Sonlight Garden

Baby Update

Dear Friends,
First of all thank you for all of your prayers. They are sustaining us right now. I definitely feel them. Thank you, thank you. I just wanted to update you all on the follow up tests on the baby. This is so hard to write.
On Friday we went in for a Nuchal Translucent Ultrasound. This can look at all of the baby's structures a little more closely. Upon further investigation, what they originally thought was a cystic hygroma on the back of the baby's neck is actually an encephalocele. What this means is that the sutures at the back of the baby's skull have failed to fuse together. This forms a sort of bubble at the neck area, sometimes filled with fluid and other times filled with tissue. It looks like there is some tissue in our little baby's sac, it also looks like because of the position of the encephalocele that it is also involving the vertebrae and spinal cord. As you can imagine this is not good. This will involve respiratory function, brain function, swallowing, walking, etc. all of the major body systems.

We are devastated. If I am able to carry the baby to term it will most likely not survive soon after birth. I am still praying for a miracle because God is bigger than all of this. If it is His Will. Regardless of the outcome I know their will be blessings. There always are when we carry a cross.

The next step is to go back in four weeks for another ultrasound. Eventually they can do an MRI of the baby's brain and we could possibly get a neurologist involved. They asked us if we wanted genetic testing done. We didn't feel that was necessary as it won't change anything for us or the outcome for the baby.

I know this is all so very personal and it pains me to write all of this but I know you are all praying for all of us, and we so desperately need your prayers. Thank you.

Love,
Kirsten

Those who sow in tears
will reap with cries of joy.
Those who go forth weeping,
carrying sacks of seed,
will return with cries of joy,
carrying their bundled sheaves.
Psalm 126:5-6
Blessed Margaret of Castello pray for us!
St. Gerard pray for us!

Lent

My Lent.

We have the slowest ever stomach bug moving through our house. We are going on two weeks. Just when you think it's gone and you disinfect and wash sheets and towels. Wham! It claims it's next victim. It's very stealth this bug. Mary Jane  is our current victim.

Last week when I had three little ones battling the bug is when I started bleeding. I left my sick ones in the care of their big sister and rushed to my OB's office. What a beautiful thing to see and hear that little heartbeat, how gut wrenching it was to hear that there may be something wrong. I have been praying and clinging to the Cross ever since. That is really what Lent is about isn't it? We cling to His cross. We suffer. He increases. We decrease. We grow closer to Our Lord, we feel His love and peace and mercy. And wow, do I really feel His love right now. Lent.

I don't know what the outcome will be for our baby. I do know your prayers are lifting us up. We have so many people praying. Thank you so much for those prayers, they mean so much. (I should have started this post out by thanking you for them. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!)

We go tomorrow for a Nuchal Translucent ultrasound. We are praying the cyst is gone. I will let you all know of course. 

I have been listening to this song non stop. It makes me cry. Carry Me by Audrey Assad.  I love her!

Our Baby

Here is our little blessing. He or she (I think it's a she!) is measuring at 11.4 weeks. I have 12 weeks. At one point during the ultrasound the baby was putting it's teeny tiny hand up to its face. So sweet.

A Baby! and prayers

Dear Friends,
We are asking for prayers. Some of you may know that we are expecting again! Our ninth blessing!! I am almost 12 weeks! Today I had some bleeding and went to the OB. The placenta is a little over the cervix which they expect will correct itself as the pregnancy progresses. The placental has also torn away from the wall a little bit, about an inch, again, with some rest it should heal up. 
The big issue is with the baby. On the ultrasound they saw that the baby has a cystic hygroma on it's neck. Of course I've been googling around on the computer. (Maybe not such a great idea.) When this appears in the early stages of pregnancy the outcome isn't as favorable. The majority of these pregnancies end up in miscarriage about half way through the pregnancy. Also the chance of a genetic abnormality is extremely high, sometimes Turner syndrome, Noonan syndrome, or Downs syndrome. I don't remember all of the percentages right now. My head is swimming. 
I am going to have a nuchal translucent (?) ultrasound soon and they will be able to measure the cyst and look at it a little more closely. I will also have a level two ultrasound at some time. 
My OB knows that we don't want to do anything invasive. 
So we pray. We know that God is in control and that His Divine Will will not take us where His Grace will not follow. If you could pray for strength for us and for our beautiful baby. We are praying for a miracle. It was wonderful to see his or her little arms and legs moving around. He or she was very active and it's heartbeat was very strong! 
We are asking Blessed Margaret of Castello for her intercession as well as St. Gerard.
Thank you for your prayers I know you are all such wonderful prayer warriors and we know that prayer works!

Love,
Kirsten

a little break for a day

The good Lord knew I needed a break yesterday. After days and days of cold and no sun we had perfect weather. It was Florida winter weather. The sky was so blue and the temp was in the 60's. The kids did math and english and we packed up and headed to the park for a couple of hours. It was balm to my soul. It healed my winter blues at least for a day. I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel. Even if the end of that tunnel is a moth and a half away. My day was full of "Thank You"s to my Heavenly Father. God is good!!

Of course I brought my camera. I shot in manual mode. My ISO is way to high in a lot these pictures until I could figure it out. I am not going to edit because if I do I will never get this posted. 

Henry had a blast being able to run around and climb on something other than the chairs in our house. He also enjoyed not being taken down from his climbing spot. :0)

January Birthdays

We had three birthdays in January!!

First, my Dad, who told the kids he was turning 42. Which is funny because that is how old I am!! We put the number 42 on his birthday cake. He got a kick out of it.

Happy Birthday Dad!!

 

Then Julia turned 14!!! My oh my. I just can’t believe it. We made her a Chocolate Peppermint Ganche cake. I used the Pioneer Woman’s chocolate cake recipe and it was delicious. She is growing up so beautifully. What an awesome kid. I love her.

 

John Paul turned 4!!! Already. This one I really can’t believe. He was so cute and really enjoyed his day. He, like Amelia, wanted sushi for his birthday dinner. So we obliged and went to a local place which is awesome!! Even Grandpa went, who is not a big sushi fan, and enjoyed himself. Unfortunately JP had a Costco cake with a blue dinosaur on it. He thought it was awesome and said I was the “best mom ever” I felt bad because it wasn’t homemade, which is actually very silly. I know. Anyhow it was a great day for him just as it should have been.