Our Little Wonder: 7 months

Moriah Ann is a Go-Getter with a strong little personality for sure. If she wants something she lets us know by stiffening her little arms, pumping them and grunting until she gets it. Usually what she wants is MOMMY (she's got it bad) or FOOD... but mostly Mommy. Pounding her hand on the table is also a favorite tactic. 

The girl has got grip. She grabs arms and necks with some intense strength!

She's also a rollie pollie girl...reaching and turning every which way on her back and tummy. She can even do a bit of a backwards crawl. 

Moriah talks on her own terms, AKA not when I'm trying to video her. Ba, Ma, Ga, ahhhh....

Water is her favorite. She squirms her way out of the Bumbo into the tub and loves splashing around. Having whole cups of water dumped on her head by Felicity doesn't even phase her a bit. 

There's no hiding anything from this one. Even when we put something behind her, she doesn't forget that it's there and continues to reach and grab until we move it completely out of reach or give in and let her have it. The look behind the shoulder is classic Mo-Mo. 

Moriah continues to be an expert eater. This month we pretty much started letting her eat anything that qualifies as "real food", not sweets, because she seems to want to eat any and everything! Her first tooth came in on the day that she would not stop eating the lamb at our friend's house. She chewed and chewed, refusing the cous cous and the veggies, and sure enough her first little tooth popped up that very night (bottom left, Oct. 1).

She continues to struggle with fussy time the two hours before bed, but it also proves the easiest time to get her to laugh. Felicity had her cracking up for the first time multiple times in a row as she declared "No monkeys in the stroller!" while I was trying to keep the girl calm by walking her around outside. 

Our family has had a lot of transition this month, and for most of it Moriah has been sleeping in a pack-n-play, in a house that's not our own, in a room with a bunch of someone else's storage.We went back to our home where she was born for a few nights, and she slept straight through each and every one without a peep so you see it's clearly not her fault that she doesn't regularly sleep through the night in the in-between that has been our existence these days!

I'm so thankful we have this sweet, strong girl to keep us smiling in this crazy life. Moriah Ann, we are smitten with you our little Go-Getter Girl. 

Our Little Wonder: 6 months

                                       

AMERICA TOUR: most of the month meeting and being loved on by her Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, and Friends in AMERICA. She's basically famous :) 

     sidenote: This month was such a blur for me that this post would not be possible without the help 

                     of said family reminding me what my child was like when we were in the US...

CRAZY over drinking water from a glass with Papa Jim. 

LOVES a good bouncy stand-up stimulation chamber (Grandma Kathy for the win)...even if her cousin Sammy sees it as an opportunity to lovingly attack her!

GRABS everything and puts it directly into her mouth. Hands, feet, Aunt Christine's phone, mommy's cheeks

SCREAMS: Ahhhhhh! She is the Baby Banchie, Banchie-Mo

GRUNTS: stiffens and pumps arms with an aggressive "UGHHH, OOOGH, UGHHH"

SLEEPS: 

in: closets, pack and plays, airplane bassinets and on guest beds 

when: Uncle Matt holds her, cousins Nadia and Audrey help her daddy with nap time duty

NOT: in the night...up every two hours most of our time in America but cat napped during the day. 

ADORES her rollie fox from Grandma Val. Loving sitting up in her Bumbo. 

SKILLS: putting feet in her mouth and leg lifts and throw-downs when she's on her back...girl has some killer abs ;) 

TEETHING: loves chewing on her pink elephant Ellie from Grandma Thresa and frozen toys from Aunt Jessica

MAMMA's GIRL: Sorry, Grandma Eades and Grandma Betty...it's not you, it's her!

Happy Anniversary to my True Love of Ten Years

Our love story is a long one, Katie Ann. After ten years as bride and groom, you are still my forever true love. Happy Anniversary!

Our Little Wonder: 3 Months

Moriah is growing so fast these days that I feel I must confess I took these pictures at 3 months and 2 days because she looks different than she really was on June 2nd...

We're thanking God for the growing and hoping that it's the reason why she's regressed in the sleep department. Our little wonder clock lets us know every time two hours has passed. Daddy has fittingly given her the nickname Booma (owl in Arabic). But oh those sweet sea blue eyes keep us from getting too upset about it...

She chews her fingers and drools like a pro, and anyone who has ever held her will make sure to always have a burp cloth because Fount Moriah always loves to share a bit of her milk. Sleep still requires a good swaddling and promenade with the binkie, and a prolonged kiss on the forehead always gets those eyes to close.

Her favorite toys are her plastic keys, heart sensory blanket, and Felicity's shiny beaded necklaces that we only take out while big sister is at preschool. :) Daddy successfully gave Mo-Mo her first bottle and mommy a much needed nap this month. She drank every last drop without complaint but struggled a bit when our friends tried to give her bottle number two a few days later.

This big girl also rolled from her tummy to back a few times during month three and from tummy to back with a bit of help. She loves talking to us. Her favorite word is "Ahh, Ahh, Ahh!" Though her sister has yet to notice her much, Moriah loves to watch Felicity and listen to her sing and talk on and on...

This month Moriah definitely knows her mommy and will find me with her eyes. When I say "Kissy Mommy" and hold her up to my cheek or lips, she opens her little mouth to oblige and flutters her little eyes.

She loves grabbing, her best friends are Chuck and Lulu (the hedgehog and owl on her bouncy seat), and like any good Meditteranian girl she enjoys olive oil treatment for all of her dry skin needs. :)

Our Little Wonder: 2 Months

This month we realized that Mo-Mo cannot be President. This month I walked the little wonder outside to the sound of sheep, the sea and the call to prayer. Oh, Moriah Ann, you have begun quite the life my dear...

Smile time with Daddy is one of her favorite past-times as well as staring at the little raccoon on her bouncy seat. On her good days she can even get him with her little fist. Following keys, mommy, and Felicity with her baby blues has made wake time much more exciting.

Little coos have begun as well as evening fussy times and a few big cries have been heard in these days. Pacing with the pacifier, breeze on her cheeks, is the best way to calm this little one, and  the swaddle has become our best friend. She loves to have nap time on the purple couch, in her car seat or in her stroller. On most nights she has been up every two hours or so, but she did have a good week mid-month where she even slept for four hours at a time. We're hopeful that will return soon!

Moriah was a star as we attempted three days in a row to get an acceptable passport photo: eyes open, both ears showing, looking straight ahead, visible chin, mouth not open too much, natural lighting. We finally got one using the boppy, a sheet, and the lighting in our bathroom. She endured so many photo shoots without a complaint...only a bit of spit up milk on her chin and ears that stick really close to her head. I'm not so sure her parents could have persevered were it not for grandparents waiting an ocean away to meet this baby!

Mid-month we took our first family of four road trip to the North. Mo-Mo did great in the car and at the hotel. Although she's a little piggy girl when she sleeps, always snorting and grunting. She became BFFs with the hotel receptionist, and she let lots of our dear friends love on her so I could eat meals and participate in meetings.
She's still loving her fists, chewing on them and even staring at them for entertainment. She still has fuzzy ears and peach fuzz on her sweet shoulders. Little rolls are starting to appear on her legs, but they are so little they can really only be seen when she's totally without clothes. The startle reflex has her hitting super hero poses, and I just can't take the cuteness contained in the little stretch routine she does after she eats. Moriah definitely has the ability to do the furrowed brow made famous by her sister, but she also gives a sweet, sweet smile. The dimple on her right cheek gets me every time.

Welcome Little Wonder: The Divine

I cannot reflect on Moriah's birth without declaring God's goodness and kindness to our family. It compels me to say...

God is our help and strength. He gives abundantly more than we ask or imagine. The prayers of His people are powerful and effective. He is truly with us, holding us, caring for us, and working out His perfect timing. The Glory is His, the Story is His, and I am forever grateful that our lives are His forevermore. 

Here are some of the prayers we and so many others prayed along the way that He answered so graciously: 

-Let us one day laugh at how much easier it was to deliver a child in North Africa than in America...believe me this prayer took a lot of faith and was even prayed without full confidence. 

-Please work the timing out so Felicity can be cared for, Cheryl and Dan are in town, Dan gets to be there for as much of the birth as possible...with a small social network here, and all of them out of town for Moriah's due date, this was a huge request.

-Getting an epidural, blood transfusion or c-section frankly terrifies me in this foreign place, please keep us from all of these, Lord

-Please let her delivery be short, let us stay at home for most of it, and let us get home as soon as possible following her birth

-Give Cheryl and our doctor wisdom

- We pray for a healthy baby girl and mommy

We called, and He answered. We are still in awe and completely overwhelmed at His kindness to our family and the kindness of our friends and family that joined us through prayer though they were so far away. 

God met me through prayer in another way during labor. Just the night before, we had listened to a message and the speaker said something like, "we are most miserable when we focus on ourselves." This word came to me early in labor, and I decided to pray for friends and family through contractions. In between, I picked who I would pray for in the next contraction. It gave me focus and really helped me get through the first 4 hours of labor. It was something I did not plan. In moments of pain, in this big life moment for our family, I was able to walk with so many of you who have faithfully held us up along the way. It was a gift.

We moved to this new part of our country at the very beginning of my pregnancy. I would say this season has been a greater struggle for me than when we initially moved to North Africa. There were times I cried and cried, afraid that I hated this place and couldn't bear to live here because of how sick I felt. I battled the god of comfort and realized its ugly place in my life. I had moments of fear for my own health and that of our little girl's. All the while, I never questioned if we should deliver in this place. In hindsight it's as if God sheltered me from all of the crazy places my mind could have gone or the depths of fear my heart could have felt. He carried me along giving the grace I needed each day. He carried me even until the very end.

In the very last pushing moments of her birth, I had an image of Him holding me. For a moment things seemed to standstill, and I felt as if I was looking on at the whole thing in slow motion. I was being held. 

I'm not the kind of person who this sort of thing happens to regularly. I struggle to see beyond the concrete and the here and now. This moment was one of the most affirming in my faith journey to this point. I marvel at His presence, and I give thanks that He allowed me to feel it and know it so well at such a time. It is my prayer that this piece of our story, Moriah's birth, will continue to encourage us and deepen our trust as we follow the One who so graciously provides all we need through His presence alone. 

For all of these things we give YOU thanks, God. Help us to walk on in light of what you have done and in complete trust in what you are are yet to do.

Our Little Wonder: One Month

One month ago our little wonder, Moriah, was born with a head full of brown hair, blue eyes, and blue little hands. Her hair is still here but has lightened a little, it even reveals shades of auburn at times. Her eyes are still blue and her hands are still little but blue no more. We love her little natural mohawk, her wide-eyed stare that sometimes goes cross-eyed, and the way she breathes on our cheeks while grunting with her little open mouth. 

Early on her daddy started calling her Mo-Mo. I said there's no way we're calling our little girl Mo-Mo. Here we are at the end of the month, and I admit, I call her Mo-Mo and sort of love it. 

Her very first night she slept six hours straight, God's grace to her parents. Ever since we've had stretches of 1 to 2 hours with a very rare 3 hours of nighttime sleep. She eats well and has since the very first time in the hospital. Sometimes I do wonder if she drinks as much milk as she spits up! She spends the night hours with mommy starting at 10 p.m., and then occasionally has quality time with daddy as early as 5 a.m. 

Moriah loves her little hands and won't stand them to be swaddled. She loves to suck on her fist and has been known to be calmed by a little pacifier time. Bath time is her favorite and ours. She seems to relax immediately as Daddy holds her with one hand in our kitchen sink. 

By week three, glimmers of a smile were in her eyes, and she even gave a few legitimate ones to show off her dimple on her right cheek. She also started lifting her head off of our shoulder and rolling to her side from her back. Of course, we think she's advanced. ;) 

On her three week birthday big sister and mommy took her on her first outing with our friends to a traveling Italian circus. It was loud, there were lions, and she was a dream sleeping and eating most of the time. 

Over the course of the month, she's had quite a few visitors. It all began at the hospital with various nurses and receptionists coming to see the American baby. Since then, we've been blessed with friends and neighbors coming for sweets, juice and snuggles. Moriah tends to sleep through it all and does a great job of letting others hold her when she's not hungry. 

The poor little thing has already seen God's protection as she had her first little "surgery" performed by Auntie Cheryl for a terribly infected hang nail. She also came out unscathed after a very tired mommy slipped on the stairs while holding the sweet girl. We are grateful that He sees her and is taking care of her every need even when we are lacking. He always provides. 

Celebrating Sixty

Welcome Little Wonder: The Details

This picture was taken just 24 hours before it all began...we had no idea what incredible grace and help we would be receiving from Him in the hours to come...

This is my attempt at a succinct, not containing many emotions or thoughts along the way, account of Moriah's birth story.

March 2, 2015

12:30 a.m.: I woke up after an hour of sleep with contractions that were 5-6 minutes apart and one minute long. I went downstairs to take Moriah's birthday cake out of the freezer. Thinking we might have a long road before us, I decided to stay in bed and let Dan sleep for as long as I could stand it. I used an app. to time contractions until 3:30 a.m.

3:30 a.m.: Felicity came in our room...a pattern that began about a month ago much to our dismay on the heels of a newborn arriving soon! Dan took her to her room, and I decided to tell him I was in labor. I continued to track contractions and Dan rubbed my back between them.

5:50 a.m. : No longer able to comfortably stay in bed, I got up and walked our room during contractions and sat on the exercise ball in-between. They were getting closer together and a bit shorter. Dan called our doula-sister-friend, Cheryl, and told her we were in labor. I continued to focus by walking through contractions but added a low moaning sound with each exhale. Dan showered, made me orange Gatorade (thank you friends who sent the powder over a year ago...it is still blessing us) and threw some things together for the hospital.

6:30 a.m.: Cheryl arrived and heard me upstairs. Dan later told me she said, "Oh no. It's too early for her to be moaning and crying." I was thinking the same thing and began to be afraid this would be a repeat of Felicity's birth...going to the hospital with a whole day of labor ahead. I got in the shower to rinse off and told Dan with much fear, "I don't think I can do it. I'm going to need the medicine." Felicity woke up and Dan sent her downstairs to Cheryl. Dan helped me out of the shower. I said, "Go get Cheryl." Dan went downstairs to feed Felicity breakfast, and Cheryl came up to help me dress and let me lean into her through contractions. I began to feel a new pressure which I hadn't had before. I took one step at the beginning of each contraction and felt the pressure move through me until it went through my foot and into the floor. I was crying. Cheryl said, "We need to go." She called the doctor to let him know to expect us soon.

7:15 Dan, Felicity, Cheryl and I piled into the car. I'm crying and saying "I'm so sorry.",  "Thank you", "Lord help me.", "Jesus, Help." as the car gets on the bumpy sand road. When I feel a contraction coming, I say, "Stop the car." At some point Felicity throws out a "Good job, Mommy."

Halfway there the doctor calls Cheryl's cell phone, "Where are you? The whole hospital is waiting for you!" (in Arabic of course). We get on a smoother road. I tell Dan just go as fast as you can. Don't stop when they come. During a contraction Felicity yells, "Stop the car, Daddy!" We keep going.

7:30 a.m.: We arrive at the clinic at 7:30. Three nurses are waiting for us. Cheryl and I follow them to the delivery room stopping for 2 or 3 contractions along the way. Dan parks, does paperwork, and is finally sent to room 102, our recovery room.

The midwife tells me to lie on the delivery table. I am terrified at how long I might be there since walking seems to be the best way to handle contractions. She checks me during a contraction (worst.pain.ever) and tells us I am at a 5 and fully effaced. My heart sinks. Fear creeps in, five is not too far, but Cheryl is insisting that the look on the midwife's face was very optimistic. 2-3 contractions later, the midwife breaks my water during a contraction (oh wait, maybe this is the worst.pain.ever.).
The doctor comes in and starts dressing as if this baby is coming soon. Cheryl calls Darryll and tells him to get to the hospital. She also calls Dan and says get in here as soon as Darryll arrives.

The nurses turn the light on at the little baby table. The doctor checks me and says I'm at a nine. Strangely, my left hand stiffens, closes shut, and I'm unable to open it. They put oxygen up to my nose and give me a shot of calcium. My hand opens. It's time to push...no more than 10 pushes later and...

8:30 a.m. Moriah Ann is born! 7.2 lbs., brown hair, blue eyes, and very few cries.

 Dan sneaks in just after she is born and actually gets to hold her and see her up close more than I do initially.

The doctor brings Felicity in to meet her baby sister after Darrell tells him Felicity wants to know what color the baby's hair is.

9:30 a.m.: We are taken to our recovery room. Sometime before that Moriah ate like a pro. This is how they bundled me up to go upstairs. 

9:30 a.m.-6:15p.m.: Recovery. The midwife placed a 20 pound bag of rocks on my stomach and pumped pitosin into an IV to shrink the uterus and get any remaining blood out. The doctor ordered another direct shot of pitosin just to be sure everything was clear. This process lasted an hour or so with me crying and begging them to stop.

Sometime after the bag-o-rocks I felt I needed the bathroom. I tried sitting up with one nurse and felt extremely dizzy. They called two others in and kicked out Dan, Cheryl, Felicity and Darrell. Once we were in the bathroom, I was crying and trying to communicate that I was dizzy. I put my head between my knees (standard practice for dizziness as far as I'm concerned). They are all giggling at me and go out of the bathroom. The next thing I know I'm waking up to the smell of rubbing alcohol with the same three nurses around me. At this point I can't communicate that I'm still dizzy, and I faint again. The second time I wake up, I stop trying to communicate with them and just moan, "Cheryl, Cheryl, Cheryl" as loud as I can muster until she comes through the door to my great relief. They take me back to bed, and I try to sleep. They put fluids and glucose in an IV for me and bring me some meat in the form of a fish to bring back my strength.

                                     

6:00 p.m.: Dan goes down to pay our bill: $400 or so, and we are given the okay to go home: 

We all pile into the car yet again marveling at the road we traveled since the wee hours of the morning until now.
The evening felt like spring: brilliant sunlight kissing the olive groves, blue skies with wisps of white, and ear to ear smiles and wide-eyed wonder at the Giver of new life...

Welcome little Wonder

 As I held our little Moriah in the very same room I walked with the consuming pain that brought her forth just over one week ago, I was ushered back to the sense of wonder and a sense of being held by Him and His people, that has been our song throughout her story. 
Her story is already full, full of grace, full of Yahweh's handwoven detailed touches, full of much more than we ever asked or imagined. 
We are grateful.We are in awe. We stand in wonder of our God and how he has carried us amidst the unknowns. 
We look upon our little wonder, Moriah Ann, and cannot help but look up to her Maker and give Him glory.
For each piece of her story we give thanks...
The Details: just the bare bones birth story
The Divine: how God met us 
The Doula: a HUGE thank you to our doula-sister-friend, Cheryl 

Birth Plan

We use the word plan rather loosely these days in all areas of life. The words patience and flexibility are much more reliable on our little edge of the world...

We are planning on having baby Moriah right here in our seaside town. She will likely be the first American to make her entrance here, and we are earnestly hoping her debut will come with much less labor time than her sister's 36 hours. 

We are thankful for our doctor, an older, grandfather type who seems to always have a twinkle in his eye and for our friend Cheryl, a nurse who has delivered many a baby in her time, speaks fluent Arabic and French and has so graciously been with us through doctors appointments and has agreed to be right beside us at the birth. 

We will deliver in a private clinic that has two delivery rooms. They are quite clean and appear to have the necessary equipment for the task, but we are hoping to spend little time there as they do not have luxuries such as a bathroom...

This Saturday our original due date (Feb. 21st) went by and so we wait.
We don't know exactly when she will come, but we are eagerly anticipating Moriah Ann: seen by Yahweh, full of grace.

We trust in the One who is full of grace. He sees us, and His plan is more than enough.