Hi!
After a super long time in the car we finally made it to our hotel in Chattanooga!!! PTL!!! We left at 7:15 am from Edgerton, KS, and made it here by 10:15 (11:15 local time). We stopped often and took a planned scenic route through the Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky. We just found that place by accident while driving back from North Carolina a few years ago so we wanted to see it again- and it was just as cool! You should totally check it out if you are ever in the area.
The drive was great, the new car drove well and we didn't encounter any problems - nor did we see any deer! Mikey had me scoping the scenery for "a big one", camera ready, but all of those back road tobacco farms and all we saw were hawks.
When we got close to Nashville we decided to check out the GPS for restaurants and found Logan's Roadhouse or Mason's Restaurant (BTW - we also saw Logan's college of Chiropractic and Mason Rd on the way down here). We opted for the Roadhouse and enjoyed some tasty steaks there. We had to go all out since it is my last meal until Friday morning!!! :*(
We had some problems with check in at the hotel, but Mike is a good negotiator and got us a good deal. We did not get a fireplace room as requested, but this room is nice enough and we are both exhausted and ready for bed!
Thanks for checking in, and I will write more tomorrow. Thank you also for all of the e-mails, facebook comments and texts! Tomorrow and Thursday will be the most trying times, and I am definitely needing all of the positive support I can get.
Good night, and blessings to each of you,
Lyn
PS- all 4 of our boys are in good hands and doing well. Man do we miss them.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Mason's birthday party
I just want to put a little something in here about how smoothly everything is STILL going for us! Mason's party was today, and I had the cakes done last night - and it turned out pretty cute! Today I had no worries that everything was going to fall into place, and I was thanking the Lord that I kept things simple and very small. THose of you reading this most likely know that I like to do birthday parties in a big way, only because I have a HUGE family, and know A LOT of people! :)
My little boy walked around (most of the time), played with the older kids (including Uncle Dale!), ate a little bit of his cake before flipping it over onto the floor, and opened his gifts. Time is such a precious thing, and I am blessed to have not 1, but 2 beautiful baby boys to give my time to. God is good.
Anyway, our bags are all packed, so we are just putting together the final items then it will all be loaded and we head out tomorrow evening. I have a ball of stress in my stomach from knowing I will be leaving my babies (in good hands-but still leaving them!) so I ask for prayer specifically for my feelings of not being able to change that.
THANK YOU to those praying for us - I have to say again that I believe His hand is guiding us and making things go so easily. This is an amazing feeling!!! PTL!!!!!!!!
We'll keep you posted, and thanks for reading!
Lynette
My little boy walked around (most of the time), played with the older kids (including Uncle Dale!), ate a little bit of his cake before flipping it over onto the floor, and opened his gifts. Time is such a precious thing, and I am blessed to have not 1, but 2 beautiful baby boys to give my time to. God is good.
Anyway, our bags are all packed, so we are just putting together the final items then it will all be loaded and we head out tomorrow evening. I have a ball of stress in my stomach from knowing I will be leaving my babies (in good hands-but still leaving them!) so I ask for prayer specifically for my feelings of not being able to change that.
THANK YOU to those praying for us - I have to say again that I believe His hand is guiding us and making things go so easily. This is an amazing feeling!!! PTL!!!!!!!!
We'll keep you posted, and thanks for reading!
Lynette
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Validation
So I ended yesterday right before I met Dr. Furr. Kathy's appointment was first and I was really anxious to meet him. When he walked in he barely peeked in the door and introduced himself and told me he was not feeling well and his kids had been very sick over the weekend. He knew I had small children and was headed for surgery so he did not want to expose me to any illness. He slipped back out and I met with one of his fellows. He was a very nice man, asked me a lot of questions and gave me all the time in the world. Later Dr. Furr came in briefly again and the appointment ended with me signing paperwork for surgery. I can't tell you how relieved I felt that I wasn't crazy, that I infact have this issue, and that it can be corrected with surgery rather than hysterectomy! Kathy noted that I must have just needed that validation and she is right. After all of the doctor's appointments I've had in the last 3 1/2 months have led to this and I was very glad to finally meet Dr. Furr and his fellow doctor.
So we left and headed to the hospital for my pre-testing where we met the most wonderful RN named Karen. She also gave us all the time in the world and we enjoyed sitting and chatting with her. She even stayed late to chat with us which we thanked her for and she smiled and said, "I stay late for people from Nebraska".
So again, I just have to point out how smoothly everything has gone for me and I know God's hand has made this path. Now my nerves are kicking in at the though of surgery in 10 days, so I could really use prayer for this. Anesthesia is a very scary thing for me, on top of us being away from home and the boys. Please continue to pray for us for these things, and thank you again for taking the time to read about my journey :)
Time to board my 2nd to last plane home. Can't wait to see my 3 men!!!
So we left and headed to the hospital for my pre-testing where we met the most wonderful RN named Karen. She also gave us all the time in the world and we enjoyed sitting and chatting with her. She even stayed late to chat with us which we thanked her for and she smiled and said, "I stay late for people from Nebraska".
So again, I just have to point out how smoothly everything has gone for me and I know God's hand has made this path. Now my nerves are kicking in at the though of surgery in 10 days, so I could really use prayer for this. Anesthesia is a very scary thing for me, on top of us being away from home and the boys. Please continue to pray for us for these things, and thank you again for taking the time to read about my journey :)
Time to board my 2nd to last plane home. Can't wait to see my 3 men!!!
Monday, November 22, 2010
scenic route
Well, Chattanooga is definitely one of the most beautiful places I have been! The little bit that I have seen has definitely made my journey worth it. And, even with Jeremy's awesome Garmin GPS guiding me, I missed one of my last exits and took the scenic route! At least I can laugh about it and we got here safely.
Thank you for all of the prayers and warm wishes. Please keep praying that we will journey home safely.
Now I meet the doctor :)
Thank you for all of the prayers and warm wishes. Please keep praying that we will journey home safely.
Now I meet the doctor :)
Friday, November 19, 2010
Kegels
DISCLAIMER - I am not a medical professional, I am just sharing the knowledge I have gathered over the last 3 years with childbirth and all of my recent health issues. Please contact your doctor if you are not sure you are doing your kegels correctly or if you have further questions. Also, this topic is not your everyday comversation, so be prepared to read about body parts and functions. :)
Ok, so some of you read my first blog and were like - What is a 'kegel'??? It is such an important topic that I am going to write about it today, and hopefully save you from having to wear adult diapers when you are older- or surgery, like I am having! MEN - listen up - You need to be doing kegel muscle exercises too!!! Kegels are not just for women and pregnant women!
Kegels refer to your pelvic floor muscle. It is one big muscle that is holding up all of your innerds. If this muscle is not exercised then you will have a weak pelvic floor and this will cause slipping down of your bladder and possibly other organs, and then you could lose control of your urinary function -aka incontinence. Next time you are going to the bathroom, try and stop your urine mid-flow (just once or twice - NO giving yourself a bladder infection from not emptying your bladder!!!) This is a kegel. Make sure you are not using your rectal sphincter muscle (your poo hole). It should be relatively easy to do, and you should be able to do it while brushing your teeth, talking, driving, etc. If you cannot do it easily, then most likely you are not doing it right. Keep trying. It will be worth it.
Now that you know what muscle I am talking about, trying working on doing kegels 3 times a day, ten times per time. Gradually work up to a number that you are comfortable with, and then try holding them for 3 seconds at a time, then 5 seconds, all the way up to 10 seconds. With Logan I was doing 250-300 kegels per day (and was doing them correctly at the time), but it isn't necessary to do that many to keep the muscle in shape. Please ask your doctor or research to find a number you are comfortable with. You can make this fun and challenge yourself to do kegels everytime you stop at a stop light (my toLabor doula instructor put KEGEL on her license plate- ha!), or during every commercial, etc. Whatever works best for you. Just remember you are doing this to keep your pelvic floor in shape, and avoid wearing diapers as an adult!
A good way to find out if you are doing kegels correctly is during intercourse. Do a kegel during and your husband or wife should be able to tell you that you are squeezing those muscles, and as you strengthen them they should be able to tell that the muscle is getting stronger.
So, did you try a kegel while you read this post??? I know it's a funky subject, but I hope someday you are able to look back and be thankful that you read about it and took the initiative to take good care of your body.
Ok, so some of you read my first blog and were like - What is a 'kegel'??? It is such an important topic that I am going to write about it today, and hopefully save you from having to wear adult diapers when you are older- or surgery, like I am having! MEN - listen up - You need to be doing kegel muscle exercises too!!! Kegels are not just for women and pregnant women!
Kegels refer to your pelvic floor muscle. It is one big muscle that is holding up all of your innerds. If this muscle is not exercised then you will have a weak pelvic floor and this will cause slipping down of your bladder and possibly other organs, and then you could lose control of your urinary function -aka incontinence. Next time you are going to the bathroom, try and stop your urine mid-flow (just once or twice - NO giving yourself a bladder infection from not emptying your bladder!!!) This is a kegel. Make sure you are not using your rectal sphincter muscle (your poo hole). It should be relatively easy to do, and you should be able to do it while brushing your teeth, talking, driving, etc. If you cannot do it easily, then most likely you are not doing it right. Keep trying. It will be worth it.
Now that you know what muscle I am talking about, trying working on doing kegels 3 times a day, ten times per time. Gradually work up to a number that you are comfortable with, and then try holding them for 3 seconds at a time, then 5 seconds, all the way up to 10 seconds. With Logan I was doing 250-300 kegels per day (and was doing them correctly at the time), but it isn't necessary to do that many to keep the muscle in shape. Please ask your doctor or research to find a number you are comfortable with. You can make this fun and challenge yourself to do kegels everytime you stop at a stop light (my toLabor doula instructor put KEGEL on her license plate- ha!), or during every commercial, etc. Whatever works best for you. Just remember you are doing this to keep your pelvic floor in shape, and avoid wearing diapers as an adult!
A good way to find out if you are doing kegels correctly is during intercourse. Do a kegel during and your husband or wife should be able to tell you that you are squeezing those muscles, and as you strengthen them they should be able to tell that the muscle is getting stronger.
So, did you try a kegel while you read this post??? I know it's a funky subject, but I hope someday you are able to look back and be thankful that you read about it and took the initiative to take good care of your body.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Meal Train
Thanks everyone for the e-mails, prayers and comments for our blog. They are much appreciated!
We have created a meal train for the 6 weeks that I will be home and recovering. During this time I will be on very light duty, so any and all meals will be appreciated - especially by my husband who isn't used to cooking 3 meals a day :)
Thank you for considering bringing us a meal during this very busy time of year. Remember, Jesus is the Reason for this Season!
http://www.mealtrain.com/?id=maxu2v91c4dt
We have created a meal train for the 6 weeks that I will be home and recovering. During this time I will be on very light duty, so any and all meals will be appreciated - especially by my husband who isn't used to cooking 3 meals a day :)
Thank you for considering bringing us a meal during this very busy time of year. Remember, Jesus is the Reason for this Season!
http://www.mealtrain.com/?id=maxu2v91c4dt
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Why surgery...
Ok, so I just want to start out by saying that this is a lot of personal info, so I hope if you are visiting this page you will be respectful of our privacy and be considerate of what a private matter this is for us.
At the end of July of this year I discovered that I have a prolapse issue. Many things have contributed to this; my weight, birth of two 10 lb babies, incorrectly doing kegels, and some genetics. In May I started a rigorous workout video in effort to shed some pounds and I believe that all of the jumping jacks and running in place really gave everything a shove.
When I started exploring what options I had all I found was medical personnel telling me the only fix was a hysterectomy. Totally not what I wanted to hear as we still would like to have 1 more child. After some more asking around I realized a good friend of mine had the same issue in 2009. She did a lot of research and basically laid the path to where I am now. She found a doctor in Tennessee that does not believe that a hysterectomy is the answer every time, so my friend had a successful corrective surgery last December. She sent me all of his info and so now I am in the swing of having surgery by the same doctor.
Dr. Furr believes that he will be able to correct the issues that would keep me from carrying another possible 10 lb baby, then post-baby (another prayer request!) I will be returning to the surgical world to have everything corrected, and then about 15 years down the road I will most likely have a hysterectomy.
I will meet Dr. Furr on Monday and have hospital pre-testing. I was totally scared to go on my own (I've watched WAY too much CSI!) and so I prayed about it and asked my good friend to go with me. Those of you in MUMs will understand that this was one of those "God loves you so much, why wouldn't he allow a friend to be able to go with you?" moments. To be honest, I believe God has been guiding us through this whole journey. At the beginning I prayed that everything would go smoothly and fall into place, and it really has. That does not mean that it has not been stressful, but I believe He has made things much easier for me to handle and prepare.
Part of this stress has been numerous doctors appointments. I have been going to a physial therapist, a chiropractor, and getting massages to help with the pain this is causing me. Some mornings the pain in my lower back is so severe that I cannot get out of bed. But I have 2 boys, so I force myself and up I go. Along with the help of my husband carrying Mason and Logan around instead of me doing it and being careful about bouncing, running and lifting things have calmed a bit.
So, for now we are asking for specific prayer for safe travel for the 2 trips - me flying on my own next week ( my friend will meet me there) and then safe travel when Mike and I drive there the following week. My surgery is December 2nd and we will be updating this blog along the way. Also, my step-mom, Michell, will have our children and we will be away from them for a long time. Please pray that things will go smoothly while she has them- for them, for her and for us.
Thank you for reading and keeping up with us on this. Prayer is what we need most, but if you feel like doing more, we will be making a meal train calendar for meals in December. I know this is a busy time of year for everyone, but we would most appreciate any offer for meals or gift cards to eat as I will be on light duty for 4 weeks post-surgery.
God Bless!
Lynette and Mike
At the end of July of this year I discovered that I have a prolapse issue. Many things have contributed to this; my weight, birth of two 10 lb babies, incorrectly doing kegels, and some genetics. In May I started a rigorous workout video in effort to shed some pounds and I believe that all of the jumping jacks and running in place really gave everything a shove.
When I started exploring what options I had all I found was medical personnel telling me the only fix was a hysterectomy. Totally not what I wanted to hear as we still would like to have 1 more child. After some more asking around I realized a good friend of mine had the same issue in 2009. She did a lot of research and basically laid the path to where I am now. She found a doctor in Tennessee that does not believe that a hysterectomy is the answer every time, so my friend had a successful corrective surgery last December. She sent me all of his info and so now I am in the swing of having surgery by the same doctor.
Dr. Furr believes that he will be able to correct the issues that would keep me from carrying another possible 10 lb baby, then post-baby (another prayer request!) I will be returning to the surgical world to have everything corrected, and then about 15 years down the road I will most likely have a hysterectomy.
I will meet Dr. Furr on Monday and have hospital pre-testing. I was totally scared to go on my own (I've watched WAY too much CSI!) and so I prayed about it and asked my good friend to go with me. Those of you in MUMs will understand that this was one of those "God loves you so much, why wouldn't he allow a friend to be able to go with you?" moments. To be honest, I believe God has been guiding us through this whole journey. At the beginning I prayed that everything would go smoothly and fall into place, and it really has. That does not mean that it has not been stressful, but I believe He has made things much easier for me to handle and prepare.
Part of this stress has been numerous doctors appointments. I have been going to a physial therapist, a chiropractor, and getting massages to help with the pain this is causing me. Some mornings the pain in my lower back is so severe that I cannot get out of bed. But I have 2 boys, so I force myself and up I go. Along with the help of my husband carrying Mason and Logan around instead of me doing it and being careful about bouncing, running and lifting things have calmed a bit.
So, for now we are asking for specific prayer for safe travel for the 2 trips - me flying on my own next week ( my friend will meet me there) and then safe travel when Mike and I drive there the following week. My surgery is December 2nd and we will be updating this blog along the way. Also, my step-mom, Michell, will have our children and we will be away from them for a long time. Please pray that things will go smoothly while she has them- for them, for her and for us.
Thank you for reading and keeping up with us on this. Prayer is what we need most, but if you feel like doing more, we will be making a meal train calendar for meals in December. I know this is a busy time of year for everyone, but we would most appreciate any offer for meals or gift cards to eat as I will be on light duty for 4 weeks post-surgery.
God Bless!
Lynette and Mike
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