Happy 34 Weeks to our Miracle!

Happy 34 Weeks to our little miracle! We can't stop smiling at how much you have grown and how strong God has made you. We can't stop singing praises to God for blessing us with you, our little warrior. God is holding you in his healing, loving arms always and blessing you with strength and miracles each day. Josh, all the Angels and Saints, and your amazing prayer warriors' prayers are surrounding you too. Easton prays to Jesus each day for you, and he can't wait to have his little brother home, just like your Mommy and Daddy. We love you so much!! Love, Hugs, and Kisses~ Mommy, Daddy, and Easton

It has been another week of beautiful blessings from God above. God is truly merciful! Asher is now 34 weeks and weighs 4 pounds 1 ounce. God has blessed him off his normal ventilator, and now helped him graduate to a machine that gives him  just oxygen. God is miraculous as he has blessed us with a miracle and a strong little warrior from above!

"And may you be so profoundly aware of God's song over your life that it puts a spring in your step. Walk blessed today. You matter deeply to God" (From a devotion book of mine)

God is always surrounding us and if we pay close attention, each day there are God Moments surrounding us. I challenge you to pay attention and praise God each day for the God Moments surrounding your life. He is truly beautiful! All praise to him for the God Moments I am sharing with you below.

Monday: There is nothing like the gift of good friends bringing us dinner. What a joy it is to us to be able to eat a home cooked dinner without cooking during the week, as our evenings are always focused on our little miracle and going to see him. Ali and Carrie, my great friends and teaching partners, came by to deliver us delicious dinner. Most days it is a challenge to have Easton clean his toys, especially as I can't sit on the floor with him to help him, which usually is more of a motivator for him. However, on this day it was no challenge. All I had to tell him is that Maverick's and Colton's Mommies were coming over so he had to make the house look nice. It made me smile as he got on the floor and cleaned up right away while singing his sweet little clean up song.. I love hearing him sing.. it melts my heart! After he cleaned up, he sat in his room and looked out his window for Ali and Carrie to come. The moment the cars pulled up, he came running to tell me they were here... and he was even more excited as Maverick was along! His smile was so big. Right away him and Maverick played, as we thanked Ali and Carrie for the delicious meal - meat loaf, cheesy potatoes, corn, rolls, and Easton's fave- dirt pudding with gummy worms. We couldn't be more grateful, and it was so nice to see them and catch up. They were starting school Wednesday, which seems so crazy to me! This whole journey began the Monday before school got out, and now school was already starting! Where did summer go? It makes me realize how fast this journey over the summer has truly gone. After Maverick and Easton played for a while and we visited with Ali and Carrie for a while, they headed back home. Easton said bye to Maverick and we again thanked them for their kind deed. We then ate the delightful meal and praised God for the gift of meaningful friends and food. Thank you again Ali and Carrie for your gift of kindness. It will be forever cherished in our hearts!

Tuesday: As Asher was nearing 34 weeks, it hit us that his arrival home will be here sooner than we know. So, I made a to do list of items we need to get and what we need to do around home to prepare for our little miracle's arrival home. One thing was to go through Easton's bins of baby clothes and get them sorted, cleaned, and organized in Asher's room. I couldn't be more grateful for my mom's help in doing this. She came down around lunch time and we spent the afternoon together going through the clothes. It was actually fun as it brought back memories of Easton as a baby. How fast time has gone! I even put a pair of his newborn size pants against Easton's leg, and they only went up to a little below his knees. I couldn't get over how much he has grown!

As we sorted the clothes, Easton cracked us up as he wore a pair of his monkey pants from when he was a baby around his head. Another time  he took a warm cozy jacket suit of his and tried to wear it. He enjoyed looking through the clothes just like us. We got all the clothes up to 12 months sorted. We didn't have time to get it all washed, but managed to get up to 6 months done, which made me very happy. We got the sleepers, onesies, bibs, burp cloths,  and socks put into drawers. I then placed outfits to hang in his closet in a hamper for now as I am going to wait for James to paint his room before hanging them up.

I was so grateful for my Mom's help. We couldn't get over the amount of clothes Easton had, and it made me feel blessed as Asher would be able to wear them. I wasn't sure how many newborn clothes we had, but we had more than I thought. Knowing that Asher will be in newborn size at first, that made me feel grateful that he would have warm clothes to wear. Thank you Mom for all of your help in preparing for our little miracle's arrival home! You are such a beautiful blessing in my life!

Wednesday: God has truly blessed us with amazing prayer warriors throughout this whole miraculous journey! I wish I could send a thank you card to each and every one of you. However, I hope you know how much we cherish each of you in our hearts. Asher and us wouldn't have the strength we do without God and  your powerful prayers surrounding us!

I did have some thank you cards to write out to family and close friends, plus my amazing doctor and nurses for their amazing care and help throughout this journey. The thank you cards were sitting on the table for a while, and I finally felt that I had time to do them as Easton was napping. So, I spent most of Wednesday afternoon writing them out. I enjoyed writing each one of them as writing is something I enjoy. However, it felt refreshing once I got them all done, as we have several items to get checked off our check list before Asher's arrival home. So, I thanked God for blessing me with time to finally get them done as He knew that was something I needed to get done.

In the evening, I got to hold Asher in my loving arms. James held him Monday and Tuesday, so I couldn't wait to have him resting on me all snuggled up. While on me, he slept the whole time. It was so relaxing to hear him breathe and feel his soft skin and warmth on me. As always, I sat there in thanksgiving for our precious miracle. As he snuggled on me, he got fed 34 ccs. His weight was nearing 4 pounds too. I couldn't get over how much he had grown. I could have lied there all night with him, but I knew he needed the warmth of his bed and Easton and James were waiting out in the lobby. After I left saying my gnite and love you to my little warrior and thanking God for the gift of holding him, James came in to say his gnite and love you too. He looked forward to holding him tomorrow as he too loved and cherished his snuggle time with him.

Thursday: Thursday I enjoyed my time with Easton at home. He pretended to cook me soup as he sang a little tune... "Make.. make...make" to himself. It makes me smile every time he notices me hearing him sing... when he realizes I am watching he stops and gets all bashful. It is the cutest thing! We went outside for a little bit and he rode his tricycle around inside the screened in porch. I watched him play with this  house toy that he got when he was little. Again I listened to him play pretend, it was too cute again. We then looked at his Thomas the Train seek and find book as he found all the items. It made me flash back to right when we first looked at that book, when he didn't fully understand the concept of finding items in the book. He just liked that it was a Thomas book and loved looking at the pictures. Now, he was able to find each item on the pages. It again amazed me at how much he has learned in the past 2 years. I truly enjoyed my afternoon with him and thanked God for each moment together!

When James got home, we got ready and headed  to the hospital as his parents were meeting us there to see their miracle grandson. When we arrived, Easton, James' dad Jim, and I sat in the lobby as James and his Mom headed into the nicu to see our little warrior. Easton entertained us as normal by putting rock on his head and trying to balance it and then let it fall on the ground. He brought a truck along too, but with him he would much rather play with a little rock from the parking lot. As he entertained us, my Dad came in. He has a Diocese meeting with the Bishop as he is on the finance committee, so he was in town. Dad and I sat and talked as we waited, and Easton then was trying to feed my dad Hot and Spicy Cheezits. It cracks me up because Easton takes after his Daddy and likes spicy things, unlike his Mom. So when my Dad got the Cheezit, it wasn't the normal Cheezit he was expecting, as my dad isn't a fan of spicy food either. As we waited, Dr. Fitzpatrick walked by, my high risk doctor who delivered Asher. It was nice again to see him as he always comes over to say hi and check on how things are going. I couldn't ask God for a greater doctor to care for me during my hospital stay.

After Bonnie came out, Jim went in to see Asher. As it was nearing time for the nicu to close for change of shifts, Dad and I walked in as James and Jim walked out. Asher was in his bed all comforted. Dad and I cherished the time with him. What a blessing to know that God was right there cuddling His loving arms around our little miracle while Josh and all the Angels and Saints and your prayer warrior prayers were surrounding him. We left the nicu with smiles on our faces.

Friday: I took it easy most of the day as I felt more tired. As I was showering in the morning, Easton somehow snuck playdough in the bathroom. When I got out, he had tiny pieces all over the tile and rug. I wanted to cry and scream lol as I knew it would be hard for him to pick it up and for me to get down to clean it too. However, I stayed calm because Easton has been such a big helper throughout this whole journey, and he didn't know better. So, after my shower I bent over and picked up as much as I could. It was a workout for me though, as I wasn't use to it and it was hard with my incision. That is why after my shower, I decided it would be a day to take it easy and rest. That little bit of bending over exhausted me and my legs.

As I rested, I called and checked on Asher. He was doing well and broke the 4 pound marker! He weighed 4 pounds and one ounce. I praised God the moment I heard that. It made me smile big! Throughout the day Easton and I watched some movies, read books, and played of course.

"Let the children come to me." Matthew 19: 13-15 (Part of Gospel Reading from Saturday)

When the hour of prayer came, I got my Rosary and prayed. It was then that the most beautiful God Moment came... Easton came up to me and asked for Jesus. I then gave him my Rosary and he held on to the Crucifix and told Jesus to take care of Asher, heal his lungs, and bring him home. He then ended by saying how he loves Jesus. It melted my heart... as he said his little prayer in the sweetest way. My goal in life is to lead my children in forming a special relationship with God, and seeing this just made me smile as Easton formed a special bond with Jesus at that very moment.

When the afternoon hit, I decided to surprise James and try to cook dinner by myself for the first time in over 3 months. Even though I was tired, I encouraged myself that I could do it. As I was preparing the dishes to place in the oven, I actually enjoyed it. It was stress relieving. Easton stood there and watched me. I think he was amazed that Mommy was actually cooking dinner... and not Daddy lol! I managed to get the dishes in the oven and wash the dirty dishes in the sink before James arrived home. My back hurt and I was ready to sit down, but it made my day that I finally had made supper in the first time in months! It made James smile too. I thanked God for the strength to do so.

After James got home, Easton ran to me with excitement! He saw Adam's truck pull up and his Uncle Adam coming to the door. He ran in circles in excitement as he knows  Uncle Adam will take him outside and play with him. This time his Uncle even had a special surprise for him. He brought Easton a little soccer net and ball. So while supper baked and I rested, Easton, James and Adam played soccer outside.... along with riding his truck and jeep of course. Once supper was ready, they came in and we all ate. We then got ready to go see our miracle.

When we arrived, Adam took care of Easton out in the lobby as James and I headed in to see our little warrior. When we arrived, his eyes were peeking open as he was nearing his meal time. Right away we noticed a different machine beside him. At first we wondered what the machine meant as we didn't call for updates in the afternoon. We sang praises to God as the respiratory nurse told us that Asher had graduated to a less supportive machine. The machine gives him only oxygen and he also graduated to a smaller tube in his nose. God is truly miraculous in all His beautiful ways!

I then took his temperature while James changed his diaper... for once it was just a wet one for his Daddy lol! James then gave him a bath..... which Asher doesn't like too much. However, once James crossed Asher's tiny arms against his little chest and held them there gently, he was comforted. One nurse taught us that position as it makes preemies feel like they are cuddled, and it truly does work to calm him down! After his bath, he got weighed. He weighed 4 pounds 1.1 ounces. He looked so cute in the scale as his eyes were wide open and observant. I then sat in the recliner as the nurse handed our little miracle to me. James then went to get Adam to let him see his little warrior nephew.

As he laid on my chest skin to skin, his eyes stayed wide open and observed the world around him. It melted my heart when he would lift his little head and meet his beautiful eyes with mine. He looked so much more alert and just bigger at that moment. Adam couldn't get over how much bigger he seemed too. The nurse said it was cute as he had his one little hand under his head while lying on me, and he was like massaging the back of his head with his tiny hand. Before he got fed, he sat there and sucked on his little fingers. As he was getting fed 35 ccs in a 30 minute period, he made sucking noises with his little lips. As I laid the recliner back, he then went right to sleep in my arms. God was truly blessing our little miracle and praised Him for this beautiful Mommy/Son bonding moment. Nothing compares to the amazing feeling of a miracle from God above in your arms!

After Adam left the nicu, James came in to say gnite and his love yous along with me. The nurse snuggled him back in his bed as he was all cozy and asleep. It was hard to leave him as always, but God was right there with him. We smiled and praised God for all His beautiful blessings and then headed to meet Easton and Adam in the lobby.


Today: This morning James took Easton along with him back to our hometown as his Mom wanted to spend the day with Easton while James worked on our rental property. Later today he will be showing the property to interested renters, so we pray if in God's loving will that we may get the one side rented out.,.. as that is another big item to get checked off our list before Asher's arrival home. Easton was excited to ride in his Daddy's work truck this morning and see his Mamaw and Uncle Adam.

As they are busy back in our hometown, my parents are coming down to help me get Asher's room organized so James can paint it tomorrow. We also will wash the rest of his baby clothes. I am going to see if my Dad can put some of the baby toys back together too. Our plan is to put the baby crib up in our room instead of Asher's as he will be sleeping in our room most of his first year. We will then just keep his clothes, and diaper changer table in his room along with storing his toys, swing, etc. in his room. I thank my parents for coming down to help us prepare and organize the room, as it is another big item to check off our list as well. Thank you Mom and Dad for all of your help, care, and love throughout this journey!

Later today I look forward to seeing our little miracle from God above! Happy 34 Weeks to you Asher, our little warrior!!

Dear Loving God, Thank You for keeping Asher and us strong throughout this whole journey! Thank You for all your beautiful blessings and God Moments in our lives. Thank You for blessing us with our little miracle and keeping him comforted in Your loving, healing arms. Thank You for the gift of family, friends, and powerful prayer warriors throughout this miraculous journey. Thank You for leading us to Your most beautiful plan. May You continue to shine Your miraculous works through Asher so all may witness the power of Your healing grace and grow closer to You through Asher's healing in Your perfect timing. We trust fully in You and all Your miraculous works! You are amazing and we praise You for Your everlasting mercy and love. We love You above all things! Amen.

We cherish each of you for continuing to journey with us throughout this miraculous ride. We are so grateful for your endless prayers and support! You help keep Asher and us strong through your powerful prayers! May we continue to unite hand in hand with God, Josh, and all the Angels and Saints in this miraculous journey as God heals Asher in His most beautiful timing. God is merciful as He has blessed us with a miracle who is surrounded by His love and Your love and endless prayers!