Maternity Leave productivity

Here we are...December 29th and that means 29 weeks and 5 days into the Max and Me journey! I am really looking forward to our last several weeks together in this whole thing because I realize that once he is out, we no longer have the same bond. That being said, I will be glad to get back into jeans with a button, sleeping more than 1 hr at a time, and spending much less time talking and thinking about urine!

Max had his 28 week check up last week with our OB as well as the Fetal Maternal Specialists. Everything is going very well and we found out that my hemoglobin A1C is down to a 5.8 which is super healthy in terms of diabetic control. We are so grateful for an uneventful pregnancy with diabetes and issues of complication. We have also not seen any further problems with my blood pressure as it is staying in a normal range for pregnancy. Max had a new ultrasound and as crazy as it is, He already looks just like Anthony (see picture above) Almost everyone that sees it says he looks just like his daddy. I think that is wonderful...super handsome is what that means. I only hope his heart is as great as his daddy's!

Symptoms are about the same with some new fun ones to add in. I am still nauseous vomiting on a every other day basis. I was one of those lucky women who have ALL pregnancy morning sickness. I am just grateful that it really does end by about noon-2 pm for me. I know women who have all pregnancy and all day sickness. I am also still really having trouble sleeping and usually get about an hour or two of sleep at a time before I am up using the restroom, waking up out of nowhere and being wide awake or just plain uncomfortable in whatever position and place I have chosen to sleep at that time. The new symptoms are that my stomach has started to burn night and day so I am using a lot of cocoa butter to soothe the pain and help my skin to be softer for stretching to Max's growth spurts and another symptom is that I now have more swelling in my ankles. This was to be expected for sure and I'm grateful it is just now happening.

We are getting very excited for all of the new things happening including Maternity Leave has started officially, January is our baby shower, and Max's room is coming along. I will be sure to post pictures on the blog when his nursery is complete. I hope that isn't with him in it. :)

It was fun to spend our first Christmas thinking about it being our last without him. He got lots of great Christmas presents already from his nana, Aunt Hilliary, and from us. It was awesome to see his stocking hanging up in my mom's house and ours and awaiting him patiently. This dream is somehow becoming reality and we are so excited about that. I will now start having Dr appointments every two weeks where Max will get stress tests and we are going to start talking about birth plans, registering at the hospital, and discussing specifics. Those are exciting yet fearful subjects for me so please keep us in your prayers.

We love you all and thank you so much for being invested in us and Max! He will love all of you so much

Love,

Anthony & Erica

Insomnia, Pain, and Joy oh my

Well here we are finally in the third trimester and I am only 16 days away from taking maternity leave, but who's counting?! Things at work are getting harder and let's be honest, things at home are too. I have only gained 10 lbs with Max but it seems like 30 billion with how difficult it now is to get off the couch, bend over, and get on any of my clothes. Everything is still very healthy and we go for our next two appointments on December 10th (OB) and December 12 (Maternal Fetal Specialists). We are excited for yet another ultrasound and our next opportunity to see our Boy! :)

Things are rapidly changing in my body and I am having the worst time with bed time and ligament pain is sure happening so as far as I know, Maxwell is growing as he should be. My stomach is rounding out like a basketball and I can see why it would have been ideal to be at a healthy weight BEFORE getting pregnant. I have much motivation to get off more weight after Max is born for sure.

Another exciting up and coming is the baby shower. My friend Carrie is planning it and we are going to have it in January. I am very excited to see all of our friends/family that are local and have an opportunity to celebrate our boy with the ones who love him. Also, we are in the process of picking out Max's crib which is always surreal and getting his room prepared for his arrival. I feel a hundred miles behind on this but having two jobs for the entire pregnancy has been a bit difficult as far as free time and energy is concerned.

The "nesting" has begun in our home as I have deep cleaned my master bathroom and am about 90% completed on deep cleaning our bedroom. I am finding the need to get rid of things that take up space that we don't use, clean every dust particle I see up, and organize, organize, organize! I wish I had the energy and ability to do what I would like to do.

I can't believe in just a few short months I will be the mommy of a little boy and not be working! I have been working two or more jobs for the last 10 years and it will be interesting to have one full time job that encompasses more time and energy than 5 regular jobs. I have never ever looked down my nose at what moms do and I am sure I will only gain more respect. I pray that you are all doing well and ask that you continue in your prayers for Max and I as we journey through the last trimester of pregnancy and gear up for labor. I can't wait to introduce our boy to all of you!

Erica & Anthony

Answers to prayer

Well, since it is 6:30 A.M. and apparently my body is done sleeping for the day even though I don't need to be up for hours, I decided to update Max's blog. Yesterday I got a fantastic voice mail that really changed my day and made me start thinking about answered prayers. When we realized that we were pregnant with Max, the ordinary fears began to spark up in me about miscarriage and overall diabetic health. Throughout my journey with diabetes, I have always encountered struggles with my kidneys. If you have ever seen the movie Steel Magnolias, you probably remember that Julia Robert's character had insulin dependent diabetes and had weak kidneys so doctors advised her to not have a baby. She went against their suggestions and had one anyway leading to kidney failure and eventually her death.

I have never been told by doctors not to try to conceive because to be honest, I probably would have listened just because there is no point in having a baby just to leave that baby here with no mother. Although that is true, I've always known that my diabetes being out of control always hit me square in the kidneys. This was not surprising to me when we heard from the doctors that they were leaking protein and may cause me to have a difficult pregnancy. We heard this news in the first trimester and began to take action which included getting put on the insulin pump (I affectionately call Pumpkin) and praying like we were getting paid to.

The way that they monitor how my kidneys are doing is by collecting 24 hrs of urine and checking my creatine levels to determine kidney function. We got the results of the second trimester screening yesterday and sure enough not only were my kidneys stable in their protein leaking but actually had made improvement and my creatine levels were (as the nurse said) PERFECT. I have never heard any good news about my kidneys in over 16 years so this is by far my Thanksgiving miracle. We have so much to be thankful for this year including Max and his upcoming arrival, my health getting so much better, and just having a God who loves us and answers our prayers for peace through a difficult journey.

As Anthony snores in our bedroom and I sit up with pregnancy insomnia, I will try not to complain, be annoyed, or even grumble because after all...this is what I prayed for.

Thanks for stopping in and for your prayers

Erica & Anthony

Babies need lots of stuff!

So here we are embarking on 24 weeks tomorrow. Yes, that means I am 6 months pregnant. Since I most likely will give birth early, this starts my third trimester. Anthony and I have been doing a lot more prep work since figuring out that we are in the home stretch. Since we have been so focused on the present, we really did not see this third trimester sneak up on us. The pregnancy has seemed to fly by.

This last week we focused on a few tasks that needed to get completed in order to have a successful baby shower. Baby showers are far more necessary than I ever imagined they were. From now on, when I am invited to a baby shower there are a few things that I have decided.

1. I will either go to the baby shower or at least send a gift.

These things are the answer to all parent's needs. It is so expensive and overwhelming to shop for a new baby. They need so much more than you ever imagined when you didn't have one or were planning on becoming parents. They need so many items that add up in your pocket and in your to-do list.

2. I will use the registry list.

I have registered so far at Kohl's and Target and at both stores I was incredibly meticulous about picking things out for Max. I tried to pick clothes according to the seasons and what age he would be, toys that were appropriate for his age for bath time, and all of the necessary toiletries for his mixed skin. Yes, I am that mom. In saying that, my sister quickly told me that when she had her baby shower, no one bought from the registry! I could not believe that was true. I have been pretty good over the years at buying wedding gifts and baby gifts from the registry because I was too clueless most of the time to pick something that the baby or couple would actually need. This awed me that people do not shop from the registry. I think that we spent about an hour and a half in Target yesterday picking out things for Max and although it was fun, it would be great to see him get some of those items from people that love him in his family. I have decided that I am going to stick with what I have always done...buying from the registry. I know we did it for a reason!

3. I will talk with the parents!

I think that it would be helpful to ask the parents from now on if they used a registry and if they did, how serious they were about it. Most of the items that Anthony and I registered for were in the $0-$10 range because those are the things that add up on our budget. We are obviously happy to buy those big ticket items like crib, stroller, car seat, high chair, etc....ourselves but it would be so helpful to be able to overlook some of the smaller items like wash cloths, socks, bibs, wipes, etc... with the help of friends and family. I can now see why these baby showers are so imperative to a set of new parents. We are doing our very best to plan well but man...who knew these little miracles needed so much!??!!!

We had a great time registering last night and enjoying our dinner out to celebrate 6 months with our little Max and we will cherish this time either way. I am looking forward to my baby shower in January to get together with those that love Max, have prayed for him, and watched us yearn for him. We know that it will be a blast being able to have our first real celebration about his life.

Another thing we have been diligently working on is the nursery. We have this great room in our place right by our room that is spacious and awesome for our little guy. It has (in the past) been filled with things we wanted to go through and possibly give to Goodwill, put away in different areas, and things we just didn't feel we had a space for. It is our time to find places for these items, give the things away that are no longer necessary, and get working on making this Max's room. We have decided to go with a Jungle Animal theme for his room in light blues, browns, and light greens. I picked up a few items at Michael's to do a few projects for his room and of course he already has all of the Scentsy Buddies and a warmer of his very own for his bedroom. We are excited to do this new room in our house and make a place for him to call his own and put all of these awesome things we have acquired over the months. For sure as we make progress, pictures will be posted on this blog! :)

As far as the pregnancy goes, we are in the process of doing a new test on my kidneys for the third trimester. This is a little more detail than you all probably want but I have to collect 24 hrs of urine and give it to the hospital and then get blood work immediately after to make sure my kidneys are functioning well for the delivery and rest of the pregnancy. In the morning, we will turn in this glorious sample and also go to my OB's office to get my blood pressure checked again. I have also noticed for the last couple of days that my sugars are starting to elevate. I will be contacting Maternal Fetal Medicine in Louisville to possibly make changes on my pump that will help have tighter control over this last three months. Please continue to pray for us in these areas!

I hope you are all doing well and I will do my best to continue to update especially since I start my maternity leave on December 21st! I am looking forward to some down time to be honest in order to get ready for my little dude!

Thanks for stopping in,

Erica & Anthony

Yes, we know...you're a boy!

Yesterday we had our 23 week ultrasound at our specialist's office and as always, it was fun and exciting to see our little Max moving around and finding new ways to aggravate the ultrasound technician. When we were there last time, they were doing the anatomy ultrasound and Max did not want to show a few parts of his heart and one portion of his spine. We were trying to get those photos yesterday and it turns out Max is shy about his heart but he has no problem letting us know OVER and OVER that he is indeed, a boy!

We were able to finish the ultrasound except for one photo of the blood going into his body from his heart. We are hoping he will cooperate in a month when we have another one. He is weighing in at 1 lb, 8 oz and the doctor feels that is exactly where he needs to be. We are so grateful for that since babies of diabetics tend to get too big too fast. So far, my blood sugars are staying in good control and Max is not in any danger.

Some things that were concerning over the last week of appointments were that my blood pressure was steadily going up. I do not struggle with high blood pressure at all but it seems that the last trimester, it is going to raise a bit. Although both of my fantastic doctors assured me that this is completely normal and I am not at any dangerous level, please keep Max and I in your prayers for the duration of the pregnancy so that we can stay as healthy as possible.

News on the delivery front: Upon talking to my doctors, it seems that the delivery could go a couple of ways in terms of location. At first, it was stated pretty clearly that I would be giving birth in Louisville. However, the new idea is that Max could be born closer to home if a couple of things go as planned. Babies of diabetic mothers tend to have under-developed lungs when coming early (by early I mean before 38 weeks). At about 38 weeks, they are more developed and can usually prevent having to be given oxygen and needing any special help. So, that being said...if Max waits a bit and comes around 38-40 weeks or beyond, we will most likely be able to have him closer to home. If he feels he needs to come a bit sooner, we will probably need to deliver in Louisville in order to have a NICU that meets those needs and the specialists that are trained more thoroughly to deal with those issues.

I am at peace either way. I know that my little guy will come when he is supposed to come and God has his hand on both of us during this stressful but exciting time. As I go into the third trimester on Monday, I am starting to get excited about new things like enjoying my baby shower, getting the nursery entirely ready for Max, and enjoying the last few months of Anthony and I being....just Anthony and I! Please continue to pray for us and help us praise God for our miracle. We appreciate all that you guys have done over the months to encourage us, pray for us, and remind us that we are going to be great parents. That never gets old to hear!

Thank you

Erica & Anthony

Quite a few updates

It's been a few weeks since I have written in here, to be specific, 15 weeks. Things have been moving right along in our pregnancy and we are happy to report, we are having a little boy! We have decided to name him Maxwell Jackson Jude Lewis. There have been numerous times of great news, including several ultrasounds where Max was doing great and measuring right on track. I have been a bit overwhelmed with trying to work a part time job at the school, tutoring part time, and being pregnant. I have extreme respect and almost awe at women who can work their entire pregnancy full time. Being diabetic has it's difficulties with being pregnant so it is a bit more work but still...in awe.

I have been seeing a specialist in Louisville since the first trimester. He is located at Maternal Fetal Specialists and his name is Dr. Thomas Tabb. He is a very caring and kind man and has really helped me understand the risks associated with diabetes. I was put on an insulin pump in August and that has really helped to give me excellent diabetic control throughout the pregnancy. In the latter part of the first trimester, we learned that my kidneys were having some difficulty functioning and may present a problem in the third trimester. I have decided to stop working at the end of December to put less stress on them and focus on preparing for the big day. They are also talking about delivering early and Max will be born in Louisville since there are risks.

Anthony and I have been diligently working toward providing all of the things that a baby needs since we have found out Mr. Max's gender. The clothes are so darn cute but they need so much that it can be overwhelming at times. Tomorrow we go for another OB appointment at our regular doctor and I think I will need to do another 24 hr Urine test in order to look at the functioning of my kidneys again. I pray that they are working well and can support my healthy boy. It turns out I am one of the unfortunate women who gets morning sickness her entire pregnancy. I was so hoping to stop the vomiting at the second trimester but at almost 6 months pregnant, NOPE!! Again, I am glad for the reminders of his health each day.

Another big landmark was on November 3rd, I was able to feel Max move/kick for the first time. That was quite an experience and Anthony can feel him move here and there as well. We are so grateful for each step of this journey and would ask you to keep us in your prayers throughout the rest of it. We are hoping to keep everyone posted on things that are going on and soon enough, there will be pictures of our little Maxwell.

We feel extremely blessed.

Erica & Anthony

8 week check up coming!

I can't believe that just a few days ago Anthony and I celebrated 4 years married and I turned 32 years old. If you had told me that I would be 32 and pregnant with my first child, I would have laughed. Obviously this isn't our technical first child because our sweet Jamie went to be with Jesus when he was just 12 weeks along in pregnancy. This pregnancy has been so different and I have peace that in the Spring we will be meeting our little one on Earth. This last Thursday/Friday, Anthony and I went away to Madison, Indiana to celebrate my birthday and our wedding anniversary. It was a wonderful and relaxing couple of days. We stayed at the Hillside Inn located in Madison and it was so beautiful. The view was gorgeous and our room had a great heart shaped spa bathtub and we had a beautiful fireplace in our room. We had a great Birthday dinner on Thursday night and spent Friday site seeing and shopping. My kind of weekend away!

While shopping, we found this adorable little store called the Rock-A-Bye Lady and bought our sweet little cupcake a few gifts. We got some books including Baby, Oh the places you'll go that was written as a book to read while the baby is in Utero. We are getting started on this tonight. We also got a book about gratefulness called I am Blessed and one about affirming your child called A You're Adorable. We got our sweet baby their first taste of music too and it was fate that the cd was J is for Jackson 5 and we got a cute little lamb that holds a blankie and says a prayer. It was a great shopping trip for us to really look at the reality that we are going to be parents in just a few months.

We are getting really excited for our second ultrasound on Monday August 13th. We are in our 8th week on Monday so we should be able to hear a heartbeat and the baby should have grown enough to get a due date. Also, I start my new job with Hoosier Uplands in the after-school program on Monday. I am a bit concerned about my nausea and energy level in taking on a new venture but I'm really excited about doing something new and bringing income into our house to pay debts/bills and get the nursery ready for baby Lewis.

Anthony has been reading a chapter of Harry Potter to the baby each night so that the baby becomes used to his voice as well as mine and finds it soothing. Anthony is going to be such a fantastic father. Today we found an awesome new grocery store in Paoli, Indiana called Lost River Deli & Market and we are so excited that we can give my body more nutritious food and feed the baby and our family better in the coming months.

Current Foods I love:

Grape Jolly Ranchers Candies
Cottage Cheese
Fruit (mostly citrus and melons)
Lemonade
Nut butters (Almond, Peanut, etc...)

Our baby has interesting tastes and sure has kept mama in the bathroom with her head in a trashcan. Again, I praise God for every single symptom of my child being healthy and alive. Thank you Jesus for our sweet miracle!

Barf and stuff

So something I forgot to mention in my last post is that we found out at the doctor's office that I am measuring at 6 weeks along. That was not what we originally thought with my cycle but either way, we are on our way. The last two mornings I have woken up to a very bad case of nausea and today spent much of my morning hurling. Most people will complain about this and be very annoyed and put out, not me! I see it as a sign of health and strength in the baby since the levels of pregnancy hormone or HCG are what causes the nausea. Thank you Jesus for a healthy and strong little one who is developing well each day. I am also cramping quite a bit with my uterus stretching and that can be scary for someone who has miscarried in the past but we are keeping our faith in the Lord and knowing that He is the author of life, not us! So here I am, 6 weeks and marching right long! We are so excited!

It is well..It is well...with my soul

So yesterday was a big day for Anthony and I. We had our first ultrasound with our little baby Lewis. Our last experience with this was a tragedy to say the least. Yesterday morning we prayed in the parking lot of the doctor because we knew that our nerves were on edge in thinking what the possibilities could be. When we got into the ultrasound room, Jesus had gone before us. My doctor is a Christian and a friend of our family and on the wall was the verse "He leads me beside still waters" and a picture of Jesus holding a lamb was beside that. The room had dim lighting and the music on in the room was Praise & Worship. More specifically the song "It is well" which happens to be one of my favorites in dealing with some of the painful things that we have gone through in our quest for a little one.

Almost immediately we saw a gestational sac and there was a heartbeat!!!! We are so excited and hopeful for our little one to be with us in Spring next year. We will continue to pray, continue to trust God, and continue to go forward in hope. We are taking this small victory though and praising God for it is well with our souls!

The clock is ticking, 8 weeks down

Well here we are at 8 weeks pregnant! It has been a very interesting journey and some pretty amazing things and tragic things have already happened in my first trimester. My nephew Johnny was born on June 29th and we had no idea we were pregnant yet, but we sure were. Then, a few days ago my best friend from California was told by her husband that he wanted a divorce. It was something that really made me stop and think about parenting and how that looks in a marriage. Anthony and I are very strong in our marriage for sure and we work very hard on it by having weekly time set apart for us, great communication, and a deep and thriving friendship/intimacy. Even though that is true, I started to realize how much more is at stake once you have this little person that depends on both of you to have a life that is fruitful and wonderful. It was a very scary realization as I did not see my friend going through a divorce although I was aware of problems. I feel like giving up was not an option and he clearly disagreed with my dear friend who did not want this for her life.

Yesterday, we learned that one of our friends was in a motorcycle accident with her new husband of two weeks. They were hit by a truck and the person driving the truck did not stop at all. She only had minor injuries but her husband lost his life in this tragic accident. It completely floored us and again had me reflecting on what it looks like to create this little life and then possibly leave them behind or have our spouse die and they lose that part of their childhood. Yesterday, my sister also had an emergency C-section and my sweet niece Everleigh was born. It has been an emotionally overwhelming week. I haven't been able to really think about the pregnancy or prepare in any way. On top of all of that, my other sister (who has 4 week old baby) had a terrible week as her husband lost his job. This was an unexpected loss and not one that they were prepared financially for so there is a lot of stress and trauma going on in our lives.

Even though that is true, I still feel incredibly grateful to have made it to this point of 8 weeks and still be pregnant. My symptoms are relatively mild in that I get nausea here and there, heartburn at times, and the main symptom is exhaustion. I take more than one nap a day so that is pretty heavy. Yesterday I received my first two maternity tops in the mail that I found online on clearance at a great store for plus size maternity called Motherhood Plus. I love them and they fit so well. My clothes are all starting to be very tight fitting and my jeans are the worst. Another symptom I have had a lot of which isn't necessarily typical this early is swelling. I am retaining a lot of water in my legs/feet so it is uncomfortable after a day of work/sitting around.

One thing that is weighing pretty heavy on my mind is the nursery. We have an extra room right by our bedroom that is the perfect size for a child and really has so much potential. The problem: It is full of things we haven't moved into our apartment yet. It is disorganized, messy, and full of junk. I want to get rid of 80% of the items that are in there and I want to organize the other 20% of it and put it in the appropriate rooms so that room is empty and ready to be a blank canvas for our little sweetie! I really can't make any progress on the nursery until we know a gender but things like the crib, car seat, high chair, pack & play, changing table, dressers, etc... can be purchased gender neutral so I have to get crackin' on that nursery! That being said, refer back to my pregnancy symptom of being exhausted. I will spend about 20 minutes straightening the house and have to lay down and nap it off. It is crazy how tired I have been. I relate it to having a diabetic high. It makes you feel stuck to the bed. I have experienced that so many times so this does not feel foreign but always has me checking my sugar just to make sure I am okay!

Overall, this week has been a very difficult week but it has flown by which is helpful when you are trying hard to keep yourself occupied through the first trimester to not worry yourself sick. This experience has so far been pleasant and I feel fine. This is a great place for me to talk since we aren't really telling people that we are pregnant yet. By the way, we have a great idea I found on Pinterest to tell everyone that we are pregnant. I can't wait to share the idea on here and see how it turns out!

I am really looking forward to my first ultrasound coming up this next Tuesday and seeing my little cupcake for the first time. I really hope to hear a heartbeat heavy and strong as well and really have that moment that we did not get to experience with our first angel. We are looking forward and grateful to every experience that parenting holds! Thank you Jesus once again for our little miracle after 3 years of feeling hopeless.

Erica

7 weeks and counting...

I always assumed when we became parents (officially) that I would want to have a place to jot down the happenings in our life. I'm finding that is still true as I peruse various mommy blogs while reading about pregnancy symptoms in the first trimester. I had no idea that I would want to learn more about parenting this early but I am really proactive when it comes to things that matter. I will take a minute to introduce myself and Anthony, my husband. We have been married almost 4 years now and have lost one child to a late term miscarriage and are now pregnant again and in our 7th week of pregnancy. So far, so good. It took 3 full years to get pregnant again so we are really excited about possibly seeing our dream of having a child come to fruition. We really don't have much of a desire to have more than one child. We realize that financially, emotionally, and physically...that is probably the best goal for us.

I'm Erica. I turn 32 on August 9th, the same day Anthony and I will be married for 4 years. We got married on my 28th birthday and it was the best present I have ever received. My struggles with parenting and just life in general begin at the age of 16. I was diagnosed with Type I diabetes and it was such a turning point for me in life and my health has declined considerably over the years of battling denial with the illness. Our first (unsuccessful) pregnancy was the change for me. I began to be very good at caring for myself and have since seen a incline in my health.I guess it is important to note that Anthony and I are a biracial couple. That is something that makes our journey unique as well as the battle with diabetes in our home. We moved to Indiana almost a year ago so now we are facing different challenges in our relationship than we did where we started in Southern California.

I am from Southern Indiana so this is my neck of the woods and I am quite used to the mindset of people around here and their preconceived notions of biracial families. I have no problem with people having differing opinions even if they aren't well researched. I try to let people have their own thoughts, feelings, and emotions about our relationship. I certainly have feelings about things that aren't particularly my business either. In parenting, people seem to have strong opinions about mixing races and they often quote that they feel that our children will be "confused." I am hoping to chronicle our journey through raising a biracial child in a loving and happy home and see if the confusion is more about the people who feel that way and less about the children that are a product of these biracial relationships. I am prepared for my child to meet all kinds of trials such as the normal childhood trials of bullying, awkwardness, broken friendships, heartbreak and I am expecting them to meet some more challenges like stereotypes, discrimination, racism and downright hate. That saddens me but I do not feel that it is my job to help people feel more comfortable in their ugliness. 

Anthony is from Southern California and is African American whereas I am a good old white girl from the sticks. We have been together for over 6 years and dated for 2 years before getting married. We were able to spend 5 of those years in a very diverse and accepting environment where we faced minimal conflicts about our races. We have been here almost a year and have faced a few issues but to be honest, many less than we imagined when moving. It is certainly a different place than it was when I left 10 years ago. I only hope that when our child starts school, it is even further advanced.

My hope for the blog is that I can walk through the journey of a Type I diabetic in a biracial marriage ( a very happy one at that) becoming a mama for the first time and letting this be my place to ask questions, divulge hardships, state what works, and overall just be able to fellowship with other people in this journey of motherhood no matter what your race or health status. It is important to note that Anthony and I are also Jesus Christ followers. Most people will just say they are Christians and that fits us too but I want it to be clear that we want to live a life pleasing and in mimic of Jesus Christ. We are all the time trying to find ways to be better at that in our marriage, as people, and now ...as parents.