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We survived Monday!!!!!!!!

You know, sleep depriving Aggie wasn't nearly as much fun as we hoped it would be. We tried to make it fun by saying thing like "Aggie, you get to have special daddy time tonight after all the kids go to bed! You can eat Oreos and do whatever you want, isn't that great!" She was very excited for the Oreos, but after those were eaten things got a little rough. She was ready for bed by 9, and even a trip to play in the school gym didn't keep her going much longer! She was a mess by 9:45 and they barely made until 12. Then it was my job to get her up at four. Poor kid, I don't know how many baths and showers she had by the time it was all over! She sure looked awful when we left for the test! We dropped the others off at the sitters (Beth Beck sure is one brave soul!) Then Josh and I took her to the Mariott for her EEG (the hospital still being in transition from this summer's flood)


She was GREAT for the actual test. She has to sit still while they put 25 electrodes in her hair with this nasty sticky stuff (I am still trying to get it out! I didn't have the heart to make her take ANOTHER bath when she got home!) Then they had her blow on a kleenex (deep breathing can induce seizures), which she did with great enthusiasm, and then went into an abscence seizure. I was very relieved that she had an episode during the test- the last thing I wanted after all this was for them to say 'it's nothing, she's fine!' This last week of episodes almost every two hours has convinced me she is definitely not! After that, they told her she could sleep on my lap, and she was snoring in about 30 seconds. She was very cooperative, and we rewarded her with a push- up from the gas station (the only ice cream treat to be found so early in the morning.) They told us that the neurologist would read the test the same day and contact her doctor. We are still waiting to hear anything.


God is merciful, and so we got naps before the next dr appointment- my ultrasound! As Josh said, it is a strange day when the ultrasound is NOT the highlight of the day! The ultrasound was on time, painless, and wonderfully uneventful- the baby looks perfect! I am also glad I haven't packed Marcus's baby clothes too far away- it is most definitely a boy!

He was very cooperative with the ultrasound and seems proud to be a boy (I think most boys are!) Aggie was with us- when I said "Aggie, it's a boy!" she just said OH. Later when she looked at these pictures she said "It looks like a turtle!" Josh called the school after the appointment, and the principal pulled Lorriane out of class to tell her the big news! Her teacher said she was GRINNING from ear to ear when she told the class about her new baby brother!

We are very excited. I can just imaine in 2yrs when Aggie is at school and I am home all day with THREE BOYS! I guess I am glad for the wide open spaces we have here in the country! "There's a mud hole boys, and here's a shovel- see you at lunch time!"

This picture is a little hard to make out but it is my favorite! The baby's head is on the right, and his hand is on top of his head. It looks to me almost exactly like big brother Seth when he is laying down playing with his hair (or where his hair used to be!)

This morning I asked Aggie if she had good dreams about her new baby brother and she said "I dreamed he was a turtle!"

After the test we picked up the kids from the Becks- bless Beth, she also sent home dinner for us! It was definitely a blessing- I was so tired it would have been a cereal or even a Halloween candy dinner! Krista and Megan (friends from the mom's group) also made dinner for tonight for us!

So today is recovery day and waiting by the phone day. I will keep everyone posted if there is more news. What I expect is to hear "Yep, she had a seizure- here's the next tests and the specialist you have to go to."

God is tenderly caring for our family during all of this, and we are amazed at the support and love from everyone here and in Michigan, and people we don't even know who are praying and thinking of us.