Parenthood, Day 2

Despite the rain, today was a beautiful day. As Monica and I ease into parenthood and getting little sleep, life is very good. I can’t help but see Noah for the miracle he is as I look into his tiny eyes, tickle his teeny feet and feel his hand wrap around my finger. I can’t help but see God’s perfect design in this little life. I am awestruck.

Noah is constantly getting stuck with needles, having his temperature taken, vitals checked and diapers changed. And he’s handling it all very well. This morning he introduced dad to the “back-slider.” I had no idea poop could shoot out the top of a diaper so fast! I’m still learning the intricacies of diaper changing, but so far everything is sliding along fine, even if a little slow ;)

Monica is doing great. She’s up and walking sitting in chairs and catching up on sleep. In fact, today we had a family nap. Noah went down, so we did too. Catch those Zs while we can! He’s a good sleeper and generally very calm, but we’re finding that there’s some learning that needs to be done for nursing. He’ll get the hang of it, but until then, he’s having trouble remembering what he’s there for. Don’t ever let anyone tell you it’s easy.

More photos of Noah will be up soon, but right now we’ve been getting sleep whenever we can, even if it’s ten minutes here and fifteen there. For today, here’s a great capture of four generations! Monica's grandmother, mom, Monica and Noah. Thank you again to everyone for your prayers and congratulations!

Noah Has Arrived

Noah Joseph Klos
Born at 6:09 p.m. | 8 lbs 5 oz | 20 inches

After lots of work, pushing and labor, Noah finally arrived via C-section. Both Monica and Noah are doing well, although very exhausted. Thank you everyone for your prayers today. Monica did awesome through all of it—I'm so proud of her. Noah is such a cutie and so far a very calm baby. Praise God!

More updates will be up as we are able.

Delivery Day, 11:30 a.m.

We've been at the hospital since 6 a.m. and things are progressing. Monica has been induced and her water was broken around 9:30. Pitosin is making those contractions strong, Dilaudid is giving her some strange thoughts and making her very sleepy. But there's no sleeping through the intense contractions.

Earlier this morning, after breaking Monica's water, the Dr. said she's guessing that Noah is going to be 8.6 lbs. She squeezed Noah all around Monica's belly trying to get a grip on him for her estimation. We're hoping he's not any bigger than that!

Monica is hungry, but can't have anything to eat. I would have shared my lunch with her but it's in the fridge at home. Perfect place for it. Doh! Oh well. Hopefully that's the only thing we forgot. If that's the case, we're in good shape.

I'll post more later as things continue to progress.

Week 39 :: Day 2

Saturday during one of the many mini thunderstorms Ryan and I sat and watched Noah for about 15 minutes and played "Guess that Body Part" as Noah wiggled and a new pointy body part would stick out. It was like watching a little shark fin protruding from my stomach. He has certainly been quite a joy in our lives already. This morning as I look around our quiet house I am wondering how life will change this week as we start our family with Noah. I wonder what kind of memories we will have and which ones will be our favorites.

Ryan and I have been blessed with four years of marriage, three of which we have worked together side-by-side (in the same office) every day. Often people ask how you can work with your spouse. Ryan usually responds with, "We got married because we like each other." For me, I don't want to spend a day without him.

As we get closer to adding Noah to our family I recall advice we got about the last month of pregnancy and how it seems to drag on forever. I thought we would be able to keep ourselves busy enough that we wouldn't feel that anxiety of waiting, but yesterday I had enough time to paint my nails so let that be a sign to you of how ready we are. :) I think we are even more ready after losing Ethan last spring, but God has blessed us with another son for which we are very thankful for.

Yesterday God reminded me about Zechariah. He was a priest, the father of John the Baptist and the Uncle of Jesus. He and his wife Elizabeth had been praying for a child for some time, but were quickly aging beyond child bearing years. One day Zechariah was visited by Gabriel, an angel of the LORD, with news that Elizabeth would soon be pregnant with a son whom they would name John. Zechariah in his old age was in disbelief and asked Gabriel for a sign to know that what he spoke was true. For the next nine months, until John was born, Zechariah was unable to speak. (Luke 1) Could you imagine not being able to speak for nine months? I bet Zechariah was even more anxious than us to have his son born!

Later today we have another doctor appointment. We hope to have news of Noah's arrival soon. He certainly is enjoying his time in the womb!

This is the day the LORD has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118:24 (ESV - English Standard Version)

Still Waiting...

My beautiful wife at 37 weeks with Noah. I am so blessed to be married to this woman and to share my life with her. Soon we’ll be a tightly knit three-person family and I will be even more blessed. God is so good.

At today’s Dr. appointment Monica measured 41cm. Since we’re at 38 weeks, she should be measuring 38cm, but apparently Noah is enjoying himself a bit too much and not exercising enough. I’m kidding. He’s healthy, even if he is a little on the porky side right now. Otherwise, everything is normal. Noah has been trying to get comfortable lately and it’s just not happening. I’ve seen Monica’s belly shift in directions that look painful and seen limbs jutting out that are downright creepy looking. But I know it’s my boy in there and all that moving around is good for him.

With only 13 days until his due date, we’re ready for him. More than ready. His room is set up, clothes are washed and diapers are ready for absorption. We’re just waiting on him. We’ve tried bribing him with candy and ice cream, but it’s not working :)

We’ll keep everyone up-to-date on progress. As always, thank you everyone for keeping us in your prayers for this healthy pregnancy. We appreciate them. Please continue to pray for a safe delivery for both mom and baby.

Happy Birthday William

William on his 12th birthday.

On this day, 17 years ago, I remember my mom going in to labor with my brother. It was the day before Easter, my dad was at work and I babysat my two little sisters until we all took a trip to the hospital to hold William for the first time. It seems like that was just yesterday.

I thought you all might be interested in how the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention benefitted from your support this past year. The Greater Chicago/Illinois Chapter of AFSP took home three honors from the 2009 Leadership Conference in January: the Largest Grossing Walk was awarded to the chapter for raising more than $201,000 during the Out of the Darkness walk, Best Chapter Support of Research Award and the Chapter of the Year Award.

Earlier this week I had an Italian beef sandwich in memory of William. Today my family is participating in another AFSP walk in Sterling in honor of William's birthday. My family is also planning a trip to the Field Museum to see the Real Pirates exhibit. Aaaarrr! Happy birthday, William!

Week 38 ... Are we there yet?

The anticipation grows! Thank you for all the warm birthday wishes yesterday. I was hoping that Noah might show up, but it looks like he will be a belated birthday present. On Wednesday I officially checked off the last task on my to-do list before Noah arrives. The nursery is all set, laundry is done the glider is assembled ... we're ready though we hope to enjoy some of this beautiful weather this weekend. We have another doctor appointment on Monday as well as a meet-and-greet with the pediatrician. We'll keep you posted on any updates. Enjoy the weather!

Week 37 Begins

Still no news of Noah's birthday, but today we celebrate the beginning of the 37th week of our pregnancy. Noah seems to really like it in the womb, happily kicking and hiccuping. You'd think he was running out of room in there, but he still manages to stretch out his legs and arms every once in a while. Not a whole lot going on right now, but we wanted to give you an update to let you know we are all doing well. Our next doctor appointment is Monday morning.

Ultrasound Update

We had our ultrasound today. Noah is growing like a weed, weighing in at 6 pounds and 14 ounces ... almost 7 pounds! The doctor had us take another non-stress test today to monitor his heartbeat and my contractions (or lack there of ... they have dropped considerably since yesterday). Noah's heartbeat was staying pretty consistent in the 180 range which was a little high for the doctor's liking. She said that if it fluctuated that would be okay, but his heart rate was pretty much a straight line. They thought I might be running a fever or fighting an infection ... either way they wanted to monitor Noah's heartbeat longer, take a blood test for my white blood cell count and if there turned out to be an emergency they'd perform a c-section.

So Ryan and I have been at the hospital since about dinner time. Noah and I are connected to an IV and monitors to watch his heartbeat and contractions. We got our white blood cell results back and everything looks fine. We finally got to eat dinner about 9:00 tonight. Now we're getting ready to settle in for an overnight stay at the hospital. The doctor on call wants to monitor us for a longer duration just to make sure everything stays on track. If so, we'll be going home in the morning and follow up treatment would consist of two office visits a week with non-stress tests at each visit.

We'll keep you posted, but it doesn't look like Noah's birthday will be April 6.

Showered with Love

As we count the minutes between contractions and work on our thank you cards Ryan and I wanted to let you all know how blessed we are by your showering of love. We are excited for Noah's arrival and can't wait to be parents again. Later today we have another doctor appointment and an ultrasound to see how much Noah weighs as there is some concern that he may be large due to the way my body is breaking down sugar. We hope to be able to share some photos with you, but if nothing else, all the details!

ONLY 27 DAYS LEFT (until our due date)!

For those of you looking for recipes from two of the salads at the shower, here they are.

Napa Cabbage Salad

Ingredients:
1 bunch Napa cabbage, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 packages Ramen noodles, broken
1 cup slivered almonds
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
2/3 cup butter

 

Dressing Ingredients:
1/4 cup white vinegar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 cup white sugar

In skillet melt butter, mix in Ramen noodles, almonds and sesame seeds. Toast until brown -- watch carefully. Mix together with Napa cabbage and green onions.

Combine ingredients for dressing in small saucepan. Boil for one minute, whisking constantly. Cool. Put in shaker-- do NOT shake while hot! Prior to serving, head dressing for 20-30 seconds in microwave. Shake gently. Pour over cabbage. Toss and serve.

Eat up because it doesn’t save well.

Tree Salad

Ingredients:
2 bunches broccoli, trimmed and chopped
8 strips crumbled bacon
1 cup raisins
1/2-cup chopped onion
1/2-cup slivered almonds
1 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
3 teaspoons sugar
Cauliflower (if desired)

Mix all ingredients and chill overnight before serving.

In Memory of William

Today marks the one year anniversary of William's death. It was quite a contrast to last year's sunshine and 70-degree weather. Today was cold, windy and ending in snowfall (approximately 4 to 6-inches are expected). Last year when Ryan and I spent the afternoon celebrating his grandmother's 86th birthday we had no idea what the next few hours and weeks would bring. While we are thankful that we have made it through an entire year, some times it feels more like three.

Spring and Easter will always be a time I associate with both Ethan and William. Ethan's memorial service was the night before Easter. Before the service my family had an Easter dinner, our last family meal with William. William was born the day before Easter and this year his anniversary falls on Palm Sunday. I remember Billy's third birthday party. We had a big piñata in the shape of a 3 and an Easter egg hunt out side. Ryan and I also had the joy of decorating Easter eggs two years in a row with William, my sisters and Mom.

Today we remembered William with a service at my parent's church followed by visiting his gravesite and a BBQ. I was glad to see so many people came to the service and BBQ to remember him with us. William had at least 10 friends and a teacher stop by the house too!

One thing that bothered me though was when the church "prayed" for my brother whom they said was in purgatory. William is NOT in purgatory (it doesn't exist) and does not need us to pray for him. Upon his death he went to be with Jesus. Our prayers can not change the fate of any person, nor can it speed up their arrival to heaven (it's instant). King David mourned (fasted and prayed) for his sick son, hoping that he would be healed and his life would be spared. When his son died, he no longer mourned for him. People asked why he mourned while his son was alive, but not when he died. David told them that he knows his son is in heaven, he cannot bring him back and that he will go to be with him again (2 Samuel 12:15-23).

While I miss Billy each day, I am reminded that he has already gone to heaven, he is with the Father and I will see him again—what joy it will be to see him again! This reunion is only possible because of the blood of Jesus. As you prepare your hearts this week for celebration of the death and resurrection of our Savior remember that we have been forgiven of all our sins (past, present and future) and receive eternal life.