28 Weeks

Angel Number 28 is a message from your angels that your self-belief, confidence and positive attitude have ensured that abundance will enter your life, and you are encouraged to make the most of these auspicious energies.  Be grateful for your blessings and remember that the more you have, the more you have to share with others.  Give and you shall receive.
The Angel Number 28 is a message that your positive affirmations and optimistic outlook will manifest wonderful blessings into your life. 

Today marks the 28 week mark on our journey to 37.  I ran across this (so I'm not taking credit for it...a lesson I learned from Dr. Berry a few years ago...I'd like to keep my job!! - non-Zeelanders sorry for the inside joke).  So, we're using this 28th week celebrating our "Angel in the Womb" by trying to keep our positive attitude and being grateful for all we've been blessed with.  Our glasses in Philadelphia are and will continue to be half full.

Another week is down and we've all re-united in the City of Brotherly Love!!

 



As Shawna blogged earlier in the week, she and baby are both looking healthy!!!  It's crazy to us that just 5 weeks ago we were just finding out what this whole Spina Bifida thing/stuff was and now we almost feel like partial residence of Haverford/Philadelphia, PA.  The weeks have been going by rather fast as we're all staying extremely busy.  The boys were able to go to Ms. Jen's house on Monday and Tuesday and hang out with Grandma Sue on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday!!!  We, once again, were reminded of the blessing it is for our boys to go to Ms. Jen's as Myles seems to have tied up any loose ends with his counting (which he's been able to do but would always skip a few numbers here and there) and had his first successful big boy POTTIES!!!  Thanks Jen!  Now it's on me to keep that up....oh boy.  I'll be heading to the store to buy some little boy underpants.  I just need to remember to get dark colors to cover up any oopsies! 
It is a nice transition back to some normalcy to get back to school for a week.  I'd much rather be in Philly with Shawna but being at Zeeland West with my colleagues and students is not a bad alternative!!  I need to give a thank you to the staff and students at the high school for making my time back in Zeeland something to actually look forward to and keep a little sense of reality to my/our life right now. 
Shawna has also been very busy.  Her crocheting is really impressive.  She's becoming quite an expert very quickly.  Any requests, just text her (616.706.5863) or email (carlson.shawna@gmail.com).  Shipping and handling fees can be paid off with diapers, house cleaning, etc.  As you can see in the picture below, life is VERY stressful in Haverford.  Janet and Shawna had another great week together of motherly/daughterly bonding!!

In an effort to beat the Pope and the traffic that was predicted because of his Philadelphia trip, we scampered out of Zeeland after the boys had their flu shots (Myles thinks I said "we are getting flu shops" so now he keeps talking about shopping when pointing to his band-aide on his thigh).  Neither did more than flinched (huge relief) for the shots.  We jumped in the van, picked up John in Lake Odessa, and headed East.  The Pope was scheduled to fly in mid morning so our calculations were if we were on the road by 5 and made a few stops, we'd arrive in Haverford around 5am, beating the Pope traffic.  All started out very smoothly and according to plan, with a stop in Ann Arbor to drop off a wedding present (grill) to Aunt B and Uncle Brooky and enjoy some homemade mac and cheese...you keep surprising me, Beef!!  After our quick stop, it was back on the road.  Not too far after that I was quickly reminded of the interests of the family that I married into as we passed Cabela's and Peyton shouts out, "Hey Papa, there is Cabela's.  I LOVE Cabela's!"  Classic.

Thank goodness our boys travel well and sleep well in the car.  If they didn't, they would have for sure have been woken up from the lights from the car and the radio on the state trooper in Ohio that pulled John over...ooops, sorry John.  I promised not to bring that up but it was too good of material not to mention, plus you did bring it up to Janet and Shawna.  My lips were sealed, but.....

The trooper, who couldn't have been more than 25 years old, claimed John was swerving, and he may have been, but I'll take some blame as I was partially sleeping and could have been awake keeping him focused or reaching the bag of chocolate chip cookies that he said he was reaching for, causing him to swerve.  So, we pulled off the road at the next rest area and switched spots.  This lead to another quick glitch as we noticed we couldn't find John's wallet just as I was about to merge on to the highway.  Yikes!  PANIC!  I reversed back down the on-ramp (thank goodness it was 11:30pm and there was no traffic) and we ripped the car apart, finally finding the wallet in the atlas between the drivers seat and the middle console.  Phew!
I think this is becoming a trend....that is Buche boy's getting pulled over when I'm in the car with them on cross-country trips.  Yes, Kurt, sorry to expose this but you did get pulled over in the middle South Dakota or somewhere on our way home a few years ago from Cody, Wyoming in the middle of the night by another state trooper who also looked like he was about 18 years old.  I think yours may have been legit, though, as I think the needle was doing a lot of hanging out in the mid-80's.
Well, we've transitioned back in to Haverford with a trip up to the campus of Villanova this morning, some marching band re-enactments, hiding in very interesting spots around the house (see pic below) and another (no surprise) Northwestern win yesterday (check out the jersey that Chris Ray sent me....brought tears to my eyes, literally, just like the scene in Rudy where the crowd chants his name....dangit, everytime!!). 
We are moving out of Haverford on Wednesday.  It has been an unbelievable blessing to have this incredible house to stay in and be able to settle in to a place without housing worries while we're out here!!  As of now, we'll move back in to another familiar place...the Holiday Inn/Cherry Hill, NJ.  This may sound inconvenient, but it's actually a great place as the boys LOVE the pool and we get a clean room everyday.  We're looking forward to some family and friends coming out next weekend, as well!!  Good times in PA/NJ!! 
Oh, did I mention Northwestern won, again, and thank goodness, the Eagles did today as well, which should make the mood of Philadelphians much better for at least the next week. 

From Haverford!!

CHOOSING JOY

-Jeff

27 weeks & 4 days

Greetings from Philadelphia!
Another beautiful week in Philadelphia.  My check up got bumped up to Thursday instead of Friday due to the Papal Visit.  The City Center is shutting down on Friday and will remain closed until Monday.  All traffic in and out of the city is pedestrian only!  The city is expecting people to walk 8-10 miles for Sunday Mass. 

This weeks check up included the normal things, an ultrasound and also my glucose screening for gestational diabetes.  The baby hadn't been measured since my ultrasound before surgery four weeks ago so they also did measurements to make sure the baby is growing.  Our baby measured in at 2lbs 5 ounces right on schedule!  The brain is still continuing to rotate forward and round out in shape.  I will be 28 weeks on Sunday which is a huge milestone in the neonatal world.  My next big milestone is making it to 30 weeks.  Just need to keep that baby cooking.  I also got the green light to go off strict bed rest.  I can now move about but will need to be in my wheelchair if I am on my feet for more than 10 minutes at a time.  The strict bed rest really hasn't been that bad because I'm still recovering from surgery.  HGTV has kept me company along with crocheting and a lot of reading!  I've also started some Christmas shopping lists because when I get home there will be no time for that, so thankful for online shopping!

This weekend is another support person switch weekend.  Jeff & the boys will be swapping with my mom.  Hopefully they are able to get in and out of Haverford!  The boys and Jeff will be here for two weeks and then switch again with my mom the weekend of October 10th.  My support people are starting their two week rotations and we also have some visitors scheduled for weekends in October which will hopefully make the time go fast.   

Thank you to everyone who has been feeding and entertaining the boys in Zeeland while I'm out here in Philadelphia.  It truly takes a village to raise a child, and we are so thankful for our village.  I'll have my hubby blog again after all his traveling adventures.

Thank you for reading & following our journey!

Choosing Joy in Philly-
Shawna 

26 Weeks/5 Day

Almost another week down!!  We've had a busy few days in Haverford/Philadelphia since our last post....well, most of us.  Shawna is still on lockdown as she's trying her hardest to keep her butt down and feet up but that is getting more and more difficult as she's feeling better and better.  Better enough (yes, not good English) that she has tried to wean her way off of the powerful pain meds that she's been prescribed and lower down the dosage to standard Tylenol.
Before we get into the health report, I'll fill you in on the haps in Haverford of the past few days.  I haven't had to cook a single dinner as people from some local churches and friends of the Hall's (the folks home we are staying in) have provided us with some VERY tasty meals.
Sunday: Janet actually left us with a bean soup which was excellent.
Monday: Mexican cornbread casserole
Tuesday: Chicken casserole
Wednesday: Ziti
Thursday: Spaghetti
Not sure what we'll do tonight but we have chili, steak, and a few lasagna's in the freezer all as options. 
Thank goodness for these meals because my menu basically includes grilled cheese, nachos, cereal, peanut butter and jelly, etc.  Yes, dad's you can all relate!!
Papa Bob made his way out Tuesday night after a few days of business in Nashville.  He's been lots of the entertainment for the boys as they've made numerous walks through the backyard to the train station to watch the trains.  We thought those were great until today when the landscaper/yardkeeper informed us that there are lots of ticks in the woods.  Great!!!  So we'll be having Ellis Island-type medical inspections tonight during bath time (got to get my US History in the blog!!). 
The three of them also went to the Philadelphia Zoo yesterday giving Shawna and I some time to relax and get some things done around the Hall's (well, I had to do my jockstrapping and keep Shawna from doing anything).  They left around 9:00am and at 1:30pm they still hadn't returned.  We didn't know if we should be excited about this or starting to get nervous that we'd turn on the tv and see Myles and Peyton chasing some monkey's or tigers in the cages on a "BREAKING NEWS" story.  Fortunately, they made it home eventually in perfect time for them to crash for nice afternoon snooze....Myles and Peyton too.
It was actually the perfect morning for them to be out of the house.  For all of you fantasy footballers, you know you've got to get those line-ups set on Thursday's before the Thursday night game!!  So, this gave Shawna and I some extra time to do some research and put our heads together and make absolutely no changes to our line-ups!!  She was a happy gal this morning as we woke up to a Peyton Manning victory with her starting him at QB...how couldn't one of us have him?  Pretty obvious choice, plus I had the Broncos kicker (9 pts.) we our household was very pleased with what the Broncos were able to produce...plus my John Elway addiction still has yet to subside from my childhood days so the Broncos are still near and dear to my heart!
We've kept up with our favorite morning talk show....Live with Kelly and Michael.  We now feel like they're quickly becoming part of our family.  They have helped fill our time in the mornings as well as the boys exploring the house and yard, numerous cups of coffee from the Hall's Keurig (sorry, Hall's, but we've put the Keurig through about a years worth of typical use as I've usually arisen early to get lesson plans done and sent to school so I've become even more addicted to coffee...Dunkin Donuts hazelnut...than I was before the trip), as well as other activities of playing with lots of the toys people have graciously given us for the boys, going to a local park, or just lounging around.

 

 

 

 
We made our way downtown to CHOP today for her weekly checkup where everything checked out well.  The docs and nurses seem very encouraged by everything they see:

1. Incision on Shawna's stomach is healing really well (she actually found a picture on-line of a mom at 34 weeks who posted a picture of her incision and was happy about the way it looked...yikes, Shawna's looked like that one about a day after the surgery...I'd post it but none of you probably want to see that).
2. The incision on Shawna's uterus looked to be healing very well on the ultrasound.
3. The amniotic fluid around the baby looked good on the ultrasound.
4. The baby's brain is making more progress as it moves back to it's natural position allowing the fluids that go from the brain and travel through the spine to the rest of the body to free as they should to allow for normal development (this was the main reason we opted to have the surgery done before birth)!!!
5. The baby's heart checks out very strong and healthy.
6. Shawna's blood pressure was low...and this was after a Pumpkin Spice from Starbucks!!  This is a good thing as a high heart rate/blood pressure/stress level of her would encourage the baby to want to get the heck out of the uterus.
7. And as you're all probably holding your breathe for, I am doing great.  Starting to prepare for the week back in Zeeland.
We're looking forward to Janet's arrival back in Philly tomorrow morning as we overlap for a day in our next transition from jockstrap to bra for supporting Shawna.  She's been a pretty easy patient for me, hopefully she does the same for Janet!!
We're starting to try to explore more options for housing after the 27th when we move out of Haverford.  We've got some irons in the fire but were excited to hear that the chances of being in the Ronald McDonald House right by CHOP (1 mile) sometime during the first week of October are VERY good. 
Well, signing off from Haverford.  Thanks for all of the support from all of you.  As a family friend who has had experience with the health issues of a child of theirs said to my mom that angels would appear all over the place in our lives during this journey, she's been right on as people/angels have stepped up in support of us from all angles/corners and other unexpected places on an almost daily basis.
Have a good night....we hope this picture happens again in a few hours!!  Go Dux tonight and Go Cats' tomorrow (probably don't want to try to get a hold of Bob or me tomorrow between 12:30 and 3:30...we're keeping our fingers crossed that we can find the game...I think the Hall's get ESPN 3!!!).

CHOOSING JOY

-Jeff

S Day + 14

The boy and I have reoriented ourselves back to Philadelphia with a full day here under our belts.  It was great to get back together as a whole family after spending about a week apart.

 

 

 

 





 Our odyssey to find Mommy in Philadelphia started with a fairly early morning in which the Carlson side of the family made a trip to Chicago.  Chad and Kathi dropped Bryce off at our house in Zeeland while they went to Brielle's first recreation soccer game of the season.  I figured that after surviving a week of me and my two boys, I could easily handle getting Bryce, Peyton, and Myles loaded up in our van before picking up Grandma Sue and Papa Bob for our drive to Chicago.  Wrong!!!  It took me an astonishing 25 minutes just to get those three rugrats in the van.  It's like they were scheming against me, and I actually thought things went pretty smoothly.  Eventually we made it to Holland, filled up with gas, and were on the road to Chicago an hour later....efficient!!  Fortunately, for the three adults in the car at the beginning of the trip, we got to choose our seats and the only seat (if you even want to consider it a seat...it was more just a small space where you could lean forward without resting back) left was between the Bryce and Peyton's car seats in the back.....YEAH FOR AUNT B!!!
We spend the morning enjoying (well, most of us....anyone who knows Bob knows he likes a warm and balmy 85 and sunny) the 55 degrees and drizzle at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, where Chad, Kathi, and Brielle met back up with us.

 

The main event was the Northwestern v. Eastern Illinois football game in the afternoon.  After a quick bite to eat at....drumroll....Burger King....yes, we're the Carlson's....that's how we roll, and some successful shopping for some more, uneeded but definitely important, purple Northwestern gear (I say successful not because we made some purchases but because we did it without Papa Bob trying on clothes by removing his shirt down to the bare skin in the middle of the store...not that that's ever happened before).  We all made the trip north to Evanston (God's Country) to watch the Wildcats defeat the Panthers in a 41-0 nailbiter.  I think the kiddos were more entertained by anything and everything but the football game and were ready to leave by halftime, although the weather had turned and we were able to enjoy the low 60 degrees and sunshine.  I think we all made parent fails by telling the kids we were:
1. staying in a hotel, and
2. it had a swimming pool.
So, obviously, they were going to be ready to leave the game before the opening kickoff.
We made it through the middle of the 3rd quarter, moved quickly back to the cars (some of us more quickly than others as a one little Carlson needed to find a potty and was adamant he couldn't hold it until the hotel...Thank goodness for Dunkin' Donuts!).  A quick drive toward O'Hare Airport and the Embassy Suites got us there with plenty of time to take advantage of happy hour (some of us more than others....I'll admit, it had been a long week) before strapping on the swim suits and taking a dip in the pool.  Most kids usually are okay without a full day of action and no naps but Peyton and Myles (especially Myles) still take significant naps so a day of this magnitude without one got them to go down pretty easily.
We woke up pretty early to get some breakfast at the hotel and get to the airport.  Shawna braved traveling by air with the boys for spring break last year and broke them in for me so there was no fear of getting to the airport, in fact it was quite the opposite....PLUS....they knew they were going to see Mommy in Philadelphia. 

We, fortunately, left the hotel plenty early on the hotel shuttle bus and arrived at the airport with over 2 hours to make it to our flight.   Peyton was AWESOME (well they both were) as he carried his own backpack the whole time in the security line that rivaled the Great Wall of China and moved with about the efficiency of Eastern Illinois offense on Saturday.  We did make it, though, with plenty of time at the terminal to watch the other airplanes and get super excited for our flight.

The flight proved again that we've got some people of a higher power looking out for us in this whole journey.  Traveling with Myles and Peyton I went to the gate and asked the man working if it was at all possible if we all sit together (I actually thought it would be kind of funny to bring the boys on the flight and put them next to some people, give them their backpacks, and say something like, "Thanks for watching my kid....the diapers are in the front pocket...I'll be up in first class.  As long as his loose bowels don't kick in, I think you'll be fine.").  He messed around on his computer together and got us all seats together.  I thanked him once then and wanted to run off the plane and thank him again after we found our seats as he gave us the front 3 seats with all of that extra leg room where I could stretch out and we had more than enough room in front of us to empty out their backpacks and all of the entertainment ammo we had packed (books, dinosaurs, candy, blankets, etc.).  We were off the ground in Chicago and touching down in Philly before either boy even had the chance to get fussy and/or antsy.

 

 Our timing was impeccable for our swap of support (The Bra for the Jockstrap) for Shawna as Janet pulled up to the airport at the exact time we were walking outside.  Our trip back to Haverford was pretty uneventful as Myles fell asleep for a much needed nap (which lasted from 2:30 in the car until 7:00 when I had to wake him up!!...Peyton also crashed in the borrowed house and his new bedroom from about 3:30 until I woke him up at 7).  It was great to see how excited the boys (and me) were to see Shawna and Grandma Janet.  In fact, Myles screamed for Janet for a good 5 minutes after we left her at the airport...Oh how they love their Grandma's. 
Shawna has been busy, or as busy as bed rest allows, in Haverford.  Her constant checking and inquiring about NFL games yesterday tells me she's put in a little more time and research into her fantasy football team than she's letting on.  The boys and I came inside today from swimming to find her working on her Spanish on Rosetta Stone and she finished her first crocheted blanked (she just learned how to crochet last week).

We had a wonderful dinner tonight that was made for us by a friend of a friend of a friend who lives in West Philly.  Amazing.  People making meals for us that don't even know us or have never met us.  I am driving out to a church Wednesday morning to pick up some meals that have been prepared for us by the church of a friend of a friend of a friend.  Once again, a congregation who we've never met is reaching out and extending a helping hand to make our experience as good as it can be.  Once again, people are good. 
Shawna is still feeling better by the day, yet slowly.  After the first day with boys being around, she was a little sore this morning but her scar is looking and feeling much better.  She was able to make her way, gingerly, down to the pool to cheer Peyton and me on in our jumps off the diving board and was able to sit with us outside for dinner on the porch...our first family meal all together, sitting around a table, in quite some time.  It was great!  Hey, sometimes its the little things, right!!
We're looking forward to another fabulous day together in Haverford tomorrow.  I publish this blog with the Eagles having struggled in their first half against the Falcons....I look forward to experiencing the Philadelphia fans and their rumored brutality towards their professional sports teams when they lose!
Good night from Haverford/Philly!!

CHOOSING JOY

-Jeff

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

S Day + 12

Today the travels begin to re-unite our family in Philadelphia!!!  Months ago we'd planned a family weekend trip to Chicago to watch my Northwestern Wildcats play Eastern Illinois University in football.  If you haven't picked up on it yet, I'm a big NU fan and with my brother Chad having taught a few years at EIU, it seemed like a natural fit for the Carlson side of our family to make a trip out of this weekend to see the game.  So, this morning Peyton, Myles, Bryce (Chad and Kathi's youngest), Grandma Sue, Papa Bob, Aunt Bethany (we're meeting her somewhere on her way from Ann Arbor), and I are driving to the Lincoln Park Zoo and then to the football game.  Chad, Kathi, and Brielle will meet us at the zoo after watching Brielle, the families lone hope, so far, to be the next Alex Morgan or Karly Lloyd and maybe our only hope (if we have a girl, chances are probably not great for her to be a World Cup Soccer superstar...that's okay, maybe she'll enjoy tractors as much as her brothers do and will be a diesel mechanic - "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy" will hopefully be her favorite song!!) play in her rec. soccer game.  I feel badly for whoever has to sit between Peyton and Bryce in their car seats in the back...guess why I volunteered to drive our van!!!!
We've had a VERY busy week here in Zeeland and capped it off last night by having dinner with Chad and Kath and getting to the Hope volleyball match.

The boys really enjoy watching volleyball (must run in the jeans - or spandex in that case - remember I married a volleyball player - and I'm sure the spandex didn't hurt in getting me to go watch Shawna play at Hope!!).  I think we're packed up for the trip to Chicago, where we'll stay overnight before heading to the airport in the morning and flying to Philly.  The boys are PUMPED!!  We've got their new John Deere backpacks full of entertainment for the flight (thanks to Mike and Emily Aldrich....you guys are the best) but I'm not sure they'll need anything more than just being on the airplane and a few suckers and M&M's.
I'm sure you all just read Shawna's blog from last night!!  Great news about the babies brain already re-adjusting.  What a relief and reassurance that we made the right decision to go through with the surgery as this was the main reason we wanted the procedure done.  Thank God, as well, for a healthy Shawna, besides the blood clot.  Hopefully you were able to pick up on a bit more of the medical terminology and lingo from Shawna's blog.  I get lost with all of that stuff.  Just ask Chevron Fickel, a science teacher who I teach with, who had to correct me numerous times yesterday when I was trying to explain the surgery to him and probably mixed up the terms "fetus", "uturis", and "placenta" numerous times (see, I can't even spell them write...just kidding...right).  We're approaching 37, slowly but surely.  Speaking of 37, check out the picture I was sent by the Hamilton High School Boy's Tennis Team (I have been the varsity boys tennis coach at Zeeland West the past 5 years and have had to take a sort of leave of absence from that for obvious reasons).

Look at the numbers on the scorecards....how cool is that!
Shawna and Janet were visited by her Aunt Peggy and cousin Jessie yesterday and had a great time catching up with them. 

As you can see, Shawna can get up a little bit to enjoy the great porch at the Haverford digs and get some fresh air but is sticking to her doctors (and Jockstraps) orders of strict bedrest.  Just a little over a week of that before we can maybe start to het out and about a bit more in her hot wheels (wheelchair).  Hoping for a great weekend and looking forward to getting the Carlson Clan back together for a week in PA!!
Go Cats!!

CHOOSING JOY (from Zeeland for the last time for a week)

-Jeff

First check up at CHOP 25 weeks, 5 days

This morning was my first check up at CHOP.  We drove the "backway" to the hospital and got a cultural experience going through West Philadelphia.  Its amazing how fast neighborhoods change out here. 

At every check up I will do the normal pregnancy check up things, blood pressure, urine sample to check protein/sugars & weight check.  I also have an ultrasound at every appointment.  The ultrasound is checking the ventricles of the baby to carefully monitor for hydrocephalus.  They are also checking for membrane separation and leaking of amniotic fluid into the abdominal cavity which are both indicators of pre-term labor.  Everything on my ultrasound today looks great.  My incision on the uterus is healing nicely but you can definitely see the stitches on the ultrasound.  I had the tegaderm removed from the outside incision which was wonderful.  I do have a blood clot by the uterus which is typically absorbed but they will continue to keep a close eye on it.  The BEST news was that the baby's brain is already starting to reverse from the herniated hindbrain and beginning to show a more "round" shape.   Music to our ears!  On the way home from the hospital I had a slight blonde moment and put the wrong address into my GPS.  My mom and I took the roundabout way home but we got to drive through Valley Forge, its beautiful, and I need to take my hubby back there this fall #historybuff.

I am still on strict bed rest which means I can do a very quick shower and I can walk to the bathroom.  That is the only time I can be on my feet.  I need to be sitting with my feet up or laying down at all times.  I usually am partially reclined attempting to crochet while watching HGTV.  Poor Jeff, I have so many things I need to do our house after staying here in Haverford & watching HGTV.  I will begin my Spanish with Rosetta Stone soon.  I am still quite sore and tire easily so its easy to follow the bed rest rules at the moment.   

We had a fun evening as my Aunt Peggy and cousin Jessie drove over from New York today for a visit.  We sat on our porch and had a wonderful time catching up.

Thank you for reading & have a great weekend!

Joyfully,
Shawna

S Day + 10

Well, as you all can imagine it has been a busy few days since our family started out on our, what we plan on it being, our schedule for the next few months.  Shawna has been spending the week at our new digs in Haverford with Janet and I have been back in Zeeland with the boys.  There has not been much to report over the last few days but we hope to have a baby update tomorrow.
Part of the regiment for post-op scheduling is a weekly appointment at CHOP with ultrasounds and other checks on Shawna and the baby.  If the docs seem to think their is a problem at all they would be likely to admit Shawna to the hospital for the remainder of the pregnancy, which may not be the best situation but, as we found out, the care their is second to none and....drum roll please....gave me some great material to blog with!!!
So I'll do an update for all of you on the state of affairs of the Carlson's individually, starting from youngest to oldest:

Myles: He was pumped to get back to Miss Jen's house on Tuesday and see all of his friends.  We're getting the itch to get his little booty on the toilet to potty train and as you could see earlier in the week with his "accident" on the blanket of which he told me about, he's darn ready to be trained but just doesn't want to.  We've learned to become patient with him on these developmental things, though, as he didn't walk until he was 18 months.  Our doctor even confirmed with us her thoughts on that matter well before that that he was very capable of walking, just lazy!  We have worried a bit about the boys and their ability to handle this whole situation and understand it but today proved to me that Myles is right in his normal ways.  I had to wake him up from his afternoon catnap at 5:30 so we could go to dinner at Stein's house and when I checked on he and Peyton around 10:00pm tonight he was definitely instigating the tractor pull in the dark on the floor between the boys bed.  Great, little sleep for the boys tonight, I guess.  Sorry Grandma Sue (she's watching them tomorrow).  This is after I thought they'd go down easily after running about 30 laps around the house while putting on a show for a few buddies that stopped over (I think every time Myles ran around the circle they make from living room to living room he'd sort of smile at Colton and shout, "Hey Colty!!"). 

Peyton: Also loved going back to Ms. Jen's and seeing all of his friends.  He was a bit disappointed he couldn't play in her new sandbox because of the rain on Tuesday, but just a head's up Jen, usually when the two boys come inside after playing in our sandbox, one or both has a head and shoes full of sand.  He is overly excited to fly on an airplane this weekend to Philadelphia.  He's heard about Mommy's new house and really wants to see it (plus I slipped up and told him there is a pool in the backyard) and is already showing signs of disappointed that "do we HAVE to come back to our old house?"  I don't quite know how much he does understand the situation but about twice each day he is asking questions about Mommy and the baby and that he hopes they feel better soon.  It's almost as if he's got a 6th sense about him with this whole scenario, like he knows that if he can be more helpful at home and playing with Myles in a positive way (well, most of the time) makes my life much easier and allows me to do stuff around that house that, I had an idea Shawna took care of but never have realized the full extent of, need to get done in terms of daily upkeep.  He's my assistant coach in this whole thing and doing a heckuva job!! 

Me: Getting back to school has been a breath of fresh air and produced a sense of normalcy.  It has been a great reminder to me of how blessed I am to work at a place like Zeeland.  I cannot start to tell you all about the true compassion and care my coworkers and students have shown me over the past few days.  It has only affirmed my belief even more about the fact that life is so much better and more fun when you are surrounded by great people.  Words cannot describe how thankful I am for the individuals that I am honored to called my colleagues, coworkers, and friends.  I miss Shawna terribly, so don't get me wrong or misinterpret my joy of being back in Zeeland, as being a single Dad the past few days has shown me truly how much she does for our family.  I am able to spend a few days each week in the summer with our boys while Shawna works but she always is home by 5:30pm.  Not any more.  This whole experience has given me a greater appreciation for so many things, one of which is now more for single, full-time working, parents.  I'm absolutely loving the time I am getting to spend with our boys but holy smokes, there is NO downtime until they go down to bed at (Shawna, please don't read this part...) 9:30ishpm.  That's not because I let them stay up and dink around but because with al there is to do, that's as early I've been able to get them in bed.  By then, having a beer to settle down doesn't even sound good as I'm exhausted and just want to get some sleep myself.  Keep in mind, I haven't yet cooked a meal this week as our generous friends and family have either dropped off meals or had us over and Sue has watched the boys the past two days.  Single parents...kudos to you. 

Shawna: The real trooper for sure.  Her and Janet, as previously mentioned, moved into a house so generously vacated for us in Haverford, PA for most of the month of September.  She is making process but that's exactly what this whole thing is...a process.  For any of you that know her she is not one to sit around and take life at a snails pace.  So, the thought of bed rest and then actually doing it have not been easy.  All seems to be going well but considering the severity of the surgery, the healing process is a long one and at times, very painful.  We'll have more information on the healing of her and the baby tomorrow after he visit to CHOP.  She's quickly becoming new besties with Kelly and Michael at 9am (personally, that was one of the highlights of my stay with Shawna in the hospital for a week....they're pretty entertaining for any of you that don't work mornings...or do work and have access to a tv).  Her and Janet are crocheting together and by the looks of some photos, making some great progress.  Her facetime sessions via cell phone with the boys each evening are also very entertaining to witness as the boys love to see and chat with their Hot Momma.  John and I are also getting a bit worried as it sounds like the ladies are getting plenty of new ideas for home renovations or updates from the beautiful home their staying at.  Looks like my honey-do list just may have become a full-time second job for the next few months!!!!  Although feeling better, Shawna is still quite sore from the surgery and gets worn out pretty quickly from getting up to shower and use the facilities.  Admittedly, it has made life a bit dull not being able to do much and needing long naps just to recover from the little movement she is able to do.  This has made it much more bearable for her, though, to be out there, a bit isolated, with just Janet or me as her ability to entertain guests is probably still a few weeks off as the process calls for so much sitting and trying to relax for the time being. 

Thanks, again, to all of you for your thoughts, prayers, cards, letters, emails, texts, gifts, and kind words and encouragement.  We know we're not the first family to go through difficult situations and sure won't be the last but we cannot imagine families doing it without the community around them that we are blessed to have.  We wish that all people could see from our eyes the generosity that we've been given.  It is truly amazing. 

Lastly, crazy story.  Today, in my 2nd hour AP Government and Politics class, we were going around the room while taking attendance and I asked each student to, when their name was called, tell us their lucky number and why it was their lucky number.  Sort of another get to know each other activity.  I hadn't done it with my 1st hour class as it is a different course and we did a different exercise.  No joke, but the first student I called on said her lucky number was .......37.  I almost filled my pants.  It wasn't a week or so ago that we were so focused on 37 but about how obscure a number that was that no one would ever have it as their lucky number but that we were going to be hoping and praying that the baby stays put until 37 weeks, giving it it's best chances for a normal life and sure enough, 37 is the lucky number of the first student I ask.  Hopefully that is a sign of great things to come.

From Zeeland but wishing for Philadelphia

CHOOSING JOY

-Jeff

S Day + 7

I'll admit, this was a tough day for me.  Leaving Shawna in New Jersey/Philadelphia for a week was much more difficult than I thought it was going to be.  It didn't help that as I put Peyton and Myles to bed just a few minutes ago (which does mean we made it home!!!) Peyton, with glossy eyes, said, "I feel bad for Mommy.  I want her to feel better."  Man, knife to the heart!. 
Having talked/texted/facetimed with Shawna all day, though, it was reassuring to me that we are attacking this situation head on and doing it the best way we feel we can.  She's in good hands with Janet and I'm convinced their time together in Philly will only bring them closer together.  Shoot, they already started crocheting today and knowing them, they'll find plenty to do and will survive just fine without John and I over the next few months.  Hearing that they were able to spend some time sitting outside today and enjoying some sunshine while still hosting a healthy baby will put me to bed much easier tonight (or will it be the 5am start to our day with having to be "on" being the driver or the waiter for the two rugrats in the back seat for 11 hours).
So, seeing that I am blogging tonight should tell you John and I survived.  I was thinking a 12 hour van ride with the boys and John would have given me plenty of great blogging material but it was a very uneventful day.  Here's how it went:
5am - Wake up call/shake by John....the dude is amazing.  He never sets an alarm, just wakes up when he knows he has to be up.  Shawna woke up to say goodbye to her boys for a week, but as I peeked in the conjoining room to get a few last minutes items, I noticed that Janet was still sound asleep (I know she loves John with all of her heart but now I can see that after 25+ years of marriage, not seeing your spouse for a week may not be quite as big a deal as it was for Shawna and me).
5:05am - Van is loaded up with boys still in their PJ's (didn't get out of them until dinner at Papa Bob and Grandma Sue's house around 5pm...life with Dad!).  I needed a coffee so we quickly stopped at Dunkin' Donuts.  I got my coffee, a Diet Coke for John, and a sprinkled, chocolate donut for each of the boys.  There were two young ladies ahead of me in line at DD so I thought I'd strike up some conversation.  They had been up until 3am at the music festival in Philadelphia and were headed back to St. Louis.  They both looked like they were just hit by a Mac Truck and considering the journey that was ahead of them and the one that waited for me....I felt pretty good about standing in my shoes. 
5:06am - Yes, not one minute into Daddy time and the boys were covered in chocolate frosting from their donuts.  I can guarantee this won't be the last time this happens but it took us a total of 6 minutes to create our first mess.  The last mess came just 6 minutes before they went to bed...photo to come at the end of the blog!!
5:15am - I quickly realized that I may have been driving by myself.  It being so early in the morning the traffic was non-existent but I was still very focused while navigating my way through some of the quick turns and twists of downtown Philly.  When I finally was able to relax, I peeked to my right and in the rear-view mirror and found 3 sleepers.  Not surprised as the previous few days were spent on the go, mainly in the pool at the hotel, swimming with the boys and John just being John.  I was glad he was shutting his eyes (and possibly waking up anyone that lived within 50 yards of the highway with his snoring) and sleeping as I knew he'd be driving some later on in the day. 
6:45am - Just finishing up the second time through the new Brad Paisley CD, there started to be some life in the van.  The boys all awoke and were in great moods.  If you've ever driven with two children in the back seat, the jobs of the adults, at least in the Carlson van, are very well defined: the driver focuses on driving and the passenger is at the mercy of the requests of the boys in the back so it's crucial that the passenger either be very savvy at finding distractions for the boys that keep them occupied for long periods of time or be physically flexible and willing to turn around in very awkward positions to reach toys, fix dvd players, serve snacks, etc.  Well, not sure that John or I am great at either.  Fortunately for me, the boys were much more needy during my time behind the wheel!!  John impressed me with his flexibility...I think he's a closet YOGA enthusiast.  In fact, I bet right now he's in the living room at 7670 Bliss Rd. in his yoga pants and tank top doing some serious yoga exercises (great mental pic!!).
8:00am - We held off on DVDs for as long as possible as our boys don't like wearing headphones too much so all of the passengers are at the mercy of listening to the DVD that has been chosen by the boys.  They chose Shark Tale first, which isn't too bad and actually makes me chuckle.  No one seemed to be getting hungry and Peyton must have the bladder of an oil tanker because he only peed a little bit and it was at our ONLY stop on the whole trip.  I was able to drive until we needed gas just outside of Youngstown, Ohio.  I really didn't want to stop near that place and buy anything as some of the tax dollars probably goes to Youngstown St. where they had the audacity/ignorance/whatever you want to call it to hire Jim Tressel as the president of the university.  Yes, the former Ohio St. football coach who got the boot for his players following NO rules and various recruiting violations.  A man of integrity, for sure...and they hire him to be the PRESIDENT of the school. 
10:30am - John took over the driving  responsibilities and the rest of us sank back into our seats with some snacks from the gas station (Peyton - Gatorade and cheese stick/Myles - juice box and circle crackers/John - Diet Coke and popcorn/Me - Bai fruit drink and turkey, egg, cheese breakfast sandwich...not going to lie here, but the boys only had a little snack from the gas station as we'd been feeding them an assortment of candy and treats to keep them happy all morning...I had a quick Dad-fail by leaving the bad with all of the junk food in it in plain view of them so denying we had any was a lost cause).  We figured we'd be stopping again a few times as the first chunk of driving is usually the longest and the easiest but little did we know that the two boys were prepped and ready to make John and my lives easy.  I had just put in Paw Patrol...little did I know we'd still be watching it 4.5 hours later when pulling into John and Janet's driveway in Lake Odessa!  Yep, only one stop the whole trip with NO complaining from the boys.  They were incredible travelers!  Both took short naps (see photos below).

Great Quotes from the trip:
Myles - "Papa, what's those in your ears?"
John - "Those are my hearing aids."
Myles - "What?"

Peyton (about 20 miles into Michigan) - "Where are we going?"
Jeff - "To Papa and Grandma's house."
Peyton - "I think Papa should walk home."

Jeff (11:30am) - "Is anyone hungry for some lunch?"
Peyton - "Yeah."
Jeff - "What would you like?"
Peyton - "I think I should have some cream for lunch!"
Surprisingly I did not give in and appease him!!

So, we actually made it back home to Zeeland in just over 11 hours.  I figured it would be AT LEAST a 13 hour trip.  I need to thank John for all of his help with the boys and taking the whole second shift driving. 
We were able to make it to my parents for dinner and celebrate Chad's birthday with his family.  Not only did we get home with enough time for that, we were able to get home, unpack, and take some much needed baths.  Back to my mention of the last mess that occurred just 6 minutes before going to bed....see the photo below.  Here's the quote that goes with it:
"Daddy, look what I just did!"

That's NOT a tootsie roll!!

CHOOSING JOY (from Zeeland)

-Jeff

Back to school tomorrow!!

S Day + 6

This blog is in preparation of what could be a wild 12-20 hours tomorrow.  I'm leaving John and I a few hours leeway as our drive home with Peyton and Myles tomorrow could take on the course of Odysseus journey (that's the English teacher in me!!).  Hopefully we don't run into any Cyclops', Sirens (although in the movie I think one of them was a young Vivica A. Fox, so that wouldn't be too bad), a whirlpool, etc.  The worst may be just some tight cops who have no sympathy for two grown men traveling cross country too fast because the two and four year old in the back seat are kicking and screaming!! 
Our last day together as a family until next week Sunday was well spent.  Shawna's feeling the baby doing exercises in her stomach which can be painful, but once again that's a good sign.  Her worst pain is from the tegaderm (a clear bandage-type adhesive that protects the incision and doesn't allow her skin to move) that won't come off until her first follow up appointment next Friday.
John and I did take a warm-up for our journey tomorrow with the boys by hopping on the commuter line that runs into Philadelphia from throughout New Jersey.  Not that I was surprised, but in my mind I felt we navigated the whole thing pretty well.  The only concern I had was when we got off at, what I thought was the City Hall stop and it was deserted.  Ooops, City Hall of Camden, NJ, not Philadelphia.  We had a debate as to whether we'd rather be stranded on a mountain side with the chance of running into a hungry mountain lion or grizzly bear protecting her cubs or being stranded in Camden, NJ at night without a weapon.  We both chose the first option!!  That's probably very unfair of me.  Actually, the areas of NJ we've seen have not been terribly flattering but the people here have been very hospitable and accommodating.  We've had numerous churches and people in NJ who through mutual friends or ours reach out and coordinate meals and such for us while we stay.  The Garden State has grown many prosperous plants for us!!
While away I'm sure Shawna and Janet had some time to relax without the boys and navigate how they're going to best navigate they're time together in the next few months.  John and I are a bit worried that they're getting excited to get rid of us for a week.  I'm afraid I might get a phone call mid-week from Shawna suggesting that I stay in Zeeland to keep up on my teaching and keeping things around the house in order if I could find a way to get the boys out to her for some time!!  If anybody knows any good carpet cleaners/house cleaners, please let me know so I can maybe pull a fast one and make the house look quite kept upon Shawna's return in a few months. 
The hotel has been, again, a happening place today with the music festival happening in Philly this weekend.  A few young ladies told Janet they paid an Uber driver $190 round trip.  My goodness, it is about a 25 minute trip, tops, one way.  So, there is another career path (along with the INSOMNIACOOKIES) that I'm now considering if the teaching gig at Zeeland doesn't pan out for some reason.
We spent the evening organizing and reorganizing all of our luggage and switching things from one car to the other as we try to plan for having clothes, toys, etc. out here for the long haul while getting what we need back to Zeeland, as well.  Our return trips will not always be by vehicle and, at least I, don't need to make journeys through airports with two boys any more difficult with the added stress of checked luggage, than it already is.  Probable is that I have no excuses for travel plans over the next 3 months with the boys as Shawna flew to Florida last spring break with the boys and all of their luggage, rented a car, and spent two days and one night in Daytona Beach, before journeying to New Smyrna Beach for another 2 days without me as she allowed me to go to the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four in Indianapolis.  So if I have any horror stories to tell about my travels, they won't be on the blog because Shawna will read them and tell me to suck it up....just keep anything I tell you face to face between me and you. 
I'm already realizing the time with the boys will be fun for all of us, especially them.  I just gave them Twix bars in bed...yes it's 10:30pm and we are departing at 5am.  I think that's the Bob in me!  On the flip side, it will be tough to be away from Mommy for a week but getting back to school and the boys back to see their friends at Ms. Jen's Jen's Gems DayCare will be good.  The three of us are flying back out to Philadelphia next Sunday (we haven't told the boys we're flying yet because that's all they'll ask to do all week) so I'm already counting down the days.  The adventures begin!!
Did I mention in last nights blog that Northwestern beat Stanford in football yesterday?
Hey, we've almost made it to 25!!  37 is just around the corner.  There is a light at the end of the tunnel. 
I look forward to blogging tomorrow night after the quest home.  Blind leading the blind. 

Hopefully the last blog from Cherry Hill...although we have reservations here for the last few days of September during the Pope's visit but hopefully we'll be in our 2nd permanent living situation by then.

If for some reason you try to contact John or I tomorrow and neither of us respond, don't panic and think we got into an accident or something...just figure one of us is driving and the other is trying to avoid WWIII in the backseat between Peyton and Myles because a serious confrontation has occurred as one wants Bob the Builder and the other wants Paw Patrol on the DVD player or something even more serious than that!!

CHOOSING JOY

-Jeff

S Day + 5

I'll just preface this blog with the fact that our stay at Holiday Inn Cherry Hill has been great with all of its comforts and amenities but the internet here is slower than our boys willingness to go to bed.  So, there will be no pictures as a result as it takes FOREVER for them to download off of emails and onto our computers. 
Well, our first full day with the boys here was tremendous, although I was extra tired this morning and really sore.  Myles chose to sleep in bed with me last night which I couldn't turn down and I can't imagine there is anyone else on the face of this earth that demands more bed space and kicks more than he does.  I had to turn my back to him to get him to sleep as I was getting a facial exam from him and then in his sleep his knees were needling my back all night while his legs kicked and kicked.  I was also allotted about one fifth of the bed.  All things considered, I guess I got more sleep than should have been expected.  Guess who is laying next to me right now....great!
We had quite the spread for breakfast after making a shopping trip across the street to Weighmans Grocery Store.  Muffins, bagels, cinnamon rolls, fresh fruit, etc.  Fortunately the hotel accommodated us with conjoining rooms so space isn't too much of an issue and that gives us access to two fridges...college dorm size.  I knew that would be plenty of room as my friends and roommates were always able to fit PLENTY of goodies in those fridges!!
Janet did purchase a few, oh how do I put it....loosening products for Shawna to keep her on the path to bowel normalcy.  Prune juice, pear juice, pears, etc.  Besides that, she (Shawna) is feeling better and better each day.  Still not too quick on her feet like her libero days at Hope, but she'll be diving around in no time or at least after this kiddo decides it wants to face the world and battle with it's two older siblings. 
I think we've spent more time in the hotels two pools than we have out of them.  Peyton is becoming a fish while Myles just follows suit.  They were nice enough to get out for a lunch break and nap while my Northwestern Wildcats took down the heavily favored Stanford Cardinal.  I'm just glad that I'm not the one who has to keep my body relaxed as much as possible because if I was pregnant today during that game, my anxiety level would have put me into labor.  So, officially, our new baby is 1-0 for it's Wildcat career.  Let's keep that going.  I know it hasn't been born yet, but the nurses were telling us that many of the spina bifida families that opt for the surgery we had celebrate the child's "butt birthday" as it's butt or backside has been exposed and born, in a sense.
Another count your blessings moment came again tonight while spending our 3rd session in the pool.  After taking the boys swimming in the afternoon and playing monkey in the middle for about two hours in the pool (rumor has it that John had to be the monkey the WHOLE time which left him laid up in bed for a good half an hour complaining of not feeling good and dizziness...remember this is with his daughter laying on bed rest in the room next door who just got her midsection ripped open and due to meds can hardly poop and felt like throwing up for about 3 days straight...not a whole lot of sympathy coming from her) John and Janet took a more than well-deserved evening out for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory just across the street (not going to be good if we have to move back into this hotel for any extended period of time as I tried the Red Velvet Cheesecake they brought back to the hotel and it was unbelievable...for those of you that may not know, Red Velvet cake is a staple in the Carlson family since it's introduction from an old girlfriend of my dad's), the boys and I were splashing around when in came in a middle aged couple with their daughter, Brittany.  Brittany, from my estimate, was of early high school age and was completely wheel chair bound.  They wheeled her into the pool and carried her out and in to the pool.  Brittany had some obvious cognitive impairments to go along with her severe physical impairments.  The family is on a vacation from Syracuse, NY and took her to the ocean for the first time in her life today.  She was almost shaking with excitement when she was telling me about it.  We all stayed in the pool while I was able to watch my 4 year swim on his own with a few other kids and hold my 2 year old who will be swimming on his own VERY soon while Brittany's dad did the same thing with her and has no hopes for her ever to be swimming on her own.  All things were, once again, put back into perspective for me.  Her parents will never be able to enjoy watching her swim on her own or make the same "awesome job swimming, Peyton" comments that I was making. 
I also ran into another CHOP family in the laundry room of the hotel.  In conversation with a mom and her two daughters, I figured they were long term hotelers if they were in need of doing laundry.  So, trying not to prod, I asked if they were here on vacation.  The mother told me know and that they were here for a hospital visit and that they were with CHOP.  So, we exchanged stories and it turns out her daughter has a very serious issue with something in her neck and she was admitted to CHOP for a surgery on it.  Her daughter showed me where the surgery was done on her neck.  They were awaiting results from the surgery to see if the medical issue had been taken care of.  I could tell it was stressful time for the family.  The fatigue and concern showed on the mothers face.
So we keep having our eyes opened on the trip, journey, odyssey, adventure...whatever this is.  Another day here in Philly makes it feel like we are inching back to normalcy as the new normal is nothing normal at all.  We've come to fly by the seat of our pants and roll with the punches and that is normal now.  I think the boys have started to adjust to their 3 month vacation from normalcy.  Each day and week will bring more of it. 
The chaos that could be the road trip back home on Monday with John, the boys, and me will get the boys back to Ms. Jen's house for daycare, me back to school to begin the school year, and Shawna moved into our new digs for the month of September where she can call home with Janet the Bra or Jeff the Jcckstrap.
Did I mention that Northwestern beat Stanford today (as soon as the game was done I needed to quickly pop across the street to pick some essentials up and although it was about a 2 minutes walk, I definitely drove my car around for about 10 minutes with my purple Northwestern window flag flying proudly!!).
We're hoping for some good sleep tonight, although I'm a little pessimistic as Myles is in bed with me again tonight and there is a huge music festival going on in Philly today and tonight with eight stages of music playing which brought quite the crowd of Jersey Shore-like early twenty somethings to the hotel.  As of about noon, they and their unique ways of living were walking the hotel hallways with adult beverages so I'm sure their noise levels will be very kid sleeping friendly when they all arrive back at the hotel tonight....I can't wait.  Shoot, if they wake us up at the wee hours of the night, I've already planned track practice with the boys in the hallways of the hotel for 5am and it won't be quiet!!!
Signing off from Cherry Hill, New Jersey while still....

CHOOSING JOY

-Jeff 

S Day + 4

I apologize for the late blog....it's been a very busy day and getting a chance to spend time with the boys was great.  How can you tell your kiddos to go to bed when you haven't seen them for more than 72 hours in the past two weeks.  These past two weeks we've spent more time away from them than we ever have.  You hope that the first time you spend a few days away from your kids you're on an exotic beach or cruise somewhere...unfortunately for us that wasn't the case, in fact it may have been quite the opposite.  They were the ones on a great vacation with the grandparents doing all sorts of fun stuff!! 
This was discharge day, though!!  We woke up in the morning (yes, still in the hospital) and started to prepare for our discharge.  Lately, that term has been asked to Shawna about discharge in a whole different context....need I explain more?  I hope not.  Fortunately the answer was always something dealing with "no discharge."  Today was quite the opposite.  We WANTED discharge, that being our release from the hospital. 
It was bitter sweet.  We loved the patience, care, concern, professionalism, hospitality, etc., of the hospital staff.  You start to develop and bond with people that are bathing you, manually draining your catheters (not mine, I fortunately never had to have one, in fact the closest thing I ever had to someone manually draining my catheter was my sophomore year of college on my way home from ACL surgery I needed to make an emergency pit stop but couldn't get up so my dad stopped at a McDonalds, got a large cup and my mom had to hold the cup for me in the back seat of our van...needless to say Sue and I have had a special bond ever since!!), waking you up at all hours of the night to give you medication, etc.  To say goodbye to them was sad but a happy day as well.  We are forever indebted to them for their care and hoping we don't see them for another 12 weeks (or just for a few minutes on our weekly visits back to the hospital). 
But here is what we got to leave to!!

Can't beat that. 
Shawna and I were able to leave the hospital around 1pm which was fine with us as we got another meal in on the hospital room service....yep, I'm definitely Dutch.  So, we cruised our way out of the hospital in Shawna's new four wheeler from Carelinc, her employer. 

 

Well, I couldn't pass up the chance to have a little fun myself!!!  You should see the boys on it. 

We moved back in to some familiar digs at the Holiday Inn in Cherry Hill, NJ where they have a partnership with CHOP.  This is the same hotel we stayed at for the few days of our initial consultation two weeks ago (which seems like an eternity ago).  Shawna and Janet will be here until next week Wednesday before moving to a house in Haverford, PA and John, Peyton, Myles, and I will be here until Monday when we make the trek back to Zeelandia!  All in all, you don't want to be holed up in a hotel for too long but considering the circumstances, we have a two and four year old that love swimming, airplanes, and trains.  Well guess what, the AMTRAK line runs just outside of our hotel windows, we have 2 pools, and tons of planes fly overhead as the Philly airport is not too far away.  So we'll be just fine for the time being. 

We are used to spending this weekend camping with the Lake-O crew up in Clare for Labor Day weekend and we're missing that and hope the gang is having a great time...we'd love to be with you guys, but count on us for next year!!! 



 

So, another big hurdle has been hopped.  Surgery week is over and like I've mentioned, we now hope baby stays put for 37 weeks.  A few people have mentioned they're considering some tributes to 37.  Ben Gardner said he'd wear the number 37 jersey this season but that is illegal (a ref cannot do a 7 on one hand so we'd get a technical foul automatically every game, although Ben may lead our team in that category already...sorry Ben, but you did get one last year at Trine, but I'm SURE you did nothing wrong) and my mom said she was considering a tattoo of the number and actually painted one on her leg using some paint she's using on the interior of a house she's working on.  All a great idea until she realized the paint was some highly toxic solution or something like that and basically burnt a red rash in her leg, so in a sense, she accomplished her mission temporarily. 

Shawna was able to get up and about a little bit more today and we were able to have a pizza dinner out by the pool at the hotel after swimming in the pool for about 3 hours.  We know we still have a long road ahead and some big hurdles to hop but feel that we're now on our feet completely (or in our bed, for Shawna) in Philadelphia and like where we're at.  Once again, more phone calls/texts/emails/and gifts were received today from the wonderful people that you all are. 

I sign off while cuddling with Myles watching the Jungle Book on tv with a huge smile on my face and a happy heart.  The best birthday I've ever had....being with my boys and healthy wife and baby in womb!  Now, if the Wildcats can just pull of the upset of Stanford tomorrow at noon!! 

Can't wait to blog tomorrow...a few days in a hotel with this crew could lead to some good material.  Oh yeah, and I made it through the day without being called an A-hole!!  Success.

 

CHOOSING JOY...as you can see Peyton was all day!!

 

-Jeff