i am here in florida. if you need to call me, i am using my dad's cell phone and it has unlimited minutes. 407-744-5988.

you can reach john at 480-345-0459.

we are all doing well.

I will be taking a blogging break this month. I might check in occasionally, as time allows, but for the most part I will be eating, running, and spending time with friends and family in the good ol' US of A! :)

Merry Christmas to ALL of you! May Christ's birth, life, death and resurrection bring you immense peace, joy, and hope.

just short updates

Please pray for Miles. He has a cold and his nose is filled with green mucus. In the morning he can hardly breathe. I know his body will heal itself with all of the breast milk he is getting, but we are flying on Tuesday and I want him to be okay.

Had another, not so great, day of homeschooling. The kids were incredibly wild and hyper. I wonder if they have Christmas fever, too!

John and I both ran the half-marathon. We finished feeling good, healthy and meeting our personal goals. :) I will write a blog about the race very soon! It will surprise you what the race was like.

We are heading to America in 5 days. To say we are excited is an understatement.

My dad and step-mom are flying out to Arizona to meet the kids so that they can see them. They haven't seen 2 of my children in 2 years and the other 2 in a year and a half. My children are bouncing off the walls with anticipation.

Last but not least....DRUM ROLL PLEASE....I hit my pre-pregnancy weight today. Gotta love Weight Watchers (and running 10 billion miles). 10 more lbs. to go to meet my ultimate goal weight and some serious toning and shaping is needed with the Power 90X workouts.

Our People

Tonight we had our first annual Christmas fiesta with the people from Oasis. All I can say is "WOW!" It was incredible in every way; the food, fellowship, deserts, time of worship, gifts for the kids! I got teary eyed when I looked around at our friends and realized that "these are our people." These are the people that God has called us too. He picked us out of St. Cloud, FL and brought us to these people so that we can love on them, share our lives with them and bring them the Gospel. Tonight was one of the sweetest nights of fellowship I have had in a long time. From my new friend Rosita coming to help serve, to the people whom we were serving, it was all such a blessing to us as well as to them. Many pictures to come!


I have to say that the funniest moment of the night, for me, was when this couple told me that they were so happy that I had "recovered" my pre-pregnancy weight! :) These are the same people who "bluntly" told me I had gotten fat when I was about 6 months pregnant. Gotta love them! And then they told me how much my Spanish had improved. I told them they are absolutely right that I had "recovered" my weight, but absolutely wrong about my Spanish. It has only gotten worse, but they begged to differ. They said it was like a little kid and if you are with them all the time you don't see how much they are growing and changing, but when you aren't around them all the time and then you see them again, you can certainly see the difference! I still think they are completely and totally wrong (not trying to be humble, just truthful), but I am grateful for the compliment. A great night!

Annual Christmas Card Plea

This is becoming my yearly tradition!!

Please don't forget the Phams when you send out your Christmas cards/pictures. We love to put them on our fridge so we can show you off to our Peruvian friends and also pray for you. This year, I will save you a $1 or $2 and you can send them to:

Jessica Pham
C/O Dean Greer
6495 Apple St.
St. Cloud, FL 34771

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Oh Mortal Man

This morning, during my quiet time (should I even call it that? kids are coming in and out while I am nursing a baby and it lasts for like 10 minutes due to constant distractions).... Okay, let me rephrase. This morning when I was briefly reading the word of God, trying to soak up whatever bit of wisdom, guidance or encouragement that I could get in a few short moments before I had 5 kids on top of me, I was reading in Ezekiel.

Basically it was very gloom and doom. The Israelites continued to disobey and worship false gods, etc., etc. God kept speaking (I believe to Ezekiel) and calling him "Mortal man." Of all of the things I probably could've gleaned from these verses, what struck me the most was the phrase "mortal man." I dunno...I guess as a human, although I know this life won't last forever, I almost feel immortal. Not immortal in the sense that I am so powerful and can conquer the galaxies for all eternity, but immortal in that I know "one" day I will die, but it doesn't really feel like that day will truly ever come. It seems so distant and far off and almost like it doesn't exist! Does that make sense?

I was reminded that the only thing that lasts forever is God. He is the only "immortal" being or thing that has ever existed or will ever exist.

So as I started pondering my own "mortality" (Oh, mortal man am I), I started thinking about my own life and what is important to me. So often I get grumpy or irritated or out of sorts (whatever word you want to call it) about different things. I don't like a dirty house. I like to stay on tasks. I like my kids to obey the first time, all the time. I don't like to walk into a bathroom and find poop in the toilet, etc. I often times, let my circumstances, or emotions dictate how I feel, how I treat my family, how I minister, how I live on a day-to-day basis. I think I put "stock" in things that aren't so important (maybe important to this world, but not necessarily to the almighty God), in light of eternity, because they feel important TODAY. I will NEVER get an opportunity to live this life, here on earth again. I only get one chance to do it and do it well. A chance to to it and "love" it well.

I told John that I know for certain when I am dying, I will NEVER look back at my life and say:

"I wish I would've kept my house cleaner."

"I wish I would've done that home schooling curriculum just perfect and would have not deviated from it."

"I wish I would've educated my kids better and sent them to a first class school."

"I wish I would've spoken Spanish better."

"I wish I would've ran more miles."

"I wish I would've......." I could go on and on.

The things I would regret would be:

"I wish I would've been more patient and not stuck to the curriculum."

"I wish I would've just laughed more."

"I wish I would've just hugged my kids all day, everyday instead of demanding so much from them."

"I wish I would've spent more time with my kids."

"I wish I would've loved my husband more."

"I wish I would've called my family every day."

"I wish I would've never raised my voice or shown irritation with anyone in my life."

"I wish I would've forgive more easily."

Again, I could go on and on.

I would not have one regret about stuff, activities, goals, daily duties or work. All my regrets would be about how I lived day in and day out with my family. Did I love them ENOUGH?

I put these thought into actions today by just continually remembering my own mortality and what regrets I don't want to have at the end of this life. I let the dishes sit there ALL day long. I let the floor get super, duper dirty (oh, that is so hard for me), and I certainly didn't stick to some man-made curriculm to dictate my day. But, I had great conversations with my hubby. I loved on a precious baby. I listened to a 9-year-old give an amazing presentation about Julius Cesar. I filled in the mazes that my kids made from scratch. I watched a 6 year old read a book above his ability and I put a weed in my hair just to please a 3 year old (she thought it was a flower). And I was truly filled with an indescribable peace because God kept me focused on what is important; the stuff that won't leave regrets; the stuff that will keep this "mortal man" on the right track to loving and living like the immortal God intended.

Where are my keys?

Things have been kind of crazy over here the past few days. John has been sick since last Friday and the kids have been on and off sick. Today it was Parker! And yesterday and today I felt ill as well. At least I was functionable today.

Last night, Avery had my keys as I was cooking supper. Around 10:45 p.m. we realized they were lost. We searched for them until almost midnight. Let's review....Avery said she put them up high outside, gave them to me, put them in her room, left them in the grass, gave them to me, and put them in her bike basket - you get the point. We searched and searched and searched. We woke up this morning and started searching again. We even gave a "reward" for whichever kid could find the keys. They hunted as well. Parker made a list of all the places he had checked for the keys. It was really cute. Anyway, we gave up and admitted defeat. I must mention that instead of getting mad, I just prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed. I said, "Lord, I know that you know where these keys are. Please show us."

So, we sit down to eat lunch and I move the laptop that has been sitting on a dining room chair, since last night, to a different spot. As I lift up the laptop guess what I find? Yep, MY KEYS!!!! I called John right away laughing. I said, "I guess I win the 5 soles." :) But since I'm so nice, I decided to share my prize money with the three kids that helped look so dilligently. They were all bummed that they weren't the ones to find the keys because they wanted the prize money ALL to themselves.

On another note...(this is for my runner friends who read the blog), tonight I FINALLY broke the 10 minute per mile mark for the first time since I had the baby (yes, I did this sick). I completed 8 miles in a 9:35 overall pace. Yep, 1:16:44! I was even able to pull out an 8:55 mile and an 8:51 the last two miles. I am super, duper happy. The Lima half-marathon is next Tuesday and tonight's run just made me more excited for it.

So I will never, ever brag about the baby sleeping through the night again. The past two nights, he has woken up EVERY 3 hours again. The only thing I can think is that he hasn't had a bowel movement in like 5 days and maybe his belly is hurting. I will never take 6 or 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep for granted again. It has felt like having a newborn all over again. I am just praying, praying, praying that he does better tonight.

Please pray that Parker, John, Jaxson, and I all feel better.

One more thing.....John and I wanted to attend our churches annual Christmas dinner this coming Monday night. Well, it is $5 per plate, per person. And our family is big so that it would cost $30! OUCH! The Pastor's wife called us tonight to talk to us about pricing and what not. We found out that the dinner doesn't start until 9 p.m. Yes, you read that correctly - 9 p.m. WELCOME TO LIMA!! So I guess we won't be attending that one afterall. And now you know why I am not an early riser anymore; nothing starts until at least 11 a.m. around here and things go WAY late into the night. That's great if you don't have little kids! :)

Blog Facelift

WOW! I hadn't updated the look of my blog in so long that it still had prayer requests from John's dad who passed away over a year ago. So sad! Anyway, I am going to try to blog more regularly and do less Facebook. Blogging takes WAY less time. Nice, grammar, huh? I do like the interactive part of Facebook, but with all these kiddos, I really need to limit my time on the computer. Today, I turned it off and just took it upstairs. Well, that certainly helped because as much as I like to work out, I surprisingly detest going up and down the stairs 1,000 times a day. Anyway, it's almost midnight and I need to get some sleep.

Just 2 more weeks until we are in America. I REALLY need the spiritual encouragment as well as some Target and Cracker Barrel! :)

My thoughts are always so scattered and random. I'm like that in real life, too!

Weigh in Day

Every Tuesday is the dreadful, I mean, much anticipated weigh-in day for the Online Weight Watcher's program that I have been doing. I am trying to get this baby weight off. It was so much fun putting it on, but shedding it isn't so delightful! I gained 31 lbs. during pregnancy and now I am down 30 lbs! WOOHOO! 1 more pound to go and I will have hit my pre-pregnancy weight. The sad thing is that my pre-pregnancy weight was still 10 lbs. more that what I normally weigh, so I have a ways to go still. And honestly, I certainly don't look like what I looked like before I got pregnant with the 5th baby. My gut still hangs over my jeans when I sit down. My arms are flabby and the back fat hangs over my sports bra. Nice images, huh?! So...I am working really hard to stick with the Weight Watcher's plan. It is perfect for nursing and also for marathon training. I am definitely eating enough and still losing weight. And Miles....well, the 12.5 lbs. he weighs speaks for itself.

I started WW on October 19th and have been doing it for 6 weeks now. I have lost a total of 8.5 lbs. on the plan (12.5 since I started trying to lose weight), which averages to be 1.4 lbs. per week. It is definitely a MUCH slower process than I would like, but most research shows that the slower you lose it, the better your chances of keeping it off are. And to be honest, I feel extremely satisfied and am rarely ravenous on this plan. Last week, I hit the milestone of losing 5% of my body weight and now I am aiming for another 5% to get me to a place where I feel comfortable and so that ALL the clothes in my closet will fit me once again.

I wish it were as easy to lose weight as it is to gain weight! Anyway, it is a process that definitely takes time, but will be so worth it in the long run. I didn't think I would have much success with WW online and doing it overseas. But honestly, it has been a lot easier doing it here in Peru because there are so few food choices as compared to the United States. I am pretty much in a rhythm of eating the same 15 things and not constantly thinking of what I'm going to conjure up next to fulfill a craving. I am just eating to be satisfied and stay within the points system.

Okay, so that was probably WEIGH more (get it) than you wanted to know! So this week I am going to keep plugging away (the Holidays kind of got me off track) and I am shooting for my next goal!

A new friend, a new treasure

Well...the much anticipated "first" lunch came at the home of my new friend, Rosita. I think I have found my new best friend here in Peru! She is a solid Christian woman, with a SUPER out-going personality. She is determined, motivated, driven, excited and all around fun to be with; all great qualities. I enjoyed our conversation and her stories. I love to tell stories, too! She corrected my Spanish (another first), was very patient with me as I tried to share with her and was incredibly hospitable. She even ironed Avery's panties (no clothes dryer) when Avery accidentally messed them in the bathroom because she was sitting on the toilet the wrong way. :)

Next week we are having the party, here at our house, for the people from Oasis. Well, Rosita INSISTS that we not buy pre-cooked food from a supermarket. She is going to do all the shopping for me and then she will follow us home from church next week and we will cook the meal together. Since she is extremely reliable, I consented and am really looking forward to it. It will save us a lot of money as well. Praise God!

Rosita is a single mother of two young men, 16 and 18. Her boys are incredibly polite and sweet. Of course, my kids had a great time with them.

We went to the late service today instead of the early morning service since I was going to her house directly after church. Normally we are there from 9 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. but the 2nd service starts at 11 a.m. and didn't get over until 1:30 p.m. OUCH! And John wasn't with me because he has to work in Oasis. So there I was, the only gringo there with 5 kids in tow alone. I could just feel that all eyes were on me. All that to say, I think I will stick with the first service that is short and sweet and will always have hubby with me.

Anyway, John and I are just praising God for the sweet fellowship and the new friend. :)

I also met another woman named, Isabelle, at church today and she lives very close and said that we should get together. WOW! I am constantly amazed at God's provision of friends and so very thankful that since we started this church that things are coming together for me and I am integrating into the culture more and more.

AND I FORGOT TO MENTION THAT THE FOOD, THE PANCHAMANCA, WAS INCREDIBLE!!!!

Loving Life in Lima

A picture update and an update on Miles!

Miles now weighs 12.6 lbs! Can you believe it? The doctor was a little concerned about his rapid weight gain, but I told him not to be because Parker was 27 lbs at one year. That comforted him. Miles is now in the 75th percentile for his weight. The pediatrician said that he thinks his neck strength is improving.

The baby rolled over today for the first time. He almost did it in the doctor's office on Wednesday and the doctor said he would be doing it very soon. He rolled from his belly to his back. Honestly, I think he is my earliest kid to do this - 8 1/2 weeks. Doesn't seem like he is going to have problems developmentally - if you ask me!!

3 of my kids came down ill on Thanksgiving Eve so we stayed home yesterday and had a quiet family feast! It was a great day. John came down sick today. Hopefully this will be the end of it. Tomorrow is our big neighborhood Thanksgiving feast.

Also, here is a link to the food I will be eating with the lady from our church. I have been told it is very delicious.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pachamanca


Enjoy the pictures!

This is Miles' favorite position. What would I do without this Hot Sling?

This is the 2nd time he rolled over today. I had to take a picture of it. He had been crying for awhile and I wasn't sure why until I saw that he was on his back. He rolled over! WOOHOOO!

Taking care of Miles!!! Jaxson took this picture, too!
Even old moms can have fun. This is me bobbing for apples on Thanksgiving day! We had a blast. I got 10 in 59 seconds for the Phamily record. It is A LOT harder than it looks!

This is Parker working really hard to break my record. It was hysterical to watch him! We all had to back up about 5 feet.

Were you this cute?

PRINCE SMILES!

The 5 Ragamuffins. John said they look a little homely in this picture. I still think they are so cute!

Check out this omelet I made the other day. I flipped it over and it had a heart in the middle of it. One of the kids noticed it first. How beautiful! A nice reminder of LOVE!

Sleeping Prince Miles! Say Prince Smiles 5x fast and it sounds like Prince Smiles!

Miles and Ally. He is laying on her chest. Jaxson Dean took this picture!

Mommy and her kids enjoying our Thanksgiving feast! We cooked lots of yummy food from scratch. Daddy took this picture and that's why he is not in it.

Miles and his First Thanksgiving! Check out the cute bib over the Gator colored outfit!

Prince Miles on his throne!

This pigeon, and her dear hubby, have decided to make a nest over our laundry room. They are constantly dragging in branches and leaving a mess. And then they lay the eggs and the eggs fall from this ledge. So, John took a piece of wood and covered it with nails to keep the birds away. If you look closely, you can see that she is sitting on top of the nails and trying to build another nest. She waits there while her hubby gets her some sticks. He brings her 1 stick about every 2 minutes. It is very entertaining to watch, but nonetheless the birds have GOT to go. Can't believe they are nesting on nails. Oh, the things we will do for our babies.

What's happening around here?

Well, yesterday I completed 16 miles in my marathon training. Towards the end of the run I was asking myself WHY? in the world I am doing this. I really don't have an answer except that I paid for the race, it's helping me to lose weight and I get to run it with Jenn. Other than that, I think I'm just nuts! :) I crashed and burned yesterday afternoon and was absolutely exhausted and took a 2 1/2 hour nap and then was still in bed by 10 p.m. And, I probably ate more calories than I burned off b/c I was so hungry.

Today, we went to church again and the people there are just extraordinarly (is that a word?) kind to us. They all love the baby and our kids. So many people talk to us each week after the service. We love it! Today, a woman named Rosita invited us to her house after church next week to eat a typical Peruvian dish that they make in the jungle. John won't be able to make it, but I will take all 5 kids and enjoy some Christian fellowship with her. Can you believe that we have been here for 15 months and this is our first "dinner" invite from a Peruvian? It takes a long time to make friends here, I guess. The culture is extremely different than Costa Rica.

In about an hour, we are ALL heading out the door to Oasis for an afternoon of ministry and showing off the baby. This is the first time he has been out there since he was born and ALL of our friends that live out there have been asking for him. In fact, 2 women who haven't been attending are going to come today just to see Miles. Isn't that sweet? Although, I do wish they would come regularly. Anyway, we are praying that the fleas do not get him or the rest of us. We are all looking forward to seeing people and attending the service in Oasis.

We have decided that we are going to have a Christmas party in our home for the church leaders in Oasis. There are about 7 extremely faithful attendees (as well as their families) that we would like to bless. These are the ones that are taking the evangelism course and have helped with all the construction on the building. We have decided we are going to make sure that not one person leaves our home without a present and that we fill their bellies with typical Peruvian food and typical American Deserts. There should be about 20 people coming. I am so excited to be doing this for them. I hope it is an evening where they feel very loved and blessed. We just want to let them know how thankful we are for their commitment and service to God and the church.

On the homefront, this week we will have a very "light" schooling week since it is Thanksgiving and I also need to refresh and recharge. We have lots of plans. Tomorrow our new friends that came over last week will be coming over again (but this time with all 4 of her kids). Tuesday I have a lunch date with another missionary that is my good friend and like a mom to me. Wednesday we have Mile's 8 week check-up. Thursday is Thanksgiving and we will be celebrating with a missionary family that works for another organization and they have 5 kids as well. They have a pool so we are so excited to get to go swimming! :) And Saturday I have another long run of 16 miles with my German/Peruvian friend, Isabelle, and Sunday I have the luncheon with Rosita. So, it should be a good mix of cultural activities as well as with other missionaries. I am really feeling MUCH more connected to Peru since we started attending this church. I have even been dreaming in Spanish again. :)

Well, off to start round 2 of the day.

YUMMY!!

Look what I'm going to make! It tastes better than it even looks. And I think it looks pretty good.

Here is the recipe (with MANY more from this great blogsite).....

http://wwwbunnysovencom.blogspot.com/2009/02/cherry-crumb-cream-cheese-bars-and.html

Pictures

I uploaded some pictures onto Facebook, but I could not figure out how to get the link to work properly so that you could just click on it and then look at the pictures (even without a Facebook account). Does anyone know how to do this? Anyway, if you hope on over to Facebook you can see the pictures. If you are John's friend, you should be able to find them on his page as well.

Blessings!

If you can't say anything positive then don't say ANYTHING at all! Isn't this the old addage we have been taught since we were kids? Well, then.....I won't say anything about homeschooling. I will just ask that you pray for me and the children. PLEASE!!!!!

A new missionary to Lima came over today with her 4 year old. She and Avery became fast friends. She stayed for about 4 hours and we had great fellowship. I forgot what it was like to do something like "have" fellowship while hubby is working. It was definitely a nice time.

Tomorrow, a Peruvian woman, who lived in Melbourne, FL for 7 years that speaks perfect English, is coming to my home tomorrow to highlight, cut and style my hair. I seriously have been praying and hoping for a hairdresser that speaks English that I can trust. It is super hard to find someone who will do a good job, is affordable and that you can communicate EXACTLY what you want to. In fact, it is hard enough to communicate a hairstyle in English. With 5 kids and a nursing baby, it is even more convenient that she is coming to my home. She will do my hair and my neighbor's hair. I just love that Peruvians make house calls. And all that for a whopping $47. Now, I'm just hoping she does a great job since I'm super picky. :)

In other news, there are a TON of changes happening with the IMB. We are getting e-mails daily about financial changes. Money is definitely going to be MUCH tighter next year as we will have more expenses. I am just praising God for a job and his continual provision and blessings for our family.

Speaking of the IMB, I have to pat John on the back. He received an e-mail from the leadership of the "Americas" affinity group this week asking him to attend a "young leaders" conference in March. They are training up and developing new leaders for the future. Only 10 men, out of a big pool of missionaries, were invited in all of South and Central America so this is a huge honor for him. I am so proud of him and can't wait to see the plans God has for our family in the future. John is not so sure if he ever wants to be in leadership, but he is honored and will attend the conference.

I will put some pictures up of little Miley Smiley! He is a cutey pants. He is now going #2 after almost EVERY feeding. WOOHOOO! He is sleeping better as well. For 2 nights in a row he has slept for 7 hours straight. Come on, Miles, keep it up!

Thanks for checking in!

What's new on the Pham front???

Still battling fleas! What else? :)

A friend is going to let me use her BMW while I am in Florida so I don't have to rent a car after all and will save money. I'm very happy about that.

John's mom is going to help us with the rental van in California unless God provides another alternative. That is a blessing too.

The baby has gone #2 at least 3 times this week on his own. That is such an improvement from zero and we are thankful for that.

John and I have been running a lot recently. John is up to 9 miles and I am up to 14 and will run 16 next week in preparation for the Disney Marathon. We signed up for a half-marathon in December that we are going to run together. It is in Lima and starts at 9 a.m. Should be nice and toasty for us. I am enjoying running with him. I am very proud of his progress. When each one of us comes home from a run we immediately share our average pace, average heart rate and distance. It's so fun!! We also talk "race" strategies. I LOVE having a fellow runner in the house.

Well, I have something shocking to tell you. I actually LOVE living here now. If the IMB told us we had to leave Lima, I can honestly say that I would be very sad. We have a lot of friends in our neighborhood, ministry is progressing, we found a church that we love, and we are extremely settled. Our life is here now and I am so thankful! Boy, it was a rough start, but I am so glad to feel like this is home.

On other good news, we found out that we will be able to live in St. Cloud, FL when we return to the states in September of next year. Originally, we were going to have to live in Orlando about 30 minutes away. Our home church now has a house that we can use in the center of town. We could not be more excited (especially me).

Please pray for my house helper's brother. He was in the hospital for like 10 days and needed an operation on his stomache. They sent him home to take antiobiotics before the surgery. He went in on Nov. 10th for the surgery, but he needed to pay $100 before they would do it. He didn't have the money and had to postpone the surgery. Now he is working really hard, WHILE he is sick and infected, to try to come up with the money. We have been having our empleada work extra so she can earn more money to help him, plus John gave her a cash advance, but her financial situation isn't very good either. She lives in a dirt shack and barely had enough money to get by (with 6 kids). If you could pray for their situation (her name is Maria and I don't know her brother's name), that would be wonderful. Can you imagine not being able to have a very NEEDED operation b/c of a lousy $100? That is like $1,000.00 or more to them. It breaks our hearts. We want to just give them the money, but we have been told countless times that it is not a good idea. UGH!

I changed the date on my rental car search and just by moving it to Jan. 1st, the prices went down from $81 a day to $17. WOW! Affordable. So I will be able to rent a car in January while in Florida. And.....the IRS returned a check to us for about exactly the amount of money it will cost to rent the car. God provides!

The baby went to the bathroom (#2) on his own yesterday. I was shocked and completely happy. We were just about to have to take him to the gastroenterologist this week (the Ped. said we should). But now we can hold off on that. YEAH!!!

Yesterday was Jaxson Dean's 6th birthday. We had a wonderful time celebrating with our family. In the late afternoon, all of our neighbors came over to our patio and we had cake with them to celebrate. They all brought presents for Jaxson and the kids played very hard (pictures to come). It was a tremendous blessing to have them to help us celebrate.

I'm sure I could write a lot more, but the homeschooling day must now begin. Thanks for checkin in and for your prayers.

A NEED

We will be in America for 1 month. A rental car for a mini-van for one month is $1,300.00 and a rental car for an economy car while I am in Florida is $1,200. If you know anyone who has a vehicle I could use while I am in Florida with the baby or while we are in California/Arizona, that would be a huge blessing. If you could put the feelers out to the WMU (Women's Missionary Union) in your area, to local churches or friends, that would be a huge blessing for us! Please let me know if you know anyone who has a vehicle we could use in either location. I will be in Florida from Dec. 30 - January 13th and that leg of the trip only requires and economy car. John will be in CA/Arizona from Dec. 15-Jan.15th and that leg definitely requires a minivan. Thank you!

Eight-things (AMY)

For those of you who read the blog of my dear friend, Amy, at http://www.eight-things.blogspot.com/, please pray for her as she is in labor and should be having the baby today. Please pray the labor goes quick and easy and without complications so that she doesn't have to have a c-section (a big dread of hers since she is a v-bac). The baby is 6 days past her 2nd due date. Thank you for your prayers! I will let you know when I get the call about her baby. :) Should be today!

UPDATE: Amy had her baby around 2ish without a c-section. I will let her fill you in on all the details and stats on her blog when she gets home in a few days. She is thankful for your prayers. :)

Miles Praise!

We had an appointment with an English Speaking Pediatric Neurologist for Miles today. To make a very long story short.......

YEAH!!!!! :)

Okay, I'll give you a little more than that. She said there is cause for concern, but not cause to worry. She reviewed ALL of his previous tests and also did an extensive evaluation. She definitely agreed about his extremely weak and floppy head. But she wasn't super, duper concerned because she said sometimes it can be "familial." Parker had the same exact problem and grew out of it. Anyway, she is repeating a blood test that caught her attention and she is hoping it will come back fine. She wants to wait until he is 4 months old and then evaluate him again. She said if he cannot hold his head and is not reaching milestones, then she will do an MRI of his brain and some "muscle" tests. She rattled off some kinds of muscle enzyme problems that are possible, but like I said...she wasn't worried at all. She even thinks the EKG looked good for a 2 and half week old baby. And she commented that a mother's instinct is very often the best indicator for how the baby is doing. And personally, I think he is doing great. She also said that the tremors in his legs are completely normal for a baby and he should outgrow them by the next appointment. And she mentioned that his not "pooping" could be from weak muscles as well. If the muscles in his neck are weak, it is possible they are weak in his bowels as well. And ironically, Parker had the no-pooping issue too. Everything else about this baby is perfect and healthy in every single way and honestly I really think there is NOTHING wrong with him.

We are so glad for the 2nd opinion and all of your prayers! I am so relieved to be done with appointments. It was getting a bit much for a family with so many kids that is trying to homeschool.

Update

The Lord has allowed me to catch up on some sleep this morning. I am so thankful. I need to be sleeping right now, so I need to make this quick.

John worked with 7 people from the church plant yesterday and they laid the entire concrete floor in 13 hours. He is going to go on Wednesday and fumigate the inside. Please pray the fleas are gone so they can start meeting there again. I would like to start going once in awhile as well. I haven't been able to show the baby off since he was born. But more importantly, we need the space for ministry.

We are looking at a ministry car, but a car that would cost $500 in America (like a 1998 Nissan Sentra) costs $2,500-$3,000 here. That is insane. It's a 20 year old car. We just need a separate car because of the flea issue and also because of the difficulty with me being here with 5 kids and no car many days a week.

Miles' follow-up appointment with the neurologist is scheduled for this Friday. We think he is doing really well. His head is getting stronger and his leg is not tremoring nearly as much. He is following us with his eyes, is very alert and today was smiling at all of us many different times. He doesn't seem delayed to me. However, he does NOT have any bowel movements on his own. This makes him very uncomfortable and fussy. Please pray he will start going. :)

Tomorrow we are going to the U.S. Embassy to get Mile's American Passport and Social Security card. We are hoping things going smoothly. We already have his Peruvian Passport, resident card and Birth Certificate. :)

We have had 2-3 appointments each week between the doctor's visits and paperwork stuff. This week should be the last of it and that should help things to get back to normal quite a bit. We are looking forward to it.

Keep Friday's appointment in your prayers please! Thank you!!!!

My rights - am I entitled?

God is reminding me that I am not entitled to what I think are "my rights." Sometimes I get caught in this trap and it can hinder me spiritually and leave me trying to work things out for myself instead of trusting God to work things out for me. The biggest right that I need to give up, in this stage of life, is my right to sleep. I am a mom of many children and an infant. 7 hours of sleep in the last 2 nights is all little Miles has allowed me and there hasn't been much rest time during the day. I found out this evening that John will be gone tomorrow from 5:45 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. tomorrow - just when I thought I could finally catch up on some sleep. I wanted to cry. Okay, sob is more like it! Doesn't he (John) know that I need sleep? (BTW- it's totally not John's fault that he has such a busy day planned coming off of 2 LOOOOONG nights with the baby). But then I was reminded that God knows I need sleep and He can do many things (as he has in the past) to help me through the day. Maybe the baby will sleep through the night tonight. Maybe I will wake up with a ton of energy tomorrow. Maybe I can steal a few hours of rest tomorrow even though I am in charge of 5 kids alone. No matter what the day holds, I know that God can and will me the strength to make it through since He gave me these precious kids and ordained this awesome, albeit sleepless right now, life for me. :) And I just need to continue to surrender what I think are my "rights" and trust in Him and his power and grace.

ROFL - as I was typing this, I fell asleep with my hand on the mouse! John said, "Jess...wake up." I had my hand on the mouse and my head was bobbing with my eyes closed. How funny is that? :) Too funny!

P.S. John and some men from the church are pouring the new floor tomorrow morning to help the flea situation. It has gotten so bad that no one can meet in the building anymore. And I use the term building loosely.

P.S.S. Dr. Spangenberg, the Ped., e-mailed us tonight and said he talked with the 2nd opinion Ped. Neurologist and to call her on Monday to get Miles in right away next week! YEAH!!

Homeschooling

Our school curriculm for today:

Hugs
Kisses
Playing in the tent
Fawning over the baby
All 6 of us in the King size bed cuddling and giggling
Speaking kindly to one another
Enjoying each other's company
Learning how to take care of a baby
Running and jumping outside
Collecting rocks
Hugs
Kisses
and more giggles!

Sounds like the perfect homeschooling day!

LOOOONG, great day! More tomorrow....

Pediatrician said he saw more normals with Miles than abnormals. That was encouraging. Still hoping the head gets stronger and the leg twitching stops. 2nd opinion to come very soon (the dr. is out of town) - hopefully next week.

I will post a picture of his Peruvian Passport photo tomorrow. It is so cute, it will melt your heart. THOSE CHEEKS!!!

John has a super long day of ministry tomorrow. He is training a national, leading a Bible study and leading an evangelism workshop of sorts. Please pray for him and the people of Oasis (and me as I manage the fort with 4 cuties and chunky, fat cheeks!

Good day already!

They day has already started out pleasant! The baby slept last night from 10:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. with only one middle of the night feeding. YEAH! From 7:30 - 6:30 p.m. I fed him at 10 p.m., and 2 a.m. and 6: 20 a.m. so I really can't complain. He is fast asleep again! YEAH!! It sounds like a lot of feedings, but compared to the every solid 2-3 hours he has been eating, I was very happy for a little extra sleep. :)

And then I jumped on the scale to see if I have lost anymore weight since I started Weight Watcher's for nursing moms. I am down 4 lbs. in 2 weeks and have lost a grand total of 25 of the 31ish I gained during pregnancy! WOOHOOO!!! I have been working really hard to get it off simply because I need to fit in my clothes again. For me, the first 20 usually comes right off, but the last 10 I really have to work VERY hard at. But I started this pregnancy 10 lbs. heavier than some of my other pregnancies, so I still have about 15ish to lose. But I am very happy with the progress so far. I just wish I wasn't craving a chocolate e-clair from Dunkin Donuts this morning. ;)

I had a great conversation with the Pediatrician, on the telephone, Thursday night. He is going to help line up a 2nd opinion with another Pediatric Neurologist. This doctor will speak English so that will help the communication. The Pediatrician said our current Neurologist is very good, but extremely Meticulous. So we are wondering if he is being "overly" cautious. It was a lengthy conversation so I can't go over all the details, but it was reassuring that Baby Miles is probably VERY okay and even without therapy would catch up and grow to live a completely normal life without delays. John has been saying this all along. Lets see what the next doctor says.

I uploaded a bunch of pictures of Baby Miles on Facebook last night. Hop on over there to see his cute myriad of cute expressions!

Please pray about the fleas and a ministry vehicle for us. Our kids are eaten up AGAIN and no one except John has been going out to Oasis. He is carrying the sand fleas back in the car and in one car ride, the kids get tortured with bites. I have found that putting deodorant on them helps ease the itch a little. Who would've thought?

EEG Results

Try to read this as a positive and that I am sharing it in an optimistic voice, because it might sound worse over the internet than it is.

The EEG was abnormal. It showed slow brain function, but did NOT show any signs of epileptic episodes (praise God). The ultrasound from last week showed white parts of his brain that indicate "immaturity." The EEG just confirmed that parts of his brain are immature and as a whole it is functioning slowly. There are already some developmental delays (head and also some leg tremors) that gave the dr. a red flag last week.

However, the best solution for all of this is to start physical/developmental therapy with him. This will help strengthen his muscles and will help stimulate his brain while it is growing at a rapid pace. The dr. is optimistic that therapy can help his brain to mature and to function normally.

He has no brain damage, no metabollic disorders and ALL other tests have come back negative. So the doctor believes that when I was pregnant, there were times that the baby did not get enough blood to his brain through the placenta. He said that sometimes this happens at the end of pregnancy when the placenta starts to get old.

Well, that is it in a nutshell. We are seeking out a 2nd opinion (not because we don't trust the doctor, but because it is always wise to do in cases like this). We will also meet with our amazing Pediatrician next week to review what we learned today. I believe we are also going to choose to hold off on vaccinations for now. We won't pursue therapy until after we meet with the Pediatrician next week, although we are definitely going to do therapy. The good news is that the therapist can come directly to my house! :)

Thank you for your concern and prayers. I really am OKAY and know that this could be sooooo much worse. And I am thankful that we are able to catch this now to start therapy while he is really little and give him (and his brain) the best possible start to life. :)

Baby and church

The baby had his EEG on Friday. It's hard to tell how it went. We were suppose to get the results back tomorrow, but the dr. did not have any appointments until Wednesday. We will try to call him tomorrow. My personal lab results, to see if I have metal, paint, pesticides or other toxins in my body that could be effecting the baby, will be back on Tuesday. So at the latest, we will know everything by Wednesday. We also received his metabolic tests (it tests for 50-60 different problems) and it was ALL completely normal!!! John and I really think there is nothing wrong with the baby. We are hoping that Wednesday's appointment will just confirm this.
++++++++

Ministry is continuing to go well. John said everyone showed up for church tonight and for the past 3 weeks, the man he is training has preached! YEAH!!!

The church has collected over $100 in tithe in the past 4ish months. So now they are going to lay down a concrete floor because EVERYONE is getting eaten with fleas. It is not just us. I am excited they are getting the floor! :)

Well, it's 8:39 p.m. and I need to get to bed! Good night!

Miles

Miles had his follow-up appointment with the pediatric neurologist today. He came to our house and did an extensive evaluation as well as an ultrasound of the brain. He found a few things that still have him concerned. He scheduled an EEG for tomorrow as well as a toxicity screening for me to see if I have pesticides or some type of metal in my body that could be effecting the baby's central nervous system. We are still waiting for the metabolic test results which tests for 50-60 different metabolic/genetic problems. The test takes 12 business days so hopefully we will have some concrete answers next week. I was a little unnerved after the appointment today, but God is faithful and Miles continues to be an amazing blessing to our family and we are enjoying him so much. Please continue to pray for this issue at hand.

Prayer Requests

Requests:

John starts an evangelism workshop tomorrow late afternoon. Please pray for his safety as well as the people to be able to learn how to share the Gospel easily and also that many people in their lives would be impacted. The people have asked for this and are very excited.

The pediatric neurologist comes to our house for our follow up appointment on Thursday. Please pray that Miles continues to get a clean bill of health. We are still waiting for the metabolic test results.

John is trying to get the baby's passports (Peru and U.S) so that we can leave in December. If you lived here you would know why I put that on the prayer requests. LOL! NOTHING is easy or fast and usually takes 10 times longer, with more hassles, than it needs to.

Pray I will feel normal soon and that God's strength would guide me in raising 5 kids on a little bit of sleep.

Pray for John as he continues trying to church plant, disciple, evangelize and invest in the people in the South cone.

Pray for our kids as they are all loving the new baby, but definitely having some adjustment/behavior issues.

Pray for Miles to sleep longer in the night.

Thanks for partnering and praying!!!!

Precious Photos

Happy and calm!
This is ALL Ally wants to do!

This picture was TOTALLY not planned! How precious!

This was just taken tonight! Boy do I need to get some sun! :)

Precious baby! He is just now at his birth weight again. Taken tonight!

Our Birthing Story - Miles Anderson Pham

Immediately after birth. I don't know how John took pictures and delivered the baby!

On Sunday night, September 27, 2009, I was having terrible bladder problems. I was using the bathroom every 4-5 minutes and felt so much pressure and irritation. I just couldn't get comfortable. Around 10 p.m., I sent John to the pharmacy to get an antibiotic because I was certain I had another UTI. I took the antibiotic and another medicine to help give me some relief. I was able to fall asleep around midnight and probably got a good hour of sleep before waking up at 12:55 to a big gushing feeling. My water broke abruptly. Turns out all the bladder pressure was the baby's head pushing down getting ready to make his entrance. The doctor thinks his head is what busted my water. Anyway, I woke John up and told him the great news. He jumped out of bed and started running around crazily gathering stuff. I was still in the bed and I said, "John, relax! We have time. I'm not even having contractions." It was so funny to see him panicking. He calmed down and we called the doctor. We told him we weren't having any contractions. He asked if we wanted to go to the hospital and we told him no that we wanted to try to have the baby at home as we had planned.

The contractions started around 2:30-2:45ish. We were praying they would start because we didn't want to end up at the hospital if it wasn't necessary. Anyway, once they started they came every 8-13 minutes and were medium in strength. We called the doctor and he came around 3 something. I was only like 3-4 centimeters when he came. I had been 3 the week before so I hadn't really made much progress. I think I was like 80% effaced though.

Anyway, John refused to let me sit down. He just wanted me walking and moving so the baby would come out sooner and faster. I knew he was right, but I was so tired. After all, I had been up for so long (pretty much since the morning before). I swept and talked to the doctor and called people in the middle of the night to let them know Miles was on his way.

The contractions were still like 10 minutes apart so I started squatting for a minute or two at a time. OH MY WORD! If that didn't speed things up! :) I had read to do this, but wasn't sure if it would work. It was insane how much things picked up after that. They started coming MUCH, MUCH harder and about 5 minutes apart. The doctor checked me around 6:30ish and I was 5 centimeters and 100% effaced. I was a little discouraged because the pain was getting almost unbearable at only 5 centimeters. And sometimes I would have contractions that would last for 3-4 minutes. UGH!! John kept encouraging me to squat, but there were times that I just couldn't because it intensified the contractions so quickly.

Anyway, around 6:35ish, the doctor received a call from a woman who was 9 weeks pregnant. She was bleeding and he went to the clinic or his office (both are like 3 minutes away) to see if she was losing the baby or if everything was okay. He said he would be back in 20. I told John, "He's not going to be here for the birth. There is no way." We were fine with that thought, as we had researched, just the night before, what to do if you found yourself in a birthing situation without a doctor. We learned about what to do with the chord and also nose/mouth suctioning. Plus, we knew he'd be coming back at some point.

As soon as he left, I hopped in the bathtub b/c I knew he probably would tell me no baths after my water broke. But I remembered that during my last homebirth, I was able to take a bath after she broke my water. The hot water really helps make the contractions more bearable.

The contractions picked up harder and stronger (if that was even possible) and I felt like I was going to die from the pain. :) If someone had offered me an epidural, I probably would've taken it. My last labor was a piece of cake in comparison to these strong contractions.

Around 6:50ish something, I could hardly talk or stand up and told John I just needed to push. I climbed on the bed (which we had already prepared) and I started to push. John went to get Ally as she had wanted to be present during the birth. She stayed by my head. He asked if I wanted him to call the doctor. At that point, all I wanted was the pain to end and the baby out. I said, "No, just help me."

So, with Ally by my head and John at the other end, I pushed and pushed. Within 2-3 pushes his head emerged. A few more pushes and Miles Anderson made his grand entrance into this world. I pushed so hard that I seriously felt like I went to another realm. I know that sounds strange, but I felt like it was an out of body experience. It probably was just that I was holding my breath and was about to pass out. :)

Anyway, the pain was immediately gone after he was born. John tried to give him to me, but honestly I needed a few minutes to recover from the intense pain I had just experienced. So after a minute or so, John put him on my chest in towels. We kept the chord attached and then delivered the placenta and put it in a bowl next to the baby. The dr. called and was shocked that we had just had a baby at home, unassisted, and that he came so quickly. The doctor arrived within minutes to help take care of everything.

All the kids came into the room, 1 by 1, as they woke up in the morning. They were shocked and so happy to meet their little brother, Miles, who was born on September 28, 2009 (5 days early) weighing 8 lbs 14 ounces and 20 inches long. What an incredible adventure.

Our first Phamily Picture

Me and the baby when he was 3 days old!

Soon I hope to be posting my birthing story. It was definitely crazy! Sleep eludes me thanks to Miles, but he is worth every second of sleeplessness. I wish I was one of those women that just had a baby and bounced right back to life. That is so not me. I'm spending most days in my pj's just sititng on the couch staring at him in a foggy, joy-filled daze! We are all incredibly in love. John and I are going to bed around 8:30 a.m. each night to prepare for the disturbances that are coming all too regularly. John is really, really awesome about helping me in the night. He brings me the baby or holds him if he is wide awake. So we are kind of suffering together! :) Miles is seemingly very healthy and we hope it stays that way. God's blessings are so good! Now if He would just bless us with some sleep! :) :)

Bye Bye Baby Ticker

The baby ticker made it to zero days today and yet he came 5 days ago. It is so bitter sweet. The end of pregnancy, the beginning of a new life. I miss feeling him inside the womb, but I love holding him in my arms. God is good. Praise Him for a marvelous, yet at times very difficult, 9 months.

Baby's sodium improved just a tiny bit, but not much. His bilirubin has gone up some more, but since he is now 4 days old, the doctor said he is at a low, medium danger level and should be fine. He is being released and we are going home. Lots of follow up appointments in the future, but the doctor said that best indicator of his health is "how he is doing now." And we think he is doing great and so does he! On our way home to be a family again!!!

Jenn is here!!!!!! I can't believe how much I perked up and got talkative and energetic upon her arrival. Wow! It is true that a good friend can really help! She is going to stay at our house tonight while the kids are sound asleep so she can get a good nights sleep and John is going to come here to help me and bond with the baby while I try to sleep tonight. John tucked the kids in and then he will be back before they wake up in the morning. We have pretty much decided that we ARE going home tomorrow no matter what (unless he is dying of course - but that is totally NOT likely) . They are giving him so little water here that we can do that at home. Also, my milk has come in on one side (kind of strange, but true). So this should help things. He really seems like he is fine, so we are taking him home and we are more than happy to come back once or twice a day for tests. I have GOT to get out of this room and back to my family. So glad that hubby gets to stay with me tonight and that Jenn is FINALLY here. I just love her so much!!

The pediatric neurologist called me this morning. He is the one who did the ultrasound on Miles' head. He said that although there appears to be no "injuries" to his head, he still wants to continue to monitor him through weekly visits at his office. The conversation was on the phone, in Spanish, and that makes it more difficult. I guess he is concerned with that "shine" they saw on the ultrasound. I have NO idea what that means b/c it just doesn't translate correctly. Anyway, he said he will send his secretary here to get us set-up with next weeks follow-up of his head. It kind of unnerved me a little and I am just praying that everything turns out okay.

The nursery is feeding him water out of a cup. I am glad I don't have to see that. I really do appreciate how the doctor refuses to give the baby a bottle nipple. He said he is very pro-breastfeeding and that giving him a bottle would be detrimental to my milk coming in and with Miles' nursing progress.

Jenn will be here this afternoon and I would be lying if I didn't confess that I am counting down the minutes until she gets here. I could use a BIG hug, someone to hold the baby and maybe a walk outside. I am also hoping she can hold the baby at night when he is restless b/c I simply cannot nurse him all night long. But I understand why he wants to keep nursing.

Anyway, I am going to try to sleep until someone barges in again in 15 minutes. It is just constant.

John called our house helper to come over and watch the kids so that he could be freed up to come here and be with me a little and then pick Jenn up today. Please pray for him as well. I can tell that he is VERY stressed and he is normally super, duper calm.

not as good as we'd hoped

Miles is NOT coming home today. He is dehydrated. His sodium is high and his glucose is low and his bilirubin is rising. My milk has NOT come in yet thanks to all this stress so that is not helping the situation any. He is nursing every 1.5 hours, but the milk is just not here yet. He still needs prayer and I need rest in the worst way. Last night was the longest night. I just kept feeding him and feeding him (not knowing that he was dehydrated), but sensed he wasn't getting enough. He couldn't rest b/c he is hungry and needs more. The doctor is going to give him water out of a cup. He doesn't want to give him a bottle (thank God) b/c he doesn't want to interfere with the nursing process. He said he noticed the baby also has reflux and maybe the reflux caused the apnea episode (like what happened with Jaxson). I am so tired I cannot speak Spanish and am very weapy this morning. This is more difficult that I am by myself while John has to stay home with the other 4 kids. If Jenn wasn't coming in today I don't know what I would do. I am counting down the hours for her to get here so that she can at least hold the baby so I can sleep for more than 20 minutes at a time.

Checking in and turning off!

The baby is coming in the room with me in a few minutes with some monitors. I had to sign a waiver so that he can room with me overnight tonight. Most women in Peru don't want that. Anyway, he is doing great still. All tests, so far, look good. They are running a complete metabolic screening to test for metabolic issues or diseases. I am confident that will be fine. The dr. thinks this episode was a rare, freak thing and is likely to NOT happen again. We are scheduled to go home tomorrow a.m. unless a problem arises. Thanks for your prayers! Turning the computer off for the day. I need to get some rest and focus on Miles now that he will be here with me constantly (YEAH!!!). Love and hugs to you ALL!!! Your prayers have made all the difference.

One VERY tired Momma of 5 and daugther of The King - Jess!

So far, so good!

I just love this baby! He is so precious and I can't help but just want to spend every second doing nothing but looking at him. UGH! He is amazing in every way.

Okay...so tests results of the heart were completely normal. The brain results were mostly normal, but showed something called "shine" (not sure about the translation of that) in his ventricals. The doctor said that could potentially be something, but we need to have a repeat ultrasound in about a month or so with a neurologist.

They are going to run some kind of metabolic test tomorrow to rule out one more thing. I didn't understand "what" they are looking for since it was Spanish medical lingo. He will be observed for one more day, but can actually stay in the room with me tomorrow and tomorrow night. They said if everything continues to go well and there are no more episodes and a good blood test result then we can go home on Thursday morning; just in time for Jenn to arrive!

Thank you for your prayers. I can't wait to have him in the room with me tomorrow.

Update

Miles is still in the NICU, but seems to be stable. He is not in an incubator or on oxygen anymore. He is on a monitor for his oxygen levels and heart rate. His oxygen does dip at times. He is a GIANT in the NICU compared to the other babies. We are still waiting on his tests to be performed. They are doing an ultrasound of the head and heart. The nurses have done a great job of calling me to nurse and hold him when he is hungry or fussy. The nurses here are very, very kind. Please keep praying. I really am just filled with hope that this will all turn out to show no abnormalities. I just posted pictures on Facebook if you want to see them. Thank you all for your concern, love, prayers and friendship!

Miles

They are taking Miles out of the incubator, but keeping him in the NICU under observation for at least 2 more days. His oxygen goes a little low at times, but he seems to be doing fine the majority of time. They are going to do a head and heart ultrasound. They think the heart enlargement is just from the x-ray and not an issue. The dr. feels confident that he is and will be okay. Nothing in his blood has come back with infection. For now...we just wait and see!

He is eating well and dirtying diapers. His color looks perfect. He has a little blueishness around the nose, but not nearly as much as yesterday prior to the episode.

Pray for Baby Miles

At Mile's routine visit this afternoon he turned a very dark purple all over his body for several minutes and appeared to not be breathing correctly. He is now in the NICU getting constant care and at times his oxygen is lower than what it should be. When he is on oxygen, his levels return to normal. We are awaiting the results of many tests. A chest x-ray showed a possible enlarged heart, but sometimes x-rays aren't the clearest of pictures. He will have more advanced heart tests done tomorrow.

The episode happened as we went to weigh him and the nurse immediately called for the doctors. I praise God for the 2 wonderful doctors that did not waste anytime at all taking care off him. We should know A LOT more tomorrow. The doctor assured me that it didn't matter "where" he was born that this was going to happen either way.

I have been admitted into the hospital as well so that I can feed him every 3 hours. I am still in a lot of labor pain and am exhausted so I am thankful for a quiet place to rest.

Please pray for baby Miles and that everything will be just fine!

BTW - He weighed 8 lbs. 14 ounces and was 20 inches long. He brings me so much joy already.

Miles Anderson Pham made his Grand Entrance (and boy was it grand) at 7:05 a.m. Peruvian time, 8:05 a.m. Florida time this morning. More details to come later.

HE IS COMING!!!!!!!!

It is 1:30 a.m. and Jessica's water broke about half an hour ago! A first for her. We are getting things ready here at home waiting for some contractions. They are slowly starting. More Later!

Serious Smile

Serious Smile, by Michael Pearl (nogreaterjoy.org)

"If you look at the quality of your trust, your smile may vanish, but if you look to the success of Him whom you trust, there will always be more than enough motivation to smile.

Life is very serious, and so it must be handled with a very serious smile. And it’s best to bring it with you, for quite often circumstances will not provide you with provocation. I am not telling you to “look within”. Sometimes the only smile you can find there is that of a court jester or a cynic. Nor am I suggesting that you somehow transcend reality with some blind spiritual ecstasy. That is an escape reserved for concentration camps and extreme suffering.

The creative mind finds it difficult to smile in the midst of drudgery. The difference between a smile and a gripe is not the circumstance, but the point of view. To the rancher it’s a useless place to raise cattle; to the oil man it’s a treasure trove. To the tired mother, repeating the same chores day after day, struggling to keep peace with the children, aware of her fading youth and her failure to have achieved the self-expression she expected, wishing for romance that died too quickly, today is just another burden to be borne; whereas to the mother with a vision for eternity, today is an opportunity to be God’s nanny, teaching His kids to honor Him. She doesn’t carry the burden of personal ambition.

Borrowed worries can leave us pulling God’s load, probably in a direction He would never take it. My Daddy used to say that he found life difficult until he resigned as chairman of the universe. The common laborer smiles while his boss pulls his hair out. If you’re not running the company, but assuming the responsibility anyway, you may never find rest. The song says, “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” If you look at the quality of your trust, your smile may vanish, but if you look to the success of Him whom you trust, there will always be more than enough motivation to smile. "

THE sandbox

Here is the sandbox wide open. The sand was a bit dark because it was still a little wet from the store.

Avery is in sand heaven! She will play out there for hours and hours - even alone! Every family needs a sandbox!

Pictures

This is the sandbox that John made. The blue tarp has an easy drawstring that pulls up the cover and underneath is a great bed of sand. I couldn't get the other picture, with the tarp up, to actually upload. The sandbox has a bottom too, so it is not sitting directly on the concrete. He did a great job with it. It was economical and cost much less, and is much bigger, than a Lil' Tikes sandbox. The kids are very happy, but the house helper doesn't like all the sand in the clothes and the house!

I'm not vain (okay, well maybe a little)! LOL! But these pictures are for my girlfriends. There is one in particular who likes to see these pictures (you know who you are). :)

39 weeks and waiting. He HAS to be at least 9 lbs. by now.

Holding my baby!!!!

Are you calling to tell me I'm in labor?

This morning, at 7:27, our phone rang. My thoughts went like this:

"It's Saturday."

"Who is calling at 7:30 a.m.?"

"I bet it's the doctor."

"He's not busy today."

"I bet he's calling to tell me I am going to have the baby today. I can't wait to answer it"

"Wow, it's Saturday. What a great day to have the baby."

"I hope it's him."

Answer the phone.....Disappointment!!

And of course those are ridiculous thoughts. Who calls to tell you that you are going to have a baby? But I thought it was quite funny that I actually associated the ringing with phone with someone telling me I was in labor. I wish it was that easy. :)

It was just the phone company here in Peru. We haven't been able to get them to call us for 4 weeks and then they decide to finally call us on a Saturday morning at 7:30 a.m. when all the kids were sleeping. Love it!

And yes, it is a great day to have a baby, but all is quiet in the womb!

Happy Birthday Daddy

My dad doesn't even read my blog very often (well, maybe if my step-mom makes him) LOL! But I just want to say happy 55th birthday to the wonderful man who raised me, taught me to fish, swim, water-ski, bait a hook with worms and live shrimp, outrun boys, jump off bridges into rivers, do front flips, drive a stick-shift, check a pool for it's ph balance, climb trees, exercise like a crazy person and make bondfires. I definitely didn't have your typical upbringing being raised by a man, but it certainly was adventurous and full of good times.

Dad, I love you with all of my heart and am so thankful for your presence and guiding hand in my life. I am glad God gave you to us and that you have been here for 55 years despite a nasty fight with lung cancer that you fought and won. I pray for at least 35 more years with you!

Happy 55th Birthday Dean Edward Greer!!!!!

I got to thinking today and I started wondering if the Dr. was offering a homebirth for ONLY last night. So I thought I should call to clarify that. He said, "No, we can definitely try it at home as long as there are no problems." I then told him that even once his partner gets back (whom I DO adore) that I would like to stay with him no matter what because I don't want to change doctors AGAIN! Plus, we have been through a lot with him these past few weeks and he is completely on the same page as we are. That is super important. SO....IT IS ON!! The homebirth is in the works again and I just can't believe (although I should) how God is working it out for me to have an intimate AND safe birthing experience here in Peru despite the odds.

Peace

Today everything is as quiet as could possibly be in the womb. I am surprisingly not as discouraged as you might expect. Starting labor and stopping labor is definitely not fun, but I have this amazing peace about the situation. I know that IT is definitely from the Lord Himself. Typically, I am anxious and impatient, but the Word does tell us that God gives us a peace that surpasses all understanding. I definitely HAVE IT!! :)

What happened with the doctor?????

Last night I went to the hospital and they said I was 2 cm. The contractions were off their little chart thingy coming every 4 minutes. They sent me home to wait it out and make some more progress. Once I got home, the doctor called and asked me to come to his office which is less than a mile from here. Upon arriving, he checked and said I was definitely 3 (maybe a bit more) and had thinned out considerably from the day before. I was vomitting with the contractions and my BP went high again. He was like, "You are definitely starting labor." He then said he had been thinking about it and he knew how much I had wanted a homebirth and that he felt very comfortable just coming to MY HOUSE to deliver the baby since I lived so very close (you can walk there in 5 minutes) to the hospital. The baby's hand moved off of his head. He told us what we need to deliver at home and sent us to the pharmacy to get an injection for Group Beta Strep! Can you believe that he, on his own accord, has agreed to give me a homebirth? Now this is the chief OBGYN at the leading medical school in Peru. This is THE BEST doctor I have ever seen in my entire life. And I have to think that it is ONLY from the leading of God that he has decided to do this. If there is anyone's hands that I feel safe in (besides the Lord of course) it is his. And...he is BEST FRIENDS with my pediatrician. He feels very good with the Ped. we have chosen and we would see him the next day, after the birth.

So, in the midst of labor stopping, I still have this awesome news. Now that's not to say it will actually happen, but it is in the works to happen. I am really excited about it.

The doctor called this morning while I was sleeping and spoke with John. John told him the contractions had disappeared and that I was disappointed, but resting. He said he completely understands, but that this is a completely normal part of the labor process. So, I guess I will be in touch with him again when things pick up again. Could be today, tomorrow or even late as next week. I'm not going to give anymore labor updates probably until AFTER the baby comes or until I am like 6 or 7 and there is NO turning back! No need for you to be on this roller coaster with me. Unless, of course, you are enjoying it! :) LOL!!!

It's 5:30 a.m. and the contractions competely stopped in the middle of the night. No baby yet!

At 6:30 p.m. the dr. checked Jess in his office. She had progressed to 3 and was thinning out. She is vomitting quite a bit from the contractions.

Dr. decided that he could and wants to safely give her a homebirth although he is a hospital doctor. Contractions are farther apart now, but strong still. Just waiting on God's timing. The sheets and towels and injection for Group B strep are ready.

contractions every 3-5 minutes lasting about a minute and they seem intense. No cervical change so we came home to wait, labor and rest. They will either stop or a baby will come. Pray for Jess!

John

I believe Jess is in labor! Going to the hospital! more later....John

Ministry does exist! Promise!

In case you are wondering....Yep, we're still missionaries here to do God's work and we are still working. :)

John is still discipling and training a national leader to take over the still forming church in Oasis. The man's name is Alberto and he is super in love with God. He still needs a lot of direction (don't we all?). John meets with him twice a week. Alberto has taken it upon himself to start 2 more Bible studies in Oasis on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. I don't think there is a huge turn out, but about 5-7 regulars show up and join him in studying God's word.

John is still preaching on Sundays (he is mostly storying the Bible) at the church service in Oasis. Alberto leads the service. A man named David leads the worship and John does the investing in people and teaching the word. Like I mentioned before, we can't go out there as a family much b/c the flea situation has gotten so bad. John took Ally with him last week for 1/2 day to help a mission team and now she is suffering like crazy with over 50 bites all over her body.

Once a week, John leads a Bible study in another area called Santa Rosa. This Bible Study is going exceptionally well. They are studying a 20 week discipleship program called "Toward The Goal." He averages between 13-18 people each week. And I think if he could expand it, it would certainly grow.

Also, John is praying about starting another Bible Study on Sunday nights in another area of Oasis. The study would be from 6:30 - 8 p.m., which means he would be in a dangerous area at a dangerous time! I struggle between faith and fear on this issue. Please pray! We know all about being wise as serpents and innocent as doves, but this is the VERY best time to reach the men of that area. John feels God is asking him to do this and I am just saying, "Please Lord, keep him safe."

And John also is developing relationships with national churches here. He has 2 or 3 local pastors that he has partnered with for various reasons. In fact, he is meeting with 2 today.

And my ministry, as always is the family. I am holding down the fort while John invests in the people. I go with him as much as I can (which hasn't been much lately).

I am building some good relationships with my neighbors. One neighbor really opened up to me about her life the other day. She knows we are Christians and she asks questions. I am hoping to continue to be Salt and Light to her. I am very content knowing that my primary place of service, at this season of life, is right here with our 5 (almost) kids!

Thanks for your prayers for the ministry God has called us too. Please keep praying for the people here.

Always and adventure with this baby!

These updates are for my close friends (and of course anyone else) who wants to know how the end of the pregnancy is progressing. Sorry if this is super boring! :)

Well, tonight I had my 38 1/2 appt. The baby's heart rate was at the max. that it should be. The dr. was concerned and had me wait 1/2 an hour to see if it went down. It did! :)

Then, my blood pressure went high again. So I had to wait to see if it went down. It did! :)

Then, I had the dreaded internal exam. 2 centimeters (still), but now I am 40% effaced, where last week I was less than 20%.

During the exam, the doctor found something. He says to me, "I have some potentially bad news."

The baby's hand is on top of his head; smack dab on top of his skull. It is common to deliver a baby with a hand on the face, but I guess (from what he said, I haven't researched it yet) it is dangerous to deliver a baby with his hand coming out before his head. I can see, on many levels, why that wouldn't be a good idea. ;) He said I just need to be "prepared" that if he starts to come out "hand" first that I will not have a normal labor. We all know what that means....the dreaded C word!!! It sounds like that once labor starts the doctor will be able to easily check to see if the hand is first.

Anyway, the good news is that he very well could move that hand just as quickly as he put it up there. Remember, I posted how he had switched sides, well I was right. He went from the right to the left, from the left to the right, back to the right again! The doctor was surprised, but said it is okay. So I knew I wasn't losing my mind with everything just feeling weird. He also commented on how "big" he is getting and how much he has grown just since last week.

I'm not in the least bit worried or stressed about the hand. It will be how it is suppose to be. I have complete trust in God and His plan. I just praise God for such an awesome doctor who checks for these type of things.

In case your checking in on me....Yep, still pregnant! :) I have a lot of peace that he is not coming until the end of next week, right around my due date. I guess we'll all have to wait patiently until this wonderful little guy makes his GRAND ENTRANCE! I REALLY want him to come before my other doctor comes back, next Friday (whom I do love, but I really want his partner to deliver for us) and also once Jenn gets here next Thursday. Her flight comes in at 1:30 p.m., so anytime after that would be perfect.

Please pray for me as I have come down with a nasty bladder infection.

Something cool - John is building a really nice wooden sandbox that fits 5 kids. Everyone is really excited about it!!!

Anyone wanna try to guess when you think he'll come and how much he'll weigh? The closest person will get the first PHONE CALL when I actually am in labor! :)

The kids are all very quiet in their rooms this morning so I thought I would take 4 or 5 minutes (yes, I type VERY fast) to blog. Not that I really have anything blog-worthy to say. It is kind of an outlet for me. I am sure you are tired of hearing about pregancy. Imagine how I feel!!! LOL!!! :)

Today we are going to church again at that sweet lil' church I told you about. We made it 2 weeks in a row and couldn't go last week. The pastor's wife texted us (don't you love technology) to tell us that we were missed. :) I thought that was so sweet. Only problem is that John and I don't know how to text back. Yep, the incredible technologically advanced Phams CANNOT text! We both giggle at that. But to be honest, we have zero desire to learn. Anyway, we are going back this morning and are looking forward to it.

We are LOVING Saturdays here as a family now that we have a BBQ grill, yard, neighborhood kids and college football. Need I say more. How about them Gators?

And of course, a blog wouldn't be a blog unless I ended on a pregnancy note. Yesterday morning I kept telling John that either the baby was super, duper big or that he had moved in a way that was hurting me a lot. I seriously felt like I had been punched in the stomache. The sensation would come and go. Last night, I figured out that the baby has flipped over to my right side. For the past 10 weeks (at least) he has been head down with his abdomen on my left while he is all curled up and his bum-bum is on my right. Last night, he would move and I just want to scream b/c it hurt to so bad. Well, his head is still down, but for some reason after almost 3 months he decided to flip over to my right side and honestly I think he is now spine to spine with me. All the kicks from his arms and legs are coming straight out now and every move he makes is hurting (even in my sleep). My only 2 concerns (and yes, I am 100% positive his position has changed, his hiccups confirmed this) is 1., the umbilical cord. It was already wrapped once around his neck. Flipping like that can cause it to wrap again and 2., That when labor does start, that he will be spine to spine with me (OUCH!!). I believe I might have had that once, with Jaxson, and it makes labor a lot worse.

But alas, no reason to think or worry about what I can't control. God's already God it under his care! But you can pray he will not be spine to spine and no cord around his neck and that if he would kindly flip back over to the left side so I wouldn't be in pain, that would be great.

It's time to start this wonderful, glorious Lord's day. I hope that your's is blessed too!

13 or less days to go. At the end of a pregnancy that can seem like an eternity, but then I look at that little ticker that says I've already made it 266 days. I CAN DO IT!! :) Little Miles doesn't feel so little anymore. Every movement he makes feels BIG! We are enjoying our last few days or weeks as a "small" family. LOL!! All is well over here!

My normal OBGYN is still out of town so if I have the baby before Oct. 2nd it will be with his wonderful partner, Dr. Levano who doesn't speak much English (I think he can, he just doesn't feel confident). I've learned A LOT of new labor terms lately. Either way, I will be in some of the best OB hands in Peru!

BTW- GO GATORS!

X7

It is so hard to believe that in 2 weeks or less we will be holding little Miles Anderson Pham. The anticipation of his arrival is more exciting than Christmas. It feels like a honeymoon everyday! The kids have become VERY familiar with the term contraction. In fact, if I even whince for a second, they will come over, rub my belly, pray for me and ask if I am having a contraction. What sweety pies! Everyday they ask if TODAY IS THE DAY!!?!! Only God knows!

But for now, we are content enjoying every moment as a phamilyof6. I just look at these kids and am overwhelmed with love for them. And soon we will be overflowing in love X7!

We have REALLY had to switch gears the past few days. Planning for a homebirth is completely different than planning for a hospital birth. Everything is now ready for the baby to come and the bags are packed (well, at least his is). The childcare for the kids is set. My wonderful neighbor is set to care for the kids. We have become fast friends and she is absolutely a precious gift from God. She is ready, eager and willing to help at a moment's notice. I have had to get my birthing plan together as well as having to prepare myself that I will have to "fight" for my desires in the hospital here, which is why I will labor at home until it is time for the baby to come. We only live less than a 3/4 of a mile from the hospital so we can get there very quickly. I have lined up a translator (a fellow missionary friend) to come to the hospital so that she can clearly communicate what I cannot when I am in extreme pain. She knows my birth plan and is already working on getting it translated so that she can ensure my needs and desires are being met. She has spoken Spanish for over 20 years, so for her it will be effortless. It takes a lot of pressure off of John and I to know we can focus on relaxing and getting the baby out while she is advocating and translating. We are still hoping to be able to come home within 6-7 hours after the birth so that alleviates having to pack bags for the kids and ship them somewhere overnight.

I am surprisingly NOT grieving the homebirth decision at ALL! I feel extremely confident that God will work out every detail in the hospital and that we are with the right doctors and are receiving the BEST care possible here! I am actually looking forward to the birthing experience MUCH more now that it will be with this doctor than I was with the midwife. I think that is a good confirmation. And having my friend translate is like the icing on the cake. Now if he'll just stay in until Jenn gets here on Oct. 1st, then everything will be PERFECT!

On another note, Monday is Parker's 9th b-day. If you would like to call or send him an e-mail, he would LOVE that. We did this last year and I think now he might be expecting it again. He mentioned how much he loves the calls and letters and can't wait for them. Our number is 321-766-4043. It makes him feel REALLY special!

Jessica Update from John

Jessica was released from the hospital. They stabilized her Blood Pressure and got the headache under control. She tested negative for Pre-eclampsia. They sent her home with a blood pressure monitor to help ensure it doesn't skyrocket again. Baby can stay in unless the BP gets too high again. The Dr. believes that she had migraine (from pregnancy and/or stress) and this caused her BP to rise. She is stable and resting. She can resume her normal activities based around her headaches or BP. Thank you for your prayers.

We have opted to not have a homebirth for many reasons. The main one being that the midwife we chose did not inform us that she is prohibited from working in the hospital that would deliver the baby if a problem arose. We were informed that due to previous complications, she is restricted from working there. That is now 3 separate doctors who have told us stories of complications gone array with her, on top of Jessica's feelings of uneasiness and lack of confidence in her. Thus, she will labor at home and we will go to the hospital when things are getting close. And then we can come home shortly after that if there are no problems.

John

update

The headache is under control. The blood pressure has gone down to a normal level now. Dr. is waiting to receive the protein results from my urine. If there is no protein then I can go home. We are hoping there is none. If there is protein then I definitely have Pre-eclampsia and will have a baby today. However, the dr. thinks my headache is from the pregnancy/stress and that made my BP go so high. He is sending me home with an electrical BP monitor so that I can measure my own BP many times a day and make sure it doesn't get so high again. He said if I don't have pre-eclampsia then I am good to go to have the baby at home. But he gave me some new information today that I need to pray about in regards to the midwife I have chosen. I will receive the results of the protein test in about an hour or so. If I go home, I can resume my normal activities based on my headaches and blood pressure. Thanks for all your prayers! I'll let you know what I find out.

BTW-ALL of my communication with the doctor was in Spanish. That felt good to know that I CAN do it!

Not My Will but Yours be Done!

Went to my 37 week check up (36.6 days at midnight) not feeling well still with a terrible headache. I have all the classic symptoms of pre-eclampsia. 5 lbs. in 10 days. Lots of swelling. Horrible headache for 24 hours that will not subside, and high blood pressure. The doctor is very concerned and is admitting me tonight to try to get the blood pressure under control as well as the headache. He wants to do some testing for pre-eclampsia as well. The baby is fine. His fluid is good. I am dialated already about 2 centimeters so that is good in case we have to take him tomorrow. The ultrasound showed he is very big already and measuring around 7 lbs. 12 ounces. The doctor was shocked at his size. None of this is part of my perfect plan, but I am in no way forgetting God's sovereignty, protection and hand of guidance and love. Please pray for everything to work out safely and smoothly. The doctor said if I have pre-eclampsia that he has to come out now. He will induce me naturally without pitocin and do everything he can to get things going so I can have a drug-free labor. He is the top Chief OBGYN at the leading medical hospital in Peru. I feel completely safe under his care. Maybe I'll be home tomorrow and can wait this out 3 weeks or maybe I'll be home in a few days with a baby. Only God knows and I am trying to be very open to His Will and not mine. You know how much I have wanted a natural homebirth. Please pray for God's perfect, divine plan and also for the baby's safety as well as mine! Pre-eclampsia can be very dangerous, so I just praise God this doctor is on top of things. More when I can!