A pleasant suprise

We had our appointment at UAB this week to check on the baby. We were pretty nervous and anxious, so we decided to go down a day early and just relax and spend time together before we met with the doctors. We stayed in a really nice hotel and spent the day relaxing in the pool and doing some sight-seeing. We ended the day in bed, watching movies, and pigging out on a variety of cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory. As I lay there with my boys and a mouth full of chocolate mudslide cheesecake, I knew that whatever was to come in the morning, that we would handle it together, and for the first time since we discovered the baby's abnormalities, I felt an overwhelming sense of peace.

We woke up early the next morning and headed for the hospital. After a long wait and a meeting with a genetic counselor, we met another doctor for a high intensity ultrasound. The detail was remarkable, and we could clearly see that the abnormalities were gone! It was so amazing. I clearly saw them in the last two ultrasounds, and now, they were simply gone. What a miracle! Our little baby's head was now perfectly round, the thickness of the nuchal fold had decreased, and the brain was formed perfectly, and as if that wasn't enough goodness for one day, we found out we're having a girl!!! There hasn't been a girl born into the Glouner family for over four generations, so we had completely resigned to the fact that we too would have all boys. Sean is still stunned, but I'm SO excited...bows, dresses, and pinkness....YAY!

I must admit, though, that having a girl for some reason seems so much harder; boys are so easy. They're rough and tough and can entertain themselves for hours outside with dirt and a stick, and as long as you teach them to work hard and be kind to others, they should turn out all right. Girls on the other hand are just complicated. I will be the eternal voice of contradiction to her as I try to teach her to become educated and successful but to value motherhood more, to be beautiful and fashionable but to be modest and healthy, to be funny and adventurous but to be feminine, to be strong and opinionated but to be humble and compassionate. I guess I just really understand what a privilege it is to be a woman, and so the challenge seems greater to me.

Well, after we finished at the hospital, we had some lunch, went to the McWane Science Museum (amazing!!), and then met Sean's brother who happened to be in Birmingham for a conference. As we drove home, we talked about what a fun time we had and how grateful we were that we could look back on this weekend as a time we grew closer and made happy memories together. We truly understand the blessing of health, and with that knowledge our hearts are even more full of gratitude for our healthy baby girl.

My Brother, My Friend

I love all of my siblings. They each have a special place in my heart, but Mikey isn't just my sibling, he's my closest friend. We tell eachother EVERYTHING. We love eachother unconditionally and can always be open & honest with eachother without fear of rejection or judgement. We just get eachother. We are so alike, but are still able to respect our differences.

Well, he's been serving a mission in Moscow, Russia for the past seven months, & I miss him like crazy. I am so proud of him. It is amazing to watch him grow as he learns of his divine potential. It has been awesome to watch the Lord use him to influence others for good. Mikey is so compassionate, hardworking, & realistic, and it is amazing to watch those traits used to bless those in need. Right now he's hard at work in a small town. He's serving as financial clerk, EQ president, & teacher in his tiny branch. He's also training his first "greenie" & trying to fit in a little missionary work in between all of his other responsibilities. I can only imagine what it's like in a strange country, speaking a strange language...it must be so exciting & scary & overwhelming.

Tomorrow is his birthday. I hope he's not too cold & lonely! If you want to send some birthday wishes his way his e-mail address is: mikeyaworth@myldsmail.net , & his address is:

Elder Michael Worthington

Russia Moscow West Mission

14 Efremova Street Office C

Moscow 119048

Russia

HAPPY BIRTHDAY my brother, my friend!!!

Here, There, & Everywhere

Well, we've had another busy week, but we managed to throw in a little fun here and there. We took a trip to the Chattanooga Aquarium. We love the aquarium!! We enjoyed the drive down there. Drew watched a movie, so Sean & I had plenty of time to talk & sing & laugh together. They had some new exhibits at the aquarium which were fun to see, and Drew got to pet a snake, a stingray, a shark, and a sturgeon. After we saw all of the fish, we got slurpies and played in the creek that surrounds the aquarium. It was a great day of family fun.

We had another ultrasound this week. They saw the same worrisome abnormalities, so we will go to Birmingham for some more tests soon.

We also went to the park, and Drew chased the pigeons all over the park. Sean & I sat in the shade while Drew ran around like a crazy man. Unfortunately we forgot the bread to feed the ducks, but we still had a great time. As I snapped a bazillion pictures, I couldn't help but recognize how amazing Drew's face looks. It healed so quickly! It was truly a miracle! He just has a few small scars left around his eye, but he's a boy so he can totally pull off the rugged, scarred eyebrow look :)

With everything that has happened lately, my mind keeps returning to the scripture in Nephi that states: "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things." Without Drew's accident, I might never have appreciated his perfect face. Without the complications of this pregnancy, I may never have understood the true miracle in the complexity of creating a child. If we hadn't started our marriage with so few material possessions, I don't know how we could truly be thankful for all that we have now. I'm grateful for the opposition in my life so that I can better recognize and truly appreciate all that I am blessed with.

Fun in the sun...and in the rain

Time flies when you're having fun! We have another busy day planned for today, but I thought I'd take a few seconds to post what we've been doing lately. We've been celebrating birthdays the past two weeks. Sean turned 25 and Drew turned 6. Drew had his party at Jump Zone. The kids played so hard they were red-faced and dripping with sweat in all of the pictures...kinda nasty, but kinda funny. We also celebrated by taking a trip to Toys-R-Us and going to the movies. It was nice to just let Drew have a few days of fun...he's been so patient with his puky, "boring" mom.

We have also been enjoying the warm weather. Sean and Drew have spent lots of time outside riding four-wheelers, and we even went on a hike on Monte Sano Mountain last week. We took our puppy, loaded up the cooler with water, and tried out a new trail. It was really fun.

We ended the week by going to the air show. Sean loves air shows. He use to go twice a year as a child when he lived in Fort Hood. The air show began wonderfully, but soon turned into a rather scary event. A small but fierce storm came half way through the show. It came quickly, so no one really had time to take cover. Hundreds of people tried to cram under tents for shelter and thousands ran for their cars which were parked a few miles away. The tents weren't very secure and the storm would be over before we made it to the car, so Sean and I felt the best thing to do would be to just hunker down together with our lawn chairs and our umbrellas. It POURED for about 10 minutes and then it was over. Drew stayed dry, but Sean and I were soaking wet. Despite the craziness of the situation, we had the most amazing time sitting under our umbrellas laughing til we cried as the wind blew our umbrellas inside out and our chairs filled with water. I can't explain why, but I was soaking wet, scared to death sitting in the middle of a field amid the lightening, terrible winds, and stinging rain, yet my heart was full of joy. We were in a terrible situation, but were were there together...what else could we do but laugh and enjoy ourselves? When the rain stopped, we discovered the tents that people had sought for shelter had blown over, many people had been hurt, and a young boy had been killed. I feel blessed that we were able to follow the promptings of the Spirit to find a safe place for our family. I am grateful for the protection we were given, and I am grateful for my sweet little family who has always found a way to laugh even through the hardest of times.