The winner is of the True Christian Motherhood Giveaway is:

Heather Griffis

Congratulations!

But you can still purchase your own copy of True Christian Motherhood by clicking on the ebook icon below!

And in even greater news…

Baby Garin is now officially 1 year old!

He’s walking…

He’s talking (sort of)…

And he’s super cute!

and well loved!

Click here for the FEBRUARY SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL ~ Homemaking from the Heart Bundle!

At five weeks, I hit a standstill in my journey to heal my diastasis.  I was discouraged.  I started a support forum.  And I kept going.

But it has been hard work.

There has been no progress, but I’ve also not gotten in all my reps and I’ve realized I am straining my belly too much getting up out of our furniture.  So much thought has to go into this, so I’m thankful I’ve only had a “standstill” rather than a “setback!” 

This week I am refocusing and starting over at Week 6.  {yes, that is allowed!}

I’m ready to get going!

The last time I spoke with Julie, she gave me some great little tidbits of wisdom that I would like to share here as well as encourage you to visit the forum (page 4 in particular) and glean wisdom from one of Julie Tupler’s certified trainers, Bonnie from Beautiful After Belly, who has been popping in on the forum to encourage everyone there!

*The first 6 weeks are just to strengthen your muscles. This is why you are not to exercise during that time.  You strengthen the muscles, then you heal them.  In fact, you need 3 good weeks before you ever start week 4.  If you’ve had a setback prior to week 4, don’t go on until you’ve had 3 good weeks in a row under your belt.  And don’t be afraid to redo the week you messed up.  {like me!}

*This is a marathon, not a sprint. I have a long way to go and my exciting nearly overnight success in the first several weeks was because I was finally healing connective tissue that had been damaged for a long time.  However, when my progress slowed, I became discouraged.  I saw this as a sprint even though I knew it would take more than 18 weeks to heal my DR, I still thought I would see the breakneck healing I was seeing in the beginning.  This past week I’ve realized this is a process, not a quick fix and I have to quit seeing this as something I just hurry up and get off my plate.  Thus, it is ok to go back and redo weeks and even go back and start over.  Just because I am blogging the journey does not mean I’m going to have a perfect 18 weeks.  I’m okay with that now.

*Everything you do is a workout! That’s right…every time you pull a cookie sheet out of the oven, pick up a crying baby, or hand a platter of meat to the child next to you, you are doing work and your muscles must be engaged or you are straining.

*Contractions are more important that headlifts. If you only have time for one exercise during a particularly busy day, do the contractions rather than the headlifts.  And you can do these contractions just about anywhere.

*Watch how you pick up baby! If you can, pull baby close to your belly to keep your DR from popping out and always, always engage those muscles when you are doing the “work” of picking up baby!

*It’s never too late. I’ve had many moms ask me if it is too late for them because their baby is 10 years old or more.  Well, guess what?!  Even men have this condition and they NEVER had a baby!  So, it is never too late.  Jump in where you are and heal the damage!

*It’s more about the connective tissue than the gap. If you have only a 1 or 2 DR yet have very deep connective tissue damage, you will actually have a harder time healing than someone who has a much larger gap with shallow connective tissue damage.  This is one reason I am thrilled about the connective tissue healing I’ve seen!

*Wear the splint, wear the splint, wear the splint until your DR is a shallow 1 or 2. Yes, I know that feels like forever, but I’m right here with you.

*Closure of you DR is NOT permanent. That is tough for me to write.  This is not the end.  There is no end.  Hopefully, though, you will have trained your muscles to hold themselves in at all times and you will not undo the healing you have done.  Be aware of your tummy and remember that everything you do is work!

So, I keep moving forward from here.  No longer will I be chronicling using the weeks as a label because I realize now I can’t do that and be true to the needs of my body.  If I have a bad week, I have to go back, blog or not.  And I promised you all the nitty-gritty details no matter how ugly they were.  Well, this is one of those lessons I’ve learned through this journey.

I also found out Julie is hoping to put together a FREE conference call where you can sit in on a Q&A session with her.  She’ll compile all the questions she gets and work her way through them.  Julie is also working on a 6 week online support program that will hopefully launch in January.  Visit her site: DiastasisRehab.com or her facebook page to stay up to date on what Julie is working on.

Click here for the FEBRUARY SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL ~ Homemaking from the Heart Bundle!

He’s 2.

He’s busy.

And if you are reading this, then you probably have one too and I’m preachin’ to the choir!

When I mentioned my curriculum for my younger crowd, I also mentioned our Toddler Box.

This box is something I put together specifically for my 2 year old to keep him busy during school hours. He is only to get it out when we are having school and only in the same room.  Once his brother is finished with his school work (about 30 mins), he puts it away (with a lot of help from me…yeah, we’re working on that) and they go in the adjoining room to play.

What’s in the Toddler Box?

• puzzles

• pipe cleaners

• alphabet stamps

• paper

• crayons

• cloth tape measure

• magnifying glass

• books

• anything I think would catch his interest for 30 minutes at a time

Your toddler box doesn’t have to be full of new and exciting stuff, it just has to be full of stuff! You could put cookie cutters and cotton balls, blocks and cars, sewing cards or a deck of cards in there or you could get really motivated and create something like:

Clothesline Busy Bag from Money Saving Mom

Ice Cream Shoppe from Spell Outloud

Farm Yard & Dino Land from Tired, Need Sleep

But truth be told, your toddler doesn’t really care, so don’t live your life feeling guilty for not creating uber-cute Montessori inspired playthings for him. Just throw some things in a box that he can only open during school hours and call it done.  {If you can manage more, then go right ahead and have fun while you do it!}

And guess where the Toddler Box goes?

Right in line (by age) with the other kids’ crates!  That really makes Micah feel like he’s “doing school” with the big kids.

Now, I know some of you are thinking,

“There is no way MY toddler would sit still for 30 minutes no matter what cool stuff you stuck in a box and called school.”

Mine either.  That’s why he opens the toddler box on the floor right beside where I am.  That way I can direct some of his play.

Pipe cleaners are great for this!  When he starts to lose interest in his books and other things, I say,

“Micah, make me a tree!”

And he makes me a…

TREE!

Or I say,

“Micah, investigate that book over there.”

And he…

INVESTIGATES!

And this creates a minimal amount of work for me and can be done quickly between math problems or phonics lessons.

But what about Baby?  My baby is 9 months old now.  {How did that happen?!}

I really try hard to time his nap with school hours (at least the teacher-intensive school hours).  He typically goes down for a nap around 10am, so that is often when school begins around here.

If his nap isn’t going to coincide well with school, I just take him down with me and he plays nearby or I hold him or if he’s really squirmy, I have one of the older kids take him for a bit.  My 6 year old daughter is also really good with him, so if she’s done with her work, she’ll take him to the play room and play with him there {again, school only takes her about 30 mins).

When there are babies in the house, you have to be creative and not hold too high of an expectation for yourself or your school day.  It’s not going to look like “school at home” (nor should it), it will look more like home with a little bit of school mixed in. {The Christian Home School by Gregg Harris and Educating The WholeHearted Child by Sally Clarkson are books that do a great job of “fleshing out” this concept.  I highly recommend both books!}

You do not need everyone in the same room doing school at the same time.

You do not need to do every single subject the public school does.

You do not need to make your family conform to school, but rather conform school to your family.

Let it meet YOUR needs and not the other way around!

So, how do you handle babies and toddlers during school hours?

Click here for the FEBRUARY SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL ~ Homemaking from the Heart Bundle!

This was Week 3.  The results weren’t quite as astounding as the previous couple of weeks, but I am beginning to “see” internal healing.

When I checked my diastasis this week, I am fairly certain it is not the huge 10+ finger width it was at the beginning.  However, it is so hard to tell when the gap is THAT large.  That said, I continue to feel the connective tissue heal and become less deep!

Next week is the BIG WEEK…the one everyone says might knock me flat on my face!  Pray for me!

Today, I thought I’d take a moment to answer some reader questions that have come up along the way.  I try to answer whatever questions come up as they come up, but I thought it might be of benefit to others to see the answers as well.  So, here’s a little Q&A session!

Q. I only have a small diastasis.  Should I even bother?

A.  A resounding YES!  This isn’t something that gets better all by itself and there is a good chance if you don’t close it now, it WILL get bigger.  What I wouldn’t give to have known I could have prevented this!  You are at the perfect place to solve the problem before it really is a problem!

Q.  Is the splint safe to wear during pregnancy?

A.  According to Julie, YES.  However, if it is uncomfortable, do not wear the splint, but DO keep up with your exercises.

Q.  Is this splint the same as a compression garment?

A.  NO.  When you put on the splint/s, you move the recti muscles into position before strapping the splint into place.  Compression garments only CONCEAL, they do not HEAL and your muscles remain in the wrong place.  The brace I used to recommend did a better job than compression garments, but I realize now it isn’t as good at approximating the muscles as wearing the Tupler splints, so I only use it when I’m washing the Tupler splints.

Q.  Do I need the book, the splint, AND the DVD?

A. NO.  I recommend the DVD, the splint/s and the guidebook, but if you think you can handle writing it down on your own (something I don’t seem to be very good at doing), then you can forgo getting the guidebook.  The Mummy Tummy book is older and Julie said it is needing an update.  I also found the DVD to be easier for me to really get a grasp of how to do the exercises.

Q.  How do you pronounce this condition?

A.  This is one I got an education on!  It is di AS tasis.

Q.  How do I measure?

A.  Julie has an explanation on her site (HERE), but I’ve heard many of you say you still don’t quite get it.  When I first measured, I was lifting my head and feeling the muscles move together and THEN measuring…well, THAT is wrong.  That makes my diastasis seem smaller.  Lift your head ONLY to find out WHERE those muscles are (they will feel like ropes on either side of your belly), then lower your head and measure with your fingers side by side to see how many finger-widths the two “ropes” are apart BEFORE they ever begin to come together. I had to say 10+ because I could put all 8 of my fingers (thumbs don’t factor in here) spread out and moving from side to side in the gap between the muscles!  ACK!

Q. How long do the exercises take?

A.  The first 3 weeks haven’t been much time at all.  It takes about 2½ minutes per Contraction exercise.  So, we are talking 5-10 minutes 3x a day (and you can do them in the car!)  I’ll let you know how long Week 4+ is taking…

Q. Is it safe to do this with an umbilical hernia?

A.  YES.  The hernia is often a result of diastasis recti.

Q.  The splint is folding over.  What’s wrong?

A.  You either need a second one or you need to wash it to let it regain it’s shape.  At least those are the answers I’ve found to be the case.  If you think you might need a second one, call or email Julie and get her opinion.

Q.  I had my “baby” many years ago.  Can I still heal?

A.  YES!   My muscles split back in 2006.  Since then, I’ve had 3 more children and I am seeing healing!  You can do this!

I will not be checking in next week (I know, I know…after I told you about that scary Week 4!), but I will be back in 2 weeks to let you know how I’m doing!  Keep me posted on your progress as well!

Click here for the FEBRUARY SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL ~ Homemaking from the Heart Bundle!

This week something amazing happened!

Now brace yourself (or splint yourself!) because what I am about say is probably going to make you laugh, but…

I actually DO have a belly button!

For YEARS (and I am not exaggerating here), my belly button has either been pushed out from pregnancy or pushed out from my diastasis.  In fact, not too long ago I jokingly told my children I didn’t have one!

But I do now!

That’s right!  My connective tissue is strong enough now that my organs are not pushing on my belly as much and my belly button is actually visible.  Not that my little ole belly button is something I plan on showing off, but it is one more proof that the Tupler Technique™ is working!

And here are the pictures…

The total inches off my waist from Day 1 to Day 14 is 4 inches!

If you have any questions, feel free to ask and also check out my Diastasis Recti from a Mom’s Perspective page.  Next week I’ll try to answer some of your questions with Julie’s help.

If you are looking for the products you need to follow along with me, click on the banner below:

Disclosure: I received some of Julie’s products and services for free; however, I do not benefit in any way from the sales of these products.  You get my honest opinion and honest results.

Click here for the FEBRUARY SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL ~ Homemaking from the Heart Bundle!

I’ve never had strong stomach muscles, so I guess it shouldn’t have been a surprise that I ended up with this condition.  I was a cheerleader and did a lot of jumps and back bends and such that put a lot of stress on those muscles.  To try to tighten them, I did crunches.  Pregnancy and large babies only made the problem more obvious.

However, it wasn’t until my last pregnancy that I became hopeless that these muscles would ever heal. During my pregnancy with Garin (who would turn out to be an overdue 11 pounder), I noticed I could actually see my internal organs moving below the surface of my skin and I could feel the muscles pulling on either side of my belly.  In addition to that, I carried bigger than ever and my OB said my uterus had actually flipped over, putting me at risk for yet another C-section.

2 months after I had Garin, this is what I looked like:

All through the years I had only made half-hearted attempts at The Tupler Technique™.  I had done fairly well despite the fact I was not consistent; however, in the back of my head I figured I would eventually have to resort to surgery and I sort of leaned on that option.  In many ways, it seemed easier.

But after the plastic surgeon told me he couldn’t do anything for me until after I was done having children and even then didn’t think it would be the fix I would need, I resigned myself to finding a way to conceal my tummy and just live life fielding comments about when the next baby was due.

That’s when I found the Donjoy brace.  It covered my belly, pulled the muscles together and concealed fairly well.  But once the brace was off, nothing had changed.  The brace didn’t fix anything…it just made it less noticeable.

I also decided losing weight would help some as well.  I dropped 20 pounds and looked like this:

The bulge was definitely less protruding…

But, it was nowhere near being gone.

For those of you who do not suffer from this and do not realize the depth of the issue, let me just give you a run down of what it has meant for me (and if you really want to get a good grasp of diastasis recti, read the comments on some of these posts…they will make you cry).

• Clothes that don’t fit right – You either buy a size larger so it will go OVER your belly, or you wear something that goes UNDER your belly and deal with the “potbelly” look.  Wearing skirts has made this a little easier as there are some great looks out there with elastic in the waist.

• Maternity clothes that are never big enough – My belly gets so big and hangs down so low because I have no muscles to hold my uterus in place (more on that later).  That makes finding tops and bottoms to fit is nearly impossible in later pregnancy.

• A uterus held up by nothing but skin – As I mentioned above, my uterus nearly flipped over.  No feet in the ribs here…baby’s feet stick straight out!  To turn over in bed, I had to hold my belly or else what little muscle I had left (which were now completely off to each side of my belly) would feel like they were tearing and burning.  No support garment was enough to hold the uterus in place, so my OB told me when I went into labor, I would need to pull back on my uterus so baby could engage.

• Lack of labor pattern – Since the DR has gotten really bad, I have struggled to pull together a decent labor pattern.  With the uterus out of position, it is very difficult to get labor going.

• Internal organs just below the skin – My muscles are separated and my connective tissues are nearly non-existent.  When I first began this program, as I checked for the size of my DR, my fingers could go quite deep into my belly.  Sometimes eating would make me nauseous and sometimes sleeping in a certain position would make my insides cramp for hours afterward.

So, as you can see it isn’t simply vanity or pride that drives my desire to heal.  This condition isn’t just about how you look.

So, because I know you are all on the edge of your seat wondering how my first week went, let me give you a quick rundown…

This was my profile picture from Day 1:

{I was shocked to see how swayed my back was!}

I watched the DVD and practiced putting on the splints (remember, I have to wear 2).

Here’s what those look like on me:

My diastasis was 10+ finger-widths with deeply damaged connective tissue. When putting on the brace, I had to really move those muscles into place before strapping the velcro.  I wear the brace 24 hours a day except for very rare occasions.

The exercises didn’t seem too difficult to start with, but as I kept doing them and made sure I was doing them slowly enough, they were definitely a workout!  I did them whenever I could sneak them in (even though Julie recommends you take time out to get away from everything).

A couple of days into it I felt a little nauseous from my insides being held in a position they had not been in in years!  Thankfully, Julie warns of this on the video!

One thing happened I was not prepared for, though…
I got grouchy!

I felt bound up.  I felt restricted.  I felt like I might explode!  I got very grouchy with the children and with the splint and the exercises themselves.  It was a moment of…

I don’t want to do this!
This is too hard!
(and it was only Day 2!)

And then I got the flu.

So, for about 36 hours, something around my belly was out of the question.  Perhaps that was enough time to collect my thoughts and emotions or perhaps I was reminded of morning sickness and WHY I am doing this, but no matter what it was, I put the splint back on as soon as I was well and never looked back!

And one week later, the difference is UNDENIABLE…

Take a look at the side by side from Day 1 to Day 7 (remember, BOTH of these picture are WITHOUT the splint on):

I was shocked and THRILLED!  I even think my posture looks a little better without so much out in front to hold up.  By the way, I have not lost any more weight (hoping to come off a plateau I’ve been on!) and I am not doing any exercises except for The Tupler Technique™ (as required by the program).  So, the 2¾” I’ve lost have been ALL because of strengthening my tummy muscles!

As for the diastsis itself, I did not feel any change in finger-width, but did feel a difference in the depth, so that means my connective tissue is healing!

If you are doing this with me, please let me know how you are doing!  And I hope this is as encouraging to you as it has been for me!

Click here for the FEBRUARY SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL ~ Homemaking from the Heart Bundle!

Visit the Diastasis Recti from a Mom’s Perspective page for more posts and encouragement!

This is me:

Not me 9 months pregnant.

Not me a couple of days postpartum.

Me today.

No brace.  No airbrushing.

We’ve talked Diastasis Recti before.  I had no idea how important that original post would become.  I had no idea how many women were out there suffering silently, wondering how this had happened.

Women

just

like

Me.

Ever since I mustered up the courage to post that first blog entry on the topic, I’ve been on a quest.  I’ve been searching for support garments in and out of pregnancy.  I’ve searched for the right size, the right amount of coverage, the right comfort level.  I’ve also faithfully stood by the Tupler Technique™ as the ONLY way to actually FIX what was broken.

However,

I did not think The Tupler Technique™ could really fix

ME.

After all, my diastasis was HUGE.  Unfixable…except with surgery…

In February, I consulted with a plastic surgeon who basically said he’d never seen anything like

THAT.

He said he could bring the fascia together, but not the muscles.  He said he couldn’t really help me.

I left his office crying.

The only thing to do now was to CONCEAL the diastasis as best as I could with a brace and compression garments.

OR…

Was there a way I could actually HEAL?

That’s when I ended up in touch with Julie Tupler herself!

She believed in

Me.

And IF she believed in MY ability to heal…a 10+ finger width diastasis…then ANYONE could heal!  And if THAT was possible, then I would shout it from the rooftops!

And so, the journey begins…

NOTE:  The 4 tools I talk about below are great if you have the money; however, I still wholeheartedly endorse the book and offer some other “tweaking” ideas in my post: So, I Fell Off the Wagon.

Today, I have in hand 4 tools:
1.  Julie Tupler’s DVD
{The DVD is so much better than the book I bought back in 2007!  Julie shows you exactly how to put on the splint – even double splinting like I have to- and goes through all the exercises WITH you.  Watching this, I also realized my diastasis was MUCH larger than I had originally supposed because I was not checking it correctly.  I received this DVD free of charge.}

2.  The Tupler Technique™ Guidebook
{This book is a quick reference guide and a logbook for checking off each day’s exercises.  I purchased this book myself.}

3.  Two Diastasis Rehab Splints™
The splint at top is the splint Julie now sells.  I have 2 of these as per Julie’s orders since my diastasis is so large.  The splint shown below is the old one I bought in 2007 – this is the splint I could not recommend.  I had no idea it had been revamped.  I wholeheartedly endorse the new version!  Using two of them has been perfect for what I needed.  To see how to wear the splint, view the video shown here.  {I received the two new splints free of charge.}

4.  Online Support from Julie herself.
{This is something that is coming soon to Julie’s website.  I’m getting Julie live via Skype free of charge.  The online support program will be in a webinar format.  I had my first session with Julie last week!  It was so nice to have her doing the exercises along with me and cheering me on!  But, I will tell you, she’s not a pushover!  No half-hearted attempts at the exercises allowed!}

The Tummy Chronicles will give you a candid look at one mom’s hope to heal.  This will be a no-holds-barred chronicle of the program…the ups, the downs, and everything in between.  This is real, folks.  This is

Me.

If you would like to join me on this journey, the first 3 items on my list are the ones you will need to get started (see note).  You will need to measure your waist around the belly button to get the right splint size (make sure you order 2 if need be!)

Be sure and check your diastasis to see how large it is so you can track your progress.  To check for a diastasis, READ THIS CAREFULLY.  As I said above, I thought my diastasis was smaller than it actually was.  Mine is a 10+ finger width, meaning I don’t even have enough fingers to check it!

Also, my connective tissue is VERY weak.  I can actually see my internal organs moving just below the skin.  Julie talks more about this in the DVD.

And lastly, Julie said something to me that has really stuck with me as I’ve begun this journey…{and I paraphrase}…

Having a diastasis is like having a broken bone.  To heal, a broken bone must have a cast on it.  The splint is like a cast.  It might not always be comfortable, but that is what it takes to heal.

I’ve spent so much time looking for comfort, I never even thought about the possibility that healing isn’t always a comfortable business.

I am committed.

I want this.  I need this.  I’d love to have you join me!

Note: You can do this program to PREVENT a diastasis AND you can do this program while you are PREGNANT!  Please, please let other women know that this IS preventable!

Visit my Diastasis Recti from a Mom’s Perspective page for more posts!

Click here for the FEBRUARY SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL ~ Homemaking from the Heart Bundle!

{Don’t miss the GIVEAWAY in this post!}

The number one question I get asked when it comes to cloth diapering is:

What is the easiest way to get started?

Which translates into many forms including:

How many diapers do I need?

How can I do this without spending a fortune?

HELP!  I don’t know what I am doing!

This post is my simple answer…

• Prefolds

• Snappis

• Covers

~Prefolds~

Don’t be afraid!  Prefolds are not as hard as you think they are.  These diapers are incredibly versatile and last FOREVER.

Infant size fits until baby is 15 lbs and Premiums can easily last until you potty train. (I prefer Premiums over Regulars because they are more absorbant due to more center layers)

2 dozen in each size is plenty.

{click here to see prefolds from Sweet Little Blessings and here to read my post on using prefolds}

~Snappis~

These little things are Y-shaped blessings!  No more pins!  No more worrying about poking baby!

All you need are 2. (unless you are prone to losing things, then you might want more!)

{click here to see how to use a Snappi}

~Covers~

I’m partial to Bummis Super Whisper Wraps and Mother-ease Air Flows.

You will need 4 per size.

{click here to see Sweet Little Blessings’ diaper cover choices}

This truly is the simplest way to go!

{don’t forget to link up your simple homemaking tips below!}

But first…

Have you figured out yet what this giveaway might be all about?

That’s right!  Coleen from Sweet Little Blessings, long-time advertiser here at Raising Arrows and another mom of many is offering one my readers a

$25 Gift Certificate!

How to Enter:

1. Leave a comment telling me whether or not you use cloth diapers.

2. “Like” Sweet Little Blessings Facebook page.

3. Sign up for Sweet Little Blessings mailing list.

4. Facebook this giveaway.

5. Tweet this giveaway.

{leave a comment for each entry!}

As an added bonus, you can receive a

10% OFF COUPON

if you become a Raising Arrows subscriber either by Email or in a Feed Reader.  The code, which expires May 21, will be in the feed footer, so don’t miss it!

This giveaway ends May 19th at 11:59pm.  Winner will be chosen at random by an automated system.

And I just found out my friend Lauren at Mama’s Laundry Talk is doing a 2 week series on Cloth Diaper Care!  Check it out here:

Here’s the link up! {Grab a button if you’d like}

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I’ll be honest with you, sick children scare me.  And when there are fevers in the house, I can do nothing but beg God’s mercy.

That is why this post will not be a light-hearted one.  It hits me too close to home.

What I have to say here will not be some comprehensive list on how to keep children healthy or how to afford healthcare.  It will not be a commentary on the healthcare plan or a laundry list of helpful herbs.  I could do all this, and probably will at some point, but not in this post.

This post is a story.  A story of our family’s choice.  A choice that works for us.  Keeping YOUR children healthy is YOUR business.  There is no ONE right choice.  With that said, I want to share with you how we chose to think outside the box and the blessings that followed.

After years of using traditional insurance and even having insurance through my husband’s job (that we paid a pretty penny for), we felt convicted to leave the world of high premiums and numbers without names.  We were introduced to a company called Christian Healthcare Ministries by some friends of ours.  We liked what we saw and decided to drop our “safe” insurance and go with CHM, a Christian cost-share type program where members “shared” each other’s healthcare costs.

In many ways, it was a leap of faith.

In fact, I was pregnant with Emily at the time.  CHM would not be able to cover the cost of her birth.  I had no idea how we would pay the thousands of dollars it would be to deliver her, but my husband believed this was what we should do.

Leap.

And the Lord provided for her birth.

Then Emily got sick.  As the bills rolled in, I wondered how we would ever pay for all of this.

Hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Doing our part to help reduce the bills, we sent bill after adjusted bill into Christian Healthcare Ministries.  CHM even sent someone in to help us get these bills reduced.  Sometimes we felt as if we were knocking heads with the hospital.  Sometimes we wondered if the money would be there to pay for it all.  After all, we had only been members for a little over a year.  We knew how the program was supposed to work.  But would it?

And then Emily died.

And Christian Healthcare Ministries took over completely.

The hospital bill was reduced and finalized and taken out of our hands.  The money began to come in from CHM and we paid off everything.

Everything.

Since then we have had 2 babies and several hospital stays.  We have nothing but good to say about Christian Healthcare Ministries.  As it turns out, Fox news agrees with us.

If you have ever wondered about cost-share programs or simply wanted a way out of the health insurance cycle, please visit Christian Healthcare Ministries.  Tell them I sent you.  My referral number is 112373.

It is a fact of life that children do get sick.  Christian Healthcare Ministries gives this mama one less thing to worry about.

Affording Kids Series:
Introduction
Feeding Them
Schooling Them
Entertaining Them
Keeping Them Healthy – this post

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Garin as a newborn.

I didn’t talk about it much.  I couldn’t find the right words.  Words to explain how blessed I felt, but also how utterly exhausted and frustrated I felt as well.

It took time…lots of time.

Garin, my 7th born child, was colicky.  Painfully, ear-piercingly colicky.  From his first full night outside the womb until he reached 4 months of age, he cried…a lot.

Couple this with the fact that for the first time ever I experienced postpartum depression, and you have a recipe for long, exhausting days and even longer emotionally-draining nights.

Many people would say,

“Is he always like this?”

And I would nod my head and choke back tears.

I felt absolutely helpless.

My oldest son was able to rock him to sleep from time to time.  Oh, how I depended on Blake’s rocking ability!

I snapped pictures whenever I could catch Garin between crying jags.  I didn’t want his photo album to be full of screaming baby pictures.  I didn’t want colic to be the only memories I had of his early days.

I gave him Gripe Water.  It helped.  I was thankful.

But the one thing that kept me going was

hope.

Hope offered by another mother.  One who had been there.  One who didn’t gloss over the desperation I felt.  One who told me…

4 months.

Four months and her son was a different child.  An amazingly happy, wonderfully smiley little boy.

I clung to her words…with every ounce of my being.  I wondered if I could survive until then, but every day was one step closer.  I prayed,

“Lord, give me the strength for one more day.”

As that 4 month mark approached, the crying became less, the smiles more.  I began to see my little guy’s gorgeous eyes and crazy-cute dimple more and more.

We slept.

And now, at 6½ months, I barely remember those days.

This isn’t a post about what to do when your child is colicky.  This is a post about hope.  The hope of time and encouragement and other mamas who have been there who are willing to share their stories.

What a blessing!

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