We're HOME!!

Hello all!! I am writing from the comfort of the Powell homestead! God is so good! Today was a marathon...for all of us! I had a hard time sleeping last night because I was so excited about today's scan...so I started off at a deficit. Thankfully, my mother, sister and Greg came over around 1 to take down photos and finish packing up my room. I had the best intentions and had tried to send home as much as I could earlier...but I still had 2 carts worth of stuff to bring home!

The sonographer came in fairly early and we were able to get a growth scan in addition to the cervical check. Tenille, the same songrapher that did my initial scan on the day I was admitted, did my scan today, which was so fun! It is crazy how comfortable you become with your medical professionals after 3 months! She and Nikki, the PA with Maternal/Fetal gave me the good news that my cervix still looked good, as did the stitches and was holding at between 32 and 34mm! Great news and a pass to go home! Additionally, they shared that true to Powell style, P3 is quite the little porker!! I told them I thought it would weigh in at around 4 lbs just based upon how big my belly has gotten and how I can be getting clobbered at the hip and the ribs at the same time! While it measured 2lbs 12oz back at week 29, today it weighed in at a whopping 4lbs 8oz!! Such great news! We also got a bonus 4D scan of the baby's face...which by the way...is adorable! And no, I am not going to post it...you'll have to wait to see the real thing...but I will tell you that "cheeks" may be this one's nickname too!

Today was wonderful, and although I was so excited to come home, there is a certain sense of security that comes with the monitors and nurses and doctors being right there! It was also bittersweet to say goodbye to the wonderful women that took such great care of me for the past 12 weeks! They truly became almost an extended family...and Greg, the boys and I will really miss them and look forward to seeing them again when we go in for delivery! We love you girls!!

Greg and I headed home right around 3pm and the boys were just getting up from naps when we got home! They had welcome home balloons on the mailbox and a wonderful welcome sign and flowers waiting in the kitchen...I have the best boys! Greg did so much to get ready for my return and I am so thankful! We had some wonderful friends share a table and small fridge that is right next to my bed along with a tray table for me to use...Thank you Dusty and Julane!

My reunion with my boys was so sweet! I was already settled on the sofa when Landon came down the stairs and rounded the corner. He just stopped in his tracks and then broke out in the biggest grin and ran over to give me a hug...I just broke down in tears...I am so thankful to God to be home with my family! Tanner was having a hard time waking up and was pretty whiny and grumpy until Cory brought him into the family room and he saw Landon and me snuggling on the couch...then he, too, broke into a big grin and practically jumped out of Cory's arms to me! We all just snuggled for about 10 minutes...it was wonderful! Even when Landon said "Mommy, you sure are fat!"...I guess a lot has changed since last we three were on the couch together! It's just fine though...the Powells are together, under one roof again, and all is right in our world!

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your faithful prayers that helped us arrive at this day! We are ever so grateful and excited to be together as a family. We ask that you continue to pray for our little P3, that he/she will continue to grow and mature and get ready for life on the outside! We also ask that you continue to lift Landon and Tanner, that my being home will be a good thing for them instead of another form of different...I am really hoping that we will all focus on the fact that we are together!

So, one last note about the hospital...although I suggested that they retire my room, kind of like a jersey...that idea didn't fly (although Judy suggested a little plaque! ha ha). However, they are in the process of renovating the floor and they were just waiting for me to leave to finally get to my room. My room will therefore be blocked for the next several days until they complete the work. When they are finished there will be a new mommy-to-be in my room, who I am sure, would love to hear from any one of you, but it may interrupt her rest...so I ask that you use my home or cell number from now on! :)

You all are the best! Thank you for your care, concern and prayers...we love you!!

Love, the Powells (all 5 of us!)

32 Weeks!!

Are you kidding me?!? That's right...we have made it to 32 weeks! We are completely thrilled to have made it this far!! The boys and Greg just left...they came to visit one last time before I am (hopefully) sprung from this joint tomorrow. Greg said he could stomach McDonalds "one last time" and only because he knew that he wouldn't be eating it after today for a long while! While downstairs, we ran into the Midwife who was working that fateful day 11 weeks ago. She was so happy to see that I was still pregnant, but she couldn't help laughing about how in denial I was. When she told me I needed to come to the hospital, my response was, "I can't go to the hospital, I have 2 kids", pointing at Landon and Tanner. And she answered, "If you want 3 kids, you need to go across the street...now". Pretty crazy to run into her today of all days!
When we came up to the room, we packed up all of the boys' toys and play doh (I'm sure Ms. Ophelia in housekeeping won't be sad to see that go!) DVDs and books to go home. I'm not taking down my pictures of the boys, sparkly lights or calendars until after my scan in the am...just in case. Landon actually said, "I'm gonna snuggle one more time in Mommy's hospital bed...this last day". Can you believe it?? The nurses were so sad to see the boys go because they knew they wouldn't see them again until I am back to deliver...they have made many friends during my stay here! We have been absolutely spoiled by everyone here...we feel like we have about 40 new family members! God has truly blessed P3 and our whole family...not just with amazing doctors, supportive and encouraging nurses and techs, but with each of you that has said a prayer on our behalf. We are so deeply grateful to you and hope you have an inkling about just how important you have been during this time! Thank you could never come close to covering it...but please know how humbly thankful we are to all of you and of course our loving, all powerful Father, that hand picked our doctors and caretakers and grew and protected our little P3. We continue to pray for protection for these next few weeks until he/she joins us, and for a safe delivery and healthy baby. And we pray for each of you, that you would know how instrumental you have been in this story! We so love and appreciate you!!

Here's to a great scan in the morning and some happy goodbyes...thank you again!

Love, Kristen, Greg, Landon, Tanner and P3

It's official!

Today I called and scheduled P3's birthday! Sounds so crazy to say, but the doctors are cautiously optimistic that I could actually go to term (38 weeks). Please continue to keep P3 and our family in your prayers that we can all be patient until December 12th! Of course, our first and foremost prayer is that whenever the baby joins us, that he/she be totally healthy. We so appreciate you and your prayers and are anxiously awaiting having you all meet our newest! God Bless You!
Love, G, K, L, T & P3

31 weeks!!

Hello all and happy Monday! It was a happy Monday indeed! We are now at 31 weeks...a huge milestone...and still seem to be holding steady! My doctors have started joking that I am going to turn out to be "that patient", you know, the one that they try desperately to stop labor early on just to have to induce labor when she is overdue! ha ha... Seriously, my measurement is still between 30 and 36mm, which is considered "normal" and I am not contracting any more than someone this stage in pregnancy normally does (braxton hicks, or practice contractions) and usually not more than 1 or 2 an hour, so everyone is cautiously optimistic. I have actually been instructed to call the office and schedule my c-section...I guess they think I am really going to make it that far! So exciting! Please pray, because the surgeon that did Tanner's delivery isn't on call the week I am supposed to deliver and I am trying my best to encourage him to change his schedule! :)

Our other exciting news is that due to our good report today, it looks like my check out next week is still on! It is so hard to believe that it is so close...if you think about it...this is quite possibly my last Monday night spend the night in the hospital!! So incredible! God has been so good to us and we are sooo thankful! As excited and ready as we are for me to be home, we are also a bit nervous. From the beginning, the doctors had told me that I was staying until delivery. Their reasoning was not only due to my body and how it was holding but that because they have discovered that when they send a mommy home on bed rest, she very seldom is able to be on the kind of bed rest that she can have in the hospital. After our weekend spend the nights I can understand...as careful as I am and even though I have lost a lot of strength during my weeks here, I was surprised by how easy it is to slip back into "mommy mode" and want to do more than I should. Please pray that I am able to be very good about my strict bed rest and continue to allow our care givers and Greg handle operations until after P3 joins us! We are still hoping and praying for a December baby! We are so thankful to our friends for the offers of help and items to help with keeping me in the guest room and even a fully reclining lawn chair so that I can BE OUTSIDE!!! yippee!! I don't care that it is getting chilly...I'll wrap up in a big blanket just to be able to sit outside and breathe in fresh air and feel the breeze!! aah...I can almost feel it now! :)











We Powells had a fun weekend...complete with a spend the night on Saturday! So maybe we were a little over-confident after our last try...quite possibly due to the benedryl help...but we were humbled this week! I think it was well after 10 before we finally had to turn off the lights and TV and put both boys in bed with me just to get them to lie still long enough to pass out! But again...it was totally worth it to have all my guys here when we woke up in the morning! Amazingly, Greg was able to get boys up, fed and dressed all in time to head out in time to make it to church on time!

Landon had a great baseball game on Saturday! He played so well that he earned the game ball!! Grandmommy and Grandy surprised him by showing up to watch and Tanner got to play with Mr. Bryan, Greg's college roommate...it was a great day!

Thank you to all of you that have come down for visits during my stay...it has truly made this time so much easier, and truth be told, I have rather enjoyed having one on one adult conversations for the first time in a long time. I am so thankful for your support, encouragement and especially your prayers...I, and we, are so humbled and appreciative. We hope and pray that God will bless each of you as He has blessed us through you...you have exemplified the love of Christ and we love you!

Monday # 10

Hello all! Hope this finds you all well! We are still recovering from our amazing family weekend, though I am so happy to be tired because I spent so much time with my boys! Today was very low key...Landon had baseball practice tonight and both boys have school (and school pictures) in the morning, so they didn't come to visit tonight. I miss them, but am looking forward to a nice long visit tomorrow afternoon!

Today was my weekly scan to check cervical length. The initial measurement she took was 30mm, which was a little disconcerting...5mm less than last week. However, she quickly reminded me that a millimeter is a very tiny measurement and that the measurements can also be affected by the particular sonographer taking the scan. She took another measurement that read at 34mm..which made me feel a little better! Honestly, I did expect a bit of a drop, after all, we did have a big weekend, but I am thankful that it wasn't as large as I had originally feared! God is good!

Thank you for your calls and messages of encouragement each Monday...you don't know how important they are...and we so appreciate them and you all! Thank you for continuing to lift P3 and our family in prayer...you all are a part of the miracle we are experiencing and we love you!

30 Weeks!!

Today marks 30 weeks gestation for our little P3!! We are so thankful and excited to have made it to this wonderful goal!! Obviously, we are hoping and praying to stay pregnant for another 6+ weeks, but we are tremendously grateful for how far we have come! You have been so faithful with your prayers and well wishes and God has been just as faithful with His care and protection...we are blessed indeed! Tomorrow morning we will have our weekly scan and we are hoping to have good news again.











This weekend was wonderful for our family. We had a ton of time together...something that we all have been missing for the last 9 weeks. Our spend the night was an absolute riot! Tanner slept like a champ...though Landon woke up around 3 and wanted to snuggle with Mommy in my bed. It was wonderful for me to hold my sweet boy and feel his breath on my cheek...not quite as wonderful when he started to flip around in my little hospital bed like he was in his queen sized bed! Apparently my belly has gotten really big lately and the baby's kicking actually woke Landon at one point! I finally really fell back to sleep around 5:30 and was awakened around 6:30 by Tanner singing the Star Spangled Banner, fingers still in his mouth and keeping time by kicking the side of his pack n play. When he immediately launched into Take me out to the ball game, I realized that I could hear the springs on Greg's chair bed...he was laughing so hard and was trying to stay quiet...which, of course, totally did me in! When Tanner finished with a flourish we couldn't resist and even though it was a full hour before he really needed to be awake, we had to tell him what a great job he had done! How can you have a bad day when being awakened by a serenade by someone you love so much?? Sure, so I had slept a total of 3 hours, but let's face it...I don't sleep anyway and it was worth it to have them here with me in the morning!

Tonight my dear friend Rebecca stayed with the boys so Greg could come down and celebrate our 6 year anniversary! He brought PF Changs, complete with the great wall of chocolate cake (yum!) and we talked...actually talked without having to stop for anything for a solid 2 hours. It may sound silly...but I think we both miss being able to have a chance to visit, face to face, on a daily basis. I guess it is easy to take for granted until you don't have it anymore...we can't wait to have that again! Thank you Rebecca for making tonight possible...and thank you Jess for making it possible for her to make it possible! You two are wonderful and we love you!

We hope you all are well and happy and we hope that you are aware of how special you are to us. May God bless you as He has blessed us through you...we love you!!

Spend the night!!

Oh happy day...or night! All 3 of my boys are spending the night here in my hospital room! It was so fun to give them a bath and put them down for bed...the first time in over 2 months and it was wonderful!! Now, for those of you that think we are completely nuts for attempting this - rest assured that they were already really tired after a big day with Daddy...so it made it a little easier to actually get them down. Additionally, it looks like poor Tanner is either having an allergic reaction or got gotten by some ants at the game, so we had to give him a dose of benedryl...and you know that works a lot like scotch on little ones!! Landon took a little longer to hit the sack...the excitement of sleeping on his inflatable bed and having the TV on for Daddy to check the scores made it tough for him to close his eyes! I am so excited to have them wake up in the am and be here to see them!!
The boys had a fun day today! They headed up to Furman for homecoming and had a ball playing football on the big hill and feeding the ducks at the student center. Their buddy Griffin made it a complete set of 3 musketeers and they so much fun together! I hated to miss yet another one of our family traditions but Greg made it a little easier when he said that the leaves were not yet to peak colors - but it was still beautiful. I had a fun day too...watched Texas beat Oklahoma (my doctor will be thrilled) and then watch GA stomp TN, well, maybe not stomp but it was good to see Knowshon and Massaquoi back on their games! Then Florida beat LSU in the late game. Now rest assured...I am still a Gator hater (sorry Elizabeth and Kelly) but now that Vandy has a loss and LSU has a loss...there is a good chance we can meet back up with Alabama in the SEC game to set the record straight!! Saturdays here are so much easier when there is good football to watch!

Well, I need to hit the sack...the boys wake up even before they start doing rounds so it will be an early morning! Thank you for your continued prayers and concern...we love and appreciate you!

Fair Photos

Here are a few photos of the boys from last weekend at the Cumming Fair. They had a blast and had their first corndog and carmel apple...I think it is safe to say that they enjoyed it!!

Focus on the positive!

Hello all!! I am not so patiently waiting for my 3 boys to come and have a Friday night dinner/movie date with me!! Greg took the boys up to Burt's Pumpkin farm today to pick out their pumpkins, take a hayride, eat boiled peanuts and pumpkin rolls and take some photos! I can't wait til they get here so I can upload the pictures to share! After the pumpkin farm, he took them over to Amacalola Falls to hike around and even started out on the Hike Inn trail (where Greg and I got engaged and where we typically like to stay for our anniversaries - maybe next year!). Greg said one of the biggest hits was crossing a stream on the rocks.











Tanner really loved it and didn't want to leave, but after taking a spill into the water, Landon had had plenty! Fortunately, Daddy had thought ahead and had a change of clothes for them in the car. They then headed over to Uncle Shucks for the corn maze and corn cannons. Tanner fell asleep on the way so Greg and Landon got some father/son baseball time in the parking field (lot) while Tanner slept. It was a huge day and when I talked to Greg, Landon had just sacked out at 3:45-looks like it will be a late night in 118!

So really fun scoop...today they installed a flat screen TV and new DVD player in my room! So if I have to miss the GA/TN game this year at least I can watch it in HD! Greg and the boys are heading to Furman for homecoming with his college roommate and his wife that also have a little guy...we had so much fun last year...I hate to miss it. Griffin is right in between our boys and the three of them have a ball together (except when my boys start wrestling with Griffin like he is part of the family...that tends to throw some friends off a little...we're working on that!) Additionally, there are not many places that are more beautiful that Furman's campus during peak leaf season...so I'm sure they will have some great photos tomorrow too!

In other news...my friend Lynda, who got back to NS on Monday for observation...delivered her twins yesterday. My techs and nurses came over and said..."you're going to be so mad...your friends' water broke and she's going down" (HRP talk for going to L and D to deliver). Jeeze, she just got back and we didn't even have any time to visit!! Actually the boys and I took a Daddy wheelchair ride over to welcome her back on Wednesday night, and we had planned to get some fresh air together yesterday...not exactly the kind of fresh air I was thinking about! Anywhoo, Bill must have heard us taking our nightly rounds counting storks b/c he came out to say hi and share photos of two adorable little ones!! They are doing really well, as is Lynda, but are being watched closely in the NICU b/c they were only 33 weeks gestation. Bill, and all 4 grandparents seemed over the moon! I haven't seen Lynda yet, but pls. keep her and the babies in your prayers for quick recovery and good reports!! I know they are all ready to be home as a family!

So that's all for now...I'll be sure to forward some photos of all my men and their day out today! Hope you all are well and enjoying the beautiful weather! We love and appreciate you all!!

29 Weeks!

Yup...it's that time again! We have marked our 9Th Monday off and have officially made it to 29 weeks!! Praise the Lord! We are feeling so grateful that we are at this point. My scan this morning went well, and though my numbers dropped a little, I am still at 35mm and the fluid levels are still great! I also got a full body and measurement scan of P3. Right now it seems to be about 2lbs12Oz's which is wonderful for a 29 weeker! We are thrilled! God is so good!

So after my entry that went on and on the other night...(one friends says I blog like I talk...I'm sure I don't know what she was talking about!) I have some super incredible news to share. Some friends of ours from church have been trying to adopt a child for a while now. I just checked her blog and they not only have been matched with a birth mom, but she is due to be induced on Dec.15Th! Super news! Please keep them in your prayers, I know from experience, the waiting is hard...but will be sooo worth it in the end!! Yay God!

Hope you all are doing well! We love you!

I have the best friends...

AND the prettiest toes! My dear friends Lila and Rebecca came by today to surprise me with a much needed and long overdue pedicure! We started our tradition way back when Rebecca had first gotten married and I was pregnant with Landon. Originally, it was several of us from our old small group, but as friends moved away or got married or had kids, it was Rebecca and Lila that refused to let our tradition die, so we have continued our monthly Sat. am visits with breakfast at J. Christophers and toes afterward. All of our husbands are wonderful about giving us these mornings...I guess they realize that a couple of hours and the cost of breakfast and toes saves them a ton over therapy! :) We have talked through so many things and solved most of the world's problems during our Saturday tradition! God has blessed me through these special friends...I am so thankful for them!

Greg, Landon and Tanner came by after church and added some wonderful artwork to my room! Then the girls, the guys and I went outside to have a picnic lunch while the girls were doing my toes. Landon was very excited to pick the color...red of course, for Georgia and Lightning MacQueen! It is now 1:30 and I am ready for a nap...with all my fun visitors this morning (thank you Pris and Chuck!) on top of taking a shower...I am spent! (What a life). Greg took the boys home for their nap and is planning on taking them to the Cumming fair this afternoon...they are so excited to see the animals and ride some rides!

I do have a pretty important prayer request please. As you know, the doctors have revised my plan of action to send me home at 32 weeks...and we are thrilled, especially since our initial treatment plan was to stay here til delivery. However, I don't know if it is that we see an end in sight, or that it has already been 2 long months, but we are starting to see the stress of this in the kids. (Not to mention the fact that Greg is completely worn out too). Landon is beginning to be shy around people (which you KNOW isn't normal for him) and they both are prone to breaking down and crying which is also a new phenomenon and one that is so hard to see...especially since they are both normally so happy and easy going. The stress of seeing this weighing so heavily on my husband and children is hard to handle and I am asking that you especially pray for Landon and Tanner's little hearts to be protected. I know that everyone says that this is just a short time and they will bounce back, and while I am hoping and trusting in that, it is so difficult to see this fear and anger over Mommy being gone totally transform my sweet boys. We are so thankful for the blessing of this baby and for the care that we have gotten here at Northside. We are also so thankful for those of you who have walked this path with us. It has been a long road, and we still have (hopefully) several more weeks left, so we are asking that you continue to pray for the health and safety of P3, for Landon and Tanner to hang in there and understand that they are loved and cherished even when Mommy can't be there, and for Greg. He has been a super dad and a super husband throughout this whole time and I am confident that the reason things have gone as smoothly as they have for as long as they have is because of how he was selfishly loving the boys and me and putting us first...ahead of his sleep, his alone time, everything. I am just praying that he can hang in there a little longer...then I think he has earned several golf outings! :)

You all are great and so important to our family. Thank you so much for your continued love and prayers! We appreciate you more than you could ever know!! God bless you!

My husband is so funny...

Hope this finds you all doing well and looking forward to a fun-filled weekend! We are excited to be almost to 29 weeks! This week has been a good one for the Powells! Greg has had lots of fun with the boys despite getting up at 3:45am every day to get some work done before the boys got up. I have been blessed with visits every day except Monday due to Landon's t-ball practice. Today I had a visit with my Mom, Lisa, Mary Claire and Bennett! It is so hard to believe that he is a month old! So observant and curious and alert...and did I mention that he is adorable? I'll include a photo to prove it!

So the title...I'll share what that is about. Beginning the first week I was here, I decided that the only way I was going to survive months in the hospital was going to be with a lot of prayer and as much or more humor. So, the first couple of days whenever someone would call or visit I would always close with..."give me a ring, or come visit, I'll be here!" After a while Greg started teasing me about my joke never getting old (I guess maybe he thought it was). Now Greg insists on calling and saying "great, I'm glad I caught you" or "I'm glad I got you" - like I was going to be out shopping for shoes or meeting a friend for lunch! He is silly and I so appreciate his fun way of encouraging me each day...even if it is a take off on MY hilarious original joke!!

Hope you have a great weekend!! Get outside and breathe in this wonderful fall air and check out the leaves...have you noticed they are starting to change?? Happy Fall!

Feeling thankful...

Hard to believe this week is almost over already...my how the days run together!! This week has been a good one. The boys were able to come every night except Monday which has done wonders for my moods and contentment! Greg usually keeps the boys home on the nights before they go to school, but this Wednesday Greg left work a little early to find gas and actually found it at the first place he stopped...so he got home really early and surprised me with a school night visit! It was a super treat!

Our new nightly routine includes a wheelchair ride either out to where the fountain is if I haven't been outside that day or a lap around the delivery floor to count how many boy and girl storks we see outside the rooms...it is really fun for the boys and we always end up peeking in at the babies in the nurseries. Tanner is constantly shushing us and whispering "shhh babies seeping (sleeping)" and then immediately hollers out "bow-woy" or "geerel" when he spots a stork outside some one's door. It is pretty comical! The coolest thing the other night was when we were taking our lap, we ended up outside nursery c where they were wrapping up triplets...the boys were amazed...as were we...they were HUGE for trips - 7 lbs and two 5 pounders...can you imagine?! I am getting the stuffing kicked out of me with one baby...I can't imagine 3 in there! Anywhoo, Greg mentioned that one of the nurses looked familiar and I agreed. Then she said "is that Landon?" through the glass. Turns out it was Kourtney, one of the nurses that cared for me when Tanner was born. She loved Landon and called him cheeks and he loved her b/c she spoiled him rotten! It was so fun to see her...she still has a photo of him (and his fat cheekers) on her dresser at home and one on her cell phone...it was such a fun meeting. You know, we have delivered twice at Northside and now with my 2 months here, I can honestly say that I have never had a bad experience with nurses/techs etc. Everyone here is so wonderful and it is obvious that they do their jobs because they enjoy them. Thought it would be fun to include a few flashback photos of a tiny 2 day old Tanner and a 22 month old Landon and Ms. Kourtney.

We are so thankful for all the blessings that the Lord has given our family. From the wonderful hospital staff that cares for me every day and loves on the boys when they are here to visit, to our incredible friends and neighbors that have kept Greg and the boys fed and on schedule. And of course, our fantastic families that are so good and supportive and patient with us! We cannot express how much we appreciate all of you and especially the peace and confidence that God has graciously given us. Thank you for being His hands and feet and as always, thank you for your prayers. We are certain that they have had a considerable impact on our situations...and appreciate you faithfully lifting P3 and our family!

Tomorrow is sure to be fun. Lisa and my mom are bringing Bennett for a visit. Lisa is looking forward to seeing and thanking several of the nurses and techs that took such good care of her during her recovery and I know she is totally excited to show off her little miracle!! I just wonder if they'll be able to get a good look at him because I don't plan on sharing him!

God bless you, we love you!