Kinsley's story... in the beginning

Kinsley is truly a miracle in every sense of the word. She is a true gift to her parents and extended family. She was born after several years of "trying" and she's just in one word AWESOME!!

Kinsley was born with a tumor on her left clavicle that was intially believed to be a hemangioma after an ultrasound was performed just a short 18 hours after her birth it was confirmed by a surgeon and radiologist that it appeared to be a hemangioma and the surgeon requested that we follow up with him in 3-4 weeks. When we went for the follow up on Auguest 27, 2012 the surgeon thought it might need to be removed as it appeared "harder than a normal hemangioma" 

On September 7, 2012 Kinsley went in for surgery to remove the mass and when the surgeon came out he shared that it was possibly a sarcoma and it was we had to wait on pathology. Later that same day, Kinsley had a CT Scan and then the next day a bone scan. All of this was a complete SHOCK to her family as they thought it was just a hemangioma. Both the CT scan and bone scan showed negative but initial pathology suggested that they needed to remove a larger margin around the mass. Kinsley was sent home to recover and heal up. All of her pathology was sent to the Children's Oncology Group for further study and was told to come back on Monday, September 17, 2012 to have a larger margin removed and for a port placed for chemotherapy. After they removed the dressing , the incision was oozing and they decided to reopen the incision to let it drain and test the fluid. The fluid came back to be an infection and she was started on 2 different IV antibiotics which necessitated a longer hospital stay.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012, the final pathology was received as Spindle Cell Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) Stage 2 Goup 1. A bilateral bone marrow aspiration is planned for September 28, 2012. Chemo will begin October 1, 2012. Kinsley will have 24 weeks of treatment with the 1st 10 weeks being weekly then followed by every 3 weeks.

Unfortunately medical insurance does not cover all the expenses that now must be incurred - hospital co-pays, medicines, weekly travel to the hospital, time off from work and the list goes on.
The medical costs were completely unforeseeable. How could ANY of us had known what the future was going to bring when Kinsley arrived?

Kisses for Kinsley on Facebook( http://www.facebook.com/KissesForKinsley) is dedicated to Kinsley by helping her& her parents get through this, beat the RMS & allow them all to have a normal life together one day. Kinsley is a fighter... she was a fighter before she was even born. There are many, many reason why God has her here and she has a HUGE story to tell one day. 

Kinsley's chemo will last through the Summer of 2013 so there is a long road ahead. Whether its $5 or $500, every dollar will help! http://www.giveforward.com/kissesforkinsley
Thank you so much for your love & support!!    

She's HERE!

Kinsley is here!!!

Stationery card

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Countdown to baby!!!

So I haven't written here since I gave our story of how we were blessed with a baby girl. My pregnancy has gone really well and aside from being tired during 1st and 3rd trimester I haven't had any issues.
   Well.... now my blood pressure seems to have decided to be a little finicky. It's been a little elevated the last few weeks and I have been doing non-stress test once a week lately and now they would like to increase it to 2x a week. Yesterday the nurse at the specialists office seemed concerned about my blood pressure thus the 2x a week. At my weekly appt with my Ob/Gyn I told her that they took my blood pressure 4 times and seemed concerned. She decided to call the Maternal/Fetal specialist Dr to consult with him. They decided that I need to do another 24 hr. urine collection to check for preeclampsia (I've done this test before and it was all good). They have also decided to give me steroid shots "just in case" we have to deliver early.  I'll know more on Wednesday afternoon or Thursday but our little girl could be here this FRIDAY - I'll be exactly 37 weeks(which is considered full-term). Ahhhh... I'm not ready .... but God is in control. I feel confident that this second 24 hr test will be good. I hope I'm right and we'll proceed with the original plan to induce on Aug. 9.
  I have one request.... please pray that our little girl can stay put for a little longer but most importantly pray for God's will. 
  I've got the nursery all ready and finally have pictures to share. Some have been edited to hide her name as we want a "surprise" for the day she is born.
Thanks!
Melissa & Galen

Here's our Nursery!!!!  :-) 

This room was made possible with much help from my friend Brenda, Courtney & Ben Boyd and last but not least my husband, mom, sister and niece (they all helped me organize all the baby stuff). Oh... and Amber Cook for painting our walls! I wanted a room that wasn't too "babyish" and that our little girl could grow into as a little girl. I am very pleased!

The white quilt bedding is from Target. I made the quilt at the end and the red bed skirt. Ben & Courtney painted the side table

My husband and I made these white shelves. Most of the stuffed toys were gifts except the Scentsy buddy! the train at the top is from my nephew Cameron. The frame is from Hobby Lobby, painted it yellow and I printed the "I am a child of God". The block was painted by my sister.

The lamp is a Pinterest project - I painted it red and then added the ruffles  & rolled flowers to the shade. The  yellow circle mirror is from Hobby Lobby. I made the coordinating pillow. Both the teddy bear and the red elephant are vintage chenille bedding that I received as a gift from my Aunt Frankie. I love them so much and they go perfectly here!

The dresser was painted by Ben & Courtney Boyd! It turned out awesome and I love it! The hair bow/flower board is an old frame with chicken wire that I painted white and Galen helped me add the chicken wire. The red frame is from Hobby Lobby and I printed out "You are my sunshine". Love mirror -Hobby Lobby. Small white frame Hobby Lobby - I printed out "For this child I prayed". Hamper in corner is from World Market online and my sister helped me cover it... OK she did a lot of it.

This is the "library" and toys -- the shelves are from IKEA - thanks to Kevin and Miranda. We painted them white. The old window was bought from Janie Conley. I found the idea on Pinterest and painted the design and used my cricut for the lettering. 

I made the wall hanging(on the left of the closet door) with her name that I blocked out to keep as a surprise.

I made the curtains and add the shabby rose trim in red. The crib is a Jenny Lind crib  in white. The flowers above the bed were from Hobby Lobby-- however the red was originally yellow and I painted it red. I ordered the wall vinyl from decalmywall.com. My friend Brenda helped me make the crib quilt - LOVE IT! I made the crib sheet and skirt. The crochet  against the wall is a handmade gift from Elaine Bragg. 

Lastly, EVERY little girl needs a chandelier. Right?? I ordered this from Home Depot and Galen and I installed it.... with all the crystals! So pretty!

Most fabrics were from a collection by Heather Bailey Pop Garden and I purchased them from lilybellafabrics.com. Christy was super helpful and had FAST shipping! 

And another chapter begins!

I have tried to edit the font size several times but I just can't get it to be smaller.
        Luke 11:9-10  ⁹ “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ¹⁰ For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Galen and I are both so thankful for family and friends who pray. As many of you may know by now... we are expecting our 1st child in mid Aug. 2012. We've been down a very long road which you can read about here.  My last post mentioned that we had some exciting options.
Our doctor gave us several options.... one was to do IVF again with my eggs, do IVF with donor eggs from a college age young lady and the other was embryo donation. I didn't want to go through the whole IVF process again and the massive expense with my eggs as we have seen 2 unsuccessful pregnancies. We talked about the donor egg thing but the high expense was a huge factor. The last option was to use embryo's from another couple who has been through IVF and have finished their family and did not want to destroy the embryos. As a christian, I believe life begins at conception and this these were potential babies just waiting for a chance. Both Galen and I feel at peace and VERY excited to accept the donor embryos.
Once we made that decision on embryo donation, the doctor's office sent us 4 profiles of couples that had put them embryos up for "adoption". Galen and I both read all the profiles separately and ended up picking the same 2 couples. When we visited with our doctor she told us couple "D" had the BEST embroys and really was the "BEST" choice that Galen and I both liked. The whole process began October 30 when I started giving myself daily shots to suppress my reproductive cycle and get it ready for a "frozen embryo transfer" (FET) cycle. On Nov 10th, we went in for a baseline ultrasound to see if everything was "quiet" and then Nov. 12 I began wearing estrogen patches along with the daily shots.
On November 30, we went to doctor's office for the transfer. As we were waiting for our doctor to return from surgery the embryologist came in to talk to us about the embryos that were to be transferred that day. He told us that they thawed 6 embryos and 3 survived the thaw and would be transferred that day. Galen asked him the success rate for FET and he said it was only 25% I was like WOW ... not too good! He then told use as he was showing us a picture of the embryos that this was "as good as it could be" for this type of cycle, that was HUGE from him since he tends to be VERY conservative and not too enthusiastic. I also remembered that Dr. Dorsett told us that these embryos were very high quality. The transfer when very well and I had to then be on bed rest for 2 long days and the wait begin as I continued getting nightly progesterone shots from Galen.
I was scheduled get a pregnancy blood test on Dec. 9 but on December 8 I was having severe back cramps and thought... this is how I felt when I found out I was pregnant in June. I thought hey I'll go get a home test and take it...... and it was POSITIVE! I was shocked.... I told Galen that night when he came home and then went for the blood test the next morning. I was so surprised and so relieved!
We have made it through the 1st trimester and now into our 2nd trimester. We were able to see our little one growing from sonograms at Dr. Dorsett's office 3 times.  Today we met our new OB that will continue our care and delivery of our little gift.  It was a great day as we got to finally hear the heartbeat of this precious baby. We love our new doctor and she was touched by our story and she said it gave her chills. I told Dr. Owen that I wanted as normal treatment as possible since everything else has be "not so" normal.
This road is had some twists and turns and lots of bumps but please continue to pray for this little miracle from God.

Our journey towards a family

Our journey towards a family………… This is long but I feel for you to truly understand what is going on you need to hear the whole story. Again....It's bit long. Read only if you will truly prayer for us.

  I've shared our struggles with some of my friends and yes with my immediate family. It's hard to discuss and it's even more difficult to see others around you getting the desires of their hearts.... to have a child and have a family of their own. I wanted to share our journey with all the bumps, turns and twists.

   Galen and I married when I was 34.... I was unable to find a job close to our home in Snyder but was lucky and blessed to find a teaching job in Big Spring, which is about 50 miles away. That job was great and I loved the people that I worked with but.... I knew that it wasn't acceptable for when we had children so I was always searching for a job closer to home and told Galen that I didn't want to start a family while I had 2 hours of drive time each day.... too much. Anyway in July 2007 I finally got a job in Snyder and we immediately started trying to have a child .... by then I was 36 and I knew the time was ticking away. I had also just witness the birth of my nephew Cameron in June of that and knew we had to get on the ball. After several months of trying on our own we visited with my OB/Gyn and he was understanding and suggested we start with the basic tests to see if there was any problems that we could see. He determined that I wasn't ovulating on a regular basis and prescribed Clomid and check blood at day 21 and yes that was working. Still after several months I was like we have to get going with this and I wanted to move on to a Reproductive Endocrinologist as I knew that the older I was the harder it was to become pregnant.

    We were referred to Dr. Dorsett in Lubbock and we had our 1st appointment in Oct 2008... She was very optimistic and suggested we do a "mini-stim" cycle with IUI. We did the 1st mini-stim cycle with IUI at the end of Nov 2008 and good news we got pregnant. After the blood test to confirm pregnancy... the numbers just weren't increasing like it should.... we had our 1st ultrasound appointment in Jan 2009 at 7 weeks. She told us then that the embryo was not measuring the proper size and said she'd like to wait and check again in 2 weeks (9 weeks) but she didn't think it was going to be a viable pregnancy.  Those 2 weeks where the LONGEST hardest 2 weeks. When we went back for that visit there was no heartbeat and the embryo had "died". I miscarried on Jan 23, 2009. It was a very difficult time but I was for sure that we needed to wait a few months and proceed again. Over the next year (2009) we did two more "mini-stims" with IUI with no success. We started contemplating IVF and had to really pray whether that was what God wanted for us. I was so torn as to what to do and whether we were playing God by doing all of this. But I knew that God's promise in Psalms 37:4 "Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart."

   Galen and I begin to get our finances in order as the Lord has blessed us with the required funds to proceed. We started the IVF process in April 2010 and had to "skip" a cycle to do blood work not being correct in order to proceed. At the end of May/ first part of June we started the daily shots and the frequent trips to Lubbock to do ultrasounds and blood work. In the middle of June we were able to retrieve 8 eggs and then the waiting and watching began. After the 8 eggs were retrieved 7 eggs fertilized. Each day I would receive a call from the embryologist to tell me the growth progress of the eggs and each day more would "expire".

     While we were waiting on the eggs to mature I began to have horrible stomach pains and was told that I was stimulated a bit too much and I need to increase my sodium intake. The nurse told me to drink a HUGE bottle of V8 every day for 2 weeks and to eat and drink items with TONS of sodium. It was a horrible few days as the acid from the V8 tore my stomach up and I rarely was able to get of bed except to go to the restroom. After about 3 days I got a call that my dad was airlift to Odessa and was in critical condition and was ask to drive over there. So.... I pulled myself together and drove to Odessa at about 10 pm. Over the next few days Galen and I were driving back and forth to Odessa to see my dad and still very ill from the over-stimulation and the TONS of sodium I had tried to consume.  Six days after the egg retrieval were told that we were ready for the embryo transfer (the process of putting the embryos back into me). I was instructed to have 3 days of complete bed rest but was only able to get 2 in as I felt it important to get back to Odessa to see my dad. Needless to say.... this was a VERY stressful time for me and I was a basket case and torn by what were the BEST actions on my part.

   We then had to wait the 2 weeks to then find out if the IVF worked and we were pregnant. That was a long two weeks again and I had to try to keep my mind off of that and to just not think of it.  Since we know that we don't have a baby now you know that the procedure didn't work. I was devastated and confused and angry! I couldn't understand why???? I clung to Jeremiah 29:11 --"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future" Because I know HE hold the future and I know I have to trust in Him. It isn't always easy ... especially when so many other ladies around me were having babies or being pregnant.

   In August 2010 I had a pelvic laparoscopy so my RE could look around inside and see if there was anything we were missing. She found that I had some mild endometriosis and cleaned that all up but she said that everything else seemed good and really wanted us to try IVF again but even suggested Super-ovulation. I knew Galen didn’t want to spend that kind of money again for IVF so we waited. In November 2010 I decided to try acupuncture and saw a Doctor of Acupuncture Medicine for a couple of months.

   In May 2011 we decided to go ahead with super-ovulation. Super-ovulation is very similar to the same medications that I did with IVF in that I gave myself 2-3 shots for about 8 nights to stimulate my body to produce more than the 1 egg that is typical for most women. I started the shots May 27 and continue to return my RE's office for ultrasounds to monitor the follicle sizes (each follicle holds a potential egg) and blood work. On June 6th we did another IUI with the ultrasound showing between 4-6 mature follicles.

  On June 20, I found out that I was indeed pregnant. The next few weeks progressed along and on July 5 I stopped in the dr office for blood work and the nurse wanted to do an ultrasound. I was able to see a little “cardiac” movement from the baby but the nurse mentioned that the fetus was measuring about 4-5 days behind in growth. I thought.... oh great… here we go again. The HCG beta did showed that my levels didn’t double the way it should have and I just knew in my gut that something was wrong. The next week July 12 (a few days before we were to leave on my vacation/cruise) we went to the official 1st appt at 7 weeks – and we saw an empty sac. No baby at all. The doctor suggested that I continue my shots of progesterone so I wouldn’t miscarry while on vacation. I am now waiting to hear back from my doctor’s office to see when to let the miscarriage happen and what to do.

  I tell you all of this so that you will pray for me and Galen. I’ve been living with a front to be brave and strong but inside I’m a not ok.  We’ve done so much, spent so much and prayed so much.

  We need peace! We need to know if God intends for us to be childless?? Does he want us to look into other options of becoming parents?  I need a HUGE word from God….. So I covet your prayers now more than ever.

A day on the farm

So since we've had almost NO rain for months.... my hubby is trying to move the cows to different places to give them more to eat and not have to use up the stock pile of hay. Well our new neighbors moved in and they are noisy!  Some moved in last weekend and the others just today. They formally had lived in the same place so you'd have thought they hadn't seen each other in years.

It was like friends yelling back and forth ... "Hey where ya been??" or "What are you doing over there?"

TOOO Cute!

So I've been following various decorating blogs lately and this was too cute to pass up. I would love to make this but I'm not sure I will get to it this year. Very cute idea! 

Thanks to Erin at:

It's A Wannabe Decorator's Life: Valentines' Cupcake Liner Wreath: "Here is a little Cupcake Liner Wreath Tutorial! I wanted to do something for Valentine's coming up and saw this floating around somewh..."