Earthquakes, Hurricanes, Tornadoes....OH MY!

It has been a crazy week!  First the most important part, Emily rolled over for the first time this week!  Yay!  Second most important part is Ryne and I have found a house and we are working towards buying it and starting the next chapter of our lives.  More on that later.

While this week was very exciting for our little family it was even more exciting for our area.  We had our first earthquake, or so I'm told.  Most people probably are thinking "or so your told?  wouldnt you know you had an earthquake?"  I used to think that sure I would know what an earthquake felt like but alas we had a 5.9 earthquake and I didn't feel a damn thing.  I thought my upstairs neighbor was losing her mind when she came knocking on my door asking me if I felt the apartment move.  I was thoroughly confused when my mom called asking if we were all OK.  I have to admit I'm a tad disappointed in the fact I didn't feel it.

Fast forward to the weekend and we got hit with your favorite hurricane and mine, Irene.  I was never this scared of a storm before and I think a lot of it has to do with Emily.   I filled bottles of water to make sure we could feed her and I filled our bath tub to be sure we could flush our toilet.  I made sure we had candles and flashlights.  Had it been just me and the hubby I probably wouldn't have done any of this.  And as if the hurricane wasn't exciting enough we also got a few tornado warnings last night.  Nothing is scarier than getting tornado warnings at night knowing that 1) you can't see it and that 2) you are on the second floor where the hell are you going to go? 

I am happy to report that the LeCompte clan is still standing.  We had a down tree in our complex and a lot of branches down.  We lost electricity for a little bit but not for long.  While the experience was very scary it was a little anticlimatic.  I have to admit I as looking forward to seeing 100 mph winds just to say I had.  That's not to say that I want a hurricane to come anytime soon but it would have been interesting.

Now that all is said and done the only thing I am worried about is that CBS airs Big Brother on schedule.

Ryne's Tattoo

Yesterday Ryne got a tattoo to symbolize his baby girl who was concieved in Disney.  Not too much to write today so I will just post his tattoo.

The Love of a Mother

Nothing can prepare you for being a mother.  You can read all the books, talk to friends and even join a message board with other mothers like The Bump but nothing can prepare you for taking care of a little creature.  Knowing that you are in charge of their every happiness.  Knowing that you are in charge of their well being.  Knowing that your life will forever be changed by this tiny little baby that you hold in you arms. 

For this reason (along with many others) I can't imagine what my friend Cheryl is going through.  I have to admit that Cheryl is not someone that I know IRL (in real life) but that doesn't make her any less of a friend to me.  I met Cheryl through The Bump, more specifically the April 2011 board.  We "walked" through our pregnancies together.   We celebrated in each others milestones and sympatized with each others struggles.  Our pregnancies were very different yet very similar.  For all tense and purposes I had a fairly easy pregnancy where as Cheryl was on bed rest.  But for both of us everything we went through was well worth it.  Cheryl gave birth to a beautiful baby girl Charlotte Juniper on March 30th, 2011.   Charlotte was born beautiful, healthy and happy. 

Cheryl's vision of a "normal" motherhood took a turn for her on May 28th.   This is when Charlotte at almost 2 months old was taken to the ER for for diarrhea, vomiting, and a bloated belly.   This sweet little girl has been in the hospital ever since.  She is in constant pain and is undergoing so many tests that a grown adult would cringe.  She was finally diagnosed with congenital lymphangiomatosis, which means she has cysts touching major organs.  One of which is only 1 mm from her aorta.    Cheryl announced yesterday that Charlotte will have surgery tomorrow to try and help her.  This is a dangerous surgery.  Cheryl wrote this on her page, "We truly cannot imagine how difficult this is going to be after surgery.....and the possibility of losing her in less than 36 hours is absolutely ripping us to shreds. I sit her staring at my precious baby girl, hands clasped, rocking away in her swing resting peacefully to her favorite music video. I am going crazy thinking that in less than 36 hours she may not be with us any longer.... I don't want to think like that, but the possibility is very real and incredibly scary."  She is begging for prayers for her sweet daugther and I ask you what mother wouldn't? 

I have only known Cheryl for a year and like I said I have never met her in person but she is a role model for all mothers.  I could never imagine going through what she is going through and know she would never wish it on anyone else.  She still manages to go through her day to day life even with her sick baby.   She still continues to share her friendship, support and humor with all of her fellow "bumpies" and we continue to share it with her.  She is truly one of the strongest woman I know and I truly look up to her. 

Please keep this family in your thoughts and prayers.  Tomorrow the girls from The Bump are wearing pink or red to show our support for Charlotte.  We invite everyone to join us as we all unite to help save this precious angel.    If you would like to keep up to date on Charlotte visit their page at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/charlotte2011/journal.  

We love you Charlotte and are keeping you in our thoughts!

Emily says Get well soon Baby Charlotte!!!