Adalynn Update!

Tom, Adalynn and I just got back from our Level 2 utrasound--with UAMS Little Rock looking in... Adalynn is REALLY growing! She is now 1 lb. 1 oz. and still tracking for the August 5th due date! I think the reason that we are seeing the doctor so much, and that they are doing quite a few ultrasounds, is to track the baby's size and ensure that her growth isn't slowing. So far so good! They are very pleased with how she is doing. Thank you for all the prayers that you lift up for her and myself! They are working! God is COMPLETELY hand feeding baby Adalynn! We are grateful!

Here are a couple of ultrasound pics:

Here is her profile. Tom figured that her head has a six inch circumference... that's like taking a dollar bill and putting it in a circle. Wow! She's getting big!

















This picture is Adalynn's "upside down catcher's stance"--as Tom calls it. Her foot is in the top right, her knee is in the middle left and her booty is the bottom right. Looks like the pitcher is going to pitch "low and inside"!

















Tom, myself, Adalynn and family are VERY GRATEFUL for all the prayer support and constant encouragement from all of you! Thank you for your intentionality! And thank you for being our WARRIORS in and through this journey! We know Who gets the glory in the end!

Next appointment: April 7th
Next Level 2 ultrasound: May 19th
MRI: @32 weeks (not sure on date--probably middle of June)

More Spring Break Pics

A few more pictures of our "low-key" Spring Break week!

Third Day / Brandon Heath Concert! This is a picture of Mac Powell (lead singer) beginning "God of Wonders" (I think). Soon Brandon Heath and the lead singer for Revive will come out to join him. This was REALLY a good concert...very worshipful! My favorite part was when Mac was praying. He prayed for our generation to "step up" and break the cultural norm for addictions, divorces, etc. It was very powerful. We stood a lot (caused LOTS of soreness the next day), but it was SO worth it! I'm just so thankful for the opportunity to witness this talent and to worship with my family (Cindy and Amberle Morgan, (Amberle's friend) Denton, Tom, Dane and Ty)!



Dane, (cousin) Chelsea Morgan and (her friend) Corey at a very cold and rainy Razorback baseball game. We were winning 10-3 in the 5th inning when the rain chased us all away!















Ty and Daddy on the front row at Razorback baseball... Thanks Robert for the awesome seats! We only got scared by one foul ball that came our way.














Just to pass along (and something to pray for), Adalynn absolutely LOVED the Hog Call! Everytime she heard that Woo Pig Sooie...she was just flipping around in my belly! Yikes! Is there another cheerleader in our future? :)

Spring Break!

Here's a few pictures of the Olsen crew on Break. I've been "grounded" by my doctor, so we didn't go anywhere. But Crist got to head out on a special, memory-making adventure with his grandparents! (Their goal is to take each grandchild on a special trip when they turn 13) They went to Baltimore and then into DC. Within the first 24 hours, they went to the ESPN zone, a White House tour, the Smithsonian and the capitol! Later that week they were visiting museums, memorials and the Naval Academy, where my dad went to college. He really had a lot of fun! Thanks Memaw and Grandpa!

Between projects around the house, our house getting struck by lightning and killing our TV and dog electric fence (and having to get new ones), a few hours for fishing, Third Day/Brandon Heath Concert, Razorback Baseball AND Crist's Amazing DC adventures... we had a great week!


Ty fishing - apparently they couldn't leave the house until they found his hat!




The Big D (Dane) stops for a photo opp!




Is this Ty or Gilligan?


In Tom's words..."Dad can still catch 'em!"


Crist in Abe's shadow at the Smithsonian

Hopefully more pictures to come!!!

Would you like a glass of tea?

You know when something changes in your life that causes EVERYTHING to shift... it causes you to sit back and evaluate... to slow down... to Be Still and Know...?

It seems like everything has bigger and deeper meaning since we heard about Adalynn. I guess I've had slam-on-your-brakes-whoa-nelly moments... It's like you are seeing things for the very first time. Things take on a new perspective when your eyes actually rise above the dashboard and look out onto the horizon. It's like you take your foot off the accelerator and start to coast ... noticing the world around you ... very cool place to be.

I also finished reading Same Kind of Different As Me a couple of weeks ago--which I highly recommend. Wow, did that bring some great perspective! It made me realize that God truly has purpose in and through everything He puts in our lives. That it's about our response to Him and His call that can cause His Kingdom to thrive. It's about widening our horizons and thinking outside of our comfortable, manmade and tiny "box." It's about making lemonade when life gives you lemons. It's feeling a genuine peace that God has you right where He wants you to be--and you have the wisdom to know the difference.

Another great "perspective" came across my path in form of a heartfelt card that my parents gave to me for my birthday with this great saying:

"Some people view their water glass as half empty,
Some people view the same glass as half full...
And some people take the glass, add a tea bag, crushed ice, sugar, lemon, a sprig of mint
and say, 'Here, would you like a glass of tea?'"

Along with that it had this comment and verse:
...I pray the blessings you've given are multiplied back to you in lots of fun and surprising ways. (I would say that Adalynn is definitely fun and surprising. Thank you God!)

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
(Luke 6:38)

I guess my desire is to be a be-still-and-know-eyes-above-the-dashboard-same-kind-of-different-here-would-you-like-a-glass-of-tea person. And I pray with all my heart that my family, friends and sweet Adalynn can say that about me some day... because I know that He has given me lots of "good measure." And it's time to make some sweet tea!

Thank you again for continuing to pray for our baby girl! Our next appointment is on Tuesday, March 31st.

It's a Miracle!

Just have to share... A dear friend gave me some verses that just touched my heart. As you know, we are planning for the baby's middle name to be "miracle" in Danish, which is Mirakel. So Kathy took it upon herself to look up all the verses in the Bible with the word "miracle" in them and printed off a selection. What a heartfelt and meaningful gift! Wow, am I grateful to see how God used this special word in His Word!

Hope you enjoy! (I believe these are from the Message)

We'll never comprehend all the great things he does; his miracle-surprises can't be counted. (Job 9:10)

What a miracle of skin and bone, muscle and brain! (Job 10:11) - this one is very cool! :)

How he piles up the cumulus clouds--all these miracle-wonders of a perfect Mind... (Job 37:16)

So thank God for His marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children He loves. (Psalm 107:8, 15, 21, 31)

Oh God, my Lord, step in; work a miracle for me--you can do it! (Psalm 109:21)

Open my eyes so I can see what you show me of your miracle-wonders. (Psalm 119:18) LOVE this!

Help me understand these things inside and out so I can ponder your miracle-wonders. (Psalm 119:27) This is my prayer!

Thank the miracle-working God, His love never quits. (Psalm 136:4) Amen!

God you are my God. I celebrate you. I praise you. You've done your share of miracle-wonders, well-thought-out plans, solid and sure. (Isaiah 25:1)

Later a few religion scholars and Pharisees got on him. "Teacher, we want to see your credentials. Give us some hard evidence that God is in this. How about a miracle?" :)

These are just so REAL! I love the meaning behind all of them, I love how He works His miracles today JUST as much as He did when He walked the earth... and I love how dear friends speak to me as the Holy Spirit spoke to them. Thank you, Kathy, for the continued reminder that God's hand is completely in this "Mirakel" of life! Amen!

The Olsen world

Just thought you'd like to see the "world" that Adalynn will be coming into... NOW you know how to pray! :)

There are times that we grow our hair out so that we can look like a famous person... Ty was dressed up for the 3rd grade program at his school--"What I want to be when I grow up." Ty obviously would like to be a professional basketball player--afro and all!


A new puppy has entered our lives (...not by choice). Snickers has grown fond of us...and we kinda like him too!


There is a common "orange" theme around the home... Poor girl, she'll probably have to have an orange outfit to come home from the hospital!

Thank you all for continuing to pray for our sweet Miracle. We are grateful for your continued prayers.



Have a wonderful first day of spring!!

Great image

Just thought I would share this with you. I have a friend that pointed me to some great images of a baby during pregnancy... very cool.

This is a picture of a baby at 20 weeks and how "old" Adalynn is right now... this isn't an actual picture of her, but a great representation of how she might look!

Isn't it amazing to see how someone so precious is being "knit in their mother's womb"?

What an awesome thought. A true miracle of life!

More facts that came with this picture:
By the fifth month: Babies born prematurely at 21 weeks regularly survive but are prone to certain physical setbacks. As science and medicine advance, the age of viability moves closer to conception and the ability of neonatal specialists to address preemies health complications are improving.
(I can see that God is moving...)

Good Reports!

We (Adalynn and I) just got back from the doctor, and my, has she grown! My mom came with me this time and just had a blast watching Adalynn up on the big screen. She was wiggling a little... I think we might have woke her from a nap.

After this past weekend, I called the doctor Monday to voice a few concerns... I had mentioned in my last post that I was feeling kinda rough over the weekend. I was having quite a bit of unexplainable pain. She reassured that I wasn't a high maintenance patient...it was just my situation that was high maintenance! She did want to see me that day.

So I went in both Monday and Tuesday of this week. I have a feeling that I will be on a first name basis with everyone down there before long! Both checkups were great. Monday, she listened to the heart beat--healthy and strong! And we talked through some of the symptons. Looks like it was a combination of cramps, gastro stuff, a little bit of bloody mucous that wasn't concerning, and the fact that I'm 38 pushing 39 years old! She also scolded me for pushing it too hard. She said I wasn't being put on bed rest, but I had to slow down. (I still haven't quite figured out what "slow down" means).

Today, we got to see the baby in action and measured everything. She is 11 ounces! She's grown 4 ounces in just two weeks! That is phenomenol! Remember that they are really tracking her progress because of the not-so-optimal environment that she is in. But her quote was that I was progressing like a normal pregnancy of a 25-year-old! Ugh, that made me feel a little old...but I didn't care! I'm just SO happy that this baby is getting enough nourishment!

Thank you to all for praying for the growth of this baby! Prayers are being answered! Our Noble Miracle is mighty and strong. In fact, my doctor said she's a little "porker"! Love that...

Next appointments:
March 31st - Level 2 ultrasound (live look-in with specialist in Little Rock)
April 7th - follow up appt. with my doctor in NWA

Prayer requests:
...that Adalynn keeps growing and growing and growing
...that Momma slows down (kinda hard with 3 active boys and a full time job!)

I cannot tell you how much we appreciate all of you... we really, really do!

Tug of War

You remember the game of tug-of-war?...the battle of will and might, but mostly it was who had the best "anchor" at the end of the rope. Undoubtedly, it was the side with the biggest, sturdiest and most anchor-like person at the end of the rope that won the game. Well... I feel like I've been in a Tug-of-War with God lately. (wanna guess who wins? :))

This past weekend we had a great time in Muskogee, OK watching Dane's baseball team, the Rogers Redhawks, play in a tournament. It was perfect weather--mostly warm during the day and cover-up-with-a-blanket cool at night. We took the whole family and spent the night and just enjoyed some time relaxing at the hotel, swimming in the pool, eating out with friends. It was really nice... and to top it off, the Redhawks won the tournament!

But I was really battling inside... I was physically hurting throughout the weekend which forced my mind into the worry-mode. I heard every little voice of doubt and concern that came into my head. Am I feeling the baby? Am I going into early labor? Was that a contraction? I don't remember what they feel like... And I tried to battle it with the Truth. I read Psalm 139 over and over. Tom was a source of comfort and strength as usual, always pointing me to Him.

It really was a Tug-of-War battle! Seems like I always want to take things over and just worry... no, God, really...I love worrying, I'll just take this back from you...(tug, tug) ...it's okay, I can handle it, you don't need to do this all by yourself... (tug, tug). But God is a much better "anchor" than I am...thank goodness.

On Sunday morning, we all went down to breakfast they offered at the hotel. My mind was spinning with concern and I was weary from little sleep. As we began to eat, a young mom and a little girl came past us to sit at the next table. We heard her say, "Hurry up Adalynn" or something like that... all I heard was her name. And each one of us in our family's ears just perked up! We couldn't believe that this little girl's name was Adalynn! The same as our new baby girl (which is somewhat rare)! Then we heard Adalynn say later, as she was getting sad, "I need my bubbas!" And her older brothers ran to her side. Tom looked at me directly in the eye and said, "I don't think this is an accident that we were here to witness that!" He went on to say, "God has you and this little one--Adalynn--in His [mighty, capable and anchor-like] hands." (underlying message...quit playing Tug-of-War!!)

Easier said than done! :) But my hands are definitely starting to slip...

What's in a name?

I have to admit... I have asked several people if I should really "post" the name of this sweet baby girl we are so anxious to meet. I've heard it's taboo to do such a thing. But the response I got from one friend is, "You are such an open book... why DON'T you tell us her name so we know who to specifically pray for!" Great idea. And yes, there is meaning behind a name.

We plan to name her Adalynn which is after my grandmother (my mom's mom). Her name was actually spelled Adaline, but pronounced Ada-lynn. And my dad's name and my middle name is Lynn... therefore, Adalynn it is! I did look up the meaning of the name and it actually comes from Adelaide, which means "noble kind." I love that! What a noble thing she is already to go through so much in just 19 weeks of existence!

Her middle name is another story...

After Tom and I came out from the specialist's office, we were both just teary-eyed. We were in awe of this little girl. How she has overcome any "odds" that were against her. That God would place someone so special in our lives... that we are getting to witness a miracle in the making! Tom looked at me and said, "I don't think there is any doubt what the middle name of this baby girl should be..."

Prior to that, he had taken it upon himself to look up the word "miracle" in Danish. Olsen is Danish descent. In fact, his great great grandfather (Hans) came from Denmark, the country. The word he found was "Mirakel." He loved it...and I loved it. And after the visit and seeing that little girl just wiggling around in my belly, we knew that we were seeing a "Mirakel." So... Adalynn Mirakel Olsen. Noble Miracle (perfect).

On the drive home, Tom and I were just reflecting, daydreaming, planning... He pointed me to some scriptures that a new friend had led me to during our last Community Group. [Side note - this lady just HAPPENED to be at our Community Group for the very first time, and on the night we shared our new baby story, and she just HAPPENS to be a neo-natal nurse who just HAPPENS to know the specialist we saw in Little Rock. Cool, huh? I don't believe in coincidence.] She told me to claim these verses: (Psalm 139:5, 13-16)

You hem (Adalynn) in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon (her) ... For you created (her) inmost being; you knit (her) together in (her) mother's womb. I praise you because (Adalynn is) fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. (Her) frame was not hidden from you when (she) was made in the secret place. When (she) was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw (her) unformed body. All the days ordained for (her) were written in your book before one of them came to be.

What a great picture! Seeing her in that ultrasound and hearing the doctor say what a perfect placenta she had and how she looked so healthy and beautiful... all I could picture was God's hands "hemming her in." Thank you, Buffy, for sharing that scripture with us. I can't tell you how much that means to us!

And thank you to all of you for continuing to pray for our sweet Adalynn Mirakel! We are gratefully humbled and humbly grateful!

Road Trip to LR - March 2, 2009

Little Rock in March - WAHOO! And what a beautiful day it was to take a road trip with my hubby! I'm amazed at how much greener everything is down there--spring hits much earlier!

After a couple of initial visits with our doctor in NWA, she felt that we needed to see a specialist in Little Rock. This doctor is the one she had interned under and felt that he would be the perfect person to evaluate and partner with on this "case." He had seen one other woman who had a pregnancy after an ablation like this in Arkansas and was definitely the one with wisdom and experience.

We had a great visit. He told us everything that could happen during the pregnancy, which I really appreciated. I don't like things to be "sugar-coated"... I need to know! He said that with the procedure I had (endometrial ablation), there was not any endometrial lining left in my uterus. He didn't have an explanation of how the embryo implanted itself! He used the example of golf. In a normal pregnancy, it's like the golf ball landing in the rough. In my situation, it's like the golf ball somehow and miraculously landing on a very slick green! He said that "sometimes in medicine, there are things you just cannot explain!" (Obviously there is purpose in this! :))

The doctor then proceeded to talk through the concerns. There will most likely be a point where the baby will not get any more nourishment from the uterine wall through the placenta. The placenta "roots" itself into the wall during the pregnancy, and it will (again, most likely) come to a point where it can't root any more. At that point, the decision needs to be made whether to take the baby early. He did say that he would like to do an MRI at 32 weeks to determine the placenta/uterine wall position...and then possibly do a stress test on the baby.

To complicate things a little more... I have a blood clotting disorder, which can cause problems at delivery. We did talk through delivery options. Personally, I'm taking one day at a time. I'm not concerned about that at this point. I'm just concerned about this baby growing!

He did tell me the warning signs: bleeding (go to hospital immediately and prepare for transfusions) and preeclampsia. I have such a peace about all of this... I really wasn't too concerned when he talked about it, but I was glad to know!

We then went into a very in-depth ultrasound. He wanted to see the condition of baby among other things. He was very impressed and we ended the visit on a very positive note! He did say that he would like to me to go thru a "live-look-in ultrasound" in which he would be monitoring/viewing the ultrasound at the same time I was having it done in NWA. Very cool! Let me just say, I'm very grateful for how proactive my doctors are being! I feel WELL taken care of!

Here are some of the ultrasound pictures that we had in Little Rock. This is our baby girl at 17.5 weeks. They say she weighs 7 ounces right now!

This is a profile picture. Her head is on the left and she's curled up in a little ball. Isn't she precious?!












This is a front view picture. She's staring at us! Notice her big belly...she's definitely getting nourishment from somewhere! :)







Next appt.: March 17th - 20 week check up!
Tele-communication Ultrasound: March 31st

Prayer requests:
...Baby to keep growing and growing!
...the placenta to NOT root into the uterine wall
...Momma's inability to sleep!

A Holy Moment - February 28, 2009

You know those moments in life--during Worship, in a quiet time, watching a breath-taking sunset, sharing joys with your children, etc.--that bring you a certain joy that is beyond description? It's like you are feeling what Heaven might be like ... it's like seeing just a glimpse of Glory for one millisecond...

I absolutely, positively LOVE those moments! I call those my "holy moments." And I especially love it when the Lord reveals something to me within those times that my normally finite and exceptionally distracted mind didn't recognize until that very moment... That exact thing happened on Saturday morning, February 28 at about 5:30am.

I wasn't able to sleep much during those few days after finding out I was pregnant... My planner-mind was busy tasking and worrying. I was fretting about not having a crib, high chair, baby or maternity clothes, etc. And I was stressed about when I was going to paint my house, fix the staircase and rearrange rooms to create a nursery! I was still in the "I, I, I" phase...very selfish and not seeing the bigger picture.

I started with a pot of coffee and a quiet time and had begun to work on my Apples of Gold Bible study. We are doing the "Life Development Planner" and were putting our lives into a timeline, of sorts ... and my timeline (life) had certainly had some big changes! I kept feeling the urge to read the passage of scripture where Mary had responded upon hearing that she was pregnant with Jesus. I just wanted my heart to be like her heart--a servant's heart, moldable and ready & willing to be a part of God's plan no matter what. It says in Luke 1:30-38:

But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you ... For nothing is impossible with God." "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said."

At that moment...the Word became ALIVE to me! In the first hours of knowing of this pregnancy, I had been joking about how the verse "Nothing is impossible with God" had a WHOLE new meaning to me... but I don't think I EVER realized that it (that verse) came from the angel in response to Mary's question of "how can this be?" (AHA & HOLY MOMENT) It was at that moment that I asked, "So this isn't about me, is it God?" I realized that He was doing something in and through this "miracle" pregnancy and baby that had great purpose. His power is made perfect in my weakness...His grace is sufficient...He alone is worthy... Who am I to get in the way of His amazing Plan?

I was crying pretty hard at this time... accepting reality, but most of all with relief that this "burden" wasn't a burden at all. Before this I was worried about my feelings, my comfort, my future, my...my...my... But this was a BLESSING. This was ordained. This was a God-thing! This was a holy moment of revelation unlike anything I had ever had before. (Thank you God for that!)

And then there was an amazing peace and acceptance that came over me... "may it be to me as you said, Lord."

Our Three Sons

I just want to say that I'm truly in love with our three boys. I love their individuality. I love their different passions, pursuits, dreams, loves, personalities, gifts... I love that they are uniquely designed in a way that only God intended. In fact, Tom and I pray all the time that in spite of their parenting, they grow up to be strong, passionate men of God. A good friend of mine (Kathy Rusch) encouraged me to pray for my boys out of this verse:

Eph. 3:16-19 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen (Crist, Dane and Ty) with power through his Spirit in (their) inner being, so that Christ may dwell in (their) hearts through faith. And I pray that (Crist, Dane and Ty), being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that (they) may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

When we told the boys the news of a new baby coming into the Olsen home...they responded JUST like we thought they would:

Crist couldn't believe it and then couldn't stop smiling. He is so tender hearted anyway, but he has a certain love for young children. He has such patience with them, never tires of playing with them... Crist was made to be a big brother to this little one and I know that eventually he'll be a WONDERFUL dad himself! He texts me all the time to check on me and see how I'm feeling. And he is an AMAZING helper around the home already!

Dane's first reaction was genuine shock...and then he went to concern. He started asking, "Why don't you look happy mom?" (that's when it was still sinking in for me) "What does 'risk' mean?" and then I overheard him ask Crist later, "Aren't you worried about Mom?" Dane takes after me, unfortunately, in that he can tend to worry about a lot of things. But he has slowly come out of that and now seems to be excited. The only thing he says now is that he doesn't want to have to drive his sister to Ballet lessons or anything like that!

Ty responded just like we thought he would... he instantly said, "Wahoo! I'm not the youngest anymore!" And then he started making out a list of names for the baby including: Trogdor the Burninator and then Po (from Kung Fu Panda). He then proceeded to say that we will FORCE the baby to play football, we will FORCE the baby to play basketball, we will FORCE the baby to play baseball, but they will have an option to play soccer. He has it all planned out, obviously. Ty definitely lightens the environment with his joyful spirit and is just plain fun to be around. Can't wait to see him interact with his new sister!

What a wonderfully unique family we have. I truly cannot wait to see how God has wired and gifted this little baby girl... we believe that this miracle child has got something special planned for her!

Tom - my rock

I just have to say that Tom is a rock to me. Not the Rock (Jesus), but a rock in my life. In fact his middle name, Peter, means "rock"--fittingly. Tom has been absolutely amazing throughout this journey of finding out we are pregnant, learning he is to be a dad again, and being a source of strength for our family.

On the day of the big news, Tom had been texting me asking me how the doctor's appt. had gone. At one point, I texted back saying, "I'm heading into ultrasound. Yikes". He then texted back but I was already being whisked away and didn't get to see it until after the pregnancy was confirmed. His response was, "I wish I could be there." And I TOTALLY needed him!

I called Tom once I got into my car to leave. Naturally he was shocked, perplexed...and any other emotion you would want to insert here (not anger!). But his concern instantly went to me (of course--our amazing servant leader). We chose to meet over lunch and talk everything out. He immediately got someone to cover his classes. We did meet, but never ate--both of us didn't really have an appetite. We had a lot to think about! And one of the first things he (jokingly) said to me was, "I'm sorry I did this to you!" :)

We then called our parents. I can't even begin to explain how EXCITED they were! You could just see my Dad's smile over the phone and Tom's mom just screamed! Truly this is a picture of the amazing family that this baby is being born into--welcome arms and hearts--lots of room for a new little Olsen.

I didn't get to talk to my mom right away because she was at a bible study, but when we did talk, I was on the computer and had begun to look up the chances that someone could get pregnant after having an ablation... I saw that it was 0.7%. And most of those end in miscarriages. (Wow, was this REALLY happening?) I then realized that my fears could escalate dramatically if I stayed online and read everyone's experiences. So from that point on, I haven't researched anymore. You know, if we DID know about the pregnancy during the first trimester, we would have been very concerned... what a blessing that we didn't find out until almost half way through!

All I know is that "God doesn't give you more than you can handle" and I'm just SO incredibly grateful to have Tom--my husband and rock--to share this journey and joy. I am blessed.



This is a picture that a friend of ours (Nita Moix) sent. It is a baby (not our baby though) at 16 weeks. What an amazing picture!!!

February 18, 2009 - Surprise, surprise, surprise!

It began as a bright and normal Wednesday around the Olsen household on the day of my doctor's appt. And after I was through, I was planning to drop in and see a good friend of ours, Don Phillips, who was getting ready to have triple bypass surgery (BTW, I never did get to go see him at the hospital, but he came through surgery great!).

While at the doctor, we talked through the symptons and concerns... I had none, I felt GREAT! I just had a weird hardness in my abdomen area. I again confirmed with her that "I couldn't be pregnant, right?" She said, "I really don't see how you could be. You haven't had a cycle since the procedure, which would indicate that the lining was regenerating."

She then proceeded to do an initial exam ... [pause] ... I wish I could show you a picture of her (surprised-this-can't-be) face! ... [play] ... She then said incredulously, "You can't be pregnant! ... We're going to ultrasound."

[Pause again] ... At this point, tears started to come. Everything was flying through my mind (selfish thoughts)--I'm 38 years old...I already have three incredible kids...this messes up all my "plans"... this cuts 9 years into time with just Tom...how am I going to tell Tom? (selfish, selfish, selfish). By the way, Tom wasn't with me at the time, we had no reason to think he needed to be at this OB appointment, obviously.

[Play] ... We then went into ultrasound. It was confirmed! Not only was I pregnant, but I was already 16 weeks! Yikes! How could this happen?! (well, I KNOW how this could happen, but how could GOD let this happen?) Again, this wasn't at all what I pictured my future to look like!

Questions started rolling out to my doctor... "How is the baby being fed? I mean, there is no endometrial lining ... Does everything look okay?" ... and then, "I just feel so STUPID that I didn't recognize this before now!" All this while tears are rolling down my face.

My doctor was amazing--a calm in the midst of my storm. She told me that she could not medically explain how I got pregnant because the environment for the baby was certainly not optimal, but she then said, "...but I know you are a Christian, and I know that YOU know that God wants this baby in your family right now." Wow, she gave me a great dose of wisdom and reality--I mean TRUE reality. She knew how to get past my selfish heart.

Then while trying to process, I started reasoning out loud, "You know, I have a great and healthy marriage, I have three incredible kids at home that will be wonderful big brothers, I have two sets of amazing grandparents that will be HUGE in this baby's life, I have a wonderful support group through the rest of my family, church, bible studies, employment... why WOULDN'T God want to put a baby in this environment?"

It was beginning to sink in... and my life was now going into [fast forward].

A little background information

To begin this journey, I need to get caught up...

About one year ago, I had a procedure called "hydrothermal endometrial ablation" as a result of excessive menstrual bleeding. It was the perfect procedure to have done because of another condition I have called "Protein S Deficiency" (which causes my blood to clot too much). The ablation was a great way to cure the bleeding without having to do surgery. And it worked! And it was wonderful!

I didn't have a problem at all until I noticed that I had some hardness in my stomach area. My mind went to scar tissue, hernia, colon problems, even cancer...but NEVER did I think (or really think) that I could be pregnant! After all, my doctor told me that with the ablation, it took out all my endometrial lining which wouldn't allow for an embryo to implant itself into the uterine wall...unless the lining grew back.

Well, after a long cheer judging weekend with my good friend, Cindra, and telling her about my weird "hardness", she made me promise that I would call the doctor. So when I returned to NWA, I got an appt. for Wednesday, 2/18.

We did it!

Okay... I broke down. I started a blog! A very good friend who will remain nameless (Elizabeth Vaught) convinced me that a blog would be a great way to record thoughts, solicit prayer requests and just stay connected. But most of all, we have wonderful news of a new baby entering our Olsen Crew! I can't wait to print all these amazing stories for her (yes, it's a GIRL!) baby book! Thank you in advance for letting me journal my thoughts and prayers. I do hope that you find some encouragement through these words. And I do hope and pray that I'm nothing but a vessel of what the Lord is doing in and through my life! The journey begins...