The perfect morning

I just want to do a quick post to mainly serve one purpose - to remind myself on some future gray and frazzled day how incredibly blessed I am. Today was the perfect morning and I could've not imagined it any better.

Dmitri and I slept in until 9am - thanks to Julie, who didn't make her presence known until about 10! (Well, I did feed her around 6:30am). While I was in the shower, he ran to the store and then started cooking breakfast with Emily and Natalie. After the shower, I peacefully nursed Julie while reading the Bible (on my phone - it's the easiest way!), while the delicious aroma wafted into the bedroom. Julie and I came down to behold a feast of scrambled eggs (by Emily), apple pancakes (by Natalie) and sausage patties (by Dmitri, but I will not elaborate on the condition of the sausage... The Lord would have been pleased with that offering). After we all ate, I enjoyed watching Dmitri, Emily and Natalie tickle fighting on the floor. It looked too good to resist, so I joined them. Dmitri then said that something was missing... and brought in Julie to join our fun. After good 20 minutes of squealing, snorting, sweating and laughing, I sat at the piano and we all sang Dmitri's favorite song from our childhood Russian movie.

After this spontaneous music number, I went to do the dishes and a while later I breathed a sigh of satisfaction seeing the kitchen sparkle, including the stove and the sink. By this point the baby was ready for her nap. So, this brings us to now, 12:45pm. The first load of laundry is going, the baby is sleeping, the girls are making bead jewelry, and I'm just about to bring out the school books. Ok, the afternoon may not go perfectly... But I am extremely thankful for God's grace and the blessing of my family. May this always be on the forefront of my mind, no matter how the kids behave or how messy the house is. Dmitri wisely says that it's signs of life. I want to treasure these signs for as long as possible...

Two weeks and Three weeks later

Julie's arm is healing beautifully!

This is what it looked like two weeks after the accident.

This is three weeks after the accident.

And here she is by my mom's first quilt! Mom made it herself without any fancy gadgets and made up the pattern herself.

One Week Later

So, here we are, a week later. A week ago at this time we were at Children's Hospital, and Julie, after being so rudely introduced to the intense pain that this world can cause, was finally calming down, aided by some baby drugs. Less than a week ago, I awkwardly fumbled with the gauze, bandages, adaptec, tape, bacitracin, bowls of soapy and clean water... Now I do it alone in less than 5 minutes, stat, even with her trying to wave her hands or trying to interfere.

My girls have been amazed at how God designed our bodies to heal. On Monday the docs at Shriner's gave us an excellent report, but I had a hard time believing that in 5-10 days she would have new pink skin. It just looked so gnarly, it bled and the dressing always stuck to the wounds, despite ample amounts of ointment. But, just look at it tonight! It looks beautiful and pink, so healthy. The edges of the wounds are dark - it's the remainder of the burnt skin, but it's becoming easier and easier to peel those away. The dressing didn't stick last night for the first time! Julie has been a trooper through it all, she has hardly cried as she endured all the dressing changes several times a day - and even when her arm was scrubbed at Shriner's on Monday! We are going back for a check up this coming Monday.

This evening we went to nearby Kinman Farms, and what a perfect time it was! Natalie was such a little cowgirl, loving the pony ride!

The girls picked out their little pumpkins - there were hundreds of them!

Emily looks so big on that pony... She is growing up so fast. She was taking wonderful care of Julie most of the evening, carrying her around with her, including on the hayride. At one point, Emily ran up to me as I sat by the fire, munching on my s'more. I asked her why she wasn't playing, and she said that all of a sudden she got a feeling that she needed to be by me, because she doesn't do it often. So, we snuggled together, and I told her that many years from now, she would be tucking her kids into bed at this hour, and hopefully she would remember this evening, as we sat by the fire together, quietly singing Russian camp fire songs. I felt incredibly blessed to have this sweet time with her, especially after a rocky morning together.

Here we are with Sarah and her son Josh - time has flown too fast... We first met when Josh was just a couple of months old and I was pregnant with Natalie. Sarah is one of the most generous people I know and she has blessed us with so many fun trips and events throughout these 6 years. Josh is like a brother to Emily and Natalie. And, tonight he was so attentive to Julie. I look forward to Julie getting to know Josh and her "aunt."

This evening, as it was dark and the air smelled of fire and fresh leaves and dirt, I basked in the sweetness and peacefulness of the moment. Fire was crackling, the stars were twinkling, country music was playing... I was walking back from an unlit spot where I had nursed Julie (who kept getting distracted by the bright moon), I simply stopped, closed my eyes and slow danced with her for a bit. I'm incredibly blessed and thankful for a peaceful end to our day, especially reflecting on the events of a week ago...

It started with some coupons...

Julie's 1st Hayride

By the chicken coop

(I wrote this on Saturday night...)

So, the girls and I had a rough school day, I was busy with housework, the fridge was nearly empty (it’s September 30th and I shop for the month – you get the idea!), so I was itching to get out of the house for a little bit. I had a gift card to Bath & Bodyworks and a coupon that was expiring in 3 days, so I was excited to get to the mall for the first time in over a year. We spent quite a bit of time at the store – the girls slathered themselves with just about every tester, and Natalie even got some black lotion on her. Or wait, that actually was a facial mask. A kind employee helped Natalie wash up. In the meantime, I picked out some great-smelling things for our house and we left for the restaurant to meet with my dear friend Yulia and her husband Matt.

The reason we like to meet at there is because every few months I get their coupons, Buy One – Get One Free entrees. Those entrees usually consist of two orders of Chicken Florentine Crêpes and two orders of Swedish Crêpes. Last night we decided to fill three coupons and ended up ordering 6 plates full of pancake goodness. We were starving and it was already past 9pm. I was busy cutting up Natalie’s crêpe, trying not to drool on it. At that moment, our sweet young server brought in a plate with two carafes with hot water for our teas, and she placed the plate squarely in Julie’s NO-FLY ZONE. For all of you who have had babies, you know what I’m talking about. For years Dmitri and I have laughed (with a measure of frustration), that no matter how hard we try to control the No-Fly Zone, waiters just LOVE to put food and drinks right in it, probably thinking, “Hey, what a nice big area for me to put down their smoking fajita skillet and a boiling pot of coffee!”

You can imagine how the next several seconds went down. Out of the corner of my eye, while the fork and the knife were still in my hands, cutting up Natalie’s food, I saw Julie grab the plate with the hot carafes as soon as the waitress set it down. A second later, her shrieks pierced the hum of the restaurant. I jumped up, fumbling to unbuckle the seat strap. Thankfully, Yulia, a nurse, immediately urged to strip Julie of her clothes – a long-sleeved fleece sweater and pants, already saturated with hot water. We worked fast, but within seconds the skin on her right arm was already broken. That’s when I started to hyperventilate… My eyes caught Natalie’s, who was already sobbing. Emily had left the table and was in the bathroom crying. A minute later, after I regained my composure, I took a screaming Julie to the bathroom to nurse. While we were there, the ambulance arrived. The EMT guy assessed Julie’s condition to be a second degree burn on her arm, and a first degree burn on her chest. He recommended going in the ambulance to Children’s Hospital, but I, foolishly thinking about the costs, first said that I would drive myself. He then urged me again, that at her age and degree of burns, we should get to the hospital ASAP, and I would never get there as fast as a speeding ambulance. I agreed, and after giving Yulia my van keys, and waving good-bye to my girls, I got into the ambulance with Julie, who was still screaming at the top of her lungs.

The ride in the ambulance surrounded me with a cacophony of the siren, honking and Julie’s screeches. It was a rough ride, and the EMT guys had to put in an IV in her hand. For some reason, they chose her right hand – that’s the one with the burns! My cell phone was about to die, Dmitri was not responding, probably being somewhere in the air, so I called Becky, our small group leader’s wife. She went to our house where Matt had taken the girls. She showed them some Bible passages; Emily got her Bible out and read from it. Natalie grabbed "Fun With Dick and Jane" and read from it too - hey, that's the only book now she's reading! :) Becky prayed with the girls and put them to bed. Oh, poor Matt had to answer a barrage of tough questions, mainly from Natalie, such as, “Is Julie going to die?” He said no. Then she said, matter-of-factly, that he was going to die someday, but sooner than her (Natalie), because he is older. He said he probably wouldn’t die before bringing the girls to the house.

In the meantime, Julie and I arrived at the Children’s trauma unit, and were promptly surrounded by a host of nurses, medical students and doctors. They assessed her and gave her some baby drugs for the pain. Shortly after she calmed down and we were taken to a room to await a response from Shriner’s, whether they needed to see her immediately or not. While we were waiting, Julie returned to her normal, cheerful self. She was singing, dancing and flashing grins to everyone who entered the room. A nurse came in to show me how to dress the burns, and she was astounded at how tough Julie was – she never cried during the whole bandaging ordeal. The doctor came by to let us know that we were free to go and that people at Shriner’s were expecting our call on Monday morning.

Yulia drove us home and generously filled up the gas tank and bought me a feast of rotisserie chicken, sushi, strawberries, and chocolate! We were ravenous as we never ate our dinner. Julie was fast asleep in her keep-sake sleeper from the hospital. Oh, besides my phone being dead, I also realized that the diaper bag was out of diapers (the doctor made a cute comment about Julie’s Nemo swimmer – I actually had swim diapers!), and there was no change of clothes. I guess I’m not getting the Mother of the Year Award…

Julie slept fairly well, though she did throw up in her sleep one time, probably from the drug. Today she was cheerful and alert, and we all had a wonderful time at a Fall Festival at Granny’s Garden on Camp Ernst Rd.

Yulia came by this afternoon and helped dress Julie’s burns for the first time. Julie complained but never cried. It had to have hurt! Tonight I had to do it by myself and it felt quite awkward… But, it’s covered with ointment and has plenty of gauze on it, including a layer of non-adhesive gauze. We are going to Shriner’s on Monday.

I’m incredibly thankful to God for all the help I got from Yulia, Matt, Becky, and for all the prayers and notes I got from many other loving people. As I have reflected on the whole ordeal, I have found numerous reasons to be thankful. The burns could’ve been worse; and I was with a friend who is a nurse and thus had the experience, knowledge and composure that I could rely on. I am a part of a wonderful Small Group that takes such care of my girls and me when Dmitri is gone.

Oh, another lesson I should learn – listening to my husband who told me not to eat out last night to save some money. And I thought I was being frugal by using coupons. Ahem…

Smiling even with the boo-boo on her arm!

My first Mother's Day

Today, on May 10, 2011, I am reflecting on all that God has done in the past 10 years. Sunday was Mother's Day, and our 3-month old Julie was dedicated at church. That day I couldn't help but think about my first Mother's Day 10 years ago. Dmitri and I were at our church, Word of Life Assembly of God, in Virginia. The pastor did a wonderful job honoring mothers that morning, first having all mothers stand up, then calling out different numbers of children, finally getting to the mothers with most children; I can't remember how many. Then he asked for the newest mom to stand up. I was doing my best to compose myself all morning, but when he got to that part, tears just started flowing. In agony, I was inwardly screaming, "I AM the newest mom!" My firstborn, Annie Angel, was just born 2 days earlier on May 11th, one day after we found out that she had died inside me at 21 weeks. I made myself remain in my seat, feeling it was unfair that another mom was standing up--her baby was 3 months old. What did it matter if the baby was here or on the other side? I knew Annie was alive, with Christ, though no one knew why she died, even after a barrage of tests on me and on her. She was perfect, with eyebrows and fingernails. In fact, the skin on her fingers already had a unique design; her finger prints and foot prints were testifying that there was no other person like her.

(The front of the card we made with Annie's foot prints)

Back to that morning... I was gritting my teeth just waiting for the service to end, which seemed to go on and on. When it was finally winding down I started to relax, when suddenly the pastor called my and Dmitri's names. Now, this was a large church, there were over 2 thousand people gathered, and we were sitting in the balcony--in a way hiding from everyone. So we were quite surprised when we heard our names called. The pastor called us up front and asked people to come up to lay hands on us and pray for us. We were beyond overwhelmed when we were surrounded with a multitude that was crying out to God on our behalf. After the prayer, as we were walking away, a young lady stopped me and said, "God will bless you! Look, He blessed me!" And next to her were standing her adorable children, a boy and a girl. Of course, at that time, I had a hard time imagining having my arms full.

Emily's Dedication, 2003

Now fast-forward 10 years... WOW! That's all I can say. 10 years ago this would've been a dream, out of my reach. Back then I would fall asleep clutching a teddy bear because I needed to hold something. Now I have three beautiful girls to hug. And frankly, there are nights when I am ready to fall over and I get frustrated with incessant requests for another song, story, sip of water, to look at an invisible (to me) boo-boo... Oh, I am so thankful for the gift of Annie! There are many reasons, but one of them is that her loss gives me a much deeper appreciation for my daughters. When I get frustrated and discouraged, I remind myself what a blessing they are. My arms could still be empty and my heart could still be longing for a child, like the women I have met over the years. Thank you, God, for allowing me to be a mother. I know you would've given me the strength to learn to be content for just having experienced carrying and holding a tiny perfect still body, even if I didn't have any more children. But, I am overwhelmed by Your grace to me, that you filled my cup to overflowing. Please forgive me for murmuring about their sinful attitudes and behavior. After all, they ARE sinners - just like me. Please lead and teach me how to bring them up in Your way, planting the Gospel bomb in their hearts. Please light the fuse when it pleases You, even if I have to wait many years. I remind myself that this is not about this life, for we are like vapor. It's about eternity. And Annie is already there, waiting for us. And, until we see her, she is in a heavenly playground, surrounded with the precious souls of Allee, Leah, Joy, and many others whom my friends here long to hold. I am praying for them too. May God fill their hearts with His supernatural peace and remind them again that it is about eternity.

Natalie's Dedication, Mother's Day 2006

(In case you didn't notice, all three girls AND mommy wore the same clothes at all three dedications. :))

"Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling... Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come." 2 Corinthians 5:1-2, 5

A few recent photos!

Julie turns 3 months old on May 3... Time is flying!

"Bloom Where You are Planted"

On Saturday I and two other amazing women had the privilege of sharing with 150 ladies at the Grace Fellowship Ladies' Spring Brunch. I was very overwhelmed as I pieced my thoughts together, finishing at 12:30am on Saturday. Considering I had to be up twice during the night to feed Julie, I may have slept for 4 1/2 hours, cumulatively. So, I felt somewhat in a fog when I arrived for the brunch. However, God truly blessed me with clarity of thought and speech, and all went well, to Him be the glory. I hope my words encouraged at least one person that morning. Here's what I shared.

"The theme of our gathering is "Bloom Where You are Planted." As I have been reflecting on this title, I couldn't help but ponder of all the different soils God has planted and re-planted me in over the past 32 years. I was planted in Russia, a fairly small city by Russian standards (only 70 thousand people!). My Moscow-born husband still sometimes makes fun of me being a village girl! :)

At 16, God picked me up and planted me many miles away, across the Atlantic, to a City of Hartland, Wisconsin, of 6 thousand people, as an exchange student. Since then, He planted me in Missouri, Wisconsin again (where I met my husband), Washington DC, Florida, and finally here. In fact, this is the longest I've ever lived anywhere since Russia - six and a half years!

Everywhere we moved, God arranged circumstances in just the perfect way and at the perfect time to grow and prepare me for our next move. Working at a large church in Florida definitely prepared me uniquely for our move to Kentucky and my new job at the Grace Fellowship office.

The six years that I worked there were incredibly fruitful and blessed. There was never a day that I regretted being there or didn't enjoy working there. I loved doing research for Pastor Brad's sermon, making PowerPoints for his counseling workshops, designing various materials, meeting wonderful people coming to the office or calling on the phone, and just working alongside some of the most amazing and godly people I've ever met. My days were always busy and I felt such satisfaction when checking that last thing off my to-do list every Friday. I was excited to serve God and this church. I was definitely blooming!

However, God was getting ready to re-plant me again. Even though I loved my job, I also longed to be home more, especially considering my husband's unpredictable pilot schedule. I didn't want to be home full-time, just more, having the best of both worlds. After months of working on my heart, God revealed to me that He would work on me the most if I were home full-time.

So, on Friday, December 31st, I shut the office door for the last time, shutting the door on a huge part of my life. Having grown up in culture essentially devoid of stay-at-home mothers, I was plunging into an unknown. As I drove home that afternoon, I could barely see through the tears. I prayed out loud that I was not doing this to make my life easier, because I knew it would be much harder. I told God that I was doing it for His glory and I needed His help.

I wish I could tell you how I've been blooming where God has planted me. In reality, I feel like the rose bush in our front yard right now. I heavily pruned it in November and now we are seeing new little shoots. In the past three months, God pruned so many of my branches!

He cut off the branch of self-confidence and the branch of my often idolatrous desire for productivity. In fact, even when I'm home all day, I often feel like I get NOTHING done, even though I'm busy every minute! And it seems like the to-do list is not shrinking, but instead getting longer. God also cut off the branch of a false view of myself - it's easy to think of yourself as a patient, kind and gentle person when working with wonderful Christian staff! God has been showing me just how sinful I am - how impatient and easily angered I can be with those I love the most! He cut off the branch of competency. I went from as my sweet co-worker and friend Jackie McFadden called me, "The One Who Knows All" to "The One Who Has No Clue," and often feeling utterly desperate and helpless as a mother.

However, as I'm being pruned, I'm thrusting myself into God's care more than ever. As I sit and nurse my 7 week-old daughter, my roots are daily absorbing God's Word, Morning & Evening Devotions by Spurgeon and the timeless and convicting Valley of Vision prayers. Those hours take my focus off of my puny rose bush and help me see a glimpse of God's big picture for my family and me, which is to make me more like His Son Jesus. My arms are full with three precious girls whose souls I am privileged to disciple, I am loved and supported by a wonderful husband, I am encouraged by a caring small group, but most importantly, I know I am walking in God's will and He is with me every step of the way. I am "confident of this, that He who began a good work in me will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." I pray that the roses will start blooming, even if it takes years."

I've got sunshine on a cloudy day...

Last week we got a few rainy and cloudy days, but inside the sun was shining! Check out these beauties in their new swimming suits!

It was cold outside but inside the smell of yummy chicken vegetable soup filled the air. Julie was sleeping peacefully in my front carrier as I chopped and stirred.

Emily was working on a Birthday card for her favorite ('farriet') cousin Katerina.

The evening ended with a relaxing bath time.

We've been excited to see signs of spring's imminent arrival.

We decided to make garden in a box this year. Well, two boxes. Here they are being built:

Emily helped stain the wood. Natalie got it on her jacket, permanently, and thus was banned from further "painting" help much to her displeasure.

On one of our first spring-like days, Emily and the neighbor girls filled the street with loud squeals of excitement - they found dinosaur bones! "People from the newspaper and TV are going to come to interview us and take our pictures!" After digging out the rocks, um, bones, they proceeded to wash them carefully and dry them with paper towels. I'm not sure which museum they are going to end up in. For right now they are being stored in the neighbor's front yard.

Ah, Natalie's passion - making soup! She simply loves emptying out the cabinet with pans and storage containers and cooking up some deliciousness with rocks, leaves and old mums that didn't survive the winter.

Julie is squinting from the unusual bright thing in the sky. Every breeze would make her inhale deeply. I wonder what she is thinking as her senses are picking up various smells and sounds.

My three girls together. It seems like it was only yesterday that Emily and Natalie were just as tiny.

March 3, Julie turned 1 months old. The midwife came over to check her out and to weigh her.

At birth, she weighed 7lbs 5 oz. A month later, she weighed 8 lbs 7 oz.

She still spends quite a bit of time sleeping during the day. The swing is a life-saver! It stays by our dining room table where Natalie works on her letters and numbers.

Here she is making numbers out of play-dough.

Here she is doing what she does best - being a princess!

Oh, and a week or two ago I became convinced (after weeks of speculation) that our Sprinkles is indeed pregnant! We can't wait for the new arrivals this spring!

Another favorite activity at our home - story time!

So, these are some snap shots of what our life here looks like. Nothing super exciting, but every moment is precious as I watch my girls grow.

How Julie Irina arrived...

It's hard to believe that Julie is already 15 days old... These days have flown by, and I am happy (and very grateful) to say that I haven't really had the sleepless nights and hazy days that are so typical of the first days and weeks with a newborn. Now, I know that things can still change, and I do mentally prepare myself for that in case Julie decides to flip her nights and days or become colicky. In the meantime, I relish my time with her, sad at how quickly she outgrew the newborn size diapers and clothes. Ok, before I get all sentimental, I need to write about the delivery experience that so many people have asked me about.

But, before I do that, I still want to run away with my emotions for a minute...

How did THIS...

turn into THIS??

"For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are Your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand - when I awake, I am still with You." (Psalm 139:12-18)

Speaking of awaking, I should probably hurry to finish this post before Julie wakes up from her nap.

Ok, here we go. As far as the pregnancy goes, it was perfect. I felt great, in fact I didn't even have any 'morning' sickness, or 'anytime' sickness as I had with the other girls, granted, it wasn't even that bad, but still, I definitely felt 'off.' With Julie, I remembered the stories I heard about women going to the hospital thinking they had appendicitis or some other belly ache - just to deliver a baby - without previously knowing that they were pregnant! I remember feeling indignant - how could one possibly not know?? Well, with Julie I easily could've been one of those women. Even later in pregnancy, I would think, "Wow, I've got some major indigestion!" and then it would hit me almost as a surprise - "Oh, that's the baby moving around!" Yes, I definitely realize it was a huge blessing as I continued working full-time until the end of my 8th month, while still taking care of the home, and trying to be a good wife and mother in the short hours I had with my family in the mornings, evenings and weekends. So, being really sick or exhausted would've made things harder not just for me.

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Then came the "BAM!!" moment. Three weeks before the due date, all the thoughts I had been having throughout the pregnancy came to a head when realized that I desperately wanted a home birth. I didn't want another hospital experience - the mandatory IV, lack of food or drink, basically being at the mercy of those who treat pregnancy, labor and delivery as some dangerous disease that only professionals can deal with. Now, I do believe that in many cases women DO need to be in the hospital, often times first-time moms, as no one can predict what complications might arise, and of course, those who have had previous problems. However, having had great deliveries with Emily and Natalie, though they were induced, and since this pregnancy was problem-free, I felt like my body already knew what to do. So, I called a friend from church who had used a midwife in her last two home births, called the midwife to discuss, and then I had to have a chat with Dmitri. Hmmm... As you can imagine, initially he was apprehensive, but after further discussion, he felt more comfortable with it.

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So, two weeks before the due date, I faxed a letter to my doctors, expressing my thanks for their excellent care and explaining why I was making the switch so late in the pregnancy. I guess it was my "I have a dream" letter, wishing that hospitals would see women with healthy pregnancies labor naturally, without a cascade of medical interventions, being able to drink water and eat healthy snacks to keep up their energy for this marathon, labor and deliver in whatever position that feels comfortable to them - all in the safety of a hospital with the 'just-in-case' equipment standing by.

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The next day, at 38 weeks and 2 days, I had my first prenatal appointment with the midwife. She again visited me 5 days later, and then a week later, the day before Julie's due date. All the birthing supplies were ready in a bin in our bedroom. The midwife also took a few minutes to organize all her supplies so that she could easily grab them when needed. We listened to the heartbeat, talked, and I told her that I wasn't feeling any different than the week before, and that I would probably stay pregnant for another week. I actually wished that. Call me crazy but I love being pregnant and I wasn't ready to be induced with Emily and Natalie either. And here was this fun anticipation of actually letting the baby decide when to come!

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The midwife left after we agreed to stay in touch through the weekend and her coming back to see me the following week. That evening I finally went through some baby clothes and put them in a make-shift 'dresser':

In fact, we still didn't even have a nursery! I told Dmitri that I felt like I was a bird with twigs in its beak, frantically flapping its wings, having nowhere to land! I needed to nest and didn't have a place! Speaking of nests, Natalie was nesting too:

She made a big nest in my bed and finally passed out from all the work!

Ok, where was I? Oh, that evening. I was content to finally go through some adorable baby clothes, fold some and toss some in the laundry basket. Then Dmitri got a craving for a 7Up and I - for Sprite and Snickers, so he went out to the store for those and ice cream. When he returned, he reported that the roads were very slippery and he could barely brake. Then we indulged in our 570-calorie snacks, followed by me taking a bath with a book for an hour. Then the clock hand moved and my due date came, February 3rd.

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I had all these ideas about how my labor would go. I thought it would start late some morning, after a good night's sleep. We would eat a hearty breakfast, and while contractions are still light, we would play a few games on Wii. Then my friends would pick up the girls, and as contractions get more intense, we would go upstairs. Dmitri and I would slow-dance in our bedroom, listen to great music, sing at the top of our lungs... Then I would get in the tub and relax there until the baby's birth. Maybe even in the tub!

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Weeeellll... That's not exactly how it went down. We went to bed at 12:30am, fully relaxed and exhausted. I then woke up for a second around 1:30am, feeling a little painful pinch. I immediately went back to sleep. Seconds later, I woke up with a start, having felt a squirt of water. I ran to the bathroom but no more water came out. I thought it was supposed to keep trickling, but there was nothing. Still, I was pretty sure that it had something to do with the baby. :)

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I went up to Dmitri who was blissfully sleeping, and woke him up with the words that you don't want to hear an airline captain or a pregnant woman utter, "There is no reason for alarm, but..." I told him that my water broke. He immediately jumped up with, "What do we need to do now??" I called the midwife who had just finished doing her visits up in the Northern KY area and was 20 minutes away from her house. South of Lexington. That's an hour away. While we were on the phone, I had my first contraction. We were still talking when I had another one. I checked the clock - they were only two minutes apart. The midwife said that she was on her way and that she would call her assistant who lives 30 minutes away. When I got off the phone, I couldn't stop shaking, still drowsy from sleep. Each next contraction was more intense than the one before. I tried to be light-hearted as Dmitri was running around, taping the plastic sheet on our bed, covering it with another set of sheets, turning on the computer to pull up the instructions the midwife had sent previously in case he has to deliver our baby. In the meantime, I was practicing my 'silly walks' (for the Monty Python fans out there), lifting my legs high as I walked around the bedroom. Dmitri started reading the instructions which included having me lay down on my side to slow down labor. He read that as I was contentedly squatting by the bed, which made him urgently say, "Um, that's NOT going to slow down labor!!" He helped me lay down. I asked him to turn on some music and I enjoyed hearing my favorite Michael W. Smith's "Worship" CD. I prayed and tried to sing along. He briefly ran away to turn up the water heater for the tub. He asked me if I wanted to get in the tub, but the midwife and I had an agreement that I would not go in the tub unless she is here because things can go fast in the water. So, I stayed in bed. Dmitri continued with the instructions, telling me not to push. He wanted to run off to look at the computer screen for further instructions (he was on point #3), but I wouldn't let go of his hand. Oh, he couldn't print out the instructions because the printer happened to be out of ink. Of course...

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Anyway, there he was, hovering over me, telling me not to push, and I finally told him, "Well, I need to." At that moment, the midwife's assistant got to our house and ran up to our bedroom. Thankfully all the supplies were perfectly arranged that she didn't have to waste any time getting ready. She was at my side just as I started to push. In less than 10 minutes, Julie was born, at 2:26am. Total time from my first contraction - about 45 minutes! She cried immediately and then relaxed on my belly. My first words after her arrival - "That was amazingly easy!" - the assistant looked pretty stunned to hear that. I guess she doesn't usually hear that from many women immediately after delivering. Now, don't get me wrong, I wasn't laughing through those 45 minutes, things got pretty intense, but I did expect labor to take much longer and to get much more painful. I just couldn't imagine everything being over so quickly!

Here we are sharing our first kiss after meeting Julie

Dmitri woke up the girls within minutes of Julie's birth. She was still covered in 'goop' when her sisters loved on her.

The midwife (who did arrive within 15 minutes of Julie's birth) showed the placenta and the sac to the girls. They loved it (in a gross kind of way). I thought, what a neat science lesson for them! They would've never seen that anywhere else. Hey, I had never seen it as they usually whisk it away at the hospital. Sorry if you just lost your lunch.

The cord was cut 2 1/2 hours after Julie's birth. The whiter the cord got, the pinker Julie's skin became. When Dmitri finally cut the cord, there wasn't a drop of blood in it. Did you know that about 10% of the baby's blood is in the cord at birth? Julie got all of it!

Then came the weighing and measuring. She weighed 7 lbs 5 oz.

She wouldn't extend her little leggies, so the 19 1/2" isn't exactly accurate... I'm sure there was another inch on her!

And here are the amazing ladies that shared this incredible experience with us.

At 5:30am, Dmitri made scrambled eggs with ham and rolled them into breakfast burritos. The four of us feasted, while still sitting on our bed. At 6:30, the ladies left and Dmitri and I went back to bed. We held hands, with this little treasure breathing softly between us. It felt surreal. But so incredible! Julie fit right into our life. I was so glad not to have the hospital-to-home transition that was always hard with the other girls. Our life just continued as before, except much richer with this sweet little girl now a part of it.

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Oh, another thought - we are so glad that we chose to do a home birth, even though it was so late into the pregnancy. Dmitri and I reflected on that night and we are convinced that had we planned on a regular hospital birth, our Julie would've been born in the car. In the ditch. Considering how fast my labor was, how icy the roads were, that the hospital was in Cincinnati, and that our other girls were sleeping... So, we give God all the glory for the way everything turned out - a healthy baby, a healthy mommy (not a single tear), all in the comfort and warmth of our home. I can only wish that every woman has a similar experience, except it would only be possible at home, if it's that fast. :)

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I'm ready for another one.

Julie with her adoring big sisters, Emily and Natalie

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise." Psalm 8:1-2