Goin' Green Update

Several weeks ago, I posted here about our garden. Well, since then we have planted several more items for sharing. We planted: corn, cucumbers, purple hull peas, okra, tomatoes, several types of peppers, and squash. O'Dells and Fosters are going to be eatin' good come harvest time. We admit that we still have lots to learn about gardening, but it sure has been a fun start! I am so thankful our children have been able to help and experience this with us. What a great learning opportunity!

Molly Kate is HOME!

Molly Kate is at home! Thank you to all of you who have been praying for this sweet baby girl and this precious family. She continued gaining weight Thursday, so Trent, MK, and Tyler were able to bring her home that same day. I know they are so thankful to all be at home together. Please continue to pray for Molly Kate's heart, that the Lord would bring complete healing. The Cloers have an appointment with the cardiologist on May 4, so please begin now to pray for that important meeting. Also, pray that Molly Kate would continue to gain weight, and they would adjust to being a family of FOUR, so exciting! Here are some recent pictures posted on facebook. Congratulations, Trent and Mary Katherine, love you!

Mary Katherine, Molly Kate, Trent, and Tyler (love this family)

Bringing home Molly Kate - love the BIG smiles on all of their faces, what a precious memory!

Big brother, Tyler, holding his new baby sister!

The lovey.

Made by Little Giraffe. Do you know about these? We were introduced to them when we were pregnant with Carter. A sweet friend of ours from our first summer to work camp together, Mary Beth, sent us one as a gift. She explained to me the neat thing about these blankets is that they absorb the smell of the mother and are comforting to babies. Well, boy have they been a BIG hit at our house! Carter quickly became attached to his, and still is to this day, though now he is made to keep his on his bed.

When we were pregnant with Summer, it was a no-brainer that she would have a lovey of her own too. For the first half of the school year, Summer took hers to school for nap time, but now hers is to be kept on her bed as well.
And when Tilly quickly followed, we knew she could not be left out. In fact, Tilly had it even better than Carter and Summer. A sweet lady in our church, who lived next door to us for a while, bought Tilly a full-sized lovey and a pillow, which she loves as much as anything. In fact, Tilly will fret in her crib until we remember to cover her with her big lovey each night; she loves it! Well, about a month ago, we ordered yet another lovey for our sweet baby Story, who will make her debut in less than 3 weeks. We are confident that Story will love hers as much as her brother and sisters do.

Story's lovey will make the trip with us to the hospital to help welcome this sweet baby girl into our family!

We saw Story this week.

This is a profile shot of Story. She has her hands up beside her face.

This is a face shot of Story. We weren't able to get a clear picture of her this time, but it was so sweet to see that she is healthy and ready to be born!

On Thursday, my sweet husband met me at school to take me to the doctor. By the time there are four babies, it is not so bad to make these trips alone because I know what to expect. However, he had an ulterior motive, I think. I mean of course he enjoys being with me and going places with me, but he knew that he would get to see his unborn baby girl. What daddy wouldn't jump at that chance? And see her, we did! It was great! The purpose of this ultra-sound was to check Story's position. You may remember from here that she has been breech for the duration of the pregnancy. Thanks to the not so gentle coaxing (shouts actually) from her brother and sister and prayers of an awesome daddy and some sweet friends, this precious baby girl has turned around and is ready to roll. We are so thankful. In fact, when we went in to meet with our mid-wife after the ultrasound, she said, "Well the baby looks good. Actually, the baby looks really good." What better words could you hope to hear! She went on to tell us that the baby has plenty of fluid, my blood pressure was great, and that she just looks great! Of course we think so, she is ours, but it was nice to hear! We were not surprised to learn that Story is large, measuring already in the 80th percentile, that is kind of small for an O'Dell baby, ha! In fact, the technician measured her head first, and her reply was, "Oh!" We quickly assured her that we have heard this before and just asked her to shoot straight with us. Ignorance can be bliss, but I kind of like to know what I am facing at this point! Labor does not scare me anymore, but the thought of another 10 pounder is a little overwhelming. Right now, it is estimated that she weighs around 7 pounds. Our midwife is thinking she will be close to 9 pounds by the time she is born, which would place her somewhere in between Summer and Tilly as far as sizing goes, not off the chart like her big bro. I am thankful for that! What I am most thankful for is that Story is healthy, she is in a healthy environment, she has turned around, and she has the sweetest brother and sisters ever excitedly waiting to welcome her home! We didn't get a clear profile or face shot today, so here is the sweet picture we got during another ultrasound. Sweet Story, we can't wait to meet you! We love you!

Mommy and Me

I love love love this picture of my sweet Summer with me! This was taken when I visited her class for Muffins with Mommy. One of Summer's teachers, Miss Lisa, who is an avid and awesome photographer sent this to me today. I just had to post it, ha!

How does your garden grow?

A while back I posted about our garden here. Last weekend, I took some pictures to show how we are progressing. It has been such a fun project for our family; everyone has been involved. Last week, I had a couple of strawberries (my summer favorite), and they have never tasted so good. Tonight, we picked some of the romaine lettuce. I love this on my sandwiches, and we buy the hearts regularly from the grocery store. It will be so nice just to get them from the yard for the next couple of months. In the coming weeks, we plan to plant some tomatoes, okra, squash, cucumbers, celery, and green beans. Can't wait!

Apparently, the garden is not the only thing growing in our backyard. David took our other child to the vet this week for his shots and check up. At 5 months, Hundley already weighs 60 pounds! We sure don't grow them small at our house.

Dandelions

These little tiny flowers have brought our family so much joy over the last few weeks. Carter and Summer look for them everywhere! Occasionally, little Miss Tilly even gets in on the action. She can say flower now and it is so sweet.

Pretty little flower, bringing so much joy!

Sweet Summer loves the little flowers in our yard.

Carter cheesin' with his dandelion.

Making and wish and hoping for more dandelions!Little Miss Busybody on the move! She is waving bye to me here!
What a pretty girl, she looks SO much like her daddy it is unreal!
Little Miss Tilly looking so pretty in her dress! She will be 20 months old this weekend, wow!

Molly Kate Update

I know so many of you have been praying for this sweet family. I am attaching a couple of new pictures along with the latest update. Isn't that such a sweet little face? I think she looks so much like her daddy. Pray that Molly Kate will gain some weight, so that she can go home. Pray ultimately for complete healing in her heart. Pray for Mary Katherine and Trent as they walk through this together. Pray for big brother Tyler as he prepares to welcome home a new baby sister. Thank you!

Molly is still in the NICU but doing well. The NICU staff is basically ready to let her come home, but the cardiologist wants to see her gain some weight before she can leave. Mary Katherine was discharged yesterday, so today was our first day of making multiple commutes back and forth between Gwinnett Medical. I spoke with our pediatrician today and it sounds like the heart issue will be something that we just continue to monitor over the next weeks/months/year to see if it corrects itself and if it doesn't, how much it impacts her ability to gain weight and breathe. The pediatrician said that more often than not, the holes close up on their own, but if surgery is necessary, it probably wouldn't occur until she was at least 6 months if not a year old.
I'm doing my best with fb updates and pictures at the end of the day. Thank you for all of your words of encouragement and prayers.
love,
Trent and Mk

Princess for the day.

Always a princess to me! Sunday afternoon, Summer and I went to a princess tea party in honor of one of her special friends from school. It was so sweet. All of the little girls wore their princess dresses, and the party was set up outside in a courtyard complete with white tables, lemonade, and cookies. After lemonade and cookies, the girls got their nails and faces painted and then. . .(as if that wasn't enough) Cinderella showed up in her white, horse-drawn carriage to take the girls on a ride around the neighborhood! It was a little girl's dream come true! Summer looked beautiful and she had so much fun. It was so sweet for me to share this special day with my princess.

My princess and me!

Two of Summer's sweet friends from school dancing.

Two sweet princesses having lemonade and cookies.

Princess Summer getting her nails painted purple because she loves purple and pink! I love the look on her face, so Summer!

Princess Summer getting her face painted with a purple butterfly and a pink heart.

She is so pleased with her pretty butterfly and heart!

Cinderella is here!

Molly Kate Update

I spoke to Mary Katherine's sister, Beth, today to get a quick update. Mary Katherine and Trent got to go home today, sadly without Molly Kate. She is now weighing in at 5 pounds 11 ounces, and they will not allow her to go home until she has gained some more weight. Please keep praying for this precious family and their sweet baby girl. Below are two recent pictures of the proud parents. I am also attaching an update they posted on facebook late last night or early this morning.

We've had a great day with Molly Kate. She is feeding every 3-4 hours, eating well when it's time to eat, having dirty diapers, and sleeping good in between feedings. We're getting to feed her, change dirty diapers, cuddle with her, and love on her.

Mk and I will go home tomorrow. Molly is still in the NICU and we still are unsure when she will come home. A few of the NICU nurses mentioned the possibility that she could go home as early as tomorrow, but that decision will ultimately be determined by what the cardiologist sees tomorrow when he comes by.

We've learned a lot more about VSD over the past 24 hours and have found some comfort in the things we've learned from doctors we've talked to. The cardiologist told us that about 1% of babies have heart defects at birth, but of those 1% this is far and aweigh the most common defect. The NICU doctor told us that 30 or 40 years ago, having a hole in your heart was a very serious condition and that today (even though it doesn't feel this way to us right now), it is a much more optimistic scenario.

We know Molly is being prayed for and we are thankful for all of the wonderful people God has brought into our lives to pray for her. Please continue to pray for Molly to eat well and gain weight. She seemed to be much better today at breathing and eating at the same time which is one of the things they are looking for before they will allow her to come home. Also pray that God would heal Molly's heart so that she could avoid needing heart surgery in the coming months.

Thank you for your love and your prayers,

Trent and Mk

MK

College was one of the greatest times in my life. Not only because I went to the greatest school ever, with the coolest football team ever, with the prettiest campus ever, but also because I had the best roommates ever, well until now! You may remember me talking about one of them here. Wendy and I also lived with Mary Katherine, MK. I met MK my freshman year of college, and as it was with Wendy, we were instant friends. It didn't hurt that I was friends with Trent first, who is now her precious husband. I loved him instantly as well! You know there are certain people that come into your life and you love them immediately and you know you will be friends forever. They are this for me. Forever friends, whom I love dearly. Trent and MK have a son, Tyler. He and Summer were born just 7 weeks apart. We have gone through another pregnancy together this go round too, which has been fun! Baby MK (Molly Kate) was born on Thursday, tax day, which is awesome because her daddy is an accountant! This sweet family really needs your prayers. Molly Kate was born with two holes in her heart, and she has been in NICU since delivery. I have copied and pasted a note Trent and MK posted on their facebook page for you to read with more details, so you will know better how to pray for this precious family. Please join me in praying with them and for them.

Trent, Mary Katherine, and Tyler last Christmas.

Trent with baby Molly Kate. I love this picture - he is such a proud daddy!

Mary Katherine with Molly Kate for the first time, such a sweet moment, meeting your baby for the first time. Next is the letter they posted for you to read, so you can pray for this sweet family.

Molly Kate is still in the NICU and we found out some not so great news last night. Yesterday morning, the nurse told us that she heard a heart murmur and that the cardiologist would perform an ultrasound to look at the cause. We found out last night that Molly Kate has a condition known as Ventricular Septal Defect ("VSD"). Essentially she has two holes between the chambers in her heart that should not be there. The holes allow excessive blood to flow back into her lungs when it should flow out into her body. The result is that her body has to work harder to breathe which can cause it to be harder for her to grow like she should.
For now, they will treat Molly with diuretics to help remove the excess blood and fluids from her body. They will monitor her weight and her breathing (especially when she eats) which will determine when she can come home. Additionally, over the coming weeks they will monitor the holes in her heart to determine if they are closing on their own (which is very much possible). If the holes do not close within a month or so, she may require heart surgery to close the holes.
Molly is not in any pain from this condition and is not at risk for a heart attack. She is off of all the machines that helped her out her first day of life, i.e. no more breathing assistance, no more IV's, no more heated bed, etc. She is eating well and seems to be doing better at breathing while she is eating. Mk and I are getting to feed her and hold her regularly which is fun. She's so cute and has our hearts!
This is my (Trent) best explanation of everything that we know and understand right now. We just learned the news from the cardiologist last night so we are still learning and asking questions as we go.
Please pray for Molly Kate and for us. Pray that Molly will gain weight and continue to get better at breathing while she eats. Pray that the holes in her heart will begin to close on their own over the next few days/weeks. We are thankful that God gave us a beautiful little girl and know that he can heal her heart.
Thank you for your thoughts and prayers,
Trent and Mk

All my curls are gone!

This past Monday Carter and Summer were out of school for parent teacher conferences, which means they got to spend the day with daddy! All were quite excited about their big day. Part of the day included hair cuts, which were way overdue. I gave David strict instructions about Summer's hair. Both Summer and Tilly have inherited by awesome cowlick, so we cannot have bangs. I have learned this the hard way myself! Side note, Daddy did great with Summer's hair. We are just waiting on it to grow! I never thought I would need to give instructions for Carter's hair. I was thinking a little trim, but boy was I in for a surprise! In fact, when I saw Carter I wanted to cry!! The curls were completely gone, and I think they used a razor on his head, gasp! He looked so grown up and so big , and that just made me so sad. They grow up WAY too fast. I cannot believe my little boy will be FOUR next month, FOUR! Here are some before and after pictures, so you can see for yourself. I think next time I will take him for the hair cut, ha! He really does look so handsome.

Carter Easter weekend after his trip to the ER with his first broken bone.

Carter last weekend getting ready to go to his special friend, Ashley's birthday party.

The next three pictures were taken today. He wanted to take a picture on his toy box with all of his animals. Doesn't he look so grown up? In honor of Uncle Cory, he is sporting a faux hawk today! Not really on purpose though, he went to bed with wet hair last night and this is what we got - I'm hoping it means the curls are not gone forever!

Update on the clavicle, Summer and I took Carter to see Dr. G. yesterday after school. He has to wear the sling and wrap for at least two more weeks. He has a lot of movement in his shoulder and really seems to be tolerating the pain like a champ. He definitely does NOT get this from me! The danger is hurting the bone again, so we are attempting to keep our almost four year old immobile for a few more weeks, no small feat, I tell you! I do have to say again that David and I have been amazed at how he has handled this minor set back. We have been so impressed and thankful for how his little character is developing.

Like Father, Like Son

A few posts ago, I bragged on what an awesome husband and daddy we have. You can read about that here if you missed it the first time. Believe me, it's worth reading! Well, he's done it again. This morning, he loaded up our little fella and took him to yet another birthday party. And on the way picked up a gift for the birthday girl and wrapped it. And took some awesome pictures while he was there! Someone give this man a gold star! He deserves it and lots more. Apparently, the rockstardom did not fall far from the tree, because our son is quickly becoming a legend in his own time. Last weekend most of you know he fell from his bed and broke his collar bone. This was our first in the broken bone category, so we had no idea what to expect. Well, our little guy has blown us away with his developing character. Not only has the injury not slowed him down a bit, he does not complain of it, he does not whine about it, he sleeps all night with it, and could care less about the attention and fanfare he is getting from it! His teachers at school have bragged on him all week about his perseverance, and today at the party all the mommies and daddies were so impressed with our little guy. It's hard not to let my mommy pride puff up a bit! I know he didn't get his rockstar nature and high pain tolerance from me, so it must be from his incredible daddy. You know, if Carter turns out to be anything like his dad when he grows up, I will be one thankful mommy!

Getting a little help from the birthday girl with cleaning up after the cake.

Having a good ole time on the dance floor!

Carter with "his girls" as he calls them. These are two of his sweet friends from school - they have been together for the last two years!

I love this picture! They love each other so much!

Leaving with his favorite part of any party!