Today is Becca’s 2-week birthday!! We’re thanking the Lord for her growth and development over the past two weeks. Thank you to all of you who have been praying for our Becca.

As of  last night, her weight is 2 lbs and 4 ounces, and we will now be able to hold her during the times she’s not being fed. So, we’re anxiously waiting for when we can make it during an “off” feeding time to hold our little girl!

The picture to the left is from the other night: one of the night nurses at the NICU took a picture of Becca at 3AM when she (Becca) was “clowning around.”

People often ask us if we spend a lot of time visiting Becca, and they’re usually surprised by our answer. We typically visit 3 times a day, but our visits usually last less than 30 minutes. Contrary to what most people expect, Becca isn’t ready for a lot of touching or talking. Developmentally, she’s supposed to still be in the womb, and too much touching or noise can agitate her. Josh and I usually touch her a little bit, talk to her, and sing to her when we visit. The NICU tries to make Becca’s environment as much like the womb as possible. She usually has a cover over her incubator to make it dark.

Only two people are allowed to visit Becca at a time (our NICU’s rule), and one of the two must always be a parent. We have to wash our hands for 3 minutes before entering the pod (Becca is on C-pod). Sometimes, if we arrive when she’s having a procedure done, they let us help. The other day the respiratory therapist let me help with her breathing treatments (similar to an inhaler for asthma patients).

Becca is doing well. Her weight as of tonight is 2 lbs and 3 ounces! She finished her antibiotic today and hopefully is clear of her respiratory infection. She continues to eat 10ml/hr and is receiving 1.5ml of sugar an hour because of her insulin levels.

This week the results came back from the analysis of her umbilical cord. She only had 2 blood vessels, instead of the normal 3 . . . and the cord was missing the Wharton’s jelly, which supplies cushioning for the blood vessels. We’ll never know what caused these abnormalities, but my doctor said that it’s unlikely that these things will occur in other pregnancies.

Josh is doing well. He has two major papers to finish this week before the semester ends. He’s been a wonderful husband and I have seen him demonstrate his love to his girls over and over again. We got our first official family picture last night (top of this post)!

During her stay, my mom has been a huge help to us! On Saturday she made 7 pans of lasagna for us to freeze, on Monday she made lemon garlic chicken for us to freeze, and today she’s helping de-clutter the closet, with the hope that we can keep the baby stuff in the closet and live in our apartment until Josh finishes his degree.

Monday evening I was discharged from the hospital and returned to our home after being away for 15 days. It was weird to think of all that changed since my admission on Nov. 16th. It was hard to leave the hospital, since I was leaving Becca behind. I never dreamed I’d have our baby early or leave the hospital without her in my arms. I made it up all 17 steps to our second floor apartment and am adjusting to what I can and cannot do as I recover from the c-section.

Before we left the hospital, I was able to visit Becca twice. The first time I was able to help change her diaper…it was a little bit scary to change a diaper on a baby that small! I was also able to stick my little finger in Becca’s hand. She likes to grip things and usually holds on to her feeding and ventilator tubes – I’m thinking she’s used to grabbing her cord. It was very special to have our little girl hold on to my finger.

Becca is doing well. She started being fed her mommy’s milk on Monday. She’s currently up to taking 3ml every hour. It’s exciting to see my “work” finally being used.

My mom is with us until Dec. 10th. She’s been our photographer and cook. She’s excited to be a grandma for the first time. We appreciate all her help as we adjust to our new schedules. She also captured our weather event of the day – snow in Texas.

Rebecca Grace Jensen – Born, November 26, 2009 at 5:58PM (emergency c-section). Weight: 2 pounds and 1 ounce.  Length: 14 inches long.

After a rough morning and afternoon on Thanksgiving Day, our doctor decided it would be best to take our baby from the womb, hoping that she would do better outside than inside.  Josh was able to see the baby at birth – I was only able to get a glance at her head and little arm from my place on the operating table, while they put me back together. Josh was able to go to the NICU later than evening and see little Becca.

I will describe our first day after Becca’s birth as being “awful.” The pain from the surgery was strong, intensified whenever I would move…getting out of bed was quite an accomplishment. The pain medication they gave me after the morphine was too strong and made my morning miserable. I finally got to see Becca in the afternoon…she’s so little and helpless and there’s no way I could help her. By the end of the day, both Josh and I were drained and discouraged.

But God is good. We know that He has us here for a purpose and that His hand is upon little Becca’s life. We are confident that He is working His good will for His glory and we look forward to seeing Him continue to work throughout the next several weeks. And I continue to pray “Lord, I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief” (Mark 9:24).

We had a great visit with Mom J. on October 24th. Mom was able to arrange her return flights from Uruguay to include a several-hour layover in Dallas. We enjoyed spending the day with her and visiting the Dallas Arboretum.

My 5th graders performed The Addams Family and a rhythm exercise on the drums for this month’s PTA meeting. I was a little worried that no one would show up and was delightfully surprised when 25 fifth graders participated in the program. Here’s a few videos Josh took and edited from the performance. The last video is lacking sound, since the recording was rather fuzzy.

Get the latest Flash Player to see this player.

Get the latest Flash Player to see this player.

Get the latest Flash Player to see this player.

Amy has always planned out the meal schedule in advance, but usually just a week at a time. In September she got ambitious and made a menu for the whole month. She asked me to indicate my approval with a signature and thumb print.

Speaking of food, my most recent attempt at making macaroni turned out better than last time.

If you want a free copy of a book on orphan ministry in the church, head over to the Nightlight blog and follow the pretty simple directions. By tomorrow (Friday).

I started a new website last week — for Carolina Hope for Orphans, a sort of spin-off from what used to be Carolina Hope Christian Adoption Agency.

I got the flu on Monday, and Amy’s been taking great care of me.

Like last year, Amy and I went to Chick-Fil-A on Labor Day for our free sandwiches, earned by wearing team shirts, which Amy once again expertly crafted. We spread out a picnic table cover on our living room floor to eat our holiday repast, and then had an exciting game of Monopoly. As usual . . . well, can you guess who had all the money?

(If you don’t recognize that thumb, take a look at this face.)

Speaking of sad faces, here’s Amy two Monday evenings ago looking at the dinner I fixed:

There was supposed to be macaroni with those beans and hot dogs, but, well, things didn’t come out pretty. (A few minutes into supper I decided to supplement things with a grilled cheese sandwich. Not macaroni, but still good.)

Some people have asked for a photo showing whether Amy is showing. Stay tuned.

This summer we got to meet and spend time with Dan’s fiancée, Isabelle during two meals at Jon and Ashleigh’s. (Dan got engaged in May and the wedding date is set for December 19th, 2009.) Jon and Ashleigh had us all over for dinner to celebrate our birthdays. Ashleigh made my family’s traditional watermelon basket (which my mom used to make for my July birthday). It was good to spend time with both my brothers and sisters-in-law (one future).

Mom J also made me a watermelon basket — and right now I’m using the gift Dad&Mom J got me/us!

In other news . . .according to BabyCenter.com, little baby J is now the size of a turnip!

In July between my 2nd and 3rd classes, we had a Jensen family weekend. Friday night we went to an Italian restaurant and had some amazing stuffed pizza and then attended the BJU summer play in Performance Hall.

On Saturday we went to Mount Mitchell, North Carolina. (Mt. Mitchell is the highest point east of the Mississippi.) We had grilled hotdogs for lunch and then went on some hikes around the area (I will admit that since I was in my first trimester, the hiking really wore me out . . . at one point I didn’t think I could go on much longer and was glad that my husband gave me a piggyback ride so I could have a short rest!).

And that pretty much sums up our summer in review. The rest of the time was spent in class and (for me) in studying/researching and (for Josh) working. Our road trip home was fun – we headed up to PA/NJ to visit my parents, grandma, and great grandma and then took three days driving from PA to TX. We were delighted to make it home safe and sound!

This past June, we celebrated our first wedding anniversary. And yes, this picture is actually from this summer.  Mom J needed a picture to match with the other siblings’ wedding shots on the wall, so we got dressed up again and had a mini photo shoot – it was fun to be in our wedding clothes again! Our anniversary fell on a Sunday before one of my mid-term exams, so instead of a big to-do, we celebrated that day rather simply by going to church and exchanging cards.

After school was over we got away for our wedding anniversary celebration for two nights at a bed and breakfast in Spartanburg —  The Inn on Main. We had a wonderful time relaxing and enjoying a break after our very busy summer. When we arrived, the owner upgraded our room to the best in the house — the bridal suite — since the air conditioning was out on the bottom floor (where our reserved room was), and the wedding couple who had reserved the bridal suite decided they wanted a smaller room. We were delighted by our upgrade.

School has started. I’m teaching Grammar and Morphology to 16 eager seniors and MA students every Monday and Wednesday from 7 to 8:20 pm. I’m taking 2 courses: Structure of a Non-Western Language and The Computer & Natural Language. The final projects for both classes should directly contribute to my dissertation. Additionally, I’m working on my dissertation proposal — with a goal of defending the proposal by spring. Will I graduate in spring 2012? That’s what we’re hoping.

Before school started, I finished a web project for a local business, Earhart Electronics:

I also helped set up (but didn’t design) an e-commerce site for Hartley Cruver (for those who know him, that’s Dan Cruver’s dad), who arranges sacred instrumental solos. I continue to do web and publications work for Nightlight Christian Adoptions (which acquired Carolina Hope Christian Adoption Agency).

And, speaking of things that don’t change, I’m married to the beautiful, amazing, now pregnant RuthAmy Sutter Jensen. What could be greater than that?

My parents send us some little hats for Baby J (due February 18th). Now we have officially starting our baby’s wardrobe. It’s so neat to think that these little hats are going to fit on a little head that will join our family. Just to get used to it, I’m practicing with our little panther.

Last week, both Josh and I started school. We have a busy semester ahead of us. My teaching schedule is much better than last year. This year I’ll be seeing every class (32 altogether) once a week, instead of for a whole week every six weeks. Josh is teaching a class on MW nights and taking classes on TTH afternoons. We’re looking forward to a good semester.

According to BabyCenter.com, this week Baby Jensen is about the size of a lemon! (Surprise!) But he’s a lot cuter than a lemon!

After our visit with Grandma Martin, we headed to NC to spend the rest of the week with my parents and sister at Canaan Land. We enjoyed our week relaxing in the mountains of NC and the time we were able to spend with my family. We spent most of our week hiking around the mountains and waterfalls. It was nice to be away from the busyness of technology and school life. A great break before my summer classes.

We had a lovely time visiting with Grandma Martin in Atlanta, GA (June 14-16). It was good to be able to spend time with her, instead of arriving at the “Martin Hotel” late at night and then heading out early the next morning (as we’ve done in the past).  Our visit included trimming some hedges, eating at Ted’s Montana Grill, and playing a couple rounds of Rook. 

We’re home to our apartment after 8 weeks away! We arrived yesterday evening at 7 pm CT. It’s so good to be home after two months away. Our apartment is bigger than I remember!

Total miles traveled: 4,800

Route (major destinations bold): Texas – Louisiana – Mississippi – Alabama – Georgia – South Carolina – North Carolina – South Carolina – North Carolina – Virginia – West Virginia – Maryland – Pennsylvania – New Jersey – Pennsylvania – Maryland – West Virginia – Kentucky – Tennessee – Mississippi – Arkansas – Texas

Total states: 15

Oldest person visited: Great-Grandma Hanyen (100 years old in May)

Places slept:

• Staybridge Suites, Jackson MS (credit card points)
• Grandma Martin’s, Atlanta GA
• Canaanland, Toxaway NC
• Mom and Dad Jensen, Greenville SC (6 weeks!)
• The Inn on Main, Spartanburg SC (anniversary)
• Mom and Dad Sutter, Dover PA
• Michael and Erin Lyons, Louisville KY
• Holiday Inn Express & Suites, Olive Branch MS (credit card points)

A great big thank-you to friends and family who put us up and fed us! More pictures to come at a later time.

Credit hours earned: 9 (my last three classes!)

Oral Comprehensive Exam: Passed!

Groceries from Grandma Sutter:

One year ago today I married my best friend. Happy anniversary, Amy! I love you.

(I told her in person, too.)

Last week Amy and I joined Dad and Mom Sutter (and Emily) for a week at Canaanland Camp in NC. On a hike, Dad saw this snake, which was later identified as a Timber Rattler (you can see the rattle if you look closely). Mom and Emily were taking a different path (the creek, actually), so only Amy and I were with Dad for the excitement. Fortunately, we had Mom’s camera because of the path she’d chosen.

In other news, Amy started her first block course this week (Differential Statistics). It’s pretty busy, so she probably won’t be posting here (or answering many emails) for a while.