A Month of Thanksgiving.

Where has time gone? The last time I posted, Ellie was being blessed, we were moving to Meridian and the summer was just starting. Now, all the leaves have fallen, Ellie is CRAWLING, Alex is enjoying  his job and the holiday season is upon us. I will give just a quick recap.

June- Trip to Vancouver to see grandparents! We also took our amazing two week trip to Singapore. I could write an entire blog post just about that. It was truly a unique experience and such a wonderful time to see my parents.

July- I taught swimming lessons at Christine’s pool, it felt so great to be back. Ellie moved into her own room, is eating solid food like crazy, and sleeps like a log J

August- Alex started working as a PSR, helping kids and adults with social anxieties/disabilities, addictions etc. I did a weekend on my own with Ellie at a family reunion. Ellie turned 6 months!

September- Another trip to Vancouver, to meet our new nephew and see family. This was the first fall that either of us didn't have school, I guess that applications kind of count, but it has been wonderful to have a break from the books.

October-  We took a trip to Provo! It was great to support our friends in their wedding, see Amber and Adam and other friends. My dad had a business trip in Boise and we had him around for a week. Ellie had her first trip to a pumpkin patch and enjoyed the little petting zoo. She is crawling all over the place!

November- Is it really November already? We took family pictures this last weekend. Ellie didn't smile much, but hopefully we got a couple of good shots. Alex and I joined our local gym. I am determined to get back into shape, let’s just say it’s a work in progress. Alex and I are both teaching the 8 year old kids in our ward. Alex is their scout leader and I am their primary teacher. It has been a learning experience, and the good times definitely help with the not so good times. Applications are going. Alex has worked so hard on them and we wait (not so patiently) every day to hear back from the schools. Alex has decided to also apply to some DO (Osteopathic medicine) schools this year and we are looking forward to hearing back from those schools as well.

This time of year always makes me think about the good things that I have. I n life it is easy to get overwhelmed and feel like you have so far to go. It is easy for  me to see friends my age who are buying houses, have “real” jobs, are in great shape etc. And think that I am so imperfect. Well the good news is, I am imperfect, but I am trying to be better. I have to take each day at a time, slow down and appreciate all of the good things I do have.

Most importantly, I have a Savior, who loves me for who I am (imperfections included). The gospel means so much to me; it truly is my greatest treasure. I love Alex and Ellie and I am so grateful that we can be together forever. I know that I am a child of God, I have divine potential and I work toward that each day through prayer, scripture reading and lots of other things.

I wish you the best holiday season, remember to be grateful and do service for others continually. I’ll try to post again soon.

How Our Lives Change

In addition to adding a new member to our family, we have experienced a lot of other changes recently! Ellie is wonderful and she is growing everyday! In April Alex and I both were able to graduate from BYU and even got to walk Ellie across the stage with us! The same weekend as graduation we blessed Ellie. My dad was able to finagle a business trip the same weekend and it was so great to have him there. We appreciated all the support from siblings, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends!

This last week we packed all our things and moved out of Provo! It was really hard to leave Provo. Alex enjoyed his time working with all the missionaries and is sad to leave the MTC. I’ve been working with Provo City Recreation for almost 5 years and I also was sad to say goodbye to coworkers! We are excited for this next chapter in our lives.

We will be living in Meridian, Idaho. We are living with my brother and his wife in my parents’ house (since they are still in Singapore). Unfortunately, Alex didn’t get into medical school this last year, so we have begun the process again, and are much more optimistic! We have a game plan and have learned from our mistakes and look forward into getting in this year. We are applying all over again, but have added a few Texas schools, South Carolina, Iowa, California and Utah to the list! We’ll keep you posted on how this goes!

For now, we are visiting family in Vancouver and next week head off for a two week adventure in Singapore. We are nervous to travel with Ellie, but are so excited to see family and a new part of the world! We’ll be back at the end of June and will start to get settled in Meridian then! Wish us luck! 

Our Newest Addition

On February 26 Miss Ellie Marie Doroshkin came to our family! Her arrival into this word was a little bumpy, but ultimately she was healthy and happy! I know a few of you wanted to hear the whole story, and I apologize that it is now 3 ½ months later and I’m just now doing this! To start off, I have to tell you that I did a lot of preparing for Ellie’s birth. I read lots of books and articles about all different kinds of delivery. I had my goal delivery in mind, but I prepared myself for anything that might happened. I think that my preparation is what saved me that day. Nothing went the way I had planned, and I am glad I knew a little bit about alternative ways to deliver a baby, because in the moment, there is not a lot of time to ask questions.

Sunday, February 24 (40 weeks and 6 days pregnant). Alex and I woke up to go to church, like we always do on Sunday mornings. This morning was a little different though. By the time we got to church I was experiencing some pretty good contractions. We decided to head off to church and see what happened. By noon my contractions were coming about every 8-10 minutes! We finally thought this was it. We went home and made sure everything was ready. Contractions kept coming, but not any closer together. After walking a lot (even going up to campus to walk in the WILK) and around 6 pm, contractions were finally about 3-5 minutes apart. Time to go to the hospital! We were sadly disappointed when they checked us in, did an exam, only to find out we weren’t in labor. I was only dialated to a 1 and wasn’t progressing. Bummer! That night Alex and I returned home, hopeful that in the next few days, we would have our baby girl.

Monday, February 25 (41 weeks pregnant). Because I was now a week overdue, they scheduled me for a non-stress test. Basically I was hooked up to a monitor that kept track of my contractions and Ellie’s heartbeat. There were a few concerns after the test and so they decided to induce me. Apparently there wasn’t a good reason not to, since I was overdue. So I checked into the hospital around 10am. They started me on a few different drugs to induce labor. I had really wanted to have a natural birth and so felt determined not to take any pain medication just yet. Fast forward 12 hours. 10 pm- still only dilated to about a 1. Pain was tolerable. During those 12 hours, Alex and I watched a movie, played the wii and ate French fries!

Tuesday, February 26 (41 weeks and 1 day pregnant).  Fast forward another 4 hours. Contractions were starting to become painful and very close together. Still only dilated to about a 2.  By this point, I was exhausted. After talking with my doctor, she recommended that I get an epidural. She said that there was still a long ways to go and that I needed to have some energy to push. I agreed and at 3 am I got an epidural. Wow! Did that feel great! I slept for the next 4 hours and at 7 am they came in a checked me again. I was about a 3. I was trying not to get frustrated, but I didn’t think it would be like this or that I would take so long to dilate. After a few more ideas and drugs, I was at a 5! Hurray! It was now about 2pm and I figured if I kept progressing, maybe by that night we would have a baby! Hour after hour, nothing happened! At 4:30 pm I was still at a 5. My doctor has one last trick up her sleeve. Ellie had turned and was wedged almost diagonally in the birth canal. My doctor was going to try and turn her and see if that would help move things along, and also make pushing later much easier.

The next 10 minutes were the scariest of my life. While they were trying to turn her, Ellie’s little heartbeat just plummeted. The beeps were so slow and Alex and I were very worried. My room became the scene you would see on TV! Doctor and nurses were everywhere. Trying to get me to move so her heart rate would rise. They gave me a shot of adrenaline to get my heart rate to rise and it started to have a positive effect on Ellie. In the process I heard “prep the OR, we need to get this baby out.” They prepped me for surgery, Alex got to get dressed in his gown and into the OR we went. They started surgery at 5:09 and by 5:18 Ellie was born. She was 7 lbs 11 oz and was 19.5 inches long. Alex held my hand the entire time, keeping me calm and expressing his love. I couldn't have done it without him! After 30 hours of labor, a lot of pain medication and a surgery later, I was simply exhausted. They put me in recovery, but all I could think about was holding my little girl. I was able to see her in the OR for a minute but I hadn't held her yet.

That moment when I held her in my arms was perfect! The love I felt for Ellie and Alex is indescribable. I had just done the hardest thing in my life, but the payoff was beyond comprehension. Alex’s Mom was able to come down to Provo and help me while I was recovering in the hospital and for that I will always be grateful. Alex balanced his classes and being there for me and was absolutely wonderful. We were in the hospital for 4 days and then got to come home on Friday, March 1. My mom was able to fly in from Singapore a few days later and stay for a week. It was a crazy time for our family, but so great!

Fast forward 3 months. Ellie is a perfect baby! She eats well, is sleeping through the night and smiles like crazy! We love her and have enjoyed every moment being parents. I’ll try to be better about keeping the blog updated. Thank you all for your love and support during this time! 

Miracles DO Happen and the Lord Answers Prayers!

We would feel ungrateful if we didn’t share this amazing story with those people we care about. Before I get into the details we want you to know how grateful we are for Jesus Christ, our Savior. This time of the year is my favorite, as we get to celebrate the birth of Christ, His life and ultimate sacrifice for us. Alex and I have been so blessed by our Heavenly Father and it continues to amaze us how he truly is in even the small details of our lives. So here is the story!

As most of you know, Alex is applying to medical school right now. Though we have applied from California to New York, our sights have really be set on University of Washington. Well when Alex went to submit his secondary last Saturday, we realized that we had missed something. Instead of taking payments electronically, like most schools, UW requires that applicants mail in a check. Well we obviously didn’t do this and realized that we were no longer considered valid applicants at our dream school. Needless to say, Saturday and Sunday were extremely hard days. Our hearts were broken that because of human error, we would no longer be considered for UW. Alex has put in so much time and effort and it made me sad to see him hurting like he was. On Sunday, fast Sunday, Alex and I had a special fast. Mine was more of a fast in prayer seeing as I can't go more than a couple hours without food. We pleaded for a miracle. We humbly asked that if there was anything we could do to change our situation, that we would be able to. 

Well good thing Alex doesn’t give up and he sent an e-mail to the admissions office asking if there was anything he could do. On Monday, no reply had been sent and so after some digging, Alex found a contact number to the office. After a brief phone call, we were informed that the deadline for the check had been extended until 5:00pm that day. The time was currently 4:00 in Utah. This meant that we had 2 hours to find someone, anyone to drop off a $35 check at the UW Medical admissions office. After trying everyone we knew, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, siblings, parents, we were out of luck. Why would we be blessed with this second chance, only to fail again. I had one last idea, look up local bishops in the UW area and see if any of them could help us. Call #1, no luck. The second Bishop answered but regretfully told us there was no way he could get down town Seattle in the allotted time. He did know of someone who worked at the institute building on campus and gave Alex his number.

As our last hope, we called the number. This kind man said that he would be happy to take a check over and that he was in fact within walking distance of the office. Wanting nothing in return, this man was our miracle!

As we move forward, we still have a long road ahead of us. It makes it so much easier though, knowing that the Lord is aware of our needs and that no matter what, the church provides a support and service system that we are so grateful for. We feel humbled that our prayers were answered, and so quickly and have faith that things will work out, even if it may not be the way we originally wanted.  We also want to thank friends and family who have been such a support to us during this time. We have felt your prayers and concern in our behalf and we love you!

If you are struggling at this time, know that the Lord loves you and is mindful of you. Continue in His path and you will find happiness and His blessings will be poured out upon you. I testify that He lives and loves His children. I am so grateful for the knowledge I have of the restored Gospel and of my divine nature. If you want to find out more about the LDS church and principles that we believe in, visit www.lds.org. Have a great week! 

Our Crazy Life! But We LOVE It!

Wow! I'm so sorry that I haven't updated this thing since September! In my defense, the month of October has NEVER been crazier! I have absolutely loved my new job, working as an event planner for the city, but working 30+ hours a week, full time school, being pregnant and the rest of life, almost did me in! But, we made it!

The Halloween Carnival was a blast! It was so rewarding to see the community enjoy our hard work! Alex came and volunteered and it was so fun seeing him interact with the kids. I'll have to put some pictures up when I get them back from the city, but the carnival included over 10 games, a food eating contest, a haunted theater, magic show, animal show, craft room, haunted house for the older kids and trick or treat street! Trick or treat street was a themed area where each room was decorated to a different theme (Winnie the Pooh, Pinocchio, Nightmare Before Christmas, Wizard of Oz and Toy Story) and the kids would trick or treat to each room. I think that specific area got the most compliments, which was great, since we had been working on it since the beginning of September! I didn't realize how much stress my body was under though until after the event and I slept more than 27 hours during the two days that followed the event!  Now we are planning the Lights on Ceremony and New Year's Eve Celebration.

For Halloween Alex and I went on a moonlit ski lift ride! It was awesome! Alex's first time on a ski lift.

We are happy to announce that we have started hearing back from medical schools and are busy filling out secondaries. We are hoping to get an interview invitation soon. Alex is really enjoying volunteering at the ER in Provo. The other day a nurse asked him to hold a child's head while the doctor stitched up his lip. He is learning a lot of good bedside manners :)

This semester is quickly drawing to a close (I seriously have senioritis SO bad!). Alex and I are constantly doing homework, writing papers, and studying for tests. It will be so great to be in Vancouver for Thanksgiving and get a little break before finals.

Baby girl is doing great! She's growing and moves so much! She's especially active when I am in the pool and right after I swim. It's great feeling her move, her most active time is from 9-10:30 pm, you're bound to feel a good kick then! We bought a stroller and carseat, and I've been busy making burp cloths and receiving blankets (you know, in all my spare time ;) We are anxiously awaiting her arrival, we know that February will be here before we know it!

I felt like I grew a ton in between 21 and 24 weeks! 

My sister and I are both having girls! Hopefully baby Hansen       will be making her debut any day now! 

I promise I don't always wear this black shirt, it is really just a coincidence, and it's one of the only maternity long sleeved shirts I have... Okay, maybe I do wear it a lot.

Just another tidbit of great news, we found a new apartment! We are literally busting at the seems in our adorable apartment and we are sad to leave, but we are excited about a bigger apartment that will allow me the chance to actually put together some type of nursery and have lots more storage space. We will be staying in the ward, which was what we were really hoping for. The Lord was really looking out for us and we feel so blessed by finding this apartment.

Well! That was a lot, I know! I'll try to do better and not wait a month and a half before I update again! We hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and know how thankful we are to have family and friends like you in our lives!

The Big Reveal!

So we originally had our 20 week ultrasound scheduled for next week, but sadly the appointment had to be changed! Instead of pushing it back a week, our ultrasound tech had the great idea to move it to TODAY! I’ll tell you what, I was so nervous! Why? I have no idea, but I felt I wasn’t quite ready to find out the gender of our baby, but was so excited I couldn’t wait another 2 weeks! Alex was calm, cool and collected, like usual and was just as excited as I was!

Here is a little preface before we make the big reveal! When I first found out I was pregnant, I had two very distinct dreams. One of the dreams was of Alex and I at our BYU graduation and in our arms was a bouncing baby boy, blonde hair, and big chubby cheeks! The next dream I had was of us in our home with a newborn baby boy, but this time, he was dark haired and had darker skin, like his daddy. With 3 nieces (and another niece coming in Nov), it seemed like my dreams were on the right track, the Mecham family was ready for a baby boy. On Alex’s side we have 3 nieces and a nephew (another nephew due in January), so another boy would also tie it up on that side. Well then I got a phone call from my older sister Chelsea. If anyone is the dreamer in my family, it’s Chelsea. She called to tell me she had a dream she had twin girls, but that they weren’t born at the same time, one came a little later. She was convinced that I was having a baby girl. So what did we think? NO CLUE! All we really wanted was a healthy baby, the gender didn’t matter.

So during the ultrasound we were able to see the brain, heart, stomach, kidneys, arms (they are so little and cute), legs, spine, and face. The tech told us that we couldn’t have asked for a more perfect and healthy baby, which was exactly what we wanted! Then we found out the gender. There’s no question about it….  

We’re having a baby girl!!! 

 This will make Granddaughter #5 on the Mecham side and #4 on the Doroshkin side and we couldn’t be more excited! Bring on the pink, bows, skirts, tutus and ruffles!

Funny story though, while we were waiting for our turn in the lobby, a family came out looking very excited, holding a bunch of ultrasound pictures, we asked them if it was a boy or girl. They were having a boy. They asked us in return what we thought we were having and we said we really didn’t know. Well the grandma took one look at me and said, “you look like you’re having a girl, the way your hips are.” Well she was right! It is a girl and the best part was, after the ultrasound we ran to Macys for some groceries, and that same family was next to us in the checkout line, Alex let them know that grandma was right! What a small world!!!

So family and friends, we’re having a girl! An adorable healthy baby girl (that hopefully has dimples like her mama :) As we were walking out of the doctor’s office, Alex turned to me and said, now I’ll have two princesses! He will be the best dad in the world, of that I have no doubt! 

New Semester, New Job, New Adjustments, but life is still amazing!

Yeah for a new semester! It always feel so great to start a new semester of school (especially for me since it’s my last) Only two weeks in and Alex and I already look forward to the weekends! This semester will prove to be a challenging one, not only are classes difficult, but Alex will have the added pressure of continuing medical school applications, hopefully getting some interviews at various schools and continuing with research and volunteering! Not to mention preparation for our little baby, but honestly the majority of that will have to wait till Christmas break! A few fun things that will be going on this semester, Alex is taking floral design! I am excited because that means flowers for me and I think it will be good for Alex to get in touch with a little feminine side! I will be working as a TA for an event planning class. I really enjoy the professor I will be working with and think it will be an enjoyable class to TA for.

A new thing that I will also be adding to my semester is a new job! Yes, I can’t believe I’m saying this either, but after almost 5 years at the Provo Recreation Center, I will be moving to a different department in the city, working as a rec leader. So what exactly does a Rec leader do? Well I am part of a small group of people that plan the city events (Halloween Carnival, Christmas Parade, New Year’s Eve Party, ect.) I started this last week and already love it! It is great to gain some new experience and try my hand in something other than aquatics. But don’t worry, I couldn’t give up swim lessons that easily, I’ll still be the lessons coordinator for Saturday lessons. I am sad to be limiting my time at the rec center, it is like a second home to me, I absolutely love the people I work with, it’s just time for me to stretch my wings and get some experience, so that when the time comes to get a big girl job, I’ll have more knowledge of the recreation field as a whole.

We were excited to see our Cougars win their first 2 games! Hopefully we’ll be able to make it to one or two this season. As for the baby, things are going great! I am definitely getting a little bump, and we are excited for find out if we’re having a boy or girl in the next few weeks. My swimming class at BYU should help me keep the exercise up so that I can stay healthy and fit!

Well I think that is all for now! We hope you have a wonderful week and we’ll keep you updated as things keep changing around this Doroshkin home!