Cute "Mommy with MS" Shirt!

If you are a mom with MS or you know a mom with MS, you should totally order on of these shirts!  They are so cute and a great way to raise awareness, plus all the proceeds go to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.  They only cost $16.50.

Shirt Front

Shirt Back

I ordered mine, but the shirt will not be printed unless at least 50 people order one, and right now we're at 37... 13 more people need to order one.  Let's let the world know what "just a mommy with MS" can do!
Order yours HERE!

Postpartum Depression and MS

The month of September has been a good one for me.  My baby turned 1, which was bittersweet, but for the first time since he was born I have felt like myself again.

After J was born I expected that things would be the same as they were after my daughter was born.  Oh, how wrong I was.  He has a completely different temperament, plus he was allergic to dairy, so he was super fussy until we figured that out and I went off of dairy until he had to be weaned.  My husband was also in the middle of a HUGE project at work when J was born, so that just added to the stress at home.  And then I had a huge MS attack when J was 7 months old.  Looking back, I know I had Postpartum Depression (PPD).  I was exhausted, I didn't want to get up in the mornings, I felt depressed and pessimistic about life, I was not a good mom, I didn't want to be who I was, I didn't want to be a wife or mom.  That is weird for me.  It was scary.  I felt trapped in a life I didn't want to be in.

Then a few weeks ago, those feelings started going away.  How randomly they started going away is what tells me that it must have been postpartum depression.  Boy, am I glad it's going away.  I feel happy again, for the first time in a year!  I love my husband, I love my children, I love my life.

People with MS are more likely to get depressed than the general population, so the same goes for Postpartum.  But because I had no problems with it after my daughter, I assumed it would be the same.  Each pregnancy is different, though, and brings differing hormone levels.  I should have been more proactive in seeking help during this time.  I went to my doctor, who is incredible, but I guess I just didn't express how bad things really were.  I know there are therapy groups, essential oils, and even prescription medications available for PPD, and the next time I have a baby and start feeling like that again, I will be more proactive about getting help.  

Just like any trial in my life, I can see that a couple of huge blessings have come about from this experience.  The biggest one is that my wonderful husband and I were reminded of how important it is to make time for the two of us.  We started doing weekly date nights, something we had become lax about, and we have seen a big improvement in our relationship and in the spirit of our home.   

This month has been good in more ways than one.  Right at the time that I started to feel like myself again, I was offered a job working from home!  I have been wanting to help in the income department, but also wanted to be at home taking care of my children.  Now I can do both!  This is a huge blessing that I don't think I would have felt like I could do if I was still depressed. 

This month I also started doing a joy school with a bunch of my friends for my daughter and her friends.  This is an opportunity to use my college degree, as I am trained to teach preschool.  It has been so fulfilling to get to use my degree, finally.

All of these blessings came at just the right time, the Lord's timing is always the best.

Memories of 9-11 from a Diplomat's Daughter

I was in my Freshman year of high school when the attacks on the World Trade Center occurred.  Most of you probably remember the attacks happening the morning of September 11, 2001.  But for me, they happened the afternoon of that day because I was living in Accra, Ghana.

The last bell of the day had just rung, so I gathered up my stuff and headed for my locker.  But I noticed groups of people with worried looks on their faces huddled throughout the halls.  I found a group of my friends and joined in.

"The pentagon has been bombed!"
"The White House was hit by a plane!"
"The Embassy was bombed!"

This last one horrified me, because that's where my Daddy worked.

I immediately started running.  I didn't know where I was going, just that I had to find my brother and sister and someone to confirm or deny these statements I was hearing all around me.  I ran around like a decapitated chicken until one of the teachers yelled, "Hannah, all Embassy kids are meeting in the gym!"

Then I ran to the gym.

I found my brother and sister, and all the other kids whose parents worked at the US Embassy in Accra.  There was someone there from the Embassy to tell us that "No, the Embassy was not bombed, but two planes ran into the World Trade Center buildings in New York, and one into the Pentagon," and that we were all going to be escorted to our homes immediately, where our parents would be waiting for us and we were to stay inside our homes for the foreseeable future.   

I remember that bus ride as strangely calm.  All the Embassy kids usually rode the bus home together and were boisterous and loud, laughing and playing.  This ride was different.  We mostly sat in silence, stunned more than anything else, I think.

When I got home, I ran to my Daddy and gave him a big hug.

We ended up being in house-arrest in our home for about a week, while we waited to see if any US Embassies were targets as well.  We had just moved to Ghana a couple of weeks before, so our stuff had not yet arrived, including our computers and TV; so I never saw the footage of 9-11 until years later, in college.  But I did not need to see the footage to feel the tide change in US relations.  Maybe I felt it more than some, actually, because I am a Diplomat's daughter.

Our country will never be the same.  I will never forget what happened that day.