Monday, July 30, 2012
Chickens, Farm Dreams and More
So much has been happening with our chickens and dreams of farm life. Please visit my new blog site on Word Press to read up on our exciting adventures. See the link below!
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Moving to Word Press
Dear Readers,
Catie's Corner is moving to a new page on Word Press. Due to the change, those of you that have subscribed will need to re-subscribe on my new page. I am sorry for this inconvenience.
Please visit: www.catiecordero.com or www.catiecordero.wordpress.com.
Thank you for reading!
There's more to come.
Catie
Catie's Corner is moving to a new page on Word Press. Due to the change, those of you that have subscribed will need to re-subscribe on my new page. I am sorry for this inconvenience.
Please visit: www.catiecordero.com or www.catiecordero.wordpress.com.
Thank you for reading!
There's more to come.
Catie
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Band-Aid the Broken
God amazes me.
I have a vivid
mind and oftentimes that is how He speaks to me, through colorful images.
As many of you
know, I lost my daughter Shiloh in December, and my heart broke. I felt like it
was split wide open, aching and bleeding. Four months later, my sister lost her
first baby. I felt my heart’s wound widen and the pain grow deeper.
In that pain I
journaled:
Surviving a Broken Heart
The news comes so unexpectedly
At first all is well, then ends in tragedy
To lose a life so small it seems
Unfair with all the sorrow it brings
How can a heart survive the blow
That grief drives in so deep, so low
It filters through the body and more
The spirit, the soul, they all feel sore
Lord mend the wound that bleeds inside
Send peace and grace into my mind
I can’t walk this journey alone
I need your help to make me strong
The news comes so unexpectedly
At first all is well, then ends in tragedy
To lose a life so small it seems
Unfair with all the sorrow it brings
How can a heart survive the blow
That grief drives in so deep, so low
It filters through the body and more
The spirit, the soul, they all feel sore
Lord mend the wound that bleeds inside
Send peace and grace into my mind
I can’t walk this journey alone
I need your help to make me strong
A few nights ago,
I lie in bed thanking God for helping and healing me through the heartbreak of
the last five months, and He showed me an incredible picture.
I saw my heart
with a jagged wound down the middle, but pulling the wound closed was a big pink
“Hello Kitty” Band-Aid. I could tell the wound wasn’t bleeding anymore and that
it was sealing shut with the help of the Band-Aid.
A memory flashed
through my mind of me as a child repeatedly falling off my bike and scraping my
knees. I’d come into the house crying. My knees would hurt so bad. They’d be
torn up and bleeding. Dad or Mom would rub my back and tell me it’s going to be
okay. They’d wash away the blood, put on triple-antibiotic ointment, apply a
Band-Aid, and place a kiss on the boo-boo and say, “All Better.”
This is what Father
God did for me.
I came to Him
with my torn heart. He looked at the wound and said, “It’s going to be okay.”
He wiped away my tears and rubbed my back. Then He washed the wound clean with
His love. He applied a potent triple antibiotic salve of peace and covered the
wound with a Band-Aid. Placing a kiss on the boo-boo, He says, “It will heal.”
Thank you Lord.
Thank you that
you Band-Aid the broken hearts.
I put my trust
in you.
My heart is safe
in Your hands.
Thanks Daddy,
I’m feeling much better.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Farm-girl Freedom
There’s a song by Alan Jackson that says, “She's gone country, look at them boots.
She's gone country, back to her roots. She's gone country, a new kind of suit. She's gone country, here she comes.”
You know what? I
like that.
There’s a lot of
freedom in going country.
I love throwing
on my rubber boots and trekking out to the coop in the morning to let out the
girls. My hair isn’t done. My pajama pants are still on. And my face hasn’t
seen a slick of paint. It’s a beautiful thing…maybe not for my neighbors, but
for me…it’s refreshing.
My mother lived
on a farm until age five, and my father grew up on a full-fledged hobby farm.
I believe that country
blood filtered into my veins:
Age
Nine –
We
moved to the farming city of Hamilton. While our house was being built, we
rented a small house on a pig farm.
Five
months later, we moved into our home across from a cow farm. On the lot next to
us was a field of tall weeds. I decided to make a fort using my dad’s clippers.
I cut out a spot and put down a blanket. It was fanciful fun until I noticed
that I had company. Hanging inches from my head was a large yellow and black
spider and a white and brown-striped one was crawling up my leg.
Sister Carmen styling in her jeans. |
Me, trying to be a pig whisperer |
Age
Ten –
My
dad taught me how to shoot a 22 rifle. He also taught me that when the safety
is off, I had to keep it pointed at the ground and not at my sister. (What can
I say? I was hyper.)
Dad
also taught me how to fish and bait my own hook.
Aunt Sandy's horse obstacle day |
Age Eleven –
My Aunt Sandy, who has a horse farm, taught me
how to ride.
Age
Fourteen –
I mucked out my first horse stable at a
friend’s house.
Age
Seventeen –
I got bucked off a horse named Hershey. (But I
rode that sucker for a good three minutes before he jolted me into the
cornfield!)
I
rode with my 21-month daughter on a horse named Midnight.
Age
Twenty-Seven –
Cordero
Family Farm began with two hens and six chicks.
Tiffany and Lily |
The Little Girls |
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Mouse Madness
This morning, I awoke to the sound of cats making a ruckus in the hall. After
plucking Isabella from her crib, we go into the hall to investigate.
I notice that
there’s a furry object tucked between the crevice of the wood laminate floor and the
wall. (We have to finish the baseboards). At first glance, it appears to be a
caterpillar.
As I get closer,
I notice a tail.
Henry keeps
pawing the little thing, and it begins to move.
Sure enough. We’ve got a small
gray mouse in the house.
I grab a Q-tip
to try and push the thing out, but Henry’s going bananas and the mouse is
wedging in further. So I did what had to be done.
I took the mouse by the tail
and yanked him out.
Bella is so
excited and asks if she can pet the mouse. I say no as I hunt for a
box.
All the while, the mouse is dangling between my fingers and Henry is jumping at my ankles.
And that is when the thought dawns on me…maybe the girls would enjoy a snack…
P.S. The mouse was resilient. And lived to see the neighbor's backyard.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Shiloh
When the test
read positive, Jonathan and I did a victory jig in the bathroom. We were ecstatic
to have another baby. We did some quick calculation and figured I was five
weeks.
My plan was
coming together beautifully. I wanted my children two and half years a part.
Bella would soon have a playmate. Peter Rabbit would be the nursery theme. The
baby name book was off the shelf and names were cycling through my mind.
My first pregnancy with Isabella went wonderful. I never had
a moment of doubt that the second would be any different. I had no fear. No
women in my immediate bloodline have ever lost a baby. I never could have
anticipated it happening to me.
As the weeks of my pregnancy progressed, I felt more sick
and fatigued than I had with my first pregnancy. I summed it up to each child
is different, and lovingly bore the sickness because my mind wasn’t focused on
the present day. I was already anticipating July 9th: the arrival of
our child.
At ten weeks, I went in for my routine appointment. Everything
seemed fine, until they did a scan for the baby's heartbeat. My doctor rolled
the gel scanner over my belly, back and forth, but we heard nothing. Her
eyebrows scrunched a bit and she said, “Well it’s still early, so the baby
might be small. Let’s do an ultrasound to be sure everything is okay.”
Jonathan gave me this necklace as a symbol of our baby in Heaven. |
At the Zeeland Hospital, I laid on the bed watching the
screen, hoping that we’d find a heartbeat. The ultrasound technician was taking
plenty of pictures and measuring things that looked strange to me, but what did
I know, I wasn’t certified in reading images. So I asked her, “Do you see the
heartbeat?” She paused before looking at me. Her smile was nice, almost
sympathetic. She replied, “I’m not sure, maybe.” It was then that I knew
something was definitely wrong.
That night, my doctor called me from her cell phone. Her
first words were, “I don’t like to call with bad news, but….” My heart stopped
at that moment. She explained to me that the images appeared to be a rare Molar
Pregnancy. The tissues inside the uterus were abnormal, the placenta didn’t
look right, the fetus wasn’t forming properly, and a cyst was also present. Ultimately,
the baby was no longer living, and we needed to schedule an extraction surgery.
I hung up the phone and wept in Jonathan’s arms.
I had to wait five days before they could get me into
surgery because the hospital was booked. So for five days, I not only felt
physically ill, but utterly devastated. As Friday approached, I battled with
anxiety over the surgery. Jonathan suggested that I look up scriptures on
peace. During my search, I came across Isaiah 26:3-4, “You will keep in perfect
peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord
forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal.” I read that verse and
thought, Okay. I will trust in you Lord.
You will be my Rock through this.
On December 16th, I entered surgery. Molar pregnancies are
tricky because if the abnormal tissues are left inside the body, they can
become cancerous. It is important that everything be fully removed or the
tissues may continue to grow and enter other parts of the body, namely the
lungs.
I was put under anesthesia and the doctor worked on
extracting the tissues. I started to hemorrhage. The anesthesiologist hooked me up for a blood transfusion but once the
placenta and fetal tissues were out, the bleeding reduced significantly. Praise
the Lord, I was able to avoid transfusion. After my uterus was scraped twice
and the last tissues were suctioned, I was wheeled into recovery.
An hour later, I awoke feeling shaky and weak. I remember
looking around the room. It was all white. White walls. White curtains. A nurse
stood beside me looking at a monitor. I stared at the wall and thought, It’s done. I’m empty. Before the surgery,
I knew that my baby wasn’t living, but now, my baby was truly gone. Tears
filled my eyes and washed down my cheeks. The nurse rubbed my arm and told me
it was okay to cry.
Recovery has been a very very hard process. The physical
pain after surgery was horrible. A week passed and I wasn't getting better. I
went in for my one-week follow-up and found I had a clinical infection. After ten
days of antibiotics, my physical body felt almost completely healed. But
feeling physically whole is very different from feeling emotionally whole.
Losing a child is devastating. I've never felt such a deep
loss ever before. I have wept and still weep many tears. It’s hard to describe
the great depths of emptiness and grief. I loved that baby from the moment I
knew she was inside my tummy. I wanted that child even before she was
conceived. And I miss my baby more than words can say.
We have named
our second child Shiloh, which means “His gift.” We never were able to hold
Shiloh or rub her smooth face or see her color of eyes, hair, or skin. But
Shiloh is still my gift from God. I have lost the time with my child here on
earth, but I have not lost my child.
I miss my
Shiloh. I will miss Shiloh until we are reunited in Heaven. But oh, that time
is coming. I look forward to the time when I enter the pearly gates and Shiloh
will run across the streets of gold and into my arms. What a wonderful gift!
Right now, I
know my baby is whole and healthy in Heaven’s magnificent nursery. Each night
Shiloh hears the most beautiful lullabies sung from the voices of angels. And
my precious child will never know pain, sorrow, or fear for she is already in
the presence of Jesus.
I prayed the
other day, “Jesus, could you go to the nursery and hold Shiloh in your arms, tell
her that Mommy loves her and that I miss her. Kiss her for me. And tell her that
Mommy will be there soon and very soon.”
I know the Lord
did just that.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
The Many Poses of Bella
It never ceases
to amaze me just how many expressions and poses my two-year-old produces. Isabella
has such a sense of humor. I’ve been lucky enough to capture a few of those
moments on camera. And so without further ado let me introduce the:
Many Poses of Bella Collection…
The Diva
The Richard Simmons
The Rocker
The Pout
The Pout Magnified
The Jackie Chan
The Debutante
The Slowly Dying of Boredom
The Daddy Melter
The Misjudged the Ratio of Space
The Sublimely Happy
Friday, March 23, 2012
I Need Thee
I love the old
hymns. I find that in my quiet times of prayer and worship, I gravitate to
those songs. Lately, there’s been one specific hymn on my lips: I Need Thee.
Those three
words really say it all.
I NEED Thee.
Bad things
happen. They happen, and they happen throughout life.
But…it’s good to cry with hope in the Lord. It’s good to hide in His shadow, knowing He
is that close. It’s good to know that
as I cling to Him, His right hand upholds me.
It’s good to KNOW the Lord.
I need Thee, oh, I need Thee;
Every hour I need Thee;
Oh, bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee.
Every hour I need Thee;
Oh, bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee.
I need Thee every hour, stay Thou nearby;
Temptations lose their power when Thou art nigh.
Temptations lose their power when Thou art nigh.
I need Thee every hour, in joy or pain;
Come quickly and abide, or life is vain.
Come quickly and abide, or life is vain.
I need Thee, oh, I need Thee;
Every hour I need Thee;
Oh, bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee.
Every hour I need Thee;
Oh, bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee.
I need Thee every hour; teach me Thy will;
And Thy rich promises in me fulfill.
And Thy rich promises in me fulfill.
I need Thee every hour, most Holy One;
Oh, make me Thine indeed, Thou blessed Son.
Oh, make me Thine indeed, Thou blessed Son.
Friday, March 16, 2012
The Splendor of Simplicity
Today we made yet another trip to
Tractor Supply (the beautiful haven that it is) and returned home with not only
feed and pine bedding, but lo and behold…we brought home six little babies: three
yellow chicks and three black chicks. They’re adorable!
I love it.
I love getting up in the morning
and petting my hens. I love watching those baby chicks at rest. I love to hear their small chirps. There’s something very special and significant about enjoying God’s creation.
Oftentimes, I’ll sit on the dirt in
the chicken run and watch my girls. They are so carefree and simple. And being
out there with them is simple and beautiful. I feel the breeze on my face and
lately, the sun too. When I’m with them, my heart is at peace.
There is such splendor in the simplicity of God’s creatures and resting in His creation. Thank you God for those moments of respite.
Psalm 148:7-13
Isabella and friend Hannah |
“7 Praise the LORD from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, 8 lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding, 9 you mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars, 10 wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds, 11 kings of the earth and all nations, you princes and all rulers on earth, 12 young men and women, old men and children. 13 Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.”
Sunday, March 11, 2012
When Nature Calls
Until recently,
we hadn’t assembled our chicken run off the coop. So Jonathan and I had created
a makeshift pen in one of our garden boxes. It seemed like a fabulous idea. The
girls could get some fresh air, scratch around, and have a little freedom.
The wire on the temporary
pen was about two and half feet high and since we’ve clipped the girls’ wings I
thought, No problem. I can leave them
alone and head inside with Bella. I’ll periodically check on them through the
kitchen window.
Bella and I had
been inside the house for maybe ten minutes when I glanced outside. In the pen,
I saw Tiffany happily pecking at the dirt but Lily was nowhere in sight. My
heart lurched. Oh no! Where’d Lily go? That
naughty girl hopped the fence!
I made a quick
scan of the backyard to find Lily frantically circling her coop. Throwing on my
rubber boots, I raced toward Lily. She dodged around the side of the coop and
started propelling her body against the wall. Her wings were flapping
frantically as she kept thumping into the coop. I couldn’t figure out what this
crazy bird was doing!
Then I realized
I had shut the coop door. Immediately, I unlatched it and ushered Lily toward
the opening. She hopped inside without hesitation.
Wondering what
was so urgent, I opened the top of the nest box to see what she was doing. Lily
was hunkered down in the straw nest. Then she suddenly released several loud
squawks.
That’s when I
realized…the poor girl was giving it the old heave hoe. As any woman knows,
when its time, its time. Lily needed to lay her egg, and she was determined to
do it in her coop. She’s such a dignified hen.
I felt really
bad that she had to suffer the trauma of getting into her coop because giving
birth to an egg is trauma enough! So that day I told Johnny we’ve got to set up
the real chicken run so this doesn’t happen again. And thus, it is now complete.
Tiffany and Lily are happy chicks without a worry in the world.
So the moral of
the story is this…when you gotta go, you gotta go. You can’t stop nature from
running her course.
Monday, March 5, 2012
An Ode to My Husband
The last several
months have been hard on Jonathan and I to say the least. And I know my moods
haven't necessarily been a sundae with a cherry on top for him. But he's
been patient and loving, for which I’m so grateful. And so I wrote this poem
for him.
I
love you so
The list is long
Of how you’ve made my life
A
happier song
Through
good and bad
We’ve
stuck like glue
No
one and no thing
Could
ever undo
The
treasured feelings
I
have for you
I
am so grateful and always aware
Of
how blessed I am, to have you near
You’re
my hero, my champion, my sweet
You’re
the one who makes my heart complete
Memories
of joy and memories of pain
We’ve
bridged them together
Through
mountains and plains
When
I’ve felt like caving in
You’ve
been at my side, you’ve been my dearest friend
I
am beyond glad
That
you are my man
I
am beyond happy
To
hold your hand
Together
we continue this journey of life
It’s
you and me baby
We’re
gonna be alright
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