Experience God Curriculum Review 1

Hello again from the land of homeschooling! I have been really enjoying my new mother goose time curriculum, but I thought I would share this week about their add on program, "Experiencing God".

This is a Christian program that can be used either as an add-on to the mother goose time, it has a schedule for how to incorporate this directly with your daily routine. OR you could use this as a complete Sunday school program. It comes with 4 crafts in the bag, enough to do one per sunday school week as well as an interactive Bible story, and activity ideas.

The teacher resource kit for the month is $15 and then the student packs are $5/student. So if you had a sunday school class of 10 children, it would be $50 for 10 student packs and then $15 for your teacher pack. For my homeschool classroom it would be $15 for my kit and then with four kids (NO way my older kids won't want in on this, they are addicted to mother goose time) it would be $35/month.

Let's start with the story. This month it is about Adam and Eve. The story came with 7 bright story picture cards with the reading printed on the backside of the cards. What sets this program apart is that it is so hands on. While you read, you get the kids to do various actions. I have NEVER had my kids (6/7 year olds included) listen so intently to a story. It is amazing what "put your finger to your nose, crawl around like an animal, wave your right hand" etc. does for a kid. Just when they are starting to lose interest, the story throws in an action and BAM! They're glued to the page again waiting for their next clue. It is awesome. I don't know why I haven't thought of this before. I have had such a hard time with bible in the past, just holding the kids attention.

Moving along, we started with the first weeks craft, which was making Herb the Turtle. The littles had so much fun with the craft. Then to top it all off they went outside and got some dirt and then got to plant the seeds it came with to make their own "garden". It was such a cool activity and full of questions to ask the kids and ideas of where you could take the lesson. I was so impressed. It took us about 20 minutes for the story and the craft.

On to the picture portion of the review. My favorite part. Here is a closeup of my teachers guide for the craft:

 

Please note that this is only the craft portion of my teacher guide, in the lesson portion there are a ton of activities and questions that I could do with the kids as well.

 

And just so you can see our botched attempt (we did it upside down ;)



 

 

Both the littles were so into this craft. They were so excited. They got to paint! I never bring out the paint because it is just a mess, but honestly they did so well and had so much fun. And all I had to provide was the glue!

Have I mentioned I love this program? ;)

You can find more information at: http://www.mothergoosetime.com/christian-program/

 

 

Mother Goose Time: Review 1

Hi everyone, I am so excited to share with you this amazing new curriculum that I (how is this even possible?!?!?!) had never heard of. It is a preschool curriculam, but it is easily comprehensive enough to use for kindergarten if you supplement with writing and math. Consequently, I have dropped all curriculum I was previously doing with Malakai (kindergarten) and am doing this program with both him and Aliyah (and Caleb and Selah are doing it to because it is so fun they don't want to be left out ;)

Mother Goose Time pretty much accomplishes these main goals for me:

• It is a super fun program! Think songs, dance, activities, crafts, games, posters, centres, etc.
• It is relatively inexpensive (about $60 each theme month pack you purchase- including all your teacher supplies, CD's, planning books, as well as the daily bagged activities for your child)
• It is so so so easy to teach (think teacher planner books with everything laid out, and student bags for each day that you just open up and go)
• It has the possibility to be a NO PREP PROGRAM! Somewhere a heavenly chorus is singing "Hallelujah!"

So enough of the writing… if you're anything like me, you want to see some examples! 

To start with, this is what I got in the mail:

What a cute box! See that welcome kit on top? That comes for free for first time subscribers, it includes your teacher guide, your CD's your student scrapbook (two pages they fill from each month's theme, great for reporting!) how to use the program, etc. It also contains different centre posters if you want to set up centres in your schoolroom, colour birds, a calendar with daily cutouts, EVERYTHING you need to set up a bulletin board, a poster to put up, a map of the world. Etc. Heres a close up of some of what is in the teachers kit

Then I moved down and found my curriculum! It goes down in order, so I put it all back afterwards to save the mess and will just pull them out one by one each day. Here is a sneak peak at what the weekly bags look like: 

The month of November's theme is rainforest. It talks about different animals, different colours, etc. To be honest, I don't know yet because we have only done one day, but I can't wait to get further into this box. Malakai (5) and Aliyah (2), who are usually playing while I talk, were GLUED to this! They LOVED the songs, loved doing the craft, were so excited to open the bag up. The older kids were so disappointed they didn't get to do more. The best part is, you could do as much or as little as you wanted with this program. The lesson plan tells you what you can do all day long. Including when to take breaks for snack and lunch. You could follow it to a T. Go out on nature walks and build your building centre with sticks, do a craft, play a game, etc. Its all there laid out for you in the teachers lesson book. 

This program would be AMAZING for daycares, preschools, homeschool families, etc. It keeps the kids highly entertained and you don't have to stress about having everything you need and preparing for your lesson. Just open up your bag and you have everything you need except the scissors and glue. 

Here is Malakai's craft from the bag of day one, they made a collage. It came with confetti, glitter, paper, animals to cut out, tissue paper, and they went wild. 

What else can I say? Except, go to the website! Check out the different monthly themes, the extras that are available! You can find them at www.mothergoosetime.com 

I will be posting weekly pictures and reviews of what the kids think of it as well as myself. Stay tuned and let me know if you have any questions!  

Caleb the Keener

Today Caleb exclaimed from the living room "mom! Seagulls are mating!" I ran over to see what he was talking about, mildly concerned, only to see seagulls flying over the beach down the road.

I asked him how he knew this and he went on to explain that he had watched a documentary about birds, and they were going to lay their eggs now.

Gosh this kid.

When trying to find a fun picture that expressed Caleb, I came across this video. Nothing could describe him better.

He is so smart, so strong, so bold and courageous and mature and responsible. He is the enforcer, always concerned that everyone is doing what they should and no one is being hurt. He tries SO HARD to be funny, but lacks the natural hilarity of Selah and Malakai. But thats him, always trying his best. Caleb the keener, the people pleaser.


Man I love this kid!

Hidden Treasures

I think we have established the complete and total racetrack of my days. Because of this general speed of light that I operate at, I find I often miss those little moments. Those hidden treasures that I feel like God has placed throughout my day to give me glimpses of heaven. 

Anyone read 1,000 Gifts by Ann Voskamp? If not, stop reading this blog and go out and purchase it ASAP, borrow it from your local library, buy it on your kindle, borrow it from a friend. GET THIS BOOK! It is so well written, so poetic, so beautiful, and it helps to put life into perspective. 

She starts seeing the gifts that are in her everyday, the gifts she misses. She starts being thankful for everything. The way the light reflects off the soap bubbles as she does the dishes kind of everything. I need some of that thankfulness and perspective in my life. So today, when I was working at the computer and heard my four year old worshiping at the top of his lungs, I grabbed my phone and snuck in for a close encounter. 

What a gift! Especially when he wasn't preforming, he didn't even know I was there. He was just rocking out with Jesus. I was so blessed to see this. Tempted to think "phew, at least I am doing something right" but really, it isn't me. I can't take the credit for this. This moment my four year old is having all on his own, thats God. That's God answering my deepest prayer, to meet with my kids. To be real to them. To show himself to them in a real and tangible way that their faith would truly be THEIRS even at this young age.

So instead I thank God, that even when I fail, even when I miss those moments, he is faithful. Faithful to fill in the many gaps I leave behind.

Hope everyone has an awesome weekend!

Hippie Homeschoolers: WHY?!?!?!?

For those of you who don't know, I homeschool our kids. You might wonder WHY, and I'm going to tell you. A lot of my reasons come from personal experience.

I was home schooled along with my siblings. In my growing up years there were four of us, really close in age, and we all did school together. I tried school out for half of grade 2, for grade 6, and again in high school. It was nothing special and I hated it. I LOVED being home schooled. My family were my best friends. I built relationships with them that I would never have had otherwise. I was a homebody and I never felt uncomfortable or pressured or awkward at home. I never felt judged or unsure of myself or stupid. I felt SAFE. Every day. I could wear what I wanted to wear without a second thought, I could make mistakes, I could learn what I wanted to learn about, and I got to do it alongside people who loved me. It was one of the great highlights of my childhood. The school part came easy to me, I ended up advancing two grades by the time high school came around. I went to our local high school and graduated when I had just turned 16 years old! I hope you don't think me conceited when I say that we were all very mature for our age. I think a lot of that stemmed from the fact that instead of being put in a fish bowl of only children our own age growing up (which is unnatural when you think about the real world AFTER high school), we learned to communicate and express ourselves and be comfortable around people of all ages.

When Jonathan and I first got married, we talked a lot about homeschooling. He thought public school was fine, I mean he turned out okay! (thats debatable ;) We debated back and forth. But it all changed when he started working more closely with the schools around us. By the time our kids were old enough to really start thinking about school, he was the complete opposite. He has become my strongest supporter, my biggest advocate. On the days when I question if we are doing the right thing or if I can handle this, he keeps me going and reminds me why we do this. He is passionate about our decision to homeschool and does what he can to support the decision (because in the end, it is ME that does it).

So that leaves us with my own reasons why, other than the fact that I loved it and saw the benefits of it personally. Do I think they get a better education one on one instead of in a classroom ratio of 1:24? Yes. Do I think they are building closer relationships with their siblings and with us? Yes. But those aren't my primary reasons. I think my kids will thrive in the school system. They will love it. And school is less about the education as much as it is about learning how to learn and developing a love for it. In light of that, my decision is based on the here and now, elementary school, the early years. In their day to day environment, my kids don't ever have to feel dumb, inadequate, unsure of themselves, embarrassed, self conscious, bullied, unsafe, or confused. They are comfortable 100% of the time. They are safe and secure in who they are and are free to express themselves in any way without fear of rebuttal or what people will think of them. Does this mean I protect my kids from the real world? Absolutely not! At this age, they still experience all those things in various groups or outings. Such as group classes they are involved in, friendships outside of our family, church, heck even the playground! They have felt bullied or dealt with kids that they just didn't know how to handle. They have dealt with peer pressure and been embarrassed or unsure of themselves. That is life, that is childhood. But it is not in their face every single day. And because of this, they are incredibly sure of themselves and self-confident.

Another primary reason we choose to homeschool is to ground our children in their faith. To give them time to form roots, ask questions, experience it for themselves before they go into a school environment where it becomes a religious vacuum. Not just the basics of our faith, but our values. In this day and age, everything is under re-evaluation, including basics like gender. I am all for gender equality, but now we are transitioning to the gender spectrum. There are no more boy and girl, that just creates confusion and stigma. Now there is a spectrum and your child is free to explore where they fit on that spectrum. You don't want to go to the "boys" bathroom? Then go where you feel comfortable! This is approved and being implemented in schools across BC. I want to teach my children MY values, not the governments. I want to instil what I believe, I want them to be confident in who they were created to be, a boy or a girl. Not told that those don't exist. This is one of my primary reasons for homeschooling, our values, our faith, these not only will not be taught in the public school setting but they won't be accepted. Where does that leave my children? Caught in between two opposing worlds?

Now for the disclaimer to calm everyones nerves: I know that most people don't homeschool and I don't want you to think I judge you AT ALL. If you knew how many times I had considered just putting them in for a year, you would know this. Homeschooling is our journey, it is our choice. We do it because we have a list a mile long full of reasons that just haven't changed at this point for us. However, it is HARD. It is a huge sacrifice. I am so jealous of all the mommas out there who take their little ones to school and drop them off! And like I said, I think my kids would love school and will, when the time comes. I don't think we will homeschool forever. I have plenty of teacher friends and I respect what they do and I don't think school is "evil" in any way. However, let me ask you this, do you judge me?

Bedtime Battles

Who doesn't love a funny story? Especially when pertaining to family life. We can all relate to them, picture ourselves in them, and appreciate them. They make us feel a little bit warmer inside when we look at our own chaos and realize we're not alone, or better yet, not as bad as we thought.

So, dear readers, I am going to give you a big case of the warm fuzzies. You are going to walk away from your computer and face your world with a new sense of accomplishment and purpose. So pour yourself some creamer with a side of coffee and enjoy the ride.

Bedtime has become the most dreaded hour, nay 3 hours, in my day. I used to look forward to bedtime, yearn for it, count down the seconds until that blessed hour. Now I cringe when the clock says 6:30, I don't know if I am ready for this. Maybe I need a glass of wine before I start this war. I mean, come on people, its one against 5! I'm outnumbered, outmanoeuvred and simply put, outLASTED every darned night. By the time they finally submit, I raised the white flag an hour before. I have tried EVERY. LIVING. THING to get them to sleep. Routines, bath times with lavender, sitting outside their doors with the door open, switching beds around. The only thing that has had some semblance of success is the separation policy. Divide and conquer right? Each kid in their own room. The problem is that my house becomes a casualty of war and I can't go into any room in my home where there isn't a sleeping child to disturb. And honestly, my older three kids know better!

It didn't used to be like this. Bedtime used to be fairly simple. I don't know if it is having 3 kids in one room that has tipped the scales (who can sleep with that adorable squealing little girl vying for their attention???) or if it is just blatant disrespect. You might be thinking that 7pm is too early for bedtime, I have even been willing to concede on this point. I let Caleb and Selah stay up until 8 reading quietly in their room. It doesn't stop the complete and total gong show that is happening in the other room and "quietly" is open to interpretation on their behalf.

Aliyah still needs naps, but not every day. The days that she naps, there is NO way she goes to bed before about 10pm. She then keeps up Malakai and Janiah. Malakai just plays off the girls, enjoying every moment of this fun game in the girls room (we moved him from Calebs room in hopes of a better nights sleep, ha!). Janiah wakes up whenever we move one of our separation victims back in at 9 or 10pm and plays for a good hour thus waking up the others all over again.

Am I losing you yet? I think I lost myself a long time ago. We need more rooms in our house! I have a foamie permanently set up in my living room right now, seriously! I just explain to our guests that we are having bedtime battles right now. Yaaaaaa, they get it right????

Sigh, who am I kidding? We need to find something that works and soon! At this point I am ready to move caleb and selah into the laundry room and Janiah in by herself. I am so ready to just lay my kids down to sleep and have them…. wait for it…. OBEY! So ready for the whining all day long to stop because my kids are getting proper rest.

So this morning, think about how your bedtimes are going. I can almost guarantee they are going better than mine. And as you sip that warm, steaming coffee or tea in your hands, may the story of my nightly battles bring you a little smile and a proverbial pat on the back. You got this! I mean, as long as you are doing better than me, you got this ;)

Signing out

Half-eaten Pizza and Water Puddles

There are sippy cups strewn throughout my home, tipped up on one end as they leak their contents onto my floor. Poor Caleb just slipped on one of these said "water puddles" and we got to enjoy a moment of drama from one of my very dramatic children, much weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth ensued. How is it that without even having time to absorb Jonathan and my own dramatic inclinations, they genetically just ARE dramatic, all on their own?!?!?!?! I mean, all 5 of them! 

Anyhow, I digress. The real focus on this little "rant" is my kitchen. I have had a migraine today, those usually don't come very often but it was a whopper. I was pretty much completely useless, laying around in fits of pain and nausea. Jonathan was a trooper and made a feast for lunch, two of them actually. Revamped pizza (he makes the frozen ones taste homemade) and thai lettuce wraps. Yum. I then had a nice little cat nap after lunch. Hey, wait a minute, I got my Sunday day of rest just a day late! But upon entering my kitchen this late afternoon, the sight that I behold is enough to make me want to pack up the kids and go for a long long drive. Preferably somewhere clean where meals are provided. Any takers?

You may think I am exaggerating, but I am going to lay down my pride and show you a little snapshot of my kitchen chaos at the moment. Brace yourselves:

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I guess now that I see it on this page, it isn't as bad as it is in my mind. But it is now 4:00 pm, I have NO plans for dinner (leftovers anyone?) I have whiny kids who I neglected all day while I recovered and top it all off with a house to clean. Lets not even mention the 8 loads of laundry that are waiting to be dealt with. The migraine is still reverberating  in my scalp and I would be perfectly content with taking this broken down body back to the sweet escape of my blankets. But alas, Jonathan is back and work and there is no one to tag team with me. So… what am I sitting around here for? 

I guess because when I see the to do list sitting in front of me, it always makes more sense to write about it than to actually do it. Procrastination at its finest people. 

Time to kick this butt into gear. ;) 

My Sunday Mistake

Today, I tried to have a nap. Why did I do that? With 5 kids you would think I had accepted the fact that those days are behind me. But in my everlasting state of exhaustion, I missed Sunday naps so bad today I couldn't resist the call of sweet sweet slumber. So I fed all the kids, got them watching a show, and poof! dreamland. It was epic, for the whole 10 minutes that it lasted. I was just breaking the surface of complete and total oblivion when "mom" collided with crying collided with "NO" at my door. With a sleeping night shift zombie beside me and a napping baby at the next door, I bounded out of bed a giant leap before my poor addled brain, to deal with the crisis at hand. After settling the drama, I forced myself to close the door to my room with a sense of finality accompanying the click and trudged to the kitchen. Here I sit, popping potty treat jelly beans like an addict to try to propel my lethargy to a general plateau of human existence. I don't even like these things! But its sugar or a giant pot of coffee, and Im sure the caffeine will not be appreciated in about 7 hours. The only thing that keeps resounding in my head is "WHY DID I DO THAT?!?!?!?!" Do I feel any better? NO! I feel worse, so so much worse. Tired beyond repair, frustrated, foggy, and just generally grumpy. The wrong side of the bed… I live over here right now. Who came up with that anyways? "Did you wake up one the wrong side of the bed???" Seriously, what is the RIGHT side? Because I can't seem to find it.  Every side I manage to clamber out of leaves me feeling incomplete, unrested, NOT READY to face the day. Deep breaths.

It's Sunday, the day of rest. Ha! My sour sense of humour mocks me with the reminder that with young children, it's really quite the opposite. Instead of staying in our pyjamas, doing school, relaxing all day. We have to wake up early, get everyone ready to go, pack up the van, show up late to church, try to keep everyone from becoming wild monkeys at the sight of other children to romp around with, just to pack them all back in and drive home. In a state of complete desperation everyone is hungry, tired, grumpy from a full week. No, Sunday is more like crazy day. I have tried to impose quiet time, put everyone downstairs, talk about how they need to stay down there. But when you put 4 kids in the same room, aged 2-7… who am I kidding?

The little angel on my shoulder reminds me that I went to church, listened to a nice sermon, I should be spiritually renewed and ready to face another week. But the OTHER me, the more skeptical, pessimistic side, laughs at the high hopes of a peaceful, encouraging Sunday. And reminds me that one day, in about 5-7 years, I can hope to have a relaxing Sunday come our way. Until then, buckle up my bootstraps, stop eating candy for pete's sake, and get going. Life doesn't stop for nothing around here, my biggest mistake was hoping for it.

From a jaded realist…. I truly hope that your Sunday has been more restful than mine. And if you have young children and your hubby is busy today: for heavens sake…. DON'T TRY TO NAP!!!! ;)

The Grand Finale

I have been putting off writing for some time simply because I am unsure of where to begin. It has been 6 1/2 months since our precious little addition was born and that is a lot of ground to cover. I have considered fast forwarding that time to the present and just moving on from here, but I feel like I need to lay to rest the situation you were following. Therefore, I will be reminiscing D-day today. So sit back with a cup of coffee… or maybe just skip ahead to the next post ;)

Jonathan and I left the kids on a Wednesday morning, stopped by RIH for my second steroid shot (OUCH!) and off we went, bound for Vancouver yet again (have I mentioned how thrilled I am that those trips are behind us?!?!?!). We arrived Wednesday night, got settled into our new "home" for the next little while and had a restless night. Thursday was prep day. We had to be at the hospital at 8am to find out where we would be going, to do the preparatory bloodwork, non-stress tests, etc. Once that was done, we had the rest of the day to walk around and managed to get in some pre-black friday deals at staples and old navy. Some retail therapy helped us keep our minds off the next morning and Jonathan had fun pushing me around in the wheelchair. But alas, the next day was soon approaching. So we had dinner before my fasting began, I made "if I die" letters for my kids, anointed with tear drops each one, and we tried to sleep.

It was an early morning, we had to be at the hospital at 7am for surgery, and I needed to use this special pre-surgical scrub. Determined not to look like a total hag, I did my hair all nice and we were ready to go. They brought me by myself to a prep room with about 6 other people in it. Here I waited for a while in my breezy little gown. Shivering as much from nerves as from the cold. Dreading what was to come and wishing Jonathan was there with me. I met my main anaesthesiologist, a student in her last year. She was so kind and understanding and spent a good 20 minutes just getting to know me as she began her preparations. (I had 2 other anaesthesiologists that were in the room BTW, so it wasn't just a student, she just had primary care of me). They started 2 IV's, which took some time, some hot packs, and some coaxing as my veins had shrivelled up in a state of wary protest. Jonathan joined me for the last 10 minutes and then we were separated once again as I was taken to the OR to begin the rest of the preparations. I was taken to a huge OR that was FILLED with equipment. There was at least 12 people in the room from nurses to the paediatrician, to the three anaesthesiologists, to the doctors, to the students, to the interventional radiologists, to the ultrasound technicians, etc. etc. etc. There were lights and carmeras and I was ready for action. Have you ever lain on a table shivering, cold, scared out of your whits, losing all facade of modesty, with cameras aimed on you at EVERY angle (yes, even the most awkward of ones), lights blaring? My arms were held down on each side as someone tried to get in an arterial line. This took about 10 separate attempts. They froze me first but HOLY SMOKES that hurt. Digging, trying, failing, bleeding, pressure pressure pressure, and try again. Meanwhile, down at my lower half, interventional radiology was having the opposite problem with my arteries in my groin. He was trying to insert balloons through my arteries there that would thread into the main arteries on either side of my uterus to cut off blood supply while they worked. Instead of the ten minutes we were advised, this took over an hour. They had to share ultrasound with the vexed anaesthesiologists poking and prodding my arms to try to find the right arteries, as my veins were so big he was putting it in the wrong area. More ultrasounds, x-rays, and jiggling needles later and I was strung like a bow. with tubes in my back (epidural), legs, both my arms, and FINALLY the production could begin.

Jonathan was called in, my stomach was swabbed with iodine, and I waited in total horror while they started cutting. Worst thing EVER. Hoping that the epidural is going to work well. *insert shudder*

Once it was started it wasn't so bad, it only took about 5 minutes until our screaming little peanut was out, and now the real work could begin. As soon as she was out, about 4 of my "attendants" dropped off to deal with her and everyone else got pretty serious. I hate how no one talks to you. I was trying to find out about the baby but they were trying to inflate the balloons, deal with anaesthesia as I was pretty uncomfortable, and try to remove the placenta as gently as they could. Within about two minutes, it was clear something was wrong from the tone of their voices. I was listening intently to what I could make out over the curtain, and it didn't sound good. Sure enough, a small portion of my placenta was attached and would not release. It was turning my entire uterus inside out in its attempt to expel it. I heard "what is happening? What is it doing?!!!!"and then my doctor popped her head over and said "ya, we're going to have to do the hysterectomy Rebecca". and that was that. Jonathan came over to say goodbye, I cried, and then asked them to put me out under GA so I wouldn't have to be awake for the rest. I woke up around noon in recovery, with the interventional radiologist coming to remove the balloons and put pressure, for 20 minutes! on the arteries so they wouldn't bleed.

All in all, I needed no blood which was a miracle in itself. In the end I was just happy to be alive, I had had my doubts. The worst was over, we had a healthy baby, and I couldn't be more thrilled. (fast forward to when the epidural wore off and it was a different tune I was singing ;) 

Now I look back on it all with a kind of resigned acceptance. I was, and still am if I admit it, pretty angry that it came to that. I question whether we should have tried to leave it in and see what would have happened. Then I remind myself my uterus was turning inside out, it probably would have been impossible to leave it in, but it doesn't stop the war in my mind. I know that 90 percent of you won't understand. You will look at my brood of 5 kids and think I am crazy for the fact that I am sad about it. But I wanted more, and I can say that once the baby high wore off, I have been pretty devastated by the surgery and I am still working through my "loss". As ridiculous as that may sound. 

So now, 6 1/2 months later, people ask me if we are done, and I finally have an answer. We are done. Our little family is complete. We may consider adoption down the road, but for now, we are just adjusting to the chaos that is 5. God has been so good to us. I am so thankful that we found out about this long before she was born so we could prepare ourselves both physically and mentally for what was to come. I am so thankful that I came home 10 days later with my healthy daughter. I feel totally normal and recovered now, though it was a long painful haul. And we are moving on with our life as a family of 7.

Im hoping to start writing again, especially in the fall once we are more into a routine. And now that this drama is behind us, it will hopefully resume its simple hilarity of everyday life. 

In other related news, I have been asked to head up an accreta awareness blood drive. This condition is so incredibly rare, but because of this, women often die. It is just not caught. Unlike my situation where we were prepared, we had blood there, a stocked OR, balloons in my arteries, etc. etc. A lot of women don't find out until it is too late. I had accreta with Aliyah, and I nearly died because we didn't know about it. I had increta with Janiah and we were prepared. As rare as the condition is, it is becoming more common due to the rising amount of C-sections (your risks increase after c-sections because the placenta adheres more tightly to the scar tissue). So I will be sharing my stories and heading up a blood drive on January 9, 2015 and I am pretty excited to be doing something so near and dear to my heart. So stay tuned for more details.