Jen Russum

The Ultimate “Babymoon”

The Ultimate “Babymoon”

After we returned from Young Life camp, I planned to hunker down at home and wait out my final weeks of pregnancy. I am trying to get a draft of my dissertation done before I go into labor and week 39 seemed like the perfect time to type up those last ten remaining pages. But then on Thursday morning {the day after we returned from camp}, Micah called to tell me he might drive to Orange County that evening for a work event the following morning. I didn't love the idea of him driving all the way to California by himself at night and then driving back the very next day and suddenly I found myself suggesting, "What if I just went with you?" Up until this point, all my travels were perfectly reasonable to me. Going to San Diego at 37 weeks was no big deal to a woman whose first baby was nine days past due and who was showing ZERO labor signs. And going camping and up to YL camp also seemed safe, since I was just a couple hours from Phoenix in the unlikely chance that labor happened early. But this... a super last minute trip to California at 39 weeks... this was pushing it a bit. However, the idea of leaving Zianne with my parents and going on a quick little getaway with my husband sounded appealing even if it wasn't medically advisable. Micah likes to joke that we've been on five "babymoons" this past month, but I remind him that it's not really a babymoon when you take your toddler with you. So later that evening I found myself in the car with Micah cruising through the desert to the west coast. We stayed in a hotel that night so Micah could be close to the office. Friday was a work day for both of us. Micah had a meeting and then worked remotely for the rest of the day, and I tackled my dissertation for a couple hours at a neighborhood coffee shop. However, we got to eat a fun lunch together and as soon as it hit five o'clock we headed to Huntington Beach. Micah surfed for an hour and I laid on the beach with my big ol' belly and a book. It was relaxing and perfect. When were done with the ocean we headed inland to stay with my college roommate and her family for the night. The trip had gone perfectly thus far, and I was thrilled we would be getting to Stacey's by 7:30 for lots of hangout time... And then we hit some LA traffic and I learned that roadway congestion gives me contractions. I've honestly been a little jumpy in the car ever since my accident this winter and all of a sudden I felt my stomach begin to tighten as we were caught in the midst of brake lights on the freeway. I told Micah to exit as soon as possible. I couldn't figure out if it was just Braxton Hicks or real contractions. Maybe my stomach was just upset from eating out all day and sneaking in two coffees? But I also know that an upset stomach can be a sign of labor, so I was frantically googling labor symptoms on my phone as we exited the freeway. We pulled into a Walgreen's parking lot and I was the giant pregnant lady running into the store toward the bathroom. The cashier saw me and alerted a clerk to unlock the bathroom door like it was some sort of medical emergency. I'm sure she was picturing labor and delivery happening in the stockroom. I texted Micah from the bathroom and asked him to bring in my suitcase. I was still wearing my swimsuit from the beach and I wanted to change into something more comfortable, but he thought my water had broken. He knocked on the door a few minutes later looking concerned {but also eating a Reese's he had somehow found time to purchase since being in the store}. I quickly informed him I was simply changing my clothes for comfort and was probably not going into labor. We debated driving all the way home that night just as a precaution, but my worst fear would be to give birth in the desert a hundred miles away from any medical facility. If you've never driven from L.A. to Phoenix I will describe it in one word... desolate. The largest towns once you get past Palm Springs are "Quartzite" and "Blythe." I don't even know if there is any type of hospital on the route. Half the time my phone doesn't even work in the middle of the drive. Instead, we decided to stop at Olive Garden and eat some bread and soup... something easy on my stomach... since we would be missing dinner at Stacey's house anyway. We showed up at our friends' house MUCH later than anticipated, but by that point I was feeling better and was even able to nibble on a strawberry donut for dessert since it was #nationaldonutday after all... By the next morning I was feeling great again. Stacey and I got to catch up some more and visit one of our favorite coffee shops before Micah and I started the drive to AZ. We made it back quickly and reunited with Zianne at my parents' house. Babymoon of babymoons, y'all. I successfully went to California at 39 weeks pregnant and I officially think I'm a little bit crazy... ... Read more

Off to camp we go…

Off to camp we go…

We returned from camping around 11pm Saturday, unloaded the truck as quickly as possible, put a load of laundry in the wash, and headed to bed. The next morning I had the privilege of speaking about motherhood and the Gospel during our church service, but then I was a poor example as Micah and I crept out of the service early to head to Young Life Camp! Micah and I were both involved in Young Life during high school and it was actually through serving as student leaders our junior year that we developed a crush on each other... and the rest is history. Since that time we've been involved on and off with the organization. Before we got married, we served as adult leaders in our home town and took kids to Malibu two summers in a row. We've dabbled in getting involved since living in Arizona, but we never fully made the commitment until this past winter. In February we finally sent some emails and got plugged in serving on committee {"Advance Team"} for our local area. We've become good friends with some of the other couples who serve and helped host a table at the banquet this spring. When we were invited to visit Arizona's Young Life camp "Lost Canyon" as adult guests, we jumped on the offer and invited our dear friends the Bakers to come with us.   I had no idea what to expect at Lost Canyon. I've only ever been at YL camp as a camper or leader, and both roles are downright crazy and exciting. As a leader, I knew that "adult guests" came to camp each week to watch everything from the sidelines but I never really interacted with them. I also had never been to any other Young Life camp besides Malibu Club. Malibu is a very unique place hidden in a remote area of Canada. It's this gorgeous resort perched on the water in the Princess Louisa Inlet in Vancouver. The property was designed to be a secret getaway for Hollywood stars (hence the name "Malibu"), but it was never financially successful and was bought out by Young Life in 1953. It takes a full day of travel by car, ferry, and boat to get to camp. Cell phones don't work there. The nearest medical facility is a helicopter ride away. It's a very special place and perhaps the most coveted of all Young Life camps. Kids across the country try to go there as a camper or a volunteer. But even though I love Malibu with its freezing cold salt water, I was excited to see how another camp works. Lost Canyon is one of the newer YL camps and it's amazing. It's nestled up in the trees in Williams, Arizona and the summer weather is perfect for outdoor activities. It's usually in the 80s by day and the 50s by night, although we quickly learned that afternoon winds keep things breezy and cool during swim time. Young Life really does camp with excellence, and the food, accommodations, entertainment, and spiritual elements were great. I enjoyed watching the campers all day, chatting with the work crew and summer staff who volunteer their time to make camp run smoothly, and we also loved spending time with Shalyn and Adam. Our rooms were connected and we would put all the toddlers to sleep in one room and stay up playing games and talking next door each night. Out of all my crazy third trimester traveling, this trip to Lost Canyon was the most relaxing. I felt great the whole time and never once feared going into labor early. Even if I had, we were a quick three hours from home. The weather was perfect and it was fun taking the kids to the pool and water slides each day. It was also so nice to have a break from cooking and cleaning. I am already missing all the amazing meals and my daily ice cream cone. Thanks, Young Life, for being awesome and pointing kids toward Christ. ... Read more

For the masses Googling “camping while pregnant”

For the masses Googling “camping while pregnant”

For my next crazy pregnant lady adventure, I went camping. At 38 weeks pregnant. Like cook over the fire, sleep in the woods, pee in an outhouse camping. Micah and I love going camping with friends, but it's hard to find people to go with because not everyone loves sleeping in a tent, not showering, and smelling like campfire smoke for a weekend. So when our community group mentioned going camping together about a month ago, I quickly said we were IN, even though the trip was scheduled for my 38th week of pregnancy. I only had one stipulation... it had to be a place with some kind of bathroom facility because there was no way my 30+ extra pounds would be squatting in the woods. On Friday night, we packed up the truck and headed up to the mountains. We had Zianne with us, which was actually the biggest variable. I knew I could handle a night in the woods, but I wasn't so sure if my toddler could. In true Russum fashion, we slept in the back of the truck on our memory foam pad instead of pitching a tent. {We actually don't even own a tent because we love sleeping in the bed of the truck, but we probably need to purchase one now that we have multiple offspring}. Zianne slept with us and did really well until approximately 4:15am when she decided it was time to be wide awake. She watched alphabet shows quietly on my phone until about 6:30am when she decided she was actually still exhausted and fell back asleep. She and Micah somehow cuddled and slept under the morning sun until almost 9am. I, however, was {mostly} awake from 4:15am onward and finally jumped out of bed for a campfire quiet time when Zianne went back to sleep.  We had a lovely day hanging at camp with our friends while the kids went crazy riding bikes and power wheels and digging in the dirt. In the afternoon, we headed to Woods Canyon Lake and rented a boat. Randy and Micah set up a line, but the fish were NOT biting that afternoon so we headed back to camp empty handed after trolling the lake for a few hours.   We made s'mores two nights in a row with the full smorgasbord of options {grahams, Ritz, Hershey's, Nutella, Reeses, bananas, and lots of marshmallows... I take my s'more buffet VERY seriously}. We ended up not staying the second night because I was scheduled to speak at church the next morning, but we hung around the campfire until 9pm and then headed home. Zianne slept the whole way back with skinned knees, dirty clothes and a sticky face... For locals: We stayed at the Ponderosa campground and we loved it. The sites were spacious and private {unlike Woods Canyon Lake which is more crowded}. We could barely see the other campers near us because the spaces were so spread out. The bathrooms are only outhouses but they were kept in fairly clean condition. There was also running water for drinking. The campground was only two hours away {just past Payson} and the weather was about 20 degrees cooler than Phoenix. We had never been up by the Mogollon Rim during spring before. It was a lovely 85 degrees by day and in the 50s at night. We got to wear long sleeves in the evening, but I was never cold like I've been during fall camping trips. Highly recommend! ... Read more