Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Poor GBK.

I have not been feeling well this past week. I have been preparing her for the worst, telling her, the baby is sick, very very sick.

Finally, today I got to see a Dr and get an ultrasound.

We are guessing that I would have been 9 weeks pregnant as of last Friday.
But that ultrasound showed a very cleaned-out uterus.

Yes, I bled all Christmas Eve, Christmas Day. I knew what was happening, just didn't want to say it out loud or even think it. The doctor confirmed that it was a miscarriage. There were still 2 blessings in disguise here, #1, we were able to get pregnant with no medicines and #2, when I miscarried, my body released everything all on its own, I didn't have to have any doctor assistance. I was able to let it run its course in the privacy and comfort of my own home.

We are deeply disappointed even though this was not a planned pregnancy. But it got us so excited about the possibility of #2 that we hope to get to try again this spring.

The hardest part was telling GBK. I reminded her how the baby was so sick and told her that the baby died. She bawled and bawled, sobbing, weeping in my arms. Poor baby. I didn't even cry that much. But this was 'her' baby and I had been making a point of making sure that she knew it was 'our' baby, not 'my' baby. I didn't want her to resent the new addition, I wanted her to feel a sense of ownership in the planning and preparing. I do not regret anything that I did or said, I would do it the same way all over again.

She wants a sibling (actually a baby brother *and* sister) so bad, she has been begging for as long as she has been talking.

I just hope that one day she gets what she wants.

If you saw me at church Christmas Eve service, I was a nervous wreck. I was bleeding heavily that whole day and was nervous that I would have to rush to the ER in the middle of church service. If you witnessed us lighting the advent wreath at the 6pm service, if I looked a little pale, shaky, nervous, you were right. I thought that I was gonna pass out up there. It didn't help that it felt like the microphone was connected to the wreath and my hair was gonna catch on fire because I was standing so close to the durn candles.

Definitely a Christmas to remember... but definitely not in a good way. It was by far the worst Christmas ever.

The Notebook

Have you seen the movie The Notebook? Read the book?

I read the book a couple of years ago, after a friend's Mom Dad. She had Alzheimer's.
I bawled my eyes out.

Sunday night we turned the TV on and the movie was on- probably at least half-way through it. I didn't know what movie it was... but I was immediately mesmorized. (Remember, I am pregnant, don't make fun of me!)

I cried three times. And I don't mean a tear- I mean, bawled my eyes out! ANd then I figured out what movie it was and remembered how the book made me cry.

Poor GBK. She was in bed with me watching me cry, worried to death about me. I explained it all to her and she started crying right along with me! I probably shouldn't have told her, but I was an emotional wreck. I didn't want her to think that I was hurt or that there was something seriously wrong.

UGH. I forgot about this part of being pregnant.

end of the school year...

Well, after lots of discussion, we decided to pull GBK from her pre-school. So today was her last normal day. She has her Christmas program on Wed, but it will be short program followed by a party.

GBK will go to the school where I sub. And take a Spanish class two afternoons a week. She is so excited. She will also be with lots of her friends and close to her Auntie Sam.

But today as I told her lunch teacher good-bye, I lost it. I broke down into tears. Sobbing uncontrollably. GBK really likes her, talks about her all of the time.

We put her at that school so that she would get first priority at the private school in town. Now that we have decided not to go the private school route, there is no reason for her to be enrolled there. It will be a lot easier to have her close to me and Sam. And we will save a bit of money.

I just bawled and bawled and bawled, sad to tell her teachers good-bye. Of course, the pregnancy hormones didn't help matters- they were probably the root of the river of tears.

GBK got a little sick last night- having trouble breathing while she was sleeping. It was worse this morning, so I decided to take her straight to the Dr.

I looked online, got the number to Immediate Care (she has been there once before) and at 8am called. The doctor's exhange (answering service) answered the phone.

ME: Hi there, what time does the clinic open today?
DE: 8am.
ME: Oh good, OK. SO you are there right now?
DE: Well, they are running a little late, this is the doctor's exchange.
ME: Oh, OK. Well we will head that way and hopefully they will be there by then.

I begged RD to go with me. We all got ready and within a few minutes were out the door. We drove straight there. While at the red light I looked over and saw no cars so I called the clinic, getting the same sweet girl.

ME: Hi there, I am at the clinic and there are no cars in the driveway... I am wondering if they are coming in?
DE: They do not open until 1 this afternoon.
ME: I called you at 8am this morning, you said that they opened at 8am. Why did you tell me that? I drove all the way into town to take my daughter to the doctor, now I have to turn around and drive 20 minutes back home?
DE: I am so sorry!! I was looking at yesterday's hours when I told you that. They don't open until 1. I am so so so sorry.
ME: (Long pause) OK. Well, I guess we will have to come back. Is there a doctor oncall that I can talk to? Maybe to get some advice on what to do?
DE: Uhmmm... yes, I think Dr Hale is on call, I will ask him to call you right back.


I drove on to a different clinic to see if they opened any earlier. Then I ran inside Walgreens thinking they would know how opened the earliest. While there, Dr Hale called me back.

I explained what happened.

DR: Uhm. OK. Who is this?
ME: Rookie Mama
DR: And who is her regular doctor?
ME: DR. Fantastic
DR: OK, I don't take calls for Dr Fantastic. I do not see his patients. You will have to call his office to see him.
ME: I called Immediate Care and the girl there told me that you were oncall today and would be over there at 1pm?
DR: No, I do not even work at Immediate Care. I am oncall at the ER today. You could come here and see me, but you will be in the waiting room for several hours waiting around a bunch of sick people. I don't recommend it. I recommend that you call Dr Fantastic to make an appt to see the oncall Dr there this afternoon.
ME: I am sooooooooooooooo sorry. I never asked that girl to page you, she just said that you were oncall today!!! I am soooooooooo sorry. UGH.

Yes, she screwed up big time. But she was so sincerely sorry that I didn't have the heart to call and complain. She was very sweet. I am just hoping it was her first day and she was learning today.

Point of the story? Had she gotten ugly with me and tried to place the blame on me, I would have been very upset and called in for her supervisor. But she was so sweet and so apologetic that I forgave her immediately and let it go. What happened to good customer service? It has been so long since I have had someone mess up like that without trying to place the blame on me. Honesty and sweetness will get you far with me!

Anyway, GBK saw Dr Fantastic's partner and he diagnosed it as stridor

He gave her something to take tonight and possibly tomorrow and said that would be the end of it. And in the future if she sounds that way, take her out into the cool damp air for a while and it would clear up.

I told him it was funny, by the time we made it into town this morning to go to the clinic, she said to me, Mama, I am better! SEE?

And I had to agree. She sounded 100% better.

She cried the whole way home this morning, sad that she would miss Sunday school. So we raced home, got ready and went to SS and church.

leftovers from Mexican Kitchen

Oh Christmas card, oh Christmas card, choosing a photo is so hard

OK- GBKand I made our Christmas cards weeks ago. They are ready- just need a cute picture to go in the envelope.

Past years I have taken a picture of her in front of the tree or on her little reindeer.

I am looking for a different, cute, memorable idea for this year's card.

I don't want to get too crazy with the whole BIG SISTER THEME just in case I have a miscarriage...

I thought about letting her hold her baby doll.
Hmmm... I don't know. I am not feeling very creative right now.

Any ideas?

The Biggest Loser

I don't get a chance to brag on myself too often- so here goes:

We had a weight loss group at church- it lasted 12 weeks and we all pitched in $20 to start. I lost 12 lbs and the most percentage, so I won the pot last night! I got $140 and there is one girl that still owes, so that might jump to $160!

Wanna know what I am spending the money on? I had planned to buy new bras, pants, whatever since the old clothes were not going to fit (I went down 2 pant sizes!)

But instead- I am buying a crib. Especially since my new smaller waist is about to expand!

In Sept, I bought a bed from a girl in Olive Branch- one of those beautiful boutique convertible baby beds (crib to toddler bed to full bed). I loved it, fell in love with it. Well, she didn't sell it during the sale (even though at least 50 women drooled over it and trying to figure out how to take it home)... so at the end of the sale, I asked her how low she would go on it, I would have to fit it in my van and bring it home... and the current price was not low enough for it to be worth my hassle.

We talked and talked and finally she said that she would take $100 and I could pay anytime before Christmas. She took it home, her husband took it apart for me and loaded it in my van! They were so incredibly nice. Their daughter is adopted and she slept in the bed maybe 8 times the Mom said. They just had a hard time being separated from her.

So- my winning money is going to pay for a crib I got-- before I ever knew that I was pregnant! I had planned to make it a full bed but now I will add the rails and have a beautiful baby bed to put our sleeping child... I hope he sleeps more than GBK did. That child still stays up to party- every night!

one down, one on the way, three to go

My great-aunt still asks me if I want a big family. Remember her? She is my great-aunt by marriage.

Well, now I need to give her a call and tell her-
one down, one on the way, and three to go.

We had a very difficult time getting pregnant with GBK. I went through blood tests, fertility meds, and monthly visits to the doctor.

So RD and I really thought that if we wanted more, we would have to do that all over again. And the dollar signs flashed before our eyes- it would cost more to conceive the child than to put him through college!! So we had the attitude of- "whatever happens, happens". So no prevention, no ovulation charts, no fertility meds, no nothin'.

Last week I was feeling so puny- tired, hungry, getting up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, waking at odd times (once at 2am and another at 4:30 without being able to go back to sleep!)... just weird stuff.

After getting heartburn Sunday afternoon, I told Keith and Tina, wow, I have heartburn! The only other time I have gotten that was when I was pregnant!

Finally Sun afternoon Miracle Mama convinced me to go to the store and get a test. Ease my mind.

We had plans to go to the downtown Christmas light night and ride the horse-drawn buggy to view the lights with our kids.

I knew I had time to stop at the store before that. Since we had just been given a Wal-Mart gift card for Christmas (thanks Bat Man), I decided to try it. GBK was fast asleep, so I put her in the stroller. We went in Wal-Mart, got a few things- TUMS, toilet paper, a new game for GBK and a PREGNANCY TEST. I had to pee so bad- but knew that I need that pee for my pregnancy stick! I hurried through the store, passing a friend that is pregnant with her 4th child, oh how hard it was to just say hi and keep on walking!

I checked out at the self-checker station, no problem, other than I paid and walked right out! About 5 people yelled at me "Don't forget what you just bought!" UGH. I grabbed my bags and headed to the bathroom.

I decided to pee on the stick and just take it with me to where I was meeting my friends for the Christmas light show. I could check it when I got there.

Oh but no. The positive sign showed up while I was still zipping my pants!! That is not where I wanted to find out that I was pregnant! Not in a nasty Wal-Mart stall, with GBK asleep in the stroller, RD at home, no friends, no one. Just me in there all by myself. I let out a tiny little hoarse scream and ran out of there as fast as I could, straight to the van. The security folks at the door looked at me funny, but I kept going.

I called Miracle Mama and told her to hurry up and meet me at the church- to hurry! I needed her to double check my stick and make sure that I was reading it correctly!

Another friend, CAL CHIC, met me there first, confirmed and we had a little celebration of hugging and laughing and giggling in the parking lot while the big kids stayed buckled in the cars wondering what the heck was going on!

After our carriage ride and lights adventure, I told GBK that I was going to have a baby and she was going to be a big sister. Her face lit up, her mouth wide open as if I had just given her the world's largest bucket of fruit snacks. She grabbed my hair, pulled me close, hugged me and said thank you, thank you, thank you over and over again.

RD called and said he was at Keith and Tina's house and needed a ride home. I agreed to stop by. GBK ran in their house, climbed on his lap and told him- Mama has a baby and I am gonna be a big sister!!!

If you haven't heard...

Give me a call if you haven't heard the lastest news.

Trinity

GBK: Mama, What makes grass grow?

ME: Well, baby, several things help the grass grow. What do you think those things could be?

GBK: Water?

ME: Yes

GBK: Sun?

ME: Yes

GBK: And the Holy Spirit!

ME: Yes, baby, that is absolutely right!

Water, Son, Holy Spirit, three in one.

Shrek IV

Did anyone else see the Shrek costume on Project Runway tonight?

Was that not the worst episode in history?

How on earth did those contestants make it on the show in the first place if they can not make a simple shirt?

I don't get it.

Gotta run... my shirt is missing a button and I have to beg DH to sew it on for me real quick.

Paranoia

A friend wrote a story of her son finding a snake, I will summarize:

Samuel was caught holding a live water moccasin last week. It was about 5 1/2 feet long and about 6 inches in diameter. The Dad grabbed it, threw it, killed it and buried it.

One of his cousins is a vet tech and said the snake didn't bite because it was too cold and when it gets cold snakes are blind. Samuel had cradled the snake gently so it didn't feel threatened and did not strike at him. The warmth from his body probably felt good.


This was my response to her:



Crystal- I can not handle it! I nearly peed in my pants when I heard this!

I am serious.

Living in the country, I am always always always on the look out for snakes.

My thoughts walking from the back door to my van goes something like this:

Are there any snakes in the laundry room? Maybe there is one outside the door... on the steps perhaps? What if there is one under the steps waiting to strike? Nope- I am safe. ok. Now quickly scan the area between the step and the door of the van. (I then realize that it is hard to see anything with 6 dogs running around- quickly get upset that we have yet to give a puppy away (one came up missing)... and then back to the original task... searching for snakes). OK. There are no snakes in sight, so take one step down , one step across the driveway and climb into the van.

I park the van 2 feet from my house and I still go through this ritual. And it never fails- I get in the van only to realize that I forgot to scan under the van before I stepped onto the driveway! Regret sinks in and I get sick to my stomach just thinking that a snake could have been there.

So I put the van in reverse, hoping that I accidentally- no, purposefully- run over that snake.

As I drive down my country road, if I see a snake I give the van some gas and hope to squish it flat. One time I ran over a snake and eggs shot out of the back of the snake- sending eggs rolling around on the road. Of course, I had to do a U-turn and go back to check it out.

I hate snakes.

They consume too much of my thoughts. Seriously, I spend too much time worrying about them. Sometimes I walk around the inside of my house looking for them. I know that I am paranoid...

but it all goes back to when I was a child and my Dad kept pet snakes in an aquarium in our house- actually, in the bedroom that I shared with my sister.

And yes, they would occassionally get loose and he would have to hunt them down.

Now do you understand why I am so crazy about them?

But enough about me- I am *so* glad that Samuel is ok. It is my worst nightmare that GBK or I will be bitten by one. I am still shaking over the fact that Samuel picked it up. I am physically ill over it today. I am not kidding you.

Wild Wild Wes

OK- SO DH has really gone off the deep end this time, y'all.

I have no idea what demon is possessing him-
and I am not sure if I am excited or nervous about this... but he has

gasp!

started his own blog.

Click here.

So y'all go over and say howdy- and tell him Rookie Mama sent ya.

Happy Fall Y'all!

Thanksgiving with Family?

Yes.

Our immediate family only.

It was great.

We went camping.

So sweet. Her fall school photo.

I sent a lengthy note to school for her teacher explaining why I was also sending 2 extra dresses, with socks, shoes, hairbows, panties, etc.

I am so used to living out in the boonies that I try to be prepared for any little accident or unexpected mishap. I just knew that she would get paint, mud, tee-tee, blood or something on her cute little outfit before her turn for pictures. So I sent extras along just in case.

When I picked GBK up from school that day, the teacher said she did great... and explained why GBK was in a different dress than what I had put on her that morning... Apparently, as soon as GBK arrived, she had to use the bathroom. Afterwards, she diligently washed hands and yes, splashed water all down the front of her dress.

Which is exactly why I sent extra clothes! I know that teacher thought I was crazy when I dropped off the 5 lb backpack containng the back-up wardrobe... but I bet she had a big moment of understanding after the child poured water all over her front.

Take a closer look at the picture- see the bruises all up and down her legs? Yes, remember last month when I mentioned her ackwardness? Her sudden stream of accidents? There is the proof. God love her.

Mama, mama, come quick!

A month or two ago, GBK was watching a movie up in my room while I was getting some work done.

All of a sudden she yelled for me-

GBK: Mama! Mama! Come quick!
Me: What's wrong sweet baby? What happened?
GBK: John Smith! John Smith! The cabbages got John Smith Mama!
Me: Huh?
GBK: The cabbages got John Smith! Oh no!
Me: The cabbages? What are you watching?
GBK: Pocahontas- with the cabbages.
ME: Do you mean the savages? The savages got John Smith?
GBK: Yes Mama! They got him!

cas in concert

I told Mom about Cas in concert and after watching a few of his songs on You Tube she was hooked. So she called, got tickets and high-tailed it over to see him in person.

I am so jealous!! She said he sounded even better live-- and bought us a few souvenirs...

She asked him if he was gonna make it to MS and he said yes, he planned to get here eventually. So keep your ears open and let me know if you hear anything in the future.

accident prone

UPDATE:
Wed she fell down the steps- skinned her leg
Thursday she tripped on the sidewalk- scratched her knee up pretty good!
Today is Friday. Can we please be finished with this accident streak!?

************************************************


Kawasaki Disease
Mystery burning sensation
Loose Tooth Accident
Ant Bites
Infected Bug Bite
Rope Burn
Carpet Burn
Bruises up and down her legs

She takes after her mama... this is exactly the story of my childhood- one accident after another.

where oh where has my little head gone?

Yes, I survived the doodlebug sale. Yes, I am exhausted.

I also found out that Cas Haley will be in Branson this week. Ugh. How I wish that I could pack up and drive up there. Dang obligations. They get in the way everytime.

One day, Cas. One day I will see you perform live.

Madi has school pictures next week. Pray that her front tooth stays in her mouth long enough for school pictures.

America's Got Stupid Voters

I am no longer addicted to America's Got Talent.

It sucks. Our guy came in 2nd place. No million dollars.

Cas Haley, we still love you. We are hoping that you will go on tour anyway. If not, we want to see you in Dallas.

I talked to SSR this evening and she said that the Hoff's singing tonight was awful that it woke the baby. I couldn't agree more. He is the biggest dork. But I love him anyway. I just do not love his singing. We had to mute the volume during that little performance. ACK.

Monday results

The GBK had her follow-up echocardiogram Monday afternoon.

The cardiologist was happy with the results and decided to hold off on Monday's scheduled EKG until our next visit! HOORAY!!!

We go back in 2 weeks (hattiesburg) for clood work to make sure that all levels are normal. And then we go back for another echocardiogram and EKG in 3 weeks (jackson).

And then we will go again at the 6 month mark, the 12 month mark and yearly until she is old enough to walk on the tread mill for the EKG and show good results. The Cardiologist think that will be when she is 6 or 7 years old...

Thank you to everyone that asked, prayed, helped us in this past few weeks. It has been so stressful- but without your help, it would have been extremely difficult.

Thank you.

America's Got Talent

Am I the only one that is addicted to THe #1 hit show America's Got Talent?

RD and I love love love Cas Haley. We are hoping that he wins.

In fact, the other night I told RD- if he wins and goes on tour, you must take me to see him. I could sit and listen to him sing all night long.

I have never said that about anyone else- even a famous person. Except Ozzy. If Ozzy comes close we must make the trek to see him.

Ozzy was the only thing that would sooth teh GBK when she was little. I am not kidding. I had to crank it and as soon as the 1st or 2nd beat played, she was quiet as a mouse. It started when she was about 2 weeks old.

I keep threatening it on Baby T. He will be a fan in no time, just you wait and see.

last day in hospital

Sleeping Beauty

kawasaki disease- nothing like the motorcycle

As some of you know, we just got home from a lengthy stay at the Children's Hospital in Jackson.


GBK was diagnosed with Kawasaki Disease. For more details click here.


If you are interested in seeing a few pictures of her hospital stay, email me privately and I will show them to you.


We are home and resting. She is only able to stay awake about 9 hours out of the day right now... and it could take weeks to months before she is as active as she was before.


Please pray that all future tests show that no damage was done to Madison's heart- we will continue to have to have echocardiograms/ EKGs as well as aspirin treatments.


The emotional stuff has not quite hit me. I am sure that I will break down anytime now- when it hits me that if I had not listened to my gut feelings I could have lost my miracle child.

Just to make us laugh

I have no idea where she got this from. But it makes me laugh out loud every time that I see it!

Fever, Chapter 2

*********
UPDATE- That didn't last long. She threw up the second antibiotic as well. So we plan to see her pediatrician tonight.

I just don't want her to get dehydrated and end up in the hospital or ER in the middle of the night.
*********

Well, the antibiotics didn't settle well on her tummy and she threw it up last night... and all night long and again this morning...

So after waiting many hours today, she got a new antibiotic and hopefully is on the road to recovery. The good news- she had no fever this afternoon.

She is sleeping fine, eating crackers, applesauce and drinking Pedialyte. Hopefully she will be a completely different person in 24 hours from now...

Thank you for your thoughts, prayers and words of encouragement.

It's times like these that you question your parenting skills.

Miss Glass Is Half Full reminded me of something in this post.

GBK has been asking for us quite some time- she wants a baby brother... and a baby sister. Not one- both. So when Sam got pregnant, I told GBK that Sam was having the baby for her... sort of like a baby brother.

She has taken that role very serious- she asks every single day if we can go see Sam and help take care of Baby Thomas.

When we are there she spends a few minutes watching him, telling Auntie Sam-
I think he needs a blanket
or
Maybe he is hungry
or
I think he wants to sit in his stroller

she is always offering suggestions (I wonder who she learned that from!)

Twice now we have been riding along in the car when Baby Thomas decides to test his lungs- screaming for his mama (I think it is a certain part of his mama that he is really screaming for) in the most pissed-off scream ever.

And GBK just sits patiently in her car seat singing- Twinkle Twinkle Little Star or her version of Hush Little Baby. She doesn't stop until the song is over and does not get upset when her powers are clearly not working on him. I say, just give him time sweet pea, he will fall under your spell just as the rest of us have.

You give me fever...

*********
UPDATE- when she awoke at 4:45 this afternoon she had a 105.1 fever and a swollen gland under her ear... so I rushed her to urgent care.
The doctor was SUPER WONDERFUL EXCELLENT SWEET KIND CARING.
His conclusion- ear infection. She could have gotten it from anyone/anywhere. My guess? She got water in her ear last week at the water park and it got infected. Am I a doctor? No. Could I be wrong? Yes. But that is my guess.

GBK was cheerful, running, dancing, laughing, smiling, no signs of pain. She is either a good faker or has a serious tolerance for pain. I vote for the later since the wooden spoon on her b**t does little but hurt her feelings. It's almost as if she has stuffed Charmin in her p***ties. (I am super paranoid about search engines finding my site from potentially dirty words, in case you are wondering.)

So he gave her some meds and within 30 minutes of signing in at the doctor's office we were already in Target parking lot.

They hooked us up with some drugs and a sugar-free sucker and everything was just peachy keen.

The doctor did say that in the past few years, medical research has discovered that there is something called fever disease or fever syndrome or something like that- and children get have recurrent fevers with no other symptoms... and they usually last less than 12-24 hours. So weird. So at least I don't feel so guilty- like I was missing a symptom or not paying attention to my child's needs.

*********



My child has had the weirdest string of fevers lately- well, really 3 in the last 10 weeks or so. That is often in her book.

But there are no other symptoms.

She even plays fine when she is awake!

She is just sleeping a lot and has fever at night. 102.7-103.1 in the arm pit.

I ask her if anything hurts- we have covered every body part and she says 'no, I am fine' in the sweetest voice ever.

She has been drinking and eating fine.

I just can not figure it out.

Have any of you experienced anything like this with your kid?

At 3 1/2 could she be cutting a molar or something? I know that the experts say that cutting teeth does not cause a fever, but her temp was always up a little when she cut teeth as a baby. I don't care what the experts say.

I called the doctor/nurse this morning and they say she probably just has a little viral something- just to watch her, there is nothing that they can do unless I want to take her in for tests.

DH says not to worry about it and just stay home and hang out. So that is what we are doing.

But I would like to know what is causing it.

My 250 pictures came in the mail today so I have a lot to scrapbook while GBK sleeps. I better get busy on it while I have the opportunity!

Hair Part 2

I was thinking about GBK's hair some more.

And I had a flashback to her mullet days.

When she was born, she had a head full of hair... but eventually she lost all of her hair on top and had a thick ring of hair around her head- making her look like a little monk.

And then the hair in back continued to grow and get long while the hair on top had a hard time catching up... Making it look like a mullet. I can not tell you how many times people asked me if I cut it that way! As if!

And finally it got long enough in the front to look more like bangs... only I could not keep them out of her eyes! Thus the 82 hairbows.

So back in Feb. she had her first haircut... to trim the ends even. It is amazing that she has had more hairsyles in the last 3 years than Britney Spears has had in her lifetime. And that is saying a lot... as long as GBK doesn't decide to shave her head, I will support her no matter the hairstyle.

Scrappin' girls

Can you tell that I spend too much time on my scrapbooks?

My friend (I will call her Miracle Mama- because we both have miracle babies) and I had to set up a separate table for the girls to use for their projects- pom poms, pipe cleaners, glue sticks, markers, paper, crayons, stickers, scissors, stamps and ink. They think they are scrapbookin'.

Tonight I started second-guessing myself though. In the past I have let GBk play with 'toy' scissors. Ya know the ones- they are plastic and do more ripping of the paper than actual cutting... I have given her the lecture about only using them on her paper- and nothing else. But tonight she found a different pair that cuts a crazy pattern- and decided that she wanted to cut her hair in that same pattern. I caught her just in time- although I really don't think that those scissors would cut her hair too well. But we had to put those scissors in time-out. She cried and said that she just wanted short hair! (The complete opposite of what she has been saying these last couple of years- remember, she cried when I cut my hair short!) I explained that if she wanted a hair cut, just to ask me nicely and I would take her to the beauty shop. Oh I hope that she does not ask me to take her- I love her hair long!

But here is the thing with her hair- it is from the 70s. I am just waiting for her to come out of the bathroom with feathered bangs. She hates to wear a ponytail- she will occasionally allow pigtails. She has 82 hairbows to choose from but her favorite thing to do with her hair is to just let it fall in her eyes and push it to the sides. UGH. I see a scrapbook page coming from all of this.

Sock Soup

Sock Soup
2 c Water
1 T Louisiana Hot Sauce
2 T Red Sprinkles
21 Raisins

Mix Ingredients in Large Clear Glass Mixing Bowl.
Have large glass of wine ready for Mama for when you Scare the Crap out of Her.

Why did she name it sock soup? Maybe because it smells like dirty socks. Totally disgusting.

She has turned into a little chef lately- really into recipes and getting all of the dishes out of the cabinets to stir and stir and stir.

One Little Indian Boy

How is it that a baby is tucked away for 9-10 months and comes out with a beautiful brown tan? His complexion is just amazing considering it has never been in the sun!

GBK and I love to sing the kid song- 10 Little Indians. That is probably not politically correct in today's society. I say society can bite me. We love that song and it helped her learn how to count forward and backward. We sing it so that there are 10 Indian Boys and One Indian Girl. We want the girl to have the best pick possible!

It has been a crazy crazy week (the last 7 days)... but everyone is doing just fine, healing normally and getting better every day. We are all so thankful.

****

Today my family celebrates what would have been my brother's 42nd bday. Every year we do something to remember him- I bake a cake, go out to eat, watch a movie, play a board game, take a drive in the country, *something* that would remind me of the good times with my brother. We also have a bigger family day in Sept, on the anniversary of this death. It keeps me from falling apart. Even now, 21 years after his accident it feels like he was just with us.

I feel his presence quite often... not a day goes by that I do not think of him.

I miss my big brother.

We are home

Everyone got to come home today!!!

All is well- send Sam an email welcoming her home!

We are all tired but everyone has pitched in to keep things together. Aren't we blessed to have such a strong community of friends?

What would we do without each other?

More pictures soon, I promise.

we are great!

We are doing great!

I finally did something right and was able to get in Sam's blog... so go check it out for today's post.

Don't know where to go? Check out the link on the right- and click on Sundayschoolrebel.

Update

ok y'all-
we still aren't sure what is going on 100%... so I will just type some notes as I remember them, no particular order.

*Baby loves the paci. I sat with him in NICU this afternoon and sang to him and held that paci- if it fell out and he sucked and it wasn't there he squirmed around until I gave it to him again. Sweet baby.

*BF went fine! Until the rush to the hospital... so mama is trying to work with him and get him to eat. Pray this works out!

*He was airlifted this morning to a bigger better hospital with a pediatric hematologist that is trying to get down to the cause of all of this.

*Basically, from what I understand, he got blood from his daddy that mixed with mama's blood during delivery... and she saw it as foreign and rejected it causing his platelets to drop significantly. (I hope that I am not screwing this up).

So she is donating platelets to him to clear it all up. We are hoping to hear results tonight... but it may be in the morning. That is the short version.

*Baby has a head full of hair! He looks just like his daddy! They still have not even been able to wash him... they can not right now in NICU... something to do with water on him. I don't know. I am not a doctor. I just play one in my head.

*Mama is doing *great*. It will probably hit her a little later. But she is being very strong for her family right now. I am so proud of her!

I am delirious and in need of sleep. So I will try to write more later!

Pray

Pray

Pray

She is feeling the prayers from around the world, seriously. She is totally at peace and calm as could be.

Here he is!

HOORAY!

Welcome to the world baby boy!

Mama and baby are both doing great!

He was born at 3:21 am, 8 lbs, 15 oz, 21 inches long.

Jesus please let that be right. I am so tired and delirious I hope I am not screwing it up. If I do, I will repost.

OK- I took her to the hospital around 3:30 and 12 hours later he was here! She did great!

I am trying to post a photo- so stay tuned.

(I will call everyone later. I need some rest.)

The Way I Heard It

The MIL is here. She got here Monday- she has never stayed that long before.

She was telling us a story about a granddaughter who was playing on the playground one day. She was swinging pretty high and jumped out of the swing and landed on her butt.

The playground was covered with that sharp mulch stuff, have you seen it? It was what schools are using nowadays... If you push your hand down on it you will get a splinter. I don't understand why anyone thinks that is safe, but I am not the one in charge.

Back to the story... the child fell and landed just right- smack dab on top of one of those splintery pieces of bark. Right up her butt. She couldn't walk. It was so deep it had to be surgically removed. How awful. I just couldn't imagine. I am thinking- surely this playground has had all of the mulch vacuumed out of it by now!

But late last night DH informed me that I misunderstood- it didn't go deep in her butt, it went deep in her foot! Geez. OK. Read the story again and replace the word butt with the word foot. I guess she wasn't speaking with enough of a southern drawl for me to understand.

True story.

Guessing game...

OK- It is time for all of us to play the guessing game- the person to come closest to the length and weight of Sam's Baby gets the first call from the hospital from yours truly.

I love this. I am hoping this will make more of you make comments here! I can see you when you peek in my little door here... so now is the time to comment- just one time is all that I am asking.

So here we go. I will start us off. Check the comments with my official guess.

New Do

This is the 'after' photo. I haven't washed it yet to see how wild and curly it is gonna be... plan to do that now.


Hopefully it won't look like cousin IT has moved into my hair.
Wish me luck... I am going in.

locks of love

I had exactly 10 inches that I could have cut so I thought- Why not?

Locks of Love is a great organization and since I had the opportunity to donate, I did it.

Wow. Short hair. Of course, my hair is so thick, we could have cut it close to the scalp in the middle of my hair and no one would have ever known.

My Secret...

My secret? I am addicted to this site:

Post Secret

(thanks, Eddie)

So when it hasn't updated it makes me crazy. Has the post secret ringmaster gone on vacation? Is he ill? Did he stop receiving mail all of a sudden? Maybe he is on tour somewhere and has no time to post.
I have hit refresh 100 times in the last 24 hours.

Gotta go- I have to go see if it has updated now.

Belle of the Ball

Where has the time gone? It has been over a month (thanks for the reminder, Keith) since I have posted.

I guess I go through phases where I have a lot to say and other times not too much to say. Or maybe I have too much to say that I can not say publicly.

We did take another break to go to Disneyworld in Florida a few weeks ago. A great aunt sent us on a much-needed-just-the-three-of-us trip and we stayed at the beautiful Saratoga Springs resort on Disney property... which meant we didn't drive the van all week. There were a couple of times that I wanted to but RD wouldn't let me. Like when we had to walk 3 blocks to the swimming pool and it was threatening to rain? I wanted to drive. And when I wanted to walk a mile or two to Downtown Disney and it was threatening to rain? I wanted to drive.

We have 1000 pictures. If you want to see them, email me and I will give you the link with username/password.

Madison did great. Really great. She took swimming lessons the week before we left, so she was a swimming fool at the resort's huge pool with slides- she even went down the big slide by herself!

Of course, we got home and discovered we have the head lice *again* so

that has been an ordeal. I guess that is where I have been - fighting the head bugs. At least this time I used a very safe effective treatment that cost me $1.40 instead of the $120 insecticide that we used last time. We went to the health dept and they said we are free and clear of them! hooray!

HOORAY!!!!!

I found my camera! It was at the scrapbook store, right where I left it last week.

I *knew* that if I bought a new one it would show up.

Now I have two. Exactly alike. Actually, the second one is on its way...

YIPPEE!!!!

fabulous food

We had Bunco last Friday night- FABULOUS. The gracious Leisa served some fine jumbalaya and bread. I ate two helpings.

And Debi brought a salad. I must say it was by far the best salad I have ever eaten. Ever. In my life. I am a picky salad eater- I don't want any raw veggies like cucumber, tomato, onion, celery, bell pepper, mushroom, carrots, etc. I either do not like the taste or I am allergic, sometimes both (like cucumber).

Debi added artichoke hearts (OMG), berries, feta cheese (that was feta, right?) and I don't know what all else.

When RD and I went to the grocery store this week we loaded up on salad stuff. Capers, artichoke hearts were on the top of my list. And I have been picking blackberries from the yard everyday to add to the romaine lettuce in my salad bowl. yum. GBK loves the berries too.

OK- Ms Debi, what all did you put in that salad and where did you buy those wonderful artichoke hearts?

MIA

My camera is still missing in action.

I figure if I buy a new camera I will find the old one. I hope it works.

GOOD DAY

OK- I guess it balances out somehow. I was having such a bad day because of the loss of my camera.

I will tell you about a day that was even worse- about 2 years ago.

I was visiting my parents in another state. 2 of my friends rode up and back with me. We had so much stuff in the car that RD put the cargo holder on the hitch of the truck to carry a few more containers full of stuff.

One project that I was wanting to work on with Dad was to take my home videos and burn them onto a DVD. We got a few of them done but it was more something that I was wanting to learn how to do so that I could do it once I got home.

Well, on our last day, before we drove home, we decided to go horseback riding. We parked the truck a little ways from the horse barn and while we were riding, someone stole all of the containers off the back of my truck (I know, it was stupid to leave the truck unattended but I did it none-the-less).

Inside one of the containers was GBK's stuff- clothes, diapers, etc that I didn't need until after we got home. I also stuck a few of those videos in last minute. I don't know why. Some were brand new but a few had movies on them. When I searched through to see what was missing I was sick at my stomach. Her baptism and 1st birthday was gone. I just wanted to throw up.

Everytime I have thought about it these last 2 yrs, I got that sick stomach feeling. So I try not to think about it. Luckily I have another copy of the baptism, so that is ok.

Ready for the happy surprise?

This morning I decided to get the videos organized. While going through them, I found the birthday video inside the wrong box. So only the bday box was taken- not the actual video. Shew. I cried tears of joy.

GBK and I watched all of our home movies this afternoon. Amazing how quickly she has grown- and other kids that were videoed as well.

BAD DAY

I have looked for 4 days now-
I can not find my camera anywhere.

I have looked everywhere. Even the frig and trash cans.

I have been 1000 places the last week.

The last time I remember seeing it was after the lake last Sunday, we came home and I downloaded pictures onto the camera. I have no idea what I did with it after that.

I hope that I find it. I have lost sleep over it.

another song- about a Monkey Named Bird

I don't usually like to read song lyrics- since it is really nothing but poetry and I am not a big poetry fan. Not to say I have never read poetry that I liked- I just seldom like it.

But this is one of my favorites, sung to the tune of Hush Little Baby.

Hush little baby, don't say a word
Mama's gonna buy you a monkey named bird.
If that monkey named bird don't sing,
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring.
If that diamond ring don't shine
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond mine
If that diamond mine don't pay
Mama's gonna buy you a Chevrolet.
If that Chevrolet don't run
Mama's gonna buy you a BB gun.
If that BB gun don't shoot
Mama's gonna buy you a bathing suit.
If that bathing suit don't fit,
Mama's gonna throw you out with it!


This was Dad's attempt to teach GBK Hush Little Baby, Don't Say a Word but between the two of them the words are a little different than the original.

The first time we heard 'monkey named bird' it stunned us for a few seconds before we all let out a great laugh. Now I can't imagine the song being that great without that line in it.

Sneaky Snake

Boys and girls take warning, if you go near the lake
Keep your eyes wide open, and look out for sneaky snake
Now maybe you won't see him, maybe you won't hear
But he'll sneak up behind you, and drink all your root beer

And then sneaky snake goes dancin, wigglin and a-hissin
Sneaky snake goes dancin, gigglin and a-kissin
I don't like old sneaky snake; he laughs too much you see
When he goes wigglin through the grass, it tickles his underneath

Well, sneaky snake drinks root beer, and he just makes me sick
When he is not dancin, he looks just like a stick
Now, he doesn't have any arms or legs, you cannot see his ears
And while we are not lookin, he's stealin all of our beer

And then sneaky snake goes dancin, wigglin and a-hissin
Sneaky snake goes dancin, gigglin and a-kissin
I don't like old sneaky snake; he laughs too much you see
When he goes wigglin through the grass, it tickles his underneath
words by Tom T. Hall

Over the Easter holiday, Dad taught GBK the lyrics to this song titled Sneaky Snake.

After a few days of practice she could sing the whole thing by herself. Of course she changed a few of the words up a bit to fit her personal opinion of things.
For instance, she says that she *does* like Sneaky Snake because she really likes to laugh. And y'all know my addiction to Root Beer, particularly Barq's Root Beer- so she sings that he is stealing Mama's root beer!

Well, yesterday afternoon as I was headed to the back yard to mow a tiny little patch of grass I noticed movement in the grass. It was sneaky snake headed to the house looking for my root beer! I screamed for RD to hurry! run! quick! He yelled back that he couldn't, he was on the phone. I screamed back- I don't care! There is a snake in the back yard! He quickly hung up and raced over... grabbed the hoe that was 82 cm from the snake and asked (are y'all ready for this?) "Should I kill it?"

I almost lost it y'all. OF COURSE you kill it! I mean, what are the other options here? I see it again and have a heart attack. I die in my sleep while having a nightmare about that thing getting in my house? I have a stroke watching it slither towards GBK's playground? No- you kill the dang thing!

He said- but it's a good snake! (I could tell he really wanted to kill it though, he is not a snake lover.)

Kill it, I said. There is no such thing as a good snake! Even a dead snake is not a good snake because the sight of it makes me nearly pee my pants!


So he chopped his head (I wanted him to chop it in half as well) and we watched it continue slithering about the yard. I spent a few minutes looking for good batteries for my camera and then finally took pictures just before he was thrown in the pond for the turtles to gnaw on.

How the heck do you explain to a 3 yr old that you killed sneaky snake?

Question of the Day

OK- This is a math quiz. It's a little tricky so pay close attention.

If you go to Wal-Mart on a Monday to print photos and use the 2Day Service Manual Machine, On what day should your pictures be available for pick up?

A.Wednesday
B. Thursday
C. Friday


Read it again. Because I am telling you- it is a trick question.

OK- have your answer? Are you ready?

Drum roll please...

The Answer is not Wednesday, not Thursday but yes C. Friday.

Sorry. No explanations available on how this trick was done.
I have a hard time explaining a lot of the weird things Wal-Mart does.

health dept episode 2

OK. So it has been a week and we have seen no bugs and we have done a total of 2 treatments. But I decided to keep us from church, gymnastics, and everything else until it has been at least a week with no signs and the official ok from the health dept.

I would have gone in yesterday... except they had off for confederate memorial day.
Could someone please explain this holiday to me? It is not a national holiday. The mail ran and the bank was open. But the health department closed. Who else was closed for this random memorial day? Who exactly is being memorialized? Not to sound unappreciative of anyone, but isn't that why we have Memorial Day in May? Someone please clue me in.

So anyway- today, we loaded up and went in to have our heads checked. GBK and I, that is. The husband shaved his head completely. So I guess he feels safe. I will have to scan a "before" photo of him and post it so you can see how much hair he lost.

When we got there, I quietly said to the receptionist "We want to get our hair checked". Of course I have to repeat myself 3 times for her to hear me! If I ran the health dept, I would have a little sign on the counter and just ask the patients to point to the specific problem on the sheet explaining the type of visit they are there for. I mean really, I didn't need to know that those teenage girls were there for condoms or a pregnancy test... didn't need to know that the weird couple was there for blood tests before they got married. I didn't need to know because I was having more fun making up my own reasons in my head.

Ok- so that last paragraph was a huge exaggeration ... but what if it were that way!? I am always paranoid that the other people in there will criticize me for the reason of my visit. How
idiotic (Debi, I put that in there for Little Man in case he was reading this)! I am so weird at times.

So back to my visit- a rather large woman walked in- probably 582 lbs. That is just a rough estimate. GBK says- look Mama, she has a big belly. She has a biiiiiiiig baby in hers belly. I was mortified. She was not pregnant. At least I don't think she was. I hope she wasn't. But she did have two little boys with her- twins I think. They were probably 3 or so...

get this y'all-

Jamel and Jamal. I just don't know about that. How confusing would that be? Say their names 5 times real fast.

Hmm- hmm. Now say it 10 times real fast without laughing.
OK. That is how I felt sitting there for 62 minutes with her repeating their names 82 times a minute over and over real fast. And I had to sit there without laughing.

Which I was a little distracted by the GBK so it helped me not to laugh. Her latest thing? She asks permission to touch my boobs. Like she is asking permission to play outside or eat a piece of candy. "Please push your boobs mama?" Only she doesn't wait for me to say no- she just does it.

I am not sure who is more obsessed with boobs RD, GBK or the girls at a local BUNCO group!!! Hahahahahahaha

You know who you are.

*******
I am in a weird mood today. Sam and I think it is directly linked to the moon.

I am a combination of nauseuas, depressed, bored, overstimulated, self-conscious and delirious. And no, it is not PMS.

Beauty consultant

Do you remember seeing her photo last summer when she tried this trick without permission? Check my archives- August 2006. I am too lazy/tired to put the link here.

She is such a girly girl at times. And such a tomboy at others. She killed a beetle in the kitchen last night and then sat and stared at it before deciding to get some paper to pick it up and throw it away. And that was the end of that! No screaming, running or jumping.

"The Green Bean Kid' aka GBK

/
And this is how she got her name.

Obsessive/Compulsive cleaners beware!

Want to know the worst possible thing to give to an obsessive/compulsive cleaning fool?

A black light.

We borrowed one to search our hair for unwelcome guests...

*BEWARE*
Do not try that in the bathroom. The black light picks up every single bit of dut, lint, bacteria, etc. If your husband missed the toilet and sprayed the wall, it picks that up too.

Let me just say that I scrubbed my bathroom for 2 hours that first night. I checked it last night and I just saw some dust/lint on the walls. But I scrubbed my walls down too- so I am thinking that is just lint from the cloth I used to wash them with.

Before you get caught at a party with blacklight, make sure you have clean hair, ears, teeth and nose. That could make an horrifying yet interesting date. One you would never forget.

Creepy crawlies- UGHHH!

We are battling the head lice.
Apparently it is going around our church and community.

We missed church because of it last Sunday. We treated it and thought we were in the clear. But the more I heard, the more advice I got from nurses and the more that I read online, I began to realize that we were not done with it just yet.

After just 2 days, I found a live one. From what I understand, the lice are resistant to the over-the-counter products.

So after 3 days of no sleep, 82 loads of laundry and vacuuming until I want the vaccum to suck me up and take me away, I called the doctor. I am desperate.

The Dr called in a prescription today for us to get rid of the lice. I got a $120 2oz bottle of lotion that supposedly will knock it out.

I am on the verge of a nervous breakdown. I do not know what I would do if I was a working mom because the cleaning in itself is a full-time job!


So- my advice. Don't let anyone tell you that you are safe to go out and about with the lice once you did the first treatment! If we had, we could have given it to friends, family, complete strangers!

Check your kids/husbands/self every single day. I missed 2 days of checking and then that is when we found them. It is going around the church/daycare and you know that they are not washing/vacuuming/cleaning every single day.

Not to scare you, but I promise you that this is not something to mess around with. It is like having fleas or termites, only it is on your head and you can not kill it with one spray of pesticide. It takes an average of one hour a day for me to go through all of GBK's hair just to make sure that I didn't miss an egg. (Because the over-the-counter shampoo does not kill the egg- so if you miss one egg, you are welcoming a whole new colony.) I found 6+ eggs last night that I had missed before. So we are staying home.

This is worse than the flu, an ear infection, and a paper cut all put together.

Madi and I are in a wedding Saturday- the festivities begin Friday afternoon!

Pray for me. I am delirious.

Thank you Disney!

Our big Christmas surprise for Princess GBK was a trip to Disney. Yes, we each got a 6 Day Pass and did it up right. We had the best time. We left Christmas Day and came home New Year's Day.

We went to the 4 major parks and saw and did as much as possible- it was crowded since it was a holiday week.

She filled her autograph book. In fact, I just realized that she never got Cinderella to actually sign her book! We were caught up in the moment, I guess. So now I am working on getting pictures together to put in the book.


Here is one such photo. We were surprised at Animal Kingdom when we looked over in the bushes and there was Flik!

More to come...