Wordless Wednesday

How C&G spent the blizzard of '08

Sorry so late, Updates!

Let me start out by saying all of your prayers have been appreciated and have helped so much! My cousin was released from the hospital the day after my last blog! She is on the same heart meds as my 70 year old Grandmother, but she and Tallia are doing well!!!! The doctors decided to release her after her heart was able to behave for a 2days straight. The meds she currently is on shouldn't harm Tallia either. We are all so happy! Unfortunately, because of the heart condition, my cousin cannot go into labor. They have told her it will kill her. So at the end of March, I believe, they will do a C-section for Tallia. She will be a couple weeks early, but they have determined that she is very healthy and it shouldn't harm her at all. So ,for now, my cousin and her unborn daughter are enjoying lots of rest and relaxation. Thank God for modern medicine!!!

Now, the reason I haven't updated in a while was the morning after my cousin was released from the hospital The Other Half had ACL surgery. We were so naive to think he would be up and moving by the weekend, WRONG! He was having allot of fun trying to steady himself on crutches as he hobbled his was to the bathroom with me right at his heel ready to catch him at a moments notice. Well, I was going to try to catch him, anyway.... So for the last couple of weeks I have been nursemaid and mom. Exhausting! C has been great. She has been on her best behavior. G on the other hand.....After 4days he found out all daddy could do was yell at him from the couch when he was misbehaving. Man that kid is smart! He would continue being naughty until I came around a corner and then it was Stop! Drop! and Run! It was an adventure I will tell you that.

Even though he was laid up The Other Half managed to hobble to G's first big Psychologist meeting. It was our first meeting with the Doc so it was just grown ups. It was so nice to have him there. He remembered to mention things about G that I had grown accustomed to, but aren't "typical" behaviors. He also had things to say about how G is around him that is different from his time spent with me. So it was a good meeting. We both came out of the meeting feeling hopeful. I am feeling overwhelmingly hopeful that this woman will help point all of us in the right direction. Her testing will be done tomorrow afternoon and then March the 12th we will find out the results. We will know whether our son has high functioning Autism, like preliminary test have shown, or is just ADHD and slightly delayed. This will also help the school, and us, decide which schools in the district he should attend for Kindergarten and what programs are available to him. We are so scared to send him to Kindergarten next year, but these tests will help to ease some of that. It's yet another life line we have been given during his dimly lit journey. Thank God for it!

My highly injured Other Half also managed to shock me with a surprise birthday party last month! I was completely floored! I had no idea! It was so sweet. He managed to get about 8 of our friends to brave a snowstorm and eat Mexican with us for my bday. They all worked together to make it so special, it was so sweet. My friend Mimi came up with some party games, Other Half bought a round of Margaritas, and we all just chatted, sang If you Like Pina Coladas, then we made wishes. Mimi had collected milk weed pods over the summer and was trying to think of something to do with them. So she came up with this great idea that we would all take one, go out side of the restaurant, open them, blow the fluff out and wish as it flew into the snow flake filled air. The pictures she took turned out so cool! I will have to get them from her and post them. After that we finished the night with lots of hugs and car donuts in the snow covered parking lot!

To all of you out there, again, thank you soososososososos very much for your prayers on behalf of my cousin they are truly working.

Vacation Over, Update on My Cousin

Sorry I haven't updated in a few days, we flew out of the States on Thursday and headed to the UK for the Other Half’s gig. We arrived on Friday in the Uk. We hung out with friends. The gig went great on Saturday. We headed down to London on Sunday. Then we were on a flight out of the UK around 7am their time, which would have been something like, 2am our time! Yuck! Needless to say I am jet lagged. I will blog on our vacation tomorrow and give pic. I am so tired that this will be more of a summary piece today.

First off, thank you all for your prayers for my cousin and her daughter. They are both still stable. As I posted I visited with her briefly last Tuesday. She was doing better. Well, Wednesday evening her heart started to spike again. I guess they were giving her oral meds that are easier on the baby and hoping that would be enough to get her heart back to normal. Well, it wasn't enough and it started to spike again. So, they had to bring in the University Hospital to consult and it was decided that they should give her intravenous drugs. That helped but it's not so good for Tallia, the baby. They took an ultra sound of Tallia and her weight is a little over 2lbs. There was talk of giving my Cousin a c-section because it would save Tallia, but the chances were not favorable for my cousin. Hearing this, my mom called some ladies from our prayer group and they weren't down immediately to pray for my cousin, Amanda and Tallia. Amanda wept and thanked them immensely for praying for her and the baby. As of Friday she had stabilized, some what. From what I understand there is still a possibility for a C-section if Amanda should go into some form of arrest. Amanda is so scared of dying. And we all know that Tallia's chances aren’t that great either. So please continue to pray. Their situation is still touch and go. I am hopping to go down and visit her today. They don't allow a phone in her room, so I can't call and talk to her personally. I am appreciating all of you thoughts and prayers. Many thanks!

Wordless Wednesday

A rare Mommy and Daddy get away!

Yet Another Update

Visited with my Cuz for a very very short bit. She said the Drs. think she always had something wrong with her heart but the pregnancy exasurbated it. She said the meds she is on finally feel like they are working. She said her heart beat kept going up to 245 yesterday. The baby ,little Tallia , is, in my cousins words, " doing well, for now." My poor cousin looks so tired. I can tell she is worried aobut her little girl. Please continue the prayers.
Thanks

Cousin Update

My cousin is still in the hospital. My sister,the nurse, said our cousin is still touch and go. They are having trouble with regulating her heart beat. It keeps racing to 200. On top of that, they found out she has pnemonia. I haven't heard any word on the baby. My cousin is 7months pregnant. I am going to see her in a few short hours.
Please continue your prayers. They are greatly appreciated.

Prayers Please!!

My cousin who is 26yrs old and pregnant had several heart attacks last night! She is NOT over weight. She does not have a history of heart problems. The doctors have not determined how many heart attacks that she had last night, but they seem sure it was more than one. From what I know the baby is ok and my cousin is concious. Last I heard the Drs. are trying to find out what might have caused this and how to prevent anotherone. My cousins mom is snowed in at her home in Colorado and is hoping she can get a flight into our state by midnight. Then my cousins dad is in Florida and is hopping on the soonest flight. Thank God for my sister the nurse. She is currently at the hospital with our cousin. She is reading charts and graphs and talking to Doctors.
Please pray for my cousin, her baby, and her parents. Her parents are just beside themselves and trying to get to her ASAP.
Thank you in advanced!

Monday Munchies

Most of you who have been reading my blog know that my son G is on a special diet that helps to curb his Sensory Processing Disorder. G is on a low/no gluten diet. Having one person in the house on a special diet can present problems for the chief of the house. Many of the gluten free products taste "funny" to the gluten loving palette. Not to muntion that gluten free is not cheap! So I am always on the look out for a good middle ground. I have found that in Gillian's Foods Gluten Free Pizza Dough. You can find it almost any health food store. I purchase mine at Whole Foods. It runs about $5, but it is a dough the whole family can enjoy. You treat it as you would any other frozen pizza dough. Even though it is gluten free, wheat free, and lactos free it tastes "normal". So for those of you with a family member or a friend in need of a yummy gluten free, wheat free, lacotos free food. I highly recommend Gillians Pizza dough, not just for them to enjoy, but everyone else as well!

Bon Appetit!

Lost

Oh my gosh! Lost is good again! I think I almost bit off all of my finger nails! Many I wish it were next thursday already! Darn you Lost! Darn you! Any one have any guesses as to what is going to/has happened?

Great Websites

I came across some great websites recently. There is this new website called zafu.com. They promise to "Find your perfect Jeans, pants, & Bras in 3 minutes." You take a mini quiz about your body shape and voila they pop out the Jean, Pant, or Bras that would best fit you. I took the Jeans quiz and it was on the money. Some of my favorite types of jeans were on the list. So if you like shopping online, or would just like to stream line your shopping trip this website can help you out.

For those of us who admire many a celebs star style ,but not the price tag, there is fashionunder100.blogspot.com/. She dublicates celebrity outfits for under $100. She comes up with some amazing stuff. I believe she updates it daily.

Now I am currently getting ready for an awards dinner in the Uk. So I have been scowering the internet for easy hair dos. Because this is a formal function I have been looking for something that will look great with my dress and that I can do my self. Two sites nexxus.com and fordmodels on youtube just might be the answer to my prayers. They have easy do's with lots of instruction. So if any of you, or someone you know, needs a glamours style done fast and at home, I highly recommend these.

Lastly, with election season in full gear glassbooth.org/ can help you figure out which canadate best represents your views. It not only tells you the top 3 canadates that are compatable to you , it gives you their answers to the same questions you answered. It is a very informative site.

With that I am off! It is time to put a little sick guy down for a nap. If I'm lucky I will get one too! ;)

Made it out Alive!

The other half doesn't travel for work as much as he use to. However, when he does he is usually gone for 5days or more. Those times when I am left on my own with C & G give me a renewed appreciation for having a partner in parenting! Last week He left for his BIG annual work conference. He was gone about 6days. By day two I was at home with two children that were crying for daddy at the drop of a hat and not hesitating to call me a "Bad mom." I had to tell them that," If making them clean their room, do their homework, eat their dinner, or stop fighting, made me a "bad mother", then yes I was." *Sigh* The life of a "single" parent. I wish I could say the days got better but they didn't. G's ticks were in over drive. He was repeating things more than normal, which was starting to drive me mad. It made me appreciate how nice it is to be able to tell G,"Go ask your dad." When his repetition of the same question or spelling word has got me to my breaking point. But alas, I just had to suck it up. It is also nice to have someone to help C with her homework while I am helping G with something, or visa versa. My hats off to you Single Mom's, you are amazing!
Thank God for good friends. I was able to get out for a few hours on Tuesday night and go to a bible study at my friends house. She has a 13year old son that she allowed to babysit for me. I had figured I would pick Joel up at 6, he would babysit at my house from 6:30-10pm and I would run him home. Well bless his parents heart, they called me before I picked Joel up and said they wanted to "serve" me by picking Joel up after bible study, that way I wouldn't have to wake the kids up and drag them out into the cold! How sweet! It was sooo sooo very nice of them and it made my life so much easier.
Well Sunday evening came and the Other Half arrived home to big hugs all around. The kids were relieved to see someone other than me and I was relieved to have reinforcements. It is amazing how much of a difference 2 parents make. It is so nice to have another person there to pick up the slack when you need a break or if the kids do, even if the break is for 5minutes.
To all the single parents out there, you are amazing. You deserve a medal. I have all the respect in the world for you!

Simplicity

What is this? This is no ordinary cardboard box. This is The Dream House! How beautiful is it that children look at this and see potential?! All I had to do was cut 2 windows and 1 door. They did the rest. What you can see is flowers drawn on the top and sides. Every dream house needs a garden, right? On the inside C and G drew furniture and animals. After they were done decorating they christened their new home "The Dream House". How beautiful. "Be it every so humble, there is no place like home!"

Happy New Year!

Happy 2008! I am so glad it's a new year, but I am,already, missing all those holiday parties and the busyness of the holiday season. We were really blessed with being invited to quite a few parties. The Eco friendly Christmas party with gift exchange was loads of fun. I received shade grown organic coffee and Endangered species chocolate. When we discovered our goodies the other half exclaimed," endangered species in Chocolate, that is just sick!" Haha, but I did look at the chocolate differently after that. Not to differently, it made it into my belly in less than 48 hours! What can I say, Chocolate is chocolate!
Our friend Michele purchased a soap stone figurine of a mother and child to give at the party. Problem is, it didn't really resemble a mother and child and the men pointed out it looked more falic in nature. Needless to say, the statue was given at a White Elephant party the following week. Michele, happened to be the person to pick it. She opened it and there was her stature with a provalactic on top! Luckily she has a great sense of humor and it is on her mantel at home! We have all decided that his notorious statue has to the "roaming gnome" of our group. So The Other Half and I are taking it to England, in February, and we will get pictures of it watching the changing of the guard. Several other friends are traveling this year and guess who will be traveling along? ;) We are a sick group, I know.
We attended a great family party on New Years Eve. It was hosted by our friends Megan and Glenn. They opened their homes and their kitchen to, what seemed like, hundreds of us. ( I think it seemed like more people were there due to the high kid to parent ratio and boys being boys. :) ) Glenn is from South Africa. He prepared a traditional dish that I can't pronounce, let alone write, but it tasted very good. We all agree it tasted like meatloaf with curry. I don't know whether or not Glenn found it to be a complimentary comment, but the dish was quit good! Later at the party our Canadian friend, Mimi, started enlisting volunteers for a New Years day Polar bear swim. The men totally wussed out and the swim was all set to be a "girl friend thing" at 11am the next day. About 11:30pm our kiddo's started become VERY cranky so we hopped out of there and headed home to watch Dick Clarks Rockin' Eve. It was probably for the best that we went home when we did. That way I could get a little more sleep before my swim the next day.
C enjoyed watching the ball drop, G feel asleep on the couch at 5 til midnight. It was heart warming to see Dick Clark doing his thing again. I commend ABC for supporting him. I also commend Ryan Seacrest on his demeanor. He was so respectful of Dick Clark. He seemed to really see him self as second fiddle and I thought that was really great. I don't watch American Idol, so I don't know much about Ryan Seacreast other than he has billions of jobs, but seeing him co host, he seemed like a humble guy. That is so rare in his business and with his degree of fame. Kudos.
Onto my polar bear story! I slept until about 10, receive the call for our meeting spot at about 10:45 and I was out the door. Man, I was so tired that I forgot to pack a towel! We met at my friend Annie's, who lives near, a major creek in our town. We had coffee and tried to psych ourselves up. Kevin and Brian, two of the husbands, came to document the whole thing and raze us about being crazy. It was some where around 10 ,or so, degrees that day, so we were in agreement with us being crazy. We took some pictures and headed out. At this point I should let you know what a dork I am, if you hadn't guessed already. I was wearing shoes and sock, but changed into flip flops before leaving Annie's house. I did this for two reasons, I didn't want to try to put wet feet into socks (the whole forgotten towel thing) and I thought we were closer to the creek than we were. Luckily my friend Megan followed my lead and we commiserated for the 5 or so minute hike to the creek. It was fun. Angela wore a shower cap, I wore a wizards hat, Mimi a funny looking hat, Sara and Michelle wore Sherpa hats, and Annie and Megan sensible,warm, hiking hats. The hubs followed taking pictures all the way. We got to the creek and it took a couple of minutes to find a good spot. Once found, we all looked around and said who is going first? I don't know who disrobed first but some one did and the rest of us followed QUICKLY! Before we jumped in we all posed for a bathing suit clad photo, and then someone again said who is going first? Kevin blew the Conch shell and someone jumped in and the rest followed. Sarah, Angela, Annie, Mimi, and Michele made it to the middle of the creek, neck high! Sarah caught Michele's flip flops as they floated down stream. Michele was so cold she didn't realize they had been lost! Megan and I weren't as daring. Our frozen toes were hurting so bad that I made it shin high and Megan made it waist high before we jumped out and started asking what the first signs of frostbite were! Mimi, our leader, was the last one out. They got some great pictures of her trouncing about in the winter water. She was cold but enjoying every second of it. I will admit it I was first out, I wore my gloves on my feet all the way home, but I felt triumphant, I think we all did. It was fun, crazy, zany, so many of those adjectives. If that 2 hours of our New Years day is any indication as to the rest of 2008, then I think we are in for a great year!

I hope all of you had just as great a new years eve and new years day. Happy 2008 and may it be a great one!

If you would like to see the card my friend Sara put together,just click on the title of today's blog entry. The picture she used is our "before" shot. Enjoy!

My Mind is all a Swirl

I have so much flying through my mind right now! I was sick last week and the kids were under the weather this week; so I am totally thrown off. I am late/behind on sending out my Christmas cards. My shopping is behind and I totally need to go to the grocery! I have tonight and Sunday night to get stuff done, no pressure. I don't think I have ever been this behind. I did manage to buy some things online last week. I am hoping they make it on time....

On top of that, I have been seriously considering renting my house out. We have tossed the idea around for many years. We have recently met many people who have 1 or more rentals. A good friend of mine recently acquired her second rental property. Her realtor told her not to sell any of them right now,because of the market, and that renting was the way to go with this crappy market. I have read that the sell of homes are down 6.7% from this time last year. Due to the huge amount of foreclosures and the mortgage industries tightening of standards, there are more people out there renting than purchasing. So, I don't know.....We are both going to pray about it. Renting out your house can be a big deal. So the other half and I are going to pray about it ALOT and have dinner with my good friend K and her Hubs and hear how they have gone about having 3 mortgages and 2 sets of tenants. I have always wanted to have a rental property, weird I know. But they can afford you some financial security when you are older. The properties could also be sold at a later date and pay for C or G's college or any extra expenses we may incur due to G's delays. It's alot to think about. So we are praying about it. We also seem to be running into quit a few acquaintances that have a property or two and have been more than happy to share their experiences with me, which is lovely of them to do.
So my question to any of you is, have you ever had a rental property? If so what was your experience with that, tenants, lawyers, and realtors?

Thanks!

Have Yourself and Eco-Friendly Christmas...

We are headed to a "Green" Christmas Party tonight with a gift exchange. My first thoughts when I was invited were: is this a spin on a white elephant but I bring something green, and that's a cute incorporation of the Christmas seasons use of the color green. It was good that I asked about the whole "white elephant" thing, because I was sooo wrong! It is to be an environmentally friendly gift. We have to be creative and the gift must be an,"interesting and fun gift that is either made from sustainable materials or will help in some way, by it's very use, to reduce energy consumption to put under the tree for a gift exchange." This struck me as a fun challenge. I mean it's easy to find eco-friendly things, but to find something "fun" and "creative" that seemed to pose more of a obstacle. So I have spent the past week racking my brain and scouring web sites. Last week I read a great article in our local paper that helped me on my journey.


According to the newspaper, "going green" for Christmas is the thing to do. So much so that the accounting company of Deloitte & Touche surveyed on the subject. They found that 12% of people in my state plan to buy more eco- friendly gifts this year. while 20% will use less plastic bags when they make their purchases. 19% of people, state wide, were planing on not wrapping their gifts with traditional wrapping paper. (It doesn't recycle, so it just sits and landfills.) It was good to see I was in good company this holiday season, but this didn't help with where I could find cool, green, gifts pronto! Further in the article I had my answer! It would seem that Home Depot, Target, Yahoo! and Walmart (?!) all have environmentally friendly products on their websites! How great is that?! So I perused Target, Home Depots, and Yahoo!. Great sites all. Great selections. Now I didn't end up buying anything from the site, though I may in the future. (I didn't have enough time for the shipping) But I did do something that I know to be easy on the planet and that is: I shopped local. There is a Wild Birds Unlimited not too far from me. On top of selling bird seed and bird things, they have a good selection of eco-friendly soaps, jewelry made from natural materials,and natural jewelry by women in Africa. So I chose from that and am putting my gift in a reusable tote. I think that meets all the requirements. We'll see. I am off to have a good time and I can't wait to see what everyone else came up with!


More Tips For a Planet Friendly Holiday:

• Buy a potted Christmas Tree. Replant it in the spring or donate it to your local parks department.


• Use LED lights on the tree. They use 90% less power that traditional lights, but they do cost more to purchase.


• Make your own gift. Who doesn't like something so thought full as something made by hand? From candy, to soaps, to scarves, all ways a way to make it creative and personal.


• Make your own wrapping paper. You can use the comics, maps, brown bags, ect. I did this one year using brown bags and paint. I painted the bags free hand and I used potato and rubber stamps. It was alot of fun!

Links to Websites listed above:

Home Depot http://www6.homedepot.com/ecooptions/

Yahoo! Green http://green.yahoo.com/

Target http://www.target.com/b/sr=1-1/qid=1197750629/ref=sr_ilm_1/602-6617218-2806255?ie=UTF8&node=357202011

O Christmas Card! O Christmas Card!

I was at a Christmas party several years ago. Someone there expressed how they found the end of year letters, that some people put in their Christmas cards, to be annoying and self important. I was opening cards, yesterday and reading some letters, when I was reminded of this conversation. I love those letters. I am not the best on the phone. My lifestyle does not provide a lot of time for the phone or meeting up with my friends on a regular basis. Plus, some of them live out of state. So I find these letters give me a chance to find out of all the fun things that have happened to them this year. It gives my friends and I something to talk about next time we meet. I also enjoy each persons unique writing voice. Receiving such a letter makes me feel that the giver finds me to be a close enough friend that I probably do care about what has transpired in the last 365 days. So, to all of those out there who fill their cards with an end of the year synopsis, keep 'em coming! You are not gloaters! 98% of we recipients get a joy out of reading your years joys and adventures. Bring 'em on.

And to those of you that feel these letters are "annoying and self important", don't read them. That way you aren't annoyed by someone who has mistaken you as someone who cares. Also, don't complain at parties about these things. You run the risk of hurting the feelings people who only have the best of intentions by sending these letters. If you think about complaining openly then you have to ask yourself ,"Who's the real self important one here?"

Wordless Wednesday

This picture sums up their sibling relationship!

Ten Rules to Live by

The topic for Letters to my Daughters writing project is "Ten Rules to Live by." I have tried to give this a lot of thought. I really have. However, I am not sure what my "rules to live by” would be. So we will stumble through this together.


1. I do believe you have to believe in something higher than yourself. It gives some reassurance to know I am here for something bigger than to eat, drink, breath, work and die. I find meaning in believing in a force bigger and more loving than myself.


2. Strive to be and do better. Everyday should be a new day to try to be a better, more loving, more forgiving individual. Making the world a better place starts with you and your smile.


3. Get outside. When we take the time to get outside and take a walk, garden, or just sit, we have the opportunity to unwind and see what it is all about! When one takes the time to observe the outdoors it takes you out of yourself. It gives us a reason to want to preserve the planet.


4. Take risks, stretch yourself. It can be any kind of risk. Go to a new coffee shop, travel to a place you have always wanted to go. There is such a feeling of freedom and accomplishment when you push yourself to do something new, learn something new, or go some where new!


5. Do not be afraid to fail. We are all afraid to fail. Failure is inevitable. Every great somebody failed many times before they succeeded. The secret is to learn from the failure and head back to the drawing board!


6. Never quit, never give up! See #5 :)


7. There is a reason for everything. I believe this with all my heart. Too many things have happened in my life that back up this theory. The trick is being patient enough to find out what the reason is or was.


8. Travel and learn about other cultures. If you can't afford to hop a flight, go to the library and check out a book. Learn about people and countries other than your own. You will find we are all more alike than we are different.


9. Study the arts. There are so many to choose from, you are bound to find something that tickles your fancy and lets you see the world in a whole new light!


10. Love. Love someone, love something. A pet definitely counts! When you love and take care of something other than yourself, you become less selfish and there is such a freedom in that. It is not easy, it never will be, but it is a necessary and useful journey all the same.


Hey look at me! I was able to come up with some stuff!! I think I just learned a little more about myself, this is always a good thing.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I love the holidays! One of my favorite things to do during the holidays is to have a nice hot cup of Starbucks Christmas blend and mint M&M's. These are two things you can't get any other time of the year other then December. I love them so much that I usually try to stock up on a few bags of both before they leave the stores for another 11months.
Some times it just the little things, ya know?

It's Official

The Other half has officially killed his knee. Last Saturday ,while playing basketball with his "Old Fogey" league, he did a jump shot and blew out his knee. A 4 Doctors visits, 2 xrays, and one MRI later the verdict is in, his ACL is toast. The other things in his knee are either stretched or blown out too. We have been told that his ACL will have to be reconstructed with either his own tendons or cadaver. My vote is for his own tendons. (Please pray they can use them) They will do some scoping/scraping will they are in there too. We meet with the Surgeon on Monday to get the full rundown of all the fun and to get a date for surgery.
This will be surgery number 2 for The Other Half in less than 12months. SHESH! I told him he's getting expensive and I might just have to trade him in for another model! ;) His sister texted him and said,'You might not think 30 is old, but you knee sure does!' That had me rolling!
On a serious note, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. Him having surgery always makes me nervous. And I am not looking forward to paying off yet another surgery. Thank God for insurance!