Goodbye 2007

Can you believe it's the last day of this year? My, has it flown by! We've had a lot of changes in our house this year and it's amazing to think about how at the time they seemed so huge. But, now, they are just things of the past.
Christmas came and went with the grand flourish that it is. The kids had a great time (of course.) Lots of traveling over the river and through the snow. It's been awhile since we've actually had white on the ground during Christmas. And I appreciated it for those couple of days. But, now I wish it would just melt away.
Miss Darby acquired a new American Girl doll. (Big surprise, I'm sure.) The way American Girl works is to infiltrate your entire existence. Their catalog comes 4 times a month, I swear. And, they were on Oprah about a month ago. So, that's all we've heard about. It doesn't help that they have a million dolls to choose from and so the list for a need for each one never ends. Julie - the 1970's-era girl came to live with us. She's actually my favorite one - which made it easy for Santa to ponder the idea about bringing her home. The next one on the list is Mia - the girl for 2008. Darby has it all planned out. She's going to save, save, save every penny she gets so that when we go to the new store in Dallas in March she can get her. I have a feeling I'll have to save, save, save as well for this trip. I doubt that when she walks into that store she'll only be able to walk out with a doll. We'll see.
Aidan crossed the bridge into a video system playing kind of kid. Which I swore would never happen, I have to tell you. But, he enjoys it and we actually limit his time playing and most of the time he plays with at least one of us. I just don't want him glued to a control with his face never to leave the screen again.
Thursday I called the new podiatrist to see if there was anything he could do until my surgery in January for my foot. It had gotten to the point where no shoe and/or being shoeless had become quite uncomfortable. They called me back Thursday afternoon and said that they could actually reschedule the surgery for Friday morning. After a quick assessment of our schedule and recruiting grandmas to watch the kiddos....we plowed through the newly fallen 4 inches of snow bright and early Friday morning and got it done and over with. If you ever have laser surgery while awake, I suggest you wear nose plugs. I won't go into details. Just trust me on this one. I have no heel left. I guess that's the point, to just wipe it all clean and get rid of the virus, but it's still disgusting to look at. So, I don't. I'm just glad to have it done and start the healing process. He said that it takes the normal skin cycle process (28 days) to heal enough to walk on, so 25 more to go! Pray that it goes quickly. I don't do well being incapacitated and watching my house move along without me. There are dishes to be done and laundry to be washed. Darby has been a HUGE help. Of course, I'm going to have to retrain her after this period of helplessness that when I call her name it WON'T mean that I need something. It's like an automatic response now, I get the semi-willing face. It's kind of cute actually. She reminds me a lot of me. :)
I hope everyone has had a great 2007 and looks forward to an even better 2008!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

So, this is the scene earlier this afternoon! It snowed, and snowed, and snowed some more! We were getting ready to head to Kansas City (we hadn't checked the weather, obviously.) Once we DID finally check the weather we cancelled our plans and holed up inside.

We baked Jesus' birthday cake. A tradition we've had since Darby decided a couple of years ago that it was a good excuse to have a party and, of course, cake!

And, homemade marshmallow fudge. I AM a chocolate addict (Isn't the first step admitting you have a problem?)

And, homemade Snickerdoodle cookies. Hey, I was on a ROLL! I'm all baked up for a good 4 months, now.

The dishes have to get done somehow!

But, we had to prove our manhood afterwards! (I can't believe how much he looks like Tim in this picture!)

Sugar fix! Happy Birthday Jesus!

Camdyn's here to spend the night. Her mom and dad braved the snow to go to the Cirque Dreams show. We're having lots of fun. She's such a good girl.

8 inches of snow! This is at about 7:00. And, Scott had already shoveled once.

What a good day to stay inside and bake and have a birthday party!

Okay, so.......

I know I declared a vow of silence, but I had to report that Scott passed his second section of the exam (the Audit section - go figure, it's what he does every day!) We are very proud of him and his diligence in getting these things passed! 2 down, 2 to go!! Wahoo! :)

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas!

So, I finally got motivated to wrap some Christmas presents. Have you ever noticed that you spend a good amount of time picking out the paper, the ribbon, the bow, the tag - wrap it just so - make sure the edges are all straight - just so someone can rip it off in .325 seconds? I, especially, am really picky about all of these things and how they're placed under the tree so that it's picture perfect and really, what does it matter? :)

These are normal days at our house - as normal as they can get with two kids, two cats, and a wiener dog. Charlie is adjusting well. Simon and Nory still hate him, but he's really gotten brave and runs after them now. Eventually, he'll probably get an eye scratched out and that will be that!

Aidan went to see the new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie last week and Terri (Scott's mom) bought him the Chipmunk Christmas c.d. because he LOVED the movie. So, I've been listening to nothing but chipmunks the last 2 days. I'm sure you remember the "I still want a huuuuuuuuuuula hoop!" song. It's literally super glued into my brain. I miss the Go Fish Guys. They're at least fun to listen to - if you haven't heard them - you have to go to their website (I have the link on the right side of this page) and listen to the clip of "The Mom Song." They're so fun. Aidan has been really silly this last week. On Sunday we were counting the cars driving in the opposite direction (hey, you do what you have to do to keep them occupied) and Aidan yelled at all of us to "Be Quiet! I'm TRYING to read my mind!" I asked him what exactly he was reading in his mind and he told us that "Right now, I'm trying to read that you'll be quiet counting cars!" And, last night he asked Scott, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Scott said, "I don't know. What are you thinking?" Aidan said "I don't know." Scott said "Well, then, I guess we're thinking the same thing." He's so goofy! :)

Darby is doing well. She's adjusting to life on medication and we really haven't noticed any side effects other than a little sleepiness. We're adjusting to remembering to give her the medicine. I can hardly remember to take medication myself, so this IS a challenge. We'll take it one day at a time, I suppose. She's very excited about winter break, but not nearly as excited as she is about Christmas. My kids have always struggled with how Santa really gets into our house since we don't have a chimney. Dale, our minister, and his wife Marsha gave us the neatest thing last weekend. It's a "Santa Key." It's an actual key that has a Santa "head" on it and you hang it on your front door for Santa to use. I have NEVER seen one of these. Although, I forget how detailed my daughter is and so we've had lots of conversations about only Santa being able to use it and no "buggler's." Now that that's all cleared up, she's thrilled. She checks every day to make sure it's still there.

The next 7 days will probably be pure madness. We have a ton of things going on, so I'll probably be silent for awhile (did you think that could really happen?)

Every year I have really great intentions on sending out Christmas cards, a Christmas Letter, or a Christmas picture. If I'm lucky, I get the cards signed and then they go into the Christmas box for next year's attempt. This year, I didn't even look at them. So, this is my new version of a Christmas card..........

Have a wonderful Christmas!

Hug your family members and tell them how much you love them and appreciate who they are in your life. Which reminds me, you all mean a lot to me! :) Remember the reason we celebrate. And, enjoy every moment of every day of this season!

Love to you all!

Scott, Anne, Darby, and Aidan :)

Ah, Monday at last!

I have to tell you.......my daughter has an amazing little voice. The kids' Christmas choir at church had their little performance yesterday during both services. Of course, Aidan played with his sleeves and rocked back and forth into the boy next to him and sang maybe every 6th word. Typical. But, Darby had what she called a "solo with Titus." I told her that it's actually a duet since she's singing with another person, but she feels VERY strongly that it was a solo - I pick my battles and this just wasn't worth it.

I have obviously had a rough week and I was feeling very "why me?" yesterday morning and I think at that moment, God decided to touch my heart. During first service it was just Scott and I there (our family all came to the second service) She got up to sing her solo/duet and I could NOT believe the voice that this child has considering her father and I can't carry a tune if our lives depended on it. Of course, it's a 7 year old voice, but several people turned around and looked at us and said "Wow!" Of course Mommy-pride took over and the tears started to well. But, I think at that moment I realized that it's not HER voice, it's her GIFT from God. Just like what He gives me - I can HANDLE things. I can HANDLE what comes at me because it's not based on MY strength, it's based on HIS. If I could let go and know that I am not in control.......EVER......I think I can get through these things. I think that I need to remind myself of that all the time.

My friend, Anne, just posted on one of my favorite verses in the Bible "Be still, and know that I am God." I guess sometimes you like the way something sounds, but if you really dig into it and apply it, it has SO much more meaning than you can understand. I have a really hard time being still. I have a really hard time just knowing that God is God. I am not. I am not in control. I am not the boss. I am not the one who makes things happen. And, I am not the one who picks me up when I feel like I just can't handle anything, anymore, ever. I cannot rely on me anymore. If you like to read, James - our youth minister, gave me a really good book called I Am Not But I Know I AM. It has all of these principles in it. I guess I hadn't really applied what I had read until yesterday.

Sorry, to get into all of that. I guess it's just easier to get these things out there. To just say them. Maybe that makes it more real?

I have to add, that before the services yesterday morning. It was about 7:30 and we were on our way there, so we were all in our "I really didn't want to get up this early" moods. Darby all of a sudden said "Mommy, do you think we could just have me sing and maybe get rid of all of the other kids. I COULD just do the whole thing one big solo." I was hoping she just got up on the wrong side of the bed, but I think I could possibly be raising a future diva. Yeesh.

Love to see you SMILE!

We're kind of back to normal today. I went in to work at the church and two days of "stuff" really piles up!

My dad is not doing real well, but they've gotten some things figured out. He'll stay in ICU until they can make sure he's more stable. That's really a relief because it means there will be constant watch over him. Pray that he'll recover quickly and strongly.

Darby's neurologist called today. He's such a goofball. But, I guess if you're working with kids' brains all the time you'd have to find an outlet. Apparently, his is being weird. He's very nice and very understanding of my feelings and beliefs, which I really appreciate. He's decided to try Darby on some medication. It's a very mild medication with little to no side effects. The fact that her seizures have changed in presentation and are happening more frequently (we and he are pretty sure she's having them in her sleep more regularly) is a little bit concerning. And, now that she's had one where she's actually lost consciousness it's a lot more frightening. We have to start thinking about leaving her in the bathtub without supervision and playing on jungle gyms, etc. and decide at what level we need to take the chance of her having a seizure into consideration. So, we'll try the medication. He said he won't twist my arm to do it and we'll evaluate her in 2 months to decide if it's working or if she's having any ill side effects. If she is, then, we'll wean her off of it. Pray that it helps and doesn't hinder her. One of the possible side effects is mood changes - I can't imagine what THAT would be like! :)

Well, I'm off to prepare for more winter weather. I've heard we could be looking at 6 - 8 inches of snow. How many more days until summer???

Is This Day Over?

So, today actually went downhill.....really, really fast! When I got to the hospital this morning, I knew something was up because my dad was having a lot of trouble with his heart rate and blood oxygen levels. The nurses weren't TOO frazzled, but you could tell they were bustling. Amidst all of this my cell phone rang. Scott called me to tell me he was on his way to the school. Darby had a seizure and went unconscious (sp?) and fell and hit her head. They said she had regained consciousness and was doing okay. So, I gave him all of the important numbers (pediatrician, neurologist) and told him I would wait to hear from him once he actually SAW her. (Lord knows the interstate does NOT need a completely frazzled me traveling down it!) The pediatrician said to take her home and keep an eye on her and call the neurologist, so that's what he did. I'm really blessed to have his calmness, because I was totally freaking out! Once I turned back into "the one in control of herself" I hopped in the mini-van and headed home. It felt SO good just to touch her! The nurse from Dr. Katz's office (our neurologist) said there wasn't much we could do. She's a diagnosed epileptic so the next step is for the doctor to decide if he wants to see her or put her on anti-seizure medication (which I've been totally against, and he's supported it - the side effects can be worse than the seizures.) It's now 7:05 p.m. and we haven't heard from him.....of course, it takes on average 6 months to get into him normally, so I'm thinking it will be next week before we know anything.
Okay, so I'm home at this point and snuggling her on the couch and my stepmom calls to tell me that they moved my dad to ICU. They thought he was having a heart attack and may be septic. Talk about being torn.........I checked back with Dr. Katz's nurse and she okayed Darby traveling (she would be at a hospital after all.) So, we packed back up and headed back down there. The surgeon and cardiologist determined it wasn't a heart attack after all, but there is some seriousness with an infection, so they're following a sepsis protocol. He should be out of ICU sometime tomorrow. Thank God.
I think I'll shut my brain off and take a hot bath and wait for tomorrow! :)

UPDATE!

About 10 minutes after I posted the last entry, we actually ended up losing our power!! So, we bundled up and carried all of the blankets upstairs to sleep together.............while visions of electicity danced in our heads. No such luck. We could hear the branches breaking off of trees and hitting things. Thankfully (kind of) USD 501 had cancelled school because THEY were without power too, so we didn't have to worry about getting anyone to school! But, we DID have to worry about packing (me) and bathing and doing all of our morning "stuff" by candlelight and flashlights. I think the lesson for today was being okay with not being in control. Not freaking out. I think I failed.
Anyhow, I made it to KC and just left the hospital. The surgery went okay. It was actually more difficult than they thought and took over 7 hours. We were there for about 14 hours total. So, I am exhausted - physically and emotionally.
Scott took the kids out to my dads so he could work and they could be warm. Apparently, sometime today our power came back on, which I'm really, really thankful for since some people have been told it could take up to 7-10 days to restore theirs.
I hope to be home tomorrow afternoon, but you know, the Legends shopping center is on my way home. So who knows!?!? :)

2 Days of Updating - Who'd have thought...............

Yesterday, after I posted I went to get cleaned up. (Yes, I admit, I shower at 2:30 in the afternoon somedays! - That's the rebel side of my life.) Anyway, I noticed - after months of using it - that the foundation I've been using says, and I quote, "Reduces Signs of Fatigue" WHAT?!?!? If you look really closely and pretend that my camera is of better quality you can see it right below the red circle! I'm thinking about sending it in to get my money back because I'm pretty sure that it's NOT WORKING! :)

When I went to pick Darby up from school I had planned a little "surprise" for the kids. So, I tell them that we're going to a super neat place. Of course, they both (in unison - I might add) yell "Chuck E. Cheese!!!!!" Now, why is it that EVERYTIME I have something cool planned it gets ruined because whatever I've thought up is NEVER as exciting as Chuck E. Cheese? I, for one, am an avid hater of Chuck E. Cheese. I'd rather stick a fork in my eye than spend an hour in that place! I do have to admit that every once in awhile, I relent. (And, so has my mom - if you haven't seen the poem on that one - request it - you WILL laugh!) So, onto my project - we have a really cute little scrapbooking store not far from our house. I frequent the place around birthday time because they have the cutest stuff and even though it costs 337 times as much to make birthday party invitations as opposed to just buying them, I LOVE doing it. (Remind me that I said this while I'm grumbling over how time consuming and stupid this idea is as I'm working on them!) We went and picked out some cute Christmas paper........

And after an arduous 15 minutes chalk-full of glue sticks and patterned scissors........ (little red t.v. is a portable, battery operated t.v., radio, and flashlight in one - hey, I'm prepared for ice storms!!)

We have paper chains to decorate our rooms with! (Note, my doofus son - he's pretty proud of the chain that Mommy cut, and glued, and put together - that's his!) And, he's without glasses because for the one millionth time they're broken. The people at the optical place know us by first name. Good thing those babies have a great warranty! The project went well, by my standards, and the children were only a hair below the Chuck E. Cheese satisfication level.

Darby came to me yesterday and said "Mom, I have a question." I've learned that when I'm being prepared for a question, it's immediate cause for heart palpatations and a lump lodges itself in my throat! She says "Did I get born............(insert my wide eyes and lack of breathing at what's to come).......on my birthday?" Whew! Isn't it amazing that the things that we know, that we take for granted, are legitimate causes of concern for a 1st grader?!? I assured her that she WAS born on her birthday and that she didn't get born, she was born. Remember, one of my career choices was to be an English teacher? Yeah, me neither. But, it's a pet peeve of mine!

If you think about it, please pray for our family for the next two days. My dad is having a pretty serious operation in KC and I'm traveling there (by myself - which is worth praying for in it's own right) amidst all of the treacherous road conditions. Scott will be with the kids (again - much praying requested on this one.) I expect to be there for the next few days and hopefully home by Friday, if all goes well. I'm super nervous about leaving the care of my family in Scott's hands......namely, the lack of control that I will have over running the household!

I'm sure he'll do fine - I think...........

'Tis the Season.........

I'm FINALLY catching my breath from the last two weeks and posting. (Warning: many pictures following!)

Scott's schedule has been hectic (as usual) and so the kids and I have (barely) survived the past few weeks. My wedding ring broke. And we even had the bonus of passing the stomach flu around our house in the middle! I've been researching sayings, bible verses, etc. to paint in our dining room and I'm leaning strongly toward "Whatever Doesn't Kill You Will Make You Stronger." :)

I found out last week that I have to have a second surgery on my foot in January. In October I had a plantar's wart "removed" from my foot. I've been fighting this stupid thing for about 9 months and my podiatrist had decided to "excise the tissue." Well, excise the tissue must be latin for "lots of pain for nothing". The dumb thing came right back. So, in a few weeks I'm going to ANOTHER podiatrist to have it removed AGAIN with a laser. Apparently, THAT will kill it? If you have any good suggestions on how to get around in winter weather with a surgery shoe and crutches, please feel free to share! (P.S. when you notice something on your heel that doesn't go away and continues to spread - don't wait until it's massive to see a doctor about it! Buy some Compound-W and duct tape and get rid of it - FAST!)

On to the good stuff:

Darby and I went to an awesome little Christmas party/gift exchange last weekend with a group of girls that Darby's known since she was 2. These girls all went to First Christian together and have developed a tight little bond. It's amazing to see that even though we've all moved on to different schools once these girls are together they're immediately best buds again. Darby had a great time. And, luckily their moms are fun to hang out with too! :)

Say hello to the newest member of our family. Little Charlie Brown came to live with us a week ago. He's a miniature dachshund and the kids' Christmas gift from Goose and Gandar (Scott's grandparents) and Uncle Jon. He's a lot of fun and a LOT of work. We are crate training him and housebreaking him and he's doing really well. Darby loves to dress him up and the sad thing is I think he likes it, too! (See below...........)

(Nikki - do your super-sewing abilities include doggie dresses, also!?!? :)

We, of course, had to have a visit from Emma. She actually let me put little pigtails in her hair. I think they look so cute! This picture is of her telling me "NO!" That's her favorite word these days and apparently the only response she knows when you ask her a question!

And, finally, throughout this season of shopping, Christmas parties, decorating, baking, etc., etc., etc. let us not forget the season of Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving is not the season of bows and presents and trees and presents and commercials for more presents, I know - but it's so overlooked in our rush to get to the sales at 5 a.m. and all the other crazy things we do to get ready for one day of Chaos/Christmas (at least at my house.) And, so, I'm trying, daily, to stop and remember Thanksgiving....so.......I'm beyond thankful for my family. My babies and my husband. My parents and beyond. My friends - they're family too! I AM thankful for our hectic life (even when I complain about it) because it reminds me that I HAVE a life and I'm thankful that I can still get up each day to face it. I'm thankful for the people who read this blog, because I know it means that you care! And, as silly as it sounds, I'm also thankful for little things like my camera because it's a way that I can chronicle all of these things and days and moments so that someday (I can't believe I'm going to say this....) when I'm OLD and can't do the things I do everyday......I can look back on all of these things and be THANKFUL! :)