Happy Birthday Jake(y)!

I'll make this brief

Today marks 8 years since I gave birth to my son, Jacob. From an early age he's had such a fun sense of humor. He's a people person, he's sensitive at times, he's a good boy and he loves his momma. I can't complain ;) Here is a quick review of the past 8 years...along with some pictures from the face smash his Dad gave him tonight. Happy Birthday Bubba - I love you more than life itself. Today has been one filled with a scavenger hunt to find presents, lots of Lego Ninjago, a trip to Gamestop, Potpie for lunch, mommy's fried chicken with homemade cheesy potates for dinner and cake. It's been a very good day and I look forward to making the scavenger hunt even harder next year bud - so be ready :)



and now, the cake smash

Cake


Smash


Make a wish

What a pain in the butt

Literally. I had to see the surgeon today because, apparently, it's not ok to leave an open wound with packing in it without having it changed. So we went to the surgeon who had a sense of humor (of sorts) and began the conversation with "can i see your butt?" and then said he was just 'going to look'. WELL, that going to look ended up being him yanking out the packing, and then proceeding to squeeze my open wound to make sure it was all cleared from infection, and THEN topping off that wonderful visit by RE-PACKING the wound - ALL WITHOUT ANY PAIN CONTROL. Mind you, at the ER they gave me a shot of morphine before they even touched the area. They then used local anesthetic to numb it and even then it hurt a bit...but today was... full of tears and followed with a viocodin and chinese food.

Tonight, after our eventful day, Nic's Uncle Paul came to visit which was great because it was the first time the kids and I have been able to meet him. He stayed for quite awhile, they talked football stuff and I sat there on the couch, pretty much completely unmoving and half asleep because of my loopy pills. BUT the kids truly enjoyed playing his phone and talking to him. Even the shy Juliette was up, laying on the arm of the couch right next to him talking his ear off. Tomorrow we are going to make the hour long drive out to his place so we can see Kieran (Nic's aunt), along with his cousins and will hopefully be able to visit Kieran's ranch. She's got horses and the kids are going to be ecstatic! I will, likely, be worried they are going to spook a horse, get kicked or otherwise hurt themselves but I'll be too slow moving to stop them if they do. LOL

Anyhow, during his visit Uncle Paul held Cayleigh for a good 45 minutes in which time we snapped a few shots. She only stayed awake for a few short minutes before snuggling into him and dozing off for a nap. She is just so, so sweet. You really can't help but love her :)

This lady is going to bed! Thankful for 4 beautiful children, a great husband, strong marriage, a God who is faithful and in control, a home to call our own, our health, and just every other blessing God has bestowed upon us ~ and even those we can't see just yet. I am just thankful. God is so good - and I hope you know Him.

Before


After

Pain, Sleep, Cheer and Legos

Daddy pretty much handled things today since I had an unexpected surgery last night. Just been in a little pain today and am thankful he was home to help so much. We ended up keeping the kids home from school because we didn't have the van but Nic got it all taken care of and our van is happily parked in the garage tonight. Daddy took Juliette to cheer practice today so I didn't get to see what she worked on & have no pictures. However, he brought home a sheet of her cheer moves and another sheet with the actual chants. Are they even called chants? Anyhow ~ she was excited to go this time and came home, ready to eat and go to bed. That means she must've worked hard, right? Tayla and I worked on her enterance questions for the FLL (First Lego League) Robotics Club that she wants to be a part of. Tomorrow she will submit the form at school and we should hear something next week. Next week also starts the beginning of her 2 week long, before and after school Safety Committee (Crossing Guard type thing) Duties. Jacob really wanted to be a part of the FLL Club but he isn't old enough yet. So we will keep our ears and eyes open to get him started in some type of sport or club. All of these opportunities for the kids is an affirmation for me that moving here was the right move for our family. I definitely had a peace about it and believe fully that if you have peace about something after praying then the Holy Spirit must be guiding you in that direction. Next Wednesday, Sept 5th, we will have our "big" ultrasound and first meeting with this high-risk doctors group locally. I'm ready to meet these doctors and see what they have to say. They specialize in 'advanced ultrasounds and testing' so we'll see what happens. I am just ready to have them tell me this IS a boy. Because I already know it in my heart and believe fully that the Lord spoke to me and told me I would have a son, and was to name him Noah, two weeks before I even found out I was pregnant. So here I am, ready to bed (again, because I had a nap today) and in not as much pain as I was earlier thanks to my 'friend' Norco. I'm definitely ready to NOT have to take these stupid pills, but I'll keep them on hand for after the c-section. Anyhow ~ I hope you're all having a great night. A big thanks to everyone who has helped us get closer to getting the equipment we desperately need for our Cayleigh. I can't wait to see how much she lights up when she can see. We've had glasses before, but they weren't special fit, custom glasses and they squeezed her eyeball, her face and just weren't right for her. Time for me to get to bed!

Cheer Baby, Cheer

If you've ever heard the sound of an overly heavy sigh being let out of an exhausted woman inser that *right here* This morning daddy took them to school while I took care of the beautiful Ms Cayleigh. While he's home we switch on and off which allows one of us to get that glorious extra 30 minutes of sleep. I spent my day with Cayleigh Jean after running errands this morning, and ended up taking oodles of vidoes and pictures of her perfectness. I especially love how happy she is when I bounce her on my leg... her smile could melt an iceberg. When it came time to pick up the kids from school I prepared all of her equipment, and feeding stuff, and we headed in to Tayla's Robotnics seminar at the school to learn about their selection process. Out of the thirty + kids there, only 10 slots were available to be on the team. They (the two men presenting) would select their candidates based on their responses on a form we brought home. At this point, she'll complete it and 'we'll see'. I had enough time to get dinner together, feed Cayleigh and then it was off to Juliette's cheer practice tonight. She did SO great. I was beyond proud and thrilled that her team is the Green Bay Packers. Her coaches name is Cindy and she seemed to be very nice. Juliette is the only Kindergartener and seemed small in comparison to the other girls on the squad. Since this lady is beyond ready for bed I'll just include a few pictures I was able to snap. I wanted to be close but not distracting but she did brilliantly! She got the basics down and we'll be practicing here at home. For her very first time ever cheerleading, and having never ever seen cheerleaders on TV before, she did AWESOME. Oh, and when I put her to bed tonight she was combing her hair. I said to her "here, let me help" to which she said "Mom, I got this, I'm a cheerleader you know". How could I forget?

Busy Schedules.. CHECK

Tomorrow begins the chaos. We just signed Juliette, the 5 yr old Kindergartener, for cheerleading and her coach called tonight with the schedule. They will have practice twice a week, Tuesday & Thursdays, for an hour in the evening. She has no experience, will be the only Grade K on the squad and is both hesitant and excited all at the same time. Her little outfit "uniform" will be here within the next week or so and their first 'game' is in 2 weeks! Holy cow! Tayla, the 11 yr old 6th grader, signed up for Crossing Guard duties at the school and her week long (bi-weekly) shift, where I'll have to have her at school at 8:00 am (40 minutes early) and pick up 15 minutes after school gets out. Tomorrow, however, she and I (along with the rest of the kids) will be attending an after school meeting for the Lego Robotonics team which she wants to try out for. She'll have to complete some type of project and then submit it. I'm assuming they then 'judge' the projects and decide who will be included in the club and who won't. They'll then be put onto teams to work together and build totally awesome, moving, stuff. Jacob hasn't found his niche just yet - but we're on the prowl. Cayleigh starts PT and OT within the next month or so and we'll see how it goes! That's it for tonight.... thanks for reading

Intro

Here is an attempt at keeping in touch with family & friends (outside of Facebook *gasp*). This blog will be managed by both Nic & I, but mostly just me :) Hope you all will select "Follow" so you'll be able to stay on top of wen new posts are available. Our lives aren't necessarily the most interesting, action packed or fun filled - but its the one we choose to live. A family of 6 with #7 in the works... here's to trying to actually keep up a blog for once ;)

Cayleigh Jean

Cayleigh Jean, Cayleigh Jean..what do you see?
Friday, April 6, 2012

Cayleigh was in the hospital at Childrens Oakland in the ICU for quite some time {over week} with Pnuemonia, RSV and Bronchiolitis! Poor kid. She was actually put on a ventilator as it was just too much with her retractions to be able to breathe without really, REALLY struggling.

That being said..... she's home. She's doing pretty great considering all she's been through. With 3 days of NPO (not given any food) she lost more than 2 lbs but, on the bright side, she can now fit in her skinny jeans. *kidding*

We're so happy she's back. It's always such a devastation when she goes in to the hospital and its not just because she's sick. It's the emotional, financial and mental impact it all has on all of us. There's stuff you see in the ICU that you just shouldn't ever have to see, or have happen to you, in your lifetime. The hardest part? Having to be away from her for any extended amount of time. She's a big girl now and she knows if we aren't there. She's got definite stranger anxiety and she'll cry if she doesn't know someone (her silent crying) or just doesn't like them. That doesn't just pull at your heart strings as parents - it literally takes surgical scissors and cuts them altogether. We were able to stay pretty close at a nearby hotel thanks to the unforseen support of strangers. It's incredible the way that God blesses those who love Him using His people. :)

For those who aren't up to the latest:

Cayleigh is 13 1/2 months
She can roll from her back to her stomach from either side
She uses her arms alot more than she ever has
She loves to play with her thumbs
She has a trach
She has a g-tube
She has an incredible smile
She loves Brown Bear, Brown Bear Chicka Chicka ABC and any Touch & Feel book
She knows DADA and lights up if she hears him, senses him or you say his name
She wiggles...ALOT
She's hard to hold because she wiggles so much
She SORT OF can sit up
She can pretty much hold her head up by herself
She has beautiful eyes
She has curly hair
She drools alot
She's my sunshine

Lift is so busy

March 6, 2012

There's nothing like remembering to post your blessings after you've tried to convince yourself to blog about your blessings every day. My blessings are plentiful and I didn't mean to forget to post them..but still, I did.

So here is what I'm thankful for...

1. My husband, because he's amazing and after having had him in my life I'd be lost without him

2. My children, they are the reason I'm who I am. I've been a mother for over a decade (11 years this August) and I learn something new about being how to be better at it each day. I think Cay really took me from just a other to being someone who is trying to be more understanding, more patient, more loving and most of all - appreciative of my children.

3. My time and talent that the Lord has given to me. I only hope to bless others abundantly in the time to come.

My Greatest Blessings

March 3, 2012


I felt compelled to write tonight about my greatest accomplishments in life. For some, your greatest accomplishment may bring to mind tangible things like your home, car, job or even your education. My greatest accomplishment in life are not things that can be achieved - they are the very people that God has blessed my life with - my family.

My greatest accomplishments are in the form of blessings. I feel honored that God ordained for me to be the mother of four amazing children and the wife to one amazing man. Of all His people, He chose me. Wow, just wow. How LUCKY am I?

I saw a young mother this afternoon in the checkout line at the store who had two young, tow headed boys around 5 and 2. The smallest boy idolized his big brother and wanted to touch everything his big brother touched, to go where he went and to show him everything he found interesting. Mind you, these young boys were faced with an array of candy, toys and other craft items that are there with the sole purpose of pressing on our impulse buying nerves. Well, the youngest boy picked up, touched and 'oooh'd' over just about everything he saw. The mother was so clearly frazzled and tended to the boys while trying not to lose her place in an every growing line. As she told the youngest boy, for the tenth time, that he needed to put the cotton candy snack down because they weren't buying it, she looked at me with apologetic eyes. I smiled at her and said "Just think, in a few years you won't be able to get them to go to the store with you even if you tried". It must've hit her like a ton of bricks because her voice perked up and she smiled and said "I try to remember that" and I said "You've been really blessed with those boys".

So tonight I'm remembering that I, too, have been really blessed. I love my children, I love my husband, and I will make each day one in which I treasure the very moments that I have with them here on Earth, and I will remind them and be comforted in knowing that I will be with them in Heaven forevermore. Thank the Lord for the promise of eternal life.

Remember that we only have a few short years to mold our children, to teach them right from wrong and to instill in them the values that will shape their future.

Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.

I am THANKFUL for...

1 Eternal Life
2 My Salvation
3 My Husband
4 My Children
5 YOU

Oh Man

Dang.
2-21-12

It's not that I haven't had blessings {because I have}, it's just that I haven't remembered to post them. *sigh* I think I warned myself about this when I first began this blog - but here I am! So, HA! (and I say that to myself)

Today was an uneventful day outside of my waking up {dreadfully sick, finding out the day nurse we'd just hired called off that day, Nic taking care of Cayleigh & Juliette all day while I was quarantined in the bedroom, Nic getting a call from the nursing agency to find out the day nurse had quit stating it was "too hard", and then {again} Nic finishing up the night feeding the kids, getting them bathed, in bed, pj's on, our dinner made} and am now sitting here typing this. *yawn*

Today I'm thankful for...

#1 GOD - For His Mercy, Healing, Forgiveness, Provisions, Love and for being HIM!
#2 MY HUSBAND - For Being The Very Best Husband EVER
#3 MY CHILDREN - For Being My Children.. the good, the bad and the ugly.
#4 My BUSINESS - For The Possibilities and the Blessings.

That's about all this clouded head can muster up tonight. But hey, I remembered to blog and that counts for something.

1 John 4:16 "....God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. "