We spent our first night in the ER last night. Wow, that was fun. Garrett has always been susceptible to the croup, so because of that we've researched all of the ways to help him here at home. We sat in the bathroom with a steaming hot shower running, we gave him a breathing treatment that he didn't want and wouldn't cooperate for, I tried propping him up a lot with pillows. In the past atleast one of those tricks would work and after maybe an hour, Garrett would be fine and go back to sleep. Last night, nothing worked unless we were holding him directly over the humidifier, and even then it wasn't very much help. He was struggling to breathe, anytime he attempted to say anything to us it took a lot of effort for him to talk and his voice was really hoarse. At one point he looked to Keith and croaked, "Daddy help." Finally, at 3am, we headed to the hospital. I've been in an ER a handfull of times growing up for a variety of my siblings, but I've never had to go specifically for me and we've never taken Garrett. Keith was apparently super healthy growing up because he had never been in an ER before. It really wasn't the bad experience I was expecting. I've heard horror stories about people waiting for hours, but we were in and out within 2 hours so I didn't think that was too bad. Garrett was given a steriod to help reduce the swelling in his windpipe, then we had to hold him down so they could do a breathing treatment, and lastly we had the fun time of getting an x-ray on a 2 year old. You have to be part-contortionist to keep that lead apron on, plus hold your child's hands or legs a certain way, and keep them sitting where they need to be, it was crazy, but the x-ray tech was super nice and she got us done really quickly. We were given a prescription for a few more days worth of the steriod medicine and then we got to leave. We finally got into bed around 5:15 or so and I think I basically died because I was so exhausted, I don't even really know what Garrett did (he was in our bed with us), I assume he went to sleep as quickly as I did because I didn't hear anything until 7:30. As the day wears on, he's sounding better and better. I'm in hopes that we don't have to deal with this again tonight, obviously the meds should help that, but it won't prevent it completely. Croup is basically the cold virus that becomes croup in some kids (of course we're lucky enough to have one of those kids), but if you're not careful their vocal cords and windpipe can swell shut, hence the need for the steriods to prevent the swelling when the other remedies aren't working.
We've just had a crazy week and I ask myself on a daily basis when I'm going to get to sleep a full night. As I said in a previous blog, Garrett was sick most of Christmas Eve night with a stomach bug, then I made the super intelligent decision to take down Garrett's crib and move him into a big bed on Saturday. He's almost 2 and a half and too tall for the crib, according to their specs. He used to climb out of it all the time, but when I started making him nap in the big bed, he threw a big fit and stopped trying to climb out. So Saturday night was crazy because at that time we still had his crib set up as a toddler bed even though he looks huge in there. We kept hearing him wake up and then he would switch beds all night long, so Keith (being the kind-hearted Dad that he is) brought him to our bed because he felt sorry for him that his crib was no longer in existence. I can't sleep with a 2 year old kicking and poking me all night, plus he grinds his teeth terribly! So with his issues and Keith's snoring, I got no sleep Saturday night. Then we get the lovely croup episode on Sunday night, so I think I've had 5 hours of sleep in the past 2 days. On top of all of this, our water heater went out on Saturday, so during all of his free time Saturday, Sunday and now today, Keith is trying to get it replaced. Actually he has it replaced, but the new one is leaking, so he's had to buy all kinds of parts and tools trying to fix it. I feel the most sorry for him because he's probably had less sleep than me. I don't know why everything has to happen at once. Of course the crib thing is totally my fault and believe me, had I known the croup was going to pop up out of nowhere last night, I wouldn't have taken down the crib when I did.
I never knew parenting would be so crazy. I guess my parents did it with appearing ease since there were 5 of us, they probably just walked around in a state of crazy all of the time and that was just normal. (I'm kidding, Momma!) Nobody points out all of these fun things when you're pregnant or talking about having a baby. You might hear a few things about the lack of sleep the first few months, but nobody mentioned the lack of sleep for years later on. And to think that I actually want another one. Am I crazy?
Monday, December 31, 2007
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Let's All Burst Into Song
I'm sitting here watching "The Sound of Music", which is on TV tonight. First off, I am a big fan of this movie, and a lot of other musicals. I grew up watching them, me and all my siblings would sing along while watching "Seven Brides For Seven Brothers" or "Newsies" (which was one of Christian Bale's very first movies, by the way. He's a pretty good singer.) or "Sound of Music. It brings back very fond, very good memories to watch these old movies. However, now that I'm an old, cynical person, I find myself struck by the very odd moments when people burst into song in these musicals. I didn't really notice it when I was young, I just loved belting out the awesome music along with the movie, but now I find myself laughing and asking Keith what he would do if I just busted out singing right in the middle of doing a random, mundane task. He just looked at me as if I had two heads and went about his business. He isn't a musical movie-type of guy. He had actually never seen "The Sound of Music" until tonight when I've forced him to leave the channel where it is, though I don't think he's really watching, just probably getting irritated at me while I sing along and repeat the lines of this movie. But back to the singing, I would like to know where the idea of the musical came from because if someone actually lived like this, they would be viewed as very strange indeed. It's one thing to break out into a New Kids on the Block song because you can't get it out of your head, it's a completely different thing to start singing about what you're doing, and just making up a song as you go. I will admit that I do a little singing with Garrett, and I make up songs occasionally to break up the monotony, so maybe it was a bored stay at home mom who originally wrote the first musical, it was just a script of her day to day life where she sang things to her kids as they did them. I realize musicals aren't really a current movie being made, but they definitely had their moment in time.
I enjoy rewatching these old movies because of the memories that it evokes. I can feel myself being transported back to when I was maybe around 7 or 8 and we were all sitting on my parents' bed with popcorn watching "The Sound of Music". I'm not really sure why we were on their bed and not sitting in the living room, but that's what I remember. Momma or Daddy, you can correct me if I'm wrong on that. I won't forget that time we went to the movie theater to see "Newsies" for the first time. My sister and I fell in love with Christian Bale (atleast, I did, I assume Grace did, but maybe she didn't...). I remember going out and buying the soundtrack just as soon as I could afford it. I guess the appeal back then was partly the music. Our family was always very big into music, so watching musicals was only natural for us. I have no idea if this will be something that gets passed down to my child, my love for musicals. I would like to think so, but you never can tell. So, what about you? Do you like musicals? Did you grow up watching them with your family?
I enjoy rewatching these old movies because of the memories that it evokes. I can feel myself being transported back to when I was maybe around 7 or 8 and we were all sitting on my parents' bed with popcorn watching "The Sound of Music". I'm not really sure why we were on their bed and not sitting in the living room, but that's what I remember. Momma or Daddy, you can correct me if I'm wrong on that. I won't forget that time we went to the movie theater to see "Newsies" for the first time. My sister and I fell in love with Christian Bale (atleast, I did, I assume Grace did, but maybe she didn't...). I remember going out and buying the soundtrack just as soon as I could afford it. I guess the appeal back then was partly the music. Our family was always very big into music, so watching musicals was only natural for us. I have no idea if this will be something that gets passed down to my child, my love for musicals. I would like to think so, but you never can tell. So, what about you? Do you like musicals? Did you grow up watching them with your family?
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Does Anyone Have a Barf Bag?
Well, another Christmas has come and gone. All of the presents have been unwrapped, the trash can is overflowing with wrapping paper and a million twist ties, toy companies have now determined they are the best theft deterrant, I guess. We had a great Christmas but it was very similar to last year, in the fact that Garrett was sick, AGAIN. Thankfully we didn't have to spend the day at the minor emergency clinic with 105 degree fever like last year, but I would love to celebrate Christmas day with a healthy child and a full night's sleep the night before.
Yesterday, we went to my in-law's for the day and exchanged presents with them. Garrett made out like a bandit with a new tricycle, clothes, a few small toys and a stick horse. He doesn't quite understand the concept of a stick horse. You know, one of those horse's heads on a broom stick that you can pretend to ride around the house. But I'm sure he'll figure it out. Keith's family draws names, which makes things pretty simple. I had his name and he had his mom's name, which translates to me buying everything. I got him a handgun, which he was super excited about. His brother-in-law had my name and he gave me a ton of placemats, cloth napkins, and napkin rings. That may not excite some of you, but I've been wanting a variety of those, so I'm looking forward to decorating my dining room table with the seasons.
After exchanging gifts we all went to Keith's grandparents' for supper and more gift exchanging. Let me just say that their house was super hot! The thermostat was set on 80 degrees (no kidding, Keith checked and almost passed out) and the stove had probably been on for the entire day leading up to everyone coming over. Garrett started getting real grouchy. He hadn't napped at all, barely eaten at lunch, and had just downed half a glass of Sunny Delight (something he had never had). All of those things led to the perfect storm with a toddler, but instead of a tantrum, we had vomiting. Yes, it was a sight to behold. Fortunately (ha!) he only got it on me and the tile kitchen floor. I had already finished eating and Keith was about 3/4's of the way through, so we changed his clothes and headed home. We figured he had just gotten overheated and the Sunny D didn't set well on his stomach. Garrett was already acting like he felt much better, but that wasn't to last. About 15 minutes down the road, he started all over again. Keith and I were doing everything possible to keep from adding to the mess ourselves. I stripped Garrett down to his diaper, covered his carseat with a blanket and then covered Garrett with my coat. We somehow managed to make it home without any more messes.
We unstrapped the carseat and carried Garrett in, carseat and all. He was sacked out by this point. We cleaned out the car, thankfully the mess he made stayed on him and in his carseat. Then Garrett took a quick bath and got ready for bed. His last gift to open at Grandma's was a Buzz Lightyear doll. He has become obsessed with Toy Story lately. Once he was bathed, he seemed to be feeling better and wanted to play with Buzz, so we also let him open the Woody doll that we bought him. He was thrilled and Buzz and Woody helped to make him feel better. He went to bed hugging both dolls with a smile on his face. We were in hopes that we had seen the last of the stomach monster. Ha, ha, again. At midnight (after I had only been asleep for an hour due to getting out all of the presents and stuffing the stockings), I heard Garrett calling me. He had left me a present on his pillow. Really Garrett, you shouldn't have. After cleaning everything up, Garrett and I got into the big bed in his room (he's still in the crib). About 15 minutes later, he christened that bed. I was thinking, "we're running out of beds." So we headed to the living room. I covered one couch in towels, put a trashcan next to him on the floor (not that he understands the concept of aiming), and I "slept" on the other couch. Since Garrett still sleeps in a crib, he's not used to sleeping anywhere without sides to hold him in, so every move that he made woke me up because I was worried he would roll off the couch (he didn't). When I woke up at 4:30 to him playing with Buzz and Woody, I changed the bedding on his crib and put him in there. I crashed in my bed and managed to sleep for about 3 hours before Garrett woke us up for good this morning. Thankfully he wasn't sick, just awake and ready to get up. How exactly can kids still wake up at their normal time after such little sleep the night before? It's so irritating.
We got up and had a great time opening presents. Garrett was thrilled with everything he got and has kept himself busy playing all day (though he did take a 3.5 hour nap this afternoon, so that was wonderful). Keith did an awesome job buying for me, as he always does. I got a new iPod!!! I've only had an iPod shuffle up until now. It's so neat to watch videos on this tiny screen! (I'm laughing as I type that last sentence, seeing as how we still have a 19" TV, I should be used to watching videos on a tiny screen. ) He also bought me a new iron and breadbox (both things I asked for and was excited to get). He picked out a very nice picture to hang in our bedroom (he has great decorating taste, better than me most of the time). I'm still in the midst of trying to decorate our house and our bedroom walls are completely bare after having lived here for almost 5 years. I'm embarrassed to admit that, but it's true. I also got some smaller things like books, socks, a candle, some photo albums, and another season of "Friends". I managed to squeeze in a 30 minute nap while Garrett was sleeping and we've spent most of the afternoon washing all of the bedding that we went through last night and cleaning up the wrapping paper covering our living room floor. I think the bug or illness or whatever it was that we experienced yesterday and last night, is finally over. I do have to admit that this was our first time dealing with a stomach virus with Garrett, so I am very thankful that he hasn't had one before. Now I'm just in hopes that Keith and I didn't catch anything. I'm sure we'll find out in the next few days.
I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and I pray that we all experience God's blessings in the New Year! Here's to everyone being healthy!
Yesterday, we went to my in-law's for the day and exchanged presents with them. Garrett made out like a bandit with a new tricycle, clothes, a few small toys and a stick horse. He doesn't quite understand the concept of a stick horse. You know, one of those horse's heads on a broom stick that you can pretend to ride around the house. But I'm sure he'll figure it out. Keith's family draws names, which makes things pretty simple. I had his name and he had his mom's name, which translates to me buying everything. I got him a handgun, which he was super excited about. His brother-in-law had my name and he gave me a ton of placemats, cloth napkins, and napkin rings. That may not excite some of you, but I've been wanting a variety of those, so I'm looking forward to decorating my dining room table with the seasons.
After exchanging gifts we all went to Keith's grandparents' for supper and more gift exchanging. Let me just say that their house was super hot! The thermostat was set on 80 degrees (no kidding, Keith checked and almost passed out) and the stove had probably been on for the entire day leading up to everyone coming over. Garrett started getting real grouchy. He hadn't napped at all, barely eaten at lunch, and had just downed half a glass of Sunny Delight (something he had never had). All of those things led to the perfect storm with a toddler, but instead of a tantrum, we had vomiting. Yes, it was a sight to behold. Fortunately (ha!) he only got it on me and the tile kitchen floor. I had already finished eating and Keith was about 3/4's of the way through, so we changed his clothes and headed home. We figured he had just gotten overheated and the Sunny D didn't set well on his stomach. Garrett was already acting like he felt much better, but that wasn't to last. About 15 minutes down the road, he started all over again. Keith and I were doing everything possible to keep from adding to the mess ourselves. I stripped Garrett down to his diaper, covered his carseat with a blanket and then covered Garrett with my coat. We somehow managed to make it home without any more messes.
We unstrapped the carseat and carried Garrett in, carseat and all. He was sacked out by this point. We cleaned out the car, thankfully the mess he made stayed on him and in his carseat. Then Garrett took a quick bath and got ready for bed. His last gift to open at Grandma's was a Buzz Lightyear doll. He has become obsessed with Toy Story lately. Once he was bathed, he seemed to be feeling better and wanted to play with Buzz, so we also let him open the Woody doll that we bought him. He was thrilled and Buzz and Woody helped to make him feel better. He went to bed hugging both dolls with a smile on his face. We were in hopes that we had seen the last of the stomach monster. Ha, ha, again. At midnight (after I had only been asleep for an hour due to getting out all of the presents and stuffing the stockings), I heard Garrett calling me. He had left me a present on his pillow. Really Garrett, you shouldn't have. After cleaning everything up, Garrett and I got into the big bed in his room (he's still in the crib). About 15 minutes later, he christened that bed. I was thinking, "we're running out of beds." So we headed to the living room. I covered one couch in towels, put a trashcan next to him on the floor (not that he understands the concept of aiming), and I "slept" on the other couch. Since Garrett still sleeps in a crib, he's not used to sleeping anywhere without sides to hold him in, so every move that he made woke me up because I was worried he would roll off the couch (he didn't). When I woke up at 4:30 to him playing with Buzz and Woody, I changed the bedding on his crib and put him in there. I crashed in my bed and managed to sleep for about 3 hours before Garrett woke us up for good this morning. Thankfully he wasn't sick, just awake and ready to get up. How exactly can kids still wake up at their normal time after such little sleep the night before? It's so irritating.
We got up and had a great time opening presents. Garrett was thrilled with everything he got and has kept himself busy playing all day (though he did take a 3.5 hour nap this afternoon, so that was wonderful). Keith did an awesome job buying for me, as he always does. I got a new iPod!!! I've only had an iPod shuffle up until now. It's so neat to watch videos on this tiny screen! (I'm laughing as I type that last sentence, seeing as how we still have a 19" TV, I should be used to watching videos on a tiny screen. ) He also bought me a new iron and breadbox (both things I asked for and was excited to get). He picked out a very nice picture to hang in our bedroom (he has great decorating taste, better than me most of the time). I'm still in the midst of trying to decorate our house and our bedroom walls are completely bare after having lived here for almost 5 years. I'm embarrassed to admit that, but it's true. I also got some smaller things like books, socks, a candle, some photo albums, and another season of "Friends". I managed to squeeze in a 30 minute nap while Garrett was sleeping and we've spent most of the afternoon washing all of the bedding that we went through last night and cleaning up the wrapping paper covering our living room floor. I think the bug or illness or whatever it was that we experienced yesterday and last night, is finally over. I do have to admit that this was our first time dealing with a stomach virus with Garrett, so I am very thankful that he hasn't had one before. Now I'm just in hopes that Keith and I didn't catch anything. I'm sure we'll find out in the next few days.
I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and I pray that we all experience God's blessings in the New Year! Here's to everyone being healthy!
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Embarrassing Moments
I was reading a blog that I check periodically and the author had posted a list of her most embarassing moments to date. I found it very funny, but I'm sadistic like that. So I thought I would do the same here. I'm sure my family and maybe some friends will be able to contribute more moments that I'm forgetting. To make it easier for myself, I'm going to attempt to do this chronologically.
~When I started school, I was very conscientious about following the rules and one day in kindergarten I got my name on the board for talking when we were supposed to be lining up for something. I was beyond humiliated.
~Fifth grade was my next year to be in public school (I was homeschooled from first to fourth grades) and I just wanted to blend in. One day in the cafeteria, the lunch lady let go of my tray before I had a hold on it and it spilled, peas flew everywhere, I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me. There went blending in...
~Sixth grade was my first year to play basketball. We had a few weeks of practice before the first game so I felt pretty confident in what was to come, boy was I wrong. I wasn't a starter for that first game (is anyone really surprised by that?), but I did luck out and got to be the first to sub in for one of the starters. Unfortunately for me, and my coach, he had never gone over the process for checking in to the game and waiting for the ref to call you on the floor, so I just trotted out on the court in the middle of the game. My coach screamed at me, I ran back, very embarassed. At that point he should have just left me on the bench, but he didn't. After being in the game for a short while I attempted my first shot, I missed, which was a good thing because we were on the other team's side of the court! It would have been much more humiliating to score for the other team than just having missed the shot.
~My junior high class was very small (12 kids) and I was named valedictorian when we graduated in 8th grade. When I got up to give my speech I just broke down and started crying my eyes out in front of a gym full of people. Thankfully we have it on video (insert rolling eyes here) so I can watch this humiliation as often as I want. After standing there for hours (not really) sobbing, I turned to my teacher and told him that I couldn't do it. He was also crying (probably because I was ruining the ceremony), and told me to get on with it already, or something along those lines.
~There's one from my freshman year of high school that I am not going to share, it was beyond embarassing.
~The many times that I attempted to sing a special at church and broke down in tears. I honestly have lost count how many times that happened.
~More than that, the bazillions of times that I've fallen down. I am the world's biggest klutz and have plenty of stories about falling down. On our way to church camp, we stopped to spend the night at a church, I fell down a flight of stairs and sprained my ankle. No fun for me at camp that year, I had to use the handicap showers because I just couldn't stand that long.
~In college, I was playing wiffle ball with my siblings. Second base was a towel, I tripped, fell, scraped my knee off.
~When Keith and I were dating, I was going to church with him one Sunday morning, we had to cross a highway due to the parking at that church, I was hurrying because a car was coming, I tripped over a rock on the side of the road and fell in front of a bunch of people at church. Keith had to take me home to clean up. I was too embarassed to go back that morning.
~Another time on my way into church, I tripped and fell. One of my sisters was behind me and I remember her saying that one minute she saw me and the next minute she didn't. She thought I had rolled under the car and I was going to jump out and scare her. Sure, in a dress, I fell down just to scare you. I wish I had thought of that.
~When I was teaching, I was walking down the hallway and met my principal, at that exact moment my foot slipped out from under me and I went down on one knee. After she asked how I was, we both busted out laughing. But I was secretly so embarassed that I had done that in front of her.
~At 15 weeks pregnant, I was in the doctor's office for a check up. It was one of those appointments where I had to have some blood work done. Afterwards I got light headed while I was standing at the check-out desk paying and making my next appointment. I had to lay down on that lady's desk because I was about to pass out. A nurse had to come and get me. She made me lay down on a cot until I felt better.
~Last summer, a good number of my family was at my house for a visit. I slipped on thin air and fell splat on my face on the kitchen tile. After my mom found out that I was ok, she immediately went to inform everyone who hadn't seen this happen. Thankfully my family is full of clumsy people because then I got to hear stories about other people falling.
That's about all that I can share. I'm not going to share the time that I sneezed and then peed on myself (I was pregnant), or that time at church where I accidentally tucked my skirt into my hose and my DAD was the person to notice and tell me to fix it, or the time I was bad-mouthing a guy I didn't like and forgot that I was in the middle of video taping a church softball game and that guy watched it later on....
~When I started school, I was very conscientious about following the rules and one day in kindergarten I got my name on the board for talking when we were supposed to be lining up for something. I was beyond humiliated.
~Fifth grade was my next year to be in public school (I was homeschooled from first to fourth grades) and I just wanted to blend in. One day in the cafeteria, the lunch lady let go of my tray before I had a hold on it and it spilled, peas flew everywhere, I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me. There went blending in...
~Sixth grade was my first year to play basketball. We had a few weeks of practice before the first game so I felt pretty confident in what was to come, boy was I wrong. I wasn't a starter for that first game (is anyone really surprised by that?), but I did luck out and got to be the first to sub in for one of the starters. Unfortunately for me, and my coach, he had never gone over the process for checking in to the game and waiting for the ref to call you on the floor, so I just trotted out on the court in the middle of the game. My coach screamed at me, I ran back, very embarassed. At that point he should have just left me on the bench, but he didn't. After being in the game for a short while I attempted my first shot, I missed, which was a good thing because we were on the other team's side of the court! It would have been much more humiliating to score for the other team than just having missed the shot.
~My junior high class was very small (12 kids) and I was named valedictorian when we graduated in 8th grade. When I got up to give my speech I just broke down and started crying my eyes out in front of a gym full of people. Thankfully we have it on video (insert rolling eyes here) so I can watch this humiliation as often as I want. After standing there for hours (not really) sobbing, I turned to my teacher and told him that I couldn't do it. He was also crying (probably because I was ruining the ceremony), and told me to get on with it already, or something along those lines.
~There's one from my freshman year of high school that I am not going to share, it was beyond embarassing.
~The many times that I attempted to sing a special at church and broke down in tears. I honestly have lost count how many times that happened.
~More than that, the bazillions of times that I've fallen down. I am the world's biggest klutz and have plenty of stories about falling down. On our way to church camp, we stopped to spend the night at a church, I fell down a flight of stairs and sprained my ankle. No fun for me at camp that year, I had to use the handicap showers because I just couldn't stand that long.
~In college, I was playing wiffle ball with my siblings. Second base was a towel, I tripped, fell, scraped my knee off.
~When Keith and I were dating, I was going to church with him one Sunday morning, we had to cross a highway due to the parking at that church, I was hurrying because a car was coming, I tripped over a rock on the side of the road and fell in front of a bunch of people at church. Keith had to take me home to clean up. I was too embarassed to go back that morning.
~Another time on my way into church, I tripped and fell. One of my sisters was behind me and I remember her saying that one minute she saw me and the next minute she didn't. She thought I had rolled under the car and I was going to jump out and scare her. Sure, in a dress, I fell down just to scare you. I wish I had thought of that.
~When I was teaching, I was walking down the hallway and met my principal, at that exact moment my foot slipped out from under me and I went down on one knee. After she asked how I was, we both busted out laughing. But I was secretly so embarassed that I had done that in front of her.
~At 15 weeks pregnant, I was in the doctor's office for a check up. It was one of those appointments where I had to have some blood work done. Afterwards I got light headed while I was standing at the check-out desk paying and making my next appointment. I had to lay down on that lady's desk because I was about to pass out. A nurse had to come and get me. She made me lay down on a cot until I felt better.
~Last summer, a good number of my family was at my house for a visit. I slipped on thin air and fell splat on my face on the kitchen tile. After my mom found out that I was ok, she immediately went to inform everyone who hadn't seen this happen. Thankfully my family is full of clumsy people because then I got to hear stories about other people falling.
That's about all that I can share. I'm not going to share the time that I sneezed and then peed on myself (I was pregnant), or that time at church where I accidentally tucked my skirt into my hose and my DAD was the person to notice and tell me to fix it, or the time I was bad-mouthing a guy I didn't like and forgot that I was in the middle of video taping a church softball game and that guy watched it later on....
Sunday, December 16, 2007
My Weekend (and Meeting Beth Moore!)
This weekend, me, Keith, and Garrett headed down to Huntsvegas (as my brother affectionately refers to Huntsville) to attend the college graduations of my brother, Brad, and my sister-in-law, Kristen. They both graduated and looked great in the process and we enjoyed getting to eat out and spend some time with them along with my parents and, for one meal, my sister Grace and her family (Christie and Jesse couldn't come due to work and school ). Kristen graduated on Friday night and Brad graduated Saturday afternoon, of course they couldn't graduate during the same ceremony! That would have been too easy.
Garrett did pretty well, he had his moments, but I brought a ton of stuff to entertain him, including a few of the small things that I had bought him for Christmas, so he did his 2 year old best to behave. Between graduations we all squeezed into my parents' hotel room and exchanged a few Christmas gifts. After supper on Saturday night we headed down to Houston to spend one more day with my family. On Sunday we got up and headed out to church. Brad and Kristen go to Houston's First Baptist Church. It's huge! But very nice and the pastor was great! Once again I wrestled with Garrett during the sermon, he did pretty well, but by this point he had already been forced to sit through two graduation ceremonies so he wasn't thrilled to be sitting through church. Why didn't we put him in the nursery, you might ask? Well, about half of the time that we put him in our own church's nursery where he's been going for 2 years, he throws a huge fit, like he doesn't know these women that he sees every Sunday or the kids that he enjoys playing with. I could only imagine how he would react if we were to try to get him to go to an unfamiliar nursery, so we decided to grin and bear it for one service.
We suspected that this was the church where Beth Moore was a member, but we weren't positive. Brad and Kristen aren't very familiar with Beth so they had no idea if she went there, and there's technically two First Baptist Church's in Houston, so there was always the possibility that she was a member at the other First Baptist Church. As we were leaving, we headed through the foyer and I immediately spotted the back of her head. I knew it was her, and she turned around and confirmed it. I turned to my mom and said, "I just saw her!" Now, I am not the type to just run up to a celebrity, I always worry that they aren't in the mood to sign an autograph or take a picture, so I was just planning to stand back and stare at her and maybe sneak a picture with my cell phone. But my mom had other plans. She marched right up to her and introduced herself and my dad, so I figured since she was already being bothered, I may as well meet her. She was super nice! I told her that I read her blog every day and she hugged me and said, "So you're one of my siestas." (If you read her blog, then you know what that means.) She even posed for a picture with us. She has a grandson who is just a few months younger than Garrett, so we chatted about them for a minute and I told her that her husband Keith and my husband Keith have a lot in common from what I've read about him in her blog. It was so much fun! We only talked to her for maybe 5 minutes, but she seemed very happy to meet us and super sweet. If I wasn't a big fan of her's before, I would be now.
After that we went for lunch at Fuddrucker's and then headed back to Brad and Kristen's apartment to squeeze in a little more visiting time. We headed back home this afternoon.
It was so wonderful to get to see my family and great that we were also able to have Christmas with them!
Garrett did pretty well, he had his moments, but I brought a ton of stuff to entertain him, including a few of the small things that I had bought him for Christmas, so he did his 2 year old best to behave. Between graduations we all squeezed into my parents' hotel room and exchanged a few Christmas gifts. After supper on Saturday night we headed down to Houston to spend one more day with my family. On Sunday we got up and headed out to church. Brad and Kristen go to Houston's First Baptist Church. It's huge! But very nice and the pastor was great! Once again I wrestled with Garrett during the sermon, he did pretty well, but by this point he had already been forced to sit through two graduation ceremonies so he wasn't thrilled to be sitting through church. Why didn't we put him in the nursery, you might ask? Well, about half of the time that we put him in our own church's nursery where he's been going for 2 years, he throws a huge fit, like he doesn't know these women that he sees every Sunday or the kids that he enjoys playing with. I could only imagine how he would react if we were to try to get him to go to an unfamiliar nursery, so we decided to grin and bear it for one service.
We suspected that this was the church where Beth Moore was a member, but we weren't positive. Brad and Kristen aren't very familiar with Beth so they had no idea if she went there, and there's technically two First Baptist Church's in Houston, so there was always the possibility that she was a member at the other First Baptist Church. As we were leaving, we headed through the foyer and I immediately spotted the back of her head. I knew it was her, and she turned around and confirmed it. I turned to my mom and said, "I just saw her!" Now, I am not the type to just run up to a celebrity, I always worry that they aren't in the mood to sign an autograph or take a picture, so I was just planning to stand back and stare at her and maybe sneak a picture with my cell phone. But my mom had other plans. She marched right up to her and introduced herself and my dad, so I figured since she was already being bothered, I may as well meet her. She was super nice! I told her that I read her blog every day and she hugged me and said, "So you're one of my siestas." (If you read her blog, then you know what that means.) She even posed for a picture with us. She has a grandson who is just a few months younger than Garrett, so we chatted about them for a minute and I told her that her husband Keith and my husband Keith have a lot in common from what I've read about him in her blog. It was so much fun! We only talked to her for maybe 5 minutes, but she seemed very happy to meet us and super sweet. If I wasn't a big fan of her's before, I would be now.
After that we went for lunch at Fuddrucker's and then headed back to Brad and Kristen's apartment to squeeze in a little more visiting time. We headed back home this afternoon.
It was so wonderful to get to see my family and great that we were also able to have Christmas with them!
Thursday, December 13, 2007
The Big 2-9
I am having a hard time comprehending the fact that I am officially 29 today. Only 364 days until I am no longer considering to be a young, 20 something. Or halfway to 60, as my loving brother told me on the phone earlier today. It's hard to believe that 10 years ago, I was already out of high school. It's been more than 10 years since those days! I still feel like a teenager. I used to think adults were crazy when they would say things like that and I thought for sure that when I was "old" I would feel my age, but that just isn't true. I don't look in the mirror and see an almost 30 year old. I still think of myself as being atleast 20, if not younger. I'm sure the rest of you don't see that, you can see the grey hairs that are popping up with scary regularity, the little wrinkles I'm getting around my eyes, the fact that I honestly do not have the energy that I hope I used to have. In a way, it's depressing. Had you asked me 15 years ago where I would be when I turned 30, I definitely wouldn't have replied with where I am today. Not that there's anything wrong with my current life, but it just seems like I should be doing more than I am. That being this close to 30 would make me more successful and ambitious. I don't know why I feel that way because all of my life I wanted to be a stay at home mom. I've achieved that, along with a teaching degree that I never really planned on but I'm thankful for. I guess I thought stay at home moms were more glamorous than we really are. There's not a lot of glamour that comes along with washing the same clothes week by week, or picking up the same toys hour by hour. It can be a little monotonous, but I'll take it over the chaos that was my life when I was a working mom for Garrett's first 9 months. I don't know how you working moms do it! You're awesome!
It didn't bother me when Keith turned 30. Of course he's 2.5 years older than me, so I was just happy to still be 27 when the big day came around for him. It didn't even seem to faze him. Although sometimes he will say that he can't believe he's 31 and he feels younger than that, so I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one.
I'm in hopes that 364 days from now when I turn 30, I won't be a blubbering mess, mourning the loss of my youth. I want to embrace each new decade with the excitement of what it has in store for me. I don't want to constantly be living in the past with my rose-colored memories, I want to be ready to make new, more exciting memories.
Can anybody tell me exactly how an almost 30 year old should feel? Because I'm not feeling it.
It didn't bother me when Keith turned 30. Of course he's 2.5 years older than me, so I was just happy to still be 27 when the big day came around for him. It didn't even seem to faze him. Although sometimes he will say that he can't believe he's 31 and he feels younger than that, so I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one.
I'm in hopes that 364 days from now when I turn 30, I won't be a blubbering mess, mourning the loss of my youth. I want to embrace each new decade with the excitement of what it has in store for me. I don't want to constantly be living in the past with my rose-colored memories, I want to be ready to make new, more exciting memories.
Can anybody tell me exactly how an almost 30 year old should feel? Because I'm not feeling it.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
I Should Buy Stock in Kleenex
Well, it's that time of year again. Nope, I'm not talking about Christmas, I did that in a previous blog. I'm talking about the time of year where everyone and their dog gets sick. It never fails! I don't know that I'm necessarily "sick" because it's so hard to tell the difference between a cold and allergies. But on Saturday my head started stopping up and I started sneezing to beat the band. We also had a cold front come through our area that day, so it's very possible it brought along some of my allergy buddies. Or I could have caught one of the billions of cold viruses out there. You know how they say that once you've had a virus you can't get it again because you're immune to it? I don't know if I believe that, or there are a bunch of new viruses out there. Because when my son comes home with a cold or something similar, I typically get it. I would think that if he's caught one of the common cold viruses that most children get when they're little, I more than likely would have caught that same virus when I was little, but apparently not. I've probably been exposed to, caught, and been immune to a bunch more viruses than the average person. I am the oldest of 5 kids, so that was 6 more people (counting my parents) in our house growing up, bringing home germs that I'm sure I caught and am now "immune" to. I also worked at a daycare for 2 years and taught school for 4 years and was exposed to a ton of nastiness, shouldn't I be immune to most everything out there? Apparently not.
Since my birthday is on Thursday and then Friday we leave to go to my brother and sister-in-law's college graduations, I want to be healthy! I've been hearing a lot about the "Neti Pot". My mom praises it, my mother-in-law praises it, I've heard news specials about it. So I figured this might be the way to go to help me get this out of my system. I've looked at a few local places for it and couldn't find one, but found something with a similar design in our local Target's kitchen section, so I bought it. I also bought a cart full of medicines that I haven't tried yet. Something is bound to work! I got home this morning with all of my purchases and immediately tried out my Neti pot. It felt really weird, but it did seem to flush out my sinuses. (If you don't know what I'm talking about or how they work, just google it, I'm not going to attempt to explain ). It also temporarily gave me a sinus headache, so I'm not sure if that was just from the water pressure in my sinuses or maybe the water was running into blockage, I don't know. But I made a stupid move after using this. I decided to also try out this medicine called "Zicam" which is supposed to shorten the duration of a cold. It's probably not the best idea to try out 2 new things at the same time because after using the Zicam I literally sneezed my head off (ok, not literally...). But I honestly don't think I have every sneezed that many consecutive times. So who knows if it was the Neti pot's magic or I'm allergic to the Zicam. I think I'm going to eliminate the medicine for now and just use the Neti pot and see what happens. But I can say that I don't feel any better after using both of those methods.
My goal now is to be sure that Garrett doesn't catch anything. I would honestly prefer to be sick all of the time, if it meant that he was never sick. I'm not saying that to be mom of the year, I'm saying that because I can't stand it when he's sick. He's still not quite to the point of being able to tell me where it hurts, or being a willing participant in taking medicine. Just this morning I attempted to give him a little Benadryl because I've noticed his nose has been running. He let the medicine trickle out the side of his mouth and run all over his nice, clean shirt. Mad doesn't really describe what I was feeling at that particular moment. He needs to be held down and sat on until every last drop of medicine is down his throat. Not really something I enjoy doing, but when he is really sick, I have to do it. He's not sick right now, so I didn't attempt another dosage. But I did buy a package of the Benadryl that's now in those thin strips of medicine, instead of liquid. Whoever came up with doing children's medicines in those thin strips are genius! No mess, once they are on their tongue the child has a really hard time spitting them out, it's pure brilliance.
I also want to thank the makers of Tylenol PM. That product is another example of brilliance in medicine. When you're not feeling well, sleep is sometimes elusive, but take a couple of those babies and I'm out like a light for a good 8 hours. I love it! This morning I felt so refreshed after a good night's sleep. Now I'm just praying that this sickness, or whatever it is that I have, will go away soon.
Here's hoping that my family can atleast avoid illness during the days leading up to, and including, Christmas. Last year we weren't so lucky, so I'm hoping we will achieve that goal this year.
Since my birthday is on Thursday and then Friday we leave to go to my brother and sister-in-law's college graduations, I want to be healthy! I've been hearing a lot about the "Neti Pot". My mom praises it, my mother-in-law praises it, I've heard news specials about it. So I figured this might be the way to go to help me get this out of my system. I've looked at a few local places for it and couldn't find one, but found something with a similar design in our local Target's kitchen section, so I bought it. I also bought a cart full of medicines that I haven't tried yet. Something is bound to work! I got home this morning with all of my purchases and immediately tried out my Neti pot. It felt really weird, but it did seem to flush out my sinuses. (If you don't know what I'm talking about or how they work, just google it, I'm not going to attempt to explain ). It also temporarily gave me a sinus headache, so I'm not sure if that was just from the water pressure in my sinuses or maybe the water was running into blockage, I don't know. But I made a stupid move after using this. I decided to also try out this medicine called "Zicam" which is supposed to shorten the duration of a cold. It's probably not the best idea to try out 2 new things at the same time because after using the Zicam I literally sneezed my head off (ok, not literally...). But I honestly don't think I have every sneezed that many consecutive times. So who knows if it was the Neti pot's magic or I'm allergic to the Zicam. I think I'm going to eliminate the medicine for now and just use the Neti pot and see what happens. But I can say that I don't feel any better after using both of those methods.
My goal now is to be sure that Garrett doesn't catch anything. I would honestly prefer to be sick all of the time, if it meant that he was never sick. I'm not saying that to be mom of the year, I'm saying that because I can't stand it when he's sick. He's still not quite to the point of being able to tell me where it hurts, or being a willing participant in taking medicine. Just this morning I attempted to give him a little Benadryl because I've noticed his nose has been running. He let the medicine trickle out the side of his mouth and run all over his nice, clean shirt. Mad doesn't really describe what I was feeling at that particular moment. He needs to be held down and sat on until every last drop of medicine is down his throat. Not really something I enjoy doing, but when he is really sick, I have to do it. He's not sick right now, so I didn't attempt another dosage. But I did buy a package of the Benadryl that's now in those thin strips of medicine, instead of liquid. Whoever came up with doing children's medicines in those thin strips are genius! No mess, once they are on their tongue the child has a really hard time spitting them out, it's pure brilliance.
I also want to thank the makers of Tylenol PM. That product is another example of brilliance in medicine. When you're not feeling well, sleep is sometimes elusive, but take a couple of those babies and I'm out like a light for a good 8 hours. I love it! This morning I felt so refreshed after a good night's sleep. Now I'm just praying that this sickness, or whatever it is that I have, will go away soon.
Here's hoping that my family can atleast avoid illness during the days leading up to, and including, Christmas. Last year we weren't so lucky, so I'm hoping we will achieve that goal this year.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
The Golden Compass
I wouldn't normally blog about something like this, but I've read about it from multiple sources and thought I would share my thoughts, briefly. There's a movie coming out tomorrow entitled "The Golden Compass". It appears to be another fantasy-type film along the lines of "Harry Potter" and "The Lord of the Rings". Hollywood has really done their darnedest to make this an appealing movie. Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig (the newest James Bond) are starring in it, for heaven's sake! But I would highly recommend you research this book turned movie before heading out to see it. The author's name is Phillip Pullman and this is just the first in a trilogy and from what I've read, it's also the most tame of the three books. I found a blog that really describes the issue the best, so I'm just going to let him inform you of what the problem is.
"This is not just any fantasy trilogy or film project. Philip Pullman has an agenda -- an agenda about as subtle as an army tank. His agenda is nothing less than to expose what he believes is the tyranny of the Christian faith and the Christian church. His hatred of the biblical storyline is clear. He is an atheist whose most important literary project is intended to offer a moral narrative that will reverse the biblical account of the fall and provide a liberating mythology for a new secular age.
The great enemy of humanity in the three books, The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass (together known as His Dark Materials) is the Christian church, identified as the evil Magisterium. The Magisterium, representing church authority, is afraid of human freedom and seeks to repress human sexuality.
The Magisterium uses the biblical narrative of the Fall and the doctrine of original sin to repress humanity. It is both violent and vile and it will stop at nothing to protect its own interests and to preserve its power.
Pullman's attack on biblical Christianity is direct and undeniable. He once questioned why his books attracted little controversy even as the Harry Potter books attracted so much. He told an Australian newspaper that what he is "saying things that are far more subversive than anything poor old Harry has said. My books are about killing God.""
Taken from: http://www.albertmohler.com/blog_read.php?id=1065
On a side note, I find it interesting that he proclaims to be an atheist, yet he's written books about killing God. My understanding of atheists is that they don't believe there is a God. So if you're an atheist why would you even worry about killing a God that you don't believe exists? Just some food for thought.
Obviously you need to research this yourself before making a decision, but I am asking that you do just that. Research. There are very few movies out there that I would recommend you do this, but if this author's ultimate goal is to kill God, I definitely don't want to contribute any money towards his pockets by heading off to see this movie. From other sources I have read, this initial movie is basically harmless, but Pullman's agenda includes getting children interested in this movie who will then head out to read the trilogy. That's when they will be exposed to his motives.
I realize that there are many authors and movie producers who probably feel the same way as Pullman does and yet I may be an unknowing fan of their work. The difference that I see here is that I am unaware of those other unnamed authors and producers writing a book or making a movie whose target audience will be junior high age children and have also openly stated that their books are about killing God. Of course if you know of some of these other people, please let me know!
If by chance, you have read these books, or you have another side of this story, please share it with me. I would love to hear your thoughts.
"This is not just any fantasy trilogy or film project. Philip Pullman has an agenda -- an agenda about as subtle as an army tank. His agenda is nothing less than to expose what he believes is the tyranny of the Christian faith and the Christian church. His hatred of the biblical storyline is clear. He is an atheist whose most important literary project is intended to offer a moral narrative that will reverse the biblical account of the fall and provide a liberating mythology for a new secular age.
The great enemy of humanity in the three books, The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass (together known as His Dark Materials) is the Christian church, identified as the evil Magisterium. The Magisterium, representing church authority, is afraid of human freedom and seeks to repress human sexuality.
The Magisterium uses the biblical narrative of the Fall and the doctrine of original sin to repress humanity. It is both violent and vile and it will stop at nothing to protect its own interests and to preserve its power.
Pullman's attack on biblical Christianity is direct and undeniable. He once questioned why his books attracted little controversy even as the Harry Potter books attracted so much. He told an Australian newspaper that what he is "saying things that are far more subversive than anything poor old Harry has said. My books are about killing God.""
Taken from: http://www.albertmohler.com/blog_read.php?id=1065
On a side note, I find it interesting that he proclaims to be an atheist, yet he's written books about killing God. My understanding of atheists is that they don't believe there is a God. So if you're an atheist why would you even worry about killing a God that you don't believe exists? Just some food for thought.
Obviously you need to research this yourself before making a decision, but I am asking that you do just that. Research. There are very few movies out there that I would recommend you do this, but if this author's ultimate goal is to kill God, I definitely don't want to contribute any money towards his pockets by heading off to see this movie. From other sources I have read, this initial movie is basically harmless, but Pullman's agenda includes getting children interested in this movie who will then head out to read the trilogy. That's when they will be exposed to his motives.
I realize that there are many authors and movie producers who probably feel the same way as Pullman does and yet I may be an unknowing fan of their work. The difference that I see here is that I am unaware of those other unnamed authors and producers writing a book or making a movie whose target audience will be junior high age children and have also openly stated that their books are about killing God. Of course if you know of some of these other people, please let me know!
If by chance, you have read these books, or you have another side of this story, please share it with me. I would love to hear your thoughts.
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