Life of the newly married

Hurricane Prep for Kids

2011-08-24T09:26:00.000-07:00

While we prepare for the arrival of Hurricane Irene here in NC, we're focused on preparing our homes, making sure we have enough supplies, etc. We watch the forecasts, check the updated hurricane prediction models, etc. Here's a little information on creating a Family Disaster Plan. (And make sure you've got enough medication, diapers, formula, etc in addition to your "regular" supplies!) But aside from this, how can you help prepare your little ones without getting them upset or overly anxious?

My oldest son Braydon is very much a worrier. He hates the thought of bad storms coming and the last time we had a severe weather problem here, places all around us got hit by a few tornadoes. We had to prepare ourselves though to "shelter in place". All of this left Braydon extra nervous, especially with our recent "jolt" with yesterday's "earthquake".

So this got me to thinking about preparing our kids "Disaster Distraction" bag: Items that would make them feel secure, that would distract them, that would allow them to feel that, God-forbid if things were to be catastrophic, they would have a piece of normal with them. Something also to keep them from driving us crazy with "I'm boooorrreeed" should we lose power. I made a list & wanted to share it with you to help you prepare your own.

I was able to assemble three of these (One for boy age 7, girl age 3, boy age 22 months) with things right in my own house in a relatively short time. I'm fairly confident that you'd probably be able to do the same as well. There's no "right" way or wrong way to make one-what works for one family may not work for another. Your kids could not like to color, maybe they prefer to write a story or make a collage. For example, I know for sure that I'm including scraps of fabric in my youngest son's bag because he loves to try to make "hats" out of them. But your kids would probably say "Mom, why did you put scrap fabric in my bag?!?" You know your kids better than anyone else so use what works best for you.

-Small flash light with batteries-keep it simple, no need for an expensive "Character" one. (see below) *Frugal Tip* I buy Halloween flashlights on clearance after Halloween is over. I know that's still several months away & won't help you now, but maybe it will help you for next year!

-A Sheet of stickers to "decorate" their flashlight so they can identify their flashlight from their siblings'.

-GLOW STICKS-these will be so much fun for the kids & you can even get the ones that turn into bracelets/necklaces so you can locate little ones in the dark. Again, no need to break the bank-A simple run to your Dollar Tree is all you need!

-Puzzles/bouncy balls/small non-electric games/Boardgames (checkers, chess, memory, etc) to pass time, even if by flashlight. Use "Spanish & English" memory pictured above and have "school" time as well!

-Deck of cards It's amazing what creativity comes out of children with a few hours of no electricity & a deck of cards! You can even have a "card throwing" party....You take turns showering each other with cards (have the "victim" put on a pair of sunglasses if you are worried your kids might get over excited).

-A small soft toy/stuffed animal. This doesn't have to be new. Surely you've got some extra stuffed animals laying around. *Frugal Tip* I purchased the animals above in May of this year at an Old Navy. They were left over from Christmas & originally had a clear plastic envelope attached to put a gift card in. I scored these for 10 cents each!

-A Ziploc bag of peppermints, butterscotch disks, or other hard candy. Make your own rules & put them in the bag. For example "You may eat ONE candy for every hour the power is out" AND/OR a Ziploc bag of cookies/cereal/pretzels/dried fruit

-An envelope with index cards with Bible verses/quotes about not being fearful (this comes in handy for my little worrier!)

-A coloring book & crayons/markers, dry erase board & makers, construction paper & scissors. All of these or some of these-it's up to you!!

GIRL-SPECIFIC ITEMS: Hairbrush/comb, hair bows, jewelery, nail polish, dolls/barbie dolls and accessories, horses, etc.

BOY-SPECIFIC ITEMS: cars, army men, airplanes/helicopters, legos, balls, Star wars figures, superheroes/action figures, guns *gasp!* (Yes, we let my son play with nerf guns!!)

IDEAS FOR TODDLERS: Use your judgement for putting in items above in your toddler's bag. Kids love to put things in their mouths & the glow sticks are toxic if they bite into & break them. The items below are geared specifically for those toddlers who will insist on their own bag!

-Bubbles are not only a distraction for little ones, but it often becomes a distraction for all. Allow the older children to take turns getting to blow bubbles for the younger ones to "catch".

-Plastic Eggs (from Easter) I can't take credit for this idea because I know recently I saw a blog post some where about it but after searching forever to get the link I couldn't track it down. But then I remembered, the for months (seriously months!) after Easter, my kids were still playing with the plastic Easter eggs. After having stepped on one too many, we finally decided to retire them to the attic until next Easter. But I went up there & grabbed about a dozen because I know that as soon as my older 2 saw him playing with the eggs, they'd want one. This way it gives them 4 a piece if they all want them at the same time!

-A Ziploc bag of cereal/cookies/pretzels/dried fruit

-A small photo album with pictures of things they like (for example, JoJo loves dogs, so his is filled with pictures of dogs, puppies, people with pets, cats, etc) You can see that I've combined actual photos (on the far right is my sister's former crazy Jack Russell Terror, I mean terrier) along with pictures that I cut out from my coupon inserts!

-An old cell phone. Toddlers love to pretend and mimic what they see their parents doing, and they love to talk so combine these together and BINGO! Entertained toddler (at least for a few minutes!) Just make sure that the battery is taken out of the phone because even if you have upgraded to a new cell phone & there's no longer service on the phone, a 911 Emergency phone call can still be placed!!

-A Ziploc bag with Paint store samples from your local hardware/super center store. They can look at the different colors, make a rainbow, you can have the identify things that start with "red" such as an apple, or the sky for blue.

Here's hoping that this post is in vain and that Irene decides she likes going a bit to the East and miss any further landfall!!!

30% off sale at OLD NAVY, BANANA REPUBLIC & GAP

2011-08-24T07:24:00.000-07:00

Three great brands Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy are offering a 30% off of your entire purchase! Simply add the coupon code THANKS in at check out & you'll also receive FREE SHIPPING on your purchase of $50 or more! This is perfect for last minute back to school shopping or even early Christmas shopping!!

Want to save even more?

Ebates offers you money back on your online purchases at over 1200 stores as well as coupon codes!! You'll earn 2% back on your purchases at all 3 stores above!

Super Shades Sale (Send the Trend)

2011-08-22T06:55:00.000-07:00

Today only you can pick any of the sunglasses from Send The Trend for 30% off! All items are $29.95 before the discount with there is always FREE SHIPPING via UPS Ground! Use the promo code: FUNDAY (expires Monday, August 22nd, 2011 at 11:59 PST)

If you're a Project Runway fan like me, you might recognize the co-founder of STT, Christian Siriano and love the fact that you're getting designer styles without the designer cost. You also don't have to leave your house! Can I get an AMEN, or perhaps a more fitting "FIERCE!!"?!?

Harris Teeter w/ the girl

2011-08-20T18:03:00.000-07:00

Makenna Rae & I got to go out to the grocery store and left the boys home with Daddy! I had a list of items to get that were really good deals and I wanted to make sure I got the "saturday only" deals before they sold out.

Since my mom has an e-vic account, we used her's since she was not going to use them. Above was the first transaction using her Vic card. Here we go:

(2) Gushers fruit snacks: Evic sale $0.97 each ($1.94/2) used $0.50/2 q doubled, $0.94/2 or $0.47 each.

(1) Snackwells snack: Evic sale $1.49 used $0.75 q doubled, FREE

(3) Tic Tacs $1.29 each ($3.87/3) used (3) $0.75 q doubled, FREE

Band-Aid 20 count, mark down $1.49 used $0.50 q doubled, $0.49

Germ-X, 1.5 oz mark down $0.34

After that transaction, we did mine. I had the same deal for the fruit by the foot as the gushers above as well as the Snackwells, Bandaids and the Tic Tacs. There were also the 4 boxes of cereal at $1.97 each ($7.88/4) used (2) $1/2 q's which made it $5.88/4 or $1.47. Normally I don't buy these kinds of cereal, but since Braydon is really nervous about starting a new school, and he's been begging for some "cool" cereal for a while, that now would be the time to do it. I can swing $1.47 a box, not so much $4!!!

(3) Rhodes 12 ct. frozen dinner rolls $2.39 each ($7.17/3) used (3) $0.75 q's $2.67/3 or $0.89 each.

2 lb. pkg. of Ground Beef sale price $6.97. & 4 lbs. Boneless skinless chicken breasts sale price $9.95 *USING MY $10 mail in rebate for meat/poultry*

Hormel Black label Bacon sale price $3.07

(3) Perdue "Cars" Chicken Nuggets (2 pictured because that's what the kids ate for dinner!!) $4.99 each ($14.97/3) had (3) on package $2 store q's, $8.97/3 or 2.99 each

Bryers Pure Fruit Bars-had a raincheck for a FREE box from a meal deal a while ago & since it's the last week before school starts, I thought now would be a great time to cash it in! (Did I mention how I love how rain checks never expire?!?)

Harris Teeter Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage sale price $2.50 had an on pkg $1 off q $1.50

Items not pictured:

(2) Minute Maid 10 pk juice boxes Evic sale $1.77 ($3.54/2) used (2) $1 q's $1.54/2 or $0.77 each. (these were not pictured b/c I took them out of the pkgs to put in the bottom drawer of the fridge!)

Harris Teeter Honey Wheat bread $1.69

(2) Aunt Jemima French toast 10 count boxes sale price $1.49 (or $2.99/2) (these & the waffles below were taken out of the box & individually wrapped for Kenney's work to make it faster for him to grab in the AM)

(2) Aunt Jemima Homesytle 10 count waffles sale price $1.49 (or $2.99/2)

I had one $2 off your next purchase catalina that I used, so altogether, I paid $ 51.52 OOP. I will get $10 of that back from my meat rebate, which will bring it down to $41.52. BUT I just realized that they didn't give me the Evic price on the my 2nd transaction for the Snackwells, so I'll have to go back tomorrow & I'll get the full price back! YAY!! So that means that the total will be $39.02 for $116.86 worth of food (for transaction #2 only)! This equals out to a 67% savings, which is not bad considering the meat and breakfast food I got!

Target Take Home

2011-08-20T15:46:00.000-07:00

We actually had no "real" plans for today, so I decided I could use it to make a few trips to a few stores to get some deals! We went to Harris Teeter first & came home to drop of the perishable stuff & pick up the boys. It was a rather long trip to Target, considering the ENTIRE family went. You know how that goes: "Mom, I have to potty NOW!" (happened 3 times), "But can we puh-lease go look at the toys? (too many to count!), etc.

On top of the whining from Kenney & the kids (just kidding about Kenney...well, sorta!), the cashier didn't scan all of the coupons (even after he swore up and down he did) so I had to go over to customer service & try to explain to the lady why the cashier hadn't scanned all of the coupons, (She for some reason couldn't understand the concept of a "Target" q and a man. q!) But we survived, and made it home without any major blow ups!

Here's some of my "scores" from today's trip to Target.

This is by far the deal that I was really excited about! We were in the "Back to school" aisle looking at lunch boxes for Braydon. He wanted the Star Wars lunch box which was like $10. Then he wanted one that had a water bottle attached to it that was $13.99. I told him that I really just could not justify paying that much when he has a lunch box that is still in great condition. We could just check out other stores to see if there were any other deals. He was disappointed but he quickly was distracted by the camping gear. I almost told him he couldn't go down the aisle, but I figured if it got him to stop whining about the lunch box then it was worth it. And then I spied this baby!

This is a "Genuine THERMOS Brand" lunch cooler with a vacuum insulated 16 oz. stainless steel commuter bottle. It can keep food warm for up to 8 hours and keep food cold for 12 hours! I was so excited when I saw the price: $7.74!!!! It's original price was $30.99 which translates to a 75% savings!!! I almost held my breath because I figured of course Braydon wouldn't want the one I found on clearance. But as soon as I held it up and said "Look B check this one out, it comes with this really cool water bottle!" , he was sold!

I held it up at Kenney because he needed a lunch box too (because we've decided to commit to eating lunches from home) and he was very excited about them! I was able to get 2 lunch boxes with the thermos for less than 1/2 of the original price of one!! Again, these were not in the Back to school section, they were found near the camping/sports section!

We also got some of the Schick razors: 3 Intuition Naturals, 3 Quattro for Women. They were on sale for $6.49 each, you get a $5 gift card back when you guy 2 and I combined that with 6 $2 coupons. I decided to do these transactions first and individually so I could use the gift cards right away. The 1st transaction was $9.52 and we got a $5 gift card to use towards the next transaction. I had a personal gift card with me to use so I didn't acutally pay for any of these transactions out of pocket (OOP). The next 2 transactions were $4.52 each after the $5 gift card from previous transaction, and I again paid the rest with my personal gift card. Altogether, the 3 transactions were $18.56 for 6 razors with an extra $5 gift card so if you count that, it's $13.56/6 razors or $2.26 per razor which translates to a 74.8% savings.

We stumbled upon the clearance section as the guy was just putting out newly "marked down" items. Most of them were just BARELY "reduced" by 30-60 cents which does not impress me at all unless I have an amazing coupon. But the Cutter bug spray was marked from 3.99 to 2.78 and I had multiple coupons for $1.50 off any 1 Cutter item. With the coupon and the clearance, it totaled $1.28 before tax, which translates to a 68% savings. It's an "okay" savings, but seeing as how my family is super sensitive to bugs and bug bites, for us it was a really good deal, so we purchased six. I will probably go back and get more if I can score some more $1.50 q's.

The next thing we found in the clearance section was Old Spice deodorant, (2.6 oz with a travel sized 0.5 oz deodorant included) "marked down" from 3.99 to 3.38. Again I put that in quotes because I don't find 60 cents to clearance worthy. But I had a Buy one get one free coupon, so it would be 2 full sized deodorants and 2 travel sized deodorants for 3.38. When I did the math at home it was only a 57.6% savings which was okay, but I'm used to getting a much better deal. Call me a coupon snob but I frown upon paying that much for deodorant when I'm used to getting it for free or less than $1.

We also found a bunch of "Twisted Sista" de-frizz conditioner marked from $4.99 down to $1.24! This is what I consider "marked down" or clearance price. Although I didn't have any coupons, the clearance price itself is 75% savings so we got all they had which was only 5. These are perfect for Makenna Rae's curly hair!! Just the other night at bath time I was saying I think it was time that we "updated" her hair products from baby shampoos to "big girl" shampoo & conditioner-something that is better for her curly hair. I paid $6.20 for all five of them which is a fantastic price!

Other notable items purchased today were two 10 pk. of Duracell Batteries on sale for $5.99 plus (2) 1.50 Target q's and (2) 1.oo man. q's which made it for $6.98 for 20 batteries. Market Pantry Apple juice 64 oz. containers were on sale for 1.75 each and I had a $1/2 Market Pantry juices Target coupon, which made them $1.25 each. My kiddos are juice addicts so this was a good deal. We also got 2 boxes of NutraGrain cereal bars that were on sale for 2/$5, and we had a man. q for $1/2 boxes and a Target q for $1/2 boxes, so we got them for 1.50 a box.

All in all, the trip was pretty decent, getting us things we use regularly at a pretty decent deal. We spent $32 OOP on our trip which is amazing considering my entire family went in Target, spent about 1.5-2 hours in there!!

Old "weigh" to do things

2011-08-18T08:34:00.000-07:00

As I was going through old pictures the other day, it hit me...I really have lost weight! I mean I know I've seen it on the scale and my clothing size, but to see pictures from even a year ago really struck me. Want to see some examples? Pictures on the left are "old", pics on the right are current.

This morning marks my 60 lb mark. (This is including the "baby" weight from JoJo). It's taken me almost 2 years to lose that much. But I can honestly say that I do not feel like I'm starving myself or killing myself in the gym. When I can work out, I workout. When I can't, I don't feel guilty. (although my body tells me b/c my hips start hurting when I don't work out a lot) When I want dessert, I allow myself the freedom to do so. I don't kick myself for allowing myself something I really want. And I have to say, this has been very freeing for me. I'm not on an emotional rollercoaster based on my failures or shortcomings on my success in weight loss. I would still like to lose 15 lbs but I'm okay with it coming off slowly, as long as I can still have dessert!

These are taken in the same place almost a year apart. Picture on the left is from July 21st, 2010, picture on the right is from August 4, 2011.

Testing...1 2 3

2011-08-07T21:47:00.000-07:00

It's that time again....We're back at the Ronald McDonald House again for another test tomorrow and more clinic visits on Tuesday. Jordan will have his laryngoscopy under general anesthesia at 9 am, but we have to be there at 7 AM. Hopefully it'll be done quickly and we'll be back at the RMH to get some sleep in the afternoon. I really hope he does well with the anesthesia this time. It hasn't been that long since he had the bronchoscopy, and he's had some more seizures a week ago. He also has been on antibiotics and sterioids in the past 2 weeks for resp. issues. All of this makes me worried that he may have complications and I really don't want to deal with any other "issues" at this point.

JoJo is very restless tonight and keeps waking up crying. I'm awake as usual-it's 3 AM and I have to be at the hospital in 4 hrs which totally stinks. There's always lots on my mind the night before JoJo has any big test, especially with his recent illnesses I just mentioned. But besides just the normal pit I have in my stomach, I'm really missing my family right now! It's pretty lonely at night time here.

Well, maybe I should rephrase this. I'm really missing my husbad, most of all. I know Braydon & Makenna Rae are busy having a blast at Ama & Papa's house as always!! And tomorrow starts our week long Vacation Bible School at our church, so they're looking forward to that. They probably haven't even noticed I'm gone! Look at the smiles on these faces...They say "Haha! We're being spoiled while you're gone and there is NOTHING you can do about it!!" don't they?!?

I can honestly say that it's been a long time since I can remember missing my husband like this. Not just saying that I miss him-I mean really missing him. And it's kind of a nice feeling, if that makes any sense. I've realized how independent I'd become, so it's nice to feel that way again. If nothing else, this man makes me laugh and I could really use some laughs right about now....

And yes, this is indeed Kenney watching the NFL draft wearing a little kid's Patriot helmet. It's okay to be jealous of my cool husband!! I hope it brings a smile to your face like it does to mine....

God's gonna trouble the water

2011-08-03T13:51:00.000-07:00

I remember sitting on my couch in August 2005 mesmerized hour after hour watching the news converage of Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath when the levee system failed. I sobbed for days-I felt as though I knew someone who was there, but I didn't. In reality, I had never even been to New Orleans but yet my heart ached for the elderly husbands trying to fan off their wives. My arms hurt for the moms having to hold their baby for hours and hours in the heat, humidity, bugs, etc because there was no where else to go. I clung to Braydon and just couldn't imagine what it would be like if we were in that situation. The truth is, that this easily could be you, or me, or someone we know, and that's part of why it affected me the way it did. I am self-admitted news junkie at heart, but this disaster impacted me in such a way that I will never forget. (Interesting side note: My husband's family is actually from Louisiana and at that point I had just met Kenney and knew nothing of his family's heritage there. It is cool to look back and think maybe that's why I was so engrossed, but I didn't know it!!)

About a month ago, I watched a documentary called Trouble The Water. In honor of the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina that's coming up on the 28th of this month, I wanted to show the trailer and promote this award-winning film. This is a raw first hand account that follows people through the storm, and as they return to the Lower 9th Ward to try to rebuild their homes AND their lives. The trailer is above & the description of the film is below. You can find this film in the documentary section on Netflix and can be watched instantly.

But first, I want to point out something that has always really bothered me about some of the media coverage of Hurricane Katrina and the misconception a lot of people have. What really bothers me is people assuming that the people who stayed behind were refusing to comply with the government officials who issued a mandatory evacuation order and that some how those people who were stranded on their roof tops somehow "asked for it" by staying behind.

I'd like you to pretend for a minute that you live in a very urban area, such as Chicago or NY. Many people opt not to have a car in these areas because they use public transportation for many reasons: there are costs for parking your car, the traffic is horrible etc. Now these people who rely on public transit are indeed at the mercy of the public transportation system.

That being said, many of the people of NO who stayed behind did NOT stay because they wanted to. These people who did not have transportation means simply were without a choice. If they did not own a car, how were they supposed to evacuate? These people, especially those who lived in poorer areas like the Lower 9th ward, didn't have the extra money laying around to rent a car. Or even if they did, maybe they didn't have a driver's license or the required credit card to be able to rent a car. Having been in very tight financial spots before, I can absolutely understand that some people just could not afford to leave. You cannot issue a mandatory evacuation and expect people who don't own a car and rely upon the public transportation system to be able to leave. There was absolutely NO city/public transit provided to help aid in evacuation for the people who had no other alternative.

Some residents were unable to evacuate because they had elderly, sick or handicapped family members and couldn't leave them behind. Others still had no television or even power in some of the lower 9th ward and didn't even know a storm was coming. Some didn't even have a place to actually evacuate to. Many of the residents of NO were 4th and 5th generation city residents with their entire family residing in New Orleans. A good majority had never even left the city before. Imagine never having even looked at map or knowing what state was directly north of you. This is the absolute reality these people faced.

Please consider watching this documentary and seeing how this storm forever impacted the lives of so many. It will leave you encouraged by seeing genuine kindness and selflessness displayed in a time of chaos and the desire to better their lives instead of living as a victim. It will also stir complete frustration inside of you by the absolute injustice that has and continues to happen to the survivors of the diaspora caused by Hurricane Katrina.

From Trouble The Water Film's website:

Nominated for an Academy Award® for best feature documentary, TROUBLE THE WATER takes you inside Hurricane Katrina in a way never before seen on screen. It's a redemptive tale of two self-described street hustlers who become heroes-two unforgettable people who survive the storm and then seize a chance for a new beginning.

The film opens the day before the storm makes landfall-twenty-four year old aspiring rap artist Kimberly Rivers Roberts is turning her new video camera on herself and her 9th Ward neighbors trapped in the city. "It's going to be a day to remember," Kim declares. With no means to leave the city and equipped with just a few supplies and her hi 8 camera, she and her husband Scott tape their harrowing ordeal as the storm rages, the nearby levee breaches, and floodwaters fill their home and their community. Shortly after the levees fail, their battery dies.

Seamlessly weaving 15 minutes of this home movie footage shot the day before and the morning of the storm with archival news segments and verite footage shot over the next two years, directors Tia Lessin and Carl Deal tell a story of remarkable people surviving not only failed levees, bungling bureaucrats and armed soldiers, but also their own past.

Directed and produced by Tia Lessin and Carl Deal and Executive Produced by Joslyn Barnes and Danny Glover of Louverture Films, edited and co-produced by T. Woody Richman, with addiitonal editing by Mary Lampson, Trouble the Water features an original musical score by Neil Davidge and Robert Del Naja of Massive Attack, and the music of Dr. John, Mary Mary, Citizen Cope, TK Soul, John Lee Hooker, and the Free Agents Brass Band and introduces the music of Black Kold Madina.

Trouble the Water has been supported by grants from the Sundance Institute, the Open Society Institute, the Ms. Foundation for Women, the 21st Century Foundation, the Fledgling Fund, Working Films, the Ford Foundation, and is a project of Creative Capital.

AWARDS

2009 Academy Award ® Nominee, Best Documentary Feature

2009 Gotham Independent Film Award ™ for Best Documentary

2009 NAACP Image Award, Outstanding Documentary (Nominated)

2009 Producers Guild Of America For Feature Documentary (Nominated)

2008 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize

2008 Full Frame Documentary Festival Grand Jury Prize

2008 AFI/Silverdocs Special Jury Prize

2008 Council On Foundations Henry Hampton Award for Excellence In Film And Digital Media

2008 Working Films Award

2008 Kathleen Bryan Human Rights Award

Official Selection, 2008 New Directors/New Films (Museum of Modern Art and Film Society of Lincoln Center)

Trouble the Water was named best documentary of 2008 by the Alliance of Women Film Journalists and the African American Film Critics Association. And it was listed on many critics 2008 top ten films lists -- in the Los Angeles Times, the New Yorker, Salon.com, Entertainment Weekly, The Village Voice, Times Picayune and New York magazine among other publications. Roger Ebert and Manohla Dargis both included Trouble the Water in their "best of 2008" lists.

01522 steps back...

2011-08-01T14:11:00.000-07:00

It's really hard sometimes to be the parent of a "sick" child, especially when he's not "sick enough". He doesn't have a life threatening illness. He's not in the PICU (thank God!). They look at Jordan and see what looks like a perfectly healthy toddler. It's extremly frustrating though because I am the one up with him in the middle of the night as he screams at the top of his lungs and can't calm him down, when no one else can see it. I am the one who has to watch his eyes roll back in his head and his body go limp when he has a seizure. I'm the one that has to grab him from the booster seat to hit his back because he's aspirating on food. These are the things I deal with that no one usually sees.

It's hard because people can see the needs of the parents of a "SICK" child (gas money, meals, childcare, etc.) But the parents of a kid who's not "sick enough" often gets overlooked. I'm not saying this to complain, it's just life and it's what I experience.

Just an idea of how much a "trip" to UNC costs:

Gas: $20-$30
Room at the Ronald McDonald House : approx. $20 ($10/night)
Food: We try to eat what we can at the RMH, but it usually is another $15-$20.
Parking: Parking is up to $10 per day.
Babysitters: varies any where from $20-$100 depending on the availability of my parents and whether they have to work.

Usually an average trip to UNC costs us around $100-$150 depending on whether we have to pay for babysitters, and these are all out of pocket expenses. Since January, we've made 8 different trips to UNC.

Again, I'm not saying this to complain-I'm saying this as a wake up call to anyone who might read this. If you know of a family going thru any sort of extended care with their child, especially if they have other children, please ASK THEM what needs they have. They'll feel bad enough that they can't "do it all" and most likely won't ask for help, even if they need it. Pass on the kindness, because you never know when you'll be needing help but not want to be a burden.

New Day, new doctor

2011-07-29T06:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we headed back up to UNC to meet with our newest addition to JoJo's care team, Dr. Amelia Drake. With each new doctor we add to the team, we have to go through the whole "get to know you" period. I did a lot of research about Dr. Drake, and everything sounded good. Just a few days prior to our appointment, I found out that she was named by US News as "Top Doctor". This indicates that she is among the top 1% in her specialty in the entire country which was completely reassuring.

We waited for quite a while, but then when she came in, it was very fast. She examined him, and discussed with me what she and his pulmonologist were worried about, which was the cleft I described in the Q & A post. We scheduled his laryngoscopy (similar to the bronchoscopy) for Monday, August 8th. She reassured us that most likely if he did have the cleft that it was probably a small one.

JoJo of course sported his Wolfpack Red and birdie in his arms. A few of the ENT staff tried to bribe him with an ugly-looking ram of some sort, but my smart baby said no! =) Raising him right!

Q & A....

2011-07-15T17:33:00.000-07:00

Lots of good questions have been asked about JoJo and all of his testing/treatments, so I thought I'd answer them on here so everyone could read it because I'm sure your wondering, right?!? If you have a question you'd like to have answered, feel free to post an anonymous comment below & I'll try to update the blog with the answer!

1. What has Jordan been officially diagnosed with?

JoJo's "official diagnoses" thus far include benign myoclonic epilepsy, asthma, and Gastroesophageal reflux disease. He's also had RSV which placed him in the hospital when he was a baby chronic lung infections & sinusitis as well as Fevers of Unknown origin. Pending dx's may also include laryngeal cleft and periodic fever syndrome.

2. How much medicine does he take/how many different prescriptions does he have?

Jordan has several prescriptions he takes on a daily basis. He is on Keppra for seizures, which is twice a day. Of all of the anticonvulsant drugs, this one has the least side affects and does not require frequent lab work. He has shown zero side effects (thank God!) He also takes several medicines for the treatment of his asthma: Singulair, pulmacort and albuterol (nebulizer treatments) They've added in Prevacid twice a day for the reflux as well as prescribing thickened liquids. (nectar consistency) We have an amazing pharmacist who I feel knows our family really well-in fact the other day, the dr faxed in the prevacid script but in the wrong form & called me to double check that it was the wrong form (capsules instead of tabs that dissolve)

3.What tests & procedures have they done/what did they test for?

You name it, I'm pretty sure they've tested him for it! In all seriousness, he's been tested for Cystic Fibrosis (sweat test), he's had multiple immune work ups that tested for immunodeficiencies, he's had allergy testing, he's been tested for lyme disease, lupus, and double-stranded DNA. He's had an EEG, 3-day ambulatory EEG, an MRI and CTs of his brain, he's had multiple X-rays of sinuses and chest as well as regular blood work and urine cultures. He's had a bronchoscopy and a barium contrast swallow study. He's had multiple stool sample studies as well to rule out any kind of parasites, fungus, etc. He's had ear tubes placed as well when he was very young (5 months old I believe) for recurrent double ear infections that did not respond to treatment.

4. Have you thought about getting a 2nd opinion?

The good news is that there are several options for us to consider since we live in an area where there are many hospitals. In particular, we have access to some top research hospitals and medical schools found. So to answer this question: Yes, we've thought about that when JoJo's infectious disease doctor "Dr. C" kinda blew us off. We looked at Duke's Pediatric Infectious Disease program after we consulted back with our regular pediatrician. She asked her fellow pediatricians and the consensus for a recommendation for peds ID was Duke. We almost made an appointment with them when our pulmonologist, who returned from maternity leave, took charge of the situation and said that she would not rest until we discovered what was going on with Jordan. We promised we'd stick with UNC as long as we were getting somewhere, and we would call Duke as soon as we felt weren't. But JoJo's pulmonologist is awesome! She's our CHAMPION-she meant what we said, and we're so thankful to have her! So for right now, we're staying at Chapel Hill but we still have the numbers for a second opinion at Duke, as well as another out of state nationally known children's hospital.

5. What is a laryngeal cleft and why has it taken them so long to find it?

A laryngeal cleft is a rare abnormality of the separation between the larynx, or voice box, and the esophagus. Normally, when the larynx develops, it is completely separate from the esophagus so swallowed foods go directly into the stomach. When a laryngeal cleft occurs, there is an opening between the larynx and the esophagus so food and liquid can pass through the larynx into the lungs. There are several different types of laryngeal clefts (Types I through IV), classified based on the extent of the clefting. (from the National Institute of Health Office of Rare Diseases Research)

This is in fact a congenital birth defect, meaning it was present at birth, and it affects 0.01% of live births and affects boys more often than girls. It is usually found early on during infancy due to the presenting symptoms: feeding problems including aspiration, poor weight gain/growth, chronic lung issues including wheezing, recurrent pneumonia, etc.

JoJo has never really had feeding problems as an infant, and his weight & height, although on the low end (between the 5th-10th percentile), his growth charts continues to remain consistent. He's had recurrent pneumonia & bronchitis along with his asthma symptoms which include wheezing & coughing. Given the fact that he kept getting pneumonia, bronchitis and things of that nature, we assumed he had either an immunodeficiency or something was wrong with his lungs. We did not realize until just recently that he was aspirating. It was not until the day before his bronchoscopy when his pulmonologist asked us if he coughed or choked a lot when he drank. At first my initial reaction was no-but the rest of the day I watched for it. Sure enough, almost every time he had a drink, he was choking and coughing. Once the bronchoscopy came back showing his lungs were developed correctly and no bacteria that grew was abnormal, the team of doctors decided to look at the aspiration possibility. And that's where we are now.

6. I thought you were an NC State fan! Why are you going to UNC?

OF COURSE WE'RE NC STATE FANS!! But even the pride for our favorite college would not stand in the way of getting the best care for our son and right now, the NC Children's hospital gives us just that! Not only is the UNC peds pulm. department ranked number 10 in the entire country by the US News and World Report, (NC Children's hospital is the only children's hospital in NC to rank in the top 10 in any department by the way!) but we've also been treated so well at UNC-almost every interaction with someone from the UNC has been positive! The nursing staff is amazing and JoJo has become a nurse favorite. They repeatedly go out of their way, above and beyond what they have to in order to make us comfortable. They do their best to schedule all of JoJo's appointments and procedures around the same time since they know we drive a ways to get there. The radiology department always thinks of not only Jordan, but of brother and sister at home. Every time we return home from UNC when he's had to have an X-ray or CT, he's always been able to bring his siblings stickers home! Even the valets are good to us-every single time we go, at least one of them remember's JoJo's name which is pretty impressive. (Maybe we tip well, or maybe JoJo's just really memorable...either way it's pretty remarkable.)

That being said, we do our part to make sure that we let our loyalties be clear every time we are there. JoJo usually rocks an NC state outfit or shirt and Mama usually sports hers too. We are almost always are given a "hard" time about it every time too. Usually it's a funny comment like, "Normally I wouldn't treat an NC State fan, but he's so dang cute I guess we can make an exception!" Sometimes on the way home, we even stop by the GO PACK store in Raleigh! Here's a few pictures to document it!

Jordan during his 3-day ambulatory EEG not only wore his Wolfpack gear, he also sported it on the gauze!

At the NC Children's Specialty Clinic in Raleigh before we met our diagnostician "Dr S"

Worn out but wearing his wolfpack red!

Have any other question about Jordan or his "issues"? Feel free to leave a comment below and I will do my best to answer it! Thank you for your continued prayers as we journey further on this road, even though I thought we were almost finished!

JoJo update

2011-07-15T12:21:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Just a quick update about Jordan's recent trip up to Chapel Hill. I'm sorry it's taken a few days, I just wanted to make sure I had all of my information before I shared everything so I didn't have to keep correcting and/or updating. We saw JoJo's infectious disease doctor ("Dr.C") again who order repeat xrays of his sinuses, and said that he was going to be following JoJo along, but that his diagnostician ("Dr S") would now take over his place for the most part since Dr. C felt he had tested everything he could test for and they had all come back fine. This was a bit of relief for me b/c the ID dr was always late and did not "do" much at any visit.

After that appointment, we saw Dr S and he said the recurrent fevers would probably just fall under a periodic fever sydnrome that would not need to be treated. It would just have a label but not treatment. He repeated some immune tests Dr C had already done becaue one of them was quite high, but according to Dr C "not high" enough to be of concern. Dr. S said he'd only ever seen one patient with hyperIgD syndrome, but he wanted to make sure we had "dotted all our i's and crossed all our t's" So he repeated IgD and IgE levels along with a CBC (blood count). He thought that if after he repeated those counts & everything came back normal, that he felt confident that JoJo probably did not have one diagnosis that could incorporate all of his "issues", that it probably would just amount to either being multiple dx's or just being unlucky.

After those appointments, we went and had his xrays of sinuses and chest done again followed by his barium contrast swallow study. The speech lady told us that JoJo was in fact swallowing food whole and that he's also aspirating both liquids and food. They prescribed thickened liquids for him. After that, she said she would talk over the test again with our pulmonologist, we'll refer to as our "Champion" and we'd get the prescription for reflux the next day. I left there relieved that we were at least getting some where and hopefully, once we corrected the aspirating issue, maybe we could get rid of all his chronic lung issues. That night at the Ronald Mcdonald house, we were able to relax, enjoy the cupcake decorating that a great group of volunteers put together and the commradary of the other families there. When we checked out of the RMH on Thursday AM before his last appointments, I felt so relieved that this "trial" was almost behind us. In fact when the lady asked me when we'd need to be put back on the Waiting List, I proudly told her that Lord-willing the next time we'd be back would be to volunteer! We all did a little dance and were excited. I remember that feeling as I walked to the car of how good it felt to be almost done!

JoJo enjoyed "cupcake decorating" one evening at the Ronald McDonald House, which meant he ate his weight in Jelly Belly's!

JoJo with his friend Victoria on the butterfly chair out back of the RMH!!

But when Dr Champion came into the room, I knew something was up right away. She normally comes in and is all cheery and saying how everything was looking good. But she started off by saying "Well, it's been quite a few days for you guys huh?" Then I got a knot in my stomach and I knew it wasn't over so fast! She said that given the fact that he was aspirating as the food and drink goes down rather than having reflux aspiration after the fact, she said she's concerned that he may have a laryngeal cleft. Basically it is a congenital defect/malformation or hole near his voicebox that keeps food and drink from going down into the lungs. She referred us to an ENT at Chapel Hill for another bronchoscopy type test because she said although the flexible bronchoscope could see somewhat, it was not as sophisticated as whatever the test he needs is. She said at his age, he really should not be aspirating unless there was an anatomical cause for it and that it would most likely require surgery to repair it. She also said that when she looked at the path reports from the bronchoscopy, there was a lot more food particles in there then there should be. She prescribed him Prevacid for his reflux issues as well. When she looked at the xrays from the day before, she said that his chest xrays were clear but his sinuses were thickened indicating sinusitis (sp?) but she thought it was not warranting another antibx script as of right now. She mentioned the fact that if he did have the cleft, it would not explain away the fevers of unknown origin, but that again, that was Dr. S territory.

I know this sounds silly when I say that I'm disappointed and bummed. I know it could be worse. I know that this will probably lead to him being a lot healthier in the long run. But I was on such a high yesterday morning when we checked out that it really caught me off guard when she said it wasn't "over" yet. Again, I know families that have kids that are battling life-threatening diseases. Several of them are my good friends and I've stood by their side during treatments, surgeries, biopsies, etc. What I also know is that my disappointment that my son's not done with his road of testing, doctors, hospital stays, etc is very real, regardless of the comparison to another. We all have our own struggles, our own road to journey on. I was just thinking that our road was almost done with hospitals and the medical field in general and turning on to a different portion of the road, like maybe a nice straight, smooth one. At least for a little stretch, anyways. (I am a realist and understand that I have 3 kids, 2 of which are of the male persuasion and therefore cannot expect to be "done" with hospitils, doctors for many years haha!) Maybe that smooth stretch of the road is just right around the corner but we'll never know if we don't keep going forward despite our road being covered with potholes....

This boy keeps us laughing: I asked him to make a silly face, and this is what he gives me!!

TINSTAFL

2011-04-26T05:34:00.000-07:00

I will never forget when I learned about TINSTAFL with my sister and our friend Julie in our Economics class at Lee University. Our professor, a hilarious young Hispanic man, always used to make us laugh by telling us his stories from when he was in college. He taught us the economic principle of "TINSTAFL": There Is No Such Thing As A Free Lunch." Basically, the princple states that even "free things" have some sort of catch or strings attached. Most of us generally have that understanding even if we do not know the specific name for this economic principle.

In case you didn't know, however, I'm all about free stuff, especially when it doesn't require a whole lot of effort on my part! So when I heard about Swagbucks, where you get points, called Swagbucks, that you can turn into prizes just for searching the internet and other things I already do, to say I was really excited is an understatement. But part of me hesitated, with my understanding of TINSTAFL, I wondered what the catch was. As I read about it on blog after blog, I thought there was a gimmick somewhere. But these people were winning gift cards, and video games, and birthday and christmas presents for their families. I decided I'd give it a try, and see how long it took to find the "catch".

I am pleased to report 17 months later, I've yet to find it! I've not had to buy any thing, I don't have to give out any personal information (unless I choose to) and my family has benefited from it tremendously!

The prizes are awesome, like gift cards to Amazon, Target, Southwest, Starbucks, etc. But you can actually get actual items too! They have clothes, jewelry, video games, school supplies, etc. The best thing is that points, aka "Swagbucks" (or SB's from now on) add up quickly and it doesn't take thousands just to get stuff. A $5 Amazon gift card "costs" 450 SBs and $5 Paypal cash "costs" 700 SBs! I used to use a lot of my points for Amazon gift cards to buy diapers, but lately, something else has caught my eye and the SB-hoarder come out!

The Keurig single serve coffee maker is one of those luxuries that I would just melt to have. My mom got a similar one and every time I went over there, I'd come home with my mind set on finding a way to budget it in. My frugal, practical side, however says, "You have a coffee maker that works just fine and you didn't have to pay a penny for it." Usually it ends there. Then my sister got one and when we went to Florida for Christmas, again, my "must have it now" fleshly impulse ALMOST took over. Fortunately, the bank account said "NO!" for me when I was weak and wanted to say yes!! When I saw it as a prize on Swagbucks, I was sooooo excited because it was a way for me to get something that I really wanted but not take away from our families' budget to get it! It is also a lesson I am teaching my kids about denying myself instant gratification and practicing patience and self-control while I "save" up for it.

Here are some Frequently Asked Questions about Swagbucks:

1.) How does it work?

Swagbucks is basically a search engine like google or ask, only you get rewarded for doing what you normally do! Swagbucks for searching the internet are usually between 5 and 12 Swagbucks. You aren't awarded everytime you search though, they are awarded randomly. Once you earn SBs, they can then be collected and "cashed in" for rewards!

2.) Does it really work?

ABSOLUTELY! I've gotten $50 in Paypal deposited into my account as well as $75 in Amazon gift cards in 514 days that I've been a swagernaut! I've purchased diapers, books, (Side note: In the beginning, I didn't do as much as I do now daily, and there are also a LOT more opportunities to earn SBs so earning is much easier now than when I joined!) I've also introduced a LOT of my friends and family to swagbucks who've gotten gift cards and other prizes from this awesome site! And the neat thing is when you refer your friends, you'll earn referal SB's when they earn search SB's! You can earn up to 1,000 SB's from each referal!!

3) How do I earn SB's?

There are all sorts of ways that you earn points, as I mentioned earlier. You can participate in polls, quizzes, trade-in items, watch videos, etc. All of these points add up quickly and are easy to do! I will be doing a tutorial soon, so check back later today for the post!

4.) Is there a limit?

Internet searches are usually awarded several times a day, although I've read that if you delete your cookies they can be awarded more than that. I'm not technical like that, so I don't know if this is true, but it doesn't hurt to try! There are limits for how many times you can get credit for the daily poll, the Swagbucks TV, and some others as well.

As far as prizes are concerned, you can get a maximum of 2 rewards per day and a total of 5 per individual item per month. So for example, you can purchase 2 amazon $5 gift cards today, 2 $5 amazon gift cards tomorrow and 1 more Amazon $5 gift card in the month of April. You could buy (5) $5 gift cards, (5) $25 gift cards, as they are two different types of rewards. You can buy a maximum of 62 items on a 31-day month, per their policy.

5) How do I sign up?

It is really easy to do! Just fill out this form and you're ready to go! You can even opt to register by connecting via your favorite social media outlet!

Remember to check back for the Getting Started With Swagbucks Tutorial!

Tea for Two (and more!)

2011-04-25T11:34:00.000-07:00

I've created a tradition that I intend to keep! Each year, I invite Makenna Rae's friends over and celebrate. Last year, we celebrated Lizette Hope's birthday. This year, it was an Easter Tea Party. Not that we need an excuse to celebrate, but I think it's fun to have a "theme".

All of the little ladies plus one incredibly dear friend of mine, Christi!

What party is complete without a nice spread of food!

Kendall and her sweet Mama, Heather

Do you see those tea cups? Edible teacups made from ice cream cones and shortbread cookies!

Erin with her two pretty girls

Christi and her lovely ladies!
We weren't super fancy, right Mary-Kate? Who needs a napkin when you have a dress?!?

Mommy & Makenna Rae

To see last year's celebration, click on the here!

"Bless her little ADHD heart"

2011-04-25T05:36:00.000-07:00

Note: This is not meant to offend anyone, and is not specific. All conversations, names, etc. are fictional. And yes, just as not everyone from the North is rude, not all Southerners talk like this or even mean to do this. Please read til the end to get to the real meaning behind the post!
While I have grown accustomed to a lot of the cultural differences the South has to offer, from the Sweet Tea to the "ya'll", from fixin' to (stuff that isn't even broken!) to saying hi to complete strangers, I often find myself still trying to understand this Southern way of life. Even after 11 years of living down here, I find myself trying to understand things. Down here there's a way that people can talk, errrrr, gossip about someone else, but if they add the term "Bless her heart!" to the end of it, all the sudden, it's not seen as that bad. I don't really understand it, but it seems fairly common.

Take for example:

"I heard that Alana has her hands full! They just found out they're having ANOTHER baby!"

"Another one already?!? How many does that make for them?"

"This one will be 8! And the baby isn't even a year old yet!"

"She sure does have hands full! You'd think that 7 was enough, especially since some women can't have any! Maybe they'll figure it out this time! Bless her heart!"

Or this one.

"I heard that Jerry's wife moved back to live in Virginia and he was not invited to join her!"

"Oh no! When did that happen? They seemed so happy at the office Christmas party!"

"I guess she's been there since early January, but she just told him this past week it was a permanent move!"

"I never liked that woman-she was always snobby and never talked to anyone at any of our company events here! In the end, it will probably be best for him! Bless his heart!"

When I overhear some of these conversations, it still kind of catches me be surprise. It also really makes me wonder what people are "blessing my little heart" over, although I'm pretty sure I know!

"The other day I stopped by Christy's house to pick up some Pampered Chef! I don't know how she can even find her kids under all that mess!"

"I know! When we were at lunch, she spent 15 minutes digging through her overflowing purse looking for her debit card! You'd think she'd just put it in her wallet where it belongs! Bless her little disorganized, messy ADHD heart!"

It's true, I may be disorganized. I may forget to put my debit card back in my wallet where it belongs. I may have a house that is full of stuff strewn all about. But some day there will come a time where there are no toys to pick up after or to accidently step on in the middle of the night. There will come a time where there will be only two people to cook for and there won't be little clothes to fold. Eventually, I will have too much time on my hands, and that's when I'll worry about all of that stuff.

So go ahead, you can bless my little ADHD heart. For now, I will try my best to keep my head above the laundry, to keep food on the table instead of the floor, and to invest in my children instead of the stockmarket. Because in the end, that's all that matters!

goals updated

2011-04-16T08:20:00.000-07:00

Back in January, I created a list of goals to do in 2011. Since it's halfway through April, I decided to go ahead and look at how my goals are going. updates to the goal are in BOLD PRINT AND CAPITAL LETTERS.

1. Pay off library fines and then go to library & borrow books (after fine is paid!) WHEN WE GET OUR TAX REFUND, THIS IS ON OUR LIST OF THINGS TO PAY OFF! (by the way, I'm not a TOTAL procrastinator-I finished my taxes Wednesday night!)

2. Go to the Buffalo bills game

3. Earn the “Taste of Travel” trip to New Orleans while earning the bronze level cruise to the Bahamas with the pampered chef! MAKING SOME DEFINATE PROGRESS...SALES ARE UP, HAVE ONE TEAM MATE NOW, SO WE'LL SEE!

4. Run in the Rock N Roll Half Marathon on Labor Day Weekend in Virginia Beach, VA. STARTED MY 18 WEEK TRAINING YESTERDAY, AND WE'VE GOT 20 WEEKS UNTIL THE HALF MARATHON!!

5. Raise $500 for St. Jude Children’s research hospital. They offer care to children regardless of their ability to pay, at no cost to them, as well as pay for travel, food & lodging for the child & parent! MY "GAME DAY GIVE BACK" PARTY RAISED ALMOST $200!! THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO DONATED! I'M PLANNING A TRIKE-A-THON FOR THIS SUMMER, SO HOPEFULLY WILL BE ABLE TO RAISE THE REST THEN!

6. Pay off both credit cards. FUNDS HAVE BEEN DESIGNATED TO PAY THESE OFF WITH OUR TAX REFUND! CANNOT WAIT!!

7. Create a budget and stick to it.

8. Figure out what is going on with Jordan & do something about it. SO FAR, WE'VE FOUND ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WRONG WITH JORDAN! HE SEEMS TO BE GROWING AND DOING WELL, THANK GOD!

9. Do at least one "once a month cooking" session. WE'VE FIGURED OUT THAT IN ORDER TO DO THIS, WE NEED TO PURCHASE A DEEP FREEZER, WHICH WE'VE BEEN NEEDING TO DO FOR A WHILE NOW ANYWAYS. SO ONCE WE DO THIS, I CAN "ATTACK" THIS ONE.

10. Go on a missions trip.

11. Donate to a different charity each month. SO FAR HAVE DONATED TO ST. JUDE'S, MARCH OF DIMES "MARCH FOR BABIES", THE CURE SEARCH WALK, AND MOUNTAIN TOP MINISTRIES, WHERE MY AMAZING FRIEND BRITNEY HAS FOUND HER CALLING AS A FULLTIME MISSIONARY IN HAITI!

It's funny because Kenney and I were talking about goal setting, having a "things to do before I'm 30" list, or even a "bucket list". He thinks it's silly to put time limits on things, whereas I think that having goals or a checklist gives you reason, purpose and motivation to do what you'd like to do in a certain time without putting it off. More on that to come....

Pampered Chef Mystery Host Party

2011-03-21T16:14:00.000-07:00

Too busy to host a Pampered Chef Cooking Show this month but still want to earn the benefits?

There's still a way for you to reap the fabulous Hostess Rewards for the Month of March! Limited to the first 10 people who respond! First come, first served!

Here's how it will work:

1. Let me know by e-mail at cookemonstersmom DoT coM that you would like to participate.

2. Collect or purchase $50 or more in orders (before tax & shipping) - It's that easy!

** All orders & payments will be due by Tuesday, March 29th**

How do I win?

All 10 participants will be entered into a drawing to win the Hostess Rewards! For each $50 in orders you collect, you'll be entered into the drawing, so the more you collect, the better your chances of being one of the winners are!

WHAT WILL YOU WIN IF YOU ARE THE "MYSTERY HOSTESS" WINNER?

The hostess will win the following:

~ $90 in FREE Product of your choice
~2 half price items of your choice
~One item of the 27 new SPRING products at 60%

*All rewards are subject to tax and are based on a $500 party. If 10 people do not participate, rewards may be lower, if 10 people collect orders for more than $500, rewards may be higher*

IN ADDITION, THERE WILL ALSO BE ONE WINNER WHO WILL WIN ONE OF THE NEW SPRING PRODUCTS AT 60% OFF!!

To place your order/orders, you may purchase online though my website, or e-mail me with your order. IF YOU PLACE AN ORDER ONLINE, CHOOSE ME (Christy Rue) AS YOUR HOST or it cannot count towards your $50. If you direct others to my website and they place an order, please e-mail me so I know who to credit it to!

****Our winner will be drawn out of a hat Wednesday, March 30th at noon and will be contacted and will have until Thursday March 31st at 9PM EST to select their free, half price and 60% off item or they will forfeit their products!

GOOD LUCK!!

*Don't forget this month, you can earn a 50% rebate on your starter kit when you join the Pampered Chef before March 31st! You can get over $500 worth of products for $77.50 after your rebate!! For more info, check it out here!!*

the night before....

2011-03-16T18:27:00.000-07:00

Well tonight's the night before...I always hate the night before all of our appointments at UNC because I never ever get any sleep. My stomach is always in knots. But I love, love LOVE the people here at the Ronald McDonald House!! We even got to see our friends Lindsey & Brentley and got to play outside with them for a little while.

Tonight, they had music time in the front living room area at the house. There was an author who wrote a book Sing and Hum Bumblebee. The kids were able to play with all sorts of fun instruments, listen to the book and the CD, and they just had a great time. The adults enjoyed it just as much!

"Sing and Hum Bumblebee
Find your inner harmony
Bumble Bee’s Sing and Hum
Hum, Hum, Hum, Hum

When you hum Bumble Bee
You can overcome anything."

The chorus above almost brought tears to my eyes, even if it sounds a little corny just reading them. There was something so special hearing the words sung and watching JoJo and Brentley together. These boys are tough, and to hear the words "you can overcome anything" just really was so very calming to my mommy heart.

But now, here I am awake. I just wish I had some answers, a plan of some sort. But then I'm reminded that if we do get answers from these test they're doing tomorrow, our lives will be very different, and I just don't know if I'm ready to deal with it. My dad asked me over the phone if I had mentally prepared myself, and I told him I had. But I suppose it's easy to say that I am mentally prepared, but how does a mama prepare to here any sort of bad news about their baby?My hope is that this round of tests will lead to us just crossing off another possible diagnosis off the list, as frustrating as that may be.

I normally have an planned idea of what I'm going to write in my blog posts, most of them have a specific starting and ending point. But for tonight, it's just ramblings. . My heart hurts right now, and I'm just really scared. I'm scared of what they'll find. I'm scared of what they won't find. Again.

seeking advice...

2011-03-16T07:31:00.000-07:00

Why is it that there are some topics where people don't ask whether you need advice, they just seem to offer it anyways? Like when you're pregnant, people feel they have tons of expert wisdom they must impart to you, even if they were pregnant like 30 years ago. Or when your 3 yr old is having a meltdown in the middle of Walmart because you are not giving in to her tactics.

Of course, most people are just genuinely trying to be nice, where some people (in the case of random strangers at walmart) are just assuming that you don't know what you're doing and feel the need to intervene.

But why is it when you really need wisdom and advice, there's no one there to help? Why is it in the middle of the day, when you're weary from being consistent and you so much want to give in to the tantrums, to just throw the towel in turn on the TV.

And what's worse when I turn to the creative homeschool moms for ideas, instead of feeling inspired, I feel incredibly inept and like a complete failure. How on earth do these moms with like 6 kids do it? Not only are they able to plan their awesome home cooked meals a week in advance, they actually follow through with it instead of looking at the clock at realizing its 7 and not even thought about dinner. Not only do they homeschool their kids, but they do all of these neat activities, while having younger kids play with each other without a problem.

I'm struggling teaching one while having my younger ones occupied. They used to play great back in the room while B and I did schoolwork. Now they quarrel consistently, and then in turn squeal and screech the highest volume possible. They hurt each other, and by the time I get back there for the 50th time in 20 minutes, I've had it and then discipline out of anger, rather than of love. I hate to admit it but it's true.

I'm desperate to figure out what, practically speaking I can do with my youngest two. And then, on top of those two, how do I deal with my oldest who is annoyed by every and anyone? Granted, we're still in the process of working the kinks out of homeschooling. I know he's eager to get out and run and play. But it's hard to meet all of their needs AND have food ready for them AND manage to get dressed (notice, I didn't even fathom a shower!) I didn't even mention anything about the housework.

For a few weeks, I tried a schedule and that worked out okay, despite the littles trying to kill one another. So I'm still trying to fix that. But I loved the idea of a schedule and Braydon thrived on it. I was able to get most of what I needed to do finished, but still my main struggle is the littlest two. So how on earth do you folks do it?!? Most of the time I could occupy Makenna Rae, but then JoJo starts screaming and then everyone gets upset, frustrated and irritated.

Corn or poison

2011-03-11T10:21:00.001-08:00

Limbo

2011-03-10T15:56:00.000-08:00

Sorry the month of February was short on content for me. I could say it was because I was busy, or because of some other great excuse. But in reality, it's because we're in limbo. And when you're in limbo, what's there to say? Our lives really are on hold, while we await the end of Jordan's antibiotic course. But I suppose I'll try to give you a wrap up what's going on.

Our pedi came over to our house to go over JoJo's chart, page by page, with me. She spent the entire afternoon with me. We looked at every lab that had ever been done, every infection he's had, every antibiotic he's been on. We read every write up that any of his specialists had written. I have to say it was a bit overwhelming. We came up with a plan: She was going to contact his pulmonologist at UNC to see if she could help us coordinate the tests that still needed to be done. In the interim, we would continue to give JoJo his 6 week course of antibiotic for the sinus infection, and then we'd go back to ID dr after the course was finished and see what he had to say.

The other day, our pulmonologist called me to speak with me because she wanted to follow up about our pedi's email. She was so wonderful before, but then she went out on maternity leave. While she was gone, we saw some other great doctors. It was during that time that his other symptoms started, so she was unaware of all of the others. She asked a lot of questions, and was very kind. Based upon my answers, she told me that they were setting up some tests for our appointment next Thursday. She promised me that even if the tests come back clear, that she would make sure we would figure out what "it" is. I finally felt reassured that we have someone at UNC who will make sure we get to the bottom of what's going on.

It was kinda funny because shortly after I got off the phone with the awesome Dr. Champion, the phone rang again and it was Jordan's infectious disease doctor, who was returning my phone call. I had called to see if they were going to be doing any repeat sinus x-rays, and if so, if they could be ordered & done prior to our appointment with him, so we wouldn't have to wait. I'd mentioned before I felt he totally blew us off at the last appointment. And he tried to do it again on the phone. I reminded him that we had several other appointments that day, other tests to be done as well. And then I reminded him that the six weeks are up, and unfortunately, JoJo is still having fevers. He acted surprised, and asked me how often and how high they got Once again, he acted surprised. "I wasn't anticipating the fevers to still be happening." I think he finally realized that maybe there was something more going on! He asked what tests were being done by Dr Champion and he said he'd probably tag a few more on to the ones she was ordering as well, but we would talk about it more at his appointment.

So anyways, limbo is a quite literally a crappy place to be. I change a ridiculous amount of DISGUSTING diapers every single day. On top of that, we can't go anywhere as a family. We split weeks up to go to church services. We're getting weary. I just want answers. Hopefully this time next week, we will have answers. But then again, I've been there done that, and been left with more questions than answers, more medicines and more doctors to see. So it's hard to be hopeful any more...

Sacrificing Your Children

2011-02-28T12:35:00.000-08:00

When I say that, you probably had the image of Abraham taking his son Isaac up on a mountain, tying him down to the altar, just in time for the sacrificial lamb to arrive. That’s a great story about trusting and loving God above all else and about God’s provision and faithfulness. But no, that’s not what we’re talking about. I’m talking about sacrificing our children, and not in a good way.

Child sacrifice, that’s a pleasant thought to think of early in the morning, isn’t it? Picture the Aztecs, as they took perfectly innocent babies and threw them in to a pit of fire to one of their gods. If you’re anything like me, you’re wondering how on earth could they do that?!? I have no idea to be honest. After 9 months, full of morning sickness, heartburn, insomnia, backaches, and so forth, and after twenty four hours of unmedicated labor, not to mention the months of nursing, how could I just willingly hand my baby over to someone I knew would kill him or her is beyond my understanding! Surely I am not alone in this, right? Of course not! It is in our very nature as mothers to protect them from harm. Even before our children arrive, we think about their safety. We buy outlet plug covers, sleep positioners, top of the line car seats and strollers, baby gates, and so forth. Some people even hire “experts” to come in and find all of the potential dangers lurking in their homes. Once they’re here, we take them to the doctor for well check-ups, and give them immunizations to protect them from diseases that could cause great bodily harm. We do extensive research on the people we will entrust the care of our little one with if we must return to work. Background checks, personal references, etc.

We do all of these things to protect them from physical harm, but my question for you today is what have you done about the spiritual dangers that are just as harmful to your child’s soul? We bring our kids to church with us, maybe they’re involved in Sunday school, or a club on Wednesday nights. We pray with them, and maybe we even do family devotions. These are GREAT, and I am proud of you for taking this time with your family. But is there something we’re still missing?

In Psalm 106, it says “They [the Israelites] sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons. They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan…” (vs. 37-38) Clearly, we are not physically sacrificing our children; we’re not shedding actual blood. We have no altar, no place to drop our kids off in masses, a place where we give total control of the children God has entrusted us with over to someone else, right? Or do we? Every morning, I waited in line to drop my child off at school, just one of the masses handing control of my oldest son over to a staff that I didn’t know. Now before you write me off and say I’m one of the crazy, isolationists homeschooling people, I ask you to bear with me. Stick through this, even if it’s just to prove me I’m wrong. I’m okay with that.

Let’s pretend for a minute that your 2nd grade daughter is waiting in the room after they dismiss school to be picked up in the car line. While waiting for her name to be called, she overhears a conversation by two teachers about the girl that has two mommies, and then her attention changes to the song on the radio in the room. It’s about a girl who found out their significant other has been cheating on her and to get even, she took a baseball bat to his car. By the time she gets into the car, she’s had a piece of her innocence taken from her that she will never, ever get back. Now I am not naïve enough to say that they can’t or won’t be exposed to this elsewhere, but these are the realities that our kids face on a daily basis when dropped off at school, even in a private school.

Imagine with me for a minute, that you drop your child off at an extra-curricular activity, maybe 4-H or soccer practice. When they get back in the car, you overhear your son and his friend talking about Wizards of Waverly Place or about the “swear word” that the coach said when he got hit by the ball in his head. You’d probably bring it to the attention of the person who is in charge or perhaps you’d even take your child out of the activity if it continued to happen, right? The problem is that when we drop our children off every day and turn them over to people who probably don’t believe exactly as we do, to spend the day with children whose parents most likely don’t believe exactly as we do, they are going to be exposed to things we don’t want them to be exposed to. They are going to be placed in situations that will not be good for them. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting we lock them in a tower like Princess Fiona on Shrek. I’m saying we are to shield them and guard them from anything that is not of God until they are able to fully dissect things using the Holy Spirit for discernment and the Word of God as a measuring stick.

So until then, my friends, are you willing to sacrifice the innocence of your children? Will you knowingly drop them off at the altar of the school doors? My prayer for you and for me is simple: “Out of His great love…Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from the nations.” (Psalm 106:45, 47)

Rockin'

2011-02-14T05:44:00.000-08:00

One of my fellow homeschooling moms shared at our monthly bible study meeting as her kids have gotten older, she has allowed them to take charge of their own "quiet time" but she has a way to help them digest and apply what they've read. She has them share what scripture they read and they make a list called "My God Is..." (a list of the qualities of God the scripture revealed about God.) I thought it was a cool concept and wanted to apply it to my own personal devotions for a while now, but haven't until just this morning (partly because I've been so slack on actually doing them!)

This morning was rough (yes, I realize it is not even 11 o'clock yet!) My feelings were already hurt from a hubby who waited until last minute to think about Valentine's day, even though he knows that my primary love language is gifts. And before I go on, I want to say that this does NOT mean that I am materialistic or high maintenance. It means that he could've gone to the dollar store and bought a purple candle and said "when I saw this purple candle, I had to buy it because I knew how much you love purple!" and that would've made my day. But I digress...Even though I know this is TOTALLY a hallmark holiday, it hurt me to know that I was gone ALL day yesterday and he didn't even try to hide that he was waiting til 8 PM the night before to get me something. So, anyways, this morning, I walked out of my bedroom into the kitchen to see all of the dirty dishes from yesterday, the trash overflowing, the kids table with leftover food stuck it, etc. I was overwhelmed and my feelings were really hurt. (By the way, he did get me something, & had sent me a valentine's day poem in my inbox, I just hadn't gotten to it yet!) I did the dishes really quickly, made the kids a quick breakfast, grabbed my coffee and literally ran back to my room. I knew I needed some time alone with God. My soul desperately needed some encouragement from the One who never forgets. I sat down on the bed, asked Him to adjust my attitude and give me strength and patience for the day. I threw my devotional book aside, and asked Him to lead me to the scripture for today. I opened up to Psalm 19, which is wonderful and full of some great imagery.

"1The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
3 They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
4 Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
5 It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
6 It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is deprived of its warmth.

7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the LORD are firm,
and all of them are righteous.

10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the honeycomb.
11 By them your servant is warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
12 But who can discern their own errors?
Forgive my hidden faults.
13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then I will be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.

14 May these words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer."

The last verse is a verse that brings back all sorts of memories for me from my few years at Lee University. Anyone whoever attended Lee knows this verse by heart, as we said it at the end of every single chapel. My mind was racing, thinking of all the good times I had there, but then they were quickly overshadowed by the bad memories that far outweighed the good. As those memories flooded my mind, I stopped and had an "ah-ha!" moment. Rather than drowning in misery, the Lord was reminding me of who He is no matter what I had done or will do. While we change, He does not change and is FOREVER the same.

"My God is..." my ROCK. As I wrote that in my journal, I made a list of what I thought that meant. In my mind, I envision this Rock as one of those huge boulders. Something that cannot be moved. Something that stays in the same place, no matter what comes. In a huge snow storm, it's not moved. In the steamiest days of summer in NC, it is not changed. The winds from a hurricane cannot remove it. It goes NO WHERE. I was also reminded of a story one of my friends recently told me about a car accident she was in. Somehow she passed out, and ran across on coming traffic, and instead of hitting any other cars, she slammed into this huge rock at the end of a parking lot. The rock was positioned at the end of the parking lot to protect the brick apartments behind it. She very easily could've crashed into the apartments or into another car, but instead, she ran into this rock that was strategically placed there. But even when you go look at the rock, you see that it has not moved, even after being hit by an oncoming car. It doesn't look any different. It remains a huge boulder set at the same place it was originally set at.That's what I think that God is saying. My God is my Rock who remains the same and doesn't change.

"My God is my Rock" also can be seen as something that can elevate us. That rock that Tara ran into were all around those apartment buildings, the same complex we used to live in. Our kids used to climb on them and they felt so cool on top of them. They felt superior because it made them taller. They were able to see things from a different perspective. I think that is the same thing that God can do for us as well. He can be our Rock, lifting us up off the ground and give us a different vantage point. We might be able to see the reason why he made us take a mile detour to the right, because there were ant hills all along the path if we had stayed straight ahead or even gone to the left. My God is my Rock who gives me a different perspective.

He also allows us to climb on Him as our Rock to elevate us to protect us from danger. When most people see a mouse on the floor, what is their first reaction? To jump up off of the ground onto something higher, right? When someone tells us there's a spider or a snake, something that we're scared of or that might cause us harm, our basic instinct is to find some place higher than where we are right now. My God is my Rock who elevates and protects me.

Sometimes though, when we crawl on that Rock, after a while, it can get uncomfortable. It's not as soft as that grass was. (even though that grass was full of ant hills, snakes, spiders and mice!) We often want to "take a break" and go rest on the soft green grass because staying on that big boulder just is not comfortable. Have you ever tried to sleep on a rock? Have you sat on a rock for more than just a few minutes? Even though the Rock has remained unchanged during the hurricane, has allowed us to see the things in our past that we were saved from and has protected us from all sorts of other dangers, we often get weary of the "hardness" and start thinking about how much easier it would be just to hop down on the grass. And then we start to figure out a way that we can do BOTH! We can sit on the grass while leaning our back on the rock. Eventually though, the things of the grass will come back to harm us and we'll once again have to choose whether we want the Rock's protection, or whether we're more interested in comfort. My God is My Rock and sometimes it's not easy to rest on Him.

My God is My Rock. When I'm standing on this Rock, I cannot be moved. I cannot be harmed. I will see things from a different perspective. And yes, it won't be easy and it will not be as comfortable as it is on the grass.

CODE RED!

2011-02-01T19:03:00.000-08:00

In 2004, the American Heart Association (AHA) faced a challenge. Cardiovascular disease claimed the lives of nearly 500,000 American women each year, yet women were not paying attention. In fact, many even dismissed it as an “older man’s disease.” To dispel the myths and raise awareness of heart disease as the number one killer of women, the American Heart Association created Go Red For Women – a passionate, emotional, social initiative designed to empower women to take charge of their heart health.

You know that heart disease and stroke are still the No. 1 and No. 3 killers of women. But did you know more women die of cardiovascular
disease and stroke than the next four causes of death combined, including all forms of cancer? Did you also know that 90 percent of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease, which if controlled could reduce their risk?

This Friday, February 4th is National Wear Red day, and I'm asking you to join me in wearing red to raise awareness of this killer.

So, this Friday, I go red for my dear AunT Sharon. I love you, AunT!!! Who do you go red for?

Diapering into Dollars

2011-01-29T10:29:00.000-08:00

Someone asked my to explain how the Pampers Gifts To Grow and the Huggies Enjoy the Ride Rewards programs work, so here goes!

Both programs basically work the same: In marked packages, you will find the codes on the inside that you enter online (although Pampers now has the ability to text the code now). The amount of points you receive depend upon the size of the packages, the kind of diapers, etc. These codes on the packages are single use only codes, meaning you can only enter it one time. Click here to see the points matrix for Pampers to see the value of their different products.

Both programs have "extra" ways to earn points as well. Huggies gives you points for watching videos, participating in polls, viewing some webpages, etc. This month, Pampers is allowing you to earn an additional 10 points when you enter one code before Jan. 31 (Monday) as well as double points for Swaddlers or cruisers until 2/12/11. Pampers also offers bonus codes that you are able to use in multiple accounts (I have an account for myself and one for my husband) Here are a list of codes, courtesy of Grocery Shop For Free. (I've used many in my account so I cannot confirm or deny whether they are currently still active, but it doesn't hurt to try!) Simple copy & paste it in the "enter 15 digit code here" box

VMF776C7HMXXT4A – 42 Points

4WJDHKU4RPP6PT2 – Good for 10 points

F9779FYAHFJRYCN - Good for 10 points

GTGWELCOME10PTS – Good for 10 points

NEWWIPESPACKAGE – Good for 10 points

Thanks2Veterans – Good for 10 Points

10PTSFREECODE4U – Good for 10 Points

FacebookOct2010 – Good for 10 Points

JOINNOW4REWARDS – Good for 50 Points

GIFTSTOGROW4MOM - 50 points

WELCOME2GTG2010 - 10 points

PUNTOSPARAMI123 - 10 points

2BEGINEARNING50 - 50 points

PAMPERS4MOMSOND – 10 points

NOVFACEBOOK2010 - 10 points

FBHALLOWEEN2010 – 10 points

4HAPPYHALLOWEEN – 5 points

Pampersgtg10pts – 10 points

FacebookOct2010 – 10 points

WELCOME2VILLAGE – 10 points

PUNTOSPARAMI123 – 10 points

GTGCOUPONPOINTS – 10 points

CAREFORNEWBORNS – 10 points

2BEGINEARNING50 – 50 points

GETSTARTEDNOW10 – 10 points

GTGGETREADYSOON – 10 points

GTGFIVEMONTHS10 – 10 points

GIFTS2GROWBONUS – 20 points

GTGTENMONTHCODE – 10 points

Rewards for Pampers include Shutterfly items, coupons and gift codes to places like diapers.com (You can earn 30% back in cash off of your purchases in the 1st 3 months, plus save 15% off your first purchase, use savings code CXXK8454 or click on the banner on the bottom of the page), toys, books, puzzles, magazine subscriptions, gift cards to places like Red Robin, Sam's Club (these can be used at Wal-Mart as well, so you don't have to be a member to use this!), etc. Rewards for Huggies include toys, potties, sippy cups, gift certificates to the GAP, and they have sweepstakes and instant win games as well.

Now before you say, well I don't buy the "brand name" diapers because they cost more, let me tell you that you actually CAN buy Pampers & Huggies for the same prices as store brands, if not less! The Thrify Couple helps you find the BEST diaper deals weekly, so that you can get brand named diapers for really good prices! You've gotta change diapers whether you like it or not, so you might as well get rewarded, right?

New kind of Normal

2011-01-29T08:50:00.000-08:00

Several Years back, my church, Englewood Baptist held a women's banquet and the speaker for the evening was a woman named Carol Kent, author of many books including A New Kind of Normal and When I Lay My Isaac Down. She told her story of how her son was arrested, charged and convicted of 1st degree murder and is serving a life sentence in a florida state prison. In Florida, a "life sentence" is just that: the rest of your natural life on this earth, meaning he will never be paroled. All of their appeals have been exhausted and denied. She spoke about when the floor falls out beneath you, you never go back to normal. You're world is forever changed, and no longer the same. She told us that this time is horrible, but that eventually you start picking up a piece here and piece there. You start to create and adjust to the "new" normal, if there is one after a catastrophic event, whether that be a death of a spouse, unexpected divorce, illness, etc. Each "tragedy" would look different for each person. She was such a good speaker, and I bought her book that night and she even signed it. I read the book and thought it was so sad and couldn't imagine the thought of going through something so horrible.

Now, I know that my situation with Jordan is not a tragedy by any means. Nothing catastrophic has happened. Yes, he's been awfully sick. But he is a strong kid, and is thriving, despite his many health issues. But I do have to admit, I've found myself in a new kind of normal. I now monitor his vitals 2x a day and record them. I administer his multiple medications throughout the day and record them as well. I find myself spending hours at the doctor throughout the week. I am one first name basis with the staff at our pedi's office. I'm learning more and more medical jargon daily. Heck, I'm practically a nurse now.

I suppose it could be much worse. I could be getting into a new normal of watching my child go through chemo, like too many of my friends are. Or I could be suffering at the loss of a child. But the thing I've learned through all of this so far is that just because my expierence is not "as bad" as this person or that person, it doesn't make my pain any less. The ache in the heart of a mama of a child with chronic illness is just as real. The sadness of seeing your child in pain is universal, no matter what is causing that pain. The helplessness and the complete loss of total control is identical.

But like Carol said, over time, we'll begin to see a piece on the ground, grab it, pick it up and place it back up in our lives. We'll continue to create our new normal each day. The good news is that our new normal may eventually turn out to be way better than the old normal. We get to appreciate the little things in life. We celebrate small victories in our kids' lives, like "no fevers", finding a completely soaked diaper after a day of no wet ones, and eating a whole container of yogurt. We see the things we used to get upset over as petty. And if nothing else we will have new friends and deeper friendships forged in the bottom of the pit, where we didn't evev know that there were pieces to pick up, or that a new normal even existed.

Eye contact

2011-01-28T04:27:00.000-08:00

Eye contact is something that is cultural, and in the South people generally look at strangers in the eye, smile, and say "hi" or nod. Simply acknowledging their existence. I grew up in NY, and don't remember doing that. If it was someone you knew, of course you said hi and smiled. But strangers? No way!

I suppose I've become a "Southerner" now, as I've come to accept and practice this cultural norm, and on the rare occasion that some one does not reciprocate, it makes me think "wow, they're rude!" or "what's wrong with them?!?"

I felt this way the first time we stayed at the Ronald Mcdonald house when Jordan was going to have his MRI and appointment with Infectious Disease/Immunology. When we got there, I figured we'd all be in the "same boat" so to speak: we were all there because our child was sick. We had an unspoken bond even before we met. The staff at the RMH are great, smiled a lot and were very friendly. Some of the people in the house were friendly, but I just didn't understand why people wouldn't look at me in the hallway when we passed. We had our day at UNC, and fortunately we were able to leave with good news!

We went back to the RMH on Wednesday in preparation for another early AM with his Infectious Disease doctor as well as a consult with a peds surgeon in regards to an inguinal hernia. Again, staff and volunteers were all smiles, very kind, etc. But the residents seemed to just pass by me, without looking up, with a few exceptions. I simply did not understand it!

We went to our appointments yesterday morning. Peds surgeon decided it would be best to wait for an official diagnosis before they did surgery, as they wouldn't want to make things worse for him, or if his condition required surgery, then perhaps they could combine the two. Then we were off to ID dr. Labs came back showing all the tests except for two were completely normal. The two levels that were off were not off "enough" for the doctor to even be concerned about. He did want to xray his sinuses to see if there was a sinus infection, and sure enough, there was! He's hopeful that this is what has been causing his fevers and that treatment for 6 weeks with an antibiotic will be what he needs. But he said as far as his other problems, they were not tied to a weakened immune system or anything else, so we'd have to go see a GI doctor for his chronic diarrhea.

I walked out defeated. I tried to hold back my tears of frustration, after all I was out in public. Plus I still had to drive back to the RMH and check out. On the way home, I would let myself cry, but until then, I just needed to suck it up.

I got to the RMH and went back to my room, looked at the clock and it was 1:30. I still hadn't eaten anything but a poptart at 7AM. I'm sure JoJo was hungry too, so I figured we'd go ahead and eat at the house first. I went to lay my laptop bag on the bed, and then the flood gates opened. I fell to the ground sobbing uncontrollably. It was not a diagnosis I had gotten, it was the fact that there was NO diagnosis, no broader explanation to why my baby has all of these issues. I began to wonder if I was just crazy, maybe there isn't anything wrong with him at all. Then I wept more at the totally helpless I felt.

Then all the sudden my tears stopped and I got mad. Mad that God created Jordan this way and was not letting us do anything about it. (I'm just being honest here, I'm sorry if I offend anyone). I got really angry that he would let this crap go on for so long without a reason. So many doctors, and the only thing I have to show for it is MORE medicine and referrals for MORE doctors. How much longer can I do this? The constant doctors visits, the agony of not knowing, etc. It is so incredibly draining both physically and emotionally. And then I started crying yet again because I was thinking about myself instead of my little JoJo.

After I finally had calmed myself down & stopped crying, I went and washed my face. It was well after 2, so I thought maybe getting something to eat would help me calm down. As we made our way from our room to the kitchen, I finally understood why I hadn't gotten eye contact. I kept my head down, stared at the floor. I didn't want to see a smiling face or to even say hi to someone else because I knew that if I did, I would probably fall apart again & start sobbing uncontrollably. And I hadn't even had a clear diagnosis. How much worse do these parents feel that already have a diagnosis?

I just want answers, and I do not understand why we don't have them. I don't get why God has us going down this path. I have to hold on to the idea that something good would come of all of this, but right now, it sucks.Even writing this, I'm wiping away the tears. It hurts beyond words. I want to be able to stop looking at the ground and be able to smile and nod at people without falling to pieces and sobbing.

Encouragement for life...

2011-01-22T07:43:00.000-08:00

My friend Lorin tells me I've been really depressing lately, and I suppose she's right. My heart is heavy and burdened, and it's hard to turn it off. But the other day I was listening to the Christian radio station and I heard the tag line "Encouragement for Life". I can't even tell you what radio show that comes from, but I think it's either Focus on the Family or Family Life Today. We all need encouragement for life, because life is just that: life!

Life is messy. And it's hard. And sometimes it gets better, just to take a turn for the worse again. Life is a battle, mixed with times of pure joy and happiness. But then I'm reminded of a scripture that was given to me during the first really traumatic experience as an adult: I had a miscarriage at age 19. It was rough, even though the pregnancy was unplanned and I was not married. But someone gave me this verse below and it changed me!

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ." 2 Corinthians 1:3-5

I was able eventually to move past the whole in my heart, and eventually would experience it 2 more times. But guess what?!? The comfort I received during those times of miscarriage, helped me to in turn comfort others who were faced with something no mother expects to deal with when she see's the "positive" pregnancy test!

Here's an e-mail from a dear friend of mine:

"I'm watching the view and Lisa Ling is on talking about her recent miscarriage and how it effects women. I thought to myself-I wonder why I handled mine so well. I never felt alone, I never felt like no one understood, etc and I think that was b/c you spoke so openly with me about it. If you think about it-that's where/how our friendship blossomed, over miscarriage and pregnancy.

So, thank you for being so open with your own experiences b/c I do believe it was a huge factor in getting over an unfortunate (but all to common) thing."

I'm so glad that due to a horrible tragedy, I ended up knowing one of my best friends. I hate that we both had to go through it, but now I have an incredibly dear friend! So what are you going through right now? Look around, and find someone who's been through it before. Let them comfort you, so that in turn, in the years to come you can be the one comforting.

Already been through the storm and made it to the sunshine on the other side? Seek out someone who is caught in the rainstorm and offer an umbrella, or maybe even invite them inside your house where it's not raining!

Kindred Spirits: Part 3 (Hailey)

2011-01-20T05:38:00.000-08:00

Hailey is getting ready to celebrate her very 1st birthday this month! Her family and friends will be celebrating on the 29th of this month. This party will not only be celebrating her birthday, but thanking God for the strength that Hailey has shown throughout her "story". Hailey is fighting neuroblastoma and is quite possibly the cutest little girl on the fact of the planet, next to my own daughter, of course! Hailey is the daughter of a good friend of mine, Amy and her husband , Bob, and is the youngest of 3 kids.

It all started in October of 2010. Hailey just changed. That is the best way to describe it. She was no longer the happy, sweet, easy going little baby that her mom, Amy, knew. She was tired more, very irritable, and seemed to be in pain. Amy took Hailey to the pediatrician and explained that she felt like something was wrong. It got dismissed as teething!!

For the next week and a half things just got worse. She refused to crawl or try to stand up like she had been doing a few weeks earlier. She also started to sit leaning to one side. She would pull her leg up in pain, she was not peeing as much and she was very constipated. Then one afternoon Amy noticed some swelling in Hailey's groin area while changing her diaper. It really scared her so the next day she went back to her peds doctor and Amy told the doctor that they were NOT leaving until they found out what was wrong. She first thought it may have been an infection in the hip joint so she ordered x-rays and some lab work which showed nothing wrong. Thank God that through a course of events that day Hailey was sent to Pitt for more workup. That was on November 3rd.

The attending doctor at Pitt attentively listened to Amy as she explained everything that she had noticed in Hailey. He also saw the swelling himself which had actually started to discipate. He told her that "moms are always right" whenever they think something is wrong. Amy felt reassured that they would not be leaving Pitt without a diagnosis. Hailey had lots of labs done and none of them showed anything out of the ordinary. There were no signs of any infection. The doctor then ruled out the hip as the cause of her symptoms and thought it could be a hernia so he scheduled an ultrasound of the groin area. The radiology doctor saw no hernia, but did mention that her bladder was really distended.

So again with no answers the doctor ordered an MRI of the groin area. Amy noticed it was taking a lot longer then they had originally told them and then the pediatric sedation doctor said they had to scan further up into the abdomen and chest area. After the doctor walked off, Amy says it was then that it HIT her...why would the do that unless they found something?!? Amy tracked her down and she said they found a mass. After that things were a blurr.

Her doctor came down and said he was having the oncologist meet with Bob & Amy as soon as Hailey got back to her room. When they met with the oncologist he told them that just by looking at her scans that he knew for certain that it was malignant. That was November 5th, just 1 day shy of Hailey turning 9 months old.

I remember being up there with Amy on the day Hailey had her biopsy with another friend of ours Renee. The whole way up, Renee & I just wondered what to say. I shared with her about how that could have been us, as we had just had JoJo's 1st EEG. And it was on that ride up to the hospital where I committed to doing whatever I could to help this precious family. When we got up there, we prayed, we cried, we even managed to make it down to the cafeteria for a bit. My heart broke for Amy and Bob, and in that moment I felt completely helpless. There are some things that will be forever etched into my heart of those few hours Amy, Renee & I spent together. The picture below is of me and that sweet girl during church the week that I got to spend with her so Amy could go to Bible Fellowship Group. I loved every second of it, and she LOVED the Little People nativity set (not to mention my fantastic song entitled "Hailey-bug", which is what Amy calls her!)

A few days later after the biopsy the doctors gave "it" a name. "It" was Neuroblastoma Stage IV (non-adrenal), and later would find out it was good biology....MYCN non-amplified, hyperdiploid, and favorable. LOH of 1p and 11q chromosomes were unable to be determined for unknown reasons. Praise God Hailey is only considered intermediate risk disease due to age.

Hailey is in the process of Chemotherapy, and has just finished her 4th round. The original plan was to do 4 rounds, then a scan to see more chemo would be needed or if they could do surgery to remove the tumor. Amy has been told by the doctors that most likely Hailey will have some of the tumor remain inside of her, and it will become benign over time. But this idea is tough for any parent to imagine, knowing they didn't remove all of it.

Amy says that it's hard for her to know that for the next few years she will have to go back and do MRI scans every 3-6 months to see if the tumor has grown and/or spread, and that it's just hard to just lay that at the feet of Jesus, which is totally understandable. Please remember to pray for Hailey, for her parents Amy & Bob, and for her older brothers Cameron & Carson! To follow Hailey's updates & to leave encouraging messages, you can visit her CaringBridge page.

Kindred Spirits: Part 2 (Brentley)

2011-01-19T12:30:00.000-08:00

Brentley just celebrated his very 1st Birthday last week! He had 2 parties, ate cake, and opened presents just like any other 1 year old. The only difference is that Brentley is in the middle of fighting a rhabdomyosarcoma in his bladder. His parents are Lindsey & Brad, and we met through mutual friends while sharing prayer requests. We haven't "officially" met in person, but I'm hoping that we'll be able to meet next week while we're all at UNC.

Brentley's story began when his mommy noticed he was VERY constipated for like 2 weeks. Then she noticed that he was having problems urinating. She said he could do a few dribbles but couldn't make a "stream". Then he started passing tissue-it would be the size of her pinky fingernail. Their local hospital missed the tumor on two separate ER visits.

Brentley wound up at UNC children's ER on November 2, 2010. Within hours of arrival at UNC, Brentley was diagnosed with the rhabdomyosarcoma via a renal ultrasound. Chest ultrasound, bone scan and bone marrow biopsy all came back with encouraging reports that the cancer had not spread any where else. Even more encouraging is that a spot across from the tumor that was seen in two ultrasound scans "disappeared" by the time it came to biopsy it! Such amazing news!

Brentley is scheduled to have 42 weeks of chemotherapy, and was originally scheduled for radiation as well. But the doctors believe that the tumor is responding well to the chemo, and radiation may NOT be needed!! He has had some side effects of the chemo, as expected, so please continue to pray that these would ease up!

Brentley was able to be at home for his 1st Christmas, which is so very exciting, even though he had developed early pneumonia and was treated in the ER 3 days before Christmas ! It is those little things that sometimes we take for granted!

Lindsey asked that we join with them in praying that the Lord would help her to be a better witness throughout the entire situation. Please also pray for healing, for comfort and for strength for both Brad & Lindsey! To follow their story, you can visit Brentley's CaringBridge page.

Kindred spirits: Part 1 (Joey)

2011-01-19T10:40:00.000-08:00

Joey is an 8 month old cutie, would you not agree?!? He is actually one of my best friend's nephew. His parents are Maura and Tom and he is the youngest of 3 boys. Joey has had many stays at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Maryland. Joey's story began on the day of his birth, May 5, 2010. He was born at 33 weeks gestation, and he had had IUGR- intrauterine growth restriction. Basically meaning he was small for his gestational age. Even though he spent 4 weeks in the NICU, Joey had no issues other than his growth. He stayed a month because it took him that long to go from a birth weight of 3lb, 8oz to the discharge weight of 4lb, 6oz.

He had a lot of issues with poor breathing and lack of growth. Everyone they went to see just gave him more inhailers and nebulizer treatments. It wasn't until the first Pulmonary appointment at Hopkins that the doctors attempted to come up with a more concrete answer. Joey got to ride in both a helicopter and an ambulance!

Joey was at Hopkins for three weeks the first time and they found that he has:

-Chronic Lung Disease
-Esophageal Strictures
-Aspiration Pneumonia

-Gastroesophageal Reflux
-Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

The lung disease and pneumonia are due to the aspirtation which is caused by the esophageal strictures. We are hopeful that with time, he will grow out of this. If not, it could remain a chromic (but manageable) issue for the rest of his life. He got a G tube inserted on 12/23 to bypass the esophagus, hopefully lessening the likelihood for aspiration.

His Mommy says "Now we just wait and see..." Please continue to pray for Joey, his parents Maura & Tom, and his brothers.

Deal of the Day: amazon gift card!!

2011-01-19T05:30:00.000-08:00

Today's deal of the day is from Living Social and it is $10 for a $20 Amazon gift card!!

What's rarer than spotting a snow leopard, Halley's Comet, and Mark Wahlberg with a shirt on? Answer: Today's once-in-a-lifetime deal. Pay just $10 and get a $20 gift card to use at Amazon.com, the largest online retailer. Whether you are looking for something usual, like a book, or unusual, like a Borat-style mankini, you'll find it among the millions of products listed on the site. Or, if you're hankering for something that really stands out, put your 50%-off gift card toward the revolutionary and bestselling Amazon Kindle device. Just be sure to act fast, because deals like this only happen once in a blue moon.

Fine Print:
Limit 1 per person, no gifting allowed • Amazon.com Gift Card does not expire • Voucher purchase is valid for US-based customers only • LivingSocial Terms and Conditions apply • The Amazon.com terms and conditions set forth below are deal specific terms that supersede any inconsistent terms in the LivingSocial terms and conditions. • Amazon Gift Card cannot be purchased with Deal Bucks.

If you need diapers, you can save 30% and get free 2 day shipping with Amazon Mom, then combine this with 20% coupons from ebay
along with a manufacturer's coupon (you may need to refresh a few times to see the $1.50 coupon for Pampers) and then use your $20, and you'll be able to get Pampers Baby Dry Diapers (100-200ct depending on size) for the price of the gift card above!! It's delivered to your door and trust me, you'll get addicted to having diapers at your door for cheap!!

crazy love....

2011-01-18T04:53:00.000-08:00

Love is a choice. It's not one that you can make and then forget it about it. It is a daily choice, maybe even hourly. The one that snores. The one that is forgetful. The one that has to save boxes. The one that hasn't met a coupon that couldn't be used or traded. The one that washes new pink pants with a tub of white clothes. The one that refuses to touch feet in bed. The list could go on, but I won't bore you.

The good news? We still choose every day to live, to laugh, and to love...
"Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins" 1 Peter 4:8

Old McDonald

2011-01-14T05:43:00.000-08:00

"Old Mcdonald housed a family whos little one was in the NICU. With a homemade meal here, a laundry facility there..."

Part of my "11 Goals for 2011" is to donate to a different charity every month. Since we just recently experienced the amazing Ronald Mcdonald House charity 1st hand, I decided I'd start with donating to them, and I'm asking you to join me! If you have a local Ronald McDonald House, feel free to donate there. If not, perhaps you could donate to the Chapel Hill Ronald McDonald House online.

The Chapel Hill RMH buys 17 gallons of milk, 4 gallons of orange juice, 3 dozen eggs, 2 lbs of lunch meat, 1 lb of sliced cheese, and 3 containers of laundry detergent (among many other things!) each week in order to provide for the needs of those families who are caring for their children in the hospital. The kitchen is always open, and they have food available at all times!

Practically speaking, they receive no public assistance and use donations to provide for the needs of the families. They charge a mere $10/night per family, when it costs about $60/night to operate. They have a Wish List of items they use every day that they are need of donations for.

I'm asking you to consider donating something off of their wishlist or just monetarily online. I will be going back January 27th and plan on stopping in to the Ronald McDonald house with donations. If you would like to give something off their wishlist, or want to give me money to go purchase these items, you can contact me at cookemonstersmom *dot*Com.

Hopefully you will never need to use the services of the Ronald McDonald House, but if you do, they will be there for you, like they are there every day for thousands of families throughtout the US.

2011-01-13T10:06:00.000-08:00

We left to go up to Chapel Hill on Tuesday night because with all the ice, we were worried we'd not be able to make it up there in time Wednesday morning. My mom, Jojo & I checked in to the Ronald McDonald House, which was such an incredible blessing. They have everything you could possibly need while staying there, including a homemade dinner, snacks, laundry facilities, etc. Every one was so friendly and we felt very welcomed and indeed, at home. We were so thankful for that!
JoJo even got pet a doggy & fell in love. We might just have to see if we can get him one, right honey?!?

We got up to the hospital around 9AM, and checked in for his first appointment with his Infectious Disease/Immunology doctor. We had to wait quite a while for him, but he took a brief history, checked our little guy out, and then ordered a slew of 29 tests for him. He told us to come back in 2 weeks, where he'll have the results of those tests back. I tried to figure out what he was testing for, but in a way, I'm glad I don't know.

We left there and it was almost time for us to head to MRI. With a quick stop at the fun clock, we were off to MRI. I was just ready for this part to be over. After filling out more paper work, and waiting with a grumpy toddler (who wanted his bottle but he couldn't have any because of the sedation & he wanted to go to sleep but we couldn't let him) they finally called us back. JoJo was ANGRY with them, to say the least. He wanted to sleep and to have his bottle, not to be hooked up to all sorts of machines. Finally after all the questions, the vitals, the monitoring began, it was finally time for them to give him the "knock out stuff". He was again NOT happy about that either. But in about 15 minutes he was sedated, and then I had to kiss my baby, and leave him. I did good: I didn't cry, I just gently laid him down on the bed, kissed his forehead and told him I loved him. I made it to the waiting room where my mom was, and still didn't shed a tear!! I had my "super mommy" cape on. I had to go all the way out near the front of the hospital to get service so I could update Kenney that he was in the MRI. I also listened to my voicemails, and I was just overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support. There were messages from friends, family members (thank you to my cousin James for calling, I'm sorry we never got back up with you, it was a crazy day!), Pastors, etc. And then I did a quick update on FB. I had to run back to the MRI place b/c I was worried they would need me for something & I wouldn't be there.

About 45 minutes later, they came to get me. I went back to see him in the recovery room, and he looked so pitiful. But alas, my "super mommy" cape reminded me to not freak out. It took him quite a while to wake back up, and finally after he did, he was unhooked from all of his machines, and we were free to go. He was still REALLY out of it, so we figured we'd go ahead and get his tests done while we waited for the neurologist appt.

It was good that he was really sedated still because they had 12 tubes of blood to draw! 29 tests later, we were finished, and we looked at the clock. It was 2, and we had 1/2 hr before his neurologist appointment and the results from the MRI. I clearly couldn't eat, plus there wasn't much time so we just decided to head on over and wait. JoJo was passed out the whole time. We finally got called around 2:40 and we were 1/2 way down the hall, when someone from behind us said "Is that the Rue family?" we turned around, and the nurse nodded and the lady said "We're waiting on them for a bit"

My heart stopped. I almost puked. I thought for sure that meant they had found something and they were just having to re-read the scan or essemble some sort of "plan of attack". The lady said "Carolyn Zook has 2 patients back there already & I'd hate for you to be stuck back there all that time." phew. Super Mommy cape back on. We went back to the waiting room, and finally were called back to the room.

I knew the minute she walked in the door that things were ok. Her tone of voice was different than the phone call when she told us that they were needing to schedule the MRI. And then she said it... "He has a completely healthy fully formed brain!" I wanted to jump up and down, do a cart wheel or something. But seeing as how my heavily sedated 14 month old was passed out in my ams, I didn't. She showed us the pictures of his scan, how everything was perfect. We then talked about medication for his seizures, and then we were out of there.

So now we're in limbo, a place that is not fun at all. We wait for two weeks to get the tests results of the 29 tests his ID/Immunology doctor ordered. I'm so thankful for this little boy, who lights up my world. Even when he's fussy, when he doesn't sleep at night he the piece of my puzzle that I didn't even know we were missing. I can't imagine life without him, and I hope I never will have to live it without him.

Relief?

2011-01-13T08:51:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd finally be able to sleep last night. But that was not the case. I had dreams of calls from the doctor, saying someone had re-read the scans and found something, or dreams that we went back in a few weeks and got horrible news. I tossed and turned all night.

How can the fact that my son doesn't have a brain tumor not be enough relief for me?! How can the fact that his brain was formed perfectly not bring me some peace?

Perhaps it's because I know he's still got "something" going on inside of his body, and we don't know what it is. Maybe it's because I know that at any given moment, my good news might quickly turn into bad news. Maybe it's because as I was leaving that hospital, I thought of my friends who are fighting with their kids against illnesses. I thought of Joey at Johns Hopkins. I thought of Hailey and Brentley who are infants both fighting cancer.

While my world came to a hault while my son was having a perhaps life-altering MRI, the rest of the world continued on. People went to work. They stopped by the grocery store & the post office. People celebrated anniversaries, birthdays, engagements, honeymoons, etc. Duke's winning streak came to an end. My mom said it best yesterday: When you're at the hospital, it's like the rest of the world doesn't exist and vice versa. It just doesn't sit well with me.

These families' lives come to a pause. They are stuck in little rooms while they watch their kids be treated. They have no control over anything. And that just sucks. I hate it. I hate it for them. I hate it for their kids. I hate it for their other kids that are having to deal with it to. Because disease is not just a one person battle, especially when it's a child that is sick.

My heart is burdened beyond measure, not only for my child, but for these precious friends of mine as well.

Faith like a child...

2011-01-11T04:11:00.000-08:00

My friend Amy is in a battle that no parent should have to face: her ten month old daughter was diagnosed with a neuroblastoma on her spinal column. I'll never forget the day we spent with her at the hospital while Hailey had her biopsy. We hugged her, we prayed with her, and we surely cried with her. I have the gift of mercy, and it was easy for me to put myself in her shoes, especially with the issues JoJo is going through.

We were talking on the phone the other day because I was trying to mentally prepare for what we might be told tomorrow. Amy & Bob were completely blindsided with the diagnosis. At least I know what the possibilities are. And I wanted to be prepared. So we talked about how scary the unknown is, and how horrible the agonizing wait is while you wait to hear from the doctors. She talked about how when Hailey was going through her 2nd round of chemo, she was waiting, as happy as can be. She looked up at Amy with a HUGE grin on her face. She knew that she was with her mom, and that she could trust her mom. She told me she wished she could be like that with God. To look up at God and trust Him completely, with a HUGE smile on her face.

To have faith like a child. A child doesn't look at the circumstances, he looks for what he knows to be true. For example, we learned during the Truth Project, that a child walks to the end of the diving board. Everything in his mind tells him NOT to jump into the water that is much deeper than he is tall, that he won't be able to breath under the water, that he will no longer be in control once he makes that move to step off the board. But then he sees his mom at the end of the board, waiting with her arms open, ready to catch him. To rescue him if the water overcomes him. He knows this because he knows that his mom won't let him be hurt under her watch.

So I know the word of God promises me many things.
-"All of my days were written in your book before one of them came to be." Ps. 139:16
-"The Lord your God will be with you, wherever you shall go" Joshua 1:9
-"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

Here's the scripture my dad shared with us:
Psalm 91

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most Highwill rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If you make the Most High your dwelling—even the Lord, who is my refuge— then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

So my goal for the day: To go to the end of the diving board, and despite the water being much deeper that I am tall, to look to my Daddy, and jump in, trusting He will be there to rescue me!

JoJo's woes...

2011-01-10T09:36:00.000-08:00

Photo courtesy Rachel at Savor Photography

It's crazy to believe that in his 13 months on this earth, our little guys has been as sick as he has. Even his pediatrician says that he is the sickest full-term baby she's ever had. I was wondering really how much he had been through, and then I read the letter that our pedi had written to the Infectious Disease/Immunology specialist at UNC. And it hit me like a ton of bricks: This kid has been really sick. Here's a brief history of Jordan's medical history:

It first started right after we took him home from the hospital. He developed physiological jaundice at day 3 of his life, and required photo-therapy with a bili-blanket. We went every day to the doctor for the 1st 2 weeks of his life. His pedi is a good friend of mine and knew that it was important for us all to be at home with each other, and allowed us to use the bili-blanket at home. (She said if it was any one other than us, she would've admitted him to the hospital, but she knew she could trust us to follow the strict schedule of photo-therapy. Eventually it turned into breastmilk jaundice and finally it went away. We called him our little glo-worm.

He was admitted to the hospital for bronchitis and respiratory distress three times this past year. The 1st time was at 3 months of age. Then he decided to give us an anniversary present we'll always remember and then 3 weeks later was readmitted, this time with RSV. He has been diagnosed with Asthma and sees a pulmanologist at UNC to help manage this.

In between his hospitalizations, he was also having recurrent double ear infections and eventually had tubes placed at 5 months. So far he has not had any ear infections since, so we're very thankful for that.

Shortly after 8 months, he stopped nursing, so we switched him to formula. We began with Enfamil, but he had projectile vomiting and diarrhea so we decided to switch to soy, since that is what Braydon had used. He was fine with this, but then he started again with the diarrhea. So we tried AR, Nutramagen, etc. Nothing worked without causing vomiting and chronic diarrhea. We were referred to an allergist to have food allergy testing done, which showed no food allergies. He suggested that perhaps JoJo had a protein sensitivity, so he decided to try him on Alimentum. Just as with the other formulas, he was fine for about 7 days, and the diarrhea returned. We still deal with chronic diarrhea today.

The allergist also decided to start some immune system testing to see if his immune systems levels were okay, since he had been so sick. The levels all fell within normal, but there was an abnormal result in regards to his responses to his vaccinations, which might indicate his immune system is not functioning the way it should. He suggested we go to the immunologist at UNC.

He also suffers from what is called as "fevers of unknown origin" where he'll have high fevers with absolutely no explanation. His ears look fine, throat is fine, strep culture negative, urine & blood work look normal. But yet he still has a fever. It was because of this and the allergist's recommendation, our pedi referred us to UNC AIRID department (which stands for allergy, immunology, rheumatology, and infectious disease). We have this appointment prior to the MRI this Wednesday.

Then one day, I was just finishing up feeding him lunch when probably the scariest thing I've ever dealt with happened: JoJo got stiff as a board and he started shaking. I was not expecting it at all, and it wasn't very long at all, maybe a minute, tops. But we took him to the ER, and he was still very subdued and just laid in my lap. He had no fever and no other symptoms. After a few hours of observation they sent him home. We followed up with our pedi, who again referred us up to UNC pediatric neurologist. They saw him and did an EEG, just to make sure everything was okay. From that 1st EEG, they showed nothing irregular, but she did mention they did not get to see him sleeping, which they would have liked to. But we set up a follow up appointment and left the clinic with a "wait and see" point of view.

Then the weekend before his birthday, he had 2 subsequent seizures. When we called his neurologist, she suggested we come back to her again. At that appointment, she ordered a 3 day amblatory EEG. He was fitted for the backpack & all the wires at the next appointment and for 3 days, we had to be really careful about how he slept, because of the wires. I was so worried he would choke himself.

After the test, we didn't hear anything back right away, which I was thankful for. (A dear friend of mine who works in the medical field told me that most of the time, if there is something grossly irregular, I'd hear from them right away.) I remember when the neurologist called me back, as I just happened to be in our regular pedi's office (again!) for another fever that couldn't be explained. I knew right away that she had found something because he tone was different than it was when she called me to tell me the results from the 1st EEG. Then she told me they had seen abnormal spikes in the right frontal lobe of his brain when he slept and that they would need to do the MRI. But since he has respiratory issues, he we need to be sedated.
Photo courtesy Rachel at Savor Photography

Hopefully this will all be nothing, and we'll look back and saw how silly we were for worrying about it. But if the path that God has for our family, and for my precious little man, take us else where, we trust that He, like always, knows better than we do. Thank you for your prayers for healing, for wisdom & discernment for JoJo's doctors!

11 goals for 2011

2011-01-10T07:04:00.000-08:00

I stole this idea from my friend Bill, so thanks for the inspiration!! Here are my goals for 2011, some lofty, some rather mundane. Hopefully, I'll be do most if not all them!

1. Pay off library fines and then go to library & borrow books (after fine is paid!)
2. Go to the Buffalo bills game
3. Earn the “Taste of Travel” trip to New Orleans while earning the bronze level cruise to the Bahamas with the pampered chef!
4. Run in the Rock N Roll Half Marathon on Labor Day Weekend in Virginia Beach, VA.
5. Raise $500 for St. Jude Children’s research hospital. They offer care to children regardless of their ability to pay, at no cost to them, as well as pay for travel, food & lodging for the child & parent!
6. Pay off both credit cards.
7. Create a budget and stick to it.
8. Figure out what is going on with Jordan & do something about it.
9. Do at least one "once a month cooking" session.
10. Go on a missions trip.
11. Donate to a different charity each month.

My 1st super doubles list.

2011-01-05T09:04:00.000-08:00

Super Doubles Trip #1
This is not everything, as I needed a few things and for the sake of convienence (since I had all three kiddos with me!) I opted to buy them there. The sale items are below!

10 bottles of Old Orchard Healthy Balance Juice, Buy 2 at 2.95 each Get 3 free used (2) $1/2q, (doubled) total for 10= $7.80, or 78 cents each.

Kashi Go Lean Cereal, sale price $3, used $3q, total= FREE!

4 boxes Ziploc Sandwich bags sale price $2.19 each, used (2) $1/2 q's (doubled), total for 4=$4.76 or 1.19 each.

6 Ziploc containers BOGO at 3.49 each (so they rang up $1.75 each) , used (3) $1.50/2 q's (doubled), total for 6=$1.50 or 25 cents each.

Quaker Quick Oats, 2.65, used $1q (doubled) total= 65 cents

2 Bounce Dryer bars at 4.99 each. Used (2) 1.50 q's (doubled) total for 2=3.98 or 1.99 each

7th Generation papertowels 1.99, used $1q (doubled) total=FREE

Covergirl eye shadow, 3.79, used $1q (doubled) total=1.79

Old Spice Deodorant sale price 2/$4, used $1q (doubled) and a BOGO q, total for 2=FREE!

Reach dental floss, 1.65, used $1 q (doubled) total=FREE

Downy Dispenser Ball, 1.59 used $1q (doubled) total=FREE

Merita Butter Bread, sale price 1.99 used 55cents q (doubled) total= 89 cents

Pedialyte Powder 4 ct, 5.99, used 1.50 q (doubled) total=2.99 (we go thru pedialyte often since Jojo is sick so often. Otherwise this is just an "okay" deal)

Bestlife spread butter 2.35, used $1q (doubled) total= 35 cents

Excedrin 24 ct (with a 5 ct of Excedrin PM sample attached)= sale price 2.99 used FREE q, total=FREE!

saved $125.48
Total Paid: $28.55

Thrifty Christy's Guide To Gettin' It For Free-Jan. Edition

2011-01-04T06:08:00.000-08:00

It's the beginning of a new year, which of course means new resolutions, right? Are you ready to make a resolution you can actually stick to? What if you could pay off debt or be able to stay at home with your kids?! What if you could earn money without ever leaving your bed? What if you could have name brand diapers (Pampers, Huggies) delivered to your door step for less than 2 cents per diaper? What if you could have money directly deposited into your paypal account? Is that something you could resolve to do & stick to it?!? This is the year to take control of your bank account & your budget! Earn money AND save it at the same time!

I'm offering my "Thrifty Christy's Guide to Gettin' It for Free!" webinar this Thursday, January 6th, 2010 at 8PM EST. It will be an hour in length and the cost is $10 per person. This is not just an oridanary coupon class! I won't be discussing triple coupons or the difference between a store coupon and a manufacturer's coupon. This class will teach you how to shop at Kohl's, how to earn FREE gift cards to Target, Amazon, Starbucks, and even money into your paypal account. I will teach you how to take advantage of the store promotions from the comfort of your own home, all while earning $ back! You'll earn the money back in one trip to Kohl's or in one online purchase!

I will be giving away a $10 amazon gift card away at the end of the webinar to a lucky attendee! Want to earn extra entries into the giveaway? Register via the button below, and then refer your friends to this webinar. For every person who registers and uses your name as a referral, you'll get an extra 2 enteries into the give-away! So tweet, facebook, blog away!! =)

Starbucks Natural Fusions for $8!!

2010-12-21T09:25:00.000-08:00

Right now, at Amazon, you can get two 11 oz packages of Starbucks Natural Fusions coffee in Vanilla or Cinnamon for $13, but if you enter in the code FUSIONC5 at check out, you'll get $5 off, so that will make it only $8 for 2 packs! What a great last minute Christmas gift! But hurry, this deal will sell out soon!!!

If you're an Amazon Prime member, you'll get FREE 2 day shipping, or it qualifies for Free Standard shipping with $25 order. You can even sign up for a free trial of Amazon Prime for a month!!!

Starbucks Natural Fusions Coffee:

Pack of two, 11-ounces per pack (total of 22 ounces)
High quality Latin American arabica coffee beans
Naturally flavored coffee

Thanks to the Happy Housewife!!

Getting stuff for free...

2010-12-08T10:40:00.000-08:00

Inspired by my sister's incredible new online teaching venture, I thought I'd tag along so to speak. I've gotten multiple e-mails, comments, and texts begging me to teach them my "secret" of getting things for free. And by "things" I'm not talking about samples (although those are really fun & handy to get in the mail!) I mean FREE cool things like gift cards to places like Amazon, Target, Starbucks, Kmart, as well as hundreds of dollars of awesome items at Kohl's. And yes, it's legal, contrary to my best friend Lorin's belief.

So here's my contribution to your family's budget: I'm offering my 1st "Thrifty Christy's Guide to Gettin' it for Free". This won't be a "coupon class" talking about blinkies and triple coupons. This will be how to get the other things besides groceries, and right now with Christmas coming up, who couldn't benefit from this?!? Cost is $10, and my 1st class will get a coupon for $5 off a $5 purchase at Kohl's store!

This first class will be this coming Tuesday night, December 14th, 8PM EST and you will have your coupon for Kohl's that night! To register,

There is a class limit of 30 participants, but if Tuesday wouldn't work for you, let me know. There is a possibility I will be able to make the webinar available for later use!!

Flashback to the 80's

2010-08-12T04:56:00.000-07:00

Kenney decided to have a "get-together" for my 28th birthday which I thought was really cool! He decided which weekend to do it & then I had a great idea. Why not make it an 80's party? I was so excited about the idea & told everyone about the 80s theme w/o even running it by Kenney. Thankfully, he went along with the idea.

We had a TOTALLY RAD time, with great friends, lots of food, games & laughter! Thanks to all my friends for making my birthday party a great one! Thanks especially to my dear friend Britney, who came all the way down from Indiana for the weekend! It was great to see here again before she departs for Haiti for a year!!

Britney, JoJo & I in our awesome 80's getups. I think the yellow belt from Salvation Army really made her outfit, where as the fringe seemed to have made mine a "work of art"!!

I know you've got to BE-DAZZLED by my dazzled shirt, right?!?

Kenney's mom was a good sport by wearing this awful purple dress I literally shoved on her!! Thanks for being a good party guest, Marilyn!!

Makenna Rae & Mommy sporting our 80's look. She had a side pony tail & blue eyeshadow (Side note: It felt so incredibly wrong to be putting makeup on my 2 1/2 year old. How on earth do those moms from "Toddlers & Tiaras" do it?!?)

All of the party-goers who were dressed up. We had GREAT participation! I LOVE IT!!

Just the ladies!!

My dear hubby & me!!

Our good friends Daniell & Tip. By far, his outfit was my favorite!!!!

I made a sort of Rubiks Cube cake along with a Ms Pacman cake. Pictures of that to come....

Walgreens Photo Deals (Frugal Friday)

2010-07-30T03:19:00.000-07:00

Walgreens is having a sale on their 4x6, 5x7 & 8x10 prints. Order online using the coupon code ICECREAM with no spaces and receive 33% off!! Expires Saturday, July 31st. For more details check it out here.

For more frugal tips, head on over to the Frugal Friday Posts at Life As Mom.

Going Once...

2010-07-29T04:02:00.000-07:00

Going once....
Going Twice....
SOLD!

Who's the best photographer in Naples, FL? Well, it's Savor Photography, of course!!

These are the most amazing pictures of my three cutest kids (okay, so I only have a total of three, but still, they're the cutest!!) and it's even more special because the blanket they're laying on is my Great-Grandmother's quilt. Heritage. I love it.

Disclosure: There was no payment or anything for this post. I just love the heck out of this photographer, who also happens to be my amazing sister, Rachel!

Friends

2010-07-28T08:47:00.000-07:00

I'm the type of person that is very social. I love to laugh, have a good time, have lots of friends around. The problem that I find is not in finding "friends". It is in finding deep meaningful friendships that actually impact you.

In my "adult life" I've found far too often that I have been on the wrong side of a fair weather friendship. They take & take & take & take, and rarely, if ever give back. Or when you really need them their excuses are too numerous to count. I often have been warned by parents & my dear husband that I am far too nice, far too giving to these people, and because of it, I often end up hurt.

But then there are a few friends with whom you have that connection with. It's more than just a hi when you see each other. It's more than some trips to the movies or to the mall, or for coffee. It's the type of friend that you can call at 2 AM and cry because your baby won't stop crying. It's the type of friend that no matter how far away you live from them, they are still your "closest" friend. It's the type of friend that even if you go for years (yes, YEARS!) at a time without talking, you can see them at the airport & pick up EXACTLY where you left off, as if no time has elapsed.

To these friends, I am so thankful for you. To these ones that pour into my heart & into my life, I am so thankful. To these people that are more than just friends, I am thankful I can count you among my family. I love you, you mean the world to me & I treasure our friendship. Thank you for being you!!

Just as an FYI: Lorin, we don't have any pictures of the two of us. How sad is that?

I heart faces-My 1st entry!!

2010-07-26T06:53:00.001-07:00

I've been toying with the idea of entering at I Heart Faces for quite sometime now, but then when I saw that this week's theme was purple, I knew it was my week. My favorite color is purple, and this, well this is Makenna's favorite dress. Ever. Even though it's a dress up dress. Don't tell her that though. For other entries for this week check them out here!!

"Wasn't Me!" Wednesday....

2010-04-28T07:59:00.000-07:00

The post where I tell you all the things I did but just like Shaggy I claim it "WASN'T ME!"

-Wasn't me that took a bath while the kids where taking a nap and when I heard Makenna starting to wake up, I did NOT turn the water back on so I couldn't hear her!

-Wasn't me that same night that decided to take another bath after the kids were in bed, and put Jordan in his carseat. And it wasn't me who picked him up when he woke him up and nursed him in the tub so I could still enjoy my bath...

-Wasn't me that combed Makenna's hair with a plastic fork since her comb seemed to have gone missing!

-Wasn't me that laid a towel down on Braydon's bed and told him to pretend it was a sheet, since the rest of his sheets were in the wash.

-Wasn't me that filled up a sippy cup with water and claimed that it was "water-flavored juice".

-Wasn't me that dodged down another aisle at the drugstore the other day to avoid someone I didn't have the patience to talk to with 3 kids in tow.

-Wasn't me who opted not to give an antibiotic to a child who mearly has a cough and has been on them too many times in the 2 year she's been alive but still told the dr I gave them to her anyways to avoid the lecture!

-Wasn't me that left my friend's son's baptismal service after he got baptized because they began to talk about the Eucharist & drinking from a common something or other which made her uncomfortable & blamed it on a "fussy baby".

I'm just sayin'
it WASN'T ME!!!

gone but not forgotten

2010-04-28T07:06:00.001-07:00

So, I've been gone...a few weeks. Not necessarily by choice, but perhaps because of lack of time. April has been an absolute whirlwind, and NOT in a good way. It all started on the weekend of Easter...

My sister in law was down visiting for the holiday, and I was planning on having my dad and our neighbors over as well for Easter dinner. I had prepared almost everything on Saturday so all we'd have to do is cook the ham & heat everything else up. We went out to Ross to go shopping & had a great night, but then my throat started hurting. I figured it was probably just because I had been running outside earlier that morning and there was pollen everywhere.

But then in the middle of the night I woke up freezing, so I put a hoodie on & got two more blankets to put on. Kenney told me I was burning up, but I felt like it was winter! And then my throat got BAD. By the time morning came, I was a mess. I could barely get out of bed, still had the chills, etc. There was no way I could go to church. So Kenney, Kimmy & the kids (minus Jman) headed off to church without me in their new Easter clothes. I felt so horrible because I didn't get any pictures of them or even give them their Easter baskets. I sent Kenney a text to tell him we had to go to Urgent Care when he was done church because I knew I just couldn't make it.

He made it home, left the kids with Kim and we headed to Urgent Care, which of course wasn't open because it was Easter. Reluctantly we headed to the ER...i hated to go there, especially because I knew the bill would be outrageous (we don't have insurance currently) but I knew I had to go. I had 103.5 fever and that was WITH tylenol! Four hours later I was home, after finding out I had strep and received to shots to get me better.

On Monday & Tuesday, I could barely get out of bed because of the shots they gave my in my hips...I could hardly walk to the bathroom, let alone walk up & down the stairs. And of course, this was Braydon's spring break from school, so I had all three of them to care for. Honestly, I don't know how I did it, but some how all three of them survived.

By Tuesday night, I noticed Braydon's ear was draining, which is a telltale sign for kids with tubes in their ears that they have an ear infection. Jordan was coughing as well, so I knew that the following day I would have to take them to the doctor. Of course our regular pedi was on vacation, so we saw another doctor (fortunately one of the good drs in the practice). She checked B out first, and gave him a script for ear drops.

Then she checked Jordan out, and decided he needed a breathing treatment. After the treatment, the nurse came back in and did a pulse-ox level which was 89, and so the dr came back in & said she needed to admit Jordan to the hospital. At that point, he was really laboring to breathe, which wasn't good. I called Kenney & had him come home from work. I dropped the kids off at home with Kenney, packed a bag for myself and off we went to the hospital. We were in the hospital for two days, where he received antibiotics, fluids, and breathing treatments.

Oh, did I mention the Wednesday Jordan went to the hospital was our anniversary?!?

My mom came home from her vacation to Florida to visit my sister and it looked like things were settling down. Until Monday, when my mom started to get sick. She started throwing up, had a fever, etc. I have to be honest I was totally hoping it would be a 24 hour bug or something short lived, because we had planned an anniversary trip to the beach for the weekend and my parents were going to watch Makenna & Braydon for us while we went. Selfish, selfish I know, but Kenney & I don't get much time alone lately.

By Wednesday, she was still sick & went to the doctor. They told her that she had the flu. At this point I was totally bummed because I just knew we wouldn't be able to go. But I felt horrible because I was more worried about my trip than my poor mom's health! The next night I got a call from my dad saying that my mom was going to the ER by ambulance....

*go ahead & press the panic button!!*

I had no clue what was going on, because my dad was a little panicky himself, and didn't give me very good details. And of course, Kenney was in class til 10ish that night, and my kids were still getting over being sick so I couldn't leave them with anyone. So I had to wait. Waiting is scary, especially when you don't know what's going on. Is my mom dying? Is she breathing? Is she puking? Did she asperate (sp?) Am I going to get a call that tells me I didn't get a chance to say good bye and that I'll forever have to live with guilt of worrying about our stupid trip to the beach instead of her? It was a long wait, even though it wasn't really long at all.

My sister & I were trying to piece together what was going on. Was my dad just being "my dad" and perhaps overdramatizing things? (Not that he ever does that, right?!?) Was this legit? Is she really that bad off? We couldn't tell. What we did know was that the EMTs had started an IV, & they were transporting her to the ER.

Kenney got home & I headed up to the ER at about 1015ish. When I got to the ER, there was a sign on her room saying anyone coming in had to wear a mask. I put one on & went in. My mom looked horrible. She looked a grayish color, she was on oxygen and just did not look good at all. They had done blood work, a chest xray, and were giving her fluids & antibiotics as a precaution until the diagnosed her with something.

I suggested my dad go get something to drink, or eat, while I was there. I wanted to make sure he got something in case he needed it, but I also wanted him out of the room to assess the situation without him there (no offense dad!) I wanted to hear from her, to get a first hand account, so I could properly determine what to tell my sister who was waiting for my call.

I left at about 11:40ish, and around midnight the doctor diagnosed her as having pneumonia & admitted her to the hospital. She remained in the hospital for the next week on oxygen, getting antibiotic treatments, etc. I spent my mornings with her, after dropping the kids off at mothers morning out, then would leave & go get the kids when MMO closed. I would go back up to see her in the evenings, but couldnt stay long as Kenney had classes.

I hated to leave her, because she was alone, since my dad had play practice. I felt guilty when I was up at the hospital because I was away from my kiddos, but when I was with my kiddos I felt guilty for leaving my mom all alone in the hospital. It's just one of those situations where you truley are torn!

And now, here we are again in the last week of April and my kids are sick again. Braydon had the stomach bug, Jordan has bronchitis & Makenna has a cough/cold. Jordan's on breathing treatments, antibiotic, steroids & singulair. This is Jordan's 4th round of steroids, and that concerns me, as well as his pedi. She said that if he gets sick like this again, she will have to refer us to a specialist.

So that's why this blog, along with my house work, have gone to the wayside for the short term. I look forward to returning to regularly scheduling broadcasting soon!!

Happy birthday, LIzette Hope!

2010-03-26T10:48:00.000-07:00

Okay, so who is Lizette Hope? It's Makenna's cabbage patch doll!! And so to honor her birthday (according to her birth certificate below), we had a birthday party with Makenna's friends and their baby dolls!

The guest of honor

Homemade birthday hats (that cost me NOTHING, as I had all materials at the house!)

Makenna Rae & her friend Carmen with their baby dolls

After getting into pretty dress up clothes, the girls posed for pictures with their baby dolls!

(from Left to right) Jazmine (our neighbor), Carmen, Makenna & Teagen

Womb-buddies Frank*star & J-man held it down for the boys in the corner!

We used the poster from Makenna's room, some party decorations we already had, and only bought "Happy Birthday" plates & napkins and balloons from the Dollar Tree, for a grand total of $3!

After singing Happy Birthday to the birthday "girl", the girls got to dig in!!

I served Cheese Nips that I got for 10 cents a box during Harris Teeter's SuperDoubles, muffins & animal cookies leftover from a brunch with my mommy's group, canned pineapple (that is 17 cents a can during triples @ HT this week) with a key lime yogurt/whipped topping dip, and cupcakes that I made from a Martha White muffin mix (that I got 37 cents this week during triples) and strawberry frosting that I got free a long time ago! Total cost of this cool get-together was only $5!!

After the girls ate, they went & played with dolls, the kitchen & tea party set, dress up clothes, but the biggest hit was the balloons! The girls had a BLAST tossing them in the air, hitting each other in the faces, etc! The moms also had a great time talking about all sorts of fun stuff, and managed to get our snack too!

Makenna in her new dress (there is a matching one that should have arrived in FL via my dad for my sister's daughter, Chloe. Who says being seperated by a few states means that we can't still dress them to match!)

This is by far my favorite picture of this entire year. It brought tears to my eyes. This is me with the Cabbage Patch Doll I had when I was a little girl holding Makenna with Lizette. Is there anything more special than the bonding of cabbage patch dolls between generations? I think not.

This post is linking to Finer Things & Frugal Fridays.

Chilis Give-away

2010-03-24T15:47:00.000-07:00

Toni over @ the Happy Housewife is giving away a $50 giftcard to Chili's Restaurant! This would be a GREAT date night compliments of Chilis restaurant or you could even regift it!! *My birthday is coming up in August you know!!* One lucky winner will be selected at random on Monday, March 29th, 2010. To enter yourself, go visit her post here & leave a comment! It's that easy!!

The power of the media...

2010-03-24T10:54:00.000-07:00

In light of all the political uprising this week, I thought it'd be good to bring some humor to the table. Regardless of your political views, this is just funny:

"Cool Mommy" FAIL

2010-03-24T09:35:00.000-07:00

Do you have those days where you realize that you're a total failure? Yeah, me too. I had this brilliant idea that I was gonna be one of those "Cool Moms" that do cool holiday-themed activities for their kids, even when they fall on school days. I decided since B had to be at school early, I would go ahead and make the pancakes up in advance and freeze them. All I'd have to do the morning of St Patty's Day would be to toss 'em in the toaster & heat up some syrup.

All went according to plan, I even had planned green things for them to wear ahead of time, and prepared breakfast (aka toss the frozen pancakes in the toaster!!) like I said.

I even made a small card & gift for his teachers

I told Kenney when he came downstairs that I would take Braydon to school that morning, and he could go ahead on to work. The kids didn't need to be dressed, because the car line provides anonymity like that! I kissed him goodbye, feeling like I was totally on top of things.

Then I looked at my calendar, which hangs above the microwave, only to notice that BOTH Makenna and Jordan had doctor's appointments with the Ear nose & throat Dr (J-man failed his newborn hearing screening) at 8:30. My eyes bulged out of my head, as I glanced down at the clock on the microwave. I spit my tea back into the cup as my eyes focused on "8:08AM". Braydon's "tardy bell" rings at 8:15. Jordan was not dressed, and Makenna, although dressed, did not have her hair done, or have shoes or socks on.

I began running around frantically, shouting at my kids to "do this" or "do that". I fussed at Makenna for not knowing what I needed her to do ahead of time. I snapped even more quickly at Braydon and told him it would be him that suffered if we were late, not me. (Even though this was CLEARLY my fault).

Thankfully, I always keep extra diapers & wipes in the car so I didn't have to worry about packing the diaper bag. I grabbed stuff to do Kenna's hair in the waiting room, and tossed (almost literally) Jordan into his car seat, knowing full well I smelled the stench of a newly nasty diaper, and that he had yet to nurse that morning. It would just have to wait.

I begun herding them towards the door, grabbed my purse, my keys & cell phone, when I heard Braydon say "Uh, mommy are you going to the dr in your jammies?" I looked down only to realize I had managed to get everyone "ready" except for myself. I threw everything down and ran upstairs, threw on clothes & grabbed my brush & makeup and ran back down stairs, only to find Makenna standing in newly wet pants. I yelled at her (and winced after what I said. Did I really just fuss at my two year old for wetting her pants b/c I didn't have time to ask her if she had to potty before we left?) I raced back up the stairs to find a new pair of panties & pants and threw them on her.

We ran out of the car, and I threw (literally) everyone into the car, turned it on & slammed the car into reverse. I don't think those speed bumps knew what hit them, and I'm just thankful my car didn't fall apart. I started grumbling and griping about how late we were, that all I wanted to do was to have a fun morning for the kids, blah blah blah. Somehow, we managed to make green lights and I made it to the car line at exactly 8:15. I told Braydon to run, but don't get caught or he'd be tardy. He jumped out of the car, without even saying goodbye and as he turned to walk in, I saw tears fall from his eyes.

My heart stopped. I gasped for breath. What had I just done? My sweet, sensitive little boy, was sent to school rushed, without a prayer from me like we normally do, without a kiss or a hug, and all he had heard while driving him was his mama complaining. My heart starting beating again, but it sank, and I was instantly plagued with guilt. Tears welled in my eyes, as I asked myself again "what did I just do?" And "Was it worth it? to be the 'cool mom' on facebook & in blogland but to hurt my baby in the process?"

As I watched him walk away, I felt like such a complete and utter failure. This ~~was~~ is my only job: to take care of my kids, and to protect them and I had failed. Failed miserably. I have been walking around with such shame that I haven't even posted pictures because I felt that I had done them not for the enjoyment of my children, but for my own personal sake. To get my ego stroked, to be acknowledged as a "Cool Mom".

It wasn't until yesterday during the first meeting of a women's Bible study group that I finally felt God speaking to me about the situation. The Bible study is called "Becoming More than a Good Bible Study Girl" by Lysa Terkeurst, founder & president of Proverbs 31 ministries. In the video series, she talked about the time she wanted to be "SUPER MOM" and decided to volunteer to make 100 individually wrapped homemade brownies for her daughter's school bake sale. As Lysa explained, "homemade" to her meant from the box, where you add egg & oil. She wanted these to be super special brownies so as to improve her super mom status even more, so she bought the turtle brownies that had caramel & nuts in them. She spent hours baking & wrapping them and finally got to # 98, when her daughter walked into the kitchen.

"Are those the brownies for my bake sale?" she asked.

Lysa told her they weren't just ANY brownies, they were TURTLE brownies. Thinking her daughter would be impressed, just as all the others at her school would be, her daughter's response was:

"Mom, we're a nut-free school. Didn't you read the directions from my teacher? Nothing can contain nuts!"

Lysa sank to the ground, and realized she had not read the directions. At that moment, she had failed. But she said that what we forget as women is that our circumstances do NOT dictate who we are. Our identity is not found in our circumstances. We can fail at things miserably, and yet still not be failures. This struck me so much, and I finally got it. I could let go of the guilt and realize that although I failed in that situation, I am not a failure as a mom. I may have wounded my baby, but I will always be his Mama, and I will have many times to do it the right way.

Provers 24:16 "Though the righteous man falls seven times and gets back up again..."

If the righteous man falls only 7 times and gets back up, my number is probably going to be more like 700 or 7000, but certainly I will choose to get back up again. How about you?

One Proud Mama

2010-03-19T03:00:00.000-07:00

I have to admit I was more worried about Braydon's first year in school than he was. Maybe you remember Braydon's story. I didn't know what it was going to be like for him. I worried he'd be teased about different habits he had, or that he'd be sent to the office for his behaviour. I was seriously concerned.

But then the reports came. And the reports were... GOOD! His teachers said he was smart, he was (mostly) well behaved. I was so incredibly thankful. And then I got a note home from school asking me to attend an awards ceremony at his school, that he was receiving an award! I was totally not expecting this!

Braydon received an Outstanding Achievement in Science award, one of six given in his class!
Braydon also received a special award for one of the "CELL" lab.

I was so incredibly proud that day, and very, very thankful.

The report cards continued to come, and they were GREAT! I was just amazed! Then just a few weeks ago, I got another note home, asking me to come to another awards ceremony, that B was getting another award!

Braydon received an Outstanding Achievement in Math award! *one of four in his class*

He was so proud of his award, and so are we!!

Braydon & Sissy after the awards ceremony

Keep up the great work, Braydon! Remember that sometimes you get awards for working hard, and sometimes you don't, but either way, God sees your heart and your attitude. Make sure you do it all as unto Him!!

CVS Pampers Deal

2010-03-18T15:14:00.000-07:00

This coming week, starting on Sunday, March 21st through March 27th, CVS is having an awesome deal on Pampers diapers!! This time, the Pampers jumbo packs are on sale for $8.97. There are coupons for $2 or $1.50 off pampers purchase, so that makes the diapers $6.97. On top of that, you will receive $3 in extra care bucks (ECBs), which makes them $3.97 a pack!!! Easy ups & Cruisers are included in this sale & there is a limit of two per household, but if you have friends who don't have kids, they may be willing to get you two packs as well!!

This makes Pampers diapers even cheaper than store brand diapers!

For other Frugal Friday posts, head on over to Lifeasmom.

4 Months

2010-03-18T08:07:00.000-07:00

Jordan you are now 4 months old!! Your toothless grin just melts my heart! You are still nursing 100%, although you've shown interest in solids by moving your mouth like crazy every time we eat around you! The few times we offered you cereal mixed with mommy milk you wanted nothing to do with it and screamed every time the spoon was put to your mouth! So we'll go back to our 6 month plan!!

You still fit into 0-3 month clothing!! It's fine because you're just being frugal by making sure we got our money's worth out of those adorable clothes, right?!? You love your brother & sissy, especially when they hold you or try to tickle you!!

You've started attempts to roll over, but have been unsuccessful thus far. You went to the church nursery for the 1st time during the evening service, and almost made it the whole service!!

Jordan, you are indeed a gift we treasure, and each day with you is a delight! We are so blessed to have you as a part of the Rue crew!

Read his other posts:

3 months

Deals make me happy

2010-02-24T07:27:00.000-08:00

What can I say? Saving money and getting deals make happy, especially for things we need and would buy even if there wasn't a deal!

Last night, I was headed to Harris Teeter for the last night of Super Doubles (to see my other Super Doubles deals, check this page out!) when I got a voicemail from a fellow couponer to let me know about a big sale on wipes over @ CVS. She had been earlier in the day and confirmed the deal locally. Supposedly this week the small tubs, the 64 count tubs, of Huggies & Pampers wipes were on sale for 2/$5. However, the Huggies refill bags with 184-216 count wipes were also ringing up at 2/$5!! And there are coupons out there as well! These bags are normally $8 a bag!!!!

Since one of the CVS stores is literally 2 traffic lights away from my house, I headed there first, since Harris Teeter is open 24 hrs a day! When I got there, there were still a whole bunch of the bags there, and I got super excited. I took them to the scanner to check to make sure they were scanning for 2.50, which of course, they WEREN'T. Ugh. I was so bummed. But I did get a coupon for CVS brand Gold Emblem candy $1/2. I ran to the valentine's day clearance and grabbed 4 packs of the gummi bears, which were clearanced to 25 cents a pack. I got all four for free, didn't even have to pay tax!!

(Apparently, my husband took a pack to work because when I went to take a picture this AM there were only 3 left on top of the fridge!)

I left the store totally disappointed and debated about whether I had time to run across town to the other CVS, the one which my friend had confirmed the Huggies deal at. I looked at the clock, which said 8:15PM. The HT pharmacy closes at 9. It's about 5 drive there, and then about 8 minutes to HT from CVS. If I literally ran in & out of CVS I figured I had enough time. So that's literally what I did!!

I managed to get 5 packs for $2.50 a piece and used (1) $1 off, (2) 75cents off, (2) 50 cents off, for a total of $9.97 with tax. That's less an a penny a wipe!! Plus I got "Enjoy the Ride" rewards on two of the packages!! If you're unfamiliar with this program, it's similar to the Pampers Gifts to Grow program. For more info, check it out here. But if you're interested in signing up, e-mail me at TheNewMrsRue at Gmail Dot Com and I will send you a referral e-mail!!

So I had saved $32 even before walking in to Harris teeter!! This time my trip was limited by the fact that a lot of things were not in stock, but I did get rain checks on the items not on the shelves. (Check back in on Friday for my post about how to make the most of Rain checks!!)

Here is the picture & the transactions:

Tran #1

(3) Colgate Whitening toothpaste (they didn't make the picture because they were apparently forgotten in the car & it was raining when I took the picture!) Sale price of $2.50 used (3) $1 q's making them 50 cents a piece for $1.50 total.

(3) Yakisoba Noodles on sale for 67 cents a piece, used (3) 50 cents q's so they were FREE!

(1) Land O Lakes margarine, on sale for BOGO, so they rang up 1/2 price @ $1.19. Used a 55 cents q, which made it 9 cents.

(1) Johnson' Baby "take along" pack, which was $2.99, used $1 q, which made it 99 cents. (I'm donating this to my friend Sherry's Relay for Life auction basket!!)

Also used a $1/$5 purchase wine tag, which doubled and gave me $2 in overage. This transaction cost me a total of $1.03!!

Tran #2

(1) Hyland's Teething gel marked down to $2.44, used $1q, making it 44 cents.

(2) Ziploc snack bags, on sale for $1.79, used $1/2 q, making it $1.58 for both or 79 cents each.

Again used a $1/$5 purchase wine tag, which doubled and gave me $2 in overage.

Total for this transaction was 25 cents, 23 of that being tax.

Tran #3

HT boneless skinless chicken breasts were on sale @ 50% off. I chose two packages that were on sale for around 4.61. I also used a rain check for Buy one get one free on HT chicken breasts. So for total for both packages $4.61 or about $2.30 per package.

In order to use my $1/$5 winetag, I needed something small that was around 40 cents. I saw in the clearance bin a bag of valentine's M&M's that were marked $2.14, which would definitely take me over $5.

I used $1/5 purchase winetag in addition to a $2 off chocolate purchase winetag.

My total for this transaction was $2.75!!!

Tran #4 (final one)

(3) Boxes of Raisin Bran on sale for $1.74 used (3) $1q, got them all free.

HT jar of honey roasted peanuts, $2.47 on sale. (Had no q, but this was a request from my hubby)

HT diced tomatoes with green chiles 99 cents. (I needed this for a recipe)

Used another $1/$5 purchase which once again doubled and gave me a $2 overage.

Total for this trip was $1.63.

***This trip to Harris Teeter, I got $75.59 worth of groceries for $5.66!! If I'm doing my math correctly, that's a 93% savings!!***

As I was getting ready to post this, I realized I hadn't yet posted my deals from Saturday when I went back. I made about 4 or 5 trips total this week of Super Doubles. (There are several deals that I've repeated throughout the week!) Here are the postings from my trip on Saturday:

Tran #1

Perdue Chicken Dinosaur shapes on sale for $3, had a $1 store q on it plus $1q.

I paid 2 cents for this transaction.

Tran #2

(2) Stonefield Organic 32 oz containers of yogurt, on sale for 2.99 each, used (2) $1q's, made them 99 cents each

HT trash bags, 10 ct on sale for $1.24

used $1/$5 winetag, giving me $2 overage.

Total cost: $1.30

Tran #3

Quilted Northern 9 pack of the triple rolls, on sale for $5.99 used $1q, making it $3.99

Whole Wheat Sub Rolls, $2.99, used $1 store q plus $1 of any bakery purchase winetag made it *FREE*

(2) Kotex Pads, $1.49 each used $1.50/2 q, making them *FREE*

(1) Pampers Wipes tub 64 count on sale for $2.99, used $1.50q, making them *FREE*

Yet again used $1/$5 winetag

Total purchase price: $2.75

Tran #4

Raisin Bran, on sale for $1.74, used $1q, so it was *FREE*

Smart Start, BOGO sale, so $2.19 used $1q, making it 19 cents

Gilette Shaving Cream, on sale for $2.85, used $1q, so it was 85 cents

Colgate Diego Toothbrush on sale for 94 cents

Used $1/$5 winetag

Total Due: Only 6 cents!!!

Tran #5 (Last one)

Celestial Seasons Tea, sale price $2.50, used $1q, made it 50 cents

Krustz Pancake mix, sale price $2, used 50 cents q, made it $1

Quaker quick oats, $2.35, used a $1q, made it 35 cents

(4) boxes of Cheese Nips, bogo, so $1.10/each, used (2) $1/2qs, making it 38 cents for all four boxes

Used another $1/$5 purchase

Total price due: 43 cents!

Total spent this trip was $4.54, total amount of groceries: $70.07, which is 94% savings!!

This entire week of Super Doubles, I've gotten $301.36 worth of groceries (from HT alone) for a grand total of $20.53, which equals a combined savings percentage of 93.2%!! I'm so excited!!

Proctor and Gamble Coupon book

2010-02-19T06:18:00.000-08:00

It's that time again!! Proctor & Gamble (makers of Tide, Pampers, Olay, etc.) is rewarding customer loyalty by providing a coupon booklet with $100 in coupons!

How do I get the book?

Step One: Purchase $50 worth of any P&G products between February 1 and April 15, 2010. *This is $50 pre-tax and pre-coupons. So if you can get item @ CVS or Walgreens for free or cheap, remembr they item counts at the price it rings up BEFORE coupons!!

Step Two: Circle the P&G products and their corresponding prices on your original cash register receipt(s).

Step Three: Print your official form here and fill it out.

Step Four: Mail your completed form with the original, dated sales receipt(s), with item descriptions and product purchase prices circled, in a stamped envelope to:

P&G Year of Savings
Dept. EPO Box 460643
El Paso, TX 88546-0643

What are the important dates to remember?

Products must be purchased from February 1st through April 15th, 2010. Requests must be postmarked by April 30, 2010. Allow 6-8 weeks.

Are there any limits to the coupon book?

Offer limited to US residents only. VOID IN MAINE. Limit one submission per name, address, or envelope. Use of multiple addresses or P.O. boxes to obtain additional refunds is fraud and may result in prosecution. Multiple submissions will not be acknowledged or returned. This form must accompany your request. Reproduction, alteration, sale, trade, or purchase of this form or proof of purchase is prohibited. Proof of purchase must be obtained from product purchased by you. No requests from groups, clubs, or organizations will be honored. Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery. Form Cash Redemption Value 1/100 of 1 cent.

What type of coupons are in the book?

According to the website:

"Receive over $100 worth of P&G coupon savings by mail when you buy $50 worth of P&G products. Enjoy savings on the brands you trust to give your family what they need — our thanks to you for everything you do.

(3) Olay® $5.00 Off Olay Regenerist facial moisturizer/facial cleanser

(3) Bounty® $1.00 Off any one Bounty Towels or Napkins

(1) Charmin®$1.00 Off any one Charmin product

(1) Pampers® 30 Gifts to Grow® points

(3) Downy® $1.00 Off any one Downy product

(3) Puffs® $0.25 Off any three single Puffs products or one three-count pack of Puffs

(1) Febreze® $1.00 Off Febreze SPORT

(1) Bounce® $1.50 Off one any-size Bounce Dryer Bar

(3) CoverGirl® $1.00 Off any one CoverGirl product

(3) Glide® $0.25 Off any Glide Floss 35M or larger

(3) Oral B® $0.75 Off any one Oral-B Pulsar™, CrossAction® or Advantage®, or two Oral-B Indicator® toothbrushes

(3) Pepto-Bismol® $1.00 Off any one Pepto-Bismol product

(3)Scope® $1.00 Off any Scope Rinse 710mL or larger

(3) Vicks® $1.50 Off any one Vicks product

(3) Old Spice® $1.00 Off any two Old Spice antiperspirant, deodorant or body wash products

(3) Old Spice $3.77 Buy one Old Spice Body Spray, get one free

(2) Old Spice $4.29 Buy any Old Spice Fresh Collection Invisible Solid, get one free

(2) Old Spice $4.99 Buy any Old Spice Odor Blocker Body Wash, get one free

(3)Metamucil® $2.00 Off one any-size Metamucil Capsules product

(3) Metamucil $2.00 Off one any-size Metamucil Clear & Natural product

(3) PUR® $3.00 Off any PUR or PUR Flavor Options™ System (Pitcher or Faucet Mount)

(3) Fixodent® $0.25 Off any Fixodent product

(2) Clearblue® $1.00 Off any one Clearblue Pregnancy product

(1) Clearblue $3.00 Off any one Clearblue Ovulation Test

****(This list was compiled from their website. I appologize if there are any typos.)*****

For a full list of items that are included please click here.

Guess what's on sale....

2010-02-18T20:18:00.001-08:00

Can you guess what's on sale? I got 18 boxes for $1.71 plus tax!!! Plus I have a Kraft rebate of $20 this counts towards!! WOOHOO!! Thanks to Harris Teeter Super Doubles!

Here are my trips so far:

Lysol Wipes-BOGO, so $1.59, and used $1 q *FREE*
Pampers Sensitive Wipes- $2.99 used $1.50 q *FREE*
Smart Start Cereal-BOGO, so 2.20, used $1 IP made it 20 cents
3 cans of Dole Pineapples- 3/$2, used $1q, all 3 were *FREE*
6 boxes of Cheese Nips- BOGO, so 6.57 for all six, used (3) $1/2 q's made it $0.57 cents for all 6 boxes!
2 packages of starkist tuna-$2.17 each, used $1 q plus a BOGO q, made it 17 cents for both
Barilla Sauce-evic special $1.27
2 boxes of Kotex Lightdays $1.49 each used 1.50/2 OIP q made them *FREE*
HT Italian bread $2.19-had a store q for $1 off and had $1 wine tag, so it was *FREE* with $1 overage
Land O'Lakes margarine- BOGO, so $1.17, used 55 cent IP made it 7 cents
Borden Singles Sensations- $2.19 used $1q, made it 19 cents
2 Stoneyfield Low Fat Yogurt 32 oz-$2.99 each used (2) $1 qs made it $1.98 for both.
Perdue Dinosaur Chicken Nuggets- $3 used $1q made it $1
2 Halls- $1.99 each used $1q, made it $1.98 for both
Used $1 off grocery purchase of $5 or more

Paid $5.03 OOP
VIC Savings: 19.20
Coupons: $38.24
total saved: $57.44

Tran #2

6 boxes of Cheese Nips- BOGO, so 6.57 for all six, used (3) $1/2 q's made it $0.57 cents for all 6 boxes!
Barilla Pasta B2G3 so $3 for all 5, or 60 cents a box
2 boxes of valentines for my kids for next year $1 a box, so $2
v-day Napkins 62 cents
HT Italian bread $2.19-had a store q for $1 off and had $1 wine tag, so it was *FREE* with $1 overage
Used $1 off grocery purchase of $5 or more

Total $3.67
Vic savings $18.92
coupons $11.00
total savings: 29.92

total spent $8.70 got 96.06 in groceries. 91% savings!! (i think)

Went back last night and got 6 more boxes of cheese nips (57 cents), the Land O Lakes butter (7 cents), 2 packages of Chinet Cups (Free), Hefty cups & plates (50 cents for both), and a dozen krispy kreme donuts marked down to $1.99.

For other Frugal Friday posts, head on over to Life As Mom.

Anything you can do....

2010-02-18T19:54:00.000-08:00

Anything you can do...

...I can do better... I can do anything better than you...

No, you can't!

Yes, I can!

No, you can't!

YES I CAN!

YES I CAN!!!!!!!!

This one's for you Dad!! I'm sure he will be humming this song all day long, and I bet you will be too!!

Menu Plan Monday (2/15)

2010-02-15T13:48:00.000-08:00

Breakfast- Frozen Pancakes, Oatmeal & Toast, Cereal, muffins or yogurt
Lunch-leftovers, sandwiches or weight watchers meals (for adults)

Monday
Snack: Candy!!! (it was Valentine's Day yesterday, folks!!)
Dinner: Beef Stew & wild berry bread

Tuesday
Snack: Popcorn
Dinner: Chicken Stir Fry, with rice and veggies & mandarin oranges

Wednesday
Snack: Pudding
Dinner: Hot Dogs, Pasta Salad and fruit

Thursday
Snack: Cookies
Dinner: Cheese Ravioli and Garlic Bread

Friday
Snack: Muffins
Dinner: Homemade whole wheat pizza and pineapples

Saturday
Brunch: Peach Cobbler
Snack: Chex Mix
Midafternoon-early evening dinner: Whole roasted lemon pepper chicken with carrots and potatoes, homemade apple sauce and rolls

Sunday
Snack: yogurt & cereal
Lunch: leftovers
Dinner: pork chops, stuffing & asparagus

For Hundreds of other menus full of great dinner ideas, check out OrgJunkie's page!

Valentine's Day Playgroup

2010-02-11T22:00:00.000-08:00

I hosted a playgroup at my house yesterday, which turned out to be small, as one mom got stuck in Maryland, courtesy of Snow-Magedon, and another had to cancel at the last minute. But I wanted to make it special for the girls there, but I also didn't want to spend a lot of money. I used a lot of things I already to had to make a decorative food tray.

The finished tray cost me $2.02!! I had considered decorating a tray like the one seen over at Tatertots & Jello, but I was being stingy (even those hers only cost $2) and decided to only use what I had!

I used the snowman cookie platter I already had that I bought on clearance a few years ago after Christmas for 90% off for 50 cents!!

I undid the napkins that I bought last year after Valentine's day for 62 cents and covered the whole plate, so the snow man disappeared.

I used a Glade candle that I got from Target for free during the time when they had the Holiday candles on sale for $2.50, matched with the $2 q and then you got a gift card when you purchased x amount of Glade candles. (sorry for the fuzzy picture, but I was holding Jordan & trying to get it done in time before they came)

I took a scrap of ribbon I had left over from the spool of dollar bin ribbon from Michael's and tied it around the middle so it would hide the Christmasy decor of the candle.

I made tent cards from scrapbook paper I had leftover from my wedding, cut out hearts, glued them on, and added little sayings that the conversational hearts have.

Then I placed the candle in the center of the tray.

I served strawberry wafers from the Dollar Tree, and made Brownie cups using a Betty Crocker Double Chocolate cookie mix that was 16 cents a few weeks back and the mini muffin liners I got after Christmas from wal-mart for 75 cents for 80 liners, so that cost me around 24 cents.

This post is linking to:

Happy 3 months J-man!!

2010-02-11T10:17:00.001-08:00

"Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate." Psalm 127:3-5

Jordan Riley Kenneth, you are a total blessing to our family! You weighed 9 lbs 13 oz at your last check up at 2 months and 1 week, and you are continuing to grow on a daily basis!

You like to spend time in your swing, watching the fish swim above you and your siblings playing in front of you. Sometimes, if you're lucky, they even perform a song & dance for you!!

You still are nursing 100%, sleeping for 3-4 hours at a time!! You are finally adjusting to sleeping in your bassinett!

Your brother and your sister love you so much-they love to kiss you & hold you, and even climb on top of you at times. You're one tough cookie though!!

Jordan, we are so thankful that the Lord entrusted you to our care, and we pray that we will guide you in the right path, that you'll learn to love the Lord and choose to serve Him when you're older. We pray over you daily, and for your future spouse, as we do for your brother & your sister!

We love you so much! Happy 3 months, little J-man!!

Menu Plan Monday (2/8)

2010-02-08T16:19:00.001-08:00

Meal Plan
Breakfast- Homemade Bagels, Oatmeal & Toast, Cereal, muffins or yogurt unless otherwise noted
Lunch-leftovers, sandwiches or weight watchers meals (for adults)

Monday
Snack: Raisins

Dinner: White hot dogs, alfredo noodles and mixed veggies

Tuesday
Snack: Popcorn
Dinner: Chicken Casserole, Applesauce & yeast rolls

Wednesday
Snack: Pudding

Dinner: Mexican Chicken Skillet ( pg 118 $5 Dinner Mom cookbook), corn & peaches

Thursday

Snack: Popcorn (my kids like popcorn!!)

Dinner: Potato Soup & Rolls

Friday
Snack: Pound cake

Dinner: Homemade whole wheat pizza and fruit salad

Saturday
Brunch: Cinnamon rolls & hashbrowns
Snack: Chex Mix
Dinner: Kids: Grilled cheese sandwiches, veggies & fruit slices Kenney & I have a Valentine's Day Dinner to go to with our Bible Fellowship Group @ church!! We'll be having steak, baked potato, salad & a dessert buffet!!

Sunday
Snack: rice krispy treats
Lunch: leftovers

Dinner: cubed steak, apple bread & pototoes

For hundreds of other menus visit OrgJunkie's Menu Plan Menu Meme!!

Snow Day turned to craft day

2010-02-01T16:45:00.001-08:00

Today was a totally relaxed day, since we all just stayed at the house. We were snowed in, or iced in, rather and we couldn't even make it out of our apartment complex. So I made chocolate muffins for the kids (and chocolate muffins with strawberry jam on the inside for Kenney & myself). Then while the kiddos played, we did a clean sweep. Since we spent the weekend with my parents, we had lots to unpack. Fortunately, I had done all the dishes before we left for the weekend and had done the laundry @ my mom's house.

After that, we broke out the crafts supplies & made Valentine's Day cards. Our local christian radion station, His Radio (or as Braydon calls it His, His Radio) is collecting homemade Valentine's Day cards to give out to children in the local hospitals, so I thought it would be great to help, and to remind my kids to think of others.

My kids ALWAYS love craft time!!

Braydon made sure that we made Valentine's Day cards that were boyish, full of trucks & roads!

I think Makenna wore just as many hearts as she put on the cards!

The some-what finished products. At this point, J-man was in some desperate need of a feeding, or the world might come to an end, and the kids were going sticker crazy, so we took a break for lunch & nap time. I ended up making many more to put in the pile to mail to the radio station. For some reason, it just goes quicker when it's just me! And after Jordan ate, Mommy got to make some crafts too, all by herself!

I made a frame out of a bamboo tray from the Dollar Tree. This was essentially free, since I used things that I already had laying around. You can see the "How-To" here.

Using buttons I stole from my mom, cardstock and hot glue, I made a cute, inexpensive decoration for Valentine's Day!!

I hung the tray/picture fram above the button love banner, and viola! Instant, inexpensive Valentine's Decorations!! Of course it's nothing like Tatertots & Jello or Tea Rose Home but it's a start!!

We were going to bake and decorate valentine's day cookies today as well, but since school is cancelled for tomorrow as well, we decided to save that for tomorrow!!

Valentine's Day Frame

2010-02-01T15:33:00.000-08:00

Who needs to buy a valentine's day frame when you can make one yourself?!?

Here's the finished product:

Here's what you'll need:

I used this bamboo tray I got at the Dollar Tree.

A piece of colored scrapbook paper and a piece of plain cardstock (that matches your scrapbook paper)
A strand of pearls or other decorative ribbon for the border.

A picture of your hubby, kids or someone else special and your favorite scripture or quote about love. I chose "I have found the one whom my soul loves" because this is a special verse to us!

To get started:

First, take the scrapbook paper and cut it to fit the inside of the tray and glue it to the tray.

Second, glue the photo to the center of the tray. Begin to hot glue the pearls around the edge of the tray.Using the plain card stock, write out your verse/quote. You can print these out if you prefer, but I liked to personalize it by using my handwriting. Cut it out and glue around the photo to create borders.

And there you have it!

I added it above my "LOVE" letters.

Amazon gift cards?

2010-01-30T18:57:00.000-08:00

This past Christmas, I really started enjoying Amazon. I got some awesome toys shipped to my house, allowing me to avoid long lines and having to lug my kiddos into stores. And now, I've found a way to earn Amazon gift cards, and plenty of other prizes, just for doing what I already do.....searching the internet!

Instead of going directly to google for my internet searches, I use SwagBucks. They use google as their search engine, so you're not missing anything. They randomly award swagbucks for different searches. How cool is that? It only takes 45 swagbucks to get a $5 Amazon gift card!! I've been swagbucks-ing for a little over a month, and I've already got 115 swag bucks, just from using Swagbucks. You can also earn prizes by referring your friends. When they win swagbucks from searching the internet, you win too!!!

You can see what other cool prizes you can win here. If you want to start earning prizes like me, click on the banner!!

Priorities....

2010-01-28T06:14:00.000-08:00

Things have been quiet on my end lately because I've been doing a lot of thinking. It's been rough, a hard pill to swallow. You know, it's the point where you realize you're wrong. That you need to change. And then once you finally do accept this realization, then you must decide how you're going to do it. So that's what I've been doing: Thinking and praying, trying to come up with the least painful way to bring about this change in myself. The other night in his State of the Union speech, President Obama said "I never said change was easy or that I could do it alone..." and that stuck with me. It reminded me that change is never easy, so why am I trying to make it? It's kind of like childbirth. You can get drugs to ease the pain, but eventually it wears off and you will still feel pain, even if the baby is already out!!

I know you're probably wondering what ways I could possibly need to change in, since I'm just so incredibly perfect, RIGHT? (Atleast pretend to think that way, please?!?) I've got my goals for this year, which are to get organized and to menu plan. But I've got to do more.

Mainly, I need to be more than just a stay at home mom. Sure, my kids are important, and that is a priority, but I also have responsibilities towards my husband. To be his helpmate, to take care of him. My husband is not only working full time, but he's also going to school full time as well, and he needs my help and support now more than ever!!

Honoring Dr. King, Jr.

2010-01-18T08:00:00.000-08:00

Today we remember the birth date of a man who chose to endure many sufferings in order to stand up for the rights of black American citizens (I use "black" because my husband HATES when he's referred to as African American!). Not because it was the popular thing to do. Not because it was what all the politically-involved people were doing. Not because he would be in the newspapers. He did it because of his children. He did it because it was the right thing to do! It is because of him, that my marriage was possible. It is because of him, my children can grow up and truly do anything they set out to do! We are forever grateful to this man, for all of his sacrifices, for the example he set of what an educated, God-fearing black man looks like.

"Cowardice ask the question is it safe? Expediency asks the question is it politic? Vanity asks the question is it popular? The conscience asks the question is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe nor politics nor popular but he must do it because conscience tells him it is right."

-Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

"The Other America"

March 14th, 1968

These are pictures from our trip to Memphis, TN this past summer to visit my brother-in-law and his family. We visited the Civil Rights museum, and left there very humbled and thankful to this courageous man!

The plaque outside the motel where King was shot & killed. The wreath represents the corner where King was actually shot & killed.

Braydon had lots of questions, and was quite disturbed by the way that some police treated people because of their skin. Thankfully, we were able to talk to him about how God has called us to treat people kindly, regardless of how they treat us, just as King so perfectly displayed throughout his struggle.

The Lorraine Motel sign.

This is a picture of the boarding house (which is accross the street from the motel where King was shot) where James Earl Ray stayed and fired the shots that killed King.

Denim Corsage (or wanna-be?!?)

2010-01-17T17:51:00.000-08:00

I have to admit, I fail miserably while trying to be "crafty". Oh how I long to be as talented as some of the women who I stalk, errr, follow in blogland. For example, head on over to Tatertots and Jello to see some AWESOME ideas and tutorials! Or Tea Rose Home. She amazes me with what she can do! She has a tutorial on how to make a corsage out of old jeans. (Really? How do you look at an old pair of jeans and say, "Hey! I can make a really cute corsage out of them!" But anyways, that's why I learn from them!) But when I saw the jean corsage above, I thought it was something I could attempt to tackle. I don't have any old jeans, but I did have a ton of denim material upstairs. So here's my denim corsage.

Not too shabby. Now it's not at all like the original but for just beginning, I thought it was okay. And of course, I didn't use buttons in the center, because I didn't have any. The total cost was FREE because all of the materials taking up space in my house!

Praying for Haiti...

2010-01-15T05:15:00.000-08:00

I've never been that "good" at praying. I pray in church, pray with the kids before they go to bed & with B before he leaves for school. I pray for things we need, I pray for things He's provided. I pray for specifics. My heart is with the intercessary missionaries with the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, but the thought of spending 2+ hours praying, interceding on behalf of others is not only intimidating, I just didn't understand it. I would watch the webstream from the 24 hour/7 days a week prayer room, seeing these people crying out, pleading with tears in the eyes for others, those they didn't even know by name. They pray for the people of Israel at times, and I see people weeping for God's chosen people. It is awesome in theory, but I just didn't understand it. How do you weep for someone you don't even know?

And then I saw this.

And This.

And this.

And way too much of this.

As I was watching Campbell Brown last night holding my 2 month old, they were telling the stories of the children of Port au Prince, and my eyes instantlly welled up with tears. And I just started pleading, crying out to God to have mercy on these people. My prayer lasted for over an hour, as I watched the pictures, heard the stories. It consisted of Mercy, Lord. Send your mercy. Mercy, we need yor mercy.

How can you not cry out for these innocent people? These children, the women and men of the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere? 50% of the Haitian population is under the age of 18, and my heart grieves for them. Just as it did when I watched the news footage of Hurricane Katrina and the devastation that followed.

My sister Rachel & I discussed what we could do to help on the phone yesterday, specifically what the kids could do to help. Our boys have such tender hearts and instantly filled with compassion on a regular basis and we knew this wouldn't be any different. After discussin it with my nephew Noah, he decided to give some of his money. When I asked Braydon what he wanted to do to help, he ran upstairs and grabbed a package of his bandaids along with his piggie bank.

So we're donating to Samaritan's Purse because they've been working in Haiti for a long time prior to the earthquake. They were also one of the first oganizations to have brought aid to Port au Prince on Wednesday. According to Samaratin's Purse president Franklin Graham, "The damage is staggering in a nation where three out of four people live on less than $2 a day. The people of Haiti need our help like never before.”

There are many other reputable organizations that you can donate to:

The Red Cross

Samaritan's Purse

World Vision
Compassion International

In addition to donating yourself, there are a few blogs that are hosting linkies for you to link up showing how you are helping, either praying, giving financially, etc. For each comment/link up they get, they are donating additional funds for the victims of the earthquake in Haiti. Thanks goes to:

the Happy Housewife ($1 for each comment/link)

MoneySavingMom ($10 for each link/30 cents for each comment)

$5 Dinners ($5 for each link/comment)

Super Doubles @ Harris Teeter

2010-01-11T05:33:00.000-08:00

Trans #1

(1) Jello Sugar Free Instant Pudding

(2) Philly 1/3 fat cream cheese 8 oz bricks

(3) Kraft natural shredded cheese packages Used $1.25 tearpad q (I just now realized that it didn't double, which i'll have to go back to talk to them about)

Total Out of Pocket (OOP): $8.42 Got a $5 catalina q that is good towards next transaction

Trans #2

(1) whitehouse natural apple juice (BOGO) $1.57

(2) Reach toothbrushes used a BOGO & $1 q 50 cents each

(1) Uncle Ben's Rice used $1 q 25 cents

(1) Sun Crystals used $1 q FREE

(2) Turkey Hill Raspberry Iced Tea 25 cents each

(1) Red Baron Singles Pizza used $1q $1.33

(4) Ore Ida Easy Fries used (2) $1.50/2 q's FREE

(4) boxes of Special K bars used (2) $1/2 plus the $5 off instantly FREE

(1) Coffee Mate creamer used $1 q FREE

(1) Chinet crystals cups used a free when you buy any chinet product FREE

(1) Chinet Plastic Cups used $1q FREE

(1) Always Infinity Pads 36 ct. Used Buy one get 18 ct free q and $1 q making it $3 for both boxes

(1) Always Infinity Pads 18 ct. FREE

(2) Lysol Wipes 35 ct. used $1 qs FREE

(1) Seenth Generation Dishwasher packets marked down to $1.99 used $1 q FREE

(2) Windex Outdoor All-in-one glass cleaning tool on sale for 4.44 used (2) 1.50 peelies made it 1.44 each

Used $5 cat from the Kraft products

Total OOP: 10.53

Between the two transacations, the total value of groceries was $118.11 and the total I paid was $14.89!! Not too shabby! This totally helps with my not official attempt at "eating from the pantry" challenge sponsored by Money saving Mom.

Menu plan Monday (1/11)

2010-01-11T05:15:00.001-08:00

Although I'm not "officially" joining the Eat from your Pantry challenge, I thought I'd see how much we could use up and try only to get the fresh produce & milk etc each week from the store. Last week I managed to spend less than $15 for groceries and I'm hoping I can do the same this week. Of course, it helped that Harris Teeter is doing Super Double coupons this week too!

After doing a quick survey of my freezer, cupboards & pantry, here are the things I have that I need to use in the next few weeks:

Ground Beef Patties

Pork Chops

Pork tenderloin roast

2 Bags of Shrimp

Carrots/Peas/Green Beans/Asparagus

4 Boxes of Whole wheat pasta

Manicotti shells
Pinto Beans

Northern Beans

1/2 box instant mashed potatoes

5 boxes of rice

whole wheat tortillas

We've got lots more in there, but those are the things that need to be used up.

Meal Plan

Breakfast- Oatmeal & Toast, Cereal, Cereal Bars, muffins or yogurt unless otherwise noted

Lunch-leftovers, sandwiches or weight watchers meals (for adults)

Monday

Snack: Yogurt with crunched up graham crackers

Dinner: Quesadillas using leftoever chicken, rice

Tuesday

Snack: Popcorn

Dinner: Shrimp Scampi & green beans

Wednesday

Snack: Chocolate Chip Cookies from Deceptively Delicious

Dinner: Northern Beans & Cornbread (I've never just made beans before, so I took this recipe from the Happy Housewife)

Thursday
Snack: cookies from wednesday
Dinner: Chili, corn chips and rolls

Friday

Snack: Pound cake
Dinner: I will going to a baby shower, so we will use this night as leftover night.

(I'll be making a buffalo wing dip to bring to the shower & will post the recipe for that towards the end of the week)

Saturday

Brunch: Cinnamon rolls & hashbrowns

Snack: Popcorn

Dinner: Braided pizza & green beans

Sunday

Snack: rice krispy treats

Dinner: Manicotti, Asparagus & Garlic toast

This week we will use up some of the shrimp, rice, pasta, & manicotti shells. For hundreds of other menu ideas check out Org Junkie's page!!

Cowboy Beans & Rice

2010-01-08T05:52:00.001-08:00

The new recipe of the week was "Cowboy Beans & Rice" from Erin Chase's $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook to use up the leftover pork tenderloin from Tuesday night.

I thought I had read the recipe correctly and took out the pinto beans & soaked them over night. Unfortuntely, what I didn't read was that after you soak them overnight, you're supposed to boil them on medium heat for an hour and a half. Seeing as how it was 5:15 when I looked at the recipe again, I knew that the beans that were still soaking were not going to cut it. For some reason, dry beans & myself just don't work together well (atleast not yet).

The recipe called for pinto beans, but the only canned beans I had on hand were Northern beans, so in the pot they went.

I added all the ingredients on top of the beans, stirred them together, brought them to a boil & let them cook on medium for 20 minutes.

This was the finished product...Served with corn & leftover quesadillas.

According to my test panel, the survey sayyyyyyssss.....

.....success!!! Both of them ate it without complaints and even asked for seconds! (Fork drop) Kenney was at school, so he didn't get to taste it until today at lunch, but he gave it 2 forks up too!! This recipe was fast (if using canned beans), delicious & didn't require many ingredients. It's perfect for using up rice & beans that are sitting in your pantry!

Extreme Leftover makeover..lunch edition

2010-01-07T16:45:00.000-08:00

Okay, so maybe it's not so extreme, but it is indeed leftovers & I did make them into something else....I really am bad at eating leftovers, but my hubby is really good at it. Eating the same meal three days in a row gets boring for me, and often the food sits in the fridge after the 1st try @ eating leftovers. Eventually it goes in the trash, and the money wasted quickly adds up. When I started contemplating the fresh start for us in 2010 and began making my goals, I was quickly convicted of the waste we have in our home & the need to do something about it.

I'm starting off simply by attempting to make meal plans that already use up leftovers to make new meals. In addition, I'm trying to find ways to reinvent the leftovers into something really good. You know, not just bearable, but something you might actually want to make, even if you didn't have leftovers. The first extreme leftover makeover that I took on was leftover pork!

As per my meal plan, Tuesday night we had a pork roast, which everyone enjoyed. After dinner, we still had about 1/2 of the pork tenderloin leftover. I knew that I was planning to use the pork for the Cowboy Rice & Beans for dinner tonight, so I went ahead and shredded it, as per the recipe. But the recipe called for only 2 cups, and I had almost 3 cups. Having been clear that I need to try to be the best steward of this food, I knew I had to find another way to use it, but how?

As I sat in front of the fridge surveying what I had, I saw the tortillas. I had bought them the other day because they were a marked down item. It wasn't on my list, but I figured that I could use them for something. But here it is, almost to the expiration date for the tortillas, and they still remained unopened. It's no bargain if I let them go to waste, and again it was not being a very good steward. So I grabbed the following from the fridge.

The cream cheese, shredded cheese, shredded pork, tortillas & salsa. Surely I could give it a try. I've never had pork on a quesadilla, but it looked kind of like chicken. I started with one, and decided that even if I didn't like it, I would know to mark that off the list of ways to re-do pork roast!

First, I spread a small amount of the cream cheese all over the tortilla & then I placed the shredded pork down on one half.

Then I sprinkled the shredded cheese (we happened to have taco cheese on hand that had already been opened because we had Taco Bake on Monday). I folded it in half & placed it on a greased cookie sheet.

I popped the quesadilla in the oven at 400 degrees for 5 minutes, flipped it over and baked for 5 more minutes. I cut it into three triangles, poured some salsa in a cup and I was ready to try it.

I took a deep breath, and took a bite. It was so good that I devoured all three triangles & began making more. I made enough at lunch to serve with the Cowboy rice and beans tonight (just in case the kids weren't too fond of the new recipe. Atleast I knew they'd atleast have something they'd eat for sure). They weren't needed, as the kids happily devoured the Cowboy Rice & Beans, but I let them eat the quesadillas as well.

If you have leftover refried beans, you could add that to the inside of the quesadilla as well. Also, leftover rice can quickly be made "mexican rice" by adding a spoonful or two of salsa and some cheese to the rice while reheating in the microwave.

I felt really good that we used the ENTIRE pork roast this time. This is the first time I haven't thrown any out. It feels so good to know that I got every penny out of that pork roast I paid for and because I had planned ahead of time, I wasn't scrambling at the last minute and ending up feeding my family sandwiches for dinner. (Not that there's anything wrong with that on occassion, but if I'm home all day, I should be able to make a real dinner most of the time.)

Menu plan Monday (on Tuesday)

2010-01-05T05:19:00.000-08:00

It was done actually on Saturday, but I just haven't had time or the energy to post. I'm trying some new recipes this week from the new cookbooks I got for Christmas, (I got Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seifeld & The $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook by Erin Chase) so hopefully I'll be taking pictures & raving about the success (or crying about how awful it was!!) Breakfast is whatever you grab (cereal, toast, oatmeal, cereal bars, pop tarts) unless something I'm specifically making. Lunch will be either leftovers or sandwiches, or a weight watchers meal for the adults. Part of my goals for this year was to meal plan & stick to it 75% of the time. So far we're doing really well!

Monday

Snack-Chocolate Chip Cookies, recipe from Deceptively Delicious (DD pg 177)

Dinner- Taco Bake, pineapples

Tuesday

Snack-Ice Cream Sandwiches (DD pg 182)

Dinner-Pork Roast, Green Beans, Cornbread

Wednesday

Lunh-Pulled pork sandwiches

Snack-soft pretzels

Dinner-Beef soup & homemade rolls

Thursday

Breakfast- Muffins

Snack-Chex Mix

Dinner-Cowboy Rice & Beans ($5 dinner mom cookbook), corn & biscuits

Friday

Snack-jello

Dinner-Individual Pizzas, leftover veggies

Saturday

Brunch-Pancakes & homefries

Dinner-Leftovers

Sunday

Breakfast-coffee cake

Lunch-Hot dog wth mac & Cheese

Dinner-roasted chicken, potatoes & carrots and applesauce

Dessert: Chocolate Fondue with leftover fruit (DD pg 174)

I hope to have pictures of the new recipes that I've tried soon!! For hundreds of other weekly menu's head on over to Organizing Junkie.

New Year, New Decade, New Goals...

2009-12-31T17:55:00.000-08:00

Well, not to be left out, I too making some resolutions, well, more like a list of goals for the "new year" and the new decade! So here's my list of goals, now where's yours? Toni at The Happy Housewife will be hosting a goal-posting thread stating tomorrow, so go ahead & make a list of goals & join in here!!

Personal Goals:

-Exercise atleast 3-4 times a week (atleast using Your Shape on the Wii)
-Lose weight (ideally, I'd like to get back down to less than I was before I got married...that was 3 years & 2 babies ago!) Notice I'm not putting a specific number down!
-Have atleast one "date night" a month ( I know this doesn't sound like it's very often, but next semester we will be lucky to get that one night a month. Of course, this doesn't mean we won't spend time with each other, but for this goal, I want atleast one specific night set aside to be child-free & spent together outside of our house!)
-Find an organizer/planner & actually use it!

Financial Goals:

-Pay off Kenney's car *We are so close to having this paid off!! Soon, we will be putting what we would normally pay into savings every month so we can by this time next year hopefully get a new to us car/van!*
-Pay off all our credit cards.
-Commit to trackig ALL expenses during the month of January.
-Create a budget, using the Crown Materials & our expense tracking in the month of Jan., and stick to it!

Home Goals:

-Reorganize coupon binder & go through them weekly to discard expireds & put up new ones.
-Meal Plan weekly & stick to menu atleast 75% of the time.
-Have one "prep" night set aside to do all baking & other prep work for the week's menu.
-Do atleast one tub of laundry each day.
-Mop kitchen floor weekly instead of monthly.

Family Goals:

-Finish Braydon's "book-it" lists before the 15th of every month
-Create a chore's chart & allowance for Braydon.
-Begin potty training Makenna.
-Have a "parents meeting" weekly to discuss weekly events

Bloggy Goals:

-Blog consistently, atleast 3 or 4 times a week to start.
-Participate in atleast one meme a week.
-Update the layout & name of the blog. *I've already got a new name & theme for the blog, now just have to learn how to redo the cool bloggy look!!

Lofty, I know, but I've gotta start some where! I will update you on my progress, and will hopefully have the new look up soon!!

A day late & a dollar short

2009-12-30T10:40:00.000-08:00

My little princess is TWO. I never in a million years would have thought that I would be talking about my daugher as a princess, as you may remember (refer to these posts for a refresher: #1 and #2 ) but now, it's the only fitting name for you! I love how "girlie" you really are! You love to dress up, play with your baby dolls, have tea parties, etc. I love dressing you in pink & purple, because PINK IS YOUR COLOR! You just look adorable in it! You love to help pick out your clothes in the morning with Mama & will definately let me know if I've made a mistake with my suggestions!

You love shoes of all kinds-Daddy's shoes are just way too big, but they're oh so fun to put on, especially since they can be found all over downstairs & on the stairs! Your favorite pair though are your precious pink crocs! Even when you were admitted to the hospital, you insisted on sporting your pretty pink crocs with your hospital gown! You definately know how let your style shine through on any outfit!

Your hair is as curly as can be, and it's getting really long! You love to accesorize with hairbows & headbands on EVERY outfit! And I must admit, your piggy tails just are way off the adorable chart!

Your smile melts my heart, and your giggle is contagious! You light up every room you walk into! You are now 24 lbs and 31 3/4 inches tall, my little petite potato, but you are built "tonka tough" *as you have to be when you have an older brother who likes to wrestle!*

Miss Makenna Rae, you have melted my heart and stolen it forever. Each day with you is better than the one before, and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for my beautiful little girl. Never forget that you were created in His image, and that you are His workmanship! "We will love you forever, we'll like you for always. As long as we're living our baby you'll be!"

For Makenna's birth story, you can revisit it here and here for her 1 year old post.

I'm baaaaccckk!!

2009-12-28T12:00:00.000-08:00

Okay, I've decided that it's time to come back to blogging....Now that life is beginning to come back to "normal", errrr, as normal as they can get, that is, I thought I need to get back in the habit of blogging. Plus I wanted to get a "jump start" on the New Year's resolutions. So, here's a quick recap of the past 5 months...I'm sure I will be posting about these in time...

-Kenney was hired @ a competitor log cabin company for a few months, but then again was laid off due to lack of work (not many people were buying log cabin homes in this economy). He decided to go back to school in August to begin working on his computer networking degree.

-Braydon started Kindergarten and is doing wonderfully. His developmental pedi is so impressed and we're so excited about his progress.

-Jordan Riley Kenneth made his debut on November 16th, 2009! He weighed 7lbs 8 oz and was 20 inches long! He is doing well, aside from some pretty serious jaundice problems in the first few weeks.

-Kenney is starting back to work for the company that laid him off in August in the beginning of January, as well as going to school at night. He will be very busy, and very tired, but it's only for a short period of time!

Anyways, I look forward to posting more shortly...