My Idea of Heaven

Cheers for Health and Karate

2010-05-20T14:23:00.002-04:00

Caylix's tests have finally all come back NEGATIVE!

They were all thrown off by the carrier gene for BIO. When she is married and ready to have babies, her and her husband will have to discuss the 1:4 odds of their children having the disorder, but for now, we are not worrying!

Caylix is two months old now! She is smiling and cooing and just as sweet as can be. She likes to watch her big brother run around and you can see how much she loves him already.

Connor is in Tae Kwon Do now and he is loving it! He enjoys showing off his new moves to anyone who will watch. I am very proud of how well he is doing and how quickly he learns! It's amazing what he can do and he is only three!

Connor's instructor offers a family program and I am going to join next week. I have been trying to talk Tim into joining too, but he isn't too excited about the idea. I think it will be great for Connor and I to have a common activity just for us. Plus, the healthy side effects won't hurt either!

Caylix Update

2010-04-30T12:18:00.001-04:00

Today we were given good news and bad news.

The good news:
Caylix does NOT have Biotinidase Deficiency. She only has one mutation of the gene so she IS a carrier. When she has children there is a 25% chance her children will have BIO.

The bad news:
An acid that is not supposed to be there was detected in her urine. Methylmalonic acid. Caylix had to give another urine sample and have another test done. We have to wait another two weeks to get the results.

The doctor said that people with Methlmalonic Acidemia usually have numbers in the thousands. Caylix urine showed a number of 10. We are hopeful that it is nothing and this is the end of all these tests!

Methylmalonic Acidemia is similar to BIO in the sense that the body cannot break down 4 amino acids. This means there is a build up of acid in the blood and tissue. The doctor said this is much more difficult to deal with and a very scary, serious disorder, but because of only showing a 10, she was not going to scare us with the details until she had the results from the new test.

Again, we wait. I hate this!

Cay's Appointment

2010-04-18T10:40:00.001-04:00

Thursday was Caylix's appointment with the Endocrinologist and Metabolic specialist at UK.

We were told that there is still a chance that she may not have anything wrong with her. However, three heel prick tests have shown that she has Biotinidase Deficiency. They took 5 vials of blood and a urine test today to send to a more high tech lab for more involved tests.

If she does have it, she will have to take Biotin every day for the rest of her life. That's it. As long as she takes the vitamin, no symptoms should present themselves. If symptoms were present already, taking the vitamin would make them go away over time. The only thing that is irreversible is brain damage, which should not even be an issue since we've already caught the disorder. She would also have to give blood every so often just to monitor her Biotin levels.

BIO is an inherited, genetic mutation. There are two types, complete and partial. If Caylix is positive for complete deficiency the doctor wants to have Connor tested just to be safe. If she is positive for partial, it would still be a good idea to test Connor, but she wasn't as adamant about it. Symptoms can present as late as 10 years old. Also, if Caylix has it and Connor doesn't, he can still be a carrier for it. They suggested genetic counseling for Tim and I if we ever have a third child. Connor may want to do that too when he is older just to see if he's a carrier.

Those were the main things we talked about today. We should know the results of the tests in 2 weeks. We have an appointment scheduled for the 30th. If the doctor calls, it is to cancel the appointment because everything is OK. If we don't hear from them, then she has it and we will go back and talk more about treatment.

Now we just wait!

When it rains, it pours.

2010-04-13T11:41:00.002-04:00

When Caylix was a week old, I got a call from the hospital saying that one of her newborn screening tests came back abnormal.

A week later we took her in for more blood work, the doctor and us both thinking that it was just a fluke and the test would come back normal this time.

Tuesday, Tim's papaw was taken by ambulance into the hospital. The family was called in to say their goodbyes. Tim left straight from work and I packed up the kids and headed to Indiana. Great Papaw had never met Caylix. While we were there he woke up just long enough to see everyone there, including his newest great-granddaughter.

Late Thursday morning, Great Papaw passed away.

Then, Friday I got the call. Caylix is testing positive for a disorder called Biotinidase Deficiency (BTD). The nurse didn't give much information other than they are worried about her vision and hearing. We were scheduled to see an endocrinologist and metabolic specialist. We were told it takes months to get in to this doctor and they got us in on Thursday. That made me worry.

I did a lot, A LOT, of research and BTD is a scary metabolic disorder, but the good news is that from what I have found, it is treatable. Most likely, a daily treatment of some sort (pill, vitamin, shot, I'm not quite sure) will be all she needs. I'm trying not to think about it until Thursday.

Sunday we went up to Indiana for Great Papaw's visitation. Monday was the funeral.

We stayed with my parents Sunday night and when we woke up Monday Caylix's eye was glued shut with green goop. Icing on the cake...

Luckily it was just a clogged tear duct.

Now it's Tuesday and things are finally settling down a little bit

...until Thursday.

Caylix Annmarie

2010-03-25T09:04:00.004-04:00

After a healthy, normal pregnancy, Caylix Annmarie was born via repeat C-Section on March 18, 2010 at 8:25am. She was 7 pounds 2 ounces and 18 3/4 inches long.

Tim and I arrived at the hospital at 6:30 am. We were taken to the prep room and everything went pretty fast! I got my IV's and shots and then the anesthesiologist came to discuss my previous history of illness with anesthesia. Because I get pretty ill with any sort on anesthesia, I was given a cocktail of Phenergan, Zofran, a nasty, super sour antacid, and a Valium like drug.

It did the trick. I never even felt nauseous during the whole thing! After given all the stomach relaxing drugs, we were wheeled to the OR. Since I had given permission for three med. students to attend the birth I met them all and the team of nurses working with my doctor while Tim scrubbed up.

I got a spinal and Tim was let back to be with me. The doctors told Tim that he could watch and take pictures and he very strongly stated that he would rather not watch, but wait until the baby was out to see.

When it was time for her to come, however, Tim completely changed his mind and watched the birth!! He even took pictures because he knew I wanted to see! When they pulled Caylix's out, Tim and the doctor announced at the same time, "It's a girl!" Tim looked down at me and said, "She's so beautiful and so disgusting!" After her cord was cut they lifted her up and I got to see our little girl for myself.

Tim went with Caylix to the nursery while I stayed on display for the med. students to observe. Because of my uterus, I am told that I am a great experience for students. I had too much blood and for some reason or another my uterus was taken out of my body and put back in. During this time it was discovered how messed up my uterus really is. It is bicornuate, but one horn is pretty much unicornuate (tear drop shaped) and the other horn is extremely small and completely useless. And even so, Caylix had no complications and the pregnancy was pretty uneventful!!

Finally I was stapled shut and taken to the recovery room to be monitored for a while. After Caylix was checked out and deemed healthy, she came to me and I got to hold her for the first time. She is amazing. She definitely has Tim's nose and my hair :) I was able to nurse her and cuddle for a few minutes before she was taken back to be bathed. Tim was able to be with her the whole time.

Finally we were moved to our room. The first person we let in, of course, was Connor. He got to see and kiss and hug his baby sister for a little while before anyone else came in. He loves to rub her head and kiss it.

Now we are home and Caylix and Connor are doing great. Connor is an awesome big brother! He will stop playing for an unexpected head rub or kiss. If she gets fussy (which is only when she gets hungry, and barely even then) he will come running to make sure she is ok.

Caylix had her first doctors appointment Monday. They said the jaundice was gone and she was already gaining weight! She goes back when she is two weeks old.

Connor has already given his baby sister her nickname. While playing with chalk outside, he drew a ladybug and said that it was his sister. Daddy asked him, "What is your sister?" and he said she is just a ladybug. Since then, Tim and Connor have called her Ladybug :)

I am so happy to be home with my whole family! I could not be any happier (and I think Tim is pretty thrilled too) :)

Eviction Notice!

2010-03-16T11:20:00.002-04:00

BABY SOUTHARD WILL BE BORN MARCH 18, 2010 AT 8:00AM!
2 MORE DAYS!

37 weeks! Full Term!

2010-03-08T19:11:00.003-05:00

I never made it this far with Connor!! Baby is still breech and we have the cesarean scheduled for March 18th at noon! Ten more days until Baby is here!

Today they did a non-stress test because Baby has not been moving around as much. This is most likely caused by lack of space due to the bicornuate uterus, but just to be safe they wanted to monitor him/her for an hour. I was contracting about every 4 minutes, but that happens EVERY time I lay down, whether it be on my left side, right side, whatever. Baby's heart rate was kind of flat and they wanted to see more of a variance so they scared him awake with a loud sound from a retractable tape measure. It did the trick! Baby woke up and danced for the rest of the hour. They checked my cervix to make sure all the contractions weren't causing any more dilation and I'm still just one centimeter and high.

TEN more days until Connor's a big brother!!!

33 Week - Preterm Labor

2010-02-09T14:05:00.003-05:00

Friday the 5th, I started having contractions around 2:00pm. By 3:00pm I realized they were every 15 minutes. At 4:00pm I called the doctor because drinking water, walking, resting, and a warm bath did not make them go away. They had me go to L & D and by the time we got there I thought the contractions were getting better. They checked me and everything was normal. They hooked me up to the monitors and after about an hour the contractions got worse. They ended up getting to be about 3 minutes apart. After checking me again, I was dilated about 1/2 - 1cm, but everything else was still good. After one dose of Terbutaline, the contractions lessened and nearly went completely away. At 11:30pm we finally got to go home.

Connor was with us the whole time at the hospital and he was so well behaved and so quiet I was so proud. The doctor didn't even know he was in the chair until I told him to move behind the curtain. He was that quiet!

I was given a prescription for the Terbutaline and scheduled an appointment with my regular OB. Today at the appointment, everything was still the same. Baby is nice and high, I'm not thinning or anything, but I am still slightly dilated. I was given enough Terbutaline to last until 35 weeks, which is only 9 days away! I was told that if the contractions continued after 35 weeks, they would just let the baby come. However, I was also told that sometimes, the labor just stops and the baby could stay put until it's time. So, at my next appointment (36 weeks) we will have an ultrasound and schedule a C-Section since the baby is breech.

It's crazy to think that in 9 days we could have a baby! It's also crazy to think after all these contractions (which are now erratic and non-timeable) the baby could make it clear until 39 weeks! I cannot wait to see if it's a boy or girl!

29 Weeks and Sleepwalking

2010-01-08T14:26:00.005-05:00

Connor has always been a talker. He talks non-stop, even in his sleep, but what I didn't know was that he sleep walks!

I still use the baby monitor in his room and a few nights ago I heard Connor crying "I can't find it. Where'd it go?"

I got up and went into his room and he was frantically searching his room! It was kind of creepy looking! He was looking under his pillow, in his toy box, in the baby's room in the bookcase. I asked him what he was looking for and he looked right at me and said "My Pop-Tart! I can't find it!" I finally realized he wasn't even awake!

When he couldn't find the Pop-Tart in his room, he came out and searched the living room and then headed into our bedroom. After letting him search for a little while, I took him to the potty then let him lay in bed with Tim and me for a little bit until he really went back to sleep.

The next morning he never once asked about a Pop-Tart! It was the craziest thing I had ever seen!

26 weeks

2009-12-17T09:45:00.003-05:00

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

20 Weeks

2009-11-06T12:35:00.002-05:00

Then and Now

2009-10-10T14:30:00.004-04:00

Pictures of Halloweens Past

2009-10-10T10:29:00.002-04:00

The many costumes of Connor Brycen

2006 (3 months old)

2007 (1 year old)

2008 (2 years old)

Appointments and Vacations

2009-09-30T10:30:00.002-04:00

Yesterday Connor had his in depth testing on his ears. He did fantastic! He hates having stuff put into his ears, but he tolerated all the tests with no problems whatsoever. All the tests showed that his hearing was perfect! Thank goodness. She recommended we come back maybe once a year just to check on them.

We also had our routine visit at the OB. Baby's heartbeat is healthy and strong. We get to have an ultrasound at our next appointment on October 27th. We are not finding out the sex, but I cannot wait to see Baby! Usually at these appointments Connor just ignores everything that is going on, but this time, when the heartbeat was found he gasped and said, "Ah! It's the baby!" Maybe he will be interested in the ultrasound this time. :)

The Zofran has been helping a ton. I haven't really gained any weight, but I've stopped loosing. It's a miracle drug if you ask me. I am now human again. However, I got yet another UTI. Because I get them so severe (turning into kidney infections) and so often, after I'm done with this prescription they may put me on daily meds to keep them away. I do not care one bit to take a daily pill if I won't get bladder infections any more or even less often!!! Bring it on!

Finally, this weekend is packed full. For the first time in his life, we are leaving Connor and going to Gatlinburg for a weekend to ourselves. I'm a little sad about leaving him, but he is thrilled that he gets to go to GeeMe and Bobo's without Momma and Daddy. After class tomorrow I am taking him up to Indiana and we are all going to go to the Farmer's Fair. I'll stay the night with him tomorrow night, but then he is all alone with Mom and Dad Friday night and Saturday night. He is growing up way too fast. I know he'll have a blast, but I'll miss him.

Finally

2009-09-10T09:37:00.002-04:00

I finally heard from the CCSHCN. Connor goes on September 29th for his hearing tests. That day is going to be crazy because I have my appointment at 8:40 am and Connor's is at 10am then I have to try to make it to class on time. Luckily Daddy is off on Tuesday's so that will help out a whole bunch!

Wish us luck!

Can you hear me?

2009-08-19T19:21:00.002-04:00

So I took Connor for his hearing test Tuesday. He thought playing the game was too much fun. Every time he heard a beep from the headphones he got to throw a block across the room into a bucket! He did great with the high frequencies and the low frequencies, however, he did not respond at all to the middle frequencies. She tried three times. No reaction each time.

Now, we are waiting to have the more advanced test done at the Commission for Children with Special Health Care Needs. I've tried to reach them for the past 3 days (since Tuesday) and all I get is a machine. I've left messages, but have heard nothing. Hopefully, if I call first thing in the morning someone will actually be in the office.

Hopefully this test shows that he actually was hearing the sounds and just not throwing the blocks. If not, then we go back to the pediatrician and try to determine what is causing the loss and what to do about it.

Smarty Pants

2009-08-14T12:54:00.002-04:00

Every mother worries about her child and I'm no different. Connor has always been a talker, a non-stop chatter box. But, he is hard to understand sometimes and pronounces things in a way that doesn't make much sense. At his 3 year well check the pediatrician recommended that we take him to our elementary school just to have him screened. We weren't really concerned that he was delayed or anything along those lines, just wanted to make sure that they way he was saying things was "normal."

He had fun with the therapist and he has no idea he was being "tested." He loved all the pop-up, noisy books and fun toys that she used! First she checked to see that he was forming the sounds that were in the 3 year old bracket. He could make every sound in his bracket and some all the way up to 6 years old. His understanding of language, again, marked clear up into the 6th year. He counted up to 11 with her and identified everything in books that he was asked, but while talking with her she noticed that he used "imaginative language." When he couldn't say something he just made up his own sounds to put into the word.

Because of the sounds he used we are going back on Tuesday to have a hearing check done. If that turns out fine, then there really nothing more to do :) She said he was super smart and displayed intelligence beyond his age! All we need to do is learn some tricks to help him say sounds and words correctly.

March 25, 2010

2009-08-03T20:51:00.003-04:00

Connor is going to be a big brother! Here is our little peanut today, at 6 weeks and 4 days :)

My Baby is THREE

2009-07-14T12:57:00.003-04:00

Exactly three years ago yesterday, July 13, at 2:02 pm Connor Brycen was born. He was the spitting image of Mr. Magoo. Now, three years later he looks just like his daddy.

He loves cars, trucks, trains and pretty much everything else that comes on wheels. As I type, he is playing with his remote controlled Lighting McQueen racer.

He is very crafty and enjoys gluing, coloring and stickering anything that can be decorated.

At any given time you could probably find a temporary tatoo covering his forearm or shoulder.

He watches the same 4 movies over and over again: "Firehouse Dog," "Wall-E," "Cars," and "Garfield."

He is an animal freak and literally smothers our pets with love.

His favorite toy right now is a lawn mower bubble blower.

He is an amazing singer. He knows not only children's songs, but he sings along with the radio and knows almost all of the words.

He is incredibly faithful. If we sit for a meal, Connor will not let us forget to pray before eating. Once he stopped his Bobo from eating and told him to "fold his hands" because he had forgotten to pray before taking a bite.

He is still attached to his lovey Herman.

He still has to announce when he has gotten his "yuckies out" and we have to look before he flushes.

He can make a friend anywhere and does!

He loves to dance and has his own signature move.

His favorite season is summer. He hates snow, but loves water!

He can memorize an entire book. He can recite Dr. Seuss' "Foot Book," and "Go Away Big Green Monster" without even looking at the pages.

He has the sweetest voice and loves to cuddle. MY favorite thing in the world is when he crawls in my lap and wraps my arms around him and he says, "I love you Momma!"

I love my little three year old!!

Windstream - Communications?

2009-07-01T15:41:00.002-04:00

Communication, it is right there in the company name, yet the people that work for this company can't seem to communicate with each other.

Everyday for the past 6 days we have had solicitors come to our door. Where are the solicitors from? Windstream! Once we had a man from Insight, but his English was horrible and I told him I was not going to waste his time because I could not understand him. The man was nice, understood and left me alone! Windstream...not so much.

In one day I had 4 different Windstream people on my front porch. Honestly, what is so hard to understand? I don't want your services! And if I did, I would come to you. You would think that the first guy I told "no" to would have told his little Windstream friends that they didn't need to bother coming to my house. Apparently the term "communication" is used loosely within their company!

I really hate living in the city! I cannot wait until after graduation when we can hopefully save up and get the heck out of here!

Almost Three!

2009-06-16T12:41:00.006-04:00

Connor had his 3 year pictures made yesterday. I cannot believe he will be three in barely over three weeks!!! He is growing up way too fast!

Reptile Rendezvous

2009-05-30T20:31:00.005-04:00

Today at work we had a man from House of Reptiles come with a few of his critters. I got to wear an albino burnese python all day and play with skinks and alligators. Sometimes my job is just too much work LOL

Connor came to check it out:

Rainy Days and Mondays

2009-04-21T21:26:00.003-04:00

Pedway from garage to Victorian Square

If it's not 20 degrees outside it's raining. Because of this unfortunate weather, Connor has had cabin fever. I took him to the Explorium today in hopes of wearing him out a bit! It was nice to go on a Tuesday, there were only two other families there. Here are a few pictures of my little explorer:

cave explorer

pueblo living

he's a brick... house

peek-a-boo

Oh, it is so nice working here and having a free family pass :) They don't realize how much money they are losing on just us ha ha!

If it's not one thing...

2009-04-10T00:06:00.003-04:00

It's another.

I no longer have an appendix...

Sunday when I went to work I felt like I had gas pains in my lower stomach. I figured it was something I ate and ignored it all day. That night we took Connor to the lake to go fishing and everything seemed ok.

That night I had some trouble sleeping and couldn't get comfortable. The pain in my belly starting migrating towards the right side.

Monday I went to school, but the pain was still there and I was getting pretty nauseous. I had that feeling that if I just threw up, I'd feel better.

I decided to go to the doctor because I was feeling pretty crummy and I didn't want to get Connor sick.

She poked and prodded on me a bit and said "I think your appendix is sick."

She sent me to have a CT scan and lab work done.

The CT scan showed that my appendix was slightly enlarged, but didn't look like anything serious, however, they wanted me to come back in the morning to have a second look.

I went back in the morning and went through the same routine. The CT scan again showed that my appendix was enlarged, but my blood work was fine.

The doctor didn't like the enlarged appendix so he called the surgeon in to get his opinion. That surgeon called another surgeon and the second sugeon had me admitted.

They monitored me overnight and then the second surgeon consulted with the first surgeon and they decided to remove my appendix.

Their initial thought was that since the progression of the appendicitis was so slow, I had the beginnings of Colitis and the infection was settling around my appendix which was enlarging it and they wanted to remove it before it perforated.

At 1:00pm yesterday I went into surgery and they laparoscopically (sp?) removed my appendix and found that my colon looked ok. It wasn't full blown Colitis, but just an infection. They caught the appendicitis at the earliest stage. My body was just super sensitive to the tiny change.

I am home now, but I have nothing but positive remarks for the staff at Central Baptist Hospital. Everyone I dealt with was super nice and treated us great. They even made Connor a "Doctor Kit" with rubber gloves, a tongue depressor, a mask, bandaids, gauze and a book "My Trip to the Hospital." They offered everyone anything they wanted food and beverage wise and never seemed bothered by us.

I am crazy about pain medication, the tiniest dose of narcotics make me feel like I'm loosing my mind, but they gave me Percocet in the hospital and a Lortab precription. I'm hurting pretty good, but it's mostly the gas that's causing the pain. Laparoscopic surgery may be less invasive, but the whole pumping you full of gas thing is horrible :(

How the Flu Turns Into Kidney Failure

2009-03-14T14:58:00.002-04:00

Wednesday night we had friends over for dinner and after they left I started to feel really sick. I took my temperature and it was 105.4. I got into my jammies and Tim brought me Tylenol. It took it 2 hours to bring my temperature down to 103.7. Connor was already in bed and I didn't want to wake him to go to the ER so I just decided to keep on taking Tylenol and go to our regular doctor in the morning.

In the morning my temperature was back up at 104 and so of course I called the doc. My luck...."He isn't in today. What is going on?" So I explained that I had a high fever, my body hurt, I was really dizzy etc. I had already been told I had the Flu, but with that fever I just wanted to get checked again. The nurse told me to just go to the walk-in urgent treatment center because since our regular doctor was a Lexington Clinic doctor and the UTC was a Lexington Clinic our records would already be there.

Tim took me in and we were told it was going to be a 2 hour wait. Connor has a sinus infection and isn't feeling 100% so I didn't want him to have to sit there for that long so I sent them home while I waited. Once I got called back, I called Tim to come be with me. The doctor did a Flu test on me, but this one came back negative. Then he poked all over me and said he wanted me to go to the ER because he wanted some blood work done and he wanted the results back ASAP because he thought I may have renal failure.

So we went to the ER and sat and waited for another 4 hours. I tried calling Mom, but my call kept failing. I had Tim try calling her (again, he went home with Connor) but his calls failed too. So here I am, by myself, completely miserable, thinking my kidneys weren't working and I couldn't even get ahold of my Mom to come down and help with Connor so Tim could be with me.

So finally I called my sister Kendra and told her to call Mom and have her call me.

The whole family came down and Dad and Ethan watched Connor while Mom and Tim came to the hospital to be with me. By this time they had finally called me back and had began all sorts of tests. It only took them 15 minutes to rule out renal failure. I sat and waited 4 hours thinking the worst and it took 15 minutes for them to tell me the first doctor didn't know what he was talking about. However, they still didn't know what was wrong.

Their main concern was that I had not urinated since Wednesday afternoon. They needed to do a urine test, but I could only get out a teeny bit. They brought in this bladder scanner thing and measured the amount of urine in my bladder. She said there was 130 units (cc's maybe?) and that most people felt the need to pee when they had 100 units in their bladder. They wanted me to try to go, then they were going to re-scan my bladder. So I went. I have never had to work so hard to pee! After I went she came back and scanned me again. This time I had 310 units. It made no sense at all and still doesn't. All she could say was "I'm perplexed."

However, the tests all came back good. I had some Ketones in my blood and urine tests, but it was just enough for them to say I was dehydrated, NOT in renal failure. Again, I don't understand how I was dehydrated since my bladder was full? But they gave me IV fluids anyway.

So finally, after draining a bag of fluid into me, a chest X-ray (what was the point of that anyway?), blood work, urine tests, bladder scans, THREE Flu tests and TWO strep tests, they sent me home with the diagnosis of "Flu-Like Virus."

Mach For Babies

2009-03-10T20:00:00.004-04:00

My sister Kendra has done the March of Dimes March for Babies every year and last year Tim, Connor and I joined her. Connor was barely a preemie, born at 36 weeks, and only had jaundice and a little bit of a rough time keeping up his body temperature, but his cousin Maddie (Kendra's oldest) spent 21 days in the NICU. If you would like to donate to the cause or just learn more about MOD please visit my site:

http://www.marchforbabies.com/ssouthard

These are just a few pictures of our team "Tiny Survivors" 2008 walk

Play Room Makeover

2009-03-01T20:29:00.004-05:00

Talk about a hot mess!

We have been in the process of remodeling our basement for nearly a year now. We bought the house in December 07 and the basement flooded with the first big rain we got that spring. The carpet was ruined along with everything else that was down there. We dug a trench along the side of the house that leaked and that solved the flooding problem. We had to rip up the carpet and clear out the basement though due to molding and mildew. We haven't done anything with the basement since then because we wanted to make sure the trench really was going to work. We have had quite of bit of rain this year and no leaky basement so we are nearly positive we are good to go.

SOooo.... We decided to build a wall down there and section the basement into two halves (now when I say "we" built a wall...I mean Tim and a buddy lol I have no wall building skills whatsoever) The left side of the basment we are not doing anything to the floor or walls. It is going to be Tim's wood shop area. The right side is going to remain as Connor's play room and Tim's office. We are still nervous about wetness down there so we chose indoor/outdoor carpet for the play room area and tile for the office area. The carpet looks like astroturf, green and all. Then I went to Wal-Mart and looked at the "oops" paints and Connor helped me pick out a green shade and a blue shade for $3! The bottom portion of the walls will be green grass (with matching carpet lol) and the top will be the blue sky. Then we are going to put up safari animal stickers on the grass part. If you know Connor, you know how obssesed he is with Herman (giraffe) so what's better than a Herman play room?! I even found a cloth shower curtain with a safari print! The tiled part will have to wait...this whole everything costs money thing sucks lol!

And now for your viewing pleasure, pictures of my blue son: from messy to messier!

Baby MaKayla Update

2009-02-24T19:37:00.004-05:00

I'm Outta Here!

Baby MaKayla is out of the hospital and you would never know that she was as sick as she was. She's been out for over a week now and has not had a single problem since. While Angie (MaKayla's momma) was out of school, we secretly started a collection for her to help her out with the costs of taking care of MaKayla. Our OT/OS program is very tight-knit and everyone knows everyone and their situations so people were more than willing to help her out.

Tonight, Jen (another good friend) and I got the money together and took Angie and MaKayla out to dinner. While at dinner we explained what we did and gave her the money we had collected for her. I have never seen anyone so greatful and thankful!

Thank you to everyone who donated to Angie and MaKayla. She is more than thankful for all your support!

Say A Little Prayer

2009-02-11T21:43:00.003-05:00

MaKayla Ma'Shay

My friend Angie has an almost 8 week old baby girl who has been in the hospital for the past week with Pneumonia. She has been on oxygen and poked and prodded and tested and retested :(

If you can find a few minutes to say a little prayer for baby MaKayla she sure needs it.

Friday Please!

2009-02-11T21:05:00.003-05:00

I really need this weekend to come just a little faster. Things are crazy here as usual.

Connor started coughing last Friday (wow I almost wrote, Connor presented with a cough....I need a homework break I think haha). The cough got to sounding really gross by Saturday afternoon so instead of waiting until Monday, I took him into the UTC Saturday evening. The doctor there said he just had a chest cold and gave him some Delsym to take.

Well, the cough was better for about a week, but then on Sunday it started getting worse, fast. I had Tim take him in on Monday (10 days after 1st appointment). Our regular pediatrician saw him and checked him from head to toe. My poor baby has Bronchitis :( He is on some antibiotics, but this whole being allergic to amoxicillan thing sucks!! Nothing else seems to be as good or quick. They always have to refill his meds and he has to take them even longer.

He does seem to be doing much better though. Still having some trouble sleeping at night and we've spoiled him a bit by letting him come into our bed. How can you NOT spoil a sick baby? I'm hoping he gets over this fast. I HATE it when he's sick :(

On top of taking care of my boy, I have had an exam everyday since last Friday. Tomorrow is the last one for this week, thank goodness!

Happy Birthday to Me...

2009-01-31T16:33:00.004-05:00

Baby It's Cold Outside!

I have the flu...it sucks!

Connor has a chest cold...it sucks!

We had no electricity for 4 days because of the huge ice storm...it sucked!

My real birthday is Monday, let's hope it doesn't suck!

Before the sickness:

Newest Family Member

2009-01-20T18:45:00.003-05:00

Our family pet growing up was a Chihuahua mix and I have always loved Chihuahuas. Well, yesterday Tim talked to a lady who was looking for a new home for her female Chi. Her family is moving to Cincinnati and they couldn't take her with them. Long story short...here is Precious!

Precious Paws

She is nine years old and a major cuddle bug. Connor adores her and Ru and Pablo want her to play with them so bad! She has sniffed in their general direction, but ignores them and instead sleeps! Last night was her first night here and she kicked me off my heating pad. She is AKC registered so we know she's full blooded, but she is SO overweight! I think she could possibly be the world's fattest chihuahua!

So Much Bad News

2009-01-11T19:25:00.002-05:00

So I'll start off with the bad and just get worse.

First, one of my two best friends moved all the way to Dallas because she hates me. Well, she was supposed to come up this next weekend for a visit, but with the way plane tickets and gas prices are she had to cancel at the last minute. :(

Then, in the same night I got the news that my second best friend's Gramma had died. She had severe dementia and developed pneumonia. With how brittle her body and mind were, her husband decided to sign the DNR papers. She was the sweetest lady and will be missed terribly.

Finally, Mom's friend Elizabeth has suffered through breast cancer and a mastectomy. Recently she collapsed at work and was taken to the ER. They diagnosed her with Leukemia and transfered her to a better hospital up in Cincinnati. She underwent chemo and it seemed to be working, but I got a call today saying that she needed a bone marrow transplant. This lady is a wonderful woman also. She is a fellow animal lover and provided a foster home for Ru while we were moving from the apartment to the house. Here is just some of the crazyness she had to put up with....

Elizabeth was home one day, just minding her own business when she get's a call from her neighbors...

"Hey, do you have a shaggy, yellow dog staying with you?"

"Um, yeah why?"

"Well you might wanna come out into your front yard."

So Elizabeth goes outside and sees flashes from cameras and the neighbors looking up. There was Ru....... standing on the roof! He had gotten out of an upstairs window and was just enjoying the breeze on the rooftop!

Please keep both of these women and their families in your thoughts and prayers.

Updated Page

2009-01-04T18:38:00.001-05:00

I updated Connor's page! Check it out at:

http://www.connorbrycen.weebly.com

Happy New Year!

2009-01-02T11:19:00.003-05:00

If you know us, you know that Tim and I and our friends are not really the "party animal" kind of people. This was the very first New Year we actually went out. It was SO much fun. I always feel sad if we leave Connor, but we went to Mom and Dad's and he was already in bed when we left, so I didn't feel too sad this time. They are about the only people I really trust with my baby :)

Our friend Marcus didn't get off work until 9 and he is also moving so Tim stayed behind to help him out along with a few other friends. My friend Manda and I went ahead to Belterra and began the fun without them. Neither of us had ever been there before and we were pleasantly surprised. Even though it was a casino, it wasn't what we expected. It was nice and open and even though it was crowded, we didn't feel suffocated. Neither of us had ever really gambled before either, so of course we had to try it out. We each played a whole dollar on the penny slots. In the end, our total winnings ended up being ........are you ready for this.................. $0.40!! Yes ladies and gentlemen, we won FORTY CENTS LOL. Manda had a whopping 10 and I had 30 haha.

The bar had $1 champaigne all night so being the cheapskates that we are, that's what we drank. So we had our champaigne and walked around until the guys showed up. After our mind-blowing earnings, we decided to stop while we were ahead LOL.

We ended up speding most of this night singing along with and dancing to two guys playing the piano. They played everything from "Rocky Top" to "Cheeseburger in Paradise" and everything in between. We decided we needed New Years attire and hunted down some hats, lais and horns.

After the guys got there we went back out to the pianos and waited to watch the ball drop on the big screen. They started handing out free champaigne in fun fakey little plastic glasses to toast with. At midnight they dropped balloons from the ceiling and I had never heard so many little horn blowers honking at once! It was a blast!!

Of course I forgot my camera in the car and wasn't going to hike the 3 1/2 miles back to it in 10 degree weather so here's what we got on our phones:

Tim and I

(too bad we cut off the cute little headband I made him wear!)

Manda and Me

Me Cody and Marcus

Christmas Aftermath

2008-12-29T15:47:00.004-05:00

Well, Santa came and our little house is overflowing with toys! Connor is one spoiled little boy, let me tell you. I cannot tell you which toy is his favorite because he has played equally with all of them.

We went to Geeme's and Bobo's late Christmas day and had Christmas dinner with them and Ethan. We got Ethan a paintball gun, and I also got Tim one so, of course, they had to go paintballing.

While they were out we stayed in and watched Connor's favorite movie "Firehouse Dog." Santa was going to bring this for Connor's stocking, but he must not have been able to find it in time, so we checked the Wal-Mart near Geeme's and they had it there so he got it a little late. We have already watched the silly movie about a dozen times!

When we came home it was gorgeous outside so we got to try out Connor's "Hamster Wheel." Ok, so it's really called a "Roller Wheel," but it sure reminds me of a hamster wheel!

Tim got a new game for his 360 so I haven't seen much of him either! I'd say we all were spoiled and had a great Christmas!!

Southern Lights

2008-12-21T16:47:00.005-05:00

We took Connor to the Horse Park last night for the Southern Lights. He loved it! He kept saying, "Oh goodness! Oh lookey!" After driving through all the lights, we went into the little petting zoo they had set up. Connor loved the camel, goats, llamas, kangaroo and everything BUT the cows!? He's crazy. As soon as we got home he started dancing around the house singing "KenenenenROO! KeneneneneROO!" I believe the kangaroo was his favorite!

In other news, our basement is so close to being done! We have the new wall up and the outside wall sealed. All we need to do is paint and put down the floor. I went ahead and just brought down the old area rug and we already have it set up as Connor's play room. I cannot wait to put the floor down and be completley done!! Maybe after Christmas we will be able to save up the money for it lol!

7 Semesters Down 3 To Go!

2008-12-17T12:44:00.003-05:00

I am soooooo excited! I just took my last final this morning! Ahhh, boy does it feel good to be done. I'm not going to even let myself think about next semester. I am just going to sit back, relax and enjoy Christmas!!

One of my professors already has our final grades up. So far so good! I ended up with a 93%!! I am so tickled!

Also, on that stinkin research project that we spent all semester on, we got a ........drum roll please......97%!

I am axious to find out my grades in my other two classes. Hopefully I did ok!

So close to being done!!

Early Christmas

2008-12-15T20:57:00.005-05:00

We went up to Indiana to see Kendra and her family and have an early Christmas for the kids. I had too much fun trying to steal Hannah Montana shoes and getting tackled by Superman! Connor loved playing with his cousins and getting SO SPOILED by Aunt Ketchup. She gave the boys not one, but TWO HUGE pieces of cake!!! Of course my child decided to eat just the icing off the top and then run around like a mad man. It was a great time...until we get pink eye LOL

PlayDoh from Ketchup was a big hit

Uncle Ethan and Connor

Reindeer and their elves visited downtown

Hail to the Bus Driver Man

2008-12-09T21:49:00.006-05:00

Oh, hail to the bus driver, bus driver, bus driver. Hail to the bus driver, bus driver man. He drinks and he cusses and stinks up the busses oh Hail to the bus driver, bus driver man!Let's back up about 22 years ago. We were living in Germany and my sister Amanda was a kindergartener. She rode the bus every day to and from school. Mom has always made cards for our backpacks that had our name, address, phone number and bus number on them. Apparently Manda had a substitute bus driver that had never heard of our village before. He assumed Mom's card was a misspelling and FORCED my sister off the bus in a stange village that was NOT ours. Some little boy found her, took her to his house and they had milk and cookies. Long story short, Dad's behavior would have landed him in jail here in the states (at least for a little bit) but they found Manda and everything was fine.

Fast forward to this afternoon. I babysat today and I had just picked up Colby from the busstop. My phone rings and I answer it and it is my other sister Kendra. She asks, "are you near a computer." In just that one sentence I could hear sheer panic in her voice. When I said, "No, is everything ok?" she said that it wasn't and she had to go.

KENDRA: YOU DO NOT DO THAT TO PEOPLE!!

...no serious, it scared the $#!^ out of me.

I called Mom to see if she knew what the heck was going on. She said that she had talked to her a few hours ago and everything was fine. So I told her about our brief phone conversation and I get in reply, "I'm getting a call"...click

COME ON PEOPLE!!

Kendra called me back to finally explain. Maddie (my neice) had a substitute bus driver and he missed her house. Kendra called the school and they paged the driver and he said for Kendra to meet him at the gas station. Kendra waited and waited and he never showed up so she started to freak. She was calling me to get online and find her a phone number.

Everything turned out fine, but the bus driver decided to finish his route, pick up the high school kids THEN bring Maddie home. I'm still not clear on why he never showed at the gas station!?

Kendra said she kept thinking about Manda and everything that happened with her :(

I think our family has had it's fair share of bus mishaps thank you!

Turkey, Planes and Guns

2008-11-30T22:26:00.004-05:00

I had a blast over Thanksgiving break! We went to Mom and Dad's and ate way too much, then Friday we went to Wright Patt and Saturday we spent the day out at my aunt and uncle's shooting. Here are some pictures of our long weekend!

And We're Off!

2008-11-26T12:04:00.002-05:00

I have one more load of laundry to do and then, once Tim gets home from work, we are off to Indiana for Thanksgiving! Connor is so excited to see Bobo, Geeme and Uncle Ethan. He wants to leave now!

This year is going to be a little different. Everyone is coming to Mom and Dad's house. Now, my extended family can be a little disfunctional so well see how this goes. Shouldn't be anything a little turkey and sweet potato casserole can't handle!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-25T21:59:00.001-05:00

DONE!

2008-11-19T22:01:00.002-05:00

MY PORTFOLIO IS DONE! I cannot tell you how much stress is off now! I also met with my research team and one member went above and beyond her share and we are now so very close to being done with that too! I have nearly completed my portion of my class session project and I only have one paper left to write...THE END IS NEAR!

In other news...

I took Connor in to the doctor today. He took a nap (which he never does) and when he woke up he was burning up with fever. I scanned his head and it was 104. He has had a yucky cough and yucky poo so I called and they got him in right away. I love our office! He checked his ears and said they looked "beautiful!" The left ear has healed amazingly. Then he swabbed his throat. Connor DID NOT like that. He yelled and screamed and tried to hide behind Herman. The strep test came back negative so he said it was just a virus and it should clear up in a few days. Connor is acting fine, but he is more cuddly and wears out easy. I hope it passes quickly! The worst is when he's sick and there's nothing I can do about it. I am so thankful he is usually a healthy child!

It's the Little Things

2008-11-18T14:12:00.002-05:00

I was having a super stressful day and to top it all off, Connor was playing cars on the brand new area rug I had just bought the day before. As he drove a car across the rug, it left a huge pull in the rug. I still had the reciept so after Connor went to bed I went to exchange it.

They didn't have the same rug so I just returned it and got my money back. I was so stressed out and irritated I just wanted to go home and just forget it. But I didn't. I drove down to GardenRidge to see if they had a similar rug.

When I got inside, the BEST Christmas music was playing. The first song was "Baby it's Cold Outside." And it was the good version by Johnny Mercer and Margaret Whiting. I smiled for the first time that day. I sang the song to myself as I went to the rug section.

While I was looking through the rugs the Carol of the Bells song (I think the real title is Christmas Eve/Sarajevo) by the Trans Siberian Orchestra came on. This got me excited that I actually stopped here to look rather than just go home. I picked out a rug and on top of that, it was $15 cheaper than the original one!

I was getting ready to head to the checkout, but the song "I Want a Hippopotamus for Chirstmas," (by Gayla Peevy? I think) came on. The store didn't close for another hour and a half and no one else was in there so I just started walking around. My original plan was to just listen until the song was over, but good song after good song just kept coming onto the radio and I ended up walking around the store for 45 minutes before I finally checked out and left.

The last song that played as I was walking out the door was "Oh Holy Night" sung by Josh Groban....I LOVE that song! What a great end to such a stress filled day!

Stress Relief

2008-11-04T19:58:00.009-05:00

It is almost Thanksgiving which just blows my mind, but I am SOOO looking forward to it. By Thanksgiving all my major projects are due which, once they are done, will be a huge weight off.

Also, I have found a new job with a really great family and I am loving it. Connor is back to his happy self and even with my work schedule I still have lots of time with him and Tim.

I still have TONS to get done: portfolio, research proposal, occupational justice session... BUT the end is in sight! One more year of this insane school work and I will be DONE!

Tim and I have talked about it A LOT, and he has agreed to be an "Air Force Husband." (it'll follow "Army Wives" next season! haha)

After I get my bachelors I plan on enlisting. We've also talked it over with Mom and Dad and Dad was tickled pink. Now, things may change in the next year and a half, but this is really what I want to do. I just hope Connor takes after me and loves the lifestyle.

But for now I am just anxious to end this semester!!!

Halloween and More!

2008-11-02T11:57:00.005-05:00

We took Connor to Mom and Dad's for Halloween again this year. He had a blast! He is old enough now to know what's going on. He even said "Twicky Tweet!" He filled up his Elmo head and had to use the back-up bag that Geeme brought! At the little parade/costume contest he made the finalist group and won $5.00! Here is my little giraffe!

The day after Halloween Mom and Dad went bowling with us. This was Connor's first time bowling. He had a blast the first game, but tired quickly. Here are some pictures from that!

Indiana Weekend

2008-10-18T22:06:00.003-04:00

We went up to Indiana again this weekend for my Grandma's birthday and to say "bye" to my sister and her family who got orders to Texas. At one point there were probably 35 people in my aunts house! The kids ran around like a pack of wild animals and just had a blast. Connor wanted to play with the older girls so bad! Here is a picture of him trying to get in on the action:

The girls were trying to bust headgeapples off a stump haha.

The girls in our family definitley outnumber the boys :) Here are just a few more pictures of the excitement:

If it's not one thing

2008-10-15T20:30:00.001-04:00

it's another...

My turn to be sick. I lost my voice Friday and I am still working on getting it back. I have a sinus infection that causes such bad headaches they could kill a small horse and now I have a stomach bug on top of it all. Today was almost as if Connor and I reversed rolls. I laid on the couch and he brought me a blanket and his pillow and read me a book....yes you guessed it "Go Away." He even took a two hour nap with me. If you know Connor, you know he doesn't nap easily!

And poor poor Connor. His gorgeous long hair is all gone! A simple trim went TERRIBLY wrong and resulted in his little head being buzzed! I cried and cried. I know it's silly, it'll grow back, but it was like his last bit of baby-ness went away. He looks so grown up now and I hate it!

Ughh, gotta run!

On the Mend

2008-10-10T20:27:00.004-04:00

Connor's ear is looking SO much better. It's not draining anymore and he doesn't scream after I put the drops in. We go back on the 28th just to make sure it has healed. He was having a hard time at night and refused to sleep alone, but now he is back to his regular routine of telling us "night night" at exactly 8:00. I think his poor ear was hurting him and now that it's on the mend he's sleeping better.

Tonight, we read "Go Away Big Green Monster" to him AGAIN! He absolutley loves this book! I don't know what it is about it, but he has become addicted to it. He reads it all day long and has 2 pages memorized: "Go away big yellow eyes," and "Don't come back, until I say so." He used to love the Foot Book by Dr. Seuss, but this one has turned into complete obsession. I'm going to look for Ed Emberley's other similar book "Glad Monster Sad Monster" and see if he likes it as much. I guess it's fitting since it is getting close to Halloween!!!

I cannot wait to take Connor trick or treating! Tim and I, instead of getting costumes this year, had shirts made. Tim's says, "Giraffes Can Kill" and has this adorable, little, cartoon giraffe in the middle of his shirt. Mine is just brown and says "a giraffe calls me mommy." I found giraffe print pants on e-bay for $5 that I also got. We have decided to go to Rising Sun again this year since our neighborhood is ....let's just say....questionable. Plus, we know the whole town and it's great to see all the kids all dressed up! The Fourth of July and Halloween are my FAVORITE holidays.

Oh and before I go, can you believe gas is down to $2.99!!

Bloody Ears

2008-10-07T14:33:00.003-04:00

Sunday night when I got Connor out of his bath he started digging at his left ear. I thought maybe it was just water in there, but when I looked there was a yucky mass in his ear. I used a q-tip and pulled it out and it was all bloody and goopy. He cried a little and said "Owie." So I called the on call nurse and asked about it (thought it may be ruptured) since it continued to bleed/ooze for about 10 minutes. She said it didn't sound like anything too bad, maybe he just had a scrape in the canal. So I left it alone.

Yesterday, I checked his ear again and there was no blood and Connor did not act like it was hurting him at all.

Then this morning, when Connor got up his ear was FILLED with blood. It was even running down his cheek a little. Totally FREAKED ME OUT even though I knew what was going on! I asked Connor if his ear was owie and he just poked at it and said, "Oh, owie." So apparently he didn't even notice the blood. I called the doctor and got him in right away. It is ruptured so they put him on Omnicef this time and drops.

He did so good at the doctor's that he got a happy meal from McDonalds with CHOCOLATE milk :) Right now he is running around like normal, but will stop every once in a while to point at his ear and say "Eww Momma." because it is still a little leaky. He goes back in two weeks to make sure it is healing correctly.

How about a DUI with your bowling?

2008-10-05T19:54:00.003-04:00

Last night, after Connor went to bed, Tim and I left him with Gee Gee and Bo Bo and we went bowling. As we were pulling into the parking lot some black car tried to back into us. We avoided him and parked. We both got out of the car and the black car kept backing up, and kept backing up and kept....STOP I yelled! The black car smashed right into the suburban parked next to us. The passenger got out and we had the following conversation:

Ding Bat Woman: "Well......?"

Me: confused look

Ding Bat Woman: "Did we hit it?"

Me: "Well yeah!" (how do you miss something like that?)

Ding Bat Woman to Ding Bat Man Driver: "Well, I don't see any damage."

Me: "But it'd be nice to let them know!"
Woman I am starting to believe is slightly DRUNK: "Yeah that would be nice now wouldn't it?"

SHE GOT IN THE CAR AND DROVE AWAY!

All this while Tim is writing down their license plate numbers. As we walked to the door of the bowling alley a crowd had heard what went on. They figured out who owned the suburban and called her out. She came out and was NOT happy. There ended up being some damage to the chrome part. After everyone had told her what happened she came to us and we told her again, our story. She ended up owning an autobody shop (how 'bout that irony) and confirmed that they were probably drunk as she had seen them in the bar inside the alley. Of course the cops were called and things were taken care of.

The alley owners gave us two free games of bowling for "being so nice to that woman." :)

For the record....I SUCK at bowling!

Farmers Fair or Family Reunion?

2008-10-04T15:02:00.003-04:00

I am sitting in Mom and Dad's living room connected to the internet through some strangers wireless network....let's hope I don't get bumped off before I'm done!

We are in Indiana for the weekend to visit and because we wanted to go to the Farmer's Fair. Connor won more toys and prizes than we could carry! He gave quarters to a monkey, ate an elephant ear and got the biggest smoothie know to man! He is still too short to ride any of the rides :( so he just played lots and lots of games.

As we were leaving (and Connor was falling asleep) we ran into not one, but two family members and a group of friends we haven't seen in nearly a year. I had a blast and I am pretty sure everyone else did too! I love the fall season when there are festivals and fairs every weekend!

(pictures will come when I know I have time!)

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life!

2008-09-30T13:12:00.003-04:00

Things are looking up! I have finally just accepted the way things have worked out here lately and my stress levels have dropped tremendously! It is even showing in my school work. I have to brag a bit and say that I got a 100% on a paper I turned in to the hardest proffessor this semester. Yay!

I had a community exchange day today so I didn't have class so Connor and I drove to Frankfort to have lunch with Daddy. We went to O'Charley's and had such a nice time. We have not eaten out since my birthday in February! Connor was SOOOO well behaved and a big flirt like always. I have forgotten how great a kid he is when all is calm.

Yesterday I FINALLY went and bought sand for Connor's sandbox. I know, I know! It's fall and starting to get cold and I decide that now is a good time to get sand to play in! I spoiled him a bit and got the Crayola BLUE play sand :) We are getting ready right now to go out and get dirty.

Another fun thing that happened recently was Connor's school's Fall Festival. My OTS meetings were canceled so we got to go to that too! Connor's favorite part was the llama that had the coloring of a Herman! And can you believe that I forgot my camera! He also had his first taste of cotton candy. He wasn't a big fan, the texture and melting freaked him out. Momma had no problem eating it for him :D

These were my contributions:

Who doesn't like a good spider cupcake! (they only have 4 legs though because who really likes black licorice?)

Well we are off to play in the blue sand :)

How to Treat a Week From Hell

2008-09-28T12:03:00.002-04:00

With a surprise birthday party of course. Mom turned 50 on Wednesday and my sisters and I threw her a party yesterday. It turned out nice. Quite a few family members showed up and a couple friends. Mom said she had a slight idea, but Dad said she had no clue and even wanted to stop and eat on their way home.

All the kids were together again, and balloons were a big hit with them! After I attempted to clean up a bit, I just tossed all the balloons in the hallway. It became a balloon ball pit for the kids!

Connor just wasn't feeling 100% and was clingy to Momma and Daddy. He would play for a little while, but then come running and crying for us. He even wanted Aunt Kendra to "bounce" with him. She would run around the yard with him on her shoulders.

Speaking of Kendra, her kids both had birthdays last month and we still hadn't gotten their gifts to them! I love to give kids presents and see their little faces get all cheery. :) I think we did ok this time. Nik got a Hulk T-shirt and a Spiderman jacket and Maddie got a Webkinz elephant. I know Nik liked his because he had to put them on right away, and I hope Maddie liked hers too! Connor had a hard time giving that elephant away! ha ha

Here are some pictures!

Surprise!

Smiley

Some guests

Party Animal

Herman!

2008-09-22T19:19:00.001-04:00

I love Halloween and Connor loves Herman....isn't this perfect!

Connor's New Site

2008-09-21T15:56:00.000-04:00

Check it out! I finally made Connor a new site.

Click here to see my handsome little man!

Yay!

Weekends

2008-09-21T15:29:00.000-04:00

I figured I whine so much about my weekdays that I'd share a weekend. I try to be as lazy as I can on the weekends. We go to the park a lot and play outside as much as possible. Here are some pictures from yesterday:

At Jacobson Park

Connor's New Word

2008-09-20T11:08:00.001-04:00

So when I pick Connor up from school I always ask if he has been good. His teachers always respond with, "Oh, you don't have to worry about Connor. He's always good." Well Friday when I picked him up and asked if he was good, Ms. Amanda said that she could clone him and have a whole room of Connors. WHERE IS THAT CHILD AT HOME? Lately all he's done is tell me, "No!"

"Connor, pick up your toys." -- "NO."
"Connor, come here and get your clothes on." -- "NO."
"Connor, _______." -- "NO."

Tell me this phase will pass quickly!

Is it Spring Break yet?

2008-09-16T22:29:00.000-04:00

All work and no play makes Sonja a dull girl

I just finished up a project for my 311 class and I came to the sad realization that 5%, yes, that is FIVE PERCENT, of one WEEK is spent taking part in pleasurable occupations. We are studying Pierce's division of occupation and she splits it up into three sections: Pleasurable, Productive, and Restorative. Out of 168 hours, I spend a little over 8 hours doing something fun! Want to know what most of my time consists of? Productive occupations: 58%. Yes ladies and gentlemen, I have no life! And the only reason I have restorative occupations is because I sleep (very little) and I shower.

This year and next year are going to kill me! I don't even want to think about next semester! I'm not going to even have time to breathe!

Scary Night

2008-09-12T21:50:00.000-04:00

Last night Connor woke me up by whining. I went to check on him and he felt hot to me but I just assumed it was because he was buried under a mountain of blankets. I uncovered him and went back to bed. About 20 minutes later he was really crying, so I pulled him into bed with me and this time when I felt that he was hot, I took his temperature. It was 101, not too bad. I gave him some Tylenol and we went back to bed together. The poor boy could not and would not sleep. He kept getting hotter and hotter. We were up all night. I debated taking him to the ER but by the time they would have got us in there, his pediatrician's office would be open. By the morning, his fever was up to 104 and he was shaking. His eyes would even flutter which TOTALLY freaked me out. I called the doctor and we went in. His regular doctor wasn't in so we saw another one. She looked in one ear and said, "Well it's infected, but not enough to cause this fever." She looked in his left ear and said, "Ah ha!" Apparently it was REALLY bad. He had never poked at his ears or even acted like they hurt! We finally got his fever down to a steady 100 and he is on Cefprozil (he's allergic to the cillans). After one dose of this stuff he was a completely different child. All he did before the antibiotics was sleep on my chest, sweat and whine. After one teaspoon, he wanted to actually get down and play.

Connor has hardly ever been seriously sick. He gets the occasional cold, but it seems that lately all this kid does is catch something! Hopefully he'll get better fast and stay healthy!

Potties and Birthdays and Laptops, Oh My!

2008-09-06T21:26:00.000-04:00

I don't have one single exciting thing to blog about. I've been sick. I think it is allergies turned into a sinus infection. Connor's had a nasty cough so Tim is taking him to the doctor Monday. I did homework pretty much ALL day today. (now that's exciting stuff right!)

Idid get an email from Dad reminding me that Mom's 50th birthday is this month. Funny, Dad sending ME and email to remind me. I am surprised that he even knew Mom had a birthday! Kendra and I have talked a little about throwing her a party. Hopefully that'll turn out nice. She's had a rough run here lately and deserves it.

Speaking of Dad: all this morning Connor ran around saying "Bobo?" He wanted to talk to his Bobo so bad! We called the house and noone was home so he left a message that went something like this, "Hi Bobo, Hi Geegee wut ooo byebye" So Geegee calls back and I told her Connor was just dying for Bobo and she said "Well Connor will you talk to Geegee?" His response, "Oh no, Bobo!" LOL So mean and so cute! (it's usually Geegee that he wants!) Finally Bobo called back and he and Connor talked for quite a while....mostly about beer and girls.

Tim got me a present too. I am typing today on a brand new PURPLE laptop :) He ordered and had it shipped to his work to make it a real surprise. He did so good! I know him so well that in the three years we've been married and the four years before that, he has not once truly surprised me (including our engagement lol). He got me this time!

Connor's potty training has really taken off lately. He peepeed in the potty twice in two days! I think he's finally figuring out that "gotta go" feeling. I was on the phone with Mom today and in the middle of our conversation I hear "potty" so I said "gotta go Mom!" and we ran to the potty. He is such a big boy :( Don't you wish time could slow down sometimes!

In other news....

It only took two whole years to do it, but I've finally hit the 20 pound mark for my baby weight loss. So Connor is 25 months old, so that's less than a pound a month....Hey at least I'm not gaining right? lol Come to think of it....I've lost a whole Connor! (he weighs 20 pounds!)

Well I think I am going to shut down my brand new, purple, Dell laptop, put on my jammies, take some good ol' nyquil and hit the hay.

Sunday, bring it on.

Labor Day Weekend

2008-09-01T12:01:00.000-04:00

We just got back from Indiana last night. We had a great trip!

First we went and visited Mom and Dad. Amanda and the kids also came up from Missouri so they all got a chance to play together. The boys actually did pretty good this time. Last time they saw each other Gavin wanted to beat up on Connor and of course my boy will fight back.

We brought the bounce room and they all really loved playing in that. Mom and Dad also put up the pool and slip n slide which, of course, are big hits with my water baby, BUT his favorite GeeGee and BoBo activity is the giant power wheel! Maybe one of these days we'll get the steering thing down and will crash a little less often! Thank goodness GeeGee and BoBo have an open field as a backyard!

Then on Sunday, Mom, us girls and the kids all went out to eat and shopping. Even though our waitress was a bit incompetent, it was still a good time. Amanda even spoiled me by buying me a shirt I just happened to pass and say, "Oh, that's cute."

While shopping I saw a sign that said, "WEBN Fireworks - August 31"! I was thrilled! What a great coincidence! Tim and I used to go every year, but since we've moved farther south, we've missed out. So we ended the weekend by taking Connor to his very first WEBN fireworks! He L-O-V-E-D the finale. He was grinning ear to ear and clapping. I'll leave out the part where we had to hike 2 miles to and from our car!

Now it's noon on Monday and we are all STILL in our jammies!

TGIF

2008-08-29T22:22:00.000-04:00

Thank the good Lord it's the weekend!

Bathroom Rant

2008-08-28T22:04:00.000-04:00

Ok, so to waste some time today between school and work I decided to take a stroll around Kohls. Well while strolling, I had to go potty. So I took Connor to the restroom with me and that's when I realized it...

A man with no kids designed public bathrooms.

First of all a mother would know to put the latch lock high enough so that a toddler could not unlock it.

Second, the protective seat covers would also be higher than the reach of a two year old.

Next, automatic flushers would actually work CORRECTLY and flush after the baby bum is OFF the potty!

Then, there would be softer toilet paper rather than a pumice stone to wipe with.

And last but not least....

A mother would sound proof each stall so that the woman in the neighboring stall could not hear "Good job Momma." or even the dreaded "Eww, Mommy poo poo!"

And just for your entertainment, check out the urinals in New Zealand!

What a Day!

2008-08-27T21:55:00.000-04:00

"Twenty Four"

Today was a rough, long, busy day, but let's not get into that.

Today was Tim's 24th birthday! Connor and I made him a cake (with a little help from Mariah ;) ) and we put 24 candles all over it. I got "Happy Birthday" streamers and we put them all over the living room along with a bunch of ballons. Connor just now went to bed! (it's nearly 10pm). He is going to be a bear tomorrow!.....so will I HA

Song of the Day: Godspeed

2008-08-26T22:32:00.000-04:00

Godspeed by the Dixie Chicks

Dragon tales and the "water is wide"

Pirate's sail and lost boys fly

Fish bite moonbeams every night

And I love you

Godspeed, little man

Sweet dreams, little man

Oh my love will fly

to you each night on angels wings

Godspeed

Sweet dreams

The rocket racer's all tuckered out

Superman's in pajamas on the couch

Goodnight moon, will find the mouse

And I love you

Godspeed, little man

Sweet dreams, little man

Oh my love will fly

to you each night on angels wings

Godspeed

Sweet dreams

God bless mommy and match box cars

God bless dad and thanks for the stars

God hears "Amen," wherever we are

And I love you

Godspeed, little man

Sweet dreams, little man

Oh my love will fly

to you each night on angels wings

Godspeed

Sweet dreams

Connor's Big Day

2008-08-26T21:37:00.000-04:00

This is the best "First Day of School" picture I could get.

Talk about uncooperative!

Anyone who knows me knows that I am over-emotional. Well today was no different. I bawled this morning after I dropped Connor off at "school" and I apparently didn't hide my feelings too well. When I got to class one of my professors asked me if I needed to talk :) But we made it through the day. I really think that once we both get used to it, Connor will really enjoy it. He's been with Momma for 2 years now, he's probably ready for a little break.

As for me, it's was only the second day of classes and I am already starting to feel overwhelmed. So much of the program changed while I was off and it's hard getting back into the swing of things, especially when the swing went from a porch swing to a tire swing. I have a really great advisor/professor who is helping me out. It's really nice to have someone who genuinely cares about their students.

On a happy note, Connor and I had 4 hours to waste today before going to work so I just brought him back to campus to hang out and get a little work done. Let me tell you what...My boy is a major flirt. He winked, nodded, smiled and batted his eye lashes at every girl that came his way. And you know what...they fell for it :D What a womanizer!

Back to School

2008-08-25T22:09:00.000-04:00

So today was my first day back to school. I am too exhausted to post now so I'll catch you up tomorrow.

Good night!

Song of the Day: "Good Morning Starshine"

2008-08-25T22:02:00.000-04:00

Good morning starshine

The earth says hello

You twinkle above us

We twinkle below

Good morning starshine

You lead us along

My love and me as we sing

Our early morning singing song

Gliddy glub gloopy

Nibby nabby noopy

La la la lo lo

Sabba sibby sabba

Nooby abba nabba

Le le lo lo

Tooby ooby walla

Nooby abba naba

Early morning singing song

Good morning starshine

The earth says hello

You twinkle above us

We twinkle below

Good morning starshine

You lead us along

My love and me as we sing

Our early morning singing song

Gliddy glub gloopy

Nibby nabby noopy

La la la lo lo

Sabba sibby sabba

Nooby abba nabba

Le le lo lo

Tooby ooby walla

Nooby abba naba

Early morning singing song

Singing a song

Humming a song

Singing a song

Loving a song

Laughing a song

Singing a song

Sing the song

Song song song sing

Sing sing sing sing song

Song of the Day: "My Idea of Heaven"

2008-08-24T20:40:00.000-04:00

I absolutley love music and am addicted to the radio. Hey, it's a healthy addiction right? So here's my first song of the day.

Leigh Nash: My Idea of Heaven

I never thought I'd get here
I was so far away
I didn't believe in love
Thought it was just a game people play
Everything changed when I met you
I touched your hand
You took my heart
And you led me to a better place
Just the two of us in the dark

This is my idea of Heaven
lying here with you
This is my idea of Heaven
nothing else I'd rather do

I never thought you'd get here
Why'd you make me wait?
But when I looked into your eyes
I recognized you were my fate
I'd been living in a lonely shell
With no windows to the world
How in God's name did you find
the lone star's loneliest girl?

This is my idea of Heaven
lying here with you
This is my idea of Heaven
nothing else I'd rather do
To feel you heart beating
To feel our lips meeting

This is my idea of Heaven
In Heaven love is everywhere
There is no pain there are no tears
In Heaven love lasts forever
It doesn't disappear

This is my idea of Heaven
lying here with you
This is my idea of Heaven
nothing else I'd rather do
To feel you heart beating
To feel our lips meeting

This is my idea of Heaven
This is my idea of Heaven
lying here with you

Figuring This Out

2008-08-24T16:27:00.000-04:00

If everyone jumped off a bridge....

I guess I would too. Just about everyone I know has a blog, so I jumped.