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We are having technical difficulties (read, totally need a new laptop) and I'm having to do a quick post from work. More to come!
They don't last long, but they are beautiful while they're here! Texas Bluebonnets are my favorite flowers and it's a long standing tradition to take pictures in them every year. This year is was so bright and windy that it was hard to get good shots, but we did ok. ;o)
Simple gorgeous!
****I am grateful for
1) God's beautiful creations
2) colors, the world would be so dull without them
3) those few weeks where the Bluebonnets are in full bloom
4) pictures
5) fields that are untouched
We are still grieving over Molly and every single night is a challenge. Chase has cried himself to sleep more than once in the recent weeks wishing she was with him. Last week we ran into a friend that had also recently lost a bulldog baby. She was shocked and saddened to hear of Molly and told us of a friend of hers that had a friend who had bulldog puppies for sale. So to keep up, a friend of a friend of a friend... literally. We went to visit the puppies on Saturday and although we had gone with the intention of picking the runt after looking at pictures, we got there and this little girl stole our hearts:
She has cherry eye which is common in this breed and will be fixed when she is spayed. She is five months old, but still a total baby. She was pretty timid at first, but is quickly coming out of her shell. She is a sweetie and everyone loves her. Yoda just wants her to play and tonight she is getting closer to doing just that.
Her name is Princess Leia (to go with Yoda of course) and it truly fits because she has two brindle ears that look like buns. We still miss our Molly and wish she were with us, but I have a feeling that Leia is going to fit right in!
****I am grateful for
1) Molly and every single moment we had with her
2) Yoda, he cracks me up
3) Princess Leia, maybe she will help us heal
4) bulldog wrinkles, so cute
5) smiles from Chase and Emery when they play with Yoda and Leia
We will be starting a denture fund for Chase. Please see below....
I swear this little guy is so freaking adorable. He has kindergarten graduation (cap and gown) pictures coming up, I think they are going to be priceless with this big toothless smile!
****I am grateful for
1) toothless grins
2) the Tooth Fairy
3) bed time (for me, ha!)
4) the wind, kept us nice and cool this evening
5) those little moments where you have nothing to do but just sit and relax, rare, but I love them
Sweet Emery, Today, you are 18 months old. A year and half. Just typing that takes my breath away. Every single day my love for you grows more and more and I find myself in awe that I get to be your Mommy. You and Chase are my dreams come true and make everything in life worth it. You are growing by leaps and bounds and quickly leaving your babyhood behind so you can become a full-fledged toddler. You love to run, jump, and climb. You are constantly on the go and looking for new things to explore and tackle. Your vocabulary has grown so much I can no longer keep track of the words you say and you have no problem getting your point across. Every day you are learning new things and I'm so proud of you. You adore animals and thankfully Yoda and Houdini are very tolerant of your love. Each morning when you wake up, or wake up from your nap, you immediately want to say hi to your fish as we get you out of your crib. You also insist on telling it goodnight each evening. I truly believe that your Bubba is your most favorite person in the world and I think the feeling is reciprocated on his end. The two of you will play and entertain each other for hours and I love to watch you interact. Even during those times when ya'll are on each others nerves, you are the first one to the rescue if the other is hurt or upset. I'm so thankful for that and pray you will both always be that way! I believe your biggest accomplishment this month hasn't been walking or talking, or anything like that. This month you gave up your bottle habit! It wasn't easy and we had a few rough nights, but you are doing so well! In a way it makes me a little sad because it's just another sign you are growing up!! Sweet, sweet Emery, I love you so very much. I always dreamed what it would be like to have you in our lives, but it turns out that my dreams didn't even come close to what the reality is. Happy 18 months birthday Princess!!! Love, Mommy ****I am grateful for 1) 18 wonderful, awesome, totally irreplaceable months! 2) reality that's even better than dreams 3) milestones 4) cold sheets 5) ice cold water on a hot summer day
This last time Chase was hit so hard with allergy/asthma issues we went to see a pediatric allergist because things just seemed to be happening more and more often. When we met with them he was concerned because Chase is on three regular maintenance medicines and we had to add three more in just to get him over that last hump. Six medicines for a six year old is apparently a warning sign! Monday we went in for his allergy testing and it didn't take long to see we had a problem. This was his back 20 minutes after they applied the testing allergens.
32 positive results. One that was a 2 (scale of 1-4) and thirty-one that were 3+, 4, or 4+. He was allergic to something in every single category and they are all extreme. Blech! I believe there were 13 trees, lots of molds, weeds, grasses, and some other stuff that I have no clue what it is. Good news is he is not allergic to any of the animals, just dustmite dander, so that was a win. He also came back positive to pecans, walnuts, peanuts, and soy. I about lost it when I saw that because 1) he was on soy formula when he was a baby when I stopped nursing and 2) he eats peanuts and pecans a lot! When I questioned it Dr. M said that when they test, they test using the outer part, not the actual nut. So Chase has a tolerance for the nut, but is allergic to the outer. How crazy is that????
We are going to try and continue to maintain with his inhaler twice a day, his nose spray once a day (year round now), and his allergy tablet once a day (but on a higher dose). Then we'll use saline drops in the evenings too. We are getting HEPA filters for his room and the downstairs, as well as dustmite barriers for his pillows. Then we'll add in a liquid allergy medicine as needed. As long as this works, we're good. If for some reason we are having more bouts we can't control we'll readjust meds as we can. If we eventually run out of medicine options, then we'd go to allergy shots. I do not want this for him! It would be 1 shot in each arm once a week for 9 months and then 1 shot in each arm every other week for 2-2 1/2 years. He would hate that and I would hate it for him.
Gotta love allergies and Texas, right??!??!
****I am grateful for
1) no animal allergies
2) maintaining with meds
3) those few things he was not allergic to
4) knowing what he is allergic to
5) pain free testing (well, a little itching, but no needles!)
Monday I had my stitches taken out (before racing to be with Jeff and Chase at Chase's allergy testing appointment). I think the most exciting part about having the stitches out is that I can now take a real shower without worrying about my foot getting wet, which by the way, is impossible!!!!! Dr. M said my foot looks good, in fact, it looks so good that if it were any better it wouldn't look like I had surgery! As a result, I only have to wear my walking boot through next Monday and then I can go back to my tennis shoes until my follow-up on the 18th!!!! I am so excited! While my walking boot is highly fashionable, I'll be so glad to be out of it because fashionable does not equal comfortable! ;o)
Several of you posted about having the same issue with your foot and my heart goes out to you. If you are not experiencing, words really can't describe the pain this can cause. I'm talking debilitating, make you want to cry pain. I think I posted this, but I know I went too long without getting in to a podiatrist. I dealt with the pain for about a year and then went to my regular MD. She told me stretches and exercises to do, but to be honest, I should have immediately just gone to a specialist. I truly think that had I done that in the beginning, I would not have gotten to the point of doing surgery. However, I didn't and even after doing stretches, exercises, insoles, and cortisone shots (ouch!) mine did not get better. So, surgery was my last option. It has not been easy, but I don't regret my decision at all. If you are having issues, I strongly urge you to go to a podiatrist asap so you can hopefully avoid surgery.
Now for the graphic pictures, this is my foot 11 days after surgery:
Those are not the best pics because they were taken with my phone in the dark (thank God for flash on the phone), but you get the picture. It's pretty tender because there is more pulling now that the stitches are out and it's not wrapped as well (basically just a bandaid at this point), but I can already tell it's better than it was before surgery. Hopefully I'll be back to 100% very soon!!!
****I am grateful for
1) a great recovery
2) not much longer in my walking boot
3) healing
4) beautiful weather
5) little moments that make lasting impressions
On Saturday Chase lost another tooth!! Can't believe how much of a difference there is when it's a top one, totally changes his looks! My baby is growing up too fast!!!!
****I am grateful for
1) The Tooth Fairy
2) lost teeth
3) adorable mugshots
4) big, happy smiles
5) another day in paradise
Our sweet twins should have been turning two today, instead they are in heaven watching over us. I bet Molly is sitting right beside them and their other brother (I know Chase's twin was a boy, just as I know the twins were a boy and a girl, I have no doubt). One day I'm gonna hold those four in my arms, it's going to be an awesome day! ***I am grateful for 1) Even if I never got to hold three of our sweet babies in my arms, I get to hold them in my heart forever, and I will meet them one day 2) Chase, he is truly a miracle from God 3) Emery, she is our secodn miracle from God 4) every single day, you just never know 5) Under 40 days of school left, I can do this.... right?
Today was Opening Day 2011 for WYAA and it was crazy! We had a lot of fun and our Little Aggies play hard! Even though we lost by three points, they did awesome!!!! Chase got base hits both times he was up to bat AND he scored a run! He had lots and lots of family to cheer him on too! Our umpire was Coach Blake from our school and he snagged the game ball and put it in his pocket early on and threw out another one for them to play with. After the game, you'd never guess who he gave it to. ;o) How awesome that we have the official game ball from Chase's first official T-Ball game! Emery was the team cheerleader (along with her friend Lilly, who's big brother also plays on the team). She was adorable and completely worn out by the end of the game, but in her defense, it was a long day. She is even in the official team picture! Here's our day in pictures!
****I am grateful for
1) an awesome game
2) such a fun opening day
3) our awesome family
4) the game ball, thanks Coach Blake!
5) being so very blessed
