Circle

It has been a great weekend! I got some much needed sleep (the eye has STOPPED twitching....finally!), and had some lovely alone time. Hair, nails, shopping, singing at the top of my lungs in my car, reading, sleeping....ahhhh (it felt a bit odd really!). The kiddos spent Saturday afternoon and night with my parents in Gadrock, and Chris and I attended his 20 year High School Reunion! It was fun and funny all at the same time! I'm actually looking forward to mine in a few years....

I spent tonight with a very special circle of friends. We enjoyed a meal at one of our favorite places (Brio), and of course caught up on life! We do this once a month and it is something we all look forward to. We each host 2 months out of the year (one month we pick a restaurant and the next month we host in our home). Our little supper club has been going now for about 2 years, and we haven't missed a month yet. It is something we hope to continue for years to come, and I have felt so blessed to reconnect with these dear friends. We met while at Samford University (as nursing students and sorority sisters....well they were all in one sorority and I was in another, but they make me feel like an honorary member. Lauren and I both grew up in Gadsden, but didn't really get to know each other till college). All of us are so very different, yet very much the same. We love each other, we love our families, we love God....it is a wonderful sisterhood.

This picture (Becky, Jodi, me, Lauren, Amy, and Melinda) was taken at our annual Christmas party in 2006 and gave me an idea for what I hope becomes a new regular feature on my blog. My primary goal when starting this blog was to capture moments and stories in our life in words and pictures. I wish now that I had started it years ago because I am already enjoying looking back at the old posts to remind myself of where we have been (it's amazing how short your memory becomes when you have little ones). I'm no good at the scrapbooking thing, and the baby books still have lots of blank pages! For some reason, the blogging thing is much easier for me. I heard someone call it scrapblogging and I think that is a wonderful way to describe it. On top of it all, I get to share it with our loved ones....near and far.

Sleep Deprivation

I've had a twitching eye for about 2 and a half weeks now.  You know what I'm talking about, right?  That totally annoying twitching that you have absolutely zero control of....you know you've had it before (if you figured out how to stop it, please send me some remedies!....)

I'm kind of tired of it!  

I know why I have it (more in a minute), but I just want it gone.  I've tried shutting my eyes for periods of time and massaging it....my eye humors me for a while, but then it is back to it's jumping around (reminds me a bit of Reeves).  

My mom says I need a heavy dose of Valium (might be nice to be knocked out for a while), I've tried a bit of Klonopin (don't think I took a big enough dose), and tonight I learned that Tonic Water (and we'll just poor in a bit of Vodka for good measure) may make it stop.  Another solution involves needles in the eye (Botox of all things), and if you know me well enough, you know that I may allow the twitch to go on till Greer gets married if that is my only option.  Any other ideas appreciated!  

Sadly, I pretty much know that the best solution would be a good night's sleep....but I just think that God has decided that I don't ever need to be allowed to sleep more than 1 hour at a time, ever again! 

I think He has realized that the middle of the night is when we have our greatest conversations, and that he doesn't want to lose the company.  I am begging for mercy!  I am promising you right now, God, I'll find some time during the daylight hours! 

 I really mean this all in good fun....I know that it will get better and that one day I will wish they were little again so that they would want to sleep with me!  For now though,  I just look forward to an uninterrupted nights sleep!

All that said, here are some of the funny things that may happen when you don't ever get to sleep for more than 1 hour at a time:

1.  You manage to get liquid laundry detergent in your hair while doing a load of towels and dirty bibs.  

2.  You allow your daughter to run around in public in a leotard and rainboots, with tangled hair.  Clean mouth optional.  

3.  Sleeping becomes so precious that you are willing to sleep in a twin bed with a kicking 6 year old if that's what it takes.  

4.  You go to great lengths to get everyone asleep at the same time, even if it means napping in the car in the garage.  

5.  You curse the Olympics for contributing to your inability to get up off the couch and GO TO BED, but you can't help yourself.  I love the Olympics!

6.  You have car issues....major car issues (see previous posts).....well, maybe that doesn't have anything to do with sleep deprivation :) 

This weekend, my parents are going to have all three children for one night.  I AM BESIDE MYSELF with joy!  I am so obsessed with the thought of uninterrupted sleep, that I can't help but tell any and everyone who will listen!  

Whew....I feel better now, and I'm going to bed!   

So, thanks for listening!

Lucy the Gymnast/Runway Model/Fashionista

Like Lucy's outfit for the day yesterday?  Yep, she wore this getup all over town!

7 Months Old and Happily Healing!

Greer's 4th laser treatment was a week ago today, and it was a really great one!  I mentioned before that I was a little worried that we didn't see as much bruising this time, but unbelievably, she has already had some amazing fading.  Thanks to my good friend Maria, I'm going to try not to get too hung up on the bruising from now on.  In our experience (2 times now), lack of great bruising does not mean lack of fading.  Thanks be to God for such wonderful results!

Her next treatment is scheduled for September 23.  We'll pray for just as nice of an experience.  We are getting closer and closer to maintenance with each treatment.....man, that will be a nice day!!!

As for my sweet 7 month old, well, she is doing some amazing things these days.  She has 2 little baby teeth, is trying to crawl (she is sooooo close), and she is clapping at any and everything she sees.  She is absolutely the most happy baby on Earth.....

She loves her sister and brother, loves to jump in her Johnny Jump Up, and is eating me out of house and home.  She is loving everything I feed her.  Some new things on the list:

black eyed peas, toast, chicken, yogurt, graham crackers, pineapple, and whole blueberries.  

She loves eating and playing and of course...sleeping!

We spend lots of time with our good buddy Ben (seen here in a blur)!  His mommy Angela is one of my best friends, and we are so blessed to be raising our kiddos together (Ben's big sister Maddie is one of Lucy's best buds!).  Greer and Ben played together today, and I tried to get a good picture, but it is near to impossible to get them both in a "still" moment.  

Awww...the joys of babyhood!!!

Chris Out of Town = Car Troubles

If you know me very well, you know that drama follows me!  I just think I am a magnet when it comes to complicated and comical situations.  Many people who are keeping up with this blog have mentioned that it is nice to read about someone who is experiencing some of the same things they are....some of those real life experiences.  From here on out, I am going to try to give you a little more perspective on my life as it happens....for better or worse.  It will be interesting for me (and enlightening) to go back and read some of these things later, and I think it may give you a few laughs (and maybe tears) along the way. 

Chris had an unexpected trip to Nashville last week.  The first week of school.  The week of Greer's treatment.  Not a good week to have to go out of town, but that's life, right?! 

The last time Chris went out of town (just a couple of weeks ago), there was a car crisis.  

MAJOR CAR CRISIS!

We have a Honda Odyssey and a really old (paid for) Jeep Cherokee.  We are really bad about keeping up with keys.  We have had only 1 key for the van for a while (only God knows where the others have gone).  It just so happens that the last time Chris was out of town, I lost that 1 key.  

NOT GOOD!!!

The van had to be towed to the dealership, serviced, reprogramed, and keys remade....it was an ordeal.  Not to mention the fact that the kids were in bathing suits ready to have a great day at the pool when I  realized we couldn't go anywhere....I thought that was about the worst thing that could happen, no more car problems now that we have plenty of keys.

I was mistaken!!!

Last Friday, the second day of school, we had another car crisis. 

With Chris out of town, I had to do it all.  It was not quite as easy to drag the kids out of bed as it was on the first day of school.  I finally got them going, loaded in the car, and snatched Greer out of bed right at the last minute.  I had noticed that the car had been slow to crank for a couple of days, but didn't think much about it (stupid!).  This time, it chose to be DEAD as a DOORNAIL!  

I panicked.  I called everyone I thought could be home, with no luck.  I ran around the garage and said a couple of things I probably shouldn't have.  Then, I decided to start knocking on doors.  I ran up into the cul-de-sac at the exact time that my neighbor, Jeff, was driving up.  He managed to drive his car into my garage at the perfect angle (after a little rearranging of various riding toys) and jump my van off. 

I flew off in a blur, had to check Lucy in to school, and arrived home about 1 hour later.  Greer had been up for about 1.5 hours at this point with no food.  She was not a happy camper.  Turns out my car died again when we got home.  My friend, Kay, picked Lucy up for me, and when Chris got home he handled everything.  As usual. He is the calmness that balances out my drama!  

Cool, calm, collected.  

I, on the other hand, am not quite as cc&c.  I tend to turn into Linda Blair when things like this happen.  Opposites attract....I know!

So, Chris is going out of town tomorrow night.  Is anyone willing to be on call?  Better yet, will you come and spend the night with me?  

Just let me know what time you'll be over!!!

  

What a Great Day!

The first day of school has come and gone, and another "year" is under way.  The kids (all three of them) had wonderful days, and I am just so very thankful for that.  It is quite stressful leading up to this day every year.  Will they like their teacher?  Will they make friends easily?  Will they get out of bed and get dressed without threat of beatings and deprivation!?!

It was so smooth, I am just in absolute awe!  Oops, let me rephrase that....

After we reevaluated Lucy's backpack situation, everything went swimmingly!  Yes, I made an assumption (and you know what they say about those)!  I assumed that Lucy would be cool with the diaper bag with straps like a backpack (since her new "big girl" backpack has yet to arrive from L.L. Bean).  Oh, my-my, was I MISTAKEN !!!  Lucy was NOT fine with it.  This massive breakdown occurred just moments before I was to take the obligatory first day pictures.  

"There's no crying on the first day of SCHOOL !!!"  Crisis!!!

I panicked!  I was running around like a wild woman, yelling at Chris to make her stop crying.  And then I found the solution.....my college L.L. Bean backpack.  The one that would absolutely HOLD Lucy!  I dumped out the contents, stuffed it with her lunchbox, change of clothes, and necessary other items, and we were ready.  Picture perfect in an instant!  Lucy carrying a backpack almost as big as she is,bearing the initials MER!  

After pictures, they were off....Chris drove them and I stayed home with baby Greer.  We had a great day, by the way.  All those things I mentioned in the last post (shower and coffee....) happened, and then we had lunch with our friends Kay, April, and Lori.  It was so wonderful.  

The kids shared so many stories with me this afternoon, and they both had a great day.  Thank heaven for a wonderful start to the new year!  Hope you enjoy the pictures, too!  Mrs. Anderson (Reeves' teacher) even sent me a couple from their day!  Did I mention that I love her!!!?  

I can't believe tonight is a SCHOOL night!

The bags are packed, the clothes are laid out, the notes are written, and the snacks are packed and in the fridge.  We met our teachers and dropped off our school supplies and proved our residency....I know I'm forgetting something!

Tomorrow, Reeves and Lucy are off to school for another big year!!!  

Summer went too fast (as always), but the structure is going to be a nice change.  A little bit of an adjustment, but a nice change.  I actually think that if we were home together much longer, we might need a visit from the Supernanny!  My patience is about out, and I know that I am a better mommy when I have at least a few hours each day to get my thoughts together and the house under control.  An uninterrupted cup of coffee followed by an uninterrupted shower absolutely transforms me into an actual PERSON!  A person capable of handling even the most challenging of mommy moments!  What is amazing to me is what a walk in the park it will feel like to just have baby Greer to take care of.  When Reeves was a baby, I struggled to even get a shower everyday!  My how times have changed!!  But I digress.... 

We couldn't be luckier in the teacher department!  Mrs. Anderson (Reeves' 1st grade teacher) and Ms. Fraiser (Lucy's 4K teacher) are both absolutely wonderful!  Reeves has many buddies in his class and a class size of only 14.  He is really going to do well this year....I just feel it.  Lucy will do great, too, but she doesn't know a single little soul in her class.  Luckily, she makes friends easier than anyone I know, so I don't see it as a problem.  She's the type of girl who calls the friend she met 5 minutes ago her "best friend EVER"!!!

So, tonight, I'm praying for peaceful sleep for all of us.  I want them to be at their best for the first day.  Of course I will be updating you tomorrow with first day pictures and stories.  Thank the Good Lord we started the bedtime bootcamp 2 weeks ago.....they were down without a fight by 8:15!