Thursday, May 20, 2010 - Update

My mama finally feels better!

Wow, let's put the last few days behind us. :) I never thought that I would be the kind of person to have a kidney stone. I thought most of them were because of too much calcium and if anything, I don't get enough. Weird. On the plus side, I now feel like I'm part of a kidney stone club, ya know, with people who can commisserate with you and talk about how bad the pain is. Even the ER doctor acted like I had won some kind of prize. . ."Congratulations, it's a kidney stone." We were all just glad it wasn't appendicitis. As you can tell, I don't have much else to talk about since migraines and kidney stones have been the focal points of my week. Hmm. . .I wonder if they're related? Feel free to leave your kidney stone stories in the comments section and you too can feel like part of the club. LOL. I can laugh about it now. :)

Wednesday, May 19, 2010 - Update

This has definitely not been my week. First, I get a debilitating migraine that left me bed-ridden for most of the day yesterday. Tonight, I ended up in the ER because of severe pain in my abdomen. After a CT scan, they found that I have a kidney stone. I got home from the ER at 1 am after a relatively short visit and now I just wait for the stone to pass. Thankfully, it's relatively small in size. And they gave me pain meds, although they say the most painful part of it passing through the ureter has already occurred. Now, I'm headed off to bed in hopes that I'll wake up and this awful week will be over.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010 - Update

After 16 hours, I'm finally getting some relief from a horrendous migraine. I've never had one this bad before. . .I don't know what was worse; the headache or the nausea. It has been so bad that it makes me wonder if I have ever truly had a migraine before. Time has a way, however, of making you forget pain. Thankfully, Granmda Mary came and picked Olivia up around 11 am and Ryan brought her home after work. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. So, I had the whole day to spend in the quiet darkness of my room with my faithful kitty. Autumn didn't leave my side all day. She is such an awesome companion. I have to say that I missed my little girl today even though I needed the time to myself. I really really missed her though. So, why didn't I go to the doctor? From what I understand, because of a medication that I am currently on, I can't take most migraine medications. I'm stuck with the over the counter stuff that rarely does anything. After this last migraine, however, I think I'm going to have to talk to my doctor about doing something different. It's such a panicky feeling not knowing when the pain will strike or how long it will last. But, I am finally feeling a bit better and I hope I don't have another one of these for a long, long time.

Just Pictures

I found Spiderman!!

??Feel free to submit captioning ideas here??

Sunday, May 16, 2010 - Update

My parents recently bought a swingset for their backyard to be enjoyed by their two granddaughters. Of course, it comes in a million pieces and my dad is in the process of building it. But, what do you do when you have a slide, but no swingset to attach it to? Why. . .you put it on the stairs, of course. :)


Their stairs are even the right size for the slide. The girls had a blast sliding down about a million times. Olivia doesn't hold on to the sides, though, so she flies down about 100 mph and I mean flies!! I'm nervous about when this slide goes up outside. She is fearless!

Here is Izzy holding on to the sides.

No hands for Olivia, though. Don't let this picture fool you. She was going so fast, there is no way she landed on her feet.

Saturday, May 15, 2010 - Update

I am thinking about putting Olivia in a gymnastics class this summer. It would really be good for her sensory needs (she loves constant movement)and hopefully would help her learn to wait in line, listen to instructions, etc. Luckily, the parent attended classes last until she is 3, which won't be until the end of summer. I'm not ready to put her in a class by herself. Now, I just have to figure out whether to put her in class at the Y or at Acrobatic Academy. We have been thinking about joining the Y this summer to go swimming and if I have to pay for that anyway, it would be cheaper to take the class at the Y. If we don't join the Y, it would be cheaper to take it at Acrobatic Academy. Not sure what we're going to do, but summer is almost upon us, so I'd better decide, huh?

Hair

So, for Mother's Day, Ryan surprised me with a new flat iron! You see, my hair is pretty thick and hard to straighten. The last time I got my hair cut, I asked my stylist what kind she uses. . .because it straightened my hair quickly. She said she uses one called u smooth that I had never heard of, but she would be able to order me one at cost. It was too expensive (although not much more than my chi. . .which I have never liked.) I later told Ryan about my plan to save up money each month to buy my new flat iron. Little did I know, Ryan was saving up HIS money and ordered me one for Mother's Day. Isn't that sweet? I got it tonight and had to try it out. Ryan doesn't understand why this one is better than my other one, so I actually made him straighten a bit of my hair with my old one and then my new one. Sold. He now understands. :)

Speaking of hair, Olivia got her hair cut today. She went with her cousins again. And. . .she even sat in the chair this time! What a big girl! Thanks to Grandma and Aunt Kimmy for taking her. Okay, enough talk about hair. Hopefully, I can get some pictures of Olivia with her new hair cut and talk again about her.

I've got nothing. . .no interesting stories, no new pictures of Olivia. . .I'm a slacker, I know. But, we're all doing well and hope you are too. Have a wonderful day!

Autumn

I thought I would just give a small update on Miss Kitty. We usually call her that or simply kitty. I'm not even sure that she knows her real name is Autumn. But, she is doing great and has more love to give than any other cat I've ever met. She would literally snuggle with me all day if she could. She is definitely MY kitty. It makes me feel bad because I don't always have that much time to give. I'm busy with Olivia all day. . .who hates for me to be on the laptop. So, once I put Olivia to bed, Autumn and the laptop fight over my attention (which is the reason for the lack of posts lately.) Autumn still, however, is wary of people who come over to the house and usually runs and hides. Well, except if you're Olivia's Rainbows' teacher. . .Autumn is crazy about her. I think she must roll around in catnip before she comes over because Autumn won't leave her alone. Autumn still sleeps above my head every night. . .it wouldn't seem right without her there. She truly adds a lot to our little family and we're all so grateful for her. . .yes, even Ryan. :)

Happy Mother's Day

We celebrated Mother's Day today at my brother's house. I was lucky enough to celebrate with my daughter, my mother AND grandmother. Happy Mother's Day to all of you who wish to be mothers, who cannot be mothers, who soon will be mothers and who are mothers. May God bless all of you!

Olivia with Grandma and Grandpa Sailing

Izzy

Grandma Sailing and Olivia

Aww mom. . .don't brush my hair!

My cousin, David, and his little boy, Zachary.

Back In The Swing

Ryan's grandma recently found out that she has breast cancer. It seems that it was caught early, thankfully. Today, she had surgery to remove the cancer and it seems that they got all of it and found no evidence of it in her lymph nodes. Please pray for a speedy recovery. She will continue with radiation and then a medication. Cancer is such a scary thing.

Tomorrow, Jazzercise is sponsoring a Back in The Swing breast cancer fundraiser. They will have four classes at 7:10 am, 8:20 am, 9:30 am and 10:40 am. I will be attending the 10:40 am class, of course. When have you known me to get up earlier than I have to? To take the class, you just need to make a $10 donation.

2260 N. Ridge Rd (behind Quik Trip at 21st and Ridge.)
Wichita, KS

Please come out and join us if you'd like. I know that I'll be thinking of Ryan's grandma all morning.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010 - Update

It was a busy, busy day today. We started with Olivia's occupational therapy, which she really loves. It's probably because if she does a good job, she gets to swing at the end! Then, we headed to my sister-in-law's house for lunch and Olivia and Izzy played outside again today. They got a slip-n-slide that the girls got to try out. They didn't quite get the running start needed to really slide (or they just don't make them like they used to.) Izzy understood the concept, but because it wasn't quite slick enough so she crawled down into the pool at the end. I laughed out loud when she looked up at me and said, "This is fun!" Oh, but it is supposed to be so much more fun! Olivia just walked down the slide and wasn't too sure about getting soaked. But, whatever they do. . . those two have so much fun doing it.

Afterwards, Olivia hung out with two more of her cousins. . .Julia and Rebekah. . .while the mommies worked out to Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred. I came home exhausted!! I am so very ready for bed. Here's hoping Olivia sleeps in late tomorrow!

Peonies

Now, I'll admit. . .I am no gardener. I don't like to get my hands dirty, I don't like to pull weeds, I don't like the creepy crawly things I find when I do. I don't know the names of most flowers or whether to plant them in the partial or full sun. But, I love to watch my flowers bloom. I love how they start with just a seed and grow into something so beautiful. I love how one day there are only buds and the next. . .beautiful flowers. I love my peonies. They only bloom for but a few days a year, but I love them when they do. And this picture was taken on Sunday. You should see the blooms today!!! It reminds me of one of my favorite poems of all time that I wanted to share with you.

It is only a tiny rosebud,
A flower of God's design;
But I cannot unfold the petals
With these clumsy hands of mine.

The secret of unfolding flowers
Is not known to such as I.
GOD opens this flower so easily,
But in my hands they die.

If I cannot unfold a rosebud,
This flower of God's design,
Then how can I have the wisdom
To unfold this life of mine?

So I'll trust in God for leading
Each moment of my day.
I will look to God for guidance
In each step of the way.

The path that lies before me,
Only my Lord knows.
I'll trust God to unfold the moments,
Just as He unfolds the rose.

Author Unknown.

Simple Arithmetic

Gorgeous weather

+

Gus

(Olivia's furry cousin)
+

Two cousins and best friends
+
A playhouse
+
juice
+
chairs out on the lawn
+
puppy dog sprinkler

+
popsicles
+

a water table
=

A wonderful, enjoyable day and a very happy Olivia.

Sunday, May 2, 2010 - Update

What a gorgeous day!! We just had to spend the day outside, so we headed to the zoo. When we pulled in, Olivia squealed "gafingoes!" So, we had to see the gafingoes, of course. Any guesses on what those are? Sadly, we didn't stay for too long. Not only did everyone have the same idea as us, but there was a huge cinco de mayo celebration. I've never seen so many people!! It was a. . . zoo!! :) As we were leaving, however, Olivia fell in love with a stuffed gafingo and because of the way she hugged it and loved up on it. . .we had to take it home. So, now she has a stuffed "flamingo" that she takes everywhere. She even tossed Gogum and Lily onto the floor in place of her new friend. Now, I'm off to start writing a children's book called Gogum and Gafingo. LOL.

Bible Verse Week Two

Do not be anxious about anything,
but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,
present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:6-7

P.S. If you see me, ask me to recite Isaiah 40:31

Choo Choo

Olivia has started to LOVE playing trains. The other day, at Toys R Us, there was a train table set up and she could have stayed and played for hours. So, we decided to probably get Olivia a train set with a train table for her birthday. Then, I discovered how expensive train tables were. This morning, however, I found an Imaginarium train table at a neighbor's garage sale for $40!! I thought that was a pretty good deal considering it's in good condition and it would probably cost about that much to make one. It didn't come with any trains, but Olivia loves pushing her cars on it for now. We just have to figure out where to put it since it won't be taking up permanent residence in our living room.

Thursday, April 29, 2010 - Update

Olivia hasn't been able to spend much time outside the last few days due to the 40+ mph winds. It's just awful here and it hasn't let up. I don't see how we haven't taken 'The Windy City' title away from Chicago. I've lived here my whole life and the wind remains one of my biggest complaints. Okay, enough about that.

Last night, the three of us just layed on the floor laughing and playing. Olivia told us where we had to lay and then proceeded to climb, run, jump and fall on us. Her laugh is so contagious. Then, she started in with the tickling. . .but she only tickles you in one place. I've tried to tell her that the eyeball isn't ticklish, but she doesn't care. She wiggles her fingers, says "tickle tickle tickle" and pokes you in the eye.

Olivia and I have both been a little under the weather. I spent the day yesterday wondering if my head was truly going to explode. Because Olivia has been a bit congested, she threw up last night and got it all in her hair. We thought the quickest way to clean Olivia up would be for daddy to take her in the shower. She hated the shower (she always takes baths) and wasn't afraid to tell us so. She always tells us that she likes things by putting the word 'fun' in front of it. . .fun zoo, fun park. Last night, she loudly informed us that the shower was NOT fun and keeps reminding us of that. She also didn't appreciate the fact that her beloved Leap Frog Lily caught some of the vomit as well and they had to be apart while we cleaned her up. Olivia is now sleeping with her Lily and Gogum. . .all is right with the world.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010 - Update

Getting ready for our road trip.

We visited Jamie and her daughter, Lyric.

We had a great day! Shelley, Izzy, Olivia and I drove down to Independence, KS. I think it was the farthest from home Olivia has been. :) We ate pizza at Big Cheese Pizza (which I hadn't eaten in years) and it was delicious. Then, we played all afternoon at the park. They have a great park there with tons of things to do. The park had a lot of new playground equipment and a lot of old school stuff as well. . .like those slides with a 1/2 inch lip on them and the metal, steep, wobbly stairs. I am terrified of those slides! Of course, Olivia. . .my slide connoisseur. . .would have gone on all of them. . .by herself. . . if she could. That girl has no fear! After playing all afternoon, Olivia only took a 15-20 minute nap during the 2+ hour ride home and she didn't go to bed any too early either. She is like the Energizer Bunny, I tell ya. I am worn out! But, it was fun and what a welcomed change of plans. Thanks girls for a great day!

The scary slides. . .maybe the stairs are what scare me. Look closely at this picture of Jamie and Lyric going down the slide. See who is climbing up the stairs? It's my daughter trying to give me a heart attack. LOL

Olivia played on this forever!

Monday, April 26, 2010 - Update

Guess what I get to do tomorrow? Mommy and Aunt Shelley are taking me and Izzy to Independence!

Shelley and I have a friend named Jamie who lives in Independence. It is actually THE friend that set Shelley up with my brother. I haven't met Jamie's little girl, Lyric, and she has yet to meet Olivia. I hope we can go. Olivia started getting a runny nose today, which has progressed to a cough. She is already having trouble sleeping tonight. Please pray she isn't sick and that she doesn't continue to get sick every month. We are really looking forward to a girls' road trip tomorrow.