For the first time in my life….

 

I am the mom to a

5 YEAR OLD!

The thing this 5 year old was dying to do, was go camping in the ‘Minnie Winnie’.  We went out to Cheney Lake on Saturday.  One of Tuck’s best pals, Reece joined us.  What a great time for these kids.

  Yes, this is a cake with Batman in a (yes, your eyes are fine) FISHIING BOAT!  I wanted to stick to a camping/ fishing theme.  Tucker had his 5 year old heart set on Batman…..we compromised… 

This was the birthday year of the fake pet…. a ‘battery operated’ hamster in a ball….

…the turtle as a package decoration….

…this frog was not hurt in any way during the celebrating of this 5 year old…

…all this talk about ‘fake pets’ and I don’t even have a picture included of the beloved stretchy fish.  This was a gift that Tucker had seen in the gift shop at Cracker Barrel and JUST HAD TO HAVE!  Turns out, it’s a rubber PIRRANAH that will stretch from here to Boston…what fun!!!!???  Oh well, it’s his birthday.  I’d rather spend 3 dollars on a stretchy fish than 300 dollars on some fancy shmancy thing that will never get played with.

 

  

…WORN OUT! from a fun-filled camping trip…

 

Happy Happy Birthday my sweet boy.  You have forever changed my life.  I’m the luckiest person on earth to get to be your mom. ;-)

I love you

Tucker Man!

 

Sunny Day … Sweepin’ the Clouds Away…..

Today was brought to you by the letter

C

and the number

63

My dad turned 63 on Tuesday…(sorry for the belated wish…internet’s been down)

Happy Birthday PAPA!!!

(Dad)  :-)

Why, Why, Why…

Why is it that I spent 5 days away from all 3 children and today I want to kill 2 out of 3?  Shouldn’t I be the mom that doesn’t sweat the small stuff?  That can blow things off because there are so many more important things in life…the fact that I have 3 healthy children, a roof over our heads, a happy (for the most part) family???  Why can’t I be that mom today?….Let me tell you…

Today #1 and #2 decide for the 20th time today that they are going to completely ignore my orders of them NOT going upstairs into the loft.  Yes, they are the type of kids, you tell them “don’t do it, stop it, quit it, no – NO – NO!”, they turn into Thing One and Thing Two (from Cat in the Hat…rent it tonight)!  They do the exact opposite of what they are told and it’s about to drive me to the EDGE!

They go upstairs and in the next few minutes I hear glass shattering into a million pieces.  I run upstairs, I’m scared for their safety for about half a second, I see them both and tell them to get downstairs NOW!  There’s no blood so there’s no sympathy!  My beautiful, glass, cloche from THE most adorable little boutique in the cutest little town up in the majestic mountains of Colorado is now nothing but a pile of sharred glass! 

Is it wrong that I sent them to their room, slammed their door behind them, told them I didn’t want to see their faces for the rest of the day???  Does this make me a mean, selfish mother who only cares about material things and (truthfully) was really not concerned at all about their safety around all that glass?  I’m sure that if I saw blood things would have been different but I didn’t so I really don’t feel bad at all.

I think that beautiful glass cloche was a symbol.  I think it was a symbol of me not getting to be the Dina I was before I became a mom.  Sometimes I feel like I don’t get to have anything pretty for myself anymore because I’m a mom.  Yes, I’m venting.  I know all mothers go through this.  I know that that’s part of the deal when you decide to have little people live in the house.  I know I’m not unique.  They destroy the entire house, why can’t they just leave my stuff alone???  Yes, I’m venting again….sorry…

After a couple of hours in their bedroom (yes, I said a couple of hours…I was really mad), Darrin lets them out for lunch.  I probably wouldn’t have but I guess they have to eat…I guess…

The day was beautiful outside so I put Porter (the only one I wasn’t mad at at the time) in the swing and the other 2 decided to join us.  Why do they think they need to be so cute?  Tucker, with his own way of dressing himself…yes, those are his dad’s socks with his Chuck Taylor shoes and plaid shorts…and Sawyer with her dirty, dirty face which still has the sticky residue on it from the band-aid that held her oxygen tubes in…Why do they think they can be so cute???  I just want to kick their tushies and hug them breathless at the same time…

Why, why, why?

It’s Friday and We’re Goin’ Home!

Sawyer had a FABULOUS night.  Her O2 levels stayed at a no-beeping-level all night long….she never went below 90%.  YAY!!!!

We’re keeping our fingers crossed that we will be out of here by noon:-)

We’ll be sent home with 2 nebulizer treatments and 2 steroid doses a day for the next 3 to 4 days.  The key word being HOME….we will be able to continue this at HOME!!!

As frustrating as it has been to be stuck here, I do really appreciate the doctors and nurses thoroughness.  Through the meltdowns (not only Sawyer’s but mine too), they have been so patient and kind and just want the best and safest scenario for my girl.  For that I am very grateful and thank them immensely:-)

Time to start packing all this stuff up.  You’d think we moved in….I guess we kind of did….

Yes, there will be a day 5

Yep, we’re still here.  It’s 11pm on Thursday night and I can hardly believe that Sawyer and I have spent almost an entire week in this sad, sad, SAD place.  She was not able to maintain her O2 levels today during her nap so yep, we’re still here and staying another night.
I am encouraged, though.  She has now been asleep for over an hour and is at a steady 93%.  If she goes to 89%, yep, we’ll still be here. 
Even though she hates, hates, HATES this place, she really had a good afternoon after both she and I went into meltdown mode when we found out that we’d be staying another night.  Her brothers and Grandma and Papa came up this afternoon and seeing those boys put her in THE best mood since we’ve been here.  She and Tuck just played and played.  I so wish that the hospital would have let him stay the night up here with us.  It was truly as if her best friend was up here with her and he was:-)  It’s nice to know that their love-hate relationship really is heavier on the love side than the hate side:-)

Day 4

We’re hoping we get to go home today.  The doctors have told us that if Sawyer can take her nap today without any assistance from the oxygen tube we get to go HOME!!!

Evidently when we sleep our breathing is much more shallow than we are awake and alert.  Soooo….if her O2 levels stay at at least 92% while sleeping we are in the clear.

Now the only problem is getting her to lay down for a nap!!!  She has been on steroids for the last 4 days.  Do you know the term ‘Roid-Rage’?…..WOW!  Not a very happy camper right now…..

Day 3

So today is our third day at Wesley Hospital with little Miss Sawyer.  I really didn’t think that when she woke up Monday morning with a stuffy nose and cough that we would end up here…much less for 3 DAYS! 

When she woke up Monday I knew she had been fighting a slight cold and was up most of the night coughing.  When she started throwing a meltdown-dragout-wheezing-fit, I had no idea that a dr.’s appointment would end up in a visit to the hospital.

We went to the dr.’s office at 10:30am and were there until 4pm.  Sawyer just couldn’t get her oxygen levels at a safe place to go home with just nebulizer treatments….keep in mind that the words oxygen levels and nebulizer treatments are foreign terms to us and I’m still trying to understand what is happening to my daughter.  Evidently, a combination of seasonal allergies, a head cold, and exposure to certain fumes (colognes, bug sprays, household cleaners) may be the start of asthma for this little sassafras.

A long, long, long story short, we are going on day number three and she is still on 3 liters of oxygen which means that until she can wean herself, we will stay put.  I’m hoping, wishing, and praying that she will make a turn-around today and this will be our last night in a mechanical bed…although, mechanical beds are kinda handy.:-)

It may sound like she is in a frightening situation.  Believe me, she’s really not.  This is just a little bump in this 3 year old’s little life and we will manage it.  I’m truly not worried.  She’s a fighter and I know for a fact that she won’t let a little breathing problem get her down. 

This floor of the hospital is a whole different story.  I CANNOT complain about a small asthma (if that’s what it is) issue.  There are little people along with their parents going through much MUCH bigger issues than low oxygen levels on this floor.  I have sat in this room for 3 days now listening to crying babies, beeping monitors, and seeing some extremely worried faces.  I am so thankful that we are blessed with a minor breathing problem.  Asthma or no asthma – I’ll take it.  Day 3, day 4, maybe even day 5 (let’s hope not…) – I’ll take it:-)

9 , 36 , and 10!

So Wednesday was 09-09-09…a day that only happens once every thousand years…doesn’t every day only happen once every thousand years?…hmmm…anyway, 09-09-09 was my 36th birthday.  I’ve always had a love of the number nine.  The day I came into the world I weighed 9lbs. 9oz. and obviously was born on the 9th day of the 9th month.  To top that, on Wednesday I turned 36…3 plus 6 equals 9!  And – to even make things stranger – I will be 99 in the year 2072…7 plus 2, yes, equals 9!

This day could have been perfect, full of surprises or bad – really, really bad.  When all was said and done, the day was nothing out of the ordinary and that’s perfect with me.

The kids and I made cupcakes.  I did the frosting, Tucker and Sawyer did the sprinkling,

and Porter did the singing…

My parents took all of us to P.F. Chang’s for dinner.  It was nice to go to a restaurant that didn’t involve paper cups and food in wrappers.  We came back to the house and enjoyed ice cream cake…courtesy of Nichole:-)…it was delicious and was followed by presents:-)

What a great birthday!

In addition to gearing up for my big 3 – 6, I’m getting rid of lots of the kids clothes that I have been holding onto for the last 5 years.  I have never gotten rid of one single piece of clothing since Tucker was born and this is what my upstairs looked like for the last week…

And this picture doesn’t even do the ‘heap’ justice.  Going through all these clothes brought back so many memories.  I’m sure this is one of the reasons I have had such a hard time parting.  I knew I would have to go through some sort of good-bye to my children’s childhoods.  I don’t like this one bit.  I want them to stay little forever…minus the screaming and fighting:-)  That blue thing in the front is the infant bathtub that was used by my niece (now almost 15) and my three children.  Attached to a plastic, blue bathtub????  What is wrong with me????

But hey, enough of this sappy nostalgia stuff…not only was yesterday my big day, today is a big day for Porter man!  Today my little – big guy is 10 MONTHS OLD!

...just a minute....

I say this waaaayyy too often. At this very moment Sawyer is on the toilet going 'potty'. She yells, "Mommy, I'm doooonnnnne..." (she draws out the word 'done' veeerrrryyy long).
I yell back at her from the living room,
"Just a minute."

Her: "Jis a minute?"

Me: "Just a minute."

Her: "Jis a minute?"

Me: "Just a minute."

Her: "Jis a minute?"

[she's screaming this at the top of her lungs by this go-round]

Me: "Just a minute."

Her: "Is somebody comin' ta git me?"

I'm laughing hysterically:-) I better go take care of one of my daily tasks:-)...gotta go...

....back to school....

So, this week was ‘back-to-school’ week for Tucker and ‘welcome-to-the-wonderful-world-of-preschool’ week for Sawyer. Granted, Tucker is now in his second year at Kidslink Preschool but this is Sawyer’s first time ever being in any kind of more-than-just-a-playdate situation. (I’m using lots of blah-blah-blaggity-blah hyphens today…sorry)
My kids have such different personalities. When Tuck started preschool last year, he cried and cried and cried. He was so worried that I wouldn’t pick him up. He was worried that he was going to miss something while not with me (like I’m that interesting and fun…please…) This behavior finally ended after about 9 weeks. He would still make sure that I would be picking him up but the tears were fewer and fewer (don’t think I wasn’t a little sad about this). But, one thing was for sure – I could ALWAYS count on a kiss and a hug when I dropped him off. And, most of the time it was instigated by him!….ahhh…enough to make a mother’s heart soar :-)

Well...his first day back was yesterday and yes he was a little apprehensive. There were no tears but I did get a hug and a kiss...I can deal with that:-)

Well, I take him to school today and he walks right in the room, gets to business....no hug!, no kiss!... It was, "See ya later, Mom."...seriously??? I was just a little upset by this. If you're not gonna cry, at least give me a hug....geesh!

I guess all is right with the world in Mrs. Bolan's M-F class...

It was a good day...

So as I said earlier, my kids are so so different. Today was Sawyer's first day. I was pretty sure she wouldn't cry as she's been dying to go to preschool for a year now. Last year it was as painful for her to drop off Tucker as it was for him. She wanted to go to school so badly. She's in hog-heaven this year.

Last week was parent orientation at the school. This was a night for parents only, as we were going over paperwork and things that were of absolutely no interest to the kids. After the meeting, I was greeted by Sawyer at the back door with the hugest smile on her face. "What's my teacher's name? What's my teacher's name?" Well, all the classes have two teachers so I was so excited to break the news to her. "Oh Sawyer, you don't have just one teacher, you have 2! Isn't that exciting?" With an even bigger smile on her face and now to the point of not being able to control her enthusiasm... "Tell me! Tell me!" I tell her that her lead teacher's name is Mrs. McCalla....huge smile on the girl's face:-) Then I continued with a huge amount of excitement and silliness in my voice.."And... Sawyer, you're never going to believe this, but your other teacher's name is...." She's so stinkin' excited. There's something about a child finding out who the teacher is that puts such a smile on the face. "...your other teacher's name is....Mrs.....TUCKER! Can you believe that! Her name is Mrs. Tucker!" My sweet little girl's face went from pure happiness, glee, and joy to her head falling to the floor, her shoulder's slumpling, and her poor little voice whispering, "...oh no..." It was so funny! She thought her Tucker was going to be her teacher and evidently she wasn't very happy about it:-) After I got my laughter under control, I explained to her that her teacher's name is Mrs. Tucker and that she in no way, shape, or form has anything to do with brother Tucker:-) She took the news VERY well and went off today with bells on. I picked her up and WOW! I don't think I've ever seen her so utterly and completely exhausted. (Thank you Mrs. McCalla and Mrs. Tucker:-) She fell asleep by the time we got to the church parking lot's stop sign...

Going...going......going....

......GONE........