Probably the last post of the year!

Superman loves his Sweet Potatoes! Only 5 months old and he is already sitting at the table with us and eating his food like a big boy. They grow up so fast! Last night he spit out the bananas instantly, but the night before the Sweet Potatoes went down quick. He ate the whole little jar. He is a rolly poly now. He rolls onto his back as soon as I put him down on his belly. He has had a fever a couple days this week. We are pretty sure its caused by the teething. Poor little guy.

We are leaving for the holidays tomorrow. We wont be back until the new year. 400 miles away and the weather better be great. I mailed out Christmas cards a bit late this year. If the mail wasn't so slow I would have gotten the pictures sooner and had them done to be sent out on time. Oh well, at least I got them out.

Now to finish the home made presents and hand deliver the neighborhood cards and get the oil changed and we are gone.

We should get to go out for our anniversary this year since we will be home with family and hopefully someone will want to babysit. I think New Years Eve is a great anniversary. We have had a great first married year. We haven't had any fights, just a couple tiny arguments. I am so lucky to be married to my hubby. He is a great father and such a sweet guy. He has been so supportive of me during the cancer and the pregnancy. I love that he is my rock. I probably would have sunken into the bed and who knows what else if he hadn't kept me strong. I love you more than ever baby. Who knew that we would end up here when we started dating 9 years ago?
I love you I love you I love you! More than yesterday, less than tomorrow.......

We wish everying that reads this blog a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

More to add..

To my wishlist for Christmas this year.
I saw this little tripod and I just think it is so cute.

I also want a good family picture. But that's something I will have to work on myself.

How do you get nice presents for your huge family with less than $50 to spend total? With the medical bills and the car repairs we had to pay for, we barely have the money to get to KS. That's our gift to our family for Christmas this year, they get to see us...but they really just want to see the boys. That's fine with us, I would rather see my kids get lots of cool stuff than me get anything.

I am going to crop tonight. Hopefully get a lot of good scrapbooking done. I am also back to blond today. I have hair that changes color with the seasons. LOL I had red since before Halloween, but I didn't feel very Julia Roberts so now I am back to normal. If people are going to be taking pictures of me at Christmas time, I want them to be of my in my normal color. That way it also looks like Spiderman belongs in our family cause his hair is the only light blond. I'm going for the same color as his, but we will see. I will have to post pics like tomorrow or sometime. Naturally mine is dark golden blond, but I think its going to be a bit lighter this time since I had to bleach and then tint. Things I have learned over the years of coloring. I think I started in high school and have been about every color. I went purplish black for Halloween one year in college. I was the dark angel and I couldn't very well be dark with blond hair. My roommate was a white angel. We won the group contest that year too. It wasn't so great the year before when we both went as Britney Spears. Funny, but not a winner.
Back to hair coloring!
Have a good Weekend!

Sweet

Going to crop with my friends tonight. Yay!
Here's something I made this week.

Its the beginning of a whole 8x8 album I am making of all the things we did last summer. This summer we didnt do any fun things cause Mama was a pregnant cow. LOL

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Winter Winter Winter

SIGH!! The snow is here. Well its been here since Thursday night.
Hey, don't you want a play by play??

Batman went to work last Monday and was told that they wanted him to fly back to Kansas to work in the plant there for a few days. They also said they had room for the baby and I. Since Spiderman went back to KS with my mom, then Superman got to take his first flight. We got rained on in a tiny little prop plane so we had to land half an hour from the airport in our town and wait for the weather to get better so we could land in our own airport. So our 1.5hour flight took 4 hours.
Then we got put up in a hotel that his work paid for, which was cool because we didn't want to choose which of our family to stay with and piss someone off. They did however, give us the crappy work van to drive around town while we were there instead of a cool rental. That thing is going to die...soon. We went to dinner with my dad and step mom on Monday night and Superman came down with a fever. He cried for a bit, but was really good throughout the ordeal. His first fever/cold and he really was a Superman.
We were supposed to fly back on Wednesday, but apparently it was storming up here in IL so he thought it best to wait until the afternoon. Then in KS that afternoon it was raining ice. Thats a good time. The pilot's son, who is the copilot, said he didn't want to take off at that time. So our flight was pushed until the next day. We were already at my Dad's playing board games and we had checked out of the hotel so we just decided to stay there in the warmth. My sister and her fiancee came over and we sucked them into the board gaming. I love the board games. My dad and stepmom are all about them. Batman isn't really a fan, unless its just me and him. We were having fun playing Sequence while it was pouring down ice and the temperature was falling as well. Oddly enough we were awoken Thursday morning with a phone call from the pilot saying he wanted to take off in the next hour. So we rushed to shove everything back into the suitcase and get the baby bundled. My step mom unfroze her car and drove us to the Airport. Its a tiny Airport, not like we had to fight any traffic or lose luggage. We were the only ones there.
So we take off safely and land safely back in IL. Our little car is at the airport here and it is frozen. It has no heater by the way. So we scrape and scrape and the temperature is 20 degrees out there. The baby is covered with every blanket I took with us for him and he is super warm inside his little car seat. No complaints from him.
We finally get it thawed and make it home and Batman has to go to work. Then at about 3pm Thursday it starts the raining of ice here. I called Batman and told him to get home before it gets too bad. Well he calls and wants me to come get him at about 430pm. So I get us all in the Durango and surprise...the heater in there doesn't work. Its like our vehicles are passing a disease to each other. The car got the STD first and gave it to the Durango. It was putting out air so I thought it would get us to pick up Batman. Well I got half a mile down the road and had to stop and scrape the window. I made it to Walmart and called Batman to tell him he was SOL and had to make the car work. So I hung out at walmart and picked up some windshield Heet and a few other things and called my scrapping friend's husband to tell him to just come tow the Durango. It needed a new water pump and belt and window motor anyway so we told him to just fix all of it. Bye Bye Christmas!!

Then after we went to bed Thursday it started snowing and didnt stop until noon Friday. Batman got a free day home from work cause the city sent out an emergency message saying to not park on the streets and to stay where you are and not drive anywhere. Yeah ice under a foot of snow is not good right? So finally Saturday it was getting cleared off so we braved the trek to Walmart cause we were about out of toilet paper I had forgotten to get when I was there 2 days earlier. There was so much traffic, I was a bit freaked out. Looked like lots of stupid people needed toilet paper. Then on Sunday we took Spiderman out to play in the snow. It was still powder and crazy cold. So here are some shots of our snow day.
Stay WARM peeps!!!

Yes, thats my kid throwing snow at my face. He soon started crying cause the cold snow was all over his face.Yes, that's my fabulous husband throwing snow directly at me, holding the camera. We were both shocked that I actually captured the snowball in the air. BTW, is it actually a snowball, I think its too big to be called that. Its a snowblock or something bigger sounding.

Holiday Spirit

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Both
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? colors
4. Do you hang mistletoe? no
5 . When do you put your decorations up? Day after turkey day
6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Turkey or Ham
7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? Since I was a kid I have always loved going to my aunts on my dads side. Dad has 4 brothers and 4 sisters and they all come and bring their kids so I love being around the huge family.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? When mom let me put out the santa presents for my little sisters when I was 10.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Always
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? Purple and silver and heirloom ornaments.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Dread it until its just on the grass, I hate it on the streets.
12. Can you ice skate? yes
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? My grandma gave me a ceramic eagle figurine 5 years ago from her own collection.
14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Being with family.
15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? apple pie
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? putting up the tree
17. What tops your tree? an angel
18. Which do you prefer giving or Receiving? giving
19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? Oh Holy Night
20. Candy Canes, like them or hate them? Like them!

Funny

'What will your obituary say?' at QuizGalaxy.com

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Tuesday Twos

1. What two things are you most thankful for?

My family and getting rid of cancer

2. What are two things you like about Thanksgiving?

Eating turkey and family interaction

3. What two foods do you like the most for Thanksgiving dinner?

Turkey and Green bean casserole

4. What two things do you do with the leftovers?

Turkey noodle soup and turkey sandwiches

5. What are two activities you do after eating Thanksgiving Dinner?

dishes and play board games

I can't wait to do all this Thanksgiving stuff with the family this year. We are going to my friend's house Thursday and then my family will be here Friday evening and our Turkey day will be Saturday. Going to be busy looking for preschools and trying to get one of the cars fixed tomorrow.

Simple Pleasures MeMe

When was the last time you _______________?

1. Took a bubble bath? I think I was still pregnant and we were in our old apartment. It must have been June or early July.

2. Watched a sunrise or a sunset? When I was in high school I watched the sunset once and in college I watched it rise.

3. Stopped to smell a flower? In April when I got lots of flowers after surgery.

4. Gave a friend a present for no reason at all? I gave my friend Sara a handmade mini book just cause last month.

5. Treated yourself to dinner at your favorite restaurant? Back when I was still pregnant we went to Olive Garden.

If you read this, you have to post it on your blog with your answers, then comment me and leave me the link to your blog, unless you are already in my links.

Cute stuff Saturday

Saturday is picture day since I don't have much time to share today. So here's some cute stuff.

 

Woo Hoo its Friday!

Well Mario didnt win Dancing With the Stars. He maybe wasn't as entertaining or funny as Emmitt Smith, but I think his footwork and Dance moves were much better. He is just so cute.
He sure entertained me this whole season and every week he just got better and better. I am dying to know if he and Karina are dating now. I think they should and they will be a great couple.

Tuesday's Nip/Tuck was bland. It was kinda funny to see how everyone could end up in the future, but I didnt get to see Christian's ass and that is all that matters.

I have to go watch Gray's Anatomy and ER that I Tivo'd last night. Don't spoil it for me, I am dying to watch as it is. The same goes for Medium and the new show DayBreak. I have a lot to catch up on.

We have a busy weekend coming up. Batman's best friend is coming up to hang with us for the weekend. I dont know if he will be here tonight or tomorrow.

We are also thinking about getting into the new Lord of the Rings MMO if it ever comes out. We already play World of Warcraft and we are waiting until January to see if we will buy the expansion. It is a great game. Batman started playing it when it came out and then he got me to play finally and we spend a couple evenings a week playing with people from all over the world. I am a kickass player too thanks to Batman.
Well time for lunch. Have a good weekend! I dont know if I will get a chance to blog if we have company, but I'll try!

4 months

My baby is four months old. He had his check up today and weighed 14 pounds and 13 ounces. He is also now 25 inches tall. Big difference from 6 pounds, 11 ounces and 18 inches.

He is rolling over like crazy right now. Just from front to back so far, but he is close to going both ways.
My kids are just so cute, if I do say so myself and I have to share them with you yet again.

Superman feels Sucky

Well Arik got his immunizations yesterday. Sometimes I wonder if it is really important to put our babies thru all this pain. Is it really necessary?
He has been kinda grumpy today and refuses to sleep much. He did good and was all tough and didnt cry until the third shot. So insane that they do one at a time. He got a total of four.
He is needing comforting again so I will leave you with a pic of him for today. Tomorrow I will let you know if I am happy with the results of the last Dancing with the Stars episode of the season. And Arik's 4 month check up is tomorrow too, so I'll update you later!

Some of my Christmas wishlist

Every time we go to the store or every time there is a toy commercial on TV, Spiderman says, "Mommy can I have that?" about practically everything. I always tell him to put it on his christmas list and ask Santa. Its my turn to tell santa what I want.

1. This curly wire thing from Pottery Barn to hold my scrapbook creations and some of Spiderman's artwork.
http://www.potterybarn.com/products/p6046/index.cfm?pkey=caccholcrd&cm%5Fsrc=campaign

2. Pottery Barn sparked my fancy and I want this wall organizer for more scrap stuff.
http://www.potterybarn.com/products/p6108/index.cfm?pkey=caccstrhof&cm%5Fsrc=campaign

3. I am never going to get this cause its so freaking expensive, but that wont stop me from wanting, The One With All 10 Seasons
http://www.amazon.com/Friends-One-All-Seasons-Limited/dp/B000AM4PBS/sr=8-1/qid=1163527491/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-1953106-6943221?ie=UTF8&s=dvd

4. This fabulous camera that I need is too much too: http://www.amazon.com/Canon-Digital-Rebel-XT-f3-5-5-6/dp/B0007QKN22/ref=pd_ys_qtk_wl/002-1953106-6943221

5. This bed set would be totally sweet. http://www.amazon.com/Kansas-Wildcats-Complete-Bedroom-Package/dp/B000I6W2SY/sr=1-115/qid=1163528430/ref=sr_1_115/002-1953106-6943221?ie=UTF8&s=bedbath

6. Some comfy boots. http://www.skechers.com/catalog/browse.do?function=displayProductList&gender=W&catId=-1&index=0&viewAll=false&sort=newest&prodId=18295
or these http://www.skechers.com/catalog/browse.do?function=displayProductList&gender=W&catId=1&index=1&viewAll=false&sort=newest&prodId=5104
And some HOT boots for fun http://www.skechers.com/catalog/browse.do?function=displayProductList&gender=W&catId=2&index=0&viewAll=false&sort=newest&prodId=14435&styleCode=30626

7. This is really a good deal on scrapbook mobility. http://www.qvc.com/qic/qvcapp.aspx/app.detail/walk.yah.0012~E880~E814 Not in blue or green though.

8. A few of these might get me organized too. Maybe. http://www.qvc.com/qic/qvcapp.aspx/app.detail/walk.yah.0012~E880~E814

9. I also have an Old Navy wish list....who doesnt? http://www.oldnavy.com/browse/home.do?cid=5151&mlink=9630,438095,0&clink=438095

10. And I'd love a Build a Bear GC. http://www.buildabear.com/default.aspx?sc_ppd=PS_Holiday_build_a_bear_goog

Well thats about it for now, I may add more as I think of stuff.

Do it! Do it! ~I cant think of a good title :)

We are taking Superman for his second round of immunizations tomorrow. HE did quite well with the first round but I never want to see him in any kind of pain.

Now for my first Monday MeMe....hopefully I can find more meme topics so I can do this every week.


Nicknames:~Honey, Sis, Mommy, Babe.
Mother’s Name:~ Heidi
Father’s Name:~ Rick
Favorite Drink:~ DrPepper
Tattoos:~ Nope, but I would like one.
Body Piercings:~ I have a total of 5; four in my ears and one in my tongue.
How much do you love you job 0-10:~ 10 BABY!!!
Birthplace:~ A-town, Kansas
Favorite Vacation Spot:~ What is Vacation? We like local county fairs and amusement parks.
Solen any traffic signs:~ AM I STUPID? Who would want a traffic sign? Well back in high school me and my girls got some blinkies.
2 door or 4 door?~ 4 door
Salad Dressing:~ Italian
Favorite Pie:~ Cheesecake, does that count as a pie? lol
Favorite Movie:~ Oh so many, French Kiss is always on the list.
Favorite Holiday:~ TIE!! Christmas and Thanksgiving!
Favorite Food:~ Mexican
Favorite Day Of The Week:~ Saturday
Favorite Soap:~ Bath and Body works
Toothpaste:~The Pro-Health Cinnamon, feels so good
Smell:~ coffee lately attracts my nose, and apple pie with lots of cinnamon
What do you do to relax:~ Watch T.V. and cuddle with my hubby or my babies!
Where do you see your self in 10 years:~ Running back and forth between kids soccer games and doing something big in the scrapbook world.
What do you do when bored:~ What are you doing right now?!? Yep, that’s right you are reading my blog.. when I am bored.. I read YOUR blog!! So let me know if you read this one so I can read yours. Thanks!

oops I did it again

Maybe my goal will be to post at least every other day since I am not too good at the every day thing.
Well my sisters are all coming up here for Thanksgiving. And my one sister is bringing her fiancee and his 3 kids and my mom is also coming. She may be bringing her new fiancee too, I dont know yet. So that means I have to plan a dinner for 12 people. I cooked dinner 2 years ago for 5 people and that was pretty easy. Just one turkey fed everyone and the rest of the stuff wasnt too hard.
So I need some help. Send me your favorite big recipie for side dishes. I dont want to have to make 3 green bean casseroles and 10 pounds of mashed potatoes. What to do?

Housing gripe

Oops I forgot to post yesterday. Dang. Someone give me their thyroid so I can remember stuff please!?
Well we have been in our new duplex for over two months now and still haven't gotten our deposit back from our old apartment. Rumor has it that in the state of IL, your deposit must be postmarked within 30 days of your moveout. If any money is withheld, the leasing company is required to itemize all damages and provide you with copies of all bills or receipts. If they do not refund your money or provide you with an itemize statement of how it was applied, they are required to return the entire deposit under Illinois law.

So we never liked this apartment manager anyway and I called at the beginning of October which was one month after we moved out and told them that I hadn't gotten our deposit back. The assistant manager said she had to check with the main office and she would call me back. Well 2 weeks later I called back after not hearing anything. Again she told me that the main office hadn't told her anything so she would check with them again and get back to me. Then, Halloween day I called again cause no one called me back AGAIN. This time I got to talk to the "fat bitch" aka the manager. She said she thinks the hold up is because we didnt turn in a 30 day notice. But she isnt sure so she has to talk to the main office and check our file to know for sure. And of course she will call me back. Well over a week later she has not called back. So now I think I will call her and tell her that I know what the law says. I am also looking for a housing authority or something to talk to about this.
A six hundred dollar deposit is not something that we can just let slide. Especially now that the surgery and all the doctor bill from this c-bomb are coming in.

Off to a good start

Batman ordered me the Paint Shop Pro X that I have been wanting. Hopefully, when it gets here I will be motivated to get a ton of use out of it. Can I just say that Amazon.com rocks?! We got it from there and it was super cheap. It better have the right CD key and definitely not be opened previously. You never know.

Here is a scrapbook Layout I did recently that I really like.

NaBloPoMo

I don't know if its possible, but I am going to try to take part in National Blog Posting Month.

I will have to post on this blog of mine every day this month. I am starting 7 days late in the month so I will go 7 days into December just to be fair with myself.

If you havent joined, please do so!

In Lieu of Halloween

At night I lay awake for hours. Tons of things run thru my head. Sometimes I get a pause in the internal monologue and I think, "I should blog this." Does that make me crazy?

NOTE: The following short story will either bore you or entertain you. Comments are welcome. I know I am not the best story writer, but consider it a rough draft.

I was thinking about writing my own scary movie. I ran a plot around and I could see what I wanted in my head. Its not a gory horror movie but more of a haunting spookfest. Basically my story is about a big beautiful bed and breakfast mansion with 10 floors. A young debutante lived there in the 1920s with her mean doctor stepfather and her psychologically damaged mother. Well something happened to the girl and she "falls" from the top floor balcony, through a glass roof, into the pool and dies. She haunts the top two floors because that is where a terrible event occurred. Sometimes she watches people while they are sleeping but only hurts people occaisionally on the top floors. An elderly lady runs the bed and breakfast now and has blocked off the top two floors.

My sisters and I and our significant others are staying there and we are on the 8th floor and hear noises above us so we go exploring. Our group gets separated on the 9th floor and I am wandering around with my youngest sister who is 14 and my oldest little sister's fiancee. Richelle leads us up to the 10th floor and we see tons of beautiful rooms and furniture that I can see but can't describe. Then we find a dark room that looks like a hospital room. There is a window in there with the shutters banging. My sister goes over to look out and suddenly faints. My other sister's fiancee catches her before she falls forward out the window. When we get her to wake up, she seems different. She has been posessed by the ghost girl and is really really mad. She leads us down a different set of stairs than what we came up. The old caretaker lady finds us coming down and gets really mad cause we were not allowed in that section, and the only way we could be where we are is if we went all the way up and now we dont know what we have done, and she makes a big scene about how we have really screwed up. Well weget away from her and go all the way to the basement and find a room like the one upstairs that looks like a tragic hospital room with restraints on the bed and old metal machines that look illegal and torturous. There is a bookcase in there with files and my posessed sister grabs a bunch.

Then she leads us thru some secret passageways under the pool and then we come out in the pool room. The water in the pool turns red and the ghost girl dives in. She comes up with a necklace and then heads back towards the secret passageway. A secret door in the passageway leads to a long tunnel and we come out in a foggy field. When we get to the only tree in the field, Richelle faints again and the ghost is free. Well my other sister's fiancee thinks that we should dig cause this is probably where the ghosts body is buried. We dig her up and take her body to the family graveyard behind the house and bury it there where her headstone is. We throw in the necklace she got from the pool and she stops haunting the mansion because she is finally at rest. I know, just the main points. I need to think about what was found in the files and how to prove what really happened to her. I am thinking it has to do with her mean and psycho stepdad.

Well I think that to finish up this post I will just add some pictures of the cutest little trick or treaters. We had fun taking the boys around to collect candy. As if we needed more candy. It was a little cold but they both stayed pretty warm. Hope you all had a Happy Halloween too!

Boys are funny

and stinky, and smart, and brave, and energetic. Just incase you didnt know. I am outnumbered by boys in my house. Spiderman is always climbing and jumping and yelling and hungry. If he weren't so energetic, he would be chubby from eating everything. I dread the teenage years.

Superman is in his smiling phase. He will smile at stuffed animals, the TV, and everyone who gets in his eyesight. Now making him laugh is our daily goal. He is getting more talkative every day. Just little sweet coos and mmmms.

I love being their mommy. Even when they are stinky. Boys emit the worst smells ever. I have never smelled anything like this from girls. Its astounding to me. Especially from Superman cause all he eats is formula.
Someday we will have a girl and I will have proof that girls dont smell as bad as boys. It probably doesnt help that I have a super smeller. Its much worse when I am pregnant because my sense of smell is heightened. I can smell a poopy diaper across the house. Not fun.

Just keep swimming

I have tried to enter a blog post like 10 times in the last two weeks and I keep getting interrupted or distracted and end up losing what I was writing. So here is one more attempt. Here's hoping I don't type it all for nothing. And now I see at the top of this screen that there is a scheduled outage at 2pm so I better get to typing.

First of all, I need to change my password cause my sweet hubby knows me too well. I was yelling at him over MSN one day about him not mailing something for me and then during all that, I checked my blog and found his post and he was let off the hook for not mailing the package he said he would mail. Well, I love you honey, and that post was so sweet.

I really have nothing else interesting to talk about. We are looking for a washer and dryer that we can afford. I don't really enjoy my weekly trips to the laundrymat. My endocrinologist told me that I would have another scan in February to find out if there is any cancerous thyroid left. And we decided that we are not going back to Kansas for Thanksgiving.

Pretty boring around here otherwise. Its amazing that anyone would let me have a blog or membership in message boards cause I really have nothing much to say. Everyone else is posting about their kids doing phenomenal things or their neighbors entertainment drama. WE however, have normal kids, that we think are phenomenal and boring neighbors. I have been working up some guts to go introduce myself to the young couple across the street. They have a son that looks to be around 4ish and a baby girl that looks to be almost 1. I just dont know what all to say to the girl or her construction working husband. We were the new ones in the cul de sac, they should have come over and greeted us already. I just dont like people coming over to my house unannounced so I dont want to do the same to her. If it were warm outside I could work on starting a conversation when she was outside. I really want to make new friends, I just dont want to seem pushy. Is it neighborly to take over a treat or something and introduce myself? I think my plan is to wait until Halloween and take the kids over there and do it then if they are not out trick or treating with their little ones.

Halloween, now there is a holiday I like. Not only do you get yummy candy and treats, but I love seeing all the little kiddos in their holiday attire. Spiderman has opted to be either a pirate or Peter Pan. He has both costumes, but changes his mind daily. I wonder if he even understands that he has to definitely pick one to wear out one night. He loves just pretending around the house.
For Superman's first Halloween, we have picked out an adorable Yoda costume. I was hoping to match the kids costumes, but I guess I have many more years to do that. Spiderman just didnt want to be Darth Vader.
I dyed my hair red, for multiple reasons. 1. Batman LOVES redheads. and 2. Its more festive for halloween and autumn. I usually dress up as a witch and somehow, being a blonde witch just doesnt seem right to me. Apparantly it has brought out my facial features and my scrapbook group of friends said they didnt recognize me at first.

I look forward to sharing the halloween pictures with you all next week.

To My Beautiful Everything

There is a wonderful woman in my life. I don't think she quite realizes how absolutely beautiful she is. I speak of beauty as a whole. Not in the context of just physical attractiveness, but as the wonderful person I've thoroughly enjoyed watching her grow to be. If you would have asked me back in High School would I know she would grow to be so beautiful, I, filled with all of my teenage lust and puppy love, would most certainly have given a resounding yes. What I didn't know then though, was how much one can underestimate such a question. She's been more than I ever could have imagined, and I'm thankful every day for it.

How on Earth was I to know the target of my High School admiration would grow to be a loving, dedicated, and outstanding Mother of two of the most beautiful boys I've ever laid eyes on. How on Earth was I to know she would grow to be such a loving, caring, and selfless wife. I couldn’t have asked for more, and I don’t really believe there is more. How on Earth was I to know one person has the strength, will, and courage to not only battle cancer, but to do it in the middle of a pregnancy. All while moving and adjusting to a life 400 miles away from her family. I can claim to be the strong, manly man of our household all I wish, but I've never had to go through anything as trying as she did. She amazed me throughout everything. I’ve never told her before, but I've already seen in her the strength and character I hope people will someday say I possessed when I’m long gone. Traits I see continuing to grow. She really, really is a beautiful person.

I can’t really tell you how lucky I am. I can say I hope the same for everyone else out there. I hope everyone finds someone so beautiful, so loving, so strong in character. I hope I’ve been as good to her as she has been to me. I hope tonight when I go home I remember everything I’ve written today and treat her with all the love and devotion she deserves. A woman so beautiful deserves much more than I think anyone capable of showing. I hope I'm up to the task.

I love you Arielle. I always will.

-Anthony

Seventeen

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My sister Hannah is 17 now. Her birthday was yesterday. Got me thinking a lot about when I was 17 and thinking a lot about my sisters. My senior year of high school was the best. I had so much fun. I was editor of the yearbook and newspaper, and captain of the flag team. I worked so hard and I was so excited to go to college. My sister plays tennis and I wish I lived closer so I could go cheer for her every match.

My other sister Amber is 21 now. She is getting married next summer and is already working on picking out dresses. Her colors are pink and light blue and its going to be a huge ceremony. She is having like 7 or 8 bridesmaids and groomsmen. I know she has a ton of friends and family that she wants in there, but geez. She is going to look for bridesmaid dresses with her friends this weekend and I wish I lived closer so I could go too. Being 6 hours away from my sisters sucks. But the crappy thing is, my sisters all live close to each other and they dont want to spend any time together, they are all too busy with their own lives to make time for each other. Amber wants Hannah and Richelle to go pick out dresses that they like and then she will make her friends get the same ones, but since H & R would rather be with their friends, then Amber's friends are going to pick out the dresses and H & R have to accept what they choose. I think I am the only sister all three of them are close to. They arent close with each other which I think sucks. I wish they could have each other to talk to or hang out with. I know that after they get out of school and move on with their lives, they wont have their friends around all the time, but their sisters will always know whats going on and always be there. They need to build those relationships and not grow so far apart.

Ah enough of my whining about them. They are just growing up so fast and I want to be there more for them. I am always a phone call away though and they all know that.

Family

Here's 4 generations.
Aren't my grandparents cute? :-)
 

Fabulous

How long does it take your body to get back to normal after being radioactive? Well I waited 2 hours to ask my endocrinologist and he couldn't answer my question yesterday. I just want to know when I will stop feeling so tired and brainless. He said it takes some time and we still have to figure out if my synthroid dosage is right. So I gave him some blood to test and left with an appointment to come back in a month and probably get no answers again.

So I hear that it is Thyroid Cancer Awareness month. Everyone get your NECK CHECKED at your next doctor appointment. Its not hard, just look up and swallow.

I barely have the energy to get my house situated the way I want it. There are still boxes sitting around that need to be unpacked. I am a newb when it comes to hanging pictures on the wall. I have a ton of adorable pictures that are framed and need to be hung, but I am really terrible about lining things up on the wall in a presentable fashion. Its strange that I can arrange pictures and embellishments on a page in an album but not on a wall. I am obsessive compulsive about how straight they are but I can't bring myself to put 10 holes in a wall to get it right. Vicious circle.

I am dying to get back to scrapbooking. But I can't get the energy to get things together to do it and I can't get Batman to be motivated to do it for me. I need to get the cabinet moved to the basement and the two big boxes of stuff. Then I need to go buy a table and chair to use down there. I can't wait to have my own scrap area though.
I got a haircut yesterday. I wanted to keep some length but have a more youthful style so I got shoulderlength layers now. Next we will try some color. But this morning I wondered if it looks like the same cut my mom has. Maybe this unhappiness with things in life right now has something to do with my thyroid hormone levels. Yesterday I loved my hair and now I think it looks like my moms. I need more shopping therapy. *_*
Sweet Batman bought me another powercat necklace off ebay. It was a sweet gesture, but it seems we got ripped off by the seller because the charm is only 1/2 an inch which is an inch smaller than my last one. So its not what he thought he paid for and definitely not worth what was paid. Its more like a child's necklace, so if the seller doesnt take it back and refund us then I may just use it as a bracelet charm. Thank you for the gesture though honey.

Well I have dishes to finish and Superman needs a bottle and some entertainment.

Back in the swing of things

Well, I had my radiation therapy. Still no info on what all got accomplished there. I talk to the endocrinologist next week and I will see what all he saw on the scans they took.
Being in the hospital for 48 hours was completely boring and I think I barely escaped depression setting in. I was thrilled to get to talk to the Genderist who called often to check on me. It was so nice to hear her cute southern accent and to connect with someone who knows how radiation feels.
I missed my babies so terribly. Not being able to hold or see my Superman and Spiderman was so hard. I cried every night just wishing they didnt have to go thru this with me. I did wean Superman completely to formula. Well my family did it for me. He stayed with his grandmas while things were going on. My stepmom and my mom and my mother-in-law took great care of him and he just kept growing even while I wasnt there.

Spiderman is not adjusting well to all the change. He acts out and does normal 3 year old things and everyone seems to think he has a discipline problem. He is a smart kid and he knows his right from wrong and I know it will just take time. I never expected him to be perfect and I dont see why everyone else does. I know he loves his baby brother, he just needs a period of adjustment like everyone else. This is like the first big thing to happen to him and I'm not surprised that he is a bit put off by it.

Add to all that, we are now living in our new duplex. Spiderman has a full basement now to house all his toys and his imagination. Our bedroom is big enough to keep the crib in for a few months. The boys will share a room in a few months. There is also a big yard to play and run around in. We are just glad that there is more room for us, less rent to pay, and its closer to work for Anthony. I didn't find my powercat necklace yet. I don't know where else to look. If I were a silver powercat, where would I be?

We went back to kansas to pick up the boys over the long weekend. It was good to get to see everyone again. To make things better I got a fever blister to signal the beginning of a big cold. As if bringing home two kids to an unpacked house after a 6 hour car ride wasn't fun enough. Being sick makes me want to cut off my head. I am slowly getting boxes unpacked and things put in their rightful places so I relax a little more and release a little stress with each empty box. I am just soothed knowing that my kids are here with me again and we can all get back in our own swing. Now that our internet is back up (no thanks to the cable company), I will hopefully get a chance to catch up on all my internet doings and get all those personal emails answered and all my reading caught up on and you may even see a post or two from me. That is if I can fit all that in between slowly unpacking, diapering, potty training, sleeping, playing WoW with Batman, scrapbooking, and coughing up lungs. Aren't you glad we're back? I'll try to share some new pics so you can see how we are all changing and get a post or two in here about something upbeat and not focused on mommy stuff or cancer stuff. Peace and love!

One month

I can't believe that Superman Arik is already a month old. He changes so much every day. I think I am going to go crazy while he is gone for 2 weeks. Isnt he just adorable?!

I was just told by a nurse and a nuclear medicine tech that I will have to stop breastfeeding completely. They say they have to give me a very large dose of the iodine and that its risky to keep breastfeeding him afterward. If there is iodine left in my system and my milk then it could kill off his thyroid cells and put him at risk for thyroid cancer. Well isn't he at risk anyway because its supposed to be genetic??
So quitting cold turkey is going to be hard and painful for both of us. I have about 3 weeks worth of milk saved in the freezer for him to use, but he really likes the closeness of nursing. This is so hard for me. I can't get the endocrinologist to budge on how late I do the radiation. I keep asking if there is anyway we can do it later and he always says no. >>>Insert sad face here.

I basically put my own health in jeopardy if I wait, and its risky to keep nursing after the therapy, and cold turkey weaning is really crappy all around.

Well since both kids are napping actually, I am going to go take a mini shower! Yay for showers at 4pm!! 

Haiku of thanks

Dear sweet Genderist,
Informative sweet lady,
My very big thanks.

Ok maybe that Haiku sucks, but I hope my message is clear. I had questions about the RAI treatment and THE GENDERIST was kind enough to give me a special post on her blog to ease my mind and I just want to say thank you, and please stop by my blog anytime.

What day is it?

It seems like if I dont have some sort of doctor appointment, then I forget what day it is and I can't motivate myself to crawl out of bed until I find out that Aidan has gotten into something he shouldn't or the baby needs a diaper change. So thanks to new mommy brain combined with foggy hypothyroid brain, I havent got a chance. If I do manage to get a good day where I have a bit of energy and can carry on a conversation for more than 2 minutes with an actual adult, I usually get interrupted by a child disaster.
I'd rather not go into the details of the disaster, lets just say it involves not being potty trained and stomache aches.
So after that, I end up without any energy. I just sit in my recliner and cuddle with my newborn while yelling at Aidan and wonder what day it is.

On a super crappy note, I lost my powercat necklace. I have had this silver powercat since my senior year of high school and I wear it all the time since. I know I had it on yesterday morning, but I don't remember having to move it for the endocrinologist to feel my throat at my appointment yesterday and then I noticed it missing this morning while changing my spit-up infested shirt. I have been frantically searching the bed and apartment and laundry between yawns and breastfeeding today. I better find it before we move or I will be devastated.

I think we found an apartment we are going to rent too. We will be leaving this upscale, overpriced, snooty apartment complex and moving into a normal little, no frills, cheaper place. I admit, I am spoiled and I like having the finer things in life, but the new apartment means we will have to pay less for rent so we can start paying off bills which puts us closer to buying a house. Not that we will be buying in Illinois though cause I think DH and I have both agreed that we miss KS and would like to move back closer to our families. So the hope is that we get offered a better job in Kansas City so we can move back there eventually. The only downside I see is that I will have to find another endocrinologist and family doctor when we move back there.

We had tried to talk to our current landlords to let us stay an extra week or so, but they are snooty and would make us pay a whole months rent for the extra week, so we HAVE to move at the end of this month. Just 1 day after I get out of quarantine for my radioactive treatment. Such nice sympathetic people we pay to live here, dont you think? Whatever happened to customer service?

So since moving is immediate, DH will be staying home with me so he can pack and finalize the apartment details and signing of leases and so forth. And even though I would have liked spending time with my stepmom, she will be given the important job of caring for my sweet new baby for two weeks. I feel good about this arrangement because the other alternative of DH going back to KS with the boys included him working at the other plant and so a different family member would be watching Arik every day and I just felt really bad about having to inconvenience family. Since my stepmom works from her home computer and she wants to get back to trying to conceive with my dad, it would be ideal for her to keep Arik every day and be in the same state as her husband (for the sex part is easier that way). The thing is that my mom would like to see Arik and as you can imagine, there is awkwardness between mom, dad, and the stepmom. I hope they can all act like adults and not fight over my baby for two weeks. Do I need extra stress?

Well I do think its naptime. Aidan looks a bit sleepy so while I wait for him to pass out Maybe I can get a few chores done and fall asleep to the sound of the dishwasher...

I'm still here

I know it seems like I only blog about my kids, but thats what my life is all about right now. I love being a mommy. I never expected it to be so hard to have 2 kids. I always thought Aidan would be a sweet and wonderful big brother. He is sweet and wonderful, just not all the time. He has his tantrums and never listens to me. I am wrapped up with feeding Arik and Aidan is not getting all my attention now so he feels he has to act out and he disobeys the most when I am most indisposed. If he knows I am feeding Arik or on the phone, then its like his queue to be the worst kid on the planet. He screams or just loudly makes growling noises or yells and gets right up in Arik's face trying to scare him. Repeatedly asking him to stop or giving him time outs are not working. I need supernanny. I have mastered the art of one hand typing while breastfeeding and yelling at other kid all at the same time though.

Its like a miracle if I can get both kids and myself dressed and out of the house on any given day. Not to mention the fact that I have been without my thyroid hormones for a month now. I can hardly hold a conversation with anyone cause my brain is froggy and I just feel stupid when I cant finish a sentence.

I am having my radioactive iodine treatment starting on the 14th. Anthony will take the boys back to KS on the 17th and I will be here with my stepmom taking care of me until the 29th or so. Quarantine does not sound like a fun time. I am nervous and upset because I dont know what exactly is going to happen. Like I have no idea what the capsule is and what the process of the ablation includes. I am upset that I cannot get faster results from the hospital and the doctors. And I am most worried about my kids. I DO NOT want to be away from them for 2 weeks. How are they just gonna take a new baby away from his mommy? He needs me and I have endured the pain of natural childbirth and breastfeeding for the past 4 weeks, just for some endocrinologist to tell me that I have to do the RAI right away and that includes being no where near my baby for 2 weeks. It just hurts. I can only imagine how he will feel. I have saved up a ton of breastmilk for his time away and I am praying I can keep up my milk supply so that he can get more when I am cleared. I know that the RAI has to be done, but I am not ready to do it yet.

Well, off to the doctor office. I promise a post not about kids or thyroids soon.

pic loop

If I actually figured this out, it may be my new favorite way to share photos with you. More pics in less space, I reccommend it. And I promise a real good post by the end of the week. Just have to figure out where I can get some energy. Anyone have a thyroid they dont need? LOL!

my boys

Here is a pic of Arik taken before we left the hospital and below it is Aidan's hospital pic. The blanket they are both on was the blanket I had behind me in my baby photo taken before I left the hospital also. I think you can tell they are brothers. I will try to find a better scan of Aidan's or I'll get a new one and I will look for one of mine too.

 

More from the photo shoot

Dont worry, I wont quit my day job, oh wait, I have no day job. Maybe I should be a photographer. LOL!!! 

Family of Supers

I have decided to nickname all of us as superheroes. Daddy is Batman cause he used to say "I am Batman" when we were in high school. I am WonderWoman cause Batman says only WonderWoman could give birth without pain meds.
Aidan is Spiderman cause he watches the movies all the time and bounces off the walls. He does a great web shooting impression too.
Arik is Superman cause he made it thru my surgery and all my pain meds like the man of steel. Nothing can hurt this kid. He is super. He probably saved my life. I just hope that he doesnt think he can fly. ;)
So here are the amazing Spiderman and Superman in a WonderWoman photo shoot on my bed the other day.



 

The Amazing Superman!

 

Superman is here!!

Well hello everyone! We got home today around 1pm and we just crashed. Hopefully I can remember everything for you all.
Tuesday morning I went in for my NST at 11am and the OB said my blood pressure was too high. It was 144/102. I am normally a 108/86. So she said she wanted to induce TODAY. I asked if I had time to run back home to get my bag and she said she just wanted me to get started on the pitocin ASAP so I needed to get someone else to pick it up for me. So I went straight to the hospital with my sister and Aidan with me. I called DH and told him to leave work and go home and get the bag and a list of other stuff and get to the hospital. We also called our moms and MIL left KS as soon as I left her a message. She had had a bag packed in her car for weeks and was ready to come. She left there at 1215 on her way to IL.
I get in a little labor room and they hook me to the belts and after two attempts they get an IV going in one arm. The pitocin starts to drip at 1230pm. Shortly before that DH arrived at the hospital. My BP is still high thruout everything.They told me that around 5 or 6 the midwife or the OB would be in to break my water. So I laid around and waited for the contractions to start gaining strength. I was contracting good between 1 and 4pm. The contractions were every 2 minutes and I was still pretty comfortable. The IV fluid was going right thru me and I was up to pee every half hour and I thought my water was going to break on its own a few times. Between 4 and 5pm the contractions were really strong so I told them to call the epidural lady on up. They said I had to be at 4cm to get an epi and they would check when they break the water.The midwife comes in to talk to me at 5pm. She got me a shot of something in my IV to relax me and then she broke my water at 515pm. She checked me and I was only 4cm when she broke the water so the epidural lady can come in. Yay! The MW also attaches an internal contraction monitor and fetal heartrate monitor. I have cords taped to the inside of my legs now instead of around my belly.
Up to par with my last delivery, the pain gets stronger after my water breaks. So I am saying OW thru every contraction and trying to talk to the epi lady. A nurse checks me and thinks I am at 8cm so the epi lady cant give the nice epidural and instead I get some spinal shot that didnt do a bit of relief. Might as well have not had anything there.
Then my friend Carol gets there. Carol is a nurse/lactation consultant at the OB office who I started scrapbooking with and she agreed to be my adopted mom until my mom or MIL got into town. She arrived right before 6pm. I am laying on my left side and trying to breathe thru contractions and she is figuring out how to work my camera so she can take pics til MIL shows up.
Well I feel the need to push all of a sudden and the MW looks at me and says that if I feel it then do it. So I am being told to slow down my breath and blow out a candle and just keep breathing. I am laying on my left side and DH is kinda behind me holding up my right leg. I push and kinda yell at the same time and the MW tells me, "no noise, just push hun." She says it a few times and I get a little annoyed but try to comply.Well I push and push and scream and tear and then at 612pm, out pops Arik! I tore on top, a labial tear. I had watched a few pushes in a mirror and on the last one I pushed until I just let out a huge scream.
So I get Arik laid on top of me and rubbed down while DH cuts the cord and they start stitching me up and delivering the placenta. Arik then decides to pee on me so my gown gets ripped to the side and I am given what they call the mandatory Sacred Hour. As long as baby keeps good color and breathing then I get skin to skin contact for at least an hour after delivery, uninterrupted. Well we get a little over 2 hours which was fine with me. I loved it!MIL arrived at 630pm and was so disappointed that she just barely missed it. :(So Carol grabs my boob and Arik's head and helps us latch on real quick. He took to suckling so well. I was just so thrilled at how good he was so fast. Then Aidan and my sister come in the room and get to see Arik. I am kinda oblivious to what else is going on in the room cause I am still in a lot of pain and I have the baby right on top of me so I dont know what all anyone is doing. After 2+ hours of skin to skin I finally realize that I dont know how much he weighed and stuff and my sister who has been on the phone is giving me impatient looks cause she has NO information to tell anyone except that I did it without pain meds and what time he got here. LOL
So they bring in the scale and weigh and measure him and wipe him off and put a diaper on him and everyone else gets to hold him for a few minutes until I get him back to nurse again. They took the IV out of my arm and moved me to a private room then. So the rest of the night I just work on nursing and pain control and my blood pressure is still high.
It feels like every muscle around my lower back and butt has been stretched and pulled and bruised and I feel like my pelvis and tailbone are broken in a million pieces. They give me some perkoset and motrin. Still a far cry from an epidural. They started me on BP meds Wednesday night and today my BP is down to 130/98 so they said I could choose whether I stay in the hospital another night or go home on bedrest, so guess which I chose?
I dont get as good of pain meds since I came home, but I did get better sleep in my own bed this afternoon. I hadnt slept while in the hospital Tuesday night and barely got an hour nap all day Wednesday between all the visitors and baby stuff. My mom got there late Tuesday night (430am) with one of my sisters and hung out for a while. My dad and stepmom and stepgrandma and stepcousin visited Wednesday afternoon and they all headed back for KS before I even left the hospital. MIL headed back this afternoon after we got home.
What else? My sister Hannah is staying 2 more weeks to help out. I am on bedrest because of my BP for at least a week. Its quite thunderstormy here too. But other than that, we are glad to be home with our new bundle of sweetness. He is such a great baby. He has barely cried his big brother just loves him up. He is nursing so well. He looks like his daddy and he has the same chin as his big brother.
Arik Daniel
Born 7/11/06 at 6:12pm
Wt 6lbs 11oz and 18" long

Here's a link to some pics I have uploaded so far.
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v13/soccermom/Arik/

I have THE cutest kid!

I don't care what you say. He is the cutest. And he is gonna be the best big brother.
His aunt Hannah is here with us for the month until the baby comes and she gave him a mohawk in the bathtub the other night. I just love his little expressions and his grown up grin. You can tell he is used to having his picture taken by his psycho-scrapbooking mommy....so when a camera is around, he knows how to hamm it up!