Boxes

They are stacked in my living room, bedroom, kitchen, laundry room, and every other place in this house. This is because starting tomorrow morning...we will be moving. So.....I cannot promise that I will write on here every night (except for the weekends!) this week. Life can get a little crazy sometimes....and it is okay to admit that and to try and downsize your to-do list to the 'absolutely vital' things that must get done. So, I will promise to at least post a picture or two to keep your interest. :) Here's one just as a teaser....

Sweet ride.

Best birthday ever.

Why you ask? It truly is the little things in life. It's the thoughtfulness behind gifts that touch my heart and brighten my day.

A friend of my stepmoms, Karyn, was gracious enough to allow me into her classroom today to observe for my class I am taking and she got me a birthday cake. She's never ever met me before, never talked to me face to face before this day and she got me a cake. A boy in her class, when he found out it was my birthday, slipped me a tootsie roll and said happy birthday. Mind you, this was one of the big tootsie rolls, not the rinky dink originals. For a ten year old that's a huge deal!

Adam and the girls got me a cookbook I have been wanting: "Pioneer Woman Cooks!", and his mom got me the new Tinkerbell movie...popcorn and movie here I come! Riley even 'signed' (aka colored) a card for me...I love it!

My mom sent me $25 dollars to get whatever I wanted...and GASP! I got a video game...weird, huh? My grandma got me a beautiful green necklace and earring set that I absolutely adore and find myself matching my clothes to the jewelery instead of the usual other way around. And then, my best friend Danielle got me a gorgeous handmade purse with beaded handles...oh! This thing is beeeeutiful! I cannot wait to have a special occasion to use it. This gift is especially dear to me because I know that money is tight for them right now, but they got me this gift.

It is truly the things that make you feel warm and fuzzy inside that make times special. It's not how expensive gifts are, or that amount of gifts that you are given...it is about the love and thoughtfulness of the people that surround you and are in your life. I, for one, am truly blessed. :)

Cutest (toddler) couple on the block!

Look at these two....

Sigh...aren't they the cutest? Ethan will push Riley all over the backyard in that silly little stroller (that she is WAYYYY too big for). They are so sweet to one another...at times. Five minutes after this photo was taken Ethan dumped sand in her snack bowl. Ah, the life of toddlers!



**Missing Not Me?! Monday? Or at least wondering where it went to? While I think it is a cute idea, I do not think it is for me. I have a hard time coming up with stuff, and frankly, I do not like admitting my inadequacies as a parent. We all mess up and make mistakes, so I am not cool with blasting them out there for everyone to read and snicker at. To each their own...I will stick with pictures of my cute kiddos. :)

Giveaway!

Not from me, but from MckMama, the amazing Mama who does "Not me! Mondays"....The contest is to win a $200 Best Buy card....just comment and tell whatever new Samsung appliance your heart is hankerin for. :) The rules are all clearly outlined on her blog....run on over there and check it out. Click HERE to go to her blog! I would love the marvelous, beautiful, amazing frig she reviews! Oh, I think I am in love!

Boobs!

Ha ha, yes you didn't read the title wrong. I wanted to do a quick little update today since I am feeling under the weather. Yesterday Riley was running around trying to tell us about "Daddy's boobs! boobs! BOOBS!!!!!". After a few minutes of not understanding what she was saying (which resulted in her screaming it louder, and us laughing harder) I had her show me what she was talking about....and she lead me right to Adam's work boots. "See Daddy's boobs?" she asked me. She was trying to tell me they were in the wrong place. My sweet sweet girl. :) I reassured her that I see Daddy's boots and had her help me to put them back in the right place.

She is also learning how to tell knock knock jokes. I have no clue where she picked it up from, but after hearing "KNOCK! KNOCK!" about 100 times followed by nothing, Adam and I decided to show her how to really do it. After realizing we only knew two knock knock jokes (orange ya glad I know this joke? and boo who, why are you crying, it's just a joke!) we recited them a few times while over dramatizing that they were REALLY REALLY funny! So, now she says "KNOCK KNOCK!" and you say "Who's there?"....and she follows with "IT'S A JOKE!!! HA HA HA HA HA HA!" Oh, she is going to be a heart breaker someday!

Roll with the punches!

I am a pretty flexible person. At least I see myself as such, and have been told by a few people that I am. That is why today when our speech therapist Stacy had to cancel our trip to the feeding seminar I just told her to not worry about it and to take care of her sick husband. Bree is going to the GI doc next week for a usual check up and I will talk to them about the idea to get their input. If they are okay with it, we will get the book and have a go at it! It's life...people get sick, schedules get arranged, and life goes on regardless of what happens.

Speaking of life, Bree did great with her MRI. We did not get to go back with her to see them put her IV in, or to put her to sleep with the anesthesia. We handed her off to a really nice nurse, and she took her back. We went and got some late breakfast at the cafeteria and headed back to the surgery waiting area right outside of the NICU. Adam enjoyed ESPN, and I enjoyed my DS. About an hour later they came and got us and took us back to Bree. Waking up from the anesthesia was scaring her so one of the nurses was holding her and rocking her. (I like it when they go the extra mile) I nicely, but promptly dropped all my bags and held my arms out for her and snuggled her like I hadn't seen her in days. After two or three scared crying fits, she settled right down and went to sleep. About fifteen minutes later, we were told we were good to go home. So home we went!

For her troubles today, she got a pink and purple glow sea horse that she is snuggling with right now! We won't have the MRI results until our scheduled appointment sometime next week. (They will call us and tell us our appt day and time) However, apparently nothing huge came up or they would have mentioned it. Whatever the results will be next week, we will just roll with the punches. We will continue to work with her, and push her to what we know she is capable of. She is beautiful, and she is ours! She will amaze everyone!

D'oh!

I thought it would be very appropriate to quote Homer Simpson for this post because I managed to ALMOST mess up Bree's MRI! I got a call today from a very nice lady at PCH and she started with "Just wanted to confirm Bree's MRI tomorrow, and remember that she has to stop eating solids foods.and or dairy at 4 and she can have clear liquids up until 7. Do you plan on giving her clear liquids?" I of course, answered her question and we went from there to more questions. After a nice conversation, we hung up the phone.

Five minutes later, my mind goes "Did she say tomorrow?!!! It's not supposed to be until Friday?!" So, I called them back, waited on hold for ten minutes, and when I got a hold of someone they confirmed that it is indeed tomorrow. I scrambled a little to find some childcare for Riley, and after a brief panic attack of "what would have happened if I didn't catch it!?" I was good to go again.

So, tonight is massive homework night since I will not have much time tomorrow between Bree's MRI and the feeding seminar. It's okay though, as a friend pointed out to me, at least I realized it and didn't miss it completely!

Happy Thursday!

Okay, so for everyone else it is not Thursday. But it is for Adam. He is taking off Thursday and Friday this week since I have the homemade blended formula seminar tomorrow night and Bree's MRI on Friday.

Today, I wanted to take the time to share with you our pictures from our last trip to the zoo. :) We love the Phoenix zoo and it gives us an open air place to go that is relatively 'safe' for Bree as long as we are careful with washing our hands before touching anything, or her. Hope you enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drawing a blank

That is what I am doing right now. Drawing a blank. Usually within the course of the day I think of something I want to write about, or Riley does something insanely crazy that I know I have to share with everyone. But.....I've got nothin! So, I will just do a general update on the fam:

For those who didn't know, we are moving next week. We found a house for rent literally 10 houses up the street and around the corner that we will be moving into. It's a 4 bedroom, 1600 square foot house, and even has a dining area! (the house we are in now has one, but we don't use it as such because it is in an odd place) We have some amazing friends who are willing to help us (so many I can't choose who!), and while the task of moving itself is dreadful it will be exciting to have a bigger space. So, if you know anyone in the Surprise, AZ side of town that is looking for a 3 bedroom, 2 bath house with artificial grass in the backyard...send em my way! It's for rent for $895 a month!

This Thursday I am going with Bree's speech therapist to a seminar on homemade blended formula by Marsha Dunn Klein. I am thinking this is the way we are going to be headed with Bree. I do not know much about it but I understand the basic concepts. You start with a base of nutritionally rich liquid, like pedialyte or formula, and measure out what else you want to put in it. You can steam vegetables, put fruit in it, pasta, etc. Almost everything can be blended up and put into homemade formula. This is suppose to support and help Bree develop a liking for real food. This is because kids with acid reflux are constantly burping up and "tasting" what is in their stomach (gross, huh?). By putting real food into her stomach, it is allowing her an opportunity to taste real food, even if she refuses to take it by mouth. This also encourages her once she does start eating by mouth because she will recognize the tastes.

Now, don't worry, we will be working hand in hand with her dietitian to make sure that she is still meeting the calories that she needs to be getting. We will start slow on this and work our way up to where we need to be.

On Friday, we have Bree's first MRI of her brain. This is to check if her brain is underdeveloped from prematurity (we are expecting to see some, but to what degree), and to see what areas are damaged from the brain bleeds and periods she went without oxygen (the two times she had CPR). For some reason, this is nerve racking for me...I think it is because I am okay with where we are at with her. Yes, it sucks that she is not developmentally in line with her peers, but she is happy and healthy! We are working on all the rest. I know this MRI won't change anything, I am just dreading the bad news that comes along with it.

Whew! What a post...so much for drawing a blank, huh?

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I most certainly have NOT eaten three bags of candy corn on my own so far this Halloween season...especially not finishing the last one in 5 days. (They are also NOT the value size bags)

Who would sleep in while they could hear their toddler screaming from their room? Not me! (If this would have happened it would not have been at six in the morning, the usual wake up time in the house.)

Riley has not had chocolate pudding and apples for breakfast twice last week...I would NEVER condone that type of eating...not me!

I am not the type of Aunt who is considering getting my niece and nephew some 'educational' toys for Christmas instead of the fun ones they want...no way, not me! (Does anyone not know anything about the Leapfrog Tag system?)

I most certainly did not rock the socks off of Adam this weekend while playing Rock Band...I did not discover that I am not as horrible of a singer as I thought I was! Not me!


Tune in next week to find out what kind of fun we have had here on Not Me! Monday!

WIC appt

Now don't get me wrong...WIC is great! We get free food because we are poor and it really does help out our grocery bill. They have even recently added to the list of items that you get and have included fresh fruits and vegetables and bread...which is an added plus!

However, since it is a state program they have mandated things they must do when a child turns of a certain age. For example, they are now giving Bree (because she is one) peanut butter, eggs, fresh fruits and veggies, cereal, but not milk or cheese because I told the lady that we are still giving her formula through her g-tube. I have no idea where the lady thinks I am going to stick peanut butter, eggs, cereal, or fruits and veggies...but Bree is allowed to have them! However, these are all things that Riley will eat too so it's not a big deal.

Of course, Bree has to see their nutritionist because she is 'small' for a one year old. Even though I explained the situation (she's was a micro preemie, blah blah blah) she said there is not a way she can mark that in Bree's file. We just have to see the nutritionist. Eek! However, the laugh I got out of today's visit was that when the lady asked "Does Bree have any medical conditions?" I rattled off the list of things "Born at 25 weeks 5 days, was a micro preemie so she has compromised lungs, acid reflux, cannot eat by mouth, is physically delayed....etc etc" I thought the ladies eyes were going to pop out of her head. I guess she is used to hearing "Nope" and just moving onto the next question.

What was Bree's weight you ask? It was 17 lbs and 5 ounces!And her height? That was 28.5 inches...whew I have got some tall girls on my hands! (they def get that from their Daddy!)

Now onto Riley...since Riley is two, they switched her from whole milk to 1%. I do not agree because she is a little skinny mini and I need her to get all the good fat and calories she can get! I am going to talk with the nutritionist about it when I go in next month. Besides that little disagreement Riley's portion of the visit went great! Riley weighs 25 lbs and 10 ounces and is 38.5 inches tall!

All in all, we have some healthy, but skinny, little girls! We are very blessed indeed!

Holding down the fort

The past week our house has been a fort. A fort of sneezing, barfing, temperature running children. Today was the first "good" day we had. Let's back it up a few days. Last Thursday we had our Happy Fall Y'all craft play date and that night Riley had a slight fever and cough. It was accompanied by a runny nose. Being the super kid that she is, she was well by Saturday.On Sunday, we laid a fussy Bree down to bed and I took her temp. It was 100...50 minutes later it was 102.4 and she was breathing wayyyyyy too fast. After a fun late night car ride (silly story), we ended up back home with both girls. Monday was all sickness and puking. Tuesday Bree would tolerate half strength formula at an ounce an hour. Wednesday was full strength formula at one ounce an hour. Today was 60 an hour...and this evening she tolerated 90! So, it seems like she is full steam now!

We have held off on therapies this week so we are hoping to jump back in next week with our fully re charged Bree! I happened to get the flu mist today and am not feeling too hot tonight so I am going to make Bree's feed for the night...and hit the hay myself! G'night!

Riley and the Stinky Ant

Setting: Riley and I are playing outside with sidewalk chalk while Bree is inside sleeping.

Me: Look Riley! It's an ant! (I point it out to her)

Riley: What is it? Oh! There it is! (waves) HI ANT!

Riley gets down on her hands and knees to get a closer look.

Riley: What you doin ant?

Me: Be gentle.

Riley: (puts her nose closer to the ant and takes a deep sniff) Peeee-yew! Ant stinky! (crazed laughter)....(she waves her hand in front of her nose) Stinky ant! Yuck!

Me: No! no! no! Don't squish it!!!! (Riley was reaching with her little toddler hand to blot out the existence of said stinky ant, but I grabbed it and pulled it back) We need to be nice to the ants. If we are nice to them, they are nice to us.

Riley: Go! go ant! GO! (Riley is jabbing her finger in the air directing the ant)

(Riley looks back at me and smiles...then looks to find her ant)

Riley: Oh no! Where ant go?(long pause while she whips her little head around wildly trying to find her ant) Okay....BYE ANT!!!! (stands and waves in general direction)

Riley: (murmuring to herself) Where he go? I don't know..... He go home...yeah. He go home to eat.

Happy Fall Y'all!

Last week..last Thursday to be exact, we had a fall fun craft party at our house! We made Mommy and me fall trees (Mommy stamps her hand then kiddos fingerpaint leaves on), and candy corn  magnets. All of the kids had a great time and us Moms got some good gab time in. We had Mommies Danielle, Heidi, Aleasha and myself in attendance (Adam was there too but he's not a Mommy!). The kiddos that came to play were Aidan, Ivy, Zoie, Eli and Ethan! All the kids had such a blast, and I am already planning a Thanksgiving edition of craft fun!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who? What? Not me!

This is something that I would like to start...and continue. This will be my Monday outlet...to stress and let go of all the things I might not have been so proud of.

It was surely not me who allowed Riley to go play outside without shoes on simply because I was looking forward to being able to watch the news (and not cartoons!!!)...nope, not me!

Who was it that groaned and said "here we go again!" when I took Bree's tempature and it was 104? Not me!

Who was it that two seconds later realized I took it on the side of her head she had just been laying on so it was warmer than she really was? Not me!

Who was it that still groaned when after taking her temp correctly realized it was 102.4? Not me!

And, it was surely not me who put Riley to bed 1.5 hours early because she was being absolutely positively a horrible nasty child the whole day? Nope, again..not me!

See, I am new at this so next week will be better. I now know what I need to remember throughout the week!!

First tea party for two

I swear the girls are growing up and interacting more and more everyday. It warms my heart to see them being so sweet to one another. Riley is very much of a leader and director, while Bree is happy to comply and move right onto the next toy when Riley rips one out of her hand. (Keep your eye on the purple and white plate in these pictures.) 

 

 

 

 

Blast from the past....

Here's the pictures that we had taken by a photographer in July when we were on our family vacation. Her name is Danielle Beauchaine and she is lives in Washington. She is such a sweet girl and we had a great time with her! Here is the photos that she took, with some editing on my part...I guess I am too picky!