Happy Thanksgiving

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving today! Take time to enjoy family and friends and good food too:)

Cam is working. I'm sad about that but it's a fact of our life. I'm thankful for all the medical, fire, police, military men and women keeping us safe today. I know there are others too that have to work today...so leave it in the comments section for me to read. God bless all the families who are without their loved ones on this holiday...especially the military families with loved ones so far from home. Prayers for safe keeping go out to all of you.

Thank you also to all the people who spend this holiday serving those in need. The homeless, the needy, the impoverished around the world. God bless you.

Cam-the kids miss you! Have a nice day:) Mr. P is reminding his siblings why you have to work today..."people are sick, even on holidays". Love you and am so truly thankful for you and our family.

Is it time???

How and when a mother decides to wean her baby from nursing varies greatly.

With Mr. P I weaned him...cut him off at 19 mos. He was waking once a night and I'd bring him into my bed to nurse him. The final straw for me was when he let go of the booby, said "I shirsty (thirsty)", and proceeded to take a big gulp from his water cup that he brought with him. After his big gulp he went right back to nursing...burrrr!

Today I think I had the same sign from Baby George. He was nursing and let go to quickly pop a piece of bread into his mouth...a piece of bread he had locked up and hidden in his little fist. Then after chewing for about a nano second he went right back to nursing:) Sheesh!

ABC's of it..

I love these photos. Mr. P was holding Baby George on the scenic train ride at the OR coast. I keep revisiting these summer beach photos...if you know where we live...rain/dark/cold...you can see why!

Baby George has some new words this week. He added baby...he says it while he holds a teddy bear, milk, Sis, and Busy Guy's name.

And...the big news is that Mr. P is reading!!!! Whooohooooo! It's so much fun to see it click in his head. He is doing so well sounding out the letter and words. He is eager to learn more and Busy Guy is eager for him too...so that big brother can read him some books:)

A few more things I'm thankful for today:

Sunday paper

My MIL's friends...great group of gals!

Kids singing

Boots

Pantry of food

So Vain

Here I am as a little girl with my Marsha Brady hair. Really, it was the begininng of my hair love. Aren't my Sis and I cute???


I'm so old. How did this happen? I feel so young. I have young children...doesn't that mean I'm still young? My husband is a college student...that means I'm young, right?


I have found grey hairs! UGH! I'm a little stunned. I've been thinking about it all day and I've realized that I just never thought I'd get them...ever...well, maybe not until 80. I showed the to Cam and he quickly said, "no, it looks blonde to me". In the next breath he says, "it's okay, I've got tons of them in my beard". Okay, so which is it Mister?


I pride myself on my hair. I'm downright vain about my hair. It's the one thing on me that always looks good...well, mostly good...except when I go WAY overdue for a foil and cut:) I have good hair....lots of it too. But, now it's got greys...hmpf! I take good care of my hair. I use Aveda shampoo/conditioner/styling products. I visit a high and mighty salon.


In fact I take such good care of my hair that my own mom pointed this out to me recently. I was complaining about how I don't take care of myself...lack of sleep/don't floss enough/don't take my vitamins/don't exercise enough/eat all my veggies/etc. My mom was quick to point out that I do take good care of my hair. OH! She was right. Nothing like your mom calling you out on the carpet to get a point across;0


Not loving these greys. Sorry, I'm not embarrassing it. I keep thinking of the commercials for hair dye and I get it now! I'm vain...I admit it. I don't want these grey hairs. GO AWAY GREY. I'll take my usedtobenaturallyblondebutnowIpayatonforexpensivefoilsandcutstolookgood:) I'm feeling not happy about this.

Doing well

I thought an update on Tuba was in order. He is doing really well at school. He has been coming home with all smiley faces on his daily chart. His morning time behavior has been very good too. Seizures have been good. Not perfect...but okay. I see maybe a couple of seizures a week. The flu left Tuba pretty skinny. He doesn't have any extra fat so any time he gets sick and loses weight it really shows. He's 4'10" and weighs about 88 lbs. normally but is now down to 84 lbs. He's almost my height (5 more inches) but certainly no where near my weight;) He has done such a nice job going with me to pick up kids from school each day. I worried that he would give me a hard time and that doing it every day would become a huge problem. But...he has been perfect. Even better than I could have dreamed of. He helps me with the stroller and waits patiently. Yeah Tuba! I love this boy. I'm thankful for him.

A few more things I'm thankful for today:

A new recipe that was yummy, easy to make AND inexpensive

Freezer in the garage

Shiloh...my cat

Dreams...big and small

Naming the Child

I have been wanting to write this post for a few weeks now. Finally, I have time to sit down and write it. Some may wonder why I share such a personal story from my life. I share it because I hope it gives comfort to someone. I think if we share our sorrows it helps each other.

A dear friend of mine just suffered the loss of her unborn baby at 19 weeks gestation. Everything was seemingly fine until a routine ultrasound discovered that the bay had died. This precious baby was a boy and his parents named him Aidan Job.

I had a miscarriage about 4 and half years ago. It was terrible. I was 9 weeks along and on vacation when I started to bleed. We went to the emergency room after phoning my doctor. The doctor treating me at the hospital was awful and insensitive. He told me that it wasn't a baby I had inside of me. I was floored. At first I thought he meant that I hadn't been pregnant. Then I realized what he meant. He didn't consider my 9 week old fetus a baby....just some tissue and cells. After he left the room the nurse profusely apologized to me...telling me that yes I was pregnant and this was traumatic and awful. I did have a baby inside of me. The medical community has all kinds of terms for each stage of growth...the embryo, the fetus...etc. But, I wasn't pregnant with a goldfish or a kitten...no, it was a baby. I was in the exam room alone because Cam had the other kids out in the waiting room. It was scary and lonely. The doctor sent me home and told me there was nothing he could do for me....only time would tell if I'd miscarry. We phoned our doctor and decided to stay at the hotel on vacation. I laid around, took it easy, prayed and waited. After two more days of spotting I woke up soaked in blood. When I went to the bathroom everything came out of me. I took my baby and wrapped it in tissue. I couldn't flush it down the toilet. I took it home with me to bury.

I buried our baby under my rose bush in our backyard. I can stand at my kitchen sink and look out at this rose bush. It was a terribly sad time and Cam and I both mourned the loss. All the plans we had made and all the love we already felt for our baby. At times I felt so much sadness that I felt like I was going a little crazy. After 6 weeks of bleeding I had to go in and have a D&C. Just before the surgery my doctor told me that know matter how much time goes by every woman who has had a miscarriage can tell you exactly how old her child would be. I was so moved by this. It's so true.

After that surgery I slowly crept out of my depression. Of course I had and still do have moments of sadness over our loss. I wonder what our child would be like now.

A few months ago I heard about a book called Naming the Child. When my friends' baby died I quickly ordered this book for them and one for myself. The book is amazing. I recommend it for anyone who has experienced a miscarriage/stillborn/infant death. It was very healing to read...even after all this time. It is also a great resource for husbands, clergy, family and friends. In the book the author talks about naming your child even if you do not know the sex of the child. I have decided to name our baby Gabriel. I think God spoke this name to me. I can feel it in my heart and know it is the right name regardless of the sex of the baby.

This story is not complete without telling you about my rose bush. I was given a rose bush as a gift after I gave birth to Mr. P. He was a summer baby and I never got around to planting the bush until the next summer. It had no leaves and I'm no gardener but I put it in the earth and watered it. It did get a few leaves and then when fall came it went dormant. The next summer in July is when I buried our baby under this rose bush. About a week after the burial the bush began to bud. It bloomed the most beautifully huge rose. It gave me such peace and comfort. I took pictures of this first bloom. The next time the bush bloomed was the following year. It bloomed the day we got Busy Guy's referral from our adoption agency. Once again I felt such happiness and peace. Many times a day I look out my window and gaze at my rose bush. The rose bush is very special to me and I'll be digging it up and taking it with me when we move.

I Spoke Too Soon

A mere few hours after writing that last post I was down and out with this most horrible stomach flu. I have never in my life felt so bad and threw up so much. Pretty picture...I know:) I locked myself in my room which has a half bath. After about 2 hours I was writhing on my bed after going back and forth to the...well you know...when I heard Cam in the kitchen. Yes, it had begun for him too. Great! Two parents both sick at the same time. My poor hubby was getting sick in the kitchen while trying to feed our tribe dinner. I was too sick to even get up and help him. We had the same idea...just get these babies in bed! He got pj's on the babies while dodging the restroom...or bucket in hand and put them to bed. It was at least an hour before their already early bedtime of 7:00. Oh well, what else could we do? I passed into sleep and woke at 8:00. I found Cam lying in the hallway outside the bathroom. The boys had put a blanket on him and brought him a pillow. The boys were watching a movie. I called for them to come to bed, stood in their room while they got in bed and then stumbled back to my room.

It was a horrible night's sleep but at least the vomiting had stopped. We awoke to a house of hungry kids. I thought I was feeling better until I stood up....whoosh...dizzy with a bad headache!!! I started toaster waffles for the kids and quickly had to pull out a chair to sit on. With my head laid on the counter I buttered waffles and threw them out like Frisbees. The kids started to complain about them not being cut up...I gave them a death glare and that was the end of it.

Basically we spent the day taking turns attending to the kids. There was no school due to Veteran's Day so we had a houseful. Cam put in a call to his mom early in the day. She made a drive-by and drop (aka...run for your health) of pizza, Gatorade, and Popsicles. At least the kids wouldn't starve. They enjoyed pizza for lunch AND dinner. During nap time Cam and I crawled under the covers and slept. I think it was the longest day of my life...surely one of the longest and sickest....blech! We made it until 6:30 and when we couldn't take any more we put the kids to bed. We laid on our bed together and ate Popsicles. After sleeping all night we are better today. Able to care for our brood. Still dizzy and shaky but moving, dressed, and showered:)

The most amazing thing...dare I type this...is that the only one (in case you weren't counting) that hasn't fallen ill...is our pint sized dynamite....Sis! I'd like to know her secret???

A few things I'm thankful for today: (I almost forgot to do this...I wonder why?)

Getting better

Not having chronic illness

Freezer waffles

Pepto-bismal

Cam

The Sick House

Thinking...this family could use a trip to the beach:)

I've been absent from my blog...I have a house of sick kids. When we first became a family of 7 I remember Cam and I talking about how busy things were going to be. We specifically talked about what would happen...if God forbid...all 5 kids got the stomach flu!!! Well, it's taken 16 months but it has happened. UGH! Tuba started in on Sat. night at bedtime. He was in the bathroom every 15 minutes all night long....which was so awful. He could barely move the next day. Mr. P started yesterday morning followed by Baby George at nap time. Same thing for those boys...every 15-20 minutes of wretching dry heaves...poor babies. Lethargic little ones all around. One hour after bedtime last night Busy Guy was hit with it full force. Poor guy. Had to change his sheets 4 times last night. Today everyone is laying low. Watching more movies and resting and trying to re-hydrate.


Sis on the other hand is her usual spirited self. She is running circles around us all. I've said a millions times, "get away from your brother's barf bowl". Now, that's not a sentence I envisioned myself saying in this lifetime:) She was up this morning carting two coats around wearing her shoes a diaper and pj top. He was carrying around a purse stuffed with junk and wanted to go "bye-bye". Cam just took her to run an errand and have a special treat. They can get some fresh air and enjoy getting out of the sick house. In all of this I'm so thankful for many things:





I haven't been hit....yet?


Cam was home yesterday to help me as we held limp sick wee ones.


Cam stayed home today to help me....God bless this man.


The vomiting didn't last more than 12 hours.


Our huge library of kid movies.


Snuggle time.

All I Want

I'm so thankful for the times I get to spend with my family. When Cam is home and I have all my children around me. I am especially thankful for the family outings we take. On Thursday night Mr. P was starring in his Kindergarten play...he was the turkey! How wonderful that Cam wasn't working and was able to attend with us. It was a dark rainy and quite blustery night to venture out but I felt so happy. I loved taking the kids to see their brother and having Cam able to attend. I've done lots of activities on my own with the kids so it makes me really appreciative of the times Cam is with us.

Mr. P did a fabulous job. He wasn't even nervous. Huge difference from the kid he was two years ago. Back then he wouldn't sing any of the songs at the pre-school concert...he told me he sang them in his head. The kids loved hearing all the songs and watching the play. The sideshow was Sister...who kept pinching the lady in front of us...right on her exposed fat roll! Yes, so embarrassing. She did it about 5 times. I just couldn't stop her quick enough. I would see the poor lady flinch and then realize she had done it again. OH!

Today, as I sit in my pj's listening to the kids playing I'm so thankful that Cam is home this weekend. It's rare and I'm cherishing it:) I can't wait for him to be done with grad school and get a "normal" work schedule that allows for more of these family times together. It's really what I love best.

A few more things I'm thankful for today:

Candles

Humor

Marriage

Music

Water

Water. Clean fresh drinkable water. It's so easy to take it for granted here in the US. Water comes out of a tap...hot OR cold. It's safe to drink. Not only do we have water to drink but to wash our clothes and bodies..and even cars. When I was in Ethiopia I saw first hand what it's like to not have this luxury. I saw women with plastic buckets getting water out of mud puddles and creeks that looked like a garbage dump. I saw men washing their hands and hair in these same rain filled puddles and streams. The water is not clean. The water is filled with waste and parasites and disease. People around the world do not have the luxury we have...that I have. This is the time of year to be thankful for what we have. It's also the time to give to others. I encourage you to give to charities that bring clean drinking water to those who don't have it. Every time you turn on the tap be thankful for what you have.

http://www.globalwater.org/
http://www.worldvision.com.au/ourwork/Solutions/WaterHealthLife.aspx
http://thewaterproject.org/

Some more things to be thankful for today:

Cam will be able to come see Mr. P's Kindergarten play
Warm dry house
Leftovers
Tea time

Funny Times

I'm thankful for all the times I get to laugh. All the times my kids make me laugh...even if it's only on the inside.

This morning Busy Guy was up too early (happens a lot). Cam put cartoons on for him while I was nursing Baby George in bed. When I got up and started breakfast Busy Guy told me he wasn't hungry because he had a bar already. Sometimes he will get out a protein bar and eat it while he watches cartoons. Okay, fine with me....I asked him to bring me the wrapper because he often doesn't finish the whole bar and then when the babies find it it's a real mess. So, up comes Busy Guy with a Ghiradelli Dark Chocolate wrapper! Huh, you had this for breakfast I asked him. Sheepish little face....Uh-huh, he says. LOL! Nice breakfast. Later after telling him that NO, that is not the same as a "bar" I found a second wrapper...mmmm....two dark chocolates for breakfast.

A few more things I'm thankful for today:

Girlfriends

Steak

Fall leaves

New slippers...and flannel pj's

Month of Thankfulness

November is one of my favorite months. I love Thanksgiving. A holiday to reflect on being thankful (plus no crazy decorating/shopping). The kids love to name all the things they are thankful for too. Plus, yummy turkey dinner....mmmmm:) I can't wait.

A few things I'm thankful for today:


Sunshine
Quiet time
Snuggly kids
Books

Speaking of books....Here's Sis at nap time. She loves books too....although I can't leave them in her bed anymore since she has discovered how to tear them up.