- Some friends have invited you over to watch the big game. What do you bring for the snack table? Chips and salsa or chips and guac
- What do you bring for a potluck lunch at work (or school)?
usually a baked pasta dish
- It’s a regifting party! Everyone brings some gift they never opened or used and leaves with someone else’s. What do you bring? Hmm, that's a hard one, I always get great gifts!
- You’re going camping for a long weekend with a bunch of friends. Everybody agrees to bring one thing that others often don’t think to bring. What’s your contribution?Toothbrushes and toothpaste
- Road trip! The car in which you’re going to spend twenty hours with your closest friends only has a CD player. What do you bring?Mad libs and my phone
Friday, October 28, 2011
Friday Five: Bring it to the Table
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Thankful Thursday
It's chilly out today, so I'm especially thankful for fleece blankets and sweaters. I'm also thankful for a dinner I didn't have to make myself, good company at said dinner AND a super cheap check for that dinner because of a free dinner gift certificate :) As I am quite often, I'm thankful for Geo's job providing us with such amazing insurance so that we can see the doctors and specialists we need WHEN we need to see them.
What are you thankful for today? How are you doing on the physical thank you challenge?
What are you thankful for today? How are you doing on the physical thank you challenge?
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Something completely different
I've entered a writing challenge and thought it might be nice if I share some of the entries with my blog readers...I won't post every entry as I'm sure they won't all be interesting, but I liked this one and thought I'd share. The topic was:
When you pray, move your feet
And here it is...
Dear Gabriel,
When I prayed, YOU moved your feet.
I don't put much stock in prayer; the thought of saying things out loud to "God" seems ridiculous to my logical brain and yet...I prayed for you every single day I knew what was in store for you. I prayed to God, Buddha, the universe....anyone who might hear my cries and answer my request, anyone or anything that might help ease the anxiety, fear, and pain I was feeling. I knew you'd never be society's standard of normal or typical, but I prayed you'd be the best you you could be...
And at 22 months, after literally praying for years, you moved your feet and you walked.
I prayed and you moved your feet.
But...was it prayer that made you move your feet? Of course it wasn't. In case you aren't aware of the meaning of the phrase "When you pray, move your feet" (and I wasn't until tonight) it basically means, God helps those who help themselves-basically talk the talk and walk the walk-make sure you aren't just putting those words out into the universe and thinking that's all you have to do.
Did I pray for walking? Yes, of course I did. Did I do anything to make sure you would walk? You're damn right I did. Hours and hours and more hours of therapy and research and tears and frustration and literally a million dollars in medical debt and YOU moved your feet.
One of my biggest hopes for you, Gabe is that you always remember that words are just words and mean nothing if you don't put actions behind them. You can talk till you're blue in the face but at the end of the day, if all you've done is talk, you've accomplished nothing. Be a man of action, not words and you, too, will see that when YOU pray FEET will move.
Love,
Momma
When you pray, move your feet
And here it is...
Dear Gabriel,
When I prayed, YOU moved your feet.
I don't put much stock in prayer; the thought of saying things out loud to "God" seems ridiculous to my logical brain and yet...I prayed for you every single day I knew what was in store for you. I prayed to God, Buddha, the universe....anyone who might hear my cries and answer my request, anyone or anything that might help ease the anxiety, fear, and pain I was feeling. I knew you'd never be society's standard of normal or typical, but I prayed you'd be the best you you could be...
And at 22 months, after literally praying for years, you moved your feet and you walked.
I prayed and you moved your feet.
But...was it prayer that made you move your feet? Of course it wasn't. In case you aren't aware of the meaning of the phrase "When you pray, move your feet" (and I wasn't until tonight) it basically means, God helps those who help themselves-basically talk the talk and walk the walk-make sure you aren't just putting those words out into the universe and thinking that's all you have to do.
Did I pray for walking? Yes, of course I did. Did I do anything to make sure you would walk? You're damn right I did. Hours and hours and more hours of therapy and research and tears and frustration and literally a million dollars in medical debt and YOU moved your feet.
One of my biggest hopes for you, Gabe is that you always remember that words are just words and mean nothing if you don't put actions behind them. You can talk till you're blue in the face but at the end of the day, if all you've done is talk, you've accomplished nothing. Be a man of action, not words and you, too, will see that when YOU pray FEET will move.
Love,
Momma
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Friends....
"God doesn't give you the people you want, he gives you the people you need. To help you, to hurt you, to leave you, to love you, and to make you the person you were meant to be"
And lately I've found this to be incredibly true...and for those reading, I hope you realize which one of these you are. I've learned a hard lesson these last few weeks and that is that some people, despite what you had hoped, what you had thought, and what you'd seen have no regard for you. Some people come into your life for the sole purpose to test you and try and take away what you have. In this case though, my happiness cannot and WILL not be destroyed by anyone, nor will my marriage or family. Misery loves company, however there's no company to be found here.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
The Flu Shot Chronicles
Today the kiddos had to get their flu shots; after our awful winter (which included a round of H1N1 thankyouverymuch) Geo and I decided that this year all four of us are getting them. We don't lie to the kids about getting shots; we don't necessarily tell them if they don't ask, but if they ask if they are getting a shot, we'll tell them if they are or not.
So Gabe and Bits saw "flu shots" on the calender; correction (!) Gabe saw it written on the calender and told Bits about it so they were in a tizzy over it today. We left one appointment to go to the ped's office for the flu shots and Gabe says "so hey, Mom, where are we going?" I looked at Geo and said "Uh, Gina's" (Gina is the first name of our pediatrician) He says "oh, okay" and continues to chat with Bits. As we got closer to the doctors' office he said "oh no. Gina is Dr. S*'s name! Oh no! FLU SHOTS BITSY!" and cue the screams and sobs.
(side note: how rough do OUR children have it, their parents have insurance and access to appropriate medical care and vaccinations. poor poor kids, their parents care about their health...ungrateful kids, I tell ya! ha ha)
So we got to the office and Gabe immediately asks how sharp the needle is going to be because he wants a soft needle and blah blah blah. I have a sick sense of humor and I said "well you're in luck, today they'll be giving shots with a rusty fish hook! no worries about the needle!" (side note number two: how mean am I? seriously? I'm mean)
We got back to the room after the children tried to bribe the nurse with pretty much anything they could think of so they did *not* have to get the shot and Bits hopped up on the table thinking Gabe was going to be first. Not so little miss, not so. I pulled her sweatshirt arm off and Geo stood in front of her. The nurse came toward her with the tiny needle (seriously a flu shot is TINY) and wiped her arm with an alcohol pad...and all hell broke loose. She started to scream (it was cold and startled her) and Gabe started to turn purple and scream "Get MEEEE OUT OF HEEEEEEREE" in the meantime, I'm trying to steady Bits so she can get the shot AND she kicked Geo right in the family jewels. He starts to double over, SarahAnne is sobbing, Gabe is screaming at the top of his lungs, the nurse is trying not to cry and I'm doing what? I'm laughing. Laughing like an idiot.
Geo stands up, says in a voice at LEAST two octaves higher than normal "okay Gabe, your turn" and Gabe proceeds to .... I honestly don't know what he was trying to do, climb out the window maybe? I grabbed him in a hug and said "alright, let's do this" The nurse came at him with the damn cold alcohol pad and he screamed (again, it scared him-why don't they warm them up?!) then gave him the shot and Gabe said "alright, fine just give me the darn shot" as he was getting a bandaid put on the shot spot. The nurse informed him that he was done and he stopped sniffling and said "wait, what? you're done? I thought you had a huge needle or something. Wow. That was no big deal"
The nurse let them choose four million stickers and then led us out into the waiting room where four parents and their terrified children sat waiting for THEIR flu shots. I'm so glad I could help their children be prepared for the flu shot this year...ha ha
*note-Gabriel did *not* attempt to climb out the window at any point during this five minute ordeal. Five minutes, seriously, five minutes was all this took from start to finish. Most melodramatic five minutes of my life, except for maybe last Friday when I did a melodramatic Adam Levine post, but we won't count that.
So Gabe and Bits saw "flu shots" on the calender; correction (!) Gabe saw it written on the calender and told Bits about it so they were in a tizzy over it today. We left one appointment to go to the ped's office for the flu shots and Gabe says "so hey, Mom, where are we going?" I looked at Geo and said "Uh, Gina's" (Gina is the first name of our pediatrician) He says "oh, okay" and continues to chat with Bits. As we got closer to the doctors' office he said "oh no. Gina is Dr. S*'s name! Oh no! FLU SHOTS BITSY!" and cue the screams and sobs.
(side note: how rough do OUR children have it, their parents have insurance and access to appropriate medical care and vaccinations. poor poor kids, their parents care about their health...ungrateful kids, I tell ya! ha ha)
So we got to the office and Gabe immediately asks how sharp the needle is going to be because he wants a soft needle and blah blah blah. I have a sick sense of humor and I said "well you're in luck, today they'll be giving shots with a rusty fish hook! no worries about the needle!" (side note number two: how mean am I? seriously? I'm mean)
We got back to the room after the children tried to bribe the nurse with pretty much anything they could think of so they did *not* have to get the shot and Bits hopped up on the table thinking Gabe was going to be first. Not so little miss, not so. I pulled her sweatshirt arm off and Geo stood in front of her. The nurse came toward her with the tiny needle (seriously a flu shot is TINY) and wiped her arm with an alcohol pad...and all hell broke loose. She started to scream (it was cold and startled her) and Gabe started to turn purple and scream "Get MEEEE OUT OF HEEEEEEREE" in the meantime, I'm trying to steady Bits so she can get the shot AND she kicked Geo right in the family jewels. He starts to double over, SarahAnne is sobbing, Gabe is screaming at the top of his lungs, the nurse is trying not to cry and I'm doing what? I'm laughing. Laughing like an idiot.
Geo stands up, says in a voice at LEAST two octaves higher than normal "okay Gabe, your turn" and Gabe proceeds to .... I honestly don't know what he was trying to do, climb out the window maybe? I grabbed him in a hug and said "alright, let's do this" The nurse came at him with the damn cold alcohol pad and he screamed (again, it scared him-why don't they warm them up?!) then gave him the shot and Gabe said "alright, fine just give me the darn shot" as he was getting a bandaid put on the shot spot. The nurse informed him that he was done and he stopped sniffling and said "wait, what? you're done? I thought you had a huge needle or something. Wow. That was no big deal"
The nurse let them choose four million stickers and then led us out into the waiting room where four parents and their terrified children sat waiting for THEIR flu shots. I'm so glad I could help their children be prepared for the flu shot this year...ha ha
*note-Gabriel did *not* attempt to climb out the window at any point during this five minute ordeal. Five minutes, seriously, five minutes was all this took from start to finish. Most melodramatic five minutes of my life, except for maybe last Friday when I did a melodramatic Adam Levine post, but we won't count that.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Bullying
It's estimated that one in six children is regularly being bullied at school; as a teacher I saw it happening (and tried my darndest to stop it) as a kid in school I saw it happening-and had it happen to me, but as a parent, it was one of those things that I really didn't pay any attention to, other than to stress to Gabe and Bits that friends use nice words with each other and we don't ever hit our friends OR allow others to hit us.
I didn't pay attention because it didn't personally affect us; we have enough to worry about without adding bullying into the mix...and that worked for us until this afternoon. Without going into a ton of detail, Gabe was physically assaulted by a kid from his school on the walk from the bus to the apartment. Because of his shunt and the fact that he was hit ON the head with a loaded backpack, he had to see the dr to rule out a shunt problem or a concussion. Our official diagnosis was "multiple scalp contusions" which is medically talk for bruises on the scalp. We're supposed to let him rest and take some tylenol and just keep an eye on him. Tonight he was treated to a late night snack of cheese pizza and a movie with his sister. He's happily laying on the couch in jams, seemingly unfazed by the events of the afternoon...
But I'm bothered...and Geo is bothered...and our little "village" is bothered and now what? What happens next? I'm the mother of a kid who is being bullied and haven't got a damn clue what to do. The teacher in me is saying "go to the school and talk to them about it" the momma bear in me is saying "rip the kids head off" (irony at its' finest) and the rational part of me isn't chiming in because I cannot rationalize ANY situation when violence toward children is EVER acceptable.
For now, I'm just going to snuggle my babies close tonight and hope that tomorrow is better.
I didn't pay attention because it didn't personally affect us; we have enough to worry about without adding bullying into the mix...and that worked for us until this afternoon. Without going into a ton of detail, Gabe was physically assaulted by a kid from his school on the walk from the bus to the apartment. Because of his shunt and the fact that he was hit ON the head with a loaded backpack, he had to see the dr to rule out a shunt problem or a concussion. Our official diagnosis was "multiple scalp contusions" which is medically talk for bruises on the scalp. We're supposed to let him rest and take some tylenol and just keep an eye on him. Tonight he was treated to a late night snack of cheese pizza and a movie with his sister. He's happily laying on the couch in jams, seemingly unfazed by the events of the afternoon...
But I'm bothered...and Geo is bothered...and our little "village" is bothered and now what? What happens next? I'm the mother of a kid who is being bullied and haven't got a damn clue what to do. The teacher in me is saying "go to the school and talk to them about it" the momma bear in me is saying "rip the kids head off" (irony at its' finest) and the rational part of me isn't chiming in because I cannot rationalize ANY situation when violence toward children is EVER acceptable.
For now, I'm just going to snuggle my babies close tonight and hope that tomorrow is better.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Three for the Price of One!
Today you get a three for one post...my wordless Wednesday post, my thankful Thursday post AND my Friday five! Woohoo! First the picture...
Now for the Thankful Thursday portion of the post...I'm thankful that I have a niece and nephew so close so that they can grow up knowing us and the cousins get to play together whenever they'd like.
And for the Friday five...
Five reasons I love being an Auntie (I'm lying, there's actually ten)
Christopher
Conrad
Caleb
Ethan
Sophia
David
Aubrey
Logan
Zoey
Liam
And for the Friday five...
Five reasons I love being an Auntie (I'm lying, there's actually ten)
Christopher
Conrad
Caleb
Ethan
Sophia
David
Aubrey
Logan
Zoey
Liam
Monday, October 3, 2011
A New Year...
Friday was my birthday and thus the beginning of a new year for me :) Geo and the kiddos spoiled me, as did other family members. It was an excellent birthday. I spent the weekend with my sister(who had her birthday Thursday) and one of her best friends at my sisters' house in Michigan. We drank froofy drinks, got tattoos, and went to an art festival (not to mention that I also got to eat GOOD Chinese food AND authentic Mexican food-two of my favorites that Geo and the kiddos don't particularly care for) It was an excellent weekend, I came back refreshed and ready to take on whatever life has to offer. How about a few pictures?
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