CHOCOLATE

Some of you I usually talk to have already heard this story but I wanted to share it to those of you I don't get to talk to because everytime I even think of this story I have to laugh. The day after Christmas we left for a vacation in Atlanta. We left a day earlier than expected so we could split the 12 hour drive into two days to make it easier on the boys and to have time to stop and see different things along the way. Well we left later than originally planned on Wednesday and we were trying to make it to Memphis but it was getting late and Martez and the boys were ready to stop. I saw a sign for gas and hotels like Comfort Inn, Days Inn etc. at the next exit and asked Martez if he wanted to go ahead and get a hotel there since I had to stop to get gas anyway. He said sure whatever. Well we get off the exit and immediately after the exit it is pitch black. The immediate things like the little gas station and the Waffle House were lit but that was it. I decided to drive further to see if maybe the hotels were back behind everything since the only hotel we saw was "The Rat's Nest". Martez said, "Where are we? It is really dark. Let's turn around!" I said, "I think we are in North Little Rock because I just saw a police car that read NLR and that is the only thing I can think of." We then saw an old beat up truck designed to look like Mater off the movie Cars and that made the boys perk up. So I said, "Well let's at least go get gas then I'll ask." I stopped at the gas station and went in to go potty then when I came out I was standing on the corner of the sidewalk while Martez finished pumping the gas. I had been driving so I didn't feel like getting back in the car so I just stood there waiting. A girl starts walking across the parking lot from the neighboring Waffle House and this is where the good part begins.
She says to me "Chocolate's in there!"
I said, "What?"
She said, "Chocolate's in there!"
At first I am thinking: I know I am a big girl but that doesn't mean you have to tell me they have chocolate in Waffle House especially since you are even bigger than me!! I was getting offended!
I said, "What are talking about?"
She then says, "Chocolate is in there looking for you!"
I nicely reply with "Honey I am not from here and I certainly don't know any Chocolate so I don't think he or she is looking for me!"
She says, "Oh I'm sorry you look like Alicia and you are on her corner!"
WHAT??!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
Martez responds with a panicked yet calm voice "Get in the car and let's go! Chocolate is a pimp name if I've ever heard one!!"
OH HELL NO!! Now I was even more offended!! She wasn't telling me about the chocolate in Waffle House because I was fat but because she thought I WAS A HOOKER! Wow I know I was dressed in lounge wear set for a long drive but I didn't know I looked like trash standing on a street corner! It is all I could talk about for awhile just so offended she thought I was a hooker!! Needless to say I drove almost the rest of the way to Memphis before stopping again. Memphis is yet another story in itself. Memphis is by far one of the trashiest, nastiest, just plain ole dirty cities I've ever seen!! More about that later!! Until next time America.................

WOW THAT ONE HURT!

So Saturday night I went into Elijah's room so all of the kids at the house could pet the rat and we started playing trivia! Basically we just sit around asking each other questions about anything and everything to see who can stump who. My stepson Tez who now lives with us was asking questions. He said, "How old is Angela?" One of the boys says "28"! Tez replies with a loud backstabbing "NOOOOOOOO WAY SHE DOESN'T LOOK THAT YOUNG!!" I just gasped! With a look of terror but still smiling he says "I didn't mean it that way I'm sorry!" How else could you mean that? I then had to defend my ageless looks with 28 is only 4 years younger than I am and normally people don't believe I am 32!! Wow that cut like a knife! Then I went to examine myself in the mirror for saggy skin and age spots! Ha! Really though I did!! Do I look old? I remember when I was young I thought 30 was OLD or when you were in college and people would date someone that was 25.....dodododo...now I am the OLD one to the babies of the world. Wow time flies when you are having fun!

JUST YESTERDAY

Today is Elijah's 6th birthday...wow! It seems like just yesterday I found out I was pregnant and in complete shock! It seems like just yesterday I found out I was having a boy and bought every outfit known to man! It seems like just yesterday I was 6 mos pregnant having my gallbladder removed and scared to death he wouldn't make it through the surgery but my little soldier boy stayed strong! And it seems like just yesterday I was in labor then had an emergency c-section because his little butt wouldn't cooperate - still having problems with that!! It seems like just yesterday I brought him home and never wanted to let him go! I can still remember the first time he ate baby food and the awful face he made when I would feed him carrots. Sometimes I would just give him carrots so I could get a good laugh - sick I know! I remember the face he used to make when he would poop and crack up to this day when I walk in the bathroom while he is pooping and he is still making that same face! I remember the first time he crawled, walked, talked, or climbed into our bed. I also remember when he first crawled out of his crib and then he wouldn't stop. Because of my fear at his method, which was to get halfway over the rail then just let go and fall to the floor, I instantly went out to buy him a big boy bed. I remember his excitement when he got his first big boy bed in the shape of a car and how much "help" he was putting it together. I then remember having to crawl into that oh so tiny and hard bed at night until he got used to staying in it or after he had a bad dream. I appreciate especially now while potty training Isaiah that Elijah was potty trained in about two weeks and soooooooo easy (no such luck with Zay). We were in awe at how he could identify cars at age two. He gets that from Daddy! It seems like yesterday we took him to Sea World for the 1st time and now he is still in love with Shamu and all Ocean life. I will never forget the day my grandfather who used a cane gave Elijah his own wooden cane just his size that him and Isaiah still use to this day whenever they have a booboo on their leg. I am amazed by his memory. His Great Grandfather who he calls Papa Cane died right before Elijah turned two and he will tell us stuff he remembers and we are shocked. He remembers things about the 1st trip to Sea World and tells stories still about it even though he was just 2 1/2!! I remember everything about this little boy of mine! He is sooooooooo good, sweet, kind, and grateful. Then he turned three - wow things sure changed! I remember we were in San Antonio when Steve Irwin the Crocodile Hunter died and he was so sad. He had been obsessed with Steve Irwin and crocodiles for a very long time. He watched the memorial and was crying not because Steve Irwin had died but because he felt sorry for Bindi not seeing her Daddy anymore. I still think that is sweet! He then decided "Steve Irwin's spirit wanted him to be the next crocodile hunter" sweet but not quite the danger free job I am hoping for! I remember the fear Elijah had that I had to have his baby brother in a hospital but I cherish the smile and love Elijah had for his new baby brother. He was jealous at first but he was always really good with him and even though he gets angry from time to time I still think he handles Isaiah with care. He loves animals, cars, dinosaurs, and sports like most little boys but I love, love, love that he is still my baby and still loves to curl up in my lap. Don't get me wrong he is ornery and don't expect him to be anything but grumpy before 10am -hmmmmm.....where does he get that- but he will always be my baby. He is the one that laughs at my jokes, sings his heart out to the Little Mermaid soundtrack with me, likes to create his own art while I scrapbook, dances around with me and hosts the Cullom cooking show while I cook dinner! I always call him baby and once about a year ago he said, "I AM NOT A BABY!". I explained to him that I knew he was a big boy but he would always be my baby and I understood that he didn't want to be called that anymore. His reply, "Well you can always call me baby but no one else!" I will always remember that day! I remember how he would always say "I love you 18, 19, 20, 90, 100 millions!" and just smile from ear to ear as we competed to see who loved who more!! I remember the fear in his eyes when he had to get stitches in his forehead but how he was a little trooper! I can't imagine my life without him and I am amazed at how much he has changed me for the better!! I thank God everyday for my boys even though somedays I pray for sanity and patience! I can't believe he is six and I know I will say that every year but it is true - they grow up so fast! It literally feels to me that I just had him! I remember every moment "like yesterday"! One day I won't be able to remember so I scrapbook to remind me of all the little moments as well as the milestones because I never want to forget those times. They are only little once! My New Year's resolution this year is not to lose weight like it always is although I am going to but rather to enjoy my children and have fun while being the best mother I can because I want them to remember me as a good, fun, loving and nurturing mother not just a disciplinarian!

ISAIAH'S PNEUMONIA

My baby is finally better and yet I am still pissed at his doctor. The week of the bad ice storm when no one had power neither did any of the doctors but I was able to get Zay in on that Wednesday. Isaiah had been coughing terribly, gagging and puking on excess snot almost every morning for three months. He got his ears done in May and had not been sick since then until Labor day weekend which might I add was a record for him. Anyway he would cough really really bad I would give him a few breathing treatments and he would be better for about three or four days then it would return. So when I took him in the week of the storm I told the pediatrician who had already been told about Isaiah's situation that it had now lasted a little over three months and something needed to be done. Well he listened to his lungs and said, "He sounds good. He just has a virus!" My response was "the energizer cold virus because it has been over three months and he coughs to the point of puking up flemy snot EVERY morning no matter where he is! He can't possibly feel good and I am sick of cleaning snotty puke I would rather clean up hotdog/macaroni puke than that!!" He says "Well kids get 6 - 8 viruses a year." I said, "ALL in three months!! Could it possibly be an allergy of some type?" His response "Just a virus!" Needless to say I left pissed at being totally dismissed and tired of him acting like I am an idiot. It really pisses me off when doctors do that!! I am not the worry wart mother who takes her child in for every sneeze, sniffle, cough and fever!!! I learned very early on in the journey of motherhood that for the most part doctors won't do much for the common cold and fever because "coughing is good and helps breakup and get rid of the nastiness". I believe though there is a point where a little sleep would do everyone some good!! Besides the fact a "virus" shouldn't last three months without being looked into!! I know there are mothers out there that take their children to the doctor for every single little thing and expect some sort of medication to fix every little thing; however, I AM NOT ONE OF THOSE MOTHERS! My doctor should know this and I know he has tons of patients but he knows me because Isaiah has been a sicko so he could just look at the chart to figure out when I bring him in he is actually sick with something that REQUIRES medication!! I take care of the little things on my own and if I take my children to the doctor - they ARE sick!! Well I went with the doctors prognosis even though it went against my gut feeling! ONE week later I was working late so my mother brought the kids up to my work and my dad said "I think you need to take him back to the doctor listen to his breathing." In a way he sounded like he was gasping. I decided to take him to MedNow since they are close and have always figured out what is wrong and fixed it all the while acting like they actually care!! Well I go in and explain everything and he asks why I haven't taken him to his pediatrician because his oxygen level was bad enough to be admitted into the hospital. I explained I had one week prior and was basically ignored and told he had a virus but I also expressed my concern for the so-called "virus" lasting a little over three months with no concern from my pediatrician. I got "diarrhea of the mouth" and told the poor guy my concerns about him coughing, gagging and puking excess snot EVERY morning for months and my concerns about the doctor ignoring me then my whole speech about that came out. I really felt bad for the guy later but I explained it wasn't him I was mad at but I wanted tests run because something was wrong with my son!! He checked him over and said, "his lungs actually sound good but I am going to run some chest xrays because sometimes the worst sounding kids turn up nothing and the ones that sound okay end up having pneumonia!" He did chest xrays then came in the room and said Isaiah had bacterial pneumonia in his right lung and he was going to see if a breathing treatment would help his oxygen level before he went any further. The treatment brought the level up and he maintained it for awhile so the doctor said since I had a nebulizer at home he would let him go home so he wouldn't be in the hospital over the holidays. He prescribed breathing treatments every 4 hours, very strong antibiotics (which in turn caused diarrhea not good in the potty training phase - yippee!), and I had to do counts on his breathing and bring him back the next day to recheck his oxygen level. He said to take him to the ER if he got any worse otherwise have his chest xrays redone in 10 - 14 days either there or at his pediatrician. My poor baby boy had to do breathing treatments all the time even on Christmas he had to open presents then do a breathing treatment but at least he wasn't in the hospital!



This is where my conflict came: do I bring him back to Mednow who actually listened to me and took care of my son? OR do I go to the pediatrician and rub in into his face that he was wrong and from now on when I am concerned enough to bring my kid there he better act as if he cares and actually do his job? The doctor at MedNow said he had no way of knowing exactly how long Isaiah had pneumonia. He said he could of had it 24 hours, 2 weeks or 3 months but from the scenerio I had given he thinks he had it for quite awhile. He said he would probably do better because of the breathing treatments but would just get bad again because he was never given anything to get rid of the pneumonia! Nice I know! Why didn't his pediatrician listen to me? Well I finally decided to take him back to MedNow for the 2nd set of xrays since they were thorough and knew what was going on AND because a visit to the pediatrician would not have been pretty especially since I am still fuming mad just talking about it weeks later!! I still plan on having a talk with his pediatrician to let him know I don't appreciate being ignored especially since I am not one of those helpless, needy, worry-wart, drug seeking mothers! When I tell you something is wrong then something is wrong! At least try to get satisfaction by attempting to prove me wrong instead of pushing my intuition aside, ignoring my concerns, acting like I am the idiot while jeopardizing my son's health or I WILL KICK YOUR ASS!!! You may have more education than me but that doesn't mean you always use it so quit acting like an overpaid know-it-all idiot and start doing your job at least for the childrens' sake! Thanks guys sorry you had to read all that if you didn't stop half way through but I really needed that! Isaiah got his repeat xrays and they were clear!! He is feeling great not coughing, gagging or puking and that is not only a relief to momma who is always cleaning it but to Isaiah who was at the point of saying "momma I no want puke!" every single time he even coughed. Sad but true! My baby is back to his normal bad little self not that pneumonia stopped his ornery little butt from being bad!! Kids - gotta love 'em! Doctors - gotta watch 'em and keep them on their toes! Pray that next time I blog I am not in jail for assault or disturbing the peace at a local doctor's office hehehehe!!