WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

In my blogging absence I have truly missed Mama Kat and Writer's Workshop Wednesday but no more....here I go!

This week I choose.......#1)  The moment I realized I was a grown up.

When I knew I was going to be a mother, I had all the little panicky but you really don't need to panic moments that every other mother-to-be would have.  I knew in my heart I would be fine.  I always wanted to be a mother but I was told when I was 21 that I wouldn't be able to have children.  Obviously, that doctor was wrong since I now have 2 ornery little boys.  Imagine my shock, surprise and excitement!  I was going to be a mommy.  Hmmm.....I convinced myself I would be a natural except for one terrifying aspect of motherhood.

VOMIT

Now I am not talking about spit up but vomit.  I have a very very sensitive gag reflex.  I remember having a very serious conversation with my mother.

Moi:  "Mom, what am I going to do if he pukes?"

Mom:  "Clean it up!"

Moi:  "Moooomm, you know I will gag and puke!  Seriously what am I going to do?"

Mom while laughing:  "Wellllll, I wouldn't do that because then you will certainly have a huge mess!"

Moi, "Don't be surprised when I call you!  Hubs will just have to clean it!"

Mom.....still laughing!

She was not very sensitive to my worry.  It was serious life altering stuff here! 

Elijah was born.  He was happy, healthy and a very easy baby until.......dodo dodo.....he got......

ROTOVIRUS

That is one nasty, evil, nasty, stinky, nasty, hospitalizing virus!  Ugh, just thinking about it makes me gag!

I will never forget the day.  It is burned into my brain.  I was scampering around picking up odds and ends while Elijah's cute little self was sitting in the highchair eating peaches with macaroni and cheese which to this day he has NEVER eaten again.  He coughed a couple of times which I thought was rather odd and maybe he was choking so I walked over to him and then.......

he puked

Without even a thought or a gag, I cupped my hands to catch it.  I caught my son's vomit then proceeded to yell for Hubs while I dumped it into the sink.  Then while Hubs went to get Elijah some clean clothes and a wash rag I decided to call my Mom because surely that is what everyone who is excited to catch vomit does, right?!  I was so proud!  Now not so calm and supermomish over the next day since apparently lightning speed projectile vomit is uncatchable and does make me gag; however, I knew I was a grown up with my supermom vomit-catching superpower until......

Elijah ended up getting very very ill.  We took him to the hospital where it was finally determined he had rotovirus.  Now if you don't know, you don't want to know and if you do know about rotovirus, you can totally sympathize.  When we finally got to take him home, we had to give him suppositories.  Umm....now that is a totally different not so supermomish phone call, "Mom, how do you get Elijah's suppository thing to stay in?" followed by several gags and my Mother's unsympathetic laughter.  Needless to say after my poor baby had rotovirus, I knew I could handle it all!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WED ~ THE DOs AND DON'Ts OF PLAYGROUNDS!

Time for MamaKat's Writer's Workshop Wednesday!

I pick........

1.) Create a list of playground dos and dont's.


DON'T wear flip flops or any form of sandal!  Those large chunks of mulch will undoubtedly stab you in the foot......why must they use such painful material?  If you don't get stabbed, then it will surely get stuck inside your shoe.  The rule is if you can't walk in it barefoot then don't wear flip flops!
 
DON'T wear high heels to the park!  THAT is just plain ignorant!
 
DON'T climb UP the slide!  This is difficult for children to understand for some reason until they are kicked in the face by the next person sliding down.  My children are highly guilty of this one!
 
DON'T talk on your phone the entire time you are at the park.  Kids grow up way too fast and you have plenty of time outside of this bonding moment to chat on the phone!
 
DON'T tell your little nose picker to wipe their boogers on the nearest piece of equipment that my child might touch!  That's just gross!

DON'T bring your sick kid to the park.  This includes children who have had fevers within 24 hrs, vomited in.....oh like 48 hrs......or if their nose is running off their face.....KEEP THE KID HOME!  Please!  I know you don't want to be cooped up with a sick kid but we don't want what they have!

DON'T wear hooker clothes to the park!  We don't want to see it because we are fat!  Well by "we" I mean "I" but in denial!  Remember it will be harder for you to breath with me sitting on you!  Remember when I jump off the swing and purposely land on....I could crush you!  Not bitter!  Not bitter at all!

DON'T climb into things with your child unless you KNOW you can fit through to reach the other side!  That would suck!  I avoid this little mishap by crawling in NOTHING!

DON'T mention the park to me outloud in front of my child unless you know I want to go!  This makes it harder for me to say NO!  Beware, I will tell your kid you are taking him/her to McDonald's!
 
DO make your children wash their hands after leaving or giving them any snack!  Hello!  At least get antibacterial crap for them to smear the virus around before eating!

DO wait at the bottom of the slide especially if they are coming down face first!
 
DO push your kid on the swing!  When you get tired just push them beyond their comfort zone and they will want off!!
 
DO swing in the swing next to your child!  It will make you feel younger and free....I promise!
 
DO take pictures!  They will be some of the best with all the colors of nature and the true smiles of a child having fun.

DO HAVE FUN!

 
 

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

Time to join in the Writer's Workshop Wed fun with MamaKat!!

I choose #4.....

If your pet could talk, what would you want to know?

I would definitely have a little chat with our English Bulldog Moose!

WHY DO YOU CHASE YOUR TAIL 24 HRS A DAY?

Don't you realize by now YOU WILL NEVER EVER CATCH IT???

Do you not understand you wouldn't have to pant and slobber so much if you would just sit still for a minute and STOP CHASING YOUR TAIL??

Do you honestly think running in a circle and then BARKING AT YOUR TAIL EVERY SINGLE MORNING will make the tail give up and hop into your mouth?  The tail is NOT scared of your bark and this only frustrates me more!!

Do you do all of this because you don't like me and you KNOW IT ANNOYS ME?  THE FEELING IS MUTUAL! 

You better be glad Hubs likes you!

Why do you sniff Samson's butt and lick his privates? 
That is so disgusting!

OH and why all of the sudden are you pooping on the back porch instead of the grass? 
You have pooped in the grass for years!  What is the deal?

WRITERS' WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

Time for MamaKat's Writer's Workshop Wednesday.

Hop on over and join in the fun!!+

I can't get her nifty picture up because I am at the library and this computer has issues! Have fun!

1.) What will you be doing now that the kids are back in school?

(inspired by Michelle from Honest And Truly)

Hmmm.......let me think!

Running around the house completely naked!

Sounds like fun!

In fact, I think I may dance around a little too!

Ok ok so I probably won't do that......using probably VERY loosely here...but it is great to know that I CAN IF I WANT TO!!

Hmmmm......I will probably still be doing laundry and cleaning BUT I won't have to clean the kitchen 10 times per day since they ARE GONE!!

WOOHOO!!

LOVE the kids buttttttt WOOHOO!!!

I will revel in the silence.

I will watch WHAT-EV-ER I WANT IN PEACE!

I will not be the referee and hear 500 million questions for at least 7 hours per day!

WOOHOO!!

LOVE my boys butttttttt WOOHOOHOO!!

I will eat in peace.

I will go to the library in peace until my Internet at home is finally up and running THEN I will blog in peace.

I will run countless errands without complaining children and telling them to please hurry ten times before they decide maybe I am serious!

I will go on lunch dates with my girlfriends without children.

I will not hear "I'm bored" 50 times a day!

I will be able to read a few less books on dinosaurs, reptiles, amphibians, animals, cars, planes, trains........and read WHAT-EV-ER I WANT!

I will spend an hour each morning dropping off children.

I will spend two hours picking up children. Man that sucks! I hate the pick up routine!

I've admitted I am not cut out to be a SAHM because of the whole "stay at home" portion of the job. After 4.5 months at home with them DAY IN AND DAY OUT

24 HOURS A DAY/7 DAYS A WEEK,

I will probably just be

lonely and bored

.............while dancing around naked!

2.) Things I have learned from my toddler.

(Inspired by Big Mama Cass from The World Through My Eyes).

Marbles and beans will in fact get stuck in your nose causing panic and the necessity of an extraction team complete with extraction tools

Crying over EVERY LITTLE THING is seriously annoying and can cause severe bouts of insanity.

Being the youngest sucks (although I knew this from my childhood) and you always want to be big but can never seem to catch up because you will always be the baby!

New shoes make you jump higher because "the jump in the shoe is not worn out"

Selective listening is essential to life in order to not "hear" Mommy telling you to stop so you can get the extra jump on the bed or the extra punch on your brother

Jumping on furniture must be fun and ALL sense of "knowing better" flies out the window along with any and ALL listening skills

Trouble is thy middle name

Bandaids cure all

I love being told "I wuv you berry much Momma. You are my best Mom ever!" over and over again and it never gets old.

Hugs and kisses are essential to life

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

Time once again for MamaKat's Writer's Workshop Wednesday and like always I am a little late but you know they say better late than never!! Good thing someone created that quote I just wish it was regarded with all my high school tardies!!

Let's see.....what to do....

2.) Describe a situation that forced you to confront a neighbor.

Really? Has someone been watching me? I found it funny that this was a prompt since I had to confront my neighbor 2 nights ago. If you are new, then go here first then here for the back story! If you are a follower, then you know about my neighbor situation and many of you have emailed asking for an update ~ here it is! After an air conditioner mishap involving water leaking, parts of the ceiling falling and ceiling stains, I was cleaning up the dinner mess. THAT air conditioner post will come soon! Isaiah comes screaming and crying into the kitchen saying, "Daddy is mean!" I said, "Well what happened?" since he says this almost everytime he is in trouble which is quite often. Hubs comes storming in telling him to tell me what he had done to which Zay replies, "She told me to take my pants down so she could see my weiner!" while crying REALLY hard! Hubs had walked outside to take the trash out and caught Zay with his pants down, literally. I knew Zay was telling the truth since he has NOT ever called it his "weiner" ~ EVER! Now some may shrug this off as curiosity but with the back story to the situation I was peeved to say the least! I immediately stormed out of the house and walked over to their house. The little was standing in the open garage. I said, "Can I speak with your Dad?" She quickly responded with, "NO!" I said, "Well I really need to speak with your father." She said, "Well you can't b/c we are about to eat dinner." Not willing to accept this answer I knocked on the front door. The older brother answered and let me in. The father was sitting in a recliner watching television and the mother was beside him in another chair smoking IN the house. They respond with "What did she do?" and the little girl runs up the steps screaming. I proceeded to tell them the situation and although they appeared shocked I didn't feel it was honest. I won't go into everything I said but basically told them she was saying and doing things that are inappropriate and they needed to speak with her. He turned the television off and called for the girl who by then was screaming her lungs off. Not crying just screaming! He said something and she screamed, "I am going to kill myself!" SERIOUSLY! He said, "Why would you say something like that?" My only thought was "hmmm.....it is time for one of us to move!" I then went home to have "the talk" with my 4 yr old son that I hated having the first time.

3.)Tell us about Grandpa.

I easily have many things to say on this topic but since I miss him terribly, his birthday was a few weeks ago and I just saw my Grandma yesterday, I don't think I can type it without crying! You can go here to read a post a did awhile back if you like.

INSTEAD I will talk about my Dad and his "Papa" skills! My boys LOVE their Meme and Papa! Papa is the type to teach them checkers, play Memory or teach the grandkids how to play cards. He is stern but always handing out hugs for his little buddies. I have countless pictures of the boys as babies sleeping with Papa in his throne, the recliner, and they are some of my favorites! He lets them "help" with repair projects and other activities like washing the cars, watering the lawn or building a small fence. He is the maker of tall tales and seems to be able to create a funny but kid logical answer to otherwise avoided questions. I don't get how he comes up with them so quick but they are normally funny. He is smart yet able to relate to his inner child! He is funny and loving so what more could you ask for in a Grandpa! We love him!

4.) Which appliance in your home would you most miss living without if you had to live without.

NONE!!

Hmmm......I was going to say the diswasher since I HATE handwashing dishes but I think the washer would be harder to live without since we have so much laundry!! WAIT....I guess I could take the clothes to the laundromat and get many loads done in a shorter time frame which I could not do with the dishes so I will have to stick with the dishwasher!!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

Time once again for MamaKat's Writer's Workshop Wednesday and I picked a few prompts for this week.....

1.) Interview a child.(inspired by Quilao Triplets)

I had to do this one since I had so much fun interviewing them about me!! It was hilarious!! I didn't get as many funny answers on this one but it was still fun!

Answered by Elijah age 7:

Daddy is 35 years old. (buzzer sounding he is 33!)

His eyes are brown.

His favorite food is bananas oh and he loves peanut butter and jelly!! (So true although I would've gone with chicken!)

He's stronger than an elephant

His job is I don't know to work

He's really good at playing football on the playstation (funny since he doesn't play that much) oh and uh he is really good at buying ugly cars (this is hilarious to me since I hate the junkheaps he brings home to restore!) .....oh and driving! (NOTE: I TOTALLY DISAGREE WITH THIS ~ HE IS A HORRIBLE DRIVER!!)

What is Daddy not very good at? cooking (Very true but I would like to add ~ DRIVING!)

I love my daddy because he is my Dad and he likes to be my coach when I play sports and he taught me how to ride my BIG bike that I thought I would never be able to ride because it is SO big!!

What makes Daddy happy? me listening

How does Daddy make you laugh? tickling me

How tall is Daddy? 300 feet

What is Daddy's shoe size? uh I don't know......size 48....is that right? Quit typing everything I say!....Am I close?.....ugh quit (NO!)

What is Daddy's favorite thing to do? sleep, eat, talk on the phone and watch football

How are you and Daddy alike? We have brown eyes

How are you and Daddy different? He is black and I am brown

How do you know Daddy loves you? Cause he's my Dad

Answered by Isaiah age 4:

I shortened his significantly due to the amount of anxiety during the whole Mommy interview I didn't think he could handle much more!!

Daddy is 33 years old!! (Dingdingdingdingding ~ correct baby boy!)

His eyes are hoad on so I can go wook...........they are brown. (form of cheating but I will let it slide)

His favorite food "panatates" (pancakes)

He's stronger than me.

His job is to work and make money!!

He's really good at working, doing exercise and taking me everywhere!

What is Daddy not good at? he's not dood at dwiving (RIGHT ON!)

I love my Daddy because Daddy took me to the doctor when I was sick one time (one time is right!!)

How do you know Daddy loves you? Betuz I always say, "I wuv you buncha bunches!" and he always says, "I love you too son!" and he gets me baby donuts on Sundays

How tall is Daddy? let me show you! He hops off my bed then places one hand on the floor and stretches the other arm as high as he can basically the span of his little four year old arms. I said, "Wow that tall?" He replies with, "Yea I know he is weally tall. Taller than us and taller than you!" (I don't think Hubs and "really tall" have even been used in the same sentence before.....bwahahahaha!!)

2.) How do you stave off boredom?(inspired by Jenn's Pen)

computers, dvr, cleaning and small children who limit time with the first two until they fall asleep!!

4.) Describe a memorable interview or talk about your experience trying to find a job amidst this recession.(inspired by Lacey)

Wow I've been wanting to blog about this! I went to apply for a job a couple of weeks ago and couldn't get into the door of the building. I went back to my truck to look at the hours and couldn't figure out why I couldn't open the door. Back to the door where there are no buttons, no intercoms when a strange man comes to the door asking what I needed. I replied, "I am here to apply for a job!" He then lets me in and leads me through a dark room full of dining room tables nicely arranged and beautiful couches along the perimeter. He then took me down several flights of stairs. The building was completely dark aside from a few sconces and very very quiet besides the loud clangs of my heels on the hollow stairs. At this point, I thought he was going to murder me and I was thankful at least my sister-in-law would know where I was since I had to call her to mapquest the address since I forgot my GPS at home. At this point I begin to hear some distant rambling and some hollering but at least I knew I wasn't alone. He then leads me through another darkened room then through a glass door down a hall to another door with a piece of paper taped to it reading, "Human Resources"......classy I know! The lady at the desk promptly says, "How did you get in here?" My reply, "The door........" at which point she cuts me off with "all the doors are locked!" I said, "A man brought me down here. Am I not supposed to be here? The ad read "apply in person"!" She then hands me an application and leads me to a dimly lit room with just a table and chair. I wanted to run back up the stairs and leave right that second. Alas, I need a job so I did not plus they would hear the clanging of my heels. The application was about 10 pages long with a full page front and back asking if I possessed the ability to speak in tongues and if I was "fluent". I don't believe in that (not trying to offend anyone who is I just grew up in a church that did not speak in tongues). First of all, I didn't realize one could be "fluent" in tongues. Seriously, if someone is speaking in tongues I didn't think anyone could understand them let alone interpret or translate. I thought it was more of a "moving of the spirit" rather than an actual language. Secondly, isn't it discrimination to ask religious belief questions on an application! I guess maybe if I was declined the job because of my inability to be "fluent in tongues" then that could be discrimination. Not worried though since I don't want this job! Long story short..........the job is low paying and I would be sitting in a cave for eight hours a day FILING!! I HATE FILING!! She kept going on and on and on and on about the filing portion and how difficult the filing would be. I hate filing but it is not difficult as long as you know the alphabet. She kept going back to the difficult filing and all I could figure is maybe they write in tongues there and so I would have to file in tongues therefore possessing the need to be fluent. Again, I really know nothing of speaking in tongues but I am almost sure you can't write in tongues BUT I could be wrong. It has happened once before! Anyway I kept thinking do I need to read tongues so I can file in tongues because even though I hate filing it is one of the most basic office duties! The lady basically said I was over qualified (thanks!). My fear is she REALLY LIKED me and interviewed me for over an hour. She really was down to earth and sweet. With my luck THIS will be the job I am offered!! I found out the decorative first room was actually a television set used for television ministry and the people hollering were actually praying in tongues on the prayer hotline.....who knew?!?!

Go visit MamaKat and to read the other links

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

Yep it's that time again and yep I am late again but still joining in!!

Jump on over to see Mama Kat and join in too!

Her story this week is HILARIOUS!

To combat last week's list I am going with this week's

#5

List ten things that make you HAPPY.

1. Hubs ~ I love his smile! I love watching him with our children! I love that he still likes to smack me on the butt every time I am anywhere near him! Wait.....sometimes that drives me nuts too! I love that he still makes me smile and makes me laugh everyday.....or almost everyday!! ha!
2. My children ~ they are so handsome, funny, sweet except when the arguing pursues, loving and well behaved or at least well behaved in the public eye even if they aren't at home
3. My family ~ my family cracks me up
4. Sarcastic humor
5. A clean house......a REALLY clean house like after spring cleaning when everything is organized and you can lick the floor.....not like my house is now in order to clarify! All donations will be accepted for maid service or if you have a maid and your house is clean I can handle airport pickup service to get HER TO MY HOUSE......COME ON PEOPLE help a girl out here!
6. laughing children ~ I love a true uncontrollable belly laugh! THAT is music to my ears!
7. driving really fast alone with the radio up full blast then singing at the top of my lungs ~ I am a rock star ya'll!! Oops maybe I should have said~ I am a rock star yo!
8. pedicures and manicures ~ hey I don't want to saw that crap off my feet and I enjoy someone pampering me for a change! Nails ~ I haven't had nails on in FOR.EV.ER! Love 'em but don't have them right now! "Why do you love them?", you ask. Because my fingers resemble vienna sausages without them!
9. Blogging, photography and scrapbooking ~ it is free therapy.....well the blogging is at least! Since my scrapbooking hobby could break a bank! I can say whatever I want on my blog plus it is easy to record things for the kids this way! I love taking pictures and putting them together in a fun way! I LOVE LOVE looking at the scrapbooks I have done already......although there aren't many!
10. George Strait ~ did you guys watch that deal last night? I don't know how old he is but he is still sexy in those tight jeans and cowboy hat. He oozes sexy!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

Time for Writer's Workshop Wednesday!

Yes I am late but I can't sleep b/c my feet hurt so freaking bad and I am using one of Mama Kat's prompts this week to vent!

I choose prompt #3:

List ten things you are currently sick of

1. Fighting ~ I am so sick of sibling rivalry around here. They are driving me nuts. They know what buttons to push on each other and they purposely poke those buttons......oh let's say about a 100,000,000 times per day.


2. Elijah has been really angry lately. For no reason he gets mad then cries. What is up with that? It can be the smallest thing and he thinks it is the end of the world. This is not like him AT ALL and I am tired of it. Is this normal seven year old behavior because it just IS. NOT. HIM? If so, how long does it last before I flip out on him?


3. Plantar faciitis ~ my feet hurt really bad! They say don't go bare foot! Um....they don't know me at all! The second I walk in the door I am barefoot and I have been this way forever. They say don't wear flip flops! Flip flops are the next best thing to being barefoot besides the fact they are my favorite form of footwear. I am supposed to wear tennis shoes with these inserts that really do help but I can't wear tennis shoes with any of my spring or summer attire for fear they will accentuate the cankle look I sport!


4. The red Tahoe that pulls out in front of me EVERY SINGLE MORNING on my way to Elijah's school. I am pulling in the neighborhood from the main road and I see her sitting on the first neighborhood street waiting to turn. Does she turn while it is clear and I am still sitting on the main road? NO! She waits until I am almost in front of her THEN she pulls out. She has done this every morning for about a month. Do you know how many times I've almost hit her? Too many! It is starting to really tick me off! My truck is bigger than her truck and if my kids weren't with me I think one day I would purposely hit her to teach her a lesson!


5. The whole taking the kids to school and picking them up from school routine! If it wasn't for the whole educational thing they have going on, I would have more leverage for complaining here. Isaiah gets done at 2pm, Tez at 2:40pm then Elijah at 3:40pm. Not enough time in between to do anything of significance once you count them getting to the car, waiting to get out of the parking lot then driving to the next school BUT TOO LONG to just sit in the car. From the time I leave to get Zay until the time I finally get home, I am in the car 2 hours and 15 minutes!!! I wish I was working and Hubs schedule went back to what it was so I would NOT have to do this!!


6. Worrying about money since my unemployment


7. Laundry ~ I don't mind doing laundry but we just have so much of it! Hubs always says, "Wow it is never ending!" I think, "Yep unless we join a nudist colony! You ought to try doing some once in awhile!"


8. Staying home ~ not going to work, being bored, a serious lack of adult conversation, being tired and sleeping away about 2 days per week (shhh let's not let that get out!), cleaning, errands and did I mention the "pick the kids up from school" routine


9. I would say rain BUT our new rain diddy worked wonders and it hasn't rained all week!! WOOHOO!!


10. Cleaning all day then when everyone gets home it is destroyed in milliseconds without a care in the world.......this is where the downfall of my insanity begins and heads are going to roll!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

This week I am going with prompt #2

Do you want a baby?

Do "I" want a baby?

Obviously YOU are not one of my followers if you even have to ask!!

Sure, do you have an extra girl to give away?

Preferably one that would match my boys with curly hair, brown skin BUT with my blue eyes......irrestibly beautiful that will want to wear cute little dresses everyday, have tea parties, play with dolls and want her nails and hair done nicely with a bow. I would appreciate one that is still a baby BUT sleeps through the night. I would also appreciate a lump sum of money since I would probably go bankrupt buying baby girl clothes. There are so many more girls clothes out there and I don't know if I could stop.

I want a girl soooo bad but I am not willing to chance it. I would need 100% chance of a girl to agree to being cut open again from hip to hip plus there is the small matter of Hubs and his vasectomy!

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WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

For this week's Writer's Workshop Wednesday, I am choosing option number....

2.)

Is plastic surgery an option? Without being vulgar, write about the body part still attached to you that you would most like to dis-attach and replace with a better one.

IS plastic surgery an option?

Really?

Seriously?

YES!

It would be even more of an option if I had the whole independently wealthy thing going on!

Why couldn't I be a trust fund baby or golddigger?

Which part?

This really should say which partSSSSS!

Let's see I would do some lipo from the second chin down to.......oh let's say the cankles making sure to spend plenty of needed time in the butt and thigh region of my body! I am a mother of two so let's also go with a breast lift so that they no longer sit on my stomach and throw in some implants to address the deflation while you are there. I would like to remove some scars while I am at it......is that possible?!?! Since I will be adding more scars from the whole breast issue this could minimize the road map look I currrently sport on my stomach left from pregnancy stretch marks, surgery to remove my gallbladder, appendectomy, surgery to remove an ovary and a tumor PLUS two c-sections. I call my belly "mapquest" with several pitstops left by children and doctors. Needless to say even if I was small I would not be wearing a bikini! Well.....ok......I should be completely honest. I would clean the house, do laundry, cook, blog and dance around in front of the mirror in a bikini just to see my hot self but not in public. Last and certainly NOT least, I want a tummy tuck! I tell ya all those surgeries, being overweight and let us NOT forget two c-sections makes the abdomen from the belly button down NOT. A. PRETTY. SIGHT. Disgusting, in fact!! I've seen Moms who weren't even fat to begin with and lost their pregnancy weight still posess the "flap". UGH! I truly believe the post c-section flap will NEVER EVER EVER go away without a tummy tuck. I know someone will write and say that is wrong BUT I just don't believe it since I haven't seen anyone get a c-section and not have some "baggage" there! If I only could have one of my options, it would definitely be the tummy tuck! FOR SURE!!! Donations will be accepted until all of my belongings are sold to pay for the surgery!! Thank you!

To join Mama Kat in WWW or to simply read others' posts, click on the image at the top of this post!!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

1.) If I sent you four hundred dollars today what is ONE thing you would spend it on and why. ps I want my change!

I would pay my son's daycare or my car payment because I don't have a job right now and donations by you would be wonderful and I could email you my address in about .2 seconds! And sorry there would not be any change!

2.) What are your kids talking about?

Currently they are talking about who has more noodles in their bowl!

It is a constant competition with these kids!

3.) Tell us about a local news story that's all the buzz right now in your neck of the woods.

Not necessarily all the buzz but my parents' 24 year business closing was on the 6 o'clock news yesterday! Just made me sad all over again! Apparently customers were calling the news station wondering what happened so they called my Dad for an interview and did a story.

4.) Share some blogging advice.

Link your email to your blog so when people comment you can answer them through your email or people can answer you when you comment! That annoys me when I try to talk to a commenter and it says "no reply blogger"! Ugh! Just set up a gmail account strictly for your blog. It is so easy to do. If you need help, I think Mama Kat has a post about it. Oh and turn those stupid word verification things OFF! I hate those!

5.) Tell us about that time at the playground when that thing happened

Well every time my Mom takes the boys to the park Isaiah has to pee. Normally she would have him pee behind a tree but with the weather being nicer there is a much larger crowd. Recently she took a water bottle and taught him how to pee in it in the car. Now he thinks he needs a water bottle in the car to pee in whenever it is needed and can't understand why my Mom won't pee in it when she needs to go!

Head on over to MamaKat's for more WWW posts!

You know you want to!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY ~ A LITTLE LATE!

I know this is actually last week's prompts; however, something unexpected happened and I was unable to finish until now so needless to say I didn't link up. I was going to discard it but I was almost done so I am posting it anyway.

Enjoy!

It's time for Writer's Workshop Wednesday with Mama Kat and I must say I am having a hard time picking just ONE prompt this week so I will be doing many!

1. Why did you do it?

Hubs and I met in Dec 2000 and I was pregnant by April 2001. Nice! I know, right! Needless to say not exactly my proudest moment, but I was excited. I could NOT believe I was pregnant! It took the nurse a lot of convincing for it to sink in. I was told 4 years earlier after several medical complications and many cysts that I would never be able to get pregnant. It crushed me but I had dealt with this fact of life and moved on. So when I found out I was actually pregnant , I was excited even though I was not married. My family was a different story. Now obviously I did not wait until I was married to have sex like I had been taught all of my life. I know many people disagree with this BUT I can NEVER say I regret that decision because that would be saying I regret Elijah. My parents first and only reaction was "Are you getting married?"

MY answer was "NO!"

They were appalled and upset to say the least. I was so hurt that after knowing my struggle with the thought of never having babies they were not even the least bit excited (at first but they got over that) I still to this day stand firm in my belief that couples should not get married because they are having a child. I know MANY MANY people disagree with me but unless you have been there, you don't really know.

How many people do you know that got married due to pregnancy starting ages ago when that was the "rule of thumb" that are now divorced?

I know if you aren't ready for marriage and kids then you shouldn't be having sex in the first place but alas I was young and not the best decision maker. My family did not understand. My view is this. Things happen. I NEVER EVER wanted Hubs to marry me because I was pregnant. I wanted the wedding. I wanted him to marry me because he couldn't imagine his life without me in it. I NEVER wanted him to be able to say somewhere down the road in the midst of an argument that he only married me because I was pregnant. I can't imagine how hurt I would be. Some may consider that selfish but oh well! I wanted him to marry me for me not because he felt trapped or pushed into it by others' opinions. We had a couple of rough years before we got married and I don't think we were ready for marriage because we were both too selfish and naive. I heard all the "well if you aren't ready for marriage then you aren't ready for children" speeches and I still believe strongly in my choice. I think waiting and working on our issues only made us stronger and more mature. I honestly don't know if we would have made it had we got married as soon as I got pregnant. So why did I do it? Because it is our life, our decision and our child! We feel we made the best decision that only made us happier and stronger in the end.

2. What is a common misconception about you?

This misconception is handed out by my in-laws. They believe because of where I was raised and my parents owning their own business that we are rich and snobby. HAHAHAHAHA!!! Oh how that angers me! First of all we were FAR FAR from rich. I have worked for my parents since I was ten years old. I had to work before and after school plus weekends. I really did not participate in many school activities. It was work and church activities only. I feel like I missed out on a lot of my childhood because of it but I would in no way say I had a "bad" childhood. I had friends and I got to do a lot of things BUT I paid for them myself by working. I worked. I was not entitled. I paid for my gas, my car insurance, my clothes, many camps and retreats, movies and outings. We were by NO means rich! I believe growing up and working for money made me a more responsible adult with more appreciation for the things I have. Don't get me wrong ~ at the time I hated it but I learned so much. Now the snobby part is hysterical to me. ANYONE who knows ANYONE in my family and has spent at least 1 SECOND with them or me KNOWS WE are FAR from snobby. How is it that they REFUSE to talk to us and then we are the snobs?

Pot meet kettle!!

In fact, I am not even going to expand anymore on my feelings about that portion and just leave it at that! Maybe they have misconceptions because they have NEVER ONCE ask me ANY questions about my childhood nor have they EVER tried to get to know me. Even when I try to start any type of conversation I get simple one word "I don't want to talk to you" answers!

I just have one thing to say ~

Nothing I have was or is handed to me. We work hard for what we have MAYBE YOU SHOULD TRY IT!! Oh that felt good!

3. Describe a moment when you felt afraid

~When I was 6 mos pregnant with Elijah, I was having horrible pains. I thought I was having a heart attack but turns out after going to the ER that I had to have my gallbladder removed. I was in serious pain folks. I think it was worse than labor. Anyway they said I HAD to have the surgery and the baby would be fine. Then on my way into surgery the anesthesiologist decides to tell me if I had the surgery I would be killing the baby. WHAT? Turns out he was wrong and not allowed to be my anesthesiologist because of his remarks. I had the surgery and we were both fine.

~My emergency C-section with Elijah because his heart was freaking out!

~When I realized my fears of Isaiah not being able to hear me were true!

~All three of Isaiah's surgeries

4. In what ways are you turning into your Mother?

Let's see......my nose peels 365 days a year and we have both tried anything and every thing!! I worry like my Mother which in turn causes bowel issues ~ I know TMI!! We both have IBS! I know, TMI! We can't seem to tell people NO when asked to do something even when we don't want to. She is horrible at this and I am getting worse! I just hope I turn out to be half the Mother/Woman she is!

5. Are you always right?

This has to be THE dumbest question EVER!!!

Am I always right?

YES

If YOU think I am wrong, think AGAIN!

In all honesty, I am not always right just 99.9% of the time!!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

It's time again for Writers' Workshop Wednesday so hop on over to join in the fun with Mama Kat or read the other posts!

I used to think......

~being a Mother would be so easy since it comes natural and all!

I love kids! Taking care of kids was always so easy for me before I was a parent so I just assumed I would have all the answers and would always be able to calm a crying baby. I was crushed when I was told I would not be able to bear children. I had accepted that fact and then four years later ~ SURPRISE ~ I was pregnant. Of course, I was so excited since I had always known I wanted children of my own. I must admit the first one WAS easy. In fact, many people would say to me, "he is so good it is almost creepy". I took it as a compliment of sorts. He was easy, laid back, fun, smart and then Isaiah was born and the monster inside broke free. He was so excited to have a brother UNTIL he was born. Although he was always good and caring with Isaiah, he turned all his anger of having to share attention out on me! Ugh! Isaiah.....well......he was NOT easy and that is putting it lightly. He still is not easy. He was good until he turned two weeks old and then the colic started. Colic is awful! It makes you feel inadequate as a Mother and hard to bond with your child who is always screaming. My views of being the perfect Mother came to a crashing halt. I had a baby with colic and a 4 yr old struggling with not getting enough attention. It is amazing how fast you realize you DON'T know everything. I used to think being a Mom would be easy BUT boy was I wrong.

MY kids would NOT hide in clothes racks at stores.

MY kids would NEVER talk back.

MY kids would NOT throw fits at stores.

MY kids would sleep in their OWN bed without argument.

MY kids would make it to the toilet before vomiting.

MY kids would not constantly argue.

My boys are good for the most part and I think I am doing a good job, but they are NOT the perfect children I envisioned before becoming a Mother. Maybe God gave me my boys to make sure I understand I DON'T know everything and be the only man to prove me wrong.....lololol!!!

Being a Mother is one the most important jobs on Earth.

These boys are my (I know I keep saying "my" but just know I totally include Hubs) responsibility. I have to make sure they becoming thriving adults and respectable, devoted men.

Wow, what a weight!

I love being a Mom and I don't take my job lightly. I will be their Mother until the day I die and my job will never end. It may become easier when they are grown but they will always be a part of me. It is amazing to me how much we take our Mother's and all they do for granted UNTIL we are Mothers ourselves! You never truly appreciate your parents until you ARE a parent!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

A bit late but I intended to do it so I am GOING. TO. DO. IT.

What is normal?

This prompt caught my eye as I was questioned by a Mother about our hectic life due to "letting" our kids play sports and our schedule not being "normal"! Here's my rant!

According to Webster's, normal is conforming with a standard, pattern, level or type - typical - functioning or occurring in a natural way.

Typical ~ let's go with that one!

Raising a step-son with special needs, I really don't like the word "normal". I have come to realize that "normal" is different for everyone. Yes, he has special needs but that is HIS normal. Yes, some of the things he reacts different to are not considered normal but they are typical reactions for him thereby making them his "normal" reactions. People often say after finding out he is Intellectually Disabled (the new PC term for Mentally Retarded) ~ "WOW I never would've guessed since he looks so normal!" OK! Well it is true he does not have any of the outward appearance features that most people associate with mental retardation. I think most people think you have to either have Downs Syndrome, be in a wheelchair unable to control your own body with drool hanging down or completely unable to form a sentence to be labeled ID. NOT TRUE! To look at Tez you would not know he has anything wrong with him. He looks "normal"! His gross motor skills are great and he is very active in sports. His fine motor skills are horrid at best. He is a 9th grader with elementary writing, reading and math skills. He is right on level with a 4th grader when it comes to his education but you would only know that if you were told or asked him to complete some on level 9th grade material. No this may not be "normal" if you include the standards of education they use to evaluate him or if you compare him to other children his age BUT this is HIS normal! I think people focus to much on labeling people or their responses to their own normal.

"Normal" is different for everyone and everyone sets different standards for their life.

What is acceptable for one may not be acceptable for another.

What one child can do may be impossible for the next but who are we to say they are not normal?

Who are we to judge because someone doesn't fit our personal definition of normal??

What I consider not the norm is another's norm.

Yes I have been known to say, "Now that's just not normal!" and I guess I was wrong because it could be normal for them!

Some people do not consider our hectic life normal but for us it is all we know. Are we supposed to sit around and let our children pass up on sports or other activities to become lazy bumps on a log to avoid the hustle and bustle of the "soccer mom" life?

NO!

I want my kids to be involved and active. I will support them in their chosen activities whether football, basketball, soccer, band, dance or choir. I must admit baseball and golf would pretty much bore me to death and I would rather rip all of the hair out of my head than to watch either one BUT I would be there sitting in the stands ripping each and every hair out between cheers! YES, it is exhausting and tough but I will not be an uninvolved parent. SO for now this is our norm. Football practices, scrimmages and games ~ our norm. Basketball practices and games ~ our norm. Drive to three different schools each day, volunteer at this school, chaperoning at this activity, coaching this team, working, taking kids to this appointment, going to countless birthday parties, taking snacks to this class or that, reading to them when all I want to do is sit or sleep, helping with homework, attending this meeting, I could go on and on ~ our norm. Some people are home bodies and that is their norm. Our norm these days is hectic at best but we love OUR normal.

We are parents and that is what we signed up for ~ to be involved in our kids lives by supporting them in what they choose not pushing them to be what they don't desire and helping them learn along the way about life while showering them with love.

THAT my friends is OUR normal!!

For more Writer's Workshop Wednesday, go visit MamaKat!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

Time once again for Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop Wednesday

Being that I am deciding last minute to go ahead with this post, I chose the easy way out and am listing my "Five Most Recent Favorite Things". Here we go:

#1

In my quest to become environmentally friendly as mentioned before and mainly to please a certain 7 yr old nagger nature lover, I began recycling when I noticed just how many plastic bags accumulate at our house. WOW!

Also while being an idiot and opening my big fat mouth starting a recycling program at his elementary school, I learned that sometime in the near future Wally World will no longer offer bags. WHAT? you ask. YEP, you heard it hear folks. Just like Aldi's you will have to pay for your bags or bring your own! Sad but honestly I think it will be a good thing.....maybe they can roll back some more prices once they are paying for bags! Yeah right! SO I decided to start buying bags periodically now!

Although the Aldi's bag is large compared to most of the cloth shopping bags and they have a great slogan ~ It's all about saving green! (earth and money if you didn't catch on!), I think they are too big. They get really heavy once they are full.

Wow I am really making this longer than necessary....too bad!

I took Elijah to Toys 'r Us because he had some birthday "change in his pocket goin' chang a lang a lang" and well I love to shop when I found these

little cutie patootie shopping bags! Aren't they cute! You wanna know what makes them even cuter........they are normally $1.49 to $1.99 and I got those little boogers for FIFTY CENTS a piece! So what did I do......I bought like 6 of them. Could've kicked myself the next day when I went to get some more and found out it was just a one day special offer! Next...

#2

Palmolive pure + clear

Sparkling fresh scent

This stuff smells so good! I rarely use dish soap but I am finding myself looking for things I can clean it with just so the wonderful smell fills the room. Sadly I am not lying! I find myself squirting it all over the sink just to rub around and clean even though it might be clean! Hey if I am doing that then it must smell good!

DISCLAIMER: I do NOT hand wash dishes! Wet food is repulsive to me and if left sitting it will make me gag so every dish goes straight into the dishwasher. I hate it and only do it when ABSOLUTELY necessary......about once a month....well honestly if that! Telling you this because I do not know how it really stacks up to other dish washing detergents but it smells good so who really cares, right!

#3

My homemade cleaner!

Smells alright ~ fresh

Zay helps me clean because he is just weird like that and he says, "oohh Momma it smells dood!"

Super douper cheap

Cleans everything although I don't use it on glass or mirrors because the oils in it leaves streaks

I got this little bottle at Wally World for 99cents but it looks amazingly just like an empty water bottle with a squirter dealie and yes that is a technical homemade cleaner maker term there so don't feel bad if you don't what a "squirter dealie" is ~ it will all come in time!

I got the guts of the recipe from The Toby Show but I tweaked it and experimented with it until I got what I wanted. You can find my recipe here.

#4

I won't lie and say I love this book because I haven't actually opened it yet......hold on I am laughing at myself

..........still laughing.........

ok.....so I haven't opened it but the mere thought of sneaking vegetables to unsuspecting children sounds like fun to me so I am going to try it someday soon! I'll let you know what I think!

#5

By far my most favorite recent thing is

Hubs new 14 day avg blood sugar is 192 ~way down from his 60-90 day AVERAGE of 443! Did you see that.... his AVERAGE was 443 so that means he got into the upper 600s! Wow! But thanks to his amazingly smart, loving wife who nagged him for 3 months that she knew he had diabetes, he finally gave in and got checked only to find out his amazingly smart, loving wife was right yet AGAIN! Not trying to take credit here at all folks...........well maybe just a small pat on the back! Yes he still has some in the upper 200s but it is occasional tests like this

AND THIS

that are bringing my baby's life and glucose back down to normalville.....as normal as it can be in our household anyway!

Thanks for stopping by!

Come back for Friday High Five!

To see more Writer's Workshop Wednesday posts go on over and visit Mama Kat plus she is really good for a laugh. Oh wait, you ALL need to watch her What's in my purse? video! Too cute!

For more of MY Writer's Workshop Wednesday posts go here!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY

Writer's Workshop Wednesday

my pick ~ the easy way out~

10 THINGS ON MY MIND THIS WEEK

1. Will I ever get the mound of bills scattered in a thousand piles throughout the house filed? I never open mail! I pay all of our bills online and never open them. They just sit in random piles everywhere. I need to sort, file then organize all the medical and daycare bills so I can do our taxes!


2. My husband found out last Friday he is diabetic and yesterday we got in to see one of the top diabetes Doctors in the state! Thank you God for an answer to our prayers! Although we have so much more to learn, we understand so much more after seeing the new doctor. Cooking, grocery shopping, counting carbs, adjusting insulin, making sure he is not in a coma.....yep those are all on my mind this week!


3. I really need my Dad to get better and pass his two kidney stones so he can get back to work! My desk looks like his aka a disaster and it needs to be cleaned! His desk ~ NO hope! My phone calls have quadrupled and I am too stressed out and tired to deal with it all right now!


4. Can Friday ~ my day "off" ~ ever really be just for me? Just once?


5. Will I ever get to scrapbook again? Will we ever eat at the kitchen table again thanks to the loads of scrapbooking supplies that took it over? Will I ever get a craft room?


6. How long before I am out of a job? Dad retiring? Shutting down? Buyout? When? What will I do? Where will I go? I will never find the flexibility I have now!!


7. Did I bite off more than I can chew when creating the school recycling program and volunteering to organize and run the project? Where will I ever find the time? Probably Friday!!


8. Why can't public school start at around....oh let's say 10:30 - 11ish?!?!?


9. If I let Moose out the side gate, would he run away or stick around? Just kidding ~ well kind of! I know, I know that was awful BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE WITH HIM!


10. How much does a maid cost? I CAN'T KEEP UP!!!

Go on over to Mama's Losin' It and join in Writer's Workshop Wednesday!

You know you want to try it!

WRITER'S WORKSHOP WEDNESDAY: MR. PLOWMAN!

For this week's Writer's Workshop Wednesday I chose ~ write a letter to someone who bothered you this week! Not sure if this is allowed but I kind of switched it to a song that I have been singing and creating all day! I'm telling ya'll I'm sick in the head...hehe!

First of all it goes to the tune of Mr. Sandman.....you know the one.....Mr.Sandman, bring me a dream, make him the cutest that I've ever seen.....ok I will wait as you catch the tune and get your vocals ready...


.....still waiting because I know some of ya'll are googling to get the tune because when you had kids they sucked the brains and memory clear out of your head like they did mine! Why do you think I stopped with kid number 2? Besides ya'll know you originally started blogging so you wouldn't forget all the crazy cute things your kids do!.....




....ready, let's go.....


Mr. Plowman, we need to talk (bum bum bum bum)
I need a break so let's take a walk (bum bum bum bum)
Your plowing maaaaiiinn streets the sun melted (bum bum bum bum)
The cars behind you are getting pelted.
Plowman, I'm not alone
The Okie Mommss don't want to stay home
Please plow the right streets
Mr. Plowman we need to meet!


(bum bum bum bum bum........)



Mr. Plowman, YOU don't get it
I've had more fun just pinching my zits
The kids are bored, restless and fighty
The cabin fever symptoms are so mighty
Plowman, I'm not alone
The Okie Mommss don't want to stay home
Pleeeease plow the right streets
Mr. Plowman, we need to meet!



(bum bum bum bum bum........)



Mr. Plowman, (male voice: "Yessss!") us Mom's are real coollllll
but our ki-ids need back in school
The maaaaiinn streets are clear of all icy
so do the streets by homes it would be nicey
Sandman, please plow the bus routes (plow the bus routes)
Before the Okie Moms go on the outs
We'rrree going o-nn day three
Mr. Plowman plow them, please please please
Mr. Plowman plow the right streets!



Rough I know! I only changed it a kazillion times while singing the madness today after I saw the plows going down clear main roads and received a call cancelling school tomorrow yet AGAIN due to unclear bus routes! Not bitter! Not bitter at all I tell you!

For more Writer's Workshop Wednesday posts go to

and join in the madness!

DO YOU REALLY NEED 6 WORDS?

This week I decided to do two of the options for Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop Wednesday!

The second one I chose was #2 ~ Ask a loved one to use 6 descriptive words to describe you and report your findings. How well do they know you?

Scared to see what people really think and wondering if they will be completely honest! Let's see 1st I will give you the 6 words I would use to describe myself: generous, amazing, intelligent, hilarious, sarcastic and amazing and yes I know I said amazing twice!!! So now let's see what the others had to say.....dodododo.......

First I call Chaitra who says, "Why? Is this for some kind of application for something?"

Me ~ "No it is for my blog and be completely honest!"

Chai ~ "Ok dependable....um......let me think....umm....hold on, what is this for again!"

Me ~ "Ok you shouldn't need to think this long! It is for my blog! It's not like you are at number 5! You've only listed one!" (realizing I have now ruled out patient!)

Chai ~ "Sincere, HILARIOUS (see!), nurturing....."

Me ~ "Awww you are doing pretty good keep going and remember to be honest!"

Chai ~ "....be honest huh?!? Well you are nurturing towards all children but not so much with me!"

Me ~ "Shut up! I am nurturing! You are just easy to make fun of because I know too much about you! If you need nurturing, you are going to have to call your mom! Keep going!"

Chai ~ Laughing "See that wasn't nurturing AT ALL! Ok you are definitely bullheaded!"

Me ~ "Mmm...hmm..."

Chai ~ "Let's see I need one more.....hmmm.....friendly? I don't know!?"

Me ~ "I don't know as if I would call myself friendly. Do you have another one?"

Chai ~ "Ok maybe you aren't really friendly."

Me ~ "WHAT! I was joking!"

Chai ~ "Well you ARE friendly to people you know! Ok I'll say beautiful!"

Me ~ "That one is great and generic! Ok thanks!"

So Chai said dependable, sincere, hilarious, nurturing, bullheaded, friendly and beautiful!

So I call my mother! Now first of all my Mother loves me unconditionally and won't say anything bad about me TO me so this was more of an ego-booster for me rather than a quest for honest answers although it is honestly how she feels about me

My Mom ~ "Let me see...you are loving and caring. I think you are absolutely beautiful! How many is that?"

Me ~ "That's just three Mom. You are halfway there!"

My Mom ~ "Just three.....ugh.....um......you have charisma. You are so so funny! (ding ding)....and um motherly."

Me ~ "Ok thanks Mom good thing you aren't biased at all! Love you!"

My unbiased Mother thinks I am loving, caring, beautiful, charismatic, funny and motherly! Good going Mom!

Still wanting someone who will be honest I call my friend Shandolynne

Me ~ "I need six words you would use to describe me"

Shan ~ "Let me think.....................(Quin doing something in the back)..just a minute Quinlynne............uuuuummmmm...............let....me...think........uuummm......ugh six words ok.......

Me ~ "You shouldn't have to think that long!"

Shan ~ ".......um.......ugh........uh..ok....fun, intelligent (ding ding!), loving, nurturing (gee I got that one twice I must be really nurturing!), .............oh you are creative (Good one Shan!), and let's see supportive and it wouldn't have taken me so long if I wasn't concentrating so hard on something before you called!"

Good job Shandolynne! You are right I am fun, intelligent, loving, nurturing (except to Chai), creative and supportive!!

I think all in all everyone was a little mushy mushy and didn't want to say anything bad about me but hey I AM A OK WITH THAT!

There you have it folks I am:

dependable, sincere, hilarious, nurturing (except to Chai who needs to call her mom), bullheaded, friendly, beautiful, loving, caring, charismatic, funny, motherly, fun, intelligent, creative and supportive. I am not at all in the least ~ impatient, bossy, straight forward, demanding and I never ever procrastinate!!!

MY LATEST OBSESSION

Join in on Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop Wednesday:

My Latest Obsession

My latest obsession is rewarding yet depressing at times and of course it involves reading the ever addictive blogs so you know I am hooked. Anyone who reads my blog knows about Maddox. Maddox's mom, Tammi, is the sister of a co-worker. When Tammi was seven months pregnant with Maddox, the doctors informed her Maddox had HLHS or Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. This is where the left side of the heart is either under developed or not developed at all. A series of three surgeries can be done to fix the heart depending on the severity while other require heart transplants. Tammi was told that if Maddox survived birth that he would only live a few moments. The Doctors said Maddox would need a heart transplant within the first few moments of life and it is rare that a matching heart would be available. Tammi and Manny were devastated. Her sister Brandi asked me to surf the net in hopes of finding answers. I did just that and found a hospital that agreed to look at her case as soon as she could get there. Tammi flew out the next day but due to insurance issues they were not allowed to treat Maddox unless the insurance was cancelled. Tammi could not take this risk in case she needed it for Maddox later on when no one would probably want to insure him. She found a hospital closer to home and finally had Maddox. A beautiful baby boy that underwent countless medical procedures and a few medical mistakes made by the doctors and nurses but he always came out with a smile on his face. I can't even count the number of times Tammi and Manny were told he wasn't going to make it through the night. Maddox was a medical miracle, living through things that even astounded his doctors. God had special plans for Maddox. I would call him Miracle Maddox. I can't imagine being told once that my children were not going to make it through the night and simply thinking about it makes me cry. I got daily updates on Maddox from Brandi and tried to stay up to date with all the HLHS info and his case. I was obsessed with this little boy and all things HLHS! It is odd how I had never even heard HLHS once before Maddox and yet found so many people affected by it on Blogger. I am now obsessed with all "heart babies" and often wonder what I can do. I pour over all of these blogs as if I know each one of them personally. Each successful procedures is exciting for me and I hold my breath for each outcome.


Sadly after several surgeries including his heart transplant in October (yet another miracle ~ he was only on the transplant list for one day!), Maddox passed away unexpectedly on Nov. 21, 2008. Just before leaving the room for a minor routine procedure Maddox gave his Daddy a "noggin" and a kiss and said, "Don't worry Momma I be wight back!" I can't imagine the devastation these young parents are going through especially when the procedure he went in for was only supposed to take a few minutes and he was doing so well. He was supposed to be home for Christmas! At that point he was fine or so they thought. Apparently Maddox was in severe organ rejection and no one knew. Maddox is missed and his family is understandably in an array of emotions. Tammi was pregnant with her second child when Maddox passed away and gave birth to their new healthy baby girl on Jan. 3rd, 2009. No one can replace Maddox EVER and he will NEVER be forgotten but I hope the new baby can at least bring some joy back into their life and maybe take their mind off of the pain if only for minutes each day. It is so sad to see her in a room FULL of family and friends and she is still so distant, in shock, in pain, in denial, angry and seemingly ALONE in her own world with just her and her memories of Maddox. I pray for her to find peace in this new world without her beloved son!

As I mentioned before I have found many going through the trials involved with HLHS then came upon Trisomy 18 and other heart babies. The numbers of cases astounds me and boggles my mind. How can we invent this crazy computer and talk to people all the way around the world but we can't cure defects and diseases of the human body? Maybe we should spend less money on electronic technology for now and erradicate heart defects, cancer and aids. Extreme I know but a girl can dream can't she!


Here are just a FEW of the heart baby blogs that I follow ~ go take a look at these babies who will go through more in their first month of life than most of us go through in a lifetime and they are all smiley happy babies! It will really put your problems into perspective!

Bela Grace, These Nine Months, Fearfully and Wonderfully Made, The Stanfield Journey, Anderson's Avenue, Lily's Angel Heart, Baby's Journey Home, Michael James Sheehan Irwin, Bring on the Rain and of course Mck Mama at My Charming Kids

I told you I was obsessed!!

Did I mention I am completely obsessed with Blogger??

I decided later on to also complete #2 on the Writer's Workshop list feel free to go read it too!

10 THINGS I LEARNED IN 2008

Joining in on Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop Wednesday for the 1st time here we go:

TEN THINGS I LEARNED IN 2008

CAUTION: This post might cause you to believe I am a little nuts! Don't worry I am! I even won two free tickets to the Looney Bin to prove it!! Oh yeah I need to go pick those up! Have fun guys and have a great New Years! I will since all my boys will be watching football and I will be SHOPPING. KID. FREE!!

1. I learned through flying kites for the first time that our 3yr and a 6yr old have short attention spans for objects flying high in the sky. Fun at first then they are like are we done now and you have to wind it ALL back up!! However we had a GREAT laugh each and every time Isaiah's kite would "fly away"! He would scream HELP repeatedly while running with his arm stretched out as far as it could go and the string unraveling at lightning speed! That's a sight! It never got old! Really I laughed each time! You don't think I handed over control of the kite simply because he asked, do you?!?! I think he thought once all the string was done unraveling that he might just fly away too!
2. I learned that when you go to sporting events games with friends and you think the husbands are checking out the cheerleaders......THEY ARE! Wow they give them big 'ol smiles! Hey I'm bendy too!
3. Elijah learned how to ride his bike without the training wheels and who knew it would be such a pivotal moment of humor. He ran into 4month old pile of ice storm debris ~ twice, rode into a parked car ~ twice, fell and scrapped his elbow then after the meltdown he eventually got back out and rode again! That was the best part even though the parked car incident was funny after we knew he was ok!
4. Who knew a trip from Tulsa to Atlanta could be so eventful? And who knew Memphis and North Little Rock were so scary? In North Little Rock I was mistaken for a prostitute. I am still wondering if besides being a bad thing that maybe in someway it could be good! Don't think so but still wondering! Trying to find the Lorraine Motel, home of the National Civil Rights museum and the Martin Luther King Memorial, we witnessed a young boy get hit by a car then stopped to help until I saw his leg bone sticking OUT of his leg and almost puked on him. When I turned around I noticed a bunch of crackheads just circling our truck in a daze, Martez quickly ran over once he saw them. He was worried about the truck and I was worried about the kids inside the truck! Yes this all really happened ~ just in the first half of the drive there!
5. Who knew that losing a pet could be so heartbreaking? She wasn't just any pet and I never had a pet that special ~ probably never will! I certainly didn't and I could still cry just thinking about my precious GIANT baby girl Daisy. I certainly never thought I would miss a Great Dane trying to get a handshake while I am on the toilet ~ sick I know ~ but I do!
6. I learned that no matter how many times I see Adriano Moraes butt I NEVER get sick of it! Even if you hate bull riding you have to like a bull rider in tight wranglers. If you don't like that, you need your eyes checked!
7. I also learned when it's your son's last day to prove he can jump in the deep end during swimming lessons his foot will really itch. Every time you think he is about to jump in, have the camera ready for the 100th shot of him just bending over to scratch said itchy foot!! AND thinking your son is drowning while his teacher isn't paying attention and he can't stay above water long enough to hear you screaming "JUST STAND UP! YOU CAN TOUCH BABY STAND UP!" ~ that's scary!
8. I learned the word "kitties" is a truly embarrassing word when you have a 3yr old screaming it repeatedly in your car, parked in a department store parking lot with the windows down AND ~ here's the kicker folks ~ your precious 3yr old ~ you know the one screaming ~ he can't say the letter "k" or words that start with the letter "k" INSTEAD he uses a "t" for every K sound in his vocabulary!!
9. I learned that my son thinks he is a "delicious" item off of the Taco Bueno menu! Mmmm.....good! Ooooo and I learned being IN parades truly sucks! I am a much better spectator!!
10. Above all I learned how a very sick, very young little boy, I only had the privilege to see in person once, could show me strength and the power of a smile even when things are bad! I can't say much more or I will cry! Rest in peace Maddox and play in heaven with your 'WHOLE' heart!! Please continue to keep Maddox's family in your prayers! Tammi is a wreck and due to have the baby any day!
11. Wait I learned that blogging is addiction, obsessive, time-consuming, work-ignoring, child-neglecting, insomnia enabling FUN which is why this top 10 list even has a number 11 b/c I just can't stop!!! Oh and I hate those word verification thingeys!!