Noggin Berries

2010-11-09T20:56:00.003-06:00

I never really know how to start out a blog post, or what to title it unless there is something specific going on. So consider this a hodgepodge of info from my family to yours :)

Raia is growing up so fast, I just can't believe it! We had a great Halloween; we went to church that morning, and then to the church's Fall Festival that evening. Raia and I both dressed up as bumble bees! We got so many compliments :) Raia had a lot of fun playing games, doing the cupcake walk, jumping in the bouncy houses, we even went on a hay ride!

We are so blessed to be at this church, so blessed...They always have great things going on for each holiday for the kids, not to mention all of the other wonderful things going on in our city to help the poor, or to help people in bad situations. I can't wait to be a part of everything that's going on! OH!!! I got a letter last week saying that I am now an official member, so that made me SUPER happy!!

I have been really busy with my cakes, and I hope to update The Sweet Life very soon! I may have to break it up into several posts, I have been that busy!

I had my second round of nerve blocks today. Ugh! They are very painful, and then I feel YUCK for the rest of the day. Still no change in headaches, and if anything, this past week has been much worse! On the headache log she gave me to keep track of the severity of the headaches, I had 7 (going on 8) days of straight "X"s, meaning severe headache. She said we weren't giving up yet (and I hadn't even thought of giving up yet!); she did say it could take 4 - 6 rounds of these nerve blocks before I see any improvement. And as of today we begin tapering my pain medication (YAY!). One part of me is scared to death to give them up. I am being blatantly honest here...with my history of addiction, I am terrified. So I covet your prayers on that front. The other part of me will be so relieved to get this monkey off my back. It's like a catch-22, I need the medication because my headaches without it become unbearable (think of day after day after day feeling like you have a rod through your head, and a screaming tightness at the back of your neck), but my body and my behavior become so used to taking them that it becomes a habit. Scary. I have learned that I cannot go one day without it without having the shakes, stomach "issues", lightheadedness, on top of a severe headache. My previous quack Dr. would "forget" to refill my prescription on a Friday, and I'd be left for a Saturday and/or Sunday with no meds. What I learned today is that the medication I'm on is not something you can stop cold turkey without having seizures...so that makes me really angry with my previous Dr. Anyway, if you don't mind keeping me in your prayers over all of this headache mess. Hopefully the nerve blocks will begin taking effect soon.

A month or so ago a friend of mine wanted to take some pictures of Raia to build up her portfolio. Unfortunately, the first shoot she did, none of the pictures came out because of a camera setting, and it was a GREAT session! Bummer. The second time we went out was so hot and muggy, but she got a few good shots :) Here are just a few:

Thanks so much to Brookleigh Photography! You can find her Facebook page (and other examples of her work)---> HERE <---.

Ok, that's about all I've got for tonight. Thanks so much for checking in!

xoxox~

I wanted to share this

2010-10-24T19:54:00.002-05:00

My friend Cathy, whose cousin Laurie recommended the new headache Dr. to me, sent me this video. In my previous post, I mentioned option 2 (if the nerve blocks don't work), which is surgery. Apparently, my AMAZING Dr. is the one who came up with this surgery!!! Check it out :)

I go in Tuesday the 26th for the nerve blocks, please pray!

Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

Dentists and Doctors and Pictures, oh my! (Now with update)

2010-10-22T01:02:00.011-05:00

Hi everyone :) Not sure if there is anyone even still out there in blog-land who reads my blog since I neglect it so much, but it's ok :) I have several things to update, so hold on to your seats, everyone!

I went back over a year ago in my posts, searching to see if I had posted about Raia's dentist visit in February (I think?), but apparently I had not posted about it, so , I will start from the beginning (for those of you who don't know).

Let this be a lesson for any new Moms out there, please let my mistake be a learning tool: Sometime at the beginning of this year (Jan? Feb? Can't remember) I took Raia to a dentist that I had heard lots of good things about. From the time Raia was born until she had several teeth in her mouth, I would scrub her teeth with a washcloth or the finger brush and infant toothpaste. Then, she learned to bite, and bite HARD. So I got her a toothbrush, a nice fancy electric one that I let her pick out, small enough to fit in her mouth (plus another manual one) to make for easy brushing...or so I though. I'm not sure what went wrong, but she eventually started refusing to let me brush her teeth. I'm talking tears and screaming, running away to hide. Nothing had happened, I had not hurt her while brushing, I think it was just a will thing. She wanted to do it herself. We tried several times letting her brush first, and then letting me follow up, but even that began to bring out rebellion. I figured "Hey, it's a phase, she will grow out of it soon. If it is this stressful for her, I will just let her do it." Fast forward a year when I take her to this highly recommended dentist. Lovely office, Raia loved it! Totally kid-friendly, they even had TV's above each chair playing Disney movies. Now, going into this I knew that Raia had cavities in 2 of her back teeth, they were visible. I also knew that she had one side-front tooth (one of the ones beside her two front teeth) that had come in broken and looked like it had a cavity at the gum line. That one I had worried about since it came in. Let me stop here and say what a big girl Raia was during her dental exam. She was such a trooper, which totally surprised me! They were all doting on her, and she ate it up, loved every minute of it! Then, the actual dentist comes over to take a look and tells me that Raia has 4 back teeth (two on each side at the very back on the top) with enormous cavities in them, 2 of which will need root canals!!! ROOT CANALS!!!!! Then, he says that the broken one must have broken sometime before it came in when she was learning to walk and would need to be REMOVED, and that there was trauma to her permanent teeth (inside her gums still) from said fall. Great. Then, the other side-tooth on the other side of her two front teeth had a pin hole cavity on the backside of the tooth. He told me all of her bad teeth needed immediate attention. The ones that tore me up the most were the one he said needed to be pulled, and the root canals. She was only 2 years old!!! :( When his financial person pulled me into her office to talk about what this would cost us, she was very cold and uncaring. Nice, yes, but I say this all the time: There are 3 ways you communicate with someone, 1.) what you say, 2.) body language, and 3.) tone of voice. All of her words were very nice, but everything else was just off. I didn't like her. She told me that what we would be paying out of pocket was $1886.00. This dentist was one who likes to sedate kids with IV drugs or oral sedation. In Raia's case, it would have taken two sessions to complete all dental work, with oral sedation at each session. The cost of sedation total (which I am NOT a fan of in the first place)...$700 out of pocket. Are you kidding me?!

Nathan and I wanted a second opinion. I am one of those Moms who wants to go back with my child, especially her being so young and with so many problems with her teeth. Not many dentists allow that. So I searched for months for a dentist who would allow me to go back with Raia. Now, I understand I can't be back there during a procedure as deep as what Raia needs, nor would I want to be, but if I had the urge to get up and walk back there while the procedure is being done just to check on her, I want a dentist who will not frown upon it.

We found a new dentist who would let me go back with her if I wanted to. Our first visit was fabulous. Raia had a blast :) This dentist office was not all decked out like the previous one, but was still kid-friendly. As soon as we went back, the dental assistant let Raia pick out a pair of shades to wear while she cleaned her teeth.

The dental assistant told me that she did see quite a few problem areas and a few things to be concerned about, so they were going to go X-ray. So she took Raia over to X-ray, which was just in the next room. I could hear her in there giggling at the dental assistant and showing just how great she is :) I had a terrible headache, and my eyes were burning like fire, so I put my head in my hands and started rubbing my temples and my eyes. The dentist walked over to me and asked if I was alright....he was genuinely concerned about me! He had been standing nearby while Raia was having her teeth cleaned, even came over to glance in her mouth. He was making sure that I was not upset about the news they had given me (which I already knew was bad). I was impressed. We talked for a few minutes about his grandchildren, his dogs, the weather...I really liked him. Just in that 3 minute conversation I could tell a lot about him.

After he examined the X-rays he came to talk to me again. He said that 1.) only 2 teeth needed immediate attention, (not 6 like the previous dentist had said), and 2.) that the side-front tooth that had come in broken and had a cavity around it would only need a little white filler in it, where the other dentist said it would need to be pulled.....HALLELUJAH!! I had been so worried about my baby girl's sweet smile being different if they had to pull that tooth!! There were other teeth that had small cavities, like the very back 2 on the top and one very small one on the bottom, but nothing we needed to deal with right away. I wondered what happened to the pin hole cavity on the back of the other side-front tooth the first dentist had seen...things that make ya say "hmmmmmm"!

Tomorrow, well, make that TODAY, Raia goes in to have her 2 root canals. I guess in children they call them "pulpectomies". Another great thing about this dentist is that he DOES NOT sedate - orally or IV. She will have a dose of Children's Motrin and a dose of Children's Benedryl an hour and a half before her appointment bright and early at 8:30am (gosh, that's 4 hours from now! Mommy nerves are not letting me feel the least bit sleepy). Then she will get the gas mask to just make her a little sleepy while they do what they need to do (which by the way, only costs us $70 out of pocket, compared to the $700 the first dentist wanted! Huge difference!!). I am praying that everything goes well, and that she doesn't just HATE the dentist after today.

***UPDATE***
Things didn't go exactly as planned at the dentist today, she ended up needing one more tooth worked on. He was afraid it would abscess before we could get to it at the beginning of the year when our insurance starts over. Bummed about that. She did so great, though. The dentist told us that while she had the gas mask on, she looked up at him and asked, "Am I at the dentist?", to which he replied "Yes". She then said, "I looooooove the dentist!". Haha, silly girl!! He was bragging on her, and told us how she talks like a grown up, and he was amazed by that. What can I say? She's a smart one!
I did get really frustrated with the ladies behind the desk, because when we first came in they said they had us scheduled to do all of her teeth, which was NOT what we had discussed a few weeks ago. They had even given me a total of what we'd have to pay today out of pocket, so that got me stressed. Then, a lady sitting in the waiting room with us (it was just Nathan and I, and the other lady) decided to take a phone call on her cell phone. At first it was just mindless chatter, LOUD chatter, and then she started giving the woman on the phone her Avon order. She was discussing which color lip glosses she should get, "Tickled Pink" or "Iced Pink". I was annoyed to begin with, but this woman pushed me over the edge, I had to go sit in the car for a bit. It was a combination of stress for my little girl having to have all this dental work done in the first place, the fact they got it screwed up and almost cost us a fortune by doing it all today, that she had to have a 3rd tooth worked on because it was so bad, lack of sleep, and this irritating loud woman on her cell phone. Do people just not think anymore?
Anyway....overall we had a good outcome. Raia is feeling fine now. We are home watching cartoons, and she got a milkshake on the way home per the dentists orders (LOL)! She had the funny numb lips up until about an hour ago, and it made her talk and smile funny, I got a kick out of that. Just wanted to update on the dentist visit.
**************************************************

Sorry that was so long, hope you're still awake :)

Now, onto headaches. If you have been reading my blog for any length of time at all, you know that I have suffered from daily headaches for years, which have been diagnosed as "migraines". The Dr. I have been seeing once told me "I diagnose you wit' migraines. 95% have no cause. Google it." - that's what he said when I asked for any kind of tests to determine their cause. So instead of Googling migraines, I Googled for a new Dr., and asked anyone and everyone I knew for a referral. One of my dearest friends, Cathy, has a cousin who sees a headache specialist. It took me about 2 months to finally call and set up an appt. (when I would remember to call they would be closed; you always remember these things when you are lying in bed trying to fall asleep). Anyway, I called and got an appt. for 2 months down the line :( They told me if they had any cancellations, they'd call me. In the meantime, they sent me a packet in the mail with all of the paperwork I needed to fill out beforehand (nice!) and a Headache Log, something to keep track of the severity and number of headaches I got. I knew she was on top of things as soon as I saw the chart. That 2 month wait was loooooong. My friend Cathy had agreed to drive me because she knew just how important this appointment was, never mind that she was due to have her second child in 4 days! So off we went.

The Dr.'s office had very low lighting in the waiting room, and in all of the exam rooms had just the blinds open, no lights on - you could tell this was a headache center LOL! The Dr. came in and asked me all kinds of questions, then she came over to me and pressed on several different points on my head. My headaches have always felt like I have a rod going in just above my right eye and coming out at the base of my skull on the right side. When she pressed on that spot at the back of my head, IT HURT!! The previous Dr. had done the same thing (sort of) but he never really pressed, he kind of just put his fingers on my head and asked "hurt?", but his touch was so light that no, it didn't hurt at all. After a few more physical exams (reflexes, light shone in my eyes, follow the finger back and forth, etc.) she said she was going to her office to read my previous Dr.'s notes in my medical file I had brought (which I had tried to read, but as with a lot of Dr.'s, it looked like chicken scratch to me). About 10 minutes later she came back into the room and announced, "Well, these are definitely NOT migraines". FINALLY!!!!! A Dr. who was not just going to throw some blanket diagnosis and a bunch of pills at me!!!! She pulled out a piece of paper with an anatomical diagram of the back of a skull. She told me I have what is called Occipital Neuralgia. Then she explained and showed me on the diagram the nerves that come out of the spinal cord and travel up the neck usually come out of a small opening in the muscle that covers the skull. With Occipital Neuralgia, the nerves either get compressed in the opening, or they miss that opening altogether, and just force themselves straight through the muscle. There are 4 places where the nerves come through: on either side of the spinal cord at the base of the skull, and on each side of the neck (just a bit farther over on each side, toward the ears) which go toward the temples. Either way, it causes pain that starts on one side of the head (front) and travels through to the other side (back).

I cried in her office after she had explained everything to me. This Doctor is truly a Godsend. I told her after all these years, and the stupid "migraine" diagnosis after diagnosis I had gotten, and being told "sorry, go home and take some Tylenol" I was glad to finally have someone who could give me a diagnosis that makes perfect sense, and a treatment that doesn't include a basketful of pills that are going to kill my liver and/or get me hooked.

*The picture says it is copyrighted, hope I don't get in trouble for using it :( Here is a link to it's SOURCE.

In the left diagram you can see the two nerves that come up on either side of the spinal column. The one on the right side is the one that is most affecting me, though I do have a little pain on the left, too. My Dr. says there are two ways to "fix" this. The first being nerve blocks, which, in a nutshell means that she will give me a shot of a steroid and a numbing agent at the site where the nerve comes through the muscle. Patients are said to have either immediate and long-lasting effects or short-lived effects. Please please PLEASE pray that the nerve blocks work!! I go in on Oct. 26th for this procedure. The second way to "fix" this, if the first does not work (and I may need to have several treatments before we move to the second option) is surgery :( She told me that in all (I think she said all?) cases where they did surgery, it is when the nerves had come through the muscle rather than the opening. Not even thinking about option 2 right now, just focusing on the nerve blocks and praying they work. She is slowly getting me off of all the poison my previous Dr. had me on, and has prescribed Cymbalta to help with the stress, which we found causes a lot of my headaches. She gave me samples to last 2 weeks. The Cymbalta is working GREAT, but sadly, I will not be able to afford it. I called my pharmacy yesterday to see how much the prescription would be per month with my insurance, and it's just not something we can handle at this time (it wasn't that bad, but the money is just not there right now when we are living paycheck-to-paycheck and have nothing left over). I will talk with her to see if there are any other cheaper alternatives. And the Cymbalta was only prescribed to get me through until we can get rid of these headaches, hopefully with the nerve blocks! So maybe I won't even need it!

Ok, now onto what you really came here for LOL!! CUTE PICTURES!!! Maybe they will wake you up from my novel-induced slumber (HA!) ;)

Raia LOVES to dress up! Here lately, she is changing her clothes 7 and 8 times a day!!

We recently watched the movie 'Food, Inc.' and if you have not watched it, you MUST. It was lifestyle changing for us. Sure, it is going to be a process, but we are really trying to eat better quality foods. We went to a farmers market a few days after watching it, and we picked out a few yummy vegetables and fruits. They had a bunch of pumpkins out, and Raia hopped up on the display where there was an empty spot, declaring it her "seat" :) She had been pushing a toy grocery cart through the small little market, putting as many of the small pumpkins, big(ger) pumpkins, gourds, fruits, etc. as she could possibly fit in! So I was happy to see her take a break from that, and it made a perfect Fall Photo opportunity (not the best quality, mind you, I took it with my cell phone)!

This was one day after church, we got home and she picked up the water hose to "wash" my car. Such a helpful girl!

Please forgive our bed-heads. This was one morning just after we had woken up, sharing some love with our pup, Dexter.

My sweetheart dog, Gibson, giving me his best smile for the camera :) He has turned out to be THE. BEST. DOG. EVER. Such a loyal companion. After everything that we went through when we got him, makes me realize how blessed I am to have him in my life, and how blessed we are as a family to call him a part of it. Dex will come around, (and YES, he is family too!), he is still a puppy. He has a good teacher and big brother, so I have no doubts :) (Dex is still just really hyper LOL).

I have found a fabulous little story time to take Raia to on Tuesday mornings at Wendy's (fast food restaurant, we don't eat much, promise!) before we go to the library. The first half hour or so the lady does face or arm painting, next she reads a story and has them play and act out fun things, and last she makes balloon animals and flowers! This flower lasted 2 whole weeks!! The other balloon creations Raia has brought home have not fared so well LOL!

Daddy made a fort in the living room with parts of the couch. Raia is camping out under there, haha, look at that hair!!!

Halloween is in just a week and a half! I picked out this costume for Raia a month or so ago from the little store I work in - got it for $6.50! She cannot wait to go trick-or-treating! She keeps wanting to wear the costume NOW! I have let her wear it a few times - once for some professional pictures...hoping to get the disc soon so I can share, but I'm not sure any of the costume pictures turned out :( So here is one to enjoy NOW!

Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

Raia is 3!! How did this happen so fast?

2010-09-13T01:36:00.009-05:00

My baby girl had a birthday over the weekend. Three years old. Where has the time gone? It seems like just yesterday that she was born, and the 8 days she spent in NICU are still fresh on my mind. I am so lucky, WE are so lucky to have her!!!

This was just after they brought her to my room, right before they whisked her back to NICU. I don't have a lot of pictures from that time because the computer that they were on CRASHED :(

In NICU, the first day (?) she was breathing without help. She had her 2 kitties watching over her, and she still has them.

The day we brought her home. She still had jaundice pretty bad, but look how beautiful :)

My FAVORITE picture - my little rocker chic! I think she was 3 or 4 months old, but I included it because it is cute :)

We celebrated her birthday by going to the zoo, just the 3 of us. A few months ago we had talked about taking her to Sea World, but WHEW! Tickets are a bit pricey, and she wouldn't even enjoy half the stuff there. The zoo is very close to the hospital where she was in the NICU, so of course, seeing it was bittersweet (not sure if "bittersweet"" is the word I am looking for, but seeing the hospital made me feel very lucky all over again).

When we got to the zoo, we rode the train through the surrounding park. Raia wasn't too sure at first, she kept trying to hide under my arm, silly girl. The guy kept blowing the train whistle, and it was loud, and in my opinion, obnoxious. Once the guy quit blowing the high pitched train whistle, my baby girl was finally able to look around a bit. She would wave at the families in the park having picnics, or at joggers passing by - so sweet :)

Here are several more pictures of our sassy little 3 year old at the zoo. I took over 200 pictures there, so it was hard to select only a few!

The albino alligator in the reptile house is always in the same spot! Sometimes I wonder if he's real...

After the zoo, we were all exhausted and Raia was especially cranky. After we ate dinner, I got her little cake out of the refrigerator, and she perked right up!

I couldn't decide what kind of cake to make for her. She loves Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends, and Hello Kitty. I made the Hello Kitty one because I remember growing up loving her too! Raia LOVED the cake!! It was strawberry (pink), so it matched the decoration perfectly!

After cake, it was time to play with her new tricycle :) Can't wait to get that baby outdoors!

We had a really nice birthday, just the 3 of us. I hope she enjoyed it, as well. As I said earlier, we are so lucky, so very blessed to have Raia. I always call her "My little Raia sunshine!", and she really is :)

Now that she is three, she is doing so many wonderful (and not so wonderful) things! She is so smart...I get comments from people all the time about how well she talks, and those people are always surprised by her age. They expect her to be older, I guess. Sometimes I feel like there is a teenager living in her tiny body! She is so sassy, don't be fooled by her cuteness! She can be such a sweet cuddler when she wants to. At night, we have a routine: brush teeth, read two books, then I pick her up and let her turn the light off, and then she turns the TV off (yes, I'm one of those Moms who has the TV on all the time!), and then we get in the recliner and she says her little prayer - "Dear God, Thank you for this day. Thank you for Daddy and Gibson. Amen." (sometimes the prayer varies depending on the events of the day, but that is her standard prayer now LOL!) and then she snuggles up close to me as I pray out loud, and within minutes, she is sound asleep in my arms. That is my favorite time of the day! I then take her to her bed, and she stays there for 5 or 6 hours, then jumps over to my bed. What am I going to do when she grows out of this? I love our time in the evening, and then snuggling during the night. I am enjoying this time so much, trying not to think about her growing up so fast.

One last thing, Raia is this close to being potty trained! We have been doing the reward system with a chart and stickers. She gets one to put on her chart right by the potty, and then she gets another one just for her, and the one she gets to keep doesn't usually last more than about 5 minutes before it is torn up, wadded up, or chewed up...whatever! She does pretty good about telling me when she needs to go, usually 5 or 6 times a day. I am not brave enough to let her go sans diaper yet. Soon....

Until next time, whenever that may be...

xoxox~

A Few Recent Pictures

2010-07-29T01:22:00.004-05:00

Since I have been missing in action for a month and a half, figured I would post a few pictures. I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed lately, so sorry (again, for the umpteenth time) for the lack of posts.

Just ignore my messy kitchen. The cutie-patootie toddler is there to distract you from her surroundings! Raia was helping me make cookies. Chocolate chip walnut, to be exact :)

Our cat, Shula, decided that she'd take up residence temporarily in the car seat that had been placed on our kitchen floor. Raia thought it would be nice to read her the story of Cinderella. It's one of her favorites!

We took Raia to see her very first movie in the movie theater. We saw Toy Story 3...nevermind that she hasn't seen the first two! She was more excited than she looks in the picture, not sure why she has the grinch-face.

Ok...DON'T swallow your tongue!! She loved it, I promise!!

Decided we'd go to the Children's Museum one Sunday afternoon. God blessed us that day - parking was free, AND our admission into the museum was free!! We had no idea, just went there on a whim for family time!!

I will try not to let it be so long before I post again. I always say that, or something similar, and then fail miserably.

xoxox~

Not much going on

2010-06-16T18:39:00.010-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately, I didn't really have much to write about. We are all doing well. Nathan is in Ohio for a week this week, and next month he heads to Canada for a week. While he is gone, I find a new respect for single parents. I don't know how in the world they do it! Parenting is hard, but to do it alone?! Wow...I will be glad when Nathan gets home, all I really want is to take a nap!

Raia and I have been going to the pool several times a week since summer started. She is quite the little fish! She even started this scary going underwater thing, and I got really freaked out and called my friend Kim. Kim is a hard core athlete. She got a full scholarship to Auburn University for swimming, and won all kinds of awards. She now teaches swim lessons, and is a swim team coach. She and her sister both compete in triathlons. Kim is actually pregnant right now, and so she has slowed down just a little LOL! She is due any day now, I can't wait!! Anyway, back to the story. I called Kim and she graciously offered to give Raia a free swim lesson and helped me learn how to teach her myself. After that first lesson, Raia was doing so much better about listening to me, and following the rules. If you know my child, you know that she has NO FEAR. Before the lesson she was jumping off the side of the pool and not wanting to be caught when she would jump into the water, she'd even run alongside of the pool to get further away from me. She was going underwater without taking a breath first, and holding onto the wall not wanting to come up! Scared me to death! I kept thinking back to that little boy who died two years ago from dry drowning. Call me paranoid, I don't care, I just want her to be safe. Kim told me that what Raia was doing was perfectly normal, and I feel a little better. She even ordered a swim belt for Raia to wear in the pool. It isn't a life vest or floaties or anything like that, this will actually teach her to swim on her own because she will have to learn to dog paddle and keep her head up while wearing it. Kim has been such a good friend to me, and her 2 girls just love Raia :)

A few weekends ago we went to Galveston. We went to Stewart Beach, and you have to pay $8 to get in. You would think that since you have to pay to get in that it would be a nice beach, right? WRONG. It was so disgusting. And SO crowded. There was trash all over the beach, even a dirty diaper right near the water (GAG!). We promptly turned around and left. I asked Nathan to stop and get our money back since we had only been there five minutes. Luckily, they gave it back. We drove a short way down the beach and parked and just went down to the free beach. It was nice, and we had a great time. It wasn't crowded at all, and it was clean. Tell me why people would pay money to go to Stewart Beach?? I still don't understand it!!

I cannot even believe I am posting this pic of myself, but please, pay no attention to me!! Look at the cute little girl in her Little Mermaid suit!! Pretty cute, huh? We didn't take many pics, sorry.

I really need a new swim suit, this one I think is about 8 years old, and had I known how terrible it looked on me, I'd have never worn it out there!! Not sure if you can tell in the pic or not, but I got my hair cut. I actually have bangs now! I haven't had bangs in YEARS!!! I am really liking it :) I can finally cover up my forehead LOL!!

A couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine posted on Facebook about an 8 week old puppy that was in a local kill-only shelter. He looked so much like our Gibson! I saw the picture, and thought "if only....". I showed the picture to Nathan, and he he said "Aww, he does kinda look like Gibson."

The next day I logged into Facebook and another one of my friends had him posted. His day to be put to sleep was two days away (that day, and the next day were his two days). I immediately called Nathan at work and said "Please can we get him??" He was surprised I hadn't already asked. He said to make the call, and so I did. The lady told me that she hoped a rescue group would step up in time to go get him out of the shelter. *(The way it works at this particular pound/shelter, there are NO ADOPTIONS. It is a kill-only shelter :( If you want one of the animals there, you must contact a rescue group, or in my case I had the number for a volunteer who worked with all different rescue groups and she forwards potential adopters information to the groups, then they decide if the people are "good enough" and are people who can care for an animal, then they will go rescue it from the pound, and you adopt straight from them. Make sense?) I waited about 4 hours, and I was getting anxious so I called her back. Long story short, we played phone tag all day, and by that night around bed time I heard that a rescue group was going to the shelter the next morning, the morning he was to be put to sleep, to get him. The lady I had been talking with all day said she had put a "rescue hold" on him, so he was safe. The next day I met the rescue people at a local vet's office, and after he was checked over and was given a wormer and a couple of shots, we were able to bring him home.

In Gibson's case, we had to wait I think 10 days before we could bring him home, but since this was a special case we were able to bring him home right away. He is still too young to be neutered, but he is getting fixed on August 17th, along with a microchip. I can't tell you how important it is to SPAY & NEUTER YOUR PETS!!! Microchips are also invaluable, and very cheap!!
Luckily, this little guy is healthy as a horse! (Why do they say that? How healthy are horses anyway?) If you remember, almost a year ago when we got Gibson, he was so very sick. Thank God he pulled through. He and I formed a very special bond while I was caring for him. Nathan was out of town for a week, and Gibson was knocking on Death's door. So I am so thankful this little puppy is healthy! We have had him for almost 3 weeks now, and not a hint of a cough or anything else he may have brought home from that yucky shelter! He did have worms, though, and has already been treated twice, and we are not seeing any more wormy poops (YAY!). He and Gibson both have an appointment on Friday with the vet for shots and check ups. Gibson just LOVES the puppy. At first we weren't so sure...I think now he just loves the attention and the play time. They are both getting great exercise just from playing. Gibson is so much bigger, too, I worry sometimes, but he is like a big brother. He has never once hurt the puppy. We keep a close eye on them when they play, and they have separate kennels to sleep in at night and when we are gone. Hopefully this crate training (potty training) will work as quickly with pup-pup as it did with Gibson!
I haven't told you his name yet. We couldn't figure out a name for him, but had tossed around Fender (to go with Gibson) or Dexter (like the Showtime series). When I was making the vet appointment, the girl asked what the puppy's name was, and I felt awful that we hadn't named him yet. So I said "Dexter". Nathan had not really
expressed much interest in 'Fender', but had mentioned that 'Dexter' was OK. So Dexter it is.

This past week, I discovered the Kingwood Library! It is brand new, and fabulous!! Since having Raia, I haven't had time to read like I used to. I really miss reading a novel a week or more. I really do. Not that I would trade being a mom to my little "Raia sunshine" for that, I just miss it is all. And now that she is getting a little older, I want to try to read more. My Bible study book keeps mentioning The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis, and I am intrigued! I went on a search for this book, and found myself at the new library. We have been 4 times in the past week, and I am not the only one who loves it, Raia does too!! We can check out up to 75 items at a time (LOL) - not that we ever would, but now I know my limit. They have DVD's too, so that saves us some money when we want to watch a movie. It has been great! They have story time on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so we are going to try and make that a regular thing too. Here is Raia at the library, she just plops down in the aisle when she finds a book she likes.

I have several cake orders coming up next weekend, and my sister-in-law's baby shower is next month, so be on the lookout over on The Sweet Life for them! I will leave you with a few silly pictures of Raia.

Fun with paint

This child fears nothing - she is jumping from her bed to mine, and back!

Beautiful girl, she is really growing up fast :(

And now it is bedtime for Miss Raia. I am off to go read some in my book before I hit the hay, too. If you don't mind, could you please be in prayer that my headaches get better - they are starting, once again, to rear their ugly heads and are getting more frequent. I hate asking for anything for myself, there are so many other things that really need prayer at this time - the Gulf Oil Spill, our servicemen overseas, deadly childhood diseases that so desperately need a cure, etc. Speaking of the oil spill, a local Christian radio station here (89.3 KSBJ) posted on their Facebook page: " Not sure how to talk to your kids about the oil spill? Here's how one mom not only helped her kids understand, but also empowered them to help out." Click here --->Craft Hope for the World I thought it was really neat :)

And one last thing before I go, speaking of being crafty, I made a bow holder for Raia out of something that she and Grandma made. Grandma got her this name plate thing, you put letter stickers on it to spell a name, and it's just cute. Well, Grandma let Raia put the stickers on, and on the back, Raia left a very sweet little message! I had to make it functional, something we would use and see every day, and she needed a bow holder, so....

I only have pictures of it without the bows, but one of these days I will remember to post a pic of it with all the bows on it LOL!

Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

P.S.
I realized after typing all of that, that the title for this particular post is "Not much going on", and then I end up writing a novel about all that's been going on. Hahaha. Figures.

So blessed

2010-05-26T22:59:00.002-05:00

I am so blessed. Sometimes I think I am the luckiest girl in the world. I thank God every single day for my family, and for my friends, both of which are so very important to me. Like I have said before, the friends I have in my life now are the kind of people I wish I'd have been friends with long ago. Just all around wholesome people, loving, caring, would do anything for me. One friend in particular, I've mentioned her here before, Tammy, played a huge part in me giving my life back to Christ. I've been incredibly blessed by her, in so many ways. She is the one who called me on March 1, and prayed with me, and talked with me about God. It was that day that I rededicated my life to Christ. Read her blog post, she tells it so much better than I do. I love you Tammy, you are a true blessing!!

Click here to read Tammy's post.

I just wanted to share that. Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~
Sara

What I've been up to and my new blog :)

2010-05-21T19:06:00.010-05:00

Not much has been going on here. I have been very busy the past few weeks with cake orders, birthday parties and baby showers! This past weekend I only got 7 hours of sleep between Friday morning and Sunday night. All of the orders at one time were also a blessing, because I've had lots of financial things hit me/us all at the same time. After this past weekend, I decided I needed to have a place for potential customers to view an album of my work without me having to add them to my personal Facebook friends list. I have been planning this for quite a while, but never could come up with a name I liked. To remedy this, I had a contest on Facebook to help me come up with an appropriate blog name for just my cakes and other treats. The winner would receive a large order of cake balls, and the runners up would get a smaller order. The names that I really liked were:

1.) The Sweet Life
2.) Simply Sweet
3.) Heavenly Treats
4.) Simply Sweet Heavenly Treats

What would YOU have chosen? If you want to see which name won, CLICK HERE, it will take you to my new blog :) I hope it will be a great success! It will at least save me from adding weirdos to my personal friends list on Facebook LOL! Keep in mind that I have just started this new blog, so there isn't much there just yet, only a few posts. You all know how terrible I am at updating this blog, hopefully I won't be so terrible at updating that one since I will only have to write out a little snippet about the cake that the post is about.

Now back to this previous weekend. Here is everything I did (all of these will eventually be posted on the new blog, but I want to post them here now to show you what I've been up to).

For two little girls, turning 7 and 3. This cake matched the party napkin.

Cake Ball Truffle Pops

Elmo cupcakes - there were 36 in all. These little buggers were hard to do, and I was kind of unhappy with how some of the mouths turned out. Live and learn!

These were for a girl at our church's baby shower. She is having a boy, and the colors matched perfectly with all the flowers and balloons they had there (from what I hear - I wasn't there!)

Two plates of chocolate dipped pretzels and a plate of Cake Ball Truffles. These were for my good friend Kim's baby shower. I decorated them with blue sugar sprinkles because she is having a BOY!!! I cannot WAIT!!!

Cake Ball Truffles

The weekend before that, I had a pretty big order, too. My very first "customer" was having a first birthday party for her little boy. She wanted a smash cake for him a few days earlier because he was having his pictures taken, and then on Saturday she wanted another smash cake and 36 cupcakes - some of which were on a board to form the number "1" and the rest were decorated separately. Stripes and all! I think they turned out super cute :)

So now that you know how busy I've been, maybe you'll forgive me for not updating as often as I should have? And maybe these pics of Raia will help, too...

Wish I could've gotten video of this, they were practically in sync with each other. Raia would hang her head down, Gibson would too, then Raia would tilt her head to the side, Gibson did too! She just loves her doggie!!

Me and my tiny gal after we played with makeup :) She looks like a princess!

Nathan brought Raia a rose from our rosebush after he cut the grass. She loved it!

This is what happens when you leave a tiny artist alone for two minutes!

I have hung some of her works of art on our door to the garage. I just love seeing it every day walking in or out, or when we are in the kitchen making food. She is so creative!!

One last thing before I go...On Saturday before Mother's Day, Nathan noticed that one of our outside cats, Mr. Lynx, was limp, and not doing well at all. He rushed Mr. Lynx to the emergency vet, where after a few tests they determined he had kidney failure. This was so sudden, the day before he seemed fine. Nathan brought him home with antibiotics, and tried his best to get food and fluids in him. Sunday, Mother's Day night, he was so much worse. Nathan and I agreed that if he did not improve drastically overnight that we needed to do the right thing and take him to the vet and let them put him to sleep. The next morning, Nathan woke me early and told me to come say goodbye. At first, when I saw him, I thought he was already gone, he was not moving and felt cold to me :( He did meow and start purring (he always purrs), so I said my goodbyes. Nathan loaded him up and took him on that last car ride. Before the vet could even see him, Mr. Lynx passed away. He purred all the way to the end. He was such a good cat, and he will be so very missed. I still look for him when I go out into the garage, or under his favorite bushes by the driveway... Nathan found him right after I came to Texas. He couldn't have been more than about 4 or 5 weeks old, and had a BALD head. We have no idea what happened to him! He was so scared, and when Nathan was bringing him up to our apartment, a mean old lady that lived below us was leaving her apartment. I guess her opening the door scared Mr. Lynx, and he jumped out of Nathan's arms and bolted straight into her apartment! He hid underneath a big piece of furniture, and Nathan had to tell the lady he was pet sitting so she would let him get the kitten. I am so glad he finally retrieved Mr. Lynx, unscathed! We have had many grand adventures with Mr. Lynx, and now he is off to even grander adventures in the sky. We will miss you, Purr Master!!

Thanks for checking in :)

xoxox~

Being Baptized

2010-04-29T01:30:00.003-05:00

As most of my readers know, in early March I rededicated my life to Christ. This was something that I had felt in my heart that I wanted to do for quite some time, and I decided that it was time. Then, on March 28th, 2010 I was baptized. This was an outward expression of my faith to those around me looking on, to those who know me and know that I did this, and to God that I am His forever and ever. Pastor Nathan Lino preached just a few weeks prior to my baptism about what it takes to be saved, and that touched my heart so deeply, and I knew that in order to prove to myself, to others, and to God that I am a God fearing Christian woman, a lover of Jesus Christ, I needed, wanted to do this. My husband and Raia were there, along with Nathan's parents, and my two dear friends Cathy and Tammy who have been such a big part of getting me back into church - they are such wonderful influences on me, and I love them both so much.
Here is a video of my baptism (thank you Tammy and Richard for this video!). This is a day I will never forget!!

Cathy holding Raia while videoing the baptism.

Nathan's dad was very emotional, and very sweet. He was so happy that he was crying. I love him!!

I can't say that rededicating my life and being baptized has made my life any easier. If anything, it has gotten harder. I know that Satan does anything in his power to bring me down, and he throws obstacles in my life to make it hard for me, get me frustrated, anything he can to make me turn away from God. But luckily, I know that God is always with me, and that through every trial there is a lesson. I have not endured every trial since my baptism with grace (as I would love to), but I am a work in progress. I saw a saying not too long ago and loved it: "I ain't what I should be, but I ain't what I used to be, either!" Love it!!

xoxox~

Wow, it's been a while!!

2010-04-27T04:58:00.006-05:00

Sorry I've been gone so long. Every time I start to write a post, Raia wakes up, so, sorry folks! I haven't forgotten about ya!!

I have lots to tell, but for now, pictures will have to tell my story for me. As soon as we are back in the lower 48, and Raia is sleeping soundly, I will lay it all out there for you to read!

Waikiki Beach:

Hanauma Bay:

Me, SNORKELING!!!! That was awesome :)

After Hanauma Bay, we drove up the coast toward the North Shore:
(No idea who that guy is)

North Shore - I was too sunburned to get out and even look around, but I enjoyed looking at the waves from the car:

We saw fields upon fields upon fields of what we thought was Aloe...
(This isn't the greatest pic, sorry)
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We found out a few miles down the road what it was, PINEAPPLES!!

Ok, that's all I've got for now. We leave Hawaii tomorrow, and although I am terribly sad to be leaving this beautiful state, I will be glad to get home. Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

Happy Birthday, Jacob!

2010-03-26T23:04:00.004-05:00

Today was my youngest son's birthday. He is 8 years old now. Hard to believe he is growing up.

Jacob is a smart boy. He has a kindness about him that touches my heart. He is so polite, and always tries to do the right thing. He loves his video games LOL, what 8 year old doesn't?! Jacob is imaginative and silly :) I hope he knows I've been thinking about him all day, and wishing he has had the best birthday ever!

I love you, Jacob!! Happy Birthday, sweet boy!!

This is the hospital picture taken just before we brought him home.

xoxox~

New pics

2010-03-18T00:39:00.007-05:00

I just wanted to add a few new pics of my little "ray-a" sunshine. We had a fun weekend at the park. We LOVE LOVE LOVE our dog, no matter how silly he is (he really needs to be trained, and we are working on that). And just a couple of random wildlife pics.

Raia, and at the park:

Jack-in-the-box Raia!

My pig-tailed cutie :)

I was underneath this big thing she was climbing on at the park, peeking at her through a large step.

A couple of kids use this park and the surrounding woods to shoot their air soft guns. There are TONS of these little plastic ammo balls all over the ground, in all different colors. She was showing me a white one she had picked up. "Great!" I say..."Another thing for you to put in your mouth and swallow!" Ugh!! It was a cute picture though, she was so proud! And Granny, Nana, Doc, and Gran-Gran, don't worry! We never stay if those boys are in sight!!

Going down the slide!

**One thing I LOVE about living here is that all of the neighborhoods, or "villages" as they are referred to here, have several different parks, all within walking distance from your home. Another little PERK of living in our little bubble here in Texas :)

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Gibson:

Spoken in my best Gibson voice, "Mmmm! KONG time!! Treats!! Now leave me aloooone!!" --A KONG is a special toy you can put treats into (Gibson loves treats AND peanut butter in his!), and *"it will periodically release food or treats. The resulting rewards ensure longer enriching playtimes." [It] "will engage and stimulate your dog, while reducing boredom, destructive behaviors, and separation anxiety." *From the KONG website.-- If you don't have one for your dog, you should get one...they are awesome! They even make them for cats!

Raia just loves Gibson...they are buddies :)

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Random Wildlife:

This cute little guy comes at night and eats the cat food on the back porch :( As animal lovers, we just let he and his two raccoon buddies come and go as they please, as long as they keep the peace with the cats. And oddly, the cats don't even seem to be bothered by them, we have even seen them eat together out of two bowls side by side.

While we were at the park, this HUGE bird flew out of the tree above us and took off. I just got the camera in time to snap a pic. This is a cropped version of the original.

And this is uncropped. There were two really big nests in two different trees right there in the park. It was so neat to see it so close!

Thanks for checking in :)

Until next time.....

xoxox~

2010-03-15T12:32:00.007-05:00

So sorry I didn't get this post up over the weekend as promised. Raia has been sick, and now I am getting it too. I usually have time to post late at night after she is asleep, but the past couple of nights she hardly slept.

There is lots going on in my/our lives right now. First, and most importantly, Sunday before last I rededicated my life to Christ! I went to the front of the church with Nathan and my sweet friends Cathy and Tammy by my side, and told the pastor that I was ready to rededicate my life. We all bowed our heads and prayed, then a lady took me and Nathan to a room to talk more. It was great! I can tell you though, it has been so hard. I have felt Satan trying to pull me down and make life hard for me. At night, before I put Raia to bed, I rock her, and we say our prayers. Really, she just says the "Dear God" part with me, and then I pray out loud and she is usually asleep within minutes. That is a time when I feel a calm wash over me and I feel completely at peace. I have been doing a lot of reading in the Bible, and I got a few books from another friend, Jenn, one called 'The Relationship Principles of Jesus' by Tom Holladay. I wanted to read that one in particular, to learn how to strengthen my relationship with Nathan, and with God. I am learning so much, it's amazing :) I am so excited about this journey! I am sad that we didn't get to go to church yesterday because Raia was sick. It would have been her first time to go and be in a Sunday school class. But, there is next Sunday! And the Sunday after...and so on! On March 26th and 27th, Nathan and I are attending a parenting conference at the church. We will learn how to raise our child the way God wants us to, I think it will be neat :) I've never been to anything like this, so I am really excited! While we are there, Raia will be in the child care classes with other kids her age. It will be good for her, and for us!

Next, I wanted to let you guys know that Raia is now sleeping in her own bed!! Today is actually 2 weeks that she has slept in her own bed (with the exception of last night since she was sick, I couldn't get her to sleep after 2 hours of trying, so I let her sleep with me). Her little bed is next to mine, and she usually sleeps in it until the wee hours of the morning, 4 or 5 am, and then she comes and crawls into my bed. Nathan has cleaned out her room, and has finished laying the carpet down, so it is only a matter of time before she is in her own room *sigh*. As much as I wanted this, it will be sad that I won't have my little cuddle bug to snuggle up with. She's growing up so fast!

Believe it or not, these pics were taken in the dark. The flash on this camera works!

Next, and this is a doozie.....we are going to Hawaii. A once in a lifetime opportunity for us. Nathan's job is taking him there to work for a week, so his airfare and hotel room and most of the food is covered. He gets 3 days off to spend enjoying Hawaii, and they encouraged him to bring his family along, as most of the other guys do, so YAY! We are going to Hawaii in April for about 8 or 9 days. I am scared to death to fly for 8+ hours with a 2 year old, so if anyone has any tips on that, I'm all ears! There are no overnight flights (we checked); that would have been nice. That way we could have all slept most of the way.

Well, I think that's about all I have for now. Thanks for checking in! I will leave you with a few more pics of Raia, she is such a cutie pie!

Pigtails!!!

This last one is Raia helping me feed Gibson. She helps every day. She just loves that dog! I took pictures of the whole process, and was going to do a blog post about it, but I never got around to it :( Maybe you will see this picture again (you know, now that I have officially made myself feel guilty for not posting about it LOL!).

xoxox~

Please stay tuned...

2010-03-12T03:00:00.002-06:00

Sorry I have not put up a post in a few weeks. I promise to do so this weekend! I have lots to write about, I just need to find a time when I can type it all out - it will probably take me a while! Good things are happening in my life...our lives, and I couldn't be more excited! We are all fine, happy and healthy :)

Thanks for checking in, even though I didn't give you much to read today!

xoxox~

2010-02-26T00:05:00.002-06:00

I thought this little video was great! It reminds me so much of my Mom and Dad :)

An elderly couple walked into the lobby of the Mayo Clinic for a checkup and spotted a piano. They've been married for 62 years and he'll be 90 this year. Check out this impromptu performance. We are only as old as we feel, it's all attitude. Enjoy! They certainly do!

Happy Birthday Dad!!

2010-02-23T02:38:00.004-06:00

Dear Dad,

I remember one year Mom and I made you a cake for your birthday; it must have been your 40th, I only remember the music notes we put on the cake in white icing! Oh, how I wish I could make you a cake now! Sadly, I don't think it would make it 6 or 700 miles in one piece :(

I have always admired you for your intelligence, I don't know if I've ever told you that. I also think it's cool that you can play so many instruments, and that you are a composer. I used to brag about you to all my friends, still do :)

There are many things about you that make me smile or laugh, like your shiny bald head (remember that time at the church in Fayette when you were sitting in the choir loft, and I was in the balcony - we made eye contact and I made motions like I was buffing my head to make it shiny like yours, hahaha! I made you chuckle that day :D I love that shininess!). I will forever cherish and have great appreciation for puns - YOU are the Pun Master! And breaking out into song whenever a moment calls for it! I was SO embarrassed when I was a teenager when you'd do that, and now as an adult I think it's wonderful!

I am proud to be your daughter, and wish I could be more like you in so many ways. Thank you for putting up with me and loving me even when I made it hard to. I love you, Dad. I hope you have a great birthday!

Love,
Sara

Time for another vote!!

2010-02-11T00:58:00.004-06:00

Another way to help raise money for SMA! With another vote, you can add $5,000 more to the efforts the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation is putting forth to find a cure for SMA. You can also post it to your Facebook page after you vote so your friends who supported us in the Chase campaign can jump in and help out once again! (I will copy and paste from Victoria's blog)

I'm no hero. No more so than any parent fighting for their child. But, if I win the "Hero Next Door" contest, that means $5,000 more for SMA research and awareness. And so, I am asking for your vote once again.

Care2 -- the company who hosts our PetitionToCureSMA.com, who has been incredibly supportive of our cause, and who we simply love -- has teamed up with Tom's of Maine to create the Hero Next Door contest -- every day people doing more. We were nominated, along with dozens of others, and here is the neat thing -- we made it to the top 10 finalists! Now this is where you come in...

Here is the breakdown:

* Voting ends February 26th.
* You can only vote ONCE.
* The person with the most votes wins $2,500 for their charity and $2,500 for themselves -- which, in my case, would obviously go directly to research and awareness because there is nothing more important! So that's $5,000 for SMA -- all with a simple vote.
* Technically only one person can win and so "Victoria" is the name you see, but the nomination is clearly for all of us -- including Gwendolyn.

How to vote:

1. Go to: Hero Next Door
2. Click on Vote for Victoria. (It is the green button at the bottom of the page.)
3. Fill out the form (name, birthday, email and zip code).
4. Click on the animal picture (to help stop spammers).
5. And then hit "Vote" and that is it.
6. You will see a big "Thanks for voting for Victoria Strong" to let you know your vote went through.
7. Since you can only vote once, help spread the word by also using the "Tell a Friend" features on Facebook, email and Twitter by clicking on the icons on the right.

And again, all $5,000 will go to the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation to support SMA research and awareness! Thanks for once again supporting us and getting your voting skills out! We are all becoming pros :)

I can honestly say, this woman is a true hero...not only to her beautiful little girl Gwendolyn, but to the many families out there fighting along side her to find a cure for SMA. She and her husband, Bill, received Gwendolyn's diagnosis when Gwendolyn was about 6 months old, and have not laid down and let this beat them - OR Gwendolyn. Instead, they are doing everything in their power to raise awareness and money to end SMA forever. They have a BLOG where many people follow the daily life of Gwendolyn and the goings-on of fundraising and awareness. They have had triathletes competing in a triathlon to raise money, the Unite For The Cure program (they challenged 20 families directly affected by SMA to raise $5,000, and the final total raised was $146,643.70!!! The goal was only $100,000, and they passed that by a mile!), they raised $44k in their Sponsor-A-Mile program where they traveled 4,816 miles round trip in an RV from Santa Barbara, CA to Vicksburg, MS and back to introduce Gwendolyn to her 104 year old great-grandfather (WOW!)! These are just a few things this wonderful family has done. I am deeply touched by their love for their daughter, and their passion to end this horrible disease.

If you need a refresher on SMA, here ya go:

SMA is the leading genetic killer of infants. It is a terminal, degenerative disease that results in the loss of nerves in the spinal cord and the weakness of the muscles connected with those nerves. SMA impacts the ability to walk, stand, sit, eat, breathe and even swallow. The mind and spirit are no different from that of a healthy baby, but the body eventually fails. Typical babies with SMA Type 1 have a life expectancy of between one and two years and they require around-the-clock medical assistance and monitoring.

SMA Statistics:

* SMA is the #1 genetic killer of children under the age of 2.
* SMA is estimated to occur in nearly 1 out of every 6,000 births.
* The gene mutation that causes SMA is unknowingly carried by 1 in every 40 people or nearly 8 million Americans.
* There is currently no treatment and no cure, but the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) selected SMA as the disease closest to treatment of more than 600 neurological disorders.
* Researchers estimate that we are as close as only a few years away from finding a treatment and/or cure.
* Because scientists know so much about SMA, SMA is considered a "model" disease with direct impact on research into many other diseases potentially benefiting millions of people.

So, if you've got a minute to spare, and I know you do, please follow the link above to vote for Victoria in the Hero Next Door contest. Actually, click here, it will take you directly to the voting page :) It costs you nothing.
If you have another 30 seconds, and I know you do (otherwise you wouldn't be here, reading my blog), then please go sign the Petition to Cure SMA. Everyone in your household can sign it; you do NOT have to be 18 years old.

On your mark...

Get set...

GO!!!

Thanks for checking in :)

xoxox~

Amazing Week

2010-02-09T01:50:00.008-06:00

This past week I have had some wonderful, amazing things happen in my life. I will try to explain everything the best I can. First, on Wednesday I found out that my sister-in-law is pregnant! Raia is going to have a little cousin! YAY!! I am so happy for Beth and Michael :)

Next, I spent Thursday and Friday with my friend Cathy. Her little boy Parker was having his 1st birthday party, and we were making his cakes! Cathy is such a wonderful woman...she is beautiful inside and out. She really wanted to be a part of making Parker's cakes, and she did great! I will post her pictures, as mine were not so great.

Also, on Thursday while I was at Cathy's, I got a phone call from a lady who works for a local grocery store (HEB). I had recently filled out an online form to possibly participate in their Shopping Challenge. Well, I was selected (woohooo!!), which means that I get to go shop in their store and get $150 of FREE groceries :) We scheduled it for Monday the 8th (that was today, I will get to that in a few minutes).

On Saturday, I had to work. I get a phone call from Nathan after I had been there about an hour. Our conversation went a little something like this:
N: "Do you know anything about a KithchenAid Mixer?"
Me: "Huh? What are you talking about?"
N: "There is one on our front porch..."
Me: "What?! Is it in a box?"
N: "Yeah. Brand new in the box, where did it come from? You didn't order this, did you?!"
Me: "NO!! What does it say on the box?"
N: "Has your name on it, from Amazon.com"
Me: "I have NO IDEA!! Is there anything else on it? A return address maybe?"
N: "No, just Amazon.com"
So, ladies and gentlemen, I have a brand new KitchenAid Stand Mixer, and I have NO IDEA who sent it to me! I am grateful for it, to say the least, floored actually, because these things are NOT cheap! Everyone I have asked and have talked to say not to question it, and to enjoy the gift. So enjoy it I will do! All I can say is WOW...and THANK YOU to whoever sent it to me, you have no idea how grateful I am :)

Nice, huh? I have already used it twice and made this cake for a friend. I know it is kinda plain, but I like it - hope she does too!

On Sunday I went to church with Cathy. I have really been feeling God pull me back into church, the best times in my life were had when I was a part of a church. I love Cathy's church; even though I was raised Methodist, this Baptist church just seems to fit me (so far). I have been so moved each time I attend - its great! This Sunday they were having Communion. At first, I was a bit apprehensive and didn't know if I would be allowed to participate since I was not a member. I had no clue how they would do Communion. There was a Catholic church I visited once for Easter a few years ago, I wasn't allowed to participate in their Communion because I am not Catholic. So I just didn't know. I was pleasantly surprised, and learned new things about Communion that I didn't know before. I loved the way the pastor explained the last supper, and the breaking of the bread. The entire service was about The Last Supper and what Communion means. Luke 22:19 says - And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them saying "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me." - The pastor said that Jesus knew there was a traitor sitting at the table with him that night, and yet He still gave thanks to God and broke bread with him. WOW. Every time we take Communion, we do it in remembrance of Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. The pastor talked about the eulogy at a funeral, and how it sums up the life of a loved one. He asked what we would say if we were asked to give a eulogy for Jesus. Then we all prayed, and I realized I had no idea what I'd say if it were my duty to give Jesus' eulogy, and I really needed to figure that out. We sang a song just before Communion, I don't remember the name of it, or any of the words, but WOW, I was moved...had tears streaming down my face - it was powerful. Thank goodness I was in the back row! I think I've gotten way off track here, I just wanted to say that church was probably the most wonderful thing that has happened this week in my week of awesomeness :)

Ok, now it is Monday - my day to do the HEB Shopping Challenge! I was nervous and excited all at the same time. The lady who walked with me was really nice, and helped me when I didn't know where something was, she was super patient with me (and my coupon shopping!). My friend Rita was picked to do it a few months ago, and she is the one who sent me the application to fill out (Thank you!!). After about 2 hours, I thought I had about $150 worth in my cart. I had been using a calculator to keep tally, but the darn thing kept turning off, so I lost track. The lady was so nice and told me I could go check out, use my coupons, and if I wasn't up to $150 I could go back for more. I didn't think I'd be able to do that. I was pretty close - $127.02. We went back for a few more things that I had put back because they were not needed and cost a little more than what I wanted to spend, so YAY!! My total after that was $149.30! It was awesome :) Here is everything I got (click on the picture for a closer look if you want). I had to buy all national brands, no store brand items. Some things are hidden because I had to stack items, but you get the idea.

Raia has been an absolute doll this week. Yesterday Gibson came in the bedroom and jumped up on the bed beside us, and I asked Raia "Where are Gibson's ears?....Where are Gibson's eyes?....Where is Gibson's nose?....Where are Gibson's whiskers?" That one confused her, so I had to teach her what whiskers were. Last night, she was still talking about whiskers, so I asked her where her whiskers were. She thought a minute and then said "I not have whiskers." I decided she should have some of her very own :)

Cute!

Well, it is very late, I really need to go to bed. Thank you for checking in :)

xoxox~

Raia Reading

2010-02-03T20:44:00.005-06:00

Raia's love for reading has really blossomed over the past few weeks. She loves to be read to, and just loves stories in general. Every night while I rock her to sleep (or near sleep), she asks me to tell the Cinderella story. That one is her favorite. Sometimes I tell Snow White, or Elmo and Gretel - same version, only a name substitution because she loves Elmo so much!
Just the other day, I caught her on video "reading" her Cinderella book. If you listen closely, you will hear the words "Once upon a time", "Cinderella", "child", "Evil Stepmother", and just toward the end, it sounds like she says something like "knock on the door" which I am thinking is the part where the King's Messenger comes knocking on the door to deliver the invitation to the Royal Ball. Soooo cute!!

On a side note, I have really noticed how horrible some of these stories are, especially Hansel and Gretel!! The old witch was going to EAT those poor children!! I guess when you are young, you don't really think about how awful the stories are...at least I never did. The childrens stories I read always had a happy ending. The children always had little animal friends to help them out of scary situations, the Prince always came and whisked the poor maiden away to a better life in the castle, and the bad guy ends up under a pile of rubble - not dead, mind you, just out for the count.

Here are a few cute pictures of Raia from this week.

Cutie pie on her Zoe (from Sesame Street) pillow. We call it the Zoe pillow because it is orange like Zoe, and Zoe's favorite color is pink, which is on the opposite side :) A gift from Aunt Chotty for Christmas :)

Here is one brave child - up in the shelving unit!

These last two are showing off a new beanie that I got her where she can actually wear her pretty bows! Her hair is so thin these big ones just fall out...or are pulled out! (Thank you again Devon, we just love them!)

Well, sorry this post was so short. I decided to blog before Raia's bedtime, and well, now it IS bedtime!! Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

P.S. Last weekend I wasn't feeling well, so Rita and I had to postpone making my Grandmother's 7 layer chocolate cake. We will hopefully do it the weekend after the Super Bowl!! Can't wait!!
ALSO - I think my new headache meds are working!!!! Wednesday I asked the Dr. to let me try something else, I couldn't afford what he had prescribed previously, even with insurance (something called Amrix). So, he put me on Amitriptyline, and so far no bad side affects, it doesn't make me sleepy or woozy or anything, AND it is super cheap!! I haven't had as many headaches, and the ones I do get are not as strong. YAY!!
Ok, really....off to bed now!

Emotional and Busy Week

2010-01-25T00:05:00.011-06:00

This past week has been a very emotional one. Chase Bank had a Community Giving Program on Facebook (Round 2), and The Gwendolyn Strong Foundation had a real chance at winning anywhere from $100,000 to $1 million!! If you've read my blog for any length of time, you know that SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy) is what took my dear friend Rita's beautiful son from her at only 5 months old. The Gwendolyn Strong Foundation was started to raise money to fund research and awareness for SMA, the #1 genetic killer of infants. Anyway, Jan.15th - 22nd we were working our butts off emailing, tweeting, basically bugging the crap out of people for votes. The top charity won $1 million, and places 2 - 6 won $100,000. It was SO very important that GSF placed in the top 6, I can't even tell you. Scientists are so close to a cure, but they need funding. When SMA is finally cured, it will also provide treatments/cures for such things as ALS/Lou Gehrig's Disease, spinal cord injury, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, the muscular dystrophies, and even some forms of cancer. So you see, this was very important. GSF was only one of 100 charities to be voted for, and compared to many of them, it is very small - SMA is not something people are familiar with until someone they know and love is diagnosed. After 8 long days of campaigning, emailing on facebook, posting every single status as a plea for votes, tweeting celebrities, etc., GSF came in 6th place with over 52,000 votes. That is HUGE!!! The money won, $100,000, will go a very long way toward finding a cure and to raising awareness. There were times when we'd lose momentum, and sink low thinking we were done for - at least I did - after countless pleas to a few of my "friends" on facebook, and being completely ignored was very disheartening. I never gave up, and I know I bugged the hell out of my friends with my relentless posting. It certainly paid off though, and we are all so proud of the great feat that we accomplished :) The winner of the million is an organization called Invisible Children, Inc. They rescue children in 3rd world countries who were abducted and forced into being soldiers, children as young as 8 and 9....sad. They had a voting center all set up with phones, laptops, lots of volunteers; all we had was a bunch of passionate people, parents fighting for their children's lives, asking for votes. So needless to say, it was a great accomplishment. Here is baby Gwendolyn celebrating! She reminds me so much of Raia, and vice versa...I have come to love this little girl from very far away, and her parents, too.

The few moments I spent off the computer this past week (LOL), I got some really cute pictures of Raia.

This one makes me laugh a little - Raia mid-tantrum.

Nathan has been so good this week about keeping her in the evenings when he got home from work. He knew how important getting votes was to me. Here they are snuggling.

And again, only this time in the Blue's Clues sleeping bag LOL!

This girl loves to wash her hands...the sticker on her forehead came from my Aunt's house, and for some reason, that is where she likes to put them...go figure.

Me and my beautiful girl :)

In addition to working so hard to get votes this week, I also had two cake/cupcake orders, and I had a cake and cupcake order the week before. I will post pictures of the cakes in a bit, but here are the cupcakes for one order...These cupcakes were for a little boy's birthday, just plain with sprinkles.

Raia wanted to lick the spatula when I was done. After all, it matched her nightgown :)

Raia is such a smart cookie - she knows when she is doing something cute, and will say "Take pitcher ah me!" while posing! (Yes, I know it's spelled wrong, but that's how she says it!)

She loves stories! Either read to her, or made up ones. Cinderella is her favorite, and she asks for it every night as we rock to sleep.

Princess Raia - (taken at my mother-in-law's house)

I mentioned the cakes and cupcakes I have done the past two weeks. These were done for a little girl's 5th birthday, and this particular lady heard of me from a friend. She wanted a Little Mermaid cake. I usually won't put the toys on a cake if they have to be transported, I would hate for them to fall over during the ride and mess up the cake, that would be BAD. So here is the Little Mermaid cake without Ariel on it. If you will notice, the bottom edge has neat little "rocks", and they look SO real!! One of the guests at the party even asked if they were real rocks, but no, they are chocolate covered candy made to look like rocks - YUMMY!!

This is the actual cake, before I baked it. It is all French Vanilla, but I dyed part of the batter pink. I think this is just so pretty :)

Here are the cupcakes to match.

After the Little Mermaid party, the woman was so impressed with my work that she called me the same night and asked me to do another cake/cupcake order for her the following weekend (yesterday). WOW! Talk about an ego boost :) This one was for her mother. The flowers are actually purple, I don't know why the camera shows them as blue :( They turned out very nice though, and she loved it.

Rosebud cupcakes to match.

I think that's about all I've got for now. The only time I really have to blog is late at night after Raia goes to sleep, and I am pretty tired tonight. Night before last I only got two hours of sleep because, like blogging, I can only work on cakes after Raia goes to bed. The 'Happy Birthday Mom!' one should have been easy and should not have taken me long at all, but I got all 'OCD' on it and had to make it the best I possibly could, so I didn't come to bed until 3am. That was also the night that GSF won the grant from Chase Bank, so I was pretty wound up and couldn't sleep. Around 4am, when I finally started feeling sleepy, Raia woke up. She had me awake for another hour and a half. I had to get up at 7:30 am to get ready for work that morning, I was so tired. Guess I'm still catching up.

Like always, I will try to blog more often. The next few weeks are going to be pretty slow around here, I hope anyway! I have a cooking date planned with my friend Rita next Sunday to try out my Grandma's 7 layer chocolate cake. I will have to blog about that for sure!!

One more thing before I go - My sweet Mother had a birthday last week, and I am so terrible at sending cards :( I always remember either the day before, or the day of....sorry all you got from me was a measly phone call, and you weren't even home :(

Mom, you have been such a blessing in my life. I love that you always have a smile on your face, and you always see the good in people. You came into my life when I was 5 years old, and have fulfilled the Mom role without batting an eyelash, no matter how much grief I gave you, especially later in my life. You have loved me unconditionally, as if I were your very own child, flesh and blood. I hope that you had a wonderful birthday, and from your email (sorry I haven't replied yet!) it sounds like you had a great week! I am so sorry that I forget to send cards, but please know that I do think of you on your birthday and hope that it has been the best birthday ever! I love you with all my heart! Happy Belated Birthday Mom!!

And with that, I bid you all adieu ~ thank you for checking in :)

xoxox~

P.S.
The headaches have been much worse this week, and I know it is from stress. We are planning to find a new Dr. for me, because this one just wants to throw pills at me and send me on my way - never once has he talked about triggers, and when I ask him to help me find a cause for them, he just tells me that "95% of all migraines have no cause". Please say little prayers that 1.) the headaches ease off, 2.) I find a Dr. that will DO something. I don't want to be on pills the rest of my life, ugh!!

Cell Phone vs. The Bible

2010-01-14T02:34:00.005-06:00

(Got this from another blogger, thought it was so neat and wanted to share!)

Cell Phone vs. The Bible

Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we
treat our cell phone?
What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?
What if we flipped through it several times a day?
What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?
What if we used it to receive messages from the text?
What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?
What if we gave it to Kids as gifts?
What if we used it when we traveled?
What if we used it in case of emergency?
This is something to make you go......hmm.......where is my Bible?
Oh, and one more thing.
Unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill.
Makes you stop and think where are my priorities?
And no dropped calls!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Don't forget that FRIDAY, Jan. 15th is the day that you need to vote for the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation on Facebook in the Chase Community Giving Program! I cannot stress enough how important each vote is. One million dollars could potentially CURE a deadly disease that steals our children, most before they reach their first birthday. Friday will be one year and one day since my dear friend lost her 5 month old son to SMA, and I hope no one EVER has to endure the heartache I've seen she and her husband have....EVER.

In addition to VOTING (on Facebook - I posted links on the previous post), please commit to at least 3 things YOU will do from January 15th to January 22nd.

1. VOTE: go to http://VoteForSMA.com
2. Email friends the voting link.
3. Post the voting link to your Facebook status all week long.
4. Blog about GSF and the $1M miracle to cure SMA.
5. Twitter the voting link.
6. BE ANNOYING (meaning persistent:) ALL WEEK LONG!

YOU can be part of a miracle...please VOTE!!!

xoxox~

If you have a Facebook account....

2010-01-13T00:35:00.004-06:00

Imagine being part of a miracle...

Starting this Friday, January 15th, Chase bank is launching their Chase Community Giving Program, Round 2 on Facebook. What that means is, in a nutshell, Chase bank is giving away $5,000,000 to worthy causes. There will be 5 chosen. I am asking YOU to please give one of your votes to the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation. Every vote they get is one step closer to a CURE for SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy), the #1 genetic cause of death in infants. Please watch the video above, it is very powerful, and you will know everything you need to know about SMA when the two minutes and 43 seconds video is over. PLEASE help...

Link to Facebook Chase Community Giving page: CLICK HERE

Link to Gwendolyn Strong Foundation Chase page: CLICK HERE

Link to Gwendolyn Strong Foundation YouTube "channel": CLICK HERE

Link to Gwendolyn Strong blog: CLICK HERE

If you've ever wanted to be a part of a miracle, it takes just one click, one vote...

xoxo~

Our Trip :)

2010-01-12T01:24:00.012-06:00

We had a wonderful time on our trip! We drove all the way to Alabama, and opted to drive overnight so Raia would sleep through most of it. There is NO WAY she would have stayed in that car seat for 10+ hours (one way) during play time!! Nathan did an excellent job getting us there and back unscathed, while I plugged in my computer and surfed the net for most of those 10 hours! I tried not to sleep, but on the way back I did a little. I was afraid Nathan would fall asleep at the wheel, and wanted to be alert in case he did. Thank goodness he didn't! Way to go, Nathan!

***Please know that the following information is not easy for me to blog about, and share with the entire world (if they so happen to come across this blog)***:

I have not shared on my blog yet about my sons; they both live in Alabama. This blog was primarily made for my family, but I do have a few non-family readers. It is something I am not particularly proud of, the fact that I am not with them. Only my closest friends know my past, and know my situation. I do not openly share this information, because I am afraid of being harshly judged. I know that there is only One who I should care about judging me, but I am only human, and I do care about what people think of me. Eventually I will have peace about everything; I am working towards that now. I feel like finding a church to attend, and renewing my relationship with God is my first step.

Patrick, who is 11, is my son from my first marriage. He is one of the smartest kids I have ever known, very sensitive on the inside, cares so much about his Granny (my Aunt, she has adopted him), loves attention, absolutely loves his video games, he likes to play rough and tough like the big guys, and he is growing like a weed! He had hit a growth spurt since the last time I saw him, and I almost didn't recognize him! My little boy is almost a man!!

Jacob, who is 7, from my second marriage, is a sweet boy, he is so polite, nurturing (he couldn't stop loving on Raia!), also loves his video games, smart, and very forgiving. He hadn't changed much since the last time I saw him, except for the few teeth he had lost, and a little taller.

It is tough not being there to watch them both grow up, but they are both in the best of hands, learning and growing, and always ready to see me when I come to visit!

We stayed in a hotel this time while we were there (Thank you Mom!!). Usually we stay with my Aunt, but her health is not what it used to be, so it was best that we let her rest instead of catering to us. Any prayers you could say for her would be wonderful! I love her with all my heart, and she has become like a mother to me, and HAS become a mother in my place for Patrick. For that, I am forever grateful.

While we were at the hotel, the boys swam, and LOVED being at the pool! I think we spent more time at the pool than anywhere else! They had an inside pool, and a hot tub (thank goodness!!!!!!!) While the boys swam in the sub-zero degrees pool (YES! It was cold, even being inside!) I was able to take Raia in the hot tub for just a few minutes. She didn't seem to mind, but we never kept her there for more than about 15 minutes; the pool was just too cold for her....AND me!

More pictures from the pool:

We had an after Christmas Christmas. We opened gifts - mostly Patrick, Jacob, and Raia, and they had a blast! I think that doing it this way kind of extends the holiday, you know? (Kinda like when someone wishes you a Belated Happy Birthday - it makes your birthday last that much longer!) My last post was about not having many Christmas decorations, and my Mom, being a loyal blog reader, filled TWO whole gift bags with Christmas decorations and ornaments! Even one from my childhood from my Nomi! I loved them all, thank you so much, Mom! I can't wait until next Christmas when I can put them all out! I LOVE Snoopy, and especially Woodstock - he is my hero! - so I got a cute Peanuts themed plush Christmas decoration to put out for Christmas, too! She thought of everything! Love you, Mom!!I also got one of those Big Top Cupcake (silicone, even!) from my Aunt!! Thank you!!!!!!
My other Aunt (I have lots of family, and since I'm adopted, my family tree has lots of branches; it gets complicated, so I won't bother explaining here) got Raia the cutest blanket, personalized with HER name on it! It came with a duck, arms wrapped tightly around the rolled up blanket..did I mention how CUTE it was?!

Raia also got a tea party set from my Mom, "Gran-Gran", and she LOVES it!!!!! Here she is playing with Nana:

We had a really good time. It is always so great to be home, and to see my boys. I miss them terribly. They are going to be grown before I know it. It is always so hard to leave, knowing that it will be months before I see them again. Patrick was having a hard time before we left, he never wants us to leave...it breaks my heart.

I know that it won't be long before we can go back, but it hurts knowing I am not with the boys, raising them like I should. God has a plan for me, for all of us. If I had not come to Texas, I wouldn't have my beautiful Raia. That is what keeps me going, and it is what keeps me from beating myself up over my bad decisions. I have three wonderful, smart, beautiful kids, and though we cannot all be together now, I know things will all work out in the end. I am truly blessed.

Thank you all for checking in!

xoxox~

I have been neglecting my blog...

2010-01-07T02:49:00.004-06:00

Sorry folks...I got so wrapped up in going to visit my family, I just didn't make time to blog. This is just going to be very quick, I just wanted to let you all know that I will be updating sometime this weekend. I have LOTS of pictures to upload and go through, and then figure out what I want to share. Thanks so much for checking in!!

And one last thing....it is bugging me to know: You all see the little tracker thing I have on the right hand side bar, called "Live Traffic Feed"? I would LOVE to know who is checking my blog from Lewisburg, West Virginia!! If it is you, please leave me a comment (or email me if you have my email, or message me on Facebook if I have ya there)!!

xoxox~

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2009-12-13T01:15:00.006-06:00

I really miss having a Christmas tree, and having the whole house decorated for the season. When I was younger, I didn't even realize it, but I'd get so excited decorating the tree, and helping decorate the house. Nathan has never really cared much for decorations, so we have never had any. Now that we have Raia, we both think it will be neat to decorate the house with her, and have fun decorating the tree, etc.

I was bound and determined to get the little table top Christmas tree my Mom got for me last year up and decorated again this year, along with one of our nativity sets. We recently got a nice little entertainment center from my friend Rita, and I thought that would be the perfect place for both! Some might think it would be a little cluttered for all of that, but I have a dog who eats anything!! I have to have it high enough that he can't reach! (Just the other day he jumped up on the counter and snagged my oven mitt, and proceeded to eat the entire lining, leaving me only the outer green sheath :( Um, Gibson, I can't get food out of the oven with that, buddy! Good thing he's cute!)

So anyway, I started with the tabletop tree :) I don't have many ornaments for it; it doesn't really need many. Nathan's mom got Raia a set of 4 Winnie the Pooh ornaments, and I have several others from her first year on there as well. I *tried* to let her hang her first ornament, but she wanted nothing to do with that, LOL! Here is the finished product!

Onto the nativity set! We have two nativity sets now, and both are so cute, I will either have to display them in different parts of the house each year, or, alternate. This was a gift from my sweet sister-in-law, Suzanna a year or two ago. Family and friends reading this ~ you all know that Nathan is very much a cat person, so I think this nativity set was more for him than for me, hahaha, but I just LOVE it!!!

Here is my favorite one:

Aren't they cute?? I think Gibson wants to eat them. LOL!

You know how all this time i have been griping about our camera? Well, Nathan and I decided to get a new one for our birthdays to each other...to share. It is a Canon Power Shot A1100 IS, and so far so good :)

One last thing before I go, I am thinking of starting a new blog just for my cakes. I have all of my cake pictures on facebook right now, and I'd like to keep that just for friends and family. I don't want to add potential customers just so they can peruse my cake album. I have done that twice already, and WOW, some people are just wacko! Glad there is a "Delete this person" button LOL! Anyway, to avoid all of that, I'd like to start a new blog just for my cakes. I am stuck on a blog name, though. Please help me think of a name!! Here is my latest cake, I just finished it tonight!

Kinda makes me want to play Twister LOL! That is NOT what I intended, though, oops! Hope no one else sees that! It is for a baby shower :)

Ok, thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

SNOW!!!

2009-12-04T20:39:00.015-06:00

This doesn't happen very often here! We got snow this week! I had to work that day, and Raia was with me, so she only got to play in it for a few minutes. It was so busy (and chaotic!) at work! I can't believe people were actually coming out in that mess.

Raia was so excited to go out, she bolted out the door before I could flip her hood up!

Finally got her to slow down long enough to put her hood up!

This is the "back yard" at work, about an hour after Raia came in from playing in the snow. I took this right before we came home.

I HATE driving in bad weather.

When we got home, I went to check the mail. I saw something red out of the corner of my eye amidst all the white in the neighborhood (I might add here that our yard was the only yard with minimal snow because we have so many trees!! Raia will be disappointed in years to come if we ever have snow again.) Anyway, here is what caught my eye...

One lonely rose on our brambly rose bush.

I had to take Raia in for her nap, she was exhausted. **By the way, I have figured out our sleep problems (YAY!!!) She used to like the TV to be on for background noise, but when I was getting so frustrated, one night I finally just turned it off, and I had her asleep within 10 minutes. Yeah, that's right, you read that correctly....10 minutes. Talk about a lightbulb moment! So now, there is no TV or radio on at bedtime, and she usually falls right to sleep within 10-15 minutes. This goes for nap time, too.** Okay, back to snow day. Took Raia in for nap, got her down, and I thought I should take Gibson out and let him check out the snow.

I think he is pretty well camouflaged here, don't ya think? He was trying to determine if snow was friend or foe....still undetermined.

I am so over all this cold weather. If anyone wants to send me a plane ticket to a warm sandy beach, that would be just fine with me. Once the temperature drops below 70, I just stay cold, brrrrrr!

Onto the Christmas surprise I promised :)

My sweet friend Jeni, of Jeni Hendricks Photography took these for us. She has always been so good to us. We will be forever customers of hers! I am truly blessed to have her as a friend, also. If you are in our area, you should book a session with her. She is a great woman, mom, friend, and last but not least, photographer!

Ok, I think that's about all I've got for tonight's edition. I do want to add that Nathan and I are doing much better. So thank you to those that have had us in your thoughts and prayers! Things are looking up, and we are looking forward to having a nice vacation at the end of this month with my family!!

xoxox~

Busy Month

2009-12-02T01:25:00.004-06:00

I have a busy month ahead of me. The last Sunday of November I made this cake for Raia's little friend Jayden, he just turned two:

My friend's little girl is turning six tomorrow, and loves High School Musical! Here's what I came up with:

This weekend I have 24 cupcakes to do. Next weekend I am doing a pretty big order for 60 people for a baby shower. The next week I have two friends' birthdays! And somewhere in this crazy month Nathan and I have to age another year, too! And let's not forget Christmas! Are you tired yet?? I am.... I also realize that I am truly blessed for this talent, and this business that is heading my way! Lord knows I need it!

Sorry for the short post tonight, it is all I have time for. More to come this week! Promise! (And psssst....it's a Christmas surprise!)

xoxox~

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-25T00:25:00.007-06:00

I'd have to agree...."WOOF!" Haha! I know it is a few days early, but I probably won't get a post up before Thursday.

This past weekend, my beautiful, intelligent, sweet sister-in-law got married to a wonderful man! It was such a lovely wedding, and I cried as she walked down the aisle, and again as my other sister-in-law gave a toast to the bride and groom. WOW...I am getting choked up yet again, it was that powerful! Anyway, it was just beautiful and I am so very happy for them...

Nathan was an usher and was all dressed up, I hardly recognized him, LOL!

(Sorry for the not-so-good cell phone pictures. Maybe someone will send me better ones.)

In other news, Raia is having sleep issues. It is taking me almost 2 hours (or more) to get her to go to sleep at night. Sometimes we start at 9pm, and most times I don't have her down until midnight. And her naps? Well...they are just a struggle. A normal day we wake up between 8 and 9am, depending on when we went to bed the night before, and if I have to go to work. Her nap usually falls around 2,3, or 4pm, and can last anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hrs (if she falls asleep at 4pm, there's no way I'd let her sleep for 3 hrs. - that is a very RARE thing). So please keep her in your prayers that she gets this worked out, I am getting very frustrated. I am absolutely convinced that her sleep problems stem from her still being in the room with us at night. For some reason, Nathan doesn't want to finish her room so that we can move her over there and let her be the Little Miss Independent that she wants to be. He isn't known for being very quick about doing things, so maybe by the time she goes to college....

Remember my posts about losing weight to raise money for SMA research? Well...I lost 12 pounds!!! I feel great, but honestly, I think it had more to do with the Topamax I am taking for the headaches than anything else, but I did exercise and eat better, and portion control was a big thing too. I was going for 15-20 lbs, but I will take 12!!! I had 6 sponsors (thank you ALL!!!) and raised $150 total, isn't that awesome?! My friend Devon lost 10 pounds, and she did great!!! With all this hard work, one day SMA and SMARD will be a thing of the past!!! Speaking of which - if you have NOT signed the petition online, please go there NOW and sign it, it takes 30 seconds of your time. The Petition to Cure SMA will help pass legislation to end the #1 genetic killer of infants and young children. You do not have to be 18 to sign this petition, ANYONE can sign it, so it is important that everyone in your household sign...each signature is important!! PLEASE take that 30 seconds to go sign! If you can't click on the blue link above, Google 'Petition to Cure SMA', or click on any of the Gwendolyn buttons I have on the right hand side of my blog.

One last prayer request for tonight. Baby Jonah needs prayers. Although he has been eating much better the past few days, he will probably still need a G-tube. Jonah has EB (Epidermolysis Bullosa) which creates painful blisters with the slightest friction on his fragile skin. He is 9 months old. I do not "know" Jonah, but through this wonderful blog world, I have gotten to know him and his wonderful family. I have a "Pray for Jonah" button on the right hand side of this page as well, you have probably seen it a million times....just click on it and go visit his blog and read about him, maybe leave a word of encouragement for his sweet Mommy and Daddy. I have had them on my mind a lot this week, hoping things get better.

Ok, that's all I've got for tonight, thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

P.S.
Raia has had to have a "kee-toe" every night before bed for the past, oh, I don't know....3 weeks? "Cream on her toe", WITH a bandaid! And it is always the big toe on her right foot. Gotta love this child of mine!

Headaches

2009-11-18T01:08:00.004-06:00

I don't have much to update. I have been MIA for a few weeks because I haven't felt much like being on the computer. Weekend before last I got the worst headache, and by day two when I was practically in tears and felt like my eyes were melting in their sockets, I finally asked Nathan to take me into the ER. The Dr. gave me a shot and sent me home, but the medicine in the shot made me pretty sick the next day, blah :( So I called my neurologist. I have seen him already twice this week. He increased the dosage on my Topamax from 50 mg to 75 mg, and gave me a nasal spray called Stadol to try for severe headache. Since my headache has still never completely gone away, I tried the Stadol. UGH! Bad mistake!! He told me it would knock me out, make me sleepy, but I was awake for hours!!! Felt like I'd drank coffee and taken drugs at the same time! So I called his office again and they made me come back in - another co-pay, dangit! He ended up putting me on another medicine that is working much better, so far anyway. It's call Fiorinol. I am not so sure the Topamax is working so great, but I am still on a very low dose. The side effects are killing me! The maximum dose of Topamax is 400 mg, and I am only at 75 right now. I am experiencing numbness in my fingers/hands, toes/feet, I forget words or letters while talking/typing, and I am losing weight (that could be a good thing though!), among other various things. We will see what happens over the next couple of months, I guess. I am just thankful I have insurance.
I will try to take some pictures this week of a cute little girl I know, and I might even try to get them posted. I am working a lot of extra hours this month, trying to save up for vacation, so please forgive me if I am not as frequent with my posts this month as I usually am. Also, Nathan's sister is getting married this weekend, and we are all *planning* to be there. How was that for a random paragraph?! Blame it on the Topamax! Haha!
Ok, I am off to rest my weary head(ache). Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

Videos

2009-11-04T00:22:00.005-06:00

The first video is of Raia doing her forward roll. This is something she taught herself! She had already done it a few times today, but while we were putting clean sheets on the bed and then making the bed up, she decided to show off and use that as her gymnastics mat / floor. I'm telling you, this child will have me gray before I am 35. She was attempting to do these off the edge of the bed today, and when I screeched "NOOOOOOOOOO!!!" I thought I had broken her little heart into a million pieces :( I just want her to do it safely!

The second video I'll post is the one where she is singing her ABC's! Now don't get too excited, she can do it much better that this, and all the way through. I don't know why she was only doing part of it, I'm guessing she was just camera shy, the little stinker!

Thanks for checking in :) I'd post a little more tonight, but just posting those two videos took more than two and a half hours to upload, and I am TIRED.

I will share this with you though - I went grocery shopping again today, spent $52 and got all this:

I already threw the receipt away, but I know I saved more than $60. I have no idea how many items it is either, I wish I had saved the receipt, oh wel! I'm sure just by looking you can tell that all that for $52 is pretty darn good :) *You can click on the picture to enlarge it to see everything I got!

Ok, off to dreamland! Hope you enjoyed the videos!

xoxox~

Halloween '09

2009-11-01T18:34:00.007-06:00

This was Raia's first year to go Trick or Treating! She wasn't nearly as excited as I was, and never really "got it", but we all had a pretty good time anyway.

The day started out like any other day, Raia and I had breakfast in bed (always LOL). Nathan was still in Denver, and due to arrive home by 4pm, so the rest of my day was spent doing laundry, cleaning the house, doing dishes, and last but NOT least, giving the costume a final trial run.

Aaaaand, her model pose:

I couldn't decide if she looked like Tinkerbell or an angel. So we went with Tinkerbangel :)

Nathan made it home a little early. He took Raia out in the stroller for a walk to try to get her to take a nap before our big night, but it just wasn't happening. At around 6pm, Raia and I headed over to a friend's house. A couple of us ladies from the resale shop where I work got together to let our kiddos go trick or treating. After all the pictures, we only got to go to about 5 or 6 houses.

Here's the gang:

Before we got started:

This was one of their first houses:

Raia's boyfriend (haha!) Jayden - cutest little turtle ever!

My friend Brandi's little girl, Jordi and Raia. Jordi is about the sweetest, most mature 10 year old you'd ever meet. Always so helpful, very respectful, I hope I can teach Raia to be as respectable as Jordi is. Love you, girl!

I had to leave at 7 to take Raia to Nathan's parents' house. We swung by the house and picked Nathan up, and headed over to the in-laws. Once we were inside, Raia didn't want to leave! There is too much fun stuff to do at Grandma's house! Add in a cranky baby who has had no nap, and yeah, she didn't want any part of more trick or treating. I really wanted to take her to a few more houses, just because Nathan missed out on our first round. I really wanted him to see how cute and bewildered she was when these people were dropping candy in her bucket! We did finally manage to get her out the door and down the street for more trick or treating, and once we were there she was fine and had fun! Maybe once Nathan's mom gets a chance, she can email me some of those pics and I will post them.

After her evening of trick or treating, she crashed at around 8:15pm. That is unheard of for this child; I am usually up until around midnight with her, at least since I have weaned her. So I thought I was in the clear! Get a bite to eat, check a few emails, play around on facebook....oh wait, who is that stirring? None other than Raia, at 10pm. We were up until midnight. So I guess she got her nap afterall, it was just a very late nap.

This morning we woke up refreshed. Thank goodness she doesn't know what candy is yet, or else she'd have wanted that for breakfast! Instead, we, (did ya catch that?....WE) yes, she and I made muffins, or as she calls them, "muppins".

She is becoming quite the little helper in the kitchen! A few weeks ago when we were doing one of the bake sales, she was helping me make some of the Amish Friendship Breads. She never forgot how much fun we had, and every chance I get, I try to let her help me, even if it is just to stir something. She loves it! Her grandma bought a cute little apron that says "Queen of the Kitchen in training". So cute!

Still a little big, yet, but I think we can make it work :)

Well, that's it for today's update. I DID happen to get her on video singing part of her ABC's, but I will have to post it at another time. It take 14 years to upload video, and I've got a cranky 2 year old to deal with! I think Nathan is ready to clock out!

xoxox~

2009-10-30T00:51:00.008-05:00

Nathan has been sending me some great pictures from his cell phone. Not great quality pictures, but the scenery looks amazing.

I don't know if you can tell, but those are big horn sheep. We don't get those just scampering across the road in these parts....

This is my favorite pic so far ^ ^ ^ ^

As pretty as it is, I don't think I could ever live somewhere that cold. I'm freezing when its 70 degrees or when the air conditioner or fan blows directly on me.

Even a note to Noggie!

He seems to enjoy being in the cold weather, it doesn't bother him. As long as he doesn't bring it home with him just yet!!! Can I hang on to summer/fall just a little longer, please??

Other News :)

I got these beautiful earrings from my blogger friend Devon over at The Daily Dakin. I joined "weight loss forces" with her in an effort to raise money to Pound Out SMA. I have lost 7 lbs so far (and seem to be stuck), and every pound I lose earns money toward finding a cure for SMA. Her precious little guy, Dakin, is about to be 2! He is a Halloween baby!! You should go read about him, and wish him a Happy Birthday while you're there!

I have been doing the Grocery Game for several months now. I've posted about it before HERE. This week I did pretty well at Kroger.

That is 42 items. I spent $50.13. My coupons and discounts saved me $45.62, a 47% saving! I did even better at Randall's but didn't take a pic. I got 23 items, and spent $16.51. Coupons and discounts were $22.20, a 58% savings. So altogether, I spent $66.64 on 65 items; that's just a little over one dollar per item, tax and all :)

Now, I know that grocery shopping may not be exciting to everyone - I used to hate it. But now it is like I am playing a game, trying to see just how much money I can save, and usually I walk out feeling like I ripped them off LOL! It does take a little work, you have to look on line on the day you are going shopping and clip the coupons it tells you to clip. My biggest problem with it right now is trying to keep my binder organized; I need a better binder.

In the theme here of saving money, if you are reading this blog, leave a comment and let me know one thing you do to save money. Here are some of mine:
~One thing I do to save money is cleaning with vinegar. It is so cheap, and you can pretty much clean anything with it, and it is perfectly safe around children and pets.
~We also water down our hand and dish soaps, about 50/50. This makes it last twice as long, and works just as well.
~I don't buy the Swiffer cloths, I just use wash cloths instead. This way, I can use whatever cleaner I'd like on my floors (vinegar), and I can wash and reuse the cloth.

Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

Lots of pictures

2009-10-28T21:32:00.012-05:00

It has been a long time since I have updated. Not a whole lot is going on here, but I do have lots of pictures to share.
This past weekend we had two birthday parties to go to, and Raia had a blast at both of them. They both had the bouncy houses for the kids to play in and Raia just loved it!

Here is the cake I made for one of those parties; it was a two year old princess party :)

Here are some other pictures of Raia taken at the park. Nathan was so nice to take her for the day and let me work on the cakes I needed to do (like I said above, we had 2 birthday parties, but actually had 3 birthdays to celebrate).

Can you tell that someone likes to slide? She is becoming a master! And so independent, my word....she is growing up too fast.

On Saturday we went to a local pumpkin patch. I thought it would be a neat thing to do for Raia. Actually Nathan had mentioned it a few weeks ago, but it finally worked out for us to go Saturday.

Raia was really enjoying all the pumpkins; she loved touching each one, and picking up the small ones to "share" with us. They had a cute little bench for photo ops, as I'm sure you saw. Anyway, Nathan selected a nice sized pumpkin for us, and it was time to head home. Raia screamed and and kicked her legs, I had to almost drag her to the van, poor baby. I know, we are horrible. She'd have stayed there all night if we'd have let her.
Nathan worked hard carving the pumpkin, and did a great job. I don't think Raia really knows what to think of it; she keeps trying to blow the candle out, haha!

A few weeks ago I bought three of the tiny little pumpkins at WalMart, one to represent each of us. I drew faces on all of them, and the mommy one is the only one that really looks horrible, I couldn't think of anything distinctive about myself to draw onto a pumpkin face. Oh well...I guess black lopsided lips will have to do! Raia totes these things around all over, and calls them her "baby punkins".

I'm pretty sure Raia is going to be Tinkerbell for Halloween, unless its too cold and I can't find anything to go underneath her costume.

That is a handmade costume made by my friend Kim's mom. She made it for Kim's daughter Madison (Raia's best friend) last year for Halloween.

Here are a few more random pictures.

And here she is lovin' on Jayden (isn't he precious?!). I work with his Mommy at the resale shop - that's where this pic was taken. We are so lucky to be able to take our kids to work with us!

I think that's all the pictures I have for right now. I realized the other day, as I was looking through the 359 photos on my phone, that I really needed to delete some of the pictures and email some of them to myself to post here. So, sorry if all this cuteness has overloaded your computer. You know you were missing it though, since it had been so long since I last updated and all...

Raia is talking so well now. About a week or so ago I heard her singing, and realized it was the alphabet! Granted, its not perfect, but geez, the ALPHABET?! I will try my hardest to get that on video, but this little stinker stops doing anything cute the second the little red light comes on....bummer.

The other day I made waffles for breakfast, and when I came in to sit down, Raia said to me with the sweetest look (while patting the seat next to her), "Mommy, sit. Wapples!" I've told that story to everyone I know because it is just so cute, and now she says it all the time LOL! Silly goose!

Last night I was getting pretty cold, and asked Raia if she was cold, and she promptly said to me, "Git unner da cubbers, Mommy!" Hahahaha!

On another note, Nathan is out of town again this week. He says this will be the last time he has to go out of town. He is actually in Denver, Colorado.
He sent me some really pretty pictures today, but I haven't uploaded those yet.

He and I are still going to counseling, and if you've got a minute and a spare prayer, I would really appreciate it. We could really use it.

I think that's all I've got for now. It is almost 1 am, so I better get to bed! Thanks for checking in! And again, I welcome any and all questions or comments, any topic suggestions for my blog would be great, too :)

xoxox~

Quick Video

2009-10-26T02:46:00.004-05:00

Nathan took Raia to the park while I was working on a cake, and he brought this video home for me. Let me just say for the record, my heart is in puddles on the floor, so watch your step as you exit...I'd hate for you to slip ;)

More to follow in the next day or two. Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

25 Things You Didn't Know About Raia

2009-10-15T00:27:00.007-05:00

1.) Raia cannot sleep peacefully with a blanket, or anything else covering her. The moment one is draped over her, she wakes herself up kicking it off.

2.) Her favorite movie (right now) is Bolt. She's good to go for about 25-30 minutes in her "movie chair" that we make out of pillows for her on the bed if Bolt is on.

3.) She is learning to brush her own teeth. I bought one of the electric ones with Dora the Explorer on it and Dora toothpaste, and she likes it pretty well. And she will even let me help now, after she's done, of course.

4.) Raia loves to color, and loves feeding her crayons to Gibson. I always know when he's had a crayon snack when I see his rainbow poo. (Yeah, too much info, but funny too.)

5.) One of Raia's favorite games is holding onto Daddy's back while he throws darts. She gets the biggest kick out of that, and always has loved the game of darts.

6.)Raia randomly runs up to me and wraps her little arms around my leg and just squeezes with all her might, and sometimes kisses my leg, too. It is about the sweetest thing ever...

7.) Bananas make her breath stinky.

8.) This child is fearless. No steps too steep, no chair too high, no shelving unit NOT climbed like Mt. Everest in record time! Just like her Daddy...

9.) Raia will spout off 30 seconds worth of unintelligible babble, but you can rest assured that there will be at least 3 strategically placed "Elmo"'s in there somewhere.

10.) She loves ice cream. Any flavor. At the mention of "ice cream" her head whips around and she comes running! She calls it "keem".

11.) Her eyes are blue (still) as the day she was born.

12.) Most of the time, if I lose track of her when I am at work, I can find her over in the girls' shoes section, trying on shoes. She just loves shoes!

13.) She is becoming a "Daddy' Girl". Not that its a bad thing, he eats it up. She really misses him when he is gone, and completely ignores me when he comes home, LOL!

14.) Loud barking scares her and makes her cry. Our friend has a really big Golden Retriever named Boudreaux, and Raia just loves him to death, but when he barks it sends her to tears. The same is not true for our Gibson, he could bark all day, and she doesn't cry. Boudreaux's bark is just so loud and resonant, I think it just goes right through you...it really is kind of scary, but she just loves him (as long as he isn't barking!)

15.) Raia has an Elmo seat cover for her car seat, and MUST kiss Elmo before going anywhere.

16.) Most of the time, Raia will kick off her shoes in the car, no matter how short or long the trip. It drives me nuts LOL!

17.) Lately, one of Raia's least favorite times of day is naptime and bedtime. She fights it like a champ!

18.) She has become QUITE the mimic! I am really having to watch what I say. I've never been one to have the cleanest language, especially when frustrated, so now I am really having to watch it! But the mimic thing goes for everything; she is feeding her baby dolls, and trying to diaper them, and all sorts of other things too.

19.) I am teaching Raia how to blow her nose. When I was younger, I had major ear infections, and blowing my nose hurt terribly because of the pressure, so I am trying to teach her the "proper" way, (close one nostril while blowing out the other, then switch. It minimizes the pressure.) I didn't learn this until a few years ago!

20.) After a recent event when Raia cut her finger, I think she may have become a Band-Aid-aholic. No, really....We are down to only the giant sized ones, and I've had to hide the box for now.

21.) She is yet to be sleeping in her own bed, much less her own room. For the past few weeks we have been dealing with night terrors (I'll blog about that another time maybe). She wakes up and has NO CLUE who I am, all the while kicking and screaming, and it usually takes me about 15-20 minutes to get her calmed down, so maybe it is a good thing she is in my bed and not all the way across the house?

22.) She is in size 6 shoes, size 18-24 month and 2T clothing, but there are still some 12 month pants and shorts that she can wear because she is so thin. She is really tall, though! (34.5 inches tall!)

23.) Raia is (so far, and probably will forever be) right handed.

24.) Raia was named after her grandfather, Ray (Nathan's dad). We wanted to have the name "Ray" in there, but I wanted to make it more feminine, so I spelled it with an '..ia', as opposed to 'Raya'.

25.) I am sure for some of you, the name of the blog itself has raised a question or two. Noggin Berries?? Well, that is Raia's nickname. After putting a beaded teether on her head, I said to her "You have berries on your noggin!", and it just kinda stuck. She became Noggin Berries, or Noggie for short, or Nogs. It really does suit her!

And there you have it, 25 things you didn't know about Raia before you read this post :) Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

2009-10-11T19:46:00.002-05:00

My Beautiful Daughter

My beautiful daughter
You cannot know
How much my heart breaks
As I watch you grow

In time you'll become
Independent and free
Always my daughter
And special to me

As you grow older
You will see
Through the eyes of a mother
Reflections of me

Past, present and future
All intertwined
My mother, your mother
All daughters you'll find

Our reflections, not vanity
Mirrored lives we share
Always a daughter
Your mother, who cares.

by Julie Copeland 1999

Nathan has been hospitalized UPDATE

2009-10-09T18:25:00.005-05:00

On Tuesday evening, Nathan was outside checking on our cats. Apparently we have a stray hanging around and Nathan, being the 'cat-whisperer' that he is, picked him up. The cat was cool with that until Nathan started walking. The cat promptly bit down on Nathan's hand to let him know that "Hey, dude, I'm not fond of walks!" It went pretty deep, Nathan said it went all the way to the bone. Stubborn as he is, he waited almost 24 hours to go to the Dr. to have it looked at, and by that point there was not much they could do but send him to the ER. He needed IV antibiotics.
Here we are two days later and he is still in the hospital. I haven't even been able to go see him because he doesn't want me to bring Raia into the swine flu infested hospital (neither do I), and as of yet (until tonight) I've had no one to watch her.
All I know is that he has been getting lots of antibiotics, there was an orthopedic surgeon that came in this morning to talk with him about possible surgery, but said that it looked "pretty good" but they would know more when the swelling went down a little more. They also had to call an Infectious Diseases Dr. in yesterday to talk about releasing him, but I guess he said no :( Since I have not been up there, I don't know much. Nathan keeps telling me not to worry, and I think he tells me as little as he can get away with to keep me from worrying.
A friend of mine up the street has offered to keep Raia for me for a few hours tonight so I can at least go check on Nathan and take him some clean underwear. I will update if I find out anything more.

Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

~~ UPDATE~~

Nathan came home this morning, and will be on antibiotics for about a month.

A Quick Update

2009-10-05T18:24:00.006-05:00

Not much is going on here, just trying to avoid the swine flu as much as possible, I guess. Every little sniffle scares me, and I am always worried that Raia has a fever. Blame the stupid media. I try to keep my composure around Nathan, though, I don't want him thinking I'm freaking out too, because he totally is. I don't think I have ever had the flu, and I have never had a flu shot, nor will I ever get one. I don't mind if you get one, or if your kids get one, just don't make me get one...
I am in a grumpy mood today, I'm sorry if that is coming through in my post here. Raia has been really cranky today, and I can't figure out why. She doesn't have fever or any symptoms of sickness, so I don't know what is going on, we've just had a rough day.
This past week I did a cake for one of my very dear friends. Her little girl was turning 10 and wanted a cake that looked like presents stacked atop each other.

And here is the finished product... (sorry for the crappy cell phone pic.)

How did I do? The little cupcakes that were on the sides of the board were really pretty, too, but they were hard to see. The birthday girl loved her cake, and all of her friends thought it was neat that they got to actually meet the person who made the cake! Talk about an ego boost!
Last week Nathan had to be out of town for two nights. As I was doing laundry one of the nights, I walked out of the bedroom for maybe 3 minutes to move the clothes from the washer to the dryer. When I came back, I noticed blood everywhere. Trying not to freak out, I search Raia top to bottom, and only find a small cut on her finger. She had somehow managed to pull a glass from the backside of the vanity off onto the floor, and it broke, and all the little pieces of glass must've looked pretty! She wanted to play with one of them and she cut herself. A week later, she is still asking for band-aids and Neosporin, and she gets this sad look on her face when she realizes that the band-aid is on her finger. Such a drama queen!
I am still doing a little babysitting for a friend of mine, but we are to the point now where we are just swapping hours. I think she is done for the summer - her swim lessons are pretty much over, so my daily babysitting is over...boohooo, the money was nice! But over the summer, we made some really great friends in these gals. I already work with Kim at the little resale shop I work at 2 days a week, but the babysitting was extra. Her 2 girls are 6 and 2, and her youngest, Madison, has become Raia's best friend. (They were the 2 girls pictured in my previous post about the bake sale in the yellow chair together.) Here is Madison and Raia together, and really, they are the best of friends.

Well, this post has gotten a little longer than I thought it would. I DID say "quick update" didn't I? Oh well...
Thanks for checking in! And if anyone has any ideas for me as far as blog post ideas, fundraising ideas (for SMA) or any questions, please leave me a comment! I know I've got a few readers out there, and I don't want you all to be bored to tears! I might have to steal Devon's idea and do '25 Things You Didn't Know About Raia'...hope you don't mind, girl! That's a great idea and I know my family out of state would love to read it!

xoxox~

Raia's cute word for the day:

This is a two-fer!
1.) "Boo-boo-daid" - Can you guess what that is and why? Our episode last week with the fallen glass and the cut finger makes her want a "boo-boo-daid" (boo-boo band-aid) with.......
2.) "Keem" - Cream, or Neosporin. Gotta love it!

Bake Sale Success!

2009-09-28T20:28:00.007-05:00

Our bake Sale this past Sunday was a complete success! We had people hitting us up before we could even get set up! We raised a little over $400 for Unite for the Cure and Families of SMA! How wonderful is that? All of the goodies were packaged so beautifully, and Rita wanted to make it a Fall theme, with lots of decorations and baskets full of the goodies, and it really paid off. We got so many compliments on how nice the set-up was. People were saying it wasn't your average bake sale, where people just put stuff in ziplocs and slap a price on it.

(Please forgive the pics, as we are all WELL aware by now, my camera is not the best.)

A couple of cutie pies that came out for the bake sale!

In other news, Raia is still NOT NURSING (yeah!) and doing fabulous! I feel like my umm, er, "upper areas" are about to explode. Actually, its not as bad as it was a week ago, but still hurts a lot. Nathan laughs at me because I've been wearing cabbage leaves in my bra. Ha ha! I guess it is kinda funny.

My headache meds are working, so that's good. I still get the headaches, but the go away. YAY! Hopefully as the Topomax builds up in my system, I will eventually just stop getting them altogether. I can hope anyway.

I don't really have much of an update today, sorry! I do have a couple of cute pictures of Raia, though.

Here is Raia with her best friend Madison at McDonald's.

For some resaon, this girl loves to put things on her head. But not normal things, like hats or bows...

Yep, it is a purse.

Thanks for checking in, that's all I've got for now!

xoxoxo~

This week I don't have a funny word from Raia (that I can think of right now....) but my friend Rita did buy her some Elmo stuff for her birthday, Elmo socks included. As soon as I pulled them out of the package, she kissed them! So cute! And let me tell you, she will wear holes in them before long....She calls them her "Emmo" socks!

Thanks Rita!

Success!

2009-09-18T22:11:00.009-05:00

Well, Raia is officially weaned. I have my boobs back...finally!! YAY!! It has been a little over 80 hours since she last nursed, and so far I've only had to deal with one night of screaming, crying, and pleading. We have replaced it with a sippy cup at night, and believe it or not, she actually falls asleep faster, and no more wiggle-worming all over my lap! Why did I not do this sooner?! It has been so much easier than I thought it would be. My baby is growing up (sniff, sniff!)
The potty training has come to an abrupt halt, much to my chagrin. I guess once she realized what all the fuss was all about, it was no fun anymore. I was hopeful that she would be one of the "early" potty trainers. Oh well. Now she goes and takes the cushy little seat and wears it as a hat....I know, I know....Thank God for Lysol!
In other news, the cookbooks are selling SO FAST! We have very few left, so if you want one, let me know NOW before they are all gone! They are $12 each, plus shipping (if you are out of town). You can pay by check, or go to the Paypal account and pay directly. Leave me a comment, or email me at maynardspet000 @ yahoo . com (spaced out to reduce spam - you will need to retype it all together in the "To:" box.
On Sept. 27th, Rita and I will be holding a bake sale at one of the local WalMarts here in town to benefit FSMA, and to fund research to find a cure for SMA. If you have had any experience with bake sales, or would like to share some tips, tricks, sage advice, please leave me a comment or email me at the address I gave above. Also, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers, as we have never done a bake sale before, don't even know what we are getting into. We just need to raise this money, and FAST! We have until the end of November to raise $5000. CLICK HERE FOR MY PREVIOUS POST ON THIS SUBJECT AND WHY WE ARE DOING WHAT WE ARE DOING.
This also leads me to asking for sponsors...yet again. Don't make me beg, folks. $1 per pound I lose...is that too much? Then do .50 cents per pound. Any little bit helps. Over the past 2 weeks I have lost 4 pounds. I only want to lose around 20 pounds, so if you sponsor me $1 per pound and I lose 20 pounds, that $20 that goes toward finding a CURE for the #1 genetic killer of infants and children under the age of 2. That's huge. You can visit Devon's blog HERE to learn more about why I am wanting to lose the weight and more importantly, WHY.
Onto other things.
My headaches are getting so much better. I saw a neurologist and have been diagnosed with migraines. After an MRI and an MRA, and a trial of different meds, we have finally found something that is working. I am afraid by typing this out that I may be jinxing it...I hope not. I am on steroids right now, and the headache that I'd had for over a month finally broke. I can't tell you how that feels. I feel free. It is wonderful.He has also given me a daily medication as a preventative, but I wanted to wait until Raia was completely weaned to try it - it has some pretty scary side effects. That will start tomorrow. I will keep you all updated.
I will leave you all with a few new pictures. I know how you love the pictures!

Raia's 2nd Birthday Cake (Elmo, of course!) There were cupcakes, too.

She got a giraffe for her birthday from Gran-Gran, and she wanted to give it a "Welcome" kiss! My mother-in-law helped her open all her birthday gifts, and they both loved every minute!

Because this is just what 2 year olds do.

My first lipstick experience! Does this shade look good on me??

Gibson - Riding home from Grandma's house...she has the BEST backyard to play in! Lots of stuff to chase and play with, its a jungle out there!

Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

Raia's cute word for the day:

"Poopons" - coupons (LOL)
She can also say 'credit card' and 'swipe'. Sounds more like "cre-cod", but you'd be surprised at the looks I get at work or at the grocery store when she says this! They all think I'm getting her started early, but truth is, she learned it from me swiping customers' credit cards at work. We don't even have any credit cards!
<3

Happy Birthday, Noggin Berries!

2009-09-11T00:45:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday, Raia!

I can't believe you are 2! It seems like only yesterday we finally met face to face, and you stole my heart. I wish I still had the pictures of you in NICU, just a reminder of how far you have come. I do have ones from your last day or so there. You were so tiny, and finally breathing on your own. We were so proud of you, our perfect little tiny angel!

When we brought you home, I think I yelled to your Daddy "Slow down!" about 100 times before we made it to the driveway. Leave it to Mommy to drive Daddy nuts!
This picture was taken after your first bath:

Little did we know, you had pooped in your towel, haha! Guess you liked bath time...

I hate this picture of me, but it goes to show just how tiny you were.

Everyone thought you were going to have red hair, I guess it must have been your love of Elmo already showing in pictures. You didn't really care much for the bouncy seat until you had almost outgrown it, but you did have a few good moments in it :)

This is one of my most favorite pictures, it makes me laugh every time I see it! Rock on, little sister!

Here we are, your first Easter:

Your first birthday was anticlimactic to say the least. We had Hurricane Ike bearing down on us, and as much as I wanted to make a huge deal of it, it just wasn't meant to be. We still had a good time, YOU had a great time, which is all that matters.

During your second year, your love for Elmo has blossomed. I am afraid there might need to be an Elmo intervention in your future! He is the first thing you mention in the morning, and the last thing you mumble as you fall asleep in my arms. Your favorite thing is the Elmo puppet you got for your first birthday, and you love to wear it on your head...silly girl!

This past year we have taken you to the arboretum...

...the zoo (which I can not find the pictures of!)...
and San Antonio - TWICE!

These were pics from your first trip to SA.
Your second Easter was fun! You looked so cute in a dress that Gran-Gran sent you. She always finds the cutest stuff!

Just in the past few weeks you have taken a liking to playing dress up. With a hat, tutu, and (sort of) matching socks...all you need is sunglasses and a magic wand!

Gotta love that hat! BUSTED digging for gold LOL!

I am so blessed to be your Mommy! You never fail to make me smile with that sweet giggle, your never ending need for hugs and kisses that always seem to come at just the right moment, your silly words, and your love for learning new things! I love how stubborn you are, you must get that from me. I hope it doesn't get you into too much trouble! I love that you hate to see Daddy go when he has to go on business trips, your love for your Daddy is so special. There are so many things that I love about you, Noggin Berries, and I can't wait to enjoy finding many more things to love about you!
We love you so much, Raia! Happy Birthday Sweetheart!

xoxox~

Potty Training!!

2009-09-06T20:59:00.000-05:00

Raia's second birthday is FRIDAY!!! I cannot believe my little girl will be 2! Time flies when you're having fun! Last week she took an interest in the potty, so I decided to get her one of her very own, and let me tell ya, this girl LOVES IT! The funniest thing is, she has to have a book to read while she goes LOL! She is doing really well, I think anyway. She has been going in her potty at least twice a day, and today for the first time, she let me know she needed to go. I was impressed. I am not doing any of the "rewards" like candy or anything, I just get really excited, and squeal and clap my hands, and for now that seems to be a good enough reward for her, haha!
I went back and forth about posting a picture of her on her big girl potty. I don't think they are inappropriate, so I will share :)

Look how excited she is LOL! My baby is growing up :( but YAY for independence! And YAY for no more diapers (soon)!

I have officially joined Devon in her efforts to raise money for SMA research with Unite For The Cure by losing weight. I NEED SPONSORS!!! I am only looking to lose 15-20 lbs, and if you sponsored me for $1 per pound, that's only $15-$20. If I lose the weight :( I am not doing very well right now, I need to eat healthier, and minimize my portions, but it's hard when you only get one or two meals a day. I feel like I am running like the energizer bunny (with no energy). I have been super busy this summer with work, and babysitting, cleaning my mother-in-law's house, cakes, and trying to get a hold on my own house and family. Now that school is back in session hopefully things will slow down a bit. Back on subject though, I really need sponsors. All you have to do is leave me a comment (below, just click where it says 'comment') and tell me how much you want to pledge per pound, OR you could make a lump sum donation (just click on the Unite For The Cure button on the right hand side of this page, and you can donate with check or credit card). When you donate online, please make sure you put "Pound Out SMA" or Lovelace family in the donation box--there's a space for it. This is just to keep track of funds raised and by whom. With the checks, you'd need to put it in the memo line. (By the way, the Lovelace family is my friend Devon who I have joined to lose weight for UFTC. Her son is Dakin, you can click on the Dakin button on the right hand side of this page to go visit his blog, he is SO precious!)

Ok, I think that's all I've got for now. I have decided that the glad game is really hard for me, so I haven't done it in a while. I feel like I've been putting the same things every time I post. I need to come up with something new to do, something positive. For now, I will post a new Raia word (or words) to end my posts with. Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

"Ho-Ho" - Horse :)

Pictures

2009-09-01T23:39:00.000-05:00

I know I have been slacking lately in the 'new post' department, and I know I apologize every time and promise to do better. Today is no different. I'm sorry for my lack of posts, and I promise to do better!
I am too tired tonight for any lengthy posts, so pictures will have to do for now.

Mommy & Noggin Berries

Raia LOVES Gibson's cage...seriously! We call it her "time out" LOL! I have better pictures of she and Gibson both in the cage, I just need to upload them.

My hair looks RED here...I think I like it! I see a box of hair dye in my future. This is Raia just after her bath, wrapped up in her Elmo towel :) Such a cutie!

Nathan in Washington DC. He is there again this week for the second time.

One of my favorite pics, it makes me laugh every time! Raia with the famous Elmo puppet on her head!

Ok, that's all I've got for now. I'm tired! More posts soon!
If you didn't read my previous post, please do. I need sponsors!! Leave me a comment if you'd like to sponsor me!

xoxox~

Unite For The Cure & Losing Weight!

2009-09-01T23:24:00.000-05:00

Just a quick post about Unite For The Cure. Gwendolyn's parents, Victoria and Bill Strong, started Unite For The Cure to raise money for promising new research for SMA. They have challenged 20 SMA families to raise $5000 each by the end of Nov. 2009. I am so proud of my friend Rita; she has been working so hard to raise the money by selling the cookbooks, making cards to sell for donations, we are working on bake sales and garage sales, Weigh To Go, car washes...anything we can think of to raise this money! Please visit Unite For The Cure to learn how YOU can help, or leave me a comment and I will do my best to answer your questions!
Also, Rita and Devon are doing separate programs to lose weight to earn money for SMA research. Rita is doing Weigh To Go, and Devon is doing Pound Out SMA/SMARD. I've decided to join up with Devon and lose a few pounds myself. I NEED SPONSORS!! Please sponsor me for like, I don't know, a dollar a pound? Whatever you feel like pledging. I've only got about 15-20 lbs. to lose, and I'll be lucky if I can lose half of that (boo me), so please leave me a comment if you want to sponsor me. I will have more info on that in the next coming posts, I'm still waiting to see what I need to do to sign up.
Again, I am so proud of my friends. I never thought I'd be so passionate about a cause the way I am about finding a cure for SMA. These precious children have touched my heart and I feel compelled to help in any way I can. Please help me help them!

xoxox~

Weaning Raia

2009-08-22T01:25:00.000-05:00

I am so sorry I haven't updated like I said I would. This past week has been just one big headache. Really...I've had a headache for a week now. These are the ones that are really bad, I can't shake them. I get headaches pretty regularly, sometimes daily, but the ones that last for days are the worst. Since we now have insurance (yay!) I was able to go to the Dr. but they cannot give me anything because I am still nursing. She said Immitrex is not compatible with nursing. Well, after talking with my boss (she is a certified lactation counselor and knows everything there is to know about nursing) we have come to the conclusion that Immitrex IS compatible with nursing. After looking in her Medication Guide for Breastfeeding Moms, by Thomas Hale, it clearly states that Immitrex is ok to take, especially since I only nurse 2 times a day (naptime and bedtime). Even still, I am trying to decrease my milk supply and wean Raia, so I can take the Immitrex. I cannot have a functional life with the headaches I have - they are just too frequent for my comfort level. I have started an herbal tea to decrease my milk supply, so hopefully in the next few days we will notice a big change, and Raia will just decide for herself that its just not worth the effort. I have wanted to wean her for a long time now anyway, I don't know why it has been so hard. She will be 2 in three weeks...it is TIME! Ugh! Prayers please, that this transition will be easy for her (and me, too).
Nathan has been in Washington D.C. all week. He has the video camera, so I have no new pictures or videos to share this week. I can honestly say, I am beginning to miss him and will be glad when he gets home on Saturday. We have been going through a rough patch, and have been going to a marriage counselor for the past couple of months. I haven't said anything before now, because I didn't want to jinx it I guess. Nathan and I didn't get together under the best circumstances, and those of you that know us know exactly what I mean. We are too far into this to turn back now, so we have got to find a way to make it work. We DO love each other, but sometimes it feels like we are on different pages. We haven't figured out the best way to communicate with each other, so we are working on that. This is another thing I'm asking for prayers on, if you don't mind.
Raia is just the most perfect angel there ever was. She is doing fabulous. She is still talking up a storm. She loves her "appa-sahn" (applesauce), and for some reason, anything that comes in little cups with a pull off lid is "appa-sahn", like pudding, or yogurt. I cannot keep this child out of the refrigerator; she is about to drive me up the wall with her incessant need to pull all of the condiments out and line them up on the floor behind me as I load the dishwasher. I NEED a refrigerator lock. It's so cute, but only about the first 10 times. This is an older video, but this is where the refrigerator obsession began:
My friend Rita has been challenged with raising $5000 by Nov. 30 to fund the latest clinical trial in research to cure SMA. We are going to be doing lots of bake sales, garage sales, and anything else we can think of to raise the money. 20 families affected by SMA were asked to participate in this to raise the money, and I think it is great! I hope that the entire $500,000 is raised. If you have any ideas for fundraisers, PLEASE let me know! If it is in your heart to make a donation, ANY DENOMINATION, please click HERE. Anything you can spare, whether it be your coffee money for the day/week, or spare change you have collected in a jar, it is much appreciated. You can also click on the above link to just read a little more about what Unite For The Cure is all about.
Our sweet dog Gibson is still doing great. It is hard to believe how sick he was when we got him just a few months ago. He was practically banging on death's door, begging to be let in, but has made a miraculous recovery. Kennel cough is nothing to mess around with. Apparently, for some vets, there is a thin line between kennel cough and distemper. I'm so glad we were able to get a second opinion...so glad. Even though Gibson has chewed many of Raia's toys; even though Gibson has ripped all the lining out from under our Tempurpedic bed; even though Gibson has pee'd rivers in our living room (thank goodness for tile floors!), and poo'd piles to rival Mount Everest in the living room (again, thank goodness for tile floors!); even though he wants to jump up on Raia, or anyone who wants to love on him, we are so thankful he pulled through whatever sickness he had. He is certainly a character, full of life, and such fun! He just got his last round of shots this past Tuesday, and he was a trooper. I can tell how anxious he feels about 5 miles before we even reach the shelter where he gets his shots. He gets very tense, and begins panting, kind of on edge. Nothing I do can calm him. I have to drag him by the leash through the front door (he is getting too big to pick up), and bless his heart, once inside he just paces back and forth, frantically. I think he thinks I will leave him there again. It's amazing to me that dogs remember, just by smell, and even location. Just amazing. He did settle down a bit when a lady brought in a beautiful blonde lab. Her name was Brooklyn, and Gibson was in love. Brooklyn's owner and I chatted a while , while we waited. She was very fond of Gibson as well. Anyway, no more shots for Gibson for another year, yay!!
While I wait for this video to finish uploading (takes FOREVER!) I can tell you about some of the things Raia has been saying, she is so funny. I have been babysitting a friend's 2 girls this summer while she teaches swim lessons. They have a beautiful golden retriever named Boudreaux. He is around 75lbs, and is not quite a year old yet. Sometimes he barks and barks and barks, so of course, we yell "Hush, Boo!" Raia has now started saying "Hoss, Boo!", every time we pull up in Kim's driveway, its too funny! She even says it to Gibson when he barks, haha!
Our cat, Shula, hides underneath the bathroom sink in the cabinets. Raia loves to try to climb in there to join "Sha". For some reason we have a box of old mail stuck under there, and the other day I came into the bathroom to see old bills, envelopes, cards, being thrown out of the cabinets. They were scattered all over the floor. Man, kids are quick! I think she had probably been under there about 30 seconds.
I know this post has been all over the map, but get used to it. I tend to be scatterbrained lately and change the subject at the drop of a hat. The video I wanted to share has finally finished uploading, so I think I'm going to call it a night. Thanks for checking in!

Glad Game:
1.) So glad Nathan will be home tomorrow.
2.) I am glad that I have such a funny, smart, sweet, cute, healthy, beautiful little girl.
3.) I am glad school will be starting next week. Kingwood is crazy when kids are out of school for the summer.
4.) I am glad I have such wonderful friends and co-workers. (I know I say this in almost every single Glad Game, but really, I am so glad I have the friends I have. I love them all.)
5.) I am glad Nathan and I are trying to get our issues worked out, and I really hope that we will come out of it a better couple.

P.S.
Something I forgot to mention earlier - Rita is doing this thing called 'Weigh to Go for SMA'. Basically, she is losing weight, and people can sponsor her per pound that she looses. Right now, I weight 143 lbs. This is the most I've ever weighed NOT pregnant. I'd like to lose around 15-20 lbs. I am not doing anything "official" as of yet with the 'Weigh to Go for SMA' group, but if you would like to sponsor me "unofficially" for now (it might be a kind of motivation to be honest) on a per lb. basis, that would be great. All money would go directly to FSMA ( Families of SMA/Rita ). Just leave me a comment, let me know what you think. If I have enough people wanting to sponsor me for the 15-20 I want to lose, I will go register with them. It is going through December, so I have until then to lose my extra weight!
Thanks again for checking in!

xoxox~

I made out like a bandit...

2009-08-16T14:39:00.000-05:00

Saturday, Kroger was having a great sale, and they were doubling coupons up to $1.00! I have started playing the Grocery Game to save some money, and it really works! It is so much fun, too! Anyway, Friday night, my friends Kim and Rita and I all went to Kroger at 11pm and shopped until the sale started at 12:15am. All three of us made out like bandits, Rita doing the best I think, she saved 74% or something. Her bill was crazy, like $141, and then after all the sales, coupons, and shopper card she ended up with a final bill of $34.41!!! She's the one who got me into this, and you can see why it appeals to me.
Ok, so this is everything I bought:

All this food, plus...

all of this health and beauty stuff.
Total bill before coupons - $128.18
After coupons - $59.50
I saved $68.68! That was a 65% savings! I got 72 items for $59.50, some of it was meat, too! I'm sitting here trying to figure out all the numbers in my head, and I am confused by this receipt because it does not tell me my 'before' total, only how much my coupons were (total $83.45) and how much the shopper card took off ($28.33) and my percent saving (65%). I know that when I saw my total before all the coupons came off, it was more like $150.00, but I don't see it anywhere on my receipt. Maybe the before coupons total of $128.18 plus the shopper card savings of $28.33 is what I saw, I don't know. Sorry if I have confused anyone, I'm just excited, that's all LOL!

On the home front, we are all doing fine. Raia is saying a few more funny words, like "Foon" for spoon, she calls ice cream or yogurt "keem", her best friend Madison is "Mommin" haha! Don't know if I've posted this one yet, but juice is "goose".
I will try to post more often, I just haven't had that much to post about. If you have any ideas, or questions, or anything at all, leave me a comment and I'll be glad to post about it! I have to go for now, errands are calling my name!
Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

Twitter for a CURE!

2009-08-11T01:19:00.000-05:00

This is from Gwendolyn's Blog--her parents worked up this perfect way to promote the SMA Treatment Acceleration Act. Tweet away! This is awesome!!
(I copied and pasted their entry).
Tweet for a Cure, 4 simple steps:
Today, we launched a new EXTREMELY simple way for you to let your Congresspeople know that the "SMA Treatment Act of 2009" is legislation that is important to pay attention to. "Tweet For A Cure" allows you to automatically Tweet a message to your Representatives and friends based on your ZIP code. Four simple steps. 1-2-3-4...Here's how:

* Go to EndSMA.org/twitter
* Enter your ZIP code
* Enter your Twitter username and password
* Click "Tweet"That's it!Make sure to let your friends know about how easy it was to use EndSMA.org/twitter to sound off to your Congresspeople by Tweeting about it, blogging about it, posting it to your Facebook status, emailing it, etc.Special thanks must go to our dear friend Josh Lippiner for helping us on this project. It wouldn't be possible without him. Thanks Josh!

Suicide Watch & Funny Words

2009-08-04T00:16:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago, a comedian was on David Letterman talking about how having small children in the house was like a Suicide Watch. I can relate. I am fortunate enough to be able to take my daughter to work with me, but let me tell you, finding her gnawing on an opened safety pin, a screw, a chunk of staples, is not my idea of fun. Not to mention she has found that she can open the front door!! I have had a few minor heart attacks just in the past two or three weeks. When we got home this afternoon from work, to our "safe haven" of a home, I turn my back for two seconds and find this:

Can YOU spot the crazy baby?? Is it horrible that I grabbed the camera before helping her down?
Also wanted to share the great news that I am the proud owner now of a few brand new shiny gray hairs. Yep...I found them just a few weeks ago. I always wondered how old I would be when I would get them. The story of how my grandmother went gray by the time she was 19 always frightened me. I am adopted, so I wasn't that afraid of going gray early, but the thought was always there of how weird it would be to be completely gray by the age of 19 or 20.

Ok, next order of business-
Raia is talking up a storm now, whether you can understand her or not. Most of the stuff she says is really just jibberish, her own little language, if you will...one of these days I will catch that on video for you. It is precious in a way I cannot describe. Here are the few things she says in English:

"Fow" - Flower
"Hah Dir-day D'youuuu" - Happy Birthday to you (of course!)
"I got (pause) SHOES!" - It is SO cute when she says this! This girl loves her shoes!
"Emmo Boon!" - Elmo balloon
"Tee" - Teeth (she loves to brush those pearly whites!)
"Goose" - Juice
"Yeh-Yon" - Gibson

There are a lot more, I just can't think of all of them right now. She has a pretty wide vocabulary; some of the stuff she says is just really cute though :)

Gibson is still doing really well. He is having a few puppy issues, but its nothing I didn't expect. The potty training is going much better as long as I keep him in his big crate at night, and take him out regularly. He is jumping up a lot, and he is teething, so he has been biting my hands. This is really bad, because Raia just loves to stick her hands in his mouth. For some reason she is fascinated with his mouth (mine too for that matter!). He has never broken the skin or anything, he never bites hard, yet it does hurt; those puppy teeth are sharp! If anyone reading this has any suggestions on how to stop him from biting like that, please leave me a comment! Otherwise, he is a really good dog, he is playful and fun!

Gibson, anticipating a treat!

Ok, that's all I've got for now. Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

A small update on the walk, and Eli's birthday

2009-08-03T01:21:00.000-05:00

The 5K Walk to honor precious Eli was a complete success! Kim did such a great job organizing it, and we had LOTS of people show up! It was bittersweet; I was so happy that so many people came to show their love and support, but at the same time my heart was aching for my friends who were missing their little boy. They made T-shirts to wear for the walk, and I swear, every time I'd catch a glance, tears would well up in my eyes...they were made and worn with love only a parent knows.

Kim and her daughter Madison.

This is only about half of the people that came out to walk or run with us.

Rita and I.

This is the beautiful donation box that Rita's sister-in-law made. Through Eli's Eyes raised $557 for FSMA!! Way to go!

There are buffalo at the park. They are the brown spots. Wish my camera would cooperate.

After the walk, Raia needed a little cooling off. She ended up wearing the pink lemonade :)

Nathan's sister came out to the walk, too (yay, Suz!).

After the walk, we took Raia to the playground. This picture is so cute...she just loves her Aunt Suzy!

We were the last ones to finish the 5K, but we finished! I wasn't worried about running or timing myself on it, I kind of just wanted to enjoy the sunshine and finish it on my own time. Raia did not want to be in her stroller at all, she wanted to walk! So that slowed us down a little, but she had fun. I''m so glad we went and did this. I can't wait to see what next year will bring!

Today, well, since it is after midnight as I am posting this it was technically yesterday, was Eli's first birthday. I had been wanting to go out to the cemetery with Rita for a while now, but it is over an hour away, so I had not been yet. She and Jason were going out today to release some balloons for his birthday, and Raia and I went, too, along with two of Jason's friends.

Happy Birthday Eli!
Eli's favorite color was red, so naturally he was having red balloons sent up for his birthday. Raia sent up one very special Elmo balloon, and it kinda stuck around for a few minutes before being taken by the wind like the rest of them. Rita and Jason had attached a little piece of paper to each one with a birthday wish, and the petition website, so hopefully lots of people will find these and go sign the petition to cure SMA. If you are reading this blog and have NOT signed the petition yet, go do it now, in memory of Eli. It takes 30 seconds, and you can even do it anonymously.
I think that's all the blogging I have in me for one night. Thanks so much for checking in!

Glad Game: (very short version for tonight)
1.) I am glad that we got to share in Eli's birthday today.
2.) I am glad so many people came out for the walk on Saturday!
3.) I am glad I have such wonderful friends!

xoxox~

1st Annual Through Eli's Eyes Family Fun 5K

2009-07-31T16:29:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is the day! We have been planning this event for a couple of months now (I say "we", I actually did very little!). We are anticipating a pretty big turnout!
August 2nd would have been my friend Rita's son's first birthday, but sadly, he is not here to celebrate it with us. On January 14th, he passed at the age of 5 months from Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Type 1. In honor/memory of sweet Baby Eli, we are doing a 5K Walk/Run Event. Click here to learn more. If you will be unable to join us, but would still like to make a donation to help fund research to find a cure for the #1 genetic killer of infants, please mail them to:

Through Eli's Eyes
18131 Pagemill Point Ln
Humble, TX 77346

If you would like to visit Rita's blog, click here or look on my sidebar and click on "Rita's Blog".

I have a lot on my heart right now about the 5K Event, and about Rita, but I don't know how to put it into words. Rita and I have become pretty close over the past 10 months that I have known her. She has become like family to me, whether she realizes that or not. Please keep Rita and her husband Jason in your thoughts over the next couple of days, this is a rough time for both of them.

Sorry I have not posted as much the past couple of weeks, I have been super busy with work and with Raia. I promise to post more often from now on!
Thank you for checking in!

Glad Game:
1.) I am so glad I have Rita in my life. She may think that I am the one holding her up when she is having a rough day, but she is the one holding me up. Love you!
2.) I am glad that school is about to start back up, this summer has been crazy with kids in the store!! Ahhhh!!!
3.) I am glad my headaches have been fewer the past few weeks.
4.) I am glad for past life experiences. I have learned a lot from my many mistakes. Too bad I was almost 30 before realizing a lot of them.
5.) I am glad that we were able to get the 5K Event planned and that so many people are coming.

xoxox~

Our Haunted Hotel - St. Anthony

2009-07-23T10:27:00.000-05:00

Our haunted hotel has proven to be uneventful thus far. Aside from the scary elevator that just stood open all day on the sixth floor (our floor) with no lights on inside, a blinky exit sign, and banging noises in the pipes, nothing has happened. It is so easy to let your imagination go wild in a place like this though, and I have a few times! Last night, sitting here on the computer in the dark I got a pretty good scare. I heard a loud train whistle, and it was nearly midnight. We have been here since Monday, and have YET to hear a train go by, until last night. So that was kinda freaky.
We spoke to the guy at the front desk a few nights ago about how haunted the hotel really is, and apparently, it is frequented by a honeymoon couple around September/November. They dance on the stage at the rooftop ballroom/theater. The front desk man said its usually the smokers that are out smoking late at night that see the couple dancing. We have been up there a few times, have taken a few pictures on the stage, and nothing...guess we will need to come back in September. There is also an employee that haunts the hotel, but Frank, the front desk guy, said she only haunts the employee areas. He said he feels watched in his locker room, and has even been tapped on the shoulder once when no one was around. F.R.E.A.K.Y.
Oh! We are staying on the sixth floor, which I mentioned before. Our room is 663. Can you guess what room should be across the hall?? Yeah, room 666 is missing in action. I doubt they would have many people willing to stay in it anyway.
Tonight is our last night here, and we have had a really good time. We go down to the River Walk each night for dinner, and then come back to the hotel and just kind of explore, or watch cable TV. I tell Nathan he will need to get cable TV for me in the near future, or I am staying here LOL. I have become addicted to Deadliest Catch on the Discovery Channel, and various other shows that we don't get at home, too. I love all the true crime shows with Bill Curtis (I've secretly had a crush on the man for years...), and all the shows on Discovery Channel.
Anyway, I've gotten off topic. I wanted to post some of the pictures we have gotten.

This is the hotel we stayed in the first night we were here, right behind The Alamo.

A beautiful staircase in The St. Anthony Hotel.

A picture from the lobby.

A huge fireplace in the lobby.

My breakfast from room service - Vanilla Bean Pancakes with Pralines and a sliced banana. It was really good!

A picture of our room, but it is huge, so this was all I could get in one picture. It has 2 bathrooms!

Here is the TV and desk, the bathrooms are on either side.

All the doorknobs are glass, they remind me of crystal balls.

I thought the mail chute was neat. It goes all the way to the top floor. You can just drop your mail in and it goes all the way to the bottom floor. I haven't seen any mail being dropped yet, but I think that would be neat, too. I am easily amused I guess :)

Daddy & Raia on the haunted stage...We will have more pictures of this later, but the camera has died.

A beautiful stained glass cross at the Methodist Church across the street. I think it is called Travis Street Methodist Church.

And here is the steeple. Again, we have better pics, but the camera is dead. I will post the better ones later.

Here is one cute little girl and her new ducky (the night before we took it to the pool).

I will have more pictures of the little cutie pie as soon as the camera is charged up again, but here is a short video of her in her swimsuit just before going to the pool with her ducky - which she wanted nothing to do with once we got there!

San Antonio

2009-07-20T10:13:00.000-05:00

Nathan has to work in San Antonio this week, so Raia and I are tagging along (yeah!). We came here once before about 6 months ago, but only stayed one night. This time we get to stay 6 days, so I am really excited! The only thing that we have to pay for out of our pocket is whatever we spend over $25 for dinner. His company pays for everything else, isn't that great?! Last night for dinner, we ate on the River Walk at a restaurant called Zuni. Nathan had a crab meat stuffed avacado salad, and I had the most amazing burger (haha, I know...). Raia shared with both of us, and I am so glad she liked the crab meat! Grand total for our meal? Around $9. Our first night here we stayed in the Crockett Hotel; it is right behind The Alamo. We have learned in our one night here so far that we have to unplug the room telephone, as Raia has been picking it up, dialing, and then holding full conversations with whoever she thinks is on the other end LOL! It is quite funny, but I don't think the other hotel guests (or whoever she dialed) appreciate her calls! They put us in a room right next to the ice machine, so we heard people getting ice all night long. I swear, the entire floor needed ice between 1 am and 5 am. And, the air conditioner in the room is a MONSTER...so loud. For the rest of our trip we will be staying in The St. Anthony Hotel, which is haunted. Yeah...can you feel my excitement? I will see if I can catch some orbs or ghostly beings on film.
Since Nathan will be at work during the day while we are here, Raia and I will be taking full advantage of the cable TV and pool! In the evenings, we will have to see what we can get into down here as a family.
I think that's all I've got for now :) Thanks for checking in!

Glad Game:
1.) I am so glad Nathan took this awesome job!
2.) I am glad we made it here safe and sound.
3.) I am glad I have such great friends who helped me fill my shifts at work so I could come to San Antonio.
4.) I am so glad I got to talk to my mom and Aunt Flo for their birthdays, even though I called a day late for Aunt Flo's. It was so good to talk to both of them!
5.) I am so glad I have a beautiful, happy, healthy little girl, and that she loves her Mommy so much! She makes it all worthwhile!

xoxox~

My latest sweet surprises

2009-07-17T17:27:00.000-05:00

These were for a little boy turning 3. I did a Go! Diego, Go! cake and cupcakes for him last year, too.

I will update more a little later, sorry for the quick post here.
xoxox~

Been a long week!

2009-07-09T15:24:00.000-05:00

Sorry it has been a while since my last update! Hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July! This will be a picture heavy post, with a video or two thrown in for good measure - I need to get everyone caught up!
We decided to take a trip down to Kemah and Galveston for the day for the 4th of July. It's only and hour or two drive to get there, and the only thing we bought was food, so it was a really CHEAP day-cation!
Our first stop was near Baytown and La Porte to see the Battleship Texas and the San Jacinto Monument. We only stayed a few minutes. This is the only picture worth posting; our camera really doesn't take the best pictures.

When we got to Kemah, the first place we went was to the little water fountain play area for the kids; it is kinda hard to miss it as it is right smack in the middle of everything else. Raia wanted to play...

She had the BEST time in the water, and screamed bloody murder when we had to leave! That was a sight, I'm sure LOL! Thank goodness I brought a change of clothes for her...

At lunch, she had her very own glass! She is such a big girl now :) The lemonade we ordered for her just would not do, and she insisted on the Diet Coke her Daddy and I were having...

So after lunch we left Kemah and headed to Galveston. Some strange sights along the way - namely this HUGE cross, standing taller than all of the many power stations all around it. I had to take a picture. It reminded me of the big cross that they stole in the show Weeds on Showtime...

Keep in mind, the cross is BEHIND the power station and power lines.

I'm not sure what this is, but it is pretty. I'm thinking it was a really old house that was made into a restaurant or a museum or something. We didn't stop, but we will next time.

Next, we passed the Flagship Hotel, which was damaged during Ike. I took a picture from the internet to show a before picture:

And here is after Ike:

Wow.

We finally made it down to the beach after driving around for about an hour or so looking for a spot to park. It was crowded!

I guess after living in Southern Alabama for so long, I am a spoiled beach brat. I love the powdery white sands of Panama City and Destin/Fort Walton, and the clear blue waters. Galveston was kind of a disappointment. I knew going in that it was going to be brown sand and dark water, but the sand was sticky, and it smelled...don't get me wrong, it's not like we will never go again, I'm just saying I must be spoiled, haha!

Raia had such a good time, she sacked out on the way home. Isn't she so cute?

Last, we headed home for the fireworks show that they hold in Town Center. We got there a little early, so, instead of sweating outside, we sat in the van and let Raia watch Elmo on Daddy's work computer. I don't know why we didn't think of this before!

Sorry, as I am sure you can tell by all my pictures, our camera is just NOT made to take pictures, so I didn't take any of the fireworks. They were beautiful, though. Raia enjoyed them last year, but this year was terrified of them. She did watch them, but only if she was holding tightly to Nathan or I.

Well, this post has taken most of the afternoon to upload, so I am going to skip the glad game today. Just know that I am glad for friends, family, air conditioner, and my beautiful, healthy little girl.
Thanks for checking in! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!
xoxox~

Toilet Drums

2009-07-02T23:18:00.000-05:00

Yeah! I finally captured this cuteness on video! Enjoy!

*Sorry for the messy bathroom!

2009-07-01T18:19:00.000-05:00

Not much to update, we are all doing fine. I have just a few pictures to share.

Spending some quality time with Daddy, watching Sesame Street on the computer.

Raia has found the only cool spot in the house...guess we need a refrigerator lock now too!! It has been SO HOT! No rain in over 35 days until just yesterday, and then it was only a mist. Walking outside is like walking into a bowl of hot soup. Boo :(

Well, that's all the time I have to update for today. Thanks for checking in!
xoxox~

Just a quick note

2009-06-30T00:42:00.000-05:00

Gibson is much better now, he is back to being a normal puppy now, but more on that next time.

I think we are going to need to get a toilet lock. My precious little girl loves to come in the bathroom while I put my makeup on and play "drums" on the top of the toilet. The other day, I had no reason to think she was doing anything different, but when I turned around, I find this:

I guess she thought her beloved kitty needed a bath. Well, he is DEFINITELY getting one now!! As far as her playing the "drums" on the toilet lid, it is the cutest thing I think I have ever seen. She dances and just pats her little hands...it is just too cute. Tonight I was trying to catch her on camera doing it (she calls it "Dums") but she was camera shy. She would stop as soon as the red light came on....Since I have figured out how to upload video, I will try to do so more often. I think I am only allowed one minute of video per video posted, but I will investigate that further.
Hope you got as good a laugh from Raia's toilet kitty as I did. I felt silly running to grab the camera when I found it in there, but, well, I thought it was hilarious :)

Glad Game:
1.) SO GLAD Gibson is back 100%, he has been so fun!
2.) I am glad that my husband has such a wonderful job, we are truly blessed with that.
3.) I am glad for all my side/part time jobs that are keeping me busy this summer.
4.) I am so glad I have such wonderful friends in my life right now. I think I have better friends NOW than I have ever had in my entire life. And they are all wholesome, good people.
5.) I am glad that we all FINALLY have health insurance!! Yeah!!!

Thanks for checking in!
xoxox~

My little helper

2009-06-25T21:04:00.000-05:00

I usually fuss at Nathan for letting Raia get all wet with the hose, but found out today just how fun it is. We were out watering our straw/dead grass/lawn, and ended up playing instead...it was a blast! She is such a big helper, as you will see :)

Haha! Please forgive my raspy voice at the end - I am sick and have lost my voice!

Glad Game:
1.) I am glad Raia had fun today, and me too.
2.) I am glad Gibson is pretty much over whatever made him so sick; he still has a cough and is kind of itchy, but otherwise is like a normal puppy! Weird, but I'll take it!
3.) I am glad Nathan will be home tomorrow.
4.) I am glad Nathan has such a great job.
5.) I am glad I have such wonderful friends and family!

Thanks for checking in!
xoxox~

Quick update on Gibson...

2009-06-23T22:33:00.000-05:00

I took him to a vet in Tomball yesterday, a little over an hour drive from us (but still in the same county, ugh!). The vet was absolutely wonderful, she explained everything really well for me, and didn't dash every hope I had for his recovery like the other vet did. She said she couldn't say for certain that it was distemper, that it may very well be a bad case of kennel cough. He also has mange, the bad kind that humans can get (eeek!!). BUT...he is on new antibiotics, and a cough medicine, and she gave me Advantage for the mange (who knew?!). Today, he is like a brand new puppy! It actually started about 2 hours after I gave him his new meds last night, he started perking up; he has been eating, drinking, doing his business, he is up walking around and exploring, wagging his tail, he even wants to play with the cat now! I can't believe how he has made this quick turnaround, I am so happy! I know in my heart that this may only be temporary, but if he feels better for only a little while, and can be a puppy like he has never been able to do before, then it is so worth it!

This first picture was taken a few days ago, when he had almost no strength...he was so sick.

This picture was taken today, and sorry it isn't the greatest picture, he wouldn't stay still long enough! But check out that tail - some serious waggin' goin' on back there! Hooray!!

Thanks so much for checking in...
Before I go, a quick Glad Game:
1.) Of course, I am glad Gibson seems to be getting better!
2.) I am glad the animal shelter paid the bill for the vet since we are still in our 10 day fostering period!
3.) I am glad I have had so many people praying for Gibson, and sending good thoughts our way!
4.) I am so glad I didn't listen to the first vet.
5.) I am glad I don't have to stick Gibson with needles anymore, I think it stressed me out just as much as it did him!

xoxox~
Sara

A little late...

2009-06-22T00:32:00.000-05:00

I am horrible when it comes to holidays, and birthdays, anniversaries, etc. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in life that I forget to stop and take a minute to wish the ones I love a Happy Father's Day, or a Happy Birthday, and for that I am so sorry. For a while I had gotten a little better, sending cards and emails and such, but this year has been pretty rough. Sorry :(

So, without further ado:

Dad, Happy Father's Day to you! You have always been a great Dad to me, and it all started when you picked ME to be your daughter! I am honored to have you as my Dad, you always amaze me with your Jeopardy! skills, never missing a question, or how cool it is that you can just think up music in your head and then write it all down and it becomes "Murky Dismal" or some such great piece of music. I love all your silly puns, and your love for puppy dogs, and so many other things. I hope you had a wonderful day, Dad! I love you so very much!

Nathan, Happy Father's Day to you! It sucks that you are 1,000 miles away on Father's Day, but you are doing what any good father would do - you are working hard to provide for our little family, and learning all you can to be the best at what you do! You ARE the best at what you do, in everything, even if I try to overlook that sometimes, you are a great father. Thank you so much for being a good Dad to our beautiful little girl. One day, she will be able to thank you herself. We both love you with all our hearts!

Love,
Sara & Raia

Gibson Update

2009-06-20T23:51:00.000-05:00

Please send up little puppy prayers, as Gibson is not doing too well. I took him to the vet Thursday for a check up (since we had just gotten him) and I suspected he had Kennel Cough. He got antibiotics, and some dewormer, apparently he has "every worm known to man"...YUCK! Well, Friday I noticed he was still acting kind of droopy, very lethargic; I had to make him get up to go out. I took him back to the vet, and she diagnosed Distemper. I was heartbroken. There is no test for Distemper, and treatment is VERY expensive. Their estimate was around $2000. I just wanted to bring him home and spend one more night with our little guy, give him lots of love since he had a rough start in life. I had gone onto our local message board/chat room, Kingwood Underground, to ask questions about kennel cough the night before the diagnosis, so I went back to give an update, and had an outpouring of support from many of the other KU'ers. One lady brought me a bag of IV fluids and taught me how to administer it (scary, I know!) along with a probiotic for his belly and some extra vitamin supplement, and another sweet lady I know from work who is also a KU'er brought me a vitamin and mineral supplement for Gibson. I had another lady call me to tell me how to contact yet another lady about getting Gibson to a vet free of charge. And I have received many private messages from a lady that works in/for one of the local shelters trying to help me out with Gibson. This all may sound rather confusing, but just know that many people have reached out to help our little guy. The lady who brought me the IV liquids was once a cop, and has worked with a lady from a rescue group. Neither one thought Gibson had Distemper. He just isn't showing all the symptoms. Sure, he is showing some, like the fever and lethargy, but that could be the nasty worms he's fighting off, or the kennel cough he's dealing with. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
I went back to the shelter today to get some more meds for Gibson. We are still in our 10 day window of fostering to adopt, so they will help with meds, and even pay vet costs if you use their vets (I knew this beforehand, but all their vets are an hour or more away from us...hindsight is 20/20). They didn't seem to think it is Distemper either. They told me to keep Gibson on his original antibiotic, that it was better than the one they were going to give me, and they also gave me some more needles for the IV line, and to keep him hydrated, and to keep him fed, even if I have to do it myslef.
After all this, Gibson is still hanging in there. We have to force feed him by watering his wet food way down and use a syringe to squirt it in his mouth because he is not eating. We do this with his water, too. We are giving him his medicines twice a day, as well as doing one unit of IV fluid twice a day. He is about the same as he was yesterday, but this morning he got up a few times and actually followed me around wagging his tail for a few minutes. He has been peeing when he goes out, so I guess that's good. No poo in two days though.
Even though we are still in our 10 day window with the shelter, I refuse to take him back there. So many people would though, and it breaks my heart to even think about it. He is a part of our little family now, and Raia loves him so much! She doesn't understand why she can't play with him yet, I tell her she can only pet and be very gentle, because he doesn't feel good. She just wants to bear hug him, though, poor dog.
Anyway, sorry this post was so long. The other night when I was posting the 'Introducing GIBSON' thread, I even thought to myself "I better hold off...what if something happens?" Ugh! Just keep Gibson in your prayers if you think about it.
On top of all this madness, Raia spiked a fever of 103 today, and I have had a sore throat all day. I was a little dizzy this morning, but that has passed, so who knows what's going around our house right now.

Now...

Glad Game:
1.) I am glad we have Gibson here, and he has gotten to know that feeling of family and love.
2.) I am glad so many people have reached out to help Gibson, and have given me hope.
3.) I am glad Nathan is going out of town for a week - we need a break.
4.) I am glad I have such wonderful friends in my life.
5.) I am glad it is bedtime...I am tired.

Thanks for checking in. Hopefully I will have better news next time I post. <3
xoxox~

Introducing...GIBSON!

2009-06-19T00:43:00.000-05:00

Meet Gibson, our newest furry family member! While I can't say I was on board with this newest addition to begin with, the little guy has certainly got me wrapped around his little paw!

After the Pomeranian puppy we found and took in for a few hours a few weeks ago, Nathan has been convinced that Raia needs a puppy friend. After our history with pets, if you know us, I'm sure you will feel my reluctance through the computer screen, but after many talks, and after I was assured that this puppy would be well taken care of, I agreed. We decided to adopt from a local animal shelter, and let me just say here that I was not prepared for what we saw inside. The place was huge. We walked though room after room after room of dogs. We were there for a good two hours and still didn't see all of them. I overheard a lady at the front desk on the phone telling a caller that they take in over 2,500 animals per month. Luckily, they have a lot of volunteers (but still not nearly enough) to come in and feed, water, walk, and most importantly FOSTER these beautiful animals. They do what they can, God bless them. I left there so sad, wishing we could take more than just one home.
The room we found Gibson in was too awful to walk into when we first tried. They were cleaning it, and poor Raia was gagging from the smell, so we had to leave. I'm so glad we went back when they were done. The smell was much better, and as we were walking past all the kennels we came across Gibson. We had originally gone into the shelter wanting a small dog, preferably female, and young. The place was packed with large breed dogs (so many...). Every dog that I liked, I knew was too big, and Nathan would kindly remind me with a, "No, lets look for a smaller one". When we came across Gibson, I thought he was so good looking, and he was a young dog, and when I said to Nathan "Oooh, that one is pretty", I thought for sure he would say no, but he just asked how big he would get. Anyway, long story short, we got Gibson. He ended up having to stay at the shelter a few more days to be neutered and get his shots, but he is HOME now, and we just love him. He is a puppy, and will be a medium-large sized dog, and yeah, he is male, but he is absolutely the best dog. His breed is classified as Queensland Heeler, or Blue Heeler. He hasn't chewed anything (yet), he hasn't had any accidents (yet), and he is super tolerant of Raia (so far...we are keeping a close eye on both of them!) He has been HOME now for two days, and he seems to be happy. I took him to the vet today, and although he does not yet have a clean bill of health, I think he will soon overcome his traumatic stay at the animal shelter. He has kennel cough, and will get antibiotics twice a day for that, and worms (yuck!) that will require medicine over the next two weeks. He also need to gain a few pounds. I think we got lucky that he didn't come out of that shelter with much worse, bless his heart.
If you have pets, please SPAY or NEUTER them. If you don't, please consider visiting your local shelter and see about FOSTERING a dog or cat until they can find a forever home. And if you have room in your home, and your heart, ADOPT one. It will make a difference in the life of a helpless animal.

To make a donation to the Montgomery County Animal Service Center send to:
M.C.A.S.C.
8535 State Hwy 242
Conroe, TX 77385
http://www.co.montgomery.tx.us/animal/index.shtml

Or you could donate to your local shelter. A few dollars goes a long way!
Off my soap box now :)

Onto the Glad Game:
1.) I am glad that Gibson has taken to us so well.
2.) I am glad Nathan is enjoying his new job!
3.) I am glad summer is finally here! (Even though it is SO HOT!!! We could use a little rain!)
4.) I am glad Raia is over pink eye. Yeah, I didn't blog about that, but she had pink eye for about 4 days - yuck!
5.) I am glad...let's just leave it at that tonight....

Thanks for checking in!

xoxox~

Father's Day Pictures

2009-06-16T11:13:00.000-05:00

My sweet photographer friend has done it once again! These pictures turned out GREAT! CLICK HERE and enter the word 'raiadaddy' as the password.

If you'd like to vist Jeni's photography blog, CLICK HERE. She has been Raia's photographer since Raia was 8 months old, and she has a God given talent. Enjoy!

Pictures

2009-06-13T16:08:00.000-05:00

I don't really have that much to post today, just a few pictures. Also, Nathan just had Father's Day pictures taken with Raia, I will hopefully have those up in the next few days, too. I'm not sure about what rights I have and if I can put them on the blog...we will see.

Raia on her rocking horse!

Coming in for BIG HUGS!

The cat wanted to say hi...apparently since Nathan has started going out of town, she thinks that the kitchen table is now the best place to hang out. Oh well...

Now, for the Glad Game.
1.) I am glad it is the weekend, maybe today we can go feed the ducks at the lake.
2.) I am glad Nathan is home.
3.) I am glad Aunt Flo and Mom were finally able to access my blog!!
4.) I am glad I have such good friends in my life!
5.) I am glad we were able to get pictures made with Raia and her Daddy. I know they will be great!

Thanks for checking in!
xoxox

Dear Grandma,

2009-06-10T02:04:00.000-05:00

It is 2am, and I can't sleep. Tomorrow (today, really) marks 11 years that you have been gone. I miss you so much. When I was little you would play silly games with me, always making me giggle with your false teeth, or wiggling your ears, which by the way, I've never seen anyone else ever do that! You didn't mind that I colored on the bottom of your coffee table while pretending it was a car - I had to draw the gas tank, the oil pan, and all the other parts of a car so I could "work" on it from underneath like the mechanics do. I wish I still had that coffee table. You always let me help when making your special 7 Layer "Schlocate" Cake, man those were good! The first time I had one remotely similar to yours after you died, it made me cry, knowing I'd never ever taste yours again. When we would come visit you, after the 4 hour trip, our first meal together was always your wonderful spaghetti, and I am so thankful that Aunt Flo can make it just like you did!
Spending the night with you was great. I loved snuggling with you in your bed, and as we would fall asleep I HAD to drape my leg across you, I guess to make sure you didn't leave me during the night, I don't know. It was so comforting to have you there. In the mornings you'd get up so early, I couldn't even imagine how a person could get up that early, but you did. And you would play solitaire for a long time on the kitchen counter while having coffee. Eventually I would wander into the living room/kitchen area and lie on the couch until breakfast was ready.
Skipping ahead a little here. I remember you teaching me how to drive in your HUGE car! "Turn left here" you said....so I turn the wheel ALL THE WAY LEFT and we find ourselves in someone's front yard, but you just laugh. "Let's go back to the stadium and practice some more in the parking lot"....yeah, that was a good idea!
There were so many things I loved about you, so many memories. You loved me so much, and I didn't realize that until it was much too late. Maybe that's the way things work, I don't know. I often wonder if you'd be proud of me now? I've made some huge mistakes, and stupid decisions. I miss your guidance. I miss your voice, your love, your support. Lord knows I could have used it. I only have memories of you, all of them wonderful.
Your house was such a blessing to me. After my first husband, and that entire fiasco, Dothan became my only safe haven, Aunt Flo being a huge part in me finding my way, and you letting me "have" your house free and clear was more than I could ever have asked for. I was able to escape a terribly abusive husband, and make a life for myself and my infant son (with Aunt Flo's help). That is just one example of your love for me, and I am so sorry I pissed it away like I did. I won't go there now....That's not what this post is about.
Thank you so much for being MY grandmother. Thank you for loving me through all my faults, and only wanting the best for me no matter how rotten I was. I miss you so much. You were such a special lady, and I hope that I turn out to be half the woman that you were. I hope that in some way, somewhere, you are proud of me.
I love you, Grandma. Always.
Love,
Sara

Trip to the Zoo

2009-06-08T21:59:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, we decided to have some family time since Nathan was home for the weekend. We went to the Houston Zoo. It is nice living in/near a big city with lots of fun things to do, especially for kids. I didn't take many pictures, and the ones I did take are pretty poor in quality. Did I mention that our camera isn't the best? It's convenient, a neat little camera, but the quality just is not great. Maybe one of these days we will have a nice digital camera!
Anyway, enjoy the pictures!

This is the view we have coming into the city. It is really quite beautiful.

Passing Minute Maid Park..."Hi!!"

Raia and a couple of new friends in the petting zoo. Look at the billy goat's toothy grin! So cute!

This guy/gal was big, but very docile. Hardly noticed we were there. Sorry for all the back shots of Raia, she just wanted to "pet, pet".

Cutest. Fox. Ever.

This was the neatest tank full of jellyfish, they were about 6 inches across.

HUGE Angel Fish!!

Me and Daddy in the aquarium...the only cool building around! It was so hot outside!

Last, but not least: this little guy. Cute little chipmunk critter, not sure what he is.

Thanks for checking in!

P.S.
The pirate themed cake I was going to do...? The lady canceled on me. Bummer. It was going to be a neat treasure chest cake.

This post is for Daddy!!

2009-06-03T19:22:00.000-05:00

Hi Daddy! I miss you a lot, and wish you were home to play "cave" with me, or to push me on my little car, mommy just doesn't do it quite like you can! I wanted to show you just how cute I looked today in my little red dress and my new red bow! And guess what? I kept in in my hair almost all day!

Mommy wanted to take me for a walk today, but it has started raining. It's always more fun when I have both mommy and daddy along for the walk, anyway.
I hope you are having lots of fun on your trip and learning lots for this neat new job you have! I have been really enjoying riding in the mini van, daddy, there is so much room and I can see EVERYTHING out the windows!
Well, it is time to eat dinner. I love you! See you soon!
Love,
Noggin Berries

P.S.
Here is one more picture for you:

"'Dis is mah mean face!"

Noggin Berries

I wanted to share this

Dentists and Doctors and Pictures, oh my! (Now with update)

Raia is 3!! How did this happen so fast?

A Few Recent Pictures

Not much going on

So blessed

What I've been up to and my new blog :)

Being Baptized

Wow, it's been a while!!

Happy Birthday, Jacob!

New pics

Please stay tuned...

Happy Birthday Dad!!

Time for another vote!!

Amazing Week

Raia Reading

Emotional and Busy Week

Cell Phone vs. The Bible

If you have a Facebook account....

Our Trip :)

I have been neglecting my blog...

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

SNOW!!!

Busy Month

Happy Thanksgiving!

Headaches

Videos

Halloween '09

Lots of pictures

Quick Video

25 Things You Didn't Know About Raia

Nathan has been hospitalized ~~ UPDATE ~~

A Quick Update

Bake Sale Success!

Success!

Happy Birthday, Noggin Berries!

Potty Training!!

Pictures

Unite For The Cure & Losing Weight!

Weaning Raia

I made out like a bandit...

Twitter for a CURE!

Suicide Watch & Funny Words

A small update on the walk, and Eli's birthday

1st Annual Through Eli's Eyes Family Fun 5K

Our Haunted Hotel - St. Anthony

San Antonio

My latest sweet surprises

Been a long week!

Toilet Drums

Just a quick note

My little helper

Quick update on Gibson...

A little late...

Gibson Update

Introducing...GIBSON!

Father's Day Pictures

Pictures

Dear Grandma,

Trip to the Zoo

This post is for Daddy!!

Nathan has been hospitalized UPDATE