So hurricane Ike was no dud like Gustav. He hit hard, and the strength of his winds were felt all the way up here and into north Texas. Thankfully he didn't bring too much rain, but many homes have been damaged from trees being blown over onto houses, car ports, power lines, even cows. That's right... D was telling me a cow on his lease needed to be put down after having a tree fall on it.
D and I fared very well. We had no damage to our home or vehicles, and the debris strewn about our yard was nothing 3-4 rakers and a couple hours couldn't handle. We lost power again, but only for... drum roll please... 18 hours! We spent one night without AC and lost none of our food. Our neighbors across the street (and I mean literally) didn't fair so well. They suffered no damage to property, but were without power for 7 days.
Darrell and I did our best to share the electric wealth. My friend from the other side of the street came over to blow dry her hair, another friend came to use the hot water in our shower, we became a store house for 2+ families' of food, and we had anywhere from 1-3 extra families over for dinner for several nights. It was actually fun to cook with friends and visit with neighbors. I was glad to have some quiet nights when all was over, but really enjoyed the fellowship as well.
The good thing that came out of all of this for me was that I realized I'd been relying on the TV way too much. Since the hurricane my children have been sitting in front of the box much less, and have been outside or playing with toys more often. I never was big on allowing them a lot of TV time, but had started relying on Sesame Street to occupy everyone while I tried to dress myself, and the boys.
On a different note: Brooks has bounced back from his surgery completely. He actually GAINED 5 pounds in the first two weeks afterward, and is trying desperately to eat us out of house and home. Doesn't he know we're on a budget?! Oh, I probably neglected to mention that as well, D and I have now been 'Gazelle Intense' for 1 month! Thanks Dave Ramsey!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Hurricane a Commin'!
We really got away well when Gustav came through. He watered our grass pretty well and cooled things off for a bit. Two days before we, and the rest of our small town, stocked up on water, batteries, and propane. We didn't end up needing any of it. Our lights never even flickered. Now our neighbors across the street lost their power for a few hours, but we were good to go.
Now Hurricane Ike is bearing down on the gulf coast of Texas and all of SE Houston has been evacuated. Schools and businesses are all closed from the coast all the way up to I20 apparently. Lianna doesn't have school in the morning, and all the public schools are closed as well. Many of the evacuees have headed this way and are taking shelter in churches and schools in town.
D said he should be home tomorrow after lunch. Wow! Thanks for the 1/2 day off work Ike! :D
However, there seems to be a bit more panic this time around too. There was a line at the gas stations today around lunch time... it was 6+ cars long by 6:00 this evening. Glad I filled up this morning before things got so hairy.
I wasn't as fortunate with the grocery shopping though. We always do our shopping on Thursdays. I have been going in the mornings while Lianna is at school, but today I was caring for my friend's 8 week old daughter and decided to wait to shop this afternoon. BIG mistake! The whole town was at Kroger this evening. I drove by at 5:00 and the parking lot was FULL. Um, did all 30,000 people decide to go grocery shopping at the same time? I dropped of the kids, and went by myself to get groceries at 6:15. I was in awe as I grabbed one of only two carts left and looked up to notice the line of people waiting to check out. WOW! The line was literally 25+ people long and all lanes were open. I put my cart back, turned around and walked out. I still have not groceries, but am going to go back late tonight, or early in the morning.
What disturbs me is that I may have to go to Walmart simply because they're more likely to be better stocked after experiencing a 'run on the store'.
Glad I found a sitter for the morning... looks like I'll have one more stop to make. Ugh!
Now Hurricane Ike is bearing down on the gulf coast of Texas and all of SE Houston has been evacuated. Schools and businesses are all closed from the coast all the way up to I20 apparently. Lianna doesn't have school in the morning, and all the public schools are closed as well. Many of the evacuees have headed this way and are taking shelter in churches and schools in town.
D said he should be home tomorrow after lunch. Wow! Thanks for the 1/2 day off work Ike! :D
However, there seems to be a bit more panic this time around too. There was a line at the gas stations today around lunch time... it was 6+ cars long by 6:00 this evening. Glad I filled up this morning before things got so hairy.
I wasn't as fortunate with the grocery shopping though. We always do our shopping on Thursdays. I have been going in the mornings while Lianna is at school, but today I was caring for my friend's 8 week old daughter and decided to wait to shop this afternoon. BIG mistake! The whole town was at Kroger this evening. I drove by at 5:00 and the parking lot was FULL. Um, did all 30,000 people decide to go grocery shopping at the same time? I dropped of the kids, and went by myself to get groceries at 6:15. I was in awe as I grabbed one of only two carts left and looked up to notice the line of people waiting to check out. WOW! The line was literally 25+ people long and all lanes were open. I put my cart back, turned around and walked out. I still have not groceries, but am going to go back late tonight, or early in the morning.
What disturbs me is that I may have to go to Walmart simply because they're more likely to be better stocked after experiencing a 'run on the store'.
Glad I found a sitter for the morning... looks like I'll have one more stop to make. Ugh!
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Flying Colors
Well Brooks came out of surgery wonderfully. We arrived at the hospital right at 6:15 a.m. Lianna and Canaan spent the night across the street with their friends. Justin and Heather... Thank you so much for making this way easier on D and I. We are so blessed to have you two for neighbors.
After checking in at the nurses station, Brooks was weighed and measured, then we were shown to a patient room. Here we changed him into his hospital gown (he really didn't want to, but with a little coaxing we got it on). Not long after that a nurse checked his blood pressure and temperature, brought us a little bag of 'goodies' for him to play with, and then we waited. I guess at about 7:00 a nurse came in, gave Brooks a sedative and showed us to the OR holding area.
This is where my stress level and anxiety spiked. I actually had to excuse myself to the ladies room. Brooks was a champ though. We waited there for about an hour. The sedative made him kinda loopy. His eyes were very droopy and he was off balance. A sweet nurse came in and gave him the mouth piece for the anesthesia. It smelled like bubblegum and she explained to Brooks that they'd use it to blow up a balloon. Somehow he got that mixed up and kept talking about blowing bubbles with it. :)
I'm so thankful God brought many familiar faces by that morning. A friend and neighbor from church is a nurse anethesist and happened by while we were in holding. Our next door neighbor's son is a nurse as well, and he actually was the one to carry Brooks off to the OR. The president of the hospital came by as well. His daughter recently graduated high school and was in my bible study for 6 years. We also saw some sweet friends that apparently came by the hospital just to check on us. She was so thoughtful to offer to bring us dinner that night(and it was delicious!)
We waited in the OR waiting for about 30 minutes before the doctor came to give us a report. Everything went smoothly and Brooks was a champ. He said his adenoids were actually growing into his nasal cavity because they were so large. We waited maybe 20 minutes more before a nurse called and said Brooks was calling for me. Imagine me now, bolt out of my chair, leaving purse and bag behind and walk, Speedy Gonzales like, down the hall. I was so glad the nurse chose a quick pace as well (cause I didn't know where I was going).
When I walked in Brooks was crying and coughing and gaging and trying to crawl out of the hospital bed. I scooped him up in my arms, grabbed his blankey from the edge of his bed and sat in the chair a nurse brought for me. I spent the next ten minutes rocking and singing lullabies. Praise God he was consolable. He would cry and pull at his IV at times, but then he'd settle down into my chest and suck his thumb. When he 10 minutes were up, I carried him out of the Recovery Room where I met Darrell (carrying purse and bag... way to go D!) and we went back to the original Patient Room. There, I laid in bed with Brooks, we gave him a sippy cup of water/juice and he downed 1/2 of it in no time. The nurse then said she'd be right back to take out the IV. We hung out there for an hour, watching TV and calling friends and family while Brooks dozed off an on. Then we took our baby home.
He's been eating well and is staying hydrated. After these first two days, the pain should improve and I wont need to wake up at 1:30 a.m. to give him pain meds any more. Please pray he will continue to eat and drink and that I will be creative in finding yummy soft foods he can eat, and that I will be able to find quiet, easy fun things to do to keep him busy during the day. They don't want him running and jumping or over exerting himself for 2 weeks! Yikes! Don't they know what 2 year old kids are like?
After checking in at the nurses station, Brooks was weighed and measured, then we were shown to a patient room. Here we changed him into his hospital gown (he really didn't want to, but with a little coaxing we got it on). Not long after that a nurse checked his blood pressure and temperature, brought us a little bag of 'goodies' for him to play with, and then we waited. I guess at about 7:00 a nurse came in, gave Brooks a sedative and showed us to the OR holding area.
This is where my stress level and anxiety spiked. I actually had to excuse myself to the ladies room. Brooks was a champ though. We waited there for about an hour. The sedative made him kinda loopy. His eyes were very droopy and he was off balance. A sweet nurse came in and gave him the mouth piece for the anesthesia. It smelled like bubblegum and she explained to Brooks that they'd use it to blow up a balloon. Somehow he got that mixed up and kept talking about blowing bubbles with it. :)
I'm so thankful God brought many familiar faces by that morning. A friend and neighbor from church is a nurse anethesist and happened by while we were in holding. Our next door neighbor's son is a nurse as well, and he actually was the one to carry Brooks off to the OR. The president of the hospital came by as well. His daughter recently graduated high school and was in my bible study for 6 years. We also saw some sweet friends that apparently came by the hospital just to check on us. She was so thoughtful to offer to bring us dinner that night(and it was delicious!)
We waited in the OR waiting for about 30 minutes before the doctor came to give us a report. Everything went smoothly and Brooks was a champ. He said his adenoids were actually growing into his nasal cavity because they were so large. We waited maybe 20 minutes more before a nurse called and said Brooks was calling for me. Imagine me now, bolt out of my chair, leaving purse and bag behind and walk, Speedy Gonzales like, down the hall. I was so glad the nurse chose a quick pace as well (cause I didn't know where I was going).
When I walked in Brooks was crying and coughing and gaging and trying to crawl out of the hospital bed. I scooped him up in my arms, grabbed his blankey from the edge of his bed and sat in the chair a nurse brought for me. I spent the next ten minutes rocking and singing lullabies. Praise God he was consolable. He would cry and pull at his IV at times, but then he'd settle down into my chest and suck his thumb. When he 10 minutes were up, I carried him out of the Recovery Room where I met Darrell (carrying purse and bag... way to go D!) and we went back to the original Patient Room. There, I laid in bed with Brooks, we gave him a sippy cup of water/juice and he downed 1/2 of it in no time. The nurse then said she'd be right back to take out the IV. We hung out there for an hour, watching TV and calling friends and family while Brooks dozed off an on. Then we took our baby home.
He's been eating well and is staying hydrated. After these first two days, the pain should improve and I wont need to wake up at 1:30 a.m. to give him pain meds any more. Please pray he will continue to eat and drink and that I will be creative in finding yummy soft foods he can eat, and that I will be able to find quiet, easy fun things to do to keep him busy during the day. They don't want him running and jumping or over exerting himself for 2 weeks! Yikes! Don't they know what 2 year old kids are like?
Friday, August 29, 2008
You think we should... what?
My middle child, for as long as I can remember, has always gotten sick so much more easily than his sister and brother and always had really high temps when he was sick. I remember one year, he wasn't even a year old yet, and he started running 105 while we were in Houston visiting family. We took him to an emergency clinic and they couldn't find anything wrong. Ears and throat looked perfectly normal. In the last couple of months Brooks has been to the doctor at least once a month for 'something'. Most recently it was for another fever above 103.5 and some random low grade (101/102) temps off an on for 2-3 weeks. Does that make sense? I mean, he'd run a temp one day, and then be fine, and have a fever again 4 days later. This went on for about 2-3 weeks. His pediatrician noted his large tonsils, and swollen glands and mentioned that she'd made note of similar things happening earlier in the year. But still ears were fine, and no strep in his throat. Another unexplained high temp. Ugh
Well finally, we decided it was time to see an ENT. Don't you love it when nurses and doctors use adjectives? As parents we only ever see our own kids, so we don't have anything really to compare things against. So when we first walked into the nurses office/exam area and she noted that Brooks's tonsils were 'practically kissing back there' I thought... ooooh... that isn't good. We didn't have to wait long for the doctor to come in and give Brooks a once over. While discussing symptoms and asking questions the doctor described Brooks's adenoids using the word 'monstrous'. By this time, it was not a surprise to me that he thought we should have them taken out.
Brooks is 2.5 years old, but he is scheduled for his first surgery on Wednesday, September 3rd at 7:30 a.m. I'm sure if you're a mother, I don't have to tell you how incredibly nervous I am. This perfectly qualified anesthesiologist is going to put Brooks under, they will give him an IV, and then our new ENT is going to go down my son's throat and cut out pieces of his body. Then when he wakes up, I've been told to be prepared for some freaking out, screaming, and a child that cant be consoled. My guess is screaming and crying after throat surgery isn't a good thing, so I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for all of this ahead of time.
What scares me the most, is putting myself into his shoes. How do you explain to a 2.5 year old that this doctor is going to take you away into a strange room and give you some silly air to breathe, then cut things out while you're asleep, and I'll be right by his side when you wake up. He's never been to this hospital... he's only seen this doctor and his nurse once, and I'm just not sure what I can do to make anything go more smoothly.
In the end, I know he'll be better for it. If I wasn't certain of that, we wouldn't have scheduled the surgery. He'll be healthier, eat better, probably fill out more, and have more energy after all this is over. Mommy just has to make it through Wednesday morning.
Well finally, we decided it was time to see an ENT. Don't you love it when nurses and doctors use adjectives? As parents we only ever see our own kids, so we don't have anything really to compare things against. So when we first walked into the nurses office/exam area and she noted that Brooks's tonsils were 'practically kissing back there' I thought... ooooh... that isn't good. We didn't have to wait long for the doctor to come in and give Brooks a once over. While discussing symptoms and asking questions the doctor described Brooks's adenoids using the word 'monstrous'. By this time, it was not a surprise to me that he thought we should have them taken out.
Brooks is 2.5 years old, but he is scheduled for his first surgery on Wednesday, September 3rd at 7:30 a.m. I'm sure if you're a mother, I don't have to tell you how incredibly nervous I am. This perfectly qualified anesthesiologist is going to put Brooks under, they will give him an IV, and then our new ENT is going to go down my son's throat and cut out pieces of his body. Then when he wakes up, I've been told to be prepared for some freaking out, screaming, and a child that cant be consoled. My guess is screaming and crying after throat surgery isn't a good thing, so I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for all of this ahead of time.
What scares me the most, is putting myself into his shoes. How do you explain to a 2.5 year old that this doctor is going to take you away into a strange room and give you some silly air to breathe, then cut things out while you're asleep, and I'll be right by his side when you wake up. He's never been to this hospital... he's only seen this doctor and his nurse once, and I'm just not sure what I can do to make anything go more smoothly.
In the end, I know he'll be better for it. If I wasn't certain of that, we wouldn't have scheduled the surgery. He'll be healthier, eat better, probably fill out more, and have more energy after all this is over. Mommy just has to make it through Wednesday morning.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Last Firsts
We've been experiencing a lot of these with Canaan. Because he is our last child, I've been trying to make a point to really enjoy all of his accomplishments. When he first smiled, I realized that was the last "first smile" we'd ever have. The same when he first sat up, or rolled over (but not in that order). Well Wednesday was a very special day. We experienced our last set of first steps. Canaan finally found the confidence he needed to take his first steps. Any other time we'd tried to encourage this landmark ability, he'd just sit his little bottom down.
Darrell had the grand idea to stand Canaan up about 2-3 feet away, but facing the couch. When he let go of Canaan, instead of sitting, our little boy took 2-3 steps and reached the couch! It was a monumental moment with lots of cheering. We did it several times so Lianna and Brooks could experience it with us. We're all excited, but no one as much as Lianna. She knew we were waiting for Canaan to start walking before we take our family camping trip. It has therefore been scheduled for mid-October, and she cant wait. :D
Will add pictures or video as soon as I can capture this new skill on tape/CF card/or whatever.
Darrell had the grand idea to stand Canaan up about 2-3 feet away, but facing the couch. When he let go of Canaan, instead of sitting, our little boy took 2-3 steps and reached the couch! It was a monumental moment with lots of cheering. We did it several times so Lianna and Brooks could experience it with us. We're all excited, but no one as much as Lianna. She knew we were waiting for Canaan to start walking before we take our family camping trip. It has therefore been scheduled for mid-October, and she cant wait. :D
Will add pictures or video as soon as I can capture this new skill on tape/CF card/or whatever.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Salt and Pepper
Is your marriage FireProof? D and I has an awesome privilege with a handful of Grace Bible Church ministry leaders to view a special pre-screening of the movie FireProof. It stars Kirk Cameron... remember him?... and was created by this mega church in Georgia and thousands of volunteers. Did you see Facing the Giants? Same church.
FireProof is going to be an awesome outreach tool, and an awesome way to open the door to conversations with friends and neighbors about Christ and his design for marriage. I'm so stoked about this... it's a great movie, the acting, well... there's been better, but it's great given ALL the cast were volunteers. All time favorite quote from the movie goes something like this... Being fireproof doesn't mean you'll never experience a fire, but that you'll be prepared for it when it comes.
This movie really does a great job on touching on real problems people experience, real sins people have to work through and real variety of advice you get from friends, both good and bad. It's a fight, but it is SO worth fighting! And this movie is SO worth seeing! It opens in theatres on September 26th.
What does this movie have to do with salt and pepper? You'll have to watch it to see. :D
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Duplicate
I posted these on my business blog because, technically it was a 'shoot'. However, the client never paid, and the little girl photographed is mine. (wait, can I be my own client?) :) I took Lianna out Saturday morning because I wanted to remember her at 4 years old. I think I'm going to try to do this with all my kids. For every birthday we'll go somewhere fun and funky and try something new or just be together and take pictures. Just me and her/him. Well I dressed Lianna in a fun sassy outfit, and we went to the SFA parking garage! Ha! Like I said... something different. :D
Now back to watching the olympics! I'm SO addicted.
My apologies to those who frequent my photog blog as well... these will be a repeat for you.
Now back to watching the olympics! I'm SO addicted.
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