Monday, May 31, 2010

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY 2010!
We have had the unique opportunity to attend two funerals at Arlington Cemetery this year.
It has made me even more grateful for the men and women who have served and died for our country.
The reverence with which they perform the ceremonies always brings tears to my eyes.
And when they fold the flag from the casket and I hear "Taps" played in the distance...
and then present the flag to the family...

It makes me even more grateful for the freedoms I have and the country in which I live.

(The memorial of all those who perished on September 11, 2001)
Thank you to all the men and women who are serving our country, have served and gave their lives for my freedom.
GOD BLESS AMERICA, MY HOME SWEET HOME!

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Life with a toddler in a cast...or how to slowly lose what's left of your mind.....

So, coming home from the hospital that day wasn't too bad....everyone wanted to sign her cast. Daddy got first dibs....

Align Center
Then they all took turns signing their names and love messages to their little sister....


Yeah, this picture is about the only time she has smiled in two weeks. It has been incredibly hard. She is not allowed to walk on it....yeah, right! And trying to keep her from walking is like trying to keep water in a bucket full of holes.
She is very receptive when you ask her to show her "boo boo"....
And the color goes well with most of her outfits....

I am exhausted, literally. The other day I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown. I had had no sleep for about a week (and neither had Jason!) and she climbed all over me and cried and wanted to get down and walk, but wanted to be held, but didn't know that she wanted to walk and be held at the same time.....well, you get the picture. Doing this for and entire week all day long. The only time I got some rest was when we were in the car to pick up the kids for carpool. It's so sad, because I know she is probably more frustrated than I am. I try and be patient, but the constant crying and whining is getting on my nerves.
Reading stories is fun, but not ALL DAY LONG! We've gone on walks and tried some things, but housework is suffering and I feel burned out on a consistent basis. It's hard for both of us. I have had lots of hugs and snuggle time too. I guess I am just venting. It's just been really, really hard. I've cried every day for some reason or another this week. She has to have the cast on a minimum of four weeks. My neighbor has been really helpful. She's pregnant with her third and she has stepped in quite a bit to spell me, even though I know it's hard to carry a toddler and be pregnant!
These are the days when you realize motherhood is not for sissies.

So, to top it all off.....
This weekend Jason leaves to go to California for a wedding. I wake up that morning with a monster migraine headache. I am supposed to bring in a special snack for Eleanor and Xander has a drama presentation that day. I drop Jason off at the airport and miss the exit to get to school. I end up in major pre-holiday/Friday traffic. I didn't get the snack delivered, I barely make it to the last ten minutes of Xander's performance. My head is pounding and I'm stressed out because of being late on top of the horrendous to weeks I have already had!
Then, as we are preparing for my aunt and uncle to come and spend the night, I realize Savannah's cast has collapsed on the bottom. No after hours for the orthopedic center. My neighbor comes over to watch the kids as Uncle Brian and Aunt Marty show up, I am driving to the emergency room to take care of the cast. Luckily, my aunt and uncle are so awesome and just stepped right in and took over.
The emergency room was a complete waste of time and money. I was very frustrated with the attending doctor. He basically gave me a lecture and told me she can't walk on it. Then proceeds to tell me he needs a second opinion as to what needs to be done.
Four hours later they decide to put a temporary cast over the existing cast and can't tell me if that really is going to help or not. I could have done more for her from home!!!! (And I can give myself a pretty mean lecture if I need one! I don't need some ER doctor telling me what I already know and being unprofessional at the same time!!!!!)
So, I come home exhausted and spend a few minutes talking with my aunt and uncle and then head to bed. At 5:45am, the birds start chirping. I slept in Eleanor's bed to be next to Savannah....Time to get up!
Uncle Brian comes down around 6:00am and says, "Did you know your tire is flat?"
A flat tire.
Are you serious?!?!?!
After the weeks I've had?
And the day I had yesterday?!?!?!
Yes, a flat tire!
The tires are only 5 months old!
So, Uncle Brian and I spend our morning fixing the flat tire and trying to get them ready to go to their family reunion. They also are dealing with cancelled flights and such with their kids, so I tried to help the best I could to get them off.
Luckily, we had nothing the rest of the day...I did get a nap and let the kids watch a movie. We went for a long walk and worked on a Father's Day present....It all turned out fine by the end of the day. It always seems to be that way. I have such great kids and even though Savannah cried most of the afternoon, we still had a good time.
For that, I am very grateful.
So, (yawn) I am going to bed now, as I need my sleep desperately!
Good night!



Tuesday, May 18, 2010

One of the hardest things I've done......

I've done a lot of hard things in my life.
I did one of the hardest things I've ever done today.
I took the crib down for the last time ever.
Then I had a really good cry.
Deep sobs.
I don't know why it was so hard, it just was.
I have no regrets with my babies...it's just an empty feeling right now.
Like an end of a chapter of my life.
Now I am getting teary-eyed writing this.
Time for bed and another good cry.



Monday, May 17, 2010

FREAK ACCIDENT!!!

Yesterday afternoon Savannah woke up from her nap crying. Garrett ran upstairs to go get her and she started screaming at the top of her lungs. Xander ran up to get her and she wouldn't let him touch her either. He finally got her out of the crib and brought her down. She was clingy and crying. She had been exposed to two children with the stomach flu in the last few days, so I thought she wasn't feeling well. She didn't want to be put down, wouldn't eat and was crying. I finally texted Jason and told him he needed to come home from Elder's quorum stuff because she wouldn't stop crying.
He and his friend came over and gave her a blessing.
She calmed down and would sit quietly in his lap. Later in the evening, she ate some potatoes and then promptly threw up. We figured that's why she was fussy all afternoon. After trying to sleep last night with her in bed with us - yeah, not successful at all! - I called the pediatrician this morning to make an appointment. They couldn't see her until late afternoon, even after I told them I was considering the emergency room. She would cry every time she was put down and wouldn't walk. So, I went straight to the ER.
The hospital staff was wonderful and friendly and nice. They, however, couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. There was no swelling, no fever, no bruising, no redness,etc. to indicate why she wouldn't step in her leg. They try not to do x-rays on toddlers, so they were hesitant to do one.
I started to think I shouldn't have been so worried and come to the ER. No one was saying it, but I started to doubt why I was there. She still would not put any pressure on her leg.
Here we are waiting in the room. She wouldn't let go of the binky and was still very clingy! Good thing we have our SUPERGIRL shirt on!!!
More entertaining! Crocs on the hands and singing songs and snacks.
Finally, they asked me to touch her leg in different places to see if she would respond to me. At the tip of her ankle, she winced and whined a little bit. We decided to try and x-ray right there.
Because she was so little, I had to put the lead on and hold her. The doctor warned me that they probably wouldn't find anything. I think it was because she wasn't showing signs of extreme pain.
Lo and behold, the doctor came back to tell me she has a fractured tibia and fibula! Basically, a broken leg! I asked if it was an old break or fresh and she said fresh. They wanted to know how it happened. I told them she woke up crying. The only thing we could think of was that she got caught in the slat of the crib and wrenched it.
So she now sports a soft cast until we see the orthopedic doctor in a couple of days. They will decide how long the hard cast has to be on. More than likely weeks...just in time for the pool to open! :(
The doctor and I both agreed that she has a seriously high threshold for pain. She did not give us any indication that there was a broken leg involved. The doctor was really surprised. While I am sad for my little lamb, I am glad I decided to go and skip the pediatrician. She wouldn't have found anything probably.
She is not allowed to put any pressure on it at all - I have to carry her everywhere! The kids were great this afternoon, crawling around and she crawled with them. She is in a lot of pain tonight and she keeps trying to pull the cast cover off. You can tell she doesn't want it on!
For now, Eleanor will sleep with Jason and I will sleep in the girls' room. She has to keep it elevated. We are taking the crib down and putting a mattress on the floor. It will be a little bit "white trash" but, it will help to keep her leg elevated at night. We are in for some LONG nights and LONG days!
Poor little lamb! I cancelled all appointments and things I was supposed to do for the next three weeks. Now I am really going to take it "easy" and not be busy! Just busy being a nurse!! She is worth it though! Lots of stories and games and walks in the stroller!!

Thursday, May 13, 2010

The Invention Convention

Go to my creative journal at www.onecreativeday.blogspot.com to see all the pictures of Xander's amazing invention! The fifth graders learn about ancient civilization and talk about how inventions were created to make our lives easier. They are asked to come up with something that will make life easier. Something that has not already been invented, or something that will be an improvement on something already in use. Xander came up with a flute and piccolo holder to carry all his music and instruments.
He had to do most of the work himself and he even added an iPod holder.....
It was made from 100% recycled materials......as you can tell by the eclectics of it!
He did a fantastic job and we are so proud of his efforts!!!!

Sunday, May 9, 2010

I have a lot to catch up on the blogging world, but I wanted to take the time to say "Happy Mother's Day" to all the moms out there, especially mine. I have the greatest mom in the world. From her I learned to love and be loved, to share and share alike, to be grateful for what I have and to always respect myself and the world.
My mom accomplishes more in a day than some people do in a lifetime. She is a great cook, a talented seamstress, musically talented and just plain fun to be around! I wish I could give her a hug every day! I love you mommykins! Happy Mother's Day!
And, just so you know, I wore purple today to honor her mother, my Grandma Butler, another great mom! She passed away 8 years ago today. I still miss her...angel kisses to you Grandma!