morning routine.

I just got back from taking the dog on his morning walk, I call them 'prayer walks'. I try to go around 630 every morning. I love it. Peaceful, alone time to gather my thoughts, pray, meditate before the chaos of the day begins.
Today I did NOT want to get up and go. Normally, I am excited about this time and when my alarm beeps I get dressed and go. Not today- today I turned my alarm off and rolled back over. About 5 minutes later Troy started fussing so I brought him a bottle and he went back to sleep. I dragged myself into the bathroom and got dressed to go walking.. then I went back in my bed. Then the dog started 640am, he knows he is supposed to be walking! Oh the routines in this house are amazing ;) I am one of the most "routined" people I know- now, my entire family is... down to the dog!
I came in and was contemplating what this blog was going to be about?
I made my coffee and sat down at the computer, the dog went to his food bowl, ate what he didn't finish last night, and I got him more, I checked yahoo, facebook, then my blog... ALL OF THIS IS A ROUTINE! I do these things everyday, this same order... down to the dog food,strange! Now, call my crazy but I never realized how much of my day is a 'routine' -I love schedules they are great, they create balance and stability.. which I am desperatly in need of during this time. Getting a little wild now, maybe tomorrow morning I'll check facebook before yahoo ;)

busy busy busy life...

Time doesn't stop for anyone you know. ;) Things have been so busy around here.
Where to start!?
I got a job, I haven't started yet. I don't start until June 8th. But I did get it! I am going to be working at the hospital like I had been hoping for. I am excited, but nervous. It is a hard transition, to go from being a stay at home mom to a working mom. I am lucky that the kids are old enough now to be going to preschool next year so they won't have to go to daycare, but it is hard to know I am not going to be home with them all the time. It's ok. We will make it work. I am happy, blessed, thankful to have a job. It is a good job, we will have health insurance, which is VERY VERY important. So- anyway, next thing-
We found a house! Staying here was always just a temporary thing. We were very very lucky to find a house. I am excited. The house is very within our means and will help us make things far more simple. I am excited for the stability that is much much needed in this family! We are moving June 20th. I am hoping by August we will be set into a routine and things can be 'normal'... whatever that is. ;)
The dog is doing good. He is adjusting to being in our house and we are adjusting to him. It is nice to have a dog again. It's nice to have a pup in the house again. He drives us nuts sometimes, sometimes I say we need to call the 'Dog Whisperer' but I tell Tony the kids need 'Super Nanny' all the time so I guess it comes with the territory. ;)
Sophia has her ballet recital next week so that is going to keep us running. She has three rehearsals and two shows. I am hoping that she can handle the busy week ahead.
Troy has been sick. He seems to be getting a bit better now. He had a fever, fussy, and kinda congested.
My cousin, Ethan, graduated high school tonight. He is the youngest of us all -I guess we are all graduated now. My grandmother is so happy. She tells everyone that her grandchildren have all graduated high school and are all Christians, that's what makes a grand momma proud. ;) We are going to his graduation party tomorrow at my grandma's house. She has called the whole family to make sure we all are there to support him. That's the kind of person she is. ;) She makes me smile. She drives us all crazy, but she keeps us all together.
Hope everyone has a good weekend.
Here are some pictures from a playgroup that we went to today. We were supposed to host it but with Troy being sick we ended up having it at our friend's Ashley's house, they live just up the road so it worked out. We had fun! Just me and Sophia, it's never just me and Sophia anymore.

my swimmin' boy

Wanted to share the video of Troy at his swim lessons today. We started him when he was 4 months old with Mrs. Tanja and he is back this summer for his refresher course. The first 10 minutes in the water she had him doing sooo much better. He fusses during the lesson but don't let him fool you, he smiles the whole way to his lessons and blows Tanja kisses when we leave.

tomorrow is adoption day for Papi.

We will be going to pick up Papi tomorrow at 430!!
We can't wait.
Sophia keeps asking me if we can go get him today. :)

Update on "Papi"

Just wanted to let you know that our adoption application was approved for our pup. We are having a home study today at 10am, then the board will review everything and if it all goes well we should be the proud owners of 'Papi' ;) Hope it all goes well.

God wink

Have you ever felt a God wink?
Like God's little way of telling you things are going to be ok?
That you are doing the right thing.
Love God winks! ;) WINK WINK! ;)

I got the JOB!!!

GOD PROVIDES!!! I got the job that I applied for at the hospital!!! WHOO WHOOO!! I am NOT praying for patience ever again!! I think I applied in February ;)
Thank you Lord!!!

More importantly, this means that we WILL have health insurance!!! Plus, vison and dental, which we never had ;)

I am really excited!!

Sophia has been doing great on the 5mg/2X a day. Hurray for that. No more tummy aches. :) She is playing with a pink water ballon that she named "Wilbur" in the bathroom sink with soap right now. I hope "Wilbur" doesn't pop. :) She even brought him to sit at the table with her for lunch. She wrapped him in a dish towel. YES, this child needs another pet STAT!

Troy is trying so hard to talk. Yesterday I was sitting in his room and he walked out and said "Say Bah Bah (Bye Bye)Troy" as he waved at me oh his way out.

Sophia just told me that "Wilbur" 'throwed up again'.. I hope it didn't pop. :)

Tony is selling stuff like crazy on craigslist. He has been selling stuff in our garage that we don't need or use.

God is really working in our family. Tonight I am going to a Girls Night with some girls from church. It is going to be so nice to be with all the girls. :) No kids!!

If there was a ladder to the moon Sophia would climb it.

Sophia really is a brave little girl! I am amazed and strengthened by her bravery. She always looks at every situation with a pure heart and a sense of confidence that I wish I possessed.
I heard someone speak of their child and they said "If there was a ladder to the moon she would climb it." Perfectly said!
The medication took it's toll on her Saturday night. She had been complaining of stomach aches in the evenings after taking her medication (now that it has been raised) but I just kept an eye on her but it didn't seem to severe. I would offer her some crackers which she wouldn't eat. She would say "I already brushed my teeth I don't want to get cavities." yes, this coming from a three year old, wise beyond her years. Saturday night she was complaining and she woke up about 11 really upset about her stomach. She laid on the blow up mattress by my bed for a while. She asked me, "Mommy, why does my tummy hurt? Why do I feel yucky at night? I hate the night." I don't want to tell her that it's from the medication. It breaks my heart that she has to go through the trials and errors of finding the right medication and the right dosage. She said she needed to go throw up and went to the toilet. She asked me to hold her hair. Three years old and she is leaning over the toilet asking me to hold her hair. For a while we sat on the floor in the bathroom. I held her, rubbed her head, kissed her hands. She would get a wave of nausea and stand by the toilet waiting. She was tired. She would yawn. It was a long emotional night. She would rub my hair back and say "I love you mommy, I'm going to be ok." She is really an amazing little being. I refuse to cry in front of her but it is so hard. She knows my heart hurts for her on nights like this. She is so brave. She finally threw up.. just what looked like the pill. Then rest. She got a little nauseous from time to time through the night but the worst was over. "I am scared, but God makes me brave Mommy"
She was glad to feel better and said over and over "I'm not sick anymore!" I am sure you can imagine how hard it was after a night like that to give her that pill at 8am the next morning. It pulled at my heart to watch her chew it up. I reminded myself though, this is a smaller dose though and she seems to do well with it. So, no church on Sunday morning after that night. And yes, it was Mother's Day. No two little butter beans would I rather be the mother of.
I called the doctor later in the evening, didn't want to interrupt her Mother's Day but there was NO way I was going to give her the larger pill that night. She said it was ok to go back down to the 5mg pill and see how she did with it. Relief!
I gave her the pill and for the first time in about a week she slept the night and didn't complain of a tummy ache. Thank you God for uneventful nights like that! We will have to test the pill again in a week or so just to test and be sure it was the pill that was making her sick.. this will be difficult to do but it is such a small dosage that the doctor just wants to be sure. They will also do a blood toxicity check at this time.
In the past Sophia has metabolized medication in her blood very slowly so they just want to check. She was taking a 5mg pill in the morning and a 12.5mg pill at night, they wanted her to take a 25 mg pill twice a day, she could take up too 75mg twice a day. I can't imagine! So- we need to get this figured out! Just another thing I guess.
It was an emotional Mother's Day.
I adore my children and wouldn't have it any other way though. Well, maybe without the vomiting.
Thank you God for blessing my Mother's Day with Sophia and Troy.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day Mommies!!!!
We had a wonderful day! ALL of my family came over. My brother, his wife, their two little girls, My other brother, his girlfriend *who is my best friend since we were 3 years old!, her daughter, my mom, my dad, my sister, me, Tony, Sophia, and Troy!!! What a fun fun fun fun fun fun day!!!!
I love being a host, actually I am not the best host, I just like opening my home and having my family in it! I love having everyone together.
It was the best Mother's Day Ever!!!

Well, I found a rescue dog that I am looking into adopting. Here is the kicker... with Tony having no job and being on a tight budget, I have to make the money for the adoption fee on my own! I am excited. It's a challege something I really want so I will make it happen. I am probably going to be busy this week, "hustling" for my puppy money!
He is a Bishon, he is 8 months old, his name is Papi. So perfect for our family! He won't replace Tater Tot but he would fill that 'dog void' in our home. I submitted an application and I am waiting to hear about the home study so hopefully that will give me some time to get those dollars! ;)

peace

We have had a sense of peace here during the end of this week. God blessed us with that, it has been nice. Mother's Day is Sunday and we will be celebrating with family for a BBQ after church. The kids took no time adjusting to being back "home" and being able to spend some much needed time with their friends Madeline, Jonathan, and Gabrielle. We are so blessed with good friends. Good friends are really icing on the cake of life ;)
This week has been pretty uneventful. We are enjoying the downtime the peace. I took the kids to the park with friends on Tuesday. Sophia had ballet, which she was glad to be back. Wednesday we stayed at home, Tony left for a few hours to job hunt, no luck yet. Thursday my "Poppa" came over for lunch and then Tony and I continued to look for jobs, it is scary how few jobs there are in this town, and how few full time positions there are. This morning we went on a little adventure to Orlando to sell some old baby items to a resale shop and then spent the afternoon at home. The neighbor kids came over to play and Sophia and Troy LOVED that!
I am fixin' (that's what we say in Florida, fixin') to give the kids a bath, put them in bed and enjoy some quiet. ;)
Hope everyone has a good weekend. A Happy Mother's Day to all of you deserving moms out there ;)

Daddies in Mommy places.

There are places that Mommies go that you rarely see Daddies.

Recently Tony has been spending a lot more time at home because of the economy.He had an adjustment time but now he is quite helpful, thanks to my descriptive instruction on how everything should be done, he is finally getting the hang of it.
He bathes kids, helps with dinner, and has probably changed more diapers in the past month than in his whole life!
It is nice to have him around, but this does create the opportunity for more stresses than normal.
He has also been able to join the kids and I on some of our normal outings; grocery store trips, trips to the doctor's office, etc. As you other housewives know these are the trips that can put the angry before the word housewife.

Which recent outings have given the idea for today's blog; Daddies in Mommy Places, go ahead laugh! You know this is going to be good.

Have you ever noticed a Dad in the pediatrician's office?
The majority of the time they just look out of place. Our society, in many ways has created this image of the mother in the doctor's office, mothers in the grocery store, so when I say Daddies in Mommy places this is what I mean. If we as a society hadn't done this, my blog would probably not exist.

Back to the Dad in the office, there he sits, child on his lap, the diaper bag next to him, waiting for the nurse to call his name.

The nurse stands at the door, calls a child's name, no one answers. Now, the nurse knows it's the man holding the child that she called, but she knows that the father isn't listening because she called the child's name and not his name. She just grins.

(Dads aren't used to this, they are used to being called by their name. The name that their parents gave them. It is all they know. Maybe it's Mr. or Sir followed by their first, middle, or last name, but it is always their name!)

Mothers on the other hand, we answer to many names. Ever seen a mother in a public place? anytime a child says "mommy" three moms turn around to see if it is there child.
Moms answer to their name, the name given to them by their children, Miss, Mrs, Mam, even their kids names! If I hear someone say my child's name I answer.. so when the nurse stands there at the door calling the child a mom knows it mean grab the diaper ,and the kids, and follow the nurse. The father in the office, sits... he doesn't ignore the nurse because he is rude, he just doesn't even know that they are talking about HIM.

Then you see the nurse grin and say "Mr. - we are ready for you" like it's his appointment. Can't you just see it? your big strong grown man sitting up on the little table with the pediatrician saying "say ahhh", confirming my point...
women just have it all don't we!?

Back to Tony joining us on our daily outings.

Today was a very special trip, we had to go somewhere that I have NEVER seen a Dad.

Once Upon A Child, it is a great little resale shop. You can take your children's "gently" used toys, clothes, gear, furniture, anything, and sell it to them for cash and maybe do some shopping why you are in there. If you have ever been to one of these shops you know that sometimes they can be very busy and it can take a very long time.

So as mothers do, I fully prepared to be there before they opened so that I could be first in line to have my items bought.

I loaded the car the night before, my sale items, diapers, snacks, cups... and when the kids got up we left before 8am.

"M" decided that he wanted to join me, I warned him against it, but he insisted that he didn't have much going on in the morning and he'd like to come. So, there we went. The whole family off to the resale shop.
We got there about 40 minutes before opening time, just like I planned. Plenty of time to unload the car and be first in line. I pulled up front into the emergency fire lane (we mothers can do this, I was just parking to unload the car so that I didn't have to drag everything through the parking lot) Tony seemed stressed that I pulled up into the fire lane, popped open the truck and started unloading.
He got out to help me unload and said, "honey they don't open for 40 more minutes"

"I know, but this place will be swarming with Moms in about 20 minutes," I told him. "And I want to be first in line."

He just shook his head and helped me finish unloading.

When the car was unloaded he said, "what do we do now?"

"We wait," I told him reassuringly.

The kids were getting restless so I suggested we get out and let them run around on the sidewalk of the strip mall.
"M" did not see the value in allowing them to run around in front of the store fronts before they opened.
I think it stressed him.
It would stress me to sit in the car with restless children, and why waste a perfectly good empty sidewalk?

Once the store opened I was first! We went in and the lady said it would take about 40 minutes for them to go through the items and offer me a price. I agreed and took the kids to the play area in the store.

"M" observed what was going on and asked me, "what now?"

You know, I forget, that I just know how this works, he was totally confused. He looked completely out of his element. Similar, to how I might look in my shorts and flip flops with two kids on my hips, standing in one of his corporate financing meetings. I reassured him that it wouldn't take long and the kids would play and I was so excited to show him the store and all the great deals that were available.

He wasn't very interested. Instead I could hear the stress level rise in his voice when he said "why did we buy everything at Babies R Us for three times as much when we could have come here!!?"

I quickly let him know that I wasn't aware of such places until after the kids were born.

I don't think he was enjoying the experience as much as I expected him too, but he was a good sport and pretended to be interested in the fact that you could buy a baby swing for $65 instead of the $140 that we paid four years earlier.

Then tragedy in the baby store occurred.
Our son escaped the baby play area. While I felt my heart skip a beat I knew he was somewhere in the store. This isn't the first time he has escaped and ran off in a store. Of all of the places to run away, a store filled with caring, loving, mothers that is no bigger than the size of our kitchen, would be the place to get lost in.

"M" on the other hand had had enough.

While my heart skipped a mer beat, his heart jumped out of his chest. And in something mixed between a rage and a panic he yelled "Damn it, where the hell is he!?" Mothers gasped as they grabbed their hands over their innocent children's ears; starring at my husband like he escaped from the asylum. I just acted like I wasn't with him and calmly looked to the ground and started scanning the store for little black and red shoes. Tony dodged to the left, then the right, then took off running to find our son. You would have thought he was back in his high school football days, dodging the aisles, mothers, and children, to locate our boy. Like a lion after it's prey, the mothers and children around where like birds on the open field flocking into the air to escape the predator. HOW EMBARRASSING!!??

I heard a check out clerk giggle when she noticed a curly haired little boy touched her rear end when he walked by her pushing a push toy that he had his eye on behind the counter. I grabbed him up and yelled "I found him!"

But where is my husband? Still dodging aisles to get back to me. He picked up our son and said "I'm taking him to the car."
Probably a better idea, like I said, he didn't seem to enjoy the atmosphere as much as I did. Meanwhile, our daughter played quietly and watched Dora in the play area of the store. It didn't take much longer and I left with a check in hand! Awesome!

As I walked to the car I noticed my handsome husband, there he is, sitting in the car with his blue tooth in his ear talking, I realized how terribly out of place he was in that store. It is nice of him to spend time with us and he said he could see the value in the store but he was not interested in going there ever again.

I guess Daddies really don't belong in Mommy places.

It works out though, tomorrow I am going back and guess who has already offered to stay home with the kids!?

Children and the Lord

Children really do have a close walk with the Lord don't they? Innocent little beings that they are.
I raise my children in a home built on faith. I pride myself in this but there are days that I have those 'insert foot in mouth' moments.
And wouldn't you know my mouthy daughter is always there to point me back in the right direction, probably because my son doesn't say much more than 'Ewww' and 'Daddy' at this point, I'm sure he will use the Holy Father to teach me a lesson or two. But for now, my daughter has taken this role.
Recently she has taken on this quote "how does God feel when you act like that?"
I really don't know where she heard that but sounds like someone really smart taught her that ;)
She tells her brother that when he throws toys, screams, or just acts naughty.
She tells her babydolls that when they are playing house alone in her room.
I got onto her the other day and she looked at me and said "MOMMY, HOW DO YOU THINK GOD FEELS WHEN YOU TALK TO ME LIKE THAT??"
Why oh why....
This isn't the first time she has used God to show me that the way I am acting was less than Godly...
I doubt this will be the last.

A How To.. on taking out the trash

Now, taking out the trash is similar to laundry.
There are steps to this process, the simple act of walking the trash can to the end of the driveway does NOT mean that one has completed the task.
This is for children, spouses, or anyone who needs the steps clearly laid out so that when they say "I took out the trash" they will have earned the right to speak these honorable words and still fully completed the task.
Now, when the trash needs to go out. You have to go around the house and collect the trash from the bathrooms, bedrooms, counter tops, and anywhere else trash may reside.
Then you place the trash in a large bag which then goes out to the large trash can outside.
Now, the trash must be taken the the end of the driveway or where ever the trash is picked up, if not picked up then taken to the dump or whatever spot that the trash must go.
If the trash is made to wait for pick up, please secure properly so that birds, bugs, or any other scavenging animal don't try and take it!
Now, you have not completed the trash duty yet. You must then return the empty trash can back up to the house, garage, back door, or where ever it is that the trash can belongs.
And yes, just like laundry it never ends and requires being done over and over and over again...
Happy Trash Day Everyone!

rough go of it

Well, needless to say.. life has brought us to our knees. No jobs, housing is tough, and Sophia had a tough doctor appointment Thursday last week.
So where to start?
Well, first thing is first I guess... Tony has not been able to find another job, yet. We are both looking for jobs but slim pickings around here.
Very short notice and quick decision,we moved back to our old house(thanks to some help from family) we don't know how long we will be able to stay here but it feels like home and we are thankful to have some time to gather ourselves even if it is just for a short time.
Then, in the middle of the move last week Sophia had a doctor appointment. I took the kids while Tony was home moving things from one house to the other. It was difficult enough under the circumstances and then taking Sophia to the doctor and bringing Troy with me really was stressful. The doctor talked to me about a lot of things. They did a lot of physical tests with her walking on a line and standing on one foot, standing on her heels, holding her arms out, alternating hands and feet... different things. They had done some of this before but this was more extensive, I just knew something was different. She asked me about Sophia's development and if I thought she was learning and speaking at a normal pace. I most defiantly did, she has had no developmental problems. She told me that she thinks Sophia is having some physical problems from the lack of oxygen in her muscles during a seizure that she is having some muscle contractions in her legs. I guess that's why she walks on her tippy toes (I thought it was from ballet)but she does it often and she does complain about her legs hurting and we always blew it off like it was growing pains. I feel like a terrible mother like I ignore all of the signs that something is wrong. Geez! The doctor upped the amount of medication that Sophia gets at night. She has been having some seizures during the night so this should help with that. While she remains on the same dosage during the day. So- this has been an overwhelming week! You'd think it was over with that but no-
Our family suffered a big loss last week. Our furbaby, Tater Tot died. Our sweet pup hasn't been well for quite a while. When she was three she was diagnosed with an enlarged heart and we were told she was going to have a shortened life span. She started to gradually decline in her activity level over the past year and when we got home from church on Sunday she couldn't even walk. It was really pitiful. She was our baby. Tony got her for me when I was 17, she had been a part of our life during the most important times in our life. She will be missed. That was a very hard day.
We are getting settled in the house and the kids are more than happy to be home. This is what they know as home. Sophia ran right into her 'pony room' and Troy ran right into his room pointed at the tractor on his wall and said 'vroom vroom'.
It has been very emotional to be here, be in this position.
I am thankful for the trails in life, although the tunnel is dark I know there is light at the end and I know that God provides even for the birds and like the sparrow He will take care of us.
I am so blessed to have family, friends, and God fearing people around us who encourage us, love, and support us.
Troy is talking more and more. When you pick him up to check his diaper he says "EEEWWWWW" He is so funny.
Sophia is a happy girl too. She is doing good with the medication adjustments and she is happy, that's most important. She misses her pup and talks about her often.
We have had a rough go of it lately.
We miss you our sweet baby girl...