Save Time in a Bottle

A letter to my children...

2012-01-29T19:29:00.001-06:00

Dear Children,

There are a few things that have been going on at our house lately that make me crazy...and laugh like a loon...Someday, when you read this, I'm sure you won't remember any of it...documenting for posterity's sake.

To my #1 hoarder...we cleaned your room again today for the 3rd time this month. This time, we went through all the drawers and refolded the clothes. There ARE better ways to spend a lovely Sunday afternoon, son! Please refrain from saving every empty wrapper, baggie from your snack, tag from your new clothes, etc. Those shows that we have had you watch are REAL! Love you tons....hope next month goes better!

Dear, sweet/funny/exasperating child...Your new habit of putting plastic baggies over your head is really freaking us out! We've locked all of the big ones up now so that you won't suffocate yourself. I know you watched that space movie last week, and are just trying to recreate helmets (very creative, by the way) but it is giving ME grey hair...I think, under all my roots...Oh, and it is also not acceptable to put plastic bags over your stuffed animals' heads. They need air to breathe, too...Just ask Woody from Toy Story!

To my Contrary Princess...Rolling your eyes and stomping around whenever I ask you to do something is NOT working for me. For crying out loud, you are 8, not 13...put on your big girl panties and deal with it! Trust me, things will only get better from here! ;) Oh, and word to the wise...if you help more and complain less, I will like you a lot more and will do more fun things with you...got it??? Good.

To Queen picky...Where do I even begin? Asking for a snack before dinner is over is not in your best interest...Your fascinating display this evening of spreading salad dressing on all of your lettuce leaves, then sucking it off was really special...Thanks for that! Anyway, if you don't start eating something besides fruit and chicken nuggets soon, I'm not sure if you will be the fairest in the land...girl gotta have some nutrition to be beautiful!

To Princess Sweet Pea...While you are showing the signs of independence, I love that you still want to "hold" me when you go to sleep at night...You have issues of your own, but watching you discover the world is a beautiful thing...Oh, and last night when you wouldn't let me go potty because I was holding you, and 5 minutes later asked me if I had "peed in my pants", I realized that you are definitely related to all the rest of my little hellions!

Love you all - hope this week brings about some progress and some new/exciting/not so dangerous issues...

Love,

Mom

One of those days...

2012-01-20T18:27:00.000-06:00

Some days make you want to scream, don't they???

Today has been one of those days...it started out with the dog peeing on the floor of the boys' room. Yuck. This single event had the power to make us late. For everything. Threw breakfast at the kids, shoved them out the door, jumped in the car for yet another long trek out to Eagleville. We were actually barely on time for Alyssa to go to school - small victory!

Went and worked out - that was good - made me feel like a rock star that I can do a resistance of 10 and most of the "New Years Resolution" crowd beginners around me could barely do a 1. I know, mean, but it made me feel good about how far I have come...

Anyway, ran a bunch of errands - decided to go to lunch at one of my favorite places "Taco Express" (soon to be renamed Oscar's Taco Shop, since they are related)...Took Ashleigh (who is potty training) to the bathroom a zillion times.

Then, Kristen and I went to Sam's Club to renew our membership. We were able to save a little money and get a business membership, due to my job...we walked around for a bit - about 1/2 an hour, and checked out.

Clay met me in the parking lot to get his lunch from my car. And then, my husband, who is the person who probably wouldn't notice if I stood on the street corner with my entire body painted neon orange said, "What is on your pants???" Um. I don't know. What does it look like? I am afraid to look. "Well, poop. It looks like poop."

Oh man. I had been walking around Sams for over 1/2 an hour and I had something nasty on the back of my pants? Kristen - I owe you one! I sneaked a look. "Yup. It looked like poop. But, we determined that I must have sat in some nasty looking refried beans at lunch. Clay sponged me off (Bless him) and I continued on my errands.

Later on, we were on our way back from the eye doctor getting #1's new glasses. We had 3 children screaming at us. Like banshees. It was awful, couldn't even drown them out with loud music. So, I did what every other self-respecting parent would do. I pulled over to the side of a country road. Pulled out my book, and told them that we would be sitting there until they stopped. At first, I don't think that they believed me. But after 5 minutes, when I was still reading my book, and it was getting darker and they were getting hungrier, they decided to shut their pieholes.

We continued on our way. Only to have another tantrum at home.

So, now I have a headache. And need chocolate. And a vacation. From my kids. And my house. And winter. And bills. And doctor appointments which create more bills.

I think that I am going to bed early tonight. With a bag of chocolate chips and a pile of new library books....Pure bliss!

Double Baptism...

2011-11-05T23:36:00.000-05:00

Emma and Reagan turned 8 this week, on November 3rd...we chose to baptize them on Friday evening, November 4th...

Clay and the twins before the baptism

Becoming a young lady before our eyes!

As with any major event, stress was a constant companion...couldn't have done it without the help of my family, yet again! Thank goodness I learned from Zach's baptism and it went more smoothly this time...It also helped that I didn't just give birth (the case 2 weeks before Zach's baptism - and I was on painkillers!)...

Me with my miracles!

Anyway, we have two brand, spanking new members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in our home. It is a wonderful, scary thing to be parents...Things went pretty well - Reagan had a few key moments, including stepping into the cold water and trying to get back out, then capping it off with "I'm gonna die" right before Clay dunked him under! Gotta love him.

So handsome in his suit!

We sure love these kids. As their Aunt Kristen mentioned in her talk, we prayed for them for years and years...having them come into our family was nothing short of a miracle.

Congratulations on your baptism and confirmation, Emma Elizabeth and Reagan Michael...We love you so much and are so proud of you.

Our "little" family

The Happiest Place on Earth...(vacation part 1)

2011-10-10T17:01:00.002-05:00

This is the first of probably several vacation posts...too much to cram into one blog!

Labor Day weekend, we headed back to our favorite place...Disney World. We went last year and had an awesome time, so we decided to do it all again...We didn't go alone this time - My sister Karen, her husband, Adam, and their son, Campbell also came along...

The drive is super long, but it is well worth it, once we get there. We hit quite a few snags this time...Ashleigh was really sick that morning, Kristen ended up saving the day and taking her to the doctor for me...she also cleaned out our car for the trip, kept Ashleigh all day, and finished some bows for the girls so that I could finish packing...the biggest snag was- my van, which has a ton of cargo space, was benched for this trip - it had to stay behind at the Dodge dealership for over two thousand dollars worth of repairs...we missed the space, but were so blessed that my parents had a van that we could use - that got us there safely...it also has better gas mileage than our van, so that helped the budget a little bit!

On the way, Clay looked into the backseat and found that Miss Troublemaker (aka Ashleigh) had gotten into my purse and painted herself with my lip gloss...Apparently, a 12 hour drive was a bit much to ask of this 2 year old!

Ashleigh's war paint

We left on a Thursday afternoon and drove all night. We slept a few hours and then drove the next morning to the Orlando Temple. We visited the distribution center for some "supplies" and took a few pics...

Orlando, FL temple

Reagan wouldn't cooperate


Again, he didn't cooperate - but the rest of us look okay!

After the temple, we went to lunch at a very overpriced McDonald's, then checked into our hotel.....

To BE Continued...

Happy Birthday, Alyssa!

2011-10-07T21:01:00.000-05:00

Okay. I suck. Alyssa's birthday was actually on September 19th. What can I say? It has been a rough month! I was sick for most of September with a nasty sinus/bronchitis thing, and I finally feel better now.

But, enough about me...

Minnie Mouse cake that was a labor of love...

She wore her new outfit to school on her actual birthday...

Our little Miss Alyssa turned 4 this year. Where does the time go? I am amazed at how much faster my kids birthdays come around than my own did when I was a kid...Things that make you go Hmmmmm....

Anyway, Alyssa is BIG! Well, not compared to other 4 year olds, really...but, she is so big to us! She just started school and is learning so darn much it is amazing. She still has a major diva attitude like she always has - but, she is learning and growing. I'm pretty proud of her.

Here's the loot!

For Alyssa's birthday, she got a tricycle and a little miniature Beauty and the Beast castle thing that she absolutely loves. (Craigslist is an awesome resource!) Grandma and Grandpa gave her a new fleece Cinderella blanket that has completely overtaken my Tinkerbell quilt that I made her last year...She got a super cute outfit from Aunt Kristen and a Belle doll from Aunt Karen...In other words, she hauled....again!


Modeling her new blanket

Saying Goodbye to an Old Friend...

2011-08-29T21:17:00.000-05:00

A few days ago, my mom called me and said that their dog was acting like she had suffered a stroke. She couldn't walk, was having accidents, was shaking, etc. Belle was over 15 years old - 112 dog years. Years ago, when Clay and I were first married, several of us went to the pound to try to "win" a small dog in a lottery. They had to pull a number because so many people wanted a small dog. I happened to be visiting from Utah that weekend and went along, to "up" the numbers - so we would have more of a chance to win her.

Wouldn't you know it, I won the dog. And instantly wanted her for myself! I reluctantly left her with my parents and over the years, many people have offered for her. Pretty much any one of us kids would have taken her in a minute if my parents hadn't wanted her.

Time marches on, and Belle grew older, as we all must do.

We have been expecting her to leave us for a while now, but we were all really hoping that she would go in her sleep...a fitting end for a good pet.

It wasn't to happen, and today, the difficult decision was made to help Belle pass over to the other side.

Clay went over this afternoon to help dig the hole in the rocky ground of Mom and Dad's property. When the kids came home from school, they wondered where he was. I chose to tell them that Belle was really sick and old and was going to die today. Dad was over helping to dig a hole so that she could be buried.

The kids took it pretty well, then Emma decided that she wanted to say "goodbye" before Belle went to live with Heavenly Father. Knowing that Kristen was taking her kids over for the same purpose, I piled them into the car and we went to pay our respects.

I'm not sure what I expected - but it was evident when we arrived that Belle really did not have much more time - she was very disoriented and lay very still. The kids went to say goodbye and pet her. Emma said something like, "Goodbye Belle. Have fun with Heavenly Father. I hope you have a happy ending!" Mom kind of grimaced and said, "Gee - I hope I have a happy ending!"

I came into the room and said her name, and darned if the old girl didn't try to sit up as straight as she used to in order to greet me. I patted her head and had her rest her weary soul on the pillow. Tears came into my eyes as I remembered all of the times that she cuddled with me when she came to my house when my parents were out of town, or how she would scavenge the floor after the kids ate something for a treat! It's funny - you don't think that you can feel the spirit when a pet is getting ready to pass to the other side, but I swear that there was something in that room. Peace. Kristen felt it too, so I know I'm not crazy.

At 5:45, my dad, Clay, and Adam went to the veterinary clinic and stayed with Belle while she passed.

At 6:45, my "little" family arrived at my parent's home. We chose to use this as a family home evening lesson - we talked to them on the way about what happens when we die. The kids were all in their pajamas. Clay began to fill the hole, then I asked Zach if he wanted to try. He did. One by one, all of the littler kids lined up behind Zach to take their turn filling the grave. Tearjerker for us adults. A stone was placed on top and the kids put flowers on top. Then we had a few prayers (from the kids). Emma prayed that Belle would have a good time with Heavenly Father. Alyssa blessed the food. We all sang "I Am a Child of God" and said our final goodbyes to a loyal little friend who will be remembered.

Rest in Peace, Belle.

1st Day of School - Times Two...

2011-08-27T23:15:00.001-05:00

So, everyone knows that school has already been going for a little while here in good old Tennessee, right? Yes, I know...I am a bit of a late bloomer in the blogging world - but, here are the kiddos on their first day this year!

We actually had TWO first days of school. One for the three older kids (Zach, Reagan, and Emma) and a second one for Miss Alyssa! And it was extra special for the little miss, because it was her 1st day of school EVER! Where has the time gone...Okay, I know that she is only four (almost), but she is going to pre-k, which is 5 days a week and 6 hours a day. May not be kindergarten yet, but that is full fledged school in my book...

Aren't they cute? My Big Kids...

Zach, Reagan and Emma are continuing their education at Christiana Elementary School...Z is in the 5th grade (Gulp...middle school starts next year - and he is already wearing deodorant) R and E are both in the 2nd grade...CRAZY to think about since they started out so little and it seems like only yesterday when they were in the special care nursery and couldn't come home until they were almost 5 lbs.

Alyssa - 1st day of pre-k

Alyssa goes to Pre-K at Eagleville School, which we absolutely love - but totally hate the 14 mile drive each way. She has the same teacher as Emma did 3 years ago - and this teacher is wonderful. We expect to see Alyssa grow and develop so much in this next year - and are very excited to see what she learns! So far, she seems to love it, but is a little grumpy when she comes home because the day is a little bit long for such a young scholar.

She wouldn't smile until Emma jumped in the picture!

And, where does that leave our little Ashleigh? LOST. She doesn't know what to do with herself. Every bus she sees MUST have one of her siblings on it. The other day, I heard her talking to herself in the car...

"Where Emma?" - she answered herself sadly, "At School."

My little sidekick!

"Where Yissa?"...another woebegone, "At School."

She proceeded to do this until everyone was named...she even included Clay and answered that he was "at work"! A little pathetic, don't you think? However, she is enjoying the extra cuddles with Mom at naptime and all the attention to herself when we run errands, etc.

Best buddies - when they aren't trying to kill each other

I am excited for this year - and a little sad that almost all of my kiddos are old enough to leave me! This school year is bound to be chock full of fun anecdotes and happenings, so - STAY TUNED!!!

Where does the time go??? 2 years already!

2011-07-15T07:41:00.000-05:00

Blueberry Picking

Our sweet Ashleigh is two today...actually, in about an hour, it will be official.

Amazing how the time flies...my baby is growing up so fast!

We haven't done any of the birthday festivities yet, those will get their own posts...this post is to celebrate Miss Ashleigh Kate and how much we love her!

Today at breakfast - such a cheesy girl!

This little girl is so loving, independent, smart and fun...we pretty much adore her most of the time...and hope it doesn't change much now that she is 2!

Happy Birthday little Miss Ashleigh!

You bring a smile to even the grumpiest faces! (This we proved this week at the ENT, when she walked down the hall, even the grouchy nurses had to look and grin at her!)

Oh - and if you scroll down a bit, you will see our blueberry picking adventure...

A Blueberry Pickin' We Will Go....

2011-07-15T07:32:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, we went blueberry picking for the 3rd year. It has now become an annual event at our house. Kristen and I rounded up 9 kids and ventured out into the heat...

The crop this year wasn't as good as it has been in years past, but it was still a fun outing. The kids favorite part, of course, is the playground that is on the property that they were able to utilize at the end. My worst fears came to pass this year and my daring Alyssa, the climbing fool, fell off of the slide right onto her back. Not gonna lie, I had visions of some scary results from this, but luckily, it just knocked the wind out of her. Then, she went right back to climbing...of course.

Kids everywhere!

Zach was my best picker this year...

They were hot and faded fast!

Emma looks like she means business - but maybe picked about 5 blueberries total...

Sophie gets her drink fix...

Playground fun

Evil Canevil

Wish I had a yard like this!

Thankful for my many blessings...

2011-07-04T22:17:00.000-05:00


Happy 4th of July!

Perspective

2011-06-24T21:45:00.000-05:00

When I was a kid, a new primary song came out. The song is called "I'll Walk With You" by Carol Lynn Pearson. I thought it was kind of a lame song - not because of the content, but because the tune wasn't quite as catchy as some of the favorites such as "I Hope They Call Me on a Mission", "We'll Bring the World His Truth", etc. Now that I have a child who is special needs, this song means a lot more to me. It still isn't the catchiest song in the Primary Songbook, but the words are very powerful.

Having a child with Autism has been a difficult road. We are constantly assessing things, figuring out new avenues and ways to help him. It is so hard for me to watch my little boy have such a hard time grasping new concepts and to also watch him be a total social mess. There always have been and always will be people who do not understand Reagan. There are always going to be people in the grocery store who look at me weird because he talks funny, or because he is throwing a fit because he doesn't understand something. I am learning to look the other way and ignore...but it hurts. It isn't embarrassment, so much as my profound grief that he will never be like other people and just "get it". Sometimes, I just want to hide myself and him away in our own little world so that he can't be hurt. Even though Autism is a "social" disorder, Reagan is very aware when people are making fun of him or being mean. There have been days when he has come to me, crying in frustration.

If only people could see what I see and what we deal with on a daily basis, there would be a different understanding. I get frustrated with him sometimes myself...and usually, I am knocked to the ground by something that he says or does that helps me to know how lucky I am to be blessed with such a good little spirit. Is he perfect? No. Can he be a brat sometimes? Yes. Are there people who will never understand? Of course. Would I give him away, if I had the chance? Never. Do I wish that he and I both did not have this cross to bear? Sometimes. I will not lie - I wouldn't wish being locked into a social prison upon anyone. Reagan's life would be a lot easier, if he were just "normal". Our family life would be easier...we wouldn't have to come up with something to feed him with because of his weird food habits; we wouldn't be thinking constantly about how to handle certain situations; I wouldn't dread going to public places - in case they are an unknown trigger to an overstimulated meltdown.

People look at him, and see a 7 year old. What they don't see is that he has the social abilities of a 3 year old. Milestones are usually hit - but much, much later than a normal child would hit them. Yes, I get frustrated at times, but I have learned over the years that my role as Reagan's mom is to teach him, love him, fight for him (a lot) and accept him for who he is. Sometimes, he is the glimmer of sunshine in an otherwise dark day. Other days, he is the cloud that covers the sun (because of a particular bad mood he may be in).

Most of the time, I am left in wonder at some of the things he has accomplished and that he has had to deal with in his little life. A lot of surgeries and therapies, etc. etc. and people still can't understand him. He wants to be understood, though...and if you listen closely enough - he just may surprise you. This year, he has just started to say prayers by himself...yes, something that others do years before this...but he is doing it...and he wants to do it...Sometimes I worry about his future and I wonder what will happen - and I can't face it or think that far ahead. I just live in the present right now...and do the best that I can as the protector of a courageous little spirit who is fighting to be heard.

Here are the words to the song - if you haven't heard it before...my perspective these days has changed drastically.

"I'll Walk With You "

by Carol Lynn Pearson

If you don’t walk as most people do,
Some people walk away from you,
But I won’t! I won’t!
If you don’t talk as most people do,
Some people talk and laugh at you,
But I won’t! I won’t!
I’ll walk with you. I’ll talk with you.
That’s how I’ll show my love for you.
Jesus walked away from none.
He gave his love to ev’ryone.
So I will! I will!
Jesus blessed all he could see,
Then turned and said, “Come, follow me.”
And I will! I will!
I will! I will!
I’ll walk with you. I’ll talk with you.
That’s how I’ll show my love for you.

So Thankful....

2011-04-11T21:43:00.002-05:00

Well, despite being a total IDIOT and not backing up any of our pictures, we have been blessed beyond our expectations...I found a company that was able to completely save everything that I had lost...

Heck, they even saved some stuff that I deleted that I'd rather not remember...such as, thousands of cookies and temporary internet files that I now have to delete from everything...but - I am not complaining...all of our vacation pics, baby pics, random cuteness pics are accounted for! It actually was a pretty cheap lesson - it cost a lot less than I thought it would...

To celebrate the joy that filled my heart this afternoon when the little UPS guy came to the door with our new external hard drive full of memories, I am going to post some random pics - just because I can! When I look at other people's blogs - I really go looking for new pics, so here you go...

The family at the zoo - summer 2010

Emma and her favorite, Cinderella - July 2010

Love this pic! Kids at Cocoa Beach in FL - 2010

The 3 that weren't afraid of Mickey and Minnie

Alyssa may have eaten sand - not sure

Zach testing out his strength...

Ashleigh - when she was still afraid of the grass!

Reagan dancing to the sound of the surf - Love this kid!

When the Cat's Away....

2011-03-28T17:51:00.000-05:00

So, when the cat is away at your house, what do the mice do to pass the time?

Here is a hint of what the female majority in our house did today while Dad and the boys were at soccer practice...

It is pretty difficult to hogtie two toddlers while waiting for nails to dry - but I did prevail! And now we all have spring-like/sandal ready toes...If it ever gets here, that is!!! (Spring)

I sure love my little beauties!

High Aspirations...AKA: "When I Grow Up"

2011-03-02T21:11:00.001-06:00

Reagan has been pretty funny lately, telling us about his plans for the future.

Honestly, it is nice to know that he is making plans for his future - I was pretty sure that there was going to be a bonus room full of super heroes and comic books, complete with Mom and Dad downstairs! Not a bad plan, but his are much better to listen to...

The other day, he went to Clay and said, "Hey Dad, When I grow up, I am going to be a Red Box worker at McDonalds..." We thought, "Hey, why not - it combines his two greatest loves...redbox movies and the McDonalds restaurant...could work - except there really isn't anyone that mans the redbox station, but it's a start, right?"

Then, tonight he brought me a pad of Post-It notes and a crayon - and asked for some tape. He said, "I'm making a book. When I grow up, I'm going to write books...this one is about the ABC's." He then said, as if reading the title of a book..."The ABC's, by Reagan Turner...no, wait...by Doctor Reagan." (He learned about Dr. Suess today at school - it is his birthday, I gather.)

Clay turned to me and said..."Hey, we're moving up in the world! Sure beats a Redbox worker at McDonald's!"

887...The sweetest number I know...

2011-02-25T20:53:00.001-06:00

A few weeks ago, I woke up and turned on the computer...It wouldn't boot up.

Dun Dun Dun...you say? Yup. You are right. My hard drive crashed, and in a big way.

I was am completely heartbroken.

Why?

Because I was a moron and didn't back up ANYTHING.

Yes, I am the type who always puts things off for tomorrow, figuring that there will always be another day - and nothing will happen, right? Wrong.

The worst part about all of it is my pictures. The computer is 2 1/2 years old - and there were 2 1/2 years plus worth of pics on the computer. So sad. Baby pics of my last two babies, Christmas ~~a few years~~ worth, our Disney vacation last summer and tons of random shots...thousands of pictures.

At this point, it is looking like nothing will be able to be recovered.

Today, I was organizing/cleaning/gutting my house and I ran across my old digital camera. My new Rebel is only about a year old, so I found this camera and my heart began to race. You see, not only do I not back up hard drives very well ~~at all~~, but I also am pretty lazy about emptying my memory cards.

I popped that memory card into the laptop of doom and tears came to my eyes. 887 pictures still on that card! I am really only missing a year's worth of photos instead of the 3 plus that I was originally missing.

Even though I still don't have our vacation pics and countless others, I have pictures from the births of my last two babies, a lot of baby pics and other sweet shots of the other kiddos...I am choosing to look at this glass as half (heck 3/4) of the way full!

This incident brings to mind the parable of the 10 virgins...and yes, I am among the 5 who were unprepared.

Next time, I am going to be more prepared...and this goes for a lot of things in my life that, upon reflection, I need to work on.

Oh, and what would this story be without a public service announcement???

BACK UP YOUR COMPUTERS!!!

Today, 887 is the sweetest number I know...

Here are a few of the gems that I found today...

Emma at age 4

Reagan, telling us all about something

Little Miss Diva Ashleigh

A very scruffy Mr. Miagi, trying out the walker - and yes, he jumped in by himself!

Alyssa's 1st piggies

Zach shows his pearly whites

Wait a minute...how did that get in there?

Clay, trying out a new ride

Ashleigh and I on our girl vacay in Sept. 2009

WHAT??? How old did you say?

2011-01-31T20:43:00.000-06:00

Today, I became the mother of a ten year old boy. It is a bit scary...you see - that is double digits. I have a kid in the double digits! YIKES!!! Where did the time go? He went from a little scrap of a thing to a kid who is only 8 inches (or a little less) shorter than me...

I know, I know...you are saying - "It's not like it is that much of an accomplishment to get that tall, Jennifer!" I beg to differ, however...it was a great accomplishment for ME to get this tall...so there. (get a mental picture of a tongue sticking out at you now) :)

Anyway - Mr. Zach is an enigma. He can be nutty and funny one minute and helpful the next...still a little boy - but becoming a young man...I AM NOT READY FOR THIS!

Oh - and I have to tell you about our conversation the other morning...

ME: "Zach, did you put on deodorant after your bath?"

ZACH: "No."

ME: "You are going to be 10 years old tomorrow - you kind of stink...you should be putting it on every day...have you been putting it on at all?"

ZACH: "Oh. Well, yes - I usually put it on before scouts on Wednesday nights."

I think we are going to have to work on this concept a little bit, don't you???

Anyway - Happy Birthday to our firstborn son...We love you and hope that you survive another year with us...just kidding...

Kid Funnies

2011-01-23T18:06:00.000-06:00

Today at church, they were talking about the five senses...they had some of the kids pick a sense out of the jar. Reagan was chosen and he pulled a picture of a nose from the jar...They asked him what we were given our noses for and he never missed a beat..."We wipe it!"

Later on at home, we asked him again what our nose is for...This time he said "We wipe our nose...Oh, and I eat the boogers too."

Tonight at dinner - I asked the kids what we have eyes for. Emma said, "That's a silly question, we put ice in our drinks!"

The other night, Ashleigh fell off a chair and hit her head (again). I picked her up and held her. She was sobbing profusely and looked at me sadly..."I stinky!" Apparently, the stinkiness was bumming her out more than falling off the chair...something that I can definitely understand because - WHOO - she really did stink!

Today's Activities...

2011-01-11T21:23:00.000-06:00

Snow day, Snow Day, SNOW Day, SNOW DAY.....AGAIN.

And now, for an unscheduled update on the Turner household.

1. Mom made Mickey Mouse pancakes for breakfast...what a cool mom.

2. Mom turned on the Tangled and Princess and the Frog soundtracks and we all danced around the kitchen...again - what a cool mom.

3. Mom let kids trash the house with the toys - so that it looked like Christmas morning...again...and didn't make them pick it up until evening...great mom, right?

4. Mom took kids to lunch at McDonalds - AND let them play in the playplace....what a sucker that mom is.

Out of all of these things, what was their favorite activity of the day??? Well, you see - it is not on this list...They thought it was great fun to build musical instruments out of the breast pump accessories that they found in the cupboard....Mom didn't think that idea was so cool.

And tomorrow - we get to do it all again! Woot for snow days...NOT!

Another Weird School Project...

2010-10-11T23:20:00.000-05:00

Okay.

I'm just going to come out and say it. Are you ready? Here goes...

I have discovered that when you send your children to school, the teachers have a lot of fun making up sadistic projects for you to do with them at home that are impossible to transport back to school.

There. I said it. You other mothers with school aged children know exactly what I'm talking about. This only gets worse the older they get. It starts with the egg project in pre-school (we had to get an egg to school in a special container that we designed - then they dropped it ala humpty dumpty, to see it it survived the fall). Then, it moves on to other things like the monthly - decorate a (insert whatever fits into the holiday/season at the time a leaf, christmas tree, snowflake, apple, etc.). In Kindergarten, Emma had to actually do a report that taught the other kids about something...Guess who did all the work on that one? Third grade, we had to make a working volcano - labels, etc. and get it back to the school...that was fun, time consuming - and MY project...

Tonight - I had 3 projects that needed completed. Two decorate-a-leaf projects for the twins...easy peasy - we've been doing those for years...and the masterpiece thus far of my school project career...

THE EDIBLE CELL PROJECT

This was just plain weird. We actually had to make a model of a cell out of only edible items - and label everything, etc. But, who thinks this stuff up? It actually looks pretty cool - but incredibly disgusting...

Just in case you want to recreate this in your spare time:

I took a tortilla and baked it over a bowl to create the cell wall. We used cooked spaghetti noodles for the cell membrane. The cytoplasm was jelly. The nucleus was a cracker. The vacuoles were peanuts. The chloroplasts (this was a plant cell) were pea pods. The mitochondria were grape nerds.

I had to make it a special little nest in its shoe box so that it wouldn't shift around - I also cheated and glue gunned the sucker to the nest!

Oh - do you want to see the masterpiece that I have been discussing? I'm sure that you can't wait to view this beautiful creation...

I am not a taco salad!

Gross, huh? Kind of like a taco salad gone wrong...

Oh, and for those of you that still have no kids in public school yet...you just wait...your time is coming!

Well, At Least He Didn't Say I Have My Hands Full...

2010-10-07T22:58:00.000-05:00

As the mother of five children, I have heard the phrase "You've got your hands full" way too many times in the past few years. I feel that most of the time, I have things under control...There are days when yes, my hoodlums are a little bit unruly, but it isn't that bad all of the time!

So, today - (Day 4 of Fall Break, no less) I decided to take the kids to lunch at Taco Bell after I worked out at the YMCA. We really haven't gone anywhere all week, so this was a special treat for them. I made sure that we went to the Taco Bell where the worker likes us and gives us a few extra drinks sometimes for free ('cause he feels bad for me, I guess!)

Anyway...they were being good. Reeeeaaaalllyyyy good.

We were waiting for our food and a nicely dressed older gentleman came up to me.

"Excuse me, ma'am...I just wanted to tell you that your children are the most well behaved children that I have ever seen."

Okay, this is not a compliment that we receive very often - but in this instance, I will admit - we really deserved it...and it was soooo nice not to hear - "You've got your hands full!" I almost wiped a tear from my eye...

I answered..."Thank you, but that can change at any moment!"

And - just as I said that....Alyssa threw up.

I think I've got my hands full.

Our Trek to Visit Mickey and Co...Part 1

2010-10-05T22:06:00.001-05:00

Disclaimer: This may be boring, but since this blog is basically my sad excuse for a journal, I am documenting what I remember...it will get better, I promise!

At the beginning of 2010, I heard about a special volunteer program that Disney was sponsoring this year. If anyone over the age of 6 volunteered (for specially approved assignments), they would receive one day ticket to Disneyland or World. This was until they had one million volunteers. I was instantly intrigued. For years, I have been dying to take our kids to visit "The Mouse", but it has always been too expensive. I signed us up and we were given an assignment to pass out some fliers to some businesses in Franklin, TN. This enabled us to get 5 tickets - one for each of us that would cost money to get into Disney World.

We were able to use the price that the tickets would have been to upgrade for a few more days in the parks - this was important, because with 5 children (a few with special needs) it would have been impossible to see much in just one day - especially considering when we were actually on the trip, two of our afternoons were spent at urgent care clinics in the area (we will get into that later). Then, we rented a condo for a week - much more affordable than actually staying in a hotel, and we were so much more comfortable. It was also a lot cheaper to be able to prepare our own meals.

Everyone told us we were nuts to go over the week of the 4th of July because of the humidity in Florida, the terrible heat, yadda, yadda, yadda....not much we could do about the fact that Clay's vacation was scheduled at the end of 2009, before we even planned the trip and the kids were off of school...so July it was!

After several months of getting tips and tricks from the internet, budgeting, couponing, hoarding anything I could find that was Disney related (to save tons of money on souvies), we set out for our trip at about 10 pm the Friday before the 4th of July. The plan was to drive as far as possible - we made it past Atlanta, crashed at a hotel for a few hours - then get in the car and drive some more. It was great - except my kids outlasted my co-pilot! Poor Clay was so tired from working (he gets up at 2 am) that he slept the whole 5 hours that we drove the first night! We crammed into a 2 double bed hotel room and slept at about 3 am. Um...they also might have thought that we only had 3 kids...don't know where they got that idea???

Here are a few pics of us in our 4th of July finery at our condo...

We finally made it to Orlando about 5 pm on Saturday afternoon...Yes folks, we took our time! Between potty stops and a lot of rain, it slowed us down a bit...We relaxed that evening and also on Sunday (4th of July). The kids thought the condo was great - we were just happy they had their own rooms!

To be continued...

A Cinderella Birthday

2010-10-02T21:09:00.004-05:00

Ever since we went to Disney World this summer, (Yes, I know that I haven't blogged about that yet - it is coming, I promise), Alyssa has been obsessed with Cinderella...actually, anything involving the princesses, fairies, castles...you get the picture. So, when we asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she replied, "A Cinderella Birthday". She also only answers to the name "Cinderella", so that really isn't a stretch of the imagination. We didn't make her birthday all about Cinderella - that would have been boring...for us...but she did get a pretty Cindy doll from her Aunt Kristen. I made her a flower shaped birthday cake (fun to do, but the dang thing fell apart very easily) with Tink and Co. perched on the top...looking quite pleased with themselves, might I add! She got a huge assortment of dress up items from Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt Karen and Uncle Adam...who were only too happy to indulge her fantastic dress-up imagination! We decided that we don't have enough noisy toys that need batteries, so we found her a pink keyboard with a carrying handle that is just her size. She was pretty cute about the whole thing - when we gave her the piece of cake, she decided to put all the fairy dolls back on - there is a picture of her cake just covered in fairies! Alyssa is my headstrong child - she has a quick temper and a loud scream...but when you ask her for a kiss or hug, even when she is mad, she will melt and give you the sweetest loves. She loves anything girly, but also will romp and tumble with the boys outside...in her Sunday shoes... We love our Alyssa Claire (AKA Cinderella) very much and are really enjoying watching her grow into a little girl...

Wheelchair Incident

2010-09-21T07:39:00.001-05:00

Yesterday morning, Emma had a cough and didn't want to go to school. Mean ol' Mom sent her anyway (we can't afford to lose any excused absences without a fever or vomit because she is sick so much). Anyway, I sent her and told her that if she was really sick, the school would call me and I would pick her up.

Fast forward to 9:15 am...

The phone rang. I look at the caller ID (because I always look) and see the school's phone number...Great...Guess I'd better get ready to go and get Emma...

"Mrs. Turner? This is the school nurse." I replied, "You must be calling about Emma."

"Well, no - actually, I am calling about Reagan. You see, he was run over by a wheelchair in his classroom this morning."

"What? Is he okay?"

She said, "Yes, he is walking on it and not complaining - I don't think it is broken, just red. The teacher just wanted you to know."

By far, probably one of the weirdest phone calls from the school (and there have been a few weird ones, believe me)...

Last night, I made up a song to send back to Reagan's teacher. For your viewing pleasure...

"Reagan's Song"
To the tune of "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer"

Reagan got run over by a wheelchair.
It was just too fast for him, you see.
You may think it was no Manic Monday.
As for me and Mrs. Chesnutt, we believe.

It was just another morning.
Class was quiet, the pledge was done.
Then there was a flash of lightning,
And our poor little Reagan couldn't run.

Reagan got run over by a wheelchair.
It was just too fast for him, you see.
You may think it was no Manic Monday.
As for me and Mrs. Chesnutt, we believe.

He went down to see the school nurse.
Shoe was off and ice applied.
He got on the school computer.
Pain was all forgotten, tears were dried.

Reagan got run over by a wheelchair.
It was just too fast for him, you see.
You may think it was no Manic Monday.
As for me and Mrs. Chesnutt, we believe.

Now, if you have this tune stuck in your head all day - you have me to thank for your early Christmas spirit!

1st Day of School...AKA Independence Day!

2010-08-10T16:26:00.000-05:00

The kiddos started school yesterday. The summer has actually gone by pretty quickly, but they (and we) were ready for them to return. Is it just me, or don't they look cute all ready to go on the first day? There is an extra bit of excitement in the air that disappears after the first week or so.

I had my day all planned out - 4 days in advance.

I worked out at the YMCA first thing in the morning. Then, I took Ashleigh to her follow up ear appt. The annual "celebratory lunch" (this year at Chuy's) followed. After that, I ran a few errands, leisurely (yeah, right - still had 2 little ones with me - but still better than five!).

All in all, it was a good day - they raced in the door and clamored to tell us all about their days.

It feels like it is going to be a good year!

Sir, Yes Sir!

2010-08-08T20:44:00.000-05:00

Soooo....what happens when your mom (now known as the drill sergeant) is cutting your hair the night before school starts and you cover your eyes with your hands and shake your head back and forth while the clippers are very close to your scalp???

Do you know???

You end up with a number 2 on the top, a number 1 on the sides and instead of 1st grade, you will now be starting boot camp in the morning....Yup. That is what happens.

Anyone want to venture a guess as to how I know this information???

Oh well...it's only hair - it'll grow back, right?

Sergeant Mom, Over and Out.

Little Miss Ashleigh Turns One...

2010-07-21T22:23:00.000-05:00

July 15th was our sweet Ashleigh's first birthday...we went light on it this year - in anticipation of a big family party (to be shared with a few cousins in a few weeks)...

We went blueberry picking on the morning of her birthday - it was very hot and humid...but we managed to have a great time and pick 5 lbs in less than an hour. Pizza and brownies made the night festive, even if it was a Thursday!

Ashleigh has absolutely no teeth - and not one in sight either, but she downed that pizza! And was totally in heaven with her brownie...

A fisher price farm finished her birthday off with a bang!

Today (July 21st) Ashleigh had her biggest birthday present from the ENT...a brand new set of tubes. This is a good thing for many reasons -- no more co-pays and prescriptions for neverending ear infections...she will not shake her head all the time because of the fluid in her ears...she will hear better and hopefully be talking like crazy soon!

Ashleigh is the sweetest baby ever - and I am so excited to hear what she has to say in a few months! We love her very much and cannot believe that a whole year has passed since she was born.

She is a little short (who in our family isn't?) and weighs about 18 1/2 pounds right now...not big enough yet for a forward facing carseat - but that will happen soon, I'm sure! I am also pretty sure that she wishes she was forward facing - it gets boring looking at the back of the seat when your siblings are all watching a movie!

Happy Birthday Ashleigh Kate! You bring so much sunshine into our lives!!!

Sometimes Life is Like a Peanut Butter Sandwich...

2010-05-06T20:16:00.001-05:00

Have you ever been really, really, hungry and made yourself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? Then, you pour yourself a big glass of ice cold milk. You take the first bite, and you wonder why you don't have peanut butter sandwiches for lunch every day, it just tastes so good? Next, you might think about the simplicity of a peanut butter sandwich as opposed to say, a club sandwich or leftover lasagna...

Sometimes, my life is like a peanut butter sandwich.

There are days that (too many, I'm afraid) where I try to cram every possible thing into the day...Like a few weeks ago, when Reagan had a doctor's appointment at Vanderbilt. I didn't want to drive up there again, so I crammed another appointment in within an hour of the other one. While it did pay off, I was completely stressed out trying to get from home to Nashville by 8:30 and to the two different appointments...Was it worth it? Probably, in terms of gas mileage and time - but it was a crazy, busy day.

There are other days (like today) when I am forced to slow down my pace of life. It is my birthday today - as I told Emma (every time she asks how old I am) I am old. I had planned on cramming so many little tidbits into today, so that I didn't think about how old I am getting - how my pants will never fit the way I want them to, and how much it is going to cost to maintain my current hair color.

I hope I am not alone.

Anyway, I was planning on getting up - kids off to school by 7:30, leave straight for the YMCA to workout (still trying to get into the smaller pants), exercise for an hour, shower, get the two little girls from daycare, go to Hobby Lobby, go to JCPenney, go to Ross, go to lunch....

You get the picture.

This morning - Emma woke up and didn't look so good. She announced - "I feel like I have to throw up".

Then she did.

I was completely undone. What in the world was I going to do to salvage my birthday? Clay hasn't been around much lately, because he is working 13 hour days due to the flood in Nashville. I have been virtually a single parent this week. Was it too much to ask to be able to spend MY BIRTHDAY the way I had planned?

Then, I started thinking again. I put on my workout clothes and the baby in the playpen. Used my elliptical machine that has been gathering dust upstairs (for those who are wondering, it is very difficult for me to workout at home due to Alyssa's crazy escape artist antics, hence the YMCA membership - which also gives me a few hours to myself each day). The baby gurgled and waved at me happily from the playpen. She thought it was great watching me sweat!

Next, I did the dishes, cleaned the bathroom, and sent a few Mother's Day cards...all of this with no stress involved...no running around, no moving kids in and out of the car...they played happily (well, I will be honest, Alyssa did scream all morning - in between playing)...

The dog was happy that I stayed home and he was allowed to run around instead of stay in his laundry room den.

I took a shower in my own bathroom - well, Ashleigh did play on the floor outside the shower - but she was happy anyway, and I am used to peeping toms by this point of my parental career.

I painted my toenails - when was the last time I had the time to actually do that?

Then, I went to a nice birthday lunch with my mom and Kristen....and 5 kids. Yes, we were totally outnumbered, but the kids did quite well - and Emma even ate a little bit.

After this, my mom took Alyssa for a few hours and Clay took Emma home - and Ashleigh and I shopped alone leisurely. I actually enjoyed myself.

The day that I had today - even though there was no birthday dinner (they had corn dogs) and no cake (cause Clay was too tired to think about it) was simple....and it worked.

Tonight, I bit into my peanut butter and jelly sandwich that I ate at 8 o'clock (because of a feverish Emma, screaming Alyssa, work issues, etc.) and I thought to myself what a great thing that a simple peanut butter sandwich is...

I think I am ready for another bite tomorrow....Oh, who am I kidding? I will probably also have a piece of cake on the side...

One little, two little, three little weirdos...

2010-04-29T19:25:00.001-05:00

We are the type of people, unfortunately, who are like magnets for weirdos. When we are in public, it is no exception. People just seem to gravitate to us and make strange remarks that make us feel like our clothes are on inside out, or that we are just standing there in our underwear.

I am dedicating this post to all of the above mentioned oddballs who made it possible...

Incident #1: Last week, Clay and I were uber sick. Rather than lay down and die, we got ourselves and all five of our spawn to the walk-in clinic on Saturday morning. We split the kids up semi-fairly (he got the boys, I got the girls)...Anyway, Clay was waiting for the check-in girl to finish and Super Nosy Nana walked in. Typical older woman...tennis shoes with her stretched out slacks...gray/black hair all around her face...glasses. You get the picture. Emma was standing next to Clay at the window.

Super Nosy Nana says, "Well, ain't you a scraaawwwny thang?" I forgot to mention that her voice was like nails on a chalkboard.

Emma, extremely confused, because most of the time people are telling her how adorable she is (even when she isn't) looked up at Clay. "Dad, what does scrawny mean?" "Well, it means you aren't very big..." She was not impressed at all with this.

Incident #2: Same day. Five minutes later. Super Nosy Nana again. Yes, a real piece of work, that one. Alyssa was in the front of the twin stroller and kept throwing a magazine down onto the floor. First of all, I felt like (this is a family blog, so insert your own expletive here). Anyway, after the 3rd time, I stopped picking it up. My kid, my prerogative. Enter Super Nosy Nana, to the rescue.

"Oh, I'll help you - poor little thang...nobody picking that up for you? Here you go."

Honestly, if I wasn't 3/4 of the way dead, I would have strangled the woman. I gritted my teeth..."It is just a game...she has thrown it 3 times already."

SNN says, in an extremely annoying voice..."Well, sometimes she has to win, doesn't she? And that's what Grandma's are for."

I refrained from getting in her face - since her Grandma wouldn't have picked it up either. But I swear, if I had been feeling better...

Incident #3: I like to call this...Way to make us feel like a freak show. Yes, we have 5 kids. I know people with more. I see people on T.V. with almost 4 times as many...Our kids are relatively well-behaved (some of the time)...the real freak show is the family that have 2 kids (you know, one for each parent) and the kids are completely out of control. We have it pretty well covered, I think.

Anyway, on the same day as the other 2 incidents - in the same doctor's office, mind you...yup, you guessed it - the nurse and doctor were shocked at the number of kids we brought with us. Well, what were we supposed to do? Neither of us was about to let the other one leave them at home with all of them, and come home with the coveted antibiotic.

It wasn't too horrible - but we did get the obligatory "Wow, you got your hands full." "Bless your hearts." And the young doctor exclaimed when he walked into my room..."How many all together? You've got three in here and he has three in there?" I corrected, "No, he has only two." His answer? "Are they all yours?" Here's your sign buddy...who in their right mind would bring 5 children to a doctor's appointment if they didn't have to?

Incident #4: Marathon Man. One Saturday, we were in Sam's Club after working out at the Y. We were standing in line, minding our own business, when the man in front of us started talking to me. "So, I saw you at the Y. I was the one running." Oh, okay...not sure how to answer that, but...okaaaaayyyy. "You were just walking." I finally answered, "Yes, I was Cooling Down."

He tried again..."Well, I took a shower before I came here - you guys are still all sweaty. I don't like to do my errands all sweaty."

Zing. Ouch. Where do we find these people?

Incident #5: I am going to close with this incident for tonight, because I think that it deserves mention. Most of you know that Zach is adopted. He is half hispanic and half caucasian, so well....he doesn't really look much like us. In California, nobody really seemed to notice. Here in the South, everyone notices.

We were in Wendy's, eating lunch a few years ago...minding our own business. A woman came up to us and said. "You have the cutest kids, but that one - he doesn't look like you."

Wow.

Way to make a kid feel like he doesn't belong. Let's just play the Sesame Street game "One of these things is not like the other" while we are at it, shall we?

We replied (as politely as possible). Yes, he is our son. We adopted him.

"Really? I was just thinking how he looks so much like my ex-boyfriend...I mean, just like him."

Ummmm...do you think he is the father or something? Why say that, honestly? And more importantly, how do we answer that?

I swear, if some people had brains, they would just take them out and play with them.

Zach's 1st Badge...

2010-04-11T20:32:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I stink at blogging. My life is super busy, filled with all sorts of things that keep me from updating on a regular basis...

A recent example of this is Zach's first badge in Cub Scouts. He got it over a month ago...

Just so you don't think I am that terrible of a mother - I did take pictures...

Isn't he cute? Don't you just want to pinch his little warrior cheeks?

We are now the proud owners of a Bobcat badge...with many more to come, I'm sure! ;)

Sometimes even a Velociraptor needs a little TLC...

2010-03-27T19:52:00.000-05:00

Remember my last post? About my little dinosaur, Alyssa? Remember how I wished that she would turn into an angel?

Be careful what you wish for.

This week, Alyssa caught a bad stomach bug. Really bad. Like a few baths a night and several changes of sheets bad.

It started on Tuesday night...high fever, vomiting, the runs....

And went on through Wednesday. Then Wednesday night. Wednesday night was so bad, I slept next to her on the couch and had to give her Motrin and Tylenol two hours apart just to get her fever to leave the 104 range. We were just a few steps from the ER.

Then Thursday. Then Thursday night.

Through all of this, my little soldier trudged on. She tried to go play outside when it was sunny - she is an independent little cuss. She tried to eat her favorite things when her tummy let her...only to throw them up again a few hours later. She still fought with her brothers and sisters, but in a more pathetic way. But, she also turned sweet. Sweet for Alyssa is an indication that all is not right. She is usually a little spitfire - blazing her own trails.

We knew she was in trouble on Thursday afternoon when she slept and slept. We were really hoping that it meant she was breaking the fever and sleeping off the sickness. Not so.

Friday morning, she was lethargic, hadn't eaten anything in 24 hours, and looked terrible.

I knew it was time. I also knew that she would probably not come home with us after she saw the doctor (we have past experience with extremely wimpy kids and dehydration).

The doctor (bless him) took one look at her and knew. Then he smelled her breath (the sickening sweet smell of ketosis). She was burning her fat now. He did the blood tests as a formality, then off we went to the hospital for some IV's.

Here is the kicker. This all happened on my busiest workday of the month. The day that I can't take off. We also happen to have four other children. Don't know about you, but I have not yet mastered the art of being in two places at once...but when I can...watch out!

Grandpa to the rescue...he has done it before, he will probably do it again. My dad is great for sitting with the kids when they are in the hospital. He stayed with her and Clay was with the kids at home. He also held her down while they inserted an IV in her FOOT because she was too dehydrated to get it into her hand.

I went to work.

Grandpa has a soft spot for our little Velociraptor. He brought her at least 10.00 worth of coloring books. She really loves him. Not just cause of the coloring books. She held his hand and chattered at him while she colored in her beloved books.

Last night, Clay spent the night with Alyssa at the hospital and I was at home with the others. She was released at 3 o'clock this afternoon...I won't lie to you, she is not as good as new. She is still looking and feeling pretty rough. We are hoping she does okay tonight. She is a lot better than she was when she went in, though. We have to be vigilant so that she does not get this way again.

One thing that I have learned from all of this...Alyssa can stay a Velociraptor for a little longer, if it means that she is healthy. I don't want her to be an angel if it means she is sick.

Because I really do love her.

My Velociraptor

2010-03-17T13:39:00.000-05:00

Do you remember the movie, Jurassic Park? And the dinosaurs that were prominently featured, the Velociraptors?

Well, if you remember - the Velociraptors were mean, angry dinosaurs. They were bipedal (travel on 2 feet) and primarily meat eaters, they also jumped on top of anything and everything and were very, very destructive.

I have a dirty little secret.

There is a Velociraptor that lives at my house.

No, they are not completely extinct yet...though, I am hoping that soon (very soon) this little blond dinosaur will be replaced with a sweet little angel.

One can only hope, right?

The funny thing is, you wouldn't know she was such a terror by looking at her.

She is Fearless.

The main reason why I Hate Cats...

2010-03-17T11:01:00.000-05:00

Look Mom! I made a friend...Ashleigh meeting the kitty (AKA Weeza)...

This is Ashleigh, after the Kitty made her "mark"...My poor, sweet baby. Mean 'ol Weeza.

Adventures in Cake Decorating...

2010-03-17T09:54:00.000-05:00

I have been wanting to learn (really learn) to decorate cakes for a while now...It doesn't help that all of the cool cake shows are on TV all the time (Ace of Cakes, Cake Boss, Ultimate Cake Off, etc.).

I just love to watch them create something beautiful out of thin air (and a little eggs, sugar, milk, etc.) These guys are truly artists in what they do...don't worry, I don't have any false hopes that I will ever be up to their caliber, but I want to be able to make birthday cakes myself, that actually taste better than crisco and sawdust, for much cheaper than what you can buy at the store.

Soooo....this month, was our RS birthday dinner and Sis. Warrick offered to show some of us a few tips on decorating cakes...My brunette sis and I showed up and learned a few tricks of the trade that we had never heard of before...

Then....I FOUND AN AWESOME COUPON....I know, I know, big shock....I am right up there with the Queens of finding AWESOME COUPONS (it has to be capitalized for effect). Anyway, 50 percent off of anything at Michaels...I hurried my little (sort of) self down there to check out the supplies.

I found a great starter kit and got it for so much cheaper than it would have cost for all of the stuff separately. It even has a great little book on techniques.

Kristen and I each made a cake for the RS birthday dinner. It took us much longer than it would have if we hadn't had two 2 year olds, an 18 month old, and an 8 month old to watch while we did it, but we survived...

I am pretty happy with the results of my first attempt to really make something semi-professional looking...My cake was lemon flavored with raspberry filling....yummy buttercream icing topped it all off.

The only problem with this new hobby is that it is murder on the diet. So, I joined the Y yesterday...
YUM!!!

What do racism, filth, and baby goats have in common?

2010-03-08T23:42:00.000-06:00

Apparently, I am a common denominator in all of these things.

Wow. There some places that I visit that inspire me to come home and clean my own house. And BOIL myself. And my briefcase. And my eyeballs. When I put my papers down and BUGS run across them, that is not a good sign. This one ranked right up there with the people that let baby goats live in the house for the winter. That one was pretty bad, too. Nuff said. Wow.It was also an interesting thing that when I said "Hello" to the husband, he ignored me. When the wife told him to acknowledge me, he said that he didn't talk to "them white people", didn't like them either...

WOW.

There aren't many people out there who are whiter (or shorter for that matter) than little 'ol ME.

I think it may be time to replace my expired pepper spray.

I find it very interesting as well that my instincts told me in advance that I DID NOT want to go to this home. I tried everything, even waiting at Wal-Mart for her to show up, but apparently her car wouldn't start.

Thank goodness for Purell.

A History Lesson (according to Emma)...

2010-02-08T21:56:00.000-06:00

Tonight, we were getting ready for bed and Emma was chattering, as usual.

"Hey Mom...Did you know that Henry Home Lincoln was our 1st President?"

"No, Emma - George Washington was our first president."

"Mom, but we learned at school that Henry Home Lincoln..." I interjected here..."You mean, Abraham Lincoln?"

"Yeah, Henry Home Lincoln...He was the first president. Then, they shot him in the back. Did you know that they shot him in the back, Mom?" *She said this in an outraged tone of voice.

"Yes, Emma...I know that they shot him in the back."

"Well, Mom...after they shot him in the back, did you know that they put him in a penny?"

History according to Emma...(6 years old and in kindergarten). I think I may need to have a talk with her teacher about the accuracy of the lessons that she is teaching. Either that, or I'd better go and have Emma's hearing tested...again!

You want to be a WHAT when you grow up???

2010-02-08T15:12:00.000-06:00

Emma came into the room the other day and said, "Mommy, when I grow up, first I will be a dictionary and then I want to be a ballerina."

"A dictionary? Are you sure, Emma?"

Zach chimed in..."Emma, the word is missionary, not dictionary!" Emma disagreed with him for a few minutes until I told her that he was right.

"Emma, a dictionary is a book - a missionary is what you want to be." She thought for a minute, then said, "Okay...when I grow up, I will be a MISSIONARY and then a ballerina!"

Que Sera

2010-02-05T22:40:00.000-06:00

"When I was just a little girl, I asked my mommy, "What shall I be? Shall I be pretty, shall I be rich?" She told me tenderly..."Que Sera, Sera. Whatever will be, will be. The futures not ours to see, Que Sera, Sera. What will be, will be.""

It has been a rough, rough week here. Snow days have been chewing up my weekdays, the days that I can actually get things done around here. My children are bored, and tired of being stuck at home. The sun has gone missing - has anyone else noticed that there has not been much sun lately? It is really difficult to love winter when there is no sun, no flowers to enjoy, no trees with their leaves, and lots of dormant brown grass.

We have been trying new meds for Reagan and he decided to wake me up at 3:50 am - bright and early. He was all set to go to school - not interested in going back to sleep...I had an Excedrin Migraine for breakfast.

Succeeded in getting the kids off to school without any mishaps.

Then, my 11 year old set of laundry utensils (aka the washer and dryer) bit the dust. Well, technically it was the dryer, but the washer is right behind. We were planning on getting a new set with our tax refund (hopefully there is one) but not quite this early. Try hauling 8-10 loads of laundry to the laundry mat to get it done...A BIG, HUGE shout out to my sister, Kristen, who let me do my laundry at her house today...a special place in heaven awaits her...We went and found a new set today at Home Depot - to be delivered next Wednesday, just in time for laundry day again! I am super excited about the prospect of being able to wash and dry ALL of our clothes in one day again! It took 2-3 hours for me to do just ONE load with our old set.

Yesterday, right after the dryer died, the baby started projectile vomiting all over me, the couch, herself, the floor...you get the picture. I fed her bananas for breakfast for the first time, apparently her system couldn't handle them. I had tons of clothes, towels and blankets that were covered in this stuff, and I couldn't wash them, because the dryer was kaput. Ironic.

In the meantime, I had two 2 year olds running around my house all day - helping me however they could see fit. Kristen went somewhere with Mom all day, and I took Kade - to keep Alyssa busy and entertained. My day went like this. Baby was throwing up...Alyssa "Oh, you frow up? She frow up. Yucky. Ew. Frow up." I asked (begged, really) them to bring me a burp rag that was on the floor in front of them so that I could get off the couch without more goo hitting the floor. Kade responded by bringing me a dog toy. Gee, Thanks. You shouldn't have! After a few minutes, Alyssa got the idea and brought me the rag - still disgusted with the mess that her baby sister made.

By evening, I was exhausted. I stepped over the childgate that led to our room (put up so the above mentioned 2 year olds couldn't raid my makeup, the toilet paper, and other fun things in our master bedroom). The gate was not put up in a stable manner, and it fell - I fell with it. My elbow is bruised, my knee, my jaw, and some other less mentionable parts. My pride was bruised a bit as well.

I fell asleep on the couch and slept like a baby until 1:30 am - when I woke myself up and toddled off to my comfortable bed.

I fell off the wagon...

2009-12-22T15:32:00.001-06:00

The blogging wagon, that is!

Due to the increased demands of school starting and juggling 5 munchkins, along with a more rigorous work schedule, I have had "blogger's falling behind" syndrome.

I plan to resume more regular updates when stuff calms down after the holidays...and I also smell a new camera in my future...maybe Santa will be good to me this year? We shall see!

In the meantime, updates will be trickling in...

Back to your regularly scheduled program.

Oh my goodness, she's already TWO!!!

2009-09-19T22:16:00.000-05:00

It seems like just yesterday when Miss Alyssa Claire was born - she grew into a little girl so quickly...

Alyssa is a fun little girl to have around. She is very independent - dresses herself, tries to change her own diaper (not so fun), changes shoes often, does little chores, chatters incessantly, watches Mamma Mia! (it is actually her favorite movie, and she dances to the songs, too!), nurtures anything smaller than she is.

I am really enjoying watching her cute personality emerge - some days are more enjoyable than others!

We had a family party for her birthday last Sunday evening. I made a ladybug cake - turned out good, but it was really a pain in the neck to do! She got a new scooter (to grow into, it is a bit big), pajamas from Aunt Kristen, a puppy dog from Aunt Karen, and a little cd player (fake) from Grandma and Grandpa...

Tonight, on her actual birthday, we let the kids decorate their own cupcakes.
She got another pair of pajamas (a girl can't have too many, you know!) and a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD - she thought it was great that she got her very own movie...nearly took it to bed with her! As soon as she opened the jammies, she wanted to put them on - we've got a little clotheshorse on our hands!

I can't imagine our family without our sweet little Alyssa! She constantly has us in amazement and hysterics over her various antics!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Alyssa Claire! We love you so much....
P.S. This is a picture of Emma's cupcakes (bleck)...have a little bit of cupcake with your decorations, right? We had a blast!

"I'm Gonna Die..." Poor Little Guy...

2009-09-18T08:31:00.000-05:00

On September 3rd, we took Reagan to Vanderbilt (again) to have surgery on his throat. He has never been able to form his words correctly because of a submucous cleft palate (repaired last year) and his uvula not being long enough to close properly. This caused most of his words to come through his nose, which made it nearly impossible to understand him.

The surgery wasn't until 3:30 pm, which was pretty crummy because that meant that he could not eat all day long. He was allowed to drink juice until 10:30 am, though, so that helped a bit. We also bribed him with a trip to Target and let him pick out a few GI Joe action figures.

When we got to Vandy, he was scared. He remembered his last surgery and was not cooperative about getting his vital signs taken, etc. so they decided to do all of that after he had his "happy juice" medication that calmed him down and readied him for the surgery.

A child life specialist came in to talk to him - she had a bag of medical equipment so that she could explain things to him. She pulled out a blood pressure cuff and asked him if he knew what it was for. "I'm gonna die..." he exclaimed. "I don't want to die..." She was a bit taken aback and we pretended to take his Mickey Mouse's vital signs.

After that, they gave him his medication and he started to get a bit strange. Reagan on a normal day can be funny, but Reagan on Happy Juice is hysterical! He gets very silly, laughs a lot, and says weird things. When it really kicked in, he couldn't walk a straight line without falling over, so we put him in the bed with the rails up.

The surgery went well, it was so sad after he came out, though. He was in extreme pain and I left him about 9 pm with Clay. We expected him to be in the hospital for days like last time, but he was able to come out of it more quickly and we got him home two days later.

The day that we went to pick him up, Emma went up to him and said, "Talk to us, Reagan...Can you talk normal now, like us?" Funny thing is, Emma's concept of normal and our concept of normal are completely different! Go figure!

Happy Anniversary!

2009-09-18T08:22:00.001-05:00

I guess this is another "time flies when you're having fun" post...On August 23rd, we celebrated our 13th Anniversary! It doesn't feel like it has been that long at all, but if you look at our wedding pics and how young we were (20 and 21) and our pics now and how old we are (you do the math, LOL!) it definitely looks like we've been married a while.

Clay brought me some beautiful coral roses. We each gave each other a trip - he got to go white water rafting with some of the other guys in the ward, and I get to go to Lexington, KY with my mom and sister next weekend to see some historical sites. I know, lame that we gave each other the gift of getting away, but whatever works, right?

This year, we were going to go to a movie, but there wasn't anything really good playing. At the last minute, we decided to go miniature golfing - it has been eons since either of us went, and we have never actually gone together. We ended up having a really good time! It was a beautiful, cool, August night and we talked (instead of watching a movie and not talking). Afterward, we went to Steak and Shake and shared a small meal (and a mint, chocolate cookie shake) MMMMMMmmmmm!

1st Day of School...

2009-09-18T07:43:00.000-05:00

Summer came and went quickly this year...the baby really helped to make it fly!

I can't believe that Zach is already in 3rd grade and the twins are finally in Kindergarten, time flies when you're having fun!

Here are our obligatory 1st day of school pictures...

Zach's first day:

Emma and Reagan's first day:
Don't they all look big???

I didn't take pictures of the celebration lunches (yes, plural!) that Kristen and I did in order to commemorate our renewed sense of freedom! Yes, we still have little kids at home, but it is SO much easier to go and run errands, shop, etc. when you don't have ALL of them with you!

Have a great school year, kiddos!

A Baptism and A Blessing...

2009-09-17T11:23:00.000-05:00

Forgive me for being a bit late in posting this...life has been crazy the past few months!

On August 1st, we baptized our oldest child (Zach) and blessed our youngest child (Ashleigh). We combined the events because we have out of state family and they wanted to come to both. Zach turned eight in January, but waited for this reason to be baptized.

We chose to bless Ashleigh on a Saturday because she was so little, we didn't want to bring her to church where she could potentially be exposed to a lot of extra germs.

Zach was baptized first. We had a simple little program where my BIL, Adam, sang a beautiful song and my sister (Kristen) and Dad both spoke. Of course, there were a few little snags - Clay baptized Zach in the shirt that was meant to be for him to wear afterward, the baby messed her pants right before being blessed (so she gassed the guys out), Zach's hand came up out of the water so he had to be dunked twice, etc. Actually, very minor issues to have happen - nothing we couldn't deal with!

All in all, it was a wonderful morning. Family and friends gathered together to support us in the occasion and we all had a great time!

This blog has been interrupted...

2009-08-26T22:35:00.000-05:00

This blog has been interrupted because a lot of LIFE has been happening here!

Stay tuned....we have a baptism/blessing, an anniversary, school starting...all sorts of episodes to add.

Also, it doesn't help that the author of this blog is seriously lacking in sleep. Rumor has it that she actually went blank and stuttered at the drive through of Taco Bell today...I know, lame - huh?

More to come...

A Day in the Life of a BUSY almost 2 year old...

2009-08-12T16:47:00.000-05:00

7 am - Wake up (on the wrong side of the bed) dragging all blankets to the living room - there are 4

7:05 am - flush toilet for no reason, opening bathroom door even though there are childproof knobs that my 5 yr old siblings can't open...what a joke!

7:15 am - Have all blankets stolen by mom to wash

7:30 am - Eat breakfast, spilling most of the sticky cereal down front, under chin, and on the tray

8:00 am - get dressed and ready to leave

8:30 am - get crammed into the stroller with baby sister in the back, have bag full of m&m's thrown at you, go into the school for kindergarten assessment

9:15 am - home from K assessment

9:17 am - strip all clothing off of back, keeps the diaper on just to humor mom, run around the house like a maniac.

9:18 am - flush toilet for no reason

9:18.5 am - flush toilet again - just because

9:19 am - flush it again, just for good measure...

9:25 am - have clothes put back on by mom

9:30 am - put sister's new school socks on, pulled up to knees - and add brother's transformers sneakers to the beautiful ensemble...amazingly, the white bow is still intact in the ponytail...What Not to Wear - watch out!

9:45 am - take off all clothes because mom is nursing the baby and can't stop me.

10:00 am - find sister's shorts in the drawer and try to put them on upside down...

10:05 am - flush toilet

10:15 am - run around the house - after having diaper re-applied to body

10:30 am - beg for root beer - and get it, because mom is so tired she doesn't care anymore

10:45 am - flush toilet

11:00 am - dressed again, and put back in the car for shopping trip - WHOOOPEEEE!

11:30 am - arrive at Target

12:30 pm - get tangled up in seatbelt of Cadillac cart at Target during the process of trying to escape.

12:32 pm - scream "I stuck, I stuck"

12:33 pm - Mom caves and carries me, while pushing Cadillac cart and checking out.

1:00 pm - arrive at Burger King for lunch

1:10 pm - get lunch

1:12 pm - pass lunch to little cousin, who eats most of it - except for the root beer

2:30 pm - arrive home ---- with NO NAP for the day

2:32 pm - go upstairs and drag MORE toys downstairs

2:35 pm - flush toilet

2:45 pm - try to climb in pack and play to get baby wipes

2:46 pm - Mom notices a huge blowout diaper

2:47 pm - Dad changes diaper and starts the bath while I scream the entire time

2:55 pm - Dad puts my pajamas on and retrieves the now clean blankets

3:05 pm - Pajamas are now off

3:30 pm - Find mom's new bottle of shampoo and rub it all over body like lotion

3:35 pm - Get another bath, with new pajamas

3:55 pm - Remove top of nightgown, pulling it down to waist - an improvement over the previous, Lady Godiva type ensemble with only the diaper

4:00 pm - try to scale kitchen counter for drink - fall

4:10 pm - cuddle with dad on couch for about 30 seconds

4:44 pm - run around screaming because of no nap and no lunch

4:55 pm - hit chin on edge of pack and play while trying to climb the side, again

5:04 pm - climb up on kitchen chair behind mom, crying - fall off chair

5:05 pm - climb back up and give mom kiss, while crying, with a snotty nose

6:00 pm - eat dinner - feeling happier

6:30 pm - fall asleep in high chair, put to bed

Sound familiar anyone???

A week ago....

2009-07-21T18:20:00.000-05:00

A week ago, we were waiting to meet this little angel. We wondered if she would be blond, bald, and how big she would be? How would we feel when we saw her? How would the c-section go?

It has already been a week and we are all completely in love. She has a full head of dark hair - something we didn't expect...her temperament is perfect. All of the kids, except Alyssa (who is having a hard time understanding, but still adores her) have been great. They are excited right along with us about the most mundane, precious things that she does. Our home is truly blessed by this little spirit who was meant to come directly to live with us.

The surgery went okay...we had a major problem getting the spinal in - it took them 4 tries - during which I almost begged them to just put me out. I have a huge bruise from the 16 shots (4 each try) that it took. Not a good way to start off! The surgery itself went well - normal c-section stuff...they pulled her out and she was so quiet compared to Alyssa! Alyssa came out and was like a siren...Ashleigh was quieter, more dignified, I guess!

Clay got to cut the cord this time - the only time he has been able to do it - he thought that was pretty cool...I was a little surprised he went for it - but glad. When he brought her around to see me, he whispered, "Look, she has lots of dark hair!" I was so excited...years ago, when we were first married, I had a dream about a little dark haired girl jumping on our bed. Every time we have had a child, we have thought it would be that little girl...I had given up hope and figured that she wasn't really supposed to be ours - but she finally came to us! Clay knew about this and was tickled to death to be the one to tell me.

The hospital stay went pretty well - pain control was better than the last time, but I was still in quite a bit - we figured out why a few days later. I kept her in my room most of the time - dressed her up in little onesies and sleepers and had a ball with her. She is quite a good little companion! I would go on the laptop and she would fall asleep in a little cocoon on the bed with me...the perfect little buddy! She also learned quickly that I was the one to look for when she was hungry! Amazing how quickly that happens!

There was a drawback - I was supposed to go home on Saturday morning, was all ready and excited to go - but they found that I have an infection in the skin above my c-section incision called cellulitis. It is pretty painful, which is why I was in more pain at this point than expected. I was pretty sad about it - ready to go home and the kids were depressed. I had Clay make the most of it though, he took them to the park and McDonald's, they had a good time and it took their minds off of it.

On Sunday afternoon, I was able to come home after 24 hours on the IV antibiotics. It is still pretty painful, and with the swollen skin, I resemble the female wooly mammoth on Ice Age. I know, not very flattering, but that is how I feel right now. It is amazing how much better the belly looks stretched out with a baby inside! You won't be seeing pics of this phenomenon, by the way!

All is going pretty well at home, except Zach did sprain his ankle badly last night and is in a removable cast and on crutches...let's just say it slows him down a bit! ;o)

Clay is home with us - thank goodness - for this week...don't know what I would do without him.

We will update you later!

She is here!!!

2009-07-15T22:24:00.000-05:00

Introducing Miss Ashleigh Kate Turner....

We got to the hospital at 5:30 am for the scheduled c-section...after a rough time with the spinal (they tried 4 times to get it in). Ashleigh was born at 8:41 am. She is 6 lbs, 11 ounces and 18 1/2 inches long. She has a full head of dark hair!

I'm in pain, but managing...and totally in love with our newest princess. I'll blog more later - but wanted to get some pictures up for your viewing pleasure...

Blueberries Everywhere!!!

2009-07-11T19:02:00.000-05:00

Well, after reading Becky's blog recently, I started to get a hankering for some fresh blueberries. We have been trying to spend some fun time with the kids before the baby comes next week, so I researched where the blueberry patch was located and the hours, and we decided to make an outing!

At 8:30 am, we piled into the car and turned up the Neil Sedaka cd...Emma was especially excited, because she had recently seen an episode of Special Agent Oso where they picked blueberries.

We arrived at the patch and were all given buckets. We wandered down the rows, and explained which berries to pick and which to leave. Reagan really got into it - he was an awesome little blueberry picker! He took the job very seriously...the others thought it was fun, but he didn't want to stop! Once he looked at me and said "I make a blueberry pie!" Then he started asking for blueberry waffles and pancakes...My work is cut out for me for the next few days! Emma put orders in for muffins - Zach doesn't really care, he just wants some good stuff!

Alyssa was pretty funny, she kept picking the unripe berries and throwing them into everyone's buckets. They would get upset with her "Mom, Alyssa put ANOTHER yellow one in my bucket! Alyssa - stop that!" She had a blast!

After we picked over 5 lbs of berries, we let them play on the playground that was on the premises. They had a ball - ran lots of energy out and we watched...

Since this is the last Saturday before the baby, we had a lot of errands to run today - but I am very glad we took the time to enjoy ourselves too!

Top 12 Indicators that the Economy is Bad...

2009-07-10T18:08:00.001-05:00

12. CEOs are now playing miniature golf.

11. I got a pre-declined credit card in the mail.

10. I went to buy a toaster oven and they gave me a bank.

9. Hot wheels and Matchbox cars are trading higher than GM in the stock market.

8. Obama met with small businesses - GE, Pfizer, Chrysler, Citigroup and GM, to discuss the Stimulus Package.

7. McDonalds is selling the 1/4 ouncer.

6 People in Beverly Hills fired their nannies and are learning their children's names.

5. The most highly-paid job is now jury duty.

4. People in Africa are donating money to Americans. Mothers in Ethiopia are telling their kids, "finish your plate; do you know how many kids are starving in America?"

3. Motel Six won't leave the lights on.

2. The Mafia is laying off judges.

And my most favorite indicator of all.

1. If the bank returns your check marked as "insufficient funds," you have to call them and ask if they meant you or them.

"Guys can paint their toenails too..."

2009-07-05T18:51:00.000-05:00

On the morning of the 4th of July, I had a little pedicure session with my girls. Emma wanted red toenails and fingernails like me - so that she was patriotic. Alyssa came in while we were dolling ourselves up and stuck her little piggies in my face, so she has red toenails too...

We came out of the bathroom, transformed! Zach saw our toes and said, "Some guys paint their toenails, too..." Clay and I looked at each other and I said, "No, most guys don't paint their nails, Zach..."

He insisted that it was an "okay" thing to do...I then said, "Zach, only sissy guys paint their nails...ask your dad if he has ever painted his nails before."

He turned to Clay and Clay said, "I can promise you I have never painted my nails before, Zach..."

Then Emma piped in..."Yes, 'cause Daddy is NOT a sissy guy!"

Random Pictures...

2009-06-25T09:42:00.001-05:00

Alyssa enjoying a HUGE chocolate bunny from Easter. This girl loooovvveeees her chocolate!

Alyssa and Reagan fell asleep on the couch one night...if he had been awake, there is no way she would have been laying on him! Aren't they cute?
My impish little nephew, Campbell...he is getting so big!
Emma asleep in a very weird position. Notice the boo-boo bunny in her hand - she probably bumped something again...also the remotes are strategically placed!

Alyssa's Big Girl Bed

2009-06-25T09:37:00.000-05:00

A few months ago, we got the girls a bed from Craigslist. It is a single bed, with a drawer-like trundle that you push underneath at night.

With the new baby coming, we moved her over to the big bed several weeks ago. She did very well - really seems to like having more space.

It is funny...sometimes at night when she is tired - she puts herself to bed. One night, she put herself to bed in our teepee and we couldn't find her for a few minutes! The girl likes her sleep!

Here are a few pics...

Reagan's Pre-school Graduation Party

2009-06-25T09:32:00.000-05:00

Reagan attended preschool at Christiana Elementary this year...he will also be starting Kindergarten in August...

Instead of a "graduation" ceremony that the kids wouldn't sit through, Reagan's teacher chose to have a party at Barfield Park for the kids and parents.

They had a lot of fun - but it was sooooo hot! We also had a little scheduling conflict, Emma's graduation party was going on at the same time - so we had to divide and conquer for a few hours.

Here are a few pictures...

Pre-K Graduation for Emma

2009-06-25T09:24:00.001-05:00

I realize that this is a little late, but I finally sat down long enough to blog about a few events that have happened over the past few months - and I know that once the baby arrives, I won't have any time to do this "catch up" at all!

Emma graduated from Pre-K at the end of May. They had a little reception thing for the kids, sang a song, and got their diplomas. She was very excited!

She also actually ate a piece of cake - not a big deal to some, but Emma usually won't touch cake or cupcakes...makes birthdays fun! I am posting a picture, to prove to my family that she actually ate it!

My girl is finally starting Kindergarten - amazing that it goes so fast...Pre-K was a great stepping stone to get her ready...I believe that she will do very well...

Congratulations, Emma! We love you!

M is for.....

2009-06-20T21:34:00.000-05:00

Miserable
Munching on snacks
Motrin - I wish
Marshmallows - to bribe kids with
Meat to have an aversion to
Meals to freeze
Morphing body
Messy kids
Messy husband
Messy dog
Messy house
Messy kids - oh wait - I already said that one...
Mystery things in the fridge that I can't reach
Mint chocolate chip ice cream
Missing cradle screws - this one is a big problem
More painting to finish the darn armoire so that Ashleigh's clothes can be washed - another big problem...
Monumental sized stomach that makes it impossible for this short mama to reach into the plate cupboard
More high 95+ degree heat to keep the kids, dog, hubby, and me from going outside to actually enjoy the next few weeks...
Minor contractions that won't amount to anything - just like the last 2 pregnancies

Oh, and did I mention how MISERABLE I am????

Yes - I guess I am complaining, but in good spirits - not ready to do myself in or anything - just very tired...if it wasn't so darn hot, I'd be all good...

3 1/2 more weeks - I can do this - hopefully, some of these last minute issues will be taken care of this week...

Goals for this week:

Finish painting armoire so that Ashleigh's clothes can be washed
Finish packing hospital bag - I actually started this today, so not such a big task
Track down missing screws for cradle - and call the company that won't return my emails
Order twin stroller
Persevere until the end...I can do this!

Welcome to Holland...

2009-06-19T09:04:00.000-05:00

I had forgotten about this poem - when Reagan was diagnosed with autism 3 1/2 years ago, it made me stop and think...every once in a while, I pull it out and remind myself how special our kids with disabilities really are...and how much they teach us.

"Welcome to Holland"

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......

When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away...because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss. But...if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.

Something to remember...

2009-06-15T20:47:00.000-05:00

Tonight, after putting all of the kids to bed, and I was making Clay's lunch for work, I heard sobbing coming from the boy's room. I went to the door and realized that Reagan was extremely upset for some reason.

Going into the room - I asked him what was wrong. The most frustrating thing about having a child with a major speech problem is not knowing what to do for them when they are upset. I knelt by his bed (not a small feat when you are almost 9 months pregnant) and asked again what he needed. He pointed to his little face and said "I crying...I sad." Sturdy little arms went around my neck and clung. I inhaled the freshly bathed smell of his little body, and my heart melted.

Taking him by the hand, I led him to the kitchen. Poured him some milk and gave him a brownie. The tears miraculously disappeared. After eating his snack, I led him back to his room. He happily climbed into bed, no further tears. Apparently, it wasn't something that a little bit of chocolate and some milk couldn't cure.

I am extremely behind on blogging - will be catching up over the next while - bear with me! It has been a crazy few weeks...All is well, but I have been in hyperspeed mode trying to get ready for this baby girl to come...see you in a few days!

Baby has a birthday!!!

2009-05-01T20:38:00.001-05:00

Little Miss Ashleigh Kate has a birthday scheduled...(yes, we have named her - and it is not Tinkerbell!)

She will be making her debut on July 15th at 7:30 am (or close to that time)...unless she decides on her own that she wants a different birthday!

That is only 10 1/2 more weeks - man, this pregnancy has flown by!

As of our ultrasound today, she is at an estimated weight of 2 lbs, 4 oz - she had her little feet crossed at the ankles and was playing with them with her hands. Isn't it amazing, what you can see before they are even born???

From now on, I go in once a week for a biophysical profile ultrasound and doctor's appointment. Again, I can't believe we are already in the home stretch!

I've got to go finish painting my house now!

Where does your dog sleep???

2009-04-07T22:06:00.000-05:00

Emma was talking to Clay on the way home from school today....

Emma: "Dad, turn the music off - I need to talk to you."

Radio goes off.

Emma: "Dad. In the movie, 'Bolt', Penny sleeps with the dog on her bed."

Clay: "Yes."

Emma: "That's just silly, Dad. Dogs don't sleep on the bed, they sleep in the laundry room!"

That's our "logical" Emma for you! By the way, if you haven't seen the movie - it is pretty cute!

Spongebob Family Dynamics...

2009-03-27T10:43:00.000-05:00

I was listening to the twins this morning - they were having a cute little conversation regarding the roles we play. If you know Spongebob Squarepants, you will get this...otherwise, probably not! It is pretty cute, though!

Reagan: "Who's Zach gonna be, Emma?"

Emma: "Patrick."

Reagan: "Who am I gonna be?"

Emma: "Spongebob. You are Spongebob, Reagan."

Reagan: "Who is Blake gonna be?"

Emma: "Blake is going to be Squidward."

Reagan: "How about Trev. Who is Trev gonna be?"

Emma: "Trev is Mr. Crab. And I am Sandy. That's who I am going to be."

At this point, I entered the conversation...

Mom: "Who is Alyssa going to be?"

Emma: "Nobody. There is nobody for Alyssa to be."

Reagan: "I know! Alyssa can be Gary."

Emma: "That's right! Alyssa can be Gary. And Mommy can be Mrs. Puff. (appropriate since my tummy is now growing at an alarming rate!) But who is Daddy going to be?"

Reagan: "Daddy can be the bug (Plankton)."

Emma: "Yes! Daddy can be the bug....the baaaaaadddddd bug!"

Not sure which is worse, me getting to be Mrs. Puff or poor Clay being Plankton!

"It will be a girl and her name will be Tinkerbell..."

2009-03-05T13:40:00.000-06:00

Well, when Emma first found out that we were going to be having another baby, she was talking to Clay one night...

Emma: "What will the baby's name be?"

Clay: "We don't know yet, we don't know if it is a boy or a girl..."

Emma: "It will be a girl and her name will be Tinkerbell!"

Clay: "Good luck convincing Mom of that!"

We found out today that Emma was right! Our new baby is going to be a little girl! We are very excited and are actively discussing names....and no, Tinkerbell is not on our list (much to Emma's disappointment)!!! Have mercy on us! Poor Clay is going to have to invest in a shotgun before they grow up... THREE beautiful daughters to protect and cherish... Hopefully, our sons can help!

Alyssa's first piggies...

2009-03-02T14:49:00.000-06:00

Alyssa has always been a little bit on the "hair challenged" side! So, you can imagine my extreme delight when her hair grew long enough to put pigtails on the top of her head!

She still doesn't have a whole lot in the back, but it's a start! She is blessed with a tiny bit of naturally curly hair in the back, like her mommy and grandma - hopefully that will keep on coming in!

I am also attaching pictures of her pretending to work on her laptop, at the table like I do...I can't believe how big she is getting!

Emma's First Date...

2009-03-01T11:07:00.000-06:00

Emma's school had a little Daddy-Daughter Dance on the first Saturday night in February...Clay heard about it and wanted to take her (isn't he a good Daddy?)

She was so excited - told us that she was going to be Cinderella at the dance! They dressed up and he bought her a flower. She had a wonderful time! He enjoyed himself, too, I think!

Here are a few pictures of our little girl's first date...with her Daddy!

Happy Birthday Zach!

2009-03-01T11:03:00.001-06:00

I haven't blogged in a while - so this post is actually pretty belated...we have had sickness after sickness in our family this past month, so I haven't had the time or the energy to blog...As a result, I now have several blogs to catch up on - this one being the first!

Zach's 8th birthday was on January 31st...the day before the Super Bowl. We decided to celebrate with a Super Bowl themed party the next day - he thought it was a cool idea, so we went with it!

On his actual birthday, he opened most of his presents from us - he got a lion webkinz and a leapfrog crammer...the next day we gave him a cool Star Wars game for his gameboy.

In the afternoon, we took the kids to Chuck-E-Cheese, they had a blast - we had headaches! Saturdays at Chuck-E-Cheese are an absolute nightmare, but we survived and they had fun - so that is what matters, right?

On Sunday, we had turkey sandwiches, 7 layer bean dip, fruit salad, chips and dip, and a football shaped cupcake cake. The guys watched the game while the kids played and us girls played Clue at the table.

It was a fun alternative to a traditional birthday party! Zach got a new wizard book from Grandma and Grandpa, an iron man from Uncle David, and army guys with a jeep from Aunt Karen and Uncle Adam. It was a fun night!

In a few months (we are waiting for warmer weather and for me to feel a bit better) Zach will be baptized...it is amazing and very strange that we have an 8 year old already!

Who's Buddy are you???

2009-02-03T09:15:00.000-06:00

On Sunday night, we had a little get together for Zach's birthday (to come in another blog)...My Dad was sitting at the table talking to Reagan, they were eating cupcakes together.

A few minutes after starting the cupcakes, Reagan gave Dad his, because he decided he didn't want it. Dad said, "Oh, you're my buddy, aren't you?"

Reagan replied, in all seriousness, "No, I my daddy's buddy. He's my best friend."

It was so spontaneous and out of the blue...he is verbal, but it is really hard to understand him because of his speech problems. It almost made me cry, though - not hard these days since I am hormonal and pregnant - Hallmark commercials make me cry!

It is nice to know that even a little autistic boy knows the role his daddy plays in his life!

Only a Flesh Wound?

2009-01-26T08:52:00.000-06:00

Clumsy me...I had a headache yesterday morning, was thinking about staying home from church...now I wish I had!

Got the headache to the point where I knew I could at least handle 1 meeting - so off we went.

During Sunday School, I walked outside to talk to my mom. Got dizzy on the sidewalk (headache had come back, I was thinking about going home). Lost my balance, started to fall and could not recover. I ended up landing on my FACE. Going down, I was thinking how bad it was going to be. When I hit, I was thinking to myself that I hadn't expected to pretty much take the fall with my face. Then, I wondered if there was anyone there to help me up...Just as quickly, I thought to myself how glad there weren't any witnesses!

I dragged myself from the sidewalk and limped to mom's car. She was asleep with the seat back, I knocked on the window and she looked up to a bloody, horror...She actually moved pretty quickly for just being startled. Grabbed a handkerchief and led me inside to the bathroom...we were stopped by Becky P. (a nurse, how convenient, huh?) and they tried to clean up the blood. I could tell by the looks on people's faces how bad it probably was...Let's just say, the mirror is not my friend right now! The pain is pretty intense - the swelling, hideous. I don't know how my lip is going to come back from this!

Needless to say, we gathered the kids together and went home...the kids were horrified. Emma tried to take me by the hand this morning to show her teacher...Humiliation galore! People look at me like I am a freak...I actually look like a domestic violence victim, but I have witnesses at church who saw me looking fine one minute, then not so good the next, so I think Clay is safe!

We called the doctor and he said that the baby is pretty well protected at this point - thank goodness I am not further along in the pregnancy. We have checked the heartbeat a few times and it is strong and seems fine.

The worst thing is, I have a really busy workload tonight and I have to go close 4 loans...hmmm...maybe I should go to Party City and buy a mask?

To complete my utter humiliation, I have inserted a picture for your viewing...only people with strong stomachs should look!

I've Got a Secret....

2009-01-22T22:24:00.000-06:00

Can you guess what it is???

Yes, folks...it is true! I am expecting our fifth child...a complete surprise (happy) to us...especially after so many years of trying to get pregnant and having it be so difficult. In November, I began craving General Tsos Chicken and knew I had to test! Yup...needless to say, we were in shock for a couple of weeks.

If you have wondered where I have been lately, this is why I have disappeared off the face of the earth. Sicker than a dog, I have been keeping myself alive with cereal and toast! It seems like this pregnancy has been rough, I think it is my body telling me that it is getting tired! Due to my long history of high risk and miscarriage, we have been keeping this new little one a secret for as long as possible.

My waistline has decided that it is now time to spill the beans! I need some elastic, instead of buttons, so that I can breathe again! I am now 13 weeks, 4 days and the baby looks very healthy...we are crossing our fingers and praying hard that all stays well until the middle of July - when I will have the c-section.

So - now you know! And, as G.I. Joe would say, "Knowing is half the battle!"

Alyssa and her babies...

2009-01-18T14:38:00.000-06:00

Alyssa has gotten so darn cute, it's not even funny! She has taken to baby dolls. Especially likes the ones that cry when you push the tummy and the eyes must open and shut! Warms a mommy's heart to see a little girl so serious and nurturing when she is only 16 months old - I don't think that Emma has ever been so interested.

We will catch her carrying her babies around, a blanket wrapped around them, bottle in the other hand. Sometimes, the dolly has a very wet face from so many slobbery Alyssa kisses!

Other times, I will walk into her bedroom and she will be sitting on the bed, very intent on feeding her baby. She will get a little dish and spoon from her play kitchen and take turns feeding the doll, and then herself - a look of deep concentration on her face!

I have included a few pictures of the little mommy for your viewing pleasure...

Happy Birthday Jackson

2009-01-15T14:41:00.000-06:00

7 years ago today, January 15, 2002, our first son was born. He was stillborn as a result of a blood clotting disorder that we were unaware that I had. We had been trying to have a child at that point for 6 long years. The devastation that we felt when we found out that he was gone was consuming. We didn't think that we would ever have children at that point. When we saw Jackson, it actually had the opposite effect that you would think. Instead of giving up on our dream of having a child, it spurred us onward. You see, whether born living or not, each child is a special miracle. We looked at him in wonder at the small person we had helped Heavenly Father create. It is amazing how your life can change in a few years.

I can't believe that another January 15th is here...it has now been 7 years since our sweet Jackson was born. Amazing that so much time has passed. I feel like a completely different person than I was back then.

Since Jackson was born still, many major events have occurred in our lives...

We adopted a son.
We had boy/girl twins.
We moved across country.
We have had many major medical events happen - some life threatening.
We had a surprise pregnancy after a m/c and now we have another daughter.

Jackson now has 2 brothers and 2 sisters. Amazing how much life can change in 7 years! People probably think that because we have our 4 living children, we don't think about Jackson ever. Not true at all. I often think about our little boy who didn't have a chance to live. Every January, until this date has passed, I become melancholy. I don't really realize that I am doing it, but it always happens. Then January 15th comes and I am able to breathe again.

Happy 7th Birthday in Heaven, Jackson...I wish you were here with us to celebrate tonight. We love you and look forward to seeing you again someday.

Jackson Bransford Turner b/d: January 15, 2002 at 3:20 a.m.

A Belated Christmas Report

2009-01-12T00:05:00.000-06:00

Well, I am a bit late to post about Christmas, but better late than never, right?

I had to work a lot on Christmas Eve - got home at dinner time and we had pizza...then the kids opened their new pj's and got all cuddly. We read them a Christmas story and sent them to bed after singing a few Christmas songs.

It took them a while to fall asleep, so Santa was delayed until pretty late this year! Finally, it was safe to have the old guy come and put out the finery. Some things required more assembling than we expected, but it was finally done.

Christmas morning came and the kids, true to form, woke us before 7 am. They were very excited, and it was hard to hold them off while everybody went potty, got diaper changed, etc. They trooped into the living room and magic had arrived! The boys each got an Indiana Jones mountain playset - they both had been begging for this for months. Emma got a Baby Alive doll and Alyssa a Pat Pat Rocket (Little Einsteins). They played for a while, then wanted the goods that were wrapped under the tree!

More fun things - Zach got a gameboy and games and an MP3, and Emma and Reagan got Leapsters...among some other items - they were all thrilled - we did pretty well this year! Alyssa was more impressed with what everyone else got - but she eventually warmed up to her fridge farm, play food, and baby doll.

It was great - they plugged into those electronics for hours - not something we normally allow - but, hey - it's Christmas, right?

For lunch, we headed over to Grandma and Grandpa's house and they brought their electronics with them - we had fun with the family and played Cranium...

All in all, a great day!

The Iron Exploded, and other musings...

2008-12-20T21:38:00.000-06:00

We survived the first wave of the plague, now it looks like we will be hit again. It is starting with a bad cough - hoping to get it contained on Monday at the doctors for the twins. They are very sickly, especially this time of the year.

Tonight I was ironing clothes (a very rare occurrence at our house) and just as I finished, sparks came out of the iron cord. YIKES! I screamed and Clay came running. We determined that Mr. Miagi (aka Stupid dog) chewed on the cord and it is now a distant memory! Oh well, I want a better iron anyway, even if we don't use it that much.

Christmas is almost here - it has come very quickly this year. I haven't wrapped a single present (besides the teacher gifts). I really need to get up and do this tonight. I hate wrapping a pile of presents, even though we scaled back this year, 4 kids times 4 gifts is 16. Then, add in spoiled Clay's presents and I have a lot! Don't want to do it, but I must...can't give them the gifts in grocery sacks, just not as magical!

I did finish the baking and gave plates to the neighbors for goodwill and Clay's home teaching families. We hardly ate any of them! This is a good thing...don't need the calories of fudge, gingerbread guys, choc chip cookies, candy cane cookies, peanut butter blossoms, etc. laying around for our consumption!

I still have to get stocking stuffers, which I am totally dreading because it is crazy shopping now. All the last minute shoppers are driving like maniacs to get good parking spots. Add in the rainy weather that we have been experiencing lately, and you have a lethal combination. At least I am done with the main shopping. Oh, note to self: Don't forget to buy a bone and a toy for the darn dog and cat, so they don't look jealous on Christmas. Does anyone else have animals that think they are people?

Hmmm....I am rambling now, probably so I don't have to go wrap the presents, huh? Clay is up - maybe I can intrude upon his generous soul (watching the BYU bowl game right now, so ha ha on that) and use his very limited wrapping skills to my benefit. He can wrap Alyssa's - she doesn't care what they look like anyway- :)

Signing off now...hopefully to go and do what I should have done weeks ago!

Another one bites the dust...

2008-12-08T22:04:00.000-06:00

So, I took Zach to the doctor this afternoon...even though he really doesn't seem sick...

You guessed it! The boy has strep. We are at 100% now! I am glad that we got him on antibiotics before everyone else was done, he could have re-infected the entire family...

This too shall pass...

Strep, Bronchitis, and knocked out teeth...

2008-12-06T21:47:00.000-06:00

It's been a rough week again medically for the Turner clan...Alyssa started out the week with a mouth injury and an earache. We took her to the doctor and she also had a nice case of strep throat...On the way to the doctor, I noticed Reagan had a funky rash all over his face, so I begged another appointment and sure enough, he has strep too.

The same day, both Clay and I were prescribed z-pacs for nasty coughs and sore throats - poor Clay has a bad case of bronchitis, I was heading that way.

On Thursday night, Alyssa re-bumped her little mouth and broke one of her front teeth off :(
That one about broke my heart...poor little thing won't have another one grow in until she is at least 5 or 6.

So, today Clay took Emma to the pediatrician because she has a barking cough, and I went the other way the ER with Alyssa to check out her teeth (on the advice of the peds office). Turns out that Emma ALSO has strep throat. I GIVE UP! The co-pays we've paid this month for medical totally goes over the budget that we had for Christmas. Talk about depressing...

Now, we have to take Zach back to the doctor on Monday to see if HE has strep...then we will be a whole happy family on antibiotics. Isn't this time of year a blast?

Responding to a "tag"...

2008-11-29T20:46:00.000-06:00

Well, Rilla tagged me to post pictures that aren't "all that" and wouldn't make it in my blog otherwise...I have a ton, I'm sure. But, I'll just post a few! I will also tag Kristen, Becky, and Norma to do the same, if you dare!

Poor Alyssa got a bit of a butt shot here!

Zach looks a little bit drunk! He was really sick last Christmas and had a high fever - this is our only pic of him smiling - it looks like it hurts to even smile, doesn't it?

Alyssa fell asleep in her Bumbo, wedged against her activity tray. OUCH!
Zach clocked Emma in the head and gave her a bad bruise - we recorded it for posterity!
Reagan just didn't want to have his pic taken that day!
My hair was too short in this one, sideways stripes are just wrong, and I hadn't lost all my baby weight yet...Nuff said!!!

So Thankful...

2008-11-27T20:48:00.000-06:00

I am so thankful for so many things in my life.

1. The opportunity to be a mother. It took so many years for this wish to be fulfilled. I have been blessed with four great kids, all different personalities, each very special in their own way.

2. Zach is my thinker. He is clever and mischievous, can make some little doodad out of any little bit of garbage that he finds. He is very artistic and can have a sweet, thoughtful disposition at times.

3. Reagan is my charmer. He is also very clever, can remember movie scenes and act them out for us. A little stubborn, but very loving. He is my kids that still gives spontaneous hugs and kisses when I need them the most.

4. Emma is my sweet girl. She loves to do things with me and be like me. She is quick to give hugs and likes to cuddle still. Going through a bit of an attitude right now, but the sweet girl still shines through. Emma is learning so many things and loves to draw, practice writing, and play with playdoh. She is very happy when she can do things independently.

5. Alyssa is my sassy girl. She is really developing a cute personality at a fast pace! She climbs everything, gets into everything else, and is so darn smart! She points at things and says "What's Dat?", looks for me when I am gone and comes running when she sees M&M's!

6. Clay is a wonderful husband and father. He supports me, even when I am wrong at times. He loves our kids and treats them so well. He honestly enjoys being with his kids and caring for them (most of the time). He is my quiet voice in a constant storm. His calm personality compliments my fiery temper, most of the time. I am very lucky to have him as my eternal mate.

7. We are living in a nice home that is ours! We were so excited to be able to buy this home this year.

8. We are blessed to live in a time with medical advances. Many of us in our family would not be here right now if it wasn't for advanced medical science and for doctors who are educated to know how to heal and help us.

9. I am thankful for a supportive family. We might not always get along, but when the chips are down, we have each other's backs.

10. I am glad that I have hobbies and interests that keep me busy and my mind sharp.

11. I am thankful for the abilities that we have been given to help each other and ourselves to better our communities and families.

12. I am blessed to be a member of a strong church with leadership that is wise and loving.

13. I am grateful that the God I know is not a vengeful God, but a merciful and loving God.

14. I am so happy that my kids love to attend church and learn about our Savior.

15. I am very blessed to have my parents who have been married for 34 years and have shown me that it is possible to stay married and raise kids for a really long time - and still love each other.

16. I am thankful for good friends who lift me up when I need lifting, listen to me when I need to vent, and still answer their phones! Thank you, Stacy.

17. I am thankful for Christmas, not for the presents, but for the wonderful time of year that it is and the renewal of my faith that occurs each Christmas season.

18. I am thankful that my husband is not a complete sports fanatic and still talks to me during football season (even if he does watch a game here and there).

19. I am thankful for a ton of nephews that make me smile when I see them, or laugh when I hear about their crazy antics!

20. I am grateful that I have had the opportunity to get to know my fellow RS sisters better.

21. I am thankful for chocolate - sometimes I wouldn't get through the day without a couple of M&M's to keep my equilibrium up! I heart chocolate!

22. I am so glad that we were given the capacity in our hearts to love more and more, each new person that leaves a footprint doesn't make the space grow smaller, it just grows bigger (like the Grinch).

23. I am thankful for General Tso's chicken...because it tastes so darn good sometimes - even if you can't taste anything afterward!

24. I am thankful for modern technology that helps us keep in touch with our loved ones and learn new things everyday. What would I do without the internet?

25. I am thankful for experiences that have been tough to get through but have given me insight and true empathy for other people in the same or similar situations. Thank you, Jackson.

Happy Thanksgiving to all...we had a great day, I hope you have too.

A sort of diagnosis...

2008-11-25T21:53:00.000-06:00

Emma came home from the hospital on Sunday afternoon. She is still feeling pretty puny, not eating much, etc. but doing okay. Today we went to her already scheduled GI specialist visit. The doctor thinks that she has a condition called "Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome". This is a condition where kids just get sick for no apparent reason several times a month. It can take hours or days to improve. She has prescribed some medication to help us hold it off when we see the first signs of it coming. We are also having an ultrasound on her abdomen on Monday, just to rule out any other abnormalities.

Hmmm...Another day, another challenge! Oh well, at least Alyssa is pretty healthy...One out of four!

Sick little girl...

2008-11-22T22:39:00.000-06:00

Emma has always been very sickly, but lately it has gotten worse. Every few weeks, she will get a fever or be vomiting for several days in a row. She is extremely lethargic and pale. We have been watching her closely, trying to see what triggers her "attacks" since it doesn't seem to be a flu bug or anything.

Last Sunday, she started out the same old pattern - lethargic, pale, throwing up by 10 pm. She has been like this for most of the week - with a fever here and there (for extra fun)...She was in the ER on Monday night (they didn't do anything), the doctor Tuesday morning, and has been out of school all but one day this week.

Sooo - this morning, I decided that I'd better get her into the on call doctor and try to get her some help (we suspected that she was dehydrated). They did bloodwork, urinalysis, and an x-ray - gave us sips of water that she had to keep down before leaving, then sent us on our way. An hour later, she was puking in the parking lot at Panera bread - all water that she had just had at the doctor's office. Called the on call nurse again...the worthless bag of rocks that she is - and tried to get the doctor to call us back (he said that he would admit her if she had thrown up at his office, gave her a phenergan, and told us that she was definitely dehydrated, so we thought he would go ahead and admit her). The nurse REFUSED to get the doctor for us - told us to go to the ER instead, that the doctor didn't need to call us back, that they were just on call, not actually available. ???????? WHAT? I am so confused as to why the heck they are even called "on call" if you can't reach them on the weekend?

Anyway, Emma looked like a walking cadaver by this point, so Dad and Adam gave her a blessing in the Sam's Club parking lot, and off I went - back to the ER. This time, we got a doctor who listened to me - tried to get in touch with the on call pediatrician for us - and put her on an IV because she was obviously dehydrated. Mom and Dad stopped by to give us some moral support (Thanks, Mom and Dad - and Happy 34th Anniversary! Sorry you had to spend several hours with us in the hospital, but glad you were there!).

They decided to admit her to hydrate her overnight, so I am now sitting on an Oh, so comfortable cot with my laptop (thank heavens for laptops). Emma is already looking so much better - her little face is filling out again, her eyes aren't all sunken in, and she is resting comfortably.

We will most likely be released tomorrow if all goes well - and then we will see a GI specialist next week, hopefully to find the cause of her frequent tummy maladies.

I am so tired - I could sleep for a week...and I miss my other kids - spent all of today doing the doctor thing...

Happy 5th Birthday, Emma Elizabeth!

2008-11-03T12:19:00.000-06:00

Same day, different birthday!!! That is the way it is with twins, everything all lumped together in one...I try to make it a bit individual for them, by making them their own cakes - no shared presents, etc. But, it can be an expensive undertaking for parents of multiples!!! We also have 4 birthdays within a month and a half of each other, so that doesn't help!

Emma Elizabeth has always been my little buddy...she loves girly things, to my great joy! She is a little princess, was the 1st grand-daughter, and is a little (okay, a lot) spoiled! She is also a sweet girl, most of the time!

Emma has grown up a lot in the past year - she is now going to pre-k and loves it! She is pretty social and it has been good for her to be at school, instead of stagnating at home with mom! There are many Emma-ism's that she hasn't quite grown out of, so she isn't quite as big as she thinks she is! The other day, she asked me if she could sit in the front seat...she probably won't be able to sit in the front seat in college if she continues with her current growth pattern...most five year olds weigh a lot more than 28 lbs.!

Emma loves princesses, purses, makeup, jewelry, dolls...you name it - she loves it! She also has a tomboy side (with 2 brothers and a gazillion boy cousins, how could she not?) so she also doesn't mind getting a bit dirty.

Emma also has a good little heart, she is compassionate when someone is hurt - and she still calls Reagan "my best friend".

I made Emma's Tinkerbell cake (quite an undertaking - I had to create a garden swing for the fairy to sit on) and she got a Princess scooter, clothes, a book, fairies, and a Princess nightlight. She loves everything- and is itching to ride her scooter when she gets home from school!

Happy Birthday, sweet Emma! We love you so much and are enjoying watching you grow each day!

Happy 5th Birthday, Reagan Michael!

2008-11-03T12:06:00.000-06:00

Today is Reagan's 5th birthday! I can't believe that my twins are already 5 years old! Where has the time gone?

Reagan is a special little boy...he has his "brat" moments, as all kids do (especially kids with autism), but he has a good little heart...He is my only "big" kid who still gives me spontaneous kisses, without wanting anything in return! I am his champion, have worked and pushed to get him to where he is through early intervention, speech studies, surgeries, etc. He calls me "Money" kind of with a little British inflection!

Reagan loves all boy things - spiderman, transformers, Indiana Jones, Star Wars...he also loves electronics and music. He has the best rhythm out of all of my kids - he gets the groove on!

We celebrated the twins birthday yesterday with a family party...I made the Indiana Jones cake - he went nuts over it! He loves all of his presents...got a Harley Davidson scooter, a game, Indiana Jones figures, a Spiderman nightlight, and a Batman book. Today, he has been very occupied playing with his new treasures. He slept with the book and the figures, and would have taken the scooter to bed if we had let him!

Happy Birthday, Reagan! We love you so much...and can't imagine our lives without the joy you have brought us!

Twins Birth Story...

2008-11-03T11:49:00.000-06:00

Today is the twins birthday...I want to blog about their birth, then I will also blog about each of them...you will hear from me a lot today!

Here is a brief birth summary, for posterity's sake...

On November 2, 2003, I was 36 weeks pregnant with twins and extremely high risk. My BP had been up, so I was having NST's 2-3 times per week. (A lot of fun with a 2 1/2 year old Zach by my side!) Mom had just flown to CA to be with me until the birth the day before...she was pretty worried about me - I was very, very swollen. My feet had grown an entire size they were so big. It was a Sunday, and I had had it. I wanted them out - was extremely scared that something was going to happen at this point, since we had a stillborn baby (at 18 weeks) in 2002. Felt like we were on borrowed time at this point. We called my visiting teacher's husband over for a priesthood blessing - was told that the doctors would do what needed to be done for the safety of me and the babies.

Fast forward to the next day...I went in for my NST - hooked up to monitors, etc. for an hour. My BP was really high and the babies weren't moving much. They sent me over to L&D to be evaluated. I was stressed out, because I had a doctor's appointment and he had promised to schedule the birth that day. They sent me to L&D instead. I was crying, because I figured they would just send me home again, and I would miss my appointment. A young doctor actually read my chart and saw how high risk I was. By this time, my BP had soared to 205/190. They decided to do an emergency c-section based on that and my past history.

At 4:41 pm, Reagan Michael was born. He was twin A, so the first to make his entrance. He was not crying. We thought that they would be so healthy, since I had made it to almost 37 weeks, considered full-term for twins. He only weighed 3 lbs, 6 oz. and was 15 inches long. So small and scary. We were in shock that he was so little. There was no way that we were off on the due date since these were fertility babies, so there were definite complications with the pregnancy because of my pregnancy induced hypertension.

At 4:43 pm, Emma Elizabeth was born. Twin B - my fiesty little girl! She was crying very weakly. We were asking why they weren't crying much, and all we heard was a flurry of medical personnel checking them over. Emma weighed 4 lbs, 7 oz and was 17 inches long, so she was a little bit bigger, but not much.

I felt a lot of pressure at this point and remember asking if there was another one! Thank heavens, the answer was "no"!

They weighed and measured them, whisked them over for me to see - then took them to the special care nursery. I was sewn up and put in a hospital room on Mag sulfate (nasty stuff) until my BP went down a few days later. I was not allowed to see them except for when a sweet nurse took pity on me and brought them to me on the sly.

I felt bad that they were so small, but the doctor that delivered them said that she knew we had made the right decision because their weights were so different, it was obvious that they were in trouble. We are so thankful that our doctors made the decision to take them that day.

I was released from the hospital 5 days later, Emma came home at 10 days old and Reagan joined us at 3 weeks old. On to the joys of having twins!

The last yard sale...

2008-11-02T22:11:00.000-06:00

For the past year and a half, my sisters and mom and I have been purging our houses of things that we don't need. From what I can remember, we have had 4 yard sales (we call them Moving sales, because someone is always moving)...maybe 5 - it is all fuzzy right now!

Anyway, with Kristen moving this week, we decided to give it another go - and get rid of more things. I dug up a bunch of things that I am sick of dealing with (toys, clothes, baby furniture, etc.), Mom found some things, and Kristen got rid of as much as she could so that she doesn't have to move/pack it.

We began at 5 am, with Kristen and I setting things up at her house...she lives on a very busy street - great for sale traffic. She also has a gigantic driveway, so there is plenty of room. We are so good at setting things up now, it didn't take very long. We now know where the electronic section, clothes section, large item section, etc. goes in order to have the best layout.

This is a bittersweet sale, because it will be Kristen's last time with us...so - I commemorated the event with pictures! (I normally don't give a darn about pics at garage sales, but was feeling nostalgic, I guess!) My best pictures were of little Kade. While he was sitting in his stroller, I gave him several toys that I was selling. Someone let him out and he went and got his little red wagon. He put his new treasures into the wagon, then pulled it behind him as he shopped for more items in the boxes! It was the cutest thing! I am really going to miss this little guy...

We made over 300.00 total at this sale - so, not too shabby, considering we just had another sale a few months ago. I think that I am finally to the point that I won't have to purge anymore - we fit into our house now! More importantly, my van finally fits into our garage! Clay was motivated and organized the garage (with my expert supervision) this weekend. While we still have things to put away, it is all organized now - so it shouldn't be too difficult. Quite a productive weekend!

Halloween is over...

2008-11-02T21:38:00.000-06:00

It is amazing to me how fast the rest of the year goes once Halloween is gone. We chose to be more low-key this year, didn't do the church Trunk-or-Treat (just didn't feel like dealing with a crowd of people - and Reagan's autism at the same time). Zach was an army guy, Reagan was the Incredible Hulk, Emma was a witch at school, and a Southern Belle, and Alyssa was Minnie Mouse...they were pretty cute!

We went to Bar-B-Cutie for dinner because they had free meals for the kids, if they dressed up, with the purchase of adult dinners. This was a most excellent choice (in the spirit of Bill and Ted)...Yummy, Yummy food! We met Kristen and Chad and Chad's dad and grandpa there - got a huge table and filled up!

Next, we decided to go to Mom and Dad's house, so they could see the kids in costume - we also went TOT at their next door neighbor's house.We got a family pic, but it was impossible to get everyone looking at the camera! We finally gave up and went with this one - because we actually look good in it! There is also a picture here with my sweet little nephew, Campbell - my sister Karen's baby (3 months old). He was a tiger for Halloween...so cute!

Finally, we headed to Kristen's neighborhood and the kids went to 10 houses or so...plenty of candy and they walked a few blocks in the chilly night air, so they were done!

We went home and as they were getting out of the car, Zach tripped over Emma (poor little Emma was asleep in her seat and he fell on her face) he gave her a bloody nose - blood everywhere! It was a little bit grisly all over her Southern Belle costume. We cleaned her up, then put them all to bed - Halloween was over!

The rest of the night, Clay and I loaded up my van with stuff for our garage sale that we were going to have on Saturday.

Clever Little Orphan Kids...

2008-10-28T10:42:00.001-05:00

Just came across these pictures and I had to post them...

The weekend before my brothers wedding last month, we were all out at Mom and Dad's property getting ready for the reception. Karen, Kristen and I were working on stringing lights in the trees, and the kids were all running around like heathens! We had just mowed down the garden, as it was an eyesore, and they were playing in the empty space. A while later, we looked over and saw that they were all munching on watermelon. They found a watermelon that was left over, used a garden shovel, and cut it open themselves...each of them had a big hunk of watermelon and they had huge grins - they were so pleased with themselves!

When I went over to get some pictures, I noticed that they had a little tray with some green tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and peppers all lined up. They explained that we didn't have to worry about feeding them dinner (they were hungry, I think - since we were pretty busy and neglecting them!) that they were just going to cut up these raw (bleck) vegetables and that would be fine! I assured them that we were planning on feeding them, so they probably shouldn't eat the dirty, raw veggies!

What funny kiddos we have! In the pictures are my 3 older kids, Zach, Reagan, and Emma and Kristen's two older kids, Blake and Trevor.

And now....the rest of the story...

2008-10-28T09:38:00.001-05:00

Clay went to work yesterday and told them about our experience with the intruder in the field this weekend...they are all a bunch of country boys, and educated him on what the neighbor was almost certainly doing.

Apparently, here in Tennessee, people grow their own pot on other people's land - so they don't get into trouble if it is found (what about the poor folks that have it growing on their land, though?).
People grow it right by a fenceline because it can't be seen - it is not out in the open, so it isn't noticeable. In the summer, when there are weeds and greenery on the fence, it blends right in. But, in the winter, the greenery on the fence turns brown, so the marijuana is easily spotted - people go in and cut their stash back, so that it isn't found.

It makes perfect sense, unfortunately...It also explains why our neighbors had a four million watt light installed on the power line right above our yards - he doesn't have to use a flashlight at all, that darn thing is so bright!

Sooooo - welcome to the neighborhood! We live next door to a very industrious entrepreneur! YIKES!

So, I will close this by saying Paul Harvey's infamous words..."And now, you know....the rest of the story!"

The days are passing so quickly...

2008-10-27T15:06:00.000-05:00

This year has flown by...I can hardly believe that it is already almost November. My twins will be FIVE next week! Crazy that it has gone so fast...I look at them and they seem so big (yet still so small, since they are tiny)! Zach is almost eight already - he will be baptized next year. How can that be? I remember when he was just a little dude, running around with a medal around his neck in a Wiggles shirt!

My heart has been heavy for a few weeks now...my sister and her family are moving away. They came here 2 1/2 years ago for Chad to finish school, and now they are going back into the real world! At this point, we have no idea where it will be - there are three possibilities, and they are all way too far for us to visit very often...It is sad that our kids won't grow up together - they all adore each other! But, life moves on - that is the way it is...you have to support your family, even if it isn't in your parent's backyard!

I got a lot of things done today (for a Monday) and am waiting to get the paperwork so that I can close a few loans tonight...should be working on something - but I am being lazy and playing with my computer...I heart my computer!

Dinner is in the fridge - along with another copy of dinner in the freezer for another week...So, Clay should be able to handle everything. I also patched the master bathtub today and now we can use it! I have been itching for a nice bubble bath in my garden tub!

Lately, in order to feel productive, I have to write a list...I put EVERYTHING on my list that I have done that day, and need to do. At the end of the day, I look at my list and see what I have accomplished - makes me feel a lot better!

Creepy Prowler

2008-10-25T23:14:00.000-05:00

Tonight, while seeing Mom and Dad out the door (they babysat), I noticed a man in a white hoodie skulking around in the field across the street. When I looked his way, he ducked down behind the fence, but he was watching us from his vantage point.

It was extremely creepy. At ten o'clock at night, no one has any business hanging out by themselves in a field with a few cows. We sent Mom and Dad on their way, and got inside. Then, we hustled up to our bonus room and watched. The man came out of the field, and walked along the ditch for a minute - looking each way as he went. He went into the brush that covered the fence and came out with a large black garbage bag. Then he crossed the street and disappeared out of our view.

By this time, I was on the phone with the Sheriff's office, describing the man and his behavior. They sent an officer out - he searched the field with a flashlight for a while and looked around (after talking to us).

The weird thing is, we think it might be our strange neighbor. If it was - it probably scared the heck out of him that we called the police. Any ideas on what he could have been doing in a field with the garbage bag? Clay thinks he might have been collecting cans from the field - but how many cows do you know that drink soda or beer?

Hmmmmmmmm.....

Happy Birthday Clay!

2008-10-25T23:07:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, Clay celebrated his thirty-fourth birthday...(Shhh, don't let him know that I printed that)! We didn't do much yesterday, but tonight - I took him out. We went with Kristen and Chad (Sis & BIL) and Mom and Dad watched all SEVEN kids!!! (enter the bugeyes smiley)

We went to Longhorn Steakhouse for dinner - that is always a great place to go...Then, we went over to MTSU to see Suessical the Musical. Ooops! They don't take cards there, only cash or check (how archaic is that system, anyway?) We decided to leave and find something else to do...

All the movies were lame, and started at 9:45, so that was out...thought about going to get Chad a new suit, but decided to do something a little different. Sooo, we went bowling. Yes, bowling - haven't done that since we were dating a million years ago.

It was actually quite a bit of fun - we all stink, big time - even Chad, who is usually pretty good at sports-like activities...Our final scores were Chad - 87, Me - 80 (this was a total fluke, I was losing big time until the end), Kristen - 75, and poor Clay - 66.

After bowling, we went to Cracker Barrel and got dessert. All in all, a pretty nice night - without kids. Which doesn't happen very often, so we had to make it count!

The House...Projects that will never end...

2008-10-22T23:29:00.000-05:00

We have lived here almost three months and I still have so many projects. Starting out, I was gung ho to paint so that I could hang my pictures. Now, I am starting to hang the darn pictures so that I can get rid of boxes. So tired of living out of boxes! The painting will come, and the pictures will go right back up after I do each room, one by one. Sometimes I bite off a bit more than I can chew. Must be the type A personality that seems to run in my family!

Things that I HAVE done so far:

1. Painted laundry room.
2. Painted walls and ceiling of bonus room - hung blinds, organized bonus room.
3. Hung pictures in master bdrm - the paint in this room is okay right now, it can wait for a while.
4. Hung pictures in kitchen - couldn't stand it anymore, even if it does have to be painted.
5. Almost finished with MY part of organizing the garage - the stuff that actually belongs in the house - Clay's part is the garage stuff. Good luck with that happening anytime soon, right?!!?

Things that are REALLY starting to bug me:

1. The orangey (terracotta, really) color in the hallways - this must go soon...Christmas decorations are really going to clash with this one~
2. The living room - really need to paint this before Christmas, too.
3. Bathroom floors - need to re-do these when I can, I hate the vinyl - it looks dirty no matter how much I scrub.
4. Toy organization and purge - we have too many...my search for the perfect toy has been in vain - there isn't one. Kids were made to drive us crazy, that is just the way it is!
5. Finish my part of the garage - this is going to be done pretty soon - I want the van IN the garage when it is cold.

There are many other "projects" that are going to keep us busy until our kids graduate from medical school (not that that is going to happen, so you get the point). The yard is a totally different ballgame - we basically have no bushes/trees/plants at all. I really like foilage in the yard, so that is a project that we are planning on tackling in the spring. Also hoping to put a fence up.

Enough of the ramblings of a crazy insomniac - I'd better get to bed - morning comes early here!

So, today I flagged down the bus...

2008-10-22T21:43:00.000-05:00

Zach is on some medication that helps him to survive his days at school. Okay, let's be honest, it helps the school survive the day with him! This year, I have been so good about getting him his morning meds (and not forgetting).

This morning, I was tired from a night up with Emma (who had an earache), the kids were crazy, and I was trying to get ready to go to Franklin. Of course, Zach doesn't remind me to give him his meds, he could care less. So, I sent him on his way and went on getting ready. 5 minutes after he left, I walked into the kitchen - what do I see? A medicine box on the counter. Enter the mental scream AAARRRRGGGHHH! I didn't have time to go to his school and give him the meds. But, I also knew he wouldn't get far without them. What to do?

It hit me then that his bus comes back by the house on the way back to school. I grabbed his dose and dashed out the door. Standing by the curb, I waited for the bus to come again. When I saw it, I started waving my arms and started to go into the road a bit. (The driver probably thought I was nuts at this point). When she stopped, I said "Are you the bus that picked up my kid this morning?" "Yes." "I forgot his medication, is it okay if I give them to him?" She grinned at me and said it was fine. I dashed up the stairs and boarded the bus. Looking around, no Zach popped up. I had to yell his name (probably his worst nightmare, Mom on the bus!). He came forward and dry swallowed the meds. Whew! Mission accomplished. I saved the school from an unmedicated Zach!

Then, I went on my way and proceeded to barely get Emma to Eagleville School in time for the tardy bell.

Happy Birthday Alyssa Claire!

2008-09-22T12:50:00.000-05:00

It seems like just yesterday when our baby was 6 lbs,7oz. Now she is almost 20 lbs and in a big carseat! Alyssa is a mellow, sweet baby. We enjoy watching her antics, such as ladder climbing, stair climbing, dollhouse climbing (do you see a theme here?)...Definitely a little monkey!

We celebrated on her actual birthday, Friday night (the 19th) by having family over for a party. We served chicken quesadillas (yum) and two types of cake (german chocolate and funfetti). It was a fun night, full of the chatter of so many kids in our house!

This little girl hauled in some cool presents! She got a new carseat and clothes from Grandma Turner; ride on pony, little people, an outfit and new fuzzy blanket from Mom and Dad; a cute corduroy jumper from Grandma Cyndi and Grandpa Mike, a my first purse set from Aunt Kristen's family, and a puppet and stylin' outfit from Aunt Karen and Uncle Adam.

The cake was a hit - she enjoyed every minute of the mess - and went straight to the tub afterward!

I can't believe my baby is already ONE! It goes by so darn fast - feel like I closed my eyes and she grew up!