A Whole New World

Christian got his new glasses today.

He said "Its like I'm seeing a whole new world!"

He got both of these pairs.

These are my favorite.

These are Christian's favorite.

Frustrated and Pissed Off!

I sent this note to school with Christian today to find out if his teachers have noticed any changes since starting the medication.  I was expecting to hear good things because I have seen the improvements in him.

According to her note, he's gotten WORSE!  I swear this teacher has it out for him.  How could it even be possible that he's gotten worse?  I have seen the changes!  How could he have four A's and one B if what she says is true?  I am so frustrated with her this year.  I just don't get it!  Advise anyone?

Gotta love the Amish!

I needed to get some new dining chairs for the table that I got of my moms.  When I started looking at chairs they were way more expensive than I expected and knew the quality wouldn't be there.  I knew that I would have to spend quite a bit of money but I also wanted the chairs to last forever.  I picked up a catalog from a store in town.  For the style that I wanted it was $249 per chair!  Uh no!  Especially for something that is mass produced and not great quality.  At that point I started searching online for chairs that I might be able to order.


I came across a website for an Amish Showroom.  I found some beautiful chairs that were under $200 each and Amish made.  I knew that the quality and workmanship would be outstanding.  I picked the style, color and quantity that I wanted and placed my order.  I waited about 2 months for them to be built and delivered.

The truck brought them yesterday.  Can I just say that I am completely amazed?  These chairs are absolutely gorgeous!  I love them!

The chairs are SOLID!  We will have these chairs forever...kids and grandkids.

Exercise! Exercise!

There was a wing level exercise yesterday called MARE (Major Accident Response Exercise).  Dominic said it was a Security Escort Convoy.  Dominic and a few others were the security escorts with the bus.  The bus "rolled over".  I guess they were supposed to wait for the fire and medical teams to get there but nothing was happening and people were "hurt" one guy even missing an arm.  TSgt. B "released the hounds".  Dominic and a couple others evacuated 14 people, triaged and in Dominic's words "ran the show".

Dominic ran to get the stretchers for the Fire Department that were standing around.

It started spreading around the wing that they all "kicked ass".  He said he is being named in emails about the exercise.  Dominic was disappointed in the fire and medical teams.  
Today he learned that he will be getting recognized by the wing for what he did in the exercise.  He said "I just did what I do".  He is great at what he does and for too long he hasn't gotten the recognition.  I am so proud of him and he totally deserves this.  He thinks he might get a coin or a certificate maybe.

Flat Stanley

Christian's class read a book called Flat Stanley.  From what I understand (what Christian has told me) Stanley gets flattened by a bulletin board.  He wants to go on vacation for the summer to visit a friend that moved away so Stanley's parents put him in an envelope and send him to his friends house.  Obviously this is the most condensed version EVER.  Anyhow, Christian's class did a project where they had to write a letter and send their "Flat Stanley" to someone to see what kind of adventures Stanley would have.  Christian sent his to Dominic and I tell you what, Stanley is going to come back a certified war veteran.  Dominic has been taking Stanley on missions with him and taking pictures with the flight crews and pilots.  We can't wait to get Flat Stanley back to see all the adventures he's been on.

Christian is going to be so excited to share the adventures of his Flat Stanley with his class :)

Pinewood Derby

It's Pinewood Derby time!  Last night we had to go check his car in.  This was our first year and had no idea what we were doing or getting into.  We found out though, the hard way.

The cars can weigh up to 5 oz.  When we weighed "Spongebob" it was only 2 oz and some change.  So we glued a bunch of quarters and nickels to the bottom equaling $1.20 hoping that would give us enough weight to be a bit faster.  It increased the weight but unfortunately Christian's car was so slow it barely made it past the finish line.  I felt bad for him because he didn't want to come in last.  I explained to him that this was our first time and that we really didn't know what we were doing.  There were all sorts of shaped cars with tons of extra attachments like fenders and drivers.  We just weren't knowledgeable about the whole derby car experience.  Next year will surely be different.

Christian won for Best Design for his car and he was happy with that.  They served a hot dog lunch and by the time it was over Mason was running on fumes.  He needed a nap bad!  

We came home and had some quiet time which inevitably only lasted about 15 minutes.  Ayden threw a major fit about having to leave Scouts and I put him in his room for a "nap".  He opens the door every 5-7 minutes and yells at me "can I come out now?" to which I answer "NO!"  By the 4th or 5th time of that Mason woke up crying.  GREAT!

I managed to get 5 loads of laundry done and I even cooked dinner!  I was so run down last night that I ended up giving the boys each a cup o' noodles.  I felt bad about that because I usually do better than that.  They were both completely content about it though and I'm thinking about buying more of them for the other crazy nights in our immediate future.

Glasses?

I got a letter from Christian's school the other day saying that he failed two vision screenings that were performed on two different days.  Did I give Christian the Franks eyes?  I think so.  I'm secretly a little excited.  I didn't give Christian much but my ears and now eyes.  I always loved picking out new glasses.  I think I felt special in a way.  I started wearing glasses when I was in third grade and when I was in 5th grade I started wearing contacts.  Three years ago I had Lasik eye surgery and wouldn't change a thing.

Christian told me that only nerds wear glasses.  I explained to him that lots of people have to wear glasses.  I told him how almost everyone in my family has bad eye sight and how we've all worn glasses and contacts at some point.  Then I told him "Auntie Kara wears glasses (she just recently had Lasik), she's not a nerd is she?"  His response was "I see where you're going with this".  He cracks me up.  What a funny kid.  I think he's more open to the whole thing and we have an appointment next Friday for an eye exam.  We'll see what happens.

My baby's not a baby anymore :(

Mason turned 1 today.  I can't believe it was a year ago that I went into the hospital to be induced.  Mason was ready to get out of there and Dominic and my sister barely made it to the hospital in time.  When I think about that day I just cannot believe that was a year ago.

I felt kinda sad today because Mason is my last baby.  He's already walking and doing big boy stuff.  He is such a precious baby.  He had a busy birthday.  It was a great day even though Dominic couldn't be here.  I tried to make it memorable for Christian, Ayden and myself.  I took lots of pictures so that we can show Dominic.  I hope he won't feel terribly left out.

It was tough not getting a phone call from my mom today.  She would have called and wished me a happy birthday too.  She always told me that she felt like moms should get a "happy birthday" too since they are the ones that did all the hard work.  I really missed mom today.

Happy Birthday sweet baby!

He makes me smile!

When Dominic called yesterday evening I was feeling really down.  I was rather depressed the whole day actually.  I know he picked up on it.  It was the first time since he's been gone that I actually felt a little resentful of him leaving.  It's a feeling that I knew would pass, and already has.  He told me that sometimes he wishes that he had chosen not to go too.  On the other hand we feel like in some strange way this whole thing is going to only make our marriage stronger just like living overseas for the first 5 years of our marriage did.  We only had each other to rely on and we wouldn't change a thing.

These flowers were delivered this evening from Dominic.  He told me that he knew just how to make me smile, he did.

All Better

Ayden is all better.  He did great all day.  He even went to bed early and without a fight.

Christian is doing fine on the meds now.  I think what happened was that Christian had a stomach bug that just happened to be when he started the meds this week.  Then Ayden got the bug.

Christian has been doing great this weekend.  I tell him to do something and he does it.  He hasn't been forgetful.  When he lost something he looked until he found it.  I have seen some big changes.  He still doesn't have much appetite which is common but I am staying on top of that.  He has lost 4 pounds since Thursday.  I expect that he will loose more but will be watching.

Valentine's Day

Dominic and I aren't ones to really celebrate Valentine's Day.  We sort of figure that we do enough for each other all year long to show our love that we don't need a special day to have the greeting card companies tell us when to do it.  I always try to make it special for the kids but Dominic and I don't usually do anything for each other.

I made the boys heart shaped pancakes and put their gifts on the table.  We were invited to a friend's house for dinner at 5 pm.  I was really looking forward to it.  She was making a lasagna and I was going to bring bread and a salad.  The boys and I just hung out at home for most of the day.  I made the food to take, did some laundry and cleaned up the house a little bit.  Then at about 4 pm Ayden said that his tummy hurt.  I asked him if he needed to use the bathroom, he said no.  Then at about 4:20 pm he threw up a whole bunch on the carpet.  It splashed everywhere.  So I get him the bathroom and get him cleaned up.  I got the carpet cleaner out and cleaned up the mess.  I figured he threw up, he probably feels better and we will still go to dinner.  So I load up the car and I'm about to send the boys to the car.  Ayden throws up on the deck 10 minutes before we are supposed to be at our dinner date.  At this point I'm thinking either we still go and risk him throwing up all over her house and getting her three kids sick or I call her and tell her what's going on and cancel at the VERY LAST SECOND.  I felt like such a sh*t.  I hate when you spend all day cleaning, buying and preparing food for guests and at the last minute they say they can't come.  I didn't have a choice.  I called and of course she was very understanding.  She ended up finding someone to stay with her kids and she brought the lasagna to our house.  We ate and talked while Ayden laid in his "camping bag" on the living room floor with a yellow bowl next to his head.  He threw up close to 15 times last night.  Before my friend left she offered to go get some Gatorade for him.  I let her and was very grateful.  Things worked out well all things considered but I was exhausted and so ready for bed.

It was rainy with thunder storms yesterday.  We even got some hail at one point.  It wasn't big enough to do any damage though.  Its still a little chilly today.  Ayden seems to be fine now.  He went to bed and didn't throw up again.  I am guessing that Christian had a stomach bug at the end of the week and Ayden ended up with it yesterday.  I just hope that Mason doesn't get it.

I am going to work on the kitchen today.  I have my order ready to get the new cabinet doors and drawer fronts.  I just need to finish the painting before I can move onto the next stage.

Happy Heart Day!

Mason eating his pancake.

The boys eating their heart pancakes.

Is this right?

Christian started his medication yesterday.  He will take one pill in the morning and it slowly releases the meds throughout the day.  Common side effects include headache, stomach ache, trouble sleeping, decreased appetite, nervousness and dizziness.  Christian took the pill with his breakfast but then decided that he wasn't hungry and couldn't eat anymore.  He had eaten about half of his bowl of cereal by that point.  I took him to school anxious to see how he was after school.  I was very surprised.  Christian was very calm.  I had a fast food bag in the car and he said "mom, if you have an extra taco, I don't want it".  I started asking questions.  He said that he ate 1 chicken nugget at school for lunch.  I asked how he was feeling and he said that he was feeling different.  He had Sylvan after school and I usually make him a snack to take with him.  He did end up eating a cheeseburger at that point.  When I picked him up from Sylvan he said "can I go home, sit on the couch and watch cartoons?"  He didn't have any homework so that was fine.  Christian sat curled up on the couch watching cartoons while Ayden went about his normal antics trying to get Christian to bite the bait.  Christian barely even had a reaction.  Normally he would be chasing Ayden away, pushing, shoving etc.  

At bedtime I told Christian that I wanted him not to read because he said he was feeling tired.  He went straight to sleep.  At 5:30 this morning he woke me up saying that he was having problems sleeping.  I asked him if he was reading in bed, he said no.  He wanted to use the bathroom before he went back to bed.  Christian threw up and had diarrhea.  Once he was done with all of that, he wanted to sleep on the couch.  He went right back to sleep and I let him sleep until 8am.  

I intend to keep a very close eye on Christian this weekend while he's home with me.  If I am still concerned then I will contact his doctor on Monday.  I really wasn't expecting to see such drastic changes. 

Successful Day

I managed to get most of the things on my list done today.  I am a huge list person.  I have probably 7 note pads that float around the house (mostly because Christian decides to take one and draw in it).  I have notes and lists for everything.  After going through my moms things I realized that I take after both she and my dad in that area.  My dad is a list guy too.  I am so lost if I go to the store without a list.  Sad, I know.

On the top of my list for the day were to get appointments made for myself and the boys to see the dentist.  I needed to do two loads of laundry, vacuum, empty the dishwasher, go grocery shopping and everything that goes along with it, pick Christian up early from school for an appointment and get him to Sylvan without being too late.  Check, check, check, check, check, check, and check!  I got it all done.

Christian's appointment went really well.  I love his doctor.  He's a really nice, typical Texan man.  We talked and he really read the results of Christian's tests.  He asked me a few questions and then he explained the course of action.  Christian will start taking medication tomorrow.  I am anxious to see what changes take place.  I am going to send a note to school to let his teacher know so that she can start observing him and taking notice of any changes.  So I guess we'll just see what happens.

Dominic wrote this morning.  He said that he is thoroughly annoyed by his roommates and wants to be home with us.  He said that he avoids going to his room so that he doesn't have to hear them whining and complaining.  He said he prefers the night missions so that he can sleep in peace the next day.  It sounded to me like he was feeling a little bit like I have been feeling every few days. 

I have our babysitter scheduled for tomorrow.  I have a few errands to run.  Nothing fun this time but I will still enjoy my time.

Estimates

Dominic sent me this picture today.

Dominic and I have decided to start getting estimates for having the exterior of our house painted.  We have a brick house and some brilliant previous owner decided to paint it.  I'm not sure what she was thinking.  One of the neighbors said that the lady just started painting one day.  Anyhow the paint is a mess and not a very nice color.  We are thinking if we want to get our house sold this would be something we might need to do.  I got the first estimate yesterday and I have another one today. 

 Dominic says that he trusts me with picking the color so we'll see.  I know that the painters that I decide to go with will guide me in the right direction.  I do know that I want a more updated/modern looking paint color that will make our new windows pop.  I was pleased with the estimate that we got yesterday and the guys were very nice and professional.  So we'll see where this leads.

I got a very nice letter from Dominic yesterday.  I miss him so much it hurts sometimes.  He's been there for 56 days I think which is almost 3 months.  When I think of it like that it does seem that its gone by fast but from the day to day, its slow.  I just can't wait for him to come home.  The magic number is 179.

We had Mason's 12 month appointment today.  He is 23 pounds now.  That means he can face forward in the car now.  He's also sick but seemed to have good spirits until today.  Sure enough, when the doctor looked in his right ear he had some fluid there.  She said its a little bit red so she gave us some antibiotics to start.  I'm glad we caught it early because a trip to the ER with three kids just doesn't sound fun.

Tantrums!

Here is my question, Is it ever possible to take a child to Chuck E. Cheese and leave without kicking and screaming?  Not in my experience.  We met up with our friends at Chuck E. Cheese today so the kids could play and have fun together.  They played games, gathered all of their tickets and bought their cheap .50 cent toys.  The problem was that Christian did the buying without me knowing and only bought himself something.  So Ayden ended up without a toy and thus a tantrum erupted.  It wasn't a full on kicking and screaming fit but it wasn't pretty.  I did feel bad and Christian felt guilty too.  I have decided two things:  Ayden misses Dominic and doesn't know how to express his feelings and he stopped taking naps way too early in life.  Ayden has had a tough time lately.  All I can do is reassure him and just keep loving him thru every fit of rage and tantrum that comes along.

Mason is sick.  He slept fine last night but I'm not sure how tonight will be.  He's very stuffy.

Yesterday was a great day.  I washed the van while the boys played on the deck.  Christian helped me by cleaning the wheels and Ayden wanted to help wash but the hose just kept screaming his name :)  It was nice to get that done though.  Now we have to wait for another nice day and wash the truck.

We have two appointments coming up this week.  One is for Masons 12 month check up and the other is to meet with Christian's doctor about starting the ADHD meds.  I received Christians results of the tests that he took.  It states that Christian's overall thinking and reasoning abilities exceed those of approx. 73% of children his age.  His IQ is 109.  It also states that Christian achieved better than anticipated in reading.  His Reading Composite score (124) is much higher than anticipated for a child with his general cognitive ability (predicted score was 107).  This obviously suggests that this is an area of considerable strength for him.  He received his lower scores in math reasoning (which is to be expected, and why he goes to Sylvan), working memory and processing speed.  

I am anxious to see what comes of the appointment this week.

Dominic called twice on Friday since he was in Africa and wasn't able to call.  He called for his first 15 minutes in the morning and another in the evening.  We both missed each other this past week since we hadn't been able to communicate.  He said that he had 6 packages waiting for him when he got back.  He said that the guys love when he gets packages because he always gets good stuff.

I better go think about what I'm going to make for dinner.

Three hours of bliss!

This is Christian with his new train.  He still loves his Thomas trains.

Yesterday was a really great day.  I had scheduled to have our new babysitter come over at noon to stay with Ayden and Mason.  Christian had started feeling sick Wednesday night and I wasn't sure if he was going to feel well enough to go to school on Thursday.  He wasn't running a fever but he was sneezing and had a horrible runny nose, so I kept him home.

Sarah came over at noon, very prompt, I like that.  I gave her the basics on how to take care of Mason, left her a couple of phone numbers and went on my way.  Mason seemed to do fine.  He didn't cry when I left and I didn't hear him crying when I called to check on them.  

The very first thing that I did was got a pedicure.  The last one that I had was when I was pregnant with Mason.  He's almost 1!  So that was nice.  Then I went over to the mall to look for some jeans.  I've lost 32 lbs and knew that I needed a smaller size.  I had no idea that I had gone down TWO sizes!  That was very exciting.  I only bought one pair because the weight is still coming off.

Then I went to The Children's Place where a friend works.  I visited with her for a few minutes and found two outfits for Mason.  I left the mall and went to the pet store to get some filters and food for my fish tank.  Then finally to Walmart for a couple of groceries, a birthday present for Mason and some Valentine's day gifts for the boys.

It was SO nice to be able to do that and I can't wait to do it again.

Dominic got back from Africa yesterday.  He called while I was gone and left a message.  He said that he hadn't had a hot meal and only slept 3 hours in three days.  He also said that it was really hot and the mosquitoes are horrible there.  He said he would call again today.  I hope he caught up on his sleep.

There's no school today so I think I will take the boys for a walk later.  It was 73 degrees yesterday and then this weekend thru Monday or Tuesday its supposed to rain.  We better get outside while we can.

Great news with my moms house.  We have accepted an offer and its time to get the ball rolling.  My sister and I are very excited.  

I'm a slacker, I know.

I'm not feeling very inspired to write so far this week.

Ayden burst out crying in my bathroom the other morning wanting daddy to come home.  He came in our bathroom while I was brushing my teeth and asked where daddy's toothbrush is.  I told him that daddy has it with him and all of the sudden, he starts crying.  I immediately put my brush down, picked him up and hugged him.  He just kept saying "I want daddy to come home" over and over again.  It was heart-breaking.  He doesn't understand why Dominic has been gone so long, all he knows is that daddy is working.  Poor Ayden.

I need to take the boys for haircuts soon.  I hate it.  I pay $12 dollars plus tip for each of the boys to get a haircut and no matter how many places I've gone to in town, nobody does a good job.  I am so frustrated with it.  I'm on the verge of giving them buzz cuts and doing it myself!

I met with another potential babysitter yesterday.  This lady is a young grandma with a degree in Child Development.  She was very nice and very obviously a teacher.  My concern is that the boys would run her out.  She said that she felt good about it after meeting us but she didn't see the true nature of the boys, if you know what I mean.  We'll see though.

Without going into great detail, my mom passed away at the age of 54 nine months ago.  Her house was left to my sister and I.  We had our dad and uncle flip it and it is now on the market.  It had been on the market for a couple of days and we got multiple offers either at or above asking price.  We are in the process of negotiating and I am excited and anxious to see what happens.  I think that selling the house will help my sister and I close a chapter in our lives, however it won't take away the intense pain and sadness that we feel for loosing our mom.  It has only been nine months and I still think about calling her then remember that I can't do that anymore.