Christmas Fun

I could have SWORN we took way more pictures, but I guess we were too busy having fun! :P

Jake could have played in the wrapping paper ALL day if we'd let him.

Cameron got a super-cool wagon from Grandma, that mom and Uncle Daren had to put together....so Uncle Daren got one of the first rides! :)

Just for fun, here's a picture of Jake's new favorite place to roll (we're not QUITE crawling yet, but rolling around gets the job done.) We've found him under the coffee table SO many times....silly boy.

And on our picture taking night, I laid on the floor with the boys for some fun shots....here's ONE. :)

Post Holiday Blah....

Christmas was VERY fun and wonderful for our family. Christmas Eve Steve's brother and girlfriend came to visit and see the cool Christmas lights here. Then we vegged out at home Christmas morning until Cam was played out (Jake totally LOVED the wrapping paper WAY more than any of the toys he got...) and then we spent the afternoon/evening at my parents' house.

Cameron got everything he wanted, except more presents. And Jake was happy just getting wrapped up boxes. Honestly, I think the boys were very SPOILED this Christmas and will not need so many things NEXT year! ;)

Now we're done with the Christmas stuff. The carols aren't playing on the radio any more, the tree has been taken down and boxed up for next year (Jake was rolling under the tree pulling things off INCLUDING branches...and we have a fake tree!) and the snow is beginning to get old. Cam asks me constantly whether he can go back to school yet, and I tell him, "Only one more week...." He has been counting down! Silly boy!

I know the next holiday is New Year's, but really, I won't have my honey around. And I'm VERY bummed out about it. He has to close both days and I won't see him unless I stare at him while he sleeps.

*SIGH*

But I guess things could always be worse. The kids are healthy, I'm healthy and we're surviving. But I do miss the anticipation that Christmas brings!

(And just for your information, I DO have pictures of the boys with Christmassy things, but I forgot to bring my camera with me....SORRY! Those should follow shortly, I hope!)

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas from my family to yours! :)

A Night At Home

We stayed home with a camera and some Santa hats, and here's the results:

And after ALL that work, we FINALLY got a cute picture!

How much fun can one family have? :)

ADHD, Why Yes, We DO Know What That Is...

Cameron had his doctor's appointment yesterday for ADHD testing, and yes, (no shock here) he DOES have it. Doctor O recommended lots of things, but the initial thing was starting the boy on meds. I did a lot of running around last night to get them, but we are set (for now!)

I gave him his first dose this morning (with him freaking out a bit before he took it) and he swallowed it in 2 tries. (YAY!) Then within an hour I noticed a HUGE change in my child. HUGE! Normally, Cam will go up and down the stairs multiple times, bother me or his dad OR his brother, beg to play the DS for a while or do other things. But normally, he's on the move. Today? He ate his breakfast, then sat on the couch and watched cartoons until the bus came. That was IT! It was huge!!

Then today when I checked him out for the holiday break, his teacher reported on his day. All of the teachers noticed a difference in the boy. He was mellow and very laid back. They did notice him getting back to his "Cameron" self around lunchtime, but they were cooped up in the classroom and it was kinda crazy anyway. But soon after lunch was over, he was mellow again.

I'm hoping that this will help the boy focus more on his school work and mellow out. (Which as of now, a few hours out, it IS working!)

Thank heaven for modern medicine!!

Nice Bandaids...

Yes, this may be considered a TMI for some, but I'm in major pain and I just HAVE to share!!

All weekend long, Jake has been teething and a few times has used me as his teether. Sunday after church, I was trying to nurse the boy and he bit down on me SO hard that it drew blood. There was blood on his face and in his mouth. I just about threw the kid across the room from instant pain. Instead I swatted the kid's mouth and said, "YOU DON'T BITE ME!!"

Yeah, I know....not the BEST way of handling the situation, but I reacted!

Needless to say the kid cried and cried for nearly a half hour straight. He was inconsolable!! I was pretty miserable!

Thankfully, my other son, who was more than willing to find me a bandaid for my "owie" went on the search. Instead I grabbed the breast pad and pressed on it. After a little while I pulled it off and noticed that it really soaked up the blood pretty well. Nice bandaid! ;)

Anyway, today I've been trying to pump on that side and let him nurse exclusively on the other side, but I was SO engorged that I just HAD to nurse him, just to relieve the pressure. Thankfully, his tooth broke through and he's not biting anymore. But I have a feeling it will take me a while to recover from this owie.

Dear Santa....for Adults

So I've been thinking about what we could ask Santa for....if he could truly give us what we REALLY want. Here's my list. Enjoy.

• Bills paid in full. (Wouldn't THAT be nice!?)
• Happy, HEALTHY children.
• Peace....not just on Earth, but in my home too.
• Calorie Free chocolate.
• Housekeeper....FREE of charge! ;)
• If I can't have a housekeeper, then a self-cleaning bathroom. (Bathrooms are my WORST chore! BLECH!)
• A working computer at my house. (Have I mentioned that I really REALLY miss my computer?)
• A piano.
• A home of my own that I can afford.
• No more PMS, please!
• Obedient Children.
• A full night's sleep.
• A skinny body! ;)
• Happiness.

So if you could ask Santa for ANYTHING and get it, what would YOU ask for!?

Dear Santa

Today Cameron wrote his annual Santa letter....ALL BY HIMSELF!! I was so proud of him! (I did have to spell out the words for him, but he wrote it out.)

I was pretty brain-dead and didn't get a copy of it, but here's what it said:

"Dear Santa

Can you bring me Sorry? So I can play with my mom and dad. Thanks.

Cameron "

I've been trying to remind him that he really does want Sorry for Christmas and not something else....anyone else have that problem? ;)

We went to the big Santa mailbox in town to mail it, and the opening was screwed shut. I REALLY hope they unscrew it soon....otherwise I don't know what I'll do with it.

Dreams

I've been having SUPER vivid dreams lately. They're totally random too. Let me share! :)

A few nights ago I had a dream that I was helping the Obamas move into the White House. (Don't know WHY they'd pick me, I can't even decorate my own house decently!) My friend was with me too. Michelle Obama had decided that because the country was in a recession that they were going to make do with all of the old furniture that was currently in the building. And apparently in my dreams the Bushes are SUPER destructive people, because everything was in some state of disrepair. We were walking through the living room trying out special couch cover that was red, white and blue with a teal ruffle. (Yeah, see, you DON'T want me decorating your house, now do you!?) We were trying to get this all figured out now and we discovered holes in the couch covers. I think my friend mentioned that we should just leave the couches as they were, but I pointed out some huge chunks of foam that was missing from the very 70-ish GOLD couches.

In the end my dream was pretty good. It just stopped, mostly because I had to feed a whimpering baby, but my overall opinion of the Obamas (in my dream) was that they were very thrifty and nice. It was like they were my best friends. (I know....I'm CRAZY!!!!)

The other dream I had was last night. I dreamed that I went to rent a video from a video store just down the street from where my husband works. (Not that we even RENT movies anymore, but you know, it must have been a movie that we just HAD to see!) Anyway, I was without Steve and had both boys with me. I was supposed to take Jacob to his doctor's appointment (which he really had today) and I was going to just get this before I went to the office. While I was getting the movies, some masked men came inside wielding guns to rob the place. I threw myself onto the floor covering the boys with my body and was terrified. The men walked past us just as my cell phone rang. And according to the ring it was Steve. I grabbed the phone to silence it, but the men held the gun to my head and demanded that I give them the phone, which I did.

After they were done, which was pretty fast, I stood up to leave and noticed that I was late for the doctor. I was grabbing other people's phones to call so I could keep my appointment time, but I couldn't remember the phone number.

Yes, I've been having weird dreams....I wonder if it was something I've been eating!?

And as a quick update on Jake's progress, he now weighs 19 pounds 7 ounces and is about the same height. (They said that they can't get an accurate measurement when the kids are wiggly...so he may be more...) He's doing well and the doctor had no concerns.

Both boys DID have to get shots though....fun for mama?? Actually, not too bad. Cameron freaked out and cried longer than Jake did (who was done second...) Both boys seem content and happy now, 3 hours later! Thank heaven!

CONGRATS!!

It's an exciting day! My friend, Mattsmom, had her 3rd little baby today. A beautiful little girl!

Congrats mama and daddy!!

What to Say?

I can't tell you the number of times I've had perfect strangers come up to me and comment on how "gorgeous" my baby is. Now, don't take this to mean I'm bragging, because I'm just trying to make a point.

My point is, why do have these comments now and when I had Cameron I had very few? Not to say that Cam didn't get his fair share of, "look how cute that baby is" comments, but Jake seems to get WAY more.

Is it bad to feel sorry for Cam? He's a cute boy, but he definitely does look different from his brother. People will comment, and I wonder if it hurts his feelings.

Raising these two boys has been such an eye-opener for me. I've definitely noticed the things people have told me for years about Cameron's delays...only because I now see Jake's typical tendencies.

Jacob will be 6 months old on Saturday, and he can already roll around, scoot, sit by himself (well, for a few seconds anyway....probably no longer than a minute....), babble, make raspberries and the list goes on and on. When Cameron was this age it was SO different. And I mourn the fact that my little Cam is not typical.

On top of these non-typical behaviors, I hear over and over how good looking my other baby is.

What can I say?

I've even had some people mention to me that we should enter Jake into a "pretty baby" contest (which we will be doing soon....) But how do I make Cameron feel just as loved and as involved?

It's all so hard!

Family for the Holiday

We had quite a week with family here. First was Thanksgiving:

My nephew Jonathan.Cameron had to HOLD the baby!Grandpa was complaining about his "bald" head, so we fixed it so it was the original color! Jake wanted to see exactly who Jonathan was, and he ended up poking him in the eye. And of course, no family holiday would be complete without Grandpa cuddling a sleeping baby.
Then on Sunday we had Jonathan's baby blessing, and EVERYONE showed up.

Then we had the kids pose for pictures.

All in all it was a fun time. It makes me all the more excited for Christmas when everyone will be together again! :)

'Tis the Season

Turkey day is over, and once that happens we pull out the Christmas decor and deck the halls. Our house is now Christmas-ready. Not that EVERYTHING is in place, but for the most part we're done. I was even so "in the mood" that I stayed up a while last night wrapping presents that I'd had stashed away since the beginning of October.

The only gifts left to get are for Jake (more clothes, now that we have an idea what size he'll be next month) and something for my parents.

I love the fact that now it's legal for me to listen to Christmas music without getting the stink-eye from those who don't love mixing Christmas with Thanksgiving. In fact, I'm just glad it's getting closer.

My only worry for this year is Jake versus the tree. He's not quite crawling yet, but he's awfully close. He does this little back scoot thing where he can move around on his back, (creating a bald spot on the back of his head where the hair had finally come back) and goes in ONE direction. I can spin him around to make him go the opposite way, but sometimes I let him squawk when he hits a couch with his head. He's also just recently learned to roll from his back to his belly....but he's seem to have forgotten how to roll from his belly to his back. So he'll get "stuck" on his belly and will squawk and get frustrated. So with his new skills, I'm afraid he'll pull stuff off the tree, or worse, pull the tree and hurt himself. I did some preventative things, like putting the ornaments higher up on the tree, but I'm sure he'll still find a way to get into stuff. I've also stuffed the newly wrapped presents at the back of the tree, hoping he won't be able to unwrap or otherwise mess up the presents.

But I guess if he does I will just have to teach him like I've done with everything else....

'Tis the season for more stress, right? ;)

Grateful?

I'm sure if someone were to just pop in on my blog, they'd think I was so ungrateful. I really don't think that would be appropriate, especially since Thanksgiving is this week, so I'm going to list some of the things I'm grateful for.

I'm grateful for a loving husband who puts up with his crazy wife. I had a night last week where I just could NOT sleep. I read something that just made me freak out. I went upstairs (I had gone to the living room to let Steve sleep...) and turned on the light, woke him up and demanded an explanation. The poor guy was not only half-awake, but he was completely unaware of what I was thinking. Thankfully, I get really weird on little sleep and everything was fine, but I'm glad Steve was there to help calm me down and reassure me that things are okay.

I'm grateful for two super-cute boys who make my life busy. It's hard to feel sorry for myself when I'm serving these little boys.

I'm grateful for little toothy smiles.

I'm grateful for a home that keeps me and my family warm and safe.

I'm grateful for a loving extended family who love me enough to help me when I make mistakes or are there to keep me sane.

I'm grateful to live in a developed country. My little brother is serving his mission in the Philippines and has told us how lucky we are to have the things we have. Even the most poor who live here are rich comparatively.

There is so much I have, and I should show my gratitude more often.

The Sun So Rises

The other day I was talking with Cameron, the non-stop chatter-box, and he informed me that he'd stretched. I said that was nice, then he informed me that because he had stretched, the sun was up.

Did you know that if Cameron doesn't stretch, the sun doesn't shine!? ;)

Therapy....Who's the One who REALLY Needs Therapy?

These last few months have been crazy when it comes to Cameron's out of school therapy. His speech therapy has pretty much stayed the same, but his occupational has gone *coo coo* crazy!!

A few months ago his OT who he's been with for 3+ years informed us that he was no longer taking pediatric patients, he was only going to be treating orthopedic patients. He gave us until the end of the month before he was going to stop seeing Cam. He also told us that he'd do some calling around town to find out who had openings so that we weren't completely on our own. I felt pretty sure we'd find someone who treated Cam as well as Aaron had, and didn't worry too much.

Well, the place Aaron searched out for us was the place I initially called and got him set up for therapies. When I first walked into the building I got the creepiest feeling. I did NOT feel comfortable at all. But I figured the unknown is always uncomfortable. But I soon found out that I should have trusted my gut.

The first therapist Cameron had was WONDERFUL! I had absolutely no problems with her whatsoever! NONE! She was attentive to his needs and made him feel welcome. She really tried to get in on his level and relate to him the way I'd seen Aaron handle him. I was pleased and decided that I would ignore that creepy feeling and continue with this place.

All was well for two weeks. TWO WEEKS! After those two weeks we found out that Jamie (his initial therapist) was no longer working because "she is going to have a baby." When the new therapist, Janet, came out and informed us that Jamie was gone and why, I made some smart-aleck remark about how she was probably miserably sick (under my breath). As soon as I said that Janet turned to me and SNARLED, "WHAT DID YOU SAY!?" I was taken back. Seriously why would you bark at someone like that? Do you not know how to deal with PEOPLE!?

After I overcame my momentary shock I said, "Um, I said that I thought because she's pregnant she's probably miserably sick with it." She just glowered at me! Then she almost instantly flipped to her sweet mode and took Cam to her room to do his therapy.

I was ready to grab him and say, "You THINK you can talk to me like that and then take off with MY child!?" But I was just shocked. Steve was with me and sat there equally shocked.

After we left he and I did some talking. We discovered that we were both creeped out by this place and didn't feel that it was where Cam should be. So I decided RIGHT then that the next time I saw my service coordinator I'd ask for a list of new occupational therapists. I wouldn't take him out of OT instantly, but would take him out once I found a replacement OT.

I told my little story about Janet to whoever would listen, and then told my service coordinator, who instantly told me she'd get me the list as soon as she could.

At her next visit she handed me the list and mentioned that there was a note on the board at her work that said there was a place with OT openings NOW! I asked her to get me the number as soon as she could. She did and I called that place the very next day. (This whole episode with my service coordinator all happened last week.)

After getting in touch with the new place I was told he'd be put on a waiting list for after school, but they were hiring a new therapist and she'd have openings soon. I was satisfied and waited to hear back.

That same day the creepy OT place left us a message (I was out running my nannies off doing errands...) and they informed us that their facility no longer was doing occupational therapy. They were calling to cancel therapy for Cameron permanently.

Can we say, 'RIGHT ON!!'?

The next day (yes, this happened VERY fast!) the new place called and said they had an opening on Monday for Cameron and he'd be paired with Jamie.

I wondered if Jamie was the same person and maybe she'd left the creepy place for the new place....but then I figured, there's LOTS of Jamies in the world.

Yesterday we went to the new place, I filled out the obligatory new patient paperwork and waited for the therapist. Who do you think walked in?? Jamie, the original new therapist he'd seen about a month ago. She was BRAND new at this place and she was the Jamie mentioned on the phone. Unfortunately, the person scheduling the new patients didn't realize that Jamie would be busy filling out the first day of work papers, so Cameron actually doesn't see her.

BUT....

We love this new place. The creepy feeling is LONG gone. Cameron is VERY happy with Lindsay and I'm pleased as well. I'm hoping this OT will last for a LONG time....well, longer than a month or two at the VERY least!

On a silly note, Cameron has been super funny lately. He told me yesterday (a no-school day around here) that he was tired of the weekend. I just laughed. Just wait until you get older buddy....just you wait!

Chubby Baby

Steve took these pictures of the baby tonight....they made me smile!! See them and enjoy!

Wait, You Mean You've Never Heard of Cody?

So I was talking with my friend today about a guy I dated MANY moons ago named Cody. And yes, Cody IS his real name. He was a guy I was dating before I met Steve.

A LONG time ago, in an age where there wasn't so many people meeting on the Internet I was set up on a blind date with a guy. My friend told me how he was SUCH a nice guy and that he was getting ready to go to college so he could be a PE teacher. She told me that she and her boyfriend would double with us, so it wouldn't be so awkward.

When Cody first came to my front door I was in shock. He was a stubby, blond, near-balding, chubby guy. I wasn't expecting him. I later found out that Cody wasn't going to be a PE teacher (BIG surprise!!) He wanted to be an accountant. I kind of liked him (but I think I "liked" him because there was no one else around.) but I remember thinking that I hoped he'd find someone who truly made him happy.

We took walks around the river and I gave him every opportunity to hold my hand, but he didn't. He was just SO shy. (And you all know me....I'm NOT that shy! Hello, can we say, I told you guys all about my boobies??)

For a while I thought that no other prospects would come along, so I convinced myself that I really DID like Cody. When I went away to college, I even bored my new friends with constant talk about him.

One date we went on I really changed my mind about Cody. We were at dinner and for nearly the WHOLE time he stared at my chest. I was mortified that he was SO obsessed with my boobs!

A few weeks later when I was at school, Cody sent me flowers with a note that said that he liked me and he wanted to know if I'd be his girlfriend. I was upset. I had JUST gotten out of my parents' house and wanted to date around before settling for something I wasn't happy with. He ended up visiting me on a day I was having a gall bladder attack. I was basically writhing in pain on my bed, and he just sat there. My friends came and he sat in the chair staring at me.

Finally, when they'd all left I told him I was flattered, but I didn't feel like I could just stay with ONE guy. I felt bad, but I didn't want to be held back.

A few weeks later I ended up going home to vote. I was only in town for 30 minutes, MAYBE! I didn't really call him because I figured I wouldn't be home for very long (which I wasn't) and didn't really feel like I needed to answer to him anyway.

Well, this guy was SO obsessive over me, he ended up bugging my brother at HIS job (which was just down the road from where Cody worked) and my brother told him that I had come home. My brother told me that Cody was SO furious, and since that day I haven't really heard from him.

Sadly, Cody works at my favorite store, and whenever I see him there, I have to make Steve check out alone, or I switch check-out lanes.

It's a sad part of my history, but it's made me who I am. (Not that you really WANTED to know, but now you do!)

Four Little Teeth

I took these pictures last night, before his fourth tooth popped out. Today it BARELY poked it's way out. I think he's still a cutie! Five months old, and FOUR teeth! *sigh*

Happy Boys

Just because I want a happy post first....

I've got such GOOD boys!! <3

Alive? Maybe, but then again....

So this last week was an off week for us. Usually I'm at my mom's house (where I do my online-ing....) but she's had strep throat!! So we kept the boys at home, hoping that they DON'T get what Grandma has.

Then we had some family dramas pop up. It's sad, but I think we're surviving.

I just wish my husband would be happier. He's pretty upset because his mom hasn't answered his phone calls since we went to Arizona at the beginning of August!! She's told someone else in the family that she's not mad at us, but that she thinks WE'RE mad at HER! Wha'!? Um....I've had Steve call his mom every night this week, we've yet to hear from her. In fact, we had to learn yesterday of his aunt's passing from his brother!
I just don't get this immature behavior.....why? JUST ANSWER YOUR DANG PHONE!!!

********

Vent over....I hope...

And as an added bonus, here's the boy's Halloween picture. I hope to get a picture of Jake with his new teeth, but we're still waiting for one to pop out. (When that one comes, he'll have 4!!)

Going Crazy....

Having kids seriously messes with my brain. I swear, I have NO idea who or what is really going on in my life anymore.

Steve is always working and I'm a little tired of being alone at church. I sometimes wonder if people think he's becoming inactive, or whether I'm even married! I miss sitting with him, and tossing my boys his way when I'm fed up! He's such a good helper, and I really miss having him at home! On a happy note though, he will have less Sundays to work. He has been promised 2 Sundays off a month! YAY! He's also nearly finished with his opera....I can't wait to have him all to myself again!

Cameron is a beast-boy! I love him, I really do, but since his birthday he's become rotten! He's highly defiant and is SO strong-willed. He's had issues at school, and we are going to get him tested soon for ADD or ADHD. Really, he's a good guy, but he does have his moments, which seem to last and last and last...

He's also got a new Occupational Therapist who I REALLY don't get along with. The first day she came out to introduce herself to Cameron she mentioned that his other therapist (who I LOVED, but we only had her 2 or 3 times...) was pregnant so she couldn't be his therapist anymore. I mumbled something about since she's pregnant, she's probably super miserable and his new therapist gave me the DIRTIEST look. I was in shock! She then barked at me, "What did you say!?" I told her and then she proceeded to take off with my child. Um, you talk to ME that way and think you can get away with my child?? I don't think so! Because of THIS lady, we're looking for another OT place here in town!

Jake is a joy. Really, he hardly cries, and is so happy. He's just gotten his third tooth and DOES still bite, but it's getting better. The kid has reason to be grumpy, but he's generally smiling and pretty mellow. I'm really spoiled with this kid!

He's working on rolling over from his back. He still hasn't quite mastered rolling from his tummy, but it's coming. I have a feeling that once this kid gets mobile, I won't be able to catch him.
He's also SUCH a talker. He babbles almost all the time. He'll babble around the binkie in his mouth, which makes it look like he's got a cigar hanging out the side of his mouth. It makes me laugh to see him do that.

And me? Well, I'm just doing what I can to keep up. I wake up stressing in the middle of the night sometimes, but really, I shouldn't worry at 4 am. There's nothing I can do about it then....but I'm such a worrier.

Being sick this last week really was HARD. I don't know how mommies to more than 2 kids do it. I just wanted to sleep, but I had to get up and clean, do laundry, cook....just be the mom. It was hard, but I did it. I'm just glad that I'm getting over the worst of it. I will be SO excited when I can breathe through both my nostrils and I have a clear throat. I will also be happy to not sweat so profusely at night.

And then there's the family dramas in my life. Why can't things just be easy? My cousin is really struggling with her boyfriend's death, and so is my other cousin. Then my mother-in-law hasn't communicated with us since the beginning of August, and we thought it was something we did, she's been thinking it was something she did. I don't know what's going on, but the phone lines are crossed somewhere.

Things WILL get better, I'm certain, but until then....*blublbublbulbublublbublublub*

Happy Halloween!!

From the box of popcorn and the dalmation puppy!

Shock

My Gramma Sue just came to my mom's house to update us on the family drama.

My cousin's boyfriend, her baby's dad, died today. He was only 20! He's been involved in fights with his brother and had broken several bones and was in severe pain. From what I understand he overdosed on hydrocodone. He was living in my aunt's basement.

My poor cousin and her baby. I feel SO bad for them.

Why do the young have to be so headstrong and stupid? I know I could easily fall into the "stupid" category, but I like to think that I've learned a FEW things in the last several years.

I'm just in shock!

Who Is In Charge?

We have a DVD/VCR in our bedroom that I use as my personal clock. (Yes, we have an alarm clock, but it's on Steve's side of the bed, and I have stopped waking HIM up to find out what time it is in the middle of the night. I think he appreciates it!) Anyway, yesterday morning I woke up to kind of a bleary day. I wasn't sure what time it was, so I looked at my trusty clock. It read 6:55. I was happy, because it felt a little later than that, and I could sleep some more!

About 20 minutes later I woke up, and it was a little brighter, so I checked my other trusty time-telling device, my watch. It said it was 8:15!!

How could it be nearly 7:00, and then 20 minutes later be 8:15?? Well, thanks to new technology, my DVD/VCR has an automatic daylight savings time changer. But.....but......

I just want to know who is in charge of daylight savings time? Who decides when it happens?? I mean, just a few years ago you KNEW daylight savings time would happen between the first Sunday in April and the last Sunday in October. But last year, someone (probably the person in charge) decided that we needed more daylight hours, so he (or she) changed it from one of the last Sundays in March to the first Sunday in November. No one told my DVD player, so it faithfully changes on the first Sunday in April and the last Sunday in October....which means I have to manually change it back!

I just want to know who I can complain to. I don't mind daylight savings time, in fact, during the summer, it's kinda nice. I do mind that they changed the regularity of the time we change it. Who decided this? When I find out who it is, I'm planning on complaining. I think it's probably too late to complain about this for next year. So my next thought was, when I complain, how soon will the change go into effect? (Seeing how I'm SOOOOOO influential! ;) ) Why can't they fix things so they're the SAME as they've always been? Or if they're going to change it, why don't they just do away with it all together?

I was wondering about who is in charge. Is there some big "Daylight Savings Time Group?" Or is someone else in charge, like some guy who lives in Greenwich, England? Does our President have a say in whether we change time or not? Why doesn't Arizona even participate?? The poopers!

So many questions, and no answers. So I'm throwing it out to cyber-space.

WHO'S IN CHARGE!?

Life On Fast Forward

It seems like it was just yesterday that I was a newlywed with very few cares in the world besides spending time with my hunky hubby. Time's passage has changed some things though.

Now I'm a busy mom to two super cute, super busy little boys. They've been growing like little weeds and I'm always in awe. I swear it was just yesterday that Cam was a little baby in my arms, and now I can't keep him still to save my own life. He's constantly on the move. I swear that he's got either ADD or ADHD, but we've yet to get him tested. (I just looked into the testing aspect of it, and sheesh, it's a LONG stinkin' process....paperwork, waiting.....) He's in second grade and does all sorts of activities including his therapies. Who has TIME for sports or dance classes? Certainly not us!

And Jacob?? Well, he's a big kid, who, if he's not sleeping, is babbling up a storm. Sometimes he gets SUPER vocal and will scream out. He's even learned to "woobie" (what other people call raspberries or zberts.) I'm constantly looking at this little boy who used to snuggle his mommy and now is always looking around for some sort of entertainment. He still looks like a little baby, but is looking more and more like a little boy from day to day.

I know that I'm on the verge of hitting the next big decade mark, but at the same time I only feel like I'm 20 or 21 at the MOST. I remember thinking, when I was younger, that I didn't want time to move so slowly, I'd even pray that time would move quickly to the next week so I could do something fun. Days just dragged by at that time. Now I count most of my time in weeks. "Last week was (fill in the blank) and next week is (fill in the blank)."

Really, time's moving SO fast, I just wish I could pause time and thoroughly enjoy these moments....I do realize that when I'm feeling a little crazy and overwhelmed I will wish for these times again. I just need to find the little happy times and savor them for the few nano-seconds that I have.

Crazy Cameron

Since Sunday, Cameron has been a nightmare!

On Sunday I had to spend his class time in his class, sitting between him and his friend. It didn't really help....or, at least I don't think it helped.

Then Wednesday when we got back from Salt Lake, he threw a MAJOR tantrum. He told me during the course of his fit that he "hated" me. Honestly, it hurt a little, but I know he was saying it to get to me.

Then yesterday, his first day back to school since going to Salt Lake, he was a terror. His teacher called us and asked us if he didn't take his meds (he's not ON any meds) or if we knew what was going on. I was SO frustrated with the kid I literally went into his bedroom and took away EVERY toy that he has. I told him that if he wants toys back, he has to earn them with appropriate behavior. Since the loss of his toys, he's been MUCH better.

We were at our wits end with him though, so today we had a meeting with his teacher to come up with some solutions to the problem. We've decided to make our expectations of him clear and specific. His teacher recommended working on one or two rules at a time. Let everything else go to pot, but work hard to get those two rules working for us. She also recommended getting him rewards for appropriate behavior and limiting "time outs" to when he's calmed down and ready to behave, not sticking to a time limit.

We'll work with these for a while, and hope they work. I'm also going to be calling his pediatrician this week and see if we can get the kid tested for ADHD. His geneticist said that kids with his form of NF1 usually have ADHD, and it couldn't hurt to get him tested. I'm pretty sure he's got it, I mean, Jake has a longer attention span than Cam! I just hope we can get these behavior things figured out soon!

Salt Lake Again....

Our yearly trip to Salt Lake for Cameron's genetics appointments is OVER! YAY!! So far, he's fine. We wait to get the results from the MRI, but I'm sure he's okay!

We left town Monday evening-ish. We had originally planned on leaving town as SOON as Cameron got out of school, but my grandpa (my dad's dad....) had fallen that morning. Grandma Sue wasn't sure what had happened at first and called my parents' house to get help lifting him up. They think he had a stroke (or a series of mini-strokes) and he was in the hospital until today. Monday was spent getting family notified and spending time with Grandpa in the hospital.

We didn't get into Salt Lake until WAY late, and we were worn out. (I went with my mom...the usual helper....and my uncle along with my boys.) We checked into the hotel that I had previously made arrangements for, and went to our room. It was ALL wrong!! This place has two kinds of suites, studio suites (with ONE queen sized bed) or a town-house (with two bedrooms.) I went to the office to get things fixed (which they did QUICKLY, sign of a good business!) and then we crashed for the night.

Tuesday we mostly stayed in Primary Children's Hospital doing tests. Cameron was fine, for the most part. He did his obligatory whine/tantrum in the ophthalmologist's office. (It took me and a nurse holding him down to get the OTHER nurse a chance to get the drops in his eyes for dilating.) Thankfully, no new symptoms to report. *Hallelujah!* We did go and do another back x-ray for his research study he's apart of, and he got $50 worth of gift cards for his participation. (He feels SO rich!)

Then we decided to visit my grandpa (mom's dad) who lives with my uncle. I'm not quite sure what I think of his living situation right now. He seems content, but then again, I'm pretty sure he'd be content where ever he lived. (This grandpa is the one who has dementia. He doesn't even remember that his wife died half the time.) He lives in a teeny corner of a large bedroom of my uncle's house. I really don't want to say that it wasn't fun, because I LOVE LOVE LOVE my aunt, uncle and cousins, but their house is so jam packed full of THINGS that there isn't much room for my grandpa and all of HIS things. I'm a bit conflicted over my feelings with this situation. Stay tuned....

We actually went out to dinner with my grandpa and my other aunt's family. We laughed and had a great time. Grandpa seemed pretty with himself at times, but at other times he was questioning everything. Every time he sees Jake he thinks it's a new baby that he's never seen before.

After dinner we went back my uncle's house and watched some OLD home videos. The video was nearly 20 years old!! I just laughed!! Then we went back to the hotel and crashed again.

This morning we woke up WAY early and took Cam for his MRI. (He gets an MRI to monitor some plexiform neurofibromas that are growing on his spine.) Because my son is a wiggle-butt, he has to be sedated. Usually he has grandma hold him for his IV and take him back to the room. This time, Grandma stayed with my uncle Aaron and Jake while I went back with Cam. He was freaked out the whole time....worrying about the poke for the IV. When the time finally came, he was a WRECK! He screamed over and over that he wanted Grandma, but he was stuck with me. After taking him back to the room where they gave him the sleepy medicine, I went out to the waiting room and....well, waited.

After 45 minutes, a nurse came out and said that Cam was waking up early. I went back to recovery (where they only allow ONE adult per child) and saw him flailing on the bed and moaning. I tried to console him, but it wasn't happening. During the MRI Cameron started waking up early, so they gave him some extra medicine that really made him loopy. He couldn't control his mouth to even form words. The poor guy was a miserable mess, and was so hard to keep under control. After a while of trying to comfort the boy, the nurse said that if we could get him to a place where he could sleep comfortably, he'd stop being so cranky and she decided to discharge him. (He was only in the hospital for 2 hours!) We did the discharge and left as quickly as we could.

Overall it was a busy trip, but it wasn't as bad as it could have been. I'm just glad to be home!

Here's a few interesting pictures.

This one is my dad's dad (the one who had the stroke) on Saturday. He had very little feeling on his left side of his body. (The doctors didn't find any blockages, so they're not exactly sure what happened to him.)

This one is my mom's dad at my uncle's house.

Baptism Boy

Cam did it. He was baptized, even though it took two times and some screaming! :P He was a little freaked out by the whole water thing, so he cried. On the way home afterward, he asked me why everyone was laughing. I told him it was because he was being funny. Poor guy!

Here's a few pictures of his wonderful day.