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.

Two More Things

Steve and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary yesterday. We didn't have a lot of money, so we did simple things. I went to Walmart and got Steve one of his favorite treats (gummy worms) then I went to his work while he was busy and decorated the windows of his car with hearts and kissy lips. I wrote "I love you" on the back window and "love you" inside some of the hearts on the windows. I stuck the gummy worms on the driver's seat, and then I left. I didn't stick around too long, because I wanted it to be a surprise, but I was so sad I couldn't see his reaction. He took the garbage out at work, walking by the car, but didn't even notice it. He finally DID notice when he was getting ready to come home. He was pleasantly surprised.

He came home bearing 3 carnations and an original poem that he wrote. The poem was so sweet, and the carnations were so yummy smelling and pretty! :)

Then that night we used some gift cards to eat at a restaurant (which we weren't all that impressed with, that's why I'm not putting up the name) and rented a movie (which we had a free coupon for.) We did end up going over our amount for the gift card at the restaurant, so in total we spent $20. I think we did pretty good!

Tomorrow Cameron will be getting baptized. He's SO excited!! We were kind of worried that he wouldn't pass the interview (earlier this year when we asked him what the Word of Wisdom was, he said it's when you get smart...) but he did! I can't believe my little boy is making such a HUGE step! I'm so proud of him! :)

Of Big Kids and Biting

My baby is HUGE!! Okay, so we weighed him on a scale a few weeks ago and according to that scale he was 17 1/2 pounds, but it only measured by the 1/2 pound. Yesterday we had Cameron's annual physical and Jake's 4 month appointment. Cameron weighs 59 pounds (which is pretty average.) and Jake is 17 pounds 10 ounces. Really, I shouldn't have been surprised, but I kinda am.

I do have a major problem with Jake though. He bites, and he bites HARD!! He's only got 2 teeth, but they are sharp little buggers! I've yelped many times in the last week, and I still can't get him to not bite. I asked the doctor what he suggested, and all he said was pump and give it to him in a bottle. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! The whole reason I nursed this kid was so I wouldn't have to DEAL with bottles! He also suggested I use a nipple shield. He told me that at Jake's age, kids don't understand the concept of causes and effects.

I'm almost at my wits end. I've tried pulling out and telling him no, but then he laughs at me. I've tried shoving his little face into my boob, but that just releases his bite. I've tried flicking him when he bites, but then I feel like I'm a rotten mommy! I've been nursing him with my fingers right by the nipple, ready to stick my finger in his mouth if he DOES bite. Oh, and I did try the nipple shield, but even WITH the protection, the kid's bite STILL hurt like heck!!

I'm not ready to give up, but I'm up for any and all advice to teach him not to bite. I really want to get him taught BEFORE the top teeth come in (I can see them starting to come down!) HELP!! I'm not quite ready to give up on nursing, and I certainly don't want to pump everytime he needs to eat.....any tips?? Anyone!?

Birthday Boy

Cameron is now EIGHT!! I don't know where the years have gone!!

We spent the day watching General Conference with my parents. We hauled the cake and his presents over to their house to open after the first session. I warned Cam that this year his presents would be super boring, but he didn't care....they were wrapped in SpongeBob wrapping paper! :P

We gave him two new church shirts with ties, a new set of scriptures with his name on them, and a scripture bag. (See, we're SO boring!) But grandma....well, grandma SPOILS my boys! She bought him new shoes and a watch the night before and then gave him TWO new remote controlled race cars! He was in HOG heaven! He kept begging to go outside to race the cars. And we let him!

That morning I woke up and grabbed the cake. (The cake that I spent a half hour decorating the night before....) and noticed two little finger prints IN the frosting!! UGH! But after showing my mom, dad AND brother, they all said that it reminded them of a girl LONG ago! I deny ANY resemblance!! I dug out the middle of the pies, NOT cakes!! :P

Now our next hurdle will be his baptism this week. The boy has been inviting every person he knows or even sees to come see it. I'm so proud of my little missionary! :)

Two Teeth

The other night Jake was SCREAMING. His little gums had blistered up and his teeth were about to pop out. (I was talking with my brother who's in the Philippines.) The next night, at 9:30 one little tooth made it's appearance. I was helping him out by rubbing his gums an hour later when I felt the OTHER one pop out. An HOUR later!! The poor kid now has two little teeth. You can't quite see them yet, but I can REALLY feel them! He likes to bite, and I've had to push his little face into my boob to get him to release his latch. If it hurts this bad now, what's it going to do when he gets those TOP teefies??

He's still pretty miserable. But I'm sure it's because he's had quite a traumatic week. (That, and I think he's still getting more teeth!)

Yup, that's my boy....two teeth before he turns 4 months old!!

It's Coming...

Party season is here. Thankfully, he's only asked for one person to sleep over. (PHEW!) Cam will be turning EIGHT on Sunday! I can't believe it's already been 8 years! I remember when he was Jake's age!! Time just seems to fly!

Tonight we're having a sleep-over party and I hope I'll survive it. I will let you know how it goes!

On another quick little note, my baby brother is now in the Philippines. He was able to call the night he flew out. I stayed at my mom's house to talk with him WELL past midnight. He's doing well and is SO excited to get his mission underway!