A Heart Mom

To Blog or Forget to Blog...

2010-01-10T19:25:00.000-08:00

So I am realizing that it is hard to keep up with this blog! Perhaps if I wasn't on Facebook so much connecting with people, playing all the Zynga games and working, taking care of the family and It's My Heart I might do better at it. Ah, I know, it's Facebook's fault. It's so addicting!

Our family is doing well. The holidays were great and it feels like they are finally over. A few ornaments here and around the house from the kids taking them off the tree but mostly it is over.

Our Run/Walk is fast approaching which is both exciting and nerve racking. It is crunch time now but the registrants are starting to pick up. I hope that we get some sponsors soon! I am excited that Corrie and Lauren from National will be here for it.

We are getting over the stomach flu in our house and in good timing too since tomorrow the boys start a new daycare called The Learning Tree which is at Hope Lutheran Church. It is VERY close to home and work so that will be a nice change. I think it is going to be a great place for them. They teach sign language at every age and Spanish. Soon they will be talking to us and we will have NO idea what they are saying!!

Kirsten will be home for a couple of weeks next month. She will be here for Ben's 2nd birthday and the run/walk. We will also get to catch the new Johnny Depp movie before she leaves too!! Alice in Wonderland!! Plus she says she likes some sushi now so I know what our last night together will be!

Sean would like to come out for Spring Break so we are working on that plan right now. Sean is a full time college student now!

Nate is back working the Electrician job which is great. He is still at Whole Foods where he will continue to work at least until the summer.

My work is going good and I haven't had anymore surgeries so I haven't missed that much work!

AHA Walk

2009-09-27T00:42:00.000-07:00

Today we participated in the American Heart Association Walk. It was so warm today which made for a sweaty 2 mile walk! My knee held up although I am sore pretty much all over right now. I'm so out of shape...
For over 1 mile of the walk we carried Ben but then grabbed the stroller once we made it back around to where we had left it.
There were a lot of walkers and runners and we were a team of 11 for It's My Heart Fresno. At least now I have some idea of how a walk works and won't be completely in the dark for our walk in February.
I've decided it will only be a 1/4 mile walk...LOL!!

Fun at the Coast

2009-09-11T21:27:00.000-07:00

We had a fun time visiting Amber and family this past weekend. The boys are little beach bums!

Superboys!

2009-08-30T21:00:00.000-07:00

Well Target finally got the cape jammies back in!

Another Year

2009-08-25T12:27:00.000-07:00

Ben has been cleared for another year with the Cardiologist! :) Of course he always says the same thing; that he will need surgery someday and to watch for signd of heart failure because there are no guarantees. His Mitral Valve leak is moderate which is the same as last year he said although it was referred to as mild last time so that part took me by surprise. Either way he is growing well, eating great and showing no signs of needing surgery right now!

My recovery has gone well from my surgery. Still a bit sore but really doing better than I expected. Word of advice to myself: Don't let Gabriel yank on your arm and start pulling you. Now my left side feels like something is pulling at times just like my right. Only worse...

My Dad came to visit a couple weeks ago and it was great to see him and Debbie. Although their visit was cut short when my Dad became ill and ended up in the hospital after they got home! He ended up needing his gall bladder removed!?!
He spent several days in the hospital and even had the thrill of having a drainage tube just like I did. What a copy cat!!!

I will post more...I just got word that a friend is coming over. Time to put on the fake house. ;)

Goodbye

2009-08-11T21:48:00.000-07:00

Kirsten left to go back up to Washington so of course I had to take some more pictures of her! I really like this one. :)

My Poor Neglected Blog

2009-07-27T07:34:00.000-07:00

I really should rename this blog to the title of this post. Once again a lot has happened but most recently I had surgery for a total hysterectomy with a free tummy tuck. I just had it done last Wednesday so I still slow going. This is a much bigger scar than with a C-Section that's for sure! I have stopped taking the narcotics because I just don't feel good on them. I have switched to a couple Tylenol every few hours instead. So far so good. It's a little harder to move around but it feels better. I am stil quite sleepy throughout the day. I am off work (again) until mid September with this surgery.

Kirsten is here for her summer visit. She arrived July 1st and leaves on August 11th. It is so good to see her. She is so beautiful. :) She spends most of her time on the computer. Luckily I have borrowed a laptop for my stay home! The boys love having her home just as we do.

Sean will be here a week after Kirsten goes home. I tried to have their visits overlap but Sean is not done with school until the week Kirsten goes back. My Dad will be here next week for a few days for a visit. He is in for the heat of Fresno!!

The boys are doing good and growing so fast. Ben has a Cardiology appt next month but is doing great right now. Nate is still working two jobs and can't wait to wean down to one. Maybe after the holidays...

The B.O. Episode of Seinfeld

2009-05-23T12:46:00.000-07:00

Have you ever seen the episode where Jerry has a valet park his car and when he picks it up later the car smells of B.O. and no matter how many car details he has done the smell just won't leave?

Well today I came out to my car to put Ben in to leave for work. I opened the door and was nearly knocked out by an odor. Not B.O. thankfully but an odor I can only best describe as sour juice and feet. I do a quick scan for leaking sippy cups and do not find any. Unfortunately we had to leave so I eventually got both kids in the car and we headed to daycare with the windows rolled down. The windows rolled down you would have thought would help. I guess so a little bit but the smell was not going away and I believe it was gaining force. By the time we got within blocks of daycare I was gagging.

After I dropped them off I did another quick scan for things that shouldn't be but did not find anything. After I arrived at work I kept the windows down and figured I would tackle this on my break.

On break I took a trash bag and threw out trash and went through everything. I have no idea what is stinky. I even scanned the engine for a dead rodent even though that is not the smell I don't think. Well unless the rodent had been bathing in some sort of sour liquid and then rubbed up against some sweaty man feet. Ugh.
Needless to say I have failed in finding the source. I had to spray with Febreeze and hope for the best.

It is now four days later and you can still faintly smell it. I imagine that after so many days most things would not smell as much as before but it is driving me nuts not knowing what it is/was!

At least the smell is not in my hair...

Three Year Olds Shouldn't Have This Much To Say

2009-05-23T12:39:00.000-07:00

It's 8:30am and Gabriel wakes up and immediately lets the dog in. From that moment on Gabriel does not stop talking. Why does he have so much to say? I mean I love the fact that he talks and blows me away with laughter at some of the things coming out of his cute little mouth. But how can he talk so much? I can barely get a word in edgewise. I find this funny and frustrating all at the same time. He also says everything in three's. Perhaps that is because he is three. I dunno. Does this mean next year he will say things four times? Even if you respond to him right away he will still repeat himself. I think he knows what he's doing...trying to break me from the start of the day.
God love 'em.

One Year Ago Today...

2009-05-20T21:31:00.000-07:00

Our baby boy Benjamin had open heart surgery for AVSD and PDA at Children's Hospital Central California. It was an experience to say the least but today Ben is a wonderfully plump growing boy with just about the best demeanor in the whole world!!
We love you Ben!!

Things To Do

2009-05-16T22:21:00.000-07:00

The list is so long. I feel like I will never have my head above water for quite sometime.

Here is my list:

Pull weeds

Plant the shrubs

Organize the garage

Finish odds and ends in the boys' room

Unpack completely

mop the floors

Organize the spare room/IMH office

Complete what is needed to stay IRS compliant for IMH

lose weight (just thought I'd throw that in)

Make the care packages needed for Children's Hospital that were requested

Keep bugging my ex about needing final dates for Kirsten to come out in July

Buy a fireproof safe or figure out where to keep important documents now that we're homeowners

Decide if I'm ever going to use all this tupperware

Clean the inside of my car

Figure how to get the dog to stop excreting in the house

Take the dog to get her overdue shot

Grizzlie Game

2009-05-15T21:59:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, May 14th with work we had Employee Appreciation Night and we went to a Grizzlies game. It was such nice weather considering just days before it was 106 degrees. It was probably in the low 90's but breezy. It was great. We could bring guests so Nate and I brought Gpa Gabe. Everybody got a kick out him and his comments. :)

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T13:53:00.000-07:00

Nate cooked me breakfast this morning. :) Pancakes, bacon, eggs and fresh fruit. Yummy. Unfortunately the boys are fighting fevers. Gabriel was down yesterday but feeling nearly 100% today but Ben is fighting it today. We had to cancel going to Yoshino's for lunch with Nate's family. We won't be making it to see my Mom either. Or Odie...happy birthday!
Nate started work at 1:30pm today and won't be home until probably 10:30pm tonight. The second half of the day is just a regular old day. I am getting my hair done tomorrow after work though! Yay!

Happy Mother's Day to all-

The 3rd Bday Party

2009-05-02T17:55:00.000-07:00

I Can't Believe It

2009-04-30T20:55:00.000-07:00

Gabriel turns 3 years old tomorrow!!
Unbelievable...
Saturday we will have his bday party and there will be lots of family and friends celebrating his birthday. :) He is growing up FAST!
Mama loves you Gabriel!

Fresno Baby Fest

2009-04-26T22:06:00.001-07:00

Peg and I had an It's My Heart info booth at the 2009 Fresno Baby Fest this year. It was a nice day. There were not as many vendors and attendees by far this year but we did meet a couple of heart moms and we did get our name out there! :)

All Moved Out But Not All The Way In!

2009-04-25T15:26:00.000-07:00

We're so tired. So so tired. Now I know why we haven't moved in ten years! We are all out of the rental and we gave the keys back last week. It was kinda sad really.
The new house is getting more unpacked everyday. It looks like we're done until you go into the garage...
We have to get a lot done this week since Gabriel's bday party is in one week! Nate got most of the stuff on the patio put in the garage but tomorrow will be spent organizing it. It doesn't look like either of us will be able to park in the garage. We have too much stuff! Even if we give more away it will be tight. The garage is much smaller than the last house. Thankfully we have a storage shed but of course I don't want my Halloween or Xmas stuff in there! What if it got wet?!?!?! lol

If Ben Was A Girl

2009-04-21T15:33:00.000-07:00

This is what he would have looked like all the time! I picked the kids up from daycare today and Angela had put his hair in pig tails to keep his hair out of his face since it was so hot outside and then he napped with them in and this is what he looked like when she took them out and I picked him up!

It Would Have Been Nice

2009-04-03T15:37:00.000-07:00

If the Title company had done their job and escrow closed on 4/2/09 like it should have and we would have our keys today!!!!!!
Now our plans are shot. We had 10 people lined up to help tomorrow...
GRRRRR
Now we will be moving on Easter weekend and only a couple people can help. On a brighter side we can clean and bug spray before we get in.
But still!!!!! GRRRRRRRR

Meet Wubbzy

2009-03-30T20:09:00.000-07:00

Here is our first dog, Wubbzy!
She is over a year old and a Terrier Mix that we adopted from the SPCA.
She is doing really good with the kids and vice versa. She is very attached
to me but that may be because I was the one that brought her home! :)

The surgery

2009-03-23T21:54:00.001-07:00

Wow. I never expected to really have knee surgery. And then I never expected it to hurt so bad. The first two days were brutal! Each day got better and better and now I am able to walk for awhile without crutches but get quite tired quickly and then some pain starts in. I return back to work Monday after being gone since March 10th!
And I thought I could go a year without needing time off for a surgery! Ha!
Thanks goodness I work for a great company and family. :)

Goofy Kids

2009-03-23T21:47:00.000-07:00

What personalities these boys have! Ben has been doing this with his bottle caps lately and Gabriel loves to give himself "boobs". A trick sissy taught him long ago!

Our New House!

2009-03-09T21:59:00.000-07:00

Moving day isn't until April 4th but here are some pics!! I can't believe we are all grown up and in great debt! No more wasting money on rent though!
The house is less than a mile from where we currently live so moving won't be too bad. We are about 80% packed and have lots of friends/family that can help us.
The house has a living and family room, two bathrooms and three bedrooms. It's much bigger than our rental. Our landlord is so bummed that we are leaving! This May we would have been here for 10 years!

It Has Been Awhile

2009-03-07T20:49:00.000-08:00

I guess I'm not doing so well keeping this blog up! A lot has happened since January...Kirsten came home to visit last month for a week and it flew by SO fast, we bought a house and we move in at the end of this month, I tore my Meniscus in my knee and I have surgery this coming Wednesday, Ben turned one year old on Feb 21already, Nate turned the big 31 at the end of January, our computer crashed and I lost a couple months worth of pictures and I'm sure quite a few other things but those are the biggest!

Ben's Bday and Kirsten's Visit

2009-02-23T22:10:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe that Ben is already a year old. It seems like yesterday that he was born and only a few months since his heart surgery. Crazy how time goes by so fast.
Kirsten flew down for the week and we had a nice visit. I worked nearly the entire time but it was great having her home. We look forward to when she and Sean can come out together!
Ben's party was great. Lots of family and friends came and he liked his cake!

Extreme Home Makeover

2009-01-18T21:23:00.000-08:00

Move that bus!!

Look who was only a few minutes away from our house! Last week the Riojas family was given a brand new home. A very deserving family! I went down two of the days on my lunch hour. It is amazing how fast this gets done and how many people gave their time.

Happy Bday Rahmi!

2008-12-28T18:30:00.000-08:00

Wow our friend's son is already four years old!
Today we celebrated at Blackbeard's for his party. It's always a fun time. Gabriel loves going on the rides and one day Ben will too. Gabriel was disappointed that he couldn't go on the roller coaster again this year. Two more inches to go!
Happy Birthday Rahmi!

Christmas 2008

2008-12-27T11:37:00.001-08:00

How quickly it came and went! The boys got way too much stuff as expected. :)

Five More Days

2008-12-20T11:43:00.000-08:00

Wow I can't believe how quick Christmas got here! All of our shopping is done. We are not getting too many gifts for everyone this year adult wise. I mailed off Sean and Kirsten's presents yesterday and they should get them by Wednesday. Just in time. Shew!
I'm going to try to start wrapping presents today. The boys' at least. I am still waiting on the calendars to come in for the Grandparents. Christmas Eve we are going to Amber's since she works all day on Chrsitmas. Peg works until the evening of the Eve. We will be staying at home that night to sleep. I can't wait to see Gabriel's face after Santa comes!
Daycare had their Christmas party yesterday and I hope Angela posts some pics. She had Santa there. Last week she had to Zoomobile come and Gabriel pet a snake and got to see a hedgehog, parrot, ferret, tarantula, centipede and some bones and antlers.
Now daycare is on vacation so Mom will be helping with the boys for a few days. I only work two days next week and three the week after. Woohoo!

Baby it's Cold Outside

2008-12-13T23:10:00.000-08:00

Well, for Fresno that is! We are in for some rain the next couple of days and the snow level is supposed to be 1500 feet or below and lows of 30 degrees on Monday. Now I know there are other parts of the country that would laugh at that but for us it's cold! At least it makes it seem like Christmas is coming.
I received my Walmart giftcards from work the other night at the company holiday party and yesterday bought Gabriel's/Ben's gifts. We are very tight on money. More so than expected. Nate and I are not getting each other anything at all this year and everyone else is getting a small gift or just a calendar of pictures of our family. I think I'll pull off some tins of treats since I am taking off Christmas Eve now. Daycare is closed that day (for two weeks actually) so I'll see what I can accomplish home with the boys!
I have a few items to send up to Sean and Kirsten and I wish we had more. I hope they understand. I'm sure they will get good gifts up there. I sure miss them and can't believe we won't be seeing them at all for the Holidays.
We had our work party the other night and once again I pick one of, if not THE crappiest white elephant gift. I got big undies and a santa hat. I give up. Maybe I won't even bring a gift next year. The meal was great and I think it was a hit. The raffle always is. I didn't win anything this year. Last year I did. They played a great slideshow of Jeff's life in pictures. Made me cry. I miss him.
Nate was in school this week with the Electrician's program and finished his first semester with a 93%!! Yay! Second highest in the class. Now he starts homework for the next semester. It never ends for five years. He doesn't get paid while at school so that is another contributing factor to the low Xmas funds. If he didn't have the other job at Whole Foods he would be able to get unemployment. They didn't even schedule him at the store at all during the week. Ugh. On the plus side it's nice to have him home! :)
I feel proud today because I helped It's My Heart connect with a woman in Columbus Ohio and she is starting a chapter there! I met her online and asked if she would be interested and today Corrie announced it's official!
Peg starts a new position at Children's hospital next month as a case manager and she will be sharing an office with Tim, the Social Worker for the Cardiology department!! How greatis that? He is who we give all of the comfort bags and care packages to.
We started selling coupon books and they are wonderful. Great deals and our chapter keeps 40% of the sales. We also finally received the SaveMart SHARES cards and I have handed out 70 of them already! Everytime you shop and swipe the card our chapter gets 3% of the sale. It's an ongoing fundraiser and I have already ordered 200 more cards. I didn't expect to hand out so many so soon!!
Earlier this month we walked Christmas Tree Lane as we do every year now and Gabriel just loved it. Gpa Gabe even went and took the scooter. He was so tickled that Gabriel held his hand while walking. We have since driven it too. Gabriel just loves lights. In fact tonight on our way home from visiting Gpa we drove around looking at houses for nearly an hour.
I hope everyone i having a safe month and plans for a relaxing holiday. Until next time...

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-29T05:11:00.000-08:00

Another turkey has come and gone. It's a very tiring day but all worth it off course! I made dinner for us and the Richards and we have lots of leftovers which is just how we like it. :) I should have taken a picture of all the food. I actually made less than last year surprisingly. Here was the menu:

Parmesan crusted creamed corn
Praline sweet potatoes
Creamy mashed potatoes
Bacon, apple and carmelized onion stuffing
Spiral Ham
Rosemary garlic turkey
Rolls
Deviled eggs
Assorted cheese

Mmmm. I was thinking about it at this time yesterday morning and couldn't wait to have leftovers!

CHD Lobby Day

2008-11-23T00:12:00.000-08:00

I hope to be able to go to the CHD Lobby Day in Washington D.C. February 10, 2009 with other fellow CHD families and It's My Heart!! I have been told there is an airline that is offering free tickets. I am hoping to learn more about that tomorrow. :)

We had a great time in Texas for the IMH retreat. It was really tiring though I must say! I can't wait for next year's retreat. Although I only had just met other chapter officers I left feeling as though I had known them forever. I also got to know a Rock Wall pretty well too. I still have the bruises to prove it!! Ouch!!

We are working on some exciting fundraisers for next year and I know that IMH Fresno will be a success before long and helping to support so many families and advocate for CHD.

The boys are doing well. Fighting a cold but nothing too major. Ben's poor little head is so bruised because when he wants something (us) and we don't immediately respond, and I mean immediatel, he bangs his head on the floor. Repeatedly. It's crazy. Sometimes he'll hit a toy, a baseboard, an armoire...you name it!
See what happens when they get mobile?

Sean and Kirsten are doing well. I message Kirsten a couple times a week. I try not to do it too often since it's probably not that cool to IM your Mom all the time. Haha. Sean is hard to catch online and his phone is ALWAYS turned off. I usually have to ask Kirsten how he is!

We'll Miss you Gma

2008-11-16T20:21:00.000-08:00

Gma Jean passed away this morning peacefully. She was 79 years old. We love you Gma.

Gma Jean

2008-11-15T20:04:00.000-08:00

Gma Jean had a stroke on Halloween night and it has been an emotional few weeks. She is currently in a Hospice home on DNR. The past day she has not awakened at all. Last Saturday the doctor gave her 1-2 weeks to live. I don't think it will be much longer honestly. It is breaking Gpa's heart naturally. They love each other so much. This has put a strain on his and Tina/Glen's relationship as well as my Mom and Tina/Glen. I know this is not what anybody wants especially Gma.
Gma has lived a great life and I love her deeply. Nate and I took the boys a few days ago to see her. She wasn't too responsive that day but did open her eyes at times. She didn't speak at all. I know she knew the boys were there. :)

So Much Has Happened

2008-10-24T19:19:00.000-07:00

Kirsten left on October 13th for her Dad's. It was so hard to see her go. We did enjoy a meal and some laughs before she had to board the plane though. I miss her. I miss Sean. Man they sure grew up fast.

Last weekend It's My Heart had a booth at the ZooBoo Friday and Saturday night. It was neat to see all the dressed up kids. The second night was much busier than the first night. Gabriel came out for a couple of hours and loved it! He has trick-or-treating down pat. Well, he doesn't say trick-or-treat but he always says thank you! He was dressed up as Frankenstein. So cute! Ben stayed at Mom's both nights and I'm sure got spoiled. :)

This week I wasn't feeling all that great for a couple of days including a headache last night and today. Feeling like I'm coming around though. Just sleepy.
Tomorrow I am throwing a fresnomommies Halloween party at Mom's clubhouse. It should be a big turnout! around 75 people is expected! Thank goodness it's a potluck. My friend Lisa and a co-worker and fellow Halloween finatic, Ricky, from work will both be helping decorate in the morning. The party is from 4-6pm. Gabriel is going to be Buzz Lightyear and Ben will be a dinosaur I think. (he has 3 outfits to choose from)

Sunday we go to Church in the morning and then the boys will go to Gma Peg's afterwards and nap. I will be going home and gathering some decorations and heading back to Church to help with the Harvest Festival. Lisa and I will be decorating the van with the theme "Spider's Lair". Gma Peg will bring the boys in the evening to the festival. They will be Frankenstein and Dracula. Too cute! I will wear a black gown and have spiders all over me I think. I'm also supposed to bring a cake for the cake walk. I haven't figured out when I'm going to get that made yet. Maybe Saturday night I'll bake it and Sunday morning I'll decorate it.
Busy Busy!

Ben had his Cardiologist appointment this past Tuesday and all is going good and he doesn't have to go back until he's 18 months old! Yay!!

Nate is doing good. He was kinda bored at work this week. He had to cover at the shop for a guy that went on vacation so he wasn't outside working. He was inside cleaning and organizing a warehouse! Now he has the boss there and the foreman at the job site fighting to each keep him!! Nate does great work and is so productive. He is doing so well. He is going to work at Whole Foods longer than we had hoped now though. At least through June. He was going to quit after Christmas but we will need the money since I need to send money up to Washington for Kirsten. And can you believe after 9 years our Landlord called yesterday and is going to raise the rent $125 per month starting in December?!?! Crazy timing. This house is still a steal though and we have no plans on leaving. Our Landlord was afraid we would move out but was happy to hear "no way!!"

And don't forget on October 28th Sean Jr turns 19 years old and on November 5th Kirsten turns 17 years old!! Crazy!!
Happy Birthday kids~ I love you

A lot will change

2008-10-03T19:45:00.001-07:00

Kirsten has decided to move up to her dad's and will be leaving this month. No set date yet but it will be soon. She has already been pulled out of school here. I am sad but if it is going to make her happy then I will accept it. Right now though I am sad. When Sean left I was sad too but he is 18 and it's easier to accept. She's still 16 and I'm not done raising her yet! I will look forward to phone calls, emails and IM's.

Sean and I IM'd for an hour a week ago. It was nice. I enjoyed "talking" with him. He is maturing so much now. The past year he has changed really. Around Thanksgiving he is supposed to take the GED and in January start Junior College! He has decided that he wants to get into gaming and help create games. A friend of his Dad and Lori's is a game developer and has said that if he takes the related classes that he will get him in the door!!

Ben is now 7 months old and I just got his pictures done last week. We took quite a few poses with out a shirt to show off his scar! They are really cute.
Gabriel is learning so much at daycare and he loves going. Here is a link to the Learning Center's web site: http://brownbearlearningcenter.wetpaint.com/
Angela posts a lot of pictures. Today they made their own pizzas and Gabriel was friend of the week so he got to share his favorite book, movie, music, toy and snack. He brought a Baby Einstein book, Toy Story 2, "Rocketship Run" CD, his Little Einstein's rocket ship, and for snack, grapes, cantelope and graham crackers. Yummy!

Nate is in Electrician school this week and actually just finished today. The other day he was proud since he scored the highest grades on the tests that they took not to mention he was the only one that completed all of his homework! He is doing great!

I am loving being back at work and have started planning for the company holiday party. I have a lot of HR things to take care of and I am nearly complete making a new handbook. We really need it!

And....halloween is coming!!!!!!!!!!!

Our Visitor!!!

2008-09-15T22:19:00.000-07:00

Sean came home to visit! He got here Sunday evening and will be here until Wednesday afternoon. He has requested his favorite meal for dinner so we bought everything to make it tomorrow: meatloaf, parmesan pasta, garlic bread and Gma's salad. Mmmm yum.
He's just hanging out since everybody works or goes to school. Gabe and Ben are sick so I am staying home with them tomorrow so inbetween the snot wiping and hacking (poor little guys) Sean and I can hang out together. He is doing good and likes it up in Washington. He's gained a little weight too!!! It's good to see him!
I managed to get a pic of him and Ben together tonight. You know how Sean hates pictures...

My Bday and the Fever

2008-09-13T13:26:00.000-07:00

My birthday was a quiet one which is really what I wanted. I worked that day but Gabriel was running a fever so he stayed at Gma Peg's house while Ben went to daycare. The boys stayed until Nate picked them up around 5:00pm. Peg came to my work and brought me flowers, a card and a monetary gift! Lisa at work got me a card and this drink mix just because she knew that I would love the bottle. It has a skull and crossbones on the back and "blood" dripping from the cap. The liquid is red and I proudly have it on my desk along with the flowers. :)
When I got home Kirsten had made me caramel walnut brownies and my Mom brought over an ice cream cake! The picture above is Kirsten's "Top Chef" presentation of the brownie. What a great job! She also got me a Fresno State Bulldogs Tshirt. Mom and Gma and Gpa gave me money too. I'm up to 37 dollars from Gma and Gpa! lol
Nate also told me that I get to spend some money for Halloween stuff. My favorite thing to get for my bday!! He also bought us Speedy Zapatos. Mmmmm...
I rented some movies and watched Baby Mama that night before retiring to bed. It was a good bday!
Sadly though we are ALL sick in the house now...

To Be Young Again

2008-09-08T21:05:00.000-07:00

I'm going to be 37 tomorrow. What in the world? Mentally I'm 16 but physically I'm 60 years old or more...
Birthdays are more fun when it's someone else's!

It has been awhile seen my last post. I am back to work and Carol the office manager had her last day this past Friday. Happy retirement to her! It feels good to be back and have a desk too! I was floating for awhile and sort of took over Dean's desk. It's hard to get my brain working with numbers again after so long away. :)

Ben is 17 pounds now and eating constantly. He might have a tapeworm...just kidding.
Gabriel is sick again and Kirsten is happy to get some internet time.

My friend Lisa and I started going to church! Yes me! And I am willingly going. And so far I really like it!! Crazy I know. I look forward to each service. We took our kids this past weekend and they had a blast playing with the other kids. Clovis Hills church is very modern and laid back which is why I think it fits for us. You can dress casual and drink your coffee during service. The Pastor has a wonderful way of explaining things so everyone understands. I am not familiar with the bible or how to read and understand it at all so he makes it fun. Hey, they have a rockin' band too! We are going to try to attend a bible study too. I can't believe how much I am into it. It is truly amazing.

I've posted some recent pics of the family and one of the yard sale to raise money for IMH Fresno. We'll be having another one sometime this month after it cools down. We have a ton of stuff leftover and this past Saturday we raised over $300!!

OOOhh...Halloween is getting closer!!! I am throwing a kids party through a group I'm in called fresnomommies.com on Oct 25th. It should be a blast! Of course I can't bring 75% of my stuff since it would scare them but it will still be a great time. ;)

Good Day and Sad

2008-08-18T22:31:00.000-07:00

Well it was back to work today! I am really happy to be back. I wasn't sure how I would feel but it is nice to be back. Oddly it almost feels like I never left. I mean it does but doesn't you know? It will take a bit to get back into the groove and to learn the changes that have been made over the past SEVERAL months but I look forward to it.

Sadly though my return also was right after the death of the company's owner Jeff Dockstader. He was and is such a wonderful man, father and friend. I truly will miss him always. It doesn't seem real that he is gone. It was very hard for his family today. Jeff was an amazing person. So many people loved and respected him. This Friday the shop will be closed and we will be attending his funeral that morning.

It does warm my heart to know that he now has been reunited with his mother and long lost love. His first wife passed away about 17 years ago after a horrible car accident the family was involved in. Please don't get me wrong. It saddens me that his wife here on Earth has lost her love and he has lost her but I can only imagine how joyous it must be for him up in heaven right now. Jeff led a marvelous life and has raised eight beautiful children.

I will remember his unique laugh, his lack of remembering people's names (haha), his compassion, his thoughtfulness, his generosity. He always said hello to you and asked how your family was doing. And he meant it.

I remember before I came to work for Fresno Body Works when I worked at Fresno Dodge/Lexus Jeff would bring popsicles on hot days, donuts on the days we all seemed to need one (or not!), and apples in the fall. This is what he did. Up until his passing. He always maintained wonderful relationships with businesses and tried to always see that every customer received the best service and treatment at his shops. Something that his family will continue on in his honor. And those of us that feel like family.

I only wish I had seen him more recently than a few months ago. I had visited the shops a few times but never ran into him. The last time I saw him was the night before our Ben's open heart surgery. He and his son Dean came to our home and gave a Holy Blessing. It was so thoughtful and so heartwarming that they took time out of their busy lives to do that. The night will forever remain special to me not only because of the emotional times with Ben and the comfort of the blessing but also because that was the last time I saw Jeff. What a wonderful way to remember him.

Jeff passed away this past Friday night driving home. He suffered a heart attack just down the street from his home. No one else was injured. Please say a prayer for him and his family.

Truly a remarkable man.

Time is Running Out

2008-08-12T23:02:00.000-07:00

Wow. You would think that after being off of work since early December that I would want to go back?!
Nope.
Nada.
Don't get me wrong. I love the job and the family I work for and the people I work with. I just don't want to go back! I love being home with the kids. I do enjoy away time and I know I will get back into the routine of working but looking ahead to next week I just want to cry!
Next week!
This Monday!
AHHHHH!
It sure doesn't feel like I have been gone this long. It's not like all this time off was fun and games. Haha. I keep waiting to find a solution to stay home. Maybe I should have been playing the lotto all this time...

Busy times

2008-08-06T07:12:00.000-07:00

Gabriel started the new daycare this week and so far he is loving it! In fact yesterday Nate and I went to pick him up and it took at least 20 minutes for us to leave and even then he cried in protest. And he even knew we were going to see Gma! And he LOVES to go there. He has been learning the letter "h" this week and is trying to use the potty everyday. No success yet but he's going through the motions.

Ben has started to eat baby food now. As if he's been doing it all of his life already! He ate almost an entire jar of carrots and apples yesterday. He probably could have but we had already used a little bit the day before. And this was all in one meal! Yikes!

Kirsten will be coming home next week on Thursday after her trip up to her Dad's house. She and Sean called me the other day. What a surprise! I was so happy to hear from them. They are having a great time and when they called they were on their way home from an overnight stay on an island. She has pictures on her Myspace I noticed last night.

Nate is trucking away at work in the hot Fresno sun and working four days a week at Whole Foods at night right now. Plus he is studying and doing homework prepping for his schooling coming up next month. He's still loving the Electrician's job so that's great. His neck and face are very tan from being outside so much. I think they pay you so well after five years because by that time you have skin cancer...

I spent yesterday plugging away doing stuff for It's My Heart around town and made a side trip to see my old OB/GYN doctor, Dr. Boehm, since he is retiring after this Thursday. I finally got his autograph on the football and baseball birth announcements. Talk about lucky timing! I will miss him. He's a great guy. He said Thursday he's going to throw back some beers and celebrate. I would to after 40 years of looking at women's hoo haws!

The Completed Final Project

2008-07-21T15:53:00.000-07:00

This project didn't take as long as I thought it would! Yay it's done!

The Final Project ll

2008-07-19T17:19:00.000-07:00

Wow I got a lot done yesterday! Even with a surprise visit from the electrician...(boring story)
I finished painting the walls and cleaning the carpet!!
Now to move the toys in and craft the trees and hang up some learning tools.

The Final Project

2008-07-17T22:28:00.000-07:00

The plan was to move the boys to Sean's old room since it's a bigger room. They are so cramped in their little room. The boys' room would then become the guest bedroom. Well that has all changed. The boys are staying where they are but ALL the toys will be taken out of their room and put into the new playroom!! A guestroom would be a wasted room really. We don't get many overnight guests and when Sean does come home to visit we still have a bed in the garage that we can put on the floor in the playroom.
So before I go back to work August 18th I wanted to get this project started and finished. I started two days ago with priming and now have begun to paint the walls. Every wall will be a different vibrant color. It's going to end up looking like a little preschool I think. I have plans to craft some trees in all the corners too. I will probably get all the painting done tomorrow (I hope) and then move onto cleaning the carpet. (blah)
I have posted the before pics so everyone can see the transformation. We are keeping the blue already on one of the walls.

New Beginnings

2008-07-12T21:25:00.000-07:00

I wasn't looking to find a new daycare for the boys. I was never opposed to the idea of another one though. It's just hard to put trust in someone you don't know and the daycare that Gabriel has been going to since November was the same one a dear friend takes her kids to. It made it easier to trust them.

Now we will embark on a new trust. Gabriel will start Brown Bear's Learning Center, an in home daycare, on July 28th. Ben will start on August 18th when I go back to work. (yes, back to work!)

Angela is the provider and her home is VERY clean, fun things to do and see, a learning curriculum, only four other children and close to Gma's house. It's closer for us to get to as well. Not much but a little bit and easier to get to.

The price is a little higher but I think this is going to be a better fit for both of the boys. Angela also has a heart child. Her 14 year old had surgery 12 years ago. He had 3 holes in his heart and a valve that wasn't fully grown. Sound familiar???? He has never needed another surgery. I take comfort in having a provider that has some familiarity with CHD.

Gabriel will have some struggles at first since it's a new place but most of all there are no pacifiers allowed after your child has turned one year old! He needs to get rid of it already anyway but it is going to be hard because when he's tired he wants it...

The downside to switching daycares is having to tell Tiffany this week that we are leaving in two weeks. I hope I don't cry...

Things are good on the homefront

2008-07-03T20:14:00.000-07:00

Ben has been cleared for four months! No Cardiologist visits until then. He still has the leakage but it didn't get any worse. Maybe surgery will be years from now.
Good news!

Ben is sleeping through the night now and Gabriel still enjoys being naked. I think they are both coming down with a cold right now which is no fun. It will be Ben's first.

Gabriel enjoyed drinking from the hose the other evening. The downside was the amount of black ants that were on him and that he brought into the house! We didn't even know until we were laying on a blanket and they were crawling all over us!

Yesterday we had a play date with our friend's twn boys, Simon and Joseph. Gabriel had a blast!

Hanging out

2008-06-22T19:25:00.001-07:00

All of Ben's steri strip are gone now as you can see in the picture. I think that he gets pudgier everyday.

Gabriel has decided that being naked is the way to go, and the picture tells no lies! No accidents yet but I ask him if he has to potty quite often. No success in the potty chair yet either.

Ah, how cute

2008-06-21T19:21:00.000-07:00

Gabriel loves to lay next to Ben and he insists that they both have a blanket on even when it's 110 degrees out...like today was. Blah.

We went to a potluck today with some new friends! It was nice. Hot outside though. It was a bit hard juggling both the kids with Gabriel being awakened from his nap to go. He was a little cranky. He was probably the most grump when he couldn't be naked in the kiddie pool. Haha.

It was nice to meet some new people. They are all from fresnomommies.com. Another reason Gabriel was upset was on the drive over there because the hotess' house was so close to his daycare and he didn't know why we weren't going there!

After the potluck we stopped by Gma Peg, Goomba and Richard's house since Gabriel was calling out their names in the car as we drove away! (and calling for the dogs) Plus it was close by.

We stayed for about an hour and then came home.

Right now Ben is asleep and Gabriel and Sissy are playing hide and go seek. A game that Gabriel and she play quite often now. :)

THE Blow Out

2008-06-06T11:52:00.000-07:00

So there I was...

Watching Chicken Little for the upteenth time with my toddler and baby. My toddler, Gabriel was enjoying some grapes and sitting in his chair enjoying the flick when all of a sudden a horrible sound came from my baby, Ben.

KABOOM!!

I felt what can only be described as a tire flattening on the highway on my leg. Followed by unbelievable warmth. Gabriel turned and gave me a look as if to say "What the he** was THAT? (I couldn't agree more) but I don't know if he thought it was me! At this point I was afraid to even move either myself or Ben. And then there was the odor... Who says breastmilk fed babies don't have stinky poop?!

Of course I had to move us eventually. Oh how I dreaded what I was about to see. Poo all up his back and out one leg (Dang you Pampers sample!!), on my shorts, soaked through to MY underwear and on my skin, and puddled on the reclining chair which I had the cover off in the wash so it's right on the fabric.

Now, what do I do first? What was the plan of action? Don't get me wrong, I have been through similar situations but not to this extent. Luckily Gabriel was occupied so I stood up praying for no loose particals or "juice" if you will would fall to the floor.

I took Ben to the changing table where luckily last nights bath towel still lay and placed him down. Standing next to him I shed my clothes, naked from the waist down. Quickly I took a baby wipe and cleaned up the biggest mess on myself to ensure no spills.

Now the baby... The onesie? How do I get it off and not spread this toxic spill onto his beautiful little smiling, yes smiling, face? It could not be saved. I'm telling you right now, the onesie had to go. I reached for a pair of scissors in the drawer and began to free him of this hideous outfit. There would not have been enough stain remover in the world to clean this thing so ruining it forever was easily done. The diaper remarkably was dry in the front. Who would have thought.

Where was I going to put this stuff? I can't walk away and leave him on the table? Where is my DH at times like this? I just had to leave it on the table for the time being. Oh, the amount of poo on this child still was amazing. How could he have that much? He had already pooped this morning? What on earth did I eat to cause this nightmare? So many unanswered questions...

Wipes. I'm glad I buy in bulk. I had to at least wipe off the majority of it before bathing him...otherwise he'd be swimming in poo and I'd be dealing with poo water! About 10 wipes later, no joke, he was ready to transport to the bath. We made it there without peeing and I put him in it and then poured the water in. Smiling and cooing he enjoyed the clean up and appeared to be thanking me...or mocking me, I don't know.

I washed him, dressed him, placed him in the swing, surveyed the damage to the chair, threw out the onesie and diaper and as I took a breath of relief my toddler who had been enjoying his movie the entire time thankfully turns to me laughing. Oh, I forgot I was half naked! He found it funny that I had no clothes on. Great for self esteem! But that was not why he was laughing... "Poo Poo?" he said. I said yes there was a lot of poo poo from the baby. But then he pointed to himself and said it again. "Poo Poo?" And then the smell hit me..._________________
Pam

Look at this full belly!!

2008-06-06T08:35:00.001-07:00

Obviously he's eating well...

My first born is leaving home! :(

2008-06-05T11:45:00.000-07:00

Yes, the time has come for one of my kids to leave. Sean will be leaving to move up to Washington on June 14th. It won't be the same without him around here. Who will annoy Kirsten? Well, I guess Gabriel has to step up! We will miss him.

Ben is home and doing well!

2008-06-02T22:52:00.000-07:00

Ben has been home from the hospital for a week and is doing great. Mild pain and eating like crazy!

He was such a good baby in the hospital. We are so thankful for everyone at Children's. They are amazing!

Pre-op this morning

2008-05-19T22:02:00.000-07:00

This morning was Ben's pre-op appointment. Nate, Gma Peg and I took him and in all we were there 4 hours. He had blood drawn, a physical, a chest xray and an EKG. Can you believe our little boy now weighs 14 pounds 1 ounce? He gained nearly 2 pounds in three weeks. Go breastmilk! He is exactly two feet tall too. He was given a clean bill of health and the surgery is only 10 hours away.

We took a tour of the PICU and got to see the rooms and all of the equipment. It's hard to picture him hooked up to them and I know it will be tomorrow when we do. That moment scares me but I also know that I will want to see our strong boy as soon as we can.

It was comforting to hear from various people how healthy he looks for an infant with AVSD. It is great that his surgery is at Gma's hospital and so many people know about him!

We will be given pagers or get calls from the nurses I believe three times tomorrow with updates on how the surgery is going which will be nice. We plan to be there most likely all night. We cannot sleep in his room but can be in there all but between 7-9pm and 7-9am for shift change. Please understand that it will most likely be hard for us to talk to everyone tomorrow. I'm not sure that we will be making many, if any, phone calls. We will likely have someone else do that for us. We know that everyone is concerned and will want to know how it went and how he is doing but I have to think that the first 24 hours are a very private time for Nate, myself and Ben. I will also compose an update for someone to post since I'm unsure if I'll have computer access at the hospital. So please don't get angry if your calls/emails go unanswered throughout the day. We may find the strength ourselves to get in touch during the 7-9pm time but no promises.

Tonight at the house we had a Heavenly Blessing for Ben's surgery and for our family to have strength. We are so thankful to Jeff and Dean for that. It's wonderful to have so many caring people in our lives and Ben is very lucky to have all of the love and support.

It's time to give him his last bath and prep him for the morning. After he gets home he can only have sponge baths for awhile. He cannot have milk past 11:30 tonight and only sugar water before 3:30am with nothing past that time. Poor little guy will be starving I predict by 6am for some milk. I imagine there will be a lot of snorting going on!

Think wonderful thoughts tomorrow!

2 more days until surgery

2008-05-18T12:56:00.000-07:00

Wow, time sure has gone by fast. Tomorrow is Ben's Pre-op appointment. Good news that Daddy got that day off from work now too and will be going with us! We will be at the hospital for about 3-4 hours starting at 9:45am. Aunt Amber is going to stay with Gabriel at home until we get back.
Later in the evening we will be having a Heavenly Blessing for Ben. Family has been invited and the blessing will be given by Jeff and Dean from my work. I'm so happy they are coming over and have the time!