Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Their ALL family

We have a new family member. Her name is Kathy and Ian adopted her last week. I've finally gotten in contact and have been emailing her back in forth for a few days now. She's a pretty neat person to get to know and I'm glad she is part of our "family" now. Want to "meet" her? Here is a little about her from her own email: I should be pinning on my E7 in a few months - been in the Army for 17 years - 14 active and the last 3 Reserve. Last time I was here was OIF1 and I was in Tikrit - home of Saddam. The unit I was attached to - 1/22 Infantry were actually the guys that pulled Saddam from his spider hole. I was in 5 fire fights and 1 IED explosion so I was one of the first females to get a Combat Action Badge from OIF1 - the IED is why I got out of active and went into the Reserves. It is a little different but still is great to work with Soldiers and do the job we do.
Yes, we have adopted a solider in Iraq...you should too! It has been a real pleasure getting to know her! Please say a prayer for her safety and all the men and women that are still fighting for us! Even though my husband is no longer active duty, we still look on the military as our family and think of them often.
Speaking of family, another "family" member of a different kind is experiencing a life changing event today on her 8th birthday. She is getting her kidney transplant at Egleston. Talk about a happy birthday! (Of which I need to give a shout out to my super cute niece who turns 4 today!!) I am leaving the link for this little girl's mom's blog. Please take the time to read and share and pray for her family and the donor's family this week. http://theotherjuliaroberts.itx.net/ Happy kidney-versary Quinn. I hope I am able to come visit you next Monday on the 6th floor...and I hope you don't mind my kidney baby tagging along. :)
I would like to visit on Friday, but I will be spending most of Matthew's dialysis time over at Emory! Yes, I finally got things fired up and things moving along. I got my pretty jug in the mail today and am flabbergasted at how much urine they want me to put in there. I'll include a picture of the jug late, but it's a doozie! I will be doing my blood work on Friday. We are lucky to have Kim as Matthew's nurse this week. She is SO awesome with him, that I do not mind leaving. I have scheduled my appointment around his normal nap time anyway, so he won't miss me for long. Just have to be back in time to give him his mid-day dose of BP meds and a bolus feed. The nurses aren't allowed to do such things if it is not written down by the docs. Hopefully I won't be long, or that is going to be one irritable and hungry baby!
Anyway, I must run and get both boys up. Only a 20 minute nap for Matthew...this is going to be fun! Off to his 15 month check up and shots. :( Gotta get them before transplant. I'll keep you up to date!

Friday, September 25, 2009

Friday Five with Mama M

Quick run down of the rules...copy and paste the following questions to your blog, answer them, grab the MckLinky BlogHop code and link up! I'd also be very grateful, appreciative, forever indebted, honored, etc...if you'd link back to me, Mama M.! Oh, and if you don't have a blog, but want to join in, just leave me your answers in my comments!

September 25th Questions: Thanks to Keely for inspiration and Liz...I really wanted to use a question Amanda suggested...but decided it was a little too risque!

1. What celebrity have you been told you look like?
I've gotten Reese Witherspoon - I think it was because I was pretty scrawny as a teenager and in my early 20's...bony chin and all. :) One time a hair stylist told me I looked like Julia Roberts, but I think the hair products were getting to her - don't see that at all!

2. What is your all time favorite movie, any special reason why?
As Drew Barrymore in Ever After - I could no sooner pick a favorite star. It's just that there are too many to choose from and it depends on what I want out of a movie that day...a good life, a good cry, a good scare...just depends. :)

3. Since we're talkin' movies...Popcorn: overrated, underrated, or 'bout right?
overrated at the theater - bout right for the couch. :)

4. Are you a glass half empty or half full kinda person?
I consider myself an optimistic realist. Empty is empty - can't be half of nothing! So the glass is always half full for me. :)

5. What perfume/cologne do you wear?
I don't wear perfume, I mainly pic body sprays. Gardenia and vanilla are my main scents. My sense of smell is off the charts oversensitive. I usually have to hold my breath and make a mad dash through the beginning of Macy's or Belk's at the mall. TOO much. Smells like certain perfumes, cigarette smoke and it seems all bathroom cleaners seem to spur on one of my migraines. Fun huh?!? Body sprays are a little softer, less strong and don't overwhelm my poor nose. :)


MckLinky Blog Hop

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Identity

I'm a wife, daughter, mother and friend. I was a teacher, student and a child before. When people on the street ask what I do, I reply I am a domestic engineer. Not only because it sounds "cooler" than I chase kids and dogs all day and consider myself ahead of the game if I manage a shower before 2pm, but I suffered through two semesters of college physics and did earn a bachelor of science degree afterall. ;)Domestic biologist just doesn't have the same ring you know? And besides the Georgia Tech fight song told me I was "a helluva engineer" - I just happen to agree.
How do I describe my boys in public? William - spirited (it's sounds nicer than unruly and wild), car fanatic, cuddle bug, and lover of nature (ok - mainly bugs, puppies and cats, but he really loves all nature including puddles). Matthew - drooler (as evident by the constant bib changes and chin wiping I do - gotta love molars right), strong, future MLB pitcher, and a snuggle worm. No mention of crappy kidneys?? Why not? It is a part of who he is!
Yes, it has shaped him into the person he is and the person he will become, but I already mentioned that when I listed strong. Matthew is not a diseased kidney, he has a diseased kidney...well two actually, but who's counting huh? Matthew is not on hemodialysis, he goes to hemodialysis...like someone else goes for a check up. His are just more frequent. My son does not have scars, he has battle wounds from a long and courageous fight - that he is WINNING! nanny-nanny-boo-boo. (never said I was a good sport!) He's my baby, and like his older brother, will remain my baby long after he brings his first baby home!
I thought I would share a few pictures that make up Matthew. Everyone who meets him knows how smiley, friendly and super easy going he is - but these will give you a look at his personality too, from my point of view.



He LOVES his brother. He will crawl to the opposite side of the house just to be near him. Climbing up in his lap and touching him, cuddling him. Luckily his big brother is easy going too and handles it with lots of smiles and a few sighs.




He's a ham, a charmer and I believe he would have Hollywood on speed dial if I didn't loathe the industry out there. He's got big blue eyes, a big goofy grin and a bigger heart than I could ever imagine on one so young. He's on the lookout for fun and funny. Mr laughs a lot is his nickname.




He's beautiful, all parts of him...natural and medical necessity. He's curious, an explorer. Matthew views obstacles as just another road to good times ahead. He's defies logic and is an outlier of statistics. He's my son and in my eyes he is perfect. Always will be - whether his kidneys work or not. :)

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Five for Friday with Mama M

Okie dokie, my friends (that's a little straight up MinneSOOOOtan for ya, dontchaknow?)...here's the rules: copy the questions below, paste them to your blog, answer them, grab the MckLinky code (link back to me, if you'd be ever so kind) and then join the fun! Honestly, you don't know what your missing if you don't participate in Five Question Friday...really.

September 18th Questions: (Thanks to Keely, Meghan, and Amanda for their help!)

1. What's your favorite line from a movie?
There are SO many for different reasons and meanings, but today I'm feeling Princess Bridey. :)
[Vizzini has just cut the rope The Dread Pirate Roberts is climbing up]
Vizzini: HE DIDN'T FALL? INCONCEIVABLE.
Inigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.


2. What "group" did you belong to in high school? Goths, jocks, preps, drama, nerds?
OK,I'll be honest - I was a straight up nerd. I didn't know it, or I was just in a strong sense of denial back then. I was a good student in advance placement classes, never cut class and was on the dance/colorguard team for the marching band. (yeah - how did nerd not hit me smack in the head huh?) Anyway, I didn't discriminate on my friends and was chatty with jocks, preps and even the skater kids. I also was a universal dater. If you had the never to ask me out, I said yes. No harm in trying something once. Oh and I was a BIG flirt, kind of had an abundance of boyfriends back then. sigh - I LOVED high school!

3. If you had $1000 just for yourself what would you spend it on?
groceries, that is about as selfish as I can get. When I get money for my birthday, that is usually what I spend it on, or I get something for the boys. I always have done this. Even when I was 16, I would go buy one cd and just put the rest in the bank. This turned out to be a good thing because I had a pretty well developed nest egg - that allowed my husband and me to go 8 months without a paycheck last year. It wasn't easy, but we managed. I just save for things that are needed not wanted right now. In this economy, you just never know! When we become a two income family again, I splurge on some clothes and a haircut that is not from Great Clips. :)

4. What was your favorite childhood cartoon?
I loved the Pink Panther, Tom and Jerry and old school Disney like Mouseterpiece Theater and Donald Duck presents. :) The new Disney is fine, but it's not great!

5. What kind of sleeper are you? Back? Tummy? Side? Sprawler?
I start on my tummy and usually end up on my side. Half the time I wake up and find myself contorted to some weird position with a three year old's feet in my back.

There you have it! Join in the fun!!


MckLinky Blog Hop

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Oldest picture w/ Jamie

Ok, so here's the rules for this hop:
Go to the place where you upload all your photos. If you don’t upload them online, just go to wherever you store your pics on your computer. Open the oldest album, and post the first photo. Tell the story behind it. Grab the MckLinky and post it on your blog. Just for fun, tag 3 people you want to see old photos of :)



Well, I believe this is pretty self explanatory...Disney World, bad 80's clothing, brother and sister. Yes, that is my older brother David and me (when I was skinny). This was our first trip to Disney World in 1985. We had no idea that from then on...we would be hooked. We went almost every year after that with a "beach" break thrown in after three consecutive Disney trips. I'm lucky in that I married a man that also comes from a Disney family and he shares the good memories with me. We went there for our honeymoon at Christmas time and for our "he's off the cutter and on dry land" celebration in the Coast Guard. (That trip was a bit more expensive, since 9 months later William came along - just stay at the parks if it is raining people) ;)
Here's a pic from the honeymoon and another from our land station celebration just for good measure. :)
Thanks for letting me play along Jamie!




Disney World at our Christmas time honeymoon.



lunch at Primetime Cafe in MGM.


MckLinky Blog Hop

Friday, September 11, 2009

Adrenaline

First and foremost - a shout out to my awesome hubby and family for allowing me to be selfish last night...and this morning. Getting in at 1am and not going to bed until 2am, I knew it would not be the wisest decision for me to brave the morning commute for a two hour drive going 20 mph into Atlanta again (for the 4th trip in four days). Love, hugs and kisses. Thanks for allowing me a little sanity. :)

Yesterday was exciting, in good - bad - good ways. First and foremost, I am officially recognized by Emory University Hospital to be a candidate for my son's kidney donation. YAY!!!! I got the call yesterday and completed my phone interview. No, I'm not being paid or bribed by my one year old son. Yes, I am a healthy person (oh...well except for migraines, year round allergies, a severe allergic reaction to penicillin products and a history of kidney stones) hmmmm...silence on the other line. Crap! Kidney stones? Just ONE episode 9 years ago. :) OK, we'll clear you after a detailed look at your kidneys and an in-depth urinalysis. YAY again!!!

So, here is how it is going to go. Emory's financial adviser is working with my insurance and with Matthew's to clear us from financial problems that they can find. Once that is complete, I get my jug of pee. :) This is the initial jug of pee collection - just to watch for protein in the urine, BUN, creatinine...so on and so forth to show healthy kidneys. Then once the results of that come in, I'll be mailed another jug (two actually) for a more in-depth look at electrolytes - calcium, phosphorus, parathyroid levels...all the fun things that can lead up to more kidney stones. Please let me pass this!! This is what I'm worried about! Not for another stone in the future, but something that would knock me out of the running. :( Then, once those results are back (which will take a while since it is run through a company in Chicago) I go to the two day in-patient gauntlet. This will include CT scans, renal and chest ultrasounds/xrays, stress test, EKG and open discussions with surgeons, coordinators, psychologist and chaplains. Again, if all of that goes well - we set a date! If we have absolutely NO hiccups, we could be transplanted by Halloween. :) I'm expecting November, trying to keep a little more down to earth about all of this. But I'm so excited just to move forward!!! EEEEEEEEE!

I was going to make this a two parter journal about my adrenaline rush last night at the Georgia Tech/Clemson game...but it's time to go wake up my three year old. So, I'm out of time. Just know - we won! But looked REALLY bad doing it. Props to Clemson for keeping the game alive. And props for GA Tech for not loosing sight of the W! Go Jackets. The Golden tornado is going after a Hurricane next week! :)

And in closing, just want to show what Matthew's kidneys look like now and what they will look like in a few short months. :) Just incase you were wondering...his kidneys are the ones that look like chopped liver. ;)



Five for Friday W/Mama M

In memory of the September 11th attacks and in honor of those who died, I've decided to make this version of Five Question Friday patriotic. I hope you'll join along!

Rules: Copy and past the following questions to your blog, answer them, and grab the MckLinky blog hop code! Then, link up! I'd love it if you'd link back to me, but that's not required!! If you don't have a blog, but would like to participate, feel free to leave your answers in the comments!



1. Where were you when you learned of the September 11th attacks?
I was sitting in my vertebrate zoology class when the first plane struck. When class was over, I made my way across campus to work in the education building. I reached the teacher resource center and everyone was quiet, listening to the radio and grouped around the computers with news channels up. I found out what was happening and was shocked. There had to be some mistake to explain all of this. Then we heard about the plane at the Pentagon. Everyone started getting emotional. Some of my friends and I ran across to the student center where the tvs were located. We got there just in time to watch the towers crumble one by one. We also learned of the Pennsylvania crash. Classes were cancelled just prior to noon, since the higher ups there didn't know if the CDC in Atlanta would be targeted. Even though I didn't want to watch, I couldn't tear my eyes away. I kept thinking how unreal it all was.

2. What is your favorite patriotic song?
The two that generally get me on my feet belting out my out of tune voice are God Bless American (Irving Berlin) and God Bless the USA/Proud to an American (Lee Greenwood).

3. When you hear "America", what do you first think of?
My mind goes to our flag, waving in the breeze. And wondering why the car dealerships have the biggest and most eye catching flags out there?? What's up with that?

4. What are you most proud of America or American's for?
I am proud for our fighting spirit. If I agree with it or not, we fight for ourselves, fight for the underdog and fight for our friends. Our military deserves our utmost respect and appreciation at all times. Lots of love for them here. :)
Oh - and Go Coast Guard (not that I'm biased) ;)

5. When you hear "American food" what comes to mind?
hot dogs, hamburgers, potato salad and a good ice cold Coca Cola!


MckLinky Blog Hop

Friday, September 4, 2009

Five for Friday w/ Mama M

Copy and paste the questions to your blog, answer them, grab the MckLinky Blog Hop code, link up and voila (I soooo wish I could put that cute little accent above the 'o'...or would it be the 'i'?)!! You're hoppin' along with us!

A special thanks to Sandy, Megan Silva and Keely for this week's questions!!

September 4th Questions:

1. The clothing outfit you remember from childhood and why?
It definitely wasn't my favorite outfit, but it sticks out the most. My mom stayed home with us and I got most of my clothes via my older brother except for special occasions, but the one that sticks out is the green jeans. Yes, my brother and I were both 70's babies and it shows in our horrible wardrobe. My dad would top off the outfit with a Skoal chewing tobacco cap - cause nothing shows class like Skoal! ;)

2. When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be a vet, a nurse, a teacher, a painter and a singer...nothing was holding me back...except for how much school would cost to major in all of those. :) I settled for teaching, but will be finishing up my nursing degree over the next few years to give that a go again.

3. What is your must have for Fall?
I love the first day it is cold enough to put on a sweater. I don't know, must be the 80's Cosby kid admirer in me, but I love sweaters! A real must have though is anything Georgia Tech - gotta show my support! Go Yellow Jackets!! :) Game day tomorrow - woohoo!!!

4. If money were no object, how many kiddos would you really have?
If money were no object (and birth defects weren't a reality) I would have been happy with three. I would have looked into adoption. My husband keeps mentioning that too. Gotta get Matthew squared away first though. We'll see what God throws at us. :)

5. The best part of your birthing story (other than the beautiful child at the end).
The epidural ;) (and yes Mama M Group B right with ya!)



MckLinky Blog Hop

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Wordless Wednesday

I don't know who originally came up with the idea, but I am borrowing the idea from the lovely Susie from Writer's Block. http://writersblock-susie.blogspot.com/2009/08/wordless-wednesday_19.html She's pretty cool. :)

No words needed - just a smile. :)

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