Saturday, May 31, 2008

Oh the Drama!

Hello everyone!
What a week. On Monday our toilet clogged and Mike spent most of the week getting it unclogged. Every Spring we have tree root trouble and we end up spending several hundred dollars having the drain unclogged. Well, Mike was tired of spending so much money on something he felt he could do himself. So..... he bought a snake to snake the line. He got two clogs loosened from the drain but everything was still backing up. We couldn't run any water appliances without all the water going directly into our yard. After messing with it for three days Mike finally had me call the city. They came out and flushed their main line but it was running fine. Then they snaked our line with a high powered water hose and within minutes had our line completely clear. They told us that the snake we bought likely helped but the clogs were too big. They said in the future to call them first before a plumber to see what they can do. Whew, what a mess!

In the process of working on the drain and working 19 of the last 21 days Mike has hurt himself. His sciatica is acting up something awful. He is taking the weekend to try and rest. He is hoping with rest and ice he can get it under control. If not he will need to see a Dr. next week. Please pray that whatever is causing his pain will be something not requiring surgery.

Well, as if the week wasn't exciting enough, I had to take a trip to the ER with Rachel yesterday. The girls and I were in Wal-mart and Elizabeth was watching Rachel for me while I looked at some Father's Day cards. Anyway, Rachel stood up and when Elizabeth tried to get her to sit back down she slipped and fell out of the cart and onto the floor with her head. I didn't see it. All I heard was like a melon hitting the ground and when I turned around Rachel was flat on her back wailing like no tomorrow. I called my ped and she said I should take her in to be checked. They looked her over but didn't do the CT scan or x-ray my Dr. thought they would do. They just checked her ears, eyes, and head and told me what to look for as far as concussion. I was not very happy with her care and called my ped as soon as we had left. She told me a few other things to look out for and told me she would see me in the morning. When we went this morning Rachel was looking and doing great. However, when the Dr. looked in her ears she found that she had an ear infection. So while she is fine from the fall she is now on antibiotics. My question is, why they didn't catch the infection in the ER! I hate my ER. I always have. Thankfully I have a wonderful ped who really cares about my kiddos. I love her!
Elizabeth felt absolutely awful about Rachel falling. She was so upset and crying. I felt so bad for her. She old me that she thought Rachel was dead, and that if she was, that she would have been her murderer. How is that for heaping coals of condemnation and guilt on oneself. I had to explain to her that no one blames her, and that it could have happened to any one of us. Rachel moves so fast these days. We have to be ever vigilant.

So....... That was our week. Hopefully next week will be much less eventful. We only have three weeks of school left and the girls are getting very excited about that. Arizona their cousin will be coming to visit on the 17th and staying for about a month with my mom. They can't wait to get to know her better and have someone other than each other to play with. I am trying to come up with some fun things to do while she is here.

Well, that's it for now. I'll write again in a few days. God Bless.
Christina

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Nearing the end!

Hello everyone! We officially will be done with school on June 20. Yeah!!! I can't believe our year is almost over. I am really looking forward to some down time with my girls. The girls will still have piano, and they will also have sewing once a week over the summer. These things are a nice extra for them when there is nothing to do outside but melt in the hot Georgia sun. Elizabeth will also continue to work at the vet's office once a week. Right now she goes in for 2 hours each week, but I think we are going to extend those hours a bit for the summer. She would prefer to stay for 3 or 4 hours a week. I may have to rearrange piano for the summer but I am sure it will all work out.

Rachel had her 1 year check-up last Monday. She was 18# 4oz. and 28 1/2 in long. The Dr. said she was in the 15% for her age. People say she is small but she looks very big to me. I hope everyone enjoyed seeing some of her birthday pics. I still can't believe she is 1. I mean, how did that happen! She sure is an awful lot of fun. I am really enjoying her company these days.
Rachel learned her first sign language word Sunday. We have been signing the word for "please" for the past month or so and she finally got it. Now if we could just get her to stop whining for things and just use the sign...... I guess it will come in time. Now we are working on "all done" and "more"

Tomorrow night Elizabeth and Rebekah will be getting awards for Awana. They both finished their Awana books and will be getting ribbons. This is a big accomplishment since many, many, many, many scriptures had to be memorized by both of them to achieve this. I am very proud of both of them. As excited as Elizabeth is about receiving her award I think it will be a bitter sweet night for her. Tomorrow will be her last official Awana club meeting. Next year she will be too old. She is considering becoming an LIT(leader in training) but is torn between doing that and participating in youth group.

Well, that's it for now. Sending my love to you all.
Christina

Monday, May 12, 2008

Rachel's Birthday pics


















Sorry about the mix-up. I think the night I was writing the last post Rachel woke up and I had to log out. Then I forgot to go back later and post what I had written. Anyway, I will now update you on everything that has happened since my OOPS.

Rebekah did in fact have a sinus infection. Her Dr. prescribed some meds for her and she was as good as new a few days later. Other than that everyone has been healthy until a day ago when I came down with a head cold. I hope I don't give it to anybody. I must say right now I am eternally grateful for Puffs-Plus and Vaseline. They both do wonders at keeping my nose from becoming so raw that I can't stand to touch it.

On the 3rd of May Mike's mom and brother came for a visit from Ohio. They were here for the whole week and left yesterday the 10th. The girls really enjoyed having them here. Unfortunately, Mike had to work most of the week, but he was able to spend some time with all of us in the evenings. He was however, able to get Friday off and we went to the zoo in Greenville. It is not a very large zoo, but it was perfect for Rachel's first introduction to animal's other than her dog's. She really enjoyed the giraffe's and the elephant's. She also really liked the monkey's and lion's. She just kept pointing and saying. "da", which is her way of saying "dog". I just kept talking to her and telling her all about the animals. Elizabeth and Rebekah really enjoyed watching her discover new things as well. It had been a long time since they had been to a zoo.

May 1st Rachel hit a major milestone. She walked for the first time! We were all so excited. It is so fun for me as a mom to watch the older girls delight in their baby sister's accomplishments. They just kept encouraging her to come to them, and when she did they would just clap and cheer. Since then she has really taken off.
On the 8th my baby turned 1. I am so amazed by this past year. I look at every day as a opportunity to see the world through her eyes and watch her discover everything with such awe and wonder. I count myself so blessed to be able to be her mother and discover anew God's creation.
We had a lovely little party for Rachel. She received many new and fun toys and some very nice things to wear. The girls each bought her a tub toy. Mike and I bought her a walking toy and an activity table. My friend Michelle made her cake. It was in the shape of the number one. It was pink and perfect. She also made her a pretty little smash cake which Rachel made quick work of. She was a riot!!! Oh, I wish we could do it all over again, it was soo much fun!

I have had a very nice mother's day. We went to church and then just relaxed in the afternoon. We invited mom and Stu over for a cookout later in the evening and then watched Survivor. We all love that show. Anyway, it was very relaxing. Tomorrow, I get to go pick out a new outfit. I am excited. I already know what I want. I am going to get a cute shirt and a pair of capri's. Well, that should bring everything up to speed. I am going to post pics of the baby's birthday as soon as I post this. My love to you all.
Christina

uh-oh Rachel is awake thos pics might have to wait til tomorrow!