noteworthy

15 years:

that is how long david and i have been together. we began dating on november 16, 1994! we dated for 5 years, were engaged for 1, and have been married for 9! time flies when you are having fun :-)

6 months:

that is how old little T is now....which blows my mind! i can not wrap my mind around the fact that we have had this little ball of preciousness in our life for half of a year. due to his prematurity, he (developmentally) is right on track with a 4 month old; which is his corrected age. had he been born full-term, he would be 4 months old this month. he is doing really well these days. there are no words for the love we feel for that little guy!

3 days:

is all we have left before we leave for thanksgiving vacation. but this year is different. this year, the entire family (all 15 of us) are loading up and heading to isle of palms for thanksgiving. it is a vacation that has been much anticipated, and long overdue. the first major holiday & vacation with the three new additions that God has blessed our family with this year. as usual, the food will be outstanding, the laughter will be gut-busting, the noise level will be deafening, the pictures will be full of cuteness, the memories will be life-long, and the thanks to God for His many blessings will be overflowing!!

november is national adoption month!

sigh of relief

i think it is safe to say that tyson has finally turned the corner, and is getting back to his super cute self!

this was probably the most scared/stressed that we have ever been about a sickness in our house...especially since having children. and it really had nothing to do with the "panic fest" that is going around concerning the H1N1 virus. maddie had it, and she weathered it just fine. her body stepped up to the plate, and didn't even require tamiflu. go maddie!! little tyson, on the other hand, was a hot mess. his poor body just can't take nasty virus invasions. the one thing his pediatrician did tell us, was that if this is how his body handles the flu, then this sweet baby can NOT get RSV!

so, although we are still doing breathing treatments and still on the look-out for signs of pneumonia, we are glad to have this mess behind us. it feels good to not have to worry about this particular flu for the rest of the winter, at least not with our children.

ahhhhhhhhhhhhh! that is my sigh of relief :-)

belated boo

before "trick or treat":

sleeping beauty

stripes everywhere!

during "trick or treat":

waiting for candy

taking a break

after "trick or treat":

maddie took this picture of tyson on our ride home

funny faces!

nyc pics

fuzzy pic of ncy skyline at midnight (top of the rock)

shot of the ny plaza hotel taken in central park

fall in central park...there's nothing like it

aunt liz, me, and linda at the rockefeller center ice rink

sweet, sweet patsy's

linda, mom, and aunt liz in rockefeller center

ode to my family....penn station!

really?

halloween is over. so, in my opinion, there shouldn't be any more scariness creeping around town. unfortunately, that was not the case for our family yesterday. and as scary as it was for us, we didn't realize its magnitude until this morning.

yesterday morning, as i was getting tyson ready for the day, i realized that he looked a little wilted. he has had a cold for 10 days now, so i felt comfortable with that being an explanation for his "i don't feel good" look. about an hour later, i couldn't shake the feeling that something might be wrong, so i decided to take his temperature. sure enough, he had a fever of 101.6 degrees. i made an appointment to take him to the doctor since everyone has been on edge about him getting RSV (common for most children, potentially dangerous for preemies).

we get in to see the doctor, and she immediately becomes alarmed. while she is listening to his lungs, she tells me that it is very obvious that his oxygen level is low. she preceeds to count his respirations. a child his age should have between 30-40 respirations per minute. tyson was at 70! he was panting like a dog. the doctor literally jumped up from her seat and left the room. when she came back, she told me that we were going to have to go straight to the hospital for a chest x-ray. she was convinced that he had pneumonia. before we left, she wanted to get his white blood cell count. the nurse came in and pricked his finger. it took 30 minutes for them to be able to get the tiniest amount of blood from him, which meant that he was also dehydrated. his blood cell count showed that he did NOT have pneumonia, and as a matter of fact, he had a viral infection not a bacterial one; which left two options: flu or RSV. she decided to test him for the flu first. if it came back negative, then we would know that he had RSV. the test came back positive....positive for H1N1. while all of this was going on, tyson was continuing to pant. she took his pulse/oxygen level and it was rapidly dropping. so, next thing i know, a nurse comes running in the room and hooked him up to an oxygen machine and then a nebulizer machine. after completing an entire breathing treatment, the doctor tested his respirations and they had dropped to 40! WHEW!!!

based on that information, she decided that we did not need to go to the hospital. instead, we were sent home with tamiflu, a nebulizer system (he has to have breathing treatments every 4 hours), and were told to very closely monitor his dehydration. he has been extremely listless. he can not move his body. he can hardly make any sounds...even crying, and he has had very little strength to drink from his bottle.

the next 48 hours are most important. if his dehydration gets worse, he will end up in the hospital. if his fever does not break by tomorrow, there is a huge chance he has developed pneumonia...and again will end up in the hospital.

so, we will see what happens. by the way, when the doctor called to check on him this morning...she informed me that yesterday she was so scared for tyson, that they actually had an ambulance waiting outside of their office...just in case he went into respiratory failure. i told her that it was a good thing she did not tell me that while it was going on, or she would have had to deal with a very sick baby, a hungry 5 year old, and a mom passed out on the floor!

nyc highlights

* pictures to come *

~ top 3 eating experiences:

1. patsy's: (located in midtown) the reason i heart nyc :-) this small, old-world italian restaurant simply warms my heart. i discovered it two years ago, because of its notariaty among one of my favorite people in the whole world...tony bennett. there is a dress-code. ALL of the waiters are italian, most of which speak very little english. there is a maitre de. he wears a tuxedo (bow-tie and all), and has a white napkin draped over his arm. he walks around and makes sure that everything is to your liking. the food is very traditional italian food, which is way different than lets say, olive garden or macaroni grill! but, the best part of all, is the most moist, deliciously rich canoli cake that has ever crossed my taste buds. yummy! this restaurant is not good for the wallet, but it is without a doubt, good for the soul (especially my little italian soul)!

what i ate: house salad, asparagus parmigiana, veal chop siciliano, canoli cake

2. kitchenette: (located in greenwich village) this was our most fun eating experience. this little hole-in-the-wall breakfast eatery/bakery is the cutest little restaurant. it is very eclectic, with old distressed doors serving as tables and mismatched chairs! you didn't really feel like you were in a restaurant. it was more like you were sitting around a friend's kitchen table. although we had great food and coversation there one morning, the highlight (for me) was sitting at a table next to todd oldham!! for those of you who don't know him...he is a very well-known, high-end interior designer. he also serves as the host for top design on bravo. we found out that he lives just around the corner from the restaurant and is a very regular customer! it was SO exciting :-)

what i ate: freshly squeezed orange juice, scrambled eggs, wheat toast, homemade turkey sausage with apples, onions, and sage.

3. serendipity: (located in midtown) ever heard of frozen hot cholocate? if you watched oprah's favorite things episode about 3 years ago, then you would have been introduced to it! words can not even describe the yummy goodness. this menu item is not only trademarked, but it is what made this restaurant a little bit famous :-) also, if you haven't seen the movie, serendipity, then you need to! this restaurant is also very eclectic, mainly due to the fact that it is adorned with tons of tiffany lamps. it is super cute! we ate here for dinner shortly after arriving in the city. we had a super fun time!!

what i ate: the haight-ashbury sandwich ( sliced turkey, tomato, avocado and alfalfa sprouts with melted muenster on raisin pumpernickel with russian dressing) THE BEST SANDWICH I HAVE EVER EATEN! frozen hot cholocate!

~ top 3 sights:

1. top of the rock: (located in midtown...rockefeller center) this is the alternative to the empire state building. and honestly, i think it is a WAY better view and experience than the ESB. when you go to the top of the ESB, you have to struggle to see the city through a metal fence. it isn't the best backdrop for a picture. at the top of the rock, you are being protected by plate glass that is two stories high. so, every aspect of the skyline is so much clearer. you travel to the 70th floor in an elevator, whose ceiling is a clear piece of glass. not only do you get to watch as you climb 70 stories (ever seen the inside of an elevator shaft?), but they actually play a movie that gets projected onto the ceiling of the elevator. it is too cool!!

2. central park: (located in midtown) most people would say that central park is what it is....really cool to see once, but not that big of a deal to see again. NOT TRUE! there is nothing like being in that park in the fall. i was mesmerized by the foliage and the general atmosphere of that place. not to mention that it would take several trips just to be able to see the whole park! i have been in the park several times, but this was, by far, my favorite experience. makes you want to worship!!

3. the MET: (located in midtown) even if you aren't that into museums, i can guarantee that you will like this one. it covers every era of art, every subject of history, and just about every civilization. this is another place that would require several trips to be able to see every exhibit. but it is SO worth the time!

~ greatest experience of the whole trip:

1. memphis: this is a brand new broadway musical, that actually opened the week we were in nyc. we saw it on opening weekend. i wish so badly that i could adequately describe this show. for those of you who know me, you know that i am a HUGE fan of wicked. it has always been my favorite broadway musical, and i could see it a million times and never get tired of it. however, after seeing memphis, i think wicked has been knocked down a notch in my book. unlike wicked (which is based in a fantasy world), memphis is based in history. i think, had we seen this show two years ago, it would not have had the impact that it had on us. but this story has become extremely personal to my family. it only took the opening song for me to start crying, and i wasn't the only one! as emotionally raw and controversial as the story is, i have never felt more energized as i did when we left the theatre. it was an amazing experience. if you are ever in nyc, and are determined to see a show, consider this one!

- Turn up that dial! From the underground dance clubs of 1950s Memphis, Tennessee, by way of hit runs at the La Jolla Playhouse and Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre, comes a hot new Broadway musical with heart, soul and energy to burn. She's a black singer whose career is on the rise, but who can't break out of segregated clubs. He's a white radio DJ whose love of music transcends race lines and airwaves. When the two collaborate, her soulful music reaches radio audiences everywhere, and the Golden Era of early rock 'n' roll takes flight. But as things start to heat up, whether the world is really ready for their music - or their love - is put to the test. Be ready to experience all the exuberance and the emotion...the beauty and the controversy...of a wondrous, defining time in our history. You're tuning in to Memphis.


...until next time, NYC!

today

today, i...

smell like a bake potato. and although i love baked potatoes, this particular smell is from tyson's spit-up (thanks to his formula), which has drenched my second shirt of the day.

have been walking around with a giant box of kleenex, because tyson's nose (as well as my own) has been the niagra falls of snot!

am thankful that i do not work outside the home. i have been fighting a cold all week, and it has finally sunk its claws into me :-( i am thankful to not have to sit at a desk all day!

wish i had a maid! i returned from NYC, and david and the kids returned from gigi & papa's house. the overload of dirty clothes and half unpacked suitcases is driving me crazy.

miss my mom! i had an AMAZING time with her on our trip to NYC. leaving her (although she is only 3.5 hours away) was very difficult.

looked at the adoption certificate we received from the court. it was actually the first time i looked at it since we got it. i was overcome with emotion. although tyson has been a part of our family since he was two weeks old, finalization day changed things a little bit. it is almost as if, on that day, his status as "our adopted child" melted away!!

am craving a salad from panera bread!

hope to get one day's lesson done in my daniel bible study! *i think i can, i think i can*

realized that in 7 weeks i will get to see my sister (my california sister), and she will get to meet tyson for the first time. words can not describe...so i won't even try!

pray that instead of just barely making it through the day, which is sometimes the case around here, that i can stop to...
1. take in the joy of my 5 year old
2. accept the love that exudes from my 5 month old
3. relish in the amazing gift that is my husband of 9 years
4. remember that God's mercies are new each day

...and know that even though my shirt stinks, i feel like crap, my house is a wreck, i miss my family, and i am hungry; that God is Sovereign! He is my refuge! He is my strength! His name is above EVERY name! He gave His Son's life for me! His grace is sufficient! And He is worthy to be praised!

difficult decisions

i hate making difficult decisions. and it seems as though we have been having to make a lot of them lately. i know this is a part of life. everybody has to do it. but it doesn't make it any more enjoyable; maybe just a little more bearable.

but one recent difficult decison has made me incredibly sad. it doesn't have anything to do with family, the health of my kids, the state of my marriage, the declining economy, or any other major life circumstances. which is probably why some people wouldn't see it as that big of a deal.

but it is a BIG deal to me! it has been extremely difficult for me to acutally have to say "no" to. this week, i had to decide that i could not be a part of my tuesday morning bible study. for those of you who read this blog, even somewhat regularly, then you will remember this post that i wrote a couple of months ago.

well, september came and went. and i tried REALLY hard to make it work. i was able to go to class for two weeks. and then, life happened. maddie got the swine flu. tyson got sick. we had our adoption finalization. tyson got sick again.

the interesting thing is, it isn't because of a couple of life issues that i have decided that it isn't going to work this semester. it is because during those weeks, when i was unable to attend, and i was becoming increasingly confused about what it was that i was supposed to do; God began speaking to me about the issue. when all was said and done, i knew that driving that distance each week and having tyson in the nursery for 3 1/2 hours, wasn't the best thing for him...for right now! i could go into a million reasons why, but those don't matter. what matters is that i do what is ultimately best for him; knowing that God has a plan and a reason for this.

it seems odd to me to say that God made it clear to me that i was NOT supposed to be a part of this bible study this semester. i mean who would actually think that God doesn't want us in fellowship with other believers, studying His word?!?! but i know, with confidence, that it isn't that God doesn't want me to grow in the understanding and knowledge of Him with other believers. maybe, just maybe (and i know this because He has used this in my life before), He is going to use this time to teach me the importance and the unbelieveable value of resting in Him and learning to be content in His presence alone!!! i will, no doubt, miss the fellowship and the encouragement that comes from the women at ebc. but i am sure that what God will teach me this semester, if i am open to learn, will far surpass anything i would gain from being a part of a bible study group.

so, i will do my best to complete daniel-part 1 on my own. in hopes that in january, when daniel-part 2 starts...i will be back at ebc, enjoying the love and encouragement that comes with being in the midst of growing believers!!

costume deals

since maddie was two years old, all she has ever wanted to be for halloween is a disney princess...or some kind of disney character. well, if you have ever seen the costumes at the disney store, then you know that they are priced a little outrageously for something that will only be worn one time.

however, she has always gotten to be a disney princess! (with the real costumes that the disney store sells....not the ones from party city or walmart, etc.) and the best part about that is that i have NEVER paid full price for a costume there. here is the trick...

every year, we wait until the week of halloween to buy her costume. if you have a little girl, then there are a ton of costumes to choose from. therefore, you are usually guaranteed to find a costume in the right size...at the last minute. we always ask her what she would like to be, and then we remind her that although we will do our best to find that costume, that she MAY have to be something else this year. she has never argued with us about it, because she loves the disney princesses. so just about any of them would work. but every year she has a preference. so every year, we go hunting for the costume.

we have a rule. we do not spend more than $25.oo for the entire costume. so, if the costume is on sale for $25.00, then she doesn't get any accessories (we use what we can find at home). this has usually been the case! the disney costumes are always $40.00 - $50.00 at regular price. if you go the week of halloween, you can usually get them 50% off!!

here are the costumes that we have managed to acquire for $25.00 or less over the years...
1. cinderella
2. tinker bell
3. belle (beauty & the beast)
4. sleeping beauty

but this year, with the sleeping beauty costume, we hit the jackpot.
sleeping beauty dress ($50.00)....$14.99
matching sleeping beauty shoes, that light up ($25.00)....$6.99
matching sleeping beauty tiara ($10.00)....$3.99

GRAND TOTAL: $25.00

i am telling you...if you have a little girl who likes disney anything, and you are willing to wait till the last minute to buy a costume, then this is the way to do it!! can't beat these deals :-)