BFF

I am the kind of person who HAS to have girlfriends. At least one at all times. I am lost without one. Each time we move, I immediately start scoping out people to connect to. I like the kind of gal that I can go over, open her cabinet, get a drink & plop on the couch and watch TV with her. I have been blessed in my life to have such great friends and some true BFFs.

This is the story of my very first BFF.

In elementary my BFF was Stacey Carrier. We lived around the block from each other and were mostly inseparable. We loved to sing songs (she liked Dolly Parton & I liked Alabama), we rode our bikes endlessly, I'm sure we played Barbies & other girlie stuff. Then the summer I turned 9, we moved to another neighborhood. We saw each other alot that first year, but after that, different schools and all, we sort of saw less & less of each other. I always missed her though and driving past her neighborhood (the same one) on my way to my grandparents house, I'd think of her. I saw her back in about 1997 or so at a carnival for the elementary school we went to. She had a kindergartener (or maybe 1st grader) and another one in a stroller. We chatted for a second and that was it. Fast-forward to 2010 and thanks to Facebook, I found her. I was so excited! Then I saw that just weeks before, she had lost that little kindergartener at the age of 17. I was devastated for her. I wanted so badly to rush to her and hold her. I know a small edge of that pain and it hurt my heart. I reached out to her via the internet and hoped she'd call me so we could get together. Then last night, we took Bubba to CiCi's pizza while we waited for Sam's to replace my tire. And I saw her. I wasn't positive (ok, 99%) so Colby went over and asked if she was Stacey. I couldn't believe it! I finally got to give her that hug I'd been holding on to for so long. I hope we see each other again soon, but now my heart is a little lighter. It's amazing how our childhood friends shape who we are and how much a part of us they become. She will be my friend forever, really, no matter whether it's another 10 years til I see her again. Those kind of friends never leave our hearts. I'm grateful for that.

I've also reconnected with my BFF from high school on Facebook, hope to see her soon. Amazingly she lives about 10 minutes from me.

DONE!

First, I didn't cry when I dropped off the exersaucer...I really tried to not think about it! :)

And, in addition to that event yesterday, all her sweet little summer clothes hanging on a rack, being looked over by strangers, I got to meet a new miracle, Baby B, a friend's new bundle. I held him for an hour, snuggled up (he is 4 days old) and had not one twinge of baby envy! Yay me! I am so familiar with that longing feeling, that it sort of shocked me to feel nothing but "awww" for this little guy. Of course, my little ball of energy was running all over the place, so I guess I am otherwise occupied :) Still, it was nice to know that we really are done and I don't have that "we're done, but I'd sort of like to have another" feeling. It was easy to hand him back to his mommy!

i wanted to share how smart my Sweet Pea is (we all know how smart Bubba is - reading at a 7 yr old level!!). The other night in the bath, I said to her, as I do each time, "ok, time to get out". She went over, pulled the drain and started getting out! I was amazed. What a smartie pants :)

Exersaucer

Bubba hated the exersaucer. He hated anything that strapped him down..the high chair (gone at 9 months since he only screamed while in it), the car seat (screamed from the second he was strapped in, whether it was a 5 minute drive or a 6 hour drive!), the swing, and yes, the exersaucer. Everyone told us we *had* to get one...it was the best thing EVER. Well, it was a torture ring to him! I mainly only used it when I got home from the grocery store, stuck him in there and listened to him cry as I unloaded & put away the groceries at about Mach 3 speed. So, I was fine to put it away so many years ago. It was one of the few things of his we had for use with Sweet Pea, since we gave away the swing & high chair to needy folks. But now it is sitting in my room, sparkly clean with a blue consignment sale tag on it. Ready to go tomorrow to be sold for some other baby who will hopefully enjoy it as Sweet Pea did. I would put her in it in the bathroom while I showered. I did this the other day to make sure I was ready to sell it and yep, she just about climbed out of it. Ok, outgrown that.

The thing that hit me was this is one of the last "big" baby items. We still have and use a high chair for her, but the swing, bouncy seat & bumbo are gone to other houses. We are done having babies, but there is a part of me who grieves at the fact that I will not feel life inside my belly again. I have been blessed to have 4 lives grow within my "room" as Bubba called it :)

Will I cry after dropping the exersaucer off tomorrow? Probably.

Kindergarten

Walking down the little school hallway - I am amazed that I have a child that belongs there. It's all so cute, the little decorations and awards and "Look what we made" things hanging along the hallway. Surreal to me. It seems not so long ago I wondered if I'd ever get the chance to be in the PTO or have a parent-teacher conference and now here I am. We are so blessed with Bubba's kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Tracey. She is the ideal teacher for K...young, bubbly, full of spirit. She is a hugger and you can tell she really LOVES these kids. She especially loves Bubba - she thinks he is the funniest kid. At our parent-teacher conference the other day, she said simply "Nothing to tell - he's great!" He's one of the best readers in the class, which is impressive to her since most of the kids in his group are older than him since he has an April b/day...lots of the kids in the class are already 6. She says she never has to tell him things twice (now why can't it be that way at home??). She was meaning she only has to instruct him on a skill once and he's got it. He's also very creative...they have journals they have to write and draw in daily with little to no help from her. They have to write phonectically (did I spell that right??) which seems weird to me but it's working. His pages go from "I wish the war was over" (read - I wich the wr ws ovr) to "I am an alien (ALIN)who has a super (Sooper) Sucker" That one cracked me up. At least he has an array of thoughts, right? I just love being in his little class with the tiny chairs & tables, the block writing and centers...I wish I could just go sit one day, invisible, and watch my little miracle boy play and learn.

Kindergarten is almost over...unbelievable. She said he is more than ready for 1st grade.

I am so proud of him!

The Never Ending Snow Day

Today is snow day #8 for our kids. These aren't consecutive, but after 3 snow days, Bubba had a recurrence of his tonsilitis, so he then missed 3 more days, now we are on another run of snow days, so he has now been at home for 13 days. I love him, but he's starting to climb the walls and drag me with him! I know he's bored...and there's not much to do. Yesterday and today, other bored friends and frenzied moms have relented and we've let the kids play. I wonder if/when we'll have to make up these snow days? I heard 10 days were alloted...what does that mean ? 10 free snow days? Our roads are fine..it's the way back roads that are still icy. I understand, but geez...there comes a point when you need to let the 95% of schools in the county go and just close the one in the problem area!!

Right now my house is quiet as he is away at a neighbors and Sweet Pea is sleeping. The only sound is the fish tank & the washing machine.

I have so much to do and I don't feel like doing any of it. I have clothes to prep for consigment, stuff to gather for my Pampered Chef party tomorrow night and stuff to prep for the Valetines Day kid party I'm hosting on Saturday. YAWN The thought makes me tired.

I know this wasn't exciting but oh well...such is my blog.

On a happy note, Sweet Pea has 3 of her 4 molars :)

Sick of Sick

The whole month of January, someone has been sick. Sweet Pea spiked a fever on Jan 1...I knew immediately that was not a good sign! 3 days after her antibiotics were done, Bubba spiked a fever. In the middle of that, Colby & I both had tummy bugs. One week after Bubba finished his antibiotics, he spiked another fever. Apparently his antibiotics didn't do the trick (tonsilitis) so now we are on round 2. He has been home since last Friday. Friday, Monday &Tuesday were snow days and Tuesday is when he spiked. So, I am the nice mommy who doesn't send her sick kid to school. Fortunately his throat has never hurt during all this, which I don't see how because it is NASTY and his breath is BAD. Other than a bit tired, he's ok.

Sweet Pea is teething. Molars. Fever. Diarrhea. One word - UGH.

Colby has something going on with his tummy - I'm afraid it's gall bladder or IBS...he's going to see a GI. I'm sure he's thrilled I'm sharing this with you :)

I have persistent PMS. Seriously, like a good week to 10 days. What gives?? I'm suffering from an overload of Estrogen. Luckily I am unarmed or I might be blogging from prison. I'm off to the doctor next week to see what we can do about that. I can't take birth control because of blood clotting issues. Maybe that bio-identical stuff that Susan Sommers raves about? Or is that only post-menopausal?

Maybe February will be better...not looking good right now. This too shall pass...but can it hurry up????

Sparkly

One of my favorite things about ice/snow is how the trees look. We drove to the mall yesterday after being stuck inside for 3 days. All along the interstate, the trees were coated in ice and SPARKLING under the beautiful sun. What an amazing site. Like a wonderland. I know ice is a pain, but that's the price to pay to see such a beautiful sight.

In other news - Bubba is out of school again. The snow/ice came Friday, and though the city is fine, up here in the sticks the roads are still a bit hazardous. It's supposed to be 43 degrees today, so I'm hoping for melting :) I will head out myself later to PetCo to return the useless piece of equipment known as a shock collar, which only shocks every 3-5 times...can you see me holding the stupid thing, testing it..."it doesn't work" {pushing button repeatedly} OUCH, ok, that time it worked. But really, what good is that? I want it to work at 5am when pscyho-puppy starts barking. So, back it goes today, day 41 out of 45 until the return policy runs out. Also, Bailey is almost out of food and that's the only place we can get his fancy "old man who is tiny and needs tiny pieces" formula. And the irony of psycho-puppy's food (which can be found thankfully at WalMart)..it's called "Smart Puppy". Um. That's not working!

Sweet Pea is getting her molars and isn't having fun with that. She has one, but the other three look like she's storing food for winter under her gums. I know it hurts, but so does my head! :)