Chaos

19 people all looking mostly in the direction of the camera and smiling.....

Sorta...

Priscilla, 2014

Sometimes you just don't get your act together in time to make things happen before Christmas.  We have limited time to get things done during 'season'.  November through February means no weekends, we only have Sunday afternoons.  Unfortunately we spent a Sunday afternoon or two sickly and cranky.  We opted to save Santa for the Monday before Christmas.  Everyone else had that day off school as well, so it was crowded.  Priscilla got pushed to the bottom of the list.

And I don't know what this is, but I really like it.  I feel like I made my own meme.

Priscilla got her visit a few days AFTER Christmas because we had to recover from the toy influx.  Hayes and Elizabeth were SO excited to have their own tickets for the ride.  We rode just once, two laps around the tiny train trail.  Daddy sat behind them and I got to ride in the seat in front of them for photo opps, of course.

I love this face from Hayes!  He was so excited for this year and the fact that he got to carry his own ticket.  We bought another Priscilla ornament for their Christmas tree and they were thrilled with that.  They also give you 'I rode Priscilla' stickers and my kids LOVE those.  So, we had stickers on our clothes for days.

I think it is safe to say that we are ready for Priscilla the next Christmas season!

Sassy Pants

I wish I had as much sass as she does.  I just don't think it is even possible.  She woke up on Christmas Eve and picked out her own attire.  Cute pants, a cuter shirt, a denim jacket, that was lined for warmth. I was getting ready in my own closet, she demanded that I give her a 'garf' to match her outfit.  She topped it all off with her pink cowboy boots, matching bow, and pink sunglasses.

We were out in public for about 3 hours and went to a total of 3 places.  She got more compliments at the Honey Baked Ham store than I would manage in a week.  She isn't phased by strangers and made friends while we waited in line to get our Christmas ham.  Elizabeth managed to charm the staff at HBH out of a few samples of food and a cookie.  She also charmed the lady in line in front of us into a very sweet conversation and some candy.

And then there was this.  I mean, I think she knows she's a ham.  She pretty much has everyone wrapped around her chubby little fingers.  Even strangers cannot resist her charm.

Santa procrastination 2013

We typically go see Santa at Lenox Mall and ride The Pink Pig between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  For some reason this year we just let time slip away and got busy, oh yeah... and we got sick!  We love going to the mall to see Santa and the Santa we see is awesome.  I'll post those pics another day.  We try to make a point to go on a Sunday afternoon as well.  Early church service, lunch, straight to the mall for Santa and The Pig.  We didn't make it on Sunday this year.  Oops.

The only days we had to choose from this year was December 23 and 24.  The day before Christmas Eve and Christmas Eve.  Which day would you choose?!  I figured it was going to be chaos no matter the day, so we just showed up the Monday before Christmas and hoped for the best.  The Santa line was about 1 hour and 20 mins ish long.  Not too shabby considering we weren't the only last minute folks in line....

Usually we reserve their 'phones' for extreme measures, today was that day.  The phones were our lifesavers!  Did I mention that all this time Libby has been potty training (at this point it was for 3 days) and she didn't have ANY accidents at all while we were out in public?  Granted, I'm pretty neurotic for that part of parenting and set a timer to make sure that she goes every 45 minutes or so.... Not to mention that I had to take a pregnancy potty break every 45 mins or so as well.  Baby bladder dancing...

Clearly she was stressed about it too...

They were troopers and stood in line, had snacks, and ultimately saw Santa.  Libby was not impressed and Hayes had a GREAT time!  Again, I'll post those pics soon!  We made friends with those in line around us and took turns taking potty breaks, pushing strollers, and the like.  I was in awe of those years that my mother took us, all 3 of us, by herself to see Santa.  Kudos mom.  You are my hero, once again.  I would never, ever, in a million years attempt this by myself...

Ever.

And then all was right in the world because they put Santa right beside the Great American Cookie Co.

Brilliant planning Lenox Mall.  Brilliant planning.

Holidays in full swing

December makes me thankful for my returning students....

The ones who are more like family and friends than the norm.

They show up when you need help and entertain the preschool crew after hours.

See above photo.

Jordan is our favorite person, ever.

We call her the other sister often.

I am beyond thankful for her help and the love she shows my babies.

Plus, she taught them to make these awesome faces.

How can I NOT love that?

Also, a parade.

 Well, the parade itself was kinda pitiful.

In the sense that there were about 10 things to look at, and the police came first.

The blue lights were quite a spectacular thing according to my kids!

 She is so nosy curious about everything.

We ran into my sweet girl Hope and she entertained held Elizabeth the whole time!

 When we pulled into the parking place we spotted Lucas and Toni!

Hayes was SO excited to see Lucas and I think Lucas shared the excitement!

Those boys sure do love each other a lot.

My sweet baby girl.

 Firetruck.

 City truck.

 Grinch and Scrooge.

This float had some cheerleaders and some of my cheer parents!

It also had goats in the back.

Weeks after the parade Hayes still talks about the goats he saw that night.  

If you ask him what he remembers about the parade that's the FIRST thing he talks about.

 Candace and Morgan!

 Frosty the Snowman.

And the giant green truck.

Christmas Prep Pink Pig Style

Earlier in December we visited The Pink Pig at Lenox.  

Last year when we went to ride it was freezing and rainy.

This year we had on short sleeves and we were still sweating.

It was an awesome day.

 Miss Priss had about had enough of waiting in line.  

She began her slow meltdown...

 I gave her my necklace for entertainment.  

It didn't work.  

See the sassy face?

 Daddy was mimicking her and poking fun at her.

She was not amused.

 Big brother was quite taken with his itouch and played on it for a good while.

 Still mad.

 YAY!  

A picture of all of us.  

This never happens.

 On the actual pink pig.  

 He was more than pleased.

This was the original Pink Pig , who's name is Priscilla.

It is so tiny.

I can't imagine sitting in that thing.

Allllllll the junk

This is PART of the pile of goodies my students brought me today!

I got one more tin of peanut butter yummies later in the day.

I also got a $10 Target card--holllllllla! 

Giant Hersheys Kiss replica via rice krispies treat!

I was saddened but excited that it stuck to the foil so I couldn't eat much of it.

Bummer.

Some sort of Chex mix chocolate stuff that I'll be eating in bed later while I watch a movie or read.

Just straight chocolate.

And a snowglobe.

A pasta soup that I add tomatoes and beef to.

This is a first and I'm REALLY excited to try it!

This one is a baggie of chocolatey chex mix stuff with marshmellows, and Santa hats!

So cute!

This red container has these amazing thin cookie wafer things that just melt in your mouth.

Heavenly.

And lastly, I got the peanut buttery goodness.

I don't know what this one is yet, but it smells like I would expect heaven to smell.

And I wonder why my pants won't fit come January.

I don't even make it to Christmas before I'm bombarded by all the goodies!

Hope y'all have a great weekend preparing for Christmas with your families.

I can't wait to share with y'all about that after we open all our gifts!

Military Lounge

Today my family and I are volunteering at the Delta Military loung at the ATL airport. 

I am going to try not to cry all day while I think about it. 

And refrain from crying while I'm there. 

But I make no promises. 

I cannot wait to tell y'all all about it!

Stroke Progress: 1 year out

My mother in law had a stroke almost a year ago.

We had a really scary Christmas because of it.

She has diabetes, COPD, and doesn't take care of herself the way she should.

We acknowledge that, but cannot change it.

Last year around Christmas we noticed she was acting a little slower than normal.

I think most of us attributed that to her COPD and likely bronchitis.

It was the season for sickness and that was usually how she started.

On Christmas Eve we were celebrating at my grandmother's house and we got a call.

My husband rushed around gathering things to throw in the car and just kept repeating to me,

"We have to to go to my mother's house."

I was very angry with him because he wouldn't explain and I was having to leave my family celebration.

Once we arrived, I noticed that we had called an ambulance to assist her.

Thankfully, my children were asleep in the car and didn't see any of this.

Inside the house were my brother and sister in law and the paramedics.

Her blood sugar was alarmingly low, so they gave her medication for that.

Everything else seemed okay.

As we attempted to move her from her chair we noticed that she had an accident in her chair.

I knew immediately that she would be mortified at that fact and I also knew that was NOT normal for her.

She was coming to with the medication for her blood sugar and KNEW it was Christmas Eve.

She did NOT want to go to the hospital.

I can vividly remember the look on Sean's face when he realized that she had an accident in her chair.

He was terrified and his face said so much in that moment.

My husband played it so cool that day and I wouldn't know anything he thought or felt until much later.

Anette did not want to leave her house, but I insisted that she go.

Daryk and Sean were very hesitant to send her to the hospital that day, and I felt like the bad guy for insisting upon it, but I did.

She pleaded with me not to send her.

I remember her crying when I told her that she had to go because she was sick.

I held it together until I got in my car.

On my drive home I sobbed.

I took my kids home and Anette went to the hospital.

I don't remember much else from that day. 

I don't think Daryk was there much.

I do remember going to the hospital late that evening.

I sat with Sean some while he was with her at the hospital.

Mom (that's what I call Anette, my mother in law) was very quiet at the hospital.

Anette and quiet and two words that should never go in the same sentence.

She was unusally quiet.

Multiple tests later and they were all inconclusive.

She was sent home on Christmas Day. 

Christmas was very chaotic and we had Taco Mac for dinner.  :)  Yummo!

But she was home.

It didn't last long.

A few days later the same thing happened, back to the hospital she went.

At this point I was scared.

Her family has a very strong history of cancer and several instances of brain cancer.

She was transferred twice to different hospitals to receive treatment and have tests.

The initial diagnosis was a brain tumor, so we prepared for the worst after we were given news that she had 6 months to a year to live.

Thankfully that diagnosis wasn't accurate. 

She had a stroke.

A slow moving, weird, not normal stroke.

That went misdiagnosed and untreated for too long.

A stroke is the stoppage of blood flow to brain: a sudden blockage or rupture of a blood vessel in the brain resulting in, e.g. loss of consciousness, partial loss of movement, or loss of speech.  SOURCE

This seemed to fit her much better.

But she hasn't been the same since then.

I cannot believe it has been a year.

She is strong and has made a great recovery, considering it took almost a month to diagnose her.

I think if she had been diagnosed appropriately closer to the incidence of stroke she would have been able to recover better.

She still doesn't talk as much as she used to.

She isn't as active as she used to be.

She doesn't leave the house as much as she did before the stroke.

Her movements aren't as steady and her endurance is not what it was when she first moved up.

She still does everything she did before the stroke, it is just slower.

Her brain still processes things slowly and her response to questions isn't always what you expect. 

Oh, and she's mean as hell... but I'm not sure that's new.  :)

But she's here.

And she's mostly healthy, all things considered.

I know most people don't absolutely love their mother in law.

And I don't love everything about her.  She drives me crazy most days.

But I wouldn't trade her for the world. 

She loves my kids with a force that only God could stop.

She loves me and has taken me as her own.

She loves her own children with a love that makes them choose her time and time again.

I pray every day that my own children feel that same kind of love from me.

Watching her choose to live every day is remarkable.