What I have been doing!

School started August 1st for us this year.  Our school district went to the "Balanced Calendar" this year.  Which basically means we are in school for nine weeks, then out of school for two weeks, until the summer which will be eight or nine weeks.  So we are really looking forward to two week breaks in October, December/January, and March.

I had a list a mile long of things to do on August 1st, however my youngest son was sick.  We thought he just had the flu, but it lingered for days.  He said the entire time his whole belly hurt.  He threw up.  A lot!  He didn't want to eat or drink or do anything.  So finally being the good mom and nurse that I am, we went to the walk-in clinic at our family physician on Saturday (by this time he had missed the first 3 days of school).  A few hours later we ended up in the Emergency Room at our local hospital.  And then a few hours later we ended up the Riley Hospital Emergency Room.  So now I know the signs of a small bowel obstruction in the pediatric population.  Vomiting longer than 48 hours, no fever,  no appetite, decreased energy, and belly pain.  All of which my son had when we thought it was just the flu.  The fact that he had several abdominal surgeries shortly after birth adds to his chances of getting adhesions which can sometimes be the cause of the bowel obstruction.

So needless to say, after two days in the hospital, the surgeons decided it was time to do surgery. Thankfully he was able to have laparoscopic surgery to take down the adhesions.  So Monday night he had his surgery and he was able to come home on Thursday, after he passed gas and some form of stool.  He even went to school on Friday!!  You know when your 2nd grade boy is begging to go to school, he is over the whole thing.

So the start to our school year has been just a little crazy.  Now I can think about all the things I want to get done.  All the legos I want to organize.  All the books I want to read.  All the stores I want to go to by myself.  Because now that summer is over, my productivity goes way up!!

Quick Update

So my youngest son ended up having exploratory surgery late Monday night.  They were able to do it all laparoscopically which was a huge praise!  So they ended up taking down the adhesions from his previous surgeries (which were 7 years ago) and repairing a small area by his colon.  The surgeon was very pleased with everything.  And poor little Devin had to have an NG tube attached to suction for 2 days.

On Wednesday evening they were able to remove the tube and let him start having clear liquids to drink.  It had been 8 days since he has eaten any real food and 4 days since he had swallowed a drink.  This morning they are letting him try real food.  If he able to keep everything he takes down, passes gas, and eventually poops, then he is good to go!

So we are just waiting waiting waiting for poop!

Joyful. Patient. Faithful.

I have a chalkboard in my kitchen that sits on an easel.  Oftentimes it is covered with papers, coupons, lists, and what not.  Sometimes I write a verse or a quote I like on it.  The other day, I wrote this verse down.  God knew I was going to need it.  I was excited about the new school year for the boys.  I was looking forward to a few hours of peace and quiet.  I was gearing up for homework, fall sports, emails from teachers, and all the stuff that goes with a new school year.  

Then Tuesday night, my youngest started throwing up.  A lot.  And it didn't stop.  So 5 days, one doctor's appointment, and 2 ER visits later, we are at Riley Children's Hospital waiting out a bowel obstruction.  Hoping he will start moving things on his own.  Time will tell.  In the meantime, I am going to practice what this verse says as best as I can.

Random Thoughts I found when going through paper work

I have been going through paperwork like crazy around the house.  I found a bunch of notes from different seminars I went to over the years.  I wanted to put the notes in a safe place and forgot about them for years.  So here is what I thought was important.

*When raising kids, remember things may not always be equal, but we will always be fair.

*I am called to be obedient, and God is responsible for the results.

*I need to ruthlessly eliminate hurry from my life!

*The days go slow, but the years go fast!

*I need to parent the actual kids I have and the life we are living right now!

*Sometimes you just need to paint the walls, instead of decorating the whole room!

*Earthy people are prone to do earthy things.

*You only see the front porch of people's lives.

So these are things I wanted to remember and now I can throw away recycle more papers!

Animals in Chicago

The Monday after Megan and Garret's wedding, Steve, the boys, and I headed up to Chicago for a 3 day road trip.  Since we are going to the balanced calendar school schedule this year, we decided on a mini vacation before school starts.   Then in October we are going to Disney on Orlando with my parents for a week!  

So we went to the Chicago zoo (in the hot humid weather!) and Shedd Aquarium. We ended up buying a Shedd Aquarium membership just so we didn't have to stand in the long ticket line in the hot sun!

The boys were very excited about Stingray Bay at the Brookfield zoo.  There are 50 cownose rays swimming around in a big shallow pool.  They swim right past and you get a chance to pet the rays.  Thankfully their barbs are trimmed making them harmless!

At the Shedd Aquarium we were very excited about the jellies exhibit.  I had no idea there are so many species of jelly fish.  They are beautiful and mesmerizing to watch.  My son took this awesome picture with an iphone!

The twins got an opportunity to dress up and act like penguins.  They had a penguin slide that was fun for them.  I think twin penguins are adorable!

Backyard Basketball Court

In May we had a backyard basketball court put in.  The boys were very excited about it!  There have been lots of games played on this court and lots of practicing.  With 3 boys who love to play sports, the court makes an excellent place to also play kickball.  After all the work was done, we decided to try and plant some grass.  The dirt was excavated and smoothed out, we put down grass seed, then covered it with hay.   Then it never rained again at our house.  We tried watering it, my husband, oldest son, and I taking turns.  But we failed!

And now the cold hard truth...this is what our back yard looks like.  Weeds, hay, and dead grass. We are in a major drought here in Indiana.  We will not have grass this summer.  My husband wanted to get rid of the play set because our boys are 7 (the twins) and 11.  But I am too nostalgic and won't part with it yet.

There are a few plants that did pop up on their own.  I think this is a zucchini plant, but not sure.   I'm sure it is from something that was left over from our garden 2 years ago.  I finally gave in and started watering this plant in hopes of getting at least one vegetable from it!

And this is the best surprise from the backyard.  I love sunflowers!  I had a sunflower kitchen in Colorado back in the day.  I have a sunflower tattoo on my ankle.  I love driving through Kansas during the summer and seeing all the sunflowers!  And this little beauty popped up in my ugly backyard.  Beauty among all the ugly!

Megan and Garret's Barn Wedding

My daughter (from marriage) who just graduated from Ball State in May and moved to Colorado two weeks later, came back to Indiana to get married to her Colorado cowboy.  He is taking his new bride back to their new home in Pueblo this week.  I cannot begin to describe how much fun everyone had at their wedding.  It was a simple affair planned from start to finish by Megan.  Everything looked beautiful, the food was excellent, the dancing was so much fun.  I didn't want the night to end.  Our good friend Dean Nester performed the marriage ceremony in his cowboy hat.  He fit right in!!

This is my husband and I.  I wanted to pull off the country chic look and he wanted to pull off the Duck Commander/Duck Dynasty look.  I think we both succeeded!

Here I am with my oldest son who was an usher in the wedding.  He did a great job and acted very professional which is a great accomplishment for an eleven year old boy.  I think this will be a great picture for the slide show at his wedding.  (If they are even doing that when he gets married)

The twins were the ring bearers for Sissy's wedding.  My sister made this adorable sign for them to carry as they walked ran down the aisle.  They looked so cute in their cowboy boots and shirts.  Once they got on the dance floor, they unsnapped their shirts and looked so so cute!

And lastly my adorable niece was one of the flower girls.  Megan was Audrey's favorite babysitter ever.  We are all so sad she is moving to Colorado!

During the reception, you could text song requests to the DJ to play.  So my son borrowed my phone to request two of his favorite tunes.  Little did I know that the song requests would show up on the screen.  And my son did not know that my texts send my signature automatically at the end.

So imagine my surprise when I looked up on the big screen and saw the following:

I'm sexy and I know it   Denise

Oh yea!  I'm sexy and I know it.  Denise