Mission IMPOSSIBLE!

Can you hear the background noise..."da-da-da-dada-da-da-da-da-da-dada," Ok, so, maybe not....anyway....the mission was and has been for Mommy to get a FULL nights sleep, uninterrupted sleep, you know, the kind where you go to sleep and don't wake up until morning. That is pretty much unheard of in my house and has been for as long as I can remember. Unheard of for me that is, not for Daddy-O who could sleep through a rocket ship barreling through our house at warp speed, and not for any of the boys who sleep through the night whenever they please. But what happens on those nights they decide NOT to sleep through the night...I'll tell you what happens, Dear, Sweet Mommy gets up and gets them back to sleep! Picture this...It's approximately 4:30am (SO close to a FULL night...yet SO far away!), I am awakened to my oldest Darling Son standing inches from my face saying "Mommy, Mommy, MOMMY!!" I respond with a low and grumbling "what, Jaxon". "Take me back to bed" he says...UGH, okay, out of bed I go, to walk him back to his room b/c apparently he forgot his way (as he does most nights). He gets back in to bed and I stand there to be sure he drifts off back to sleep. As I round the corner to get back into my nice, cozy bed, I see 2 wide eyes and little puppy ears all perked up...yep, Maggie needs to go out. I carry her down the stairs (she's too small to make it all the way down on her own still) and outside we go. She pees and poops...good thing too b/c I would have been mad if I had taken her out for a wee hour play time! Back to bed I go..YAY! As soon as my head hits the pillow, literally, I hear heaving. The cat was throwing up right outside my bedroom door. Now, to be 100% honest with you, before the days of Maggie, I may very well have left it there to be dealt with in the morning BUT I didn't want the dog to eat it so UP I got, AGAIN, to clean up cat vomit! When that was done, I got back in bed only to almost drift off to sleep when I hear Caden crying......I tried to ignore it BUT, it triggered Camron (yes I am serious). So up I went before they woke up amigo #3, to see what was ailing the two of them. Nothing, of course! They were crying in their sleep. I snuggled their blankies close to them then trudged back to my bed to get a few more minutes of sleep before time to get up for good! There is no doubt in my mind that this mission will one day be completed....until then, I will have to make due with being a Night Owl and an Early Bird!

A Morning Poem!

I must say "NO" 10,000 times
I always read the same 'ole rhymes
I wipe their hineys and their noses
I wash and wash and wash their "clotheses"
I cook their breakfast, lunch and dinner
I lose the game so they're the winner
I give them baths so they don't stink
I show them how to whistle and wink

It would be nice to just be lazy
Some do say that I am crazy
Doing the same thing every day
but you know what...
I WOULDN'T HAVE IT ANY OTHER WAY
I have a better job than a king or any ruler
Being a stay at home Mommy of Preschoolers!

by: Mommy =)

Who knows about Clifford the Big Red Dog?

I am beginning to think I am going to have "Maggie the Big Black Dog". Seriously, we have had her for almost 2 weeks and she has gotten SO much bigger already! When we brought her home, she was literally 1/2 the size of Bailey (who most of you know is an abnormally large cat). Now, she is pretty darn close to being the same size as Bailey. We haven't been over feeding her I swear! She eats 3-4 times a day just like they told us! Of course there have been a few things in her diet that will remain nameless due to any weak tummies that may be reading this (I'm sure you can only imagine...lol =)).

Here is a new picture of her. You can't tell how big she is in this one but it's cute!

Is it Friday already?!

This week sort of flew by! Possibly b/c we stayed so busy...not sure! Our first week of Kindergarten went GREAT! Jaxon is such a good "student" and SO eager to learn. This morning he went to take Maggie out and when he came back upstairs I was checking my email. He said to me (sounding rather annoyed, might I add) "C'mon MOM, I'm ready to start SCHOOL!" It was great!
Camron and Caden are enjoying taking part in some of Jaxon's school activities. They want to do everything he does but that's just not possible! They try and it's cute so I let them! They are so incredibly independant that it's not even funny. If I had a nickel for every time I hear "No, MY DO IT" each day, I would be a gazillionaire! If only "my" wanted to pee in the potty! Oh well, they will do it soon enough.....I hope!
I did have 2 dr.s appointments yesterday. One being my rheumy for level checks and the other being with my gastrointerologist for tummy issues. My rhuemy continues to think my muscle strength is wonderful which makes me happy. My SED rate is really good this go-round. My liver levels are still "good" and my CK has dropped from 1240+ to 804! That makes me EXTREMELY happy. He did, however, increase my methotrexate BUT he lowered my prednisone. I think the plan is to try and taper me completely off prednisone and if my levels stay "okay" or normal for me, he will attempt to taper the methotrexate. Now, don't get me wrong, this is not something that is likely to happen in the near future BUT it IS a step in the right direction which is a good thing in my book! I would rather take baby-steps forward than any kind of steps backwards!
Maggie is doing good. She is one spoiled doggie, let me tell you! The boys like to take her everywhere...that it's possible to take her at least! She's been to petsmart (of course), bruster's, and even to harris teeter! She is trying really hard to get the house training thing down pat and she's doing much better. She had her first vet visit today. It wasn't bad at all, although, it made Jax really nervous!
Last but certainly not least, Daddy-O is great as well. He is counting down the days until we go to the beach for vacation! I think we all are! Yep, that's right! We are taking the circus on the road! The whole fam and the dog! Poor Bailey is going to stay home and hold down the fort!
Well, I hope you have all had a wonderful week! Until the next post........tata for now!
OH, one more thing...I cannot even believe that one month from tomorrow my baby will be 5! AND one month from Sunday my itty-bitty babies will be 3! WOW!

Daddy-O has a CRUSH on Jaxon's TEACHER!!

How cute are they? This is Jaxon D., Jaxon B., and Abby S. They are all starting Kindergarten tomorrow...well, all of them except Jaxon D. I am letting him skip his first day of Kindergarten! Not really. He actually did all of his "work" on Friday! That is the beauty of homeschooling! It is extremely flexible! We had a "back to school" pencil party on Friday for these rising Kindergartners who are starting school tomorrow at the school of MOM! We are all (yes kids included) super excited about our new adventure. I am sure I will have LOTS of fun stories to share with you during this adventure! Camron and Caden will be learning preschool "stuff" while soaking in everything big brother is learning! We are taking lots of field trips, going to the library each week and just planning on having a great time!

So, I guess it's okay that Daddy-O loves Jaxon's teacher 'eh?

Trays, bracelets, and MORE!!

Ok, so it has been brought to my attention that I need to post pictures of the things that I am making and selling. I have actually been meaning to do this but have not been able to get the pictures until now! I paint these adorable lap trays that are VERY versatile and really just come in handy. They can be used for snack trays, art trays, homework trays, and even fit over most car seats for trips in the car! I can paint just about anything and personalize it with a name. I will post a few pics for you to see. They are $20.00 each so let me know if you are interested! I also paint bubble totes, plastic carrying cases (for things such as trains, cars, small dolls, etc.). I do not have pictures of these but will get some on soon. I also make photo bracelets. They are $20 for a two frame bracelet then $1.50 for each additional frame. I will post a picture of those as well. The bracelets are good gifts for Mommy's, Grandma's, proud Aunt's, etc.! The trays are great gifts for ANY child, young or old!

Welcome to our newest addition!

Yes, Chris and I now have child #4! It's a GIRL! Her name is Maggie! We were planning on getting the boys a puppy for Christmas but it worked out that they got one for their birthday...early! I think this was the best birthday present they could have asked for. They LOVE her and are SO cute with her! She was born on June 26th. She had lots of brothers and sisters so it was sort of sad to take her away but I think she will LOVE her new home! The picture below was taken with my phone so it isn't the best but I will post more soon!

A Fine Feathered Friend!

A few weeks ago, Jaxon was over at Nana and Poppi's out in the yard when he came across a baby bird who had fallen out of his nest. Of course they rescued it and it became sort of a "pet". Jaxon named it Chucky. Poppi took it under his wing (no pun intended) and began feeding it...every 30 minutes or so! Let me tell you, this bird can do some serious damage to some worms. Jaxon would hold a worm over his head and Chucky would open his mouth and swallow it right down! Camron and Caden would attempt to feed him but when the worms started squirming, they got a little freaked out. Mommy even touched a worm for this bird...that tells you how cute he is! Chucky even went to work with Poppi! We all hoped that Chucky would learn to eat and fly on his own and we could keep him as a "pet" forever but apparently it is illegal to keep wild birds as pets.....(I wonder if there are actually people who have that as their job? You know, to go around and find people who are harboring wild animals without a permit?) Anyway, Chucky is now in flight school. They found a lady who has one of those permits and has lots of wild animals she takes care of until they are ready to re-enter the WILD! Jaxon is a little sad that Chucky isn't around but he knows he will have more animals to help eventually! He wants to be an "animal rescuer" when he grows up! SO CUTE! Below is a picture of Jaxon and his feathered friend, Chucky.