A change was due

A change was due to this blog of mine. It had to match the season. I've added my picture (finally) for those of you who haven't had the pleasure of knowing me IRL. I've added other things, and taken other things away. Browse, lurk, check it out, comment. Commenting is good. Feedback is better. I also added a "theme verse" for myself. When I searched my heart and asked God which to choose, He led me to the verse listed. (See under blog title). And so I read the chapter and found great comfort in His words to Jeremiah. I am hereby claiming Jer. 31: 2-8 as my verses that I will cling to and claim as my own. I claim them over my life in the name of Jesus.

Note to self...and anyone else who might heed my warning...

When taking the task upon yourself to put new staples in your stapler, don't wonder if there's any "whole sticks" of staples in the box, and thereby dump out your box of 5,000 staples. For it is a Pandora's Box in reality.
Now why, in the world, do staples come in boxes of 5,000??? Does anyone know? I mean, I know if you were working in an office then you go through a lot quite quickly, but come on! 5,000? I also know from my days in the office that when you place an order through your purchasing dept that they come in packs of like 6 or 8 boxes (maybe more) from Office Max or wherever. Yet another type of conspiracy, if you ask me. Oh, there are hundereds, maybe even thousands of those, right under your nose, and you probably don't even realize it. You've probably never stopped to think about it before. And you think Big Brother is just a reality tv show! Ha! Sorry for me going weird. I'm gonna have to do a post soon about my own conspiracy theories. Stay tuned -- its bound to be a great read! All joking aside, though. To make my staple matters worse, did you know that you cannot just "shove" those blasted things back in the box? Oh, no. You've gotta stack 'em. Makes sense, I guess, since that is how they came out of the box. So, the pic above is my Pandora's Box mess, and the pic below is how I had to reorganize them just to put them away.

Yellow Jackets

Reading a friend's blog about flying ants made me think of an expierence of my own, so I thought I'd write about it. It was terrible! Read on...We have had a serious problem with Yellow Jackets this month! I can't put my daughter on or get her off the bus without the terrible things swarming around and dive bombing me and my kids! Its really aweful! About 4 weeks ago, I got stung by one. DS#2 almost got stung cuz it landed on his face and he went cross-eyed and swatted, which made the yellow jacket mad, and it dove for DS#2 so then I instinctively swung at it for coming near my baby. I connected with its head, which, needless to say, made it come after me. Then, as it landed, I knew what was going to happen, and I dropped DS#2 in the process of trying to ward it off and not get stung myself. It didn't work. I got stung anyways, but at least my baby didn't. And he only got a scrape on the leg, which was much less than what is still "bugging" me. (no pun intended.) That thing, thought was rotten! I had to squeeze it to death to pull it out of my arm! It wouldn't brush off. You know, when something lands and stings or bites you, you try to give it the ole"brush off"? Yeah, no. Not happening with this one! I guess it got stuck. The sting-site ached and kept me from sleeping well for almost 4 days; also my inside forearm swelled, got really hot and there was a red area about the size of a softball. it only swelled about and inch and a half, though. My parents were not as concerned, until they saw what I was telling them was true! My brother saw 24 hrs post sting, then saw it 48 hrs post sting and became alarmed that my body was reacting that way but I wasn't having any breathing problems. My dad took an Xacto knife to my arm and removed what we thought to be not only a stinger but also the venom-sack. But why am I still itching? I am highly allergic to Benadryl. I cannot take a children's dose of the children's liquid without passing out for at least 2 hours. Let alone and adult pill. So the only comfort I have is the cream (tried it, it KILLED me to try to rub it in!) or the Caladryl, or that AfterBite stuff. Both work ok, but only last for about 20 minutes, then the immense itching/redness/hotness is back. We have not been able to play outside or get into our van without 4 or 5 coming in with us. It really makes you leary and edgy and kinda like a looney bin in your head to see them or have them flying around you after getting stung that bad! You start freaking out, I mean really losing your mind whenever you are outside. I wouldn't classify myself as an outdoors kinda girl, although I am making an effort to be moreso for my kids' sake, but I'm not typically scared of stinging insects. I usually just calmly shoo them away and they don't get to me. Not now. Hopefully next year we won't have such an outbreak or bumpercrop or whatever you want to call it. The first year we were here, was the year of the houseflies. Terrible. Much rather that in my house that I can chase and kill without the potential of harm coming to me and my children vs. the Yellow Jackets. See, I thought it was just my apt. complex, till I started going to the store, and I was 4 blocks from home at a stoplight and saw them trying to get into a car 3 cars behind me. Yes, I could see them that far back -- that's how many there were around here! Plus, they were all around at two different stores in two different cities about 5-10 miles apart, and about 15 miles from my place. Apparently, it is a NE Ohio thing. Yeay! Aren't we special? I only hope I don't get stung again. Ever. I haven't bene stung by anything since I was a teen, and back then, I wasn't allergic. Now, who knows? The reaction I displayed was so bad that I wonder what would happen if I got more than one sting? I don't want to find out, but I'm considering myself borderline allergic. I spoke to my Pharmacist friend, who said my only option was to use the topcial cream or lotion. So, it has been a l-o-n-g time healing. Although the pain was gone by about 7-10 days, the bump is still there and quite itchy when touched or brushed against something. Which is like all the time since it's on the inside of my forearm. What do you think?

This wonderful time of Autumn

First, I want to say a big CONGRATULATIONS to my friends Mindy & Mike!! The Lord has blessed them with a baby! They are now pregnant after trying to conceive for 6 1/2 years! Much love to them! :)

I love to keep the temp inside down low so I can dress warmly and drink coffee or hot cocoa frequently! :) Besides, my birthday, anniversary, DS#1 b-day and Curt's b-day are all in fall! I love it! The football, although I can't see many MSU games down here. :( Only if they play Ohio State or Penn State; maybe a few others. But, I frequently call my dad during the games to get that great play-by-play action! Today, my DD was suppose to wear the color red, as they are studying the word, color, and things that are red. And the fact that OSU plays Penn State tomorrow. DD asked me to wear red, too. I thought and thought, and told her, "Ya know, Mommy just can't do it! This girl bleeds green and white!" Of course, that alarmed her, so I had to explain. But I can't betray my home state of Michigan just because we moved here 2 1/2 years ago. Looking forward to a great year w/ MSU -- can they do it????? Will this be the year?? We shall soon find out....

Also, this time of year causes me to be introspective. Which is a great thing. It can turn out to be a bad thing if I do it too much, but to heck with reevaluating myself at the end of the year, I like to do it now, when everything is crisp. I feel more alive now. By January, I'm ready to hibernate and do nothing. That is not my best time to be creative. Today, I will be getting out my autumn decorations. I love fall so much that I heard a name once I might use if we ever adopt (considering biological kids aren't coming anymore) a little girl. The name would be Autumn Rain. Now, don't steal this from me! I wanted it for my DD, but everyone told me I couldn't use it because my DD was born when? (just checking if you all have been reading my posts! Ha!) she was born in the summer. Somehow Summer Rain just wasn't as nice sounding to me. If I could name DD all over again, it would most definately be Autumn Rain. Mindy, if you want, you can steal the name. :) I don't know anyone else who's pg, but I don't really care if someone steals it. I've always wanted to meet someone with my name, but never have in person. Once over the phone while working in a call center I did. Needless to say, we were both shocked! I could like totally roll around on the ground like a dog, that's how much I love fall! However, the last two years I have had allergy problems. But then, I was either pregnant or nursing. Now, I'm not, so I can pump my body full of drugs so I can enjoy this time of year! (jk!) Seriously, though, my options for medicine are now wide open, so I shouldn't be so miserable due to the fact that the dr cannot give me anything. I will be taking many pics of trees and maybe my decorations and posting, so stay tuned!

I Won! **update**

Yesterday, I won tickets to go see Anberlin (christian hard rock) at Cleveland's HOUSE OF BLUES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It has been my hubby's and my DREAM since moving here to go to a concert there!!!!! (that and the bloom amphetheatre). I am totally GEEKED to say the least! I have not stopped running, skipping and jumping around since I won them. It was the greatest radio station in the whole universe that I won them from; The FREQ 107.1!!!! I love them and we here are truely blessed to have them. I won the Jolly Time Popcorn Question of the Day. (Thanks, Matt!! :-D ) I just can't stop listening to Anberlin. I can't decide between the radio and them! It's great! We have hubby's mom coming to watch kids for us. I will definately post pics (if they let us take them). At least before and after pics of us. What's more, is that DH and I get a date night! We haven't been out since our anniversary (which is coming up in a few weeks, by the way!) So we really need it! Thanks again, Matt! You're truely the best DJ ever!

**update** We went, we had a great time! Pics to come soon! Wanna get my fall decorations out today, then maybe post pics, or post Saturday. :) Awesome concert, though! Will go down in history as one of my favs based on location alone, not to mention the band ROCKED!

Its been a looooonnnnnggggg time!

Yes, I know it has. Between not having time to blog with end of summer vacations, school starting and spending quality family time, blogging has taken a back seat for me. I apologize. My daughter is now in kindergarten, and loving it. I was sent a note home yesterday that I had to sign and return! She was being disruptive in class and bossing others. :( I just knew that I would get a note home -- was hoping it was going to be a little further down the road. Three days into the schoolyear means that it may be a long year with trips to the principal's office. (Three minor offenses, which this was classified as, equal one major offense.) We shall pray continually and look for "teachable moments" to guide her heart in the right direction. Maybe we will end up homeschooling afterall??? Ok. Not going there and getting myself all rialed up. She loves riding the bus, and says she's already invited one of her friends for a sleepover. (To which I had to remind her to ask me first.) She loves music class, but really gets "bothered and annoyed" with her friends copying her in class. I explained to her that it was because they liked her and they thought she was cool and they wanted to be like her and you should have seen her face light up! "It is! Wow! I didn't know that!" she said. Last evening, we spent about 2 1/2 hours at K*Mart doing school clothes shopping. It was stressful. Let me tell you! She has the know-it-all attitude of a teenager with none of the reasoning skills. I'm not being mean here, but that's the best way I can sum it up. For instance, when asked "do you like these jeans?" her response: "Well, what was your question again? Oh yeah do I like the jeans, right mom? Let me think....(meanwhile, I'm standing there still holding the jeans and another 30 seconds goes by, then) No. I don't. Well, yeah, I guess I do. But I like those ones you asked me about before, too." By this, she would be actually referring to ones she turned down 3 pairs previous; meaning we have to go through like 10 pair to find them. Am I making my point? I guess I gave her too many choices. I should've just gone myself and bought them for her. I know she adores the color pink and also princesses. Next year, I will do this. It's just plain easier. The papers the teacher sends home is going to surely drown me by Christmas. Its not homework, just what equals a lot of "bathroom reading material". Its the PTO and Open houses, support the football team and the soccer team, and its the book fairs, etc. You all with kids in school or graduated know what I mean. Its a bit intimidating, and I typically have had about 45 minutes of reading per night to stay caught up with the goings-on of the school!

Ok. DS#1 is still doing well on his Zantac and we have a checkup appt tomorrow with the gastroenterologist. His appetite seems to be quite supressed, so I will be addressing this issue. He is also getting better at computer games and asks frequently to play games on the "On-a-net" (internet). We do some of the Yahooligans games, and some of the Nick jr games. He is getting good at doing a CD ROM game that is Maurice Sendak's "Little Bear". He can find things and games I ask him about, and he doesn't realize he's learning. He is also talking tons more without sissy around interrupting and speaking for him. Last week, DH asked him if he wanted a dog and that if he gets one, he's gonna have to pick up the dog poo from the yard. To which DS replied "EEEEEWWWW! No! I do want a dog, though. And a ball. I will throw the ball and say 'go catch, boieeeeee!' " (that would be 'boy' with the y drawn out.)

And now for DS#2. He is already 14 months and 5 days old! Waaaaaaa! My baby is growing up. I know he's still a baby, but my hormones are out of whack as he is weaned now. He hasn't nursed since Monday at about 11am. It was time. He was only nursing twice a day, before nap and bedtime, but he wasn't nursing to get to sleep much at all. I am currently not feeling so good in the chest area -- painful. Its amazing how quickly you forget stuff like that! That will pass soon, though. The main push for weaning was my problem with eczema. Its only on my hands, but come November, I will have suffered with it for 2 years. It came about when I was about 2 months pregnant with DS#2, and I was told not much can be done because of him being nursed. It has spread to double the surface-area than the original outbreak, and is itchy and I get water-filled bubbles that are very painful. Not to mention that my skin cracks and bleeds at the joints. My goal was to nurse to 12 months, and then take it from there, so I feel satisfied for reaching that goal. I just told my DH he should be happy that I have the eczema to make me want to wean so I can take care of it because otherwise who knows how long I would nurse, knowing this is my last baby??? LOL! I wouldn't nurse him past probably 18 months, if even that long. Did I mention that when DS#2 was 9 months old, my doctor told me that he was fairly certain that my eczema could be cleared up with one weeks worth of steroids and he thought it had only a low chance of returning? Let me say for someone who is extremely pro-nursing that made me want to wean him and start the formula right then and there!!!! But, I had to do what was in the best interest for my baby. I chose to suffer and put him first, because for me, that's what motherhood is about. Me taking a backseat and letting my kids enjoy life. :) And most of the time, I'm happy to do it. :) Today, DS#2 was in the backpack carrier while I was preparing dinner (yes I still use the backpack carrier! He is the biggest momma's boy you'll ever meet -- ever challenging him for that title is his big brother, though!) Anyways, I realized that right behind me, I heard DS#2 singing 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star'. No, I'm not kidding. And yes, I am bragging. :) Of course, he wasn't using the words, but he was saying "nana nana" to that distinct tune. What's more, is that I asked him if he was singing 'Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star' and he nodded yes with a big smile. I have been singing that to him lately to calm him before bed or during a diaper change when he just wants to get on with playing! Bragging about my kids is a decision I have made to go ahead and do on my blog. I have tried to be careful in past entries so as not to make people feel like I was saying "my kid is better than yours", but I decided that every parent feels like their own kid is the best kid, so I'm going ahead and doing it! Please don't take offense. It's nothing against your kids, I just love mine!!! :)