playing catch up....again

Well, we have been without internet for, well too long so now I must play catch up. I will start with Tre' coming! Usually during the summer Tre' comes for 7-8 weeks, since we moved we decided to wait until we got to Cali. no point of making him ride cross country and we really wouldn't have had room for another person yet along more stuff! So anywho, we picked Mr. Tre' up from the Oakland airport. Before I move on here is my take on Oakland....It is kinda HOOD. Driving over the bridge from our area to there makes you not want to go there, but that's a different story. Well, we picked up Tre' and headed out to dinner. Tre' is 12, will be 13 in November so the whole thought process of a pre-teen is always....fun. We went to Outback, which was close to the hotel and Tre' fav. During dinner he brought up the topic of SEX!!!! Yup SEX! Apparently teachers now teach the basics and then tell the child to go home an ask their parents any questions they have about the topic. Tre' did just that! He told me the instructions and proceeded with his questions. Oh the questions he asked. "Is sex pleasurable?" and "What did you do during sex?"......WTF!!!! How do I answer this and to top it off Rob had gone to the bathroom at this point.  I redirected the convo and made Rob answer. This was just night one with Tre'.  Some of the things he says makes me laugh so hard and I swear some of the stuff he doesn't even realize is funny. Preston and Gracie, who don't like anybody were beyond excited to see Tre' and started playing with him as soon as he got here. Preston has also mastered saying Tre' it is the cutest thing ever! The first night I wrote Tre' down on a piece of paper and Preston said three!!!! Once he realized Tre's name he didn't stop saying it! I wonder if they realize that Tre' is their big bro....age difference and all!

Busy Mama

Last week Rob was out of town all week, imagine that right? Well that left me and the rug-rats home alone! The first day/night is always the hardest for Preston. He wonders around the house yelling "oh daddy" and when that doesn't work he says "Rob"! It's very cute the first few times but it gets annoying very quickly. The rest of the week was very calm. I don't sleep much normally and when Rob is gone it is even worst! Every noise wakes me up and I swear someone is going to get me, I've seen one too many movies! We went to the pool a couple of times and watched a ton of movies and of course did a ton of dancing around and singing. Preston also is doing amazing with the potty training. He now says when he has to pee and yucky! That makes me a very happy mommy. I always heard how hard boys are to train and so many negative comments about starting at such a young age. I knew he was ready and he has proven that to be true. Savannah also decided that walking forward is not enough. She now can walk backwards and likes to be chased. She is almost "running". Rob made it home early Saturday morning only to have to go back out of town. He will be taking Monday off which means Colbi time. When I have the kids by myself for a long time it's crazy, but I get to see every single milestone. I know how many moms that work outside the home who would trade places with me without hesitation. The upcoming days are going to be super busy, 20 days until the move and even less until the packers come box up the house. I am very excited but very stressed. There seem likes so much to do and just not enough time. So many people I want to see and the time is just not there for it. I am trying to stay as calm as possible and just take things day by day....

Update on Preston

Friday Preston had his appointment with the nephrologist. Rob was still out of town so I knew I would be doing this solo, which did not make me happy. I always end up having to take the kids to the appointments by myself because of his work schedule and the amount he travels. Well, I guess Preston had a flash back of getting all his lab work done, because as soon as he saw the nurse he slowly started to cry. It broke my heart that he was that afraid of the nurse because he had such a bad experience before. I calmed him down in the waiting room but as soon as we went back to the exam room it was waterworks! They needed to do a blood presure reading, check his pulse, take his tempt, get his weight and get his height and listen to his chest and tummy. They were able to get his height and weight....everytime the nurse came near him he said, well he sobbed No, bye bye, car please! It took me about 30 minutes to calm him down from that part. The meeting with the doctor was through a video call. I told him everything that happened up until this point. Based on the blood work, everything was normal, but he was still concerned about the blood in his urine. He scheduled him to have an ultrasound next week so they can rule out any damage to the kidneys. Once the ultrasound is complete he will be able to tell if this was just an injury to his penis or something more serious. He seemed very sure it was more than likely just a bruise to the penis from rough playing or when he throws himself down during a tantrum. That made me feel much better, but I am still a bit concerned and anxiously await the appointment next week. I also hope that Rob will be able to go because I know this is going to be a fight to have the exam done.

FAMILY VACATION....not really

Well, I have mentioned that we have been on the road the past few weeks to Savannah and then to South Carolina. Once we got back from Savannah on Friday we unpacked and repacked and got ready for our next trip. We would go to Columbia, SC with Rob. With his job he goes out of town a lot, so anytime he goes somewhere that he drives, we usually tag alone. Not because he goes to any super exciting places, but the kids are crazy when he leaves and ask for him all the time and I like staying at hotels.. Weird, but I have always liked them since I was a kid. It is also a way for the kids to get to go to places we would not normally go. Well, before we could leave we had to take Preston back to South GA to get the remainder of the blood work done. The regualr nurse was there and was able to get all the blood with one stick. I guess Preston knew where he was because as soon as we got to the room he started crying and saying no, no, no and I'm sorry, as if he was getting punished! We hit the road and made it to SC that evening. Rob has made this trip a few times with out me so he knew where he wanted to go  eat the very first night. We went to the Blue Marlin, which is yummy but kinda pricey place. Preston's kid meal was $7 for a plain burger and fries, no drink included! I had already had a late lunch on the road so I stuck to a liquid diet of beer that night. Once we finished there we headed back to our room and watched Swamp Brothers for a few hours. It was a pretty interesting show that seemed to suck us in. It stormed pretty bad that night, which was great background noise for some good sleep.   The next morning we headed down to breakfast. I love hotels that have great breakfast to choose from and I really love when I can make my waffles in the morning. Not a meal you can really eat every morning without turning into a cow, but a few days of a waffle topped with strawberries, whipped cream and syrup is pretty amazing for a few days. Rob went off to his training and the kids and I did some shopping. It was nice to be somewhere that had a decent amount of stores to shop at because Valdosta lacks in the good stores. We headed back to the room and had dinner at the Melting Pot that evening. Rob didn't understand why we were paying so much money to cook our own food, but ended up really liking it in the end. he had been once before and didn't care for it. maybe it was the bottle of wine we ordered that made this time better. The next morning we did a late breakfast, Rob had to be in class by 8 so eating with him required us to get up too early! We hung out at the hotel most of the day and kind of relaxed. We did dinner at Bonefish that night, which was once again a yummy night of food. We made it back to the hotel just as it started storming. Bad storms, that kind you don't want to go out in at all. Good thing I had a bottle of wine already! I had a few glasses and off to la la land I went! The next morning after breakfast I decided to take the kids to the zoo. It was free for both of them and ended up only being $10 for me after my military discount. Preston liked everything but LOVED the fish part. He would put his hand on the tank and when the fish would bump the glass he would get so excited. After a fun day at the zoo, we headed back to the room and waited for Rob to get out of class. The next day we were back in Valdosta and back to regular breakfast food as well. The trip ended up being fun and I it made me happy that Preston and Savannah were able to go to the zoo!

 

Gracie doing laps in the hotel room

Preston taking a color break

FISH!!

At the entrance to the zoo, they don't know where they are yet, I swear they had fun!

Okay, so this was at the mall, I have never seen a little toilet so low to the ground. They also had the low sink and hand dryer, so cute!

Preston doing a little reading 

Everything always goes wrong when Rob leaves.......

So 2 weeks ago Rob headed to Virginia and the kids and I planned to meet my parents over in Savannah for some of the days he would be gone. He left out on the morning of June 6, a Monday and I planned on leaving on Tuesday. Well, when I took Preston to the bathroom that morning I noticed that his urine was really dark, almost tea colored. I didn't know what was going on so I decided to see what the next pee break looked liked and in the mean time I googled away. Well, around 10 his pee seemed to have a red color to it and I immediately got him and his sister dressed and headed to his doctor. I took him in as a walk in and we were seen pretty quickly. They needed a urine sample but he had just gone to the bathroom so after waiting for about 30 minutes I told the nurse I would bring the sample back. We live extremely close to the doctor so I went home and loaded him up on juice. I knew I would regret the number of bathroom breaks I was setting myself up for, but I needed that sample and i needed it fast! I think that he would have peed a lot sooner, but he had the urine bag collector tape to him, it's supposed to be easier to do it this way instead of a cup for his age. After about 20 minutes he finally went. I sealed the bag and loaded the kids back in the car and to Dr. Criscola we went. He was somewhat concerned because there was blood in the urine but also told me that it could be something as simple as a bruised penis. He also told me it could be an issue with his kidneys which sent immediate panic through my entire body. He sent us over to South GA for some lab work to just be on the safe side. Well, I was told by the nurse to go to the outpatient lab, when we got there I was told that we had to go to the main hospital and get registered there and then have the lab work done on the pediatrics floor. This meant that I had to load the kids back in the car seats, drive over to the main hospital and then unload them again. It was also 99 degrees out and I was beyond stressed. Once registered, which was a pain because the hospital didn't know the correct codes to put in on the lab request and could not get in touch with anyone from the doctor's office for about 30 minutes. We were finally sent up to the lab. This was honestly the most horrible part of my day...week...life! The regular nurse was out that day so that already was a bad sign. Nothing against the fill in nurse, but I would much rather a nurse that does this all the time to stick my kid over the girl who looked younger than me and seemed a bit nervous. She called in another nurse to help hold Preston down so they could get all the tubes of blood. He has never had lab work done and he is not old enough to understand what was going on. The process of trying to get enough blood from him went on for over an hour. We took breaks, they attempted to bribe him with stickers and juice, turned on the TV, nothing worked. With the first stick he peed on the table, I changed him and tried to calm him down and a total of 6 nurses tried to get blood. They did both arms, both feet and his hand. After painfully watching with tears in my eyes, i asked if there was something else we could do. The nurses agreed that none of them wanted to stick him again and had enough blood to do about 3 of the 6 test. They called the doctor and told him what was going on and he told me that I could bring Preston back in a week to complete the lab. I knew Rob would be home for a couple of days at the end of the week and I would have him there to help. Once we got home they day was over. I had not got anything done around the house and really had a bunch to do. Preston crashed as soon as we got in the car and his sister was still laughing. She seemed to find joy in his pain. The next time he peed it was normal and  has continued to be that way. Tuesday morning we headed over to Savannah. I was about 30 minutes out when his doctor's office called and told me that he would need an appointment with a nephrologist...I immediately started to cry, I already knew before she could explain that a nephrologist is a kidney doctor. My mind went to the thinking the worst, was there something wrong with his kidney, would he have to be on dialysis, would he need a new kidney....and then even more panic because I knew I had already donated my "extra" kidney.... what the hell were we going to do now?!?!?..... I called Rob in tears and told him what happened. He called to nurse back to get more of an explanation. We were told that anytime there is blood in the urine they are going to make sure there is absolutely nothing wrong with the child and that I could relax. He showed no signs of pain and had only peed 4 times with the blood in it, everything was now coming out normal. I relaxed a bit, and said a little prayer that everything would be okay. We headed on to Savannah and had a great week. My dad and his buddy buddy,( that is what he calls Preston) were two peas in a pod and Gracie, the girl that goes to know one really took to being with grandma. Anytime mom went and fixed a snack or had chips she let Miss Piggy have some, so I think that is what broke the ice. I was able to go out two nights in Savannah and spend time with friends that I don't see very often. I also went to my godparents and they were able to spend time with the kids. After almost a week, we headed back to Valdosta. It was kind of bittersweet to know that this would be the last time, at least for a while that I would do the most boring drive in the world, 84 East to Savannah and 84 West back to Valdosta.  

Easier said than done

WEANING.... to some breast feeding moms that word and everything that comes along with it is a smooth road, and to others.....well not so much. I have been on both ends of things, and I don't like this side. With Preston I did the breast feeding for a year and pretty much stopped the night of his first birthday. He didn't really seem to mind, except at night and that faded after about a week. Well, of course little princess Gracie wants nothing to do with the simple way of doing things. She stopped taking a bottle around the 7 month mark, I guess she had enough of the bottle after my kidney donation. She also decided that the paci wasn't her thing, she never really cared for it, but she started making it clear to us how much she didn't want it. The same goes with the sippy cup. She loves banging it around, and throwing it at her brother, but that's about all she finds it good for. I have been pretty successful with the night time weaning. Between the hours of 11PM and 6 AM there is no nursing allowed, she also does not get nursed to sleep anymore. I still nurse during the day when she wants, but it's not offered. I am just freezing the milk until she decides she wants to drink from a cup. I do not want to stop nursing her, but it would be nice to be able to let someone else feed her liquids. She is doing great with solids and loves the veggies, but no cup! I have googled this issue and tried all the ideas I could find. I guess I will continue to put the cup out for her everyday and hopes that she picks it up soon. The last resort will be going cold turkey and using pumped milk in the cup and waiting for her give in and just drink the milk from the cup!

Moments like this.....

I absolutely love my kids, but most of the time they are driving me nuts! I say about 75% of the day I am picking up behind them, telling them not to hit each other, telling them not to touch something or dealing with one or two little people and their breakdown. The other 25% of the time the do something sweet like a kiss, or a hug, or says a new word or hits a new milestone! Well, last week Miss Savannah Grace decided that Preston was getting too much attention. We had been rewarding him and praising him so much on his potty skills and how well he knows his shapes, numbers, colors, letters and simple words. Gracie needed the spot light back on herself. Well, while I was picking up toys off the floor, Gracie stood up and started to take a few steps. This was not a surprise to me because she had been taking a few steps and then falling down for days. Well, she decided that she would take 17 steps this time! I went and pulled out the video camera and started recorded this milestone. I also went back through and watched the recording of Preston walking. He was a late walker and I honestly thought that he was never going to walk! But, he did and now my baby girl is walking as well. It makes me kind of sad because she is growing up so fast. It is honestly the cutest thing to watch though, she is so short and just small in general so to see her walking around makes me giggle. She gets a kick out of it as well and tends to just pop up right behind us at times. Sometimes I forget that she can walk now when she goes exploring. Now, if I can just get her to drink out of a sippy cup I will be a very happy mommy!

Healthy baby girl!

So last week Savannah Grace had to go for her 12month check up and shots. I always hate shots and I still tear up whenever the kids have to have them. It was also a sad day because this would be our last visit to Dr. Criscola. I stared looking for a pediatrician in my second trimester with Preston and once I found South GA Pediatrics I was so pleased. I'm pretty anal when it comes to stuff for the kids so the thought of having to find a new doctor makes me sad. He also entertains all my crazy mom questions no mater how silly they are and does it with a straight face! You would be surprised at the stuff that crosses my mind to ask. Well little baby girl is in perfect health! They were surprised how strong and loud she was to be so small. She does not like having the ears checked and threw a fit when he did that part. She had to get three shots which bought tears to my eyes. Since this was my last visit there, I asked for a copy of both of the kids immunization records. Well, Gracie was up to date, but Preeton needed one shot. Not sure why they didn't give it to him already, because we never miss appointments, but the nurse said it was a newer booster that may not have been required when we were there in September. I decided to take Gracie to the house and bring Preston back up there for his one shot, so I could be done with it. He threw a major fit and screamed no, no, no before she even gave him the shot! It was the saddest thing and I felt like the meanest mom ever! Atleast I know that both kids are nice and healthy and looking great on the growth curve. Savannah Grace is 16 pounds and 28 inches and Preston is 27 pounds and 35 inches. Although compared to most kids their age they are small but I'm small and they were small babies(both under 6 pounds), so based on their birth weight and size they are perfect! Now my search starts for the new doctor, I joked with Dr. C that I would fly back in September for Preston's 36 month check up!

A week already???

So this time last week, we were all at South GA Medical Center waiting on Rob's surgery to start. He has awful sinus issues and last year had his uvula trimmed. If you open your mouth really wide and that thing that kinda hangs at the back of your throat is you uvula. Anyways, that surgery didn't help with the snoring and sinus issues so as a last resort he had surgery to correct his deviated septum. It was a very long day to say the least, we did not expect to be there as long as we were. We had to be there at 7:30 and they took him back to pre-op about 7:45. The kids and I went to get breakfast while he was getting ready. Once we got back to the hospital I was allowed to go back to the pre-op room with him. Around 11:45 they took him back for surgery and the kids and I went to get lunch. Once we got back to the surgery center they took us to the post-op room to wait on Rob. He finally rolled in the room around 3:00. He was so out of it, it was kinda funny. He was saying the most random stuff, like "your teeth look really white", "you look good in certain colors" and "when can I have beer". Surgery went well he was just really sore. I loaded the kids in the Jeep and picked Rob up from the special patient exit. We filled the prescriptions and headed home. After a few hours home I had to change his nose bandages and good thing I am not grossed out by blood. It was a mess! He had to sleep and sit at a 45 degree angle for the first few nights. He has also had to have his nose stuffed to catch all the blood and stuff, pretty gross. Well today he will go to his doctor and they will take the splints out of his nose which should help him feel much better. I will glad when he feels better too. If anyone has ever been around a man when he does feel well it's so sad. It's like they are so pitiful and helpless. Good thing men aren't responsible for having kids, because we would be near extinction!

FRIDAY!!!

Wow, it seems like this week has be going in slow motion. No worries I'm sure the weekend will fly right by....Well, we have already had a busy day. The kids and I went to Publix to stock up. Normally I do not like going to the store with both of them but, it had to be done. Usually I carry Gracie on my back in the Ergo carrier and Preston rides in the cart, but today they both were asleep when we got to the store so I loaded them in the double and pulled the cart behind me. It's actually really easy, but you would be surprised at all the stares and comments people make. I normally hear stuff like, oh you have your hands full or iIbet you are busy. I usually give a half smile and move along. I really want to say, no shit my hands are full and I am very busy so move out of my way so I can shop! In a perfect world both kids would have stayed asleep like angels and my shopping trip would have been a breeze, but those kind of things just don't happen to me! About half way through, they both woke up and Preston had to pee and Gracie just wanted out. After a bathroom detour and a free cookie stop I was able to continue. Gracie was fine until we got in line and she really got loud. I even called Rob to see if he was anywhere near Publix so he could come help out. He had already finished at his doctor's appointment and was at work, so he was no help. I finally checked out and loaded the kids in the car. As soon as we came through the main gate, Preston started pointing at the pool and decided he needed to swim. I told him that we had to put up the stuff and nap first then we would go. He is currently napping right now, so I guess I will have to keep my word and take the little munchkins to the pool. I don't mind the heat or going to the pool I just enjoy it more when I have beer in my hands and not sippy cups! Well, off I go to prepare for our pool adventure! Have a fun weekend!!!!


Hopefully this post will stay up, Blogspot has been a bit weird the last couple of days!

Happy Birthday Savannah Grace

So I stole this idea from Emily's blog, I actually borrow a lot of ideas from her blog, she has been doing this for a bit longer than me, so it's nice to use some of her ideas to spruce up my blog.  Anywho, for her son's birthday she wrote a letter to him on her blog. I agree that years from now it will be much easier to read the blog books that I have made instead of a bunch of old cards. So here we go!

Gracie,


Oh my precious baby girl. God knows that before your presence was even known to your daddy and I you were making big and loud statements without any words! I remember thinking I had food poisoning the days before I realized I was pregnant, because I was so sick. Well, that sickness went through the entire pregnancy, up until labor!

You were a little fireball from the start. Even though the pregnancy was extremely difficult and labor long and frustrating, I would not change a thing. In just a year you have turned into a very independent, vocal and beautiful little girl. I look at you everyday in amazement!

 I love your laugh and your "precious moments eyes" as your daddy calls them. Watching you copy everything your big brother does, good and bad, is always entertaining. People always asked me if you were an accident because I was crazy to have children so close in age, well no you were not. You came into our lives exactly when we wanted you to! I have always loved the closeness that your daddy and Aunt Winnie have and I look forward to see you and Preston get to that stage, until then I will just have to deal with the pushing and hitting. 

I must admit, you are a big girl and you can hold your own when it comes to that big brother of yours.

I know little girls are always thought of as daddy's girls, but you are my baby cakes. You bring me so much joy every single day. I love painting your little toe nails, putting your hair in ponytails and shopping for great shoes and clothes.  You're like a little doll baby! Most of all I enjoy our nursing moments. 

 I didn't truly appreciate what a blessing it was to breast feed until you came along. I took it for granted with your brother and I could not wait until he tuned one so I could stop. I have grown to appreciate that special bond we are able to have during these times and I know that I am doing one of the healthiest things for you.

 I try to cherish every single moment I have with you even when you drive me nuts. I know how lucky we are to have a healthy daughter. I love waking up every morning to you. You are really chilled out the first few minutes and then you start laughing so loud! Everyone that meets you always asks me if you are always so happy. Yes you are, although you do have you diva moments! Today is bittersweet because it's your official last "first" holiday/party, but I am also a very proud mommy of the little lady that you are growing up to be. 

I fall more and more in love with you everyday. You keep me on my toes and God could not have created a more perfect fit. I see myself in you so much and I sometimes stare at you in amazement and awe. I don't know what I did to be blessed with such a healthy, happy, beautiful and funny little girl, but whatever the reason I am forever thankful. 

So today we celebrate the first of many more birthdays. I love you Savannah Grace Marks!

Birthday and Mother's Day

So Saturday we had a little I mean very small celebration for Savannah's birthday. Her actually birthday is May 11, but my parents came up so we did a little cook out on Saturday. We grilled out and she had fun with her cake and opened a couple of gifts and then took about a 2.5 hour nap on her granddad! Of course once she woke up from the nap and realized he was holding her she flipped out, but she was so content while sleeping on him. I have mentioned before that we don't do big birthday celebrations for the kids and we won't until they have real friends to invite. If I wanted to have a ton of adults over I would just throw a party, which if you know me it's not gonna happen. It's not that I don't like parties, I just don't like having a ton of people at my house and some people don't know when to go home!!!!! Anyways, for mother's day all I asked is that I get to sleep in....well that didn't happen so I ran away and spent the day at the pool. It was supposed to be for an hour or so, but it turned into almost 4. I guess all the other mom's had the same idea of a great mother's day would be to not have the kids around! We all laughed and had drinks and just relaxed. Rob stayed home watching basketball and movies with the kids, lucky him. Overall, it was a pretty good weekend nothing to extreme or exciting, but it was nice. here are some pictures of the day and her playing with some of her presents!