We kicked the summer off today by heading to one of the city pools.  Okay, it’s not actually a pool you do laps in or anything, but it does have water, entertainment for my kids, good people-watching for Clay and me, shaded places to eat the lunch I threw together in less than 5 minutes this morning, and clean bathrooms so what more can you want?!?  We decided to get city pool passes this year – those combined with our zoo passes will hopefully by my sanity this summer while my husband is traveling all over the world this summer.  He says it’s for business, but there’s been a little too much talk of Stonehenge and the Sydney Opera House so I’m getting a bit skeptical.  I digress.  The kids had a blast this morning and we really enjoyed ourselves.  Here’s to a lot of sunscreen applications this summer, many a soggy sandwich, lots of “Mommy – what kind of bug is that in the pool?”, and tons of other great pool memories in the next 3 months.

The pool
 

I have been dying for Rachel to wear this suit since Tracy gave it to us in the fall – thanks, T!

And you have to love the shades that cousin Mak sent!

Ethan loved spraying the people below with the hoses

Both of the kids had fun with the sprayers around the pool

Taking a snack break

As you can tell, Rachel is feeling much better.  Thank you to everyone who said prayers for her this week.  She finally kicked her fever Thursday morning, and got her appetite back today.  She lost 2 pounds in the past 2 weeks, so we’re thankful she’s getting back to normal.  Thursday afternoon Nana pampered Rachel by giving her first mini pedicure.  She is SO proud of her painted toenails and gets very upset when she has to put shoes on.  What a girl.

Any time I try a new recipe I feel very domestic and a little proud of myself.  I got extra points this week because I tried 2 new recipes and they were both fantastic.  If you like pork, try this (the best part was that I didn’t have to alter this one AT ALL to make it Ethan-friendly):

Yesterday was the last day of preschool, and I’m really looking forward to next Monday night.  Why?  Because I don’t have to pack lunches, get my bag ready, make sure Ethan has a supply of all things needed for school, etc.  It will be so relaxing.  Actually, Ethan and I have both had a great year at Little Hearts School.  He has learned so much from his teachers and just the experience of being away from me, and I just fell in love with my kids.  It was so weird saying goodbye yesterday after spending 9 months with them.  I can’t imagine how hard it will be when Ethan is leaving pre-k. 

For the sake of comparison, here is Ethan on the first day of school:

And on the last day of school (no clue what he was doing with his hands):

With his teacher – Mrs. Shawn:

And this is random, but I don’t want to forget it.  Two nights ago, Ethan’s bedtime prayer went like this:

Dear God, thank you for this day.  Thank you for mommy and daddy and Rachel and Nana and Poppa and Mimi and all our friends.  Please help Daddy to be safe in his traffic, and please help Jesus to feel better after he died on the cross.  In Christ Jesus’ name – Amen.

I’m really not sure where to begin with this story, so I’ll probably (in true Lisa form) give the long version.  Yesterday afternoon we made plans with our friends Kevin & Jenny to go see the new Indiana Jones movie.  We use the same babysitters, so they brought their youngest daughter over and we had 2 of our high school girls from church come over to watch the kids.  Both of our kids were sleeping and we were going to an early movie - no big deal.  About halfway through the movie Kevin’s cell phone started ringing (Clay had 5 missed calls because his phone was on silent).  He answered, jumped up, and told us we had to go and started running out of the theater.  Never a good thing.  We get to the lobby and I heard him say “Ray-Ray,” and then he handed the phone to Clay and said the EMT was on the phone.  Again – never a good thing.  As we are racing to Cook Children’s to meet the ambulance, we call the girls (who at this point, bless their hearts, are just beside themselves) to get the story.  Apparently Ethan and Sophia were playing in our bathroom and got some water on the floor.  Rachel came in right behind them, slipped on the water, and fell straight back on her head on the slate floor.  Haley picked her up and said she started shaking, her eyes rolled back in her head, and Julianne said her lips were turning blue.  I’m not sure of the next course of events, but they called Haley’s mom (who thankfully lives right up the road), called 911, and the paramedics were here in no time.  Rachel was crying when they got here and very agitated, and they went ahead and took her to the ER.  She apparently knocked her head so hard that it caused a seizure, and they took her in to get her all checked out.  We actually beat the ambulance to the hospital, so we were waiting on her when she came in – that is not a sight a mother should ever see.  I really knew she was going to be okay, but it just broke my heart to think of that precious girl on an ambulance all by herself – no familiar faces, no pink blanket – nothing.  The girls asked if they could go with her, but the paramedics said they couldn’t ride in back with her so there really wasn’t any point.  We were there a couple of hours, had a head CT which came back perfectly clear, and were released to go home with a very sleepy and very agitated little girl who had a pounding headache.  She was so miserable in the hospital that she really did let out a huge sigh of relief when we walked outside to the car.  And thankfully my parents met us at the hospital with a carseat so we could safely get her back home. 

She did really well last night but woke up this morning with a fever – completely unrelated to the incident last night.  So, she’s resting a lot today and taking it easy and we’re all okay with that.  Sweet Ethan just said, “Daddy, those fire police men came and took Rachel to make her all better!”  You have to love that innocence. 

Okay – so back to the title – lesson learned.  I always, always leave a notepad on the fridge with the info on where we’re going, any special instructions for Ethan, and our home address.  Well, we left in such a hurry yesterday that I didn’t put the note up there.  So, the poor girls called 911 and had no clue what our address was.  Thankfully I had a card ready to be mailed sitting on our end table, and they remembered to look there for the return address.  So, when you have a babysitter, even though you KNOW nothing will happen (yeah, right), leave your address and birthdates of your kids in an easy to find spot. 

Rachel really is going to be fine, and we’re all slowly getting over the shock of the experience.  Most of all we’re just thankful that it wasn’t more serious.  And Haley and Julianne – we love you girls and we thank God that you did everything you did for our sweet girl. 

Ethan hit three major milestones in the past 24 hours:

1.  Last night his horizons were broadened when I discovered that the Target brand fish sticks are milk and egg free!  Finally – a convenience food that doesn’t have the word ‘chicken’ or ‘nugget’ in it.

2.  This morning he actually used the bathroom without feeling the need to wake me up and tell me.  I heard the toilet flush and wanted to get up and hug his neck…instead I rolled over and went back to sleep for another 8 seconds before he woke me up to tell me that he didn’t wake me up to use the bathroom.  It’s a step.

3.  He completed his first yard task today – unassisted.  This morning I mowed, Clay edged and picked up sticks, and Ethan used the blower to clean off the driveway.  It was wonderful.

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On a side note, I gave Rachel a pretzel the other day and she put it on top of her head, said “bow!” and clapped for herself.  She keeps us laughing.  I think she inherited more than just her Uncle Bryan’s name.

My advice today goes out to all the expectant moms in the world.  When registering for that sweet and innocent little bundle of joy, go ahead and click the Babies R Us gun about 40 times on the crib sheets and mattress covers.  When your precious baby is sleeping on an old bath towel because they’ve thrown up all over the five sheets a normal person has plus your good bath towels, you’ll be wishing you had cleared space in the closet to accomodate those 40 sheets.  But hey, what do I know?

Last week Clay’s cousin – Jennifer – had a precious baby boy named Eli.  She and her husband have 2 girls, and are thrilled to have a boy.  Shortly after he was born they got the shocking news that he has Down Syndrome.  Please pray for this sweet family and the struggles they face ahead as they seek God’s wisdom in how to best raise their son.  When I found out, I kept thinking about Psalm 139:14 – part of it reads, “I am wonderfully made.”  Our dear friend Meredith put this verse on a sign that we hung over Ethan’s bed in the NICU (Mer – I will never forget that, and I’m getting all weepy just thinking about it).  I just keep thinking that while Eli has an imperfect body, he is God’s perfect gift to Brandon and Jennifer and he is wonderfully made.  I obviously don’t know the challenges that face parents of physically or mentally handicapped children, but I’m sure it’s overwhelming on a daily basis.  Ethan’s NICU sign inspired me to make this onesie for Eli…I also put his name on the back and hope they can overlook how crooked it is.  Oops!

So many good and fun things have been happening around here lately. Here’s the nutshell version:

Went camping at Lake Tawakoni with our good friends Kirk & Sonal and their kids. We went to church with them in Dallas and it was so nice to spend some time together again. We actually took our very first camping trip with them in August of 2002 or 2003…it was prekids and it’s hard to remember dates from WAY back then.

A couple of months ago Clay and Brent got together and planned a birthday weekend for Nicole and me at the Gaylord since our birthdays are 2 days apart. We cashed it in last weekend and I still feel so refreshed and renewed. We shopped a lot, saw 2 movies…in the theater!, ate a lot, slept in, had a huge breakfast, you get the idea. It was wonderful and I’m already looking forward to next year!

Ethan and I only have 4 days of school left. I’m knee-deep in pre-k drawings and pictures trying to get all of the kids books put together before our program next week. He’s just now really starting to love school…now that it’s almost over. I’m already trying to plan some things for us to do this summer so we’re not stuck inside for 3 months.

Rachel is talking up a storm. As I’m typing I can hear her in her crib making barking noises at the neighbors’ dogs. Nice. I took her for her 15 month checkup last week and she checked-up great. She’s 45th% for weight and 75th% for height…who would have thought that huge baby would ever be in the 45th% for weight. I love that she and Ethan can actually play together now, and I’m also loving our Mondays together when Ethan usually goes to the church building with my mom.

Ethan will be seeing a new allergist next month, and I’m hoping to have him retested to see where we stand on his allergies. He’s been up and down all spring, so we’re hoping for a more regulated summer.

Clay went to Chicago a couple of weekends ago with his mom to see his brother – Nathan – graduate from Navy basic training. We are so incredibly proud of him, and so thankful that God provided this opportunity for him. His unit received top honors at graduation, and he’s in Florida right now and loving that he has his cell phone and tv privileges back.
I’m sure I’m missing something, but maybe when my brain catches up with my fingers I’ll be motivated to post again.

Many of you reading this blog have met my mom, and some of you may even know her.  But none of you have the privilege of knowing her the way I do.  Adulthood is an amazing journey, with one the best stops being that point where your mom becomes one of your best friends.  My mom has this amazing ability of just being there for me.  I can’t explain it, and I’m assuming some of you know what I’m talking about.  I have tons of good memories growing up of taking special shopping trips, great birthday parties, wonderfully handmade clothes, rearranging my room(s) together, getting ready for special occassions, studying Bible verses, having her at every game/performance/etc., and a million other things.  But two of my best memories I’ll hold forever are seeing my little (or huge in Rachel’s case!) babies in their Nana’s arms.  It’s like they already knew that was going to be one of the safest places in the entire world for them.  I’m pretty sure that when God was handing out intuition, he skipped over a few people and gave their doses to my mom.  She just knows. 

Mom – have taught me everything I know about being a mom, and I thank God for you.  I am so blessed to be the only girl in the world who gets to call you MY mom.  I love you beyond measure.

Yesterday Clay and I bid farewell to the four paint cans that have been holding up our nightstand-turned-desk. I didn’t even take a picture of it because it was just sad. We (meaning I) decided some time last year that I really needed the computer downstairs (when I was working from home), and unfortunately, our room was the only place for it down here. And since the computer obviously has to go on something, we repurposed a nightstand. I hated that setup. Loathed it. But yesterday brought a renewed sense of joy into our home. A couple of years ago Clay’s brother, Nick, found an old army desk at a job site and snagged it for us. The thing was hideous, but Clay saw something in it. It sat in our garage for a good year and a half collecting sawdust, cobwebs, spilled paint, old holiday decorations – you get the idea. But, when good old Uncle Sam came through for us this year we (Clay) decided to take the desk and finally have it professionally refurbished. He picked it up yesterday and it is amazing. It has to go in our bedroom until we can kick Rachel out of her nursery and move her upstairs, but we don’t even care. It’s beautiful. I haven’t arranged anything on it, but I did put my mom’s old typewriter and Clay’s granddad’s old fan on it. Now if Nick can just find us a really cool old chair to go with it…

Ugly

Pretty

Ugly

Pretty