Home Sweet Home!

We all had a great Christmas. We got home From Indiana yesterday afternoon. We had a nice visit, but I must say it was pretty hard on all of us. Mason started getting sick Christmas Day and continued to get worse. He had a lot of trouble sleeping and GETTING to sleep and we were just all worn out. It is nice to be home! Brandon said he never knew how much he'd miss this tiny little farmhouse! Everyone slept all night last night!
I took Mason to the dr this morning. He has a terrible ear infection, and is wheezy. So we are back to 5 breathing treatments a day, an oral steroid and an antibiotic. Hopefully it will kick in and he will be feeling better soon. As I type, he and Ellie are napping peacefully and Brandon and I are chilling.
Santa was very good to all of us. Brandon and I decided not to buy much for one another since I got my embroidery machine and all that goes with that a few months back and Brandon has gotten two new tractors and a new truck this year. We bought gifts from the kids so I got two beautiful scarves and a sewing lamp and Brandon got insulated work gloves. Wow how things change once you're Santa! But I also got a lot of nice things from our families!
The kids got more stuff that I think they'll ever be able to play with. Ellie got loads of baby things: stroller, bed, swing for the baby, carrier, clothes, bottles and diapers. She also got a Vsmile, Lincoln Logs, markers, crayons, Tag reading thinger, Candyland and a block puzzle and I am sure I missed something. Mason got two tractors (one with a wagon), a ride-on airplane!, blocks, a peg board to hammer, books, and on and on. Together they got a DVD player for their room and a DVD player for the car. I am not sure how I lived three years without a DVD player for the car! Well, I do know how...Ellie has only just started watching TV and she spends much of her time in the car telling me stories about her imaginary family or singing along to Taylor Swift. But I think we are all going to enjoy having it. I do want to make some rules and not just stickin a DVD every time we are in the car. My kids are really good in the car, especially considering that on weekdays we spend no less than an hour and a half in the car each day.
I have already started the process of cleaning out the kids room of "old" toys and putting some of the new stuff in there. I really think I am going to downsize what they have in there because honestly they only have so much time to play with it all. It loses its luster fast so I would really like to start rotating toys a little more often to cut down on clutter and keep them more interested in what they have.
Brandon is leaving Thursday to go to Alabama and hunt with Tim. I know they will have fun. The kids and I are going to the WKU game with Biz and my parents on New Years Day. I'm hoping mom will take pity on me and stay with me one night to help me get the house together and very clean before we have to start back to school next week. :)

SNOW DAY!

Ok, ice day, but still! My boss made the executive decision to open late today. We did not open today until 1 pm. I was very happy. Biz had to come on in to work and she said it took her about 30 minutes longer than normal and it was slick. Last year, there was ONE day when the roads seemed fine but about 15 minutes into my drive into town, things got BAD. Cars were literally going off the roads all around me. State troopers were lining the sides of the roads from all the wrecks and when they would get out of their cars, it was so slick they couldn't even walk! So with the call of 1-4 inches of snow and ice starting last night, I was relieved to be able to come in a little later. We do have some unhappy parents. Several parents said "Well I am from Ohio/ Colorado/ Illinois/ Indiana/ Pennsylvania/ Michigan and nothing shuts down for weather there!" Inside I was thinking "THEN MOVE BACK!" But I did respond professionally. But really, why risk it? WHY is everyone so friggin gung ho to rush around? SLOW DOWN PEOPLE. There are what? Nine shopping days left? No worries. You WILL find a scarf for Aunt Tilly and everything will be ok.
Ok, so there's my rant. I do have the good fortune of a couple of days off Wednesday and Thursday this week. I need to finish up a few sewing orders, overhaul my house, and finish a little decorating (I'd like to do something simple and cute to the mantle since I've never had one!) Of course, I still have some shopping to finish up. Then my mom and I are planning to take the kids to see Santa tomorrow afternoon. Ellie is VERY unsure about Santa. When I tell her she needs to tell him her list she says "Well he can just bring me what he wants to give me." And honestly, I don't think she even cares what she gets. She will be thrilled with anything. But I am hoping she will at least stand near Santa for a pic. I am not worried about Mason. And watch them surprise me and Mason will freak and Ellie will love him!
One last sad note...our dear Rose has passed away. Rose is a cow. Ellie adores all of our cows and she knows ALL 20 of them by name. I'll save the whole story of Rose's demise but we did prepare Ellie last night when we knew that Rose was not going to make it. Brandon and I talked to her about Rose going to live with God and explained that Rose was hurting really bad but now she felt all better because she is in heaven. She took it all very well. Until this morning. Now, let me preface this with: I am still learning all there is to know about country living. This is the first cow I KNOW that has died. This is my first experience with the "dead wagon". Yes, I said Dead Wagon. So the way you do things is that you put the cow at the road and call the DW and they come and take the cow off your hands. Thing is, with the weather, DW isn't operating today. But, we did prepare Ellie for the the fact that Rose was laying at the end of the driveway. Brandon even explained "It's only her body." So we get to the end of the driveway (for those who do not know, we have a VERY long driveway) and there is poor old Rose and Ellie has her look and I DO NOT slow down and off we go. She is silent in the backseat for about a mile and suddenly she starts WAILING. I say "What is wrong???" And she says "I miss Rose!!! I want Rose!!!" OH MY LORD. KNIFE IN MY HEART. Ok, so Rose was a good cow. Gave us two good calves. But she was a cow and I have learned enough about being a farmgirl to know that this is the circle of life. But when my baby is this upset it just KILLS ME. I stopped the car and got out and hugged her and told her it was ok to be sad. As we drove on, she would compose herself for a few minutes and then the wailing would crank up again. My heart! By the time we got to school, she had calmed down. She didn't mention anything when I dropped her off at her class and I have seen her several times today and she seems to be ok. But I dread getting home tonight. So keep Ellie and Rose in your thoughts and prayers!!!

Smile pretty!

I did resort to candy bribery!

Ellie and Lola

Would my mom have DIED if I'd used this one???

Another busy week for us...I shipped the kids off to my parents last weekend and tried to whittle down my sewing pile. I got quite a bit done, but the pile is still pretty steep. I've stopped taking orders so hopefully after this weekend I will have it knocked out. I honestly think that I am going to have to put Initial Reaction and all my big plans for it on hold until we finish the house at which time my kids will be older! The combination of very very tight living quarters and two small children AND a full-time job just does not allow for a side business. BOO! I enjoy it so much! I will certainly keep sewing for my kiddos and just hope that people still want it when I can find the free time to do it for others.

I went to pick the kids up in Gallatin Sunday morning and Biz and I took pics for our Christmas card in front of mom and dad's tree. LORD HAVE MERCY! Is getting two kids to smile and look at the camera at the same time really that hard???? YES! It really became comic. Between me, Biz and BOTH my parents we could barely get them to cooperate. I think I ended up with about 90 pics and maybe 5 were good enough to use! I considered putting one fairly decent picture and then a couple more pictures of them really showing out on the card so everyone would get a good laugh!

And since I had obviously not had enough, I came home, Ellie and I decorated our tree that Brandon had put up while we were gone and I dressed them up AGAIN and tried to take more pics while Brandon was hunting!!!!! Yes, I am certifiable! Ellie had a blast putting ornaments on the tree. And Mason has not even offered to bother the tree! I even put non-breakable ornaments at the bottom so he could touch them and take them off if he wanted and he totally ignores it. Our tree this year has made me a little sad. We had to trade trees with Biz and Tim because they had a really small tree since they lived here last year. We gave them our nice big fluffy 7 foot tree and took their tiny one. And it's tiny. But a tree's a tree and we will make it this year. Next year, we can have an enormous tree and I cannot wait to decorate the new house!!!!

I had a doctor's appointment in Nashville today and Brandon went with me. After my appointment, we did some Christmas shopping for the kids. We just wandered Toys R Us in search of something to entertain Mason and basically came up with NOTHING. Brandon suggested we ask for a cardboard box that would be FREE. We did end up getting him a couple of things but I think it will be a while before we can figure out what really entertains him.

Mason has decided to talk talk talk. He is just talking up a storm since last week. He is saying : paci, Ellie (but it sounds like Heidi), mama, Callie and dog and he is babbling a lot more and will repeat a lot of things we tell him.

Ellie is doing well. She is so excited about Christmas. Every year seems like more fun as she understands more and more about Christmas. She loves the nativity scene and every day Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus are doing something different. I saw the little people Nativity set at Walmart and I was so tempted to get it. But I guess I will stick with the more decorative one we have and continue to let her play with it all she wants.

Brandon and I have been guilty of a few phone calls to Santa when Ellie's fits get really bad and it really brings her around to think she will only get sticks. How wrong is that??? My mom said "What are you going to do??? Call Cupid then the Easter Bunny, then the tooth fairy????" Hey, whatever works! I have heard about a book "the Elf on the Shelf" that I want to check out. I *think* it is a little behavior motivator. I'll blog about it when I find it. We have to stay on our toes and keep being creative to avoid major meltdowns. Who was it that "when she is good she is very very good, but when she is bad she is awful."??? Ellie Jordan Fields???? HA! I kid. Well, kind of. Ellie is an amazing child and heaven knows I adore her. She's so smart and sweet and kind and FUNNY. But when things don't go her way WATCH OUT. I just want to help her learn how to channel her emotions in a bit more positive way than laying in the middle of the school hallway kicking and crying because things don't go just her way. Can you tell we had a bit of a bad evening??? Oh well, tomorrow is a new day!

Hopefully I will get my sewing done and finish decorating the house and get my Christmas Cards in the mail. Or maybe I will just send New Year's cards! Email me if you want a Christmas card! Unfortunately, I have not created a good permanent card list of addresses. I need to work on that. Add it to my list....

I feel BE HIND

Well, we are having a pretty good week out here in Trammel. Both kids finally seem to be well. (Should I even say that for fear something will go bad???) Mason is still getting breathing treatments but we are down to once a day and he has really cleared.
Calli is doing really well. Jack and Lucy have accepted her and everyone seems happy. If we are home, Calli spends a lot of her time sitting at the front door looking in and watching us. She is a people dog. I actually hope that some day we might be able to bring her in some. (not until we have the house built) I never thought it would be fair to bring Lucy in because Jack HATES coming inside and I hated to leave him out alone. But now I figure those two can keep each other company and Calli can come in. Am I showing favorites???
We have a (hopefully our final) meeting with Shawn tomorrow. Brandon and I have agreed our budget is where it needs to be. After seeing Scott and Jennifer's house I am sooo ready to get this house DONE and have an awesome kitchen!!! And more than one bathroom, and more than one closet and on and on!
I am still not even sure where we will cram a Christmas Tree. And while we are on that subject...Seriously. What is going on??? I feel like Christmas is tomorrow or something! And I haven't even started. No decorating and obviously no shopping. I DO have the kids Christmas outfits. And I have been able to find time to do one Christmas shirt for Ellie. But not much else. I have plans to take Christmas pictures this weekend. I honestly am not sure when I am going to find the time. Obviously, I will find the time. Midnight? 2 am??? But it frazzles me to think about it.
The kids are going to Nana and Poppop's Friday night and I have told Brandon we are cleaning Friday night and I am sewing ALL DAY Saturday. I have several orders and I have actually stopped taking orders until I get what I have completed. I hated to have to turn anyone down, but I just don't think it's fair to promise something I am not even sure I can do! When someone works a few more hours into the day without being absolutely exhausted, let me in in the secret! Eh what a whiney blog. Oh well, stay tuned and perhaps the next one will be more exciting!

Say HI to Calli!

CALLI




Say "cheese"!










The "meeting" with Lucy and Jack







Well, we are back from IN. We had a really nice time. It is hard to get everyone packed up. And I have to admit that I sometimes dread being away from home and all my little projects here. But once we get to IN, I realize how nice it is to just hang out. We have 24 hour help with the kids and there is no dishwasher to load, laundry to do, kitchen to sweep, and on and on. And someone else does all the cooking. And of course we eat VERY WELL.




Friday afternoon, we went over to Brandon's step-brother, Scott's new house. It turns out, the floor plan of the main level of Scott's house is almost identical to our houseplan. Some of the dimensions are different, but it's basically the same. It was really nice for me to see it BUILT and know how everything would lay out. And to be assured that my kitchen will be PLENTY big enough. Scott and Jennifer's (for those who do not know, ALL of my mother-in law's daughters-in-law are Jennifer! Makes it confusing to call her on the phone. I digress..)house is so beautiful! It made me really anxious to get this building thing under way!




Yesterday morning, we were talking with Brandon's step-dad and he said "Know anyone who wants a one year old lab?" Ok, I don't even think Brandon knows how much I have been wanting a lab lately. Biz put a deposit down a few weeks ago on a lab puppy that will be born SOON and I have been so jealous. So I started asking questions. John's niece had this lab who was given to her 3 year old son and the dog has just been too much for their family. They live in a neighborhood and they just haven't had time to spend with Sally. I was ready to say YES, but I tried to control myself and asked if we could see her when we went to Scott's house. Well, of course, she's a doll baby. And of course we had no trouble deciding to bring her home. Brandon is a sucker and I knew if he SAW her there was no way he could refuse. We have decided to change her name and we hope it won't be too damaging for her in the long run. My family had a Sally for 15 years and I just can't bring myself to call another dog by that name. We figure Calli probably sounds the same to a dog!



Calli is fitting in very nicely. She's very sweet with Ellie and Mason. The dogs accepted her right away and she is giving Lucy a run for her money. I think poor Jack is glad to have someone to keep Lucy out of his hair. Jack is at least 6 years old. He came to us a stray so we can't be sure. We've noticed that since the weather has gotten cooler, he prefers to stay in his warm doghouse than be out getting into trouble with Lucy. So now Lucy can have a new partner in crime! I have added some pics, as you can see. However, being the sweetie that Calli is, if you are anywhere near her, she wants to be in your face. We'll work on posing for the camera! And I have already warned Brandon that Calli may be my new roomie next time he is out of town!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Yes, it is a day early! All my little turkeys and I will be headed to Indiana tomorrow morning. We will spend tomorrow with Brandon's mom and John and then Friday we will go to his dad's house and make the rounds to see his Granny too. We plan to head back home on Saturday. Ellie is so excited she asks me every day "Is today the day we got to Indiana???" I keep trying to explain that it's a long drive (ok 2 1/2 hours is not long, but it is long to a three year old). She is all set to see Grandma and Pappaw and Grandma Linda. Ellie is the kind of kid who really does best when she knows exactly what to expect. Brandon's step-father's mother (did you follow that???), Deloris will be at Thanksgiving dinner. So this morning I said "There will be another Grandma at Grandma's house too. Grandma Deloris." Silence. She is Pappaw John's mama. Silence. She's really nice and I know you will like her. Ellie:"Why will she be there?" Me: "So she can have Thanksgiving with us." I'm sure it will all be fine. But Ellie may need some more information.
Brandon suggested that I take my sewing machine with me to IN. For a day or so, I considered taking it. But in the end, I have decided against it. As much as I would LOVE to get some stuff done, I think we over estimate the amount of free time we really have when we are there. Hopefully next weekend I can talk Brandon, Biz and mom into taking kid duty in shifts because I DO have some orders that I have to get on. And I think Brandon is in town so that makes it much easier to get things done in the evenings.
I can't believe I am putting this mid-blog because it seems more important than that...we finally have a treatment plan for Mason. Dr K seems to think he is somewhat asthmatic. We went BACK to the dr on Monday. (This was the 3rd or 4th time to the pediatrician in 3 weeks) Dr K listened and said his lungs were clear. But I told him Mason has been waking 3-4 times a night and this congestion will just not go away. He had me take his shirt off so he could watch him breath and he said he did see that he was breathing very fast. Soooo...we are now on an inhaled bronchial dilator and an inhaled steroid AND a decongestant. We only have to go the bronchial dilator until he gets better and then we can also cut the inhaled steroid back to once a day. He finally slept all night last night for the first time in over a week. And his congestion seems better for the first time today. Hopefully this is the answer. I didn't ask all the questions Brandon would have liked answers to, but from what I gathered Dr K thinks this is brought on by allergies and this will not be a long-term thing. My poor kids and their allergies.
I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

I shopped til I dropped (almost)

First, Ellie's surgery went well. Dr. Sims said we definitely made the right decision in taking her to the OR. He said the tube was very embedded in the ear canal and would not have come out on its own. Ellie did INCREDIBLY well with the surgery. She actually walked back to the OR with the nurse anesthetist. All the Medical Center staff worked HARD to win her over and it made our experience very nice. Ellie's only major refusal was that she DID NOT want to put on the gown. Lucky for her, EVERYONE agreed there was no need for a gown. So she wore her own clothes to surgery! I'm sure it wasn't a first. She has been in a great mood and had zero meltdowns all day yesterday and today. I definitely wonder if she has been just having some dull aching pain that has been really bothering her. POOR THING!

Brandon is home safe and sound. He is exhausted because he has essentially been up since yesterday morning at 4 am. YIKES! But we are all going to bed early and hopefully everyone will sleep all night.

Finally, I have to admit that I think I might have lost my mind!!!!! I went to the Kelly's Kids http://www.kellyskids.com/ warehouse sale. I got the card in the mail a couple of weeks ago and mentioned it to mom. I LOVE their clothes and the prices listed were really too good to pass up. Mom and I decided to go. The plan was that the kids, Biz and I would go to Gallatin and Biz and my dad would be on kid duty and mom and I would go to the sale. Biz said she would rather stick hot needles in her eye than go. We also found out that Tim's sister, Nicole and a group of her friends were coming from Birmingham so I planned to hook up with Nicole. Last night I talked to Nicole and I realized this was going to be an athletic event. She was talking strategy and telling me how crazy the women and these sales get so I begged Biz to go and let mom stay home and she agreed. (after an early morning for Ellie's surgery, the last thing mom needed was another VERY early morning and then to get knocked around over a Santa longall!) Then I broke the news to Biz that I had agreed to meet Nicole at Municipal Auditorium in Nashville at 6 am.... OH MY WORD!!!! You have never seen so many crazed women in your life until you tell them they can get an adorable courdory coat that normally sells for $69 for $14.99. And the deals didn't stop there. But we paid in blood, sweat, and tears. There were 10 of us in the group and we were lucky enough to be FIRST in line (THANKS NICOLE!!!) We had a strategy and Biz and I were instructed to go to the racks and get what we were assigned to get, bring it to our designated area, drop and go back for more! We ended up with a PILE of stuff 9we were buying for 20 kids in all) and we drew some attention because of this. Let's just say it is a good thing I stayed out of jail and didn't get in a fist fight today. EVERYONE at the sale (and I am talking hundreds of people) were talking about "that group of women from Birmingham". Rumors were going around that we started fights and threatened people! WHICH WE DID NOT! We had two grannys and a pregnant girl with us for goodness sake!!! But in the end I got some ADORABLE stuff for both kids. And saved a ton!!! And it was competitive enough that I think I can talk Biz into joining me for the spring sale!!!

I should be in bed!

Well, I took Ellie to Dr Sims and he said the tube has to come out ASAP and it will not fall out on its own. I was actually a little shocked when he said "Yeah, I think we need to just take her back into the operating room and get it out." I somehow thought this was the kind of thing he could just take those long tweezers and get it out right there in the office. But who am I kidding? That's not my luck! So he was gracious enough (This is said with complete sarcasm as all who know my saga with Dr Sims will get!) to add her to the line-up for Friday. His nurse first said the first opening was December 4. Um no. So mom and dad are taking off work. Mom will stay here at the house with Mason and my dad will come with me and Ellie. Mason's surgeries will seem like a real piece of cake compared to what I know I have in store for me with sweet Ellie. I can only imagine the scene it will be when they peel her out of my arms. Dr. Sims does not give any sort of "relaxation meds" before surgery. He says those meds are actually what cause the really really bad mood and drowsiness after surgery. (I saw a child at Vanderbilt whose parents demanded she get said drugs and it was BAD) I agree with him, but I know it's going to be traumatic for her to go back to surgery without me and then wake up without me. But, Mama knows best and this tube must come out. She'll be no worse for the wear.
I feel bad for Brandon. We agreed there was no other option than to go on with the surgery on Friday even though he will not be home. But technology is a wonderful thing and he is only a phone call away even on his international trips. In Brazil, he is four hours ahead so that makes for some logistical issues. But it's nice to keep in touch so well with texting, email and phone calls just like he is down the street.
Speaking of Brandon, today he is 35 years old! I told Ellie on the way to school this morning "Today is Daddy's birthday!" She said "MY DADDY????" I told her yes and that I texted him and said "Happy Birthday, we love you." She said "ok" Then she said "What did the message say again?" This just struck me so funny!!!! Like she was really processing what I had said since I put her name on it too! Then she expressed concern that Brandon would miss his party so I assured her we would hold off on any partying until Daddy returns. So we party Sunday!
Now I really must get to bed. When Brandon is out of town, I find myself staying up until I am absolutely exhausted. I guess he keeps me in line and makes me go to bed on time! Night night!
I almost forgot...Mason's 1 year check went fine. Dr K says he has some allergy drainage, but overall he is perfectly fine. Weight, height and head are good and Dr K was impressed Mason can do 3 animal sounds. My little baby einstein!

Mason's appt

I was mistaken. Mason's 1 year well-check (what a laugh because he is HARDLY well!) is tomorrow, 11/18 at 2:30. I also made an appt for Ellie with the ENT to get this ear thing figured out. She SCREAMED in pain again last night with the drops so methinks it is not healing and I would just feel better if the dang tube was out!

You can call me Mrs. Clean

Sadly, the weekend is over. We did have a pretty good weekend. Brandon was off to Brazil yesterday and he called today to say he'd arrived and all is well. I asked if all the women look like Charo and he said thankfully, they do not. He did say he'd seen a few dressed like her???? But that was about it. And I just googled Charo and she's from Spain so I guess that's why the women in Brazil don't look like her.

My mom came yesterday afternoon to spend the night with me and the kiddies. She brought all the fixin's for Ann's homemade veggie soup and homeade chicken noodle soup. She played with the kids and straightened their room while I made dinner and then our little hunter, Biz, came over and joined us for dinner. Biz killed her first deer last weekend, a doe. She said she took this pic to be corny, but I don't completely believe that!

So now she is also on the hunt for the big one. But her luck ran out today as gun season is OVER. Now all the bow hunters can get back to business if there are any deer left.

This morning, I got to sleep late and then mom took the kids to Gallatin and I stayed and CLEANED my house. It seems I just cannot keep my bathroom clean enough. I JUST cleaned it on Thursday and it needed a good scrubbing again. Brandon and I had not ever shared a bathroom until we moved into this house so I lay all blame for the filthy bathroom on him. But it's clean now. All the sheets are changed, floors are clean (until Mason ate dinner tonight) things are dusted and organized and we are ready for the week. I am really thankful for mom's help. It will make a big difference in our week that I was able to get everything in order today and hopefully I can maintain it this week. I already have both kid's cups filled and in the fridge so there is one less thing to do in the morning!

I picked the kids up this afternoon and we headed home in time for dinner and bath and bed. Mom suggested I get the pack and play back out for Mason. She said she's never seen such a busy kid. It's true. Brandon's first order of business when he gets home is going to be cabinet locks in the kitchen. In 2.2 seconds tonight Mason made his way to the cabinet under the sink and pulled out some cleaning product and had it on it's way to his mouth right as I snatched it away. If I tell him "NO!" He thinks it's the funniest thing he's ever heard. Whew he is keeping us on our toes!

I think both kids are headed BACK to the dr tomorrow. Mason has his one year check-up anyway, but he still has a cough and bad congestion. Ellie is still congested too and last night she started SCREAMING when I put her ear drops in. Same thing tonight and it is more than just MUD(made up drama) which Ellie is SOOO good at. It seemed like real pain so I think we need to get things checked out.

Ellie drew a picture at my parent's today and when mom asked her what it was she said "It's Mary." Mom said "Oh, Mary your friend at school?" Ellie said "NO! Mary who is in the sky with God." That kid cracks me up! Just out of the blue she draws Mary Mother of Jesus. I am ashamed to say how long it has been since we have been to church. Where does she come up with this stuff??? It's probably God talking to me. Perhaps coming to me directly isn't working so now he's using Ellie? OK. I get it. We'll be at church Sunday! Actually, while I was cleaning today, I opened some mail (very old mail) and one of the things I opened was about Baby Celebration Sunday which is next week at church. It's a time to recognize all the babies who have been born in the last year or so. They have never had the Baby Celebration at the Greenwood campus so they said all babies under 2 will be recognized. I decided we'd go. Hmm...perhaps God is trying to get me a message. I hear it LOUD AND CLEAR and I will be there. (I hope God reads my blog)

I still haven't had any sewing time. I may just have to take off work and take the kids to school to have some time. I have so many things I want to make for them so hopefully I can work it in a little at a time.

Oh and for all the love I had for fall, I am dreading winter. I hate cold dreary days. Does anyone like those??? Hopefully we'll have some sunshine this week!

I want this pic to be my header. If you can tell me how to get this to work, I will make out with you!!! Simply editing the Header and putting a pic in does not work, BTW.

Mama's little helper

Well, we are still not over our illness in the Fields household. The kids both have full-blown colds complete with runny noses and icky coughs. I am just puny. None of my symptoms are really impressive, but I just generally feel icky. And I have had this medicine head feeling for about 3 days...and I am not taking anything! So both kids decided to have BAD nights last night and we were all up for about 3 hours straight. At one point, Ellie was in our bed talking to her lion and I think Brandon and I were just so tired and out of it we let it go on far too long. So the kids and I called in sick today. Ellie slept until 8:30 which is unheard of. I think if we have a good night tonight we'll be set to go back to school tomorrow. Hopefully, we can kick this gunk. Brandon is getting over his so I guess it runs about a week.
So Ellie was in a fairly good mood today, probably due to the fact she slept so late. She decided that today she really wanted to help me. She picked up any toys she played with and she "babysat" Mason. She ASKED that they be locked in their room with the baby gate so she could contain him in there and play with him. And who am I to complain??? Then she came to the gate and asked for the baby wipes informing me she needed to change his diaper! I did let her help me and she actually impressed me with how well she put the clean diaper on him. He was perfectly still and really studied the whole episode like "WHY are you letting her do this???" (for the record, I wiped him until he was completely clean then let her take a swipe with a clean wipe. I held him up so she could slip the diaper under his bumbum and she fastened the tabs...then I re-fastened them when she wasn't looking!)
Brandon leaves Saturday for a week in Brazil. Fun for him! It actually IS a work trip, but I know he will have some fun. He's never been to Brazil so I think he's a bit excited. Maybe it will be an account he has to work on a lot and I can go back with him sometime! Me and the kids are planning some Nana and Poppop time over the weekend. I am hoping mom will come stay with us so I can get everything in order for next week.
Brandon's birthday is coming up next Wednesday. This will be the 7th year we have been together and I think he has been in town for MAYBE 3 of his actual birthdays. Obviously this year is no exception. What's the vote on him getting a cake if he's not around on his actual birthday???

You think you've seen it all....

My kids have seen their fair share of illness. And anything my kids haven't had, I've seen working in a child care center. But today, my pediatrician showed me a new one. Ellie has had tubes for a year and a half. We knew one tube had fallen out and the one in her right ear was still in place last time anyone checked. And the last time we checked would have been AT MOST 6 weeks ago. But I actually think it's been less than that. Anyway...the tube has come out of her eardrum. The eardrum has healed and all is well there. However the tube laid in the eustachian tube and started to grow into the eustachian tube causing a BAD infection. So Dr K made me take a look through the otoscope! He said a picture is worth a thousand words and I need to see it. I will spare the detials, but he said that would explain the foul odor. BLESS HER HEART! She has not complained one bit. She has to have been in pain. Who knows how long this has been going on! I feel like mother of the year fo sho! Maybe what Brandon and I have been thinking is three year old attitude is really just nagging pain??? But we have meds for her now. Dr K says we need to let it heal up before we try to get the tube out of there. Good thing for me, my kids have all the same issues so I will take her along for the ride when we got to Mason's ENT follow-up for his tubes in three weeks. I'm always looking on the bright side!
Our week is off to a pretty good start. Things are getting chilly in Ken tuck. I broke out the kids' cute little winter hats complete with pom poms. They can just be mad when they are 16 and see pics. I think they're cute. I'm working on thinking of more ways to pimp my Initial Reaction stuff. I really want to get it out there so I am considering putting some stuff on Etsy. We shall see.

What's going on?

Well, it almost seems like there isn't much going on with my lack of blogging. But we have had a pretty busy week. Mason's surgery went well. He did better this time than he even did with his eye surgery...and he did spectacular with his eye. This time, he barely fussed at all after surgery. Five minutes after they brought him to us, he was trying to give Brandon his paci and doing snake tongue for us. He took a nice long afternoon nap and he was back to normal. However, he had started with a little cold before surgery. As of today, it is FULL BLOWN nastiness. Brandon also has a bad cold, but he is treating it with Nyquil and Dayquil. I am at a loss as to what to give Mason and the few things I have tried don't seem to dry him up and just make him super crabby. I think we are headed to the doctor tomorrow because in addition to Mason, Ellie has (Get ready for this) a foul odor coming from her ear. Yeah. So I asked my mom about it today and she said "Go to the dr." Then I got online today and all signs point to an ear infection. She isn't acting like anything is wrong and I am sad to say, we've noticed it for about a week! We thought her ears were dirty!
Friday afternoon, we met with our builder to review the budget he had layed out. It was about $150K over what we wanted. Yes, I said $150K. Needless to say, we are making some revisions. Shawn (builder) wanted Brandon and I to look over the whole thing and get back to him. So while I was typing this, Brandon drafted and sent an email to Shawn so hopefully we will get something worked out and SOON. Today was a pretty cold day and it is just giving us a glimpse at what this winter is going to be like. COLD. But we will make it. As long as we are not still here next winter!
Today, we went to Gallatin to celebrate my dad's birthday which was last Tuesday. We had a good time and I think dad enjoyed his celebration. Ellie's on her way to bed and I might get a shirt sewn for Mason. Check out Initial Reaction for some cute new shirts!

Hello weekend!

And what a nice weekend it is. Yesterday afternoon, mom the kiddos and I made our rounds in Bowling Green to trick or treat. Ellie had a great time. I appreciate my grandparents, aunts and uncles being so sweet to my kids. The love is certainly mutual. We only visited my grandparents and all my mom's siblings (my two aunts and my uncle) and Ellie's candy bucket was FULL. And of course Aunt Nancy even included a book with instructions for me on the importance of learning to rhyme for children. Ellie's Halloween experience will be different than mine (but I guess a lot like Brandon's). Growing up, I always went around the block with all my friends (and parents) with instructions to only go to house with the lights on and people we knew. And of course "Don't walk on the grass!" Since there are only two other houses on our road (and no it's not a new road...we live in the middle of no where), I guess my kids will always do Halloween this way.
Brandon made it home from Ecuador. They are also on central time so he only really has to recover from general traveling exhaustion, thankfully no jet lag. One of his bags got lost and they called at 11:45 to get directions to the house. We were both sound asleep, but somehow he made it to the phone AND it did not wake the kids! They brought the bag some time in the night. We were both surprised they found us with no trouble.
Brandon is hunting this afternoon. (Yes, he is still stalking that BIG ONE) Ellie joined Nana and Poppop at the WKU Homecoming game. Mason is napping and I am chilling. The Redditt boys (Tim's cousins from Alabama) are still here and I think we are having dinner at Tim and Biz's to partake in the deer Tim shot Thursday night. Yum! I am sorry Ellie is missing it because, being the weird little eater that she is, "deer meat" is the ONLY meat she ever asks for! Maybe we will save her some!
Mason has his ear tube surgery scheduled for Friday and it just hit me this afternoon that I missed his pre-op appt yesterday. Hopefully that will not delay the surgery!
ALSO! Shawn (our builder) emailed me yesterday and said he has everything pretty much ready to go. We will meet with him next week to work out the final budget and then get started on building this thing! He made some little comment about seeing (based on the bill!) that I had fun picking out plumbing fixtures. So I guess I already know one area in which I will have to cut! That hammer copper powder room sink I found is just too cool though!!!! We shall see...


With Aunt Biz

With Aunt gg

Aunt Susan's New 'do

At Nanny's

Happy Halloween!

Lots to share!

The Whole Family

The Cousins

The Chili Cook-off Winners: Shelby, Skyler and Brittany


First, Mason is doing great. He had his surgery yesterday and it went really well. It was super quick. Mom went with me because Brandon and I felt like it was best for Ellie to keep her home and in her routine. So Brandon stayed with her and mom went with me to the hospital. Mom and I had barely sat down in the waiting room before the dr was out to give us the information on the surgery. Then it wasn't 5 more minutes before they came to get us because he had woken up in recovery. It turns out that Mason had a significant blockage in his tear duct. Dr. Donahue says there is a higher than normal chance that the blockage may grow back within 3-4 weeks and we will have to do this all over again. Here's to hoping that does not happen! He's been alittle irritable yesterday and today and he has not wanted to nap at all. I finally got him down this afternoon and I am afraid he may never wake up and ruin bedtime now! Mason is scheduled to have tubes put in on November 7. We had hoped to have tubes and the tear duct done all at the same time, but that just did not work out.
Now on to other news...Bizfest 2008- The Fall Edition was a great success. All my mom's sisters and brother and all the cousins and my grandparents ventured out to Trammel to partake in the festivities. We had a chili cook-off, a birthday celebration and a cornhole tournament. And we got some family pictures taken. We all had a really great time. I will put a few pics on here and more can be found at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jennfields75/BizfestFall#





I am planning to take Mason back to school tomorrow and have some ME time. I have two more vacation days that I have to use or lose by Friday. Sadly, I really do need to be at work on Friday, so I have decided that Wednesday and Thursday will be MY days. I am hoping to whip the house into shape and sew sew sew.
This weekend, Biz has informed me we will be having another get- together to celebrate the Alabama Redditt boys' visit. Also, WKU Homecoming is this weekend and me and the kids are planning to join my parents at the Homecoming Parade on Friday and we also have to work in some Trick or Treating that evening. That should be a whirlwind...
I almost forgot..Mason got his first haircut! He needed it so bad so I finally gave in and asked my cousin Shelby, who happens to be a hair stylist, to cut it on Sunday. She did a great job. Mason was relatively still while she cut it and it turned out really cute. But he looks so grown up now!

More Party pics

Nana helping Mason open his gifts

Me and Mason

Ellie and Mason on the four wheeler

The Party's over...

Mason eating his birthday cupcake

Well, Mason had a great First birthday party. We kept it small so it was: Brandon, Ellie, me, Biz, Tim, my parents, Brandon's dad and step-mom and Brandon's mom and step-dad. Jen, Cam, Macy and Madison couldn't make it, but they were missed. I hope everyone had a good time. They seemed to.
Then after the party and a shirt nap for Mason, Aunt Biz carried on her tradition of pumpkin carving with Ellie and Mason. Although Mason wasn't really terribly invovled. Actually, Ellie wasn't terribly involved either. I just saw a commercial for a man who can carve a pumpkin in 24 seconds. It takes Biz a little longer...But she did a great job and the pumpkin turned Jack-o-lantern is aglow on our front porch as I type.
Tomorrow is Bizfest 2008. What is Bizfest, I can hear you all thinking. Well, Biz and Tim are gracious enough to have the entire Jordan clan out to their house. Biz cleverly disguised the party as a chili-cook-off read "Biz isn't cooking". She's a smart one! I kid. Really, she can't cook. But she is providing burgers and hot dogs and the makings of s'mores. We will be celebrating Abbey's (10/2), Mason's (10/23) and Aunt Gail's (10/24) birthdays. And things are always exciting when you get my family together!!!

Busy week

Well I am just now getting a chance to update the blog. My sister pointed out that I have not posted anything in a while and said she was tired of seeing the pic of Ellie on Pinkie Pie.
Things have been pretty busy for me, but not necessarily exciting. Brandon was out of town Monday and Tuesday nights and got back home today. Last Sunday I decided to have a little photo shoot with the kids. It was kind of spur of the moment, but I had been thinking I really wanted some pictures of them with the fall leaves and I wanted to get some good pictures of Mason around his first birthday. So we went into the front yard and I set up their pumpkins and my mums and we went to town. I was really pleased with how well the pictures turned out.
I am busy getting ready for Mason's First Birthday. I still want to make him a birthday shirt and I actually may run in there and make it tonight! It will just be us, Biz and Tim and the grandparents. Jen and Cam and the girls can't make it. I am hoping for nice weather so we can be outside mostly.
I guess one exciting thing that happened was this afternoon when campus went on lockdown. I was across town at our other center and I got a text message from the emergency system at WKU that shots had been fired at PFT (Pierce Ford Tower- a dorm) which is literally right across the street from our building. And my kids were there. So I jumped in my truck and ran back to the main center. They had all the kids locked in the interior hallway. There were tons of cops on campus and as I turned in I noticed a sharp shooter in the grass across the street. Scary stuff. Although, as it turned out, it was just a couple of big fist fights that had started as a party last Saturday night and continued today. So hopefully, all that is over and the rest of the week will be more low-key!

A productive weekend!

Yeehaw!

I love it when I feel accomplished on Monday morning. I feel like I got a lot done this weekend! I've been thinking that I could make my family's evenings go much smoother if we had less prep time for dinner. When we get home, we pretty much hit the door with two hungry kids (ok usually only one hungry kid and Ellie, but still) and I hate that evenings are always so rush rush that I end up throwing fish sticks or chicken nuggets in the oven for them and then Brandon and I grab something and choke it down between baths and bedtime. So I decided that it really wouldn't take too much to get some things prepared and frozen so I could thaw them and pop them in the oven. I made Chili Relleno Casserole, Cheesy Potatoes and Ham Casserole, Spinach Feta Pie, I cooked some taco meat, made two meatloaves, and marinaded some meat and froze it so it's easy to throw on the grill. In all, I froze 5 casseroles and all that meat. Ellie chose meatloaf for dinner tonight so I have it thawing!
I also got some sewing done. Check out the other blog for pics! Ellie went to the WKU game with my parents and she reported that she had a great time. I'm attaching a picture of her on her "pony". She was all ready for bed the other night and put on her cowboy hat that Aunt Biz got her in Dallas when she realized she needed a horse. She ran to her room and came out with Pinky Pie the singing and dancing My Little Pony (thanks again Biz...remember you'll have kids one day...) Brandon and I agreed we'd use the picture for blackmail some day.
Mason is still not walking. And I have kind of decided the longer it takes, the better. I told my dad that when Mason does get on his feet, he will be one of those kids you just chase everywhere. He will never stop. He had a good weekend but we realized yeterday afternoon that he really missed Ellie while she was gone!
I better get on to a productive rest of my week. Everyone have a good one!

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Good weekend people of the interweb! I just love Friday! We've had a pretty good week. I have done a lot of sewing and I am getting more orders all the time. Check out my other blog if you haven't! http://www.initialreactiondesigns.blogspot.com/ I know you know a kid who needs a cute tee!
Mason has decided he is a big boy this week! Sunday I decided to start trying more exclusive table food and he has taken to it like a duck to water! Mason has never been a very good eater with bottles or baby food. Actually, he has always pretty much hated bottles. Now I know why: He wants chicken nuggets and steak fingers! Last night he ate a steak finger, diced carrots, diced pears and 3/4 of a banana! And followed it up with tons and tons of crackers and a sippy of milk. Most days, based on the reports I from school and at home in the evenings, Mason eats better than Ellie! I am really happy about this because I just don't think I could handle another eater as picky as my sweet Ellie. She refused baked potato last night! And she only just started likeing french fries and chicken nuggets. That's just un-American!
Onto Ellie and her political views...I have pointed out all of the candidates to Ellie during the debates. When she is on one of those cute show where they are interviewing kids who "say the darndest things" I want her to be well-informed about who our president is. She knows them all including moderators. Tuesday night Ellie wanted to know where Leo was. After some questioning, we realized she was asking abou Jim Lehrer The moderator for the first debate)!. I guess she doesn't like Tom Brokaw. Then she got into a conversation with Brandon about who she likes:
ELLIE: I like Barrack Obama!
BRANDON (AKA MR REPUBLICAN): NO YOU DO NOT!
E: Yes, I do!
B: NO YOU DON'T. He going to take all your money.
E: (Shoulders shrugged hands in the air, head bobbing) Um, I don't have any money!

I found this entire exchange so funny. She has since decided that McCain is her man. I remember when I used to vote like my dad told me to as well...
This weekend should be a pretty normal weekend for the Fields. Brandon is still stalking the BIG ONE. Ellie will be going to the WKU game with Nana and Poppop. I hope to get some sewing time in. And Mason will be hanging out. Everyone have a good one!


Nana and Ellie at the zoo

The Zoo!

Ellie and Brandon

Mason at the end of the day



Ellie and Jennifer

I wasn't sure he should wear this shirt to the zoo. But he didn't get heckled so I guess it was ok


Happy Monday! We decided to take Ellie in her first visit to the zoo over the weekend. Brandoon, my mom and I took both kids. We had a great time! We got pretty up close to the elephants and giraffes. And the elephants even did some tricks for us. A lot of the other animals were sleeping or just really really over being gawked at. But it was all exciting to Ellie. She wanted to go back yesterday! Mason was not as impressed. But he is such a little trooper. He rode in the stroller and just chilled. Then he finally fell asleep and slept for the last 20 minutes at the zoo and the entire way home!
Brandon hunted some this weekend and got some more pics off his trail cam. There is a nice buck that he is undecided about, but I say SHOOT HIM! I got some sewing done yesterday afternoon. (Pics posted on the Monogramming blog) I'm starting to get several orders so I am very excited about that. All in all it was a pretty good weekend! Here's to hoping to week goes as well!
Mason's surgery is set for October 27. He'll have the tear duct opened and the tubes put in all at Vanderbilt. We have to be there at 6 am so that should be fun! And Brandon leaves that morning for Ecuador so once again I am calling on my family to pitch in and they have graciously agreed. We didn't want to do it with Brandon not only out of town, but out of the COUNTRY, but it was either the 27th or wait until November 24 and with Mason's history, no one thought it was a good idea to wait. I'm sure it will all work out just fine!

Hello October!

Good Morning!

Watching Mickey Mouse

Bathtime

"Fields"



Wow I can hardly believe that October is upon us. And it is even harder for me to believe that Mason will be one year old in just a few weeks! This first year has just flown by. Ellie's seemed to go at a more even pace. But I guess that is the poor second child for you. With Ellie, I focused everything on her, but with Mason, my time is split. But Mason has the benefit of learning and spending time with an older sister who adores him. I am so thankful for their relationship and I hope it continues. Ellie is so patient and sweet to Mason.
We've had another bought of illness that is hopefully coming to an end very soon. We were back at the dr's office yesterday with both Ellie and Mason yesterday. Mason's ear infection has come back (while on antibiotics no less!) and Ellie could not be outdone so she has an ear infection too! Mason and I are headed back to the ENT this afternoon for hopefully our final visit where the dr and I will discuss tubes and I will tell the dr it IS happening. Also, Mason's clogged tear duct is not better after 10 days of antibiotics so I am hoping to coordinate the surgeries so he can have the tear duct and the tubes done all at once. I am waiting on the call from the Eye dr at Vanderbilt.
I'm including some pics. Ellie was just playing around on her magnadoodle last night and she said "Look, I wrote 'Fields'" And to our surprise, she had! Brandon had written Fields at the top for her to "practice" and she did it. At 3 years old! I am pretty sure Harvard will be calling soon. The other pics are bathtime and my little tv addict. Ellie only started watching tv in the last 9 months or so. Mason has been a tv hound since day one! He didn't even know I took his picture!