Happy Anniversary to ME!
It has been three years since I joined Thirty-One gifts as a consultant. I had NO IDEA how my life would change as a result of that one decision.
I saw a Thirty-One booth at our county fair in the fall of 2008. I remember telling my husband that I would never “do” direct sales but if I did, those were the products I wanted to sell. It stayed on my mind for months and when I saw that a friend was selling, I asked her for a catalog and HAD TO HAVE the skirt purse (this was the OLD one with the ties which I never use anymore because I like the newer style better but I refuse to get rid of it!). I booked a party with her for April but couldn’t wait to get my purse so I ordered it for my birthday in March (easiest birthday present my husband ever got me!). At my party, I talked more than the hostess did and she said I should be a consultant. There was a special that month that allowed you to join for $25 and they took the balance out of your first commission check…what did I have to lose?
In the beginning my WHY was to earn enough money to be able to buy Thirty-One and other “fun” non-essential things without worrying about our budget or feeling guilty for spending money. When I realized that I could actually make pretty good money with Thirty-One, my WHY was expanded. I had always said that I wanted to be home with my girls in the afternoon by the time Hailey started middle school. It was a dream because I never thought it would actually be possible. I was able to go part-time at my job in the middle of Hailey’s third grade year (and I owe a lot to my boss for allowing me to do that!). Now my WHY is to continue to be able to spend more time with my family and continue on our path to being debt-free (happy to say we have NO credit cards!). My WHY is also to share this opportunity with other women to empower them to have control over their lives and their finances and to be able to achieve their dreams. I especially love helping those that are trying to find a way to stay at home with their babies. I remember sitting at my computer desk during my maternity leave searching online for a work-at-home opportunity that wasn’t a scam or a pyramid scheme. That was not in God’s plan for me at the time but His plan is always greater than our plan! As I look at my downline numbers now, I know without a doubt that I am exactly where He wants me to be and I thank Him for his many blessings!
Thirty-One is not MY business, it is my FAMILY’S business. My husband is a HOTtie (Husband of Thirty-One) and supports me 100% even when that means helping me put labels on catalogs in the middle of the night! My children of course carry Thirty-One wherever they go and my oldest especially loves to tell everyone about Thirty-One and will tell them what they need to buy! My girls help sort orders when they come in, they help stamp order forms, label catalogs, etc. It doesn’t hurt that they know that our upcoming trip to Disney is being paid for by Thirty-One Dream Rewards!
I can’t wait to see what the next 3 years have in store for me!
A Cupcake without Calories!
What better way to celebrate your birthday than with a Thirty-One cupcake coin purse! Leah got this for her birthday as well as an MP3 player which fits perfectly inside along with her ear buds!
Soccer Mom? More like Photog Mom!
I am not one of those parents who constantly yells at their children from the sidelines. I will of course yell Hailey’s name and encourage her but I certainly won’t tell her (like the opposing coach yelled to one of his players) that if she lets a goal past her when she is playing goalie and the other team scores, that it is her fault. Seriously? They are SIX. Let them have FUN. Remember FUN? This is a RECREATION league, not a competitive league. I feel so bad for these kids when their family members are yelling ugly things at them from the sidelines. You should see their faces.
ANYWAY, my point is that I don’t yell…I take pictures. Here are just a FEW of the pictures I took yesterday!
Leahisms
(She just wants to be close to us!)
It was raining pretty hard when we went to get in the car this morning. Leah was carrying her umbrella in one hand and her blanket in the other. I overheard her saying to her blanket, “It’s okay blankie, I’ve got you, just hold on to me!”
On the way to pick up Hailey, Leah was singing “Five Green and Speckled Frogs”. I was talking to Ed at the time and she was finished by the time I got off the phone so I asked her if she could sing it again. She told me she could not because “they are all in the pond now”.
Hailey had art this afternoon and a friend had asked me to pick up some cake truffles for her at Shops at Steele Street so it was easy to pop in and grab those for her…or it should have been. I had to wait 10 minutes to buy the truffles which was a loooong ten minutes for Leah to see lots of stuff she wanted. She really, really wanted a watch with a pink plastic armband. I told her she would not have a watch until she could tell time. She went over to the table, picked up the watch and said, “It is 5:18.” She waited a few seconds and then picked it up and said, “It is still 5:18.” She then told me that she could “tell time now” and so she could get the watch. (and NO, I did NOT let her get the watch)
We had a new teacher start last week and she told me that when she introduced herself to Leah, Leah said, “I Leah Page, my mom Emily Page.” 
Speaking of the little cutie, she has crept into the office and is sitting on the floor beside me so I better go get her back in bed!
PS I ended up doing 20 more minutes of Wii Fit last night and did over an hour tonight. Woo hoo!
Leah
Hailey is at soccer practice so Leah is hanging out beside me in my bed (me preferred spot for working on the computer). She is leaning back against the pillow in a pink pajama top and too-small red pants (she picked them out). She has her legs crossed in front of her with a can of cashews between her legs (her dad’s cashews that she went and snitched from the pantry).
She is chomping away and asked me if I wanted some “peanuts”.
I said, “No thank you, Leah. I don’t like cashews.”
She said, “But when you put them in our mouth they’re good.” (You must say the word good with three syllables to hear it the way she said it).
I LOVE this age. I love the way her voice sounds, I love the way she pronounces words, I love her sweetness, and I love that she is still so cuddly. I love that after she sang Happy Birthday to my mom today, she followed up with 4 more songs.
She just said “no way Jose” to me (out of the blue and not in response to anything) and then closed the cashew can and told me that she didn’t like them either (after eating LOTS). There is no telling what she will come back from the kitchen with next.
Deep Thoughts with Emily
When you haven’t blogged for a while, you want to come up with a really awesome post that will blow your readers away and remind them why they kept checking your blog even though you hadn’t posted anything in days. Sadly, I just don’t have it in me. I do have lots of random thoughts, though.
Some day (probably late July after our big fundraiser is over), I am going to go back in time so that I can post pictures of Hailey’s dance recital, both girls’ birthday parties, and our beach trip.
It is tradition in our house that we watch the video of the birthday girl’s “birth day”. As we were watching Hailey’s (she turned 6 on Friday), she said that that was the best time of her life because everyone was looking at her and no one else. How in the world do we teach this child that she does NOT have to be the center of attention all the time??
Wal-Mart is starting to stock school supplies. They have a whole wall of lunch boxes. Is it weird that I can’t wait to take Hailey to pick a new lunch box?
I made fun of Webkinz when they first came out. Hailey now owns two. I have a feeling this is the beginning of a pattern.
Hailey purchased her second Webkinz with money she got from her Aunt Jo Ellen and Uncle Scott. We found it at Limited Too because they are only one of 3 retailers in Crabtree that sell Webkinz. I had a glimpse of the clothes my child will want to wear very, very soon…it scared me.
Hailey has just started her second week of Camp Voyager through the YMCA. She loves it because she says all she has to do is play and eat!
The Lee County Schools Superintendent resigned today before a closed door School Board session regarding alleged immoral conduct…am I the only one who is really curious about that conduct?
The house I remember in little Washington had a banister halfway up the stairs followed by a wall. I used to sneak halfway down the stairs so that I could feel like I was closer to my parents but they couldn’t see me. I even have a picture of me sitting on the steps with my head back. I am wearing pajamas and an orange plastic bracelet and I am fast asleep. Ed just had me go in the hallway (at 9:44)…Leah was sitting on the floor with her legs crossed and her back against the wall. She might have been hidden by the laundry basket if it wasn’t for the holes! When she heard me, she covered her face with her hands. I guess she thought if she couldn’t see me, I couldn’t see her. too cute.
I just heard a new/old McDonald’s commercial with the twoallbeefpattiesspecialsaucelettucecheesepicklesonionsonasesameseedbun…it made me remember that I was SOOO proud when I was in middle school that I had that memorized and could say it super fast. What a dork.
Speaking of McDonald’s commercials…do you remember the one where the teacher was leading her class through the rain and they were all wearing yellow slickers and saying “quack, quack, waddle, waddle”? We had to cross the street to get to the beach on our vacation and we would walk single file and chant this. Apparently I am still a dork.
Our Marriage by the Numbers
0 – Number of times we kissed before we got engaged
1- Number of dates we went on before we got engaged
2 – Number of children we’ve brought into the world
3 – Number of pets we have
4 – Number of homes we have lived in
5 – Number of rooms in our first apartment
6 – Number of cars we have had
7 – Number of towns we spent the night in during our honeymoon
8 – Number of years we have lived in Sanford
9 – The total number of brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, and sisters-in-law we have
10 – Number of years we have been happily married!!!!!!!!
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to my wonderful husband…the man I want to be with for the rest of forever!
Movie Mystery Solved
Ed rented “The Water Horse” last week. When it was time to turn in the movie, it was NOWHERE to be found. We looked for that movie for days. I knew Leah had to have hidden it because she was the last one I saw with it and she likes to hide things (remember the granola bar incident?). I tried tricking her into telling me where it was. I tried bribery. I told them no one would be in trouble as long as they just found the thing. Nothing worked.
We opened every drawer and cabinet. Furniture was moved and cushions and pillows were tossed. We looked places we thought there was NO WAY she could have gotten to. We were truly at a loss and thought we were going to have to purchase the stupid thing. Our main frustration was that if we had to buy a movie, why did it have to be that one? That is probably my least favorite movie I have seen in a year. I have no desire to watch it again and I did not want my kids watching it again.
Leah asked me on the way home yesterday if she could watch a movie. I asked her if she wanted to watch “The Water Horse.” Nope. *Sigh* It was worth a try.
This morning as I was getting ready, Leah came running into the bathroom and told me she found the movie. To be honest, I did not believe her at first…so imagine my surprise when I turned around and she was holding the movie in her hand.
She was SO excited. She jumped up and down, danced, and giggled. She was VERY proud of herself. I asked her to show me where she found it. She pointed to one of the shelves in the office. In our search, I sat down and looked at every single book on those shelves so it had to be behind the books. The little stinker.
I looked at Leah and said “Now Leah, who put that movie on the shelf?” Leah very excitedly grinned and raised her hand…and then thought better of it and quickly dropped her hand and said (with wide eyes), “I don’t know!”
When you are not having to pay a fortune to buy a movie you really did not like and absolutely did not want to own…you can actually laugh at that.
Heartbroken
Hailey’s week did not start off well last week. We traded notes with her teacher and spent a lot of time talking to her about her behavior. She ended the week on a much better note and with her teacher starting to challenge her more, we were daring to hope that she would start listening more and talking less.
We had a good weekend. We went to Paint in the Park on Saturday and Hailey painted her granddaddy a picture for his birthday. She was on her best behavior at my parents’ house and even ate her dinner without complaints. Last night she did a great job of helping me clean and practiced her reading and second grade words without a problem.
When I arrived at the Y today, I found Hailey sitting in the office. Not a good sign. I asked her why she was there and Megan told me she had been hitting. I asked Hailey about this and she would not say a word to me. A lot of parents were coming in at this time and needed to get to the sign-out sheet where I was standing so I told her to go get her stuff and I stepped over to talk to Brenda.
Brenda informed me that Hailey was not the same Hailey that started at the Y. She said she was not listening to the counselors at all. They would tell her to do something and she would do the complete opposite. Not only did she hit a child on Friday, but she punched a child in the stomach multiple times in the bathroom today. WHAT??!!!
I told Brenda that Hailey had been getting in trouble in the classroom and that maybe she was trying so hard to follow the rules in class that by the time she made it to the Y, she was done with listening and following directions (please understand that I am not making excuses or saying this behavior is okay…just trying to understand where it is coming from). I promised Brenda that we would talk to Hailey and asked that she please tell the counselors to keep me informed about Hailey’s behavior.
It was all I could do to hold myself together in the car on the way to dance class. This is not how I have raised my child to behave and in no way do I find this behavior acceptable. I am at a point where I really don’t know what to do. Talking to her does not help. No punishment really seems to faze her.
I had a real struggle as to whether or not to let her go to dance. However, dance does require that she be quiet and follow directions and she obviously needs all the help she can get. Besides, her recital is in a few weeks and her teacher has worked hard. I did not feel it was fair to her teacher and the other children to have Hailey ill prepared for her part in the recital.
I am going to call our EAP and see if they have any resources in this area. I need to talk to a professional and I would like for Hailey to talk to a professional. Our family cannot continue to live with this roller coaster of behavior. Hailey can be the sweetest, most helpful, loving, caring, creative, and fun child…and then she can be defiant and mean.
If any of you have words of wisdom, I would love to hear them!
The Husband Meme
OK, so I keep breaking my promise to write about Booksfree.com, but I saw this on The Diaper Diaries and just had to post my own answers. This meme is in regards to Ed and myself.
How long did you date? We had one date before we got engaged but we did not call it a date at the time.
How old is he? 32
Who eats more? Ed (but I eat more chocolate by far)
Who said “I love you” first? Pretty sure I did but I am not positive. I was more concerned with the “spend the rest of your life with me” part.Who is taller? Ed
Who sings better? I cannot carry a tune to save my life. I would really, really like to be able to sing. I am so bad that I frequently just mouth the words to hymns in church.
Who is smarter? I think we each have our strengths, but overall, I would say Ed is smarter. He is the one with the law degree after all!
Whose temper is worse? Me – no doubt.
Who does the laundry? We both do
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do
Who pays the bills? I did for the first four years but now Ed does it. (Of course, when I was doing it I had to actually write out checks and use envelopes and stamps. He has it easy with automatic drafts and online bill pay! )
Who cooks dinner? Ed – he is a great cook! There are very few dinners that I can make without lots of guidance. I told someone recently that I did not cook and Hailey said, “Yes you do, mommy – you make chocolate chip cookies and meatloaf!” I love to make desserts and salads but I would prefer to leave the actual meals to Ed. I once started two small fires in my parents’ kitchen in the same night.
Who drives when you are together? Ed
Who is more stubborn? Me!
Who kissed who first? It was mutual
Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? I am never wrong – just ask Ed.
Who proposed? He did.
Who is more sensitive? Me – I cry at Hallmark commercials.
Who has more siblings? Ed has 3 brothers and I have 2 sisters
Who wears the pants in the family? We make decisions together, but I am what Ed calls the “social director” of the family.
Chickens, Caterpillars, Cell Phones and Butterflies
Leah’s class was learning about birds this week so one of her teacher’s brought in 5 little chickens to show the kids. Julie had even put a wooden dowel through the cardboard box so that the chickens could roost. They were a big hit and they were certainly missed today! Leah thought it was very cool that there were real live chickens in her classroom. My grandmother raised chickens so I grew up around them and would get so excited when there were new “biddies”. These were a little older but still had a little down on their heads. They made very sweet chirping sounds. I missed hearing them today as I walked around the building.
Today’s fascination is caterpillars. Leah told me about seeing one crawling through the grass on the playground but he would not crawl in her hand. She later saw a baby caterpillar and she touched him but he “did not bite her” for which she was grateful!
Leah had a long talk with Lindsay on my cell phone as we drove to pick Hailey up from the Y. She gave her a running commentary of the drive home…”there is a yellow bus and it is at the school…that is a blue van and there is a blue car…that little boy’s mom is wearing a yellow shirt…” When Lindsay had to speak to someone who came in the office, Leah got very indignant and told me that “she won’t talk to me.” My favorite is when she holds the phone up to something and says “see?”…I can’t convince her that the people on the other end can’t see what she sees through the phone. I think the fact that I have picture caller-id confuses her!
As I type, she is strumming on Ed’s guitar and singing a made-up song about butterflies. She just told me she is going to sing “Edelweis”. How many 2 year olds do you know that love “The Sound of Music” and can sing the songs?
This is my favorite age.
P.s. The next post will be about the books!
Catching Up
I have failed miserably as a blog writer lately. Between family and work, life just simply got in the way. Here are some notes from the past week:
- I am not as young as I think I am. We went roller skating on Saturday. If you read my last post on roller skating, you know that I broke my elbow the last time I tried to skate. I have been wanting to try again for years and finally convinced Ed to go to Jelly Beans in Cary. I was very hesitant and so scared that I was going to lose my balance and break something. I was afraid to hold Hailey’s hand because I didn’t want her to knock me off balance. I had to take frequent breaks and finally my thighs were quivering so badly I had to give it up. I promised Ed it was out of my system and I will not be asking to go again. There – it is in writing. I hope he holds me to it. Getting out of bed on Sunday was a difficult task! Leah was too cute in her tiny skates. She tried her best but I am confidant we won’t be hearing her ask to go back anytime soon.
- Our next excursion was to Chuck E. Cheese. This was a first for me and I absolutely loved it. We had a great time and learned that I should never be allowed near a slot machine.
- Leah and I had to stay home Thursday and Friday because she had strep. She asked me one day where her daddy was and I told her he was at work. She told me that daddy got people out of jail because the big mean witch put them there and they missed their mommy and daddy.
- Leah also had her second UTI so she now has to go to UNC for testing to determine if she has urinary reflux. This will involve a catheter. I have had two children without epidurals and one catheter. I would choose childbirth any day. I wonder if they provide the mom with a sedative!
- I love Zelda (my GPS). I had to go to Raleigh yesterday to “defend” my budget proposal. I decided I wanted to eat at Zaxby’s for lunch since we do not have one in Sanford. Even though I grew up in Raleigh, learned to drive there, and go there often to visit our parents, I have no directional sense whatsoever and do not have confidence in my abilities to get from point A to point B without getting lost. Normally I would not venture off my main course, but I knew Zelda would get me from Zaxby’s to our state office in the “fastest time possible”. On the way home I realized I needed gas. I took an exit because of the “gas next right” sign. It was just my luck that there was not one of those signs that tells you which direction to go and for how many miles. Zelda to the rescue! I just clicked on the gas pump icon and she led me where I needed to go and got me back on the road with no problems.
- I got carded today. It was at Wal-Mart and they card everyone under 40, but it still felt great!
- Our book club discussed To Kill A Mockingbird tonight. If you have not read this book since middle school or high school, you should really read it again. It is a great book and even though it is set in the 30s, the messages still hold true.
- My sister, Jo Ellen (aka “Your Far Away Sister”) gave me a B&N gift card for my birthday. One of the things I got was a “Too Cool for School” box set that includes “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”, “Pretty in Pink”, and “Some Kind of Wonderful”. I just need “Can’t Buy Me Love” and I am all set! I can’t wait to watch them this weekend!
- When I found out Leah had strep and had to be home, we went straight to the movie store and got “Freaky Friday” (the original, of course!), “Shaggy DA” (we watched the black and white version), and “Follow that Bird”. I’m sure I enjoyed them more than she did, but it was fun to revisit those old movies. We also had to get “Princess Diaries”. We have PD2 and Leah is obsessed. She will be 3 next month and she wants a “Princess Diaries” party.
- Hailey, Lindsay and I went shopping at the Kids Kloset consignment sale. We were really going to look for outdoor toys for the center but ended up looking for clothes for Hailey. Lindsay got to experience first hand how difficult Hailey is to clothe. She shot down almost everything we showed her. I was trying to get her excited about shorts or a short skirt for the summer. She finally agreed on 2 pink skirts and black gauchos (so cute). When she put on one of the skirts on Saturday, she told me it would be rude to wear it because it was too high above her knees. ARGH! She wanted to wear a white shirt and the only one she has is a tank top. She asked if she could wear a sweater over it because she did not want her arms to show. How many moms do you know that fight with their girls to wear shorts and tank tops??
- I’m sure there is plenty more, but for the two of you who have read this far, I promise to try and keep up a little better!
Me (as a child) vs. My Kids
Me: Tang at breakfast, Kool-Aid at lunch, Sweet Tea at dinner
My Kids: Milk at breakfast and dinner, Gatorade at lunch
Me: Nesquik out of a can with a lid you had to pry open
My Kids: Nesquik out of a boring plastic box
Me: Metal Sesame Street Lunch Box
My Kids: Pink camouflage -insulated lunch bag
Me: Awesome home-cooked meal from scratch every night
My (poor) Kids: Awesome home-cooked meal sometimes
Me: Smurfs
My Kids: Harry Potter
Me: Fisher Price Little People and Matchbox Cars
My Kids: Dolls, dolls, and more dolls
Me: Dolls that talk when you pull a string
My Kids: Dolls that talk when you install batteries
Me: Summers and “preschool” at Grandmama’s
My Kids: Child Care and YMCA
Me: A mom who can do anything
My Kids: A mom who still takes her sewing to HER mom
Me: Free rein to ride my bike and play outside
My Kids: Not allowed to play out of my sight outside
Me: Intellevision 
My Kids: Hopefully PS3 someday!
Me: TV with no remote and an antenna on the roof
My kids: HD TV with an antenna on the floor (someday maybe we will have satellite again!)
Me: Superman and Follow that Bird in movie theaters
My Kids: A large collection of Disney movies
Me: A toy poodle naked Trixie and a cat named Fluffy (and lots of her offpsring)
My Kids: Two beagles named Copper and Daisy and a cat named Buster
Me: A manual typewriter
My Kids: A computer
Me: 9 1st cousins, 5 Aunts, 6 Uncles
My Kids: 4 1st cousins, 4 Aunts, 5 Uncles
Me: Learned to ski at 22
My Kids: Hailey learned to ski at 3
Me: Kindergarten where you play in centers
My Kids: Kindergarten where you learn to read and do math
Me: Raised as a Wolfpacker
My Kids: Raised as TAR HEELS!!
Mean Girls
I knew having girls and enduring the preteen and teenage years would be a challenge. I did not know, however, that some of the issues I thought would not come up for years would actually occur in Kindergarten. Kindergarten for me was all about building with blocks, “cooking” in the housekeeping center, sand and water play, journals, recess, and playing with my friends. I went to a K-12 school in Bath, NC and we had a grand total of 2 kindergarten classrooms. We were all friends and I never remember anyone being mean. I was the only child in my grade level with glasses until 4th grade. I was a prime candidate for mean remarks. I actually remember being kind of upset when the new girl with glasses started because I was no longer special. I did not encounter bullies or mean children until I moved to Raleigh in 5th grade.
The issue we are dealing with now is that Hailey does not want to wear shorts.
She says her legs are too fat.
Yes, you read that right, my KINDERGARTNER thinks her legs are too fat. She even grabbed her thigh and said to me, “Look at that. It’s so big.” According to her, she has been listening to older girls at the Y talk about fat and skinny after school. She has been looking at other girl’s legs and has decided hers are too big.
We have talked and talked and talked about this and I really don’t know what else to do. At a loss of what else to say, I finally told her she was going to be hot. She told me she was wearing a short-sleeved shirt and the air would go down her armpits to her legs and cool off her legs.
I knew peer pressure started earlier these days, I just didn’t realize how much earlier.
Leahisms
My current favorite Leahisms:
“How ’bout that?” As in, “I’m going to go get a treat, how ’bout that?”
“Uh-Huh, sure can!” – when asked to do something.
Leah is very sneaky. She likes to hide food. After Leah stayed at my mom’s, mom noticed that there were four granola bars missing. She found them a couple of days later. They were in a line under the dining room table. I bet you Leah looks for them next time she is there and wants a snack. She also hides food in her purse and has been known to use her stool from the bathroom to reach the shelves in the pantry that are off-limits.
After they both got into the candy stash, Ed made a production of throwing the whole container out. (side note: We rarely let our kids have candy. It makes them NUTS. The stash of candy including Halloween candy. It was time for it to go and it just made it all the better that we got a lesson out of it!) Not long after Ed threw the candy in the trash, Leah whispered to Hailey, “Let’s go get the candy.” So glad she learned a lesson.
We are in so much trouble.
Cards, Birthdays, Books, and Basketball
That pretty much sums up my weekend.
Cards-
My mom in all her wonderfullness (it is my blog, I can make up words if I want to) kept the girls on Friday and let them spend the night. We had a great time with Jennifer and Billy at Joe’s. I love that Joe’s has a non-smoking side now. You still leave smelling like smoke, but you don’t notice it when you are actually inside.
After we left Joe’s, we played Texas Hold Em’ at our house. I won’t go into specifics, but I do believe that the girls each had more chips than the boys at the end. Copper and Daisy were ecstatic to have fellow dog lovers in the house to shower them with attention.
UNO was the card game of choice tonight. Hailey beat me soundly two times in a row. She never even had to draw a card from the pile. I won my hand against Ed but I really wish we had timed the game. I truly think it was the longest game of UNO I have ever played with just two people. We had to shuffle the discard pile several times.
Birthdays-
We celebrated Hunter’s birthday on Saturday with our family. Jimmy and Julie provided an excellent dinner as always so we left very satisfied. They recently went to PA on Spring Break and brought me back a Hershey’s glass filled with chocolate. My sister knows what makes the world go ’round! Although the good people at Hershey’s would probably cringe to know that I will be drinking my Nestle Nesquik out of that glass!
Hailey wanted so desperately to keep up with the big kids. At one point she told them to slow down and exclaimed that she was “just a little girl!”
We celebrated my father-in-law’s birthday today. Now my dad AND my father-in-law are twice my age! Brunch was fabulous and Bob even got candles in his ice cream!
Books-
I finished Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio. I don’t feel like writing a full review so I will just say that it was “ok”. It wasn’t a page-turner for me and I really prefer books I can’t put down.
I have started re-reading To Kill a Mockingbird. It is our book group’s book for the month. I feel like I am back in school.
Basketball-
We all know how thrilled I was to have UNC win yesterday. I was pulling hard for Davidson today and hate it for them that they couldn’t pull it out in the end. I hope going up against the school he coached at for 15 years won’t break Roy’s focus. Hopefully it will make our guys dig a little deeper to get the win. I do think it is pretty cool that this is the first time ever that all four #1 teams are in the final four.
I hope everyone has a great week!
Happy Birthday Hunter!
A super Happy Birthday to my nephew, Hunter. We lucked out to end up at the same restaurant as my sister and her family tonight so we got to help celebrate Hunter’s birthday on his actual birthday.
Hunter is one of the coolest kids I have ever known. For my birthday, he made me a treasure box. He covered a cardboard shipping box in Carolina blue paper and then glued a photo sleeve on the top. He even put a picture of my girls in it for me. He made a little tab to make it easier to open the box. He also gave me a pottery heart necklace, and 3 pottery miniatures from Cole’s pottery. I am very proud to be his Aunt!
The little green monster
We are having serious issues with jealousy in our house. I spent the last 10 days with Hailey and Leah and had to be very careful with dividing my affections and my attention. Here are some questions I got from Hailey this week:
“How come when you look at Leah you smile and when you look at me you make a face like this (she frowned)?” (ok, I probably do frown at her more than I do Leah but she WHINES and I HATE whining!)
(at a restaurant) “Why does Leah get to sit by you and I have to sit across from you?”
“Why do you love Leah more than you love me?” (too bad there is no way to prove you love both your kids the same)
“Why does Leah get all the hugs?” (and if you believe that, you are crazy)
“Did you do that with me when I was Leah’s age?” (Yes, only more because we just had you!)
“Why does Leah get a purple egg and I have a pink one?” (yeah, you just have to roll your eyes at that one)
Not to mention all the times she dissolved in tears because Leah had come to snuggle beside me first. Hailey would not think to do something until she saw Leah do it and then she would be offended at ME that she had not thought of it first.
I wanted to minimize the fighting and whining on Easter morning so I was very careful to buy duplicates of everything for their baskets. I bought two small dolls but they had different outfits – one was dressed as a duck and one as a bunny. I did this to minimize fighting over whose was whose. I asked Ed who should get what and he made a good point that the bunny would probably be the more popular one and Leah would not care if Hailey got it but Hailey would care if Leah got it. sigh. If only it was that easy. The bunny outfit had feet and the duck outfit did not. Hailey’s question? “How come you can see the toes on Leah’s doll but you can’t see them on mine?” argh!!! We can’t win!
We have talked to Hailey until we are blue in the face (Carolina blue, to be exact) but this is just something she is going to have to get over and grow out of.
Great Birthday
Besides the usual reasons like being with family, gifts and birthday cake, here are some reasons why I had a great birthday yesterday:
1. My mom let me choose what I wanted for dinner AND she made homemade cinnamon rolls AND two cakes AND sourdough bread.
2. My Heels won (although I almost had a heart attack in the last few seconds).
Photo by Robert Willett, N&O
3. For the only time in our lifetimes (and only for the next month), I am exactly half as old as my dad (my 32 to his 64).
4. I was in Raleigh when a funnel cloud was spotted heading towards Lee County. It was stressful, but not nearly as nerve-wracking as if I had been home. I am petrified of tornadoes.
5. Yesterday was also one year from the day that we walked into our current house for the first time. Ed was holding out on letting me go see it because we had not even put our house on the market yet, but when I asked to go see it for my birthday, how could he resist? It was love at first sight and a few months later, it was ours!
And TODAY is a great day because Ed proposed to me 11 years ago today.
What a mess!
Someone came in our house while we were at work today and threw clothes, toys, books, and papers all over the place. Really. I couldn’t have been us. SURELY our family could not have made this much of a mess. When you can’t walk from one end of the house to the other in a straight line, you know you have a problem.
One of my goals next week is to go through the girls room, their playroom, and our office and get rid of a lot of stuff we don’t need or don’t use. When we were trying to sell our house, we rented a P.O.D. so that we could pack up and store a lot of our stuff and stage our house with just what we needed to get by. Our house looked so much bigger and we were able to clean in minutes. It was very refreshing to not have to see and deal with clutter.
And you know what? Our kids were just as happy then with the few toys we left out for them as they are now with their whole playroom of toys. I think the more toys kids have, the less they actually play with toys because they are so overwhelmed by all the choices.
The goal is always to have the girls clean up their stuff before they go to bed, but in reality, it doesn’t always happen. During weeks like this one when I am swamped with work, I have a choice: I can enforce the clean up rule and drag out the time it takes them to get to bed, or I can let them leave stuff out and get back to my work sooner.
Yes, I KNOW consistency is key and I have all kinds of advice when I am asked by parents…but in reality…well let’s just say I have to be better at listening to my own advice!
back to work!
Grouchy mom
I hate this time of year. Budget time. When I am at work, constant interruptions makes it difficult to concentrate on my budget. When I am at home, my kids make it even more difficult. Leah wants to snuggle, Hailey either wants to read what I am working on over my shoulder or give me a picture every 2 minutes (seriously, my living room floor is covered at the moment by about 20 large pieces of paper covered in everything from rainbows to portraits of me).
I WANT to snuggle, I WANT to ooh and aah over every carefully colored picture. I WANT to sit on the floor and play a game. The problem is, after a long day at work, it is too easy to get frustrated with my girls when I am trying to get work done.
I tried to explain to them on the way home that I had to get back to my work as soon as we got home because I was staying home with them all of next week and had to have my work done before then. I told them we would do all kids of fun things next week, but that they had to let me get through the next few days first. Why I try to reason with a 5 and 2 year-old is beyond me.
At one point tonight, Hailey was asking me how to spell “birthday” and I got snappy with her and told her to sound it out and spell it herself because I really had to work. It is a sign of how focused I was on my budget that I did not even make the connection until she brought me a handmade card and told me “Happy Birthday, Mommy” (my birthday is Saturday). Yeah, I felt like a heel. The front says “To Mom” and the inside says “I love you. You love me. You are nice.” What is missing? “Happy Birthday”…because I couldn’t take the time to spell “birthday” for her. sigh.
I know I am not a bad mom, but there are certainly plenty of times where I realize I am not always the mom I want to be. I have tried really, really hard to not work at all on the weekends lately and I am going to try just as hard (after the budget is done, of course!) to not bring work home or to only tackle it after the girls are in bed.
Hopefully I can plan a fabulous week for them next week that will help us all to forget how grouchy I have been this week. Only 2 more work days until Spring Break!
Ramblings
I have neglected my blog and I have really missed it. However, when the choice is write or sleep, I am going to choose sleep every time. My random notes and thoughts of the day:
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I was very tired when I got home and in and effort to wake myself up a little, I took the girls for a walk. We rambled all through the neighborhood and had a great time looking at the flowers and watching for squirrels. We ran into Jennifer, Miles, and Honey which thrilled the girls. Hailey loves a chance to “perform” and Leah just loves dogs. I love this neighborhood and am thankful that we will be able to walk in the afternoons now that it will stay light longer.
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Buster the cat has taken to staring into the fireplace in our bedroom. It is creeping me out a little.
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Hailey and Leah were playing a nice game together just now until Leah did something “wrong” and Hailey told Leah she was not her friend anymore…Leah responded with “you’re not my sister anymore!” You gotta love sisters!
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I have an ear infection that refuses to go away. I had to go to urgent care on Wicker over the weekend…scary place. They will be building a new facility next to the new Kerr, but in the meantime, they should really do something to make the place look a little cleaner. They literally have wallpaper hanging off the walls – even in the examining room.
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My budget for the next fiscal year is due Friday and I will be in meetings Thursday and Friday. Anyone have a crystal ball I can borrow?
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I spent about 2 hours total on the phone with our IT office today because my laptop hates me. It takes 5-10 minutes just to get a Word or Excel document to open…if I can get it to open at all. I would get so much more done in a day if my computer would just keep up with me.
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I have watched “Mr. Magorium’s Magic Emporium” 3 times in the past 3 days. I love it (and obviously my kids do too). I hope to write more about it once life calms down a bit.
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We moved furniture into the law office this weekend. There is actually a waiting room now!
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Ed sent out his first round of letters today to people who have received traffic tickets. I hope this generates some business!
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There are 3 more work days before our Spring Break…thank you, God! Being home by myself with both girls for a week should make for some interesting blogs next week!
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and Jennifer…I STILL want chocolate!!!
Living with Fibromyalgia
Although this is the longest I have gone without a blog entry, I did not drop off the face of the earth. For reasons unknown to me, my fibromyalgia (FMS) has flared over the past week and so I spent most of the weekend in bed or on the couch. I had no desire to be sitting up typing on a computer.
I was diagnosed with FMS when I was sixteen. After being in a minor car accident, I began having problems with relentless muscle pain and I could not get enough sleep. I have no idea how I managed to keep my grades up because I remember crashing on the couch every day after school. I would wake up in time for dinner and then do my homework and go to bed. My poor boyfriend would come over and end up playing Nintendo with my dad while I slept on the couch (thanks for putting up with me, David!).
My mom stood by me and listened to me. She did not brush off my problems. She took me to the doctor and we were very fortunate that he had a personal history with FMS. It is believed that it takes most people an average of 5 years before they finally get a diagnoses of FMS. The doctor gave us a couple of articles to read and it was a huge relief to know I was not crazy.
I have been examined by many different doctors since then…unfortunately, they ALL wanted to see for themselves that I had FMS and would use trigger points as an indication. To meet the diagnostic criteria for FMS, you have to have widespread pain in all four quadrants of the body and 11 of the 18 trigger points have to test positive (I have 16). To test positive, the patient feels pain with a minor touch (just enough to change the color of the skin). We aren’t talking minor pain. We are talking get-the-blank-off-me P.A.I.N. If one of my trigger points is touched (even just slightly brushed), I will feel the pain at that spot for up to five minutes.
Sustained muscle contractions or repetitive movements today can keep me in bed tomorrow. Simple things like peeling potatoes, sweeping, or carrying a bag a long distance can cause inflammation in my neck and shoulders which will cause the pain to spread throughout my body. Holding my head up is a huge chore. You will notice that I frequently prop my head up with my hand. At home, I usually sit so that my head is propped up on the couch or chair.
I have had EEGs, EKGs, MRIs, X-rays, and countless blood tests. At 18, I was told by a PA that he thought I had a brain tumor (because of recurrent migraines and dizzy spells which are both symptoms of FMS). During my pre-employment physical for Glaxo, the Dr. told me I should be on disability, not working full time. I was 22. My pregnancies were so problematic and taxing on my body that our midwife told us point blank that we should take measures to ensure that I never get pregnant again. (because I know you’ll read this, thank you Kim for being such an understanding boss when I was pregnant with Hailey!)
I write all of this not to gain your sympathy, but to gain your understanding…not just for me, but for everyone who struggles with a chronic illness. I have had to endure too many co-workers who believed I was lying when I said I was sick or unable to come to work because it hurt to move – especially since to them, I would have seemed just fine the day before. Thankfully this has not happened as much since we purchased a Sleep Number Bed (my what a difference a bed can make!). Encounters with some past co-workers have made me apprehensive about getting too close to people or opening up to people about FMS and how it affects me. I don’t want to feel the deep hurt of having my pain and fatigue being discounted by someone I trust and feel close to.
I put on a good “face”. I have gotten so good at putting on a show and smiling through the pain that I have very few people that truly understand me and what it takes for me to get through each day. The aches and pains? Think about how your muscles feel when you have the flu or when you exercise your whole body after months of not working out. The fatigue? Imagine going to bed night after night and falling asleep, but waking up feeling like you just closed your eyes. The mornings? Imagine having to be helped out of bed in the morning because you hurt so much it is difficult to even lift your head.
God truly blessed me with a husband whose mother also has FMS so he understands me like almost no one else can. God also blessed me with a mother-in-law who not only has done a ton of research on FMS, but who is also a physical therapist and can provide me with therapy when I most need it. Ed has learned some of her tricks and is able to help as well.
I have taken so, so many drugs and I worry about the long-term effects. I think I have taken every sleep drug on the market. My current drug cocktail was working until this last flare up and I hope I don’t have to adjust it. However, I did just see that a new drug (Lyrica) has been approved by the FDA for treating fibromyalgia. I can’t wait to talk to my doctor about it and see what she thinks. Many thanks for those of you that read this entire post. Thank you for stepping into my world for a few minutes.
The following is from the Lyrica website. to learn even more, visit one of the FMS sites listed on the right.
What Causes Fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia affects 2 to 4 percent of the population, according to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR). Scientists believe that the condition may be due to injury, emotional distress, or viruses that change the way the brain perceives pain, but the exact cause is unclear. People with rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and spinal arthritis may be more likely to have the illness.
According to ACR, people with fibromyalgia can have abnormal levels of Substance P in their spinal fluid. This chemical helps transmit and amplify pain signals to and from the brain.
Researchers are looking at the role of Substance P and other neurotransmitters, and studying why people with fibromyalgia have increased sensitivity to pain and whether there is a gene or genes that make a person more likely to have it.
A Million Thanks to my family and friends who provide me with much needed support and encouragement every day! Thank you Trina for caring enough to ask about FMS last week and (without realizing it) helping me to decide to write this very personal post.
Things I learned from my sister, Julie
Because of our age difference (I won’t say how many years so that I don’t get in trouble), I didn’t always have my oldest sister, Julie, around. When she was around, I was either pestering her (I would hide behind the furniture in the living room when she had dates over and annoy her) or she was mean to me (sorry, Julie…you were…you played hide and go seek with Jo Ellen and I and you did not seek…that is just plain mean).
When Ed passed the bar exam and was looking for a job, he decided to call the DA for the 11th district just to see if they had any openings because we loved Sanford, knew Julie and her family loved it, wanted to live in a small town, and wanted to be able to see Julie, Jimmy, and our nephew, Jay, often. We were thrilled to learn that there was in fact an opening in the Lee County DAs office and Ed got the job. I feel very fortunate to have lived in the same town as Julie for the past seven years. I have been able to watch her parenting style with her two boys and much of how Ed and I parent is based on what we learned from Julie and Jimmy. Here are some of my favorite things I have learned from Julie:
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Laugh – no matter what is broken, ruined, stained, or lost…find a way to laugh about it because in the grand scheme of life, it really doesn’t matter.
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You are never going to have enough money to have children…money isn’t important, family is.
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Don’t scrimp and buy cheap cat food or you will pay for it later.
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Pay attention when filling out your address on work-related orders or you might just come home to find huge boxes of prom stuff on your front porch.
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If your kids want to just eat Cheerios and milk for every meal…let them. They won’t do it forever.
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If your kids want to sleep in your bed now and then…let them. They are only little once.
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Don’t stress about potty training. They’ll get it on their own time.
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Every child is different and you have to relate to them differently because of their differences.
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If someone offers to buy something for you…let them.
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Help your children discover their passion and listen when they tell you they aren’t interested in an activity.
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Finding a good deal on a great purse is reason to celebrate.
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You should buy yourself a birthday present.
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Let your children make their own mistakes…they’ll learn.
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The adventures you have with your children are more important than the “stuff” you give them.
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Kids heal…don’t stress.
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Petri dishes are a cool way to keep your matching jewelry together.
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Instant mashed potatoes can taste better than the real thing – and they are a heck of a lot easier.
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You can never have too many earrings.
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When you are pregnant, no one, and I mean, no one, will take care of you like Wesley Tyler, CNM.
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If you aren’t the best cook…marry someone who is.
