I am not my hair continued...

It's official! I am no longer horny!

O.k. get your minds out of the gutter. I finally had my horns removed today. Bryan and I arrived at the hospital at 10 am. After 3 hours of waiting, the doctor finally walks in. We were told that there was a scheduling mistake and I should have been told when I came in, blah, blah, blah. Anyway, he wasted no time. He walked in, put a little sheet over my my head that had a hole in it so he could see the cyst. I felt him doing something and saw a few hairs fall away and realized he was shaving my hair. :( I looked at Bry who assured me it wasn't very much. Then he told me I would feel a "little bee sting" and numbed the area with a local anesthetic. Then he went right to work cutting out the cyst.


Now, those of you who know me, know that I can handle pain. What I am not great at is seeing my own blood or feeling tugging when I know that I am being stitched or hearing cutting when I know that I am being cut. I had a mole removed from my hand last year and almost passed out in the chair when I heard a cutting sound. I found out later that what I heard was the doctor cutting gauze not my skin. I didn't know that though. I never watch what is being done to me because of the blood issue. Anyway, this time I was prepared. So when I felt him tugging and started feeling woozy, I closed my eyes, took deep breaths and visualized him braiding my hair. Somehow, it worked and I got through that one and the next incision really well. The last cyst was smaller and it was also right at the front of my scalp. He told me that one was going to be the toughest because it was smaller so he would have to "look" for it. Well, I don't know if the local didn't work or if he didn't hit the right nerve but I felt everything. It was awful. Luckily, he found it pretty fast and he was done.


He showed us what he pulled out and I can only say "eeeeeeewwww!! The first one was about the size of a large marble. The second was about the size of a small marble and the third was pea sized. The were milky colored, round and mushy looking. He said they were oil filled cysts. He will send them off to be sure but wasn't worried.


The nurse came in and tried to clean me up but she said it was just impossible to get all of the blood off because of all my hair. It was already drying and matted. She apologized for making me walk out in public looking like a gunshot victim, gave me prescriptions for antibiotics and pain killers and told me to come back in 10 days to have the stitches removed.


I really don't know how much hair I lost yet or how many stitches I have. My hair is so matted that it is hard to tell. I can't wash it for 24 hours. Right now, I am drugged up and feeling much better, but I have to say until I got the drugs I was hurting pretty bad. I never realized how much you move your scalp! I couldn't frown or smile or make any expression really without it hurting worse. It pretty much felt like my scalp was on fire. Although, the first two weren't giving me any problems, it was that darned little one.


So, for those of you who were concerned, I lived through it. I still have most of my hair. I have been successfully de-horned. I guess my family will have to find something else to pick on me about. I know they won't have any problems there.

Aaaaah, Spring

Today was one of those rare Saturdays when we had nothing planned and nowhere to rush off too. It was also a beautiful day, so we decided to spend it outside. We pulled the cars out of the way and let the kids write with chalk all over the drive way. They pulled out all of their little cars and bicycles and rode around. They love being outside. We decided to let them have a picnic at their little table. The kids always want to have their lunch in a lunch bag like Bailey's so I put each of their lunch's in a separate bag and wrote their names on them. I cut Presley and Luke's PB and J's into hearts. (Bailey had a bacon sandwich, she is much too grown up for heart shaped sammies.) They LOVED it! I think that is the best they have ever behaved at a meal. Luke and Bailey finished theirs pretty quickly and jumped up to go help Bry with some yard work. Presley sat there for the longest time. She is such a priss-pot! She was so cute sitting there nibbling on her food.
Bailey's friend Carson showed up for a play date while we were out there. Not long after that Papaw stopped by in his police car. That was a big hit. Presley and Luke were fighting over who got to sit in his lap and play with all of the buttons. Luke, Bailey and Carson were begging to sit in the back seat. I thought that was pretty gross considering who usually sits in the back of police cars but I was over-ruled. Dad said he hadn't had anyone back there in a while and Bry said that he was sure that the backseat got cleaned out frequently. Still, yuck. The kids loved it though and to be honest, I liked that they couldn't get out unless I wanted them too. :)
The big girls eventually went inside and we took the babies into the backyard. Luke and Presley got out their shovels and looked for worms. Bryan talked Luke into holding a worm in his hand, which is a big deal for Luke who is usually freaked out by bugs. Presley had her turn holding the worm also. By the time we went inside we were all filthy and exhausted. We took the babies straight to the tub and then we all took a good nap.
Sidewalk chalk, a picnic, a visit from Papaw and worms... who could ask for more on a beautiful spring day??

Small Group

We had "small group" at our house last night. It was the guys night to watch the kids. Jeff, Clay and Ben did their best to entertain 8 kids (all under the age of 3). Bailey was in there also but she takes care of herself. It was really funny to watch those poor guys try to keep control of the situation. We were in the living room so we were able to see the craziness. They were doing a great job, but all of the kids decided to have meltdowns at the same time. The fact that the kids could see their mommies but couldn't get to them wasn't helping. I felt sorry for them and eventually went in to help. I brought in the bubble machine, which was a big hit. They were so cute, running around trying to catch the bubbles. After "group" was over we pulled out Sing Star, which is basically a karaoke type game on PlayStation. It was hilarious to watch these normally, somewhat normal people turn into what they thought were rock stars. :)

Between the kids screaming earlier in the evening and the adults "singing" later on, I'm pretty sure every dog in our neighborhood was howling before the night was over.

My day with 3 really cute guys

I spent the day with Brandon and the twins. Bre had an appointment and luckily Bry was able to stay with my munchkins so I could help out. I have to admit I was a little nervous on the way there. It's been a while since I cared for a newborn and never two at once as well as a 4 year old. I brought a movie for my man, Brando and fed the twins soon after I got there. I changed them when the were done. Cameron had a huge green poopie diaper. Brandon casually walked over to inspect my work and informed me that he had a green poop yesterday. I thanked him for the info and tried to keep the twins awake for a little while. They are smiling so much now! They are so sweet and calm and eeeeee! I could just squish them!!

Anyway, I put them down for their naps and went to get Brando a snack. He pulled a big wooden spoon out of the drawer and said "Look, this is what my Mom spanks me with." Then he proceeded to whack me on the bum with it. :) The kid is hilarious! You never know what he is going to do or say. We spent some time playing games and watching the movie and then it was time to make the twins' bottles again.

Bre showed up right as I was starting to feed them. Brandon tried to come home with me. He got in my truck and said "Aaaaah, now I can get away from those people". He was pointing at his mom and brother. :) The boy is a mess!

Bre finally pried him out of my truck and I took off to go pick Bailey up from school. It was really fun to have them all to my self for a while. I would not trade jobs with Bre though. All I had to do was sit there and listen to them coo, feed em and play for a while. Bre has to do that and take care of two other kids and a hubby. Not to mention taking care of her house and also going to work. She makes it look really easy too. I, on the other hand, get tired just thinking about her life. :)

OF COURSE!!

Bryan has been out of town since early Monday morning. Needless to say, I haven’t been able to get on my computer very often. I have been journaling on paper so that when I got the chance to blog I could recap my week. So here it goes…
We finally put the house back on the market a couple weeks ago. Somehow I knew that as soon as Bry went out of town, they would want to show it. That brings us to Monday.

Crye-Leike called and informed us of a 9:45 showing. Luckily, Bryan was able to help me get the house clean before he left. So all I had to do was keep it that way. I took the kids to the park and we had a lot of fun. When the showing was over we met Mom at my house. She was watching the kids so I could go see my fat babies. (Translation- Cameron and Carson) Anyway, she took the kids outside to play on the new swing set and I was preparing to leave. (Translation-going potty) Mom busts through the door screaming for me to come quick!! I run outside to find Mom pointing at a snake that was heading right for my house. ICK!! Luke is standing there like a statue and Presley is trying her best to get past Mom so she can pick the snake up! The child is fearless. Anyway, I won’t go into the long, embarrassing and hilarious story of my fight with the snake but in the end, the snake got away. OF COURSE we would have a snake when Bry is out of town, right?!

Some of the other interesting events of the day were finding a HUGE wasp in my breakfast room and having to kill it without getting stung. Also, Presley poured a whole glass of tea on my freshly mopped floors. Oh yeah, and Crye Leike called to say we were showing the house again Tuesday at 11. OF COURSE.

Tuesday
I was able to keep the kids out of the house all morning so that it would stay clean for the showing. I met Bre at Chick-fi-la for lunch. It was quite comical, I’m sure, for anyone who saw us trying to eat. Bre was feeding the twins and I was trying to get my two to eat before going to play (in the indoor play area). I finally gave in and let them go. Bre and I looked a little rough, as Mom’s sometimes do, and OF COURSE we see our buddy Liz’s hubby, Zach. He, of course, was all dressed up in a suit and looking like a normal, sane human being. Bre and I on the other hand were in spit up and ketchup, covered jeans and t-shirts with our hair half in and out of ponytails and very little make-up on, if any. (Why do you always see people you know when you are looking your worst? But yet you get all dressed up and feel beautiful and you see NOONE! ) Anyway, after much craziness, we knew it was time to go when Presley got her fingers smashed in the door. She screamed so loud that I lost my hearing for a few minutes. On my way home I received a call from my hubby. Crye- Leike called. We have another showing from 5:30-6:30. Dinnertime. OF COURSE!

Bre was kind enough (or crazy enough, I’m not sure which) to invite us to her house for dinner. It went surprisingly well considering how outnumbered we were by kids. As we were preparing to leave Presley poured a glass of tea into one of Bre’s candles and all over the table and floor. It was definitely time to call it a night.

Wednesday
Today we had plans to meet Jo and the kids at the park. We actually were able to keep the house clean and get to the park on time. Jo was a little late but we had fun playing while we waited. Bay was out of school today so she was able to come with us. The kids were so excited when Ella, Seth and Jo arrived. I’m so glad we planned this. My kids adore Ella and Seth but they rarely get to see them without a bunch of other kids around. Luke was such a gentleman to Ella. He helped her get water from the fountain. It was so cute! Presley and Ella liked splashing in the fountain but had a little “tiff” about who got to push the button. (Two very strong female personalities, what do we expect?) Bailey got bored with the heat real fast but she was such a big help to me all day. She is so good with all of the kids. We played for about and hour but it got really hot so we decided to get lunch. We met at McDonald’s on Trinity, they have the best play area! The kids loved it and Jo and I really enjoyed the air conditioning. After much fun in the maze of tunnels and slides, we decided it was time for naps. The little ones were not too happy about that but we managed to drag them out, literally. Jo and I decided that next time we would skip the “hot” park and go straight to the indoor play area.
The rest of the day went surprisingly smooth. I am looking forward to tomorrow though. My hubby’s coming home!! Absence definitely makes the heart grow fonder!!

Bry and I decided to take the kids to the Children’s Museum on Saturday. We used to take Bailey all the time but haven’t been able to do so with the babies. It’s a lot harder with three. One baby wants to go one way and the other wants to go the other way and then Bay just ends up having to follow with us. She had a friend spend the night on Friday so we thought that would be the perfect opportunity to go and not have her feel left out.

I got up early and made the kids favorite breakfast, which is chocolate chip pancakes. Bailey loves for me to make a huge batch so that we can save the leftovers. We wrap them up and she takes a couple out every morning and microwaves them. Anyway as usual, those were a big hit. We immediately started getting everyone dressed and ready to go. We wanted to get there as soon as the doors opened so that we could play as much as possible before naptime.

We actually got out the door and made it there right after opening. The kids were so excited. Luke hasn’t been there since he was a baby and Presley has never been. We decided that Bry would go with Luke and I would go with Presley. We let the big girls just go and do whatever as long as they stayed within certain boundaries. That, of course, went over really well b/c they felt like we were treating them like big girls. It was so fun to just follow the babies and watch them take everything in. We occasionally switched back and forth with the babies, so that we could spend time with each. We take Bailey on “dates” all of the time so that she can get one on one time with us but we rarely get to do it with the babies.

Luke loved the water exhibit. They had these fishing poles with magnets on them and he got to go “pishing”. He also loved the fire truck and Police car. Presley liked the water exhibit too but I had to steer her away from it b/c she was getting soaked. She really loved the Time Square Exhibit. It was a little room with a disco ball, flashing lights and a dance floor with dance music playing. Anyone who knows Presley, knows that she loves to dance. She had us laughing so hard with her dance moves. Bay and her friend Emma liked the climbing tower and the bank and grocery store. They also liked trying on the dress-up clothes and acting silly on the stage.

We of course had to visit the Museum Shop on the way out. Daddy being the sucker that he is bought each one of them a prize. He just can’t say no! It was such a fun time. Afterwards we went to Pizza Hut and ate. Then of course we just had to go get ice cream to finish off the day. The kids were so pooped when we got home!

I think that is the most stress free time we’ve had in a while. We really needed a day like that. It reminded us how much fun it is to be a parent.

Burgers at Bubs

Jo and Bub’s had our small group over on Friday for dinner. Bub’s showed off his grilling skills and made us some yummy burgers and hot dogs. I believe there ended up being 12 adults and 12 kids. We had a great time but needless to say it was a little crazy. Some of the funny and not-so-funny things that happened…
After making sure everyone had a burger, Joey threw a couple of the ones that weren’t what he considered perfection back on the grill. He then sat down in the dining room to eat his own burger. Someone asked him if he still had anything on the grill b/c there was a pretty good fire going. He calmly replied that yes, he did have something still on the grill. Right about then we heard a commotion coming from the other room and someone shouting about a fire. No, the house did not burn down, but the fire was pretty big and it was kind of exciting for a moment there.
Later on, Clay was making cookies for dessert. Bailey and her friend Emma smelled them baking and came running from upstairs. They stood in front of Clay, who was removing them from the pan, drooling for a few minutes. I guess he couldn’t take the pressure anymore so he gave in and told them they could have one. He then proceeded to take the spatula and lift a cookie from the hot pan and deposit a cookie into the hands of both girls. Needless to say, tears and blisters followed soon after. J This gave me great ammunition for picking on Clay.
We knew the party was over when we looked up to see sweet little Evelyn standing at the top of the stairs. All of us sort of froze for half a second and then she took a step and came tumbling down. When that happened everyone was moving trying to get to her. Benjamin got there really fast and caught her before she was about halfway down. She was fine but I think her parents were quite traumatized. Not 5 minutes later we hear screaming again and go upstairs to see Ella being cuddled by her Daddy. She had fallen off the couch in the toy room and hit her head on the table. Not long after that everyone started making their way out the door.
This is not to say there wasn’t fun in between all of the craziness. We had yummy food and as much conversation that you can possibly have when there are so many kids around. The kids had a blast destroying Bubs and Jo’s beautiful house. Bubs and Jo, of course, took it all in stride. They have to be the most patient, tolerant people that I know.
And I always thought we had crazy parties before we had kids!

Ahhh Motherhood...

You know, I’ve realized since having kids that no one warns you about some of the things that will happen. Before I had kids, there was this picture in my mind of how it would be. I didn’t think it would be easy but I really had no idea of what I was in for.
For instance, we were going to dinner at Bubs and Jo’s Friday night. I was in the kitchen frying hamburger meat to put into the baked beans. Bryan was upstairs working, Bailey was at school and the babies were in the atrium watching TV. I go over to the sink to drain the meat and I glance up through the window into the atrium. I immediately drop the meat and scream for Bry.
The reason? Well… Luke is lying on the floor, diaper off, legs in the air and poop all over his rear! What’s worse? Presley is in the line of fire with a wipe in her hand trying to clean him up. His diaper is laying a few feet away (on my carpet) poop side down. I run in and said “What are you doing”!?! (Dumb question, I know, but parents seem to be full of them. ) Luke tells me he pooped and “Pressy” is changing his “biper”. Presley is so proud of herself and is holding up the wipe and showing it to me. That is when I notice that she has poop all over both arms, on her shirt and on her legs. There is also poop on my carpet and apparently Luke was trying to help in cleaning himself because he had it on his hands too. As I am cleaning Presley up and watching Bry deal with Luke out of the corner of my eye, (Bry’s face was almost purple, he was so upset.) All I could think was… this is going to be hilarious one day.
Maybe that’s why people don’t tell you about these kinds of things. Because really, would anyone have kids if they had a clear picture of what they were in for before hand?
Or maybe they don’t tell you because they want to laugh at you like everyone laughed at them when they were going through it.

My daughter, the poet

A few months ago, Bailey’s guidance counselor asked the kids at ECS who were interested to submit a poem to her. The poems that she chose would then be sent in to a contest. The poems that were chosen from that would be published in a book. Well, Bailey’s poem was chosen and we just received the book yesterday. The book is Celebrating Poetry- An Anthology of Young Poets. I am so excited and so proud of her. She is such a smart and creative little girl. Her grades aer awesome. Her teachers have loved her every year. She loves to write and draw and paint. I don’t think there is anything in this world that she can’t do if she puts her mind to it.

More than that, she is just such a great person. She is sweet and thoughtful. Always trying to help me and make my life easier. She is such a good big sister. Luke and Presley adore her. She takes so much time with them. She reads to them, plays games and dances. She kisses their boo-boos. She acts silly and entertains them when they are sad. I can see the joy on her face when the do something cute and I can feel her pride when they learn something new.
I love the relationship that she and I have. We had so much time together before the little ones came that we became best buds. We love to shop together and we both have a passion for books. We are both addicted to shoes and soap operas. She is my little mini-me.
Anyway, I just wanted to do a little bragging on my little girl.

Daddy builds a swing set!

We have been putting off buying a swing set for a while because we thought we would have sold our house by now. Well, obviously that isn’t happening so we decided to just go ahead and get one.
Bryan got started 1st thing Saturday morning with the help of Grumps. The instructions said it would take two men 8-10 hours to complete, so we figured it would take those two a few days. J They worked hard all day long with only a short break for lunch. Bubs, Jo and crew (and Mom) showed up around dinner and we all ate some yummy steaks that Bry grilled for us.
Bry and Bubs went back out and got a few more things done (in the dark). The rest of us stayed inside and played with all of the kiddos. Ella, Presley and Luke loved the playing with our bubble machine! Bay and Seth had some sweet cuddle moments. After a long day outside, the babies were all exhausted and we were too! We finally had to call it a night.
Bry woke up the next day and went straight back out there and in a couple of hours he was done. We let the kids loose and they had a blast! Bay loved the swings, Luke loved climbing and sliding and Presley liked going from one thing to another.
We are so grateful for all of the help we had in putting it together. And are so glad that we decided not to wait any longer. Our only regret is that we didn’t buy it sooner!

Oh and by the way, do I have the cutest niece and nephews in the world or what??

My favorite Idol

O.K., I'll admit it. I looooove American Idol. LOVE IT! I usually tape it and watch it when my kids are in bed. That way it doesn't take time away from them and also it gives me the choice of fast forwarding through the sucky performances and anything Paula says. I'm sorry but she gets on my nerves. I used to actually like her, being a child of the 80's and all. But come on! These kids are up there singing their butts off and all she can come up with is "you look great tonight." I actually love Simon. I just love honesty and hey, it's not like they weren't aware of what they were in for when they auditioned for the show. Anyway, don't get me started.

So, the reason for this little idol rant is because my favorite "Idol" got voted off last night. And like every season, when this happens I swear I won't watch it anymore. Hey, my kids have tantrums everyday! I can have one every once in a while! Yes, I know that I will not be able to keep myself from turning it back on next week, but for some reason it makes me feel better to rant and rave and swear off the whole show.

Anyway, I thought I would include the video to one of my favorite performances by my favorite contestant this year. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CReExerbv-I

I am not my hair.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TBrQHVMoWM

Tomorrow I have an appointment with a general surgeon. There are these little cysts on my head that I need to have removed. To be honest, they aren’t really that little. My family lovingly refers to them as my horns.
The doc says that I shouldn’t worry. They aren’t any danger to me but they won’t go away without surgery and they will continue to get bigger. I have put this off for years. Then the other day I saw this woman at the store who had one that actually sat on top of her hair and it was the size of my fist. Ironically, the next day I had just finished drying my hair when I noticed that one of my “horns” had grown and I could see it! Until then I could only feel them, not see them!
The saddest part is that I am more worried about how much hair they are going to shave than anything else. You would think I would be worried about the pain, the recovery or if it could be something more serious. How vain am I?
It’s just that I have been through a lot of physical changes over the years. I gained and lost a lot of weight. My skin went crazy after taking lots of steroids for an illness. My eyesight is not great and I have glasses that I am supposed to wear, but they bug me. Now, my hearing is going! I’m only 32 people! Anyway, my hair has sort of become a crutch. It makes me feel better. It’s healthy and long and it hides my face. J It’s my security blanket. I know that sounds really strange but whatever- there it is.
I am so scared about how much they will have to cut and how bad it is going to show. I know it could be a lot worse. I know how fortunate I am that this isn’t something more serious. I know it will grow back. But for some reason, I can’t be logical when it comes to my hair.
Maybe I’m supposed to learn something from this. Just maybe I’m supposed to realize that beauty comes from within. That even if you have no hair, are overweight, have really bad acne, wear glasses, etc. you can still be beautiful. I feel like I know those things about other people but I guess I have a hard time believing it about myself.
Or maybe I’m supposed to learn that I need to draw strength from God and not silly things like my hair. That God should be my comfort, my security blanket. That He will love me no matter what I look like and as long as I have Him nothing else matters. Yeah, I feel like I know those things too.
I could also just be over thinking it. Either way, I really don’t want to lose my hair. :(

(I am going to attempt to add a video to this post. I'm not completely computer savvy though so we'll see how it goes. It's the video for "I am not my hair".)

Girls Night

Our family has always been so close and we have so much fun together. Up until we started having more kids, we got together at least once a week. It is impossible to do that now, but we do try to get together as much as possible. Even so, with all the kids, cooking, cleaning up.... we really weren't able to have a lot of girl talk.

So towards the middle of last year we decided to start a girls night out. No hubby's, kids or even friends allowed. Once a month we meet up for dinner and usually a movie. ("We" being me, Mom, Jo and Bre.) We talk and eat and laugh and act silly. It's so funny to see how different and relaxed we are when we aren't in the "wife-mommy" mode. It has become something that I not only look forward to but I need.

I feel so lucky to have these ladies in my life. They are each so important to me and I truly can't imagine my life without them.

Mom is the person who has always been there for me and has loved me unconditionally. She's so laid back and easy going. She is always smiling and making people feel good. She cares so much about other people that it's almost like she can feel whatever someone else is feeling. She would give the shirt off her back to help someone who needed it. She has this innocence to her. She wants to see the best in everyone. We love to shock her with our stories and pick on her about her "blonde" moments.

Bre is like having an extension of myself. Watching her twin boys now makes me realize that's how I feel about her. I feel totally connected and like I belong when I'm with her. We can laugh at almost anything together and act like goofy little kids. I know that no matter what I tell her, she will keep my secrets and not judge me. I also know that if I get upset, she will have my back and either get fired up or calm me down- whatever I need at the time.

Jo is just like sunshine. She makes you feel better just by being in the same room. She's such a great listener and will give you and honest opinion when you need it. She also has this great sassy side that I think surprises people. She's really strong in her beliefs but doesn't try to push them onto other people. She has this wonderful lust for life that is contagious. You can't help being happy around her.

I am so grateful for my girls and our nights out! Because of them, I am a better person, a better wife and a better Mommy.