There they were, sitting peacefully across the round table from each other. It was here that many battles had been fought, many talks of change took place. Talks of peace and happiness. It was here that these two lands had become civil to one another after many, sometimes lengthy, discussions. So there they were, these two nations, sitting peacefully across the round table from one another.
Then it happened.
The looks in their eyes suddenly changed. A change that simultaneously occurred.
Across the country, the governing nation - The L.o.P. - could be seen getting ready to divvy out property to these two smaller nations.
The look in their eyes was one of determination. The peaceful silence turned into a silent strife.
They both eyed the properties. Only this time the conflict between them wasn’t about who would get the better property. It wasn’t about who would get more. The look in their eyes showed their cunning thoughts.
What would the other land want?
Once they figured out which property the other land desired, their job would be easy. For, of course, they would desire that same item. The look in their eyes could not be mistaken. It was a look of greed, yet at the same time, a look of shame. For, even with a choice, they did not choose what they wanted…they chose what they thought the other would want. They chose contention.
These cunning looks brought sadness to the L.o.P. The L.o.P. was determined to not have such contention among this, the League of Nations. Why would they choose contention and strife over joy and happiness? Why must they frequently desire to make those in the other land suffer?
And so it was with these two nations, Hannahland and Bellatopia, while the neutral party of Almania looked onward, learning from their ways.
(If you haven’t noticed, the League of Nations has gradually expanded its border by adding another nation just over a year ago - Almania. The League of Parents (L.o.P), the governing nation, is still working with these smaller, younger nations to help them learn to live together in peace.)
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Is this what meal times are like around your house, too? Why do they choose the cup they think the other one wants instead of choosing the cup they want? Oh, and it doesn’t just stop at meal times, either. It happens frequently over many things. How do they learn such behavior at such young ages? And why do they do this but then are best friends at other times? It is a conundrum. But I love ‘em!
The weather is HOT around here! And since the temperatures have been up in the 90’s we decided to pull out the sprinkler pool and play. And, to top it all off, we have real grass to play on and walk barefooted! Yes, real grass. Not just weeds that are green and give the appearance of grass from a distance - but real grass! We enjoyed the grass between our toes, the cool water, some homemade sno-cones and, periodically, some shade. Enjoy some warm weather with us as you take a gander at our fun in the sun!
Click on the picture to view it full-sized. Enjoy!
Yes, it is that time of year again. Time for reflecting back on the “pre”school year, wondering how it went by so quickly. Time for smiling because both Bellatopia and Hannahland successfully shared the same preschool kingdom with minimal land wars. Time for celebrating little ones graduating on to another year of preschool and little bigger ones graduating on to kindergarten. Time to realize that I’m going to be the mother of a school-aged child. Am I ready for this? I don’t think so. But then again, I’m never ready for such big changes - yet they still happen and life still goes on and I always realize it isn’t as bad as I expected.
Every year their teacher, Mrs. Eison, does a theme for graduation. In the 35 or so years she been teaching this class (high school child development/preschool) she has never repeated a theme for graduation. I don’t know how she does it but she is great! This year the theme was Graduation Celebration (PARTY!). (Last year was Going on a Safari and the year before was Transportation).
This year there were only about 10 preschoolers (6 of which were 3 sets of siblings). However, this year there were 31 high school student teachers. That’s right, 31!!! Last year there were maybe about 14 high school student teachers and the year before only 7, so 31 was quite a shock to us. So because of the numbers we were unable to get to know them all like we did with the teachers in the past.
During the graduation ceremonies the kids performed many songs and activities that they learned during the year. Then after that they got into their caps and gowns. Every child in their class got to wear a cap and gown and get their diplomas (which conveniently doubled as swords, bats and telescopes as our pictures show) however, the children had different colored tassels depending on how many years left they had in preschool.
We, of course, took a plethora of pictures. Please enjoy a select few pictures of the girls at their cute little graduation! Remember to click on the picture if you’d like to see it bigger. Enjoy!
Isabella informed us the other day that she, once again, likes to be called Boppers, and Bella and Bella Boppers but not Isabella. But then she changed her mind and decided that Isabella was okay, too. So, good luck trying to figure out what to call her when you talk to her. hehe
Last week Isabella met with the pediatric gastroenterologist and had a scope of her esophagus and stomach lining as well as a sigmoidoscopy (scope of her lower intestinal tract) and all visual results revealed healthy tissues and lining. They did take some samples for testing though, but he said she doesn’t have cysts, Crohn’s disease or Celiac disease based on what he saw. This is all good news and we’re glad she is healthy in that way…however, it is also frustrating since we still don’t know what is causing her extreme tummy pain on a daily basis. He diagnosed her with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and said she cannot eat chocolate, corn syrup, caffeine or ibuprofen. So, we’ll see how it goes. In my opinion, IBS is a ‘catch-all’ diagnosis when they don’t what is causing the problem. Hopefully one day we can figure out what is causing her such discomfort.
The other day we were working over at the old house finishing up some projects involving painting. There isn’t much left over there but we do have a t.v. there still so the kids can be entertained while we work around the house. Well, Isabella doesn’t really care much for t.v. (perhaps because she can’t hear it?). So she was in helping me and Steve. About an hour into the work Hannah realizes that Isabella is helping out and since our kids seem to have a thing about being in competition with each other she came running in and wanted to help as well. For a while we were all working in the same space but suddenly that space was very crowded and bickering started between the girls. They were taking each other’s spots, breathing each other’s air, etc., so finally Isabella said “I’m going to go watch t.v. by myself.” She wanders off and a few minutes later Hannah realizes she is gone so she runs in there and says she wants to watch t.v. as well. Just as Hannah sits down Isabella comes running back where we are working and says “Ah, now I can have my spot back!” We’re pretty sure this was a premeditated occurrence on behalf of Isabella. Steve and I were quite amused by her manipulative behavior that night. She knew what she wanted and she figured a way to get it. This problem-solving skill will come in handy for her in the future…hopefully all for good. hehe
Regarding my comment above about her not watching t.v. because she can’t hear it - she probably really can’t hear it very well. We previously mentioned about Isabella being diagnosed with a hearing loss. Well, over the last few weeks she has not been responding when we talk to her and she won’t turn around when we call her. I’ve never had her be like that before. Luckily she had a follow-up appointment with the audiologist and this time she was diagnosed with a mild (20-30 decibel) hearing loss in both ears instead of just the right ear. The audiologist once again recommended tubes in her ears. She has a follow-up appt with the ENT in the next couple of weeks so we will revisit that issue with him again.
That’s what’s going on with our little Isabella. We’ll update as we know more.
What a silly girl she is sometimes! My kids haven’t really used night lights very much. They are okay with the dark and we’re okay with that! That being said, we do have a nightlight plugged into the only available outlet in the room - just in case - which just happens to be next to the girls’ bunk beds. Tonight, all on her own gumption, Isabella turned on the night light. I wasn’t sure why she did this in the first place since she always complains about how it is bright on her eyes as she is the one on the bottom bunk. Well, a little while later I went in to check on the girls and this is how I found Isabella:
(never mind the fuzzy picture…it was very dark in there and I couldn’t see where I was focusing!)
Apparently she figured out a way to not make it so bright on her eyes. It’s a good thing she keeps those sunglasses on the shelf next to her bed ’cause I’m not sure how she could have fallen asleep so quickly with all that bright light!
Silly goose, indeed. I’m glad she is a thinker and was able to find a solution to a problem - even if it was one she brought on herself. She definitely has some good thinking/problem-solving skills. I still smile when I hear her talk about the “stories in my eyes when I sleep” and “look at these drips coming down my cheeks” when she cries and how she points out the freckles and moles and tells me she has “sprinkles” on her legs.
And I loved this conversation with her from February 19th:
Mom wonders what is wrong with the pencil sharpener and this conversation follows: Isabella: “Maybe there’s a hair thing in there.” Mom: “Did you put a hair thing in there?” Isabella: “No, I didn’t put a hair thing in there. Maybe there is a hair thing in there. Probably it was Alma. Probably Alma put a hair thing in there.”
Well, we’re back online…for a little bit anyway. As Steve alluded to in his red vine post, we have had lots of things going on here lately. I’ll just do a little section about each person in the family.
Steve and Em
One day, out of the blue in January sometime, we thought to ourselves: Hey, maybe we can afford to buy a house so we can cash in on this $8,000 tax rebate for first-time homebuyers. (We know, we know…we aren’t first-time homebuyers, but technically speaking, according to the rules we are first-time homebuyers since we haven’t owned a home in 3 years!) Previous to that we just didn’t think it was the right time financially. So began our search for the perfect house. At some point in February we found a great home at a great deal (foreclosure). We just closed on the house last week and will be moving in soon. It is still in the area…just a bit further East from where we are now. We are excited to have a separate laundry area, an eat-in kitchen and a dining room, a spacious garage, and a nice master bath suite!
Everyone knows the pain associated with buying a home…all the searching and then once found all the back and forth contracting and then approvals and all that jazz. So, while all that was going on we were having some other issues with the kids!
Alma turned 1 year old in February. She had her 12mo check up in February and during that visit they did some routine blood work to check for lead since we live in an older house. We got a call from our pediatrician after 9pm that she had some concerns about Alma’s blood work and was referring us to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital - which we are so lucky to have right here in Memphis! (…and it is the reason I moved to Memphis in the first place!)
Anyway, apparently her platelet and white cell counts were elevated more than normal and looked abnormal. From the work-up it appeared that it could be a blood disorder of sorts. But after a couple of stressful weeks of waiting and not knowing what was going on we had our appointment and it turned out that nothing was wrong! She is a healthy 12mo baby! The doctor at St. Jude said that sometimes the manner in which the blood is taken can lead to abnormal looking cells and inaccurate results (i.e., suctioning the blood out quickly instead of letting it flow freely into the syringe). They were pretty sure that is what caused the abnormalities. Like I stated before, I moved to Memphis to work at St. Jude and I had the privilege to work with children and families there - helping them get through tough times - but I never thought I’d be referred there for one of my own children. While I’m glad St. Jude is local to us and was here when we needed them I’m glad we don’t have to go back!
I know the Lord blessed me with calmness during the stressful waiting and unknown. I had initial reactions where I had a sinking feeling in my stomach and was emotionally upset and visualized my little 12mo baby attached to IV’s and receiving chemotherapies and blood transfusions and pretty much any and everything I saw while I worked there. But then I just had this calmness fall upon me - a calmness that I had felt before during stressful times. Most cases I have felt this calmness was when one of my patients died and I was in charge of helping the siblings cope with their death and understand what was going on, etc. I would always feel the pit in my stomach but then a calmness would come over me so I could be a support for the family and help them cope and grieve. This was the same calmness I felt. I mentioned to Steve and our parents that I knew the Lord was blessing me with the calmness either because I needed to be calm and prepared for what I was going to face ahead with Alma’s health like in my previous experiences or because there wasn’t anything to worry about and the Lord knew that the stress and anxiety I would feel was unnecessary and unhealthy for me to experience when there was really nothing to worry about regarding Alma’s health. But either way I knew the Lord had blessed me with that calmness and assurance even though I didn’t know what was ahead. I am very thankful and glad that it was because there was nothing to worry about and Alma is a healthy 14mo toddler!
Isabella
Isabella is 3yo. Ever since April of 2009 she has been having tummy problems. Many of the problems we’ve already mentioned on here but they’ve been unsuccessful in figuring out what is causing her to not feel well. We finally were able to get her into a pediatric gastroenterologist in February. In fact her appointment was the same day we found out our offer on the house was accepted and Alma’s pediatrician called after 9pm! (that was a busy, stressful day!) He looked over her charts and did some blood work and said he had suspicions that it could be something like Crohn’s disease, Celiac disease, Ulcerative Colitis, or cysts. We are still waiting to hear back from them on the results from her blood work. It was just so nice to hear someone validate my feelings and her symptoms and not just assume it was nothing.
Isabella also has been diagnosed with a hearing loss of lower pitches in her right ear which is common with fluid in the ears. Her speech wasn’t developing correctly and so mentioned it to the pediatrician’s office adn they referred us to LeBonheur (the local children’s hospital). She’s been back and forth to the hospital a couple times for audiology appointments. The first appt they suspected a hearing loss from her booth testing and negative pressures but she wasn’t very cooperative. The 2nd appt she was very cooperative and they were able to confirm a hearing loss of lower pitches and she is still having negative pressures. She was referred to an ENT. He didn’t see any fluid in her ear but she was retested there and still came up with negative pressure in her ear. They did further testing which showed that she doesn’t have any damage or malfunctioning of the inner ear meaning that it is most likely fluid causing her the problems. Her speech is improving so that is good, too. The ENT recommended to just wait it out and not get tubes in her ears since he didn’t see fluid there currently and her speech is improving. He said the Eustachian tube is draining the fluid - just not very quickly - and that kids usually outgrow that around 3-4 years old. So, she meets back up with him in several weeks as well as the other audiology dept at the hospital. We are still waiting to hear back from the speech pathologist as well.
Hannah Grace
Hannah is 5yo. She is doing well and getting taller and taller every day! She definitely takes after her dad in body type and height! She has an excellent memory and is doing great with her pre-schooling activities. She is looking forward to going to Kindergarten next year. She is a little stressed with moving into the new house because that means we will be attending a different congregation for church. Our church is the same everywhere in the world but the congregation you attend is based on geographical location. So, we are moving just outside the boundaries of our current congregation and will be attending a new one. This makes her sad to leave all her friends in Primary. The other day she told me something that her sweet primary teacher said to her “You are so nice everyone will want to be your friend.” This really cheered her up and made her feel a little better about moving into a new class of 5yo’s! And we told her she can still keep all her same friends where we are now because we aren’t moving that far away. So, I think she is starting to cope with the changes and she is getting excited to move to the new house.
Recently she’s been working on learning some addition and subtraction. I’m amazed she can do some of the problems in her mind! (I still have to use my fingers to count…sometimes! :wink: ) I sometimes forget how hard it is, as a parent, to help your kids reach their potential. Kids are always ready for new adventures long before we realize they are ready! Just like when babies can communicate their wants/needs long before they can verbalize them! And I think kids follow that same pattern all the way through their growing years!
So, now we are all busy with our move and packing and painting and all that fun stuff so we aren’t on the computer too much (or rather, we shouldn’t be on the computer too much so we can get stuff done! )
Enjoy some pics of the girls from Easter. These were taken in the yard at our new house. I’m excited to get some printed off to hang on the walls of our new home!
If you’ve made it this far then you must be a trooper! Thanks for catching up with us and our busy lives.
Last night, I had a post-9:00pm expedition to Walgreen’s for some printer paper. Unfortunately for me, the school supply aisle lies directly south of the candy aisle so I must cross its path in my trek across the store. After much debate between my stomach and my brain (and my wallet, I might add) I decided to get some candy. Now Walgreen’s prices their candy so that the boxes cost $1.somethingorother when purchased separately or $1/ea when purchased in multiples of three. Since I’m a sucker with a sweet tooth I purchased a box of Whoppers, some other stuff that I can’t remember the name of although it did include a flavor by the name of Peachberry (?!), and some Red Vines.
I got home and Emily opened up the Red Vines…and they were as hard as a rock. Like hardened steel swords, these things were. We could have poked an eye out, or accidentally pierced a tongue, or skewered a small animal with these things. She looked at the expiration date and it was from 2005. For those of you math-challenged readers: 2010 (our current year) minus 2005 (the afore-mentioned expiration) equals 5. These things were 5 years expired. ON THE SHELF AT THE STORE! I would expect my mom to have salad dressing or salsa that far gone, but not a store.
I guess my point is that we haven’t updated the blog in a while and I decided to make a mountain out of a molehill with expired Red Vines just to fill some space. We do have a lot of stuff going on with our family and more posts should be coming soon.
Even though Alma took her first couple steps a few months back she hasn’t been interested in walking too much - by herself, anyway. But she’s been having more opportunities to do so lately. Two days ago, as I set her down on the floor to play, she stood - much like she normally does - but this time, instead of slowly getting down on the floor to crawl, she took about 10 steps toward Steve and then tripped over his honkin’ steel-toed shoe. And then she actually did this several times throughout the evening. She is finally walking. Hurray!
She’ll be 12 months old in a couple of weeks so I was getting worried that we had hindered her ability to walk by our 3+ month long floor debacle of 2009 where she didn’t have any room to get down and play and crawl and walk. During those 3 months she had to either be held by one of us, sitting in her highchair or sitting in her exersaucer. Both Hannah and Isabella took their first steps at 8 months and were regularly walking by 9 months. Alma took her first steps at 9 months and now is starting to walk at 11 months. Yay for Alma! Now just anxiously awaiting her hair to grow in.
Edited to add: Here’s a video of Alma taking a few steps today. It isn’t quite like she did the other night. But steps nonetheless.
FYI: Isabella, seen here on her 3rd birthday this past November, informed me on the way to an appointment yesterday that she no longer wishes to be called Bella, Bops, Boppers, Izzy and/or any combination/interpretation thereof. She said she likes the name Isabella and that is what she wants to be called. ‘Nuff said.
Recently Steve went a very long time without a haircut. In fact, I think it was the longest he has ever gone without one in the last 7 years! I’ve never seen his hair quite so long. It had to have been at least 3 inches from his head to the end of his hair! And when he got it wet the other day for his haircut I couldn’t believe how curly it was. I’ve never, ever seen it curly like that before - probably because he doesn’t usually wear it curly. When he gets out of the shower he brushes the curls away (and it’s usually pretty short, too). Well, when I saw those handsome curls as he wet his hair for the cut I couldn’t resist taking a picture. Isn’t he handsome?
Yeah, go ahead, wipe away the drool, ladies. I know, I know, you are sad he’s not your husband. He’s all mine. All 6 foot 2.5 inches (well, the half of an inch is due to the length of his hair )! His beard is also pretty full - perhaps the fullest it has ever been, too. Usually the two go hand-in-hand; longer hair = longer beard. When the hair on his head gets a trim then usually the beard on his face does, too, or else it looks out of place.
So, now it is my mission to keep those handsome locks of curl around by encouraging him to keep his hair a little longer. I bought some gel for him to use since the reason he usually keeps it short is because it gets all “puffy” and he doesn’t care for that style. But either way, he is obviously very handsome. Just look at him!
That’s right, 31!!! Last year there were maybe about 14 high school student teachers and the year before only 7, so 31 was quite a shock to us. So because of the numbers we were unable to get to know them all like we did with the teachers in the past.
hehe
Hurray!
