Surgery Outcome

So just a little update to let everyone know that A's surgery on her hernia today went really well. She was only in the OR for like 45 minutes. The Dr. ended up making the repair on both sides (not just the right side). Just 3 little incisions, one on each side and then one in the belly button for the telescope to go into. They took some pictures, which tripped me out, but the hernias are fixed and there is very little chance of them recurring - awesome news!

She had a really rough time coming out of the anesthesia (neither A nor I are very good with anesthesia, so we weren't too surprised by her reaction) and we spent most of the time in recovery just trying to get her to keep down fluids and come back to reality (she was seriously tripping for a while).

After keeping down some orange slushy and then some cherry slushy we figured she was ready to go home. Alas, on the way to pick up little sis, she threw up said orange and red slushy. Thank heavens for little pink buckets the hospital supplies, because otherwise I would be shampooing the carpet and seats in the car, instead of writing this post.

So we are back home and she is laying down watching Camp Rock and resting. Something tells me I am going to be hearing this sound track quite frequently over the next few days while she recovers. She has to take it easy (lay down) for the next 36 hours and then take it easy (minimal activity) after that for the next 2-3 weeks. So no bike riding or trampoline jumping. I just hope this little one can handle the "down time". She is definitely not one for staying still for long.

Any suggestions for low key activities for recuperating 6 year olds will be greatly appreciated!

Thinking . . .

I found this on another blog and just had to share it!

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Thinking of Becoming A Parent??

Thinking of having kids??

Do this 11 step program first!

Lesson 1
1. Go to the grocery store.
2. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.
3. Go home.
4. Pick up the paper.
5. Read it for the last time.

Lesson 2
Before you finally go ahead and have children, find a couple who already are parents and berate them about their...
1. Methods of discipline.
2. Lack of patience.
3. Appallingly low tolerance levels.
4. Allowing their children to run wild.
5. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's breastfeeding, sleep habits, toilet training, table manners, and overall behavior.

Enjoy it because it will be the last time in your life you will have all the answers.

Lesson 3
A really good way to discover how the nights might feel...
1. Get home from work and immediately begin walking around the living room from 5PM to 10PM carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 8-12 pounds, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly. (Eat cold food with one hand for dinner)
2. At 10PM, put the bag gently down, set the alarm for midnight, and go to sleep.
3. Get up at 12 and walk around the living room again, with the bag, until 1AM.
4. Set the alarm for 3AM.5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2AM and make a drink and watch an infomercial.
6. Go to bed at 2:45AM.
7. Get up at 3AM when the alarm goes off.
8. Sing songs quietly in the dark until 4AM.
9. Get up. Make breakfast. Get ready for work and go to work (work hard and be productive)
10. Repeat steps 1-9 each night.

Keep this up for 3-5 years. Look cheerful and together.

Lesson 4
Can you stand the mess children make? To find out...
1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains.
2. Hide a piece of raw chicken behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.
3. Stick your fingers in the flower bed.
4. Then rub them on the clean walls.
5. Take your favorite book, photo album, etc. Wreck it.
6. Spill milk on your new pillows. Cover the stains with crayons. How does that look?

Lesson 5
Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.
1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh.
2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.

Time allowed for this - all morning.

Lesson 6
Forget the BMW and buy a mini-van. And don't think that you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.
1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment. Leave it there.
2. Get a dime. Stick it in the CD player.
3. Take a family size package of chocolate cookies. Mash them into the back seat. Sprinkle cheerios all over the floor, then smash them with your foot.
4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.

Lesson 7
Go to the local grocery store. Take with you the closest thing you can find to a pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is an excellent choice). If you intend to have more than one child, then definitely take more than one goat. Buy your week's groceries without letting the goats out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys.

Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.

Lesson 8
1. Hollow out a melon.
2. Make a small hole in the side.
3. Suspend it from the ceiling and swing it from side to side.
4. Now get a bowl of soggy Cheerios and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.
5. Continue until half the Cheerios are gone.
6. Tip half into your lap. The other half, just throw up in the air.

You are now ready to feed a nine-month-old baby.

Lesson 9
Learn the names of every character from Sesame Street , Barney, Disney, the Teletubbies, and Pokemon. Watch nothing else on TV but PBS, the Disney channel or Noggin for at least five years.

(I know, you're thinking What's 'Noggin'?) Exactly the point.

Lesson 10
Make a recording of Fran Drescher saying 'mommy' and or 'daddy' repeatedly. (Important: no more than a four second delay between each 'mommy'; occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play this tape in your car everywhere you go for the next four years.

You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.

Lesson 11
Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continually tug on your skirt hem, shirt- sleeve, or elbow while playing the 'mommy/daddy' tape made from Lesson 10 above.

You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.

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Now - if I could only find a way to take all of the skills gained from the above lessons and turn them into relevant job experiences to account for the last 6 years of my life, so that any employer who would take a look at my resume would become so overwhelmed with my expertise and skills that they would offer me a position on the spot and pay me 100's of thousands of dollars. Seriously - a mom can dream right?

Where Oh Where . . .

. . . have all the honest people gone, oh where or where can they be?

and why couldn't they have been the ones that we loaned a crap'ola load of money to and extended our good name and credit to, to start up a trucking company, instead of the dishonest, unethical, not hard-working, slimey, no good, co-dependent users that we did loan the money too!?!?

(Note - we did not know ANYTHING about the true character of these people at the time we loaned the money or extended ourselves financially to help - otherwise I would not be writing this post)

It's a loan people - which implies that at some future point in time you will pay it back!!

and you don't just get to one day decide you no longer want to be in the trucking business, while you still have debts and payment to make on said trucking business. Sorry that it 's so inconvenient for you to get up and go to work and actually earn a living to support your family and meet your financial obligations.

AAAUUUGGGGHHHHH!

Bad times, folks, seriously - bad times!

(for your reading benefit I have removed all swear words and derogitory remarks that have been directed to above said couple, as I have decided that it does no good to think this way or speak this way and they couldn't care in the slightest.)

Watch out Project Runway

You have your next candidate ready and waiting. That is if you are willing to let a 2 year old onto your show and allow her to upstage everyone there.

K is showing her fashionista side lately and it's providing some very entertaining moments I felt the need to share. She has an opinion on what everyone is and is not wearing.

Every morning she tells me what she will and will not wear. This morning was the edict to wear shorts, not pants and her shirt had to be pink with flowers on it.

I am also beginning to hear the phrase "I do it mommie" A LOT. Hence the picture I am sharing of her trying to put on her jammie bottoms by herself without any help.

Also, she has to pick out her jammies at night or she will simple take off whatever I have put on her and change into what she wants to wear. This also happens at random times through out the day so I never know when I am going to have a naked child running around the house in just her diaper.

One of these times the camera will be close at hand, and full charged so I can capture the before and after moments, but for know you just get the verbal description.

I feel I should also apologize to the little boy who went into Walmart Neighborhood Market without a shirt on (in his defense, he was sunburned, so I get it) but K saw him and literally followed him around the produce section saying " your naked" "where's your shirt" " YOUR NAKED" causing the little boy to cower behind his mothers legs. She was merciless in her pursuit of what she thought was a breach in proper fashion.

Dear Aruba

Thank you for rocking as much as you did. You were an awesome place to visit. I can't wait to see if my snorkel pictures with the underwater camera turned out.

Thank you for providing the rest and relaxation that both A and I desperately needed.

Thank you natural pool for proving the most beautiful snorkel place on the entire island, even if getting to you required getting bounced and thrown around the back of a jeep (compact cars need not even try) and fearing for our life on a couple down slopping turns. You were totally worth the trip (pictures to come later).

Thank you Jolly Pirates for providing such a fun snorkel excursion on a true to life pirate ship (where I only got mildly sun burned - yahoo!) Next time I promise to try the rope swing and A won't loose his sunglasses over the side of the boat.

Thank you Moomba, Pelican Pier, Tomato Charlies and Hadicuari for providing such fresh and delicious food at pretty reasonable prices. Oh and thank you Champions for having the best nachos and Appetizer platter with wings rings, fries and skins to feed 4 very hungry people after a long hard day relaxing in the sun and floating around the lazy river. It was tough work, but someone had to do it!!

Next years trip has already been booked - Fiji - June 2009 - want to come along?

Happy Birthday Baby!

All though at 6 years of age, I guess I can no longer technically call you my baby. . . But my baby you will always be.

You can into this world so tiny and small and yet you had so much spunk and life about you. You were a fighter and one who knew exactly what she wanted to do. You took your dad and I by the heart with your tiny little fingers and have yet to let go. . . and I hope you never do.

You are growing into one of the most beautiful girls (I am going to have to beat the boys off you with a stick) but more importantly one of the biggest sweethearts. I love how you take your sister by the hand and show her everything this world has to offer (even the things I sometimes wish you wouldn't) but either way, you are a great big sister and K is lucky to have you looking out for her. I am sure it will be many years before she truly appreciates you and all that you have to share.

I love your hugs and kisses and the way you always look to make sure mom and dad are there watching you. We will always be there for you as you go through this life, exploring, learning, growing and challenging those around you. I am so glad to play a part in your life and I will always love you! Ditto for your Dad!

Happy Birthday Baby!!

Dear . . .

Dear Perspective,
I will be needing you more often then I realize or have ever needed you in the past, so please make sure you hang around me as often as you can.

Dear Patience,
Please see above comment and stick close by as well. Thanks in advance.

Dear People who don't keep their promises or honor their financial obligations,
YOU SUCK!! and you are stressing me and my husband out more than we really need right now. So man/woman up and start paying off your debt. We are not a bank nor are we your personal line of credit.

Dear Stress Related Weight Gain,
Your presence is no longer required. You were never invited in the first place and it's time that you leave and take the weight you brought with you. I have a bathing suit to look smoking hot in in just 6 days. If you like, you can send your Cousin "Stress Related Weight Loss" in your place. He/She is welcome to stay as long as He/She likes as long as the pounds keep coming OFF.

Dear Summer Camp,
Thank you for promising to keep my oldest child entertained with arts and crafts and activities along with all her friends for 4 days a week, for 3 hours a day, for 6 weeks total - all for the bargain price of $30. You are well worth the money being spent. My only complaint - I wish you took 2 year olds who are not yet (nor soon to be) potty trained.

Dear Aruba,
Thank you for waiting so patiently. We look forward to experiencing all that you have to offer. We will be there on Sunday!

Dear Nana & UT Gma,
Thanks for watching the girls for us to make the above trip possible. A and I owe you both big time!!

Dear A & K,
Thanks for putting up with your mom and dad through all of the emotions of the last week or two. We love you both more than you will ever know. Thanks for your hugs and kisses and helping us keep things in balance. Your giggles and laughter are more precious than gold. You make our life fun!