Oh no!

I'm sending out a request for prayers today. Scrabble hasn't been feeling well the last few days so we took him to the vet yesterday. They did blood work and found that his kidneys are in bad shape. It could be dehydration because he hasn't drank much the last few days (he hasn't been eating either) so he's going in for a urinalysis today to see if that's what's going on. If it is, they will give him an IV to help him get back up to speed.

If it's not dehydration, his kidneys are diseased and there's not much they can do; we will have to put him down. :(

I am so very sad about the idea of this happening. I know we've only had him for about 6 weeks but I REALLY like him and I'm NOT a dog person, so this is a FLUKE! I know it seems trivial to ask for prayers about a dog, but I'm hoping anyone reading this will send one our way.

Weekend Fun (?)

I had the weekend off and Saturday was pretty spring-like here - I think it got up to 50! WOW! (Of course that's a fluke because they're saying it will snow this week. BOO!) Thankfully, we took full advantage of the nice day while we had it. I will be the first to admit that sometimes I bite off more than I can chew, or at least enough that I have a hard time chewing it but I almost never spit it back out. That is to say, I tackle things that people think I'm crazy for even taking on. But I've always said "Go big or stay home." Saturday was an example of this philosophy. What can make going out with four boys, 7 and under even more difficult? Take the dog! Yes, I loaded everyone up bright and early on Saturday and went to a couple of stores. (Old Navy had some great deals and I got a few cute shirts for the boys to wear for Easter.) I promised them if they were good we could go to Natureland and hike the trails and they were really good, so off we went. I had packed a nice picnic lunch so after hiking for 1/2 hour or so, we sat down and enjoyed our pb&j's in the warm sunshine with Scrabble tied to the picnic table. Life was oh-so good up until that point. It went downhill FAST! After packing up the lunch refuse, I strapped Luke back in the backpack but on my front this time. He seemed cold during lunch so I thought that would help. My back was also hurting a bit from his 30 lbs of cuteness. We started out on another trail and we didn't get 50 yards in before faced with a steep incline that was covered with about 4" thick ICE! It was mud on both sides of this strip of ice so of course we all had to try to trek through the mud. Imagine trying to get up this incline with a baby strapped on you AND a crazy untrained dog pulling at the leash. NOT FUN! Now imagine seeing your 3 year old slipping on the ice and crying for you as he slides back down the hill. His older brothers were no help because they were struggling themselves. I ended up having to tether Scrabble to a dead tree, go back down the hill to try to retrieve William and then back down the other 1/2 way to get the dog. WHEW! When that ordeal was over, I was so relieved! What else could go wrong, right? We got back to the car shortly after and I was telling the boys to get in the car when I suddenly felt no more pulling at the end of the leash. Scrabble had wriggled out of his collar and taken off. I didn't know what to do! My first priority had to be getting the kids strapped in and safe, but by that time that crazy dog had taken off down the road. Have I mentioned Scrabble is NOT a car-chaser? It would actually be much better if he were. No, he doesn't chase cars. He tries to ATTACK cars HEAD-ON! So I got in the van and start down the road to try to find him. I saw him on the opposite side of the road up on the embankment and there was a red pickup truck coming towards us. Scrabble saw his target and started RACING down the embankment to try to jump up on the hood of the truck (smart dog, huh?). I was waving my hands frantically, thinking this is the moment when my kids get to see their dog get run over right in front of them. Thankfully, the man in the truck saw me and slowed down so he didn't hit Scrabble. I jumped out and was able to gather him up and throw him back in the van. The rest of our weekend was pretty peaceful because I decided make it so. I'm all for going big, but sometimes it IS nice to just STAY HOME!

The Frugal Challenge - UPDATE

I asked Chris to do a guest post about the Frugal Challenge and he has just one word:

"WINNING!"

Yes, I have conceded after just 2 1/2 months of watching every penny. I have come to the conclusion that a social life is not at all conducive to being frugal. The money I felt I "had" to spend was on my officemate's baby shower gift (I've shared an office with her for almost 3 years and I'm supposed to get her NOTHING to celebrate her first baby?) and drinks with a friend who was turning 30. (A milestone birthday - it's not like she was turning 26 or anything!)

So I give up. Chris is clearly much better at being a total tightwad and never doing anything fun. And to celebrate his victory he went out and bought a pack of gum. To the victor goes the spoils, I guess.

Excitement!

Beyond the excitement of getting a dog this week, we are having such a great time with so very many things to look forward to. The weather is starting to warm up and it's getting REALLY muddy with all the snow melting, but of course any sign of spring is welcome at this time of year!

Scrabble is doing GREAT fitting in with the family. I get up at six every morning to walk him for a mile and a half. It's been really hard for me in the past couple years to motivate myself to get up and walk and/or run before work, especially because I haven't been sleeping well (more on that later) but when I do get out of bed and start my day with some fresh air, I find my thoughts are clearer ALL DAY! So it's been nice to have Scrabble waiting for me as inspiration to get my butt moving!

We are going to have a fun weekend this weekend with two free family activities. First, tonight we are headed to the Parks & Rec dept's Game Night. It's geared towards 2-5 year olds, but they said there'd be stuff for the older boys, too. Then on Sunday a good friend of mine invited us to go to her church's annual skating party at a roller rink. I'll have to take pictures because I pride myself on being ONJ in "Xanadu" but I don't know if I can still cut the mustard on 8 wheels.

I posted on Facebook a while back about my problems sleeping and many of my friends suggested taking Melatonin and that helped some, but not a lot. I know these problems are linked specifically to my job. I can get to sleep, but invariably I wake up in the middle of the night and my mind immediately starts racing with all the problems I'm having at work. It's ok, though, as I am on track to begin a new chapter in my life very soon and these things will no longer be a concern to me. Sure, there might very well be other things that will keep me up at night, but at least I will be shaping my own destiny.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Meet Scrabble!

Well, it was inevitable that someday we'd get a dog and that someday came yesterday. A couple I work with fosters strays through the local animal shelter and they were telling me about Scrabble back in November. He seemed like the perfect type of dog for our family: 2 years old so out of the puppy stage, small (30 lbs) but not too small that the boys would unintentionally hurt him, low maintenance, and in need of a home. I think it's great that we're teaching the boys how lovable a dog can be, even when it seems no one else wants him. Anyway, here's the newest member of our family... Yes, his one ear flops over like this all the time and we think it's ADORABLE!

He's doing REALLY well adjusting to life with our rather large family. The boys love him and he's VERY gentle and patient with them. He was allowed to jump on couches/beds at his foster home but he's quickly learning that's not acceptable here. He's a black lab/Corgi mix so is very smart and picks up on things very quickly.

The only one who's not real happy with this addition to the family is Dope (the cat.) There was some definite tail-fluffiness at first, but today it's turned into full-body-fluffiness as he seems to be realizing Scrabble's not just visiting. I'm sure he'll get used to him eventually....right?

We're so excited for the weather to warm up and all this snow to melt so we can take Scrabble to Natureland and teach him how to play Frisbee. We also plan on taking at least a couple small camping trips this summer and I'm sure he'll love it!

My Sammy

He is amazing - always has been - and today he is 6 years old.


I want to clarify here, that it's not just me. EVERYONE who knows him, even for just a few minutes, recognizes his own brand of genius. He is smart - much smarter than he needs to be at this age - and extremely sensitive, too. That's quite a combination in a little boy!


One of my favorite pictures of Sammy, during the monsoon of April 2010.





He is so caring and gentle with babies. When William was born and Sammy was almost 3, I was so worried he would be jealous of the new baby. But instead, he immediately took on the role of big brother and both William and Luke just adore him.

I remember holding Owen as a baby when I was newly pregnant with Sammy, hoping and praying I would have another boy so that they could grow up together as best friends. Well...

Owen and Sammy are 19 months apart in age.

Right after people comment on how intelligent Sammy is, they turn right to his sense of humor. His teacher says that she gets it, but the things he says usually go right over the other kids' heads. Chris and I just think he's hysterical.

It's been difficult for me to let him go out into the world because he's like an amazing jewel I just want to keep to myself for a while longer, before having to share him with others. He is doing so well in kindergarten this year, both socially and academically, and has a few girls after him. When I visit the classroom, they come up and ask me when Sammy can come to their houses to play. Note who he is surrounded by in the below picture of his class...(he's second in from the right, in case you can't spot the red hair.)

Sammy - you are such an incredible, special person and I love you more than you will ever know. Happy 6th Birthday to you!

I want to pull the stars down from the sky
I want to live a day that never dies
I want to change the world - only for you
All the impossible, I want to do.

And every time you touch me, I become a hero
I'll make you safe no matter where you are
And bring you everything you ask for, nothing is above me
I'm shining like a candle in the dark when you tell me that you love me.

104

Today would have been my maternal grandmother's 104th birthday. We buried her the day before what would have been her 97th on February 4, 2004. Owen was just a baby then and she'd been in a nursing home for several months. One of the greatest regrets of my life is that by the time she passed, it had been almost a month since I'd last gone to see her.

I didn't like that nursing home. I guess it was ok, as far as nursing homes go, but it wasn't exactly a place I wanted to hang out. I went there a few times while I was on maternity leave when Owen was a tiny baby. The women there would practically mob me as I walked in. They all longed to touch this brand new life, perhaps hoping a bit of his newness would rub off on them. One woman I'd never seen before pleaded with me to hold him - what could I say? I put my 2 month old baby in her lap and I've never before or since seen such gratitude on someone's face. In that moment, I prayed that one day when I am old a young mother will see fit to allow me to hold her infant, too. I'll breathe in and the smell of that newborn will transport me back in time. Yeah, that will be nice.

The last time I went to see my grandma was on New Year's Eve 2003. Chris and I walked down the hall towards her room and laughed at how every single room had "Wheel of Fortune" on. The synchronization of the bells and the wheel spinning was just hilarious to us! She was there in her little room and excited to see us, as always. My mom had put up a picture of Owen in his Christmas outfit on her wall. She was really confused and kept calling him "Omar" and referring to him as a "she." I think we only stayed for about 1/2 hour and then said our goodbyes, never imagining it would be our last.

A few weeks later my mom called me very early one Saturday morning to tell me Nana had died. My initial reaction was a tremendous amount of sadness for my mom because they had always been so close. But as time goes on, I am more sad for me and the rest of the people she knew because she really did leave her mark on all of us. She was truly a "character" - not one easily defined, but definitely an unforgettable one. I miss her and always will.