Seth Turns 3

Can't believe how the last 3 years have flown by. Labor and Delivery is so fresh in my mind that it seems like yesterday the nurses were telling me he was 9 pounds. My response, "Uh.. what?? He's 3 weeks early!" He was such a big boy and is still a big boy! Turning three and wears a 4T. Big brothers better watch out! He has brought such joy to our lives... and much laughter! Tonight, we took him to Chuck E. Cheese to have pizza and play games. He had a blast. Sunday we'll have his Birthday Party. Tonight was just our family. Fun times! Happy Birthday Elijah Seth! Mommy & Daddy love you bunches!!!

Lucy Lane

On Sunday, October 11, 2009 we had a new "baby" join our family. Her birth name was Sugar and we changed it to Lucy Lane. She is a 1.5 year old female Boxer. We adopted her from Atlanta Boxer Rescue. Check them out http://www.atlantaboxerrescue.org They have so many great looking Boxers that need homes.
I drove out to Newnan where she was being fostered by Katrina & Tom to pick her up. I am so thankful for the opportunity to meet them and be able to bring home our sweet new girl.
She is such a sweet dog. The boys just LOVE her. She loves to give big ol' Boxer kisses and loves to lay & snuggle beside ya.
She has adjusted well in our home. We have had a few casualties... a Spiderman flipflop, a USB cable, part of a New Balance shoe, an el cheapo ball glove and nearly a Mickey Mouse Croc! We were warned she still had a bit of puppy in her and that her chew toy of choice was shoes. But, really she is good. I've noticed she only chews when I get on the computer. So, maybe I should refrain from goofing on the computer as much. She rides with me to take the kids to school and to pick them up. She loves to ride in the front seat and it cracks me up because she looks like a person sitting in the seat, just taking in the scenery. She's been to PetCo and loved shopping for new toys! Hope you enjoy the pics of her. She's so pretty.

North GA Mountain Fun

Labor Day weekend our family decided to take a trip to the North Georgia mountains. We had the best time. Visited Anna Ruby Falls. Of course, Allan & I have been many times, but this was the boys first visit. They loved it. We saw 3 snakes while we were there. They were laying on rocks near the falls and if it hadn't of been for people pointing them out, we would have never seen them. They were definitely camoflaged in their surroundings. Kinda scary though. Then after the falls, we let the boys play in the creek. They had a great time & the water was freezing cold. On the way home, we stopped by Hansel & Gretel Candy Kitchen. No trip to the Helen area is complete without a stop there and loading up with pounds of sugary goodness!! The boys picked out a 2.5 foot long gummy snake. Allan & I had a variety of chocolates for the ride home. Good times and very little money spent!

First Day of Kindergarten

Hello my Friends!
Today was Nate's first day of Kindergarten. He was such a big boy walking in and finding his seat. He was super excited about his Star Wars lunch box. Can't believe this day has come... seems like just yesterday he was born. Thanks to all of you who prayed for me this morning! I was a big girl and didn't cry!! :)
I got all my boohooing out on Wednesday evening. Bawled my eyes out at my 'baby' growing up too fast. I've tried so hard to shield him from some of the evils of the world and I feel like today that veil is going to be ripped off and he'll be exposed to so much. I pray that what Allan & I have tried so hard to instill in him will show in times of testing. It was extremely hard when talking about good touch/bad touch. He so innocently asked what it meant. Still, I think what we talked about was over his head. I am praying for a hedge of protection around his heart, mind and body!!
He had a yummy pancake breakfast with his PancakeName and a big K for Kindergarten. He was very excited.
I hope & pray this is going to be the start of many great years to come!! Enjoy the pics!
(the last pic is a picture he drew on orientation day of him & daddy fishing)

Home Sweet Home

Well, we finally arrived safely back home last night around 8:45PM. Soon after we hit I-85, Nate says from the back seat, "So, we decided to take the long way home, Mom?"... mind you this was after 8 hours of driving. Pretty funny.
Anyway, our last day (Friday) was spent at Epcot. I wish I had some good stories for you Lisa H., but not so much. It was scorchin' hot again and the boys were pretty bored. They enjoyed the Soarin' ride & even got to ride twice since we did rider switch. That was nice! We went through Living with the Land & The Seas with Nemo & Friends. The boys really enjoyed Turtle Talk with Crush. It was pretty cute, but I was bummed I couldn't take any pics.
We walked around all the different countries & for the most part, the kids weren't into the masks from different countries. Alex & Seth did one in Mexico, but weren't that into it, so we skipped it in the following countries. Allan & I ate yummy fish & chips while in United Kingdom.
The best part of the day was the park wasn't crazy crowded like the other parks & we got to walk right onto rides that normally require a fast pass. And, somehow, we managed to miss all the downpours. Another great thing was the character meet & greet. They got to see Mickey, Minnie, Goofy & Pluto all in one place. They loved that & Seth was so cute lovin' on all of them. Sweet memories! We didn't stay long enough for Illuminations show, so we'll have to see that next time. We had to get on back to the condo to start packing to get ready to come home.
Saturday, after leaving the condo, we thought we'd tucker them out at the pool for a couple hours so they'd sleep on the ride home. Not so much. They decided they'd stay awake for the whole ride. They might have slept 20 mins or so.
So, in a nutshell, it was fun, slightly stressful & definitely exhausting vacation!! It'll be a couple of years before we decide to go back!!
Kelly

Downtown Disney

Today, we decided to skip a park and have a SLOW day. We took our time getting together & getting out the door. No rush-rush today. We went to Downtown Disney. We had lots of fun at Lego Land and the boys got to get their 1st Lego sets. We had a yummy dinner at Wolfgang Puck Express. After dinner, we hit up Goofy's Candy Store. SUGAR GALORE!! The boys all made their own mixture of different flavors of sugars. It was basically a glorified pixie stick. Then we shared some cotton candy, Mommy's FAVORITE!! The boys had never had it before & Alex protested at first. But, as soon as it hit their mouth, they were hooked just like me!! Hopefully, everyone got their batteries recharged for a fun-filled day tomorrow at Epcot. Enjoy some pics from our time at Downtown Disney!! Roll over the pics to see captions!

Magic Kingdom Day Two

So, yesterday was Day Two at Magic Kingdom. When we got to the park, it was alot less crowded than the previous day. That was nice. Right away we got to start seeing shows and riding rides. We saw the Country Bears Jamboree which the boys loved. Then we saw the Tiki Bird show. I remember this one from when I was a kid. The boys liked it. When we came out from that there was a slight downpour, but we just found a covered area & ate our picnic lunch. By the time we finished, the rain was over & can you believe that was it for the rain for the rest of the day! We didn't even have to break out those hot ponchos. The other things we enjoyed were: Peter Pan's Flight, Stitch's Great Escape, Jungle Cruise (which Nate cracked us up on... he bought into the story our boat guide was telling & when we got to the part where the people were shooting spears at us she was telling everyone to duck & Nate's eyes were big as saucers as he tried his best to get as low to the floor as he could! haha.. so funny) then we rode the Magic Carpet Ride, saw a Stitch show, rode Tomorrowland Speedway Race cars twice and Pirates of the Caribbean. We got to see one of the parades and the Wishes Fireworks Show at the end of the evening. We accomplished everything at Magic Kingdom in 2 days rather than 3, so we are heading to Epcot later this afternoon. We weren't planning on Epcot originally, but why not!!

I hope to have yummy food at Epcot! More posts later....

Kelly

Magic Kingdom Day One

We had a super great time today at Magic Kingdom. We actually accomplished more than I thought we would even though it was crazy crowded. The past couple of days we've had a few meltdowns due to there only being a double stroller and all 3 want to ride. But, today we took the umbrella stroller from the condo & that eliminated a few fights. Then they just found something else to fight about... haha.. who sits on front of double stroller.

Anyway, the rain followed us again today. But, today we finally broke down & bought $30 worth of stinkin' ponchos. Money that could have been spent on something a bit more fun or tasty. Oh well.. hopefully, they'll serve us well over the next two days.

We rode so many things today. The most memorable one (and not for good reason) was the Goofy's Barnstormer Coaster. It's supposed to be a kiddie coaster, but poor Nate had to ride alone b/c I sat with Seth & Allan sat with Alex. Well... it was WAY TOO MUCH for all of them and poor Nate was crying all by himself. I didn't see his face, but Allan said it was a priceless pitiful. Wish he had the camera. So, that does it for coasters for at least a couple more years. We rode the oldies, but goodies... Dumbo & Small World & the Tea Cups. I remember riding those when I was 3 years old which was my last time at Disney prior to this. They had a fun time on them, too. We had a good late lunch at Cosmic Rays. Good burgers and chips. The light parade was canceled due to weather but we got to see fabulous fireworks from the van in the parking lot. Alex was conked out by 9.

So... that's today in a nutshell. Gotta get in bed for another fun-filled day tomorrow!!

Til then... good night! XOXO ~ Kelly

Day Two & Three

Recap of the past couple of days...

Sunday: We headed to Animal Kingdom. WOW... it'll be a long time before we go back there. The Kilimanjaro Safari was absolutely great. But was it worth it to fight a bazillion people and 90 degree heat.... hmm, not so much! This definitely needs to be a park you visit in the cooler months. We did see a lot of cool animals & the little story our bus driver told along the way was pretty entertaining & the kids loved it. We ended the day with a fanstastic dinner at Rainforest Cafe at Animal Kingdom. The kids loved it once they realized it wasn't really thunderstorming in the restaurant. Yummy, yummy food!! When we got finished eating, we got to run a couple miles to our van in the pouring rain again! haha... ribs, shrimp & steak all jostling in mine & Allan's tummy not so good! :) We seriously need to buy some ponchos.

Monday: We hung out at the condo pool all day. Then we went to Chili's for dinner. Yum O food, too. You can always count on Chili's for good food & good time!

Today: we're off for the 1st of 3 days at Magic Kingdom. We're hoping for great weather.
Stay tuned for more.... I have pics on the computer now & will post some tonight! :)
Kelly

SOAKED PICS

Ok.. found a couple pics.

You'll have to click on them to see them larger! :)

Disney Day One....

Well, today was our first official day at Disney! We came down yesterday through some horrendous downpours! Rain, Rain, Rain! We got settled into our hotel after going to City Walk at Universal Studios for dinner. We had yummy Panda Express & the kids had Moe's. We were looking for simple & got simple since it was already 8:30 PM.
LOL... this is supposed to be a fun & happy trip. But, so far, we have all had short fuses and quick tongues & tempers. I think we're all so exhausted and it's coming through our attitudes. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better.
Today, we went to Hollywood Studios, formerly MGM. It is Star Wars weekend, so the boys have got to see many of their favorite characters. Some, I don't even know who they are. We ate at Pizza Planet. We did the Muppet 3-D movie, Star Tours, Toy Story Mania, Lights, Action, Stunt show, saw an awesome parade, watched the Playhouse Disney show that included: Tigger & Pooh, Handy Manny, & the characters from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. The kids really suprised us with not being scared of the characters. They all walked right up & gave all of them a big high-5. Toy Story Mania was the last ride we rode b/c we got a fast pass at 10:30 AM to ride at 7:10 PM.. wow. We waited ALL DAY to ride it. The weather was actually nice until we came out of that ride. By the time we made it to the van, we were soaked to the core... literally! The water in the parking lot was up past our ankles. The van was almost floating and the boys had to strip down for the ride home. The double stroller even had a puddle forming in the basket underneath. CRAZY!
As some of you know, we originally were going to plan a couple of days at Daytona Beach. But, it got to be too much of a hassle trying to find accomodations that worked for us & we said forget it. Well, now we know that was God intervening to save us from FLOODING! Tonight on the news, 10 Florida counties have been declared disaster areas & need help from FEMA from all the ridiculous rain they've had down here. The whole town of Daytona is flooded. God is always looking out for us!! Thank You Lord!
Tonight, we checked into our condo & I can say I am beyond pleased!! It is super fantastic!
I have LOTS of pictures, but can't get them on my computer tonight. Will work on that & try to post a couple soon!!
Stay Tuned for more posts about our trip!!

Dacula Night at Turner Field

Last night was Dacula Night at Turner Field. Dacula Athletic Association's fund raiser this year was selling Braves Game tickets. All the kids got to do a lap around the field & it was very exciting & fun. This was Nate & Alex's first game & they had such a great time. They loved doing the Tomahawk Chop & dancing and watching the big ball players hit the ball so far. It was a great, great family night & we hope to be able to do it many more times!!

Last Day of School & Graduation

We had another fantastic year at Hebron Weekday Preschool. We were so blessed with such wonderful teachers who truly cared for & loved our boys. Unfortunately, two of them will be leaving. Mrs. Lacy & Mrs. Lisa... the Rainey family will miss you!! We'll be praying for you & your new endeavors.
Nate & Alex had such a good time at the end of school year party. It was kind of bittersweet. They still don't understand that it'll be a good long while before they see their friends and teachers again. I pray that each year we are blessed with teachers that it's hard to say good- bye to. I pray that every teacher they have in the future will nurture & teach our children as well as Hebron's teachers have.
After the school parties, we got to go to a fantastic swim party!! The boys had sisters in their classes so both were invited. They had a fantastic time swimming & playing with their friends. Seth wasn't liking the water very much, so he found his way down to the basketball court & had fun there with Zachary.
Graduation was that evening. I did pretty good in regards to crying. I think it was such a joyous time that I couldn't find time to cry. We are so very proud of Nate. He has gotten such a jumpstart at Hebron that I know will boost him tremendously once he begins Kindergarten. I think the saddest part is that all of his friends he's been with at Hebron since the beginning are now going to be dispersed all over the Dacula area. Thankfully, there are 2 friends we know of that will be going to Dacula Elementary with Nate. So, hopefully, they can all be in the same class. I'm such a sap!! I do know we'll be needing lots of prayer because Allan & I will be outside our comfort zone in regards to schools/teachers and knowing that Nate is safe & secure.
Hope you enjoyed the pics of all the fun the boys had last Thursday. Stop back by anytime!!
Kelly

Happy Mother's Day 2009

I had a fantastic Mother's Day. God has blessed me with a wonderful husband and three beautiful, energetic & fun boys.
My day began with breakfast in bed, great gifts, sweet cards & beautiful roses! Then we got to go hear the Word of God preached with Allan's family at Carl Baptist Church. It was a great day & we had fantastic weather.

My devotion today talked about raising up Godly children. It is my prayer that I teach my children to love & honor Jesus in every aspect their lives, not just when it's convenient for them. I want them to know early on about His love for them and not have to wait so long in life to figure it out. I want them to understand how much their Heavenly Father sacrificed so that they can have eternal life with Him. I want them to experience as much of His love as possible. I hope that one day, I can look at my children & see how the LORD has watered the seeds that Allan & I try so hard to plant each day.

I am blessed!

Proverbs 31:28 Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her

Here's my devotion for today from RBC.org

May 10, 2009

Magnets And Mothers
READ: Proverbs 31:26-31

Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you. —Deuteronomy 5:16

A teacher gave her class of second-graders a lesson about the magnet and what it does. The next day, in a written test, she included this question: “My name has six letters. The first one is m. I pick up things. What am I?” When the test papers were turned in, the teacher was astonished to find that almost 50 percent of the students answered the question with the word mother.

Yes, mothers do pick up things. But they are much more than “magnets,” gathering up clothes and picking up toys around the house. As willing as many mothers are to do such chores, they have a higher calling than that.

A good mother loves her family and provides an atmosphere where each member can find acceptance, security, and understanding. She is there when the children need a listening ear, a comforting word, a warm hug, or a loving touch on a fevered brow. And for the Christian mother, her greatest joy is in teaching her children to trust and to love Jesus as their Savior.

That kind of mother deserves to be honored—not just on one special day a year but every day. And that recognition should involve more than words; it ought to be shown in respect, thoughtfulness, and loving deeds. — Richard De Haan

Of all the earthly things God gives,
There’s one above all others:
It is the precious, priceless gift
Of loving Christian mothers. —Anon.


Godly mothers not only bring you up, they bring you to God.

HSP... What??

Here's my Sweet Nate! Poor thing has been put through the wringer over the past few weeks. He's all better now, Praise The Lord!!

Wow, where to begin. It all began with a simple virus that the only symptom was fever. Feb 28th, the day of cousin Madi's 1st Birthday party, Nate seemed under the weather but every time I asked if he felt bad he'd respond that he was fine. However, when we got home, he had a low-grade fever and slept from 330 PM til 830 AM the next morning. He still had a fever all day Sunday so I had made up my mind to take him to the doc on Monday. Well, Monday morning he woke up and said that he had a bit of a sore throat. I thought it was definitely strep throat. So, we went to the doc. In office lab test said no strep, but we got antibiotics just in case the sample they sent off to culture came back positive. Lab culture said negative for strep as well. Well, by Wed. I thought he was ready to go back to school. Fever was gone & he was acting normal again. But, Wednesday night, he started limping on his right foot saying it hurt. We quizzed him over & over as to how he hurt it and he never had a clear answer. So, I thought maybe somehow he had fractured it. Thursday AM I took him on into the doc b/c he was still limping and not putting weight on it and he was complaining of abdominal pain. So, the doctor sent us to Xray to see if it was fractured and said the stomach pain was constipation. Well, Xray revealed no fracture. I was frustrated. He was clearly in pain and I had no answer as to what was going on. I mean, I was having to carry a 48 pound boy everywhere b/c he couldn't walk. The doctor called and told me to encourage him to walk on it, but if he wasn't walking on it by Monday to call him back and we'd go to an orthopedic doctor to further investigate. Mind you, it's Thursday. Ok.. so at first, I was like there is no way I can listen to his whining (I know, bad mother) for that long, nor can I carry him around for that many days. Well, that afternoon he took a nap & woke complaining of not one but both legs hurting. By this point, I was starting to think he was reallly milking it. I mean, c'mon...now he was saying both legs hurt?? Surely he's not really hurting like that. Well, he sat and watched TV and was fine, but still wouldn't walk. That evening as we were getting ready to put him to bed, I insisted that he take his jeans off so he could rest better. He pitched the biggest fit I'd ever seen, crying like mad, insane. So, upon my pushing, we took the pants off and thank God I did! His legs were so swollen, particularly in his knees, ankles & feet. They looked as if they were bruising and had little bleeds underneath the skin. I started shaking instantly because I KNEW this was not normal & that it definitely could not wait until Monday. We instantly prayed for Nate and felt more peace and comfort knowing God was in full control of the situation.

So, we took him to Gwinnett Medical Center's Children's ER. There, thank God, our friend was our nurse and she was a huge comfort for us knowing that she'd take the best care of Nate. She assured us of the doc that we were with was great. The GMC Doc wanted to send us on to Scottish Rite. But, before they'd transport him, they needed to be sure he had no blood clots in his legs. So, they ordered an ultrasound. Well, I can tell you I just about had to break bad on the ultrasound techs. Nate was in an obscene amount of pain in his legs and one of the techs felt the need to hold him down by his ankles and he was screaming like mad. Finally, they gave him a dose of Morphine. Too bad it didn't kick in until mid-ambulance ride. He was pretty stoked that he got to ride in an ambulance. So, at 330 AM, we got transferred to Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta Scottish Rite. Man, I tell you, that is where you want to be with sick kids! They were awesome & I can't say enough about them. I (HEART) Scottish Rite!

Once we got there, they gave us a sheet explaining what they were diagnosing him with. Henoch Schonlein Purpura . WHAT? That was my first thought. Then, I read up on it more and realized that basically it was inflammation in his blood vessels. Almost an allergic type reaction of his immune system while trying to fight off the simple virus he had to begin with. It heals itself with time. However, I know God is in control and after doing a bit of research on it, I realized how gracious God was because looking at pics on the internet, Nate had a very, very mild case. Thank You Lord! It is also apparently common in boys ages 2-11.

Allan & I were so humbled by all the prayers, phone calls & emails of encouragement, offers for meals and offers to watch our kids while we tag-teamed staying with Nate in the hospital. We are so thankful for such loving & caring friends & family. Even his sweet teachers came to the house to visit him & brought him yummy cookies & a get well pail full of great things to do while laying in bed! He thought it was pretty awesome that his teachers were at his house! While in the hospital, I told Nate about how several people were praying for him and several of his classmates & Sunday school friends were praying for him. Nate thought it was awesome that his friends were praying for him. His eyes just lit up when we told him. The first night we were in the hospital I read James 5:13-16 to Nate and he lit up again because he knew God would heal him b/c I had told him about how everyone was praying for God to heal him! James 5:13 Anyone who is having troubles should pray. Anyone who is happy should sing praises.14 Anyone who is sick should call the church's elders. They should pray for and pour oil on the person[a] in the name of the Lord.15 And the prayer that is said with faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will heal that person. And if the person has sinned, the sins will be forgiven.16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so God can heal you. When a believing person prays, great things happen.

Sunday afternoon around 6, we got discharged. Nate had regained full use of his legs, swelling was gone & he was in good spirits again, just seemed a bit weak.
Well, once we were home, we couldn't get him to eat b/c he kept complaining of stomach pain. This was another symptom he had b/c the stomach & other abdominal organs become inflammed. We were having to give him Ibuprofen every 8 hours to keep the pain gone. Well, since he hadn't eaten he was also experiencing acid reflux. But, low & behold, Wednesday evening, his legs started to swell again and again he wasn't using them. So, back to Scottish Rite's ER. There they gave him Zantac, Lortab & Orapred (Steroid) through an IV. He wasn't none to pleased to have to get an IV again, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do. It seems as though there's a divide among peds on who likes steroids & who doesn't. But, so far, the steroids have seemed to work. And, apparently, he could experience symptoms like this for up to 2 months. We're believing God to completely heal Nate so he doesn't have any more symptoms. He's already done mighty things and we know he'll finish the work he started!

So, thankfully, today he's great. He's ending his steroids either tonight or tomorrow morning. But, I tell ya, it has been extremely tiring. But, again... we are so thankful we serve a mighty God who is in control & gave us peace & comfort during such a stressful time.

So, here's a few pics of what HSP looks like.

And, now, I think I've set the world record for longest Blog Post!! Hehe!! :)