Good Morning!!

~*Updated the Food Blog*~

Little Miss mariah decided that 5:30 was a great time to get up this morning, usually she sleeps until 6:30-7am and I can usually stay in bed and doze during that time because the older kids can get breakfast themselves. However once Mariah is up, Mama has to be too!!!

Well, that nasty virus has claimed another victim. Alyssa apparently has the virus or strep throat, I can't really tell for sure yet. She's got a fever and a headache, so she'll be staying home today. Poor girl, tomorrow is her field trip to the zoo!!! She told me that's it's alright, she wouldn't want to go feeling this way anyways.
I think I may just order some groceries instead of getting Bill to drive me (Shellie can't go this time around) I hate to do that because I have to pay $9.95 to have them delivered, but it's better than having to drag the kids all out, especially with Alyssa being sick.

I hope she's feeling somewhat better tomorrow, I have to take Robbie to his final speech assessment, but we will have to walk. I don't think Alyssa will make the 40min walk there and then a 40min walk back. I have to take Robbie because his therapist left me a message saying there might be funding for Robbie to continue with services. This would be great because of the homeschooling. Of course Bill will be at work until 4. Oh well, something will work out, it always does!!LOL

Golly, trying to get things organized for my sisters move has been a crazy thing. Movers aren't available and then this and that...grrrrrr. This is why I hate moving and my sister is learning real quick that moving sucks!!!LOL

Well, guess I should go start my day. Mariah apparently needs her bum changed.....again! I need to make Alex's lunch, even though he's determined to stay home, because he doesn't want to go without Alyssa. Grrrrr, there's only five days left!!!

I may be back on later, when it's naptime!!LOL

God Bless!!!

Happy Hump Day!!

Well it's Wednesday, and it's HOT!!!LOL All that rain has left and now we have very warm, highs near 26C!! I like it though, when I'm warm I feel better.
Although I think the forecast calls for some showers tonight (most likely thunderstorms if this heat continues!) and some on the weekend. It would be awesome if it was nice and hot during the day and then it would pour at night, like between 11pm and 4am!!

Well, so far that med she put me on is helping!!! Actually I may be in fact in love with this new medicine!!LOL I take it about an hour before bed, and then as that hour approaches, I start to feel tired, but not a drugged tired (like I thought) it's like a natural "YAAAAAWN I'm tired" kinda sleepy. The good thing is, I don't feel too bad in the morning. Doc said I may feel groggy in the mornings while my body adjusts. Mt eyes feel kind of funny, but I deal. The nice thing is for the past two nights, I have slept 6-6.5 hrs STRAIGHT!!! No waking up because my legs hurt or are buzzing, no muscle cramps (that wake me up) it's AWESOME!!!
I'm really praying that this is the drug!!! The nice thing is it's a multi-purpose drug, it's for migraines, chronic pain and mild depression as well as sleep disturbances!! Yup, me all wrapped up in a package!!!LOL

Interestingly, it is (I'm like 99.9% sure) the same drug I was on as a little girl (4-5) for my sleep problems and nightmares and sleep walking. (yup, it's been a life long issue)So, I hope when I go see her, we don't have to adjust the dosage, but we'll see. I don't feel it's need to be right now, but I've only taken 2 doses, things could be different in 2 wks.

Well, guess I should get going on my day!! Not too much planned, it's too warm. I should was up the breakfast dishes, and I had to cave in and do a small load of laundry :o( with five kids...it was necessary!! At least a small load, and I didn't do a second rinse.

Have a great day everyone!!!
God Bless!!

Happy Monday!!

Updated the Childrens blog!! Click on the link to the right!!



Well, Robbie is doing much better and his fever is gone!! Praise our Lord!!!
He is still a very tired little man, but at least he's responding to the Zithromax!

I had a quick appointment with my doctor this morning. Praise the Lord it went great!! She gave me a lot of hope and told me there is no way she will deny me pain medication, we're just going to monitor carefully. She said now that we have a diagnosis and know what we're dealing with, she will give me the Tylenol 3's. She said if they work that well for me, it's better than going on something stronger. See, the Tylenol 3's give me no adverse reactions, I don't feel loopy or 'stoned' on them like some people do. The only thing they do is make the pain manageable. She said if I were to go on something stronger I run the risk of feeling loopy or groggy because it would be too much medicine. We're also going to try the Amitryptilne (I'm guessing at the spelling because I don't have the bottle beside me!!) but it's supposed to help with getting better sleep. She believes once I get better sleep, I will be doing much better. So, at least we have a plan. She also reassured me that she has a lot of other ideas should this plan not work, she told me she's committed to getting me better!! Yeah!! I was worried he was going to react the way the other doctors had, So that was good news.

We have a water ban on right now because of all the flooding in our city. A few communities were evacuated on the weekend! YIKES! But because of the massive water, our water treatment plants cannot handle it and keep up with the demand. So, we are not allowed to use water outside for ANY purpose, such as watering lawns or flowerbeds, washing down vehicles or outdoor furniture. If you are caught violating this rule you will be fined $500.00 for a first offense and $2000.00 for a second offense. They are also asking residents to take short showers and preferably baths as well as not doing laundry or running the dishwasher. So, I'm obliging! Luckily I'm all caught up in the laundry area, so 1 or 2 days shouldn't be too bad, as long as I get caught up as soon as we get the okay. I don't mind washing dishes by hand either, so if it helps with water consumption, then I'm all for it.
Luckily we didn't get any serious flooding in our community. Although the wildlife park a few minutes away from our house is closed. They are low lying, but poor Alex will have to miss his filed trip there that was scheduled for tomorrow. The were going to be doing an archeology dig, which is right up my little scientists alley! So hopefully I will be able to incorporate that into our studies next year. We're going to be doing a few studies on bugs and insects throughout the summer, as well as a reading program...gotta keep those little minds busy!!!

Well, I've rambled on enough! Time to go take my first pill and hopefully start the road to being in better shape!!! Praying that this is the right dose and medication!!!

Have a great Tuesday everyone!! God Bless!!

Guess What?!?!?!?!?!!?

THIS IS WHAT WOKE UP THIS MORNING!!!!!





We are singing Praises this morning!! Praise be to our Lord and Savior!! It was a very long night, filled with comforting and a lot of prayer!!! After crawling into my makeshift bed on the floor, right beside Robbie on the couch, around 4:30am I was awoken to him asking for breakfast!!!! His fever is down to 101.2 before Advil/Tylenol and it was 99.9 afterwards!! It is coming down!! His rash is gone!! It is a miracle, please thank the Lord for hearing our words of prayer!!

Of course, this is what is left now:






A very tired Mama, both emotionally and physically!! But most definitely relieved and very thankful!!!


So, now we will just enjoy our Father's Day. Bill chose to go watch Uncle Rob's football game and then when he returns, we'll be going for a walk to our lake. No swimming though!!LOL Just a nice walk by the beach and probably let the kids play at the park there.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!

Enjoy your day ladies with that special man in your life!! What a blessing they are!!
Thank you so very much from Robbie and I (he sure felt special when I read him your prayers, thank you so much!!!!)
God Bless!!!

Please continue prayer for Robbie

I can only update a little, it's coming up to 1:10am. He's still not well. we spent the afternoon at urgent care with him, because his fever was still there and he has also developed a rash. the doctors still believe it is strep throat and the doc we saw today has put him on a different antibiotic. (Zithromax) please pray that this does the trick. those of you who know me IRL, know I;m usually pretty savvy with the medical field, but this one has got me. all I can do is pray that this med works. he was originally on Pen-vk, , so the doc thinks it just killed off the weaker strep 'bugs' and left the stronger ones to take over. His throat is so swollen he is suffering from sleep apnea, as well his O2 SAT was 94 and he has a sick stomach from all the pus. We did however finally get his fever down to 102.3F, the lowest it's been in awhile. The positive, he is still drinking, not eating, but at least he's keeping fluids in there. As if that wasn't enough, he has also started with diarrhea tonight....I just feel so bad for him. I have been praying over him all day and all night tonight so far.

So please continue prayer for him...it's been a very long day.
Thank-you all dear sisters, if you leave a quick comment in my comment section or tagboard, I will pass it on to him. He knows all about my MOMYS group and all my internet friends.

God Bless.

BUSTED!!

Okay, so I'm in my kitchen preparing lunch for the kids and I look out my kitchen window, which looks directly outside into my backyard and alley. I saw a group of girls go stand in behind my neighbor's garage door and fence. Seems how it is raining, I thought perhaps they were just adjusting their hats or something. Yeah, or something. I look up again and they're smoking weed from a pipe!! WHAT!!!!????? They couldn't have been more than 14, I'd say grade 8-9. I. Just. Don't. think. so. Not In front of me!!!! So I put my shoes on and open my back door and holler "Hey Girls, why don't you take your dope and get out of here!" LOL original, I know. And then I went into some sort of rambling state of "do your parents know where you are, I mean honestly can you not find anything better to do than stand in the rain in some alley getting high?" to which they replied something that I couldn't hear and I toss in " you just wait until it's your kids!" Goodness, I mean honestly, what is going on?!?! This is supposed to be a good community, and here's these children standing outside smoking dope?!?!? I really wanted to just walk over, rip that pipe out of their hands and drag them inside!!! They looked so young and naive............The sad part is, they were well dressed in the 'trendy' clothes and probably live in a nice house, with hard working parents who 'believe' their innocent dd's are at school, enjoying lunch. Then again maybe not. Having lived a secret life as a teenager, I can never be in a position to judge.

I pray that they find their way.

Update!!!

Good morning everyone, sorry I didn't repost last night, it was hectic and crazy. By the time it was quiet, I just crawled into bed.
Anyways, Robbie is good...well....nothing serious. Apparently the doctor believes it to be a virus. All the weird stuff to be just symptoms of his fever rising so quickly and going so high.

He slept pretty good last night, and I was alternating with the tylenol and advil for him, that seems to be doing the trick. His fever has been hovering around 101.2F, much better than it was. When they took it at the hospital, he was 104.5...YIKES!!!And remember that was with the tylenol in him!!! Seems how it's a virus I am praying that it won't travel throughout the house!!!

Well, it could be an interesting day around here weather wise. As of 4am this morning our city is under a heavy rainfall warning, you can read more about it HERE You can click on your browsers refresh button to see if it's been updated.
Bill just called and told me to keep the kids home, so they get a day off of school.

Candy Sorry I had to remove your comment. While I deeply appreciate your prayers and concern for Robbie, I do not want any affiliation with any companies that produce products simply to bulk their own wallets. Especially ones that aren't approved by the US food and drug or the Canadian equivalent. I do hope you understand. I want every link on my webpage to be something I support and those companies, I do not support. Also do address your question: at first I was taken aback by your question because it crossed me as a 'holier than thou' comment, but I decided that perhaps my lack of sleep and huge concern for Robbie probably made me vulnerable and I took it the wrong way. So hopefully that is how you meant it. I do not think my kids have been overly sick or more sick than a normal level. First off, the two olders attend public school and are in different classes, thus being exposed to different germs. Add on the fact that I also babysit two other children, one of which is a schoolager as well. So there are the vehicle's that bring the germs home. The average normal child contracts 10 upper respiratory infections per year, and that's not including tummy bugs, strep throat, etc. The big thing is, not that they catch these bugs, but how quickly they fight them off and build their immune systems to become healthy adults. Before school days, we rarely had an infection roaming the house, but now.......... Unfortunately, we most likely won't escape it with homeschooling either because, I will still be looking after the schoolager and the children will be in activities that will expose them. So, rather than me rambling on and on, I will leave it at that. Illnesses are just a fact of life, they are necessary to build immunity and in the long run create a better immune system for the future. God knew what he was doing when He equipped our bodies with immune systems and I trust His work!!! Hopefully that answered your question.

update and another prayer request

Just thought I'd update and ask for prayer

Bill has just taken Robbie to the Children's Hospital. At 1:30pm, his temp was 104.2F so I gave him some Tylenol. At 2:30pm he was 103.5F. He was still really shaky and complaining that he hurts all over. So as soon as Bill got home, I told him I thought he should really be checked out.

Please pray that it's nothing serious and that God will protect him.

I'll update as soon as I can.

Oh my, please..tell me it's Friday?!?!!?

Good grief! What a night, I feel so bad for Robbie. I went downstairs to throw another load into the dryer and while I was doing that I could hear him making some funny noises. I didn't think too much of it because he has a tendency to babble and moan in his sleep. Well, then the noises got very strange. I went in and he was stiff as a board, teeth clenched and jerking! Oh my goodness, he's having a seizure was went through my mind. I went over and just made sure he didn't fall off the bed and kept talking to him and reassuring him. It was only about 45-60 seconds, that I saw, but it felt like forever. After it was all over, I took him upstairs and told Bill what had just happened and that I was going to let Robbie sleep on the couch, with me beside him. I also gave him a dose of Tylenol. About 15min later the same thing happened, only it wasn't quite as weird. Bill wasn't coping to well and left the room. (poor guy, he just doesn't handle situations like that too well)and then he was fine about 2min later. He stayed awake for a bit and then fell asleep. His fever was about 103.3 before the tylenol and afterwards it was about 101.8. Bill wanted to take him in, but I'm confident it was just a febrile seizure and so was the nurse I spoke with. She said if I keep the tylenol going in him every 4hrs, he should be alright. BUT, if he has one WITH the tylenol in him, he needs to be seen.
So, it was a very long night for me! I am ready to crawl back into bed.......oh well, not for another 16hrs at the least!!!
Please pray for Robbie and that this was just a febrile seizure and nothing more, and that he doesn't have another one. He was a little freaked out by the whole thing. I just told him that sometimes when you have a high fever it can make your body do funny things, so we gotta keep up with the tylenol.

Well, I must get kids dressed and breakfast going for some and C and R will be here in about 1/2 an hour. I'll be back on in a little bit, during morning nap time!!

God Bless

I'm here!!!

LOL!! Nope, I haven't disappeared, nor did my oven swallow me!!(LOL, Daphne)
It's just been busy, busy!!
Just a quick update,

Got all my cooking done, hurray!! I'm off the hook for a month.
I also did my entire basement on the weekend as well. Managed to get 7 garbage bags outta there!! Mostly broken toys and garbage, ripped clothing, mismatched socks that haven't had a partner in months and had holes. (I use the non-holed ones for dusting)
Helped the kids organize their rooms and vacuum their mattresses!

Monday, not much. Kayla started with a fever so I believed she had what the others had/have. Tuesday, Bill took her to the clinic because she was also showing signs of a bladder infection. The doctor put her on antibiotics because her throat was horrendous as the doc said. She was also very concerned that Kayla may have a kidney infection because she also has a fever, but it could be from her strep throat. So, here we go with a pee sample again. I tried last night before I went out, but we missed!grrrr. So, we need a new cup and then I can get one in today.
It's very quiet around here today. Robbie is still feeling really yucky and sparked a fever again last night, I'm giving him until tomorrow and then we'll be back at the clinic. He's been on antibiotics since last week, he shouldn't be having symptoms again. Kayla is asleep on the couch because she still feels yucky.

Mariah is just happily crawling all around, having the whole house to herself, because the baby I look after had a rough night last night, and is a sleepy girl too.

Went out last night with Kerri. It was so nice to go out with her, we haven't done that in ages!!! I always enjoy her company, she is such a good friend to me. Oh, and she also brought some clothes that her little...er big boy has grown out of for Robbie. He was very pleased!! They had also done a clean out (they just moved into their new house) and had some toys that her kids don't play with anymore....Robbie was doubly excited because it was Rescue hero's and some Toy Story stuff...his favorite!!!! Anyways, we wandered around WM for awhile and then had a snack at McDonald's. I bought the kids this really neat thing, it's a Bug vacuum!!!LOL It looks like a dustbuster and it came with a magnifying lens so they can see what they caught. I also got them a coloring set and Alex some new undies, as well as Bill!!LOL
Got Mariah a couple sleepers. She's been growing lately, so I think I'm going to have to get her some new summer outfits. She's finally out of the 6-9mo size and into the 9-12mo sizes and I don't have much to fit her!!LOL
I got a huge garbage bag filled with boys stuff in Alex's size from Freecycle, lot's of summer and fall stuff. So, it's just Mariah that needs some stuff. Alyssa is pretty much set and I bought her a bathing suit last night as well. Kayla has ample amount of summer stuff, so no worries there. Kerri also sent some fall stuff for Kayla to grow into and some even fit Alyssa!!! Kerri's dd is just a smidge taller than Alyssa, so Alyssa usually gets to wear a few things as well. I'm so blessed that Kerri does this for us...Thankyou so much!!!!Anybody with a large family knows how much handmedowns are appreciated, the kids go through stuff so quickly!!LOL

This morning I managed to get my front flower bed dug up and planted a some seeds. other than that, I'm doing a bit of a tidy in the kitchen and my loads of laundry for the day and that's it. I'm very sore in my upper back and arms today, I bet there is a rain/thunder storm coming! Oh yeah, gotta get the bread machine going. Bill LOVES to have the fresh bread with supper, which I think will be Spaghetti and salad tonight.

Well, that about sums up what's happening at our house!!LOL I decided to give the interview questions another few days....C'MON YOU GUYS MUST WANT TO KNOW SOMETHING!!!!LOL ASK AWAY!!!! The amount of things I get asked out in public, you'd think my comments section would be filled!!!ROFL!!!

Have a great day everyone!!
God Bless!!

Oh, special congratulations to ~*JAY AND RUTHANNE*~ They just had their 8th blessing...a sweet baby Girl, click to read more at their blog site. I always appreciated her input when she was on the MOMYS list. May God bless them.

Cook-Day!!!

Good Morning!

Well, today will be a busy day around here. I plan on getting all my meals cooked today and packed away frozen. I'm a little sore, grocery shopping takes a lot out of me and I usually hurt the next day, regardless of pain medication. I also will get some bread baked as well, I'm hoping for two loaves. I think a cheese bread loaf would be yummy!!

Also, I have some catching up to do on laundry. I ended up having a few more loads of blankets than I had originally thought. So, there is a bit of a pile still needing to be cleaned.

Grocery shopping went good last night, I did update the FOOD BLOG with the total amount. It came out to be more than I had budgeted for, but the grocery store prices vary and sometimes I'm off. Their prices sometimes go up about .10cents an item, but when your buying like 1000 different items, it adds up!!LOL Oh well, it does leave us short for a few days, but I get paid Tuesday night, so it's not too bad.
No funny or interesting grocery stories to tell, although I still find it hilarious that the other shoppers just stand and stare at the amount in my cart!!!LOL
The things that must go through their minds!!! I mean honestly, do they not know that one, I can see them staring at me and two, I can clearly hear their comments to the other person shopping with them! "Oh, my would you look at all that" "I'm glad I'm not pushing that" Although there was one guy who got to me. As Shellie and I were trying desperately to fit all our packages and bags into our two carts, one of the men who works there stood not 3feet away from us laughing under his breath! Grrrrr, sheesh, glad to be of entertainment for you!
Ah, well.

Then I cam home and put everything away. Which took about an hour. Good thing I cleaned out the fridge and cupboards before hand!!!LOL

Soooo, I guess if I am going to get started I should remove myself away from this screen!!LOL Why-oh-why, does this screen lure me away from my work.....it's a hopeless addiction. One thing leads to another here, you say "oh, I'll just check my email" then someone has sent you a link that you simply MUST check out, then while surfing, you think "Oh, I'll just check such and such's blog" then after reading you think of another blog you just have to read and so on and so on. Then just as you click off your internet browser, you decided "Oh, I'll just quickly check my email again" and thus the cycle continues!!!LOL

So, I am closing my blog, then my browser, and I am going to remove myself from the screen...........after I quickly check my email, of course!

Have a great day!! DON'T FORGET TO ASK THREE (OR AS MANY AS YOU WANT) QUESTIONS, I DECIDED I'LL COMPILE THEM MONDAY NIGHT, SO EVERYONE GETS A CHANCE. ASK AWAY, NOTHING IS OFF LIMITS....BUT DO USE YOUR GOOD JUDGEMENT AND REMEMBER YOU CAN BE ANONYMOUS!!!
God Bless!!

There are worse things

~CAROLINE~

Hug your babies a little tighter.

God Bless.

Updated the......................................

~FOOD BLOG~

For those who are curious!! Although I haven't posted my meals that I'm making tomorrow, maybe later.

Have a great morning!! Today I want to accomplish, washing out the fridge, and getting two loads done (FRIDAY means, sheets and towels, I also have a small load of kiddie sized blankies to wash, so I guess I'll end up with three loads or so.) I also will bake a loaf of bread to enjoy with supper (unfortunately I have no idea what that will be, maybe a breakfast night tonight!!LOL I had to use a couple of meals in one night so as to have enough to feed Bill, he switched shifts before I could go grocery shopping again!!LOL) I also would like to give the inside of the cupboards a wipe down and I need to re-arrange my counters to make room for my bread machine!!
Busy Kitchen day, today and tomorrow!! :)

I will try to pop back on later this afternoon, a mama needs to take a coffee break!!

God Bless!!!

Oh dear, I totally missed your tag Debbie!!LOL Sure I'm game if anyone wants to play!! Do y'all remember the rules?? Here's a refresher:
1.post ANY question, although I will delete anything that vulgar or poor in taste.
2.you can post your name OR post anonymous, doesn't matter
3.you can post a minimum of 3 questions and a maximum of 20 (YIKES!!!)
4. On Sunday night I will compile all the Q's and put them in a post with all my answers!!!
5.post your questions in this thread's comment section.

HAVE FUN AND GO FOR IT, ASK ME ANYTHING YOU WANT!!!!

~*~*OAMC*~*~ It's DONE!!!!!! :o)

It's all done and has been sent to those who requested it!! If you haven't received it, please send me a note and I'll be sure to send it off to you.

For those who are curious and aren't sure what I am talking about...........

OAMC, stands for Once a Month Cooking. This is where you plan and prepare, then freeze your meals for an entire month. Thus, eliminating the nedd for a lot of hoopla at dinner time. Just remove what you want for dinner during your AM routine, warm it up when it's dinner time, as it warms prepare your side dishes (potatoes, veggies and/or salad). Very easy and makes the rest of the month much less stressful.

If you are interested in learning more and would like to have my handout, let me know and I'll send it off. Just put OAMC in the subject line!!! It's in word format, so you can print it off!

I'll be back later to update, as well as to add my grocery list!
It looks as though we may have a storm, but who knows THESE days around here!!

Us Calgarians have a saying "If you don't like the weather, just wait 5 minutes" The joys of living in a valley surrounded by the Rocky Mountains!!

God Bless!!!

It's Happy Hump Day!!

Weird, it is 3:00pm at my house and my kitchen is clean, laundry is going and children are SLEEPING! Alex, is kinda awake, but just relaxing. I kept Alex and Alyssa home again. I'm at the point right now that I don't really care about that school. Everytime they get better from something they go to school for a week and then BAM! They're sick again. Alex's strep throat is pretty much gone, but he's still on the antibiotics of course, but they seem to upset his tummy. Alyssa seems to be alright, she doesn't have the fever, just really sleepy and she says she has a headache and a sore throat. So, she's under watch!!LOL

Today has been a slow moving day. At least the main stuff has been dealt with, but with a living room covered in sprawled out kids, what more could you expect!

Anyways, I want to finish up the OAMC tonight and send that out tonight and tomorrow morning, if not by tomorrow night for sure!! Hopefully I'll be able to post groceries and meals tomorrow night and then, PRAISE THE LORD! It's friday!!!
I don't have much planned this weekend, hopefully.....maybe get some gardening done!!

I'm hoping to post some b-day pics sometime on the weekend from Mariah's b-day. I should be able to get my roll of film developed!!

Have a great afternoon/evening everyone!!
God Bless!

Quick update

Sorry I've been MIA. We've had a constant rain since about Wednesday last week, and it is taking it's toll on my body. So my arms and wrists have been really sore, and typing just aggravates it.

Not only that, Robbie took ill on Monday and sure enough he is also on antibiotics for strep throat! Luckily the meds seem to work quickly, so he was feeling a bit better today. Although, it might be Alyssa's turn. She was very tired and complaining of a sore throat as I tucked her into bed tonight. We shall see what the morning brings! Goodness, I know I tell them to share with each other.....but!!!LOL

This week is grocery shopping and it's the middle of the month so that means it's time for the cook-off this weekend!! I am going to try and post my list on the foodblog this week, but we'll see. I'm trying to conserve my energy to finish the OAMC handout for you guy's!!LOL I have about 4 or 5 more recipes to add and then it's done!! I hope you will all find something in there to enjoy!!

Oh, my big excitement for today!!! I have been very sad about not being able to bake any of our bread lately(with the weakness and pain in my upper body it's just not possible), and not being able to afford a bread machine right now. So I thought, why not post a WANTED on the Freecycle email loop!! Guess what?!?!? A sweet lady emailed me back and said that she has one!!! So Bill is going to pick it up tomorrow after work!! I am so excited, what a blessing. I really cannot thank her enough, this is going to be so wonderful for us. It makes m feel better too, now at least being able to have fresh baked bread again in my house!!!
I also posted for an Ice Shaver too. I thought this would be a lot of fun for the kids this summer, making homemade sno cones with real juice!! Hopefully I'll get a reply. I think in time I may post for one of those Dr.Scholls foot soaker baths. What a treat THAT would be. I'm hoping it would stop or at least help alleviate some of the pain in my feet and ankles, it's the worst at night. I know I would definitely be using that every night!!!

Well, goodnight dear sisters!!
If you can please pray for my dear friend Rebekah, her family is going through some trials right now. Some of you know her, but for those who don't, God will know what you are praying for. She is such a beautiful person and her family is just as precious!! You and hubby are in my prayers Rebekah!!!
God Bless!!!

Attack of the virus bugs.......AGAIN!!

Yes you read that right, we've been nailed with yet another virus. This one goes by the name of Strep. It's victim, Alex. I awoke this morning around 4:30 hearing him at the top of the stairs crying. I went to him and he said his tummy hurt real bad. I felt his forehead and he was burning up. Great. My first thought was that dreaded Rotavirus making a comeback, but then he said that his head hurt too. Hmmmmmmm. By about 8:30am, I knew what it was. Stomach pain (with no vomiting or diarrhea), headache, high fever, and then his voice started sounding like he had a wad of fuzz in the back of his throat...BINGO! Strep throat! So, I get him all cozied up on the chair and give him some flat gingerale and decided that I would get Bill to take him in when he gets home.. Fast forward, Bill gets home, I give him the rundown and the smart mouth he is, says "So Dr.Penny, what is it?!?!" Ha-ha, yes dear you are so funny!!!LOL I say, I would bet my left arm it's strep throat! Sure enough they come back, and Alex is on antibiotics!!LOL Yes, for strep throat!!LOL Why my sweetheart husband finds it necessary to question me, I'll never know!!LOL I think he finds it amusing. I just pray that it doesn't make a home here for the summer like it did last year, that was a nightmare!! Every 10 days someone was on antibiotics. Until finally that doctor listened to me and put us all on antibiotics, by then the summer was practically over, but hey, it worked!

Oh, I had a friend drop by today! Diana came over with her little guy. He just turned one on the 30th of April. He's such a cutie. We had a nice visit, it's been ages since we had talked.

Other interesting news that I forgot to post about in regards to homeschooling. When I was talking with Mrs.S, she told me about a new program they have especially for homeschooling kids enrolled in their program. Because of the inability to provide any curriculum for physical ed, and music, they offer each student $500.00 for the school year to be used towards extracurricular activities. This could be swimming lessons, music lessons, Zoo trips, Glenbow Museum trip, The Calgary Tower, Heritage Park , Calaway Park, and a few others I can't think of right now. I'm so thrilled, this means the kids can choose field trips and their admissions will be paid for (not ours though, or Robbie's because he won't be enrolled in the school), but still I'm still saving money!!

This baffles me. If I were to put them back in public it would cost me $630.00 for just the lunchroom fees. Then, both Alex and Alyssa's fees would be $60.00 ($120.00) and then Robbie's would be $65.00. Plus any field trips they would go on during the year, or special presentations/lunches/recesses, I would have to pay for.
BUT, with the homeschooling, I will be paying $160.00, that is it. That covers both Alex and Alyssa's curriculum, text books, workbooks and anything else I should need to support the curriculum. I have to supply the pencils/paper/scribblers/crayons, all that stuff (which I can hardly wait to go shopping for in August!!!LOL) PLUS, THEY give me funding to do outside activities with them?!?!?!?!LOL!!!
And we don't need to go into the positives with homeschooling vs public. So, now I am so VERY, VERY happy about the whole homeschooling situation. Praise the Lord I was able to present my case to Bill and he agreed it WAS the better way to go. (thank you Lord for helping me change his heart!!!)

Not much on the schedule for the weekend. I have a nice big shelving unit (thankyou Shellie!!!) that I am going to get Bill to move for me. It's going to be in the 'formal' dining area (whatever that is!!LOL) just off the living room, and it's going to hold all our homeschooling stuff. I was going to set up the downstairs as the homeschooling area, but decided, upstairs was the better idea. Especially with the littles and keeping an eye on them. So hopefully he won't procrastinate about it and I can start organizing it somewhat. Then I just plan on doing some cleaning here and there, catch up on a few lone laundry piles. Perhaps we'll tackle the big kids rooms, they appear to be in dire need of an adult-led/guided cleaning!!LOL

But, I'm off. I would like to get a few more things done on the OAMC pamphlet, it's almost done ladies!!! Hopefully I can get it out Sunday night, if not Monday at the latest. (barring nothing unforeseen!!LOL)

Have a great night, and snuggle your hubby's!!
God Bless!

After almost three years of pain and no one...........

knowing what is wrong with me. After feeling like I'm losing my mind and having doctors MAKE me feel that way, I finally...FINALLY have a diagnosis!!! lo and behold, guess what I have.......FIBROMYAGIA! Go figure, perhaps we as individuals are more in tune with our bodies than SOME doctors think?!?!

So my appointment went like this...........

At first Bill and I had know idea how to take this guy. He had a weird sort of personality. He asked Bill NUMEROUS times if he was sure he wanted to be in there with us. I assured him that I was positive I wanted my husband there with me. So we began with why I was there and the symptoms I am experiencing an so on. He asked a bazillion questions and then said for me to remove my shirt and pants (yikes, I always get apprehensive about that sort of thing) so he left the room and Bill and I talked, Bill was a little curious as to why this dr didn't seem to want him in there. I said that maybe because when he does the physical aspect of the exam, Bill might get upset if I seem to be in pain. Bill never handles that sort of thing too well, usually he gets very upset (read:MAD) so I said that maybe it was best if he left the room while I got checked. This was a very good decision because it was VERY painful and I did have a few tears. The dr then tells me to get dressed and he leaves the room. Then he tells Bill to come back in with him so he tell us both (actually his exact words were "You might as well hear this to, just so there is no confusion") So, he starts out by saying this is what I know you don't have, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, or Multiple Sclerosis. What you do have is FM. And he went on to explain the whole deal with it and so on. I ask, okay so what are we going to do? His reply....diet, exercise and sleep. Apparently he does not believe in pain management! YIKES! He suggests that I take Vitamin D supplements and calcium. That I also take a multivitamin and possibly go gluten free in my diet. He says that ALL the stuff out there, MAY work, but if it was a true thing, they would be recommending it to they're patients. So, okay, I agree 100% that diet and frame of mind are very important and I'm all for trying the vitamins and supplements, BUT, in order for me to start any form of exercise I need to get the pain under control. He disagrees, so that's alright, whatever. I'm just glad he didn't tell me I'm a loon and send me on my way!!LOL All in all, it was a great visit and I really appreciated the time he took to explain everything to us. He was thorough and kind.
He gave a lot of ideas on how to fight FM on a mental side and with healthy foods and through the non-use of drugs, which I want my goal to be.
So, I ended up at my drs office in the hopes of seeing my family dr. She was booked solid. (I was hoping to be able to implement some sort of pain management) I booked an appointment to see her on July 4th, and then just saw a walk in dr to renew my original prescription. Which they did no problem, Praise God!!

So here's my plan. I'm changing my frame of mind and how I view this. Now that I have a diagnosis, it's much easier. FM is not doing ANY damage to my body, it just causes pain. Pain CAN be fought with the mind. I'm going to start Vit D and the calcium (can't hurt!). My inner voice has to change as well, instead of allowing the pain to take over, I must tell it IT'S NOT GOING TO RULE ME! I'm stuck with this forever, and I hope to send it into remission. I have to realize that there are going to be good days and bad days, that's just the way it is. When I see my dr, I want her to know that I DON'T want to take pain meds as a regular thing, but I believe it's my right that I can have access to them IF I feel I need it. I don't think ANYONE should have to be denied pain meds for chronic pain, simply because the dr is afraid of addiction. I believe as long as the meds are used when they are truly needed, they should be allowed. I think it comes down to risk vs benefit, and only I can decided if the pain is unbearable enough to warrant pain meds. It's the tricky thing with pain, everybody is different and chronic pain, is entirely different than having acute pain (broken arm) and nobody can completely comprehend it, unless they experience it. This is why I believe that I have a crucial part in making these decisions.

My ultimate goal, I want to be in the position of pain med free, eating healthy and regular exercise!!! Only using a pain med, if I am in so much pain I cannot function. I'm praying that all the other things will work, and drugs will be a last resort. I'm staying positive, thinking positive and reacting positive!!
Sleep is another issue that I need to address as well, sleep is VERY important to a person with FM. Unfortunately a horrible circle begins because I can't sleep because of the pain, the pain gets worse because I didn't sleep and on it goes. Here's where it becomes imperative that I have a better focus and where my mind over matter will have an important roll. See, here is where I draw the line at drugs, I refuse to use sleeping pills. I don't believe a drug induced sleep is good for the body, therefore I prefer to use something natural (which this doctor is against, believe it or not, no homeopathic jargle for him!!LOL) such as some valerian or chamomile tea. Milk and a banana before bed, those things. Anybody who has taken a sleeping pill knows how icky it is to wake up in the morning...YUCK! No thanks!!! I also will not take a pill for depression. Interestingly enough, I do believe I suffer from depression, BUT, I have discovered it's directly linked to the pain. If I can get the pain under control, I honestly think the depression will subside, not treat the depression and the pain will disappear. (Which BTW DOES work in some FM cases, I just don't believe it's the right thing for me) when I'm not too bad with pain, my frame of mind is great. When I'm in pain, I'm sad and I hurt, I can't clean my house or take care of the kids (playing ball with them, going for walks, ect) I don't get depressed and THEN get pain.

Sooo, there it is. I feel relieved that I have an answer and I can now move on and FIGHT!!! I have too much spiritually and family wise to roll over and say Well, I'm doomed!!LOL

But, I'm going to sign off for now, the wrists have had the biscuit and my kitchen is still calling my name!!!!

Thanks again for all your prayers and lovely emails!!!

Love to you all!!!

Tomorrow is the day................

Please keep me in your prayers. I can't believe how nervous I am. I don't know why, really. I think my biggest worry is it's going to hurt. The doctor I saw on Sunday had said that if it's true Fibromyalgia (FM) when they do the trigger point test it can be extremely painful. I'm already in a lot of pain, so I'm scared. But, it has to be done. Bill just went to pick up my sister from the train station, so they should be back pretty quick, I'm excited to see her.

Well, not much to else to report on. Both Kayla and Mariah have that nasty cough, poor girls. As long as they don't start barfing, I'll take it!

My appointment is at 2pm(MST) so I'll try to post ASAP.

Let's pray that the Lord Jesus will give this doctor the knowledge and wisdom he needs to help me.

Thankyou so much for all your prayers and kind words.

God bless you all!!