Catching Up

I need to make a correction. I misspelled my new cousin's name. eek!! It's Lucas Hermon Chisholm (aka Luke). Alright. Better? (His parents in no way shape or form commented on the tragic slaughter that I did to his name, I just felt the need to share that I noticed I was wrong and needed to fix it)

So it's Friday. Friday. Almost a whole week since I have blogged. Goodness. Have you missed me? I have certainly missed you. And my kids. Not so much my husband. Ha. Just kidding. I did miss him. Quite a bit actually. So let's start at the beginning of the week shall we?

Sunday was a great day for me. Stuart got up with the boys and together they brought me breakfast and Starbucks (no spills this time) in bed. Aww. The boys were just clamoring to get in bed with me, so I retreated to the table so that we could all talk without food getting on my sheets. They then presented me with cards and flowers and the boys took turns taking every.single.flower out of the vase and smelling it. Stuart's "gift" to me was that I did not have to do anything for the boys for the day. No diaper changes, no clothes changes, no preparation of meals and snacks and no sitting in the bathroom doorway while Tyson made lemonade. It was glorious! He also took me (and the boys) to dinner where I partook in some tasty adult beverages. Well, beverage. I can taste it now...

Monday I began my little blog hiatus. My cousin David and his precious wife Rachael, not to be confused with his sister Rachel, were scheduled to deliver their first child some time on Monday. At 16/17 weeks, Rachael found out the her little boy had a major heart problem and would most likely not live to term. Week after week God continued to amaze everyone as Luke continued to grow and defy the doctors. He was born on Monday evening and continues to amaze all that are around him. Luke is by no means better, or ok. He is still very, very sick. One of the valves did not form correctly or at all and thus his heart is not functioning correctly. Because of all the extra work the left side of his heart was having to do, his entire heart became very large and thus his lungs did not form properly either. Double whammy. He is currently in the NICU and will be there for some time. The doctors are waiting to see how his little body can handle being on medications before they make decisions on surgery or heart transplant. Please keep Luke and his family in your prayers. Rachael was discharged from the hospital yesterday and so now begins the daily trek to and from the hospital.

All that said, I really wanted to be in Dallas to support my cousin during this painful time. Stuart was able to take off this whole week thus allowing me to go without the kiddos. Hooray!! I mean, I love my boys but it's so nice to get a break for a couple of days and remember how to walk around without two sidekicks. Ahem.

I made it into town just after Luke was born and so my sister, BIL and I went up to the hospital to meet and greet my aunt, uncle, cousins and a few strangers who also wanted to witness the birth of this little boy. Tuesday and Wednesday were filled with much of the same-playing with Kate (my niece), feeding Kate, bathing Kate, sleeping, shopping, hospital runs, oh and watching Dancing with the Stars and American Idol (two shows which I don't personally watch since we don't get Fox or ABC). Good times!

Let me just say: I have the cutest niece in the world!

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

Exhibit D

Exhibit E

See?? Isn't she adorable? I LOVE her! Quick note-thanks Marci for letting me borrow your guest room, your bathroom, your towels, your food, your car, your week! I love you!

And what were my handsome three boys doing while I was gallivanting in Dallas? Good question. I know there was lots of pajama wearing. Take for example this conversation I had with Tyson this morning:

Me: Booger, what did you and daddy do while mommy was gone?
Tyson: Daddy let me stay awake till morning time!
Me: Really? {hmm, maybe I need to have a word with Stuart}
Tyson: And daddy let me wear polars bears every day (i.e. his polar bear pjs)
Me: He did!? Did daddy wash them for you everyday too?
Tyson: thinking....daddy is a naked boy at night time so I wear my polar bears every day!

Let me point out the key words-daddy is a naked boy at night time. So many thought fighting for attention!

What else you ask?
Well.
While I was away, as in not-in-the-same-city-thus-Stuart-can-make-any-and-all-decisions-without-consulting-me-and-has-no-need-to-fear-my-wrath, this wonderful man decided on his own to split the boys into separate rooms. On.his.own.

When I left my house Monday night, the boys slept in the same room. There were two beds in one room. There was one room dedicated to being a play room. There was also a door on the frame into my bedroom.

When I returned Thursday morning, the boys were sleeping in two separate rooms. There was one bed in one room. And another bed in the another room. There was one room that looked quite empty since it only housed a bed and a dresser. And another room that looked ridiculously morbid since it now carried the weight of all the boys toys AND a bed. And somehow this third room acquired a door.

Do I really need to write it out? It is NOT wise to make major decisions/changes/improvements while one's spouse is away (unless that spouse happens to be the male in which case it is perfectly legitimate for the female to make said changes). And while I am on the subject, major decisions/changes/improvements should also not be made while one is pregnant and for the first year post delivery. Just a thought.

Cleansing breath.

And did I blow up at my dear, thoughtful husband? No. But I am enjoying sliding snide remarks at him. I am still me.

But my boys are in one piece. They seem to have eaten a large amount of food as witnessed by the remains of the unorganized refidgerator and pantry. The dogs are in one piece and unfortunetly have to sleep on the floor now that I am back. The fish are alive. My house is still standing. The grass grew, thanks in part to the $100 grass seed Stuart laid down before I left.

Eveything is ok. And alive. That's kind of a biggie.

So now begins the tumultuous task of cleaning up what has been done since I have been gone. It's going to be an interesting couple of days.

Shout outs:
Aquarium vacuum-my fish might be dead if not for you since Tyson decided to help by feeding the fish (while mommy was gone).
Fresh pineapple-I could smell you all day.
Noise makers-who doesn't like to hear the gentle murmur of crickets and waves and birds and white noise?
Daddy taking off work so that mommy can leave the house for a couple of days-yeah.
My sisters-love you!

P.S. Bri-ok, the Nuva Ring, I'm not sure if it really works or not. I had only been on it for a month. I too was tired of remembering to take my pill and I was just ready for a change. I couldn't do the patch since I am sensitive to latex and I couldn't do the shot since I did want to have kids sometime in the future. So the ring seemed like the best option. Apparently we were supposed to use another form of contraception during the first month of transitioning from one method to the other. Oops! And so Tyson was conceived!