Deep Breaths & Deep Snow

First of all, I want to thank those of you who left such encouragement on my last post. I don't like to be Deni-Downer, but I also want to make sure that I am raw and honest with those who still read this blog. I don't want to lie and sit here and tell you, "I am just fine, peachy keen jelly bean" when deep inside i am torn and hurt and broken. I have done that too many times in my life and I need to not do it.

Parker is doing GREAT! He's been stuffy and a little cough-y but other than that, his breathing is beautiful. I've had to do two alubterol treatments since Monday, at night, which honestly isn't surprising. I mean, if you think about how stuff settles and you heard how snotty he was, you'd do it too. It was completely precautionary. He wasn't wheezy, but his cough concerned me enough to go ahead and do it. And he's had no wheezing and is pretty much back to normal. FloVent will be on his daily regimen, but no biggie...anything to keep his lungs open and give him the ability to breath. It's good to hear him breath deep and not here him struggle. It was a long week.

I myself am doing better. I think I mentioned I was sick too. Sinus infection and congestion. Today is the first day really that I finally can breathe through my nose again. Still got a little junk in my throat, but I am doing well. It was a long week for me. Oh and I got blood tests back (I had them done Mon.) and everything looks great. I need to probably lost about 40-50 lbs to be mostly healthy, which I want to and intend to do, but my cholesterol is doing great (though I am on meds for that).

Parker and I are hunkered down inside for the next couple of days. Snowmaggedon is on in full force here in central ohio and I do not have any desire to be out in it. We could get up to 10 inches of snow and in some areas a foot. Which means I have every intention of hanging out in my home till Sunday. Mostly because of Parker and the fact that cold weather does trigger his issues and also because I HATE snow, I hate being out in it, I hate driving it, I hate cleaning it off my car and away from my front door.

Sunday is the BIG GAME! Colts vs. Saints in the Super Bowl. Our life group is having a party and I am pretty pumped. Can't wait to wear my jersey to church and show off my Colts pride. Have a good one and if you are in central OH - stay warm and don't get lost in the snow :)

GO COLTS!!!!!

Tidbits - Lots of Randomness

It's been a while since I have actually put in a decent update of a blog. I don't know how decent this will be, but I will share with you some of the things that are going on.

- Taking precautions: I have heard too much lately about pictures being stolen and used on other blogs or in other areas of the country/world. I have decided to start watermarking all pictures I put on here. Last thing I need is someone passing off my son as theirs. I am hoping to also make this blog look a lot nicer, someday when I get money, I want to get a layout made as well as a button and such. But alas - I have no money - or at least not enough to have a decent background made, so I wait.

- Ouch: So yesterday I am getting out of the shower, I am rushing and slip and fall, hit my back on the tub and come down hard on my tailbone - needless to say I have been in PAIN!

- So our apartment complex was being repaved last week - and they still ARE NOT DONE! I mean seriously! The paving itself is done, however - they haven't lined the area by my building...and we don't know when they will and it's sectioned off - can you say annoying.

- I went to garage sales on Saturday and I was horribly disappointed. They were in these two HUGE neighborhoods that are near my apartments. Well the one, I was like, oooh, young families, lots of stuff - WRONG. Only maybe 1/4 or less of the houses were actually selling anything. I did, however, find 2 Melissa and Doug puzzles and a purse at one and they were each a dollar a piece! After that neighborhood Parker and I headed to another - where we met up with Tabatha and Logan. Logan is Parker's NICU buddy - born the same day and same gestation. We were able to score some clothes for Parker and Logan, but other than that, Nadda. Oh and for people who have one - I will not go to a garage sale if you are standing outside smoking by all the stuff you are selling. Last thing I need is my stuff to smell like smoke. So just a suggestion - maybe go behind your house or in it - especially if you have other people helping. Also, if you are selling posters of mostly naked women - I will not be purchasing from you!

- Today, Drew and I had a date day. We got up and rearranged our living room again. I like the set up, but need to finish getting stuff moved to other places. My house is a mess - which is annoying. After that, we dropped Parker off at our friends and Drew and I went to see Night at the Museum 2 - I looooooved it. So much better than the first if you ask me! It was nice to have that time with Parker.

- I should note, I do not at all appreciate know-it-alls. (I REALLY wanted to go off on someone last night for being rude and acting like a know it all. It annoyed me!)

- Hmmmm - I think that is all I have for today! Have a good one and be blessed!

Merry Maid - Where Art Thou?

I am going to be honest here for a moment. I want to confess to you, my readers, something that you should know about me. It may be quite surprising, so hopefully you are sitting down.

I HATE HOUSEWORK!

I see you there, gasping for air in shock and awe. Well darn it, its the truth.

I hate dishes, mopping, sweeping, dusting, vacuuming, wiping things down, taking time to clean...bleck. Oh and I especially hate the bathrooms and laundry.

So where, may I ask is my merry maid? I think I deserve one...I think all of us at some point deserves one. I am a stay at home mom of a little stinker (good stinker, but stinker none the less).

And the cleaning has gotten worse - that mushed up animal crackers in the rug, the cherrios I step on all the time, and that melted cheese cube I missed that got in the corner. Yup, I have a baby that gets most food on the floor and than in his mouth. Someone tell me they start to get it in the mouth eventually. (then again, I still can't always make it in my mouth.)

The one thing I do love - cooking. I could cook all day. And bake, I love to cook and bake and make things with food. And I am getting more adventurous with my cooking. I even made pork roast recently. PORK ROAST - ME? What! Oh yah, I am like the poor girls Racheal Ray! Actually, I love Paula Deen and I agree - it's better with butter! :) So if you ever want to come over for dinner, let me know.

But when it comes back to the rest of home things - just call me a maid and let me go out and come back to a spotless home! Now, don't get me wrong, I do clean - if I didn't do some cleaning I'd lose what's left of my mind! Seriously, I would!

Anyways, now that I have complained about my issues - I am off to clean! You know why? Because I see you there, staring at me as if I am a big girl and can clean! Fine, I will stop with the guilt already!

TidBits: HAHA moments, TN, Grocery, Parker

It's time for another issue of Tidbits. Tidbits is where I basically write all that is in my head. A little bit of this, a little bit of that.

1) I am happy to report that Mr. Parker precious pants is back to his normal breathing self. Last time he had any form of his inhaler was a week ago! He is acting as if nothing really happened. I still have to be careful with him, but I think it's all over with. I hope that his breathing issues never happen again, but with every challenge I realize that I am a great mom and know my son. I am sad in a weird way that he is no long on his steroids. They cleared up his eczema beautifully, but it's back...but at least it's not every part of his body, it's really just his cheeks and knees and his arms. I am continually rubbing lotion on him. It's frustrating, but with this nicer weather, it's not nearly as bad as it had been!
- 2 Quick Questions: 1) How do I teach Parker to use a cup? well a sippy actually. Is there anything I can do to help him realize you don't chew it, you suck? 2) If you baby has an allergic reaction to something, how do you know the difference between that and say just eczema?
Now I am not saying that Parker had an allergic reaction, but I just was wondering if maybe part of his breathing issue was due to one. It was the first day he had tried beef and he ended up in hospital. Granted I think his breathing had started out that day being more rough than normal, but not as bad until the evening. I feel like I am questioning myself and all I do for Parker. But maybe the hospital would have noticed if it were an allergic reaction - don't you think?

2) Moving along - I have to say, I find myself amused by random things. For example today, I am leaving the grocery. I am getting ready to pull out of my spot and I see this precious little old lady attempting to pull into a handicap spot. She totally missed it and ends up parking in the striped part. She sits there for a minute and realizes she didn't make it into the actual spot. I don't know, but I found it humorous. You know what else I find humorous? That I hate drinking wine, but I use it to cook with. They say only cook with wine you would drink - well what do you do when you wouldn't drink it? I think it tastes awful personally, I love cooking with it though because the alcohol cooks out. I think it's funny. Also funny - attempting to purchase wine when I know squat about it.

3) Speaking of the grocery - I have found the perfect time for me to go - 10am on Monday morning. I scored some awesome meat deals, there was no one in the store really, I got to take my time and compare prices and think through things. I loved it. And Drew got to be with daddy here at home so I didn't have to deal with him (though he would have been fine!) I am attempting to use coupons more...it helps!

4) I am getting so excited and giddy about May! On May 10th our church will be holding a dedication time during service. I will be dedicating Parker at that service (no it is not baptism). It happens to be mother's day too, what a great day. Also exciting, Drew's parents are coming down to be there during Parker's dedication. I am hoping maybe some of my family with come from Indiana, it would be awesome to have them, but I don't want to pressure them. Anyways, on the 11th - that monday - we are headed to Tennessee for a week. We are going to Knoxville and I finally get to meet Drew's grandma and grandpa and they will get to meet Parker too. We are going to go to Gatlinburg, Panther Creek State Park and other fun places. We are also going to Mt. Vernon indiana to see Drew's aunt and uncle. We may get to stop in Nashville! I am so excited for our trip, I can't wait to go on a proper family vacation.

This weekend we are heading to Cincinnati to see our friend's The Vinson's who moved to MN a few years back. I haven't seem them in almost a year and I miss them. Heather and I were roommates and I love her to death. I turned to her a lot during my pregnancy and even the first months of Parker's life. She is one of my BFFs! I can't wait. I also get so see some other college buddies too, we are having a cookout at the Reasor's; Brandee was my roommate the last year of college. And the Hobb's - almost all of the CCU posse.

I think that is all I have for today, other than to stay in prayer for Stellan and the MckMama family (see my other post from today.)

Love you all! Glad to be back in the swing of blogging!

The Inspiration is stuck inside - help!

Hello Friends,

I have a lot in my head today, yet am stuck as to what I write. I thought I would write more about mommy guilt and giving myself a hard time, but changed my mind. I don’t want to bog down my blog with that right now.
Instead I decided I wanted to share something with you that frustrates me. There are days I just absolutely do not like living in an apartment. It really has nothing to do with the apartment community or neighbors (although, I could explain why slamming a door in the middle of the evening is annoying!) It’s the fact that it’s not a house and specific things that go along with that truth.

I realize right now we cannot afford a house and I am ok with that. What frustrates me most is that my apartment is a mess of random! In the living room/dining room alone there are 4 different colors of wood. Nothing really goes together and I feel stuck when it comes to decorating and organization. I want to paint and I realize I can, but I also know I would have to paint over what I paint when we move out and I don’t want to have to do that.

I don’t know where to begin when it comes to decorating an apartment or how to organize. I know I want to do creative things. I would love to make a corkboard with cloth over as not only something practical, but also something decorative to bring color in. I want this place to look put together and cute and I want things to match and I don’t want to be ashamed of it anymore.
It’s like, I have all these thoughts and ideas in my head, but don’t know how to get them out and make them reality. (Not to mention, I don’t have the money to go nuts over this either!) I know one thing I love is that I use a cute bench that is supposed to be for blanket storage as toy storage so when I am able to pick up Parker’s toys, I can hide them. I feel lost from there.

So here is my question for you…when you lived in an apartment, how did you make it look nice and organized? And what things in your home are not only practical but also add a punch of color and décor? I need some inspiration, I am feeling very stuck!