Chopped

We don't have the TV on much during the day at our house. There is one show I DVR and the girls will watch with me once in a blue moon and that is "Chopped". Any tv that I watch is after the girls go to bed. The other day I was working in my studio and the girls were playing with play-doh. I heard Ella say "step away from your plate and see who will be chopped". I looked up and Jetty had three lids lined up with her pretend food. Anyone who has seen the show could appreciate the cuteness. I looked at the girls and suggested we go inside and play "chopped" with real food. It was so much fun and the girls got such a kick out of playing. Just an FYI, we didn't chop anyone:) I gave them a bag with salad, crispy rice noodles, honey and a banana. Jetty made these cute little precise plates and Ella made two different plates(because she is my little rebel)and one featured a lovely cheese and honey sandwich. They both ate everything up.

The Fair

The girls have been talking about "it" for a year and it finally arrived. The fair was in town and we had a blast. Some things might look similar to here. We did think enough to put Ella's cowgirl boots on her to make her a little taller. She just made the height to ride the kid's rides. Thank goodness because she had such a great time being able to ride with Jet.

Wiped Out

Jetty has not been herself since the Flu. She is just wiped out. I am wondering if she is having a relapse of Mono? The other day when I was in the studio Doug took a photo of her after she fell asleep in this small box. Poor little thing. As for her tests...the MRI needs to be redone in a year or two to see if there are any changes in some lesions on the white matter. They aren't concerned and it is something that people with migranes usually have on their scans. Now we need to re-do the bloodwork again and see if she still has a positive ANA and we have started a headache journal to try to find her triggers.

My Super Heroes

Jetty finally decided that she wanted to be a Super Recycle Girl for Halloween. Ella also loved this idea and the "Super Recycle Girls" were born. What a difference a year makes in the excitement of Halloween. Little timid Ella was so excited to dress-up (she has always refused)and walked up to the houses like such a big girl. The costumes were so much fun to make with the help of this etsy video. Their boots, belts, and bracelets were all sewn with fused plastic bags. So much fun to do!

This is the 4th year we have been lucky enough to trick or treat with a group friends. There was about 15 families and it was so much fun. One of the houses had an old dog who looked like Hudson. Ella walked right in their house and past the man handing out candy. Doug called to her from the doorway as he watched her walk straight to the dog and pet him as he laid on the floor. She told us she wanted to pet the dog to remember Hudson. It brings tears to my eyes. She is such a sweet little animal lover.

The Flu and Should I be Concerned...

We have been stuck in the house for the week with the flu. Jetty was diagnosed last Saturday and started Tamiflu but they are now treating her for pneumonia(we are still waiting for x-ray results). She is doing much better with no fever in two days but she is so tired. She fell asleep last night at 5 woke up for dinner and fell back to sleep until 8 this morning. Doug came down with it a few days ago but is now starting to feel better. I had a sore throat so I started taking Tamiflu and it hasn't gotten any worse. Ella seems to have the best immune system of any little kid because she is still hanging in healthy. Hopefully we will be all back to normal next week but I am so grateful it wasn't any worse.

On another note...this is written on the utility pole that faces our house. Why would you write "I love the man on the bike?". Should I be concerned? HaHA

A little about Jetty and Ella

Ella says "I Love You" about 10 times a day with such meaning it is so wonderful. It is often completely out of the blue but always the perfect time.

Jetty wants to be a "Trachea" for Halloween. I love how my girl thinks outside the box but a trachea....really? When I said to her I wasn't sure if I could make that costume she said "okay,how about a cup or an ottoman."

Time flies

There is really no excuse for my lack of posting. Well, my computer is slow as molasses and I really try to avoid getting on it as much as possible. I am saving my pennies for a newer model so the girls can use this "clunker".

Jetty has had some tests in the last two weeks and so far so good. The tests are for daily headaches she has been having for months and because of her +ANA they really needed to check her blood vessels. There was a little something on the MRI/mra that requires another test on her nerves that she will be getting this week. Poor little thing had to be sedated for the MRI and MRA which was an experience. Eight hours later we were at home and she would stand up, make a funny comment and fall on her face. The neurologist says if the nerve test is fine we just need to re-do the MRI in 2 years to check the area again. It is most likely a condition that shows up when you have Migraines. Now we are trying to find her triggers for the Migraines. She is really a trooper and never complains about anything. I feel like we have had so many Dr. appts lately but I feel like we are getting closer to an answer. We re-do her bloodwork in another month and I am hoping that a third time is the charm and all her levels will be in the normal range.

Puppy Love

Jetty started first grade and she is loving being back at school. Ella and I miss her and for the first time Ella has been asking to go to school. The other day we visited a preschool down the road to sign Ella up for next years VPK program. Now when we are out walking Ella will insist we walk by her school. It is really cute and everyone who knows Ella knows what a big step this is and how much she has come out of her shell. She has also started reading! Out of he blue she will tell us what some words are and she is even trying to sound them out. Kids are so amazing!

As for the puppy...have I mentioned that she is a little extra work? She gained 21 pounds in a month(she is now 41 pounds and almost 5 months old)and is sweet as ever. She did just eat my prescription glasses which I am not real happy about at the moment. The first thing the girls said to me was "Mama, you should have put them away." Do you think they have heard that often from me lately?

Jetty's First Triathlon

Jetty had been looking forward to this tri for months. It is hard to find a Tri in this area for 5 and under. The poor little peanut had 102 fever at 3 in the morning the day of the race. She still insisted on racing and had a great time. It was a 25 yard swim, 1/4 mile bike and 1/8 mile run.

North Carolina -part 3

Gem mining in North Carolina was always one of my favorite things to do as a child. I had all my rocks in a wood box my brother made in boy scouts. How I wish I still had that box of rocks. Gem mining with the girls was so much fun and now they had a good collection growing.

After Gem mining we went into Cherokee. Cherokee is one of those tacky tourist destinations that remind you of the road side attractions of the 60's. I always have fond memories of Cherokee as a child and the truth is there are wonderful things in Cherokee if you can look past the tackiness and casinos. The Museum there is really wonderful and the Native American village was just a beautiful walk in the woods. There is also a great river that runs through town and makes a wonderful place for a picnic.

North Carolina- part two

While we were in North Carolina I wanted to hear some true mountain music. As I scanned the local papers I found a nearby city who was having music to raise money for their library. Groovin on the Grovemont was in cute little Swannanoa and was better then mountain music. The band was Barrel House Mamas and they were a wonderful folky/blues band. We had pizza on the grass that they were selling to raise money for the cutest little library and we all ate up the wonderfulness of the moment.

The one photo is of Jetty examining a knat. The girls became obsessed with watching them and who could collect the most "pets" on their bodies.

North Carolina

We have been back from the mountains for almost a week and I feel like I am finally getting back into the swing of things. The mountains were beautiful and we had a nice relaxing week. This week has been spent doing laundry, adjusting to the puppy, and watching the Tour. Truthfully, Doug has been watching the Tour and I am truly interested but I am too tired to watch it all at night.

One of the days on our trip, my very in shape husband, rode his bike from our cabin in Asheville to the summit of Mt.Mitchell(36 miles one way). I am so impressed by the cyclists that are able to do that ride. I am also impressed with my ability to follow him back on part of the Blue Ridge Parkway as he went down the mountain at 40 mph and not be concerned. The worry that would normally be welling up in my throat has dissipated with time and I know how careful he is on his bike. The girls and I had met him on top of the summit and we ate at this cute little restaurant right below the summit. At one point as we were following Daddy down the mountain Jetty said "Mommy, please pass Daddy". My immediate thought was that she was concerned he would crash but then she clarified "I don't want him to beat us to the cabin". Everything is a race with that girl.

Back from Vacation

We just git back from a lovely vacation in the mountains. Doug was able to ride his bike to the top of Mount Mitchell, we had lots of wonderful family time in a cute little cabin, and I was inspired by amazing artists. More to come ...as soon as I finish laundry, download photos and play with a puppy. Good thing Rose is so cute because she is a lot of work:)

A Day at the Springs

Lots of swimming, ice cream, watermelon, and fun visits with friends. That would sum up our last few weeks. Here are a few photos from one of our swimming adventures. I love the photo of Jetty on Doug's shoulders. It was a really sweet quiet moment for them. Ella has been swimming like a little fish and is a little more confident then her actual abilitles.

Five years ago today...

Five years ago today Jin Jie Li was placed in our arms in the Lottery Hotel in Nanning, Guangxi, China. We are so lucky and blessed to be her parents.

New Family Member

Last night before Doug went to sleep I said "By the way, I know we don't want to get a puppy right now but there are Bull Mastiff puppies for sale in the classified". Doug said "you really should go and check them out with the girls and send me some photos at work." The next thing I know I am calling him at work and telling him they only have one girl left and she is very sweet. We have wanted another dog after we lost sweet Hudson and had pretty much decided on a Mastiff. Needless to say, the little girl puppy is sitting at my feet being adorable.The girls have named her Rose.

Happy Father's Day

My girls are so blessed to have such a wonderful Daddy!

Last Day of School

We are so excited that Jetty's last day of school was a little over a week ago. We already had some wonderful visitors. Lisa and Maisie we all had so much fun:) I didn't sign up Jetty for any summer camps because we are going to take advantage of as much family time as possible.

The photos are from her last day at school and the awards ceremony. Jetty received an award for reading, music and another for P.E. She was very excited and all the little ones receiving their awards were so proud.

Jetty also showed her braveness with another round of blood work this week and a CAT scan. She went right into the cat scan all by herself and didn't shed a tear with the blood work. I was so proud and hope it will be the last and they have an answer for us soon.

Field Day Fun

How many of you remember field day? To be honest I never had fond memories of field day as a child. I was a chubby little kid who truly was embarrassed when I had to participate. Once I became a teacher I loved field day and being in charge of one of the games. Watching the children having so much fun is contagious. As a Mom it has reached a whole new level of fun for me. Having an athletic child who truly enjoys sports takes it to the next level. Only one more day of school and my little peanut will be finished with kindergarten.

Rain, Rain Go Away

If you had asked me a week ago I never would have thought that those sediments would have come out of my mouth. As of last week we were in such need of rain to lessen the fire danger and the high pollen count but enough already. Since Monday we have had over 16 inches of rain(and that was yesterday's count) and they are expecting another 4 inches of rain this weekend. For us it is so far just a major inconvienence but for many other families it is very sad and tragic. We had our boat cover ripped from the rain, we will probably lose some plants, and we have lost many hours of sleep this week. Between the weather radio going off for warnings(flood and tornados) and our sweet Murphy terrified of the storms we are not getting much sleep at night. I am reaching the state of exhaustion and would take a nap if I was able. We have broken down and we are going to try medicating Murphy tonight so maybe we could all get some sleep. She just wanders around our room all night panting like she is going to have a heart attack. But, as I said before, these things are nothing compared to the loss some families are feeling with their houses flooding and cars unable to get them to work. The county above us has gotten over 28 inches of rain since Monday. That is insane. Even with all the tropical storms and hurricanes we had dealt with I have never remembered rains like this week. Hopefully the rains will let up soon and no more property will suffer damage.

Fashion

"Project Runway" better look out because I think my husband has started a new fashion trend. Okay, I don't think anyone would be caught dead in this outfit except my husband. This is the romantic garb he wears to bed. The tights are some fancy schmancy pants that help circulation(or something like that)before a bike race. I think the Birkenstock really take the outfit to the next level. I still think he is adorable no matter what he is wearing.

On another note, Happy belated Mother's Day to all the wonderful Moms out there and all the Moms-to-be. I remember how hard Mother's Day was before our family was complete. To all the Mom's out there who are waiting I hope you hear good news soon. I can't say enough amazing things about my Mom. She is truly amazing and inspiring...I love you Mom!

I really need to put more of an effort to posting. By the time the girls are asleep I really am spent. I usually want to do something creative so I sit and hand-sew or needle felt. Posting can also be creative but for some reason the technical aspects zaps my creative spirit. I need to give a better effort and that will be my goal this week(maybe this month:).

Jetty was feeling better this week but her joints started hurting her again this morning. She ended up testing positive for mononucleosis and had a positive ANA test for Lupus or Rheumatoid Arthritis. We are praying that it is a false positive from the Mono which can happen. We go back for more tests in the beginning of June for Rheumatic diseases. Please keep her in your prayers and hope it is just a combination of the sinus infection, mono, and double jointedness that is causing her to be out of whack.

The Winner is..

After a random drawing with help from the girls...
Fliss who wrote "I will be a sucker... I will put in for it... just remember... with me... cheap postage... hahahaha" Congratulations:)
Also, some other people should be expecting an e-mail from me soon.

Last Day for Give-Away

The give-away ends tonight and don't forget...I will be giving extra away to any followers so right now my followers have a GREAT chance on winning,hehehe.

The pendants dimension is 1 1/4 inch and I usually make my necklaces 17" but can change that to whatever size needed. Good luck.

Give-Away

I have a new necklace design and thought I would like to give one away. Just leave a comment with you e-mail and you will be entered for a personalized ceramic necklace with either a favorite word or your child/children's name(s).

Since I would also like some followers of my Blog...I will also be giving away two more necklaces to two of my followers after the contest is over. I know I have some wonderful friends who follow my blog and would love to give them a little something every now and then. So if you become a follower expect more give-aways...

The give-away will end on May 5th. Good-luck.