In Loving Memory...

The last two days have passed by feeling like an eternity. The love for my family has been SO evident, and I'm so appreciative for all of you who have called, commented, written, prayed, stopped by, posted about us...there are literally thousands praying for us and it is amazing! God is good!!

You may be asking how can I possibly say that after all that has happened. There is NO doubt that we are sad beyond belief. Our beloved brother and sister were taken from us unexpectedly and violently. There are a million "what if?" questions we could ask...and we've thought them and voiced a lot of them. There are no answers to them. God has a big plan, bigger than any of us can imagine, and we don't know what it is...but I KNOW that God loves me and that He loves Gary and Kim and all the rest of you, and there will be GOOD that comes out of all of this.

I can't get the song "When we all get to heaven" out of my head. It just keeps playing over and over in my mind. The chorus goes like this:

When we all get to heaven,
what a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
we'll sing and shout the victory!

Gary and Kim shouted in victory on Friday night. All of us are still crying because we miss them so much, but they are rejoicing...and someday I will rejoice with them. Until then, I will hang on to their memories, and I will be sad that they didn't get a chance to meet my son.

The last two days has seen my family receive umpteen visitors, all bearing sacks of groceries, paper goods, and food to last us for quite a while. They also came bearing hugs, shoulders to cry on, and stories about Gary and Kim. We've seen cousins and aunts and uncles that we haven't seen in almost a year -- Laura and her family came from Nebraska, others came from Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma -- all to show us that they care.

Through is all, we've remembered and shared why we love Gary and Kim so much. Gary and I were the same age...well, actually, he was born 3 months and 2 days before me, so he's OLDER. And that has been a fun joke between us ever since I became part of this family 8 years ago. I think he started it, by sending me a birthday card jabbing at me about my age...to which I jabbed back that he's older than me. This went on for 8 years, and I didn't get out to buy his card this year. He would have turned 34 on June 1. One of the first things that went through my mind was that I will be older than Gary now.

Gary and The Colonel found a common interest a few years ago. It brought them closer, and it was so fun to watch. They both have a passion for firearms. They discussed different guns, gone shopping together, and taken their wives target shooting. The Colonel wasn't close to most of his siblings growing up, mostly due to the large age gap, but this was a wonderful way for Gary and The Colonel to bond. The Colonel will definitely miss those times with his little brother.




Gary LOVED his nieces and nephews. In fact, when Jayme's first daughter was old enough to talk, Gary spent hours teaching her to say, "Uncle Gary is my favorite Uncle." He bought them gifts and gave them lots of love and played with them. He also became Uncle Gary to Kim's 3 nieces immediately. In fact, it's been said that sometimes the girls would run to Gary before Kim...I'm sure that was a fight for G & K. =)

Kim also fiercely loved her nieces and nephews. In fact, after their wrecked car was found, a search was started for a baby because there were so many baby clothes strewn about. Well, those clothes were handmade by Kim for my little boy. It hurts my heart so much to know that a big reason they were making this trip was to meet and love on Lil Major. They loved him so much and they had never met him. I hurt for my son who will not feel the loving arms of his Auntie Kim and Uncle Gary around him. Kim's mom was able to recover some of the clothes from the scene, and I will treasure them always.

Kim became a sister before she actually married Gary. From the first time Gary brought her around, we took her under our wing to explain some things about our family. =) We bonded with her, and amazingly, blogging brought all of us even closer. We shared stories, photos, dreams and fears, and I will miss her posts. Her creative spirit was evident in her gifts to us, her auction items for our annual family reunion, and her newly started business. She was an inspiration to me, and I'm much more crafty now after knowing my sisters in law.

My FIL took me in his arms yesterday as we both cried, and he told me that one of the Three Musketeers was missing, and it didn't seem real. We missed our sisters' lunch yesterday, and we will have to wait "til we all meet in heaven" to have that lunch.



This post may be a bit rambling, but the bottom line is that I love and miss my sister and brother, but I know that they are in a better place, where they are together...and I WILL see them again someday.

Please Pray!

This is not what I expected to be posting today...I was expecting to tell you about a wonderful day spent with my in-laws and how my son met another aunt and uncle for the first time, but that is the farthest thing from what happened.

The Colonel's brother and his wife were killed by a tornado last night as they travelled from Colorado to Kansas. It was such a freak thing and so devestating to all of us. Our family is grateful that they went together and that they are rejoicing with Jesus today, but we miss them so much, and we're sad that they were taken from us so suddenly and when they were so young. Click here for the news story.

There is a lot more to say, but i don't have the energy for it right now.

My Buddy Visits!

Last week my good Buddy Marge came to visit me and meet Lil Major. We had so much fun! Marge has been my friend since high school, and she is one of my 9 Buddies. We have always been friends, but a few years ago, we got even closer. After being friends for over 15 years, we still found ways to learn more about each other and to become even closer. We have spent HOURS and HOURS playing cards, shopping and drinking cocktails. And what do ya know? We even found time to do all three of those things while she was here last week. =)

Since there is a newborn in my life now, this visit was a little different from past visits between Marge and I. We were slow going in the morning and completely on Lil Major's schedule. My house was a disaster, and Marge was so kind as to clean my kitchen on afternoon while I fed the baby. And it wasn't until our visit was almost over that we realized that we hadn't taken any pictures. I did manage to get a couple of her with the baby, but we don't have one of us together. Stink!

We had a great time, and I was sad to see her go home. I miss you Marge! I'm so glad we got some Canasta in while you were here...even if you kicked my butt!!




When Jayme and I went to CA in March, she got to meet most of my buddies, so it was fun for Jayme to come over and hang out with Marge and I. It was Addy's last day of kindergarten, so just Jayme and Ellie came over. And what fun did we have. Jayme and Ellie made homemade whole wheat pretzels for all of us. Yum yum!! They're all gone, so I think Jayme needs to come back and make some more for us.

A day in the life...

Lil Major has had quite the excitement lately.

From hanging out and reading about Hummers...




to sharing a burger with Dad and the puppies...



to taking his first walk in his big boy stroller (which Mommy LOVES LOVES LOVES)...




the fun never ends around here!

Economic stimulus...

in action!




I spent my wad on a new washer and dryer. And even though I didn't have to ask for it, I got a GREAT deal, and only spent about half of our rebate on this...that means that furniture I got didn't cost us nearly as much.

I can rationalize anything!!

Our Monday

It's hard for me to remember what day of the week it is...and today is worse than normal because we didn't go to church yesterday and because The Colonel is on vacation this week. But, it's Monday, and it shows.

For the last week, my beloved boy had been getting fussier and fussier, and feedings are painful for both of us. Finally, yesterday we decided we had to do something, so after yet another almost sleepless night, I got up at 8am and called the pediatrician begging for an appointment this morning. They were able to fit us in at 8:45, which gave us 35 minutes after I got off the phone to get everyone up, dressed and out the door.

What we found out is that Lil Major has reflux. It's not uncommon for babies his age or for boys, but he hasn't had the classic symptom of spitting everything up (I'm thankful for that!) -- he just gets very upset when he's laying down or nursing (and what do babies do 85% of the time?!).

The nurse practitioner told us that we need to use the bulb to suction his nose (I've been avoiding that, because I'm scared to do it) and she prescribed some Zantac for the acid. We stopped and filled the prescription on the way home, drove through McD's for breakfast, came home to feed the boy, and then I was back out the door for my 6 week check at my doctor. Whew! Thank goodness The Colonel is off this week, so I didn't have to take Lil Major or worry about his next feeding (I LOVE my pump!).

At my doctor, I learned that my BP has come down to better levels (yay!!), and that I've healed well and everything looks great. She still wants me on my meds for another couple weeks to make sure it stays down. I'm praying for that!

I had a few errands to run after that - Babies R Us (I think I live there now) and the grocery store - and then I came home to relieve The Colonel so he could go run his errands.

Now, Lil Major and I are resting and trying to stay cool (where did this 90 degree weather come from??).

Here's my sweet angel, all 10 pounds of him!! (Obviously reflux hasn't affected his ability to grow -- bye bye newborn diapers!)



And here is how his daddy put his clothes back on him after his diaper change:

Discount Sally

As many of you know, my husband, The Colonel, is very creative. He is a writer and an artist, and my son will have the coolest Dad helping him with school projects.

This creativity was made known to me early in our relationship. The Colonel and I were on our first vacation together, and we headed down to San Diego with another couple who we are good friends with. It was on this trip that we started talking about getting married -- and we were engaged 2 1/2 months later and married 3 months after that. I was known for trying to get deals - I shopped with coupons, and I wasn't afraid to ask for a discount if something wasn't up to snuff. On the complete other hand, The Colonel was embarrassed to use coupons, and he wouldn't bother to return an item that wasn't 100% after he bought it (case in point -- we STILL have a TV that is half green and has been since the day The Colonel got it!).

The story below is true, or mostly true, with bits of The Colonel's embellishment thrown in for entertainment purposes. The Colonel wrote it, and unleashed his creative side to me, after an experience we had in San Diego. Since this story was shared with our family and friends, I have been called Discount Sally.

Discount Sally

So far, we had eaten about five times that day, and we still had yet to make it to our dinner reservations at 8 PM at a posh seaside fish house. Stevie and I were dragging our feet.

"We told you boys weeks ago that we were going to dress up and go out for dinner," Sally said, hands on hips. So we turned off the basketball playoffs and went.

That's how we found ourselves sitting stiffly in our Sunday best in a dimly lit fishhouse by the ocean.

I was stuffed. As I mentioned, we had already consumed twice our normal daily intake that day - bacon and egg sandwiches, nachos, Chinese food, funnelcake - with very little activity between feedings.

For this fine dining event, all poor Stevie could manage to eat was a salad and a bowl of soup. I gamely nibbled a few bites of undercooked steak and a couple of shrimpy shrimp. I simply could eat no more.

Stevie and I were stuffed, happy and a bit drowsy and we amused ourselves by gazing out the windows at the nearby boardwalk where a local fruitcake was playing a fiddle and fooling around with passersby.

But the girls were not so content. "This waitress stinks," Sally suddenly stated.

"No kidding," Megan chimed in. "We had to ask three times to have our water refilled."

"Yeah! Doesn't it seem like she's treating us different than the other customers?" said Sally, sharply elbowing me in the ribs.

"Uh, sure, honey," I obligingly replied. I had no idea where this was going.

Stevie, amazingly, was now alert and paying attention, eager to assist. "Hey, she didn't even offer me ground pepper for my salad," he chimed in.

Trying to help the cause, I said: "I didn't buy new pants and shoes just to be treated like this." I even thumped my fist on the table for emphasis.

Our little group was getting rowdy. "Look," said Stevie, pointing. "Those people over there never had to ask for more water."

"What are we - second-class citizens?" said I, fueling the fire.

The girls were really in a frenzy now. The sharks smelled blood in the water. Suddenly, Discount Sally reared her head. "I think we should speak to management," she proclaimed.

What? Stevie and I looked at each other in alarm. Whoa! We hadn't bargained on this. We wanted no part of this. Our waitress wasn't really that bad. We were just having a little fun, you know? We quickly turned our interests back to the fiddler on the boardwalk.

But the girls were not to be denied. "This restaurant came highly recommended by a friend of mine," Discount Sally said. "And this treatment is unacceptable."

There was a lull in the conversation as the worst waitress in the world brought us the check. It was three figures and change. This pleased the girls not at all, and the next thing we knew, they were flagging down the manager. Goodness.

I wanted to be anywhere else. The thought of sneaking out to the men's room passed through my mind, but I decided that would be a bit cowardly. Stevie was rolling his eyes and searching desperately for somewhere to hide, like under the table. "I don't like these confrontations," he whispered to me. "I'm just a simple country mouse. I got my food and that's all I care about." I nodded in understanding.

When the manager arrived at our table, the girls lit into the poor guy like I've never seen. They beat him up one side and down the other. They tore our waitress limb from limb as they rattled off her many transgressions. How on earth could she have treated us so poorly? After all, we were from out of town! Her actions bordered on criminal.

Stevie and I stared out the window, suddenly very interested in the foolish fiddler.

The manager quickly snatched up our check. "Let me make a few changes," he hissed as he scurried away.

When the manager returned, our bill had been magically reduced by some thirty percent, down into double digits.

"We really weren't expecting this," the girls babbled gleefully. Yeah, right.

"We're sorry for the inconvenience. Please come again," the manager pleased as he quickly fled the scene.

Discount Sally strikes again.


Well, I'll have you know that I struck 2 more times recently. I walked out of Sears with a $139 digital frame that I paid $49 for AND it has a $10 rebate. And I wasn't even looking for that deal. AND, I scored on my furniture by buying the floor display and shamelessly asking for a discount. I'm offering lessons if anyone is interested. =)

So cute!

“I’m having a muffin with frosting on it, and I get to eat it in the truck. Oh, and I’m so handsome. Do you want to take me home with you??”

This is a conversation I had with a 3 year old at Starbucks this morning. His mom was a little embarrassed, but she thought it was cute, too. She had told him while walking into Target (where the Starbucks was) that if he didn’t stay close to her, then someone might think he was so cute and take him home with them. Ha!

Someday my little one will be melting strangers’ hearts in Starbucks!

I'm so tired...

that in the middle of the night when Lil Major started crying, I reached over and tried to pick up Lucy (my furry child) and put her over my shoulder to burp her. I couldn't figure out why all of a sudden Lil Major had doubled in weight!

We had a long night. Can you bottle baby gas and sell it as natural gas?? We have a TON of it around here!

Mother's Day

My first official Mother's Day. I say "first official" because The Colonel has always given me cards and gifts on Mother's Day from our puppies. I guess that's why he didn't really see this Mother's Day as very different. Don't get me wrong, I got 2 very nice cards from him, Lil Major and the puppies. And he finally agreed to get new furniture, which is what I'd been asking for for Mom's Day.

So, our day wasn't all that different. In fact, I had to remind him it was Mother's Day when I wanted a nap and the baby was fussy. We went to church with my parents, then we headed to a restaurant we'd tried before that I had really liked. It's a South American steakhouse. Too bad our food wasn't as good this time as the last time. We'll try it again though.

Then we headed over to Sam's Club to pick up the furniture I'd picked out. The stuff we had was 9 years old, and The Colonel had helped me pick it out when we were dating. The dogs had taken it over, and it wasn't very comfortable to me to sit and feed the baby. So, I found this great set at Sam's...5 pieces - couch, 2 chairs and 2 ottomans. And the price was right. BUT, when we got there, the only one left was the display set. So, Discount Sally (more about that later on) reared her head, and I left the store with the perfectly-fine display set for 15% off the already good price. Woo Hoo!

Here are a couple pictures of it...as you can see, the puppies have already laid claim...but I'm working on that.




The rest of the day was spent trying to catch up on sleep. We had 2 very short nights with our fussy gassy babe. None of us got much sleep, so we took naps, and did our best to get to bed early. We've had a few better nights, including Lil Major going 4 1/2 hours between feedings once. I just wish he didn't want that 5am feeding, because after he goes back down at 6am, he wakes up at 7:30 and seems to be ready for the day. Grr. But, I'm getting used to this no sleep thing, as scary as that sounds.

I hope all of you had a great Mother's Day. I'll have to lay out my expectations more clearly next year. =)

Miscellaneous

I know it's been a while since I've posted. At first I didn't have anything to write about. I mean, I sleep 1-2 hours at a time, then I get up, feed a fussy baby (it takes an hour to get him to eat a good meal), and try to go back to sleep. During the day, I try to get at least one thing crossed off my list, but it doesn't always work. So, I didn't think you'd want to hear all about that.

But, then I did have a few things to post about...and I couldn't find the time to sit down and get it out. So, here I am, 11pm, baby is FINALLY asleep (he's been crying for the last 2+ hours and we're not sure why), and I'm using the precious few minutes I should be sleeping to try to get something out. I'm tired...I'm probably not making sense, and I'm probably being more blunt than I intend to. Sorry.

Before I droll on about whatever it is I'm going to droll on about...here's a cute picture of my sweet baby (well, he's sweet 90% of the time).



I took this picture today, right before Mema and Papa took him to the DMV with him (what fun, huh?). I was heading to the Y for my second class back from having the baby. I went to my first class last night, and it felt SO good. Of course, I woke up sore, and then submitted myself to further torture by taking step and a weight class today. I can barely sit down or stand up now! I guess that means I really need it.

After the gym today, I intended to feed the baby and head out to run some errands. I should have known better. I got my errands done, but it took me over 2 hours to get back out of the house after I got home from the gym. One of our first stops was the pediatrician to see how much Lil Major weighs now...he weighs 9.4 pounds!! He's gained 2.5 pounds in the last 3 weeks. Woo hoo!! The Colonel says his "wing span" is now 24", one more inch than he is tall (I think that's unscientific, but I'll take it).

I'm reading the book, "On Becoming Babywise" (thanks for the tip, Liza!) in an attempt to get my kid sleeping through the night ASAP. We've had a couple times where's he's slept 4-5 hours, but we're not quite there yet. Last night I only got up twice, but after I finally got back to bed at 6am, he woke up for the day at 7:30. We'll have to work on that.

In other news, I have a prayer request for you guys. We have a family friend (from growing up) who really needs prayer for their little girl. She's had physical problems since she was born prematurely last fall, and after human error during a head surgery earlier this week, she has suffered brain damage. The family is trusting God, and praying for miraculous healing, and trying to take it one day at a time. This is stressful and sad and disappointing to them, but they are an amazing testament of faith. They have a blog, but I'm going to wait a bit to post the link. For now, if you'd remember Mia (the baby girl) in your prayers, I'd appreciate it. As a new mom, I CAN NOT imagine going through this.

Well, I'm off to try to catch a few hours of sleep.

Nieces are lovin' him!

Since Jayme doesn't have a camera right now, I'm posting some cute pictures we took of the girls w/ their newest cousin last night. This way, I can show off my cute nieces, and Jayme can steal the pics and have them on her computer, too.

The girls were so excited to hold the baby, and they both did an awesome job holding his head and loving on him. Hmm...looks like they're ready for a new sibling...hint, hint...

Our week in pictures

Aunt Jana and Captain are here visiting us from IN this week...and we have been busy! With 2 babies in the house, it's often comical as we try to get ready to go somewhere. Invariably, one baby will need to eat as soon as the other baby is finally ready to go. Our excursions have not begun each day until well after noon...unless we are just trekking the 3 doors to Mema and Papa's to help them scrape wallpaper. And because Aunt Jana is here, we have GREATLY added to our photo collection of Lil Major (Thanks Aunt Janer!). Here are the highlights:

My sweet baby boy, posing like an angel for Aunt Janer...




Cousins in their matching car seats:


Lovin' on his paci:


Tummy time


Lil Major's furry brother checks on him for Mommy


Lucy does this same with Captain


Aunt Jayme and our sweet nieces came to visit last night


We all went to a shower thrown by MIL's church friends...Lil Major wore shoes for the first time -- isn't he cute??


All that shopping and playing and partying wore him out


Mema and Captain after bath time


Notice that there are NO pictures of Sis and I. That's mostly because we're never ready at the same time as the babies. But, BIL will be here for the weekend, and we'll make sure to get some family shots.

Lil Major is IT

At a whopping 3 weeks old, Lil Major has been tagged for a MEME by his cousin, Captain, aka Micah. His cousin wants to know 10 things about him. So, I sat down and interviewed Lil Major, and here's what he had to say:

1. I was born 3 weeks and 2 days earlier than my due date. My mommy and daddy weren’t exactly ready for me, but I think they’re glad that I’m here now, even though Mommy had to stay in the hospital for 5+ days to make sure that both of us were ok.

2. I have 2 cousins with birthdays in April, also. But, mine is the first in the month. One of my cousins turned 11 a week after I was born, and the other one – his sister – turned 10 fifteen days after I was born. I can’t wait to meet them!

3. People say I look just like my daddy. I have curly hair, eyes shaped like his, and big blue eyes. I already have facial expressions like my Daddy, too, and I sleep like him, too. I also look a little like my mommy. I got her little mouth, but Daddy says her mouth is ANYTHING but little.



4. I will get to grow up in the same town where both sets of my grandparents live. Daddy’s parents have lived here for a long time, and Mommy’s parents moved here just before I was born. That will be so fun to have them close by.

5. My big cousin, Micah (but I call him Captain), was born 5 months before me. He’s so cool because he loans me all of his clothes after he outgrows them. And guess what?? He’s on a plane RIGHT NOW to come meet me. He’s bringing Aunt Jana along, and we’re going to have SO much fun. Right now he seems really big compared to me, but we’ll actually be in the same grade at school once we get big enough.

6. Mommy and Daddy are very tired these days. Sometimes Mommy falls asleep while she feeds me...but I guess that’s ok, because sometimes I fall asleep when I’m eating. I’ve had bad tummy aches lately, and it makes me cry a lot. This makes Mommy sad and Daddy confused. He always tries to change my diaper when I get fussy.

7. Even though I’m the first “real” kid in my family, I came home to meet my furry brother and sister, Rerun and Lucy. They aren’t sure what to make of me. But, they’re very friendly and nice. Lucy always wants to help Mommy calm me down, but Rerun runs away when I start crying.



8. Lots of people have done really nice things for my family since I got here. Some of the people at our church bring Mommy and Daddy dinner every couple of days. Mommy and Daddy really like this because they say they get to eat "real" food on those nights...since Mommy doesn't really cook much. We also have received flowers and plants from people who love us. Mommy's good friend Shell, who is having a little girl this summer - I bet she'll be cute - sent some really pretty flowers when Mommy went into the hospital.


Mommy also got some flowers from people she works with:




And because I got here early, I got to go to a shower for Mommy. It was kinda weird though, because no one got wet. But, I got a bunch of cool stuff! Here's a picture of Mommy and her friends who gave the party.



9. Mommy laughed really loud, and scared me, when she opened a gift from her good friend Brenda in CA. Mommy and Brenda used to work together. This was the first thing Mommy saw when she opened the box:


But, we don't like the Cowboys very much, so Mommy said I can suck on them.

Then Mommy saw this in the box next.


Mommy told me it's ok if I wear them, so I can puke on the Raiders.

And then we got to the good stuff...



10. Right now I might be little...



...but Daddy says I'm going to be a GIANT someday. Daddy checks my arm span every couple days, and instead of tummy time, we do calisthenics. I did a push up on Daddy's chest a few days ago!




UPDATE: So, after I posted this, my sister reminded me that Lil Major needs to tag some of his buddies, so let's tag Hudson, Gray, and Ollie.

Monday

The Colonel had to go back to work today. I miss him. I loved being home together. I wonder how he's doing after getting less than normal sleep last night? We're working on ways to become independently wealthy so we can stay home together always!

There are SO many things that I want/need to do in the hour to three hours I have while Lil Major naps. And it never seems like enough time to get done what I really need to. I HAVE managed to write a lot of thank yous, do a bunch of laundry, and get a shower pretty much every day. But, my floors are disgusting, as are the bathrooms, I need to wash our sheets, vacuum the floor and clean off the counters. I suppose I'll eventually get to it all.

In the meantime, Carrie posted a prayer that she prays for her little one every night, and I LOVE it. I'm going to steal it and start using it to pray for Lil Major. Check it out here.

Thirteen Signs that I'm a Mommy

I've never done this Thursday Thirteen thing before, but I thought I'd give it a shot this time. Here are 13 signs that I'm now a Mommy...

1. I no longer can eat a meal from start to finish without being interrupted by a hungry or dirty baby.

2. I now do laundry every day where I used to be able to stretch it to every 2 weeks.

3. I started this post this morning, and only got this far - it's 12 hours later and I'm attempting to finish.

4. I've been puked on more times in the last 3 days than I was in 5 years of college.

5. When it's the middle of the night, and I'm exhausted, I still get up and smile down at my son as he starts to wake up looking for a meal.

6. When I shop, I (willingly) bypass the women's clothes and head straight for the adorable baby section.

7. I drive an SUV with a stroller and a car seat inside.

8. My house is full of baby items, most of which I had no idea about until very recently.

9. My heart aches when the little guy starts to squeal, and I almost burst into tears when his little chin starts quivering.

10. I call my girlfriends and talk about spit up, bouncy chairs and feeding schedules instead of shopping trips, books we've read and our next vacations.

11. My counter is covered in bottles and breast pump accessories.

12. The pediatrician is on speed dial on my cell phone, and we've already been to her office 3 times (4th visit will be tomorrow).

13. I'm too exhausted to think of a 13th thing -- that should be evidence of a mommy right there.