Happy Birthday Evan!!

Today is my youngest son's 9th birthday!! Every year on my children's birthday i have always made a big deal and go all out for them. Not like over the top parties or lavish gifts, just simple traditions that we share together. We go eat breakfast together where ever they want to go. Dalton just wants to run to McDonald's and Evan prefers the local diner here called Peggy's. Greasy but country cooking! This morning when Evan woke up he came in my room and climbed into bed with me and at 6:30 this morning, we shared our birthday talk. This is when the boys want to here all about the day or night they were born. Evan's birth was special to me in many ways. The pregnancy was a challenge and the delivery was a nightmare! We tried for almost 5 years to have our first child and spent a lot of time with fertility doctors and taking lots of fertility medicine to conceive, with Evan.... he just showed up! I found out i was having him three weeks to the day after my grandfather died. He didn't want Dalton to be an only child and he got his wish. The pregnancy almost killed me physically but at the same time, saved my life! I went into labor with him the first time when i was only 25 weeks along. The doctor told me that if he was born then, he wouldn't survive! I was in the hospital for almost 2 weeks and put on bed rest for the next 3 weeks. I was taken medicine around the clock to keep contractions to a minimum. At 28 weeks, i was 5 centimeters dilated and 80% effaced. Evan was coming. I remember the nicu nurse coming in that evening that i went back to the hospital and telling me that my baby would be born very sick and could possibly die! I told her that i believed different and that God had given me this baby for a reason and i was going to leave it in his hands. She actually laughed at me and said " that's crazy!!" By the next morning my contractions had stopped and the very next day i went home to be with Dalton that wasn't even 2 yet! Those next few weeks were crazy!!! Evan was born at 32 weeks and weighed a whopping 6lbs 9oz. He was enormous to be so early! He would've been 15 pounds if i would have carried him to term!! ha ha. The delivery was a breeze! Since i had carried him so low, 2 pushes and he was out. He was beautiful. You can hear everyone cheering but that was the only sound! Evan never cried! He just laid there in my arms turning blue! He was not breathing. It took 4 minutes for him to come around! That was the worst silence of my life. Evan is now a healthy boy who is full of energy!! I said early that his birth saved my life and it did. Two days after Evan's birth i started having trouble catching my breath and gaining weight. I had gained 35 pounds in 2 weeks by the time i was admitted to the hospital. I was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure. If i wouldn't have had Evan i would have died, but having him almost killed me. He is truly my miracle! Both of my boys are the greatest gift! I can't remember my life before them. As i laid there this morning telling Evan about him spraying the nurses and hating his first bath, i watched him smile and listened to him laugh and thought that this moment will never come again and i am so grateful to be here everyday to share this with my kids. Happy Birthday to my little man. I love you more than words can express. Today was also the day that Dalton went to see the nerve doctor about his arm. Even though we were excited about celebrating we are sad with the news that we received from the doctor. Dalton's arm is in bad shape. He has been casted again for another 4 weeks. April 1 we will go back for more tests and will know more then. He will have to take it easy for a while and hopefully he will be healed and the arm will be normal again. Please lift him up in prayer. This is a serious situation for a child to be faced with. We have some big decisions to make on how we will treat this injury. The nerve damage cannot be fixed and will only get worst with time. If the cast does not help the problem, we will be faced with several surgeries. I believe that when you pray, you call someone by name and they will be healed. Miracles happen everyday! Just look at my family. Thanks for all of the birthday wishes and the prayers that are going out!! God Bless!

Things you learn from kids!

My oldest son Dalton, broke his left arm 8 months ago playing baseball and he wore a cast for almost 4 weeks. When the accident happened the doctor that was treating him told us that he would be in a cast for up to 6 weeks, have a MRI, and need surgery. We were surprised that they took the cast off early and never followed up with the rest of the treatment. A few weeks ago, we finally was able to get a doctor to order a MRI. Dalton has had pain every since they removed the cast and we were scared that the injury didn't heal correctly. We were right. Yesterday i finally got my hands on the written report from the test. We are so thankful that we have an appointment with a nerve specialist on Wednesday. Dalton is worried that since baseball season starts soon, he will not be able to play. Last night when i went down the hall to tell the kids goodnight, i stopped when i heard Dalton talking in his room. I thought maybe he was on the phone or just playing with the dog. He was in there praying. He was actually on his knees beside his bed. I could not help but cry when i was listening to his prayers. He was praying for healing. He actually asked the Lord to heal him. Dalton's words were plain when he spoke the words "Dear Lord, please heal me so my parents will not have to pay any more money to fix my arm." When i heard him say Amen, i walked into his room and he told me that he just finished praying and asking the Lord to heal him. He said that he didn't care if he missed baseball, he just didn't want us to have anymore co-pays. I told him that he shouldn't worry about that. Then i will never forget what he said next. He said parents worry about money all of the time, kids need to learn that it's not all about them all of the time. It's amazing what kids say everyday and what the little ears hear. Since we started over with the going from doctor to doctor trying to find the answers on why he is still in pain, i was worried about how he would feel if he didn't get to play ball this year. All this time i never thought that he was worried about us. I am grateful for my children and i learn something from them everyday! Tonight before i go to sleep not only will i pray for healing for Dalton but i will say a prayer of thanksgiving for him. This morning when i took the kids to school, Dalton reminded me that everything was going to be ok and for me to stop worrying about him. He is growing up more everyday! God Bless!

On the road again.

This morning we overslept AGAIN and missed church. This has become a habit lately and we need to get back in the swing soon!! Anyway, after we all finally got up, Evan had homework and Dalton's room was looking a little swampy so we tackled that and decided that today would be family day. Since it was a beautiful day (winds blowing what seemed like 100 mph) we showered, changed and hit the road! We decided to hit the flea market to see the sights and check out the deals. After wondering around for what seemed like eternity we found Dalton a Braves belt buckle and of course Brian found a few tools he COULD NOT live without we were done. Poor Evan and i got the shaft! Evan went from booth to booth trying hard to find something with his little money. He looked pitiful digging through the bens. He gave up and i told him that his birthday was coming up Wednesday and maybe he would get something wonderful that day. We all piled back in the car and instead of going home so i could get on the laundry, Brian decided that we needed to run to Sears. He had a gift card from Christmas that was burning a hole in his wallet. Oh great! I can just picture the laundry hitting me when i walked in the back door, but i grinned and thought "no, it's family day and this is time together". Evan and i skipped on sears and took off to Gamestop to find that birthday gift that he had to have now since we weren't coming back to town any more this week. He looked and finally made his decision and we shot out of there. I don't understand how people can go to the mall and spend hours in there shopping. Roaming from store to store looking for that special item.
I like to get what i need and hit the door! I am a strange woman i guess. My grandmother loves to go to the mall and not really shop but wonder! Maybe my urge to wonder will kick in when i am 81!! You go Granny!!! Finally, Brian showed up with his bags from Sears and we left for home. He talked on the way home about what he was going to fix with the things that he got today and i just shook my head and nodded from time to time. Tomorrow will be his test! He is off and there is a list on the fridge that he is going to go by. I will let y'all know exactly how much he accomplishes. If anyone needs anything fixed, call him! Heaven knows that he will have the tool to do it! On a different note, my mother in law came by this evening and gave us some bad news. A friend of ours out here, was just diagnosed with cancer. Bless her heart, she has babies and a family and is a giving women and wonderful friend. Please lift her up in prayer! Cancer seems to be taking over our area! Everyday we loose a friend to that terrible disease! I would like to say thanks for all of the loving comments that i have received. I love hearing from you! It was a great day spent with Brian and the boys!! God Bless!

Small town living..

A few things about small town living. This is in no particular order. Fact: the smaller the town the bigger the hair. Look at the ladies who go to the beauty shop on Fridays. They go in with maybe 20 hairs on their heads and come out looking like a a night at a honky tonk. Fact: if someone sends you to the store for washing powders, it's really clothes detergent not regular soap. I learned this one the hard way. Fact: everyone is really related so don't gossip at the grocery store. Fact: if you pass gas at home by the time the news gets to town, you have poo pooed all over yourself. Fact: overalls worn by adult men are considered formal attire. Fact: when you are dating a country boy and he comes to your high school to pick you up, never let him get out of of the truck unless you know what he has on. Camo overalls and a flannel shirt do not match! He might say to you "but my mom said it looked great!" Fact: most dates that include dinner out on the town is code for .... let's drive through Wendy's and have a jr. bacon cheeseburger and go coon hunting! Fact: some people might not speak to you at church but if you see them coming from the store with a twelve pack they will wave you down to invite you to a pig pickin! Most people think that country folks are slower than most and don't have the sense the lord gave a cow, but it's not true. True country people believe in taking care of their own. They are the first ones to show up with a pot of chicken-n-dumplings and sweet tea when a loved one passes. When disaster strikes, we ban together and cook for each other and find clothes for one another. We will even find a place for you ol' huntin dog to hang out until you can get your pens rebuilt. If you want a better life, move to the country! We may not have a Walmart on every corner, but the traffic is good and the men at the local diner knows all the news. God Bless!

All in family...

Here's the story of my life so far. I guess i need to start at the beginning. Not like David Copperfield beginning , but you get the jest of it. I am a only child. I am the oldest grand-daughter on my mom's side with 18 cousins and my dad's side, the oldest of 4 girls. I had a good childhood from what i can remember. I grew up in the same church that i still attend today. My grandfathers both past away and they both gave me many things. One grandfather "Pa" gave me my love of politics and fishing. He was also a great story teller and according to legend he could shoot a mean game of pool!! He and my grandmother "Granny" loved and raised 7 wonderful children. He was a hard working man who loved my grandmother and his children deeply. He was very proud of all of us. My greatest joy is knowing that he was here to meet my sons. I remember when i had Dalton my oldest and he would be fussing, i would take him to Pa and lay him on the bed beside him and they would watch CSPAN together. Dalton was a baby then but i heard Pa explaining politics to him and to this day my son can tell you the difference between Democrats and republicans. When he was 4 he used a couple of choice words in preschool about different political parties and embarrassed me! He was a wonderful provider and will live on with my kids every time they swing a golf club or vote!! My other grandfather "Papa" was a true gentleman. He loved my grandmother with a love that i envy. He is the one who taught me to drive. He would let me sit on his lap when i was 7 and drive home. The poor man had no fear! I say that because my kids scare me to death sometimes. He also taught all of his granddaughters to swim. Anything that my grandmother wanted, he would find the means to get it for her. It was the same with us grand girls. My cousin has downs and since her sisters and i could ride a bike with no problem, he thought that she should too. He had a 3 wheel bike made and she peddled with us like there was no tomorrow. He past away three weeks before i found out that i was pregnant with Evan. Those men changed my life for the better and i miss them daily. Especially when my boys do something great for the first time. The first time they hit a golf ball, caught a fish, said a ugly word about a democrat. So many times we are so worried about planning meals, running errands or cleaning that we forget that seconds are ticking by and if you blink one too many times, it's over. Life has passed you by. People say that you marry a man like your father. I married a man like my grandfathers. Brian and i have been married for almost 16 years and most of the time we are happy. I could lie and say all of the time but i promised to be truthful on here. Brian is a hard working man who will help anyone do just about anything. He is a hunting, karaoke singing, baseball coaching man. He's even handy around the house. If he can't fix it, he can tear it up more where you might think it was made that way. He always has parts left over when he puts things together and sometimes it runs and sometimes it doesn't. My boys were worth the wait. It took forever to have Dalton and Evan just showed up. I will share more about my pregnancies later. Dalton is a kind-hearted boy that just wants to do good. He loves baseball, hunting, video games and his dog Georgia. Evan is a comic that knows no fear!! He can crack you up one minute and make you steaming mad the next! He also loves baseball, hunting and working in the shop with his dad. I am very lucky to have my family and if the journey ended tomorrow, it was worth the trip! This was long, but hey i am new at this! At least i shared positive things. Maybe next time i can throw in some gossip or slander just for fun. Tonight i will pray for our neighbors in Hancock county that were hit by the tornado Wednesday night! The folks out here in Jefferson county know too well what you are going through. Oh! By the way, thanks for the laptop Brian, i won't ask for anything else for a while! God Bless!

Where do i start??

As i sit here in my living room in front of the roaring fire, i couldn't help but think about the little lady down the road that Brian and i are taking care of this weekend. Her son and wife are out of town and asked if we would look in on her from time to time. She is a young 84 year old lady that still has her "spunk". I have known her for almost 18 years. My husband Brian has known her all of his life. I went down to her house earlier to visit and we were talking about this and that and she said something that i will never forget. She said that when you are married to someone, no matter how young or old you are, you should always take care of them since they are the ones that will eventually wipe your behind when you are in need! I couldn't help but laugh, but you know she's right. When you think about it.. they should include that in your marriage vows. For better or worse, until you can't make it to the bathroom on your own. I think that those words would really stick with you over the years. Like i said in the last tidbit i wrote on here, i might not always be correct with the things that i say, but you will here something interesting. Right now my husband is gone on a rescue call in town. He is a volunteer fireman and i always worry when he leaves, not just about his safety but i worry about how a tragedy would effect my kids. They are wonderful boys ages 11 and very soon to be 9. My youngest son wants to be a fireman when he grows up and the other kid wants to be a vet. Maybe by the time Evan is a grown up fireman, the goverment will pay them the money that they deserve. It's amazing, you can dribble a round ball, or you can hit home runs and make a great living or you can run into burning buildings and crawl into cars and don't make squat! I just don't understand! Well, later i will give more information about the family life and catch everyone up. I sound as if i have a fan club or something when in truth it's me and a laptop! ha ha! Remember tonight to pray for others in need! God Bless.

This should be good....

Well, after reading different blogs from all over the Internet , i decided to give it a try. I have always enjoyed reading about others lives and listening to stories of encouragement so maybe i can actually do that for someone else. I am a real person with real feelings and i will not hold back. I have a wonderful family and great friends that truly love me for who i am, not what i say sometime. I will get back to the family information as soon i learn to blog. If anyone has any suggestions, let me know. I need help! Not just with a blog!! hahahahah. Give me some time to get the feel of this and you will see what my life is all about! God Bless!