The Low Down

It's been nearly 3 weeks since we arrived in Texas for our quarterly month-long visit.  I haven't posted much because it seems that we haven't really done all that much, but in fact, we're "going" from morning to night, mostly staying busy playing, going out, or just hanging around with the gang. 

Pumpkin mostly hangs out at his cousin D's house all day, every day, M-F.  I finally just started leaving his bike there so I wouldn't have to keep toting it back and forth everyday from "our" house to theirs.  One fine day during our 1st week here, I took the 3 kids (my 2 & D) to the lakeside park in D's neighborhood.  Being a weekday, the park was pretty much deserted, which was both eerie and cool.  The boys really wanted to go down to the lake to throw rocks, and of course, Giggles being Giggles, she walked right into the lake up to her knees just because she could, haha.

My kids are loving it, but they really just aren't used to this much hoopla.  Two weeks ago, after we'd been here just one week, Lis had a dance competition in Houston so the "neighbors" and the Grands were all gone for the weekend.  At the same time, my brother and sister-in-law went to Dallas for a concert, and my other sister and her fam were in San Antonio for my nephew's medical appointment.  Leaving me and my kids home alone for the weekend.  I'd planned to go to Houston for the dance-off but changed plans at the last minute.  Instead, I took the kids to a local Earth Day festival, which we all enjoyed, then we came home and all 3 of us took a nice, long nap!

Last week, I drove to San Antonio to attend a librarian conference with my sister and her librarian buddies.  I'd heard her talk about these conferences before, and here was this great opportunity for me to finally go to one too.  Whoop!  Neither kids nor rain nor...more rain was going to keep me from the conference. 
Bonus! ~> Not only was I able to crash with the ladies' in their hotel room(s), but one of my sister's friends was also able to snag me a free admission pass for the conference from one of their vendors.  Whoop whoop!  I had a lot of fun hanging out with my sister and her friends, and I made off with some EXCELLENT free books and loot!  And, I even got to take a picture with Super Scholastic Girl, hehe.

This weekend, Lis and her fam are headed back to S.A. for another dance competition.  I don't think we'll join them there either.  I'd kinda like to, but I understand hotels are sold out because of Fiesta.  There's a hay ride or something going on in town this weekend, a fund-raiser for autism.  Perhaps we'll do that instead.

Anyway, in other news, QT was recently promoted within his company, and we are moving back to Texas!  Yee-haw and Whoop-de-doo!!  Pumpkin is thrilled...as are all his cousins (about the move, I don't think they even realize it's tied to a job promotion, haha).  QT and I are pretty excited too.  We always planned to return, and it's much better when someone else picks up the tab.  ;)

Even more exciting is watching Giggles continue expanding her repertoire of words and signs and just learning more each day.  It turns out...she...likes...to..dress up!  Beautiful Grandma bought her a new outfit with a flouncy skirt, and Giggles immediately had me put it on her...along with about half a dozen hair bows, haha!  And the other night, she was crying but was instantly placated when B.G. offered to paint her fingernails, haha.  Oh my!

Headphones!

Test Posts from Texas

Pumpkin is LOVING this blanket of the Texas flag!  We've already requested one of our own from Grandpoo, who bought this one.

And this one was not taken in Texas.  It was taken shortly before we left Colorado.  This is a picture of Giggles' first time ever riding in a "big girl" car seat.

Easter with Friends

Thought I didn't post any pictures or blog about it, last year, we celebrated Easter with our good friends (let's call them the Rrrs).  The Rrrs accompanied us to the Colorado Railroad Museum for a train ride and egg hunt a week before Easter then came over to our house on Easter Sunday for a lovely lunch and an indoor egg hunt (b/c it was actually too rainy to go outside).  This year, we, once again, met up with the Rrrs for an Easter outing...this time with my mom's Bible study group.  Each of the moms pitched in some Easter eggs and yummy treats for lunch, and we all had a wonderful time.  The day was beautiful so we hung around at the park for hours.  Needless to say, the kids had a blast (and were nice and exhausted by the time we got back home).

And The Hits Just Keep Coming

In November, I told y'all about dear friends of ours who were facing possible foreclosure of their home while their little girl Avery fights infant leukemia.  They managed to raise enough funds from good people such as yourselves to stave off foreclosure for the time being, but they're nowhere near out of the woods yet.

Before I go any further, I'll go back a bit and tell you about some of the things they've gone through since Avery's diagnosis.  For starters, the entire family came down with H1N1 for which they had to take Tamiflu, which is unbelievably expensive.  They've also had to deal with bronchitis and strep, and they were unable to spend last Thanksgiving with their family because of a case of mono.  Both Avery and her older sister Emily were wearing casts on their legs at one point because of injuries received in separate incidents.  Melissa's mother, who has been helpful and instrumental in the way only loving grandmothers can be, fell and broke her hip, was hospitalized, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, underwent surgery, was hospitalized again, etc.  Meanwhile, Kelvin (Avery's dad) had to take a job out of state because he couldn't find enough work here so my friend Melissa was left alone to care for their 4 kids, take Avery to the hospital for her treatments, and even help care for her mom, who lives about an hour away.  Even their fairly new dishwasher broke down and had to be replaced!  Talk about bad luck...this is country song bad!

As I said, the hits just keep coming.  The latest:  Their home was burglarized!  Three nights ago while the family was at home sleeping in their rooms, these brazen thieves broke a window in Kelvin's truck, used his remote to open the garage door, entered my friend's home, and made off with thousands of dollars worth of tools and Melissa's purse, which had her ID, ATM card, cell phone, Avery's prescription card, the babies' WIC checks, and all their April grocery money!  The bastard scum went into little Avery's room where she slept and even raided the family's freezer and stole their roast beast!

The problem now, of course, is that Kelvin is unable to work without his tools, and there is no telling what the insurance company is going to cover or how the family is going to get by in the meantime.  I thank God that no one was harmed....though I'm left to wonder why bad things keep happening to this wonderful family and hope and pray that this will be it for them for the rest of their natural lives...and also that they win the lottery. :)

I'm reposting the slideshow from November in case any of you would like to do something to help my good friends and need to know where to send your donations.

(Here's the slideshow. To see the full screen, click on the little square within a square below the video.)


P.S. If any of you know Oprah, please ask her to give me a call so we can chat about the Spicers. ;)

Midnight and All is Well

A couple of weeks ago, we held a small gathering at our house to celebrate QT's birthday. No jello shots this time, but there were still plenty of laughs to be had by all. Unfortunately, as our guests started leaving, one of the kids started coughing...a croupy kind of cough. Nooo!

I called my friend a few days later to ask after her daughter, and it turns out the girl, who suffers from chronic respiratory problems, was put on steroids and missed about a week of school due to that virus. That very evening, Pumpkin started up with a croupy cough of his own. Even though it was just a mild case of croup (cough, runny nose, hoarse voice, but no fever), I kept him home from school the next two days to be on the safe side. He seemed fine by Saturday so he and his dad went out to visit the model train store, have lunch, and just enjoy some guy time together. I guess somewhere along the way, Pumpkin must've been exposed to an allergen because, that evening during dinner, his left ear suddenly started getting red and swollen. It was also hot to the touch, and Pumpkin complained that it hurt when I touched it. Then, just as suddenly, it went away! So we gave him a bath, loaded him up with Zyrtec, and put him to bed, same as any other night. A few hours later, at around dawn, he started coughing terribly then he sprang up in bed crying and gasping and grabbing at his mouth.

As luck would have it...or perhaps by God's good graces, I'd decided to have him sleep with me in my room so that I could keep an eye on him so I woke up as soon as he did. I'd also (again, by sheer luck or what-have-you) read up on the latest in croup treatment after we'd put the kids to bed so I knew exactly what to do. I "calmly" gathered him up and ran downstairs and out the front door with him to breathe in the cold air, which is what the "experts" said was the best thing to do (one study found that hot bathroom steam didn't work very well after all). And don't worry, he didn't get resfriado. We didn't actually stand around outside in our pajamas. I held the door open, and we sat on the sill, and I covered Pumpkin with my coat, which fit like a full-size Snuggie only warmer.

Once he was all nice and medicated and breathing easier, I noticed that his left eye was swollen and puffy. Was it mere coincidence that it was on the same side as the ear that had swollen the night before? I think not! Might this weird recurring allergy have something to do with the sudden worsening of his previously mild croup? In my reading, I came across something known as spasmodic croup, which is a recurring fever-less croup that appears to be triggered by allergies. It seems odd that I hadn't heard of this before, but it seems to fit.

So Pumpkin missed school again on Monday and then again on Tuesday because I'd kinda sorta re-injured my back when I carried him down the stairs. And then on Wednesday, which was to be his last day of school and the day of his classroom Easter party, school was cancelled on account of snow. Darn!

You'll be glad to hear that Pumpkin is doing better. In fact, we all are. I haven't yet attempted to go anywhere with the kids that might require any heavy lifting of strollers or pulling of loaded wagons, etc. Perhaps tomorrow when the weather is nicer, we'll try leaving the house. Or not. Whatever.

In other news this month, we visited the Zoo, celebrated QT's actual birthday, went to the park, and played with mice and dogs. Here are some pictures for you to enjoy.

Boo Boo

When I walked into Giggles' room this morning, she covered her eyes with her hands and said "Boo Boo" (as in Peek-a-boo). She often starts the p-a-b game when I walk in to greet her in the mornings, but since she couldn't say it for herself, she'd wait for me to say peek-a-boo before uncovering her eyes. Today marked the first time that she's ever actually said "peek-a-boo" to me, and it was sooo cute.

She's talking more and more every day. She says teta (bottle), Sunshine, Dada, Mama, No, Drink, Sit, papa (eat), ball, bowl, cat, bird, fish, thank you, and more. She's still working on getting Pumpkin's name, but she tries. It's sounding better and better.

Last week, we ran into a photographer friend at the park, and he snapped these beautiful pictures of Giggles playing on the slide. I think he captured her personality well in the pictures, but especially so in the one of her crinkling her nose and gnashing her teeth (below). That's totally her! I'm just glad she wasn't wearing her usual attire of dirty food-covered clothing that day, haha.










In less happy boo-boo related news, I decided, on the spur of the moment, to take the kids and meet up with some fellow moms and their kids for dinner at our local Chick-Fil-A last night. As I was tidying up the kitchen before leaving, I accidentally smashed Giggles' finger with the refrigerator door. Augh! At first, she was shaking and kicking and could barely make a sound, but when she got her lungs back, oh man, did she let loose! My poor little baby. Wah!!! As I rocked her and calmed her down, I started wondering whether we should just stay home after all. I bandaged her little finger up where it was bleeding and convinced myself that we should go ahead as planned. Then, just as we were walking out the door, Pumpkin inadvertently poked his eye with a toy he was holding and, of course, started to cry. Oh my gosh....I'm heaving a big ole sigh just thinking about last night's misadventures. What a weird night. I seriously wondered whether God or the Universe was trying to keep me home last night, ha ha.

BTW, you'll be happy to hear that her injured finger looks great today as does Pumpkin's eye (that was doubly injured yesterday, but that's another story).

Got a Minute?

I do.

Kids are asleep, QT is out of town, and I'm all alone for once with no distractions of any kind around me...well, excepting the toys all over the family room and the dirty dishes in the sink, there are no distractions! Also, Giggles is now able to climb onto the sofa, and she made off earlier this evening with the remote controller for the cable box. So it's just me and my netbook...at least until I locate that remote.

Anyway, for those of you who are wondering, I took Giggles to the doctor today. Not so much my idea as that of the nurse on the Nurseline, but I think I may either be in the market for a new pediatrician soon or just start following my own advice from now on. It's happened more than once to us that the nurse on the phone will tell me one thing (for ex: a child under 2 who's had an unexplained fever for 24 hours or more should be seen in the office right away) and then I am told something entirely different by the provider who sees my child (ex: sure, we can run tests but it's too soon now. Come back in 2 days if the fever isn't gone yet b/c right now, we just can't tell). Seriously. Do I look like I'm made of money and have nothing better to do with my time? My kids' health is worth everything and anything to me, but this feels more like I'm flushing money down the toilet for all the good it does them. I was pretty steamed about it this morning, but I'm over it now. Plus, I'm getting tired.

So I'd best wrap this up. Giggles seemed fine today after she woke from her nap, but her temp was 101 when I checked her at bedtime. I've got some serious thinking to do tomorrow (take her in or risk waiting until Monday). Oh, and Giggles apparently has a heart murmur. Thank goodness she has a well-child exam in 2 weeks.

Pumpkin is doing great, btw. He's really gotten into his new computer game Trainz. He can sit at the PC for hours playing that game. I'm impressed that he figured the game out all by himself (and it looks complicated), but I'm not so sure it's good for him to be on the computer all day so I signed him up for karate classes. Tonight was his first class. On the way home, he told me he didn't like it because they "do everything too fast" but when told that the instructor would be working 1-on-1 with him next week to teach him all those moves, he seemed mollified and kinda sorta indicated he would go again next week. Only time will tell if he will actually want to go when the day rolls around. I'll keep you posted.

Goofy Kids

Today, Giggles woke up from her afternoon nap with a fever of 102.5. So here we go again. And, of course, QT is out of town...because it seems this kind of thing only happens when he's gone. Oh well.

Last night, I made a video of the kids while they were having dinner and goofing around. What a difference a day makes sometimes. Hopefully, Giggles will be back to her crazy self in no time. Until then, here she is (with Pumpkin) in all her crazy glory.

Wow, that dude in Austin...

Crazy. But, I read his manifesto, and not only is it (mostly) well written, it's also quite persuasive...and very angry.

Anyway, on the school front, Pumpkin's preschool teacher told me a cute story when I went to pick him up today. Apparently, at recess, Pumpkin was surrounded by 5-6 girls all of whom were insisting that he was her friend and "the best." In the car on the way home, I asked him who the girls were...thinking it was probably some of his little (girl) friends from our playgroup. (It wasn't.) His answer "Umm....I don't really remember their names." ......Goodness me!

While all this was going on, Giggles and I were entertaining some "little" friends at home at our 1st-ever baby playdate especially for Giggles! It was lots of fun. All the little girls (and one boy) who came over also have older siblings at home, and it was just so cute watching them play together without their sibs around to knock them down or speak for them, haha. As usual, Giggles took a few minutes to warm up to the visitors, but she was laughing and yelling away with the rest of them in no time. She also really seemed to enjoy the yummy snacks because she didn't stop eating pretty much from the time everyone arrived until it was time to go pick her brother up from school.

Sad to say, but I didn't even remember to take out the camera until the playdate was about over so I have no pictures to show for it. INSTEAD, I'll leave you with a lovely collage of Giggles taking Mousie (and her brother's Nintendo DS) for a ride in her red coupe.


I love that last picture! It looks like she's saying "Get that camera out of my face already!" hahaha

Moving Right Along

Gosh, it's been so long since I updated with much about the kiddos. Well...for starters, they're both growing like weeds. Clothes that fit Pumpkin over the holidays didn't fit anymore by the time we got back from Texas. As for Giggles, some of her 12-mos size clothes are too short/small, but the next size up is still just a bit big on her so we're in that weird midway point and trying to make the best of it.

Pumpkin is reading! Sight words, I think, but he's able to sound out words too though that takes him longer obviously. And get ready for this: Giggles is talking! Or trying to anyway. I can make out the words: drink, cat, down, cracker, and car. She also makes specific sound combinations when she's calling her brother or the dog, and though the sounds she makes each have the right inflection and the appropriate number of syllables, they don't really sound much like the real things yet. But she's getting there for sure!

That's Right, You're Not From Texas

The kids are loving this song lately. When we play it at home, they both go nuts and start running around the house like lunatics. Here's what happens when we play it in the car.



In other news, I very ambitiously checked out about 8 books from the library a week and a half ago including one that I'm supposed to read for my book club meeting next week (Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen). We're allowed to keep borrowed books for 4 weeks, and I thought I'd be able to manage it easily. But then, I got an email from the library that the Dan Brown book I signed up for months and months ago finally came in for me!

When I originally signed up for The Lost Symbol, I was #215 on the list, haha. I picked up my book but didn't start reading it right away since I was already in the middle of another book. Then, I got another email from the library letting me know that the Anna Godbersen book I signed up for (also last year) had also finally come in! Since I'd already read books 1 & 2 in her Luxe series, knew them to be fairly easy reads (since they're YA lit), and was excited to find out how it all ends, I rushed over to the library, picked it up, and started reading it that very same evening....once again, putting aside the Dan Brown that was still patiently waiting to be read...as well as the Gruen that I needed to read for book club.

Well, next thing I know, I've got another email from the library letting me know that The Lost Symbol is due back by Saturday, Jan 30th. WHAT?!! I hadn't even cracked it open when the email came so I quickly polished off the Godbersen and the book that I'd put down to read the Godbersen and started on The Lost Symbol. I even tried to renew it, but there are still people waiting for this book so I wasn't allowed. And tomorrow is Saturday. And book club is on Wednesday. And I'm on, like, page 25 of 528 of The Lost Symbol. Good thing the library has a generous late policy, and that after tomorrow, they won't open again until Wednesday. Hehehehehe (that's my sinister laugh)

So....Our Christmas Trip

Yeah, it's long gone. QT said he was going to guest blog about our annual holiday trip, but he's been busy and/or out of town so I'm just gonna forge ahead without him.

So Christmas was fun, as usual. We got home, celebrated, had a birthday party, ate a lot, laughed a lot, sang, and came back to Denver.

We took loads of photos, and I made a few collages to make it easier to post them. I'm even skipping right over our night out watching Vic's band play and day out with the kids at the Children's Museum as well as photos from our trip back when we stopped at a railroad museum and played at hotels because there's simply too much.

Speaking of photos, the Times ran a front page photo of me and the kids enjoying the Christmas village at the Mall. Plus, Grandpoo and Beautiful Grandma took out a billboard on Shiloh with a birthday greeting for Pumpkin along with a giant picture of him so, even though we were only in town for a couple of weeks (at most), we got exposure all over the city! Pretty cool, eh?

Here, then, are my collages:

This is of Pumpkin's pre-party celebration with the fam at Cousin D's house.

















Here are some pics from the actual birthday bash!

















And here's our homegrown New Year's Eve celebration complete with Singstar:

Instant Day Brightener. Just Add Dogs.

Picture of Sunshine and Lily having fun on Rainbow Road.

Christmas at Home

Since we always end up traveling for the holidays, we've never enjoyed a Christmas morning at home with our kids. So this year, we decided to try something different. I told Pumpkin that I sent Santa Claus a letter explaining our predicament and got special permission from him to open our own gifts a few days before Christmas Day. I explained to Pumpkin that we were only opening the gifts we gave each other, and that they still had to wait until Christmas Day to open whatever gifts Santa brings. Pumpkin was soooo excited!

Friday night, we dressed the kids in their new Christmas pj's and put them to bed. Then, QT & I stayed up for a few more hours wrapping gifts, assembling toys, cleaning up, and getting food ready for the next morning. It wasn't so bad. We were probably in bed by 2:30 AM at the latest.

In the morning, well...I'll let the pictures tell the rest of the story. Even Sunshine got a gift (and loved it!) as you'll see. Merry Christmas Everyone! We're looking forward to the nice, warm, Texas weather. :)

Click here to view these pictures larger

Pumpkin's Christmas Program

The song is 'Tis Christmas.




Here's Giggles watching her big brother. Enraptured. Good snacks too!







Pumpkin's BFF came to see him perform, and he was just delighted.



And, finally, here's a shot of the 4 of us after the show.



Last weekend, on a whim, we decided to take the kids to the Railroad Museum to visit with Santa Claus and ride the trains. It was nice to be able to spend some time outside after the cold weather we recently had, and both kids seemed to really enjoy themselves. Pumpkin even agreed to visit with Santa to let him know that he'd written him a letter; however, Giggles wasn't too thrilled with the meeting.

Letter to Santa

This is Pumpkin's first-ever letter to Santa. I helped him a bit with the wording whenever he asked, but mostly, he composed and wrote this letter by himself. And, because his sister is still a baby and unable to write, he wanted to include her in his letter so that Santa would know what to get her. He even signed her name to the letter. Awww....he is SUCH a sweet brother.

Key:
Norfolk S. Locos = Norfolk Southern Locomotives
Baby Movie = Baby Einstein DVD

p.s. That line about his sister having been good...I'm not sure if that's entirely true, but I don't think Santa will count it against him. ;)

I'm Just Phoning It In Now

We just returned from watching the Christmas Parade of Lights in downtown Denver, and I realized that I haven't even posted pictures from our Halloween yet. Pre-Halloween parties, yes, but nothing after that. Here goes then.


Mario, Wario, and Giggles cruising through Southlands Mall on Halloween day. Notice that Giggles is holding a beaker--already following in her daddy's Mad Scientist footsteps! We actually went there to get lunch. In the 2nd picture, Giggles is doing a pretty good job of coloring her kids menu.

Halloween Night. Super Mario takes his dog, the Court Jester, for a walk before we head out trick-or-treating. Pumpkin had a blast being Super Mario. When other kids recognized him, they'd call out "Super Mario!" and Pumpkin would reply very nonchalantly, "Hey" and kind of even give them subtle little wave or point with his finger. Very cool. Very The Fonz.

In case you're wondering why there aren't pictures of Giggles in her costume, it's because she was down for the count by about 5PM, well before any trick-or-treating had started on our street. Better luck next year.


Now for this last picture...we took the kids to a birthday party the following day at a roller skating place, and Pumpkin insisted on wearing his Super Mario costume from the day before. SInce the costume was already in the laundry hamper, I put together a "disguise" for Super Mario to wear to the party so that he could attend without attracting too much attention from the paparazzi. His shirt is still red, only this time, it's striped with blue! Ingenious, no?

Please Help!

Y'all might recall hearing me talk about a good friend of mine whose baby daughter was diagnosed with leukemia last year (was it really just last year?!!). Well, the baby, who is now 2, is hanging tough and doing much better, but the family still needs our help.

My close friend Melissa had to quit her job to care for her little girl throughout all her hospital stays last year and this year. Meanwhile, Dad hasn't had much luck finding work as a contractor. I guess it might be because of the current economic situation around here, where the zip code that abuts ours was recently reported to have the highest rate of defaults and foreclosures IN THE COUNTRY! Anyway, the family has been struggling to keep their heads above water, but unfortunately, their situation has not improved much since all this began, and they are now in danger of losing their home. They need all the help they can get. Please take a look at the slideshow below and give what you can. They have been through so much already.

To see the full screen, click on the little square within a square below the video.


To read more about Avery, click here to visit her Caring Bridge site.

Update: Click here to read a related article on the Denver Egotist, where their tagline is "Helping Denver Suck Less, Daily." Well said. :)

Another way to help!
Click here to visit the C.O.L.E.S. Foundation website and cast your vote for Avery in the Christmas Cash giveaway! Families must qualify to enter the contest, and the winner receives a monetary prize to help them out for the holidays.

Birthdays Galore

This month, Pumpkin and I took Giggles sledding for the first time. Getting there proved to be a bit of a logistical challenge because the sidewalks were dry, but the park was covered with snow so I couldn't pull them there in their sleds, but I also couldn't pull them all the way in the wagon because it wouldn't make it. I ended up having to load both kids in the wagon, carry 1 of the sleds, and have Pumpkin pull the other sled behind him. By the time we arrived at the park entrance (1 block away), I was beginning to think it might have been a bad idea to try this on my own, but I persevered.


I parked (read: abandoned) our wagon at the park entrance, and we proceeded from there via sled. The park entrance is shady, and thus very icy and slippery, and I nearly fell once or twice, but we finally made it to the hill. Giggles was very excited to be out in the snow, but unfortunately, her cute little snowsuit didn't quite stand up to the elements as well as I'd expected. Before I realized what was happening, the feet on her little suit had gotten soaked, and Giggles' own feet were very, very cold. Thankfully, a friend had brought her kids over to sled with us so I was able to leave Pumpkin with her while I rushed Giggles back home to change her into some warm, dry clothes. And yes, I had to pull her back to the park entrance in the sled, then transfer her over to the wagon, then walk home as quickly as possible without slipping, then shuck our wet clothes and boots at the door, then dry and warm her up, then rush upstairs to find new clothes, then dress her, then pull our coats back on, then load her back up in the wagon....well, I'm sure you get the picture. Needless to say, I was a fried and sweaty mess by the time our sledding adventure was over that day, haha. But it was fun!

November was also a busy month for us birthday-wise. We celebrated mine in the usual style (as per QT's incredible planning), and we celebrated friends' birthdays at the usual spots (Chuck E Cheese, kid gyms, Chuck E Cheese, etc), and we ate lots of cake.