Fun and Then Sick Baby

Michael Mini-Golfing
Life is good, as always. I lucked out and last week while driving to a doctor's office for work I drove by an adorable daycare by my work (it looks like a castle) and I called to ask about their rates just out of curiosity. They told me it would be $113/week for 3 days then asked if I wanted to come see it. I told them we were looking at an in-home daycare that would charge us $60/week and that we really couldn't afford much more. The girl then called the owners and called me back to tell me that they would match that price! So Michael started there on Monday and it's great. They have a security code to get into the daycare and offer an amazing curriculum. Plus, it's not even five minutes from my work office. :)

On Saturday, we went to Wahooz and played mini-golf with our good friends Russell and Sarah. As soon as we walked in, Michael eyed a stuffed Elmo. Our Fun Package came with 10 tokens each and we were able to come up with all but 100 tickets needed for the Elmo. They weren't willing to work with us on the Elmo, so Russell and Mike went back to get those tickets... and they ended up with 400 more! So Michael was spoiled and walked away with an Elmo and a four square ball. He also decided that by the second round of mini-golf, he was playing and mommy was watching. Lol. He took over my club and ball and it was adorable to watch him try and get it in the hole. He did actually get a hole in one on one hole and we were shocked! It was awesome. Unfortunately, Sunday he was really cranky and miserable so we weren't able to make it to Stephanie's baby shower.

Then last night.... I woke up at 12 to Michael just screaming and upset. I let him come lay with us and tried to get him to go back to bed, but it just wasn't happening. He kept crying and tossing and turning. I didn't know what was wrong with him...until about 1:30. I was still trying to comfort him when all of a sudden he screamed a few times, then threw up all over me, the bed, Mike's pillow, and our blankets. It was awful! This is so much worse than spit up. I am terrified of throwing up, then I got thrown up on and I was mortified. I just kept rubbing his back and trying to calm him down. Once he finished, we cleaned up, changed our clothes and washed off, and laid back down. I thought we were in the clear and that maybe he made himself sick from crying, but then around 2:30, it happened again. The poor little guy was up almost all night throwing up. By the end of it all, we were down to tiny little blankets and decorative pillows because unfortunately a toddler can't tell you he's going to throw up or even get a running start for the bathroom. We're home sick today, and I'm a little nervous since I've never had to really care for a toddler with the flu. I'm just trying to make sure he keeps hydrated, eats slowly, and hopefully he'll get a good amount of sleep so that he'll be back to normal by tomorrow.

My new job is so amazing! I called to let them know what happened and I was terrified they would be upset (I've only been there a month or so and it looks so bad to have to call in), but my boss said they understand, they all have kids and are real people and have been in this situation. He told me it wasn't a big deal at all. I feel so fortunate to be working for such an amazing company and I can't wait to get back to work tomorrow.

Another really cool thing that happened this week was that a friend from elementary school in Utah (I haven't seen her in 13 years!) found me on Facebook! Her name is Janie and we were best friends. We used to play all the time and we loved to sing along to the Phantom of the Opera. We never kept in touch after I moved and she said all she knew was my name and that I had a dad who lived in Idaho. She found my facebook page with a link to this blog and she said as soon as she opened it, she knew it was me because Phantom of the Opera was playing. Lol. How cool is that? I'm so excited!

Quotes and Being a Parent

"We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today" -Stacia Tauscher

"You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, for instance." -Franklin P. Jones

"A characteristic of a normal child is he doesn't act that way very often." -Author Unknown

"Boy, n: a noise with dirt on it." -Not Your Averge Dictionary

"Children seldom misquote. In fact, they tend to repeat word for word what you shouldn't have said." -Author Unknown

"While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about." -Angela Schwindt

"Any kid will run any errand for you if you ask at bedtime." -Red Skelton

I love these quotes. Life is such a gift and everyday offers so much happiness and so many blessings. Michael is starting to grow so fast that it's scary. On Sunday, April 18, we went camping and decided to make a big ceremony out of getting rid of the binky for good. We explained to Michael that it was time to become a big boy and that binkies are for babies. We told him when he was ready that he needed to throw his binky in the camp fire and say good bye to binkies for good. It took a few minutes, but he did. He threw his binky in the camp fire and he hasn't had a binky since. The first few nights were rough, but it's going much better now. He still asks for it several times a day, but he's pretty good about just letting it go once we explain that he's a big boy now and he threw his binky in the camp fire. It was really hard the first couple of nights, there was a lot of screaming, and he even ended up in our room one night, but it's worth the benefits now that we are on the downhill slope. Next big task: Potty training. :( Ugh.
Beyond the binky, Michael is so smart and continues to amaze me every day. He has the funniest personality and he talks all the time. I adore his words. He calls an airplane an "up high", a poptart is a "poppart", grandpa is "papa", and even the words he pronounces correctly sound like the cutest thing you've ever heard. He's a handful. He loves to play outside (and he doesn't care if it's cold and raining or 5 in the morning). He goes down slides face first on his tummy, he climbs on everything (we caught him standing in a window sill holding on for dear life today... luckily we got to him before he fell, and he was only a couple feet off the ground), he ALWAYS tries to drive when I tell him to get in the car, and his smile will melt your heart like butter. He's absolutely adorable and I can't imagine life without him in it.
You think about your life changing when you have a child.... you can't go to a movie without finding a sitter, you can't go out to eat unless it's a loud restaurant where your child can scream and get messy, you can't pamper yourself as much, you sacrifice your body, sleep, and sanity. But being a parent has changed my life for the better. I've never felt love the way I love my baby boy. I haven't been so excited about bubbles and play-doh since I was young enough to enjoy it myself, I haven't appreciated the simple things such as a good swing or slide in years, and I LOVE when he calls "mama" and kisses and hugs me. Being a mom is the greatest thing in the world.
Mike is doing wonderful. His leg is healing well and with physical therapy, he will be back to good in no time. Just in time for summer fun!
My school is going well and I only have 3 classes left! I'll be excited to have completed that milestone, and then it's on to the next step from there.
Life is good. We are so fortunate to have a wonderful family, a beautiful home, and an amazing life. There are always obstacles to overcome, but we get through them together and it only makes us stronger. And without hard times, you can't learn and grow. You can't really appreciate all the good in life, without experiencing the bad.

Well, it's been a while since I wrote so I decided it's definitely time. My new job at RehabAuthority is going amazing! Not only do I LOVE the job itself, but the people I work with are incredible. I love working with them all. They really believe in making work fun and making fun a priority at work. I am still figuring my "groove", but I don't think it will take too long before I have a good system that is working for me. Another exciting point: I will be getting to drive a company car soon and I am definitely looking forward to that. :)
School is going great. I only have 3 classes left after the two I am in now, and then I will have my associates. :) I'm supposed to take two classes at a time and if I do that, I will have my degree in September, but I think I am going to try and shoot to take them all the same time so I will have it in July.
Beyond that, I am on day 2 of no soda! It's not easy and my head hurts, but I drink probably close to 100oz of caffeine a day and I know it's not good for me so I am quitting cold turkey. :) We are also getting excited about the arrival of our two new nephews in May! Blase and Marissa will be bringing baby Matix into this wrld, and Stephanie and Mike will be blessed with beby Aiden. We went baby shopping this weekend and I couldn't believe Michael was ever so tiny and I'm excited that there will be another little baby around.
Michael is getting SO big! He said his first sentence last week (it was "Where'd mommy go?" to daddy as I was loading up the car before work. :) Since then, he's just taking off. He now tells us when he has gone potty (no matter where we are, lol), he tells us Uncle Daniel's chihuahua bites (he will look at her and say, "she bites"), and so much more. It's absolutely adorable! He even asks to go to the park or go play (that's what he says when he wants to go to the gym daycare to play with all the other kids). He's such a social butterfly and definitely a little energizer bunny, but he has the funniest little personality. His favorite TV shows are SuperWhy, Dinosaur Train, and Word World. At the beginning and end of Super Why, they sing and dance and he's right there with him. At the beginning of Dinosaur Train, there is a dinosaur that growls and he's sure to growl at the exact same moment every time. Lol. He likes to think he's a big boy too. He has decided he's too big to ride in shopping carts, he has to walk along side of you. And tonight, he even decided it was time to move from the booster seat to the chair alone at the dining table. We did a work out video tonight and he was doing it with us as well. He's just so silly and funny.
Mike is healing well. He has physical therapy 3 days a week for a total of 6 weeks, but they are working on building back up his muscles and range of motion so that he will be back to himself in no time. :) He was able to go back to work this last week too and that's been good for him as well.
Things are tight on money with the loss of my job and some disability payment issues we had, but overall, we're working through it and life is good. :)


Michael "Building a House" with Blocks

Michael Dancing to Super Why

Michael Learning to Drive an RC Car