Paxton

Today is August 30th. It is also the 1 year anniversary of my little man's open heart surgery. I have very mixed emotions today. I am so happy and so grateful that he is here and healthy. However, it brings back such vivid memories of what we went through. Just thinking about it brings tears to my eyes. I remember going into Dr. V's office. The first thing he said was, "Don't worry, I will save your son. I will fix him." I was skeptical, but that is what I needed to hear and he made me more confident. The surgery was originally scheduled for September to allow him time to gain weight and I remember begging him to please wait till October. September is a very hard month for us. We have always had bad things happen during that month (car stolen on wedding day, losing Parker, etc.). Dr. V said...."I'll turn it around for you. You'll see. I'll make Sept a good month". Well, as it turns out, the surgery was in August as Paxton was not gaining weight as we hoped, but he did follow through and make good on his promise. He fixed my son's heart and we are forever grateful.

Earthquake

So, by now everyone knows that they was a 5.8 point earthquake in VA yesterday. Working in DC, we definitely felt it. It was scary, though at first, I had no idea what was happening. I ran out of my office and my coworkers and I just kind of looked at each other like, "what's going on". Seconds later, my mom called in a panic. I told her to grab Pax and go to the basement. I have no idea if that is good advise or not, but it sounded good at the time. Immediately after, the alarm sounded at work and we were evacuated. This was around 2:20pm. By 2:30pm, we were sent home. Unfortunately for me, I ride the bus in as there is NO parking in my building unless you are in an already established carpool :(. The buses don't start running until 3pm so .... I had to wait. By 3pm traffic was terrible and it took me 3 hours to get home.
I don't have anything more exciting to say. I'm grateful that my sisters and I could establish contact (thank God for FB!!) and they were able to check on Mia for me. The biggest eye opener for me was...I know now that eventually, I will need to find a job closer to home. Being stuck in DC when my kids need me, with no transportation, is not acceptable.

See Girl Run....

There are a couple of blogs that I keep up with regularly. One is littlepinkmonster. She is the wife of a local radio DJ and has 2 kids the same ages as mine. I like to read about her kids, her crafts, recipes, and whatever else. Recently, she has started running. Strangely, I had started just the week before (only to stop after day 2). Her blog has inspired me to try...yet again. So, today I will download a good running app and try to put together a motivating song list. Let's see how this goes the 2nd time around. These last 8 lbs of baby fat just don't want to go away...

Santa's watching you....

So, after Paxton's visit to Hopkins, we spent some time at the Inner Harbor to celebrate. We decided to eat lunch outside at Dicks Last Resort. As we were sitting at the table, a man dressed in a red shirt, red baseball cap, and white hair/beard walked by. Mia just sat still watching him. As he passed us, she said, "I love you Santa". This...is coming from a 2 year old (almost 3) who rarely even says I love you to C and I. We busted out laughing. Thankfully, this man was so sweet. He turned around and said, "just remember, Santa could be anywhere and I'm always watching you". Needless to say, she was a perfect angel all weekend! This morning, on the other hand...was a different story.

Pax's appt

We got good news on Friday. Paxton's heart looks great! We went to Hopkins for his 1 year follow up and they did an EKG. That came back normal so they did not need to sedate him for an ECHO (Phew!!!). I can't tell you what a relief that was. Though we suspected everything was fine based on his numerous pediatrician visits, it is still a relief to hear that news coming from a pediatric cardiologist from Hopkins. So....we go back in another year and in the meantime, he is a normal, healthy baby. We are so thankful! We love our Super Pax-man.

Big Day Tomorrow

Tomorrow, August 19th is Paxton's 1 year post surgery follow up with Dr. L at Hopkins. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't sick with anxiety and nausea at just the thought of it. I know he's ok. Dr. S listens to his heart at every Dr's visit (which has been often with the number of ear infections he's had), but I still can't help but feel anxious. He has been through so much in such a short period of time. I will be saying a special prayer tonight for my little man.

Fun Foods

These sandwiches have worked well for my picky eater, Mia. I only made one mistake, giving her the fruit at the same time. Lesson learned. Otherwise, she loved it!!! I even let her pick out the shapes.

Pinterest = my new addiction

If you know me, then you know I LOVE new craft ideas. You also know that I am probably the least crafty person ever. Seriously....I can't even wrap gifts well. My husband wraps gifts better than me. I have the best intentions and the worst execution. I won't go into the craft projects that I've started and failed miserably at but the list is long. Most recently, I found pinterest. Pinterest is a site where you can create an inspiration board of ideas. It is filled with wonderful inventive ideas for kids crafts and DIY projects. It's probably my husband's worst nightmare :). So anyway...the first project I wanted to attempt was a memory jar. In the past 3 years, New Years has been kinda hard on me. The "flipping" over of a new year to me, signafies year without Parker. It makes me sad. So...I thought this was the perfect easy starter project. Basically, you get a jar and you fill it with happy memories throughout the year and you read them on New Years. Sounds easy right? That's what I thought too until I tried to decorate the jar. Turns out, among the long list of things I'm not good at--bow tieing is near the top. Go figure. This is what I came up with.

If I ever decide to make this public, I welcome any classes or tutorials on how to make bows :)

Me!

so...a few things about me. I am:

• a shoppaholic who LOVES a good bargin!




• an avid reader




• a reality TV junkie




• a starter of craft projects that turn out disasterous

I love:

• Wine tastings (esp. Pindar on Long Island and Running Hare in MD)




• catching up with good friends




• trips to the spa




• SLEEP




• A fountain coke




• A chocolate covered donut from Bay Country Bakery

I dislike:

• FROGS (and also lizards, reptiles, hampsters, mice, snakes, etc)




• Confined spaces




• Greed




• Whinning