What a weekend!

I don't know about you, but we had a really wonderful weekend doing all sorts of things and a little bit of nothing.  It was quite nice.

I will say, 0600 came mighty early this morning as we tried to get going for our last week of school.  Come on Friday!!

Our sweet, sweet babysitter Emily Frances graduated high school on Saturday and hosted an open house later in the day.  She is A&M bound this fall.  WHOOP.  She has a younger brother and sister who are equally wonderful with our kids.  There just aren't enough complimentary words to go around for Emily Frances and her family.  We love 'em.  To pieces.

On Sunday, we enjoyed a visit with some mighty fine sisters.  It was bittersweet because that lovely one second from the right, Sr. Thomas Aquinas, is heading to a new school next fall in Mill Valley, California.  Now aren't they are a lucky bunch?  STA, we love how you are an amazing example of faith for the kids at school.  You are fun and prayerful and totally hilarious.  And, I hear you play a mean game of soccer.  You will be in our daily prayers.  We consider it a privilege and an honor to call you friend.  Surely we can come up with a reason to bring you back to Texas someday.  May Cali take good care of you.  VERY good or in they're in big trouble.  Sr. Maria Rosario, Sr. Mary Elizabeth and Sr. Elizabeth Ann...we'll see you in the fall!

On Monday, it was all about the home improvement honey-do's and some pool time.  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.  All in all, a pretty amazing weekend.

Thank you

Because, really, there just aren't any more appropriate words for how I feel about today.

Thank you to the families that had to say goodbye to a loved one.

Thank you to the men and women in our armed forces who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Thank you for allowing me to live in freedom, even though on many days I don't deserve it.

Thank you.

QOTW: May 27, 2011

"Are you wearin' wipskip?"
Clare.  If I have not said it enough, I will say it once more.  3yo lingo is awesome.  She was trying to say "lipstick."

The kids were all taking swim lessons at Nitro.  Their classes are divided into two sections, Nitro 1 and 2, and there are 10 stations within each.  The kids get uubercompetive on the "station" thing and last Monday was no exception.

JP:  Will, what station are you?
W:  6
JP:  Oooooooooh, BURNED.  I'm on 7!

"Granny won't be sad this weekend because she'll be at our house.  We have LOTS of people here!"
Anna-Laura, commenting on Granny's stay at our house during the birthday celebration.  Sometimes your kids are the ones teaching you lessons.  ALG had commented earlier in the week how Granny must be sad living alone.  Scott's dad died nearly six years ago and the cat, Muffin, passed away last year.  In her mind, it's impossible to be sad when you're in a houseful of people.  I'd say that was pretty astute of a 6yo to make that connection.  Thank you, sweet girl, for reminding me.

"Mom, I'm writing a journal entry about 'Something Beautiful'...guess who it's about...{big grin} YOU!"
Will.  I'm telling you, that boy is going to tear my heart out when he leaves the nest.  Can he stay innocent a little while longer, Lord?

We have a wonderful 3-day weekend ahead of us.  The kitchen underwent a little makeover and it was great fun.  I got to play contractor for a few days.  Let me tell you, though, that was work!  There will be lots of cooking, a trip to the swimming pool, a high school gradaution party for the world's best babysitter, time with neighbors (I hope!), time with Nana and Papa and a visit with the Sisters.  Is it possible to cram that much joy in three days?  Yes.  Yes, I think it is.  Make it a great weekend!

Hat tip to the many men and women who said goodbye to their families so we could say hello to ours.  God bless the USA.

Top Ten: Recital!!

How much do I love my girls?  Let me count the ways.  After 66 dance practices, 66 hours in the car for drop-off and pick-up, 2 pairs of tights, 4 leotards, countless hairbands, 1 new and 1 used pairs of tap and ballet shoes, we finally made it to RECITAL DAY!

There are many things I adore about being the mom of girlies, dance is one of them.  I distinctly remember taking ballet class in Dumas.  I really loved it.  Too bad I wasn't that great at it.  Fortunately, my girls are good at it and they love dance class.

The studio has two locations and rotates the recital between the two every other year.  It's fantastic because you're not out all the money for the costumes, yet you still get to enjoy seeing your girls' dance on stage.  This year, our location was "demonstration" and the other one hosted the "recital."  The memories and dances were just as precious.  More so, actually, because there wasn't all the stress of an actual recital.  And, it only lasted an hour because they divided up all the classes into four different times throughout the day.  I loved it!

May I present my 3 sweet memories and 7 favorite photos of the day!

1.  The girls were so excited about getting to wear make-up.  Who knew?  I put a little blush, eyeshadow, lipgloss and a touch of mascara on those sweet little faces.  Just enough but not too much.  They giggled and oohed and ahhed in the mirror.  Both girls looked stunning and I had to catch my breath when I surveyed the final product.  My little girls won't stay little forever.  Soon enough, they'll be applying their own make-up, skipping out the door with their date.  On Saturday though, they let me do all the primping and they gladly skipped out the door on their daddy's arm.  Nobody said motherhood was easy.  Sweet and awesome, though...

2.  At the demonstration, things are pretty laid back.  Just after Clare's class performed, one of the girls who was terrified to go on stage, changed her mind.  So, they trooped everybody back out on stage and performed again.  Awesome.

3.  All the grandparents were there to see the show.  The girls must've asked me 10,000 times the week preceding the recital if Nana, Papa and Granny were coming.  Very cute.  We ended the morning with a well-deserved slush from Sonic.

Truly, there is something so innocent and pure about little girls in tutus and tights. Shout out to our dance studio who made the choice to keep all the costumes tasteful and age appropriate. Too many times we tell our girls to slow down and enjoy childhood, while shoving the way-too-sexualized world upon them. Saturday, it was wonderful to see an auditorium full of beauty - the kind seen within.

Bravo, sweet girls. Your day was beautiful!

Happy Birthday #6 and a Fab Art Party!

This one has been in the works for a long time.  Anna-Laura, like all my children, loves art.  It's part of her DNA.  Papa used to paint mighty fine western art and Mom is a graphic designer.  Can I just say planning the party with her was total heaven?

I have always loved home birthday parties.  The kind where the tea is sweet, the screams aplenty and the decorations homemade.  We have certainly gone to places for a few of my kids' parties, but mostly we've kept it close to the casa.  I did the math and this is my 28th kids' party.  That's just crazy talk.

Let's get to it, shall we?

I found a great art collection of PDF printables on Etsy.  It included invitations, thank you's, banners, popcorn boxes, birthday gift list, address labels, food / beverage labels and more.  It's fantastic because you only print what you need - no waste.  Love me some Paper & Cake.  They were also instrumental when we planned John Paul's Cabela's party.  We took a generic place and personalized it for us.  Proof positive that you can make any party your own.  Back to the art.

The party was all about color.  I got the lanterns and the colored buckets 50% off at Hobby Lobby.  Weee.  We will definitely be reusing them for another birthday party next month.

These adorable cake balls were made by a co-worker of my mom's.  They fit perfectly in these paint palettes, another 50% off find at Hobby Lobby.  Instead of slicing cake (we saved that for the family dinner and celebration after the kid party) we served these up to the girls.  Note to self, serve them in bowls in lieu of plates.  They don't roll as much :)  The cake was created by my favorite bakery, Polkadots.  Olga knows how to rock it.

The girls rotated to four different stations.  Face painting was definitely the highlight.  Christine is crazy good and I think the girls' faces show their excitement.

Next station? Tote bag stamping.

Self-portrait collages.

And, you can't call it an art party without a fabulous piece to take home and hang on the wall!

There were lots of smiles, giggles, sweet tea drinking and awesome memories made.  I am grateful for a husband who patiently hung the lanterns, a mother-in-law who willingly folded popcorn boxes and strung banners, a brother who took fantastic photos and a mom and dad who organized the cake balls and finishing touches.  It takes an army to throw a birthday party.  But, I wouldn't have it any other way.  Celebrating such an important milestone is a big deal.  I hope my children always know how much they're loved!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET GIRL!

HDYDI: Doctor Visits

With 5 kids, 6 pregnancies and the last 20 months of experience with Luke, I feel like we've got the doctor shtick down.  Here's my best tips and tricks when it comes to navigating (and preparing for) doctor visits.

HDYDI:  Doctor Visits

1.  If it's a well check, call about 6 weeks ahead and get the first appointment of the day.  I don't care how early it is, you'll totally thank me later when you're not scraping the bottom of your purse to find activities to entertain your kids while you're waiting.  The first appointment after lunch isn't bad, but steer clear of just before lunch or mid-afternoon.  Those are the worst.

2.  Take in your own hand sanitizer and bathe your kids in it before you leave the office.  Hello germ haven!  Doctor's offices and hospitals are THE worst.

3.  Write down your list of questions, or type them on your cell.  So many times I've thought, "Oh I'll remember to ask the doctor X, X and X"...only to forget and kick myself on the way home.

4.  At the end of the visit, repeat "the plan" back to your doctor.  If you need to get meds, schedule any follow-up tests or screens, schedule a visit with a specialist or do anything else, repeat it back to the doctor to get confirmation.  Quite honestly, I do this for myself more than anyone.  Saying it out loud helps me remember.  As much as I try to pay attention during the visit, little people can be extremely distracting.  I have enough mommy brain to go around.

5.  If you have a little one, you're still nursing and it's shot time, nurse while they do the shots.  I've had to quite nearly arm wrestle a few nurses into doing it my way.  Either way, I don't really care.  It's my baby and I call the shots.  HAHA.  Seriously, it has calmed many a fussy baby in nanoseconds and it makes the pain of giving them the shot a little easier.

6.  If you have a big one and are way past nursing, here's a couple of suggestions.  1)  Bring their favorite toy or lovie to comfort them, but only pull it out just before shot time.  Otherwise, you lose the impact.  2) If they're older, I've always been upfront with my kids about getting shots.  We say, "To keep you healthy the nurse is going to give you a quick shot.  It's just a quick owie and then it will be over."  Then, we focus on all the other things they get to do at the doctor like write their name, tell her the names of colors, draw a picture, whatever.  I don't lie to my kids, but I also don't focus on "the shots."  If you're cool with it, your kids are likely to be to.

(DISCLAIMER:  I have also been *that* mom during shots.  A couple of years ago, I took all four kids to get their flu shots.  What a disaster.  I had four screaming, I mean SCREAMING kids that I was wrestling down.  Another nurse even popped her head in the door to see if she could assist.  The most fun part was walking through the waiting room, sweating, holding one kid with three trailing behind and the ENTIRE place staring at us.  Yes, that was a mighty proud parenting moment.)

7.  When you arrive, ask if the doctor is running on schedule.  Sometimes, if it's a doctor we always wait, I call ahead about 30 minutes before the appointment to ask.  Even though it's not like Chili's and they don't have call ahead seating (darn), it does give me an idea of what to expect when we arrive.  It reduces the stress fo shizzle.

8.  If you have to fill out paperwork - usually at a specialist appointment - I ask if I can fill it out ahead of time so we don't have to arrive as early.  Most doctor's have online forms so it's a snap.

9.  Speaking of paperwork, if you have a special needs child, bring a copy of their pre-printed history to save like ten hours filling out that section.  There is a fantastic mom here in Austin that created such a time-saver.  If you need it, or know someone who does, give it a click HERE.

10.  For yearly visits, like dentists, I schedule all the kids at the same time and I also schedule them a year in advance.  Six months out doesn't give us the flexibility to choose our time but doing it a year out does.  I always do one in the summer during a week that we typically don't have anything and the other is in January, just after the new year.  It's a great system.  Oh, and check with your dental provider.  Most don't require that the visits are exactly six months apart, they just pay for two a year no matter when they're scheduled.  You're welcome :)

I'm sure I could keep writing, but I'll save some more specific tips for another Monday.  I hope y'all had a great weekend.  Ours.  Was.  Fab.  Pictures and stories coming later this week!

Goodbye to another *awesome* Specialist

Dr. Shaffer is pretty much a rockstar.  She and Dr. Meyer must know one another.  When Luke was hospitalized for spine surgery last April, she was the detective that finally figured out what all the hullabaloo was about.  Luke and cephalosporin drugs do not get along.  At all.

The first time he was exposed, we did a couple of blood transfusions; problem solved.  The second time, several blood and plasma transfusions with a minor freakout from mom; problem solved.  The third time, we paged hematology and did a litany of transfusions and blood draws.  Major stress for Mom.  But, still, we thought the problem was solved.  It wasn't until his kidneys almost shut down, his belly blew up like a balloon and he turned the color of the white sheets (that ain't no lie) that he got the attention of a general surgeon, a neurosurgeon, an intensivist (ICU doctor), a hematologist, a charge nurse and his nurse.

When Dr. Shaffer and I first met, I remember I was sitting in a chair in the PICU, holding a sleeping baby.  Luke had finally settled into a slumber after two really horrible nights of sleeping.  Dr. S had her chart and was already talking about possible causes.  It was the weekend, too.  What are the odds that a hematologist who specializes in blood disorders was on call?  I think she knew immediately what it was.

I love that everytime we saw her, she was so calm, cool and extremely knowledgeable.  She didn't dumb down anything for me.  She talked all medical and I was able to keep pace.  Luke did provide me with the steep learning curve - stinker.

I love that when we had our first office visit with her, she commented on my shirt (it was an old VBS shirt that I randomly threw on that morning).  It opened the door to our faith talks which we enjoyed every visit.  That was pretty awesome.  She shared what she loved about her parish and I shared a bit of our work with youth, BC (before children). 

At our last visit this week, Dr. S bounded into the room, beaming and said these sweet words, "Luke's blood work looks beautiful!"  "Beautiful or really beautiful?," I said.  "The latter," she replied.

Even better, she told us that it would only be necessary to do blood draws at age 4, 11 and 15 - all of which could be done at our pediatrician's office.  In other words, she fired herself.  I like a doctor who's proactive.

Dr. S, thank you for grabbing that bottle of wine and so diligently looking through Luke's old charts.  If not for you, I fear that the unthinkable would've happened the next time Luke was given cephalosporins.  Thank you for answering my 1,001 questions, I always came armed with at least that many.  Thank you for being a woman of faith.  A doctor who, no doubt, is in a tough specialty.  For my non-medical friends, Dr. S is a pediatric hematology/oncology specialist.  She sees heartache everyday.  She wrapped up nearly a year of knowing her with a big hug and a squeeze for both me and Luke.  Then, I teared up.

I won't soon forget her parting words, "Faith is what gives me strength to do my job."  Amen, sister.  A-MEN.

Top Ten: iTunes

I've missed iTunes.  I used to listen to it all the time when I worked in the afternoons, but when Luke arrived on the scene, he was a horrible sleeper, so I had to turn it off so I could hear him when he inevitably woke up from his nanosecond nap.

That too, has passed.

He is sleeping (most days) like a true Whitaker and I am very grateful.  We still have a few icky things going on with him, but they are WAY easier to deal with when I'm not running into walls because of sleep deprivation.  Funny how that works.

I've been cranking it in the afternoons.  Yes.  It's a good thing my neighbors can't hear me sing.  Or...if they do, at least they don't listen and tell.  My "most played" songs here lately are below - if you have any good recs for some good music, send it my way.  I love a new song.

TOP TEN:  ITUNES LOVE FEST

1.  Bella's Lullaby, Carter Burwell (yes, that was a recent phase, I just loved it because of the instrumentals)

2.  Decode, Paramore (again, another phase :)
3.  Sing, Glee Cast (another addiction, I'm sad to admit)

4.  Just the Way you Are, Bruno Mars

5.  Fireflies, Owl City

6.  Walk Like a Man, Four Seasons (I totally dug Jersey Boys, what great music)

7.  Our God, Chris Tomlin (give it up for the Aggie, Class '96)

8.  Love Never Fails, Brandon Heath

9.  Red Dirt Road, Brooks &Dunn (I am a Texas girl)

10.  Brighter Days, Leeland

I'm betting my playlist from 15 or 20 years ago would've looked way different.  A little Aerosmith, Paula Abdul, Stephen Curtis Chapman, George Strait and Neil Diamond.  How's that for a smorgasboard?

Feeding Story

Last week, I was asked to share Luke's "feeding story" for an upcoming newsletter for Hand to Hold.  We are learning that every NICU baby's story is different.  Luke's almost always is!  Inspired my fellow NICU mom and friend, Katrina, who posted about Bryce's struggles, I wanted to do the same.

LUKE'S FEEDING STORY

Because Luke Timothy, our fifth baby, was born at 36-weeks, not many of us expected him to have any feeding issues; we didn’t struggle with the typical preemie challenge of suck-swallow-breath. He did have an IUGR diagnosis (intrauterine growth restriction) and did not grow well in my belly. Luke weighed a dainty 3lbs. 9oz. at birth. A few days into our NICU stay, I was able to get him to latch for a couple of feedings and I was elated. In the meantime, I pumped and he ate my milk via bottle feeds beautifully. My husband and I were feeling confident about his progress and hopeful that our stay would be a short one.

Unfortunately, Luke contracted necrotizing entercolitis (NEC). He stopped breathing, was resuscitated and intubated for an emergency transfer to Dell Children’s Medical Center. He underwent exploratory surgery where he lost 16cm of his small intestine, part of his colon and his appendix. For nearly three weeks he was NPO (no feeds).  When we reintroduced milk, his feeds were increased at a painfully slow rate. Although just before discharge, he was nursing ad lib and gaining weight to the tune of about an ounce a day. As the days turned into months, he continued to nurse wonderfully (I didn’t wean him until 17 months!), despite more belly and spine surgeries and more bouts of NPO orders following said surgeries. Each time, he would return to his excellent nursing status.

When it came time for baby food, he lapped that up, eating every new flavor we introduced. When he turned one, we made the transition to table food and began seeing signs of oral aversion, sensory challenges and some marked weight loss. His gastroenterologist prescribed an oral supplement, Boost Kid Essentials, along with a calorie enhancer, Duocal. For many months we flirted with G-tube insertion. While the supplement helped him put on the necessary weight, it was complicated by his tender and immature bowels, illness and more oral aversion. He began throwing up at every meal, at the sight of food and when touching various textures. Mealtime has become a constant, and very wearing, struggle.

Presently, Luke receives 97-99% of his daily caloric intake from the supplement and we fight to get him to eat every cracker, every piece of fruit, every vegetable and every bite of meat. Most days the meals end in tears, for all of us. He is in twice weekly therapy and is making progress, albeit extremely slow. I have learned a whole new level of patience. Our goal is to have him eating table food on a consistent basis without gagging or throwing up in the next six months. For now, we are thankful for his baby steps of progress, our therapists and four siblings who are great models of positive eating behavior!

Happy 6th Sisty!

Sweet, sassy, lovable Anna-Laura is turning six today. SIX!  She was my first girl and has totally played the part.  She loves babies, shoes, the color pink and just about any bling you send her way.  I love her.  So much.

I love that she won't let me touch her hair and wants to do it herself.  She's actually quite good at it, too.  Last week she started sporting the side ponytail and I saw 1985 all over again.

I love that she is strong-willed, that trait will serve her well as she grows into a young woman.

I love that she sleeps with a blanket and her baby, every night.  Her baby is missing one arm, one eye and another leg and an arm on holding on my a thread, yet she still treasures it like a new baby in the box.  She is loyal.

I love how she giggles and ducks her head.  It's so stinkin' cute.

I love that she is bossy and opinionated and self-assured.  It is my prayer that those keep her from bowing to peer pressure.  She is her own woman.

I love that she is so helpful around the house.  She loves to help cook, clean windows, toilets and dishes yet when I ask her to clean her room, I get a heavy sigh and a, "Mom, that will take forever!  Clare made the mess, not me!"

I love that she is named after an exceptional and faith-filled Dominican nun, Sr. Anna-Laura.

I love that she gets excited when we pray the rosary.

I love being her mom.

Happy birthday sweet girl.  We love you to the moon and back!