Monkey Business

So we are now in Atlanta...after 10 hours in the car, we made it!  I thought I had planned for everything, brought everything we could possibly need.  What I didn't plan for was Ethan getting car sick and throwing up all over all of his monkeys.  For those of you who don't know what the word Monkey means in our house ...monkey means blanket. Specifically, if you are Anna Claire it is a pink blanket with silk on one side and soft material on the other and if you are Ethan your monkey is the same except it's blue.  Don't try and switch out the monkey with another color or another size because folks it won't work.  We were 4 hours from our destination and he had gotten sick and no more monkeys left.  He was not happy!  He does this really funny sound with his mouth - it's kinda a cross between a purring kitten and a dying seal when he wants his monkey and it is very cute the first 5 minutes but after another 55 minutes of it at a very high pitched squealing followed by loud fits of screaming, I had had enough.  So I did what any other Mama would do.  I was on a mission to find another one because I was NOT gonna make this kid go through two days of medical testing without the one thing that comforts him.  Soooo, after 6 stops, 2 Walmarts, Carters Outlet, Osh Gosh BGosh Outlet, Target and finally the Mecca of all stores....Babies R Us...we found a Monkey....

Within 2 minutes of monkey being put around his sweet little head, he was fast asleep in the car and we were on our way.....and all is good in Ethan land....

Insane

Insane is how I would describe my day....This morning Jake & Gracie had dentist appointments at 8 and I'm happy to report they are cavity free.  Wahoo!  Anna Claire had to be at the ENT at 8:20 so Chris took her and I'm not happy to report that she still has fluid on her eardrums so she is getting ear tubes. I think she might just be the oldest kid I know who has gotten ear tubes.  So strange!  She had maybe one ear infection the 1st year of her life but in the last 6 months she can't seem to clear an infection.

After the big kids dentist appointment, I took them back to school only to pull up and find the entire school outside for a fire drill. So I had to wait until that was over before I could take them in.  By the way, those elementary kids were so quiet outside that you could hear the birds chirping.  Man, when I was in school and we had a fire drill I don't remember that ....I just remember chaos!

So I'm on my way to work when I get a call from the bank notifying me of "suspicious activity".  They were concerned about the amount of withdrawls from the hospitals in Atlanta.  Um, I hear ya people, I'm concerned about my bank statement also after all of the withdrawls for doctors, hospitals and biopsy up front fees.  And speaking of Atlanta, we still do not know if we will be traveling by Angel Flight or not.  As of right this minute, we have no pilot so I made an appointment to get the oil changed tomorrow just in case we have to drive...ugh...ugh...ugh !  We also don't know if we will be staying in the Ronald McDonald House either, depends on if they have room.  So, we may be shelling out about $300 for a hotel for the 3 nights and gas money and food money ....oh my...my head is spinning!

All of this before 10 am, I felt like I had ran a marathon this morning!  Got into work and am sooo busy trying to get everything ready since I will be out next week.  Don't get me wrong, I am sooooo thankful for my Clients and my prospective Clients so I won't complain about my workload today because it could be worse.  I could be unemployed!

So I answered emailed, phone calls, figured out contracts, did some contribution strategies.  Left the office, went by the bank, stopped by the grocery store, picked up the kids, have done 3 loads of laundry, fed the kids, cleaned the kitchen and now I'm gonna go and do this....

Pink Giraffes

A while back I was in a situation where my girls were painting animal pictures with some other children and Gracie wanted to paint the Giraffe pink.  Another Mother stepped and told her absolutely not, that giraffes were not pink and that she must color it yellow.  Gracie looked up at me with her big brown eyes with pure innocence and confusion.  You see, in our house, it's OK to paint giraffes pink, yellow, brown, green....I pick my battles, folks, I got 4 kids.  I'm really not concerned with "perfect".  I love the creative side of my girls and I love how they are emerging into their own little people.

So on Sunday as we were getting ready for church, when Anna Claire demanded to wear her new "twinkle toes" (which by the way, I got on clearance and with my coupon ended up costing $12.50, that's right I got a pair of $40 shoes for $12.50 boo yah!!!) I looked down at her in her beautiful smocked dress (thanks to a great church friend for the most amazing hand me down smocked dresses) and her big white bow and smiled at her and said of course you can wear "twinkle toes" because white Mary Janes just wouldn't cut it ....sometimes you gotta paint the giraffe pink!

I'm a Nut, I'm a Nut, oh yes I'm a Nut!

Gracie's 1st grade class had a play last night and she played ..... you guessed it.....A Nut!!!

And she had her very own speaking part....

And she rocked it...'cause that's how we nuts roll.....

Mothers Day Memories!

What a beautiful day was today, the weather was perfect, my children were healthy and we spent the day with family. What a blessing! 

Gracie made me a hot pink jewelry box, I love it!!

Look at this sweet card that Ethan made with a little help from the best babysitter EVER!

Anna Claire was so proud of her flower pot she made in school and so was I!

Look at this beautiful necklace my husband and kids gave to me....so sweet, all 4 kids names and a heart in the middle.  I just love it!!!

And speaking of necklaces, look what my amazing and talented sister MADE for me.  She made this awesome necklace with a birds nest with four little eggs and a Mama Bird flying around it.  So sweet!!!

And you can't forget a little sweet chocolate to end the day with!

Happy Mothers Day!

Being a Mother in pictures...

It all began when I was a little girl playing with my dolls and dreamed of being a Mama....

It was the love a Grandmother

That you never outgrow!

It's still needing your Dad the same way you did when you were a little girl

It's being loved as a daughter by a woman who didn't give birth to you and a sister that you always wanted and who shares her Mama with you.

It's holding your first born child and not knowing you could possibly love someone so much

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It's having daughters to teach what you learned from the Grandmother and the Lady who didn't give birth to you but treated you like a daughter anyway how to be a Mama

It's learning how to fight like mad and never give up hope

It's having friends that help make you a better Mama

who are there to laugh with you and dry your tears

It's having a Man that loves me despite all my flaws and makes me the best Mama of all....

Movie Night!

Last night was movie night in our house.  We rented OldDogs and it really was a cute movie.  John Travolta, his wife and daughter were in the movie.  It was a good one to watch as a family!

On movie night in our house you get to eat in the family room, that is a BIG deal around here!

Frozen pizza was the dinner of choice by the little hams!

Ethan joined us in the family room...and thought it was so cool!

Holly Cow, is this a scam?

That was my first thought when my friend Karen sent me over a link from RVA indicating that I had won Mother of The Year.  This must be a joke, right? I am just speechless, and those of you who know me in real life know that it takes a lot to stop me from talking! 

I am so excited, overjoyed, jumping off the roof kinda happy.  Chris and I have not had a night to ourselves away in a hotel in 11 years.  Yep, you read that one right!!!  Wow!!!

And RVA’s Mom of the Year is…


by RVANews staff

May 6, 2010

.A couple of weeks ago, we asked you to nominate a mother in your life who deserves a special night on the town. We requested sweetness, sentiment, and stories that would tug at our heartstrings. And boy, did you deliver. Many tissues were hurt during this process.



So, without further ado, RVA’s Mother of the Year is…



Laura Meyer Hamilton



Congratulations, Laura! You are the winner of a gift certificate good for a weekend night stay at the Omni, including dinner and breakfast for two!



Laura was nominated by her friend Karen who had this to say…



If you visit lovemy4littlehams.blogspot.com you’d understand fully why I am submitting this entry. Laura and her husband find their strength through their faith, their family, and their friends. Laura has become a voice for her son’s disease while raising three other children. She never finds time for herself. Her nights out consist of support group meetings and planning meetings to get the word out about her son’s disease. Through it all she still smiles, uncertain what the future brings for her son. It’s stressful enough worrying about your children but knowing that you may face a day where your child may leave this world be before you do would put me in a tail spin. I cannot image what her days/nights are like. I hope you’ll take a minute to read her blog. It tells you more about who she is and why she is and should be your Mother of the Year.



Just this March, Laura’s sweet baby boy Ethan (born on December 5, 2008) was diagnosed with Mitochondrial disease. Since then, in addition to the demands of raising a family, Laura has started her crusade of raising awareness for her son’s disease. When you get a minute, take a look at her blog. Her positive attitude, determination, and complete and utter love for her children will take your breath away. We are thrilled to be able to give her the chance to take some time for herself — she deserves it so much. And a special thanks to the Omni for giving us the opportunity to be a part of honoring Laura.

How are you?

I think that is the funniest question because we all ask it and we all say Good, Fine, Ok....you know something like that.  At least I do, and well dear friends if you ask me and I tell you Good, Fine, Ok....I'm lying to you, just thought you should know!  We got the call today that Ethan is headed to Atlanta the week of May 24th for his Mito testing with Dr. Shoffner. 

Now, I have been working on getting this done since the beginning of March when Dr. Teasley's tests came back showing Mito based on his acid levels so one might think I would be jumping up and down with excitement that it is happening.  But I'm scared, nervous, afraid....

I guess in the back of my mind, I thought that Dr. Shoffner would look at Ethan's lab results from Dr. Teasley and say she was wrong, Ethan didn't have Mito, he is good, just a little slow for his age but definitely NOT Mito.  Well, that is not gonna happen and I better just face it.

So dear friends, from now until May 24th when we board the plane to Atlanta and you ask me "How are You?" be prepared, I'm not gonna lie to you....so unless you are prepared for the truth, just don't ask.....

March of Dimes Walk

On Sunday our family participated in the March of Dimes Walk and we walked with Team Richmondmom.com in Honor of Ethan. It was a hot morning but the kids did great, it was a 5 mile walk and we made it about a mile before little legs got tired...What a wonderful event that helped raise money for research and bringing awareness to Premature Birth. Thanks again to the founder of Richmondmom.com, Kate Hall, she did a great job and our team alone raised over $3,000 and placed us at #3 for the amount of money we raised. Good job, Richmond Moms!!!

Here are some pictures of our family from the event....

My Parents...don't you just love how he is holding on to his Pawpa?

My Sister and Ethan's Godmother

Time for a water break

So happy!

Jake signed the wall and left Ethan a message

He loves his brother so much