Update

Wow, so much has gone on this week. Where to start?

Well, Skylar started school on Monday. She loves her teacher and has been doing well so far. We had a couple of snafus with the bus, but I think we have finally worked things out. (It didn't pick her up two mornings in a row. She will now be riding with a teacher from her school.)

Brayden turns three TODAY!!!! I can't believe my little man is growing up. Time just goes by too quickly! We had his birthday party at Chuck E Cheese on Tuesday and he had such a good time. I don't know what we are going to do with all the cars and trucks we have accumulated as of late. We could start our own garage! lol They are his favorite though. He is all about trucks these days...dump trucks, cement trucks, pick up trucks, flat bed trucks. You name it, he knows it and believe me, he is yelling it at the top of his lungs until you acknowledge that yes, you do see the truck. Yes, it is a big truck. Yes, you saw that it was red. No, you don't know why it is going that way. lol I don't think the boy knows how to take a breath. It is a constant stream of questions and comments from him. And I thought Skylar was going to be my talker!

As for me, I have lost two pounds this week. I am so excited!!! I am feeling better about the denial as well. I have decided that this is something that I really want and if I have to fight for it, so be it. I went to consult with a chiropractor yesterday to get his opinion. That was kind of scary. He did x-rays and my spine looks like the spine of a 70 year old. (No offense to those who read my blog that are 70! I am sure yours looks much better! :-D lol) Seriously though, it is pretty curved at the top and showing early signs of osteoarthritis. He wrote a letter for me stating that he thought a reduction would alleviate the pressure on my spine and stop most of my back pain. I am going to talk to my surgeon again today and see what else he recommends. Will update when I know more.

That is pretty much it so far. Peyton and Matt are doing good. Matthew has been home this week so that has been fun for everybody. The kids will be sad when he goes back to Alaska as I am sure he will be too.

DENIED...

That is what my letter from CIGNA says regarding my request for preauthorization of breast reduction surgery. According to them, my surgery is "not medically necessary". Apparently it is okay for me to carry around an extra 5lb bag of sugar on my chest everywhere I go. It is okay that I cannot walk down the street with my shoulders back because within five minutes, I ache from there all the way down to my lower back. Apparently, it is normal to walk around with DDD's. It is okay that I can't sleep on my stomach, throw a bowling ball straight without having to compensate, or sit at my desk all day without propping up "the girls" on the top of it. Can you tell I am a little bitter? lol Well, I assure you. This fight is not over. They don't know what a hornet's nest they have stirred up. I already have about 100 pages of documents and studies in front of me supporting my case. I've got the Internet and baby, I am not afraid to use it! If I wasn't paying so much in premiums every paycheck, I would almost feel sorry for them. As it is, they are not going to know what hit them! :-) Back to my research...

Who knew?

It is amazing how one little moment can transform an ordinary, not-so-great day into something spectacular. Today started out pretty crappy. Everyone bailed on church this morning which left me trying to corral and keep track of all three kids and get us dressed and there on time. Pretty stressful to say the least. Neither Brayden or Skylar napped today and both were pretty miserable by 5pm. Needless to say, I had had enough. I took Skylar to her first night of Children's Choir (which she enjoyed by the way), and when we got home the other two kids were in bed. Brayden was still awake though and greeted us at his bedroom door. Skylar and I had had a very grown up conversation on the way home about their behavior throughout the day and so she took his hands and went in to his room with him. I just stood in the doorway and watched as they stood next to his bed in his darkened room. She explained to him that if he "behaved" next time that he would get to go and have fun and sing too. She then told him that he was going to Grandma's tomorrow and she would be going off to school. She put her arms around him and asked him if he was going to miss her. She said that she was going to miss him very much but reassured him that she would indeed be there in the afternoon to spend time with him. He put his arms around her and they stood there like that for what seemed like an eternity. Then she kissed him on top of his head and he turned to give her a goodnight kiss and he climbed into bed. Who knew that starting first grade would make someone wiser than all of her six years? Who knew that one little act of caring could touch a Mother's heart so deeply and teach her that even when things seem so bad, there is always hope? Who knew?

Getting positive

Wow, this has been a rough week for me emotionally. I have been going through old photos for a scrapbook that I am doing and it was really painful to see some of the old pictures of me. I know that you can't help but gain weight when you have kids and that your body changes as you get older, but looking at those pictures, I realized just how far down I have gone. I have literally put on 50 pounds in 7 years. That is outrageous! Anyway, I made a conscious effort this morning to do something about it. It isn't going to melt off with what I have been doing. That much has become, oh so, obvious. lol I have been half-heartedly working on it for a few weeks now with less than stellar results so now it is time to get serious. I started with FitDay.com this morning tracking all my stats and figures. I have tracked everything I have eaten today and made some really good choices. I have done a couple of sessions on the treadmill and walked at lunch. I fell like I have made a really positive start. My first goal is to lose 23 pounds by Jan.1. That averages out to a little over a pound a week which is totally doable. Looking at the overall of 50lbs was really discouraging but now that I can see the light and that it really is manageable, I am excited. I wasn't going to post this because a.) It seemed a little depressing at first and b.) Well, it really isn't fun to tell the world that you are a cow. lol But, I figured by posting it here, I will have to be held accountable. Anyway, wish me luck. It is going to be a long journey!

Skylar's Going to 1st Grade!!!!

Well, I took Skylar yesterday for her 1st grade testing. I can't believe it! 1st grade! My how time flies!!!! She is going in to a new program here that combines 1st and 2nd graders. Each incoming 1st grader (novice) is paired with a 2nd grader (expert) and that is their buddy for the school year. The experts are supposed to help them get adjusted to the new setting, help them learn and obey the class rules, and work with them on their school work. The program does not focus on a set curriculum but is based on where each student is at in their learning process and is tailored to their individual needs. I am so excited for her because I think this is going to be a great program. She needs that extra challenge to stay motivated and I think this is going to be a perfect fit. Her teacher seems like a real sweetheart too and Skylar liked her right away. She can't wait for the first day of school. She picked out a brand new pair of camouflage tennis shoes at Target, grandma got her a "girly" camouflage shirt and with her sassy new "wedge" hair-do she is all set. Not what I would have picked to wear for the first day of school, lol, but should be the start of an interesting year! lol

Scrapping

Well, today was a very long day. I just got home from Mom's house. We spent a nice quiet evening in the "Green Room" working on some of the scrapbooks that we brought home from the Convention last weekend. It was fun and nice to be able to sit and chat. Since Mom started keeping the kids, I don't get to spend much time over there since the weekends are her downtime. The kids get their Grandma-time but the big kid misses out on her Mommy-time.
:*( That is a new one just for you, Mom. It means crying. lol Have to explain these things to the digitally-challenged. Anyway, the kids had a good time with their Daddy. They went over to Gwen's and swam. Brayden has gotten braver now. He has moved off of the step. Last weekend, he let Matt swim him around the pool and tonight he discovered that he can stand up on his own in the shallow end. Much improvement!! Skylar and Peyton are both like fish. Skylar is swimming underwater in the deep end like a pro and boy, Peyton would go on her own if you let her. She has no fear that one and she adores the water. Good thing, since it was 107 today with a heat index of 120! That is just too durn hot!!! Can't wait for October!!!

Skylar Funny

Funny for the day:

On the way to Mom's house this morning we started talking about ice cream. Skylar decided that ice cream was made out of snow, and then started asking questions about snow. This was the conversation:

"Mom, you can eat snow, right?"
"Yes, baby. You can eat snow. Just don't eat the yellow kind."
"Why?"
"Why do you think?"
She pauses a moment and then giggles. "Because it has pee pee in it!"
"That's right, baby."
Another pause from the back seat.
"Mom...you shouldn't eat brown snow either, right?"

Only out of the mind of a six-year old!!!

A New Adventure

Well, it seems like everyone and their brother (mine included! lol) is hosting a blog these days so I thought that I would try my hand at it. It is a really great way to get things on "paper" and keep up with the everyday events that we sometimes let slide by. Mom, Donna and I went to the scrapbook convention in Charlotte this weekend and I had such a blast. I was really inspired by all of the layouts and especially our instructor, Jessica Sprague. She was very focused on making sure that we knew how important it is for future generations that we write stuff down and "have our voices be heard". She has a great blog on her website where she posts some really funny stories about her kids and how they spend their days. Hopefully, I will be able to achieve the same thing here although I really don't know how she keeps up with it and two small children. lol I am doing a little digital scrapbooking as well so look for those layouts to be published here as well. I think that is it for now. Hope that you enjoy!!!