How I've Spent My April Vacation

Friday 4/18 Gabbie turns 14...YAY
Saturday 4/19 Gabbie bike rides with her friend for a few hours and boys play while dad is out dj'ing a benefit gig. Saturday night Gabbie comes home with a possible dislocated finger from falling off her bike and Daddy comes home with a broken nose from when he was struck by a piece of equpiment while loading it into the truck.
Sunday 4/20 church goes well except that Miss K is super clingy and won't leave me to go to nursery as she always does. Sunday night Gabbie feels icky and we think she's just worn out from riding her bike for 4hrs the day before.
Monday 4/21 Gabbie still doesn't feel great,but her friend asks her to visit so she does and I bring Eli to the pedi becuase he's running a temp and has a sore throat. We suspect strep,but the test comes back negative. Pedi tells me that it's just a virus, but be careful because Hand/Foot/Mouth (Coxsacki? virus is going around). Go home and let him rest and keep him comfortable the rest of the day.
Tuesday 4/22 Gabbie is sick again; lethargic, achy and generally not feeling well. Eli is spunky again and has no fever. Gabbie manages to go out for a bit with Daddy and I bring Quinn to his baseball game. Dad treats kids to BK for dinner. Gabbie manages part of it and goes to bed.
Wednesday 4/23 Gabbie can't get up. Feels really lousy and has no strength, coughing, tummy ache; let her rest all she wants. We figure it's the virus that Eli had. Miss K is not drinking well, but since we just introduced milk we guessed that she just doesn't like it. She's also a little more clingy than usual and I remember that she did have her vaccines last Thursday so this could be a side affect.
Thursday 4/24 Both girls are not themselves. Gabbie can't get up off the bed and has a temp over 104 and Miss K still doesn't want to drink much and her temp is 101; call the dr. Dr said to piggyback Tylenol and Motrin and make sure they're both getting fluids in and bring them in next morning to be checked for strep (it was too late at this point by the time they had the fevers). Thursday overnight Gabbie is alseep off and on because of coughing and Miss K wakes up 2-3 times crying; VERY unusual for her.
Today, Friday 4/25 bring both girls to the dr with 101-102 temps and same symptoms as yesterday. After various tests and exams, Gabbie has pneumonia and Miss K has measels!! Mind you the pneumonia IS possible to get at this time of year; something people keep questioning. And the measels? They only popped out on her while we were in the dr's office!! A rare but possible side affect of the MMR shot she had last week. I've had 5 babies and she's the first to react. Gabbie is on antibs and an inhaler and Motrin as needed. Miss K is on Motrin as needed. Thankfully, neither of them is contagious. I just feel so sad that my girlies are sick. I'm doing all I can to keep them comfortable and hopefully both will be well soon. Of course none of this comes without some MommyGuilt because I thought I should have just known it was pneumonia and that if only I had been able to breastfeed Miss K she wouldn't be sick. Logically, I know that's silly, but sometimes my mind just goes to those places. I know that what matters is that I'm taking care of them properly and they know that too. Poor Gabbie though; she didn't get to enjoy her Spring Break, but as I told her, it would probably be better than missing 5 more days of school.
Now it's on to better things. Tonight Eli had his very first TBall game and tomorow he has another. He loved it and the kids were so cute to watch; looked like the Keystone Cops! LOL And Eli the silly boy, every time a player on the OTHER team hit the ball, HE would run the bases!! LOL By about the 4th time he figured out he didn't need to do it. He had fun though and that's all that counts. Tomorrow is another game simultaneously with Quinn on the adjoining field. We've got some VERY busy weeknights and Saturdays ahead of us with all three (G,Q, E) all playing ball, but they'll have fun.

I hope you all had enjoyable spring breaks! :-)

TAG! You're IT!!
If you're reading this, I'm tagging YOU to do this on your blog.

I am...debating about cutting my hair really short today
I think...I should probably go eat since I forgot breakfast
I know...I have to do laundry which never seems to end
I want...to go to FL and see my dad before he leaves and bring my kids to DW
I wish...I was in Disney World
I hate...control freaks with bad tempers
I miss...the people I rarely see
I fear....being trapped
I feel...tired and want to go out in the sunshine
I hear...the tv
I smell...like baby food
I crave...ice cream and brownies
I search...for the answer to how to handle my life
I wonder...if I will get to go to FL for my birthday
I love...my kids
I ache...for freedom
I care...about lost souls
I always...pray
I am not....a quitter
I dance..when nobody is looking
I sing...to any song I know when I hear it
I cry...when nobody can see
I don't always...share my feelings
I write...very well and should do it more
I win...each time I make the choice to start again
I lose...when I buckle under
I never...want regrets
I listen...always
I can usually...bring the positive out when someone is upset
I am scared...snakes and fire
I need...a happy and fulfilling marriage
I am happy about...having good friends
I think...I deserve better than I allow myself to have

April 1st, but no April Fool!

It's so hard to believe that only a year ago this sweet unexpected blessing of a girl came into our lives. I can still so clearly recall the conversation wherein I told David that after losing yet another baby to m/c, I would not have another unless I could be sure it would be a little girl; something I wished for again after three wonderful sons. Now don't get me wrong, I adore my boys, but I longed for another little girl to raise since my other girls are so much older now. Since there are no such guarantees I didn't want to try again and maybe suffer yet another loss. I have a condition that causes me to lose pg's by 8wks so the fact that I've had all the kids I have is a real miracle. After some impulsive thought, I made an appointment to end my baby making career. Just before the day came, we found out I was pregnant again. I cried mostly for fear of losing yet another baby. I cried in shock because it had been so difficult to make the decision to stop having babies; I had felt like it wasn't up to me, it was up to God. Apparently, I was right! It was a rocky start, but the dr's kept a careful eye on us and after a few worriesome weeks of wondering and praying that this baby would be a keeper, we found out that this little blessing was indeed a little girl! I cannot tell you how stunned I was!! And the due date? The day after our older daughter's birthday. After 13yrs she would finally have a baby sister; something she'd always wished for was finally coming true and she was SO thrilled!! The perfect birthday gift she said. It was a complicated pregnancy and at 25wks I went into labor. My husband was a 25wkr himself and I sadly lost a cousin who was a 25wkr so needless to say I knew the risk we faced. That day is forever etched in my mind; I'm crying now just thinking back on it. Well, thanks to the advance of medicine and technology, the dr was able to give me Terbutaline to stop my labor. I was put on bedrest for the duration of the pregnancy. Not fun with a 1yr old and 4yr old under toe,but this little girl arriving safely in our arms at the right time was worth it all. My labor began two other times in later weeks and again I was giving the Terb. shots. We prayed, wished and watched the calendar because every week I made it through was another week she grew. Ultimately, I made it to 37wks and had a wonderful, easy birth. We went to the hospital on her cousin's birthday (another cousin) and she passed the midnight hour and arrived on her great-grandma's 90th birthday instead. I remember looking at her and she was SO tiny! She weighed all of 6.4 which was very small for my babies. She would end up losing more weight quickly in the next few weeks and had some minor complications,but they have resolved. Today we have a beautiful, loving, charming, funny, sweet ONE YEAR OLD daughter who brings so much joy to our lives. God proved to me that he does things in His time, not ours and that he does hear the prayers of our hearts.
Happy Birthday Kingsley Faith, we love you Princess Baby!

One day old....

One YEAR old...

What have we done lately???
We colored eggs..first time and the kids loved it

We had a playdate with our baby cousin (both boys are NJS)

We had a tea party and told Bear how to play

The last few weeks have been really hectic and the only time I get to blog is at night when the kids are asleep and I'm just too tired and brain foggy at that point. I'll try to do better. Sleep is grossly under-rated. LOL