World Down Syndrome Day

Today is March 21st... World Down Syndrome Day! This date was chosen because Down Syndrome is a triplication of the 21st chromosome.

We have a good handful of friends who have amazing, sweet, loving children who just happen to have Down Syndrome. Look at these sweet faces that Kayleigh captured on camera when she did her Reflections Project and send a special prayer up for them, and all others affected by Down Syndrome!

What Goes 'Round... Comes 'Round!

Well... after feeling MISERABLE for 4 days and a Minute Clinic visit that was an hour of my life wasted, I went to MY doctor's office on Friday afternoon. Turns out - their strep test was POSITIVE and I had a lovely sinus infection brewing, huge tonsils, and a bit of an asthmatic type of cough going on that the doctor got to witness! So, he put me on steroids and antibiotics.... 24 hours later, I'm finally feeling a little bit of relief!

But... while I was AT the doctor's office, he asked me what took me so long to come in. I explained to him I went to the Minute Clinic thing on Wednesday night, and I told him how awful of an experience it was. He pressed for more details, so I gave him the WHOLE story! He then asked me which Minute Clinic I went to, so I told him. Then wanted to know who the NP was. I couldn't remember her name, but I told him she didn't speak much English. He smiled and said "oooohhh... that's Elena... I'll have a chat with her. I'm her supervisor!".

HA!

Turns out, my doctor is the Supervising MD for the Robinhood Road Minute Clinic!

What goes 'round, comes 'round, Elena! Maybe next time she'll use a bit more clinical judgement and a bit less computer clicking!

Don't Waste Your Money!

I've been dealing with a horrible sore throat for a few days now, and today the white blistery spots started. I have a history of tonsillitis and was actually scheduled to have my tonsils taken out a year ago, but I chickened out last minute. So - for me - it's not rocket science to figure out what's about to happen!

So, tonight, I gave in! I've hard all the rave about the new CVS Minute Clinic's so I thought I'd head down there thinking it would be an easy in and out, with a simple diagnosis, especially considering my history.

Started out simple enough... you enter your name into a computer and sit and wait your turn. I only waited about 20 minutes, for a walk-in I was pretty happy with that. A nurse practitioner (who did not speak English well at all) greeted me and took me into her little office. She immediately starts asking me canned questions from the computer and she clicks my answers... hardly any eye contact at all. Once she's done she says "the computer says to do a rapid strep test". I told her that was fine, but I was certain it was tonsillitis and started to tell her my history - she cut me off saying "the computer gives us clinical guidelines we have to follow".

Uhhh... excuse me? The computer is your clinical judgement????

So I let her do the strep test - she shoved the thing half way down my throat and left it there so long I ended up grabbing her arm to take it OUT of my throat! Kid you not! She runs the test and then shows it to me saying "one pink line is negative, two is positive, you only have one so what you have is viral".

Again - at this point she still hadn't even LOOKED at my tonsils! She's working based on what the computer told her to do!

She starts to click something on the computer and I said to her - it's the tonsils that are a mess, so she finally looked. First she asks (after she looked) do you even still have your tonsils? SERIOUSLY!?!? She then told me.... and I quote.... "you do have a lot of them, but your white blisters aren't large enough for me to click as a symptom" and she turned to go back to letting the computer spit out IT'S diagnosis...

"sore throat"

By now I was ticked and I told her so! Told her that it was a complete waste of my $35 copay and I'll call my own doctor tomorrow - to which she asked me if my own doctor prescribed meds based on what I thought was wrong. I very sternly replied - and I quote again "no, but she DOES use her own clinical judgement, something that you clearly don't know how to do!".

She was ever so kind as to print off the what to do for a sore throat sheet, and sent me on my merry way!

Now - I'm sure that if you have something that can be simply diagnosed with a test (i.e. strep, flu, etc.) that it's fine. But if there's any clinical judgement involved at all - don't waste your time or your money at Minute Clinic!

First Time On Stage...

This weekend was the first time the new youth praise band was on stage during regular services. They sang "Hosanna" during the offering. Kayleigh's nerves were high, but they all did a great job!

(ps - Kayleigh's the one on the far left of the video!)

Poor Andy!

In the short week we have lived here, Andy has already learned that he LOVES to go for an afternoon walk in the neighborhood to see his friends too! Tonight, as he was going down one curb to cross the street, his back hip gave out and he tumbled forward. His paw got stuck in the sidewalk crack and the next thing we knew there was blood everywhere! We got him back home figuring we could fix him up... but it was clear there was no stopping the bleeding so off to the emergency vet we went....

Turns out our poor pup has some sort of bleeding disorder we didn't know about! Yeah - I know - write a book of all the crazy stuff that goes on in our house! After two hours of waiting for his foot to clot on it's own, they ended up having to turniquet his leg for nearly 15 minutes AND cauterize it to get it to stop bleeding!

So for the next 3 days, no walks for Andy. To top that off, to go outside to potty he has to have a plastic bag over that foot (he HATES it!). Add to that, we get the joy of trying to get him to take antibiotics twice a day for the next 10 days and a pain pill each day for the next 3 days!

Poor pup!

A Tour of the Main Level...

Here's a quick photo tour of the main level of the new house...


First, this is looking into the dining area and kitchen from the family room...

Part of the family room... beyond those french doors is the "formal sitting room" that we are using as an office.

Just another view of the family room...

And yes, another view of the family room!

Up to the 3rd floor... lots and lots of stairs! Man do we get a workout every day!

This is the view into the family room from Mike's office.

Lots of blank walls in there still! We haven't decided how to decorate it yet.

From the center hallway looking through the dining area into the sunroom.

Andy's room.... aka the sunroom! Andy LOVES it out there! The ceramic tile floor is cool for him, but he gets all that sunshine!

The mostly finished kitchen. The blahh valance over the sink will be replaced with something a bit more colorful!

This was intended for a formal dining room, but we're turning into a 2nd living area for the kids to have their movies, video games, etc. They love it!

Looking down the center hallway out the front door.

Thank you for stopping by!

Lent Is Here...

We were Catholic for many years, and although we are no longer practicing Catholic and we attend another Christian church, there are some beliefs of our Catholic background that still mean a lot to us. One of those beliefs is the idea of giving up something for Lent to glorify and Honor a God who gave up His LIFE for us!

We talk to the kids each year about why we do this, and we all decide on something that we can "give up". One year I gave up pop (yeah, that didn't work out so well!), Mike has given up cursing (a few time), and Kayleigh even tried giving up MEAT one year! This year we haven't really talked too much about it other than to toss around thoughts here and there.

Until today... A friend sent this, and I think it's what we've been looking for all along

Give up complaining - Focus on gratitude

Philippians 2:14&15 – Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure…

1 Thessalonians 5:18 – Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Jesus Christ.


Give up bitterness - Turn to forgiveness

Ephesians 4:31 – Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.

Ephesians 4:32 – Be kind and compassionate to one another forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.


Give up worry - Trust in God

Matthew 6:25 – “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life… who by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

Matthew 6:33 – But seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.


Give up discouragement - Be full of hope

Deuteronomy 31:8 – The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you: he will never leave you or forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.

Isaiah 40:31 – But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.


Give up hatred - Return good for evil

1 John 2:9 – Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness.

Luke 6:27 – “But I tell you who hear me; Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you.”


Give up anger - Be more patient

Matthew 5:22 – But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.

Proverbs 15:18 – A hot tempered man stirs up dissension, but a patient man calms a quarrel.


Give up gossiping - Control your tongue

Psalm 34:13 – Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

Proverbs 21:23 – He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.

I hope that this helps you during this Lent and Easter season to remember why we celebrate Easter, how much our God loves us, and ways that we can glorify and honor Him!

How Cool Is It...

Newsong on Stage

Our kids LOVE to sing and dance to worship and praise music!?!

My friend, Jenni, and I took our kids to the Winter Jam 2010 concert in Greensboro last night. Once there, we met up with another good friend, Kristen, with her husband Scott and son Ethan.

Kristen and Ethan

It was so worth the 45 minutes standing in a crowd of thousands in 30 degree weather, plowing through to find your own seat as others rushed to find and save theirs too, then being herded out like cattle after the concert!

Juli, Paige, Chase & Jake... FREEZING!

Seeing them all smiling, dancing, and laughing made it a great evening! It was way cool to see everyone of many religions praising and honoring a God who loves us ALL!

Juli, Jenni, Paige, Chase, and Jake

By the way... Devin went to... but in the crowds of thousands I had no clue where he was to get pictures!

Paige's April Snowman!

Paige had a project that initially sounded like it was going to be quite a headache. You know, one of those projects they assign to kids that the parents end up doing! She had to use a cube, sphere, cylinder, cone, and rectangular prism to make a snowman. And, if that wasn't enough, the snowman had a month them... hers was April.

She spent one of our snow days going through the house finding everything she thought she could use. I wrapped them all in white tissue paper, and she did the rest! Her original plan was to put a small Easter basket on the arm and put an Easter egg in it, but she was having trouble with the stability and being able to carry it. Daddy to the rescue... the ended up using an old Easter basket!

The kids will be having a snowman parade at school tomorrow and then their masterpieces will be displayed in the Media Center for a while. She's mighty proud of her Easter Snowman and so are we!

Snowboarding For the First Time

With school out the last few days... Devin was SURE he was going to be "amazingly bored" (his words, not mine!). That was until a friend of ours from church invited him to go snowboarding and skiing for the first time ever. Now, if you know Devin AT ALL, you KNOW that this was a big risk for him... which bone would he break, how was he going to get hurt?!?

Yep - somewhere up at the top of this hill Devin is FLYING down on a single snowboard. BUT, he shocked us all and came home uninjured... absolutely exhausted to the point where he can't even stand up on two feet and carry on a conversation.... but uninjured!

He had a blast with the Muellers and came home thanking us over and over for letting him go. He even gave me a big ol' hug! Love that kid!

Why Is It Important?

When I was revamping our blog for Valentine's Day, it occurred to me that I've never really explained WHY the "Important Links" are important to me... So here goes it:

The first one is the Autism Society of America. We have known that something was different about Chase from a very early age. As a therapist, I think I've just learned to accommodate him as he's grown. Chase doesn't have a full autism diagnosis, but does have Pervasive Developmental Disorder with austistic tendencies as well as Mild Developmental Delay. So for us - this website has really helped us to understand Chase as he grows and changes.

Fight Prematurity is a website by the March of Dimes to help raise awareness about prematurity. This is a big one for us because BOTH of our girls were premature: Kayleigh by 7 weeks, and Paige by a whopping 9 weeks! Both had very different circumstances that really made Mike and I thankful for all we have with them. Kayleigh has no long term "direct" effects from prematurity and Paige only has challenges with asthma. We are very blessed!

The "In Memory of Mom" link is a link to the Melanoma Research Foundation. My Mom lost her battle with Melanoma on April 13, 2003. Melanoma is most serious type of skin cancer, and the hardest to treat. There is so much more research that needs to be done to keep others from losing loved ones as young as Mom.

The Juvenile Diabetes Association is another one linked to Kayleigh. When Kayleigh was in 6th grade she collapsed in school. We were called and she had to be taken to the hospital.... it was then that we learned she had trouble with sugar. This past year, her cousin also collapsed and was later diagnosed with Juvenile Diabetes. It's hard to watch these young kids have to watch every little last thing they put in their mouth, for fear of what it will do to their bodies.

Kawasaki Disease is a very rare, and little known about auto-immune heart disease. The key to KD being treatable is for the child to be diagnosed by day 11! ELEVEN! That's not much time! Chase was very sick when he was 5 and had been in and out of the pediatrician three times in just about a weeks time. Chase was diagnosed on day 9... 2 days from what could have been complete devastation for our family! Since his initial diagnosis he has had two acute episodes - which is even more rare than the actual disease itself!

And Organ Donation! This is one that, fortunately, we don't have personal experience with. We do realize, though, that the simple gift of organ donation saves lives and brings joy to someone during a time of loss for another. It's just common sense to us!

I hope this encourages you to check out these sites and see how you can get involved!

Snowed In...

Well... 9 inches of snow followed by a good solid 1/4 inch of ice kept us in the house most of the weekend. Mike did get to the grocery store a mile up the road this afternoon... took him SIX tries to get the van up the driveway! Why did he go to the store? Well... because if we're cooped up in the house with a lit fire all day... we MUST make indoor s'mores.... right? They were soooooooo worth the risk of his life! Just look at that oooey goooey goodness!

Lost Generation Message...

January 29, 2010 Snowstorm

School, Sick, and Snow!

Well... since we're snowed in for the weekend, I guess I have time to update everyone!

First - School...

We received word from Meadowlark Thursday that they AGREE that Chase needs help! Not only do they agree... the guidance counselor said that if we didn't put Chase on an IEP we would be doing him a huge dis-service! So - she's started the process and is putting Chase's team together. We should expect our first IEP planning meeting very soon! Woo-Hoo!

Second - Sick Sick Sick...

Chase had the flu last weekend... woke up with it one morning and spent a great deal of the day in the bathroom. By last Wednesday, it was me... I haven't thrown up that much or that hard in YEARS! By the weekend Paige wasn't feeling so hot. Then, the worst, MIKE! Yep... he came home from work yesterday morning with a bad headache and before we knew it he was throwing up too! Blech! He's feeling better and we're hoping it's all gone now!

Last - Snow...

Is someone pulling some sort of trick on us? Seriously? I want to know now! We moved SOUTH to get AWAY from the icky white stuff! We got hit in December with 7 inches... that was enough.... but NOOOOOOOOO.... old mother nature seems to think we need more! 12-15 inches by the time this is all done tomorrow! So, Mike's spending the night at the theater and the kids and I got a bunch of movies to watch while we're snowed in.

That's about it for now! I think that's enough! I'm sure by the end of the weekend I'll have some snow pics to share! Blech!

Dear Mr. Flu Bug...

PLEASE LEAVE OUR HOUSE NOW!

Sincerely,

Dear Mr. Flu Bug...

What a Night of Love!

I was asked a while ago to help out at our church's Youth Girls Lock-In. Nervous as I was, I agreed... and so very glad I did! What a fun night with some of the best youth ever and even better youth leaders!

But - before the lock-in, the youth leaders hosted "Deeper"... a night of praise & worship for all the youth. This was an amazing experience for me, as a youth parent. When I was in school - youth groups were social time. But River Oaks Youth Ministry really is different! These kids go there to love our God! They sang together, prayed, and just spent time worshiping "as one"!

Big Big Kudos to our youth directors, Chip Herrera and Sonny Flowers, for a job well done and allowing God to work through them to guide our kids!