Whirling into the weekend

I have failed to give an update on Summer's MRI that she had earlier this week. So, as you can probably guess, things looked great. Now if we can just make it through next week's ct scan with the same news life will continue to be good. I mentioned her eyes being sensitive to light to the Dr., but I didn't get a definite answer or direction from him. I guess I will take her to an optometrist and see what they think.

I have decided that Summer and I will go to the funeral home together for visitation rather than the funeral. It is just going to be too sad and it is quite a ways away from where we live so it would be hard to do both days. She told me that she wishes we could see him one more time. I told her we might get to at the funeral home. But, she said she meant his whole body. I told her one day in heaven we will get to see him. They were never what I would call close, but a familiar face is a familiar face and when you know their name you have some sort of bond.

Playgym was a blast this morning as the kids explored emotions. Summer definitely knows how to show her emotions, although I am trying to curb some of her actions into ones that are acceptable. For instance, when she is mad, it is NOT OK to hit the person or be destructive. Also, it is OK to be sad, but whining is not the answer to anything. But, at the same time, I want to let her express her emotions. Man, this mommy stuff is fun. Just before our shower, we listened to Summer's Song of Love which she still loves. During the song, she directed me to dance with different faces - angry, sad, happy. It was cute to see her follow up the class with some of the things we talked about.

We also made a book run at the library since we had some books that were due back. I can't wait to read the ones we picked out to her. I really think she might start reading at some point this year. She is learning small words right now and how to sound out the letters that she sees. It is so exciting for me to experience all of this with her, although it may seem cheesy to some. Some people would rather just let someone else do all of this fun stuff for them or are too busy to even care. I know some people can't help it and have to work, but it is really sad to me that some people just don't want to put that much effort into their kids. I really feel so blessed to be able to nurture and cultivate her as she grows up. Of course, only time will tell if it was worth it. But, right now I think it is. The days go by fast as we run from here to there experiencing all we can, but it is fun and we do have some down time. Maybe not much, but I feel like life is so short. You never know when you will have your last day on this earth. So live your life to the fullest and make your dreams come true! That's my motto anyway.

Cowgirls and Angels

Why is it when I sit down I always want to write something about my life being a whirlwind?

This morning Summer and I had a nice time playing "cowgirl," as she called it. Her bed was my house and hers was under the table in the corner of her room. It was fun putting all the stuffed animals to bed while she watched. Then she went to her house and did the same. I remember playing house with my sister as a kid. We would take blankets out on the front porch and they were our boats. The deck around them was water, of course. I have lots of fond memories of playing dolls with my sister. I think I've said it before, but just in case I am mistaken, I'll say it again. Summer doesn't play with her dolls. Lexie, on the other hand, does. Summer likes to play with her stuffed animals. Leah, her cat (the FurReal one), was one of my pets today. She got new batteries and was purring up a storm while I put the other animals to sleep. Leah still has a donkey sticker on her belly from when Summer was in the hospital last year. She will not let me take it off because it is Leah's animal. LOL I noticed yesterday that another one of her cats has a sticker on it's belly. I think I need to go ahead and take it off before it is stuck like this one is. I am thankful that I don't find stickers on the wall or furniture though. After quite a few "pardners," we were through with our cowgirl play time. I was informed of this after Summer had decided she didn't want strawberries and bananas for breakfast. We're still working on that one. :)

There were a million things that came to mind to write about yesterday, but of course, today my head is blank. I can't believe I've forgotten all those things I thought I would write down. I'm sure they will come to me as soon as I get up. Oh well, gotta go get my girl out of the bed and eating so we can do something fun in a little bit. I am thinking maybe the aquarium. She has mentioned several times going to check on the octopus who is supposed to die since she laid her eggs.

Speaking of death, yesterday, one of Summer's fellow cancer warriors breathed his last breath. He was diagnosed with hepatablastoma, a type of liver cancer, just before Summer and I feel like I have been on their whole journey with them. It was so sad to see him go, but he is not suffering anymore. I don't understand that part - why he deserved to suffer like that. But, he is not alone. There are so many others out their suffering too. I went ahead and told Summer that Joshi went to heaven. She took it pretty well. She said something about people not feeling bad anymore once they do. That was it, and I left it at that. Last night, when we were going to bed, she asked God to not let us die. Not sure if that was related to Joshua, but in some way it probably was. The funeral will be in a couple of days, and I am still unsure of whether or not to take her. She has been to several funerals this past year, but I know this one will be especially sad. Oh well, I guess it will come down to whether or not her Daddy goes and if she wants to go. I hate decisions like this.

All is not doom and gloom though. She also prayed that she would lose a tooth, except she wants to keep it. And, she wants the tooth fairy to come. She has her first dentist appointment next week. I really need to get the paper work filled out, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. It's sitting in the messy pile of papers on my desk that also need my attention. I guess I better get to that pile of papers before the keyboard gets buried underneath them. LOL

Rainy day update

I am so behind in the blog world. I haven't had time to read any blogs in days. I've been really slacking for a while now, but at least I am making time to write my own before I forget the things I want to remember forever. Maybe one day I'll be able to just relax at the computer and catch up, but with two kids around a lot of the time, I just can't do it.

Summer spent the weekend with her Memaw & Nanny while I had a nice break in Detroit. I got to go to a friend's bachelorette party and had a whole weekend of cartoon free TV. I told Clint I was watching adult TV once when I was on the phone with him and he was confused. LOL It was nice to actually be able to sit and focus on a show without being interrupted to wipe any body's butt or make a snack. I did miss my baby though. On Sunday morning, she called to sing me "Happy Mother's Day." It went a little something like this:

Happy Mother's Day to you! Happy present to you! Happy present to you! Happy present to Mommy! Happy present to you!

I guess since her Daddy had taken her to the store to let her pick me out something the day before, she was thinking about the present she picked while she was singing. I opened my gift when I got to my mom's yesterday. She had colored me a MOM card and gotten me peanut butter cups. She was anxious to open them and sat on my lap eating them. It was cute and special because I got to hold her in my arms and snuggle on her to make up for the weekend without her.

She had a great time at Memaw's camping, fishing and playing with her cousins with pine needles and a canoe. The clothes she was wearing are still covered in pine sap, even after washing them and scrubbing them a little in the sink. Anyone got any ideas on how I can get it out?

Today was her last music class until June. She got some kind of instrument to bring home with her which was cool. We've played all three of her Candy Land games today. I am hoping to watch Toy Story with the girls in a little bit.

Tomorrow she has an MRI. Not sure when we will have the results, but if there is anything major that shows up, I'm sure it will be sooner than later. No worries though cause He has got the whole world in His hands!!!

Birthday Recap

Summer started her birthday off with a grilled cheese and some turkey slices. Her dad, Paw-Paw, Lexie and myself sang to her with 4 candles in a piece of leftover brownie from the night before. The adults all ate their brownies, but Summer did not (at least not until just before we left the house later that afternoon). The flames on the candles really bothered her eyes and she immediately started rubbing them. Bummer. It took all of us to get the candles out. Summer almost did, but then they flamed back up like trick candles. And, they were not trick candles. After breakfast, she opened her wrapped gifts from us. Then she went out front to discover her brand new (used**) bicycle. She wanted to ride it right away of course. Her daddy had to adjust the training wheels for her because it was a pretty wobbly first ride. She sped around the driveway in her pjs with no shoes on. She had a few spills. For some reason, she tried to dismount the bike while in motion rather than waiting for it to stop - several times. Overall, she ended up with a skinned up knee, but no other major or minor injuries. Hopefully, she will remember to stop before she dismounts and to use the brakes if she gets scared rather than turning and spilling over. While the girls were out playing, I realized that her tricycle, scooter and bicycle are ALL Disney Princess. That's crazy because she isn't even really into the princesses. After several trips outside to ride the back and one trip down the street, we headed to eat at Longhorns, her pick. Her Paw-Paw joined us since he wasn't going to get to go to the main event. She loves their bread. She also ate chili which Lexie was happy to share with her. She always wants to do what Summer does. We headed to pick up the cake after our bellies were all full, topped off with a hot fudge birthday sundae. When we got back to the condo for a quick pre-party break, Summer had a birthday present waiting at the door from my buddy Christina. It is a write desk which holds markers, crayons, colored pencils, brushes and that kind of stuff. We got it finished just in time to leave for the party.

When we got to the party, it was a little chaotic, but I guess most birthday parties are. They had a horse which cost $.50 and everyone wanted to ride. Luckily, it sat two kids - one on the saddle and one on the tail. Summer definitely had her fair share of rides, but was still waning one more ride with her pillow pet before we left.

The kids played bingo by listening to sounds and matching them up to the pictures on their cards. They were each given a pack of Smarties for playing pieces. She really loved all her gifts. Her unicorn pillow pet that she got from Memaw and Nanny is her favorite I think. Maybe the glow in the dark jelly fish from Gavin is though. She played with most of them when we got home. She even colored a picture on her new desk from one of her new coloring books. She played with her pom-poms and told her daddy she would cheer while me and him played football. LOL Guess he just might have a cheer leader after all.
The bubble blower from Amanda was really awesome with super-sized bubbles and bubbles inside other bubbles.
Polly Pockets were fun and she found that her Snow White doll is the same size so she can hang out with the other chick on the boat whenever. LOL

It was a great and exhausting day, but she stayed up until I made her go to bed a little after eleven. She did pick one book she got about a snowflake to read before bedtime. I sure am grateful that she had so many friends and family members to share the day with. It was a great day full of great memories.

Today, I have realized that I am now shopping in the big girls section. No more toddler stuff here. I can't wait to see all the growing she will do in the next year. Stay tuned.

**used - he found one on craigslist just like the one he bought. So he bought it and took the new one back saving about $40. It had not been used more than a half hour the ad said. Anyways, $$ saved by Daddy. Go Clint! :)

Leaving the 3's tomorrow

Today is Summer's last day of being 3. Right now she is in my bed, where she ate her strawberry pop-tart with no icing on Dad's side of the bed. No more rolling around in crumbs for me. LOL She is watching Bear in the Big Blue House and coloring with the new markers and crayons she got from her Nona. She's coloring on pink construction paper, of course. Not sure what she is making yet, but I am sure it will be a work of art. LOL I guess now is a good a time as any to share some of her latest creations.

Chicken she made at story time at the library A bear she made for me and a bunny which was not for me
Cats ( this was before she could, or should I say would, draw their ears)

Can you see all 5? I love the instrument the most I think.

We've got story time in a bit preceded by a bath. I couldn't convince her to bath last night and really didn't put up much effort to make her since I saw the perfect opportunity to update the blog with pics (see post below). She actually stayed up past me and Clint. I think we went to bed around 11:00. She tried to sleep, but couldn't. Maybe it was the late nap yesterday before her t-ball game. She is enjoying it more than she did in the beginning, but sometimes she falls victim to the glorious dirt on the infield. She actually ran towards a few balls yesterday, but she is kind of slow so she didn't always make it there before someone else got it. Her friend Willow was gracious enough to take turns catching the balls when Summer played on the pitcher's mound with her in the second inning. Afterwards, we had some sinful snacks. My friend made homemade chocolate chip cookie sandwiches (with homemade butter cream frosting between the cookies). Yes, they were sinful. And, I have two more in my fridge. Who wants to take bets on who is going to end up eating them? If you guessed me, you won.

Yesterday, we went to the mall and had lunch together. She wanted to go to her "favorite" mall - Hamilton Place. The train they put in there really gets her vote on making that mall the best. She loves to play on the playgrounds at both of our malls. Unfortunately, she had to learn a life lesson in obedience yesterday. She did NOT get to ride the train. I gave her a five minute warning which she took in stride. Then when I told her to come and let me put her shoes on her, she just looked at me. Then I counted to three. No movement. So, I said, "No train." Needless to say, she wasn't happy about it. All the way to Kohl's, she wasn't happy about it. But, I bet you next time she is going to hop up and get those shoes on! Her legs still seem to get tired often. When we got to Kohl's, she started complaining. I'm not sure if she just wants me to hold her, which I would gladly do more often if she weren't so heavy, or what. She usually doesn't complain until after she has walked a pretty good bit, so I think they really do get tired. Darn chemo damaging her nerves. But, I haven't noticed many other side effects so I'm not going to complain too much.

I am just so grateful to have a happy, healthy little girl who is going to be 4 years old tomorrow. Sometimes I still feed her so she'll eat everything on her plate. Sometimes I still wipe her butt (well, more than sometimes, but it is getting better). Sometimes I carry her when her legs are tired. Sometimes I hold her in my arms and kiss her head. Sometimes I tickle her silly. Sometimes I snuggle up with her and take a nap. Sometimes I read to her before bed. Sometimes I sing. Always I kiss her goodnight and tuck her in. Always she wakes up looking for me. I am so thankful for this wonderful little girl that God has blessed me with.

A month in pics

Summer & Mom Her second t-ball game she was all about the dirt.

Headed to visit the neighbors down the street.

Hiding from the camera, but I liked it anyway. :P

My very own little Tinkerbell. Riding at Willow's house.

Ready to crawl like a turtle in Playgym.

Lexie and Summer have their own rides. LOL

She LOVES this swing!!!

Taking time to pick some flowers.

Carnivals are fun!

Sometimes life is a blur, but the memories are great.

I think we may have been to Chuck E Cheese a time or two in the past year or so.

The ride she waited and waited to ride. Not because there was a line but because we walked by it and went to the other side of the park first. Of course, she is hiding behind her duck she won.

Lexie loved the rides. She is such a big girl (or so she thinks).

Summer being silly with straws on the carousel.

Her momma would've been proud of the way she was driving. Of course, there was no radio to blare. (haha, j/k Amanda)

She was ready with her kitty in her pants.

Hot and sweaty kids enjoying their after game snack.

Summer got to open a birthday present early. Thanks Nona & Nono!

Here is a video of what followed.

3 days until the big 4

The past week was packed with things to do, as usual. Summer's 3 classes were all attended. Plus, we went to Lake Winnie with some friends. I really wanted to post some pics, but my wireless provider is not doing the best of jobs right now. And, I'm too lazy to hook the laptop up to this computer to switch them over. Oh well, maybe one day I'll get them up.

We also had two birthday parties this weekend. One for Josh, a little boy Summer's same age, who is battling for his life. Please pray for him and his family. It was a pirate and princess party so Summer decided to wear her Hannah Montana dress. I guess she is a modern day princess, right? Yesterday, we went to a party at the Learning Express which was pretty fun. Summer wore her Sleeping Beauty dress to this party, although it was NOT a costume party. Everyone thought she was cute though, so I'm glad I didn't put up a fuss about the princess dress. At the party, they did a few scientific experiment type activities, one of which was making slime. Summer would NOT touch the slime. It took a while for her to even stir it. The boys all loved it and Laila, who is not quite 2, couldn't get enough of it. They also made candy tubes and snow (no, not out of ice). I am happy to say that I got out of the toy store without buying anything for her. Well, I did buy her two activity books, but she doesn't know about them because they are for her birthday. Unfortunately, she has definitely come to be quite a material girl which I hope to curb once cancer is a distant memory in her head. She really got ruined after her diagnosis. Now, we have stuff galore, and we weren't lacking to begin with. Hopefully, I will be able to instill some philanthropic values into her in the years to come. You know, that it is better to give than receive.

She is really excited about her birthday and told her daddy that she wanted a bicycle. So, he went and got her one. I think he even sprung for the princess one with streamers since I told him I'd just go buy them if the bike didn't have them. Of course, she doesn't know about it yet so don't anybody go asking her about the bike she got for her birthday. I also ended up getting her a little figurine set that had the meerkats and baby leopard she wanted, plus a few others. I was so happy when I saw it on the shelf. I even bought it when she was with me and she had no clue.

Well, it is off to music. Then back home to play doctor???