Birthday Boy. Birthday Girl.

It goes in that order too. Andrew was the birthday boy last Tuesday (the 13th) and I was the birthday girl the following day on Wednesday (the 14th).

Andrew had just the greatest birthday. My sister, Lori, delivered him a teddy bear with balloons at school. The school sang "Happy Birthday" to him during lunch and I came by before school was out to bring cupcakes and juice. He again got to have the class sing to him as he wore the "birthday boy" hat. I wish I had brought my camera!

That morning when he got up, I asked him, "Do you feel older?" He replied, "No, but look! (He's laying on the sofa and yanks the blanket off of him.) My legs have grown!!" He's completely serious and completely excited. Too cute! I had blown up some balloons and tied them to a long string and put them in the entry from the kitchen to the living room. When he walked in the door, he declared, "You didn't tell me about this!" For dinner we had the meal of his choice - grilled hotdogs and ate some leftover cupcakes. We had revival last week so we went to it later. He loved the children's program they had each night so he was excited to spend his birthday there.

Wednesday, my birthday. Wade took the day off. We took the kids to school together and then went to Panera Bread for breakfast - cinnamon crunch bagels and caramel lattes. Mmmmm! We talked for a bit and then he dropped me off at my hair appointment to get my hair cut and my "fall" highlights. He picked me up later and we went shopping at the mall then on to lunch at Gourmet & Company (as many of you know, my very favoritest restaurant!). We then ran some errands and then picked the kids back up. We enjoy having time like that to just hang out and be together.

I have to say that this birthday was pretty special for me. I think after being scared with the melanoma I had removed, it has made me appreciate life more. Small things seem to be a little more special. I just knew how quickly Aunt Emma and Sara (my mother-in-law) had died from it so honestly, when they first biopsed my mole and then found it was melanoma, I didn't know if it had spread and how long I had to live. That may sound like I was jumping to conclusions on whether it was that bad or not but I knew it was serious. Life or death serious. Once again it was caught in time. No one knows how many times that will happen to my advantage. So until then or until it doesn't, I want to continue to feel this way - enjoy my time on this earth with my family and friends.

On Thursday, Elizabeth's class had their field trip to Wolf Creek Indian Village in Bastian, VA. It is a very neat and nice place but it was very cold. We drove the last 30 minutes through some very heavy wind (later found out they was a wind advisory). It was the strongest wind I had ever drove in. I had to stay at "ten o'clock and two o'clock" as I drove to keep the van in the lane. Yes, it was that bad! When we arrived, it had started to snow! Wow! I had NOT dressed for this kind of weather. The day before it had been 69 at our house and here it was 34. Brrrr! I had on a short sleeved shirt but thankfully had a sweat jacket and light rain coat that I both wore.

The kids were ecstatic to say the least. It put them in sort of a wild mood. LOL One of the guides, a young man, did not have any patience for children in wild moods and was quite entertaining to all the adults (ten kids, twelve adults!!). Because of the bad weather, I left my expensive camera in the van and didn't get any photos. I hope to get some from some of the other parents. The students learned a lot though (and so did I) about the Eastern Woodland Indians that had lived there.

Elizabeth's class re-enacted the first Thanksgiving on Friday. Her second grade class dressed as Native Americans and the third grade dressed as the pilgrims. The parents provided food for the feast (turkey, corn, cornbread, green beans, etc.). Elizabeth wore the Indian costume that Mom made me when I was around her age. She was excited to get to wear it. I was excited for her to wear it too. :) We will have to come up with a pilgrim costume for next year. The classes did skits after the meal.



Friday for me was spent cleaning house and getting ready for Andrew's party the following day. Elizabeth had piano lessons on this day since Thursday was such a hectic day for us. While she was there, Andrew and I ran to Wal-mart and picked up an undecorated cookie cake and icing to do our own decorating. It was his idea. He wanted to decorate his own cake. This is what he did the following morning.


He used chocolate icing for a race track and the green is the grass along the side. He had picked out Hotwheels themed party decor a few weeks ago. The guests arrived at 11:30. We had the usual family and friends (Tom had come up for the party on Friday) and he invited two of his best buddies from school, Joshua and Canyon. They were so cute together. Three boys, big buddies, just having so much fun to get to play together outside of school. They stayed longer than the party lasted as we had asked them to.

I supposed this was my tenth birthday party to be given at our house. Elizabeth had one at Fun Adventure a couple of years ago and her first two were celebrated at Daddy and Mom's before we moved into our house now. I think this party was my first one where I wasn't stressed and just had fun and went with the flow. It so much easier not to try to plan things for the kids. They truly have fun just running around the house and outside and playing with each other. Games not required. ;)

Today I had my stitches removed from the surgeries I had last Tuesday. I had two more moles removed. Eight stitches on my right foot and five on my right arm. My reports were clear. Praise the Lord! The mole on my foot was mild atypia but for me that's no biggie. My arm was just fine. I had a time though with walking on my foot. It was right behind my toes and I couldn't lay my foot flat for a few days because the skin was too tight and I was just afraid to! Sunday was the first day it didn't hurt. I was walking on it crazy and making my arch hurt and even my calf muscle ache! The surgery from my melanoma wasn't as bad. You can actually walk without bending your ankle much but you can't walk without putting your foot on the ground! Ha ha! Thankfully, the cutting is over for a while. My appointment with the melanoma specialist at Vanderbilt is in January.

We leave tomorrow to visit Wade's family for Thanksgiving. I will do most of the cooking. His family is small (twelve total when we're all together and counting kids) so it's no big deal. I hate that Ben, Stacy and Stone won't be with us this year. They will be in our thoughts though as they stay up in Pennsylvania having to stick close to home with a new baby, law school and a long drive home.

I have to close with my recipe for Jackson Pie. I say "my" but really it was Wade's grandfather (William H. Clemmons). It's basically a pecan pie with chocolate chips but better than any pecan pie recipe you'll ever try. ;) I made two of them today for Thanksgiving and I hate to admit, but Wade and I already started on one. Oooops! Hee hee!

Jackson Pie

1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup pecans
1/2 cup chocolate chips (or more)
1 nine-inch pie shell

Cream sugar and butter. Add the next four ingredients; mix well. Put chips and pecans on bottom of pie shell; pour filling on top. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until set.

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Delish!

Six Things About Me. That You May Not Have Known.

Or you may have. :) I was "tagged" by Krystin over on her blog so here I go . . .

1. When I was in high school, I decided I wanted to marry a cowboy or a farmer. Well, I got the farmer. Not in occupation but last name. He does have a family farm though (around 700 acres). It's never too late to turn Wade into a cowboy . . . or is it?? Ha!

2. Stupid body tricks - not double jointed but maybe my thumb is? I can bend only my right thumb in the middle joint backwards. I can "pop" my ears by putting my finger in it and pushing it out. Really it's just the air "popping". My dad hated for me to do this when I was young and would tell me I was going to hurt my ears. Hee hee! AND (yes, there's one more), I can wiggle my nose like a rabbit. Kids especially find that one funny.

3. I'm "extremely moley". Oh, how many times I have heard doctors and nurses tell me this. I know it and I don't need to be told. I almost feel like they're saying how ugly I am because in truth, I hate my moles. I had one jerk in school make fun of them that started the downward spiral of my feelings toward them. Now, I just hate them because of the problems they cause me but it is true.

4. I love okra - pickled or fried. Truly a southern food. It may not be my favorite vegetable but it is the weirdest food I like.

5. I enjoy housework, maybe because I like a clean house. There are a few I don't particularly like (dusting and mopping) but washing clothes and vacuuming are favorites.

6. I'm weird about how the dishes go in the dishwasher, how the dishes are put up, how I fold clothes, and a few other odd things. I believe "my ways" are more efficient usually in my reasoning. Yes, I exhibit a few OCD tendencies. I'm definitely a believer in "everything has a place and everything in its place" philosophy.

Who to tag? Um, how about Brianna and Kristi? Sorry friends!! :)

Jam-packed Week.

I'm not sure why my banner up there is crooked now. It used to not be that way and I know I haven't messed with my template or anything. Guess I need to figure that one out.

Happy Veteran's Day!! Thank you to all the men and women who have served in the US military to ensure the freedom of our country.

We had revival start today at our church. The evangelist and the "team" he brought with him are SO talented. I LOVE their music. On Friday they are having a "Sacred Irish Concert" that I can't wait to attend. There are about eight or so 20-something-year-olds with him and his wife doing the music. It was a great service tonight. They have something for the kids too. Andrew and Elizabeth had a fun time. Andrew was pumped and told me the story that was told to them. It was one of those "you gotta come back tomorrow to see what happens" kind and he can't wait! LOL

The weekend! Andrew spent the night with his friend, Caleb, Friday after school so that left Wade and me with just Elizabeth. One child and our easy child so we had a quiet night. Missed our boy, of course, but it was nice to baby Elizabeth a bit. We ate at Cootie Brown's (a family favorite) and then went home. Elizabeth was anticipating having the Webkinz website to herself the whole time Andrew was gone. She stayed on it for as long as we let her too.

Saturday we went visiting for church. Elizabeth went with us. She loves to visit for church. I hope she always feels this way and is eager to serve the Lord in this way. Andrew enjoys it too but he was still at Caleb's. Afterwards we ran to town and looked at faucets in Lowe's. The one in our bathroom has been leaking for a while - a little drip in the sink every so often that has now turned to a drip about every 10 seconds. I just read the other day that a drip a minute results in around 125 gallons of water a year. I put a cup under our sink and from that morning until Wade got home at 5:30, it was over 3/4 full. He took the point. We hope to hire an electrician we have used in the past to replace some light fixtures and do the sink for us. He does small plumbing jobs too.

We picked Andrew up after Lowe's. He had a great time with his friend. Behaved well. That's what we like to hear. ;) The rest of our Saturday was spent at home, just hanging out, it was woooooonderful!

I forgot to mention Wade's lumbar puncture on my last post. I understand a lumbar puncture is the same as a spinal tap but his doctors kept calling it the former. He had the procedure this past Wednesday. The neurologist is still trying to figure out what is causing the chronic headaches. He did well though. He had to lay down most of the afternoon and evening but went to work the next day. He had some achy-ness in the spot on Thursday but was fine on Friday. It will take a week or so to find out the results - if any.

This week is so busy. I think it's always busy, but this week seems to be worse than ever. We're going to have to take the van in to be looked at tomorrow - it's beginning to leak some fluid. I'll also get groceries tomorrow and have my weekly Bible study. Tuesday is Andrew's b-day and my appointment in the morning for two more moles removed (more stitches). That afternoon I am taking cupcakes to Andrew's class to celebrate. Supposedly, I can't drive to my surgery appointment so I hope I'm good to go afterwards so I can take the cupcakes. Wednesday is my b-day and also I get my hair cut and "fall highlights" put in - excited about that (the new do, that is!! LOL). Thursday is a field trip all day for Elizabeth's class. We are going to Virginia to an Indian reservation. That night we have a meeting with the people in the association for our beach house. Friday, Wade's dad is coming, Elizabeth has piano lessons and I'll be getting ready for Andrew's b-day party on Saturday. EVERY night this week (Mon-Fri) is revival - we plan on going each night except Thurs because of the meeting. Whew! Oh, and then next week is Thanksgiving. We won't even go there!! :)

Tonight when we got home, we put the kids to bed and Wade ran to work to get some stuff done. I decided that after my nap this afternoon, I wasn't sleepy enough to go to bed yet. I walked in our closet and started cleaning. I needed to rotate my summer and winter shoes; I had already done my clothes. I also worked on some of Wade's shoes. I came across our video recorder which I found I haven't used in TWO years. We lost the hook-up to transfer our tapes to a CD or whatever when we moved in our house (5 years ago) then the battery started losing its charge. I would like a new one but it may be cheaper to just replace the parts we need. We had bought a very nice JVC model in its day (probably 7 yrs ago now!). I was watching some of the tape in there when Elizabeth was 5 and Andrew was 4. Wow! Where has the time gone AND then it's funny how they are still so similar now as to then. Cute! I want to make a conscious effort to record more often. Mental note. :)

I still need to blog something a friend "tagged" me on but it requires thinking which I'm not up to at night. Ha ha! No pictures this time but ending with a great quote:

The angel fetched Peter out of prison, but it was prayer that fetched the angel. ~Thomas Watson

Bad Blogger Update. Um, the Last Month.

I've become a blogging loser, I believe!! LOL The post below I had started over a month ago and never posted because I had to upload the photos. Wow! So here I am again, a whole month later. Again, a lot has been going on as such is life. ;)


Pumpkin Carving (10-22):



Our weeks are just so crazy and hectic and full of soccer practice, soccer games, church, this and that so we finally saw a day of no plans and did plan something - our pumpkin carving. The kids were excited to do it. Elizabeth basically did all the carving herself this year. She thought that was just so cool. It was one of the things she was thankful for that night when she prayed. Andrew designed his pumpkin himself. He drew on a piece of paper what he wanted and I sketched it on the pumpkin and Wade cut it out. That's what you call a collaborative effort!! Ha!


Andrew had his first field trip to Winged Deer Park (10-24). It was canceled the first time because of rain and it almost got cancelled a second time. The kids were excited to be on their first field trip. I was a driver and got to haul FOUR boys (including Andrew) and the teacher, Mrs. Shelley. Having Mrs. Shelley ride with us was a lifesaver. She knows how to keep those boys in shape. We didn't get to do the nature hike we had planned because it began to drizzle but the kids still enjoyed their morning.


Fall Break at Isle of Palms (10-26 through 10-29):
We had a great time Friday through Monday at the beach house. It turned a little chilly but we had a fabulous day on Saturday at the beach. Earlier that morning we went on a carriage tour of Charleston. The kids enjoyed the ride and sights even though they didn't care about the history part. :) The weather was mild, the ocean water was still warm and there wasn't even a breeze. During this time of the year, it's like we have our own private island. Wade said he knew why these multi-millionaires buy their own islands - the privacy and solitude is refreshing to say the least. The kids enjoyed playing the tide pools most of the time but did play in the waves some too. I took a TON of sequence action shots of them running but here are a few of my favorites:



On Sunday we took a long walk around the resort. We went up to the board walk and discovered some things we never knew where there - after all these years!! We looked for the alligator that usually hangs out in one of the lagoons but we couldn't see him. Instead we saw a bale (that's what you call a group of turtles!) of turtles come to greet us. They must get fed there. We found little berries that had come from a nearby tree and threw them in the water to them. We didn't know if they would eat them or not OR if they were poisonous.

Here I am in "raw" form - a picture Wade took. Raw meaning no make-up, no shower, fever blister from the past stressful week (Nik passing away), etc.

Oh, and a complimentary photo of Wade. Hee hee!


Halloween:
I spent two and a half hours at the kids' school working two Halloween parties, doing a craft, cleaning up said parties and helping with the trick-or-treating of the elementary students to the other classes. Whew! The kids had a fantastic day at school. We ran by the store on the way home to get a few last minute things for dinner.


Daddy and Mom came over again this year to pass out candy. Nannie came with them this year since she's been staying with them some during the week. It was nice to have her join us. I cooked for the seven of us - loaded baked potato soup, sour dough bread and dessert. After we ate, Lori, Jon and the boys came over to trick-or-treat with us. Here's the little trick-or-treaters - Elizabeth, Andrew and Jeremiah:

Later we went to Griff and Dallas' to say hello and then on to Steve, Jeanette and Grace's to visit. Steve and Jeanette always have a special bag for the kids. The kids love having them in their lives. Andrew's birthday and Webkinz was the topic of discussion while we visited. Grace, Jeanette's mother, had made a delicious chocolate cake that I could hardly eat with all the food I had eaten earlier. (I had made a chocolate turtle cheesecake for dessert for dinner that was still sitting heavy on my tummy.)


Melanoma Scare:
Before we went to the beach, I had two moles removed at a routine check-up with my dermatologist. One was a little pink mole that had recently come up on the front of my ankle. The other was one they felt had changed a bit on the back of my thigh. The day we came home from the beach, I received a phone call from the nurse that the small new mole had been melanoma. It was larger than the one I had removed 8 years ago. Needless to say, I was shocked, upset, scared. I had watched my aunt and mother-in-law die from this aggressive cancer. I'm not afraid to die but I'm not ready. I have two children to raise, a husband to care for, a family to love and another good 30 years (at least!) to live. Wade and I like to dream. We have plans for a future house 10 years from now. We know how we are going to spend our retirement years. I'm already thinking about my future grand kids for crying out loud!!! LOL


I had to go back in the next day to have more cut from my foot. I had called and emailed some of my friends to request prayer. I needed peace. I felt peace that day. I knew if I had only 3 months left to live, that all was good. The melanoma didn't adhere to any of the ABCDEs of melanoma. Dr. Rash (yep, that's my dermatologist's name!! Ha ha!) cut a good chunk from my foot requiring six stitches inside and 10 on the outside. He also wanted to cut more from the mole on the back of my thigh he had removed. It wasn't cancer but it was moderate atypia which means the cells were not normal and could possibly evolve into cancer. Another six stitches there.


Today I had the stitches removed. I found out I have a clean pathology report for the melanoma they removed. I have another surgery next Tuesday to remove two more moles that they were concerned about and had already scheduled to remove before they found the one was melanoma. I'm praying the peace I feel continues. I do have moments of anxiety about it all though. I laughed to myself the other day when I thought, the gift I'm getting this year for my birthday (next Wed) is a powerful lesson in faith. :)


I'm back working on the church cookbook. I spent several hours this week already editing and typing. I am at the mercy of others right now before I can go forward though. That is a little annoying. I missed my first deadline I had set for myself. I've not been hard on myself about it though because things have just happened that have been out of my control. This reminds me of a quote I copied from an e-devotional recently:

Deal with the faults of others as gently as with your own. ~Author Unknown

A nice reminder.