Memorial Day Weekend

Here's our weekend in pictures...






And I know I'm a day late, but I wanted to personally thank all of the veterans out there. This wonderful country wouldn't be what it is today if it weren't for you!

Happy weekend!

We have Gage today and tomorrow, so you know I will have pictures to post later. He's taking a nap right now and Jenna is dying to wake him up.

While I was catching up on my blog reading, I wanted to bring your attention to this blog. This particular post was absolutely wonderful, carrying with it a message that all can benefit from hearing. If you have a second, link over to it and read it.

More to come...

A Tragedy-Please Pray

Please pray today and in the coming days for the family of popular Christian recording artist, Steven Curtis Chapman. Last night, one of his teenage sons accidentally backed over and killed their 5 year old adopted daughter, Maria, who they had adopted from China.

I was already in bed last night when I heard the news. I was heartbroken to hear that such a tragedy had happened to such a good family. Rachel and I attended his concert in Nashville a few months back and both of his sons played in the band during a song or two and he brought all 3 of his adopted daughters up on stage.

If you think of it today, whisper a prayer for this family. I can't imagine the grief over losing a child not to mention the guilt the young teenage boy must feel.

Thank you all...

The Vacation Chain

A couple years ago when we went to Disney on vacation, a month or so before we left, I helped Jenna sit down and make a paper chain. Every night, she'd tear off a link in the chain. This was a visual to help her see how much longer until we left. It turned out to be a very fun experience and in the end, made a terrific cover page into our Disney scrapbook.

Well, this past weekend, Jenna decided she wanted to do a vacation chain for the cruise. If you've noticed on the ticker at the top of my blog, we still have several days before leaving on the cruise.

It didn't take as long as I thought, but it is a rather loooooongggggg chain. She really looks forward to tearing a link off each night though. If you have kids that continually ask, "How long until...", I'd highly recommend a vacation chain!



In other news, I am sick again. This is allergy attack number 5 since the fall. This time I was already on Claritin, so I don't know what's going on. All I know is that I'm ready for summer and less pollen. I'm seriously considering going to visit an allergist.

E. T.

So, last night, we got home after dinner and decided to watch our Netflix movies. Jenna had one and Steve had one. We popped in Jenna's in her DVD player in her room and settled down to watch Steve's. Well, as he went to put it in, he realized that the movie was cracked. It was already 9pm, and I didn't want to start my movie, so we were just toing to watch some of the stuff we DVRd.

At some point, Steve went in to see how Jenna was doing and I heard what I thought was laughter. I figured he'd gone in and started tickling her or whatever. Moments later, here comes Steve carrying Jenna who is absolutely SOBBING. And it's the kind of crying where you can't breathe etc. I had no idea what could be wrong. Well...

Apparently she thought the movie ET was sad. She thought it was sad that ET got left behind. She thought it was sad when Elliott took away the toy he was trying to eat. She thought it was sad when he felt into the bathtub of water because she thought he was going to drown. And this was just 20 minutes into the movie. For those of you that have seen it (who hasn't), you know it gets WAY worse before it gets better. She lightened up during the middle of the movie especially where he gets drunk and starts bumping into things. And then she sobbed all through the end of the movie where ET dies and those people take over the house. Of course, it was a happy ending and she was glad she watched it.

I told her she was getting worse than her mom about crying during movies. :)

Well, I better get up and get busy. We've got several things to do this weekend....

Happy weekend!

I haven't been blogging like I usually do and I'm sorry I haven't updated...

First, Tuesday's weigh in was very depressing. I've felt like a bottomless pit and after reaching my 10% goal last week, I promptly gained 2 lbs this week. I was very disappointed, although admittedly, not that surprised. Sometimes you just *know* you are going to gain.

My dad is doing very well. He sounds good and while his breathing isn't improving (and won't), everything else is good. He just sounds better and that's truly a load off.

Work is busy. I'm about to transition into my new role in about a week and so I'm trying hard to wrap up all the loose ends. They haven't even begun to interview for a replacement, so I'll be doing 2 jobs for a while it looks like.

Thanks to all my friends who ordered Premier Jewelry and Avon, I was able to send in $1600+ to Heaven Scent Paws! Our fundraising letters have almost all gone out. Many of you have probably received them. If not, then just hang on, you'll get one. :)

That's about all that's going on right now. Jenna has just a week of school left and then it's summer time! I can't believe the year has passed so quickly.

I'll update later this week when I have more to share.

Graduation pics

The diploma. Notice the M.A. Cool!
All of us. So proud! This is the first picture where I can actually see my weight loss!)
So happy it's done! She's an official college graduate!
Didn't I tell you she was a knockout?!?!?
The most beautiful baby boy in the world!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there! I got a sweet card from my dear husband and then a gift certificate for a mani and pedi. Sweet! From Jenna, she made me (in school) a ceramic plate with "MOM" on it. It's those handmade things that mean the most to me. I have it prominently displayed on my console table in the foyer right now. I'm unsure...I might take it to work though.

We are waiting to hear whether we are on for lunch with Steve's mom and family today. Other than that, I just have laundry to finish and my Bible Study. The house is clean and I planted flowers yesterday in our beds outside. All that's left it to mulch and that's for another day.

I'm about to post pictures from graduation the other night...

Hope all of you have a great day!

ConGRADulations!

My brown-eyed girl graduated tonight. For those of you who don't know, I'm referring to my beautiful step-daughter, Micah. She graduated from Remington College tonight with her MA. Medical Assistant, that is. She is working for a pulmonologist in Lebanon already.

I cannot tell you how proud we are. Shortly after Gage was born, she up and decided on her own to go to school. She went down there, talked to admissions, lined up her own financial aid and went to school for like 4 hours a night Monday through Thursday. It was not easy, but she did it. And finished. And she did well.

I am just so, so, so proud. Did I mention that already???? I just can't say it enough. Just seeing her tonight walking across that stage and then later at the reception with Gage...I realized...she has turned into this...woman. Mom. Oh my gosh...that bob-haired little girl who used to say to me (before I was dating Steve), "I wish you could be my step-mom" has turned into a beautiful (seriously, it's not just me, she is...have you seen her lately!??!!) brown eyed, long (sometimes!) haired knockout. And she's all grown up now. She's almost 24...

What happened? Apparently I blinked and she grew up right before my eyes. But the good thing is...she turned out just fine. Despite all our mistakes and stumbles with our parenting. And now she is on the same journey...parenting and making a life for herself and her baby boy.

Micah-don't know if you read this, but if you do, we are so, SO proud of you. You will probably never understand just how proud we are until Gage walks across the graduation stage too and then you will realize...I love you baby girl. More than I ever knew I could love a child not of my blood. You are now, and forever...

My brown-eyed girl.

(pictures forthcoming)

Another milestone

Again, I forgot to update everyone on my weigh in from yesterday. As you know, last Tuesday, I was .6lbs away from my first goal. And then I gained a pound, putting me 1.6lbs away.

I *tried* to do better this week, watched what I ate etc. but I felt like a bottomless pit. Anyway, I didn't know what to expect yesterday (I think I say that every week) and when I weighed in, I lost...drumroll please............. 1.8 pounds! That put me over my goal by .2lbs! YEEHAW!!!!

Now, for a little confession time. I have been debating on whether to do this, but now is the time. I feel that the weight is only going to get harder to lose and I'll need your support, so I'm laying it all out there.

In Weight Watchers, your first mini-goal is 10% of your current weight. This is the milestone that I just reached. And the goal was 17 pounds. Well, if you passed 3rd grade math, you will know now how much I weighed when I started Weight Watchers in January. To put things into perspective, I weighed about 110 pounds when I graduated high school. Now, I know I can't get back to that and it wasn't healthy, blah, blah, blah, but that is mostly for those that knew me back then...when I started the IVF to have Jenna, I weighed 125. When I got pregnant, I weighed 127. And now you know how much I gained since then...

So, my next step is to pick a REAL goal weight between 109 (yeah right!) and 137 which are considered my "healthy weights" for my height. My goal is going to be 130. So, now, I begin the rest of my journey to get down another 27.4 pounds. If I lose all that, I will have lost a grand total of 44.6 pounds, so at this point, I'm not even 1/2 way.

I need your support....stick with me on this. For those of you that eat with me occasionally, remind me of my goal...and yes, that means you, my Bible Study ladies when I'm shoveling yummy dessert in my mouth on Tuesday nights!!!

Thanks for your support this far. I am so blessed to have friends like you!

Thanks for all of your concern about my Dad. I'm happy to report that he was released to go home late this afternoon. His breathing is still very labored and that is not going to get any better. However, he is well enough to go home. Keep us in your prayers. Thanks!

Quick update on us...

Steve's doing better...we might be able to settle back into our routine again soon.

My Dad seems to be doing better. Although, I thought he looked better yesterday and last night my stepmom said he was doing worse. I went to the hospital about noon and stayed until about 5pm to give my stepmom a break. He's really wanting and expecting to go home tomorrow, but they won't know for sure until the doctor comes in tomorrow morning.

I'll let you know more as soon as I know.

Just a quick post to get a couple prayer requests out there...

First of all, my cousin by marriage down in Florida, Anne, has recently found out she has breast cancer. This is a recurrence of breast cancer that she fortunately overcame some time ago. It is very serious and she's got a long road ahead of her including some pretty nasty surgery coming up. Please pray for her and her husband and family.

Also, please keep my Dad in your prayers. Many of you know that he has a serious case of COPD (lung disease) and emphysema. He's got about 20% use of his lungs and is on free flow oxygen most of the time. Friday afternoon, my stepmom called and reported that she'd carried him to the doctor because he had some congestion that they couldn't seem to clear up. The doctor immediately put him in the hospital. They were hoping they'd caught it before it turned into pneumonia. For anyone with lung disease, pneumonia can be deadly. Last time Daddy was in the hospital, they made it pretty clear that a bout with pneumonia would be very bad.

At this time, we are unsure whether this congestion has turned into pneumonia. Steve, Jenna and I went and spent some time at the hospital this afternoon and while he looked tired, he seemed to be doing better. But, tonight after we got back from dinner and more errands, my stepmom called to report that he was not doing well. Even walking the few steps to and from the bathroom in his room leaves him barely able to breathe. The doctor came by tonight and told him he should not expect to go home in the next day or so. Daddy is very down tonight and wanting to go home. He is threatening to check himself out tomorrow AMA which would most certainly be a fatal decision.

My stepmom told me that his condition is "quite serious". So, please, pray for healing and for Daddy to have peace in his mind about staying there. I'm going to the hospital as early as I can tomorrow to give my stepmom a break and to try and calm him a bit. And pray for strength for my stepmom. She's 18 years younger than my dad, which is good, but he is a handful to care for and live with and that is putting it mildly. Those of you who know the whole story, know what I mean.

I'll keep you posted...

This afternoon has been rougher than I would have imagined after my first post.

I got Steve fed and I ate lunch myself and settled down for a good 1/2 day of work. About 2pm, I went in to check on him before I left to get Jenna from school and found him in excruciating pain. I was stunned. I had no idea that he was even remotely uncomfortable except for when he went to the bathroom which we'd been warned about.

Apparently, the pain was a level 10+ in his back and that is the level it was when I had to rush him to the ER about a month ago. He'd already taken 2 pain pills, which was the max and so the only thing I could think was a hot bath (as the doctor suggested).

So, here I am, my laptop still logged in at work, trying to get that last thing done, 2:15 has no rolled around (the time I was supposed to leave to get Jenna), the AC man called and was on his way to do the maintenence on the unit (which meant letting him in, writing the check etc.) and I had the tub filling up with hot water for Steve in hopes that we could avoid the ER again. I was stressing out big time.

Oddly enough, I got everything taken care of and got Steve into the tub and within minutes, the pain had eased. I left him there a few minutes, set up the heating pad on the highest setting and got him out, dried off and back in bed. I finally left at 2:30 to get Jenna. I checked in with Steve about every 10 minutes. Things were going well until I was about 10 minutes from home and I called and he said he'd just been sick in the bathroom due to the pain. Imagine my frustration at being 10 minutes away, thinking this was all over and here we go again with the pain and the unknown diagnosis etc. I was just turning down our street when the phone rang again and I recognized the ring as being Steve's cell calling. I thought "Oh no...this can't be good". When I answered he said, "I'm fine now. The pain is gone". WHA???? Well, I don't know who was out there praying at about 3:30 today, but whoever it was, I thank you from the bottom of my heart because the pain went away and has been managable ever since.

He is in quite a bit of pain considering the most he was supposed to feel was "uncomfortable", but remember, the stint has been in place since March 29, so over a month...I'm sure he had started to heal around it and so there is more pain than usual. He plans to go to work tomorrow as do I. Pray for lessened pain and for a good night's rest for us both. I tell you, in the midst of the craziness today, I seriously did not know if I could take any more. I just want our lives back to normal and to not have some kind of doctor visit or surgery every week. The bills continue to pile up and I worry about how we will pay them all. I sincerely do not understand how people with no insurance do it. I am so fortunate to have as good of insurance as I do. But it's still quite a bit of money to come up with and when you are on a tight budget, paying extra bills means belts have to tighten somewhere. But, I have been faithful, so I know the Lord will provide.

Keep those prayers coming. They are still needed and felt more than you know.

If you haven't lately, check out this blog...it's one that touched me today.

Stint Free!!!!

This is going to be a quick update as I just got Steve home and put to bed, for the 4th time in a month!

We got to the doctor's office early this morning as we had to drop Jenna off at school. They took the x-ray and while we waited to see the doctor we looked at it. Amazingly enough, the stone that was lodged, was no longer there. It appeared to us to be further down the tube, which meant it was moving. A little while later, they called us back to prep Steve for the stint removal. I made sure they had Dr. Hagan look at the x-ray before removing the stint because I knew we didn't want to go through replacing the stint again. Dr. Hagan stated that there were still a few stone pieces floating around and to expect those to pass, but there should be little or no pain with this procedure. It took all of 5 minutes. Steve had IV sedation and is quite loopy. But because there should be little or no pain, we think by tonight he'll be good as new!

Thanks for your prayers. I was worried this morning that they would say they missed the stone and another lithotripsy would need to be done, but that's not what happened. Thank you Jesus for taking care of us today.

They did take 2 of the stones we had managed to save (I'll spare you the details of that) to be tested. And we have a 24 hour urinalysis that we have to do at some point in the next few weeks once Steve's fully recovered. We've been through all this before and they have found nothing out of the ordinary, but hopefully this time they might find a cause and then a way to stop these from forming. His right kidney should be clear now. Of course we have no idea about the left.......

OK, thankfully, my manager at work is letting me work from home this afternoon so I don't have to take another day off, so I better get to it. I'm going to get Steve rest a little longer and then feed him some lunch. Poor guy had to fast since midnight, so I'm sure he's hungry!

Thanks again for your prayers.

I have been remiss in posting lately. First thing is that we are going back in to the doctor tomorrow to have Steve's stint removed. However, since the lithotripsy last Wednesday, nothing has passed. So, it's been a week and the big stone has not passed in pieces or otherwise. We will have an x-ray before the procedure tomorrow, but I have the sneaking suspicion that the doctor did not hit the stone with the procedure last week. Which means, we may have to schedule surgery #5 and then #6 to have the stint removed. Needless to say, neither of us want to go that route, but there won't be much choice. He has no more time off to take, I'm dwindling down myself and at 20% co-insurance for the doctor and anesthesiologist, we have burned through our FSA account and have already racked up about $500 in bills...not to mention the stress toll on our family and our lives. So, just remember us tomorrow. I will post as soon as I get home. However, if something happens and they do NOT do the procedure, I'll go in to work...

Today was weigh in. As you know I was .6lbs away from my first big goal. I exercised last week 2 times and had really tried to do well at watching what I ate. But despite my best efforts, I gained a pound this week. I tried not to let it bother me, but it was a true bummer. I almost didn't report on it in the blog today, but I figure if I need support when I'm losing, I need even MORE when I'm gaining. Of course, if I'd paid attention to the calendar, I probably could have guessed this would happen.

Let's see, what else...oh yeah...I am happy to report back on that issue I was getting all impatient about has resolved itself. In a nutshell, I had applied for another job within HR at my company. It was working for the manager that I used to work for. Things were moving along quite quickly until the process hit a roadbump and that's when I got impatient. I found out last week that I did get the job! So, I am excited that I get to go back and report to my friend and mentor, Sherri. Very cool news!

Last, but not least...this past weekend was great. Jenna had her friend, Annabelle, from school over to spend the night. Jenna's choir program at church was Friday night and here is a couple pictures from that. Our bonus room will never be the same!

Oh and one side thought...Thursday afternoon, I'm hosting a Premier Jewelry Party at work. If you are a Premier customer or would like to be, let me know and I will get you a catalog. This is not just a Premier party...it's a fundraiser for Steve for HSP (diabetic alert dog). The wonderful woman who is the jeweler happened across my previous AVON fundraiser and asked if she could do this and donate the profits to us for the cause. I was thrilled! So, if you are interested, let me know. I only invited work people, but we have all our letters copied and folded, so everyone will be getting one of those soon (relatively speaking!)

OK, will post more tomorrow. We covet your prayers!

I was remiss in posting about my weigh in on Tuesday. I am proud to report I lost another 1 pound! I am now .6lbs away from my first weight loss goal of 17 lbs. Once I reach that, I set a second goal. I don't want to jinx the .6lbs, so I haven't really thought about what is next. I'm still far from my ultimate goal and I'm not even sure what that is yet!

Steve is doing well today. He went in to work and despite my doubts, stayed all day. He did have significant pain, but he is so strong, has such a high pain tolerance and is such a trooper that he just pushed through it. I know he's looking forward to the weekend! He is scheduled ot have the stint removed next Wednesday morning and while they can do that in the office, it is still under some mild sedation, so we'll both have to be off work. I think I might see if I can work from home that day. I did quite a bit of work yesterday from home, but am still taking PTO.

Let me share the coolest thing with you (some of you already know this)...Jenna and I went to church and when we got home, there is this huge chocolate cake on the counter. I knew Steve better had not left to get it and come to find out our neighbor, Aimee, had read my blog and saw that Steve had surgery and so she dropped off the yummy cake. Before you yell at me, it was a sugar free cake, so it wasn't as high in WW points as a regular cake and I only tasted a sliver. But the coolest thing (for me, at least) was that especially for me, she bought me Weight Watcher popsicles! Oh my goodness, they are delicious!!! I have had one two nights in a row, so I can already tell they won't last long, but what a wonderful surprise!!! WAY COOL! Thanks Aimee! I love having such good neighbors!

Also, if you are interested in Premier Jewelry, I am hosting a party at work and the jeweler will give all the profits to HSP for our fundraising efforts (see this post for more information about HSP). I didn't invite anyone but people from work since it's actually on campus, but if you want to purchase I can get you a catalog.

That's about it...tomorrow night Jenna is having a friend from school over to spend the night and she's stoked. Also, Jenna's choir performance is tomorrow night at church, so that will be fun also. I'm sure I'll have pictures of all of our activities.

All Done!

Just a quick post to let you know that we are home from the surgery! It went very well. Much, MUCH better than the first time. When I arrived at the step down unit, Steve was sitting up, awake, alert and in minimal pain. We got home about 11am and he is resting now, sleeping off the anesthesia. He did begin to experience some increased pain on the way home but he took a pain pill for that (he didn't have anything at the surgery center). He is anticipating going back to work tomorrow and me too!

The doctor said everything went well and that we can have the stint removed with just a little IV sedation in his office next week. So, let's hope that stays the case.

The coolest thing was that while we were in the pre-op room waiting for the surgery time to arrive, we heard his urologist come in. This is not the urologist that Steve normally sees, but he was the one on call when we went to the ER that night and he has followed Steve through this entire process. Anyway, we are of course, in a closed curtain area and we hear his urologist arrive and begin talking to a male nurse or anesthesiologist. They are discussing their families...their grown daughters and what they'd been up to in the past. It was clear they had not seen one another in a while. And then they are talking about their churches and what blessings their kids are etc. I tell you, of all the things two doctors could have been discussing just prior to surgery, this probably rates right up there. I believe these two Godly men were there sharing between each other just for Steve and I today. When the doctor came in, we asked the doctor where he attended church and we talked about our mission trips. He goes yearly to Ecuador. We thanked him for his faith and he thanked us for ours. What a blessing.

So, with all that said, you know I have to plug this doctor. Anyone in the Nashville or surrounding areas needing a urologist, Dr. Keith Hagan of Urology Associates comes highly recommended by the Taylors!!! :)

I am leaving in about an hour to get Jenna from school. They have the opportunity to shop at the book fair today and so I am going to get her in time to do that. Then we'll come home have a few hours to work and grab a bite to eat and head back to church about 5:30.

OK, I think I hear movement upstairs, so I better go check on the patient.

Well, the countdown is on tonight until Steve's surgery tomorrow. I will most certainly update you all as soon as I can. If you think of us, say a little prayer. We have to get up extremely early in the morning and I have a pre-planned activity at church tomorrow night, so it's going to be a very long day for all of us tomorrow. I'm hoping that we get done in enough time to get home a take a little nap before church.

Thanks and stay tuned...

Steve's appointment today showed that stone still in the exact same place as before. So we are on for surgery on Wednesday. Keep us in your prayers that this surgery will be easier than the last and recovery quicker.

I appreciate all the emails from readers regarding the issue I'm struggling with at the moment. I have felt the prayers more than you know.