Castaway Bay

I had the chance to chaperone 18 Brownies at Cedar Point's Castaway Bay Resort on Monday and Tuesday. We had a great time and it was really fun to get away. There were four rooms and four moms spending the night. There were 5 girls in each room except mine, I just had 3 including Robyn. I went on all the water slides and the water roller coaster with Robyn. Not bad a week after heart surgery. The troop leader was a paramedic so I wasn't too worried. I was a little sore Monday but was back to 100% on Tuesday. I have even gotten back on my treadmill at home.

Wordless Wednesday

Beautiful Flowers!!

I just realized I've been blogging over a year! June 21st, ironically the Norwalk Flood, was my first day. Anyway, I think I am fully recovered now! I had a little scare on Friday and Saturday with pain and a fever but now I'm fine. Here are some pictures of the beautiful flowers that were sent to me.




I had so many people helping me through this week and it was great. I believe all the prayers made this as smooth as it was.

This was also the longest Doug has been with us in a while so he was able to bond with the kids again. I took him to the airport for his final training week! I think he was relieved since he worked so hard taking care of us this last week. This should be the week we find out the exciting news of where we will be living.
Now that I'm recovered I will going with the Brownies to Castaway Bay. I'm not sure today if I'll be up to any rides but I can at least chaperone.

Slowly Recovering

I guess I pushed it the first few days because now I feel worse. I'm having a little more trouble getting around. I just showered and I plan laying down the rest of the day. I was really expecting to be back to myself today. I'm bored!!! Poor Doug, he just can't keep up with me, the kids, the dog and the house. He has also had some minor house repairs that had to take place on top of it (the sink, the garage door opener, the truck, and luckily our friend Jake fixed the air conditioner for me).

The funny thing about the garage door happened yesterday. We walked on the porch to say goodbye to my parents yesterday morning. My mom forgot something, went back in and the came out and shut the door which locked it. They drove away then we realized we were locked out. Luckily Doug was able to lift the garage door enough so Garrett could roll under and push the garage door button to let us in.

Okay, I'm worn out so I'm going to rest. This is frustrating when your body can't keep up with your mind. Pray for me, I have to be up to chaperoning Brownies at Castaway Bay on Monday and I'm concerned at this point.

Recovery Wednesday

I came home from the hospital around 1:30 yesterday afternoon. I feel much better now. I just have a little discomfort getting around and some dizziness due to one of my medicines. I was sitting there amazed that I just had heart surgery. Its amazing what they can do these days. I'm a little sleepier than usual but I'm getting back to normal. I'm even going to attempt to eat at Damon's tonight.

Heart Surgery Monday

I couldn't help it, I crack myself up. My surgery starts at 11:30 today. The procedure is only an hour long but they are keeping me overnight for observation. Please pray for me. I'm not sure when I'll be able to post again. I'm supposed to take it easy for a week.

Safety Town Graduation

I have another Safety Town Graduate in the house!!! I can't wait for some of my friends to have this experience (Jenn, Rachel, Amy). You send them for a week to learn about safety and they come back to tell you what you do wrong and explain the correct way. Really, its amazing they have survived for this long under my supervision.

Garrett had a great time with his friends in the class, Lance, Josh, Sam and Dylan. That is the last time he will be in class with them. Even if we stay here they will be in different elementary schools.

Best Buds!

We decided to have another beach day and this time we brought along friends. We went with Josh, Caleb and Jenn. Here is a picture of Garrett with his best bud Caleb. In honor of this I use my Thursday Thirteen to list great things about having friends.

Friends are for:
1. talking
2. laughing
3. crying
4. understanding
5. calling
6. confiding
7. visiting
8. celebrating
9. sharing
10. encouraging
11. helping
12. keeping
13. a lifetime

Scary Wordless Wednesday

Tackle It Tuesday

Once again I don't have pictures of my tackle. I worked hard though. I painted the ceiling of Robyn's closet to fix a problem and I also painted the bathroom ceiling.

I also went to the beach with the kids today. We had a lot of fun but had a little too much sun. I was thinking about how much I love living near a beach. I really hope we get to move somewhere close to one. I love sitting there with the cool breeze hitting me while the kids are off playing in the water NOT fighting. I love the feel of the warm sand on my feet and the peaceful setting. We are hoping to go back on Thursday but only if our sunburn heals quick enough.

Thursday's Adventure

At one point yesterday I had all four kids helping me weed. They were extremely excited to find a toad. They played with it for a while and even took it across the street to show the other kids. Then it was time to set it free. Garrett cried for a very long time because he loved that toad even though he didn't want to touch it. I can't believe Robyn wanted to carry it around. She even asked if we could cut it open to see what was inside since she will have to do that in high school anyway. She is so sensitive!

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen Things that are scary about a doctor's office:
1. Quiet (The feeling like no one is around)
2. Flourescent Lights (Migraine inducing and nauseating)
3. The Artwork (Tranquil artwork makes me feel like they think I'm gonna die)
4. Stainless Steel trays (Like they are expecting lots of blood)
5. Stirrups, especially when its not one of THOSE offices
6. Having two doctors explain a surgery at different times (why make me feel sick twice?)
7. Those places in the wall where you can plug in for oxygen (what do they do to their patients that would make them need oxygen :))
8. When they forget something in your chart (what else are they overlooking?)
9. The Smell (need I say more)
10. Cardiologist specific - just being somewhere where it says cardiac rehabilitation
11. Cardiologist specific - being the only young patient around and having everyone stare at you
12. Being there alone and having to make a big decision

As you can tell I was at the doctor's office yesterday. It was a very difficult time for me. Just being in that kind of office brought tears to my eyes even before they called me back. The took all my information and looked at my results. They gave me two options. I could take medicine which they would suggest if I was 60 or 70 years old or have the Angiogram/Catherization for the PFO closure. They said since I have already had a mini-stroke that they suggested the second option. The second option may also help with my migraines. I am having this procedure done on the 18th of June. I have no restrictions until then. The have to go in each side of my groin. On the one side they will send up an ultrasound machine that will look around my heart and verify the hole and look for other problems if they exist. The other side is the catherization that will go up and open like an umbrella and seal the hole. They will keep me in the hospital overnight and I will be restricted for a week after that. It will be hard for me to just sit around for a week. I do have some books I'd like to read though. Doug is going to take off for the week and my parents will be coming out. I would like visitors though and I definitely need people to pray for me!! It will take six months for the heart to adjust and grow over the closure so I will be on blood thinners. Hopefully I will heal easily because a week after my procedure I have chaperone Brownies at Castaway Bay. We will also be moving soon too and it looks like its going to be Norfolk, Virginia. It was an informal talk from the person who places him so we are waiting for the definite word.

Not Wordless Wednesday Here

My helmet

This is our 2005 Yamaha R1. We decided to sell it during the winter but have now changed our minds and want to keep it. Doug is going to use this back and forth from work and we are using this for our dates. This forces us to get babysitters and spend time together. Hopefully my cardiologist will approve of this when I visit him today.

Bra Quiz

I'll join Tina, Heather and Michelle and take the test too.

You Are an Animal Print Bra!

Wild, zany, and even a little crazy. You make every date an unpredictable adventure. You want a guy who will constantly surprise you. A relationship that's the most insane ride of your life.

What Kind of Bra Are You?

Garrett's Baptism

This was an exciting week for Garrett. He has been asking us a lot of questions lately and awhile ago he prayed to ask Jesus into his heart. We weren't sure how much he understood. He asked to speak to the pastor starting on Monday, then kept putting it off saying he would do it tomorrow until Thursday came. Then he told me he was ready and went and prayed with the pastor and asked him to be baptized. This was really big for him because he is scared of having water in his face and still wanted to do it. I was thinking he would get scared and change his mind this morning. I knew that if God wanted him to be baptized today he would help him through it and he did! The only sad thing is that Doug had to fly out early in the morning and he missed it. Garrett was too excited about it to put if off longer. Luckily my brother-in-law was able to take pictures so Doug will be able to see them.