Yes we can!

I am not a big fan of politics. In fact, it's fair to say I HATE politics. But while I may or may not share his political views or view the speeches of the candidates as rhetoric, the recent speech by Obama in New Hampshire moved me. Will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas fame turned that speech into the inspiring and moving video above. On the website he created to feature this video (dipdive.com) Will.i.am wrote:

When you are truly inspired..
magic happens...
incredible things happen...
love happens..
(and with that combination)

Inspiration breeds change...

What does this have to do with CHD Awareness? Well, to be honest, this dive into the CHD world has been a tough one for me. Though I jumped onto the idea of doing a 29-day blog-a-thon, I've found that it's hard for me to say what I really want to say. Some of it may offend. Some of it is too hard to write. Some of it is very personal. But it is a message that needs to get out to the public. At a mass level.

To me this video was a reminder... that through inspiration, change is acquired. I've been inspired by the other CHD moms who are tackling this issue by my side. And by the surgeons and cardiologists who are at this very moment finding new paths of treatment, new ways to save lives.

Take a look at this video created by a mom from the local Mended Little Hearts group . (Note Sadie's beautiful mug shots).

After gaining this inspiration, I can't help but feel a spark of hope, and an emblazoned desire to create change. Creating awareness is a HUGE challenge, but messages like these drive me to take action. Can we inspire others through our small movement? Can we cultivate this plight for awareness, and in doing so, save lives? YES WE CAN.

Feisty

One of the things I've heard since the moment Sadie was born is that she's feisty. And I've always agreed. The child came out of the womb screaming, and screamed until the moment she was intubated, even though it was difficult, given her condition. The first time I held her she cried as loudly as she could (which wasn't that loud, as she'd just had the breathing tube removed). During the first months of withdrawal from the medications she had, she screamed. In the middle of the night she often wakes and screams. At the grocery store, at birthday parties, in the library, in the car... (you may get where I'm going here)... she screams.

Tonight she threw one of her infamous fits as I took her out of the tub (from which she and her sister had emptied an entire bottle of baby wash and were trying to create bubbles by swishing around like crazy). As I was trying to keep her on my lap while she kicked and squirmed, I saw her scar, remembered I needed to write a blog tonight, and also, felt incredibly grateful for her screams. For a few minutes at least.

It's tough having a child like Sadie that has such a "challenging disposition." But at the same time, her screams are a reassurance to me. I often laugh to myself thinking of how desperate I was to hear her cries for the first time after surgery. Though it doesn't seem like it when I'm at wits end after a day of 10-12 tantrums, I am happy that her heart is strong enough to support her feisty spirit. Heaven knows that that poor little organ must work incredibly hard.

What the heck is CHD?!

I had an email conversation with a member of the Mended Little Hearts group this past week, and mentioned that I did not even know what "CHD" or a "Congenital Heart Defect" was until several months after she had been home from the hospital and her heart had been repaired. The other member replied that she had never heard it called "CHD" either, until the last couple of years. Interestingly enough, she is an adult survivor of CHD.

So why is it that we don't know what it is our kids have? We are given a medical diagnosis for missing chambers to underdeveloped (or missing) valves; from narrowed blood vessels to unconnected arteries. We identify ourselves as "a parent of a TGA child" or "an adult with tetralogy of Fallot" - not as part of the larger Congenital Heart Defect Community. Perhaps that is why we are so disconcerted in our efforts to join forces and create an effective awareness campaign.

When I was in the hospital with Sadie, I was desperate for information on her condition. I spent hours surfing the Internet for stories of adult survivors, for parents who could relate to the horrors of open heart surgery with their infant, and for inspiration. Never once did I Google "CHD" or "congenital heart defect" (both of which bring up tons of links I could have used!). I looked up "TGA," "Transposition of the Greater Arteries," "open heart surgery" and "pediatric cardiology."

I suggest we start to educate the social workers (who often have extensive interaction with the parents and provide links to support groups) on the importance of being able to identify CHD as being the tie that binds the "broken heart" community together. What do you think? How can we create a better way for newly diagnosed CHD families to find other heart families, websites, resources and information? Send your thoughts to learnaboutchd@gmail.com or feel free to post a comment.

Overwhelmed

Day 1 of my personal CHD adventure in advocacy, and I'm overwhelmed. In the last 48 hours I've received about 40+ emails from parents of CHD children and some of which have lost children to these series of defects. I had planned a nice commentary for my first blog of this month long venture, but can't seem to find it in myself to finish it today. So, I'll keep this simple and share with you some of the facts from the Children's Heart Foundation. I have not had time to verify all the facts they list, but from the research I've done in the last week, most seem to be right on target.

• CHDs are America’s number one birth defect, affecting nearly one out of every 100 births, or 40,000 babies a year.
• CHDs are responsible for one third of all birth defect related deaths, making CHD the number one cause of birth defect related deaths.
• More than 91,000 life years are lost each year in the United States because of CHDs.
• More than 50 percent of all children born with CHD will require a least one invasive surgery in their lifetime. Twenty percent of these children will not survive past their first year of life!
• The cost for surgery alone exceeds $2.2 billion a year!
• CHD research is grossly under funded. Pediatric cancer research is five times higher than CHD research although twice as many children die from CHD each year in the United States than from all forms of childhood cancer combined.
• Research has already made a difference in the lives of thousands of children and their families. In the last decade, death rates for CHDs have declined by almost 30 percent because of the advances made through research. As more children's heart abnormalities are treated, research is needed to meet the needs of CHD patients as they reach adulthood.
  

There, the facts are laid out. Next up... coping with a tantrum thrower, ways that CHD has changed my perspective on life and what you can do to make a difference for a child or family facing CHD.

Wow! What a response!

Thanks to everyone who has responded and is interested in spreading the word for CHD Awareness Week! Because I've had some media interaction and don't want to share my personal blog with the world (yes, yes, I know... why do I post in public then?), I've created a sister blog, LearnAboutCHD, to chronicle the events. I've also come up with a dandy little campaign called "7 for 7" that everyone is invited to participate in!

In addition to the mad blog marathon I'll be running this month, on the 7 days of CHD Awareness Week (Feb. 7-14), I and many other CHD families, friends and supporters will be posting lists of 7. While most of us will do seven things related to CHD, you're welcome to use your imagination and go wild with your 7 lists of 7. My only request in all of this? Please put a link in the entry to one of the many CHD Information/Support sites.

Feel free to use the logo I cooked up, or come up (above) with something a bit more exciting of your own. I'll be linking mine to the new sister site, or when posted there, to CHIN (www.tchin.org), as they seem to have the most information and links of the sites I have seen relating to Congenital Heart Defects. For those of you in Central Virginia, there is a great support group here called Mended Little Hearts that would benefit from informing Richmond area residents about their programs.

And we're off...!!

Going Grassroots for CHD

Last week I discovered that February 7-14 has been designated Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) Awareness week across the globe. Who knew? Obviously, this campaign doesn't have the impact factor other more "popular" campaigns have.

Sadie barely survived her CHD - partly because of the type of defect she had, but MOSTLY because her CHD was not caught in utero. For 17 months I've been angry - angry with my OB for never telling me CHD existed. Angry with the precious moments that were lost that I can never recover. Angry that her warning signs were ignored. I decided this past week that enough is enough with the anger - I'm going to take that energy and turn it into positive action. So, my dear reader, you get stuck bearing the brunt of my latest climb onto a soapbox.

For the 29 days of February, (it HAD to be leap year that I decided to take this on) I'm making it my goal to post to this blog every day, each with some sort of reference to CHD (though not always the subject). From the 7-14th, I'll post only lists of 7 relating to CHD. Let's see how creative I can get. There will be some juicy stuff in there. Just you wait.

You can join this grassroots crusade, too. Find some facts on the CHD Information Network and share them in an email or on your blog. Add an image promoting CHD Awareness (see the two here!) and a link to your MySpace page, LinkedIn page, FaceBook, blog or wherever you lurk in cyberspace. Better yet, join me in a blog-a-thon from Feb 7-14 for Awareness Week. C'mon over and jump onto the CHD Awareness bandwagon, it'll be fun times for all!

Tradition.... TRADITION!

Among Jason's fraternity, there is this (for lack of better word) "tradition" that takes place at weddings. Alas, Jason and I were married too young, and had too "stiff" of a wedding (read no dancing, no booze, not many friends, the parents church, lots of strangers, not much fun) to have carried on this heart-warming tradition. Just one more reason we need to renew those vows.

Some of the brides within the fraternity circle dread this moment in the wedding evening. Some refuse to let "YMCA" (which accompanies this particular tradition) be played. Some fear their family's reactions and avoid it like the plague. Some are not told by their husbands that the tradition even exists, and get VERY angry and embarrassed when it happens at their wedding (rightfully so!). But there are many who laugh along and enjoy it. I've seen the tradition take place at all types of weddings - from small, intimate gatherings to huge, extravagant events.

Recently, an article was published in a local rag about "wierd, wild and wonderful" wedding moments, and guess what it featured? The Zete Psi tradition of dropping trou to YMCA. A photo was included with the article, showing two of our friends taking part in this unique tradition at their wedding last fall.

I can't tell you the number of weddings we have gone to when Jason has asked me "Which pair should I wear?" and wondered how many other women out there have to worry about their outfit for the wedding, as well as ensuring their husbands have exciting undergarments to sport at the event.

Tanya, you definitely win the award for "best bride" within the fraternity circle. Not only did you welcome the tradition, you came prepared. And made a fashion statement at the same time. Now THAT's class!

So Lucky

I've made quite a few friends through the various outlets I've found for parents of CHD kids, one of which posts frequent updates of her daughter, who suffers the same defect (and more) that Sadie has. While she is in a much more serious situation with her child than I am with Sadie, I felt that her post read a portion of my heart, a part that I'm unable to verbalize as eloquently (if at all). I'm posting a portion here:

I can’t describe what it’s like to be a part of this new world. Things that I never once thought about, are a part of my daily life now. As parents – no matter how old your children are – you never want to think about losing them. Unfortunately, when given the very special honor of raising a medically fragile child – those thoughts never go away. They are literally in my mind all the time – lurking in the background on a good day, and more obvious on the bad days. We have certainly had more close calls than I care to remember!

So many parents and children I have read about and couldn’t help but cry – even though I have never met them and never will. Even though I have not lost a child – my imagination of those feelings are very real. Especially when these parents have worked SO hard to do everything to keep their children alive and healthy. It just seems so unfair!

But one thing I’ve started to notice more and more – is that the ones that have been honored to raise these special children feel so lucky, so blessed. How can that be? We deserve to feel cheated and bitter and angry! Well, okay, we do feel those feelings. But, more than that, we feel blessed and grateful. I find that so amazing. Those that have never spent one night in the hospital with a child recovering from life-saving surgery should feel like that. Those that have never had to learn about a rare medical condition, surgery, birth defect, how to be a nurse for their child, etc. should feel like the luckiest people on earth.

I am incredibly thankful. (Even though I am very bummed that the Packers lost tonight.) Every single day completely amazes me. Now isn’t that something?

Looking forward to more fun in DC

Two weeks ago I had a business meeting in DC. I was to meet a lobbyist for the frozen foods industry (yes, I know, exciting, isn't it?). Luckily for me, this lobbyist had good taste and invited me to meet him at the Occidental for lunch. For those of you who are not familiar with DC, the Occidental is one of the nation's oldest restaurants, conveniently located next to the Capital. Congress was out, so we had most of the restaurant to ourselves, allowing us ample time to discuss the implications of the recent outbreaks of salmonella in microwave foods (yes, again, please contain your excitement).

A few minutes into our meeting, a gentleman walked into the restaurant with a shadow (bodygaurd) and waived at my friendly lobbyist. A few minutes later, introductions were made and the Secretary of Agriculture (who I called Mr. Secretary and who in turn told me to call him Chuck) joined us for lunch. Fancy schmancy. Of course I had nothing of interest to say, but he humored me by asking a few icebreakers before discussing the current issues facing agriculture with the lobbyist.

As I left the meeting, the maitre d' asked if I'd enjoyed my lunch (which was a small piece of salmon placed on pineapple and surrounded by clover... yum), and I replied I had. He then said he thought I'd made quite the impression on the Secretary, and that he hoped I would be back to visit often on business. He clearly had NO clue who I was.

I walked out of the restaurant into a 75 degree day in January. A homeless man smiled and waived (again, for those not familiar with DC, that is NOT normal). The valet whistled as he went to get my vehicle. The sun shone. And I wondered for a fleeting second what my life would have been like if I'd followed any number of different routes in my professional career.

As soon as I got into my vehicle, I got on the phone and headed toward 14th street. I was eager to tell of my newfound love of DC and famous encounter. I managed to get onto Constitutional Avenue before reality checked in. Reality this time came in the form of a friendly DC officer blaring his siren at me and flashing his lights. There was no where to turn off, and it was a two lane road, so I turned on my blinkers to acknowledge I saw him, slowed and moved to the right. His bullhorn blared that I should get off the road, so I drove some more, looking for a spot to pull off. His bullhorn blared again to stop immediately, I saw a spot on the side of the road, so I stopped and pulled onto cobblestone. Which just happened to be a national landmark. I received a ticket for talking on a cell phone (a $100 offense in DC), a written warning for not having an insurance card with me (I had only a card with my insurance ID that did not have a expiration date, which apparently is normally another $100 in DC) and a verbal warning about desecrating national monument property.

I had driven well past the road I would normally turn on, so kindly asked the officer (a little stump of a man with obviously low IQ and equally pitiful self esteem who thus needed to overreact to the situation) to point me toward the 14th street bridge. To which he replied, "I'm not from DC." Hellooooo... you're a traffic cop in DC!! Give me a break. So I wandered, luckily found my way to Arlington Cemetery and finally got onto 395. Ah, DC. You ARE what I remembered. For a moment you had me fooled, you wily district, you!

Tonight I'm back in NoVa (that's Northern Virginia, for you nonlocals), awaiting another trip into DC tomorrow for a conference on more microwave food safety issues. Needless to say I'm taking the Metro in this time. I can't wait for a homeless person to accost me, demanding that I purchase a used newspaper for $2. I will gladly oblige and bask in the dysfunctional city that is our nations capital.

The New Year

Well, we're already half-way through the first month of the new year, and I'm finally finding a moment to sit down for an update. This year is going to be a good one, I just feel it. Even if it's not great, it has to be better than last year! I've never been so happy to leave a year behind in my life. It was stressful on all fronts - work, kids, house, relationships...

So, this year I'm actually making a few resolutions to ensure it's a better one. I started out with only two, but as the year opened up, I found a few more I want to add. Here's what I've got:

1. I'm not going to take the backseat in my life anymore. Don't get me wrong... I will always help others when I can, but not at the expense of my emotional health, nor my family's. Last year I tiptoed around quite a bit, not wanting to hurt anyone and bending over backwards to accommodate what I thought others wanted of/from me. This applied to a variety of aspects of my life both personally and professionally. So, this is the year of taking the reigns back, which leads me to,
2. I will make more time for fun. With the kids, with the husband, on my own. Life is too short not to be having more fun! This means expanding my social network that shrunk so much over the past two years, getting to the theater more often, trying new things, having more girls nights out, etc.
3. I'll learn how to take care of myself again. Since I work from home, I rarely put on makeup, "do" my hair, etc. Because of child and work obligations, I forgot how to take time and take a bath, go for a walk by myself, shut myself in my bedroom and read a book without interruption, enjoy a moment of silence. I'll start MAKING time to go to the gym (already have started to return to that routine), even if it means missing an hour with the kids, the husband or the pets.
   
4. And then there's the ever-present (it seems in my life) need to lose some weight. Yeah, yeah, that too. It fits into #3, but needs to be broken out so I can see it in writing. Time to get back to pre-baby weight again. I can and will fight the battle of finding an elliptical at the gym in January (amongst the hoards of other resolution-makers) and will stick with it through the end of the year when the gym once again echoes and I have my choice of machinary.

That's the lowdown on the soon-to-be new-improved Kim. More backbone, less fat, more fun. Sounds good to me. Plus we have some fun stuff planned. I'm heading to Boston in February for the Consumer Trends Forum (shameless plug for my client organization... it will be a GREAT meeting packed with lots of insight into current consumer trends), to Hatteras in May with a group of friends to try out scuba diving in frigid waters (if we can get our certification in time), to one of my fav cities in the US - New Orleans - in June for some Cajun cookin' and microwave science (again, client meeting) and then to the big one... Lake Biwa, Japan for an international microwave science congress. I can't wait to go. Jason will be coming with, and we are saving and planning now to make it the trip of a lifetime. It will be his first trip out of North America!

Happy (belated) New Year!

Kid Flicks

Surprisingly enough, our video camera broke. So, I had to get said promised videos promised weeks ago to this viewing audience on the digital camera, and they're low quality. All the same, they are definitely the two favorite movies I've viewed this past year. Enjoy!

1. Katie's Concerto



2. Sadie's Jungle Boogie

Christmas Photos

Yeah, they're gorgeous. And full of it.

Best of the Holidays

It's been another whirlwind month, and I haven't had a second to sit back and update the blog in days. I hope all of you out there have had a very merry Christmas!

Despite the kids continuing to share sicknesses (Sadie's turn right now, Katie's was last week), we've managed to have a great time getting ready for the mack-daddy of all children's holidays. Here are my top highlights:

• The look of wonder on Katie's face as the curtain went up for the opening scenes of the Nutcracker. This is the first year we've taken her, and she was drawn into the show from the first notes. She didn't sleep or complain once (which is pretty impressive for a 5-year old). She sat with a look of wonder mingled with pure joy as the scenes changed, dancers flowed across the stage and the orchestra played. Shame on me for not introducing her to live arts earlier. I've decided that we'll be hitting some classical concerts, dances and theater several times in '08.
• Sadie and the "Christmas balls." She loved the glass balls on the Christmas "Flower" (she refused to call it a tree). She would carefully remove them and feed them to Carly Sparkles the Pitbull Pup, who daintily chewed and spewed glass shards throughout the living room on multiple occasions. At least twice I emptied her doggy bed chock full of glass. Not once did I see a cut on her mouth, nor in Sadie's bare feet. Truly a Christmas miracle.
• Katie's Christmas tree. Katie got her own tree in her room this year - bright pink and "bling"ed out to the max. She rearranged the decorations often and took great pride in her additional decor (hand-painted items she made, garish garland draped over her windows, etc.).
• Presents for the kids. We spent way too much this year. I admit it. But the good news is taht according to American media, we did our part for the economy. Katie got a (I know, I know, reliving my childhood wishes) Barbie Cadillac Escalade power wheels. She buckled Sadie in and tore up our yard all morning. It came with a built-in radio, and reverse features. She'd back it up to her play set and swing to the good songs that came on. Sadie got a Dora kitchen, complete with 44 bilingual phrases. Maybe she'll stay out of my cabinets now (haha). She is having a blast with all the noises, and taking things in and out and "feeding" us gourmet toddler meals.
• A "real" kitchen. Yep - we now have working appliances once again! I can wash dishes in a dishwasher, heat things in the microwave, cook on the stove and (gasp) the water filter in the fridge actually dispenses water. While replacing the appliances, we had the brilliant idea of sanding and restaining all the cabinets, replacing their hardware, tearing up the hideous tile and placing new flooring. My kitchen is pretty now. Yay. And it works. Bigger yay.
• Hark the Herald. Katie learned every word of it. I'm going to try to get it on video tomorrow and will post it. She sings it with such earnesty and sincerity. It's hilarious.
• Dancing. Sadie learned to dance this past week, to Christmas music. Again, an item that must be uploaded on video. It's something between steppin' and an Irish jig, baby style. The kid has talent.
  

From the Thies household to yours, I hope you, too, had a merry Christmas!

It's broken...

You can say that about every big ticket item we own almost. This quarter has resulted in record spending in our household, and NOT for Christmas gifting. The death toll includes:
- Over the range microwave
- Oven
- Dishwasher
- Refridgerator
- MacBook screen
- Central heater for office
- Jason's computer (HP)
- Retaining wall in front of our house

Just when I thought we were done with things giving out on us, the battery died on the truck two days ago. No biggie - my sister got it switched out and it ran again. For about 24 hours. Then as I was driving to one of Katie's friends houses yesterday, it died again. We jumped it, got back on the road and less than a half mile away, the lights started flashings, strange beeps followed, the steering went out (which is a BIG deal with an Expedition), then the brakes. Luckily we were on a dirt road and I managed not to lose control and got off to the side of the road. Diagnosis? One alternator. Sweet. My mechanic brother-in-law advised that this is the beginning of the end for the 10-year old truck I love.

I called a tow truck, mom came and rescued us from the side of the road and we got home safe and sound. The tow truck driver informed me that this was the beginning of the end of the truck. Thank you. So I've heard. I came inside, warmed some leftovers and sat down at our brand-new dining set to feed Sadie... and the chair leg split down the middle.

Sadie, of course, thought it was hilarious. "BowKin" "BowKin" she keeps telling me this morning, pointing at the chair laying on its side in its carnage. Then she laughs. Yeah, kid. HILARIOUS.

Enchanting Chicken Pox

Katie surprised us all over our long Thanksgiving holiday with chicken pox. Luckily, she'd had her first vaccination (you need two, we found out) and it was mild. But still, it was no fun for her. Will Sadie be next? I'm taking her in tomorrow for her vaccination (they were out last week and the week she went in for her annual shots), so hopefully we can get it taken care of before it gets too bad. So far, no spots.

To celebrate the drying up of the pox, Katie and I had a girls night out. We went to the craft store to shop for ornaments to adorn presents with (which Katie will be making), then went to see the latest Disney flick, "Enchanted." The critics gave it a B, so I wasn't expecting much. Turns out, I was pleasantly surprised. Sure, I knew most of the plot and could guess what would happen next, but hey, it's a kids movie. However, I didn't guess the ending, which was a fresh and crisp contrast to the fairy tales of yester years - some girl power to the max. I was thrilled. Only Pocahontas (which I hated) and Mulan (which I loved) have given girls the creds they deserve. This is one movie I'd be thrilled for Katie to watch over and over (which she likely will). More strong women need to be present in kids movies. Good for Disney. Thank you for making movie-going with kids a smidgen less painful.

Carly Sparkles

This is what happens when you let a five year old name the new puppy: Carly Sparkles... the pitbull.

I knew that this puppy would likely be a challenge. I imagined that she would teeth more than the average pooch out there, and destroy more based on her jaw muscles alone. What I didn't realize is that pitbull puppies are much like sharks... with thousands of teeth that are constantly falling out and growing in. Daily she chews at least one toy, a sock, a hairband, sunglasses, moulding off the doorways, etc. One may say to me "well, you adopted a pitbull puppy, what did you expect?" And alas, I have no cute response to this. Darla did her fair share as a pup - ruining the carpet in our brand-new condo, eating pens and spewing ink daily - but Carly Sparkles takes it to a whole new level. Honestly, I often wonder if she's pissed off about her name.

The best part about Carly's name is that Carly means little and strong. Which Carly was (now forgoing little for more of the strong side of things). What I didn't know is where Katie came up with the name from. I found out at a preschool function recently, when I introduced myself as "Katie's Mom" to a woman standing beside me. "Oh. I'm Carly's mom," she said, and my heart skipped a beat. She quickly followed up with, "I heard you named your new puppy Carly, too." Lovely conversation starter. I wanted to wring Katie's neck. I blundered on about what a beautiful name it was, and that I had no idea where Katie had come up with the name. She looked less than impressed. I left with an awkward "nice to meet you" and haven't spoken with her since.

Back to Carly Sparkles. If anyone knows of a good trainer in Richmond, send me their way. I had thought I was the mac-momma with animals, but Carly's teaching me a few lessons.

Speaking of Macs (total stretch there, I know), my three month old MacBook Pro 15" notebook is TOAST. Done. Mac said I could replace the screen for $1200 through them. As if. They also said that the only way it could have cracked is through blunt trauma to the screen. Not true. Close it when its hot. That will do it. Others have reported this problem, though not often. I suspect that, as this new MacBook was just released this summer, that we will see lots of these stories in coming months.

The interesting thing is that I got back home, and using the half of my screen on the laptop which still works, did a quick google. Turns out there are lots of people who can fix it for less. MacService.com was the one I chose - $495.

I have this to say about Mac. I've been a total, devoted disciple of your products for over a decade. This is the way you treat your customers? Blindly rob them for a repair that costs, AT MOST, 1/4 of your quote, after they sink thousands into one of your new products? That is not the way to gain new customer loyalty, or to retain long-time customers. I will not be buying a new Mac for many years to come. I may even stop sniggering at the Mac vs. PC commercials I've so loved. It's that upsetting.

The fun just won't stop

So... Sadie's sick this time around. Total sick time between Katie, Sadie and myself (without break) = 3 weeks and counting.

Also, my brand-new MacBook Pro that I got to replace the stolen iBook has a cracked screen. Cost of repair, $1200. Thing is, I did nothing to break it. It was running very hot, so I decided to close it, give it a break and take it upstairs. These MacBooks run hot, and it's a common thing. It's supposed to shut off if it gets too hot. Fifteen minutes later I opened it and voila' - large black spots connected by a spider web. Better yet, half the screen promptly turned white, then got lines going up and down it. Good news is half the screen works.

Also, it's running about 75% of the time since the bizarro screen "accident." This is a 3 month old computer that cost more that $2500. I am not a happy camper.

This is the 4th Mac I've owned, and I've never been disappointed until I got this one. This is by far the most top-of-the-line one I got, but from day one there have been little "glitches" I don't like - its Airport isn't as powerful as my iBook G4s was. It's frozen several times when I have multiple graphics programs running. Granted, they're super powerful programs, but this is a MacBook Pro... it's DESIGNED for this stuff and should do it in its sleep mode. I've looked around on line, and it seems like everyone's pretty happy with them, minus battery issues and power plug fraying. Except if the screen cracks. And it seems like a lot of the screens crack. It's not covered by warranty, they say, because it's blunt trauma from an accident... usually. 

So, I'm sitting at the only Mac store in town, which is full to the gills. Waiting for a "genius" to tell me my screen is cracked, which I already know. And ready to fight the "accidental" clause (which I'm sure is what they'll say caused this). Wish me a bit o luck, please. 

Bragging Rights

I'm long overdue on bragging on my kids... so here's the latest and greatest on the girls.


Sadie was a flower sprite for Halloween. She started walking at 12 mos 2 weeks, and has been on the run ever since. She's now 14 months, and has at least a dozen words in her vocabulary, including her newest: Buuhrrrrd (bird), Fower (flower), Dawa (Darla - our senior citizen canine), Tayteh (Katie), Ni-Nah (Kerinda)... and those are in the last week. Her vocabulary is almost doubling daily now.

She also has lots of great animal sounds and can pick out the animals (e.g. Where's the penguin?) for more than 75% of Katie's Schleich animals (if you don't know what they are, you don't have a kid under 10) and knows who moos and who baas and does a great tiger (RRRaawwwwhrrr!) that scares the puppy.


Katie was Barbie Island Princess for Halloween. Somehow, in the last year, she morphed from my fun-loving tomboy into a princess dressing, nail painting, love sick five year old. It's crazy how fast it goes. She thoroughly enjoyed Halloween this year, and is still working on the giant pumpkin full o candy.

We put her in a "normal" daycare this year instead of a Montessori, and I think it's had negative effects. Her bi-annual "evaluation" came back last week with things like "she knows all her colors" (what 5 year old doesn't?! She knew them at 18 mos!), she does well cutting shapes (again, she was doing that at 3, so what's new?!) and she's a "joy to have in the classroom." I shouldn't complain - the school is full of nice people. I just miss education. Guess I better get used to it since we have to do the public school routine.

We're working at home on reading and math, and she's great with addition and initiates math "games" on her own all the time now. She is reading 3-5 letter words, and loves to practice writing. I wish I'd put her in Kindergarten this year, but was worried about the potty issues, which still persist.

Playing on the beach. Don't be fooled. It is rare for the girls to be in the same 10' radius and not be fighting. This is a rare photo - kind of like a sighting of a UFO or BigFoot. And no, I didn't use photoshop to get this.

While I can't stand the bickering, it is good that Katie is finally free to be a sister, and not a caregiver. She no longer worries (too much) about Sadie's fragility and now fights back like any big sister would do when pestered to death by a strong-willed toddler.


Peek-a-boo! Sadie's running around the house now. For a few weeks she walked with her arms thrown up over her head. Just this week it stopped, and I already miss it. She's bending and picking up without falling, and loves to feed the new puppy everything... food, hair clips, playdoh, paper, Katie's favorite Schleich animals... the list goes on.

Back from Haites

So, we're back. Katie ended up being sick the entire week, except the last two days at the beach. It was in the 80s the day we got to the beach (when Katie was still very sick), but dropped to the 60s that night and stayed there (when Katie got better). We defied nature and went out on the beach anyway... freezing our butts off and playing in the sand.

Those moments out there on the beach made the entire trip worth it. It was only a couple of hours total, but I thought to myself that these are the moments you want to record in your mind for replay again and again. Just me and my girls, hanging out. Sadie chasing the seagulls and trying to walk through the deep sand. Katie singing to herself as she made a castle. An egret landing beside us to watch, as the waves lapped quietly beside us. Despite the cool weather it was beautiful, and the beach was empty. I wish we could have stayed longer.

On the final day of the trip, I woke up in the middle of the night with my heart racing and a 102 temp. The virus struck again. Friday I took them out on the beach again for a few minutes anyway, then we drove to Tampa to stop at the aquarium. The Florida Aquarium is great - the girls had a blast checking out the octopus, watching jelly fish, petting sting rays and climbing through 'hermit crab shells' in the play area. I couldn't eat, could barely walk and was exhausted, but enjoyed it all the same. We left from there for a one hour trip to Orlando, where we went through security crap once again (why do they pick on moms traveling alone with small children?!) and finally boarded our flight with only moments to spare. This flight was empty, so we had an entire row to ourselves. It was nice, though Sadie refused once again to sleep until we were coming in for a landing.

I've been sick all week with the lovely virus, and just last night Sadie came down with a fever and cough, so I guess it's her turn. This thing lasts 5-7 days minimum, so I'm not looking forward to it.

Tomorrow's Jason's birthday! I think I'll send him to the VT game to get him away from the sick and cranky girls in his household.

More Tales of Woe during the TripFromHell

THURSDAY NIGHT
Katie develops croup. She coughs all night.

FRIDAY MORNING
Katie seems better. Sadie's measles are residing. All seems to be getting better.

FRIDAY AFTERNOON
Katie spikes a fever of 103. I start the Tylenol regimine, after being scolded by her pediatrician long-distance for (gasp) using cough medicine the previous night. Heaven forbid you use cough medicine when your kid coughs. Why is it the FDA is so quick to OK get-slim-quick drugs and life-risking birth control, yet all of a sudden all children's cough medicine, some of which has been used in some form for over 100 years, is now deemed terrible?! Someone please explain.

The night progresses, with Katie and Sadie alternating coughing/screaming fits all night. A few hours later it's morning.

SATURDAY
Katie is sick. Katie is very sick. She doesn't eat. She quits drinking around 7 pm. Her temp won't go below 101.

Sadie discovers that her molars are coming in. The measles are almost gone. Now it's just pain and crankiness.

Again, with the nightime routine. I don't even bother trying to sleep. I just sit in bed waiting for the next kid to cry. I do doze on a twin bed with Katie, awakening with a start to realize I've probably caught her bug since she's breathing in my face.

SUNDAY
We head to the emergency room at the Pediatrician's recommendation. Katie gets IVs for a few hours, and is sent home. She can't keep down water/anything still. She pukes all day, and all evening. Finally, at night she sleeps. The fever drops to 101 again.

MONDAY
Now I'm really behind in work. I worked until 2 am since both girls slept, then got up at 4:45 (after Sadie's wake up call at 3 for a bottle) thanks to good ol' daylight savings time. Katie slept through the night, and her fever got down to 99 by the morning... finally light on the horizon. She still won't drink, still has not eaten, and was still throwing up this morning. She hasn't thrown up since 3 though, and has taken about an ounce of water, so there's hope. Poor thing.

Tomorrow...

Off to the beach for my meeting. The kids are going still, with the in-laws, as I have no choice. I don't want to be hours away from Katie when she's so sick, but hate to move her to a hotel. Wish us luck...

PS - Tally on Panera coffee thus far... 8 large cups.

Best idea EVER

I decided that since I needed to travel to Florida this week for business, I'd add on a few days and take the kids with me to see their grandparents (my in-laws). This has been the "best" idea ever.

Let me paint a mental image of my last two days for you...

WEDNESDAY - The day before departure.

Sadie breaks out in Measles pocks everywhere. Turns out she's one in 5000 kids that has a "moderately severe" reaction to the MMR vaccine. Sweet. That explains the 103 fever she's had off and on the past week. She doesn't go to sleep until 11 pm, and then sleeps fitfully, in 20-40 minute intervals.

Add to this that it is Halloween. Both children are hopped up on sugar and insanely wild.

Add to this, too, that I screwed up our flight reservations and realized on Monday that instead of leaving on Sat., we're leaving on Thurs. So work is a mess, and I have to do 3 days of work in 24 hours, before hopping on a plane to retirement hell where there is only one WiFi hotspot for miles (where I currently sit blogging... thanks Panera).


THURSDAY - Travel day.

I get up at 5:30, after about 2.5 to 3 hours of intermittent sleep to drag everyone out the door. Jason helps with the bags and kids, and we miraculously make it on time for our 8:00 flight.

Getting into the airport is fine. We have a skycap help. Getting through security was another ordeal entirely. Katie goes through fine, but then they decide I more or less need to strip the baby down, put the stroller through the conveyor belt (it doesn't fit and I've never had to do this before), take my LCD projector out and plug it in (seriously?! I've traveled all over with it and NEVER had to do that. They didn't even check the laptop!),... all AFTER Katie is on the other side. They won't let Katie come back to me. She's terrified and crying. I'm uttering words that should not be said in front of my 1-year old, hoping she won't pick up on them. (She tried to say one, but seems to have forgotten them today.) The security guard warns me about my "lack of cooperation."

We finally get on the plane, which is, of course, full. I hold the screaming Sadie for 2 hours. She falls asleep 10 minutes before landing. Then awakes screaming as we're to disembark. I got lots of nice looks from fellow travelers.

Orlando's airport is HUGE. I drag Katie and Sadie to the bathroom, we all get taken care of, but only with lots of juggling, hand holding and door propping so we can keep eye contact, as Katie is now terrified of airport security, who may "take" her from mommy again.

Katie decides she doesn't want to roll her little suitcase anymore. Nor does she want to walk. I'm half-dragging her, pushing a stroller and pulling the computer bag/Dora bag/diaper bag down the halls. I hear women clucking and saying how tough it must be to be traveling alone with small children. No, you don't say?! Would you like to grab a freakin' bag instead of walking behind me and making loud comments? And NO, I'm NOT a single mom. Just stupid. Out of my way, biddies.

We get the luggage and I make a half-mile long train of the five items of luggage, which I pull behind me to the car rental lot, as I drag Katie, push Sadie and pick up objects randomly thrown by Sadie along the way (shoes, jacket, socks, etc.). It's pouring. Of course.

Two hours later we're in retirement hell (Sebring Florida). All the way Katie asked if "we were there yet" every 5 minutes. Sadie finally slept.

Exhausted, I got the kids to bed at 8 and 9. Katie awoke at midnight (25 minutes after I hit the bed) with a fever of at least 102, croupy cough and sore throat. The girls then took turns waking up every 30 minutes until 6:15 this morning, when I gave up and let them out of bed.

Yes, this was DEFINITELY my best idea EVER!!

When it rains...

it pours. Seriously. Talk about the theme of the week!

It's been pouring literal rain for two days now, greening our lawn, encouraging our puppy to poop only indoors. I'm thrilled to have the rain, even if it has been more than 4.5 inches in the last 24 hours.

Other things have been pouring into my life this week, too.

Last week phone calls began to come in for one of my clients, the International Microwave Power Institute (yes there is an association for everything) regarding a major national recall of a microwave product. It's devoured all of my working hours, and then some. I've found myself researching food safety and microwave science articles of the last 20 years to write a response for the public. There is nothing I could think of that would be more fun than this.

Just when I was feeling like I would absolutely loose what few granuals of brain cells I have left up there, and that my daily life stress levels were about to top the charts, good things started happening. For the first time in over a year.

1. I finally talked to the right person at UVA, and managed to get almost all of Sadie's medical bills wiped clean... in ONE day. This may not seem like a feat to most of you out there, but consider this. According to my records, I have spent 118 hours on the phone with UVA and Anthem this past year (I did not record early hours, so it's actually more, I'm sure). I called them almost weekly for 6 months straight. We have paid fines, penalties, listened to collections calls, fought, cried, begged, took it to an appeal, took it to the state, contacted a congressman... and all we needed was a different phone number and one woman's name. Don't get me wrong - I am thankful. I am ecstatic. I am still waiting to see that paid-off bill in writing though, before I can breathe.

This has consumed almost all of my waking hours lately. Our family's financial health was at stake. We were losing everything we'd worked so hard for, all because of a loophole in insurance regulation. I'd been pulling my hair out each month, agonizing how we'd make it. I went back to work full time. I cut staff hours to increase income for our family. It's been nuts.

Then, with a magic phone number, 10 minutes on a call and a very sincere apology from UVA, I found out it was all a misunderstanding. I am too tired to be angry that they started sending collections after us with a 1 million dollar bill the day after Sadie's surgery. I'm too worn out from it all to even be ticked that they threatened legal action. I'm just done. I feel like I could sleep a year. I may take a nice long nap to celebrate when and if that final bill with "paid in full" written on it gets here.


2. Out of the blue, I got a call from a recruiter in Texas, looking to fill a position in a hospice in Florida. At first I said no, that I was not interested, even though I sounded like a good fit. Then Jason and I got to talking about it. Why shouldn't we consider it? I'm working a bazillion hours a week, so who am I kidding in thinking that this lifestyle of trying to be full-time stay at home mom and full-time working mom wrapped into one is healthy for myself or my children? So, I'm taking a chance. Worst that happens, I get a no. Or maybe I hate it there, and I say no. Or maybe I love it. We'll see. It's a new thought for me, and it's kind of exciting.


3. Out of the blue, about two days after the call from the Texan recruiter, I get a note requesting a bid for a new client. Hmmmm. So I figured what the heck. I'm just going to throw it all up in the air - put myself out there and see what happens. Maybe nothing happens. Maybe I'm in the same spot I'm sitting in now a year from now. Or maybe life could change drastically in the next few months.


I think the big guy up there is sending major waves my way, telling me it's time to shake things up; to shrug off the anger, hurt and pain I've been internalizing and battling all year and to move on with life. Even if nothing comes of this, it's making me think about life in a different way. Of what I could be doing that I'm not now. And it's kind of exciting, I have to admit!

So in love

Our new puppy arrived last night... all head and paws. She's clearly a German Shepherd/Pitbull mix, with possibly some Lab thrown in for good measure. She's so cute we can hardly stand it.

We still haven't settled on the right name yet - though I'm probably going to try to convince Jason to let Katie have her way and go with "Sparkles". Both of us hate the name, but Katie loves it, and has taken to calling her that already. What can you do.

As mentioned in a previous blog, the puppy was rescued from a dumpster, where she was placed in a airtight tote in 100+º weather to die. Three did die, though four survived - she is one of them.

When Katie saw her at the fair, apparently it was love at first sight. To be honest, I had my eyes on another pup, and didn't even notice this one. On our drive home that night, Katie talked about the puppy with the "curly tail" (I hadn't noticed her tail) and how much she loved her. The next day she told me that she and the puppy were meant to be together, because the puppy had come to her and told her when she met her at the fair. The next day she was in tears, because I had a short temper (possibly from hearing about the puppy nonstop) and told her that we didn't even know which one had a curly tail, and we weren't sure if we'd be able to get that one. Finally, we got the interview (from AARF, the rescue league that saved this little girl's life), and were asked which puppy we wanted. I told them the one with the curly tail. And now she's here!

Last night Katie told me that it was the happiest day of her life. She said, "Mommy, my puppy and I were meant to be together. I love her so much!" And today's quote took the cake. She was on the floor, cuddling with the puppy when she looked up at me with tears in her eyes and said "Mommy, I'm so in love with my new puppy!"

Mending Little Hearts

Two weekends ago, Katie, Sadie and I participated in our first "Poker Run" for Mended Little Hearts, a Richmond-based chapter of a national support organization for families of children with CHD. A poker run, we found out, is a charitable event common in the biking community. About two dozen bikers came out for the event, sporting Harleys and Hondas for a good cause.

The best part of the event was that one of the riders that day was a man named Dr. Peeler. It just so happens that Dr. Peeler is the surgeon who saved Sadie's life when he performed the aortic switch and VSD repairs on her heart. I can't tell you what it feels like to see the man who held your daughter's tiny heart in his hands and have a few non-hospital moments to chat. In the hospital he appeared to be cold and aloof, and, frankly, a real jerk. In our real-life encounter, however, he was candid and even funny, telling stories of how he swindled his wife and UVA into allowing him to escape for a weekend bike ride.

I had written him an email several weeks earlier, in my mass-thank-you efforts around Sadie's birthday. He commented on what it meant, and how little correspondence or news he receives on his patients. You can bet that I've added him to my holiday card list!

Check out Sadie's first attempt at pigtails in the pic. :)

Rejuvination

The husband and I took off this weekend for a long-overdue road trip to Blacksburg for a weekend, leaving our kids in Kerinda's (my sister) able care. It was Jason's fraternity's 40th anniversary, and brothers from the class of 69 on up were all there to celebrate. We had a great time seeing a lot of friends we hadn't seen in ages, hanging out and making fun of freshmen chicks.

On the way into town on Friday night we enjoyed a beautiful sunset - something I'd seen a hundred times or more while living in the mountains, but not once since moving to Richmond. We both enjoyed seeing the almost flouresent colors of the maples just beginning to drop their leaves. As night fell and we drove into town, I gazed up at the ultra clear sky, and enjoyed picking out constellations I'd forgotten in the two years we'd been gone. I felt like Dorothy, revisiting Oz with it's colors and vibrancy. I kept thinking how everything looked so ALIVE, so crisp and clear. I could breathe better, I felt lighter, and I was able to clear my head and just take a moment to exhale.

On Saturday I took off by myself for the day to visit my old haunts in my favorite town. I took a quick drive through the mountains, visited campus and fed some ducks at the pond... visited the old neighborhood, stopped for the obligatory trip to the bookstore for more VT crap and wandered down Main with a cup of Mill Mountain steaming in my hand. I couldn't have asked for better weather or a better season to make my first return to the Burg in over 2 years. I came back with scraps of paper jotted with a million ideas for my clients, the office, a new business that I've been pondering for a few years, and generally making my daily life better.

I also came back with a renewed pride for my alma mater, and Blacksburg. The town has come together incredibly since the tragedy on April 16. The town has always been friendly, but seemed even more open and embracing than ever.

It was incredibly emotional to see the memorials and signs that has been placed throughout campus and the town in memory of the victims of that fatal day. The town of Blacksburg had placed flag poles for each victim lining Main Street, in the only open area downtown has - on a strip of grass that was donated by a church. It was beautiful to see the flags (each one representing the nationality of the slain individual) lit at night.

On the busy, bustling drillfield the students had chosen the most beautiful spot on campus to create a memorial, which was made permanent by the university several months later. A stone was placed with each victim's name, carved from the same "Hokie Stone" that is the very foundation of our campus. I was struck by the way in which students lowered their voices when passing, the variety of persons paying tribute at the memorial, the notes left by the stones for friends and loved ones, and a single rose, laying in the middle, next to the stone proclaiming "We are Hokies. We will Prevail." I took the time to go through it, reading each name, and the gravity of what the families and friends of these victims must have, and still do, experience really sunk in for the first time since that fatal day.

I left Blacksburg reluctantly today. While I was incredibly anxious to see the girls and get back to my daily life with them, I couldn't help but notice the haze, the dimmed colors and the diminishing natural beauty as we traveled Eastward. I'm happy to be home with our family, and ready to move onto the next adventure, but I think I may have left yet another piece of my heart back in the 'Burg.

Be careful at the fair...

For the first time in well over a decade, I headed out to the fair... this time with the family in tow. The Virginia State Fair is held only minutes from our house, so I figured it was worth checking out. We had a great time - Katie rode every ride that she could manage to convince the carnie's to let her on; Jason had funnel cake, which is one of his favorite things in the world; Sadie jammed to the loud music and lights on the midway, amusing passersby with her astounding dance skills.

We saw it all while we were there - the biggest pumpkin ever. Some fancy eggplant from NoVa. A giant bin of corn to play in. A winning kumquat. Prize winning bulls. World's smallest woman. More mullets than I even realized existed. Then we hit the Young McDonald's area. That is where we got into trouble.

Our state fair adventure ended with:
- A sleeping baby in a stroller. For the first time ever. She never sleeps in her stroller. Ever. Apparently she needs massive stimulation for 4-5 hours straight to do the trick.
- A light saber that is constantly left on, changing colors and blinding me.
- An empty wallet and heartburn due to bad fair food.
- The little girl in this photo

Yes - she's ours!! We'd been watching for puppies for a while. I made the mistake of looking online recently, and found that a litter of lab/pit mix puppies had been abandoned in a Richmond area dumpster 7 weeks ago, locked in a plastic tote in 105 degree weather. Three had died, four survived, and are now up for adoption. And they were at the state fair. We saw them there, and that's where our biggest splurge was made. We had to apply for adoption of one. HAD to.

This little gal will be joining our family early next week!! I'm not sure how Darla (our 10 year old hound/cocker mix) will take it, or if the cat will tolerate her, but we'll see. Wish us luck! And be careful if you're going to the Va Fair this weekend. Those puppy dog eyes will get you.

On the move...

Yes, Sadie is officially walking at 12 months. To think they told me in the hospital at this time last year that she may never walk, or could lose some of her toes!

Like everything else Sadie does, she "walks" in her own way - a full-out run with her arms thrown high over her head. Since her initial few timid steps she's been tearing around the room as fast as she can - a few steps at a time, crashing, getting up and doing it again.

She has no fear whatsoever, and has already has several hard knocks today, but just laughs it off and says "uh oh!" She's also learned this week to climb stairs. Fast. And couches. And chairs. And boxes, and beds...

I foresee bruises and bangs in my very near future.

Preschool Party Survival Tips

Last weekend we celebrated Katie's 5th birthday with the ultimate little girl's party, complete with a pony. Yes, I'm a total sucker. Yes, I realize I'm trying to relive childhood. And yes, I am a glutton for punishment.

But, Katie had a blast, and the look on her face when she saw and rode the pony was priceless, so it was all worth it. I enjoyed watching her play with her friends, and seeing how much that circle continues to grow each year. I actually even relaxed and enjoyed some of the party myself.

It's been an incredibly tough year for Katie, and I wanted to do something extra special for this birthday. She loves a good party better than anyone I know, and it was fun watching her be spoiled rotten for a few hours. If anyone deserves it she does - she's had more responsibility, stress and emotions than most kids will have in their entire childhood wrapped up in the last 12 months. I'm glad to see that she is finally starting to move past it a little bit, and get back to just being a kid.

I credit the success of the party to a few tricks I've figured out after 5 years of trial and error with children's party. For those of you who have kids just entering the party age, let me pass on some of these nuggets of wisdom regarding children's parties.

1. Don't even think of organizing a game. Half the kids are afraid of blindfolds. The other half are all too busy picking their noses, digging in sand or running in circles to pay attention to the instructions.
2. Skip the piñata. Yes, it's so cute to see little ones whack the heck out of a paper maché pony, but really, it's a liability. I was only hit once this year (a record, I think), but it was a good blow to the head, and it still hurts when I brush my hair. No piñata next year. Period.
   
3. Know the people you invite. I invited Katie's entire class (10 kids) because they have a rule at her preschool that if you want to invite one kid, you have to invite all, or none at all. It made for an awkward beginning and it was nearly impossible to break the ice with some of the party-goers, adults and children alike. On the plus side, I now know who to avoid at preschool get-togethers.
   
4. Dollar store cowboy hats are not a good investment. They leave a ring of color on your kids' heads that do not come off. Ever.
5. Have adult drinks. You will need them by the end of the first hour. Trust me. You may want to share them with parents who are spending the afternoon, as well. The parents relax and let the kids play while they visit, and the kids learn not to cling to mommy like cat hair on black pants. Read "The Three Martini Playdate" for inspiration in this area.
6. Lock the children out of the house. Allow them in only for party breaks. This serves two purposes - one, it gives the parents a space where they can go for quick doses of sanity and refills of item #5 above. Two, it helps with the aftermath that comes after a tidal wave of children descend upon your home. A little, at least.

I think we can say that the party was a success. Katie had a blast and honestly, I did, too. After the initial hour or two's awkward moments, everyone mellowed out, relaxed and enjoyed a nice, muggy central Virgina afternoon.

Cow attack

It was a gorgeous day in Richmond today, and I decided to give Jason the "day off" to watch football. I packed up the girls and headed out to the zoo (which is 45 minutes away and has 3 tolls each way)... to discover it was closed. We detoured and went to frolic in Carrytown at World of Myrth, grabbed an ice cream cone and then hit Maymont for some serious petting zoo action. Sadie is at the perfect age for this now - she mastered 3 new animal sounds while at the petting zoo today - moo, quack and baa. Yes, she's a genius.

We were about to wrap things up, when a friendly cow came over to the fence for a scratch behind the ears. I gave her some clover I scavenged, which she took with pleasure. Katie decided to do the same. That's when Clarabelle decided to scratch her head against the post, trapping Katies thumb along the way. Of course screaming, jumping and tears ensued, at full volume. Sadie felt left out, and began to scream as well. Passersby stopped to stare, wondering if the cow was to have the same fate as those poor bears last year (I'm still ticked about the bears).

Feeling like the neglectful mom I so detested last year (again a reference to the infamous bear incident), I carried Katie out (still screaming) while pushing the stroller with Sadie in it (also screaming) to our vehicle. Everyone stopped to stare. Several prissy moms gave me death looks. Perhaps they didn't see the cow attack and thought I had been beating my children. The thought did cross my mind half way up the hill, but no, the children were unscathed from my end of things.

We left the park, Sadie still screaming, Katie reduced to sobs. Fifteen minutes later, Sadie was still screaming. Katie was stopped sobbing long enough to begin yelling to Sadie "Shush - You have NO IDEA WHAT IT'S LIKE TO GET SMUSHED BY A COW. You're just a baby." Which then reduced Katie to tears once again, realizing how terribly horrible it was to be a victim of such a gruesome incident.

We arrived home 30 minutes later. Sadie still screaming. Katie still teary.

Alas, no support group seems to exist for victims of cow attacks. I guess Katie's on her own for this one. Jason owes me. Big time.

Mug shots

It's been ages since I've added any photos, so since I'm on a roll this week with the blog, I thought I'd add a few!


Katie the Ballerina


Sadie showing her true colors. She hates her bikini. Obviously.


My sister, my friend.


Spaghetti is Sadie's favorite... and my least favorite because it guarantees I will be bathing, mopping, wiping walls and pulling spaghetti pieces out of her hair all night.

What I really meant to say...

So after the ranting and raving of my last few blogs, I'm taken aback that I didn't take the time to say what I truly have wanted to say... what I planned to post for the past year.

The past year has been an amazing one - with life, death, love and "war" all twisted into our daily routines. It's been tough for all of us, yet rewarding. All four of us have some personal battle wounds that we need to heal from, and we're finally pulling the pieces of "normal" daily life back together.

What I've learned this past year is how truly blessed I am for every moment I get to share with my children. Though I'm often pathetic at keeping my cool when they demand intense attention for hours on end, I can look into Sadie's eyes, see her scar or (heaven forbid) Katie's tears, and I'm immediately reminded how much worse things could be. I love my girls like there is no tomorrow.

I've also realized this past weekend that I've put my life on hold long enough. I've stopped "living" as I used to, and felt like I've been struggling with each day, just trying to get by and survive, until things could get better. It's funny, but the events of the past weekend were enough to finally jolt me out of the non-action trance I've been in and make me realize that it's time to stop tiptoeing around and start living life the way I want to and in which my family thrives. I've put a lot of time and effort into helping others (which isn't a bad thing usually), but at the expense of my family's time and my welfare. So it's time to change that a bit. No, I'm not going to go overboard and become a selfish, hoarding fool. But I am going to put my family and my needs first once again.

The other overwhelming thing I've realized is that, despite the isolation I felt this past year as Sadie recovered, I have an amazingly strong network of friends and family who have been there for me through it all. I was often tearing up this weekend as I recalled the things that different friends have done to make life easier for my family, me and especially for the girls. To see such a large group of them come together to sing "happy birthday" to our little girl was a memory I'll treasure the rest of my life.

I've finally begun to start the thank you notes I never could write last year. I wrote to her surgeon, whose expertise saved her life. I wrote to the ambulance driver, who held my hand and teared up with me when I told him to take good care of her on that first scary night... then promised she'd get there safe and sound. I left a note for the nurse at the hospital who held me up in the bathroom that night as I sobbed after Sadie was taken from me, as I the enormity of the situation finally hit me. But I haven't been able to really express my thanks to my friends - yes, I sent thank you notes, but they just don't do it. This weekend's "bash" was when I planned to talk to many and express just how much their calls, prayers, well-wishes, food, hugs and support have meant to me this year. I could not have made it through without them.

And to you out there, who still reads my blogs despite their dark air lately, thank you for your thoughts and support too. I love getting notes from the "lurkers" out there who have followed our family's story; or hearing from a friend that they're keeping tabs on us through the blog from thousands of miles away. It's great.

What I really wanted to say is THANKS!!

MAJOR drama and ANGRY blog. Reader beware.

I win the SUCKER OF THE YEAR award.

OK, so it was supposed to be a fabulous weekend - a real celebration. Sadie turned 1, and we had a party to celebrate with our friends and family who supported us through this past year. It was something I'd looked forward to for months. But this weekend has been extremely stresful.

I had major issues with some people at our party (described below), but the most scary thing all weekend was a close call I had with Sadie tonight - she stopped breathing. No kidding. She started screaming and 2 hours later, was really worked up. I took her for a walk, and she started to do this weird intake, and her breathing got slower. I ran back home with the non-jogging stroller (fun) and threw her in the car to take her to the emergency room, yelling in at Jason that I was taking her to the emergency room. I hadn't even gotten to our first light, when I heard her breaths stop for an extended time. I panicked, prayed like I've never done in my life and floored it, doing 60 on a 25 mph road to the nearest facility - a Patient First. I got her out of the car and she was blue and her eyes were rolled back. I ran into patient first, accidentally banging her carrier on the way in, and she came to. She pinked right up, and by the time I got her into the exam room, was coherent, though sweating profusely and still breathing oddly. They watched her a few minutes as I took her out of the carrier, she gave a great big cough, and seemed to start breathing fine. They treated me like I was insane, even when I told them that she'd had a heart defect, and it could be serious. Finally, after only a few minutes, she was back to her normal self - blowing kisses at the doctor, smiling at everyone and trying to get down to crawl.

They all thought I was nuts. I have this major bruise on my arm from a blood test last week, and Sadie - while we were there, mind you - developed two bruises on her head. The doctor asked me if "everything was OK at home" (no, I'm not abused nor is Sadie), then sent me on my merry way; admonishing me all the while that they are not an emergency room, just a 24 hour clinic. I told him I knew that, but just wanted to get her on CPR or intubated if needed and that they were the closest place (which my cardiologist had told me in our early scary days of having Sadie home). So, I left with my tail between my legs, feeling like the fool of the year after the weekend I've had. Sadie's perfectly fine now. I think maybe she swallowed something perhaps.

Which brings me to my angry venting section of tonight's blog. While it was wonderful to have everyone over, and my eyes were brimming as I looked around the room at all who were singing happy birthday to my little miracle baby, I leave this weekend behind feeling vastly disappointed. I'm also furious, exhausted and worn out. So I'm venting. Which is, frankly, why I started blogging in the first place. Venting and spreading news. So, now that the dramatic news of tonight has been told, there's a major vent session coming up. Here goes:

I frankly don't care if this family finds out I'm blogging about them, as they are NOT welcome in my home again. They were casual friends at best, and have the most horrid parenting and child-rearing skills I have seen - thus they have bad kids. Because they overheard me talking about our upcoming party at another friends' party recently, I felt obligated to invite them (Sucker award #1). Their children were completely unruly this weekend - they spread sand throughout my house, left towels wadded up in my bathrooms, turned on the floorboard heater in Katies' room full blast and almost burnt the house down, tore apart her room (2 times), stayed the night due to the story I'll tell below, woke at 5 am this morning SCREAMING (for fun) and waking everyone in the house. I had gone to bed at 4 after cleaning behind everyone, and sleeping on the floor of Sadie's room with baby blankets wadded under my head as a pillow.

The parents were no better. I got bamboozled into leaving the party I'd been waiting all year (Sucker award #2 - I thought the husband had been drinking and thus could not drive - turns out he hadn't been and just wanted to stay). I had barely had more than a few bites to eat all day of the food I'd been craving for months, when I hurried out the door to the hospital with the family's matriarch. We ended up in the very room I gave birth to Sadie in (which holds scary, sad memories for me) for hours, while the husband stayed to hang out with MY friends and let his children tear apart our house. Turns out it was a false alarm. I'm thankful she's fine and the baby is OK, but am still too angry to really acknowledge it much. I called the husband after been at the hospital several hours and told him to come over to get his wife, and that I was going back to my house. It took 2 phone calls before he agreed to go to the hospital.

The couple came back to my house "too tired to drive," which I could totally understand after that drama, so being the polite hostess I let them crash in our bed, leaving us with no place to sleep as we had a full house. Her husband then proceeded to tell all my guests all night to "hush" so she could sleep (HELLLOOOO?? MY house?!), then went to the room and locked the door - after I told him I needed to get pillows and a blanket out for myself. I knocked on the door to retrieve them, and he told me to go away. I told him who it was, and he said he didn't care, to go away. NIIIIICCCEEEE. This morning, when their kid had been screaming/talking loudly for over half an hour at an ungodly time (still very dark - about 30 minutes later I checked the clock and it was 5:30 am) and after 3 warnings, I told their child to quiet down or I'd put him in time out. The kid told me I couldn't do that. I told him that it was my rules and my house and I darn well could and would, giving him my best "scary mommy eyes" and he finally quieted down. For five minutes. The entire family snuck out shortly after without so much as a goodbye or thank you.

I mean really, come on. How can people be so rude? Never, in a MILLION years, would I let Katie or Sadie run wild, tearing apart someone's house and not admonish them, help clean up or at least apologize. Never, if my spouse were in perceived danger and on their way to the emergency room, would I stay behind to visit. Never would I sleep in a hosts' bed and leave without at least scribbling a note of thanks. Never would I LOCK my hosts out of their room when they needed something. And by God, I've only spanked Katie a few times EVER, but those kids butts would be so red you could see them from a moon if they disrespected any adult or household the way those kids did. Did they even stop for a moment to think that I, as the hostess of the party for my 1 year old that barely survived her first year, would like to rejoin the celebration for my child, instead of sitting at the hospital staring at the clock? Nooo. But at least the husband had a good time visiting his "friends." Jerk.

So, I spent most the party getting everyone and their kids settled, barely visiting, thinking I'd have the afternoon to relax and visit, only to deal with their drama all night. Good gosh, I can't tell you how much I despise this family at the moment. They are hereby banned forever from the Thies threshold. Today's drama of Sadie's episode has me darn well close to nervous breakdown status.

The good news is that Sadie slept through the majority of her party, so at least I didn't miss too much of her celebration - I just missed the socialization with our friends. The better news is that she's safe and sound in bed now, sleeping like (haha) a babe.

Tomorrow is Katie's first day at a new preschool as well as some medical tests for me. Let's see what kind of new drama we can stir up here.

Vacation is over... finally!

So, we’re back from our first family vacation with both girls. I discovered one important thing on this trip. Family vacations are no longer vacations when small children from the extended family are all brought together under one roof.

Katie had a blast with her 3 closest cousins (in age) – Brittany (8), Nick (5) and Meagan (4). They played on the beach about 6 hours a day, coming in hungry and obnoxiously exhausted each afternoon. Sadie was the youngest by a long shot, so spent most of her days having mommy lotion her up, to take her to the beach, only to have mommy bring her back in 30 minutes later for a change/food/sand removal or nap. This routine was repeated multiple times a day. Needless to say, I didn’t get a tan. Heck, I didn’t get more than 15 minutes of peace all week.

Sadie did enjoy some things on the beach. She loved sitting on the edge of the water, letting waves lap over her legs. She enjoyed covering her legs in sand and giving herself an exfoliating massage. And she loved to eat sand. By the handfuls. We’ve had some interesting diapers, needless to say.

Man, I could really use a vacation.

Sadie's ONE Today!!!

It’s hard to believe that a year has passed since that frightening ride to the hospital. I vividly remember holding my legs together as tight as I could just praying the baby would not arrive in the front seat of the Expedition.

On that life-changing day we still had not decided upon a name for our soon-to-arrive daughter. As the contractions grew stronger that morning, I got more frantic about choosing a name. It turns out that Sadie and her great-grandmother chose her name in the end, in a way... when Sadie’s heart defect was announced, we knew that we had to name her after Nana, whose strength and fiestiness got her through 96 years. Not surprisingly, I find myself missing Nana a ton today, wishing she were here with us to celebrate, and to hold her namesake. There are so many days I look over at Sadie and see her getting into mischief, with a twinkle in her eyes that unmistakably is a gift from Nana.

Mischief, by the way, is Sadie’s specialty. Jason and I have taken to calling her “Trouble,” as she seems to find it wherever she turns. She’s into the cabinets, taking safety plugs out of the electrical sockets, pulling down floor lamps, biting wires, pulling up on the dog, pulling the cat's hair, eating any small objects she can sneak into her mouth (dog food being a favorite), raiding her sister’s bedroom, exploring the bathroom, pulling Katie's hair, crawling under chairs and tables and bumping her head and causing general mayhem wherever she goes. She makes me think of those old Looney Toons cartoons with the Tazmanian Devel, who levels everything he goes by. I forgot how much fun it is to have a 1 year old. I don’t remember Katie being quite so into everything. Or so tempermental. But hey, I can’t complain!

A year after Sadie’s whirlwind arrival, I’m amazed at the little girl I see today. So strong, healthy and normal. As such, today is a HUGE day to celebrate. In fact, in some ways it is a new chapter for our entire family.

On a personal level, I have worked hard not to think about or focus on what happened those first days of Sadie’s life, but last night I allowed myself to read my blog from back then, peruse the pictures and be reminded just how far our little girl has come. It has been hard for me to even think about it… I find myself compartmentalizing it all and pushing it back into the “history” section of the brain, dusted off only to remember the overall outcome. Perhaps its best to keep it that way, but for me, it feels like I’m only now coming to a point where I can allow myself to process the feelings and emotions I’ve worked so hard to repress this past year, or even to allow myself to admit how very close we came to losing our little spitfire, and how extraordinarily lucky we are to have her here with us today – healthy and normal. I’m finally starting to come to terms with it all, I guess.

So today, Sadie my dear, since it's your big day, you can tear through the cabinets, smear cake on the wall behind the high chair, feed the dog and lick her hands afterwards, scream back and forth with her sister and bite me… and I’ll smile. Tomorrow you’ll be in trouble again, but today we’re all going to bask in your amazing recovery, your health and our happiness in having you in our family.