New Diagnosis

I knew this day would come.  We've had another diagnosis.  It was only a matter of time until Mary Claire told me that Megan (her American Girl doll) had been diagnosed with diabetes just like her.  I was really surprised it took so long for one of her "friends" to get it too. (it's been almost seven years now!)  Today Megan got her pump and a really great matching pump pouch (just like Mary Claire's!).  We reassured Megan as we put a new site on her tummy.  She got to stay up extra late, and she's not as sad now.

The things I'm never prepared for.  This is just one of the things we take as they come, because in our children's lives they are very real.  She'd asked me WHEN (for goodness sake's!) I was going to finish her new Valentine's pump pouch (yes, she was wearing last year's today).  I guess I've procrastinated a bit..I've had the fabric for at least a month!  I even had it cut, ironed and ready to go.  Ha!  And then, other stuff got in the way.  So, while I was sewing her Valentine's pouch, she dug around in my fabric and found enough of the pink peace sign fabric to make one for Megan, and told me matter-of-factly that Megan had been diagnosed today, and she was sad.


I could hardly ignore that!  I made both, and got them all cheered up with some pink.  Here is Mary Claire's new pouch:

You can hardly even see her name!  (But she kinda likes it on there anyway)

And here is Megan's pump pouch:

heehee-it's so tiny!  It was too small to put a zipper in, but Mary Claire really wanted one!

And here she is with her tummy site and her new pump pouch.  She's taken it well so far. : )

Yesterday was a super-busy day, so I didn't even have time to write!  We cleaned, made adorable strawberry cupcakes (and little paper *flags* to go in them..), made dinner for friends, had a date night... I'll just show you!

Look at these perfect cupcakes, just waiting for frosting!

I got a chance to try the new kit Ches got me for Christmas

This is the super-cool creme-filling needle attachment.  You stick it through the top (or bottom) of the cupcake to the center, and squirt in the filling.  I even made homemade fluffy whipped frosting to fill the cupcakes!

Mary Claire and I made cute little flower picks to stick into the cupcakes.  They each had a name or word with a tiny picture, then we stuck a toothpick on the back with little heart stickers. : )

Aren't they cute?  (After the filling mess, I didn't mess with special designer frosting!  It was getting late, and I had to take a shower before we went out.)  Do those little hearts look familiar?  We had extras left from our Valentine cards, so we stuck pairs together around a toothpick and put them in the extra cupcakes!

Here's a closeup of Gigi's (with a cupcake picture!)

...and Mary Claire's with a rainbow!

And I'd forgotten to show you our finished Valentine's boxes:

I told you they weren't perfect.  Clay added "bolts" to his mailbox-so cute!

I'm praying you will be blessed by the wonderful love of God this Valentine's Day!  Enjoy your day tomorrow, and think of all the ways God shows you how much He loves you.  We are blessed.  God, please show us how to be thankful for the gifts You've chosen for us.  Even diabetes.

I have loved you with an everlasting love...with lovingkindness I have drawn you.

Jeremiah 31:3

Sugar Makes Me Crafty

GrEaT photo shoot, thanks, Jeremy Cavness!

Here is the picture from the photo shoot:

At some point, they'll get the quote added and send them to be printed (this is where I want to get in on it!)
Then, we did something even BETTER!  We walked down to the corner, and enjoyed a small reward for our good deed (well, you know).  We each had a specialty cupcake at Kupcakes and More on the Bentonville Square!

 They were absolutely scrumptious.  I had Chocolate Peanut Butter, Mary Claire had Red Velvet (with cream cheese frosting), and Ethan had a chocolate Army Man (from Toy Story) cupcake with vanilla buttercream frosting.  All delish.  And then we got to sit at one of the tiny, child-size tables.  It reminded me of when I was little, and my brother and I would go to our friends' house-they had this tiny table set in the kitchen, and I loved to eat in there!  So, I sat on a teensy chair, and we had a cupcake party-fun! 

(I only wish Clay had been with us.  I missed him so much today!  He's staying with Gigi.  I called him when we left the cupcake place, but he's still having fun, and not wanting to come home yet.  Grandmas are always better than home.  He says I'm no fun-I make him clean his room, make his bed, and get dressed-I'm so mean!).
So, then we went back home, got our library books, and went to the library.  We read books and checked out new ones.  I helped Mary Claire this time-she got too many non-fiction last time!
Then we picked up Ches for lunch and went out to US Pizza in Fayetteville-so good!  I must be having a great day-cupcakes and pizza, in one day!  We were all tired after that, but the day must go on.  We headed home for a little bit, then made our way back to Mary Claire's orthodontist appointment.  Just a check-up, so it was pretty fast.  She doesn't go back until August, but we are supposed to do ten more turns on her palate expander.  She wasn't worried-she wanted me to do two tonight-Ha.  Strange girl.  She used to hate it!

Then, our relaxing included some crafts...
I have a prayer partner (a Bible study friend I'm secretly praying for-we drew for names), and I wanted to keep track of all the times I'm thinking of and praying for her.  I resurrected an old idea-paper bag scrapbooks!  I made these for each of the kids in Clay's first grade class, but as I discovered today..that was before I was blogging.  So!  I took a couple pictures so you could make them too.  Super Easy.
You use two or three plain paper bags (you can use white too, if you have them), some ribbon, a hole punch..

Stack the paper bags end to end, with the bottoms at opposite ends.  Make a cardstock cover that is the same size as your bags.  Hole punch through the cover PLUS the bags in the center fold.  Run about 14" of ribbon through the holes, and tie on the outside.  Now, you can get creative, or keep it simple.  I add little matching ribbons tied on the spine ribbon, knotted-add as many as you like.  I usually add at least three or four.  Then, when you close the "scrapbook", you'll have openings in the bags on the right side.  I make tabbed pull-outs to journal or put pictures on.  Cut a piece of cardstock to fit inside the "pocket" (end of a bag), and put a stapled tab on it.  (I have a nifty little punch from Stampin' Up, that I LOVE!), then punch holes (I used this punch), and tie a ribbon through the front and back, to hold all that fun inside!

Here are a couple I made (I had to make Mary Claire one as a bribe for her to go get an old one upstairs-so I could remember!).  You can see the tabs on the pull-outs in the above picture.

I had to cover my prayer partner's name, since it's supposed to be a surprise!
Ok, so it wasn't quite dinner (and I was still sugared up?), and Ethan was still begging for his own backpack (see yesterday!).  I was resisting, since they were a little girly, but I made him one.  He was so happy to see it stitching his name-he is just precious.  I didn't do all the process pictures, but took one of the end product!  His name is in green (his choice) on the tractor fabric, so it's hard to see.  He wanted me to combine fabrics, so here they are:

Then we had dinner, swam, and I researched *wait for it*...going back to school.  I have some time this fall, so I looked into finishing my masters degree.  Except, I have 18 hours in one subject, and am thinking I would switch majors/areas.  Umm..only three hours would transfer, and it's a Maybe/Probably.  So, it'd be at least two years.  But..what else am I doing?  (besides making backpacks and scrapbooks...)

Bed Hopper

He had no nap again today. : ( Tonight we meant to get him to bed earlier, but it's just almost impossible! (with dinner late after girl scouts, bath/showers, spelling words, cupcakes for dessert, books..) We set up gates at both of his doors, so maybe that will help the little bed-hopper stay in his own room! He went into both kids rooms early this morning, and never went back to sleep. It annoys Mary Claire, but Clay just lets him climb in! I think it's sweet. They just aren't getting their rest, and it all comes down to Ethan sleeping. I'm not get to rest or nap either, so it's affecting me too! : P Of course he pretty much went right to sleep tonight after not having a nap! That's the good news.

When it was time to go up and read his bedtime stories, I wasn't sure if I should sit on his bed: he'd used the back of my jeans (my pockets) to wipe his cupcake remainders on! He'd walked right up and wiped his face on me! Silly boy.

What do you dream of? Lately I'm dreaming of two dishwashers. More and more frequently (not EvErY night yet), I have to wash dishes while the dishwasher is running. There just isn't room in the dishwasher. We run it every night, but it seems to fill up as I finish making dinner (measuring cups, cutting boards, mixing bowls, etc. added to breakfast/lunch/snack dishes and cups/glasses). I just can't imagine running it right after lunch, since it's not quite full yet (and that seems wasteful I think). Oh, what to do since another dishwasher just isn't fitting on my To-Do list? : )

I'm having ambivalent feelings about a baby again. It's still hard. I still want one more baby, that last time to be pregnant, one more chance to buy baby clothes, smell a new baby, watch them sleep, learn to crawl, and watch the kids adore them. But. Sometimes I wonder if we got another chance to not have a baby. Ethan is almost in preschool, and there is a day coming soon that he'll be in school, and I'll be busy with projects and time will fly while the kids are in school. I just wonder both ways a lot lately. I might be preparing myself for the chance it won't happen, who knows. I just can't get my hopes up again. What if it was a chance to want one even more than last time? I just have to lay it at God's feet, and not worry about it.

The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Isaiah 58:11

Negative Balance

A teensy update.

Biggest (Recent) Trauma Drama
On Tuesday, I went by the girl scout office/gift shop to purchase Mary Claire's new uniform (since she's a brownie now). The total for the vest, patches, etc. was $40.25. Well, by some odd mistake, the lady charged me $4025. I didn't really freak out (really). They worked on it for a while, and eventually told me they voided it. I left with some copies and signed things, and didn't really think about it again. Until yesterday.

I called to check my balance, and it was $17. I can only say that I don't think I've had that balance since I was in college. Or before. Of course, I freaked out, and immediately transferred $3000 in case anything else was to come through. Well. That was just the beginning of my exasperation. What ensued was lots of yelling and transferred phone calls to the Little Rock GS office. Longer story short, they did it AGAIN. So. Then since my savings is my overdraft protection for my checking account, all my savings transferred automatically. So, then I had $0. I really lost it then, and did lots more screaming. I was actually at a girl scout meeting with Mary Claire (and Clay was reading quietly) when I found out about the second time. I had to get the kids and leave. I thought I was going to explode.

When I got home, Ches took the kids out to swim (thank the good Lord in Heaven for the pool heater) since I had another good hour or two on the phone. Good bye, dinner and family time. They assured me that I'd receive $8050 worth of credit by morning. (trying to shorten the story..) I didn't. *Insert more anger, but I'm drained, and don't have lots more yelling in me, so just some crying* I was supposed to meet Susan at 9 this morning, so I tried to get ready (even though Ethan really wanted to play outside!). Life seems to go on even in the midst of chaos.

I had my hair appointment today. Yes, some sanity and tiny time for me. Ahh...a commercial break in the drama. Then, back to chaos. David, the finance man for GS, called *during* my appointment to check in and find out my balance. I called the bank, checked the balance, and called him back. It was up to $2900, so one of the $4025's had made it in. He told me to check in tomorrow (Friday) to let him know how it was going. I'm sure Taylor was relieved to know he'd get paid!! heehee : )

Just another crazy day in my life. Susan brought dinner to ease my crazy life-so sweet. The kids gobbled it up (including homemade chocolate chip cookies!) which I probably haven't made since Mary Claire was diagnosed! I have certainly slowed down in the bake shoppe department. Those cookies are definitely calling my name. . .

Tomorrow is my big 36th birthday. I guess I still look forward to an anniversary of the day I was born. Every year my world changes so much. I wonder where I'll be in a year. I'm just in the passenger seat, and I'm sure I'll find out soon enough.

The kids shopped and got gifts, and we ate cupcakes tonight with dinosaur rings (kinda girly, kinda boyish, the kids thought). They were wonderful, and my kids were so sweet and excited for me! Clay got me a card and recorded a little message. Mary Claire had made a card at school-you know, those are just the best, full of love! : )

Tomorrow I'm headed to Branson to shop (and maybe some relaxing?) with Angie for the weekend. It's an (bi)annual tradition, and I love it. It feels like I'm helping my family (by buying their winter clothes..or summer clothes!), yet it's for me (as I dearly love to shop!). Just perfect!

I'm praying for a coming year of blessings, whatever they may be, whatever God thinks I can handle. And after watching a great skit/video on youtube, I'm praying that God will chisel me into the masterpiece He created. I still have bits that need refining.

In the midst of crazy town, I forgot all about my Walk shirts. I had messages to turn in the final shirt (size) numbers. I totally forgot. I've emailed now, and I hope they don't push printing. I'll live if they do-I've been purified in the last week. The design is cute, I'll try to post a pix of the front. It's a vintage/tatoo kind of design. It's a heart with a crown and wings with Hero across the heart. : )

I really need some rest, so I should wrap up. I totally meant to type a tiny bit, but I always get carried away. Kinda like the way I talk! : )

Abstain from Meat (not your Mate!)

I've been enjoying the last pre-Lent day. Ethan and I went out to run errands, and we got stuff to make a cake (pink strawberry cake with vanilla frosting), some pastel Easter m&m's, muffin mixes (I can't possibly eat aLL of this today!), and then we came home, and he couldn't WaiT! So, we made mini cupcakes since they'd take the least amount of time to bake! He ate some batter, then two of the mini cupcakes when they came out-with no frosting. I used the rest of the batter to make regular size cupcakes. When they were cool, he saw me frosting them and putting on sprinkles and m&m's, and decided he needed more! Not. Going to happen. I gave him lunch, and finished up, then put him to bed. He'd already had m&m's for snack too. I so spoil him. (It's fat Tuesday after all..) I would have never given the kids chocolate (ever), or the things he gets. This is why we have a birth order, and it means something. Older kids have it harder, are harder workers, and are probably harder parents. Younger children have it easier, aren't the most motivated workers, and are probaly partying with their kids (jk, probably are easier on their kids though). I can see Ethan breezing through life based on his sweet, charming personality-eating cake for breakfast, girls for dessert-ohmygoodness-we shall be harder on him!!!

Speaking of, the Naughty Chair has been working for the little boy. If we even ask him if he needs to go, he stops his ranting. (Yay!) Ches also uses the bed-if he's behaving badly, he takes him to his bed, then gets him after he straightens up and pulls himself back together (aka-stops the screaming fit). It works also. The spanking we did a couple times-not so much! He wanted to hit us for fun, so we had to teach that it was naughty. So we couldn't do it anymore. As long as it works, I'll do whatever. I just don't want my kids being crazy naughty/bossy/whiny/spoiled/uncaring, etc. I mean, isn't that what we all want?

Well, mom informed me, as well as Sandra (my loyal commenters) that the posting thingie was not working. It apparently doesn't ever put in the letters you are supposed to verify (that you are a breathing human, and not a computer commenting-whatever!). Anyway, I don't know what is going on. Maybe I'll repeat the challenge another day. For the moment, I'm busy gorging myself on all things chocolate and sugary, so I can't concentrate very well. I just finished a box of Samoas, and have eaten maybe half the bag of pastel m&m's, and will work on the cupcakes after a sensible dinner involving meat. (As on Ash Wednesdays and all Fridays of Lent are days of abstinence) Don't be dirty-minded: not from physical "contact" with your mate (as I'm a pg-13 rated blog), but from meat: the other dirty four-letter word. So, back to bean burritos, spaghetti with marinara, cheese pizza, salad, soup, etc. on Fridays. You know, you only miss it if you are not supposed to eat it. So, tonight, MEAT! and Mate? heehee

Yes, Fat Tuesday since I'm gaining as the day goes on. Still don't know what I'll give up for Lent. I'll just be really good tomorrow till I figure it out.

Brainstorming more ideas:
Yummy chocolatey coffee drinks (think Starbucks Dark Mocha Latte, McD Iced Vanilla Coffee), Nestle Toll House break-and-bake cookies (raw or baked), or I could give up the fun, time-consuming habit of playing with my blog backgrounds!

Ok, forgot to mention my foraging in the stick/log pile out in the front yard for sticks!! I made a cross out of sticks, and I'm planning to put flowers/ribbon on it to use it as a wreath for my front door! As usual, if it turns out amazingly beautiful, I'll share my pix! If it fails miserably, I'll never mention it again. : ) Toodles!