Say Cheese...

I have really enjoyed the new camera that I got for my birthday. I have wanted a new camera for so very long and so it has been such a treat to have nice equipment to work with to capture cute moments like this one of Karmindy. There is also a really cool editing program called piknic on the www. The program lets you do all kinds of nifty things to pictures. I am loving it. This is my first picture to edit and play around with. I think I may be in love with this program and I might even upgrade to the other fancy gagets. We will see. 

However, all hasn't been rosey with my camera, a few weeks ago, Little Missy a.k.a. Karmindy was caught stepping on my camera.Yes, she was using it as a stepping stool to climb on to our bed. Yikes. She totally jammed the lens so I could even take pictures in manual. After Mark, my go to fix it guy, looked at it and popped it back into place all was not well. I was ticked and so sick to my stomach at how much it was going to cost us to either repair or replace the lens. After calling around and talking to photo professionals they said that buying a new lens would be a lot cheaper than repairing it! One hundred and fifty bucks later I am back in the business to snap more pictures. That amount definitely hurt paying for a whole new lens. From now on, I will be a little more responsible and not leave my camera on my nightstand or even in arms reach for little fingers to touch or use as a stepping stool.

Concussion

Today, I got a call from the school secretary telling me that Kaleb had gotten hurt while running out to Recess and that he had tripped and fell and got a pretty good sized goose egg on his head. I asked the secretary if he was OK and also if the goose egg had split. The secretary said he had just hit his head pretty good but that he was fine and that she just wanted me to come down to the school and check on him. It is protocol to notify the parents and then let them decide if they want the child to stay at school or have them released. Once I got this news, I raced to the school to check on Kaleb. When I got there, he was sitting in the office and had one of the biggest goose eggs that I had ever seen on his forehead. Kaleb said he was feeling okay besides having the goose egg and  a few scratches on his hands and tummy. I decided to check Kaleb out of school and let him come home and rest because he looked exhausted..

When we got home Kaleb asked me if he could play the Wii, I let him because I knew he didn't feel good and thought it might help get his mind off his head and cuts and scrapes. After about a 1/2 hour I thought he seemed okay and asked if he wanted to go back to school. He said that he was a little tired and wanted to go to sleep. I let him doze for a few minutes because I was in the process of making Mark's Birthday cake for that night and had gotten the call in the middle of mixing all the ingredients. After a few minutes of cooking in the kitchen, I peaked over the counter and noticed Kaleb sitting up. He told me that he needed to throw up. I went over to him and talked to him for a bit. He seemed really out of it. At first I brushed these symptoms off and just figured that it was because of his fall but then I started getting worried that he might have a concussion. I then decided to call his pediatrics office for advice and no one answered. I then tried calling Mark to see if I should take him in to the Insta Care. I couldn't get a hold of him either. I decided to go to the W.W.W. to see what some of the symptoms of a concussion were. One was that the person won't be able to answer questions that they know the answer to. I walked back over to Kaleb and asked him his birthday and he gave me our address. I asked him where we lived and he told me St. George. He knows the answers to these questions and so I started panicking. About this time Karmindy came home from preschool. I kept calling the pediatritions office and Mark but still no answer. Kaleb kept telling me he needed to throw up and also that he wanted to go to sleep. I felt in my heart that I should let him do that, so I called my friend and asked if Karmindy could come stay for a bit while I ran Kaleb to the Insta Care.  I started getting a little more worried when the Pediatritions office or Mark didn't call me back. I raced and put Karmindy in the car and came back for Kaleb. When I went over to him, he couldn't even walk. I was FREAKING out by now and carried Kaleb to the car.

After getting Karmindy dropped off , I raced to our Insta Care which is fortunately located in the Riverton Hospital. After parking the car, I went around to get Kaleb. He still couldn't walk so I carried him, a metal throw up bowl and my purse into the InstaCare. I was dying because Kaleb was so heavy but he was so limp and was totally dead weight. The ladies behind the desk in the Insta Care must have seen my frantic face and took me right back after I told her what had happened and seeing how unaware Kaleb was. After they got us seated, (I was still holding Kaleb) Kaleb threw up all over me, my purse and shoes. I also had throw up in my hair. I was trying so hard to be strong for him but I about lost it for I can deal with blood but not vomit.
After the nurse ran vitals, and he went for the Doctor when he asked Kaleb questions that he knew the answers to but could not answer correctly. The Doctor on call came over and said that he was worried that he might have a severe concussion so he told us that we needed to go to the Emergency Room Stat. While holding Kaleb, they wheeled us to the Emergency Room. They got us into a room and Kaleb settled. After that a few Doctors came in and decided that they should do a CAT Scan just to make sure that there was no bleeding on the brain. Kaleb threw up several more times on the way down to Radiology. I felt so bad for him, for it was so hard not to know what to do to help him.
After the trip down to Radiology we went back to the room and waited for the results. After being at the Emergency Room for 3 hours we found out that all was ok with Kaleb's brain and there was no bleeding or damage. Thank goodness. While this was all going on Mark finally called me. He was in training meetings so his reception wasn't great in the room he was in. :( I was a little upset to say the least because I felt so alone through it all and it is never fun to sit in stinky throwup!! I must have kept my composure well because I had several nurses tell me that I seemed so calm. I was dying inside to be honest and was ready to go postal. I think having gone through everything with Karmindy has definitely numbed me when it comes to Hospital visits. I HATE THEM!!! However, I have learned to suck it up and just do what you have to do when things like this comes up, even though I really, really struggle with it. I think it comes with being a Mom. You have to stay strong for your kids.
After they discharged Kaleb, we headed home and let him rest the rest of the evening. By 9 o' clock that night he woke up after being a asleep for 4 hours and seemed back to normal. Go figure. The things you go through for your kids can about kill you!!
I am really glad that my little boy is okay. It was a really scary experience and to think it all stemmed from a  little hit on the head. It is not an experience that I want to go through again.

Cowabunga Dudes!

This past Wednesday (September 14th) we had the opportunity to go to Cowabunga Bay! Our friends and next door neighbors had some extra free tickets, so they offered them to our family. We graciously excepted. Kaleb and Karmindy love Cowabunga Bay and had begged Mark and I to take them this Summer. However, it never felt like we could find a day to go. The weeknights were busy and the weekends were crazy! Thankfully with school underway and Fall Baseball over with we were glad we got to go. We didn't end up telling the kids until Kaleb got home from school that day. We just told them to go get their swim suits on and get in the car. I was teasing Kaleb and it was driving him nuts because I wouldn't tell him where we were going. He would try and guess where we were going and I would tell him that his guess wasn't the place. He finally guess Cowabunga Bay and he was so excited!

When we got to the park we road the lazy river for a bit. It was starting to get a little chilly so we wanted to warm up. After we warmed up we headed to the slides. Mark took Karmindy and I took Kaleb. Both the kids had a blast. Kaleb was a little more timid when it came to the slides but Karmindy wanted to tear it up. Mark said she would've gone down the biggest slide they had if he would've let her. She is quite the Dare Devil and it totally makes me CrAzY!! Somedays  Most days I think she will drive me to an early grave!! It was so nice to get out and do one last BIG outdoor activity as a family before the weather turned cold!

Mark with the kids!

Kaleb getting warmed up after swimming!

Super Cheez!

Our Baseball Player

 The Fall Baseball Season came to a close today for Kaleb. It has been a really fun season. It has been a delight for us as his parents to watch him grow as a player. Kaleb's hitting and catching has really improved this year!! Kaleb loved playing this year and enjoyed playing 1st base and catcher. He would look forward to each game just so he could try his hand at these two positions. Kaleb also had fun and really enjoyed being a team this year with a few friends: Matthew Payne, Caleb Bradford, and Jaxon Trimble. After tonight's game he asked when he could play again! We are looking forward to watching Kaleb play next  season! 

We love our Little Slugger! Way to go Kaleb on a great Baseball season!

Kaleb with his coach, Jeff Trimble

Kaleb, The Amazing Catcher
We loved seeing Kaleb suit up in the catchers uniform/equipment. The equipment is as big as he is!

Puppy Love

This past week Kozette turned 5 months it is hard to believe that we have had our cute little pup since June. She has been the best little puppy despite the usual puppy annoyances. She barks, and has had a few accidents on my floors but overall, she has been the best. I have taken her in to get her groomed twice  now and each time those that worked on her said that she is the most well behaved pup. They say that Shih tzu's tend to be kind of hard to work on because of their stubborn personalities but Kozy really has impressed them. We sure are happy to have her apart of our family.

Kaleb and Karmindy adore Kozette and are so good to keep her entertained everyday when I can't. Karmindy especially has taken a liking to her and I will often times catch Karmindy holding her and talking to her in a sweet calm little voice. It is adorable. Kozette sits still for both of the kids, I think sometimes it may be out of fear of them because they do terrorize her but for the most part they are kind to her.

Just yesterday (Saturday) after I had come home from walking I came into the house and asked where Kozy was. No one knew. I asked Karmindy who was playing in her bedroom if she knew where Kozy was. She replied that she was giving her a bath. I got a little worried because I didn't see her anywhere. Karmimdy then walked over to her play kitchen and opened the Dishwasher door and opened it. There sat Kozy sitting so still. I was so mad at Karmindy for I had no idea how long that poor little dog had been sitting in that small space.

Another cute story about Kozette... Each night after putting the kids to bed around 8 pm, Mark and I generally will go unwind for the day in our bedroom and watch a movie or check emails or play games around 8:30 pm. Our nightly ritual generally includes Kozy lying between us. Kozette loves the attention and loves that me, her momma, will pet her and cuddle with her. On the nights that we are not sitting on our beds, she will come in at bark at us until we go and sit on the bed with her. We are truly amazed at how she likes our nightly routine.

We love our little dog!!

I was a King Today!

Kaleb is really enjoying first grade this year. He had a little bit of a tough time with the new schedule and being gone all day but has now adjusted and is loving everything. He especially loves lunch and recess. What kid doesn't? I have really been impressed with Kaleb's teacher, Mrs. Forman this year. She is the cutest friendliest older lady and is so very organized. I am amazed at the stuff that Kaleb brings home. So far she has bound several books for all the kids in her class of the projects they have been working on. Talk about time consuming and going above and beyond. I am grateful to her for all the wonderful things she does and helping Kaleb to have a fun 1st grade year experience. I have also been able to go and help twice a month in Kalebs class and help read with the kids in his class. It has been so fun to meet the kids and get to know Kaleb's classmates. It has also been nice to see where Kaleb is at and where I can help him.

Today, Kaleb came home so excited. He told me that he got to be the king for the day. Apparently if you are King for the day you get to be a special helper and you also get to have some special attention from your classmates. The King and Queen for the day get their names chosen randomly out of a jar and they get to sit at the front of the class. The teacher then lets the kids ask them questions that are about them. Kaleb loves attention and truly felt so special that day at school. He came home with a poster that his teacher had written about Kaleb's likes and it had a special sticker on it that said, "I was a King today!" Here is what Kaleb's Poster said:

"My name is Kaleb. I love to go to the park and play at the playground. I love to ride my scooter. My favorite treat is a fruit snack. Junie B. Jones are my favorite books to read. Yellow and Orange are my favorite colors."

We are so proud of you Kaleb and are so glad you enjoyed your Day as King!