Cacker Barwul

This morning, Kale slept until 8am. At that time, I woke him up. He slept with Mema last night, so not sure what kind of night they had. His first reaction to being awakened was to whine and squawk (much like his momma has been known to do in the same situation). He sat up, found the pillow he had been sleeping NEXT to instead of resting his head upon, and then plopped his head back down on the pillow.

I again told him it was time to wake up. He looked directly at his Mema, who was laying next to him, and said: Cacker Bawul? For those of you who can't decipher that, its Cracker Barrel.

Yes, Kale is a fan of Cracker Barrel. We eat there often enough that he knows the name of the place. He also knows Al-mart (Wal-Mart) and the Target Store (which is what he calls Target).

This morning, I had to break his little Cracker Barrel heart and tell him we weren't going to Cracker Barrel and that we were going to school. He wasn't so pleased with that. In fact, he said: NO SCHOOL. Lovely. But, alas, he went to school with raisin toast and helicopter in hand.

abcdefghijklmnrstuabcdefg

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNRSTABCDEFG

At first glance, I know that looks like I just randomly picked and pecked at the keyboard. Look again. That is Kale's current version of the alphabet. It stops at T and starts over. Sometimes, other letters are skipped. You never know quite what version you will get. He even says the alphabet at 4am. Yes, we know this for a fact.

We also happened to get him the Fridge Phonics for Christmas. I am not sure who is more entertained by it, us or him. He is entertained by the singing and such when he puts the letter inside the hole. His parents are equally entertained or maybe even borderline stunned by the reality that our son knows some of his letters and is quickly learning more of them daily. Its not that we don't know he is smart or that he will probably be smarter than us by the time he reaches double digits. Its just kind of shocking to verbally hear him remind us that there is a LOT going on in that sponge brain of his and that he is no longer really a eat/drink/pee/sleep baby.

Where are we?

Its been a whirlwind week of a different house every few days. Ep went home yesterday and tomorrow I will make the trek with Kale and Mema. We have had a good time seeing family and friends, but I think we are ready to be home.

The holidays have not offered a break from the hard moments in life. My good friend is currently dealing with the loss of her older brother. He was in a bad motorcycle accident and they made some hard decisions before he passed away on Saturday. This friend means the world to me, and her situation has been weighing very heavy on my heart. Please do me a favor and pray for her and her family.

Additionally, Ep and I received some information today that was flat out frustrating. Its not something that we care to openly discuss. Everything happens for a reason and God is at work in all things, not just the good things. Please pray that both Ep and I are able to truly hand this back to God and let Him work it out. I can already tell you, I am going to need you to pray hard on that one...because I am really wanting to take a little bit of this situation into my own hands.

I know that there haven't been pics added much in the past week, but its because I haven't been at home to load them. So, the pics are coming....

Yep, pretty boring post huh? Sorry about that. I promise better and more positive posts to come...

Kale and Dash

You would think that this dog (Dash) would want to sleep as FAR AWAY as possible from Kale after spending all day putting up with a two year oldsters antics. When Kale is around, Dash deals with having a pulled tail, getting smacked instead of petted (because Kale gets so excited), and generally having to be constantly ready for an attack.
After Kale went to sleep, I crawled unto my own bed. Dash came into the room and immediately went to Kale's bed and curled up at Kale's feet! Normlly, Dash likes to sleep under the covers...but I guess he knew that a snoozing Kale wasn't going to lift the covers for him.
I turned on the light and quickly snapped this pic. Sorry it's blurry!


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Christmas

Christmas has now come and gone, and wow was it jolly and merry! It was a great celebration with family. The only downer was that we are all still recovering and hoping we didn't infect those who weren't already sick.

Kale got everything he didn't ask for...because he didn't know to ask for it but we all bought him fun stuff anyway. He also got what he asked Santa to bring him...a train. He is a happy and blessed boy.

We got our Christmas snow, and on par for an Arkansas snow, it snowed more where they said it would snow less and snowed less where they said it would snow more. I guess I can't really fault the weather people here since they get to predict a measureable snowfall about once a year, or maybe once every 3 years. And speaking of snow. Kale HATES snow. Its cold and wet makes everything so bright and he wants nothing to do with it. We pulled him around on a sled and tried to get him to touch the stuff...but no way that was happening. The boy who loves to be oustide was begging to go back inside.

Today we drove back down to my parents house and enjoyed a great lunch at Catfish Hole. So incredibly yummy. Here is a random thing you probably don't know...they use my maternal grandma's hush puppy recipe there. So, everytime we go there, not only do we get to eat great fish, but I am also reminded of some great fish meals at my grandma's house.

Kale is currently fighting a nap, despite nearly falling asleep at the lunch table. Dad and Ep went to put new tires on my Sequoia. Merry Christmas to me! I got two tires and Ep got two tires! Whew, good thing we could agree where to put them.

Speaking of naps....maybe I could handle one myself.

The Drive, round two.

Todays drive was shorter (only about an hour) and the drive while he naps idea worked! Here is proof!


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The drive

Today, I made the journey with Kale to my parents house while Ep was still working. A two car trip was necessary thist time, so I packed us up and off we went. I had best laid plans and on par with all two year olds, Kale had his own set of plans.

I planned the journey (2.5 hours) to coincide with naptime. By 15 minutes into the trek, he was snoozing. Until a guy (stupid #1) swerved into my lane. I hit the brakes (and horn) and suddenly had an alert fella in the backseat. He went back into zone out mode and fell back asleep within about 10 minutes. All was well until yet someone else (stupid #2) decided to play interstate roulette and the brakes were once again tested. No horn this time, but the bright eyes in the back seat came alive and the word "Alma?" came forth. I told him no, we weren't in Alma and to go back to sleep. He didn't buy it. "Mema's house?". Yes, we are going to Mema's house in Alma, now go back to sleep and we will be almost there when you wake up. Nope. Not having it.

So, we stopped for mommy to potty (and Kale to wash his hands) and then hit the road again.

He proceeded to play with every toy I could reach and throw a fit when he put one in a place where he nor I could reach as we motored on down the road.

So what do you do when you are 2 years old and tired of your toys and bored going down the road? You start taking off your shoes and get frustrated. Your mommy helps you with the shoes and smartly keeps them so they don't get thrown. Then you pull your socks up to your chin, or at least try anyway. Then you get mad because you can't pull the socks off. Then you try your best to escape your car seat. When that doesn't work, you throw another fit. Then you decide to give your toys another try. And this time, when you get sick of the truck, you fling it. Said truck hits the middle console, a plastic part of the truck goes one way and bounces off the front windshield while the rest of the truck parks itself right in the bag where it started. Mommy gives you a stern comment about not throwing toys and you do your best at a "woe is me, my mommy is so mean" cry.

Thats when mommy puts on some music, turns up the volume a tad, and checks the backseat every few minutes through the rearview mirror to make sure that you haven't figured out how to escape your seat.

We arrived in Alma, safe and sound. There is a toy truck missing a small plastic piece that landed in the front passenger seat. Not bad.

School Pics

Here are Kale's school pictures.

None of us have figured out how they got him to sit still, pose like that, and smile all at once.

Really, we have no idea!

Kale George Fletcher

2 years, 1 month

Pooftaste

This morning, Kale and I were each brushing our teeth. He looked up at me and asked "more pooftaste?" and I nearly wore my own toothpaste as I laughed. Yes, I gave him more toothpaste.

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

Oh, it is NOT ME who is still coughing and choking and working my way to the other side of the "daycare death" virus.

It is certainly NOT ME who has sprouted not one, not two, but three cold sores as a result of the above mentioned virus.

It is NOT ME who has somehow managed to get most of my Christmas shopping done while our entire household and Mema have been sick.

It is NOT ME who knows a secret and can't tell and won't tell and its NOT ME who isn't sure whether I am more excited or scared for the person with the secret.

It, without a doubt, was NOT ME who left the pee soaked sheet on our bed this morning after Kale peed a monster size lake in the middle of our bed. It is also NOT ME who has never put the waterproof (pee proof) mattress cover on our bed. Good thing we don't plan on keeping that mattress for the next 15 years. Oh, and its NOT ME that has this weird thought that if our mattress starts to stink that we will be forced to come up with the one to buy a new one to replace the current one which was bought from a motel that was going out of business. It was NOT ME who just admitted ANY of that!

It was NOT ME who threatened her own mother about going to the doctor. I am pretty sure it was NOT ME who said "go back to the doctor and make them give you something that makes you feel better OR I WON'T BRING KALE TO SEE YOU THIS WEEK!" Its NOT ME who is more stubborn than my own mother.

Its NOT ME who is pretty sure thats enough confessing for the week.

Quickie (no, not that kind!)

Here comes a quickie update!

Our house seems to be on the mend. We sent Mema and Papaw home today with strict orders for Mema to go see a doctor again tomorrow. Her will to get up and be active is there, but her ooomph apparently left the building. We are hoping the doctor can give her a shot of some ooomph! We are all still taking antibiotics and other medicine varieties, but each day we all seem to feel better than the day before.

Thomas the train is a HUGE hit in our house. In fact, Kale didn't want to nap today and we think it was because he was afraid Thomas would disapear during naptime (since he appeared during nighttime). All the other toys in our house were serioulsy neglected today....so maybe Thomas will be a good excuse for me to thin out the toy piles again.

Please keep my friend Robin in your prayers. She is a dear friend and her older brother was in a serious motorcycle accident early this morning. He has lots of head trauma and they are still waiting to find out the depth of his injuries. Please pray for her and her family as they cope with his hospitalization, medical needs, and all the emotions/feelings that come with these hard life events.

We have a busy holiday week ahead and are looking forward to seeing family and friends. Christmas will be celebrated on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, so those two days should be full of fun and craziness. I am hoping that we find a few days of relaxation somewhere in there as well!

I plan to stay in Alma on Sunday and Monday...so there is your notice!

In case I don't get to tell you in person, MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Thomas the Train has arrived

Well, Thomas has arrived at Kale's house. There is lots of playing to be done!

The picture in the bottom right corner is of him running into the living room and the rest are of him discovering different things on the train track and table. He has been playing with it for the past 15 minutes and still hasn't quit! Can you tell he likes his train table and track?

Which way?

I just came to bed to find Kale sleeping like this...think he'll make room for momma?



PS: Ep is in Kale's bed because he is getting up before dawn to go fishing.


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Santa's Sleigh Was Too Heavy

Santa's sleigh was too heavy so he dropped this off a little early for Kale to enjoy....

Kale will discover it in the living room when he wakes up tomorrow morning.

Don't worry, I will take plenty of pictures!

Moody Christmas

Today, we celebrated Christmas with Mema's extended family. We had a great time and tried not to spread our germs!

This was Kale's first real introduction to opening presents this year and it didn't take him long to get the concept down. It probably helped that his first gift was a train caboose for his train set (that he will find when he comes into the living room tomorrow). Kale loved his gifts and ended up playing with a dump truck that could haul the caboose...and somehow managed not to loose either of them before we left for home.

As you can also see, he had a great time playing in the wrapping paper with his cousin Sarah (she is 3 months younger than him).

Oh, and his shirt? It says "Naughty is the New Nice", which I deemed appropriate given the amount of "MINE!" we have been hearing this week!

Daddy Boat

This morning, Kale got to spend some time with daddy in the boat.

Can you tell he had fun?

Like Photography?

If you like photography, you might want to head over to http://www.mycharmingkids.net to check out the awesome giveaway she has going. I love her blog anyway, but this just makes her blog even sweeter!

He is two!

Tonight, we have been graced with the presence of a real deal two year old. He has talked about sitting on Santa's lap--despite the fact that he won't go within ten feet of Santa. He requested a smorgasboard snack of cheerwios, marshmewoes, and cookies when he got home from school. He has distictly used the word "mine" repeatedly, including when Ep was putting up the bathtub toys and Kale wasn't done playing with the one being taken from him. He has talked about Santa bringing him a train. He pulled off his diaper in the middle of the hallway and streaked the house. He brought a small tractor to bed with him. He poots and can't contain the ensuing giggle or keep from announcing the poot.
Yep, we have a real two year old folks. There is no telling what tomorrow holds for him!


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Ok, we are sick.

Ok, Ok, Ok. I give, we are sick. A couple of posts ago, I tried to vehemently deny this fact. It didn't work. The crud has infected our whole house. The good news is that the crud transporter (Kale) is getting much better. In fact, he is literally running circles around us now.

However, Mema has a bacterial something or other and is taking about 3-4 meds to combat her illness. I went to the doctor today and am taking cough syrup with codine and a steroid pill--and its working! I have an antibiotic on file at Walgreens if needed and can still take Nyquil at night, so I honestly believe I am on the mend (which is a good thing, given that I still have 75% of my Christmas shopping to do). Ep is still battling and I am not sure if he is getting better, worse, or just in a holding pattern. He goes to the allergist on Thurs so he is waiting until then to figure out what meds he needs.

So, that is us for now. Here is to hoping that we are all fully functional and feeling fine by Christmas!

PS...here is pic I took tonight of Kale's eyes. That red you see in them...that was how all the white of his eyes looked last week. It was awful. Oh, and check out those freckles on his nose! How cute are they? I took this pic with my new camera that someone amazing bought for me (thank you!)...those freckles never ever showed up when I took pics of Kale with my old camera!

Boring Bulldozers

I guess he has finally seen enough of the bulldozer video because when I got off the phone with the clinic, this is how I found him!



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Our Motto: We aren't sick

Our new motto is: We aren't sick.

Too bad our bodies aren't following the motto just yet. Kale is much better than he was, but still sick. Mema just went to the doctor and was told she has the onset of a bacterial infection. My cough is increasing and I was congested earlier this morning. Ep says he isn't feeling well either.

I just can't believe that from Wednesday to Saturday, so many things went wrong with Kale. Next time, he will go to the ER when his fever gets that high. He went from supposed clear ears/lungs to upper respiratory infection, double ear infection, and conjunctivitus in 3 days. Maybe thats normal or maybe its not. I do know that he isn't going back to see a certain doctor at his pediatrician's clinic. I have scheduled him a re-check for Wednesday at 3pm. If nothing else, I will use that time to get some answers from our normal pediatrician.

I had a good time this weekend, although it seemed to be shrouded in drama. It was nice to get away and spend some time catching up with Bekah. I don't think we crammed 15 years into one weekend, but we touched on enough of it to feel caught up and in sync again. We shopped until we dropped on Saturday--13 hours worth. I mostly looked and got my hair cut and did end up finally finding some jeans that fit me well. That was a miracle in itself. She is now finished with 99% of her Christmas shopping. YEA Bekah! She also bought me a Christmas gift and I love it! I can't wait to learn more about using it and showing you the results...its a Nikon 3000D.

Now, I've got to get presents purchased and Christmas cards addressed and mailed....

Still sick but better

Our little patient has a fever again but it's not high. He didn't run fever all night but it came back this morning.


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We traded

Just like it crazily apppeared, the fever vanished tonight when I had prayed it would not go higher. Yes, instead of his fever climbing, it just went away.
His eyes still look awful and he is choking on his mucus, which seems to have given him a sore throat.
I'm just happy to be having a night that doesn't include contemplating taking him to the ER! (like the last two nights)


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Sick little boy--night #2

Just like clockwork, at 10pm last night Kale's fever went from holding at 102 to making mommy worry 104. He then setted in the 103 range and occassionally went back up to 104. Around midnight, the thermometer read 104.3 and then we had to add a degree because it was taken under his arm. When the on-call nurse returned my call, she had me take it again and it was back down to 104.3 so she told us to hang tight and if it went above 105 again to take him to the ER. He got his next dose of Motrin and the fever settled at 102 again but did sometimes flirt with 103.

This morning, at 6:30am he had a 102 fever. After a dose of Motrin, by 7:15 his fever vanished.

His cough is horrible, his eyes are bloodshot, but its the fever that scares me the most.

Here is to hoping and praying that the fever is gone and doesn't decide to come back.

Sick little boy

Yet again, we have a sick little boy. When I picked him up from daycare yesterday, I knew we were in for it. His cheeks were rosy, his eyes were red rimmed and glassy, and I could hear it in his voice. Within 2 hours, he started running a fever. He got a dose of Motrin. He moaned and whined and his parents worried.

By 10pm, which was 3 hours AFTER he had been given Motrin, his fever jumped up to 104. I called the on-call nurse while his daddy rocked him. She advised to keep a close eye on him and call back or take him to the ER if his fever went higher. Really, I wanted to take him to the ER right then. Panic and worry don't quite seem adequate for describing the feelings I was having at the time.

Kale and I went to our bed and daddy went to the couch and finally the other bed. We watched the last half of a movie and just laid in the bed. Kale fell asleep but was too close to the edge. When I moved him, I noticed he didn't feel hot at all. I was shocked. Despite being within an hour of needing more Motrin, the fever had vanished. Between 2-6am, he slept well and I kind of slept. I think I slept with one eye open, as if watching for the fever that might run back into the room and jump into my son's body.

Fast forward through a lot of whining (mostly on Kale's part, but some on mine) and realizing that when Ep locked my truck last night that I had accidentally left my keys INSIDE the truck. Whoops. While we waited to be rescued so we could go to the doctor, I rocked Kale and he zonked. Those kids you see being hauled into stores while they sleep on a parent's shoulder? That is not Kale. Not ever. He never sleeps through doors opening, his daddy's footsteps, and most certainly not through is parents slipping him into his coat. Today, he slept through everything except me handing him off to his daddy, which confused him because the look on his face was very "whoa, where did you come from daddy?"

Our appt was at 10:30 and by 10:49 we were headed back out to the truck. Diagnosis--virus. So, more Motrin and not much else we can do. His eyes look like he has been pulling all-nighters for a week straight and if they still look like that tomorrow, I will be calling to see if there is any relief we can give him for that. We know his eyes must be uncomfortable. Add that to a cough that takes his breath, a rapid and fast heartbeat when his fever rises, and sometimes a runny nose. No wonder he is the definition of cranky. At least we are all getting long cuddles with him.

Mema arrived by lunch today. Mema for President! She could have told us to suck it up, miss work, and figure all this out on our own. She didn't. She came when she was called and didn't say one word about exposing herself to who knows what kind of virus. Yep, Mema for President.

Tonight, the fever took off again (it came back during naptime) so we will keep a close eye on it. If I ever catch that fever monster, I swear I will kill it dead on the spot!

Don't worry and I choose

Here is your warning. Worry, but don't worry. And as another disclaimer, nobody is sick or dying and nobody cheated on anyone else. Our family needs your prayers right now. We need prayers that we will make the right decisions and that we have the courage to face things that aren't fun or easy. Really, thats all I feel comfortable saying about it right now.

I know you want to know more and that your first inclination might be to call us and ask what is going on, so please let me tell you what is going on. Life. That right, life is going on. We will talk/share when we are good and ready...and that might just possibly be never.

Here is what you can do to help. Pray for us. Take that ball of worry that is in the pit of your stomach or your heart, wad it up into a nice ball or make a paper airplane with it...and send it on up to God in a prayer. I am asking you to give your worry about us to God and asking that while you are giving it to Him, that you ask for some guidance and strength for us as well.

While I am at it, let me tell you that God is here. He is here with us in this struggle. In one moment this morning, we both were able to see that.

My anger that flares in these types of situations? I don't know where it is. Maybe, for once, my anger realizes that it doesn't have a fighting chance in this situation or maybe my anger has been scared into hiding. I really don't know. There are still lots of conversations to be had. Lots of patience to find. Lots of understanding, forgiveness, and coping to do. And maybe in the meantime, my anger decided that it was all just too much work and that it was time to just take a vacation.

Our normal coping mechanisms won't work in our current situation. Maybe that should be cause enough to panic, but instead maybe we can view it as an opportunity for change. Maybe we can mend some other fences along the way. Maybe we can find a place that has eluded us. Oh, and just maybe, maybe, maybe...God has finally found a way make us stand up and take note that our independent, stubborn, prideful, and sometimes self-centered behaviors have no place in our marriage. Maybe instead of talking about being a team, we can truly start acting and performing like one.

In the middle of a situation where I could throw up my hands and ask, WHAT HOPE? I choose to have hope anyway. I choose to reach out and ask for prayer. I choose to practice what I preach. I choose to keep looking for God, even in the most frustrating and hurtful situations. I choose for us to take the hard road because its going to lead us to where we want to go. I choose not to take the easy road simply because I KNOW it does not lead to the place where we want to be. I choose to acknowledge that the road ahead in this situation will have bumps and that those bumps might jar us a little. I choose to view it all with my eyes wide open. I choose to remember to be thankful for my blessings, especially the one that tells me to "gets up mommy".

Again, the best thing you can do for us right now is to say a prayer. And for the worriers in the group (I know of at least 2)...remember, that worry won't fix any of this or make it better. Take that energy and do something positive with it.....like pray!

Love You Mommy

Last week, I had a bad day. I took some information my husband shared with me, digested it, stewed on it, and was ready to cause him bodily harm by the time he got home and started cooking dinner for us. In the middle of all that mess, God gave me a moment to really think about what is important to me.

I had left work, picked up Kale, and driven all the way home. Normally, the afternoon ride home is full of babble between me and Kale...topics include trucks, trains, ambulances, Pawpaw big trucks, and so forth. I mean, seriously, this is really riveting conversations we have! Or not. Anyway, back to my point. I had driven Kale all the way home and was stewing the entire time. As I pulled into our driveway, I realized that I hadn't said a word to Kale for the entire drive...and its a 20-25 minute drive. I was so lost in my own world that I gave him no choice but to be lost in his. I turned off the truck, took off my seat belt, and turned to look at him. I said "I love you Kale". I have said this to him countless times since he was born (and even some before then). Several weeks ago, he surprised all of us by saying "love ya'll" back to my mom on the phone. He could have gone the rest of his life saying that and we would have been just overjoyed hearing him say it that way. As if saving it for a day I needed it most...he chose this day to respond with "love you mommy". My eyes welled with tears and I couldn't get to him fast enough to give him a giant hug. I was feeling way, way, way mushy. Of course, he responded as any boy would--he headed for his daddy's lawn mower and just left his mommy standing there all mushy feeling.

I didn't end up causing my husband bodily harm. There was some gnashing of teeth until we finally came to a point that we could both accept the reality of the situation and acknowledge our separate frustations. As dinner was nearly ready and we found that mutual point of acceptance, I told my husband that I had something that would make his day. And it did. And immediately after Kale showed him that he could say "love you mommy", he also showed his daddy he could tell him "love you daddy."

I won't lie. I think Kale softened me up because he knew his daddy was in for it. And it worked. Then he proceeded to pay his daddy back for having to do such hard work by trying to entirely kick his daddy out of our bed a few nights later.

Testing and before I forget

Testing out this app on my phone. While I'm at it....

The other day I told Kale once that he was a hot mess. That was all it took. When I tell him he is a mess, he now looks at me and says hot mess!

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