My Cup Runneth Over

I've been missing in action on this blog. I apologize. I have started composing many blog posts in my mind, only to find that I don't really have time to sit and write them out.

Tonight, I made the firm decision to go to bed at 8:00 P.M. because I'm exhausted and it's Mother's Day, so I'm entitled to certain luxuries. However, The Fates have aligned against me, once again. (It can't possibly be a coincidence that every time I plan on going to bed early, my children have a difficult time falling asleep/staying in bed.) That is why I am starting this post at 7:59 P.M. If I crawl in to bed, one of them will start crying for me. It's inevitable. So, I'll sit here and stay awake until I feel confident they won't ruin my slumber.

I've had the most amazing weekend.

Friday was fun. I took the day off work, took Emma to preschool, and spent a couple of rare, treasured hours one-on-one with my Liam. Then I ditched my sweet second child and had some grown-up time with old, dear friends. It started with picking up my forever friend and former college roommate from the airport. We then met with two more college friends and ate the most delicious food for lunch. (Do you live in the Bay Area? Eat at Burma Superstar. Seriously. Do it!) I inhaled the mango chicken and coconut rice and I fully intend to return there soon in order to do it again.

It's always fun to watch my kids interact with other adults. This weekend I watched them crawl all over Tanya, fight for a spot in her lap to look at pictures on her phone, and bring her book after book to read to them. They adore her, which is proof that I'm raising them up right. Emma was very attached and so excited to color with Tanya, play with her hair, dance with her, and cuddle with her in the morning. It was adorable and I'm grateful that Tanya enjoyed herself and was so kind to my kids.

Saturday morning was the Tri-Valley Walk To Cure Arthritis. Once again, we gathered together as friends and family to walk a 5K to raise awareness of arthritis. It is a very special event for me. So many people who are extremely important in my life come out to support my family and my brave, strong little girl. We had over 40 people walking with us! I was pumped! Excited to see such good friends, excited that our team raised so much money this year, excited to think that maybe... maybe we can make a difference in the treatment of Juvenile Arthritis. Maybe we can make someone's life better, easier, pain free. Maybe we can save a life.  

After the walk, we spent time with several of our "local" JA friends. I treasure these people. These women and their girls take away all the feelings of solitude that I felt when Emma's arthritis first reared it's ugly head. Arthritis is our common enemy, and that is a force that bonds us together differently than any other friendships I have known. I'm so blessed to have these people in my life.

Sunday has been lazy, which is good because I am tired and my thighs are still burning from yesterday's walk. This Mother's Day I am so grateful to be a mother of two stubborn, bright, funny little kids. I'm grateful for my husband who works so hard so that I can stay home (most days) and raise our children. I'm grateful for my own mom for loving me unconditionally and for being such an amazing grandmother.

Now it's past 8:30 P.M. and I'm certain my darling children are sound asleep. I'd better follow suite.

Thank you to all of you who helped make this weekend so extremely wonderful!!!!

February Is One Heck Of A Month

My cute little family has been passing colds around since mid-December and I, for one, am sick and tired of being sick and tired. Last week it was Emma who had a cold with an incredibly runny nose, cough, and low-grade fevers. Now it's Liam's turn. I'm glad I stayed home from work today to take care of him, because he has a double ear infection! Poor buddy. These kinds of colds make it hard for kids to sleep well at night, and if kids don't sleep well, Mommy doesn't sleep well. Poor Mommy.

Anyhow, since I'm home from work and Little Dude is napping (I should really be napping too, but that's just not my style.) I figure it's time to write a quick blog!

This is how he feels about ear infections, Nursery, and Daddy spiking his hair.

February is a big month for us. Liam hit the 18 month mark, which meant he got to attend Nursery at church for the first time. That didn't go over so well. Previously, he had his sister and a parent in there with him. This time his family ditched him. He was okay for 20 minutes, then he noticed we were missing and he sort of lost his mind. We'll try it again this Sunday, if he's well enough to not snot on all the kids and toys.

18 months: 25 lbs 11oz

4 years: 35 lbs 6 oz

Emma turned FOUR! I had no desire to throw a party and bring other people's germs into my house, but we had to celebrate. Emma wanted to go out for ice cream, so that is what we did. We invited four of her little girl friends to come to Menchie's with one of their parents. I bought the girls ice cream, they watched Emma open gifts, they ran in circles around the tables, and then we all went home. It was one sweet hour of my time and everyone seemed to have fun. I loved it.

Hello from the Oakland Temple

Barry and I had our sixth wedding anniversary, and Valentine's Day was also our fifth anniversary of being sealed in the Oakland Temple. We celebrated by leaving the kids at home (Thanks, Mom!) and having a weekend adventure. The glory of being able to eat my meals without making sure kids were eating first was worth the weekend away. That, and sleeping through the night without having to get up to tuck anyone in or wipe any noses, are just a few simple reasons why parents need adult time. 

Fentons.
This was devoured shortly after I inhaled a cheeseburger.

My happy place.

I hope all of you are doing well and not coughing through the night.

Adventures in Hypothyroidism

On Christmas day I gave up sugar. It definitely wasn't the most convenient timing ever, but it's what I decided to do. I had been in a horrible funk, unable to regain energy after my afternoon crash, and I thought this little break from my best friend might help.

I went one month and four days without any desserts, candy, or other magnificent sweet. I wasn't perfect, because bbq bacon cheeseburgers happen, and I'm fairly certain that Chili's bbq sauce is loaded with high fructose corn syrup. I also had pancakes on a few occasions and ate a sample of cinnamon raisin bread at Costco before thinking about its sugar content. (It was delicious.) Overall, I rocked it. I am feeling a lot better, still often tired and lazy, but not as wiped out as before.

Wednesday last week I decided to reintroduce sugar. I had one little See's chocolate with lunch and one mini ice cream sandwich (made with coconut milk instead of dairy-so good!) with dinner. I didn't die or feel horrible the next day, so things are good.

I've decided to allow sweets into my life on a limited basis, and only with meals. I need to make sure my blood sugar doesn't spike and plummet too much if I want to prevent my midday exhaustion, so grabbing a cookie when I'm hungry between meals is a no-no.

In addition to cutting out sugar, I increased my thyroid medication at the start of the New Year. That's probably helping with my energy levels some as well. It's also helping prevent my wee-hours-of-the-night ridiculously low heart rate of 40 beats per minute from happening so often. Good thing, too, because I don't like feeling my heart do weird things in my chest.

Now, if I could just sleep for more than a few consecutive hours at a time I'd really be feeling great...