finally some answers!

We've been dealing with some major tummy issues with Mattie Leigh for a while now...since early March at least. After being told to try a few things to help her feel better and several tests that came back normal, we were not closer to an answer at the beginning of the summer. I decided to try a few things on my own to see if I could figure out what was going on. The main thing I did was take gluten out of her diet as much as possible. We noticed positive changes to how she was feeling within 48 hours. We kept her off gluten for almost a month before letting her have some early in July...all the positives disappeared within 2 days and she once again felt terrible. I KNEW then that gluten was somehow involved in her stomach issues and took her off it again. Since then, we've kept her off for a few weeks and then challenged her system by letting her have a couple meals with it.

We were scheduled to see her GI in August, but her appointment was rescheduled to September 19. The nurse asked how she was doing since we last saw them and I explained what changes we'd made and the improvements we saw. The doctor came in and was surprised at how much better Mattie Leigh looked. In a few months time of being off wheat, her hair and nails are growing well again, her skin isn't so pale, the dark circles have nearly disappeared from under her eyes, her appetite is better, she's gained almost 3 pounds, her attitude has improved tremendously, and her stomach rarely ever hurts like it was for a while. The doctor decided right away that Mattie Leigh did have some form of gluten intolerance (even though the markers for celiac disease came back normal) and said that we need to keep her mostly gluten free for the next year when we can really challenge her system and reevaluate.

I *think* part of her stomach upset comes from her nerves. Kid is REALLY high-strung and gets upset very easily. I think she may have picked up more on the months that Kevin wasn't teaching than we thought she had at first...pretty sure that added to her already high-strung nerves and made her stomach issues worse. We shielded her from as much of it as we could, but since she's so smart, she still picked up on more than I wanted her to.

All that to say, that I'm so glad we finally have some answers to what was going on for so long with her stomach. Now I'm working on figuring out things that will help her learn how to let us know how she's feeling (other than losing it and throwing a fit).

Max and Ruby

***I totally forgot to write this post on Saturday.

Last Thursday, Eat Jackson let me know that I was a finalist for the Max and Ruby Bunny Party show tickets and Brent's Drugs gift certificate. As soon as the voting page was up, I let all our family and friends know to vote and tell all their friends to vote. I apologize for filling your facebook newsfeeds and twitter feeds with posts begging for votes.

At first, it looked like another girl was going to take the lead and keep it in the votes. She got a lot of votes right at the beginning. I got a little sad because I REALLY wanted our girls to get to go to the show. Max and Ruby is probably their favorite show to watch...they have a lot of "favorites" but this one is special to both of them.

Sometime Thursday night, we started getting a lot more votes. A lot of that had to do with my brother and sister-in-law getting the word out to vote for us...they got a bunch of people to vote. We got in the lead with votes then and stayed in the lead after that. I knew before Eat Jackson announced it that we'd won...I was glued to the voting page to make sure no one took a last minute lead!

We told the girls that we would have a special day on Saturday and that we would go to a new restaurant that we hadn't taken them to yet and then go to a special show. Mattie was convinced that we were going to see the Berenstain Bears...I have no clue how she came up with that.

We went to our church work day for a few hours and then headed to Jackson to pick up our tickets and go to lunch. Kevin and I got cheeseburgers, Mattie got a junior cheeseburger, and Allie Grace got a grilled cheese. We shared mine and Kevin's orders of fries and onion rings. Then, we got milkshakes (our favorite part of the meal)! We'll definitely be going back, especially for dessert.

After lunch, we headed back to the convention complex so we could get in our seats for the show. Mattie had seen the sign for the show outside but apparently didn't think much of it because she still thought we were going to see the Berenstain Bears. It wasn't until we got to the table where they were selling shirts/toys that she realized that we were going to see Max and Ruby. Her expression was absolutely priceless!

The show was great...it took a few of the TV episodes and combined them to make them something new. Mattie waved at Max, Ruby, Louise, and Grandma and talked to them like she was on the stage with them. Allie Grace jumped up and down in my arms...she was so excited to see them.

I have over 60 pictures that I took from the day...go to my facebook page to look at most of them.

This is when she first realized we were going to see Max and Ruby.

Waving to the characters...not a great pic but she was so excited

This is my favorite picture of the day! She was so excited she didn't know what to do. (I realize she looks pitiful...combo of taking a picture with my phone and the fact that she's felt awful for the last few months with her stomach.)

things I learned today

I wake up really cranky when I don't get enough sleep. (I guess I've been learning this for a while, but it really hit me today. Allie Grace was awake until after 1 no matter what we did to help her go to sleep. Then, she was super restless the rest of the night, so we got very little sleep.)

I have a little road rage...EVERYTHING and EVERYONE on HWY 49 was getting on my nerves this afternoon on our way to Mattie's GI appointment. People were going to slow in the left lane, people were passing me and then going really slow when they got in front of me, road workers placed cones way too far in the lane (my car was almost in the median a few times), people braked suddenly (and for no reason), and people cut in front of me with little warning.

I really should have gotten a degree in the medical field. The nurse practitioner that we saw today was asking me how I thought we should go about treatment. She asked how aggressive I wanted to be. I told her that I wanted to first do blood work and see what that showed before we gave her anesthesia and did a scope to look for what was going on. I also had to go through ML's whole history with stomach problems (from acid reflux as an infant to the tests/scope she had done at 1 1/2 to what I thought might be going on now). She ordered blood work to check for the markers that indicate celiac disease, anemia, h. pylori infection, and anything else that would show up in blood work. We'll get results to all but one test in the next 2 days...the other one will take a week to come back. If all the blood work comes back normal, we're going to treat ML for gastritis.

I could have a potential career in wrestling. I had to wrap my legs around ML's legs and bear hug her body and left arm so one nurse could hold her right arm and the other could draw blood.

playing catch up

First, I realize that I've been MIA on the blog scene for a while. I just haven't felt like writing lately. Life has been busy with lots of  everyday stuff and even more not-so-everyday that I'd like to be gone from our lives for a while. I'm going to try to catch everyone up as best as I can.

For three months or so, we were at the doctor's office almost every week (every week and twice a week sometimes) with Allie Grace's ears. She constantly had ear infections. We finally were referred to an ENT and she got PE tubes to help with the infections a little over a month ago. She made it a month before she had another ear infection. Our pediatrician prescribed ear drops that would have cost $165.99 without insurance...I'm so thankful that we have good insurance for the girls!

Just as we were finally getting Allie Grace's ears back to normal, Mattie started having trouble with her stomach. We had a couple appointments with our pediatrician about it and they referred us to her GI doctor. For the last couple weeks, I've been having to readjust her Miralax dose so that we can hopefully get her stomach back to normal. (I'll spare the details on what exactly was going on so that no one gets grossed out.)

Oh...if you didn't notice, Mattie Leigh is now just Mattie. She told us that she wanted to be Mattie because her doctors and nurses call her that and she'll get called that when she goes to school. I'm still waiting to see if this is a permanent change or if she'll go back to Mattie after a while.

Kevin and I are still looking for a new job (one of us HAS to find something soon). I'm finding that no one is wanting to hire someone that has a counseling degree but isn't already licensed (which is where I am), so I've been feeling that I wasted a lot of time and money getting my masters. Kevin has applied at every place that he can but has only gotten one call back...and that was for a job that was wanting lots of hard work for very little money. I'm really hoping that something opens up soon, because right now, money is so tight it's hard to take care of everything that we have to each month.

Needless to say, the last few months have been super stressful for me. I've been on edge and my temper has shown up more than it should. I'm working on that...I hate being so stressed and am really trying to not let all these stresses get to me. I could really use some prayers...that the girls would get back to their healthy selves, that either Kevin or I would find a new job soon, that our financial needs would be met until a new job happens, and that I would start managing this stress better.

I think I've caught up on the important things that were missed over the last few months...I'll try to get better about blogging again.

calling all frugal friends!

I need help finding dresses for Mattie Leigh, Allie Grace, and two of my nieces...we need a 2T, 5, and 10. My hope is that there is a dress out there that will come close to matching for all four of them and work for both Easter and my brother's wedding in July. I know the wedding colors are close to lime and turquoise, so if the dresses have those colors in them, it'd be great. Otherwise, I'd like a white/cream dress that we can embellish with a sash or flowers in those colors. If any of you know where to look, please let me know.

How does she come up with this?

Last night we were visiting with Kevin's cousin, Kelli. Mattie Leigh and Isabella, her cousin that is also three, were playing together. I realized that they'd gotten really quiet and went to find them. I found them in the bathroom with the door closed. They'd put a whole roll of toilet paper in the toilet and then taken it back out, put powdered make-up in their hair, in the toilet, and on the floor, and when I caught them, they were playing with Germ-X. I took Mattie Leigh to the side and asked her who came up with the idea to do all that and she confessed that she had. Here are some pictures of what they looked like after they were caught.

Don't you love their expressions? Mattie Leigh was crying because she thought every adult in the house was about to spank them. The last picture are their footprints.

Apparently, Mattie Leigh still thought it was okay to play in the the toilet, because she definitely was at it again this morning. She now knows that it's not a good idea and if she chooses to do it again, she'll lose her TV shows for two weeks.

this is the stuff

This song by Francesca Battistelli sounds a lot like my life right now.


I lost my keys 
In the great unknown 
And call me please 
'Cause I can't find my phone 

This is the stuff that drives me crazy. 
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately. 
In the middle of my little mess 
I forget how big I'm blessed 

This is the stuff that gets under my skin 
But I've got to trust You know exactly what You're doing 
Might not be what I might choose 
But this is the stuff you use 

45 in a 35 
Sirens and fines 
While I'm running behind 

This is the stuff that drives me crazy 
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately 
In the middle of my little mess 
I forget how big I'm blessed 

This is the stuff that gets under my skin 
But I've gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing 
Might not be what I might choose but this is the stuff You use 

So break me of impatience 
Conquer my frustrations 
I've got a new appreciation 
It's not the end of the world 

This is the stuff that drives me crazy. 
This is the stuff 
Someone save me 
In the middle of little my mess 
I forget how big I'm blessed 

This is the stuff that gets under my skin 
And I've gotta trust you know exactly what You're doing 
Might not be what I would choose but this is the stuff You use 

This is the stuff You use

faith like a child's

Kevin and I have been teaching Mattie Leigh about prayer and how to pray. We had a small obstacle in our way at first...she wouldn't let me pray with her. I talked with her for a while one day about why she'd only let Kevin pray with her, and she was finally able to tell me that she thought that only boys (men) could pray. Kevin and I talked with her and explained that anyone could pray and that God wants us to all know how to pray and to do it every day. After that, she asked me to pray with her that night. As we were first starting to pray with her, she wanted us to pray and she sat in her bed and looked a little nervous. After a few days, she has started telling us what she thinks we should pray about and then she repeats the prayers we say. I'm hoping she'll start praying on her own soon.


She definitely has the faith only a child can have. She prays and she believes that what she prays about is going to happen. It is so refreshing to see that...so many adults I know will pray for something but don't really believe that God is going to hear the prayer or answer it.


Mattie Leigh has also been paying a lot more attention in her Sunday school class and tells me what she remembers afterward. She's really starting to get what it means to be a Christian and is starting to ask questions.

grief

I've been thinking a lot about how I should approach this topic. Why? Grief is different for every person. The way I approach it may be totally different than someone that will read this. I don't want to be offensive to anyone, but I also want to share what I've learned from my experiences with grief and what I've learned from being with others as they grieve.

First I want to define grief. According to the definition on dictionary.com, it is keen mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss; sharp sorrow; painful regret. This means that grief is painful...it isn't a fun or easy process. It hurts. A LOT! It also means that we can grieve for a lot of reasons -- death of a loved one, miscarriage, loss of a job, end of relationship, giving up a dream, loss of health, etc. It also means that no two people will grieve the same way. Since no two people grieve the same way, we shouldn't try to push our way of grieving on someone else. It is rude, selfish, uncaring, and very hurtful to do that to someone in their time of grief.

Now that I've defined grief, I want to mention something very important. Grief does not happen in stages! Stages implies that you move through each stage and then you're done (which would mean that the grief process would be very brief, and it isn't). Grief happens in a cycle. Very often, people experience the same parts of grief multiple times during the days, weeks, months, and years that follow the experience that led to grieving.


Everyone will experience grief at some point in their lives. No one is exempt from grieving. Ignoring the event and not grieving is not an option. Doing that is actually very unhealthy and can cause various emotional, physical, and mental problems. It's best to face grief head on and deal with each part of the cycle as it comes.


How long does grief last? That's really hard to say. Again, each person experiences grief differently. Therefore, each person has a different time-frame for grieving. It also depends on what you're grieving. Grieving the loss of a job will probably take a lot less time than grieving the loss of a spouse, for example. I CAN say that for big losses, I think it is important to give yourself at least a year to eighteen months before you think that grieving is over. It's really important to make it through what I call "the year of firsts" -- the first birthday, anniversary, Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, and the one year anniversary of the death of a loved one/end of a very significant relationship.
Even if you feel like things have reached a new normal, these dates can catch you off-guard and the pain can feel brand new.


What do you do if you feel that you're getting stuck in your grief or if you have thoughts of harming yourself so that you can end the pain? TALK TO SOMEONE! Please don't think that it is normal to feel that way. Find a friend, pastor, family member, therapist...someone that will listen and offer sound advice or that will take you to get the help you need. Depression often follows the initial stages of grief. While this is normal, it is not normal for depression during grief to last a long time. If you find yourself stuck in depression, please see your doctor. A low dose of an anti-depressant for a few months may be necessary. That doesn't mean that you're weak or that you can't handle life. It does mean that you have an imbalance of chemicals in the brain; anti-depressants quickly balance them back out.


What should you do while you are grieving? Talk to someone about what happened, how you feel, and the "what if's." Find a way to remember the person you lost in a special way. Leave reminders of the person around your house (pictures, clothes, letters, etc.) so that you can accurately remember him/her.


***I realize that this has kind of turned into a loss of loved one grief discussion toward the end, but I think the focus needs to be more on it.


***I'll be posting more about grief soon. I will discuss some of my personal experiences with grief and how I dealt with them. Let me know if you have anything that you think I should add to this post. I may add more to it later as I think of more things.

writing idea

I've been thinking a lot lately about possibly writing about my experiences with grief. Really, it's just been heavy on my heart and I feel like God is telling me that my experiences could help others. I'm just not quite sure what exactly needs to be written or how to go about it. I would love to know what any of you may have learned through experiences with grief (what it is/was you're grieving, what people said/did that helped/hurt you, where you are in your grief experience, and anything else that might be helpful). At this point, I think I may just write a blog post (or series of posts)...but who knows what it may eventually turn into.

yummy carrot cake

My mom has this cake creation that is absolutely delicious. You take your favorite cake mix and mix it up according to the directions on the box. Then you mix your favorite frosting, a block of cream cheese, and an egg and pour that on the top of the unbaked cake mix. You bake the whole thing off until it sets in the middle...I started the oven out at 350 degrees but reduced it before the cake was done because I was afraid that it was going to burn. I think it took about 10-15 extra minutes for the cake to cook than the box said.

I really wanted a carrot cake today so I used a Duncan Hines Decadent cake mix and Duncan Hines cream cheese frosting. It is DELICIOUS! For lunch at church on Sunday, I'm planning on making a German chocolate cake (German chocolate cake mix and butter pecan frosting).

where's my luck?

I think I entered 5 contests last week to get either free games or hair care products. I didn't win ANYTHING. What's the deal? None of them were huge entry contests...I just have no luck with that sort of thing. The game contests were all put on by The Wonder Forge (look them up on Facebook and Twitter). They have some really neat games and Mattie Leigh loves the Curious George matching game that we already have. I was hoping to get another fun game for her. The hair care products are for people with curly/wavy hair...which I've recently learned I have. (Long story...I quit using shampoo with sulfates in it and my normally frizzy straight hair turned very wavy.) It's called DevaCurl and it was developed by the author of The Curly Girl Handbook. I have ordered the book and a few of the products...can't wait to try them out.

curly girls

Hey ladies! I know at least a few of you that read my blog have curly or wavy hair. Here's a chance to win a new copy of Curly Girl AND a travel set of DevaCurl products.

http://www.familymusings.com/2011/01/giveaway-curly-girl-handbook.html

There are FIVE ways to enter to win. Contest is over at midnight January 30th.

Eli's home!

I'm a little late in posting this but ELI'S HOME! He was released from the hospital on Thursday...9 days after having his surgery. He's doing great. We haven't gone to see him yet, but I know they're getting lots of visitors...since that can be really tiring, we're going to wait a little longer before we try to go over.

sassy sauce = better attitude FAST

Thank you Sarah for the Sassy Sauce (white vinegar) tip. I had to use it once on Tuesday and once on Wednesday. Mattie Leigh's attitude has been so much better. She is thinking before she speaks and acts (well, most of the time anyway). I know it's only been three days, and I may be jinxing myself, but I have noticed a big change in her. Her attitude isn't where I want it yet, but I'm proud of the difference I see already.

In other news, Allie Grace is now putting herself to sleep at night. I've started letting her cry it out...otherwise she wants to play until close to midnight or falls asleep and then wakes up within minutes of me laying her down.

my little monkeys

Like the new look? I call the girls my silly monkeys so I had to use this background when I found it.

My oldest monkey is having some trouble lately...make that A LOT of trouble. It's with her attitude and it's bad. I'm talking major meltdowns, screaming fits, stomping, slamming doors, lots of tears...even CHOCOLATE doesn't make it better. Seriously though, we've tried one on one time, time-outs, taking things away, and offering rewards. Nothing is helping. I'm low on ideas and patience. I want my sweet girl back.

My baby monkey isn't much of a baby anymore. She's crawling, saying around 10 words, and chasing us around the house. She gets into EVERYTHING. One of her favorite things is bath-time...she tries to crawl to the bathroom whenever she hears the water running. She's so into everything that she wakes up multiple times at night wanting to play.

Needless to say, I'm one tired momma.

Eli

Thanks to all of you who have been praying for Eli. He had his surgery this past Tuesday. Kelli found out today that he'll be moving into a room tomorrow and that they'll be bringing him home in just a few days! When they first found out that he'd have to have surgery, they were told he'd probably be in the hospital close to a month. Dr. Salazar met with them before the surgery and told them that he had one baby leave the hospital 10 days after surgery and that others had been in the hospital a month after surgery. Eli is proof that prayer works and that God still does miracles. So many things have worked out so that he was healthier and stronger than we first thought possible and he has done remarkably well after surgery. We can't wait to meet the little guy!

twitter

I started a Twitter account...@heatherw83. Follow me if you have one.