Update on Miss Pheobs

Well... we went to the ENT. The doctor basically left it up to us on whether or not to do the surgery now. We decided to go ahead with it because we don't want to risk having to do emergency surgery in the future and have to do surgery while there is infection. We believe that she will continue to have problems with this in the future if we don't get it taken care of. We have good insurance, so why not deal with it is the question we asked ourselves. There is no real good reason not to. The doctor believes that at 4-years-old and her size she should handle the surgery well without remembering much about it. He said she will have a minor incision that should heal well since she is so young. So we are waiting on his surgery scheduler to call us so that we can choose a date. We don't know if it will be in the next couple weeks or in a month or two. I will keep you updated.

In other Pheoby news... my big girl started Gymnastics yesterday! She was such a natural... as much as a 4-year-old who only went to class one time can be a natural. She even came home and showed her Daddy some of what she learned. She has been "practicing" her gymnastics skills on the futon in Trey's room during diaper changes. Yesterday she realized that Trey's crib is perfect for practicing her "pencil arms!" L.C. was not too fond of the new gym toy... he asked her not to practice there! ;o)

***Scroll all the way down to see the slide show from her first week!

Ramblings

WARNING!!! I haven't blogged in a while so this is bound to be a rambling post. ;o)

Today was a wonderful day! I got to sleep in until about 9:00. I got up and got ready while L.C. helped prep Pheoby for her day. Pheoby and I went to Weight Watchers (for the record, she is not a member!) then to deposit a check at the ATM, clothes shopping at JC Penney and picked up some pressure washing detergent for the house and some seeds from Lowes. When we went to the bank we drove right up to the ATM, but when we were leaving JC Penney there were about 6-8 cars lined up. I am so glad we did that first! And I must say I have a serious issue with whoever stocks the infant boys clothing at the Easley JC Penney. They have about 4 things in the infant section. We bought 3 of them. They have tons of infant girl stuff (so cute!!) and lots of toddler boy stuff. I guess in another year we will shop there, but for now we will have to look elsewhere.

When we got home Pheoby and I planted our Zinnias out back near the woods. Trey was sleeping and L.C. was pressure washing the house. It seemed like the perfect Spring day that childhood memories are made of. Pheoby seemed to love watering the soil, the seeds and then the entire bed after the seeds were covered. She had a little watering can that is normally a bath toy that literally sprinkled water out, so it kept her quite busy. The smart girl must have told me about 5 or 6 times the process of growing flowers and the ingredients needed (soil, water, sunshine).

Here are a few more topics I wanted to post on in the past week....

--Dr. LaBar recommends reading this parenting article from Slate. It was a great reminder to me as I struggle through the terrible-fours! I promise... four has been the hardest age so far. ;o)

--I was shocked to hear about the earthquake last week in the Midwest since that is where I am from (well, that general area of the country) and often remind people how safe it is... there is not much risk of natural disaster, no poisonous spiders and snakes to be concerned about and no worries about bears on your back porch. Here is my friend Deborah's account of the experience.




--We will be taking Pheoby to the ENT (ear, nose & throat doctor) on Tuesday. She was born with a tiny hole above her right ear. It looks almost like a Barbie earring hole. We noticed it when she was first born. Her first pediatritian, Dr. Barnes, explained it very quickly in a way that satisfied our curiosity. When we moved to South Carolina Dr. Feiste once again brought our attention to it and stated there was no reason to be concerned. He drew a little diagram on the paper that covers the exam table in his famous Feiste way that calmed any fears that may have existed and we were on our way. The understanding always was that if it began to drain stuff or if it changes or if it starts to hurt her then we will look at fixing it. Well, a couple weeks ago it got infected. It was pretty much over night. There was no problem with it and then when she woke up one day she mentioned that her ear hurt. It was all puffed up and red. We treated it with peroxide and neosporen and it did get better, but also her exema began to break out on the backs of her ears. So we took her in. Dr. Feiste quickly got to drawing on the exam table paper again and was thrilled with his ability to find the diagnostic code for the 4-5 word term for the little hole. He states that this is something that didn't close up very early in her development as a fetus. Most times they close up completely. Sometimes they still have a little depth to them, but in cases like Pheoby's there is a open channel to some other part of her head. More than likely it leads to her sinus cavity. So he referred us to an ENT to determine what needs to happen next. We are expecting that they will do some sort of simple surgery to determine where it goes and then close it up. I don't believe that it is anything too serious and I haven't talked with Pheoby too much about it because I don't want her to worry. I guess we will talk about it more on Tuesday when she asks where we are going, huh? Or maybe Monday night.
(This link provides a basic medical explaination. This is how I found the link.)

--Ok... so... when I first moved to SC for college I learned that people in SC are very proud of their state. Everyone had cups, shirts, hats, car decals, rugs, pocket books (that's purse for my Michigan friends who are reading this) and even jewelry that had a palmetto tree with the crescent moon which is on the SC state flag. Another very popular thing is to have this "logo" on items with the words "Carolina Girl" on them. Here is a sample. These items are everywhere as well. And they are cute! But what concerns me is that there is no tag or pamphlet on these items to explain the membership requirements. I mean... I live in SC and I am a girl and I love SC and I think the shirt is cute, but...

• Would I make a mockery of the whole idea if I were to buy the shirt let alone wear it outside of my house?
• And if that isn't ok... can my Michigan-born daughter be a part of this prestigous club since she has lived here longer than she lived in Michigan?
• If either of us were to wear this shirt would it in some way arbitrarily terminate our membership in the Michigan Pride club?
• Would our Michigan family and friends disown us?
• Would our SC friends scoff at us when we turned and walked away? Or worse... to our faces?

These are all questions I have been having for years and the urge to ask them has gotten stronger as the years pass and as my length of residency in this state has increased. If you have any insight on this matter please speak up! This is a very serious matter and I can only hope that even one life would be affected by your willingness to share your views!

**After finally writing out my thoughts I googled "Carolina Girl" to find some images to share with you and found a link to the Urban Dictionary's definition of Carolina Girl. There were several entries there which make it clear that we won't be picking out our shirts any time soon!

--Trey has started eating baby food! He wasn't a pro the first time like his sister was, but that doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would. This isn't the greatest messy-eater pic. I am sure I will have plenty of those to add later on! We didn't have too many of these with Phoeby. She did not like messes... even this young. That was fine with me! I am glad that my boy is my second baby! So far he is loving sweet potatos, bananas and peaches. And... while we are on the topic of this baby growing up too fast.... Trey will be graduating from his infant car seat soon. I weighed him the other day and he was 19 pounds! Our infant car seat only goes up to 22 pounds. I can't believe that this boy who (it seems) just came home from the hospital a few minutes ago is already getting too big for his baby seat! Ugh.

Funny thing is that I held two new babies at girl's night on Friday and felt the baby itch for a minute! The good news is I felt that way when Pheoby was tiny, too, but thankfully it took 3 years for the timing to work out. (Shhhh!!! Don't tell our Moms about this part of the post!!!)

Autism Speaks

Please follow the link below to help raise funds for Autism Speaks in honor of my cousin's daughter, Sammy!

Here is the request I got from my cousin Missy. "Chevy is currently running a promo that everytime anyone watches this video, Chevy will donate money to Autism Speaks; which is an organization that helps with Autism. Since Sammie has an ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder), I would really appreciate anyone that can click on the video. I just turned it on and let it play (didn't even really watch it)."

Visit Help Chevy Help Autism (http://www.chevrolet.com/autismspeaks) and see how you can help too.

Pictures

It has been a wonderful weekend! Later I will post some thoughts I have been compiling throughout the last few days, but until then I thought I would share some pictures of my lovely family!

PRAISE -- Martha Marie

I am so happy to report that there was good news from the latest test! They have discovered that surgery is possible. Read the story straight from Martha Marie here.

Stuff Christians Like

I followed a blog-friend's advice and went to check out this blog, Stuff Christians Like. It seems very interesting so I have subscribed to it in google reader. Here is an exerpt from yesterday's post:

"if your plan for "not sinning" is eventually not "liking sin" then good luck."

I like Jon Acuff's interesting view on the simple and complex aspects of being a Christian. Quite entertaining and challenging at the same time.

Sweet Phoeby

It has been a little while since I have posted a truly sweet pic of my little girl. So to give the girl her dues... here is Sweet Pheoby!


Phoeby has grown so much lately. She is becoming a little woman. She is so dramatic (I don't know where she gets it, lol) and funny. She loves to tell jokes and is a great story teller. Although I think she has a little of my Grandpa Tanner in her because sometimes the stories go on and on just for the fun of it! ;o) She is an excellent big sister and is definately a blessing to Mommy & Daddy helping where she can. She very rarely is hesitant to get a paci, burp cloth or something else that we need for Trey.

Trey Billups

Check out this link to discover the meaning behind the title of this post! I am really loving finding so many pictures of my little ones popping up all over.

Trey's day with JJ Star!

What a sweet boy this is!!! Once again, I am approaching my bedtime. I need to head to bed, but it was important to share my boy's day with you! Oh... and we were able to meet Jill at Upstate Gymnastics, where we will be enrolling Pheoby soon! Can't wait to see her out there running and bouncing around in that gym! ;o) Thanks again, Jill!

Tired

Hey all....

I am home from Michigan after a FUN Stamp Camp! I didn't get much sleep so I set myself a bedtime goal for the week. I am pretty tired and am up later than I am supposed to be, but I did want to post a couple pics. The first two are of some wall art that I created while at stamp camp. And then an updated picture of my sweet boy! He is 3 1/2 months old. I determined over the weekend that Trey and Pheoby could have been twins! Sometime I will post the two three-month pics to prove it!

Special thanks to my great friend, Jill, who is stepping up at the last minute to help out with Trey tomorrow! And please continue to pray for Martha-Marie (Trey's sitter) who found out today the prognosis is not good for her type of aneurysm.

He Rolls!

L.C. called this morning to tell me that Trey is rolling over! He has done it 3 times so far. No one has witnessed the action, just the results. Hopefully we will have some pictures or video soon!

An airport and an angry face.

This is one of the only times in my life that I have been happy to have an opportunity to sit and wait. You see... I struggle with a touch of ADHD so I struggle to entertain myself when in a waiting situation. Often times I fidget so much that it is bothersome to even me (not just the people around me)! This time, however, I am enjoying the time at the Charlotte International Airport since I have my new laptop and am able to tap into the complimentary wi-fi connection. How fun is that!?!?! I should be on my plane already, but there is a mechanical delay. Oh, don't worry about us... it is just the bathroom! YUCK! Hope they fix that soon!!! It will be a long flight to Detroit if the toilets are backed up! ;o)

In case you are wondering, I am headed to Michigan for Thinkin' Ink Stamp Camp. My mom and I put on this event twice a year for our stamping & scrapbooking friends. It is sooooo much fun! And I am really looking forward to this one since I am not pregnant. I should have more energy.

WHOOPS! Time to go...

Ok... a day late and a picture short... I was trying to upload the "angry face" when it was time to go yesterday. Here it is!

Blog Links

As I sit here and cry in prayer for my friends and even strangers who are brother & sisters in Christ I can't help but want to share their stories with you. I know how awesome it is to have the prayers of others to rely on when going through the toughest times in life. So I share these links with you so that you can share their burden in whatever way you can...

www.eddiesmith.com -- for updates on my good friend from college, Martha Marie, who is dealing with an aneurysm and will need surgery. Martha Marie is the one God laid on my heart as the perfect caregiver for our baby when I first found out that I was pregnant. What a blessing to know that we have someone so trusted so close by. I know that God has an awesome plan for this woman of faith. She is an example to me in so many ways, as a wife, as a mom and as a Christian.

www.cfhusband.blogspot.com -- saw a link to this blog just a few days ago. This is an amazing story from a man whose wife and daughter are in the hospital. His wife is awaiting a lung transplant and his daughter was born very premature. What an inspiration they are in such a difficult time in their lives. Please lift them up for strength and sustinence while they endure this journey.

Happy Easter!

It was a beautiful Spring day today. I spent most of the day cleaning the house. I hate to admit the last time we did a deep cleaning on this house! I will though... by our best estimation it was just before my parents came for Pheoby's birthday, February 22nd. I don't remember the last time I had that many dust bunnies hiding out... well... they weren't really hiding that much by this point. You know how if you see lots of roaches you know there are hundreds you are not seeing? It was a lot like that with the dust bunnies and dirt and germs. There was so much visible nastiness all around so I can't imagine all that I couldn't see. YUCK! I am so glad we got it all cleaned up, though.

Anyway... I digress. What I was saying is that it was a beautiful Spring day. I cleaned the house and L.C. mowed the jungle. (He has been working to get our lawn growing well and I think he was successful!) While I was mopping with the back door opened, smelling the fresh cut grass I couldn't help but praise God for the great blessing it is to own a home to care for. So many times I get bogged down by all the responsability on my shoulders, but in that moment with mop in hand I was so thankful for the many blessings we have been entrusted with. Thank you God for undeserved blessings!

On a related note, with my return to work last year and L.C.'s advancements at Duke Energy we have been able to make great strides in some financial goals we've been working towards. We have definately not arrived and have a way to go before we achieve our long term goals, but we are to the point where we can day dream about our next steps without having them seem unreachable. Because of that we have been talking a lot about where we see our future, our family and our ministries.

Yesterday as we went for a road trip we chatted about the areas we would consider moving when we are ready for our next home. We knew when we moved here that this home would be a stepping stone. Actually we don't really see ourselves staying put for the rest of our lives in any home... there is just too much we want to keep ourselves open to. When choosing the next home/community we will have to consider school options for our children, business opportunities and many other long term issues.

What we settled on was that we really liked where we lived when we were first married. We were about 5-10 minutes from anything we should need on Woodruff Road, but also were surrounded by farm land. It was the best of both worlds. Country living with quick city access. The opportunities for schools, activities and business are endless.

Another thing that we didn't really discuss was the vast array of great churches that we would be able to consider. We really love Foothills and one day if the Lord does allow us to relocate back to that area it will mean leaving our friends at FCC. We already struggle to stay involved due to the 30 minute commute. And it is a blessing that we are already connected there. It is hard to believe we have been at Foothills for almost 3 years. WOW!

Ok... I am hoping that this post doesn't appear so much as rambling thoughts. The truth is, though, it is! I am just sitting in the recliner with my feet propped up unwinding from a beautiful day. What a blessed life!

Happy Easter, friends!

Wow... its been a while!

It has been a while since I have taken the time to post, huh? I have felt pretty busy lately, not sure why. It has definately been a couple weeks where I have eliminated a few things due to being overwhelmed. Maybe, too, it is because I haven't had any great news to report. Well... I have news tonight! We just got our new computer tonight!!! It is a laptop. Our desktop is one that we purchased when we first moved to Croswell. We have done a lot of living since then and the condition of that PC definately shows it. It has crashed twice and we have just been hanging on to the shreds of the systems that would run for the last several months. So it was time, definately time, to invest in a new computer. I am so excited, too, because I have just started to invest time in digital scrapbooking and my old system wasn't handling it too well. Also, I am getting ready for Thinkin' Ink Stamp Camp. (TISC is a weekend retreat for scrapbookers & stampers in Michigan that my mom and I organize.) I will get to bring the laptop to organize business on and work on some digi projects, too! How fun will that be to be able to play with my new toy for a whole weekend? Can't wait!

Oh... and I suppose I need to do some research on what the problems are with Vista. I realize it has only been a few hours, but I am enjoying it so far. If you have any ideas on this subject please post a comment... I would love to hear what you have to say whether positive or negative.

First Digi Layout

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls... I am pleased to present you with my very first ever digital scrapbook layout! It was so fun to work on. I loved putting all the elements together and manipulating them to suit my whims. I have known for a long time that digi was the way for me and today's experience confirmed it! Now that I have a tiny bit of experience under my belt I will enjoy reading my digital scrapbooking magazines, I am sure! There is so much I want to know more about. For instance, I am not sure if I made the best choices when it came to saving. (It loaded, so I did something right!)

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think!

Oh!!! I just realized something I did wrong! I didn't add journaling to the layout! Shoot! I guess I am already needing to go back and edit!

2 months old & moved out!

Trey moved out! We moved him to his bedroom a week or two ago. I meant to post pics then, but I figure you will forgive me! Because of Trey's continuous coughing we have elevated his mattress. He scoots a little now and with the scooting and the incline he seems to have taken a little detour!

Ketchup... oh, no, I mean "Catch up!"

I logged onto msn messenger this weekend, which is something I rarely do, and lo and behold my dear old friend Amanda K. popped on! Amanda was a member of the (I'm sure) famous Jetsabillies small group from SLM @ CWC. Amanda is a very special girl. I was really looking forward to watching her (and all the other Jetsabillies) grow, mature and graduate from high school.

I started out with these girls when they were in 7th grade, followed them to 8th grade and was preparing to transition with them into high school when I felt the Lord calling us back to South Carolina. It was hard to follow God's plan and leave my family twice, but it was a close second having to break the news to those teenage girls who I had committed my life to. I will never forget the night that I told them I would be leaving or the conversation, tears and special gifts that came from that. It was a pivital spiritual point for many of us in that room. We talked a lot about faith and trusting God through it all. And my, didn't we have to lean on Him so much through so many things.

It has been almost 3 years since we made the big decision to head back to SC. My heart still hurts for the relationships changed because of our decision to move, especially for the relationships lost. But I must praise God for the amazing gift of many special relationships that have stood the test of time and many miles. My friendship with Amanda is a tremendous blessing which reminds me that God is right by my side taking care of me when I need a little extra surprise!

Thanks, Amanda, for the connection we share! You truely are a blessing and an amazing young woman! I am honored that you call me friend!!! I love you, girl!!!

Virtual Weekend Crop

I am spending much of my weekend participating in a Virtual Weekend Crop with my secret sister group. We are all working hard to get lots of paper craft projects done while checking in on one another throughout the weekend. There are also challenges. We will post pics of our projects and prizes will be given for jobs well done. It is a nice concept, the virtual crop thing, because it isn't costing any of us anything and we can come and go as we please. Actually, I wasn't planning on participating as much as I have, but since I am still sick I didn't want to take my germs to the FCC Girls Night. And now, instead of going to the UniverSoul Circus with L.C., Pheoby and the rest of the Hayes & Banks families, I am staying home with poor Trey who is coughing up a storm still.

I am excited to share with you some of what I have accomplished so far. Then I am going to get back to work and make some more progress!

75% Of Us

This Tuesday was not-so-Super for the Hayes family. In honor of Super Tuesday II a poll was taken in our home and the results are in...

75% of the human residents in this home are sick!!!

It pretty much stunk when Pheoby came down with the flu symptoms (sore throat, cough, high fever, lathargic) over the weekend, but it has gotten worse! Last night my symptoms (sinus pressure, congestion... is that the same as pressure?, runny nose, achy neck, headache) became almost unbearable so I popped some Sudafed and some Tylenol and hit the hey pretty early. Trey started developing his symptoms today. (low grade fever, runny eyes, sneezing, cough) Pheoby seems to be feeling better, but she still has a runny nose, is sneezing and coughing, and has a low-grade fever.

Because of all this our 2-times-this-week doctor visit may turn into a 3-times-this-week if Trey's fever climbs. I took Pheoby yesterday, may have to take Trey tomorrow, and they both have well-checks (including vaccinations) scheduled for Friday. How much does that stink?!?! I am so thankful for L.C.'s good insurance with a relatively low co-pay!