Little Man is 6 ... WOW!

I remember it like it was yesterday ...

It was a March evening 2002. I had just worked a 10 hour day at the office (it was tax season and all) and Carey had not worked at all (it was Spring Break and all). In fact, I believe he had spent the majority of the day building the "Ultimate Theme Park of the World" on Roller Coaster Tycon on the computer. So there we were, 25 and 24, been married for almost 5 years and contemplating having a baby. I had just had some tests done for a heart issue that turned out to be nothing big (Thank You Lord!) and we were discussing the fact that we weren't gettin' younger and we might want to start this process while we are still young and everything is in good working order. The weirdest thing. We knew we wanted to have kids, but we really never discussed when. Weird because I am the type that will plan out everything to the smallest detail ... but this just didn't register on my radar. So we both decided, let's go ahead. Why not? Should be fun.

A little less than a year later we were holding our first born.

Here is his birth story:

We were so very anxious for you to come. And not just because I was sick of being pregnant. We just couldn't wait to meet you. I had gone to work the week before dilated at 2 (which I suppose is no big deal) and your head wasn't even engaged yet. But as the week went on, I was getting more and more tired and getting less and less sleep. By Friday, I was totally exhausted and managed to only work for 2 hours that day. Came straight home, watched an episode of Baby Story on TLC and went to sleep. Got an hour or so nap and then maybe 4 hours of sleep that night.

Saturday night, I only slept about 3 hours. I was just uneasy and couldn't relax. When Daddy woke-up on Sunday morning, we decided to skip church and go walking. It was a bit cold outside, so we went to Babies R Us. That is when my contractions started. Not painful. Just uncomfortable enough that I had to stop walking for each one. We went home and Pops and Gigi came over and spent the afternoon with us thinking that this was "it." I contracted for 6 more hours and then ... they just stopped. Meanwhile, Daddy is making me cup after cup of raspberry leaf tea, hoping that would speed things along. Pops and Gigi left and we went to be around 10PM. I was totally exhausted and went right to sleep (which was very unusual for me).

Then, around midnight, I woke-up from a dream were I was in intense, excruciating pain and didn't know what it was. I kinda opened my eyes and then fell back to sleep. Sure enough, it happened again.

OH MY STARS!! WHAT THE HECK IS THAT??!!

It wasn't a dream. I was having the real-life, gonna-have-a-baby, this-hurts-so-bad contractions. Wow! Gigi said that I would know that they were the real contractions when I felt them. Boy, she wasn't kidding. They were about 10 minutes apart and lasted 30-45 seconds. I slept some between them for the first few, and then ... I was wide awake.

I woke-up Daddy around 1AM and had him help me keep track of them. By 2AM, they were 6-7 minutes apart and about 45-60 seconds long. We called the hospital.

"Wait until they are 5 minutes apart. In the meantime, take a warm bath and try to relax."

Relax? Has she ever had a baby?

I sent Daddy to the living room couch to get some sleep and I continued to have contraction after contraction. Took the nurse's advise.

I took a bath. No help.

I tried to relax. Not possible.

So, I walked around our bedroom and bared down on the foot of our bed with each contraction. By 4:30AM they were still 6-7 minutes apart, but I was getting so very tired after almost 5 hours of this. I woke Daddy up and told him to take me to the hospital ... NOW! Grabbed our bag, jumped in the car and we were off.

While I was contracting on the way to the hospital, we were still discussing what your name would be if you were a girl. Never came up with one that we both loved. We were also discussing the fact that they might send us back home. That would be a huge bummer.

When we got there, I was only dilated to a 3, but I was contracting every 5 minutes. They told me to walk around the hospital for an hour and they would recheck me. We went ahead and called Pops and Gigi. Daddy walked through the halls with me until Gigi got there. She took over for Daddy and helped me through my contractions. Gigi was much better than Daddy at it. She reminded me to find my focal point and to not hold my breath. And she didn't touch me during the contraction. That is the last hing I wanted was to be touched while contracting.

After an hour, I was still a 3, but they admitted us anyway. I immediately instructed the nurse to send the anesthesiologist ASAP. This was at 7AM. I wish I could tell you that your Mommy went all natural, but I hadn't slept well in days, I had already endured 7 hours of the pain, it hurt so terribly bad and I just wanted some relief. To get some rest before the real labor began.

Over the course of the next three hours, my contractions grew in intensity (which I didn't think was possible) and became closer together. They were 60 seconds apart and 60 seconds long. My focal point was a Dr. Pepper can on a shelf in the room. I tuned everyone out and just focused on getting through the pain. FINALLY at 10AM, after 10 hours, I received the epidural

... and all was right with the world again. Relaxation.

By 2PM, I was only dilated to 5 and you were still not descending. Still hadn't seen my doctor yet. Kinda weird. Guess that is how they roll here. Anywho, they decided to break my water. When that happened, the monitor that was on my belly lost your heart beat for a moment. So, the nurse decided to put an internal monitor on you. Right on top of your head. In the course of doing this, they discovered that you were not head down, but face out. The nurse could feel your little nose. So, they tilted my bed back in hopes that you would come back up towards the top and then descend back down in a head down presentation. Still no doctor.

After an hour of laying upside down on a tilted hospital bed, they moved us back horizontal. Oh, and the epidural wore off during this hour. Took 30 very long minutes to get that fella back to put more drugs in. Those contractions were still 60 seconds apart and 60 seconds long ... oh the agony of it all.

When they checked me again and tried to put the internal monitor on you, this time they didn't find a nose ... they found a mouth! You were sucking on the nurse's finger. Kinda weird?! Well, then everyone wanted to feel and nurses were running this way and that, raising quite a ruckus.

Finally, a doctor walked in the room around 4PM. But not my doctor. He took a turn feeling your face, looked at the chart and told the nurse she needed to call Dr. Storts right then.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because that is her doctor." he responded.

Then nurse stupid looked at me and asked "Dr. Storts is your doctor?"

"YES" I replied.

"You didn't tell me that" nurse stupid said.

"You didn't ask." Silly of me to think that preregistering, going on the tour and showing up at that particular small hospital while in labor would make the nurse think that maybe I had some maternity care and actually had a doctor. I believe she thought I was some vagrant off the street that just wandered in to have a baby. Urgh. Anyway, sorry sweetheart. Just had to get all that drama in. Nurse Stupid got in big-o trouble from Dr. Storts. He had been up at the hospital 4 times that day and no one told him I was in labor.

So, once the doc showed up, he evaluated the situation and told Daddy and I that the safest course of action was to delivery you via c-section. I was progressing so very slowly and you were presenting face first. The doctor said that this would be the only way to deliver you and the both of us survive. Eeek! Kinda scary. The Lord definitely had us planned in the right century.

So very relieved and excited, they rolled us into the OR around 5:30PM and within just minutes, you were born. We chose to not find out if you were a girl or boy. So it was a surprise when the doctor said "It's a boy." Daddy looked at me and said "We have a boy" in such a loving and very content voice. They showed you to us and then whisked you off to weigh you, wipe you off, take your vitals and then give you to Daddy. I couldn't hold you yet, so I just looked at you for about 10 minutes before you and Daddy went to the nursery.

We all three were able to go into recovery at the same time. I was able to hold you and I introduced you to Pops, Gigi, Kevin and Corey.

"This is Riley Garner Thompson. He's a boy."

I held you for just a little bit, maybe 5 more minutes. Because I was so very tired, I gave you to Daddy and fell asleep. You slept too. It had been a very busy 18 hours for the both of us.

And this is how you have grown:

First birthday. Very into Elmo and Pooh Bear.

Second Birthday. All about Thomas the Train.

Third Birthday. Snoopy was his favorite.

Fourth Birthday. Star Wars was all his craze.

Fifth Birthday. Still lovin' that timeless Star Wars.

So, here we are six years later. It is just so hard to imagine life without the Riley-guy. He is a joy and delight. He has the biggest heart and the sweetest spirit. He loves everyone. He is such s good boy. Always has been. There were no terrible twos or threes to fours. He has always been an obedient little boy ... for the most part. He has the best little personality. Comes up with the most off the wall little sayings or "Riley-isms."

At school with his Happy Birthday Crown that he got to
wear all day. And still lovin' the Star Wars.

Here he is enjoying me and Daddy and Victoria
singing to him. Just full of joy!!

At age 6 here are his likes and dislikes:

LIKES:

Going to school, his sister, reading books, strawberries, Legos, playing anywhere and with anything, Go Diego Go, animals, talking to Grandpa and Grandma on the webcam, swimming, singing, playing Indiana Jones Legos and Star Wars Legos on the Wii, blue, pancakes, those chewy fruit snack that are technically candy but that kids think are healthy because they have the word "fruit" in their title (urgh), Sonic, doing anything with just him and Daddy, nacho cheese doritos (who doesn't?!), playing board games, playing with his cousins in Michigan, going to Pops and Gigis house, Pops and Gigi coming to his house, being picked up from school, making a happy plate so that he can get dessert, jumping on the couch, having his picture taken, and PBJ sandwiches.

DISLIKES:

Running errands, tuna, wearing shoes, taking medicine, going to bed "It is boring," Victoria playing with his Legos, casseroles, getting dressed, going to the doctor, and crust on bread.

Riley,

You are such a precious sweet little boy. You have the biggest heart and the best attitude. You love others and are so considerate of others too. And you love to make people laugh. You are always asking questions about what words mean, about God, about what people do and why. You have such a thirst for knowledge. Our prayer is that you will always keep these wonderful personality traits that God has given you and never stop asking your questions. We pray that God will give us the wisdom we need to raise you to become a Man that loves God and love others. We can already see this in you at age 6. It excites us to no end! Keep your head high, treat others with love and respect and know that we will always love you and answer any question you have without hesitation. You bring such joy to our lives! Our first born. Our favorite little man. Our gift from God on High. And our future friend and brother in Christ.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Riley's Birthday Celebration

For Riley's 6th birthday, we decided to go to the Great Wolf Lodge in Grapevine. TONS OF FUN!! We got there around 1PM on Friday. Even though 3 out of 4 of us were on antibiotics and I was so very tired all morning from still being somewhat sick, we decided to go for it anyway. So glad we did! Yes, Riley played a bit of hooky from school on Friday. But technically, he hadn't been on his antibiotic for 24 hours yet, so he was still contagious Friday AM. So, I believe that makes it ok. Anywho, we were able to check-in to our room immediately and then off to the indoor waterpark.

Comin' down the slide ...

... and into the water!

Can't imagine how we get so sick 'round here.

Pure Joy!

Love this picture of Victoria and Daddy.

It took ALOT of convincing from Daddy to get Riley to go on the first tube slide. But after it was over ... there was no stopping him! He went on them over and over and over again. Because we were there during the school day, it was pretty sparce. We walked right up and got on every ride.

After a few hours of water fun, we were off to dinner at the Rainforrest Cafe. Riley and Victoria are crazy about animals, so this place was right up their alley. They just loved it when the animals would make noises and start going crazy.


Then party-time back in our room.

Helping his sister put together her un-birthday present.

We had a blast just the four of us together. We laughed because we found ourselves watching TV and putting together Legos in the hotel room last night ... something we can just as easily do at home.

Perhaps when Victoria is a bit older we will go back. She was a bit unsure of it all. Not much for her to do ... yet. She was warming up to it all by the time we got ready to go this afternoon ... go figure. But the birthday boy had an absolute blast!

He's Nothing Like Me ... And That Is a Good Thing

This is what I discovered when I opened the dryer this evening:


Just at first glance, I would say that there are four different sorting categories in that there load of laundry.

A little background on the day:

So, at 8AM this morning, I get an email from God. Well, it isn't really from God, but it did provide the answer to a question that I didn't even know that I had.

As you know from my previous posts this month, we have been a sick bunch 'round here. Started with Riley getting a cold two weeks ago. Followed by Victoria a week later. Then me two days later. Sore throat, runny nose, body aches, head ache, etc. Your run-of-the-mill cold ... or so I thought.

Then Riley got this rash everywhere ... and I mean everywhere. And this horrible looking sore on his precious little nose. Then my sore throat was just not going away. I told Carey that I wish this darn cold would just run its course and be over. Miss Victoria's appetite still had not returned and she was not drinking like she usually does.

Anyone seeing the probably diagnosis here? Sore throat, rash, loss of appetite, headache. Well, I didn't.

I consider myself a fairly intelligent person ... or at least a good study. I excelled in grade school and college. Managed to do well in my 10 year career as a CPA. Climbed the CPA ladder quite nicely. I retain most information that manages to squeeze its way into my already packed brain. Any wisdom or insight I possess I totally recognize comes from God. I know this because I pray for it. And He delivers. But on this occasion, I guess I just wasn't gettin' it. So, He sent me an email.

Well, M sent me an email. M is mom of Riley's best bud at school. We have been emailing back and forth this past month regarding all things PTA carnival. This particular email had a variety of things involving sing-ups and time frames and blah-blahs. She also filled me in on what they were currently experiencing at their home.

Strep.

Then the Lord flipped on the light switch. (Hallelujah chorus begins to play in the background as I stand at my computer reading the email). Of course ... we all have strep.

Within the hour, literally, I am at the doctor's office getting my positive strep test result. Two hours later, the kids and I are at their doctor's office getting their positive strep test results. And by 2PM we are all being treated with the lovely amoxicillin.

So my prayer of thanksgiving to God went something like this:

Dear Lord,

Thanks for the email.
Thank you for amoxicillin.

Amen.

Eventually I will get to the laundry picture at the beginning of the post. Just hang in there with me.

So, my 30 something year old, childless, Harvard Medical School graduate doctor tells me the number one thing I need to do in order to treat strep, besides take the drugs, is rest. Rest? Sure, bring it on. When does the nanny, cook and maid show up. Can you write me a prescription for some of those? This is after she asked me if I was able to function daily or had I just been in bed all day.

In bed all day ... in that split second before I answered her question, I savored the thought of it. Then the scene in my head went all wavy and a flashback appeared. It was 1BC (one year before children) and I was in my mid 20s. I was sick and in bed ... all day. I did nothing. I prepared no meals. I cleaned up no messes. I was not concerned for the needs or desires or wants of anyone except for myself. Carey? He's a big boy. He can take care of himself. Leave me alone. I am sick. I will come out of my room when I feel better.

Back to reality.

"No, Dr. Jones I haven't been doing much. Just taking care of two kids as best as I can."

Of which I am so honored to do. Like I tell Carey, we can sleep, watch TV and rest all we want when they are in college. Now is not the time for wimps. Now is the time to raise children that will grow to be decent human beings and be able to contribute to this world by being messenger of God's Love.

Anyway, back on topic.

When I get home Carey is there. YAY! He had an early hearing and was at home for the rest of the day. Before I went to pick up Riley at school and then proceed to take him and Victoria to the doctor for their appointment, I tell Carey that I am supposed to get some rest.

So, the laundry.

Carey, in his sweet, caring, loving and servant's heart manner, does some laundry for me while we are out and about doing all things doctor's office, pharmacy, lunch, pharmacy again. Totally without me asking. Isn't that just wonderful? And just when I thought I couldn't love him anymore.

Well, there is a reason why I don't ask him to do the laundry. (see picture at beginning of post). Sorting ... not his strong suit. He just doesn't get it. When I opened the dryer door and saw the results of his "sorting," I well, first grabbed the camera, then told him how much I soooooo appreciated him doing the laundry for me. Then, as politely as possible, trying my BEST to not sound condescending in any way, shape, form or fashion, asked him what sorting technique he used for doing the laundry, of which I was so grateful that he did. His reply:

1. Nice clothes

2. Not-so-nice clothes

Ok. Interesting.

So I guess based upon this, nice clothes are towels, underwear (white and not white), jeans, washcloths, colors, darks. Not-so-nice was everything in the kids hampers.

I guess I have no problem with the two categories, but the application is lacking quite a bit.

Oh well. He is still the greatest. And I love him even more today than yesterday. He made the effort and did it FOR ME in his Carey-like fashion. I wouldn't change a thing about it. He brings such joy to my life. After almost 12 years of marriage, I have learned not to expect Carey to adhere to my neurotic tendencies with regards to housework, taking care of the kids, driving, or anything else for that matter. One of the things I love most about him is that he is nothing like me. That is a good thing.

A S-L-O-W Day

I LOVE no school days!! Riley is home. Yay. There is no rush rush to get him to school, get Victoria down for a nap, go get him at school. It is just nice and S-L-O-W round here. So nice.

There has only been one fight so far. It was over the Lightning McQueen chair we got Riley for Christmas. Curses ... I knew I should've got two! But no ... I got her the pretty polka-dotty bean bag chair. Which does she like better? You guessed it ... Lightning McQueen. Oh well.

My time has been spent on wiping noses ... mine and Victoria's, doing 7 loads of laundry (ran out of laundry soap this weekend), reading blogs (always a blast), and helping Riley do all the Lego Indiana Jones Wii moves that create welled up tears in his eyes from frustration. So he calls on me? I manage to get the job done after fifty tries and in the process loose every single last coin he has worked so hard to find ... thank you for invincibility!!

Anyway, just love these days.

Still haven't taken a shower. Yep ... still in the PJs. Will mosey on up there in a bit to take care of my appearance before hubby gets home. That would just be very bad of me to have him come home to this 5'6" mess of a lady. A little 1950s of me, but hey, we should put on our best for our husbands when we have the time. And today I have the time. Don't get me wrong ... I am not talking a ball gown and pearls. Today my best will be jeans and a t-shirt. But a little paint on the barn door and a head of hair that doesn't scream "Just got out of bed!!" is on the agenda too.

A S-L-O-W day to take it easy. To get over sickness. To plan the week. To fold the mound of laundry on the couch while watching Riley rescue the lost ark from the clutches of ... some villain.

Maybe take a bath. Well, that is just pushing it I suppose. Just a quick shower will do.

He is instructing me here on what he needs me to do next.

There is the laundry pile. That is only three loads.
Four more to go.

Playhut to the Rescue!!

It was inevitable ... I have the cold that the kids have had. Yuck! Anyway, Carey desperately needs the day to clean the garage (and fix the garage door opener so that I can park my ride back in the garage).

So, I have unpacked all the Playhuts we have accumulated over the years and made the Ultimate Playhut Experience. Hoping this will occupy them while I collapse on the couch in exhaustion. We'll see. Should last for at least 15 minutes. Enough time for the cold medicine to kick in.


Lasted less than 10 minutes ... now they want to go outside. Oh well, I am sure they will return to it later today.

The best-laid plans of mice and men often ...

... bite you in the back-side!

So today was going to be a busy day for us. Wednesday always are, but we had a bit more on our schedule today.

1. Get everyone up and dressed and fed.
2. Take Riley to school.
3. Do some laundry, play with Victoria, watch some Sesame Street.
4. Go to Wiggles class.
5. Drive-thru McDonalds for her and Sonic for me.
6. Run by a Goodwill donation center and finally drop off the mound of things that are in my car.
7. Go to Baylor Surgery Center and sit with Mom while Dad is having shoulder surgery.
8. Leave the center to go pick-up Riley from school.
9. Snack, play, do some more laundry, perhaps convince Victoria to take a nap, make dinner, eat dinner.
10. Go to church for children's choir followed by adult choir.
11. Get kids home and bathed and pajamed and read a short book and then to bed.
12. Collapse on the couch at 9PM and try to enjoy the rest of the evening together.

Great plan. Lots to do, but that's ok. I even packed a bag for snacks for the hospital and a bag of toys and what-not. Color wonders, doodle pro, books, dolls, DVD player, etc.

So, I didn't even get past number 1. First off, Victoria was still sleeping when I walked in her room. Not usually the case. Riley is known to be a bit loud in the morning, so she is typically already awake. She was still snoozing. Picked her up ... she was burning up. Bummer. 100.6 fever. Riley had this last week. She is all snotty and eyes are watering and cannot breath through her nose. Poor little girl ... and there goes our full day.

New plan:

1. Instead of pancakes and bananas for breakfast, it is ibuprofen and juice.
2. Instead of Wiggles, it is TV and an ibuprofen induced nap.
3. Instead of going to the hospital to sit with my mom (which I am totally bummed we can't do), it is calling to check-in on the status of it all.
4. Instead of all of us going to church tonight, it is only me and Riley.

So, the day will be spent just around the house taking care of the sick one. I have learned as a mom that your plans can change in an instant. I don't let it get to me too much. I know that the Lord is in control and that I am oblivious to most things that are going on around me. All I need to know is that He wants me to glorify Him throughout my day. And today, I will bring glory to Him by taking care of what he has given me ... a beautiful little baby girl that is full of life and joy, who happens to be all snotty and has a fever. I can definitely do that!

And maybe get some laundry done too (silver-lining).

Sitting on the couch watching Sesame Street.

I love that my kids enjoy a show that I also enjoyed as a kid. Sesame Street, so timeless. And I know what you are all thinking. Pacifier? Still? She is almost two Kim! We did get her off of it about four months ago. But she got sick in December and I brought it out again. And then we drove to Michigan, brought it out for that, too. Even bought two more at the store. So we are trying to only use while sleeping. But now she is sick, and I always give in to just about anything when the kids are sick. It is a rule I have.

I am sure we will go cold turkey again here in a week or so.

Monopoly

Carey told me that this was blog-worthy.

I played Monopoly for the first time yesterday. It was Star Wars Clone Wars Monopoly, but it is essentially the same as Monopoly. The results were not pretty ... for me. After about two hours, I was forced into bankruptcy. Carey only had 5 cities on the board, but that was enough. I told him the game was over. I had noticed that I started stress eating and drinking once I had to start mortgaging my property. So after 2 Diet DPs and a half a bag of Doritos ... I called it quits. It was fun. I really love to play board games or any games for that matter. I am hoping we will do that more often. A better use of our time than zoning out in front of the TV.

We'll see.

Oh, and Riley played the game with us for the first 15 minutes. He kept taking the pieces of the board and making them fight each other. I suppose that is more fun for a 5 year old than buying properties. But once we started taking his blue money, which was the $10s I believe, he got fed up and left the table. Blue is his favorite color and I guess that just did it in for him. Go figure.

So Bummed

Riley had to go back to school today. I'm so bummed. I LOVE having him at home all to myself. He is just the coolest little guy! One of my most favorite people. But, I know that he needs to go to school and be social on a daily basis. He just loves school to pieces and would be devastated if he didn't get to go. He gets bored around here ... hard to imagine with the small toy store that has developed over the Christmas holiday. He was "so exciting" (a Riley-ism) to go to school this morning. Couldn't wait to see all his buds.

So Victoria and I are having a quiet morning at home. We were going to run errands, but it is cold and rainy ... so I built a fire. We are staying in today. In fact, she is still in her PJs at 10:20. She loves her PJs.

We have added a new "Riley-ism" from our trip to Michigan. "Illinnoying" - This is what he called Illinois. And then there is the nagging question that he asked all through the state of Missouri. "Daddy, are we out of the state that we are in yet?" And you probably thought that Missouri is called the "Show-Me" state, but Riley informed us that it is "The Big Fat State." It takes a while to travel across that state ... about 6 hours or so.

Too funny. He makes us smile.


Grandpa (Carey's Dad) took these pictures in Michigan. If he said it once, he said it a thousand times "Riley, just smile. Stop goofing around." Well, I do believe Riley was having some fun with him!