"Eye" Can See...

After this simple procedure, Mom can see! On Thursday, December 2nd, she had iLasik surgery in Bloomington. Before the surgery she could only see 20/500 in her right eye and 20/400 in her left. Her vision was only correctable to 20/40 with glasses and contacts. One Valium and approximately 15 minutes later, Mom was a new woman. When she went back on Friday for her 1 day post-op surgery her eyesight was 20/15. 20/15!!! She can see and is amazed at some of the things she didn't realize she was missing out on. The top 3 discoveries she made are:
1. People can actually read the numbers and addresses on mailboxes from their cars.
2. The back-up camera on her van is actually in color.
3. there is a sign at the end of our road (where it dead ends) that says "Spang St.". Mom didn't even know that sign was there and we've lived in our house for 11 years!
The procedure was simple and painless. If you have ever even thought about it, DO IT! As Mom can tell you, it is "life changing"!

I Can't Believe My Eyes!

Yes, the title tells the truth. We are still alive and well, although we seem to have fallen off the face of the blog world in recent months (well, really many months). We are giving this a trial run again. So much has happened in the past nine months. Here's a brief synopsis of what is going on:
Jake
Jake has graduated from 5th grade, turned 12, and started middle school. He made it through his first season playing tennis. Last week he tried out for the 6th grade basketball team at his school. Over 40 kids tried out and the team was cut to 12. He made the cut! You can look forward to seeing some pictures and updates on the basketball season.
Syd
Sydney started 5th grade, her last year in her current elementary school. She is currently on the newspaper staff, serving on student council (and campaigning for president at this moment-- we'll keep you posted), involved in math club, and Girl Scouts. Mom and Dad are currently trying to persuade her to take up either basketball or volleyball, due to the fact that she is 5'3" and the tallest kid in her school. Did we also mention that she probably also has the biggest feet? She currently wears a size 10 in women's!
Owen
Owen graduated from kindergarten. He was nervous about moving to 1st grade because "1st grade work is too hard". Over the summer, he turned 6. Needless to say, school started and he reluctantly started 1st grade. He is doing very well and now claims the work is "too easy". he has had 100% on all of his weekly spelling and reading tests and on both of his two math unit tests. Owen still loves to run around outside like a mad man and climb like a monkey. He is really beginning to love reading, as he can read many books by himself. He loves reading to his little sister. He can't wait for basketball to start in a month and wants to play soccer in the spring.
Kenna
The baby officially started public school this year. We were fortunate enough to be able to send Kenna to the elementary school she will go to for a brand new morning preschool program. She is kind of like a guinea pig. Hopefully the program takes off and they will be able to offer a morning and afternoon session next year. She thinks she is a big girl going to school everyday with Mommy, Syd, and Owen. Kenna has also developed into a little fashionista, so be careful. the girl can SHOP! Everything has to coordinate. She refuses to wear certain items in her wardrobe because "that's ugly" or "that's not cute". She has started taking ballet class once a week and acts like a prima ballerina. She has yet to decide if she will participate in the spring recital.
We promise to do a better job with keeping everyone up to date. Mom got a new Nikon camera and is really getting into photography. She has tons of pictures she has taken and will post some this week for your enjoyment. Thanks for hanging in there and being patient with us. We promise it will be worth the wait!

Purchasing stock in disinfectant

Yuck! That is the only word to describe our house the past couple of days. Mom literally has used every sheet, blanket, and pillow case in our house changing beds in the past two days. Kenna was the projectile queen, failing to hit any target in front of her. She wasn't the bad one though. Her illness was over as quickly as it came on. No, the winner of the most annoying puker officially goes to Owen. He would begin to throw up while he was asleep. he would get it all over the bed and then hit the trash can. Mom gave him three baths last night alone. Where was Dad, you ask? Why at work, of course. Owen even proceeded to do the unthinkable around 3:30 in the morning. it was at this time that he pooped all over Mom's bedroom floor. Yes, i said pooped. It happened because he threw up all over his pajamas and took them off. As he approached the bedroom door he proclaimed, "I have to pee". Mom ran over with the trash can trying to catch the remaining remnants of his urine only to have him proceed to leave a love offering from his rear on the floor. Oh, happy day! Needless to say, Mom is still washing laundry and missed yet another day of school due to lack of sleep. Isn't it great to use sick days when one isn't the sick one. Here's hoping the stomach flu won't be the gift that keeps on giving in your household this holiday season...

When we grow up...

Okay, we know it is a long time from now. One day we will all be big and on our own. Mom thinks we are going to grow up, have jobs, and live either in the basement or next door. Realistic, we know that's not going to happen. We had this discussion last night at dinner and we thought we'd share our future hopes and dreams.

Jake wants to be a surgeon. When mom and dad told him he'd have to work harder on his math to do this he changed his mind. He now wants to be an engineer (even more math is required). "Oh well," he said. "I'll just be a professional baseball player." Chances of that happening, slim to none. But remember, we are a supportive family (even though it is hard for dad to stay quiet on this one...).

Syd wants to be a vet. Very reasonable for her. She is loving and compassionate and LOVES animals. This future Purdue grad will have to take mega doses of allergy medicine before she goes to work everyday. She is allergic to cats, dogs, and horses. It can be done.

Owen says he is going to be an artist. He wants to paint pictures of monkeys or as the parents say, "self portraits". Owen is really into coloring, drawing, and painting right now. Mom's room at school is like his own personal studio.

As for Miss Sassy-Pants, aka Kenna, she wants to be an "animal fixer up person like Syd". She says she wants to help kittens and save them from "people who put them under wheels". Under wheels? Where did she come up with that? She must be watching too much of the Animal Planet with Syd.

We never know what the future might hold for us...

Bad Momma

Okay, lets face it. We have one bad momma. Yes, she is bad on so many levels. She is bad at keeping everyone up to date on what is going on in our life. She is bad about taking time out of her busy schedule to share about us. What about our lives? Aren't we as important as she is? Anyway, Mom is making a new pact (for the hundredth time) to update our blog once a week. One time a week is reasonable, don't you think?
Well, back to us. A lot has been going on since Mom last updated (in July!). We have had two birthdays since that time. Jake hit the big 11 in August. Syd is now in double digits at 10. Can you believe it?
School has once again started. Jake started 5th grade and has Mom's good friend as his teacher. Jake cannot get by with anything and nothing is sacred, as they talk everyday. Syd started 4th grade and loves her teacher. Owen is now in kindergarten. That is another story in itself. He is starting to become a little reader and learning so quickly. Mom and Dad are really proud of him. We also got our report cards two weeks ago. The winner of the best report card in the house goes to...Sydney Paige. Straight A's! She works so hard and has a great work ethic. Her teacher raved about her. Owen and Jake also had very good cards. Owen had all S+'s (kindergarten report cards are a bit different) and Jake had all A's and one B+. He will be working hard to raise that for next time.
We are heading straight into the holiday season. Christmas lists have been made and Santa is watching. He will especially be watching Momma to see if she can keep up her end of the bargain. She may even upload a couple of pictures, if she gets real ambitious. Until next week...

Our Daddy the Hero

This is our Daddy. Did you know that he is a hero? We mean a real life hero!

Last night, our Daddy saved some 17 year-old girl's life. He went on a call last night of an unresponsive female who had possibly overdosed. When he got there, she did not have a pulse. He started CPR and gave it to her until the paramedics arrived. He saved her life. She is in ICU right now, but is talking and responding. Our Daddy is too humble to talk about it, but that girl wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for him. He is a real life hero--our real life hero. We think he should get a lifesaving award from work. Love you, Dad! We are all so proud of you!

Bad news (don't read if you get emotional)

I wanted to take a minute to share some thoughts that are going around in my head right now. In the last two days, I have gotten some really rotten news. The first is the death of my friend Kelley. Kelley taught with me a Lost Creek and we worked together through Covered Bridge the last six years. She finally lost her long, courageous battle with breast cancer on Friday night. She was 37 years old. Kelley has been sick for several years now. Her cancer went into remission and came back last winter. She knew she was dying and spent a lot of quality time with her son Lance. She bought many gifts for him as he grows so she will continue to be involved with him as he grows. Lance is six months younger than Jake. Kelley was a single mother, so keep her son in your prayers. She was a great teacher and mentor. She touched the lives of many children and adults with her enthusiasm and smile. I will never forget her.

The second tragic event I learned of involves my Big Sis from college, Christa. Christa helped me decide to become a special education teacher. She is so compassionate and giving. She teaches special education at South and goes above and beyond for all of her students and their families. Christa is the mother of three terrific boys; Gabe, Caleb, and Isaac. Gabe played on Jake's baseball team this fall. Isaac had special needs of his own. He was born with a birth defect where his arms were not fully formed. Christa treated him like he had no challenges. She coached his t-ball team, which also had several other children with special needs on it. On Saturday, Christa's little boy Isaac fell and hit his head. He died from his injuries on Sunday. He was Owen's age. I cannot even begin to imagine the pain Christa and her husband Gary are feeling right now.

I guess I just wanted to remind everyone to hold their children tight and love them no matter what. I know there have been days when I just want to be left alone, but those days always get better. My children are so special and precious and I can't imagine my life without them. Whether you have time to prepare for a loss like Kelley did or if it comes as a complete shock as Isaac's did, it still leaves such a void in the lives of someone. It is times like these that I am reminded about how precious life is and that it truly is a gift. Live each day to the fullest and appreciate and treasure those around you.

Amy