He Loves Me

I'm talking about Trent. He shows it in different ways. Like one night this week, we were sitting on the couch and he somehow snuggled his way into my lap. I didn't mention anything about the fact that my soon to be 4-year-old was sitting in my lap. We just kept on talking like normal and I sure was enjoying every minute of it.

Trent is a lot like me. If he loves you, he is going to tell you he doesn't. If he wants to compliment you, he will say something mean instead and then give you that shy little sneaky grin. You have to about bribe him for a hug. I remember a friend of mine once saying "Becky doesn't give hugs." Well, I used not to. They made me uncomfortable. But after graduating high school, I've given a lot more than I ever thought I would because I realized just how important my friends and family were to me. Trent is the same way.

If I catch him being sweet to me and loving on me, I might say "you love me don't ya?" His response, "no I don't" followed by the sweetest smile you have ever seen.

The funniest thing to me is how he shows his love to the people at church. I can't tell you how many times I have heard a woman holler "ouch!", but it happens pretty often. To show his love to the women at church, Trent just casually walks by them and "whops" them on the tail! Yes, he really does. So many women have asked me why he does that. It is obvious to me - he is showing his love. I've told them over and over...if Trent hits you on the tail, then it means he loves you.

Today we had a special day - just me and Trent. I took him to the hospital to do paperwork for his surgery next week. He will be getting his tonsils removed on Tuesday. He was a good boy the entire time. The nurse asked us both questions and he would use his manners each time. He said "yes 'mam" and "thank you". For using his manners, the nurse rewarded him with a book. She was impressed and it just made me smile inside to know that he was being such a good boy.

Trent and I ate lunch together too. I asked him what he wanted and his response...spaghetti. So, we went to Rockin Bear. He got spaghetti and I got a bbq. After that, we went home and napped together. But, our time wasn't over yet. We picked up Natalee from school and while she was at gymnastics for two hours, we went to the park. That's where Trent made me the happiest....

We got out of the car at the park and Trent grabbed my hand. We walked hand in hand toward the swings. Halfway there, I scooped him up and gave him some sugar and told him I loved him. We played on the swings a while and then he was ready to slide. I bent down to talk to him and he caught me by surprise....he just threw his arms around my neck and gave me the biggest hug.....and then he kissed me on the cheek! I had the biggest grin!

My heart is so full of love for this little boy. I'm so thankful to be his "mama".

Trent's Dr. Visits

I'm thinking about my little Trent tonight. He's got to go to the Doctor tomorrow. He will be having his tonsils out soon and the doctor wants to do a test on his ears to make sure he may/may not need tubes also. Of course, I'm hoping that he doesn't need tubes, but I just want what is best for him.

For some reason, Trent has had Strep Throat constantly for the past year. Yes....constantly. We did not realize it until Nov 2010. Sure, it seemed like every time we turned around that he was getting diagnosed with strep again, but none of us stopped and actually counted up the times.

Turns out that Trent was treated for strep about 7 times in 2010. What is puzzling, though, is that he does not have the classic symptoms. Yes, he occasionally gets the fever with it....but not every time. The only thing we've noticed is that he will lose his appetite when it "flares" up.

He is not contagious. No one in our family is contracting it from him...... no one at daycare is getting it. It's just a weird thing.

We took him to the doctor in Nov and told him, "Doc, it seems like he gets this an awful lot." He looked in Trent's files and it was like every other month!

What has happened is that Trent will lose his appetite (or possibly run a fever), we take him to the Doctor, the Doctor tests him positive for strep, antibiotics are prescribed, Trent takes all of the nasty medicine, and we then think that everything is fine. Come to find out, the medicine never fully worked! Sure, he would feel better and we would think he was fine. We never thought to take him back to the Doctor and test to see if the medicine worked!

Poor baby has basically had Strep Throat for at least the entire year of 2010 and we did not realize it!

Well, now that we know what has been going on, he has seen a specialist. Looks like he is going to have his tonsils and adnoids taken out. First the doctor wants to make sure that his ears check out and he doesn't have fluid buildup or anything.

Would you say a little prayer for Trent? He goes for his ear test on Monday and then we will be scheduling his surgery soon. He's been a happy boy through all of this. He even has his appetite now and says he feels fine. Poor baby still has strep throat though, and he needs some prayers from us all.

Comforted

My work schedule is pretty good. The best days are T/R when I work from 9 am to noon. Love those days!

However, I work long hours on M/W. I am at work between 9:30 am to 7 pm. I have a class between 11 and 12:30. Then another class between 5:30 to 7pm. The other hours in between are my Office Hours in which I must schedule to do work in my office - stuff like grade papers, meet with students, etc. I get a lot done on these days.

I love my job, but there are times when things get stressful. This week was one of them. Monday morning. It all began. It was a long day for me on Monday. I had a lot to do. Students are getting stressed because due dates are approaching....they have tests to take....and all the other things that we all remember as a college student. Well, believe it or not, the teachers feel the stress too.

I had great classes on Monday, but I was very ready to get home. Nathan has the responsibility of the kids all by himself on Mondays. He is quite capable, but I still worry about not being able to be home until 7:30 or 8 pm. By the way, he did an awesome job this Monday. He had the kids bathed and had a yummy pot of homemade soup waiting on the stove when I got home.

Still, I was stressed as I left work and headed home. I wanted to be able to blink....and then be home immediately. I rushed to my office after class, gathered my purse, and headed to my car as fast as possible. As I left the College, I had to stop at the red light. I had my blinker turned on, ready to turn right and be on my way. I was in a hurry. And that's when I saw it.

There was a big rig coming from the left. He was zooming into town and I had to stop and wait on him to pass before I could continue on my way. But there was something unique about this rig.

He had a cross on the front of his grill. It was a cross outlined in lights. I just stared at it as he approached me. He got nearer and I took a look at that cross..........and I was immediately Comforted.

Comforted in knowing that my Lord and Savior loves me. Comforted in knowing that God is there for me. Comforted in knowing that He cares for me each and every day. Comforted in knowing that He has blessed me with a job that I love and with a husband and family that love me so much.

Just seeing that cross on that big rig made me relax. My tense shoulders fell back into my driver's seat. I let go of the steering wheel for a moment and forgot about the fact that I was in a hurry.

As the truck passed, a smile came across my face......and I said a silent prayer....."Lord, thank you for showing me 'that' tonight. Thank you for being there for me. Thank you for the driver of that truck who is displaying his testimony wherever he drives each and every day."

And then, I drove home to the family that I love.

The Weekend

I got sick in in the middle of the night on Friday. I caught what turned out to be a 24hr virus. Nathan stayed away and he even took the kids to a birthday party on Saturday morning so they wouldn't be near my germs. Ryan already had a touch of it, so it was already too late for him.

Well, that little virus bug got a hold of Trent on Saturday evening and I felt so bad for him. He didn't know what was going on. He had never been sick like that before. Actually, he has....maybe once....but he was too little to remember. He felt so bad.

We had some company over on Saturday and I informed everyone before they came that I had been sick and Trent was too. However, everyone still came......maybe it was because Nathan was cooking a delicious meal of Japanese. Yep, he got a new griddle a few weeks ago and he can whip up some gooooood Japanese. He cooked steak, chicken, veggies (peppers, onions, zucchini), fried rice, and white sauce. Bridgett helped him out too. I finally got a little appetite back by Saturday night, and it was a yummy supper.

On Sunday, I planned to stay home with Trent and Ryan and keep our germs to ourselves instead of give them to everyone at church. Well, guess who woke up sick? Nathan. He has been sick all day and stayed in bed most of the time. I think he will feel better by Monday morning because this thing seems to only last one day. Natalee has been fortunate enough to stay well so far.

Since I stayed home today, I was able to do a lot of organizing. I'm still working on a bunch of piles all over the house. Remember my new motto? A place for everything and everything in its place!

Trent and I cleaned his entire room including the closet. I went through his toys and got rid of some. I went through some of his clothes that were too small and boxed them up for Ryan. I feel that I was actually productive. I've been thinking about doing a chore chart for the kids. I was inspired when I read a friends post here. So, Trent and I sat down and came up with his very own, simple Chore Chart. He helped with it and we talked about it. He knows exactly what to do each morning, afternoon, and night. It consists of 1. Get dressed 2. Brush teeth 3. Homework 4. Help with supper 5. Take a bath 6. Put on pajamas 7. Brush teeth 8. Clean up all toys.

I've added a few blogs to my list of "blogs I follow". If you are thinking about organizing, you should check out some of them. The Cowboy Phraseology girl has such a simple, beautiful style. She can accessorize really well and she has inspired me to clean up my unneeded, unwanted junk. My new favorite blog is IHeartOrganizing. She has decorated her home to be beautiful and functional. She has an awesome playroom that I would like to mimic in our upstairs room.

Check them out if you have a few minutes. You might even get inspired to do some organizing. Ya'll have a great week!