Chappelle's Party Pictures....8 weeks later!

I forgot I had not posted pictures from sweet girl's party. Here they are!

BIG NEWS!!!!!

Braxton is on his very first field trip as I type this. I was a complete loser and went to school to take pictures of him boarding the bus, in the bus and the bus driving away. And then I ..... cried! I have been so emotional lately and cry at everything. The director even hugged me. I found it bizarre (which also emphasized what a loser I am) that I was the only mom who came and took pictures. They were going across town to the park with a bagged lunch and all. This is big people. Not only is he on his first field trip, the teacher driving the bus is only the 4th person outside of me and Bryan who has driven my kids. Plus this means he is growing up:(




















We have a WALKER! Chappelle will take 7-8 steps at a time and then plunk down. But my girl is steppin'! Not only is she walking, but she likes to squat and bounce/dance. I have absolutely got to get both of these events on video. We have both of these on video with Braxton and I want to do the same with Chappelle.




We had a major scare Monday night/Tuesday morning with Braxton. He woke up at 2:50am screaming of a headache. I laid down with him until he fell back asleep. 10 minutes later he was in our room crying of a headache again. I put a pallet on our floor and we tried again. He woke up again crying. And let me paint the picture "it's a hysterical cry where he is holding his head and trembling" so we put him in our bed and less than 5 minutes later he says his head hurts really bad and he has to throw up. We took him to the bathroom where he proceeds to dry heave, but nothing came out. This happened 3 more times through out the night. Around 5:30 he ended up laying on the floor with a cold washcloth over his forehead. As I was getting ready he woke up and said "mommy, I feel much better!" I told him good, because he sure did scare me and daddy. Poor little guy was exhausted so after he got dressed for school he fell back asleep, where he then proceeded to wake up again screaming. uuggh! So I gave him Motrin, we sent him to school and told the teachers what was going on. I called and checked on him around 10:30. Of course as soon as I got to work I googled headaches in little ones and let me forewarn you, you should never do that. Most websites said 1.tension/stress 2. migraine 3. meningitis 4. tumor. Of course the diagnosis in the tumor section said if they wake up in the middle of the night or first thing in the morning...are you kidding me?! Not what a mother wants to read at all!!

So, I knew that the Motrin would be wearing off around 1:00, which would also be nap time. I was dreading every time my phone rang. Sure enough at 3:10 I see Gateway on my phone...ugh! I answered and they told me he was screaming of a headache. I immediately left work. I cried the entire way to school. I tried calling the Dr. but they didn't have any openings, so I was taking him to the walk in clinic. I got to school and he was lying on his cot. I looked at him and started crying all over. There was nothing in his eyes, his was whiter than I have ever seen him and clammy. He looked pitiful. I picked him up and he was like a limp rag doll. He wouldn't even put his arms and legs around me. It broke my heart. Once we got to the dr. they checked him for strep - negative, his glands, ears and throat were fine, so they did a blood panel. His white blood cell count was elevated. Normal for his age is 13,000 and his were 17,000. So he was fighting an infection, they just couldn't localize it. They sent us home with a 10 day prescription of augmentin and said if things don't improve in 48 hours to bring him back. I am happy to say Tuesday night and Wednesday night have been filled with sleep and no shout outs or headaches. So fingers crossed we are on the road to recovery. I can honestly say I have never been so scared and at that time I decided, it's time to lighten up on the little guy.




I had my very first mammogram yesterday. A mammogram....but you are so young! Yes, you are right, I am young. But given the fact the my sister was diagnosed 1.5 years ago at age 35 with breast cancer...you are never to young to get tested. It was very emotional for me. I walked into the radiology office and cried (I already told you guys I have been a complete mess). The office was beautiful and tranquil. They had the prettiest furniture, color scheme and ambiance in there. I stopped, took a deep breath and took it all in. This is where people's lives change. My nurse was super sweet. After the process she asked why I was in so young and cried again explaining it to her. It wasn't painful at all and the ambiance and staff made it very comfortable.

So there you have it. Alot going on at the Carpenter house!

Smiles and gratefulness!

5 Things I am grateful for today:

1. My health! We know way too many people who have been affected and I am just super grateful that we are as healthy as we are.

2. My Husband....we may not always get along, but he is my strongest supporter, looks like Scott Baio and helps to produce the cutest kids EVER!!!

3. My kido's! I knew I loved my sweet goose about as much as anyone could love a child and then my little girl came into my life and WOW...I love her like nobody's business! I love each child the same but in different ways. Braxton amazes me everyday and is super smart and funny. He's my cuddle bug! Chappelle melts my heart from the minute she wakes up and smiles her toothy 6 tooth smile!

4. My family! I don't get to see them as often as I would like - heck lately, I don't even get to talk to them as much as I like but they are the best! If you are reading this - you know who you are:)

5. My girl's!! These girl's are my extended family and I am absolutely so grateful to have them a part of my life. We have been through thick and thin and are as strong as ever...I love you!!!



5 Things that make me happy:

A good book!!! Right now I am reading "Between Sisters" by Kristin Hannah. Between my sister and one of my bf's we could open our own book store!

A good cup of coffee!!! It doesn't even have to be expensive coffee. Matter of fact "New England's Best" normally $3.65 a bag when it's on sale at Target is my absolute favorite brand. But let me tell you, I am a creamer girl.

Clean sheets - make momma ssssooo happy! I am really weird when it comes to my bed. I can't stand to feel anything on my sheets. Before I get in the bed, I do a clean sweep to wipe anything off and then have caught myself in the middle of the night doing the same thing...while sleeping!! Weird - I know!

Chilling with my girls! My girls are my core group of 7 and of course my bestie, my sis!

A good day at the beach..and you know what, it doesn't even have to be sunny. My all time favorite beach - Folly Beach in Charleston, SC!!

Be prepared - this blog's taking a turn!

So in all the blog following I have been doing - I think I am going to make some changes to this one. My blog started off as a tribute to my child (at the time) and now children. An easy way for out of towners to see what we are up too. But I think I may put a little more into it.

Let me tell you for starters how FREAKING excited I was to see that I have not one but TWO followers (you gotta start somewhere right?!?!?) and one of my followers left me a comment. Whoop Whoop!

I see all these super cool things that people do on their blogs and I am going to attempt it. Who knows how it will work.

Hi my name is Lorie and I am a Blog Addict!!

Yep - you read it right! I am a blog addict. As time goes on I get worse and worse. I will click on a complete stranger's blog and then will see the blogs she follows and the blogs she follows and so on. I will be 5 peeps deep and not know one of them. When did it get to the point in my life where I enjoyed reading about people's lives that I have never met? What's worse is that I do it daily. It's like my out to know that I am not the only one that has the daily issues that I have or the twisted sense of humor that I do. I thought I was the only smart alack around...I can tell you...not the case! So here's a heart felt thank you to all of you who blog all the time and don't make it private!