Changing addresses

Hey all!  I am restarting my blog, since the layout of this one is all messed up and I can't figure out how to fix it.  The new address is http://owens5.blogspot.com/.  Update your links!  I'll delete this site in a week or so.

Braeden's birthday fish

OK, so his birthday was a month and a half ago.  Don't hate.  Braeden got a spiffy new fishing pole for his birthday.  Grandpa Owens took him up to Henry's Lake to try it out the next day.  He caught this monster ALL.BY.HIMSELF.  And he was tasty.  And fame-earning!  Grandpa sent his picture in to the Post Register and they published it today as their Picture of the week.

Cute giveaway!

All Things Ribbon is giving away a set of REALLY cute hair bows. Go check it out and enter to win!

http://hairbowsforgirls.blogspot.com/2010/08/black-and-white-ribbon-blossom-giveaway.html

Perfect heart poem

A Mother’s Perspective
by Stephanie Husted

You passed me in the shopping mall…
(You read my faded tee)
You tapped me on the shoulder…
Then asked…”What’s a CHD?”

I could quote terminology…
There’s stats that I could give…
But I would rather share with you…
A mother’s perspective.

What is it like to have a child with a CHD?

It’s Lasix,aspirin,Captopril…
It’s wondering…Lord what’s your will?…
It’s monitors and oxygen tanks…
It’s a constant reminder to always give thanks…

It’s feeding tubes, calories, needed weight gain…
It’s the drama of eating…and yes it’s insane!
It’s the first time I held her…(I’d waited so long)
It’s knowing that I need to help her grow strong…

It’s making a hospital home for awhile…
It’s seeing my reward in every smile.
It’s checking her sats as the feeding pumps beeping…
It’s knowing that there is just no time for sleeping…

It’s caths, x-rays and boo boos to kiss…
It’s normalcy I sometimes miss…
It’s asking do her nails look blue?
It’s cringing inside at what she’s been through.

It’s dozens of calls to her pediatrician…
(He knows me by name…I’m a mom on a mission)
It’s winters homebound…and hand sanitizer…
It’s knowing this journey has made me much wiser.

It’s watching her sleeping…
her breathing is steady…
It’s surgery day and I’ll never be ready.
It’s handing her over…( I’m still not prepared…)

It’s knowing that her heart must be repaired…
It’s waiting for news on that long stressful day…
It’s …praying…it’s hoping…that she’ll be okay.
It’s the wonderful friends with whom I’ve connected…

It’s the bond that we share…it was so unexpected…
It’s that long faded scar down my child’s small chest…
It’s touching it gently and knowing we’re blessed…
It’s watching her chasing a small butterfly…

It’s the moment I realized I’ve stopped asking why?
It’s the snowflakes that fall on a cold winter’s day…
(They remind me of those who aren’t with us today)
It’s a brave little girl who loves ballet…

Or a special heart bear…or playing in the rain….
It’s the need to remember we’re all in this plight….
It’s their lives that remind us we still need to fight!
It’s in pushing ahead amidst every sorrow…
It is finding the strength to have hope for tomorrow

Fun blog giveaway!!!

The Body Shop is doing a fantastic giveaway for Christmas. They've partnered up with 12 fun blogs, so check it out!! You can either go to The Body Shop website for all the blog addresses, or here's one of them. Check it out!!!

I know, I know.........

I'm so bad at updating this! This one will be a quicky, but I promise to write more later on today.

Since the last time I wrote:

• McKinley got her glasses
• and she turned 16 (I mean 2)
• Her new favorite phrase: "Tareful mommy. Slick" as I get her out of the car.
• Emerson is a crawling maniac
• She is obsessed with the vacuum. Like chasing it around the room screaming obsessed
• She also pulls up on everything and likes to freak me out by letting go and standing ALL BY HERSELF!!! I keep explaining to her that she is NOT big enough for this.
• Braeden is just the normal crazy little kid.
• He fell asleep in the car the other night and I about died carrying him in. When did he get so heavy??

Things we are excited about:

• Jacks Mannequin and Thriving Ivory coming to the Civic Auditorium on April 9
• The Titanic exhibit at the Museum of Idaho
• The hints of spring that keep popping up between snow storms

Our 15 seconds of fame

Article
http://www.kpvi.com/Global/story.asp?S=9844428

and Video
http://www.kpvi.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp?ClipID1=3447201&h1=Local%20Families%20Talk%20About%20Daughters%27%20Heart%20Defect%3B%20Have%20Advice%20for%20Others&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=151467&LaunchPageAdTag=News&activePane=info&rnd=6388324

Newsworthy

February 7-14 is Congenital Heart Defect Awareness week. I faxed out some information to all the local news stations and newspaper trying to get them to do a story about CHD's. There are a lot of families in this area affected by them. A reporter from Channel 6 called yesterday! They are going to come to our house tonight and do a little story on McKinley. I'm guessing it will air tomorrow, but I will keep you all posted. Watch for us!!

THIS ought to be fun!

McKinley's appointment with the eye doctor was today. She thought it was really cool that she got to go with Grandma ALL by herself. I have a feeling the appointment was somewhat interesting though!

Anyway, she is EXTREMELY farsighted. When she tries to focus on things far away, her eyes have to work really hard. The one finally gets tired and jumps off to the side. SO (here's the fun part) she has to start wearing glasses!! I'm already having nightmares of them getting lost or broken. The doctor said that once they figure out they can see better with them they leave them alone, but she's SO wild.......I'm not buying it. We tried on a pair, and she looked pretty stinkin' cute. They should be here in about a week.

I also thought (mistakenly) that glasses for a little kid would be relatively inexpensive. HAHAHAHAHA!!!! They were more expensive than my last pair! Damn Fisher Price......

New camera!

So................not much new happening these days. Just work, and work, and well, work really!

We finally got a new camera! Yay! It's SO much better than the old one. Our old one was about 2 megapixels and this one is 14. Super cool. My kids probably think I'm the paparazzi now.



What else is new? We had to have ALL the carpet in our house restretched today. They didn't stretch it hardly at all when it was first installed, so now there's big bubbles where all the seams are. Looked oh so nice......at least it isn't costing us anything.

My mom is taking McKinley to the eye doctor tomorrow. THAT should be fun. Good luck! She has a little bit of a lazy eye so we want to make sure it gets taken care of. Poor kid. She's all sorts of defective!!

Ok. Enough random babbling. My brain hurts. TTFN!