"Sweets and Sassy's"

...at least that's what Maci Dean (Brenly's best friend!)calls it...and that is where she choose to have her birthday party!


So imagine my precious Bren (the biggest tomboy ever...as I have noted in previous entries!) as she prepares herself to have to ENDURE one of the most miserable things in her life...Dressing up, getting her nails done, make up, sunglasses, scarfs, dancing (remember she has NO rythym---apparently a trait she picked up from her daddy and her MiMi:) AND a doing a runway model deal, strutting her stuff and having to pose three times! I mean, there just isn't much more that a tomboy could dread!! I had to have a SERIOUS conversation with her on the way there, "This is MACI's party, she is your best friend, you need to participate, have a smile on your face and for the love, just TRY to have a good time!" So we walk in, and it is all things GIRLY!!! Pink everywhere, boa's, nail poish, hair glitter, dresses...enough to make Brenly get sick even at the sight of it all! But she was a trooper...they took her back and let her pick out a dress...(ha...I can't help but laugh even as I type it!) and she finds one that is blue...(at least they have one that is her favorite color, I don't think she could have gone with a pink one!) The funniest part of that is that the only blue dress was the "Frilly-est" one there! They place her in the chair to get her nails done (she picks the lightest color in the box so that no one will notice that she has had to endure such pain:) she changes chairs and they start fixing her hair (keep in mind that she has a come apart when I try to even brush it and put a barette in...and she is sitting there patiently while they put half of it up in a pony tail?!?! My talk really did help!)





The girl asked if she wanted glitter and she winced and quickly nodded her head yes, truly hoping that the girl would NOT see her response...She loads Brenly hair up with sparkly glitter and now it is makeup time...Brenly again decided that she is going with the most neutral color...almost skin color :)
And not they get to have a freeze dance party (they play loud music and when it stops, you FREEZE!) So she quickly starts jumping up and down to resemble any form of dancing...with a smile on her face no less!




And now they start to practice their runway modeling...They must come from behind the beaded curtain, walk up the runway and pose three times (Brenly looks at me with a terrified look..."what's a pose?)




She does all of it very well, and even does the cutest "poses" ever! AND now for the real fashion show...sunglasses, scarfs, rings...the whole nine yards! It's showtime...They crank the music and she struts her stuff!





Absolutely precious..and I think she may have even enjoyed it...just a little, but don't you dare tell her that I told you so! She will deny it forever!


P.S. and I had to add one of Avery...she was too cute...She was just ready for the cake!

We take the paci...

and she finds her fingers...and I am not sure which one is worse. We took the paci from Avery when she was 13 months old...(for her mother is a dental hygienist who is a nut about anything teeth related...YES, I even Floss :) and when she was about 15-16 months, she and Brenly were playing in her room and at the VERY bottom of her toybox she spotted it...a long lost paci!! AND the love for that thing was rekindled and perhaps even stronger than before...SHE LOVED IT! and we let her have it for a week or two...only to remember what a hassle it was! When we lost it (remember we only had that one!) It was traumatic! So we quickly remembered why we didn't like it in the first place (other than the fact that it was messing up her alignment and her occlusion!) So we have recently, within the last month...have been noticing that she has replaced the paci for her fingers...three of them to be exact, on the right hand....The pointer finger of the other hand goes in the tail of her lamby (I know, it sounds a little disturbing...) and so I had to take a picture of her, so that we would remember exactly why we are going to have to spend thousands on orthodontia in the years to come!

The power of advertising on tv...

is a pretty powerful thing...Last week we were sitting at the dinner table and Brenly tells us that she is freezing and that she needs to get her blanket before she can eat! She continues to say that she is always freezing when she sits down to eat! We both look at her as if she has lost her mind...but allow her to go get her blanket (she is VERY good at using EVERY excuse in the book to keep from eating...esp. when we are eating something that she isn't fond of!) so she goes and gets her blanket and sits back down at the table! She starts "picking" at her food again and says..."Last night (because any moment that is not in the here and now...is last night to her!) I saw that they were selling these blankets that have sleeves in them...they only cost 4 numbers (meaning $19.95) AND they come in different colors! They have kids sizes too! I need one so that I can wear it when we eat!" She would be referring to the "slanket" that they sell on tv! Imagine my child ordering a slanket to wear at the dinner table, so that she will eat!...OH MY...way too much tv for my oldest child!

She is healed...

Praise the Lord! Yesterday was very traumatic and emotional for all involved...however our prayers were answered and she no longer has bladder reflux!!
We were supposed to be at Methodist Germantown at 8:30 and the procedure was to start at 9:00. Everything was going as planned and they were right on time. They call us back to the xray/ultrasound room and I was FINE! We walk in and Avery can sense that "something" just isn't right! She asks if we have done this before, I nodded yes and she hands me a little bitty gown to put Avery in....Avery LOSES IT!! She cries like never before (over a gown...and it only went downhill from there!)Brenly is standing beside me and big ole' alligator tears are streaming down her face (because she doesn't want Avery to be sad!) Oh my goodness...So I have not one, but two children who are terribly upset...The nurse tells me that they are going to need strap Avery to the papoose board (its easier to use, less radiation, less traumatic-right?!, makes the procedure faster, etc....none of those excuses make it any easier for a momma!!) One of the nurses take Brenly behind the metal wall and I proceed to get her dressed in her little PEACH gown (did not go with the RED hair:) and they laid her down on that skinny (keep in mind that my kids are not) little board and strap her in...BLOODY MURDER!!! (this is when I LOSE it!) She was so mad (comes with that red hair territory) that she started arching her back, trying to squirm her way out of it! The nurses take a leg a piece and put me in charge of her upper body! GREAT...so I get to watch the HUGE tears, the blotchy face, the looks of agony ("Mommy, do you see what they are doing? and why aren't you stopping it?) and in the midst of all this nonsense...one of the nurses starts the catheter and the bloody murder screams gets louder and the fit grows larger! Avery starts SCREAMING, "BB (which is what she calls Brenly) HELT ME, HELT ME (interpretation, HELP ME!) PITIFUL! BROKE MY HEART!! So we are set to start the test...except that we now have wait on the radiologist...Are you kidding me? In the meantime, one of the nurses has gone to get Avery a bear from the "toy chest" and so I start asking her what she is going to name the bear...I go through every name that I can think of (I am sure that I mentioned your name...that is how long we waited!)I even threw in things like "I promise we can go to Target (my kids love TARGET...so does their mother!) and I will get you popcorn and an icee! I am trying anything that I can to get her mind of this most horrendous experience! He finally arrives and asks if I remember which side had the reflux (right, like I remember that, especially NOW!) So now he says that we need to call the Lebonheur Surgery Center (which is where we had the first test done) b/c he needs to know which side and how much of the contrasting soln. they used last time! For real? Just start this mess so that we can get out of here! They never heard back from the surgery center, so he proceeds on without that info (couldn't we have done that 15 mins earlier!) So he fills her bladder up to at least the size of a large cantaloupe (perhaps even a small watermelon) as I watch it on the screen (in my head, thinking...I wonder if a bladder has ever burst because her bladder was HUGE! They finally stop the drip (of contrasting soln.) and the nurse explains that she is going to start removing the catheter...HERE WE GO AGAIN...not that it ever really stopped, but the screaming and crying subsided "just a little"! The cath. is removed and Avery pees everywhere (well who wouldn't when they put liquid in your bladder the size of a cantaloupe!) and it shows that her reflux is completely gone! Jesus has healed her and we are getting out of there! The doctor mentions that the reflux is gone and her kidneys/bladder are functioning completely normal! Thank you Jesus!
We wash her off, clean her up, dress her and we are on our way to Target for some popcorn and an icee and all is well with the world!
By the way...Brenly was such a big sister, she tried real hard to brave, but it is hard to watch baby sister go through that! She got popcorn and an icee as well :)

Girls will be girls...

and girls can be silly! The other night (after the scary potty incident) I was taking pictures of the girls together and they decided I needed to join in in the fun! Can you tell by the smiles on our faces that we had a pretty good time?!

PooPoo on the potty...

The past week has been a busy week for Avery as far as potty training goes! She has been trying to get this whole thing down...and she has picked up on it pretty quick (we are no where NEAR the end of this journey...however any step forward is good!) so Sunday night she was running around naked (which helps her realize that nothing is going to "catch" what is falling:) and she ran up to me whining, basically with her legs crossed...So I pick her up and run her to the potty and she continues to cry..That's interesting, this hasn't been an emotional issue before...She quickly finishes and as she is getting up I realize that this wasn't just a peepee stop...She went ahead with "other" and it scared her to death...Perhaps even a bit scarred for life! She got up and cried and REFUSED to look at the surprise she had left in the potty! It really was quite comical...So now, she is even scared to poop in her diaper...which has made her even a little constipated!! Great...I now have a child who is scared of her own poop!


and "lamby" even made it for the big occasion...there isn't much that "lamby" hasn't experienced!

Pray for Avery tomorrow...

we are going into Methodist Germantown Hospital tomorrow to get retested for Bladder Reflux :( She got diagnosed a year ago and has been on antibiotics ever since!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Vesicoureteral Reflux
Urine normally flows in one direction—down from the kidneys, through tubes called ureters, to the bladder. Vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) is the abnormal flow of urine from the bladder back into the ureters.

VUR is most commonly diagnosed in infancy and childhood after the patient has a urinary tract infection (UTI). About one-third of children with a UTI are found to have VUR. VUR can lead to infection because urine that remains in the child’s urinary tract provides a place for bacteria to grow. But sometimes the infection itself is the cause of VUR.



Vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) can cause swelling in the ureter and kidney, known as hydroureter and hydronephrosis.


The test consists of this...
Voiding cystourethrogram (VCUG): A test that examines the urethra and bladder while the bladder fills and empties. A liquid that can be seen on x rays is placed in the bladder through a catheter. Pictures are taken when the bladder is filled and when the child urinates. This test can reveal abnormalities of the inside of the urethra and bladder. The test can also determine whether the flow of urine is normal when the bladder empties.


Our prayer is that she has completely outgrown this and that no further treatment will be necessary...

Pray for mommy too...It is so hard for me to have to watch her go through this procedure...I have to hold her hands above her head, while she is screaming bloody murder for about 30 minutes...uuuuggghhhh...I am just ready for it to be over with!

Thanks for all of your prayers for all of us!

BULLIES...

at church?
Yesterday was a very traumatic day for Brenly in Sunday School...This is the first time (and certainly not the last!) that Brenly has gotten her feelings hurt because of what others have said about her!
I had just gotten out of my small group and was headed to Graceland to pick up the girls...on the way there Emma Willard ran up to me and said...Mom is in the room with Brenly, she is crying real hard because everybody was teasing her and Ethan about being boyfriend/girlfriend and she was really sad!
Let me back up the story alittle bit! Ethan Willard is related to Scott Willard who is Richie Willard's (uncle Richie...whom I have known since I was in the womb) brother. Brenly (as most of you know...) is the biggest tomboy in the world and so for all of her 4 (almost 5) years of life she has always "hung with the boys" (and Maci)!! Luke Willard (son of Richie) and Ethan Willard (son of Scott) and her have ALWAYS been big buddies...Luke got moved to the Kindergarten class leaving Brenly and Ethan to fend for themselves...and they are pretty tight...Peas and carrots, peanut butter and jelly, etc. you get it...If you see one, you see them both...Forget the fact that other people are in their SS class, because they only play with each other!!


(These pictures were actually taken by Mr. Matt and Mrs. Liz at Sunday School!)
Keep in mind that Ethan has 1 older brother and 2 older sisters...and so being teased is a NORMAL part of Ethan's little life! He is completely used to it..and it never really phases him...Brenly however doesn't have older siblings to tease her on a daily basis..which is where out melt down takes place!
Yesterday they were in class together...playing their normal games...Building guns to shoot Mr. Ben with (which is completely normal in SUNDAY SCHOOL!), being spies, putting together a dinosaur puzzle (all the normal things a 4 year old GIRL should be doing...but whatever!) Anyway...supposedly the "WHOLE CLASS" (or so Brenly says) was teasing her and Ethan about being boyfriend/girlfriend and it sent her over the edge...she was hysterical, wouldn't talk to any of the teachers about what was wrong...I really haven't seen her THAT upset in a long while! Carla (Ethan's mom) reached the class before I did and was sweet enough to sit in there and love on her until I got there! She told her that the friendship that her and Ethan has was very special...
I finally arrived and didn't help much! I held her, told her I loved her and tried to justify (not really justify, but explain their actions) why they were teasing her! She wasn't having any of it! We got Avery from her class and went to see Uncle Richie and Aunt Christy. He held her and loved on her and told her that next week, he would come in there and use his "Bart" (Richie's KidCity character) voice and talk to the kids about being nice...I then went on to tell her that Eli (Ethan's older bro.) would be in there 1st service and I would be in there 2nd service...I think after she knew we would ALL be in there next week, she was slightly comforted...but we shall see...
Don't let momma go in there and have to roll up her sleeves...Cuz' I'll do it...Nobody puts my baby in a corner! :)

Who's in the kitchen with Dinah?

Yesterday we were on our way home from church...(one of the MANY times we are in the car for extended periods of time) and Avery had fallen asleep! Avery is usually the one that LOVES to sing (BaaBaa Black Sheep, Twinkle Little Star, Jesus Loves Me, Ring around the Rosies, London Bridge, Jesus is His Name-O, etc...) however because she was asleep, Brenly decided to take over the singing role! She started singing:

"Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah,
Someone's in the kitchen I know ho ho ho
Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah
strummin on the ole' banjo

we're singing Fe-Fi Fiddley I Oh
Fe-Fi Fiddley oh ho ho ho
Fe-Fi Fidley Oh
strummin on the ole' banjo ho ho!!

Soon after she stopped singing she asked, "Mommy, who is in the kitchen with Dinah?"
I answered by singing
SOMEONE'S in the kitchen with Dinah
Someone's in the kitchen I know HO HO HO

Brenly exclaimed, " I got it...It was Santa Claus...because he said HO HO HO!" I laughed out loud and then continued singing

We're singing Fe-Fi Fiddley I oh

and she shouted, "no maybe it was a giant, because he said Fe-Fi (Fo Fum..like Jack and the beanstalk!)

She is too smart for me...Always has those wheels turning...analyzing everything...including Who's in the kitchen with Dinah! Heaven help us if you've got a minute!!

Sleep deprived...

because of Dora?!?! If you have read my previous post, you will understand that I have survived many sleepness nights due to my sick baby...I also need you to understand that I LOVE SLEEP and miss it greatly (seeing as how you never get enough sleep when you have children!) so last week was pretty hard...sick child is bad but no sleep on top of it is WORSE!
So Tueday night I put both girls to sleep and fully expect to sleep through the night (Avery was FINALLY feeling better!) I was anticipating a great night of sleep...That idea got shot down when first Avery start crying at about 3ish am! She is coughing and choking on snot..so I get her up, head to the kitchen to fill her up with that pretty strong cough medicine (as advised by my pediatrician--I don't drug my kids for no reason...although there are days...) and it takes a while for her to relax and get back to sleep...so I roll back in the bed at approx. 4:00-4:15ish! Just get comfortable when my OTHER CHILD...Brenly hollers out for me...MOMMY, MOMMY, etc...(ARE YOU FOR REAL?! I have already spent an hour and 15 min. of my precious sleep time with one...and now the other one needs me! So I reluctantly roll out of the bed for the 2ND time to check on Brenly! I crawl in bed with her (because it is cold and I am too tired to stand beside her bed and find out what is wrong...and perhaps I could get in and she would fall back asleep alittle faster, which means I would get more sleep as well!) She feels me crawl in and she says (completely still asleep...) Mommy...I just saw Dora!! (oh my goodness, I have gotten woken up again, gotten out of my bed, only to hear that you have seen Dora?!?!) I pat her on the back and say, "that's great honey...are you okay?" She replies (Keep in mind that aside from loving sleep...I DO NOT speak in the morning..until I am fully awake...Everyone around me KNOWS that you have to give me several minutes...Okay quite a while, before you start having full blown conversations with me !)"Yes, Mommy, I just saw Dora...and then when I turned around MiMi was there, and then Dora handed us a map, so we will know where we are going and...etc...Okay, alright, enough already, go back to sleep, Precious Angel! Perhaps one to many Dora shows, ya think!

My sick baby...

is finally better (I hope and pray!) This past week and a half has been a rough one! WOW!! You forget how hard having a sick baby is until you have one and it last for over a week...SOLID! Last Monday, I went to get the girls on my lunch hour because I had to run some important errands Monday afternoon (and had to get there before dark :) and when I got to Denise's house...I picked Avery up and she felt extremely hot! I asked Denise if she had been sick and she said that she had been fine all morning, but that she had just woken up from a nap...maybe she was just hot from being under the covers...I leave there and head to Walgreens for some tylenol and motrin (just in case) I get back to work and she gets REAL fussy and clingy...and even hotter than before! We are getting ready to leave and she THROWS up ALL over and me and my scrubs! UUGGHHH, so I just figure that she is getting the stomach virus again (since we have had it 3 times in the past 4 months!) So we get home and my child has 103 fever...YIKES...so I give her Motrin and actually get in the bathtub with her because she is sooo HOT...and lethargic, she could barely open her eyes or hold up her head...Bless her little heart! The fever seems to break a little and we were up all night with her! I got to work Tuesday while Ray stayed home with her and he said she seemed to be a little better...Get home from work Tuesday night and she is not looking good. Fever, Pasty skin, No appetite...Just plain YUCK!!! So I get up (Well I was already up because it was another one of those nights) and get to the dr. for early clinic! The Dr. says that she has a virus (I hate that word...there is nothing in the world you do for a virus except to let them feel terrible for several days!) but says that she is very congested, so he gave her a decongestant, cough suppressant, antihistamine...Which was REALLY strong and it wiped her out...literally! Poor baby...So from Last Monday to literally Tuesday, she has NOT been herself! But I think we have finally turned the corner and our Avery is back...However I think that she got used to all the attention...Yesterday (Wednesday- I was off!) and I was laying on the couch (she wakes up SO early, especially since I LOVE to sleep!) and she was laughing and playing watching Mickey Mouse and she walks up to me and has her eyebrows cocked alittle and says, "Mommy, I'n tick!" (translation: Mommy, I'm sick!) I cracked up laughing...She wasn't sick but needed me to treat her as if she was! I think we have a drama queen on our hands!
Welcome Back precious Avery...we certainly missed "you" while you were sick!

Heaven got another angel!

This week has been a sad one! Tuesday morning a got a text from Keren (Misty's sister in law!) saying that we needed to pray for her dad RIGHT NOW! I immediately got off the phone and started praying when Misty called...just to chat! I was very confused at why she wasn't hysterical! Then I realized that that is one of the tings that I love most about Misty...Alot of the time- she is just clueless! Bless her heart! However...at this moment in her life, God was using her cluelessness to protect her. She was driving to the hospital, not knowing that her dad had just passed away! Larry aka Mr.Pam/Papa Bear Miller went to be with Jesus Tuesday morning after an apparent massive heart attack. 911 was called and when they arrived they had to do CPR to try to stabilize him enough to transport him! Jesus had different plans for him and he is now in heaven in NO pain and eating ALL the sugar he wants (he was a diabetic and was not fond of the no sugar diet!) We are all very sad for the family, for their loss is sudden and great, BUT we know that God is good and He has got great plans for the family (I know sometimes it is hard to look past the pain to see the future, But I trust that God is faithful and Just and that His love endures forever!)
I am trying to memorized at least 2 Bible verses a month (I am not so good at memorizing but I am going to try...That way I will have memorized at least 24 verses by the end of the year!) and it just so happens that I pick out Psalm 39:4-5
"Lord, show me when my life will end.
Show me how many days I have left.
Tell me how short my life will be.
5 You have given me only a few days to live.
My whole life doesn't seem like anything to you.
No man's life lasts any longer than a breath.
We have to keep in mind that LIFE IS SHORT!!! And when Jesus is ready to take us home..there is not much we can do besides OBEY! LIVE, LAUGH and LOVE like crazy!!!

We will miss you Papa Bear and we are grateful for the time that God allowed us to have you! See you one day in heaven!

I know you didn't...

..get "THAT" for my children to play with...There are times in your life when your children get gifts from friends and family members that just aren't necessary...a loud toy, a set of drums, an baby doll with an annoying cry etc...You understand what I am saying! So this Christmas, my brother and sister-in-law went WAY out of their way and got the girls some really great presents...remote control trucks, a Wii, a HUGE mickey mouse, I mean some REALLY good stuff! But all good things must come to an end...We were almost through with unwrapping all of our most wonderful presents and my brother leaves the room and tells us that we have to close our eyes for the girls last present...(WOW, one would think...what else could they have gotten for them? IT must be REALLY good!) However...My brother steps out and throws "THIS" on the floor...




A "STINKIN" Alabama Bean Bag...For real? You want me to bring THAT into my house! And Brenly LOVED it...maybe more than any other present that she got! In fact we were leaving to drive to Dickson for Christmas Eve night and our car was PACKED...so it ws unfortunate that we had to leave the dreaded bean bag with the Deaton's...Brenly cried, because she wanted to take it so bad!
And furthermore...one of her other presents was an ornament that will have to hang on our tree, Maybe...And it looks like this...

"Bama girl" UUGGHHH! He has RUINED her, maybe for life!! That's okay...when she decides that she HAS to go to "Alavama" (Brenly adds a "v" instead of a "b")because Uncle Chad LOVES them...He can just pay the tuition..only fair, right? AND he has a precious child that I love to death and turn about is fair play! It just might happen that she will end up loving a team he is very opposed to...Only time will tell! And don't think that Baylee won't receive something ORANGE from us in the near future!

Christmas 2008...

..seems so far away...I can't believe that it is already January 5 of a new year and I have yet to blog about Christmas (Thanks to my precious sister in law, I got a gentle reminder last night that I have been neglecting my blog for far too long!) It was Christmas Adam (the name that my sister in law used to describe the day before Christmas Eve..It took me a while, but then I cackled out loud!) and we all (Ray, me and the girls...loaded up all of our Christmas goodies and headed to OB,MS. to celebrate our Christmas and then we spent the night so that we would be ready to celebrate with our extended family! We had such a fun night...lots of presents of god memories! It was a first for us to do Christmas this way, and I feel like it may be our new family tradition...The girls got lots of new and fun things...They gave us a Wii and Wii Fit and that by far was my most favorite prize! They were too good to all of us and we love them to pieces...Here are a few pics from the evening...


They gave my child 2 huge remote control trucks...and she LOVES them! Look at that smile on her face!


Avery and her Cabbage Patch Kid...They look just alike...RED Hair and Blue eyes!


Baylee and her "Granny Bear"...I found a Care Bear with a pink cancer ribbon on the belly! Too precious! She loved it!



Thanks to Uncle Chad for such fun surprises...


and thanks to Aunt Ronni for making it all happen! You both are the BEST!!!



The girls with their Uncle Chad...


Brenly painted Uncle Chad and Aunt Ronni an elephant for Christmas...Brenly says "it is an elephant with its trunk up" I thought it was really good!


Look at all the mess...and it was so much fun making that mess!