BEST NEWS EVER!!

MY BROTHER IS ON HIS WAY HOME FROM IRAQ!!!!

He has been there since November of last year! He has missed the last 3 Christmases due to deploying! There is light at the end of the tunnel! He is not planning to re-enlist, so as soon as he steps off that plane, we will be able to breathe a sigh of relief!

This has to be the best way to end 2008!

Love you Bubba! Can't wait till you are home safe and sound!

Merry Christmas!

Our beautiful tree before the mayhem!

Yes, it's over. I am SO glad! Kinda. We had an AWESOME Christmas! My kids were absolutely thrilled with every single present they recieved! They were perfect little angels as well!

One of the perfect angels!


The only thing better, would be that if got to see the rest of our families, but since that couldn't happen, we made the best of it and had a really great Christmas with our little (ok, big) family!


Gerald and I finally laid our heads down on the pillow sometime between 2 and 3 a.m. Sydney was first to rise at 7:14. Lily quickly followed, and we had to wake up the last two. It started out very calm and organized and quickly turned into mayhem! 6 people worth of presents is a LOT! Only one present was opened by the wrong kid, and it just so happened to be Lily opening Lucas', and he didn't care a bit. Whew!

Due to not having a charger, we almost had to do without our camcorder, but I am so glad I got it all on video! We watched last years video and it almost made me tear up seeing how much my babies have changed! I had to turn the camera off a little early though because of the amount of presents to be opened! The kids got so much, I couldn't even start to list it all. Gerald was spoiled as well. I got most of what was on my list too! My new table for scrapbooking has to be exchanged though. I took it out to set it up tonight and the corners are just smashed. :( Not sure when I'll get my new one since the lines will be crazy for a while. I've waited this long, I suppose I can wait a little longer.





Santa Came!


Mayhem quickly followed!


We had an absolutely to die for dinner! It consisted of Ham, potatoes au gratin, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, candied yams (plain sweet potato for Aubrey), corn, and rolls. Wow. I just realized how many carbs we ate today! LOL! We all ate a TON and barely had enough room for the pumpkin and lemon meringue pies I had made nevermind, the dozens of cookies I had baked earlier in the week!



A tuckered out Cakers!
She was full of ham and sweet potato!


Some friends of ours came over for a few hours in the evening to hang out since they were spending their first Christmas away from their family. It was nice to have the company, and I think it was good for them as well. In the military, our friends are family too!

And with that, I'll end this post. I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas and has a Happy New Year! Here's to 2009!
~God Bless

Rain Rain Go AWAY!!!

Today would be so much better if it would just quit raining! I love this area, but I HATE the weather! It seems like all it ever does is rain. And of course, I had lots of running around to do and it would start raining just as we would be getting in and out of the car.



Anyway, this post isn't meant to be a rant about the weather...


First things first. The Dr. agreed that we could wait on the CT scan. He said with my kids' history of large heads, he was comfortable enough to wait and see. Though, he had to plant that seed of worry by saying, if you notice any changes in her coordination or development, bring her right in. Umm, she's 13 months old and she has parents that were born without coordination, so I guess we'll be looking for changes in her lack of coordination! LOL!




Next. The teacher's gifts that I have been staying up late for the last week to finish and deliver by today. Guess what?! One actually got delivered yesterday! A whole day early! That's why I don't have a picture. But it's the same as Sydney's, just green instead of blue. Here's a picture:

And finally, the class snacks that I spent over 6 hours making (I made 51 of them)! I got this wonderful recipe off the Bakerella blog that I follow! They are candy coated Rudolph Cupcake Pops! The kids just loved them! And here's a picture of them:

So the craziness is ALMOST over! I don't have a whole lot to do to prepare for Christmas, other than cleaning the house that I've been neglecting while I made gifts and snacks. Work is still nuts. If I end up working open to close tomorrow, I'll have 32 hours just for this week! But, that too, will end this week. I am not sure what I am going to do on December 26th with so much time on my hands!? I still look forward to it though! :)

Hopefully it'll all be over on Friday

9:50a.m on Friday, Aubrey has an appointment to re-check her head circumference and for me to present the Dr with all of the other kids records that I was able to come up with. Surprisingly, I was able to come up with quite a few. I think I have enough to make the point that 3 of my 4 kids (Sydney's records were not available since we were in the Marine Corps during her first year) all had measurements at or near the 95% around their 12 month birthdays. If her head is even bigger at this appointment, we will, without a doubt, be getting the scan. However, I don't think that'll be the case. So, I may have to miss out on part of the girls' holiday celebrations at school, but Aubrey's health is far more important. I'll head to their school first thing in the morning, then leave for the Drs appointment from there.

Anyway, I have a little boy trying to sit on me and a little girl eating the screen of the laptop, so I must go. I'll be sure to update Friday with the final decision!

So behind...

I feel like a chicken with my head cut off! Work has been crazy. Scheduled for 3 or 4 hours and end up working 10-12. It's amazing how many people procrastinate as well as I do! LOL! Then they realize that Christmas is, GASP, less than 11 days away and they MUST have their pictures taken! Our studio is promising pictures to be delivered on the 24th if you have them taken by the 21st! That is CRAZY!

Work is not all that is crazy. I am just now finishing up Christmas cards. They are all addressed, stamped, and waiting for return labels, then they can be mailed. I do have 3 or 4 I need to find addresses for tomorrow. But not too bad. They are going out a bit later than I'd like, but at least they are going out!

School. This has to be my biggest worry. Of course, being me, I decided I would attempt making all of the teacher's gifts. I will post pictures once they are all done. The finished one turned out cute. For all the resource teachers (art, music, P.E., library, etc), I am making edible gifts. Art teachers had to be done tonight because Monday is art day and it'll be the last time they see her before break.

So, that is where I am. Knee deep in work, christmas cards, making gifts, and nevermind the fact that I wanted to get my hair done last week, Aubrey's Dr appointment/big head problem, I need a Drs appt (nothing serious, just regular check-up stuff and med refills), the dogs need to go to the vet to get shots...It never ends does it??? I love Christmas, I really truly do, but I will be breathing a huge sigh of relief on December 26th. I promise!

And now I must shower and crawl into my bed for a few hours of rest!
G'nite!

To worry or not to worry...

That is the question.

So, Aubrey had her 1 year well child check up yesterday. The Doctor says that her head circumference is beyond what it should be for her age. He suggested a CT scan to rule out hydrocephaly. Under normal circumstances, I would be freaking out and wanting the test tomorrow. But, this time I'm not. I just don't see what he sees. Granted, I'm not a Doctor. But, I might as well be after 4 kids, not to mention my NICU time! I'm not rushing off to the test without some further information. First and foremost, I want him to get the rest of her records (they are still at Tyndall thanks to no one informing us we needed to fill out forms, but that's another blog for another day). Then, I want him to get the records for my other 3 children and compare. I did some of this on my own today. I called Tyndall, and I got Lucas' 12 month head circumference. And guess what?! It's almost identical to Aubrey's! I couldn't get Lily and Sydney's due to their's being in an old format that the computer didn't recognize, so we need hard records for those. And finally, I want to know what the test will entail. How will she be kept still and will she be sedated and for how long and where will the test be?

Like I said, I tend to err on the side of caution, but my mommy instincts are just telling me that she's no different than the rest of us and just has a good sized noggin. Big noggin = big brain right?! Not to mention, upon looking up signs for hydrocephaly, she shows not a single one of the other symptoms besides the above average circumference.

There are pictures of her from her birthday in my Novembers blog posts, so go ahead and look for yourself. Tell me if you think it's extremely enlarged as the Dr stated based on the circumference measurements.

Coincidentally, I also found in my research that breastfed infants tend to have a larger head circumference than formula fed babies during the first year of life (most in the 95%). And I'd be willing to place a bet that those charts are based on formula fed infants!

Anyway, I am worrying, because I'm a mom and that's what I do. I'm not freaking out though. I'll keep y'all posted.

Because I don't give him enough credit...

We get so busy with everyday life, that I don't often get a chance to recognize all that my husband does for me. I know that I really need to work on showing my appreciation for him and all he does. So, tonight I'm going to do just that. I've been working a lot lately while there are hours to be worked. When you work in a photo studio, holidays are the busiest time, then there is next to nothing as of the 26th of December . So, I need to work while I can. This means being called at odd hours and asking if I can work with very short notice. This also means that if I'm scheduled till 1p.m., I may not be home till 7. Tonight was one of those nights. When I walked in the door tonight, the house was clean, the kids were fed and playing nicely, and the laundry was going. I couldn't have asked for more! The relief I felt when I could just take off my shoes, grab a bite to eat, and plop on the couch was indescribable. Granted, the house isn't always clean, the laundry isn't always going, but I do have to say, when he's in charge, the kids are always fed and well taken care of. Not that I'd expect anything less, but you have to remember he's gone from seeing the kids for only a half an hour a day just 6 months ago, to not only working 40hrs a week, but also being a single parent for a good chunk of every week! Not everyone can just be thrown into our routines and make it work! Of course, there are 4 little heathens that are sure to let you know if you do something out of routine! :) And while I'm on a roll here, I'll let it be known that he NEVER EVER complains if I want to go out shopping alone, take a nap, take a bath or shower just to get some peace, if the house isn't clean, or if I didn't feel up to cooking and we eat convenience foods. I know I complain too much, so before he ticks me off and I delete this whole post, I'm going to end it here and hurry up and hit post! LOL! I love you beeb!

Let it snow...Let it snow...Let it snow...

What a huge surprise for all of us this morning when we woke up to the clouds dumping huge, beautiful flakes of snow on us! I quickly called for the girls to come down because I knew it wouldn't last. We all stared in amazement and Sydney ran to the computer and went straight to weather.com to see how long it would last. Immediately she said, "Mom, I thought you said it had to be 32* out?, Weather.com says it's 36*." My reply was, "You may want to go watch it for another minute then because it will be stopping soon and it will be raining!" Sure enough, about 10 minutes later, you would never know that it had snowed at all. Most that know me, know I'm not a fan of winter, but this was perfect! A little snow to help bring in the festive time of year, but not enough to make us miserable. I would still like to see an inch or two once or twice this winter. It IS better than all the rain we get. Not to mention, actually living in a place that gets snow is fascinating to my children after having lived in Florida for most of their lives. Unfortunately I hadn't had my morning cup of coffee yet and didn't think to snap a picture of the snowfall, but trust me, it happened! :)
disclaimer-it's late, and I'm tired, so please forgive any spelling errors or poor grammar!

$74!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But, they are worth it!

Holy crap school pictures have gotten expensive! And they have really learned how to manipulate us parents who are suckers for cute pictures of our babies! The newest trick up their sleeve is that you can't get an 8X10 unless you order the biggest package at $37! That is, unless you ONLY want an 8X10, then you can pay $15. The cheapest package is $23. If you add on an 8X10, you are paying a dollar more than the biggest package. So, they've got ya, hook, line, and sinker! I cringed at paying $74 for pictures, but you can see why I HAD to order them!

I get nauseas when I think of the future when I'll be paying $37 (or more with inflation) X 4!

I should start a savings account for school purposes alone with book orders, book fairs, PTA stuff, fundraisers, pictures, and extra curriculars!

Such is life I suppose! ;)

Lucas Cleans

So, as part of our morning routine before school, I told the girls to go brush their teeth. Sydney headed upstairs and came down shortly after. She was holding a bottle of Listerine Smart Rinse (kids mouthwash). There was only one problem. It was EMPTY! I had just bought it 3 days ago! I asked her what happened, and she said, "I think Lucas dumped it down the sink." It seems while I was at work, Lucas decided to "clean". I learned this when I questioned his actions when he woke up this morning. Here's how our conversation went.

Me: Did you dump this down the sink?
Lucas: Yup, the sink had germs.
Me: Lucas, this is mouthwash, not chemicals for cleaning.
Lucas: I smelled it and I didn't like it.
Me: Ok, we'll next time you don't touch it, Ok? And if the sink has germs, tell me and *I* will clean it!
Lucas: Ok.

I'm not sure that any part of that conversation stayed in his little brain. But, I did learn that we are going to have to hide the nearly $4 bottles of mouthwash from him! I thought it was pretty safe, he's never touched it before! Oh how much I learn from a 3 year old boy! LOL!

A year ago (minus a day, but who's counting right?)

My first attempt at a fondant covered cake!

I made it all myself!
She wasn't so sure about the cake and daddy couldn't stand it,

so he rubbed some on her face! LOL!

One year ago at this very moment, I was sitting in a hospital bed, unsure of what the future would hold for me and my unborn daughter. We had been in the hospital a couple of other times, but this time was "it", it was just a matter of time. My water had broken days before, but in an attempt to mature her lungs, I stayed bedridden in the hospital until she decided it was time. The very next morning, she made her decision. I felt yucky. Not horribly ill, just not well enough to eat (especially since the hospital brought me the wrong food for the millionth time and I despise scrambled eggs). I also noticed that the baby hadn't been moving much. I really had to push on her to get a response. Shortly after my discovery, a nurse came in and immediately started moving me, pushing on her, anything to get some sort of response. Her heartrate was stable, but it was not accelerating or decelerating at all. And I mean you could hold a ruler to it on the little paper that the machine spit out. Minutes later the Dr came in and said, "So, you're not feeling well eh?" I told him I wasn't, but I didn't feel horribly ill like I had during my impending deliveries with Lily and Lucas. He took one look at the paper and said, "Call daddy. It's time!". Within an hour, we had a beautiful baby girl! The actual c-section was 2 minutes from the time of the first incision! She had a short stay in the NICU (well, compared to Lily and Luke's). After 10 days, we busted her out! Our family was complete. She was perfect.

Everyday, she fills our home with such joy! She has her moments, just as any other baby, but I wouldn't trade any of them for the world! We definitely have spoiling down to a science! LOL! Even Lucas, the little brute knows how to spoil her! One little peep in an unhappy tone, and he says, "MOMMMM, what's wrong with the baby? GET HER!" Or if I dare leave her in the playpen or highchair, while I do some unthoughtful thing, like go to the bathroom, and she cries, her sisters are right there to the rescue! And if I question their rescue, it's always, "Well she was crying! She's not allowed to cry!" Oooops. I take full blame for that one. I must admit, this baby hasn't been allowed to cry much. I carry her a lot. I nurse her when she feels like it. I rock her to sleep. I take her to bed with me. You can't overlove a baby right? We may pay for it when she's two and she thinks the world revolves around her, but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, we'll let her believe it and cherish every single moment of it!

So Aubrey Cakers, I want to wish you the very happiest of birthdays, and let you know that I thank God every single day for blessing us with you! I'm sorry I have to work tomorrow night, but we celebrated your birthday all weekend long, I hope you had as much fun as we did! :)

I love you forever!

Oh, and for the record, she stood, unassisted for the first time yesterday, Nov 8th! We'll have a walking baby soon! YAY!

For the Birds...Work that is.

I started working yesterday. I am working at a portrait studio. I am training this week, so I am working the loooooongest hours ever (10.5 today!). I miss my babies so much, but I am so grateful for them when I return home! It's only day two and my appreciation for home and family has already grown! I am glad that it is doing something that I love. I am excited and can't wait till I am confident and able to do the job on my own. The first few days in any job, with a supervisor looking over your shoulder are tough and nervewracking. It won't be long and I'm sure I'll be in full swing with everyone else. I do feel better that I am not the only newbie! Well, tomorrow is another long day so I must shower and prepare the kids' things for school. I will be blogging more after my training is over and I start a more regular schedule.

p.s. got news from my brother that is in the desert that there is unofficial word that they will be home in 6 weeks! YAY!

A heavy heart

Today, at 8:30a.m., our family lost a precious baby and heaven welcomed a beautiful angel. My heart is heavy with grief for the niece that I never had the chance to meet. I hope that Natalie is resting peacefully in heaven, free from the illness and pain that she had on earth. I pray that her wonderful parents, Robert and Sarah, find the peace they need to cope with this devastating loss.

Please keep our family in your thoughts as we head north to celebrate Natalie's life and mourn her passing. It will be a long drive and a short stay , but we need to be together with our family during this time.

A Blog Virgin

My first blog. Well aside from Myspace. But that doesn't count.

After much thought, I'm gonna give this blogging thing a whirl. I've been reading blogs for many years now, but never thought to write my own. I didn't think my life was quite interesting enough, but if nothing else, I'll have written record of the going ons in my life. I can't promise a daily, weekly, or even monthly update, but I will try...

For my first post, I'll give some interesting and not so interesting facts about me:

*I have 3 girls and 1 boy and, NO I do not want to even things up.
*I am good at cleaning, but hate every minute of it and don't do it as much as I should.
*I am addicted to shopping and have the debt to prove it. Oh, and whether he admits it or not, my husband is an enabler.
*I LOVE photography, but am a point and shoot girl and take better pictures when I'm not trying.
*I LOVE animals, but hate taking care of them (don't worry, they are all taken care of and well loved)
*I am a night owl, but go to bed early with my husband due to my anxiety.
* I am scared of things I have no control over.
* I happily take meds everyday to help with the above.
* I am Catholic, but suck at going to church (partially due to the younger 3's inability to sit still).
* I am not registered with a political party, but tend to vote republican.
*I am still nursing my almost one year old and I don't care what anyone thinks of it.
*I hold abovementioned one year old almost all day and I don't let her cry. she also sleeps with us.
*I let my kids have candy, soda, stay up late (on non-school nights), and play video games, but all in moderation.
*I have good days and bad, but the good far outweigh the bad!

And with that, I will end my first blog, lay this very sleepy baby down, and make attempt #2 at getting the remains of Mt. Laundry put away.