Plus, it was fun to see a girly cake since nothing like that exists here in our house. Here is a picture of the cute, Rapunzel cake.
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Sunday, October 21, 2012
Tim's Cake
Tim got asked to make a birthday cake for a friend's daughter. His first ever paying job for a cake!!! He made a Rapunzel cake and it was very cute! The little girl LOVED it and the mom loved she got a great deal on an awesome cake! Yes, I am bragging about my husbands talent. He does an amazing job on all the cakes he's done and this one was great and much more satisfying cause he got paid.
Plus, it was fun to see a girly cake since nothing like that exists here in our house. Here is a picture of the cute, Rapunzel cake.
Plus, it was fun to see a girly cake since nothing like that exists here in our house. Here is a picture of the cute, Rapunzel cake.
Baby Rattler
A couple weeks ago all the boys were out in the garage cleaning and playing. Suddenly they all came rushing in and Tim said, "Keep Bacon away from the garage. There's a baby rattlesnake in there." It was curled up in in the front right corner of our garage, in between the wall and the garage door opener track. They all must have walked by it half a dozen times at least. We were so grateful no one was hurt!
Trying to figure out how to dispose of it, I called a friend whose husband has killed some before. While I was on the phone with her, Tim was going around the house, inside and outside, trying to find things to kill the snake with. At one point, he had a large dowel and one of my Cutco knives. I told him to stop. Our friend said her husband shoots them with a gun. We don't have one and he wasn't home. She did say the Fire Department will come get it for us.
So after Tim decided the dowel and knife weren't the best option or anything else, since it was in a small spot all coiled up, I called 91. Just a FYI: If you need the number of the police or fire department, you can call 911, tell them it isn't an emergency and they'll help you when they have time. Luckily, the operator had time and transferred me to the local Fire Department. I told them we had a baby rattlesnake in our garage and she said they'd be there in a few minutes.
When they pulled up, the little boys and I trekked out to watch. I had to keep a firm grip on Bacon but the other's stayed way back. They LOVED watching the firemen do their thing. They came in the smaller engine, wearing pink shirts for Breast Cancer Awareness Month and brought out their big hand grips to catch the snake with and the big box to put it in.
Tim and I were VERY glad he didn't try to get it on his own. Even the fireman had a hard time getting the snake since it was all coiled up. Here is a picture of the little thing:
Trying to figure out how to dispose of it, I called a friend whose husband has killed some before. While I was on the phone with her, Tim was going around the house, inside and outside, trying to find things to kill the snake with. At one point, he had a large dowel and one of my Cutco knives. I told him to stop. Our friend said her husband shoots them with a gun. We don't have one and he wasn't home. She did say the Fire Department will come get it for us.
So after Tim decided the dowel and knife weren't the best option or anything else, since it was in a small spot all coiled up, I called 91. Just a FYI: If you need the number of the police or fire department, you can call 911, tell them it isn't an emergency and they'll help you when they have time. Luckily, the operator had time and transferred me to the local Fire Department. I told them we had a baby rattlesnake in our garage and she said they'd be there in a few minutes.
When they pulled up, the little boys and I trekked out to watch. I had to keep a firm grip on Bacon but the other's stayed way back. They LOVED watching the firemen do their thing. They came in the smaller engine, wearing pink shirts for Breast Cancer Awareness Month and brought out their big hand grips to catch the snake with and the big box to put it in.
Tim and I were VERY glad he didn't try to get it on his own. Even the fireman had a hard time getting the snake since it was all coiled up. Here is a picture of the little thing:
Agua Linda Farms
Friday late afternoon we headed to Agua Linda Farms as a family. It is a little farm that has a Fall Festival every year. They have a larger corn maze for adults and/or teenagers, pumpkin patch and a hay ride. You can walk to the patch and pick the pumpkins or take the hay ride there. We walked and found 5 lovely small pumpkins that fit very nicely in our little stroller. Bacon opted to hold his the entire time he could. For small children, like ours, they have a bouncy house, pony rides, hay bales to climb, potato sack races, a petting zoo, other animals to look at, John Deere tractor colored tricycles to ride and a "maze". There is only one way to go in the maze but the little boys LOVED IT!!! And they also play "It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown". We got discount tickets, which was nice. We spent enough on food to make up the difference.
The boys had a blast. They loved the animals and the maze. The thoroughly enjoyed picking out the pumpkins and finding the "baby" ones to keep because "they are so cute!" They also quite enjoyed the pony rides and missed being on the news by about 5 minutes. One of the local news stations had someone out there who did a spotlight with the 2 kids right before Pach and Pickle on the ponies. It was still fun.
Pach got his first ever bloody nose. He yelled at me and I saw blood on his knee. I thought he'd scraped it on the maze. Nope, it was coming from his nose. Poor guy! He was so scared and it was soooo hard to get him to lean forward and not get the blood all over himself. Tim ended up putting some tissue up his nose as the bleeding slowed down. That drove Pach crazy! We had to keep reminding him not to touch the tissue, as it was helping his nose. He is a little OCD about a couple things, so this was an interesting incident with him.
Enjoy the pictures!
The boys had a blast. They loved the animals and the maze. The thoroughly enjoyed picking out the pumpkins and finding the "baby" ones to keep because "they are so cute!" They also quite enjoyed the pony rides and missed being on the news by about 5 minutes. One of the local news stations had someone out there who did a spotlight with the 2 kids right before Pach and Pickle on the ponies. It was still fun.
Pach got his first ever bloody nose. He yelled at me and I saw blood on his knee. I thought he'd scraped it on the maze. Nope, it was coming from his nose. Poor guy! He was so scared and it was soooo hard to get him to lean forward and not get the blood all over himself. Tim ended up putting some tissue up his nose as the bleeding slowed down. That drove Pach crazy! We had to keep reminding him not to touch the tissue, as it was helping his nose. He is a little OCD about a couple things, so this was an interesting incident with him.
Enjoy the pictures!
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| Tim trying to get the boys to jump and land on their bottoms. It was hilarious to watch! |
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| All the boys looking at the woolly sheep. |
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| The chicken coop. They LOVE chickens. It reminds them of their grandpa. |
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| The "maze". Me trying to get Bacon to go the right way. |
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| Finishing the maze together. Both the older boys ran back and forth a couple times while Bacon and I worked our way through it once. |
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| Pach and his tissued up nose. Poor guy! |
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| Beautiful sunset shot. |
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| Random picture I took of Bacon while we were waiting for the boys to ride the ponies. |
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| Ready to ride!!! They were leaning on the fence waiting with eyes open wide. |
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| Pickle waiting to go. |
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| Pach finally smiling. |
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| Potato sack races with dad. They did two and each won one. |
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| My three boys on top of the hay bale pile. |
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| All the men in my life on top of the hay bale pile. They were all supposed to be making scary faces. |
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| Bacon on the tractor. He loved it. |
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| This was the one trike he could reach the peddles on. |
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| He tried to pedal but the trikes were all too big. |
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| This is how Pach and Bacon spent most of the time. Pach just went over and started pushing him around. It was so fun to see. |
Guinea Pigs
Tim is making a wedding cake for a friends son in December. She sent over a recipe for a chocolate cake with raspberry filling and raspberry flavored whipped cream. Tim decided to make it today. We were his guinea pigs. As you can see, little Bacon LOVED the whipped cream. He mostly ate the cupcake but the whipped cream is what made him HAPPY!!!
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| A close up of the happy, messy boy! |
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| A picture of the table in front of him. He had fun too! |
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Falling Down the Stairs
Some of you know about the exciting week I had this week. Some of you don't. But thanks to technology and this blog, you all can know what happened.
First thing to know is our house is a 2 story house, which means WE HAVE STAIRS! And they are wood stairs, which makes them really easy to clean but also a bit slippery in socks.
Second thing to know is I wear socks to bed! Shocking!! I've been wearing socks to bed for a long time. I even wear socks when I walk up and down the stairs! (gasp!) I even wear socks when I carry kids up and down the stairs (double gasp!).
With this knowledge, here is the story: Bacon was still getting up in the middle of the night to eat. The kid is a tank (compared to the other two) and eats! He never seems to get enough. I am really not looking forward to food bills when he gets older. So Tuesday night/Wednesday morning about 2:30 am, he woke up crying. I put my glasses on, gathered him and his blanket up and headed downstairs. I stepped on the first step and the next thing I knew Bacon and I were flying down the stairs. I was trying not to let him get hurt, so all my focus and energy was on keeping him safe and not me. We landed on the landing, bum first and I screamed, "TIM! TIM!" and he came running. He had heard us falling but didn't know what it was.
Thankfully Bacon was absolutely fine. Rightly a bit shaken up and screaming. I guess falling down the stairs was not his idea of fun at 2:30 am. Tim took him and was able to calm him down. He drank a bottle and went back to bed. No fuss or anything. I was so grateful!
I, on the other hand, did not come through quite as unscathed. I knew I had hit my back right at the end of my ribs on the left side. Actually, my whole left side took all the fall. I stood up, walked down the stairs and started seeing black spots. I made it to the couch, sat down and put my head between my knees. I don't know how long after that but not long I ran to the bathroom. I felt like puking but gladly I did not. I did, however, see myself in the mirror. YIKES!!! I think I looked better when I had my kidney stone and I looked awful then! I was a weird shade of gray and green and my eyes looked funny. I know, imagine that. I tumble down 6 stairs doing nothing to save, protect or help myself and I look horrible!
I finally went and sat in the family room and iced my left elbow. It took the brunt of everything. I could barely move it. Around 3:30 am I took one regular strength ibuprofen and headed upstairs. I slept in the spare room on the bed surrounded by pillows so I would hurt myself even more. Tim headed to bed too. He was a little wired from it all and very worried about me.
At 7:30 am we dropped Pach and Pickle off at a friend's house and headed to the Urgent Care with Bacon. It had just opened so I got in really fast. The nice PA asked me to raise my arm over my head. I could barely move it. She asked if I'd had any ibuprofen or tylenol. I said, "One regular strength one at 3:30 this morning." She looked at me like I was a mental case or something and said, "You know you can have 4, four times a day, right?" She got me a sling so I didn't have to hold my arm at a 90 degree angle and sent me to a different location for x-rays. Their machine was down.
At the next place the x-rays were brutal! Tim jokes to be an x-ray tech you have to have no feelings and be completely insensitive! The girl had me doing all sorts of stuff to get the x-rays and my elbow didn't like it. The PA there said whoever read the x-ray couldn't say for sure if my elbow was broken or not, so I got a referral to an orthopedist. I also got a temporary cast put on. That was nice.
I was thankfully able to make an appointment with the orthopedist for later that day. We headed home and picked up Pickle from a different friend's house and had lunch. After making arrangement for Pach to be picked up from school by a friend and dropping the other 2 off at yet another friends house, Tim took me to the orthopedist. He was quite impressed with my temporary cast. So much so after all was said and done, he put me back in it. I thought it was a good idea anyway. It helps the boys understand I am actually hurt. And it was nicer than just a sling.
So the verdict? My elbow is not broken. No fracture or anything like that. I am just very bruised and hurt. My whole arm was swollen, so I started taking ibuprofen for that. I was told to wear the cast until today and then start moving my elbow. I am and it is mostly OK. I can lift my arm above my head again. I can almost straighten my elbow all the way. Of course, that hurts quiet a bit. I still have a hard time picking things up. And I can't grip anything. Drying my hands hurts my elbow. So there are some motions that will take longer to do than others but all in all, I'm doing great. I have a nice bruise on my back and elbow but Bacon is fine and basically so am I. My chiropractor will be getting to see me sooner than originally planned and will probably be getting more of my money that I planned but oh well. Small price to pay for Bacon being OK.
First thing to know is our house is a 2 story house, which means WE HAVE STAIRS! And they are wood stairs, which makes them really easy to clean but also a bit slippery in socks.
Second thing to know is I wear socks to bed! Shocking!! I've been wearing socks to bed for a long time. I even wear socks when I walk up and down the stairs! (gasp!) I even wear socks when I carry kids up and down the stairs (double gasp!).
With this knowledge, here is the story: Bacon was still getting up in the middle of the night to eat. The kid is a tank (compared to the other two) and eats! He never seems to get enough. I am really not looking forward to food bills when he gets older. So Tuesday night/Wednesday morning about 2:30 am, he woke up crying. I put my glasses on, gathered him and his blanket up and headed downstairs. I stepped on the first step and the next thing I knew Bacon and I were flying down the stairs. I was trying not to let him get hurt, so all my focus and energy was on keeping him safe and not me. We landed on the landing, bum first and I screamed, "TIM! TIM!" and he came running. He had heard us falling but didn't know what it was.
Thankfully Bacon was absolutely fine. Rightly a bit shaken up and screaming. I guess falling down the stairs was not his idea of fun at 2:30 am. Tim took him and was able to calm him down. He drank a bottle and went back to bed. No fuss or anything. I was so grateful!
I, on the other hand, did not come through quite as unscathed. I knew I had hit my back right at the end of my ribs on the left side. Actually, my whole left side took all the fall. I stood up, walked down the stairs and started seeing black spots. I made it to the couch, sat down and put my head between my knees. I don't know how long after that but not long I ran to the bathroom. I felt like puking but gladly I did not. I did, however, see myself in the mirror. YIKES!!! I think I looked better when I had my kidney stone and I looked awful then! I was a weird shade of gray and green and my eyes looked funny. I know, imagine that. I tumble down 6 stairs doing nothing to save, protect or help myself and I look horrible!
I finally went and sat in the family room and iced my left elbow. It took the brunt of everything. I could barely move it. Around 3:30 am I took one regular strength ibuprofen and headed upstairs. I slept in the spare room on the bed surrounded by pillows so I would hurt myself even more. Tim headed to bed too. He was a little wired from it all and very worried about me.
At 7:30 am we dropped Pach and Pickle off at a friend's house and headed to the Urgent Care with Bacon. It had just opened so I got in really fast. The nice PA asked me to raise my arm over my head. I could barely move it. She asked if I'd had any ibuprofen or tylenol. I said, "One regular strength one at 3:30 this morning." She looked at me like I was a mental case or something and said, "You know you can have 4, four times a day, right?" She got me a sling so I didn't have to hold my arm at a 90 degree angle and sent me to a different location for x-rays. Their machine was down.
At the next place the x-rays were brutal! Tim jokes to be an x-ray tech you have to have no feelings and be completely insensitive! The girl had me doing all sorts of stuff to get the x-rays and my elbow didn't like it. The PA there said whoever read the x-ray couldn't say for sure if my elbow was broken or not, so I got a referral to an orthopedist. I also got a temporary cast put on. That was nice.
I was thankfully able to make an appointment with the orthopedist for later that day. We headed home and picked up Pickle from a different friend's house and had lunch. After making arrangement for Pach to be picked up from school by a friend and dropping the other 2 off at yet another friends house, Tim took me to the orthopedist. He was quite impressed with my temporary cast. So much so after all was said and done, he put me back in it. I thought it was a good idea anyway. It helps the boys understand I am actually hurt. And it was nicer than just a sling.
So the verdict? My elbow is not broken. No fracture or anything like that. I am just very bruised and hurt. My whole arm was swollen, so I started taking ibuprofen for that. I was told to wear the cast until today and then start moving my elbow. I am and it is mostly OK. I can lift my arm above my head again. I can almost straighten my elbow all the way. Of course, that hurts quiet a bit. I still have a hard time picking things up. And I can't grip anything. Drying my hands hurts my elbow. So there are some motions that will take longer to do than others but all in all, I'm doing great. I have a nice bruise on my back and elbow but Bacon is fine and basically so am I. My chiropractor will be getting to see me sooner than originally planned and will probably be getting more of my money that I planned but oh well. Small price to pay for Bacon being OK.
Pach's homework
Pach started Kindergarten a little over a month ago. He brings home an amazing amount of stuff everyday in his backpack. I don't keep most of it. There is just too much. I do, however, go through everything and pull out things I think are cute or that would be fun to have later. I've kept some things he's written his name on. I want to see how much his handwriting changes over the year. I also kept the packet the cute pictures down below came from.
I think the pictures are so adorable and I wanted to share! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
I think the pictures are so adorable and I wanted to share! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
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| Tim is the top left one. I am the one next to him. Pickle is the one in the black pants. Pach is the big blue one on the side. Bacon is the little blue one, sideways, on the bottom. |
More Allergies
Back in February Pickle had a pretty bad reaction to the Stuffed Peppers I made for dinner. I had decided it was something in the actual Campbell's V8 juice since that was the only thing different I used. Normally I use the cheap store brand stuff and he has no problems with it. In fact, I made stuffed peppers last week with the cheap store brand stuff and he had no problems.
In late March I finally got in touch with Campbell's about it. I asked if I could have the list of "natural ingredients" used in the making of the V8 juice. The answer was of course NO! However, I was told if his allergist called, Campbell's would release that information to her for testing purposes. So began the obnoxious and long battle of actually getting the ingredients! Campbell's was not willing to even give up that information to Pickle's allergist! Even though I had been told by 3 different people it would be no problem, the lady from Campbell's kept telling the allergist, "Just test him for everything and if something comes back positive, call us and we'll confirm whether or not it's in the V8 juice."
Well, I had finally had enough. I called the number I had and spoke to a very nice woman. I felt bad for speaking so firmly and harshly but I had to do something to get Pickle help. She read from the file that "we are helping with the situation." I cut her off and explained they weren't. Campbell's kept saying they would help but wouldn't. I told her I didn't want to get lawyers involved but I would if I had to. This was for the welfare of my child. Later that day Pickle's allergist had the list.
So yesterday, August 24th, Pickle was tested for a few of the ingredients we knew he hadn't had. While the allergist and I thought he would test allergic to one spice, it was actually watercress he is allergic to! Watercress is one of the 8 main veggies found in V8 juice. That explained why the reaction was so severe. I had seriously thought about shooting him with an epi-pen and heading to the hospital once again. Instead I just gave him Benadryl and monitored him for over an hour.
I have found allergies to be interesting things. For example, watercress is part of the mustard family. So Pickle will most likely be allergic to any type of mustard green. However, he is not allergic to yellow mustard at all. And those are in the same family. It all has to do with where the proteins are found and how things are made. We don't plan on using watercress for anything and it's not something hugely common, so I think it will all be OK.
In late March I finally got in touch with Campbell's about it. I asked if I could have the list of "natural ingredients" used in the making of the V8 juice. The answer was of course NO! However, I was told if his allergist called, Campbell's would release that information to her for testing purposes. So began the obnoxious and long battle of actually getting the ingredients! Campbell's was not willing to even give up that information to Pickle's allergist! Even though I had been told by 3 different people it would be no problem, the lady from Campbell's kept telling the allergist, "Just test him for everything and if something comes back positive, call us and we'll confirm whether or not it's in the V8 juice."
Well, I had finally had enough. I called the number I had and spoke to a very nice woman. I felt bad for speaking so firmly and harshly but I had to do something to get Pickle help. She read from the file that "we are helping with the situation." I cut her off and explained they weren't. Campbell's kept saying they would help but wouldn't. I told her I didn't want to get lawyers involved but I would if I had to. This was for the welfare of my child. Later that day Pickle's allergist had the list.
So yesterday, August 24th, Pickle was tested for a few of the ingredients we knew he hadn't had. While the allergist and I thought he would test allergic to one spice, it was actually watercress he is allergic to! Watercress is one of the 8 main veggies found in V8 juice. That explained why the reaction was so severe. I had seriously thought about shooting him with an epi-pen and heading to the hospital once again. Instead I just gave him Benadryl and monitored him for over an hour.
I have found allergies to be interesting things. For example, watercress is part of the mustard family. So Pickle will most likely be allergic to any type of mustard green. However, he is not allergic to yellow mustard at all. And those are in the same family. It all has to do with where the proteins are found and how things are made. We don't plan on using watercress for anything and it's not something hugely common, so I think it will all be OK.
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