What A Weekend

So I haven't had a chance to post in the past few days, but here is a recap, along with a few things I am grateful for!

On Thursday night my parents were babysitting so that I could go to a Pampered Chef party. About 20 minutes into the party my mom called me to tell me that Ethan couldn't breathe and I needed to meet her somewhere to pick him up. Ethan had woken up with a cold that morning, so I knew the breathing problems were coming, he has them every time he gets a cold. I did not, however, expect them to come so fast. My mom met me about 10 minutes from her house and poor Ethan was really struggling. I swapped cars with her, jumped in the driver's seat, and was off, making phone calls all the while. I hurried us down to the ER, trying to keep Ethan calm by reciting superhero trivia. By the time we got there, he couldn't even say a word without gasping for breath. talk about scary!! Here is the biggest thing I am grateful for from that night...I am grateful for the 3 years that I spent working in the ER. I loved working there and I loved my job, but wanted to stay home when Ethan was born. Luckily, some of the people I worked with in the pediatric department are still there. For that I am grateful. We were in a room within 10 minutes and Ethan was getting the treatment he needed within 20. we were in and out in less than 3 1/2 hours. Don't get me wrong, everyone gets treatment that good when they go to the pediatric area of the ER. But I am grateful for 3 years of experience that allowed me to be calm and use my child life training to take care of and keep my child calm. I am grateful for the trust that I had in my old colleagues that I knew would take the best possible care of him.

So we went home armed with a nebulizer, steroids and antibiotics for the bronchitis that he had so suddenly developed. The rest of the week/weekend progressed likewise, Ethan getting better, Sam getting his cold, no sleep, learning to balance two sick kids by myself with husband at work, and then cleaning and degerming the house yesterday. I am grateful for Ethan's quick recovery and grateful that by the end of the weekend, Sam went from waking up five times a night to only once last night.

Funny thing is, when I got up with Sam this morning (late, which had us running to get to school on time), He gave me a TOOTHY grin!! thats right, the frequent waking up at night resulted in not one but TWO teeth! I knew he was teething, but had no idea that they would be breaking through so quickly!

So there ya go....a long tiring weekend, capped off in some kind of severe back pain for me...yuck!! We are glad everyone is better and ready for a new week!

Early Christmas!

My mom is an awesome seamstress/knitter/crocheter/you name it....she made this adorable Santa hat for a photographer that we use for all of our family pictures, but I got a crack at it first...here is my sweet Sam playing Santa!!

Monday and Tuesday

so Monday i blogged my gratefulness for the weekend, but forgot to include Monday! I didn't get out my camera, but did take a minute to sit and just be grateful. I am grateful for Northway Preschool and what Ethan is learning there, I am grateful for Piedmont Church for helping me teach my son about God...he comes home on Sundays with so many questions, and this past week he has been learning his Bible verse for the month! It's so cute! I am grateful for all of these people who are committed to helping me raise my child the way I want him to be raised!

Tuesday, I had a minute to be grateful for something simple, hamburgers and one last dip in the pool before Fall! mmmm, summer!

Wednesday, today, I am thankful for a husband who works hard, but on Wednesday, he gets off early and gets to spend the afternoon and evening with us! it's a blessing to have the help and get to spend quality time with him!!

Ahh gratefulness, it makes other, not so great things, seem so much less not-so-great!

A Weekend of Grateful

a weekend of being grateful...wow...this weekend was tough! i basically single mom'd it this weekend and it was not a fun job! I did find things to be grateful for though, even when i was having some bleak moments!!

I am grateful for the fact that Ethan makes friends easily...Friday we went to a little boy's birthday party that was the perfect opportunity for Ethan to get some playtime with kids his age and exercise...making him and me happy campers!
Saturday was a photoshoot with a childhood friend. I am so grateful to have friends who help me with my photography endeavors by being my guinea pigs or finding interesting projects for me to do!
Sunday was just a day to be spent at home...I am grateful for funny moments like the one above, when James found a very silly wig while cleaning out his closet!

Gratefulness can be hard sometimes but I am already feeling like I am reaping benefits, a better way of looking at things and realizing that i really do have a lot of amazing blessings around me!

Misty

This weekend I did a photoshoot with someone who has been a close friend for more than 20 years. She is an aspiring book author and needed a cover for her book, so here are the pictures she had to choose from!

A Beautiful Day

Day 2 of 365.GRATEFUL

Yesterday was day 2, and though i didn't get a chance to post, I did take the time to get a few shots of my grateful moment of the day!

I am so grateful for the fall weather, after such a scorching summer that allows us to be able to get outside and play. I am also unbelievably grateful for my active parents who take time out of their very busy schedules to come play with their grandkids!

365.GRATEFUL

For anyone who knows our family, 2010 has been somewhat of a tough year for us so far. Beginning with some big life changes for my brother and the loss of a very dear friend, to a really hard, painful pregnancy and childbirth, quickly followed by an unaffordable increase in our house payment on top of scary hospital bills! And those are just the big things that have happened, the mile markers, so to speak. Don't get me wrong, there has been plenty to celebrate as well, a number of my friends have had beautiful babies and there have been celebrations of all kinds. Still, the tough year is what resounds in my recollections of the past 9 months. The endless bills, wondering how I'll pay for groceries, wanting things that are simply unaffordable. God has taken care of us so far and I have no doubt that his generosity and love will continue to suffice, but for a slightly type-A planner, it is hard to give up control and remember not to worry. I was really struggling yesterday on the see-saw of worry vs God, trying so hard to keep in mind that God's plan is so much bigger than mine. So today, I open up blogger and go to check the blogs that I look at daily to see what is new. The post on The Creative Mama this morning was God's answer to yesterday's awful see-saw. It was a post about thankfulness. I urge everyone to check it out and read it. The post lead me to another blog, and a project, one that I am planning to make very near and dear to my heart: 365.GRATEFUL. This project was begun by a woman/photographer in Australia who embarked on a personal project to help her to daily remember to be grateful and really show her all of the things she had to be grateful for. Being a photographer, she decided to document this journey with photographs. I am going to work on the same things and hopefully document it on this blog.

So, here it is, photo #1. Today, as i sit and take an hour to myself and watch LOST (which I am way late getting on the bandwagon of, since I am on episode 9 of season 1!) while my older son is at school, I look next to me and realize how thankful I am for my sweet youngest son Sam to be sleeping AT HOME next to me. I remember the 9 days that he had to stay in the hospital and the anger and defeatist attitude that I had, wondering if I would EVER bring my sweet boy home. and now, 3 1/2 months later, he is perf

ectly healthy and sleeping in his moses' basket beside me, completely at peace. For that I AM GRATEFUL.

Georgia Football Boys

Back to School, Back to School!

Today was Ethan's first day of 3K!! We went and met his teacher, Mrs. Vance on Monday and then today was the first day...He was really excited, though when we got to his classroom, he did seem like he was on the verge of tears! Luckily his sweet teacher gathered him up for a big hug to start the day!!



Ethan's friend Logan is in his class again this year...these boys are so cute playing together and I'm so glad they are getting to grow up together!