thoughts for the end of today

First off, thanks for all of the prayers and all of the comments. We appreciate everyone who is standing in the gap for us. As far as blood goes, in answer to a previous comment, we are good for now, but please consider donating for Ridge in 2 weeks, a month, or sometime in the near future when supplies will be down some again.

Today was a really hard day. I want to be asleep but I've stepped out while they change a dressing on Ridge's central line so that I can avoid hearing his screams/cries...although I actually hear them through the heavy double doors and over the blaring TV here in the waiting room.

I have felt like I've been walking with my head in a cloud all day. I took some time to pray this afternoon and several songs sprung to mind. I was so blessed to read the comments on the previous blog, b/c some of you shared songs and verses that blessed me this evening. As I prayed this afternoon, I was convicted that I have not given my son completely to Jesus. I have tried, but I haven't done it. As a mother, I want to fix him. I want to scream when people don't take care of him like he is their first priority. I am broken for him and would do anything to trade places with him. I just want to stop the bleeding (which has started up again) and take him home and play with him and love him. I am just so "lost" feeling right now. So I took some time to be reminded and to recommit my son to the Lord. During this prayer time, one song kept coming to mind. I will share it here, forgive me if the words get messed up. This is my cry today...

Hungry, I come to you, for I know you satisfy.
I am empty but I know Your love does not run dry.

So I wait for You....so I wait for You.

I'm falling on my knees, offering all of me.
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for.

That's not all of it, but that's the part I can't stop feeling. I just feel so desperate and needy for the Lord to just pick me up and hold me and carry me straight through this. I keep praying that God would just heal my son...in the Bible just a touch of his robe healed the woman who had been bleeding for years. I desire that for my baby boy-- just a little of the power of Christ in him to heal him. I am so desperate to see God in this. I know he is here. I know he has done mighty things. I just want to see and hear him with an abundance of clarity...there is nothing and no one else I can cling to any tighter than I am clinging to Him...I feel like a lost little child right now.

Exhaustion is creeping in. I went to the chapel tonight and prayed long and hard for my son. I was about to come back to the room when Brandon called and said to wait a few more minutes. So I sat down and prayed some more....and 20 minutes later my mom is sitting by me waking me up from the hardest sleep I think I've slept in forever. I'd missed 3 phone calls from her and Brandon trying to tell me to come back to the room....I was just completely zonked right there in the pew of the chapel.

Pray for us. Pray for rest. Pray for Ridge- for healing, for the bleeding to stop, for the breathing/respiration/blood-oxygen levels to normalize, for wisdom for the doctors b/c I know this is a confusing disease for them to be having to treat, and that is scary to me. Pray that our nurses would understand that this is a serious disease, b/c I am afraid my son will be overlooked b/c he looks perfectly healthy on the outside and his vitals are usually good. But he is having serious internal bleeding. He is also having serious apnea issues at night. We are afraid for him, and we need to feel like we have some people taking care of him who understand those concerns. Pray he would be made whole again.

Thank you for everything you've done for us and are continuing to do. Much love to all of you.

i don't even know

So...we are kind of having a rough patch. Ridge seemed to be doing really really well. He still seems fairly happy/content...but we have come to some new crossroads.

Last night, they moved us from ICU to a regular floor. We were excited b/c he seemed to be doing so well. We figured we'd get a good night's rest and things would go great. As soon as we got him down to sleep....there went the monitors. Apparently, for some unknown reason, Ridge keeps having apnea spells at night-- he stops breathing...for like 15 seconds. This happened REPEATEDLY last night. So...we got basically zero sleep. Which makes for a tough day. His blood/oxygen level kept dipping too low as well; no one seems to know yet what could be causing all this. There is a sleep lab here in the hospital so hopefully we can get in tonight...b/c staying up all night AGAIN is going to be hard on all of us. These secondary symptoms are bothersome. Some of you will wonder if it has to do with the meds he is on...and we wonder the same thing. However, he doesn't really have another option as far as the meds that stop the bleeding in his gut. Especially since some of the diapers that had turned more "normal" are changing a bit in the opposite direction again.

I don't have a lot of things to say today. We were sitting in the room today and I just felt completely shaken...even with Ridge's improvements...these setbacks are...just that, setbacks. Setbacks in a cure/treatment/management. Setbacks in our spirits and our emotions. I need, we need, God to reign down in power. We need to see a miracle. We need to be given more hope. And I hate that b/c it's not like God hasn't worked a million miracles already in this situation. I'm not mad at God. I'm mad at myself for letting whatever or whoever affect my faith in our God. I am mad b/c I need that faith for my son. I need God to carry us now; I need to feel overwhelmed with peace from His presence. I need more good news. We all do. It seems selfish. My focus is off. I need time to breathe, to mentally step out of the situation. I am constantly thinking of some adage I heard in a song or read somewhere or something, and today, it fits just perfectly. In the midst of all of this...the victories, the setbacks, the great nurses, the not so great nurses, the answers, the questions, the doubts, the fears, the joys....in the middle of it all, here is our plea--

Even so, come Lord Jesus.

We pray your day is blessed today. Remember us as you pray.

are you kidding me?

As if all the aforementioned things aren't divine enough, I have to tell you what else has happened.

I am worried about not working. I am worried about not being able to have a place to put sawyer while I adjust to staying home with Ridge, b/c we can't afford daycare....so...

The school has worked things out where I should be able to at least collect my paycheck for a few months due to sick leave/state laws/sick leave sharing where others are willing to donate some days for me. My principal has been more than supportive and has told me I have a job waiting for me when I am able to come back. He is checking on things for me and taking care of some details. His secretary told me that there were some more good things happening and she'd let my friend Melissa tell me those things. I could tell it was going to be something that brought me to my knees...and boy was it. Melissa calls me today and tells me that she knows I am worried about Sawyer. She has worked it out where he has a place at the 3 year old program in our school district. His tuition and lunch and school supplies have all .... been....paid for. all of it. are you kidding me? seriously? God is so good. so so so so so good. We are so blessed to have a community and to have friends and co workers and church members who love us so much.

A normal family like us never expects to be blessed as much as we are being blessed. This has been an amazing ride.

God is so faithful.

The hand of God at work in our life and in others'

So today has been interesting. Not much change in Ridge since my last post. But check out what I am about to tell you.

First, we were told that the doctors in Miluakee do not believe this is a fatal disease. That is not to say that no children have died from this or no children will die from this- but they do believe it is manageable. This is good news to us, b/c we had not been told that yet.

Second, you have to hear some of this craziness. Okay, so I was getting ready this morning, and over and over I have wondered why Ridge's diapers were not checked for blood seven weeks ago when I took him to our pediatrician. I have tried to be understanding. Tried to explain it away. Tried not to be upset or bitter. I just didnt understand it. Everyone at the hospital who saw pictures of similar diapers knew by looking that there was blood in the poop (sorry if it's TMI for some readers). I did not get it...but I do now. Keep reading. I also am baffled by the odds of having this disease. Divide 35 by 6.5 billion and figure it out. We have a 1% chance of finding out Ridge does NOT have this disease. That figure looks incredibly hopeful compared to our odds of him being diagnosed with it. I say that somewhat in a joking fashion, b/c I know our medical teams are pretty certain he has MLT. I came to a peace this morning that the odds of having that disease are so slim to none, that for whatever reason, God is the only one who could orchestrate that. Please don't misunderstand- I am not happy Ridge has this disease. But as I keep typing, and you keep reading, I pray you will see how active the hand of God is and has been in our lives...and we didn't even know it. Okay, so here we go....I made peace about the diaper issue...for whatever reason, the pediatrician didn't check them for blood, and the odds of tha thappening are probaby slim to none, so I figure for some reason, it was meant to be. Earlier today, some of the doctors came in to talk to us. We were told about some possible treatments/how we deal with this when we get home/etc...the doctors were astounded by the response of people going to give blood for our baby. The doctors were very appreciative of our attitude, and mentioned something like, "you guys are the perfect parents to have a baby with this condition. he is lucky you are the parents he has." luck...maybe. but i doubt it. we all know it's Something bigger. Then...we were told this. Apparently, we came at just the right time to Children's. Not because Ridge was in grave danger, though I believe he was. But because...the week we arrived...was the first week that our initial GI doctor was here @ Children's. It was his first week here...HIS FIRST WEEK HERE. If you do not see the significance of this, here it is-- he came here from the hospital in Miluakee where this disease was found! He knows the doctors who treat this disease! It wouldn't have mattered if our pediatrician checked those diapers seven weeks ago, because even if we were here, they wouldn't have had a clue what they were looking at or how to get the resources to treat it! Do not tell me our God is not in control, never again will I doubt. We were also told, before we came here, that it would take a month to get into the GI dr. at Baptist Hospital...it took 2 weeks, and that put is in the EXACT right timeframe to be admitted to Children's when we were. I am in awe. Keep reading.

Almost six years ago, my husband and I were needing a different job. My husband was a part time youth pastor...and it looked promising that we would be hired full time at his home town church. I have not shared this story with many people. Some of you will hear this for the first time, and I hope you see God's hand at work here...and are not offended by anything I write. We interviewed, and really believed with all of our hearts that God was going to work it out for us to go there. That was the impression everyone there gave us. Then, one morning, we got a call that said for whatever reason, unanimously the team had decided that was not what God wanted. We were stunned. I'm not going to sugar coat it here- I was upset. I couldn't believe it. I was hurt and angry for a long time over that b/c I honestly believed a mistake had been made. Since that time, we have tried twice to move to Hollis for teaching positions (hollis is my husband's hometown). Once, it was basically promised to us that we'd both be hired. Then...that didn't happen either. We became so frustrated we just gave up trying to be that direction. Ridge was not even thought in our minds at these times. Hollis is about 3 hours from OKC. There is no way that we could live there with the disease Ridge has. God knew. Even then, God knew. Any doubts or questions or anger can be lifted, b/c all of this was all in God's hand even then. SERIOUSLY? I am baffled.

These are not coincidences. There is more to share I think, but my mind is blank right now. I will update as I have time and as I remember other ways God has been active in this, even years ago.

We would never wish this upon our child. We would never wish this upon your children. But we have been chosen by the Lord to walk this road for however long He desires us to. We still believe God can work a miracle in Ridge's life. We pray that He will just FIX IT. But if He chooses not to, He is still Mighty. He is still God. He is still watching over us. And we will still praise Him.

day 11 in the hospital

well..i can not say time has flown by quickly. here's the update today, so far, before i go grab a quick shower while there is a bit of time...
Ridge's platelets dropped to 50K last night, so they transfused again. His hemoglobin dropped a little, but was not enough to do another RBC transfusion. His temperature got very low (94-ish)...so they put this blanket under him that airs up w/ warm air (Bair Hugger is what it's called). finally that got his temp up some, so we are monitoring him today w/o him having to be laying on that blanket thing. His heart rate and respirations seemed better when they got his temp up. He is still eating well, but is possibly somewhat dehydrated, according to one of the med students here...so we will be watching that as well. He is awake a lot more in the day, but is not quite back to his normal self. His dirty diapers are beginning to look more normal. There is talk of us getting out of ICU today and back to the regular floor rooms...we are going to ask that we either be kept in icu or sent to the hemotology floor b/c there are less patients there, and we feel we need that "closer" attention. I think we have a lot of positive news, but my spirit is down today, so keep praying. Pray that we will stay positive and keep faith. Pray that God would heal Ridge. Of course we want wisdom for the doctors. Of course we want to know what treatments would work. of course we want a cure to be found. Of course we want his bleeding to completely cease for this "episode". But the cry of our hearts is for our son to be completely healed by a miracle that only Christ can perform. Some may call us crazy, but it's nothing we don't already know. And we believe God can do this. We do know He may not choose to, but I have zero doubt that He CAN. So from the deepest parts of us, that is what we are pleading for him to do. We ask you to do the same, with everything you've got. And we will let it all be to and for the glory of the King.

Be blessed today. Thank you for being a blessing to us, and to our family.

latest update-- READ IT!!

AAAAAAAAAAAA!!! PRAISE THE LORD! They just told us the best news we've recieved the entire time we've been here. Ridge had red blood cells last night. After receiving them, his hemoglobin was at 9.5. He received platelets Tuesday night. They check those levels every 8 hours. 8 hours ago, Ridge's platelets were at around 56K. He has not received RBCs or Platelets all day. They just gave us the results of his latest blood work. His hemoglobin is 10.1!!! His platelets are 69K!!! Praise God! Keep praying! My prayer is that God is working a miracle in our son! No matter what, He IS taking us over this hump for today! And for that, and in all things, we will praise Him. Thank you for all the prayers...and THANK YOU, LORD!

this road we're on....

So it's early in the AM....about the time I'd be waking up to get ready for work here in a little over a week...man, things can change on a dime. Several weeks ago, we were holding our happy and healthy baby boy, not even having an idea what was ahead of us. Now here we are in desperation begging for a miracle. Through it all, God is good. Change is hard, and learning to live only the moment right in front of your face is difficult to do. Learning how to live with this diagnosis is something we haven't mastered even a little yet. Figuring out what to do with our precious 3 year old when it is time for him to resume daycare is something I worry about. Most likely not being able to go back to a job I love is .... I don't even know the word for it. Depressing? I love teaching. I love my students- every year- so I have no doubt that this year would have been filled with faces and personalities that I love. Not that I'd have it any other way- until my sweet baby is healthy and stable, he is who I need to spend all of my time with. But trying to figure out the finances, and if there is something I can do during evening hours to make up some of my lost paycheck, and where to put our other son since it might be difficult to keep both boys at home for a while...thoughts just overload your mind...Sometimes, life is just hard. Here is our latest update.

Ridge has been tentatively diagnosed with MLT- the ridiculously lengthy full name of it is posted in my previous blog. There is a 1% chance that is not what he has. Only 30-35 people have ever been diagnosed with this as far as we know. 30-35 people...EVER. And here we sit. This has never been diagnosed at this hospital, or even in our state, as far as I know. Our doctors are working diligently with doctors who first diagnosed this disease in 2004. We are just waiting to find the best course of management for it.

Ridge had not been allowed to eat for 2 days, and we finally got word he could eat. He has perked up a bit since then. We've had a couple of scares during his sleeping times- very low respirations, and not simultaneously, but even just now, very low heart rate. Everything else is monitoring good, but it is still worrisome. Please pray that this stops.

Before being allowed to eat, Ridge had two episodes of vomiting blood. So far, we have had only one spit up episode of blood since he's been allowed to eat....and NO throwing it up/vomiting the blood. Pray that this stays stable. He has been bleeding a lot, and his "dirty" diapers are mainly blood. This is too hard for me to look at, and I have to have someone else change him. I feel horrible for that, but it just breaks my heart to see it. Pray that there is a turnaround here.

The prayers have been overwhelming. We have people contacting us -- people we do not even know! People we don't even know are calling saying they are praying, volunteering to help out with ANYTHING...and people giving blood. OBI called me yesterday morning, and the woman I spoke to was choked up (as was I) at the response-- a long line of people...all there for Ridge. This was not at just one location, as far as I know, either. The response has amazed them- and us as well. Apparently, even the media is asking questions. Good ol' Oklahomans, helping each other out (these are the words one woman from OBI used...and she is so right).

Sidenote here- if you are donating blood, thank you. If you have donated blood for Ridge, thank you. The nature of this disease will require future transfusions, so please do not hesitate to continue to give. I will be sending out pleas again when we need transfusions. I'll probably be giving OBI a heads up too-- b/c I know the masses will continue to pour in if we need them to. I actually think it's a fairly good problem to have- there's more blood in the blood bank for EVERYONE now. If you have not donated for Ridge, right now you can probably sit on that idea and wait for the next time we need it. But I won't tell you not to give if you want to, now. So you do what you need to do.

We can feel your prayers. We have a peace that was not there a few days ago. Not that things are not still difficult...not that this is the road we would have chosen for ourselves or or son. But we can honestly tell you are praying. Definitely we want prayers for the bleeding to stop, for the drs to be wise, for the meds to work, for the heart rate to become normal, for our endurance and faith...but what we are begging God to do is work a miracle. He may not choose to work one here, but we are asking for it. We have some dear friends who have shared that even though they have tried to pray for all of the above, what God has laid on their heart is to just pray for complete and total healing for baby Ridge. That is the cry of our hearts. We are undeserving of it, but as a mother you can not help but plead for it. No matter the outcome, we will give God the praise. He is faithful, and will continue to be. We know we are in His hand. We dedicated our son to him from the moment of his birth, and I know God is holding Ridge right now through all of this, just as He is holding us. He is mighty to save, and we will give Him all glory as He carries us through this.

Keep the prayers coming.

Much love-
the carys

sweet baby ridge

our doctors are fairly certain the cause of ridge's problems is a rare disease called multifocal lymphangioendotheliomatosis with thrombocytopenia, or MLT. As far as they know, about 15 people in the world have this disease. All of them are children. The outcomes are not the same for all of them. The disease was discovered in 2004. There is no cure. There are some treatments, but not all of them work on everyone.

I am too tired and too sick to my stomach and too desperate to type any more right now. We are begging for your prayers. We are pleading for divine intervention and a miracle. And we are asking you to donate blood in his name if you are an Oklahoman. Any blood type can give. If you are O negative, we are asking you to designate your blood be given directly to Ridge. You are allowed to request this. All information you may need is listed in my previous blog.

baby ridge update 2

We don't know much yet. Ridge's counts have dropped again...hemoglobin was 9.9 yesterday and now is at 7.4 or so...platelets were 140K yesterday AM, 50K yesterday afternoon, and 27K this morning. Ridge has not been allowed to eat since yesterday afternoon @ 2:30. They are needing him to drink some water...this venture has been unsuccessful. Probably b/c he doesn't drink water...or at least never has before. This is really all we know. Pathology reports should be in today (uh...that's what we've heard before...but hopefully this time it is true). Everyone here has been really great, at least as far as doctors go, and most of the nurses, as well. Since I don't have a real update...I thought I would share a couple things that have been shared w/ us.

Last night, a tremendous friend came to the hospital and took me downstairs for a coke. We got to visit for a while and it was a great blessing. She shared this scripture with us. I have not had time to check the context...so forgive me here, but I wanted to share it anyway. I know it has to do w/ the sins of Jerusalem and God's restoration...at least that's what I took from the brief glance I had at the preceding and following verses.

Ezekiel 16:6
"When I passed by you and saw you squirming in your blood, I said to you while you were in your blood, 'Live!' Yes, I said to you while you were in your blood, 'Live!'"

My aunt also shared a few verses from Psalm 91 with us via text this morning. I think the entire chapter is noteworthy.
Ps. 91
"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, 'My refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust!' For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence.

He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. You will not be afraid of the terror by night, or of the arrow that flies by day; of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or of the destruction that lays waste at noon.

A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousanda t your right hand, but it shall nto approach you. you will only look on with your eyes nd see the recompense of the wicked. for you have made the Lord, my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling place. No evil will befall you, nor will any plague come near your tent. For e will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways. THey will bear you up in their hands, that you do not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and cobra, the young lion and the serpent you will trample down.

Because he has loved ME, therefore Iw ill deliver him; I will set hims ecurely on high, because he has known My name. He willc all upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will recue him and honor him. With a long life I will satisfy him and let him see my salvation."

Keep praying; Ridge just spit up blood- not vomit, not spitup, just blood. We dont' know what it means and it is taking forever for people to get the heck down here to help him. The only blood we want to see is the blood of Jesus. So, bring it, Lord.

baby ridge update 1

Yesterday Ridge had a lazy day- he wasn't very energetic. Last night we got to hear him chatter quite a bit...his little voice is so precious. They did a CBC (complete blood count) and his platelets were back down to 19K (150-300K is normal)...his orders say to do a platelet transfusion when he dropped below 20K, so that was to be coming...his hemoglobin was also low, down to 7.4 (which is not near as low as it had been, but is definitely not "normal")...so he also was to have another red blood cell transfusion. We've been moved to the 8th floor, which is not the hemotology floor....so there were some delays in getting the blood-- the draws were at 3:40 and results were requested stat...but it was about 3 hours before we got the results, and it was another 4 before they started the transfusions. Something made him sick after the transfusions- either some high blood pressure, or well...who knows? and he threw up all over Brandon in the middle of the night...due to his situation, his throw up is not..."throw up"....it contains some extra things like coagulated blood/clots...and it was most definitely brown like "old" blood looks. We have noticed some blood in his drool, which was not present before. He had only vomited one other time in his life, and it was not incredibly similar to this time. He continues to have dark stools, and we are waiting on some kind of biopsy report today...at least that is what we are hoping for.

I apologize for any rambling or randomness here, i am honestly not 100% sure of what I am writing. We are hoping for answers today, or at least hoping some things can be crossed off the list of possibilities (I don't know what things...but the drs do). It is encouraging to me that Ridge is not fussy and is basically in no pain...but it is still so hard to watch your baby go through this....and to hold him with all the cords coming from his little fat body.

The transfusions raised his counts, but this will most likely not be a permanent raise, b/c he is needing the platelets to stop the bleeding and he is needing the RBCs to replace what he is losing. He may have an MRI today to test for lesions anywhere else in his entire body, b/c they could be other places besides the stomach. Pray that is not the case, unless it would make treatment or diagnosis easier.

We know a lot of people are praying for us. We earnestly appreciate it and continue to need it. If you would like to donate blood in Ridge's name, you may do so @ any OBI or @ any OBI mobile blood drive. You will need to tell OBI that you want to donate as a credit to Ridge Cary's account.

May the God of peace bless you as He continues to use you as blessings in our lives. Thank you for everything.

our baby

Ridge...our sweet little baby boy...well...here we sit @ Children's Hospital. Sitting. And Waiting.

Our story--
Tuesday we went to a GI specialist. Ridge had been having bloody spitup....and dark blackish brown dirty diapers....these concerns had been dismissed by our pediatrician, twice, and finally after a horrible bloody spitup incident, we were referred for a GI screen/xray. Reflux was the diagnosis...the medicine Ridge took made him scream and turn white as a ghost the first time he took it. We cut back the dosage and noticed less reaction, but were told the meds would only reduce the spitup, not reduce the blood in it. So...we stopped giving the meds, b/c spitting up itself was not a bothersome issue for us. Instead, we opted for an appt. with a GI specialist. The doctor took one look @ him and said he was anemic. He did a stool culture and immediately said, "he's bleeding inside"...the poop (sorry if it's gross) wasn't even dark, but he'd been bleeding so long there was just always blood in his poop. This dr. ordered blood work and he called us an hour later with results. The moment the phone rang, we knew it wasn't good news b/c he'd told us if Ridge was super anemic, he'd call us soon and we'd have to come in for transfusions. So...he told us that part, the part we expected. He then said Ridge had low platelets, and that's not a GI issue, so we had to come back in for more bloodwork and he referred us to Children's Hospital and to a hemotologist there. Needless to say, we were so upset/worried/scared/uncertain. The bloodwork came back the same, so we were admitted to Children's, where Ridge underwent a long time of poking and sticking in attempt to find an IV location...to no avail. Finally, later that Tues. night, ICU volunteered to put a central line in so we could begin transfusing. so...that's what we did. They put our little boy under sedation and got this line in his leg....and his first blood transfusion began. Since then, he has undergone a total of 5 red blood cell transfusions and 2 platelet transfusions, and his numbers are getting more stable. But where was the problem? We had a bone marrow test/biopsy done and it (THANK GOD) ruled out leukemia and cancer and some other diseases. He had to be sedated for that procedure. He has a nice wound on his lower back from it, as well. The following day (friday), Ridge underwent complete anesthesia and had an endoscopy done on his upper GI and lower intestinal area. The doctors found multiple lesions in his stomach-- this is the obvious cause of bleeding. This is why his hemoglobin is low- he is losing blood through these oozing sores and then he is passing it in his poop and spit up (the blood, not the sores- they are not going away). They flushed out and cleaned his stomach of all the coagulation b/c the platelets had been trying to stop the bleeding- in overdrive, basically, and that is why he had few platelets. We are waiting on the biopsy to come back from the endoscopy; this will tell us what the lesions are. The doctors are not certain at this point.

Please pray for our baby. Pray for the doctors. Pray for answers and treatment and peace. Ridge is doing well today, his counts were fairly stable. He is not bleeding at this time, but without treatment, this process will continue. There is a possibility that he could have to receive transfusions regularly, to keep his platelet counts up to keep the bleeding controlled. This could be long-term. Of course, we covet your prayers. If you want to do more, and if you are from Oklahoma, you can donate blood in Ridge Cary's name. It does not matter what blood type you are. You donate, at any OBI location, even mobile blood drives. You tell them you want your donation to be credited to Ridge Cary's name. The way it works is this: for every five units (we think )of blood donated (ANY TYPE) in Ridge's name, we are "credited" one unit of blood-- which means we get however many transfusions can come from one unit of blood, we get free. You can donate every 56 days, and it's free, and you'd be giving us something priceless...at no financial cost to yourself. Most of all-- pray. If you can do this also, we are asking you to do so. Thank you so much.

sometimes life is funny...sometimes it is not

So...normally I am sure I entertain you more than anyone has before with my tales of Sawyer's hilarities.  I don't even know if that's a word, but I just made it one if it isn't.  Sawyer did something really funny today and not re-tell-able b/c it will embarrass one of his parents.  I don't really have anything funny to tell today.  So I'm gonna be inspirational, or serious, or whatever you will, today.

I know we all know, on some level, that our actions and our emotions affect people around us.  You don't have to be a genius to figure that out...if I'm having a bad day, somebody's gonna take some crap for it, even if I don't mean for them to...but a lot of times, I mean for them to.  I guess it makes us feel better sometimes to take it out on other people.  It's still totally unacceptable, but it does happen.  But, if you are on the receiving end of this, it can really throw you for a loop.  This has happened to me....and while the logical response is to just be patient and understand that people are probably having a bad day...or having a lot of junk going on in their life at this time...etc. etc. etc....the emotional, FEMALE response is, "what the heck did i do?" so you beat yourself up time and time again trying to figure out where you wronged this person.  when....maybe you didn't even do anything wrong at all.  There's no point to this rambling.  Just like there's no point to why we do this...why is it even an option for someone that is NOT the object of your annoyance and frustration to receive the bad end of the deal?  I don't know.  But it happens, I guess.   I think we should stop it.  But I probably won't.  How's this for an inspirational paragraph?

You know what else happens, apparently?  Apparently if a baby doesn't like formula (I wouldn't know, we don't use the stuff), you can feed it...well, wait until I tell the story.  I have a good friend whose sister is in medical residency.   She is working with OB/Pediatrics....and a lady comes in with a baby who is about Ridge's age (12-ish weeks old).  The resident is watching the lady give the baby a bottle.  The resident is noticing the bottle looks incredibly dirty.  So she asks, "Is that bottle dirty?" The mother says, "No." The resident wants to know what's in the bottle but the mom doesn't tell....Finally, the resident says, "give me that bottle."  She takes it and says "WHAT is in this bottle?" and the mother says "Well, he didn't like that formula the state pays for, and this is the only other thing they pay for. So it's hot cocoa mix." WHAAAAAAAAT?  SAY WHAT?  You're feeding your baby some flipping hot cocoa mix?  He may be fat but he ain't healthy, woman!  Well, that's  not what the resident told the mom...she told her that the baby gets little calcium from that since it's mixed with water and that his bones will not be strong from drinking hot cocoa mix (I wouldn't know, we don't feed THAT to our baby either, most definitely).  

Yeah, so there was a little bit of ridiculous sad funny info for you.

Peace out.

everywhere we goooo, people wanna knoooow....whooo we aaaarrre....soooo we tell them...we are the crazies, the crazy crazy crazies

That....is how i feel EVERY.SINGLE.TIME we go out to eat.

Tonight...I put on my new jeans (banana republic outlet- a steal- $24...yep)....a cute black top....and some big giant black circle earrings.  I got all fixed up with some makeup, and did my hair....and the boys and I headed to...the Yukon Super Buffet.  For those of you who don't know-- this is an Asian Buffet.  They have everything from traditional chinese restaurant stuff to sushi, steamed crab legs, muscles....gosh, i don't know...they have a lot of things.  I stick to the fairly normal stuff.  ANYWAY.  So on the way, Brandon lets me know that I can pick somewhere else to eat if I want. I don't want to pick.  Does the girl ever want to pick? I don't know- I never want to pick.  So he says, "Fine...we can just have Italian or Mexican." (He knows I will veto this b/c I can not have dairy currently b/c it upsets the digestive issues of the fat baby)....So I say, "Okay. I will just have a salad." And Sawyer says, "And I will just have a corn dog."

Okay. Good for you, kid.  The other day he got a corn dog at the grocery store. He also tried a chicken gizzard.  The kid who hates any chicken meat....well...he loved that gizzard. I've never even had one, neither has Brandon.  Brandon said Sawyer chewed it forever.  Then he wanted more.  sick.

Back to the task at hand.  So we go to the buffet.  By the time we get to the host, who will seat us, Sawyer has been told to straighten up at least 3 times, and Brandon finally takes him into the restroom to get a spanking.  So Ridge and I find our seat....and Sawyer returns.  I fix his plate, then fix mine, and as soon as we sit down, Sawyer says, "I think I need to go pee."  Well...this is important b/c we don't want a three year old peeing his pants.  So....Brandon takes him back to the bathroom that he just left...and lets him go pee.  Not long after his return, sawyer says... "my tummy....my tummy hurts!"  Anyone who's kept up with this blog knows what's coming....the kid has to poop.  So I repeatedly ask him if he wants me to take him to the bathroom, which I am so afraid is going to be disgusting.  Taking a 3 year old to poop in a public restroom sicks me out.  I don't think I can take him to a public toilet, not to poop.  So....he makes it.  Until we forget about it and go to Hastings to rent a movie.  Then, the attack of the poop monster returns.  As we are walking the aisles looking for a movie, Sawyer begins his bent over walk, where you know the poop is about to exit the boy.  I find Brandon and tell him we have to go. Now. So we pay for our movie, and as I pick Sawyer up to hopefully avoid a scene, I feel a non-normal something in the buttocks area.  Whatever came out went back in and we just had success w/ him pooping in the potty.  But folks, I gotta tell you, that stuff is nasty.  God should make kids born knowing how to use the toilet.  That's what I think.  Because this pooping issue is strange.  And gross.  

That's all on the saga of my bathroom challenged child.

Peace out.

vaca....i guess.

DISCLAIMER: Sorry if some of the pics don't show up- i can't figure out why some of the copied and pasted pics are working and some aren't...so...sorry.

So, we loaded up the kiddos and headed to Branson...our first "family vacation."  Um...I don't know whether I'd advise taking a trip with a three year old.  Ridge, the baby, was excellent the entire trip- of course he does sleep pretty much all night long, and the rest of the time he is usually held, so he doesn't really have any room to gripe.  We mainly took the trip for Sawyer, but "off-routine" events did not serve him well...and we had a lot of fits...which resulted in even more spankin's (sorry if you are anti- spanking...we, obviously, are not).  but we had a pretty good time overall i guess.  

Here are some highlights of our trip....

we set off around 8:20 on a Tues. morning....forgot the pike pass and had to come home so we didn't really leave till about 8:45...Ridge was lookin' like this:

His daddy gave him that mohawk the night before....but it was still there in full force that morning.  We did nothing to get him to smile- he did that on his own.

Sawyer was lookin' like this:

The car ride was actually pretty good-- we stopped a couple times, but didn't really have any issues; Sawyer watched his DVDs the whole car trip, and Ridge mostly just slept.  It took us about an hour or two longer than if we'd had no kids with us, but not too bad, all in all.

Here's where we stayed:

brandon enjoying the water park
some guy i don't know but this slide was in the park
sawyer liked the splash park
this is the clubhouse of the waterpark...i didn't take a picture of the hotel.

 this is the hotel, but i can't get the pic larger

So, the first day we just hung out at the hotel b/c it was late when we got there...well too late to do much with 2 kiddos.  The second day, we got up early and went here:

That night we went to the Noah musical.  You weren't supposed to have any cameras inside, so I didn't break the rules, but it was AMAZING!  the entire theater is eventually made to be like the inside of the ark, and it is FULL of animals- some real, some animatronic- but they all look real!  If you ever get the chance to see it, go. I've copied two photos from online, and then there's 2 photos of the theater front.

Oh, I forgot that earlier that day we went to Silver Dollar City....I didn't take pictures b/c we didn't stay long.  Sawyer didn't like the rides, and I refused to stay in the heat for nothing....they wouldn't let us take the stroller into the shows, and I wasn't leaving it outside b/c it was too expensive to get stolen.  

The next day Sawyer and Brandon rode go-karts....Sawyer did not really like this unless Brandon went super slow.  

This is the track they went to-- see why sawyer was scared?

After that, we went here:

This is the Titanic Museum-- also a great stop.  Sawyer liked parts of it, and was bored in part of it, but was pretty good that visit.  Good thing he was free to most of the things we did.  The museum is so interesting- upon entrance you are given a card with a story of a person who really was on the Titanic.  You are told where you can find out more about them w/in the museum, and at the end of the exhibit, you find out if they were a survivor or not.  There was a lot of fascinating information in that museum, and I'm sure we saw it for a much shorter than normal time period since we had a 3 year old with us.  It was incredible.  Here is another pic (these are all online, copied and pasted, b/c no cameras were allowed)

The following and final day, we shopped @ outlet malls all day.  It was super fun and we got some good deals and some cute stuff.  Sawyer was super well-behaved this day which was a complete shock since, in my mind, shopping would be the most boring of the three days, especially to a 3 year old.  

The icing on the cake of the trip was supper on the way home.  Here is where we ate:

and it was WONDERFULLY DELICIOUS.  Definitely worth the hour and five minute wait....next time we will stop there on the way to Branson and the way back, for sure.  Food was great, prices weren't high, and you got all these free pass arounds (okra, rolls, sorghum, macaroni, black eyed peas, fried potatos-- free-- all you could eat!)

The rolls...they throw them at you.

The sweet tea...it's great...and served like this:

mmm...it was our favorite stop of the entire trip.  

So...there was our branson experience in a nutshell.  Here's some funny stuff Sawyer did...I can only think of two things so far, but I'm sure there were lots more.

1. at the outlet mall, just as we were about to leave, I turned to find sawyer pulling his pants down about to pee on the sidewalk.  and he couldn't figure out why this bothered me.

2.  at the hotel, sawyer found out where some guy was from, and the guy said, "where are you from?" sawyer replied, "Well...Jesus gave me to my mommy and daddy, but I don't really know where i'm from."

Upon arriving home, here are some things Sawyer did...

1. Today, sawyer announced, "everyone stinks in this house."

2. (this might not be for those uncomfortable when it comes to feeding a baby)-- I was feeding ridge.  he wasn't eating well.  brandon jokingly said he could feed him if he wasn't really going to eat...and proceeded to raise his shirt.  Sawyer said, "put your boobies away daddy, nobody wants to see that."

Yeah, so there it is. sorry for the long post!

Ridge meets his girlfriend, Sawyer sees dinosaurs and screams

So here's Ridge...and Kate, his cute little tiny girlfriend.  Kate belongs to my 6 months-sr. year best friend in life....not that she isn't still one of my best friends, we just went to different colleges and added more best friends to our repertoires.   Little Kate is exactly two months behind Ridge in age....and she is a tiny sweet thing!  I couldn't believe how little she was when I held her...precious!  It was so good to see her momma again, and to finally meet little Kate herself!  We don't frequent the Tulsa area much, but I suppose I'm gonna have to make more trips as Ridge gets older, so he and Kate can hang out.  We are laughing in this picture because Ridge is pooping his pants incredibly loudly.  That's why he looks so focused...b/c he is.  Just not on Kate.  Not yet.  Give it time, he'll come around. 

While I was roadtripping it to see Kate and Meg, as well as stop off to have lunch with another HS gal pal, which was also great fun, Sawyer got to go see Ice Age 3 in 3D today-- opening day!  Apparently, taking a 3 year old to a 3d movie about dinosaurs, as well as containing 3d previews for a Christmas Carol  (which contains ghosts)...is not a swell idea.  Apparently there was out loud screaming in the theater at the sight of ghosts...and at the sight of the t-rex.  Brandon had to keep saying TAKE YOUR GLASSES OFF!  Sawyer doesn't  respond to things immediately w/out freaking out, so probably at this command he got even more upset.  All in all, I think he had a good time, and he definitely got to experience something I never have- a 3D movie.  But...his favorite part...of course....was the candy.  The kid is surviving on a 15 minute nap today and is all hopped up on Mr. Pibb, Gummy Worms, and some blended iced coffee beverage I concocted for ourselves when I arrived home from Tulsa.  Crazy.

Seriously, though, what a fun day!

nothing's going on

so...nothing exciting is going on in our life directly.... but i had time to kill so here i am blogging.

sawyer's as funny as ever, his latest hilarities can not be blogged about b/c they would cause utmost embarassment to his mother.  

ridge is growing, getting fatter by the day.

we have a garden, it's finally starting to yield some edible somethings..i had a cucumber yesterday. it was good. the tomatoes are finally getting kind of red...the squash is growing at a snail's pace....no visible okra or canteloupe yet...and the corn is yielding, but it's short.  i wish it would hurry up.  summer is about half over, so let's get this party started, garden.

my HS best friend had an adorable baby girl this week, two months (to the day) after ridge was born.  i can't wait to meet her- she is really just beautiful in pictures!  i know her mom will read this, but i'd say it even if she didn't. i'm excited to go see baby kate soon.  i will bring ridge, b/c hopefully, he will marry her.  :)

speaking of marriage, we're off to a rehearsal dinner....and brandon's in a wedding tomorrow...and then sunday is our sixth anniversary.  six years, and two kids. way to go, us.

the Bible...according to Sawyer

Soo....Father's Day morning we wake up and are getting ready, sort of, for church.  Brandon is reading his Bible in the floor of the bedroom and Sawyer gets a Bible from the bookshelf and lays down beside him (I was not in there, this is all a retelling as I was told by Brandon)....Sawyer starts reading out loud, and Brandon isn't really tuned in, but he does pick up on something about a "bad man"...He thinks Sawyer is saying Jesus is a bad man, so he says, "what is this bad man's name, Sawyer?" and Sawyer says "....Butt."  So he is reading some story in his Bible about a bad man named Butt who takes things from other people or something.  yeah....

he also asks Brandon, this morning, why he is reading a book (Bringing Up Boys, Dobson)....and Brandon says, "so i can be a better daddy."  Sawyer says, "you're already a good daddy" (melt my heart)...then he says, "and so mommy can be a better mommy?" (thanks, kid).  then he says, "and i can be a better boy."  that about covers it.

in other news...i think we may have conquered, at least semi-conquered, our fear of swimming...sawyer had a great time @ the lake last week (wading, not swimming, and definitely NOT getting in the boat- he'd have NONE of that)...but he asked yesterday if we could go swimming today.  So we've got a time all set up to head to the neighbor's...we shall see.  between that and fixing my busted cell and spraying the yard for some weird webworms that are overtaking some ivy AND getting the house sprayed for the scary spiders i keep seeing...it will be a busy day.

exciting things are happening in the gross department

So....tell me this...at church, I'm sure it's not incredibly uncommon to hear about trumpets blasting sounding the coming of something spectacular....or to hear about being cleansed...or purging yourself of the dirt inside of you....think i'm getting deep? well, we heard all of these things, in some form, at church Sunday.   As I walked into Sunday School, Ridge, with his nice full belly, sat down on my lap, and just when it got quiet, BLASTED out a sound, but what was coming was NOT spectacular....he definitely purged himself so much he had to be cleansed.  It was an awakening experience for us all.  Completely embarassing, as well, I might add.  But he isn't the king of the land of the gross. His brother conquered THAT territory this morning.  We took Ridge to the dr...i needed to be reassured of some things being "normal."....anyway, while we waited (forever), Sawyer became uber-independent and HAD to get a drink of water w/o brandon even standing NEAR him.  When he was finished, Brandon said, "You did it by yourself. Didn't you?" (he was kind of being and instigator here, you know, b/c Sawyer had been so bratty about not wanting any assistance)...then Brandon added, "You have water on your face."  So, Sawyer does something totally unexpected.  Even as it is happening, I am not putting the pieces together. I keep wondering "What is he doing?"...he lays down, on his stomach, on the waiting room carpet right in front of the check in window....and then....of course this all happens in a split second and i am thinking, "man, he's so weird ,why is he laying down?".... and then and then and then...he wipes his mouth...ON THE CARPET!  of course this is the exact spot where every person who has entered that office has stood to check in.  dis.gus.ting.  i'm sure he will come down with some disgusting disease soon.  so if you want to congratulate me on having some gross kids, feel free to do so.

the third birthday was crazier than the party

Sawyer turned three today.  Let's recap the events.  It all started around 7:20 when I woke him up to tell him happy birthday...we were headed to the zoo, early, to beat the heat.  I told him "Happy Birthday" and he said, "it's MY birthday?" i told him he was three...he said, "no...i don't want to be 3!"  finally I convinced him it was a good idea, and we started getting ready.  the morning at home was fairly uneventful, until it was almost time to go and he said to me, "here's my cup.  (pause)...i can't drink it b/c it's old.  and i don't drink old stuff.  it's old. my cup is old. " this goes on and on and i'm just nodding, okay yeah, b/c he was at his pretend kitchen so I figured he was pretending...so i was kind of ignoring him. I won't lie.  I was.  Until Brandon said, "yes, that is old. disgusting" (or something like that)...apparently, in the pretend refrigerator, a sippy cup of strawberry milk had been placed, who knows when...now..or this morning, it had turned to yogurt or something, and sawyer actually drank some of it. disgusting.  Anyway, we finally made it to the zoo.  The zoo currently has a dinosaur exhibit and Sawyer was so excited to go see it.  So in we go....and he keeps asking "are the dinosaurs little or big?"  i didn't know so I said, "medium sized, but they aren't alive.  they can't hurt you or anything."  We walk in, and there is t-rex growling audio playing non stop....sawyer is okay.  I see the dinosaur around the corner, and as soon as we even begin to round it, Sawyer sees the dinosaur also, and lets out a horrendously loud screech and crawls out of the stroller and as fast as he can up into brandon's arms, locking brandon's neck in a death grip.  so we turned right back around and went out....so I don't know if the exhibit was any good at all.  Some other things happened that were funny, I'm sure, at the zoo, but the real kicker is when we left the zoo...so keep reading.

We wanted to take sawyer to lunch but he didn't want to pick where.  I wanted to go to a grill type restaurant in Edmond, but on the way we passed County Line Bbq and went there instead.  I know a lot of people like the food there; I, however was not impressed.  Possibly b/c I didn't have a chance to enjoy it.  Here's why:  we get there....there's no one there, but they seat us in the middle of the restaurant.  There ARE private areas blocked off with only one table in them, but they seat US, the family with a newborn and a three year old, in the middle.  Then the lunch rush hits and it isn't too busy, but the people that are there get seated right around us.  Sawyer is talking as loudly as possible, dumping all the Sweet N Lows out everywhere, stacking the little butter cube things and dumping them on the floor as well...he bends down to pick them up and busts his face on the corner of the table.  Ridge is already screaming, now Sawyer is, and I forgot to mention I am at the table by myself at this time.  If only I'd known this was only the beginning, we would've left right then.  Sawyer progressively got louder, and usually he was saying un nice things b/c he was usually getting in trouble for throwing things on the floor.  We have this business lady eating lunch all alone beside us and she does not look very kid-friendly, so all I can think about is how annoying we must be.  Ridge won't stop crying, Sawyer is screaming because finally he's gotten so bad Brandon's picked him up to take him to the bathroom and give him a spanking (don't judge- yes, we swat the child). Sawyer's really only this mad b/c I took a bite of his corn on the cob to make sure it wasn't hot and Sawyer doesn't know how to share...  So he's yelling "NO DADDY, I DON'T WANT ONE (a spanking)!" and everyone is looking....Brandon and Sawyer finally come back, Ridge doesn't calm down, I've scarfed down what food I can eat while holding a baby and I get the heck out of there.  Ridge and I hang out outside and he is just fine.  We finally get brave enough to go back in....here's the kicker...Sawyer's acting normal, I sit down, Ridge is fairly calm for just a second, but then Sawyer gets this look on his face...this look I've thought about since yesterday, just fearing it would happen when we were in a restaurant.  It did . He gets this grimace and these huge eyes and he says, "EEEEEEEEEEE." or maybe "AAAAAAAAAA." Idk, but whatever sound it was, it was followed by "My tummy hurts."  This can only mean one thing in our household- he needs to poop.  He usually says this while clenching his backside....So i'm utterly embarassed but Ridge is crying again so I take the child and we sit in the car for the remainder of the lunch session (except we get stopped before we get out the door by some total stranger man who has to ask me all about Ridge and his feeding sessions...yeah...weird.) Anyway, apparently, when I left, things only got worse.  Here's my telling of the remainder, but I wasn't actually there.  The yelling, the "EEEE...my tummy hurts." only got louder and more frequent and worse....Brandon's really sweating it here, and then....what we'd both feared....occurs.  No, sawyer didn't poop his pants- he tries to avoid that- this is much worse than just pooping his pants and saying 'I pooped my pants.'  That, I could handle...no...the worst possible thing....Sawyer clenches up and yells, "POOOOOOOOOOOP!"  

out loud

in the restaurant. 

everyone hears.

people are laughing, quietly.

and the waiter, who has been kind of slow, does not waste time here, he takes the check and the money w/o any haste and brings the change quickly.  

The day has been eventful after that as well, but nothing like the restaurant, which wasn't kid-friendly anyway, but we won't ever go back.  I don't think i'll ever take both children to a restaurant again until Ridge can be content and Sawyer is willing to use a toilet to poop....without yelling in clenched pain.  

After nap, Sawyer opened a few gifts, then we ate dinner....dinner is where Sawyer told his daddy tonight, "I will rip your face off and eat it."  hmmm....what is the deal, kid?

party...crash.

the party...is over.  and we crashed yesterday afternoon.  it was an uneventful event- in the best of ways..no big problems...lots of good presents, none so big that we had to get rid of things to keep them.  i don't have pictures of everything, but i will post a few.  the only big toy i can think of that isn't pictured is this nice wooden fire station my friend crystal got sawyer-- she works for a company that manufactures toys...so she always gets some good stuff.  sawyer's favorite, by a landslide, is the gun set a couple of my students got him....i think he might like it better than the trampoline...or perhaps it's a tie.  he slept with the rifle the night of his party.  he cried when i wouldn't let him take it into church on sunday.  he plays w/ it all the time....shooting bears...and deer...imaginary, of course.  when we told him there was a squirrel (or a squee-uhl as he would say)...on the deck and that he could shoot it...he pretended, ONCE. then he said, "no, we can't shoot THAT squee-uhl.  we can only shoot squee-uhls in the house." so...idk how good of a hunter he will be. :)  perhaps he is too soft-hearted.  we shall see.  so here are the pics...it was a good time. blowing out the candles on our monkey cupcake
the cool gun and hat and handkerchief some of my students got sawyer...this is the pistol..he really loves the rifle...those are my students in the background.
the trampoline in all of its glory
the monkey cake...easy.

the monkey cupcakes...they took FOREVER to frost.

it's about to get CUH-RAZY in he-ah! (it's about to get crazy in here, for all you "normal" people)

PARTAY tomorrow!  today will be spent making 2 double batches of homemade ice cream, and baking a cake as well as 2 dozen cupcakes...decorating a table, will have to decorate the other one tomorrow...stuffing party favor bags....getting the house ready for overnight guests....and trying to get a trampoline put together w/out the child seeing it....at least that's what i can think of off the top of my head. i'm sure there's more-- like regular stuff...laundry, picking up the house, and hopefully taking sawyer swimming for the first time this summer...thank the Lord for the head of the math department who lives up the road and has a GORGEOUS saltwater pool...can NOT wait...but it's like my reward if i finish all of the above, so i better get busy!

on the other hand, anniversary is @ the end of the month.  this will be numero six for us....dinner at the melting pot is on the agenda and definitely NO gifts this year...first the excuse was b/c we had a baby and are poor. now the excuse is i just bought a whopping expensive father's day gift (expensive for a father's day gift, not for a...christmas gift)...so i'm making it count as our anniv. gift too....which is okay b/c it's something i will probably like too....if not, well, i just threw away my own gift, i guess.   but i can hardly keep it a secret!

okay got stuff to do. forgive the boring blog today.

summer

hooray! summer is officially here...i went to work today; was finished by NOON!  terrific!  came home, had a little lunch...the boys took a nap, i went for a walk and discovered that i had something wrong w/ my foot.  all day long i've been so worried about a stupid plantar wart...i knew i had one.  i KNEW it.  finally, this evening, i discovered it was....a blister.  now, to my credit, it was a DEEP blister that didn't look ANYTHING like a blister.  but it is, or was a blister.

sawyer refuses to poop in the potty.  or in his pants. he's like on a poop strike.  instead he just runs around in the squatted position screaming and crying "POOP!" tonight he even asked me to pray that his tummy would feel better (all the while, squatting and screaming....) . The child just holds it. forever. his daddy said he wasn't praying for that b/c it was sawyer's fault he wouldn't poop.  so mommy said a prayer that sawyer would be able to poop.  but he hasn't, and he won't, and it isn't b/c he CAN'T.  he just WON'T.

sawyer will be 3 in a week.  unbelievable.  we are having his party this saturday and i am super excited...we are having a monkey theme.  in the past we've had a cowboy party, and last year we had a race car party.  i LOVE making the cakes, cupcakes, and ice cream. it's so fun to me.  i'd do it for a living if people would hire me.  birthday parties are one of the best parts, so far, of being a mom.  we're getting him a trampoline (well, not just us, family is chipping in)...the turnout will be great- a lot of family and friends, and i even have some  (at least one!) of my college friends coming to see me (okay, ridge).  I'm so excited!  i love getting to see my Ouachita "sisters."  

I thought I'd post a pic or two of the last two year's cakes...not that i'm ace of cakes or whatever, i'm so not. but i think both of my cakes are cute.  this year's is even better.

and i'm proud of my blogging ability so far. i'm going to lose readers if i keep posting every day though, so i will try to BACK OFF.

sawyer's first bday

i didn't make this cake, but he sure did like it.
sawyer's second birthday