Cheerleader Cheerleader Boom Boom Boom!!!

Emma Claire is now a cheerleader - she joined her cousin Chandler on the cheerleader squad. Emma Claire is by far the youngest on the squad (ranging from 4 years to 8 years) but she held her own! Several times we heard her yelling in her megaphone to the crowd "be QUIET!!! we are trying to cheer" It was stinkin hilarious - she is not shy!!!! She didn't know all the cheers perfectly, but that didn't stop her - she did everything everyone else did! It was a cool night - and we were not prepared -

Henderson and Stanton hung out on the blanket until their piggy toes turned blue from the cold, as you can see, Henderson is all smiles as usual!!!! We then picked them up and held them close to get warm - no socks anywhere to be found - hopefully they won't come down with pneumonia - next time I'll be more prepared for these Fall Nights!!!! Wilson was his usual busy self, no pictures of him - he wouldn't be still long enough - but he had a great time!

Get ready to see RED!!!!

We had a great weekend! We tailgated for the Alabama game in the HOT HOT HUMID Air!!! I actually got some great pictures with Big Al - notice Wilson is in NO pictures with Big Al - you can see him clutched in his daddy's neck. He would wave to him and that's about it. There was a blow-up Big Al near our tent and Wilson would run up to it and hit it and run off - he thought it was hilarious - but that's as close as he would get (and that took about 30 minutes of coaxing). The children loved watching the Elephant Stomp!!!!

Henderson is doing great - the heat aggravated his rash a little, but he was a joy out there on Saturday! He LOVES eating his toes, as you can see in this picture and he is rolling and turning around - I never find him in the same place anymore - in his bed or on the floor!!!

Sunday night we went to a Birthday party of one of Wilson's best friends who turned 2. The gracious mom and dad invited 50 some odd people to play in Lee's backyard and have dinner - but it rained - so everyone, children and all ended up inside - bless her heart, but it was a great time! Here are some of our tailgating pictures!!!

Update on Henderson

Thank you all for your kind and gracious prayers for Henderson this weekend. We went back to the doctor Friday afternoon and had more blood drawn and his WBC count had fallen to 19,800 (still way above the normal 5,000-10,000), but this indicates that whatever was going on, his little body was reacting to the aggressive antibiotics. He got 2 more Rocephin(sp?) shots and his fever finally broke Friday night. He still has remnants of the red dot rash all over his body - still no idea what that was (maybe a reaction to the amoxicillin he had been on the previous week) - but all is well today! Let's pray it stays that way! I'll post later about our fun weekend when I can get the pictures on my computer! Enjoy this fall-like weather and pray for gas prices to go down soon - I have half a tank til empty!!!! =)

Pray for little Henderson

Yesterday, about 1:00 I got a call from the Dayschool that Henderson (4 mos) was running a fever - 102.6 (axillary, so really 103.6)- he has had an ear infection for the last week so we both assumed that was what it was. The director said he could stay (since Thursday is the only day I work all day) if we brought him some tylenol and the fever went down. Well, I was about to go into a meeting, so Will took him some Tylenol at 1:30. At 2:30 I got another call that he was still running a fever -102.9. I called the Pediatricians office and b/c he is on an antibiotic and still running a high fever, they wanted to see him right away. So I leave work and pick him up and take him to the doctor at 3:00. He has a mild rash all over his body (little red dots, nothing raised or serious-looking) my other two children have had this before when they run fever. The doctor assumes it is just a fever virus b/c his ears look great, but b/c the fever was so high and he is so young, she ran some blood work and did a urine test just to make sure. Well, his blood work came back and his WBC count was 25,000 (should be 5,000-10,000). She sends us to the hospital lab (it's now 4:45 and the lab closes at 5:00) to have more blood drawn and a urine culture done. We get there at 4:59 and they get us back. They put the tourniquet on his arm and try to find a vein and stick the needle and tubing in and WIGGLE it around to find blood, but can't find any. SO, they go to the other arm and do the same - NO BLOOD!!! They go back to the original arm and stick him again and finally find blood, they are able to fill 2 vials (they need 3) when no more blood will come out (I guess he's a little dehydrated). So they go to the hand and find more blood (I feel like I'm talking about digging for oil right now!!!=) After 30 minutes of holding H's legs down and listening to him scream bloody murder and turn bright red and blue, it's finally over (or so I think). We go back to the Pediatrician's office and he is SOUND asleep in his carrier (you would be too after all that screaming). We are waiting for the CBC, CRP and urine results (the cultures take longer) and the doc comes in and says she is going to give him 2 Rocephin (sp?) shots - an antibiotic, just to cover any infection. Well, I WAKE him up and the nurse comes in and tells me what she is going to do - the shots are BIG and they have lidocaine in them b/c they hurt so bad - it's thick and I need to give him Motrin for the next 24 hours b/c he will be SORE - ya think?????? My little man is black and blue all over from 7 sticks in 2 hours - not just little vaccine sticks, but BIG needle/tubing/squeezing/thick sticks. I hate I didn't get a picture of him all bandaged up - he was a sight, but he began eating the guaze and tape and bandaids, so I had to take them off and throw them away! The urine came back clean and the CBC confirmed that the Ped lab is correct - WBC still at 25,000, the CRP is slightly elevated - meaning there is some sort of inflamation going on probably. He ran a high fever about midnight last night - 103.3, I prayed over him and couldn't sleep until he finally went to sleep an hour later when the fever broke. We go back today for more results and a follow-up - no one seems to know what's going on. He will get 2 more shots of Rocephin if he's not better and possibly more blood work - Seriously, poor guy =(

Please pray that he will get better miraculously and if that is not God's will that we will at least know how to treat it.

Sorry no new pictures lately - but here is the little guy - how he looks even when he's sick - with a big smile on his face - he was all smiles even with 103 degree fever!!!!

Faith as a child

The sweetest thing happened yesterday afternoon while I was playing on the floor with Henderson (4 months) and Emma Claire (4 years). EC and I were both "baby talking" to H and handing him little toys to suck on and watching him roll over when all of a sudden EC said "mommy, I want to pray" and I (kind of shocked, b/c we were in the middle of play time) said "okay honey, you pray" and this was her prayer:

"Dear God, please come live in Henderson's heart. Amen"

It was the sweetest thing, but I did go on to tell her that it was wonderful for her to want that for her brother, but that one day when he gets old enough to understand, he will have to ask Jesus into his heart on his own! We then talked a little more about sin and our need for Jesus and why Jesus died on the cross. It was a very special unplanned moment on our den floor!

EARLY Morning Run

Okay, I'll set the stage: I got up this morning at 4:30 am (yes, that's right, it hurt me too - I go to work at 7:00, so in order to get in any excercise, that's what has to be done). I pumped (b/c I dare not go running without:) and I was on the road with my precious Weimeraner dog Daisy by 5:00. I live in an area where there are 4-5 fairly large neighborhoods all within a 3 mile radius connected by 2 fairly busy roads (not highways by any means, but busy during school time traffic). Well, in my neck of the woods it is still pitch black dark at 5:00 am. Daisy is all bark no bite - but she is my security, b/c a kidnapper (womannapper) might not know the difference =). I am armed with my cell phone - ready to dial 911 at any approach of a stranger (or so I think). Well, I am about 10 minutes into my run, on a dark street (with houses, but these houses sit about 100 yards away from the street - they are on "Estate" lots as some call them) when all of a sudden my worst nightmare comes true. From behind me I hear a car coming and SLOWING down!!!!!!! My heart was racing so fast (from being scared, not the run), I had my cell phone ready, but I just froze, then the car came to a crawl - I looked over and do you know what I saw???



It was a POLICE CAR

Do you know how happy this made me???

He said, "I was just making sure you were working out and not up to something."

Do you know how happy this made me???

This police man was just canvasing our "nice" neighborhoods at 5:00 in the morning to make sure no one was "up to no good". All I could say was "no" - yes, that's what I said, if I had not been nervous to the point of near hysterics I would have said "oh thank you Mr. Police Man for making our streets safer and for really making sure that I was "legit". Thank you for actually doing your job and not just sitting in some Krispy Kreme eating away your shift." Thank you Thank you Thank you!!!!!

My run was a bit faster and better from that point on - no more looking over my shoulder waiting for the boogie man to get me!

And did Daisy bark or growl even once? Notta!!!!! So much for my "guard dog"!!

Just thought I would share this fun event with you all.


***Just a side note, don't think that I get up at 4:30 every morning - I am aiming for 1-2 times a week at this point - maybe more later, but you've got to start somewhere and with 3 children now 4 and under, and a 32 hour a week job, it's the only time I have!!!!

Tailgating on the Quad

We had a great, yet busy time tailgating on the Quad Saturday for the Alabama game! It was humid but not too hot, thanks to the cloud cover! We had good food, good fellowship with great friends, and lots of fun! Emma Claire had a great time with one of her best friends Mary Alice, whom she went to the game with and had a fabulous time - thanks William and Ashley!!!!

She also had a great time on the bouncy things - but she was disappointed that you could only go on them one time per ticket - we're used to having "unlimited" time on them at birthday parties/church functions, etc. Maybe we can bypass the "dollar drainer" as I like to call it next time :).

Fearless Wilson was terrified of Big Al - he clung so tight to Will and buried his head in his neck - only when Big Al was driving off in his golf cart did Wilson finally look up and cheerfully say "Bye Bye Big Al!!" Emma Claire loved him of course!

We didn't lose Wilson, but it was tough keeping up with him - I'm sure I was a sight over at the bouncy things with Henderson asleep on my chest in the baby bjorn (thank God for that thing) chasing Wilson through the 10,000 some odd people out there - he can weave in and out of people much better than I could with a sleeping baby attached to me!!!! Next time I will do like a brilliant friend of mine did and write with a Sharpie on his bicep my cell phone number - or better yet, I will just keep him strapped in a stroller and listen to him scream the whole time =)

Henderson was wonderful - doesn't it look like he's doing a cheer??? Roll Tide Roll!!!!