Ortho BBQ

Last night the new chiefs for Patrick's Ortho residency held a BBQ (at our favorite Homestead Park) to welcome the 5 new guys (3 new interns and 2 adopted residents from a program that got shut down). It was great to see everyone, and despite the off and on rain, we had a blast! Gavin got to play with some old friends, Daddy got to talk to a bunch of people, and mommy got to catch up with the girls. We had delicious food and even whipped out the fishing poles and caught a HUGE fish (so big, I couldn't even reel it in on the Lightning McQueen rod - we had to manually pull the string in ourselves). It is so nice to see the residents hanging out outside of work, and is a great indicator for the year to come!

Tag

Memory Lane...the tag that gets everyone involved
I got this from Laura's blog. I thought it would be fun! I hope you will play along. Here are the directions:

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments.

Oh No!!!

This is what we learned Evelyn could do tonight:

Random pictures from our weekend

Here are some random cell phone images from our weekend:

Evie loves to climb on top of EVERYTHING! Her newest trick is climbing on the toilet, into the sink to brush her teeth.

The kids asked to get the blow up pool out to cool off in the hot hot heat!

Both Gavin and Evelyn love helping with the Swiffer Vac.

We went fishing on sunday with the Christensens. The fish were biting left and right and each of the kids got to actually catch a fish on their own. Kelly caught 3, Gavin 2 and McKenna 1. Here is Angie waving the fish in front of Evie and Camille to entertain them.

McKenna and her fish.

Kelly was a bit nervous - but still loved it!

Next best thing

Since Diego was not available - we got the next best thing.


*** For those concerned friends - The pics of the raccoons are just taken from Google. They were not real. I made sure to stay away! Also - Patrick did not find any coons in there today. No nest - nothing. So the fireworks may have scared them off. He is sealing the roof today to avoid this happening again!

Diego - Where are you?

So anyone who knows my kids - know that they LOVE Diego and Dora. Diego, the Animal Rescuer, has saved us many times with his videos, games, etc. My kids could literally sit ALL day and never move if Diego was on tv. Kinda sad - but has been proven to be useful more times than not.

Well, now I need Diego for real. My neighbor called today and said she saw the cutest raccoon playing on our playset out back and then climb up the pole attached to our shed and climb into our shed through a hole where the roof attaches. And tonight, while the fireworks just started (we were watching from the safety of inside out house since Gavin was afraid of the loud noise), I saw the raccoon climb out and shimmy down the pole and off into the night. Then another. And another. I counted 6 adults (and that was just what I actually saw) plus HEARD numerous babies freaking out because the adults left and the fireworks scared the crap out of them. So I think we have a brothel/nesting area for some slutty raccoons. Diego - come rescue these animals before we resort to inhumane resorts! (For those animal rights activists - I am just kidding - we will handle this appropriately...and for those hunters - let me know when you are available).

God Bless America - Happy 4th of July

If tomorrow all the things were gone I'd worked for all my life,
And I had to start again with just my children and my wife,
I'd thank my lucky stars to be living here today,
'Cause the flag still stands for freedom and they can't take that away.

I'm proud to be an American where at least I know I'm free,
And I won't forget the men who died who gave that right to me,
And I gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today,
' Cause there ain't no doubt I love this land God Bless the U.S.A.

From the lakes of Minnesota to the hills of Tennessee,
Across the plains of Texas from sea to shining sea.
From Detroit down to Houston and New York to L.A.
There's pride in every American heart and it's time we stand and say:

I'm proud to be an American where at least I know I'm free,
And I won't forget the men who died who gave that right to me,
And I gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today,
'Cause there ain't no doubt I love this land God Bless the U.S.A.

**PS - Those are my yummy pretzels for our neighbors party today!

Little Girl who cried wolf

So, thanks to Hailey on our vacation together, Evelyn's new favorite phrase is, "I stuck". She uses it very appropriately, and besides "Go Diego Go", it might be her only real words she puts together. In her high chair, when strapped in her stroller or a shopping cart, when she really gets stuck behind the couch - basically all the time she is saying "I stuck". So today when she was laying down to take a nap - I hear her yelling "I stuck". I mean, she says it all the time, so why would I believe she was really stuck. I don't think much of it (probably 10 minutes of her saying it) until I hear "that" cry when you know something bad is happening. Turns out, she got her legs(knees) stuck through the crib spindles, unable to pull them back out. She kept trying herself and ended up getting pretty swollen around her knees - making it even harder to get out. I had to try to pry apart the spindles with one arm and a leg, while pulling her backwards to get her leg out. It was not easy, but I got her out. Now if she would only use the phrase when she REALLY means it...

Sick Boy continued...

How sad is it to be a parent when your child is sick? Gavin had spurts of good moments today (when his ibuprofen set in) but for the most of the day was pretty yucky. He seemed ok at dinner - although he ate NOTHING but at least asked for chocolate milk - but then asked to be excused to go lay on the couch. At least he remembered his manners. Then I was taking Evie up for a bath and he started whining that he wanted to go. So upstairs we went - into the tub. Things were fine until I asked him to stand up so I could rinse him off. Then he started SCREAMING and crying asking, "Mommy - why are you hurting me? Stop hurting me please!" He was shaking like a leaf with awful chills and grabbing his body in pain. I quickly swooped him up into a towel and grabbed Patrick to help (since Evie was still in the tub). Patrick took Gavin and got him dressed as quickly as possible. Then Gavin (unable to move himself since he was still shaking) asked to be put into bed with extra blankets, no lights and no fan. He was doing that swallowing thing you do before you puke - so we laid a towel down just in case. I asked him if he wanted me to stay and he said no - he just wanted to sleep. All this was done by 7:15pm (and he had a 2 hr nap). Poor guy. You feel like a schmuck when you can't do anything for them!

Guess who is sick now?

Poor guy

Super Scary

So tonight we had another super scary event with one of our kids. Here's the summary:

Evelyn woke up from her nap feeling a bit warm and not wanting to eat or drink anything. I figured it was her 2 year molars since she had been waking up some nights and was chomping on anything she could get her hands on. Anyway, I ended up giving her some Tylenol because she started to get warmer and I had to leave for a New Intern Welcome party for Doctor's Hospital. I handed off kid duty to Patrick (who also had to watch our friends Nathan and Carter since Ashli was joining me) and I was off to mingle and recruit new doctor's spouses. As soon as I pulled into the driveway of the party Patrick called. In a very calm voice he said, "I just called and ambulance for Evelyn." I thought he was joking because we kid about how crazy she is and adventurous - never would I think he was serious. I even told him that he needed to quit joking - I was just getting to the party and had to go. Then he said again - very matter-of-factly (in doctor mode now that I look back), "I am serious. I had to call and ambulance, Evelyn had a grand mal seizure and was not breathing for almost 2 minutes. She is ok now, but we need to take her to the hospital." I immediately dropped everything off and headed home.

He said he had taken all the kids outside to play and she was running around like normal - maybe a bit slower than usual - but nothing way wrong. Suddenly, the boys wanted to go in for a drink so he turned to get her and saw her start walking funny and then she just collapsed. She started seizing in all 4 quadrants and her eyes rolled back and she was not breathing. She had a rapid pulse but was starting to turn blue. He took her inside and checked her airway, breathing, circulation. He called 911 and she started to gasp and breathe on her on again. She slowly came out of the seizure and stabilized but was in a post-seizure state...sort of like a rag doll. She didn't care when the EMS took vitals, etc. I got home when the ambulance was there so they let us drive her in since she was stable and Patrick was a doctor. We got top notch care at Children's and Ashli took Gavin for us during the whole thing (A HUGE THANKS).

I had an eerie sense of calm, maybe because Patrick was so calm, maybe because my mommy instinct told me she was ok. Evelyn has had a history of febrile seizures before so we knew that a rapid increase in her temperature could set it off. We have to be very careful even when she shows the slightest sign of a temp. It turns out she has hand, foot, mouth virus which caused the high spike in temp, which caused her seizure. We are grateful there was a logical reason behind it - at least we don't have to worry about WHY she seized. But we always have to be careful when she gets a temp because once they have multiple episodes, they are more likely to keep getting them. The febrile seizures usually go away by the time they are 6 - but that is 4 more years of worry!!!

We want to make all of our friends aware - since we were at playgroup, over friend's houses, etc and this is a communicable disease. Please check for fatigue, fever, rash on hands, feet and mouth. Ashli told us Nathan also spiked a fever tonight - so it is definitely going around!

Anyone who knows me...

photos by nbc4i.com

knows I slept under my FITTED sheet covers last night. After be woken up at 11:45 by thunder lightning and TORNADO sirens, I tried to wake Patrick up (a very hard feat). He did not believe me so I turned on all 3 local channels and saw on of my worst fears approaching...severe thunder and lightning storms as well as a tornado warning. The storm developed so quickly they did not have time to even have a "watch". Hail, lightning that was non-stop and lit up the sky...all of it developed right over our streets in Hilliard (over our exact location in Hilliard as they showed on the NBC radar - following the worst parts of the storm street by street). I was totally freaking out as the weathermen were telling us that "This is NOT a drill, get in your basement now". So, did we go to our basement? NO! I was frozen in fear (for real) and Patrick kept sleeping!!! Even when I heard the golf ball sized hail - I started shaking Patrick again, who kept assuring me we would be fine. Next time - I am really not listening to him. Although the storm did eventually pass (after about 30 minutes), we saw that there were 2 other storms JUST like it following it's tail. So we braced for rounds 2 and 3 (well actually just I braced - the kids and Patrick slept through it all). The power flickered on and off - but there was no wind. The national weather said they spotted a tornado on their radar during the 1st storm, but then lifted the warning for the other 2, downgrading to just a severe thunderstorm. Once the 3rd storm finally passed (over an hour and a half later), I was so shaken up I couldn't fall asleep for another hour or so. Overall, a terrifying experience for me!!! The only cool part was watching the live radar and really tracking the storms. They could turn the radar into 3-d mode and you could see the HUGE storm cells - all 3 traveling in a row. It was a beautiful and magnificent show of what mother nature is capable of.

Baby steps...

I loved this little poem to match this picture of Evie I took at our playgroup today. We went to Ballantrae Park (aka the Bunny Park, the Fountain Park, etc). We were just about to leave and she FINALLY started getting wet and playing in the water when she decided to talk a little stroll. I followed the baby step footprints and found her, staring up at the huge hill with the bunnies on top. I also included some other cool pics from the day...


Someday I'll jump through puddles, take a stroll or run a race.
Someday I'll walk across the street, or maybe walk in space.
Someday I'll scale a mountain, or join a ballet corps.
Someday I'll walk a tightrope, or explore the ocean floor.
Someday these feet will do some things that only heaven knows,
But for today they're happy just to wiggle all their toes.

Nathan having fun splashing the water around.


Gavin running head/face first into the water spray.


Evelyn getting up the courage to go near the fountains.


Gavin on top of the Bunny Hill.

Things I thanked God for yesterday

1. I thanked God for my friends and family.


2. I thanked God for my husband and kids.

3. I thanked God for not letting it rain, even though most all other areas of Columbus got drenched, so we could hold a going away party for our friends, Cara, Phillip and Hailey.


4. I thanked God that my friends are amazing cooks/salad makers/dessert makers/appetizer makers/food bringers so I didn't have to make anything for the party and we still had tons of delicious (mostly healthy) foods!


5. I thanked God that they kids ate veggies (even if it was doused in ranch dressing).

6. I thanked God my husband took over Grill duty and made delicious dogs, burgers and chicken for everyone.


7. I thanked God that there were THREE yummy desserts to choose from (even if some of us chose all 3 - not just Angie).


8. I thanked God that the kids all played together very well and ate at tables together, like real friends do.


9. I thanked God for the guys getting to hang out and catch up.


10. I thanked God for little girls who love dolls, and little boys who help their moms.


11. I thanked God for neighbors who dress alike and play alike.


12. I thanked God for little friends


And big friends.

A few fav pics

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the beach. To see ALL pictures - check out http://picasaweb.google.com/kellybull/MyrtleBeach2008.

This shows off the tide pool, my baby, and my sucking my belly in pose.


My loves...


Gavin getting eating by an alligator


The Pack-N-Play Sport was used for baby jail as well as an eatery.


Dessert (frozen yogurt sticks) at our playground.


Our visit with the Pokablas.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY BABE!!!

Babe -

How do I begin to tell you how lucky

I am to have you in my life?
I'll start by saying what an honor it is
for me to be your wife.
I'm going to try to speak the words
that my heart wants you to know.
I want you to see what you mean to me
and why I love you so.
You're my best friend in the good times
and my rock in times of sorrow.
You're the reason for sweet yesterdays
and my promise for tomorrow.
Nobody else can know my thoughts
and touch my soul like you can.
No one can melt my heart like you do
by simply holding my hand.
With a loving glance or a tender kiss
you make my cares disappear.
Warm thoughts of you surround me
and always keep you near.
For better or worse, thick and thin,
you've been there by my side,
sharing the laughter and the tears
through life's uncertain ride.

I never thought I could feel this loved
until I became your wife.
You made this year and every year
the best one of my life.
I need nothing more from you than this-
to know you'll always be mine
And the promise of your love in my life-
until the end of time.
We don't know what the future has
in store for you and me
but this I know, without a doubt,
the best is yet to be.

I love you and I love us more than words can write. Thanks for everything!

Our tribute to Leah...

Leah, our very health conscious friend, would have keeled over and died when seeing what we ate almost every night in Myrtle. It included: peanut butter chip brownies, Edy's double fudge brownie ice cream, peanut butter sauce, chocolate sauce and whipped cream. If we did not eat that, it was because we got ice cream with the kids at Maggie Moos. Forgive us, Leah, for we have sinned! Yum :-)

Almost ready to post...

I have just finished uploading my pics - but am waiting for Ashli and Cara to veto any they do not want seen (common courtesy for girlfriends in bathing suits). I will post some pics with some of our highlights as we can!

For now - you can read Ashli's blog. She has started outlining each day with pics also...

PS

A shout out to all the great dads out there this weekend. I would've/could've/should've posted a schmoopy message about what a great dad Patrick is - but instead we spent every second together (not on the computer) since I just got back from missing him for so long! But - schmoopiness is coming.

Weeeee're Back!

Long time, no blog. We are safely back to our Ohio house after a 13 hour trip yesterday. We were so excited to see our Daddy, but it was sad leaving our awesome beach house. We can't wait to go back!!! We had a great trip with the Pokablas, by ourselves as a family, and with Ashli, Nathan, Carter, Cara and Hailey! I will be blogging shortly about our trip - but I want to spend time with my hubby for now!!! :-)