Update on everything

at 03/18/10 9:52PM
Well, within rwo hours of my last post I woke up writhing in pain from yet another gall bladder attack. Ugh! This time it was so bad I could hardly breathe. Brent called the ambulance and Christa came to stay with the baby. At the ER they weren't able to do the surgery immediately like I was hoping they would. There was no infection, just pain. SO I was offered morphine, which I declined. 1. Because I didn't want to be loopy and have to stay longer. 2. I knew the pain wouldn't last forever. 3. It would be a long time before I could feed the baby after that. The pain gradually went away while I was sitting in the ER waiting for them to give me a prescription for something in case it happens again before my surgery. We got home around 3AM.

I woke up a little tired this morning but in no pain. We still made our apt for pictures at 1PM. Nola is no fan of the camera and threw a fit for most of it but we did get some great shots. These will be posted when I have some energy.

If it was up to me they would reschedule my surgery for Monday instead of next Friday, but that may make things harder on Brent and Mom. Their bosses have already rearranged their schedules for them to be off Friday. We'll see how things go...

A little bit of everything

at 03/17/10 11:13PM
Nola is 100 days old tomorrow! Woot! I'm sure she'll feel the need to celebrate. : )

We're also having pictures taken tomorrow at Portrait Innovations. I heard good things about them and their prices were very reasonable. I think we're also going to do one family picture of all of us. I'm ashamed to say I still have no pictures of my own child hanging in my own house... We're going to fix that!

I am wanting to do some vinyl writing on our bedroom wall. Any ideas for a saying/Scripture that would be nice for a bedroom? No, Gen 2:25 will not make the cut...

Friday is a fun-filled day at the hospital with pre-op apts scheduled from 10a-1p. My gall bladder will be nestled snugly in a jar next Friday, never to pain my poor middle again. Yippee! I have had only one other surgery (hernia as a toddler) that I do not remember so I am a bit nervous, but I think he's a little more concerned about it than I am. (I lightly brought up the discussion of living wills/life insurance in the car the other night, and he requested not to discuss it.) My mom is coming to stay for a couple of days and my sister for a couple after that to help with housework and Nola. I wonder what my restrictions will be as far as lifting that chubby girl... She is probably about 15 lbs now, but we won't know for sure until her Apr 4 mo apt. She will be seeing a new pediatrician this time as the last dr wasn't my favorite. (He resembled Matt Hennecke for those of you who know him, but far less likable.)

Brent and I have started attending a Tues night study at the Fountains where the men are studying one topic and the women another (right now, Babylonian captivity including Ezekiel and Jeremiah). I am also looking forward to a study she is starting about the historical background of the Bible on Thurs mornings.

The weather has been so nice we've been able to get out and walk around our neighborhood. Nola is good on walks. Fred? Well, he could be better... (On a side note, Fred has been really good with Nola. He sniffs her when she's down playing on the floor sometimes, but as far as he's concerned she's getting to be an attention-hogging bit of old news.)

Brent's job is going well. He is still working a swing-ish type shift. I think he will be glad when it's something more permanent. He makes jokes at home using police 10 codes. Example:
Brent: Ken! Code 1 in the baby's room!
Me: What's that?
Brent: Officer needs assistance...
Hehe!

Pictures to come soon. Have a good day!
  • cbonk
    You should just remind Brent that he tried to talk Josh into getting life insurance for me RIGHT before my knee surgery. Nice.
    by cbonk at 03/18/10 4:09AM
  • hmjmom
    I hope your surgery goes well. I´m looking forward to seeing more pictures of Nola.
    by hmjmom at 03/18/10 7:21AM
  • flowerchild82
    You guys are such cute parents!
    by flowerchild82 at 03/18/10 8:57AM
  • MexicanJewel
    Wish you well with your surgery. Wish I could be there to help with Nola. Hugs!
    by MexicanJewel at 03/18/10 10:31AM
  • andtheking
    I hope your surgery goes well...I just got back from the Dr. and he told me I have gall stones and will eventually need to have my gall bladder removed. Because we have a high deductible, I was thinking that doing it this year would be best, and wondering how close the the birth of our little girl could it be done. Did you have any liver issues connected with your gall stones? My liver enzymes were high but the doctor didn't think the gall stones were causing it.
    by andtheking at 03/18/10 12:06PM
  • littlelamb
    I think you need to have cake to celebrate her 100 days. :)
    I had to have 3 surgeries last year and what I liked best was the good drug induced sleep afterward. :) When you have little ones that's pretty much the only time when you get to sleep as long as you want without being woken up to handle some crisis or other. :)
    by littlelamb at 03/18/10 1:57PM

Not a grocery gamer...

at 03/03/10 3:50PM
but still excited to save money nonetheless. Today at WalMart I got the following things for $1 each: 2 bags of Kraft shredded cheese, Glade scented oil candle refills (4), an additional Glade candle, 2-4pks of Dole fruit cups.

With me not working and having a new baby, we've definitely had to make some budget changes. One of those was groceries. Before, I usually bought things that I knew were on a good sale, and I was always very aware of how much things cost. However, I never planned meals based on what was on sale. I usually shopped for whatever I felt like making and bought those ingredients as inexpensively as I could on that particular day. Since I have more time for meal planning and less money for mounds of miscellaneous groceries, I have had to be a bit more creative with what we already have or what we get good deals on at the store in a given week. Probably sounds normal to most of you, but this is a new world for me--especially the being creative part.

As far as news goes, we set up Nola's high chair this week. She is not eating solids, but she still sat with us at the table for supper last night. It was cute.
  • cbonk
    How come I hear an evil laugh when I look at this picture?
    by cbonk at 03/03/10 4:51PM
  • kendrad
    I said the same thing... : )
    by kendrad at 03/03/10 5:44PM
  • denisemccaskill
    She is so cute!!
    by denisemccaskill at 03/03/10 8:25PM
  • flowerchild82
    Yeah, I used to just buy whatever groceries I wanted too, but now I meal plan around the sales. I also pretty much only buy meat when it's on sale. And I shop at Aldi. I make the shopping list categorized by grocery store, and I put the sale prices next to the item. Then I make Aldi my first stop and if it's cheaper there, I buy it there instead. I save a TON!
    by flowerchild82 at 03/03/10 10:12PM
  • bonkrs5
    :)
    by bonkrs5 at 03/03/10 11:28PM
  • wifelet
    I'm going to start calling Nola Brentina, instead. :)
    by wifelet at 03/04/10 7:49AM
  • dawnmk23
    She's so sweet! And good for you for sticking to your budget. We use Sam's Club for meat, and it's good quality, and I think it helps us save with a family of 5. We also get toiletries there for a lot cheaper.. We also plan for simple meals. Anything with pasta goes farther and it cheap. We make spaghetti, pork chops, sloppy joe's, tacos, our own batches of chili, beef stew. :0) If you buy more fresh stuff it's a lot healthier, too. We buy a lot of salad, tomatoes, cucumbers, bags of apples. You're doing great though to be more conscious of what you buy!
    by dawnmk23 at 03/04/10 8:26AM
  • flowerchild82
    We're doing Laura's photos. We won't be at the reception, though, because we have an eight hour drive right after the wedding. My sister is graduating from college the next day at 10:00 in Tennessee!
    by flowerchild82 at 03/04/10 10:35AM
  • joel_megan
    I just noticed that the ticker is British!!

    I am getting very excited. Right now we're trying to decide what to do with the nursery but still have to wait for our landlord to fix a few things on the roof before we start painting so we still have time. In the meantime I've been window shopping and looking at stuff on the internet.
    by joel_megan at 03/04/10 11:06AM
  • tab
    Yes, Jason Elmore.
    by tab at 03/04/10 12:03PM
  • nillabarr
    I dread grocery shopping for those very same budget reasons... but at the same time I feel so empowered with the couponing and pricing. It gives me satisfaction. :) Nola is ADORABLE!
    by nillabarr at 03/05/10 9:42PM

Outrageous Shipping

at 02/26/10 4:43PM
As I attempted to plug my cell phone in the other day I noticed the loose end of the charger had gotten wet. A green crusty residue covered the counter and the metal part of the charger. (This was the same type of green crust as one would find on a corroded battery.) The water had dried up and the tip was no longer wet so I used a dry brush to sweep away the green junk before plugging in the phone. No charge, no phone, no luck. Boo!

Brent called a few local places to price out a new charger for me. The phone was too old for AT&T to carry that style of charger any longer, so they suggested an iGo (sp?). This type of charger has interchangeable tips so it can be used on a variety of phones. How much did they want for this bad boy? $30. I am way too cheap for that, so we continued looking.

At last, Brent found a steal on the perfect charger on Amazon. $0.14! That's right. Only fourteen cents! Yahoo!!!! The bad news? The shipping was +20x the cost of the phone! Seriously? You offer a fourteen cent charger and then rip off my right arm to send it to me?! Just kidding. : ) I was stoked to only have to fork over $3.18 for a new charger. And totally thankful I didn't have to replace the whole phone. I ended up with my current phone only because my last one went in the washing machine. : (

Here's to a working cell in 5-7 days!
  • cbonk
    I like how you make it sound like your old phone just randomly decided to take up skinny dipping in your washer...
    by cbonk at 02/26/10 5:01PM
  • ladymustang_08
    Don't you know that electronics dont belong in water??
    by ladymustang_08 at 02/26/10 8:04PM
  • wifelet
    I had to buy a new phone right before we got married, because I was getting a pedicure for a friend's wedding and forgot my phone was on my lap, and it fell into the pedicure water bucket. Sigh. They really should make cell phones more water resistant ...
    by wifelet at 02/27/10 9:27AM
  • littlelamb
    I'm glad you found one cheaper! We've never been keen on paying the cell phone store price for chargers. Walmart usually has generic ones pretty cheap...but not $.14!

    Lauren- they do! My cell phone can be submerged for up to 30 min! It's also shock resistant. I have it because of the kids and because I take it running with me and often drop it in the road. But it's still going strong after a year and a half of abuse.
    by littlelamb at 02/27/10 11:50AM

Happy Valentine's Day

at 02/12/10 4:25PM
Love, Nola

I tried to get one with both kids, but they were a little squirmy. : )

  • bestill
    Look at that belly!! She must be eating well!
    by bestill at 02/12/10 5:38PM
  • dawnmk23
    So cute!
    by dawnmk23 at 02/12/10 5:55PM
  • joel_megan
    How cute!!
    by joel_megan at 02/12/10 5:59PM
  • wifelet
    I'm digging the cloth dipe!! How does she/ how do you like them so far?

    Matt says she looks very mellow - and cute. :)
    by wifelet at 02/12/10 7:17PM
  • babyelephant
    Haha! Thanks Nola....and Fred!
    by babyelephant at 02/12/10 7:40PM
  • heidiw
    She is looking so much like Brent! But the girlie version, of course. :) She's a beauty!
    by heidiw at 02/12/10 8:52PM
  • purrph1
    Those pictures are adorable! :)
    by purrph1 at 02/12/10 8:55PM
  • nillabarr
    She is so cute!!
    by nillabarr at 02/12/10 10:49PM
  • hmjmom
    What a sweet baby! She is really cute!
    by hmjmom at 02/13/10 8:01AM
  • indianamom
    She is getting so big already!!! Happy Valentine's day to you guys!
    by indianamom at 02/13/10 9:20AM
  • tab
    Cuteness!!
    by tab at 02/13/10 2:59PM
  • onelittlecandle
    Sooo cute!! Happy Valentine's Day to you all!
    by onelittlecandle at 02/14/10 5:39PM
  • cherri
    Awww :)
    by cherri at 02/15/10 9:08AM
  • bonkrs5
    I think Nola looks a lot like her daddy in these pictures! :)
    by bonkrs5 at 02/16/10 5:36PM
  • holly_ann
    Oh how prosh!
    by holly_ann at 02/17/10 10:24AM
  • turtle_girl
    I heard you and Nola were up here today and I didn't get to see you. :( Boo.
    by turtle_girl at 02/17/10 9:28PM
  • wifelet
    Ditto. Only, I was going to call you a stinker, in addition to what Paula said.
    by wifelet at 02/18/10 5:12PM
  • turtle_girl
    I think in July. I hope I get to see you before July!
    by turtle_girl at 02/22/10 4:45PM
  • dawnmk23
    I'm getting Wes involved to be my exercise partner! That way, we're doing it together so we're more accountable. :0)
    by dawnmk23 at 02/24/10 7:30AM
  • wifelet
    BTW, saw your question on Paula's blog - the singing is, indeed, in July. This year, it'll most likely be the 2nd Friday in July. But I'm with Paula - you'd better make your way up here before July!! Zoe will be months and months old by then - she and Nolie need to meet!!
    by wifelet at 02/25/10 11:36AM