Wonderful Weekend in Wonderland!

We had an amazing day on Saturday.  We took the kids to the Please Touch Museum for neighborhood toy store day http://www.neighborhoodtoystoreday.com/.  The event was organized by Debbie at http://www.mamanista.com/ & http://www.bloganthropy.org/.  It was amazing!

I had taken Faith to the museum several years ago, before they moved to the new location.  But, the new location at Memorial Hall is unbelievable.  The building is just breath taking and the model of the original fair grounds was fascinating.  There is so much more room and the exhibits are so much fun for the kids. 

We spent well over 4 hours playing and learning.  Even the baby was entertained by the visual displays throughout the museum.  Faith and Rocky were particularly fond of the Wonderland exhibit.  It was like stepping into the story!

The kids became story book characters, train conductors, doctors, construction workers, chefs, mailmen, astronauts, bus drivers and mechanics.  Their imaginations were running wild.  They rode on the carousel and learned about history. 

The museum was definitely a big hit and I can't wait to go back when Gavin is more able to interact with the exhibits. 

 

To Be Continued...

Monday morning I was a nervous wreck.  I had a custody hearing at 9am and, although I knew my case was strong, the uncertainty was driving me insane. 

You can read about my story here.  It has been a very difficult and confusing time for my family.

We only had time to address the issue with Faith.  The judge removed all of his overnight and weekend visits with her and is allowing him one day per week for dinner.  This is a huge relief because she has been going through a lot of emotional abuse from him.  He has called her fat and ugly.  Him and his girlfriend punish her for lying when she is telling the truth.  They try to force her to answer questions with what they want to hear and if she doesn't tell them what they want to hear she has to stay in her room all day/night.  She has been very upset about going with him.  The judge told him he was confusing her and not doing what is in her best interests. 

Unfortunately, Rockland still has to go with him because we did not have time to address both issues in the time we were given.  We go back to court in mid Dec. and I am hopeful that can be resolved as well.  He has put these kids through so much. 

For now I am happy to have the small victory.  I am continuing to pray that the judge/courts will see through him and do what is best for the kids.

Proud Mommy

This was posted over at Band Back Together. But since I have been an emotion wreck lately (what with my custody court date coming up and all).  I haven't had it together enough to post about the happenings at home.

In my previous post, What If I talked about the emotional abuse my children are going through.

I constantly fear that they will carry these scars with them.  But I don’t think I have ever been more proud of my daughter than I was yesterday.

I got out of work two hours early, so I called my daughter to tell her that after her homework, we could go to the playground. She was so excited. I told her to get her school books ready and she said “Mom, I am playing right now and I REAAALLY want to finish this.”

I asked her what she was playing.  She told me she was pretending to be a counselor. She’d gone to summer camp and the older kids volunteer as camp counselors. I figured that was what she meant.

So I asked, “What kind of counselor? Are you starting a camp?”

She said, “no Mommy, I am being a counselor who talks to people. That’s what I want to do when I grow up.  I want to talk to kids like me so I can help them.”

It brought tears to my eyes. It made me sad that she acknowledges the scars she is going to carry but it also made me so proud that, instead of feeling sorry for herself, she wants to use her experiences to help others. At six years old, she is already thinking about how to help others instead of dwelling on her own problems.
Most kids her age play house, doctor, and teacher. She is thinking about how she can use the small amount of experiences she has had in her short life to help other people.

I am so proud of her. At age six, she is such a smart, kind, and compassionate person and I truly believe she WILL help many people in her lifetime.  I am so thankful that she is learning how to help people rather that assume that abuse is okay.

I have always loved the song In My Daughter’s Eyes, but yesterday I could hear the lyrics over and over again in my head: “I see who I want to be in my daughter’s eyes.”

I only wish I could be as strong, caring and compassionate as she is.

And it spread like wildfire!

What a weekend!  I am almost happy to be back in work.  I said ALMOST!

Last Wed night/Thurs morning Faith woke up and was throwing up non stop.  She went to the doctor Thurs and he said it was a small stomach virus.  No food or drink for 4 hours, then only Gatorade for 2 hours, then light foods.  If she got sick again, start over.  He said she needed to rest her stomach and give her body a chance to fight off the virus.

By Fri she was doing pretty well.  Fri evening we had dinner, watched some TV and played out back.  I got Rocky ready for bed and Faith was playing with her scrapbook kit.  Around 9:00 I settled down to watch CSI.  about 9:15 Rocky came downstairs and said he couldn't sleep.  He said his belly hurt.  Well for about 2 weeks now he has said his belly hurts every time he wants another snack. So, I started to tell him no more snacks because it is bed time. Before I could finish my sentence he was projectile vomiting all over me, the sofa, and the living room.  I rushed him into the kitchen and he started vomiting all over the kitchen as well.   Tim had walked next door to borrow formula from my grandparents because we ran out and didn't have a chance to go to the store since Faith had been sick the past few days.  I yelled for Faith to run next door and get Tim. 

When Tim walked in I was striping both Rocky and myself in the kitchen so I could get him to the tub without tracking puke all over the house.  As soon I got him in bathroom he started puking everywhere again.  I hosed him off with the shower and got him settled in the bath while I cleaned up the bathroom.  I put some clean pj's on him and got him back into bed (with a bucket on hand).  Before I finished tucking him in bed he puked all over himself and his sheets.  I got him back in the tub and striped his bed down.  I put on his third pair on pj's and took him back downstairs.

While I was taking care of Rocky, Tim threw all of the sofa covers, clothes and bedsheets in the wash and wiped everything down with Lysol.  We sent Faith to my grandparents and my parents offered to watch Gavin.  Rocky sat on the recliner and watched TV from about 11:30- 3am.  He threw up a few more times but I was able to get the bucket in time.  Around 3am he started to fall asleep so I moved him to the sofa.  He woke up gaging a few more times after that and finally fell asleep around 5am. 

I was in tears with him the whole night.  He was screaming and crying through the whole thing and yelling "my belly hurts make it stop."  I kept telling him "I wish Mommy could take it all away.  I wish I could feel it instead of you."  Yea, well be careful what you wish for!

He woke up around 8 am and and said "Mommy I feel all better.  My belly no hurts no more."  Not even 30 seconds later I was running to the bathroom to throw up.  I spent all of Sat curled up in my basement in pain.  I felt like I was being repeatedly stabbed in the stomach.  Tim cleaned the whole house and took care of me.  Sunday morning I felt much better.  But, like clock work, Tim started puking as soon as I stopped. 

Around 10am Sunday morning I got a call from my mom telling me my parents and grandparents were also throwing up.  Tim's mom picked up the baby (who, thank God, was not sick).  I spent all of Sunday cleaning the house again and re washing EVERYTHING, while taking care of Tim.  The whole time I was panicking about the baby.  What if he gets this? He is only 3 months old and would most likely have to go to the hospital for dehydration.  The worse was running through my head.  This thing was spreading like wildfire. 

I called and check on him this morning and he was still doing great.  He had eaten well at every feeding, slept through the night and didn't seem to have any problems with his bowels.  But, just in case, I called the doctor.  The doctor was pretty sure it was the stomach flu.  Apparently, the stomach flu or rota virus is the most common cause of vomiting among infants and small children. 

So, I immediately googled rota virus and it said that by age 5 nearly every child  in the world has been affected but rota virus at least once.  The symptoms are vomiting, diarrhoea, low grade fever and body aches.  In older children and adults the symptoms usually last for a few hours-about a day.  It's extremely contagious, and spreads easily through ordinary person-to-person contact.  Good hygiene and sanitation don't effectively stop rota virus disease.  This is exactly what everyone has been experiencing and why it has spread so quickly.  But, the doctor also explained to me that in 2009 pediatricians started giving infants the Rotateq vaccine at 2 months, 4 months and 6 months.  Gavin had the vaccine at his 2 months check up which, most likely prevented him from getting sick.  Since the rota virus vaccine was not given regularly until 2009, Faith and Rocky did not have it.  I will sleep much easier now, knowing Gavin will probably not catch this horrible virus!

I Take 2 more sets of arms please....Thanks!

So yesterday was interesting.  Faith woke me up and hour early because her throat and mouth were hurting.  She was talking funny so I got her dressed, dropped the boys off with my grandparents, and took her to the doctor.  Turns out she has 2 canker sores and a sore throat.  The doctor thinks the canker sores may be from an iron deficiency (which is very likely since both Rocky and I are anemic).  We were given a prescription for blood work and some magic mouthwash.

We stopped home, had some breakfast and headed over to get the blood work done.  As we sat in the waiting room Faith was getting impatient waiting for her name to be called.  When they finally called her back she lost it.  She was shaking and freaking out.  She had her arms wrapped around me so tight I thought she was going to choke me.  I sat her in the chair, pulled out my cell phone and started flipping through pictures with her.  This kept her occupied while the nurse inserted the needle.  She didn't flinch or make a peep.  But, a few seconds into drawing the blood she looked over, saw the blood going through the tube and lost it again.  The nurse finished up and as we were leaving Faith says "Mommy that didn't hurt at all.  I was just scared."

When we got home I pick up Rocky and Gavin.  I got Gavin situated in his swing and Rocky was playing with his toys.  I grabbed a q-tip, dipped it in the magic mouthwash and attempted to put it on the sores.  Well, this is where all hell broke loose.  Faith started screaming.  The baby woke up and he started screaming.  Then Rocky comes over, puts his hand over Faith's mouth and starts screaming at the top of his lungs "Mommy why you do this. Faithy no want medicine.  Why you do this to her."  Now I have three screaming children and, with the way they were shrieking, I'm pretty sure my neighbors thought I was beating them. 

As if that wasn't bad enough, I look over towards the kitchen and I see trash everywhere.  The puppy had knocked over the trashcan and pulled everything out.  So, in an attempt to regain some sort of control, I told Rocky to take the puppy in the backyard to play.  I put the baby's binky in his mouth and sat back down with Faith to get this over and done with.  It was quiet!  I swabbed her mouth got her a drink and walked out back to check on Rocky and the puppy.

 

Just as I step out back I see Rocky standing with his legs spread, hose in his hand, aiming it point blank straight at the ground.  I screamed "Rockland Michael put that hose down RIGHT NOW!"  He looked up and gave me the biggest "evil Rocky" (see this post) face and pulled the handle.  Water and mud flew everywhere. 

don't you love how he is wear his Up To No Good shirt!

At this point I just gave up.  Since he was already covered in mud, I hosed him off in the backyard before taking him in and cleaning him up.  As I was doing this my mom called and asked if Faith and Rocky could come down to her house (she lives on my street).  YES YES YES...Of course they can come down.  I sent them both on their way and got a bottle ready for the baby. 

He ate the entire bottle and be both passed out on the sofa.   At some point during our nap Tim came home.  I guess we looked really comfortable because when I woke up 3...YES 3...hours later he was laying on the other end of the sofa with the puppy curled up on his lap. 

I really think I need 2 more sets of hands!

Can we please freeze the kids...RIGHT NOW!

Where the hell does all the time go?!?!?!  Gavin is 3 months old today.  How is that possible?  He was JUST born!  I swear I blink my eyes and the kids have sprouted like little weeds. 

Gav is in an in between stage.  He doesn't wanna sleep but he can't stay awake so he fusses.  He can't sit up by himself but he doesn't wanna lay down.  He's hungry but he doesn't always want to eat because there is so much going on so again he fusses.  I am sure he will be much more content with life when he cans it up, pick things up and occupy himself. 

Gav & Faith...he looks so big

Faith is having some troubles in school.  Not because she can't do the work but because she talks so much she forgets to bring stuff home.  The first day of school she brought home someone else's math book.  The first full week of school she forgot her copy book for homework and she forgot her folder.  Now the second week of school she has somehow lost her progress calendar.  The calendar stays in the folder until the teacher removed it to note her progress for the day or until I remove it to sign it.  It has to be signed everyday.  Somehow the folder came home but the calendar is MIA.  She went back up to school, looked through her desk and talked to the teacher...NOTHING.  I have no idea how she could lose it when she only takes it from her class to the house and back to class. 

I think I am finally going to have to put my foot down.  If she keeps forgetting to bring things home there is going to have to be some form of punishment.  I have cut her some slack because it is her first year in "real" school and she is still adjusting to the changes.  But, she needs to bring her homework books home.



Faithy going to school

Lets see I talked about Gav and Faith so I guess it is only fair that I talk about Rocky!  Rocky is....well....his smile is so damn innocent.  And he is so damn cute!   Until he is carrying the puppy around by her head and breaking everything in sight.  I swear he has to have such a cute little face and sweet little smile to make up for the mass amounts of destruction he causes.  It is like his built is defense mechanism so that Mommy doesn't go nutz~o when she see what he has done.  He just smiles, blinks his eyes and say (in the cutest voice imaginable) "Mommy is you mad"  "Mommy I loves you"! AWWW come on kid how can anyone resist that!

The Evil Rocky Looks!

Then you have this sweet smile!

So, sitting in work on Friday I get an email from Daffy at Batcrap Crazy  asking me to do a guest post for the Friends You Love blog hop.  Let me just tell you how honered I am.  I am new to blogging and reading  Daffy's blog always gets me laughing and thinking "WOW, I can totally relate to that!" 

I decided to write about my friend Shannon because she has consistently been there for me over the past year.  Even if it is just to listen!

Check out the post.....