SCHOOL'S OUT!!!!!!!!!!

Need I say more! I am so glad that we made it through another school year. It is somewhat bittersweet since my baby will now be a first grader, but life does go on. I did miss my students last day of school being out with strep throat AGAIN, but at least I am recovering a lot quicker this time. Baseball also ended for Jacob last night, Hallelujah! I am glad they won 2nd place for the season, but am even happier that we don't have to play today. I love it when my son wins, but am so ready for the break. The kiddos are starting swimming lessons Monday. I am not real sure how that will go. I think sister will do fine, but Jacob on the other hand??? He told me this morning "but you and daddy usually just hold us in the pool". When they tell that child to stick his face in the water, I am sure we are going to show all of our true colors.(Remember the death grip from the beach Becky?) Only time will tell. On to better news, Disney is only 20 days away!!!!!! I am so ready for this trip, I've only been planning for a year(you know the OCD kicked in a long time ago!). We are also in desperate need of a vacation. We missed ours the last 2 years due to moving!

Finally, Easter Pics

I am ashamed to say, this was my kiddos 1st time to dye eggs!

Notice Gracie hoping for an egg to eat!
Aren't they sweet, sadly it won't last!

Just to let everyone know...

Brad made it through surgery great and without a problem. He was even cracking us up afterwards coming down off the drugs(I wish I had a video of that). Then they got him up to go to the bathroom. While in the bathroom I had to hold him up when he nearly passed out. I pulled the nurse call button and they came with a wheel chair to get him. He lost all color in his face(even his lips turned white). They got him back to the room and turned him basically on his head to get his blood flow back and when he regained some color, took his blood pressure. Of course it was 80 over 50 and then the longest day ever started. We spent the next 7 hours trying to get his blood pressure back up. The nurse even called the dr trying to get him admitted, but there was not a bed available. So finally at about 8:00 with a blood pressure of 99 over 76, they decided to go ahead and send us home. Keep in mind this was suppose to be day surgery. The dr had told Brad to stay off his feet for 3 days because the swelling was going to be bad. I knew this was going to be a challenge, but never dreamed that I would have to threaten to duct tape him to the bed at 5:00a.m. Tuesday morning. Tuesday was a little better. He only got up a few times and managed not to pick up anything-shocker! Well I took Jacob to his baseball game Tuesday afternoon(which he scored 2 runs!) and my throat was a little scratchy- I figured just allergies, no big deal. Well in the middle of the night I noticed I was sweating and running a fever. I got up at about 6:30 and took my temp and it was 101, which is very high for me. I took Jacob and Carley to school then went straight to the dr. Of course my strep test came back positive. The dr said I had a horrible case of strep with tons of pus pockets in my throat. So after a quick stop by the pharmacy, I went home and went to bed. Now we were a sight to see, Brad hobbling around after surgery and me feeling like death! So to make a long story short, today is Friday and the the first time I have really gotten out of the bed besides running the kids to and from school. I still don't feel great, but feel a lot better than I did. Brad on the other hand went to work today, so that should tell you how he is doing. Please pray that my life gets better! I know that may sound petty, but I am really about to reach my breaking point!

Update!

Well to update everyone on the recent situation. We went Friday and picked Josh up for his first visit home. On Saturday he wanted to go to his Aunt and Uncle's and see his half brothers, not a good situation. These are the people he went with last time that got him in Cherokee in the first place. I told him no and after an hour of arguing decided to call the home. The director told me to let him go then go back in 1 hour to pick him up. If he didn't come let them know and at 3:00 Sunday afternoon he would be considered a runaway and they would deal with it. I agreed and let him and Josh know that if that was the case me and Brad were through. Well you guessed it. It is after 3:00 on Sunday and he is now a runaway. Me and Brad are finished helping him and no longer consider him a part of our family. I know it sounds harsh, but we can't keep putting time and energy into a kid who don't care. He is now the homes problem and hopefully they can straighten him out. Me and Brad both feel that we did the very best that we could do.

On to other news. Brad's hernia surgery is tomorrow at 11:00. It is suppose to be out patient, but with Brad's blood pressure issues, they told us to pack a bag "just in case", so we will see how that turns out. Please pray that all goes well and that we don't have to stay in the hospital. I am really tired of those at this point. Also hopefully my next post will include some Easter pics of the kiddos!

Living a Crazy Life!

Does anyone else out there feel like they are running in a constant circle? Just wondering if I am all alone. When I was a stay at home mom, I felt like I was constantly busy with cleaning, bathing, feeding, etc. That I never had a moment to catch my breath. Now that I teach school 8:00 to 4:00 5 days a week, have 2 kiddos in school, 1 kiddo playing baseball, the wife of a very busy preacher, and now live 14 hours from close friends and family, I feel like I am gasping for air. Not to say I don't love my life, but just to question when did things get so hectic! If any of you have advice that would help me sort it all out, I would greatly appreciate it. I know this is not my typical blog entry, but I really need to just vent and take a moment to meditate on this crazy world that i am now living in.

Finally Getting Better!

After a very long week and a lot of crazy diagnosis, Brad is finally getting back on his feet. They have narrowed the problems down to a blood clot in his arm, asthma, strained muscles in his chest, and STRESS! Who knew. Today he actually went to work for the first time in over a week, and for anyone who knows my workaholic husband knows how hard that is to believe. We thank you all for all the prayers and please don't stop. It is us we are talking about and you know how prone we are to all kind of problems! We love and miss you all!!!

Cut Me Some Slack!

Well Brad went to preop Monday afternoon. He wasn't feeling real well, but after a stress test and an EKG they finally cleared Brad for surgery. They did say however that they were going to have a cardiologist stand by in the surgery room "just in case" and that they would most likely keep him overnight instead of sending him home that same day. Well Tuesday morning I wake up to Brad throwing up. He had taking some medicine that made him sick. That early evening me and the dr. decided to go ahead and take him to the hospital to get hydrated. After a long night, a chest xray proved pneumonia. So at 2:00a.m. Wednesday morning we were admitted. Wednesday was a horrible day for Brad. His blood pressure at one point was 49 over 40! I don't think he even got out of the bed until Thursday night. Friday the dr. comes and says it sounded like he was getting bronchitis. So they kicked up the antibiotics a bit and started breathing treatments around the clock every 4 hours. Finally by Saturday they said he could go home. He is still not up to speed, but is at least up and talking a bit. I don't think he spoke a word all day Wednesday. Of course his hernia surgery has been cancelled until he is on his feet. He goes in the morning to see the dr. and see what kind of progress he is making. Please keep us in your prayers. Brad always says the devil isn't after you until God has you and this year is proving that true!