Meet Natalie Danielle 8/30/2009

Getting Ready For Tomorrow

This morning, we went to Pine Bluff and walked around the Flea Market. They really didn't have much, but the weather was beautiful and the kids needed to get out of the house.
On the way home, we ate lunch at Chili's. Hayden made us crack up because of the way he eats corn on the cob!! He eats it like a pit bull would eat a small animal..like he is afraid you may take it away from him!!
We got back home and OF COURSE, the older two went to MawMaws for a couple of hours. Dale and I put Hayden down for a nap and finished trimming the doors in the dining room (Happy Anniversary, huh). We cleaned up our mess and waited for H to wake up so we could go get the other two kids.
We made it back home in time for baths and getting things in order for tomorrow. I really am going to try to plan ahead a little better, it makes my mornings so much smoother.
That's all for now...back to facebook I go.

Beautiful Day!!

I had to work this morning...yuck! We were not that busy, sure we had our share of sick kids, but nothing like I was expecting. We actually got to leave around 11am. I went to MawMaw's to meet up with Dale and the kids. I played softball outside with the kids (Austin included) and then we played some kickball. The weather could not have been better!
We came home around 6ish and the kids got their baths and are almost in bed. Well, Hayden is asleep and Caitlyn is watching HS Musical in her room. Jackson...my little insomniac...is still awake. I went over to mom's for a little while and visited with them this evening. Dale was watching War Of The Worlds (with Tom Cruise) and I have seen it so many times already, but I guess Dale keeps watching in hopes that it will end differently or something. Tomorrow is our 11th Anniversary, I cannot believe it!! I really didn't think we would make it this far, but we did!! I am not sure if we are planning anything or not, my wallet says "NO", but who knows. I think we are going to Pine Bluff in the morning to look around the flea market, but other than that, I have nothing planned.

I DONT FEEL GOOD!!

I have a cold...just a cold...but I feel aweful!! I do not make a good sick person. Probably because I dont get to rest. I am crabby and obviously a little hormonal. Dr Stanford seemed determined to point out every time that he thought I could have said something nicer. I did NOT appreciate that at all!! Leave it to him to point out my shortcomings on a day that I feel like crap!! ha ha
Hopefully tomorrow will be better!! For now, I am enjoying facebook...okay Jennifer, you were right...I think I am hooked.

First Day of School...The Morning Part.

This morning went so well. What a nice surprise. Jackson woke up and immediately said that he needed his lunchbox. I told him that he needed to get dressed first! He got dressed and was READY to go. He always surprises me...when I expect a meltdown...I get NOTHING. When I expect him to be fine...he has a meltdown. Anyway, he walked right into his classroom and started coloring. It was funny because his teacher was making the kids wear nametags, as she was putting Jacks nametag on, she told him that she already knew his name! I am not sure if that is a good thing or not. I am sure that Mrs.Jessica warned her about Jack!! I was so proud of him. On the way to school, he told Caitlyn that the first day of school is always scary, but the next day is a little easier and the next day is even better. I thought that was nice because that is what I have been telling him for weeks. After he told Caitlyn that, he said "damnit," I about wrecked the car...I said WHAT DID YOU SAY...he said it again...and again...I said "Where did you hear that word?" He said that he heard it last night watching "Deadliest Catch." I had to explain to him that that was a terribly naughty word and he is NOT to say that EVER again. I think he could tell by the look on my face that I was serious. Hopefully, he will have a great day and be ready to go back tomorrow. Caitlyn, I am sure, will do great. She is a good kid and has a lot of friends. I will let yall know

Updated Dining Room Pics

So I need some input. I was originally wanting to do black and white toile wallpaper and paint the wainscoat white. Now I think I am still going to paint the wainscoat white, but I am thinking about painting the wall a butter yellow color. All of the door and window trim is also going to be white. I think that the yellow will go really good with the blue living room and the green kitchen. Actually the three colors together match our dishes. I think the lighter color will really make the room look bigger. I am wanting to put lots of pictures on the wall...mostly black and white pics of the kids.

Off Day!

Today was WONDERFUL!!! I spent the day getting things in order for school tomorrow. I have the kids' clothes ironed and laid out for the rest of the week. I wish I could stay this organized for the whole school year, but I get tired of being so organized after a while!!
Mom and I took the kids to Mills Park to play for a little while...literally A LITTLE WHILE...it was HOTTT out there and the kids were sweaty and ready to leave after 45 minutes. I had to go to Kohls and get Caitlyn some new flip flops that match her outfit that she is going to wear tomorrow. They had some super cute ones that are made by Sketchers and they were on sale! Jackson was starting to get fussy in Kohls so we went to Target and let the kids get popcorn and a drink (only $1.50) and we sat at Starbucks and let them eat.
We finally came back home and I had to get busy with supper. Tonight we had barbecue ribs (made in a crock pot), purple hull peas, three cheese biscuits and okra. Dale and Caitlyn left for soccer practice and I gave my boys a bath and cleaned the kitchen. Now I am sitting here blogging in the peace and quiet and getting ready to go watch Hell's Kitchen. I am off tomorrow too so that I can take Jackson to his first day of Kindergarten (sniff sniff) and also I will be able to pick him up when school is out. I hate it on their first day of something when I am at work because by the time I get home from work, they are tired of talking about it and I get nothing out of them. Holli (my boss) is really good about letting us off for stuff like this. She also let me off on Caitlyn's first day of Kindergarten. I think she knew that I wouldn't be worth much if I did come in that day!! I think tomorrow will actually be the hardest one yet. Caitlyn was so happy to start kindergarten. She never cried. She was like, "bye mom and dad", it was NO big deal to her. Jackson, on the other hand, had a death grip on my hand when we went to Open House at the school. I felt like crying for him because he was so scared. He is a dependant kind of person where Caitlyn is independent. He needs familiarity. New things are always tough for him, mixed with the fact that he is NOT a morning person...tomorrow has all the makings to be terrible for us! I will let you know how it goes....

100th Blog!!

I'm Pregnant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha.....just kidding!!!!!!!!!!! I just wish I had something exciting to say on my 100th blog!!
Today went fine. We were busy and had Well-Clinic this afternoon. I HATE WELL CLINIC!! It is hard because I have to run up and down 2 flights of stairs about 8 times in a 4 hour period. We really like that we get to go downstairs for Well Clinic, but a lot of what we do for our checkups takes place up stairs, so needless to say I get a lot of exercise on those days!
Shannon and I went to eat lunch with our Hubby's at Treadway! We were a tad bit late coming back from lunch, but nobody seemed to notice! Tomorrow I have to take my car to Lander's to get it looked at and see if they can fix the bumper. Anyway, I will hopefully have something fun to blog about tomorrow. I am off for 2 days and I will spend tomorrow getting the kids ready for school on Wednesday. Enough for now...

Happy Birthday Austin!!

Today was my nephew's 10th birthday party! Betty and Brenda had a party at Betty and Ralph's house! We had a GREAT time and I got to do something that I have been wanting to do for a while. I took the kids out back and got some CUTE pics in front of the old farm gate. They turned out wonderful. I love taking pics almost as much as working in the pediatric office!!! Enjoy the pics...

Not a great off day!

Well, this morning I had to take Hayden to his appt at the clinic. The kids and I loaded up and headed to the clinic. I was in front of Target getting on the access road and I was rear ended. The guy was driving a 2009 Ford Focus and he hit me from behind. He was VERY nice, but un-insured!! I was SO mad! So I was late getting Hayden to his appt and then after the cop let me leave (the guy that hit me got the ticket) I was driving off and realized that he never gave me my license and registration back. I couldnt turn around because that is a one way street. I went ahead and went to the appt and then went to my insurance agent and filed a claim. Luckily, I have uninsured motorist protection. My insurance will cover the accident and will not increase my insurance. My nice insurance company called the state police and had the officer to meet me somewhere to get my information back to me. I felt a little weird driving around looking for a cop, usually I try to avoid them!! Anyway, the damage was only done to my rear bumper and hopefully I will be able to get that fixed soon.
Dale and I went grocery shopping tonight and ate left over Larry's pizza for dinner. Hannah Cantrell is spending the night tonight while Jennifer and Mark deal with Mark's dad's death. Hayden is starting to get sick...just a cold I think. Enough for now, more later...

I am off tomorrow...HORRAY!

Today was fun! We had "Well-Clinic" this morning so we were downstairs with Shannon. We ALWAYS cut up when we work together! We had a lot of fun. Laura had to leave early, so another nurse came over and worked with me until 5 ish. Dale took Caitlyn and Jackson to the softball field for Caitlyn's practice. I stayed at home with Hayden and gave Bella a bath. Hayden and I took a shower and met Dale at Larry's Pizza for supper.
Tomorrow, I am taking Hayden to the clinic so that he can take part in a research study. NO he is not getting anything investigational. He is just going to get a Hepatitis A shot. It is not a required vaccine...yet. It is recommended that children get it, but the CDC has not made it mandatory yet. The study just lets him get the shot and they just follow him more closely to see if he runs a fever or not. He does not have to get any blood draws AND he gets paid $200 for it (which he will get to keep).
Caitlyn is also going to be in a study in a couple of months. She will get a meningococcal vaccine (prevents meningitis...NOT a live virus vaccine so it is not possible to get Meningitis from it). She gets paid for it too, but I am not sure how much. I asked Jack if he wanted to do it and he said NO, Caitlyn will buy me something with her money, so I dont have to do it. I let them decide and if they refuse, that is their choice. OF COURSE, I would NEVER allow them to take part in anything that I know would be dangerous (actually, our clinic does not take part in those kind of studies). Anyways, the kids are asleep and Hell's Kitchen has gone off. I think I am going to bed.

OH, I almost forgot...our hot water heater broke. Apparently, all of this construction has created a cloud of dust (probably from the sheetrock) and it stopped it up. There is no fixing it. CRAP. Dale had to go to Home Depot this morning and get a new one. The grand total was $404 ...YIKES!!! You know, it never fails....you try to do one thing and everything else has to fall apart. Anyways, the old one is on our front porch...probably forever. The new one works great and I owe Dale something nice (I am sure he will be able to think of somthing!!!). He can do anything. I knew there was a reason I married him!!!!! GOODNIGHT!!!

Hayden Playing In The Water Hose!

These were so cute! He LOVED his popsicle!

That is a BIG mouth!!

Feeling Weird...

Dale and I are SOOOO blessed...blessed more than we will ever know. We are blessed that we have had three beautiful healthy children. We certainly do not feel like we deserve the Grace that we have been given. We of course had to struggle to get pregnant, but our babies were so healthy and for that we are incredibly blessed. Tonight, a terribly difficult decision is being made in another household. Jesse and Jodie are having to make the decision to let precious little Eli hang out with Jesus for eternity. I am SO sorry for them. I dont even know what to say, we all feel like we have been a part of her pregnancy (especially if you followed her blog) and I cannot imagine how they are feeling right now. The important thing for her to know is that she did not do anything wrong (God don't make mistakes). I know that they wanted to bring those two babies home and live happily ever after. It makes me wonder why some people have to go through so much just to get what came fairly easy for us. There is a christian song called "Farther Along" and it says that "Farther along we will know all about it, Farther along we'll understand why". I know that death, to us, is sad and terrible, but to God it is the greatest thing. That sweet precious baby gets to live in Heaven now...a far more incredible place. I cant help but think that Eli was sent here to deliver Walker to his Mommy and Daddy. He accomplished his goal and Jesus needed him to come back to Him. Maybe that is a better way to look at it. Anyways, now that I am in tears, I need to change the subject.
Today was insane at work. We could not catch a break for nothing. Poor Dr.Stanford did not get a lunch and we had one crazy thing after another. It was just a peek inside what this winter is going to be like. I am very excited that tomorrow is Friday. We have had a lot of work going on around the house. Dale and I decided to enclose our carport and make a dining room. We have the outside wall and electrical stuff done, but have to pass our inspection tomorrow before we can do anymore. I love it so far. We have been eating out there even though it looks rough right now! I will post the pics tomorrow if I can. Our house is in shambles it seems. Everytime I sweep the floor, it just gets covered in saw dust again. I am a NEAT FREAK and this is making me crazy, but luckily Dale has helped me keep a pretty good handle on it. Hayden just seems to get into anything that gets left out. He already dropped and broke my new light for outside the back door. We kind of have to keep things picked up because of him. He is SNEAKY!! Okay...enough for now. GOD BLESS YOU MCGINLEY FAMILY...