Things to love right now

* Chubby baby cheeks with dimples and giggles
* Toddler tea party with mini pumpkin jack-o-lanters as the guests of honor
* Magic red and gold leaves, pink sunsets, and chilly mornings
* 7 yr olds with wiggly front teeth who make everyone waffles for breakfast
* Fourth grade student of the month, nominated by her peers for being  trustworthy- a good friend, honest, and reliable
* Finding a giant chocolate bar in a grocery bag while cleaning off the top of the fridge, that I didn't know was there, that had been bought and left sometime earlier by a thoughtful husband
* A kitchen that smells like pumpkin chocolate chip muffins
* An organized front closet
* One week until my mom getaway- room with housekeeping, a hot tub, a pool, no cooking for two days, and great company. And that is before the event even starts!
* Fresh picked apples, apple crisp, apple pancakes, and apple pie
* I found the box with my sewing machine inside- welcome back friend!
* Celebration season in our family- 2 birthdays down, Halloween, 2 more birthdays, Thanksgiving, Wedding anniversary, and Christmas! I can think about presents and celebrating, and baking, all the time instead of laundry and boxes and humidity.

I am grateful for little girls who turn on the light

We have had a very eventful few weeks over here. Thursday Lenna was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. After a few scary hours in the ER and a few more hard days in the hospital, and a long week of learning and adjusting and recovering, things are almost starting to feel normal again. I thought I would start off with a gratitude list, to help me keep things in perspective.


1. I am grateful Lenna is alive. Without the medical intervention she received last weekend, she wouldn't be.

2. I am grateful that I know her well enough to notice that she was sick, not just in need of an earlier bed time or more water or chapstick. ThatMike works crazy long hours so I can stay home and mother my kids all the time. I think it would have taken much longer to notice all of the subtle signs of illness if I only got to see her a few hours before bed.

3. I am grateful for the bathroom light. It woke me up every time she had to get out of bed to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, another symptom that would otherwise have gone unnoticed.

4.I am grateful for a school teacher who was willing to allow Lenna to carry water bottles around all day drinking, and then let her go to the bathroom 6 times a day. The water kept her from getting seriously dehydrated those last few days before the diagnosis. And the bathroom monitoring led her to ask for a note from home, asking for permission to go to the bathroom so much. This was one of the things that told me maybe there was something going on- if she needed a doctor's note to go to the bathroom so much, maybe there was a medical reason for the problem.

5. I am grateful for technology. Although WebMD and other google health diagnosis tools can sometimes be dangerous because they lead people to believe they have something they don't or keep sick people from going to the doctor, they can be really useful tools as well. After some quick research before bed, I knew she had all the symptoms for diabetes. That gave me an entire sleepless night (interrupted by a few bathroom lights and a nursing infant) to get used to the idea, so when the doctor delivered the diagnosis, I already knew what she was going to say and didn't have to adjust right there in front of the doctor and could answer some of Lenna's questions on the way to the hospital.

6. I am thankful for quiet answers to prayers. I went to bed the night before unsure about what to do next. I didn't want to take her to the doctor for unnecessary tests or be one of those alarmist moms who thinks its a crisis every time their kid gets a stomach ache or feels tired. But I didn't want to ignore a potentially serious problem. I said a simple prayer asking for guidance and peace when I went to bed that night. I woke up certain that I needed to take her to doctor. I had no doubts that she was very sick, that she was experiencing the onset symptoms of type 1 diabetes, and that we needed to visit the doctor that day. And so I made an appointment, dropped Becca with a sitter, and picked Lenna up from school and we went to the doctor. I felt calm and was able to do it all very matter-of-factly.

7. I am thankful for the Spirit and it's power to calm and strengthen the hearth of a mother who needs to be there for her daughter. When the doctor told me I was handling the news of the diagnosis surprisingly well, I wanted to reply that it was miraculously well- that it was only by Divine intervention that I wasn't falling apart right before her eyes. I wasn't a rock or a robot- I still cried right along with Lenna as soon as the doctor left the room. My voice caught when I had to return to the school and tell her teacher she would not be returning to school that day or the next. I get teary when I make her cry with an unsuccessful finger prick or painful injection. There was a moment in our training when we had to learn to give insulin shots, that Mike took Lenna to go to the restroom at just the right moment, so I could sit alone with the nurse for three minutes and cry my eyes out. But I could pull myself back together in time to do what I had to do.

8. I am grateful for a diagnosis. As much as you hate to be told you have a chronic condition that will require lifelong treatment and lifestyle adjustments, at least we know what is wrong and how to treat it. My sister has been struggling for years with her son. He has something that is affecting his development and motor skills. They know something is wrong but a string of doctors and specialists still can't say what it is or how to treat it. I think I would rather know and be able to move forward. And I am thankful for the vending machine full of chocolate that was a full five minute walk away from our ER room that gave me a chance to walk away for a few minutes when I really needed to.

9. I am grateful for family. I didn't expect to go to the doctor and be told to drive right to the children's hospital two hours away, to be admitted and stay over night. When I left Becca with her Aunt Jessie, we both expected it to be for just a few hours. When I called and asked her to keep her indefinitely, as well as pick Andy up from school, feed them both dinner and just wait to know what was happening, she didn't hesitate to ask how else she could help. She kept them both the following day as well. I don't know what I would have done if I didn't have that kind of support network in place. I can't imagine how much harder it would have been if I had to take everyone with me, or to send Lenna on to the hospital alone because I had to be with the other kids, or to have to choose. As soon as we knew we would be late getting home that night, my mother-in-law went straight from her long day of work to my home so my kids could go to sleep on time in their own beds, prepared to stay the night if needed and send them off to school the next morning before going back to work. Then she did it again the next night as well. My mom couldn't be here physically, but she called each to let me know she was thinking about us and praying for us and just to let me talk to someone. My sister Sandra called to check on me, to give me a much needed outlet to just talk to someone while I worried away the hours on my daughter's first day back at school. My older sister Shannon is a nurse and also dealing with gestational diabetes- she could empathizee with Lenna and give me tips like how to make the shots hurt a little less and which sugar-free ice cream tastes the most like the real thing.

10. I am grateful we live within driving distance to a nationally-ranked children's hospital that was staffed with pediatric endocrinologists who knew how to stabilize and treat Lenna and educate me and Mike on how to care for her after we left.

11. I am grateful for a hospital full of nurses and staff that are used to working with kids and had Lenna smiling by bedtime, in spite of everything she had just gone through. And that they let me stay the night, even though I had to keep Elizabeth with me.

12. I am grateful for health insurance. So that when we left the hospital with a $9,500 bill and a stack of prescriptions totaling over $400, we didn't have to worry about how to pay for it on top of everything else. We still have a pretty big bill leftover after the insurance paid its share, but at least it is manageable.

13. I am grateful for Mike's job. So that when I called and said "I'm on the way to the hospital." he only had to tell his supervisor that there was an emergency and was able to leave right away, for as long as he needed, and no one gave him a hard time about it. That they paid him for his time anyway. That he was able to work extra hours the next few weekends to so he didn't have to lose vacation days and earned overtime pay so we could more easily pay the hospital bill.

14. I am grateful to our ward family here who make daily phone calls to tell us they are concerned, offers for babysitting, and for those who bring meals, because "when you are concerned and don't know what to say and want to help and don't know how, you bring food." Thank you for the food.

15. I am grateful to the school nurse who knows what she is doing, for a teacher who lets my daughter eat in class and make up tests she failed while she was sick and didn't know it (but still had fuzzy brain cells from all the sugar) and guidance counselors who take time from their schedule to do presentations to fourth graders about diabetes and blood sugar and the difference between diseases you can catch and those you can't and feature slide shows about little girls with IVs and glucose meters and "nurse buddies" and morning snacks and Halloween party cupcakes.

16. I am grateful for insulin. And glucose meters. And lancing devises. And syringes. Even though I hate them. I am grateful to have them so that Lenna can get better and stay alive and go back to being a kid and worrying about spelling tests and running races and how to make a spaghetti and meatballs costume for Halloween.

17. I am grateful to recipes on the back of graham cracker boxes that can be made with sugar-free pudding and cool whip so that my daughter can make and share and eat dessert and feel normal.

18.I am grateful for nap time.

19. I am grateful to Mike, who is everything I am not. For being strong when I am weak, for being brave when I am scared, for being an advocate when I am intimidated, for being efficient when I am frazzled, for being helpful when I am overwhelmed, for working while I sleep. For bringing food and clean clothes and a toothbrush. For keeping an eye on the forest while I am fretting about the trees. For priesthood blessings.

20. I am grateful for my girl, who never ceases to amaze me with all she can do and be and learn and will become. I am so excited to see her grow up into all that ability and potential. I am grateful for the privilege of being her mother and getting to watch her do it all and maybe come along for the ride sometimes.

21. And Lenna says she is grateful that she never has to fast on Fast Sundays anymore and for sugar-free jell-o and chocolate bars.

Thanks for my southern family

I am sick today. Not really blog-worthy in and of itself, right?
This morning has shown me how much I have to be grateful for in my wonderful network of friends here, illustrates why I didn't want to move before the arrival of baby, and has helped me turn my "I feel like I want to die" into an "I am grateful for this opportunity" moment.
My dear visiting teacher called me earlier in the week and ask if she could drive me to the temple to help me get one more thing checked off my list (which, by the way, I am doing very well at accomplishing). After a crazy morning of running around, including a few frantic phone calls to find a temple dress to borrow that would fit around my expanding belly, it was a great way to spend the afternoon and evening. Unfortunately, even with my front seat privileges I started feeling quite ill on the way home. I figured it was a weird combo of morning sickness or car sickness. And thus started a night and day of the above mentioned "I feel like I want to die" illness.
I woke up, somehow managed to get the big kids dressed and to school on time, and came home and started whining about how cruddy I felt on facebook.
Within minutes I had friends practically tripping over each other to help me. Rebecca has been whisked away to play and nap with a friend, there is dinner waiting in the fridge, and all the baby laundry in storage I needed to get done has been taken away, washed, and returned smelling fresh and clean to the nursery (another project tackled by a friend that would otherwise not exist!).
The kids are looking forward to a sleepover this weekend aranged to give Mike and I a chance to get away one more time before baby comes. Two amazing ladies are throwing a baby shower next week aimed to fill my freezer with food and calendar with helpers instead of the dresser with baby clothes. The woman I called to borrow a dress from yesterday didn't even blink before agreeing to lend me her temple dress and asking to keep Rebecca while I went. Even Lenna's dance teacher called to make sure I had things covered and offered to drive her to classes for a few weeks so I wouldn't have to venture out with baby.
I am so very grateful. And super-scared to move away from my support network into the unknown.
So, to my southern family of friends and sisters, thank you for taking care of me!

Thanksgiving 2010

This year I am thankful for:

Recliner chairs,

Good food,

Cousins,

Turkey,

And really big, full dining room tables.

And family. Happy Thanksgiving!

GT-9

Today I am thankful for the grocery store that is within minutes of my house, fully stocked with a variety of reasonably priced food, and that they didn't kick me out when my toddler had a melt down in aisles 3,4,5 and produce.
I am thankful that I have a toddler daughter. Not so thankful that she screamed a threw a fit over not being able to eat the raw eggs, stand on the bread, or hide in the clothing racks, but thankful I had one to haul out anyway.
I am thankful that Mike went to the doctor today and got some medicine. Not so thankful that he had to miss school and work and that he has bronchitis and a sinus infection, but grateful its not strep and that I can kiss him good night again.

Giving Thanks- 8

I am thankful for the end of daylight savings time that let me sleep an extra hour this morning, even if my kids didn't. I am also thankful for the Disney channel that kept them entertained for that extra hour.

Giving Thanks- 7

I am thankful for the mother's lounge at church, a place to sneak away to eat an anti-morning sickness snack on fast Sunday w/o disturbing others. And of course, there is always someone else in there to visit with!

Giving Thanks- 6

I am thankful for my Becca girl, who blessed our family with her sunshiney smile two years ago today. We love you! Happy birthday!

Giving Thanks- 5

I am thankful for the fall weather that finally came to Georgia.

GT-4

I am thanful for my little sister and her contagious smile and fun personality who made her appearance in this world on this day a little over two decades ago. Love you Emmy-Lou!

GT-3

I am thankful for nap time.

GT-2

I am thankful for modern medicine so my family can be healthy. And for emergency chocolate bars brought by caring visiting teachers.

Giving Thanks 1

I am thankful for my husband and the way he supports and strengthens me.

Wordfull Wednesday- Thanks Dad

Dear Dad,

Just thought I would take a minute to say thank you. Thanks for being my dad.

Thank you for putting our hand prints in the sidewalk outside our first little house. It made me feel important and included. Thanks for helping me ride that big scary horse, even though I was scared. Thanks for living right down the street from Grandma and Grandpa. I loved hopping over the wash and running up the hill to visit. Thanks for shooting down my Strawberry Shortcake balloon when I let it outside and cried when it started to fly away. Thanks for taking me out for ice cream after I had to get my face sewn up. It really made everything better. And for picking me up and fixing it when I stepped on nails, splinters, sticker weeds, horse poop, barbed wire, sand, and dead sea creatures. I am surprised I can still walk, really.

Thanks for moving us around all the time. I know we gave you grief about it, and still do. I know you did it because you were working hard to make things better for us and to take care of us. I remember the times you were forced to change jobs to honor your integrity. Your example was more valuable than a pension and a company truck could ever be. Besides, it was good preparation for marrying an Airman. After living here in the same place for five years, I sometimes move the furniture around just for variety.

Thanks for teaching me to ride a bike down the hill against my will. I see now that sometimes the hard way is the best way. I thought of you as I forcibly removed the training wheels from Lenna's bike and sent her screaming down the hill at the park. As soon as she opened her eyes and started pedaling, she never looked back.

Thank for being a worthy priesthood holder when it was time for me to be baptized. Of course at 8, I didn't realize the significance of the moment, but I do now. Thank you for being there. For the blessings when I was sick. For making things happen so you and Mom could come to the temple with me and be at my wedding. It meant everything to have you there.

Thank you for all the nights you stayed up late with me finishing homework. For making cell models when I was 10 and science fair projects when I was 12, and who knows what else. I should have gotten it done earlier, and I am sure you had better things to do. Thanks for staying up. Thank you for buying me a clarinet and making me learn to play it. Thanks for letting me stop when I really hated it. For lending me your drawing books and putting my pictures up on the wall.

Thanks for coming to all those basketball games and track meets. It made me proud when you cheered for me and told me I had done well. Thank you for all the track spikes and running shoes and basketball shoes you bought for me when we probably couldn't afford it.

Thanks for taking us to see the country from DC to Mount Rushmore to the Redwoods. For taking me fishing and camping and hiking and trying to teach me to swim. For teaching me to start a fire and shoot a gun. For making me go woodcutting even though I wasn't even really strong enough to swing an ax. For making rope swings and sledding hills and club houses and baseball diamonds. You taught me that it's ok to not be girly and to get dirty. Thanks for not making me scoop the dog poop or mow the lawn.

Thanks for putting up with all my crap as a teenage. For the ice cream dates and long uncomfortable drives. For not threatening to shoot any of my dates. Thank you for pushing me to do well in school. For driving me across three states to drop me off in my first college apartment. For hauling my stuff back and forth. For the encouraging letters and phone calls and making sure I finished no matter what.

Thank you for being so nice to my husband. Thank you for loving my babies and coming to see them and making memories with them.

Thanks for still telling me that you love me and are proud of me even though I am an adult. It still makes me smile.

Love,

Jannet

Wordfull Wednesday- A Father's Role

Thankful

Today I am thankful for . . .

My testimony in its simplicity.

Fasting (the first time in about 2 years).

My primary class, even the one I have to coax out of the window each week.

Pleasant company in the mother's room.

Friends who can help with child watching while I am out of the room or up in the front.

Children who eat the food that is placed in front of them.

Medicine.

Afternoon naps.

Children who are my example and reminder to CTR.

Christmas songs.

No Drips

She who nags incessantly encourages gently, but consistently, gets her leaky roof fixed. Thanks Mike, and Andrew for helping.

Yes Dad, it was the flashing around the vent pipes. Black goo worked wonders. Thanks for the tips.

Thank You

Did you know that Thanksgiving is in November? I had forgotten.

I kind of think of Thanksgiving as that forgotten holiday, the neglected middle child (not that we know any of those, it is just an expression!! Just so no one thinks I am implying anything here) squished between Halloween parties and the "24 shopping days left until Christmas" countdowns, serving only as a marker for when it is finally OK to put up your Christmas tree. I think that a day put aside just for the expression of thanks is a great idea, but why limit it to one day? So I am going to challenge myself to post something at least weekly (I was going to say daily, but why set myself up for failure?) that I am thankful for, so I will have a nice long list built up for Thanksgiving dinner when we go around and have to say what we are thankful for, and I can beyond the generic answers I always give.

I am thankful that I have so many friends willing to drop everything different afternoons or even overnight to watch my kids while I go to the doctor or the hospital to have a baby.

I was discussing with a friend at work about child care arrangements, how I had everything covered with several backups. A co-worker heard and said how she wished she had lived here knowing all of us when she had her babies the last time. How hard it was to find anyone to care for her older children, let alone bring in meals or people to scrub the bathtub when it hurt to bend over. I didn't tell her it wasn't really me, but the church support network we have built in for us no matter where we go, that makes that possible. If only she would accept the invite to come to church with me one of those times and see for herself. Someday- she now teaches 8 Mormon preschoolers with great parents- one of us will get through!

I am thankful my grandma taught me to crochet.

So that when I put on my crocheted slippers, and Lenna runs to get hers that match, and Andrew pokes out his lip and asks where his slippers are, I can tell him to pick a yarn color and wait a few hours. Then I can give him some new blue slippers so he feels included and loved. It makes me feel connected to her, and my mom who also crochets, that we all have something in common and I can keep a little piece of them with me. That when we pull an afghan out of the blanket closet, they can ask who made it with love just for them, and I can answer "Grandma" or "Great-grandma" or "Nanny" or even "Mom" and they can feel warmth not only from the blanket but from the hands that made it one yarn loop at a time.

I am thankful that I married such a good man.

Because as much as Andy loves and imitates Buzz Lightyear and Woody, Spiderman, and Mickey the Musketeer, his real hero is his dad. And I love that when I hear him say "I want to do it like daddy does," I don't have to worry about what he will be doing. From wearing Mike's old basic training BCG's, to doing push ups in the living room, to wearing black socks and a tie to church. From putting his feet up on the computer, and insisting his chocolate milk be poured into an insulated mug to keep it cold, to helping out in the yard.

And as he gets older and sees beyond the physical traits and learns to admire and imitate Mike's sense of loyalty, honesty, and duty as he works at protecting our country and in excelling at school to better provide for his family, or his love and respect and generosity towards his family, or his enthusiasm and encouragement of higher education and learning, I can not only understand and indulge his imitation, but encourage it. And for that I am very grateful!

What are you thankful for? Maybe you could start your own list!

Thank yous on Thursday

Thank you to the women who, two different times this week, gave their kid's meal toy to my son. It saved me from an a-la-carte meltdown and made Andy feel special as the toys came with compliments for his blue eyes and good behavior.

Thank you to the three women who watched my children Monday afternoon while I went to the doctor. It is so much easier to tolerate the doctor running late when I am sitting with just myself to entertain, not worrying about how much longer until the exam room starts getting torn apart while the kids wait.

Thank you to the primary for making up those great little invite cards for the program. I don't think anything will come of it, but Lenna was so excited to give them out to her teacher and friends at school. None of them agreed to come, but I was impressed that she had no reservations about handing them out and inviting them to church. I wish I was that brave!

Thank you to my sister, Emily, for the bath and body works gift card. I had so much fun in there today looking around and smelling and choosing something completely impractical for myself. Andrew fell in love with the fluffy sheep, and I was taken with the pumpkin and the cranberry candles, along with the pomegranate body wash and body butter. And since it was supposed to be a gift, I didn't worry about what was a good deal (they were on sale anyhow!) or if it was too extravagant for my budget.

Thank you to Andrew, who spent the entire day running errands with me without complaining, begging, or asking to be carried. He sat through a portrait session (he is too cute, if you ask me), walked through the mall, left the teddy bear store without complaining, didn't break anything or run away in the lotion store, gave me plenty of notice to take him to the potty, requested fruit and milk instead of soda and fries with his chicken nuggets, and even survived an hour in the craft store with his indecisive mom without a breakdown when I wouldn't buy the Lightening McQueen fleece kit or the $3 vitamin water at the checkout. He definitely gave me a nice gift today!