Isaiahs Adventure

It's been a busy, crazy weekend, as usual.

We took an unexpected trip to urgent care for Isaiah on Friday night. My sis-in-law had my kids all day (YAY!) and after he woke up from his nap, was just coughing constantly. She texted me, and was a little concerned, but I didn't think a whole lot of it. Until then he started wheezing and acting like he was having a hard time breathing. So Fri night, about 6, Jer and I went to go pick the kids up, and see what was wrong with Isaiah. (of course, having "been there done that" with him, my first initial thought was - his peanut allergy -- he's gotten in to some peanuts or peanut butter. But, of course, my sis in law knows all about his allergy, and told me everything he had to eat that day. He seemed pretty safe, as to have not consumed anything with peanuts.)

So when we got there, we checked him out. He was coughing a lot, and wheezing when he was breathing. But it threw us off, because he was also playing around, and not just lying arond on the couch. So Jer and I made the decision, that because he was wheezing, and we weren't 100% sure what was wrong, and it had a lot of the same signs as his peanut allergy-reaction, that we decided to go ahead and give him a shot of his Epi-Pen. Which, of course, meant an automatic trip to Childrens Mercy hospital urgent care.

When we got there, they checked his oxygen levels. They were pretty low, but not dangerously low. So they took us back to a room, and gave him some steroids and a breathing treatment, to bring his oxygen levels back up. He seemed to be doing better after the breathing treatment, so they just kept us for a couple hours to keep an eye on him, then released us at 10 PM.

The doctor told us that we did the right thing though. If ever in doubt.......Epi-Pen first.....ask questions later.

So I will be calling Isaiah's allergist tomorrow, to try to make an appt. I'm still unsure of what exactly happened. I don't think he got in to any peanuts or peanut butter. His peanut reaction is a LOT more severe than this. So I'm not sure if it's another allergy, or if this was asthma related or what. I'm hoping to find this out soon. Isaiah has seen the inside of Childrens Mercy urgent care too many times in his short life!!

Off and on this weekend, he has still been slightly wheezing or, as Jeremy calls it, "whistling" when he breathes. So we have continued his breathing treatments here at home. Please say a prayer for my baby if you think about it. :)

The rest of the weekend was pretty uneventful. Went to a wedding on Saturday, some friends from church. Oh! And Saturday night, I made Jeremy (well, not made him, but you know what I mean..... :) ) take me to the christian bookstore, to pick up Karen Kingsbury's latest book. I'm so excited! I just LOVE her books. So now I'm allready halfway through her book, "This Side Heaven". Sooooooo good so far!

On that note.........I'm off to go read some more. The kids are in bed.....Jer is gone helping some friends put in hardwood floors........and I have a book waiting for me. :)

Happy 2009!

Happy New Year friends and family!!!

The holidays have once again came and went in a whirlwind it seems like. We got our tree taken down earlier this week, and all the Christmas decor is back in storage for another year. :( Except of course a few 'snowmen' and winter decor I will leave up for another month or so.

We are slowly trying to get our house back "in order". If that is ever possible.

Before the year goes any further though.......I wanted to reminence about 2008.....

In 2008, these events took place in our family......

-We started off the year, on a not-so-good note, with taking Isaiah to the allergist. After a Christmas Eve incident in 07, and an ER visit, we discovered, like his big sister, that he too, has peanut allergies. :(

-In the beginning of the year, Jan/Feb timeframe, Lilly had a speech screening with a speech pathologist. This is the beginning of monthly visits for Lilly, working with her on her speech, and in turn, getting her accepted in to a special preschool for her speech.

-Isaiah turned the big TWO in March, and we have seen some "terrible two syndrome" come out in him like thunder. On the upside, we have also witnessed some incredibly sweet, adorable moments with him.

-In April I attended a National Girls Ministries conference in Springfield with a group of ladies from our church. Tons of fun!

-In May, Jeremy and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary. :) Our awesome family watched the kids for the weekend, while Jer and I had dinner here in town and went to the theatre and had some quiet time, without the kids. :)

-Around this time, our family hit a few bumps in the road. It actually felt more like mountains. After some problems with Jeremy's grandma's health, we discover that she has cancer in her liver. She begins a looooooong process of chemo and all the junk that goes along with it. :( It has upset our whole family, and rocked our world upside down. How precious our time with loved ones are!!! Grandma is the glue and foundation to the Haines family. seriously. She is no longer taking chemo. It has made her too weak. She has not been out much, except to visit the drs. She is weak and tires easily. Please continue to pray for Grandma H! We would all appreciate it!

-The summetime included lots of activities, such as MOPS spa night, ABF class dinner and mini golf, visiting the dairy farm, going to the KC Zoo, hosting scrapbook gathering at my house, BBQ's, swimming at my parents house, and attending many birthday and anniversary celebrations.

-The end of August, (Aug 19th to be exact) marks a big day for this mommy and her little girl. Lilly started preschool and rode the school bus to school for the first time! It was a success!

-Labor day weekend, we attended Jer's side of the family's annual labor day reunion at Pomme de Terre lake. Lots of fun. Bittersweet though, because that meant summer was officially 'over'.

-September, brought in fall, which meant ladies bible studies kicked up again at church, harvest tea parties, birthday celebrations and much more.

-In October, was Jer's birthday, and he also took another quick trip to Mexico City, right before our family vacation to St Louis to visit some friends. That was lots of fun - but it was over much too quickly.

- November was Lilly's birthday - she turned 4! We had a fun, outdoor, hayride/bonfire type party for her this year at my parents house. Lots of fun - and perfect weather!

- After that, it quickly became Thanksgiving, then Christmas........then New year, and here we are. January 1, 2009. The Lord has been good, and blessed us this year. We have seen his hand at work upon our family, time and time again throughout the year. We give Him all the glory and praise. We serve an amazing God. And look forward to serving Him in the year to come. Only the Lord knows what is in store for our family for 2009.

I pray the Lord richly blesses you and your family in the coming year. It is easy to remember Jesus during the Christmas and holiday season. Let's not forget Him the other 11 months as well.

God is good......all the time!!!! And all the time......God is good!!!!!

December Slideshow

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. December came in with a thunder and seems we have been busy busy busy - along with everyone else! Here is a quick slideshow I put together, of all our Christmas parties/events/gatherings, to give you a quick peek on what we've been up to. :)

1st Corinthians 13.....Christmas style

If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights and shiny balls, but do not show love to my family, I'm just another decorator.

If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals and arranging a beautifully adornedtable at mealtime, but do not show love to my family, I'm just another cook.

If I work at the soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home and give all that I have to charity, but do not show love to my family, it profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties and sing in the choir's cantata, but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child.

Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband.

Love is kind, though harried and tired.

Love doesn't envy another's home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens.

Love doesn't yell at the kids to get out of the way, but is thankful they are there to be in the way.

Love doesn't give only to those who are able to give in return but rejoices in giving to those who can't.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails.

Video games will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubswill rust, but giving the gift of love will endure.

Santa

Lilly is officially on Christmas break now, until January 5th! Today was her last day of preschool for this year and she brought home all kinds of artwork and fun stuff in her backpack today. And tonight was her Christmas party in Rainbows. She came home with some goodies from there too, and told us that she sang Happy Birthday to Jesus in class.

Isaiah didn't have quite as much fun in his class. Him and another boy were playing I guess, and the other boy poked Isaiah in the eye (on accident, I think). Isaiah's eye has been red, a little swollen and watery ever since. He has been having a hard time opening his eye tonight while we were reading stories, and told us he wanted to go to bed. Poor baby. :( Say a prayer for him, if you think about it. If he still can't hardly open his eye by morning, I'm calling the doc.

I'm making this short tonight, it's nearly midnight, and I'm exhausted. Just wanted to update you all on the whole Santa issue. Do you want to know what we decided? I'm sure you are all just on the edge of your seats in anticipation. ;)

We are not going to do Santa in our house. For many reasons actually. And no, I don't think Santa is "bad" or evil, but for personal convictions and reasons, we won't be believing in him at our house. Obviously, because they are kids and live in America, they will know of Santa. But they will also know he is not real, and mom and dad buy their presents-- not Santa! We will do our best to train and teach our children, and make sure they understand, that Christmas is not about Santa or presents or 'what I want'. It's about celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. I don't have the energy or time to go in to it more in depth right now. If you really want to know- I'll put that in another post!

White Christmas

We've gotten about 3 inches of snow so far.....and slowly ending. Beautiful white all over.....love it!

Perfect video for today.......... <-- Click this Link! (turn on your speakers on your computer too!) Enjoy =)

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The countdown continues.....................

Here's another twist for ya, on the song, "The 12 Days of Christmas" (btw....for those unaware, that is suppose to be a picture of '8 Maids a Milking'. :)

{thanx to mom for email me this......}

The 12 Days of Christmas

-The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.

-Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.

-Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love.

-The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.

-The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.

-The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.

-Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit--Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.

-The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.

-Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit--Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.

-The ten lords a-leaping were the ten commandments.

-The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.

-The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed.

So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol...so pass it on if you wish. 'Merry (Twelve Days of) Christmas Everyone

A Christmas Experience

Our church choir did their Christmas performace yesterday, and did a fabulous job. Along with a huge orchestra, lots of special effects, lighting, huge new sound system, dancers, bagpipes, ensembles (which my hubby was a part of :) ), tweens - dressed up as angels, and even fake "snow" when they sang "White Christmas" at the end. Very cool. A few pics for my mom who was sick and missed it..... :(




Not the greatest of pictures.....but you get the idea. They had the stage decked out and was just georgous, with a chandelier hanging down.

My best friends daughter, Brianna was one of the "angels" who sang with them during part of it.



At the very end, they sang "White Christmas" and had this fake snow coming down from both sides of the choir loft. It was really pretty, and cool.......until the "snow flakes" turned more in to snowballs, and these big pieces came down, and landed on the choir members hair and folders while they were singing. It was quite humorous. :)

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The countdown til Christmas is on................NINE days left!

Christmas Season....in full swing

Yes indeed, it is the Christmas season! My mom and I noticed it especially this morning, as we went to Toys R Us for some more gifts (for my kids, from me-- mom is done- of course!). The parking lot was full and busy. It sure did not look like 10:00 on a Thursday morning, that's for sure. Looked more like a Saturday. So mom and I were wondering, do all these people just not work, or what? ;)

I did not have much luck at Toys R Us (I know! I was surprised too!), so we went to K Mart. Not a whole lot of luck there either. Although I did find myself 2 pretty Christmas sweatshirts. Only $8.99. What a bargain. :) Although it wasn't on "the list"....... lol

I'm frantically ordering last minute Christmas gifts online (I forgot!). I hope I get them back in time for Christmas! Otherwise, I'm just about done.....except maybe one or two more things for the kiddos. I feel like I haven't gotten them much, but seriously, how much do they need....really?

I wanted to share with you all a couple of Lilly's 4 year old pictures. My good friend and photographer Jami took them. I thought they turned out pretty cute- if I do say so myself! What do you think?

The whole santa claus dilema

Jer and I had a conversation the other day about santa claus, and whether we are going to allow our children to believe in him. Lilly is now 4 and Isaiah only 3 months shy of turning 3.

I believed in santa when I was a child. I remember my parents going the whole nine yards. We saw santa at the malls, and got our pics taken with him (my sister crying the whole time- lol). We wrote letters to santa and left out milk and cookies for him on Christmas eve. I even remember waking up Christmas morning, and going downstairs, so excited to see what santa had left for us, and finding the cookies were eaten.....all that were left were crumbs. We had a few wrapped presents by the fireplace, in their own 'santa wrapping paper', with our names on them and "from santa" on the tag. I even remember getting a letter in the mail, from santa. He knew my best friend, what I wanted for Christmas (I believe it was a Betsy Wetsy doll that year....), the street I lived on......everything! (come to find out, of course, my mom "ordered" the letter from a magazine and just provided the info to them, who in turn mailed it to me).

I don't remember how long I believed, but I believe it was my sister who finally told me that, *gasp* there's-no-such-thing-as-santa-claus!

Now..........fast forward 20+ years............and I have 2 children of my own. What to do. I have heard pros and cons of santa claus, and allowing or not allowing your children to believe in him.

I have asked several people, about what they do, and if they "do" santa in their house. ("Do", as in let their children believe that santa brings them their gifts on Christmas eve. And allows them to think that santa flies in a sleigh pulled by reindeer, all over the world delivering gifts to children in one night)

Some answeres surprised me. Some people I talked to. Others did not. I am curious......

Did you vote at my poll (on the right)?

And if you indeed voted, did you leave me a comment telling me why or why not?

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Do you "do" Santa in your house?

I'm curious. How many of you do the whole Santa-thing at your house?

Do your children believe in him?

Why? Why not?

Vote at my poll, then if you don't mind sharing, leave a comment here and tell me why or why not.