Ten years ago tomorrow was a Tuesday. I was working at Mother's Day Out, Aron was at Morningside. Carey Grace was in Kindergarten and Madi (then Maddie) was almost 3. Aron's grandma, GG, was in a nursing home in Dumas.
Aron and CG had already gone to school, and I jumped in the shower to get ready for work. The first plane hit while I was in the shower. I called my dad, recently retired, to see if he was watching, and to talk to him about it. I knew nothing about NYC or the world trade center, but I just kept thinking that looked like a lot of damage for a Cessna to do (as was being reported).
You know how sometimes the world seems to move in slow motion while your brain is on fast forward? I saw a huge plane from the corner of the screen and I remember thinking "oh my gosh, that plane shouldn't be flying so close to the fire!" Then I thought " It must be a fire plane"... planes that fly over fires and drop water or fire retardant on the top of the fire while fire fighters fight it from the ground. Normally these planes are small, but I was willing to accept that I did not know everything about fighting fires..... I said to my dad (on the phone) "there is another plane..... oh my god!!!! Dad didn't see it, he had taken his eyes off the TV for a moment, but after a few exclamations from the news anchors, they replayed it and he saw. I remember saying "dad, that wasn't an accident! That was on purpose! Who would do that?" I remember thinking "I hope there were no passengers on that plane", which was obviously a 747 type passenger plane, not a Cessna!
Eventually I made it to work, where I was a bad teacher and put in a movie for the kids while we listened to the news on the radio.... at lunch I had the presence of mind to pop a tape in the VCR and I recorded the news non stop until I ran out of tapes somewhere in the evening of the 13th. Still haven't watched the videos, but I have them!
this was supposed to be longer, better written, and more poignant, but I have to go do things so at least it is recorded!!
~s~
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Poll Questions and 9/11
I hate unclear or biased poll questions! Take for example GMA's daily poll: do you think America will recover from 9/11? Three choices: a) yes, I think we will recover we just need more time. b) yes, I think we have already recovered. and c) no, I think we will never be the same.
Why does recovery have to equal being the same? As a nation, we have recovered from massive outbreaks of "Yellow Fever" that wiped out entire townships, yet we no longer sit around the fire in our mud thatched homes waiting for brother to unhitch the horses and come inside so we can listen to Pa play the fiddle while sister finishes her embroidery sampler.
Some might say that is an unfair compairison because the advancement of lifestyle and invention of technology have nothing to do with Yellow Fever... ok how about this.... we wash our hands with antibacterial soap, we clean our dishes with hot soap and water, we keep our foods fresh, we go to the doctor and get antibiotics... these are advancements in technology that keep us from getting epidemic diseases.... we don't do things involving our health and safety the same as we did in Laura and Mary's day! Does this mean we have not recovered from yellow fever?
Times change, technology is invented and people figure out new and better ways to do things. That is progress, not the lack of recovery! Just because we have stepped up security in airports and people as a whole are more alert and aware of their surroundings, does not mean we have failed to recover from 9/11.
I was shocked to see my answer of "b" (already recovered) was the least chosen response in this poll, and "c" (never be the same) had almost 50% of the votes, then I realized the difference in wording was throwing people off.
I looked up a definiton of "recovered" and found it is a "return to a normal state of health, mind, or strength" or to "be well again". Have we as a nation recovered from 9/11? Yes, we have returned to normal. We no longer have people wandering the streets of NYC covered in ash and soot, bleeding from gaping wounds, and crying out the names of missing loved ones. We no longer have pillars of smoke filling the skyline where massive architectural giants once stood. Men and women who lost loved ones have remarried. Children who lost parents have grown up. Senior citizens have passed away, babies have been born. People go to work, to the store, to the movies.... our lives have returned to normal so by definition we have "recovered".
Will we ever be the same again? No! Our lives as Americans and world citizens, whether we live in downtown New York, Toyoko, or the panhandle of Texas, have been forever changed by the events of Tuesday September 11, 2001. We will never be the same, and we will never forget that day, but we have moved on to a place where we can "be well again."
God Bless America!
Why does recovery have to equal being the same? As a nation, we have recovered from massive outbreaks of "Yellow Fever" that wiped out entire townships, yet we no longer sit around the fire in our mud thatched homes waiting for brother to unhitch the horses and come inside so we can listen to Pa play the fiddle while sister finishes her embroidery sampler.
Some might say that is an unfair compairison because the advancement of lifestyle and invention of technology have nothing to do with Yellow Fever... ok how about this.... we wash our hands with antibacterial soap, we clean our dishes with hot soap and water, we keep our foods fresh, we go to the doctor and get antibiotics... these are advancements in technology that keep us from getting epidemic diseases.... we don't do things involving our health and safety the same as we did in Laura and Mary's day! Does this mean we have not recovered from yellow fever?
Times change, technology is invented and people figure out new and better ways to do things. That is progress, not the lack of recovery! Just because we have stepped up security in airports and people as a whole are more alert and aware of their surroundings, does not mean we have failed to recover from 9/11.
I was shocked to see my answer of "b" (already recovered) was the least chosen response in this poll, and "c" (never be the same) had almost 50% of the votes, then I realized the difference in wording was throwing people off.
I looked up a definiton of "recovered" and found it is a "return to a normal state of health, mind, or strength" or to "be well again". Have we as a nation recovered from 9/11? Yes, we have returned to normal. We no longer have people wandering the streets of NYC covered in ash and soot, bleeding from gaping wounds, and crying out the names of missing loved ones. We no longer have pillars of smoke filling the skyline where massive architectural giants once stood. Men and women who lost loved ones have remarried. Children who lost parents have grown up. Senior citizens have passed away, babies have been born. People go to work, to the store, to the movies.... our lives have returned to normal so by definition we have "recovered".
Will we ever be the same again? No! Our lives as Americans and world citizens, whether we live in downtown New York, Toyoko, or the panhandle of Texas, have been forever changed by the events of Tuesday September 11, 2001. We will never be the same, and we will never forget that day, but we have moved on to a place where we can "be well again."
God Bless America!
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
And 7 months later......
I had to quit blogging for a bit there - stuff was going on and it was just too stressful. So to catch you up:
January/February - Dad was taken off the ventilator and eventually got to leave the CCU, then the hospital. He is fine now! Carey Grace turned 15, I turned 38. Grandpa got moved out of assisted living into a nursing home. He was there about two weeks with only minor mishaps, falls, grumpy spells, misunderstandings, etc. Then he had a BAD fall and was sent to the hospital. He had a broken arm and some other injuries, but mentally he started sliding downhill FAST. A resident's wife (at the nursing home) told mom that she didn't think Grandpa "fell". That on top of some other stuff bothering mom caused her to choose another nursing home, which he went to when he was released from the hospital. A week after that he was put on Hospice... which brings us to
March - we didn't get to go skiing, but we did take our first ever family vacation! The four Hutchins and the five of us (Rufus got to go!) went camping at Boiling Springs State Park near Woodward Oklahoma. It was WONDERFUL! We had a great time doing nothing! We did tour a cave, took a couple of hikes, did a lot of cooking and just hanging out! Last night there the wind was bad so instead of cooking sans fire, we went to town and had BBQ at a hole in the wall place. It was a fabulous trip and I look forward to going camping again sometime if I can get Aron to agree!
Gpa was put on hospice, and on March 22 he passed away. He was burried in Shawnee OK and Aron and the girls and I all went to the funeral in Plano. While all this was happening, I found out that my contract was not being renewed. I resigned to prevent that from happening, and I was mildly comforted that 11 people resigned when I did and I know only one of them that resigned willingly (she was moving) and over half of the remaining 10 were in the same boat as me! Budget cuts suck.
April May.... went on the Band trip to St. Louis - it was awesome and I had a great time! So glad I was able to make this memory with CG..... don't know that I will get to go on band trips again, as the time off will be harder to arrange!
June-July.... Went to camp (Panfork) with Madi, then turned around and went to camp (Piney Woods) with CG. Spent some time with mom, visited 6th floor museum in Dallas that I have been wanting to go to for forever!
August.... Summer band! This year they had THREE A DAYS! We have a new director (the previous director was forced to resign the same month I was!) and he is really whipping the kids into shape!! They went from 8- 12, then home for lunch and back from 1-4:00, then home for supper and back from 6-8:30. Only home 3 1/2 hrs out of 12 1/2! BUT they are doing AMAZING! they sound so good! The new guy seems to really have great plans for our little band, and right now the district is willing to give him whatever he wants.... we are getting new uniforms, new percussion instruments, new equipment, mikes, even a new wood floor for the band hall!!!!
Also our landlords are divorcing and selling the house to split the assets, so we are having to move. Found a TINY duplex that accepts pets so it looks like we will put half our stuff in storage and be moving the 1st of September AGAIN! Oh how I hate moving in Sept!!! Oh well, praise the Lord we are all together and okay.... don't know how we will pay our bills, but somehow we will make it!
School starts next week, Aron is already back doing inservice. This is the first time in 16 years that I haven't been up at the school helping him get ready or getting myself ready for the new year. It feels weird. Also knowing that I won't have summers off, 2 weeks at Christmas, etc..... very weird.
Anyhow, that about catches you up. Perhaps I can post more regularly now.... hahaha, yeah, we shall see huh? Next post will be less day to day and more profound, just needed to fill the gap from January to August!
Everybody have a great day!
January/February - Dad was taken off the ventilator and eventually got to leave the CCU, then the hospital. He is fine now! Carey Grace turned 15, I turned 38. Grandpa got moved out of assisted living into a nursing home. He was there about two weeks with only minor mishaps, falls, grumpy spells, misunderstandings, etc. Then he had a BAD fall and was sent to the hospital. He had a broken arm and some other injuries, but mentally he started sliding downhill FAST. A resident's wife (at the nursing home) told mom that she didn't think Grandpa "fell". That on top of some other stuff bothering mom caused her to choose another nursing home, which he went to when he was released from the hospital. A week after that he was put on Hospice... which brings us to
March - we didn't get to go skiing, but we did take our first ever family vacation! The four Hutchins and the five of us (Rufus got to go!) went camping at Boiling Springs State Park near Woodward Oklahoma. It was WONDERFUL! We had a great time doing nothing! We did tour a cave, took a couple of hikes, did a lot of cooking and just hanging out! Last night there the wind was bad so instead of cooking sans fire, we went to town and had BBQ at a hole in the wall place. It was a fabulous trip and I look forward to going camping again sometime if I can get Aron to agree!
Gpa was put on hospice, and on March 22 he passed away. He was burried in Shawnee OK and Aron and the girls and I all went to the funeral in Plano. While all this was happening, I found out that my contract was not being renewed. I resigned to prevent that from happening, and I was mildly comforted that 11 people resigned when I did and I know only one of them that resigned willingly (she was moving) and over half of the remaining 10 were in the same boat as me! Budget cuts suck.
April May.... went on the Band trip to St. Louis - it was awesome and I had a great time! So glad I was able to make this memory with CG..... don't know that I will get to go on band trips again, as the time off will be harder to arrange!
June-July.... Went to camp (Panfork) with Madi, then turned around and went to camp (Piney Woods) with CG. Spent some time with mom, visited 6th floor museum in Dallas that I have been wanting to go to for forever!
August.... Summer band! This year they had THREE A DAYS! We have a new director (the previous director was forced to resign the same month I was!) and he is really whipping the kids into shape!! They went from 8- 12, then home for lunch and back from 1-4:00, then home for supper and back from 6-8:30. Only home 3 1/2 hrs out of 12 1/2! BUT they are doing AMAZING! they sound so good! The new guy seems to really have great plans for our little band, and right now the district is willing to give him whatever he wants.... we are getting new uniforms, new percussion instruments, new equipment, mikes, even a new wood floor for the band hall!!!!
Also our landlords are divorcing and selling the house to split the assets, so we are having to move. Found a TINY duplex that accepts pets so it looks like we will put half our stuff in storage and be moving the 1st of September AGAIN! Oh how I hate moving in Sept!!! Oh well, praise the Lord we are all together and okay.... don't know how we will pay our bills, but somehow we will make it!
School starts next week, Aron is already back doing inservice. This is the first time in 16 years that I haven't been up at the school helping him get ready or getting myself ready for the new year. It feels weird. Also knowing that I won't have summers off, 2 weeks at Christmas, etc..... very weird.
Anyhow, that about catches you up. Perhaps I can post more regularly now.... hahaha, yeah, we shall see huh? Next post will be less day to day and more profound, just needed to fill the gap from January to August!
Everybody have a great day!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
my mother is a cat enabler
If you are one of those people that does not believe animals have distinctive personalities or that a pet can "talk" to his owner by simply looking at them.... well stop reading now because you will never understand this blog!
My mother's cat is Mokie. Originally she was my mother in law's cat Mo (named after an internet friend) and she lived in Oklahoma. When Carol found out she was dying, we took Mo to my mother and she became Mo from Oklahoma... Mokie.
Mokie is very spoiled. Mother gives her fresh dry food every morning, but she always throws away the food still left in the bowl.. So Mokie's food is never more than 24 hrs old. Mokie prefers fresh running water, so when you are in the bathroom she expects you to turn on the bathtub faucet so she can get a drink. Doesn't always work that way, but that is what she expects!
Mokie loves tuna juice! Never had the tuna, just the juice. She will hear the can opener (non electric!!) from across the house and come running on the hopes that it is tuna juice. Last night I had tuna for supper, only I had it from the little foil pouches - no juice. Mokie smelled the tuna and was FURIOUS with me because I didn't give her any juice! After 10 minuets of tail flopping and dirty looks, I got the packet out of the trash and cut it open on two sides. I set it in her plate, but it was like an open book and it kept flipping shut. My cats - that wouldn't have stopped! They would tear into it, butt it with their heads, hold it with their paw - whatever it took to get to that tuna! Not Mokie. She stood by her dish and meowed at my mom until mom bent down and held the packet open while Mokie ate. When Mokie was done she brushed up against mom and sauntered into the bedroom to have a nap. Mom managed to get herself upright and moved on with her business. All I can say is I'm glad they have each other!
On another note - to Aron -or anyone else close enough to need this information....
If I ever have to be on a ventilator make them slow it down!! I don't breathe that fast! I was trying yesterday to breathe in rhythm with the machine - inhale when it made dad inhale, exhale when it made dad exhale. I swear I almost passed out! It reminded me why I did Bradley instead of Lamaze with the girls -- if I pant, I hyperventilate. In all seriousness - please tell the doctor or respiratory therapist that I have a naturally SLOW breathing rhythm. I can't imagine what shock my body would go into if I were forced to breathe that fast. It can't be good!!!!
~staci~
My mother's cat is Mokie. Originally she was my mother in law's cat Mo (named after an internet friend) and she lived in Oklahoma. When Carol found out she was dying, we took Mo to my mother and she became Mo from Oklahoma... Mokie.
Mokie is very spoiled. Mother gives her fresh dry food every morning, but she always throws away the food still left in the bowl.. So Mokie's food is never more than 24 hrs old. Mokie prefers fresh running water, so when you are in the bathroom she expects you to turn on the bathtub faucet so she can get a drink. Doesn't always work that way, but that is what she expects!
Mokie loves tuna juice! Never had the tuna, just the juice. She will hear the can opener (non electric!!) from across the house and come running on the hopes that it is tuna juice. Last night I had tuna for supper, only I had it from the little foil pouches - no juice. Mokie smelled the tuna and was FURIOUS with me because I didn't give her any juice! After 10 minuets of tail flopping and dirty looks, I got the packet out of the trash and cut it open on two sides. I set it in her plate, but it was like an open book and it kept flipping shut. My cats - that wouldn't have stopped! They would tear into it, butt it with their heads, hold it with their paw - whatever it took to get to that tuna! Not Mokie. She stood by her dish and meowed at my mom until mom bent down and held the packet open while Mokie ate. When Mokie was done she brushed up against mom and sauntered into the bedroom to have a nap. Mom managed to get herself upright and moved on with her business. All I can say is I'm glad they have each other!
On another note - to Aron -or anyone else close enough to need this information....
If I ever have to be on a ventilator make them slow it down!! I don't breathe that fast! I was trying yesterday to breathe in rhythm with the machine - inhale when it made dad inhale, exhale when it made dad exhale. I swear I almost passed out! It reminded me why I did Bradley instead of Lamaze with the girls -- if I pant, I hyperventilate. In all seriousness - please tell the doctor or respiratory therapist that I have a naturally SLOW breathing rhythm. I can't imagine what shock my body would go into if I were forced to breathe that fast. It can't be good!!!!
~staci~
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Sigh! What a week!
Mom called Monday - dad was supposed to go to the hospital for his surgery (4th time this surgery was scheduled) to have the cancer removed from his neck. Instead of that, he was taken by ambulance to the
ER for intense pain. They admitted him and after being moved from room to room, he finally landed in CCU (ICU). The first two days they spend trying to get his heart rarte and blood pressure down enough they could treat him. At one point they had 3 or 4 doctors and 8 or 9 nurses in his room with the crash cart.
Very scarey stuff! He had to be put on a ventilator, so he has tubes down his throat and the machine is breathing for him. The danger is that he wont be able to breathe on his own when the time comes. They turned it off for a bit this morning but he was struggling too hard to breathe so they turned it back on.
Overall the diagnosis is Pancretitus plus a whole bunch of complications including a heart rate over 150 and blood pressure skyrocketing from pain that was NOT responding to triple doses of super high powered pain killers (didn't know there was anything stronger than morphine!)
He was admitted to the hospital Monday, and to the CCU Monday night. I took off Thursday and Friday and came down here after school on Wednesday - got in around 12:30. I decided today to stay through the weekend (original plan was to come home Sunday) and come home Tuesday. I figured mom would argue with me but she admitted she needed me. Wow! That's a first!
so here I am in the CCU waiting room... people came to visit and you can only have 2 people in the room at a time, so either I come out here and wait, or mom and her visitor have to come out here and visit. I wanted mom to be able to be with dad so I am here. This is not something I ever though of before, so maybe you haven't either... when you go to the ICU/CCU to visit someone, please be aware of the rules (only 2 in a room at a time). If two people come to visit mom she had two choices, she can come out in the waiting room to visit - which means she leaves dad alone and he may wake up and be lucid during the time she is gone - she might miss an opportunity to tell him she is there and she loves him! Her other option is to allow the two people to stay in the room and willfully break the rules. While the nurses might not say anything, they DO notice. If it ticks them off that mom is ignoring the rules, it could affect (effect? don't know too tired to care) the way that they treat dad. In a life or death situation, which we are in right now, the nurses attitude toward the patient can make a HUGE difference. So, if you come to visit someone in the hospital - especially if the patient is unconsious and you are visiting the spouse, please make note of the number of people allowed in the room and don't put the spouse in that difficult position of having to choose to stay in the room with her husband or go out in the waiting room with her visitors. Not something I really thought about before, but I sure will now.
anyhow - sorry if this isn't well constructed folks, just trying to get some stuff out in the few minutes that I have. I am really missing aron and the girls, and my friends (Brian! I'm sorry about missing spades, partner!) but I do feel this is where I need to be. There was a few moments yesterday and then again today when the sedative wore off and daddy was lucid and I KNOW that he knew I was there -- he nodded at me! not much, but under the circumstances it was just awesome! Well, I am going to go back in now.... thanks for all the prayers - please keep it up!!
~s~
ER for intense pain. They admitted him and after being moved from room to room, he finally landed in CCU (ICU). The first two days they spend trying to get his heart rarte and blood pressure down enough they could treat him. At one point they had 3 or 4 doctors and 8 or 9 nurses in his room with the crash cart.
Very scarey stuff! He had to be put on a ventilator, so he has tubes down his throat and the machine is breathing for him. The danger is that he wont be able to breathe on his own when the time comes. They turned it off for a bit this morning but he was struggling too hard to breathe so they turned it back on.
Overall the diagnosis is Pancretitus plus a whole bunch of complications including a heart rate over 150 and blood pressure skyrocketing from pain that was NOT responding to triple doses of super high powered pain killers (didn't know there was anything stronger than morphine!)
He was admitted to the hospital Monday, and to the CCU Monday night. I took off Thursday and Friday and came down here after school on Wednesday - got in around 12:30. I decided today to stay through the weekend (original plan was to come home Sunday) and come home Tuesday. I figured mom would argue with me but she admitted she needed me. Wow! That's a first!
so here I am in the CCU waiting room... people came to visit and you can only have 2 people in the room at a time, so either I come out here and wait, or mom and her visitor have to come out here and visit. I wanted mom to be able to be with dad so I am here. This is not something I ever though of before, so maybe you haven't either... when you go to the ICU/CCU to visit someone, please be aware of the rules (only 2 in a room at a time). If two people come to visit mom she had two choices, she can come out in the waiting room to visit - which means she leaves dad alone and he may wake up and be lucid during the time she is gone - she might miss an opportunity to tell him she is there and she loves him! Her other option is to allow the two people to stay in the room and willfully break the rules. While the nurses might not say anything, they DO notice. If it ticks them off that mom is ignoring the rules, it could affect (effect? don't know too tired to care) the way that they treat dad. In a life or death situation, which we are in right now, the nurses attitude toward the patient can make a HUGE difference. So, if you come to visit someone in the hospital - especially if the patient is unconsious and you are visiting the spouse, please make note of the number of people allowed in the room and don't put the spouse in that difficult position of having to choose to stay in the room with her husband or go out in the waiting room with her visitors. Not something I really thought about before, but I sure will now.
anyhow - sorry if this isn't well constructed folks, just trying to get some stuff out in the few minutes that I have. I am really missing aron and the girls, and my friends (Brian! I'm sorry about missing spades, partner!) but I do feel this is where I need to be. There was a few moments yesterday and then again today when the sedative wore off and daddy was lucid and I KNOW that he knew I was there -- he nodded at me! not much, but under the circumstances it was just awesome! Well, I am going to go back in now.... thanks for all the prayers - please keep it up!!
~s~
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Mom, don't your kids deserve the best?
That's the question posed on a commercial I just saw. My answer? NO! They don't! My kids do not deserve the best! They haven't done anything to earn special rights. They don't deserve the most expensive glasses, or the brand new car, or the name brand jeans. For that matter, neither do I. Come on America, wake up!! We do not DESERVE the best. We are not entitled to top of the line products simply because we exist! It is awesome if we can work hard, earn money, and purchase bright shinny new things, but we do not by any means deserve them! CG found out that she does not deserve money. If she keeps her room reasonably clean and treats me with respect, I may choose to give her money - but she does not deserve it. Madi found out that she does not deserve a cell phone, or computer/TV rights. If she does her homework and keeps passing grades, her daddy may choose to let her have a cell phone and watch TV, but she does not deserve it. "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Folks we don't deserve anything! I'm not sure when we came to have this sense of entitlement in our country, and I know I am guilty of it too, but sometimes it really really makes me mad when people assume they will get the best in life without feeling any obligation to work for what they want.
Reminds me of another quote (no clue where it is originally from, but I think I first read it in a chapter intro of Huxley's Brave New World)
A man says to the universe "Sir! I exist!"
The universe replies, "That instills in me no sense of obligation."
Okay, stepping down off the soap box! Sorry for the rant.... I feel better now!
~staci~
Reminds me of another quote (no clue where it is originally from, but I think I first read it in a chapter intro of Huxley's Brave New World)
A man says to the universe "Sir! I exist!"
The universe replies, "That instills in me no sense of obligation."
Okay, stepping down off the soap box! Sorry for the rant.... I feel better now!
~staci~
Friday, January 14, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
So much for daily!
Wow! I'ts been over a week since I wrote in here! And now you can all see why I never do well with a journal/diary. The advantage of a blog is that there is not a notebook to loose, and I don't have to find a pen or pencil. As long as I don't forget my password, I can still get in! Woohoo
Last weekend the Aggies lost... and it just went downhill from there! This sounds like a sitcom, I know, but this is the true story of how 8 people spent the hours following the A&M loss, and why 24 hours later we didn't even care!
All 4 of the Dillahunty crew went to our friend's home for a Cotton Bowl party. We cooked pizza, chicken wings, and had all kinds of snacks and goodies. By the end of the game, Shannon had a phone call in to the doctor because her baby had not eaten or drunk anything significant all day long, but she kept having diarrhea. Long story short, they decided to take her in to the ER. This is something I love about my husband - and proof that we have been married FOREVER... Aron and I didn't even have to discuss it, he just said we would stay with their other daughter who was already in bed asleep, so Brian could go with Shannon to Amarillo. Sooooo glad they agreed (well, it wasn't like we gave them a choice in the matter - we were kind of bossy!).
So CG stays at their house, and I take Madi and Aron back to our house and get a few things -- pajamas and contact juice for me, phone chargers for me and for CG, meds for the morning, toothbrush, etc. Brian and Shannon start throwing stuff together for their excursion, and I head back to their house with my stuff. They set off - I don't even know what time... midnight? So CG and I settle in to spend the night in the living room, Aron and Madi are at home, and Brian and Shannon and sick baby girl are headed to the ER. All is, ummm, maybe not well, but it is under control and running smoothly!
Then, when they get to the river, Shannon and Brian get a flat tire! They can't find the jack, so I text Aron that he may have to get up and drive to the river to help them change the flat. Eventually the jack was located, Aron was put on stand down alert, and the tire was changed. Now for those of you unfamiliar with the panhandle, it is about an hours drive from Dumas to Amarillo... so after they changed the tire, the one hour trip has become a two hour trip. Still, stuff happens and you just keep moving forward (I LOVE "Meet the Robinson's!")
So they are almost to Amarillo - just two miles from the loop exit that will take them to the west side of the city, where the hospitals are, without going through town. And..... the spare tire gets a flat! Ah, irony is so mean sometimes! Apparently the police can not transport people anywhere, regardless of the situation. They would not take the baby to the ER, but told them an ambulance would have to be called. Really? An Ambulance? To take a dehydrated infant less than 10 miles? Well, perhaps Bill Gates could afford that, but a rural church youth minister sure can't! So I called Aron and after attempting to rouse Amarillo residents on facebook, he put clothes on and prepared to go be a hero.
Aron gets Madi up, grabs a sleeping bag and a couple blankets, and puts her in his car and heads to their house, where CG and I are. Along the way he gets pulled over for not using a turn signal... (bahahahahahahahahahaaaaaa, oh, that felt good!) So he drops Madi off, switches cars with me (his has an issue that needs to be checked out before it makes a trip out of town) and heads to Amarillo.
He picks the three of them up, takes them to the ER, and waits in the ER until they admit the baby girl, then he brings Brian home. It is about 6 am so we gather up children and head home ourselves, where I finally get some sleep (didn't sleep at their house cause I wanted to stay awake and man the phones... glad I did!) for about an hour and a half! Baby's car seat was still in my car, so I headed back to Amarillo Saturday, and visited with them a bit before we found out that sweet baby girl was going to get to go home! Yay! Got home in time to go back to their house and play spades.....BRIAN AND I WON AGAIN!
Sunday was a whole other story, but I need to go eat lunch, so it will have to be a whole other post!
~s~
Last weekend the Aggies lost... and it just went downhill from there! This sounds like a sitcom, I know, but this is the true story of how 8 people spent the hours following the A&M loss, and why 24 hours later we didn't even care!
All 4 of the Dillahunty crew went to our friend's home for a Cotton Bowl party. We cooked pizza, chicken wings, and had all kinds of snacks and goodies. By the end of the game, Shannon had a phone call in to the doctor because her baby had not eaten or drunk anything significant all day long, but she kept having diarrhea. Long story short, they decided to take her in to the ER. This is something I love about my husband - and proof that we have been married FOREVER... Aron and I didn't even have to discuss it, he just said we would stay with their other daughter who was already in bed asleep, so Brian could go with Shannon to Amarillo. Sooooo glad they agreed (well, it wasn't like we gave them a choice in the matter - we were kind of bossy!).
So CG stays at their house, and I take Madi and Aron back to our house and get a few things -- pajamas and contact juice for me, phone chargers for me and for CG, meds for the morning, toothbrush, etc. Brian and Shannon start throwing stuff together for their excursion, and I head back to their house with my stuff. They set off - I don't even know what time... midnight? So CG and I settle in to spend the night in the living room, Aron and Madi are at home, and Brian and Shannon and sick baby girl are headed to the ER. All is, ummm, maybe not well, but it is under control and running smoothly!
Then, when they get to the river, Shannon and Brian get a flat tire! They can't find the jack, so I text Aron that he may have to get up and drive to the river to help them change the flat. Eventually the jack was located, Aron was put on stand down alert, and the tire was changed. Now for those of you unfamiliar with the panhandle, it is about an hours drive from Dumas to Amarillo... so after they changed the tire, the one hour trip has become a two hour trip. Still, stuff happens and you just keep moving forward (I LOVE "Meet the Robinson's!")
So they are almost to Amarillo - just two miles from the loop exit that will take them to the west side of the city, where the hospitals are, without going through town. And..... the spare tire gets a flat! Ah, irony is so mean sometimes! Apparently the police can not transport people anywhere, regardless of the situation. They would not take the baby to the ER, but told them an ambulance would have to be called. Really? An Ambulance? To take a dehydrated infant less than 10 miles? Well, perhaps Bill Gates could afford that, but a rural church youth minister sure can't! So I called Aron and after attempting to rouse Amarillo residents on facebook, he put clothes on and prepared to go be a hero.
Aron gets Madi up, grabs a sleeping bag and a couple blankets, and puts her in his car and heads to their house, where CG and I are. Along the way he gets pulled over for not using a turn signal... (bahahahahahahahahahaaaaaa, oh, that felt good!) So he drops Madi off, switches cars with me (his has an issue that needs to be checked out before it makes a trip out of town) and heads to Amarillo.
He picks the three of them up, takes them to the ER, and waits in the ER until they admit the baby girl, then he brings Brian home. It is about 6 am so we gather up children and head home ourselves, where I finally get some sleep (didn't sleep at their house cause I wanted to stay awake and man the phones... glad I did!) for about an hour and a half! Baby's car seat was still in my car, so I headed back to Amarillo Saturday, and visited with them a bit before we found out that sweet baby girl was going to get to go home! Yay! Got home in time to go back to their house and play spades.....BRIAN AND I WON AGAIN!
Sunday was a whole other story, but I need to go eat lunch, so it will have to be a whole other post!
~s~
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
ouch
3 words.... hot. glue. gun.
First time I have actually used one of the many aloe vera plants in my room. At least it was the me and not one of the kids!!
~s~
First time I have actually used one of the many aloe vera plants in my room. At least it was the me and not one of the kids!!
~s~
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Yup it was a Tuesday!
Short posting tonight = I want to be in bed by 11!
Today was an eh day. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't spectacular either. My student's brother is still in the hospital, but at least he is where he is getting good medical care! I don't think McGee (hedgehog) is eating very well... has me concerned.
Highlights of my day:
I wore a bright pink sweater with Tinkerbell appliqued on it. The kids usually really like it. Four year olds are soooo honest
boy: Mrs. D why'd you have to wear that shirt?
me: what's wrong with my shirt?
boy: it's Tinkerbelle!
me: yes.....?
boy: but Tinkerbelle is for GIRLS!
me: well, I'm a girl.
boy: no you are not!
me: (huge mistake here! I was asking for it) well then, what am I?
boy: you are old! you're just a teacher! lol gotta love em!
2nd highlight
At walmart - phone rings and it says it's my friend Brian soooo....
me: hello!
phone: (indistinct voice)
me: hello??
phone: (more indistinct voice)
me: (realizing what has happened) Corrin?
phone: YES!
me: hello Corrin!
phone/Corrin: hello! hello!
me: how are you?
Corrin: (not sure what she said but it was a reply)
me: did you have a good day?
Corrin: yes!
me: are you having fun playing on the phone?
Corrin: YES! YES!
me: does daddy know you have his phone?
Corrin: (huge silence, then...) nooooooo.......
HAHAHAHAHA! She is awesome! I love that kid! She can call me anytime - that made my whole day!
I had Skylar for a bit today and when mom and dad were on their way to pick her up she said "Don't tell my mom...." and my heart skipped a beat! I was fixing to say "uh-uh Sky! I don't keep secrets from your mom!" then she finished " Don't tell my mom that I lost another tooth, I want to tell her!" LOL I did tell her I would never keep a secret from her mom, but that wasn't a secret, that was a suprise! Soooo I sure hope that tooth fairy they had last night is doing a little better tonight or they got a new one!
oh and Aron and Brian's conversation about age and VDs on facebook made me laugh!!!
10:59... I'm gonna make it!!! night!
~staci~
Today was an eh day. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't spectacular either. My student's brother is still in the hospital, but at least he is where he is getting good medical care! I don't think McGee (hedgehog) is eating very well... has me concerned.
Highlights of my day:
I wore a bright pink sweater with Tinkerbell appliqued on it. The kids usually really like it. Four year olds are soooo honest
boy: Mrs. D why'd you have to wear that shirt?
me: what's wrong with my shirt?
boy: it's Tinkerbelle!
me: yes.....?
boy: but Tinkerbelle is for GIRLS!
me: well, I'm a girl.
boy: no you are not!
me: (huge mistake here! I was asking for it) well then, what am I?
boy: you are old! you're just a teacher! lol gotta love em!
2nd highlight
At walmart - phone rings and it says it's my friend Brian soooo....
me: hello!
phone: (indistinct voice)
me: hello??
phone: (more indistinct voice)
me: (realizing what has happened) Corrin?
phone: YES!
me: hello Corrin!
phone/Corrin: hello! hello!
me: how are you?
Corrin: (not sure what she said but it was a reply)
me: did you have a good day?
Corrin: yes!
me: are you having fun playing on the phone?
Corrin: YES! YES!
me: does daddy know you have his phone?
Corrin: (huge silence, then...) nooooooo.......
HAHAHAHAHA! She is awesome! I love that kid! She can call me anytime - that made my whole day!
I had Skylar for a bit today and when mom and dad were on their way to pick her up she said "Don't tell my mom...." and my heart skipped a beat! I was fixing to say "uh-uh Sky! I don't keep secrets from your mom!" then she finished " Don't tell my mom that I lost another tooth, I want to tell her!" LOL I did tell her I would never keep a secret from her mom, but that wasn't a secret, that was a suprise! Soooo I sure hope that tooth fairy they had last night is doing a little better tonight or they got a new one!
oh and Aron and Brian's conversation about age and VDs on facebook made me laugh!!!
10:59... I'm gonna make it!!! night!
~staci~
Monday, January 3, 2011
What a day!
Today was the first day back to school. (Note that I really wanted to start that with "Well," but I didn't!) The kids were okay... morning class was really loud. No, make that REALLY LOUD. Other than that it was okay... they weren't too out of control and nobody had really forgotten the rules as sometimes happens. CG forgot her instrument and after a few tear filled panicked calls, a sweet friend came to our house, braved the wrath of Rufus, dared to enter the sty that is CG's room... found her instrument and drove it to the High School! Thank you Brian! you are my hero!
Things didn't get crazy until this afternoon. I have two girls in my pm class that ride together. I's mommy picks up N and brings them both to school. The girls were late today and Mr. Garcia opened the door for them and I's mommy started talking to him. I knew it was serious when they stepped out into the hall. N came in and said her "brother was bleeding there" and pointed to her chin. I figured he fell or got a scratch or something, no big deal. When Mr. Garcia came in he had a strange look on his face and he called me to the side. It seems when I's mom came to N's house the little boy was asleep on the couch but she couldn't wake him up. When she picked him up blood gushed out of his mouth (gushed was the work I's mommy used) They called the ambulance and I's mom convinced N's mom that the best place for her to be was school, so they came. Now let me say right now that I know teachers are not supposed to have favorites.... but we do. You can't help it, some kiddos pull on your heart strings! Well N is one of my favs. She is so sweet I just fell in love from the start! So here this horrible thing has happened to MY BABY! Uggghhh. I was just sick, I wanted to throw up all afternoon! We didn't know if maybe little N had just watched her baby brother die!!! I emailed everyone I had an email for at my church and asked if there was anything we could do. (side note: this family was one of the families our church bought stuff for at Christmas so I was hoping that the deacon that delivered the kids gifts might be able to go to the hospital and check on them since they would have already had some contact) Our church secretary called the two deacons that were in town (pastor was in Lubbock) and said they were en route to the hospital. I asked her to keep me updated and she sent me an email later that said the boy was okay (at least still alive!) and was going to be moved to Amarillo. The church loaned them a vehicle so dad could get back and go to work tomorrow (boss said he had to be there). Well grandma came to pick N up after school and as I was helping N get in the car I asked how things were and she was filling me in. Grandma had never met me before, didn't know even my name yet. One of the first things she told me is that people from Calvary Baptist Church were at the hospital almost immediately. She was so impressed by that. She was also grateful that CBC had loaned dad a car to get him to the hospital in Amarillo. She said "I don't know how they knew to come, but I am so glad they were there!" I can not even express the joy and pride I felt when I told her "That is my church. I contacted them as soon as I heard, and I am so glad they were able to come out and help you" THEN I introduced myself and told her we would be praying for the family. I still don't know exactly what is wrong with the little guy, but I feel better that he is in Amarillo and being cared for by doctors and nurses that can help. To the deacons at CBC and Debra... Thank you so much for responding so fast to a family in need. It meant so much to me to know that my church was taking care of this family! I love you guys!
So, that crisis managed, on to after school.... Madi had an follow up appointment with the podiatrist for a procedure he had done 3 weeks ago for her warts. The results of that medicine were amazing... I actually think it was a miracle! Well, he had to apply a little more of the stuff to the two tiny warts that remained. Then Madi brought to his attention that she thought she had an ingrown toenail. He poked and said "Oh my gosh, yes, you can feel the nail right here!" Bad mommy... I thought she had a callus or something... no, it is her toenail growing sideways in her toe!!!! So in addition to the painful medicine treatment, she also had surgery today!! They gave her a shot to deaden it... actually I think there were at least 3 needles! then he pulled her skin to one side and cut her nail and killed the nail at the growth point. so now Madi's toenail is about 1/4 an inch narrower than it was this morning! That is a permanent thing, so eventually her skin will grow up to where the new edge of her nail is.... And while I don't mind watching this kind of stuff on TV, or in the ER when I was getting my EMT certification.... watching my child with needles stuck in her foot and the doctor actually doing surgery.... well my knees got a bit wobbly and my head started spinning. It is again now just thinking about it. I guess it is different with other people than it is with your own kid! Felt the same way when CG had a procedure a couple years ago that involved anesthetic shot and a scalpel! "And I think maybe I should faint, but I don't" (see backing up auto tune on you tube)
So..... tonight I am grateful for a church that cares about people in Dumas with no regard to what church they attend, or if they attend any church at all. I am grateful for a church that DOES SOMETHING. It's the physical going out and doing something that matters so much more than any amount of money you can give to a person or group!
Tonight I am also grateful for doctors who 1. care enough about their patients to send them to another doctor that can care for them better -- thank you Dr. Carter for sending us to Dr. Higgins-- and 2. have the knowledge of what to do and the ability and skill to do what needs to be done to make things better for me and my family -- thank you Dr. Higgins!
PS - Madi's foot hurts but she was happy for the distraction of getting to hang out with a little friend! Thank you Sky for inviting Madi to play, and thank you B and S for letting her stay! Love you!!
gotta get some sleep so I can get up early tomorrow and treat Madi's foot.... and there's that dizzy feeling again!!!
Goodnight!
~staci~
Things didn't get crazy until this afternoon. I have two girls in my pm class that ride together. I's mommy picks up N and brings them both to school. The girls were late today and Mr. Garcia opened the door for them and I's mommy started talking to him. I knew it was serious when they stepped out into the hall. N came in and said her "brother was bleeding there" and pointed to her chin. I figured he fell or got a scratch or something, no big deal. When Mr. Garcia came in he had a strange look on his face and he called me to the side. It seems when I's mom came to N's house the little boy was asleep on the couch but she couldn't wake him up. When she picked him up blood gushed out of his mouth (gushed was the work I's mommy used) They called the ambulance and I's mom convinced N's mom that the best place for her to be was school, so they came. Now let me say right now that I know teachers are not supposed to have favorites.... but we do. You can't help it, some kiddos pull on your heart strings! Well N is one of my favs. She is so sweet I just fell in love from the start! So here this horrible thing has happened to MY BABY! Uggghhh. I was just sick, I wanted to throw up all afternoon! We didn't know if maybe little N had just watched her baby brother die!!! I emailed everyone I had an email for at my church and asked if there was anything we could do. (side note: this family was one of the families our church bought stuff for at Christmas so I was hoping that the deacon that delivered the kids gifts might be able to go to the hospital and check on them since they would have already had some contact) Our church secretary called the two deacons that were in town (pastor was in Lubbock) and said they were en route to the hospital. I asked her to keep me updated and she sent me an email later that said the boy was okay (at least still alive!) and was going to be moved to Amarillo. The church loaned them a vehicle so dad could get back and go to work tomorrow (boss said he had to be there). Well grandma came to pick N up after school and as I was helping N get in the car I asked how things were and she was filling me in. Grandma had never met me before, didn't know even my name yet. One of the first things she told me is that people from Calvary Baptist Church were at the hospital almost immediately. She was so impressed by that. She was also grateful that CBC had loaned dad a car to get him to the hospital in Amarillo. She said "I don't know how they knew to come, but I am so glad they were there!" I can not even express the joy and pride I felt when I told her "That is my church. I contacted them as soon as I heard, and I am so glad they were able to come out and help you" THEN I introduced myself and told her we would be praying for the family. I still don't know exactly what is wrong with the little guy, but I feel better that he is in Amarillo and being cared for by doctors and nurses that can help. To the deacons at CBC and Debra... Thank you so much for responding so fast to a family in need. It meant so much to me to know that my church was taking care of this family! I love you guys!
So, that crisis managed, on to after school.... Madi had an follow up appointment with the podiatrist for a procedure he had done 3 weeks ago for her warts. The results of that medicine were amazing... I actually think it was a miracle! Well, he had to apply a little more of the stuff to the two tiny warts that remained. Then Madi brought to his attention that she thought she had an ingrown toenail. He poked and said "Oh my gosh, yes, you can feel the nail right here!" Bad mommy... I thought she had a callus or something... no, it is her toenail growing sideways in her toe!!!! So in addition to the painful medicine treatment, she also had surgery today!! They gave her a shot to deaden it... actually I think there were at least 3 needles! then he pulled her skin to one side and cut her nail and killed the nail at the growth point. so now Madi's toenail is about 1/4 an inch narrower than it was this morning! That is a permanent thing, so eventually her skin will grow up to where the new edge of her nail is.... And while I don't mind watching this kind of stuff on TV, or in the ER when I was getting my EMT certification.... watching my child with needles stuck in her foot and the doctor actually doing surgery.... well my knees got a bit wobbly and my head started spinning. It is again now just thinking about it. I guess it is different with other people than it is with your own kid! Felt the same way when CG had a procedure a couple years ago that involved anesthetic shot and a scalpel! "And I think maybe I should faint, but I don't" (see backing up auto tune on you tube)
So..... tonight I am grateful for a church that cares about people in Dumas with no regard to what church they attend, or if they attend any church at all. I am grateful for a church that DOES SOMETHING. It's the physical going out and doing something that matters so much more than any amount of money you can give to a person or group!
Tonight I am also grateful for doctors who 1. care enough about their patients to send them to another doctor that can care for them better -- thank you Dr. Carter for sending us to Dr. Higgins-- and 2. have the knowledge of what to do and the ability and skill to do what needs to be done to make things better for me and my family -- thank you Dr. Higgins!
PS - Madi's foot hurts but she was happy for the distraction of getting to hang out with a little friend! Thank you Sky for inviting Madi to play, and thank you B and S for letting her stay! Love you!!
gotta get some sleep so I can get up early tomorrow and treat Madi's foot.... and there's that dizzy feeling again!!!
Goodnight!
~staci~
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Almost ready!
Well, it's 8:15 pm and I'm up at the school. For the most part, everything that can be done has been done to get ready for the coming week. I was going to get new folders for my whole class, but Walmart has only $.97 folders... not the $.15 folders that they had at the begining of the year! I guess folders will have to wait until I can get to Amarillo.
I missed praise team practice this morning. It wasn't that I over slept - I was awake. My brain just changed the time we meet! I went in to wake CG up and she told me church had already started. I asked her when her Sunday school started and she replied "an hour before yours!" YIKES! I was there in time for Sunday School but missing PT practice makes me feel discombobulated! CG missed Sunday School but she made it to the service at her church.
Yeah, Carey Grace goes to a different church. We had to decide if we wanted her to go to a church of her choosing, or not attend church at all. We let her go. It was painful... still is sometimes when people at my church ask where she is. I see now that it wasn't that she didn't like my church... it was just God calling her somewhere else. She is happy and she is learning, serving, witnessing, growing, and having fun. It is funny how sometimes God takes you somewhere kicking and screaming and throwing a fit, and if you just shut up, calm down and do what He wants you to, you will find yourself in a much better place! If CG hadn't changed churches, I would never have spent two hours talking to her youth minister's wife in an attempt to tell her all about CG, her spiritual life, and my hopes and dreams for her and assure myself that my baby was okay with these people I didn't know anything about. I wouldn't have ever forged a bond with this woman - I wouldn't have even met her! Now, just 3 months or so later, Aron and I BOTH have wonderful friends that we love dearly and so enjoy spending time with. They feel like family - the good kind, not the crazy "are you sure I'm not adopted?" kind. If God hadn't called CG to a different church, we wouldn't be planning a family vacation for the first time in our family's history. If we hadn't let her go, we wouldn't have plans ever single Saturday night! Thank you God for forcing us to go places we don't want to... the benefits are so incredibly awesome!
On a non spiritual note, I messed up my pinkie ring today. (Oh! Water is playing on Pandora! Love Brad Paisley!... sorry, I'm not really ADD I'm just easily distracta...... OH LOOK! A squirrel!)
So I got my ring caught on the drawer of the filing cabinet and it roughed up the edge quite a bit. I took it off and looked at the ring and at the indention in my finger. I have worn that ring on that finger since I was in the 6th grade. It's a James Avery ring, and although they now make one almost exactly like it.... it's not the same, so I'm going to have this one fixed rather than replaced. I have had that ring longer than I have had my wedding bands! I have had my class ring awhile too, but I didn't really wear it for about 15 years between high school and now. That little Spanish Swirl has been on my right pinkie for 27 years! Wow! It is the only thing I can think of that I have had that long and still use daily. Watches, glasses, clothes, shoes, everything else has changed numerous times over the years but that little ring has stayed on my finger. I had it when I met my first "love". I had it when he broke my heart for the first time. I had it in all the prom/homecoming/ROTC/Orchestra/ formal dances. I had it in all the swimming pools, sleepovers, and parties growing up. I had it through the drama of breaking away from my parents. I had it when I met Aron. I had it through our marriage vows (I think I may actually have taken it off for the ceremony), through 5 miscarriages and two babies, through surgeries on tumors and jawbones, through 9 moves and 4 churches in three towns. I really struggle to remember a time before I had that ring - memories are there, just a little hazy! And, I know this is weird but bear with me, I was thinking about what will happen to my ring when I die. I want my wedding rings to go to the girls, but I think I want to be buried with my pinkie ring! It's been with me all this time, it only seems fair right? Besides, it would just be something for the girls to argue over and they don't need any encouragement!
Well, I think I have done all the damage I can do here, and by now most people have quit reading anyway! :-) Sorry, I have long ramblings... that's why I wanted to blog - it's a release!
Sooooo..... go where God takes you, even if you don't think you want to go there, and appriciate significiant pieces of jewerly and make sure your spouse knows who gets what when you die! Yup, that sums up this blog!
Goodnight!
~staci~
I missed praise team practice this morning. It wasn't that I over slept - I was awake. My brain just changed the time we meet! I went in to wake CG up and she told me church had already started. I asked her when her Sunday school started and she replied "an hour before yours!" YIKES! I was there in time for Sunday School but missing PT practice makes me feel discombobulated! CG missed Sunday School but she made it to the service at her church.
Yeah, Carey Grace goes to a different church. We had to decide if we wanted her to go to a church of her choosing, or not attend church at all. We let her go. It was painful... still is sometimes when people at my church ask where she is. I see now that it wasn't that she didn't like my church... it was just God calling her somewhere else. She is happy and she is learning, serving, witnessing, growing, and having fun. It is funny how sometimes God takes you somewhere kicking and screaming and throwing a fit, and if you just shut up, calm down and do what He wants you to, you will find yourself in a much better place! If CG hadn't changed churches, I would never have spent two hours talking to her youth minister's wife in an attempt to tell her all about CG, her spiritual life, and my hopes and dreams for her and assure myself that my baby was okay with these people I didn't know anything about. I wouldn't have ever forged a bond with this woman - I wouldn't have even met her! Now, just 3 months or so later, Aron and I BOTH have wonderful friends that we love dearly and so enjoy spending time with. They feel like family - the good kind, not the crazy "are you sure I'm not adopted?" kind. If God hadn't called CG to a different church, we wouldn't be planning a family vacation for the first time in our family's history. If we hadn't let her go, we wouldn't have plans ever single Saturday night! Thank you God for forcing us to go places we don't want to... the benefits are so incredibly awesome!
On a non spiritual note, I messed up my pinkie ring today. (Oh! Water is playing on Pandora! Love Brad Paisley!... sorry, I'm not really ADD I'm just easily distracta...... OH LOOK! A squirrel!)
So I got my ring caught on the drawer of the filing cabinet and it roughed up the edge quite a bit. I took it off and looked at the ring and at the indention in my finger. I have worn that ring on that finger since I was in the 6th grade. It's a James Avery ring, and although they now make one almost exactly like it.... it's not the same, so I'm going to have this one fixed rather than replaced. I have had that ring longer than I have had my wedding bands! I have had my class ring awhile too, but I didn't really wear it for about 15 years between high school and now. That little Spanish Swirl has been on my right pinkie for 27 years! Wow! It is the only thing I can think of that I have had that long and still use daily. Watches, glasses, clothes, shoes, everything else has changed numerous times over the years but that little ring has stayed on my finger. I had it when I met my first "love". I had it when he broke my heart for the first time. I had it in all the prom/homecoming/ROTC/Orchestra/ formal dances. I had it in all the swimming pools, sleepovers, and parties growing up. I had it through the drama of breaking away from my parents. I had it when I met Aron. I had it through our marriage vows (I think I may actually have taken it off for the ceremony), through 5 miscarriages and two babies, through surgeries on tumors and jawbones, through 9 moves and 4 churches in three towns. I really struggle to remember a time before I had that ring - memories are there, just a little hazy! And, I know this is weird but bear with me, I was thinking about what will happen to my ring when I die. I want my wedding rings to go to the girls, but I think I want to be buried with my pinkie ring! It's been with me all this time, it only seems fair right? Besides, it would just be something for the girls to argue over and they don't need any encouragement!
Well, I think I have done all the damage I can do here, and by now most people have quit reading anyway! :-) Sorry, I have long ramblings... that's why I wanted to blog - it's a release!
Sooooo..... go where God takes you, even if you don't think you want to go there, and appriciate significiant pieces of jewerly and make sure your spouse knows who gets what when you die! Yup, that sums up this blog!
Goodnight!
~staci~
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Goodbye Christmas!
Well, despite doing nothing until well after noon, today was pretty productive! Aron shampooed the carpet in the bedroom, we flipped the mattress (winter side/summer side) and I took down the tree and all the Christmas decorations (I think....). Everything is neatly packed away in the garage cabinet, ready for next year. Well..... almost everything.... I will take the lights off the roof tomorrow and disentangle the net of lights from the bush in the front. Those go in a box (labeled mind you!) with the wreath that goes on the door. The box has its place in the cabinet waiting, and then I will remove the wooden sign from the yard... THEN Christmas will be packed up! Aron is currently shampooing the spots in the living room that need it, then we will move the couch back to it's rightful place in front of the window tomorrow. Rufus and the cats will be glad - they like to sit on the back of the couch and watch everything that is going on outside. Tomorrow we both have to go to the school and get ready for the new semester.
Anyhow, we are going to make a Walmart run for some stuff, then its back home to the fire! I am ready to see my church friends tomorrow and get back in the swing of things! Goodnight and God bless!
Anyhow, we are going to make a Walmart run for some stuff, then its back home to the fire! I am ready to see my church friends tomorrow and get back in the swing of things! Goodnight and God bless!
A New Year
Well, it is Saturday January 1, 2011, 10:00am and I am the only human awake! In other words, it is a normal Saturday in the Dillahunty house! I am excited about having a blog... been wanting to start one for awhile but didn't really know how to do it... big thanks to Jennifer H/S for getting me started!
We rang in the new year with some awesome friends! I won't post their names because I haven't asked their permission, so lets just call them S (her) and B (him). Isn't it wonderful when you meet someone and feel like you have known them forever? It is amazing to think that we have known S and B for only about 3 months, but we are already indescribably close! (yes, I know that indescribably does not look right, but please don't expect correct spellings on this blog... unless Aron posts!) Aron and I really needed good friends. I have my girlfriends, my Bunco groups, church friends, etc... but we have not had "couple friends" since the Kings moved! God is so good! We have had a great week going on a double date (Little Fockers is very cute!), playing Spades, and planning a Spring Break ski trip (cross your fingers everybody!) This is especially exciting for me because it will be the first ever Dillahunty Family vacation! The girls and I have gone places, and Aron and I have been places both together and on our own, but we have never, in the 14 years and 335 days that we have had children, gone on a vacation as a family! I am so very very happy!
So last night we ate supper (yummy!) at S and B"s house. By "we" I mean the whole crew - S, B, their two sweet girls, Madi and CG. The original plan was to eat, then take our girls home while they put theirs in bed, then head back over to play spades..... but our girls really didn't want to spend New Year's Eve with each other at home, so S and B graciously let them stay. CG watched B's new "Phantom of the Opera" movie and Madi played squinkies with their oldest daughter, and their baby slept, while the grownups played cards. As usuall, Aron and S won, and B and I just took our loss as par for the course! Best moments of the night? Watching Aron try to NOT make his "I won, I won, I won!!!" face, and both families (minus the littlest one) crowded around the door watching B try to open a bottle of bubbly.... Aron misheard (perhaps intentionally?) something S said and YELLED out into the night "WHAT? B HAS SYPHILLIS????" Hahahahahah... Good times!!! Don't even know what S actually said, but Aron announcing that to the whole neighborhood was just awesome! Don't know if we will have our usuall Saturday night spades, since we did last night, but we have some awesome memories to start the new year with!
Well my Madi is up, so I guess I better finish up this and then introduce her to the wonders of Punky Brewster - S found me a DVD of the first 8 episodes! How awesome is that???!!!!
~staci~
We rang in the new year with some awesome friends! I won't post their names because I haven't asked their permission, so lets just call them S (her) and B (him). Isn't it wonderful when you meet someone and feel like you have known them forever? It is amazing to think that we have known S and B for only about 3 months, but we are already indescribably close! (yes, I know that indescribably does not look right, but please don't expect correct spellings on this blog... unless Aron posts!) Aron and I really needed good friends. I have my girlfriends, my Bunco groups, church friends, etc... but we have not had "couple friends" since the Kings moved! God is so good! We have had a great week going on a double date (Little Fockers is very cute!), playing Spades, and planning a Spring Break ski trip (cross your fingers everybody!) This is especially exciting for me because it will be the first ever Dillahunty Family vacation! The girls and I have gone places, and Aron and I have been places both together and on our own, but we have never, in the 14 years and 335 days that we have had children, gone on a vacation as a family! I am so very very happy!
So last night we ate supper (yummy!) at S and B"s house. By "we" I mean the whole crew - S, B, their two sweet girls, Madi and CG. The original plan was to eat, then take our girls home while they put theirs in bed, then head back over to play spades..... but our girls really didn't want to spend New Year's Eve with each other at home, so S and B graciously let them stay. CG watched B's new "Phantom of the Opera" movie and Madi played squinkies with their oldest daughter, and their baby slept, while the grownups played cards. As usuall, Aron and S won, and B and I just took our loss as par for the course! Best moments of the night? Watching Aron try to NOT make his "I won, I won, I won!!!" face, and both families (minus the littlest one) crowded around the door watching B try to open a bottle of bubbly.... Aron misheard (perhaps intentionally?) something S said and YELLED out into the night "WHAT? B HAS SYPHILLIS????" Hahahahahah... Good times!!! Don't even know what S actually said, but Aron announcing that to the whole neighborhood was just awesome! Don't know if we will have our usuall Saturday night spades, since we did last night, but we have some awesome memories to start the new year with!
Well my Madi is up, so I guess I better finish up this and then introduce her to the wonders of Punky Brewster - S found me a DVD of the first 8 episodes! How awesome is that???!!!!
~staci~
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