Vaccines and Airports

This morning we had an interesting speaker at MOPS! His name was Dr Alex Holston, a neonatal-perinatal pediatrician that graduated from the Naval Academy in 1999. He practices at Bethesda Naval Hospital. One thing that he said that I thought was hilarious but also quite insightful was about vaccines. There were some moms that asked a lot of questions about vaccines and autism and vaccines in general. His personal opinion is that vaccines are necessary and helpful but if there are new vaccines on the market, hold off on them for as long as you can. A lot of moms got opinionated about that statement, you know how it is... And he says... "Well let me tell you that vaccines are like telling you about Christ. If you already have your mind made up about Christ, I am not going to convince you one way or another. You can weigh the benefits yourself and make your decision. I am not going to argue about it!" Isn't that true?

We are trying to find a way to get to National airport at 5:30 AM for our trip to Florida with all the kids, car seats, luggage, etc... We are debating about just spending the $60 to take a taxi but that goes against my way of doing things. I have taken so many people to the airport and don't mind doing it all yet I am so nervous about asking anyone!! (And a friend already told me she couldn't do it.) So I am going to ask someone else today, why am I so stinkin' nervous?? I will keep you posted!

Fridge Cleanout!

I took this video of Grace when she was tapping with a marker on a piece of paper. I asked her what she was doing.... (how do I rotate it??)

Then tonight we cleaned out the fridge. It did not take me 4 hours and I did not use toothpicks or QTips like Kate Gosselin. I did throw away relish from VBS last summer.\

Two years ago, we had a MOPS speaker at my first MOPS group that talked about ways to simplify your busy life. I don't remember her name or anything else about what she spoke about. One suggestion was to make your sandwiches ahead of time for your kids or husbands and freeze them. I thought that sounded horrible because they weren't fresh. But I told Nate about it and he said was game. So now, for two years, I have made 2 weeks worth of sandwiches for Nate and put them in the freezer and have had no complaints. Gracers (and really all of them) helped me tonight.

Frozen Pineapple on a Stick

Looked at another school in the area. Pros: small classes, nice kids, classical education, very close to where we live. Cons: expensive. I loved this school and it looks like it is in the running!

On another note, I went to a women's breakfast this morning that was held by the women's ministry at my church. My frozen pineapple/coconut sticks didn't go over as much as I would like but I was really encouraged in regards to my prayer life. (I guess that matters more!) The speaker has had cancer 7 times and discussed some aspects of prayer that would encourage us to pray!

Her blog is here: http://thekarenpages.blogspot.com/

My sticks are here:

the kindergarten school search

Many of my peeps would be shocked to hear this but we are starting to look at private schools in the area for Gracers. I have always wanted to send my kids to the darling public elementary school practically in MY BACKYARD but we are really feeling the Lord lead us away from this. Many reasons that I won't go into here. That doesn't mean that we are closing those doors completely but we are taking the first steps. Today I toured a little school that is very close to us and actually uses a church building for their facility. Some of the pros were that the principal was wonderful, I know her son, the location is close, small class sizes. Some of the cons were that older grades were combined (2nd and 3rd together, etc), mandatory volunteer hours of 10 + hours/month, and school is named after a place in The Lord of the Rings. Tomorrow I tour another school and I am so grateful for my dear friend Donna who is watching the BUSTER. I know she will teach him how to play outside, shoot guns and eat meat... she is hard core Arkansas.

Thin blood leads to Butterfingers at CVS

Gracie has an ear infection and croup. I took her to ballet without a coat or hat (Nate asked me about that later - I don't know what I was thinking!) Then we went to church for the chili cook off. My chili didn't even place and the Hawaiian chili won. She started complaining on the way there. We didn't make it to Minute Clinic before they closed (8 PM) so I called our ped and they were open at 8:30 PM and told me to come in. 20 minutes later I was at CVS eating Butterfingers and candy corn and San Pelligrino with Grace waiting for her prescriptions. I had thin blood. Thin blood is what my brothers and I call it when you are on a diet, don't eat much, crave something good and you end up eating salad. That is thin blood, you should of just eaten something a little more fattening to thicken up your blood. Thin blood leads to Butterfinger binges at CVS!!!

My ped told me that he was thankful that I thanked him for being open this late. He said most people complain. With that in mind, I now thank the lady at the gym who folds my towels all the time and tip the lady at Magruders who loads my groceries in my car.

Our Tree Visit

We went as a family with my mom to see the White House Christmas Tree on December 30, 2 days before it closed for the season. There was so much security, even then, for the Obama inauguration festivities. We took a photo of the bullet proof area where the Obama family will be watching the parade.

Then I took a photo of Rita sitting in the basket of the stroller. I am so glad that we brought the stroller because we ended up having to walk about 10 blocks because of a security concern.

Then this was cracking me up. I saw a backpack sitting on the ground that someone must of dropped while walking around. The bag was there for about 10 minutes. Then this park ranger walked by casually and saw it. He didn't really know what to do but stood there staring at it. He knew that it was a security threat but also knew that if he reported it, it would probably shut down the city or something. He never did anything but kept staring at it closely and shining a flashlight on it.

Lonely Sunday

Today was a lonely Sunday. Our church had an extreme flood yesterday from the water sprinkler system, yes - despite the fact it is on a hill! I guess the fire dept had to turn off the water and so because there is no water, that means no toliets and therefore no church. Pastor Andy wrote about it on his blog with videos. The guy with the hat talking is my good friend Candi's husband -Rick. He is the funniest person. I shouldn't be laughing about the flood but hearing Rick talk about it makes me laugh. Check it out:

http://web.me.com/richardsonandy

Grace had a barking cough so we didn't visit another church. We just spent time as a little family this morning which made me appreciate my church body and corporate worship even more. I can't wait for next Sunday!! Last night around 10 PM Pastor Vic called us to make sure we knew that there was no church. Talk about having thoughtful men of God shepherding the people in our church!!

Sam doing his thing.

Nate reading a library book.

Grace and I calming a meltdown.

MOPS and Jackson's

At MOPS this morning, we heard about some wonderful input about choosing a good preschool. One of the points that the speaker made was this: "Don't think that of these years as slipping by. (This always depresses me.) Your kids will continue to need you all the time, even after they go to college and get married." She was a mom of many grown children and I appreciated her wisdom. Her blog is this:

http://simplestoriestimelesstruths.blogspot.com/.

Later on this evening, Nate and I had a fabulous sitter (thank you wonderful Jessica) who really made my kids happy when she brought Hi Ho Cherry O and lollipops. They hugged her when she left... what a difference a prepared and thoughtful sitter makes!!! We went out to the new Northern VA hotspot restaurant called "Jacksons." It was fabulous and I will not win Biggest Loser at church if I keep up like this.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/04/AR2008110401057.html

Befriending the Duggars...

Lately, I (not Nate)have been into the show on TLC called "18 and counting." It is about a family named the Duggars from Arkansas and they keep having kids. The mom is 42ish and just had her 19th kid. I got their book from Amazon and read through it.

I am not into tator tot casserole but I do think that debt-free living, chore systems, blanket discipline, and family closets are superb ideas. They are really a Godly family and are seeking what the Lord wants for them and following through with their convictions. My kids love to watch the shows too. My favorite Duggar is Jessa. She is the sassy one that rolls her eyes at the camera all the time. She is the one that will probably write the book about dysfunction in the Duggars. My second favorite is Amy Duggar. She is a cousin and is always on the show with her dog talking about how she loves her cousins but they are different. She is spunky. The reason I write all of this is to say that.... I became Amy Duggar's friend on Facebook today. So I got an insiders look into the family photos! I was very excited.

2nd Dentist Appt

Grace had her second dentist appointment this morning. She did great. She requested cherry instead of mint, wore the sunglasses that were provided, and told the dentist she was sorry she swallowed some toothpaste this morning. I would highly recommend this book if you are interested in warming your kid up to the dentist.

We Are BLOGGIN' !!

My first post... I invite you to visit with our family on a trip to the National Cathedral. It was so funny, the girls thought they were at a Princess Castle.