I’m Normal!

Some of you reading the title of this post might be thinking, “I beg to differ.”  Allow me to explain what I’m talking about.  In March, I went to see the ophthalmologist because my eyes had been red for 3 months and I was feeling intermittent pressure behind my eyes.  The specialist didn’t find anything wrong with my eyes and the pressure had basically  gone away.  She sent me for a LOT of blood work, like 16 vials worth.  I called back 3 weeks later because I hadn’t heard what the results were.  They said they would look into it and call me back.  A week later, they finally called back and said that everything was good except that my white blood cell count was slightly low.  I made the mistake of googling what that could possibly mean.  HUGE mistake!  Did you know that leukemia is the first thing that comes up on Google?  I immediately went into major stress mode and started feeling pressure in my head again.  I’m thinking stress is the trigger for that.  I started wondering whether or not I would live to see my kids grow up and my train of thought was just horrible.  After praying a lot and another reflexology treatment, I felt better.  The person who called with my results suggested I should follow up with my family doctor.  I don’t have one, but I saw a doctor who said he would test everything to make sure I’m healthy.  That was over 2 weeks ago.  Today, I went in to find out my results and he said that my white blood cell count is normal!  Praise Jesus!  He said normal is around 4.5 and my number was 4.7.  He asked if I wanted to see on his computer screen, so he showed me and there was a long list of things they had tested and beside each one, it said normal, normal, normal, all the way down the screen.  When I got back to my car, I cried and praised God.  I have never been so happy and so relieved to be healthy and gloriously normal!!      

Trampoline

At the end of March (I think), the kids were given a trampoline, which was a belated birthday/Christmas present for them.  It sat in the box for a couple of weeks as we waited for warm weather to coincide with Jared having free time to help set it up.  On Easter week-end, we set it up and the kids LOVE it!  We had Haley set up on a picnic blanket right beside the trampoline.

We started while the kids had their Easter hunt outside.

These were taken while we were setting it up.  We hadn’t put up the net enclosure yet.  SO thankful for that!

Jared also bought them a big ball to bounce on there, which just adds to the fun!  I grew up with a trampoline and spent hours on there with my friends, so I’m excited for them!

Dairy Farm Adventure

Kiera was going to Preschool at our church and we decided to end it early, at the end of March.  We decided to do a couple of field trips this Spring, so they had one at the beginning of April.  One of the Moms grew up on a dairy farm, so we went to her parents’ farm.  I have never really been on a dairy farm, so it was a new experience for me, too.  I took all 3 of my kids.  Blake was very unsure, Kiera was very interested and Haley was just bundled up in the stroller, fairly content.  Here Kiera is running to the barn

The first barn was full of calves

I have never seen that many calves in one place before

Feeding time

The next barn was full of big cows.  I must say the smell was horrendous

Can you say "butt ugly?”  Sorry, I had to say that.

Milking time…I had no idea this is how they’re milked.  They have a machine that measures how much milk is coming out, what percentage of the milking is done and it displays the cow’s number.  I couldn’t help but mentally compare it to breastfeeding.  A few differences there…

It was a beautiful morning on the farm!

Smoothies Galore

Lately, I’ve been on a smoothie kick.  I LOVE them!  Last week Thursday, Jared went to McDonald’s.  They had their snack-size real fruit smoothies for $1, so he brought me back a mango pineapple one.  YUM!

On Saturday, we were at the mall eating in the food court for lunch.  Before we left, I decided I wanted to buy a bubble tea to share with the kids, so I got green apple.  The key to a great bubble tea is to get ones that are made with syrup, not with powder.  Some of them use jello powder and I think it tastes so fake and almost gross.  This one was fantastic!  I forgot to ask for no pearls like I usually do, but they were ok.  Kiera thought they were “chocolate balls” so she liked them!

On Monday, Jared and I got to go out on a date!  We went to a nearby coffee/dessert place that we had never been to together and I was thinking about getting gelati, but wasn’t pumped about the flavors they had.  I ended up getting a pina colada smoothie.  Mmmmmm!!

 

Yesterday, Jared surprised me by taking a day off, so we all went to the chiropractor, did a couple of errands and went to McDonald’s for lunch.   There was a Booster Juice right close by and I had brought my BOGO coupon along that I got off the back of a cereal box.  So, we got 2 large Booster Juices for the price of 1.  That’s the only time I can justify getting them because they are expensive, but SO good!  I got Strawberry Storm and Jared got Raspberry Rapture.

They are definitely my favorite treat these days!  I’m really happy that I’ve been able to have so many different kinds from different places.  I wonder if I could find a job as a smoothie taste tester and then I could get paid to drink them instead of paying for them… If anyone hears about a job like that, let me know! :)

Things I Never Thought I Would Hear or Say

With kids around, you never know what kind of conversations are going to take place.  I have been keeping a list of strange and funny comments over the past couple of weeks.  Here are the ones I wrote down:

Things I have said to Blake

-No, I can’t breastfeed your dinosaur.

-Haley is not a popsicle.  Please don’t lick her head.

-Please eat your yogurt with the spoon instead of your fingers.

Things Kiera has said

-I want Jesus to be pink! (while coloring a picture)

-Great Grandma is a mermaid!

Something Jared said

-Blake, just concentrate on drinking your milk and leave your sister’s underwear alone.

I saved the best for last…

Something Blake said

-We were sitting down to eat supper which was soft tortillas stuffed with a pizza mixture.  He pointed to it and exclaimed, “That looks like a penis!”

There are other comments and questions the kids have had about certain body parts recently, and although they’re hilarious, they’re not the most appropriate blog content.  Where do they come up with these things?!  My 2 favorite recent pictures of these silly kids:

Shaving with Daddy

Playing at one of our Easter gatherings

Gifts 1186-1200

“The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.” –Psalm 28:7

I got to spend time putting pictures onto the computer and editing them this afternoon, so here are some more gifts I’m thankful for:

1186. Giving a mug full of Skittles to my cousin's fiance who loves Skittles possibly even more than I do

1187. Lite-Brite

1188. That I was only up in the night for an hour and a half with Haley who is sick…it could have been longer

1189. That Kiera can buckle herself up now that she’s in a booster seat

1190. Gorgeous April weather, before it turned cold

1191. Successfully taking all 3 kids for a walk by myself for the first time

1192. When someone is happy to see me

1193. Feeling safe and loved

1194. Dressing up for church

1195. All 5 of us on a twin bed (you just can’t see me)

1196. Sharing a secret

1197. Kiera pointing out the first buds on the bushes

1198. Shaving

1199. My friend painting my toe nails at a girls night…they are happy toes!

1200. This reminder that I put on the fridge

Natural Healing

I am learning new things when it comes to the area of my health.  My Mom has a close friend who does reflexology, so the 2 of them come over and I get reflexology treatments on a regular basis.  For those of you who may be unfamiliar with reflexology, it is: the practice of applying pressure to the feet and hands utilizing specific thumb, finger and hand techniques based on a system of zones and reflex areas that reflect an image of the body on the feet and hands with a premise that such work effects a physical change in the body.  She does reflexology just on my feet, but I can do it on my hands in between her giving me treatments.  Since starting treatments, the pressure behind my eyes has gone away, my digestion has improved, I’ve had headaches go away within a few minutes of starting a treatment and I have had a decrease in neck and shoulder pain.  I can also feel it working in different parts of my body as she’s working on my feet.  All of the nerves end in the feet, so what she’s doing is stimulating the nerves and helping the body to heal itself if there’s something not working properly.  It can help for so many different health problems.  I am just so amazed at how God has designed the body!

My 2nd discovery is Echinacea.  I got a cold in February, so I immediately went to the health food store.  I was going to buy oil of oregano capsules because I’ve heard they’re effective, but they were $30, so I decided to try Echinacea which was under $10.  I took 2 capsules every few hours in combination with vitamin C and the symptoms stayed extremely mild and then my cold went away after a few days.  I now had a cold this past week and I tried it again and it worked the same!  Praise God for natural products that work!

My 3rd discovery from when I was pregnant with Blake is D-Mannose powder.  When I was pregnant with Blake, I had a bladder infection that wouldn’t go away.  For 3 months, I tried 3 different antibiotics and nothing worked.  I then went to a Naturopath and I got D-Mannose powder.  It worked within a few days.  Since then, I’ve had several bladder infections, so I just take the powder in water or juice for a couple of days and the infection disappears!  It has a slightly sweet taste, so it’s very easy to take.  The cheapest I have found it is $18 plus $6 shipping on iherb.com. 

I get excited about ways of helping the body with natural methods, so I figured I would share my excitement with you!