Quick Update

For a quick update about Will's ENT appointment and to see some cutericious pictures from our weekend picnic, click on over to Prather Place.

It is late, and I am tired, so I will leave it at that for now. I hope everyone has had a most wonderful and blessed Monday!

Branson

No, not the city...the new baby boy! Branson Matthew Tungate was born today at 10:21 am; his proud parents are Carrie and Adam and big sister is Ally. How exciting. I can't wait to meet the little guy. It's always exciting when a new baby arrives in the world.

As for Prather family news...there isn't much to report. I am looking forward to sleeping as late as possible tomorrow before tackling my house with various assundry cleaning chores. Sounds great, huh? It is possible that one of Scott's high school friends and his finacee are coming through town on Sunday, so I'm sure he is excited about catching up.

Other than that, our big news is that Will is seeing the ENT on Monday. Sounds kind of weird to be excited about an ear doctor, but nevertheless, I am. I am just ready to figure out how to keep my boy well.

Have a great weekend, everyone :)

The Trip, Amber, and the Car

I am so exhausted! We went to San Antonio for Easter this weekend and had a good time relaxing and seeing the family. I saw my cousin Amber and her son Cade whom I haven't seen since November of 2004, so it was good to spend a little time with them (not enough!).

Amber was my best friend growing up. It was so cool going to Grandma's house because Amber lived right down the dirt road. When I would stay at my grandparents' house for a week at a time in the summer, you could bet that at least one or two of those nights would be spent and Amber's house. We would stay up late watching Dirty Dancing and Grease (shh, don't tell!). We had the best fun. She also had a pool in her backyard--a real, in-ground pool. What better to cool you off on a hot San Antonio day than a little dip? I don't get to see Amber near enough, even though she and her husband built a house down that same dirt road; we don't get to go down as often as we like and busy lives get the best of us. We'll need to make sure and get together for some good catching up the next time we're there.

My parents brought us a new car. Well, new to us. It's a small SUV (4Runner), so it will be nice to have some more space again. I had forgotten how nice it was to have a pick-up to haul stuff around in. We did have a couple of problems with it over the weekend, though, so my brother and Scott spent a lot of time working on it outside. First, the A/C went out on Kendall when he was driving it up to San Antonio. They figured out fairly quickly that it was a fan belt and got it fixed. Then, we were playing around with stuff (like you do when you get a new car) and got the rear passenger side window stuck in the down position. They worked on it a while and decided to get a new window motor. As it turns out, if you do not shut a car door all the way and leave it that way for several hours, it runs the battery down. They found out the window motor was not the problem, but a new battery would have to be purchased. So, it was not a spectacular weekend on that front, but I think they still had fun being guys and working on the car. Kendall is going to Texas State Technical College next year to be an auto mechanic, so I know he had fun :)

Anyway, we made it home safely after a delicious meal at The Cracker Barrel in Kerrville, several stops, and lots of deer between Ozona and Garden City. Woo hoo! My bed never called my name so loudly as it did last night. It is calling to me yet again...what? I need to crawl in and get comfy and not wake up til noon tomorrow?? I wish, oh, how I wish life were that easy!

New Me?

Okay, folks, it's a record! For two nights in a row, I have cooked a real, home-cooked meal. I'm not talking Hamburger, Chicken, or Tuna Helper, either. Real recipes that require real ingredients. Wow...it truly is amazing. And dare I say it? I actually enjoyed myself. I enjoyed putting everything together correctly and then tasting the scrumptious meal I had produced.

Last night was also special because I installed the child-safety locks on the cabinet doors in the kitchen BY MYSELF (okay, Scott did help me on the first one, but other than that, it was all me, baby!). Incredible. It was a breakthrough evening. I have included a picture of me, the drill-wielding mama, with this post. Watch out, your kitchen may be next.

Soaked

My mother has told me I need to update, so here I am. I decided to give everyone a break from me for a few days because of my incredibly long previous post, but here I am, back to haunt you. For new and exciting Will news, click here. I have just updated that blog as well.

On Sunday night, our youth group had a devo at a member's home. Sunday was a warm, sunny day--perfect for outdoor games where you get all wet and disgusting, right? That was what we thought. We told the kids to wear/bring clothes that could get wet, stained and nasty. Most of them chose to abide by this warning. Some, however, did not.

The host family had prepared "Survivor" type relay games. The first was a puzzle, then digging through jello with their feet to find marbles...then the water balloons came out. At first, they played the actual game with the balloons. Then, all of their carnal instinct kicked in. They went pyscho on each other. The garden hose was brought into play. Everything so far had taken place in the front yard...did I mention that this particular family has a pool in their backyard?

The pool had not been cleaned since last summer, so over the winter it had developed a swampy, murky color. It was so green that you couldn't see through the water at all. Needless to say, it was nasty water. Of course, since a pool was nearby, and more so because it was so dirty (I think), the kids decided it was necessary to jump in, whether forcibly or voluntarily. So, every kid (but one--I think they will later seek revenge against him) was completely soaked to the skin. Remember I said that Sunday was supposed to be warm and sunny? Well, the wind had picked up a bit and it was a bit cooler than we expected it to be. I was completely dry and was chilly (not saying much for me, I know) so I couldn't imagine being soaked trough.

Fortuanately, the family also has an outdoor fire pit, so they were able to spend the rest of the devo huddled around the fire since they were too wet and gross to come inside and eat. We also brought them old blankets, hot cocoa, and coffee to keep warm. It was quite a scene. Thankfully Will and I got inside the house before it got too crazy!

So, remember, if you are told to bring old clothes to an event of some sort, heed the warning. You never know if you'll get dumped in nasty pool water!

If it were last year...

April 8th will forever be a date that sticks out in my mind. If it were last year, today would be my last day at work for the rest of the year. I thought I would share what I wrote in my journal on the 19th of last April. (The picture to the left was taken on April 4, 2005.)

"On Friday, April 8th, I had some really bad back pain. I'd had the same pain on Wednesday and Thursday, but by Friday I was getting concerned. I got to work and immediately started calling [my OB/GYN] Dr. Byerly's office. I didn't get through until after 9:00 AM. Of course, I already knew that Friday is his surgery day. I asked to speak to his nurse, Mitzi. She wasn't in yet and had a full day of patients ahead of her. I asked them to please have her call me. About 20-30 minutes went by and I decided I needed to just go in to see her, so I called back. They didn't know when I'd be able to get in and were going to call me back with a time. More time went by and I couldn't think of anything else but the pain. Finally I decided to call [my general practioner] Kim's office and see if they couldn't see me right away. They told me to come down as soon as I could. I called Byerly's office back and told them nevermind, I was going to see Kim. The receptionist told me that she had just talked to Mitzi and she had said to go to L&D and have them put me on the monitors. I asked if I should do that or go see Kim first. They said to go to Kim and see what she said. So, I went.

Of course, now I'm a bit freaked out because of the mention of the fetal monitor. On the way, I started to cry. I got there and as I'm telling the nurse about the pain, the tears start up again. I told them I was scared. They decide to go ahead and send me to L&D to be hooked up to the monitor. I got there, changed into the hospital gown (by now it's around 10:45, maybe 11:00). Kim called Scott for me to tell him what's going on. They hooked me up right away to the fetal monitor and also a pulse/blood oxygenation reader. Now, I'm really starting to panic. They check to see if I am dialated and she says it's about 1 1/2. They want to keep me on the monitor for at least an hour. Scott finally arrives and we sit and wait--me being in excruciating pain. The nurse is thinking that I am having contractions, even though I haven't noticed any. She checks my dialation again at 12:00 and she thinks I am up to a 2. They want to keep me on the monitor for another hour. I haven't eaten anything since 8:00 that morning and all I'd had was a piece of dry wheat toast and a granola bar. Dr. Byerly came in and said I'd probably be going to Odessa or Lubbock because I was having contractions and was dialated. They soon decided that was indeed the plan and began to hook me up to an IV and a catheter. That was quite painful. I was to ride to Odessa in an ambulance and Scott was going to follow. Scott went to get himself something to eat and pack a bag. They also gave me a shot of steriods for the baby's lungs in case he was going to be delivered because his lungs still had some developing to do. The reason they were sending me to Odessa Regional was because they have a neo-natal intensive care unit there and the high risk OB/GYN consults there as well.

Since I was only 33 weeks and 5 days along, it would still be considered a pre-term birth and [Scenic Mountain Med. Center] wouldn't be able to care for the baby as ORH would. When Scott got back, he realized he'd forgotten few things. I knew that the ambulance guys would get there soon after he left and they did. They transferred me to the gurney and down we went to the ambulance. The guys got me in the ambulance and situated and I told them I was concerned because my husband hadn't gotten back yet. One of the guys lent me his cell phone and right after I dialed the number, Scott poked his head around the door. We were off! I actually got sort of "comfortable" in the ambulance and dozed off a bit.

When we arrived at ORH, we went up to the L&D floor. They got me into a room and immediately did an ultrasound to check and see how the baby was doing. He looked just fine. The high-risk OB/GYN came in and said he didn't think I would deliver the baby anytime soon (they had checked my dialation again and said it was a 2 and 80% effaced). He thought I was having a kidney infection. They put me on antibiotics, fluids, and magnesium to slow down labor progression. His prediction was that I'd get out on Monday at the earliest--if everything went well. He also told me that from this moment on it was bedrest until the baby was born. He wanted me to stay pretty much horizontal 24/7. On Saturday night, Scott planned to go back to Big Spring so he could teach class on Sunday morning and pick Mom up at the airport in Midland on his way back (she was coming for my shower that was supposed to take place on April 10th). Harmony volunteered to stay Sat. night at the hospital with me. Kara and Carrie (who had also come down for my shower) visited me on Sat. night.

Based on the urine analysis they did on Saturday, they decided to do a renal (kidney) ultrasound on Sunday to see if kidney stones were visible; the UA had come back high in RBC's and WBC's. They also wanted to do another UA on Sun. morning. Around 2 pm, Mom and Scott arrived. Very soon after, the ultrasound tech came to look at my kidneys. He didn't see any visible stones. He also looked at the baby again and said he looked okay. When the doctor came in later, he said that even though the ultrasound didn't show any stones, he still thought that's what it had to be. He also began to wean me off of the magnesium and started me on an oral-based anti-labor drug (terbutaline). They upped my fluids to try and flush the stone out. He also said that I could be detatched from the catheter (yea--that thing was awful!!) and take a shower. He said that I would probably change rooms the next day, but for sure wouldn't go home until Tuesday.

On Monday, the doctor came back to do a bio-physical profile of the baby. While they still had the ultrasound machine on, he looked at my kidneys again to see if any stones were visible. Still, no stones could be seen and I hadn't passed any. He decided that I could go off all the IV medication and be transferred to a post-partum room [I had been in an L&D room this whole time]. I moved rooms pretty quickly. He wanted to keep me on terbutaline, but he did take me off of the antibiotics too. He wanted to do another glucose test to see about gestational diabetes because the level of my amniotic fluid was higher than normal.

Tuesday morning came early, they woke me up at 7:00 to draw blood and give me the nasty orange drink. The doctor came in around lunchtime and said I was free to go home but had to stay on the terbutaline. He also said that my glucose test came back 161 (normal is between 80 and 120) so I had to get the 3 hour test done the next day at Byerly's office. We got all packed up and got home around 3:00. I went to the doctor's office at 7:45 on Wednesday morning to begin the 3 hour glucose test. They drew my blood a total of 4 times--at 8, 9, 10 and 11:00. The waiting in between was the bad part. My results didn't come back until Thursday--hallelujah--we found out that I wasn't diabetic.

It was quite a long ordeal, and I'm just glad it's over and my little one is still safe and snug inside momma's belly for now."

I know this post was long; but it has been something that has been heavy on my mind lately. It doesn't seem that one year could have already passed since this ordeal took place. And yet, so much has happened. Will was born safely and without any complications. We have experienced so many blessings being his parents. He has grown into a very curious little boy! It has been a great year.

Finish the Sentence

I got this fun email today and thought I'd share!

1. My ex: is now happily married, as am I.

2. Maybe I should: do my work instead of writing on my blog!

3. I love: my family, friends, Diet Coke, Ben and Jerry's Half Baked ice cream, and rainy days.

4. I don't understand: how anyone could abuse their child. (April is National Child Abuse Month)

5. I lose: my keys and on occasion, my dogs.

6. People say I'm: shy. (??)

7. Love is: a many splendored thing.

8. Somewhere, someone is: giving birth.

9. I will always: believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and died for my sins.

10. Forever is: a long time.

11. I never want to: go through life without my faith in God.

12. I think the current President is: a man trying his best to govern and protect our country.

13. When I wake up in the morning: I want to go back to sleep.

14. My past was: filled with both mistakes and successes.

15. I get annoyed when: people don't use proper spelling, capitalization, grammar, punctuation, etc. in emails, blogs, and the like. (Ex: hey what up...idk im just chillin bc im bored. u wanna do somethin? well ill see u l8r...)

16. Parties are for: celebrating!

17. My dog is: OCD.

18. My cat is: dead.

19. Kisses are the best when: they are given sincerely.

20. Tomorrow: is Friday!!

21. I really want: a large Diet Coke from Sonic (easy ice). A breakfast burrito would be good too.

22. I have low tolerance for: people who just want to whine and complain all the time.

23. In public: I try to blend in and not look stupid.

24. Today: I am getting the first disc of season 2 of Smallville in the mail from Netflix!

25. My last dream was about: Clark Kent??? I have no idea.

26. I suck at: doing two things at once (ie: driving and talking).

27. I'm going to: get busy doing my work now!

It's Official

In case you don't read my other blog, I'll say it again here: I have officially resigned from my job for next year! I am going to be staying home with Will and I am so excited. I have always wanted to be a stay-at-home mom and now I'm getting the chance. I have a little less than two months until school is out "for-ever!" Woo hoo!

Also, can I just say how much I loathe the time changes? I like the summer one because we have longer daylight hours, but I really don't like switching the clock forward. It always takes me weeks to get used to the new time. Almost every morning this week I have woken up late, and I wake up late anyway, so now I'm waking up really late. Hopefully my body will adjust soon! Poor Will's clock is totally messed up, too. Oh well, we'll survive.

Crazy Day

Actually, I should say "crazy days"...I am totally worn out! This weekend I hostessed a shower in Lubbock (2 hours away from my house) for my friend Carrie.

The craziness started yesterday when both my friend Kara and I were late getting to Lubbock. We were supposed to meet there and get the hostess gift together (we gave the mom-to-be a big basket full of baby necessities) and then meet Carrie for dinner. One of the items we needed was the actual basket in which to put all the goodies. We didn't get done shopping for the goodies until almost 8:00 pm and we needed to get the basket from Hobby Lobby. Hobby Lobby closes at 8:00 pm and isn't open on Sundays! So I drove like a mad woman (not much different than how I normally drive) over to Hobby Lobby to get the basket. I ran up to the door and the little old man manager said, "Sorry, m'am, we're closed." I put on my most pitiful looking face and said, "Please, please, please, let me in there! I just need to get one thing!" He looked like he felt bad for me, so I milked it a little more. I pooched out my lower lip. "What do you need?" he said. "A big basket," I replied. "How long will it take you?" he asked. "5 minutes! 5 minutes, I promise!" He let me in! I ran to get a basket. They did not have the type of basket I was looking for. So I grabbed the closest thing to what I wanted and proceeded to stand in the checkout line for about 10 minutes. I think they train their cashiers to be slow.

So, I met the girls at Chili's for dinner. By the time we got seated it was about 8:25. We finally got our drinks at 8:35 and we sat there for about 10 or 15 more minutes without a server coming by to get our order. Mind you, we had a 8 month pregnant woman and two very tired little children with us. Finally the server came by and said we had "fallen through the cracks" and apologized about a hundred times while taking our order. The manager came by and told us that we would get half-off on our ticket and our appetizer for free! Woo hoo! Our bill was about $12.00. Sweet action.

Now for the real craziness. Last night, Kara and I both set the alarms on our phones to go off at 7:00/7:30, thinking the time would switch over during the night. Neither of our phones switched with the time change! So we woke up an hour later than we meant to. We still had to get ourselves ready, her kids ready, pack up our stuff, and check out of the hotel. We were trying to get to church which started at 9:30.

We got to the church building at about 9:50; late, yes, but still there. On the outside of the building, it has three start times for worship: 8:15, 10:45, and 11:30. Not 9:30. The phone book we had checked twice the night before had it wrong! Grr! So we decided to go to McDonalds to get some breakfast before the 10:45 service. On the way to McDonalds, Kara's daughter threw up the juice she'd had earlier that morning. So, while Kara took her daughter to Walmart to get her some new clothes, her son and I went to McDonalds to eat breakfast.

Pretty much our whole day went like this...crazy!! I could tell you lots more, but I'll stop here. I'm just glad the shower went over well...Carrie got lots of great clothes and other items. We had a good time with her and some other friends from college. This was also my first night without Will since he has been born, so it was sort of a milestone for us. He had a good time with his dad, so it all worked out really well. Yea!