dammit...

i bit the bullet on Mob Wars...

some F'er knocked me off! asswipe!

omg...

dummy me JUST realized... 10 days and I'll be in labor and maybe
holding Joshua! gahhhhhhhhh!!!!

stupid TV is giving me weird cravings... I now want a spicy chicken
sandwich & fries from Wendy's....

sent from my iPhone ;)

ok.. so now i feel

like a complete and total bitch...

yes, it's 336am... im awake ... woke up to talking from my neighbor... im tired, the talking continues for a good 5-10 minutes - its NOT quiet... i really need to sleep... im exhausted and the benadryl is not blocking my ears. i call teh nurse. she comes in (with the scale, sausage fingers are back - up almost 2 lbs overnight)...

SHE was in teh otehr room admitting the patient, apologizes, says they'll try to be as quiet as possible... i ask if the lady is ok... and kind of stop myself because
1- they cant really talk about it and
2- she wouldnt be admitted if everythign was "OK"... (duh)..

on the way out the door the nurse says lets just put it this way, there will be a rose on the door soon. ??? - im confused and ask for clarification .. "fetal demise, she's only 11 weeks though"..

it doesnt matter if you are 11 weeks or 20 weeks... anytime it is hard (i've miscarried at 7-8 weeks and its horrible...)

how incredibly sad.. she's in my thoughts...

i am SUCH the slacker...

i owe several people emails and i wanted to say im sorry here .. i've been L-A-Z-Y when it comes to emails cause its a pain in the ass to type sideways ... i actually have a bruise on my arm from where the table hits it when i type...

i'll try to be better soon... i know, i suck.

on the hospital front, all is ok ... i was up .2 lbs this morning but i think im just not drinking enough ... yesterrday i think i only had maybe 32-40 oz of liquids.. (and the piece of chocolate cake didnt help)... BP is fine if i continue to lay on my side..

i did just find out some ick news... the OB that i left for my current OB is on call on the 30th so she will more than likely be delivering Joshua... there was nothign WRONG with her, per se, she just has no personality what so ever... gahhhh!!

oh well, she's going to hand me my baby boy so i guess there's SOME good to her... ;)

my spahhhh room 1/2

here is my room at the SPAHHHHH ...

ok, the formatting is all wonky, but you're smart ... and will be able to figure it out. ;)

'front door' - curtain for privacy - closed facing my bed. it closes all the way, but i leave it partially open so the nurses wont close it "wrong" (leaving it open facing my bed)



ummm, the bathroom ... kinda tiny...



my 'view' most of the day - facing the door the flowers from my parents and Joshua's first "bed"


thrilling, huh??

my spahhhh room 2/2

ummm, my bed...


baby / BP monitor and a chair (with my body pillow i use at night)


the couch for DH and my view of the parking lot


'drink station', sink and make up bag (HA!)


TV area & my dresser

induction info,,

IF my BP continues to cooperate, my OB said they will induce me when I
am 38 weeks which will be January 30th. BUT that does not necessarily
mean he will be here that Friday. they will more than likely start the
process on Thursday the 29th then start the 'good drugs' on Friday to
get me into labor... she said i could labor all day on the 30th and
deliver on the 31st or if its a quick labor (fingers crossed) it could
be the 30th..

sooo...im just going to chill out here until either:
- i go into labor on my own (entirely possible and i'm far enough along
to where they will not stop it)
- if my BP spikes and continues to stay up (hopefully not) and they
induce me early
- January 30th when they induce me...

pregnancy stuff (in other words, i cant think of a title)

things here are boring but i am finding myself less and less on the internet... it really IS difficult to type while i am laying down... typos and all ... plus its just a pain in the ass.

bp this morning was 115/56 or so ... i lost a bit more weight but nothing dramatic.. they keep changing scales on me, so who knows... i'm just gunna call 7 pounds since Friday... its ALL water though.. my fingers really do look like fingers and i think i'd probably be able to put my rings on... but will leave them at home, one less thing to worry about.

i received a visit from a mom from the Mom's club i belong to... FANTASTIC group... they have taken DD pretty much every day this week so DH can get some work done... even just a couple hours helps out so much ... but anyway, she is literally about to pop - due in less than 2 weeks, this is her 3rd so she's HUGE .. plus she says she has huge babies (think 9+ lbs!!!) yikes! she knows i was interested in cloth diapers so she brought me a Target bag FULL of them! like i said - fabulous group!!

i received a surprise ultrasound today ... dr. g - well, let's just say he has the personality of a gnat normally... i've seen him about 4 times before today and he's just different... well today he was really OUT there... i guess the field trip to the hospital made him different... he was playing me songs off of his iPhone and everything while the tech was looking at stuff... he says there's no reason what so ever to deliver Joshua right now... (unless of course BP gets out of hand - but i'm trying to be a good girl)... trying *as i sit up typing this* - eyeroll..

good news is - Joshua is 5lbs 4oz give or take a little.. and i heard it from my favorite NICU nurse that it's a good weight, so yay!

ok, i've been sitting for about 7 minutes, im going to lie down and watch something then take a lovely Benadryl (my new BFF) and hopefully sleep thru the night. my OB is on call here tomorrow so that'll be nice (she's in a practice with about 10 other docs and they rotate)...

oh look - its an update!

bed rest is working...

since Friday, i've lost 7 pounds of 'water weight'... im less swell ;)

my BP is stable, early this morning, it was 115/58 ...

soooo, this afternoon, i decided my hips just hurt ... really hurt... i decided to sit up just a bit... i was still kinda on my side, but sitting up... nurse came in and we talked about maybe eventually being able to 'walk the hall', but not yet... she said what i was doing should be fine, i asked her if she wanted me to lie down to take my pressure, she said might as well see what sitting up does to you... 155/90!! dammit!! she put my bed down, i laid on my side for no longer than 5 minutes and my pressure dropped to about 140/60ish...

soooooooooo.... my poor hips will have to just take the abuse until Joshua is born... it's a small sacrifice to keep my little guy in my tummy a bit longer. the nurse told me im almost 36 weeks and more than likely he'd be fine especially with the steroid shots i received for his lungs, but id REALLY rather deliver at 37 or later... 37 is considered full term, we'll see...

so thats the story .. had yet another FABULOUS dinner tonight... DH & DD are on their way with a proper dinner ...

another failed dinner

chicken & dumplings.... I call it 'slop'... even the beans were
horrible..

holy crap...

LOTS of food!!!

more mystery meat..?

and those don't look anything like green beans....

wow....

im losing weight ...

im down 3 pounds in a couple days... its NOT cause im not eating crap (thank you DH for the 18 pound bag of M&Ms)... the swelling is going down so im losing the extra fluid... yay....

why???

ok ... i woke up about 530... didnt sleep as well as night before, but i still slept "OK"...

i know they have to weigh me and i have to give a lovely 'sample'... gave my sample - i'm getting pretty good at that ... i can normally even do it without going all over my hand now - even at 530 in the morning...

i called the nurse at 535 - 'im up for a minute, you wanna come weigh me'? secretary said she'd send her "right in"... its now 557.... I WANNA GO BACK TO BED!! but you know, as soon as i lay my big butt on the bed she'll stroll in ...

grrrrrrrrrrrrr

MUCH better

oh... and today in particular sucks...

because today was the Disney Marathon... Rick and I were supposed to be running it today... **sigh**

update...

doc came and saw me this morning (730 - ugh!!) and said all looks well. i will be in here til i deliver (unless of course i get a f'ed up doc who says i am discharged..)

he said delivery would probably be next week - Sunday starts this week, so NEXT sunday's week... i reminded him im not due til 13February and he said it may be later depending on how my pressures are... ideally, i'd like to wait til the last week of January... ideally....

here - in the hospital on bed REST - vs just IN bed at home... my pressures look great... in fact, my last one was about 130/50or60... so really quite good...

soooo im sitting / laying here thinking about what i want to do ... i have a loud neighbor and doesnt help much with the rest, but hopefully she'll shush soon...

i have a few movies on my laptop and 24 does start tonight. i hope its better than the past few seasons...

thanks everyone for their thoughts & prayers ... MUCH appreciated...

UGH!!!

admitted to the 'spa'

yup, I've been admitted until I deliver.. 2-3 weeks probably.

THANK GOD for health insurance!!!!

sent from my iPhone ;)

ok, I just need to create a 'template' email

off to labor & delivery again...
148/94ish... yay... ok, not

Christine
sent from my iPhone ;)

cleaning my old hard drive

... i found my work out schedule for January 2007... HOLY SHIT!

i was literally working my ass off. M-W-F-Sat 2 sessions... one cardio and on M/W/S a class in the afternoon... Friday i just did 2 sets of cardio. T/Th i had an hour long training session and always did 30 mins of cardio beforehand. Sunday was my 'lazy' day - didnt do anything... lazy lazy girl....

after Joshua comes, i'm seriously thinking about doing this for a month or so (wont be able to continue it too long with a newborn) so my commitment to myself is 3-5 times a week. work.my.ass.off...

WHAT THE F IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE???!!!!

ok, ok, ok... i admit, FARRRRRR from perfect...

but in the past DAY i've read two very disturbing posts on LBT...

first was "i had surgery 2 days ago, but i ate a burger today"
second was regarding portion control "i just ate a double-double cheeseburger from in-and-out"

WHAT.THE.FUCK people??????? did you NOT have weight loss surgery?

**shaking head**

fucking idiots!

REALLY PEOPLE.....

i think i can gnaw a freaking arm off!!!!

poor DH .. how's he going to work with only 1 arm?? ;)

have i told you lately...

that i'm FING HUNGRY????!!!

seriously...

breakfast - HUGE bowl of cocoa crispies
lunch 11:00 - almost 2 whole chicken quesadillas from Chipotle
snack 2:30? - WANTED a wendy's spicy crispy chicken sandwich but settled for a bux chai tea
dinner 5:00ish - no fewer than 7-8 chinese dumplings (potstickers) DH cooked
snack 1 7ish - handful of Chicken in a Biscuit
snack 2 9ish? - 2 cupcake cookies (see a post below)
oops - forgot snack 3 1030ish - 1 piece of Kraft Deli Select Swiss Cheese (the only cheese i will eat right now...) YUMMIE!!!!!!!!!!

and now its after midnight and i freaking want a rotisserie chicken ... i honestly think i could eat the WHOLE thing...

the only good news of the day ... i didnt gain one freaking pound since new year's eve... considering i've been pretty much eating what i want AND on bed rest for what - 5 days... not bad...

going home

sent from my iPhone ;)

back to labor & delivery

being monitored... BP was high at office, ok here... we'll see....

sent from my iPhone ;)

yup, i'm home

you'd think that being on bed rest and bored stupid i'd be posting all.the.freaking.time, but im just not ... im not keeping up with my blog list either .. so sorry if i havent made any comments on your blogs...


what have i been doing? nothing that requires thought ... playing Sims2, reading (Twilight series) and moping around...

im doing OK i think. i go in for an appointment tomorrow. hopefully my BP will cooperate and they'll let me stay at home. but it is stressful here! between to whiny obnoxious dogs and my lovely DD who has to have her way no matter what - even if "mama's sick"... i think i'd still rather be home in a comfy bed ... ya know?

so DH's boss is amazing... DH called him Sunday and he didnt even have to ask - his boss just said "work from home, done" ... DH feels like since he is the manager for a good sized group, he HAS to go in a couple times a week for a few hours - make an appearance - which i totally understand... soooo, my Mom's club is helping out SOO much. i cannot believe the overwhelming support that i have been offered!!! they are taking DD to playdates, to restaurants so she can play in the playground (McD's, Chick Fil A, etc...) and they are bringing food...

which is a good thing cause last night's dinner ... ummm, yeah, not so much... and it was EASY ... wait til tonight's Chicken Fajitas ... i think im going to smell onions (burned) in the house for days.. oh well, DH really IS trying ... and he's seeing how difficult it is home with DD sometimes..

im tierd of being in bed... really tired of it ... i have NO CLUE but im hungry 24/7 (bored maybe??)... the one good thing is, i can feel Joshua moving A LOT more now than i could when i was up and about ... LOVE IT!!

so, i will try to update regularly... i am going to pack a bag for the hospital just in case they admit me tomorrow... i will bring my laptop and supposedly the rooms have free wi-fi .. if not, there's always Sims2 ... yup, imageek!! ;)

thanks so much for your thoughts... i REALLY do appreciate them!!!

99%

going home tomorrow... tests look good.

Christine
sent from my iPhone ;)

update on meeeee...

bp looks great when I'm on my sides, I'm 'allowed' to get up, use the
washroom, sit up straight (not on sides) about 20 min every few hours
(think eating, etc..)

I'm pretty bored... I am NOT the sit and do noting type and it's
driving me bonkers!! plus, I really miss DH & DD - a lot!!!

last night pretty much sucked... went to 'bed' about midnight, tossed
& turned until about 230, 4am, nurse comes in to take BP... THAT I
was ready for, what I wasn't expecting was to have to get out of bed
and on the fing scale..!! W.T.F..???!!! at 4am!! grrrrr... so I'm
up til about 6, fall asleep.. RIGHT AT 7am, blood draw... WTF
people... I'm here supposed to be RESTING... 8am food - horrid !! -
then BP, okokok, I'm up!!!

DH/DD visit for a bit, bring me a chai latte & bfast sandwich... all
is right with the world except I'm a tired & cranky bitch and DD just
ate so she has SOOOO much energy to burn... *jump jump jump*...

after lunch, I took a nap and slept longer than I had all night... it
was wonderful!!! :)

sooo... here I am, should be released tomorrow.. :)

sent from my iPhone ;)

so I've been admitted

which I guess is better than COMMITTED, but ehh.. yeah, I'm TRYING to
be funny...

blood pressure all day has been quite high.... so at 4, I called my
doc and the nurse said go to labor & delivery NOW... *sigh* DH is
still at work, etc... I get him home, pack - just in case - and load
up iPhone with movies... all of which I've probably seen 10+ times...

off to L&D triage .. it's FULL!! wait a little bit... they see me,
lay on left side, monitor.. BP does go down, lab results look
good... woooo hooo .. I'm going home... until nurse talks with
doctor... I 'get' to stay for the weekend... just found out maybe
more.... *sigh*... if I wanted a break from DD, all I had to do was
ask DH ... ;)

soooo that's the story so far....

sent from my iPhone ;)

ever had one of these??!

if not, don't start... VERY addictive!
http://lofthousecookies.com/products/cookies/frosted.html

hey - WT!!

HELLOOOOOOOO

looks like another early delivery

30 weeks pregnant - due to high blood pressure... scary...

i've been pretty good all day... only times i got up were to take a bath (not even a shower - i sat while bathing)... and i admit, i did stand for 5-7 minutes to put the roast in the oven... otherwise, i've been on my ass all.day.long.... driving me freaking CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!!!

**edited**
she did have her baby, 3lbs 9oz, 16 inches. lungs NOT mature so she is intubated ..

thoughts go out to them.

reflections of 2008

let's see if i can remember ... yikes!

January - plain and simple ... SUCKED... major issues/problems but they were worked out... still creep up every once in awhile, but nothing horrible

February - day after v-day found out i was pregnant (SURPRISE!!!), 2 days later i miscarried. plastic surgery on the 29th. changed.my.life....

March - recovering from my tuck, back to work, it sucked as much as ever. started really training for my 15K.

April - training training training ... LOL, that's all i can remember. had a couple 9 mile runs here.. gah!

May - DISNEY!!! completed my 15K, great experience. fabulous time at Disney with my family, DD had an absolute blast at all the character meals...

peed on a stick... very surprisingly, 2 lines appeared!

June - peed on more sticks, lines became darker and more pronounced.. flew to Toronto right before my birthday, ran a 5K, horrible morning sickness before/during/after the race... that was pretty much the last time i REALLY worked out during my pregnancy.

had first ultrasound (only one babe in there!) and he looks great. i've always called him a 'he', just intuition i guess...? my exhaustion and nausea continued..

told family & friends of pregnancy

July - not much going on, nausea continues. hating work even more. towards the end of july - pants stop fitting... nausea starts to subside, but massive headaches start coming daily.

have first ultrasound where he looks like a little BABY (not a speck on the screen)... so sweet!!!

August - MAJOR MAJOR issues with headaches, work sucks beyond belief. i cant stand the job nor the people... beg DH to let me quit. he, surprisingly, says OK.

September - little do my co-workers know that my last day of work will be the 15th. headaches are still there, but not every minute of every day. SEPTEMBER 15, 2008 - i retire heh. from American Airlines. i leave not telling one person goodbye (i think) cause everyone of the bitches are just that - bitches... yup, you - Treasure, Susan - and for god's sake get some clothes that MATCH, Pearla (not so much - not outwardly anyway), Sandy, Lin and Lynda - initially didnt think so but since i havent heard from her at all since i left - i know she was just a fake ass bitch as well... and most of all Sherri my 'boss' ... more like dictator than anything ... nowhere near a 'mentor' or anything...

ahem .. ok guess i needed to get that off my chest...

started staying home with DD. fun. :) challenging!!!

October - November - where the hell did the time go? headaches stopped about 17-18 weeks into pregnacy, DD was a princess for Halloween... all going well... :)

found out he really is a 'he' ... worked on names - finally decided on Joshua Kellan.

December - time is flying by. towards the end, it feels like my first trimester all over again. nausea, EXHAUSTION.... on new years eve i was informed my blood pressure is HIGH (140/101) and will be on bedrest for a few days. hopefully that will work.

January & beyond 2009 - hoping i will have a healthy family of 4 (yes, we are stopping at 2 kids). i want to start running again to drop the baby weight and the rest of my excess.

i wish everyone a happy and healthy 2009.

ok I'm scared now...

my blood pressure (3 different times) was about 140/101... not good.

I have another appt Monday.. hopefully this was just a fluke of
sorts.... hopefully.

I'm on modified bed rest til then... "don't do anything"... ummm ok.

sent from my iPhone ;)

more thoughts please...

2 more babies born 12/29...

mom was 29weeks 3days with twins. tests yesterday showed absent cord blood flow to one of the twins and one was very growth restricted

twin a - 3lb 1oz
twin b - 1lb 13oz

mom delivered via c-section, please keep them in your thoughts.

Things you may not know about me ....

(thanks She Smiles)
yes, it's taken me this long to work on this ...

- you can count the number of people i've slept with on one hand ... being fat and self-conscious ... not a good thing for sex.

- i thought i've been in love with 3 people

- in actuality, i've only TRULY been in love with 2 - one of them my DH and one my first...

- i've betrayed and i've been betrayed, both sides suck.

- i met my DH on the internet in 1996

- we met IRL for the first time February 21, 1998 and were married February 25, 1998.

- i really dont have a favorite color

- i love to read but rarely 'find' the time

- i LOVE to eat... im a huge sweet eater and volume eater...

- the real reason i run and work my ass off is so i can eat more.

- i tend to lose my temper and fly off the handle... i tend to scream and shout and then feel horrible.

- i jump to conclusions without rationally thinking - well i guess that would be the definition of jumping to conclusions **eyeroll**

- i am becoming more and more computer illiterate... even simple things that i could once do (registry edits, etc...) escape me...

- i cannot STAND bell peppers - green/red/yellow whatever ... they literally make me gag

- i've met Tori Amos back stage twice and bawled thru both experiences

- i have a plan to lose the weight after DS is born but am petrified that i wont follow it and will end up huge again.

- DH and i adopted DD from China in February 2005

- im concerned that somehow i will love DS more than DD because he's "mine"... irrational i know, but it still scares the crap out of me

OMG ... how can i forget this one???
- i LOVE sex with DH - - right now cannot.get.enough....

ok, some things are just WRONG...

DH took DD skating yesterday ... she had an absolute blast. as they were taking a short break, we saw this one woman (probably about 24-25ish) ... she weighed no less than 300 pounds... i cannot even begin to describe what this woman was wearing ... it was kinda like a tank top with spaghetti straps (the clear ones)... she had ROLLLLS hanging out of this top... and the 'muffin top' was all the way around and you could see it in all it's glory...

now now ... before you think im a complete hypocrite, i'm not... i was that big - bigger even - but i would not be caught dead in that shirt or anything close to it. i did take a picture of her at a book store, but decided against posting it... my luck, she'd belong to LBT or something... **eyeroll**

so the moral of the story is ... hell, i dunno ... dont wear white trash clothing if you are fucking huge. (ok, dont wear white trash clothing at all - especially if you are huge)...

even better than the ring i think ...

another present i received from my DH was a book ...

"Quotable Runner"....

i was thinking tonight ... damn, this man has so much faith in me, i think he has more in me than i do myself... he KNOWS i can start running again and this was his way of telling me that he will support me... even if it means me getting up at (ugh) 4am again...

words cannot describe how much i appreciate that.

thanks, Rick... ily

people are just fuct up...

this is so sad and tragic.

COVINA, Calif. – Stinging from an acrimonious divorce, a man plotting revenge against his ex-wife dressed up like Santa, went to his former in-laws' Christmas Eve party and slaughtered at least six people before killing himself hours later.

Three people were listed as missing after Bruce Pardo's rampage — his ex-wife and her parents — and it was feared their remains were among the ashes of the home, which Pardo set ablaze using a bizarre homemade device that sprayed flammable liquid.

Pardo, 45, had no criminal record and no history of violence, according to police, but he was angry following last week's settlement of his divorce after a marriage that lasted barely a year.

"It was not an amicable divorce," police Lt. Pat Buchanan said.

The massacre began when an 8-year-old girl answered Pardo's knock at the door. Pardo, carrying what appeared to be a large present, pulled out a handgun and shot her in the face, then began shooting indiscriminately as about 25 partygoers tried to flee, police said.

A 16-year-old girl was shot in the back, and a 20-year-old woman broke her ankle when she escaped by jumping from a second-story window. Those two, and the 8-year-old, remained hospitalized Christmas Day.

The gift-wrapped box Pardo was carrying actually contained a pressurized homemade device he used to spray a liquid that quickly sent the house up in flames, police said.

When the fire was extinguished early Thursday, officers found three charred bodies in the living room area.

"They were met with a scene that was just indescribable," police Chief Kim Raney said. Investigators found three more bodies amid the ashes later in the day.

None of the dead or missing have been identified.

Following the shootings, Pardo quickly got out of the Santa suit and drove off, witnesses told police. He went to his brother's home about 25 miles away in the Sylmar area of Los Angeles. No one was home, so Pardo let himself in, police said.

Police were called to the home early Thursday, and officers found Pardo dead of a single bullet to the head.

so yeah... bah humbug...

I'm ready for this flipping tree to go down.. between the 2 dogs
dragging it around in circles and DD touching it, it's gotta come down
tomorrow... FED UP with it...

overall, Christmas was pretty nice... I was overwelmed at my
present... I love jewelry and I'm acquiring a taste for platinum
now.. oh dear... $$

in the middle of opening presents, my DD said 'I wanna go see grand
pappa' (in St Louis)... that made me really tear up... sucks...
plus, really... just getting a check for Christmas, not so much
fun... and we missed out on stockings, etc... my sister (the oldest
but younger than I am-if that makes sense)... got engaged... so yay...

one good thing... we don't have a 10+ hour drive home tomorrow...

sent from my iPhone ;)

2 quotes from Christmas morning...

both from DD:

upon opening her new princess wallet:
'hey, there's no money in here'...

upon viewing her new (anatomically correct boy) doll seeing his
"package":
'whooops'

LOL

sent from my iPhone ;)

Christmas

.... a wrapper for my sausage fingers..

Merry Christmas!

i hope you all have a great Christmas!

nosy nosy nosy....

12/21/2008 19:37 4.248.43.219 Opera


HI!

and another thing...

DH's mom asked him if I have gained any weight... too bad he didn't
give the 'good' answer 'a little, not much'. instead he said 'I
dunno, I don't ask that..' SIGH...

me, I would have said none of yer f'ing business!! nosy!! grrr

sent from my iPhone ;)

oh joys...

just found out my in-laws are visiting
after Joshua is born... I'm SOOOO excited! NOT!

sent from my iPhone ;)

DH's bday..

out for steak... ate little less than half the steak... SOO good!!

i am sorry to say...

after a piece of cheese about 20 minutes ago...

I'M STILL FUCKING HUNGRY!!!!!!!!

today...

today's my DH's birthday ... i wonder if either his parents or mine will call to wish him a happy birthday? **eyeroll**

thoughts please....

our first February baby has been delivered today at 12:30 Central.

she was 32 weeks pregnant today.. please keep Michelle & Naina &
family in your thoughts....

sent from my iPhone ;)

yup... preggo hormones in full swing...

http://www.sunnewspapers.net/articles/tsnews.aspx?ArticleID=428476&pubdate=12/18/2008

Dear Santa

Special delivery surprises soldier’s son

PORT CHARLOTTE — When Tina Wood took her children to visit Santa at the Port Charlotte Town Center mall in November, she never thought the experience would bring her to tears.

After asking for the games Hungry Hungry Hippos and Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed, 3-year-old Aidan asked for something that shocked everyone within earshot.

“He got really close to Santa, wrapped his arms around his neck, and said, ‘Santa, I have been a good boy and I help Mommy with my little sister and I clean up after myself,’” explained 30-year-old Tina. “Then he said, ‘Santa, can you please bring Daddy home from Iraq?’”

Since September, 27-year-old Sgt. Chris Wood has been serving overseas in special operations in the U.S. Army. Because Aidan rarely speaks about his father’s deployment, she was shocked.

“When he said it, it made me really realize how much this little boy is missing his dad,” Tina said. “I know he hurts, and he shows it in his own way, but he actually took the time to plan out what he was going to say to Santa.”

Tina took his wish as a sign that a Christmas miracle was in the works.

After all, only one week before the November mall trip, Chris received word he may be able to go home for the holidays.

“It was perfect timing,” Tina said.

Almost immediately, the mother of two went to work planning her son’s Christmas miracle, which came true Wednesday morning.

In front of dozens of clapping onlookers, flashing cameras and rolling camcorders, Chris hugged his little boy for the first time in several months.

Grandparents MaryAnn and Dave Mills escorted Aidan and his 3-month-old sister, Mazzy, to the mall, under the pretenses that Santa had called grandma that morning and had a special pre-Christmas present waiting for the little boy.

Expecting toys, Aidan walked to Santa’s photo line with wide, twinkling blue eyes and a smile that could be seen across the corridor. Only a few feet away, his father was hiding behind a black curtain in a FotoXpressions booth.

After waiting for his turn in line, Aidan climbed up on Santa’s lap.

“Do you remember what you asked me to get you for Christmas?” asked Santa, also known as Paul Gagnon.

“Hungry Hungry Hippos!” exclaimed Aidan, a response that received a lot of laughs from onlookers.

“What else?” Santa pried.

After another guess, Aidan grew quiet and finally said, “My daddy.”

“That’s it,” said Santa, signaling Chris. “And here he comes.”

Without delay, Chris emerged from his hiding place, jumped the fence separating him from his son and embraced Aidan.

As the crowd erupted into applause and tears, Chris turned to Santa and said, “Thank you. This was a really nice present.”

But the tears were soon replaced with laughter as Aidan exclaimed, “I still want the games.”

Looking back on the journey that got the family to this place, Tina simply smiled.

“This is truly a Christmas miracle, but more than that, it’s a story that gives people hope and what the true meaning of Christmas really is.”

E-mail: pstaik@sun-herald.com

By PAMELA STAIK

Staff Writer

FUCK FUCK FUCK!!

TEN fucking pounds in two weeks.. how is that even POSSIBLE!!???

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my thoughts on the Biggest Loser finale ...

obviously dont read if you havent watched...

Heba - she looked really good... too bad her actions on the show caused America to vote Ed into the final 3. at the ranch she did "OK"... i think she only lost about 8 pounds more than all the other females (Michelle) and easily started weighing 30+ pounds more than her... so yeah, she did well at the ranch, but should have done a lot better... hopefully, when Heba and Ed do have a child, she will realize what a bitch she was and have changed her ways... yes, it was a reality show, but the producers can only film the way you actually were...

Ed - did better than i thought he would. he looked good.

vicky - complete and utter bitch and she got what she deserved - last place and absolutely nothing. hopefully her 15 minutes are up, but if they arent, i hope someone calls her out on the way she acted on the show. what a disgrace. hopefully her kids see reruns when they get older and question her actions.

michelle - holy crap she looked so amazing. she won and didnt have to "play the game" like others did. not to the extreme that others did... Renee looked very very good as well...

i think it all comes back to my good friend Karma ... it will kick you in the ass every time...

next season looks ... interesting. i just wish they'd go back to individuals... nix the 'teams'...

is it wrong for me..

to be ticked at DH?? I was really sick last week... sinus infection,
a cold, etc... he didn't do ANYTHING to properly take care of
himself ... no extra vitamin C, nothing... now HE is sick... he
best not get me suck again...

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the weather outside

is frightful... freezing rain, etc...

my perinatologist didn't make it to the appt.. the ultrasound tech
talked to him and he said growth looks good (3 lbs 9 oz) and to come
back in6 weeks... I'll be REALLY preggers then!!! (almost 38 weeks!)

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sigh... men!!

they really are TOTALLY clueless, aren't they??

DH's iPhone case tore.... he sheepishly asks me 'so can I get a new
case'? (I do the bills)... I said no (ummmm HELLO, your birthday is
THIS Sunday & I needed more ideas)... he's now pouting.. big baby.
I should wait and give it to him for Christmas!! yup, I'm 'mean'...

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ok, this is the coolest thing...

DD was talking to my belly just telling him hi and about her day...
he starts moving around and the more she talked, the more he moved...
über cool!!!

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why???

ok so it's cold here.. below freezing... I went to starbucks to warm
up.. drive thru cause DD in car..

speaker:
hhhhhhhiiiiiiiiiiii mmmmmmmyyyyyyyy nnnnnnnaaaaaammmmmmmeee
iiiiiisssss mmmmmmitttttcccchhhhh ccccccaaaaaannnnnnn iiiiiiiiii
innnnnnntrrrrrrredsssttt yoouuuuu innnnnnnnn.......

nope, not stuttering, just drawwwwwwwwn ouuuuttttttt
I finally interrupted him.. WTF mitch?? it's COLD!!!!

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but what would the neighbors say??

ok, so DD has hit the fuckinghorrible fives... today being the penultimate... we went to DH's race, all was ... ehh... ok... she started getting antsy about 10:15 ... right about when he was going to cross the finish line... i told her to 'suck it up', dad was running 13.1 miles and we could wait outside (it had warmed up - i wouldnt make her wait out in the cold for 20 minutes...) she got cranky and fussy...

well, DH crossed the finish line (YAY!!!) and we went back to the hotel... she started talking back to me - telling me no, "IM NOT GOING TO DO THAT MAMMA", etc.... we told my parents goodbye (another YAY!!) and went up to our hotel room for a time out. 'normal' time outs last 5 minutes - this one lasted for well over an hour... an hour of her screaming at the top of her lungs... we were ALLLL the way at the end of the hall and my DH heard her at the elevator.. she was literally screaming for absolutely no.reason.whatsoever.... NO REASON... she didnt want to go to time out... she finally chose the alternative to timeout and we checked out of the hotel and went to lunch...

apparently my very DD has a 'thing' for hotels... as in she wants to live in one... "I wanna go back to the hotel" no fewer than 200 times today... seriously...

we get home... time for a nap... she didnt want to and started back talking - again... "NO... I'M NOT GOING TO DO THAT".. bullshit again... time out... "NO!!! BLAH BLAH BLAH"... this time it only lasted about 1/2 an hour, but damn the child has lungs...

getting ready to go eat dinner ... (yes, we ate out 2 meals in a row **gasp**) she goes in our room (not allowed unless invited), i ask her to leave, NO!! BLAH BLAH BLAH AGAIN... dh puts her in time out (yup, again).... guess what - - another fit! lasting 10-15 mins, im fed up, DH is fed up and hungry... alternative to time out, done... she is still screaming i tell her to go outside... she's whiny-crying... we are in the driveway, i ask if she's finished... "NO"... ok, well you can just stay out here and cry and show everyone what a baby you are.... so she does ... and she screams ... blood curdling screams... im no where near her .... screaming for no reason... our neighbor comes out and looks at her ... i tell him that she's acting like a baby and to have a good look (yeah, i'm evil sometimes).... at that point i notice that its not just a neighbor - it's a NEW neighbor just moving in ... oh dear... **eyeroll**

so at dinner entering the restaurant, she's still crying... i have to take her to the car and i start buckling her in her carseat. "are we going back to the hotel??" - we've been ignoring that question since about 4pm... i say no, she starts to cry - again... i tell her if she keeps crying she can stay in the car while DH eats and i will stand outside of the car, she'll be in there all alone... those apparently are the magic words... she stops and says she is finished... i asked if she was sure cause it's a nice night and i can use the fresh air.... "YES"... so we went back to the restaurant, she's OK ... not great, but OK... she starts asking about that fucking hotel again i say no, she starts to cry, i just get the keys out and silence... hmmm.... what the hell am i going to do when it starts getting cold.?????

does this make me a 'prude'?

my parents are in town... my dad cussed in front of DD and I hate
it... cringe every time... 'jackass', 'asshole', you name it..
including *blush* racial slurs... and I'm such a chickenshit I don't
say anything...

yes, I can cuss like a sailor but not in front of DD

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ok I REALLY

cannot stand my fing nephew... the f'er just told my DD that Santa
isn't real..

F'ER!!!!!

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ehh... not impressed..

what ICU means...

ICU = I see you...

i have a stalker of sorts on my blog... she claims that she is trying her darndest to 'ignore' me on LBT, yet she stalks my blog hoping i'll post about her...

thanks for the concern though... :)

icu ....

12/4/2008 11:38 4.248.62.198

yay!! shopping spree!!

went to target and spent wayyyyy too much money, but it's all cute and we need it, right?

i need to stop though and figure what else we will need (clothes/bedding wise)... i know we'll need more, but not sure what.

shopping spree - part 1

shopping spree - part 2

shopping spree - part 3

**shaking head**

people say they want the band SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO bad, yet right after they get it, they fuck up... how pathetic is that?

granted yes, i ate things i shouldnt have, but i did NOT cheat on my pre/post op diet....

going on a trip..

woo hoo... home for the holidays..
i.cant.wait....

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finally remembered the title

you cant find they lyrics if you cant remember the title of the song.... preggo brain at it again.

Oh, why you look so sad?
Tears are in your eyes
Come on and come to me now
Dont be ashamed to cry
Let me see you through
cause Ive seen the dark side too
When the night falls on you
You dont know what to do
Nothing you confess
Could make me love you less

Ill stand by you
Ill stand by you
Wont let nobody hurt you
Ill stand by you

So if youre mad, get mad
Dont hold it all inside
Come on and talk to me now
Hey, what you got to hide?
I get angry too
Well Im a lot like you
When youre standing at the crossroads
And dont know which path to choose
Let me come along
cause even if youre wrong

Ill stand by you
Ill stand by you
Wont let nobody hurt you
Ill stand by you
Take me in, into your darkest hour
And Ill never desert you
Ill stand by you

And when...
When the night falls on you, baby
Youre feeling all alone
You wont be on your own

Ill stand by you
Ill stand by you
Wont let nobody hurt you

Ill stand by you
Take me in, into your darkest hour
And Ill never desert you
Ill stand by you
Ill stand by you
Wont let nobody hurt you
Ill stand by you
Wont let nobody hurt you
Ill stand by you

poll closed

thanks for voting!!!! :)

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have i mentioned lately

that i love life so very much...

karma's a total bitch and i love it.

I PASSED!!!

3 hour diabetis test with 'flying colors'

what a relief!

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awwwww....

first purchase... sooooooooo tiny...

names - the final 4... poll to the side

ok, so i create a poll for our 4 name choices...

we had a list of about 14 names, combined them to make first/middle name combinations that we liked and came up with about 10.... DH and I picked 3 each from the 10 and 2 of the combinations we chose were the same!

but... we're including the other 2 choices that only 1 of us picked ... (make sense? im really tired).... soooooo ... options are in the poll... any input would be appreciated...

take in consideration our last name is short (3 letters)...

thanks!

dammit ... so bummed

i failed the 1 hour glucose tolerance test... i am a lucky ducky and get to take the 3 hour test tomorrow... DH is going to take 1/2 day off work to watch DD... there's no way she would survive 3+ hours at the doc's office - although she was excellent today for the hour.

hopefully i dont have gestational diabetis (sp??) ... if i do, i guess i've eaten my last bit of cheesecake for awhile...

gahhhh...

ok, ummm yeah... unfill 'worked'

up a ton... yikes. 14 lbs... eeeek

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does this sound obnoxious?? - input please

DH and I are not big fans of 'sport' type apparel for boys (no baseball/football prints, etc..) i dunno what it is, we just dont care for it...

since registering yesterday, i noticed quite a few items (ok, MOST items) have sporty themes, so we put this as a comment on our registry ... we just dont want someone buying something we will not put Tigger in ...

but i was thinking last night ... does this sound pretentious or something?

this is what i put:
it's a BOY!!! :)

for blankets/clothing, we'd really prefer animal type prints/dogs/safari/etc over sports type. please

thinking BLUE!!

it's a boy! NO DOUBT - he flashed us really well a couple of times!

off to go shopping / registering.

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seriously... boys can wear pink / dresses, right???

not that i'm really having a boy... not that i know anything... no clue (next ultrasound Tuesday)
this is less than half of what is left of my daughter's closet... the clothes that do not fit her any longer... yup, lotsa pink, lotsa girly dresses... the piles on the floor are over 18 inches high each...
yup, over 1/2 her closet still needs to be cleaned out - still... huge green tubs (2 or 3) still need to be gone through... guess i know what we'll be doing this week.

stubborn is an understatement..

well since Friday I haven't really felt Tigger move much.. a couple
kicks on Saturday morning about 6, but nothing the rest of the day and
all last night... even his 'active' periods between 3-315 & 6 am...

so yeah, I was really concerned and called my OB... "go right to
labor & delivery (L&D) NOW..."

so at 7am, we were off to L&D... the nurse hooked me up right away -
once we actually FOUND L&D... got a nice heartbeat and about 2 min
later... thump thump... didn't feel it, but we heard it on the
monitor... a couple min after that I felt the thump... didn't really
feel a lot, but we heard them. so she gave me some orange juice..
felt a few thumps and off I went... she gave me a few tips on how to
get him moving.. if it doesn't work come in again... hopefully we
won't be back until February...

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is this selfish/stupid?

DH's family lives in Canada.. (they don't really like me per se cause
i'm not Chinese... *eyeroll*)... so needless to say, I was THRILLED
when they got 'web chat' and wanted to chat with DH via webcam... I
didn't really want anything to do with it... and since I was sore
from my massage (elbow deep tissue massage to shoulders) I took a warm
shower...

I come out and really hope they are finished... they were... he then
proceeds to tell me that his cousin and his wife are expecting their
2nd child... February 18th... WTF... I'm due the 13th... I don't
really know exactly what pisses me off... maybe because we're just
now finding out?? (DH's parents see them weekly)..

now this is really pathetic but now I'm really hoping for a boy for us
(this will be their second girl - boys are SOO important to the
culture and if Tigger's a boy, he would be the first...)

*sigh* just wanted to get that out I guess...

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holy crap!!!

i cant believe i'm in the third trimester... 27 weeks pregnant.. 13 weeks to go... OMG .. only 13 weeks to go...

we have so much stuff to do...

here's a belly pic... yup, i'm preggers...

a new LBT hero...

Donna113 - you rock my socks!

yo... Gloucester...

i cant read yer blog... :(

hmmm.... pretty cool...

so i'm 6 1/2 months pregnant this week (almost 27 weeks - will be on Friday)...

it's chilly and rainy in Texas today... the house just feels, i dunno ... damp... we have 2 very shedding dogs so i mostly hang around in jeans and a t-shirt... the only mat jeans i have are capris and well, with this weather, it just doesnt work very well...

so i'm digging through my closet looking for some casual pants to keep my poor legs warm -- i think im the only preggo that isnt always warm.. i find an old pair of running pants (old meaning from Mar/April after my PS...) i figure my t-shirt is huge so i can just cover up my belly with the shirt... the pants fit... even in the belly... size 18 pants... hmm... not bad. :)

248 am and yup, im awake

ok, this is just getting ridiculous... its like im not even tired...

i was just lying there in bed and all that was happening was my left shoulder was getting sore... so i tried to kinda lay on my tummy ... not fully on it, but enough to ease the shoulder ... Tigger would not have that one bit... was like "HEY... get off of me!!!"

i may need to find my wedge that i bought when i had plastics ... dunno how that will help, but maybe it will...

blahhhh

442 and i cant sleep ... we keep a fan on in the bedroom as a 'noise detractor' of sorts... (barking dogs - neighbors, snoring dogs - ours, snoring spouse, etc...) well i woke up and literally coudl not breathe through my nose... stupid fan wasnt even pointed towards me ... almost an hour after i turned off the fan and i still cant freaking breathe... of course as soon as i turned off the fan, neighbor dog started barking...

so now i'm awake. fun times...
no - not really

OMG

I am SOOOOO unfilled... had Vietnamese soup for lunch.. I NEVER eat
it all (beef & vermacelli noodles)... today I ate all of mine and
took some of my DD's noodles... phew!!! but it was sooooo good (&
spicy!!)

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WHY????

why am I hungry???!!?

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dinners..

guess how many dinners I had tonight?

TWO!! I was starving! I had a thigh/breast rotisserie chicken, scoop
of mashed potatoes, scoop of green beans... then 2 hours later, 2-3
tablespoons of Costco chicken salad..

omg!

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holy crap!

im in double days til baby comes... 99 days... wow!

SOOOO bummed..

I'm starting to bust out of my pj's... I've been so proud up until
now, I've been fitting in my size ladies large.. tonight I put them
on ... oh dear... snug would be an understatement!!

*sigh*

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wow.....

from UBER conservative Fox News...

GO VOTE!!!!

go vote go vote go vote...

please

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woof... i c u

11/3/2008 12:51

4.248.62.143

how would you react?

most of you know my DH is Chinese...

a few times a month we go to an 'authentic' Chinese restaurant for
lunch (dim sum)...

the way dim sum works is they bring small meals to your table and put
a stamp on your paper for the price and you pay when you are finished...

today the table next to us ordered the same dish I wanted... just out
of curiosity, I looked at what they were charged... they were charged
price C, we were charged price D (about 50 cents more)... their table
was all Chinese people, we obviously were not... DH doesn't think
it's a big deal, it now has me wondering what else and how many times
have we been charged differently??!

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holy swelling!!

my fingers are so swollen that my ring barely fits. I guess all the
walking last night and right now (at the mall) isn't good for my
body... must drink more...

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