Pyogenic Granuloma

Yesterday I was diagnosed with THAT on my hand. If you want to see pictures of what those growths look like; then just google that. On Tuesday morning I am going to be having surgery to have it removed. The doctor said that surgery should take around 30 - 45 minutes. I am so relieved to be having it removed. I was VERY scared that it was going to be cancerous before I found out what it was. One thing that scared me was what it looks like and how fast it grows. My husband and I my mom will be at the surgery center with me. My dad is going to be taking care of Zachary. After surgery, my parents will care for Zachary for several days. The doctor said that my hand will be very sore. He also said that the incision will be fairly large because he has to have room to take the thing out and have skin to stitch up. I am picturing a scar of a good inch long, but we'll see once I get home. My plastic surgeon said that he could do it in office, but he is worried that it will bleed too much and that I would be very uncomfortable during the procedure. He wants to be able to make sure that he can get it out without having to worry about me. I am happy about that because I know that it bleeds very easily and I don't want to have to worry about pain during the procedure.

I appreciate your prayers and that it would heal quickly with no problems, that it would be a very quick and easy surgery, and that Zachary does good a few days away from us.

Otherwise, that is really all that is happening around here. We're all doing really good and just moving right along. :)

Arnold the Scratchy Pig

This is probably one of the funniest videos that I have taken this summer. This is Arnold, the pig. He is my MIL's pig, but we're trying to get rid of him, so if you know anyone that would like to buy him - send them my way ASAP.

Anyways, Arnold is very itchy (supposedly, they all are) and he was scratching and scratching one day when I was over there, so I, of course, had to take a video of it for my blog. :)

Hope you enjoy Arnold!!!

Quiet Times

I read a blog everyday (almost) and always come away with learning something. Each week they have a topic that they each write about on different days. This week they are blogging about their daily quiet times, how they succeed and how they struggle. I decided that I would do the same thing and I have been meaning to write about my quiet time since about Tues or so.

My Bible is an NIV - Life Application Study Bible. My parents gave it to me in September 2000 in honor of my 21st birthday; which was going to be that November.

This Bible has been all over with me. It has been to Mexico several times on Mission Trips, it has been to Montana with me when I was a summer missionary, it has been to Peru, it has been to several states, it has been to the Dominican Republic, and I carry it to church. This copy of God's Word has taught be a lot, been there with me through thick and thin, has been there when I am praying and trying to figure out what God wants me to do, etc.

Through the years, I have marked, highlighted, underlined scriptures that mean things to me. I usually write whatever is going on in my life that has led me to that scripture. I always enjoy going back through the past and reading my different struggles, happiness, etc. I always remember what I was going through and how I got through it. I like to see how I have grown through the years and can't believe that I have had my Bible for 9 yrs. Of course, I had other Bibles growing up, but I think that this will be my last Bible.

Lately, I have not been studying my Bible as much as I should and for that, I am embarrassed to say. However, I have never ceased to stop praying. I pray daily with my husband and by myself. God has never left my side through the years and has ALWAYS been there for me. I have had a lot of great things that have happened to me, but there have been my struggles too.

The Book of John is my favorite book of the Bible. It is full of hope, in my opinion. My grandma Brown's favorite passage is John 14:1-6.

The Book of Revelation is the most fascinating book of the Bible to me. My favorite scripture is there and it is Revelation 3:20. The scripture says," I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door. I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." There is a painting that I love and it has a door with no door knob on it. Jesus is standing there at the door knocking. He will never force His way into your life, but will gently knock and hopes that you will open the door and invite Him in. He only wants to have a relationship with you. He died on the cross for our sins and He loves us all so much.

I have recently become interested in the Book of Daniel. I am interested in the End Times and in fact, our ABF at church is actually going through all that kind of stuff. It is so interesting, but at the same time, my heart breaks for those who do not know the Truth and those who wish to not believe. I have family that doesn't believe and I just pray that they will come to know the Lord before it is too late. I believe that it is too late only after you have passed away, otherwise, there is no hope!

Anyways, I hope that you get something out of my blog today.

I would be interested in hearing your favorite scripture or anything that you wish to share.

I have tried to link the picture that I found of Jesus standing at the door knocking, so I hope that it turns out. :)

So, what do you think of the newly updated blog?! I am loving the color changes, so fun and funky. I thought it was due for an update since I haven't changed it in FOREVER!!

Make sure to read the newest blog below - complete with a few pics too!!!

5 months old!!!

5 months old - playing with his bear!! He is trying to sit-up during the pic....:)
Here he is pushing up - 5 months

Cute froggy housecoat - 4 months

playing in the pack and play outside

posing with bear at 4 months of age

5 MONTH UPDATE!!!!

My baby turned 5 months old yesterday. I can't believe it. He's doing great and loving life, well, most of the time.........hahaha

Let's see, he is weighing in at 15 lbs and 0.6 ounces. He had his blood work this past Monday and everything looked good. So, he gets to take off another month from blood work. While we LOVE our doctor, nurses, lab techs, etc, we're definitely glad to have time off. I remember when we first started this journey I was so ready to be over with it and now (I think) that time has come.

He is eating cereal with several fruits and a few veggies. He is eating: bananas, apples, peaches, apricots, sweet potatoes, squash, plums/prunes, and has started carrots this evening. I think that our next veggie to try this weekend will be green beans. :)

He is getting to be SOO active and he started going to the church nursery 2 weeks ago. I cried when I took him for the first time, but mommy survived........LOL He did great and just went to the ladies covered with a big smile and ready for fun. He is a HUGE people person and LOVES to talk to anyone who will talk to him. He is also squealing a ton - he enjoys hearing his voice......hahaha He loves the outdoors and whenever he gets upset, if we take him outside he immediately calms down. He is sitting up, but does hold my finger with one hand - he's doing amazing. He's daily gaining strength and balance. He wants to crawl so bad he can taste it, but he just slides around.......hahaha I'll put him in his bed one way and when I go in the next morning, he has done a 180 degree turn. He love sto pull the ball off of his toy that he lays under and plays with. He enjoys tummy time and can really hold his own very well.

Les and I just love having him as part of our family. We have enjoyed watching him grow and look forward to watching him develop and grow.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures too!!

Breakthrough!!!

SOOO exciting. Normally Zachary will not sleep in his bed during the day and I have no idea why. He'll go down at night like a pro and won't hear anything from him the rest of the night till 7 or 7:30 AM. Well, yesterday, I decided that we would try the napping in his own bed again. I put him down at his morning nap time; which is usually around 9:30 AM or so. This nap is normally only 1 - 1 1/2 hours. Well, I couldn't believe it, he slept for about 45 minutes and then woke up and I could hear him in there playing; which was totally fine with me since he was happy. We have a remote control to his mobilie, so I snuck into his room and turned the mobile on from the doorway - that way he wouldn't see me. LOL I was gone in the afternoon, so the nap was in the car. This AM I put him down for a nap in his bed and he had a repeat of the day before. We visited with my SIL, Amy and the triplets this morning; then I had a doc appt to freeze (again) a stubborn wart on my hand that literally came out of nowhere, back home and we fed him and out he went. I told Les to try and lay him in his bed and to my amazement, he is fast asleep IN HIS CRIB!!!!! So, I am TOTALLY SHOCKED and so proud too!!!!!!! :)

Other updates, we have been working on Zachary's solids and he is taking homemade: Plums, bananas, apples, sweet potatoes, peaches (this is not homemade), and apricots (not homemade either). I am getting more and more used to making the food, so I am excited about it. Tomorrow Zachary is going to be trying squash for the first time. I am so curious to see how he does. He's a great eater!!

Zachary is going to be 5 months old on Tues and I can hardly believe it. On Monday he has his bloodwork to see how he's doing; which I think will be normal, well, normal for him. ;) I am excited b/c we'll get to see Dr. C and I just love her. She's probably 6-7 yrs older than I am and super sweet.

I'm going to try to get a pic to upload, but if there is no pic; then I am still having problems. :)

Yay it worked - okay, this pic was from the first time that he tried just cereal; which this was back around 3 1/2 months old. The hemotologists wanted us to start him on a little bit of cereal b/c he was eating like crazy. He didn't really like it at first, but now he's an old pro and sits in his bumbo to eat 2x a day. :) My big boy!!

400th Post!!!!

Wow, I can't believe that I have made 400 posts, of course, I have had my blog since January 2005, so that's to be expected at this point. :)

Today I made baby food for Zachary. I find that veggies are easier than fruits to make for him. Today I made yellow squash and sweet potato. At this point, Zachary is eating bananas, peaches, and apples. He LOVES eating and does really good. I am excited to see what he thinks of the squash, but I am going to introduce that to him after the sweet potatoes b/c I had more of the SP. I have froze the rest in ice cube trays for near future use. :) I am curious to see what kind of things that you have tried for your little ones. He is no ready for many mixed fruits yet, but I would still like to hear of things that you have tried or if you just have suggestions on making fruit baby food.

Zachary had a blast at SeaWorld and I'm not kidding either. When we were watching the shows, he just sat in my lap and watched, squealed, and waved his arms around. He had an absolute BALL! He was a hit and everyone kept saying how alert he was and how cute he was too. I loved SeaWorld too and want to take Les there, but without Zachary next time. There were a few rides that I wanted to go on, but we ran out of time and we didn't want Zachary in the heat for too long at a time.

Hope you have a great week!!!!!!!!!!