Geeking Out

So I feel like we all have those 1 or 2 things that we all geek or nerd out over. Sometimes we don't get to express it as much because the people we hang with don't really get it or they do get it to an extent but not the extent that you do. So today I'd like to dive into the two things I geek out over!

Yup. I'm one of those people. I am a star wars geek! I wasn't always a Star Wars geek though. It started for me in 2006 I wanna say. Yes, I was waaaaay late to the Star Wars game. In all fairness though, I wasn't around in the 1970's when it first started. It started to look fun to me when Lego came out with the Lego Star Wars video game. My brother got the demo of the game and it just looked so fun. We rented it on New Years Eve in 2006 going into 2007 and played the game the whole night into the new year. From that point I decided to watch the original trilogy. I got the DVD's from the library and then I was hooked. 

I love Han and Leia's relationship. Just the back and forth with each other, basically in denial about how much they really like each other. Leia is awesome just by herself as well. She's a strong female character who shows other girls and women that she can take care of herself when she needs to. She is a princess who recently turned into a general. Han Solo is awesome as well because he is funny. Especially with his sidekick Chewbacca.

Now ask me about my favorite charactes from Episodes 1-3 and I will immediately tell you Anakin. Anakin as a teenager though because good God is he gorgeous! Why oh why did he have to turn bad? Always after the bad boys. A lot of people will tell you that from these 3 movies their least favorite character is the infamous Jar Jar Binks. He doesn't bother me like he does the whole Star Wars community. 

So why do I love Star Wars so much? It's something completely different than most movies. You get to explore the galaxy. I wish I had a better answer as to why I love Star Wars so much. The plain and simple answer is.....I just do.

My 2nd nerd obsession is the wonderful Harry Potter universe. I didn't get involved with Mr Potter until the Prisoner of Azkaban movie. Two of my high school friends and I were having a sleepover. We were planning on going to the movies. They kept insisting we were going to see the new harry potter movie and i kept saying no were not. Well before we went to the movie I had to watch the first 2 movies to catch up on everything. I was hooked after the 1st movie. It was something new and different. So I only went to one of the book releases. I went to the Deathly Hallows book release because I don't think I had started reading the books until right after the Half Blood Prince book release. Being a Harry Potter nerd means you have read the books AND seen the movies. You can talk with other nerds about how the books were so much better than the movies because in books stuff isn't left out. Movies like to change stuff or leave stuff out which is extremely frustrating. We Harry Potter nerds would sit through a long ass movie if it meant that nothing was cut out from it. 

With Harry Potter, you wish and dream for that letter from Hogwarts. You wish magic was real to cast a spell on that enemy or that one true love or just to have a fun duel with a friend.

Severus Snape.....what can I say about him? He was a character you never would see yourself crying over his death, but you do because of everything that was revealed with him. I cry every single time with his death. Honestly, I cry with all of the deaths......Cedric Diggory, Sirius Black, Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Fred Weasley, Tonks, Remus Lupin. Those are the death's I cry about. 

Harry Potter teaches us to be kind to everyone no matter what differences they have. That's a lesson I gained from it. 

You could look like young Neville and turn out to be a gorgeous man in the end. The Harry Potter community went nuts seeing Neville in the final films. He went from awkward little boy to OMG!

One day I hope to get down to Florida to visit both the Harry Potter world and the soon to be opening Star Wars world. It's on my bucket list. For now I have to rely on friends who go down there for pictures.

So in closing, why do I like both of these universes so much? Because they are worlds that take me away from everyday life. It gives me something fun to watch with my kids and just get away from the real world for awhile. If I'm having a bad week or a bad day, I can go to one of these films and it cheers me right up. So if you're a friend of mine and I've ever bored you with either of these obsessions, I'm sorry. but these are two things that really excite me in life and I want to share my joy with it with you all. If you ever tell me you want to sit and watch these films, i will be there with snacks.....and 4 kids. If you say "Hey let's read the harry potter books together" I will grab my kindle and get started!

Share your nerdiness and geekiness with the world. Don't hide it. Be yourself!

Emma's Myelo clinic

Yesterday morning Emma had her yearly Myelo clinic appointment. What is Myelo clinic you ask? Well I will tell ya! Myelo clinic is a special clinic for children with Spina Bifida. The child goes once a year to the clinic to see all their specialty dr's in one day. Yes it's exhausting but it's nice seeing them all in one day instead of a million appointments throughout the year. Depending on the child's progress and well being, some dr's will either say "See ya next year" or "we would like to see child back in 4-6 months at their own office". As of right now we only have the "see you next year with 2 of the Myelo clinic dr's, Neurology and Behavioral Development. We got to the hospital yesterday morning around 8:45ish since Emma had to go for another Urology test called a VCUG.

Our appointment with Myelo clinic was scheduled for 9:30 but we were late from the testing so we got there at 10. They understood because everyone was running behind due to testing before appointments. Here's a rundown of what each of the dr's expect from us until we see them again.

Behavioral and development- This dr we talked about how shes doing in all areas and how she's growing and if she's on track in all areas and what not. We also discussed about her tantrums lately. As of lately Emma will cry at the drop of a pin or she will scream and yell if shes not getting her way. As of right now we are taking blame for summer break. If this continues through the school year, we will make an appointment to see them again and discus further steps, like behavior therapy and if that won't work then we would take further action and try medication. I'm hoping it's just an age thing or with her being out of school.

Genetics- Next we saw the genetics dr just to touch base and see how things were and how she's doing and if any major changes happened in the household. well yeah, there were 2 deaths in the family and a new addition. So there have been some big family changes.

Gastro- Next we saw who I like to call the butt dr or poop dr. lol. We discussed how emma is doing with pooping and if shes had any constipation issues which she had a few weeks ago when she had the UTI. He asked if we were trying to sit emma on the potty at all to get her trying to poop. We havent done that yet. So what we're going to try is twice a day using a suppository and sitting her on the potty. if that works then if we're lucky we can get it to once a day and then have her on a pooping schedule. that would be nice to have done so she doesnt have a bunch of stinky diapers while at school.

Urology- next we saw Dr Ross who is a Dr who works with Dr Woo. Dr Woo is on maternity leave right now. Dr Ross went over Emma's test results from Urodynamics and VCUG. Both were fine and showed no concerns thank goodness. He wants us to try cathing Emma either 4 times a day or if possible every 3 hours. He says no big deal if you cant. Were just trying to see what works in keeping her the dryest. He was going to up her dosage of Oxybutynin but i told him it was making her hot and sweaty at times so he didn't wanna push that. He suggested that there could be a chance her sphincter wasn't closing all the way which is causing the leaks in between caths. Our options would be botox injections into her bladder or another surgery. Obviously I would try the botox 1st. but those 2 options are only if the increased cathing doesn't help her stay dry. so not a concern yet.

Neuro- Next we saw our fave dr, Dr Tomei. SInce Emma has had no shunt issues over the past year we didn't get to see her long. We will just continue our once a year appt with Myelo clinic unless we have a shunt issue.

Orthopedics- finally we finished the day seeing Dr Hardesty. We talked with her about how Emma is doing with her walker and starting to try out the fore arm crutches. We've been using the fore arm crutches very little. mostly in PT. We noticed last Monday that Emma was turning her right foot outward when using the fore arm crutches only. So until Emma is a little more older and has more control and strength we want to just stick with using the walker for right now since she doesn't turn her foot out with that. So that kinda stinks we can't progress with walking too much right now but who knows. Maybe she'll get some more strength starting all day school and doing a lot more walking. She had an x-ray done of her hips and pelvis and both look great. So we don't see Dr Hardesty for 6 months.

Today I have been on and off the phone with the secretary from Urology trying to get the Ultrasound scheduled for when Dr. Woo returns. Hopefully by then end of the day we get that taken care of. I'm so proud of all the progress Emma has been making in the past year. Her dr's are as well. It bums me out some about the fore arm crutch situation but I don't want her using them and hurting herself or her leg. That would cause a huge setback. 

I'm worried about the whole behavior situation as well. I don't want to have to resort to behavior therapy or medication. I've heard that sometimes medication will have side effects that will cause other problems and make them worse. I know there have been lots of changes at home and she's just trying to adjust to being on summer vacation. She misses being in school. She should be going back in the next month. The big kids start August 13th. I'm sure preschool starts a week or 2 later. Fingers crossed we can have good routines going by school start as well.

1 month old!

So as of July 8th, we have a 1 month old! I seriously feel like we just had her. She's only had a couple of bad nights since we had her. So here are her stats for the 1st month!

-10 lbs 9.6 oz
-23ish in
-size 1 diapers
-2-4 oz of formula
-size 0-3 months or 3 months clothes

This being only her 1st month, this list is rather short. I know as the months go on this list will get longer. I can't wait to see how she progresses over the months.

cutting the cord

Yes, you read that title right! Tomorrow we are going to start the journey of cutting the cable cord! I was able to locate the kids antenna in the back closet so they can use that when they don't want to use the other options that they will have.

Right now we have the triple play bundle with Spectrum. We've had this bundle for a few years. Well what happens after 2 years of having it??? They hike the price waaaaaaaay up. With tax we were paying $120. These past couple of months the price hike took effect and went up to $180 with tax a month. I'm like nope. Can't do it anymore. There are other options out there that can help us out so much and save us money.

So the first step was seeing how much just internet will be. I checked just before starting this blog. The person I talked with said our bill would be $69.99. I'm sure a little more with taxes. They also gave me the number to call and said that maybe someone would be able to give me a promotion as well to make my bill even cheaper. The plan is for 100mbps speeds and free wifi and modem. That sounded like a good plan to me.

I looked into a couple of the streaming services and decided that Directv NOW would be our best option for the channels we watch. It has all the channels I watch and the kids channels they watch. It's $35 a month but for the first 3 months it's $10 a month. I like those numbers! You get 2 screens to screen on simultaneously. I will get a feel for it in those 3 months. If it doesn't work out, then I will switch over to Sling. That's $30 a month with the channels I would have to add on.

We also have the Amazon Fire Stick. I've made some tweeks to it so I can use it to my liking. I've downloaded some apps to use on it as well. The DirecTv app is ready to go on it, along with other streaming services, like Netflix and Hulu. We can use Netflix and Hulu on our Smart TV as well. Netflix is now $10.99 a month with the plan we use. Hulu is $7.99. I think if you're a new subscriber with Hulu though you can get it for $5.99. So with all of those options, I'm looking at spending $123.97 a month before taxes. Probably around $130 after taxes. That's after the 3 months though. For the next 3 months I'm looking at spending about $100. I think that's a lot better than $180 a month! That extra money will go towards diapers and wipes and school clothes!

I'm hoping this adventure works out for us. I'd love to save the extra money each month. I will keep you all posted as to how our first week goes using it!

Tired Mama

Well, we're approaching the 3 week mark. I'm writing this while pretty tired and should be going to bed. I've been dealing with kids screaming and crying all evening. I'm def done for the day but I wanted to get this written.

So what have we been up to you ask? Well, Brianna had her 2 week check up on Friday and everything was fine with her. We don't go back now until August for her 2 month check up! On that same day, Emma was supposed to have her urodynamics testing but couldn't because she still had a UTI. So today she started her antibiotics and will have the testing done next Tuesday....I hope.

Sunday my cousin stopped in to deliver some size 1 diapers since her little guy is now in size 2 diapers. I can never pass up more diapers!!! Brianna is still in newborn size diapers but will be in size 1's by this weekend. I'm just gonna finish up the package of Luvs we have and then start the size 1's we have. These 2 are 7 weeks apart. They were very close in size at birth too! It'll be fun watching them grow up and see who does what and when.

Monday was our first day alone without daddy. He finally got a new job so we had some stuff to do on Monday. Emma had a dentist appointment. She has no cavities. She was still scared about the dentist cleaning her teeth so we decided to hold off until next visit for that. Hopefully she is fine with it by then. Then we had to make a trip to Wal-mart to exchange some diapers. I'm so thankful for these big carts at Wal-Mart. It was a huge help!

Tuesday was playdate day! We had a lot of fun and this mama got adult conversation time. I don't get a lot of that. We took a few pics during the day.

 Auntie Adrienne with Austin and Brianna. Austin decided Brianna needed lots of trains and cars to play with.

 Emma and her future husband Austin(hey, ya never know. lol)

 Alex and Austin behaving for a moment.

 Kayla and Ella playing blocks out in the living room before retreating back to the bedroom away from little kids.

 We had to get Uncle Brian to do some work and feed Brianna. Austin helped some.

And as always, our group pic of the kids. 1 is missing since she was at daycare on a field trip.

What else have I been up to??? Well, my bestie, Adrienne, talked me into watching The Bachelorette this season. I got hooked the first dang episode. These guys are so much drama. I'm really rooting for Garrett. I'm hoping he wins, but we will see what happens.

Today we watched The Incredibles for the first time. The only one who paid attention was Alex. He really enjoyed it. It was a good movie but I still don't see what all the hype is about.

Tomorrow I plan on watching this. I read the book and couldn't put it down, so I hope the movie lives up to the book. And I hope my kids let me actually watch the movie! Fingers crossed!

I've been on a punk/alternative music kick and this is my go to album. It's one of my faves. I downloaded a couple more albums of theirs and I am looking forward to listening to them over the next few days.

I've had a very clingy little girl this evening which is why it took so long to get to my blogging today. She wanted mommy all to herself. She's crying for me as I type this so I guess it's time to wrap it up. Hopefully more exciting adventures to come our way.

Brianna Lynn Fiasco

My sweet little trouble maker is finally here!!! Well she's been here a week now. She arrived on June 8th, 2018 at 5:07 pm. My doctor asked me at my appointment on June 6th when I wanted to be induced since June 7th was my due date. She gave me the options of June 8th and June 13th. I chose the 8th because I didn't want any bad luck Friday the 13th birthdays for her.....and I was basically done being pregnant.

These pics I took the night before. I was sooooo huge! Let's just say the last few weeks were hell to get comfortable at night to get some rest. Turning from side to side was like a turtle being stuck on his back. I feel for those turtles now. I think this was the biggest I had ever gotten with any of my pregnancies.

On June 8th, I arrived at the hospital around 7:45 am to get the whole process started. Joey dropped me off and waited for my mom to be done with her appointment so he could pick her up and drop her back at our house to watch the kids. The nurse got my IV in around 9ish I think and we started the Pitocin at 9:30. Everyone told me that being induced was no fun because once the contractions start hitting, they will hit hard. The Pitocin took an hour to finally get things going. The contractions weren't really hitting hard like people had said so I'm like great, this is going to take forever. A little after noon, the house doctor broke my water. At this point, still no epidural because I didn't feel like I needed it. Well let me tell ya....not long after they broke my water those contractions started hitting hard. I was in tears. The nurse came in to check on me and I'm like "can I get that epidural now?" Thank God the guy came up quickly to do it. I was hurting bad. I don't know how women did it before with no drugs. I was able to get a tiny nap in after the epidural kicked in. I also noticed it made me a little talkative at first. I think I was just so happy to be out of pain. My doctor arrived at the hospital around 4:30 finally. They checked me and said it was about time to start pushing. So they got everything in the room all set up. I started pushing about 4:45. I felt like it took forever to get her out. They kept saying shes almost here, she;s almost here. Then right at the end I started panic pushing. I heard them softly talking and saying the cord was around her neck. It wasn't tight thankfully, but as a mother hearing that scares the crap out of you. When she finally came out, she wasn't crying. Yet another scary moment for me. I looked at Joey with tears in my eyes because i had all those fears my whole pregnancy. They took her over to get cleaned up and after what seemed like forever, I finally heard her cry. I was so relieved that she was okay.

Brianna Lynn came into this world weighing a whopping 8 lbs 9 oz and 21 in long!!! She was my biggest baby. When they told me her weight I'm like "WHAT????" I was just in complete shock that I was able to push her out. I'm like that explains why I was so miserable carrying her at the end. I was all baby.

I was stuck in the delivery room until like 10 pm. The epidural was taking forever to wear off on my right leg. I was happy when I finally gained feeling back. I did get to have dinner while waiting for my leg to be normal.

It was very yummy!!! Especially when you haven't eaten since early morning.

We stayed in the hospital one night. We had to do a full 24 hours though. She needed a couple of tests done that couldn't be done until the 24 hour mark. So we were discharged at like 7:30 pm.

The kids were in love with their baby sister when they finally saw her. Even after a week later they are still in love with her. I hope they continue loving her a lot.

We like taking lots of pictures....can't ya tell???

So let's go to some real talk about post pregnancy care. These are items you will most likely leave the hospital with. The squirt bottle, also called a peri bottle, is for cleaning off your privates instead of using toilet paper. Your stuff is going to be swollen and this is nicer than the toilet paper. Plus if you get stitches, you won't be tugging or pulling at them with a squirt bottle. The tucks pads could be something you get or don't get. If you do a lot of pushing, you will end up with hemorrhoids. I was very glad for these because they helped a lot!!!! Also had to sit on an ice pack one morning because of the pain. The other thing was something new to me. It's called Epifoam. They used to give you a spray called Dermoplast but the nurse told me they stopped with that because people were spraying themselves in the face somehow. I don't know. People amaze me. The Epifoam is essentially the same though. You shake it up, spray some on your fingers and apply to your nether regions for pain and swelling. It does the job as well!

Now if you plan on bottle feeding like I am, then you'll want a trick to dry up your breast milk quickly so your boobs are not sore as all hell. Cabbage leaves. Yes I am serious. You place a leaf or two or three(Depending on your size) in your bra and it feels really nice and cold. It helps with swelling and pain. I was optimistic at first but I'm a believer now. It does work. Also taking any kind of antihistamines will dry you up. I had to take an allergy pill the one night because mine were in over drive. That did help with some pain and swelling as well.

Also, if you are someone who suffers from depression, there's a good chance you will have postpartum depression. If you feel yourself getting way down, please call your doctor and let them know. It's a very serious thing that could lead to worse things. I've been dealing with some sadness each day. Having 4 kids total to take care of and 2 that are toddlers and fighting like there's no tomorrow have been very rough on me. At least once a day, I lock myself in the bathroom for a few minutes just to sit and cry. I know if it gets too bad though to talk with my doctor. I know things will get better and I need to stay strong for my kids.

I can't wait to see what adventures I have with this little girl added to the mix now. Oh, and one last bragging rights I think I deserve....and because it annoys some people....NO STRETCH MARKS!!!!! This is my 4th child! Goodnight everyone!