Lydia paves the way

Yesterday was a long day. It started like any other wednesday. I dropped all the kids off at school and went for a 5 and half mile run, came home and showered and had a snack. Half way through my snack I got a call from Lydia's preschool saying she had fallen off the monkey bars and wanted her mom. Everyone knows that Lydia is as tough as 4 year olds come so her wanting her mom and crying is a big deal. They told me that she wasn't wanting to move her arm but that it looked normal as far as they could tell. By the time I showed up to pick her up she was curled up in her teachers lap and still crying. I looked at her arm and thought her elbow didn't quite look right. It looked a little swollen. Had it been any other child I may have just said lets go home and ice it and see what happens. I called Brad and asked him what he thought I should do and he told me to just take her to the ER, so I did.

We sat maybe 5 minutes in the waiting area before we were able to go back. It continued to swell and she still wouldn't move her arm. At first glance the check in nurse thought it could be dislocated or broken. Pretty quickly Lydia was given a small dose of Vicodin and juice and was feeling much more comfortable. I was able to go back with her to do xrays. This was the worst part of the day. They had to take xrays from every angle and kept making her twist her arm every which way which caused whimpering and tears to fall. It was heartbreaking to watch but Lydia did so amazing. She made her momma so proud. Once they took us back to her room we waited some more. While we waited different staff members took turns coming to say hi to Lydia and bring her stickers. You sure get good service when you are a cute 4 year old girl. After awhile the doctor came back and said they wanted to xray her good arm now to compare the growth plates...oook. Brad was there at this point and he went back with her that time. Obviously these xrays went more smoothly. When they brought her back this time they put a splint on her arm. We were told we were waiting for xray results and then would meet with the orthopedic surgeon to discuss when she would get her cast. An hour later the doctor came back and said the orthopedic surgeon thinks it is best to do an MRI to check on the growth plates because the xrays didn't show them enough. Awesome! They had to take the splint off to do the MRI. I had never had an MRI before but was able to go right in the room with her. We both had ear plugs and head phones on. It was over an hour of standing there in a noise filled room watching Lydia lay down and be as still as possible. She did perfectly but I felt like I was an anxiety attack waiting to happen. Once we got back to her room the orthopedic surgeon was waiting for us and had already seen the results of the MRI. He said the brake is not in her growth plate yet but its really really close. Basically I have to keep her from doing everything my very active 4 year old does on a daily basis. It wouldn't take much for her brake to worsen before she gets her cast put on. By the time they put the splint back on her arm was huge. It looked like a big giant man arm:) Hopefully by this time next week the swelling will have gone down so she can get her cast. Unfortunately because the brake is in a joint she will have to have the cast taken off every week to xray it to make sure it is healing properly. Hooray for good health insurance! She is doing well this morning so far. She has discovered care bears on netflix:)

 Lydia when we first got to mason general

 drinking some juice after pain meds

 Snoopy sling? really? :)

Lydia holding her xray surrounded by her stickers

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: "what are you drinking about" Florida Georgia Line


#2 watching: Monday night I started watching friday night lights. I started at 9 pm and watched until 4 am. Obviously I like the show.


#3 reading: I started reading Game of thrones on monday while at my parents house. I didn't get very far and then forgot it at their house. I am going there sunday so I may pick it up then.


#4 eating or drinking: Brad and I got to have a date night thursday. I went and watched his coed soccer game in olympia and then we had a late dinner at red robin. I wanted to order something I have never had so I went with the whiskey river bbq burger. It was amazing!! I will be getting it next time I go there.


#5 goal: my goal was to not sit around on spring break and let my kids play xbox. I think we did pretty well with that due to some nice weather. We had a couple play dates with friends and the kids did some fishing at my parents house.

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: "Out Here" by Dan +Shay

#2 reading: nothing


#3 watching: nothing


#4 eating or drinking: lots of fruits and veggies..yup nothing delicious


#5 goal: I wanted to up my mileage on my runs. My longest run was 5.6 miles and then the other days of the week were between 4.5 and 5 miles. My shin started hurting today so I may have to move on over to the huff n puff for runs next week or tone it back down. Ugh! I feel like I am making progress....everything is in sync at the moment..good eating and good exercise. :)

I really have a sister

Remember when I wrote about the day I got a tattoo and what an eventful day it was for me and I couldn't say why...well now I can. I met my 37 year old half sister, Tamara the same day I got my first tattoo.

I have known my whole life that I had a sister out in the world. However, I never thought I would get the chance to meet her. I won't go into all the details of why but I will say that she is my dad's daughter. My dad was only married to her mom for a very short time right before he met my mom. Tammy's mom met someone else right away and she "forced" my dad to give up his rights to her. He did and never saw her or talked to her again until weeks ago. If facebook been around 20 years ago I might have gotten the chance to know her then. However, I know this is how it was supposed to be. Everything has gone so smoothly so far.

I also have another nephew. His name is Jax and he is the same age as Lydia.

This is us meeting for the first time. We met for lunch at red robin in Tacoma before I got my tattoo. She got our dad's height. She is 5'10". She is slouching:)

Tammy's son Jax is pretty tall too! She told me his dad is 6'6"

The next two pictures are from 2 weeks ago when she came to Laila's soccer game.


We are still getting to know each other but we are emailing back and forth quite a bit. I think I am still in shock that my sister is in my life after all these years. I'm lucky she lives close enough that we can get together and my kids will get to know their cousin Jax.

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: "play me that song" Brantley Gilbert


#2 watching: I went and saw divergent last night with my friend. I didn't know much about it and thought it would just be ok. I was pleasantly surprised though. I definitely plan on reading the books now.


#3 reading: nothing


#4 eating or drinking: This has been a good week for eating healthy. My only real indulgence was getting kettle corn at the movie yesterday.


#5 goal: I didn't have any goal other than to keep with the running and I did...I feel like I am getting in the groove again and am not cursing under my breath anymore every morning I step outside for my run :)

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: "sweater weather" by the neighborhood. I kept hearing this song on the radio but never caught who the artist was. On one of my runs this week it came on pandora and was able to see who it was. I love love this song but when I went to check out their other songs I was so disappointed. :( but..I still love this song.


#2 watching: becoming obsessed with LA Ink.


#3 reading: nothing


#4 eating or drinking: Brad's birthday was wednesday so I made him a peanut butter cup icecream cake.


#5 goal: Brad had the whole week off so I decided to take advantage of that and run every morning this week. There were definitely mornings I did not want to run but I am feeling great. I will be sad when I can't run every morning next week but I will try and force myself out the door when Brad gets home from work.

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: "say something" by a great big world


#2 watching: two nights ago Brad and I watched 21 and over off netflix. We wanted comedy. I laughed a few times but probably won't ever watch it again.


#3 reading: still haven't bought divergent...still thinking about it though


#4 eating or drinking: Last night I made pb pancakes for dinner. It is my ultimate comfort food. They are very rich though so you can't eat many


#5 goal: I wanted to eat better while I was running during the week...although pancakes for dinner isn't the best...I didn't eat any candy this week. That is huge for me!

I got my tattoo

Yesterday was one of the biggest days of my life!! Not quite as big as my wedding or the births of my children but probably next in line. I wish I could lay it all out there. Soon...I can talk all day about my tattoo though. I am not going to pretend like things went off without a hitch and that I am a total badass! (unfortunately) I had been a nervous wreck from the time I woke up in the morning and I think that took a major toll on me. First on the agenda was the event I can't talk about. I will say that it went amazingly and once that part of the day over I could breathe easy for a few minutes. Brad and I both got tatoos but I decided I had to go first and get it over with. I knew it would make it worse sitting there waiting.

We walked into the shop about 15 minutes early and I immediately began to sweat. We were the only ones there with appointments and Oz was all ready for us. My adrenaline was pumping in full force for a good 15 minutes before he even touched me with a needle..prepping the outline that they put on your body first and tattoo over. My fears were mostly of the unknown and wondering if I could handle that kind of pain for an hour. I went into this thinking I was going to be able to lay on a table and just zone out and pretend I was getting a massage...hahaha. Unfortunately, picture this...straddling a chair and bending over the front of it with your feet not able to be completely flat on the ground. It was not comfy whatsoever and then because I was so nervous I forgot to breathe. The initial pain wasn't even that bad but it was worse than I imagined. I think that I was so wound up and waiting for it to hurt worse that I wasn't breathing like I should have been. After about 10 minutes I looked over to Brad and told him I was going to pass out. I felt like all the blood had left my head and I was sweating buckets. Oz was super nice about it and told me to take my time and remember to breathe. Once the color came back to my face we continued and it went smoothly. The worst parts were the beginning outline of the hammer where it really did feel like he was dragging a knife across my back and shading right on my spine. It took just just under an hour. My friendly advice for people who are thinking of getting a tattoo are as follows; don't tattoo your spine, breathe as normal as possible, and don't tattoo your spine:)  I love my tattoo. I think Oz does amazing work and I would do it again if I ever found something I wanted enough.

Brad's tattoo took twice as long as mine. His had way more intricate lines. I always like watching Brad get tattooed. I think its entertaining to watch someone try and be unaffected. I could tell exactly when he was in pain though. Brad's eyes would get wide and he wouldn't blink. Here is Brad's

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: "I never told you" Colbie Caillat


#2 watching: My best friend and I got together and watched the One Direction movie yesterday. I am not even ashamed!


#3 reading: I am thinking about reading the divergent series. I am a big fan of young adult fantasy so it seems like it would be something I like. although, it seems it might be too out there..because of course vampires are not far fetched at all right?


#4 eat or drinking: Last night I made pesto chicken pizza from scratch. It's my expertise.


#5 goal: Sunday is a very very big day for me for a couple reasons. One I am not ready to share even though hardly anyone reads my blog, but ya never know. The second one is that I am getting my tattoo!!! ahhh! I feel sick just thinking about it. However, the thing I am not ready to share makes me want to pass out so tattoo is not as big of a deal as it could have been. So if anyone reads this please pray for me...seriously..

Friday Five

#1 listening to on repeat: I never want to just make something up on here because this is for future Liz to look at. I have shared my love for Ed Sheeran on here many times but lately I have been listening to some songs he wrote for one direction. My favorite is "moments"


#2 reading: nothing


#3 watching: There is literally nothing on worth watching


#4 eating or drinking: When I wasn't snacking on jelly beans I was eating carrots and celery to balance it out:)


#5 goal: my goal was to get back in the routine of running and eating healthy. Running this week went well..eating well did not!! We are having friends over tonight and I am making icecream sandwhiches for dessert.

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat:  "hearts on fire" by Passenger and Ed Sheeran


#2 watching: nothing


#3 reading: nothing


#4 eating or drinking: I started drinking lemon water this week. I have always heard that it is supposed to boost metabolism and the immune system. It also makes drinking water less boring.


#5 goal: I haven't been able to run this week because Lydia is on winter break and we have had something going on every night when Brad gets home from work. Soo instead I have been doing planks. I have just started off with a minute. I have been doing this twice with other ab exercises.

Friday Five

#1 listening to on repeat: "whatever she's got" by David Nail


#2 watching: I started to watch the Tudors this week on netflix. I have always been a sucker for movies and shows based on history. This particular show centers around Henry the eighth. Going in I knew there would be violence and scandal but after one episode found out it wasn't for me. Soo now I need a new series.

#3 reading: nothing


#4 eating or drinking: what haven't I eaten this week?? This has been a tough week for my family with putting our Leo down so I have definitely been trying to eat my feelings away.


#5 goal: Not lose my mind..how is that for a goal?

Goodbye Leo

Super Bowl was an exciting day in our household minus one thing. Our Loving lab of 4 years, Leo bit one of our friends kids noses. It basically punctured his nose and caused it to bleed on the outside and inside. It was hard to tell how bad it was so our friends took him to the ER just to be safe. Luckily, he didn't need any stitching or glue. Unfortunately, they had to file a report. Brad and I were sick about it even though we knew he was going to be ok. Two days later Brad received a call from animal control asking if this was the first time Leo had bit anyone. Part of me wishes he would have lied and said no. Brad didn't blatantly lie but he did say "I am not comfortable answering that." Leo has nipped one of Lailas friends and has given Landon a bruise on his nose by nipping. This was the first time he broke skin. They called Brad the next day again to tell him that Leo was now listed as a dangerous dog. A dangerous dog? I have been Leo's human since Brad brought him home 4 years ago and I reluctantly grew to love him and refer to him as my protector. I was frustrated when I first heard this but didn't realize exactly what this meant until later in the day when Brad called me crying. He told me that because Leo is listed as a dangerous dog we could have felony charges pressed against us if Leo were to bite again. Ever been in a situation where you know what the right thing to do is but at the same time it feels wrong to do it? This is how I feel. Brad and I both knew that we had to let them put him down. Leo isn't sick and he has been the best dog to our family. I keep wishing I could reason with him and tell him to stop biting. Brad has talked to many people in the last week that have said we are doing the right thing. That chances are he is just going to keep escalating. The worst part of this has been that even after we made our decision we weren't allowed to put him down yet. The state law after a dog bites is that they have to be quarantined for 10 days. This means they aren't allowed around other dogs so no going to the vet. So we have to feed and love on a dog for the last 10 days knowing it's about to end. The first couple days I had it in my head that I was going to just ignore him the best I could so it wouldn't hurt. After a couple days I realized I would be upset with myself later if I didn't love on him as much as I could.

Tomorrow is the big day. Brad is getting off work a little early and we have one last walk with Leo over to Shelton veterinary clinic. Tonight we told the kids. I had been dreading this and it was horrible like I had expected. The only saving grace was that they weren't angry with us like we thought they might be.  Laila and Landon took it the worst as you could imagine. Lydia was just concerned with not having a dog..she wanted to know when we could get another one already. I guess that is a 4 year old for ya. I am glad that Laila and Landon may have some memories of him when they are older. Tomorrow is going to be rough when we have to say our last goodbyes. I wish it were sunglasses weather.

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: Katy Perry "Dark Horse"


#2 reading: nothing


#3 watching: I am going to see Vampire Academy in the theater tonight. I read the books which I really liked but based on the previews the movie looks like crap. However, I need out of the house so I'm going on a best friend date with dinner and a movie.


#4 eating or drinking: skittles skittles and more skittles! I am surprised I don't have rainbow pee.


#5 goal: get out of my funk from being sick...I was not specific about this goal at all but today I vacuumed for the first time in a month!!

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: "small bump" by Ed Sheeran


 #2 watching: I have been having trouble falling asleep lately so we have been watching the office in bed at night.


#3 reading: nothing


#4 eating or drinking: haven't had much of an appetite this week. I did get an amazing turkey wrap from fred meyer today for lunch. It's really not that amazing..I could make it just as easily. It is just turkey, lettuce, cream cheese and cranberry jelly in a wrap.


#5 goal: figure out what the heck is wrong with me?? I went to the doctor again on tuesday. I still have swollen glands that hurt and a low grade fever. This is 3 weeks now. She still doesn't know what to make of it so she got me antibiotics. I am on day 4 and don't feel like I am getting any better. Blood tests will be the next thing for me to do next week.

Friday Five

#1 song on repeat: "Gravity" by Sara Bareilles


#2 watching: we watched the big NFC championship game last sunday and the only other things I have watched have been football highlights and interviews


#3 reading: nothing new


#4 eating or drinking: I got to eat at one of my favorite places this week after Lydia's dentist appointment. I wanted to get her a smoothie so we went to Panara and I got a cup of their broccoli cheese soup. YUM!!!


#5 goal: This week I really had no goal in mind. It was a very busy week and nothing seemed to go smoothly.

Scary mommy moment No. 1345

      I took Laila into the pac lab first thing this morning for a fasting blood test. In december she started not feeling well. It all started when she fainted at school and ever since has been complaining of headaches and shakiness. Last week she had some testing done which all came back normal. They decided on a fasting blood test just to be sure. I think they were worried about her blood sugar based on symptoms. This was also one of my main concerns.

      Laila has never been the best with anything medical or pain. She has had to be restrained at doctors offices before for shots. I had Landon and Lydia with me this morning as well as Maddie, a friend of the family that I watch in the mornings and drop off at school with my kids. I didn't want to make Laila more tense by bringing everyone back with her so we waited in the waiting room while they took her back. We could hear Laila cry a little and then 30 seconds later it was quiet. I had just started to think phew we did it when one of the techs flung the door open and says something like "come back please, Laila just went out" As soon as I walk into the room I see my girl looking the weirdness shade of green I have seen a person look and she was shaking. I sit down in the chair next to her fast enough to see her eyes close again and I catch her as she passes out again. She kept saying "what happened"  and "I feel weird". My poor girl. I did my best at calming her down because she seemed so freaked out she was holding her breath. They gave her some juice and I watched as her color started coming back to a normal shade.

     After about 20 minutes we all had her laughing and I gave her a piggy back ride out to the car. I went by mcdonalds for a large OJ and a breakfast sandwhich hoping once she ate she would be ok for school. I told her if she wasn't 100 % I didn't want her going. She ended up being ok but I have been pretty much a mess all day worrying about her. I called the doctor to let them know what happened and they told me they would get back to me. I really hope today was just a bad case of nerves and not eating. I have heard there are people who just can't take needles. I am hoping that is the case. *sigh* who knew a person could be so wiped out just a couple hours into the day?

Friday Five

#1) listening to on repeat: "I knew you that way" Luke Bryan


#2) reading: "Mystery Man"


#3) watching: Real Rob report you tube videos.


#4) eating or drinking: Too much junk food this week. We had pizza hut one night for dinner and I have had mcdonalds for lunch twice...yes you read that right TWICE!!


#5) goal: feeling cruddy this week so I have been in survival mode. no goals.

Probably just viral

"probably just viral" is one of my least favorite phrases a doctor can use. This is what I was told yesterday at the doctors. I have had a swollen lymph node on my right side for 3 days. I am used to swollen glands but this one is driving me crazy. .I try to ignore it but I feel so much pressure in my neck I feel like i'm being choked. I made an appt in hopes they would give me something...I am one of the least likely of people to take medicine for no reason but I wanted antibiotics to make me feel like I was going to get better. I even found out I have a slight fever but unfortunately they want me to wait another week before getting any medicine. I haven't done much the last few days but sit and read and try and be comfortable. I did run yesterday and am contemplating going tonight for a short run.

Friday Five

#1) song on repeat: Imagine Dragons "Demons"


#2) Watching: I feel like I never watch tv anymore at all. Last weekend Brad rented a couple movies for us though...lets see...they were "We are the Millers" and now my mind is completely blank. I know it was one I wasn't that excited about..must be why I can't remember it. oh I know now..."Two guns" with Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg

#3) reading: nothing


#4) eating or drinking: I have tried to make drinking water my mission in life. When I run I sweat ALOT and often get headaches almost immediately after finishing. Soo...didn't want to take any chances getting dehydrated.


#5) goal: run every day this week(mon-fri) Done!!

A Whole Year without pop!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't even count how many people I have seen post about trying to quit drinking pop lately on facebook. That was me last year. I will be honest and say that I wasn't too confident at the time that I would be able to keep away from the darn stuff. I am a self proclaimed sugar addict in fact. I can't say now that I really even remember times of struggling much without it. I am sure there were, however a year later I don't miss it at all! The only time I remember even questioning why I was doing this was when I would get together with people or go to a restaurant and their drinks looked way more fun than my clear liquid. Yes, I know I sound like a baby and yes, I know there is always tea. However, I have tried for years to like tea but it just doesn't do anything for me. Now that I have rambled on I just wanted to say that for whoever reads this...it make take a long time to get over pop..maybe even a year...but one year later and I am pretty sure I could live a life time without it now. :)

New Running Play List

 Imagine Dragons- "It's time"

Eminem- "The Monster"

Timbaland- "The way I are"

Pitbull- "give me everything"

Trey songz- "bottoms up"

Good Charlotte- "I don't wanna be in love"

Eminem- "til I collapse"

Jason Derulo- "the other side"

Ellie Goulding- "lights"

One Direction- "Best song Ever"

Friday Five

#1) listening to on repeat: All of Ed Sheeran's music. He is my new favorite artist. He is an awesome musician as well as singer. My favorites right now are "Give me Love", "I see fire", "Drunk"  and "Kiss me"


#2) watching: watching more of "Alt for Norge", the reality tv show I talked about last friday.


#3) reading: nothing


#4) eating or drinking: Loving those mandarin oranges that are the best around Christmas time


#5) goal: have fun with my kids.

We still LOVE target

This year for Christmas the kids each got their own 50 dollar gift card to target from their great grandparents. They had a lot of fun picking out what they wanted. I admit it was hard for me to give up control and just let them pick what they thought would make them happy. Lydia was able to get 2 Equestria girls to go with her rainbow dash one that I bought her for Christmas. Landon picked out a minecraft pick ax and a battery operated torch. Laila had the hardest time picking out something and I tried to convince her to just wait if she didn't want anything. I cringed when she decided to buy one of those fur real friends cats. It purrs and moves and that's about it!!



                                                   We never go to target without getting Icees.