110,263

Thanks for all the safe miles! So much has happened since I bought you! I've gotten married, had a baby, quit my job and had another baby. While you were a great car, that got me from point A to point B efficiently and with good gas mileage our family no longer fits in you . As a matter of fact, if we kept you, we'd probably get hired on by the local circus as the clown family in the clown car. As much as I'm going to miss you, the first car I bought brand new, the first car I bought without a co-signer it's time for you to go to its second home. I know you are going to see lots more miles and be well taken car of. Please take good care of your new passenger like you took care of me!

This is why your donations are so important!

This article gives so many families of children with Angelman Syndrome so much hope. To even imagine that someday I might hear my beautiful boy say "I Love You Mommy and Daddy" or even just "Hello!" The money that we raise through the walk-a-thon funds research like this. It gives all of us more hope. Also, to know that it may not be a developmental problem but a biochemical issue makes me believe that treatment may not be that far off. What an amazing miracle that would be!
The original article can be found in the Spectrum Magazine here.

A "Long Shot" Pays Off
Grandmother’s Alzheimer’s leads scientist to a major breakthrough in Angelman Syndrome
By Elizabeth McBreen

As a research scientist, Edwin Weeber, Ph.D., never thought he would be in a position to receive fan mail. Weeber, who is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Southern Florida (USF), has spent his graduate and post-graduate career conducting research on Angelman syndrome (AS). After 10 years of research and testing, he has discovered how to reverse the deficits of the disorder in mice.
Angelman syndrome, first discovered in 1965 by an English doctor, Harry Angelman, is a disorder that causes severe developmental delays, impedes speech and motor coordination. Other symptoms such as seizures and microcephaly affect about 80 percent of patients, according to the Angelman Syndrome Foundation Web site (www.angelman.org). Not evident at birth, AS is generally diagnosed after the age of 3 years. Relatively rare, AS affects between 1 in 15,000 and 1 in 30,000 people, and it is common for patients to exhibit some of the same earmarks as autism. These can include hand flapping and a short attention span. Although the two disorders can present similar symptoms, Weeber says that AS is considered more severe in nature.
Weeber started out as a graduate student studying microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine in Texas. Because his grandmother was suffering from Alzheimer’s at the time, he was drawn to research of the brain, specifically learning and cognitive ability. Weeber began working with David Sweatt, Ph.D., who was conducting cognitive studies in his lab. While working in Sweatt’s lab, Weeber became particularly interested in the hippocampus, a part of the brain that plays a role in memory. Down the hall from Sweatt’s lab, another researcher was studying AS in mice models. “Angelman syndrome is a maternal imprinted disorder and there are no expressions of it in some parts of the brain – one of these is the hippocampus. So instead of studying random things in the hippocampus, I decided to study Angelman syndrome,” says Weeber.
Prior to Weeber’s studies, most of the research that had been conducted on AS had been genetic. The gene that carries the disorder was identified in 1997. Abnormal function in this gene, UBE3A, had been targeted as a possible cause for the disorder. UBE3A is a gene that is imprinted on the brain, meaning that the body knows what part of the gene is maternal and what part is paternal. “We get half of all of our genes from our mother and half from our father. The deletion or mutation of the mother’s gene causes AS,” says Weeber. Interested in the biomedical aspects of the disorder, he began studying enzymes and proteins in the brain that work with this gene. Weeber would make his groundbreaking discovery while working in his own lab at Vanderbilt University.
As he worked with his mice models from Baylor, Weeber discovered that he could reverse the effects of AS by regulating a particular enzyme, CaMKII. CaMKII is “an enzyme that is essential for learning and memory, as well as normal motor learning. We found that one of the biological abnormalities in AS mice was reduced CaMKII activity. It was known that reduced CaMKII activity results in neurological deficits. Thus, we concluded that regulating CaMKII in the mice may reverse their neurological deficits,” says Weeber. When Weeber tested his theory by crossing mice with AS and mice with a mutation that caused them to retain their CaMKII activity, the resulting offspring had no AS symptoms. The seizure activity, mental retardation and problems with motor coordination all disappeared in the mice models. These results caused Weeber to conclude that the deletion or mutation of the maternal part of the UBE3A gene caused reduced CaMKII activity, resulting in AS.
Weeber says that when the activity of CaMKII enzyme is regulated, the deletion of the maternal part of the UBE3A gene is corrected. He adds that this enzyme is not produced until after the mice are born. This may also be the case in humans. Weeber says that this conclusion is an important when it comes to the treatment of AS. “This suggests that AS is not developmental in nature, but rather biochemcial. In other words, the brain appears to be wired correctly, but the change in CaMKII activity prevents the proper communication between the neurons in the areas of the brain where maternal UBE3A imprinting occurs.”
Six months ago, Weeber, his wife and their son moved to Florida. The couple has since welcomed a new daughter to the family, and Weeber has taken the position as Associate Professor at USF. Weeber and his wife, who has a Ph.D. in neuroscience, feel that a move to USF is a natural progression because the school is known for its work in cognitive studies. At USF, Weeber will pursue therapeutic approaches for AS patients. The results found in Weeber’s mice models were obtained through genetic engineering, and so this method is not applicable to humans. He says that one of the approaches for treating AS in humans could be a pharmacological one that would modulate CaMKII. Another possibility is adeno-associated virus (AAV). Weeber explains that this is a method for introducing foreign genes in neurons of the central nervous system. AAV can be used to either introduce CaMKII with the same mutation that was used to rescue the AS mice, or introduce a UBE3A gene that would take the place of the deleted or mutated maternal UBE3A gene. Weeber plans to begin researching the use of AAV to treat AS in the next six months.
While Weeber’s discovery has many positive implications for AS patients, it could also be good news for people with autism. He says that while AS patients and autistic people look very different, there are genetic similarities. “Future research may in fact find a relationship between changes in UBE3A and autism,” says Weeber. Other disorders having to do with cognitive function may also benefit from his research. For now, parents of AS children are celebrating Weeber’s work. Terry Jo Bichell is a Visiting Scholar at Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development and the mother of a nine-year-old boy with AS. Bichell took a position at Vanderbilt not long after Weeber’s article was published. “I suddenly realized that concentrating on a cure for AS was not a pie-in-the sky day dream, but a real possibility,” says Bichell. “Now it feels like the answer lies just beyond a flimsy curtain. It is almost in sight.”

For more of this article please subscribe to Spectrum today

Again, thank you so much for your support of Little J. Donations still can be made at Little J's fundraising page.

A Princess Freak Out!

Since we're talking about the Adventures of a Pitiful Princess, I thought now was a good time to share what cartoon freaks this little princess out and which will stop her from crying on a dime.

This cartoon will have Princess J screaming in fear, as if Jack the Ripper has entered the room. This show on Noggin Oobi must be turned off immediately. Princess J freaks out every time they appear on the television screan.






This Cartoon, Yo! Gabba! Gabba! will stop the tears instantly. It will also generally make her feel better when she's sick. This, somehow does not freak her out. I must admit that the first time I watched it with Little J I was a little freaked out, but DJ Lance Rocks, Foofa, Muno, Brobee, Tutti and Plex have grown on me. Kind of funny that Biz Markie has found new uses of his beat boxing skills on this program occasionally as well.

The Adventures of a Pitiful Princess.....

Our poor Princess J had a horrible night last night......of course she did, because mommy had some scrapping plans on Friday! Anyway, Princess J spiked a fever at about 7pm of 101. again. We gaver her some tylenol and she ate and drank her bottle and fell asleep. This poor little girl was up every 45 minutes to an hour all night! She was just miserable. Her fever came down and hovered in the 99 to 100.3 range until morning, but nothing would console this wee little one. I felt so bad for her, all she wanted to do was get comfortable and sleep, but it was just not happening. When she finally gave up trying to sleep and decided she might as well watch cartoons, she just looked miserable. Her poor little eyes were all watery, her nose was just drenched in snot and she's got bags packed under her eyes that could hold every outfit she owns (and that's a lot, if you hadn't guessed). You might think looking at this photo that she's smiling, but she's not. That is here melodramatic look for....."Look Lady, that's not whatI want, you don't have what I want, so until you have what I want, leave me the freak alone (as she uses her hand to shove whatever item or person is in it's wake out of the way)!

We took her to the pediatrician, this morning and there is no ear infection, no strep throat....and no magic pill to make her all better! She finally slept for an 1 1/2 hours this morning, but has been grumpy (I would be too) all day long. I got everything set to go to my scrap night, set Daddy up with all the kids food put together and ready to go, Little J's medications and suppliments and headed out to have a little girl time. About 2 hours in, G calls me, and Princess J is not happy and had spit out part of her motrin. I felt so bad, that he was having a rough time, and that Princess J was so unhappy, that I just had to come home. When I got home, G had just changed her and we let her walk around in her walker for about 15 minutes. She drank her milk (and then in a perfect world, this is where she would fall asleep) and she wanted to go in her play pen. She has this routine in her play pen, that if she's thinking about being tired and napping, she will start getting all the toys out by throwing them out of the play pen. Tonight, she decided she didn't want the toys in there and started handing them to me to put away. One by one, all of the toys were removed in this manner. Poor thing kept laying down trying to get comfortable, but it was not working. Mommy walking around holding her was not working, mommy rocking her was not working, laying her in our bed propped up (so the snot wouldn't block her nose) was not working, daddy trying to cuddle her was not working..............so, I resorted to the one thing I never thought I would do.......I loaded this kid up in her car seat and drove her around. When I first put her in the seat, she was screaming like a banshee, but once we got moving I think she was asleep before we hit the stop sign that exits our neighborhood. I drove about 5 miles in a perfect square through town and (knocking on wood right now) Princess J has been asleep for 2 1/2 hours in her carseat! She's squeeked a few times, but gotten right back to sleep. Let's hope this keeps up and she sleeps through for a few more hours at least. Sleep is, what I think she needs most to feel better.

On another note: I really want to thank everyone for their wonderful support of our family after the letter I posted about Little J the other day. So many people have generously donated to support him in the walk-a-thon. To each and every one of you, I am so grateful! If you didn't get a chance to read the letter, you can find it HERE.

If you would like to make a donation to support Little J in the walk-a-thon you can do so at Firstgiving-Team Punkypants. I guess I'll have to tell you how the nickname Punkypants came along someday too........

Okay, time for this tired mommy to try and get some rest.....

Pitiful Princess

In case you cannot tell by the photo, Princess J is not having a good day. Poor little thing is sick with a terrible cold! I knew yesterday she was going to be sick later in the evening, because while we were having Starbucks with my aunt, she wanted nothing to do with her snacks and she was throwing a major temper tantrum! When this little one does not feel good, she makes sure that everyone and I mean everyone knows about it. Last night we took her temperature before dinner and it was at 101.3. We gave her some tylenol and she slept in her own room until about 11:30pm. After that she came to sleep in her playpen in mommy and daddy's room. At about 3 am she woke up very cranky, I gave her some more tylenol and then decided I would change her as well. When I took off her blanket sleeper, poor little one had sweated through the front of her jammies (she sleeps on her tummy). We got her all changed and took her temperature, it was back up to 101.0 and this was about 1/2 hour after the tylenol. Thank goodness for Nick Jr. On Demand! She layed in bed with mommy and we watched 2 episodes of Yo! Gabba! Gabba!, she gave mommy a fat lip and then she went back to sleep. I don't think she really wanted to get up this morning, but we had to take brother to school. Once she was in her car seat, she was asleep again until almost 11 am. She's kept her temperature down this afternoon, but that poor little nose is running in overdrive. She's still miserable. It breaks my heart to see this sad little pouty face.

Walking to Raise Awareness for Angelman Syndrome

Dear Friends and Family,
As many of you know on May 1st 2006, our beautiful son Litte J was diagnosed with Angelman Syndrome. For those of you who don't know, Angelman Syndrome is a rare neurologically based genetic disorder. It is believed to occur in 1 in every 15,000 to 20,000 births. It is often misdiagnosed as Autism, Cerebral Palsy or other childhood disorders. There are a few diferent causes of this disorder. The type that Joshua has in simplistic terms is that there is a small portion of his 15th chromosome missing. This is the most common type of this disorder with 70% of children having it in this manner. This type is also generally not hereditary. With Princess J, although we had her tested, we had a 1% risk of her having it. The same as any other pregnancy in anyone. Some challenges faced by patients with Angelman Syndrome are developmental delay, profound speech impairment, movement and balance disorder, ataxia, short attention span, hyperactivity, sleep disturbance, and siezures. Little J has many of these symptoms, but not all of them. One symptom that many of the patients with AS have is a very happy demeanor. Little J definately has this! Thank goodness!

While this was not the journey we had planned for our family, we are so blessed to have Little J. His challenges make for a lot of work and effort on his and our part, but he is such a sweet joy to have around. He never ceases to amaze us with his progress, his abilities, and his determination to accomplish things. Currently Little J sees many amazing professionals to help with his care and progress. We cannot begin to thank these people enough. Dr. H. has been a godsend to us since Little J's birth and diagnosis. Her support and care for Little J and her direction to amazing other support professionals has been wonderful. She has directed us to others with great knowledge of Angelman Syndrome, and who are strong advocates for Little J and his needs.

Two years later, things are so different for us now. Little J is still the same amazing boy, but making so much more progress everyday. Today, we don't feel as devistated by his diagnosis, but blessed. This doesn't mean that days are not hard, or that some days we don't have a mini pity party for ourselves, or wish that he didn't have Angelman Syndrome, but we know in the grand scheme of things we are very blessed and lucky to have this little boy. He is an absolute joy to be around. We have never seen this kid wake up on the wrong side of the crib. If you need a smile, a hug or a big wet kiss, he has one for you. Little J makes friends with everyone anytime we go to the grocery store...or anywhere else for that matter.

Little J has made much progress in the last year. He started school in December and loves it. He loves being around and interacting with the other children in his class. He is showing much progress in his physical capabilities. His therapists think he is well on his way to walking, it's just going to take a little more confidence and body awareness, but we are working on this daily. Little J has a high receptive vocabulary and definately understands what he's hearing. He is working on communication skills and will be evaluated for an augmented communication device soon. Simple tasks like turning on a light switch and such require much thought and concentration on his part, but he is doing it!

The reason I am writing you today, is on May 17th our family will be participating in the Angelman Syndrome walk-a-thon. The purpose of this walk is to raise awareness for Angelman Syndrome and to raise money for the Angelman Syndrome Foundation (ASF) which provides support for families as well as funding for research programs. Little J is currently participating in two studies at UC San Diego funded by the ASF. He is participating in a natural history study as well as a vitamin suppliment study. With awareness and money being raised, we hope to someday find a cure or treatment for those affected by this rare and not so well known syndrome. We are hoping that you will be able to support us in this endeavor. If you would like to donate, you can either go to Little J's walk-a-thon page and make an online donation or you can contact us to send a check. Your donation is tax deductable too!

We would also welcome anyone who would like to attend the walk with us. We have created Little J's team Team Punkypants and anyone who loves and supports Little J is welcome! Contact me for details.

We thank you in advance for your support.

Take Care,
Laurie, G, Little J and Princess J

Please Pray!

Today I received the heartbreaking news that fellow Angel Ashley Williams has passed away. She was rushed to the hospital in Birmingham Alabama on Sunday after choking on a peanut butter sandwich. She went into cardiac and respitory arrest. She was on life support until last night when the family removed it. Please pray for Ashley's family in the days and weeks ahead that they might be comforted.

As a mommy, I cannot even begin to imagine losing a child, my heart is just breaking for them.

Let's Go to the Park (and Happy Tax Day)!

Since Little J was a school this morning, and we are not scrambling to get our taxes done, we decided to take Princess J and check out a park that we've never been to before. Since it was about midway between our house and Little J's school, we headed over there about an hour before we had to pick him up. If you can't tell from the photos, she loved the swings! We didn't stay very long, because it was a small park and about 15 minutes after we got there it started filling up and it was a little chilly. I think she got plenty of playtime though, because as soon as we pulled away from the curb she was sound asleep.

Toddler Choices in the News....

I bet you didn't know you had to decide which gang your toddler will belong to did you? Seriously, I cannot believe this! I was directed to this link from
Renee's Blog

Here is the story:

COMMERCE CITY, Colo. -- A couple fighting about which gang their 4-year-old toddler should join caused a public disturbance that resulted in the father's arrest, Commerce City police said Thursday.

On Saturday, Joseph Manzanares stormed into the Hollywood Video store where his girlfriend worked, threatened to kill her and knocked over several video displays and even a computer, Commerce City police Sgt. Joe Sandoval said.

After he ran out of the store, police were called and the 19-year-old was arrested at his home.

His girlfriend told police that they had been arguing about the upbringing of their son and which gang he should belong to. The teen mother, who is black, is a member of the Crips. Manzanares is Hispanic and belongs to the Westside Ballers gang, the woman said.

"They have different ideas on how the baby should be raised. Basically, she said they cannot agree on which gang the baby would 'claim,'" Sandoval said.

Manzanares was charged with disorderly conduct, harassment, and domestic violence. He was transported to the Adams County Detention Facility.

On Tuesday, he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and was sentenced to a year of probation. The misdemeanor harassment charge was dropped.


See original story here.

I too am at a loss for words.....

Scrapbooking Gone to Wrong

Scrapbooking saleswoman linked to $170K in thefts

Karen McGates, 47, appears in a Washington County courtroom Tuesday. She is charged with stealing $170,000 worth of scrapbooking supplies.
By Thanh Tan and KATU Web Staff

HILLSBORO, Ore. – A Beaverton woman was arraigned Tuesday on charges she stole $170,000 worth of scrapbooking materials from craft stores and sold them from her home business.
Karen Sue McGates, 47, pleaded not guilty in Washington County court to charges of racketeering, first-degree theft and tampering with evidence.
She was licensed to run All About Scrapbooking & More from her home on Southwest Lisa Lane.
Beaverton police allege she and another woman accumulated a house full of illegal supplies during the course of about a year, between February 2007 and this month.
Police allege that both women made numerous visits to craft stores, where they would pay for a few dollars-worth of merchandise but leave with their purses stuffed full of stolen items, such as paper, scissors and stamps.
They mainly targeted Craft Warehouse stores in the Portland metro area but also hit Jo-Ann Fabrics and Michaels stores, police said.
The alleged accomplice is cooperating with police in the investigation and has not yet been named or charged.
McGates was arrested on Feb. 1 following an investigation into the thefts.

Crazy Silly Milestones can be SCARY!

This little boy is very mischevious! Today he mastered a new skill....almost to my horror though. Imagine a crazy busy day (ok, many of you mommy's out there don't have to imagine). You are driving along making good time to get to an appointment and you think you might actually arrive a few minutes early! Yay! You look back to check on your big kid in the back seat and notice that his passenger door is slightly ajar! OMG! We didn't close the door all the way. You try to remain calm as you slowly pull over to the side of the road (thanking God that your child is strapped into his car seat and hasn't figured out how to undo those straps and that you are not on the freeway). Your mother-in-law, who you are quietly thinking in your head didn't close the door all the way, gets out of the car and securly closes the door. As she's settling back in to her seat, your 3 year old reaches over and just opens the car door! Sure enough! Little J has mastered the art of opening the car door. As we started on our way again (now destined to be late) with the door locked, Little J continued to try and reopen the door. Thank goodness he hasn't mastered unlocking the car door! New car routine in effect now.........

1. Little ones strapped safely in car seats.-check

2. LOCK CAR DOORS! -check......you get the point now right! :D

I am so proud of this little munchkin! Always paying attention, always trying something new and always suprising us by showing off his new skills at sometimes not the safest moment. We took this photo a few weeks ago, but I love the fun "here comes trouble" look on his face!

Ken Lee - Bulgarian Idol (WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION)

I just don't know what to say except "tulibo dibu douchoo's...".

Reposted since the last one is no longer available.

Ken Lee - Bulgarian Idol (WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION)

I just don't know what to say except "tulibo dibu douchoo's...".

Learning to Ride A Bike and A New Kind of Talent!

Little J is learning to ride a bike! He loves it so much! We are going to work on adapting a bike for him at home too. He is just full of smiles (as usual) and giggles while riding around so proud of himself! Love it!

Something new Princess J has decided to do! Two binkies at one time while singing! :D

Someone is on her way to walking!!!!

Princess J took her first few unassisted steps today! She was in her playpen and walked across to get to me to be picked up!!!! She's been trying this for days! Usually, she puts one foot out and falls down...but not today! She was so excited and giggling with all the excitment that Mommy and Daddy were showing!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PRINCESS!!!

Our poor little princess is not feeling well today. She's a bit congested and just cranky. I had planned on taking some new photos of her today to mark her birthday, but why torture her when she's not feeling well. We took this photo yesterday, so for today it will have to do.

What an amazing gift from God and such a blessing in our lives this little girl is. She continues to amaze us with her big personality, sassy little attitude and her sweet little love. She's turning into a big hugger and sometimes you can get kisses when you ask! :D She is well on her way to walking....I swear she's gonna start running any day now.

Happy Birthday my sweet little princess! Mommy and Daddy love you bunches!

One Year Ago Today....

We were still anticipating the arrival of this little princess. We thought we still had a week to go before she came, but little did we know, we'd be meeting her the very next day. She has brought so much love and joy to us! She continues to amaze us with her little personality and all of things she is doing. I can't believe that tomorrow, this little baby, my little princess is already going to be a ONE YEAR OLD! It really does seem just like yesterday that I was anxious for her to arrive and heading to the hospital to have her. There are so many things that I'm going to miss about this last year, but I am so excited to see everything to come.

Happy Easter!!!

It was just a quiet family day here for Easter. Hope

everyone had a beautiful day.

The Easter Bunny Adventure!

Every year, I plan on taking care of the Easter Bunny pictures early. Every year, it never happens that way. It's always at the last minute and it's always an adventure. Last year, it was at the last minute because Princess J made her appearance a bit earlier than expected. This year, it was just a matter of timing and way too many things planned. This year, we also had to work around Little J's school schedule and his week of being sick. So, on Friday, we loaded up the car, with strollers and good clothes and headed over to the mall. We decided to get the kids dressed there, so that they would be less likely to make a mess of themselves during the walk from Nordstrom (because everyone knows they have the best (cleanest) changing facilities down the hall to the Easter Bunny. We checked the Easter Bunny schedule and it said they would take their break at 1:15, sweet! 25 minutes to spare! We get to the line and thankfully, there is only one other kid ahead of us. Our excitment was short lived though.....they decided to take their break early!!! Ugh!!! So, we talked to them and got them to let us be first when they came back without having to sit around in line. I had to take Little J's good shirt and sweater off and put his t-shirt back on, because that would have been a mess by the time 2pm rolled around. When 2pm rolled around we got Little J redressed and were ready to go! We let Princess J go first and she was not a happy camper. She was all smiles at the bunny when I was holding her letting her look at and touch his paws, but the minute I handed her off, she just stared at the bunny and then turned to the camera and started screaming! She did this off and on, stopping the screaming long enough to get another look at the bunny, and then back to screaming! Little J on the other hand, loved the bunny! He was so excited when he saw the bunny, he just started giggling with joy! We warned the Easter Bunny to hang on to his hands while they were taking the photo, since he had removed Santa's hat at Christmas! Little J was so good during the photo! He would look at the bunny and when we called to him, he would look at the camera and smile! All was good until the bunny let go of his hands.......Little J went for the bunny head......thankfully it was screwed on tight! LOL!!! The only other bump in the well laid plan was Little J's shoes! Mommy forgot the good shoes!!! Ugh!

Holy Cow! I Miss Food!

You don't know how much you love food, until you can't have what you want! Yesterday, I had to have 4 teeth pulled...Ugh! I will say, that I have the best oral surgeon ever though! My appointment was at 10 am yesterday, and I was done and home by 11 am! I thought for sure it would take longer. I can't believe how hungry I am though! I don't even normally eat breakfast or snack very much throughout the day, but all of the sudden, now that I have to just eat soft foods (mostly liquid), I find myself wanting everything under the sun! I can't believe that I have to go a full 7 days like this! I'm a little grumpy right now too, because I've had to go without my daily Starbucks too! Tomorrow though, I think I'm back on the Starbucks train though. Hopefully, that will make me happier! :D While I'm having my own pitty party right now, I'm going to list the foods I'm missing (most of which are sitting in m pantry or refrigerator calling my name)!! LOL!!

Lays BBQ Potato Chips
Girl Scout Thin Mints
Chinese Food
Hamburgers
Spaghetti
French Fries
Cupcakes (darn that Haley and Amy for tempting me with those!) :D
Apple Pie (darn that Uncle Joe and Auntie Karen for tempting me with those!) :D
Spicy Food!!!!!

Oh man, I just made myself hungrier than I was before! Thankfully, I did have a yummy milkshake tonight! :D Okay, go eat something yummy for me now!

TAGGED!

Krista tagged me!

Here’s the info:
Here are the rules…
Link to your tagger and post these 3 rules on your blog.
*Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
*Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
*Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Hmm......7 random facts...... Ok, so here goes, I've posted some of these random facts before though....

1. When buying books, I never take the book from the top of the pile....it must be a "virgin" book.

2. I don't like checking books out of the library, because they smell funny, and I'm always worried someone took it into the bathroom...eeewww (remember that episode of Seinfeld where George tries to return a book to Barnes and Noble, but it's been flagged that he took it into the bathroom?)

3. I watch at least 2 episodes of Friends everyday.

4. I love Korean Dramas.

5. I love being a Mom!!! It's the best job ever!

6. When I graduated from High School, I almost joined the US Coast Guard.

7. I hate wearing socks and flat shoes....I know I wear flip flops alot, but it's more of a convenience than what I like. :D

I'm tagging:

Island Jen
Kent
Lizz
and my lil' sis
Annie
and
Syliva

I know, I only tagged 5, but everyone else I think will complete the tag has already been tagged!

When Life Get's Crazy.....

Take some photos and forget about the craziness for awhile and just have fun! Princess J is such a HAM! Little J is still under the weather and his fever still hasn't broken. Thankfully, (knock on wood) he has not had any breakthrough seizures. He's still his happy little self, but he's obviously fighting some infection, since his fever is ranging between 99.9 and at it's highest 102.5. He continues to eat and play the same, just a bit of coughing and runny nose. Tomorrow, we are going to take him to the pediatrician to just have him checked out. We are hoping for a speedy recovery, as I know he misses his fun at school...and they told me they miss him too. When you have a sick kiddo in the house, it makes your plans for the week change. We had plans to get the kids their Easter finery for photos with the Easter Bunny and then actually visiting the Easter Bunny. We, finally got to the mall today to get the clothes. Princess J loved being hammy at the mall. As we walked in, she was waving at everyone with both hands and making sure that everyone heard that she had arrived. It ws so stinkin' cute! We finally found Princess J her Easter Dress as well as a dress for her birthday at Macy's. Why do I always forget to look there in the begining. They always have such cute stuff, and a lot of times it's on sale. Little J was a little harder to shop for, since he's getting to that age, where all the boy stuff just starts to look the same and it's not all that unique. We finally found him a cute big boy outfit at The Children's Place....along with a cute little coat to go with Princess J's birthday dress. I can't wait to get the photos done now!!!! I have to say, that today while we were shopping, the staff at the Children's Place was ON FIRE with their awesome customer service...and they were super friendly. Just thought I'd throw that out there.

On another note, why didn't I think of this? The Miche Bag....what a brilliant idea!!! Can't wait to start using it and switching up the look!

My Little Cupcake!

I have been on a photo taking palooza lately. This weekend and beginning of the week, I had all kinds of photo ops planned. Unfortunatley, Little J was not up to it after Sunday. Little J has been a bit under the weather, with what seems to be a sore throat, runny nose and a bit of a temperature. So, on Monday, I took Princess J out to the front yard and got some sweet pictures. She is just cracking us up with all of her peek-a-boo playing and waving. she waves at everyone and everything! Today, while G was out in the garage, she kept opening the door and closing the door to play peek-a-boo. The funniest thing now, is taking her to the grocery store. She likes to chit chat the entire time and wave at everyone....until they wave back at her, then she ducks her head down to play shy little mama. I love the photos here. Especially the one of her waving at Daddy. She wouldn't even look at the camera while she was watching Daddy and waving. The last one is my total photo ham! More Hammy!

A Couple More Silly Pictures

Just a couple more pictures to add to yesterdays post. I just love their smiles! If you didn't see yesterday's post, check out the photos!

Almost One Year.....

I cannot believe that this little girl is almost a one year old! It still seems like yesterday that she made her arrival. She is such a joy to have around....even with her sassy little attitude. She is doing so many things and trying new things everyday. She just amazes us. Currently her newest thing is standing up on her own without holding on. She is so proud of herself and even claps for herself. It is so stinkin' cute! Her favorite thing is to play peek-a-boo. She will pull that blanket up over her head and pull it down laughing excitedly the entire time. I think if given the opportunity, she would do it all day and night!

Grandpa and Grandma have been here for a couple of weeks now and Princess J is getting a little bit of spoiling from them.....she loves sitting and watching tv with Grandpa....he's a good cushion! Little J loves having Grandpa in the back seat with him. Whenever we go shopping, Grandpa and Little J sit in the car and nap together.




Princess J and I joined a new mommy meetup group. Last week, they had a meet at our local park, so we headed down to explore the park! Princess J loved every minute of it!!! This was really her first time to explore the park and get dirty. Since Little J is in school, it's a little easier to get out for a little while with her and let her do some exploring. It looks like they have a lot of great meetups planned, so hopefully we can work a few more into our schedule.

The first time she was on the swing, she tolerated it for a few minutes and then made it clear she wanted off. I let her play in the sand and crawl around and then she was ready for another go at the swing. This time she laughed her self silly with the wind in her face.


It's so nice that the weather is making weekends a fun time to be outdoors lately. Today was so beautiful, that before the kids and I headed out the door, I had to plop them on the grass and try to get a couple of shots of them together. You know how it goes with kids, when one smiles, the other looks away or closes their eyes. I love this one of Little J trying to pull Princess J's bow off of her head. She had just gotten done taking it off and mommy putting it back on. Just as soon as I walked away, Little J decided to try and help her cause and pull it off himself.


You may have noticed a firstgiving button on the side of my blog. This is another fundraising activity that we will be participating in to raise funds for the Angelman Syndrome Foundation. We will be walking in the walk-a-thon on May 17th in Sacramento. I'll put more information up as it gets closer. In the meantime, if you'd like to donate, we would greatly appreciate the support. If you would like to participate and walk with our team, we would love that as well!

Who Needs Toys?

Who needs toys, when you have metal bowls and wooden spoons to play with? Princess J has officially figured our how to open up the cabinets and grab everything. So, in order to avert her attention away from said cabinets mommy pulled out a metal bowl and wooden spoon for her to play with. She was in noise heaven! When given the choice of her regular toy or the wooden spoon, it was the wooden spoon that maintained her affections. When we tried to take the wooden spoon away the tears started flowing. I couldn't help but snap this photo of her playing with her new found favorites. So, with Princess J's 1st birthday quickly approaching, we're thinking maybe we should check out the new Martha Stewart pots and pans at Macy's.

Sailing Trip ***CANCELLED***

Sadly, we don't have a sailing trip to look forward to tomorrow. Mother Nature has other plans for the day. I am so disappointed for my little one, because I know the trip would have been so joyful for him. The trip will be scheduled for another day, but I'm still sad today.

NOOOOOOOOO!

If you know me, you know that I am a reality tv junkie. You also know that I am a Survivor junkie! I was so excited for this season, to see some of the favorites from past seasons hook it up and hopefully kick som boootay! I was also super excited that a local favorite was headed back to the Survivor camp. Yau-Man from Martinez, California was definately my favorite during his first season, and to see him back, I was hoping for a big win for him! Unfortunately, the favorites are not cleaning up like I had hoped. Sadly, because Cirie (who used to be a favorite of mine, but now I hope she leaves soon) is an idiot, my favorite survivor was sent home packing. So, now I have to pick a new favorite to root for this season. I'm stuck between Ozzy and James now. I guess for now, I'm just hoping that Cirie gets sent packing. Ugh!

Forestville?

Okay, so you've never heard of it. If you drove through it and blinked, you would probably have missed it. It's a small quaint little town with a few small businesses and very friendly people. The two biggest things in this town....at least all those many years ago.....the elementary school and the high school. Imagine my suprise this evening while watching the local news to hear the name of my high school and small podunck town where it's located in the first 11 minutes. It's sad, that this is why my alma mater made the news. It is a great school and I look back at my years there as fun times! Sometimes, I actually miss those days where my only responsibility was getting that English paper done! :D

Sonoma Co. Student Arrested For School Bomb Threat

CBS 5 CrimeWatch
FORESTVILLE (BCN) ― A student at El Molino High School in Sonoma County was arrested Wednesday on charges he emailed a bomb threat to his school on Tuesday.Sheriff's deputies Wednesday served a search warrant at a home on Harrison Grade Road, where they arrested the student and seized materials that could be used to build "destructive devices," although no actual bomb was found at the residence or school, authorities said.Knives, swords and replica firearms were also seized at the home.The email threat, sent anonymously, gave a specific date as to when the school would be bombed, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department.The sender used what county officials called a "hacker Web site" to hide identity and IP address. Property crimes detectives were able to identify the sender and where the message was sent from.The student's name was not released because the student is a minor.

Happy Valentines Day!!!

This was a year of firsts with Valentines Day. It was Little J's first year to exchange Valentines at school with his classmates. I'm sure that I was much more into it than he realized. Little J definately gave out the best Valentines! This was also Princess J's first Valentines Day! She was the cutest little one in her Little Gym class all dressed for Valentines fun! Here are a few photos from our day today, hopefully we'll get a few more tonight!

Someone Got a Haircut!

It's about time, that this little boy got a haircut! He was starting to look like a real mop! Daddy said extra short, so this is our new Little J! This last month for Little J has been crazy! Lots of 6 and 3 month check-ups, a few breakthrough seizures, that were cleared up quickly thanks to our wonderful neurologist and he brought home his first cold from school. He came through the cold fairly quickly and without too much trouble, but he did manage to pass it on to the rest of the family. I think poor Princess J got the worst of it.

In other exciting news, Little J is going to be going on his first sailing trip the weekend of February 23rd. We are so excited for this opportunity!

A local angel dad has become informally associated with Heart of Sailing Foundation. What could be more fun for a kid who loves water and wind!!! I think Little J will have a blast! As of right now all four of us are planning on going on the sail, but if the weather is too cold for Princess J, then just G and Little J will be taking the ride. I can't wait to photograph all the fun! Be on the lookout for those photos!!!

Lil' Miss Grumpy-Pants

Won't let me get a darn thing done. Princess J is Princess Grumpy Pants today. Actually, she's been grumpy since last night. Of course I should have totally expected that since I had a plan to scrap last night. No sooner had I sat down at the scrap table and opened my grungeboard pack, Princess Grumpy Pants was in full action. So, Michelle, I owe you coffee. I did start on my project, but there is no way I can finish it today....Princess Grumpy Pants said so!

A Challenge You Say?

So, after a Sunday of selling all of those scrap items that are just not getting any love to clear the clutter, what is the last thing on earth that you think I would do? Of course you didn't say buy anything new scrap related right? You said, run right out and replace the old stuff you got rid of with new stuff....right? I think it's impossible for me to say that I won't buy new scrap stuff. It's just simply unrealistic. What I have vowed to do, is to use the stuff. Today, I picked up a package of these sheets of grungeboard by Tim Holtz. It looked quite interesting and all of the sudden I got a few ideas floating around in my head. Well, in general, stuff like this is not really up my alley. It just looked interesting though. So, my challenge is to use the stuff! HA! While I was roaming the scrap store (Picture Me Perfect) with Michelle (who's blog I would share with you, but she never updates it!! LOL) and holding on to this package of grungeboard sheets, I decided that I would do something with this right away! My challenge is to use the grungeboard on something tomorrow and post it by sometime on Friday afternoon. If I succeed, then I get the satisfaction of using stuff that I bought, if I fail, then I have to spend more money by buying Michelle a Starbucks! Actually, I'll probably buy her a coffee even if I succeed. :D So, be on the lookout Friday for something grungeboard.....hopefully it will be spectacular, but don't get your hopes up! :D

Thank Goodness I'm Not Alone!

Today was our annual mechanics garage sale at Picture Me Perfect. Every few months, our mechanics team is able to use the store to sell off our unused treasures so they can go to good homes that will actually use them....or maybe add to their collections. I had not participated in the last few, and since moving my scraproom, I took the opportunity to go through everything. I can't believe all the stuff I have gotten over the years that have just gone unused. I had to be ruthless and just get rid of stuff, because it was taking over the house and just making me feel completely uncreative. I felt like a lunatic when I showed up with all my boxes full of stuff. Once I saw everyone else though, I felt a ton better! Thanks ladies! As you can see by the photos we had a ton of stuff. Everything from totes, stamps, paper, inks, tools...just anything scrapbooking and crafting that you could. I can't believe that all of this stuff belonged to only 8 girls. I got rid of a lot of stuff, but still have some things left over. I think with what I have left, I'm going to try to do an online garage sale on Craigslist.

Things that made me smile today!

Mornings are crazy around here, especially when our routine is thrown off a little. Today was one of those mornings! Little J had an appointment at 9:15 this morning, and then had to go to school a little late. Getting everyone ready and out the door to arrive anywhere on time is a challenge, but one we are getting used to. This morning was no different, anything that could challenge me and make the clock tick faster was happening and I was getting frustrated. It didn't help, that when I got in the car, it seemed that everyone was cutting me off left and right! Ugh...that's a whole other post. Anyway, as I got more frustrated, I told myself to take a deep breath and relax...and then it hit me! We recently bought the new Backyardigans CD Born To Play for the kiddos. Little J gets a kick out of the Backyardigans and enjoys the music. So anyway, as I was taking my deep breath and relaxing, I realized that I was actually singing all the words to the song "Almost Everything is Boinga". Holy heck! When did I learn all of the words to that! It made me smile and even a little giddy, that these cute little cartoon characters could sing such a catchy tune and not only make my Little J smile and laugh with joy, but that it would pass on to me as well!

So, in honor of the Backyardigans these are the things that made me smile today!

1. Realizing that I knew all the words to the "Almost Everything is Boinga" song and that I was singing it out loud!

2. My Venti Peppermint Mocha Frappacino with an add shot blended from our local drive-thru Starbucks!

3. Firecracker Chicken at Panda Express

4. The looney guy that opened the door for me at Panda Express and said "God Be With You" and when I thanked him and returned the sentiment, he said it was "Be Nice to Sinners Day"! ROFLOL!!! He jumped out of his chair whenever anyone was at the door and said the same thing to everyone who came in!!! HA! He was doing the same thing as people were leaving as well, so when I left, I told him that we better be nice to everyone then! :D

5. Seeing Little J's joyful smile when I picked him up from school!

6. All the random people who thought that G was giving me a ticket when he met me up at the school to pick up Little J!

7. My 1 1/2 hour nap this afternoon!

8. Watching Princess J running down the hallway in her walker! I must get a good picture of this so you can see! It is so stinkin cute! For anyone who has seen her favorite show Yo Gabba Gabba! She reminds of us Brobee (the little green one) with his hands waving in the air! :D

9. Both kiddos falling asleep with Daddy tonight! Free night for Mommy!

10. Knowing that I'll be unloading some scrap stuff at the garage sale on Sunday!!!! I'll post some details on that tomorrow for anyone that might be interested!

I've got issues!

Every week, it never fails. The week is just jam packed with things that need to get done. As if our weeks were not busy enough, there is always the added things that need to be dealt with. I was just checking over my "To Do List" and I have no idea how I will ever get it all done! There are a gazillion phone calls to make, a gazillion appointments to be made, not to mention the ones we already have. Just when I think I'm going to have a day to just get some of my "me stuff" done, I realize that we have some random appointment. How do I not just make an appointment for myself to do nothing? It seems like I try to spread the appointments around, but somehow they always end up one right after the other. Oy! Oh well, enough venting for now.........I just gotta get the stuff done.

10 Months!

I can't believe that Princess J is 10 months already! I know I say that every month, but it is so true. One thing I am trying to enjoy and savor is when she first falls asleep and sleeps with Mommy for a little while before going to her crib. It is so amazing watching her all day, just testing the waters and trying new things, and exerting all that energy. She is seriously a little explorer. She is everywhere and into everything. She's faster than a bullet train. She gets so tired, and you can see in her eyes that she is about to fall over from sleep, but she fights it kicking and screaming. One minute she'll be kicking, crying and arching her back, and the next she is peacefully asleep. It's amazing, that everytime I look at her, I almost can't remember life without her. It seems like she's been here forever, yet it's only been 10 short months. I say short months, because they seem to fly by faster than I can blink.

Princess J and Little J are interacting together so much now. They both are trying to steal eachothers binkies and whatever toy one has, the other wants. They are seriously like two peas in a pod right now. I love how they watch eachother trying new things. I love how Little J pays attention to Princess J when she's babbling. I love how they smile when they see eachother in the morning. They are both so stinkin' cute! I know I'm a little biased, but I am totally in love.

January brings...

Good and bad. We're only 26 days in to the new year and so far, January has brought:
Lots of rain
A major home expense
Little J's breakthrough seizures
Little J's anxiety about school for the first week back after spring break.
Little J's first cold brought home from school.
Princess J's first cold (thanks to big brother!)
Daddy's first cold of the new year
Mommy's first illness of the new year.
A new schedule for Little J. (school and therapy)
The Little Gym for Princess J!
New milestones for Princess J (clapping hands, pulling up to stand, cruising and Princess attitude)
A need for purging and cleaning.
A new scrap space for Mommy!
A need for some new furniture pieces.
Renewed relationships with my sorority sisters! (So thankful!)
A "to do" list 10 miles long for February!!!

Little Artiste!

Little J is officially a little artiste! He came home from school today with paint all over his hands and face (and they had cleaned him up) and this beautiful painting for our refrigerator.

Loving Bubbles!

I had to share this photo also! Princess J loves bubbles!

Little Gym Fun!

About 3 weeks ago, Princess J joined the Little Gym. Now that big brother is in school, we are trying to find fun things for Princess J to do. We started with the Little Gym. She loves it so much! Right now, she is the youngest one in her class, because it's the end of the fall semester. Most of the little ones are between 16 and 19 months. Although she is only 9 months old, we figured that she was close enough to 10 months to join the birds group. The new semester starts next week, so I'm sure there will be more little ones closer to her age. These extra 3 weeks has given her a chance to explore the environment and get comfortable. She loves it so much! Everytime it is time to leave she throws a complete temper tantrum including screaming and arching her back to try and wiggle herself out of your grasp. Thursdays we have to run a tight ship to get Little J to school and Princess J to her gym class, but it is so worth it to see how much fun she is having. She loves to check out the other kiddos in the class too. I'm sure she will be making lots of friends next semester! :D

SNOT!

As we swim our way out of the water, we've come to make a new friend around here. SNOT! Ugh! So, Little J brought home his first cold from school last week. We thought we were going to get lucky and that Princess J would get to skip this round. Unfortunately, she was not so lucky. Little J was just getting to the end of it, when late Saturday night, poor Princess J's nose was all stuffed up and running. She was completely miserable. Poor little thing could not sleep or get comfortable. Thank goodness for On Demand television. The only thing that calmed her down was Yo! Gabba Gabba! I think she has watched the sleep episode at least 100 times. Whatever keeps her happy though. Now mommy and daddy have the cold too. I have a lot of things on my "to do" list, but none of it seems to be getting done. I was prepared today to get a few things done, but poor Little J had a slight relapse and I had to go pick him up at school. They thought he was vomiting, but when I took him to the pediatrician, she said more than likely it was his sinuses draining out, and that made it look like he was vomiting. He doesn't have any ear infections, or red throat, or bronchitis, so it's just a virus that we have to ride out. Hopefully tomorrow will bring some progress in the "to do" department and in the kiddos getting back to their healthy happy selves. As long as they are healthy and happy, this cold won't stop me!

How Much is Too Much?

Things have been crazy since the beginning of the year. We've definately been put to the test of staying calm, cool and collected around here. Weve come through pretty well, but there are a few scratches that need to heal. In all the craziness around here, it became necessary to move my scrapbook area. OH MY HECK!!!! I have way to much freakin' stuff! In moving my scrapbook stuff, I am finding out just how much I have. I started out this year with the resolution to give up soda. It was either soda or Starbucks...and well, I just love my Starbucks too much. Anyway, after working on my scraproom and working on organizing everything, I have decided that I need to resolve to scrap more and use up this stuff. I can tell you that right now...I HAVE TOO MUCH STUFF! Is there a Scrappers Anonymous somewhere? I need to go to a meeting 7 days a week! I am shocked and overwhelmed by the magnitude of my stuff! So, here is my plan...as soon as my room is done and my house is put back in order, I am going to start working on using up this crazy stash. My first plan is to pull out all the stuff I know I am not going to use and sell it either on Craigslist or at our Garage Girl garage Sale the first weekend in February. I will post the date and time in a later post. The exact details of this event escape me at the moment. Then, I need to come up with a plan on my layout and project goals for the year and what exactly I am going to allow myself to buy. I should probably not buy anything except for cardstock and adhesive, but I know that will be impossible for me. So, if your interested stay tuned for more on that front. Oh and by the way, if you know me, then don't give me a hard time about my stash either.....(you know who you are!)

In other news, Little J is back in school and readjusting to his schedule and work. His therapies are all in place and he is doing well overall. We had a few breakthrough seizures, but medication seems to have controlled them quickly. Princess J started her first week of classes at The Little Gym. It's the end of the current semester, so she's definately the youngest in the class, but in two weeks we start a new semester and I'm sure there will be more kids at her level. Since it's been awhile since I posted, here are some of the things Princess J has accomplished in the last few months.

She's been crawling for awhile now.
Using her walker, she loves to walk around the house and explore and she runs with abandon!
She pulls up to her knees.
She pulls up to a stand.
She cruises along furniture!!!! (this is a new skill this week!)
She gives kisses to mommy and daddy.
She comes to you when you call her. (If she feels like it!)
She claps! (She clapped for the first time today!)
She says mama, dada, and HI!
She waves!
She's got mommy wrapped around her little finger.

Her 9 month checkup was just last week, and she is growing healthy and strong!