11-Month-Old Cadence Grace Ivester

I spend today again with Abby & Cady helping out around the house. Today also happens to be Cady's 11-mon.-old "Month-Day". Can't believe it's been 11 months since she was born. I took lots of pictures with my camera since I was mobile and Abby stayed on the sofa. Here are some . . . .

She was in a very good mood today.

She's doing her touchdown!!

Her new 'thing' is that when you say "Touchdown", she throws up her arms in the air like the touchdown sign then she claps her hands like a cheerleader. AND today both Abby & I heard her try to say "touchdown". Her first two-syllable word! Now if she'll just do it one more time so we can prove to our husbands that Cady really did say touchdown!

The girl loves to stick out her tongue.

I love close-up pictures.

She looks so old . . . like she could just walk away on her own. She did stand alone this morning.

I love this picture of her reflection in the door. I couldn't tell if Riley wanted in or if Cady wanted out . . . or both!

Love my little Cady Bug!

And I'm missing little Brie. She and her mom are in Canada for a visit. Twice in the last two days when Andrea and Mark were on the phone together, Andrea said to Brie, "Daddy is on the phone." Brie responded excitedly, "Hi, Daddy!" Just melted my heart to hear that story.

Morty . . . The New Thorn In My Side . . . . Or Rather, My Toe

For the last few weeks I've had a pain in my foot. It hurts every day - some days much worse than others. I finally went to the doctor yesterday b/c during the past two nights my foot ached like a toothache and kept me await most of the night. When my doctor looked at my foot, he said, "You have funny-looking feet." Thanks, dear doctor, for pointing out my lovely feet. My doctor is also my good friend so I expected something witty to come out of his mouth. Then he began to prod and poke my toes and foot. Soon he diagnosed me as having "Morton's Neuroma". Sounds like a neurotic Italian dish served up with too much salt. It actually is a benign tumor below the toes on the bottom of my foot. As my doctor pointed out to me, "Why can't you have a regular diagnosis? You have to go ahead and have something weird, don't you?" That's me . . . . always want to keep my doctor on his toes (pun intended!). Here's a picture of Morton's Neuroma.

Again, I'm odd. In most cases it is located in position above. Mine is located one bone to the right. Go figure.

Usually, no surgery is required. It just dissipates over time. That's where my mind wonders.............how much time? I've already been hobbling around with bad knees for over a year. I'm tired of hobbling. Guess I'll just have to wait and see. I googled to read the causes. I have not one reason for this condition. I don't wear 5-inch heels, I don't wear shoes too tight, I don't have flat feet, etc. It's a mystery to me. Oh, well, it does give me a new blog topic HA.

Here's to Morton's Neuroma. Go away, little tumor, go away!

(By the way, I named my little buddy. His name is Morty. I talk to him and ask him to leave, please. )

Tuesday Night Supper - A Night To Remember

Last night we had our family supper. We missed Chad & Michelle who had a prior commitment. After Tom arrived home, Mark offered to drive us to a house that he's selling for someone to look at items in the house that are also for sale. Tom, Mark, crutch-walking Abby & I went while Adger, Jane, Andrea & Matt watched Brie & Cady. Believe me, it took four adults to keep up with those two little gals. Brie & Cady are so mobile. You can blink your eyes and they're off in opposite directions. Many times they are going toward something that is a no-no. Just last night Cady was seen putting something in her mouth. I swept my finger thru her mouth and out came a wadded-up, hot-pink sticky note. Where in the world did that come from? Life is crazy with both little girls here and I LOVE IT.

Anyway, before we headed out the door to see this house for sale, I left Matt in charge of taking the chicken out of the oven and putting the bread in to cook. He's so reliable; I knew he'd have everything under control and he did. (That so sounded like the other three are UNreliable; that's not what I meant at all! To be honest, I knew Andrea would be looking after the girls with Jane, Adger would be "observing" the girls, and Matt could easily monitor the food. Understand?)

We had a nice tour of the house and saw a few items we might purchase. As we walked back into my house, the buzzer told us the bread was ready so Let's Eat! We all enjoyed a good meal. We were sitting around the dining room table talking. Mark was feeding Brie. Suddenly, he looked down at the floor under her highchair and thought he saw a biscuit. (We did not have biscuits for supper.) He looked more closely, then noticed something dripping from the highchair. Upon further inspection, that 'something' was dripping from Brie's diaper! EWWWW! What a mess. While Mark & Andrea tried to very carefully carry Brie to the bathtub, I prepared for cleanup duty. I donned my rubber gloves and Lysol and began to clean every inch of the highchair. Then I tackled the carpet. A very fun job, indeed. The only cleaning tool I lacked was a gas mask.

The funny thing was that when I began to clean, I looked around and the only person I saw in the room was poor Tom. He's a real trooper and he helped me. As soon as Mark had discovered the diaper mishap, chairs began to fly and people left that dining room in a hurry. That's the fastest I've seen Jane and Adger move in years! HA HA Thinking back, I should have taken pictures of the mishap . . . . . I could have used them at Brie's wedding rehearsal dinner in 25 years. Just Kidding!

Here are some pictures from last night MINUS the mishap!

Brie sharing a toy with Cady

Mark's attempt to get Brie to kiss Cady. It didn't happen.

Andrea's attempt to change Brie's diaper . . . it happened but barely!


Cady sitting in front of her mommy's healing foot.

Tom trying to get both G.G.'s still for a picture. It's difficult!

Andrea & I were trying to get a picture to see how much taller Brie is than Cady. Brie's legs appear much longer. We didn't get a very good picture. Maybe later.

After Brie's emergency bath, she got jammied up and played with Cady.

We had a great time together as a family. The family that cleans up poop together, stays together!!!

G.G. Pictures

Cady spent Friday night and Sat. morning with us. Brie spent Monday over here. I took lots of pictures and I'm sharing a few.

Cady - eating the cell phone

Cady is totally mobile now. She's gathering toys to play with.

Love those brown eyes peering up at me.

Saturday Abby requested that Cady get into her Clemson attire.

On Monday Brie was in her Clemson attire.

She was totally glued to Sesame Street.

Sweet face

Still watching Sesame Street

Today I'm taking Ab to get her hair trimmed. (When I just typed that sentence, I first typed "taking Ab to get her FACE trimmed". I cracked myself up when I re-read it.) We're gonna get lunch out prior to the haircut. Anything to get out of her house. Cady spent the night with the Ivester's so it'll be just me and MY baby.

Family coming tonight for supper tonight. Tootles

My Week At Abby's

I had a great week at Abby's house. Busy, but fun. Every morning I was there by 7:20 a.m. so Matt could head to work. Then I'd crawl in the bed with Ab and usually Cady was already awake and in the bed with Ab. The three of us cuddled and talked until about 8:15. Then Cady & I went downstairs for her breakfast. By mid-morning Abby joined us downstairs and I prepared a nice bowl of cereal for her each morning. A couple of days I ventured out and even made a pot of coffee. The rest of the day we watched TV, played with Cady and talked. Of course, I also cleaned up and did laundry and anything else I could talk Abby into my doing.

Abby has great neighbors. I didn't fix one meal last week. Not one. They had food brought in almost every day and usually had leftovers, too. She and Matt are truly blessed with great friends nearby.




Friday morning, I boo-booed. I set off the alarm system. And, man oh man, is it loud!!!! I figured Matt had already been downstairs to turn the system off. I was wrong. I used my key to enter the kitchen and all of a sudden my heart stopped when the alarm began to blare. I just stood there and audibly said, "uh-oh". Believe it or not the baby was not awakened and the dogs did not bark. A miracle to say the least. My red face & I headed up the stairs to face Matt & Abby. When I saw Abby, I just busted out laughing . . .. my M.O. in crazy situations. Abby was apologizing like she and Matt were responsible. I was just glad that Cady didn't need therapy for being abruptly awakened. Good girl.

I have a suggestion for a new alarm system.

Red Neck Alarm System

My Little Ray Of Sunshine

This was Abby today. She was so happy that she was almost delirious! And just what made her so happy that she couldn't stop smiling????? For the first time in 7 days, she got out of her house and breathed fresh air and was chauffeured around our great little town. Today was her best day yet. She was back to her ole fun, silly self. She was itching to get out of the house. We went out to eat (well . . . we went to a drive-thru and ate in the car), we went to my house for me to take meat out of the freezer, we went to my friend's house to pick up an item, we drove on the outskirts of town to investigate a situation, then we drove to another drive-thru for something to drink on the way home. Now wasn't that one grandiose outing?? Well, for Abby, it certainly was. She was flying high all afternoon. You'd think she was on a free shopping spree w/o limitations. Glad you had a good day, My Bethy. Just wait until tomorrow . . . . . . . you and Cady are spending the day at MY house with "Papa" and I. Now you'll have two parents/grandparents to spoil you and Cady.

I'm Happy Today

Today Is A Good Day . . . I'm Happy

Abby is having a good day, Cady is taking a good nap, Brie is much better, Tom has passed his kidney stone. Hip, hip, hooray!

Gotta grab a quick lunch before Miss Cady wakes from her nap...............

Our Family Is Going To Pot!

Abby: Recovering from foot surgery - in pain


Cady: Taken to doctor this weekend, but no ear infection. However, her gums are very swollen and she was fussy this weekend.


Brie: Fever of 102 today and feeling terrible.


Tom: (See below. . .)

PLUS

EQUALS

Kidney Stone!!

Yep, poor boy. He's not felt good for a couple of weeks and he was pretty sure he had another kidney stone. This is his third attack, I think. He had a CT scan today and the stone is in his bladder. On Thursday, the urologist will decide his course of action.

Poor, Papa. . . . "Papa was a rolling stone" . . . . just kidding. . . Tom is anything BUT a rolling stone! Tom only laid his hat at his home. And when he dies, he won't leave us all alone. (Check out the song lyrics if you are confused about this paragraph!)

In case you are wondering . . . I'm fine!

Squirrels . . . . ARGH!

Squirrels are bothering my bird feeders less and less lately. HOWEVER, now the little varmints are chewing away at my twin antique tables on the front porch! Those were Mamu's, you stupid creatures! I hope you get intestinal blockages from the wood you consumed.

Stairsteps To Heaven and Dirty Fingernails

First An Update On Abby:

I've been enjoying my time at Abby's while she recovers from foot surgery. She's in pain but it's manageable. She says when she just wiggles her toes, she is in lots of pain. The surgeon actually did three procedures on her foot. He stretched her Achilles tendon, repositioned her heel and reconstructed her arch. She has two nice, long screws in her heel. I saw the x-ray . . . it's lovely. She's handling things fairly well. I know Abby and she can't stand to be confined to a bed or sofa. She may be going nuts by week 3.

Stairsteps To Heaven

My only challenge with babysitting Cady is the fact that I must go up and down her staircase multiple times a day. With two bad knees and sometimes I also am toting Cady, here is what her staircase reminds me of:

Except that it's indoors

Ab, I know you read my blog. I'm completely exaggerating! Stop worrying about me. I'm a big girl (literally) and I can handle your stairs!

Dirty Fingernails

Yippee! Fall is here (at least in Joy's world). I have part of my fall decorations on the front porch and some in the garage area. This weekend I hope to add the rest of my fall things. Today I planted my pansies. I love pansies through fall and winter. I worked like a yard slave today but enjoyed every moment. I just took a long, hot bath and my fingernails are still dirty. Guess I need to do a little digging in my nails now. Enjoy the weather.

I just have to give a shout out to my Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets after last night. Yes, it wasn't a good second half, but they hung in there. That just clinched my anniversary celebration!

(Sometimes it's tough living in Tiger Territory)

Happy Anniversary, Tommy Boy!

Happy 37th Anniversary,

Tommy Boy!

(I was a child bride.) This is a quicky blog b/c I spent the night at Ab's and I'm in a rush at home to get a few things done before our dinner out, but I do love my husband of 37 years. He's the same person on the inside as he was in 1972. I'm a LUCKY woman to be Mrs. Tommy Boy.

This napkin was bright white in 1972. Not so, now.

This is me with long hair. This is Tom with hair.



Let's celebrate another 37 years, ok? I'll be 94 and you'll be 96. We may not remember each other, but we can still celebrate!

Please Pray For Abby On Wednesday

Minus the red hair, this will be Abby on Wed.

Abby will have foot surgery Wednesday afternoon. The doctor will go in through her heel to reconstruct her arch. Ouch! She's been battling an achy foot for many years. This should relieve her foot pain in the future. Recovery is another issue. She'll be in a cast for 4-6 weeks and can't be any weight on her foot for 4 weeks. This is a gal living in a 2-story house with two indoor dogs and a 10-month-old daughter. Looks like Matt's mom and I will be spending lots of time helping out over there. I offered for her to recover in our one-story house, but so far she wants to try to stay at home, which I completely understand. Please pray that she doesn't have significant pain and that she heals rapidly. Thanks!

If I don't blog much during the next few weeks, you'll know why . . . . . .

Labor Day Weekend 2009

What a great, long weekend we have at the lake with our family. Tom & I and Abby & her little family went on Thursday afternoon. (The rest of the family came on Friday.) The entire weekend's weather was perfect - warm but cool at night and low humidity - my kind of lake weather.

We are having renovations at the lake house - not for selfish desire but out of necessity! Earlier in the summer we loaned the cabin to some summer campers of a Christian camp from our home town. After the first night, they were forced to find other lodging b/c our roof leaked so much that water was streaming in from several places in the ceiling. Oops. We didn't know we had a problem.

Thankfully, the insurance company is helping pay for our mess. We have new tile in all bathrooms and kitchen and new flooring in the den & all bedrooms, fresh coat of paint in all rooms/ceilings, new ceiling fans, and most importantly, a new metal roof. Tom and the other owners had already painted the outside. And repair work on the porch and soon-to-be-rescreened porch. So, we feel like we have a brand-new lake house. Since we were the first ones to use it since the renovations, we protected the new den floor with two big moving mats so our granddogs wouldn't scratch the floor. Maybe not necessary, but we don't want to be the first ones to mar that floor!

Our weekend consisted of morning coffee with hazelnut creamer, Tom's famous French toast (with either blueberry syrup or regular maple syrup), morning cruise, snack lunch, water sports or blobbing or reading or whatever we wanted to do, wonderful dinners, evening "cocktail" cruise (minus cocktails), card games-TV-reading-talking in the den, bedtime whenever you get sleepy. That's about all we did and we have a blast doing it! We had several old friends drop by and see our family. It is great to have a lake place so near our hometown. We can reconnect with our old friends and we make new friends with our neighbors.

Saturday was our annual Horseshoe Tournament. We've done this for many years. Tom & I won about 8 straight tournaments. Our children were not good sports about losing for so many years. In 2007, we did not have a tournament b/c Mark & Andrea got married in Canada and the summer was crazy which allowed us no time to get together as a family at the lake. In 2008, pregnant Andrea and Mark dethroned Tom & I. Big shock. We congratulated them (biting our tongues the entire time) wondering how a pregnant woman could beat us.

This year Tom & Joy once again reigned supreme. We won without much competition. We frustrated, aggravated, and dominated those 'shoes! We ruled the pits! We wore out our "6" children's tails! Our names will once again be engraved on the trophy. And, we had to ask for congratulatory salutations. No one seemed too happy for us. I think for a couple of old fogies we do pretty well.

Also on Saturday we had a great meal that will become tradition in the future. Skipper Brown's recipe of B. B. ribs. Man, oh, man were they delicious and fall-off-the-bone good!

I'll leave with pictures of the weekend.

Sweet Cady on Thursday night.

Cady & Mimi cuttin' up while cruising.

Abby & Cady on the sunset cruise eating Matt's homemade birthday cake ice cream. Yummy!

Cady loves her Papa.

Brie and Cady playing on the floor.

Andrea, Mark & Brie swinging lakeside.

Cady & my baby girl playing in the baby pool while on the pontoon.

Our little Brie with her dad and dog.

My little brown-eyed beauty, Cady.

Brie and her dad on a float. There was no way in the world Brie could have drowned with that life jacket! There was more life jacket than there was Brie.

Cady & Brie playing in the pool.

Tom's GREAT B. B. ribs.

Bath time for the little G.G.'s.

Andrea and Brie reading

Pretty little G.G. #1

G.G. #2 - Cady with a diaper helmet! (Thanks, Auntie Michelle!)

Cady in the exer-saucer while on a boat ride.

Sunset cruise Sunday night.

God's Handiwork

No one or no thing could create such beauty except my Lord and Savior!