crazier than i thought...

so its a week before Christmas and i have barely purchased anything. my husband and i are going to brave the madness this afternoon with high hopes of completing the ever dreaded task of Christmas shopping. all year we have been telling our kids (whom are all teenagers 13-21) they arent getting "much" this year . PSSHHHTTT who the hell am i kidding. according to my "list" each spawn should have 8 gifts under the tree, unless of course i accidentally purchase 1 or 2 more for one of them then ALL of them have to get 1 or 2 more so everyone has the same amount.. YES... my TEENAGE children still whine " why did he get 10 and i only got 8". OMFG...REALLY?!? then there's always 1 or 2 that have no clue what they want.. leave me stranded to come up with gift ideas on my own, then aren't satisfied with my selection. so either way...mom loses. so visualize this... FIVE KIDS.. 8-10 gifts EACH, 2 boyfriends ( no, not mine), nieces & nephews on both sides , and whoever else we decide to buy for. not to mention 5 kids, a husband and 2 boyfriend's (again, not mine) stocking that "santa" takes care of Christmas Eve night. yup, in-freaking-sane! but on the plus side.. it's all paid with cash and it's just about the only time i have everyone here, at once. :)  and thats what makes me a very happy momma. and just so my kids know.... you WILL set out beer & jerky for santa and you WILL sprinkle reindeer food in the front yard or santa will NOT come   :)   MERRY CHRISTMAS

*The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree:  the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.  ~Burton Hillis

Know it or not, there was a reason....

It's been a while since I have braved the blog.... last blog was Feb. WOW!  So you may find your self all over the place and a bit dizzy with this blog then, consider yourself warned.  ;-)
Alot has gone on in the last few months, but then again to most it would be alot of nothing so I'm not even going to bore you with details of teenage drama, family drama, and well just drama in general. you are welcome.

It seems everything truely does happen for a reason. Regardless of what it is or how devestating it may seem or even how wonderful it is... it is all placed in your life for a reason. As most of you know I have been unemployed for close to 2 years now. It has been all fun, fine and dandy, I have been enjoying my time at home, I have been here for the kids when they need me...which is CONSTANTLY! ( I think teenagers are much more dependent on mom than babies/toddlers...and of course the tantrums are much worse )
Unemployment money has been coming in every week like clock work...all has been good on the homefront. Well my unemployment was cut off without fair warning... I filed one week like normal and BAM there it was... a nice big message in red stating as of April 16,2011 EB benefits in NC will no longer be paid out. WHAAAAAAT ?!
Now those of you that know me also know that I am an obsessive worrier... I worry about absolutely EVERYTHING if it's the slightest bit off track. I worry to the point of making myself physically ill. Things are supposed to be a certain way and if they are disrupted in anyway, Im a stress filled bomb. So, needless to say I was freaking out about losing that money. I prayed and prayed and prayed ( I don't do that often, but find myself doing it ALOT lately). Naturally, when I found out I will no longer be getting a weekly check, I went crazy applying for jobs. Everything from movie theaters to grocery stores, hospitals, if they were looking for help.. I sent them a resume'. Nothing..nothing...nothing..... ( I had been applying the whole time per ESC requirements, but not seriously) Now it was serious. The first Tuesday with no check rolled around.... my stress level was higher than it's ever been about anything. I was applying different places daily, every minute of the day it seemed. I have no formal skills, I have no education beyond high school.... I do however have tons of customer service experience. So just maybe that will trigger someone's interest, right? Well... midweek of my first no-pay week I get a call with an invitation to come for an interview. REALLY??  This kind of luck just does not happen to me, ever. I was so excited, but nervous as all get out.. ( remember I'm an obsessive stresser/worrier) so just imagine..... It was a long interview, point on direct questions, alot of open ended questions,I was myself and answered honestly and did not put on a front of any sort. The interview went well, so well they scheduled me for a 2nd interview with peers a week later,  called me 3 days before the 2nd interview to say I was going to be bypass the 2nd interview and jump straight into the employment process. OH YEAH!  I felt very proud of myself, I have no idea how many canditates were interviewed, but this was for 1 position only... and they picked ME! So I have been to orientation and I officially start training Thursday this week, the 26th. After a week of training and 2 weeks of peer shadowing, I'm on my own. :-)
I am now, an official member of the Carolinas Healthcare System family. I will be providing all patients & patient's family  who enter the CMC -Northeast's Emergency Dept.  with the highest level of care and customer service, as their patient registrar. :-D   Call it fate... call it prayer, but I now know that my unemployment ended so rudely so that I could open the door to the next chapter in my life.

There are several other things that have happened recently to prove this point but they don't all end on such a happy note ( RIP~ R.D.C) .... just know, that no matter what happens in your life...there IS a reason behind it all...wheather it be to get you motivated towards something, teach you a lesson, or get your priorities in line.... know there are no mistakes.

Romans 8:28 tells us that all things work together for good, for those that love God and are the called according to His purposes. So everyday I wake up and say “I will trust You today”. No matter what may come my way. Things do happen for a reason.

Ask and you shall receive!

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.. it worked! We were able to bring Roxy home last night =)  She fought the Parvo ..and she won-- YAY! And boy was she glad to see us, as we were her... so happy that she pee'd all over the place at the vet , and in our car LOL. (Thank God for the invention of Clorox clean-up) I have to say, I never in my life want to go through that crap again! She's still not 100% back to her normal self, but she's close. I think once she's off this restricted prescription diet and can eat normally.. she will be her same ole pain in the butt self again.  So I won't harp on this anymore and I thank those of you, again, for your thoughts and prayers and putting up with my obsessivness over this for the last week. =)
(( If we are Facebook friends, then I know you got your fill!--- sorry)) 

A big shout out  to Cabarrus Animal Hospital for keeping it real with us, constantly communicating updates and doing what they needed to do to get her through this.

There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face.  ~Ben Williams

Well,  today is day 5 that Roxy has been in the 'doggie hospital' for her fight against Parvo. It has been a VERY stressful weekend for us knowing we couldn't go see her. We took our 2 Yorkies to the vet Friday and had them checked out and updated with all of their booster's and tests. They are fine =). 
We have bleached this house from one end to the other and washed everything Roxy touched with bleach. All that's left is the yard.. yes, we have to bleach that too. 
We declined a superbowl party last night for fear of being carriers of the virus, we knew there would be people there who have puppies too young to be vaccinated...so we chose not to take that risk. Hopefully they understood.
Well, Robert and I went to visit her Friday night after all the kids went to their mother's/father's. She looked so pitiful in that little cage. I know she was happy to see us. She put her little nose up to the cage .. but she didn't lick us.. shes a big time licker, so that made me sad. Of course, I cried again and many times since. She did vomit while we were there =(  But it made me feel better seeing her. 

So the updates were so so over the weekend... still vomiting/diarreah. Saturday's update left me feeling a bit uneasy, but Sunday's update made me feel a tiny bit better. Today's update was somewhat promising. She's alot perkier and active today... no vomiting, and she was offered food for the first time since thursday...and ate it! Now to see if she will keep it down. If she's able to hold it down, they will start her on oral med's and hopefully those will stay put as well. I'm feeling a little better about her recovery, but it's still iffy. I'm definately getting very nervous about the bill though.... I wonder if the animal hospital accepts BCBS  - LOL. This has got me looking into pet health insurance. Call me crazy... but I need to know I can provide my little guys the care they need without having to sell a child to pay for it... ya feel me.
I know I'm obsessing over this.. but those of you who know me, know that I stress and worry about everything anyway.  If something is out of whack... it comsumes my brain 24/7. Doesn't matter what it is... and it's even worse if I have zero control over it. Crazy. But, I love my poochies and that will never change. 
So I thank everyone, from the bottom of my heart,  who has sent up prayers for Roxy. Just for you to take time from your life to think of us...means so much. =) Keep praying, and hopefully we will have her home this week!

She has what?

I NEED A CIGARETTE! No, I don't smoke (anymore)... however I sure could use one right about now. If stress were money, by God I'd be a bazillionaire!

So my 3 girls have been sick sick sick this week. I have purchased enough Nyquil/Dayquil to take a nice sticky bath in it, if I wanted to. Steady 102 F temperatures, the moaning & groaning, coughing, vomiting ( love the new bright red masterpiece on your carpet Gabbi... gives your room that special touch) running back and forth between rooms all day long...juice..meds..thermometer..juice..humidifier..cold rags.. meds...juice..you get the picture. All the while arming myself with a can of Lysol in one hand and Clorox clean up in the other trying to disinfect so the rest of us don't get "it". I'm calling it..."it" because the doctore seems to have no idea what "it" actually is... so she named it "flu's cousin". OK, I didn't know the flu had a family tree. But whatever. So today they are feeling better... they want to go to school but I prefer they don't. So I told them if they were up to it in a little bit... I would take them in late. Gabbi only wants to go so she can go to her Valentines Day dance after school.. not a good idea. Bailee just wants to see her boy, who is also sick. So I'm glad all that mess is swept under the rug now.... still praying HARD that the boys, robert and myself  DON'T get blessed with the illegitimate cousin of the famous flu.( damn inbreeding )

So Robert and I decided many years ago to not have children together....the 5 between the 2 of us was plenty. So instead of pro creating to express our love... we get dogs. We've had lots of dogs over the years..always having to rehome the big ones for different reasons. Our St. Bernards tore everything up. ( Still love the big crack in my kitchen picture window because Sophie was a freak when it came to storms) The nice chewed up wall that Dozer left me is just beautiful,! ( finally getting around to fixing that soon )
not to mention the back deck...he chewed that whole dang thing. Zeus, our blue dobie, he was a sweet baby.. however he did not like my nephew (who is scared of any dog big or small)  and he would make me very nervous when my nephew was around. So I was not willing to take even the slightest chance with him.
My husband has always wanted a rottweiler. We all know the stereotype they carry. I did alot of researching and self educating  and after talking with a friend, whos had a rottie for many years, I decided that I would get him a rottie puppy for Christmas. So, one day while he was at work in the beginning of Oct. I found a puppy, and surprised him with her. Today we know her as ROXY.  I have never been so attached to a dog as I am Roxy. She is the sweetest thing. We definately can feel the love from her. Well Roxy fell very ill yesterday and I took her to the vet. X-rays showed no obstruction in her intestines ( she had eaten a WHOLE frozen (old)  london broil that I had accidentally left out when I cleaned out the big freezer...packaging and all) I watch the Animal Planet show "My dog ate what?!" alot.. so of course I'm thinking her intestines are all tangled up with the wrapping of the meat and she's going to need emergency surgery. (Like I can afford that) So I was very happy to hear the X-rays looked good. THEN the ball was dropped....they tested her for parvo, and she was positive. My heart sank.. Parvo is a canine killer. But she has been vaccinated so I just didn't understand. And it turns out that Rotties, Dobies and other black & tan dogs are very prone to Parvo and have a hard time fighting it. So needless to say, Roxy is now quarrantined at the vet with IV fluids and antibiotics. That's all they can do for Parvo. There is no drug that will kill the virus. As I sit there in tears at the vet, I'm talking to her and loving on her and demanding that she pull through this and come home to us..she looked up at me with those sad little puppy eyes, as if she was telling me she knew this was the end. So of course I have been a wreck ever since. I'm hearing from alot of people with positive outcomes who's dogs have survived parvo... so I haven't given up yet. I should be getting an update from the vet this morning, anytime now. I have 2 Yorkies as well, so of course any slightest out of character behavior I'm seeing from them, I'm thinking they have it too. They are 5 years old and the vet told me usually a dog over the age of 2 has an immunity to it. It's more of a puppy illness. More stress... wonderful.
Well...as I type this, the vet called. No vomiting or diarreah throughout the night (good)... she was offered water but was not interested at all (not so good)  they are going to switch her meds around noon and try offering her water again. She is standing up and moving around however, I was told not to get my hopes up because sometimes they seem better..and then............  :'(
So it's just a waiting game of pins and needles now... everytime the phone rings my stomach flips. My friend made a comment to me yesterday...why is it that someone can tie a dog to  a tree and throw food out to it once in a while, never make it part of the family or give it the first shot and it's fine. But when you love your dog like a child, and treat it like royalty... this happens. Another fact of proof that life isn't fair. And the good seem to be the ones who suffer.

So, just pray for our Roxy girl... I pray that her suffering be done.... either way, I just don't want her to suffer.

Reflecting back.... Happy Birthday.

Being such an emotional person drives me absolutely INSANE! I cry at freaking everything..seriously. I caught myself in tears yesterday looking through old pictures of my oldest daughter, realizing that in just 4 short days she will be 20 years old! No longer a teenager, no longer a child, no longer dependent on her momma. (( It brings me excitement to know that I'm 1 down 4 to go however! )) So let's  reminice about that day and the days and years following. 
Tuesday January 23rd , 1991 at 9:50 am I gave birth ( by c-section ) to a beautiful 9 lb 1 oz baby girl .
( c-section beause she was breech... she came into this world showing her a$$..and nothings changed. lol ) Her namesake is unique,to me anyway...back then I was a dedicated addict of the soap opera, Days of our Lives.. So for those Days fans out there, you can clearly see where 'Kayla' & 'Hope' came from. My mother, Patricia Ann, passed away on April 7,1990. I concieved Kayla at the end of April 1990. She never knew she was going to be a grandmother, therefore I honored her legacy by including her name in my daughter's name. God took my mother so he could bless me with my daughter, all in the same month. So therefore, we have Kayla Patricia Hope Childress.
I was a teenage mother, just 5 days shy of 19. Never in my life have I been more scared,excited,nervous,and shocked than when I delivered that little girl. I..ME...was now a mommy. I had such a great support system though, my parents, Kayla's dad's family, my siblings... all pulled together and we survived =)  Kayla was definately the center of attention. And to this day.. she is still the center of attention no matter where she goes. (same goes for her 2 little sisters). She is the first grandchild on both sides, so you can imagine ... she walks on water, according to her Mimi & mamaw's. Kayla became a big sister when she was almost 4, how she loved Bailee.. and today, they are the best of friends. (Thank God, I had to sleep with one eye open for fear they would murder eachother  while the other was sleeping lol) When she was 8, she was a big sister for the second time... Gabbi was very fragile so Kayla didn't get to enjoy her as much at first.. but she was a big help. And today...Gabbi is SOOOO Kayla's clone! Both of her sister's love her so much and look up to her .... So remember Kayla, little eyes are always watching you. ;)
At 10 years old.. Kayla gained 2 little brother's ( that she always wanted) and the BEST BEST step-dad in the world! Although in the very beginning, she wouldn't let Robert near me...today, they have a very special bond, and I am SO thankful for that.
Kayla was a good baby, a good kid...although she would definately have defined 'brat', only because she was,and is, so spoiled. =) and looking back now, a good teenager. From the day she was 16.. she has held a job, maintained her grades in school and graduated in 2009 with a seal of  Honor, and is now working full time at Metrolina Greenhouses with her  Step-dad and 2 Uncles. My little baby is now a beautiful, independent, young woman and I think we did a wonderful job raising her, as well as her sister's and brother's. We have 5 GREAT kids who we couldn't be any more proud of. Each of our children are an individual with different qualities that make us so proud of them. Every one of them give us a reason to smile.  (yes, I'm patting us on the back)
Kayla, Robert & I are very proud of who you have become and wish you nothing but happiness. You have a strong will and are such a go getter. Thank you for showing me so many things in life, that without you, I may have never seen. You are a product of me and I am happy to say that you are my daughter. We wish you a very Happy Happy Birthday, but remember... you will always be our 'little' girl! And I will always be your MOM.. so sorry my dear, the nagging will never stop & I'm SUPPOSED to get on your nerves, it's in the handbook =D!

XOXOXOX

MOM & ROBERT

Like sand through an hour glass.. so are the days of our lives....

Well, we made it through the holidays safe and somewhat sound. I hope everyone had a wonderful christmas and is looking forward to the new year. I couldn't have asked for a better christmas. Everyone was happy, kids were happy, family was happy, no arguments, no drama anywhere. So nice!  We had a white Christmas for the first time since 1947 here in NC. The snow was definately the icing on the cake for a perfect christmas. I spent alot of time with family. Got a little tipsy Christmas night....OK, ALOT tipsy...and had a great time "playing" in the snow. FYI, my brother-in-law is a bad influence hahahaha ;).  We took some great pictures and I will share a few.......

So I'm excited about the new year, I guess. I mean this would be the first year I don't have a "resolution". It's always the same every year..I'm going to lose weight. Well I have (slowly) been doing that all year and don't plan on stopping now. I don't smoke.. I rarely drink, so I'm not really sure what I could "resolute" for 2011. WOW....2011. Can you believe that. CRAZY!

Yeah, this was definately a boring post... so I will not continue the torture. Happy New Year to all and be safe. DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE~!