Frankenbaby?

I had another acupuncture appointment yesterday and we did some electrical stimulation! Woo Hoo! As soon as I walked in the door, Dr. Kim says, "Hello June!" (grinning ear to ear), then says, "Or is it May?" (still grinning at his own lame-o Dr. humor). "Hello Dr. Kim!", I said and smiled, (mentally shaking my head). Guess I could have thrown him a bone and laughed a little bit like I've NEVER heard that joke before but I just wasn't up to making the effort. =]

Didn't take any pictures this time as I was laying on my stomach with my face in one of those massage table donut things with a BUNCH of needles in my lower back, shoulders and back of my neck. When Dr. Kim flipped the switch, I about jumped off the bed! Scared the crap out of me! Didn't really hurt...just startled me! After he adjusted the voltage, he turned on a relaxing CD, turned off the lights and said "Goodnight" and left me there for 1/2 an hour. I actually fell asleep this time!

Dr. said that it would improve circulation to my ovaries which in turn helps promote better egg quality during ovulation. Hmmmm. All I could think of was that my eggs were getting shocked and that The Husband and I were going to end up with a Frankenbaby! Green with bolts coming out of it's neck and instead of my OBGYN saying "It's a boy/girl", she would be yelling, "It's alive, it's alive!" Mmmmmwwwwwaaaaaa. <------ attempt at typing an evil laugh.....oh well....

We'll see if all of this pays off.

Thud! Ouch!

That's the sound of me falling off the caffeine-free wagon!

Date Night went well...no caffeine. Sunday was great even though they do have Starbucks in the Cafe at church....I resisted! Today I caved! Jaden and I were running errands and he wanted pumpkin loaf so really...IT'S JADEN'S FAULT! Yeh! That's my story and I'm sticking to it. But seriously, I can't have any tomorrow because I see my acupuncturist again and I REALLY don't want to see that disappointed look on his face when he asks me if I've had coffee that morning!

Now, after all that, I've decided that I'll only periodically post how the wagon ride is going because all this "trying to stop drinking coffee" business just isn't interesting blogger fodder! So from this point on you can count on me to post intellectually stimulating information! Like farting cockroaches! (see Sept. 18th post) =D

Let's try this again.....Day One without Starbucks!

So far so good but it's date night and we ALWAYS stop at Starbucks at some point during the date. I'll have an updated post of the evenings events by tomorrow! =D

Day One without Starbucks.....

Ahhhhh....Starbucks...you seducer you!

Day One without Starbucks:

Day started out pretty well! Only had one absent-minded caffeine withdrawal moment in the car when I missed my turn that I make all the time. But I feel the pressure in my head coming on.....or maybe my sinuses are acting up? (denial?) The lovely green awnings of 2 different Starbucks caught my eye as Jaden and I were out running around but the force is strong within me......must... resist... the dark brewed side. ;D

John called me on his way into work and asked how my morning was going...Going Well! I said...half surprised at my answer. "Good, Good", he says. "You know, the Dr. told me this morning that I needed to quit drinking caffeine too!" Then I hear him muttering to himself, "Hmmm, I thought there was a Starbucks down here." What did he say?!?!?!? I explained that if we both had to give it up, and I hadn't had any today, then he shouldn't either! He says, "Well, I thought I'd start tomorrow." Right, Right, traitor.

After lunch I put Jaden down for his nap and I found myself googling and checking youtube.com for pics and/or videos relating to craving coffee, Starbucks addiction, etc., for this blog. Seriously?! What a waste of time! But I did find this really cool vid on youtube.com! 2 teens going through the Starbucks drive-thru and they do this rap. So funny! Really! It is! Go to YouTube.com and search for Starbucks Rap. For some reason my caffeine deprived brain could not figure out how to download it from YouTube.com to my blog. {{{{heavy sigh}}}}} It's going to be a LONG weekend.

Correction made at 5:01 p.m.:

Sadly as of 4:12pm, Jaden and I hit the Starbucks drive thru. {{GASP}}}

Jaden was in the back seat screaming, "I want my pumpkin loaf now!" so that didn't help my headache! He was only faking the tantrum because as soon as he said it, I started laughing which got him laughing and because he made me laugh, he kept repeating it until we got up to the drive thru girl.

I feel guilty for giving into my cravings and the drive of shame back to the house was a downer......WHO AM I KIDDING?! I was in heaven, sipping my Iced Tall Latte and sharing my chocolate chip banana coffee cake with the boy! (they were out of pumpkin loaf and cream cheese pumpkin muffins!) =D

Here's our conversation:

April: Mmmmm? (after handing the boy some cake)

Jaden: Mmmmmm Mmmmm MMMMMMMM! (smacking away with chocolate on his face)

April: Mmmmm Mmmm (in agreement)

Jaden: Let me hold it! (real meaning: give it to me, and when you do it's mine and I will eat all of it).

Better luck going cold turkey tomorrow huh?!

Relax?!?!?!

Today I had an acupuncture appointment! 3 years ago I was getting acupuncture treatments once a week to aid in getting pregnant....it worked after only 3 months! John and I are ready to try again for #2 starting next month so I wanted to get started with the one thing I know really helped us conceive Jaden. But I must say that going to a new Dr. was a little intimidating....I mean...you don't want just anybody sticking you with needles! So upon a recommendation from the pilates instructor from our health club; I called Dr. Kim and set up the appointment.

So we sit down in the treatment room, go over my history and he tells me that I have to quit eating sugar and cut out caffeine. WHAT?!?!?! I went in to get help and he wants to kill me! So I ask him, "does my husband have to cut that out of his diet too?"...thinking to myself that if I have to be denied the goodies and suffer....I'm taking John down with me. Doc says...."No". ......greeeaaaaat.........Thank goodness I already had my Starbucks fix that morning!

Then the treatment began! Before the first one went in, the doc says to me, "I have to use the long needles for your pelvis area". And I say....."How long are we talking here?" And he holds his hands up about a foot apart, "About this big" and laughs. He laughs! Not sure that the length of a needle is something to joke about but I gave him a weak/fake laugh....just to be nice. After he worked on my stomach, he says "Pin cushion!" and snickers.....I had to laugh at that one because I did look like a pin cushion or a porcupine! I had AT LEAST 20 needles stuck in me! (Man I wish I had thought to bring my camera with me to take a picture!)

Once he was finished sticking me, he turned on the heat lamps, turned down the lights and said to relax for 30 minutes. Hmmmmm. Problem is, when I start to fall asleep, I twitch! Annoying habit that drives John crazy but there it is. So I got nice and cozy under the heat lamps, I started to doze off and in turn start twitching which moved the needles which then immediately woke me up because it hurt like #$$$! So I just laid there thinking about how much I wanted to put up the Halloween decorations, how hungry I was, where should I eat lunch.....blah, blah, blah. Not real relaxing huh? But it was nice to just lie there and do nothing which is so not like me. I'm usually GO GO GO GO GO! Hmmmm. I'm sure that has nothing to do with my caffeine intake! =D

But seriously....it's all worth it. John and I want to have another baby so we'll be trying through the end of this year. We'll keep you posted!

Farting Cockroaches?!

Recently we went home for my husband's grandfather's 80th Birthday party and had the opportunity to visit with family and friends that we don't get to see very often. It was great!

One evening, Aunt Kathi, Uncle Lonnie and I were discussing different ways to kill outdoor pests. Example: Slugs like beer, just stick a can outside and they'll crawl in and drown or pour salt on them and they'll dissolve. And all of a sudden the discussion takes a very intellectual turn!

April: I saw a GIGANTIC cockroach outside the other day! (everything is gigantic in TX, you should see the mosquitos!)

Uncle Lonnie: (smirking) Just pour baking soda on the ground. They'll eat it and die because the sodium bicarbonate causes a build up of gas and cockroaches can't fart so they explode.

April: (pause) Are you serious? (starting to laugh) They just go boom! (laughing now)

Uncle Lonnie: (laughing) Yes they explode!

April: You know this is great material for my blog. No seriously! I'm going to blog about this! =D

So I Googled "Do cockroaches fart?"! Here is what I found on one site: "Cockroaches are among the biggest contributors to global warming, since they break wind every fifteen minutes. Furthermore, they continue to release methane gas for eighteen hours after they die."

And on another site: “Insect flatulence may account for one-fifth of all the methane emissions on this planet. (Termites are also prodigious farters; indeed, dogs trained to sniff out termites are actually following their farts.) Cockroaches are among the biggest contributors to global warming, since they break wind every fifteen minutes. Furthermore, they continue to release methane gas for eighteen hours after they die.”

Seriously?!?!?!

How do people know that cockroaches fart?! Do they put their ears right up to the little suckers backsides and listen for one?! Eww Eww Eww!

So I guess Uncle Lonnie was wrong! I guess you just have to step on them!

Save the planet! Kill a farting cockroach!

Photo Update

I posted some pics of Jaden last month that were "possibles" for the 2010 Hope Calendar coming out in October. Here are two more that Debi took but we still don't know which one she is going to choose! Can't wait!

Too much?

I was looking at all the toys in Jaden's playroom the other day and it seriously looks like we have 3 kids at least! Do you think kids have too much these days? Really! My brother and I grew up in a 3 bedroom house, the four members of my family shared 1 bath until I was in Jr. high at which time they converted the 1 bath and parts of 2 closets into 2 full baths. We didn't have a playroom either! My toys were in my room, my brother's in his and the outdoor toys were kept to a minimum in the backyard. Today, kids have their own bathroom, playroom, a giant climbing structure in the backyard that resembles Mt. Olympus and battery powered ride on cars with their own parking space in the 3 car garage! It's crazy! Who is to blame for all this craziness?! Oh yeah......we the parents buy all this stuff for them. Hmmm. Nevermind......=D

Jaden in Toy Land

In Memory of Gordon

Gordon

1993 - 2009

A week ago, we took Gordon to the vet for a check up. The Dr. said that the arthritis in his back legs was getting worse (more shaking than usual), he had lost more weight (hyperthyroid & was about 5 lbs) and the Dr. thought he had a mass in his chest which was pressing on his heart. Said that Gordon's heart occasionally stopped or skipped beats when he took a breath (arrhythmia). Because of his advanced age, medication wouldn't make him better...only prolong his condition. I knew this time was coming but nothing prepares you for having to say good-bye to a family member. We made the difficult decision to put him to sleep before he suffered anymore pain.

Gordon was my baby before I had Jaden. 16 years we spent together. Before the husband, before the move to TX, before the kid.....lots of history together. To say he was my favorite "furry kid" would be unfair to Katie but we did have a different relationship. Katie was the "Diva" in the house, content to come find me only when she needed something. Gordon was the "softie", sneaking into my lap while I was watching t.v., sitting at my feet while I was working on the computer, patting my leg if I was drinking a glass of milk, Pat, Pat, Pat, Gimme, Gimme, Gimme. =D He loved sleeping on my tummy when I was pregnant with Jaden and once Jaden was born, he was Jaden's shadow. It's strange how quiet the house is now without Katie and Gordon.....I really miss them both.

The night before we took Gordon in for his appointment.

I think we knew that the Dr. visit wasn't going to go well so we made sure that Jaden and Gordon got to spend some time together.

Jaden even kissed Gordon good-night.

Katie and Gordon

Jaden and Gordon's naptime

Gordon watching Jaden play

"Look! There's Gordon!"

Gordon watching us play with the iMac camera

when Jaden was 10 months old - at the old apartment.

Flying with a Super Hero!

Super Jaden and his sidekick Mommy!

This is what Little Man thinks of pickles...

No!!!!