End of the Year Awards....

So much to share.... First, a big CONGRATULATIONS to our baby girl for achieving her first Honor Roll!! (yes, first, she's only in first grade) :)

Today, my husband and I attended a second "Award Ceremony" for our daughter.  Their official ceremony was this past Monday.  Unfortunately, due to some miscommunication in within the staff, some students were overlooked, including our hard working daughter who had only one B (88) in Language Arts.

Both of my children are hard working kids, but this girl... she is the definition of "committed".  You may remember her monthly illnesses and her second surgery which forced her to be out more days that any child is allowed.  If you have not, you can read about her struggle here: A Little Girl's Journey to Surgery: Tonsillectomy

Ms. Bree studied very hard even during the days she was sick.  She would often take two tests in one week because it was important to her to make up all the work and tests she had missed while she was absent.  Ms. Bree never cared for scoring anything lower than a 90, and whenever she would score anything in the 80s (which is still a B by the way), she would be very upset, to the point of tears but it also made her more determined to do better.

There were times, when she couldn't stand knowing she didn't get an A, she would beg me to talk to her teacher and asked her if it was possible for her to re-take the test, "because I wasn't ready mama, I was sick for three days and I couldn't remember it all, I got confused".  What kind of kids does that??  I sure didn't!! I would just put extra patting on my butt and pray my mama beating would be a quick one!!   

Imagine our surprise when she received a "Reading Award"!! I was informed that her Lexile Level is 460!! (In Georgia, 2016 Lexile Gateway Requirements in order to be promoted, students in the 2ND Grade must meet a 345 Lexile Level)  Well, let's just say that I don't anticipate her having any problems in the reading department.  Regardless of her level, she will continue to do lessons from her Common Core Language Art Book and we will continue to practice dictation and spelling through out the summer.

Now, all of you know I'm a planner, and my entire week was consumed by the planning of "Summer Lessons".  Yes, I'm that kind of mom that makes her kids work even during the summer.....

I had already compiled a list of possible titled for Ms. Bree to read this summer but now I have to pick new titles.  We were under the impression her reading level was in the 200s... Boy, did she have us fooled!! Her list of books must be in the 400 to 500 range.  Jeesshhh!

Continue the good work my mini me, mommy and daddy are so proud of you!

We will continue to give you all the tools you need to do better in school, but remember that it's really your hard work and your determination to be an amazing student that made this possible!!  

Ideas for the Perfect Mother's Day Gifts!

With Mother's Day a few days away, we decided to put together a list of special ideas to help you find the perfect Mother's Day Gift.  Whether you are shopping for Mom, Grandmother, Sisters, Aunts, or friends.

Why not help her keep her skin looking radiant and young with some of these products.  Our friend, Korrie has some fabulous products that she promises will make that special woman a very happy one.

Here is what Korrie has to say: 

Hey Ya'll, give her what she wants!! Mother's Day is a few days away.  Every woman I know loves to feel cherishes, nourished and wants beautiful glowing skin.  Why not do it without breaking the bank ?!!

Everything is under $25.00, Buy 5 and get the 6th free.  These are natural based products, cruelty free AND you can earn perks fro every $1.00 you spend on her!  

Wow, I would love to get pampered with these products!  To place your orders click on her party link: Korrie's Korner Perfectly Posh

Let's continue shall we.  

For Mom who enjoys a good cup of tea.... 

Primula Daisy Glass Tea Pot, Clear and Rishi Tea Turmeric Ginger Bundle

Kitchen Aid Quart Kettle with C Handle

 For Moms who love to entertain!

Royal Albert Devotion, Gratitude and Joy 3-Tier Cake Stand 

Designed by Miranda Kerr

Royal Albert New Country Roses Pink Teaset, 3-Piece

Wilton Chocolate & Candy Melts Melting Pot

For Moms who love to be outdoors...

Woven Willow Picnic Basket (for 4)

Vivere Double Hammock with Space-Saving Steel Stand, Tropical

For the wine lovers...

BigMouth Inc Ultimate Wine Bottle Glass

BigMouth Inc "How Was Your Day?" Wine Glass

From the kids' heart.....

For this particular section, my kids helped picked the gifts they felt any Mother would love to receive.  Willow Tree is an intimate line of figurative sculptures that speak in quiet ways to whoever receives them as a gift.   

Willow Tree Mother and Daughter Memory Box

Willow Tree Mother & Son

Amlong Crystal Mothers Day Gift "I Love You Mom" Lighted Crystal Cube With Gift Box

Mother's Day Personalized Engraved Cutting Boards

For the Fit Mom...

FitBit Blaze (Plum-Small)

My husband recently gifted me with a FitBit Blaze of my own and I'm completely in love with it.  FitBit Blaze comes in three different colors, Black & Silver, Blue & Silver and Plump & Silver and it also comes in two different sizes, Small & Large.  

If you cannot decide which of the above gifts will be perfect for that special woman, you can always let her celebrate this special day her way by giving her GIFT CARDS or how about a day at your local Spa... 

Either way, the most important is to celebrate her, show her how much her work is appreciated and how thankful you are for having her in your life.  

Happy Shopping! 

Life After Tonsillectomy- A Month After Her Surgery

Hello Everyone!! 

Ms. Bree's Tonsillectomy surgery was performed thirty four (34) days ago today.  Can you believe it?  It has been a rough thirteen months for us but I think I am finally seeing the light at the end of tunnel.  

In my post "Her Journey To Surgery: Tonsillectomy", I explained how long her journey had been and how helpless we felt during her monthly fevers before her surgery was finally scheduled.  

A lot of our fans have asked why did it take so long for surgery to be scheduled. I agree that nine months of reoccurring fevers are a bit too much for a child's little body to endure.  

As a rule, pediatricians can only advise this type of surgery after making sure the tonsils are causing a chronic problem.  Unfortunately, during the beginning months, Ms. Bree had no signs of red or pink throat, she had a good cell count, no throat ache, no ear ache nor congestion.  However, she would occasionally complain of a tummy ache.  It was not until January 7th, 2016 that she was officially diagnosed with Tonsillitis and her second diagnosis was in February 8th, 2016.    

When the doctor tells you "children recover faster than adults" believe them!  Usually, tonsillectomy is done as an outpatient procedure, which means that the child will be able to go home the same day.  

Day 2 Post Surgery: 

The diet suggestion throughout the first few days included the following: 

Drinks: water, tea, apple juice, gatorade, milk, milkshakes, popsicles, jell-o (drinks that contained high levels of acidic were not allowed)  While she was allowed to have soda, it was not preferred. 

Thankfully she understood that she couldn't have anything "red" and soda, therefore she opted to stick with Frappucinos and Milkshakes. 

Food: Bland foods that are easy to swallow like ice cream, mashed potatoes, scrambled eggs, applesauce, grits, noodles, pasta, macaroni and cheese, dumpling, soft chicken (bake or boiled, not fried) and meatloaf.  

Food was one of the most difficult parts for her.  Ms. Bree is a big eater and by Day 2, she wanted to eat everything that she was not allowed to eat.  She had a lot of mac and cheese, plain noodles with grated parmesan cheese.  She also ate a lot of ice cream sandwiches, popsicles and chicken breast (rotisserie style). 

Our instructions were to concentrate on hydration rather than nutrition and that's exactly what we did.  We took cues from her and we watched her behavior closely for any indication that she was in a lot of pain.

The anticipated recovery time was two weeks and the only activities allowed were lot of "bed rest" and "quiet activities".  No running, lifting, yelling, swimming are allowed.  

Day 3 Post Surgery:

By  Day 3 she was so bored, tired of taking naps and coloring quietly in the company of Grandmother.   She followed instructions wonderfully by not yelling and running around the house. 

We were also advised that while you are able to controlled the pain throat with medication, the pain becomes more severe during the 3rd and 4th day and usually peaks during the 7th-10th day.  

She was so blessed, the severe pain we were told to expect, never came! While she continued to take the antibiotics like a champion, she really didn't require a lot of pain medication and I'm so thankful for that. As parents, we hate to see our children in pain and no power to take it away. 

We were expecting some nasal speech or nasal regurgitation as we were told that both can sometimes occur, but Ms Bree didn't experience either of those things. 

However, her breath was out of this world!   We didn't make it a big deal, in fact, we explained to our son why Ms. Bree had a foul odor coming from her mouth, and why he shouldn't say anything to her.  After all, we really couldn't do anything about it, the foul odor is often present during the healing process.  We were told that swelling of the tongue, uvula and throat are common and it usually goes away within seven days.  During the first two days, Ms. Bree had a hard time opening her mouth in order to brush her teeth, so we did our best to keep her teeth cleaned.

Ms. Bree's follow up with Dr. Oliver was on March 24th, 2016 at which time she was given the "green light" to return to school and was told she could slowly return to her regular activities. (except the trampoline)

Day 16 Post Surgery:

Ms. Bree was so excited that she had been given the "ok" to attend her best friend's birthday party! 

While I anticipated for her to be a little bit more tired than usual after the party, she was not.  She didn't require a nap after the party at all.

Day 17 Post Surgery:

Her first day back at Church was so amazing.  The kids were also looking forward to the "Egg Hunt".  Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate and the Egg Hunt didn't take place.  However, their Pastor and staff did a great job making sure the kids had fun and they each received a bag full of goodies. 

Day 31 Post Surgery:

April 9th, 2016 

April 9th was a very important date for her and for me as well.  We celebrated little man's "special friend's" birthday, the celebration took place at the "Get Air" and what kid doesn't like a "jumping place"?

It was important to me because as I mentioned before, her fevers were a monthly occurrence and she would have them anywhere between the 5th -8th of the month.    Well, the fevers never came!! 

I can see the change in her.  She no longer snores and she has not complained of any tummy aches.  Like every child, she will get sick, she will experience the occasional cold or sore throat.  We deeply believe the surgery worked and her quality of life has improved.  While I know it has only been 34 days since her surgery, the fevers didn't strike this month and her daily activities were not affected at all.   

Ms. Bree has been able to enjoy birthday parties, play dates, church and the good old Strawberry Festival!  She is back to her old happy self, enjoying everything in life and everything in the refrigerator!!  And that ladies and gentlemen, makes us very happy and very broke but we gladly accept being broke if it means having our children happy and healthy!  LOL  

Easy Spring Crafts for Kids- Project 3: Easter Egg Wreath

I just love spring and the many activities we can do during this time with our kids.  As I mentioned on our first post, I love spending quality time with our children which is very important to me.  

Ms. Bree knows how much I enjoy making new wreaths for our home.  Therefore, she wanted to make one for her room.  Instead of buying all the materials I would normally buy to make a wreath for our front door, I decided to buy this pack of 30 Foam shapes. 

All Easter theme items are on sale at 50% off their regular price at our local crafting store and the final price for the foam shape pack for $4.79.  They already have the "egg" shape we need and the pastel colors are perfect for this project.

PROJECT 3

EASTER EGGS WREATH  

Unlike the last two projects, your little ones are going to required a little bit more of your help, specially with the assembling of the wreath.

What you will need to have: 

13 Oval Shape Foams (or Easter theme scrapbook paper);
Glue;
Markers; and
Piece of Ribbon

First thing to do is to ask your child how big they want their wreath to be.  I used thirteen (13) shapes to create ours.  

The next step is to decorate the oval shapes.   You can use markers and draw lines, circles, flowers, whatever design your little one wants to have or you can print Easter Eggs Coloring pages, color, cut and paste them onto your shapes. 

Once the shapes are decorated to the satisfaction of your little artist, it is time to assemble the wreath. 

You will need two pieces of ribbon of you choosing.   Make a bow using your first piece of ribbon and glue it to the front.  

Add the second piece of ribbon to the back of your wreath to hang it and now you're all done!!   

There it is ladies and gentlemen.... for less than $5.00 your little one can create his or her own Easter Theme Wreath!! 

Happy Crafting and stay tuned for our next Easy Spring Crafts for Kids!!  

His 9th Birthday Celebration & A Special Letter!

Hello Everyone!! 

We would like to thank everyone from our Instagram, Facebook, Twitter channels for taking the time to wish Happy Birthday to our son!

Our son was born on September 29th at approximately 10:00 in the morning.  After twelve hours of labor, he came into this world weighting 5.5 lbs and measuring 19 inches long.  

He was small and long but it took very little time for this baby boy to put up some serious weight and his length was above the charts.

He was three months old when we celebrated our first Christmas together.   

Our baby was so chunky, long but most of all, he was adored by all!

He has always been a happy and active baby.   

At five months old, he was part of Savannah's Cutest Baby contest! 

His smile and laugh has and continues to be infectious! 

Experiencing one of Daddy's favorite hobbies at just 8 months old!  

He loved been on the boat but he loved his little inflatable boat even more! 

Learning how to crawl at nine months old, he has kept grandmother on her toes

since that day! 

Dear Son: 

     You are now nine years old... and we are so happy and proud of you!  Being a parent is not easy, at times it can be scary.  You see, children don't come with an "instruction" book that will tell us how to deal with every situation.  Therefore, we have to try our very best to guide our children in the right direction. 

    We want you to know that we love you very much and we are so proud of everything you have accomplished in just nine years.   You may think we are mean because we won't allow you to quit when a situation gets difficult.  But by not allowing you to easily quit, your father and I are trying to prepare you for the future by teaching you that you most continue to try.  We want you to be able to reach your goals even when the obstacles seem too high. 

    Remember that a lot of people loves you, Grandmother, Papa, your Aunts, Uncles, cousins, all your friends and classmates.  But most importantly, GOD loves you, no matter what, when or where, he will always be there for you.  You only need to reach for him.  

   I know you most get tired of us telling you that "you need to be more responsible" and to "pay more attention".   You see son, nothing in this life is easy or free and yes, we do know school isn't always fun, but it is very important that you learn these things, so that you can take advantage of your education, so that one day you may have good career options.

    You are smart, talented in so many ways.  Don't ever forget to stay true to yourself and always be thankful for everything you have been blessed with.  Daddy and I have tried to teach you and will continue to teach you the difference between right and wrong.  Always try to be nice and kind to others because those simple actions will define who you are, it is never worth been mean to others.  You need to surround yourself with people who are just like you.  If you are good to your friends and others then they will be good to you.  A true friend is someone who compromises, listens and understands.  If you see a friend who is making the wrong choices, speak up and tell them, if they fail to listen then do not follow them, ONLY follow your own path.  

   Don't ever try to be someone you are not, be proud of who you are. Hey, we are, so why not you!!   (just to prove a point, watch yourself in this video Daddy made for you)

   You are unique because GOD created you that way, and to us you are ONE PERFECT DUDE!

     Love, Mommy and Daddy! 

Birthday Party at Frames & Games

 The moment he discovered he was given a $20.00 gift! 

Ready to play Laser Tag!

 5D Movies!