We went to see a surgeon today...

T-minus three days, and we were spending the day today (yesterday at this point, but it's so late or early rather in the morning) at the orthopedic surgeon's office at Cook Children's Medical Center in downtown Fort Worth. Why, you ask? Well...

Kayden and her friend (whom I will leave nameless) were playing outside on Tuesday, when she let out a horrible shriek. I knew what it was right away, because she was protecting her arm. Long story short, her friend had twisted or pulled her arm and hurt her. This was particulary worrisome, because it was the same arm that had been pulled out of socket about two years ago...

In brief: A teacher at her school went psycho and yanked her up by her arm and pulled her elbow out of socket. We filed a police report, it went to the D.A., then the grand jury, and they decided not to pursue the case any further, because they could not prove malice. We had the bitch on camera. Whatever. Anyway, that was what flashed through my minds-eye.

To continue... she came home and didn't want me to do anything but lay on the couch with her and later in her bed and watch Monsters, Inc. I would try to comfort her and she said she was hurting and didn't want me to touch her. Every once in a while, she would assure me that I didn't need to take her to the doctor, because her arm was fine. In the next breath, she would cry and tell me that it hurt. Come to find out, she just didn't want me to take her to have a shot. I so remember that fear. My pediatrician was a she/he.. I still don't know what it was to this day, and it wore white nurse shoes. Oh, the scars from that... anyway... So we watched the movie, and I moved to the couch out of her bed, when she fell asleep. 15 minutes later she was on the couch with me telling me to get OFF of the couch, because I was in her way and hurting her arm.. I WAS THERE FIRST! Oh... I'm the adult here... So, she informed me that it would be o.k. if I slept on the floor. Perfect, the floor. I thought at least then she might go to sleep. Oh, if I had only been so lucky. Bless her heart, she literally whimpered every two or three minutes. She just couldn't get comfy. I can't imagine how badly it hurt.

So, this morning John and I discussed the situation, and we decided that we were torn. She stubs her toe, and it turns into an ordeal so that she can milk it for all the attention away from Kylee that she thinks it's worth. So we were thinking some of the whining might be that, but then she told us that it didn't hurt anymore. She wasn't even moving. Her eyes weren't open, but here is this little voice, "my arm doesn't hurt. I don't need to go to the doctor..." John and I just laughed. She always has to get her two-cents in. So, I took her to school and told her teacher what was going on. It wasn't 30 minutes later, and I had an email. Kayden wasn't using her arm, and she was upset. She was most upset about the fact that I was taking her to the doctor. That was much worse than the pain she was in, apparently.

The pediatrician tried to put it back into place, and he was unsuccessful. We got bad parent points, because we waited to get her in until the next morning. She hurt it around 9 PM. Not sure we should relinquish our parent card for that, but whatever. He told me that with "Nurse Maid's Elbow" (google it), you have to reset it within 4 hours or it becomes more difficult as time goes on. Having said that, he did tell me that she seemed to have been severely injured, though, so he wasn't sure that theory would have really applied to her. At any rate, he wasn't comfortable trying to reset it any further, so off we went to the orthopedic surgeon. Beautiful. I was pissed, stressed, heart-broken for Kayden, and selfishly hoping that we wouldn't have to make a million different doctor visits to fix her poor arm. My hoping wasn't all in vain. The orthopedic surgeon visit was actually a piece of cake.

The ortho took pictures of her bones, as I explained it to her, and he assured me that she was all in one piece and her friend hadn't broken anything, but had twisted or pulled it pretty hard. He gave me two options. Option one was to attempt to reset it, but he said he really didn't want to do that. She was still traumatized from the pediatricians failed attempt, and he said he didn't want to put her through that. Option two was the winner: we would cast her arm from her hand to the middle of her upper-arm, and then come back in two weeks to remove it. We walked out of there... well, I did with a monkey sporting a purple cast, and feeling much better. As soon as the cast was on, she said it didn't hurt her any more.

At least it is in my color scheme. :-)

I have GAS!

In my Tahoe, and I am ready to run the last-minute errands for the wedding. We have NINE DAYS! That still seems like an eternity. We have been engaged since April 2004. 4 years and four months. Wait... I was just doing the math in my head.. I think that's right. I think we decided that we had been together since 11/10/02. That's right.. I got pregnant in January of '04, got engaged when I was about 4 months pregnant, and then I had kayden on 10/01/04. I was thinking that we had been engaged for five years for some reason... not that after four years it matters that much, but still.

Anyway, what is another 9 days? Maybe Kylee's diaper rash will clear up, since her upper front tooth will have time to break through... that's what I worry about these days ;-) She has been teething so badly, and she is SOOOO late... bless her heart.

I have to make the flip flops for my girls this weekend and buy their gifts. Actually, I have about half of the stuff that I am putting in their bags; I just need to finish. John is going to C.S. for his bachelor party this weekend, so I will probably have time to get everything done. Funny how when he is home I feel like I get nothing done, and when he is home I feel so productive! I guess I just feel like I have to wait on him all the time when he's home or do whatever he thinks he wants me to do... he's just another kiddo for me to babysit haha... not really, he's just distracting.

I am getting stressed-out, though. I need to contact the DJ, pastor and make sure that all the vendors don't forget. I just have this fear that someone won't show up. I guess what happens happens, and everything will be fine. I just need for next weekend to get here!

I LOVE this place

baby%20girls">http://www.childrensplace.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?exp=n&storeId=10001&langId=-1&catalogId=10001&categoryId=25851&catTree=25851,26140&clearance=C&cmLink=shopOutlet>baby%20girls

Update...

To update -

Ryan is still pregnant, which is marvelous. She had her sonogram, and her baby is doing well. We are having a hard time getting her to follow the order to STAY OFF OF HER FEET! I told her I was going to kick her butt after she has her Daughter. I was on bed rest with Kayden, so I know the frustration, but it goes without saying that it is so worth listening!

The Jegerator is doing really well, also. They literally gave him a brand new face. I'm going to have to get used to it, because I so adored the "old" one! The only surgeries that he will need to have now will be to repair his palate. His is one handsome little guy. I'm really not sure that anyone will be able to tell really what his lip used to look like, after the swelling has subsided. It is just amazing what doctors can "fix" now. I'll have to post an updated picture today or tomorrow.

To anyone and everyone that prayed for these two people that are so special to me.. thank you. It worked. The power of prayer, as I have always known and at times forgotten, is far greater than we can ever comprehend.

On the subject of prayer... my oldest and dearest friend, Melinda, is pregnant with her first son. She will be around 33 weeks on the date of our wedding. She has told me that she isn't sure if she will be able to make it, so a good friend of mine, Kristin, is stepping-in for her as a bridesmaid. Melinda would have been my Matron-of-Honor. Her baby is having problems with his kidney function, so they, too, need all the prayer that they can get.

I'll post pictures of Kayden and her Dad at the Airhogs game on Friday.. I wish we could have gone... Kylee and I have been pretty sick for the past few days. We have some sort of dumb stomach bug that requires that you are within 10 feet of a toilet at all times... sucks....

19 days to go! wahooo!

Pray.

One of my bridesmaid's, Robin, is going to become a Grandmother again, soon. Hopefully, not too soon. Please pray for her Daughter, Ryan, and her unborn Daughter. Ryan had been having contractions that were progressing her cervix. She was put on bed rest, and the contractions stopped. She had a Fetal Fibronectin test yesterday, and it came back positive. From everything that I read last night, this is terrible. 77% of women with that result will more than likely deliver in 7-10 days. Hopefully, the information that I was reading was wrong. She is only 25 weeks. She is supposed to be having a sonogram today to assess the baby. All indications are favorable that the baby, a little girl, is healthy and developing normally. But, she would have a fight if she were born now, obviously. Ryan's first son had open-heart surgery, and prayer saved his life. He is happy and healthy and beautiful.

My other bridesmaid has a son that is having surgery today. He is such a little angel. He is my Jegerator! His name is Jeg. He has double cleft palate and lip. They are repairing the right side of his lip today. The left side was repaired in a previous surgery, and it looks incredible. They need prayer also.

Every time you think about it today, pray.

This is Ryan and her son, Joshua, at our house on the 4th:

This is my Jegerator with his Mom and Dad at our house on the 4th:

VOTE FOR KYLEEEE!

I entered Kylee into the "DFW's CUTEST BABY" contest on Mix 102.9. It's a great station, and they stream online, if you're interested in listening to a family-friendly "mix". Anyway, click the radio button next to "Kaylee Hall"... I emailed them and asked them to correct it, so we'll see how long that takes, but it's her! The site will send you an email to the email address that you enter at the bottom. You can vote once per email address that you have, so if you have more than one - USE THEM!!!!!!! We win a trip to Mexico, if she wins..





This is the picture:
Here is the link: http://www.mix1029.com/pages/contests/cutebaby/index-voting-2.html

One Month to Go...

We have one month, until we are "official"! I am not sure whether to be nervous, excited, stressed... I'm hoping we have a decent turn-out. After having to cancel my bachelorette, because noone was coming, I'm expecting the worst. I'm usually not that pessimistic, but at this point I guess stress has taken over.

We hired Cinderella Stories to do our cakes, because my Great Aunt decided that she would rather not try to do them. She is having knee surgery a couple of weeks before the wedding, so she really isn't going to be strong enough to do it.

I'm in the process of putting the bridesmaid's gift bags together. I also have to tie ribbon on the bubbles.... oh how stressful tying a freaking bow can be! I'm actually going to have my bridesmaid Robin's daughter, Ryan, do it. She's prego with her second baby, and she is on bed rest for now. I know how frustrating bed rest can be, so I'm trying to come up with crafty things for her to do. I'm making the flip flops for the bridesmaids and myself, so I might have her help with that, as well.

So far 26 people are coming... crickets.... I hear them now...

I finally got Kylee fitted for the wedding. She looks like a little doll. She really wasn't into the whole standing still thing, but we got it done. She actually was very well behaved for it being her bed time. Kristin went with me and got fitted, as well. We had a heck of a time with David's Bridal. I had asked Kristin months ago to step in for my best friend and Matron of Honor, Melinda, in the event that she became pregnant and couldn't make the wedding. Well, she is not sure if she will be able to make it. She and her husband live in Florida. She is going to be 33 weeks pregnant with her first little angel on my wedding date. His name is Colin Ryan Smith, and bless his heart, the doctors found that he is having problems with his left kidney function. She is going to the doctor on the 22nd, I believe, and she will ask then about flying. She is a nurse, so she is well-equipped to know whether to take the risk or not. I told her if there was any risk in flying at all that I would be very upset if she made the trip. It is just so not worth it. I would love for her to be there, and it won't be the same without her. I never pictured anyone else as my Matron or Maid of Honor. I won't have one now, really, but if she makes it here, I will be ecstatic. I can't wait to see her pregnant belly. I can't wait to meet my nephew, either! Anyway, my point in rattling on was to explain the situation. When we ordered the dresses a year ago, they assured me (they, being the David's Bridal staff) that we would be able to return and/or exchange the dress if we needed to, no matter when we needed to. So, we get to the store for Kristin to get fitted, and they informed us that we would not be able to return or exchange Melinda's dress for Kristin's. Well... it was so late at that point, that I wasn't in the mood to argue, and I just wanted to get a dress ordered for Kristin and go home. It was after 10 at this point, and we had to order a different dress, because apparently my style had been discontinued. Oh, the drama. I was so tired of "issues" that I agreed to a dress that was basically the same, with just a different neckline.

At work the next day, I told Shelley (John's sister) about our ordeal. She reminded me that they had assured us that they would exchange the dress, yada yada. I'm not good at confrontation, so Shelley said she would call and get it straightened-out. Sure enough, within 10 minutes she had gotten them to agree to refund Melinda's money and order the correct dress for Kristin. Crisis averted.

So here are a couple of pictures of Kylee getting fitted.