Uugghhh!

Today has been one of those days. You know, where nothing can go right and you just keep getting bad news? Well, this morning when we dropped Will off at school, his teacher told me that he had to go to the principal's office yesterday and that his hitting is really getting out of hand. This makes me so sad, because I don't know that Will understands that hitting is bad. I also don't think he understands that the kids he's hitting can't fight back. Then, we go to get our taxes done, and they tell us we have to have our social security cards. We've been looking for them for several days and can't find them. We called , and they place that does our taxes said if we came to the same location we used last year, we wouldn't need our cards. We got there, and they said we had to have them. So then we go to the social security office and wait an hour and a half to apply for new cards and get receipts that we can use at the tax place. Once we finally got to go up to the window, they told us the shot records we brought for the kids' ID's (this is what they told us to bring), weren't the right kind of shot records and that we would have to come back once we had the right kind of shot records. They wouldn't accept the official birth certificates I had with me. I was so mad. I just don't understand why people have to be that way. Anyway, I just really needed to vent. Please pray that things get better in my life because right now I'm stressed to the max. Hopefully my next note will be more uplifting and light hearted.

New Van

I'm sure I've posted about our wreck that happened at the end of December. Well, Jeremiah has been driving a 1996 Crown Victoria that belongs to our Sunday school teachers for a month now. Today, we got a new van! It's awesome! It is a 2008 Chrysler Town & Country. The only thing it doesn't have that we really wanted is a DVD player, but we're going to get one when we get our tax refund. Jeremiah and I are both really excited about it. It's pretty and big and will be great for driving around with the kids. Anyway, that's all for now. I start night shift Monday, so I'm not sure how much I'll post over the next few weeks.

Little Rock Rocked!

Well, today is my last day on my developmental pediatrics rotation in Little Rock, and I have had an awesome time! Everyone has been really great and encouraging about me coming here for my fellowship. One of the psychologists asked me this morning if they had promised me the position yet, and when I told her no, she said, "Well, I'll start talking to Jill (the program director) about that them." Things look very encouraging. I had dinner with the program director and the two fellows and had a really good time. Everyone here is really nice and seemed very excited that I wanted to do the fellowship.

There is also a lot of stuff in Little Rock for Will. They have every type of pediatric subspecialist there is and also have places for outpatient therapies. There is a special needs private school that goes kindergarten through 12th grade, but I don't know how much it cost yet. Anyway, if we came here, I think Will would have all of his needs met. I also have a friend who lives here. She is the person I've been living with for the past 2 weeks. We went to medical school together, and the is at UAMS in Little Rock doing her residency in anasthesia. She will be completing her 4th and final year of residency my first year of fellowship, so we'd be in town together for at least one year. It will be nice to have someone to help us get to know Little Rock. The church she goes to even has a program just for special needs kids! How cool is that?

Cate had her speech evaluation yesterday, and she tested to be delayed in her speech. I kind of suspected it, but she had been saying new words over the last month or two, so i was hopiung I was wrong. She'll start speech therapy soon and probably go at least once at week. It stinks because she doesn't have medicaid like Will does, so we'll have to pay out-of-pocket for some of the costs. It's okay though because we want what's best for her. I'll update more after her first session. Hope all is well with all of you. More to come...

Happy New Year!

Well, it's 2009, and so far so good. I had yesterday and today off from work and have been able to spend some quality time with my family. The kids have even been sleeping relatively late, so I haven't had to wake up incredibly early. Hooray! I'm trying not to make resolutions for this year but rather goals for myself and my family, that with the grace of God we'll be able to meet. One of our big goals is to potty train the kids. I think Cate will be fairly easy to train because she's started hiding when she goes to the bathroom. I'm not so sure about Will, but I'm hoping that maybe if Cate is doing it that he'll be interested in it too. Another goal is to get a contract for a fellowship position - specifically in Little Rock. I'm going there on Sunday to spend 2 weeks, and I'm hoping I'll make a good impression and that maybe even this early talks will start about the position. I'm also hoping for a healthy year for our family. That hasn't started out so well. Jeremiah and the kids were in a wreck on Monday, and he has a pretty bad burn on his right wrist. I'm hoping that it heals well and soon, but it's looking like it's trying to get infected. Will is also going to have surgery in March, so it won't be a fantastic year, but hopefully it won't be too bad. Well, that's all I have for now. Hopefully, I'll have great news about potty training soon. Happy New Year!

Growing Up

This Christmas has been a good one. We traveled to Alabama to spend the holiday with our families. Watching the children here, it's scary how much they've grown up since last Christmas. We see them everyday, so it isn't as obvious to us, but everyone back home just can't get over how big they are and how much they have changed. Cate even got her first haircut this week while we were home. She was actually pretty good. She only cried when they sprayed her hair with the water bottle. Will was very good at church on Christmas eve. He was actually one of the quieter kids in the service. Their routines have been totally thrown off this week, and they've missed several naps. While, I hate to leave our families and I'm dreading the drive back to Oklahoma, I am looking forward to getting back to our normal daily routines. I am not ready to go back to work, but it must be done. I'm heading to Little Rock next week for a 2 week rotation. I'm excited but I'm worried about my family being in Tulsa without me. Anyway, the kids are doing well, and that's a good thing. Hopefully I'll have some wonderful stories to tell about my adventures in Little Rock.

Sick Again!

Catiebug is sick again. I'm sure I've brought home RSV or something else to her. It seems like half our patient census has RSV right now. Cate has runny nose, cough, congestion...you know, the usual. She had fever on Friday, but none since, thank goodness. I hope she doesn't get bad. Some of the kids in the hospital are pretty sick, but they are very little too. I just hope she gets better by the time we head home on Saturday.
I'm so excited about being able to be home for Christmas with my entire family. This will be the first time that we've been home for Christmas with both kids. My parents, brother, and sister will be there too. It's going to be so fun! Like everyone else, it's a Christmas on a very tight budget, but I don't care. I wouldn't care if I didn't get any gifts as long as I can see my family. I miss them very much, and I can't wait until we're able to move back to Montgomery for good. Hopefully I'll be able to post some pictures next week of the kids playing with their grandparents and aunt and uncle. Until then...

Sorry!

I know I've been a total slacker, but I have a good excuse! I've worked 85 hours each of the last 2 weeks. Anyway, Will had his eye surgery yesterday, and he did well. His eye is red and swollen from it, but he seems to feel okay. He participated in the children's music at church Sunday night. He was supposed to sign something, but they had him go very last, and he was so tired and fussy that he didn't do it all. He looked really cute though! Cate had her Christmas performance at her preschool tonight. She did so good. They stood up on the stage and did motions to a few songs. It was very entertaining! I don't really have any other updates at the moment. I'll try to be better about updating the blog this month, but no promises. I'm 9 days into a 21 day stretch, so when I get home, I play with the kids and then go to bed. I hope you guys enjoy this video of Cate at her program tonight. More to come...