[ december... december... ]

sooooooo... december is here already!!! so much excitement today ~ we started the STAR WARS advent calendar that the boy's wonderful godparents got them ~ VERY COOL!! & also YODA is back!! [ my elf on the shelf!! ] please read here

YODA!!!

STAR WARS ADVENT CALENDAR!!!!

[ ouchy ]

sooooooo... i pick up my boys from school, & i don't do this often but they love it, i brought them a lollipop to eat in the car. when i say i don't do that often don't go thinking i'm a meanie!! i usually try & give candy nearer a time they are going to clean their teeth...

we arrive home, it was pouring with rain, my phone starts ringing & i drop my keys in a puddle. i'm desperately trying to keep the kids from jumping in there too with arm actions so the person on the phone doesn't have an inkling of the chaos going on. i'm rubbish at doing that though because even though i try really hard i know my voice changes a bit & i can't actually listen properly to whats being said either!!

somewhere between the car, steering the boys, trying to get flynn to put down the muddy sticks he's collecting, carrying 2 backpacks, a closed umbrella, my phone held to my ear with my shoulder & unlocking the door i managed to knock the skin completely off my knuckle :( it was bleeding quite a lot & at first i stuck some kitchen towel on a la cut yourself shaving... but it looked gross & wasn't very functional!!

flynn, my 4 year old, has a very caring nature, came over & wanted to see, then before i could stop him he kisses it... but we're not talking a light peck... we're talking big sticky lollipop smooch... then shouts for his brother & says 'look mum's got a boo boo' & didn't steer his point so well & pushes his muddy finger in... so i now have a skinless knuckle covered in a mixture of cherry slobber & dirt!! but it was nothing a spiderman band aid couldn't fix!

flynn the photographer!

[ HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!! ]

sooooooo... i walked my son, oscar (6), to school ~ it was a lovely morning, a bit misty. My other son, flynn (4), trotted along happily with our old husky, lennon 11. lennon seemed really happy & enjoying the walk, his back legs seemed much better today, the arthritis not effecting him so much & i'm happy to say there were a few times that his tail even managed a curl, not seen that in a while.

oscar was asked to bring in a fruit today, to make a thanksgiving fruit salad with his class. we looked at all the fruit in the store & decided on a pineapple... then found a pineapple with 3 sprouty top bits instead of the usual one. so we had this pineapple in tow & i'd put in a brown paper shopping bag.

we reached school & said our goodbyes ~ i glanced behind me, as i walked away, to see oscar proudly showing off his pineapple to the kids in line, one of the handles had ripped off the bag & i knew it would only be a matter of time till that pineapple busted out!!

flynn & i continued home ~ the leaves seemed so much brighter today, beautiful colors as we high kicked through them... flynn asked me to carry his toy jet plane so he could hold my hand & he clung tight... i suddenly got butterflies in my stomach, the eve of a holiday my kids super excited, i was filled with childhood memories. we have a lot to be thankful for & i truly am.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all you wonderful friends & family x

flynn's center piece ~ gobble gobble

[ flu shot ]

sooooooo... i have to get this off my chest ~ as i've said before this blog is part of my therapy...

last week i called up my pediatrician's office & made appointments for the boys & me to have flu shots. flynn, 4, must have overheard & asked was it just oscar going. i replied no ~ all of us... he asked 'for flu shots?' & i couldn't lie...

this was not how i wanted to handle this ~ i wanted to take them to the appointment & they'd realized what was happening minutes before.

so for the last few days flynn must have been agonizing about this... i gently explained that we all need to have our flu shot, that it doesn't hurt at all & if you got the flu you'd be very sick etc etc etc (actually if he doesn't have the shot he would have to withdraw from pre-school). but this wasn't helping... so i then starting answering 'ok' to his statements ~ 'i'm not having the shot. tell the dr i don't want it. i'll get it next month. i won't get the flu.'

oscar, 5, on the other hand was behaving very bravely. 'mum, i'll go first ~ get it over with.'

i was reading stories to them as we waited our turn... when we were called into our room i looked at oscar ~ he had gone very pale & decided not to go first. flynn stood by the door. i pulled up my sleeve ~ confirmed it didn't hurt. next oscar sat on my knee. i told him to take a deep breath & when i saw the needle was about to go in told him to let it out. he also confirmed it didn't hurt. flynn started rapidly saying over  'i don't want it...' i tried to talk to him but he got hysterical, screaming & crying as loudly as he could... really screaming & slamming into the door. i really had to struggle to get hold of him, i fought trying to get his leg out (i think shots in kids thighs must hurt less...) it took all my strength & was horrible. i wanted to just pick him up & run ~ it hurt me so much... my insides ached & i felt sick. the shot was over in an instant but 6 hours later i still feel pains...

then i kept getting these awful thoughts ~ what if he was kidnapped or someone terrible tried to do something to him ~ he'd put up that kind of fight... that's want kids do... i'm making myself crazier!

we went to wegmans to watch the movie & eat pizza... flynn wanted to sit on my lap ~ i was really surprised, i thought he'd be really fed up with me, but instead his hugs felt tighter & when daddy met us he proudly showed off his plaster [band-aid], there are no words to describe this love

[ my brave flynn! ]

sooooooo... my little man, flynn, whose 3 years old had surgery today for a hydrocele & inguinal hernia.

i didn't realise how much i was worrying about it until the doctor called us into a room to tell us the surgery had gone well ~ i suddenly felt like a rag doll & could have just collapsed onto the floor.

while we were waiting for this news i felt really lightheaded. every time i heard a cry or a call for mum my ears pricked up with a yearning ache.

it's an odd feeling waiting for your child to finish their surgery & knowing everyone else in the waiting room is in the same boat. there's a sense of unspoken unity.

flynn had already had surgery when he was 3 weeks old for pyloric stenois, i went numb then. but i think my body could'nt cope with anymore as my husband & i were both laid off 3 days before.

when they wheeled flynn away today & was out of sight i shed a few tears but held it together pretty well (i think!!). but i did cry when i saw him afterwards all wired up & in pain.

we dressed flynn in his batman pj's but i didn't bother putting on the cape ( he was so out of it & hadn't really opened his eyes yet). flynn in his hoarse voice, brought on from the breathing tube, mustered up a gruff whisper 'put on the cape'. somehow he knew his outfit wasn't complete!

i can't say enough good things about the staff at CHOP.

thank goodness it's done & went well, i feel really lucky, blessed & proud of this very brave 3 year old.