Christmas 2008

Lil B ( braden) had an awesome Christmas. Santa was very good to him this year. Everyone is doing good despite several health issues. I'm really enjoying this time off from school. I plan on getting my house organized (yeah right) and just taking it easy and spending time with the best present our family received this year, Braden Riley!

Happy Holidays!

Here are a few pics from our christmas. These were taken Christmas Eve at my mom's house. We all had a great time, even though the gift card exchange got pretty competitive (haha)! Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!

Braden Meets His Great Grandmother

Braden is meeting his great grandmother ( sorry mom) for the first time! My mom was so excited to finally see him, and he slept through it all. He kept mom up till 3am so he was catching up on his beauty sleep! Braden is up to 7 lbs now and that is hard to believe. I can't believe Thanksgiving is almost here. We have a lot to be thankful for esp our baby. Dan lost his job about 4 weeks ago and has been unable to find another job. It is getting really frustrating because everyday he sends his resume out or fills out an application and nothing! He has applied for 37 jobs so far and only 7 have said his resume was forwarded to the hiring manager. It's so hard to not be angry that this happened or be depressed it happened. I know that when God closes one door he opens another but come on already! This is getting ridiculous. Oh well, please pray for us that we can get through this and Dan can and will find a job (at least with benefits, hello! do you know Whitney and I?? We can't go to long without insurance)

Being Grandparents Rock!!!

As you can tell Dan and I finally got to hold our first grandchild, Braden Riley! It was soo amazing to hold such a precious gift and to know he is a part of you. Braden finally came home on Friday so mom and dad decided to spend a few days alone with him before letting others come and see him.. Although this is a good idea, I think grandparents should have been able to come and see him first. But I respect mom and dads wishes and held out till Sunday. He looks so different from the way he looked in the hospital. I don't know maybe it was because I was finally up close and personal that I saw how adorable he is. I still think he looks like his great grandfather with a little Branden thrown in there! He has decided to give mom and dad a hard time and likes to stay awake at night and sleep all day! Haven't we all been through that phase? I told mom I was available for night duty if she needs me! So Braden slept the whole time we were there, even with passing him from Dan to myself! I remember those first few weeks. You are so tired it is hard to put one foot in front of the other. I really want to be there and help the new parents in any way but I'm not sure what the boundaries are. When I had my kids I welcomed any and all help those first few weeks and I was glad to have my mother, Dan's mom Marie and my Granny to help me and let me get a few hours of precious sleep. So I don't know what else to do except keep offering my help and hope that they will let me help . I really want to be a good mother-in-law and a great grandmother. But where are the boundaries? I don't want to be pushy or overbearing. There really should be a class or a book one can read on how to do this grandparenting and mother-in-law thing! Anyway, if someone really reads this blog I invite you to give me some advice on this subject. I'm curious as to what people think makes a great grammy and a good mother- in-law!

One Week Later Update

Wow! What a difference a week makes! Our little baby is doing awesome. He is now taking a bottle and mom and dad finally get to hold their little boy. Unfortunaly grandparents have to wait til he comes home :( but I get to go into the nicu and see him! If everything continues to progress we are hoping he will be able to come home the end of the week or early next week. Yesterday was his one week birthday and I went to see him. He was awake (finally!) and was very curious about the world around him. He seemed to be mesmerized by his mommy's face, it was awesome to watch the two bonding. This was the first time I was able to see his eyes open. Everyone says he looks like Branden but I'm not sure. I have to give thanks to Arlington Memorial Hospital's NICU, they run a tight ship but are always there to answer questions or help mom and dad with the care of their baby. Of course Whitney and Laura are patiently waiting till he comes home so they can see him. Whitney has given me strict orders that when she comes home for the Thanksgiving holidays the very first stop has to be and Branden's and Sharla's! We are so thankful that a bad situation has turned out good and that mommy and baby are doing great!

Braden Has Arrived!!!

Our family proudly announces the birth of Braden Riley Elkins! He was born at 12:46am Tuesday Nov. 4th. Braden weighed in at 6lbs 7oz and 19 inches long. Braden decided to make his appearance 4 weeks early. His birth was a little scary and there were complications that causes Sharla to have to have an emergency c-section. But thankfully mom and baby are doing fine. Braden is in the nicu because of his early arrival and he needed a little support breathing. (that is the breathing machine you see around his head and his nose. We are so thankfully that angels were watching over that little boy and his mom. If they had waited any longer this would not have turned out good! We don't know how long Braden will be in the nicu so please keep mom and baby in your prayers. Hopefully I will have better pics to post soon along with an update.

Spring Registration

Wow! I can't believe it is time to register for Spring 2009 classes. This semester has flown by. I have really enjoyed my education classes and my professors. They are all so down to earth and really want you to be an awesome teacher. So, also starting in January I will be taking care of Braden while his mommy works. I am so excited! The family can't hardly wait for the little guy to get here! I think Sharla has 29days ( technically), but I'm expecting Braden's arrival in 1-2 weeks. ( let's see if my prediction comes true! It would be really funny if it did!). So for the spring my classes will be: Literary methods for ESL/Bil, Technology for the Classroom, Content Area , Reading/ Writing, and my FINAL!! math class!!!!! (I'm so excited about this one) Ok thats all for now, hope all have a great day!!

RIP

RIP my dear friend. We have shared many moments together. You were truly my best friend, my link to the outside world, the one who was always there for me. I will miss you very much. Yes, my laptop has gone to laptop heaven and has left me very lonely. I guess I will have to use the computers at school! Yuck!!!!! Anyway I'm without a computer and have to wait till January to get another one.. Please keep me in your prayers that I can make it till January and that I don't catch some awful disease from the schools's computers!

My best friend from high school came to the shower. Patsy and I have been friends for well over 25yrs!(now I'm showing my age) We have shared out life's ups and downs with each other. Even though we sometimes have a hard time seeing each other I know she is only a phone call away if I ever need her. At the shower we reminisced about how fast our children have grown up and how we can't believe our babies are old enough to have babies. Although Patsy does have a 15 yr old and 12 yr old (I hope I got the ages right, if not please forgive me Patsy). Thanks Pat for being my friend all the years. Love ya!

Also on Saturday Branden and Sharla had their baby shower. There were quite a few people there. They received lots of gifts. Only 8 weeks to go!!

Best Friends and Babies

It was a busy weekend. Dan's friend Mike got married on Saturday morning. Congrats Mike and Kathleen Clark!

Free Counter

Baby Braden

Here is our baby at 28 weeks! Isn't he a cutie already? Braden has been playing with us this week. For some reason, he thought he might like to make an earlier than planned appearance. After several trips to labor and delivery we hope we have convinced him that even though we are anxious to meet him he really needs to stay in mom a little longer. Mom is on bedrest and medication right now so we are hopefull that everything will be ok and they will make it to 34 weeks.which the dr says he can be delivered anytime after that safely. School is in full swing for me. I'm taking 12 hrs, and 9 of those are education classes. I love my professors. They are making learning how to teach fun.

Girl's Night Out

The girls and I had a "girl's night out" last Saturday. We went to dinner at PF Changs and we had a great time. It was nice to have my girls all to myself for just a little bit. After dinner we hit up Petsmart for new toys for Landry and a new pet for Laura. She bought a fish for her new apartment. It's name is Pinkster ?? Guess you have to start somewhere right? Anyway I think we should all have a "girl's night out" with our daughters, our mothers, sisters, and friends. We get so busy in our daily lives that we sometimes forget to tell or show the ones we love how lucky we are to have them in our lives. So, to ever reads this blog, go have a girl's night out with your favorite girls!

Meet our new addition

This is Landry and he is our new addition to the family. Landry is an 8 month old Chocolate Lab. I hope in one of the pics you can see how beautiful is eyes are. So far the other members of our animal family have welcomed Landry and have decided he can stay. Dan is going to train Landry to hunt with him so that will be interesting. As for me, well, I plan on loving them all and spoiling them rotten.

Tag I'm it!

Well Whitney tells me I have to do this so here goes! I have to tell 6 quirks I have. I didn't think I had quirks but Whitney swears I do so with her help here we go!
1. I am pajama addict. There, I have admitted it. I stay in my pjs as long as possible. Sometimes I stay in my pjs all day (shh don't tell anyone).

2.I HATE driving on the highways and at night. Thank goodness for Whitney and Dan who play my chauffeurs.

3. I love my puppies, Samson and Isabella. Sam is a boxer who is 13yrs old and Isabella is a lab/chow who is 6 yrs old. I spoil my babies and sometimes when Dan is away hunting for the weekend, I let them sleep with me (hee hee don't tell Dan he doesn't need to know this).

4. I love to teach! I enjoyed teaching primary so much that I am 2 yrs away from graduating with my teaching certification.

5.There are five members in our family and I am so proud to say that as of today 4 out of 5 of us are in school! I'm at UTA, Whitney is at TWU, and Dan and Laura are going to TCC! I am so excited about this. (Don't worry Branden we still love you).

6. I am looking so forward to being a grandmother! I can't wait till Nov when little Braden makes his appearance. I am trying to arrange my schedule next spring so I can have the privilege of taking care of him while mommy and daddy work.

Ok, there you have it, all my sorid details of my life. Thanks Whitney for your help. I don't know who to tag so.....if you read this then....tag your it!

Life Sucks

This has been a rough few weeks since we got back from our trip. Our baby Samson, is doing better. ( in case you don't know who sam is, he is our adorable boxer baby. He is also 13yrs old!) The vet thinks he has lymphoma and will be doing blood work soon. I have been down with my old friend (not really) Mr. RA. He decided to pay me a visit and I can't get him to leave! I went to my rheumatologist and he said "well, Lynette you are having a bad flare". Like I didn't know that one! So basically Danny took off from work to drive me to Dallas, pay 40 bucks to the doc and 2 bucks for parking just to be told something I ALREADY KNEW!! Wonder how many years in school he spent learning that one. Then comes the heat! It has been awful here, with the temp being 107 for 2-4 days in a row!! That was miserable! Then we learned that Whitney's old buddy has come back! The RSD (nerve condition she had in arms/legs) is back in her ankle where she broke it. Poor baby, sometimes she just can't win. But Dr C is hoping all they will have to do is reprogram her device to reach her ankle and it will be fine. If not, well then they will have to do a revision and that means more surgery and she doesn't need or want that to happen. RSD has taken up too much of her life she said and that is the truth, but she will always have to live with the possibility of it coming back if she injures herself. So my hands aren't working/very painful to use and whit's still on crutches so we make a good pair! And poor Dan is working himself senseless. Hopefully that will let up soon. So it has been so much fun at our house. I'm still trying to figure our how you can clean house,cook, do dishes etc without the use of your hands! I knew I should have watched the video closer of the woman who only has feet and how she works with them... Oh well, guess we all have stuff to bear, whether we like it or not.. Good news---- Dan has registerd for classes this fall. He is doing an Associate of Applied Science at TCC. It is two year degree dealing with robotics(whatever that is).and Laura is starting TCC also and she is taking math and philosophy. I think it is pretty cool all 4 of us will be in school together! GO US!! Branden and Sharla bought their first home this week. We are soo excited for them. It will be crazy getting everything done before little Braden makes his appearance. OHHHH I can't wait for that little boy to get here!! I'm really looking forward to spending lots of grammy time with him when mommy goes back to work. Whitney informed me that she is taking over the summer duty, which is ok because I will be going to summer school for one class anyway! Later everyone!!!

Happy Birthday Whitney!!!

Happy Birthday Whitney! Yes today Whitney turns 22 yrs old. Wow where has the time gone. In case you don't know my daughter, she is smart, funny, very independent,she sometimes does not play well with others but you get used to it. When she makes a friend, they become her friend for life. She is trustworthy, honest, lovable and cute ( but I am biased) We are so proud of her and the way she has gotten through some pretty rotten times. She is my best friend, which is nice but I still get to play the " momma" card when I need to! So Happy Birthday baby girl, I hope this year brings you love, happiness and better roommates! Love ya!

Vacation PIcs!

Dan and I went on a road trip last week. We started out in New Orleans, LA. We stayed in a cute B&B and toured Burbon St. It was fun to people watch. We then went to St Augustine, Fl. We stayed right on the beach and had homemade muffins and scones delivered each morning to our room. We did discovered another beach we would like to visit again and that was Navarro Beach. It is on the gulf side so the water is a little brown but the sand was white! Unforntunatly we could only get our toes wet due to the large amount of jelly fish that were on the beach and in the water! We had a great time and can't wait to go back!

Always Trust Your Instincts

Our family has had a rough time the last 6-8 weeks. My beloved father in law was sick (as noted in a previous blog). So we got him through infection, surgery, and time spent in the ccu helping to take care of him. He really has had a hard time with his memory and when you read the lasted news, that probably is a good thing. Anyway he was finally discharged about 3-4 weeks ago to go to rehab and finish his recovery. He was admitted to Kindred Hospital. NOTE: NEVER SEND ANYONE YOU LOVE TO KINDRED HOSPITAL!!!! Our dad went from being able to get himself out of bed, move to a chair, and walk a little bit. In Kindred he went downhill so fast. They were constantly finding something wrong with him. First it was a blood clot in his leg, that I can understand, then it was his kidney and somewhere in this mix he needed blood, then it was his heart. The staff was very unprofessional, there were no communication between patients, family and nurses. They were disrespectful to our dad and that was with a family member present. We knew then that if they talked to him this way when we where around imagine what they were doing when no one was there. He lost his memory and couldn't even remember simple things. The final straw was there were two incidents where his condition has changed and NO ONE bothered to call the family and then they refused to answer any questions,we were always told we needed to talk to the Dr. That was fine except we could not get the Dr to call a family member even after requesting this many times. Finally somehow a problem was detected with his heart,and no one knew how this determination was made. He was placed in their ICU for close monitoring. All I can say is if that was close monitoring I will pass. The cardiac Dr put him on a lidacaine drip to regulate his heartbeat, unfortunately it interacted with his dilantin he takes for seizures. He was only supposed to me on this drip for 24 hrs at the most. He was on it for 3 days! Our beloved dad became catatonic and could not respond. This was the last straw. My wonderful sister in law called his PCP Dr and he helped us remove him from this place . He was then taken back to the hospital and put in ICU. Within 24 hrs of being off the lidacaine he was responding to commands and talking. His memory was still hazy and he still talked of crazy things. But he improved so fast he was able to come home in 5 days. Now he is staying with my sister in law and he is able to walk with a walker, dress himself, push himself in a wheelchair etc. It was amazing to see how much he improved. Whitney and I had the privilege to go stay with him today while my sister in law ran errands. Thankfully the Dan I know and love is pretty much back with us! I'm am so thankful that the family trusted our instincts and removed him from Kindred. I'm tearing up just writing this because I know that Heavenly Father listens and answers our prayers. So always trust your instincts because Heavenly Father will never steer you wrong. I am so thankful for my family and all the prayers that were said for us and our dad.

It's a BOY!!!!!!

That's right our new little addition will be a boy! We are all so excited!! His name will be Braden but the parents are still working on the middle name. Oh my! Novemember can't come soon enough. I did get to hear his little heartbeat today! I can't wait till I can feel him move and kick. The parents say he is a big boy at 8 inches long and just under a pound, and he has long legs. He gets that from both sides of the family. Dan and I have decided what we are going to do for our 25th wedding anniversary. We are going on a road trip together! We plan to stop in New Orleans for a night and then on to St Augustine, Fl. for a few days and maybe if we have the energy or not too sunburned we may head up to Georgia. All in all it will be fun!

Update

Wow! It seems if things just keep getting crazier. Between Laura's graduation and party and being with Pop and life, time is getting away from me. Pop is doing great. It has been a bumpy road with a few setbacks but we think he is finally on the mend. He is now in rehab and will hopefully be home soon. He still is having good days and bad days where he gets really confused. This morning Whitney and I took his favorite pigs in a blanket to him for breakfast. He knew who we were but then he proceeded to tell us he was going to be a guest speaker today at TCU/SMU (he couldn't decide which one)! Gotta love him!! Laura will graduate this Saturday at Nokia in Grand Prairie. She did great on all or her exams! Dan and I are so proud of her! I will have to sweet talk Whitney and see if she will help me post pictures of Laura's party and graduation. I would post pics by myself but after my last attempt I have been banned from posting pics without help!! Branden and Sharla find out what they are having on June 30th! Yea!! Sharla says it is a boy and Branden said he was sending it back if it is a girl ( yeah, let us know how that works for you B!) As far as Dan and I are concerned it doesn't matter whether it is a boy or a girl as long as they are healthy! So stay tuned!

Have Faith

Wow! It has been a busy couple of weeks. Danny's dad who we call "Pop", has been diagnosed as having lung cancer. There is a funny story behind this discovery. Two Saturdays ago Dan was cutting tree limbs for his dad. While trimming a SMALL branch fell on Dan and then hit his dad on top of the head. I emphazise small because Pop told everyone that he was hit in the head with a log! (which is not true) Anyway Dan made sure his dad was fine and came home. A few hours later he became disoriented and his head and neck began to hurt. So he called 911 and got a one way ride to AMH. While there getting his head checked out the drs ordered a check x-ray. We are so thankful they did. Because the drs saw a huge tumor surrounded by infection in his upper right lobe of his lung. They proceed to do a biopsy. One came back inconclusive while the needle biopsy came back positive for a-typical squamous cell. He has been so sick and had surgery yesterday to remove the infected tumor. He did great and is breathing on his own, sitting up in a chair, and cracking jokes. He is still in CCU but should be moved out tomorrow. Thankfully the surgeon was able to remove everything, and tests show the cancer has not spread!!!! I love Pop! We have the best time running his errands and doing lunch. I can truthfully say he is more than a father -n-law to me, he is the father I have never had. Just the thought of losing the dear man brings tears to my eyes. Also during this stressful time we hosted Laura's graduation party. It turned out good and everyone enjoyed Dan's bbq

Laura's Senior Pictures

I can't believe my baby is graduating from high school!

Mother's Day

The kids got together and took these pictures while Whitney and Laura were on spring break. The kids gave me a beautiful frame with all the various pictures they had made. It was the best present ever!

That's my grandbaby!

Well, Sharla gave in and went to maternity clothes. Here is the first pictures of the "baby bump". Isn't it soooo cute! I believe she is 11wks in this picture. We keep teasing her by telling her she is having twins! She didn't like that too much! Thats fine the baby is growing and the heartbeat is strong and healthy. We are so thankful for this baby and can't wait to meet him or her. Branden and Sharla will hopefully find out what they are having at the end of June! Stay posted and I will let all of you know as soon as we get the news.

School's Out!!!!

Wow, school is finally out for the summer! I took my last final this morning. I'm so excited that I have the summer off! Of course I'm not sure what I will do with myself. Got any ideas?

Sadness

Our family is very sad today. We found out that Clay and Katie lost their baby. I believe that she was about 6 weeks along. This reminds us how having a baby is indeed a miracle. It also reminds us of the love that Heavenly Father has for his children. Even though bad things happen sometimes, he is always there to help us pick up the pieces and move on. We will keep them in our prayers and know that when the time is right they will be blessed with a child.

Trace Adkins - Celebrity Apprentice - Your Gonna Miss This

Love this song!

Senior 2008

It's that time of year again when seniors look forward to graduation and Laura is ready for it. I've posted sample pics but we are in the process of taking "official" senior pictures. It is time to address the graduation announcements and plan a graduation party! We are so proud of Laura. She has had a challenging year dealing with the after effects of a car accident that occured in Sept. 2007. We are hopeful that this last treatment will be the one that works! Laura is planning on working this summer at Target and will start at TCC in the fall. She would like to attend UNT(in denton) and major in Special Education. It's hard to believe that our baby is already 18 and graduating from high school. Time really does fly by! I'm reminded of a song that Trace Adkins sings, " Your Gonna Miss This". It is about how time goes quickly by and how one looks back on their lives and they miss when their children were young and and all the craziness that comes with being a parent and raising children. I know I'm missing those times when my children were young. Even though, it's nice to have an empty nest, I truly miss having my children around me. But now I get to enjoy grandchildren! My mom says this is the best thing ever! We will see. I've posted Trace Adkins song above so check it out!

The stork has struck again!

The stork has struck our family once again! My sister, Lisa, is going to be a grandma in December! So, does that mean I'm going to be a "great aunt"? Our family is so blessed to be having these two babies join our family. Please keep these two moms, Sharla and Katie, in your prayers that they will have a safe and easy pregnancy and delivery.

P.S. To my Granny, we love and miss you. Please take care of our babies!
To my sister, Lynda, tag your it!

I hope you like the new background. I love the water and the beach. I choose this background as inspiration. In case you didn't know, Dan and I will celebrate our 25th wedding aniversary on December 23, 2008. A lot of people said we would never make it this long. To all of those people (you know who you are), looks like we proved you wrong. Anyway, we were going on a cruise but since we will have a new grandbaby by then we really didn't want to be gone that long. So we are going to compromise ( which is the secret to a happy and long marriage, along with laughter) and go to Mexico for a few days. We have started our diets and have done pretty good so far. Dan has lost 20lbs and I have lost 10lbs! I know it's not a lot but hey, you have to start somewhere right? The beach has always been my "happy place" so when I see this picture it will motivate me to stay on the diet and put a smile on my face !

Hailstones in Texas!

This is what we woke up to last night around midnight. It was so loud and the poor dogs were not sure what was going on. Luckily there was no damage just a bunch of leaves everywhere. Oh well, that is spring in Texas!

TGIF

Thank goodness it is Friday! This has been a hectic and stressful week for us. I had 2 tests and another coming up on Tuesday (wish me luck!). Whitney had to come home from school this week with a migraine. Poor Baby!! She has had this migraine for 5 days. Finally, today the neurologist admitted her into the hospital. He plans on her staying 3-5 days. She is so unhappy that she will miss working the Nascar races this weekend with her dad. Hopefully next week will be better!

More Pics!

Lighting the Unity Candle

Sharla & her mom Stacy

Sharla & Family

The Ceremony
The Ceremony

Mr & Mrs Elkins

Wedding Pics!

Our Family

Branden & Grandparents

The Wedding Party

Our Baby

It was a great day. It was a beautiful wedding and everyone had a fun time. The day before the wedding all the girls and moms gathered together and had pedicures. That has become my new addiction. I LOVE getting a pedicure!! My girls love it too and it is something fun we do together....