An almost 2-decade old secret revealed-and you'll never guess what it is!!

Years ago when I was dating Kevin, as a teenager, we would spend weekends out at his parents lake house. His mom would often make the most delicious potatoes with onion, sometimes chopped peppers or spinach along with whatever the main course was. The memory of those potatoes is as clear as the lake house itself- they were sooooooo good! Now- 18 years later I finally learned what made those potatoes so yummy- LIPTON ONION SOUP MIX!! For dinner tonight I made ribs, broccoli cheese casserole, salad and you guessed it. . . potatoes with LIPTON ONION SOUP MIX! The recipe is on the back of the box. I highly recommend it!! Now, what's funny is that Kev and I are still friends- he & Todd get along great and would often have bloody Mary's together while Kevin's wife & I chatted alongside the kids. I could call "mom" and let her know I finally figured it out but some things are better left unsaid. Perhaps that's what she was thinking when she made the potatoes! :0)

Words to live by. . .

Don't take life too seriously. You'll never get out alive.

- Bugs Bunny

Baby Gavin getting mad at mommy for taking too many pictures.

Today's quote

I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."
- Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931)

Like I've told these kids 1,000 times. . . "if you can dream it, you can do it". I'm my own inspiration- from dropping out of highschool to graduating nursing school with honors! (of course the kids don't know about the highschool stuff, and you might not have either) Anything is possible if you want it bad enough! Never give up!

Today's quote. . .

"Believe none of what you hear and half of what you see"


-Benjamin Franklin

Fourth of July

The kids are getting so excited that the Fourth of July is just a week away! Every year we used to contemplate on where the best place to see fireworks is. And every year we missed the show right here at home- except for the last 2 years now. We've got these "mystery fireworks people" that come every year and host an intricate display of fireworks that's just as good, if not better than the shows the towns put on. . . and noone has any idea who these people are! Across the street from us is a row of homes. Behind them is the open field with the soccer goals and baseball fence, the park, etc. These "people" have an elaborate set up where they block off that section of street and set up. I'm not kidding when I say it is the best show around- right here out our front door. The Amber Fields homeowners association claims they don't know who it is- and there's a big community christian church that owns the land on the corner- but would they illegally sponsor a fireworks show? They've got our neighborhood guessing who they are! Last year, a couple guys yelled "thank you" and a man replied "you're welcome- see ya next year" so we're all looking forward to it. Frank fires up the grill and his friends who are in a band come and play, the kids run back n' forth between houses playing on swingsets, and the adults drink a nice ice cold beer until the show begins just after dusk. Then all the neighbors in rows of houses down- gather around. It's so much fun! And it's comforting to know that noone has to drive home!!

Peekaboo Gavin

Gavin enjoys playing "peek-a-boo"

He thinks we can't see him when his eyes are closed....
but to his surprise, we can see him!!

Hunter got his pads!

We're into week 3 of football camp and Hunter came home today with his pads and helmet! He's being prepped for either fullback or lineman- either of which I have no idea what they do! To have Hunter tell it, "I get to run people over- like a tank!" You think Hunter's big now, at 6'4, 175 pounds- you should see him with his uniform on! He is a tank! In this picture, I only have the upper half. After he's officially named a position he'll get the rest of the pads because they're different for different positions. We'll let you know! P.S.- 66 is not his number- he's going for "43" - Uncle Van's racing number. Hopefully he'll get it!

It's raining, it's pouring. . .

This was the view from our front door. Out the back, it was perfectly sunny. Lauren thought it was a hoot. We have had the most beautiful rainbows this spring. This one turned into a double but you can't see the second one. The song "It's raining. It's pouring. The old man is snoring. . ." was the first song Lauren learned all the words to and now Gavin's learning it. He knows there's something about an old man and that it's raining outside. He also knows about the pot of gold at the end so he makes a wish each time we see a rainbow outside!

Here's what we're up to this week

Todd, Lauren, Hunter and one of Hunter's friends went to Great America. Hunter is off with his buddy so he's not in the pictureLauren, Gavin and I went to a birthday party at the bank on Wednesday night. The bank where the kids have their savings accounts always has fun stuff for the kids. We last went to a reptile show. Their haunted house is better than something the jaycee's would put on! They have the "Dog days of summer" where people bring their dogs and have a pet parade and there are all different vendors there with stuff for your pet. In December we go see Santa. They have movie nights- all kinds of stuff, and it's all free! Everytime the kids make a deposit they get "Oxford bucks"- play money that they can save and buy toys from a mini toy store in the bank. Most of their money goes into their savings account and then they still get to buy a toy so it's a win-win situation. Gavin loved the ball pit in the "tiny tots" area. Granted he was the largest kid in there!
Lauren played jumbo basketball among other things
"My Three Sons"

Remember that show? We joke that Lauren is a boy trapped in a girl's body because she loves bugs, dinosaurs. . . you name it.

Not your 9-5 job but I LOVE it!!

In the words of Albert Einstein:

"There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle."

. . . and I witness the miracle of birth everyday. I LOVE my new job as a labor and delivery nurse. It is AMAZING! Since I've been a mother/baby nurse already they're kind of teaching me backwards. First I'm learning the babies. Then next week I'll learn OR- for c-sections, twins, etc. THEN I'll learn the labor process and delivering babies. Right now, my job goes like this:

The labor nurse calls me on a cell phone and informs me of an impending birth.

I meet her in the room (either the labor room or the operating room if it's a c-section). I immediately attach the suction tubing, the oxygen, get my vitamin K injection ready (all newborns are given a vitamin K shot in their leg to help with clotting), then I prepare my erythromycin to wipe across their eyes- that prevents any infections from bacteria they came in contact with on their way out.

Then we wait. And wait. And wait.

Soon the air fills with excitment as the doctor announces the sex of the baby, cuts the umbilical cord and almost literally, throws the baby to me where I vigorously wipe the baby dry. (they're born with blood, fluid, vernix (a cheesy like stuff to protect their skin from acid in the amniotic fluid) all over them. As I wipe the baby, he should be pinking up (he's born blue or kind of gray) If he's not pinking up I may have to put the oxygen mask on his face or wave it by- depending on how long it's taking. This is when we assign those "apgar" scores. The babies are given a number 1-10 at one minute of life, then again at 5 minutes of life. They're judged based on their color, their muscle tone, their heart rate, their respirations and their reflexes. When the doctor cuts the umbilical cord and the baby takes his first breath of life, he often sucks down lots of fluid- if his lung sounds are gunky (I'll spare medical terms for ya :0) then I suction him by threading a small tube (again, I'll spare medical terms :0) down his throat and suctioning up all the "crap". C-section babies are especially gunky because they're not squeezed threw the birth canal on the way out.

After I've determind the baby is in no imminent danger I give him his shot in his leg, smear the medicine across his eyes, weigh him, measure his length and continue his assessment. I won't bore you with all the details but there's an exam called "Dubowitz" that we have to complete to determine the exact gestational age of the newborn. Here, I just googled "Dubowitz" and found this:

Dubowitz exam

The Dubowitz scale is a standardized scale for the estimation of newborn gestational age by neurological examination. The full exam is very extensive and scores 33 specific responses in four major areas: habituation (reponse to repetitive light and sound stimuli), movement and tone, reflexes, and neurobehavioral items. See also Ballard scale.


Then I put a little diaper on, his hat, and I wrap him up and hand him to either mom or dad. It's usually dad because mom's still getting repaired. Can you believe I am the one who hands the baby to his dad for the first time-and I tell him "congratulations".

Not exactly your desk job. I've learned that in labor and delivery when we're busy- we're really busy and when we're not, we're not. There's no in between. I'm also learning there's no lolly gagging around. I have to be aware of every minute and every detail. As the doctor's tossing the baby to me, the labor nurse is yelling out the time of birth which I have to note. Then she'll yet out the time the placenta was delivered, which I also have to note. The doctor will yet out what kind of laceration the mom has- which I have to note. And whether he's using stitches, steri strips or staples to repair her- which I also have to note. All while I'm completing the above with the baby. So there's a lot going on and a lot to do. I am THRIVING on the adrenaline! I learned yesterday that when there are twins, the first one comes out healthy and strong - and the second one has the trouble. I witnessed a beautiful boy being born and then when they tossed him to me, he had cleft palate. I've seen a baby stuck (called "shoulder dystocia"), and I've seen a new little premature girl get whisked away to the neonatal intensive care unit). Among the many many normal deliveries- all in just this past week!

So that's "a day at the office" for me :0) I wanted to share it with you because I think it soooooooo exciting. This is a small window of everything I'll be learning. Once I get the babies learned, then I'll learn to be a circulating nurse in the OR and then I'll learn labor- from beginning to end. And you get to hear all about it!! :0)

Hunter's off to highschool!

It literally seems like just yesterday that I dropped off my beautiful, blond haired, blue eyed boy to kindergarten. As I went to get out of the car to walk him up to the door he reached out his tender little hand and said "no, mom. I can do it myself". Now that sweet little boy has grown into a strapping young lad bound for highschool who delights in the typical teenage stuff. . . rock n' roll, video games, doritoes, attempts at wearing his pants sagging down (no way!!) but also relishes in the good old days of fishing, catching frogs, hiking- all that outdoor stuff that we love to do. One day soon I suppose he'll want to stop hanging out with mom and dad but I am savoring every minute that I still have my firstborn close at hand. Yet, it is so nice to have a toddler in the house again- oh, how Gavin amuses us with his toddler antics :0) Hunter was such a good big brother yesterday as he taught Gavin how to hold his fishing pole and shared in the joy of catching frogs by the pond. And Gavin LOVES his big brother sooooo much! We're looking forward to the fall when we can cheer for our favorite quarterback (or whatever position he'll play- quarterback's the only football term I know!) He'll be going to Oswego East High School- go Wolves!!

Here's the 4 of us at Hunter's graduation ceremony. I had a box of tissue handy certain that I'd be wiping away a tear or two- but I held strong and did good as we sat and listened through 250 names!