Mom of 5 Blessings

123stitch.COM

2009-02-17T00:14:00.000-08:00

one of my few favourite places to buy stash from is 123 stitch, the prices are great and the service excellent. In fact I buy 95% of my charts from them.
I was a bit sad and surprised to see that a bigger company had decided to go in and start a turf war.
This was in my email yesterday and wanted to pass it on and get as much support out for them as possible.
Please read it and if possible mention it on your blog so that everyone else know that to get to 123 stitch you have to DOT COM IT !

" For 11 years, our friends and customers have visited us on the web at 123stitch.com. Now one of our competitors, a much larger company, has set up a website called 123stitch.net. If any of our friends or customers accidentally goes to 123stitch.net, their browser will be directed to our larger competitor's website instead of going to 1-2-3 Stitch! Please help us spread the word about our correct web site address to our friends and customers.Here's how you can help...
1) If you have a blog, please mention our correct web site address (123stitch.com) on your blog
2) If you have a website, please mention our correct address (123stitch.com) on your website
3) When referring to 1-2-3 Stitch! anywhere online, please ensure you also include the address 123stitch.com
4) Please tell your friends our correct web site address
5) Please ensure that when you want to visit 1-2-3 Stitch!, you type 123stitch.com into your browser. We want to make sure that you get to the company that you really intended to visit and support.
Thank you for your help!
Joanne and Jim 1-2-3 Stitch! 123stitch.com "

Friday the 13th.....

2009-02-13T07:34:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone is having a super day.
I have a early valentines gift for all my stitchy friends I hope you like it, I have decided to make this a bit interesting and if anyone decides to stitch it email me and I will pop something in the mail. for them........

http://www.snapdrive.net/files/574059/flutter.pdf

For all the woman in my life ......

2009-02-10T05:33:00.003-08:00

My Mom in law sent this to me and I found it beautiful, so wanted to share this with everyone......

'MAYA ANGELOU'S'
BEST POEM EVER
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ... enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own, even if she never wants to or needs to...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ... something perfect to wear if the employer, or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE . a youth she's content to leave behind....
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .. a past juicy enough that she's looking forward to retelling it in her old age....
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ... a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .. one friend who always makes her laugh.. and one who lets her cry...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ... a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .. eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal, that will make her guests feel honored...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE . a feeling of control over her destiny..
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW... how to fall in love without losing herself..
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW... how to quit a job, break up with a lover, and confront a friend without; ruining the friendship...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW... when to try harder... and WHEN TO WALK AWAY...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW... that she can't change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents..
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW... that her childhood may not have been perfect...but it's over...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW... what she would and wouldn't do for love or more...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW.... how to live alone... even if she doesn't like it...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW.. whom she can trust, whom she can't, and why she shouldn't take it personally...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW... where to go... be it to her best friend's kitchen table.. or a charming Inn in the woods.... when her soul needs soothing...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW.. What she can and can't accomplish in a day... a month...and a year...

Happy Birthday to my 2nd eldest baby boy !

2009-02-06T06:45:00.000-08:00

So Tyler turns 12 today, Yet it seems like only yesterday I was lying in hospital waiting to be wheeled into theater. Finding out I was pregnant with #2 was very emotional for me, I had a terrible pregnancy with Keagan and when I had my Csection I could only discribe my surgeon as a butcher ! The memory was still so fresh in my mind since Keagan was only 6 months old. But a better pregnancy I could not have wished for. From the word go Tyler was going to be the child to fly under the radar, he has his moments where he will throw a strop but other than that he is sweet kind and funny.

We were convinced he was a girl even the day I went into hospital I was put in a ward where 6 other mothers had all given birth to little girls. But it was not to be,my little man came into the world gave a scream and went to sleep while everyone else was kicking up a fuss he just slept on.

I owe him so much, I am convinced that he saved my life, I would not have gone for that dreaded smear had it not been for having him and they would not have picked up the dreaded C and I would never have been treated.

Thank you Tyler for being you ! a wonderful young man who I am so proud of.

Hope you have a super fantastic birthday and for now I still have my sweet young boy.........soon those horrid hormones will get him and he will become ..................................A TEENAGER !

Getting into it !

2009-02-04T04:34:00.000-08:00

Wow has it really been over a week since I have rambled on about my life ??? So much is going on that I just dont know if I am coming or going.

We had an awesome couple of days in the UK, we have been housebound because of the snow :)

Yes life comes to a stand still because of a few inches of snow. BUT on our defense, it is something of a rarity here. considering we only get this amount of snow every 18yrs. Of course my children loved it and I would be quite happy if it carried on snowing so they could stay home with the Mama.

At first I did not want them to go out and ruin our pretty garden all covered in a blanket of white BUT, Dad on the other hand is a soft touch and let them out to ruin my pretty white garden !!

Where did the weekend go ?

2009-01-26T05:48:00.000-08:00

Wow I cannot believe it is Monday already, where did the weekend go ?
I suppose with all the drama we had it just vanished into thin air. Those of you who hang out in the same circles with me will know what I am talking about.

I had weight watchers on Saturday morning I know I should be happy with the 2.5lb loss but I just feel I should have and could have lost more. I think I need to step up the activity level. 5 mile cycle plus some cardio every day should do some sort of trick.

We got the new wii fitness coach and it is quite a workout, I have achy muscles in places I never even knew muscles existed which says a lot. so 15 minutes of that a day for a couple of weeks and I should be well on my way to my desired goal.

its a start ....

2009-01-23T05:50:00.000-08:00

I have had a good start on my charity piece. Although I would have liked a better one since I want it in the post by Monday but with sick children and a home to see to getting stitches in on any project is always a triumph for me.

"Silver Linings - Charity " 2 days of work.

lets see how far I can be come Sunday :)

Today is a lot better for Braydie Bear, after not eating for 4 days he decided to that 3 bowls of cereal was just enough to make him feel human again ! But now that he is on the mend Tyler and Myself have come down with a bug. It never ends in our home.

2009-01-22T04:43:00.000-08:00

Two sick kids at home and a house in need of cleaning, not to mention all the diy going on. Does that sound like paradise to you ? Today was suppose to be a easy one with just Madison at home and housework to do until 12pm before fetching Braydie bear from school. But that is not to be since both are running temps and full of sickness.Temp or not, Madison still seems to get into all sorts of mischief, wish someone had told me 2 years ago what hard work little girls would be. I am sure she does it just to make it known that with 4 older brothers around who spoil her rotten she can get away with just about anything. She Just does not know that she may be the princess of the house But Mom still firmly holds the title as Queen !!!

On a Stitchy Note I got in a bit of stitching last night, I am stitching "Charity" by silver lining this is going to be part of a quilt for a lady fighting the dreaded "C" I will hopefully get a bit of time later to upload a photo and I hope to finish it before the weekend.So here is hoping my little princess plays the game :)

2009-01-21T07:23:00.000-08:00

I have never been one to keep a diary or to blog, they always seem to get me into trouble somehow.But I have decided this year I am going to do a few things differently and one of them is to start blogging again. After all I have tons to blog about, Mom to 5 children and a wife to a big baby life is never dull on our home front.I am on a roller coaster ride with weight watchers Iv seen more ups than downs the last couple of years with them, but this time I am more determined to stick with it. So far so good 9.6lbs gone so that is a good start.And in my spare time ( not much of that ) I cross stitch - This year I have decided to give a lot back to charity and have signed up to do a few quilt squares for Cancer recipients. Thank you for reading and I hope you come back and visit often ...

Sleepless in Hampshire

2007-05-30T02:55:00.000-07:00

Our first bad night with a newborn ! wow not sure if I should even post about it as I am sure many Moms with newborns will despise me for having such great nights of sleep and only one bad night after 2 weeks !

Madison has picked up a little cold and is very congested, so she is snorting and snoring the whole time through. of course that is what has kept me up, She is such a good girl sleeping in batches of 4-5 hour stretches. Does not play around with her feeds finishes them and goes back to sleep and even burping her is a breeze. Praying this does not end as I am loving my last newborn.

The boys are still in love with their little sister and its a constant battle to get them to step away from her crib and that she does not need to be picked up every time she stirs.
I am even lucky that Brayden has not been put out that his baby spot has been taken over by a real baby. He loves watching her make noises - when she is asleep or quiet he has no interest in her at all but as soon as she wakes and lets out her little food wail he is there in a flash laughing at the little noises.

well our little princess is 2 weeks old today and growing big, I am sure she will soon be out of her early baby clothes and into her newborn outfits.

time to get my tea and maybe even pull out some stitching something else I have not seen in 2 weeks !

adjusting to life in pink

2007-05-29T11:42:00.000-07:00

wow cant believe Madi is nearly 2 weeks old, time is just flying by .......Yes we still in shock about our pink bundle of joy and think it will take a long time to get to grips with the fact I am no longer a Mom to 4 little boys but have a daughter as well.

We have accumulated enough clothing over the last 2 weeks for triplets !!!!!!! I no longer have a wardrobe as my clothes have now gone in with Andy's stuff and Madison has now a double door wardrobe all to herself........and that is just first stage clothing and not including her chest of drawers which is also jammed packed full of clothes. I have now got 2 boxes of clothing put away for the next stage......phew this little girl has more clothes in 2 weeks than I have had in a lifetime lol.

But seriously, she is such a little angel, She sleeps her 4 /5 hours and has her feeds hardly moans groans and I can count on my 1 hand how many times I have heard her cry. She loves baths and in fact falls asleep when Dad baths her.

My favourite pic is of her asleep in her Dads hand while he was bathing her.

speaking of baths - I think mine is ready and waiting for me !!!!!!!!

She is here ! and boy were we shocked

2007-05-19T12:41:00.000-07:00

Wow where do I begin ……..thank you all for the big congrats and well wishes Andy and I appreciate it and are over the moon.

Well everything hit the fan on Monday afternoon, after a lovely day shopping with my parents I started getting this weird shooting pain on the left side from just under the breast going straight down into my abdomen and scar at first I did not think anything of it but then realized that the movements had decreased since the weekend. I did not bother phoning the midwife because she is useless. So I called the hospital and explained to them how I was feeling etc and that baby had slowed down a lot in the movement department so they asked me to come in just so they could run a trace on him.
Anyway I arrived at the hospital about 5pm and sat and waited for what seemed forever……..they put they monitor on and everything seemed great heart rate was super and there was many movements but they were worried about the pain and decided to keep me in over night.
Finally got to bed at 11pm and it sucked as I was knackered and in pain and still had no idea what the heck was going on.

Anyway the next day the pain was still there and when they did a urine test they flipped and said it looked like a rainbow – I had traces of protein, white blood cells and something else but can’t think right now what it was so they sent that off for testing and decided to take some bloods as well. To keep things on the safe side they then decided to send me in for a renal scan as well as another ultrasound to make sure everything was alright with baby... renal scan was fine my kidneys were ok then when I went off for the ultra sound the first person I thought of was Snoots and how she would kill me if I did not ask them to double check if all the bits where there. So anyway I was busy talking to the woman and she was telling me baby looked fine etc etc and could not see any problems so I said to her make sure all his bits are in the right place and she said NO so I still thought how rude, it would not kill her since she was in that area anyway I carried on talking to the other midwife and we were discussing the boys and “Connor” so the lady doing the ultra sound kept giving me weird look so she asked me if I was told the sex at the last ultra sound so I said no because baby had his legs closed but I knew it was another boy as we had 4 already, she looked at me again and said do you want to know the sex ? So I said yes – that’s why I asked you to check all his bits were in order and she said NO again, huh? she said NO he has no bits As he is in fact a she – I nearly had heart failure on the table to tell you the truth the next was all kind of a blur all I know is she showed me the spot where the bits where missing !!!!!!!! And I burst into tears. Anyway now I was in pain and in shock and a bit of denial.
I still got back to the hospital ward and phoned Andy and my parents, we decided to keep it from the boys as I wanted to surprise them with the news.

Anyway they did not want me to go home until they got all the tests back as they still had no clue what was going on.

Tuesday night all heck broke loose……..or so to speak, I had the most unbearable pain and just could not take it anymore..everytime Madison would move I would want to die as the pain would increase about 1am they monitored me again and she was moving ten to the dozen and her heart rate increased from 127 right up to 175 so they were a bit concerned about that but decided to keep me monitored and on oral morph which is a lighter dose of morphine.
By 5am I was in so much pain so they decided on a shot of morphine straight in the thigh so by 6 am I had had 15 mls of oral morph 4 painkiller tabs and a dose of morphine I was totally out of it my words were slurring I could not focus and then I started to panic because she had not moved in hours and although her heart rate was ok she was very still and the pain remained.

Then the day doctor came on and basically that’s when I lost it and threw my toys out the cot.
She came in and reviewed the night docs reports etc etc ….and said to me that she cant see where the pain is coming from because the u/s and the bloods showed everything was fine etc and it WAS BAFFLING !!!!! flip I lost it and basically told her she could get stuffed – how dare she say there should not be pain when I was in pain she then vanished and called the head dr on duty who also could not come up with a reason I should be in pain and they have one of 2 choices they could deliver Madison which they were not keen on doing as she was not 38 weeks yet or they could keep me in and run some more test and keep me comfortable. Well I let him have it as well but I don’t think I was very pleasant as I was still high as a kite from all the drugs and told him their patient care stank and I know that my baby is fine and do they think I would really put her at any risk but I felt that by the amount of meds they had me on was doing more harm than good…..well the old fart said he would review the case after lunch and let me know then what they planned on doing. Anyway I called Andy and told him I did not know what was happening but if he wants to come at lunch time they might decide to do my section then but it was not confirmed and they still Had 2 emergency and 3 electives to do before they would get to me….thinking okie dokie no rush ….this was about 9/10am…….I was busy coming in and out of my little druggie sleep when all of a sudden the midwives were moving things around and sorting my bags out and handing me tabs to take, I Was on my way to surgery……..wth no one knew what was going on and thank heavens I called andy and he was on his way home so he came straight to the hospital by the time he got there I had signed consent forms was shaved and being wheeled into theatre.
1.04pm Madison Grace was born weighing in at a whopping 5lbs2oz or 2.620kgs she is so dinky and I still cant believe she is a little girl.
But the drama did not end there – while they were doing the C-section they knicked my bladder so I had to have that repaired and have a catheter in which has to stay in for another week then I need to go back into hospital to make sure it is all healed etc. The Drs still insist they don’t know what caused the pain, but I overheard the midwives talking that my bladder had attached itself to my uterus and that was causing the problems so now I am not sure if that is the case and the Drs are trying to save face – Andy and I both seem to find it weird that for being reviewed I was rushed in before the 3 electives and on the paper work it says emergency C-section. I don’t know if they discovered anything or what the hell happened!!!!!!!! Even though it bugs me that I got treated that way and probably won’t know what the heck happened we just happy it all went ok and we have a lovely little girl who has Dad and her brothers wrapped around her little fingers already.

It was so sweet though we had decided not to tell the boys until she was born and then to surprise them. Anyway Andy told them they were going to see me in hospital because I was missing them so on Wednesday evening when they came to the hospital I was holding Madi and their faces was total shock they still did not know she was girl at that stage so they came rushing to see Connor and when I told them to say hello to their little Sister………Keagan burst into tears.. I got such a fright did not know what the heck was going on so when he finally calmed down he was saying he was crying because he was so happy he never thought he would ever have a little sister he was just so happy.
Anyway that’s my long and involved story.
As for the name – Daddy chose the name Madison May but I liked Grace instead and thought Madison May M....our surname just had too many M’s in it. To tell you the truth he could have named her winnie the pooh and I would not have bothered because I was in so much pain and so drugged up. It suits her though she is just so darn dinky I am so scared I am going to break her.
So far she has been a good baby but I am sure that will change with time !! the last 2 nights she has slept from 2 am to 7am and I keep having to wake her to feed. She likes her sleep. I am sure once her morphine over load wears off we will find out how life with little Madison is going to be.

Still it has not completely set in we have a little girl. And she is nearly naked as we have nothing for her to wear so we still have to go and do some shopping for her. My parents have gone a bit overboard and bought but I also want to go out and get her some outfits lol.

Well that’s about it really !!!!!!!!

returning after MIA

2007-04-13T22:51:00.000-07:00

Wow 4 children is finally catching up to me not sure where I am going to make time when I have 5 little souls to look after.
The boys have been on easter holiday so it has been difficult keeping 4 of them entertained without driving myself mental. It has surely been a long 2 weeks to say the least.

On the other hand I have gotten some well deserved stitching done and have to just take pics and post them them off to the people they are going to so I am doing well on that side.

Connor is doing some major spring cleaning inside, I think he has re arranged most of my internal body parts as nothing feels like they sitting where they belong. He has been so active these last couple of days my stomach is even feeling bruised, hope he is of a milder nature when he finally makes his appearance. I cant wait now for the big day - I think we finally down to 30 odd days but need to double check that :)

2007-04-05T23:01:00.000-07:00

So this morning I woke up to some weird noise outside.....yup the dirt trucks ......since when do they work on Good Friday ? ain't is a public holiday for EVERYONE ? Now I have 2 bins that wont be emptied for another 2 weeks because I did not put them out thinking they would not come today.
Dunno what upsets me more that or the fact they woke me up at 6am on a day I could sleep late.

So its official we are finally on the 32week Mark, this pregnancy has been a breeze - in fact most days I forget I am pregnant until baby mo decides to rearrange my internal organs.

This week has flown past so quickly, today we dont have anything planned except for working in the garden I have decided to work out a play area for the smaller kiddies - so hoping Andy will take me through to toysrus today to get the stuff I need. I am sure much to his disgust lol.

Schools out and I am tired.......

2007-04-02T06:57:00.000-07:00

First day of the holidays and one would swear it has been one of those never ending 6 week breaks.
I think the long weekend is catching up with me, lack of sleep does wonders for your soul.

Today I treated the boys to a day out and some lunch in town, nothing fancy just good old macdonalds.
Great time was had by all and Brayden is now fast asleep after all that excitement.

Both older boys got fantastic reports and all their subjects except for 1 they are achieving higher than the national standard. I am really proud of the work they have put in at school.

Now for the rest of the day I am going to relax and get some stitching in while the washing machine does its job.
Then tomorrow I will be sitting stitching and watching Cricket !!!!!!!!!

Sunday already..........

2007-04-01T11:38:00.000-07:00

Never said I was very good at this blog thing, been a few days since I have posted ..Am I suppose to post everyday ???

Today was Tylers birthday party, granted his birthday was in Feb but the place he wanted to spend his birthday was booked solid for 4 months in advance, and the only slot we could get was a 10 am one on a Sunday morning.......truly they had this April fool covered.
great time was had by all.......Andy, Josh and I ended up playing 10 pin bowling while the party and quasar was in progress - No fun I tell you I got beat by a 6 year old but then again my excuse was I have a tummy that looks just like the bowling ball. I am sure I had a lot of patrons in hysterics.

Was a bit put out by one of the parents at the party, he was shocked to hear we were expecting #5 and wanted to know if we did not own a T.V !! have to say I thought it was kinda rude , but I guess not everyone understands the joys of having a large family............Ahhhhhhh the joys when all 4 heads are asleep on their pillows and the only sounds I hear are their heavy breathing as they drift off.......NOW that is a joy !!!!! lol.

but on a more pleasant note next month we have another bundle to put us through our paces ! 50 more days to be exact !!!!!!!!!!! yes this is a count down.

If you cant beat them join them...

2007-03-29T04:51:00.000-07:00

Im not one for blogging but thought I would give it a try, as the saying goes if you cant beat them join them.

Today is cold and miserable and althought I have a lot to do I just cant seem to get myself motivated.
althought there is not much left to do it will probably take the rest of the day to do it with my energy levels at an all time low.

53 more days to go until our final bundle of joy arrives, I am really looking forward to having a newborn in the house again