Life Update

I have not blogged in forever  - I love reading other's blogs...I just can't find the time to write my own lately!  SO much has happened in our lives since I last posted.  I write this so that I can look back and see the ups and downs in our lives months or even years later.   That being said - I am glad that I have an "outlet" to spew my feelings! :)

We just remodeled our upstairs bathroom - I have never been so glad to never see someone again as I was those contractors - Don't get me wrong; they did a great job and it looks fabulous, but I'm OCD and the mess about killed me!  It took three long weeks, y'all!

My dad's younger brother has been diagnosed with stage four terminal cancer.  This seems surreal to even type that.  He is so young (early 50s).  It's just jolting that he could not be with us soon.  He has the same type of cancer that we lost my Great-Grandmother to in the 1980s.  It is in his esophagus, lungs, and parts of the stomach.  He is on a feeding tube and resting at home with hospice care.  They tried chemo and radiation but said that at this point it was fruitless...Never good news.  He is an inspiration to me in his Faith and the fact that he was at Church yesterday despite his weakness and how badly he feels.  I don't know how he found the strength to get there and stand, etc.  We are all in prayer for him, my Grandfather, and my dad and his sister right now.

I saw my OB today about my yearly and about our fertility.  It has hit two years that we have been trying.  We have one tubal and one miscarriage down and still no baby.  I filled the prescription for Chlomid today and we shall see.  I am in prayer that this path works for us and that this is what we are supposed to be doing.  I am praying that my left tube is still healthy and that we can have a healthy baby.  I am not greedy - at this point I would just be grateful to get to have one healthy child.  Just one.  I also have to have an ultrasound of my right breast on Friday and I would appreciate any prayers for a good outcome of that as well...It worries me with our family history.  There is someone else in our family that is having a biopsy on the 20th and prayers for her would be welcomed too.  It seems that there is so much sickness and sadness lately, but I am hopeful and prayerful for good things ahead! :)

On a happy note, we did get to go to Las Vegas in February and had a blast!  Also, I am LOVING my practicum experience at the middle school where I am placed.  I am SO BLESSED to have such an awesome supervisory - I am learning so much from her!  Also, my brother is well into his Senior year.  He graduates in May!  Crazy how time goes...So proud of him!

Hopefully my next update will be filled with blessings and positive news.  Just keeping it real, though...This has been our lives lately...Good and the bad.

XO-T

Christmas 2012 Recap

Y'all - I completely failed at the POD thing this month...We have just been too busy!  I have tried to soak in every little moment of this Christmas because it feels as if the moments go by in an instant and I would just love to pause those moment and go in slow-motion with them to make them last just a hint longer! 

 

We traveled to Gray to see my husband's family up until Christmas Eve when we left to come home and spend Christmas day with my family.  Sadly, I do not have any photos from the hubby's family Christmas...However, I do have some from my side of the family's get together. 

 

We had such a blessed Christmas...We thought alike and got each other IPads (we are secret tech nerds!), and the pugs even got a stocking this year from my sweet MIL.  Prissy is LOVING her Santa - she just sucks/chews on his beard all day long! 

 

Last night we lost our minds and decided that it would be great timing to take down allll of the decorations and clean the house...Y'all we didn't get done till around 9:00p.m.  Hubby said we aren't doing as much decorating next year, and I kind of agree with him.  It takes up so much time that we could just be spending with each other and family.  However, it looks so pretty!

 

On the baby front, the Mr.'s first cousin and his wife just had their baby yesterday morning.  Welcome to the world, Baby Ethridge!  He is just beautiful from all of the photos I have seen so far.  If anyone reads this regularly you know that the hubby and I had sad news last month with our miscarriage.  I'm not gonna lie, y'all...It was hard on us this Christmas and Thanksgiving.  I have cried a TON, sat around and felt sorry for us, and imagined how different this Christmas would have been if I was still pregnant.  I remember each Wednesday how many weeks I would have been.  I pray that this gets easier and that we are able to conceive again soon with a health baby and pregnancy. 

 

Enough of the sad...Here are some photos from our Christmas :)

 

Our IPads - I got a black one and he got a white one!

Our living room tree/mantle this Christmas.

Porter on Christmas Eve - He has hollowed out this cushion!

Mom and Dad's house Christmas lunch.

Madison (brother's gf), Stewart (brother), and Brandon, his best friend.

The Mr. - HATES having his photo taken!

My Nana, Dad, and Mom.

My Nana and Ralph.

My granddaddy and his friend, Cora.

My brother and me.

Mom and Me.

Dad and Stewart.

I pray that y'all families had a blessed Christmas and that you have a happy and safe New Year!
XO-T



Pod - day 5

Today is temperature - it is unseasonably warm here in Georgia! Feels more like September than December! Also- check out the massive mounds of leaves in our yard!! Pathetic!

Xoxo-T

Picture of Day- December

This is the picture of the day for December- I'm already behind! Day one was view for day, day two was fav holiday movie, day three was red, and day four was joyous ( weren't the pugs cute this morning?! Made my heart smile!)

Happy Tuesday, y'all!
Xo-T

Baby-Trying Update

So...If you can sort of read between the lines on some old posts you may have figured out that we have been trying for a baby for a while now - Since April 2011.  I know it's probably weird to talk about it so openly on this blog when I can't even seem to discuss it openly with friends or family...This just seems easier and more private.  Weird, I know. 

We had a tubal pregnancy last December that resulted in emergency surgery.  We kept on trying but had a setback when I had to have my gallbladder removed in June.  Well, we were at the point in our plan with our doctor that we were going to talk to a fertility person in March of 2013 if not pregnant yet due to my chances being more difficult as I only have one tube now.  Well, about two weeks ago I had horrible pains in my right side and they discovered a cyst on my right ovary...Thought nothing of it until I discovered I was late.  I was pregnant again - Y'all I just can't describe the joy that P. and I felt upon seeing that little "pregnant" message on the screen of the test!  We went that day for an ultrasound and blood work b/c they consider me high risk.  As excited and overjoyed as we were, we once again only got to enjoy the happiness for a week this time as well.  I woke up Thursday morning and knew something wasn't right...

Upon calling the doctor they put me on some meds to try and help, but it was too late.  We have had a hard week and a hard time tying to accept that this was just not our time and not that sweet babies time.  Everything happens for a reason and I pray for God's healing hand to be on our hearts.  We have pushed through this week and are planning a big Thanksgiving celebration with our families. 

I just wanted to share the pain and emotions that we have been going through and that it does get easier and to not give up; if anyone ever stumbles upon this and it helps them, then that was my purpose in writing this.  I feel grateful and blessed that it was not another tubal and that my left tube does seem to be working properly.  That was my silver lining throughout the sadness of the miscarriage.

"Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

Joshua 1:9

 

Have a blessed Thanksgiving y'all.

 

I am thankful for my wonderful family, amazing/supportive husband, my snuggle pugs, my faith, and for this blog in allowing me an outlet to express the things I have been feeling and not able to say out loud.

 

XO-T

My "Little" Brother's BDay-#19!

Y'all, I confess...I completely fell off the blogging bandwagon lately...I've had some stuff going on and the blog just fell by the wayside-Maybe next year I can do all 31 days! :)

 

Today is my "little" brother's 19th birthday...I guess I should call him my younger brother, not little brother anymore.  He's taller than me and everything now! :)

 

He's been in Panama on a mission trip with some of the other baseball players from his school for the past week, so this is the first year that he hasn't been at home with family on his actual birthday...Sort of weird!  Praying that they have a safe plane flight home tomorrow and that he has a good birthday abroad.

 

Here are some photos from last week before he left and one throwback Thursday pic of him when he was about four...Our poor old pug we had back then was trying desperately to get away!

 

Stewart and the other baseball players getting ready to leave on the mission trip.

Mom, Stewart, and Dad

Stewart and Me

Stewart at 4 with our old pug, Pepper.

Happy 19th, Stewart!

XO-T



Days 25 and 26

Day 25 was "In my town" - I started thinking about something unique that is actually right down the road from our neighborhood.  It's Dinglewood Pharmacy.  I know...A pharmacy-that's unique?!  It totally is...

 

They still have a fully functioning pharmacy, but they also have the fully operational soda fountain where you can get a scrambled dog, fountain drink, and chips that are just simply to-die-for.  This place is pretty darn yummy and unique and was even written up in Southern Living in the May 1995 edition - Dinglewood Pharmacy has been open since 1918.

 

Local artist's rendering of the inside of the pharmacy.

A "Lieutenant's Scrambled Dog"...It's divine, y'all!

 

Day 26 is "On the Road" - This is a picture of my drive back from Gray, GA., my husband's home town, on the way back home.  The sky was gorgeous and it was too pretty not to get a quick snap of the scenery on the way home.

 

Happy Friday, y'all!

XO-T

 

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