Clayton's Friend Paca...

So, yesterday I picked Clayton up from Mother's Day Out and we were talking about his day in the car on the way home. I was naming off the kids in his class and asking him about each child. I would say, "Do you have an Emma in your class?" "Do you have a Lexi in your class?" etc... After discussing a few friends, Clayton said, "Mommy, you forgot about Paca (pronounced PAH-CA - say it out loud to yourself)." I racked my brain to figure out which child he was talking about. I thought maybe there was a child that went by Paco... then I thought maybe he was just confused. He was very emphatic about this child named Paca. He said it over and over. Finally, it came to me. He was referring to Parker. I guess that with Miss Yvonne's British accent it sounds like Pah-Ca. :) I laughed so hard that I was crying when I finally figured out the mystery. I am hoping that Clayton will pick up a British accent with more words. I just love the way it sounds!

Burpies Galore!!!

So... I guess that the need to be crafty is in my genes. My Mom and Dad both took painting classes when I was little. They painted all kinds of scenes on canvas and were both really quite good. My mom also smocked and sewed dresses for my sister and I. My sister was an art major for awhile in college, and is extremely creative and artistic. I have always been the least talented artist in my family, by far.

I don't know if it is the fact that I am a mom now, but I feel this drive to be crafty. Maybe it is because my mom was so creative, and that is the main role model that I have for being a mother. Maybe it is watching a little too much Martha Stewart. Maybe it is the need to have a creative outlet. Whatever it is.... it has hit me hard!

When I had Clayton, I got all of these wonderful handmade burpies at my showers. I LOVED them! I thought that they were all so cute and loved the fact that someone made them just for me. Well... I am now at that age where ALL of my friends are having babies. Out of necessity (due to my limited budget and wanting to give them all something nice), I started making burpies myself. Wade says that I should try selling them. I am not so sure about that. I just love picking out all the fabric and ribbon and then sewing them together. I am hoping that "Santa" will bring me an embroidery machine so that I can start personalizing them (hint, hint, Honey :). Here are some of my baby burpies:

Weekend Fun...

We have had a great weekend! On Friday, we went out to Bass Pro Shop and to a barbecue restaurant for dinner. The restaurant was right on the lake, so we ate on the patio to take full advantage of the view. It was perfect weather and the food was great. Clayton, of course, loved Bass Pro. He had so much fun looking at the fish and the stuffed bears, deer, etc. They even had a shooting game that he played with Wade. We are definitely raising our little redneck up right. :)

On Saturday we went to Talon's birthday party. Talon is Clayton's second cousin. They are only 6 months apart, so Clayton had fun playing with Talon's new presents. Talon got a ride-on Hummer that he and Clayton "drove" all over the yard. Talon steered and Clayton pushed the gas. Somehow, I managed to miss getting a picture of that. Thanks for sharing your new toys, Talon! We also got to see a lot of Wade's extended family, so that was nice. Wade's cousin, Kelli, and her husband, Doug, came in from NYC for the birthday party. They have always been super sweet to Clayton. On this trip, Doug brought Clayton a guitar that he had salvaged. He even took it to get restrung and cleaned it up. Clayton thinks that it is the coolest thing ever! He carries it around with him constantly and even fell asleep with it in the car (see the picture on slide show). Clayton now adores Doug even more than he did before. :)

After the party, we went to the lake with Wade's sister, Leigh Ann, and her husband and kiddos. The kids all had fun tubing and swimming in the lake. Clayton and Makinley even took turns jumping off of the boat into the water (see the video below). No fear, I tell you! It is so hard to believe that Clayton is only 2 when I see him doing things like that. It just doesn't seem like my little baby should be this big!

Hope you all are savoring these last few weeks of summer, too! It'll be getting cooler before we know it...

Looking at the Water

Redneck in Training

Daddy Being Silly :)

Mommy & Her Boy

Three Cousins

Group Photo

"Mommy, this is so fun!!!"

Miss Morgan

Tubing with Daddy

Makinley, Clayton, and Aunt Leigh Ann

Tubing at Sunset

Group Hug

Swimming in the Lake

After-Tubing Snack Break

Sleeping with his Guitar

Makeup is a beautiful thing, Addicted to Craft Stores, and Potty Training

I have got to start blogging more often. I wait a week and then post a huge blog. I'm sure that is annoying to those who are reading. Sorry - I'll try to do better.

1. I am now post-op day 8 after my Lasik surgery. Why is that so exciting, you ask... Because I get to wear makeup today. YEAH!!! I have been so self conscious all week without makeup. I have tried to minimize my time out in the general public because I am so embarrassed. I am so excited about "making my face up" today. :) I also get to get rid of those hideous goggles and my overnight eye patches today. Life is good...

2. I have come to the realization that I have a serious addiction. My name is Sarah, and I am a craft store addict. I mean, seriously, is it just me or is Hobby Lobby heaven on earth! I could spend hours (and hundreds of dollars) in Hobby Lobby, Joann's, Michaels, or Hancocks. I am attempting to be more crafty and have been spending those precious 2 hours a day of nap time scrapbooking, sewing, and making handmade cards. My favorite piece of equipment these days is my Cricut. It is a little computerized machine that cuts paper into all different letters and shapes. I love it! Here are some of my latest crafts...

(Leslie - if you are reading this, Baby Anna's gifts should be in the mail in the next few days. :)

3. We are STILL working on potty training. It is brutal, I must say. In nursing school, they always taught us that a child was ready to potty train when they woke up in the morning dry. Clayton has never done that. I figured that that information was just like other nursing school info that was only applicable in a perfect world. But... this morning (at 6:30 am - an hour before he usually wakes up) Clayton woke up screaming, "Mommy, I need to go tee-tee!!!" I stumbled into his room and took him to the bathroom. His diaper was completely dry! What's worse waking up an hour early or continuing to change diapers? Hmmm... not sure about that one yet. :)

Last Night at Work and Lasik Eye Surgery

Wednesday night was my last night at work. It was sort of bittersweet. I know that I am going to love being home with Clayton, but I am going to miss my friends at work as well as that part of my identity. Being a nurse has been such a big part of how I define who I am. I will still keep my license current, so I will always be an RN. I am just not going to be practicing for the next few years.

Anyway... everyone at work was so nice to me on my last night. We celebrated in true night shift fashion with a "Dog Night." YUM! :) Everyone brings hot dogs, chili, chips & dips, and goodies to pig out on at midnight. Everyone participated and there was so much good food. There were even four different cakes. I definitely felt loved. :) I will never be able to eat a chili dog again without thinking of all those nights that we celebrated in the lounge. My friend, Sunni, even brought me a gift. She got me this huge activity book of projects and crafts to do with Clayton. She also got me a book called "1001 things every child should see or do." The card on the present was one of those singing cards. It sang, "Take this job and shove it" when you opened it. Hilarious!!!

On another note, I had Lasik eye surgery today. We had money in our flexible spending account that had to be used by the 30th and I had always wanted to have it done. So... I decided to go for it. Let me tell you - I am sure that the end result will be worth it, but it was a stinky process. The consultation alone took almost 4 hours. It was a "cattle call" to say the least. We were herded from one room to the next like a bunch of cattle. Today, during the surgery, it was the same type of thing. Whatever... I guess that they have to work a system to keep everything moving quickly and to treat many patients at once. The problem is that it is very impersonal and they don't explain what they are going to do before they do it. Case in point, I was sitting in a chair waiting for the surgery portion to begin. They ushered me to another chair and told me to lay down with my eyes closed. They next thing I know, this guy is prying my eyes open to put more drops in them. A few minutes past and he did the same thing. He never said a word. So, I said, "Is this where you are going to make the flap?" He said yes. A few minutes later they told me to open my eyes and look at the 8 lights. Then they put something on my eyelids to keep them open, put a suction cup on my eyes, then I felt the laser cutting my eye (OUCH!!!), and everything went black. I was so upset. I said, "OUCH! That really hurt. I wish that I would have had some warning!" They said, "Don't move a muscle, not even your legs." Then they did the same thing to the other eye. It wasn't as bad, because I knew what to expect. When they were finished with that part, I was so mad and upset that I started to cry. They told me that that was the worst part. I was fuming inside and said, "I sure hope so."

I know that they have a lot of patients, but is it really too much to ask for them to warn you before they slice a portion of your eye?!?!? I feel a scathing letter coming on...

I can see almost perfectly already, though. So, hopefully it will all be worth it. I can't wear makeup for a week. They also said that I am not allowed to wash my face for a week (whatever!). I also have these AWESOME goggles that I have to wear whenever I am outside and when I am in the shower. That's right... I know I look hot. :)

I am also posting a video of Clayton riding his tricycle. He has gotten really good at it. :) If only he would look up instead of looking at his feet pedaling. :) He is going to crash bad. It is only a matter of time.

Sorry for the long post!!! It's been a busy week. :)

Hangin' Up My Support Hose!!!

There have been major life changes happening at the Carpenter household over the last couple of weeks. First of all, Wade accepted a new position with a company out of Detroit. Wait, wait, wait... don't panic - we're not moving out of state. :) He will be working from home. He will, however, be doing some sporadic traveling. He assures me that he won't be out of town any more than he is now, it will just be more frequent 1-2 day trips instead of full week trips. The problem is that he won't be able to plan around my work schedule as well as he has been able to in the past. What's the solution, you ask? Well... I quit my job!

I have mixed feelings about it all. Being a PICU nurse has been MUCH harder since I had Clayton. Not to say that I wasn't sympathetic before, but now I have a much better grasp of the pain that those parents must feel. I have always tried to play it cool and answer "fine" whenever someone asks me about how my job is going. The truth is, that ICU nursing takes a toll on you. It is very stressful and emotional to take care of critically ill or dying children. It is hard to look at a child and know that they will never be "normal" again or to know that they will probably die before they ever get to leave the hospital. It can be so depressing. I have been fortunate, in that I have not had to make too many trips to the morgue in my 5 year career. That is what really gets me. No one should have to place a child in a body bag and take them to that cold dark room and put them in that stainless steel drawer. That is, by far, the very worst part. I spent several nights fighting back tears as the chaplain said a final prayer just before we closed that cold drawer. So... all that being said, it was a very hard 5 years of my life. There were many success stories, and that is what keeps an ICU nurse going. While I will truly miss all of the people that I worked with, I will not miss the heart breaking moments that come with that job. It was an extremely challenging job and I have grown so much in my time on the unit.

Now I am on to a different phase of life. One that doesn't require support hose, scrubs, or being up for 36 hours straight (that is until we have another newborn :) ). I am praying that Wade enjoys his new job and that everything pans out financially. It should be an interesting adjustment and one that will require us all to be flexible. :)

Here's a few pics that they took at work for a scholarship that I got in nursing school. Not the most flattering pictures that I have ever taken, but that is what I look like at 4 am at work. :)

First Day of School

Clayton's first day at his new school was yesterday. He had a really good day! We had gone to meet the teacher night last Thursday. We got to meet Ms. Yvonne, Clayton's new teacher. She is a very pleasant lady with a British accent. (Think of a tall, thin Super Nanny. :) ) There is just something about a British accent that is so soothing. I could sit and talk to her all day.

Clayton had been a little uneasy yesterday morning before we left for school. After I explained the process, he said, "Mommy, you no leave me." I was prepared for the worst. To my surprise, he walked right in there like he owned the place and started playing. No tears whatsoever! When I came to pick him up he said, "One minute, Mommy, I playing with this." I guess that is a good sign. Ms. Yvonne said (in that sweet little accent), "He's a very talkative little one, eh?" I'm sure that he talked that poor woman's ear off all day long.

When we got home Clayton named off all of the children in his class and the offenses (hitting, not sharing, etc.) that were committed throughout the day. He assured me that he did not (of course) do anything naughty. I'm sure that he was the model of good behavior (wink, wink). He then proceeded to fall asleep on my bed while I was taking a shower. Yes, that is a drool mark on the pillow where he had been laying. :)

I'm sure there will be many more stories to tell about Clayton and his new little school. Hopefully, it will be a good year!