WORDLESS WEDNESDAY:BRIANNA'S GRADUATION

BRIANNA'S 4K GRADUATION

Our little girl was so cute on the stage tonight. They sang many songs to show us what they have learned this year. They came in marching to "Grand Ole Flag" that was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. They also did the Macarena Months, which was very funny. But one of the funniest things was a song and dance they do called "Tuti Ta". It consists of singing and doing several funny gestures. Us as parents even got involved. It was so funny, I really thought I would have to excuse myself to go to the restroom. The show ended with an all out brawl between my "precious little girl" and another girl that didn't want to walk off the stage. Brianna was pushing on her and telling her to "Go!" and the little girl started crying. But by the time they were dressed in their cap and gowns, they were best friends again. Brianna was the first to walk across the stage to receive her diploma. I must tell you that watching her tonight, I was totally amazed. A year ago, we had this shy, timid little girl that never spoke in public and would run behind me. Tonight I saw a confident, attention getting, young lady sing and dance her heart out. There were times when I felt tears come to my eyes and other times when I would laugh so hard I thought I may cry. I'm only posting a few pictures tonight because it is so late. Tomorrow, "Wordless Wednesday" (I'm trying) I will post a slide show of all the pictures.

MEMORIAL DAY

The morning started out with a trip to Dunkin Donuts and a ride down to Mom and Dad's to help him finish painting. It looks pretty good, but Momma is anxious for the mess to be cleaned up. We came home around 12, just in time for the water in the pool to be warmed up. I laid out while Brianna played in the pool. And yes, I did take the occasional "dunk" to cool off. Brian was busy working in the yard. His shoulder is sure to hurt tonight. We were invited to a cookout at Morris and Shirl's house at 4:00. Nothing was going on around here plus Brianna wanted to check on the baby chicks; so we went over there. There was tons of food and I ate way too much. After dinner, we ventured outside to play a game of Cornhole. If any of you bloggers out there know what this game is, then I truly am impressed. My aunt and uncle are the only ones I know that play it. Basically it's like a mix of horseshoes and beanbag toss. The object is to toss a bag of corn onto the board and hopefully land in the hole, hence CORNHOLE! Anyway, I attempted to play and lost terribly. But I did manage to get the bag in the hole once or twice. We left around 6:30 to come home, but not empty handed. Shirl sent me with a huge bag of watermelon and this dip that she calls Southern Caviar. I will get the recipe and post it on the blog because it is GOOD!
Hope you all had a safe and fun Memorial Day.

SUNDAY SWIMMING

Today, Brian put out Brianna's swimming pool. It's nothing big, just one of those rectangle blow up pools. I think it's perfect for Brianna to splash around in, and it is just big enough for me to float around in to get some sun on these white legs of mine. I took some pictures.

BRIANNA LOVES THINGS OF NATURE

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

Well, we don't really have nothing planned for Memorial Day. No big cookout or anything. Our grill has just recently started to leak gas, so Brian is a bit afraid to use it. Who knows what we will do tomorrow. Yesterday, I went to pick out paint at Lowe's with my Mom and Dad. She is wanting to paint her computer room and really has no clue. If you saw the last room she painted, you would understand why I was so quick to jump in. Anyway, after filling all the nail holes and lining the ceiling with blue tape, I only got on wall primed. So my goal today is to get my house cleaned up. It's a total mess. I haven't washed dishes in 3 days,and for those of you that know me, know that is something that I never do. So anyway, this morning I will be washing dishes, cleaning the kitchen, mopping the floors, dusting and vacuuming in the living room, and pickin up toys in Brianna's room. Its really not that much because our house is small, its just getting the motivation to get it done. For some reason I would rather play on this computer than do house work. I bet none of you have that problem:) Anyway, maybe once the house is cleaned I can ride down to moms and get another wall or 2 painted. Just have to see if I get burned out cleaning or not. So anyways, I guess I will go and get this "stuff" done as it won't do it by itself. You all have a great weekend. Eat some steak for me!

WHAT'S BEEN GOING ON AROUND HERE LATELY

Well, about the same I guess. We survived the whole Birthday thing, now we are looking forward to Brianna's graduation from 4k. She graduates from Memorial Methodist on May 27, 2008. Our little girl is growing up fast on us, that's for sure. We are also trying to figure out what we are going to do for childcare this summer. Memorial Methodist is an option, but they only have hours of 9-3 during the summer for Brianna's age group. I have to speak to the director to see if they will make an exception and allow Brianna to be dropped off at 8. I mean come on----don't most of us have to be at work by 8:00 in the mornings? Plus, as many of you know, there is a great possibility that Brian will be losing his job very soon. If that's the case, then our problem is solved. He can watch her all summer on his "hiatus". Anyway, please say a quick prayer for us that things just somehow work themselves out for us. As far as other things go, I am really wanting to try to get some of my scrap booking caught up. I am now so far behind I don't think I will ever get caught up. Blogging is great, but I think I like scrap booking better. So maybe I will get a couple layouts accomplished on my 3 day weekend! WOO HOO!! Allright, its 8:00 and the season finale of American Idol is about to come on, so I have GOT TO GO. All I can say is GO DAVID COOK! Don't know what I will watch now that that show is over.

WELCOME HOME HEATHER

Heather,
I am so very glad that you are home. I know that you are probably scared to death, but don't worry. The same ones of us that supported you while you were in the hospital will now support you on your road to recovery at home. If anything, I am sure you will see more of me, since you are right down the road now. Heck, you may see too much of me. I just wanted to let you know that if you need anything, I mean anything, please don't hesitate to call. I can be there in 2 minutes and you know I will be. Love ya.

HEATHER IS AMAZING!

I went to see Heather in the hospital Wednesday and I was totally blown away by what I saw. I saw my very best friend sitting up in bed, with clothes and makeup on, wearing a huge smile on her face! She looked amazing. She thought she was about to get an xray and she sat right up in that bed, asked me to grab her shoes, and was going to put them on all by herself.(Fortunately, they came to get her by mistake, no xray till Monday) I swear, it was just like sitting in Heather's kitchen talking to her while our kids ran around playing. She said that she had a good day in physical therapy, stood up for 3 hours and played Connect Four. She was looking forward to her Day Pass on Thursday, but was a little nervous about the whole thing. I stayed and visited her for an hour, but then had to go because she had more company coming. If I could, I would have stayed everyday with her. But she understands, some of us have families we have to take care of. Anyway, I spoke to her Thursday night to ask about how her Day Pass went. She said that she had went to Mexican for lunch and then she even managed to get out of the car and walk on her walker up to the window at Brewster's to order ice cream! When I tell you all, Heather has worked so very hard to get to where she is at. I don't think anyone else could have come so far so soon. Hopefully, she will get to come home on May 20th. Keep her in your prayers, as she will surely need the Lord's strength to readjusting to being at home.

MOM

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HAPPY MOTHERS DAY, MOMMA

How much I love you I can't say:
It's more than words can hold.
You're all at once my rich, red clay,
My potter and my mold.

Yours the words that shaped my voice,
The spirit within mine.
Yours the will that shaped my choice,
My fortune, and my sign.

How lucky I was to have had you
At the core of me!
Wise and good, you always knew
Just what I could be.

And so I came to be someone
Whom I could be proud of.
For this I give my swollen sum
Of gratitude and love.

A FUNNY STORY FOR HEATHER

Heather, the Greer Family Festival was last night. No, we didn't go to it. But you know how close we live to downtown. Well, anyway, at the end of the night fireworks were shot off. You know where I'm going with this don't you? So, we went outside to sit on the driveway to watch them. They were really beautiful and I could not help but think about us watching fireworks on Fourth of July, and I started missing you so much. Then Brianna being Brianna, said "Momma, sometimes fireworks are a flud. Remember how at Fourth of July with Heather, one didn't go off, well that was a flud." Anyway, after the "Grand Finale" we went inside and I knew I would have to tell you this story before I forgot her exact wording. I know you may not get much amusement while you are at the hospital, but I'm sure this gave you a laugh.

Love ya

COME OVER FOR CAKE

We decided that since Brianna's actual birthday was Thursday, we would have a small celebration. Nothing too big, since her party is on Saturday. I invited Skylar, the little girl from across the street and Carson to come over for cookie cake. MyMy and Papa and Granny came by too. Brianna opened up some of her presents, and like I had predicted, the Bug Vacuum was a huge success! Here are some pics of our evening for those of you that couldn't come.

BRIANNA'S DATE WITH CHANDLER

BRIANNA TURNS 5 YEARS OLD THURSDAY

I tried to take one cute picture of Brianna the morning of her Birthday. She had other plans. I had hoped this would not dictate how our day would follow. Our plans were to go to Inman First Baptist(Briannan's old school) to treat everyone to cookies for her Birthday. Then we were going to pick up Chandler so that he and Brianna could go on their first "date" together. The kids at the school were so very excited to see Brianna and her broke arm. It was like she had never left. I would like to say "Thank You" to Ms. Joyce for allowing the kids to share in Brianna's special day.

BRIANNA VISITS THE DOC TODAY

The pediatric orthopedist took a look at Brianna's arm today. He said that the ER docs set the bones really good and that she would probably be in a cast for about 5 weeks. He decided to keep her in the "soft" cast that was placed on her in the ER. He said that she still had some swelling and he also wanted the bones to begin to heal a little before cutting the old plaster and placing the new cast on there. She of course, opted to have it wrapped in pink. The plan is to bring her back to the doctor next week, he will do xrays, remove the old cast and place a new waterproof cast on her. The only bad news is that he said due to the fact that she broke the bones high up on her forearm, it would require a fool arm cast. That should be fun. In the meantime, she is steady hanging in there and discovering more and more that she is capable of using her arm. She just has to be careful. She is almost proud of her pink cast and guess what? Her daddy was the first one to sign it. SWEET, I KNOW!

CINCO DE MAYO

Well, around here we just say May 5th. Today happens to be my great grandmothers birthday. Granny Thelma turns 69 today. You definitely wouldn't know it to look at her that's for sure. Brianna and I took her a present, cards, and a cake by her house earlier. She really enjoyed that. As far as things go around here, well, I took the day off work to take care of Brianna. I am still a little apprehensive about sending her to school. She goes to the pediatric orthopedist tomorrow, so maybe he'll put her in a permanent cast and say that she will be ok to go back to school. I finally went to get Brianna's birthday presents from her Dad and I today. Originally she wanted a trampoline, but since I don't want her to have 2 broken arms, we have to axe that idea. Instead, I picked her up a swimming pool for the back yard, sandbox toys, and a StarStation. I thought she might like watching herself sing on TV. Oh yeah, and I also got her a bug vacuum gun. You press the trigger and it sucks up bugs and you can then place them in a bug kit. I know, I know, I know, that is right up her alley. I managed to get all the party bags done for the guests that will be coming to the party. So with her gifts and that out of the way, I feel a little bit has lifted off my shoulders. Now I'm just trying to figure out who will be coming. Chandler, her "boyfriend" from Inman called tonight and said he would be there. But only for a little while, due to a baseball game that afternoon. That made Brianna really happy. I am taking invitations to the other kids at Inman First Baptist (Brianna's old school) tomorrow. I was planning on taking them last week, but the she broke her arm and things have kind of been up in the air. Anyway, I know its kind of late notice, but if there are parents and kids that don't have any plans for Saturday morning, maybe they could drop by and play a little while. The more the merrier, I guess. Well, wish us luck as we venture off to the orthopedist Tuesday. I sure hope that nothing complicated is going to happen. I would HATE for that doctor to say her arm isn't set right, and that he will have to do it again, UUUUUGGGGHHH!

I SAW HEATHER TODAY

She looked beautiful. Though she would not agree with that statement. But seriously, she looks really good. We carried on conversations just like always. She said that today she could actually tell the pain medicine was helping her. Her spirit is great and her attitude is positive. I offered to take her out of the bed and wheel her outside, she said that she hadn't gotten that far yet:) Anyway, it was really good to laugh with my friend today. I sure needed that!

FUNNY STORY #2

As I mentioned earlier, Ms. Kim brought Brianna some markers to color with and that has pretty much kept Brianna occupied all weekend. I went to wash Brianna's hand last night and saw that she had marker all over her body, but especially on her feet. I said, "Brianna, why do you have marker all over your feet?" She replied, "Well, I have to use my feet to help me put the lids back on!" I guess that makes Brianna somewhat "ambidextrous".

FUNNY STORY #1

Brianna hung up the phone with my brother last night and said, " I'm tired of everybody telling me to be careful! I know I have to be careful, I have a broken arm!"

BRIANNA'S BIRTHDAY WISH LIST:

People have been asking what Brianna would like for her Birthday. Here are some ideas:

*Littlest Pet Shop Things
*My Little Pony Soft Baby Rarity or other My Little Pony Things
*Horses: HORSELAND STUFF-wants "Scarlett", she especially likes horse "families"
*Outside playstuff: Any of that Crayola outdoor chalk stuff would be great, just anything that she could play with OUTSIDE!
*BuildABear gift certificates or clothes: This is one of her favorite things right now.
*Games: WhacaMole Tower Game, Flippin' Frogs
*Arts and Craft Stuff
*Clothes: Dresses(Girl SZ.4) Shorts 4t, Shirts Girl SZ. 4
*Barbie Mariposa Stuff
*Gift Certificates to ToysRUS: She loves going "shopping" with her money.

I could go on, and on , and on, but I really don't have the room in my house :)

ADJUSTING TO A BROKEN ARM

This is no small task, but I really must say Brianna is handling it as best as could be expected. Friday was a little difficult. I had to help her sit on the toilet and get on and off furniture. Bathtime was not very easy, though it was better than I had expected. I think probably getting her clothes on and off is probably the most difficult thing. Her school had flowers delivered to her and they were beautiful. MyMy and Macy came over and that cheered Brianna up a little. Brianna read some books to Macy and played with her. Then Brianna's teacher, Ms. Kim, came by to bring Brianna a present of coloring books and markers (Washable Thank God). This visit cheered Brianna up tremendously. But I still felt like I needed to do something "special" for my little girl, so I took her to Build A Bear. She had fun, but it was a very fast trip! I didn't want her to do too much too soon.

BAD THINGS COME IN 3'S

I knew that we still had one more bad thing that was going to come our way. I just wasn't prepared. First it was losing a very close friend, then Heather was in an awful accident and I almost lost her, and now Brianna. No I haven't "lost" her, but that is the 3rd thing that has happened to me in a matter of 3 weeks. So let me give you the scoop:

I went to pick Brianna up at school Thursday. She was playing on the playground like usual when I arrive to get her. I was speaking to her teacher, Ms. Kim, when all of a sudden I heard another teacher yell, "HER ARM, HER ARM, LOOK AT HER ARM!" I looked over and saw Brianna standing there with a horrified look on her face, but I saw no blood dripping from her arm. So I thinking to my self for just a second, "What is she talking about?" And then I see it. Brianna's arm was twisted like nothing I have ever seen before. I guess my best description would be from her elbow down, her arm was in a curved "snake" shape. It has to be the worst things I have ever seen in my life. Apparantly, brianna was running toward me and tripped and fell over a tire on the playground and landed on her arm. So anyway, her teacher was freaking out and ran inside to call 911 and we took Brianna inside. A father of one of the boys in Brianna's classroom helped me get Brianna inside and sat her at a desk. We let her rest her arm on the desk and placed an icepack on it till someone got there. You all should have seen Brianna. Boy was she a trooper. She just sat there. She had a few tears in her eyes, but she mostly just kept saying that her arm was crooked and it hurt. The firefighters arrived first and actually set her arm. They were so great with Brianna. Heck they even asked her if they could come to her Birthday party next week and bring the fire truck for her to ride on. I told them though it was in Spartanburg, since it was Greer FPD that came, I doubt they could drive it to Spartanburg. So one of them gave me her name and number and told me that she had a class at 11:30 Saturday but after that she would come by PumpItUp to see Brianna because "she was one of them now." I thought that was just the sweetest thing. I have got to tell you, they were just terrific. I'm taking Brianna next week to see them at the fire station to give them a thank you card and some doughnuts. Maybe she might get to ride on the firetruck then. Anyway, back to the drama of the day. So I'm standing there as they try to brace her arm. I wanted to cry so bad, but I knew that if I fell apart, Brianna would to. So instead I "cowgirled up" and stood there about to just die inside. Oh yeah, and felt like I was going to puke everywhere. But Brianna, she was just so very brave. The paramedics arrived in the ambulance, placed Brianna on a stretcher and took her for a ride that I can to go on too. On the ambulance, the guy placed an i.v. on her. I think that might actually have hurt her more than breaking her arm:) We arrived at Childrens Hospital at Greenville Memorial about 3:15, they did xrays on her arm. Yes her arm was broken:2 bones broken in about the same place. Then they had to place her under sedation so they could set the bones and place her arm in a temporary cast. Next came another set of xrays to be sure they had set the bones correctly. I guess they succeeded because they never came back into reset it again. They sent us home with Loratab for her pain and we have to follow up with a pediatric orthopedist this morning. I think the funniest thing that Brianna has said during all this was when she woke up from the anesthesia, she asked "Is my arm straight?" I was telling everyone how brave she was and she finally said,"Momma, I've heard it a hundred times about me being brave, that's enough!" She might break her bones, but NOTHING is going to "break" her attitude!