Happy Halloween!

 

The boys were decked out in their matching skeleton shirts today, and Anderson was not thrilled with Jackson trying to keep him still for the picture. Oh well...Happy Halloween anyways!

First Report Card Of First Grade

Jackson got his first "real" report card at school yesterday and he made all A's! (And by "all" A's, I mean that he made 2 A's. They only get grades in math and reading.) He made "S's" in social studies and physical education, and he got a 91 in math and a 94 in reading. We are so proud of Jackson! His teacher wrote on his report card, "Wow! So proud of Jackson. He is precious! :). We have been so blessed by Mrs. Hicks, and I can't imagine a better teacher for him. He is thriving under her, and she definitely has a gift for what she does. Just wanted to brag on our big boy. We are so proud of him for working so hard and doing so great! First grade is off to a great start!

Happy Birthday, Papa!

 

Jeremy and I want to wish his Dad a very Happy 61st Birthday today. We are blessed with a great father and father-in-law, and the boys are blessed with a great Papa. We love you!

 

Happy Birthday, Papa!!

Weekly Confessions

• I brush Anderson's teeth to the tune of 2001 A Space Odyssey intro. We played it when I was in band in high school, and it was one of my favorite band halftime shows ever. Anderson thinks it is the funniest thing brushing his teeth to that rhythym, and his giggles are so cute that I can't stand it! This confession alone is further proof that "once a band geek...always a band geek."
• I saw the "Girls Gone Wild" party bus the other day in Montgomery. I texted my friend and said, "Just saw the Girls Gone Wild party bus. Anything you need to tell me?" She didn't see the humor. I, on the other hand, thought it was hilarious.
• I have 3 pumpkins on my front porch just waiting to be carved. One of them will somehow end up as a Vote Romney pumpkin.
• Jeremy is going on his first camping trip tonight with Jackson and my Dad. Trying to pack for them last night was ridiculous. Clearly, without a woman in sight, my child will not be dressed appropriately for the weather, despite my packing skills. 
• I'm beyond ready for this election to be over just so I can quit hearing Obama lie. I have never seen such a skilled liar, and I can't wait for him to be standing in the unemployment line with the rest of his victims.
• Jackson and I spent 20 minutes last night laying in bed just talking and laughing. He went to bed later than he should have, but I wouldn't have traded it for anything. How else would I learn all the gossip of first grade?

Anything y'all need to confess? Hope you have a super weekend!

 
 

Back To Reality

Jeremy got back last night from his quarterly trip to Macon, GA for business. I was so glad to see him get home. It's crazy trying to do everything for the boys by myself, work full time, teach at church, cook meals, keep the house presentable and try to get a few hours of sleep by myself. I seriously don't know how single parents do it!

In heath news, Anderson has had a cough for the last few days, so we're keeping a close eye on that. I'm hoping that he's not about to get a bad cold, but I guess we'll know in a few days. My headaches are doing much better. I think the new BP medication is helping; I still have headaches, but they haven't been as frequent or severe. Keep the prayers coming!

And finally, Jeremy, Jackson and my dad are going camping with the RA's from church tomorrow night. Jackson is so excited, and I wish I could go, but it's a "boys only" thing. Oh well....I know he'll have a blast. Y'all have a great Thursday!

Let's Try This, Shall We?

After placing repeated phone calls to my neurologist office last week, I finally got through to my nurse to let her know that my headaches were back with a vengeance. Let's just say that I was less than thrilled with some of the stuff that she asked me, and just about everything pointed to the fact that she wasn't even bothering to look in my chart to find out the answers to her questions. A few examples...

"Did you take the steroid prescribed to break up the cycle of headaches?" No, because your office told me to quit taking the steroids after I was awake for almost 2 straight days. Did anyone bother to write that down?

"Did you follow up with the TMJ doctor like the nurse practitioner wanted you to?" No, because we discussed (and she wrote it in my chart) at my last appointment that we were going to wait until my appointment in November to even bring up the TMJ aspect of my headaches. She didn't even tell me the name of the doctor, so how, may I ask, was I supposed to follow up with him?

"We're just going to change your BP medication and let that be that for now." No, because I'm dying over here. Lady, I have a headache all day, every day. I wake up with headaches. I go to sleep with headaches. I need relief, and the only thing that is working right now is the Imitrex injections, of which my insurance company will only cover 12 every 2 months. Right now, I have 3 injections left and a month and a half to go before they can be filled again.

As of right now I'm on a new blood pressure medication, have a prescription for a pain medicine and I have a "first available" appointment with a TMJ specialist in November. Please pray that the new meds give me some relief. I'm super afraid of causing liver damage because of the insane amounts of medication I'm having to take, and I know that rebound headaches are in play from the medication. It's like a bad roller coaster that I can't get off.

Here's hoping that the new pill works, because y'all, I need a break. Jeremy will be gone most of this week and its just about impossible to function with a headache when you are alone with 2 kids. Wish me luck...

Winter Warmerland

I’m hosting a Winter Warmerland Scentsy Open House party this weekend to highlight Scentsy’s holiday catalog. There are so many cute warmers and amazing Fall/Winter scents, and I can’t wait for people to see how great this stuff is. Right now I have Autumn Sunset warming in my kitchen and it is the perfect cinnamon toned scent and I’m loving it! Here are a few of my favorite warmers. Aren’t they great!

If you are local, I would love for you to drop by my house on Saturday from 6-8 (email me at auflag@yahoo.com for directions). I’m offering free shipping to orders delivered to me. If you don’t live in the area, you can browse online at amywade.scentsy.us and see everything. Let me know if you have any questions!

A Little Bit Of Random

• I'm trying a new recipe out in the crock pot today. It involves chicken, cream cheese, dry Italian seasoning and a few other things. If it turns out, I'll share. If not, we'll order a pizza, cause that's how we roll.
• I've had to take 5 Imitrex injections in the last 7 days because my head has been hurting so bad. Something has got to give, because life is not meant to be lived under the fog of migraine injections.
• Jackson is reading like a champ right now. He's reached "Rising Reader" status in his class, and is thisclose to reaching "Rising Reader 2" in a few weeks. We are so proud of him, and it thrills me to no end to see him picking up a book and reading it aloud all by himself.
• Jackson's school is selling cookie dough for a fundraiser. He has to sell 8 units in order to qualify to see a magic show at his school. Jackson was quick to inform me that if he sells 15 units he can sit in VIP seating for the magic show, and "they will pick lots of students as volunteers in the show." At $15-$16 per container of cookie dough, I told him not to hold his breath on sitting in that VIP section. We'll be doing good to get him to the show. 
• We're spending Thanksgiving at the beach this year with Jeremy's family in a 4 bedroom condo. I've never been at the beach for Thanksgiving, and I'm so excited. We're going to have a great time, and I'm super stoked about searching Pinterest for yummy Thanksgiving recipes that I can cook.

Hope y'all have a great Tuesday!

Happy 35th Anniversary!

Jeremy and I want to wish parents, Buddy and Janet, a very Happy 35th wedding anniversary! We love y'all, and hope you have a great day!

Happy Anniversary!!

Keeping It Real Wade’s World Style

 

Jackson started running a 99 temp Tuesday night. He had gone to Cub Scouts and then asked the den leader if he could leave early because he wasn’t feeling good. When he got home, he was at 99 degrees. We gave him Motrin and put him to bed, and then Wednesday morning he was still at 99, but he insisted on going to school because they were testing and he didn’t want to miss anything.

I got a text from his teacher around lunch that he wasn’t feeling good, and my Mom went to get him. I picked him up when I got home from work and took him to the doctor where they strongly suspected the flu. Thankfullly both flu tests came back negative and we went home with a diagnosis of bronchitis and a viral infection. He is home today, but feeling much better.

And as if all that yesterday wasn’t enough, I had my first full blown migraine since my neurologist appointment and I got to try out my new Imitrex injections. Let me just say, giving yourself a shot at home is so strange. It just doesn’t feel right giving yourself a shot, but it did help. It knocked me out, but it helped.

And Anderson’s ear is draining like a faucet. Again. For 3 weeks in a row.

I should buy stock in ear infection antibiotics.

Nipping It In The Bud

Jackson got his first "straight" face of the year on his daily behavior sheet yesterday. He had a talking problem yesterday, and after I made him write an apology note to his teacher, I think he is on the straight and narrow again. Too tough? Nah....he'll be fine, and I'm fairly certain he won't get another straight face today.

Mrs. Hicks,

I'm sorry for talking in class today. I will do better.

Jackson

My Inner Band Geek Comes Through Again

The Ohio State University Marching band performs what has to be the best halftime show ever! Stick with the whole 9 minutes, and you won't be disappointed. As a child of the 80's, the Super Mario Brothers references are amazing, and the horse is one of the coolest things ever. Enjoy!!

Happy 40th Anniversary!!!

40 years ago today my sweet parents, Tom and Soyna, otherwise known around here as Nana and Tata, got married. Kellyn and I have been covertly planning a surprise get together for about a month, and last night we pulled it off. We had 21 friends from church and Mom and Dad's supper club meet up at the Catfish House and we pulled off a pretty good surprise party on Mom and Dad! Kellyn and I had told them that we wanted to take them to dinner, but they had no clue that it wouldn't be just us! Kellyn, Jason and her mother-in-law had made an almost exact replica of their wedding cake, which turned out gorgeous! We had their original cake topper, cake knife given to Mom and Dad as a gift from Governor George C. Wallace, and their wedding album from their house, all without them having a clue!

 

The party was so much fun, and we enjoyed ourselves so much celebrating such a special, and these days, rare occurrence for a couple. 40 years is a long time, and I'm so proud of my parents for being such a good example of marriage to Kellyn and I. My sister and I have been so blessed by our parents, and we hope they know that they mean the world to us!

 

The cake, their flowers, a picture of them cutting their cake on their wedding day, and their wedding album.

 

 

Mom and Dad with their girls.

The Wade's, the Moore's and the Gibson's. I have such a wonderful family!!

 

Love you Mom and Dad!! Happy 40th!!!

The Post In Which I Tell You How I Feel About Chicken Trucks

 

 

 

Despite the fact that I am an unashamed carnivore, I  hate getting stuck behind chicken trucks or cow trucks or any other kind of transportation of animals to their demise. The poor animals are packed in there like sardines, there is no shelter from the elements if it is super cold or rainy, and you know the last time those animals are getting out of those poop filled cages is before they get prepped to become someone's dinner. It's torture for me to just see the chicken trucks, so I can't imagine how the poor chickens feel. I think it's a guilt thing for me that those chickens are going to meet their maker simply because they are delicious baked, broiled, grilled or fried. So basically I feel majorly guilty that the chickens are going to die, but not enough to quit eating chicken.

 

I know I need therapy. Stick with me folks...

 

I got stuck sitting behind a chicken truck in a constuction zone on Thursday. We had to wait for the pilot car for 15 minutes, and the entire time I was sitting there I could feel the little beady eyes of those future chicken tenders staring at me like I was a conspirator to murder.

 

I thought my torture was over when the pilot truck finally got there to escort us through the construction. However, my joy of finally getting to move was short lived.

 

When we finally got moving again, I was stuck behind that darn chicken truck for 10 miles with no where to pass them, and I had millions of white chicken feathers flying at me like snow.

 

Remember the feather song from Forrest Gump? The beginning of the movie where the feather is flying sweetly through the air? This wasn't like that at all.

 

It was like the chickens were moulting in expectation of their impending doom.

I know it sounds irrational, but y'all, I was dying. Those little chickens were watching me, for 10 miles, losing their feathers the whole way, and I hated every second.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity of driving 10 feather-filled-miles, the chicken truck turned down another road and I was able to drive guilt-free to my next destination. When I got out of the car, there were feathers stuck to my car which only gave me the heeby-jeebies again. 

I guess the thing I feel the most guilty about? After driving behind the chicken truck for 10 miles, I ended up stopping at the only restaurant in the little town I was in, a Jack's, and I had chicken fingers for lunch.

I'm a terrible person.

 

 

 

Jackson's (Almost) Wordless Wednesday

 

If I go fast...

 

I will git a tic it.

 

I wus rit.

 

Someone remembers a lesson his Mama had to learn the hard way!

Same Song....Different Verse

My headaches are back with a vengeance.

I wake up with a headache every day....

I deal with headaches all day every day...

I go to sleep with a headache every night...

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

I'm throwing in the towel and making another appointment with my neurologist. Life isn't supposed to be lived like this.

Stay tuned.

The Definition of Irony

Jackson's school is participating in a Auburn vs. Alabama reading incentive, and students that read 6 books and return their form get a bookmark and are entered into a drawing for tickets to the Iron Bowl in November. Jackson realized this morning at 6:00 am that he only needed to read 1 more book in order to turn his form in. He went into his room and picked a Corduroy book and as he started reading, I went to go jump into the shower.

I was about to get into the shower when Jackson busted into the bathroom. There I was standing by the shower, nekkid as the day I was born, and Jackson brought his Corduroy book over to me. I grabbed a towel to cover up and started preaching to Jackson about privacy and respecting closed doors and all those other things that went in one ear and out the other on my sweet child. Seemingly oblivious to everything that I had just said, Jackson said that he needed help on "just one word" and he would be done and would leave me alone.

The word he needed help with: "undressed."

I live the definition of irony...