he's back

Two nights of sleep have almost rejuvenated the Beasley bunch. Almost.

Little Boo headed back to school today after his full week off. We were blessed to have Monday with Mimi, Tuesday with Aunt Linda, and Wednesday with Mamie and Paw Paw. Thursday {today} meant back to reality.

When he woke up to me this morning, and I started rushing around to get him dressed, he was quite confused. He held his hands up as if to say, "Is there no one here to greet me today but you?"

We are happy he seems to be feeling loads better. As I'm sure you were able to gather, I was at my wit's end. Adenoid removal is a million times harder than tubes. At least for us.

The anesthesia, bad breath {oh the breath}, stuffy nose, and just general yuckies were more than I was prepared for. I knew he might feel bad for a few days, but never did I anticipate a whole week of misery.

Back to school he went today, though. He has a few limitations: no outside play for rest of the week and no rough housing in the big play room. He didn't seem too upset about missing outside time-- instead he got to eat gummy bears in Ms. Maureen's room. Oh the life!

back to work

Now that the hubs is pretty much back full time as my house slave, the honey-do list is slowly being tackled.

We like to separate our projects into two categories: those we can easily afford {and that can be done in a short amount of time} and those that must be saved for/financed {more on that later}.

The projects Lofton accomplished this weekend fell into the first category.

Before I make the big reveal, I’ll remind you of a few things:

1) When we bought our house EVERY room was grey with the exception of our eggplant colored dining room. I quickly picked out paint colors and the rooms were transformed in a span of two weeks. Needless to say the old adage about living in your house before you make design decisions held true. I don’t love all the colors I initially picked out. We are making changes as needed J

2) Our decorating/remodeling budget was slashed tremendously when we introduced little Boo into our house. It is just now starting to re-coup.

And now the reveal!

First, Lofton made a headboard for Reese’s bed. I was inspired by a tutorial I found online. We found the fabric in Montgomery, and with a little help from the staple gun, my dream became a reality.

In keeping with Reese’s room makeover, Lofton also hung a few new pictures on the walls. I have another print on order, as well.

After we took down Reese’s original headboard {which came from the salvation army and has moved with me 4 times}, Lofton cut it down and used the spindles to make legs for our new desk. We trashed the skirted desk because our air vents couldn’t circulate properly.

This crafty move was actually my brain child and I’m pretty darn impressed with myself. We still have to paint the desk and finish the edges with some trim, but all in all I’m very satisfied.

Lastly, Lofton popped up the molding in the dining room. We are “paneling” the walls to make the room a little more visually appealing.

The wall color, rug, and floor were all too similar in tone for me. The paneling will be white, the walls are going to be a lovely shade of creamy green, and the curtains are going to be a dramatic navy silk.

I’m most excited about this room transformation. We actually use our dining room a lot.

After the painting inside is complete, hubs is moving outside to tackle a bigger {more expensive} project: painting the house.

It wasn’t at the top of our “big project” list, but someone got a little overzealous with the chainsaw and hacked off the bushes. Now vast portions of our hundred year old abode are exposed to the neighbors and I just can’t take it. I knew painting the house would happen eventually and Lofton just accelerated the need.

We’ve picked out the color {with some help from our friends and neighbors} and it’s even been purchased. It cost a huge chunk of change but we bought the best, hoping it will last a long while.

And so, on the verge of our third house anniversary, we are still making changes. It’s a labor of love, this house of ours—hard, tedious labor {which I know a little about}, but definitely worth the pain.

the great escape

Saturday morning started out pretty routinely. Mom was stuck here for another day, a result of a nasty bout with Vertigo, and Lofton was here also, loaded down with house chores for the day.

After breakfast Lofton put the dogs outside and then headed to Lowe’s to pick up a few supplies. I was doing some laundry, Reese was moping around, and Mama was getting dressed.

In a short span of ten minutes things went from mundane to manic.

Wendy, our sweet neighbor, knocked on the back door a little after eight. When I opened it, she was standing on the back porch with Raleigh. {Now, this is not the first time Raleigh has gotten out. It has happened once before with the same result—she walks up on the porch and waits for us to find her.}

My heart sank into my stomach and I ran to the laundry room, flew open the door, and started yelling for Jake. Nothing. No barking, no yellow dog bounding across the yard, nothing.

I threw on my shoes, grabbed my phone, and ran outside. Wendy and I ran around the yard, surrounding houses, and the immediate streets before I jumped in my car. At this point I called Lofton.

L: Hello?
Me: Do not panic.
L: Aww *%$@. What’s wrong?
Me: Wendy found Raleigh on the porch, and Jake is nowhere to be found. You need to come home.

At some point Lofton and I crossed paths as we cased the neighborhood. Each of us was yelling for Jake out the car window. I think I yelled, “Load up” at least 1,000 times, and at every turn I was certain Jake was going to be lying dead in the road.

After what seemed like eternity, I headed back toward the house to regroup. I was sick to my stomach, sad, and a little befuddled as to what we should do next.

As I drove in front of our house, something compelled me to keep going—toward the seedy side of our hood. I drove straight, scanning rapidly for signs of our yellow child. There was a truck behind me {riding my tail}.

Close to the railroad tracks, as I rounded the turn, I saw the sweetest sight:: Jake, wet and muddy, running toward my car. I threw it in park, opened the door, and yelled load up. Mud and all, he jumped into the car.

I think he was glad to be found. Life on that side of the tracks was not going to be pleasant for him.

I called Lofton and headed home, all the while cussing Jake in the car.

A transcript of what I said:

“Stupid dog! You smell and you’re getting my car muddy. What in the heck were you thinking? I don’t even like dogs--- if your daddy didn’t already have you before we met we wouldn’t have pets. You are so much trouble. If you ever do this again I’m not coming for you… I swear it. If you want to live in the ghetto go for it. Let the pit bulls use you for cage practice.”


Another side note:

The “hole” the dogs tunneled has been present for awhile. Just last week I pointed it out to Lofton and asked if he thought the dogs could get out. He said no. He also said that our dogs would never run away, that they dig holes to get cooled off, not for means of escape.

Famous last words.

Needless to say the hole has been fixed and our children won’t be digging to China anytime soon.

Also, Reese is still under the weather and we are still not sleeping.

still hanging on

Sleep is still hard to come by around these parts. Lofton and I are being reminded of the good ole days of having an infant. Unfortunately, although Reese is up during the night he isn't napping more during the day. This makes for an exhausted mama and an irritable baby.

Some things I plan on blogging about when I have time/energy:

* House Projects:: Lofton tackles my honey-do list
* The Great Escape 2010:: Jake and Raleigh hit the open road
* Adenoid removal recovery:: Foul breath that could knock you to your knees

Stay tuned!

better days ahead

We're home. Things aren't fabulous here at Casa Beasley, but we are doing the best we can.

Surgery went well on Wednesday. Reese was quite the trooper. Dr. Whatley said his adenoids were very swollen and full of mucus. Lofton and I took that as good news because if he had told us that they were in perfect condition we would have been pissed.

Reese had an iv in his foot for the majority of the day and barely complained at all. Even when the needle got bent backwards and had to be readjusted. He now has a nasty bruise to prove how tough he is!

The anesthesia was the worst part of it all. The experience was totally different than when we had the tubes. He was groggy, combative, and woozy for most of the morning post-surgery. We then transitioned to projectile vomiting all night Wednesday night. It wasn't pleasant. We changed his crib sheets three times in less than three hours. Eventually he feel asleep, wrapped in a bath towel, on me. That was night one of my sleeping sitting up.

{Bringing sexy back.}

Night two was last night. With adenoid removal your sinuses get worse before they get better. Reese and I spent last night hanging out in the rocking chair because he is too congested to sleep. Once again I was reminded of how happy I am I splurged on that chair.

Another side effect of the surgery is sore throat/itching in your throat and ears and bloody discharge from your nose. To help the healing process we have been instructed to keep Reese from running, climbing, or sweating. No problem! Do you know how hard that is with an eighteen month old? His odometer only has two speeds: go and sleep.

That's all I've got for now. I'm going to go rest while he rests, maybe { but probably not} it will help improve my attitude.

lions, tigers, and bears- oh my!

The zoo. What an adventure!

The day didn't start so fabulously. Someone was in a foul mood. Like he pitched a screaming fit on the dining room floor because he didn't want to eat breakfast foul mood.

We got dressed and hit the road anyway with fingers and toes crossed for good behavior.

Our plan was to hit the zoo right when it opened at 9:00. It actually worked out perfectly because the park wasn't crowded and the weather was just perfect. Our little hotbox managed to make it just fine! As we were leaving {a little after eleven} the line was to the parking lot. Whew! Another reason I'm glad we are early risers.

Reese wasn't so sure what to make of the animals. Lofton and I were prepared for him to freak out because about a month ago we went to Red Lobster for dinner and Reese had a meltdown when he saw the lobsters in the tank. He also screamed hysterically when I gave him a stuffed rabbit for Easter.

The first animal we saw was some strange type of South American bear. It was quite friendly and walked right up to the glass. Ooops...

He is saying, "Dear Lord, Please save me from this bear!!!"

After we recovered from that frightening encounter things got much better. Reese was still Mister Serious, but he pointed, waved, and growled at some of the animals.

We let him walk a little...

And when he got tired, Daddy was available for a ride...

Cause Daddy's are sweet like that.

We explored the park and saw lots of cool animals. It has been a loooong time since I have been to a zoo. I was pleasantly surprised by how well maintained the Montgomery Zoo is. The animals looked happy and healthy!

We took a few breaks for photos...

Cause mamas are like that. Everything is a photo op!

Here are a few of my favorite animals:

And here are my two favorite pictures from the visit:

There is nothing comparable to experiencing something like the zoo through the eyes of your child. It was the best day ever.

{Say a little prayer for us if you will. We go in early Wednesday morning for Reese's adenoid surgery and are staying overnight at the hospital. I know he's going to be just fine, but I'm a worrier...}

jam packed

The Beasley Family is gearing up for our big surgery on Wednesday, so we took this weekend as an opportunity to have lots of fun family time.

I'll hit the high points:

Dinner with Bunko friends {plus husbands} Friday night.

Then On the Tracks in Downtown Opelika-- just the two of us.

Saturday we hit the A-Day tailgate at the Sig -Ep house {complete with flashbacks to college} with the Hamrick's.

T-minus five weeks til preggo gives Reese a BFF. We are counting down the days!

After a nap, it was fun times at the firehouse with the Sport Family. Reese was surprisingly under-whelmed. I think maybe he was over stimulated and tired. Still, it was a bummer. Thanks Morgan for letting us come visit {-- and we have our hopes up that we'll be seeing more of you soon}.

And our last stop---- the zoo!!!

We've been eating up this weather and wanted to do something fun with Reese before he has his surgery on Wednesday. The zoo fit the bill. I love the zoo {which is actually quite strange since I'm not such an animal fan}! It deserves a post all of it's own, though, so stay tuned....