Bye Bye Baby....

It is ALL fun and games

Until somebody gets their tooth (really teeth) pulled out

Today was the day

They day my girl conquered her fears

(well one of them, she is still working on befriending a cricket)

She did great

Her grand dentist Dr. Bashara at Sweet Tooth Pediatric Dentistry worked his magic

If you have a child....I highly suggest going there

Calista and her blue-eyes got kicked out of our old dentist office

Well not so much kicked out as maybe they broke up with us

She gets a little dramatic about her mouth being touched

There were a few instances I had to hold her down for her routine teeth cleaning

And MAYBE there may have been an instance where she took the flosser out of the dental hygienist's hand

AND

It MAY have fallen to the ground a few feet away
(my sweet and innocent child would NEVER throw it on the ground) 

AND

She MAY have refused to open her mouth

When she got her first and only cavity

They very nicely suggested we go to a Pediatric Dentist so she could get laughing gas for dental procedures

That may have been the best break up on earth

Flash forward.....

At her Ortho appointment on Tuesday they took x-rays to make sure her braces could come off

They can't

Her adult K-9 teeth (aka I teeth) are growing sideways and touching the root of her baby I teeth

He suggested she get her baby teeth pulled so they can grow in correctly

He of course suggested this in "Code" so Calista would not hear the words "extraction" or "pulling" or "torture"

Cut to today

I picked her up from school at 9:30 so she could take her antibiotic an hour before her appointment
(for her little heart to be safe from infection)

I was suppose to give her a Valium 30 minutes before her appointment

I normally don't like to drug my child, but for everyone's safety

It is for the best

I gave it to her 40 minutes before the procedure because she was having a nervous break down in the back seat

After one phone call from her Daddy with his awesome pep talk skills and a few jokes at his expense to make her laugh

AND

A surprise stop at Tilly's (her favorite store) to pick out a good luck necklace and to let the happy pill kick in

She was chatting away about how she thinks Tilly's should really start carrying Betsy Johnson items and then....
SILENCE
I knew something was wrong I turned to look at her

AND

She was looking around with a blank stare on her face, jackpot!

We made our way to the appointment

They are amazing at Sweet Tooth
 As soon as we walked in the Sweet girls at the front desk spoke in "Code"
AND
 Graciously understood she was feeling NO pain at the moment
But was still quite nervous

As soon as she was called back the panic set in

She made it through x-rays with her eyes as big as saucers

She made her way to the "torture" room
(and walked as slow as she could)
BUT

As soon as she sat down, she started trembling with fear and she couldn't stop

Seriously trembling and shaking with fear
(I thought she was having a siezure for a second)

They started the Nitris right away even during her teeth cleaning to keep her calm

I held on to her leg and foot to let her know I was still there

Every time she spoke she said the same thing

"So you are going to pull my teeth out and it is going to hurt, I know there will be a needle involved."

The dr. came in and while he was speaking to me I took my hand off of her leg

Suddenly I felt something in my armpit I looked down and it was her sparkly purple shoed foot

She had her leg at a 90 degree angle off of the chair to touch me

The Sweet dr. did well,
 He hid the needle behind a Q-tip and gave her the shots while he was counting to 3
Instead of on 3.....good work Sweet dr.!

She had four shots,
 I almost punched him, but my hand was too busy holding onto her foot to avoid another armpit kick

The Sweet hygenist was holding her hands,
However, when he got ready to yank the suckers out,
She removed her hands

I suddenly had a flash back to her flosser incident
So I quickly put one hand on her hands and one on her foot,
I have NEVER been more thankful for my long noodle arms....
They come in handy sometimes

That was it, it was over and she was still trembling, poor thing

She walked out of the office with gauze sticking out of her mouth on both sides
(do you know what a walrus looks like?)

She got into the car and then had a mini melt down

I drove the 20 minute drive back to Nana's with my right arm in the back seat holding her hand

Again, I was thankful for my long noodle arms

AND

I started thinking about how amazing this life is

The precisous little life that we live to the fullest and suck every ounce of joy out like its going out of style

Sure, it may have been tramatic

BUT

There was a Daddy who called with a pep talk and sent several IM's for the play by play during the procedure because he was scared too

There was a kick to the armpit just because she needed my touch

MY Mama touch to calm her down

There was a little blue-eyed babe that faced her fears like a Rock Star

There was a 20 minute hand holding session on the ride home

There was some mad mult-tasking skills driving and comforting

That was my Rock Star moment

I love this life, this crazy beautiful sometimes overly dramatic traumatic life

When we got to Nana's and changed her "oozing" gauze 

(gross right???? that is what the Sweet dr. called the bleeding)

I got to spend time with my Mama and my babe

I got to use my Sweet mama skills to calm my beloved down
AND
Listen to her talk non-stop about what happened

Chatty Kathy she is, Chatty Kathy a she shall stay

(even with a numb tongue and mouth AND holes from missing teeth)

Mission accomplished, teeth out for my little lady

AND

My heart happy with the ever-existing promise that
As long as we have each other we can conquer anything

Here are some before and after shots
 !!Warning there are missing teeth and gaping holes involved!!

Good Luck Necklace

Bye-Bye Baby Teeth

Chattin' it up.....

P.S. Maybe one day I will work on my clown, bird, midget fears

P.P.S. Don't judge me!

Love -

Rock Star Mama

There is a girl I know......

There is a girl I know

I love her to pieces

I am not talking about my favorite blue-eyed girl

I am talking about my favorite brown-eyed girl

Happy Birthday Cassie Girl

This is the girl all girls want for a friend

A girl with mad Mama Bear skills

A girl I have grown up with

AND

I will grow old with

A girl with a sweet sweet laugh that makes you smile

A girl that has been there for me through the best and worst times in my life

A girl that taught me how to laugh out loud at commercials (even if you are by yourself)

A girl that thinks she isn't funny

BUT

May be the funniest person I know

A girl that has the most humble pure heart in the world

A girl that is loved by anybody who is lucky enough to meet her

A brown-eyed girl that my blue-eyed girl thinks is the coolest person on earth

A girl that I couldn't imagine my life without

A girl that should win the Mom of the Year award....every year

A girl that has the most beautiful babies in the world

A girl that can make my whole week by an hour visit to my work

With the M & M's

A girl that I am lucky enough to call my sister...

even if she is from another mister

Have the best birthday ever

The Smitty's Love You

Holy Cow

Karve was amazing

So amazing in fact I am sore in places I never knew I had

I did not make ALL of my dreams come true 

By pretending to be in a beautiful ballet production

I couldn't,

I was too busy concentrating on doing the moves correctly

If you don't do the moves correctly, the very friendly instructors come correct you

I felt like I was a bad child in time out when they would come tell me to tuck my pelvis down

I loved it

I loved that I knew people there

Maria and Jennifer, you two rocked it

We will be going back

Speaking of back....my normal sore Scoliosis back

Is pretty much pain FREE

I can not believe it, one class and it feels better

Now every other part of my body...parts I never knew I had hurt like a Mother

Did I already mention that?

BUT

There was a ballet barre.......

P.S. Lauren...you are coming lady!  Can't wait for Saturday :)

Truth be told......

I have always wanted to be a ballernina

From the time I was a little girl, my sister and I would dance to the Christmas Symphony and pretend we were on stage in a beautiful production

When I worked at Little Prospector I would have the children line up, clear a path and I would do a running jumping split in the air 

Which I am sure looked much better in my head than it actually looked in person

The kids still clapped, that is all that mattered

Anytime a slow song comes on....I still break out my ballerina skills

Truth be told.....

I am not very graceful

I fall A LOT, I mean at least once a week

Some of the memorable times are:

I fell into a bush while picking up Calista and Hannah at school.  After I picked myself up in front of all the other parents and pretended it didn't happen, I hear this.....

Hannah said, "Jasmin, did you just see that lady fall?"

Calista said, "Hannah, that was my Mom, she does it all the time."

NICE!

OR the time I fell in Outback Steakhouse and took Calista down with me....

OR the time I fell at the mall walking out of Eye Masters

OR the time I fell after James threw a ball on the roof which somehow came down on my head knocked me to the ground and chipped my tooth

OR the time I fell in the rain while dancing with Calista

OR the time I fell trying to help Cassie put together the swing I brought over for Mason....

There are many more instances, but I think I should just stop there.

When I had Calista, I thought...well sure I am not a ballerina BUT I can MAKE my daughter one

Truth be told.....

It didn't work out, she prefers to swim instead

Don't worry, I am sure my dreams of her becoming a Rocket Scientist/Brain Surgeon are sure to come true.

BUT

Today, I am going to Karve

Have you heard of it?

Kelly Ripa does it, so it must be cool

It is a work-out that includes a ballet bar......

I am VERY excited

All of my dreams are coming true

In my head while working out I am going to pretend I am practicing for a beautiful production

Maria will be with me, so when I fall (because I am sure I will) I will have somebody there to laugh at me, that actually KNOWS me

Wish us luck.

Captain Obvious

This is to all of the Captain Obvious' out there (and I know there are many because they ALL seem to talk to me when I am out and about OR I work with them)

To you all...

Let me just clarify some things for you

Then you can stop making obvious statements

YES, I know I am tall

YES, I do know I don't HAVE to wear heals because I am "tall enough"

NO, I will NOT stop wearing them to accommodate you and your insecurities of being short

YES, I know I am skinny, however 

NO I do NOT need a burger and fries, I eat plenty probably more than you, Sir Obvious

NO, I do NOT need to "put some meat on my bones"

YES, it is extremely hard finding jeans/pants in 37.5-38" inseam, thank you for asking

NO, I don't play the piano, but thank you for pointing out my fingers are REALLY long and skinny

YES, I do know my wrists have bones sticking out of them 

YES, I do know it is weird that I am so bendy and I can bend my thumb back to my wrist

YES, I know my feet are REALLY narrow and they look like skis 

YES, that is a scar on my chest from open heart surgery

Don't try to pretend you are looking at my ta ta's

I know you know that I know what you are REALLY looking at
NO, I am not going to have any more children
I know I respond by saying "I stopped at perfection."
Truth is, I am NOT suppose to have anymore
Thank you for pointing out I have just the one
Thank goodness she is perfection

NO, I don't play basketball, besides the fact that I am not very sporty......if I get hit in the chest with said ball my aorta would dissect and that would be bad.

YES, I know my daughter is VERY tall for her age

NO, you do not need to point it out to her, don't you think that she is self conscience enough about it????

YES, I will punch you in the nose if you mention her being tall again

Do you know who else is tall, besides me?

Her father, who is built like a line-backer and has a punch like Mike  Tyson, back off Obvious!

YES, I do have one more thing to say to you

SUCK IT!

This is what the Smitty's think of you, Captain!

This is to YOU Chromosome 15 and your mutation

My daughter and I will rock our mutated chromosomes and all the things that come with it

Marfan Mama  has left the building

Oh what a night.....

It was one of those kind of nights

You know the kind that you want to scoop up and put in your pocket

The cherry on top of life, is what it was

It was a night about nothing that turned into something

3 car rides for our puppy girls

Starbucks, DQ, AND on a mission to save Raylyn's head

6 loads of laundry

Yummy turkey, cucumber, tomato, feta, mozzarella, and sour cream pitas for dinner

AND

To top it all off braids ala' Cali Girl

My hair is straight.....fun to play with and easy to comb

Nice, RIGHT???

When you comb my curly hair you get this

HOT Right????

A pedi for Mama, pink with yellow stripes

AND

Karate Kid I (the best movie ever)

All while snuggling and falling asleep holding hands

Ahhhh

A night of nothing turned into something

FO SHO!

Cheers to that!

4th Grade and Special Souls

4th Grade has begun

We have been blessed with an AMAZING teacher

Yet again

I have been thinking a lot about teachers lately

Random Thoughts 

All day long
Being a Mom is the hardest job in the world
Letting go of your little babe to go off to school is even harder
I believe you need to be close to the ones who teach your children
I believe those who teach are special souls
My heart rests a bit when I love and trust the one my little is with all day
What would we do without these special souls?

Ponder, ponder, ponder....

We were lucky enough to have lunch with 

Ms. Michael

Calista's First Grade Teacher
The day before 4th grade began

We loved her then and maybe love her more now

Ms. Michael is a special kind of lady

She looks like she could be on the cover of

Sports Illustrated Swim Suit Edition

BUT

She decided to teach

BECAUSE
She is one of those special souls

Cali the Cat and Ms. Michael 2007

Having lunch with Ms. Michael was great

AND

Watching Calista's blue eyes light up as she talked to her

Like she was her best friend

Well that was just fabulous

I didn't make them pose for a picture

BUT

I will have that "mental picture" stored in the 

"Vault" (aka my head)

FOREVER

AND

I love it.

I do have a picture of Calista before lunch began

She wanted to wear her Christmas Couture Dress

She wants to wear this dress

Everywhere we go 

I normally say 

"No honey not this time."

BUT

"Aunt Cassie picked it out, why not Mom?"

Aunt Cassie (who is another special soul)

Will receive payback when Madee

Is a tween

I gave in to my Blue-Eyed Girl

I choose to pick my battles.

 

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

RIGHT?
Having lunch made me
Ponder, ponder, ponder
Yet again....
I thought about MY first grade teacher
Ms. Wells
OHHHH Ms. Wells
You are the reason I wanted to be a teacher
Ms. Wells taught at SMES up until this year
She still made me feel special even in my 30's
One time at a Science Fair while I was there as a parent
She made me feel like the
Homecoming Queen
She brought me around to all of the other teachers
To inform them I was her favorite student and look at me now
Look at how wonderful I turned out,
Look at MY amazing daughter
Oh Ms. Wells
YOU
Special Special Soul
I am lucky enough to still see some of my favs when I pick up Cali everyday
Mr. Thorpe, Mrs. Turner, and on occasion one of my favorite favorite favs, Mama Henry
I still remember most of the things you taught me
Mostly, I remember how you treated me
While all the kids were making fun of my chicken legs
YOU encouraged me and made me feel like a million bucks
You know when you see your teacher outside of school and you can't believe they shop for food?
OR
Go out to eat?
You also feel that way when they pass away.....
NOT
These special souls they are immortal.....
RIGHT?
Mr. Belcher one of my favorite Jr. High teachers recently made his way to the other side
He was amazing to say the least
I mean who wants to hang out with stinky 7th and 8th graders all day
A Special Soul
One of my favorite memories of Mr. Belcher was this.....
I was not the most popular of the ladies in Jr. High to say the least
BUT
I was pretty smart
One young man who shall remain nameless liked to take advantage of my brain
He would copy off of every one of my math tests in Belcher's class
Nameless also liked to point out I had no boobs, chicken legs, mushroom hair, and weird glasses
One day I decided I was "Mad as H-E-Double Hockey Sticks and I wasn't going to take it anymore!"
I wrote EVERY answer wrong on our end of the week test knowing he was going to copy me
Muahahahahahah I got him
He turned his test in and I quickly changed  all of my answers to the correct ones
On Monday when Mr. Belcher passed our tests back, I had 100%
Nameless had a 0%
As Mr. Belcher handed me my test he winked and said
"Good job, Skipper."
I knew he knew what I did and I liked it!

There is a special soul in this picture

Angie, Mr. Sill, Me, and Jodie; Sophmore Year

This picture makes me smile from ear to ear

You know the kind of smile that makes your cheeks hurt

Mr. Sill was one of a kind

He defined the teacher who everybody was scared of

BUT

We all loved

There are too many stories to tell about Mr. Sill

Too many stories that make me smile

He wasn't what most people thought about him

He was an angel, even though he wanted everybody to believe he was the Lucifer

My Senior Year I had open heart surgery

I didn't want anybody to feel sorry for me, so I didn't make a big deal about it

My close friends knew and were with me

Cassie, Jenny, James, and my family

The first day I came back after said surgery

Mr. Sill saw me, hooked elbows with me and said

"Walk with me young lady."

So I did, I walked with him all the way to his classroom

Even though my next class was accross the campus

AND

I wasn't feeling all that well.....heart surgery and all

He told me he had heard I had work done on my "ticker"

He said he thought about me daily and was glad I was back

He also told me to give them H-E-Double Hockey Sticks

Mr. Sill retired the year we graduated

He passed away a short time later

My ticker hurt that day

All of these random thoughts about special souls

AND

I don't think I can portray in a Blog how much teachers have made a difference in my life

AND

I hope they do the same for my girl

I have many friends that are teachers

I think they are all amazing

I believe there is a special place in Heaven for them

I also believe this year, this 4th grade year.....

Well this is going to be one grandiose year!

I mean how can you look this gorgeous on your first day without having a grandiose year?