The Prophet Turned Seven!

Yesterday was The Prophet's birthday. I can't believe he is seven already. It doesn't seem like that long ago that he was born. We spent the weekend celebrating. On Sat., Casinodad's parents came over for pizza & cake (actually chocolate chip cookie bars w/ frosting). Yesterday we went to my Aunt & Uncle's for a bonfire & birthday celebration w/ my side of the family. The bonfire ended up getting rained out, but we still managed to have a great time inside. My mom made a cake & decorated it with Spiderman figures. The Prophet is really into Spiderman now & ended up getting mostly Spiderman toys & clothes for his birthday. We bought him a new bike & a set of the Castle Legos w/ skeleton figures (for which he's been thanking us for the past two days).

We had a suprise guest at the bonfire last night. Captain Jack Sparrow came all the way from the Caribbean. Someone asked him where the Black Pearl was & he said that it was broken up & used to start the bonfire, after removing all the rum of course! All the kids got a kick out of that & the adults as well! My cousin was the one who dressed up & he did a remarkable impression of Capt. Jack. I think he had just as much fun as the rest of us.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my oldest munchkin! I love ya, kiddo!

Allergies? Me?

Okay, remember my post last month about how I have this thing about shots & needles? Well, this morning I went for an allergy test. Basically, it is just to cover all the bases from the ENT appointment I had a few weeks ago. Other than seasonal & a couple nuts, I've never had a major problem w/ allergies.

I had gone in because of fluid in my ear that I'd had for at least 5 months. At that appt., he didn't find any fluid, but he did discover that I have chronic sinusitis. No surprise there, but I've never had any major problems - maybe an infection once or twice a year & all the rest I took care of w/ OTC stuff. Anyway, he wanted me to see an allergist, have a CAT scan of my sinuses (this coming Monday), & start using a sinus rinse & a steroid spray.

Knowing that I would have the allergy test today, surprisingly I wasn't all worked up about it. Once she pricked my back w/ all the allergens, it didn't feel bad at all. In fact, it just felt like someone was scratching my back. She left the room & said the Dr. would be in shortly to check for the results. I still felt fine. I read my book for a bit, then all of a sudden, I started to feel strange - dizzy, cold sweat, dry mouth, slightly sick to my stomach. I put my book down, put my head between my knees, & pulled the trash can over (just in case!) I contemplated going to the door to ask for some water, but didn't think I'd make it w/out passing out. Next, I sat down on the floor & rested my head on my arms while leaning on the chair. That seemed to help & after a couple minutes, I felt fine. I know it wasn't a reaction to the test, just my own nerves I guess.

So now you want the results? The doctor walked in the room & said "Oh My!" (Yeah - that made me feel better?!?!) They use a four point scale in measuring the welts from the test & on my back there were about 3 welts that were 4++. The welts were about the size of a half dollar. & were for dust mites, ragweed, & grass. I wasn't surprised by the first two, but I'd never noticed a problem w/ grass. There were a couple other minor reactions (pets & histimines) & none for the nuts. She was concerned about the nuts because of the metallic taste I get in my mouth from certain ones. She wants me to keep an epi-pen on hand & to also have a blood test to check for the allergy since it didn't show up. She also suggested allergy shots, but I really don't see a need at this point. The seasonal allergies have never made me too uncomfortable & OTC meds seem to help the congestion from them. She want me to continue the sinus rinse & nasal spray.

Casinodad went through all this allergy testing about 7 months ago. He does the same treatment & the shots as well. He's been telling me since then that the sinus rinse would be great for me, but I just kept putting it off. He finds my situation humorous & keeps telling me "I told you so!" What a loving husband I have :)

Peace, Munchesmom

Halloween

A bit belated, but here is a picture of the munchkins in their Halloween costumes. They got to go twice this year. My in-laws' neighborhood always has a parade & Trick-or-Treating on the Sunday before Halloween. It's a lot safer in the daylight & there are more houses than our neighborhood. The Prophet was a Clone Trooper from Star Wars, The Archangel was a firefighter, & The Princess was a Fairy Princess. They looked so adorable & had a great time.

Casinodad took them in our neighborhood the night of Halloween, but not many people were handing out candy this year. It seems like the numbers have dwindled in the past couple years. So, luckily they got to go on that Sunday. They're still working through the candy supply. (The parental supply is just about depleted, but fortunately, our munchkins like to share!)

Of Kindness & Compassion

Our Small Church Community has a large jar that we put out doing our gatherings. In it, we place any pocket change or extra money that we happen to have on hand. We've done this for a little over a year, but had not decided what to do with the money we've collected. Well, a couple months ago, we decided to send that money to a center run by a Franciscan sister in a poor county not too far from us. Twice a year we drive down there to donate clothing, toiletries, etc. They do not take those donations in November & December because they are focusing on purchases of food & gifts for children during the holidays.

This morning, I mentioned to the munchkins that our group had saved over $300 in our jar & I was going to get the rest of our family's donations added to it. All three of them gathered their piggy banks & gave some to help out. The Archangel & The Princess gave me a small handful each. The Prophet dumped all his money onto the kitchen table & proceeded to give me 4 1/2 handfuls of his change, almost half of his money. I told him that he didn't have to give that much if he didn't want to. He told me, "But I want to. They need it more than I do." I am so proud of his compassion for those children less fortunate.

Peace, Munchesmom

The Lost Tooth

The Prophet lost his second tooth yesterday. It's been loose for quite some time, however, it wasn't completely ready to come out. He asked at least twice daily if it was ready & finally it was. He had lost his first tooth the same day as his dental appointment back in May & the dentist had given him a little treasure chest to put it in. He used the same one this time & the Tooth Fairy left him a "whole dollar!" He came running into our room this morning, waving it around.

A little while later, The Archangel came up to our bathroom while I was getting ready & said that The Prophet gave him the dollar. When asked about it, The Prophet said that he felt bad for his brother because he hasn't lost any teeth yet. Wasn't that just the sweetest thing?! We've been talking about The Beatitudes in Religion this week & we'd had a big discussion about putting others before ourselves. It really does my heart good to see & hear that he is using his studies in life. I pray that he will continue to grow in his generosity.

Peace, Munchesmom

I'll Miss You!

I just put the Princess down for her nap a little while ago. When I covered her up, I laid down w/ her for a minute. Here is our conversation:

Me: I'll miss you when I go to work tonight.
The Princess: You go work 'gain.
Me: Yes.
The Princess: You tan't.
Me: Why not?
The Princess: There bad guys. Be tareful.
Me: Okay, I will.