my friend list

Today I'm taking a moment to be thankful for the friends in my life. I was reading this blog about the types of friends that are needed in the life of a mom and started thinking of all the people who fit certain categories.

My "there in a heartbeat pal"? There are a few, but the one who stands out in my mind at the moment is Sarah. She was the one I called when Miriam was flown to Rochester and James was going to be about an hour behind us. I didn't want to be alone and she showed up. To this day, I have no idea what stuff she dropped to be there for me, but I will always be grateful for her willingness to drop it. :)

My "right where you are buddy" is Danielle. She's a mom of 3 boys who are about as close in age as my 3 girls. (Personally, I think her job is more difficult b/c, well...she has BOYS.) It's a good thing our children enjoy playing together. :) Also, in this category is my long-time friend Joy. She and I have spent lots of time on FB chat this past week just venting about our days. It helps to tell someone else b/c then it doesn't seem as significant and I usually end up laughing at myself in the process. It's too bad she lives in NC. If I could choose a neighbor, it would be her.

My "been there done that buddy" is Jane. She brings me sanity and reminds me that life isn't always going to be about diapers, bottles and bedtimes. I am grateful for her wisdom even though I don't tell her that nearly enough. Some others who fit in this category would be my Sisters-in-law, Amy and Sherry, and my friend Dee.

My "tell it like it is ally"? again...JANE. and also my sister. I don't know if anyone else could tell me the things that they tell me. And even though I get defensive, they know that I love them (sometimes only b/c I HAVE to) and our friendships will always survive the ups and downs.

My "child-free friend" .... hmmm.... the only one I can think of that I have regular contact with is Lauren. She's also my kids' favorite babysitter, so she serves two VERY important roles in my life.

And I'm blessed with SO many more friends than this, but these are the only categories given by the author of the blog. If I were to add one more it would be the "makes me laugh out loud" friend. That would be Jessica Collins. She has some very entertaining animals and children in her home and I love hearing her stories.

Who are some of the friends you've been blessed with? and what category would you add to the list?

coffee and blogs in the morning.

My friends, I'm addicted. It's bad. And I'm not just talking about the coffee. There are some creative, entertaining, and wise people out there in Blogland. There are also a few nutjobs, but I try hard to avoid those. :) I wanted to share a few of my favs with you because I'm generous like that and also b/c I need a place to chronicle some of the things I'm reading and, well, my bookmarks are getting clogged up.

It all started with The Nester and her 31 Days to a Less Messy Nest. I loved the ideas she had, especially the one about lower my expectations. It took me a few days to get through them all with all the activity around here, so be forewarned if you choose to check it out.

This Farmgirl is also a regular part of my day. She is a friend of my college roommate from Indiana and she's FUNNY. I've been known to laugh out loud while reading her posts. And I think it's pretty cool that her youngest child is named Silas.

This lady is another of my favorites. I can't remember how I found her, but her recent series about organizing was very entertaining. Unfortunately, I didn't end up participating, but I was inspired to go to Big Lots last evening and purchase a bunch of baskets to use in organizing my under-sink cabinets.

Today, I'm thinking about this post and how nice it would be to get to do all the things I want to do, but my life is here in this house for now (most of the time).

And I had a moment to pat myself on the back this week also. I found these printables a few weeks ago and decided it was time to make up a chore chart for my girls. "Picking up toys", "say 'please' and 'thank you'", "play nicely", "help clear the table", and "mommy's choice" are all categories on our chore chart. I came up with "mommy's choice" b/c they had already picked up a mess of coloring books and crayons and I wanted to find a way to reward that without having to add a "pick up coloring books and crayons" column to every week since they aren't likely to need to do that every day. The "mommy's choice" category has come in handy all week for things like helping to put away laundry or emptying the dishwasher and even for behaving for the babysitter last night. Then I saw this post and had a glorious moment. Notice the chalkboard...there at the bottom of the list of chores. That's right. I did good. I came up with that idea all by myself (and God gave me a pat on the back by showing me that someone else who is probably more organized had done the same thing). What's that saying about necessity being the mother of invention?

So, there you have it. Some of my favorites. And even if you don't care, it's nice to have some of my favorite ideas linked together in one place.

what are your favorites?

"This is the Stuff" by Francesca Ballistella

"Sacred" by Caedmon's Call

"No Hurry" by Zac Brown Band

"Carry Me" by Audrey Assad

I'm planning to make a cd (since i have yet to step into the 21st century and get an ipod b/c i simply don't need one) that would encourage me as a mom. These are the songs I have chosen so far. I only have a few songs to put on it and I'm curious. What songs encourage you the most in your day to day stuff with your family?

follow up...

We now have an ugly board running the length of our staircase. At least my kids are safe(er).

Miriam

On Tuesday my baby girl took a fall.

James and I were upstairs chatting and our girls were taking turns coming up to greet us. Miriam was so cute when she came up. She played on the bed and wanted to be covered up (but I had made the bed...surprised? so was I.) She did have a throw to snuggle under, but quickly got down off the bed and headed for the downstairs and the sissy's. As we continued chatting we heard a sound that I want so badly to forget. We immediately ran to the hall and saw our worst nightmare. Miriam had fallen off the side of our staircase. From where she was laying, we assumed she had fallen about 4 or 5 feet.

She was crying as she lay face down, but when James picked her up she immediately stopped crying and turned white as a sheet. Her little lips were pale and her eyes weren't focusing. I decided to call 911. This was around 415pm. Even as I dialed I wondered if it would work since we live in no-man's-land and I had only heard rumors that we had access to 911 services. The 911 calls go to the state police office and they dispatch from there. The firemen were at our house within 15 minutes. That might not seem very fast to those who live in town, but for us Hicks it's lightening speed. In the time it took them to arrive I had called my mom to come over and stay with the other kids. Between the time the first responders and the ambulance arrived my friend Kirsten and Jason called. Jason was a volunteer fireman in a nearby town and I knew immediately that they had heard it on the scanner. They offered help in any way and I appreciated their thoughtfulness. After the first responders arrived, the ambulance wasn't far behind. (They had to come from farther away.) During this time Miriam had started making eye contact with us, but James says she was still limp in his arms. She had been "unresponsive" for about 4 minutes, but never lost consciousness. At one point I did see her move her arm. That gave me a bit or reassurance. And while she was being assessed Catie got her to smile. I started hearing the paramedic talk about a helicopter and Strong Memorial Hospital, which is our nearest Trauma Center. I was in a bit of shock over that news and decided that I needed to grab some clean jammies for M, her doll and special blanket. I also grabbed a few things for myself and my husband in case we had to spend the night someplace. (A few days later, as I was unpacking the other bag that James had packed before heading up I found his Bible. It meant a lot to me that in that moment he thought to bring a Bible.) The whole thing was a bit overwhelming and I cried constantly. Miriam was quiet as a mouse. Then they started putting a neck brace on her and strapping her to the stretcher. The fear was that she had a head injury of some sort and based on the distance she fell and the length of time she wasn't responding they thought she needed a higher level of care than our local hospital could give. Let me tell you, she HATED being strapped down. She began crying and fighting and screaming and kicking and SHE. WAS. MAD. and scared. It breaks my heart to think about it now. I just wanted to pick her up and hold her and tell her it was going to be ok, but at the same time I knew that all that activity was a GOOD thing. By the time they were loading her into the ambulance my mom was there and James was able to follow behind in the car. I assumed we were going to the hospital in Corning to get her assessed and then MAYBE flown to Strong. nope. The helicopter was already parked at the local CMA church. I was able to ride in the chopper with her, but still not close enough to touch her. Luckily she slept most of the 30 minute ride.

James went home and grabbed a few things including her car seat (that's also when he packed the second bag with that Bible in it) and started the hour + drive to Rochester. When we landed they took me away to register (which was very frustrating) and by the time I got back to Miriam she was off the stretcher and in the doctor's arms. He quickly handed her over to me and she was fine.

My wonderful friend Sarah lives only 30 minutes from the hospital. I called her before the helicopter took off and she was happy to come stay with me until James got to Rochester. Miriam was observed for a few hours, but they quickly knew that she had only suffered a Grade 1 concussion, which is the mildest, and probably didn't even need all the hulabaloo. We were thankful for the precautions taken and I got to ride in a Helicopter.

We are also thankful for our family and friends who were quick to jump in and do what was needed without hesitation. The news of Miriam's fall spread quickly through local church prayer chains and connections, and even made it to James' workplace.

My great friend Danielle simply showed up at the house. She was a God-send since she knows how to get 3 small children prepped for an overnight with the grandparents.

This is our staircase. I had taken these figurines down so we could have stockings up over the holidays and I never put them back afterward. We think Miriam fell from the step that the second highest figure in on. James plans to do something more permanent on the edge in the next few days, but these seem to help keep Mimi away from that edge a bit. She is the first of the 3 girls to stubbornly not obey when I tell her to "go over by the wall". That just seems to be Mi's personality and I love her strong-will as much as I hate it. :)

And this is Miriam the day after the ordeal. She seems no worse off. She's still stubborn and gets into trouble and won't go up the stairs by the wall, but that just means I have to be more conscious of where she is in the house. And her sisters have to help me keep track of her. They tell me when she's close to the edge.

And speaking of the big sisters...they were rockstars through the whole thing. Catie was simply amazing. She put on her brave face and when I kissed her goodbye and asked her to pray for Mimi, she smiled and said she would. Lydia stayed by Miriam's side while the EMT and Paramedic were assessing her and when she was being put in the ambulance she cried and wondered where they were taking her sister. Silas slept through the whole thing. He's amazing, that little boy of mine. :)

I was wonderful to end up coming home that night and to know that our little girl was sleeping safe and sound in her crib. I know the day will come when I forget this ever happened (well, not totally) and go back to taking my children's health for granted, but I hope it doesn't happen any time soon.

i need help...

As you can see, I'm trying to make this blog as visually interesting as I can without actually having to learn how to design a web page, but I'm no computer geek by any stretch of the imagination so I need some help from you. (Not that I think you're geeks, but you know a lot more about this stuff than I do.)

I would like to center the title of my blog up there. Do any of you know how to do that?

I'm part of the Gang....by proxy.

Last night was STRESSFUL!

I'll admit I get a bit jealous of football. Sometimes I wonder if it isn't James FIRST love, but then February comes and I relearn to cherish those months until August.

Except that time in late spring when the draft happens.

And those random days throughout the summer when James does his JETS stalking.

I think he's addicted.

But I have learned to be the supportive wife (with an itsy-bitsy bit of complaining thrown in during the fall months, just to make my position known). I watch the JETS. I ask questions. I discuss plays. I learn names. I listen to his rambling during a game, which is what I did last night.

I didn't actually watch the game. I updated my blog for the first time in a looooong time (with pictures and everything. I hope you like it). I missed the JETS' first touchdown. Honestly, I looked up and there was 7 points on the screen for the Gang Green. (See, I even know nicknames.) I didn't comment or ask when they scored because I didn't want to draw attention to the fact that I wasn't watching. (How supportive would that have been?)

My heart rate and blood pressure elevated toward the end. Somewhere around the 3min mark in the 4th quarter. I was nervous. I'm a realist (as is my hubby). We knew there was a chance the JETS would lose, but I sure am glad they didn't.

And just think....I get to do it all again next Sunday. yippee!!!