Melted like butter on hot toast

Today is Damon's Birthday, but I wanted to record this before I forgot any little detail. I have been sick for the past 2 days. That little reaction turned into an infection in my throat, and a zpack later, I am golden again.



If you ever had any question how much Mommy means to a 3 year old, here is your answer.



I was asleep basically the entire time, four days, fighting the reaction, then the infection, and I missed Damon, Liam and Zoey, and they missed me.



Tonight, I was reading to Liam, as our nightly bedtime routine goes, and I pretended to fall asleep. Fake snoring, and wakes me up after the first snore or two. The third time I started snoring, he just laid there. He patted my head and stroked my cheek, then he said, " Shhhh, mommy sick, Leeam snuggle mommy all better."



Could he be any sweeter???

Notes of an allergic person

Last Friday, we went to a baptism. It was wonderful, Lana is a Russian woman who Damon taught along with the missionaries. The refreshments after looked yummy, but I didn't eat any because of this new allergy thing. I did get my kids some. I got a brownie with frosting for Liam, and a tiny smear of chocolate frosting got on my hand. Without even thinking, I licked it off. Instantly my tongue and roof of my mouth started tingling. I thought, "Crap." By the time I got home, my throat had swelled up, but I could still breathe and swallow fine. The weekend came and went, we went to Austin, and my throat will not go down. My neck is hard to the touch. It kills to swallow. I am on 800 mgs of ibuprofen every 5 hours and still nothing. It wipes me out. My body is fighting something it doesn't need to fight. I slept 16 hours and I have been up for 6, and I could go back to bed at 3 pm. All from a tiny amount of chocolate frosting.

I am so tired. It has changed everything. I can't eat anything from a bakery. I can't have anything that contains trace amounts of tree nuts, or that was made in the same plant as tree nuts. If I want dessert, I have to make it myself, and if its chocolate, I have to pay $12 a bar to get some that wasn't made in the same place as nuts.

No milk. No nuts. I am gonna be so skinny.

Confidence is Key

Its as if he is thinking, "Sometimes I even surprise myself with my level of pure AWESOMENESS."

The Calm Before the Storm

This is what I call Saturday night. The night before Church. The night before Primary. The night before Chaos. I am still not used to people looking to me for answers, teachers, insight, and inspiration. I can't get used to certain people calling me "Prez" every week. I can't help but think someone else should be doing this because all I can think of is, "Quick! Someone find me a diet coke so I can think this through properly!" All I can say is thank goodness I was at least inspired enough to have the BEST counselors and secretary known to woman-kind.

Its almost go-time.

wish me luck.

Mantra

I posted my facebook status the other day as this:

Rachael spent the day hunting 'badybugs' with Liam instead of cleaning the house and doing laundry. Totally worth it.

I got a few comments, but this one from a friend in Colorado literally brought tears to my eyes.

"choose to be where you are irreplaceable"

I really struggle with being a stay at home Mom. I constantly worry, for whatever reason, that I am not doing enough. I let the expectations of the world constantly rule my perception of self worth, instead of really remembering why I am doing what I am doing. My kids deserve a stay at home Mom who makes their lunch every day, and who tells them how wonderful they are, and will spend time hunting 'badybugs'. Being a Mom is hard. And I love it. I don't have time to work. I don't want too! I have a job that needs me, and no one else could do it as well as me! I know this because Heavenly Father sent these kids to Me. They are mine and I am theirs.

Perspective

Liam isn't feeling well today, so I finished editing some photos. I stumbled on these beauties. Zoey got a hold of my little camera over spring break, and this is what she saw.

I thought the perspective of my little 5 year old was quite fascinating, and a bit humorous.