Friday, October 2, 2009

What's your hurry.....?

Hello again our faithful followers! Today's topic.....Growing Up. Follow me for a minute..you'll see where I'm going. So, as most of you know I wait tables as a side-job a few nights a week. Right around the start of school we were getting the families in with their kids after the first few days of school. In an effort to make conversation I'd inevitably ask the kids how school is going....with the typical response of "Good". After a few more probing questions they start to talk about how they can't wait to get out....or can't wait to just go to college and party....or just can't wait to get a job. So, I do the polite thing...smile and nod, and walk away to get their Strawberry Lemonades and Chips/Salsa. In my mind...I want to scream "WHAT'S YOUR HURRY??"

Let's flash back several years for all of us....we all remember being in school and saying the same things...we can't wait to get out of school. Well, now that we're all out...what do we want to do?? Go Back To School? Whether it's to get a Master's Degree, finish our Bachelor's degree...or just go back to naptimes and recess....everyone that has a job realizes that it's way over-rated!! What's wrong with kids today? They seriously need a reality check.

All that being said....I find myself in that boat with our daughter, Sydney. When she was just a wee lil' baby, we couldn't wait for her to walk and talk....well, didn't know what we were in for. The only time she's not moving or speaking is when she's in her sleep....however, she seems to have inherited my "sleep-talking" gene, so really there's not much of a break. (Let me take a moment to sincerely apologize to Jenny...basically she doesn't get a break from either of us talking...Sorry baby!) Don't get me wrong....I love running around with her and listening to her stories about a princess getting chased by a horse in a car and then a dragon swooping in from nowhere. However, when I'm trying to get into a really intense episode of The Office, or So You Think You Can Dance...it's just not the right time. I find that I was in such a hurry for her to grow up that I didn't appreciate the silent, motion-less baby of years ago!

To try and wrap this random entry up...those who follow me on Facebook might remember a few weeks ago when Sydney told me on the phone "Daddy, I'm having a bad day". She's 3 years old...how bad of a day can it be?!?! I remember thinking how grown up she sounded as she told me that...and instantly I wanted to hug her and tell her to just slow down. I know she can't be a little kid forever.....but I'll do my hardest to make sure she enjoys her childhood...and even harder to make sure I enjoy it just as much!

On one final note.....I had no comments from my last entry about stories from the world of waiting tables...so I'll keep all the good stuff between myself and Jenny! Happy Friday all!!!

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

So..nothing new

Well, I kinda felt like I should get on here and update everyone on what's going on with The Storms....after all, that's what this blog is about right? Well folks...you're not missing a whole heck of a lot. Sydney is still doing well on the potty...for the #1 incidents. #2...well, it's a stinky situation that involves lots of laundry. But, patience will prevail... Jenny is still continuing to get her monthly blood draws. Apparently things are fine because I haven't had any calls from the doctor "...wanting to explain things to me because Jenny was a little upset and might have missed some facts". Ahh...that was a stressful day for all of us! Regardless....I'm glad that she's healthy and things are good! On the job front....well, she's still looking. I know out of the 3 people a year that look at this blog...one of y'all have to have a decent job lead for her! Remember the whole 6 degrees of separation to Kevin Bacon?? Come on folks....someone has to know Kevin and I'm sure he needs an assistant...right?

So, I've got something else that I want to start blogging about on a semi-regular basis. I'm reading a new book based off of another blog I've started reading. It's a book called Waiter Rant. It's essentially about a guy who waited tables at an upscale bistro in New York...talks about his experiences and in a humerous and story-telling fashion...is basically giving readers who haven't been in "the biz" an idea of how to not end up with a little spit in their food. So...I was kinda thinking about kicking off my own lil' version of that based on experiences in my 10+ years of working in restaurants...most recently with Chili's. Trust me...I run into some interesting characters out there..both customers and fellow employees. So...if this is something that the 3 of you would find interesting...please comment and let me know. Otherwise, I'll just keep boring Jenny with the same ol' stories instead of y'all!

Beyond that...all is well on the Storm Front... (haha..just got that as I was writing...damn I'm funny). To those family out there...we love y'all. To the friends out there....well, it's a little early in the relationship to tell...so we'll leave it at....we like y'all!

Friday, July 24, 2009

Potty-training success!!

As most of you are well aware, the Storm household has been potty-training central for the past several weeks. Sydney showed no real desire to start doing her business in the big girl potty, but I figured now was as good a time as any since I'm not working.

We started on Monday, July 6th. After chatting online and getting some last minute tips from my Babycenter mommy friend (thanks, Tricia!), Sydney and I headed off to Target for potty-training supplies. We got Pull-Ups, flushable wipes, a Dora seat for the big potty, a toy she could open when she went a day with no accidents, and a package of Chewy Spree. As soon as we got home, we swapped her diaper for big girl panties, and I waited for something to happen. I had everything set up in the bathroom: Her Dora seat on the big potty, a stool for her feet, and two sticker charts--one for good bathroom manners, and the other for going pee-pee or poo-poo on the potty.

Well I waited, and waited, and waited. Sydney had been in big girl panties since 11 am and it was now 3 pm with no accidents, but no success in the potty. She either had a bladder of steel (unlike her mommy!) or was learning to hold it so she wouldn't have to go on the potty. Finally, at about 4:30 pm, we had success!! Well, not complete success. She went pee-pee, but on the carpet. Then again on the tile floors. I was starting to get discouraged and it was only day 1. She ended up having one more accident before finally going on the big girl potty at the end of the day. The rest of the week went much like day 1...lots of accidents with some success mixed in.

By the weekend, she was starting to get the hang of it, and I was thankful to have some help from Troy! Week 2 came, and Sydney was doing really well going pee-pee in the potty. She got to open her toy for having no accidents, but was still struggling with poop. After holding it in for 4 days, she FINALLY went poo-poo on the potty and that was one of the happiest days of my life! Who knew poop could be so exciting?!?

We're now at the end of week 3 and I can say with a fair amount of certainty that Sydney is officially potty-trained (well, pee-pee at least!). She hasn't had a pee-pee accident since the end of week 1. She's finally starting to poop more regularly, but it's still a work in progress. She'll start to push it out in her panties, but stops and does the rest in the potty. She only wears Pull-Ups at night or if we're going to be out of the house for an extended amount of time. We could probably do away with the nighttime Pull-Ups, because she has yet to have an accident at naptime or overnight!

Troy and I are so very proud of Sydney. She is such a big girl, and never ceases to amaze us! Potty-training is by far one of the hardest things I've had to do as a mommy. I feel as if I can now join that elite group of mommies who have been through the battle known as potty-training, and I survived!!

I end this post with a picture of Sydney's Potty Chart. She has diligently put a star on her chart each time she has done her business. I can't say it enough, but I'm so proud of her!!



Monday, July 13, 2009

Sigh

Yes, I know I'm at home, jobless, and have all the time in the world, but I just haven't been in the blogging mood. Troy, Sydney and I are doing well, just trying to stay out of the stifling heat!

I leave you with a picture of Sydney, because she's what makes me smile!


Saturday, May 9, 2009

Final Pathology Report

Just when we thought we could finally move forward from our miscarriage and D&C, Dr. Erwin called Thursday afternoon with the final pathology report. Earlier in the week he had the initial report back that just stated degenerative changes, but the final report was a different story. It stated that the reason for the miscarriage was a Partial Molar Pregnancy.

Basically what happened is that my fertilized egg had the normal chromosomes from me but double the chromosomes from the sperm, so there were 69 chromosomes instead of the normal 46. Either the sperm duplicated or two sperm fertilized the egg. My doctor said there was fetal tissue but of course it was so abnormal it couldn't survive. Apparently the chances of this happening are 1/1000 and there's only a 1-2% chance of it happening with my next pregnancy.

The bad news is that some of the abnormal molar cells can still be in my uterus and if that's the case, it starts rapidly dividing and can cause Gestational Trophoblastic Disease. If that happens, my doctor said I'll have to take methotrexate to kill the cells. The good news is that he said there's really only a 5-7% chance of that happening.

What I have to do now is to get my hcg levels tested to make sure they go down to 0. I had my blood drawn today and my doctor will take more in two weeks at my post-op appointment. If my numbers are going down, I'll have to continue to go back every month for the next 6 months to make sure my levels are at 0. Instead of waiting the standard 2-3 months to try and get pregnant after a D&C, my doctor said I'll have to wait 6 months-1 year. He wants me to go back on birth control pills so my hormones will be at a constant level--that way if there are any changes, he will know it's because of the molar pregnancy and not my hormones being wacky.

After reading online (which, according to Dr. Erwin I shouldn't do so I won't scare myself!!) the odds are in my favor. Most likely my numbers will go down, I won't need any treatment, and my next pregnancy will be just fine.

So after the latest drama, I'm hoping that this is the last time I'll have to update our blog with bad news. Here's to hoping the black cloud of rain stuck over the Storm family will lift and we can finally see our rainbow!!

Thursday, May 7, 2009

It's been a while!

Hello, all! I figured that since I'm sitting at home with no job and nothing to do, I'd finally get around to updating our blog. Just a warning...this is going to be a long one!!

As all of you may know, April was a rough month for the Storm family. We found out we were pregnant in March and were nervous but excited to go to the doctor in April for our first ultrasound. Deep down I had a feeling something wasn't right, but Troy being the supportive husband he is, kept telling me everything was fine. The 16th finally rolled around and as Dr. Erwin performed the ultrasound (while I had a death grip on Troy's hand) he discovered that our baby was only measuring 6 weeks with no heartbeat and I was almost 9 weeks along. Troy and I were in tears and heartbroken. He said it was probably a missed miscarriage but wanted to send us to a MFM specialist with a better ultrasound machine.

A note about Dr. Erwin--Troy and I are so blessed to have such a wonderful, caring, Christian doctor in our lives. He always treats us with the utmost respect and makes us feel as if we are his only patients. He prayed with us and helped us to see that this was all in God's plan.

The following day, we went to see Dr. Sheppard expecting her to confirm Dr. Erwin's findings. We were wrong. After staring at the screen for a long while, we all noticed a flicker of activity on the screen. She grabbed my wrist to feel for my heartbeat, and informed us that our baby did indeed have a heartbeat, although it was rather slow. She said things didn't look normal but she wasn't ready to rule it a miscarriage yet. She recommended we wait for a couple of weeks and have another ultrasound to see if any progress had been made.

So that's what we did...we waited. While waiting, more bad news hit. I found out I was laid off from work. At this point, I really didn't know how much more stress and bad news I could handle. Now I look at losing my job as a blessing in disguise. I need a better job and Sydney is definitely ready for preschool so she can learn new things and meet new friends. God had a mysterious way of doing things and sometimes I don't understand them, but I know He's doing what's best for my life.

After waiting 2 weeks, the 30th finally rolled around and we were finally ready to have some answers. At this point in my pregnancy, I was almost 11 weeks along. Dr. Erwin performed the ultrasound, and once again, our baby was only measuring 6 weeks with no heartbeat. After seeing that, the next 24 hours went by in a flash. Since his machine is old, Dr. Erwin wanted us to be seen immediately by the radiologist with a better ultrasound machine to confirm his findings, and he went ahead and scheduled a D&C for the following morning at 7am. After giving 3 vials of blood, we went next door for another ultrasound, which indeed confirmed the results of a non-viable pregnancy. So then we went back to the hospital to pre-register for the procedure. While there, I had to visit the lab and give 2 more vials of blood. Since my blood type is B-, immediately following the procedure I had to have a Rhogam shot and the lab had to type my blood for the shot. Needless to say, I was a little woosy after giving so much blood and not eating much all day!!

Since the procedure was at 7am on May 1st and we had to be at the hospital at 6am, Sydney got to stay the night with Mamaw and Papaw. I'm so blessed to have such wonderful parents that can help us out on a moment's notice! Troy and I woke up at 4:30am the morning of the procedure and were at the hospital promptly at 6am. Shortly after checking in, we were brough up to pre-op where they took my vitals and started my IV. Dr. Erwin stopped by to go over the procedure and said a prayer with us. Troy was then shown to the waiting room and I was wheeled back to the OR. About an hour later I was in recovery feeling groggy, a little crampy, but otherwise ok. After staying there for about 1 1/2 hours, Troy was finally able to bring me home. I slept most of the day away on Friday and gradually started feeling better over the weekend.

It is now the Thursday after my procedure, and physically I'm almost back to my old self. Emotionally, I have my good moments and bad moments, but I'm starting to feel better. I'm comforted to know that our Angel Baby is in Heaven looking down on us and that one day, Troy and I will finally be able to meet our little one.

Thanks to everyone for their love, support, and prayers during this difficult time. Troy and I are blessed to have each and every one of you in our lives.

Saturday, March 21, 2009

It's that time in Texas...

...for bluebonnet pictures! We were lucky this year to find a nice patch of bluebonnets after the drought we've been through. Here are a few pictures of Sydney in her best element...in front of the camera!




Finally, here's a shot of Sydney making sure not to step on the flowers!

Monday, March 2, 2009

Fun in the sun!

Sunday was an absolutely beautiful day in Texas. With a high in the low 60s and not a cloud in the sky, we decided to have some fun in the sun!

With our new camera in hand, we decided to go to Mt. Bonnell. I was a tad nervous the entire time because some of the areas aren't fenced off, but we got some great pictures of Sydney! She had lots of fun climbing the steps to the top, and of course, she wanted to climb them all by herself. Once at the top, we walked around a bit and took lots of pictures. Here are a few of our favorites!



After we left Mt. Bonnell, we stopped for lunch at The Hub off of 2222. Troy goes there often for lunch, so he wanted Sydney and me to try it out. The food was great (my favorite: the onion rings) and I definitely want to go back again!

After lunch, Sydney said she didn't want to go home, so we stopped by Target and bought a Mickey Mouse kite. Sydney had never flown a kite before, so she was excited to test it out!



After all of our fun in the sun, Sydney decided she wanted to go home after all, and took a 2-hour nap. We had lots of fun, and I hope you all had a great weekend as well!


Monday, February 23, 2009

Sydney Cheering

As you all may know, I work at Capital Gymnastics and Sydney gets to come to work with me. We also have a cheer program at work, and Sydney is obsessed with all things cheer! She has watched our cheer teams so much that she does the cheers with them, and she's actually created a cheer all by herself! Here's a video of her cheering...



It looks like we have a future cheerleader on our hands!

Friday, February 20, 2009

New Camera!

Sorry it's been a while, but life has kept me busy and away from updating our blog! So, anyways...Troy and I decided this year that when we got our tax refund, we'd do something for ourselves and put the rest toward bills. We tossed around the idea of buying a Wii, but decided on a new camera instead! We are the proud new owners of a Nikon D60 Digital SLR and couldn't be happier! We always love the way Daniel and Julie get such great pictures of their kiddos, and we want the same for our family pictures. We're still learning the ins and outs of all the camera settings, but we have gotten some great pics just in the auto mode. Here are a few we took just goofing around...




and just for fun, here's an action shot Troy took of Hayley at her softball scrimage!

I think that's about it for now...hopefully everyone is doing well, and we'll try not to bore you with pictures until we really get the hang of our new camera!

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Motivation.....

....let's just start by saying I don't have it. I should, but I just can't find it. What am I talking about?? Exercise! However, Jenny is a different story. Let's start with her. She's been talking for about 2 years now on how she's wanted to tone up, lose a few pounds, and just in general..live a healthier lifestyle. I admit...I'm not helping with this. I've always been able to eat junk all day long and it never affected me....that was until I started sitting at a desk for 9 hours in a day and realize I don't have "super-metabolism" anymore. But...I'm still addicted to my junk food. When I can eat a double cheeseburger (plain of course), Large French Fry, and Large Dr. Pepper for under $5....heck yeah!!! So...back to the point....I need to start being a better influence on our eating habits at home. But...Jenny now has a new DVD called "30-day Shred". I admit...after the collection of work-out DVDs and acccessories stacked up in our closet I was a little skeptical. She started it last Sunday (Jan 24th) and has kept with it. Every night she pops in the dvd...lays out her mat and her weights and knocks it out for 30 min. And...she's still doing it! The other night we noticed some more definition in her shoulders and back. She's pumped and is not letting it stop. Although we enjoyed some Mexican food last night...she promised to do 2 sessions today to make up for it. That's committment my friends. I love you Jenny and support you 110% for the next 20-something days on this..and then past that. Heck...I'll even clean off the clothes from the Elliptical so we can start using that again! :-)

So..that's where my motivation comes in. If I could lose weight just by talking about how much I'm going to do....I'd be back down to my fighting weight already. However, it's just not the case. I've been saying forever that I'd wake up 30 min early and go walking/jogging every morning. I actually did it yesterday! I felt great...until about 3pm when I couldn't keep my eyes open. So....alarm goes off at 6am this morning......yep, you guessed it. Hit snooze...changed it to 6:45 and went back to sleep. To top it off....I grabbed a toaster sandwich on the way to work this morning too! So....alas, I'm back to square one. I think I'll try to change my walks to night time...I value my sleep a little too much in the morning.

Well...time to wrap this up.....my Dr. Pepper is getting warm and tater tots are getting cold.....

Saturday, January 31, 2009

A few thoughts....

Hey..it's Troy. Ok, so I stole this "bullet points" idea from another blog...but it works so, here's a few thoughts:

- It's Saturday morning at 7:02am...why am I awake? I hate the fact that my body is so used to getting up at 6:35am each day that I can't sleep in anymore.

- I'm also tired of everyone being sick. But...the problem with Texas is, are you sick or is it allergies. It just seems that at some point, someone that you encounter is sneezing, coughing, snotting, whatever. Maybe it has something to do with every three days going from 30 for a high to 70 for a high....then back down to 30. Ok...so I love Texas. I'm quickly learning that there are very few actual "Austinites" left out there. (There are however tons of those California people moving in...leave us alone...lol) But...I would love to experience a climate where there are actual seasons! Maybe some consistant temperatures. The only time the temp is consistant here is in the summer when it's consistantly 110 degrees! There's a slight chance that my sister-in-law and her husband are moving to Green Bay, WI...maybe they'll invite me up there to shovel snow for a week so I can get it out of my system and enjoy the warm Texas winters.

- So we're still renting a house in wonderful Buttercup Creek. Oddly enough, this is the same neighborhood that both Jenny and I grew up in for a period of time...(well, I grew up here for about 21 years and arguably am still growing up here...and Jenny lived here for about 3-4 years I think) anyways...this was a pretty cool neighborhood back in those days. It was actually controlled with regulations and if you had your house looking like crap you got a notice. If I wanted to complain about a neighbor I could do so in a proper anonymous way. I'm ready to own my own lil' piece of America and call myself a home-owner...however I keep hearing conflicting views of it's a great time to buy or no it's not. I know the economy sucks across the nation and I do feel for the people who are losing their jobs, their homes...basically their lives as they know it....but Texas, and Austin in particular, don't appear to be as impacted. I read in the paper about homes with "Payments starting at $1200/month". Great deal right?? Until you read the fine print which tells you that you need x% down and all these other requirements that narrow the field down to about 3 people who can get in this house. I actually just read one this morning that had the comment "Payments starting at just $746/month"! REALLY?!?! I'm moving today.....oh wait, the fine print again. 10% down, does not include taxes, insurance, HOA fees...and as my dad would say recappable tires! Oh yeah...that included 2 mortgages too....one at 5% and another at 8%. Ok...on to the next subject....

- Let's talk about Sydney. This lil' girl never ceases to amaze me. For example...most of you know she just broke her arm. Well, she wore the cast for 4 weeks, had to wear a little temporary brace for 2 weeks (ended yesterday) and then goes back for more x-rays in 2 weeks to make sure it's healed. She NEVER let this slow her down. She actually cried more about a little scrape on her elbow the other day then she ever did about her broken arm. I've broken both of my arms in my childhood and it's not comfortable. Ok..so maybe she's at the age where she doesn't quite know how to milk it properly. She still wanted to do everything herself and be Ms. Independent. Not me...when I had my arm in a cast....I even had my sister getting stuff for me. If anyone knows my sister....that's a pretty dang good accomplishment! Sydney's personality is just amazing. She can go from being a girl who just got her heart broken because we told her no ice cream....to laughing and giggling and trying to put my hair in a pony tail in no time! (p.s...she's never accomplished this...and probably never will) Anyways, I love that lil' girl to death! Even at 4:32am when I go in a lay down with her because she woke up and is calling for me. I walk in the room and she looks up at me...you can almost see a smile. I tell her to lay down and she does...then pats the pillow next to her and says "Lay down daddy...on my pillow". Just amazing.....

Alright..well, I'm sure I have more random thoughts..but I'll let y'all go for now. Have a great weekend and enjoy the SuperBowl!

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Fun at the zoo, and Waco too!

On Saturday, Troy, Sydney and I decided to get out of the house so we drove up to Waco. We visited with Toni for a bit (congrats, again!) and then we were off to Cameron Park Zoo. Sydney was so excited to see all of the animals...it was her first trip to a zoo and we all had a wonderful time! There weren't a lot of people there, so it was nice to enjoy the exhibits without having to fight the crowds! Here are a few pictures of Sydney's first trip to the zoo!







Here's Sydney's favorite because they sing her favorite song from Madagascar, "I like to move it, move it!"

The Lemurs!

After the zoo, we decided to drive over to Baylor University to walk around. Troy and I took a stroll down memory lane, and Sydney got a Baylor Bear at the bookstore. Unfortunately, she didn't really get to see the real Baylor Bears because they were sleeping! Here are a few pics from our walk around campus.

Troy and Sydney sitting in Judge Baylor's lap

Sydney by the Immortal Ten statue

We had such a fun day in Waco, and I hope you all enjoy the photos!

Friday, January 16, 2009

Sydney's Cast

Back in December, Sydney fell and fractured her right ulna and radius just below the wrist. She had to get a cast, and it's been four weeks. I never realized how much you actually use your arm until Sydney had a cast. Finding long-sleeved shirts, keeping food off of the cast, bath time, you name it.

Today, we went to the orthopedist to FINALLY get it off. (This was actually her second cast because she got the first one wet!) The nurse sawed it off and threw it in the trash, which I dug out when she left the room. After a couple of x-rays, the PA came in the room to look at them, and decided she didn't like how her radius was healing. Now Sydney has to wear a brace for TWO MORE weeks, and goes back to the doctor in four. It's never ending!!! Here are a couple of pictures of Sydney in her cast!

Watching TV with cousin Preston:














The day she got it off!!

First ever blog post!

Troy and I finally decided to jump on the bandwagon and create a blog. Hopefully this will be a way that our family and friends who can't be with us all the time can keep up with us!

It's hard to believe that our Sydney is 2 1/2! These years have flown by. She is definitely our pride and joy and we love her so much! Troy and I are amazed at how she is blossoming into a little girl. Sydney is very active, isn't afraid to try new things, and loves to talk and meet new people.

We hope to add to our blog several times a week so everyone can keep up with the Storms. Enjoy!