While we were out...

I feel absolutely terrible that I have not blogged in weeks. My goodness, did we have a run with those miserable ear infections. The actual infection lasted 23 days. We tried 3 antibiotics and a steroid shot before those suckers decided to give up! Addi handled it all so well. ~

At Dr. Timm's Office

         She was so sweet about waiting. We had to wait 2 1/2 hours to see the doctor. Not only was waiting that long already an enormous thing to ask of a 1 year old, but she was hungry too. This was NOT Dr. Timm's office's fault though. Our other doctor's office refused to fax her shot records so... enough said :) Anywho, she got her steroid shot and we headed home....

Doodle was NOT happy with me after the shot

    On a good note, her ears finally healed! Praise God! I was so scared that she was going to have to have tubes right before I was scheduled to leave for Honduras. Like everything else, God just took care of that! I didn't have to worry about her having surgery (as minor as it is) while I was out of the country.

    So that Friday came and I knew I had to leave her. I spent the entire day with her and prayed thoughout the day that God would give me the courage to get on that bus later that night. You see, I signed up to go on this mission trip in 2010 when I was 8 months pregnant. My mind set at the time was "She will be over a year old by then and I will be able to leave for 7 days for sure". Boy was I wrong in my thought process. Until this trip, the absolute longest I had ever been away from my angel doodle was a little over 24 hours. I could not stomach the thought of 7 whole days! I knew that she would be in good hands and well taken care of but I was worried about ME! The time came and I sqeezed her tight and told her that I would miss her every single second that we were apart and that was SO very true. Yes, I did have two panic attacks but I made it! And let me just tell you, stepping foot on that plane to head to Honduras was one of the best decisions that I have ever made!

         We flew out of New Orleans a little after 6 AM Saturday morning and before I knew it we were meeting the missionaries that we would later call family :) We hopped on a school bus and headed down the road....

       We stopped in town and got a bite to eat at Popeyes! Yes, they had a popeyes and they had spicy chicken! I was pretty excited. We all ordered our meals through Jarman, our translator, ate, and hopped back on the bus. After about an hour in the bus, we stopped at a restaurant for a potty break. There was live entertainment!

That was pretty neat. We continued our track up the mountains :) We took part in a worship service that evening and it was cool getting to worship with other people in a different language! We played a few games and called it a night. Once we got to where we would be staying the first night, we got out, stretched our legs and went over our game plan for the following week. We had a short devotional and hopped in the bed.
     The next day we knew we were going to an orphanage. We were going to do puppets, tell them a few bible stories, tell them about the Gospel, do a few crafts, and mainly LOVE on these precious children. I knew that there would be certain kids that I would feel connected to once I got there. When we got there, we could see the kids from afar. We unloaded the bus and started walking up to the orphanage. That's when my eyes met hers. I smiled at her and waved at her gently. I knelt down and held out my arms and she took to the invitation immediately! I squeezed her over and over again and kissed her precious little forehead numerous times. Her name was Cindy

....and I will always love her....

I painted her nails....

....and she painted mine :)

     We all fell in love with those kids. They were so open to love! It is something that I cannot even put into words. They wanted to be loved and you could tell. I wanted to tell Cindy that I loved her so much, without even knowing her, because Jesus loved me and allowed me to love her. I didn't know how to say that I the time but I learned so that I could tell other children. So, we had to leave the orphange. We gave them care bags and flip flops and left supplies for their teachers. I will never forget them and I do not think they will forget the Americans that came to tell them about Jesus either.

     We spent the next two days at a school there in the mountains. We would start the day off with praise music, puppets, and bible stories. 

    The kids seemed to enjoy it. I worked with the youngest children and loved every second of it. We took their pictures and put them in foam cross picture frames and they LOVED that. I am sure that it was the very first time some of them had seen a picture of themselves. We also did crafts with them and let the little ones color. They were so proud of their work and loved showing us what they had done. I told them each that Jesus loved them and that I did too. When we were getting ready to leave the first day, one little girl ran up to me, jumped in my lap and whispered "Jesus loves you!" and sped off. The tears of joy that streamed down my face are some that I will never forget.
    During the afternoon, our assignment was to help build a wall at the school. This school was actually due to be getting computers!! So, they were wanting to split the outside section in half and make one part a computer room. My job was to help mix concrete with Kristen. It was SO HARD! lol. They told us to mix 46 (I think. Possibly a few more or less) shovel-fulls of dirt to every 1 bag of concrete. After that was done, by slowly turning the dirt into the concrete multiple times with a garden hoe, we were to mix in the water. We would mix and knead and mix and knead until it was like gumbo mud.

    Then, we would pour it into the hole where they would be laying the cinder blocks. We all worked super hard! Everyone else in the group was hauling buckets and buckets and buckets of dirt...in the rain! It was quite the experience. We were pretty proud of ourselves by the time the day was over :)

     We had wonderful meals prepared by the sweetest ladies you would ever meet. We laughed because we were all concerned about what we would eat and how hungry we would be but man were we wrong! We had pancakes or egg sandwhiches in the mornings, fried chicken, homeade mash potatoes, fresh veggies, fajitas, porkchops, soup, chicken salad and all kinds of other amazing things. It was so wonderful! We would come together as a group and worship at night and that was always special to us. It gave the group time to grow together. Then we would split up and do seperate devotionals. I really enjoyed how close it brought us all!

     So after two days at that school, we went to another, much smaller school. There was only one teacher for grades K-6. These people were so receptive and precious. We did puppets, bible stories, and the Gospel there as well.

     We also did crafts with them and took their pictures too! It was so much fun :)

    While we were at the second school, we fed them chicken and rice and it was super yummy! Then we handed out flip flops and care bags as they left for the day.
     We also went to houses in the mountains and brought care bags and shared with them. They family that my group visited had just lost a 28 year old daughter to a brain tumor. The daughter had left 4 small children in their care. It was absolutely amazing how they treated us when we got there. They welcomed us with open arms and told us that they knew God had sent us to remind them of how much God loved them in during this tragic time. I wonder how many of us would be that way?

One of the Children

Their home

   Other groups visited other families and had amazing stories to tell as well. Some visited the home of a terminally ill woman whose bed was made of string. They bought her a mattress and she responded to the gift by telling them that "her bones did not hurt anymore". There was also a teenage girl with a 4 month old that one of our young mothers was able to help by sharing her testimony with her. God just moved in RADICAL ways during this entire trip. I could never do justice by trying to explain it with my simple words.

    The last day that we were there, I was privileged enough to get to share my testimony with some local women. It was amazing how closely they paid attention and how interested they seemed. It was an amazing experience for me. God revealed things to ME that I needed to confront and I am forever grateful for this experience.

    
      Saying goodbye to these amazing people was so hard. I feel like I have a new family. These people are so precious and willing to serve. I will never forget this trip and I will have a constant yearning to return!

Some other fun pictures from the trip....

Sweet Elias

The Waterfall

The ride there!

My new Family :)

Kelly's Kids

I just wanted all my friends to be sure to look for Addison as they flip through the Fall 2011 Kelly's Kids magazine :)  We love having so much fun with the crew from Kelly's Kids. Hopefully you will catch Addi in the Spring 2012 issue as well! She took pictures for it earlier this month :) Don't forget to pick up a copy and get your little one something sweet from Kelly's Kids!

 These pictures were taken in February so my Doodle bug is only about 9 months old here :)

hehe

:)

Mean ole Ears

          I feel terrible that I have not blogged in so long! We have had a time with this whole ear infection business. Addi has had a double ear infection for about 15 days now. She is finally making some progress and we are hopeful that the ears are on the way back to normal :) I have to brag on my sweet girl and say that she has been so unbelievably sweet during all of this. She has still slept through the night just about every night since it started.

                     Angel Baby 

She has gotten to spend some extra time with her MaJack and her Mammaw Chandler since she could not go to Mrs. Robins house.

Pictures from the past week :)

She was actually more interested in pulling her wagon than riding in it...

This is her new "fake laugh" that she does on command! LOL

She insists on wearing these purple shoes.... with EVERYTHING. She is so funny!

Angel baby ~

I wish I had time to write more! I am preparing for a final and it has taken over! I am also trying to prepare for our mission trip to Honduras! Please be in prayer for our team :) We are leaving July 29th. Please pray that I will actually get on the plane! LOL. As of now, I have never been away from Addison more than 24 hours and I will be away from her for 7 DAYS. I am very uneasy and upset about leaving her but I know that God is going to use us and I know that he wants me to go! Your prayers are greatly appreciated :) 

Until next time...

Breathing Machine for Big Girls :)

       So, initially we were having HUGE problems with the breathing machine. The first day we got it I set it on the ground and let Addi take a look at it. She propped her little hands up above her shoulder's and made a little noise which in Addi language means "what's this?". I explained to her that it would help her feel better and went on and put it on my face and promised that it was pretty much the coolest thing ever invented. I know this is somewhat of a recap for those of you that read Addi's blog, but I figured I would explain it to any new comers :) After a extensive examination, I asked Addison if she would like to sit with Mommy and try it out. She responded by shaking her head "no" and then swiftly walking over to her chair, plopping down and staring at me! ----- >

"I'm good Mom...thanks though"

Needless to say, the first treatment was a battle. She cried and I cried harder. The next night Lele came over and did some coaxing of her own. It worked out much better for the two of them than for the two of us the night before. Lele had the secret weapon though! She let her have the paci. I thought that she couldn't have her paci the night before because I guess I was under the impression (for that strenuous 20 minutes of my life) that she could only breathe out of her mouth. Lol. So, the paci worked and things went much smoother. Those big brown eyes still said "I don't really like this Mommy" as I snapped a quick little picture ...

My Sweet Love Bug

The following night Lele asked if she needed to come give Addi her breathing treatment because she knew how upset I was the time that I attempted. I told her no. I knew that we had to get it under control because after all, Lele cannot come over every single time Momma's doodle bug needs a treatment. This time we started off watching Praise Baby. I asked "Addi, do you wanna come sit with Mommy?" She shook her head yes and climbed up in the chair with me. When I tried to hold her, she wiggled out of my arms down into the little space between me and the arm of the chair. She needed her own spot because she is so big you see. After about 5 minutes had passed and I could tell that she was pretty comfortable and content, I reached for the breathing machine. She grunted at me and reached her little hand out. I said "You wanna do it baby?" She shook her head yes again and grabbed it right out of my hands and stuck it directly on her precious little face. And the rest is history! 

Nice try scary breathing machine!!! But only big girls live here ;-)

God Bless and Goodnight Sweet Friends :)

The week of zero sleep

I know the title sounds awful right? Well, it has been a horrible week but doodle bug makes things so much better. She has had double ear infections and a sinus infection since the weekend. You would think that I was referring to when I named the post "The week of zero sleep" BUT that is not completely true. Although Addison has been up a good bit at night because she feels so terrible, our neighbors barking dogs are the real problem! If you have been my friend on facebook, I am sure you already know all about that. No need to go into detail since this is a happy place :) So, she has been super sick and running fever all week but still manages to be this cute

Hehe. We went back to the doctor on Thursday. She weighed 22.2 pounds! Such a growing girl :) Her ears were still pretty red and she was still feeling icky so they decided to add to her meds and start breathing treatments. I knew that the treatments would be trying because I had already been through that with my Godson Peyton. I went to pick up the machine and was happy to see that the little mask was a cute little fish face and I just knew my Addibug would love that! We got home and I let her check it out. She walked around the machine several times and picked up the mask with question in those little eyes. I told her it was a magic machine that would make her feel all better. I asked "Do you like it?" and she shook her head "yes" so I thought we would give it a try..... TRAUMATIC does not even scratch the surface. My baby girl screamed bloody murder the entire 15 minutes we attempted to do our first breathing treatment. I have never once seen her so frantic. I cried with her because I had to hold her down. So, what I am getting around to is, if you are reading this please PRAY for us and her breathing treatments. It is going to take a lot of getting used to and it is very upsetting. We know it's going to get better though! :) Today doodle acts like she feels much better. Mommy got to stay home from work and so we have had a blast playing. I wish that every day could be like that. When we are together, we have everything we need.

Peek-A-Boo!

:)

Have a good weekend!

Until next time....

4th of July Weekend Take 2

We actually celebrated our 4th of July on the 3rd. Our sweet friend Mrs. Charla Knapp invited us over for a swim and we couldn't wait to see her new pool! Not to mention Addison couldn't wait to show off her festive swimmy! I know I know... That tiny American Flag is the cutest thing you have ever seen :) So off to Mrs. Charla's we went and the pool was amazing just like we expected. We enjoyed fun fellowship and great food. I opted for hot tamales that Lele brought and Addi opted for her Mommy's lasagna -------- >

I think she liked it. Lol. She shared her food with her new found best friend Teddy. That would be The Knapp's Cha-Weeny dog. Addi really wanted to take him home and I wanted to take him for her but we just do not have time yet. She absolutely adores dogs. After a good little swim and getting our bellies full, we packed up to head home. I noticed that Addison's eyes were draining and she was starting to act a little fussy. By the time we made it home she already had 100.9 fever and her eyes were swollen and a deep shade of pink. I was sure that after her bath she would be ready for me to rock her to sleep and that we would probably just skip the strict routine that I am so determined to stick to. Addison, however, showed me real quick that whether she was sick or not, story time was a must...

...even if she had to read the story to herself! Of course all mothers think their children are brilliant so as I am sure you have already guessed, I am no different. Look how smart she is! After our prayers this sick little baby drifted to sleep while Mommy got in some extra snuggle time...

... Sweet dreams my angel baby. Mommy adores you more than you will ever know :)

4th of July Weekend Take 1

For the first year in a very long time, we do not have any plans for the 4th of July weekend. Being that that is the case, we decided to take it easy. However, we were super excited about this! ----- > (well Mom was)

We headed out and after about ten minutes on the road, Addison decided that it was NOT her cup of tea. I was so disappointed to say the very least. I had already ordered parts and pumped myself up about this awesome little contraption! Needless to say, we ended our bike ride early. Addi had way more fun on her bouncer that she out grew 6 months ago....

She thinks this is her "lazy boy". She is hilarious. I guess that she likes it because she can get herself in and out. That is her new thing. She can do EVERYTHING by herself. No help needed from the Mom thank you very much! ;-( It's already beginning. However, I still have high hopes of her deciding that she wants to live with me and hang out with me forever! Don't rain on my parade people! hehe We ended our night with bath time,

a book, and a prayer like every night. Rocking this angel to sleep is such a blessing from God. Words could never begin to express my gratitude to God for giving her to me. She is my saving grace. My precious angel baby.