Visit with Jill

I was at work this morning catching up on some stuff and my cell rang - it was Jill's mom. After some chatting, she called me back and said "Jill would like to see you!" I was so excited! (If you haven't read my post about Jill, read it...right before this one) I closed up shop and headed for the hospital.

When I got there, she was sitting up in a chair. I mean...come'on...the girl got a new liver YESTERDAY and she's in a chair! You go, girl! She has (excuse me, this is kind of gross) a tube down her nose and she says "Don't you like my new accessory?" I told her she could have at least chosen a colored band aid and not a nude one that blends in with her face. She said when she woke up, she actually thought they bent her nose because all she could see when she looked down was the tube and band aid. LOL! Can you imagine...having to get plastic surgery b/c the surgeon bent your nose? Anyways, I couldn't believe how good she looked! Her color was less "jaundice" and she looked pink. Her eyes were whiter. I just wanted to squeeze her and tell her how glad I was that she was alive, but I opted for touching her hand and telling her I was proud of her. Jill, I hope you know what an inspiration you are to everyone. You are a precious, precious gift from God and I'm so blessed to be a part of your LIFE!

Jill - the "green" is for you!!!

A wild two days

It’s in and WORKING!!! That was the call I received at 11:15 today and it was the best news I’ve heard in just about forever! One of my oldest and dearest friends, Jill had a liver transplant today. Her 2nd transplant. The liver is officially in and working! I didn’t have the words to speak when her husband called me. All I wanted to do was cry and praise God!

Jill was born with a liver disease…let me see if I can still spell it. Biliaratresia?? I’ll have to ask Jill when she wakes up! :) She had her first liver transplant when we were fresh out of high school…14 years ago! WOW!! Several months ago, she was told she was in liver failure again. Shocking news, to say the least. I can’t imagine everything she’s thought, felt and experienced since that news. She’s married now, has two adorable children, ages 5 and 2.

We live (crazy enough) right across the street from Jill now, so I was the “on call” person for night time. If she got “THE CALL” in the middle of the night, I was to go over and stay with the kids. Yesterday, I was at work…it was 2 o’clock and my cell rings. Caller ID informed me it was Jill calling. My heart sank. I teared up before I picked up the phone.
“Hello”
“I got the call” …she was crying
“Holy crap…okay, everything is going to be okay…”
And so began the whirlwind. I arrived at the hospital a little after 4. They were still cleaning her room, so I met her and her family in admitting. We hugged, had a breakdown and cried and then just sat and waited. I got to spend some good time will Jill laughing, taking silly pictures, crying (yes, I have the “cry headache” today) and strolling down memory lane. I left her to go to choir where they prayed over me as I “represented” Jill. More crying. I talked to Jill before bed and she was upbeat.

She went into surgery at 6:30 this morning. Bob called at 11:15 today with the sweetest words I’ve heard all day! The liver is in and working. Praise God.

Oh my gosh…I could go on and on, stories, feelings, emotions…but, I will stop here. I just want to say “Praise God!” As little stories, memories pop in my head, maybe I will blog about some of them!! Jill, I love you and I can’t wait for you to be all better again.

Weekend happenings

This weekend was really fun! Saturday night was our GGNO (Girl Guy Night Out). This month, it was the guys night to get together with the kids and the girls got to GO OUT!! Woo hoo! The guys all headed to Matt's house with the kids while ladies tried not to think about the stuff they were feeding them, the things they were doing (climbing on furniture, falling down steps...) We started with dinner at Panera. While we were there, Gretchen's parents showed up and for a second, we all felt a little like we got busted!! After dinner, we headed to the mall to kill time before the movie. There was brief talking about going cruising, but that was quickly shot down because I didn't want to waste gas! LOL We saw "Confessions of a Shopaholic"...very cute! Our evening ended with dessert at the Pie Kitchen. YUM! As usual, I had a great time of gabbing, eating and laughing! Thanks girlies. :)

This morning, Levi and Eric posed for a quick picture before church. Levi was wearing his first tie. Oh, man, I love that boy with all my being!!!! He looked quite adorable and each person we passed at church, he made sure to tell them he had a dinosaur tie on! LOL

Father to son lesson for the day...

Levi: My nose is runnin'
Daddy: Just wipe it on your sleeve, Buddy.
Levi: Ok


Geez!

From my Honey!

As promised, here's a picture of my Valentine's necklace! (I couldn't get a really clear picture because of the flash.) Eric and I don't usually exchange gifts, so it was extra special this year when he initiated doing gifts!! I love him so much it blows my mind!

Thanks, Eric. I love you!

My boys!

Seriously...is there any denying that these two are related?? LOL

I snapped these while the boys were chilling before Levi's bed time. :)

Today was a good day! Valentine's Day!! Awhhh! Eric got me a pretty necklace - a heart with diamonds on it. A girl's gotta have her diamonds - thanks, Honey! I got Eric some dress clothes. Levi got him a green tie with white polka dots. (Green is Levi's favorite color.) I'll take pics of the tie & necklace tomorrow. My original idea was to get Eric a gun, but that didn't pan out. Bummer! So, we'll go pick out one together after he gets his gun permit renewed. Fun!!

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! May it be blessed with love from the One who loves us above any other!

What does Daddy reeeeally do??

Levi woke up at 5:50 this morning (nice!) so he got to go to work with Eric. I picked him up from Eric's office and took him to school. Here's the conversation he had with one of the teachers, Tammy:

“Good morning, Levi!” (I told him to tell Tammy where he got to go this morning)
“Wif Daddy to office!”
“You did?! How wonderful. What does Daddy do at work?”
“Works for Steve” (Steve is Eric’s mechanic)
“Works for Steve, huh? What do Steve and Daddy do?”
“Drink coffee.”
LOL I love my child this morning!

Oh no you didn't!

Yep, I did...just posted these embarrassing pictures of my son. I can do this because I'm the mom! LOL They were too cute not to share!!

Levi got in trouble for throwing a temper tantrum, so he had to go to the corner.

How pitiful is this....

And, of course, the potty shot! Look at this adorable face....

The weekend...

You know what's more fun than spending money? When it's someone else's money! Saturday, I got to go shopping with my mom. At the end of each season, when the clearanced items are somewhere around 70% off, we usually go shopping for all the grandkids to get clothes for the following year. We met at Target and then went to Dillard's and Kohl's. It's pretty crazy, but incredibly fun to pick out clothes for a 5 year old, 4 year old, almost 3 year old, almost 2 year old and a 1 year old! :) Thanks, Mom for a fun day!! Levi was very excited about his clothes...especially his Reggie Wayne jersey.

Today was church and then lunch with the family at El Nopal. The kids have gotten to where they ask for a quarter to get something out of the gumball machine. Today, Papa gave them each two quarters and you would have thought he gave them the moon! They all ran out to pick out their prize! (Dad, you know you've set a precedence now!!) Levi got a football sticker. I think it was the Detroit Lions...the worst team in the NFL this season! You're right, Dad...50 cents doesn't go very far these days! LOL Levi loves his new sticker and put it in his toy room. Sorry, Mom, but I think he likes Dad's sticker way more than his new clothes!! ;) Dad wins again!

It's late and tomorrow starts the work week over again (sigh). Hopefully we'll get out tomorrow night for a walk or bike ride before the cold weather gets here again!!

25 things I love

I did a "25 Random things about me" on Facebook, so I thought it'd be fun to do "25 thinks I love" on my blog!! (Plus, I'm trying to kill time while I'm on the elliptical!)

I love:

My husband. He makes me laugh a lot and love more deeply.
My son. I have no idea what I would do without him.
Diet Mt. Dew. I think it has cocaine in it and I'm addicted.
Going to the beach laying in the sun and baking myself. (How many more days, Jenny?)
Ice cream.
My friends. God has blessed me far beyond what I deserve.
The movie Sense & Sensibility.
Going boating. I miss our boat! :(
Singing to the Lord. Praise & worship has become so special to me. I love praising God!!
Reading the Bible. I don't do it enough, but when I do it, I feel like God speaks to me.
Baking.
The smell of fresh laundry.
My new house. Another blessing I don't deserve.
My family. My parents and siblings are amazing and I love spending time with them.
Eating. Love it too much!
Leaving work feeling like I got a lot accomplished.
When my son wakes me up by breathing in my face in the morning.
Strawberries and chocolate.
Coach purses.
Technology, but it also scares me!
Jewelry.
Clothes.
Shoes.
Jesus. I'm amazed every day that he died for me.
The feeling I get after working out. I'M DONE!!

Sweet dreams...

Kids are so funny! Saturday night, Eric and I went in to check on Levi before we went to bed. When Eric leaned down to kiss him, Levi sat up in bed and roared at us. Yes, roared, kind of like a lion or tiger. We both just immediately busted out laughing. He woke up and just stared at us for a couple of seconds and went back to sleep. Then he whispered softly "love you".

Those memories are priceless.