No Fun November

When Caroline was 6 weeks old, which was almost exactly 4 years ago, I did something awful to my back. I really was just holding my sweet Caroline (all 10 lbs of her) with my feet planted and twisted at my waist...this led to a major back injury. Not very exciting huh? For about 3 days I could hardly move from standing to sitting without feeling like I was being electricuted. Probably the worst pain I have ever felt. Well, since then (the past 4 years) I have been dealing with the pain of a torn disc. My neurosurgeon recently told me some very valuable information that cleared up the whole mystery surrounding why a disc would just tear for no reason on a 26 year old healthy woman. Apparently, the last few disc/vert. in my lower back did not fully form when I was in the womb. They appear to be there but are non-functioning. Therefore this disc that tore was just worn out from taking all of my lower back stress/pressure/work...as the other disc were not doing their job. In the last six months the pain has gotten a lot worse and my dr. has advised I get surgery soon as to not have any permanent nerve damage in my back and leg. So, on November 1st I will be going in to have a micro discectomy...basically where they move the nerve aside and remove a portion of the disc. I will be in the house for at least 2-3 weeks as I am not allowed to ride in a car and will be receiving intensive help with the children as I am not allowed to lift anything over 5-10lbs. Maggie weighs 24 lbs and this is where the problem lies. Thank the good Lord we have many wonderful people to help. Please pray for my speedy recovery and for Dr. Pool. But even more so please pray for my children. I know that they will be confused by all of the commotion and shuffling around while I recover. Maggie will be especially confused b/c she is attached to my hip (which I thoroughly enjoy every second of it)! I will miss it more than her...but we can snuggle while I am in the bed healing. There is never a good time to have surgery like this BUT I will be up and back at it by December...in time to enjoy the holidays!

A BIG Texas Wedding!

Everything is BIG in Texas...including weddings! I was lucky enough to be a bridesmaid in one of my dearest friends weddings in Houston on Oct.2nd. Yes, that was Caroline's birthday too so she came along for her very first airplane ride to see my precious friend Kelly get married! The flight was great but the gorgeous wedding was even better! The church, the reception, the flowers, the food, the bride, and the groom were more than beautiful and just perfect! Kelly married a wonderful guy named Jason and he is such a gentleman and soooo much fun! They are the perfect couple! Congratulations to the new couple Kelly and Jason Hughes...Love you guys!

Baby Jack

One of my VERY best friends Rebecca gave birth to a precious little boy today! Baby Jack was born at 1:14pm and weighs in at a whopping 6 lbs, 4 oz. The precious little boy gave his momma an easy delivery into this world! Good boy already! You may think arranged marriages are only in India but they are here too...this is Maggie's little boyfriend:) JK! We already love im and can't wait to get to know him! God is so good!

A "gluten free" me

I recently was trying to educate myself on hypothyroidism (low thyroid hormone disorder) and I ran across some information that sparked my interest greatly. I read that there was a link between autoimmune disorders, which hypothyroidism is, and gluten (gluten is a protein that is found in wheat, rye, and barley. Some peoples small intestines will not digest it and actually attack it as a toxin. This attack wears down the villi that absorb vitamins and nutrients in the small intestines). As I investigated further I found that gluten is also linked to Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) which I have been battling since I was 13 years old. I bought a great book, figured out just how to be gluten free, and started down the path to eating a gluten free diet. There are over 250 symptoms that can exist from your body "attacking" gluten in your body if you have an intolerance or a sensitivity to it. In the extreme cases, some peoples small intestines can be permanently damaged if they have Celiacs Disease and they don't know it. It is amazing to me how many parts of your body can be affected by gluten other than the obvious gastrointestinal parts. Tony is doing this with me and we are on a mission to see if this helps my health improve. I am only on day 3 but I really feel like this is going to be a great thing for us. Yes, I will miss my carbs...I literally had to clean out my cupboards to get rid of the 6 boxes of cereal, most of the crackers, chips, and other yummy wheat filled things that I have always eaten (really about 90% of my diet was bread, wheat, crackers, cereal, etc.) Thankfully, whole foods has a huge gluten free section where I stocked up on gluten free cereal, snacks, and sweets! If you are curious about gluten and want to know more go to www.celiac.com
I will def. post again and let you know how it's going. My body better thank me b/c this isn't wasy...ha!And yes, you knew I was going to say this...Man, I'm getting old:)

Way Back Wednesday

CAROLINE 3 1/3 months old (Jan 2007)


May 2009- Caroline 3 and 1/2 years old, Mags 2 weeks old

A friend of mine always does Way Back Wed. on her blog...it was so cute..thought I'd go back and look at some old pics on my computer...Can you tell I'm getting sappy about this BIG 3-0 approaching...:) My babies are getting older and I'm just getting OLD

The last few days of my 20's

My 30th birthday is quickly approaching. I used to laugh at my "older" friends and think how silly they were being for dreading their 30th birthday. However I am realizing, as the day draws nearer, that I am in the same boat. It sounds so much better to say you are in your twenties, even if I do have two kids, an extra ten lbs, stretch marks, body parts sagging, a herinated disc, and many other glamourous things happening to me! :) The day Caroline was born, as I have told many people before, I believe I aged at least ten years. So really when she was born I felt at least 36, not 26, and now that the girls are getting a little older I am finding my "old" self again..isn't that an oxymoron...ha. Raising little ones is VERY exhausting and very rewarding...it is selfless and selfish (in how much joy I derive from them)...it has been the second part of my 20's. So as I dread 30, I also look forward to it. And my sweet hubby is taking me out for a big treat...shopping! I am throwing out my "old" clothes which consists of lots of maternity clothes and other clothes that fit me and were in style when I was 25 (before kids) and when I was working.
I'm going to enjoy and tell every stranger I meet for the next ten days that I am in my twenties...and then in my new updated (and mature wardrobe...ha) I will gracefully enter my 30's with a huge smile on my face holding a precious baby girl on one hip and holding the hand of my other little three year old! Happy life!

Ocean Isle Beach 2010

The View...so beautiful


Mrs. Lomax and Baby Reid Lomax


Sun bathing Sisters...ha, that lasted for about 3 seconds:)


Big girl shoes..had to slip this one in here... Mags is getting so BIG,15 months old



We always look forward to our favorite place, The Frink house at Ocean Isle beach, every July. We go every summer (ever since I was a baby) with a big group of friends (25 or more) whom are so close I consider them family (The Mitchells, Simpsons, Lomaxes, and my family). We always have more fun than we really should but this year with two kids...it was more of a trip than a vacation. Maggie does NOT sleep well in her pack n play so it was a tiring week for Tony and myself. However, we did manage to still enjoy everyones company and have good family time with our little ones and a little adult time with our friends. We are hoping for more of that next year though:)We know they are only little for a short time so we are savoring all of the "baby" time we can get...even if that means giving up some of our fun now and then. Here are a few pics from the week. Maggie started walking about a week before we left for the beach (beginning of July) and is growing so fast. I had to include oa pic of her in her big girl walking shoes...she looks so old. She is actually 15 months old today. Caroline is loving life and entertaining everyone around her. She will be 4 in October even though she thinks she is 14 :)


Yes, she is eating sand...and seemed to enjoy it


More sand eating...We joked that she was going to make a drip castle in her diaper....nice, huh?


Maggie Moo loving the beach. She really enjoyed it, last year she was only 7 weeks old


Surfer Chick Caroline

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Precious Maggie