Hangin' with Gta & YaYa

I've only known my YaYa for six weeks, and I love her so much already!

Oh Gta, your shoulder is the best place in the world to be!

If I smile and show my dimples, maybe I can get whatever I want!! (check out the after-nap hair!)

Buddies for life

Where in the World are the Turners?

Yes, I've been out of touch for a little while now! My last post talked about my little scare (health-wise), and after getting my ultrasound done, they discovered my gall bladder was full of gall stones. I went to see a surgeon right away about my options, and he wanted to remove my gall bladder asap. Needless to say things moved very fast, and this past Friday I had the surgery done. I did NOT want to go to the hospital at all....I get major anxiety whenever I see needles, doctors, medical equipment, IV's, etc. In fact I could not sleep the nights leading up to the surgery, and was very tempted several times to call and cancel it. When I arrived at the hospital Friday morning crying, the nurses could clearly see I was very apprehensive. Once they got me all ready for surgery and my IV hooked up they gave me a shot of something to help relax me. It helped temporarily, until I had another episode of tears and they gave me another shot. I don't remember anything from that point on, which is a really good thing:) Later I found out each shot is like drinking three beers, so essentially I had six beers in a matter of minutes! Plus I'm not a big drinker at all...one beer probably would have done it...ha! Anyways, the surgery went well and I was home in a matter of hours. They removed my bladder and found a stone stuck in my duct, so I am so grateful that we went ahead and had this done before anything serious happened.

Recovery has been harder and longer than I thought it would be, but thank the Lord for my wonderful parents. They flew out the day before surgery and have been the ultimate helping hands with all three of the kids ever since. There is nothing like having your mom and dad to take care of you and your family! Please continue to pray for my recovery, as my parents will have to leave eventually:-)

Doctors, Hospitals, and more Doctors....

Sorry for the lack of posts ....let's just say we've been at the doctor's office more than our fair share lately! Thank the Lord for health insurance, otherwise we'd be in a huge deal of debt right now:-) Ryan's been trying to get to the bottom of the severe pain in his hands (considering his hands pay our bills with his work!), so he's had nerve conduction tests, MRI's, etc.... So far they can't determine what the problem is, but he has many more tests to come....

I had a scare last Friday night with severe pain just below my chest that hurt so bad I could not breathe. We ended up calling the ambulance and having paramedics come. They administered oxygen to me and did an EKG, which came back fine. By the time we got to the hospital I was feeling almost 100% better, and did not want to wait for the 3 hours they were claiming it would be (got the ok from my doctor to come in to her office when the weekend was over). I went to the doctor this past Tuesday and had some blood work done, and received an alarming phone call this morning saying one of the tests they ran with the blood came back really high (a sign of a blood clot). They wanted me to go to the hospital right away to get a CT Scan to make sure there was no blood clots present. Thank goodness that came back negative, and tomorrow I go to get an ultrasound on my gall bladder (possible gall stones?). Anyways, just pray they can get to the bottom of my little incident!

Drew's allergies are acting up again, and his poor skin is so sensitive that he has bumps that itch him everywhere:-( So back to the allergist for him!

Ethan and Elise are doing great! They are the two pillars in our family right now as far as health:-) But I'm not saying all this to complain....thank God for modern medicine and the wonderful Doctors that we have found. And I know that none of our problems are life-threatening....so we are so thankful for that. Hopefully I'll have more happy posts to come...just wanted to keep you all updated!

Summer, here we come!

I picked up a blow-up pool last night at Target, and decided this evening was the perfect time to try it out. The boys were very excited to give it a go, and poor Ryan had to blow most of it up himself with the boys constantly asking if it was ready yet. Once we filled it with water we figured there was no way they were going to get all the way in since it was literally ICE cold. Well we were mistaken! They had a blast and were even laying down in the water at one point. It made me excited to take them to the neighborhood pool...the pool has actually been open for a couple weeks but with a newborn and all, I haven't been able to take them yet. BTW, my pediatrician said it is now safe to put sunscreen on a baby after 2 months, so I am completely psyched about that (it used to be 6 months). One more month and Elise will be in the pool as well:-)

Pass it on!

It's been fun buying cute stuff this time around with the baby.......partially because she's a girl, and partially because we already have all the essentials so I can splurge on a couple non-essentials this time:-) I was searching the internet for some parts to a pump and found a site that sold "hooter hiders". It was quite catchy so I decided to take a peek at their product. I discovered it is a nursing cover, but stylish at the same time. They sold me on their product so I ordered one......and I absolutely LOVE it! It works so great...I don't have to worry about exposing myself at all, and it is so subtle that people don't even know you are nursing. Anyways...I would definitely recommend this to anyone that is nursing and gets frustrated with the whole what-to-do-in-public problem. The site is www.bebeaulait.com

The next product I love is the adorable diaper bag I ordered. My sister referred me to the site (thanks Kerry!), and once we actually decided on the name I jumped on it. The prices are very reasonable for the quality and cuteness (is that a word?) of the product. I think the bag is the perfect size (not too big, not too small), and there are a ton of pockets on the inside to hold everything in place. Here's the link for the diaper bags www.karens-creations.com

Either would be a great gift for somebody that is expecting!

Shower of Blessings

A couple of ladies in my neighborhood threw Elise a neighborhood shower yesterday. Yes, I'm the ghostly white girl in the middle of the tan girls:-)

Little lady received MORE cute clothes along with some blankies, socks, dolls, and other girly accesories. I absolutely love the neighborhood that we live in (not because they threw me a shower...ha!)...but because the people that live here are such quality, caring, helpful individuals. It has been such a blessing that God placed us here in our current stage of life! While I was sick this pregnancy I had neighbors that would come and take the boys for a morning so I could rest. Since I've had the baby, I have yet to have to cook a meal (three weeks later!)....my friends and neighbors have been absolutely amazing at bringing over meals and calling to check in on things. I am so thankful and feel blessed to have such wonderful people in my life. Thank you God!

The picture below shows me holding Elise next to my neighbor Linda with her little baby Christopher. He was born five days before Elise, and he is truly a miracle. Linda and her husband tried for years to conceive a child but were not able to. They decided to adopt, and over the years they have adopted five children from all different countries. Well nine months ago she miraculously became pregnant after TWENTY YEARS of trying! What an amazing story for Linda....oh, and she homeschools all of her children!

Raise a Cheer!

We decided last minute to go to the Renaissance Festival on Sunday. I was debating whether I should take Elise or not, then remembered that I missed out on it last year (don't remember why!), so we packed the diaper bags and loaded up the minivan. Ethan and Drew both dressed up, although Drew's knight costume was extremely hot so he only lasted in it for a couple hours. The boys had a blast, and Elise did very well. Papa, Grammy, and Uncle Brandon went with us, so it ended up being the whole Turner clan in attendance. Papa and Grammy bought the boys pirate hats there, and you couldn't get them to take those things off! By the end of the day we were all exhausted (and hot!), but it was a fun last-minute adventure. I'm glad we decided to go before it gets too hot here in the Georgia sun!