Just Your Average Thursday

So last week me and the kids went to get Breton's blood work done...we got there at 10 am with a waiting room filled with tons of old people (probably on their last leg :)), but we checked in and waited.  There was a sign that said no food or drink, so I stuck with that for about 15 minutes, but my kids are only quiet with food in their mouths.  So to the benefit of us all, I broke out the snacks.

Well, an hour later I watch 3 or 4 people that had checked in behind me go back and get their tests done.  So I go up and ask if they had called our name yet and she says, "Yes, I called James."  Well, our last name isn't James!!!  So she had called the wrong name and we missed our chance!!!  Hello?!?!  I've been stuck in the waiting room with 2 crazy kids for an hour because of illiteracy (oh Florida)!  It was a Seinfeld moment.  "Cartwright...Cartwright..?"  Anyone on board?  Remember that episode (the one at the Chinese restaurant), Matt and I laughed about that one.  

Another 30 minutes later we go back (yeah, apparently we didn't get our place back in line even though she called the wrong name) and she asks for Breton's stool sample.  So I hand her the diaper (that I had carried around with me since 8:30 am) and she says, "you have it in a pamper?"  (Pamper? Really, they don't say diaper here. Weird.)  She tells me this is not how they do it...um, how else will I get his stool sample to the lab?  I mean, Breton isn't even 2 yet so he's obviously not potty trained.  I still want to know how they expected to get that stool sample from him. 

So then we get to the blood--6 vials.  That's like half of Breton's blood!  Well, he was instantly bawling and I was crying too.  Trey's in the background saying (in a loud 3 year old way) "Mom, why are you sad? Why is your face all red?"  The nurse is asking me if I'm scared?  Duh, lady I'm not stupid...I just feel bad that I'm subjecting my baby to this torture.  Well, about 10 minutes later we're done with blood, both of us crying the whole time through.

Then I have to take the diaper in the bathroom and smear stool on three sample cards and then scoop the rest in two specimen bottles all the while I'm playing referee between the boys and trying to keep them away from the toilet.  Oh geez, it smelled bad in there. 

Well, that was my day.  An hour and 45 minutes in a lab with two energetic boys and me on 3 1/2 hours sleep (I forgot to mention that I worked the night before and didn't get in bed until 4 am).  So imagine this whole story with me and even less patience than normal...not a pretty sight!  Well, I'm laughing about the situation now, hopefully it will put a smile on your face too!

Lion Country Safari Website Pic

Last fall we took a trip up to Lion Country Safari.  We have a friend that does the marketing for the park and she asked us afterwards if we took any pictures while we were there that might be "website worthy".  

Check out the following link and see if you recognize the kid feeding the giraffe. 

www.lioncountrysafari.com/safariworld_entertainment.html

Say It Ain't Tebow!

I would be remiss if I didn't add a post on the most exciting and disappointing experience of our new life here in Florida.  

I've been a huge Sooner fan for as long as I can remember so it is always a dream come true when they advance to play in the National Championship game.   This year it was particularly special though because that game was to be played in the stadium where I go to work.  Any other year I'd have to pay at least $1,000 just to get in the game (not to mention airfare) but this year I could go for free!  It seemed like fate that I would be able to see my Sooners win the big one live and in person.  

But then a man named Tebow turned my dream into a nightmare.  We definitely shot ourselves in the foot one too many times for a guy like him not to take advantage.  Ultimately it was still one of the greatest times of my life...not only the game itself (watching most of it from my own private suite with a few co-workers) but the whole week leading up to the game.  It's a time that I won't soon forget.

Our First Family Christmas

This was our first Christmas with just our little family.  I was pretty worried that it would be uneventful and lonely, but we loved it.  Christmas in Florida has it's advantages...we were going to head to the beach for the day, but Trey had other plans after he saw his new bike. 

This is Trey's face when he opened his first present...a barbie.  Well, it's a Ken barbie so that doesn't really count, right? He calls him "my boy".  He came with a swim suit and a basketball outfit, pretty much perfect for Trey.  It's February now and Trey still plays with him.  He's not very good at getting him dressed (but maybe that's a good thing). 

Breton opened a train for his first present and he was content for the next week. We tried to get him to open the rest of his presents, but he wasn't having it...he was too excited about his new train.  Ahhh the simplicity of little kids.  

Here is Trey learning to ride his new bike from Santa Claus.  He caught on pretty fast.  I think we get demoted for not getting our kid a bike until he was 3 1/2, we should be fired...we're lame parents!

Breton was happy just to run around and play football.  Can you believe the beautiful weather on Christmas day?  Seriously, the weather is keeping me sane while we're so far away from family!

Gator Park

So while Grandma Myers was in town we decided to drive down alligator alley and went to Gator Park.  We love it when family comes to visit because it gives us an excuse to do some of the stuff we never have time to do.  There is so much to do down here so we need more visitors to help us see all the tourist attractions.

Anyway, Gator Park was really cool.  We got to ride on an airboat through the Everglades and saw several alligators.  And then they had a little show afterwards where we got to take pictures with Gators.

Breton was actually crying because he wanted to hold the gator like Trey did.  But Mommy didn't want anything to do with that (you'll notice she's the only one without a picture with the gator). 

The guy running the show was hilarious as he would put the baby gator right up to you to give you a kiss (whether you wanted it or not)!

Notice the gator sneaking up on Trey.  They would swim right up to the boat and stare you down.  It was a little creepy.  

White Trash?

We went to our first Monster Jam. And even more shocking...we absolutely loved it! I can't believe that all these years I had no idea how incredible the Monster Jam is, I feel so sheltered. Really, we are now super fans. Who would have guessed it, white trash and proud of it. 

This is Dolphin Stadium all decked out, Monster Jam style. I think we lost about 20% of our hearing afterwards and Matt kept worrying about the field turf when the trucks got a little out of control, but other than that the night was a blast. 

Getting Back on the Horse

Well, where do we start?  After a long hiatus from the blogosphere, I'm not sure if we should just pick up as if nothing happened or try to recap the past two months.  It feels like when I write in my journal every year (notice I didn't say every day or even week) and I try to recap a year's worth of living into a few short pages.  Never really works out too well.  

Anyway, here's my feeble attempt to put some life back into the past two months that were in the Jarvis household. 

Believe it or not, we haven't taken a true "family picture" since Breton has been born.  Word has it we're putting that on the to-do list for 2009 (as soon as Kristi is back to her pre-Breton weight--only 5 pounds to go!) but we kind of gave it a shot for our 2008 Christmas cards. Unfortunately, the kids had other plans...and this was pretty much the best we got.  

So later we were showing Kristi's mom around the town and she wanted to see the beach so we thought maybe we'd see if the kids would cooperate. And cooperate they did (kind of)...

Breton!  Look over here!

...but it was mother nature that got in our way this time.  Whoever named Chicago the windy city hadn't spent a winters day on Miami Beach. Between the back of Breton's head and Kristi's hair we decided not to include a family picture with the Christmas card this year.