My Favorite Ornaments, 2009 Edition

The other day BFF Chrissy said she was making a list of her favorite ornaments and I thought, "Hmmmm, that sounds like a great idea and I've got the perfect place to share what mine are." So today's post is all about my 8 most favorite ornaments on the tree. Some are obvious, others weird, some may make you say huh?, but these are the ornaments I love to put out every year (or in the future, since 1 is new this year). Anyway, enjoy my ornaments tour of 2009...

1-
I, along with the help of BFF's Michelle and Chrissy, made these ornaments back in 2007 to remember Jackson. It was our gift to everyone that year. They each come in a nice little box with a card that says as you place the ornament on your tree please take a minute to remember Jackson and his battle with SMA. The ribbon says Jackson Cole Hedgepeth on one side and Forever in our Hearts on the other. Believe it or not, I still have about 20 left, so if you would like one please let me know.

2-
This ornament is new this year, but it goes all the way up to spot number 2. This was given to me from BFF Chrissy (gosh, three credits already?!) for my birthday this year. It's absolutely perfect. I cried when I saw that Jackson was the star. It is just perfect!


3-
This isn't an "ornament" really, but he does go in/on the tree, so he counts. This is a Christmas Memory Bear that a coworker gave to me. He wears a locket and I had it engraved with Jackson's name, birthday and the day he passed away. It also came with a precious poem. I think it is another great way to remember our Angel Boy!


4-
An ornament not about Jackson...but very special to me. This is mine and Joseph's "Our First Christmas" ornament. It's just so cute. Who would have ever thought when we got married over 6 years ago we would begin such a journey?! I could not imagine having anyone else by my side!


5-
This ornaments goes way back to my childhood. I know I bought this ornament when I was in elementary school. It's some kind of animal that squeaks. You can't really tell what it is because some animal (probably Barkley, vicious dog) attacked him. This was one ornament that I had to take with me from my Mom's...


6-
Two words sum up this next ornament...GROUP CRUISE! In 2005 we took a week long cruise with 14 of our friends and had the time of our life. For Christmas that year I gave everyone these ornaments, including myself! They say "Carolina Cruisers" which was our name in challenges, trivia, whatever game we happened to find on board. Since this trip Joseph and I have not been able to go on another "group" vacation, but this one will always be on the list of greatest memories EVER!


7-
What favorite ornament list is not complete with supporting the home team?! This is my Carolina Panthers ornament, Santa included. I have several Panther ornaments, but this is my favorite.
Go Panthers!



8-
And rounding out the list is an ornament that represents two of my favorite things in life...South Carolina and flip flops! I know I was born in upstate NY, but my life is now in SC, I've got the tattoo to prove it (but don't tell anyone). And any true Carolina girl is a fan of the flip flops, though you must have a fresh pedicure, which I don't have at the moment. Flip flops will be making their way back into my life rather soon because they are so comfy and much easier then any other shoe...

And that is it for my "Favorite Ornaments 2009" tour. I bet next year will include some new ornaments, think of all the super cute "Baby's First Christmas" ornaments there are, times 3! I hope you enjoyed seeing some of my favs, do you have any favorite ornaments? I hope that all of you had a wonderful Christmas and a very safe, Happy New Year. 2010 is going to be an unforgettable year, I hope you join us. As always, please Remember Jackson!

My Mother's Worst Fear...

Quick post (promise)...

Went downstairs to get my last glass of water for the night and this is what I found...

Yes, that is a cat in one of the baby seats. Thank goodness we are having 3 babies so that the cats will never have to fight over baby seats!! And if this completely freaks you out, well sorry, we do vacuum our stuff so calm down. And no babies were hurt in the taking of this picture! Anyway...that's all. Check back tomorrow for another post I'm working on, and it's actually not related to the babies...shocking! As always, please Remember Jackson!


, Abby, Claire and Brayden

Week 15 and Maybe Some Baby Names...

Welcome to week 15...which arrived rather fast thanks to the busy schedule. I hope each of you had a wonderful Christmas, I know Joseph and I did. We are so blessed with great family and friends to share the holidays with. We just hope after next year we get invited back to all the dinners and lunches. We are also so very thankful for the gift we've been given this year of 3 healthy babies!

What is going on with those babies this week you ask?! Well, according to my book they are about 4-4.5 inches long, weight about 1.75 ounces and are close to the size of a softball. That seems rather big to me, and if you look at my belly, which I know I have not put pictures of on here, you can tell there is a lot of something growing in there.

This past week found me going to back to the nutritionist, which did not go great. Remember she gave me the 36 pounds before 24 weeks article, so Joseph gave me Muscle Milk. Anyway...after two weeks of keeping track of what I ate and Muscle Milk I managed to gain 0 pounds, and actually lost about 1/2 a pound. She was shocked too, so now I'm on a new plan. Now my plan is to get 2,000 calories a day by eating throughout the day. That's a big adjustment for me because I'm not a big eater, so for the times when I don't feel like eating I'm to drink a Boost or Slimfast since they are liquid and can "fill in the cracks" so to speak. Don't freak out over Slimfast either...it's got exactly the same components of Boost or Ensure, it's just marketed differently, so no I'm not trying to lose weight drinking Slimfast, it's just something that taste good to me, so that's what we go for. Oh, and one of the great recommendations was at the end of the day if I had not met my calories to get a bowl of chocolate ice cream with some chocolate syrup and enjoy...darn, that's going to be pretty tough! She also wants to me to start doing pregnancy yoga to try to make more room for babies. And if possible, I am suppose to find a way to get taller, which is not to my advantage at all this pregnancy. Let me know if you have any ideas on that one! The last thing we talked about was my thyroid (oh how I love that stupid thing!). I need to have my levels checked because if you remember back to the hives incident, the treatment for that was over medicating me, which can lead to weight lose and stuff like that, so we are going to see if that is keeping me from gaining weight. At the end of the day though the babies continue to grow right on track and that is all that matters. In a few weeks weight will probably start piling on and I'll be here complaining, so for now, I'll just eat my ice cream!!!

Did someone say something about baby names?! I got side tracked thinking about ice cream!! After weeks of discussion and going back and forth and even some voting amongst family and friends, we have finally decided on names. It may seem early for names to you, but if I'm at week 15 and the babies can come anytime after week 28, well, we are closer to the end then we think, though the babies are staying put until 34 weeks for Dr. Hilton. That's still almost halfway through.

Anyway, names were tough...we actually had solid names picked out for 2 boys and 1 girl, so when it became 2 girls it got a little tricky. Then there were family names we wanted to include, names that one liked more then the other, names that would be on, then off, then on the table again. The list got pretty short rather quickly and after practicing for a week or so we decided we had the right names.

So, now it's time. Introducing...........

Abby Love
Abby was the name we had chosen the first go around if we had a girl. I've always loved the name and so has Joseph. We actually went back and forth on this one and tried out a few others, but in the end she was Abby. Love is a family name. My middle name is actually Love, so we know we would always use it if we had a girl.

Claire Elizabeth
Joseph fell in love with the name Claire so fast it blew my mind. We had originally planned to use it as a middle name, but then decided if we could find a middle name to go with it we would use it. Clair was also my grandfather's name, actually he was Clair Love, so these girls are pretty much after him. Elizabeth was the only name that really flowed with Claire. We found out later that it is actually my grandmother's middle name, so there is family history there too.

Brayden Jae
It was hard for use to decide on a name for baby boy. There were 3 names that we went back and forth between (Collin and Cooper were the other two). Joseph again fell in love with the name Brayden, and I too have always loved the name. We knew the middle name would be Jae after Joseph's grandfather, who passed away a little after Jackson. After trying Jae with other names, Brayden was the most loved and sounded the best!

So, those are the names of the babies. A huge weight has been lifted. So go crazy with monograms people! Oh...I did forget to say that all the babies will have the last name Hedgepeth...we decided on that pretty quickly! Thanks as always for sharing in our journey. As always, please Remember Jackson! Also, please continue to keep us in your prayers...

and babies

Week 14

GOOD-BYE 1st Trimester, HELLO 2nd Trimester...thank goodness! So what's going on with babies in week 14 you ask?! Well, according to my little handy book they are about 3.25-4 inches long, weight almost 1 whole ounce and are the size of "my" fist. My fist seems small compared to last week's comparison of a peach...but whatever. I know they aren't the size of Hulk's fist that's for sure. My belly seems to be growing at a horrifically fast speed, but I guess when you put three babies in there things are going to go fast!

As I said in my last post I don't go back to the doctors until Jan. 6th, and I am going through seeing the babies on ultrasound withdrawal. I want to so badly call and ask them just to check them out, but that doesn't seem like the right thing to do! I'll just try to be patient. I do have a follow up appointment with the nutritionist sometime this week. They called yesterday and said I missed my appointment, I thought it was Wednesday, so I may try to get in there today to see how the weight gain is going. According to my Wii Fit, not stellar, but I'll just wait and see how I do on her scale. If I am doing good then I'm probably going to stop going to the nutritionist because it's not covered by insurance and she's already gave me a diet plan...

Other then that things have actually been pretty quiet. I'm on Christmas Vacation...thank you!! So the next two weeks are for relaxing and spending time with family and friends. The only complainant I have about this week is a wicked stuffy nose that sometimes likes to bleed...but hey, I got three healthy babies so bring it on! So, that is that. Really nothing too exciting this week...well, we did decide on names, I dream about the babies all the time, and we did finally agree on a stroller and car seat pattern for the girls, but other then that, pretty calm week. A belly picture is missing, we've been busy, but I hope to get one up soon. And hopefully after we share with are families our names I'll be able to share them with you. We've changed 1 name back and forth, so we are going to see how it sticks this week, but I'm pretty sure we are solid on 3 first and middle (and last too!) names. Thanks for checking in on us! Until next time please keep us in your prayers and always REMEMBER JACKSON!

and babies

13 Weeks and Counting

Well, technically half way through week 13, but it's been crazy and I haven't had a chance to really blog. We've been busy ya know...adjusting to the concept of triplets and everything. According to my "Your Pregnancy Week by Week" book the babies are about 2.5-3 inches long, weigh about 1/2-3/4 of an ounce and are about the size of a peach. I've got three peaches in my belly...

Anyway...week 13 is flying by (thank goodness b/c come week 14 I'm on Christmas Vacation...woohoo!). Last week I had not 1, not 2 but 3 different appointments. First, I had to meet with the prenatal nurse (again, nothings change lady) and have all my blood drawn. Nothing too bad. Thursday I had to meet with the nutritionist, which didn't go great or horrible. The one thing I learned from that appointment...Mom's of normal weight and BMI (that's me) who are expecting triplets should gain 36 pounds before week 24. 36 freaking pounds?! Well, I'm down about 2 as of this morning so I need to somehow find a way to gain 38 pounds in the next 11 weeks...ummmm, the healthy way for me and babies, no junk food. So, nice nutrition lady put me on a plan and we'll see how it goes. Dr. Hilton told me not to worry because all babies are growing perfectly and the weight is going to come and before too long I'll be complaining about it. Joseph's solution to me packing on the pounds...

MUSCLE MILK! Watch out Hulkster, I'm going to be huge in no time! So, actually, this is just a protein shake, a Boost (and Slim Fast actually) on steroids. It has 32g of protein per serving, but I'm actually just taking half a serving, so hopefully the extra protein will help me in my goal of freaking 38 pounds...crazy!

So, after my nutritionist appointment I got to see Dr. Hilton who was so excited and happy and supportive of Joseph and I. I did learn that if I can hold these babies in until 32-34 weeks she'll get to deliver them locally and that Piedmont has recently upgraded some and can handle babies for at this time. So...that's my new goal so that Dr. Hilton can bring these babies into the world for us! Oh...and a little plus or two about being pregnant with triplets, EVERYONE knows who I am at the doctor's office so I have tons of people to talk too and it's impossible to determine if you are hearing three different heartbeats...so they just do a quick (FREE!) ultrasound to look for those precious little beating hearts! And then when the ultrasound tech lady is having fun, she measures them, and really takes her time...so nice, only problem, no pictures. But all babies had perfect heart beats and measured exactly on...go babies go!

Surprisingly my next appointment isn't until Jan. 6th, and that's with the specialist, and it's a big one. It'll be a 16 week anatomy scan which they've blocked off A LOT of time (2-3 hours). They will measure each baby and look at all organs and everything. After that scan it's back every two weeks. Pictures to come soon I'm sure.

Anyway...so, that's week 13 in a nutshell. Things are going great here. I'm not horribly tired, a little sick now and then, but overall OVER THE MOON! Oh, and rather large, example below. I'm not sure how I'm gonna grow these babies another 20+ weeks, but I'll do whatever I have to! Thanks for sharing in our journey...it's starting to get extra good. As always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!



and babies

Are you Ready?!!!

So...the time is almost here to learn what the babies are. Thanks 4 friends for leaving a comment. Are you ready?! Well...the time has come...we are having:





3 Babies...
have you heard? Ok, ok, ok...we are having...





Either boys, or girls or both, did you know that?
Ok, ok, ok...we are having...





Babies called A, B and C!
Ok, ok, ok...we are having...





TRIPLETS!
Ok, ok, ok...we are having...














AND WE HAVE NEVER BEEN MORE EXCITED!




and Joseph and Babies too!

Get Your Votes In...

I'm to excited to keep to quiet the sexes of the babies...which are all perfect. No SMA, no downs, no trisomy 13 or 18, nothing wrong...just 3 healthy babies who I'm excited to share about. So...you have something like 10 hours to vote (and me 10 hours to think of some crafty way to tell y'all) what the babies are. Good luck...not that you win anything or anything, but still...

Nichole and Babies

PS-Any chance you'll leave me a comment telling me how you voted? Just wondering who voted what. Again, like a dork I voted on my own blog, several times-hehe. I voted for 2 boys and 1 girl (home computer), 3 boys (school laptop) and 2 girls and 1 boy (computer lab). I'd just love to hear how everyone voted...

The Most Asked Questions...Answered!

So...the number one question, well questions, I get is where will the babies be born, who will deliver them and what about bed rest. Great questions...no answer, ok just kidding. So, at one of my many appointments I did ask Dr. S (specialist) if she would deliver and she said no my regular OB would deliver, Dr. H. Well, Dr. H only has delivering privileges at Piedmont in Rock Hill and they are not equipped to care for 3 babies, they have a NICU, but it's only to get the baby stable and transferred somewhere else, which they normally send to Richland in Columbia (remember, Jackson was born at Piedmont and transferred that same night). I did ask Dr. S if she could deliver if I was downtown and she said she has privileges at CMC Main, but I would have to switch practices, which doesn't sound very appealing since I've been at Rock Hill for so long! So...right now my thinking (and hoping) is that I can keep these babies in me as long as possible and deliver downtown at CMC Main. Whoever their on-call Dr. is will deliver, but it's not like he'll be alone since they'll be at least 3 neonatologist (NICU docs), NICU nurses, probably some NICU RT's, me, Joseph, delivery nurses, my parents, Joseph's parents, who knows...maybe even a freaking TV crew-HA! And, the great thing about the babies going to the NICU at CMC is the wonderful nursing staff I've already got lined up (that's you Allison, Laurie and Carol, in case you didn't know!). I'm very comfortable with the NICU there and have no worries about the babies going there.

As for bed rest...well that's a tricky question. Many books suggest going on bed rest at 24 weeks...ummmm, not a reality for Joseph and I. My job does not pay for maternity leave, though I will be covered under FMLA for 12 weeks, and I'm looking into short term disability (but that only goes into effect after I've used all my sick days and I've been unpaid for 10 days, and I may have to be in the hospital). So, there are lots of things to worry about, think about, plan for, pray for, hope for...bring on the keep the babies in my belly as long as possible prayers! I did ask Dr. S (she gets a lot of questions, we're good friends, I'll be seeing her every two weeks starting at 20 weeks) if she thought I'd have to go on bed rest and she said every case is different. Here's a big shocker now...not to my advantage, my height (I know, shocking). However, to my advantage is/was carrying Jackson full term and getting VERY LARGE, so my short body can grow like you wouldn't believe! Now...a little bit bothersome is the fact that I've already had to go on a mini bed rest last week when I had some bleeding. But it has since stopped and I need to learn not to push myself too hard.

Alright...that's all for this time around. Oh...well maybe a little bit of a teaser to end with. Yesterday we got back chromosome results for Baby C (all by his/herself) and Baby C is perfect...no Downs, no trisomy 13 or 18, no Turners-NOTHING! And we do know if it's a boy or a girl, but we're not telling, well, not quite yet anyway. Thanks for the love, support and prayers...keep them coming! As always, please Remember Jackson!

Nichole and Babies

Triplets?! How'd That Happen?

So, I know there are lots of questions out there about how in the world Joseph and I ended up pregnant with triplets. So, that is where we will begin. I was once again on Clomid, 100 mg (lowest does is 50, so I wasn't on that much). The chances of having multiples does increase when on Clomid, for example, your chances of having twins is 1 in 10, or 10% (that's an important bit of information for later). So, no, we did not go back to REACH for fertility treatments, no alien abduction (though I feel as though I'm still having an out of body experience)...we did it the good ol' fashion way with a little help from Clomid.

So, here's bit more of how it all went down. I found out I was pregnant on October 7th, which was pretty early. From the beginning I had a hunch it was twins for several reasons...1-I ovulated hard (felt it really bad in other words), 2-I got a positive test so early (26th day of cycle) and 3-I broke out in hives, which is a sign of a multiples (now you see why the hives was such a big incident too, but thankfully they are gone!). I immediately called my genetic lady Jean, who is the best and scheduled the CVS test. Dr. Hilton wanted me to see a specific doctor this time, Dr. Stephenson, who just happened to specialize in twins (that would be hint number 4). Got the test scheduled no problem for the week of Thanksgiving when I'd be 10 weeks. Before going in for my test I had to go in to my regular dr. for a "viability scan." Doesn't that sound nice? All they were checking for was a heartbeat and how far along I was.

So...the scan was scheduled for Oct. 23rd because I was furloughed that day and so off I went to my appointment, alone. Joseph had to work, my mom was sick, but I was fine...I have had a lot of ultrasounds in my day! Go in and we start the scan and the sweet lady says to me, yup there is definitely two heart beats, at which time I clap and say I knew it! She continues looking around and then says "oh goodness". Now, this wasn't an excited oh goodness, this was a concerned oh goodness and I thought something was wrong. I asked her and she told me to just hold on one second, and then she said look here, there is a third heartbeat. So...that's how I found out about triplets, with a shocked little ultrasound tech all by myself. How do you call your husband and tell him it's triplets? Well me, I just cut to the chase...the nice nurse handed me my phone, went to get Dr. Hilton and I called Joseph who may have screamed, cried, yelled and who knows what else.

So, now for the logistics of how in the world it happened, beside by the grace of God of course. If you look at the picture from the post below you can see that there are two babies in one area (these are identical, known as A and B) and then there is C all by their self. Back to the numbers...chances of having twins, fraternal (not identical), on Clomid is 1 in 10, or 10%, which is what I had originally with A and C. However, A got a little funky on us and split into two, or identicals, A and B. The chances of that happening (one egg splitting) is 1 in 250 or 0.4%. So, I "dropped" two eggs, both were fertilized, and then one split, leaving us with triplets, two identicals and a fraternal. Any questions?!


Now for a few more pictures, one of each baby, from the test last week. Which, by the way took 3 hours and 10 minutes. Those little triplets are feisty and it took awhile to figure out the best way to get the samples. Anyway, enjoy these pictures. My next post will be who knows what, but I'd be more then happy to answer any and all questions you have, just leave a comment or email me. Triplets...wow!

Nichole, A, B and C


Baby A


Baby B


Baby C


Here's the latest, and probably last picture of all three together. They are getting too big for one shot. In this picture poor little baby C just gave us a butt shot, but it sure is a cute butt. They do focus more on the identicals because they are more "high risk" with some things that could happen, but we aren't going to think about that. Anyway...

Babies A, B and C

Speechless...Almost

Many have heard, many have not, but Joseph and I are expecting...triplets, sma free, healthy triplets! More to come, very soon, but for now, we are just enjoying the moment. To hold you over until my next post here's a picture of A, B and C (that's orginal right?!) who are all SMA FREE! This picture is from 7 weeks, they are already much bigger. Enjoy, and thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all of your love, support and prayers. GOD IS GOOD!



Nichole, Joseph, Babies A, B and C and our angel boy, who's always watching, Jackson Cole

Pins and Needles?!

Have you been waiting on "pins and needles" to hear what in the world is going on with my jacked up body?! Well...I've had to deal with a lot of needles if it makes you feel any better. Here's a break down of how things have played out...

Friday-one little hive pops up on my foot...
Saturday-urgent care, steroid shot
Sunday-Back to urgent care-benedryl IV for several hours
Monday-Regular doctor visit-options 1-steroid pack, 2-hospital for steroid IV (picked 1...)
Tuesday-no needles, but didn't work either
Wednesday-Went to work, had to leave after calling my mom to come pick me up because I could not move. Back to regular doctor, who threw his hands up in disgust, well not really, but he sent me to the allergist. That appointment ended with another needle and 4 vials of blood later. Testing lots of things like lupus and arthritis.
Thursday-no work again
Friday-back to work, somewhat normal, pretty rough night with joint pain
Saturday-pushed through any thought of pain because we threw my parents a 30th Anniversary Party
Sunday-horrible pain in knee, waiting for blood results
Monday-pain moved to elbow, still waiting...
Tuesday-Nurse calls and the doctor needs to see me to go over my blood test, which sends me in a panic because why can't they just tell me over the phone, and I'm going to die, and I don't want to die, and I'm really nervous....(dramatic, I know)

The answer to why Nichole broke out in hives/rash with severe joint pain...........

not sure, but they are pretty confident that it's has to do with my thyroid, big surprise. My blood work showed that my body is making antibodies that are attacking my thyroid, therefore causing my thyroid not to work properly which in turn leads to the rash thing. The solution, even though my thyroid level is "within normal range" they are going to up my medication (goodbye those last few extra pounds-yes, not that I would be happy to use medication to lose weight, but if I have to have something good come out of this whole thing then this has got to be it!) to make my thyroid fight back against the antibodies that my body is making. Confused...me too kinda, but I feel like I have a pretty good grasp on what is happening. But, I did not get out of the office needle free. Another level, my SED rate (which looks at inflammation) was high which could mean a number of things so they took 2 more vials of blood today to run some more test that I should have the results of in 10 to 14 days.

That's all I got people. I'm very over this rash thing, which is still over a good part of my body, but not bothersome or painful. I'll try to do better about updating, but seriously my fingers and wrists hurt so badly that it's hard to type. My next post will be about my parents anniversary...yay! So, as always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!

Not the Way I Planned on Getting Back to Blogging...

If you can recall, about this same time last year I was going through a bit of a "mini-hell" when I broke out in horrible hives right before my scheduled cataract surgery. Don't remember, or want to revisit, click here. Well...they are back, the hives, with a vengeance this time around. They are not covering my whole body like last time but seem to be around all my joints causing swelling and a good bit of pain. I've been up all night pretty much popping pills to stop the itching, but it looks like I'm going to have to go in for a shot and some of the stronger stuff. Fun times. So, my welcome back to blogging starts off on a rough note, but is anyone surprised by that?! I'll update about what the doctor says...

Official...

I have officially decided to take a blog hiatus. I have been feeling a little overwhelmed the last couple of weeks and as silly as it sounds when I really wanted to blog, and couldn't, I felt horrible about it (for my 3-4 followers). I think I have a husband named Joseph and lives in the same house and I do, and I REALLY miss spending time with him, so I'm going to get focused on getting my school work done at school and spending time with my hubby when I get home. I'm just so lucky to have him in my life...and after watching The Biggest Loser, well that just confirmed to me that no matter how horrible I think I've got it, it could be worse. So...for now I really need to buckle down and get school stuff done at school, not bring any work home and spending time with my family and friends. And...we are going to be putting our house up for sale and we need to focus on that too. Neither one of us has been happy there...great location, horrible layout, so we said what the hell-one more move won't kill us. And no rushing this one...we are going to find the perfect house for us with everything we want in it. We looked at a house last night that we both really liked-the layout was perfect, but there were lots of things wrong with it that we didn't want to deal with, so for now, we get ours gone and continue our search for our perfect house.

So, that's my official blog resignation for now. I'll be back soon, but for now, I'm outta here. Well...that is until something really good happens or something like that...

Officially, until further notice, thanks for sharing in our journey and as always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!

I know, I know, I know...

I am the worst blogger in the world, yes that's me! This blog is going to be short and sweet, if I know what such a thing is! Life has been crazy for me which leaves zero time for blogging. I bring home so much work that by the time I'm ready to blog I'm so tired blogging doesn't happen. And it's the fall, all my new TV shows are coming back on, plus Panther football-which I DO NOT even want to talk about right now, so life has just been crazy. Here's a run down of all the things we've done the past 3 weeks I haven't blogged...

1-I've been teaching 2nd grade, which requires me to learn new material and grade test, and read stories they've written and do LOTS of lesson plans.
2-We took home 6th place in "The Amazing Race" Lake Wylie (SO much fun).
3-I have wrote a lot of lesson plans.
4-We went camping this weekend with the boat...lots of fun!
5-Charlotte Knights baseball game with fireworks
6-Wrote some lesson plans.
7-Pondered moving...thinking of putting our house on the market and looking for the perfect house for us.
8-Every free moment of weekends is spent on the lake.
9-Except for when we broke the boat...shallow water=broken prop=lots of $$ to repair!
10-Went to Newberry to see the in-laws and bid a irrigation job.
11-Wrote some more lesson plans.
12-Drove countless miles looking at houses.
13-LookED at a couple of houses that just weren't it.
14-I spent some time writing some lesson plans for school.
15-Getting ready to start cleaning out our house and may be putting it on the market to see what we get. If we don't find our perfect house and our house sells, well, we'll just go where we always go...Widrick Compound
16-Committed to my 10 year High School Reunion by buying tickets
17-Planned our 3rd Annual after Thanksgiving trip to the mountains to get our tree trip...and there might be shopping this year too!

That's all I've got! Now I have to go write some lesson plans...story of my life! Anyway, thanks for hanging with me even though I'm a horrible blogger. I would promise to do better, but right now things are crazy with maybe selling the house, finding a house, trying to have a baby-arrgghhh, work and being the social butterfly that I am. I do promise to update when something big happens, maybe...if I don't have lesson plans to write. So...that's all. Thanks for sharing in our journey and checking up on us. Until next time, as always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!

A New Record

I have just earned a new medal for the fastest ever catching of a cold since starting school. I made it Wednesday and Thursday...come Friday I was feeling the cold slowly but surely. By Sunday, I couldn't get outta bed. I actually ended up going to the doctor because a good friend of mine's child ended up with the Swine flu, and well, anyone who knows me knows that I like to catch everything there is to catch. Thankfully I do not have swine flu...but they say a MAJOR outbreak is going to be hitting our schools soon. I already know it has hit the middle school closest to us (but I'm not sure how badly), and now I'm just waiting for it to hit Oakdale. I doubt they'll have the vaccine in time......

In other news...I miss my Kindergarten babies!!!! I said I didn't think I'd go back...I lied! This 2nd Grade is tough business ya know?! There are just so many things to learn and do and I feel lost. I'm working on getting organized, but this stuff is tough. Add on to that my cold and I'm in pretty rough shape so it seems right now! But, I'll get it all figured out. I just hope sooner rather then later!

Let's see...what else is there?! Living the boat life is going good. We only got to go out on Saturday (and I was pretty drugged up). Sunday was a no go for sure. We are getting ready to enter "The Amazing Race Lake Wylie Style" which is a fundraiser for children with cancer. I'm super excited. Our team name is the absolute best...Three Girls and a Buoy (it's me, Michelle, LG, and Joseph). Isn't that great?! We are having a harder time deciding on a name for the boat. I think we've narrowed it down to two names, and what better way to decide then by letting my faithful blog readers vote?! Go check it out on the side.

That's about it for this time around. Believe it or not, I actually brought a bunch of work home-big surprise. I do have pre-test to grade...I never had to bring home test in kindergarten. Oh...and I'm going to ask that you lift Joseph and I up in prayer. We have decided to try one more time for a baby and have started back on medicine to help us get pregnant quicker. Now...since our experience last time, I will again be keeping all pregnancy news confidential until we know we are out of the clear of not only SMA, but heart defects, which was a major concern/issue with the last pregnancy. So, if you will please just continue to keep us in your prayers. And as always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!

While the Hubby is Away...

The wife (who's a teacher ya know?!) will spend lots of time labeling several things with her 21 student's names...GREAT FUN! Oh, and pay bills after that! Oh, and of course find some time to blog! It's been a pretty exciting night here all by myself, can't cha tell?!!

Anyway...things in the Hedgepeth House are going great. I started back to work this week (but I've really been in there pretty much every day since last week since I had to change grades and rooms). I think I've got everything set up (mostly) and now I've got to work on figuring out what the heck I'm suppose to teach. I can teach all the Kindergarten stuff with my eyes closed and my hands behind my back, but this 2nd grade stuff is all new. I'm super excited about the change though...I think it'll do me good and everyone I talk to says it's great, we shall see right?! And a quick shout out to a co-worker...Mrs. Julie Marshall was our teacher of the year and today she won the Rock Hill Schools Teacher of the Year...ROCK ON JULIE! Many of you aren't from around here, but Oakdale (my school) hasn't had the best publicity in local papers due to issues that we as teachers have nothing to do with, but today, finally maybe people will realize that no matter what, we are a team and we have the BEST teachers in Rock Hill!!! GO OAKDALE!!! Alright...enough school stuff right?!

Last weekend was our first full weekend on the boat. We had perfect Carolina Blue skies and 90+ degree weather and spent all day Saturday (11-6) on the boat and most of the day Sunday (1:30-6:30) on the boat. This weekend we only get to go out on Sunday because Joseph is helping his friend tomorrow (he's away tonight remember?) and I'm spending the day with my chicks doing stuff, most importantly going to see "The Time Traveler's Wife" which I'm super excited about! Sunday after working church nursery we are headed back out on the boat. We also just got all the new stereo stuff for it, so Joseph will be putting that in this week, then we will be 100% ready to go for good (well, until we find something else to fix-haha). I'm really excited for a fundraiser coming up the last weekend this month...it's like "The Amazing Race" Lake Wylie addition...I love the amazing race, I love to win too!

So...that's pretty much all for my life right now...school and boat. Oh...I did get that info about adoption, and well, I guess if you want to use the best you have to be willing to pay. They charge $750 for a 2 hour consultation, which is nothing really, just the good info that you want to know before you decide to start the whole adoption process. Joseph and I go back and forth a lot about what our next step is, right now we are enjoying each other and we'll see where God leads us. Right now we are just up in the air. We plan our starting to save for adoption and if we go that way great, and if not, we'll have extra cash for something!

Alright, for real that's all for now...well except a shout out to Aunt Connie who never misses anything and noticed my new hair cut...You rock Aunt Connie! And I'm giving a shout out to Jenny Jenny Jenny too...I haven't forgotten you, just been slammed! Ok Ok Ok...as always, thanks for checking in on us and praying for us and please please please always REMEMBER JACKSON!

Awesome Weekend

Joseph and I had such a great weekend...I'm so sad it's over, but look forward to many more awesome weekends on our boat! It's in the water and running great-yay! There was a minor mishap on Saturday...Joseph took it for a test drive and ended up broke down (in my parent's cove thankfully) and got a tow from my dad. Worked on it some more and it's good to go. Yesterday was so nasty out that I didn't think we'd get to put it in, but the rain thankfully stopped and in the water we went. Here's a pic of me and Joe on our "new" boat...

A BIG thank you to my Mom and Dad for 1-being here to buy the boat for us when we were out of town, 2-helping Joseph when the boat broke down yesterday (even though he got you out of bed), 3-following us around the lake yesterday in case we broke down again, and finally, 4-for letting us store the boat in their extra slip in the boat house. Now we have many great weekends ahead of us!

This weekend we also went to see Rascal Flatts and Darius Rucker. It was an awesome concert and we had a great time. We did some tailgating beforehand...we just had a great time with our friends. Hopefully we'll get to do it again soon, or at least the tailgating party in someones backyard. Here's me and Joe at the concert (notice anything?!)...

And finally for today (before I go to my fav place for lunch with the girls-yummy). We have kinda started the adoption process. Neither one of us is really "there" at the moment, but I'm more there then Joseph. It's going to take some time, so we decided to go ahead and get the info and see what we need to do. There is an awesome adoption attorney in SC that we are looking into. The word on the adoption street is he can get you a newborn baby in 6 months. That's very appealing to Joseph and I right now. Anyway, it's going to be a longish kinda project and we are just in the beginning stages but I'm really excited. We've also talked about getting an "older" child (between 1 and 2 years old) which could happen even faster (I think). I've also been looking into the money part of it, because let's face it, it's not cheap (I was even blown away by the average cost) and there are many places out there that we can apply to for grants and stuff like that.

So...that's our life lately in a nutshell. We are just having a great time being with our family and friends and enjoying each other. Please do keep us in your prayers and we begin looking into adoption and stuff like that. And as always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!

Overwhelmed, to say the least

So...since I'm now addicted to Facebook I joined a SMA Awareness group and got a link to the following article. I hope you can take a minute to read it, it's really not that long, and you might have to copy and paste...

http://esciencenews.com/articles/2009/07/27/isu.researchers.find.possible.treatment.spinal.muscular.atrophy

I'm not sure what has been going on with me lately, but I have had Jackson on my mind more then usual. That should have been one of my truths in the previous post...there's not a day that goes by that he does not enter my mind. I miss him so, SO much it's unreal. I just wonder if that emptiness will ever go away.....I wonder if other people think about him as much as I do....I wonder if I'm going to be alive to see them find a cure for this horrible disorder.....I wonder a lot of things!

Anyway...so researchers seem to have found a way to treat SMA, how unbelievable is that?!?!! I'm just overwhelmed-hence the post title. I know we are years away from anything really happening, but think how much this is going to change so many people's lives. So, that's all for this time around, that's kinda a short and sweet post (like me!). As always, please, PLEASE, always REMEMBER JACKSON!

The Ugly Truth

So, I was super excited about this movie coming out on Friday night and gathered some of my peeps together to go see it. Well, I was a little bit disappointed in the movie...I had very high expectations, and they just weren't met. Don't get me wrong, the movie was funny, but it was actually a bit dirty with lots of f-words too. It reminded me a lot of "Knocked Up", which I also wasn't super excited about. It is not my fav movie of the summer that's for sure. Now, if you are looking for a GREAT movie...I say go see "The Proposal" which was probably the best movie I've seen in awhile. I will own it on Blu-Ray when it comes out because it was just a great movie. Joseph didn't see that movie, and I might just go back with him to see it again! I've turned into a bit of a movie buff this summer...there's one more movie I'm excited to see-"The Time Traveler's Wife" which comes out in a few weeks. I read the book, which is always better, but I'm willing to give it a chance. And in November "New Moon" comes out, and I never thought I'd be a big "Twilight" fan, but I'm addicted. Me and Grace even talked about being pshyco "Twilight" fans and going to the midnight showing of "New Moon" but that' pretty late for me you know!

Anyway...the title "The Ugly Truth" got me to thinking of some of the ugly but true aspects of my life, and I thought it'd make a great post. So...here's my list-

***Buying a boat that is 16 years old is gonna require a good bit of work, and money. But, after Joseph has put much time, sweat, blood and tears into the boat the motor is running. Now I have to get it registered-tomorrow in Columbia- and we have to get the right prop on it and we will be cruising the lake in our new boat-hopefully next weekend!

***I had some good success with Weight Watchers and actually lost 16 pounds before getting pregnant, never really gained any weight while pregnant (thank you morning/noon/night sickness)! I'm stuck on losing these last 4-6 pounds that I want to lose-arrgghh! And then I have to learn to maintain. And truthfully, I'd love to lose 10 more and be back to my before Jackson "fighting weight." It's time to get dedicated, again...

***I really hate thyroid disease. Which lead to several (about 10) pounds after losing Jackson (probably added with some stress). I'm thankful we did IVF because Dr. Crain found the thyroid issue, but then the other 10-15 pounds came on thanks to IVF. Oh well...again, it's just time to get dedicated!

***I'm super excited about graduating (as Joseph calls it) to 2nd Grade. After the initial shock I think it's going to be a great move for me. I've already begun working in my room and have my desks set up, but I'm lost at what kinds of centers, which aren't centers in 2nd grade I'm sure, I need to have set up. Lucky for me, I'm going out to dinner with my new team on Tuesday night, so I can grill them then!

***I'm really nervous to take my three boys to the vet. They are due for their shots, which of course they'll get, but I think I'm going to get yelled at. Rocky (the name fits) weighs 15 pounds (according to the Wii Fit) and that's way too much. I swear he's active and eats the same, if not less, then his skinny brothers, who weigh 11 pounds (Tripp) and 12.5 pounds (Charlie). Maybe I can just say he's a "big boned" cat?!!!

***After months of making fun of my friends I am now a "Facebook" addict. I don't know what it is...I don't even "talk" that much with people. But I do love the games and looking at everyone's pictures. I got to see great pics of the family reunion on there, which I wouldn't see other wise. Are you my Facebook friend?

Alright...those are some of the "ugly truths" about me. Wanna join in and confess an ugly truth? Come on...it makes you feel better. I feel so much better then I'm going to get off this computer and do something about dinner...ok, well drive somewhere and order dinner! As always, thanks for checking in on us. The real pretty truth in my life...I'm so thankful to have such wonderful family and friends who can deal with me, ugly parts included! And also, please REMEMBER JACKSON!

The Story of the Boat...

In my previous post I told you we were looking into buying a boat. We got all excited and found out the boat had been sold. Yuck! We aren't really in need of a boat, so it we were ok with not buying the boat. And then the guy who was going to buy the boat didn't show up, so the boat is for sale again. This time we got it! World meet our boat...



And this is the hunky captain of the boat...



Now...the boat isn't exactly "water ready" at the moment. So now Joseph has a bit of a project on his hands. We did find that the motor will "turn over" (what ever the heck that means), something about the motor not being locked. It's an older boat ('93) that has been out of the water for 3 years. It was stored outdoors for those 3 years, not covered, so you can imagine the shape that it's in cosmetically. We are lucky to have a great friend who can fix any motor imaginable. I am lucky to have a great husband who likes to make things look really nice. So, first we get the boat running. Second, this winter we will begin working on all the other stuff. We are super excited about our latest purchase and look forward to many fun times on our new boat. The biggest issue now...what are we going to name the boat?! Any suggestions? Let me here from you!

That's all this time around. I'm now off to finish wifey stuff. I love going on vacation, and I love coming home too, but I really hate all the unpacking, washing clothes and getting all settled again. Oh well...I guess since I'm not working I can take care of those things-yuck! Anyway...thanks for checking in and as always, Please REMEMBER JACKSON!

Moving On Up, and Out

So...last night I learned that I'm going to be moving on up. Up where you ask? Well, I'm leaving my comfort zone, my home, my first love-Kindergarten, and moving up to 2nd Grade. My emotions are all over the place right now, excitement, nervousness, scared to death because this is something very new, but it's a move that I think is going to be great for me, and that's what it's all about right...me?!!! The numbers at our school for Kindergarten this year are way down, so we had to lose a teacher either to another school or going up to 2nd. My principal called and asked (ok, really told) me that he wants me to go to 2nd grade. After the initial shock, I'm really ok with that decision. I'm VERY sad to leave my kindergarten team...we've been a solid team for the past 5 years, but I'm also excited to try something new. My biggest concern at the news was about my BFF, my assistant, my partner in crime Pam, but she's been giving a instructional assistant job still at Oakdale...and I'm hoping to work my magic and at least get her in my room! We are both sad but excited, and actually thankful to still have a job. So...that's my big news on moving on up, well that, and that we are looking into buying our own boat! That's still in the works, but we've found an older boat at a descent price and we are looking into buying it, that way we don't have to use my parents all the time for their boat! I'll let you know how it goes.

Now...moving on out. In a couple of hours we are headed down to the beach for our second get away with our friends. I think I'm going to be leaving the laptop at home this go around and enjoy the time with my hot hubby and fantastic friends. Thanks for sharing in our journey. It's always interesting that's for sure. Pray for me as I begin this new chapter in my life...I'm not going to know what to do with these older students-PRAY! As always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!



PS...Joseph says he's still waiting on some apologizes from 8 people. Whose going to be the first to say sorry in a comment and maybe win a prize?!....

So Sorry Joseph...

It looks like 8 people need to say sorry to Joseph...and I'm not one of them. I finally gave in and gave him the benefit of the doubt that he would not leave that kind of mess, therefore to give him some credit I voted on my own blog in his favor...I was the only NO vote-haha! After much debate and investigations into the whole how the heck did all the water get on the floor and rug and not on entertainment stand we came to a few conclusions. One...there was water in the entertainment stand, in the drawer under the fish tank, you just needed to look for it, which I didn't. Two...our living room runs at a light angle, kinda in a downwards angle from the entertainment stand towards the rug area. Three...when a fish is stuck in the pipe apparently water shoots out the back-wanna know how we figured that one out?! We put a fish back up there-JUST KIDDING! Four...the little "tool" that comes with the filter to keep things from going up the pipe should be used at all times-lesson learned, that little piece is now in place. The fish are happily swimming in their fist tank up on the top shelf of the entertainment center away from the three cats. It has been a great move for all Hedgepeth Animals!

There isn't much else going on to report at the moment. To be completely honest with you, I'm actually in a training class, apparently not paying to much attention! I can't believe that I've been here since 9:00, have to be here until 4:00, and have 3 more days of this. The light at the end of the tunnel...after training on Thursday we are off to the beach again...YAY! Thanks for checking in on us and sharing in our journey, and as always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!

My Poor Fish...

***Update (and if you don't know the story about the fish, you might want to read it first, below) Joseph called me on his way home and he has come to the conclusion that if a fish was stuck in the pipe of the filter then water would spit out the back of the filter. I'm still not buying into that though because the water was ALL OVER the floor and rug and NONE on the entertainment stand. We'll see how his face looks when he gets home and I can look him in the eye... I should probably let it go, but I'm not known for letting things go...

So, I might have mentioned that I had to bring 3 fish home from school...here they are:


These poor little fish have been through some stuff. I had to bring them home from school because someone tried to kill them by dumping red paint into the fish tank. The water was tinted red for some time after that, but after many cleanings everything was fine, and thank goodness it was non-toxic paint. Now they have to put up with the 3 cats who are always trying to put their paws in the water and stuff. Anyway...there's a little background information, now to the story of what happen this morning.

I came downstairs and the fish tank was only about 1/3 full of water, the floor and rug were completely soaked and there was not very much water on the actual entertainment stand. I called Joseph and ask him if the cats had knocked over the tank, he says no, I don't believe him, but I let it go and set out to get the tank back in order (you know with the important things like water...) so I dump the fish into a bowl and count only 2 fish. I call Joseph and explain that the cats have apparently gotten a fish and he says they probably didn't eat it but played with it, which makes me nervous because now there is probably a dead goldfish somewhere in my house (I've yet to find my battery charger which is big, I can only imagine where they have put the fish). I'm feeling rather sad because even though they are stupid goldfish I'm an animal lover and hate that they have suffered some. I decide they are leaving my house-either down the toilet, to the lake, to PetSmart...I don't care where they go, but they need to leave. I go about cleaning out the tank...check the filter for the missing fish-you never know, and begin running water through the hose of the filter. Out pops the fish and down the garbage disposal he goes ALIVE...oh crap. I call Joseph again this time screaming the fish is in the garbage disposal what do I go, how can I get it out. Joe says I have to put my hand in, which I'm not excited about, but I look in and can see the fish and try to grab it. He's a slippery little sucker, but I finally grab him and put him in the bowl with his brothers (or sisters, I don't really know). All 3 fish are currently in their cleaned out tank up as high as I can get them on the entertainment center, hopefully out of range of all cats...here's a picture where they now live:


They use to be on the bottom, but I'm hoping the cats can't get to them now (I've never seen them get up on the top shelf, so hopefully my fish are safe). However, the fist sign of a cat up there and the fish have to find a new home, so, I might be giving them away in a later post. My big issue right now is with my husband. I have looked at the situation from many different angles and there is just no way the cats didn't knock over the tank. I think he's telling me a story because he didn't clean up the mess knowing I was getting up right behind him soon (which I actually didn't...the one day I kinda sleep in!). So...I decided to create a little poll, it's over on the right hand side. Did Joseph come downstairs to find the fish tank on the floor and just pick it up and leave the mess? Go ahead and vote...I'm only going to keep it up a couple of days, but I promise I'll let you know the outcome!


That's all for this time around, though it's a pretty long post. Hope you enjoyed my fish story...I promise you it is 100% true, and I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't lived it. Thanks for checking in, until next time, as always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!

4th of July Weekend

Joseph and I are so lucky to have such great family and friends to spend time with. This weekend we were on the go, and it was just the kind of weekend I needed. I've had a pretty rough time, understandable I know, and everyone always says to me you are so strong and I could never do what you have done...well, the truth is, I'm not that strong. I get through the tough times because what other choice do I have?! Yes, I could stay in bed all day, cry all day, not do anything, but lucky for me, I have a great husband who is with me every step of the way, the support of the most amazing family EVER, and a group of friends who may not know what to say or do for Joseph and I, but they are here and we know we could call them for anything! So...as America celebrated her birthday I celebrated being surrounded by great family and friends. Here are some pictures of our weekend...

Friday night we went to Red, White and Boom in Rock Hill with several of our friends. I will admit that I enjoyed some adult beverages, and well, it shows in the picture!





On Saturday we headed up to my parents and spent the day on the lake. Joseph did a lot of fishing and I did a lot of reading. It's funny how some things get sent your way during a certain time. In the book the main character has 5 miscarriages and gives up hope only to become pregnant. As I was watching Joe fish I came to the realization that we have a pretty great life, even if it is just the two of us right now. I have not given up on us having our family...but I had to step back and remind myself that I am so happy with my life and everyone in it right now and if God wants us to have a baby, well he's going to take care of it for us. Anyway...here are some pictures of the day up on the lake with my family.

Joseph's fish-



Me reading a great book...The Time Traveler's Wife (a movie is coming out soon!)



Some pictures of the men playing washer board.



My Dad and Uncle Tom are the North/South Carolina washer board champs. No one can take them down...here they are doing their victory dance, and my Dad kicking Joseph's butt, literally!





Later that night we took off on the boat to go watch fireworks. Dad and Joseph got us there after much debate...



Mom and I enjoying the ride...



Me with my Mom and Dad...



I want to end with my favorite two pictures of the day. I don't tell them nearly enough how much they mean to me and how lucky I am to have them in my life. They have been there for me every step of the way my entire life and I love them so much...here's two great pictures of my parents...I love you both so much!



But this is how they normally act, all the time. I guess I hope after 30 years of marriage Joseph and I love each other like you two do...



I hope everyone had a safe and relaxing holiday weekend. I just can not express enough to my family and friends how thankful I am to have you in my life. Thank you as always for sharing in our journey...you never know where it's going to take us, that's for sure. I love you all, and as always, please REMEMBER JACKSON!



Like the new look?! It was time for something new! Enjoy...