little {big} lucy-bug

Our little Lucy-bug is growing up so fast.

I can hardly stand it!

On Monday she went to have her first cavity filled.

Well, the first one where she wasn't FULLY sedated.

The last time we tried this (unsedated),

she slithered out of the chair and melted onto the floor

before the dentist could even stick his mirror

in her mouth for a look-around.

She cried.

I cried.

The dentist cried.

It was a mess.

But this time was different.

She was brave.

She didn't waiver.

She sat there like a big girl.

I was so proud of her!

And then today she held her very first tiny newborn baby.

Like she was a big girl or something.

My dear friend Angela had a baby girl a few weeks ago

and today we finally got to meet her!

Lucy was so smitten.

She talked about her long after we left.

And as if the conversation about how she got out of her

Mama's tummy wasn't previously discussed (fully) enough,

we almost bounced into the discussion of

breast-feeding.

Call me a coward, but I darted the subject completely because,

at the end of a very long day...I simply wasn't up to

explaining God's main intent for our boobies with a six year old.

And on that note,

I wish you a lovely evening.

The End.

lucy + dentist {bad, bad mix}

First of all,
to all of you nay-sayers regarding my reference
to us being DONE adopting
in my last post,
I have made note of each of you and you will be blocked
from my blog.

Just kiddin'.

But you are on probation.

And we ARE done adopting.
Mark my words.
You can vow to say, "I told you so" in the future if you want.

But you won't be saying it.

Because we are so done.

Now, let's move on.

I feel the need to tell you about my night on Saturday night.
Not sure if I will or not right at this moment.
I need to figure out whether it's really all that blog-worthy.

Do you see?
Do you see why I can't handle any more children?
My brain no longer functions well.

While I'm figuring that out,
I will tell you about Lucy's dentist appointment this morning.

Or lack thereof.

Ahem.

Bless my lil' dumplin's heart...she's had bad teeth from the get-go.
She had a lot of dental work done
IN the hospital under complete sedation when she was
about 3 years old.
It was awful.

There's nothing worse than seeing your child
in a hospital bed.
Even for minor procedures.

So anyway,
she had her first cleaning at a real dentist a while back.
By real dentist,
I mean...not a pediatric dentist.
Those people are whacky.
And by whacky I mean...only people who are completely nuts
could work with little children and their teeth all day long.
And act joyful about it.

Something ain't right with people like that.

Oh yes, but there's all that money.

Ok, back to my story.

At Lucy's latest cleaning the dentist
(who is joyful but not in a fairy-princess-crazy-person kind of way)
said that Lucy most definitely had two cavities
right smack on her front two teeth.

And probably elsewhere but since she wouldn't let them do
x-rays...well, one could only guess.

So I debated back and forth as to whether to get them filled
or not since she will be losing those teeth...but when?

I finally caved (insert crazy-person decision) and made the appointment.
She was oh-so-brave until the dentist started talking to her.
How dare he.

Things spiraled completely out of control right then and there.

Crying.

Thrashing.

Panic.

The dentist said,

"Wow."

Actually, it was more like,

"Wwwwooow."

Yes he did.
He said that.

But thankfully he made the decision that it just wasn't going to happen.
And told us it was ok to put it off a little bit longer in hopes
of the darn things loosening up,
falling out, and us living happily ever after.




And this, my friends, is reason #5,986 that we won't be adopting again.



Tell ya about Saturday night later.

my good friday

I sure wish I could tell you that Good Friday brought
a much-needed spiritual awakening in me.

Deep things.

Even...semi-deep spiritual things.

But no.

Our day started early with Brenden getting his wisdom
teeth removed.

Which was quickly followed by this...

Though unable to talk, he was far from unable
to communicate.

And if you are having a hard time reading exactly what's there,
let me help you.

"When I tap cup, get Mom."
Which was his instructions to Lucy.
Like she could even be able to fully read and comprehend what he wrote.
She's 5.
But his cup-tapping system was his go-to way of
getting my attention.
Throughout the entire day.
Only because I didn't have a bell that he first requested.

Next:

"Could you ask Angela (our friend who is a nurse) if there is an
easier way to take pills while numb."
I just stared at him in pure disbelief.
Seriously?
Did he really think that anyone would have a brilliant solution
to him swallowing his pain pills, other than the traditional way?
Short of me standing on the other side of the room
with a blow-gun, propelling it into his half-open swollen gullet??

Next:
He wanted to know how to correctly spell narcotics.
I was proud that he cared about his spelling.
But who, in their right mind..who is on narcotics,
cares about spelling?

The day continued with other antics.

All the while,
here is what Nick was doing...

He used a half a loaf of bread...

trying to lure the chickens into the house.



Good heavens, people...somebody rescue me.

dreaded dental work

My poor sweet Macy Shu Li...
had her very first dental procedure today.

First. Ever.

Thankfully, there's not a whole lot of work that needs to be done but because she's never had a professional cleaning, she will need to go in twice for extensive scaling (I hate that word) and will have to be numb for it. Plus, fillings.

And today she had 4 of 8 cavities filled.

Gulp.

As the dentist was explaining things, he told her that if at any point she wants him to stop, to raise her left hand.

Right then, her left hand went up. The girl had her sense of humor turned on, even as she was shaking in her tiny size 4 boots (ok, tennis shoes).

She's such a brave girl.

I'm just so tickled to be her mom, I can't even tell ya.

thankful for Dora underwear

First, thank you all for your sweet comments about
my TA pity party.
Honestly, I believe that perhaps God has allowed
this long wait as a test. For me.

As stubborn as I am...
I'm here to say, 'I surrender!'
God's lessons for us only make us stronger if we
lean COMPLETELY on Him.

**************************

Lucy's appointment went well.
Her procedure was to start at 9:45.
So of course, it started promptly at 11:05.

Grrr. No, really...I'm not complaining.
It beats socialized medicine any day.

She ended up having two silver caps put on her back molars,
which she is very proud of, I might add.
She will quickly show you her new fancy teeth,
whether you want to see them or not.

She also had about 4 or 5 other cavities filled.
Yikes.

It sure wasn't easy seeing her as she came out of her
anesthesia. Poor baby. I just couldn't help but be so very
grateful that we were only dealing with dental work
and not something serious.

Playing with Daddy as we waited...and waited.

Sorry for the fuzzy pic, taken with my cell phone.
But I couldn't resist this.
The sweet innocence of a child...
she had no idea her backside was open for
all the world to see.
Thank goodness for Dora underwear.

Lucy's dentist appointment and a TA hold-up

Lucy's dentist appointment went well.
Let me tell you about it...

We went to a pediatric dentist,
which was new to me.

And let me just say this.....
I'm glad Lucy doesn't have any sensory issues
because the office was sensory OVER LOAD!
Of course their intent is to make the
kiddos excited about being there but good golly,
balloons, trinket toy vending machines,
TVs everywhere,

an ice cream machine right smack in the middle
of it all!!!

Far from calming but Lucy seemed fine with it all.
Thankfully!

The dentist (Dr. Jill) came in and the high-strung-sensory
theme continued.
My goodness...this doctor went overboard on "welcoming"
Lucy. I've never seen a grown-up so excited.
I wanted to say,
"Lady, BACK OFF."
And at first Lucy was a bit freaked out.
But then quickly thought she was funny.
I, on the other hand, wondered how in the world
she could maintain that level of enthusiasm all day long.
Perhaps she's dipping into the laughing gas.
Who can blame her.
On the other hand, if I was making the clams she is,
I could maintain giddiness for as long as necessary also.

Ok,
Lucy did let her look in her mouth.
Whew.
And Dr. Jill quickly saw the huge hole in her back
tooth, which I've been watching grow over the
past year.
It was decided that Lucy needs to have it fixed,
along with whatever else they find,
in an outpatient situation at our local
children's hospital where they can give her
anesthesia.
They will clean, x-ray, and put caps on
the teeth in need, all while she's asleep.

At first I was all for it.
And really, there's no other choice,
unless we want to try a mild sedative
and do it in the office,
which Lucy would still be awake and could fight it.

I'm just sad that she has to go through this at
all. It makes me really see (in a teeny tiny way) how
it must feel for those of you whose children have to
undergo surgery.
My heart goes out to you.
That must be so very difficult.

Anyway, we are scheduled for early October.
I hope we are back in the swing of things
having just returned from Ch*na.

And on that note,
I got an email from our agency last night saying
that there was a mistake with our immigration stuff.
Honestly, I don't understand it at all.
All I know is that our coordinator apologized
several times in the email and said they will
continue to make daily phone calls to USCIS until
it is resolved.

I'm a bit stressed...yet I really don't know what it all means.
I am still clueless about all these new procedures
so I'm not sure what is going on.
I will call our agency first thing Monday morning.

*Sigh*

Trusting the Lord. Trusting the Lord. Trusting the Lord.

school bell ringing and Lucy's first dentist appointment

Well, next week we start homeschool.

My boys are thrilled.
Just tickled like you wouldn't believe.

Sure they are.

I feel really guilty starting them so soon
but we simply must get in a good
month of school before we head to Ch*na.
But honest to goodness, most of the time those
boys are sitting around doing nothing
which drives me crazy! So sticking their
noses in a textbook will bring much
satisfaction to me at least.
Hee.hee.

I want to take 2-3 weeks off after
we return with Macy Shu Li.
So, they will be thankful once that nice little
break rolls around.
But for now, they are grumpy.

My time will be mostly consumed with that
so, please bear with me as I may
have days that I just can't post anything...
or it will be very short and sweet.

Or long and bitter, depending on how
things are going.

**********************

Today is Lucy's first dentist appointment.
I covet your prayers.

This little unpredictable dynamo is
excited/resistant about going.

I keep telling her she will get a surprise
and a new toothbrush.
That's enough to make any girl want
to hop in the drill-screeching chair, right?

Seriously, if they were smart the reward would be a new
pair of shoes.
Or at least a venti frappacino.

I'm bringing my camera...not sure
though that whipping out my big Canon Rebel
will go over well....
so I may have to just nonchalantly snap
pics with my cell phone.

Good times ahead.