by Holly
1. I'm never out and about in traffic in the mornings anymore.
2. I never watch the news, or really TV in general anymore.
So it was really crazy that today I saw on the shoulder of the Loop a red pickup with its tire at an odd angle, and then on the 10:00 news I saw that same pickup smashed to pieces because it was hit by another vehicle while it was parked on the shoulder of the Loop.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Post-Tubes
by Holly
Eli has Reactive Airway again. So we are doing albuterol and steroids with the nebulizer as well as an oral steroid and have started daily Zyrtec. He's taking it as well as you would expect an almost 2-year-old to. He's pretty wheezy and has a cough, but the docs felt okay to go ahead with the tubes, so we had that done early this morning. We were in the waiting room 20 minutes before the doctor was back out telling us all was fine. Amazing. Eli's been quite cranky today and only took a few catnaps but nothing substantial. Justin and I can hear his ears crackling so that's got to be maddening inside his head. Lots of drainage, but hopefully it will stop soon and he will regain his hearing and decrease these infections.
Thanks for all the prayers and well wishes. We know this is a minor procedure, but as parents of little ones, nothing is minor when its your child. An added blessing today was two of our friends from our new Sunday School class bringing us a wonderful meal. It was delicious and felt so good to be cared for!
Eli has Reactive Airway again. So we are doing albuterol and steroids with the nebulizer as well as an oral steroid and have started daily Zyrtec. He's taking it as well as you would expect an almost 2-year-old to. He's pretty wheezy and has a cough, but the docs felt okay to go ahead with the tubes, so we had that done early this morning. We were in the waiting room 20 minutes before the doctor was back out telling us all was fine. Amazing. Eli's been quite cranky today and only took a few catnaps but nothing substantial. Justin and I can hear his ears crackling so that's got to be maddening inside his head. Lots of drainage, but hopefully it will stop soon and he will regain his hearing and decrease these infections.
Thanks for all the prayers and well wishes. We know this is a minor procedure, but as parents of little ones, nothing is minor when its your child. An added blessing today was two of our friends from our new Sunday School class bringing us a wonderful meal. It was delicious and felt so good to be cared for!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Lost in the Shuffle
by Holly
Its awesome to see so many 'first day of school' photos on Blogs and FaceBook. Its wonderful to feel the spark of excitement in the air around people geared up for the new school year. It makes me smile to see school supplies at WalMart and little kids excited about their new backpacks.
Aw... we are totally missing out on this. Our next door neighbors are 3 college guys back in Lubbock for the next semester so its fun to see them back, but personally, not affecting us. Am I crazy to long for the dorm days, the time of fun we had with our friends, the anticipation of what our professors would be like and how hard the classes would be? The school zones are one down side, but thankfully I don't drive during school zone hours, so no problem for me.
I know I should enjoy the season of life I'm in, revelling in how precious our almost-two year old is and that before I know it he will be in school himself, walking the two blocks to his elementary school holding mom's hand and then saying goodbye. I'm not ready for that day, but maybe we could just borrow someone else's schooltime joy for a bit.
Maybe I'll just go buy a pack of newly sharpened pencils and smell them like Kathleen Kelly does in 'You've Got Mail'. :)
Its awesome to see so many 'first day of school' photos on Blogs and FaceBook. Its wonderful to feel the spark of excitement in the air around people geared up for the new school year. It makes me smile to see school supplies at WalMart and little kids excited about their new backpacks.
Aw... we are totally missing out on this. Our next door neighbors are 3 college guys back in Lubbock for the next semester so its fun to see them back, but personally, not affecting us. Am I crazy to long for the dorm days, the time of fun we had with our friends, the anticipation of what our professors would be like and how hard the classes would be? The school zones are one down side, but thankfully I don't drive during school zone hours, so no problem for me.
I know I should enjoy the season of life I'm in, revelling in how precious our almost-two year old is and that before I know it he will be in school himself, walking the two blocks to his elementary school holding mom's hand and then saying goodbye. I'm not ready for that day, but maybe we could just borrow someone else's schooltime joy for a bit.
Maybe I'll just go buy a pack of newly sharpened pencils and smell them like Kathleen Kelly does in 'You've Got Mail'. :)
Friday, August 21, 2009
A Whole Weekend
by Justin
What would you do if you had a whole weekend to yourself? The wife is out of town. The kid is away to grandparents? What would you do?
What would you do if you had a whole weekend to yourself? The wife is out of town. The kid is away to grandparents? What would you do?
Thursday, August 20, 2009
The Big D!
by Holly
I'm putting the finishing touches on my packing/last minute to-do list before I head out to the Big D! Or Big A (Allen), however you want to think of it. I'm going to the Women of Faith Conference this weekend at the American Airlines Center, and staying with my friend Erin for the weekend. We went to the conference last year and jumped on this year's tickets as soon as they were available. What an experience!
Eli is also going away for the weekend, to stay with Nana and Papa, so Justin has the weekend to himself! I expect great things from him- sleeping, playing FarmTown, eating cereal 3 times a day... :) Enjoy your weekend dear!
I'm putting the finishing touches on my packing/last minute to-do list before I head out to the Big D! Or Big A (Allen), however you want to think of it. I'm going to the Women of Faith Conference this weekend at the American Airlines Center, and staying with my friend Erin for the weekend. We went to the conference last year and jumped on this year's tickets as soon as they were available. What an experience!
Eli is also going away for the weekend, to stay with Nana and Papa, so Justin has the weekend to himself! I expect great things from him- sleeping, playing FarmTown, eating cereal 3 times a day... :) Enjoy your weekend dear!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Hi I’m…
By Justin
Following today’s title standards I wish to now be referred to as:
Justin T. Noble, HD, MBA, MArch, ES, CIA
Seriously, isn’t enough enough on this stuff? I have been annoyed for a long time about people who place long series of initials after their names. The reality is most people don’t have a clue what they mean, and anyone who does understand really isn’t impressed.
I propose we change from initials to spelling it all out. At least then we will know what you are bragging about. With this I now wish to be referred to as:
Justin Thomas Noble, High School Diploma, Masters of Business Administration, Master of Architecture, Eagle Scout, Certified Internal Auditor
I will need bigger business cards, but it will be worth it in so I can brag on all my accomplishments. I think the initials that drive me nuts are the ones where people have started listing their degrees. Recently I have seen three different people put MBA after their name. Okay, let’s just be honest. I have an MBA. Is it an accomplishment, yes. The truth is that they are handed out like candy to make people feel good about having an ‘advanced’ degree and can get 100 more a month at their job. Some people parlay the MBA into senior management, but let’s not kid ourselves that it was a difficult item to attain and thus worthy of tacking it on to our name like we are a doctor or something. And seriously when did your degree get placed on a business card?
I have also witnessed this with Holly’s career. She signes her name, HNoble, RN. While she is required to include the RN, other coworkers have decided to do JJones, RN, BSN, XYZ. Somehow while doing the same job as everyone else, it is necessary to include the fact that you have a bachelor of nursing not just an associates. It begs the question, “If you have your bachelors, and it is worth calling out, why are you not doing something better than me”? I know the answer, but that may take cynical to the next level.
Alas I will just stick to my original plan. Let’s just all be people who do a job and forget about the “stuff behind the name.”
Thanks,
Justin T. Noble
P.S. If you think mine is bad you should look at Holly's:
Holly Jyl Jack Noble, Bachelors of Science in Human Development and Family Studies, Associates of Applied Sciences in Nursing, Registered Nurse, Registered Bone Densitographer or Holly J. Noble, BHDFS, ASN, RN, RBD. Or just Holly for short.
Following today’s title standards I wish to now be referred to as:
Justin T. Noble, HD, MBA, MArch, ES, CIA
Seriously, isn’t enough enough on this stuff? I have been annoyed for a long time about people who place long series of initials after their names. The reality is most people don’t have a clue what they mean, and anyone who does understand really isn’t impressed.
I propose we change from initials to spelling it all out. At least then we will know what you are bragging about. With this I now wish to be referred to as:
Justin Thomas Noble, High School Diploma, Masters of Business Administration, Master of Architecture, Eagle Scout, Certified Internal Auditor
I will need bigger business cards, but it will be worth it in so I can brag on all my accomplishments. I think the initials that drive me nuts are the ones where people have started listing their degrees. Recently I have seen three different people put MBA after their name. Okay, let’s just be honest. I have an MBA. Is it an accomplishment, yes. The truth is that they are handed out like candy to make people feel good about having an ‘advanced’ degree and can get 100 more a month at their job. Some people parlay the MBA into senior management, but let’s not kid ourselves that it was a difficult item to attain and thus worthy of tacking it on to our name like we are a doctor or something. And seriously when did your degree get placed on a business card?
I have also witnessed this with Holly’s career. She signes her name, HNoble, RN. While she is required to include the RN, other coworkers have decided to do JJones, RN, BSN, XYZ. Somehow while doing the same job as everyone else, it is necessary to include the fact that you have a bachelor of nursing not just an associates. It begs the question, “If you have your bachelors, and it is worth calling out, why are you not doing something better than me”? I know the answer, but that may take cynical to the next level.
Alas I will just stick to my original plan. Let’s just all be people who do a job and forget about the “stuff behind the name.”
Thanks,
Justin T. Noble
P.S. If you think mine is bad you should look at Holly's:
Holly Jyl Jack Noble, Bachelors of Science in Human Development and Family Studies, Associates of Applied Sciences in Nursing, Registered Nurse, Registered Bone Densitographer or Holly J. Noble, BHDFS, ASN, RN, RBD. Or just Holly for short.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Eli's Ears
by Holly
Thanks for all of your comments and suggestions on our Stealth Baby. The last two nights have actually been doable, last night like old times. Went to sleep easy and stayed in his bed without a peep until I went to get him up for school. I do believe this whole escapade is due to two things combined: 1) He is a toddler and is learning about his environment, and 2) He has horrible fluid and chronic infections in his ears and he doesn't feel well, so he's not himself.
That said, here's the rundown from the ENT appointment yesterday. Eli first had a hearing test by an audiologist, which was a very interesting process. We both went into a booth, where I sat in a chair with Eli on my lap facing a corner. She turned the lights off in the room outside the booth and watched us through a small window. There were two speakers in the booth, one to our left and one to our right. Below each speaker was a glass fronted box with a toy inside. These were darkened. As she would play a sound, if Eli heard it and looked to the correct speaker, she would 'reward' him by lighting up the box under that speaker to allow him to see the toy. This kept him looking at the speakers to let us know what he was hearing. I was urged not to prompt him and I didn't. What was disturbing is the number of sounds Eli didn't hear at all, or some that he heard but wasn't sure where it was coming from.
We were told later by the doctor that Eli's level of hearing right now is like us trying to listen with our hands held tight over our ears. That made me feel horrible, not that I've done anything wrong as his mother, or neglected to do something I should have done, b/c I've been playing by the rules set forth by our pediatrician, and I trust and respect him. Still, I feel bad for Eli. The hearing loss is not permanent and should come back almost instantly once we have his tubes placed, which is scheduled for August 27th. That's how long we have to wait for an early morning appointment, to avoid forcing Eli to fast during daylight hours. Bless them for thinking of that!
The verdict for now is that Eli has a lot of fluid in his ears, but it is not currently infected. The reason he can't hear is b/c that fluid is pushing against his eardrums, prohibiting them from moving as they normally should. Once the tubes are placed and the fluid is drained, he should be back to his normal self for the most part.
Here's something: I have noticed in the last couple of weeks that the adorable animal sounds and words that Eli can say have become more muffled, less clear than they have been as he's learned them. I wondered why he wouldn't care as much about pronunciation as he first did, but here's our answer. He can't hear correctly, so he can't speak correctly.
Thank you for reading and please pray that the tube placement is easy and without complication, that his hearing and wellness return quickly and that we can all get our normal Eli back!
Thanks for all of your comments and suggestions on our Stealth Baby. The last two nights have actually been doable, last night like old times. Went to sleep easy and stayed in his bed without a peep until I went to get him up for school. I do believe this whole escapade is due to two things combined: 1) He is a toddler and is learning about his environment, and 2) He has horrible fluid and chronic infections in his ears and he doesn't feel well, so he's not himself.
That said, here's the rundown from the ENT appointment yesterday. Eli first had a hearing test by an audiologist, which was a very interesting process. We both went into a booth, where I sat in a chair with Eli on my lap facing a corner. She turned the lights off in the room outside the booth and watched us through a small window. There were two speakers in the booth, one to our left and one to our right. Below each speaker was a glass fronted box with a toy inside. These were darkened. As she would play a sound, if Eli heard it and looked to the correct speaker, she would 'reward' him by lighting up the box under that speaker to allow him to see the toy. This kept him looking at the speakers to let us know what he was hearing. I was urged not to prompt him and I didn't. What was disturbing is the number of sounds Eli didn't hear at all, or some that he heard but wasn't sure where it was coming from.
We were told later by the doctor that Eli's level of hearing right now is like us trying to listen with our hands held tight over our ears. That made me feel horrible, not that I've done anything wrong as his mother, or neglected to do something I should have done, b/c I've been playing by the rules set forth by our pediatrician, and I trust and respect him. Still, I feel bad for Eli. The hearing loss is not permanent and should come back almost instantly once we have his tubes placed, which is scheduled for August 27th. That's how long we have to wait for an early morning appointment, to avoid forcing Eli to fast during daylight hours. Bless them for thinking of that!
The verdict for now is that Eli has a lot of fluid in his ears, but it is not currently infected. The reason he can't hear is b/c that fluid is pushing against his eardrums, prohibiting them from moving as they normally should. Once the tubes are placed and the fluid is drained, he should be back to his normal self for the most part.
Here's something: I have noticed in the last couple of weeks that the adorable animal sounds and words that Eli can say have become more muffled, less clear than they have been as he's learned them. I wondered why he wouldn't care as much about pronunciation as he first did, but here's our answer. He can't hear correctly, so he can't speak correctly.
Thank you for reading and please pray that the tube placement is easy and without complication, that his hearing and wellness return quickly and that we can all get our normal Eli back!
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Project Stealth Baby
by Holly
If you are on FB, you know Eli has been sneaking through the house at night and scaring the bejeebers out of us at all hours. From what I'm hearing, this is normal development and the basic gist is 'Welcome to parenthood.' Wow, thought I was already there, but this is a whole new experience.
To start from the beginning, we have been hugely blessed that Eli never tried to climb out of his crib, slept well in the pack 'n play for the 2 months we lived in the travel trailer and transitioned easily to the toddler bed when we moved into this house when he was 15 months old. We've been so proud of his resilience and also the fact that when he wakens, he plays with his stuffed bear and moose or talks to himself until we go get him. That all changed last Saturday, when he showed up next to my side of the bed at 9 am, with Taggy in tow (his blankie). We thought it was adorable that he was big enough to walk to the other side of the house and find us, with such a precious little proud-of-himself grin.
Adorable until that night at 3 am when he repeated his performance. We found out he is Stealth Baby, making no sound whatsoever as he gets out of bed and walks through the pitch dark house to our room and stands staring at me until he loses patience or gets scared and starts wailing. I have never woken so suddenly or sat up so straight in my life. What good is a baby monitor if there is no noise to warn you of these goings-on?? It took only 10 minutes to get him back to sleep in his own bed, but an hour and fifteen for me to calm my heart and reassure myself that he wasn't coming back anytime in the next couple of hours. Justin lay awake feeling the same panic I did.
The next evening I purchased a baby gate. Its a cool, yet expensive, one that has a walk-through feature and extra pieces to adjust to several doorway sizes. It took a degree to assemble it, as the instructions could have been written by a 3 year old and made just as much sense. Needless to say, Eli was already asleep when I got it finished so I couldn't put it up that night. Too bad, b/c here he came about 30 minutes later. It was a rough night.
First night using the baby gate: We showed it to him to get him used to the idea and he didn't care one bit; kept on playing. Went to sleep easily and slept all night. Had to wake him the next morning for school.
Second night using the baby gate: Went to sleep on attempt #2, after calling in the Big Guns (aka Daddy). Slept all night, until 5:30, a full hour and a half before the alarm was set. Thankfully Daddy took his turn and found Eli standing at the baby gate, mad that he was trapped in his room. He got Eli back to sleep in his own bed in just a few minutes and got a little more shut-eye before it really was time to get up.
That brings us to now. I'm nursing a Tall Nonfat Iced Latte w/ One Splenda. Ahhh.....
Any prospective babysitters??
If you are on FB, you know Eli has been sneaking through the house at night and scaring the bejeebers out of us at all hours. From what I'm hearing, this is normal development and the basic gist is 'Welcome to parenthood.' Wow, thought I was already there, but this is a whole new experience.
To start from the beginning, we have been hugely blessed that Eli never tried to climb out of his crib, slept well in the pack 'n play for the 2 months we lived in the travel trailer and transitioned easily to the toddler bed when we moved into this house when he was 15 months old. We've been so proud of his resilience and also the fact that when he wakens, he plays with his stuffed bear and moose or talks to himself until we go get him. That all changed last Saturday, when he showed up next to my side of the bed at 9 am, with Taggy in tow (his blankie). We thought it was adorable that he was big enough to walk to the other side of the house and find us, with such a precious little proud-of-himself grin.
Adorable until that night at 3 am when he repeated his performance. We found out he is Stealth Baby, making no sound whatsoever as he gets out of bed and walks through the pitch dark house to our room and stands staring at me until he loses patience or gets scared and starts wailing. I have never woken so suddenly or sat up so straight in my life. What good is a baby monitor if there is no noise to warn you of these goings-on?? It took only 10 minutes to get him back to sleep in his own bed, but an hour and fifteen for me to calm my heart and reassure myself that he wasn't coming back anytime in the next couple of hours. Justin lay awake feeling the same panic I did.
The next evening I purchased a baby gate. Its a cool, yet expensive, one that has a walk-through feature and extra pieces to adjust to several doorway sizes. It took a degree to assemble it, as the instructions could have been written by a 3 year old and made just as much sense. Needless to say, Eli was already asleep when I got it finished so I couldn't put it up that night. Too bad, b/c here he came about 30 minutes later. It was a rough night.
First night using the baby gate: We showed it to him to get him used to the idea and he didn't care one bit; kept on playing. Went to sleep easily and slept all night. Had to wake him the next morning for school.
Second night using the baby gate: Went to sleep on attempt #2, after calling in the Big Guns (aka Daddy). Slept all night, until 5:30, a full hour and a half before the alarm was set. Thankfully Daddy took his turn and found Eli standing at the baby gate, mad that he was trapped in his room. He got Eli back to sleep in his own bed in just a few minutes and got a little more shut-eye before it really was time to get up.
That brings us to now. I'm nursing a Tall Nonfat Iced Latte w/ One Splenda. Ahhh.....
Any prospective babysitters??
Saturday, August 08, 2009
The Return
By Justin
This blog was started by me at the begging request of ‘The Boys’. Trey, Scott, Armand and Ethan (The Boys) all had blogs and we kept each other up to date on life through them. Well it seems that life has gotten in the way of their blogs. Slowly but surely each one has dropped off the face of the blog world and thus our friends links to the right.
So in a directly proportionally way, my blog became the family blog. The less I blogged on my random thoughts and escapades, the more Holly blogged on family happenings. Now “Holly’s Friends” (which I count many among my friends) far outnumber the number of “Justin’s Friends” as readers. So I am at a crossroads.
Should I return to the blog? Should I create a whole new blog? After thoughtful consideration I am returning to this blog. In the true nature of even our family makeup, I will bring the off the wall happenings, sometime thoughtful considerations, but more often than not the cynical view from my end of this world.
Some of you will like it. Some of you will see ‘by Justin’ and move on. But mostly I don’t care. Our Blog is meant to capture our life. My life includes the odd daily happenings, watching Eli grow up and even the random thoughts that travel through my head.
Some of you are Facebook friends with me. If so, watch out. The random status updates I post might just become all out blog post. Now that should be frightening.
I also think it is prudent (since many of you haven’t spent significant time around me) to explain my cynical head. Many many people think I am a pessimist. They think I see the whole world as bleak and unfortunate. The reality is I am not a pessimist, but I am neither an optimist. I classify myself as a realist. In the old ‘glass half empty, glass half full’ analogy, I really don’t care which it is. The reality it is neither. What I want you to understand is it is NEITHER. If you say it is half full, you are wrong. If you say the glass is half empty you are wrong. It is both. And my close friends will tell you that I will stand on the street corner and yell at you till you acknowledge that fact. (Thanks to Jenise for helping me put the analogy together, on our daytrip to New Orleans of all places!)
So as I close, prepare yourself. I have made my return.
This blog was started by me at the begging request of ‘The Boys’. Trey, Scott, Armand and Ethan (The Boys) all had blogs and we kept each other up to date on life through them. Well it seems that life has gotten in the way of their blogs. Slowly but surely each one has dropped off the face of the blog world and thus our friends links to the right.
So in a directly proportionally way, my blog became the family blog. The less I blogged on my random thoughts and escapades, the more Holly blogged on family happenings. Now “Holly’s Friends” (which I count many among my friends) far outnumber the number of “Justin’s Friends” as readers. So I am at a crossroads.
Should I return to the blog? Should I create a whole new blog? After thoughtful consideration I am returning to this blog. In the true nature of even our family makeup, I will bring the off the wall happenings, sometime thoughtful considerations, but more often than not the cynical view from my end of this world.
Some of you will like it. Some of you will see ‘by Justin’ and move on. But mostly I don’t care. Our Blog is meant to capture our life. My life includes the odd daily happenings, watching Eli grow up and even the random thoughts that travel through my head.
Some of you are Facebook friends with me. If so, watch out. The random status updates I post might just become all out blog post. Now that should be frightening.
I also think it is prudent (since many of you haven’t spent significant time around me) to explain my cynical head. Many many people think I am a pessimist. They think I see the whole world as bleak and unfortunate. The reality is I am not a pessimist, but I am neither an optimist. I classify myself as a realist. In the old ‘glass half empty, glass half full’ analogy, I really don’t care which it is. The reality it is neither. What I want you to understand is it is NEITHER. If you say it is half full, you are wrong. If you say the glass is half empty you are wrong. It is both. And my close friends will tell you that I will stand on the street corner and yell at you till you acknowledge that fact. (Thanks to Jenise for helping me put the analogy together, on our daytrip to New Orleans of all places!)
So as I close, prepare yourself. I have made my return.
Thursday, August 06, 2009
Camping Trip
by Holly
We went camping in New Mexico with Holly's family this past weekend for 3 nights, which was wonderful but went by too quickly. The nights were cold and the days warm, allowing us to enjoy the weather but also have campfires at night. The crowd included the three of us, Holly's parents, Holly's brother and his family, and family friends Bill and Wanda. B&W have been camping with us, or rather us with them and their family since Holly was 2 months old. Great memories! We had to come home on Monday to return for work, but everyone else went on to Colorado to the campground we always went to growing up. I'm sad and jealous to be missing out on that, as we haven't been there in about 10 years. I spoke with my mom today and she said it is just as beautiful as ever and they are having a wonderful time.
Eli digging in the dirt. Yes, that's a flower behind his ear- he picked it and gave it to Nana but promptly wanted it back!
Jared and his two fish he caught that day. My dad calls him Willie Two Fish, as he always seems to catch them in two's.
Justin doing his thing with the campfire. Yes, that's lighter fluid. Wouldn't the Boy Scouts be proud? Seriously, we appreciated him keeping wood chopped and the fire stoked.
Group photo before we left this campground on Monday:
We went camping in New Mexico with Holly's family this past weekend for 3 nights, which was wonderful but went by too quickly. The nights were cold and the days warm, allowing us to enjoy the weather but also have campfires at night. The crowd included the three of us, Holly's parents, Holly's brother and his family, and family friends Bill and Wanda. B&W have been camping with us, or rather us with them and their family since Holly was 2 months old. Great memories! We had to come home on Monday to return for work, but everyone else went on to Colorado to the campground we always went to growing up. I'm sad and jealous to be missing out on that, as we haven't been there in about 10 years. I spoke with my mom today and she said it is just as beautiful as ever and they are having a wonderful time.
Eli digging in the dirt. Yes, that's a flower behind his ear- he picked it and gave it to Nana but promptly wanted it back! 
Jared and his two fish he caught that day. My dad calls him Willie Two Fish, as he always seems to catch them in two's.
Justin doing his thing with the campfire. Yes, that's lighter fluid. Wouldn't the Boy Scouts be proud? Seriously, we appreciated him keeping wood chopped and the fire stoked.
Group photo before we left this campground on Monday:Back row- Dad, Kelly, Jared, Teresa, Mom
Front row- Holly, Eli, Justin, Tyler
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