Company's 'a Comin'

Lots going on with the Zumbiels these days. Sam is pretty much back into the swing of swim team practice and trying not to think about school starting backup. However, one of our new neighbors will be Sams vice principle at Middle School in the fall. We have already discussed with her the fact that Sam wont be able to get away with anything!

Sydney survived her stay in the hospital for her 24 hour fasting test, although it seems just barely. It was very tough on her and she got very nauseous and by the end was tired of being poked and blood sugar tests being done at all hours of the night and day. Test results wont be back until next week, so we should have more information then.

We are excited about company coming. This gives me the push I need to finish digging things out of boxes and putting them where they belong. But mostly, we are looking forward to seeing loved ones that we don't see nearly often enough. Michelle, Jeff, Rachel and Alex will be our first round of guests. They will be arriving next week, and plan to stay about a week. Then in mid August Mom and Elizabeth are planning a visit as well. After that in September Scotts Dad and Step Mom will be coming to see the new house. And last, but not least, Scotts Mom and Step Dad will be coming for a couple of days in October.

It's going to be fun having everyone come visit. Especially now that we have plenty of room for company. We are looking forward to good times, sharing new experiences and seeing exciting things. But most of all seeing the ones we love.

Family Gatherings

I'm slow. Rachel had her blog on the Heagerty Family Reunion up before the reunion was even over. Michelle had hers up yesterday. Both had taken the time and thought into actually taking pictures.

Sonya was joking that when our kids and grandkids and future generations look at the pictures from the reunion that they would be saying "Thats so-and-so. They're dead now." Well, I didn't even bring a camera so I have nothing for future generations to look at. I'm scatter brained that way. It's not that I don't want to take pictures and have treasured memories, it's just that I get caught up in the moment and forget. Too busy visiting to snap pictures.

I guess that over the years I have gotten use to Scott being our family photographer. Since Scott didn't know very many of the Heagerty's before we got there, so I can understand his not thinking of taking pictures either.

So, I have a post with no pictures to attach to help paint the picture of good times, good food and good fellowship.

Rick and Dave recognized me when they arrived. Good thing too because I hadn't seen either one of them since I was a little girl. I couldn't have picked they out of a crowd if asked too. Their sister Sonya, on the other hand, I had seen 13 years ago at my Grandmothers funeral. Sonya is the spitting image of her mother, Aunt Wanda. She has the same infectious laugh and sweet smile. It took me back and I could almost taste and smell Aunt Wanda's blueberry pie.

The weekend was much too short. The late nights and early mornings didn't catch up with me until the 14 hour drive home, and the next day, and the next day.

The family probably wont make these family gatherings a yearly thing. We just aren't that organized. But figuring the good time everyone had, I doubt it will be the last.

And, I'm curious, did Rick and Dave every agree on wether that was their old house or not?

Oh The Drama

After 3 days of fretting and crying and carrying on, Sydney finally relented last night and let me pull her loose tooth.

Tuesday as we were brushing her teeth we discovered the loose tooth. At first she was very proud and showing it off to the hygienist at the dentist office. (We already had our appointments scheduled) And she had to call daddy at work and share the great news with him.

As the day wore on she began to get concerned about what would happen if... What if it falls out while I'm eating? What if it falls out while I'm sleeping.

By Wed. she had pretty much forgotten about it and the day was pretty normal.

Then Thursday as the day got longer, the looser the tooth got and the more upset Sydney became. It had wiggled into a strange spot and had become very painful. This set off a couple of hours of screaming and crying and fit throwing. I'm sure it was just from the pain, but after so long it was beginning to get annoying. The mother side of me wanted to console her and make her feel better. The frustrated human side of me just wanted to yank that thing out and stop all the madness. (I know, a bad mother moment) But, at last we convinced her that pulling it would not be nearly as painful as the pain of just having it in there in that weird position. She relented and out it came and the crying stopped immediately.

Oh the fun parenting moments.

Vacation?

Whew! It's been a while since last I posted. Summer has been a whirlwind of activity.

Scott's Mom Susan and Stepdad Jim came for a 2 week visit. And for those of you who have been around Scott while he is on vacation, you know that he never stops, every moment of every day has to be filled with some sort of sight seeing or learning experience or he sees it as a waste of vacation time. So, needless to say, it was go, go, go.

First we went to Gulf Shores, AL for a few days to "relax" at the beach. Scott's idea of relaxing at the beach is much different than mine. Give me a cold beverage, a book and a deck chair and I am a happy camper. I will admit he was better this time than he normally is.

At some point we went to Warm Springs, GA (was that actually the first thing we did?...can't remember, I've slept since then.) to see the FDR's "Little White House". This was his vacation home where he would go to seek treatment in the springs for effects of the polio he suffered from. This is also where he died.

Oh, in Gulf Shores (or Columbus, sorry I'm skipping all around) we went to a Civil War Naval Museum that was pretty cool. They had an old iron clad on display. Well, it is actually what was left of the iron clad after the North got a hold of it, burned it, set it adrift on the Chattahoocee where it eventually burned to the water line and sank.

Grandma Charlie came down for a weekend to check out the new house and see Susan and Jim whom she hadn't seen since before Sydney was born. We went to Chattanooga, TN and went through the caves and saw Ruby Falls. We went to Rock City on Lookout Mountain, and Scott, the kids, Susan and Jim did the incline railway while Mom and I stayed on level ground and did some shopping and ate a funnel cake.

Now that Grandparents are gone, the kids don't know quite what to do with themselves. They have lost their captive audience. Although next week Sydney will be going to Vacation Bible School with her friend Loralia and Sam is going back to swim practice as well as helping me with some of the moving.

Yes, we will be moving! The closing on the house is set for Monday afternoon. We are sooo excited we can hardly wait.

Summer's Coming!

We are nearing the end of the school year.  Tomorrow is the last day of school and the kids are excited.  There is so much to do this summer and fall will come too quickly for them I'm sure. The house should be done in a couple of week and hopefully we will be able to move in around the middle of June.  We have Grandma Susie and Grandpa Jim coming next week for a visit and Grandma Charlie is going to sneak down during their visit as well.

For the 4th of July we plan to go to Missouri for the Heagerty family reunion.  (Sarah's side of the family).  We will see Grandma Charlie again, as will as Alex, Rachel, Michelle and Jeff. Maybe we can talk Aunt Michelle into borrowing her kids for a while this summer.  That is if they aren't too busy with baseball.

Between those two events we hope to move into the new house.  We are getting so excited. But, Sam is probably the most excited out of all of us.  He is getting weary of having to share a bedroom with his sister.  I can't say that I blame him.  I had to share a bedroom with a sister until I was a Junior in High School.  I feel his pain.

On The Inside

Things on the outside of the house have slowed down, but on the inside they are plugging along. The drywall is finished, the paint is on, the stair rails are in, kitchen cabinets are up and today it looks like they are going to be putting the tile on the floor in the master bathroom.  It's really starting to come together and it gets more and more exciting everyday.

Sydney Update

I know it's late, but we do have (some) news from Sydney's Dr. appt in Birmingham.  This doctor is leaning towards it having been an isolated incident due to the medication and later low numbers due to the residual effects of the medication still in her system.  However, to help put our minds at ease and give us a better understanding of how to treat her when she is sick and not eating to keep her blood sugar levels even, we are going back to the hospital to do another fasting test.  This time they well faster her from between 24 to 48 hours.

The doctor did say that skinny kids (and she and her brother fit that description) tend to be more likely to be Hypoglycemic.  He did agree with the diet we have her on and thinks it is good to keep her on it.  Possibly the diet is making the difference.

Anyway, not really any new news, yet at the same time it is reassuring to know that we are doing things right.

The light at the end of the tunnel

We can see it.  The light at the end of the tunnel, and it looks glorious.

If you aren't sure what I'm talking about I'll tell you.  The house in Reedsport is (almost) no longer ours.  We signed the final paper work yesterday and sent it UPS back to Oregon.

Hopefully by this time on Friday the home will belong to our friends Robyn and Rowdy Mead. We are so excited that someone we know is buying the house and that they love it and will enjoy it as much as we did.

The house here in Opelika is coming along.  However, most of the work now is being done on the inside so it's hard to tell that much is going on.  They still have the brick work to do on the outside.  Inside they have been doing all the duct work, electrical, plumbing and TV/Internet cables.  By Friday we should have insulation and possibly starting on drywall.  (I say WE as if Scott and I are out there everyday working our butts off.  Haa Haa.  Can you picture Scott with a tool belt?)

Sydney has her doctors appt in Birmingham tomorrow, so I will try to post what we find out tomorrow when we get home (if we have time). 

The laughter of children

I just had to share this with you.

I was up last night at about 2am dealing with a migraine that I had been fighting all day.

Suddenly I hear Sydney just laughing her head off.  (For those of you who know the apartment is very small and the kids room is right next to ours).  I drag myself out of bed to see what in the world has her so amused at 2am, because unlike her brother, she doesn't seem to talk in her sleep).  Anyway, I go in there and she is snoring away.  Apparently her dream was extremely entertaining to make her laugh in her sleep.

It was nice to hear her having a good dream rather than a bad one. 

Not Just House News

I haven't been keeping daily updates to the progress on the house, but we have been checking on it every day.

Scott and I have been having lunch together at the site and enjoy watching the progress and the workers, they can be pretty entertaining.  We know that our house is being held together with ALOT of nails.  The workers seem to enjoy the nail guns tremendously, I can't say that I blame them, they are a lot of fun.

Some other news going on...Sam had his A honor roll breakfast this morning.  We didn't have any family emergencies to keep us from attending.  We are very proud of all his hard work and that he keeps it up with all his swimming on top of it all.

Sydney is doing well.  She goes to the Dr. in Birmingham next week, so we should hopefully have news then.  Her class is gearing up for their PTO presentation at the end of the month and field trip to the zoo on the 1st of May.

Thats all the news I can think of at the moment!

A House...Sort Of

This is the progress on the house from the slab we saw at lunchtime on Friday to getting ready to put the roof trusses on Saturday afternoon.  The workers got the trusses up on the roof, but after that called it a day.  

It will be exciting to see what progress will happen on Monday!

The Saga Continues

Here are some more pictures of the on going process on the house.  

Scott is becoming very obsessed, checking in on the site about 3 times a day.  That would be the type A personality coming out.  He says he's not obsessed just excited.  The kids and I are not so sure.  Hopefully they will be able to move quickly on it so Scott can settle down a little.

Our New House

It has been a while since I have updated the blog, so I will fill you in on what has been occupying our time.  We are under contract to sell the house in Reedsport and should close on or around the 17th of this month.  

The other exciting news is that we are having a new house built.  We are making a bad habit of going out to the job site everyday to check the progress.

The kids are very excited and can not wait for the house to be finished so they won't have to share a bedroom anymore.

We hope to be in the new house by the 4th of July, but that all depends on the weather and how quickly the crews can get the job done.

Another exciting thing about the new house is that we will have plenty of room for guests!  (So start making your reservations at Casa Del Zumbiel!  Rooms could go quickly!! Tee Hee).  We would love to keep the extra room booked with family and friends.

I will try to be much better about updating and posting pictures of the building progress.

Compliments From Kindergardeners

Just a couple of cute complements I have received from Kindergardeners the past two days.

The first was from Sydney last night at dinner.  Scott was working late, so I cheated on dinner and just heated up canned soup for the kids.  Sydney was sitting eating her Chicken Noodle soup and says, "Mom, you cook the best canned soup.  This is simply delightful."

The second came via another mother who's son is in Sydney's class.  Apparently they saw me in line at the grocery store the other day and the son said to his mom,  "That's Sydney's mom up there, she's most beautiful."  

I take my compliments where I can.  

Who says it doesn't snow in Eastern Alabama?

Snow, glorious snow!

It has been so beautiful to watch the large flakes swirling around in the gray sky.

The kids have had a great time building a snowman, making snow angels and throwing snow balls.  And Mom has had a great time sitting inside watching it all.  Dad had the fun task of playing outside with the kids.

I will down load pictures later!

Where do I begin?  There seems to be a lot going on in the Zumbiel household these days.

Sam is enjoying a new term of Talent Pool at school.  They have finished their study of Greek Mythology and are on to Biology/Anatomy.  A couple of weeks ago they got to dissect a cows eye. Sam really enjoyed it and loved telling his mother and any one else who would listen all the details of said dissection.  Next they get to dissect a cows heart.  This is all right up his alley and he is having a great time with it.

Sydney was selected by her class to be the class student of the month for February.  Yesterday she got to have breakfast with Mr. James the principal.  Today she, along with the other kindergarden students of the month, got to help plant a tree at the school for Arbor day.

Sarah helped clear brush at Sydney's school today for Arbor Day.  There where a lot of other parents helping to clear brush, plant trees, dig holes, build planter beds, move gravel etc.  They even fed the parents lunch!  Sarah is wondering how you can be so sore from working like that, but the body part that hurts the most are her two big toes.

Scott spent a week officiating for the SEC Swimming and Diving Championships.  He had a good time and enjoyed seeing some very talented swimmers compete.

Other than than, there isn't much else.  Still no real news on Sydney getting into an Endocrinologist.  She has an appointment with a Dr in Birmingham on April 23rd.  But we and her Dr. here think that is way too long to wait,  so they are trying to get her in with a new Dr in Columbus, Ga.  We shall see how it all goes. 

Some Success

We had success this morning!  Sydney woke up, took her blood sugar test with no fighting and her levels were 81!!!!!  We are so excited.  

Sydney is having a little trouble adjusting to the Hypoglycemic diet, but not as much as we had feared.  But hopefully with this mornings numbers this means that it is starting to work.  I suppose time will tell.

We are still waiting for the Human Growth Hormone test results to come back so they can make an appointment with the doctor in Birmingham.  Those results should be in any day now.

Thank you for your continued thoughts and prayers.

Grandma's, Grandma's Everywhere

Haven't posted in a while, so I thought I'd try to push back the headache and fill you in on the happenings here in Opelika.

Grandma Susie was here from Wed. the 28th until Wed. the 4th.  Boy did we provide her with lost of excitement.  We were so grateful that she was here to help out during Sydney's emergency. I'm not sure what we would have done with out all her help.  We enjoyed a wonderful visit and were sad to see her leave.  She got to go to Sam's swim meet while she was here, and she got to do one of her favorite past times...take the kids shopping.

On Wed. the 4th we exchanged Grandma's.  Grandma Charlie came in the afternoon and had come to check up on Sydney and go with us to her Neurologist appointment in Montgomery on the 5th. Little did she know that on Friday we would be spending the evening at the hospital. Yes, a second trip to the hospital in less than 2 weeks.  The doctor in Montgomery wanted to have an Endocrinologist see Sydney.  That doctor is in Birmingham and when he and her Pediatrician here in Opelika started discussing her history and the fact that she had gotten up on Friday with a blood sugar level of 39, they decided to do some fasting tests and wanted her in the hospital for evaluation in case her blood sugar levels bottomed out while they were doing the tests.  Luckily her blood sugar levels were pretty normal all night, but kind of a pain that they didn't dip so we could find out what is wrong.  They are still awaiting some of the results, but we should be getting an appointment to see the Dr. in Birmingham soon.

Again, it was great to have Grandma Charlie here when we really needed the extra help.  She stayed the night at home with Sam while Scott and I stayed the night at the hospital with Sydney.

Both Grandma's really hated to leave, and we hated to see them go, but we had a great time with them when they were here.  They also know that anytime they want to visit all they have to do is just show up at the door and we would be so happy to see them.

Scott and I have decided that it's Grandpa Stan's turn to have a little hospital excitement.  We don't want him to feel left out.

If anyone is planning to come visit us and have a nice relaxed visit, somehow I'm not sure that could happen.

For the time being, the doctors have Sydney on a Hypoglycemic diet to try and keep her blood sugar levels stable until we can find out what is going on with our little drama queen.

Thanks to everyone for your calls, thoughts and prayers!  It's nice to know that we are so blessed with wonderful family and friends.

Thank God for Firefighters, EMTs and RNs

I will start out by stating that Sydney is fine and back to normal.  She just stopped our hearts for a while there.

As some of you know and for those of you who don't, Sydney was rushed to the Emergency Room yesterday morning after having suffered an extremely rare and serious side effect from the Beta Blocker she is on as a preventative for her migraines.  We went in to wake her up for school and she was unresponsive, very cold and clammy and drenched in sweat.  Scott called 911 while I tried to get her to open her eyes and respond to me.

After what seemed like hours (although it was only a couple of minutes) we had a fire truck, 2 ambulances, and a police car in  front of our house.  They quickly got to work on her.  It was amazing to me how calm these people could be...how could they with our baby limp and unresponsive on the floor?

They immediately found out that her blood sugar had dropped to a dangerous 20.  All the lead EMT had to say to his fellow responders was "You know what to do." and in a split second 2 of them were out the door and back in a flash with cases of medical equipment and the stretcher was ready to go.  It's amazing how fast they got the IV into her arm and just like that we were heading out the door and on our way to the hospital.

Apparently they don't normally let anyone not a first responder into the ambulance, but bless them for making an exception for this worried Mom.  The thing is, Sydney would have loved all the attention and the fact that she got to ride in an ambulance with the lights and sirens a blaze. But bless her heart she doesn't remember any of it.  We asked her later in the emergency room if she remembered the fire fighters being in our house and she said "Our house was on fire this morning?"

We will never know the names of all the men and women, fire fighters, EMTs and RNs that helped save Sydney on Thursday.  They were all so good and sweet to her and to us.  I'm sure if anyone asked them, they would just say it's their job, it's what they are trained to do, they do it everyday.  But, they don't do it everyday to our baby girl.

So, to all those unknown heros, Thank You! Thank You! Thank God for You all!

Thoughts on Inauguration Day

For some reason I felt compelled to write something on this historic day.  I suppose something profound should be said about how far we have come as a country and yet how much further we still have to go.  But words escape me.  Everyone has different emotions that they are feeling today, some are feeling pride, or caution, joy, or fear.  Scott, the kids and I all feel excitement and hope.

No matter how you personally feel about who is in elected office, I think everyone hopes that that person will do the job to the best of their ability and that the choices they make will be for the good of all.

This all makes you wonder, what's next?  What other barriers will be broken?  What advancements will be made?  And, What will my part be in all of this?  What more will change in my lifetime?

Migraines Suck

I was thinking about what to title this post.  Another thought was "I'm just pooped".  That one fits today too.  Last night I had another migraine.  The bad thing about when I get them in the middle of the night, is that it's not just me that stays awake and suffers with them.  Poor Scott has trouble sleeping with all the tossing and turning I do.

So, last night when I got one, Scott wound up moving to the couch and spending the rest of the night there.  I feel bad.  I don't intend to keep him awake, and I try really hard to stay as still as I can.  Sometimes it's just not possible.

The other thing that sucks about migraines is that I'm now not the only one in the house that suffers from them.  Sydney is now having a lot of problems with them too.  I wish there was something I could do to make hers go away forever.  Having suffered myself for over 30 years with them, and considering our long family history of migraines, I fear that is not possible.

Part of me feels responsible for the fact that she gets them.  I know that it's just the roll of the genetic dice that determines these things, but I still feel guilty.  Hopefully there will be a medical breakthrough soon and she won't have to suffer for the rest of her life.

Her doctor has started her on a preventative to see if that will reduce the frequency and severity of them.  It's only been a week now, so only time will tell.  Although, yesterday when I picked Sydney up from school she had a mild headache and she said to me..."I thought the medicine wouldn't let me have anymore headaches."  It's hard to explain to a 6 year old how it all is suppose to work, if the medication does it's job.

Hopefully someday the medical community will figure something out and people won't have to suffer, especially 6 year old little girls who just can't understand why migraines suck.

Children In The Grocery Store

We have all seen this scene in the grocery store.  A couple of kids being troublesome and an exasperated mother following with the cart saying things like..."don't touch that", "no we are not getting that, put it back", "watch where you are going, you almost ran into that person".

The kids run all over the store causing a ruckus where ever they go and by the time they reach the check out line the poor mothers eye is twitching and she is a breath away from completely snapping.

Then it happens.  The kids start fighting over a used candy wrapper found on the floor.  One wants to keep it and make a lovely piece of jewelry not seen since the days of King Tut.  The other wants to throw it in the trash where it belongs.  You see the creative side of one child whos imagination is limitless and the other who wants to protect Mother Earth and do the right thing.

The altercation escalates into near fisticuffs.  Thats when you see Mom snap.  She yells at the children at the top of her lungs, scaring the poor check out girl, the children and stunning the rest of the patrons of the store.  You, along with everyone else just stare at this woman in disbelief.  One of several thoughts run through you mind...1)I'm glad that's not me.  2)Been there, done that. 3)Those children are awful, my children would never act like that in public. 4)She is the worst Mother ever, she should have better control over her children.  Or, you are like me and you think 5)Why God must my children act like this in public?  Are you testing me? Please give me the strength to keep from beating these children in front of You and everybody. Amen.

Yes, cabin fever has set into the Zumbiel household and 2 and 1/2 weeks is far too long for us to be cooped up together before we revert back to caveman like behavior.

But, Alas, the children are back at school today and the house is once again quiet.  Almost too quiet.  They sure can drive me crazy at times, but I do miss them when they are gone.

Ringing In The New Year

Happy New Years!

If you are like the Zumbiel Family, then you are just lazing around the house watching the Rose Parade.  This is the way New Years Day should be spent.  Doing nothing.

The kids tried very hard to stay up last night, but lost all steam at about 10:30.  I went to bed with a migraine at about 9:30 and Scott fell asleep on the couch watching CNN.  Scott was suppose to wake everyone up just before the New Year came.  So much for having the person who falls asleep the earliest in the house be in charge of that detail.

I was not disappointed to have missed the ringing in of the New Year.  I enjoy my sleep.  The kids on the other hand were a little let down.  Somehow I think that they will get over it.

I would like to say that we have lofty goals to reach this coming year, but we don't.  I think that like alot of people we are just wanting to get through each day as it comes.  Our only hope so far for the New Year is to sell our house in Reedsport.  After that everything else will be good.

This is the time of year that people should be saying wise and profound things, but for those of you who know me, I'm not really capable of that.  So, I will just leave you with the hope that you all have a wonderful and blessed New Year.