On the Road Again

 Just in case he forgets who he works for...

It's the last week of recruiting for Tyson...hallelujah!

Honestly, recruiting hasn't been that bad this spring.  With me not working on the weekends anymore, it is much more tolerable.  Plus, the first 2 weeks flew by since we had exciting weekend plans (the trip to Tifton and then to the beach) to look forward to.

I'm definitely going to miss Tyson, though, these next few days.  He has taken such good care of me, the boys, the dog, the house, etc this weekend.  I don't know how he gets it all done and still manages to work, but he does.  He is simply amazing.  I am one lucky girl.

And now the countdown to the end of recruiting begins!  Not much longer til vacation!  Woohoo!!

Thank for the beautiful plant, Mary Ann!  That was so sweet of you!  The boys have LOVED smelling it! ;)

Moo-stache

Mama has a "moo-stache," as Jake calls it. ;)

This is what I looked like yesterday when I got home.  Today, I'm much more swollen and bruised- you will definitely not be seeing any pictures of that!  Ha!

I'm doing much better than I thought, which is why I am able to blog.  I'm still in a great deal of pain, but it is tolerable.  I think once you've carried 9 lb babies and had 2 c-sections, you must develop a higher threshold for pain.  That, or I'm super tough, or the surgery really wasn't that painful.  Ha!

The surgeon said the surgery went well and my cyst was the size of a walnut, which is huge considering the size of that space.  Hopefully, I'll start seeing some relief from some of my symptoms now that that thing is gone.  My septoplasty went well...that is by far the most painful part, though.  I've got these splints in my nose that will be pulled Monday, so I'm kind of a sitting duck until then.  Unfortunately, the septoplasty will not alter the appearance of my nose; boo for a would-be free nose job!

My mom is here and is taking good care of the boys and me.  Tyson was able to stay with me during surgery but had to go back to work afterwards and then was sent on the road recruiting for most of the weekend and next week. :(  Like I said, though, my mom is here and is being a rockstar, as always.  I don't know what I'd do without her.  The ENT said I had to be off work (aka mom duties) for a week, so I'm enjoying a little mini-vacation from my bed while my mom takes over. 

Well, that's all for now.  I'm a little loopy as I write this, so please excuse any grammatical errors or just plain nonsense.  Thanks for all of your prayers!   

Mother's Day

Ok, so I know this picture isn't the greatest, but believe it or not, it was the best one we got for Mother's Day.  Tyson and I had stayed out too late the night before and it is written all over my face; Walker was throwing a massive temper-tantrum in the background and refused to be photographed; and Jake was like "will someone please get that kid to be quiet?"  Ha!  Happy Mother's Day to me!  ;)  Just kidding...it was an awesome day and weekend...just a really bad time for a picture.

I just wanted to let everyone know that I'm going to be taking a break from the blog for a little while.  I'm finally having surgery tomorrow to remove the cyst from my sinus cavity, but they are also fixing my deviated septum, my nasal passageways, and a few other things that are causing complications to my eyes and ears.  I really have no idea what to expect....my CT scan looked pretty messed up.  I'm pretty sure, though, I'm going to look like I got hit in the face with a baseball bat.  Ha!  Prayers would be much appreciated!  Thanks!

Downtown Disney

 The T-Rex Cafe

 Buzz and Woody!!...and some creepy guy that purposefully posed for the picture.

 It might not look like it, but that dinosaur was right in Tyson's face and would make a loud squawking sound every 20 minutes...right in his ear.  Tyson loved it.

 Jake told me the other day that when he grows up, he wants to be a paleontologist. :)

Walker, who was over-due for a nap at this time, saying, "my cookie" as Jake reached for it.

Tyson finally rolled back into town from recruiting around 3 am Saturday morning, so we had a slow weekend this past weekend.  We decided to head to Downtown Disney for lunch since we've never been, and it was awesome!!  We went to the T-Rex Cafe to appease my little paleontologist and his little brother, and let me say this, that was by far the coolest place I've ever eaten.  Every 20 minutes or so, there was a "meteor shower," which meant the lights would flicker and the dinosaurs would "come alive."  So, so cool.  The kids LOVED it!  We will definitely be going back!    

Muffins with Mom

Jake's class had "Muffins with Mom" earlier this week to celebrate Mother's Day, and I got to go.  For some reason or another, I've always missed Muffins with Mom when we were in Birmingham, so I wasn't going to miss it again this year.  It was so sweet.  Jake was soooo proud to show off his Mama, which is so unlike him, but I ate up every second of it. :) Love my sweet boy!

Happy Mother's Day!!

Character Confusion

Ironman/Spiderman meets Ironman/Storm Trooper

So...who wins this fight?

Happy Paws

 Sam and Jake

Despite the sad puppy dog eyes, Sam was actually really excited to Jake. :) 

 Pretty boy came home with a bandana around his neck, but I took it off since the boys were making fun of him.  Ha!

While we were gone this past weekend, Sam stayed at this awesome place, Happy Paws.  Happy Paws is a  pretty much a pimp little dog hotel with an awesome little doggie pool and everything!  As you can imagine, Sam was a little disappointed when we came to pick him up!  Ha!  If you live in the Orlando area, I would highly recommend this place.

Feeding the "Tuttles"

There is a cute little pond by my parents' condo in St. Simons that has tons of little turtles (or "tuttles" as Walker says it) in it.  I'm not a big turtle fan, but these little turtles are so cool...they see you coming and swim right over to you.  They obviously get fed a lot and are used to it, and my boys LOVE feeding them, too.  My dad said they are snapping turtles, so I haven't attempted to grab one yet.  However, Jake is dieing to see one up-close, so I have a feeling I might end up taking my chances one day.  Oh the things we do for our kids!  Ha!  Mom thinks we need to buy our own turtle, decorate its shell with the kids' names, and put it in the pond.  I think that's more up my alley...what do you think?

Back to St. Simons Island!

 Tyson made many a trips to the water with Walker to fill up his bucket. :)

 Look!  A stegosaurus fossil!

 Jake, the Paleontologist. 

 So busted throwing sand...

 ...so busted eating sand!

Tyson was gone all last week recruiting in Georgia, so the boys and I drove up to St. Simons this past weekend to meet him.  The weather was perfect; it was sunny in the high 80's the whole time.  The boys really enjoyed playing in the the sand since the water was still a little chilly.  Walker had no problem jumping right in, though, despite the water temperature; Jake, on the other hand, wouldn't go but about ankle deep.  Ha!

It was a short trip, but we had so much fun.  In fact, Tyson said, we should come here every weekend!  Ha!  He also didn't have to make the 4 hour drive with two little ones in the car by himself!  Yep, the boys and I have logged 16 hours on the road these past 2 weekends, so I think we'll stay put for a while.  It was definitely worth it, though, to get to see Daddy these past two weekends.  Now hurry up and come home, Tyson!  We miss you!

**For some reason, Walker's hair is looking a little red in these pictures.  I'm not sure why, but I can assure you it is just as blond as can be...for now. :)