Bad things come in 3's.

So, it all hit at once.

1. The stomach bug- three kiddos over 5 days and one trip to the ER while Matt was out of town. Sleepless night full of worry, countless loads of laundry, lots of time spent disinfecting. Luckily (or unluckily) I got it the day after he got home. At least I was able to lock myself in our room and rest for a quick recovery.

2. A dog bite. I take pilates classes at an in home studio where the instructor allows her dog to stay while we work out. He is a rescued, albino, mostly blind and mostly deaf great dane. About 180 lbs and big. Normally he is gentle and just lays quietly on the ground next to my machine. This particular morning, as I went to pull my ponytail from behind my head he took my neck in his mouth and bit me. Luckily (or unluckily) if he had wanted to really hurt me he could have and all I got was this-

which warranted a round of antibiotics and some apprehension about dogs.

3. All others pale in comparison to when my mom called to tell me her doctor had found a polyp on her colon during her last colonoscopy. Colon cancer runs in our family with my aunt passing away at a young age with it. My mother gets checked every two years so as optimistic as we all wanted to be it rang too close to our hearts. The next procedure brought stress as the doctor never followed up and a nurse ended up telling my mother, on the phone, she had colon cancer and the doctor would call her soon. Turns out the sample had to be sent for a second opinion which resulted in laparoscopic surgery to remove it. All in all, luckily (or unluckily), we are as thankful as ever it was PREcancerous, is now removed and my mother is recovering. We are counting our blessings and sending sweet prayers to my momma.

Hoping the next several months are uneventful.

9-1-1, It was bound to happen.

Sometimes it is hard to tell if Luke and Eli are particularly rambunctious or if they are just being boys. I know they have lots of energy and laugh while jumping, spinning and flipping off just about anything in our house.

Yesterday I went to change the laundry in the basement, heard a scream and as I was running up the stairs heard Luke say, "Eli has blood." I walk in to find Eli holding his toothbrush (which he can be found doing about 25% of the day) full of blood and screaming. I picked him up, he was hysterical and I asked Luke what happened.

In Luke's terms, "I bumped him off the stool (in the bathroom where they brush their teeth) and he hit his head." There was a lot of blood and I was having trouble telling where it was coming from. I took Eli to the sink to wash him off but it just kept coming. I tried to lay him down but when I did that he started to whimper, his eyes fluttered and I had no idea what was happening. I called 911 thinking maybe he had a concussion. They instructed me to keep him upright.

Once they arrived Eli had calmed down and was waving at the firetrucks as they pulled up. We all thought the blood was coming from his mouth, the paramedic looked him over as best he could but stubborn Eli would not let go of me or let anyone look in his mouth. Turns out he had gashed his chin. We decided to forgo an ambulance ride and take him to our pediatrician to get it fixed up. Forget stitches, nowadays they have super glue. Within the hour he was as good as new, proud of his boo boo.

Lo and behold, ten minutes after this he fell out of the cart at Costco. Oh sweet love. Then proceeded to trip over his fire truck once we were home and get a fat lip.

Well, not my most stellar day as a mother.

Lesson learned~ Luke is very adventuresome and while Eli so wants and so tries to keep up with him, I need to set boundaries. If you were to ask Luke what my job as a mother is he will tell you, "To keep me safe and healthy." I am hoping these boundaries will do just that.

Really, Snow White too.

What is it about Disney stories that just entrance children? Luke loves Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I can just not get passed some parts of the story line~ the evil queen, the request to kill Snow White, the huntsman needing to return with her heart inside a box to prove the task was completed, magic mirrors and potions and then her laying in a casket. Hmm....the pictures do not help the either. Thank goodness for a black Sharpie marker.

A seemingly innocent and jovial story.

Throughout the book, I found the following words~ magic- 4 times, evil- 2 times, wicked- 2 times, kill- 2 times, blood- 1 time, casket- 3 times and goblin- 2 times.

On this page, the "evil queen is looking for a magic potion." Notice the skull on the table and the "bird that is mad" as Luke refers to it.

As a mother, I feel it is upon me to protect my children from those things in which they are too young to comprehend. Whether it comes from Disney, a child in the neighborhood or something seen out in public, I owe it to them.