The Christmas season is upon us

Well it is definitely Christmas time around here.  The lights, decorations, and tree are up.  Matthew is really digging the lights and tree this year.  Matthew still doesn't get the whole concept of Christmas but I think that is what is making it so magical this year.  He isn't at the stage of asking everyday when is Christmas and asking for a million presents.  He really is just enjoying the decorations and he especially loves the christmas stuffed animals that only come out at Christmas time.  Every morning he tells them "hi guys."  He really doesn't have a clue that he is supposed to get presents and I think that is great.  I wish more kids would just enjoy the magic and true meaning of Christmas rather than counting how many presents they are getting.  Don't get me wrong, I used to "count" my presents, but I hope that isn't the only thing that matters at Christmas.  In the coming years I'm sure Matthew will start "counting" his presents.  It's only a matter of time :)  Despite how commercialized Christmas has become we must remember that the true reason for the season came as a baby in a manger.  Thank you God for sending us your son.  I added a song to the playlist (Breath of Heaven) which pretty much sums up the meaning of Christmas for me.

Blessings to you all!

Decorating the tree

Betsey

Thanksgiving

Cousins playing in the leaves

Ahhh that feels good!

The turkey!

Matthew and Momma (Matthew discovered "ice popsicles" and he thought they were the greatest!

The family!

Had a great Thanksgiving at our house this year.  We hosted this year so that was nice.  We didn't have an overwhelming crowd so it was very manageable.  All I really had to do was clean the house and pretty much everything else was taken care of.  Mark did the turkey, potatoes, and veggies, and the in-laws did the stuffing and dessert.  Not a bad deal.  As you know in Texas you could easily be wearing shorts on Thanksgiving but not this year.  It was very cold that day which was great.  We had our 1st fire of the year.  So warm and cozy!  Matthew did great.  He seems to be "detaching" from me some which is nice, but for the most part I am still the main woman in his life right now which I guess I should enjoy because someday that won't be the case.  Enjoy the pics!

Toddler blues!

Oh the frustrations of raising a toddler.  Don't get me wrong, I'm trying to enjoy every moment but sometimes those moments are not enjoyable.  Lately Matthew has been very indecisive and resistant with everything.  I know, probably just a typical toddler phase, but boy is it frustrating.  I can't help to always wonder if it is worse because of his language delay.  I know, I know, it seems I am always using the "language delay card"  but I do feel it plays a part.  Sometimes it is just so hard communicating with Matthew.  He has improved a lot but he has quite a ways to go.  Also sometimes it is so hard to just "play" with Matthew.  He gets so easily frustrated and even when I follow his lead he will get all "freaky" on me and storm off.  I just can't figure him out sometimes. 

I guess I can say we are "officially potty training" and well I guess it is going okay.  He will sit on the potty but he has to be bribed with a vitamin, cookie, or M & M's.  He has never actually done anything in the potty but at least he will sit on it.  I think it's going to be a long road.  I am hoping he is potty trained by the time he is 4.  I'm pretty sure he is the only one in his typical preschool class that isn't potty trained yet.  Oh well.  I'm sure he won't be going to high school in a pull up. 

On a more positive note Matthew still loves to cuddle with "momma." and can be such a sweetheart and he still such cutie pie and that boy sure can throw a ball good.  I see sports in his future :)

I think I am done complaining.  Thanks for reading!

How could you not love this face.

Until next time.

Matthew knows his name!

Yep, you read right.  Matthew knows his name now.  If I ask him what his name is, he gets a big smile on his face and says "Matew."  It is one of those big speech milestones we have been waiting patiently for and at 3 1/2 he can finally tell me what his name is.  Way to go Matthew!  We are getting there slowly but surely. 

Just wanted to share!

Grandma's visit, Halloween, and other updates!

It's so easy to get behind on the blog and before you know it there is so much to update on.  Well Grandma from Del Rio was here recently.  Had a nice visit as usual.   She comes every October for about a week.  She is soooo great with Matthew and Matthew always warms up to her very quickly.  I did have to share her this time around but it was for good reason.  My stepbrother and his wife just had a baby boy name Jayce.  He is such a cutie and a good baby and she spent a few days with him.  We managed to get some time to ourselves, went to church and got to go to the pumpkin patch so we did get a lot done.  She will be back in Feb. after Luke arrives (yeaaaa!!!).

Had a good Halloween.  Attempted to make a fire hydrant costume for Matthew and lets just say it was a big flop.  I was one dissapointed mamma.  Matthew has been into fire hydrants since before he was 2 and it is showing no signs of slowing down.  He would have made a great fire hydrant.  Oh well, maybe next year.  Dad had to go out at 9:30 at night to Walmart to find another costume because Matthew needed it the next day.  Thanks Mark :)  He brought him back a doctor costume which worked out great.   Matthew had a Halloween party on Friday at his preschool and Halloween night we had a Fall Festival/trunk or treat at our church which was a lot of fun.   He really doesn't get the whole concept of Halloween just yet, but he definitely understands what the candy is :)

The pregnancy is going very well.  I am 25 weeks.  YIKES!  I am more than half way there.  So far no problems.  Luke moves around a lot and seems to be growing well.  It really isn't reality that I will be having another baby but the reality doesn't really set in until the baby is actually in your arms and then it is panic time.  I am scrambling to finish my medical transcription course.  I have to be done by 12/31 or else I have to reenroll which isn't an option.  I am almost done so it shouldn't be a problems meeting the deadline.  I am hoping to have 4 to 6 weeks before Luke arrives to get some stuff done around the house.  There is a lot to do before Luke arrives.

My latest nephew!

At the pumpkin patch with momma

At the pumpkin patch with Grandma

Carving the pumpkin with Dada

It's a pumpkin!

Paging Doctor Matthew

Yummy sucker

Until next time!



It's a boy!
"Luke" at 21 weeks



Trip to Iowa and Indiana

Well Matthew and I had a great time on our trip to Iowa and Indiana!  We drove and it took 2 days there and back.  Overall, Matthew did well with the long car ride.  It was actually a nice drive.  It's nice seeing other parts of the country.  I do have to say I fell in love with the midwest.  It seems like a wonderful place to live.  Our 1st stop was Iowa to see my brother and his wife and their foster daughter who is 17 months.  She is a cutie pie.  I will be respecting her privacy so there won't be any pictures of her posted on the blog.  We stayed with them for a few days and had a nice time.  Our next stop was Indiana where my best friend since 9th grade and her husband and 2 kids now live.  They moved there a year and a half ago.  Stayed there for about a week and had a great time.  We went to the Ft. Wayne children's zoo.  Phenomenol zoo by the way.  Also went to a Fall festival and had a blast there.  They live next to an Amish town so that was quite a treat.  Saw horse and buggies in action.  Pretty neat stuff.  Anyway enjoy the pics!  Also all the fire hydrants in the midwest are yellow.  Matthew could spot them a mile away it seemed :)

By the way, we find out tomorrow what we are having.  So far the pregnancy is going well.  I will update after the appt :)

Betsey

1st week at Preschool Language Class (PLC)

Well the 1st week went well.  No problems.  He didn't mind being dropped off at all.  They have snack right when they get there so I just bring his breakfast with him and he can eat it at school.  It hasn't been too bad getting up early and getting him to school.  It is actually great for me because it forces me to get up and get ready and I do have to admit I am enjoying the free time in the morning. 

His teacher and teacher's aide seem great so far.  Once everyone gets settled in the speech therapist will start coming about 2/week to do speech therapy.  It will be a "group session" for now which is fine with me for now.  That's usually how it works in the school district unless you request otherwise.  I think for Matthew the best therapy is just being around other kids.  Every 6 weeks I will get a progress report on how he is doing, sort of like a report card but of course he won't be receiving actual grades.  I do kinda wish he could go 5 days a week but the reality is I have to work some so it just isn't an option.  Oh well.

Enjoy the pic!  Yes, we have already found the "da di di's" at his school :)  I haven't had a chance to take any other pictures yet.  When I do I will post them.

Until next time,

Betsey

Meet the teacher night!

Well I went to "meet the teacher night" at Matthew's school.  As most of you know he will be attending a preschool language class (PLC) 3 days a week from 7:45-11:00 a.m. starting next week.  It is with our local public school district.  When I first drove up I was a little overwhelmed because the parking lot was a zoo.  There were cars and people everywhere.  It was obvious that it was "meet the teacher night" for every grade.  Once I found his class all was well.  His teacher (Miss Smith) seems like she is going to be great.  She is very outgoing and enthusiastic.  She had a shirt on that said "PLC Rocks" and she said that "her PLC kids" are the best kids in the whole school.  I think it is safe to say at this point that she is passionate about her job and "her PLC kids."  It does feel a little strange that my 3-year-old is starting school.  It really doesn't feel like "real school" yet.  Its not like he will have homework (at least I hope not) :)  He will only be there for about 3 hours but looks like it will be full of activities and structure and of course fun.  It will be good for Matthew.  Yes, he is making a lot of progress in his language but he still has a ways to go and this class is here to help him do that.  I think there will be about 8 or so kids in his class and they range in age from 3 to 5. 

I will update after his 1st week. 

Blessings,
Betsey

Had a 2nd ultrasound!

I decided to go forth with the 1st trimester screening with this pregnancy.  What it entails is an ultrasound between 11 and 13 weeks and bloodwork. I did debate whether this extra testing was necessary because regardless we would be continuing the pregnancy and it wouldn't change anything but I decided I would rather be prepared just in case something was wrong.  Since I am "advanced maternal age" the risks are a little bit higher for chromosomal abnormalities.  If something did show up concerning then they would recommend further testing and do more frequent ultrasounds to monitor the baby closer.  The ultrasound is done with a high-risk doctor and we had that done yesterday and everything so far looked great.  The baby is measuring right on target for 13 weeks and he didn't see anything concerning at this point.  We still have to wait for the bloodwork and of course we will still be getting the 20-week ultrasound.  Some doctor's are making gender predictions at these early ultraounds so of course I had to ask what his "prediction/guess" was.  Of course he said it is too early to say with certainity but he thinks there is "something sticking out" so maybe a boy :)  Yep, possibly another boy.  I would be thrilled with that.  We will know for sure at the 20-week ultrasound. 

Feeling pretty good most days but I do have days where I just feel "blah."  It is soooooo hot right now too so it is pretty much impossible to get outside and do anything.  I really want to start walking again but it is just too hot.  I am so ready for Fall.  I hope it comes early this year.

Blessings,
Betsey

Blog makeover in progress!

Bear with me while I tweak the layout of my blog.  The template I had went away and I couldn't figure out how to restore it.  I am not a computer guru.  I am working on getting it how I like.  I will be updating soon!

Betsey

We're expecting baby #2

We are excited to announce that we are expecting baby #2.  I am 8 weeks along and had my 1st OB visit today and everything looked great. There is really a little "baby bean" in there and only 1 (yeaaa!!!).  The heartbeat is strong at 164.  Due date for now is 2/18/11.  So far the pregnancy has been going well.  Some mild nausea, cravings, and tiredness but overall not much to speak of.  I do feel "bigger" this time and will probably show much earlier this time. 

Enjoy the pic!

Matthew is 3 years old!

Hard to believe Matthew is 3 years old.  We had a great birthday party/cookout at the house with friends and family.  Matthew had a blast.  Unlike the last 2 birthday parties where Matthew was attached to me, this year he was off playing with the other kids and having a blast!  I couldn't even get him to sit down and eat.  As most of you know Matthew is really into fire hydrants.  The highlight of the party was the custom made fire hydrant pinata made in Mexico that Grandpa Carroll brought.  It was very large and red.  Matthew loved it.  Matthew also sported a fire hydrant shirt and that was topped off with a fire hydrant cup.  Mamma alos made a fire hydrant cake.  It turned out okay.  Lets just say I won''t be quitting my day job anytime soon :) 

Until next time :)

Matthew's IEP

I went to Matthew's 1st ARD meeting yesterday with the school district and overall it went well.  They did his IEP which is an Individualized Education Plan.  Basically his education plan is individualized to what he needs.  Obviously most of goals are to improve his language/communication skills.  He will be officially starting on August 23rd and I have to register him for school.  I have to do all the same things as if he was starting kindergarten.  It is kinda of strange that I am enrolling my 3 year old in school but it will be for the best.  He will be attending Tues, Wed, and Thursdays.  I REALLY WANT MORNINGS, but I may have to settle for afternoons.  They are going to try to get him in the morning class, but I may have to take the afternoon class.  If that is the only thing I have to complain about then I am doing good.  It will be exciting to see how he progesses next year.  I think Matthew will be making a lot of progress this next year.  Watch out everyone, soon Matthew will be talking your ear off.

Until next time!

An update on the Krueger family

All is well here.  Summer has officially kicked in.  It may not be officially summer on the calendar, but as most of you know Texas doesn't wait around for the first official day of summer to start heating up.  I am a summer person at heart though.  I would take the heat any day over the cold.  I have a lot of wonderful memories in the summer so I think I just associate summer with happy.

Matthew will be 3 very soon.  Wow!  Where did the time go.  I am enjoying watching him grow.  He is coming along.  He is up to about 100 words and some of them are even easy to understand.  Imagine that!  ECI will be ending this month and he will be transitioning to the school district in the Fall so he can continue services for his speech and language.  I received his results from the evaluation that the school did in April and they say he has a moderate expressive/receptive language delay and a moderate articulation delay.  I agree with it.  He qualifies for the preschool language class which is 5 days a week/3 hours a day, but I will only be able to send him 3 days a week.  I think it will be a good class for him and they will be working to get his speech and language up to age level.  He also saw the developmental pedi at the Child Study Center this week for a follow up.  She was pleased with his progress, but agrees that he still has a speech and language delay.  She is optimistic though, but did say that he is at a higher risk for learning disabilities but it really is too soon to know.  She will see him again next summer when he is 4.

So what else is going on.  It seems I am always writing about Matthew.  Work is good.  We have been staying very busy for the last several months which is great for me.  We have had A LOT of twins lately.  Not sure what is going on with that, but for some reason there are a lot of them.  Mark is good.  Business at his work is good.  Not great, but good.  We will take what we can get.  Of course he is working around the house with a lot of various projects.  He likes to stay busy.  My hard working man :)

Well, Matthew and I are going to Iowa to see my brother and his wife and then we are going to Indiana to see my best friend and her family.  We will be going in September and will be gone about 2 weeks.  We will be driving.  I am looking forward to it. 

This pic I posted is of Matthew and his great grandmother who is called "Oma."  Oma just turned 92 and Matthew is in love with her.  She lives in Del Rio and Matthew and I were down there recently for a week and now when he sees any white haired lady he yells "UUUUMA"  which is his word for Oma.  It is very cute. 

Until next time!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all you wonderful mothers.  This day really didn't carry that much significance until I became a Mother.  Sure, I enjoyed acknowledging my mom's on Mother's Day but you don't really "get it" until you become a Mom yourself. 

I am blessed to have had more than one Mom.  I have a biological Mom who made the selfless decision to give me life back in 1973.  I have the most upmost respect for her for making the right decision because we all know she could have made a different choice and well I wouldn't be here writing on my blog.  My adopted Mom, well that's complicated.  All I can say is she did the best she could, and I learned a lot from her, and I probably wouldn't be the person I am today because of her.  She lived a tough life and had many struggles in her life.  She passed away this past year at the age of 60.  Even though she had some shortcomings as a Mother she never lacked in her ability to love me unconditionally, and I love her for that.  Rest in peace Mom!  God also blessed me immensley with a wonderful stepmother who has been in my life since I was 8.  I could not imagine my life without her.  God knew that I would need her to fill in the gaps where my adopted Mom lacked.  God is good that way!  I also can't forget to mention my wonderful mother-in-law.  She is the best!

Now that I am a mother I understand the love mother's have for their children.  It is truly the hardest and most rewarding job ever.  If only their were guidebooks though :)  Now I understand when people would say "I would die for my child."  I get it now because I would do the same.

Trip to Del Rio

Me, Mark and Matthew went to Del Rio to visit family this past week for a few days. Matthew and I have been several times.

A little background: My Dad, stepmom, stepsister, her husband and kids and my grandparents all moved down there in 1996. My Dad sold his nice home, quit his job as vice president of sales and marketing and bought a trailer on a couple of acres in Del Rio. I'm sure you are wondering why. Well his passion is the people of Mexico so he does mission work in Ciudad Acuna. He has worked with various orphanages and currently has a home for unwed teenage pregnant moms. He helps them with the pregnancy and teaches them how to be good moms and gives them lots of love and lots of rules and boundaries. They have to go to school or work. He is doing some good work and is showing them God's love.

I hate that they are that far but I'm used to it now. It is about 420 miles so it's about a 7 to 8 hour drive. Matthew does very well in the car. I am able to get down there fairly often since I only work 2 days a week. Matthew and I are going again in a couple of weeks and will be staying a week. I enjoy going. There isn't much to do in Del Rio but that's what I like about it. It's relaxing and we spend most of are days doing nothing. Love it.

This past visit was good! Matthew's 2nd cousin was there as well who is 2 1/2. He is a cutie. Of course he is very advanced in his language but other than that he is a typical 2 year old. His Dad is VERY SMART so the advanced language is no surprise. Matthew and him really didn't have too much interest in each other. I think they saw each other as a "threat" to each other. Especially if there were toys involved :) Typical selfish nature of 2 year olds.

Until next time!

Betsey

PPCD evaluation

Well today Matthew had his evaluation with the Mansfield ISD to see if he qualifies for services when he is 3. There was a speech therapist and a diagnostician and Matthew did very well today. He was cooperative and had fun. They really just played and interacted with him and asked me questions. I also had to fill out several questionnares prior to the evaluation. Today was just a time to gather information and they will call me back for a meeting prior to his 3rd birthday to give me all the results of the evaluations and they will let me know if he qualifies for services and what they recommend. Of course I had to ask if they think he would qualify based on what they saw today and they didn't hesitate to say "yes." Even though Matthew did well with the evaluation he does have a significant communication impairement. He just isn't communicating like he should. Does it make me sad? Of course, but at the same time there is still a lot of hope because he is still young. There is a good chance that he will be all caught up by kindergarten but there is always that possibility that he won't and I am accepting of that. I do fear that all these language impairments may be a sign of later learning disabilities. Only time will tell.

I have been doing some reading on language delays and was looking back on Matthew's visit with Dr. Mauk in September and she did diagnose him with "developmental language disorder" which is another term for "specific language impairment." Kids with specific language impairment have problems with expressive and receptive language that can snowball into other issues such as social, self help and cognitive delays. A very high percentage of these kids go on to have learning disabilities so getting help early is key. There is a lot of information on specific language impairment and it seems to fit Matthew very well.

I will update when I have the "official results" of his evaluation.

Betsey

What's new with us!

Things are good here. Had a good Easter. Matthew scored 3 easter baskets. We had a small family easter egg hunt in our backyard. He enjoyed that. He did get the hang of finding the eggs and was very proud when he would find an egg.

The cat is working out great. He has actually been a wonderful addition to the family. The cats name has changed to "Mia." Not really a boy cat name but that is what Matthew calls him so "Mia" it is. "Mia" is Matthew's word for meow so basically he calls all cats "Mia." The cat is very tolerable of Matthew and is quite playful. The cat loves to be out back with all of us and likes "playing ball" with Matthew.

Found out my Aunt Vicky passed away. She was only 60. Sad. She lived in New York. She lived a tough life. Hopefully she is at peace now! I really didn't know her too well. Saw her a lot when I was a kid, but didn't see her much as an adult. That's the reality of extended families these days. Noone really lives close anymore. It's kinda of sad.

Matthew's evaluation with the school district is set for April 20th. I will update when I get those results. He is doing pretty well. His word list is growing. He is up to about 60 words. Go Matthew. I will be curious to see what the school district thinks. ECI will end in June and I think I will just lay low with Matthew the rest of the summer. I think it will be good for him to have no therapy for a few months.

Enjoy the pics! "Mia" loves to climb trees in the backyard so there is a picture of him in a tree. He was way up there.

Until next time!

Matthew's cast is off and he is in a big boy bed.

Well the cast came off yesterday! Yeaaa!! Other than having a skinny, very dry and flaky leg it otherwise looks good. He will have to wear a walking boot for the next 2 to 3 weeks, but we can take it off for naps, bedtime, and baths. He had his 1st tub bath tonight. Its been almost 5 weeks since his last tub bath. He isn't walking much yet but he should start walking in the next few days. It will be nice when everything is back to normal.

Matthew is finally in a big boy bed. He is almost 3 so I figured it was definitely time to get him out of his crib. I really didn't have a reason why he is still in his crib but I really didn't have a reason to get him out of his crib. Most toddlers move out of their cribs because they are climbing out of it or they have a new little brother or sister on the way that needs it. I was one of the lucky ones because Matthew was good about entertaining himself in his crib when he woke up so I was able to get some extra sleep :) I admit, I have been spoiled. The first couple of nights have gone well, but he didn't take his nap today. I thought he was sleeping but then I heard a very loud banging noise on his door. He was throwing his toys at his door and he made a big mess in his room. We'll see how tomorrow goes.

Enjoy the pics of Matthew's noncasted leg and him sleeping in his big boy bed. Notice the "da di di" (a.k.a. fire hydrant) right next to his bed. His "da di di" also goes "night night" when he does.

Whats new!

Hope everyone is getting used to the blog rather than the share site. I know, change is hard. I am still getting used to the blog as well. Mark and I had a nice visit from Mike (brother in law) this past weekend. He is always great to have around. He loves seeing Matthew and we always have good talks. We had a great conversation about rasing kids. Raising kids is likely the most difficult job on the planet. There is no training and no guidebooks. You just kind of have to figure it out as you go along. There will likely be many mistakes along the way, but hopefully the things you do right will outweigh the mistakes.

Matthew is good. His word list is growing. His latest word is "wa wa". Yep, that's his word for giraffe. Grandma Carroll will be happy to hear that Matthew has a word for giraffe. She LOVES giraffes. Matthew is still very much in love with his "da di di" (a.k.a. fire hydrant). We put "da di di" to bed every night now and "da di di" even gets baths :). I have decided that the theme of his 3rd birthday is going to be fire hydrants. Should be interesting :) Matthew still has his long leg cast. He gets it off in a week (yeaaaaaa!). He is walking on it which is an interesting sight. Overall he has done pretty well with it.

My brother and his wife live in Iowa and are in the foster to adopt program. Well they just got a little 9 month old boy named Ben that they are fostering with hopes of adopting. Just saw pictures today and he is a cutie. Pray that everything works out for them. Ben would be very lucky to have Allan and Katherine as his parents.

Work is good. We are still slow so there is always the fear of getting cancelled, but so far it has been ok. Working Sunday nights is working out well. As long as I get a good nap in that afternoon I can usually make it through the night ok.

That's all I can think of for now.

Betsey

Enjoy the pic of Matthew with his Uncle Mike and "dada" on Uncle Mike's Harley.

Introduction

So who are we? My name is Betsey and I have been married to my wonderful husband Mark since July 2005. We met through a friend and things really got going after hanging out at a Stryper reunion concert together. We are both huge Stryper fans so it was just meant to be for us to be together.

We have 1 son named Matthew who was born on June 24, 2007. Can't believe he will be 3 in June. Where did the time go? Matthew is a very handsome boy and his mommy and daddy love him very much. Matthew is speech delayed. He has about 30-40 words and his first words didn't really come until after age 2. He has been in ECI since his 1st birthday and is receiving speech therapy. He is doing much better than when we started. There were some concerns about autism because he did have a lot of "red flags" like no pointing, no babbling, limited waving/clapping, etc.... The "red flags" have gone away, but we are still dealing with the speech delay. ECI ends at age 3 so he will transfer to the school district and will likely attend PPCD (preschool program for children with disabilities). The school will evaluate him and recommend what they think is best. He currently attends a wonderful preschool program 2 days a week and I enrolled him for 3 days a week in the Fall. I would like to contine with that preschool and use the school district as a supplement. I do believe that he is more than just a "late talker", and I think he will need all the help he can get to get his language skills to age level. It's hard to know what the future holds, but we will be there for him every step of the way. He has been evaluated by a developmental pediatrician and will see her again in June.

I have been an RN since 1998 and love it. I currently work 2 days a week in the NICU. I love working in the NICU, and I feel so blessed to be able to work part time so I can be home most of the week with Matthew. It brings a nice balance. The days that I do work are a nice break. Mothers of young kids know what I mean.

Matthew LOVES fire hydrants so the reason for the pic with Matthew and a fire hydrant.

P.S. Matthew had his 1st dentist appt. today and it went well. All they did was look in his mouth. His teeth look good! Next time they want to do a teeth cleaning. Good luck with that!

Good news and bad news

I will start with the bad news first. I am no longer going to use my K-Family Happenings share site, but the good news is I am starting a blog. I felt to limited with the share site and wanted to give blogging a try. This will now be the place to get updates on whats happening with us. Be sure to put my blog in your favorites so you can visit often :)