The most wonderful time of the year!

Ok, so Fall is by far my most favorite season of the year! Perfect weather, beautiful colors, football and fairs, what's not to love?! So this past weekend was a weekend jam packed full of fun things to do.

Saturday night, we had a Fall Festival at our neighborhood clubhouse. They had bounce houses, corn hole, football/baseball throwing, face painting, an outdoor movie, and even a duck shooting game (the kind they use at the MWRA gun permit classes)! It was put on by our HOA. A few months ago, me and Paul had a discussion and I told him that he needed to get more involved down here. We have hung out with our neighbors a few times and of course my sister, and I have bunko once a month, but Paul really hasn't stepped out. So, he went to an HOA meeting and came home as a HOA Board member! He also volunteered us to help with the Fall Festival, which means he will help and I will chase our son around for a few hours! =) But it urned out to be a great time until a kid that lives down the street from us (Charlie) decided to ride his Lightning McQueen car down to the party. And Kaleb HAD to ride it. First, he rode with Charlie, and then took it over completely. When his friend Brooks got there, they both rode it till the batteries went dead (at which point he LOST HIS MIND!). We ended up leaving a little early but our neighbors came over and the kids played while we watched the UT vs Georgia game that we had DVR'd. It was a really fun, and really exhausting night! I took a video of Kaleb and Brooks in the car! (It's really supposed to be a one-person car!)

Sunday we decided to get up and go to the Mississippi State Fair in downtown Jackson. It is a lot like the MidSouth Fair but not quite as big. Every year, Paul and I go to the fair for the food, but this year, we knew Kaleb would be big enough to ride some of the kiddie rides. My sister and her husband met us there at 10, when the gates opened, but the rides didn't start till 12! So we just walked around and tried to kill time, going into the FFA Livestock barn and watching some motorcycle/tightrope walking circus. It was actually kind of nice because no one was there yet and you could just look at things. Of course Kaleb wanted to ride every single golf cart/rhino that he saw (which resulted in a few meltdowns when we said no).  Another reason I wanted to take Kaleb this year was the pony rides. He loves horses and I just knew he would want to ride one. Um... nope! He was scared to death and clung to me for dear life when I even tried to get him to pet it! But then, thank goodness, a kid half his age came in and started to ride. Monkey see, monkey do I guess because Kaleb couldn't get on there fast enough! He was so cute! After that, we went down to the petting zoo. I'm not sure who likes them more, Kaleb or me. They had a huge variety of animals including goats, llamas, scottish cows, mini donkeys, a camel, a zebra, a tortise and some kind of antelope. The camel was by far Kaleb's favorite! We let him feed them carrots and every time the camel would turn to get another kid's carrot, Kaleb would yell "Hey CAMEL! Here!" It was so cute! By the time we were done there, the rides had started. First, I rode with him on a Bumblebee Ride that goes up and down while going in circles. It was pretty fun. The next one was a tug boat the we thought just swung back and forth. Paul rode that one with him. When it started, not only did it swing back and forth, it spun in circles (see the video). I could barely catch his face as he went by but Paul said he was yelling "Weeeee!". So I got on there for a second ride and it was really fun. The next thing was a motocycle ride that he had to get on by himself. After strapping him in, we were shocked to see how fast it actually went, but he loved it. He also rode an airplane ride by himself that was alot like the bumblebee ride (see the video), and of course the carousel. The only ride he did not enjoy (or us either), was the Nascar ride. It was another one that we couldn't ride with him, so Paul strapped him in and he looked excited. The cars went on a oval track, like a real nascar track, not too fast, but when it came time to round the corner, it SLUNG him so hard he hit the side of the car and didn't move! He didn't cry, but he looked scared to death. We were about to tell the guy to stop the ride but luckily, the ride only lasted about a minute and a half. I think if he had been able to hold on to the bar in front of him or if someone had been in there with him, he would have actually enjoyed it. We will have to remember that for next year! So, all in all, it was VERY fun and I was so proud of him for being a big boy. We can't wait to go back next year!
Oh, and all I ate was a pronto pup, one deep fried oreo, fresh lemonade, and another pronto pup on the way out! I can't believe I missed out on the saratoga chips this year but the pronto pup called my name!
Here are some pictures and video. My camera kept messing up on me so I wasn't able to take pictures of everything but I'm happy with the variety I did get.

This was the motorcycle ride that we thought was so fast. He loved it though. After looking at the video, I don't think it goes any faster than his tractor he has at the house!

This is the tugboat ride that he LOVED! Him and Paul are in the last row. You can see Paul in his green shirt and hat pass by but it's hard to see Kaleb.

He loved the airplanes. The guy that was controlling it let them go for like 5 minutes. It was just him and one other girl and no one was waiting in line, so he just held the button and let them ride!

10 years down...

So, today is one of those anniversary's you kind of lose track of over the years, but my wonderful husband seems to remember it every year. On this day, October 3, 2001, Paul and I officially started dating. (although my parents will not recall it beginning till a few months later! shhh!) You see, I was only 16 years old (awful close to 17 if you asked me at the time) and Paul was 21. A definite no-no in any parent's book. It didn't help that he was my brother's age. But, Paul was polite and respectful of my parents and family. He won them over quickly. We have went through high school, college, optometry school, having a baby while in school, and moving 250 miles away from the nearest family member. Needless to say, it has been crazy. He has helped me come out of my shell, push me to become the woman I wanted to be, not the one everyone thought I should be. And me, well, let's just say I tamed the dragon! I taught him that not everything had to be taken so seriously, or with aggression. That it's ok to turn the other cheek at times. We balance each other out completely. We have made SO many friends along the way, each of which has helped us in getting where we are today. We reminisce about the fun/stupid/crazy times we have had over the years. It is a little bitter sweet to know that most of those crazy times are in the past, but that's part of growing up and becoming more than just husband and wife, but mom and dad! Because on March 29, 2009, our world opened up! We saw what true, undying, everlasting, 'throw yourself in front of a moving train if you have to' love was all about. It has been one big juggling act ever since (did you know kids do not come with a instruction manual!), but one of those things where you couldn't imagine your life any different!

So, Paul, our first 10 years were the most incredible, mind-blowing, ten years of my life. I was so lucky to have met you (and gotten you that bottle of coke you asked for! ha). We have been through a lot of highs (graduation, wedding, Kaleb, graduation again) and lots of lows (losing my PawPaw, Aunt Sally, Chad, your MawMaw and your PawPaw). I couldn't imagine spending the last 10 years with anybody else by my side, and look forward to spending the rest of my life with you! You and Kaleb are what mean the most to me in this world. We are going to have our ups and downs, as with any good relationship, but our ability to work through anything is what is going to make us one of the few couples that really makes it to the end. I looked you in the eyes on August 13, 2005, and promised to love you, sick, healthy, rich, poor, it doesn't matter. I'm here with you as long as we both shall live!

I have included a few pictures from over the years. I have tried to put them in order as best I can. Enjoy!

This one is our first Teen Club Dance we went to together. It was December 2001.

This one is from May 2003, right after my HS graduation. For my senior trip, Paul took me to Orlando.

This one is Nov 2003. We went to Knoxville, TN for Homecoming to see the Vols play and too see my sister who was a freshman there.

This one is in May 2004. We decided to take a romantic vacation to Gatlinburg. Stayed in a cabin in the mountains!

August 13, 2005, I was one of the lucky ones that got to marry the person they are meant to spend the rest of their life with!

New Years/January 2008. We went to Copper Mountain, Colorado with my sister. Paul's first time to see the Rocky Mountains. He loved it as much as me!

Feb 2008. SCO's EyeBall semi-formal event

The day our lives changed forever. March 29, 2009. We became parents to Kaleb Wade Rasmussen.

When Kaleb was only a few weeks old, we had the same photographers that did our wedding do a photo shoot with us and Kaleb. Beautiful!

December 2010. Party with our Covington friends that we miss so much!

March 2011. Our first cruise!

Our most recent family photo at my sister's wedding. September 17, 2011.

Tractor!!!

So, if you haven't picked up on it yet, Kaleb LOVES tractors! It was one of his first understandable words, and he says it at least 20 times before we even make it to daycare in the morning. I have been known to bribe him to do things with tractors, from going to bed to eating to peepee-ing in the potty! So, when it came time to switch his toddler bed over to the full size conversion, I knew I had to find a tractor comforter. I searched and searched, and finally landed on this one:

It is from JCPenney. At first, I was not crazy about the design. I mean, its a brown plaid with 6 tractors on it. But, after Paul explained to me that it was not MY room, and that Kaleb would LOVE all the tractors, I saw that he was right and went ahead and bought it. And OMG, was Paul right! We brought Kaleb home after putting it together, and he went crazy! "Tractor, Momma, Tractor!" Jumping up and down! He has also learned that the one closest to the pillow is a combine, not a tractor! I am planning on doing some new canvas paintings with his name and tractors. So I will be sure to post pics of those when I get around to doing them!

One problem did happen that I should have thought of, but unfortunately was too wrapped up in how much he would love his new tractor bed... He is more interested in saying 'tractor', over and over and over, than he is in going to sleep! (It is actually reversible with the other side having about 50 tractors printed on a dark brown plaid!) But he eventually calmed down, and went to sleep.

He still doesn't sleep all through the night, but we have only had it a few nights, so we are still hoping that having his own bed will: a: help him sleep better, and b: keep him in his own bed! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE it when he sneaks into our room at 4 in the morning to cuddle with me, but after about an hour of being kicked and hit and head butted, you just get up and go lay on the couch and give him the bed! So, this is our solution: give him a bed that is just as comfortable as ours (even if he does continue to come to our bed, at least I have somewhere else to go besides that couch!)

And, just for giggles, I wanted to share a couple videos from today. The first was from this morning. We had the radio on while Paul was ironing some clothes for a trip he has to take next week. Kaleb decided to show off some moves! The second was from this afternoon. We ate at Five Guys for lunch. It is located at an upscale outdoor shopping area called Renaissance. They have a water fountain/jets that the kids can play in. We have taken Kaleb to it a few times but he has never really been that interested in it, but today (when we had no intention of playing in it), he decides to get SOAKED! It was a really nice day, weather wise, so we let him have fun. When he was done, we stripped him to his pull-up and went home! Overall, it has been a really great day!

(Oh, and those 'big boy underwear' were his choice after peepee-ing in the potty this morning... Bad idea  seeing that he poopoo'd in them about 10 minutes after this video!)

Oh, and one more thing: GO VOLS! =)

Eat This, Not That... Yeah, Right!

As I have mentioned before, Kaleb is a picky eater. He hasn't always been that way though. When he was a baby, he ate pretty much any baby food and would try any of our food. I have no idea the exact date the switch happened. I guess it was gradual. First went the macaroni and cheese, then went the hot dogs. Slowly, my son began to eat only a handful of things. As a mother, I worried myself sick if I was doing the right thing. Why could I not get my son to try new foods. I just knew that if he would try it, he would like it. (I have the Yo Gabba Gabba song in my head right now... "Try it, you'll like it. Just try it, you're gonna like it!" I mean, what kind of kid doesn't like mashed potatoes! Well, my son HATES them! If you somehow trick them into his mouth, he cries and holds out his tongue until you wipe it off! When he would eat hot dogs, it wasn't just any hot dog! It HAD to be an Oscar Meyer Weiner. And there was no tricking this kid. He would pick up a bite, look at it, feel it, taste it, and throw it away if it wasn't right! I have no idea how he knew, but he did. But he doesn't even like them anymore! The funniest thing is getting him a happy meal at McDonalds. It is a PLAIN hamburger with a small fry. He will take the meat out, hand it to you, and eat the bun and fries. He forgot to take out the meat one day, took a big bite, and completely freaked out! I guess he just doesn't like the texture of meat... I have no clue! 

Here is a collage of his favorite things... for now:

Breakfast is by far his favorite meal of the day, and mommy's too. It is the only meal I know he will sit down and eat. If he doesn't eat breakfast, I am ready to call the doctor and find out what's wrong! And it is the easiest meal to find him something to eat. We have gone through phases of dry cereal with cup of milk, Cinnamon Toast Eggos, Nurtigrain Bars, mini-pancakes, and now we are on the Eggo Chocolate Chip Waffles (I found the Fiber Plus Antioxidant ones, so that makes me feel better!) We also give him his daily vitamins in the morning which are his 'gummies' and he loves those. Found ones with DHA which is great for brain and eye development! 

After worrying so much about his nutrition (the only meat he eats is chicken fries), I have finally decided to just let him eat what he will and throw in healthy options when I can (Fiber plus waffles, Nature Valley Granola bars with Dark Chocolate instead of cookies, almonds, yogurt instead of ice cream, V8 fusion juice instead of soda, etc). I even made zucchini bread mini-muffins once and he actually liked those. 

I keep telling myself that he will grow out of it, and I know eventually, he is going to be the teenage boy that eats me out of house and home, and I will be dreaming of the days when he wouldn't eat anything. But for now, I am his mother, and I am going to worry! 

Going to the chapel... Well, the metal museum.... and they're gonna get married!

So, Saturday was the big day! The day my sister married the man she loves and became Melodie Cromwell Goodwin! We have been waiting and planning, and planning and waiting for this day since he proposed on our birthday, Dec 7, last year! After deciding to have a traditional wedding, instead of a small destination wedding, Melodie knew she wanted an outdoor location overlooking the Mississippi River. She finally decided on the Memphis Metal Museum for September 17 and it couldn't have been a more perfect location and date! The weather was PERFECT, the sunset was PERFECT, the flowers were PERFECT... are you noticing a theme here?! Everything was PERFECT!! Even Kaleb walked down the aisle without a fuss! Like I said before, just PERFECT!! Don't get me wrong, there were things that I kind of freaked out about (one particular photo before the ceremony that I was not informed was going to take place where Melodie and Chad were on opposite sides of a tree holding hands.... I thought she was coming out and had no idea Chad was there, FREAKED out, and then was explained to what was going on, and it was the cutest picture ever).

I want to say a special thanks to two people: My husband, Paul, and his mom, Judy. They had the extra special responsibility of keeping Kaleb while I did my Matron-of-honor/only bridesmaid duties! I really appreciate both of you stepping up and keeping an out-of-control two year old!

Another thing I love about weddings is that I get to see all my extended family that I love so much but never have the time to visit with during our two-day trips home! It really makes me miss living so close to everyone. I hate that there were some family that couldn't make it, but things happen, and you move on.

One thing that did happen that was a little nerve racking for us, was we witnessed a wreck the day before the wedding after getting mani/pedi's. I turned out to be Melodie's old neighbor from when she lived in Memphis. Everyone was OK, thank goodness, but we had to stay and give a statement to the police because the guy that caused the wreck was trying to say it wasn't his fault (FYI: you can't turn left in front of a car, just because you have a green light... the oncoming car has a green light too, idiot!). The scary thing was that they were behind us right before the wreck. We were behind a bus that decided to slow down to turn and they went around us before we had the chance to change lanes... It could have been us in the wreck! Like I said, thank goodness everyone was OK.

We had the rehearsal Friday night, with the rehearsal dinner at The Arcade in downtown Memphis. This is pretty cool seeing that The Arcade is just a breakfast/lunch place, but will host parties in the evening! All out-of-town guests as well as immediate family were invited, which ended up being about 100 people! But what a great time it was! Everyone stood up and congratulated the cute couple and also told stories, lots of funny stories! Afterwards, the younger crowd decided to hit up Beale Street, ending up at Silky Sullivans. It was a great time had by all. And to my surprise, the Bride and Groom decided to turn in early (11:00), so they could be fresh and ready to go for the big day!

After a restless night for everyone, we headed over to the museum to help set up and just make sure everything was going smoothly. The flowers were there and looked gorgeous! It was just such a beautiful day, when we headed back to the hotel to start getting ready, we looked up Carrie Underwood's 'How Great Thou Art' on my phone and praised God for the weather. After getting ready, we headed back to the museum to take pictures with the family. I can't wait to see all the pictures! The wedding and reception were wonderful and everyone mentioned how beautiful everything was and how much fun they had! Melodie and Chad decided to make an early exit (about 10:30), so we decided to break down the reception equipment and head over to the hotel for an after party, which was just as fun as the reception!

One memorable and very emotional thing did happen right before the ceremony. Me, my sister, and my dad were waiting in a room for the ceremony to start and my mom comes running into the room. She assured us everything was ok, but my Great-Aunt Patricia had brought something that she thought my sister would want to carry with her down the aisle. It was a handkerchief that my great-aunt Sally had when she was alive. Me, my sister, and my mom all burst into tears, trying not to ruin our makeup. You see, my Aunt Sally was a hoot-and-a-half when she was with us. She was my maternal grandfather's sister. I remember, growing up, she would come over to babysit us, and we would have the best time. Friends would beg to sleep over when we knew she was keeping us. She would dance, play hide and seek (like hide in cabinets, or on top of the fridge, things like that!), etc. I thought she was AWESOME! It wasn't until I was older that I really realized how old she was when she was doing this (in her mid to late 60's), which made her even more awesome! She would always tell us, straight up, if our new hairstyle was good looking or not, if we were dressed cute or not, if our new boyfriends were good looking or not...! She was just the most incredible person I have ever known! Her favorite saying was "If you see a silly card, send it to Silly Sally!" She was there for my brother's wedding in 2004, my wedding in 2005, but got very sick shortly after, and eventually passed away. It was very hard to see her go, and very hard for her not to be there physically with us for Melodie's wedding. We had her listed along with other grandparents that have already passed away at the register's table, but to have something of hers there for Melodie to wrap around her bouquet and carry down the aisle with her meant SO much! We love you Sally and know you were watching from above!

So, in summary, it was a great weekend, spent with great people, celebrating a great love between two people!
Here is the link for Wedding Pics! that I have uploaded to my facebook!

To Dilate or Not To Dilate?

Just so I'm clear, I went to three years of undergrad and four years of optometry school so I could be Dr. Melissa Rasmussen. I, as an educated and licensed eye doctor, recommend that everyone have a dilated eye exam every year. BUT, if you do not want to be dilated, for whatever reason your little heart desires, that is your right to refuse it. That DOES NOT give you the right to tell me that I am almost to the point of malpractice by dilating you on the front end of an eye exam (along with complaining about all the forms that need to be filler out, that our sink doesn't have a stopper[???], about how her old doctor just never could get it right!). A: Dilation affects your near vision, not distance. In essence, dilation drops temporarily paralyze the muscles that control the iris, or colored part of the eye. One drop makes the pupil bigger and the other keeps it from getting smaller when the light hits it or when you try to focus, hence the side effects of light sensitivity and near blur. By dilating you, I am able to view more of the retina than I would normally (the bigger the window, the more you can see) helping to detect retinal diseases like glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, etc. But it also insures a more accurate prescription, especially in most children. Children have the ability to focus through a tremendous amount of near blur. So, undilated, a child that is very farsighted, can actually read 20/20 at near and will show hardly any prescription. But by taking away their ability to focus, we are able to see their true prescription and prescribe glasses accordingly.

So, please, by all means, refuse to be dilated if you have had a bad experience being dilated, if you don't feel comfortable driving while dilated, even if you feel like it might make your glasses not perfect. But that does not mean I do not have a good reason for doing it on the front end of an exam. Usually, to be honest, most of the time we do it on the front end to save you, the patient, time! If I waited till after the glasses part of the exam, you would be in the office about an additional 20-30 minutes. And I know the LAST thing I want to do is spend more time at any doctors office. But you know, they would probably be the first to complain about how long the exam took! (Funny thing is, this particular patient ended up saying how happy she was that I was her eye doctor! Funny how things work out, huh?!)

Thanks for letting me rant a little! =)

Remembering 9/11

So, as everybody knows, today marks the 10th anniversary of one of the worst days in American history, September 11, 2001. I still remember where I was when I heard the news. A junior in high school, I was in my history class of all places. Little did I know that that very moment would be written in the history books for future generations. We had a daily TV show made by students updating us on the goings-on in the school. But on that day, they interrupted class to inform us that a plane had flown into the first tower. I have to admit, I was a little undereducated on the world trade center, and had no idea what it really meant, or if it was even really happening. Then the news of the second plane came through. We all changed our TV's to the local news and the impact of what was happening sunk in. One of our teachers had a son that was working in NYC at the time, and we were all worried for her and her family. (Luckily, he was not at the WTC that day!) I just remember praying HARD that people would be ok, finally realizing how tragic the situation was.

To this day, I can hardly watch the footage that is aired. I become physically nauseous at the thought of all the people that lost their life that day. To see the footage of people jumping off of balconies over 100 stories up. I can't imagine what it must have been like for them, to know the only way to keep from burning alive was to jump to their deaths. (I am shaking just typing this.) But at the same time, I become overcome with anger at the people that did this in the name of their religion! What kind of religion says that killing innocent men, women and children will be rewarded in the afterlife?!

I pray for the people lost that day, for the families of the lost, and even for the people responsible for it, that they may see the error in their ways and finally stop with the hatred and war. Because if anyone has the power to do it, God does.

God bless all the men and women that are fighting for our freedom. No matter what your opinion of the war, there are men and women out there (fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, neighbors, friends) putting their life on the line everyday to protect us from something like this happening again.