Meet my Children...

I am a mother to 2 beautiful babies, Raymond and Ayla. They are my whole world. And as any mother knows, life would not be the same with out them. Sometimes it would be easier but never happier. They are such a huge part of my life that I feel by not telling you about them I am excluding you from 2 very amazing people!!

My son Raymond (the 4th Raymond on my husband’s side of the family) was born June 8, 2007. He was just so amazing as soon as he came out. Funny thing, most babies look like so, Ray looked just like he does today only tiny. He had such a definitive face, so distinguished at just 1 day old. He was beautiful. From early on, he made these FUNNY faces all the time that just made me laugh so hard. They all had nicknames, some he did while sleeping, others when we would rub his head. Oh he was a funny boy. Still is actually.

Raymond was tough though. He was colicky and cried all day and night. He would get sick on a daily basis and would have the worst tummy aches. Finally we found a good formula for him and he was ready to go. Only thing was, the formula had added in rice and he ballooned soo big. He was too heavy for me to carry but still so cute. He was always early doing things. He sat at 4 months, crawled at 6 and walked at 8 months. He was running and climbing at 11 months, thus being how he got his first set of stitches at just 11 months. You see, I was in the hospital giving birth to my daughter when I get a call that Ray had ran into a glass table and was bleeding profusely all the while smiling and laughing. Laughed right through the stitches in fact. And he has never stopped since. He still climbs as high as he can, falls, runs, trips, breaks things, and is always laughing while doing it. He loves his sister, his dog, and his uncle Danny. My son is so sweet and cute and charming and I know someday he will do something amazing to this world! Keep an eye out for him, he’s one to watch!!



Now about my daughter Ayla, she’s just the sweetest most loveable thing ever. She was born May 13, the day before my birthday. She was a month early and weighed 8.8 and was 22 inches long. Let me tell you, she was beautiful! We couldn’t find a name good enough for her for quite awhile and finally we decided on Ayla. Now Ayla is a girly girl. Always has been. She’s always been quiet, learned everything right on time, loves her brother and will do anything he does or wants. She loves her “pretties” which is mommy’s jewelry and hair things, she even says “I’m Ayla, I’m pretty.” Lol. She is talking way ahead of age and she is soo sweet. She loves to give hugs and kisses, she loves to tell everyone “LOVE LU” which is Love you. She’s so independent, she doesn’t want help with anything and really barely needs it, she just wants you to sit with her and tell her you love her and she’s pretty.

Ayla loves dolls, animals, Elmo and her brother. She loves makeup and talking on the phone. Let me tell you, this little girl is just a spitting image of me as a child. I love her so much and she loves everyone!!

So these are my 2 great loves in life. The reason I get up with a smile on my face and go to bed with food on my clothes, and a smile in my mind (by this point I'm too tired to actually physically smile) but boy do I love them! Just thought I should introduce them to you so that you can have a tiny piece of this wonderful duo!!

My best friend could kick your best friends ass!!

So you expected a part 2 right? Well, like a said, I had to wait, and so that you get the full experience, you must wait too. ;) Instead, I’m going to talk about friends. It seems simple enough, even a pointless subject right? But did you ever think about how many kinds of friends there are? There’s your best friends, your good friends, your acquaintances, your frenemies, your super flaky friends, friends because you feel bad friends, friends bc you have to friends,.and the list goes on and on.

As a child I moved a lot so I never really had any ‘best’ friends. My best friend was and still is my mother. She was who I looked up to as a child and now even more as a woman and mother. She’s who I can to cry to, to get comfort to and who I call on a really good day just to share good news or my good mood with. I love her and unfortunately we live half a country apart, but that doesn’t stop me from talking with her almost every single day!

I’m not saying I didn’t have friends. I had lots of ‘friends’ that I still talk to today infact. Just not any best friends, until I met Amy. Amy is my exact opposite. I’m a redhead, she’s a blonde, I’m brown eyed, She’s blue eyed, I’m quiet and reserved, she’s loud and opinionated! When I say we were as different as night and day I am NOT exaggerating. But I have never loved a friend more. We were inseparable and from the beginning there was not one thing I could not tell her. She was a wild child, a free spirit and did not care what anyone thought and I followed suit because with my best friend by my side, I didn’t care what anyone else thought anyway! As we got older we never really lost touch. Today I still talk to her 10 times a day, we share advice, stories, mothering and life tips, rant and rave, and joke and fight as if we were 10 but you could not pay me enough money to give her up!! That is a best friend. She’s been there for me through thick and thin, brain surgery and marital fights. She’s my other half.


I have only one other friend I would consider a best friend. My neighbor and bff Val. She’s unlike Amy. She’s exactly like me in every way. We hate the same foods, love the same movies, and have the same opinions and views on almost everything. We have passion for life, the same down home quiet personalities but are full of yummy chocolate once you break open our candy shell. Val is a wonderful mother wife, nurse and friend and cares so much about people that you can’t help but care so much about her. She’s amazingly beautiful on the inside and out. And funny thing is, she doesn’t even know it!! Lol. I love our laughs, our talks, our children’s friendships and our plans for the future…we’re going to become in-laws when our children marry and we’re going to grow old together…we just know it! Lol.

So, to all of you flaky friends who like the convenience of my niceness, let me tell you something, I have the best friends in the world. You don’t shake me, you should learn to be one of these and you’ll be as happy as I. If you don’t have a good friend, I’m sorry but I have 4.

When the Tough Gets Going...SMILE!!

Well now I want to tell you about something I went through recently that have made me a completely different person. Yes, I know we don’t have a very long blogging relationship yet, but I think in order to understand me, to understand my blog, you first must understand this.

It was the week before Thanksgiving 2009. Id been having some headaches, and had been really tired for quite a long time. It was 2 am and I was starting to come to. I began looking around and was more confused that you can possibly imagine…I was on a stretcher…in a hospital?! I couldn’t remember my name; I couldn’t remember my birthday though I must have given them one. I thought I was 14 years old and kept asking for my mom. I can now imagine how people with amnesia feel, and that is the scariest feeling I have ever felt. Around 10 minutes later, my husband showed up. I don’t think I remembered his name though I knew that he was someone important in my life and boy did he look stressed! As it turns out, Id had a grand mal seizure. The first I’ve ever had as far as I know. Around 5 am things started to come back to me, the fact that I was not 14, that I had 2 beautiful children at home, and that I was in Rhode Island.

After a CAT scan and some lab results that all came back fine, I was discharged with instructions to see a neurologist the following week. We went home and I have to admit, I was a little scared to do anything at all just incase I had another seizure, and I was a little scared as to what the cause could be. I called and scheduled the appointment hoping that they could diagnose it as a fluke, a one time thing.

I finally went in to the appointment the following week. The doctor was friendly, and didn’t seem to concerned, which put my nerves at ease a little. He ordered a brain MRI and an EEG just to rule out anything serious and scheduled me to come back in a week. So, I went next door and did the tests, which I’m a little claustrophobic so I didn’t do so well with the MRI. It was time consuming and nerve racking but needed. I just wanted to results already!!

The week following the tests seemed to be the longest week of my life! Finally Friday had come and I went to see the doctor again. He was holding my folder, scanning the results, nodding a little, and saying “mmhmm.” And then I heard the news, I had a lesion on my brain. I was in shock. He didn’t say tumor, he didn’t say anything I understood! Finally, he explained that at this point it was a lesion and that I would need to see a neurosurgeon to get a more definitive answer…MORE WAITING!?! Seriously?! I was put on some heavy duty seizure medication and told to wait for a call from the referred neurosurgeon.

So, I just had to wait and see what was to come. I had never been so anxious, scared and on edge in my entire life! Was this the end? Was this how I was going to go? Would I have more seizures? What next?! So many questions, with no answers, that is the worst feeling ever. And so I did what I could, I prayed and I waited…..

no place like home

One Country, Two Worlds

So let me tell you something about myself. I am born and raised in small town Iowa. I’m not ashamed, Iowa is wonderful! They have amazing educations system, beautiful scenery, and full of down home hospitable folks. I am proud to be an Iowan. However, I recently moved to Rhode Island and let me tell you something, this may be one same country but its two completely different worlds! Culture Shock? You bet! Sure, Rhode Island is small and has beautiful ocean view, but it’s more populated that Iowa and 1/10 the size! There’s no gap between towns/cities. Nope, they are just overlapping each other! I never know what town I’m in!

And don’t get me started on the drivers here! (Though we will go there in a moment) It all goes back to that word I used to describe Iowans…hospitable. Rhode Islanders (for the most part) NOT HOSPITABLE!! I have been out here for 3 years now and still haven’t made any friends here. And I’m a nice, smart, clean, and pretty and I have a good personality. So why don’t they want to be my friend you ask? They’re stuck in there ways, and apparently I’m “too nice.” Seriously?! Don’t worry everyone; I have friends here, they just all also happened to move here from somewhere else! Ha-ha!

Now I’m not a person to judge someone I don’t know, but as a whole, this state needs to take a few classes on manners. Don’t get me wrong, there are a few very delightful people that are in my presence, the people I work with are wonderful, but that’s really as far as I can go.

But aside from the people, let me just tell you how different it is here! In Iowa, at 14 you get your permit, at 16 you get your license and at 14 you also get a school permit (where you can drive to and from school unassisted). In lil Rhody, however, that is not the case. Most are 17 before they get a license. The slang here is absolutely ridiculous! Yes, in Iowa we do use the occasional “ya’all, howdy, and gee golly” but let me tell you, mad, and wicked are NOT adverbs people!!! Also, a living room is not a “pala” and a water fountain is not a “bubbla.” There are so many more but you don’t want me to list all them because I only become frustrated!

Now, if you’ve ever been to Rhode Island you know what I’m talking about when I say that though they think they are defensive drivers, in reality they are aggressive drivers. They will try to beat you through the four way after their light is red, no one will ever “let you go” and if you let them go, don’t expect a thank you, instead be prepared for the 3 people behind them to speed ahead and squeeze in front of you as well! Be prepared for anything!!

I wish I could click these red slippers and be back home because there truly is NO PLACE LIKE HOME, and that for me, folks, is good old down to earth, humble Iowa.

Something to Look Foward To!

So I’ve been racking my brain to come up with an eye catching first blog. We all know how important first impressions are! And, well, I’ve decided not to do any catchy little articles just yet nor an article that will start the war of debate. Instead I’ve decided to simply tell you why I started this blog and what makes me so special and interesting that you should follow me all the way!

I will not tell you my age, but I will tell you I’m in my 20’s. Now you may want to hit “next” after reading that because you may think the same thing that I do about many my age “What knowledge could they possibly have at that age?” And yes, for most my age I’d agree, but PLEASE tell me, when you were 25 could you say you’d joined the army, traveled the entire country, given a child up for adoption, been adopted, gotten married, landed in a coma, had a brain tumor and surgery??!! The answer is probably no. However, I can say yes to all of those.

So, you see, I have lived a very full life and accumulated much knowledge and wisdom and all through experience. And age really can be just a number! Did you know that at the same age I am now, English poet Jane Taylor wrote "Twinkle, twinkle, little star, “ Orson Welles produced and performed his "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast, terrifying millions of people. He also got his face on the cover of Time Magazine, Truman Capote published his first novel, Other Voices, Other Rooms, and Jamaican-born Barrington Irving became the youngest person to fly around the world solo. So you see, it’s not the age, its you do with the time.

So, I started this blog because I have an amazing story to tell and I am going to do just that. And through this life I’ve lived, I've picked up a few lessons I’d like to share with you. All in good time, my friend, all in good time. So, like I was saying, I’ve got a lot to show you, to teach you, to offer you, and if not, I’ve got one hell of a story! Read on and you’ll see.

Mz. Jess