A Thank You, Christmas, An Update.

Hello again all of my lovely bloggy friends. As always things have been mighty busy here in the Adkins household with the holidays, shopping, appointments to here and there. Let me tell you, being a mom of 4 wildly crazy kids can be rather stressful at times.

I want to thank you all again for all the wonderful comments you have been leaving on my blog. You all have warmed my heart so much with your thoughtfulness, I honestly cannot think of the words to express how your comments make me feel.

Also, I received a pressie in the mail from one Teresa Kasner over at Teresa Kasner Crochet. She sent me a lovely Christmas card with a nice suprise inside.

 You see her wonderful heart? Oh it has a top honor spot on my Christmas tree. Thank you very much for your kindness here in blogland, on Rav, and over the www. Such generosity will be graciously rewarded for sure.

Now, I don't know about you but I am very happy that the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are now over and we are coming into a new year. The stress of this time of year sometimes is overwhelming to me. Trying to find all the goodies the kids want and need, trying to organize dinners and keep plans to see family. All while trying to remember the True meaning of Christmas. We read the Christmas story in the Bible as well as Twas the Night Before Christmas in this house. We make sure to say our blessings and to give our thanks to Jesus for what he has done for all of us. Then we get to the gifts. In our house, the kiddos get to open a pressie on Christmas Eve which contains new pjs and slippers. Also, the kiddos know that mom and dad get most of the pressies under the tree and Santa provides the pressies in the Stockings. Sometimes he leaves extra special gifts under the tree as well.

 I won't bore you with the hundreds of pictures I took of my kids opening their pressies but here is a great one of me telling my husband NO DON'T TAKE MY PICTURE IT IS WAY TOO EARLY FOR IT! He laughed and took many snapshots of my hands and the back of my head.

 Here are my furbabies Tinkerbell back there blending into the fireplace guarding one of her Christmas pressies and Shorty in the foreground carrying one of hers. That bone is nearly as big as her and I know her mouth stretched like that has to hurt but she doesn't seem to mind.

 My youngest son Sj patiently waiting to open some gifts. He is wearing his new How to Train a Dragon pjs which have officially became his favorite over his skateboarder pjs.

 Here is my oldest son Eddie. He is wearing his new Pheneas and Ferb pjs. As I took this picture he said, "Who's ready to open some presents? THIS GUY!" He cracks me up.

 Here is my youngest daughter Faith marching in to open the gifts. She just loves her new fleecy pjs with kitties on them. She also got pink slippers with hearts on them to match. She was like mom lets just open the gifts already.

 And my oldest daughter, Hope wearing her purple fleecy pjs with penguins. She was ready as well. She wanted to know what was in some of the strangely shaped boxes. Sadly, being 11 nearly 12 years old, she doesn't believe in Santa anymore but she has graciously agreed not to ruin the magic for the rest of the kids.

Here are Eddie and Sj sifting through the pile of pressies just getting theirs out. I said hand out the gifts guys and they decided to just get their own. Eventually though, they did manage to get all of the pressies to their rightful owners and the tearing of wrapping paper commenced.

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. The kiddos got perty much everything they asked for. They got gifts from relatives in other states and gift cards from other relatives. They loved to go shopping for themselves and to be able to pay with their own gift cards.

Oh yeah, I have an update on my denture adventure. I had my impressions made early this morning. They said I could have my wax try-ins as early as this Thursday. I don't think these will have the teeth in them I just think they will be to check my bite and to see where the teeth need to be set in the moulds. After this one I will try on a wax pair with teeth, then I will probably get my permanent teeth. I cannot wait and I am still hoping for teeth before my 31st birthday on February 1st.

That is all for now friends. Hope you all have had a wonderful holiday! Until we meet again, Be Blessed.

Update

Hello everyone. I just wanted to post a quick update. Things have been super busy here and I haven't had much time to take pictures or blog. Guess I just haven't really felt like it to be honest. I am still working through some emotional things but all things are great.

I want to thank you all for your kind comments on my personal story. Being 30 and always doing my best to take care of myself and my teeth, it is hard to come to terms with my reality. You all have helped alot with your comments. All of them were encourageing and non-judgemental and I certainly do appreciate it.

Also, I was finally able to get an appointment with my dentist. He hadn't been in the office because of the weather lately. My appointment is at 8:15 Monday morning. This appointment will be to get the impressions made of my gums and to check out my bite. I will also get to pick out my new smile. I will get to pick the color, shape, and style of my smile. I am kind of excited to see how it will all come together. After the impressions appointment I will go back in a week or two to try on a wax denture to make sure I like the color, the teeth are the right length, shape, well just what I wanted and then  a week or two later I will pick up my completed denture. My hope is to have them by my birthday on February 1st. I also want to get a family portrait made once I get my new smile.

Thank you all again for your encouragement and I will do my best to keep you updated on all this and to post some more happy blog posts.

Oh and can you believe Christmas is only 4 days away? Where has this month, well even year gone?

Until next time my friends, Be Blessed.

A Personal Story

Hello all my wonderful bloggy friends. We are still trying to stay warm here in Ohio. More snow fell the night before last so I've been staying inside and keeping myself occupied by making scarves for everyone.

 How do ya like that picture? He looks super cold. My son left him on the porch under a chair when it was much warmer. Unfortunately this wrestler still sits in the snow on our porch.

 Here is a neat picture of the snow in between the front wrap around and the deck. I like all the puppy and kitty prints and the way the snow has kind of drifted around the bushes. I love the snow but it has been a pain to drive in and I have a 4wd car.

Now on to my personal story. This is one of those things that only close members of my family know.  It is hard for me to deal with, it is very embarrassing for me, and very emotional for me. So I need to give you a little background.

First off, I was raised by my mom. She was a single parent for a long time and she tried really hard to provide what she could for us. (Myself and my two younger brothers). He had medical and vision through her job but the dental was too much so my brothers and I never went to the dentist..ever! As a matter of fact, the only reason why we had vision insurance is because my oldest younger brother had very poor vision.

I never had a cavity until I was 17 years old. It formed because something I ate chipped one of my back teeth. I told my mom what had happened and we watched it. It became a cavity, still she couldn't afford to have it fixed. Then it became painful. So we went to the dentist. Pulling that tooth was cheaper than the little bit of drill and fill that had to be done so my  mom had it pulled.

 Here is a picture of me and my best friend Alli. I was in 10th grade and 15-16 years old at this time. Before my first cavity.

 Here is me and alli again before our graduation. I didn't mind the missing tooth because you couldn't see it when I smiled.

 Here is my Bestie Alli helping me at my wedding. I was nearly 21 when I got married. You can see, still very beautiful teeth. No cavities here.

 And again after my wonderful hubby and I got married. I love this one. Oh but I'm getting off my story slightly.

So, I didn't get another cavity until I was pregnant with my oldest son when I was 23. I gave birth to him and two months later moved here to Ohio. I decided I would get my cavity taken care of and went to a very reputable dentist in my area. Everyone I talked to sung his praises. I arrived for my 8am appointment on that day and they took me straight back for the initial exam, x-rays, and cleaning. The dentist said he would take care of that tooth and I had a couple others that needed attended to and he had time. So I said ok. He filled all of my teeth, top and bottom on my left side starting with my upper and lower front teeth. I sat in the dental chair with my mouth gaping wide open from 8am until 1pm. I had blisters from the nurses pulling my mouth open because I had it open for so long the tendons were tightening up. The fillings the dentist had put in hurt my whole mouth. I couldn't chew, brush, run my tongue over or anything because the pain was so bad. I called the dentist to ask if it was a normal reaction and he said yes. Worse of all, the tooth I origionally went in there for was still in my mouth.

One month later the fillings this dentist put in started falling out. The teeth would break soon after that. I was mortified. I started having panic attacks and depression so bad because I felt I looked hideous. Worse part is I didn't have any dental insurance so I couldn't have anything done about them.

I ended up having tons of cavities, broken, horrible looking teeth because of the actions of this dentist.  I learned how to smile without showing any teeth.

 See, no teeth. So now I am doing something about it. August 27, 2010 I had all of my lower teeth extracted and October 13, 2010 I had all of my upper teeth extracted. I am toothless. Very embarrassing for me to admit.

Even more embarrassing is the fact that now I'm afraid of getting the dentures (would love to get implants but cannnot afford them). I'm afraid I will be a person who can't wear them because I will gag all the time. They won't look natural, they won't fit right, the list goes on and on.

So what do you all think? Does not having teeth or having to get dentures at 30 years of age something to be embarrassed about? Does anyone out there have dentures and can ease my anxieties?

Oh and I tried to make an appointment to get my impressions and to pick out the color, shape and all of that stuff but the offices are closed due to all the snow we have been getting. Damned if I do, embarrassed forever if I dont. :p

Now you know my personal story, one truth about me that not too many know about.

Oh yeah I have a good picture for you...completely unrelated to my story.

See the kitty. He is sitting on the roof outside of the window. He is saying please let me in, I am so cold. After I ran to grab my camera I did let him in.

That is all for today my friends. I hope you all are keeping warm. Feel free to leave me comments. I love comments. Until we meet again, Be Blessed.

Trying to stay warm.

Hello friends. I hope you all are staying warm. It is really, super, dooper cold here, 13 degrees as I type with wind chills around 0.

Today we had tons of fun. We warmed up the Kia since is is 4 wheel drive and took the kids sledding.

 Here is all four of the kiddos coming down the hill at me. Some crashed, some made it all the way down. All were smiling, screaming, and laughing.

 My oldest daughter Hope and my hubby had a race down the hill. My hubby just got in front of her.

 And here, my hubby won with a crash on the end. He laughed so hard he couldn't get up for a moment.

Here is my sweet little Tinkerbell. She just doesn't understand why I make her go outside to potty when there are so many warm places in the house to do so. It is a battle all day long.

 This one was taken last night as the snow was falling. Here is my husband trying to catch snowflakes in his mouth. It is so big I'm sure he caught a few.

 Me posing as my hubby took the picture. Not a very good one of me but it will do.

 The snow came down hard and heavy and the wind whipped it around. Here is one without the flash on. You can see the snow streaming down in the street light.

Here are the lovely snowflakes in the flash. I love this picture. Seems magical to me.

 This is how I am warming up from all of this fun in the snow. French Vanilla Coffee. My secret indulgence.

Some wonderful chocolates, my list of crochet items I want to make, a scarf in the works for my youngest son, and a warm, soft blanket to snuggle under.

Thank you all for all of your comments. I love reading all of them! Keep warm friends. Be Blessed.

Random Things to Share

Hello friends! Things are busy, busy, busy here as always. There has been shopping, crafting, fun, laughing...I wanted to share some things with you.

1. All of our Christmas shopping is finished! Under our tree is full as you can see. All that is left is getting the stocking stuffers. This usually includes candy and small cheap toys. I usually hit up the dollar stores and find some cute and charming bargains for the stockings.

2. Toe socks. I absolutely love toe socks. They look funny on me as I have some very long toes (my darling hubby says it almost looks like gloves..lol). I now have 3 lovely pairs of toe socks to keep my toesies warm this winter.

3. My youngest furbaby Shorty's sweater. She loves to wear sweaters. Being part Chihuahua she is always cold and trimbling. Doesn't she look lovely?

4. My oldest furbaby Tinkerbell. She is dachshund and chihuahua mixed. She isn't as cold as shorty but she does love to snuggle. She doesn't like sweaters too much but tolerates me putting them on her so she can go outside to potty.

5. My eldest daughter Hope. We finally got the new mirrors to put in the girl's room and bathroom and since she is nearly 12 she stands in front of them and primps. Last night she came downstairs and said "Hey mom look, Cousin It". If you have watched any of the Addams Family movies or television shows, you know what I'm talking about. What a lovely sense of humor she has.

That is all for tonight. I'm going to go grab some hooky time while my family watches Shrek Ever After.

Until next time you all, Be Blessed.

Snow, Christmas parade and Cozy

Hello again my friends. I hope you are all having a wonderful day. My day has been ok. Been snuggled up on the couch most of the day as I have came down with a cold. I know I will feel better in a few days so snuggling on the couch watching movies, playing on the internet, and crocheting is perfectly fine with me.

Today has been a really good day to snuggle on the couch too. The weather people around here have been predicting snow for over a week now and today is the day it came.

 Can you see it in this picture? Well I know you can see the snow on the ground but can you see the snow falling?

 Here you can see it falling is this picture in front of that old barn. I love the way the snow is coating the shrubs. So wintery, so beautiful.

In spite of the snow, our little town had a little Christmas parade today. It was a tad chilly so it was good that the parade isn't that long.

 We missed the very first float of the parade (finding hats and gloves for 4 littles). Since our house is pretty much on the parade route, I did manage to get a distant picture of the band marching down the road.

 And a distant piture of a float. Good thing they were all bundled up.

 Here is a float of Queens, Princesses, and their attendants.

 And of a guy on a horse. Do I spy some wise men?

 I just love this old racin car.

 And of course, Mr and Mrs Claus riding on our firetruck. Aren't they just a sight? I bet the weather here is nothing like what can be found in the North Pole.

 Oh yes this lovely picture. A couple blog posts back I was talking about getting an electric fireplace. Oh I have wanted a fireplace (of any kind) for so long. So we finally went to our local home store and bought the fireplace. We brought it home and I put it together (the hubby gets quite angry when putting things together). Anyway, the above picture is of the Christmas decor on top of the fireplace. The little tree in the middle is a real tree. I also found it at the home store. It is so cute!

This is where the cozy comes in. Here is my fireplace. I love, love, love it. It has a heater also so it's almost like sitting by a real fire minus the smoke, embers popping, and fire hazards. I can sit and stare at it for hours. Did I mention that I love it?

I hope you have enjoyed this glimpse into my day. I hope you all are staying warm!

Until next time my friends, Be Blessed.

A nice surprise!

Hello my friends! How are you all doing today? I hope you are staying warm. The weather is cold and snowy here in Ohio today. Nothing is sticking yet but according to our weather people we could get some accumulating snow soon. The salt trucks are on the road already!

I got a super nice suprise yesterday from my hubby. You see, we had been talking about my messy crochet corner. All my yarn and sewing supplies were in a little white bin. You can see a picturehere. I told him I would love to have a black bookcase with some little black bins for my yarn because the messy corner was getting to me (I'm just a little OCD about things).

Last night my hubby came home with these:

 This lovely black bookcase, 3 black bins for my yarn, and a nice cart type of thing with wheels. So now my crochet corner is all tidied up and neat and lovely...I just love that man.

 In this picture you can see it a little closer. Oh and he got me 4 new skeins of yarn as well..they are on the 3rd shelf: the burgundy, blue, brighter yellow, and bright green under the blue are all new Caron Simply Soft yarn.
I was up til late last night sorting it all out and deciding how to put everything.

Oh...this is Salem...We are bunny sitting for a friend of ours. Salem is a very loving bunny. She loves to play and be held and she and the puppies get along well...

That is all for today friends. Thank you for leaving your comments. I love getting comments. I hope you are all staying warm and are enjoying your day.

Until next time, Be Blessed

Grey, Rainy Day

Hello my friends. As the title says, it has been a grey, rainy day here in Ohio. I guess it's good that it is raining as we are in a drought but I prefer the sunshine.

 The grey skies and leafless trees look so sad to me. Hopefully, if the weatherman is correct, the flurries we are supposed to get, starting tonight, will cause these poor bare trees to have some white on them. We may even get some accumulating snow over the weekend!

 The gray day does mean I can leave some of my Christmas lights on though. Here the ones on my fence are glowing ever so cheerfully. Makes me happy to see these big ole bulbs shining.

 And you can see the evidence of the rain. The puddles, the grey reflecting in them, and the ripples caused by drippety drops.

 What better to have on rainy days than a big ole pot of chicken soup. Boil your chicken, add carrots, celery, chicken stock, boullion cubes, and whichever spices floats your boat. Boil until veggies are tender, add noodles, boil until they are done and presto...Beautiful chicken soup.

Up close shot...Looks lovely doesn't it. I have to say, tasted mighty lovely too.

Well that is all for today my friends. I am going back to monitoring nightly baths for the kiddos and crocheting on my granny stripe..I hope you all have a wonderful day...Until next time you all please, be blessed.