NEW BLOG ADDRESS

In one week I'm going to switch our blog address to heathermacbeth.blogspot.com.  Our URL has always bugged me because it has everyone in it but Skyler.  So I'm changing it to keep it simple and fair.  Benheatherandlily.blogspot.com won't exist then so please remember to save these changes on your computer if you want to continue to read our blog.

Thanks!
Heather

Hives

There are 4 types of pain that I think deal with motherhood:

1. The pain involved in pregnancy and delivery.
2. The pain involved in watching your children make wrong choices, but allowing them to do so.
3. The pain involved in watching yourself make wrong choices in front of your children.
4. The pain involved in watching your children go through their own pain and not being able to take on their burdens yourself.

The last 8 days have been a horrible example of #4.

Monday was the first day that Skyler was covered in hives. They gave him Benedryl as soon as we walked in to the doctors' office and they started doing tests on him.  I kept thinking this must have been an allergic reaction to some food or even to the antibiotic the hospital had given him 2 weeks before.  Nope.  Apparently, he was having an allergic reaction to a viral infection.  Whatever the heck that means.  I was informed that 90% of the time when someone breaks out into hives it's because of a viral infection.  Weird.

They gave me a list of symptoms I needed to frequently check in case he needed to go to the ER.  2 days later his lips started swelling up and cracking -- one of the "ER" symptoms.  So into the ER we went and lo and behold he had developed a 2nd blistery rash called a "target lesion." The ER dismissed us with the unhappy news: "He'll have hives for 2 weeks."

I'm not exaggerating when I say that Skyler has had hives on every inch of his body.  His eyes have been swollen shut.  His hands have looked like blown up latex gloves.  He had hives covering the soles of his feet so he couldn't walk on them.  He has scratched himself to the point where he is covered in blood and bruises.  There's a reason why I haven't taken a picture of him.  I don't want to remember this.

I can't remember which day it was when I had to flip on a movie for the kids so I could go upstairs and cry harder than I've cried in years.  I poured my heart out to Heavenly Father and asked for any comfort or aid that could be given.  Immediately I felt peace and the next day Skyler's hives became much less. 

The Little Handsome still has them.  Each day looks a little better than the day before and hopefully they should be gone by the end of the week.  Even though his little voice is so sweet, I will welcome the day when I never have to hear these words again: "I'm so EEEEE-CHEE Mommy!"

Memories and Memory

Almost 3 years ago Lily looked like this.  Every night I ask Ben, "Why do they have to grow up?" It makes me think of Finding Neverland when the mom says, "Children should never be put to bed.  They always wake up a day older."  That's how I always feel (although if I'm being TRULY honest and realistic, I definitely need their bedtime).

Last night as I was running errands, prepping for the hurricane to hit us this weekend (oh FYI that was AFTER my first earthquake ever yesterday afternoon.... you can calm down now, Mother Nature...).  I took Lil along for some girl time.  While we were in the car we sang songs (because that's where I jam.  Nobody can hear me and that makes everyone happy.  But a little 3 year old doesn't know anything different... her poor little ears in a few years though....) 

We sang things like Twinkle Twinkle and our ABC's.  Then I asked her what song she wanted next.  She replied, "The Indian Princess Song."  "Uh.... that's Grandmum's song.  I'll see if I can get the words right."  So I sing the song that tells about this shy little Indian girl who is in love with her warrior boy who goes off far away to fight and ends up dying while she is left alone.  Grandmum always adds the part that she gets baptized and then they're sealed in the temple afterward.  But I didn't add that part at the end, but she did.  Here's our conversation after I stopped singing:

L: "Mommy, then the missionaries came."
H: "Uh huh."
L: "She got baptized."
H: "Yep."
L: "And then she went to... to..."
H: "To the temple."
L: "Yeah!  To the temple!  They were sealed.  And they got to see Jesus.  I want to see Jesus, too."

That's when she started singing I Am A Child of God to herself.  I'm left in this surreal experience where my daughter is showing me how much she "gets it." 


On Sunday morning another thing happened (although not nearly as reverent).  I was busy getting ready for church and it's Lily's custom to make sure I put my blush on my cheeks and not on some who knows what place on my body.  She's my supervisor, that little Miss "No, I Too Busy Right Now."  She's never too busy to watch me put on make up. 

Well I had left out my Neti Pot from the night before (hate me if you will, those dang things work) on the counter and the next thing I know Lil yells, "LOOK!" I turn to see her shoving that spout up her nose and I just about had to put on some Depends because I almost needed them. 

HOW ON EARTH DID SHE REMEMBER THAT?!  She hadn't seen me use that thing in probably 6 months.  Her memory really is kicking in.  She really is getting stuff.  She's not just a baby I can hope doesn't notice all the things I suppose passes her by.  She's a real human being and she gets it.  And then she remembers it.  SHE ACTUALLY REMEMBERS IT.

Ben, it looks like you're going to have to stop smacking my bum in front of the kids. 



A Macbeth Visit

Ben's parents left their lovely St. George and drove across the country to visit our lovely Raleigh. For a couple of months Ben and I were brainstorming ideas of things to do with them.  We thought about the beach, the zoo, restaurants, and other things but ended up mostly staying home and relaxing (well if you call all of the Macbeths' work "relaxation").  You see, the reason why our possible plans were immediately cancelled was because shortly after Ben's parents arrived, he came down with the most severe case of strep ever and it lasted almost the entire duration of their trip.  Boo.  But no time is more precious than time spent at home, right?

 Lily and Grandmum looked for animals in the clouds.  And major kudos to Grandmum for lying down in that rough bermuda grass.

 "Smile Cookies" were made and eaten. 

 One of my more flattering pictures, no?  (See Mom and Dad!  Your multi-thousand dollar investment in braces paid off!!!)  At least the cookie was delicious.

 Lily and Grandmum invented the game of "Princess Superhero," in which they wore capes and saved whatever Lily said needed saving (cats, pigs, etc).

 One of the highlights of the trip was how much Pop Pop spoiled Lily and Skyler.  He not only made HUGE progress on the castle, helped us with some of our plant problems, and did tons of crucial work on the motorcycle, but he even made this horse swing by hand for the kiddos that we set up on the front porch.  Talk about love.  I think my kids have probably got to be some of the most spoiled kids in the world.

It was a hit.  Lily is always asking to go higher and faster.

3 generations of handsome guys.

These two spent a lot of time together.  As I always say to people who think my children look like me, "Lily is her grandmother's twin and Skyler is his grandfather's."  It's actually kind of funny.

By the way, Skyler's cute.  Just thought I'd point that out.  There's a reason why he's got me so well wrapped around his finger.  It's probably unhealthy.

For FHE (which had to wait until Thursday night because Ben was so desperately sick) we took Mum and Dad to the Raleigh temple.  They had only been to one of the little temples before.  Here we are standing in the steeple's shadow, blowing our horns like Moroni.... except facing the wrong direction....

Too cute.  I hope Ben and I are this happy when we're their age.

Aren't we so glad that families can be eternal?

It was a fabulous visit.  The only thing that was tough was Ben's extreme sickness.  But that in itself was a blessing.  It reminded us to slow down and to remember the important things in life and we were able to have a real vacation (even if that meant me sleeping on Lily's trundle bed for a few nights... ugh). 

Perhaps my own favorite part of the trip was the bond I saw between Lily and Mum.  Mum has these different songs that she would sing to Lily: A Bushel and A Peck, "The Indian Princess Song," and my personal favorite, "The Fish Song."  Except it has absolutely NOTHING to do with fish.  It's actually a Ukrainian song about wooing the wrong man but since it's in Ukrainian and there were a lot of "ish" noises in it, Lily named it "The Fish Song" and asked for it to be sung to her all day long.  Oh how lucky we are to be able to preserve these memories with modern technology.  If my internet wasn't so horrible I would upload the movie.  Maybe another day....

Thanks for coming Mum and Dad!

Reality

I've mentioned before how difficult it is for me to view other people properly. I think we all have this feeling that we need to put on a fake happy face and pretend that everything's alright when it's not.  So when I share my ramblings I don't do it for attention or for pity.  I do it because it's reality.  When I read the scriptures they're full of rough stories.  I definitely think it's important to remember the tough stuff just so that we can be grateful for times when we're not in those situations. 

This past week has been RIDICULOUS.  Between the two kids we've suffered immunization shots (and the fevers that accompanied them), a virus, croup, and an ear infection.  Skyler became so sick his fever got up to 104.2 and he didn't eat or drink for a couple of days.  Last night his pediatrician instructed me to take him to the ER.  We had a friend come over and help Ben give Skyler a blessing and I immediately left.  To my surprise, Skyler slept for probably 5 of the 6 hours we were there.  That made the whole IV business much easier.  I was prepared for a full night of screaming Skyler but he was such a good sport.  I was so proud of him.  After a few days of being too weak to even turn his head to watch a movie, we were delighted when Ben went into his room this morning and found him rocking like crazy on his glider, giggling.  We're so relieved he's fine. 

I hesitate talking about this, just because it seems as if there's some unspoken rule that says that you're not supposed to.  But I don't always go with the norm and I want to record this.  In the midst of all this craziness, I had a miscarriage.  To be honest, I always assumed that if I were to ever have a miscarriage it wouldn't phase me much.  Everyone seems to react differently to them and I can understand how a lot of women become emotional about it.  But this was so early on in the pregnancy and I don't really bond with my kids until they're born.  So when I found out what my body was actually doing, it was a little bit of a bummer, but I wasn't upset. 

When it rains it pours, right? 

So life goes on with its ups and downs.  I told my mom that this was all so laughable that I wanted to cry.  But it makes me think back to Adam and Eve and how they chose to go through all the pains in life because it would be worth it to know the good.  And we DO have a lot of good to be thankful for.

The Wonders and Joys of Life

This week has been a pretty relaxed week. I have been trying to finish the castle and when I went into Lowes this week I found some grey paint on clearance. Heather has wanted to paint the bathroom downstairs grey and so I felt pretty safe buying it without checking with her. When she saw it what did she want to do? Paint it that night. So we got the stuff and between the two of us it turned out pretty amazing. Only problem is I am still trying to find time to finish the castle.



The kiddos had their annual doctor's visit and are doing great. Lily was so scared by the nurse that they weren't able to measure her, but she is doing really well. Apparently their doctor is concerned that she doesn't share 100% of the time. She (the doctor) apparently is still not a mom. Skyler on the other hand is in the 75th percentile for his age. They were impressed that he is talking so well. He had to get his immunizations and has been a little under the weather, but that means he snuggles a lot more which I (Ben) don't mind.


While waiting to see the doctor Lily had to use the restroom. Because Heather was by herself she also took Skyler into the bathroom with her. Lily did her business and while she washed her hands Heather looks and sees Skyler who has his mouth open and tongue out, moving in to see if the toilet tastes as good as it looks. I can only imagine the nurses reaction to a panicked scream, "SKYLER! NO! DON'T LICK THE TOILET!!!" For all you concerned mothers, Heather was fast enough to prevent anything too disgusting from happening.



It has also been really nice to see Lily becoming a good older sister... most of the time. When I am home it is so nice to see the kids love each other. Yes sometimes they do things to aggravate each other, but a lot of the time they really have fun together (much of the time adding to Heather's insanity). I have noticed, though, that Lily really does seem to worry about Skyler. She will make sure that he is OK or bring him his blankie. Today, while he was feverish from his immunizations, she wanted to help us put him in bed. We have start a tradition where we sing I am a Child of God to them as we get them ready. As we were tucking him in she sang it for him. She knew most of the words and sang it pretty reverently for Lily. It makes my heart melt to have such sweet kids.

Can I also say that Skyler has the most impeccable sense of fashion. I really wouldn't be surprised if this fall you see milk pitchers on all the runways. After all, who needs 6 inch stilettos when you can have a 12 inch hat?

Rascal Flatts

In case I haven't mentioned this before, I have an awesome husband.  My friends have awesome hubbies, too.  And do you know what all of our husbands did secretly behind our backs?  They bought their sweet wives tickets to the Rascal Flatts concert.  Well done, boys.  Well done.

The lovely ladies I got to spend the day with.  Rachel, Erin, and Megan.  And yes, we did have fun.

See?

 A picture of us all together after we had been completely soaked by rain and then immediately baked in the 3-digit temperatures (the humidity just about killed us).  We didn't have smoke-free air for about 3 hours and I witnessed a 16 year-old throwing up all her beer on herself and her friends in the bathroom, screaming that she was going to get in so much trouble with her parents.  It was a fabulous reminder as to why drinking isn't all it's cracked up to be. 

But you know what?  All that was totally worth it to see this:

(except with an actual good view instead of my cheap camera's)

Jay, one of the members of Rascal Flatts, said it best:  "This is the kind of heat that makes the thankful I know Jesus."  They were fabulous performers and it was so much fun to sing along when I knew the words.  The whole night was a blast as we listened to all the music and had girl talk in between.  So thank you Ben, Jaxon, Caleb, and Travis for being such stellar hubbies!  We owe y'all a rocking guys' night out.

As a thank you to Rascal Flatts, here are the lyrics to my favorite song, although there are several that I adore.  Even though it talks about finding love, I think of it as finding other things in life.

"Bless The Broken Road"

I set out on a narrow way many years ago
Hoping I would find true love along the broken road
But I got lost a time or two
Wiped my brow and kept pushing through
I couldn't see how every sign pointed straight to you

[Chorus:]
Every long lost dream led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart they were like Northern stars
Pointing me on my way into your loving arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you

I think about the years I spent just passing through
I'd like to have the time I lost and give it back to you
But you just smile and take my hand
You've been there you understand
It's all part of a grander plan that is coming true

[Chorus]

Now I'm just rolling home
Into my lover's arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you

That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you.