The Farm

I have great memories of being on my grandparents farm as a kid. My Mom was a school teacher and every summer her and my sister and I would travel by minivan up to Western Pennsylvania to stay on my grandparents farm for three weeks. I looked forward to this trip more than anything else all year. I loved the serenity and nature of the surroundings, the calm quiet, the daily chores to keep the farm going, the animals, the simplicity of it all. Here is a picture of me petting one of the barn cats in the barn where I spent a good portion of my time.

Looking back now I realize what a phenominal place it was and the hard work that my grandparents put in to keep it going. My grandfather was known all over for his amazing flowers. Every year he would plant five huge circles of flowers lining the driveway plus all along the front of the house. The tall middle flowers I remember he would dig up and keep in the large greenhouse he built through the winter then re-plant (perhaps it was just the bulbs? not sure) when spring rolled around. People would come from all over to see his flowers often stopping to take pictures. Now that I am older and giving my green thumb a go planting and caring for my own flowers I realize the dedication this takes, even for what little I have. I wish I could go back and tell my grandpap how proud I am for all his hard work. I also wish I could go back and take notes because he sure had a knack for growing big beautiful flowers!

To the left and above are a couple pics - one taken from the driveway looking down to the house and the other with my Grandma standing in front looking up towards the road.

Not only did my Grandpap plant and maintain all these beautiful flowers but he also had a huge garden... and I mean huge. At one time I think it was almost 2 acres of all kinds of fruits and veggies. The front half of the land was rows of every kind of vegetable and ground growing fruits like cantalope and berries. Then the back part was where he would grow pumpkins for the fall. Eventually when he started having heart problems, or maybe it was the fall from a ladder that broke his hip, he stopped growing pumpkins. But that didn't slow him down. In fact I don't know how he did all that to begin with, keeping in mind he was in his 70's during this time. Before that he also had in addition to the flowers, pumpkins, and vegetable garden, a full farm with animals such as cows, pigs, chickens, sheep... the pigs and cows were my favorite! And this was what he called retirement!!! Here are some pictures of the garden. He had everything from tomatoes, to green beans, potatoes, green peppers, broccoli... you name it! I can tell you one thing for sure we always ate good when we were there. Every meal included salad and veggies fresh from the garden. I wish I realized how lucky I was to have this exposure as a kid. I also remember my grandparents were never wasteful. I don't even think they had a trash can. My grandma kept an old cooking pot and all the food waste (food peels etc.) and things like that would get dumped into her "compost" (it wasn't exactly a compost but they had an area in the woods next to the house where they would dump these things). Then they had a separate area for paper trash. This would get burned at the end of each day. Whether or not this was such a good idea environmentally I don't know but to them it was less trash. Everything recyclable (cans and bottles) would be just that, recycled.

I also loved all the animals I got to be around when I would visit the farm. There were always the barn cats to take care of and they loved the extra attention when I came around. As a child I remember trying to climb through the fence so I could ride the cows. Good thing someone was always there to stop me. I also remember always asking if I could get in the pig pen and play, but I was never allowed. I think my love and animals grew from these experiences. When I got a little older (around 10) and my Grandpap had to cut back on some of the things around the farm (like the pumpkins) he decided to sell the animals. It was at that point the horses came. My grandpap had a nice barn (which of course he built himself) and he figured rather than letting it go to waste or just becoming storage for the tractors he would rent it out. So a few local ladies with horses moved their animals in. He always had anywhere from 5-8 horses boarded. It was always the same ladies and after a few years of becoming friendly with them (remember I was always in the barn, especially around feeding time to lend a hand!) I was allowed to ride. This was a new highlight for me! I had ridden horses a little before. Some neighbors had an old (I think quarter) horse and I would often go ride her. But this is where I got my first experience ridding english saddle. It was lots of fun!

I definitely miss the family farm. My Grandpap passed away when I was 19. He maintained a sized down version of his garden, the greenhouse, and 2 flower beds up until then even through heart problems and a replaced hip. My Grandmother stayed on the farm for a few more years until the winters were too bad for her to be out there alone. I was heartbroken when the farm sold. My dream had always been to live there and follow in my grandfather's footsteps. I am glad I have the memories to hold on to.

Nursemaids Elbow

Never thought I would be posting about something called Nursemaids Elbow but unfortunately I got a first-hand look at it today and I can tell you it wasn't happy or fun! My poor little guy was climbing up to sit on the chair next to me at the kitchen table this afternoon as I was clipping coupons. This is a new favorite pastime of his - climbing in general! I found him on the kitchen table this morning and he is even able to climb into the car and into his carseat unassisted (of course with some spotting from Mom)! We have affectionately started to refer to him as the family "dare-devil". Well today the dare-devil met his match!
Like I said before he climbed into the chair to my left and as usual sat right on the edge of the chair. This always makes me nervous but I have found if I move him myself he will usually do the defiant toddler thing and move right back so I left him where he was. We were listening to his favorite children's folk music cd so I am not sure if he started dancing or just slipped but I caught him in the corner of my eye and I grabbed for him but only got his hand/arm while the rest of him took a tumble. In retrospect he probably would have been better off just falling off the chair as a whole, arm included because 30 minutes later we were in the doctor's office having his Nursemaids Elbow looked at. Thankfully she was able to maneuver his arm a bit and his joint I guess popped back in place. Nevertheless it provided for a very upsetting day all in all.
Of course when he first fell I scooped him up to console him, not yet aware of the severity of the incident. Being the dare devil he is we have gone through these motions before a few times. He usually cries for 10 seconds and then he's back to climbing again! But this time I could tell there was something more. I started to try and undress him to see if I could see where the injury was and I realized that he was having lots of pain whenever I tried to move his right arm. I thought for sure I must have dislocated his shoulder by grabbing his arm when the rest of him was falling. I felt horrible that I couldn't console him. Later at the doctor's office she asked if I could nurse him to soothe him. Boy I wish that had been an option! I have tried this in the past but ever since we stopped using the Lact-Aid after his first birthday he won't nurse unless it is in the middle of the night to help lul him back to sleep. And even that he hasn't wanted any part of for the past few weeks. It seems to frustrate him more than anything so I didn't want to add insult to injury. It did make me think of some other moms I know who are recently weaning their children from breastfeeding. I would give anything to be able to offer my own milk as comfort to my child let alone nutrients. Although I hate to admit it I even have a hard time being around them lately, I think because for one I am jealous and second I am sad they don't see the breastfeeding relationship for what it can mean to the child. Especially with Luke even rejecting comfort night nursing.
But I regress... So after we shed some tears (I felt horrible! I have never seen my little guy in pain and it was heart-wrenching) I called Dave and asked him what I should do and we decided Dr. Punger would be the best place. I can't stand the ER and choose to avoid it at all costs! And thankfully she was able to fix him right up! He cried the whole way there (I felt terrible putting him in the carseat!) and off and on while I consoled him in the waiting room but after she manuevered his arm he was miraculously healed! I almost felt crazy, like I over-reacted! But of course I didn't.
Then when I looked up Nursemaids Elbow I saw it is something usually attributed to nanny's or babysitters? What does this mean? And I wonder if all the problems I have with my joints has been passed on to my little guy? I sure hope not. That was a pretty good fall and unfortunately my grabbing for him led to a pretty good tug of his arm.
Well that is the summary of my day. My two guys just woke from their nap so I gotta go. Hopefully next post will be about something happy!

Luke's new swim diapers

As I have already blogged about a few times now we have been using cloth diapers rather than disposables. So now that summertime has rolled around it seems only natural to also use reusable diapers for Luke to play in the water rather than disposable swim diapers.

Last summer even before I had considered cloth diapering I knew I wanted a better solution to the heavy and hard to get on disposable swim diapers we were using. They seemed so uncomfortable and held so much water I would have to take the diaper off every time he came out of the water so he wasn't sitting in all that wetness and then put another one on when it was time to go back in the water. Way too much trouble in my opinion. I know a lot of people use these disposable swim diapers and most just keep their babies in them the whole time and all I could think about is diaper rash! from sitting in such a wet diaper!!

Now that I have been formally introduced to the world (and ease) of cloth diapering I realized they also make reusable diapers for swimming. I was a little skeptical about this also because in my mind they would hold water and then I would have the same problem I did with disposables. But when we went to Luke's 15 month check up at Dr. Punger's and we got our first Swimmies swim diaper I was very pleased to see that it was more of a cover. I was excited to try it out!

So we went for a swim at my folks house and gave them a go. They work GREAT!! They don't have a whole bunch of absorbent liners but who needs that? When the kids are swimming around and getting wet why do you need these layers anyway? We can all admit we have pee'd in the pool at least once and it didn't hurt anyone.

Luke really put these diapers to the test when he pooped while we were swimming and this diaper contained the poop way better than a disposable which gets saggy and falls away from his legs once heavy with water. I just treated the diaper like I would any other cloth... held it over the toilet to get rid of any solid poo and then I rinsed it in the sink and let it hang until time for laundry. It is super easy.

Luke liked it so much he gave one to his friend Caleb for his first birthday. Caleb also likes to be earth-friendly with his diapers.

These diapers are very inexpensive and very useful especially for those of you who do lots of water activities like we do in the summer. You can order through twofloridadocs.com or stop by Dr. Pungers office in Fort Pierce and pick one up.

Finally! a funny signing story of my own

I have followed a great book that has guided me through teaching Luke signing ("Sign Language for Hearing Babies" by Karyn Warburton). When I read this book I really enjoy the cute letters found throughout the book that families have written to the author about memorable or significant experiences they have had with their toddler communicating through sign language. I always looked forward to a memorable story of my own when my toddler would communicate with me through sign language in an instance when communication might not otherwise have been possible... or at least not as memorable!
Finally my day arrived!
It was a lazy day yesterday around the Cuti house. Dave had been on call all week and through the weekend and we were all tired from our nights of interrupted sleep by the phone that seemed to ring the second his head hit the pillow. The night before he was called out at 12:30, then when he got home at 2:30 his phone rang again just as we were all settling back in to sleep, and of course again at 5am the phone once again roused us from sleep. I was laying on the couch yesterday morning while the baby played on the living room floor with his toys. He came over to me and started to sign "animal". This used to be the sign he used for "dog" but he has been using this sign for any kind of animal and changed his "dog" sign to be the "animal" sign while also panting or barking like a dog. (side brag note: he progressed all this on his own... pretty impresive for a 15 month old in my opinion!) So back to the story... Luke is looking at me laying on the couch and while gazing at my shirt (or the back of the couch... I couldn't figure which) he was signing "animal". I was very tired and kind of ignored him at first. I asked him where the animal was? and simultaneously thinking in my head if I had worn a shirt with an animal's picture on it. I finally gave in and looked down at my shirt and wouldn't you know there was a beetle perched near the shoulder of my shirt! Of course my natural reaction was to jump up and flick the beetle of my shirt. Then I just had to laugh because this is what Luke was trying to tell me! He walked over to where I had flicked the beetle and signed "animal" a few more times. I quickly tried to think of a sign for "bug" and did this with him a few times for picking up the beetle and putting him back outside. I guess next time I will pay closer attention when Luke is trying to "tell" me something! ;)

A fun little foursome

So I saw this post on another blog and thought it was fun and cute... and quick and easy.
Although my in-laws left a few days ago so I have my nightime computer time back (but not without a loss because I am very lonely without them here... my m-i-l has been staying with us for a month and that doesn't include the two weeks we spent up north with her before... so I am missing her now!) I am still working on getting back into my swing of blogs. But I will!
In the meantime thanks to Danielle for lending me this post ;)...
"Four Things Tag"
Four Jobs You've Had in Your Life
Runner in my un-airconditioned VW Bug in the middle of Florida summer!
Marketing Specialist for an online learning dotcom
Motorcycle and Watercraft mechanic
Bartender
Four Movies You've Watched More Than Once
because I have two movie moods:
seriously:
Adaptation
The Fastest Indian
Lady in the Water
Shawshank Redemption
and not so seriously:
Home Alone 1 and 2 (I watch at least weekly during holidays!)
Adventures in Babysitting
Can't Buy Me Love
Spaceballs
Four Places You've Lived
Fort Pierce, FL (born and raised)
Tallahassee, FL
Daytona, FL
Jacksonville, FL
Four TV Shows You're Watching
Thomas the Train (I am not much for tv for the tyke but once he saw this at a friends it was all down hill!)
American Idol (sucked in what can I say... but if your a fan David Cook rocks!)
Big Love (on showtime... should be back on soon!)
?? I don't get much tv time... I am struggling in this category
Four Places You've Been on Vacation
New Hampshire
Las Vegas (there is actually a lot to see beyond the booze and boobs)
Western Pennsylvania (family here but also beautiful on the eyes)
Long Island, NY (been here a few times but refuse to go to NYCity until we go at christmas time!)
Four Things You Love to Eat
Sushi!
my cooking... especially when it is experimental! ;)
my mom's cooking (always yummy)
chocolate
Four Things You're Looking Forward ToWatching
the snow falling while nuzzling up by the fire
what kind of people my children will grow up to become
Luke riding his first motorcycle!
video clips that we are taking with our new camcorder twenty years from now
Four Places You Love to Shop
the Internet
ebay (does this fall into the Internet?)
antique shops
TJMax

An Intense Day at the Beach

It was supposed to be a nice relaxing day to enjoy each others company and watch the baby play in the water. We headed out to the new pool area in Lakewood Park where we planned on meeting up with my folks and a few good friends. Such is my luck, the pool was closed! So we decided to venture on to the beach in North Fort Pierce. It was a nice day and we didn't want it to go to waste.

Once we got to the beach we settled in a nice spot near the inlet. I played in the sand with the baby until he got up and started to make his way down to the water. The conditions were good for him: low tide and plenty of area for him to play in barely ankle deep water. He was having a great time. After a short time our good friends found us and we settled into a few chairs at the edge of the water. Shortly after my folks also arrived.

We were all enjoying a nice day together. The water was nice and warm with some small cooler waves making their way towards the shore. I waded out in the water and couldn't believe how far I could while still standing in waist level water. I was fairly close to a few surfers and body borders waiting for a wave (which were small and gentle, coming at a pretty consistent pace) and decided to bend down to wet my hair and head back up to the beach.

The baby was having a ball wandering around at the waters edge and his gradma was enjoying following him around.

Towards the end of the day a friend of our good friends showed up to finish out the beach day with us. She positioned her chair next to ours and after introductions were made and small talk was done she decided to go for a swim with one of our good friends and my father. She said how much she enjoyed the water and swimming in the ocean.

The rest of us stayed near the waters edge chatting and soaking up the sun. Then the alarms went off...

I was standing facing the water when I noticed a woman quickly coming towards us with an alarmed expression pointing towards the water. When I finally heard her say she didn't have her phone and to call 9-1-1 I quickly realized the day just went from good to bad. I motioned for Dave to get up and get his phone. We scanned the water and saw our friend out in waist deep water supporting another person floating in the water. Dave started to reach for his phone and call 9-1-1 and then like a switch went off I realized not only was this the woman who had just recently joined us at the beach but she was in big trouble.

I rushed out to the water to help the others pull her to shore while Dave was conveying our emergency to the dispatcher on the phone. Once we got her on shore we realized the seriousness of the situation. We were feeling around for a pulse and turning her to the side in an effort to clear the salt water from her mouth and airway. Time was standing still.

I kept saying over and over "should I do some rescue breaths? let's start CPR!". There was concern from others and (what felt like finally) when everyone realized it would take paramedics some time to get here and we needed to react we moved into CPR mode. I kept asking if anyone was a nurse. It had been three years since I took CPR certification classes and in all the hustle I couldn't remember the compression to breathing ratio.

My husband, a police officer and a former paramedic knelt down next to me to start compressions while I waited for my que to "breath". Eventually a woman came over identifying herself as a nurse and helped talk us through CPR. After a while when Dave was fatiguing another man kindly took over chest compressions while I continued mouth to mouth.
We continued CPR for what seemed like forever until the paramedics arrived and took over.

The purpose of my posting this experience is two-fold:
1: Please keep this woman in your prayers as she continues to fight for her life.
2: Please consider taking a CPR class

Once the woman had been transported and things were calming down a few people approached to say good-job to us but my first response was that I felt it my duty as a fellow human being to help this woman and I would hope someone would do the same for me and my loved ones. This woman was somebody's daugher, sister, mother, friend and if it were my daughter, sister, mother, friend I would hope others would offer the same unquestioning help.
I can tell you for sure without having ever taken a CPR class I definitely wouldn't have been as prepared to help. In fact one of the first things I did this morning was register to take another CPR class (which by the way not only gives you instruction on how to perform CPR but also how to help someone in any type of first-responder situation) and from now on I plan on keeping up-to-date with this.

I strongly encourage everyone to do the same. Things can happen in an instant when you are least expecting it. I know for me, I would like to walk away from the situation knowing I did everything in my power that I could to help this person, including being prepared for a situation like this as much as one can be.

Some quick pics of my little buddy!

My beach buddy is also a comedian!!

Two of his favorite things in one - water and a gadget to operate! It doesn't get better than this!

Here's Luke helping me and Nana get the ground ready for some flowers. He's great with a rake!!