My Numero Uno

Today is a very special day, because it is the day that I married the cereal to my bowl, the cheese to my cake, and the peanut butter to my cookie.  

The past seven years have been full of surprise, excitement, and at times, hardship; but I know without a doubt that God placed Jody and I together so that we could experience all of those blessings together.  I usually reserve blog posts to talk about the boys and their fun escapades, but today, I want to do something a little different.

I want to write about my numero uno--my husband.

When thinking about how to condense my feelings for Jody down into one little post, I decided it would be best to make a Top 11 list to describe some the reasons why he is important to me.  (I couldn't decide on just ten.)  Here they are, in no particular order.  :)

1.  Jody is a huge Georgia fan, but since we've become parents of two, he has put his game watching plans on hold for the family.  Instead of sitting back on the couch watching the game, Jody is shuttling us to our latest fool-proof event (which usually doesn't end up so fool-proof).  He does it all with a smile and is content to catch up with the game on the DVR.

2.  Jody is my number one blog fan.  He loves to read my posts, and he encourages me to write every day.  He also proof-reads every post for me, so you can thank him for any and all typos as well.  ;)

3.  If a stress-induced breakdown should ever occur, Jody is always there to calmly help me through it.  He is often the zen to my crazy.  Although, I can't say that these episodes ever happen that often.  I mean, maybe once, if that.  

4.  He is the best daddy in the world to our boys.  They love him, and he loves them more.

5.  He often surprises me by coming home with an extra cookie from Subway or my favorite soft drink.  Sometimes it's the little things and the terribly unhealthy things that make me happy.  I'm glad he knows that.

6.  He loves Downton Abbey, just like me!  He sacrificed his manhood by going into Video Warehouse on several occasions to track down season one for me.  I'm forever grateful, as this is my new all-time favorite show.

7.  He bought a minivan for me!  He actually loves it, but did admit that he probably wouldn't drive it out and about by himself.  Baby steps?

8.  He thinks I'm awesome.  Now, he doesn't always come out and tell me that, but I know that's what he's thinking.  How else could we have made it through all these years?  :)  Besides, I think he's pretty awesome, too.

9.  He is the timely to my untimely.  Sometimes, I tend to procrastinate, and he calls me on it every time.  I really like that about him.  He keeps me motivated.

10.  He says the funniest things at the some of the most eventful times (e.g. bath time, diaper changing time, getting ready for church time).  If you were to ask us how we manage to raise twins, we'd both say through laughter--lots of it!  

11.  He knows all of the words to all of my made-up songs that I sing for the boys.  Nothing sounds better than a Mommy/Daddy duo of nonsense.  

Though every day together may not be perfect, in the end Jody only wants the best for me, and I only want the best for him.  That's what will keep us going for another fifty years.

We're a good pair, the two of us.  

My three amigos, getting ready for our daily stroll

      

                  

Superstar

What a difference a year makes!

In October 2012, we had one of the biggest scares of our lives when Rowan was diagnosed with a heart condition called SVT.  I still remember almost every detail of that day, including all of the faces who crossed my path in an effort to sooth a sick little boy and his scared mommy, too.  

Ever since then, Rowan has taken medications to help to regulate his heart rate.  While we had a few little bumps in the road during this time, Rowan has really done quite well.  In fact, we think he's a superstar.  Rowan is strong, rowdy, adventurous, and then some.  There is no doubt that his experiences with SVT have led him to be the brave little boy that he is today.  

This afternoon, Rowan went to see his cardiologist for the last time.  Since June, Rowan's doctor hasn't raised his medication dosage in accordance to his weight, in hopes that Rowan would outgrow his condition.  Thankfully, Rowan hasn't had another episode of SVT, so he was given a clean bill of health!  Our little boy is officially SVT-Free!  Most babies who develop SVT at a very young age, as Rowan did, often outgrow it by the age of one.  His doctor said that there is about a 1 to 2 percent chance that Rowan will ever have to deal with another episode again.  

As Rowan's doctor was saying goodbye to us today, he said, "Well, Rowan, you are a great little guy, but I hope that I never see you again."  Rowan just smiled and very enthusiastically waved him out the door.  

This picture is of Rowan staring out the very same window that I looked out from a year ago.  Last October, I was watching for the CHOA ambulance to come and pick us up; this October, I was watching my little boy stand at the window and say, "truck!" 

We are thankful for our blessings from above!