Archive for » January, 2008 «

Chatter Box

They said it would happen.  I must admit that I was a little skeptical at first, but indeed it has. Fulton is starting to become quite the chatter box.

He’s already up to 2 to 3 word sentences.  “No, Mommy,” or, “No, play,” is a favorite especially at nap time.  “Tootie,” for cookie is a favorite as he walks around the house with his play cookie, I’m sure, hoping it would become real!

I’m amazed and quite thankful to our Lord for how far Fulton has come in the matter of a month.

Category: Family  5 Comments

Rally for Life

Today we joined thousands of other Texans at the Rally for Life sponsored by the Texas Alliance for Life to remember the over 40 million babies who have died since Roe v. Wade legalized abortion.  We continue to pray for an end to this crime and the healing and conversion of those have taken part in it, especially the mothers and fathers of these children.

We were pulling up the rear; so most of the people who marched down to the Capitol were in front of us.  There was an awesome turn out and the weather couldn’t have been any better!  It was so nice to see so many of our friends too.  Kudos to Alexis who works for TAL and all the hard work she did to make this happen.

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 Some parishioners from St. Catherine of Sienna parish made the signs that you see Therese holding.  What a great idea for the children to carry since they can identify with the picture of the Holy Family and especially the baby Jesus. Below the image it says, “Embrace the Culture of Life.”

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Category: Events, Family  One Comment

Family Picture

Compliments of Therese….

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Category: Family  3 Comments

Fulton’s Hearing Update

We had Fulton’s two week post-op appointment this morning. He didn’t have a tympanogram because of the tube, but his hearing was retested in the sound booth.  He is hearing in the normal range again.  Thanks be to God!

The tubes should fall out in 6-12 months.  The physician assistant suggested we continue with the nasal spray for allergies and keep his nose clean as can be. 

Fulton has been absorbing words and sounds like a sponge these days.  He has definitely made progress on his speech.  Our friend Misty commented yesterday that he even seems more engaged when you talk to him.   Things are looking good and progressing well, but he still has a little ways to go.

Category: Family  2 Comments

Normal Catholic Kids??

Therese (to her friends A. and C.):  A., come upstairs! C., you’re going to be Jesus.  Mommy, A. and I are the soldiers.  We’re playing crucifixion. 

 Is this normal play for Catholic children???

Category: Faith, Family  One Comment

Dietary Changes

One of the best gifts I requested and received at Christmas was The World’s Healthiest Foods from their website.  It’s a whole food approach to eating healthier.  What I love about this book is that it lists 100 of the world’s healthiest foods, the health benefits, the nutritional breakdown, the best way to prepare the food so as to maintain the most nutrients, and very easy recipies to prepare a great and healthy meal in around 15 minutes. 

It’s been a blessing since our new houseguest arrived.  Adam’s brother Ben is staying with us for the next couple of months as we investigate through an elimination diet if a food allergy has contributed to some ADD-like symptoms he has been experiencing.  It’s been interesting and challenging to find new and exciting ways to prepare meals without high allergy related foods such as: wheat, dairy, corn, apples, oranges, grapes, and their derivatives plus a load of food additive and preservatives that are frankly in almost everything processed. 

So it’s been a lot of raw vegetables, meats and whole grains for us–which has been awesome!  For our main course tonight we had crepes (made with rice flour, rice milk and oil–instead of wheat flour, cow milk, and butter) filled with chicken and topped with a homemade tomatillo sauce and avocado.  It wasn’t too bad having totally made it off the cuff!

Category: Family  2 Comments

Trained

One day the phone rang and I asked Therese to bring it to me.  Since then, everytime the phone rings I hear:

“Me!!!”….followed by the pitter patter of little step that only a two-year-old can make….and Fulton back with the phone in record time before the machine can pick it up!

Who needs a pet when you can have children!

Category: Family  2 Comments

Happy 4th Birthday Therese

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We love you little goose! 

Therese had a great birthday party yesterday blessed and surrounded by all her best little buddies.  Strawberry shortcake was this year’s theme.  So we made some pinata’s over the weekened, painted them as strawberries, and filled them with snacks.  At the party we had a “treasure hunt” for the pinatas which it seems the kids quite enjoyed.  Then we cracked them open–thanks mostly to the strength of Lucas.

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And in case you read our parish bulletin…yes, there was a misprint….no, she’s not named after a deceased grandmother. 

Category: Family  3 Comments

Fixing a Dryer

As my beloved mentioned in an earlier post, I was indeed up until 2:30am the other morning diagnosing the dryer’s problem. [My wife's words were all too kind. I am undeserving of such a loving spouse]. No sooner had she told me the clothes dryer wasn’t working, I instantly responded “Call a repairman.” This is totally unlike me and even caught Sharon off guard. Normally I’d at least try to find out what the problem is before bringing in the calvary. My fear was that I assumed it would have something to do with electricity, and still not having found a solution for my scooter’s electrical woes I didn’t want to have anything to do with that appliance. However, my wonderful spouse gave me the reassurance I needed to at least try.

It turns out the dryer is probably one of the simplest home appliances you can fix. Probably the most common problem that occurs with a dryer is that it still runs but there’s no heat. I gathered quite a bit of information from a few sites (namely here and here) so I compiled the steps I followed here for anyone’s future need:

  1. Check your service panel. See if the circuit breaker for the dryer has been tripped. A dryer typically runs on 240 volts so it’ll be operating on a dual-breaker. Make sure both are positioned on. It was suggested flipping them both on and off a few times to make sure they’re reset. The dryer’s motor can run on only 1 circuit, but the heating element requires both.
  2. Check your receptacle. If both circuit-breakers are on check that you are in fact getting 240 volts at the outlet. At this point, I highly recommend getting a multimeter, particularly one with a beeping continuity tester. This is a handy inexpensive device you can get at Fry’s or Radio Shack. If you’re only getting 120 volts at the receptacle you probably have a faulty breaker.
  3. Check the air flow. Turn the dryer on to a setting without heat and head outside to the vent. Make sure there is good airflow. If not, the dryer may in fact be able to produce heat but there’s no where to move it. This could cause a fire. Clean out the exhaust vents immediately. You should do this anyway while you’re at it.
  4. Test electrical components. Now comes the fun stuff. Unplug the dryer. You’ll need to locate, disconnect, and test a few items for continuity using your multimeter. This page pretty much lists all the potential culprits. I suggest try locating a parts diagram for your dryer. Luckily Sears Parts Direct had mine online which made locating and testing the components a snap. You can also test a part by bypassing it and see if the dryer heats up. If it does, do not continue operating it with the bypass.
  5. Once you find the defective part, get the part number from your diagram, open your Yellow Pages to “Appliances – Parts and Service” and start calling around. You’ll save a few bucks on shipping if you can find the part locally.
  6. Replace your part and run the dryer for a few minutes without any load.

In our case it was the thermal cut-off. The continuity test failed and sure enough the heating element lit up when the cut-off was bypassed. I found the part (also packaged with a new thermostat) for $25 at Appliance Associates. Who knows how much I saved by not calling the repairman. Good thing my wife still has faith in me.

Category: Budgeting  4 Comments

Music to a Mathematician’s Ears

Therese:  So if two friends come to the door and one goes away, then there’s only one friend at the door.

Me:  That’s absolutely right! (beaming that the math genes are kicking in!)