Family fun!

I have so many pics, and just never got to put them on facebook (before Andrea beat me to it), so I thought I'd put them in the form of a blog.

First, there's the well deserved first family Father's Day! By that I mean, more than one dad in the group. For Father's Day we went to Andrea's, where they put on quite the spread. Ribs, chicken, beans and salad. All very good, all very yummy. Tony did the BBQing and the food was enjoyed by all! We started with Summer Sauage and WI sharp cheese and crackers. (So, I guess Ron was there in spirit :))




Dad gifts were exchanged....

Grandpa loved this....
...he was almost moved to tears!
Diamondback tiks from Tony. He went on this rampage about how the Diamondbacks suck this year, so his face was a little red when he opened this gift...ahhaha. But we are looking forward to go checking out the new management, and having a fun time with a team he really likes...SF Giants.
Chad with his new movie from the 'in-laws". A gift not worthy of the gift he's given us...but there is no gift that size!

When the sun went down, we packed up the cars and headed to Castle and Coasters for some gaming and mini golf!


The guys got into virtual bowling....
....while Andrea played air hockey
...with Bill! I think Bill won!
Andrea went on to play a little pinball, and got herself a little worked up!
This is what happened! hahhaahha

Next, a serious game of mini-golf!

We all set out with winning in mind!



Andrea definitely had a little bit of a disadvantage.

It was Jake's first time out in an outing like that, and he was a little trooper, even though it was hotter than hell, and when I got my hole in one (that's right!), we scared him when we cheered. LOL. Poor little booger. But he wouldn't go to sleep, he wanted to be part of it all. We've gone during the day since then (an indoor deal) and he loved it. He's so cute! Tony won that round by the way, I think it was the impressive golf shorts! :o)

It was a special day for the first time dad...and for the long distance one. I know Bill was missing his girls, and they were missing him. Even though they aren't right here, on these special family days, I hope they know they are not far from mind or heart. We miss them! (and wish they would move here! Okay, had to throw that in! hahah)

Of course, no blog from this grandma would be complete without some candid Jake pictures. He's really a special part of the G in Grandpa...along with Jack, Jessica and Menisha!! (Wow, how did that happen!)

Peeking out of his big ole' travel system. I don't get those things!

Checking out all the lights in the game room. He loves lights!
Chilling at home in his place! He has a lot of toys! He's very intense when he's playing! haha
He loves his Uncle Tony! They like to chillax together!


I think one day of fun is all this blog can handle!! There is nothing more important to me than these family times...being together, and sharing food, fun and relaxation. Whether it be Father's Day, or just a regular ole' Sunday, these memories we make are priceless, no matter what our age! Never take them for granted, and make as many of them as you can!!

The day in the life at an Ob/Gyn office...

Sometimes, my job, really is over the top.

Yes, there are those good points, I get to see the miracle of happy couples making life! It's so much fun to see these mother's every month, watch them grow and anticipate their babies arrival. When all goes well, it's awesome. It's almost as if we're in it together....and in the end, they get the baby...but I get to meet the little bundle, and it's always an incredible feeling.

Sometimes, things don't go so well. Sometimes it takes a little more effort for that little life to grow and become that same said bundle. More than not, the end result is the same, but the process is harder. To me, it's watching God take over, and guide the mother through this process, teaching her to just...trust. In Him, and in her doctor. It's not always easy, but it's a miracle to watch.

But sometimes, things are just beyond my ability to comprehend. I truly believe that the 'making of Life' is truly God's call. It's His miracle. Although, not all pregnancies end (or even start) with a happy ending, but there is a reason behind it all, even if one doesn't always understand. Usually, they don't.

Yesterday, a patient was having a miscarriage. Her second in a very short period of time. She was truly inconsolable. Although she hadn't really lost the baby as of yet, she was anticipating the miscarriage. I tried so hard to get her to...trust...but she couldn't grasp it. She just cried and cried, and as I told her to hang onto the positive, she really didn't believe there was that side. She was bleeding. The end. I told her about Andrea and her bleeding. No. She told me that she knew she would lose the baby, she knew it would come out and no one would understand what it feels like to flush her baby down the toilet. Ouch. Ew. I went to God. In my profession, we really aren't supposed to go there with the patients, but at this point, I needed Him as much as she did. But she didn't hear. She lost the baby today. But she brought the products of conception in. She didn't flush it down the toilet. But she had a hard time handing it over to us. It's hard to understand the pain that sometimes this miracle of making life can cause.

This story reminded me of earlier in the year, when someone had brought in her product of conception that she had lost. She was 14 weeks along. Second trimester. The fetus was whole. It had hands, fingers, toes, eyes, ribs...it was literally one of the saddest things I'd ever seen. I cried for that little life. I prayed for it's soul. It was an image I will not soon forget, if ever.

Now, the crux of the reason I am writing this blog. Today, same day, we had SIX new patients who were newly pregnant. All happy, all good news. One patient, about my daughter's age, came in and was very excited. She had struggled to get pregnant, and in fact, was put on Clomid, a drug used to "push' egg making. She was a bit of a prima donna, as most Scottsdale patients are. Put off by blood drawing, and the probe used in the ultrasound. But she seemed happy, seemed excited. As it turns out...after her ultrasound, she had two babies in there! Twins! Sometimes with Clomid, this happens...not always, but it happens!

She left, looking overwhelmed with her news. This isn't unusual...people usually are shocked at first! Two newborns, can you imagine? Two of everything! Wow. Unfortunately, she was so overwhelmed, she decided to terminate. TERMINATE? What?? I COULD NOT wrap my head around this one. Seriously, who goes through the trouble of counting her cycle days, finding out when she ovulates with an ovulation kit, taking blood work on certain days of the month, taking Progesterone, and Clomid on the days indicated in the plan, having timed intercourse....and then when she gets pregnant, wants to KILL it?? Because it's inconvenient? Are you kidding me? Okay, so she wants to go through some procedure where they try to only take one of the fetuses out...but it puts the other one at risk. All i could think of was the little girl who cried about her baby she flushed down the toilet...or the hundreds of women just in our office, who can't conceive, and I swear, I wanted to VOMIT! I was so angry at this selfish, self-absorbed woman, who can't see a blessing when it's right on the moniter in front of her! She WANTED this pregnancy! Why? If the one she decides to let live survives, how will she look her in the eye? How will she not look in the baby's face and not see the one she didn't let live? Will the surviving twin feel empty? Will she know? I can't fathom it. CAN'T!

I wonder if it's too late to in life to change careers. I'm thinking....cupcake store.

Mother/Daughter Mother's Day!

Hello! I know I'm a little slow on the draw, but I wanted to tell you about my first Mother's Day as a grandmother...and more importantly, Andrea's first as a mother!

This was an instant of not really knowing what to expect, as I've had no life experience in 'sharing' Mother's Day. Mother's Day was really one of my favorite day's of the year. The day I was recognized and appreciated for all the hard work, struggle and sacrifice I've had to endure in being a mom. Totally worth it, yes, and the good always outweighed the bad, the great moments definitely outshining the not-so-great moments. Happy tears totally outnumbered sad ones.

My kids always went way out of their way to make my day special! Since they were kids! Whether it was making me some pancakes in the morning...to taking me out, the fact that they were making such an effort always made me so happy. Even to this day, the effort is there...even though now that they're adults, just all of us getting together is a huge blessing for me!

But this year...it was a little different. I wasn't the only Mom in the bunch! I didn't want to take Andrea's first Mother's Day away from her. So how did it work? We've never been a big fan of going out with everyone and their mother (yes, pun intended), so we decided to do dinner at home. Tostada bar. We each had our 'assignments' and we worked together in the kitchen and tried hard not to resent the boys watching basketball in the family room. Seriously? It wasn't "Boy's Watching Basketball Day", it was MOTHER'S DAY. Sigh. At one point, as we made the shredded beef and warmed up the homemade beans, Andrea asked, "Is Mother's Day always like this?" LOL. Um, yes. From now on, we fight the crowds and go out!


I got some nice card from them, and nice gifts, including a bracelet with charms that spell "Grandma". Awww. Cute, right? A nice heart sapphire necklace from Tony, and movie from Bill. (One I requested). Heartfelt cards that tell me how awesome I am...gotta love that, right? But my favorite, favorite moment of the day, was watching Chad give Andrea her gifts. Sooo cute! Lots of knick-knacky things, and a muscial snow globe that had an angel, and was inscribed with First Mother's Day. It made her day special, and stand out just a little bit! Yay!



So, all in all, we had a great day, we spend time together as a family, which is my favorite thing in the world. I appreciated all the well wishes from family and friends, but especially the very special cards I got from my stepdaughter Meghann, and the 'Grandma" card from Jess. It meant a lot to me!

The cherry on the top? The Phoenix Suns sweeped the Spurs that night!! But, that's a whole other blog!


(Jake, sporting his orange...of course I had to throw him in here somewhere!)

Lots of fun to share!

I know that most of you keep up with stuff that happens on facebook, so I really don't feel the need to have to blog much these days. But I do miss the writing...the sharing...etc. I don't really like eblog as much as I did blogging on myspace, because on myspace, I could see how many hits I had, people could comment...and it was just more interesting to me. Here, I just feel like I'm talking to myself!

I've been wanting to share this story since Easter. Jakes first Easter at Grandma's was alot of fun. My favorite moment though was when he became way too curious about the platter of ham that was in front of him as he sat on his daddy's lap.



He stared at this platter for so long. It was as if he just couldn't figure out exactly what this strange flat pink stuff was! Plus, it smelled pretty scrumptious! He just kept looking and looking...and got closer and closer....



We were all getting quite the kick out of it...and what I didn't record (and I take pics of everything when it comes to Jake) was when he reached out to touch it. At that point, he wasn't really reaching much, so we got excited that he was reaching. It was after dinner, so it wasn't hot, so he reached out and grabbed at a piece. He didn't take it, but he played with it for awhile. Then...he did what he always does...he put his hand in his mouth. He was so startled by the taste, he started to cry. I mean really cry! It was like he was saying, "What happened to my hand??? Why does it taste that way! I don't like it! Help!!!!" LOL...poor Jake. That was his first taste of real food, and he was not a fan!

Of course, since then...he has started cereal, baby fruit and baby veggies. Guess what? He definitely is a fan! Today I let him try out my Ritz cracher (suck, not chew) and he seemed to like it okay. He really loved his cereal, sweet potatoes and bananas tonight! He even drank water out of a water bottle!





Not to mention he's a hoot in restaurants! Here he is at Si Senor after him and his mommy picked us up at the airport.




My little man is growing up so fast, and developing this awesome personality! Today I heard him laugh for the first time, and it was so awesome! He is a cute little bundle of joy....who just isn't so little anymore. I relish every minute that I get to spend with him and I know he knows that his Grandma loves him very much!!

A night at Grandma Sandy's!

Jake spent the night again this weekend. Bill, or shall I say, Grandpa, and I, love having him here, we just love that little booger so much!! He is adorable, and fun, and sweet, and....a lot of work. Here is the typical 24 hours with our little love.

We start off with playing. Grandpa Bill likes to play "Where's jake...he holds him up, then brings him back down. Next we do a little reading. Jake at only 4 months, LOVES to be read to! It's the cutest thing ever! He loves looking at the pictures, and gets excited at certain parts, and really takes it all in. So, so cute! We read to him when he gets bored, and before he goes to bed.


Of course, there's lots of feedings! Diaper changes! Soothing! Walking! Burping! Changing clothes!


Max is ever the protector of the little guy, and really get's upset when Jake cries. He sits by him as he accusingly looks at me as if to say, Um, don't you hear him?? LOL.
This morning he sat watching TV....and he didn't even care that it is STILL not a flat screen, or that it isn't 73 inches! He happily watched "Happy Feet", a cute little movie about penguins.

Although Jake is still a bit of work, and is teething...and today suffered from constipation (sorry Jake), we enjoy every single minute with him. We have our moments...like when he breaks free of the swaddler! Or there's issues in the diaper changing...or I forget to take the thingie off the nipple and nothing comes out! But all in all, Jake loves it here, and we love having him, and well, we can't get enough! He definitely is our little prince!

Ready, GO!

I am going to see Paul McCartney! Yes, one of the remaining Beatles, pretty much THE Beatle....a very powerful, talented, KNIGHTED man. I'm excited! I haven't seen him ever, and even though I am not a rock 'em, sock 'em Beatle fan....I learned after going to see Ringo and his All Star Band, that a Beatle is always a Beatle, and well, a legacy.

This blog today is a total self indulgent one. I want to write down all my concerts in all my life. Music is a big thing for me, and going to concerts and seeing people I love is....euphoria. There's nothing like it, and I know this is something that will never change for me. When I went to see Neil Diamond, there were so many little blue haired old ladies there, and even though I kind of laughed, I thought to myself, that will be me! I will be rocking it until there 's no rock left in this body! WoooT!

So, here's my list for those who are interested, and for those who are not, log off now!

It started at age 14 when I went to see 1)The Carpenters with Patience, her mom, and her mom's boyfriend, Bogey. It was pretty mellow, and we wore our little baby doll dresses (that' was when they were "in" the first time), and it was exciting. I mean, these were people I listened to on the radio, singing some of my favorite songs, and I remember being very impressed. Next, Patience and I went to see 2)Bread , loved it and I was hooked on concerts!

Patience and I saw many a concert together. Reaching back through the cobwebs of my minds, I can come up with 3)The Osmonds, along with the Heywoods, 4) Grand Funk Railroad and 5) Three Dog Night. All very good. All memorable, and all rocking! I won tickets to 6) Rare Earth from the radio station, and my sister and I went to see that. Then I met Ron and Richard, and we were very into going to see concerts, and my 'Rocker Babe' stage began!

With Ron and Rich, I saw 7) Fleetwood Mac, 8-18) Santana, 19) ZZ-top, 20) Los Lobos at least twice, 22) War 23) Tower of Power, also twice, They were awesome!

I can also think of 25) Heart, where i was in like a mosh pit and drinking blackberry brandy. This is the night I realized I was claustrophobic and blackberry brandy made me puke. I couldn't get out. It was gross. But the girls rocked it! My fav concert memory was the one with ZZ top...i was about 7 months pregnant, and it was the last festival style seating ever at the Tucson Community Center. They lit a bonfire on the floor. I was like, YEAH!! Whooping it up. Ron and Rich were like, "Let's get Sandy outta here!" LOL. I wasn't going nowhere...what were they going to do, throw me over their shoulders and carry me down the stairs? Hahaha,. No. So we stayed. It was a great concert.

But I digress.

As you saw, I saw Santana ten times...spanning quite awhile, the last one being about 5 years ago with Bill. After Supernatural. But i have to say that i will always love seeing them best at the Fairgrounds for about ten bucks. Sitting on the ground...drinking and mingling. Awesome. One with nature and the stars. Well, that's how I felt then, anyway. Me and Carlos....and the universe.

The kids came into our lives and the concerts pretty much slowed to a minimum. I took Andrea to her first concert when she was nine. 26) Bobby Brown, Bell Biv Divoe, and Al B. Sure. Andrea has the same love for concerts that I do, and always have. We saw 27) Debbie Gibson 28) Tiffany 29) NKOTB. In this same era I saw 30) Cher (twice).

Then...my country period started. It started with the one and only, love of my life, better than anyone...31) Garth Brooks. Martina McBride was with him, and I got to meet her and get her autograph. Pretty cool. Then there was 32)Alan Jackson and Diamond Rio. That was pretty much it for awhile. No one compared to Garth.

Next, i went....old school In the 90's, I started liking the oldies. Soooo, I saw 33) Kool and the Gang, 34) Jefferson Starship, 35) KC and the Sunshine Band. Very cool. 36) Earth, Wind and Fire.

Then came...the Bill era. We love the music! We started slow, with 37) Huey Lewis and the News. We've seen 38) Elton John and Billy joel together in concert, which was awesome, and then we saw 39) Elton by himself. 40) Fleetwood Mac again, and 41) Ringo Starr. This also included, Sheila E, Edgar Winter, Billy Squier, Richard Marx again, Ron Argent. This was SUCH a good concert. 42) Neil Diamond. 43) Clay Aikan 44) Faith Hill and Tim McGraw. 45) Garth, again in CA 46) Richard Marx 47) George Clinton and his funkadelics 48) Brad Paisley.

I forgot!!! When I was sixteen I saw 49) Diana Ross with my cousins and sister. Fun times!! MJ was a guest, and she introduced them, but he didn't sing. He was also 16.

I've really had to rattle the cobwebs, and with a little help of the internet, have remembered more from the 70's. 50) Marshall Tucker Band was a big one back then. 51) Boston 52) Commodores 53) Cat Stevens 54) BTO 55) The Guess Who. In Washinton, we sat outside the concert hall as 56) Aretha Franklin sang. You don't have to SEE Aretha, you just have to hear her, and hear her we did. 56) Billy Ocean.

Oh, and 57-59) Tom Jones.

Some I've forgotten 60) Ted Nugent. Cat Scratch Fever. LOL. 61) Lynard Skynard. Free Bird. The anthem of the 70's. I wonder why I forgot that one??? LOL.

I know there's more. I just can't think of them, and right now, my brain hurts. My goal is to make it to 100! I get to see one of the greats this month, so I'm looking forward to putting it on my list. I need a few more county ones, and Bon Jovi and Aerosmith! I have to see Rascal Flatts!

I'll let you know how Paul McCartney goes. Rock on!

The far-away Grandmother

I feel that I've been remiss in not writing a blog about our new little granddaughter. Her name is Jessica Jinghree and she is a total cutie.

I've seen pictures of her, of course, that Meghann, Tony, and Nancy post on facebook. I hear tales of how fast she is growing through Bill (Grandpa), that Meghann tells him. I know she's there, and I know she's cute and I know I love her already...but I do't know her.

I am so glad that Grandpa got to go and bond with his little munchkin. He got to hold her at two weeks old, and feed her, and love on her. Even as grandparents, we need that bonding time, the time to fall in love, and kiss their heads (my favorite part) and smell them and laugh at their babiness...and be in awe at the new parents as they learn their new roles.

I am so excited to meet Jess next month. I love looking at pics, and looking at little girl clothes, and hearing the stories....but I want to see her for myself...and create that bond. I love her mommy and am so excited to hear what a wonderful job she's doing, and happy that she is a wonderful mother...and can't wait to see it for myself!!

I guess this blog is for Jesscia. I may not know you, but I love you and can't wait to hold your cuteness in my arms!! See you in April!