I have neglected my blogs....

 Here we are at Union City Pizza King....and on this day we actually saw a train meet! Two trains coming together in the opposite direction. Do you remember? I love you Noah....more than you will ever know!

I can't believe you turned 22 in December.....

Happy Birthday Noah! I love you!!
 

Memories..............

Dear Noah..........you are getting closer to getting your college degree!

You are doing very well in college and I am very proud of you for being so determined and such a hard worker to get that degree! You set your mind to something and you always do whatever is necessary to succeed so I know you will be successful in whatever you chose to do in life!

I love you more than  you will ever know.....I really do...to the moon and back again always!

Mom
XOXOX

Dear Noah.....you are finally over pneumonia.....

What an experience this was! You started off at urgent care on January 21 thinking you might be getting strep throat. They gave you an antibiotic but your cough and fever just got worse no better. By Saturday the 26th I took you to the local ER as I was concerned about possible pneumonia or even infective endocarditis. They also felt the same so you were transferred to Miami Valley for a so-called stat echo which never happened till Monday anyway so I wish they could have just kept you local...but you made that trip by yourself in the ambulance transport, while I went home and took care of a few things to make the trip back down to Miami Valley to spend the night with you as I was pretty sure you would not be coming back home that day. You had 3 IVs going by the time I got back and you had already ordered your own supper and was eating it when I came into your room. They were treating you for sepsis and possible pneumonia/endocarditis and running all sorts of tests. You became an expert at blood draws, needle sticks and IVs before this experience was over with! Your heart rate was also super fast, and while I knew you had a fast heartbeat I totally forgot that your cardiologist had said in the past she felt you had sinus tachycardia, so while fast, it was normal for you, and when you are sick and with a fever your heart rate goes even faster. This would have been helpful to have remembered because the hospitalist was very concerned about the fast heart rate and of course I had not told him about sinus tachycardia, only a fast heart beat all the time in the past.

You were not getting any better and you had a reaction to the vancomycin, redman syndrome, so they had to then treat  you for that and the next time they gave you some they treated you beforehand and slowed down the infusion rate, which is usually what causes that type of a reaction. Poor kid you were really sick, not getting better and still with high fever, now looking like you were sunburned on your face and torso and back, and still with a heart beat of up to 160s.

Your flu tests were negative..but you did finally test positive for Mycoplasma pneumonia so they switched antibiotic treatment specifically for that. Once they did that you started to finally get better! By Monday, they were not going to let you go home again but if they were not going to do anything different, and you were off all your IVs at this point and on oral medicine, and I could monitor you at home, I did not know why we could not be discharged so I really pushed for it. FINALLY got you out of there and back home Monday night before the sleet and ice hit, somewhere around 7:30 or so after we picked up your medicine at the pharmacy.  You still were not great ....took you another week at home to feel better and totally get rid of your cough.  THEN I got it......and I am still fighting the cough a bit though I am much better than I was! I have never coughed so much and brought up so much stuff in my life!

THANKFUL you made it through and did so well.....thankful to God for getting us better and back home safe and sound and keeping us healthy now. I love you and I really missed not having you here at home, even though I pretty much spent all my time down there at the hospital with you.

Here is to the best health going forward for us both!

LOVE YOU  LOTS

Mom
XOXOXOX

Dear Noah...your 20th birthday party at CiCi's Pizza.........

 

You ended up basically eating an entire pizza all by yourself. You got some money and gift cards, a cool Doctor Who T-shirt, a cool mini train ornament for your mini Christmas tree......and more. We all had a great time......and I still can't believe you are now 20 years old! I love you my little man!

Mom XOXOXO

Dear Noah.......you will be 20 years old next Saturday.......

and I have to wonder where those 20 years went! It seems like only yesterday (okay maybe last week or last month or year) that you were still about 5 years old, and now you are in college and growing up before my eyes. Bittersweet because I am thankful you have progressed along so well and come so far, but also a little sad to see those days have passed, forever. If you are successful making it on your own in the world, I will have done my job. There are times I wish you were still tiny and I was still  homeschooling you, but I love you now as a young man who has a lot of goals in his life. I hope and pray you will be able to accomplish all you set your mind to.

Christmas is only a few days away now, then your birthday, and we will be into yet another new year. I love you more than you will ever possibly know, even though I am sure I totally get on your nerves a lot now lol.

Love you to the moon and back, again and again, forever, and ever, and ever.......

Mom
XOXO

Dear Noah....before and after your hair cut........

Dear Noah..........forgot to post pics of your gaming PC build

These pics are not the greatest...and this new gaming PC is MASSIVE..........we had fun building it......except for a couple of minor frustrating events..

Love you!

Mom XOXO

Dear Noah..........

 

I came across this photograph of you I had taken when we were looking at model homes in Indiana. This was after we had moved back to Ohio and were looking for something to buy or rent. We always enjoyed looking at model homes in Colorado just for fun and on this particular day we went to Muncie, Indiana to go through all the model homes in this one particular area....I forget how many but it was either 8 or 18......lol..I do remember an 8 being in the number. I know it was a lot and I believe it was TK Constructors but I am not 100% certain on that. Here you are testing out the jet tub...and look at your face. You were in heaven!

It is hard to believe that this little guy in this tub will turn 20 this December. WHERE has all the time gone? It truly seems like only a few years ago you were this little. 

I love you Noah to the moon and back again, forever I will.

Mom

XOXO

Dear Noah.........

I don't post much these days in here...after all you will soon enough be 20 years old, leaving me asking myself, "When did that happen?"  It seems like only yesterday we were still homeschooling and living in Colorado. It seems in my mind you are still little even though I can see a much older young man in the room beside mine. Time is so odd in that way.....life really does end up becoming truly only how we "perceive" things to be I guess.

You are doing well in college......still cannot believe you are in college! I guess the fact that I make such a low income right now is good for you because you qualify then for grants to be able to go to college, which is a good thing,  but I always wish I could do more......and I want to do more.

So many little details I still need to take care of here and always things to do. I still  love you like I always have and always will...but it is getting harder and harder for me to see those little Christopher Robbins' legs, socks, and shoes on you and hear that little snippet of Winnie the Pooh song I hear in my mind when I used to watch you walk down the hallway.

I love you!

Mom 

XOXO

Dear Noah....you are officially a permanent licensed driver now!

Driving for an extra period of 2 years and earning straight A's in college and being on the Dean's list has helped tremendously to lower your insurance costs for being added to my policy...so that is a good thing! I knew you had passed when you came "running" back across the parking lot with a big smile on your face! I am very proud of you and so happy you finally accomplished this! We went out to celebrate at Domino's Pizza since you had not eaten there since December 2017! THEN we stopped and picked up a cell phone for you as  you now will need one if you are out driving by yourself here and there and for down the road on your own or working..etc.

I was just looking at this photo of you the other day and wondering where all that time has gone. I know that little boy is still somewhere deep down inside of you....but wow...time is flying by and you are making huge strides to get out on your own one day.

I love you Noah and am SUPER happy for you and proud of you for all you have worked for an accomplished in your life so far!

Dear Noah.........

 

 These are 2 photos you took with your camera at grandma and grandpa's house....a cute little bird came up on their windowsill to eat some bird seed and you snapped a shot or two.

I know you are anxiously awaiting some more extra money to come along so we can get your new gaming PC built. SOON..soon...soon....

I love you!

Mom XOXOX

Your belated 19th birthday party at Clara's in Richmond, Indiana, along with a few other trips

 

Well we finally were able to get over to Clara's for a small belated get together for your 19th birthday. You had really wanted to go there for your birthday for pizza but the weather had not cooperated for everyone and then the next time we planned it a few were sick. So 2 of your aunties came and we had a good time just the 4 of us. The pizza and cake were good too. We went to Warm Glow Candle after that and Centerville Antique Mall and had a great outing. 

We take your photo every year we can at Warm Glow Candle with their giant Santa sculpture out front. You are now up to his shoulder!

 

I only come up to Santa's elbow! 

 

On another extreme...the antique mall had a giant chair which you looked tiny compared to it lol.

I love you lots  Noah. You are registered for your spring college courses now and we went and picked up your textbooks this week. You got straight A's on your last semester courses. You are doing very well working towards your degree in business management!

Happy 19th Birthday and I hope and pray you have many, many more to come!

Love you always,

Mom

XOXOXO

Happy 19th Birthday Noah!

I have no idea where the time has gone! Seems like only yesterday we were in Colorado getting ready to take you home from the hospital! Now look at you! You are in college!! FULL GROWN!

I love you more than you will ever possibly know or understand...........my little man. I am so proud of all your challenges you have overcome in your lifetime so far! You are doing fantastic!

LOVE YOU!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Dear Noah.......I got a birthday card from you this year....

which was extremely special for me. I believe it was the first official card you ever bought for me...and what made this even more special was the fact that you bought it clear back last December when we separated at a store to do our individual stocking stuffer shopping for each other. I guess you figured you would not be out shopping away from me again before my birthday so you bought that card 7 months ahead of time.  You then hid it from me until I woke up on my  birthday to get ready for work and there was the envelope on my desk.

What a way to start my day. You went to so much effort to do this!

LOVED IT...LOVE YOU MORE

mom

XOXOXOX

Dear Noah.....you have officially graduated high school!!

Like when did that happen?? SO hard to believe that you are old enough to be driving and finished with high school AND have 10 college credit hours already completed towards your associates degree in business management!

We had a nice small family get together at CiCi's Pizza to celebrate you graduating......per your request as you LOVE CiCi's Pizza. I think you ate almost an entire pizza by yourself!

You have qualified for grants to go to college so you are already registered for fall and winter courses. You will be going to school full time. You are also considering getting a job.........and I am very proud of  you and all your accomplishments in life so far. You have certainly come a long way!

Here are a couple pics from your graduation party.

I love you Noah!

Mom
XOXO

You got a nice leather journal and pen/pencil set as part of your gift from Uncle Chris and Aunt Rita who could not make it up for your graduation.

Dear Noah........

well...the days are moving by quickly and you are getting A's and B's in your college classes....now you will  need to decide what you want to do next..lots of decisions to make and possibilities to think about!

I have to wonder most every day where the time has gone....and how you could possibly have gone from that cute little boy to a nice looking young man.

I love you very much Noah!

Mom
XOXO

Dear Noah.......you are now 18 years old...........when did that happen?

Wow..cannot believe it has been like over a month since I posted any updates. I know things are going pretty well when I don't post that much OR things are going too rough and personal and I don't share. Let's just say a lot has been happening in the past couple of months. You have finished your first semester of college courses and got an A in the Customer Service/marketing class and a B in the Business Management class........you did VERY well and I am very proud of you and I believe this has boosted your confidence level which you definitely needed! You will start your next 2 classes next week.......English composition (to prepare you for Business Communications) and a marketing class..forget now off the top of my head what it is called. I think you will do well......but time will tell. 

You have dealt with some personal issues which I will not go into here.....as they are personal.....and you have not always made the best choices or handled them the best but you are learning. I do try to always understand you and help you through trying times but it seems I was not even aware of some of your trying times because you did not let me know. When I found out you held a knife to your throat and wanted to die during this personal time I was so devastated.......but so thankful it was mostly just a threat to someone and not something you really would want to do. However, your more immature responses to times of personal crises reminds me of the fact that while young....and young people can be super dramatic at times...you are still more emotionally behind than your peers at the same age as you. I do not have a problem with that as I know from the past you will catch up......but I know it makes it harder for you to be ready to take those first steps out into the real world. I am trying all I can to prepare you....but it takes time and you move at a slower pace in this regard than others your age. NOT all...just some. In a way that is kind of normal probably for kids your age. 

We did have a small birthday celebration at your grandma and grandpa's house after Christmas since everyone was there..or just about everyone......like we always do to make it convenient for everyone not to have to get together again over the holiday rush.....but you have always wanted to have a party at CiCi's Pizza ....and with the holidays and some not feeling well and work schedule conflicts I figured once again we would not be able to do this....but your aunt Angela arranged a SURPRISE birthday party for you at ...yes...CiCi's Pizza!

When I got you over there you had no idea and when you walked in and saw everyone and realized your wish of over 2 years was finally coming true...you teared up.....but you were so happy. I DID cry the semi-ugly cry lol..but tried to keep it together. We had a great time there and good food and playing arcade games. Big shout out thank you again to my sister Angela and everyone else who came along to celebrate Noah's 18th birthday! 

I still can't believe you are now 18 years old. While there are a lot of "firsts" in your life and my life with you recently...there are also some "lasts" and things coming to an end...like homeschooling. I have loved every minute of that and really never wanted to relinquish my duties in that regard even as you had to become more independent with your studies. I had a very hard time with that and still have kept most of my old school stuff I used to teach you with. I did donate a large box of items to Goodwill....which about tore me up.....but I did it. I have to remember sometimes it is okay to let go of the material thing as I still have the memories and photos. 

In another month or so you will get your permanent driver's license. Another big first was the fact that we had to register you for the selective service/draft. Life goes on and there will always be changes coming our way........and I am so thankful you were born and have shared your life and time with me. 

I love you to the moon and back again my little man.....though you are all grown up now! Love you! Mom XOXOXOX

Dear Noah..........your annual pumpkin patch photo.........where has my little man gone?