I am back!

As you can see, I am trying to update my blog. I finished my second semester with all A's and am still working on a paper for a conference in Kentucky the end of this month (May) as well as finishing up research projects for my professors. I start a summer class in June and then I have July completely off. Stay tuned over the next few days for the rest of my pictures from the past two months!

Easter Morning

The Easter Bunny left their baskets by the door as bunnies are sneaky and don't like much noise (this totally got Jake to be quiet for at least five minutes every time I said it).

This was Mari's first real interactive Easter as she was only 4 months old last Easter. She loves balloons and so we ge them for every holiday.

Jake was happy to see "Lightening McQueen" and many of his Disney Car favorite characters in his Easter basket along with a chocolate bunny.

This was Mari's first chocolate bunny (first realy chocolate as well) and she knew exactly what to do with it! She couldn't even wait to let us take off the plastic wrap!

As you can see both kids enjoyed the morning (and the chocolate for breakfast) and despite the sugar high we all managed to make it to church in time for the egg hunt.

These are from our church Easter Egg hunt.

James and Jake above and Mari and Lucy Gratz are playing on the play equipment oblivious to the egg hunt going on around them.

Jake checking out his eggs.

In and Out

Mari has a new game where she wants in and out of her crib--not to sleep but to play.
Here she is trying to climb in it, because I am tired of lifting her in and out!

Once in she turns on her musical mobile and dances. Why won't this work at night????

A trip to the Memphis Zoo!

Jane Goodall was at the zoo Saturday when we went. Below is the best picture I could get of her as it was a) crowded b) raining and c) you were not allowed to use your flash.

It was not forecast to rain and it looked to be a nice day when we left the house, but when we arrived in Memphis the rain started. Luckily it was not a very heavy rain and we bought these ponchos in the gift shop as we had not thought to bring rain gear. They only came in two sizes: child and adult and so we had to put the kids' sun hats on them to keep their heads from getting soaked as the hood on the ponchos did not want to stay up. It quit raining by around noon and was nice and bright after that. Saturday was also James' birthday (he is now 27) and so we went by his sister's house after the zoo (she and his parents went to the zoo with us as well) and had grilled hotdogs, hamburgers and birthday cake. Mari ate half of the meat and cheese portion of a hamburger. She still is very picky about vegetables though (the COMPLETE opposite of Jake).

I wore a poncho too, but had just taken it off and was about to take the kids off of them. I handed James the camera so I could take the ponch off better and he got some pictures of me and the kids. We never all seem to look in the same direction with decent smiles on our faces.

I thought this picture of the polar bear feet was cute.

Jake posing for a picture and below, the polar bear would swim right up to Mari (well through the class) and she was very impressed with it. We were the only ones in the exhibit at that time and it would splash right by her as if it were playing games with her!

They didn't sit still long enough to get a good shot.

We went back in the sea lion and polar bear exhibit to wait on Aunt Cheri (James' sister) who had just called to say she was at the zoo.

As we dressed for warm weather and Mari can't stand the slightest chill, Cheri shared her lined rain coat with Mari (plus Mari had started eating the yellow poncho at this point).

Above are Jake and Cheri looking at the hippopotamuses and below are Ann (James' mom) and James holding Mari so she can see the large Koi fish in the chinese exhibit (near the pandas).

Mari was really excited about the fish and kept pointing and saying there and then jabbering on and on about them.

Above are Mari and I watching the hippopotamuses.

Above Mari is making barking noises at the otters and James is mimicking her in encouragement. Below, Jake wanted to hold Mari's hand so he, Mari, Ann and James formed a line.

This year Mari was old enough to ride the merry go round as well, which meant James and his dad Larry got to chaperone.

After the rain, Mari insisted on walking for most of the trip (until she fell asleep).
Jake was very excited about riding the train!

It was a great trip overall, and we will have to do it many times this next year now that Mari is old enough to enjoy it as well.

Disposing of Drugs Properly

We have several bottles of medicine from the kids being ill (mainly antibiotics) that I have not been able to figure out what to do with. Normally you would take all of something that is prescribed to you, but with them switching antibiotics because the others were ineffective (both with Jake and Mari) we have about five bottle of left over antibiotics. The doctor has decided that it wasn't allergies after all (I am still having allergy difficulties though) and so I have two bottles of Nasonex (they cost me $95 each) and two different inhaled steroids that were prescribed for Mari (one box was never even opened). Ugh, I will stop now, because I feel a our health care is broken rant forming at my finger tips. Anyway, here is what you are supposed to do with leftover drugs. I searched several times before I found this on(after logging in to) the Walgreens Pharmacy site. I guess I will call tomorrow and see if they will let me drop them off there as I don't quite like the other suggestion (plus I don't want to give up any of my coffee grounds as they are great in the compost).

Topic: Drugs, Proper Disposal
Question: How should I dispose of old or unused medication?

Answer:Because of hazards to humans, pets, and the environment, the old guidelines—flushing unwanted medications down the toilet or putting them in the trash—are no longer advised. Children, pets, and indigent people may find medications in the trash and become accidentally poisoned, and putting medications in the trash or down the toilet means they can find their way into water sources and landfills, and pollute them—causing danger to humans, animals, fish, and vegetation.

Why do we discard medications? There are many reasons: For example, the drug may have expired, it may not have worked for the patient, the prescription was changed to a different drug, the patient forgot or refused to take the drug, or the drug caused uncomfortable side effects.

The Federal government released new guidelines for proper medication disposal in early 2007. These guidelines, released jointly by The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), urge Americans to take these steps:


§ Take unused, unneeded, or expired prescription drugs out of their original containers.

§ Mix the prescription drugs with an undesirable substance such as used coffee grounds or kitty litter, and put them in impermeable, nondescript containers such as empty cans or sealable bags, further ensuring that the drugs are not diverted or accidentally ingested by children or pets.

§ Throw these containers in the trash.

§ Flush prescription drugs down the toilet only if the accompanying patient information specifically instructs it is safe to do so and your state permits such actions.

§ Return unused, unneeded, or expired prescription drugs to pharmaceutical take-back locations that allow the public to bring unused drugs to a central location for safe disposal.


View the Walgreens.com Ask a Pharmacist Archives for a list of all commonly asked questions.

DISCLAIMER: The information provided is not a substitute for medical advice. Consult your physician for diagnosis and treatment of your medical condition. Advances in medicine may cause this information to become outdated, invalid or subject to debate. Professional opinions and interpretations of the scientific literature may vary. Walgreens' terms of use and general warranty disclaimer apply to all services provided. If you are in need of immediate medical attention, contact your physician, poison control center or emergency medical professional. If you need to speak with a pharmacist for non-emergency matters, contact your local Walgreens pharmacist or call a Walgreens.com pharmacist toll-free at 1-877-250-5823.

Miss Mari goes to the hospital

Six years ago...

James and I got married and started this whole family thing, which is still working out pretty good (in my opinion). It has been a wonderful six years, it has gone by too fast! Below is a picture of us I took yesterday- six years, three degrees, two kids and a mortgage later...