Thank you, Auntie Em.

When Savannah had her blood drawn on Tuesday, she was given an Elmo sticker. Well, quite a few actually. But she was only interested in ONE.

A few weeks ago, when she also had Elmo stickers, her Auntie Em was over for a visit and was being goofy, and told Savannah that since her belly was hurt, to put the stickers on her belly. Makes sense, right? Well, for some reason, Savannah has remembered that advice.

So when the lab tech handed her the Elmo sticker, she yanked up her shirt and stuck it to her belly. I just kinda laughed and we left... and later I tried to remove it, which did not go well. She screamed and cried and I thought... pick your battles... she can keep the sticker on her belly. It'll fall off eventually, right? Haha. No.

Two days later...

Elmo sticker finally disintegrated in the bath tub. Which was a catastrophe in of itself. And... three days later... her belly still has sticky residue on it despite alcohol wipes and baby oil... Thank you, Auntie Em. :)

Quite the Competitor...

Darren says that Savannah retired from pageants like Brett Favre retired from football. (And yes, I did have to google to find out how to spell his name and to find out that he played football. Darren wasn't specific as to which sport.) But I really did mean it when I said we weren't going to do any more. But when this weekend rolled around and I got a call from a friend and I really wanted to do something just for fun, it sounded like a good option. :) Maybe I should change my statement to... Savannah might do pageants on occasion, but not nearly at the frequency she did before. Haha.

Anyway, let me tell you all about it. Savannah was in a fantastic mood. She really was hamming it up that day. In fact, in the dressing room, she laid on the floor and pretended to sleep (complete with snoring sound effects) just so people would come over and laugh. She'd peep at them out of one eye just to make sure they were still watching and then close her eyes and let out another snore. I just don't know what to do with this kid.



But, in spite of spending a considerable amount of time pretending to sleep on the floor, she did look pretty cute, huh?! I think she's a doll but I am aware that I'm at least a little biased.

People have asked me before what you do in a pageant with a baby. First of all, there is a group line up, where all of the girls competing against each other line up together so they can all be seen at once by the judges. Then, the girls go on stage individually. Well, the moms are required to accompany the child on the stage, and there are three x's that mark where you stop. So you walk the child to the first x, pause, proceed to the second x, stop for a minute, turn around, and proceed to the third x, where you pause once more before exiting the stage. Got it?! Before Savannah could walk (and got extremely independent) it was a lot easier because I could carry her and it wasn't hard to make her smile for the judges. Now that she has quite a mind of her own, I really can't predict what will happen on stage.

I usually coach Savannah a little bit while she is on stage, and I say things like "can you blow a kiss?" or "can you wave and say bye?" But this time she did not need any coaching. Let me tell ya.

We got up on stage for the group lineup, and Savannah was almost too over the top with personality. She stepped out from the rest of the children and clapped, waved, and then started to spin around and dance. Usually she gets great scores but gets comments like "she was a little shy." This time, that was not the case. I actually thought maybe she was too much.

When we went back on stage for the individual part, she did great. She stopped on each x without prompting, and when she got in front of the judges, she really hammed it up. She blew kisses and waved with both hands and then giggled and clapped.

This pageant was more involved than the ones we've done before because she had to compete in casual wear too. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of that outfit because she had to change so fast, but it was very cute. She did pretty good in casual wear too but this time she sat on every x. Haha. Ooops.

After that, we headed into the crowning ceremony, and each child's name was called for awards, but not Savannah. I thought she did really well, but you never know what the judges' personal preferences are, so its hard to predict who they will choose. I figured, we had a good time anyway and I was really proud of how well she did.

We got to the end of the crowning and they said they were going to give the highpoint and overall awards. Let me explain this part (because someone else had to explain it to me when we started pageants). In a pageant, they have a highpoint queen (sometimes called Supreme) for the whole pageant and its the one with the highest total score when they add up all events. For this pageant, it was the one with the highest score in photo, casual wear, and gown all added together. They also give overall awards in each category too. And for the overalls, its all of the contestants in the whole pageant, not just the ones in your age division. Clear as mud? Usually older kids win these things because they are old enough to know just what to do on stage.

So... with great pride... let me introduce to you....

Savannah Beckner, United Miss Supreme Highpoint Queen

Highpoint Most Photogenic

Highpoint Most Beautiful

Winner, prettiest hair

Winner, best attire

Winner, best smile

Winner, casual wear

I couldn't believe she highpointed in every category except casual wear. I was so surprised when her name was called over and over again at the end. Six medals, three plaques, a trophy, and a crown accompanied us home. Way to go, girlie!

The Good News and the Bad News

So here is the scoop. We got some answers. We have some good news and some bad news.


Good news first? Okay. The good news is that nothing major is wrong. No cancer, no ulcers, no diseases, no malfunctioning organs, etc. Okay, so maybe even the bad news will sound good after ruling all of that out!



The bad news is that Savannah has a fructose/sucrose intolerance. Its not technically an allergy in that consuming fructose/sucrose won't cause hives or breathing difficulties, etc. But, its an intolerance in that her body is unable to process it properly. Basically, here is how they broke it down for me. Everybody has a certain level of tolerance in life. Some people tolerate everything, and some people tolerate nothing (oops, that last one is me!). Its the same way with stomachs. Savannah's stomach doesn't tolerate fructose. So when she gets a certain, very small level of it in her body, it basically freaks out and produces a ton of acid and then pushes everything out. Which means she goes to the bathroom 14 times in a day and its so acidic that it causes blistering diaper rash. This condition is sometimes called "Toddler Diarrhea" because its something that she WILL outgrow. As the stomach grows, so does the level of tolerance. He said Savannah's case was kind of severe in that she doesn't seem to tolerate much of it AT ALL, but it will get better.



So... what contains fructose/sucrose, you ask? Uhm. EVERYTHING. Pretty much. When I asked that question, they grinned at me. That is never a good sign.



No more cheerios (or any cereal), cookies, cake (I'm going to have to totally restructure our breakfast options - HA!), fruit juice, soda, icing, pancakes, syrup, koolaid, oatmeal, etc. Nothing that has artificial sweetener. Which actually rules out things I kinda thought were healthy. Like some yogurts and packaged fruits. ANYTHING SWEET.



You read that right.



What CAN she eat? Bananas, unsweetened applesauce, some crackers, pasta, potatoes, soy milk, whole grain bread, nuts, meats that aren't breaded or are breaded with things that don't contain fructose/sucrose, some veggies that aren't seasoned with sugar, water, and thats about it!



Whoa.



So... the good news is that we have a SOLUTION for the first time EVER. And its not all that hard. Read the label, don't eat it if it contains fructose. Man, I have a feeling I'll be cooking more and being healthier.



The bad news is that, in the words of a friend, "This is going to be a real PAIN in the BUTT!"



Couldn't have said it better myself!



Savannah also had blood drawn today to test for lactose intolerance (and why they didn't do that the last time they strapped her down for this is beyond me and it made me a bit...ahem... very cranky.) We should have those results back in about a week.



Thank you all for praying for us and supporting us through this long journey of doctor visits, testing, etc. The end is in sight!

Not Me Monday... Round Two

1. I definitely did NOT let a toddler in my bed with a CapriSun juice box. And if I did, when she spilled it everywhere, I did NOT just rub it in and not change the sheets. That would be gross.

2. I have NOT been paged to the church nursery twice this month because my toddler wouldn't stop kissing/hugging other children. She is NOT overly affectionate and I do NOT remain clueless about what to do about it.

3. I did NOT give my 19-month-old a box of Nerds candy… and then when she tripped and fell and spilled them everywhere, I definitely DIDN'T sit in the floor and help her eat them.

4. I really DON'T let Savannah brush her teeth for like 20 minutes and keep reloading the toothbrush with the kiddie toothpaste because it keeps her quiet (no fluoride, don't panic).

5. And for that matter… if she is taking a bath and gets loud … and I'm sitting in the bathroom floor reading a good book (wait… I don't do THAT either!)… and I want to keep reading… I NEVER give her the toothbrush in the bathtub to buy a few more minutes.

6. I definitely DIDN'T shave the lower fourth of both legs so that I could wear capri pants running one day. Who would do THAT?!

7. I did NOT totally forget to meet a friend for coffee after we'd talked about it like… 10 times. And if I did, it wouldn't be because I knew I was supposed to meet her on a certain day but I had my days confused in my head. Because I'm WAY too young to do that!

8. I did NOT laugh so hard at a friend this week that I spit on myself. That would be SO embarrassing.

9. I certainly did NOT see a green paci laying in the mall parking lot and contemplate… for a minute… picking it up and taking it home. That would be weird. And ridiculous.

10. I definitely DON'T refuse to stop my not-me Monday list at 10 so that people don't think I'm completely insane. I really do NOT have more not-me's that I'm leaving unlisted due to the overwhelming volume.

Are you brave enough to fess up to what you did NOT do this week? Check out my friends Katie and Meagan (later...after they have time to post!) if you wanna see what other people did NOT do…

http://jermankatie.blogspot.com/

http://www.markandmeg04.blogspot.com/

And you're right - I did NOT just reference my friends on a public blog so that now they HAVE to do this again. :) I wouldn't do THAT...

Wake Me When Its Over

This morning we checked into the hospital in a very sleepy mood.





But thank goodness we got to go to the Childrens Hospital, where they cater to kids (go figure!).

Slipping her back into the yellow hospital gown gave me some bad de-ja-vu though.

I'll be okay if we go... forever... without putting one of these on again.

After she got ready, the nurse brought her a coloring storybook called "A Trip To The Hospital." I have to give them props for being creative. This visit was SO DIFFERENT from our last visit now that they have the full blown Childrens Hospital up and running.

Do I look like I'm happy about this?! Really?!

After waiting a little bit, they came and gave Savannah some Versed, which proved to be a wonderful thing. It made her totally relaxed and she completely forgot how thirsty she was. Look at those eyes!

I carried her back to the OR and held her while she was put under general anesthesia. She hated the mask they put on her face, but luckily she could only fight it for a few seconds before she was out. That part was probably the hardest for me - laying her on the operating table and leaving the room. The nurses and doctors were great though and they made me feel as comfortable as possible about it.

About 45 minutes later, she was done! They brought her back to the room and she was fighting mad. She was trying to rip everything off... the electrodes, the blood pressure cuff, the pulse oximeter... It took about 20 minutes to calm her down, but a few sips of diet Coke made her feel much better. They said her throat was probably sore from the breathing tube. Why diet Coke, you ask? Well, because thats what she insisted on. And when a baby comes back from a surgical procedure, she apparently gets what she wants.

As you can tell, we're a little bit exhausted.

Yet still creative. Have you ever seen a throw-up bucket used as a bowl for goldfish?! Good idea, Savannah!

Now we are back home and Babycakes is sound asleep in her bed. And hopefully she'll rest comfortably for a while.

So what did they find? Well, we'll find out for sure on Tuesday, but the preliminary report is pretty good. They didn't find any big abnormalities. They did find one significant thing though and it was that her duodenum was very pale, and it is supposed to be a bright pink color. The doctor said he took some samples and microscope pictures and he will get those back on Monday and we'll discuss them at the office on Tuesday. It typically indicates a food allergy, however. So all in all, I feel like that is really good news... we can totally deal with a food allergy!

Thanks for praying and please continue to pray as she recovers and we get the results on Tuesday. :)

Maybe I'll Make It Into A Sport Coat

Lucy: You think you're so smart with that blanket. What are you going to do with it when you grow up?
Linus: Maybe I'll make it into a sport coat.
-A Charlie Brown Christmas-







I was going to update and remind you to say a prayer tomorrow... but then I thought... what good is a post without pictures of a little cutie?! So I took her outside to take a few shots... but for some reason today blankie AND paci had to accompany us everywhere. Not sure what the deal is with that. :)

So anyway... now for the real purpose... don't forget to pray for Savannah tomorrow! :) We have to check into outpatient surgery at 8:30 am and her procedure is at 10:45 am (oh, and she can't eat after midnight tonight... which won't be a problem... until I wake her up tomorrow morning, at which time she will be ready for milk and cheerios...). Sometime between those time frames, we'll meet with her doctor and a team of pediatric anesthesiologists who will sedate her. The procedure should take 1-2 hours, depending on what they find. She will then need to recover for 1-2 hours and eat before she can leave the hospital. It should be quite a day!

But... just so you all stay updated... or maybe because I just love to blog... I've added a new tool! Check it out... on the right sidebar is... Twitter! Now, I must admit that I'm not real familiar with Twitter so hopefully I won't screw this up... but from the limited concept I have... I think I can text message updates to the blog. How cool is that?! I tested it out today and it seems to be working so hopefully I can update allllllll day long tomorrow. Just what you wanted right?! And... if you are real stalkerish... ahem... I mean...concerned... you can sign up for your own Twitter account and have my updates texted directly to your phone. I don't know how to do that part, so you're on your own for figuring out that one. :) Now... for the real purpose of the blog... I'll close with more adorable pictures...

Thanks for praying!!!

Pray Pray Pray

Our little friend, Stellan, is still in surgery in Boston this morning for a very risky ablation. His mom just got word that his lungs are quite full of fluid. Pray, pray, pray!

Update: Stellan came out of surgery but it was not as successful as they hoped it would be. Please continue to pray for him! Head on over to www.mycharmingkids.blogspot.com for updates!

Not Me Monday

I've been inspired by MckMama (mycharmingkids.blogspot.com) and nudged by a friend (here ya go, Katie!) to partcipate in "Not Me Monday." So here is what I did NOT do this past week. Ahem.

1. I did NOT let my 19-month-old eat cake for breakfast this week because well... she didn't want anything else.
2. Even if the cake incident DID occur, I definitely didn't let her have vanilla oreos for dinner that same day. Never.
3. I'm pretty sure I did NOT take a picture of a bad rash on a certain baby's bottom and email it to her pediatric gi specialist to avoid a trip to the doctor and a copay. That would totally be cheating! And it would be weird. To take pictures of a butt and email them.
4. I definitely didn't whip out my cell phone to take a video when my child put a raisin in her nose this past week. That would only encourage bad behavior.
5. And when we were at Lowes on Saturday... there is no way in the world that I was that mom taking a screaming toddler out to the car because she wanted to play in the fountains... and even if that WAS indeed me, I definitely didn't offer her a sucker to stop screaming when we got to the car because people were staring and thought I was probably kidnapping her due to the sheer amount AND volume of screaming. I mean, who would give a kid candy after that?!
6. I didn't think it was hysterical yesterday when the 19-month-old squealed loudly at lunch in a crowded restaurant and then cackled her head off. Like 12 times in a row. While people stared and also laughed too. A real mom would totally have told her to stop and be quiet, right?!
7. And I'm pretty sure I didn't let my sweet girl taste dirt yesterday because she simply kept trying and I was tired of telling her no. And if I did let her taste it, I wouldn't have needed to try really hard to supress a grin at her face afterward. No way.
8. I didn't just realize that its been a week since Easter, and my house is still decorated in bunnies and Easter eggs, and there aren't about five moms and their babies on their way here for a playdate. And if that really happened, certainly I would have popped out of my chair and put away said Easter decorations instead of blogging about it... wouldn't I?
9. I definitely didn't take pictures of Savannah in rain boots for a special church project and then refer to them as "booty pictures" in a meeting. I mean... I would never be as crazy or thoughtless as to say... in a church related meeting... "I've got some booty pictures for this!" And then when my friend busted out laughing...because she knew I did not actually take booty pictures, I did NOT find it hysterical and somewhat embarassing.

And... even if I did do ALL of those things... I would absolutely would NOT post them on the internet for all to see. Never.

Flower Girl

Our weekend was full of flowers! Momma planted 110 flowers in the front yard on Saturday. Whew! :) Miss Priss here happens to love flowers too.



We hope you all had a good weekend too! We also enjoyed a visit from Grammie and Pop-Pop and Aunt Kathy in Pennsylvania, so there was a lot of spoiling going on around here!

Savannah's procedure at the hospital is coming up on Friday, so we'd like for you guys to start praying with us now. Here are some specific things to pray for:

1. That the procedure would go smoothly with no complications.

2. That she would recover from the anesthesia quickly.

3. That the results will be clear and the direction we need to take with treatment will be obvious.

Thanks so much for praying with us! We really appreciate the support of friends and family.

In the face of uncertainty, it is easy for me to focus on the things I don't know: how the procedure will go, what the results will look like, how I will be able to handle handing my baby over to a team of doctors to be put under anesthesia... and when I think about what I DON'T KNOW, it is easy to get overwhelmed. So instead, I've chosen to concentrate on what I DO KNOW.

2 Timothy 1:12, "This is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I KNOW whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard that which I have entrusted to Him for that day.

I know that God loves Savannah. More than I do. And I know He is good. So whatever the outcome, God will bring good through it. And things will work for His glory. Its not about us - its all about Him. And I know I can trust Him. With anything. Whew. Isn't it so much easier to concentrate on what we KNOW? Now, just keep reminding me of that principle, because I'm fairly confident that I'll forget it at some point!!! :) Love you all!

I Won't Even Attempt To Explain...

Toddlers Should Wear Helmets and Facemasks

Sweet Jesus

I'm so excited that Jesus is alive! :) I didn't do a good job of sharing that yesterday. But I really am so psyched! Do you even know what this means for us? We are FREE because He is so awesome!

This song has been in my head these past few days and has really become more and more real to me. Jesus is ALL of these things to me, and I'm ever so thankful!

Sweet Jesus by Selah

Sweet Jesus, my Savior, you are my Faithful Friend.
You make me, You know me, You've seen my every sin.
And my soul is amazed by this gift of your grace,
And these arms that take me in.
Sweet Jesus, My Savior, you are my Faithful Friend.

Sweet Jesus, My Shelter, you are my Faithful Friend.
The refuge I run to when my world comes closing in.
Why should I be afraid when I know I am safe,
By the arms that take me in?
Sweet Jesus, My Shelter, you are my Faithful Friend.

Sweet Jesus, My Shepherd, you are my Faithful Friend.
You hold me, You lead me, I'll follow until the end.
And once more I will say on that beautiful day,
When your arms take me in -
Sweet Jesus, My Shepherd, you are my Faithful Friend.
Sweet Jesus, My Savior, you are my Faithful Friend!

Wild Weekend (Happy Easter!)

We started off our crazy weekend by heading over to a neighboring town so that Savannah could make an appearance at a preliminary pageant as Wee Baby Miss Virginia.



Momma helped with the pageant and Savannah was visiting royalty.


She handed out gift bags to the contestants with good luck wishes.

She also got to hand out the awards and crown the little queen. After which she promptly smooched her new friend right on the lips. Ooops.

She also enjoyed playing/following around her sister queens.

Then, on Sunday, we got dressed up again - it was Easter morning!

Do YOU get this excited about Easter? Because maybe you should.

She's got it all right. Its the most exciting holiday of the year because we celebrate that Jesus rose from the dead!

After church, we headed to Mimi's for a yummy lunch. And pictures, of course.

And the Easter Bunny came to Mimi's too! And if a child gets too much candy, you might witness behavior like this....

Or this...

Ahem. Then we headed to Gram-B's for dinner... and more candy. And... you guessed it... more pictures! When these girls get together, we tend to use our cameras. Because we like pictures, particularly if they're of us! :)

I love this sister.

And this one too.

Really.


Then, we colored Easter eggs!

Emily kinda forgot that dye colors everything... even hands. Ooops.

And then... Gram-B hid the eggs and Savannah went on her first Easter egg hunt!

What a wild weekend! But it was so much fun that we wouldn't have it any other way! Happy Easter - we love you all!