Brown-eyed girl!

Blog world, you should know by now if I have blogged about you...I love you!  Now, now, don't take that to mean if I have not blogged about you you are aren't loved. The timing hasn't been right, that's all.  Now for the star role of this blog...I introduce to you , my niece, Miss Audrey Grace Burns!

You may not recognize her name Audrey Grace as she goes by "Gracie".  She was named after one of the matriarchs in our church, Audrey Grayson.  All of my nieces and nephews are special to me.  This particular one, I was blessed to be part of her delivery when I worked in Labor and Delivery.  I was the first, aside from the midwife,  to see her pretty little head. 

She has grown into quite a bubbly little girl with a personality that screams drama queen!  As you can see, she has beautiful, huge, brown eyes that act as dancing walnuts when she talks and laughs.  She can tell you the most interesting stories with such zeal! 

One of her favorite past times is sucking her finger.  I tried to stage a pic of her caught in the act and she informed me, "No, I don't do that much anymore, Aunt Leah!"    She is growing up fast!  She just graduated from kindergarten at TCS. 

Keep on keepin' on, Gracie! It's a tough job keeping everyone in line, you're doing a great job so far!

I love you, my brown eyed girl!

Aunt Leah





Happy Graduation Rhett & Ryan!

Rhett & Ryan,

Where in the world has time gone?  It seems like just yesterday we were so excited because we learned we were getting our first set of twins in the family.  By the way, God knew which of the Parker girls could raise twins and remain sane in doing so.  And tonight you two handsome men will walk across the stage at JMA.  It has been amazing watching you grow into the men you are today. 

You two have a relationship with one another that is unique, unlike any other relationship you will ever encounter.  A bond that is tight.   You are a pair, yet unique as individuals.  Each of you are strong men with great potential.  I remember when your mom tried you in different kindergarten classes thinking that was the best plan.  It didn't take long to learn that you weren't easily separated, you guys constantly looked for one another.  The coming year will be exciting but different because you two are going separate ways. 

I leave you both with a challenge.  Yes, graduating from high school is a great accomplishment, yet not the greatest in life.  The greatest is not to be the best athlete nor the smartest student.  The most important decision you will ever make is to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and choosing to live in a way that is pleasing to Him. This decision will lead to God's highest calling for man.    I challenge you to take a stand for Christ in such a way that this world can't touch you.  I pray you will be hungry for His word and yield to its instruction.  God's word tells us we must learn to be in this world but not conform to it's ways.  That is hard to do without being totally sold out for God. All in or all out...it's not possible to serve the world and God at this same time. Not lukewarm...yet on fire.  Without Him guiding your way, you will be in darkness and easily tossed about.  This decision will influence your life forever,  not just now.  A godly young man grows into a godly husband and father and that is precious in the eyes of the Lord, his plan for you.  Then you will leave a legacy that will continue for many generations.  

I love you both and I am excited about your new journey!

Aunt Leah

Happy Nurse's Week!

Alright blog world- in honor of nurses week I thought I would post some of the things that really grate my nerves to hear.  Sometimes I grin and bear it, others times not-of course if it could cause harm I'll speak up.  We all know that old wives tales/myths/that's what my mom told mes outweigh the textbook knowledge that has strong clinical evidence right?  So I thought I would dumb some things down and make what some make so complicated easy to digest. 

(1) URI (upper respiratory infection)- aka the common cold, is caused by a virus (usually the Rhinovirus to be exact) that someone has come in contact with.  To be brutally honest, if you contract a cold, you have either inhaled some one's respiratory droplets, touched some one's dried "snot" from where they wiped their nose and then touched that grocery cart/door knob etc...Make a mental note that hand washing is very important.  This eliminates the following causes: sleeping under a fan, walking around with wet hair, being outside with no shoes in cold weather, etc... The normal course of these things can be 7-10 days. This brings me to my next ranting.

(2) Antibiotics are used to treat bacteria and are ineffective on viruses.  Bacteria and viruses are not the same in that viruses cause problems until they die on their own (run their course) and bacteria will live and cause problems until killed with antibiotics.  When you have the sniffles or an uncomplicated cough you need only to drink plenty of fluids to thin that "snot" I referred to above right out. (Have fun harkin' that up by the way!) Use some good ole' decongestants , you know some inexpensive over the counter products will help.  BUT keep in mind...you will not be cured over night (see above for the normal course of  a URI).  If after that 7-10 days...then you may need something stronger (that's another lesson for another day- stay tuned).  Take home message:  *antibiotics do not treat colds* *No one should ever have any "left-over" antibiotics- if they do they didn't take them properly and are setting themselves up for trouble later on.   So don't go ask Aunt Susie if you could borrow some of hers.* If you have taken antibiotics for a cold and swear they worked...this is probably what happened.  You suffered with cold symptoms for 4 or so days until you couldn't stand it anymore, you stole from Aunt Susie's medicine cabinet and then in a few days you were miraculously cured.  Guess what in those 7 days you were sick...your RhinoVIRUS was running its normal course and by day 2 or 3 of your unecessary antibiotics your cold was resolving on its own.  Can you tell I deal with this almost daily?

(3)  The textbook normal body temp is 98.6.  This does fluctuate, however a fever is not considered a fever until its over 100.3 and that's even a low grade temp.  When someone says they have a temperature because their thermometer read 98.6 and their reason is because their normal body temp is 96.0-  I just smile because I know that is what they learned in childhood.  Truth: if your normal body temp is 96.0 you might need to get evaluated for hypothermia. 

(4)  Allergies to medications are NOT inherited.  Just because your mom or dad had an allergic reaction to penicillin does not mean you will.  Everyone has their own unique immune system that acts independently. 

(5) You are perfectly allowed to drink milk if you have a fever.  The only time I would warn someone to avoid dairy in relation to a fever is if the fever is due to a stomach virus.  That can cause further stomach upset due to the acid in milk...not because it may curdle in the belly.

(6) Last but certainly not least...I never mind giving anyone medical advice *pinky promise*.  I don't pretend to know it all (I'm sure Jason will get a laugh out of that one). I can only give you my educated opinion. 

Please keep in mind this is a post in honor of nurse's week and some much needed humor in my life- not to offend anyone.  I won't laugh at your beliefs or teachings...but I do promise not to  intentionally withhold information that could be detrimental to your health.   

Happy Birthday, Jordan!

Ten years ago today, I was blessed with my first bundle of joy, Jordan Elizabeth Barbee. Beautiful name right? Well, her daddy has called her "Peanut" (properly spelt Pnut) from day one because she was tiny, bald, and had a very round head when she was born.   Her first day or two was very busy for her.  My pinning ceremony for nursing school was the day after her birth.  I was determined to be there, baby in tow. That has to be the craziest day ever. After getting the ok from my doctor for early discharge, we hurriedly gathered flowers, balloons, and all other goodies from the hospital and piled them quickly into the car.  We landed in Irwinton shortly thereafter and noticed the water from the vases had spilled in the back seat and so was lots of other things.  Ever heard a new mother say that riding the baby around in the car for the first time made them nervous?  I didn't even have time to have those thoughts so I  was quickly relieved of that fear.  Upon arriving to Parker Street we changed and shewed away the company we were already beginning to have and set out on a very fast trip to GCSU in Milledgeville.  I don't think I have ever nursed a baby while traveling that fast! I hope we didn't scar her for life with all of that insanity!

 I was overjoyed and excited but soon realized that this beautiful baby of mine cried... and cried LOTS.  This was officially her first hobby- as I think it consumed most of hers, mine, and everyone elses time for the first several months of her life!  Some events I remember:


Being in Walmart holding this screaming child and strangers commenting she was hungry and swore I needed to feed her.

Someone (I didn't know) actually saying, in Walmart again, "Here- let me take her, I bet I can calm her down."  I gladly handed her over :) Guess what!  It didn't work.

Constantly staying outside in the heat...as this seemed to calm her down.

Setting her on top of the dryer, hoping the wobble and noise would soothe her.

Letting the vacuum cleaner run while sitting idle for a while so I could have what I called, peace and quiet. 

Giving her Mylicon drops like they were candy (forgoing the dose and frequency)- they didn't work it was only for my mental state.

Giving her the prescription drops that would make her sleep for a short while, only for her to wake up crying again.

This crying baby has grown into a beautiful young lady. She has been through more than most 10 year olds and not as much as others.  She has embraced troubled times and has proved to be a strong girl. Many times, she has let me cry on her shoulder and told me things would be ok and for me to stop crying, as she cried with me.  Now, she is not only my daughter, but a sister in Christ and has experienced the true forgiveness we can only find in Jesus Christ.  We are somewhat alike and that can cause some friction sometimes, but overall our bond is tight!

On this day, I am blessed to call you my child!  I love you, Jordan Elizabeth Barbee! (aka Pnut)