Allergic Reaction Again!

On Saturday, I called my parents around 4:50 p.m. to see if they could babysit Annabelle for the evening so that hubby and I could have a date night out without the little one. I honestly just wanted to enjoy a good meal with hubby without a fussy and squirmy toddler.

So, my parents were up for another challenge. They arrived around 6:15 p.m. Annabelle was "reddy go" as she told Grandmama with her hand on the doorknob. Grandmama then reminded her that she had forgotten to tell Mommy and Daddy bye-bye. She ran over to us each separately and gave each of us the sweetest hug and kiss goodbye, and then she was ready to go!

Before hubby arrived home, I had told Annabelle that Grandmama and Granddaddy would be here shortly to take her to dinner. She immediately said, "Ont shuuzz on!" Translation: Want shoes on! And, then she ran to the dining room window to look for them. They hadn't arrived yet, and that upset her, but she calmed down, and she was definitely ready to go when they got here.

For dinner, they took her to Piccadilly. Grandmama said that she didn't eat very much for dinner, but she had bites of the following:

Carrot Souffle
Macaroni & Cheese (Per Grandmama, something in it tasted a lot like nutmeg)
Boiled Okra (one pod) (not fried...yuck!)
Black Eyed Peas
Cornbread
Banana (1/2)
Dried Peas
Water

Per Grandmama, Annabelle did not show any allergic reaction when they put her down for bed that evening.

But, when Annabelle got up on Sunday morning around 9:00 a.m., hubby spotted a small rash (just a few light red spots) under her left arm. Then, I spotted a few more light red spots on the back of her neck. I didn't think anything of it though because Annabelle has always had very sensitive skin, and it didn't look too much like an allergic reaction to me.

So, for breakfast, I made homemade Oatmeal Pancakes with Blackberries on top. Annabelle has had these pancakes several times in the past, and she did not react adversely to them at all. But, this time, I noticed that she had developed a small red rash between her lower lip and chin. I didn't freak out though because this was actually a very common occurrence for her after she started eating solids.

I finally learned (or thought I had learned) that egg was the culprit. However, typically, as long as I didn't give her the egg straight (such as scrambled eggs or boiled eggs), she would not have an allergic reaction to the food itself. It seemed as if it were cooked, that the egg did not bother her.

The ingredients in the oatmeal pancakes are as follows:

Oatmeal
Whole wheat flour
Milk
Sugar
Vegetable oil
Baking powder
Salt
Egg!!!

Well, since she was a complete mess from the blackberry juice, I picked her up and took her straight to the bathtub for a bath. While I was bathing her, the rash under her arms started to get darker and darker. Then, it started spreading to her stomach, chest and back.

Also, I forgot to mention that Annabelle woke up during the night at 5:00 a.m. because she wanted her "passy." Translation: Paci. Her diaper was soaked when I went in the bedroom to give her the paci, so I changed her diaper as well. While I was changing her diaper, I did notice red marks along her diaper area, but I didn't think anything of it. Grandmama had mentioned that she wasn't sure if she had put Annabelle's diaper on very well, so I thought maybe she had gotten the diaper a little tight. And, it was dark in the room, so I didn't pay very much attention to the rash. Annabelle was not complaining about the diaper at all. And, when I laid her back down with her paci, she went straight to sleep.

So, hubby and I discussed giving Annabelle some Benadryl, but we decided against it because the rash was not causing Annabelle any discomfort at all, and she was not having any breathing problems or anything that made me feel like we needed to rush her to the emergency room (again). One $150 copay for the year is enough (hopefully)!

This post will be updated as soon as we return from the doctor for a checkup on this rash! I was just trying to get something documented so that I could discuss these things with the doctor.

Okay, so I am back to update this blog entry a day late.

So, around 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, the rash comes on with full force! Annabelle is covered, mainly on her torso, but also on her arms, neck (back of the neck) and feet (where her sandals fasten). We finally decided it was time to give her some Benadryl.

We gave her a teaspoon of Benadryl at 7:15 p.m. after we finally determined the correct dosage to give her. Per my written (typed) instructions from the hospital, it read: Benadryl mg x 12.5 Mg, Oral, 4 times a day. Per the drug facts on the carton, it reads, "Active Ingredient (in each 5 ml teaspoonful) Diphenhydramine HCI 12.5 mg........Antihistamine." Well, that makes perfect sense, right? That is until you look at the little measuring cup they give you with the carton which shows 12.5 ml (ml not mg) marked at a line at the middle of the measuring cup. Well, hubby said, "That's it. 12.5 mg, right? And he pointed to the line that said 12.5 ml." I thought, "Yes, it does say 12.5 mg" (because I didn't really notice the "in each 5 mL teaspoonful"). But, I just didn't think that was the right amount because I thought I had remembered them giving Annabelle 1 teaspoonful in the hospital. So, I looked more closely at the ingredients, and I finally caught the "in each 5 mL teaspoonful."

Is that not scary? We could have totally overdosed our child on Benadryl! That is serious stuff too! They really should make the directions a lot more clearer, and they really should get rid of the 12.5 ml on the measuring cup. There is absolutely no place on the directions that uses ml. I guess they are required to include it due to the fact that other countries use different measurements than the United States?

So, we gave her one teaspoonful of Benadryl. Her reaction once again: Hyperactive!

I checked on her several times during the night to make sure she was alright and was not having any respiratory problems due to the allergic reaction. She was fine and breathing, and she still was not itching, so I honestly was not worried about her.

Well, when she woke up on Monday morning, she was still covered in the rash, and it didn't look any better. Of course, per the hospital instructions, I was supposed to be giving her Benadryl every 4 hours, so she had not had another dose since her last dose at 7:15 p.m. I was not about to wake a sleeping toddler to give her yet another dose of hyperactive medication.

I did not panic, but I did decide to call my pediatrician to request to speak with a nurse. I called at 9:49 p.m., and the nurse called me back at 11:04 a.m. I spoke with Pat who I have spoken with before, and she normally encourages me to make an appointment. Do they pay these nurses more money if they can convince the mom to schedule an appointment? Keep in mind that this is yet another $40 copay! And, please, don't get me wrong. I love my child dearly, but I normally follow my instinct on when to actually schedule an appointment with the doctor. I should know the routine by now.

So, Pat told me that it was probably best if I could see the doctor while Annabelle still had the rash, but they didn't have any appointments available with Dr. Calk until 4:00 p.m. They could, however, schedule an appointment with a Physician's Assistant (P.A.) at 1:50 p.m. I told her that I would opt for the 4:00 appointment since 1:50 p.m. was right at naptime and if the rash was going to go away any time soon, it would probably have already done so by 1:50 p.m.

Pat told me that it was probably best that I bring her in because they should rule out any reaction caused by a viral infection. What? I had never even thought that a viral infection could cause such a rash. And, also, because Annabelle has had recurring problems with allergic reactions, they could run simple blood tests at their office to determine if she was allergic to some of the more common suspect foods such as eggs and nuts. She mentioned this because the whole reason I told her I was calling was to determine if I should take her to an allergist or not.

Keep in mind...I am trying to avoid a silly $40 copay to only have the doctor tell me that he would recommend she see an allergist. Why not go straight to the allergist?

So, I schedule the 4:00 p.m. appointment with Dr. Calk, and then the rat race begins. It is 11:09 when I got off the phone with Pat. I mentioned to Pat that I had pictures of the first ER visit rash as well as pictures of this rash last night and then again this morning. She said, "That is great. Bring them with you if you can." The only problem is that they were not printed.

I quickly loaded all of the pictures onto a Secure Digital memory card, and I dress Annabelle and myself, and we're off to Sam's Club at 12:00 p.m. The pictures are uploaded to Sam's Club by 12:15 p.m., and we have an hour to wait and feed Annabelle. She needs a nap before her 4:00 appointment, and I know that I need to wake her no later than 3:30 p.m. to get her diaper changed and simply get ourselves out the door by 3:45 p.m. to make it to the doctor by 4:00 p.m. So, that means she needs to go down for a nap as close to 1:15 p.m. as possible.

We ate lunch at Chick-fil-A. Bad idea! I ordered a 12 piece nugget, but they only gave me 12 pieces. So, I had to take Annabelle out of the high chair and lug her back to the counter to get my extra two pieces of nuggets. I have two hungry girls to feed, and 10 nuggets were not going to cut it! They gave me a 6 piece nugget to replace the 2 missing nuggets.

During lunch, Annabelle took her sweet time eating. And, this was not as usual because this time, she ate even slower! She had to watch the three children that stood by our table talking to another Mommy and child. Timing people, timing!

We finally leave Chick-fil-A around 1:05 p.m. We ran in to Sam's Club to pick up the pictures, and then we were off to go back home. I think I finally got Annabelle down for her nap around 1:45 p.m. after arriving back home around 1:30 p.m. And, fortunately, she fell asleep right away.

Thank goodness! I figured she would really be a pill if I had to wake her at 3:30 p.m. And, best of all, she actually woke up right at 3:30 p.m. on her own, and she wasn't crying! Excellent!

We were off to see the "doc tur" at 3:45 p.m. And, yes, she used yet another new word. Translation: Doctor. I am so excited that my little girl is finally starting to really talk. She is repeating just about everything we say!

Guh Job Da Bebe!

Translation: Good Job Baby!

Annabelle was playing with one of her wooden puzzles this evening. She has several wooden puzzles, but this particular wooden puzzle has pieces shaped as animals, and the slots on the puzzle board itself does not have a duplicate image of the puzzle piece as some of the puzzles do to make putting the puzzle together easier.

She wanted to play with that animal wooden puzzle right away, but I opted for a different one with bigger pieces. Her Daddy came in the room shortly thereafter and told me that she had gotten frustrated when she played with the puzzle we were playing with last night. He mentioned that she was good at the animal wooden puzzle which I thought would be harder for her.

So, I pulled it down off of the changing table (where I had placed it), and we dumped the pieces out onto the glider stool. She figured it out right away! The puzzle probably has 12-15 pieces, and she knew where every single piece went even starting with the first puzzle piece to go in.

She struggled to get some pieces turned exactly right in their slot to snap into place. So, when she did, she decided that she would be the Mommy. She ran over to her babies who were sleeping in their bassinet, and she grabbed her Cabbage Patch Newborn doll named Carly. She brought Carly over to the puzzle, and she held Carly's hand and "helped" Carly push the puzzle piece into the slot. Carly got it in too! Carly's a smart baby doll!

We clapped for Carly and said, "Good job Carly!" As Annabelle walked back to the bassinet to lay Carly back down, she said, "Guh Job Da Bebe." She repeated this process of running over to grab Carly to "help" several times, and by the last time, Annabelle finally learned to say "Guh Job Bebe" instead of "Guh Job Da Bebe."

One time, Carly didn't do such a good job, so Annabelle walked towards the bassinet to lay Carly down. Unfortunately, Carly didn't make it in the bassinet, and instead, she fell and hit her head on the floor. Annabelle still needs to work on her mothering skills as she left Carly there to cry as she brought her babies' stuffed puppy dog to help instead.

Per hubby, Carly "helped" put the puzzle together last night too, and he did not encourage her at all. He didn't even mention getting the babies to help. That was all Annabelle's idea!

Maybe I can grab the camera tomorrow night to snap a picture of Carly helping with the puzzle.

Mommy Wears Diapers Too!

This evening, I gave Annabelle a bath and I let her run around naked for a few minutes while I dressed myself after my own bath. While I was standing in my bedroom, Annabelle comes running in there with me, opens up the dresser door and then pulls out the drawer filled with my underwear. She grabs some clean underwear of mine, and she runs off with them to her bedroom.

I smiled at the situation at hand, and I decided to follow her to find out what she was up to. I thought she was going to try and put my underwear on herself. And, if that had been the case, I knew it would have been time to buy Annabelle her own panties.

Well, I was wrong! She took those underwear into her bedroom to a wet spot on her bedroom carpet, and she started wiping the wet spot up!

She had tee teed on the floor, and the most logical thing for her to do was to find a clean pair of my underwear to clean up the tee tee. I could not help but laugh at her.

I still wonder what exactly was going through her mind. Why did she use MY underwear to clean the carpet and not her very own diaper?

All I can guess is because she thinks that Mommy wears diapers too!

Who flipped the switch?

I am sad (and happy, but mostly sad, right now) to say that Annabelle is fast approaching the "Terrible Twos!"

My, I sure have a lot to learn!

Annabelle and I just arrived home last night from a very long vacation. Oddly enough, pre-Annabelle, I don't think I would have ever referred to a vacation as a "long vacation." But, this child is wearing me out! I honestly need a break from my vacation. And, my husband tells me that he doesn't feel sorry for me after another long, hard day because "I just got back from vacation."

We left on Saturday, July 19th right around 9:00 a.m., and we just got back home last night, Tuesday, July 29th, around 9:30 p.m.

Hubby had a conference to attend in St. Simon's through Wednesday, July 23rd, so Annabelle and I and my parents went along for the ride. Hubby rode back with a friend (coworker) on Wednesday, while my parents, Annabelle and I ventured farther south to Orange Park, Florida, near Jacksonville.

Well, the fun started early in the week on Sunday, July 20th. It probably started before then, but I recall specifically that I experienced the worst dinner out with Annabelle that I have ever experienced. Hubby had other plans for dinner that night, but my parents were "fortunate" enough to join us.

Before dinner, Annabelle wanted to climb from chair to chair in the waiting area. As more people waited, I told Annabelle that she needed to sit in my lap so that other people could sit down, and she didn't like that one bit. So, I took her outside, and we walked around a little bit waiting on our name to be called. Of course, it was so very hot and very humid, so she decided she wanted to go back inside the restaurant only to go back outside again within less than a minute. I told her if we went back outside again that we were going to stay outside until they called her name. She obviously didn't understand the consequences until I would not let her go back inside, and then she just fussed.

Annabelle would not sit still during dinner, and she kept attempting to stand up to get out of her high chair. She didn't want anything I fed her except for the bread and the mushrooms (I know, strange child, isn't she?). There are more specific examples, but I cannot remember all of them now. I just remember thinking that leisurely dinners out were going to be no longer!

When we arrived in Orange Park, Florida to visit with some long-time family friends, Aunt Mary and Uncle Bill, Annabelle walked inside their house as if she had known them forever. Keep in mind, Annabelle is normally very shy when she meets people for the first time, but she wasn't this time! I guess she remembers meeting them last year when she was closer to 6-9 months of age because she made herself right at home!

By the time we left on Tuesday, Annabelle had been going way too strong on very little sleep. She would fall asleep in the car for anywhere between 5-15 minutes every day we were there and out and about, and as a result, she would not fall asleep when I put her in the pack-n-play for naptime (whatever time we finally were able to lay her down for her nap). Her schedule was so messed up! And, she was only getting 10-11 hours of sleep at night. Poor child! She was going on only 10-11 hours of sleep per day when she is used to between 13-15 hours of sleep per day. I guess I shouldn't have expected her to be a perfect angel with the lack of sleep.

But, as parents, we all want everyone to "think" we know how to parent, so when our children act ugly in front of other people, especially family and friends, it is quite embarrassing. Not to mention, since Annabelle has been fairly good until this past week, I know nothing about disciplining! Yes, I know what I always thought I would do in certain situations as I watched parents in awe while I was still childless, but all parents know that they know more about parenting when they have no children, right? We've all been there! "I would never do that!" "I cannot believe that they let him get away with that!" "My children will NEVER act like that!" But, it all changes when you have children of your own and you learn that they don't listen like they are supposed to listen.

So, I am currently struggling with my technique for discipline as Annabelle tries to rule the roost.

What did I hear from Annabelle from Wednesday, July 23rd, through now? "NO NO Mama NOOO NOOOO!" Over and over and over and over!

And, my birthday was probably one of my worst birthdays ever because my child was driving me bonkers, and she threw the worst temper tantrum she has ever thrown for me. It probably didn't help that I left my twenties behind! Happy birthday to me!

As we were getting in the car for dinner on my birthday, Annabelle decided that she wanted to climb into the car seat herself. Alright, no big deal! She has done this in the past. However, it took her forever to climb in. I finally told her that Mommy was going to have to help her get in her car seat if she didn't get in the car seat right then. She didn't listen, so I had to "help" her in the car seat. She screamed and she turned over in the car seat with her butt in the air. I threatened for just the two of us to stay home while everyone else went out to eat, and I was dead serious! I was pulling her out of the car to stay, and Grandmama said, "She'll be alright. You need to eat. Just get her in the car seat, and she'll calm down." I don't think Grandmama wanted me to eat at home by myself on my birthday. So, I did finally force (gently) her into the car seat, and we left the house for Whataburger with a screaming child in the back seat. Grandmama tried to feed her Ritz crackers and a granola bar, and I think she finally calmed down after she got some food in her tummy shortly before we arrived at Whataburger. She was an angel during dinner.

After dinner, we headed back home for birthday cake. Annabelle enjoyed her Mommy's birthday cake very much until it was time for me to clean her up. Once again, I heard "NO NO Mama NOO NOOO!"

I think by Monday I decided that I was no longer going to put up with this attitude, so when she acted up, I left the room with her and asked her, "Do you want to go sit in time out?" It didn't seem to help much though because she repeated the misbehaving only seconds after she was in "time out."

Also on my birthday, Sunday, I told her that I needed to change her diaper, so I asked her to go into the bathroom. I had Grandmama come in the bathroom as well to help me. I had the diaper and wipes in hand ready to change Annabelle's diaper. That little stinker took the diaper and wipes from me and said, "NO NO Mama NOO NOOO!" She proceeded to hand the diaper and wipes to Grandmama. She did not want me to change her diaper! Of course, I took advantage of the attitude she gave me this time, and I let Grandmama change her diaper. It was quite funny, and Grandmama asked Annabelle, "Did your Mommy put you up to this?" Grandmama told me later that Annabelle also said, "Back!" to me as she pushed me back towards the door after handing the diaper and wipes off to Grandmama. If I had known she said "Back!," I probably would have handled that situation a little different!

On Monday, after she had already been sitting in time out two or three times in a row (probably all within less than 5 minutes), she told me "NOOO!" as I walked inside the house from the garage. And, she was no where near me when she told me "NOOO!" She was standing on the opposite side of the house in the den looking outside the glass door at the birds with Grandmama. She didn't want me to come near her and Grandmama. And, I am positive she was talking to me as she turned around and looked straight at me as soon as I walked in the door. Talk about attitude!

Then, on Tuesday, July 29th, we stopped in Valdosta, Georgia on the way home to visit with my cousin, Beth, and her two daughters. I thought for sure that Annabelle would behave since she was only a few months old the last time she saw Beth (and like I said before, she is normally shy around new people). I was wrong!

She did not want the Subway sandwich that my cousin, Beth, had picked up for us for lunch, so once again, I heard, "NO NO Mama, NOO NOOO!" She handed that sandwich back to me. I insisted that she try a bite before she could have any Sun Chips, but she refused. So, I offered that she could instead have some grapes before eating the Sun Chips. She ate one or two grapes, and I then gave in to the Sun Chips. It wasn't a battle I was ready to fight. And especially not with new people standing by to judge my lack of disciplining skills.

Earlier in the week, while we were still at St. Simon's, Grandmama said that she told me "NOOO! STOP!" I didn't hear the "stop" part of the conversation. I wonder where she learned that word! :)

So, as you can see, a switch has flipped, and my sweet, innocent baby must be gone forever! This is just another step for her towards independence!

And, it should come as no surprise that I have been suffering with canker sours in my mouth ALL week long! They are normally stress induced for me. It looks like I am going to have many more years of constant canker sours! Oddly enough, they disappeared with the migraines while I was pregnant (I do not remember having one canker sour at all while I was pregnant and I recall only one migraine headache), and they were pretty much non-existent until Annabelle stopped nursing as often (around 15 months). Maybe I should just stay barefoot and pregnant! Ha! Ha! ONLY KIDDING!

Shuzss On

Translation: Shoes on.

While I was rocking Annabelle today for her afternoon nap, she looked down at my feet, and she said, "Shuzss on." I instantly knew what she was saying, and yes, I was in fact wearing my shoes.

I am so proud of her for starting to put words together now. She used to just say "shuzss," but at last, the sentences are starting to flow.

Since then, she will say "Shuzss on" when she knows that she needs to put her shoes on before she gets out of the car or before she leaves the house.

"Rite dare" has been her common "sentence" for a long time now. She uses this saying very often when we ask her if she knows where something is located. She'll say, "Rite dare" as she points in the right direction.

Translation: Right there.

While we were in St. Simon's, Granddaddy said, I need to go to the bathroom. She pointed towards the bathroom in the hotel room and said, "Rite dare." Granddaddy thought it was so funny that she pointed the bathroom out for him (like he didn't already know where it was).

She keeps us in line!

Where is the undo button?

Has anyone found it yet? You know, that little button you just drag your mouse on top of in Microsoft Excel and Word and "undo" the last mistake you made. If only life were that simple!

I just had one of those days where I wish I could have gone back and started all over again. It wasn't a terrible day because I really did get a lot accomplished (except for the important things, such as spending quality time with my daughter), but I look back now and realize what an awful mommy I was during the morning today.

My patience was running too thin today, and I took it out on my sweet daughter. We had plans to get Annabelle's hair cut this morning (before our appointment to sign our wills), but hubby called around 9:30 a.m., and he said he had gotten some work to do at the office that he needed to finish up before he came.

Since his workload has been very sparse lately, I completely understand, appreciate and accept all new work for him. Lack of work for him makes me very, very nervous with the current economic state of our country. And, believe me, I am typically not a pessimist regarding the economy. It is just that these rising prices (gas and food) really have an impact on the monthly bottom line when you only have one income to draw from. I guess technically we have a little bit more than one income since I do work a little, but you get the point! Rising prices on the necessities makes less discretionary income available.

So anyhow, I became upset over the situation because he thought he'd still be able to make it, but he still wasn't sure (until around 10:09 a.m.). But, by then, I felt it was too late for me to get Annabelle and myself in the car to make it to Pigtails and Crew Cuts before 10:30 a.m. (at the very latest). I had originally told him that I hoped to be there by 10:15 a.m. We had an appointment to sign our wills at 12:00 p.m., so I wanted to make sure that we had time to wait on a hair dresser (if there was a wait) and then the actual time to get Annabelle's hair cut and then the additional time to drive to my office to meet the attorney to sign our wills.

I didn't want to feel rushed at all, so by the time 10:09 a.m. rolled around, I was a nervous wreck!

I know, I know, you are probably thinking, "seriously?" Should I also mention that I woke up with a stomach ache (and, no, I am NOT pregnant) from the nerves alone. I am so nervous about getting Annabelle's hair cut for some reason.

In all honesty, it makes me very sad. It is just one more step to letting go of my baby. Annabelle was born with a full head of hair, and I have always adored her hair. It is just beautiful, so I can barely stand the thought to get it all cut off. Although I am sure I will probably wonder why I had not cut it sooner once I do get it chopped off.

So, by 10:09 a.m., I was pretty upset that my plans had been changed after I had grown accustomed to the idea that I was going to get Annabelle's hair cut today.

And how did I react? I took it out on sweet Annabelle. Everything she did just seemed to drive me crazy! And, she really wasn't doing anything harmful. Well, except that she almost pulled my camera off the buffet in the dining room because she was trying to get the camera to bring to me so we could go outside and take her "pic-tur." We had just come in from outside from taking pictures of her very long hair to document the length before her very first haircut. She just reached for the camera and said, "pic-tur, pic-tur, pic-tur." Do you think I am a little obsessed with pictures? My own 21 month old (tomorrow) knows that I needed the camera in hand if we were going to be outside.

And, I got upset with the poor child for not sitting still in the house for her photo shoot of her beautiful long hair. I mean, seriously, what did I expect? I know better!

So, God, please forgive me for raising my voice with my sweet and beautiful daughter. Please grant me the patience tomorrow and everyday so that I can truly enjoy these special moments instead of becoming irritated at the silliest things.

The innocence of a child is truly amazing! I'm not sure that she sensed my frustration earlier today, but I am sure she did. But, all the same, she forgave me in no time at all. I just wish I could forgive so quickly!

This evening while I was "busy" washing dishes, Annabelle walked into the kitchen with me, reached her arms up and said, "Mm Mm Mm." We basically make that sound whenever we give her hugs, and ever since she really learned to hug us back, she has done the same. It is precious!

Well, I was so caught up in everything that had to be done that I didn't realize what she was trying to do. Hubby yelled from the living room, "She is trying to give you something. Pick her up." I immediately realized what she was trying to "give me," so I picked her up, and she gave me the best hug ever! Is that not the sweetest thing? I asked her, "Did your Daddy put you up to this?" She said, "Mmmhmm" as she walked away.

Now, that is a simple joy I would have most definitely missed because I was so "busy" washing dishes if hubby had not pointed out to me that Annabelle was trying to give me something.

Preparing Wills

Sorry folks! I've gone through one of my phases of "not having time to blog." In other words, I didn't make time to blog because I found myself "busy" organizing other important areas of my life. Most of the time, they aren't always so important as I just find things (other than blogging) to keep my mind spinning. But these important things should have been at the top of my list about 20.5 months ago (or prior).

First and foremost, I have been working on finalizing our wills. Yes, I know...shame, shame, shame on us! We should have signed our wills a long time before Annabelle was even conceived (and definitely while I was still pregnant), but it was one of those things that just got put on the back burner.

So, everything has officially been decided on, and hubby and I will go next week to the attorney's office to get them signed! Hallelujah! Let's just pray that nothing happens to either one of us between now and then (or after then for that matter). I would really prefer that hubby and I raise Annabelle!

For those of you out there without wills (and especially if you have children), you really should most definitely consult an attorney ASAP to get your will completed. If you live in Georgia, it is especially important because the law states that all assets (including savings and checking accounts) is to be divided equally among the surviving spouse and children if you do not have a will.

Do you know what that means? If you have $10,000 in savings and checking to pay your monthly ongoing bills, this $10,000 will be split 50/50 with the surviving spouse and child assuming you only have one child. And, it doesn't matter if your child is only 1 day old...the child would get $5,000 of the $10,000. Apparently, you have to go through a lot of paperwork and dealings with the court system to get that $5,000 back to the surviving spouse's name. Otherwise, it would go into a trust (for your child) managed by a trustee assigned by the state which means you could not touch it at all! And, the state is responsible for assigning that trustee. Scary!

Also, it is very important that everyone (including those that do not live in Georgia) have their beneficiary designations on their retirement plans set up properly as well. The average Joe would not know the tricks to save taxes on retirement funds at the death of the owner, so I'll share them with you.

In most cases, it is not wise to designate your child as the contingent beneficiary on your retirement plans. If you do (and if something were to happen to you), the money in your retirement plans would be required to be paid out over 5 years. The reason this is not good is because the money would then be taxable over 5 years. Depending on the amount you have (or hope to have one day) in your retirement accounts, this could amount to huge taxes paid out over 5 years whereas if you assigned the contingent beneficiary differently, then the payout would be over the beneficiary's life expectancies. This does not mean that you would not leave the money to your children...you can still leave the money to your children, but you would do so indirectly using different terminology.

It is all about the terminology! Isn't that great? That is our wonderful tax system at work! Complicated, complicated, complicated! And, typically, the average Joe's in the United States don't know these tricks (unless they have consulted with an estate attorney or CPA).

It is actually all very complicated, and even being in the accounting and tax profession, I didn't think about not assigning Annabelle as the contingent beneficiary until I spoke with my attorney. Once our wills are signed next week, my next goal is to change all of our contingent beneficiary designations.

You should also know that just because your will states that you want your assets to go to certain individuals, your will does not hold power over your retirement beneficiary designations. If your retirement beneficiaries are different from the beneficiaries assigned in your will, the retirement beneficiaries designated holds for those retirement assets. The will cannot direct these payouts in any way. So, it is very important that you review these designations annually.

And, the most important (and very obvious) reason for having a will is that you do NOT want the state to decide who is going to raise your children if you were to die before they reached adulthood.

Please note that I am NOT an attorney, and you should not rely on the information printed here. You should consult your own attorney for advice.

I just thought I would pass along the importance of preparing a will and designating beneficiaries for your retirement plans.

Don't follow in my footsteps...make this your priority today (if you haven't already done so)!

Best of luck!