Christmas 2011

Yes...Christmas. And, sadly, I think these are the only 2 photos that I took. I have a tendency to get caught up in the moment of enjoying a good time and never remember to take out my camera. But, I came across these and loved them too much not to post them.

Maddison's baptism

Wow, I never put up pictures of Maddie's baptism! Over a year ago!

Halloween 2011

I just realized looking through posts and pictures, I have a lot that is missing. I am not going to go through and post everything that has happened the past year or two, but I will post some things that I want to remember. Halloween 2011 was one of them.
This past Halloween was our families favorite by far. We decided to go to Disney's Halloween party, where the shut the park down in the afternoon and evening for special ticket holders only. There is unlimited trick-or-treating, rides with no lines, and amazing costumes. We decided that if we go, we should go all out. Mary Poppins style. I had so much fun getting our costumes together. The thrift stores were my bff during that time. And the kids loved it. Going through the park, I didn't see any other Mary's, or the rest of the crew for that matter. We had people stopping us asking for pictures, and got so many compliments. It was just so fun, for one night, to dress up and be someone else. Isn't that what Halloween is about anyway?

Gramma Vi

This sweet lady went "home" in the early hours this morning. A sweet relief amidst our sadness. No one ever thought, or wished, she would last this long. It is always hard to see loved ones suffer, and deteriorate into someone so unrecognizable.
So many memories came flooding back this morning from my childhood spent with Gramma Vi. More than this blog could ever hold. But, I will always cherish my time spent with her. For it was her kitchen in Wheaton, Il where I learned how to bake, wash dishes, and show love to my family through food.
Gramma was the epitome of a lady. I never saw her without her hair done, even in her last days. She was always dressed perfectly, never showed anger, never judged, always loved with every bit of her soul. If I could be half of what she was, I will be pleased.
A few months ago I was able to go to my fathers cabin and visit her one last time and say my goodbyes. Bitter sweet. I saw my childhood flash before my eyes when I was holding her hand. And, though she looked nothing like I was used to, she still was perfect. Skin just as beautiful as ever, hair curled just right, and her bottle of perfume by her hospital bed. She couldn't say much, but neither could I . It was in that moment of our eyes locking, saying we loved each other, we will see each other soon....I felt love. We knew. We didn't have to speak. Just the touch of her hand, and a kiss on the cheek, was all I needed. I can not wait for the day to see her again.

Feeling down?

With the kids arguing non stop, school taking every bit of time I have (even weekends now) and so much more....I have had this perpetual pity party in my head. But last night made every bit of this journey we are on worth it. Reid and I have a little routine at night...
Me  "I love you so so much"
Ried-"I love you so so much, all the way to the sky"
-"I love you so so much, all the way to the moon"
-"I love you so so much, all the way to the stars"
-"I love you so so much, all the way to the heavens"
and the I kiss his little head, twice, and head out the door. Last night, he stopped me at the door and said "I love you so so much, all the way to my surfboard and pirate flag" ...two things that he loves most right now. I would say that is a lot of love from a little (almost 3 year old) little boy.

Heard around the house

Reid talks non stop at home. Some days, things come out of his mouth and I am stunned that such a little boy can say so much. I love that we can have conversations. And, I love he is in the "remember?" stage, asking me if I remember an event that happened weeks, even months prior. Some of our fave Reider phrases....
"wanna see somethin awesome?" -followed by a cool trick of his...
"wanna hear something awesome? ....oops, I farted. Did you hear that?"
"booty shake" this follows everthing. Favorite color, booty shake yellow. What do you want to eat? Booty shake sandwich. And sometimes, when you least expect it, it will pop up.
"i have a secret for you. I love you. Booty shake"
Love this kid.

Reid was bored

I've skipped out on some posting. The usual, Halloween, Christmas, birthdays. Fill in later.
I guess Reid was getting bored and needed some action. Saturday afternoon he and the girls were playing when I heard a thud, small cry, and Maddie said he fell. So, he walked up to me on tears with his hand on his head. Thinking I'm going to see a big egg, he pulled his hand off and blood came gushing out. Head wounds bleed. A lot. And thus was no exception. Of all his head hits this was the worst. The split itself wasn't big, thankfully. He had hit it on the brick fireplace.
So, I cleaned him, and I, up, put a compress on it and he was off saying "it feels better". After several hours of dripping down his face I decided I should look closely. We cleaned it good, and it was deep, and wide open. So, off to the ER we went. I would have glued it myself but being on the face I didn't want to do a bad job and have it scar too bad. He did amazing. The cleaned and cleaned it, and he just said it didn't hurt. He sat so still and everyone was so impressed. I'm glad he is used to ER's and drs, makes it easier in me. He's all boy, keeps me on my toes, and I love it.

What a difference a year makes...

Wait, I have a blog? Does anyone read this? If not, at least I have something to look back to and read, since my last journal entry was almost 2 years ago...
Last time this year, I was laying in a hospital bed with a very sick little boy, followed by procedures and blood work galore.
 This year, we are running around the house, playing monster trucks, spider man and trains. Playing baseball outside and racing cars. Wow, what a difference a year makes. He turned 2 and decided he wanted to wear big boy underwear, follows his sisters around and mimics every move and word they say. He adores them. He loves to read books. He loves any time we have an opportunity to pray so he can say "Reid's turn" do it by himself. In fact, if someone else says prayer, he still has to say it after them. He loves to cuddle and give love. But his favorite thing is watching monster trucks in the morning with daddy.
We love this boy to pieces and we are so thankful that we have had a healthy few months with him, and many more to come. In June, we were on our way to north Florida to go to a children's hospital to try some different treatments for Reid that would hopefully help him out. The medicine he was on was causing liver and kidney failure so we were in desperate need to try something new. I kept getting the "we have never seen this kind of resistance before and do not know what to do" from his doctors and I was ready for something else. I begged for 2 more weeks of medication for him while I was out of town so I knew he would not spiral out of control while I was gone. The doctors hesitated, but agreed if I would take him to Shand's when I got home. After the 2 weeks, we went in for final blood work and other tests. Exactly one year to the day from the original diagnosis in July, we got the all clear. This boy was a warrior for an entire year! And he has been perfect ever since! We are so thankful for all the love and support through it all.

Last year....

Last night....I like this one better :)

My cutest potty trained little boy. It only took 4 days of nakedness and consistency and he did it! So proud of this man!

8 certainly is GREAT!

Maddison's birthday marks the begining of our "birthday season". She, Reid, and Chloe have birthdays within 3 weeks of each other.

This year is a special one. She is 8. Marks the age of accountability. Which means...Baptism!!!!

 All she wanted was dirt dessert...

 My my, have you come a long way Maddie. From a spunky and spirited little baby...to a spunky and spirited young girl. She can go from the sweetest girl on earth, to a screaming raging mad girl in a matter of seconds. I am told constantly by her teacher "If I could have a classroom full of Maddie's, I would be so happy." She is such a great helper with her brother, a wonderful friend, and an amazing daughter. We are so blessed to have her in our family...forever....

Easter

 Easter weekend was filled with family, just the way we like it. Chloe was sick with a real bad stomach bug and had been vomiting for almost 3 days, and then in bed for 3 days, so Easter was the first day she got out of bed...only to put on her dress for pictures...

 I was brave enough to make the girls dresses this year. They all picked out different patterns, but similar fabric, just different colors. I didn't get good pictures, since Chloe was ready to go back to bed and we were running a little late for church.

 

 The Hunt...

What's going on....

A lot going on, haven't blogged. So sorry.
Hana just finished her first FCAT week and said it was "SOOOO easy". Hooray!
Maddison is almost 8 which means baptism which means...where did these past 8 years go?
Chloe finally stopped sucking her thumb!
Reid....well...is Reid. I could fill a whole page on him. But for now, lets just say we are dealing with that darn intestinal infection again that has doctors scratching their heads and telling me they have never seen such a resistant infection before. Oh, and he broke his face. (see post below)
Bryan continues to work like I have seen no man work before, all so that I can stay home with our children. He is such a blessing.
And me....I start school in a little over 2 weeks!!!!!

Humpty Dumpty

I guess Reid was thinking life wasn't exciting enough for us and not enough attention was on him. First, let me explain that he is a BOY. All boy. Never did any of the girls EVER try anything tricky in the least bit. But, he has been climbing things before he could walk. So, we always keep an eye on him, or try to. He was in the playroom with the girls the other night while I was cleaning up from dinner when I heard a crash...and then screams. I quickly went to see what happened. All that we know was it involved the high windowsill in the back room, a chair, and a kids tool/work bench. Thats all. I thought he just hurt his hand, so we sat on the couch and cuddled for a while. No crying, just telling me it hurts. About 5 minutes went by when I looked and saw his face. A huge line across his eye that was swelling quickly. We watched him, he didn't sleep at all (can you imagine having your face hurt and throb all night?) but the morning came and although it was swollen almost shut, he seemed fine. I called the doctor and they told me to bring him in. While there, the pediatrician said get him to the ER immediately. If there is a fracture, we can not waste time. So, off we went for a CT scan and observation for about 5 hours. The results were a severe bruise on his bone and a tiny litte size of a peice of sand fracture. No bones out of place, no fragments, no pressure or bleeding. So, we were able to go home with just a black eye. He is fine...normal...running around like nothing happened. Sad thing is, I'm starting to get used to this....

       Shortly after it happened...(Bryan had the camera, so my phone pics didn't show that much)

                                       Last night in the ER...he was so ready to go home....

This morning...swelling gone down but some cool colors going on!

Spring

Lots happening in spring here. I'll let the pictures do the talking. But, I will add, my one and only sister came to visit us and we could not have been more excited. Its been way over a year, I think Reid was only 6 months old when we saw each other last. So sad. I miss her dearly and the time spent was way too short, but enjoyed every minute...