A Day for Daddy.

Anthony had to work on Father's day this year ( bummer), so the kids and I decided that we wanted to make the most of our time with him. We got out the grill and made steaks and potatoes......Anthony's favorite. And yes, I know how to grill! We had dinner all ready for him when he got home. After pestering him to scarf down his meal, the kids told him that we were going to play a video game. Also one of Anthony's favorite things to do. We had a Mario Kart tournament. We all took turns playing against Anthony. In the End, Anthony won.....go figure. The kids presented him with a hand made paper mache' trophy that we had made the day before. Anthony was quite impressed, as he should be! That was not as easy to do as I thought it would be. Very messy!!!!! After we got the kids in their jammers( pj's) we all enjoyed another of Anthony's favorites....Root beer floats. Yummm. Nice and cool for a hot evening.

We love you daddy! Happy Father's Day!

Daddy's Day.

"I'm so glad when daddy comes home, glad as I can be.....". These words start a familiar song that we would sing to my dad every Father's Day. I remember making ties and other gifts for my dad, but it was not this day that meant ( at least to me) we loved daddy. It was all the wonderful times that we spent with him. My Father taught me so much and did so much for us that I never knew. Things a child doesn't think of. The sacrifices a father makes for his family are only being realized now as I am seeing those things in my own life. Some of the things I remember most of my father is that he loves genealogy......works on it, literally non-stop. He loves to play basketball! His right hand was MANGLED in an accident and has lost part of the function of it. Regardless of how it looks, he has the best shot out there, whether it is a 3 pointer or his favorite hook shot. And he is still doing it in his 60's. Go Daddy! He was always spontaneous, he loves to laugh and loves his family. He is a soft spoken man, but a man with a strong testimony. I am so grateful to him for his example to me! Love you daddy!

Daddy always let us torture him. He made cleaning fun!

Taking care of a wasps nest in the play house. Dad could never call a professional!
Me and daddy. Love you!!!!

Last Day of School!

Sydney wanted to blog about her last day of school, so we will be updating this blog later.

This year I was in first grade. Some of my favorite things in first grade were music class , gym, and art. My teachers were really nice and taught me lots of new things.

On or last day of school we took lots of pictures and had a picnic lunch. we cleaned out our desks and had lots of reading time. I love to read!!!

It was kind of sad at the end of the day when we said goodbye to our friends and sang a song as the buses pulled away. At our school it is a tradition for the teachers to stand out front and sing goodbye to the kids as they leave for the summer. This year they also sang goodbye to Mr.Potter, the principal, who is retiring this year. I will miss listening to him in our assemblies.

Next year I will be in second grade. I'm hoping that I will be in Mr. Murphy's class. I am looking forward to learning science and fun field trips. I hope that Ali will be in my class!

Mid West Woes

May 25th sparked a series of weather related events that are changing peoples lives. First came the tornadoes. One of which was an F5 that destroyed numerous towns and killed 7 people in the town of Parkersburg, IA. For those of you who do not know the area, we are not very far from that at all. How this tornado missed us, I don't know.

As if that was not enough to create a desperate situation, now mother nature adds more devastation to our lives. We are now faced with evacuating our homes because of rising river levels and major flooding of our cities. The relentless thunderstorms north of us as well as the storms in our own area have made us realize some things.

One. We are never exempt from a disaster. No matter how safe we think we are, it can all change in an instant. Two. How prepared are we for an emergency. I thought that our 72 hour kits were up to par. Ha-Ha. Silly me! It takes the treat of loosing everything to open my eyes and realize how little we are prepared.

So now I will stop typing and start hauling things up stairs as I prepare to have a flooded basement. And in the case we are evacuated, I will be re thinking our 72 hour kits. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of those who have already lost so much!

3 Blocks south from my house. Road closed.

3 blocks east of my house. The flood gates are not holding!

3 blocks north of my house. More flooding!!!
A bridge I cross everyday. 15 feet tall....completely flooded to the top!

Following in My Footsteps

Dental school here we come!

As a dental assistant, I am pleased to see that proper oral hygiene is occurring in my home. As a mother, I am just thankful that Tui likes to do whatever his sisters do, otherwise I would never be able to brush his teeth ( all 12 of them).

When Haylie was just learning to brush her teeth, she would argue and refuse to let me help. The only way to get her to open long enough for me to check was to tell her about the " Sugar Bugs". She would say that there were no bugs in her teeth. But I would say that Mommy has special eyes. When I went to Dental assisting school I got new eyes....eyes that can see tiny little bugs that like to eat sugar and food from off your teeth. That got her! She would ask me to check and make sure all of the bugs were gone, and then I could scrub the places she missed and chase away the bugs.

Now I do the Same with Tui. Any moms out there can use this trick. It really works. Just come up with your own story on how you got " Special Eyes".

Say Cheese

Tui is getting so big! He is now 21 months old. Yikes...the big 2 is coming up soon. Our little boy has always been fond of the camera, but since I got my new camera, picture time is a whole new thing. The flash on my camera is much brighter than my old one. Tui has figured out that he squints when the flash goes off, so now he squints ahead of time....like he is preparing for the bright light. Regardless of how bright it is, he still loves having his picture taken.

Small Price to Pay.

A year and a half ago, Haylie had surgery to fix a problem with her kidneys. It is called "reflux" and is actually quite common in little girls. Usually the problem corrects itself without the parents even knowing there was a problem. Haylie's did not correct them self and she ended up with some major kidney infections. One time she woke up in the middle of the night screaming. She said that her sister, Sydney, was covered in bugs. Then when I tried to pick her up to comfort her, she ran from me screaming that I had worms all over me and that daddy had lady bugs all over him. I thought she was just dreaming. When I finally picked her up she was so hot it actually hurt me to touch her. We rushed her to the ER and they told me that she was hallucinating. Her temp was at 105.5.

This happened off and on for a while so we scheduled her for a non- invasive surgery ( no cutting). We thought that had fixed the problem. Not so. The fevers came back. So then we were faced with a tough choice. Re-do the previous surgery and see if it works this time, or do a more difficult surgery ( cutting required). It was a particularly hard choice for me because I had to have the same surgery when I was a kid. I know the ups and downs of recovery and the scar that it leaves ( not a fun scar to have when you are pregnant!).

We decided to fix the problem once and for all. One last visit to the hospital, one last I.V., one last catheter. Haylie is a trooper and actually likes the doctors and nurses, and for some reason, the hospital food. But enough is enough when it comes to the fevers and I.V's.

As her surgery day grows closer, I realize that the decision to have the surgery was not the hardest thing I would have to do. Sitting and waiting for the surgery to get done would be the hardest. It was difficult! 3 hours of waiting and worrying ( and a bit of crying). But that was not even the most difficult part. The hardest thing was......( this is a warning for any parent who has to take a very young child into surgery)..... what the parents are asked to do. With Haylie's previous surgery they asked both of us to go with Haylie into the surgery room and wait with her while they put her to sleep. They do this with a mask that delivers gases that make the kids drowsy enough to put in an I.V. with the general anesthetic. they warned us that she might shake a bit and that it was normal. NORMAL? It was like watching your child go into a coma right in front of you and you can't do anything about it.

So this time Anthony told me he couldn't stand to see that again ( the big softy!). That left me to take Haylie in and watch all that again. This time they did it different....not better, just different. I had to hold Haylie on my lap as they put the mask on her. So instead of just watching her slip away, I had to feel her slip away. That is when I lost it. Through a chocked throat and tear filled eyes, I kissed my little girl and Told her that I loved her. Then I was rushed out the door and back to the waiting room where Anthony just held me for a minute.

The surgery went well! The surgeon said it was good that we did the surgery now. Apparently her Ureters ( the tubes that go from your kidneys to the bladder) were not in the right place and that was why she kept getting infections. That is also the reason the last surgery did not work. My daughter is a freak of nature just like me. I had extra Ureters ( don't ask....just call me a freak). I finally had an answer to why things were so bad with her. There was a reason, I was not just a worrying mother.

Well all is well now. Haylie recovered very well! We have been home for 2 weeks( which she was supposed to be staying calm for....ya right). She has a scar from pelvic bone to pelvic bone. But it is a small price to pay for the peace of mind that your child will not have to face those problems again.

Thanks to everyone who prayed for us and thought of us during this time! We love all of you!

Daddy and Haylie- prep time

Mommy and Haylie -OR time

Recovery room....teddy makes everything better!

Haylie's favorite nurse.