Off track fun!

I was very skeptical of Year Round School when April started Kindergarten in 2004.  Can I just tell you how much we LOVE IT!  Not only do the kids need the break.... so does Mom! We've had a great time already.  We started out at the bounce house Monday,

and went to visit Great Grandma Tuesday.

Now we are busy finishing laundry and packing our bags to visit Grandma and Papa Gailey in California!  

I love to see the Temple...

We had the awesome opportunity to go to the Draper Temple open house last week! The kids were so anxious to go and loved the experience! We are spoiled here in Utah with all the beautiful Temples around us.  A lot different from when we were kids!  We tell our kids how lucky they are.  Tyler and I had to travel for hours to see a temple when we were young!  Now we are counting down until we are able to go to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house!

Summer is on it's way!

Today has been a gorgeous day!  It might have only been 50* outside, but with the sun out and the awesome blue sky....  it easily felt like 80*!  You know summer is coming when you can pull out the sidewalk chalk and make chalk houses....

finally take down the Christmas lights....

and go for a little bike ride....

We are choosing to ignore the remaining snow on the grass and the 7 day forecast which shows more rain and snow showers.

9 month photos!

Aunt Wendy did an awesome job capturing all of his cuteness for his 9 month pictures! Thank you so much.  I love them!

Off we go!

I totally love that my kids are creative! It doesn't take much to entertain them, thank goodness! Last Saturday the girls had Ashlee (cousin) over.  We left them for several hours while Tyler and I ran some errands.  This is what we came back to!

They took every possible chair they could find to make their car so that they could travel to California! Notice the Wii wheel they used as their steering wheel, the car seats for their babies, and the luggage in the trunk!  So much fun!

Big boy!

I had to show off my new high chair which I love!  When they put me in it I get so excited to eat.  I just kick and kick with excitement!

I also love that Mom and Dad let me sit in shopping carts like a big boy!  It is so much fun. I like it when Brynn sits by me. She pushes me back up when I slide towards her! I think I like this big boy stuff!

Home and happy!

Justin finally had his PDA closure Thursday. This is a picture of the always happy little guy right before the surgery.  He was oblivious to the stress that Mom and Dad were feeling. 

As they took him from us and explained all the terrible things that could go wrong, (because they have to) they also warned us that it could take up to 4 hours.  We were given a pager and began to walk the halls.  Finally after pacing for a good 45 minutes, we decided to get a coke and find a place to sit and read to get our minds off of the time.  We figured we had a long wait ahead of us. Right as we found a spot and began reading, our pager went off!  Instantly we thought something went wrong!  It had only been 1 hour and 10 minutes!  We rushed back to see the sweet nurse greet us with a smile! "He's all done!  It went very smooth!"  As they rolled him out I had to hold back the tears.  He was so out of it, but I was also very glad to have this done and over with.  The surgeon pulled us aside while they took him to the first recovery room.  He was extremely happy with his heart! Luckily the closure was quite small, so that should heal up really well.  They also did some exploratory stuff while they were in there and his heart is functioning beautifully! We are so thankful! 

Only one parent was allowed back in the first recovery room.  Of course Tyler didn't have a say!  I was up and out! Tyler was only out of the loop for 20 minutes.  They put us in an overnight recovery room.  Since the procedure was done through his groin, we had to make sure he didn't move his leg for 6 hours to prevent any blood loss.  We felt awful because we couldn't hold him.  All we could do was stand there and hold his leg down as he looked up at us.  

All he could do was use his little arms to touch us.  I spent most of the time leaning over so I could kiss his cute fingers.  They gave him atropine before surgery. Down syndrome patients heart rates tend to drop during surgery, so this is used to maintain proper heart function and increase his heart rate.  It also dilates the pupils and causes major flushing of the face after surgery!  He was such a trooper and never needed pain medicine!  After the six hours was up, they had to x-ray his chest to make sure the coil (used to close the PDA) didn't move.  Luckily it didn't.  Next thing we know they said we were going to be discharged!  He did so amazingly well they didn't see a need for him to stay over night!   The girls were so sweet (with Grandmas help of course) to get his room all decorated for his homecoming!  They were so relieved to see him!

We want to thank everyone for their prayers! We are so happy to have such a healthy little boy!

9 months!

I have a hard time believing that my baby boy is already 9 months old!  He is growing up much faster than I'd like!  Today he had his well baby check-up and is doing very well. He is in the 60% for weight and 75% for height on the Down syndrome growth chart! The Doctor is more than pleased with him and his progress!  The Dr. checked his lungs and he sounds awesome, which means surgery should be able to take place this Thursday for the PDA closure. We are anxious to get that done and over with even though we are very nervous to have him put under for the 3 - 4 hour procedure!

I had to document this moment today with him in a highchair!  I know that seems so silly, but he has been so unstable in highchairs, so we've always fed him in his bouncy seat.  I thought I'd give it a try today while I took Brynn out to lunch.  What do you know.... he sat up nice and strong and loved every minute of it!  Now I have to go high chair shopping!  Don't you just want to squeeze him with loves?!  I sure do!

A day with Grandma!

Last Sunday us girlies spent a little bit of time with Grandma!  We had so much fun eating popcorn, drinking cokes, and laughing with her down at the little cafe in her new apartment. She is a trooper and is doing incredibly well! 

You are such an inspiration to me. I love you Grandma and I am so excited for our new tradition!  You mean the world to me!

Motivation!

Who would have thought that something as simple as the Wii could be such a motivator!  All it takes is one little bit of complaining after I ask them to do a certain task... and this is the threat. "Girls, you either get it done like I asked, or you can chose to ignore me and be grounded from the Wii. What do you choose?"  "Oh.... the Wii.  Now what did you ask us to do?"  I know this phase won't last forever, so I'll take advantage of it while I can!

Surgery? Not yet....

This is so humiliating... but you know how Mom is about this stuff.  So we headed off to Primary's early this morning (I'm talking 5:00 a.m.) for my PDA closure.  By the time we get to the hospital it's 6:00. Of course we have to sit in the waiting room a little while, so by the time we get called back it's 7:00.  I'm STARVING at this point because the last time I ate was 6:00 the night before! But I never cried!  The nurse came to check my vitals and had Mom change me into this getup!  Well, she didn't like the way my lungs sounded, so she called in more staff.  After many people listened to my lungs, they gave Mom and Dad the option to continue on with surgery and take a few scary chances, or give me a prescription for antibiotics and reschedule.  After listening to the pros and cons, I'm so glad my parents chose to reschedule.  Not only so I could eat, but because I could have ended up in ICU fighting for my life if something went wrong.  I know my parents love me!  I'll be back to PCH February 5th to try again.  I'm not too thrilled about the hospital clothes, but I am ready to be healthy!  Thanks for your prayers!

BIG day!

Tomorrow is a big day for the J-man!  He will be going to Primary Children's Hospital for an operation for PDA closure.  We love you baby boy!

Ready, set....

I know I post a lot about Justin.... but we are so proud of him and his progress!  He has a great therapist from the school district that comes to our home twice a month to work with him and also teach us how to make him stronger. (His therapy will move on to more detailed things as he gets older like speech, etc.) Just one week ago she taught us how to put him in the crawling position, even though we know he won't crawl for a while. We need to get his body used to the position and also get him strong enough to be able to hold the position, which is very hard for him.  When she first put him in the crawling position his little arms would collapse to the ground.

Not anymore!  He always amazes us!  Just a little bit of therapy and a lot of patience sure pays off with him!  He might not be moving, but he sure is able to hold himself up!  One step at a time!
I know this probably isn't appropriate... but I had to do it!  He is JUST like his Daddy.... and I love him even more for that!

Togetherness!

This by far, is one of my most favorite Christmas gifts that I received this year. (Thanks Wendy and Ian!) I have felt so many different emotions this past week. Every time I pass this as I walk through the house, it brings me peace and comfort.  

I absolutely adore my little family and wouldn't know how to function with out each and every one of them.  I am so proud to be the Mom and Wife that I am even though I know that I don't have it "all together."  Now that I have this hanging to remind me.... it doesn't really matter!  All that matters is that "together we have it all!"

Take Two

It was only the end of September when April decided that she had enough of sharing a room.  She wanted and "needed" a room of her own.  She put a lot of hard work into the color scheme and even helped Dad paint.  As happy as she wanted to be... she just never seemed quite satisfied.  Every single weekend (and I mean EVERY SINGLE weekend) and off track, there would be a spread of blankets on Aprils floor so that they could sleep together.  During this time, Brynn was doing terrible with her change downstairs with Taylee.  Maybe it was because she was only 3 or because she prefers to be alone and play alone. Either way, this whole situation just wasn't working!  During Christmas April decided that being alone just wasn't that cool after all.  So guess what that meant for Mom and Dad?  More painting (because if she was going to move back downstairs, she needed a room that looked a little more "grown up."), more moving furniture up and down the stairs, and more throwing out of trash that had been collected in these few short months. But we agreed... it "needed" to be done! This is the new color scheme that April and Taylee agreed on.  Thank goodness I kept those blue comforters from a few years back!

Needless to say, Brynn is very happy with the change also.  She can play with her toys in peace and quite... just the way she likes it!

In with the NEW!

Happiness is what we'll remember this year. It was

Amazingly wonderful and so full of cheer. A

Proud set of parents and four kids that are great

Proudly say good-bye to 2008.

You know that sweet April is now in 4th grade.

Now with Taylee in 1st, feels she has it made!

Every Dino is played with as Brynn's day starts,

While cute little Justin always melts hearts! Twelve

Years of marriage and eight in our home.

Each day is a gift, we are never alone.

All in all this year has been fine! We are

Really excited for 2009!

We hope you have a Fantastic New Year!!

These are a few of our favorite things....

Every Christmas the "Gailey" clan has always done something service oriented to feel the true meaning of Christmas.... to feel a little more of the spirit.  In the past we have been a secret santa for a family in need.  This year we decided to give of our time and show the kids other ways of helping.  We went to the Bishop Storehouse and they put us to work.  We unpacked big boxes of toilet paper and put them into bags of four.  The kids were busy working on diaper boxes.  We all had a great time!

Christmas morning the kids woke up (because Mom and Dad made them.... at 8:00 a.m.) to some great gifts! We all had great time and loved our gifts! It was nice to know that April (being the oldest), said it was her best Christmas!  WHEW!


We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and wish you all a fabulous New Year!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS.....

to you!

Let's Dance!

April and Taylee did a great job at their Christmas recital! Aunt Wendy did an awesome job taking these pictures for us! Tyler was a no-show. (with good reason of course! It was his work Christmas party which I had to miss). I was chasing Brynn up and down the isle and trying to videotape at the same time. Richelle was a lifesaver! I was out of hands. Sorry Justin!

Taylee (middle) danced to the song "Christmas of Love."

April (middle, back) danced to "Christmas means to me."

I'm too cool!

This gets pretty annoying.... Mom and Dad feel like they need to show me off every now and then.  In this picture I finally have enough strength to hold myself up while Dad puts me way high in the air!  I know this doesn't seem like much... but look... it takes a lot for me to be able to hold myself up like that!  BIG day!  It's fun too!

I get a kick out of this picture!  Mom and Dad are constantly checking up on me when they put me to bed to make sure I have my oxygen all shoved up my nose.  Well... this time I got caught! I was busy playing with it instead of using it for what it's really supposed to be used for.  Hey... you try to sleep with plastic tubes up your nose.  Not too comfortable!

Kiddo Updates!

It's time for some much needed updates on my sweeties!

APRIL -  Every year the school has a "reflections project." The theme this year was "WOW."   Being the artist that she is, she chose art and came up with the fun eye catching WOW picture. She did awesome and was even given an award!

She is definitely in the pre-tween stage if there is such a thing!  I know I went through a million outfits in the morning before I chose the one I would wear for the day... but I recall being at least 13.... not 9!  Luckily she is a sweet girl and has even taken up a lot more baby-sitting for Mom and Dad! She's working hard for that cell phone! (little does she know it will take many more years...)

TAYLEE - She also chose art for the reflections project and also won an award! I had a flower arrangement on the table and she sat there and put it to paper very nicely!

She is doing an awesome job reading!  She has always had an interest and can't wait to read before bed.  She is on her 3rd chapter book!

Lucky for me - she trusts what I pick out for her to wear... and wears it proudly! 

BRYNN - Oh the fun loving, firecracker of a child.... She amazes us daily!  She is wild.  She is busy. She is determined. She is Brynnie! But she always tells us how much she loves us all day long!  She is my partner in crime.  She loves to shop and eat out just as much as me!

We are working on getting her to realize that she has a bed of her own.  I never thought I would have to share my bed with my 3 year old AND my husband. We have her wrapped up like a burrito in mom's blanket so she feels me around her at night.  I doubt it will work, but it's worth a try!

JUSTIN - Oh my sweet little J-man!  He had his first echocardiogram last Friday. The Cardiologist was thrilled to tell us that he only had 3 minor issues.  I kept thinking - THREE?! They told us to feel very thankful with the results.  He has a very healthy heart! He has been ordered to be put on oxygen when he sleeps for several months up to one year.  I would love to explain why... but this medical stuff really confuses me!  It has something to do with the pressure that is being put on his lungs.  He has to go in for a procedure (date not known yet) to close up his PDA.  A valve that should have closed before birth that didn't.  It's a simple out patient surgery, so we are thankful for that!  He is still a happy little boy who now says dada too! (all that matters is that he said mama first!)

Proud Mama!

At 7 months old.... Justin's first word! Of course I'm proud! Don't forget to pause my music!

Off track is over :(

You would think that after having my kids home for 4 weeks from being off track that I would be DYING to send them back.  For some reason that just isn't the case.  This particular off track went by extremely fast and I'm not too happy about it.  We enjoyed a wonderful week with the entire family for Thanksgiving, saw a few cute movies, went to the bounce house, ate out with friends and family (what's new), had several days of sickness and even a night in the ER (not so fun), went as a family to Justin's physical therapy so they could meet the therapist, went to Temple Square to see the lights, decorated for Christmas, had many sleep overs and late nights, went to the girls dance recital at the Festival of Trees, celebrated many family birthdays and much more that I'm forgetting. Now it's crunch time.  Time to work on book reports and memorizing poems before Monday!  Should have started that 4 weeks ago!  Na.... that would have been no fun!