Double the fun!

It has been blowing me away lately how quick my "not so little" girls are growing up. I'm excited for the future but at the same time I am so sad to see them grow up. It's a hard switch from "Mommy" to "Mom", but I am going to welcome it with open arms!

I was scheduled to volunteer in their classes yesterday, so I decided to change things up a bit. I woke them up before their alarm went off and told them I was taking them to breakfast! They were so excited!

I love you with all my heart April and Taylee and hope to enjoy many more fun memories with you sweet girls!

Bribery works!

So I have been trying to get Brynn to practice writing her name since she was 3 (she will be 4 this June). She is the stubborn one of the group and I just couldn't get her to cooperate. Knowing that she will be in pre-school this upcoming year made me want her to do it even more! She has always been able to outsmart me, but not this time! She was begging for ice cream after her lunch. So why not use it as bribery?!

That's all it took! I know it isn't perfect, but it's not bad for her first time. Now hopefully she hasn't caught on to me!

Summer Love!

As I looked out my window this morning I saw the most horrific thing! SNOW! I decided to write a post about why I LOVE summer!

i can get a pedicure and actually enjoy looking at it

i can walk the kids to school

i can take walks... period!

i can leave the house faster than I can in the winter

my wood floor stays clean

my carpet stays dry

i can buy a bunch of flip flops and only spend $20

i wear sunglasses as a headband when it's a bad hair day

my flowers bloom (if I'm lucky)

i can go waterskiing

my laundry load seems lighter

i actually see my neighbors after the winter hibernation

making slurpee runs

taking the kids to the park

opening my blinds and feeling the sun

basking in the sun

watching the kids play outside

summer clothes are much cheaper than winter clothes

i can put the winter clothes away!

i can take a vacation anywhere and be happy

What is there not to love about summer?!

California fun!

We always enjoy when the kids are off track. We usually take a little vacation whenever we have a chance. We headed to California! This time we went up North with Grandma and Papa Gailey to visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium. It was amazing! The pictures just don't do it justice either!

I think we stood in front of this aquarium for a good 30 minutes! They enjoyed watching the shark pass right by. There were some amazingly huge fish in there that I just couldn't get because they wouldn't come close enough.

Brynn was addicted to the school of fish! It was a HUGE school and she would "touch" them every time they would pass by!

She was so happy when Papa showed her where Nemo was!

After the aquarium we stayed over night to rest our tired legs. We found the cutest park in Monterey where the kids played for a good hour!

Justin just wasn't as excited as the girls were!

We hit Fisherman's Wharf where they listened to some Sea Lions (couldn't see them close enough to capture a picture), and played around on this boat before heading back to Bakersfield.

It's always a bummer when we have to say good-bye to Grandma and Papa. (Mom and Dad) Someday they will live right here in Herriman and we will no longer have to visit Bakersfield! We will ALWAYS take trips to other parts of California though! We always enjoy time with you Mom and Dad! Love you bunches and thanks for the wonderful week!

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!