Tired

Long night last night. Carter's in the middle of Delayed Intensification. (Head to my photography blog to see details on that.) He's been doing amazingly well. He should be puking his brains out and while he doesn't feel fabulous, he's not throwing up. YAY! Last night when he was heading to bed he felt particularly nasty. He went to sleep at 7:00, garbage can in hand ready to vomit... whimpering. Poor guy. At 10:00 Bryan and I were in the family room and we heard him crying. He was in our bathroom going potty and on FIRE. His temp was 104. Again, poor guy. So, we called the oncologist who told us to head to the ER. Bummer.

The nice thing about him having cancer is that when Carter and I got there they knew he was coming (thank you to the oncologist for calling) and we didn't even sit down. We headed back to Carter's room and he went back to sleep. He still had a fever, though it was a little lower at this point. When he gets a fever we aren't allowed to give him anything to treat it until they get his blood counts and give us the okay. They want to see what the fever will do on it's own. It wasn't until I asked the nurse a few times at 1:00am for Tylenol that we actually got one. (Poor ER nurses. They are going a million directions at one time.)

By the time they finally accessed his port he was no longer numb from the numbing cream I had put on him. They missed his port the first time (they did this last time we were in the ER) so they had to poke him twice... at 12:30am... while he wasn't even numb. He was NOT entertained. But, we finally got his counts. They were really high, which is GREAT! What that means is that his body sensed the sickness (whatever it may be, we still don't know) and his white blood cells went crazy multiplying trying to fight it off. This is great! They pumped him full of some pricey, super strong antibiotics and by 3am we were back in our own beds at home.

It was a long, looong night but it was good to hear that his body's doing what it should be doing. His fever is all but gone this morning and we are heading into the oncology clinic in a few hours to get some more of the antibiotic. Poor kid. He had been de-accessed for a grand total of 12 hours before they poked him again. We had de-accessed him at home yesterday morning (that means that we took the poke out of his port) after we had given him his dose of chemo at home. But, as always, he took it in stride, slept in this morning, and hasn't complained even once. Amazing.

Here's a picture I took at the hospital on my iPhone last night. He looks so darn tired... :(

Addi Cakes

This child.... honestly, she couldn't be more perfect... couldn't be more adorable... couldn't be more sensitive... Sometimes my Mommy-guilt sets in. She is the middle child and I do my best to not let her have "middle child syndrome". But, right now, it's hard. With Carter going through everything he's going through and with Preslee being such a little spit-fire right now (and potty training), I worry constantly if I am being a good enough mommy to this little sweet heart.

She is IMPOSSIBLE to stay mad at. I dare you to try it. You won't be able to. Her heart breaks into a million little pieces when she knows she's done something wrong or made you upset in any way. She sobs very sincere tears and just wants to hug you when she knows your upset with her. Every ounce of frustration or anger instantly melts.

She is also our little snuggle bug. Always has been. Ever since they handed her to me the moment she was born, she has loved cuddling (every mother's dream). She will constantly come to us (sometimes if she wakes up to pee or something at 2am...) and sweetly ask, "Can I suggle wis you?" in her cute little voice. We could not be more in love with this little girl. I just wish I could freeze her like this so she doesn't turn into a mouthy teenager.

I know there is a reason the dear Lord gave her to us. I think it is a reward for something... not sure what, but I'm going to question it. I could spend every last moment of my life with her. She's my littel angel.

Our Big 2 Year Old!

Preslee turned two on August 1 while we were up in Breckenridge on vacation. It was so fun- and easy- to celebrate it while we were there. My parents were up there with us so that in itself was a birthday present for her. We took her out for a little photo shoot (it's beyond stunning up there). It was a photo shoot I left feeling frustrated and like I had gotten exactly ZERO good pictures. Turns out I got tons of great ones. The key for Pres is having Daddy behind the camera to get her to smile and laugh. She was definitely hard to photograph (I wanted to super glue her rear to thr ground) but well worth the sweating and running to get these pictures. I want to freeze her just like this... she's so darling! (With a Tasmanian Devil edge to her.)

This one below is SO "her."





The one below she was mad a a wet hen in. She had taken off her shoes and refused to put them back on so she was just in socks. She was NOT pleased with me (nor was Daddy, I think) when we took her out of the stroller to walk across the beautiful field.

Pikes Peak

One of our new favorite places to go is up to Pikes Peak. There are literally hundreds of places to go exploring up there. every time we go we end up somewhere different. This day was fun because we just played in the sand, put our toes in the water (shhh... it's the drinking water... that has fish in it so I didn't feel bad about my kids putting their toes in it), and then went exploring. So FUN! I LOVE LOVE LOVE days like this. Makes me feel like our family is "normal". It was perfect!

Daddy Dearest

I have the BEST dad. Ever. Really. In the entire history of the universe. Search high and low, far and wide, and you will NEVER find a dad as great as mine. (Ok, well, Bryan ties with him.) He's AWE-SOME. He is so well rounded. He hands the credit cards over to my mom with fairly little grumbling. (Although he does run his hands through his hair when finances are brought up.) He is a very successful wealth manager. He loves his Mom and brothers. They are so important to him and I know that he's felt the responsibility to step it up since his Dad passed away almost two years ago... something he was GLAD to do. (My Grandma's freaking AWESOME! Hanging with her is hardly a chore!) He's a MASTER car-packer. Seriously, stay out of his way when he's packing it up. Talk about a man on a mission. He took us on some amazingly fun vacations. (There was one time we ran out of gas... won't lie... it's on video.)

He's silly... oh, is he ever silly. (Case in point: My nickname is "J-bird-digger-dogger". I'm so use to it that I don't even notice when he calls me that instead of Jenny.) When we were kids we use to play Slam-to-the-Turf with him. We would climb all over him and he'd grab us and tickle us and kiss us all the while we would squeal in delight. (Always right before bed time... got us all hyper. My mom, I'm sure, loved it.) He would give us Honk-n-Kisses. He'd kiss us on our cheeks with his mustache and then he'd say, "HOOOOONK" while tickling us with his mustache. (They were "in" then. Don't worry, he shaved it.) When I was in high school and played music (probably far too loud) in my room he would come in and dance around like a complete idiot. He would do this hopping backwards thing with his hands out in front of him... so goofy. (Still does it.)

My dad is also so tender-hearted. I've seen him get emotional (I won't say "cry"... it's not manly) very few times. One was when Kelly and Robby moved to AZ. I don't think he gave two craps that they were leaving, but they took those two little angels with them. I'm pretty sure his heart broke a little bit that day. He's a loyal man. He loves my mom and his family more than anything in the world. Never once did I feel like work came first. He's faithful. He loves God and our Savior with all his heart. One was when his Dad passed away. That one absolutely tore me apart. He's also let anyone who's wanted to, move in with us. I had a friend live with us while we were in high school. We have had countless cousins and friends live with us through the years. He never seems to mind feeding the extra mouths.

I always knew I wanted to marry someone like him. And I did... only slightly better looking! (That's right, Mom, I said it!) If you look at these pictures my mom took with my camera while they were out here a few weeks ago you'll see all those qualities listed above... ok, maybe not. But you'll see HIM. The "real" him. I love my dad. I'm so lucky I get to be with him forever and ever. He's such a great husband, dad, son, brother, and Papa to my sweet little ones. I love you, Dad!!!

Water!

When Brigett and Koen were here we took a little adventure down to Helen Hunts Falls. It was a beautiful day. Perfect weather to play in a stream. Brigett was in heaven having it only be in the 80s as the weather in Phoenix got up to 118, setting records. (NOT missing that!!) We knew, from previous trips up here, to come with bathing suits and flip flops in hand. The kids just played; it's not "swimming" water. They built a dam and threw rocks to make splashes. Preslee, of course, was SOAKED after about .3 seconds so we stripped her down to her diaper so her clothes could dry. That's right, it was a SUPER classy look. She is by FAR my busiest child. She can go go go all day long. But she sleeps well... :) from burning all that energy, I can only assume. It was the perfect day. Relaxing, great weather, wonderful friends, beautiful children, and a picnic. ***Side note: My poor children are the definition of pasty... poor kids. I take full responsibility for that.***

Preslee, in true form.
Chucking a rock. I can't believe she didn't hit anyone.
Building the dam. Bryan was the site manager... did a great job. ;)
I love this picture. She absolutely adores her Daddy. (So do I!)
I told the kids I would give them some gummy worms if they would sit in the water for a picture. Preslee, obviously, was great with it. Koen also did great... I'm sure he was thrilled it didn't feel like a bathtub like water in Phoenix does. Carter and Addi on the other hand... wimps.

Reunited and It Feels So Good!

Last week, Brigett brought Koen up for a surprise visit. She woke him up at 4:30am and they headed to the airport. We didn't tell Carter and Addilyn... just headed out to "run errands" and ended up at the airport to pick them up. The kids were SOOOO excited. Koen is one of Carter's best buddies and Brigett is like a mommy to all my kids... but especially Addilyn. Addilyn has been attached to Brig her entire life... to the point that she use to call her Mommy Brigett. (How cute!!) We had an absolute BLAST with them. We went exploring, played in streams, and had picnics. The boys played Legos, played the Wii, played the DS's, laughed, and got far too little sleep. Brigett and Brad will never know what it meant to us having them here. Brad has been telling me for 4 months, the minute Carter's healthy enough he'd fly Brig and Koen up for the weekend. So, for a late birthday present, up they came!

And it was an added bonus for Bryan that he got to do whatever he wanted. He got to sleep in, hang out with his buddies, and skip out on bed time because he knew I was perfectly entertained with Brigett here. And for me, Brigett's one of my closest friends so we enjoyed catching up and chatting all weekend... over frozen yogurt... twice. :)

I love Carter's face in this picture.

One morning we took the kids up to Pikes Peak to explore. We had a picnic and a lot of fun. Koen even graced us with his "I'm the King of the Mountain" dance. Loverly.

These two are such goof balls together. They laugh contantly. It's a noise I love to hear!

Side note: Preslee eats the oddest things. Example: wood. Another example: wipes (clean ones. She'll just suck on them... so strange)

I think Addilyn has a tiny crush on Koen. :) She just adores him; always has. Gotta be honest, I wouldn't fight that one in 15 years. He's such a great kid and Addilyn Martineau has a nice ring. :)
Koen took this picture. Good job, huh? I told him he could be my apprentice. :)