June 1st

It's June 1st, the first day of the second half of the year, school is now out for the summer, we just moved into our new home, and Brett has been out of the hospital now for a record nearly SIX MONTHS. This morning I had to go to downtown Raleigh and answer a jury summons. I failed to write my letter asking to be excused for my son's medical caretaking before the required 10 days, so I had to go in person. I spent 3 hours waiting. They called many people and sent many people back for another round. I never got called to even go in a courtroom, and then the jury clerk announced that all of us who it was their first day reporting could be excused! Something happened with one of the courts, and we weren't needed. She thanked us for our service and said we wouldn't be called again for 2 years. So thankful for small "miracles," and that I didn't have to go through a long process of trying to get out of jury duty!

New House

I am struggling to find the time to post lately, with all that's been going on. Often in the past few weeks I've gotten on to write only to find that Blogger is down or my own Internet connection is slow or non-existent. Really, I do have the time, it's just the uninterrupted time I don't have much at the house.

We are trying to wrap up the school year - projects to turn in, parties, etc. We are living at our new house.  We are loving it VERY much. I know many of you have been waiting for pictures of the new house and all, so here's the front and back of the house.

 Front of the house

In the backyard

As for the old house, we've had one showing, and the people say they want to come back in a few weeks - we'll see. It's still got so much of our stuff in it. We went last Sunday when my parents were here to watch the kids and worked on it. It was me, Rob, and another helper. We worked about 2 hours. Yesterday I went over for 2 1/2 hours with my friend who is a professional organizer at Saving Space in Raleigh. I highly recommend them if you need help organizing or decluttering! We plan to go back tomorrow and see how much we can get done.

Did I mention I've already hosted 2 parties at the new house in the last week? Yes, I did. Mark turned 8 last week. All the grandparents came in to stay a night or two, and we had Mark's party in the backyard. Wednesday we hosted Mark's second grade end-of-the-year party. It was great fun in a great atmosphere. I love being about to share this space with family and friends.

Mother's Day 2011

I had a very nice Mother's Day this year. It was Mark's idea to get me a bike! He was getting new bike for his birthday, and he wanted to get me one so we could ride together. So sweet! I hadn't asked for a bike, but I'm very happy about the surprise. I love to ride with Mark when we get the chance, and Sunday I rode 7.5 miles.

My Bike - yay!

Mark's Birthday

Mark turned 8 yesterday. He had several happy birthday phone calls, and I brought cupcakes to school at lunchtime. We played with the neighbors all afternoon and then they all came over for (leftover) cupcakes after dinner. He's still a very sweet boy and we are so blessed to have him in our lives and in our family. 

One of the funniest things that happened was that on Facebook 17 folks wrote Birthday greetings to him. One was from Twomama (my mom's sister) and it said, "Hi Mark hope you have a great day. Patience (Mark's cousin) is right behind you watch out she might catch you!"

He was reading them out loud in the car and as soon as he read that he snapped his head around and looked out the back because he thought it meant their car was behind ours on the road! Which would be very startling because they live in Georgia! I started laughing and he didn't know why. Once I explained he said, "Ohhhhh" and started laughing too. It was a very fun moment!

Mark's 8th Birthday Party

We had Mark's 8th Birthday Party here at our house. Family, neighbors, and other friends came to join in the celebration.  Here's a slideshow of the festivities!

Wordless Wednesday

Brett has made lots of progress with his eating and drinking! Here's a cute video.

The Royal Wedding

While I was not crazy interested enough to get up at 4am and watch the royal wedding (like several of my friends did), I did set the DVR!

I watched it Saturday night after the twins were in the bed along with my mom and Mark. So Mark is almost 8 now, and I think the only wedding he's been to is his uncle David and aunt Kim, which was --almost 4 years ago? Mom and I were cracking up at his commentary as he watched and we tried to explain things. Try explaining royalty and heads of state and wedding rituals to an 8 year old boy. When you break it down to something that seems understandable, it certainly begins to sound silly! Oh, the things we humans make up in this life - but that is for sure another post for another day.

Here are Mark's questions and observations and thoughts:

1. Why her dress too big? Asked over and over.  From Mom:

It was a hoot answering mark's many questions. One was why is her dress too big. As i tried to explain it is actually a gown and they all have big skirts and trains. He thought for a bit and then asked his mama if they didn't have sizes on those dresses like small, medium, large.

2. Why is Harry's hair crazy?

3. Mom, did you have a carriage ride at your wedding? Actually, I did have a carriage ride the night of our wedding. It wasn't planned, but they have those horse and carriages in the streets of downtown Atlanta, and I was still in my wedding dress and Rob still in his tux. I told him people were not lined up there to see me, but when they saw we were bride and groom, people clapped and cheered and I waved back as if I were famous. I really did feel like a princess!

3. I didn't know weddings were so LONG and BORING

(We did fast forward quite a lot!)

After all was said and done, Mark asked incredulously, "we watched all that just so we could see them KISS?!?!?!" Well...yes.

Wordless Wednesday

Gantt Praying at dinner

Clinic Visit

Well, we narrowly missed being admitted yesterday when the doctors saw Brett in clinic. Although he seems healthy, his weight has continued to decrease. He weighed under 18 pounds.  We were there 2 1/2 hours - a short but draining visit. Luckily GG was able to be there to help out and to take Brett to the car when he was done.

This is how tired Brett was after the appointments!

I have been having feeding tube issues* lately. I have also not been as diligent as I should be about keeping the feed on all the time and getting all the enzyme administrations done (6 times a day, about 3 hours apart). The early morning ones and late night ones are hard because he's asleep and to get him to take the enzymes by mouth requires waking him up. Usually he chokes, then he's awake. It's not a fun thing. Now there is a thing you can do to dissolve the enzyme beads in bisodium carbonate then actually add it to the feed for the late night or early morning feed. It is not the best scenario- it's second best, but it's better than not at all. Only one administration per day will be done this way. The rest will be done by mouth as usual. We also changed the formula again, in case it might make a difference. The formula itself is the same, just a different brand.

Just to make sure it isn't a lung problem that is causing an inability to gain weight, we are going to have infant PFTs** done again in the next week or two. He hasn't had these in quite awhile. He was doing very badly back then, and his lung function was just above 30%. The department chief actually said it was the worst she had ever seen in an infant. They don't like to do them when the child is sick, and when the child is well, it often seems unnecessary or even a bit risky since the child must be sedated. Although I'm not convinced the lungs are the problem, I actually don't know of course, and since it's been awhile, I don't think it's a bad idea to repeat the PFTs. So it looks like we will have quite a few scheduled visits to UNC in May. Please pray for weight gain and think HEAVY thoughts!


* Feeding tube issues: we recently switched Brett from what is called a mic-key button to a mini button (amazingly enough, they just happen to be called this - it isn't because of Disney or anything!). While I like the mini button for various reasons, the one annoying thing that keeps happening is that the one little tiny piece that locks the extension into the button breaks off easily. This last time when it broke off was a few days ago. I opened up my back-up and began to use it, but it kept coming off. The back-up looked like an adult size, but I thought it still might work. When it didn't, I called the good folks at Mid Carolina Home Health care to send me the correct extension. They did send the extensions but they were the mic-key extensions. I tried them, because I knew that they knew he had a mini, and maybe they were supposed to work. I found out they actually are supposed to work. But they didn't. The extension kept coming off - wouldn't lock in place. By this time it had been about a day and a half without a feed. Brett can still eat by mouth, so he wasn't hungry or anything - it's just that we are missing the opportunity to feed him continuously and theoretically maximize his growth. Since Mid Carolina's offices are on the way to UNC, I stopped by on the way back home and got the right thing. It actually did take the lady who was helping me about 15-20 minutes for us to figure out the problem, phsyically see that what SAID it was supposed to work actually didn't, and then for her to find the one that did, then be able to tell the difference in description to put it on our file so we don't get the wrong thing again. A minor inconvenience, but I can always count on the Mid Carolina people to help me and get it right. Sometimes it just has to be done in person!


**Infant PFTs -


Pulmonary function tests measure how well your child’s lungs are working. They measure how fast air can flow through the airways, how much air is in the lungs and how stiff the lungs are. This information is important in diagnosing breathing problems and checking to see if current treatments are working.  The results of these tests can show if your child’s lungs or airways are obstructed (blocked) in any way because of asthma or other conditions that affect breathing. Infants are not capable of performing the voluntary breathing maneuvers necessary for measurement of lung function. Consequently, special equipment has been created to measure lung function in very young children. There is more preparation required for infant pulmonary function testing than for lung function tests in older children.


The child is placed in a special Plexiglas bed and a mask is placed over his/her mouth and nose. A loose fitting jacket is placed around your child's chest and abdomen. He/she is given a few deep breaths from the mask and then the bag is inflated so it gently squeezes the chest causing him/her to blow out. This is similar to asking the older children to take a huge breath and blow out as hard as you can. For the last part of the test we measures the size of the lungs. The top of the bed is briefly closed around the child. The air coming in and out of the child's lungs is stopped for a few seconds which causes a pressure change in the box and enables the computer to calculate lung size (this is similar to measurements obtained in older children using the box.

Wordless Wednesday

Mama's Bed

Life and Science Museum Field Trip

Last Tuesday we had the 2nd grade field trip to the Life and Science Museum in Durham, North Carolina. Most of the exhibits are outdoors, kind of like a cross between a museum and a zoo. Many farm and zoo animals, playgrounds, and the popular Dinosaur Trail.

Notice the dinosaur sticking its head out on the left

We enjoyed beautiful weather! Not too hot and a very nice breeze. The boys could've stayed there all day long!

Mark with school buddy Andrew

This dinosaur looks nice

The kids love climbing this Parasaurolophus

Mark is afraid of this one!

Cool dinosaurs

Mark found an inchworm

And his friend Kristen found a caterpillar

And I got this cute keychain at the gift shop!

Two Year Check Ups

Brett and Gantt's two year check ups were uneventful! They both are developing just fine, with Brett getting extra assistance through his various therapies. Both had a hepatits A shot, and it was over quickly.

Gantt 

Gantt weighed in at 27 pounds, 10 ounces, which puts him in the 45th percentile for weight. He was 35 1/4 inches tall, which puts him in the 74th percentile for height! Way to grow, Gantt!

Brett

Brett weighed in at 20 pounds, and he was 32 inches tall, both less than 5th percentile. We are doing all we can to help this little guy grow as well! Their next well-child visit is due when they turn 3! Yay!

2nd Grade Field Day

Mrs. Rasmussen's Super Stars!

Mark and his buddy Nathan

Relay Races!

Go Mark, go!

Hula Hoop contest - boys vs. girls - wanna guess who won?

Look at Mark on the left! Hysterical! Trying to keep it going any way he can!

Pretty good at carrying the pizza boxes!

Silly face pic

Moving Day!

Today is finally moving day! For weeks we haven't been sure when it would actually be, but now the house is move-in ready. In the next few weeks as we get settled I'll post some before/after photos of the renovations and home improvements. We are very excited to begin living at our new place, and while we will move all the "big stuff" today, we'll probably be spending several weeks trying to move out all the other various belongings from the other house.

It's not just the house that we love, but it's the setting, the front and back lawn, and the neighbors. Really, we wanted more of a ranch house (this house only has 2 upstairs rooms), and wanted more outdoor living. We've discovered the perfect place for that here. We purchased this house back in May 2010, almost a year ago! The previous owners (who we have known for several years) rented from us while they built their new house right next door, so now we are neighbors! Once they moved out, we began our renovations and additions. During the past year we've also gotten to know the neighbors on the other side. Since we just love hanging out there so much, we've been able to spend time with the neighbors and have dinners together and such.

He Is Risen!

He is risen, indeed! Thank you, Lord, for loving us enough to send your Son to take the punishment for our sins upon him and face death on the cross to reconcile us to yourself. He is our mighty Savior!

Easter Bunny

This is Mark doing the Easter Bunny. He thinks this is funny, and it might be the only year he can do this with his teeth. He might even have braces on the front two this time next year...

Tornadoes

Tornadoes ripped through various parts of Raleigh and surrounding suburbs Saturday afternoon. My family is fine, both of our houses are fine, and our business is still standing and operating, so we are VERY grateful for these things. Others were not so fortunate. Many have varying degrees of damage to their homes and property to deal with, some had their homes totally destroyed, and some lost their lives.

Uprooted tree in front of Wake Cross Roads Baptist. Photo by Scott Stanton

Tornado in Sanford NC

Lowe's Home Improvement Center in Sanford- all employees and customers survived

Downtown Raleigh

It is encouraging to see the community come together during a devastating time in our city. We are doing what we can in donating food and clothing, and others are physically volunteering to help pick up the debris and restore the damage where they can. The video below is a story about such an instance. Our friends live here on Serendipity Drive, a street in a neighborhood that was hit pretty hard by a tornado. Everyone on the street took cover and made it through the storm, but there was so much damage. There has been a tremendous outpouring of support and help there.

Getting Nosey about CF Video

I'll leave you for the weekend with this awesome video about cystic fibrosis. It's about 6 minutes long, and Oli explains what it is like to have CF. This video is not only wonderful for children, but also for anyone who wants to learn more about CF. I love their British accents!

Happy Birthday! Here's Your New Stroller

I'm so pleased that these kids enjoy riding in the stroller!  Once again, this is something my firstborn never liked, so I appreciate very much the fact that they do, especially since there are two of them this time!

For two years we've either used separate strollers, or our super-old tandem stroller that a friend gave me for free before they were born. I felt the expense was justified since they like it and the tandem wasn't really that comfortable to them and didn't have cup holders and stuff. Also, where we are moving (I promise- we really are one day!) it will be nice to be able to stroll them over the various surrounding terrain.

Ok, I'll be honest. It's really for me (and my sitter) as much as for them. I have recently added running to my fitness routine (more on that in a future post), and pushing around that very heavy tandem stroller up the hills was killing me. I couldn't really jog at all with it. Maybe 30 seconds. Both Candace and I were very excited to get this one, because it's so much lighter and easier to push! With this stroller, I can truly do the jogging intervals I am doing, even though the hills are challenging.

Here's a reason why it pays to be ready to snap with your phone at any moment -- I can't believe I actually got this pic! So Sweet!

Wordless Wednesday

Fun with Pop

When Mark was a baby, Pop taught him nod his head very enthusiastically when asked the question, "Do you love Pop?" So he had to teach the twins this little trick, too!

And Brett

and of course, Mark had to do it for the camera as well!