world's best dad

Have you seen this Subaru commercial??



I think I cry every time I see it.

I love it so much.

It reminds me of Curtis.  I can see him doing this exact same thing.

Curtis is the BEST dad!  I love watching him with our kids.  Clover and Henry are sure lucky to have such a wonderful daddy who loves and cares for them so much. 

If you have ever held Clover or Henry in front of Curtis, then you have most likely experienced him telling you about 152 times to "be careful" and "watch his/her arm" and "be sure to support his/her head" and "he/she likes to be held like this" and my very favorite, "don't drop him/her."  Don't feel bad if Curtis criticizes your every little move while holding one of the babies.  He does it to me too.  Every day.  He loves them....that's why.

The one time we left our kids with a friend (for one hour, mind you), Curtis was sure to go over every little thing about the kids.....including how to do infant CPR.

He was meant to be a daddy and there is nothing I love more than watching him fulfill that roll.

what to do, what to do??

I tell ya, these kids are growing way too fast.  I'm sure this is how every mom feels, but seriously....what the heck?  Why must they double in size over night?

They have outgrown so many of their clothes....some they never even got to wear.  So now what?  What do I do with all of those adorable clothes??  Some of their outfits and so freakin' cute and so teeny tiny that I just can't get rid of them.  So what do we do with them?  Save them for future kids?  Are we going to have more kids??  I would love to adopt and/or have another baby, but is that really going to happen??

So many decisions in life.

Today I went through all of their clothes and put my very most favorite precious outfits in a box marked "SAVE."  The rest will be given away.  If we don't end up having more kids, at least Clover (and Henry) will have some pretty adorable clothes for their dolls.   

Hello, hello.

Wow, it is sure hard to find time to blog with two little ones to dote on all day.  It seems that whenever I have a free second, I have to hurry and do a load of laundry, wash bottles, take a shower, eat something, or even just sit and do absolutely nothing.

A lot has happened in the last 2 months since I last wrote.  Things like....

A trip to Denver to attend a PWS clinic
Christmas
A very sick little girl on Christmas
An emergency room visit
A 10 year anniversary
The start of a new year
Another emergency room visit at Denver Children's Hospital
A sleep study
A diagnosis of sleep apnea
An oxygen prescription
A birthday
Lots of milestones
And lots and lots of diaper changes, midnight feedings, hugs and kisses, bedtime stories and "a bushel and peck" singing going on in our house.

Oh yeah....and did I mention we moved?

We've been in our new place for a week now.  When Curtis was offered a new job, we felt like the timing was right and that moving was the right thing for our family.

My hope is to find the time to update the blog more often and update you on some of the events above.

The kiddos are growing like crazy.  It is hard to believe that Clover will be 6 months and Henry 4 months old next week.  I don't know how that is possible.  Here are a few pics of the little cuties....

PWS

So.....Clover has Prader-Willi Syndrome.  Everyday I am reminded of this.  And everyday it breaks my heart.

I wish more than anything that there was a cure for this awful syndrome.  I have never wanted anything so badly in my life.

It's a hard syndrome to explain.  In fact, if I am going to be honest, I really dread explaining it to others.  No one "gets it."  There is just so much to it, that it is impossible to explain it all in a two minute casual conversation.

When I learned of Clover's diagnosis, I was in Billings alone.  Curtis was in Thermop at work.  I was sitting with Clover in the NICU when the doctor came up and said, "we have a diagnosis."  My heart sank because I knew we were waiting on results from three different tests to come back and I was hoping that all three would come back negative.  If we indeed had a diagnosis, then that meant that one of the tests came back positive.  The doctor stood next to me and out came the words,  "Clover has Prader Willi Syndrome."  I just kind of sat there in a daze and listened to all the doctor had to say about it.  I stayed calm and tried to ask intelligent questions....tried to act okay with it...tried to act like my world wasn't crashing down around me.

When the doctor left, I stared at my sweet baby girl, held her little hands, rubbed her round little head full of strawberry blond hair, kissed her round cheeks and then it was time for me to share the news with her daddy.  I called and shared the news with Curtis.  I tried to remember everything the doctor had said.  We were both kind of quiet as the news sank in.  "What does this mean?"  "What does the future hold for her?"  "How are we going to do this?"  We had a lot of questions.

When I hung up the phone I completely broke down.  I burst into tears and cried and cried.  I didn't want it all to be real.  I tried to imagine that the whole day was all just a dream.  That she didn't really have Prader Willi Syndrome.  That the doctor never said those words.

After learning of the diagnosis, I had to wait three days to see Curtis.  Those few days were some of the toughest days of my life.  I probably shed a million tears those few days.  When I held Clover, my eyes would fill up with tears.  When a nurse gave me a hug, I would break down.  If someone so much as looked at me, I would lose it.  My heart was broken into a billion little pieces and I didn't know what to do.

It was never the "why me" that I felt.  It was the "why her?"  She's so wonderful and so innocent and so pure....why does she have to go through this?   

My heart is still broken, and I still have my moments of weakness.  But I have hope.  I hope and pray for a cure one day.  I hope and pray that Clover won't have to feel hungry for the rest of her life.  I hope and pray that she will be happy and have a wonderful life.  She has already brought more joy into my life than I ever thought possible.

I know that we were meant to have Clover.  It seems like she has been ours forever....even though it's just been a few months.  It seems like a part of her has always been with us.  She was meant for us and she was meant to have a little brother.  As much as I wish that Prader Willi Syndrome didn't exist, I have to trust that God has a plan for us and that life for our little family is happening exactly as it should.

one and three

I thought it was probably about time to update the good ol' blog.  It seems as though these days all I do is feed and snuggle babies....it's awesome!

Henry is ONE month old today.  Can you believe that?!?  He was in the NICU for his first 2 weeks and he's been home with us now for the last 2 1/2 weeks.  He is a sweet, handsome little guy.  His due date was actually yesterday.  I can't imagine him not being with us for this past month.  I am so glad he is part of our family.  I am so in love with him.

Clover will be THREE months old tomorrow.  She is as cute as ever!!  She smiles all the time and has the best little personality.  She still has her feeding tube and we use that for most of her feedings.  She will be starting physical, occupational and speech/language therapy in the next couple of weeks.  She is getting stronger though and continues to impress us everyday.  She has brought so much joy into our home and we can't get enough of her!

These two cuties have completely taken over our hearts.  It's hard to imagine what life was like before they arrived.  We are hardly getting any sleep and I swear all we do is feed babies and change diapers, but as exhausting as it all is, it is doubly rewarding.  Our lives are fuller and our hearts are overflowing with love.  Being a mom is truly the best job on earth!!

More photos and updates coming soon....I promise!

ONE MONTH!!

Holy cow, where has the time gone?  Our little Clover is ONE MONTH old today.  How did that even happen?  Is this what it's going to be like the rest of my life??  I'm going to blink again and another month will have passed...and then another?!?  I'm doing my best to enjoy every little moment, but time is still going by too fast.

Clover is doing well these days.  She is still on oxygen and still being fed through her feeding tube, but she is happy and getting chubby and is still as cute as can be.  We will most likely be here in the NICU for another 4 weeks....and even then, it is looking like we would head home with her still on her feeding tube and low-flow oxygen.  Her low tone really makes it difficult for her to breath and eat, so even those little things that seem so simple and natural for other babies to do takes extra effort and concentration on her part....which is very tiring for her.  Her endurance is slowly building, but it just takes a lot of time and patience.  

She is truly the light of our lives and we are loving every second with her.

Happy ONE MONTH Birthday, sweetie pie!!

    

updates on us...

Clover:

It is hard to believe that our little sweetie is nearly 3 weeks old (in just 2 days).  She is already growing up too fast!

We are still in the NICU in Billings.  I don't know exactly how much longer we will be here, but I'm guessing at least a couple/few more weeks.  Our little Clover has made some good progress these past few days.  She is eating a little better with her bottle, however, she still receives most of her food through a tube.  The poor thing just likes to sleep more than she likes to suck from a bottle.  She is still on oxygen and if she doesn't start improving with her breathing this week, we will probably visit with a pulmonary (lung) doctor soon.

Last week was a little rough.  Clover had a whole slew of tests done including an echo cardiogram and MRI.  She also had lots of blood work done....which completely broke my heart.  Watching my little sweetie get poked over and over with a needle was agonizing.  I couldn't help but break down a little at that point.  Her heart and brain look great and all of her blood tests came back normal, so that was all wonderful news!

She has what the doctors call "low tone," meaning she is more "floppy" than normal.  We will visit with a genetics doctor to see if he has any ideas as to the cause of her low tone since all of her other tests have come back normal.  She is getting stronger though and is bringing her little hands up to her mouth and stretching them above head.  She also picks up her feet and legs and holds them in the air.  I know it sounds like what any baby would do, but for a long time she was pretty limp and her arms and legs would just sort of fall to her side.  She no longer just sleeps through getting her temperature taken and her diaper changed, but puts up a fight and wiggles around and fusses a bit....which has been a very welcomed event.

She smiles a lot and is the absolute best snuggler in the whole world.  My favorite thing to do is cuddle and snuggle with her while she eats.  She truly melts my heart every single second.  I can't help but just stare at her in awe and amazement at how perfect and beautiful and wonderful she is.  I am so incredibly thankful to have her in our lives.

 

Millie:

No, we have not forgotten about our sweet Millie.  She has been spending the past few weeks with a wonderful family back in Thermop.  She is having the time of her life there and I'm sure has no desire to come back to our boring old house.  She has a huge yard to run around in, other dogs to play with, chickens to chase and a horse to hang out with.  She also has 2 little kids to play with which she is thoroughly enjoying.  Curtis went to visit her while he was in Thermop for work and he said Millie didn't even really care that he was there.  She was too busy running around the yard and having fun with the other animals.  It has been so nice to not have to worry about her and to know she is being well taken care of and having such a good time.

Me and the Hubs:
We are holding up quite well.  Curtis usually has to work during the week, but is able to spend the weekends in Billings with Clover and me.  We sure miss him while he's gone and he definitely hates being away from our sweetie.  I am now 30 weeks into my pregnancy which seems absolutely crazy.  I am feeling pretty good except for my ribs....which I swear the baby has broken at least one of them.  I feel him move around all the time and he is able to throw some pretty impressive punches.  He loves his sister and squirms all around whenever I hold her.

It is weird to think that when we left our home nearly 3 weeks ago, it was summer.  Now there is a chill in the air and fall is here.  Today marks day 20 since I have been away from home.  We are definitely looking forward to being back home all together as a family soon.  Aww, family....I love love love my little family.

 

new arrival

Our little Clover Jane made her grand appearance early.  The docs originally thought that she was about 2.5 weeks early, however, she is teeny tiny and they are now thinking she wasn't as far along as suspected and is closer to 6 weeks early.  She is the most beautiful, precious, wonderful thing in the whole world.  We love her to pieces.  We were able to spend quite a bit of time in the hospital with her birth parents and their families which was pretty special.  Adoption is truly the most amazing, beautiful, selfless thing and I will forever be grateful to Clover's birth parents for giving us this little miracle.

Clover has been doing pretty darn good considering how early she is.  Her oxygen levels are pretty stable, but her respiratory rate is fast and she is just too tired to eat.  She ended up being flown to Billings, MT which is where we are now.  We will probably be here at least a couple of weeks.  The nurses and doctors are taking such good care of her and hopefully we will all be on our way home before too long.

And now for the best part, pictures of our sweetie pie!!

@ the birthing hospital....

[very soon after she was born]

[she is so, so tiny!]

[with her papa]

[trying to open her eyes]

[the cutest angry face I've ever seen]

Flying to Billings....

[Curtis flew with Clover to Billings and I drove and met them up there.
He got sick on the flight, but our little peanut just slept right through the bumpy ride.]

@ the NICU....

[basking under the heat lamp]

[eating from her tube]

First Family Photo....

We are so in love with this little girl.  There are simply no words to describe the love in our hearts.  Clover Jane is the best thing to have ever happened to us and I could not be more grateful to have her in our lives.   

  

another self portrait-----> 6 months

I have made it past the nausea stage and have entered right into the heartburn stage....which by the way, I will take over nausea any day.  I am at the point where I am really enjoying being pregnant.  There is nothing better than feeling that little guy move around inside me.  I am so thankful everyday that I get to experience this.  

While I am not due for another 3 months, we only have 3 short weeks until our birthmom is due.  Everyday I get more giddy and filled with more excitement and love for this little baby and can't wait for him/her to come into our lives.  I seriously feel like the luckiest girl on the planet.  

21.5

I've made it past the half way mark!! 

To celebrate I'm being super nice by posting a picture of my growing belly.  And my super short haircut....seriously I asked for a trim and came out with a buzz.  I think the more my hairdresser talked, the more she cut.  And she just kept talking and cutting and talking and cutting.  And talking.  And cutting.  I let myself cry for a good 30 seconds and then slapped myself on the cheek, looked in the mirror and told myself to "snap out of it and rock this new haircut like nobody's business!"  Besides, there was absolutely nothing else I could do about it.  

Anyway, enough about the boy hair, lets get back to that belly.  I can't believe there is a little baby in there.  It's still just so crazy and so surreal.  I did feel the little guy move for the first time and it was completely awesome!  Curtis was able to get a feelsky too.  It really is the most amazing thing ever!              

10 things...

1. 4-H Camp.  The weather was great, the kids were fun and the bears stayed far away.  So, in my book 4-H camp was a great success this year.

2. Growing a garden.  We're keeping our fingers crossed that our 2 tomato plants and 1 pepper plant survive.

3. Puppy Hangout/Sleepover.  That's what we tell Millie, but really, we just boarded her at a kennel for a couple of days.  We always think it's a good idea, but the second we drop her off and drive away, we get all sappy and miss her too much.

4.  Angel Food Cake Explosion.  Who knew that my pan (that I just bought because I thought it was cute...and because it was yellow) is too small for a standard box mix of angel food cake?  My house filled with smoke and it still smells like burnt cake batter.

5. Working in the yard and sharing water from the hose.  These two are best buds.  It's pretty darn cute.

6.  I finally got around to making our year's supply of homemade Strawberry Jam.  And by homemade, I mean good ol' pectin.  Easy and fool-proof....just what I need!

7. Laying around trying to stay cool in this hot, hot weather.  There has been a lot of this going on.

8. Family walks.  We try to take Millie on a walk every night.  It's the only way to settle her down.  Plus, it's just nice to get out of the house....and it's fun to watch Millie drag giant branches down the street.

9.  Successful batch of cookies.  This rarely happens, so when it does, I do a little happy dance and then post about it on the blog.

10. Growing a belly.  There is a cute little boy growing in that belly of mine.  We are pretty super duper excited about it!!  And in just 2 short months he will have a new little brother or sister!  Holy cow, we can't wait!!

Our weekend...

My blog posts are quite sporadic these days.  During the day I'm busy trying to keep up at work and my evenings are typically spent feeling sick and throwing up.  But don't you worry.....life is good.


This weekend we hosted our first ever Cheney garage sale.  We started at 7 feeling pumped up and ready to roll.  By 9 we put up signs that read "EVERYTHING FREE" and went inside.  Occasionally we would peek out the window to see who was going through our piles of free stuff.  Hopefully that is the last garage sale we ever host.  


This weekend was also Father's Day.  I'm thankful for the fathers in my life...my dearest grandpa who raised me and who I love and admire, my dad who it has been wonderful reconnecting with, and my father-in-law who has the kindest heart and who raised a pretty spectacular son.  And lastly, to my sweetheart who in just a few short months will become a daddy.  It makes me giddy just thinking about it.


Other recent happenings include Millie getting stung by a bee (or bees possibly).  I opened the door to let her inside and this was what I found...

It scared me to death, but after giving her a benadryl and lots of loves, she returned back to her chipper, cute self.  She was back to chasing the bees in no time.


Lastly, here's a little video that I love.  Enjoy and have a good week!



Tomorrow I'm off to 4-H camp!  Oh the joys.  Lets hope I survive...

Surprise...

first BBQ of the year

Today was a wonderful day. 

It was sunny,
we didn't have to go to work,
and we used the grill for the first time this year.

mmmmm, dinner fresh from the grill...nom, nom, nom.

There is just something about the sun shining down on me combined with that sweet BBQ smell and sizzling sounds from the grill that make me feel content with the world.

some thoughts here and there...

I decided it was time to dust off the ol' blog and get er' up and going again...

I rather enjoy blogging, so I'm not sure what all the slacking has been about.  Oh well, here we go...

The weather outside has been absolutely wonderful.  I've actually been able to step outside without my winter coat and snow boots on and it has been oh so lovely.  It makes me long for a nice warm spring.

Note to self:  Next time, don't get a puppy in the middle of winter.  It makes for a very difficult time in house training.  Millie hates the cold and would rather stay inside....as would any reasonable person/animal.  This warm weather has helped tremendously.

Last weekend we took Millie to play with some other animals at my friend's house...and by other animals I mean other puppies, big dogs, some goats, a couple cats and some chickens.  She liked everything but the chickens.

The other day I brought Millie to work with me to meet some cute 4-H kids.  One of the kids was trying to tell Millie to "sit" and "shake" and she accidentally told the puppy to "shit."  It was pretty funny and we all had a good laugh.  Why is it funny when kids swear?  Luckily Millie did not obey this time.

Yesterday was the day that I turned a year older.  I feel like life keeps passing me by at record speed.  It scares me.  I don't want to end up 40 with still no kids.

Is anyone else excited to see The Hunger Games?  I'msoexcitedIcan'twait!  I doubt it will come to Thermopolis (at least not opening night), so a road trip may be in order.

When reading through my past posts about Millie, it sorta sounds like having a puppy has been the easiest thing ever and that Millie is perfect.   No, no, no....tis not so.  I've failed to mention all the pee/poo incidents that have occurred inside, the biting, the stubbornness, the licks, the getting into everything, the selective hearing, and her dreadful gas that has almost caused me to pass out a couple of times.  She's cute and she cuddly, but oh she can be naughty too.  Don't let those puppy dog eyes fool ya.

I am thoroughly enjoying my 366 Photos Project.  It is one goal that I have actually followed through with.  If you want to check out my daily pics, you can find them HERE.

I am so happy it is Friday!  The warm weekend weather forecast has got me all sorts of excited!!

Happy Weekend Everyone!

I am happiest when I'm home!

I finally made it home from my week long training in Albuquerque.

I never want to do that again.

I think this was my hardest time being away from home.  I hated leaving Curtis and Millie behind for that long.  And the 2 days of driving to get there and the 2 days of driving to get home totally sent me over the edge.

New Mexico itself was fun (despite being homesick) and I did enjoy hanging out with some fun work folks, but boy does it feel good to be home!

When I arrived home, Curtis had flowers waiting for me and Millie had a new trick to show me.  She can now sit and shake on command.  It was a wonderful welcome home from both of them!

We're still working on getting down the stairs with Millie....but we'll get there eventually.  While she is still little, I will continue to enjoy scooping her up in my arms and carrying her down the stairs.


It is so wonderful being home with my sweetums...and with Millie (even though she doubled in size while I was gone)....and sleeping in my own bed last night was pretty darn peachy too. 

Awww, home....thanks for being awesome!

life lately...

A Birthday...

This last week Curtis turned the big 31.  I'm so incredibly happy he was born and that all the little things (and big things) in each of our lives happened that made it possible for us to meet and fall in love. 

We celebrated his birthday by eating a delicious sushi lunch and then playing with Millie in the park.  It was wonderful. 

 Happy birthday darling dear!!

Millie...

We have now had Millie in our home for 3 weeks.  I can't believe it has been that long...
For most of the time she is the sweetest thing ever and we can't get enough of her.  Although, she has her moments (about 1 hour every night) where she transforms into this ball of energy and leaves us wondering what we just got ourselves into.  She is growing like a weed but is still as adorable as ever!

Work...

At work I am teaching a group of kids in an after school program.  They are ages 5-8.  The other day I was teaching them about being kind and treating other people nicely.  Then the kids started talking about how they hate Tim Tebow (Denver Broncos QB).  I told the kids that it's not nice to talk like that and I made them each say one nice thing about Tim Tebow.  Once we done, one girl piped up and said, "my mom said that Tim Tebow is an idiot."  I tried...

Work Part 2...

Today I am headed out to New Mexico for a week long conference.  Oh how I am going to miss home.  My stomach hurts just thinking about it.  (Nate/Gretta...any tips on surviving Albuquerque for a week?)  I spent last night burning CD after CD to make the drive bearable.  If anything, at least I will have some sweet tunes.

Book Club...

This month I hosted book club and we read The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Arnim.  It was delightful.  If you haven't already read this book, do it now.  It's free on the Kindle and only $1 on the Nook.  It's a fun and easy read.  When you're done reading, let me know what you think....then lets head to Italy and enjoy some sunshine and wisteria.

Date Night...

Actually it was a date day.  We went to a matinee yesterday and saw We Bought a Zoo.  I loved every minute of it.  It was sad and happy and full of inspiration.  I already can't wait to see it again.

That's life lately in a nutshell.

Adios friends.   

Millie.

This last weekend we took the plunge and got ourselves a puppy....a Boxer puppy.

Millie is a character and we love her so much already. 

She is so adorable, so loving and so full of spunk.

Last night she bit Curtis' toe and he yelped out and told her "No!"  She came right up to him and licked the toe she bit and laid her head on his foot.  How can you get mad at that?!?

She pretty much has us wrapped around her little finger....er, paw.  

Curtis calls her "the most cuddly cute dog in the world."  And I would have to agree.

We love having her in our family!

She is totally spoiled!

 

We haven't even had her a week and she has already gotten so much bigger.  Part of me wants her to stay little forever...however I am excited for her to get bigger and learn new things and be able to do more things outside.  For now I have to follow her around the house everywhere she goes.  She loves finding new things to chew on as well as sneaking into rooms and going to the bathroom. 

She's a rascal, but we sure love her!