Silence is strange

We can't hear Reggie breathing anymore!!! Even though things are still swollen, he seems so much more comfortable already :o). He told me he could breathe much easier through his nose, so even he can tell a difference. He threw up a couple times yesterday, so we stopped the tylenol/codeine and are just alternating tylenol and motrin and it seems to be working great. I already had to tell him to slow down, so he's feeling really good. Today he gets to have ice cream and things that are a little more substantial, which means he'll probably have more energy and it will be even harder to keep him down. Last night he told Ryan he was done with t.v. Words I never thought I would ever hear him say! Thanks for all your prayers!!!!

God is good.....so far, so good!

Things went very well this morning. The Dr. said his tonsils/adenoids were very large, so it was good we did it. Right afterward, it was a bit rough because he felt like he couldn't breath or swallow and he said he was scared :o(. He was coughing a lot and did have some blood, but not too bad. Once his throat started to feel normal (it was numb), he did a lot better. We've been home about 45 minutes and he's had 2 otter pops and is working on a popsicle, while watching Toy Story II. Now, we just have to pray that the tylenol/codeine doesn't make him sick.

Good night sleep….perfect for our busy day!

Oh my goodness, both kids slept through the night 2 nights in a row and didn’t wake up until after 7 (only one day)!!! It has been months since we’ve enjoyed a full night of sleep (besides our trip). And then to have them wake up so late…I thought they were dead! They’re probably getting sick or maybe we’re turning a corner??? Whatever the case, we’ll take it :o).
Reggie had his pre-op appt. yesterday morning and we learned all about what to expect on Friday. The bad part was that they had to do a blood draw. He was crying and nervous from the time I told him it was going to happen. When the time finally came, he was fighting us with all his strength and completely hysterical. After 2 trips to the bathroom and 20 minutes of heavy persuasion, we got it done and the actual procedure was much easier than the wait to get it done. From there, we had to stop at the dollar store to get him a toy.
Then, we went right to Reggie’s school. It was his last day yesterday and they did a little singing program and we had a nice lunch. It has been such a big year for him at school. He has gotten so much more confident and even started to raise his hand to participate during circle time. He absolutely loves school and we can only hope that continues indefinitely. We got a nice book of his artwork, which he has already taken a few things out of and hung up on the walls in his room. It couldn’t have been a better year for him!!!!

From there, we went home, had a little quiet time and then went to Ainsley’s last day of school. She also has come a long way this year. She never moved during circle time, didn’t sing any songs or get up to dance, never even cracked a smile. Now, she’s a maniac. She knocked someone over a couple weeks ago as she was jumping and flailing to the music! She has really enjoyed all the artwork (and Reggie too) and has made a friend. Next year will be really fun for her…she’s already talking about going to Reggie’s school :o).

Its days like these when I’m reminded that life is going fast and I have to enjoy each day, tantrums and all. We are so lucky to have such good kids, who know right from wrong and choose right most of the time. Just today, Ainsley was freaking out, wanting me to get her something and I told her that she needed to get it herself. She cried and cried and then her big brother showed up with what she wanted. How sweet he is :o). Ainsley reciprocates, but not as often and usually she is the one who made him upset, but we’ll get there. She is sweet in her own way, helping clean up or giving me big hugs and kisses :o).
Reggie’s surgery is tomorrow, so please pray for him! I'll try to give an update sometime tomorrow.

Grandma Pam’s visit

We had a very nice, relaxing time with Grandma Pam! She played with the kids and got to learn how to play Mario Kart on the Wii. Reggie has gotten quite good and didn’t hold back. By the end, she was able to beat Ainsley :o). We also biked to school and that was a fun adventure for Aunt Pam (it had been several years!!!)-I only wish I had my camera. She was a bit wobbly at first, but what they say about riding a bike is true, it comes back fast. The kiddos were asking her to stay, so it is good we’ll be heading back to Washington soon!

Video of Reggie/Grandma Pam playing Wii (click http://arrtwade.blogspot.com/ if you get this via e-mail).

Grandma Peggy’s visit!

We headed off to the airport bright and early on Friday morning and the stars were aligned…..no traffic at 8 in the morning??? I think lots of people were taking 4 day weekends :o). We hung out most of Friday. Grandma read and read and read! We did go to our favorite place to eat Friday night, Sweet Tomatoes. It is an all you can eat soup and salad restaurant and we all left nice and full.
Sat. we went to Six Flags and froze! It was windy and chilly. We were somewhat prepared, but left a little early because it was freezing :o(. It was a bit crazy because of the 3-day weekend, so we didn’t get exploring until 4 o’clock and most of the animal shows were over. The sea lion show was at 5, so we decided to check it out and it was so much fun. Everyone loved it. Then, we went on a few rides (Reggie's first time on Harold the Helicopter and he loved it! He's been too nervous in the past) and saw the parade with batman and his batmobile.

Reggie has been wanting a stuffed snake for a couple years and Grandma did what Grandma’s do and let him get one :o). He had to do the strong man hit and he almost set the bell off, but not quite. He was guaranteed a prize, so he got his snake and one for Ainsley too.

Sunday was pretty mellow, church and just hanging out. Ryan and I went golfing and then to a movie. We saw Angels and Demons and it was really good. It is always nice when just the two of us can hang out. Reggie and Ainsley were having lots of fun, watching cartoons and bowling on the WII (and I think having a little ice cream treat!).
Ryan took Peggy to the airport early this morning and Reggie and I decided to go through his toys and donate some and he’s going to sell some on Craigslist to buy new toys. We’ll see how that goes! He is REALLY into crafts and I thought it would be nice to move the kid table and some art supplies into his room, so he can do something he really likes during quiet time (which I’ve extended to 1 ½ hours). Last week he made a book about Buzz and Zurg :o). It will be fun to see what creations he comes up with.
Tonight, Grandma Pam is coming for dinner and she’ll stay until tomorrow :o).

http://arrtwade.blogspot.com/

We really needed to mop the floor…..

It has been a long while since we mopped the floor. One of those things that we just don’t enjoy doing. I’ve spot cleaned, so it isn’t super disgusting, but Reggie gave us a huge nudge tonight. Ryan and I were talking in the living room and I saw him streak by, holding himself. Next thing we new, he was peeing all over the kitchen floor. It is nice and clean now :o).

Hot Weekend

Just a cute picture of Ainsley and Reggie:

It was in the high 90’s this weekend and way too hot…too hot to be working on building a sandbox. I had the bright idea that the kids needed a new sandbox because the one they use is so small and it seems to be a kid magnet. At playgroup, there will be 4 kids in our tiny frog sandbox. Ainsley and Reggie often play in it by themselves, so I thought it would be worthy investment. I looked on craigslist for awhile, but didn’t find what I was looking for, so I decided we could easily make one for a fraction of the cost. So, we did and it turned out great!! But, trying to do that on a hot weekend, while entertaining the kids, made it a really long project. If we’d had a solid block of time, we probably could have finished it in a few hours, but instead it just drug on. The kids love it and have really enjoyed it. It will be even more fun when our ship wheels arrive from Ebay. Thank goodness for the internet!!!

Here's some pics of our playgroup at the park and on our train ride. Ainsley has a thing for Kaylee and follows her everywhere :o).

For those getting automatic updates, here's the blog link to see pic's: http://arrtwade.blogspot.com/

Happy Mother's Day!

What a wonderful special day :o). Ryan prepared a nice breakfast for me and Reggie brought me my gift in bed. All my favorite treats and a temporal thermometer that I’ve been wanting forever! It will be nice when the kids are a little older and can actually be more involved. Ryan is pretty tired, trying to keep the house in order and do a little extra :o). It has been a nice restful day for me. I went to the gym and then laid outside in the sun for a few minutes before my lovely dinner!

Babysitter

We found a great babysitter today and we are super excited!!! Ryan and I were invited to participate in a golf tournament and we decided to go for it. The other family dropped their kids off at our house, so the babysitter, Alyssa, had all four of them and it went great :o). It was a little rough waking up at 5:45 and then having to wake up the kids at 6:30 before we left!
Golfing was great, other than our 7 o’clock tee time. It was a best ball tournament, so it went quick and we played with a really good couple and it was fun getting to know them better. Shawn was originally from Snohomish, so it was good to talk to another northwesterner! I was totally bummed that I forgot my camera because we saw all kinds of wildlife on the course, a bullfrog eating a crawfish, a fox hunting and eating mice? (it was fun to watch him hop and pounce) and a coyote wandering the course. Oh and a groundhog popping in and out of a hole. Who needs the zoo?!!!

10 year Anniversary!!!

Crazy to think we’ve already been married 10 years :o). Ryan took the day off and we went to the pool and had a great time. Ainsley is afraid of the slide this year and said she wanted to do it, but she couldn’t get up the nerve. She’s already talking about doing it next time, but I’m not so sure. That night, we went to movie night at our church and had some gummy worms, popcorn and watched a Bug’s Life. We met up with Sarah, Michael, Sam and Cooper and Ainsley was shooshing them during most of the movie!
I have to say I might be married to the best guy out there :o). I’ve been wanting to print our blog and put it in a binder to have as a family diary and that was my anniversary gift! Pretty thoughtful.
We had a little reflection time on our trip a few weeks ago and we remembered what life was like before kids. Our lives have changed a lot, but we’ve only gotten closer and we can still talk for hours, just like we used to :o). We started dating 17 ½ years ago…is that crazy or what!!!
Just a few reasons I love Ryan:
His big bear hugs
His happy smile when he comes home
His giving heart
His willingness to listen and change
His nighttime wake-ups (can’t believe the kids are still waking up!)
His affirming words
His positive outlook
His love for his children and me

Car accident

Well, I was in my first at fault accident :o(. I was taking Reggie to a birthday party at the bowling alley and a car nicely left room for me to take a left hand turn and was waving me on, so I went. The problem was someone was coming in the other lane! I thought the impact would have been much worse, but it wasn’t too bad, no airbags or anything. His car had minimal damage, but Ryan’s was not drivable. Yes, I was driving his work car, which worked out to be a really good thing. It was all taken care of in about an hour and he had a rental the next day. What a hassle, but at least we were all o.k.

Fun with the Rinehardt's!

My sister and her family came for a visit a couple weeks ago and we had a wonderful time. They drove late into the night on Thursday and arrived around midnight, so we took it easy the next day and let the cousins hang out and let Maggie rest. We did make it to the park, which just keeps getting more fun. Amazing what a few months can do for their climbing and maneuvering ability!

Sat. morning the girls went to gymnastics and the boys went for coffee (and donuts). Ainsley was so excited and wouldn't stop grabbing Maggie's hand. It was really cute, but I think Maggie was ready to have her hand back! That afternoon, we were off to Six Flags, until someone forgot their eye drops and we had to turn around (oops, my bad). By that time, it was too late to go :o(. Reggie was pretty upset about the change in plans, so we decided to go to the Jungle instead because it was a lot closer and there was a Sweet Tomatoes (all you can eat soup/salad bar) a couple miles away. We plan many of our outings around food...do you think we like to eat!!! The Jungle was just that, a maze of tunnels, slide and climbers. It was like the biggest McDonald's playland times 100! We couldn't keep track of the kids. Thank goodness for Reggie. He made sure everyone stayed together and helped them through obstacles they couldn't quite do. He is such a good boy :o)!

The next day we went to church in the morning and Six Flags in the afternoon. We love that place! Every time we go, we explore something new. We went to the elephant show and it was amazing. We sat just a couple feet from the elephant and got to touch it at the end. It felt very strange, kinda like a thick callus. They are sure amazing animals. We also finally made it to the orca whale show. It was neat, but I think I like the dolphins better. The kids were starting to fade, so we grabbed some dinner and then rode on some rides. The kids were in awe of the huge roller coasters. Maggie was ready to go, but mine, not so much. Next time Liha and Wade come, I think we'll get a babysitter and enjoy Six Flags from an adult perspective :o). We closed the place down and were hoping the kids would fall asleep in the car, but they had other ideas. We brought some banana muffins and they wanted to eat. Uncle Wade cut them off by telling them they were all gone and leave it to Ainsley to ask if she could, "see". As he was showing them the empty part of the bag, Reggie was yelling, there not gone. Sometimes, you just can't win! They were sleep deprived the entire visit, but managed to be in fairly good spirits.

Monday morning, Liha and Wade packed up and went to Napa for a night. It was good because I didn't take them anywhere and we just hung out. The cousins have so much fun together! We had a couple more activites planned, but Ainsley came down with a fever and nasty cold. She wasn't a happy camper and we were kinda wondering if she had Swine flu because she had all the symptoms. Then I got it, Maggie got it and now Ryan has it. This has been a rough few months for us and I keep waiting until the end of cold season!!!

Enjoying the bounce house:

Watching a movie on Uncle Wade's Ipod:

The visit went fast and we were sad to see them go. But, Ryan's mom is coming in 2 weeks, so we have something to look forward to.

Visitors in, visitors out

My parents were here 2 weeks ago and 4 days after they left, the Rinehardt family came for a week! It has been busy around here and I'm just now getting organized.

We had a very nice visit with my parents. We didn't do a whole lot because my dad's back is all out of whack and it looks like surgery might be his next option. It was nice to just hang out and visit. They were at it again in the yard (dad's bad back an all), weeding, clipping, raking....CRAZY!! The sad thing is that it has been so dry here, so we turned on the watering system and all the weeds are already growing back. The yard it extremely overwhelming and it is pretty small. I don't get it. Anyway, we're going to have to spray or put some mulch down to try to control all the weeds because I just can't keep up, nor do I want to! My parents were a little disappointed that we didn't have lounge chairs for sunning, so thanks to them, I went out and bought some! Even more of a reason to figure out a weed solution :o).

We made it to the park a couple times during their visit and mom and dad took them to the jelly belly factory. Turns out that wasn't such a good idea because it was spring break. Reggie and Ainsley were very patient waiting in line for an hour, but my dad was worse than a child!

We also had a fun bike ride on the trail with my dad (biking is about the only thing that doesn't hurt his back). It actually was a very stressful ride because I forgot Ainsley binkey and she screamed the entire time. It was a tough lesson, but 2 days later I forgot her binkey in the car and she handled it fine.

Easter fun....they patiently waited 3 days for these to "hatch"
Easter party at Reggie's school

Loving grandpa's shoes

Dad did his usual exploring and on an outing to get propane for the BBQ, he and Ryan came across the donut wheel. Let's just say we had our fair share of donuts while they were here. Mom made us a great early anniversary dinner and cake, which everyone thoroughly enjoyed! We had lots of great food, including fresh oranges off of our neighbors tree :o). Nothing better than a fresh orange. Dad was up on the ladder trying to reach over the fence to grab a few....no wonder he has back issues!!! We all had a lot of fun, ate great food and visited a lot. The kids are already talking about going to the lake this summer :o).

Think Reggie is excited for cake???