JD: Celiac Disease

I'll have an update on this one soon!  In the meantime, JD does in fact have celiac disease, and I am in the process of finishing a lot of research--both on the internet, and in grocery stores--so we can transition him over to a gluten-free diet.  Definitely, lots of changes to be made!  I'll put in his endoscopy pics below for now.

He loved his wristbands.

 He drew a great picture while waiting.

 Just coming out of the procedure and before he woke up.  He got some sleeping medicine, but pretty much nothing else-the anesthesiologist gave him a bit of pain med with anti-nausea meds when he was ready to come out of surgery.

 Close up of the mask, which he brought home.  The smart anesthesiologist smeared it with bubble gum lipsmacker so he couldn't smell the medicine.

 Just woke up-and he was super groggy. I tried to get him to smile, he was having none of that!  Thankfully he didn't try ripping his IV out.

 Waking up a bit more and acquiesced with a smile.  He kept saying, "I fell asleep.  Did I have my surgery?  I did?  Wow. I didn't feel a thing."  He also kept shaking his head and rubbing his forehead down to his chin with his hand....it was obvious he was still so tired.

 The whole bed.

 And the thing that actually got him to be happy about his situation.  :) 

 Taking a wheelchair ride out of the house.  He charmed upwards of 40 stickers from his nurse.  That's pretty impressive.

I totally see a mix of Jordan, Jacob, Me, and Stephen in this picture. Definitely an Erickson at heart.   :)

Sara and the Potty

 Sara entered the realm of potty training this week!  I have been meaning to get her on that potty for the last few months, but the Rachel way of potty training is all or nothing--which means, I  have to be prepared to go all or nothing!  Sara spent all last week telling me when she needed to poop and then proceeded to do it on the potty.  Thus, I knew it was time to cut the cord and lose the diapers.  I wanted to get this done before school started and this was the only week to do it given how non-busy we are for some reason.

So on Monday, I put the underwear on.  I set the timer at 20-minute intervals.  I never looked back, and thankfully Sara never did either.  Yea!  Sara had one time that first day where she came to tell me she was wet, but then proceeded to pee in the potty-so I don't even think I count that as an accident.  To date, she has yet to have a full-blown accident.  We have been on 1 outing that involved us leaving the house for 2 hours, and we were accident-free.  We haven't tackled naps or bedtime yet, but I will probably do so as soon as school starts and my schedule changes. 

All in all, I'd count Sara as being potty trained at this point.  Finally!  Only 1 kiddo in diapers! If you had asked me 6 months ago, I would have told you Sara was going to be terrible in the potty training department. She is so much more independent and strong-willed than my other kids.  Plainly spoken-she throws fits.  However, she hasn't thrown one fit about the potty thus far. She thinks it is cool to do "pee bubbles".  I'll take it and run with it as fast as possible!

A Holy Story

Okay, I admit I stole that pun (which is indeed a pun) from the Weasley twins.

Karianna got her ears pierced!



In our family, we give the girls the option to get their ears pierced when they are 8 years old.  Since that is baptism age for us, we feel that is a good opportunity to introduce something that involves a higher degree of responsibility-and something that is pretty special.  Karianna has wanted her ears pierced for a long time, so I knew she would be an easy sell!  She asked me just a few days ago if she could wear my earrings as soon as she got her ears done.  She also asked me "why in the world" we never allowed her to wear clip-ons because they would have "looked so amazingly special and unique".  Ah, such a girl.  :) 

Even though it will be a month and a half before Karianna turns 8, I thought it would be nice to take care of her ears before school starts, just in case they get infected.  I also thought it would be nice to have her ears done before her baptism pictures in August.  Thus, we picked today to give Nana this very early birthday present. 

 Karianna only seemed slightly nervous sitting in the chair at Claire's.  She picked out a pair of small diamond earrings (of course they are real!!!!) and we talked her through ear care once she got home.  Karianna is such a responsible girl-she is very good at taking care of her things, and I have no concerns when it comes to earrings. 

With very little ado, the store associate marked Karianna's lobes, checked with me to make sure they were even, and one by one punched holes in Karianna's ears. She was the only person there so she had to do it one by one. I was worried Karianna would flinch on the second ear, but she held perfectly still.  She commented that it hurt more than she thought it would, but she said it was totally worth it. 

 A bit better view of her freshly pierced ears-her lobes got pretty red, but the coloring returned to normal within a few hours.

 See, no redness left!

So a fun mother-daughter date for Karianna and me!  Though the ear piercing took center stage, I very much enjoyed hanging out with the girlie-our conversations, more than anything.  I love you Karianna!

Quick Surgery Update

First things first:  No, James is not prepping for heart surgery now.  :)  Something a bit different, which I'll get to in a minute.  First, a quick update on James' heart.

James went to his routine cardiology appointment a few weeks ago. The appointment went really well overall.  We got my favorite echo tech, who approves of me nursing James during the echo so we can get good pictures without frustrating anyone.  We didn't have to do an EKG this time, which was also nice!  Dr. Garn told us James' blood pressures are all matching well, his pulses are right on target, and his echo pictures/numbers pretty much look the same.  His aortic gradient was at 46 last time and is at 45 this time (lower numbers are better). The fact that this has stayed pretty much the same for the last 2-3 visits is fantastic; it means his body is acclimating well to his malformed aortic valve.  There is still some degree of aortic stenosis in his arch, and we will continue to watch that-right now it is not causing any blockages or high blood pressures, thus we are not immediately concerned.  That silly valve is obviously still very thick and very malformed-we just don't need to operate yet.  Dr. Garn gave us the go-ahead to come back in 3 months instead of 2-definitely a good sign that he approved spacing our appointments even further apart.  We left happy that we wouldn't need to return until October. 

With a good cardiology appointment under our belt, we head to the next doctor: a pediatric surgeon, who will be doing James' circumcision. Nope, he never got that done, and we meant to do it.  I could not reconcile the idea of putting James through further procedures or pain after all he dealt with as a baby.  I also could not swallow doing a procedure until I knew his heart was in a good place.  After very consistent cardiology appointments, and with this most recent bill of (overall) health, we opted to move forward with the circ. 

We just got word yesterday that his surgery is scheduled for September 4th.  It will be done at PCH and he will have a cardiac anesthesiologist taking care of him and monitoring him throughout.  Though we will plan to do the procedure outpatient, we may have James stay overnight just to monitor his heart coming off the anesthesia.  That will be a call they will make afterward, and if it does happen, James would be on the cardiac ICU floor like he was in the past. I love the nurses and doctors on that floor, and I am so glad we will have access to that resource if it is necessary. 

I am somewhat nervous about going back to PCH.  It brings back hard memories and emotions, though everything is going so well now.  I am sure James will be fine with such a routine procedure, and we feel at peace with our decision to move forward....still hard though given his past and current medical status.  I am grateful for a very proactive and informed surgeon and for the resources we have available to us.  This little boy...man, is he going to have stories to tell.  Hopefully not about circumcision--at least not at the dinner table or on a first date--but you get the point.

JD Lost a Tooth!

Look what's in my hand!

 JD lost a tooth!  JD was so excited after his tooth fell out while he was brushing his teeth.  The actual falling out was so low key-I'm surprised JD noticed.  He was very excited though, as was I-our kids are kind of late bloomers when it comes to anything dental, and Karianna didn't lose her first tooth until well into 2nd grade!  It was surprising to see this tooth pop out, especially since just a few days ago, it was still pretty tight in there. 

JD put his tooth under his pillow that night, but the tooth fairy wasn't able to come-she had a ton of houses to deliver to apparently and JD's tooth had fallen out pretty late....the same thing happened to me as a kid.  She promised to come the following night, and sure enough, she did!

Congratulations JD-your new smile looks fantastic!

I Lost My Job: A Note to Myself

It came out of nowhere.  I was anticipating going full-time with my online job.  I was loving working with my team of teachers. I was incorporating more teaching hours into my schedule and remembering why I started working for this company in the first place.  I was feeling fantastic about my position and my growth as an employee. 

Then I lost my job.

A 5-minute phone conference ended with a fanfare of shock and awe:  my position as a lead teacher was being eliminated.  The company was restructuring in a massive way and layoffs were happening left and right.  In a matter of minutes, I learned that I was part of that layoff.  I had two days to wrap things up, tie up loose ends-and then that work schedule, that income, those responsibilities would be taken from me. 

I was admittedly in shock during that phone call.  I had a zillion questions but couldn't formulate a single one amidst the mix of emotions I was feeling.  I had no idea this was even in the works.  I was never given the consideration of prior notice, not even the hint that a restructure was in the works. I have been with this company for 6 years, 4 of which also included a leadership position, the most recent 2 of which were spent as a lead teacher.  I assumed I was viewed with a level of respect that included prior notice.  I was unfortunately wrong.  Shock and awe.

Now, I should say that I didn't fully lose my job.  I was invited to remain with the company as an instructor.  I accepted through my dismay at the idea that my hours were being reduced drastically, and that my pay rate was dropping significantly.  Regardless of my feelings about how this was handled, I love working with these students and I believe in the program we run.  I am not willing to lose this connection to education, nor this association I have with students around the country.  Yes, I will continue to teach, and I am happy I was asked to do this.

However, I still find myself overwhelmed by this series of very unfortunate events.  Overwhelmed may be too kind of a word, honestly.  The repercussions of this incident, which I had zero control over, are huge for our family and for myself on a very personal level.  It would be easy for me to sink into those very pessimistic emotions.  So I am choosing to be positive as I move forward.

I see this as a blessing.  The loss of my main job has given me time.  Time to concentrate more on the kids and attend more to their growth and development.  We have spent more time together, read more books, explored new ideas, and baked more cookies.  We have cuddled more before naptime, belted out songs, and danced more haphazardously than ever.  We have discussed goals for our days, routines for our nights, and little places to improve in between.  This time has meant a lot to our family and has strengthened me in terms of filling my more abundantly free time with extremely important activities.

I am amazingly grateful for the time I can now dedicate to teaching. This is the core of why I became a teacher, and perhaps I forgot that a bit since I began taking on other roles.  I have worked with so many students since that disastrous phone conference, and I felt I have made an impact on every single one of them.  The kiddo who talks about Harry Potter every single session; the boy who needs football applications to help him focus on any lesson; the girl who just barely started to understand fractions because of our conversations; the adult who is struggling to earn her GED and was able to explain her own thought process to me in terms of real life.  These are the moments that remind me what I do makes a difference-and that is a nice thought that perhaps gets hidden in the bureaucracy of business.

I am hopeful for openings that will allow me to move up once again in this company.  I very strongly feel I have much to offer as I have in the past.  I also feel I have much to learn-and I will use this time to continue learning so I can contribute even more when I do add additional responsibilities.  I am confident that I am seen in this light, and I am likewise confident new opportunities will open themselves up when the time is right.  These changes are not the end of the world--they are the opportunities that challenge us to grow as individuals and to rise above the trials of life.  I am up for the challenge and have every intention of making the best of it.

***********************

I cannot claim to fully believe everything I just typed.  In reality:  these are my hopes.  This is the way I hope I can react in the upcoming weeks.  I have no desire to meander in the land of sadness.  I take great pride in my job, and it is difficult to find a resolution when there are no answers.  However, I want to make this an opportunity rather than a tragedy.  Has that happened yet?  I don't think so.  But I am hopeful that it can. I hope that I can come back to this note in a few weeks, months, days, hours-and see that I have improved for the better.  With the Lord's help, I know it can happen. 

Sorrow looks back.  Worry looks around.  Faith looks ahead.  I've been all three.  Time to focus on the latter.

Jamos and Sara

 Sara loves this little boy, and I love that about her.  She has gotten to be such a mother figure for James--it is endearing for me to see as the real mother of the home! 

Summer Stuff: Day Trip to Sahuarita

 We were able to go down to Sahuarita for a sleepover, as the kids called it.  We always love visiting the Hammerquists-we wish we could do it more often!  The kids had a blast hanging out with their cousins, and we really loved our visit.  I'll let the pictures speak for a little bit:

We were able to ride the train several times, which was super fun for the kids!  We were all still in our swimwear and anticipating a fantastic monsoon to hit any minute-which it did, and delivered the biggest booms of lightning/thunder I have heard in a long time!  We loved watching the monsoon clouds roll in-so much cooler than the ones we see in Mesa!

 We also played several rounds of mini golf.  It has been a long time since I've golfed and I'm proud to say both Jared and I birdied or parred most of those holes (except blasted hold #3, which we both tried multiple times to no avail!).  The kids did okay-they loved running around the greens trying to wack the balls like pros. Problem was, they just missed a lot of the time.  :)  They ran off and played at the neighboring park while the adults finished up.

 The park was really nice given the monsoon-y weather, and all the kids enjoyed it...and the dinosaurs...and the bugs.

 The best part besides hanging out with family was the splash park.  The play structure was super fun, even for me!  I never let myself get totally soaked by that dump bucket though. It fills up with a TON of water! Sara got soaked by it by complete accident...she was not happy.  :)  It was rather funny!  The slides, and the lap pool-all equally fun and with the cloudy sky, it was a perfect swim outing!

 LOVE this shot!!!!!!

 Sliding with cousins Amber and Chloe

We were able to go to church with the Hammerquists the next morning. During primary, JD started crying and his teacher had to bring him to me.  JD kept saying he missed his house and me, and he wanted to go home.  Sweet little guy!  I kept him with me, and he fell asleep on my lap during the 3rd hour.  That has not happened in a long time, and it was honestly very sweet to me that my little 6-year-old still finds that degree of comfort with me.  He had a similar experience in the middle of the night-I wonder what prompted that, but he was perfectly fine the next morning.  I was surprised how well all the cousins did overnight honestly-4 in each room can get tricky, but it worked okay.  Sara did have to come sleep with us at some point because I found she was running a fever-probably from being outside most of the day.  She was fine the next morning though and all was well.

Thanks to the Hammerquists for letting us come visit! We love you guys and look forward to seeing you soon!

Two Girls, One Room

It always takes a leap of faith to do it.  After all, two kids in one room can equal havoc. Regardless, we did it:

Sara and Karianna now share a room.  A nearly 8 year old with a 2 and a half year old....kind of scary!  I have been putting this off for a while because I knew it would be a huge job to clear out Karianna's room in order to make room for Sara.  However, I have hit my breaking point with James being in my bedroom.  I love having him close, and I have needed him that close after his tumultuous beginning.  However, I have gone 7 months with no more than 3, maybe 4 hours of sleep at a time, and it was starting to wear me down.  Even though James hasn't nursed at night for more than a month, he still tends to wake up and fuss, which means I need to also wake up to calm him down.  I was ready to be done with that, which meant moving James to his own room...which also meant Sara needed to move in with Karianna. 

So when I felt the slightest desire this week to start the move, I leaped into it.  I cleaned out the desk in Karianna's room, unplugged the various computer devices, and moved that honkin', heavy desk out of there on my own.  If I do say so myself, it took a lot of geometric brain power to figure out the angles I would need to get it through the doorways.  Plus it weighed a ton.  After moving the desk into Sara's old room, I went about setting up her bed frame, and moved the mattress pad over along with her bookcase and all her toys.  I moved James' bed in there as well as his little chest of drawers and all his baby accessories.  I cleared out Karianna's closet, packed up a ton of books to sell back, and with a final vacuum of the floor, I called the girls in to see the transformation--I felt like I was on extreme makeover.  :)  The girls loved it and acclimated right away.  James loves it too-he told me so himself and had zero issues falling asleep in his new room...on his own (at least initially).  Ah, I have a bedroom again. And a CARPET next to my bed-who knew??? 

I miss James, but it sure felt good turning on a baby monitor that night and falling asleep in an adult room.  James honestly didn't have a great night, but I didn't care so much--I know it will be a transition, and that's okay.  Sara didn't have that great of a night either.  She loved her bed-but she also loved Karianna's bed, all Karianna's toys, and all Karianna's books.  It was a night of "Sara, get back in your bed!  Stop touching my things!  It's not time for a pillow fight!  SARA!!!"  I think it was after midnight when the girls finally fell asleep, and it was just before 2 when James woke up and decided it was weird to be on his own.  We played the 5-minute game until 3 when he finally fell back to sleep on his own. 

It will take a good week, I am guessing for everyone to acclimate, but I am so excited!  This is a great change for the kids and I love that Karianna is so enthralled at being the big sister in the room.  James is growing up-my only kid to stay in mom and dad's room to 7 months.  Time goes by so fast!

Summer Stuff: Fiesta Mall

We hit the mall play area today to get out of the house and hang out with the cousins.  We enjoy this mall play area since it is a bigger space than the mall closer to us, and honestly, much more kid-friendly.  It is always interesting to see the games the kids come up with to play!  Sara got a little feistier than normal and scaled the wall of cushions to play on the train on the other side....otherwise, everyone did great!

It was James' first time at the play area when he was old enough to actually play a little bit-or at least enjoy watching the other kids play!

 I couldn't decide which shot of him I liked best with these little critters....

 But I know, hands down, that I love this shot of Karianna and James:

 All the kids did fantastic-what an enjoyable group I have!  Adventurous, but enjoyable! Not that either one of those is bad things!  :)

Rain, Rain, Go Away--NOT!

Part of summer fun in Arizona is enjoying the monsoons!  So when it started downpouring very suddenly one fine afternoon, we had to go out and enjoy it!  And when I say we, I mean WE!  I was just coming home from the gym and took the opportunity to let the rain soak me from head to toe.  It was amazingly refreshing, especially with the drop in temperature.  Of course, I knew this would come back to bite us:  messy pool, sticky humidity, and scattered leaves.  No matter-we live in Arizona.  When you get rain, you just enjoy it, plain and simple. 

The kids were no exception-they stood outside on the pool fence just watching the rain pour down for over an hour.  They like to get measuring ups and buckets to see how much rainwater they can gather. JD was the brave one to get soaked with me. The other two said it was cold.  COLD!  :)  And of course, James couldn't miss out on the fun.  I believe this is the first time we have had a true blue downpour with James cognizant enough to enjoy it.  Here's what he thought:

 I love monsoons in Arizona!  I love the flashes of lightning, the blasts of thunder, the curtains of rain, and the smell of resin in the air.  I love how it can be a blistering 110 degrees and then plummet to the 80s--dare I say the 70's?  It sure doesn't happen often, but we certainly plan to enjoy it while it is here!  We love monsoons!