Climbing Kelsey

Did I ever mention that Kelsey is a CLIMBER!! One day out of the blue she said "Look what I can do Mom!!" I couldn't believe it.

Adventures in Abilene

We are finally home now. Blake was discharged from the hospital on Friday morning. We were all VERY excited to go home!! Blake is doing well and getting used to his new "plumbing system". His spirits are high and he is doing amazingly well. Mylee was happy to see us, but it took Kelsey a while to warm up to us. She had had a big week.

This Super 8 Motel room was my home for 5 days thanks to the generosity of my in-laws. It was very nice to have a place to stay while I was in Abilene. The room was very comfortable and Lanaea slept all night every night that we stayed. They also had a continental breakfast that I enjoyed each morning.

Here's a small shot of Blake's hospital room. We had Lanaea's port-a-crib next to his bed. Lanaea just chilled in there for 4.5 days!! She was a trooper. Blake is enjoying a popcicle in his chair.

We just had one catastrophe. Lanaea was having plumbing problems too, only opposite to Blake. In an effort to help her, I gave her a 9 oz. bottle of apple juice. She LOVED it and chugged it down. I was surprised!! Well it worked as you can see below. Blake and I were laughing hysterically. In fact we were laughing so hard that I had to leave the room because the straining from the laughter was hurting Blake.

Lanaea was happier too!! Good thing I had packed extra clothes for her! Sad thing that I didn't pack any for me.

Kindergarten Day 3

Yesterday morning (Wednesday the 25th) Kelsey had decided she didn't want to go to kindergarten. According to my mother-in-law Joyce, her room looked suspicious in the morning like she had gotten up and played in the night. Needless to say she was very tired and grumpy the next morning. She said to Joyce, "I don't want to go to school today." Joyce had to bribe her with some marshmellows she would get packed in her lunch if she got up. This got her going. Then Kelsey insisted that her hair be left down with a headband which wasn't going to fly that day because she had PE. Again Joyce had to bribe her with something which got her to concede. The next battle was wearing her winter coat to school because it was a little chilly outside. Joyce let her wear it walking to school, but convinced her to leave it with her before she went inside to her class. I was told that Kelsey woke up happy to go to school today, but ohhh the days I have to look forward to!!

Update**When I got home on Friday I looked in her school folder and found out she had gotten a yellow check for her behavior that day--which is NOT good. Not as bad as a red, but it's the next one up from that!! Apparently Blake would push the limits at school he was young too!! Like father like daughter I guess. She definitely doesn't get this trait from me!! I couldn't get out of Kelsey what she had done. She kept saying, "Humm, I don't remember." I also forgot to mention that she refused to eat breakfast that day. Good thing they feed them free breakfast at school.

New Posts GALORE!!

Life at our home has been a little bit busy so blogging has taken a back seat for a while. But being that I use this blog as our family journal, it was important to me that I update everything. During Blake's hospital stay this time I got everything updated. I just need to add some pictures of Kelsey's first day of school which I'll do when I get back home. It's taken me hours and hours and 4 days so enjoy!! You'll have to click back quite a few pages to see all that I updated.

Blake's 3rd Surgery and Kindergarten

I thought I would just share with you my journal entry I wrote today to give you all an update on Blake's surgery and Kelsey's first day of Kindergarten:

Blake just had his 3rd and hopefully last surgery yesterday. Kelsey also started her first day of kindergarten. The day started off early for me at 5:30 A.M. I hurried to finish packing and clean our bathroom for Blake's mom who would be using it for the next couple of days while she stayed at our house to watch Kelsey and Mylee. I went and woke Kelsey up for school and quickly went to french braiding her hair and getting her ready for the day. She was SO excited!! It warmed my heart to see her so excited and I was glad that I was able to participate at least a little bit on her special day by doing her hair. On the way to Abilene I got a call from Blake's mom that all went well when she dropped her off at school. When Joyce dropped Kelsey off at her classroom, Kelsey's teacher Mrs. Spradley said, "Are you Mormon!?" To which my mother-in-law replied, "Yes". She then asked her to see if I knew a girl her daughter goes to school with--I do. Joyce was surprised at getting asked such an abrupt question of that nature. I have learned though that people here in West Texas are uninhibited when it comes to religion. They aren't afraid to let everyone know they are religious and to ask if others if they are as well--which is great!! It also makes it really nice for missionary work. I was relieved to hear that her morning started off well!

Twenty to thirty minutes after Blake was called back to get prepped for surgery we were informed that Dr. Kendrick got called into an emergency case so his surgery was going to be delayed. Blake's surgery was scheduled for 12 PM, but he didn't end up in the operating room until 4:15PM. Chuck, Lanaea and I hung out in the family room located on the floor all of Dr. Hendrick's patients go to. It was great! We had the room to ourselves for most of the day. I had brought along Lanaea's pack n' play so she could play and roll around and take naps in it. It worked out perfectly. I was even able to catch a few z's with her. I called Joyce around 3:15 to see how Kelsey's day went. She immediately handed the phone over to Kelsey. When I asked her how her first day of school went she said, "It was AWESOME!!" I couldn't wipe the proud smile off my face. She then told me that she had spilled milk on her pants. But it was okay, she said, because it just dried. She also told me she got to sit on the rug and sing really funny songs and listen to some stories her teacher read. She then told she got to color a ROCKET SHIP!! She thought that was really cool. She also drew 2 giraffes and taught a little girl sitting next to her to draw a giraffe on her paper too. Her day went on without a hitch!! Okay except for that evening when we was demonstrating to grandma how she prevents Mylee from flushing her panties down the toilet (yes it has happened and no we have not experienced any plumbing problems YET!). In her demonstration she jumped up on the toilet seat thinking the lid was down only to land right in the toilet getting all wet and scrapping her back on the way down. She cried and cried and she even called me to explain the incident, which I didn't understand until Blake's mom told me the whole story this morning. Joyce eventually had to bribe her with a go-gurt she was to get in her lunch the next day if she stopped crying. I'm a little concerned about how her school schedule will affect her with it being ALL day. I won't hesitate to pull her out half day or even all together to home school her if it comes to that. I think Kindergarten will be really good for her though and hopefully she will get used to the schedule. To be honest though, it has been really hard for me to send her away like that. I worry about the influences that will surround her and the things she will learn from the other kids that may not be acceptable. She's my sweet little girl and I felt like I sort of gave her away a little bit today. I was able to handle these emotions without any tears though, which is good for me.

At 4:15 I got a call informing me that they had just started Blake's surgery. I became a little anxious when I didn't receive a call an hour into his surgery. This surgery was supposed to be a "no-brainer" essentially and wasn't expected to be very long. Dr. Kendrick didn't call until 6:35 PM. He told me he had finished the procedure and everything was closed up now like what was planned, but it had taken longer then expected because Blake had quite a few adhesions (scar tissue) that he had to cut. So much in fact that he had to open his abdomen up again about 6 inches. This was disheartening and a little upsetting to hear. It would have only been an 2 inch horitzontal incision where his stoma had been, but Dr. Kendrick had to cut vertically an additional 6 inches to get to all the adhesions. All in all though, I was glad Blake was okay and that they were able to complete the procedure that was originally planned.

I didn't see Blake until that evening at 9 PM. Chuck and I went out to dinner then we checked into the hotel. At that point Lanaea was ready for bed. I got her dressed in her jammies and put her to bed. Before long she was off to sleep. Blake's dad came over to my room to sit with her so I could go over and visit Blake. When I arrived at his room he was sleeping, but his color looked good--he wasn't pale like he was after his last procedure. Eventually he realized I was there and we briefly visited. His pain was at a 10 and he was very uncomfortable. But after receiving some Toradol on top of the Dilaudum he was taking, he started to feel a little bit better. He was unaware that Dr. Kendrick had had to open him up. He was disappointed to hear that. I was surprised that no one had informed him. After helping him brush his teeth and getting him settled I kissed him goodnight and went back to the hotel where I found Lanaea still sleeping soundly.

This morning Blake looked good. The pain meds make him really sleepy and his eyes roll back and he dozes off quite often. It's funny sometimes because I think he is sleeping and I'll say something to Blake's dad and then he chirps in like he fully alert. He pain is much more manageable today and he even went for a walk with his dad around lunch time. His wounds seem to be oozing more then his last surgeries however, so hopefully that is not a reason for alarm. Lanaea at the moment is sleeping in her port-a-crib. The mantra "3rd time the charm" is ringing true for me. I have found ways to entertain Lanaea much better then our previous visits and I found a better place to park our car and get to his hospital room. We hung out in the family room instead of the cafeteria like his last surgeries this time and I'm learning to read Blake's cues of when and when not he wants and/or needs my help and/or attention. I hope to get my blog updated during our stay this time. We will see how successful I am in getting that done with Lanaea to keep busy and entertained.

Love, Cami

Photo Shoot

On July 28, 2010, I took the girls to Maxey Park to take their pictures. I changed these to black and white and plan to hang them with black ribbon in white frames in their pink and white room. I need to get a better picture of Lanaea and a picture with all of them together, but overall I am really happy with them.

Lanaea is Sitting Up AND Crawling

At 7 months Lanaea mastered both sitting up by herself and army crawling. Before she would just roll every where, but now she army crawls everywhere. She's become quite good at it. She'll get on her knees and rock back and forth and try to make a lunge forward but will just fall on her chest. She hasn't quite figured out that you have to move your hands and feet at the same time.

Sitting up playing with her toys

Lanaea with her sisters

Aren't I big Mom!!

Bandaid Girl

I don't know what it is about bandaids and kids, but they LOVE them.

Getting swarmed by mosquitoes + leaving the bandaids down = Mylee putting them over all of her bug bites including the one on her chin.

Needless to say, we are out of Hello Kitty bandaids, but how could I get mad at a face like that!?

Kelsey Plays T-ball

This summer I signed Kelsey up for t-ball to get her some exposure to sports. Needless to say, it wasn't a huge success. She got bored and would just stand in the field and say she was hot. It wasn't until I cheered her on that she would run and try to get into it. She would ask me, "Mom when can I take dance again?" Okay, so t-ball right now is not her thing. I think it was good exposure though and it was something structured for her to do everything Thursday this summer.

Do, ta, do

Look at that ball go! Good hit Kelsey!


Kelsey and her team doing a cheer.

Look at her field that ball!

Our Little Gymnast AND Our Garden

Like mother like daughter, Kelsey is my little gymnast! She loves going in the backyard practicing her handstands, cartwheels, headstands, and even makes up her own little moves like in the picture below. She'll get on her tummy and rock back and forth. Mylee will often try to copy Kelsey. Mostly she ends up doing a forward somersault then finishes with a TA-DA!!

Here is Kelsey goes doing a cartwheel

This spring we planted a garden in what used to be our sandbox. After too many hair fulls of sand and cleaning sand out of my house, it went bye-bye. We planted tomatoes, cucumbers, yellow squash, green and red bell peppers, and jalapeno peppers. Our only successful plants have been the squash and cucumbers. Our tomatoes got some sort of disease and our bell peppers never produced for us and our jalapenos peppers turned red--probably let them get too ripe or something. The girls have enjoyed going out there to see the food in our garden grow!

Blake's 2nd Surgery

Blake had his 2nd surgery on July 12, 2010. The procedure went smoothly, but being that this was such an involved surgery that included at 12 to 13 vertical incision down his abdomen and a reconstruction of his small intestine to create what is called a "j-pouch", it was expected that this recovery was going to be rough. And rough it was! The first time I saw Blake after surgery he was in pretty bad shape. He was as white as a ghost and couldn't mutter more to me then "This time it was MUCH worse." He was in a lot of pain. Blake's dad and I ended up leaving that night to let Blake get some rest. We went to Chili's for dinner then checked into the Super 8 around 8 PM with the intention to visit Blake early the next morning.

When we saw him the next day, he had improved significantly. He was sitting up watching television making the best out of his situation. His recovery in the hospital was pretty smooth after that. Just 4 days after his procedure, he was discharged and we headed back to Lubbock. The next week and a half was hard to say the least. I had never seen anyone let alone my tough husband be in so much pain. In hindsight we would have stayed one more night in the hospital. His sodium and chloride levels were extremely low which caused severe nausea--not something you want to have when you have a 13 inch incision down you abdomen! After getting those levels in where they needed to be, he improved rapidly and was able to go back to work 2 weeks after his operation.

These are pictures of Lanaea during his hospital stay. I still thought Blake looked as handsome as ever, but he had banned pictures of him. The hospital rooms are really small, so I had to get creative in finding things to entertain her with. On the 17th, I put a blanket on the floor and let her stretch out some. She enjoyed this. Sitting in her travel swing all day wasn't her idea of fun; however, she did pretty good at staying content.

Kelsey Loses 2nd Tooth

Kelsey lost her second tooth on July 7th, 2010. Her wiggly tooth this time was a lot more stubborn then her first. It took quite a few tears and a lot of help from mom and dad to get this tooth out. Dad was finally able to get it pulled after some tweaking as he called it. Instead of money the tooth fairy gave Kelsey a certificate to get a new pair of sunglasses! She was so excited because hers had broken and she had been asking for new ones for a while.

A Day in the Life of Lanaea

Lanaea is definitely my easiest baby. She is usually content on her own an occasionally she squeals for my attention.

Starting at 5 months to the present at 7 months her schedule is as follows:

7:30 AM wakes up and eats

10:00 AM takes her morning nap

12:00 PM eats lunch

12-2:00 PM plays which usually involves interacting with her sisters, playing with toys, rolling and crawling around, and playing in her exersaucer.

Kelsey is making her laugh in this picture

2:00-4 or 5 PM takes an afternoon nap

5 or 6PM eats dinner





Yummmm, dinner. This expression is so funny to me, but oohhh so cute!! She does it all the time! She'll get that nose crinkled up and give me the happiest smile--can anyone say priceless!!



8 PM goes to bed and sleeps ALL night!
This particular night (June 21st, 2010), she fell asleep on the family room floor. Looks like she had a good long day of play.

Dancing/Posing Princesses

Just look at this kid and tell me she's not cute!! She and Kelsey were having a great time posing for the camera on June 17, 2010.

Here they are again. Stike a pose!!

We can't leave Lanaea out.

Kelsey and Mylee LOVE to dance. Nothing seems to resonate as well with Kelsey as does dance. This video of her is a crack-up to me!! I especially love her pose at the end.

Swim Lessons 2010

I signed Kelsey up for another session of swim lessons this year. Unfortunately I wasn't that impressed with her teacher this year and at her progress, but nevertheless she had a great time and looked forward to going all 14 days class was in session. She got pretty good at swimming on her back and putting her face in the water this year wasn't even an issue.

I loved seeing her interact with the little friends she made.
She got brave and jumped off the diving board this year by herself too.

Long Hard Day

You know it's been a long day of play when your daughter falls asleep on the hard tile floor. This picture was taken on June 2, 2010.

Summer Days of 2010

The Summer of 2010 has been an interesting one. Looking back I felt like we didn't do anything more then manage Blake's health and go to Abilene for his surgeries. Despite and even because of the trials we have been through the past months, we have learned that joy in the minutia.

It will be a summer I will never forget because of all I was able to learn. Including the realization that I have a Heavenly Father that loves me and is mindful of me and my family. The love I have felt from Him has helped my love for Blake and my children grow and deepen. There have been many days that I can barely contain the joy I feel in being a wife and mother. The Orthopaedic surgery wives gave me this exersaucer before Lanaea was born. It has gotten lots of use!! There has been many summer days spent on this little bench swing. In the middle of the day, there is shade on this swing so it's not uncommon for me to look out our kitchen window to see the back of my two little girls swinging along. My heart just flutters of joy when I see that. The girls have had many a popcicle together on this swing.

Much to my excitement, Mylee learned to pump on the new big girl swing we got for her this summer. It has been so great for me because I'm not getting constantly nagged to come and push her and she has loved her autonomy to go out and swing at her mind's content. She doesn't have the rhythm down perfectly, but she does amazingly well.

Kelsey has enjoyed riding the bike she got for her birthday. I usually push the younger girls in our double stroller and we follow her along throughout our neighborhood. She has become quite good at riding her bike and enjoys showing Blake and I tricks she can do. Awww, summer days.