so thankful..

Yesterday marks TWO years since Jason's aneurysm incident. It feels like a long time ago and yet it feels like it just happened. I ran through the whole day in my head..'right now we were at the first emergency room, now we're in the ambulance, now we're at Parkland, wheeling you into the operating room....'

It was a great day yesterday, we were lazy, we cuddled, we played and we just enjoyed being with each other, and for that I am so grateful. I am so lucky, we all are. My girls have had their Daddy for two more years !! I thank GOD because I know it is only because of his grace and love that we were given this gift.

A couple of weeks ago Miss Priss and Jason went on another Indian Princess campout. It was a huge success with 10 girls and dads participating - a cabin busting at the seams with 20 people in it. Campfires, smores, BB guns, hikes, boat rides, horseback rides, and not a lot of sleep. They both had a great time, but they walked in the door, straight into the bath/shower and were pretty much exhausted for the rest of the day. I took this picture of them knocked out later that day and smiled because I know Miss Priss is going to cherish these memories with her Daddy and all the things he did to spend time with her and make her feel special. I was so grateful that she got to make this memory with him. Every day is a gift to us..

we moved!!

This might have been one of the first posts in my latest updates but better late than never. We MOVED! again!

Long story short, we had always loved this one neighborhood since we moved to this area. Beautiful quiet street, no sidewalks, gorgeous trees, huge lots, right by the park... Anyway - this summer the opportunity to look at this house for sale came up, and although we were not looking to move, this house just seemed like it would be perfect for us. One story, beautiful big front and back yards (the front of our old house felt like a mini freeway and we never felt comfortable letting the girls play out there), and huge potential (we love our home projects!)

After some back and forth we decided it would be a great time and opportunity for our family. It seems crazy, we sometimes think we're a little crazy, especially because our new house needs SO.MUCH.WORK and our old house was finished (had JUST finished remodeling the master bath), but we are all enjoying our new house, and little by little it is going to look exactly the way we want it to. For now, we are so happy enjoying our new space and looking forward to the future in our new home.

five ...

happy happy birthday sweet baby girl. I CAN.NOT.BELIEVE that you are FIVE years old!!!! holy cow, it seems like just yesterday you were born and now you are going to be starting kindergarten !!

you are amazing, so so smart, so sassy. you are a girly girl through and through. you LOVE dresses and sparkles, you love being crafty and creative. you always want to help in the kitchen but you also love working on projects and getting dirty in the garage with daddy.

today you woke up with a fever and had to stay home from school, but I didn't mind because I really enjoyed the extra cuddle time, I know before long you won't want to cuddle with me and work on puzzles and paint suncatchers, but today you did, and for that I am grateful. I love you baby girl.

happy birthday sweet little miss...

sweet angel baby, i can't believe it has been two years! some days it really feels like it is just flying by, and some days (I mean, i'm just gonna be honest) it really doesn't!

you are beautiful, playful, cuddly, sweet, loving, silly, sneaky, mischievous, high maintenance, dramatic, picky... and I couldn't imagine our family without you!

you love to watch Dora, and sing and dance. you are the worlds pickiest eater, but your favorites are CHEESE (who can blame you), berries, goldfish, tortillas, frozen peas (weird, but whatever it takes). you adore your sisters. you are a great nighttime sleeper, love playing with playdough and crayons - maybe you're going to be an artist!

thank you for all of your daily hugs and kisses, even when I think I might pull my hair out, you still can make me melt with that little snaggletooth smile :)

love you, sweet girl..

mission..

This year the Preteen has gotten involved with her middle school youth group at church. She had an amazing opportunity to go on a mission trip this summer with the group. They went to New Orleans for 6 days and then wrapped up that week with a few days in Gulf Shores, Alabama for beach camp.

They spent a lot time in the lower ninth ward cleaning up debris, garbage, tearing out, hauling off and just working hard in an area that, still after all this time, is in such bad shape and needs help. These kids had a chance to meet the people in the neighborhood, hear their stories, and serve them by getting their hands dirty and doing the work that needed to get done.

In the afternoons, the group would go to the projects and play with the children there. She said that as soon as they'd show up in the park, all the little ones would start trickling out to play with them - she said it was her favorite part of the whole trip.

It was a great experience for her, she learned a lot, she met a bunch of people and made tons of friends. She was touched by what she saw and learned there, I can tell by hearing her talk about it. She grew up just a little bit more. She wants to go back next year, says she can't wait..amazing!

back to work...

J went back to work yesterday. He's only doing a couple of hours a day to get used to doing it again. He was so exhausted when he got home yesterday. I know this is good for his mind and spirit, and I know this will help his strength return as well but it makes me so nervous to have him out of the house, and out 'on his own'.

But, with the return to work means back to business as usual around here, which is also a good thing! Yesterday I finished putting all the Christmas stuff away. My mom helped with all the outside and big stuff the day after Christmas because with the small kids, those things would take me FOREVER to finish by myself. The kids begged to keep the tree up a couple more days so I did (i'm not a scrooge but by the end of Christmas, i'm DONE with the decorations), but finally put that up yesterday. I always feel so relieved to get all the decorations put away, all the 'stuff' really makes me feel flustered.

Speaking of clutter... our kids are SO fortunate and blessed by all our family! But OH MY, there are so many new toys and things all over the place. I need to spend some quality time this week and next going through the toy closet and baskets and getting rid of the old to make way for the new. Normally I would have tried to do this before Christmas but this year just didn't allow for that, and that's okay :)

I also really can't wait to get back to the gym - haven't been since before Jason's surgery, there was just too much stuff going on all the time around here. But I am anxious to get back to the treadmill to work off some of these holiday pounds - ugh. I feel like a red hot mess being cooped up in the house for all this time. I need some exercise, a hair cut and color, and lucky me got a massage and facial from J and the kids for Christmas, so I've got to schedule that ASAP!!

The PreTeen and Miss Priss start school again next week and I am ready!!! Loved being home with the family, but it's time to get back to our routines!

In terms of J's health, he's had all sorts of tests run in the past week and everything is looking good and healthy - THANK THE LORD!!! So aside from just allowing his healing to continue and building back his energy levels, which will take another couple months according to the doctors, he's fine now. We just have to breathe a sigh of relief with this news and praise God for looking over him and our family and helping us through this challenging time.

Looking forward to a safe, happy and healthy New Year!

christmas eve!!

Yay! Mom will be here soon, Sister and family coming later. Breakfast for dinner, Christmas PJ's! Gifts wrapped, about to start snowing outside. Gonna be a great day!

Merry Christmas to everyone! Here's hoping for a happy HEALTHY holiday for everyone!

our house is quiet....ahhh

This morning our house is sooo quiet. J's parents came yesterday and took the two little girls out to their farm for a couple of days. Miss Priss LOVES her Nana and Papa and runs to their car to buckle herself into her carseat so they can leave. Then comes the 'oh yeah, bye mommy!' Little Miss loves that there is a constant stream of arms over there that want to hold her, so her bottom doesn't sit on the ground very often, which is right up her alley! Honestly, I miss them as soon as they drive away, but I do appreciate a little break.

The Pre-Teen had to be at school eaaaaaaarly this morning, but I came back home and got right into bed. I love all my girls, but it is NICE to not have any noses to clean, diapers to change or Dora the Explorer for a couple of days! I think there is a nap in my future - yay!

J is doing better each day. Slow and steady but he's getting there. He's still figuring out that his energy isn't what it used to be and it's going to take a while, which is frustrating to him. He's got bad cabin fever so we try to get out of the house at least once a day, even if it is just for a little drive and some fresh air and sunshine.

Selfishly, I love having him home. I love the conversation and company. The kids love it too. I'm sure Miss Priss probably thinks it's extended vacation or something, she doesn't even ask if he's going to work every day like she used to. Sure, sometimes it's hard to remember that he can't help with picking up a kid or loading them in the car, etc. and by the end of most days I am BEAT. We have been eating so many delicious meals that our friends have been bringing and I am SO THANKFUL for so many reasons, but mainly because I don't know how I'd fit cooking into these days!!

More than anything though, I love having him home all day because I can see him and see that he is okay. If I'm out at the store or somewhere else, I feel I need to get home urgently to see that he is okay and feels well. I just am so aware of how lucky we are that everything turned out the way it did. I definitely cherish every day with him, you just don't realize how quickly things could change until something like this happens.

On another note, we've been getting ready for Christmas. Thank GOD for my mom who helped get the majority of our decorations up in the house. I've done 95% of my shopping (online - thank you amazon.com!) and just finished my Christmas cards - whew! The Pre-Teen and Little Miss both had Christmas programs at school and were so cute! I was wanting to do some Christmas activities for the kids this year, but we might only make it to take a picture with Santa, and drive around to see all the beautiful lights, which will be good enough! We'll make up for it next year though!

I have lots of pictures to upload, but who has the time, sheesh! Okay, i'm off to enjoy my quiet house and day off!

patient recovery..

We've been home about a week now and things are slowly getting into a sort of rhythm. Things are not back to 'normal', nor will they be for a while, but the girls are happy that daddy is back home and we're kind of easing into things. J is still in a lot of pain, but it's getting a little better each day.

I took him to see the Dr. yesterday and she was pleased with his progress but assured him that this was MAJOR SERIOUS stuff that happened to him and that recovery is going to slow and painful. This can be so discouraging for anyone to hear, but especially J who just isn't one to sit around, do nothing, ask for help, have people do stuff for him.... it's an adjustment. My patient isn't usually very 'patient', but he's learning to be since he has no choice, he hurts. My heart hurts for him because I can see how hard and painful it is right now. It's like when your kids are sick and you literally feel sick because you can't make them feel better, that's how I feel.

I try to keep his spirits up as much as possible and the kids are really a great help. Those three girls sure can put a smile on his face! I'm having to be extra cautious with Miss Priss because she does not understand the extent of the 'boo boo' on daddy's belly, so when she's sitting with him or cuddling, i'm on eggshells and ready to swoop in and grab her if I need to. Hard to be cautious but not scare her, it's a fine line.

Mom has been her since the day of J's surgery and she leaves this Saturday. I.AM.NERVOUS! She has been such a huge help with the kids and I am so grateful to her. I know I can handle things, but I'm already beat by the end of the day and she's doing so much of the kid work - eek! Luckily our local parents are coming to help or be on standby, thank God for all of them!

All of this scary stuff has really been such an eye opener in so many ways, some of which I'm sure I'll write about in the future. For now I just thank God for J and for his life, for his improved health and strength, for our girls and for our family.

WE'RE HOME!!

We're finally home!

I didn't update for a couple of days because I was able to get J a private room and so I stayed with him the past two nights. Once I waved our insurance card a little, they moved us pretty quickly and J was able to rest so much better. He slept well because there were half as many nurse interruptions and because I was able to be there with him.

He was able to walk around a little and his belly and insides have started 'working'. It has been painful and uncomfortable for him but little by little, things in there are trying to get back to normal. He was able to eat solids this morning and was so happy to finally have some real food after 6 days. Just a little food has already done so much for his mood and energy level. The doctors were very pleased with his progress this morning and told us we could go home, and we couldn't get out of there fast enough!

He's so comfortable right now (well as much as can be expected), he has had a great long nap in his own bed. He's wearing his comfy pj's, and laying in the big chair watching the Cowboy game. We're home alone for a little while while the girls and my mom have gone to have Thanksgiving with different family members. It has been nice and quiet for several hours and so nice to be able to sleep next to each other again - I missed my husband so much!

Recovery will be slow and will be hard on J, mostly because he does NOT like sitting still and tends to get cabin fever very quickly. Also, it will be difficult on him and the little girls (Miss Priss specifically) because Daddy won't get to play and do normal stuff with her for a little while and she's going to have to be very gentle with him while he heals.

The doctors said that he'll need to just rest at home for about 2 weeks. After that, take it easy, no heavy lifting (more than 10 lbs) for 6 weeks, and he will feel back to 'normal' in about 2 months.

This last week really has been such a whirlwind and seems a little foggy in my head. I'll admit I've just been on auto pilot and and just going going going and doing what needed to be done to make sure he was okay and get him home. I'm coming really close to hitting the wall - now that we're home I can feel myself relaxing and just feeling so exhausted. I'm looking forward to just being home for a while.

I'm so grateful to my mom for coming into town and just taking over watching the kids for me. My sister and inlaws have also been a huge help juggling the kids and keeping my house running (all my laundry is washed and folded - wow!) We both are so genuinely touched and humbled by the love and prayers that have been sent our way - to all of you who have sent us messages, texts, calls, snacks, dinners, books, magazines, etc.... THANK YOU, we could never express to you how much it has meant to us.

This Thanksgiving we are thankful for so much, J, his life, his health, and our beautiful family. Thank you God!

Happy Thanksgiving!
Liz

I'll post occasional updates on his progress, and hopefully we'll be back to normal life around here in no time.