So Big!

Noah is officially a big boy now! He has been
sleeping in his bed for the last two nights and
has even taken his naps in his 'Cars' bed.


He loves his new sheets and did not want Rick
or me to climb in his bed today!



See how happy he is!


But, when we first put the beds together he wanted to
sleep in Kari's 'Rella-Rella' bed.


Of course, she has Princess sheets and such.


And she loves it! She has been doing really well
sleeping in her bed.


I just love this face! And this girl!

Of course, as you can see we still have some
unpacking to do. Not sure what the kiddos will
sit on when we have all the boxes emptied.

Bug Update

When Noah woke up from his nap, he wanted to show Daddy his bug. So, he took him out of the box and then Buggie was gone!

We looked everywhere and couldn't find him. Noah was pretty bummed.

Two hours later we were downstairs in Grammie and Poppy's apartment and something spooked me, crawling on my finger.

It was Buggie! We couldn't believe it!

But, we are not sure we want to know where he was the whole time we couldn't find him. Heh.

Sunday morning, Noah took Buggie out again and this time he was gone for good.

The whole time we had him we never saw him use his wings. I guess after being confined overnight he finally decided to use them.

Buggie!

We were outside watering the mums we just planted and we found what we thought was a lady bug. Since I am not afraid of lady bugs like I am spiders, I let it crawl on me. Noah thought it was really cool, but Kari would not even touch it.


He loved having it on his finger!


He let it crawl all over him and it did - from hand to hand. He kept trying to touch it, too.


It even crawled up his arm and onto his shirt. He was very interested in watching it crawl.


He thought it was cool on the tip of his thumb.


He also enjoyed chasing Kari with it! It stayed
on the whole time he chased her all around the
yard.


And she wanted nothing to do with it.

When it was naptime, Grammie found a
plastic container to put him in with a top with holes
for him to breath. Noah wasn't too happy that he
couldn't sleep with him. He named him "Buggie".

Gotcha Being Good

On Monday, I volunteered in Kari's class. It was really neat to see what she does during the day and to interact with her classmates and some of the other parents. Mrs. Kathie gives the students "Gotcha Being Good" coupons if they exhibit responsible and polite attitudes during school. We told Kari if she received one each day last week, she'd get a special treat. On Friday, she received her third coupon for the week and chose to go to CEC on Monday for lunch. She and Noah had a great time! I was very thankful that it was not busy. It was a perfect time to go.


Noah liked riding on the Teletubbies vacuum.


Kari still likes hanging out with Barney.


Kari and Noah earned most of their tickets
at this game. I was shocked that they could
throw the ball into the rolling barrel so well.


Inspiring musician, maybe?


Can Kari fix it? Yes, she can!


I love seeing them share and ride things together.
Kari asked Noah to ride with her and he couldn't
climb into the fire truck fast enough!

Feeding the Turtles

Yesterday, I volunteered at Kari's school. It was really neat to see what she does during the school day and to interact with her classmates and other parents. It was also Kari's day to feed the turtles. We got to go to the courtyard after class. We brought peaches, tomatoes and dog food.


This turtle loved the dog food!


Kari loved that this turtle was not hiding in the
bushes like the other ones. She gave him extra
peaches and tomatoes!

She can't wait until it's her turn again. On Friday they found 8 babies giving them a grand total of 25 turtles in the courtyard!

At the Fair

The fair was this weekend. We got to go as a
family on Sunday (well, minus Josh - he was
at a friend's house). This is Rick and Dad's
exhibit booth for Outdoor Designs. It looked
great!


Noah, Kari and Cody are ready to go on the rides.


Cody made it to the top of the climbing wall.


Kari and Noah loved the car ride.


Cody rode the dragon ride with Kari and Noah.
What a good big brother he is.


Rick and Kari played the race game. Rick won
Kari and Noah stuffed animals.


Cody needed someone to ride on
the Zipper with him. He found a
few boys to go on it and they rode
it two times in a row!


Waiting to go on the ferris wheel.


Kari loves the merry- go-round!


The swings are one of my favorite rides!


Cody assures Noah that it's going to be fun!


I totally got dizzy on this ride. Some
little boy got on it with me, Kari and
Noah and wouldn't stop spinning the
thing!


Noah and Cody enjoyed the giant slide!


Cody enjoyed some big kid rides, too.


Kari even rode the roller coaster! We really
enjoyed the fair. This was the first time in all
the years I lived in MD that we even went to
the fair! Josh did go on Saturday with Grammie.
He took his friend, Nick and he got sick on the
Zipper. Josh was thankful he did not vomit on
the ride =)

Leaving on a Jet Plane.....

Cody is on his way to the airport. He is heading to Texas for his Mimi's 80th birthday party. He'll be home on Sunday. This is his first plane ride solo. He said he is not nervous. He must get that from Rick. That doesn't come from me =) It is a short trip, but hopefully one where he'll get to spend time with some family he's been missing.

House Calls

Well, Mom-Mom has come to stay with my parents in the apartment for an indefinite amount of time.

She is getting stronger every day.

Kari, Noah and I get to make sure she eats and takes her medicine. Kari likes talking to her about her day and sharing snacktime with her. Noah likes bringing her his Cars book to read and dancing in front of the TV for her. I am concerned about them growing too attached to her, but they seem to need each other right now.

Tara and Aidan came by today and spent some time with her, making sure she had lunch and giving her a sponge bath. Mom-Mom gets many check up calls during the day and my Uncle Butch stops by after work. I know Mom wants to be home with her, but she can't.

It all seems a bit overwhelming right now - I do not feel like I can leave her alone for very long during the day and do not feel like I am getting much accomplished, but I know this time I am spending with her with be even more valuable when she is gone.

Not Quite Home, Sweet Home

Mom Mom is home from the hospital.

She is very weak and disoriented. She said she hates feeling old and that she is losing her independence. I had to cut her nails for her yesterday and Mom has had to fix all of her meals and administer her medicine. Mom called her last night at 11 PM so she could take her pill and she answered the phone and then left it off the hook. Rick and Mom headed over to make sure everything was okay. She had just fallen back to sleep. She should probably be in a nursing home so she can gain her strength back and do some rehabilitation, but she doesn't want to go. I think she is afraid that if she does, she will never come home.

I am not sure how to pray anymore. It seems she has given up and accepted that the cancer is taking its toll. It is very hard to see her so thin and helpless.

But, I guess we just trust God and take advantage of the time we do have with her.

I am still not ready to let her go. Even if it may be best.

Opening Day

Courtesy of Hurricane Ernesto, tonight was opening day for football season for the Andover Apaches. Cody played defensive tackle. He had an incredible game. His name was called by the announcer over ten times. He finished the game with more than a dozen tackles, a sack and a forced fumble. In fact, he made 3 of the first 4 tackles on the opposing team's opening drive, including a tackle on 4th down to give the Apaches the ball. The game was a real nail-biter. The game went into overtime after regulation ended 12-12. The Hawks got the ball first but the Apache defense pushed them backwards and kept them out of the endzone. Then the Apaches scored on 3rd down ending the game in victory, 18-12! It was an awesome first game!

Kari's First Day of School

Here's the traditional picture in front of the
fence. Kari is wearing her new Princess tennis
shoes. School started with circletime. The
children sang songs and recited poems. Kari
was very shy at first.


After circle time we played with different games and such.
She said her favorite thing was playing Play-Doh. She also liked this
bug puzzle. It had a magnetic net to "catch the bugs".


She also liked riding the horse.


This is Kari's flower garden. During playtime, the
timer would ring every 10 minutes and the children
would switch activities.


After playtime, it was storytime. Mrs. Kathie read
Clifford's First Day of School.


Then it was snacktime. Kari enjoyed the "Scooby
snacks" and apple slices.


Kari and Mrs.Kathie


Here's a turtle from the courtyard. The door was
locked so we couldn't get a closer picture. There are
17 turtles that the children get to feed.


Noah got to goof off while Kari was at school. He
actually hung out with Tara and Aidan. We went
to Chick-Fil-A for lunch to celebrate.

Kari can not wait to go back on Monday.

Uncertainty

Seems no one knows for sure what is going on with Mom-Mom. Well, except God.

Seems she is on morphine, but has been taken off the oxygen.

The doctor told my uncle yesterday that she could have 2-3 months left, although he made it sound like she was very close to the end on Saturday*.

I just want her to be comfortable. I do not want her to suffer. I do not want her to die.

*Sidenote: Kari got to see her Saturday. I am so glad that she did.

Just Keep Praying.....

Mom-Mom's cancer has spread and is pressing on her bronchial tubes making it hard for her to breath.

She has signed a 'no resuscitate' form.

The doctor will not give us a time frame. I am sure he really can't.

I just hope I get to see her one more time. And Kari needs to see her. She is the only one who has not seen her since we've been back.

I hope she gets to see her. She has to get to see her.

Prayers for Mom-Mom

The phone rang at 12:50 AM.

"Mar, it's Mom-Mom. I can't breath."

Not something you want to hear from an 80 year old woman with lung cancer.

My parents headed over to her apartment and had an ambulance take her to the hospital.

She has an UTI and pneumonia. She is staying in the hospital for now.

My parents are operating on a few hours of sleep and both of them are working.

Prayers for my grandmother and parents would be much appreciated.