Moses 3:21

Today was only a half day at the hospital for me.  I took Dace up for a visit and knew that it would only be a morning thing.  I was toying with the idea of bringing him home and going back again, but their play date kind of fell through and I needed some time at home to possibly get a nap in, do some laundry and collect all the garbage and get that out.  ugh. 

Dace and I got to Dallin's room at 10 to find him resting. I had explained to Dace that daddy had to stay in the hospital until his really big owwies got better.  He was shy when we first got there, which we were both expecting.  I explained to him how everything hooked up to Daddy was making him feel better.  He saw the chest tub drain beside our feet and asked- What's that juice?  that was funny!  If he only knew what that actually was.  We found Curious George on tv and he started to warm up, feeling a bit more at ease with his favorite monkey now in the room.

While he watched cartoons, Dallin and I dozed until Amy from physio came in.  She got Dallin into his brace while I watched and helped learn the process.  She was so excited that he didn't complain or anything.  A few other nurses came in shortly and got Dallin to his feet then we went for a walk down the hallway and back.  It's funny because you see him walking and you would never guess that he had just broken his back and had major surgery within the last few days.  There is no limp, there is no struggle.  It's just him walking normal, albeit more slowly and wearing a hospital gown and back brace.  The whole therapy crew is so impressed with his strength and healing. 

Once back in the room, Dallin settled into the arm chair and I got the bed for a little snooze, fresh linens and all.  It felt so good to lay down, even for a few minutes.  Today was the first morning that I truly felt exhausted.  Zade is teething again and woke up about 4 times last night just screaming in pain and ticked that it hurt him enough to wake him up.  I think my sleeping hours count is barely over 20 hours since Saturday.  Dace hung out in his stroller and watched cartoons while we got Dallins room service for lunch ordered and chatted for a bit.

I was getting hungry too so Dace and I ventured down to the cafeteria to get ourselves some lunch.  He loved walking through all the winding hallways and taking 2 different elevators and everyone smiled and talked to him because he really is the cutest little boy ever!  Can I just say that I am so impressed with the food in this hospital?  The room service options is 2-3 times the options at the best hotel and the cafe has 4 different stations with good healthy delicious food and the prices are fantastic.  Today they had a farmers market cart with all sorts of fresh fruits and veggies.  Dace of course had to pick out a basket of fresh strawberries.  We took our food to go up to eat with Dallin and passing through the lobby we ran into our stake president and his wife coming to see Dallin.  He was happy to have some company and they chatted while Dace and I munched on lunch. 

Shortly after they left, I was getting ready to go when Dr. Bromberg, another surgeon that operated on Dallin came in.  They weren't able to take out the last chest tube because too much fluid was still draining.  Dallin really would like to be home Saturday morning but once the tube is out, he has to stay 24 hours for monitoring.  So if the tube doesn't come out tomorrow, it will be Sunday or later when he gets home.  They are also starting to wean him off the pain pump so that his Rx meds will be enough once he is home.

So what does the title of this post have to do with anything?  Has curiosity got the better of you and you searched it out?  Well, here is the scripture in case you haven't looked it up:

"And I, the Lord God, caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and he slept, and I took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in the stead thereof;"

So Bromberg was the surgeon in charge of clearing the path to the spine.  He informed us today that besides taking out the diaphragm and deflating a lung, he also had to take out one of Dallin's rib in order for there to be working space for the spine.  This was brand new information to us!

Dallin- So, what did you do with my rib?  Did you put it back?
Bromberg- Oh no.  we tossed it. 
Dallin, laughing- Oh! 
Bromberg- you don't get it back.  You've already got a wife or I was going to tell you we could make one for you but.....

it was a pretty funny conversation and a detail that adds extra wow factor to this whole story.  crazy. 

Well, it is now almost 9pm.  The boys are in bed; I can hear Zade humming the last of his sleepy time hum before he will be out for the night too.  I really should clean up the supper dishes but I feel like a complete zombie so I am going to bed.  Thank you to all the wonderful people who are watching the boys during the day (as well as a few nights earlier this week) and to those who are brining in our dinner.  I would not be surviving without you.  I love you.  good night. 

A Room with a View

Dallin was moved out of ICU today and upstairs to a normal room. 
Woohoo!
Signal the marching band, bring in the cheerleaders, light the fireworks and shoot the confetti!!

Here is a run down of today:

I got to the hospital at 9am because Dallin was scheduled get up and do his walk with physio first thing.  I got to his room and there he was, sitting in a chair with his brace on.  I had already missed the walk.  But he was happy to be up, was breathing really well and said the walk went well.  Dr. Suh had been by earlier and had given him the play by play of the surgery and drawn a diagram of what his hardware looks like on his spine.  Dallin wants to eventually scan a picture in to show everyone.  It's pretty neat to see what they did.  He wanted to rest a bit in his chair so I went off to take care of financial paperwork.

 When I got back a while later, he was ready to lie down so the nurses help him back into bed. He was in great spirits- making jokes, making the nurses laugh and overall feeling really good. After he had his lunch, I let him nap while I went and ate. He rested off and on for a few hours after that, watched a bit of tv, then Mark stopped by to visit.  Physio came back to teach Dallin how to move to get in and out of bed around 4pm.  Then it was time for the big transfer.  He had to stop by Xrays before moving up to his new room.

The new room is about 4 times the size of his previous one.  The ICU he was in used to be NICU so the rooms were really small, made with the intent of cribs, not adult sized beds.  Needless to say, the new room is luxuriously spacey and includes a window to the outside world.

After getting settled and introductions by the new staff, a surgeon came by to take out his top chest drain. This is a very good sign. I was worried that it might hurt but the nurse said some people say it just feels weird; Dallin didn't even feel it.

With our new access to wifi, I read through all the comments from friends and family that have been posted on facebook.  He was so grateful to hear them.  I was getting ready to leave but it started pouring outside so we waited that out then I took off for the evening.  Dallin gave me a high five before I left.  The boy is back!

No where but Up from here

Today we went from very very low to a high.  That is the direction we want to keep going.

Dallin had a really rough night.  The pain meds weren't doing anything and he didn't get any sleep.  I got to the hospital around 11 and he was still in rough shape.  He said it was a good thing I hadn't gotten there earlier because it was rock bottom- he was wanting to die. 

Shortly after I got there, they came in with his back brace to fit it.  This made me really nervous because he was in such pain already, I didn't want him to be moved around and prodded into this thing.  It was a really painful experience but he made it through.  Dallin can usually breathe through pain but he couldn't breathe deep enough to do anything so it was just enduring. 

His great day nurse Kelly gave him some percocet before I got there and it kicked in around noon.  It usually takes about an hour to feel.  Once he felt more comfortable enough, he ate a good lunch then started drifting off.  I left him to nap while I went and ate. 

I spent the afternoon at his bedside grateful to see him dozing in and out.  He was doing so much better!  A nurse brought his brace back at 330 to make sure the changes were okay.  Thankfully they only had to place the front so that was nothing.  There had been talks in the morning that physio was going to get him on his feet today but they ran out of time with the brace needing adjustments.  An answer to prayer.  I think after the rough night and morning his body needed a good rest to build up to that challenge. 

His dinner came at 630 and I got him set up to eat and Kelly came back with another dose.  On a scale of 1-10, he said his pain was a 1!  I could not believe it!  A night and day difference from 8 hours ago.  So he took his meds and ate his dinner and was feeling really optimistic, like he was over the hump and was actually looking forward to getting up tomorrow.

It is an amazing thing to witness a miracle like today.  I am overflowing with gratitude for the changes that took place.  I could just feel all the power of all those prayers flooding into that room and aiding him and healing him.  We might not be out of the woods completely but at least after today he knows that he can get there. 

He wanted me to share a few more details about the surgery.  He is looking forward to talking with Dr. Suh and getting the play by play of how it went.  The whole thing took about 12 hours, after it was budgeted for about 3.  A doctor told me it took a lot more time than expected to actually get to the spine.  Dr. Thompson, a Bishop from Savannah that Dallin knows, is an anesthesiologist and he switched his surgeries so he could be in there with Dallin.  I found such peace knowing that the priesthood was literally in that room.  Thompson said that there were surgeons coming in and out the whole time assisting and looking at his case.  He definitely was in the best hands and was greatly taken care of. 

His left lung was deflated, a chest tube put in, then they removed the diaphragm in order to make room to get to the spine.  They used a support for his L1 that is like a car jack.  They secure it then pump it up to the right height then filled it with bone then drilled it into place.  Then replaced his organs, reinflate the lung and close. 
Dallin has had a lot of struggles with getting his breath deep enough and has a little blowing machine that he has to practice on.  Last night, he could only blow to 500.  By the time I left tonight, he could make it to almost 2000.  I am completely blown away by his progress.  Leaps and bounds. Leaps and bounds. 

He is anxious to see the boys but I can't take them to ICU.  He should be moved to a normal room tomorrow and I will take Dace up to see him Thursday.  I don't think it will be safe for Zade to visit since as soon as he sees his daddy, he will want to pounce on him for hugs.  Thankfully he is young enough to not notice or be affected too much by his absence so he'll have to wait until we bring Dallin home. 

Thank you again for all the prayers and thoughts.  Please keep them coming.  We love you all so much. 

Pain

I was finally allowed to see Dallin at 1215 last night.  It was really tough, really tough.  He said the pain was "almost unbearable" which completely broke my heart because he has the highest pain tolerance of anyone I know.  It hurt to talk, even to brethe.  Mike came in and gave him another blessing and within 5 minutes, he was breathing easier.  I massaged his hip for half an hour.  That and two other spots were throbbing from laying on his side for 8 hours of surgery.  They gave him some valium to help relax those muscles and since the pain pump wasn't cutting it, the nurse gave him some percocet.  At 130, I went to talk to our friends who had come to sit with me, telling them to go home and that he wanted me to stay.  But they didn't want to leave me driving home that late.  They said they'd hang out for another half hour to see if he fell asleep and I could go. 

I went back to his room and he was starting to doze.  The nurse told me I should go so he could sleep and so I could get some sleep.  I was sneaking out when he opened his eyes.  I told him I was going to head home and he was okay with that, starting to feel the meds and relax.  I got home around 3. 

So today is another day and I hope he had some decent sleep.  I am bracing for another rough bad day.  Please keep those prayers coming, specifically for pain relief so that we can get over the post-op hump and get healing and more comfortable.  I really hope that his doc doesn't force him to try and get on his feet if the pain is still this bad. 

Love you all. 

Surgery day

I left Dallin at about 1230.  We were both in good spirits.  He has an amazing team working on him and I know the Lord will be in that room.  He was feeling reeeeeally good on the meds and requested that the ten inch incision be sewn up to look like a railroad track so Dace can play on it.  haha!  He was serious too.  That wasn't just the drugs talking. 

At about 130, Sheila the nurse called to say they had started and things were going well.  His vitals were stable and they were looking at about 3 hours to complete.  I'll update this when I hear more.

345pm update- Sheila just called again.  Dr. Suh is in now working on the actual spine.  Everything is going just fine, Dallin is stable and staying cozy under the heated blankets.  he's being a trooper!

550pm- still in there and no update for the last couple of hours.  Starting to get a bit nervous and emotional.

615pm- finally an update from the OR.  Dr. Suh is starting to put in the hardware now.  Everything is going fine and Dallin is doing fine too.  Probably another couple hours til they are done.  Back to hulu I go.....

7pm- Dr. Suh just called me and they are done.  Everything went really well, he was able to build up the support and regain most of the height that was lost.  He was really happy with how it secured to the other bones.  They are closing up now so it might be another hour or so until he is awake and I am able to see him.  He's going to be quite sore but they'll keep him on the pain pump.  He needs to be up and moving as soon as the back brace is ready- probably in a day or two. 
Thank you again for all your prayers and thoughts and well wishes.  Please keep them coming.

11pm- 4 hours later and I still haven't seen him.  Dr. Suh was here about an hour ago and talked to me on his way out and he said Dallin was awake and talking and they were just monitoring him.  Just got a call that he has been moved to recovery, they are waiting for him to fully wake up and get him comfortable on meds before they move him back to his room THEN I can see him.  Here's hoping I am home before 2am.  I've already been here over 12 hours.  My butt is sore and these babies would like to lay down.  So would their mama. 

Dallin update #1- Sunday, June 26, 2011

It is late and I am finally home but wanted to get an update out to everyone before I try and get some sleep.

I apologize if I haven’t returned your call or text or email.  I am getting them all and feel the love and support that is coming from all of you.  The power of all the prayers being said on our behalf is truly undeniable.  Thank you so much and please keep them coming. 

I got to the hospital this morning at 9am.  Dallin had been taken for an MRI and was waiting to hear back from the doc.  He had last eaten at 11pm the night before and was finally allowed some ice chips.  He is so used to drinking water that dry mouth has been his biggest complaint.  He could fast forever if he needed to but the water thing is another story. 

An internal meds dr came to make sure he had no abdominal injuries and he does not.  He said they found 3 cysts on his liver that are not connected to this injury and will need to be followed up in a few months down the road.  Nothing to be concerned about. 

Dr. Boatwright came in after and explained the 2 options for surgery- going in from the back or from the side.  He said they were looking for a hospital that would take him since he was not trained in moving the diaphragm which would need to be moved if going in from the side which was the preferred route.  But they were making plans to transfer him either to Savannah or Charleston.  Thankfully we were found room at Memorial in Savannah.

Our dear friend Mark and KC came and gave Dallin an incredible blessing which really put my mind at ease.  After they stayed for a short visit, Dallin left via ambulance for Savannah around 1130.

I went back to church to make arrangements for the boys for the rest of the day then picked up some things from the house and drove in.

Then it was the wait game.  Since it was a trauma hospital, they start from scratch, drawing more blood and they put the neck brace back on Dallin.  That really ticked him off.  It was hot and uncomfortable and his neck had already been cleared.  4 hours later, it was taken off by Dr. Suh (rhymes with moo).  This guy is awesome.  He explained how the disk was compressed and the pros and cons to both entries for surgery.  Then he took me to see Dallin’s scans so I could completely understand what he was saying.  Wow.  It made me remember why I wanted to be a surgeon once upon a time.  Basically, Dallin’s L1 is about half the size of the other vertebrae and it protrudes into the spine canal.  So they go in from the side, pushit back into place and build a support around the disk and drill it into place.  The ONLY concern with this approach is that he has a small blood clot in the disk that they would need to screw into, possibly weakening the stability.  If they found that it was not stable, they would have to go in from the back and attach a plate.  Two surgeries,  Going in from the back means stripping away the already torn ligaments and clearing a path to the spine plus flipping him over and so the big preference is to do it from the side.  

The general surgeon will come see Dallin during his rounds tonight or tomorrow morning, make a final decision and schedule him in for surgery sometime Monday.  Hopefully!  I’d hate to see him lay there another day without progress. 

After seeing the scans and talking extensively with Dr. Suh as well as what was said in Dallin’s blessing, I strongly feel, have no doubt really, that they will choose to go in from the side and there will be no problem in stabilizing the support.  As can be expected, the whole idea of surgery especially to do with the spine makes Dallin nervous but I reassured him that if I have learned anything from my twin experience is that I completely trust my intuition and feelings on what was discussed.  I’m sure it will be one of those surgeries where the docs look back and are completely baffled by how perfect it went and how amazingly quick he healed.  Everyone is calling him the perfect surgical candidate because he is as healthy as a horse. 

Once Suh left, Dallin was cleared to eat and drink and I was happy with how much he took in before I left. The meds they had been giving him really hadn’t been cutting it all day so they gave him percocet which kicked in and really made a difference then he will be on a pain pump for the night.  I left around 930, he had eaten, drank and peed and was comfortable on meds and looking forward to getting a good sleep. 

The nurse will call me tonight when he gets scheduled and we will go from there.

The boys are doing great.  They think life is just one big play date party these last few days.  They went to church then back to Langfords and came home to their own beds where a couple friends stayed with them til I got home.  We are definitely being looked after and are so grateful for all of you.  Thank you and keep it coming. 

Urgent Prayer Request

It's 1am but I can't sleep so I will post this.

We had an accident today.  Well, Dallin did.  He fell off a roof he was cleaning, fell 20 feet.  Thankfully an azalea bush broke his fall somewhat.  He landed on his feet but knew enough to give out his knees and that is probably what saved his ankles from both shattering. 

He is okay and stable.  He has a compressed fracture vertabrae (L1) and it looks like it's going to need surgery.  They were going to transport him tonight to Savannah for it but there were no beds available.  So he is staying overnight at the HH Hospital and they will move him to Sav tomorrow.  The operation should take place tomorrow or Monday. 

Dallin is a fast healer, he calls himself Wolverine.  We both believe in miracles and so maybe this delay in surgery is a blessing in disguise.  Perhaps things will improve substantially overnight so that a surgery is no longer needed.  But whatever will heal him quickest and without long term affects is what we want to do. 

We were told that the surgery is an outpatient procedure, that he should be up and walking and be released the same day.  Then it's just a matter of taking it really, really easy and letting everything heal.

Pro- he is officially retired from roof cleaning.  He will not be going back up there nor would I let him.  His days of manual labor are quickly coming to an end. 

Con- our trip to Utah that we were supposed to take on Monday is currently rescheduled, maybe even cancelled.  It still is in question.  It depends on what options we have to rebook our flight tickets given a medical emergency situation, how fast Dallin is feeling somewhat normal and able to move and be able to manage travelling like that, all based on the outcome of the surgery.  We should know more by tomorrow. 

I left Dallin in the ER at 9pm where they were preparing to move him up to a room.  I had been there for 8 hours and we both felt that the boys (who had been at a friends house for the afternoon) would sleep better at home so I picked them up and brought them home to bed.  Dallin was comfortable when I left.  He had been on pain meds since we got there and they were doing their best to keep him comfortable.  He gave his pain a level 6 when we got there, the morphine brought it down to a 3.  Then they switched him to valium since his muscles were starting to tense and that was better and then one last drug just as I was leaving that the nurse said would give him a buzz like chugging a 6 pack of beer and help him sleep.  Within seconds, he could feel it kicking in.  I hope he sleeps like a baby tonight.  Not sure how much I will be getting. 

How am I doing, you ask?  It's been a stressful day and I am tired.  Perhaps writing this will relax me enough to fall asleep.  When I got the call, I really panicked.  So much that I had some minor contractions so I had to talk myself off the edge just to keep these babies happy.  We are all better now.  I've had a couple meltdown points but am doing okay now.  I feel alot better about the surgery being put off than the thought of us going into Savannah tonight and going under the knife.  Everything happens for a reason. 

But the one word I can give to sum up all my feelings is grateful.  It could have been SO, SO, SO much worse.  One of the first things the doc said to me was that I should go by a lottery ticket because Dallin was in amazing condition for the fall he had taken.  I am grateful that it is only a fracture when it could have been broken bones, ruptured organs, paralysis, or even death.  The Lord truly looked after him.  And I am grateful for the amazing friends that have come to our aid.  I could not have done this day without them.  We are so blessed to have such great people in our lives. 

So please pray.  Pray for the right decision to be made in regard to his healing- surgery or not.  Pray for a quick and sufficient recovery with no lasting affects.  Pray for Dallin's strength and for my strength and comfort.  Pray in gratitude that his life was spared.  And pray that this will be over before we know it.

How I Knew

This story starts a long time ago, about 15 years to be exact.  I still remember this as clear as day.  I was about 14 years old.  One day, I came into the kitchen and my dad was making a sandwich.  Whether it was lunchtime or it was before school and he was making lunches, I don’t remember.  “I had a dream about you last night,” he says.  “I had a dream you had 3 boys and 1 girl.”

That has always stuck with me and ever since then, I have felt like that was my number for the children I would have. 

So when our first was a boy, I wasn’t surprised.  We weren’t going to find out but then broke down at the ultrasound and sure enough, I was right.

With our second, I knew it was a boy the second I realized I was pregnant.  Again, no surprise there when my intuition was confirmed. 

This pregnancy was a little different.  First off, it was a really big surprise.  I had been going back and forth for a while if I could even handle another one.  With our current situation, we knew that a baby just wasn’t going to fit into the cards for about another year so we planned on starting to try for one at the end of summer, 2011. 

But then back in January, I was reading scriptures one night before bed when I heard a little voice- “It’s my turn, mama.”  I felt like it was a girls voice but I wasn’t completely sure.  But to hear it so distinctly took me by surprise, especially since we had only recently agreed that we’d wait until the end of summer. 

A few weeks after that, we were coming back from the movies with Mark and Lisa.  Somehow having babies came up and I jokingly made the comment that if God had 2 more for me, he better send them together because I had decided that I only wanted to have one more. 

But the idea of twins started following me.  I was thinking about them so much that I even asked my midwife about their twin policy even though I wasn’t pregnant yet nor did I plan on being any time soon. 

A week after asking Jill that question, I learned I was pregnant. 

At first, I felt like it was a girl.  The girl name that I found and was in love with would not leave my head.  And whenever I thought back to that little voice I had heard, it seemed like it was her that had spoken to me. 

Then the crazy hunger hit.  Remember when I blogged about this and first predicted twins?  You can read it here.  Some nights getting up 2 or 3 times to eat just because I was so insanely hungry, I felt like I would morph into a werewolf if I didn’t get some major calories into me asap. 

Then the dreams happened.  I remember having at least 2 dreams that I would have twins.  I talked about this on facebook.  Some of my friends remember this status post and cannot believe that I called it. 

But then the hunger subsided and I wasn’t growing any bigger than I had with a single boy so I started dismissing the twin idea.  But every now and then it would creep back up and I would entertain it, probably driving Dallin crazy with the constant flow of the rhetorical question- “But what if it is twins?” 

Then about 2 months ago, again at night reading my scriptures, this prompting came to me as clear as a voice from a person beside me- “Name your son _____.”  I honestly looked up from my book because it was such a profound voice. 

So that made me wonder- well, is this a boy then or are there two of them?  What was even more interesting is that I had no other boy names that I liked and even when trying to find one, I always came up with a blank. 

I told Dallin what had happened and after discussing it, we felt like maybe it was a way of telling us that we had to have one more, that we had to have a fourth, that there was one more waiting up there. 

Then about 3-4 weeks ago, Dallin came to me and said that he was bracing himself for another boy.  REALLY? was my repetitive question all day long.  After I accepted that, because my heart was really stuck on having a little girl, we started playing the name game.  We had the first name, how could we ever ignore the name I had been prompted, and played around with middle name options.  Same with the girl name.  We couldn’t pick a middle name for either sex which left us both on the fence.  Is it a boy or a girl?  Who knows- only time will tell. 

Two weeks ago- I had been worried for a few days because I hadn’t felt any baby movement yet and thought that I should have by now.  I started praying that I would feel the baby move and have my worries put to rest.  That Sunday night, I woke up in the middle of the night and was awake for several hours.  At one point, laying on my back with my hands on my belly trying to fall back asleep, Pow!  A strong boot directly into my right palm.  As soon as I felt it, I thought –girl. 

The following night there was movement again but it seemed to be ping ponging from one side to the other very quickly.  I thought that either she was swimming really fast laps in there or was there still a chance that there were two?????

So when those two little heads popped up on the ultrasound screen, it was a shock to realize that all those dreams and promptings and preparatory experiences had been right.  I had been right.  I wasn’t crazy.  I had always known it was twins.  The Lord had been slowly bracing me for this reality for several weeks and now I knew it for sure.  How grateful I am that He was loving enough to break the news to me slowly, bit by bit, prompting by prompting.  A few of my friends were completely blown away that I had called it from the get-go and I still shake my head to realize that I really had known all along.  I will never doubt my intuition ever again!  I am just grateful that I am in tune enough to hear and to listen and to acknowledge that communication from my Heavenly Father. 

What an incredible journey it has been already and what a wonderful story to tell these babies years from now.  And to think this is only the beginning….

PS- that first kick that I felt?  It was exactly where Baby A is positioned, where she is taking up her space. 

Both doing summersaults. 



Face on right side, looking at the camera, arms up by her head-the same way I was laying. 



Profile on right side. 

Being a little shy and not sitting still for his closeup.  head on left side, left hand up by his head. 

Taking a quick glance at the camera. 

Experience the moment with us

Ya gotta see it to believe it!

Daddy's Day

We took some quick shots before flying out the door for church.  They were indeed quick shots as most of them turned out blurry due to me not having my camera set right and two squirmy boys who just wanted to explore the backyard. 

I've got slow cooker pot roast perfuming the house and artisan bread dough rising.  Going to roast potatoes and carrots and onions, have a simple salad of greens, carrots, tomato and avocado, raspberry lemonade and ice cream for dessert. 

I am so grateful first for my amazing father.  I had to speak today and couldn't talk about him without crying.  He is such a solid part of faith and support in my life.  I love you, Dad! 

And I am so grateful for Dallin, for being the best father I could ever ask for for my children.  I love you, babe!

Proof

"Mama, I so tuckered out."

So tuckered out after the afternoon in the paddling pool that he couldn't even finish his apple slices. 

Dace Ditties

The other morning, Dallin and Dace had this conversation:

Dallin- Dace, do you know my first name?

Yeah.

What is it?

Dallin!

That's right.  Do you know my middle name?

Um.....yeah!

What?

Daddy!
____
Sometimes, Dace will give me random lists of his favorite things, just out of the blue during the day.  Yesterday's list was- Mommy, I like Thomas, sleeping and treats. 

A few weeks ago, it was - Mommy, I like puppies and kitties and blue {as in the color.}
_____
Dace's favorite phrase this week- Mama, I'm all tuckered out.

Favorite word- actually.  And yes, he has actually used it correctly. 

Spoon Skills

Zade wants to be a big boy, just like his older brother.  He copies everything Dace does and now Zade wants to sit at the table and eat with a utensil.  He's only had a spoon for a couple days and is really getting the hang of it.  Nana's orange salad for dessert was a great practice food at lunch today. 

Healthy Big Boy

Dace had his 3 year check up today and passed with flying colors. 

He is in the 80% for height, 75% for weight.

Our pediatrician thinks he'll land somewhere in the 6'2'' range when he is done growing.

 Dace is smart and strong and healthy and happy and that is all we could ever ask for. 

Color Your World

I love that I have a garden and can plant and tend to beautiful flowers all season, possibly all year long if I feel like transplanting through the change of seasons.  Now that the flowers are in and doing wonderfully, my next project is to get some potting plants going.  I want to grow lettuce, green onions, herbs, and a couple tomato plants. 

I wish I had a BEFORE picture.  I thought I took one when we first came to look at the house, but no.  Just imagine the garden with 5 years of untended weeds growing from it.  It was a bit of work to de-weed and prep for planting but I loved doing it.  Here are the AFTERs:

This was the first section I did.  It is the corner garden closest to the door.  Lisa brought me a potted petunia for a house warming gift and it has at least doubled in size since transplant.  I got a couple smaller bunches and planted around the potted one and now they have grown into each other and I love how big and full and colorful it is.  I used sea shells that I had in my craft box and pushed them into the dirt.  It looks so pretty.  /I need a better closeup to show them. 

The first corner of the path.  The sunflowers in the back will be a bit disproportionate at 4.5 feet tall but they will be beautiful and bright and yellow, Dace's favorite, and will attract all sorts of critters that he loves to watch. 

The rest of the path.  I am really happy with the color palette that I chose.  I was working with a budget and tried to stay in the clearance section of walmart.  The petunias and red velenas are all wave plants so by the end of summer they should all be grown together and surrounding the marigolds with little dirt exposed.  Can't wait to see the bed that full of blossoms.  We scooped buckets and buckets of dried up oyster shells from the shoreline to throw in the back under the bushes.  I love how it brightens it up and the idea has been a total hit with all the neighbors.  Free landscaping-can't beat that. 

Our house.  I don't think I have posted a pic of it yet. 

Next up - A serious overhaul on the grass.  It's been neglected for about 5 years too.  But we'll revive it...hopefully. 

And what's a post without a picture of our BEBs...

Meeting cousins

Dace and Zade finally met some Racicot cousins over the last few weeks.  My older sister Charelle lives in Ottawa and she and her family travelled down the coast for their summer holiday- stopping in at DC, our house, a week at Disney then another stop at our place on the way back.

The kids hit it off right away.  Dace was so excited all week for them to arrive.  He learned all 3 of their names and kept asking about his cousins.  I loved watching them play and interact- they were so cute and so great playing with each other. 

Both weekends were a jam-packed blur but so much fun and so worth it.  Weekend 1- we had a full Saturday together.  We went on a dolphin boat tour, then lunch at the Sea Shack, siesta then Dace went shopping with his cousins while Dallin, Zade and I attended a function at the church.  Sunday was church and naps as usual, followed by a great seashell pick on the beach.

Weekend 2 started on a Sunday, with me doing their family pictures on the beach that evening.  Then Monday was non-stop: playtime in the morning so Char and Chris could go shopping in peace, a feast of Mexican food for lunch at our favorite spot, a swim at our pool, a trip for frozen custard, a quick last dip in the ocean and play time on the beach then back home where the guys took over and ordered pizza and Char and I went out to hit the outlets one last time.  That Monday was pretty much a perfect day.

We wish we lived closer so these little guys could grow up together.  But the distance will force us to make it more of a priority to get together, more than just every 3.5 years.  We are working on a long term stay for next summer. 

Aenea would have collected shells all night if we would have let her. 

Low tide is very, very muddy. 

Trains were a hit for Baeden and Dace- instant bonding. 

Back yard pool time. 

Boys on boat. 

The dolphin tour...and Dace making himself at home in a family photo. 

Cousins.