The Grahams

Best Friends

2012-02-05T20:32:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago as I got off the phone with a best friend from high school, Avery asked me who I was talking to.

(she has to know EVERYTHING)

Our conversation continued a little longer and then I asked Avery who her Best Friend was; without hesitation she replied: "oh mom that's easy, Ansley."

She has asked me multiple times this week, "when is Ansley going to wake up from her nap? I want her to play with me."

I can't put into words how happy this makes me :)

Proud Wife Moment

2011-11-29T21:36:00.000-08:00

All my blog posts (when I'm posting) revolve mainly around the kids and different activities we're caught up in.

Today the Man Behind the Scenes made his debut on the UAMS website! You can check it out here: http://www.uams.edu/update/absolutenm/templates/news2003v2.asp?articleid=10946&zoneid=29

He HATES it when I get all sappy and cheesy but I'm so glad I found him:) He's Pretty Awesome! & I feel pretty Lucky<3

Taylor Swift Baby!!!!!!

2011-10-12T18:23:00.000-07:00

Back in February I learned Taylor Swift was coming to Little Rock in October. I got online to find tickets possibly for Avery's birthday, and Holy Cow-- tickets for seats in the nose bleeds were almost $100.00!!!!! I'd looked on ebay and Craigslist too with no luck for less expensive tickets. I have listened to the radio for multiple ways to win and tried so many times I couldn't possibly count.

The 2 days before the concert, KSSN played Taylor Swift songs each hour and when you heard a song you had to be a certain caller to win tickets. I listened both days, ALL DAY. Even Joey helped me call when he got home from school and in the mornings.

The day of the concert I was at a friends house here in my ward. I was cutting her kids' hair and she was asking me what I'd been up to. I laughingly told her what a dork I was, and how I finally told myself I needed to get some things done and turned the radio off. She said, "Taylor Swift, you say?" I responded, "Yes." She then went on to casually say that she thought her husband had some tickets and they didn't really care much for country and wouldn't be using them. She proceeded to call him. He didn't answer cause he was in a meeting. I didn't get my hopes up. I had already told myself it wasn't going to happen. We left the Hansen's around 3pm.

On the way home from picking Joey up from school, I get a call and my phone says Jennifer H.. (My friend here in the ward) I seriously think my heart skipped a beat, ok maybe 2! I answered and she told me she had 4 tickets for me that I could come pick up cause the concert was in 2 hours!!!!!!

We quickly drove home.

I was so giddy!

Avery ran into her room and grabbed her cowgirl boots. I put mine on too:)

We got dressed and were on our way with more excitement than I can possibly write.

We were jammin' out to Taylor the whole way there.

& Jennifer's daughter, Wesleigh, came with us. (Avery loves her)

I just hope she always will want her mama to go to concerts with her!

Such CUTE & FUN girls!

At the car headed into the Concert!!! Woo Hoo!

Taylor Swift Baby!!!!!!!

Wesleigh told me some of her friends from school were going. I told her not to get her hopes up because the verizon arena is a big place. How fun that we DID in fact run into them:)

Waiting for the concert to start!

Silly faces

More silly faces!

Wesleigh was one of my activity day girls and there is Never a dull moment with her!

Between her and Avery I felt like a kid again and we partied it up!

In one of Taylor's advertisement posters for Cover Girl she is striking a pose with her arms behind her head.

The girls asked me what she was doing...

I told them she was posing, then they started doing it- hahahaha

Everything was so P.R.E.T.T.Y.

Avery was singing every word to Mean

Some day I'll be livin' in a big ol' city... Why you gotta be so mean

She was crackin' me up and I was lovin' it!

We were all 3 standing up, screaming, and singing the majority of the time.

So FUN

My favorite performance of the night:

(Back to December) + some lyrics from the song-It's too late to apologize...

She played the piano, fake snow fell, and she wore a beautiful light blue sparkly dress.

Just BEAUTIFUL

Before we left she came to the back (closer to where we were) and the last song we heard before we left was Fearless!!!!!

She plays the guitar, the banjo, the fiddle, the piano...

She has got talent!!!!

We <3 Taylor Swift

Although I acted like a crazy teenager squealing the whole night, I DID responsibly leave at 9:45pm (before it was over). Poor Avery hadn't had a nap and her head was a bobbin'. She cried when I finally decided we needed to leave. I also realized I hadn't talked with Jennifer about a time to get Wesleigh home...

So UNFORTUNATELY, we left before it was over, BUT I was/am GRATEFUL for EVERY minute of it!

It was a night to remember & we are still talking about it!

ANSLEY 1 YEAR

2011-10-03T18:25:00.000-07:00

ANSLEY TURNS ONE (well back in July)

We celebrated Ansley's 1st birthday with some close friends and Joey's mom and youngest sister also came into town to celebrate the big day with us!

We are continuously grateful to have her here as part of our family.

& A special visit to Children's was unquestionably amongst the festivities to celebrate this special day:)

Lately:

Ansley will go grab her shoes and bring them to me to put them on her when I say we are going bye-bye.

She runs and starts yanking on the freezer door when I announce its time for a popsicle.

Her pink blankie and baw-baw go everywhere with us.

She starts flailing her arms and squealing da-da when we pull into the UAMS parking lot to pick up Daddy. (Joey is yet to hear it- and doesn't believe me & Avery)

She is into EVERYTHING

Playing with her new kitchen!

& lovin' her handmade pillow from our friends!

Friends and Family who came!

Racing around the corner to find out what is going on!

and 2 months later--

She is a walking tornado...

& a ball of non-stop energy-
We call her and Avery "Double Trouble"

I tell them multiple times not to play on this table-

So she recruits a partner in crime.
& although Pickett (our cat) is not in the pic, they were playing a game where they hang their arms off the table and Pickett paws at them. They giggle and giggle and think its the most hilarious thing:)

One morning Avery told me that she was going to cook me up a snack.
I hear some crazy giggling going on and I walk in to find out what's cookin'...

ANSLEY!!!!!!

I can't get enough of these girls.
Some moments I think I'm so ready for Avery to be in PreK, but its moments like these I think, "I/We are going to be so sad when she goes to school."
They crack me up!

Difference a Year Can Make

2011-10-02T20:09:00.000-07:00

Last Summer:

If so much as a tiny droplet of water came anywhere near Avery's face, she would dart quickly out of the pool and search for the nearest towel.

& She rarely ventured from the shallow end of the pool.

{which was very frustrating to a mama who lifeguarded and taught swim lessons throughout High School and College :/ }

On the Other Hand This Summer:

We joined our neighborhood pool and a visit there has become part of our DAILY routine.

They have a very laid back swim team and told Avery if she wanted to join they allow the younger ones to swim with floaties.

Her first meet was 2 weeks ago ( I forgot the camera) and she swam it WITHOUT her floaties!

She has become our fearless little fish and jumps off the diving board all by herself too.

At her first meet, she finished far behind the other kids she swam against but she had no clue and was all smiles as the other kids on her team were chanting, "Avery, Avery, Avery." I got a little teary eyed-(I think I'm becoming my mom) But it was so sweet. As soon as she got out the other kids were there telling her, "good job" and giving her high fives.

This week she did better and beat her old time by a little more than 5 seconds!!!!

She loves it and we love watching!!!

Avery waiting for her turn with the other 3 year old on the team Oliver

(This was obviously from the summer, I'm just late on posting)

Now that the weather has cooled off and the pool has closed, Avery had expressed interest in wanting to take dance, ballet, or gymnastics. I looked into a few and we decided on gymnastics. She LOVES it and today she walked the balance beam all by herself with pointed toe kicks, before jumping in the pit. (that is her fav part) I love watching her, its so CUTE!

Avery before her first day of Gymnastics & my CUTE lil Dawg Fan:

Penny and Izzy's visit

2011-10-02T20:05:00.000-07:00

My cousin Penny came to visit this past week.

Ever since we were kids we have been such great friends. So many of my favorite childhood memories include visits to Bay City or their visits to our house. I remember in grade school writing letters to each other and always being excited for the mail. We lived about 5 hours apart, but our dads were good about getting together often. As we got into high school we were always there for each other (especially to vent about the dramatic things high schoolers gab about). Then we went off to college together, her a year before me. She got into BYU and I did not. She was there to listen to me cry as I thought the world had ended! I ended up at UVSC (now UVU) and we lived in neighboring apartments. We have been there for each other through so many of life's obstacles and so many wonderful and exciting things as well. We lifeguarded and taught swim lessons together. I was there the night of her proposal... The list goes on and on...

Since getting married we have only gotten together a hand full of times:( Funny how life does that...

This past spring her brother, Craig, (my cousin) passed away at the young age of 26.

I remember the day, the time, the place and what I was wearing after I had received a text from her saying, "Can you call me asap". After having heard the news, I was at a loss for words and miles away.

If I had to describe Craig in 2 words they would be smart and thoughtful.

I found this pic of him taken at my wedding and I love it.

(Craig & Suzette)-

I know it has been a hard year for her but I continue to be amazed by her strength, faith, steadfastness in the gospel and her outlook on life. Though there is but a year between us, I look up to her so much.

Penny is one of those people after having spent time with her, you walk away knowing you are a better person! It was such a treat to have her and sweet Izzy here with us this last week!

Some pics from our week:

The girls loved having Izzy here to play with!

We were riding 3 wide in the Accord! (I told Joey if we ever get brave enough to have a third I'll definitely be wanting that Odyssey I always dream about. (who would have ever thought I'd dream of owning a minivan?!?!)

The weather was so perfect we played outside a lot

Izzy was so Cute she wanted to ride the big girl bike

giving Ansley hugs!

Love these CUTE girls

While Avery was at preschool Izzy and Ansley played at the tubes & loved the fish tank

I had to take Penny to the Rhea Lana sale (the most awesome name brand consignor sale)

too bad she didn't have a suitcase big enough to take this back in, Izzy loved it! It made noises too!

Had to get a tub shot

Ring a round the rosies after bath time

Playing at Peabody Park on the Arkansas River

On one of the Pedestrian Bridges

& of course we had to see the Ducks walk the red carpet at the Peabody Hotel

If Penny and I had not been standing close I'm positive they'd have all dove in with ducks!

The Wildlife Museum

Izzy liked the Bear

She loved Pickett, sadly I think Ansley has pulled his tail too many times b/c anyone who looks 'young' he now runs from... I was trying to get him to sit with her.

More outdoor play

Wagon Rides

& blowing bubbles.

Penny and I also had a girls night (thank you honey) and went out to eat Mexican food of course! & then squeezed in some shopping down at the Promenade. (I had never been there--AWESOME)

We came home -talked, laughed, cried, and vowed there are some stories (from our teenage years) our kids will never know about!

Although by Thursday, Penny and I felt much like referees with the girls- Avery is already asking when Penny and Izzy are going to visit again:)

Guilty

2011-08-29T21:42:00.000-07:00

I know my blog posting has been scarce.

I have a lot to catch up on.

This is why its hard to get caught up with anything-

I walked downstairs for a second to get my clothes out of the dryer and I come up to find...

2 girls playing in the water

emptying the soap dispenser

and half a tube of toothpaste in the sink

(I heard some mischievous giggling as I was walking up the stairs, peaked in on them and opted to grab the camera before they had to help clean it all up:)

Then they try to play the "but mom" look on me-

and it halfway worked. (how do they learn this so young?!?!?!)

& I can't help but laugh when Ansley is sporting a "panty necklace", as Avery informed me -thank goodness they were clean!!!

Oh these Girls!

Its a good thing they're CUTE:)

5 Years

2011-07-08T10:45:00.000-07:00

5 years ago today I married my Best Friend!

{I'll just leave it at that and not get too mushy here on blogger}

Some of my fav memories of just us over the years

Manti Pageant 2006

July 8, 2006

On Marta for the Cowboys/ Falcons Game 2007 (for the record-COWBOYS WON)

Disney World 2008

Up in the old Gold Mines Cooke City, MT 2009

& all those GA football games! Rain or Shine:)

Love you Joey

Father's Day

2011-07-02T21:44:00.000-07:00

We love DADDY!!!!

We started the morning off with Cinnamon Rolls (Daddy's fav)

and Avery gave him the card she wrote for him along with some treats she picked out.

(She was so proud she wrote it all herself. I just told her which letters to write and to leave spaces or else it would all be one long word)

We came home and had a ham for dinner and just relaxed and spent time together.

I love those days.

Little Photo Session after Church:

Kisses for Daddy

Ansley says, I'm tired of this-

But if I have to I'll just pick my nose

Or pull my hair out

I couldn't have picked a better Daddy for my kiddos.
He is the BEST!

Kitchen in Stages

2011-06-21T11:06:00.000-07:00

When we bought the house:

The kitchen gutted, new sub-flooring and paint:

Joey and I opted to save some $ and do the flooring ourselves (with the help of my brother)

Oh and Avery too!

Such CUTE workers

Flooring complete:

With Appliances:

Excluding light fixtures and cabinet hardware its FINISHED-whew:

I've never been so excited to cook and do dishes before!

Memorial Day Weekend

2011-06-21T10:18:00.000-07:00

For Memorial Day weekend we headed down to my parents house!

The guys went fishing early Saturday morning and they caught quite a bit.

Avery joined the guys and said she loved it.

She doesn't look so sure...

Later we headed over to Shreveport for the Mudbug Festival.

I have been telling Joey about this since we have been married and was excited to take him even though he does not love crawfish like I do;)

So I know this pic is a little tacky but I can't help but laugh because there was another one of these set up in the kid area and the display was with mudbugs in the sun. The line for that one was really long and I didn't feel like waiting. When I saw another picture cut out place with no line I gave the camera to mom and rushed back with Joey to hold the girls up. I guess this is why there were no kids in line for this one...:)

The rest are pics from the festival with the family.

We love being able to spend time with them!

Grandpa introducing Ansley to crawfish

My baby brother

Its always fun to go back to the ward I grew up in

Ansley seems so grown up to me now :(

Mom got a new dishwasher while we were there and Avery and Joey made a house out of the box.
I love that Joey gets older and older but still he knows how to be a kid!
He is the BEST

Blowing Bubbles with Grandma

My good friend growing up and College Roomie Robyn came in that weekend too and we got together with her and her husband Sunday afternoon.

We talked and laughed and reminisced on old times.

Robyn with Ansley

BFF's!!!!

Our last weekend with Mingi.

He left to go back to South Korea and we will miss him!

When we got back we headed to opening weekend at the neighborhood pool.

The girls LOVE the water!

Mother's Day

2011-06-20T21:27:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day was such a treat this year!

My Mommy came up to visit and helped me with our new house.

We started out in the flower bed and between myself, mom, Mingi and Joey we pulled out all the old stuff, including 3 stumps and replaced it with this:

The girls loved spending time with her.

Originally Dad hadn't planned on coming up BUT I think he felt like he was missing out on all the FUN- all this stuff is right up his alley.

He called in and got off work so he could come up too!

He pressure washed the back decks for us (see how he put TEXAS in it as he was doing it)

and cleaned out the creepy crawl space.

He is pretty AWESOME!

Mom helping me out;)

Mingi and Avery working

Avery loving on Grandma

Ansley loving all the popsicles Grandma feeds her

My girls love Mingi so much and so do we!

Joey and I call him our Brother from another Mother;)

It was a wonderful Mother's Day weekend

& I didn't have to cook, clean, or change diapers!!!!

Adventures with the Wallentines

2011-06-20T19:21:00.000-07:00

The Wallentine's, some friends of ours from GA, came out and stayed with us back in April and May while Ryan did a rotation for PA school at Arkansas Children's Hospital. It was a crazy time (with moving and the construction on the house) but it was a FUN time!

We went to different parks and grilled out frequently.

These pics are taken at Pinnacle Mountain Park.

The girls would rather play in this little creek than on the playground.

Cute Carter (I LOVE THE FOHAWK!)

If I ever have a little boy he WILL have this hairstyle!!!!

For Ryan and Kristen's anniversary they went to the symphony here in Little Rock- courtesy of the Myers- and we had a fun movie night with the kiddos.

These two are what we like to call DOUBLE TROUBLE and LIPGLOSS QUEENS... the list goes on

Kristen and I have decided the best description for these two would be "Frienemies"

When they were having fun and sharing they were the best of friends BUT when they were arguing we wanted to string them by their toes off the balcony;) (not really of course)

We went to see Belle at the library for storytime.

Avery loved her!

Pic of all of us with Princess Belle

So you'd think that if one of these two were to be the bully- it'd be Carter- I mean he's twice her size!

But no, it was all I could do to keep Ansley from being too rough with him!!!!! She loves him:)

We also celebrated Easter together!

We made a trip down the park on the river with Abigail and her girls
(& this is what Kristen would look like with 6 kids hehehe)

& Avery wants us to get a minivan now!

We couldn't let them come to LR without seeing the Ducks at the Peabody Hotel

Lunch at the Rumba Room on the river- CAN NEVER GET ENOUGH MEXICAN FOOD!

More fun times at the park

& this $8 kiddie pool occupied many hours of our time!!!!

They all loved splashing around in this

We also took a weekend trip to Memphis and the girls were excited to have a slumber party!

We love our daddies!!!!

& love when they get home!!!!

Our last night we made a fun trip over to Chuck E Cheese.

It was a FUN 2 months!

We miss them and these CUTE kiddos!

The working video!

2011-06-05T19:34:00.000-07:00

LOOK WHO'S WALKING

(the other one, from the previous post is not working for some reason)

At this point... all you can do is laugh:)

2011-06-02T21:33:00.000-07:00

So our kitchen first went from looking like this

& this:

To this:

We were welcomed into our new home by a pesky little or should I say big rat! (it still makes me shudder to think about it) If you put your two fists together that was the size!

This was no ordinary rat- I kid you not this stinker was SMART

I had Terminex come out 3 times

We originally set out the sticky pads- we found his paw marks on it- but NO rat

We set out peanut butter on the snap traps- peanut butter licked clean off but still NO rat

One night I left the trash on the floor and he went for the banana peels so...

we loaded every trap with banana around the trash, set up the baby monitor so we could hear when he came, and took shifts trading off to catch the darn thing! Problem was as soon as he heard us coming he would escape.

After this DIDN'T work- we set up our own trap and used the two lap tops to set up a video.

We wanted to see exactly where he was and where he was coming from.

The rat would enter and exit under the dishwasher - so Joey set up this speaker box with a rope connected to a wooden spoon that came out to the living room. When we saw the rat come out the plan was to pull the rope so the speaker box would drop and block off his escape route. It almost worked and Joey got a couple of good hits on him but the box didn't drop flush with the dishwasher so he got away again. It was like Ratatouille in our kitchen. (I started thinking maybe we should just find a trap like the one Gus-Gus was caught in in Cinderella) But after the night we almost got him he hasn't been back.

So after all this we NEVER caught him.

Unfortunately, there was a terrible smell for about a week and I'm pretty sure it was him.

He must have tried the rat poison Terminex put out on their 3rd visit

This went on for a week; Avery named him Squirt and apparently prayed for us to catch him when asked to give the prayer in her primary class.

After the big rat fiasco we now are in the process of redoing the kitchen and a lot of other things, but this is the main focus now.

The demolition crew came out today to take out the cabinets

& unfortunately this is what they found:

(No not a dead rat- that would have been better)

The particle board under the sink and dishwasher is rotted from a previous leak

The bad news:

We have been so good about sticking to our budget without having to use the Contingency $ and now we'll have to use it- but at least we have it left to use.

They will have to rip up all the old particle board and put in new subflooring as it extends into the parque so we will need new floors too.

Also the guy who is to install the cabinets leaves to go on vacation Saturday for a week and then they are booked with appointments for a couple weeks after he returns.

That means 3 weeks without a kitchen

We also have been working on the bathrooms and the tile guy ripped out all the vanities so for the time being we are brushing our teeth, washing our hands, and drinking water from the tub faucet :)

However,

The Good News is:

At least we found the problem and can make things right

I'm pretty excited about new floors

Its a good thing Joey and Avery could live off pizza because for the next 3 weeks we'll be having lots of Little Ceasars Pizza :)

In the meantime my beautiful new cabinets will sit in these lovely boxes until things are taken care of-

At this point all we can do is laugh- it will be funny to look back on and laugh too!

& I know it will be worth it.

For a fun and beautiful kitchen remodel to glance at check out my cousin Suzette's!

Now ours won't be near like hers (that'd be awesome if it were) but I love looking at her ideas and how well everything coordinates!!!
Its Beautiful!

On a more positive note

Avery is loving helping with the house and her room is coming along nicely

My dad (Grandpa) is very proud!

My sweet 92 year old Grandma asked if there was anything we needed for our new home.

I quickly remembered all the paintings she painted herself that hung in her home. I asked her if she had any extra and told her my color schemes. She sent a big box and I chose this one for Avery's room.

I plan on sanding and repainting the dresser white, the front face of the drawers pink and leave the knobs white. Its all coming together a little at a time.

& BIG NEWS Ansley started walking a few days shy of being 10 months!

She AMAZES me multiple times a day!!!!!
We sure love this girl

Lil Miss

2011-05-16T21:34:00.000-07:00

I've been feeling a little guilty lately...

I didn't get to making Ansley an Easter dress, she gets all the hand me downs, I haven't been as good about posting her progress each month like I did with Avery...

2nd kids get the short end of the stick-

So here is a post of Lil Miss Ansley

who is getting into EVERYTHING!

<9 mo. stats>

she weighs 16 lbs 8 oz

and is 27 3/4 in. long
She also now has 4 teeth!

She is Avery's #1 fan and is ALWAYS trying to keep up with her!

Sweet Sisters

Ansley is a very determined little girl- she does not let big sis push her around!

I always know if Avery or one of her friends has taken something from her because she lets out this really loud grunt/shriek, tries to get the toy back on her own and if that fails she comes quickly crawling or looking for me!

Already a little flirt!

She knows the meaning of the word "NO" very well!

After she hears me say it she quickly avoids eye contact and buries her head in her lap or the ground.

UNLESS she has something I don't want her to- in this case she quickly sticks it in her mouth or tucks it in her hand and bolts as fast as she can in the other direction! - Cute Little Stinker

During the move all she wanted to do was climb all over the boxes

She loves to play and have FUN! & is such a SMILY little girl:)

Joey really is Super Dad!

Such Cute Kiddos!

She has also figured out how to move these chairs to more easily reach things she wants-

it makes me so nervous!

But she thinks its HILARIOUS

I could just eat her up ALL. DAY. LONG.

Between her and Avery I am one busy Mama

Lastly, she is Sooooo Close to Walking its scary!

She puts herself in a bear crawl position then pushes up off the floor in a standing position and has taken 2-4 steps several times. {First time was 5/6/11} It is only a matter of time...

Step By Step

2011-05-04T21:31:00.000-07:00

While the house construction and renovations are far from being complete I thought it'd be fun to track our progress-

These are some pics I took while we were first looking at the house

This wallpaper was the first thing to come down once we closed on the house!

Joey and I could see it had potential and have been working on it since we got it.

I'm becoming quite the "handy-manny", Avery tells me.

Not complete- (I'm searching for the perfect rug, lamp and antique chair within my meager budget!)

But Still there is something satisfying about turning an ugly (or not so attractive) area into something more beautiful ~sigh~

More updates to come!

ps If anyone wants the ceiling fan- its yours (now don't everyone fight over it at once;)

Easter

2011-05-02T07:55:00.000-07:00

We began the festivities with an Easter Egg hunt Good Friday with lots of our church friends

It was very muddy, but made for some good puddle jumpin' for the kiddies!

Avery and a few of her buddies

Off to hunt eggs!

I actually forgot my camera for the egg hunt-- But some of my good friends got these great pics of my kiddos! Thanks gals:)

Ansley and Theo

His mom and I had the same due date... He is two weeks older!

& Sunday the Easter Bunny paid our new house a visit!

**I really wanted to be moved into our new house for Easter so- we moved in Easter weekend.

In my mind it all worked out nicely and envisioned us being all settled by Easter morn.

This was not the case and yet again my unrealistic expectations didn't turn out as planned

BUT I did finish Avery's Easter dress by 3am Sunday morning (in time for Easter) and we had a Fantastic Easter morning. (Despite boiling water for baths and our big key fiasco- but we'll save that for another post)

This is not how I pictured Easter morn in my head but still good:)

We also talked about the resurrection and in my primary class I ventured from the book a little and let all the kids talk about Jesus (their favorite stories and how they feel about him)

It was such a refreshing Sunday and yet another reminder of how grateful I am for our Savior's sacrifice for each of us.

The girls and the goodies

Our friends from GA shared Easter with us and it was a treat!

I would have never stayed up til 3am to sew alone...

Pics of our CUTIES

It must be impossible to get 4 kids to look at the camera all at once

Ansley and Carter

I know she loves having a play date all the time like big sis

Avery and Aubrey

Neither are looking

But this is them:)

Ansley was loving huntin' the eggs

Such a big girl-- makes me a lil sad

& of course lovin' the chocolate

GA trip

2011-04-16T20:30:00.000-07:00

For Spring Break we went to Georgia!

Our first stop was Roman and Kayla's house (Dallas, GA)

Avery was very excited to see Cody and they played and played!!

We went and ate hot wings, took the kids to the park and Kayla and I got a little shopping in!

We were very excited that the Georgia Bulldogs made the tournament this year although they didn't get very far...

Ansley still cheered them on:)

Next Stop: Athens, GA

We stayed with Hannah and Jason. Avery was VERY excited to see Roxy and get to play with their dogs.

Uncle Jason taught Avery some stuff on the PS move

I was surprised by how well Ansley was with Hannah and Jason's dogs. She warmed right up to them despite their urge to give her lots of kisses.

While we were in Athens we also went and visited Brian and Claibourne.

We drove up to Jefferson and had dinner together and the girls played.

It was so fun to be reunited with so many of our old friends back in Athens. When we walked into church it was so nice to exchange hugs, tears, and laughter with old friends as we quickly caught each other up with recent happenings. The ladies also changed playgroup to accomodate me and I got more time with some of my dear friends and their kiddos;) It was a treat!!!

Avery with her buds Kayden and Addi

Avery and Addi

Ansley enjoyed the swings and the weather was perfect!

We also went visited and had dessert with the Beckstead's while we were in Athens.

Ansley's buddies

Azilee, Ansley, Mallory & Andrew(Mallory's twin--not sure how he escaped the pic)

Midweek we headed to Marietta to Joey's parents house.

Avery and Taylor had a makeover party where they painted their finger and toenails and put on lip gloss

They also did lots of coloring with the new crayon tower Uncle Kevin got for Avery.

Ansley always wanted to catch up with everyone and not be left behind-

she learned very quickly how to get up the stairs...

She was quite pleased with herself and now mommy does not get a free moment!

The weather was incredible we spent a lot of time outside

like on the trampoline! Avery's crazy hair with her funny faces;)

& Crack the egg with Aunt Kimi

We got to spend a lot of time with Aunt Kimi!!!! (which means LOTS of laughter!)

Ansley and Grandpa!

Ansley got her turn on the trampoline too and she was LOVING it!

The girls loved the extra time they got with Daddy too!

We also went and cheered on Jeni at her track meet

The Crew playing Bochi Ball

More girl time

Then Jill and her kids came over and played too!

They built fortresses, played with play-doh, hide and seek and many other fun games

And Grandma and Grandpa watched all the kiddos while Joey, Jill, Kimi Jason and myself hit up our fav mexican restaurant in Marietta Los Cazadores and had a great time!

We loved our trip and by the end we were all exhausted!!! & Avery cried all the way to Birmingham, AL and told us she wasn't ready to leave yet...

1st half of March

2011-04-16T19:47:00.000-07:00

First part of March Joey had lots of tests, judged an elementary school science fair, and also helped with campus visits for the upcoming prospective graduate class at UAMS. Things were busy, busy, busy. But For my birthday a couple of my sweet friends here coordinated with Joey and put together a surprise 'Thai' (my fav) birthday dinner for me! It was DELICIOUS and meant a lot especially considering both of them were in that first trimester of pregnancy and VERY sick, yet still managed to cook the yummy meal!!!! Thanks gals!

Avery thinks she is Ansley's mommy sometimes and since Ansley is so light she will just pick her up and carry her around places. (Makes me a little nervous but Ansley always has a HUGE smile on her face; she loves being with big sis)

Somehow we managed to squeeze in a quick Memphis weekend trip and went to the temple! It was so nice and it had been a while since we'd been...

& I'm learning to worry less about messes and just let them have fun:) I still worry about little pieces as Ansley loves to put anything she can get her hands on in her mouth.

On my actual birthday some friends of ours from GA came out to visit and both girls loved getting to play with little Evie.

& my sweet mom and dad also came up just because and got to spoil and love on the girls while she was here:)

Avery and I get some time together while Ansley naps and recently during this time we like to bake. Well, if licking the spoon and bowl CLEAN counts as baking:)

OURS

2011-04-03T21:02:00.000-07:00

This "Diamond in the Rough" has consumed A LOT of our time these past few months

BUT after 3 months of having an offer on this foreclosure, inspections, lots of paperwork, an appraisal, and a final walk through-- its OURS!

We are very excited!!! ESPECIALLY Avery

We have already started working on it and Avery is always outside playing collecting leaves, sticks and flowers:)

We hope to move in in 2 weeks and maybe I can get the blog caught up on our recent happenings.

Including a FUN trip to GA and excited to have some our BEST friends from GA here with us for this next month while they do a rotation at Arkansas Childrens Hospital!!!!!

These Two

2011-02-27T19:50:00.000-08:00

I love when babies get about 6+ months old and their personalities start to really blossom!

Not that I don't love the newborn stage but the 6+ month stage brings new elements I really enjoy.

Ansley cracks me up-- she always wants to be around Avery.

Every morning when we wake up I get Avery a cup of 'bunny' (aka milk) while I get breakfast going.

Ansley always wants Avery's cup. So I got smart (well, somewhat) and got Ansley her own cup with water so she wouldn't take Avery's.

But still Avery's cup is better! & for the most part Avery is a good sport about it!

Morning Cuddling

(melts mommy's heart)

Ansley's first pump knot! So stinkin' CUTE!

Playing peek-a-boo with big sis

Avery and her babies! THEY ARE REAL!

She acknowledges them each by name and even feeds them.

I walked in the other day before she was laying them down for a nap and she had pinky pie under her shirt feeding her...

I think I too may be entering into this imaginary world, or we've watched too much Toy Story or maybe I'm going crazy you tell me...

For the longest time Sunshine Bear has been her special toy. Special as in I don't make her share it and it goes everywhere with us. Recently she rediscovered her Pinky Pie Pony which is a little cooler than Sunshine (who only rattles). Pinky Pie talks when you press her feet, and makes a sucking sound when you place a bottle in her mouth. Well, we have a rule when we go somewhere that we only take one thing/toy with us. Otherwise our car would end up a disaster area! The other day she wanted to take them both and I told her just one. This time she chose Pinky Pie ( previously its always been Sunshine Bear). My first thought was about poor Woody and how he felt when Andy chose Buzz over him and do you know what I did?!?! I let her take BOTH of them...

I think I really might be going crazy...

This month Avery has been working on her Articles of Faith

Daddy and her come up with pictures to help her remember the words on her glow board.

Ansley wanting out!

I love finding them in the mornings-

Sometimes Avery is laying in her bed telling Ansley to be quiet.

Other times Avery is throwing toys into the crib for Ansley and they are both laughing hysterically:)

Miss Ansley got her first haircut! & now I'm dying for the sides to get longer so I can give a full A-line Bob! Look at her pulling herself up and those yummy rolls!

These two

Rock our World!!!!

My Valentine

2011-02-17T21:23:00.000-08:00

Doesn't get much hotter than this:

Man I love him!

We enjoyed our Valentine's celebration a few days early and got a babysitter so we could go see "Just Go With It!" We have both been waiting for this to come out & it was HILARIOUS!!! After the movie we came home, relieved the babysitter and grabbed the girls to go get some Krispy Kreme Valentine's Donuts! They were Delicious! Hope you all had a Happy Valentine's Day!

Going Down in the Books

2011-02-17T21:13:00.000-08:00

I've joined a virtual quilting bee started by one of my friends here. The pinwheel block above is my very first quilting block ever!!! (I only had to use my seam ripper three times!) This month is an elephant applique quilt block which I am working on now. Visit 12squared.blogspot.com to see some of the creative quilt blocks done by some of the ladies in our group!

After telling my sister, Rose, about this she wanted to start another one of our own. So we put together a group of friends and family who sew/like to sew and so now I'm in two quilting groups and loving every minute of it! The block for our "Material Girls" quilting group was the churn dash and this is how mine turned out: To see more of our groups blocks visit www.sewincorporated.blogspot.com

After doing these I got brave and decided I wanted to make an article of clothing. A friend of mine had this adorable twirl skirt pattern she got from etsy, so I made one for Avery. Avery is in love with it and I'm pretty proud! (I need a pic with her in it!) I think I'll go get more of this fabric and make a small matching one for Ansley

& last of my accomplishments to boast about-

We went to a dessert bake off for Valentine's with some other students and their families.

Each family was to bring a dessert to enter into the bake off-

I picked to make one of my favs: Key Lime Cake (a recipe I got from a Better Homes and Garden Magazine) & Guess who took first prize?!?! ME!!!!!! I was in shock!

I wasn't even going to post about this but when I told my sister about it the first thing she said was, "are you serious, you mean you didn't burn it, and people liked it?!?" In her words, "This needs to go down in the books Rachel! I'm so proud of you!" HA HA

At the moment I'm feeling like & telling myself I am a Domestic Goddess! *Sigh*

Recipe For Key Lime Cake:

- 1 3oz package of lime-flavored gelatin

-1 1/3 cups granulated sugar

-2 cups sifted all purpose flour

-1/2 tsp salt

-1 tsp baking powder

-1 tsp baking soda

-5 large eggs slightly beaten

-1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

-3/4 cups orange juice

-1 Tbs lemon juice

-1/2 tsp vanilla extract

-1/2 cup key lime juice (squeezed from 4 large regular limes or 25 small key limes)

-1/2 cup confectioners sugar

Icing:

1 8 oz package cream cheese

16 oz confectioners sugar

1 stick unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour three (I did 2 and made mini cupcakes with the rest) 9 inch round cake pans. In a large mixing bowl, mix gelatin, sugar, flour salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Stir to mix well. Add the eggs, oil, orange juice, and vanilla. Divide the batter evenly among the 3 pans and bake for 35-40 minutes. Test for doneness by lightly touching the tops of the layers or inserting a toothpick. Cool the layers in the pans for 5 minutes, then turn them out onto racks. While the layers are still hot, mix the lime juice and confectioners sugar and pour it over the layers on the racks. You can pierce the layers with a fork to allow the glaze to soak in better. Allow the layers to cool completely as you prepare the icing. Cream the butter and cream cheese. Beat in the confectioners sugar until the mixture is smooth and easy to spread. Spread the icing between the layers and on the top and sides of the cake.

& my Cuties making my deal of the month look BEAUTIFUL!

I got these two matching dresses for the girls for $6 each!!!

(Gotta love when Old Navy takes an extra 50% off their already reduced clearance prices!!!)

Arkansas "Blizzard"

2011-02-10T09:41:00.000-08:00

Within the past month we have seen so much snow! Yesterday we got our second snow storm or southern "blizzard" (for you Abbey) of 6+ inches of snow!!!! & last weekend we received a little over an inch. Although I'm ready for days at the lake with the sun beating down on me as I listen to some Kenny Chesney or Tim McGraw (ahhh that sounds so good) its been nice to have the extra time with Daddy.

Since our first snow Joey has really wanted to go sledding. When he mentioned it yesterday morning, Avery quickly asked, "What is sledding?" From that moment on we were bound to find something to work as a sled. (They are hard to come by here especially when snow is in the forecast)

So this is what my clever husband came up with:

Just an ordinary saucer for the baby...

Makes for a pretty awesome sled!!!!!!!

We lasted quite a while!

& even Ansley took a turn

These are taken later in the evening-

Avery loved making snow angels &

I still can not believe how much snow!

A short clip of Joey and Avery going down the hill

(please ignore my obnoxious laugh... is it just me or does it make everyone as uncomfortable as it makes me to hear myself on audio?!)

6 months

2011-01-28T20:11:00.000-08:00

Ansley is 6 months today!

This past week she has been perfecting the art of "the pounce"- she will get up on all fours, start rockin' then hoist her entire upper body forward to retrieve an object. (and she's got to be fast enough to beat Avery or Avery's friends to the desired object) Its so FUNNY!

She's like a little lion ready to pounce on its prey.

BUT, Today she got it all figured out & started CRAWLING!!!

She is doing extremely well and brings so much sweetness into our home

Ansley's All time Favorite: AVERY

Avery makes her laugh the hardest (even if she is being pulled across the room by her feet), when Avery is around she stops crying, & she is always trying to catch up to Avery. I love watching these two together.

Avery has been dying to go camping and since we haven't been able to go, we've been doing A LOT of indoor camping. I put Ansley in the tent with Avery so I could get some cleaning done and they had a blast together! Avery is getting better at being a big sister- Today she told Ansley as she hands Ansley one of her toys, "its ok if you drool on this toy; I will just wipe it off when you finish." ~ I couldn't believe my ears ~

Yes, I had to stop cleaning to get this pic! I can't get enough of them!

Snow in AR

2011-01-16T20:19:00.000-08:00

6+ inches of snow in Little Rock, AR

We had snowball fights

Built a Snowman on Day 2

& made snow angels

But overall we would last a whole 20 minutes outside before the cold brought us back inside.

WE ARE NOW COUNTING DOWN THE DAYS 'TIL SPRING!

Trip of the Year!

2011-01-10T12:22:00.000-08:00

**VERY LONG POST**

The Monday after Christmas we headed down to my parents (a day early cause we couldn't wait any longer) for a second round of Christmas with all my siblings. We made so many great memories and everyone but my sister's husband, Bryan, were able to make it!

Cute pic of my lil Ansley practicing her new fav trick -sitting up- only for about 10-15 seconds but she is getting stronger everyday!

Tuesday The Grahams and Grandma Grandpa & Mingi headed to Dallas to see the new Cowboy stadium (which I can't believe I didn't get any pictures of it was so AWESOME) and then I went to this cute craft store some friends of mine here told me about called City Craft citycraftonline.com. It was a cute store but my girls were so fussy I didn't get to stay as long and browse around as I wanted, but its ok:) We then checked into the hotel and played games as we waited for my sister, Renee's flight. My dad and I went and picked her and her boyfriend up at 1am. The next morning we all headed to --

DAY 1: 6 FLAGS HOLIDAY IN THE PARK

It was a perfect day- no lines- 68 degrees and overcast :)

Meeting the Characters

Avery the whole morning had been telling us she wanted to ride the big rides. So, I put her hair in a ponytail on top of her head, let her wear her cowgirl boots with a bit of a heel and she squeaks by as tall enough to ride some of the bigger rides with an adult. She anxiously boarded THE CONQUISTADOR with the 'big kids'. The first 2 swings and she was loving it!

when it got this high- NOT SO MUCH!

When she got off she told me, "Mom, I don't like that ride. It tickled my whole body!"

Such a fitting description

So we decided to take it easy and my sister rode the "Bumpy Boot" (as Avery called it) and she liked it much better.

I was a little worried my younger siblings would get irritated with being slowed down by the kids.

It was quite the opposite and they were helpful and ready to ride with the younger ones.

A ride we could do as a family

Avery loved the Carousel

Ansley Loving 6 Flags

I LOVE this pic of her!

Truck Drivin' in Toon Town

Look at these sweet helpers! They sat with the kids too so Rose and I could ride some roller coasters!

Our favorites were the Titan and Superman!

Avery loved the characters so much! I can't imagine how giddy she'd be at Disneyworld!

Even big kids like the characters

Tweety was the fav!

Cute little Jordan!

I love this little guy!!!

Avery's favorite ride - The airplanes.

In her bed time prayers she always includes that she is thankful for airplanes and dogs!

After all our fun at 6 flags we headed over to Cici's across the street for dinner.

My best friend growing up lives in Ft. Worth and she came to meet us; it was so fun to catch up!

Our girls of course were friends instantly!

DAY 2: Getting Everything ready for our Second Round of Christmas & Marshall Wonderland of Lights

Thank goodness Renee got us all out of the house and demanded we go see the lights (which is a family tradition) cause we had fun! & the lights were beautiful!

Let the girl on the train! or she'll tip the stroller over to get on it!

Had to get this pic -this is what you see when you go to an ice skating rink in the south -

more people hanging onto the wall for dear life than actually skating! ha ha

couple pics of the girls:

Avery smile!

She finally does Only a little late...

DAY 3: GREBE FAMILY CHRISTMAS

Everyone gathered for Christmas morning fun!

Mingi serenading us with some beautiful Christmas music on the flute

Loving on Aunt Rose

Did my parents really get this for her, along with a loud keyboard and drums?!?!?!

I think those are stay at Grandma/Grandpa house toys:)

Robert Rose and Baby Jordan

Grandpa!

DAY 4: FAMILY PICTURES/ SHREVEPORT/ NEW YEAR'S EVE

We thought that while we had so many there we better get some pictures & my mom got the cousins matching outfits! They looked adorable!

**it wouldn't be normal if someone wasn't arguing or being irritable about taking pictures, this year was Avery's turn!**

Mom and the Boys

Such a good picture of Rose and Jordan

Jordan and Ansley

Girls with Dad

The Boys

Grandpa of the Year!

All my siblings

Mom and the girls

Our whole crew!

with Mingi, Kyle and Scruffy

at this point this would be the more honest Whole Crew Picture!

(I think its my fav)

& Ryan being Ryan (he should be tapping his head... hehehe)

After the picture taking Rose and I laid the kids down for naps while the younger crew headed over to Shreveport

They went to the big Bass Pro Shop

Renee and Kyle (such a sweetheart!)

Mingi!

Buddies (they played here together a lot!)

Ansley trying out Jordan's johnny jump up

& fireworks for New Year's Eve

Avery thought they were too loud!

Roman Candle Wars

(Yeah Rose and I were the smart ones or pansies however you want to look at it and didn't participate)

DAY 5: JUST HANGING OUT & BOWLING

Last day Rose flew back early in the morning and we just took it easy and went bowling later that evening.

WE LOVED LOVED LOVED OUR TEXAS TRIP!

December to Remember

2011-01-09T12:27:00.000-08:00

December was such a fun month in our house BUT

rushed by much too quickly!

Little Ansley is not so little anymore and is rolling around everywhere...

Mommy doesn't know if she is ready for 2 mobile kiddos!

Avery and Ansley with Santa at the Ward Christmas party

Some of the CUTE little bakers I had in the kitchen with me this month

We made cupcakes and muddy buddies (aka Reindeer Food)- YUM!

One of the nights I was trying to keep the girls occupied while Joey was studying for one of his last finals... (he must've taken a quick break)

Joey surprised me (well kinda... I'm the hardest person to keep things from) He told me back at the end of Nov. not to plan anything for Dec.18. I really did try this time not to ruin his surprise until the radio advertised that TRANSIBERIAN ORCHESTRA was coming to Little Rock on that date! I knew we were going:) When we lived in Georgia I wanted to go see them so bad, but they always came on a Sunday. The concert was INCREDIBLE and not long enough. I definitely want to go again!

SO AWESOME!

More baking in the kitchen!
Avery and Joey melting chocolate for oreo truffles

The night of Christmas Eve

We read some Christmas stories including the birth of Jesus while Avery placed the pieces on our felt nativity

Then Santa stopped here!

Ansley on Christmas morning

She was loving the lights and wrapping paper! (the sound it makes and she accidentally ate a little bit- oops!)

Some Christmas Love

Avery was more than willing to help show Ansley how to open presents

Christmas continues to get better every year!

I love seeing my girls so HAPPY!

Avery out riding her bike Santa brought

& some of you might think this is a little crazy, but Avery is always wanting to go to "Daddy's lab." So yes on Christmas Day while we had time we took the girls up to the lab to see what Daddy does. Avery was very intrigued and Ansley was even a delight the whole time we were there.

A few other things December included:

Lots of Christmas Movie watching

Avery LOVED- The Polar Express (which she calls Chicken Express- let's you know how often we ate there in GA), How the Grinch Stole Christmas & Home Alone

Multiple Christmas Parties/ Gift Exchanges (with some ladies in the ward & Joey's lab)

& an AWESOME trip to TX that I hope to post soon!

More Avery Funnies

2010-12-20T08:28:00.000-08:00

**Trying to get everything 2010 in before the New Year, hence all the posting as of late***

#1- Being Grateful

(pic i had of Avery practicing with Dad for Santa's lap)

Precursor-- Avery has asked me lately why the bell ringers are standing outside stores we've been to. I explained to her that there are some people who don't have anything and this a way we can help give to them. Then I've really reiterated that we should be grateful for what we have and not always asking for more and more. I think she may be catching on because--

A few nights ago I was leaving for a girls night and Ansley was crying. I laughed and gave Joey a hard time saying, "see ya & have fun with that". Joey quickly responds to me by joking back saying, "well if you're going to leave like this at least give me your boobs!" (Ansley is not too fond of the bottle yet...) Avery was standing nearby, overheard and quickly retorts, "No Dad you can't have mom's boobs!" Avery then pats Joey on the chest while telling him, "you just need to be grateful for what you have Dad!"

(Avery & Isabelle watching the primary kids sing. They are VERY excited for Primary)

#2-Daddy's Occupation

Avery had one of her buddies over the other day and this is a conversation I overheard while they were playing Doctor with her toy Dr. Kit-

Isabelle (as she is using the toy stethoscope to listen to Avery) : Avery, did you know my Daddy is a Doctor?

Avery : Oh, my Daddy is a Hottie. That's what my mom says.

Yes, I about lost it...

Follow Up

2010-12-19T13:02:00.000-08:00

4 1/2 month stats:

Weight: 14 lbs 1 oz (25%)

Height: 25 1/2 in. (50%)

Head Circumference: 16 1/2 in. (15%)

Ansley had her 'Follow Up' Appointment that the Dr's had scheduled for us from when we left ACH.

We met with the Developmental Therapist who evaluated her as to where she is in different developmental areas

Here are the results:

Gross Motor Skills: 6 months

Fine Motor Skills: 5 months

Visual Perceptual: 6 months

Needless to say we left this appointment ALL smiles!

She is such a delight and sweet addition to our home :)

We sure LOVE her!!!

Family Photo Shoot

2010-12-18T21:56:00.000-08:00

Family Pics (Special thanks to Joey's Dad for doing these for us!)

My top 3 favorites below

Miss Photogenic

'Caught in the Act'

SISTERS

The Bloopers:

We were right next to a fountain and could not get the girls attention for anything...

& I tell Joey to make sure to keep his shoulders back and this is what I get:

The Girls

2010-12-07T19:36:00.000-08:00

**Warning: (Parental Guidance Suggested)

I had all the laundry folded and put away- except my things on the corner of the bed.

I get out of the shower and look everywhere, I mean ALMOST everywhere for my bra, before giving up!

This is where I EVENTUALLY found it...

Funny thing is she had the straps over the shirt but the actual cups were pushed under the shirt.

Nothing gets by her!

Us trying to wake her up (I'm thinking good blackmail pictures for the future...) ha ha ha ha

Our little Chatterbox as of late!
I love watching her day to day- her little personality has really come out within the past couple of weeks!

She loves it when we sing songs to her, lots of kisses and the crinkly sound the wipes package makes when she fiddles with it !

Georgia Thanksgiving

2010-12-01T12:12:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday after church we left for Georgia. We left at about 1:30pm. This drive out when we moved took about 9-10 hours. We quickly found out that Ansley is not a fan of long car rides. After about an hour she whined/cried all the way to Birmingham. (and that includes taking pit stop breaks every so often for her to get out of her car seat) We pulled into Athens at about 1:30am. It took 13 hours to get there!!!!!!! I was not looking forward to the ride home (which ended up being about the same maybe worse cause both kids were sick)!

Joey woke up the next morning and went fishing with old friends while I took the girls to my favorite park (Memorial Park) and fed the ducks. We also went to our old complex and saw our old landlords (who are like extra parents to us). Sadly Avery didn't remember our old place:( She did recognize her little butterfly house she made with Joey that was still hanging on the outside balcony. I can't believe its been 6 months already since we moved!!!

Later we met up with more friends, Brian and Claibourne and got to see their baby Evie!

We were due 2 weeks apart but our babies ended up being a month apart.

Ansley and Evie

Avery loves dogs so much! I'm glad she can get her pet fix at other peoples homes cause it will take a lot of convincing for mommy to even consider...

We did not get to be in Athens near long enough! We did not get to see all our friends we wanted to or eat at some of our favorite places... Guess we'll have to go back soon!

Next we made our way out to Marietta for the traditional weenie roast.

Avery got real territorial over Aunt Jeni when her boyfriend came over-

Avery told me when we got back, "Mom, Phil is Jeni's boyfriend, and my boyfriend is Jeremy(from the show Phineas and Ferb)." I think I can handle a cartoon character for a boyfriend :)

Thanksgiving morning we ran the Marietta Square Gobble Jog 5K

We girls have decided to make this a tradition and next time we'll line up at the front with the non-walker/stroller/pet people!! That first mile was an obstacle course!!!!

Mr. Turkey also came to visit and all the kids were very excited!!!

This is one of my favorite traditions that the Graham family has:)

Yummy T-day dinner- had to get Karl in a pic (he flew in from Utah)

Friday afternoon Joey's grandparents made the drive down from Columbia, SC to see everyone! Anytime Ansley was not being held G-Grandma would quickly come and scoop her up.

Getting more of her pet fix by taunting the cat

There were also foosball tournaments

& Hannah and Jason surprised everyone when they announced they will be having their first baby in June!!!!! WE ARE SO EXCITED for them!

Kimi and Jill were the champs

Then we split teams up

Ansley and cousin Taylor

Avery got to have a sleepover at Aunt Kimi's high rise in Buckhead and she loved that place. She kept telling me that Kimi lives in a huge hotel where all the lights are. They went and saw the new Disney movie Tangled and she loved it!

Some of the other things we did include:

Black Friday shopping after plotting out our plans of attack (& of course Target and Kohls rank at the top of my list)

Shopping with Dad for Mom's anniversary gift

Dad took family pictures for us and I love them! (Sneak preview at top of blog)

-I am saving my favorite for Christmas cards :)
a few games of Oh Heck

LOTS and LOTS of football watching - & so glad UGA won cause we are bowl eligible!!!

The guys had their turkey bowl and traditional game of jumpball where MY husband is always the one that ends up hurt!

This along with 2 sick kiddos on the ride home! FUN FUN FUN! It was worth it I just wish it would have lasted longer.

Our week was NOT near LONG enough!!!!!!

Attitude Adjuster

2010-11-19T10:59:00.000-08:00

I was thinking back to my childhood (which I tend to do a lot now as Avery gets older and is participating in and doing so many more things than I'm ready for her to) and I was remembering the paddle that hung in the kitchen with the bold blue letters that ran across it that said ATTITUDE ADJUSTER. Just its presence was intimidating. I think about those two words frequently because the older I get the more I realize just how much more my attitude still needs adjusting.... Although I had my fair share of attitude adjuster moments as a child, the experiences I have experienced this year have been the biggest ATTITUDE ADJUSTER for me!

I have been wanting to make a thankful post but really want it to be a little different because I feel our family has been blessed beyond what I could have ever asked for in the past 11 months! So although I am thankful for my supportive family and friends, our home, every ward we have ever lived in, a working car, freedom, the gospel of Jesus Christ our Redeemer, good health, beauty in nature, etc I am going to make a "Not your Ordinary Thankful Post" of things that reflect my Attitude Adjustment... Here goes-

~I'm thankful for the Professors who assigned papers I was NOT thrilled about writing because it made me stretch beyond my comfort zone, become more informed, and understand new ideas from different perspectives.

~I'm thankful for the job around our old complex Joey was able to do to drastically reduce our rent although it came along with some pretty scary incidents including the dead man (overdose) he and the other maintenance man found. (that's for another post)

~I'm thankful that when I was sick during pregnancy with Ansley that it was always in the evening so I could get to school during the day and finish my last semester.

~I'm thankful for our old 550 sq. ft. apartment in Athens that so inexpensively got us through our last 2 years of school.

~I have never been so excited for wet diapers until this summer! It means my baby has a fully functioning and healthy set of kidneys.

~I am thankful for Microbiology (wow never thought I'd say that) because it is the field Joey enjoys and an area for him to further his education.

~I am thankful to feel sore after a workout because it means I have a strong & healthy body that allows me to work out.

~I am thankful for the ways Avery tries my patience during the day because it helps keep me in constant communication with my Heavenly Father...
-side note: I know I talk a lot about Avery and how she is difficult but she has lots of good moments and makes me smile multiple times a day. especially when I get the random out of nowhere, "I love you mom"! She's a sweet girl:) & man I see myself in her daily...

~I'm thankful for the sound of a baby crying even at 3am especially when the cry is in my house! (it means the lungs are functioning and I have a baby alive and well WITH me)

~I'm thankful for spit-up (from Ansley) on a stretched out shirt (from Avery pulling on me) because it means I am fortunate to have children.

& last but not least

~I am thankful for the 4 1/2 years of wet towels on my bed ;) because it is evidence of my sweet husband who makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world! after 2 years of telling and showing him where to hang his towel after his shower, I quit getting on to him. Now it just makes me chuckle inside!

Happy early-Thanksgiving Family and Friends!!!!

My heart is full of an infinite supply of thank-you's for your love and support especially this last year!

Hide-n-Seek & Hairpulling

2010-11-13T19:57:00.000-08:00

Highlights from our week:

Avery has learned to play hide-n-seek, but has not quite gotten the hang of it...

After the seeker counts and calls out, "ready or not here I come!", she immediately responds, "I'm right here." This is frustrating yet funny for a competitive mommy who placed her in the ULTIMATE hiding place where I was sure daddy would never find her!!!

The hiding place I concocted (in the storage closet wedged between boxes and the vacuum was in front of her)

one of her hiding places

& the Fun Begins...

I am in the kitchen getting lunch ready and Avery lets out a loud shrill. She runs into me sobbing because Ansley has pulled her hair. While Avery was playing with Ansley, Ansley had gotten a good hold on her hair. Sure enough when I went over to where Ansley was she had a good several pieces of Avery's locks in her hand. I can't decide if Avery was more heartbroken that Ansley would do such a thing because she adores her little sister or if it really hurt that bad. I explained to her that Ansley doesn't really know what she is doing yet and Avery seemed to be ok with it. Since then she always asks me to pull her hair back before playing with lil sis:) I got a feeling this time won't be the last!

One stinkin' CUTE "hair-puller"

p.s. How I got outsmarted by a 3 year old this week:

Avery is our little 'aquaholic'.

I can NOT keep her out of the water.

It doesn't help that the only entrance to her bathroom is through her bedroom.

I am ALWAYS getting onto her about playing in the water.

So today when I'm feeding Ansley I hear the water running

for a LONG time

Finally I holler for her to come here-

She knows what I'm going to say to her.

When she comes around the corner to where I am

before I even get a word out she tries to convincingly tell me, "Mom, I'm not playing in the water, I'm just washing my hands 5 times!"

She really keeps me on my toes...

To Grandma's House We Go!

2010-11-08T20:03:00.000-08:00

This move to Little Rock has made us only 3 1/2 hours from home! & I LOVE it!!! -so does Mom can't you tell?!?!

Ansley was such a trooper! Excluding the ride to TX she was awesome; she was always looking around, giggling, smiling, and taking it all in. The entire morning before we left, Avery filled her in on everything at Grandma's (Scruffy, Granpa, her Uncles- she thinks its so cool Uncle Ryan works at Chick-fil-A~her fav, the movie room, the stairs etc)

Avery picking green peppers out of Grandpa's garden

Ansley talkin' & gigglin' with Grandpa

(excuse his shirt please, if you know my dad he has an unexplainable sense of humor...)

& of course Avery knows Granma ALWAYS has chapstick!

Some other highlights from the trip:

games til 2am

window shopping (Mom and I aren't the sizes we want to be yet...)

golfing (the guys)

Mingi (foreign exchange student from S. Korea) showing Avery his guitar, flute, and helping her on the piano- she was in heaven!

& the girls being spoiled ROTTEN!

Needless to say I am VERY excited we'll be so close for the next 4-5 years!!!!
Now, If only I can get my sisters and cousins closer...

October Fun

2010-10-31T20:38:00.000-07:00

Avery and Ansley helping mommy bake in the kitchen

Avery's idea of decorating was load up as many candy pumpkins and candy corn that will fit onto the cookie as possible!

DON'T KNOW HOW WE'D LIVE WITHOUT HER--

This is her singing "popcorn popping" during FHE

She said it was a concert--man she makes us laugh;)

October would not have been complete without our traditional nutter butter ghosts ~YUM

& Ansley started rolling over!

The girls all dressed up and ready for the trunk or treat at the church. Ansley was happier before I put her kitty cat make up on...

Sleeping Beauty and Bagger Vance

So many of the kids in our ward had such creative and beautifully made from home costumes I was impressed and in awe at the talent of the women in our ward!!

Unfortunately I didn't get pics of all of them but I did get some

Avery's friend, Sam dressed up as Bob from Veggie Tales (his mom made it!)

& the mustard bottle costume also made by his mom (this is a boy in the primary class Joey teaches)

Me and the girls! I passed out the candy with Ansley while Joey took Avery around

The Jesse costume Riley is wearing is also home made/sewn by her mom chaps and all!

Avery loved the cake walk

Avery and her buddy Isabelle

'Pretty in Pink'

This girl is also in Joey's primary class. I asked what she was and she told me- one of Lady Gaga's backup dancers! Love it!

Avery's buddies, JT and Drew the pirates!

Another preschool buddy, Henry the Knight (His mom also sewed his costume!!!) He was really proud of his boots!

The Bouncy House was definitely a hit!

A fun night makes for some Happy Kids on the drive home-

as if we couldn't have gotten enough junk already we had to stop for ice cream on the way home

Joey insisted!

Then for some traditional door to door trick-or-treating!

Ansley was very alert and attentive trying to take it all in; She seemed to enjoy it all!

& We Love it too because 5 years ago Halloween is when we met...

Preschool

2010-10-23T20:39:00.001-07:00

This week preschool group was at our house:

A few pics from 'free play' time
These kiddos crack me up!!!
Preschool day is the highlight of Avery's week, along with nursery :)

Weekend Family Fun

2010-10-20T06:51:00.000-07:00

This last weekend Joey had a research Conference in Fayetteville at the University of Arkansas
He presented his work from the lab he worked in this summer-- During the first year he will do rotations through 3 different labs before he starts on his actual project for his Dissertation.

The poster says: Regulations of P62/Sequestosome 1 during Oxidative stress Proteasomal inhibition and Aging
I honestly try hard to understand it but in simpler terms he studied the effects of aging-- want to know more and you better ask him...

Reynolds Razorback Stadium
Where the Bulldogs beat them last year!!!
(As for what happened this year at Sanford Stadium I'm still in denial...)

This made me like the Razorbacks more- I guess they needed to expand and it looks like they just took some bleachers from a high school stadium and stuck them up on top! I like the thriftiness and maybe the expenses that could have been used went towards their English program?!?! I'll entertain the thought

After our time in Fayetteville we stopped at a place called Devil's Den and went for a hike with the girls
It was a BEAUTIFUL place

Daddy and The Girls

Pictures in the visitor's center showed this but with water just pouring over the rocks- its been so dry that it was just a trickle:( But still Pretty

This picture was actually taken after our hike! Avery hung in there- only because we promised ice cream

In front of the caves
We couldn't go in because of the bats and the white nose disease

Family pic

Ansley stayed awake and kept looking around for the first half and then she was out

The Crevices

Happy Halloween Spider

It was a nice, short but FUN weekend activity
Avery was our leaf collector and kept trying to collect all the colors she could;
the backseat of our car was quite colorful on the way home!

Our picky eater- we told her we couldn't take the pepperonis right then cause we were driving, so she found a way to get them out of her way:)

10-10-10

2010-10-11T21:30:00.001-07:00

Ansley's Baby Blessing 10-10-10 --This date won't happen again for another 100 years!

Joey blessed her and it was a BEAUTIFUL blessing

& She looked BEAUTIFUL too!

Sweet Baby Ansley

{The lady who made this blessing dress, that Avery wore too, is the same lady who made my blessing dress back in 1985!}

We woke up the morning of the blessing and I go to get the dress and it had somehow yellowed on the collar and down the front. I went into panic mode but between the hours of 8 and 9am, my mom and mother in law were able to get it cleaned and ready for her to wear in time for church! & in time for us to get there early enough to get a seat together! Whew :)

Joey's family made the 9 hour drive to stay for only a day to be here with us for this special occasion!

Avery giving Jeni one of her puppy dog kisses... she was a good sport about it!

Ansley getting lots of sugar!!!

My sweet mom drove up to be with us too! I don't think I give her enough credit but she has been so awesome! Within the last 4 months she has been up here to help 5 times including staying longer to be with us after my complication with delivery. I don't know what we'd have done without her-- LOVE YOU LOTS MOM!!!

Ansley and big sis

Cute pic of Joey and his mom!

All tired out and cuddled up with Grandma!

Such a sweetheart

Stats and Stories

2010-09-30T19:11:00.001-07:00

Ansley's 2 month stats:

Weight-- 10 lbs. 15 oz.

Height-- 23 inches long

She is such a smily little girl! & sleeping 5-7 hours at night ;)

I feel so spoiled because Avery didn't sleep 5 consecutive hours, especially at night until SEVERAL months after she was born!!!

**Our little Sweetheart**

Today when Joey got home from school he really wanted to go play 9 holes here at the golf course we live on, especially since the weather has been so nice, and its dirt cheap to play a really nice course! Avery insisted on going with him (like normal) and so Daddy agreed to take her. >>Fast forward --I'm feeding Ansley when they get home and Joey has this look on his face (one that I can tell something went wrong)... Joey explained that while he was on the 8th tee box waiting for the group in front of him to finish, he had his back to the cart with Avery in it. This was at least her 4th time going to play golf with him so he thought she'd be fine. He was gearing up to tee off (with his back towards her) and next thing he knew he heard the brake release on the golf cart... Avery was sitting up on the steering column backwards and the cart was headed straight for the steep down hill that leads to the water/pond. He said he kinda jogged her way and told her to take her foot off of the gas but at this point she had unintentionally pushed the gas to the floor from being scared. --While he is telling this part Avery then looks at me to tell me "Mom, I was driving the golf cart backwards"-- Joey said his heart was racing and he quickly dropped his club and took off running for the cart! He said he was able to catch the cart and stop it about 30-40 ft away from the hill. Joey said if the cart would have gotten to the hill it would have either rolled and tumbled down the hill throwing Avery from it, or just taken off down the hill with no chance to catch it before crashing into the water. (Man I wish I would've been there to see it and the looks on their faces and the people around them...hehehe) Easy for me to laugh since they are both home safe and sound as he tells me... Avery, what are we going to do with her?!?!

(pic of them this summer before one of their golfing trips)

"Dad, Mommy can't know how to count!" -- Tonight Joey and I were discussing when Ansley's next check up will be. Joey asked me what months they go in at and I replied, " I think 1, 2, 4, 6, & 12." Avery not even a second later piped in, "no mom its 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12" and then said to Joey, "Dad, Mom can't know how to count!"

Priceless

2010-09-28T19:20:00.000-07:00

Check out this hair:

(& look how chubby she is getting!)

Stumbling in to get Ansley at 5 am I saw this: (had to run get the camera, sorry Ansley you had to cry a bit more...)

Who can sleep like this?!?!

LOVE THEM!!!

Avery Madison

2010-09-08T14:51:00.001-07:00

Avery turned 3 today -- 4:20am to be exact!

Although she is a challenge for daddy and myself with her strong-willed and independent attitude she brings so much joy to our home! Happy Birthday Avery!!!

A few of her favs:

tea parties, doing hair and makeup (putting it on herself and others), shopping (even if its just to the grocery store), SHOES, Little Einsteins, Dora the Explorer, and Family and Friends!

Also if you are ever in the car with us, you would undoubtedly hear her sing all the words to the Georgia Bulldogs Fight Song, most Justin Beieber Hannah Montana and Taylor Swift songs sung very LOUDLY! She cracks me up!

She is also a WONDERFUL and HELPFUL big sister!

For her birthday her cousins and Aunt Jill and Aunt Kimi came to visit from Georgia

While Kimi and I were setting up for her party Joey and Jill took the kids for a stroll at the Dam Bridge

I incorporated her favorites... (although by the looks of rocket you can tell I'm not a pro)

She loved it and had TONS of FUN!!!

When I tucked her in that night for bed I asked her what her favorite part was and she said, "my friends here!" I responded, "you mean your cousins?" and she told me they are her friends too! I love that she loves her cousins so much because so many of my favorite memories growing up include my cousins too! This sums up Avery she is such a social butterfly and loves being with family and friends.

Fun with Cousins!!!!!

She loves shoes, but lately all she wants to wear with most outfits are boots!

The next day she decided we should go swimming. I found this old school place online when I googled 'inexpensive water park in Little Rock'. This place was interesting but FUN to say the least and we had to fight the kids to leave! The kids wore this slide out! Tonight we took Avery to eat at her place of choice and of course she picked Chick-Fil-A! I think she had a great birthday and we sure love her!

To top things off the Bulldogs had an impressive win over the Ragin' Cajuns. Yes, yes they are just a no name team but it was still a pretty win! Excited for this weekend and might I add we are liking what we see so far with this new defensive coordinator (Cowboys old d-line coach)!

And how CUTE is this Dawg fan?!?!

1 Month

2010-08-28T20:56:00.000-07:00

Ansley is 1 month old today!

She had her first Doctor's appointment on Tuesday and she had gained more weight (which was good, but not as much as they wanted). She was averaging about 17 grams a week and they want her to be gaining 20-30 grams a week. So they made appointments for me to come in for weekly weigh ins to monitor her progress. I went back in on Friday for our "weigh in" appointment and she had gained 3.5 oz.!!!! (which averages to 32 grams a week) We were so excited and no more weigh ins, just regular dr. appointments for us:) I also have been reading up very thoroughly on the booklet the speech pathologist gave me to make sure that Ansley's development is on track. So far she is right on target!!!!!

Being a big sister has been so good for Avery!

Just a couple things that have made us laugh or surprised us:

Anytime Ansley cries Avery will say to me, "Mom, make her not be sad!"

Today when Ansley was crying in the car, she told me the same thing and then I looked back and she was trying to give Ansley the pacifier. When Avery gave up on trying that she covered up her ears. :)

When we went to Ansley's Dr. appointment Avery made sure to tell the Doctor that Ansley was just visiting here and she was coming home with us! Today as Grandma was getting ready to leave, she was holding Ansley. Avery strictly told Grandma that she could not have Ansley because she is to stay at our house! Avery is very protective of her and always has to know where she is and what she is doing. It is so sweet!

HOME SWEET HOME

2010-08-18T19:12:00.000-07:00

Happy 3 weeks Ansley! I can't put into words how nice it feels to be writing this posting from OUR HOME with Ansley sitting beside me hiccuping while Joey is helping Avery get ready for bed. We got home from the hospital a few hours ago and could not feel more blessed and grateful for so much. We can't believe that just 3 weeks ago our baby went from this....

to this: Isn't it AMAZING?!?! This is nothing short of a miracle! As of Sunday all tubes were taken away and the only cords connected to Ansley were monitoring her vital signs.

After we were able to hold her last week, we then started to work on her eating without the feeding tube. She did rather well considering all she had been through, but it was still a process. I really wanted to nurse her although I thought it would take a little longer than if she just used the bottle. The first few days were slow and a little frustrating but by Sunday she had gotten the hang of it. They gave this to me on Sunday and we knew it could only mean one thing... and then on Monday as the Doctors were doing rounds and came to meet with us, they used the "H" word (home, and they don't use this word unless its for sure). We were very excited!!!

During the whole feeding process I would sleep in the waiting area until the nurse would call for me to feed her. I think that got old fast for both the nurse and myself. They ended up getting us a room and I boarded at the hospital with Ansley from Sunday until today. Although Ansley was eating well on her own she was not gaining any weight. In fact she was losing weight. The Doctors did not want to send her home until she could show them she could gain weight. This morning she gained weight!!! When it came time to get things ready to go home we had so many mixed emotions-- we realized we had gotten attached to this place! We were always surrounded by the most incredible staff from the front greeters at the hospital, to the NICU front desk employees, other parents of babies in the NICU and of course the AWESOME Doctors and Nurses. We got pictures with a few of our many favorites:

Dr. Peeples (pic below) was at UAMS when I delivered and helped with Ansley, then worked a rotation over in the Neonatology Department at ACH when we were there. She was with us through it all and we absolutely love her! Dr. Chandler (I didn't get a picture of her unfortunately) was also with Dr. Peeples and was the Dr. who resuscitated Ansley. When I met her I could not keep from hugging her! She told me that the stars were all lined in my favor that night, the fact that my placenta did not rupture until I was at the hospital, that my water had broken to initially get me to the hospital, and that there was maconium present so that they were able to have the pediatricians there after delivery, were just a few of the many miracles that got Ansley to where she is now. All of this does not even do it justice to how AMAZING they are!!!

Let me set the stage for you, in the NICU here, if I saw correctly there is somewhere around 60-80 babies, and there is 1 doctor and anywhere from 1-3 Fellows/Residents. Sometime in the morning the group of them, including a nurse practitioner, do their "rounds", where they go around to each baby and review everything and make any necessary changes or adjustments, and then the nurses are responsible for carrying the orders out.

So when we show up, unless we are there when they do their rounds through our pod, then all we usually see is the nurse, unless we ask them to call the doctor over for us. However, we feel like we got special treatment, and had a special connection with Dr. Peeples, because it just so happend that her rotation changed from UAMS after the delivery, to ACH NICU! Also, The day of the delivery (delivery was 12:50 AM, this was around 12 PM) Joey saw her in the main entrance to the Hospital and she stopped to talk with him about everything. She was also the Dr. that came and got Joey right after the delivery and brought him back to see Ansley and explain everything that happened, and everything that was going on, and everything they were doing. Anyways, so all that being said every time we would show up to the hospital (which was multiple times per day) Dr. Peeples would come to the bedside to check on us, and explain any new updates or plans. She was and is absolutely phenomenal! Does not get any better than her!

Ansley and Dr. Irby with my tired self and Avery

She was also fabulous and the one who told me we were going home!!!

Our Primary Care Nurse Brieanna (Avery loved her and she was so patient with Avery that it made our trips to the hospital a lot less stressful! She set up a little play station/desk for Avery and made it so nice and cute for her!) Just being around her and hearing her talk about her job, you are able to feel the love she has for the babies she cares for.

Nurse Judy (she was with us through the head cooling and always came around to check on Ansley even if she wasn't our nurse for the day)

Nurse Heather was also with Ansley frequently and she was Awesome! These are only a few of the AMAZING staff that helped contribute in Ansley's miraculous recovery! Not only do we feel fortunate that we were able to bring our Ansley home but the short amount of time that she was able to recover seems incomprehensible! The intricate workings of the human body are evidence of an all knowing Heavenly Father; this combined with his tender mercies, and trained Doctors and nurses made it so we get to have our Ansley home with us! We will forever be grateful!

Ansley's cart all decorated

Avery would watch the nurses take care of Ansley and one of the times we were leaving the house she had her dr. kit in hand and told us she was going to help baby Ansley feel better too! She was so excited to help and show Nurse Brieanna she had a stethoscope too; we could not object:)

She already gets lots of SISTERLY LOVE

Even if she may not be too thrilled about it...

Avery is always concerned about where and how she is; it is so sweet!

One of our cuddle sessions after we could hold her!

And Cuddle time with Daddy

This sign is above the main entrance and it was just one of those small and simple things that brought comfort to us daily!

These two pictures of the girls sleeping I took while Joey went to get the car seat to have the tech inspect it. I think we are all wore out!

Our Girls

As I mentioned before, leaving the NICU was harder than I thought it would be. It was nice those last few nights to have the monitor constantly checking Ansley's vitals. If she slept for longer than I expected I could look up at the screen and make sure all the numbers were where they are supposed to be and feel comforted.

Also, our thoughts and prayers go out to the families we met whose babies are still in the NICU. I could not walk past a station with a baby on machines like what Ansley was on without getting emotional and hoping for a positive outcome for them as well! Thanks again for all your thoughts and prayers through out this time of difficulty. We will never be able to express our appreciation.

Ether 6:9

"...he did thank and praise the Lord all the day long; and when the night came, they did not cease to praise the Lord."

What a Day!

2010-08-10T14:40:00.000-07:00

Joey and I just recently left the hospital and today has been one of the best days EVER! We walked into the NICU just like normal, washed our hands and put on our gowns to head back to Pod 2. This time as we walked up to Ansley's little station it looked a lot less busy. The Nitric Oxide machine is gone (they took that away yesterday and were able to do all her testing) and as of today she is completely off the ventilator. The huge tube is no longer down her throat and she looks so much more comfortable. Joey, Avery and I all sat around her like normal and were talking to her. Not but a few minutes later we were all startled as she let out a little cry. It was the first time we have heard her make any kind of noise and we were all so excited!!! Then the nurse brought an outfit over, let me change her diaper and put the outfit on her. Then yes, we got to do what we've been wanting to do for the past 2 weeks... We got to hold her!!!!!! I'm thinking as I hold her - do I have to share, I have two weeks worth of holding to get in!... but I know how excited Joey was to hold her too; I was grateful he let me go first:)

The doctor then came over to Ansley's station and gave us the MIRACULOUS results and we feel so blessed and know it is due to our Heavenly Father and all the thoughts, love, support and prayers of each of you!

Now for the test results:

MRI - They told us her brain looked NORMAL with the exception of a thrombus on the right side of the brain. A thrombus is a blood clot, but something the doctor said should heal/dissolve on its own and not a concern!

The Renal Ultrasound showed NORMAL kidneys and her creatinine levels are now where they are supposed to be! I was thinking back to a week ago when her levels were 3 times what they were supposed to be and how Joey and I were mentally preparing ourselves for the possibility of dialysis. I can't explain how grateful we both were to hear this!!!

She is completely off of all blood pressure medications and due to all this exciting news Joey and I forgot to ask about the Pulmonary Hypertension...

They started feeding her my breast milk yesterday. They started her out at 9 mls(which is not much, but still something); she did so well that they increased it to 20 mls today! They told me that tomorrow we can introduce her to mommy feeding:)

Our first family picture

Avery asked the doctor when Baby Ansley can come to our home and he told her that if things keep going well, she will be home this month!!!! WHAT GREAT NEWS!

This pic is from a couple days ago, the nurse had her all dolled up when we came in, she looked like a little Anne Geddes baby! I can't tell you how much we love her and how blessed we feel!!!

Thought I'd share my favorite quote and scripture that has kept me going these past 2 weeks:

"Keep the faith; it pays such great dividends!" -Marjorie Hinckley

They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

(From her book titled "Small and Simple Things")

Ansley Update II

2010-08-05T08:20:00.000-07:00

Sorry it has been so long since we have updated Ansley's status. However, we never really got any definitive results from her testing. The echocardiogram still showed the pulmonary hypertension, the EEG showed no seizure activity (although she is on anti-seizure medicine, and probably will be for the first 6 months). The more conclusive test is the MRI, however they will not be able to do that test until she is off of the nitric oxide. It is not a big deal, the MRI will not change any treatment it is more just for knowing.

Monday the doctors had a nephrologist (kidney specialist) come and meet Ansley and start to get involved because she started to have blood and blood clots in her urine. He came and talked to Rachel and I, and he explained that she was/is experiencing kidney failure even though she was producing more urine than the catheter could handle (they had to remove the catheter). He was also saying that they would be monitoring her kreatin levels in her blood twice a day to make sure that they dont get to lethal levels. A normal baby has levels around 0.5, but anything under 1 is ok. Her levels on monday were at 3.4. He said that they are going to try to wait it out and try to let her body repair its self and start functioning on their own. That is the best case senario, worst case senario is that they have to put a tube in her side so that she can come in for long term dialysis for at least 2 years until her body is big and strong enough to handle a kidney transplant.

Tuesday morning her kreatin levels had dropped to 3.2, and by tuesday evening hey had dropped to 3.1. Not huge improvements but at least not any higher. Wednesday morning down to 3.0, and the biggest improvement was last night they had dropped to 2.5. Still more than two and a half times normal but definitely a downward trend. Also, there is still blood in her urine but at least there have been no more clots.

They have been weaning her oxygen, and said that the magic number is 60% oxygen that they want to get to in order to be able to start weaning the nitric oxide. As of last night she was at 60%, so we have to hope she can maintain that, we will see when we go in today.

The blood pressure medicines have been weaned, one completely off and the other one down to a rate of 10 from 15.

Rachel SOOOO excited she gets to help bathe Ansley and change her diaper

Avery reading Ansley her favorite book, Brown Bear

Thoughts Honesty & Gratitude

2010-08-02T23:45:00.000-07:00

So a friend of mine made a blog post a couple weeks ago titled HONESTY and told of some happenings that took place in her home even though it wasn't the most happy and "picture perfect family" posting. I really liked the post because it was just little sibling disputes that are inevitable in every home but I loved how she told the story honestly because we all can relate.

I give you this precursor because this is going to be my honesty blog posting.

I'm sitting here awake at 2 am thinking back to 2 weeks ago when I was mentally preparing myself to be up with a baby every 3 hours. Instead I'm up every 3 hours with my yellow medela breast pump and hoping this milk will get to be used sooner rather than later. Ansley is still receiving all her nutrients through an IV and will not be able to use a feeding tube for at least another 5 days:( All the tests excluding the MRI (it will have to wait until she comes off one of the machines she's on) were ran today and we receive the results in the morning (maybe this is why I can't sleep). I'll have Joey post the results tomorrow. (or I mean later today)
I was also thinking back to the times I complained of pregnancy and the difficulty in that first month being home with a newborn baby. I think the Lord is teaching me some valuable lessons and I'll think before I do much more complaining. Here are some of the things I have been grateful for that I never imagined would mean so much before-

-the sound of a baby crying
- my baby's eyes being open
-wet diapers (I get to give Ansley a bath and change her diaper tomorrow & I'm so excited!!!)
(this is her favorite position, the nurses said they turned her over like this and she was just a snoozin'!)

Also, as much as I know that everything these past few days has happened for a reason and God has a plan I have allowed for thoughts like these:
-because of MY body's malfunction, my baby girl is hooked up to what seems like a million tubes and in the NICU
-if the baby would have come sooner maybe my placenta would not have tried to detach from the uterus
-was there something I did during pregnancy that made this malfunction happen?!

I know again the Lord is strengthening me and teaching me to substitute these negative thoughts with these:
-the staff at UAMS at the time I came into the hospital could not have been more fabulous and better prepared for the events that occurred.
- Arkansas Children's Hospital is the leading hospital in the country with the treatment and knowledge of the cooling cap (that Ansley needed)
- I am fortunate that I was at the hospital when my placenta detached from the uterus or I may not even have our little Ansley here right now.
- I am grateful I was given strength to prove I was able (walk and get around well after my cesarean) to be discharged from the hospital early to be with my family.

As much as I am trying to keep an optimistic attitude I thought I'd be honest and sort through some things while I am unable to sleep. Today was hard because I watched a premie come into the hospital last night and get stationed across from Ansley. The baby weighed 1.5 lbs. The mom came in today and as I saw her holding her baby tears just started falling down my face. I was not envious of this mother, but I thought-- this baby just came in last night and mine has been in here 6 days and I still can't hold her! I was glad the mom was able to hold her baby, I don't wish this on anyone. I just longed to hold Ansley like she got to hold hers. As I was watching this I had little Ansley's fingers around my index finger and she gave it a little squeeze. It was small and simple but helped me snap out of it and I know I will eventually get to hold her I just need to be patient.
I think this is my favorite picture EVER! My 3 FAVORITES!!! I love them!

In times like these I had a relief society president in my BYU ward advise us to focus on all the things we are be grateful for. I don't think I've ever felt so grateful in my life as I have these last 6 days. (Isn't funny how our feelings can range so completely opposite on the spectrum when events like these happen?!) I will never be able to fully show how grateful I am for the love and support me and my family have received. I have felt your love and continue to because of your prayers! I'll make a list so I can visually see how blessed I am and how much our Heavenly Father cares for us and sends his earthly angels to us in times of need:
1. This last Sunday I received emails that 5 different wards (including
our new one here that has taken us in so quickly with open arms)
included us in their fasts.
2. Comments, Emails, Phone Calls and texts from family and friends
expressing love and concern. They always come at the best times!
3. Messages I have received from people I do not even know but took
time to share a similar experience and that they care and are praying
4. Help with Avery so Joey and I are able to go to the hospital to meet
with doctors.
5. Family (near and far) that have come to help!!!
6. The yummy Dinners that have been brought by (not a day has gone
by that a dinner has not been brought in)
7. Gifts that have shown up at the hospital from family, friends and
anonymous givers (if you were one of the "unknown gift givers"
thank-you) I went down to the gift shop to see if a mistake was made
and they left off the from, the lady said it was meant to be unknown
so thank you... I feel bad not making a thank you card for it.
8. Packages and cards that have been sent in the mail.
9. People who have called or emailed to tell us they put Ansley's name on the temple prayer roll.

10. Caring and Trained Nurses and Doctors

11. Joey (I couldn't ask for a better husband, he is the BEST) and Avery (I am probably driving Avery nuts with all the hugs and kisses I constantly want to give her)

12. Visitors and many many more things I am sure I have left out

Every bit of it has made us smile and been a comfort! I am so so GRATEFUL for EVERYTHING and thank you, thank you, thank you to ALL! I think now I'll sleep better...

Ansley Update

2010-07-31T10:46:00.000-07:00

Well it has been about 4 days, so we figured that we would post an update. The last few days have been very tough, but we are dealing with everything much better than initially. We are so grateful to have Ansley be a part of our family and cannot wait to bring her home. No matter what happens Ansley has brought so many blessings into our lives and we know that she will continue to bless our lives.

Thursday morning I was able to talk with the Doctor that was over Ansley, and I was able to ask her some questions. One that i think most everyone is interested in is her overall well being. I asked from the time she was born until now (thursday morning) if you were to draw a line graph in relation to her progress what would it look like, and she did her hand in a downward motion (the birth) and then a line straight across. That was hard to hear after over 30 hrs in Children's and on the cooling cap.

She explained that Ansley had not urinated except for a few drops that morning, and that they are really hoping and expecting her kidneys to start working a little better to start filter out some of the wastes in her body. She told me that her blood pressure was very low and that they were putting her on 2 different medicines to try to raise that, and suspected that she has pulmonary hypertension, so they were starting to treat her with nitric oxide (20 ppm) to help dilate her veins, to help with the pulmonary hypertension. The Dr explained that in the womb having higher blood pressure on the right side of the heart (pulmonary hypertension) is normal, but when the baby comes out and takes its first breath it usually switches over to having higher pressure on the left. They performed an Echocardiogram and confirmed that was the case. They suspect that all of her abdominal organs took a hard hit similar to the kidneys so they will not attempt to feed her anything for at least another week, maybe longer depending on how she does. All of her nutrients will continue to be supplied through an IV straight into the blood stream. I asked about potential pneumonia from the fluid in her lungs and she said that she looked at the chest x-rays from that morning and that there is fluid in her lungs but no more than you would find in any other C-section baby, but that they would continue a normal antibiotic treatment. But she said "we are definitely not out of the woods yet" in regards to overall health, however she expects Ansley to make some big improvements in the next 24 hrs.

Also Thursday afternoon is when they performed the Echocardiogram, and every 12 hours they remove the cooling cap message her head, and flip which side her head is leaning on, and at the Thursday afternoon removal they performed an ultrasound on her head to look for any bleeding, swelling, or pockets of fluid. The Dr told me that she expected to see all of the above.

Fast forward to Friday, I talked to the same Dr and she said that she is making small improvements, that she is urinating a little more, but still not where she needs to be. The blood pressure was still giving them trouble, that they kept having to go up on both medicines to try to maintain the proper blood pressure. She told me that the chest x-rays from Friday morning and that it looks like she might have some small pockets of pneumonia, so that they would keep a close eye on that and continue the antibiotics. She also told me the results of the ultrasound, and said that it looks like a normal baby's brain, no bleeding, no swelling, and no pockets of fluid. Yes that is exciting however, that does not show any brain activity, so we will have to wait until the cap comes off and the perform the 12 lead EEG, CT scan, and MRI to get more conclusive results, which will still not be conclusive, the best indicator will be the first 6 months of development says the Dr's.

Friday evening they had to give her more platelets and another blood transfusion, I believe that puts us at 4 blood transfusions. However they were able to start weening her off of 100% oxygen. By the time Rachel and I left the Hospital last night at midnight they had stopped weening it at 65%.

Now Saturday morning Rachel and I went in and the cap was removed early this morning, so they were able to take the sheets down from around her incubator so we could actually see her. Her reheating went well, the Dr said that she responded well to reheating, not to fast or slow. Unfortunately her oxygen had to come back up to 80% and she needed a little higher dose of blood pressure medicine. She also needed more platelets and another blood transfusion. She is still not urinating like she should, a little bit better, but still far off from where it needs to be so they are going to be starting some diuretics to pull the fluid from her tissues to try to get rid of it, and to try to help reduce her swelling and puffiness. We have never been so excited to see pee before! So the Dr said 2 steps forward 1 step backwards. But overall, we are happy with PROGRESS! Also one last thing, they will be performing all the major tests (CT-scan, MRI, and EEG) on Monday.

We hope this helps anyone who is/will be fasting and praying for our little Ansley. We really do appreciate all the fasting, prayers, and kind thoughts that have been sent our way. We definitely would not be able to make it through all this without yalls love and support.

Here are the pics from the camera so they are a little better than the pics from my phone. However I want to warn you about the 1st picture, it is a very sad and to me, graphic picture. But the reason I wanted to post it is to show the progress (look at her color change) that she has made and the AMAZING work that all the Doctors at UAMS and Arkansas Children's Hospital have done!

This picture was shortly after birth still at UAMS, when we were not allowed to go back so the nurse took our camera and took a few shots for us (pay attention to her color)

Right before she was transported to Children's we got to say goodbye

And she opened her eyes to let us know everything would be ok

This is where she will spend the next few weeks (as a friend of ours described this place to Rachel: "a little piece of heaven here on earth" and where miracles happen)

Her with her cooling cap, she is our little solider just fighting away!

While she had the cooling cap they had to keep the blankets around to try to keep her body temp up, so we could only make brief peeks through the blankets, but that didn't stop us from going up and just sitting next to her and Avery colored a picture for her:)

She is SO cute. No more cooling cap, although we were SOOO grateful she got that treatment we were glad when they took it off so we can see her more

CUTE

Our personal little Angel

Thanks again so much for the love, support and prayers! We can not express our gratitude for everyone's thoughtfulness and kindness; we will continue to keep everyone updated.

Miracle Baby

2010-07-28T22:10:00.001-07:00

***Long and uncensored***

As many of you know Rachel delivered our second daughter Wednesday July 28, 2010 at 12:50 A.M. It was an emergency C-section, her water broke around 5:15 pm Tuesday so we gathered everything dropped Avery off with a friend until Rachels mom could make it here, and then headed to the hospital. We were in our own room being monitored by 9:00 pm. Everything was going fine, with the exception of meconium (baby's first stools) in the womb, and potentially a little in the babys lungs, so they notified the on-site pediatricians to be on hand. Then Rachel got up to use the bathroom and passed a rather large blood clot. The doctors were a little worried about the clot and Rachels bleeding, however they said that we would go forward and just monitor the bleeding. Then a little while later the baby's heart rate dropped drastically and over 10 nurses doctors, residents, students etc. were in the room working on Rachel, they were able to get the heart rate back up in a very short period of time, so they said they would monitor her closely and if it happend again we would have to go in for an emergency C-section. In the mean time Rachel was able to go ahead and get her epidural. However her heart rate did drop again, and the same thing happend, a ton of people came running in and the main doctor started barking orders to get the OR ready etc. That all started happening at 12:40am, they came and told he that Rachels epidural was not taking correctly and that they would have to put her completely under to hurry and get the baby here, and then I heard someone yelling about the heart rate dropping to a very low number, and so there was a lot of running etc. they were able to switch Rachels anesthesia and have the baby out by 12:50am.

When Ansley was delivered she tried to take her first breath on her own but there was too much blood and meconium in her lungs so it was just a gargle. What had happend was the placenta separated from the uterus and ruptured. This caused Ansley to loose lots of blood, and was also the reason for all the blood that got into her lungs. The loss of blood deprived her of oxygen, and most importantly to the brain, it also caused the heart to stop beating because there was not much for the heart to pump. The doctors were able to suction a lot of the blood and fluid from her lungs, and get some fluids in her and do chest compressions and dose her with epinephrin to get her heart beating, until they could get some blood from the blood bank which only took a few minutes. While they were working on her they came and got me and brought me back so i could see and they could explain to me what was going on (also i think so i could see her while she was still alive in case they couldn't save her). There was again 8-10 doctors, nurses, residents etc in the room actively working on Ansley, 3 of which were directly working on her, others helping with supplies, monitoring her, etc. They worked on her for a solid 2-2.5 hours, they were able to stabilize her enough to transport her to Arkansas Children's Hospital which luckily is only about 5 miles down the street. It is one of the best children's hospitals in the country. I am convinced that the only reason that she is still alive is because the pediatricians were on site waiting to take Ansley as soon as she was born. The doctors also told me that the OB/GYN know how to deliver the baby, but after that they are very limited in what they can/will do.

After transporting her to Children's they have put her on something called a cooling cap that is supposed to help tremendously with any potential brain damage. That does not mean that she will be brain damage free. We are really not sure to what extent her brain has been damaged. However these cooling caps are supposed to be amazing, and in research studies the children that used the cooling cap in similar situations had vast improvements over children that did not, and that is with no side effects. Another miracle/blessing is Arkansas Children's Hospital is the best and most experienced hospital in the country with this treatment, they have treated more babies with this than any other hospitals in the country.

Her current condition, she still has the respirator breathing for her, the cooling cap has to stay on for 72 hrs, after which they will perform EEG, CT scan and MRI to try to determine any damage etc. That will not be conclusive at all, the only real indicators will be within the first 6 months of development, and how she develops. She has had 2 blood transfusions, but seems to be ok with that and should not need another. Her blood gas levels are still being monitored and manually maintained. She is still in critical condition, but her outlook is positive.

Lets not forget about mom, what happend is what kills some mothers during birth, sometimes the doctors are not able to stop the bleeding and the mom bleeds out. Fortunately Rachel is a fighter just like her daughter and is recovering from the surgery well, and cannot wait to be able to go see her beautiful daughter!

Rachel, Avery, Ansley and myself are so grateful for all of our wonderful friends and family we have, and for all the thoughts, prayers, comments etc. We cannot make it through this without all of you. We love you, and will try to keep you updated.

Here are a few phone pictures, I will try to get some better ones, they are also in reverse order, oh well.

This is a close up of Ansley with the cooling cap on and all the machines hooked up to her

This is a shot of her in NICU, she was 8 lbs 4 oz, and 20 in

They draped these blankets over the incubator to try to keep her body temperature up, but brain temp down with the cap

This was as she was being transported from the UAMS hospital to Children's

She even briefly opened her eyes to tell us goodbye and that everything is going to be OK!

(this is Rachel now)

Today they are going to do an ultrasound on her head to check for bleeding and pockets of fluid, so please continue to keep her in your prayers. We will continue to keep everyone posted and thanks again for all the love, support and prayers that are being sent her/our way! We feel so blessed for every bit of progress we continue to watch her make. Joey has been more than AMAZING running back and forth between hospitals. Yesterday he went over there 5 times to check on her and was able to give her a priesthood blessing with another brother in our ward. He also took Avery to see her and she keeps telling us that she will help take care of Baby Ansley and wants her to come share her room with her. This whole process will take time and I am definitely learning patience as each new step and hurdle our new baby girl gets through is such a miracle! I hope to be out of here (hospital) some time this afternoon; it has been so hard to sit in this room and here babies crying in the rooms next to mine... I can't wait to hear our baby cry!