Cookie Exchange, November 28

Last year I had a cookie exchange party with all my friends from school, so this year we decided to have our second annual party. Friends that I rarely get to see came over with plates of cookies and we exchanges them, ending up with an amazing assortment of yummy cookies. Mostly it was fun just to hang out. Rob was super dad as usual and kept an eye on the kids, who had a blast. I also really appreciated how everyone was so patient with Jake, who is not always the easiest to be around. I really have a lot of amazing friends. They all know what I have been through and are unbelievably supportive. We ate, had cookies, and played games. Another one of the many reasons I have to be so thankful for my life.

Luke and Elijah (Kelly's son)

Hannah and Jake

Rob and Ry playing Cranium

Shopping, November 27

Rob and I decided to continue the Black Friday tradition and shop, shop, shop. Money is super tight this year, so we were determined to get some good deals to stretch a little bit. Toys-R-Us opened at midnight, so my parents let the kids spend the night and Rob and I headed out. We were at the store by 10:30, but didn't get in line until 11:30, which probably wasn't the smartest move. It was crazy busy. The fun part is that Rob and I don't care. The craziness comes with Black Friday, so it is a day that we get to go with the flow. We went to Toys-R-Us, Target and Old Navy before coming home and taking a nap. We picked Jake up and dropped him off with Rob's parents, and my parents kept the other two until 3. It was great, we slept, unloaded the car and went to lunch before picking up the kids. The day ended with a trip to Sam's club and a beautiful sunset. I must admit, I am tired but grateful for another incredible day.

Thanksgiving, November 26

Papa carving the Turkey
Let's Eat!

Me and my hubby

Best friends

So thankful

Today was a day of relaxation and thankfulness. We spent the morning relaxing at home and then went over to my parent's house for Thanksgiving dinner. This has been a rough year, but we have so much to be thankful for. Our family has been such an incredible support through some really tough times and it was nice to get to celebrate with them. We had a delicious spread to eat and ended the night with the traditional viewing of Christmas Vacation. Mostly I was grateful that we were able to go back and reflect how God brought us through a journey that resulted with us all being together.

Grammy and Lu

Specialist, November 25

To say that Lu has had a lot of Dr. appointment this month would be an understatement. We had to follow-up with all the specialist, plus get stitches and the flu shot. Rob and I drove down to Loma Linda 2, 3 even 4 days a week. It has been tiring, but nice that I was off work to be there. Today was saw the kidney specialist, Nephrology. It was nice to hear that all looked good and that Lu is continuing to improve. I must add that Lu had been such an incredible trooper. It is tiring for Rob and I to keep having to make the trips and wait and wait and wait for the dr., can't even imagine being Lu having to go through it. We still have a long road to go and many, many more appointments, but it is good to know we may finally be going in the right direction :). I would also like to point out, since all the pediatric specialist moved to a building away from the hospital getting to the appointments have been much, much easier.

Thanksgiving with the Grandias, November 24

Cousins: Jordyn, Ry and Jake
Uncle Dave
Aunt Michelle and Jake

What a crazy, crazy day we had today. The day started out with Rob working, so I took all three kids to the doctor. Luke needed to get his stitches out and all three kids had to get their flu shots. It went way better than I anticipated, confirming that my kids are unbelievable tough. Then it was off to the Grandias for an early Thanksgiving celebration. It is rare that we are able to get the whole family together and was nice having the chance to just hang out. The cousins LOVE playing together and us adults got a chance to sit and relax together. It was a delicious meal and all around good and exhausting day. I love the holidays!

Disneyland, November 23

Rob and I took Ry, Hannah, and Jake to Disneyland for the day. Grammy and Rosa watched Lu so we could have a big kid day. We haven't taken Jake to Disneyland is almost 2 years because he gets so overwhelmed by all the people and waiting in line is miserable. Jake doesn't want to stand still and touches all the people around us. His teacher told us about a special assistance pass we could get that allows us to go towards the front of the line, so Jake doesn't have to wait in the line. It was so great. We were able to go near the front of the line on all the rides, so Jake didn't have time to get overwhelmed and freak out. All day Jake kept saying, "This is fun!" It makes me tear up just thinking about it. When you have special needs kids, you accept that life is different, but still mourn getting to do the "normal" things. Today was so much fun and made us feel like our kids could enjoy those activities that most people take for granted. Since we had so much fun, Grammy and Papa got the kids season passes so we could go again. It was a really, really great day.

Hannah drove me on Autopia

Small WorldTwirling in the Teacups

Carousal

Jungle Cruise

Jake surprised us by loving the characters

Me and the kids at the end of a great day

Cookies, November 22

My girl Hannah spent the night so that Rob and I could take the kids to Disneyland tomorrow. In order to save money we decided to pack our lunch for the day. After packing the sandwiches, chips, apples and juices, we decided that we needed something sweet. Ry, Hannah and J helped me make chocolate chip cookies. Now we are ready for a fun-filled day.

Fall Ball, November 21

Ry's final game of Fall ball was another great game. Ry improved soooooo much this season. She went from not knowing how to play to being a pretty good fielder and hitter. Ry came off the field already asking to play Spring ball. I can not express how proud I am of her. I am also extremely grateful for a great coach this season, he was patient and really focused on fundamentals. I hear Spring ball is more competitive, which makes me nervous. But, I feel confident that she will continue to excel. It also helps that Rob helps coach during practice and games. I am pretty proud of my hubby too :).

Cold Night, November 20

Tonight was the first night that it got extra cold at Ry's softball game. I bundled the boys up the best I could. Staci, Hannah, Grammy and Papa all came to the game. It was fun watching Ry play, she got a great hit off the pitcher, and watching Jake play with Hannah. Luke liked riding in his car instead of the stroller for once. All in all it was a great night!

Report Cards, November 19

Jake's IEP and Ry's Report Card
Today was the conferences with the kid's teachers. I was nervous, since Ry struggled so much last year, and everyone keeps telling me how much more difficult 3rd grade curriculum is. Turns out I have yet another reason to be extremely proud of my daughter. She is proficient/ advanced in all areas and even going to make honer role. Ry's teacher said that she is a joy to have in class and a really hard worker. It feels good, because it makes me think that depute everything, Rob and I are doing something right :). It is so funny because when it comes to Ry we expect the proficient, but with Jake we get excited if a Basic shows up. He is Below Basic in almost all areas, which is to be expected. Despite his "issues" Jake is expected to meet Kinder standards like the regular ed. students. I was really proud of the growth he has made since the beginning of the year and the fact that his teacher said that he behaved in class, most the time. I will admit that it is a little disheartening to be reminded of how far Jake needs to come to be considered "normal." I just have to remind myself that nothing about our life is "normal," and that is one of the many things that makes us special. Despite the craziness that is our life, conferences confirmed that Ry and Jake are okay and even excelling.

Thanksgiving at School, November 18

Today Rob and I volunteered in Jake's class to help them make Stone Soup.
It was so fun watching Jake with his peers. We worry about him so much and it was nice to see him in his element. We helped Jake and his class cut up vegetables for the soup. It was a nice way to spend the morning.

After a nice morning, we received a phone call from Rosa that Luke bumped his head on the table and had a gash on his head. The rest of the day was spend in the Urgent care getting three stitches. My boy is tough, all went smooth, but man I was tired.

November 17, Christmas Cards

Every year I look forward to sending out my Christmas cards. They give me the opportunity to connect with family far away and thank everyone for their prayers and support throughout the year. Because of everything we went through with Lu, I used a picture from out professional photo shoot back in March. This is definitely one of my favorite pictures, but it bothers me because Ry's hair is still long in the picture. I guess everything can't be perfect :). I will be sending them out the day before Thanksgiving, so our friends and family should receive them by December 1st. It is a great way to kick off the holiday season and I like checking something off my to do list.

November 16, Feedings

One of our new rituals since getting out of the hospital is doing feedings four times a day. Luke is still allowed to eat, but is not allowed to drink anything because of aspirating. He gets 5 ounces of soy milk and 5 ounces of water at each feeding. It is hard to not let him drink anything, but worth it since his lungs sound better than they have since birth. He does pretty good sitting for us, most of the time :).

November 15, Crazy Kids

Rylee went over to my parent's house for a few hours today and came home with these crazy glasses for all of them. They were a huge hit and the kids loved acting "goofy" in them. With everything we have been through I appreciate these little moments of silliness so much. These moments make my heart smile :)

November 14, Proud Auntie

This was Hannah's last game of the season and she did awesome. I really am so proud of my niece and the person she is. Her and and Ry are definitely inseparable and fun to watch. I am a proud Auntie!

November 13, Ry's Game

Keeping the boys occupied during Ry's game is always a task. Tonight it was extra cold out, so we were really bundled up. The boys actually did pretty good and Ry won her game, double bonus.

November 12, Lunch with Friends

Today Lu and I met Lori, Lisa and Denise at Victoria Gardens for lunch. These are some of my Preston gals that I miss getting to hang out with everyday. We had a blast having a nice leisurely lunch at Lucille's and the walking around Borders and Bath and Body Works. It is amazing some of the incredible people that I have in my life. As we walked Lu enjoyed his Tootsie Pop from Lucille's. It was a really great day.

November 11, Oak Glen

All the kids were off school, so we decided to head up to Oak Glen for the morning. Grammy, Papa, Auntie, Robert, and Hannah joined my crew for a fun-filled day.

All smiles!

Jake had so much fun!

My 3 troublemakers

My girl

My boy

Grammy and her girls

Papa, taking the kids to the pond

Lu liked talking to the ducks