Merry Christmas

from our family to yours!

Eight

Last night when I tucked the boy's in bed, I told them that tomorrow was someones birthday. They guessed everyone they could think of and then I told them it was someone we love who lives in Heaven. Their faces lit up and they shouted, LAUREN! I love when they say her name or talk about her. They have a sister that they never knew but somehow I know they love her.

Evan came home from school one day a while back and told me that he drew a picture of our family. I asked him to tell me about it, and he said, "I made me and Jake and Colin and you and daddy. You were holding Lauren and we were all smiling because Lauren was with us." What a reason to smile. Things like this are a gift to me, I love it. Jacob was looking at a baby picture of himself one day and told me, "Hey I look like Lauren, both our hands are the same." Sure enough, in his three month picture his hands are folded up by his face just like hers were in one of the pictures we have hanging up. Colin is still a bit young to talk much about her but when he says her name "Yo-yen" it gets me every time.

Today would have been her eighth birthday. Sometimes it seems so far away, like it never really happened. But it did happen. I know that on December 23, 2001 we welcomed a little girl into our family. We have hours of video tape of her and hundreds of pictures. So I know it happened. I know we have three sons, but before that we had a daughter. Our sweet, beautiful girl, Lauren Rebecca. I struggle every year to know what to do with this day. It's just hard do do birthday's without the guest of honor. I'm sure we will look through her scrapbook. We may end up going out to the cemetery. Whatever we do, I know we will be celebrating in our hearts this day eight years ago when God gave us Lauren.

Mystery revealed

My sneaking suspicion was right. The pin cushion came from my good friend Sarah! We are going to use that pin cushion together some day. We have big plans.

Thank you for the gift Sarah. I love it and I love you! (p.s. remember what you told me on this day?)

Deals

I've done a few posts about the deals I get couponing but haven't for a while. I had a pretty good shopping trip this week and thought it would be fun to share. I did two transactions at Meijer and spent a total of $23.24. The fun part is that I got $72.45 worth of groceries! When I brought all the food in and told Matt the total, he asked me if I stole some of it! ( I didn't of course.) I used about $18 worth of coupons on top of store sales and scored some awesome bargains. I'll tell you about some of my favorites.

Select Kellogg's cereals were on sale for 5 for $10. Meijer had a promotion, buy 5 Kellogg's cereals and get a free gallon of milk. I had a coupon for $5 off any 4 Kellogg's cereals and a .75 cent off coupon for 1 box of cereal. That means I got 5 box's of cereal and a gallon of milk for $4.25! I am loving that deal!

Mueller's pasta was on sale 3 for $2 (.67 cents each). I had a coupon for $1 off 2. That means I got 2 box's of past for .34 cents (.17 cents each). That is some cheap pasta!

Tropicana Trop50 orange juice is $2.92 regular price. I had a $1 off 1 coupon, which I stacked on top of a $1.50 off 1 Meijer coupon. That means I got it for . 42 cents. Woo-hoo!

This makes me so happy. Weird? Maybe. Budget friendly? Oh, yeah! Hooray for extra grocery money in the envelope after shopping!

I got a package

A little brown box came in the mail on Monday, addressed to me! I never get stuff in the mail so I was very excited. I didn't recognize the return address and had no idea what it could be. I wasted no time ripping into it and found this sweet little gem.

It's a pin cushion. A very cute one at that. It makes me wish I knew how to sew! I looked through all the packaging but there was nothing saying who it was from. A mystery package! The only other thing in the box was a little business card from the etsy shop it came from. Have a look.

I have only one idea who it might be from and why but I don't know. Does anyone want to fess up to sending this sweet little bird my way? Does anyone want to teach me to sew so I can help it live up to it's full potential? Just asking.

Jacob's birthday party weekend

Jacob will be turning five on Wednesday, but we had his party's (two to be exact) this past weekend. The weekend started out a little iffy. (We can't make plans in this family without some type of hitch!) Jake had a fever for three days straight but, thankfully, it took a hike on Friday afternoon so we didn't have to cancel the festivities. We hosted our first "Friend Party" on Saturday afternoon. Five of Jacobs friends came and of course Evan too. It was lots of fun for the kiddo's and also reminded me why I stopped after 3 boys. We played a few "organized" games but I'm convinced that they all would have rather just wrestled the whole time. I think everyone had a good time and Jacob was happy as a lark to have all his buddies in one spot!

We also did a much smaller celebration at my mom and dad's on Sunday afternoon with family. Mom and dad host Sunday afternoon/evenings at their house almost every week (they are awesome like that) so it wasn't much different except we ate cupcakes and Jacob got to open more presents.

He was quite wore out by Sunday night. It was a busy weekend for just getting over a fever and it may have been a case of too much birthday.

I love this boy. I love his heart. I know God has big plans for him.

More Christmas Cheer

The girls in my family had our annual Christmas cookie bake on Saturday and as you can see we were quite busy! It's no wonder I can't take off those pesky ten pounds but boy am I in the Christmas spirit:)

What we did today

It is a beautiful day here and perfect for decking the halls. We went and got our tree and trimmed it. I love it and the boys love it. My heart feels happy. I am blessed.

Breathe

Evan was not quite four months old when he was first hospitalized with croup. He seems to gravitate to croup any time he starts with cold symptoms. He has asthma and that tends to complicate things further. We started to see a pattern. He would start with a clear runny nose, then get completely stuffed up, and then the cough would start. The super tight, barky cough. That usually started in the middle of the night and then we were in for it. If the pattern held true his breathing would start being labored and then sometimes end up with him struggling for each breath. We would sit up with him most of the night giving him breathing treatments, sitting in the bathroom full of steam, taking him outside in the cold air and still there would be times that we would end up in the E.R. There was one evening that "the cough" started at dinner and by 8pm we had called 911 and he was on his way to the hospital via ambulance. I have seen my boys lips start to turn blue and have to fight so hard to get a breath that his whole chest caves in. It is scary and awful. I think it was when he was around two or three years old that our pediatrician told us that it might start getting better when he was six or seven, when his airways were bigger. It seemed like such a long way off back then, but here we are!

This past weekend Evan started his old pattern. Runny nose, stuffed up, barky cough, but that was as far as it got! The last three nights I have brought his inhalers upstairs to bed. I've been on high alert and had super sonic hearing to detect the slightest change in his breathing (from across the upstairs). I mentally prepared myself for the worst. Ready to dash to the hospital with a boy, tinged blue, and having trouble breathing. I had to be. You can't exactly take many chances when your child has a history of not being able to breathe. But there was nothing. Not even a single wheeze. The doctor was right, he is finally growing out of the worst of his asthma! I am tickled pink, truly amazed and so thankful!

We might not be completely out of the woods yet but I'm counting this as a victory. Evan's first cold without having breathing difficulties. It may just have to go down in his baby book!

Catching up a little

I feel like I should tell you that I haven't just been sitting around my house crying for the last few months. We have managed to do fun stuff, I just never managed to blog about it. I figured the best way to share all the pictures from some of the fun was to make these cute collages.

The boys and I tagged along with the Birch's (my sister Lindsey, and her family) to Kerchers for some fall fun. It was packed but we managed to do a hay ride, pick a basket of apples, eat lunch and drool over all the yummy baked goods. The pumpkin patch was a muddy mess so we opted to pick pumpkins from the already picked and cleaned pile:) The kiddos didn't seem to mind and we left with only one boy throwing a major fit. I count that as a success!



We also had the privilege of babysitting this sweet boy. My nephew Tyler blended right in as a fellow Moyer boy. I have to practically peel my boys away from him when he's around. They just love him and I think it is mutual. It always does me some good when I get some good snuggle time with him too:).



Lindsey, Shannan and I packed up all the kids, and a picnic lunch and headed to a fun park one day. It was supposed to be close to 70 degrees but I think it might of topped out at 45. We were all under dressed but it didn't stop these cousins from having a blast. The hit of the day was definitely the merry go round. The cold did, however, stop us from having our lunch outdoors. We packed up and headed back to Shan's for an indoor version of our picnic.



I am such a game player! I love to play just about any game so it makes me happy when one of the boys asks to play a game. It's usually Jacob and he usually picks Candyland. He is still working on being a good sport and gracious loser but let me tell you, he is NOT there yet! Evan won this particular game.


There you have it. A normal-ish post, from a normal-ish family, with exceptionally cute kids:). Happy Wednesday!

November

November is a tough month for me. The past 7 Novembers to be exact. Lauren was born on December 23 but that day isn't as hard as the month leading up to it. For some reason the anticipation of her birthday is worse than the actual day. I start getting anxious and sad when November hits. It is hard to think of another year without our girl. Another year without a birthday celebration. Another Thanksgiving where we gather up all our strength and give thanks for all the hard stuff that has shaped us into the family and people we are. It's easy to thank God for all the blessings and good things but it's not so easy to say thank you for something that causes such tremendous pain. We are so thankful for Lauren and the gift she was. She changed us and I think she changed others too. She changed the way we think, the way we feel, the way we pray, and the way we love.

November is also the month that we do this:

These are always the first decorations of the season for us.

Just for fun

These pictures make me smile...and they make me miss summer. I think I'm already starting to get antsy about being couped up for the winter! Enjoy!



This is my very favorite picture of my boys with their pals William and Kate.


Beach fun



My soccer boy.



Classic



At the pool.



Love these shorts on the boys. Don't they look handsome?!

Here, but not really.

I've been sitting at my computer, staring at a blank page trying to think of something to write. I've already written and erased an entire post. I'm just not feeling it. I'm in some sort of haze that I can't seem to break free of. I'm having a hard time moving past my Annie post. Annie started a new grieving cycle for me. It's good and hard at the same time. Don't give up on me. I'll be back with other posts that are happy and fun but right now, I'm just not feeling it.

Annie Jane

I have this friend, Sarah. We grew up about a mile from each other and have been friends since 1st grade. We have a history. We always knew we were a lot alike and people still mistake us for sisters when we're together. I'm always very flattered when that happens. I love her and even though we have been separated by many miles most of our adult lives, we have remained very close.

Sarah was one of the few people that I drew comfort from when our Lauren went to be with Jesus. She wrote me a note about 2 months after Lauren died and in it she said,

"I hurt for you and Matt, because I can't imagine your pain, I want to be there for you, to understand what you are going through, but I can't."

In the same note, she affirmed my feelings, assured me that she was praying for me, offered her support, and let me know that she would never forget Lauren. She is a great friend and her support meant so much to me. She was good on her word and has continued to love and support me through this almost 8 years later.

It breaks my heart to say that on Friday, we will be attending the funeral of Sarah's 6 month old baby girl, Annie Jane. Annie was sick for about a month before doctors discovered she had a large brain tumor. She went from the arms of her mom and dad straight into the arms of Jesus on September 22. I can't understand how something like this happens or why. Matt and I felt like since we went through what we did with Lauren, that everyone close to us was "off the hook" so to speak. Surely this type of tragedy wouldn't strike so close to home again. It did and boy does it hurt.

My prayer is that I can be the kind of friend to Sarah that she was to me. I certainly don't have any answers but I can offer her the same support she offered to me and this time, unfortunately, we will both understand the pain that comes with this type of loss. I hate that it is like that. I hate that Sarah has to know that pain. I hate that we have that in common. I do know that God is at work and I am trusting that he will sustain Sarah, Peter, William and Kate.

I am coveting your prayers now for my dear friend and her family. Pray for a peace that passes all understanding. They are going to need it. Annie Jane and Lauren are together in heaven. I can only imagine that they will be the best of friends.

I will leave you with a scripture that Sarah and I memorized (or were supposed to memorize) during a bible study that we attended together.

Isaiah 61:3 "and provide for those who grieve in Zion - to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor."

Evan

Evan is 6 1/2 years old. He has seen pediatricians, developmental pediatrician, opthamologist, dermatologist, neurologist, neurosurgeon, urologist, geneticist, and endocrinologist. He has had too many viles of blood drawn to count, had 4 MRI's, 1 CAT scan, 2 EEG's, 2 eye muscle surgery's, 1 skin biopsy, been hospitalized 3 times, been taken to the hospital 3 times by ambulance, had numerous x-rays, been in physical therapy, occupational therapy, developmental therapy and speech therapy in different combinations since he was 8 months old, and been poked, proded, and checked over more times than anyone would want. He has been diagnosed with Syringomyelia (fluid in the center of his spinal cord), asthma, and Chromosome 17q21.31 micro deletion syndrome (a small portion of his 17th chromosome is missing).

Evan had some appointments this week down at Riley's Children Hospital. Our first was a 23 hour EEG. Evan is always so tolerant of doctors and does very well but having leads glued all over your head would get to anyone!




He was less than thrilled with the new "hat" he had to wear but decided that it might be ok, after a few books. He is easily distracted:)

The nurse told me that I was lucky that our room had the "deluxe" bed. Yes, that is it folded up behind Evan. FYI...it didn't feel very deluxe to me! He was very ready to have all of this removed but I think that part was worse for him than getting them put on! He was a trooper though and was very happy to see that his hair was still under there:)

After our neurology appointment we decided to have a fun day! We ate at our favorite Indy restaurant, Buca Di Beppo! It was so yummy!

Then we headed to the zoo. I forgot how cool that zoo is and we had so much fun forgetting about doctors for a while. He thought about reaching in and touching the sharks but decided against it.

He did touch the elephant and said that it felt like a porcupine. I'm not sure how he came up with that.

We even got to watch a dolphin show. It was so nice to spend some fun time with Evan in the midst of so much not so fun stuff.

The next morning brought more lab work, an x-ray and an appointment with the Endocrinologist. It was a long 3 days but I came home to two other happy boys, cared for by my parents and sisters and a sparkling clean house (thanks to my awesome mom)! In most ways it was annoying that we had to spend 3 days going to doctor appointments but I spoke to one mom who said they had been there for 13 days! We really are blessed and it was obvious that Evan doesn't have it half as bad as some of the other children we saw at the hospital. We are so blessed with a 6 year old boy who despite all of these medical issues is learning and growing and even teaching us a thing or two. God gave us a special little boy and we are so very proud of him.

Crazy

Things are crazy around here right now. We have a ton of stuff going on and it's all happening at the same time. I feel like a stressed out, worn out, unorganized mess at the moment and it's about to get worse. We head down to Indy on Sunday night with just Evan. We will be there for 3 days for doctor appointments and tests. Those kind of trips are not my favorite. He will be getting a 23 hour EEG, seeing the Neurologist, and were adding a new specialist now, Endocrinology. We are also throwing another test in at the lab while we're there, for good measure. (ha, ha)

But, since I would really prefer not to think about all that I'm going to post some pictures of the boys several weeks ago. They make me smile and I need that today!

I bought goggles on sale at Dollar General and thought it would be fun to let the boys try them out in the tub. They agreed.

HA! That one cracks me up! Ahhhh, I feel better now:)