soon

"DADDY! The snow melted off the grass and that means it's almost springtime and in springtime we can go GOLFING, and it's almost springtime because the snow is melting so hurry, Daddy, HURRY! Get the golf cart! We can drive it to the golf course because we have to go golfing because the snow melted off the grass and that means it's almost springtime and we can go GOLFING during springtime! Hurry, Daddy, we have to go right now because it will be springtime when we get to the golf course!"

That's what was shouted at our house last night. Too bad it was 7:00 in the evening and we had to tell B that, no, he could not go golfing right this second, and just because we can see our grass does not mean the golf course is ready to be played on yet. The poor boy had his heart broken last night.

Soon, buddy... soon.

(and guess where Daddy and B will be spending all their time this summer? I've already been told: "NO GIRLS ALLOWED, MOMMY. Just me and Daddy.")

it's because his daddy was valedictorian

We had our first parent/teacher conference as parents today. It was a bit odd to be on the other side of it! I wasn't sure what to expect- B is the youngest in his class so I kind of told myself we'd be hearing about how he's a bit behind.

Quite the opposite! His teacher said he's one of the smartest in his class! What a great thing to hear. She said he's a wonderful student, he never whines or complains, always tries to do his best, is very friendly, and a great kid overall. (And she wasn't lying about being one of the smartest!) She showed us his portfolio of work she has collected over the months and we could see how much he has improved with coloring in the lines and cutting. She had an end of the year evaluation (even though there's still two months of school) and he scored 47/50! I know he could have scored higher because one of the things on there was identifying letters, and I work with him on that at home and he can recognize all but 8 letters when we do it. At school, he only got about half of the letters. Must have been an off day. :) 47/50 is awesome though, and we are very proud of him! He has two more years of preschool; we *could* start him in Kindergarten when he's 4 turning 5 because he beats the cutoff date, but unless he turns out to be a genius, we will keep him out of K until he is 5 turning 6. (I have taught young K's before, and let me tell you- it's not a lot of fun. They just aren't ready to sit all day and listen and learn! K is NOT playtime anymore! It's amazing the demands on such little guys.) So, two more years of preschool. We discussed keeping him in the 3 year old class next year or moving him to the 4 year old class where he will be for two years. His teacher said what I had been thinking- she's afraid he would get too bored in the 3 year old class next year so we will be moving him to the 4 year old class next fall. She said she's rather challenge him in that class, than get bored in the other.

She said she loves having Brecken, and we said we think we got lucky with such a great kid. She said "You may have a bit of luck, but I think it's more that you've done a great job parenting". SA-WEET!

Hopefully the next 15 years of conferences go just as well. :)

small fry

Josh and I took Brecken to Laramie yesterday, to the pediatrician. The pediatrician we saw was a girl I went to high school with- weird to see her as a full-fledged pediatrician now! She was great. We took B there to get checked out since he doesn't seem to be growing, we just wanted to make sure he doesn't have anything medically wrong with him. She checked him out, took some history, and declared that she's pretty sure he's just a small fry. That's OK with me as long as there is nothing wrong with him! Phew! :) He weighed in at a whopping 28 pounds and that actually put him ON the percentile chart for the first time since he was about 6 months old! He's sitting nice and strong between the 3rd and 5th percentile. Impressive. :) Dr. H gave us the chart print out and told us to hang it on our fridge. :)

While there, I got my 6-month follow-up liver CT scan done. Might as well kill two birds with one stone, as long as I'm in town and taking a half a sick day. I'm sure everything is fine, but my mind is a pro at playing mind games. I mean, it's really, really good at it. The radiology tech told me the image would be up on the computer (that doctors can access) an hour after my scan was done, and the written report within 48 hours. I would assume that would mean that if something was terribly wrong, the radiologist would call my doctor who would then in turn call me. Otherwise, a letter would be sent to my doctor, who would then mail me one. I wondered all day long today if I had a message on my phone (my phone doesn't get service at work). I could call from school to my phone and check, but I was afraid there would be a message on there, which probably means bad news since it was so fast. I didn't want to get bad news at work, so I didn't check my messages. I had myself so worked up by the time I got back to cell service that I was afraid to turn on my cell phone! I did though, and NO MESSAGE!!! Hooray! I'm telling myself that means there isn't any change and they'll send me a letter! (And I keep reminding myself that my blood test in November came back TOTALLY OK! It's those mind games- have to keep myself in check.)

We woke up to a snowstorm this morning. 6 inches or so on the ground when I got up and by the time I left Encampment, another 6-8 inches had fallen. Story of our lives the past week or so- one day we walk to the park and play with light jackets on, the next day we have a snowstorm. Ahh, spring in Wyoming!

libby

all she can talk about

Guess who gets to meet her Aunt Kara this weekend? That's right!! LIBBY! According to Kristen, all Libby can talk about is getting to meet me. She's ready to look gorgeous for her newborn photos and let her Aunt Kara mess with her with hats and blankets and bean bags and all sorts of fabulous stuff. I'm so glad she's so excited! Be looking for photos soon!!!

libby diane

Usually calls at 2:00 am are never a good thing- but the one I got this morning was a beautiful call! My new niece, Libby Diane, was born this morning at 1:27, weighing in at 6 pounds even, and 19 inches long. (and if you're wondering, Diane is my mom's middle name!) So far, according to everyone who has seen her in real life and not just pictures, she doesn't look much like Brooklyn did, but a lot like Ryan did instead! Size-wise, Libby and Ryan are similar too: Ryan was 5 lbs, 7 oz while Brooke was a chunk at almost 8 pounds! Welcome to the world, little Libby! I can't wait to meet you next weekend- I hope you are ready for my camera and all the fun stuff I bought for you too look beautiful with!

Ryan after he was born- June 2006:

Brooke after she was born- July 2008

Libby after she was born- March 2010

no longer strangers

We spent the weekend as a FAMILY, and boy, was it nice!! I took Friday off of work, and Thursday night, the 3 of us headed up to Casper for the weekend. We took in quite a few basketball games, but we got to sit TOGETHER instead of Brecken and I across the gym from Josh! We spent time swimming at the hotel, shopping at the mall, eating meals and taking our time, and it was great. We had so much much fun that Brecken asked if we could stay another week instead of going home this morning. :) He is one tired boy though- he fell asleep at 5:30 tonight! I hope he doesn't wake up at midnight ready to party!!

My grandma is doing better. Thank you for the thoughts. She was moved from her independent living apartment in the retirement buildling she lived in, to an assisted living apartment in another building in Chicago a couple weeks ago. The move was against her will but she desperately needs the help. She is 92 years old and has dementia and needs more help than the caretaker that comes every couple hours can give her. She was in her new apartment for a day or two and then was hospitalized with pneumonia. Last Tuesday, while still in the hospital, she suffered to mild heart attacks. (Yes, the same day.) They really didn't konw she had them until they ran tests on her because she said her chest was hurting. However, she rebounded and was moved out of ICU this weekend, I believe. She's still in the hospital, but it's not an emergency like it was last week. I do believe, however, that she is on the downward hill so it's a good thing we have a trip planned out there starting April 6.

It was such a beautiful day out today, it felt just like spring. However, as I write this, I looked outside and the fattest snowflakes are blowing around. Typical Wyoming spring weather...

gram

If you can spare some prayers and good thoughts, we need them for my Grandma who lives in Chicago. She's not doing well right now and nobody knows which direction it's going to go, but it's to the point where we are now wondering if she will make it long enough for us to visit in a month as planned. :(

hello, stranger... i am your wife!

Basketball season is officially over. We went with Josh and his boys to the Regional tournament Wednesday night-Saturday. The boys easily won their pigtail game to get into the tournament on Thursday morning, then lost Thursday evening. They had to win Friday morning to stay in the tournament, and after a VERY exciting game, they won! They lost on Saturday morning though, so that meant they were done and did not make it into the State tournament. As much as I am glad to have my husband home after school for the first time since August, I will tell you that I had tears in my eyes after Saturday's game. :( I REALLY wanted them to make it to State!

Thursday's pigtail game was one of inspiration. They played Shoshoni, who had to forfeit their last several games this season because of injuries, and who only had seven kids dressed out Thursday morning. Two of those were wrestlers that did not make it to State Wrestling and were added to the basketball roster on Tuesday. You could tell who they were by the way they played. But those 7 kids NEVER gave up. They lost, 59-10, but they never once stopped playing as hard as they could. How awesome is it for kids to step up to help their team so the team could play, even though odds were completely against them for a win? Our crowd cheered as hard for that team as we did for our own.

Brecken had a blast, of course. He got to ride the bus sometimes with the boys, he got lots of gym time in, and he got to go swimming at the hotel. He LOVES hotels. He had several nights of really late bedtimes, no naps, lots of activities, and he was sooo good until it was time to go home, and then his exhaustion set in and had a meltdown. I'm a lucky mom though, to have such a good boy in those circumstances for that long! Josh's boys are so good to Brecken- they give him lots of attention and one of the boys even spent a long time having races down the hall and back at the hotel with Brecken. How great is that for a freshman boy to do?!

Even though the team didn't make it to State, Josh has a meeting there still this weekend so B and I are going to go with him Thursday after school. We'll watch basketball TOGETHER on Friday without Josh having to do anything! Brecken and I are both looking forward to Daddy time. Josh loves coaching though, which in turn makes me happy that he's doing what makes him happy. I'm a lucky person to have such a wonderful husband. :)

and we're off

to Regionals! We leave tomorrow evening. Brecken helped me pack his suitcase tonight so we can be ready after school! The teams are having a carry-in dinner after practice and then loading up and we'll all take off. Wish the boys (and girls!) luck! My Tigers from school, too!

end of an era

We said goodbye and good luck to Josh's 6 seniors on his team this year. Today was Senior Day, their last home game ever. Next week is Regionals, followed by State, but it was the last time they'd play together on their home court. Austin, Joe, Nate, Paul, Sam, and Ben, it has truly been a pleasure watching you play ball for SHS- there is some amazing talent in this group of seniors and they will definitely be missed next year!

sweet dreams

I've always wondered what Brecken dreams about. If we ask, he never can remember. Or, he tells us, "I dreamed about waking up." I'm not sure he knows how to put his dreams into words yet. I got a glimpse of his dreams this morning though. I heard him talking in his sleep. Here's what he said:

"I want the one with sprinkles!"

Leave it to my son to dream about donuts. :)

a great day

Brecken had such a great day today- he got to ride on the school bus, and watch one of Daddy's games! B and I hopped on the bus this afternoon to travel with the tream to Walden, CO. It's about an hour away from Saratoga. It was a great game to watch- Josh's boys won by 21 points! (They beat Encampment by 29 last night!) Then we got to get back on the bus to come home. Brecken had a BLAST. I can't remember when the change happens, from loving the bus so much, to not thinking it's exciting at all. Hopefully not for a while, since I think B will be riding them a lot in his future. :)

No more than 3 weeks left of basketball. Next weekend is the last set of home games. The weekend after is Regionals. If they make it to State, it will be the first weekend in March. There is light at the end of the tunnel! Perhaps then, we can breathe a bit. And maybe my house will be clean again. :)

out of the mouths of little squirts

Yesterday, Brecken asked me if I could pull his toes. I asked him why, and here was his response.

Are you ready for it?

"So I can get taller!!"


HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

full of heart

Amy's dad is no longer on the transplant list- he got his heart!! He went into surgery on Wednesday night and after 19 hours of surgery, got settled into the ICU. Part of that 19 hours was the surgeons having to go back in a couple times to stop bleeding, but he now is resting and the doctors are happy with how he's doing. So far, no signs of rejection- pray that this continues so he can recover and use that new heart to the fullest!

word games

I wanted to get a picture of Brecken to use in some Valentine cards today. I told him this morning we needed to find something to wear that was Valentine-y. He said, "I KNOW!", ran to his room, and came back with this itty bitty baby shoe. He held it up and proudly exclaimed, "THIS is tiny!" It took me a minute to realize what he meant- to him, I said "Valen tiny". That shoe definitely was tiny! I had to try to explain what I meant, which didn't go over very well, so I had to start calling it "Valentine-ish". :)

milk- it does a body good

Brecken had his cup of milk sitting next to him tonight. If he even reached his arm out half way, he could pick it up. He said, "Mommy, can you pass me my milk please? I can't reach." I told him there was no way I could reach it, and was right there NEXT to it so he could get it himself. He said, "I can't reach." "Neither can I!" I replied. "Try", he told me. So I did. Yup, couldn't reach. So he says,

"Here! I'll pass it to you!"

And he did- passed it right to me, so I could reach, and pass it to him. What a commedian.

tag, you're it

That's about what it's been around our house the past week and a half! And I think it might continue this week, too. Josh and I take turns being home and being gone... keeps us on our toes, that's for sure! Last Thursday night, I had to stay at school late to run the concession stands for a middle school basketball game. Friday morning, Josh left for an overnight basketball trip to Kemmerer and Big Piney. He got home Saturday night, I left Sunday for All-State in Cheyenne and got home Wednesday. Next week, I have parent-teacher conferences in the evening on Wednesday and Thursday, while Josh has football stuff to do on Thursday night as well. Perhaps, just maybe, after next week we'll be able to remember what each other looks like. :)

In addition, Josh has won the Father of the Year award this past week. In my eyes, anyway! Our babysitter is still gone, and on Monday of this past week, our backup babysitter's kids got sick and were throwing up. Josh took Tuesday afternoon off, but had to bring Brecken to work with him on Wednesday all day (no preschool due to them having meetings) and Thursday afternoon after preschool. Brecken always amazes me- he was so good for Josh and no teaching the kids was sacrificed. Thank goodness for the invention of personal DVD players and lots and lots of snacks. :) What troupers, both of them!

Josh got pretty hurt at practice on Tuesday night. He was working drills with the kids and one of the boys jumped high and hard and his knee landed in Josh's ribs. He thought a couple might be broken, but the doctor here in town thinks they're probably just pretty dang bruised. Poor guy can hardly walk, his back is really, really stiff. Hopefully he will heal soon- I don't like that he is so hurt! I felt incredibly bad that I was still at my conference on Tuesday night when it happened- I couldn't be home to help him out with Brecken. :( I'm glad B is at the age now where he can be more independent and doesn't need lifted into the car seat anymore, that helped a lot.

Last night, my school staff had our "Christmas" party. We have it after Christmas, when things have slowed down (for everyone except me, I think. ha!). Josh did not have a basketball game last night, so he was able to come! I think it's the first Christmas party we've made since we moved here! :) It was held in a beautiful cabin in Riverside ("suburb" of Encampment) and Brecken stayed home with a babysitter. We got home and he was snuggling with her in a recliner, watching cartoons- I love that he snuggled with someone that wasn't Mom or Dad!!

B and I are headed to Hanna in a little bit to watch Josh's game. I really enjoy having away games that are close enough for us to go watch! :)

I realize that I haven't posted very many pictures of B lately- I'll try to fix that soon. :)

I heard a rumor that Amy's dad is now first on the transplant list. While it makes me so sad that someone has to die to give that heart, it makes me incredibly happy that it might give Amy's dad new life. Please continue praying for them!

my hero of a husband

Just as Josh texted to say he was in Rawlins on his way home from the trip, the pager went off for the ambulance to respond to a possible heart attack. I immediately texted Josh back, because he is the only one in town that is fully certified for cardiac. He got on the phone with the police department while I listened to the scanner, to see if they needed him. They do, so the bus is going to meet the ambulance at some determined meeting spot, where he will get off the bus and onto the ambulance and make his way back to Rawlins. Poor guy- long day for him, but I'm glad he'll be able to help out. Qualified EMTs are hard to come by where we live, and Advanced Intermediates are even harder. Josh. He's the one and only. There are a two other Intermediates, I think, but he's the only Advanced one. Makes me sad for the people in our valley because they don't have enough people to respond to them if something happens. :( As annoyed as I get when Josh is getting call after call and has to go, I'm glad he's there TO go, because if it were me, I'd sure want someone coming to my rescue. I'm glad he was on this side of Rawlins so he could meet the ambulance tonight.