Easter Bunny

The boys and I had a fun afternoon. I took them to our mall so we could get their picture with the Easter Bunny. Aiden actually reminded me that the Easter Bunny is at the mall (I don't know where he got that from, since I hadn't mentioned it-nor have we been to the mall recently). But I knew I wanted to take them since this is Devin's first Easter.
Aiden had a fun day at preschool with an egg hunt his teacher had set up for them. Plus it was Aiden's snack day, so we made all the kids treat bags for Easter. Then we got to go to the mall! We saw the bunny first, which is a good thing because after we saw him, he left and wasn't coming back for 3 hours! Then we had lunch and then they got to run around in the play area. Needless to say they are both sound asleep :) Good thing too because we have church tonight. I'm hoping Aiden's discipline for sitting still continues, as we have a lot of services to go to this Holy Week.
Here are some fun photos of the kids playing, and then the Easter Bunny pictures at the end!

Devin gets around quite well now, and wants to join in with the action! I don't even bother trying to keep him still in one place anymore

Funny mirror...he was pretty cute with this.

That baby looks just like me!

silly faces

After seeing the Easter Bunny, they gave Aiden these ears...he wore them the whole time we were there! I took them off before he went to play so they didn't get ruined. Right now they are on his train table, where all his precious things go while he sleeps-so he can still be near them ;)

I tried to take a few shots of my own for a little variety, but as always, its the mom who needs to get the babies to smile...

So I left it up to the professionls to get the good shot while I hopped around like a crazy mom to get the kids to smile :)
I thought it turned out pretty cute!

Someone got stuck

Devin has been crawling all around for a few months now, and he goes everywhere! He's gone between the couch and the table before, but now he's getting a little to big...
Thought it was funny and took a few pictures ;)

I had to pull him out! The little, or should I say big, stinkpot :)

Early Easter

This weekend we went back to visit our families again and celebrate Easter a little early since we plan on staying home this weekend. On Saturday night we went with Micah's parents to a gala for a fundraiser they sponsor. It was fun, and we enjoyed a night out without the boys. Uncle Danno babysat for us-so it was awesome! Too bad we were the only 4 that danced, aside from one of the women recognized at that gala (pictured below). I told Micah to go dance with her :)
Then on Sunday we spent the morning with his family and then the afternoon with mine. Everybody set up a mini Easter egg hunt for the boys, and they had a blast! Too bad my camera was totally dying on me-so I'll have to get more pictures from Sandy later. Devin is a whopping 24 pounds now (we weighed him at my doctor visit Friday)-and he barely fits in the bunny sleeper we had for Aiden's first Easter...All it's good for is some cute photos, and then it's off! It was a sad day for me when I put Aiden's first birthday outfit on Devin at 7 1/2 months! Oh he's getting sooo big, and growing up too fast! He's getting the hang of cruising the furniture now, and we are just going to have to wait for that pivitol moment when he lets go to take his first steps...
I also wanted to give everyone an update on Aiden at Church. I posted earlier last week that we had to "Practice church" because he was having a hard time-well he did GREAT! It was amazing, I was so proud and so happy when we went on Sunday. Again, it was a church he wasn't used to, but he really did wonderfully. It was also nice to have Micah there along with his family so I could focus on keeping Devin happy. But we talked about it before we went in, and he really did well. I hope it keeps up!
Well, here are a few of the pictures I managed to take before the camera's batteries quit on me. I'll probably put more up on this post as I get them. Enjoy!

at the gala

Easter egg hunt is on!

This is so much fun!

Aiden found one in the "seeds" (potpourri smelly things) and wanted to continue to play with them!

Devin's off to find his eggs!

There they are!

The Easter Bunny had a bright idea of leaving balloons and hanging them from the ceiling fan so it can be like a mini "balloon drop". The Bunny enrolled some Jr. Bunnies to help blow those up-yeah, that was fun...
But the kids had a blast, so I guess it was worth it ;)

Yes, I have a balloon and you're not taking it from me!

my cute bunny :)
I'll get more of him in this outfit and post them up!

My Heart

This may or may not come as a bit of a surprise to some of you that I have had some heart issues. I have experienced what I thought were heart palpitations since middle school. It turns out I was experiencing Tachycardia. I kept this mostly to myself, but informed my parents about them sometime around high school. They would come sporadically, usually when I caught my body off guard-like missing a step or bending down and coming up too fast. When I got pregnant with Aiden I found myself having them a little more often and they were harder to stop. Now after my pregnancy with Devin I began having them for no apparent reason at all, just sitting in the movie theater on one occasion. Given that my Grandmother, and 2 Uncles on my mom's side have all died from heart issues, I figured it was about time I take this seriously and see a Cardiologist. My mother had me see a doctor right after my Uncle Bob died, a few months before I got married, and had an Echo done. Everything seemed normal except for a minor murmur. So nothing more came of that.
Last month I made an appointment to see a cardiologist at our Heart Center and he scheduled me to have a Stress/Echo test done and put me on a heart monitor/event recorder to see if they could get one of my 'episodes' recorded. The recorder works by pressing the button if you have an episode, or it will automatically make a recording if it detects your heart going above or below a set pulse rate. My recorder would automatically record about twice a day-and I would have to call it in and send the readings over the phone. Not even a week after I had the recorder I got a call from the Cardiologist stating that they were going to refer me to their Electrophysiologist (EP), and that they would call me to set up an appointment within 2-4 weeks depending on what they saw on my EKG's from the recorder, my stress/echo results were not in yet. I got a phone call a few hours later telling me that my appointment was in 2 weeks. I was told to make sure I continued with the monitor and send everything in. Another week went by and I got a phone call from my cardiologist again stating my stress/echo results were back and everything looked fine except for the EKG portion of the test-and again wanted me to consult with the EP. My doctor saw evidence that I had Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome (WPW) and that the EP would be able to definitively diagnose it. I told them I already had an appointment scheduled, and they were glad.
So I just had my appointment with the EP and he concluded that I do have WPW and that the best way to treat me was to have a catheter ablation done. With WPW, there is an abnormal "bridge" of tissue, called an accessory pathway, that is connecting the atria and ventricles-and this extra pathway can allow rapid heart rhythms. The catheter ablation destroys the bridge of tissue, and in most cases provides a permanent cure. My doctor can tell by my EKG's that I have one on my right side, but there is a good possibility I have more than one. I am scheduled for surgery on May 29th where they will do and Electrophysiology Study (EP study) where they insert special electrode catheters into the heart. These catheters can sense electrical activity in different areas of the heart, and also deliver tiny electrical impulses to pace the heart. This will allow the doctors to see where my accessory pathways are, and then continue with the ablation procedure. They anticipate for the surgery to take about 3-4 hours depending on where the pathways are located. If I have any on the arterial side (left side) then it can be a little more complicated and require an extra day or two of recovery. They anticipate for me to stay overnight for observation and then just a few days of taking it easy. After that and an aspirin a day for a month I should be as good as new.

Here is a website that briefly describes all this.

Heart surgery is nothing to sneeze at that, and there are of course real complications to consider-however they are rare. My doctor has been doing this procedure for over 20 years and has a very good success rate. I do feel I'm in capable hands, and that this is the right course of action for me. I was born with these accessory pathways and have lived this long :) However there can be real complications if left untreated. I want to be able to live a normal healthy life with my family and not feel restricted to do things because I'm afraid of having an episode, as I have in the past.
I want to thank you for all of your thoughts and concerns. I'm sorry to those who were unaware I was having any issues...I did keep this to myself for many years-my own sister was caught off guard a few weeks ago when she first learned I was going to the doctor. Your prayers are always welcome, and I'm grateful we finally have the answers we needed, and that I can stop wearing the recorder now :)

Let me out!

Since Devin has been mobile, he is into EVERYTHING! This should be old news for all parents out there...but it's really kinda new for us! Aiden had no desire to get into much as a baby. He didn't crawl until 10 months, and was soon walking after that. He really didn't put much in his mouth, and was content playing with us, his friends, or his toys. Devin is the opposite. He has been crawling for a few months now, wants to put everything in his mouth, and explore as much as he can get to before we pull him away! :) Granted in our other house when we had Aiden, we didn't have any stairs-although the house I nannied at did. He learned to manage the stairs quickly after he was mobile, but he was also much older than Devin at the time. So this is the first time we have had to use the baby gate. We try to let him have as much freedom as possible, and make the house safe for him to explore, but he seems to find the one thing he shouldn't have ;) I just thought this was so cute between Micah and Devin on the stairs...it was sweet because Devin really wanted Daddy to be able to get on his side.

"Here Daddy, I'll let you in!"

And yes, Devin has been pulling himself up on the furniture, and cruising along the bottom stair and fireplace. He's starting to figure out how to walk along the tables and couches, but hasn't quite gotten it yet...

Aiden requested to have his picture taken :)

Look at the lungs on that kid! He can blow balloons up!

HA! It's more like check out those teeth-he wants to chew everything! Luckily it hasn't popped yet...

He's such a happy baby!

Mission Trip

As many of you know, Micah has been on quite a few medical mission trips these past few years. He started his first year of medical school going to Honduras, and has gone on one every year since. He goes with GHO (Global Health Outreach) through the CMDA (Christian Medical and Dental Association). This past trip marked his 6th mission, his 3rd to Nicaragua. I was supposed to go the year we got married, but lo and behold I was pregnant with Aiden, and waited until the following year to go. It was their last trip to Honduras, and the next was the first ever to Nicaragua. We had a wonderful experience, and I got to see first hand why Micah is so passionate about going. But it was hard to leave Aiden so young (he was only 5 months). I haven't been on another trip yet, but will probably in the next few years. It's too hard for me to leave the kids knowing both of their parents would be out of the country.
So here are some pictures from Micah's latest adventure :)

Every morning you start out at breakfast with a review for the day, prayer, and singing. It's always nice to have some good musicians on the trip :)

Here is the clinic set up in a school

Here is the MMU (mobile medical unit) where they do some more of the major surgeries. Some years they have an anesthesiologist with them so they can totally put people under and do hernia repairs etc. Most of the time it's all local anesthetics. They do some other minor surgeries in the clinic-removing cysts and other lumps and bumps-and try to keep it as sterile as possible, but the MMU is the most sterile environment for the more serious cases that they can handle.

Here Micah is putting a cast on a little tyke...

All Better!

The doctors and nurses are there to lend their skills to those in need, but they are also there to talk to the people about God and their beliefs. They lend an ear to those who need it, and pray with those who want to.

It's not all work and no play...they have a good time with all the locals...and the translaters become fast friends. Usually it's soccer they play, and the Americans always get a good butt-whooping :)

In Nicaragua they have a large Dump...and people live in it. Every year the team goes and makes a trip to the Dump and participates in one of the church services held there. It's hard to believe that people live in these conditions. A few of the doctors noticed kids playing with hypodermic needles, and had to quickly explain to them why it was so dangerous. It really makes a person stop and think of all the things we have and take for granted...

That haze you see is really there all the time from all the fires to burn the trast. And it smells terrible.

Micah on top of the dump

Putting the animals to work-but look how skinny that bull is...

They were right along the ocean...and thought it was a good idea for a swim. Ummm-yeah, that didn't go so well. As Micah puts it "It got a little hairy out there..." I could have killed him when he got back!

Then they got to see the other side of this beautiful country. From rags to riches! Just like any part of the world it has its good sides and rough sides.

The last day they got to do some fun activities: zip lining, shopping, or boat tours. Micah had already done the zip lining in a previous year, so he went on the boat tour. I guess they went to some monkey island, and some of the tour guides were encouraging the monkeys on the boats. Micah luckily voiced his opposition to having a monkey aboard their boat, and the guide respected his wishes and refrained from going to the island-but they still got some pictures!

Micah had a wonderful trip and is all ready to go again next year. I myself need the year to accept that he wants to go and will be gone again. I admit it is hard to have him gone. I know it's only a week, and they are doing wonderful things out there. I think it's just hard to have virtually no communication with him and have him so far away. I am so afraid something terrible might happen and I wouldn't have any way of getting to him, or him having a hard time coming back if we needed him. After so many trips the anxiety never goes away. But it's so rewarding when he gets back, and we are so proud of everything he does! It is definately an experience I encourage anyone to make at least once. It puts a lot of things into percpective...
We love you Micah and we are so proud of you! I know you have touched so many people in more ways than you can know. It's good to have you home :)

Practicing Church

I don't know if this is a struggle for many of you out there...but sometimes it is for me! Aiden seems to have a hard time sitting still in church. Part of it is because I can't hold him much anymore because I have Devin, and I know sometimes he just wants Mommy to hold him. But Devin is too big to bring him in his carseat, and too little to let him sit on his own. And now that he's mobile, it's hard to get him to sit and be content for the full service. So when you add a whiney toddler to that mix, minus a husband because he's on call-it gets frustrating really quickly. Now I will say that Aiden is not "that" child in church (well maybe once). But I have a pretty short tolerance for behaving in church, and will not hesitate to take him out for a timeout. However I am strongly against putting my kids in the child care or "cry room" when we go. Then they'll NEVER learn! I also don't allow toys, and really try to limit any food or drink. So I guess I'm setting myself up for a hard time, but it's what my parents did and we turned out fine!
But anyway when we went this past weekend, it was just so hard for me, and I got so fed up. I did have a few mom's stop by afterwards and commend me for even bringing them in the first place...but I just want a pleasent and enriching experience. So when we got home I had Aiden "practice church". I wanted to see if he was physically capable of sitting and standing still for extended periods of time. And I wanted to see if the method I used for potty training would work here as well. If he had an accident, we would have to go and practice going to the potty over and over. The reasoning is that practicing is not fun, and if you have an accident that means we have to pracitice again. Aiden had caught on to this pretty fast, so it worked for him. We'll see if this works for church then too! I had him sit for 3 min, stand for 3 min, sit for 4 min, stand for 4 min...etc until he got to 6 minutes. He did great-so I'm thinking "no excuses now!"
It was pretty cute though watching him sit and stand with his hands folded...so I snuck a few pictures ;)
I'll keep you posted if it worked or not...and if anyone has any advice I'm certainly open to it!