Back from Leavenworth!

Before I talk about our trip, HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY, KELLY!!! Kelly turned 29 (again) on Saturday--we're going to lunch tomorrow to celebrate. We're going while the kids are at church play day, so don't tell Sophie...she's crazy about her Aunt Kelly!!

The trip to Leavenworth was good but exhausting. It was good to see Dad doing so well. He got tired pretty quickly, but that's to be expected--I didn't expect him to be doing as much as he did. You'd never know he'd been through such an ordeal!

Dad and Louise had all of the family over on Saturday afternoon. It was great seeing everyone, and I was so sad to see everyone leave. I miss the relaxed conversations that came before having kids--I can't remember the last time I had a long, relaxed chat with anyone, and I miss it!! I'd give anything to freeze-frame the entire afternoon and talk with everyone that was there individually. I miss you all so much!!!!

I got some good pictures, but not enough. Here are a few of the snapshots--the first one is the girls in the outfits I made them. Didn't they turn out cute?! The last picture is Aunt Judy with her grandson Carter--the newest baby in the family!

Blessings

It's fun to count your blessings, and I thought I'd share our "Tuesday blessings" with you. Don't get me wrong, life isn't perfect around here--Sophie pooped in the bathtub, Blake just had an accident all over the bouncy chair--but these are a few of the REALLY GOOD things going on in our lives today. :-)

1. My dad is doing great! His greatest complaints are boredom and the outrageous cost of medication--but he feels GOOD.

2. Blake is officially crawling!

3. The boys are sitting next to me holding their own bottles as I write this, while Sophie takes a nap.

4. We've been seeing swarms of bugs with wings on the outside of the house, and the exterminator just stopped by and confirmed that they are NOT termites--just carpenter ants that he sprayed for.

5. The kids went to Summer Play Day at church this morning, allowing me to go to an allergist appointment that lasted over two hours. Brent held my hand as they poked my back with 84 different substances--I'm allergic to a lot of things, but NOT cats! Good news for Heidi and Edge! :-)

6. Jessica brought by dinner for tonight--sloppy joes!

Not too shabby of a list, eh?!

Here are some cute pictures of Sophie and Brent playing in the sprinkler on Sunday!

Dad is on his way home!

I just talked to Dad, and he's on his way home! They kept him an extra day to make sure he was ready. He has to take it easy for a couple of weeks, so I hope he takes this time to kick back with his feet up. Easier said than done, I know...but doctor's orders are doctor's orders! If Dad is anything like Brent when he's sick, we might have to see about getting Louise some medication--Dad might drive her crazy. :-)

Dad's going to be fine!

HALLELUJAH!!! Dad was transferred to a Kansas City hospital, and they did a heart catheter. They found some blockage and did two heart stents. He's feeling MUCH better, and says the heaviness in his chest is gone. Again...HALLELUJAH!!! They'll most likely keep him until Sunday, then he'll go home to recuperate. I'M DOING A HAPPY HALLELUJAH DANCE TONIGHT!!!

Dad in ICU

Please pray for my dad. He's been in ICU since yesterday with chest pains. They plan to transfer him to Kansas City to a larger hospital today with a more specialized cardiac unit. He's in good spirits, and was grateful that they brought him some coffee this morning...it's the simple things in life! :-) I'll post when we get more information.

On a lighter note, today is our niece Emma's birthday!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY EMMA!!! She loves Hello Kitty, so Amy made her a Hello Kitty cake. I'll post picture when I get some.

Happy (belated) Father's Day!

We hope everyone had a great Father's Day! Brent had to work, so we fixed him french toast in the morning and then the kids and I took him lunch. Not exactly the most festive Father's Day, but at least we got to see him!

Saturday morning was Sophie's tumbling class. Brent was working, so I took her by myself. We got there too early (I thought the class was at 9, but it was at 9:30--oops!), so we played on the outdoor playground equipment for a while. She was MAD at me for making her leave the playground to come inside. She had calmed down by the time we got to the gym, but as the parents and kids were waiting outside the gym for class to start, Sophie tried to smack a little girl that got too close to her. A collective *gasp* filled the room (I'm not sure if that actually happened or if it was just my OWN gasp that seemed to fill the room), but when I looked up everyone was looking at me...I wanted to be invisible!! Sophie got a time out (and threw another tantrum), and it wasn't even class time yet. Class finally started...Sophie screamed during song time...then she didn't want to get out of the foam pit...dissolved when I wanted her to try the trampoline...more screaming during closing song time...and we left before she got a stamp on her hand. No way--no reward stamp for Miss Naughty!

We ran to Sam's afterward (trust me--I thought twice about this given Sophie's mood), and saw a friend of mine from church. She's one of those people that has such a sweet peacefulness about her--she completely turned my day around. :-)

The day ended with Jess and Ellie coming over for dinner (Jess made the BEST chicken salad). Sophie was on her best behavior--whew!!

Tooth #6

Graham (aka "Creepie Crawlie"--he's quiet as a mouse and sneaks up on us now) has tooth #6! He's eating two full jars of food at each meal, and likes EVERYTHING. He won't be a picky eater! It's funny to see the differences in the boys...Graham--loves food, lots of teeth, and prefers crawling to being held. Blake--loves his bottles, no teeth, and looooves being snuggled.

When Sophie woke up this morning, she was searching her bed for something. I asked what she was looking for, and she said "Where's my paci?" (not clearly, of course, but in a very cute toddler language). Three words together!

I took Graham to swimming class last night, and he seemed to like it. The water was pretty cool, though. He was getting the concept of kicking his feet by the end of class! I took Blake last week--I'm alternating so they all get the experience!