Red Ribbon Week

Its red ribbon week at school and we are trying to help Maddie join in on the daily fun. Today was Western day. Believe it or not, Maddie has a "cowgirl" outfit that my mom sewed for her. But with her having PE and recess, I figured her cowgirl dress wasn't the best idea so we opted for boots, jeans and a western shirt! NO her jeans aren't really too short, she's just so skinny that even with a belt, she feels the constant need to pull her pants up as high as they will go!

Her actual cowgirl outfit plus what she wore today.

Trunk or Treat

Sunday evening was Central Baptist Church's Trunk or Treat. We've been attending church there for a few months and really love it! We were all set to attend TOT as a family until both Brooklyn and Easton got sick with a stomach bug. I felt bad for them but my parents were kind enough to still take Maddie! 

Hospital Stay

What a crazy, tiring and stressful time it's been lately. Last week, Jaime began complaining of a sore throat and swollen gland on his right side. Neither of us thought much of it. I mean, we've all had those kind of symptoms before, right?! He went to see our family doctor on Friday. At this point, his neck was visibly swollen and he was having a hard time swallowing. She told him that she felt like it was a salivary gland that was infected and prescribed him antibiotics and a follow up appt for Monday. Poor guy....the weekend was completely miserable for him. He was in tremendous pain; so much so, that it would cause him to throw up. We made it to Monday, with no improvement, and the doctor sent him straight to the ER since his symptoms had worsened. Of course, the wait at an ER is long and lots of tests were run. Here is him waiting and a glimpse of his swollen neck:

Finally the tests confirmed it to be exactly what his doctor originally said. The gland was probably blocked by a stone and had no way to drain. He had to be admitted immediately with surgery followed shortly thereafter. They wanted to try 24 hours of IV antibiotics first to see if the swelling could come down some, which would make surgery easier. They put him on the intermediate care unit (just a step down from ICU) because there was a small concern that if swelling continued, it would block off his airway. The next 24 hours was hard on everyone. He continued to hurt and the antibiotics didnt help. He ended up having surgery the next night because the doctors didnt want to risk waiting any longer. At the end of his surgery, I got the report that Jaime was doing well but they were not able to remove the entire gland yet. Things were just too swollen and the infection was a mess. They placed a drain in his neck, which is still there, and they've been treating him since surgery with antibiotics and saline rinses for the drain. 

The kids were not able to see him for a few days, but finally got to meet up with him in the skywalk area to visit (they were not allowed to see him in his original room). When he got moved to a regular room, they got to see him again. Jaime is suppose to leave the hospital today, drain still in place, and we will treat it at home until tomorrow. Then we'll head to the surgeons office for them to remove it and schedule his final surgery for about 2 weeks from now. We are ready to have this all over and Jaime completely healed. Our family and friends have been so good to us this week and really stepped up to help us out when we needed it the most. Thank you to everyone! Please continue to pray for this healing process over the next few weeks! We are ready for a sense of normalcy again!

Better

By the looks of things, this boy seems to be feeling much better! Ah, boys...... I fear broken bones and stitches could be a part of our near future. ;)

Friends

Today, a friend of mine from college came to see me and the kids. We talk often but I hadn't actually seen her in about a year. Last time I went to see her, her youngest daughter (Bailee) and Easton were tiny babies and Maddie wasn't in school yet. We also both have a daughter named Brooklyn! Sara is expecting her 3rd little girl in December! She's such a sweetie and I enjoy spending time with her. Here are a few pictures from our last visit:

Here are some pictures from today. I was only able to snap "action" pictures because no one wanted to pose for me!

Picture Day

Maddie is taking pictures at school today. Bring on the goofy kindergarten smiles!!

The Land

I'm telling ya...country living is where it's at! Don't get me wrong, I like all the nice amenities that are available to Us these days. But I also love peace and quiet and a slower pace of life. I love seeing my children run around in open spaces and fish in my parents pond. I enjoy looking at, helping with and eating out of a garden. And I'm so grateful that we have land available to us to build on soon. We are probably a year away from trying to sell our home. If and when that happens, we'll start the process of building and I'm so excited. I'm excited for the future but quite content in my home that I have now and totally ok with waiting on the Lord's timing! 

This evening, we went over to my parent's house for dinner. Jaime and my dad worked on cutting up fire wood (also a huge plus!) and the kids watched them work and played. What a great evening!

Ears

It finally happened. The stud (who weighs in at 25.5 lbs) has his first ever ear infection. And boy is it a doozy. Dr. Smith said that our little guy actually has a bulge in his ear that may.....dare I say it......pop! Ouch! Easton is obviously in some pain, but we got him some good meds today which should start to work their magic soon. He's quite the trooper and as long as he has some Motrin in his system and ear drops in his ear, he's even been in a relatively good mood. After eating some French fries (because they make everything better), he's sleeping in his bed! Praying my boy's ear feels better soon!

Funfetti

After school Friday, we went to the store and bought a Funfetti cake for the girls to help us make. Madz wanted purple on the inside and blue on the outside, so that's what we got! We also ordered pizza and made a fun night out of it!

Yay cake!

Crazy Hat Day

In celebration of studying the letter H this week, the teacher made Friday crazy hat day! Maddie was excited about it all week! When the nurse called me yesterday because Maddie had a tummy ache, I headed to pick her up. She panicked, thinking she was getting sick, but she woke up feeling great this morning and was able to wear her hat after all!