easter morning

 its a hoppin' morning here.  we are missing some loved ones who live far away... they were a part of our easter routine for a few years. the boys have been asking for their cousins. the globe joined us as we emptied our baskets. missing you and sending hugs.

first birthday

baby doll is just turned one...bittersweet day for me.  she had plenty of help opening 'her' gifts.

we sang.

she laughed.

she smiled.
 
she cried.
 
it was fun, but she was ready for bed an hour before her regular bedtime.

happy birthday lily grace!

The party

We rocked the socks off these little ones!

It was a windy, yet perfect day for Landon and Niko's party at the park with the firetruck surprise.

Honestly I do not think the day could have gone better. Landon had his big day, he was delighted, each time he turned around it was better and better.

Friends, pizza, cake, firetrucks, tatooes, kites, legos, a new bike....and his brothers favorite part of the day was watching him open his presents.

 Luke and Logan were so exhausted they requested we cancel their late afternoon cub scout activity of horseback riding. It was Luke in rare form.

 Pictures to follow. My hard drive is protesting me using it at the moment. Since I am not really a computer person, and very thankful for a husband who is, I think that means I am out of luck at the moment. I will be bound to my iPad for posts....which does not have a way to post pictures. For the meantime I will be wordy and anxiously waiting to share some fun pictures.

and our own little party at home...

these times

its been a busy few days here...

for luke and logan its been falling back into their back to school groove.  routines, i have a love/hate relationship with them.

landon has had a week of hanging with my friends and papa while i ran to and fro one appointment after another with lily.  and he has LOVED every minute.  thanks to you all for hanging with my little buddy.  yesterday at breakfast he asked who he was going to go visit for the day.  such a sweetie.

then lily.  oh my, this little girl has been through it all.  she has been looking paler and paler over the past few weeks.  her blood counts have been low.  low enough for a blood transfusion, but not low enough to absolutely require one.  so we, her doctors and i, had been waiting it out to see if she would improve to save her the transfusion.

on tuesday it was her regular chemo.  she was miserable so i got her in for a transfusion appointment on wednesday morning.  it took all day. we finished just in time to pick the boys up from school.  but lily was pink again and all smiles.  off we went to swim lessons.  as soon as i got all the boys situated and into the pool, i picked up lily and she was burning up.  i took her temperature, 102.5. i called the doctor and they wanted her to the emergency room lickety-split.

so. three boys in the pool.  sick baby girl.  husband out of town.  amazingly enough, i just kept calm and thought to myself, this will all work out.  somehow.  well, i am one lucky mama.  my sitter came through on a moments notice, even though she has another job (and school, and a life) and saved the day.  because of her, i was able to bring them all back home for a normal nightly routine and be off to the er with baby girl.

they talked about admitting lily, then after much persuasion on my behalf, decided a one time dose of antibiotics and follow up in the morning was sufficient.  she slept well.  is now feeling much better.  i think it was a respiratory infection, not a reaction from the blood transfusion.

that has been our week in a nut shell.  whew...... i do not know what i would do without all you wonderful people by my side.

spring break

tucson was as far as we ventured.  but it was fun filled with water slides, hiking, cave exploring, smores, and much much more....