Tahoe

So Sean and I get another weekend by ourselves! Thanks again Aramark! We are headed to Tahoe this time, a place I've never been. I've always wanted to go there because I hear it's beautiful and the skiing is amazing. So we booked a little extra time to stay on Sunday to get in some skiing, etc, except there's no snow there. Yep, they are actually getting it while we are leaving. It's supposed to snow on Sunday, so hopefully our flight will get out on time.

We're excited to spend some time by ourselves. I plan on reading and sleeping. I'm looking forward to the quiet. Hopefully my parents are NOT looking forward to quiet, but a rambunctious fun time with the kids! What I'm not looking forward to, or maybe I'm just not quite prepared for it, is the cold. The high in Tahoe for Friday is 47 - ok, I can deal with that, it was 47 when I got up this morning (although it got up to 70s). But the high for Saturday and Sunday is 26. Um, that's cold. When was the last time I saw 26? Hmmm, I'm seriously not too sure. I guess I'll have to stick the thinsulate in my leather coat. Do you people who live in that weather wear long underwear all of the time? I do believe my blood has thinned. How quickly I forget winter.

Zoolights

We had our annual trip to Zoolights. Zoolights is great - it's where the Phoenix Zoo puts lights on everything. It's pretty amazing. They have camel rides and such as well. There is one area there where these trees light up and are coordinated with some music. The kids loved it. They were out dancing to it. I videotaped them, but it was too dark to see what's going on.

Here are some pics

The lights

Aunt Aileen - Or Eeen, as Lauren calls her

Our good friends -- Nate and Kristen

pictures

I realize I haven't posted many pictures recently. Heck, I only had 2 blogs for the month of November! 3 with this one I guess. Soooooo, like everyone else we had some Thanksgiving. I hosted it at my home for the first time. I cooked 2 turkeys. One we did in the oven (the big one, thankfully) and it was done in time for all 26 guests. The other we decided to fry. Well, we had to wait forever for the oil to heat up, so that became our turkey dessert. I think it was better that way anyway because everyone wanted to watch it go in and see how it was done. The overall concensus is that it was more moist, but my thought was - how much money did I just spend on all of that oil? I personally don't know that it's worth it. Maybe if you fried up the whole neighborhood's turkeys........

Anyway, here are some pics since I haven't shared any recently.The turkey going in and then coming out. It was a big deal folks.

We had a crazy rain downpour with hail. It looked like snow! There was a LOT of it.Sean with his "Christmas ball." It's a wad of lights that don't work, but we needed the rest of the lights to finish the roof line! He's a little embarassed about that...The finished product.Our family, although it's a blurry picture.Lauren during light hanging. It was a little chilly and she wanted to wear a hat.I can't get those silly crocs off of her. Annoying.

Grant's hanging out with Aileen and Lauren is taking a nap. Sean is in Tucson for business. Ahhhhhh. I am going to do this before I get to work on my assignment do this week for school. Yes school. I've got one class down and 11 to go until I receive my MBA. Then what? Ah, that's the question. Let me know your ideas!

So while I'm sitting here thinking, chewing on some Bit-O-Honeys, let me ask you a question. What is your favorite candy? I mean anything - jelly beans, twizzlers, snickers, homemade toffee (yum), starburst, etc. What do you just love to eat when you have a candy craving? I have a few faves. Bit-O-Honey is definitely one of them - although I don't have them often. My mom makes the best toffee, which we have at Christmas. I love Twizzlers though. They really do make this mouth happy. They are low-fat, easy to eat, etc. How about you?

so sue me

Yeah, I haven't blogged in awhile. I've been avoiding some things I guess. Mainly, I guess all of the politics and the election. Oh, we're doing good here, I've just come to some realizations. I won't share them all, but the main one is that God's in control. Am I just realizing that? No, but I've been reminded of that. Also, these are exciting times we live in! The first African-American (well, half anyway....) will be President in a couple of months - I'm proud that Americans have gotten over themselves and race isn't an issue. I'm sad that some seem to think if you didn't vote for him, then you're a racist. That is a weird presumption to make. Still trying to understand that one anyway. Maybe if you didn't vote for him then you simply don't agree with his agenda? Seems like a simpler presumption to make....

I think God put him in charge for a specific purpose. Without sounding like I'm a conspiracy theorist, I believe our world's getting ready to become "one." As exciting as that sounds, it signals we're closer to the "end" than ever before. Since he's being touted as the world's president (that in itself shows you something), the world may be coming together for peace, one currency, etc. - we're ushering in a new era here folks. And it's exciting! We need to be praying. We need to be telling others about Christ. We need to be praying, praying, praying - can't stress that one enough.

Ryan's Skin Tags

Dr. Sean did a little surgery on Ryan while he was here. He cut off 2 of them from Ryan, his 4th and 5th skin tag removals. Pesky skin tags anyone? For a small fee, Sean will remove them for you. Cauterizing is available when needed. Don't act like you don't have any - are you over 25? I'm guessing most of my readers are - except my niece and nephews who read this.... And if you're over 25, your body starts doing some crazy things my friend. Crazy things.

missing the fam

So I don't like living far away from my family. It stinks. I was reminded of it more when my brother, wife and daughter came to visit. It was so great to have them here and just hang out together. We didn't have to do anything special but just spend time together and talk. I love my little bro and he has a great wife and baby girl. I miss them, and my older brother's family too. They all get to live by each other up in Missouri, but I am stuck down here in Arizona. Don't get my wrong, I love Arizona. I love Sean's sister Aileen - probably couldn't survive without her. Her parents are great too, hanging out with the kids on the weekend and whenever I need help. We are never lacking for someone to watch and love the kids. I don't think we've ever had to pay for babysitting yet, and they are being loved by their family at the same time. It would be very difficult for me to rip them away from them. At the same time though, my heart yearns to be with my family and I miss them. It's so far to drive and getting so expensive to fly, so trips are not frequent (how many times can I say "so" in a sentence?). I just wish we could all live by one another like we want. But how can we do that when we all have lives where we are - lives that are good and hard to interrupt? I'm just being selfish and want everything all at once. I know we will all be together in Heaven, but that's a ways away right? At least we think so..... :) For now I'll have to settle on the once a year trip to Missouri and hope they'll come this way sometimes too.

Cadence

It's easy to live life and be happy everything is great. Love your kids, your husband, be happy you have a job, watch a football game, etc. When things go upside down, it makes you prioritize and appreciate some things better. It's not that I didn't appreciate my niece Cadence before, but now I just want to hug her and kiss her and really try to bond with her.

On Saturday night, we received an upsetting phone call that Cadence was taking by ambulance to the children's hospital in KC. Her platelets were low, very low. They gave her more and they went up, but would drop again quickly after that. At one point, they were at 2000! They are supposed to be around 150,000. Crazy. No one knew what was happening. The doctors had a few ideas - ITP or do some tests for leukemia. Yikes, that's a scary word. In the end, they gave Cadence a treatment of immuno-globins or something like that and her body responded well and she is now building her own platelets. She was at 115,000 for her last test and is right now getting ready to go home after spending 2 1/2 days in the hospital. Her treatment should last 3 weeks and she'll be tested again. They won't now for about 6 months if this is something that will be recurring or just a one-time deal. Doctors don't know why ITP happens.

It was/is a scary time, but makes you realize how precious our children are, and other people for that matter. I didn't want Ryan and Tiffany to have to go through that. I wanted to do it for them if I could. That must be something very hard for parents to go through, especially for a child only 4 months old. We are so happy our precious Cadence is feeling better and her platelets are near normal levels. We are still praying for her, and ask you to as well.

So here we are, it's Friday and just finishing up the week. I'm in the middle of making my famous (to us anyway) chili since tomorrow it's supposed to be 80. That's cold, folks. Downright chilly.

I'm in the middle of "week 4" of the MBA and it's going well so far. I think I've got a decent handle on how things work. It's a lot different than on campus, that's for sure.

My husband was promoted to Sales Manager at work, so that's the big news here. If we had any thoughts of moving out of Phoenix before, those are gone. It's long overdue and we're really proud of him. He'll be awesome.

We're excited about fall around here. Grant's still talking about pumpkin day - which is October 23, by the way, when Ryan, Tiffany, and lil Cadence are around and hopefully the parents too. I'll post some pics.

Grant's being doing a bunch of stuff in preschool with pumpkins and having a lot of fun. His teacher has such great ideas! He's got the week off next week for fall break, so we'll have to come up with some fun things to do here as well - which will include cleaning the house for our guest's arrival. Grant actually enjoys cleaning so I take advantage of it while it lasts.

We're headed to Vegas next weekend for Sean's award trip. I can usually handle Vegas for a day before all of the gaudiness gets to me, but there are some fun things planned and I'm excited to get away for a couple days without the kids. Apparently Aramark rented out Studio 54 for an evening, so that should be fun. Now to find some "club" clothes....

This picture is of Grant and Lauren and their new cousin baby Jace (actually my cousin's son).

Aileen, Grant and Lauren at Makutu's Island - an indoor play place, super fun.

She's a growin!

Yeah! We had Lauren's 18-month check-up today and she's growing! She shot up in heighth to 32 inches - over the 50th percentile! For her weight she gained a couple of pounds and is finally in the 20-pound club at 20 lbs. 4 oz. That is the 5th percentile. She was struggling to stay in the 3rd before, so the doctor was very happy. And we were informed we can turn her around in the carseat now. Um, okay. Cough.

Randomness

This is just going to be some random thoughts on some random topics.
So, I'm doing alright. I've got the first week under my belt and I think I'm getting the hang of things. It's definitely going to be some work, but I'll get it done. I think having more things to do helps me get things done too. I know that I have limited time to do things, so I don't do as much dawdling.
Anyway, Sean's in Burbank until Thursday night. He's got his management class for Aramark and then he interviews on Monday also. Tomorrow's a big day for him, so we are doing a lot of praying.
Seems like we have a lot going on right now in our lives. God is taking care of it all, or else I think things would simply overwhelm us.
Also - sick of the government bailing everybody out. Yes, it may help in the short term, but not in the long. They are going to own everything soon. Sean's ready to go out and buy a generator and stock up on food and water. Anyone else have these thoughts? It's a scary world out there, thank goodness our faith is in the Lord.
Ryan and Tiffany and my parents are coming out for a visit in October. We're VERY excited to have them here. Also hoping it's still not 100 degrees every day by then. Maybe we'll be in the 90s..... :) Ha ha
So, how's that for a blog? I guess that's truly a blog because they are just quick thoughts off the top of my head!

overwhelmed

I guess I'm overwhelmed. I started the MBA program yesterday at the Univ of Phoenix. I think a lot of it is just trying to get everything down that I'm supposed to do. Like how many times I have to comment, what type of comment it has to be, what forum it needs to be in, etc. This first week isn't too difficult - reading and getting acquainted with the website. The whole thing is going to be more time consuming than I thought though. Kind of worried about that. I'm just going to take each class at a time and pray pray pray. Sean is being a good support and Aileen is volunteering her time when she's off work to help with the kids. She really does a lot for me and I appreciate her so much! I've said it before, but I'll say again how blessed I am to have her for a sister-in-law. Alright, well, I don't think I'll get as much blogging done in the future - I'll be online, but just talking some different people. I'll be around as much as possible!

Go Cardinals!

Since I am a Rams fan and Sean is a Bears fan and Aileen is a Colts fan, we are trying not to confuse our children. Soooooooo, go Arizona Cardinals! It's easier for me to be a Cardinals fan with Kurt Warner (former Ram) as the QB. As long as they like football in general, we're good. So they got some Fitzgerald jerseys today and decided to wear them around. Grant and Sean got box seats to a DBacks game tonight so Grant says he has to be sure to put his DBacks shirt back on. He is excited to stay out late with daddy -- past his bed time, he keeps reminding me.

photographer Grant

Grant decided to take some pictures yesterday with my camera. Here are some of his shots. Not too bad for his first time, I'd say.

sock sliding

Yesterday we donned some of our winter socks and did some "sock sliding" on the tile by the front entry. It was fun and whoever fell down apparently "lost" according to Grant.

MBA? yikes

Yep, I'm gonna do it - go get my MBA. I'm actually going to do it online, so we'll see how it goes. I'm not sure if I'm ready to get into "student" mode. Once I earn the MBA, I'm going to try to teach online and then when the kids are older, I can use it for my career as well. Hopefully I can get in the swing of things again. So I've got a busy year ahead of me: full-time stay at home mom (this is the primary job of course!), realtor (which is picking up), discussion leader with BSF (this is a great Bible study if you can find one in your area), and now full-time student. I've had a lot more energy recently though, so, with God's help, I believe I can do it all! We'll see how it goes.

On another note, the weather's getting a little better here. You all have talked about how it's been cool and rainy, but it's been hot here. Of course. But the mornings have been cool, which is the first sign that fall/winter is on its way. And the evenings have been good for grilling. Speaking of cool weather, we are super excited for fall around here - I've already bought some pumpkin and "leaves" scented things. I just love this time of year and Christmas. Grant keeps asking when it's going to be "pumpkin day." We read a book about pumpkin day and now he thinks that we have one. Well, we'll just have to. We'll head out to Schnepf's Farm and eat chili and cornbread, ride on the rides and pick pumpkins. Then Grant wants to come back and carve his, but he says he wants his to be nice, not scary. I think I'm going to have to explain to him this year why we don't dress up or celebrate Halloween. We'll see how that goes.....

molar pregnancy

I went to the doctor last week for my post-op check-up from the D&C I had for the miscarriage. Everything's going well, then I'm told to wait because the doctor needs to go over the results from the procedure with me and I'm given a huge stack of lab paperwork (for future blood tests) to take with me. She sits down with me and explains that I had a molar pregnancy. Well, I'd heard the term molar pregnancy before, but didn't really know what it was. I had a partial molar, which means that probably 2 sperm fertilized one egg, but didn't result in twins. A fetus developed, but just for a short time because the placenta overwhelmed it. The placenta started growing at a much faster rate than normal and produced a lot more pregnancy hormone. This is why I was so tired and nauseous - more so than my other pregnancies. Soooooooo, if not all of the placenta was taken out, it can still grow, becoming cancerous. Thus the reason for all of the blood tests. I have to go once a week for a month, every other week for another 2 months, then once a month after that for 6 months. The bloodwork should show my pregnancy hormone level at 0 and they want to make sure that it stays there. If it doesn't, it means it's becoming cancerous and they have to nip it in the bud. So, we can't get pregnant for at least 6 months, which is alright I guess. I've read other stories of women with this who actually had to go through chemo and can't have children again. I'd say I'm blessed that my doctor caught it. And again, God is protecting me/us through all of it. Have any of you had this happen to you? Similar experience?

Oh sweet Prescott

I miss it already. We went up to Prescott in the high country this past weekend. It was a last minute, spur of the moment thing, and it was a great decision. We don't do this enough like we used to. My cousin Angie lives up there with her family. Her husband is a golf pro at Talking Rock - a country club and golf community. He was able to get us a sweet house to stay in while we were there, wish I would've taken pictures. Anyway, the weather was just perfect, 70s, no humidity. The boys got to golf (another couple went with us). Grant golfed his first 18 holes and had a good time. We got to ride 4-wheelers and Grant and Lauren got to play with their cousins. Angie actually went in to labor while we were there with their 3rd child. Jace, their son, was born yesterday.

So, it was perfect there. Grant was out golfing, Lauren was napping, and I got to sit outside and read. Then I went in and had Oreos and read some more. Believe me, I did not want to leave.

Golf clubs for the little guy

We decided to go to Starbucks for a little dessert the other night. We came home with a set of clubs for Grant-man. He and Sean golfed 9 holes the day before and so Sean decided they're going to golf together once a week. Grant is VERY excited. Every day he asks to go golfing. His golf clubs are actually real nice and he loves having a rain cover. Lauren, on the other hand, is a girl after her mom's own heart. She's holding a venti latte that's almost as big as she is. Thankfully I always get decaf, so it was mainly just sugar intake. Yes, she's extremely messy, pay no attention.That was actually a good trip to Starbucks for me because the oh-so-nice barista made me a Pumpkin Spice Latte before they officially come out for the fall. Which, they're supposed to be on the menu Sept. 8 or 18, can't remember which. Sorry, I'm just a huge fan of iced decaf nonfat PSLs with a little whip on top.

Grant at preschool

I struggled for awhile deciding what to do for school for Grant. Do I homeschool, Christian school, charter school, public school....etc. So many choices, so many opinions from all different people. Thankfully, I think I still have another year or 2 before the big decision, but for now I have him going to a preschool. He's young yet, only 3 1/2, but his 2 cousins go to this school as well, and I want him to grow up close with his cousins, like I did. It's a preschool in a lady's house and she used to teach at a Montessori school. I like the things he's learning. Do I think I could teach him the same things here? Yes. I just don't think he'd actually pay attention. I have tried to teach him other things and he always wants to run off and do something else. Part of it is just his age - I mean, he's just 3, part of it is me, he'd rather be playing. All in all, it's a good change of pace for us. He goes M,W,F for 3 hours in the morning. I get to have one-on-one time with Lauren and he gets to learn and be around other kids. He's still getting used to it, but he enjoys it when he goes. So, all that being said, here are some fun pics of the kids. One is Grant's first day and the others are just having fun around the house.

Why

I always felt like when people asked "why did this happen to me?" that they needed to just rely on God. I mean, seriously, just pull it together, stop whining, maybe it had to happen to somebody, so it was you. I'm not known for extreme gentleness to others. I have kind of a suck it up attitude, grin and bear it, you'll get through it. I know, it sounds like I'm some mean uncaring person, and I'm not like that in all situations. I've sent my share of get-well cards, I've cried with friends, I've made meals, bought things for people, etc. So, when I learned yesterday that I had my third miscarriage, I asked why does this keep happening to me. I cried and cried. I thought, come on God, don't put me through this again. I understand and can sympathize with those who ask why things had to happen to them, why it's hard to just trust God. But that's what you have to do. That's what got me through the other miscarriages and God is doing it again this time. I have learned to lean on Him even more. People are there for you, sure, but God is there all the time - at 3 in the morning when you suddenly wake up and can't get back to sleep, in the middle of the day while dealing with kids, He's there to just pray to and ask for strength.

So, maybe I'm being taught patience, maybe I'm being taught more gentleness, which is something I've been working on developing for a few years now. Whatever it is, I know the Lord is teaching me. I will be open to Him and do His will. It's hard, it's easier to cry and mope, but it's the right thing to do and the thing that will help me the most. And when somebody says why did this happen to me, I can respond in love.

3pm

It happens around 3:00 every day. I'm doing well with the kids, managing the nausea (although eating too much), then 3:00 hits and I turn into a monster. Seriously, I get grumpy, snap at the kids, all I want to do is lay down and have Sean walk in the door to save the day. It hasn't always been like this, just this first trimester with this pregnancy. Grant and Lauren are managing well, but I feel like a big jerk. I also then tell myself I don't have enough energy to make dinner and a bunch of other things. I know remedies to all of this: I need to hit the gym so I have more energy (which is true), I need to eat small things all day long to battle the nausea, etc. So yesterday I decided to get back into the Word. You know, THE WORD, the B-I-B-L-E. And it helped. Of course it would, why wouldn't it? I took a long shower last night after putting the kids to bed. I wanted to get in bed at 9pm, but I stayed up and read the Bible. It was worth it. Today is a new day. I have an hour to go until 3, but I'm feeling pretty good. Even thinking about cleaning the bathrooms.... one step at a time though. ha. I took the kids to the store so Grant could pick out his first backpack - of course, it was green. Then we hit Chick-fil-A for lunch with Aunt Aileen. Lauren's now sleeping, Sean says he's coming home early and Grant just wants to make a pillow fort. I think I'm up for making dinner tonight. Thank you Lord.

hair cut and mug shots

I got a haircut. I know it doesn't look like much, but it seems I was always trying to grow my hair out. I cut 2 inches off yesterday - which would take me until Christmas probably to grow back out. My bangs aren't in my eyes anymore, which is great too. But I like it and it feels more manageable in the heat. Plus I hear when you're pregnant, you get your hair cut, so, I decided not to let anybody down and fit the mold.

I also decided to take some mug shots of the kids so we can all have our pretty faces up here.

I have to admit, my hair feels a lot shorter than it looks in this picture...

Grant-man, such a good looking kid. I couldn't ask for a better boy - he's 3 1/2 already.

And little Lauren. She looks so sweet here, and she is, but she is also a WILD THING.

Sean's 30th

Ah, a few moments to myself. Lauren is taking a nap, presumably. Grant is at the store with his Aunt Aileen. I find myself at the computer.

I am thankful for Aileen. She is always ready to watch the kids and has also agreed to watch Lauren every Wednesday and every other Thursday this fall! That's amazing and a big commitment! I am going to be a BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) leader again this year and could never do it without a great family that supports and helps. I really feel like I am supposed to do it again, although I am pregnant and feeling tired. I believe God will give me the strength. Also, I learn much more as a leader and am excited to see how my faith will grow as we study Moses and his life.

Sean is finally 30. I think it was kind of hard for him to actually turn 30. He has a lot going on in his life and sometimes I feel so helpless to help him. I appreciate and am encouraged by his love for the Lord and his diligence in following Him and wanting to do the right thing. He is a great husband and I thank the Lord for him. It also hasn't been an easy couple of weeks to love me either as I am moody from this pregnancy (at least I am blaming it on that). I am hoping the next 3 weeks will go quickly so I can end this first trimester and start feeling better. I'm also eating more with this pregnancy than the others, so I need to watch myself!

Well, that's all for now. The pictures are from Sean's 30th at his parents' house. Aileen and her friend Angie made the cake. Pretty good, huh?

Back from the Journey

Well, we're back! Been back for a week now, but I needed the rest and break from things before finding time to blog.

Our trip was great! Even though it was 8 days, I think we could've stayed longer. It was wonderful to see "old" friends and to visit with family. Our friends' visits were so short though, since there were a lot to see. It's nice to catch up though and see how each others' lives are changing. God is so faithful and His work is evident.

One of my favorite parts of the trip was Lauren eating wild raspberries. She had a few opportunities and she loved pulling them right off the bush and popping them into her mouth. She was quite a mess after finding many black raspberries in Missouri. It was neat to see her enjoy them. Our only concern is that she would start pulling flowers off plants here and start eating them! I think we've definitely got some "country" kids at heart. Grant had lots of fun riding horses, catching lightning bugs, finding snakes, catching tadpoles and frogs, riding 4 - wheelers, etc. There was a lot to do! He also had so much fun playing with his cousins Andrew and Ethan. We were home not even a day and he asked me "mommy, now what can we do?" He was so used to being on the go, not slowing down, he wasn't too sure what to do with himself. We're settled back into the routine here though and things are going well. Grant finishes his last night of Vacation Bible School tonight.

I think most of you who read this already know the news, but we're pregnant! I'm due February 24 - almost 9 weeks along now. I've had nausea and have been very tired. Sean was gone all week for work in Atlanta, which I think just made me feel more tired since he wasn't here. We've not had much family time together since Sean wasn't able to go on the trip and then he left 2 days later for Atlanta. He celebrates his 30th birthday next week though, so that's something else to look forward to (for me, anyway, since right now I'm 31 and he's 29....).

Here are some pics of the trip, not all of course, but some good ones.

Lauren eating wild red raspberries - much cleaner than black...

And here are the black ones - you can't see the full extent of it ALL over her.

Here are Ryan and Tiffany and sweet Cadence. Isn't she so cute.... Oh wait, where is she?

Our kids! 2 are mine, 2 are Amy's, 2 are Sarah's, and Katia had 1 representing that night...

My brothers and me --- and our newest-born children. I think Lauren just finished squeezing Cadence's arm. Sorry Cadence.

Lauren loves playing the piano. I believe Uncle Aaron was getting her going on some hymns.

Lauren, Caleb and Cadence. Yes, I do have pictures where Cadence is a very sweet little girl. I just caught her here with her tongue hanging out - she was just trying to smile, that's all.

Grant-man on the 4-wheeler. He is tough.

Sweet Baby Cadence.....Adorable

All of the Lauxes present at the "LFC" Laux Family Reunion this year. What a good looking bunch.