Has Spring (Finally) Sprung?

The first day of Spring is this Friday, the 20th. It has certainly felt like Spring the last 2 days. The kids seem to be on the mend (again) and we took full advantage of the 80* temps today!

We had snack time at the kid's picnic table...

Watered the tree (Brayden thought she needed too also...Kennan informed her that it doesn't work that way!)

We played in the sandbox

Brayden wouldn't get in the sand box. She prefered to dig and dump from the sidelines.

Brayden also dislikes the feeling of the dry, prickly grass on her feet. Who could blame her?

Then we had our first popsicle of the year!

This is what kept happening to Brayden's...

But she had fun anyway!

Taking some pointers from big brother.

Daddy's little helper...

FYI: This post took an hour to finish. Halfway through our sweet girl starting throwing up. Just when I thought we were done...

On this day...

in 2005 at 2:54pm, our little Kennan Joshua entered this world at 7lbs 8oz and 21 inches long. And these two parents have enjoyed every minute of the last 4 years. To celebrate Kennan's 4 years of life, he decided we needed to have a pirate party. Arrr Mateys!Our preparations began on Thursday when my parents and brother arrived. Their gift to Kennan was a handmade sandbox by Pops. My dad worked really hard and I think it turned out beautiful!!

Uncle Kyle, Pops, and Kenny working on the sandbox in the freezing cold. The high on Thursday was 43*.

On Friday Lala, Grumpy, Uncle Chris and Katherine arrived.

The kids enjoyed some time reading...

snuggling on the couch...

and Brayden worked on getting Pops wrapped around her finger, just a little bit tighter!!!

Kennan and Grammy made the cupcakes for the party...

and worked on some decorations. (Kennan was practicing his pirate face.)

And this is what we woke up to Saturday morning (the day of the party).

The sun came out and the snow melted, so the crew set forth burying the treasure in the sandbox for the party.

Little did we know, this was going to be one of the last real smiles for the day...Kennan ended up in a bit of a funk as his friends arrived for the party.

Captain Kennan

The pirates went on a treasure hunt...

and collected their booty in the sandbox!

We opened presents, had cupcakes and ate hotdogs and hamburgers.

Imagine now that you are looking at pictures of all of the way cute decorations and cupcakes. I managed to not get ONE picture of any of this. Maybe that is because I was a little overwhelmed by our little pirate who wasn't feeling so hot.

At least we got a family picture!

We enjoyed some time outside with Lala, Grumpy, Uncle Chris and Katherine.

And, this is how Kennan spent most of today (Monday, his actual birthday day).

Blowing out candles on his toast...in bed...before he went back to sleep.

You probably gathered that our weekend went downhill after Kennan's party on Saturday. Kennan and Brayden were both throwing up and Kennan had more going on than that. Sunday was a lazy day with Brayden running a fever and Kennan throwing up again that night. Kennan slept until 9:30 this morning, which NEVER happens. We woke him up to give him his birthday toast and to sing to him, then he kicked us out so he could go back to sleep!! He woke up at 12:30 for lunch and seemed to be a bit better. We went to the doctor this afternoon just to be on the safe side. Brayden is running a fever again (as of this evening) and has a nasty runny nose. Hopefully they will both be over this very soon. I am ready for spring and warm weather to be here. Maybe we will be healthy then!!

This week is our Spring Break and we are hoping that the kids will both be well enough later on in the week for Kenny to take of work a little early so we can celebrate Kennan's birthday as a family. Today wasn't much in the area of excitement since he was in bed most of the day!!

This post turned into a bit of a downer, so I will leave on a funny note. Kennan and Lala were decorating a Bunny House (like a gingerbread house for Easter time) on Sunday. Kennan infomed Lala that "I am kinda fond of these candies". He was, of course, referring to the jelly beans they were decorating with. Love that kid!!

For your viewing pleasure...

Kennan got this mask at the Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper at a church in town a few weeks ago. He then decided he needed to be a superhero, so we decided on the name "The Kennanator". The Kennanator then decided he needed a cape, so we called on Super Grammy and this arrived last week...

The Kennanator protecting our home!
"Mom, stop taking pictures and get over here!"

The Kennanator making sure Brayden has a safe landing!

Muscle man!

I was washing and folding some of the kids new spring/summer clothes and Brayden found this dress in her stack. She wore it for most of the day (inside), even though it was pretty cold today!

Kennan making the Royal Gorge Bridge out of play dough (shout out to Stephen and Jenn-Kennan talks about this place and the wedding all.the.time!!!)

And now for a before and after shot of the tooth...

Definitely worth the $$$!!!

We are gearing up for an exciting weekend! Grandparents, uncles, friends and family are coming this weekend to help us celebrate Kennan's 4th birthday!! His party is on Saturday and he turns 4 on Monday. How can it be that I have an almost 4 year old?? Man, I love that kid!!

Our journey to a new tooth...

Last night we had dinner with some wonderful friends from our church. They had invited Kennan over for a slumber party so that he didn't have to wake up and go with us to the hospital this morning (2 cranky kids + a tired mom and dad = BAD). We took them up on their offer and dropped Kennan off last night for his first non-grandparent sleepover. Then we headed to the closest "big" town where the procedure was to take place this morning. It is an hour from where we live, so we stayed at our friend's parents house last night to make this morning a bit easier. We woke up at 5:15 this morning and were on our way to the hospital by 5:45am. Check in was a breeze and they called us into the "holding area" by 6:15. I'm not sure if "holding area" is the best name for the place we were, it sounds more like a room at a prison!!

Here are Kenny and Brayden in the holding area!

Anesthesiology was talking to us by 6:45 and the doctor was there by 7:00. We talked with both of them and got lots of questions answered. In the meantime Brayden got her gown on and drank some medicine to make her a little loopy and relaxed.

Waiting for the medicine to kick in!

As it started to work, she became like a sack of potatoes. She was fighting sleep big time and enjoyed playing with my hair!!!

Saying goodbye to her was hard, but made a little easier because she was so out of it. She didn't cry or fear being taken away from us. Don't get me wrong...it was hard! But we had a great peace and calm about us the entire time. Thanks for your prayers...they worked!

The nurse and anesthesiologist took her back at 7:10ish.

Kenny and I were in the waiting room by 7:15 and decided it was time for breakfast. Kenny went off in search for food and I stayed and watch the news in the waiting room. Kenny got back at 7:30 and by 7:45 the doctor was out of surgery and ready to talk to us. I am amazed at how fast it was!!! He talked with us about all that he did and what he found. We learned that Brayden had two tooth buds (the middle top tooth on the right and the one to the right of it) that had formation issues at some point in her short little life. He said that as the tooth was coming out of the tooth bud it geminated and tried to become two teeth. The tooth to the right was successful and what should be one normal shaped baby tooth is two skinny baby teeth. The tooth that had chipped and gotten the cavity was not successful in its gemination and what we got was her funky tooth. He said it looks like all her big girl teeth (my words, not the doctors :) ) should come in normally and don't look like they will germinate. After talking to the doctor, we called our parents and Kenny's mom said that Kenny had this same problem with his baby teeth. Interesting!!! Recovery took about an hour and then...

they called us back to see this sweet little girl!

"Off! Off!" She did not like the IV in her hand!

The only time she cried the entire morning was when we took off her gown and put on her sleeper. She had to let go of the juice for about a minute and was not happy about it!!!

Happy girl again!

Back at home, Brayden laid down for a nap and the second she woke up she was calling for a "affle". Of course I obliged since she hadn't eaten since 7pm the night before!!

Eating her "affle"

Relaxing out side with another snack!

I tried everything I could to get a picture of the tooth!! She was not having any of it, so I finally resorted to tickling her tummy while trying to hold her mouth open while trying to take a picture. This is as good as it is going to get until all her "loopy/relaxing" medicine wears off and she is back to feeling like herself!!
We are grateful for the wonderful experience we had today. Thanks to family and friends prayers we felt a great peace and knew that Brayden was in great hands. The doctor, nurses, and anesthesiologist were helpful and loving. She was such a trooper and I think she started off the day for the nurses great! They all loved her! Be looking for lots of pictures of her smiling face in the future!!!

The Big Day!!!

Tomorrow is the big day!! Brayden is getting her tooth all fixed up and we are all anxious and nervous. Well, I guess Kenny and I are. Brayden has no clue what is going on and Kennan is just excited about having a sleepover tonight.

We ask for prayers during Brayden's procedure (I like that word much better, Bethany!!) and that all will go smoothly. We are hoping to be home before lunch time! I will update then! Love you blog friends!

In 2 weeks...

my baby will be 4 years old. I.cannot.believe.it. Where has the time gone and why isn't anyone slowing it down??

Yesterday Kennan and I went on a mommy/son date to the grocery store. While there, it became very apparent to me how much he is growing and changing before my very eyes...he is able to look at double digit numbers and tell me what they are, he finds items on our list and crosses them off as they get put in the cart, he is using words like "repair" and "disappoint" in the right context!! He is aware of the different emotions and feelings he has and is compassionate and kind. He soaks up all he can from books and has become an excellent story teller. I am overwhelmed with what a wonderful little boy he is and can't wait to see what his future holds! And now for a flashback...

Kennan Joshua, March 2005 And now, an almost 4 year old!!!
And not to leave Brayden out...In one week our little girl will have a brand new front tooth! Her surgery (I don't like that word, but don't know what else to call it) is happening a week from today at 7am. She will be under anesthesia for about 20-30 minutes while they do the work on her tooth. I am feeling anxious and a little bit nervous and know those feelings will magnify as we get closer. As far as paying for all this, that is another matter (I still haven't found that money tree)...but it is something we have to do. There is no other option. Be looking for pictures of her pearly whites in the weeks to come!!!

Oh, and on another Brayden note...She has pooped AND peed in the potty the last two days. Can you believe it?? She has taken complete initiative in this endeavor and we are thrilled!!! We won't be in panties for a loooong time, but I will take what we can get!!

Nothing to blog about...

As cute as the little tiny hiney is in the post below, the blog was in need of an update. I don't feel like there is much to say...but I'm sure I'll come up with something!

~The weather the last few days has been great! 70* temps and sunshine are great playing on the playground conditions! I think we are paying for it with snotty noses, but that's okay!

~We took a TON of bathtime pictures with Kennan, but have taken hardly any of Brayden. I pulled out the camera the other night and got some great shots of the mullet! Good thing it is curly when its dry!!
~Kenny had to be out of town last Friday night for a church meeting so the kids and I were on our own. This is a worn out mommy and an energized Kennan on Friday night before bedtime!

Kennan took this picture of Brayden. This is her new trick...climb up on the chair and pull whatever she finds off the table. She has also taken to falling out of the chair lately and has a nice goose egg on her forehead to prove it!

Saturday morning the kids watched cartoons in our bed while eating breakfast...on daddy's side of the bed of course!!

~This last week has been all about the Scholastic Book Fair at Kennan's school. I was the "chairman"...and I use that word loosely. I had LOTS of help and didn't do much. I love kids books, so it was fun to browse the fair everyday and look at all the cute books! Today is the last day and I have a running tab that needs to be paid!! Kenny will probably regret all the time I spent up there after he sees the total!!! Oh well, it goes to a good cause!

~Kennan is sick again. He threw up 3 times last night between 5pm and 9:30pm. Went all night without getting sick and threw up again this morning. YUCK! He seems to feel fine but I am thinking he will start to get pretty weak and lethargic over the next few hours since he can't keep anything down. Here's to hoping that no one else gets it!

~I get to go up to the church tonight for our ladies craft night. I am going to make a fruit pizza...yummy! I am not sure what my craft is going to be, but at least I know what I am making to eat!