HE'S IN - HE'S IN - HE'S IN !!!!

He'll be mad that I put this on the blog - - - but too bad! I'm happy for him and very proud of him! He's officially in the School of Exercise Sciences: Sports Medicine! We knew earlier in the week because of the online system, but waited for the official acceptance letter.

I went to school for a whole new career a few years back and he supported me 110%. It's my turn to support him and couldn't be more thrilled!!!

Friday's Favorite Five!

1) My Kids! This week Devin ran his best track race ever, Kayleigh completed an AWESOME presentation on Anne Frank at school and aced it, Chase received the best report card we've ever seen, and Paige continues to make us smile every day! They're amazing!

2) Jennifer Dasta!! She'd die if she knew I posted about her. BUT - she's my boss at work and has stuck with me through more illnesses than I care to think about this spring season! Seriously! We've had about 7 weeks straight of me missing at least one day of work because of illness. Two of those weeks I missed the entire week. She's truly wonderful and fun to work for!

3) Craigslist!! We were able to find a BRAND NEW FUTON for FREE on Craigslist for Devin's room! He's wanted one for a long time and we happened to stumble upon this. He hasn't seen it yet - he'll come home tonight and find it all set up in his room. I can't wait to hear his shock!

4) Spring and Summer!! Everything here is turning so green and full of spring life. It's absolutely gorgeous and I love sitting out back on the swing just looking down into the woods.

5) Andy!! Our golden retriever is such a lover! I've been very sick this week and he's stayed right by my side - as if he knew how sick I was. Anytime I'd get up - he'd follow close by. Such a sweet dog! So glad my husband and kids talked me into getting one!!

Kate's Kart

Kate's Kart is a non-profit organization set up in honor of little Katherine Anne Layman (June 26, 2006 - January 15, 2008). She is a little girl from Fort Wayne, IN (where Mike and I used to live) who passed away at just 18 months old after months of dealing with a heart condition called Tetralogy of Fallot with Pulmonary Atresia.

Kate loved to have books read to her at home and in the hospital. Kate's Kart was started to supply free books to children in the hospital in Fort Wayne.

Visit the Kate's Kart and The Layman Scoop for more on her story and how you can help!

How About a Few Updates

First of all - Grandma is back at the nursing home and seems to be doing better than she has in months. Family says she's up talking and even eating some again. What wonderful news!

Chase is doing well. He's in week 2 of his aspirin therapy now and we expect to be hearing about our next lab appointment soon. He really is an amazing, resiliant child! Still smiling ear-to-ear with that big goofy grin of his!

Devin is running his last track meet tonight at Reagan. I'm not there with him - which upset me more than I could tell you, but Mike is there cheering him on. He's had a great freshmen season! We're so proud of him.

Kayleigh has been preparing for a skit on the story of Anne Frank. She and one of her friends have spent hours prepping for it and have done an awesome job!

Paige has been quite the handful! After church Sunday she had a royal tantrum so Mike put her in her room - she tried to escape causing him to have to hold the door shut for about 10 minutes before it got quiet - we assumed she was asleep. Well - we should know by now not to assume anything with that child - SHE CLIMBED OUT HER BEDROOM WINDOW!! Fortunately it was onto our front porch and I was in the living room so I saw her. We are totally in for it with her!

Mike is once again caring for me! Above you read I couldn't go to Devin's track meet . . . that's because I spent several hours yesterday at the doctor again and having chest x-rays only to be told I have pneumonia in my right lung. So - I'm stuck at home "resting" and taking 5 meds that are gagging me to no end!

Until next time . . .

Two More Projects Done!

Mike finally bought a bracket for his flagpole and got it up today. His Dad will be here in a few weeks and he wanted to be hanging his IU flag proud! We've had the IU garden flag out for quite a while. Our neighbors (Duke and UNC fans) are dying now!

Also - we FINALLY got the guest bathroom repainted! I wish I had a before picture for you! It was stark white with a border paper through the middle of it with green diamonds. Devin did 90% of the work - seemed like every time I went in to help the fumes started another coughing fit that nearly choked me! He did an awesome job!

Thank You Lyons Boys!!

Look - I'm Still Somewhat Crafty!

From This

(notice all the stains on the white seat!)

To This!!!

This was my project for the day! We just bought this dinette set with 8 chairs a year ago. But not all the Stain Guard in the world can keep white seats clean with 4 kids in the house!! Took about 2 hours start to finish - including a 15 minute run to the hardware store to get more staples for the staple gun. I'm pretty happy with the results - and Mike loves it too!

How Unique Our Son Chase Is!!!

We always knew Chase was a unique child!! If you've met him, you knew that from the first instance of his silly smiling face!

I emailed this out earlier - but actually had typed the wrong number on the rate- So here it is:

per the KD Foundation Stats page:
- Annual Incidence Rate of Kawasaki Disease: approx 1 in 271,440 or 1,002 kids in USA
- Relapse Incidence Rate of Kawasaki Disease: approx 10% of diagnosed kids or 100 kids in USA

So . . . Chase is amount only 100 kids in the ENTIRE USA who have KD and have relapses.

Earlier this week his KD decided to show it's ugly face again and scared me to death. As for Daddy, he was calm all along saying "he'll be fine". We were both right. His latest lab work showed his platelets at 592 at 24 (normal is <400/<14). The outcome is another regimen of high dose aspirin therapy over the next 30 days with labwork and check-ups 2 weeks into it and 4 weeks into it. So - he is definitely in a relapse, but he shouldn't have to go in for another IVIG transfusion.

For now we just watch him closely and wait for it to subside once again.

Praying for Grandma . . .

We received word last night that Grandma is facing yet another setback and is very weak. At first they thougth she may have had a stroke, now they are saying she's got an infection in her blood. She is awake, but hallucinating and talking to deceased loved ones.

The picture is one we took our last trip home in January, shortly after her admission into a skilled nursing facility.

Please say a prayer for her and our family today.

Thank you

For Mom

Five years ago tomorrow, at 10:00am, you left us. It seems like just yesterday. We all surrounded you with love as you opened your eyes for the first time in days, and looked at us all for the last time ever.

In that moment, you were healed of all your pain.
In that moment, you were welcomed into your forever home.
In that moment, you became our guardian angel.

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Jars of Clay: "Oh My God"

At the very bottom of our web-page there is a playlist of music selected for our website. One of our absolute favorite contemporary Christian songs is "Oh My God" by Jars of Clay. The first time Mike and I heard it we were speechless - it was so captivating. The next few times we started really listening to the words and realized how powerful it is.

I recently read an article where the members of Jars of Clay were explaining their meaning and interpretation of the song - I thought I would share it:

"OMG is a mediation on the reality of the power of this phrase. All the different ways it is uttered. It is so universal, I dare say that these words fall from the lips of every man whether he is cursing God or praising him, gasping in horror or in joy. It is a meditation on all the reasons that a man might cry out “Oh My God” and the end is left silent so that we might hear whether or not God is going to answer. " (Family Christian Bookstore Interview: 60 Seconds with Jars of Clay)

If you've never heard the song - listen to it by clicking the arrow in the middle of the playlist.

The next time you listen to it - think about it.

Isn't She Sweet . . .

Many of you know the story of Kayleigh and her "blue baby". But for those who don't - the jist of it is - my Mom (Kayleigh's Grandma obviously) bought this blue baby (it's actually a My First Cabbage Patch) for Kayleigh when she was born. Kayleigh was not much bigger than blue baby actually - being premature herself. Immediately - she latched on to the thing and has been sleeping with it for almost 14 years now . . . it even goes on trips with us in the car.

I had to get through her room one night this week to get to her bathroom - sure enough - she was cuddling her blue baby while she was sleeping just like she has for years. I snapped a picture of it, much to her dismay the next morning when I showed her!!

She may be a teenager, but part of her is still my baby girl.

Friday's Favorite Five

This week's Favorite Five . . .

1) The topper on our week was Jill and Kurt's adoption of little Caleb! They have waited so long for this and I know they are going to be wonderful parents! What an awesome blessing for them to now have a family!!

2) Report Cards came out and once again we are reminded that our kids are awesome with glowing grades!! Kayleigh is once again honors, Devin is honors and is taking "seminar" classes that count for more than a 4.0 on the GPA scale giving him an overall score of higher than 4.0. Chase is doing great and all his behavior scores have improved! Love our kids!!

3) No one stayed home sick from work or school this week. This is a first in 6 weeks believe it or not. We're finally starting to move past all the crud we've been passing around between the 6 of us!

4) Warm weather looks like it's here to stay - we even broke 80 degrees Thursday (hit 84). The kids begged to put on shorts for the first time and stayed outside until we drug them in for showers and bedtime. They are loving it!!

5) Mike and I got to do a midnight movie pre-screen of "Smart People" last night. Having a husband who manages the Projection Department really pays off sometimes. I enjoy going in with him when he has to pre-screen. Kind of nice having the entire theatre to ourselves and being the first to see a movie before it debuts on Friday. Kind of a nice midnight date!

That's it for this week.

Can This Kid Catch a Break!?!

I tell ya - if it's gonna happen to one of my kids - it'll be Chase! This kid has endured more medical anomolies in his 9 years of life than I care to think about! Geesh!

The latest - MONONUCLEOSIS! Yep - you're right - the "kissing disease"!! He was super sick a month ago with a bad case of strep/scarlett fever that kept him out of school for an entire week. The fever part has lingered on and off with no other symptoms. When the fever is there - he's tired. That's it.

Took him yesterday to get it checked out and they did a boat-load of labowork. She did say she suspected that he had mono because of how sick he was in early March. She explained it may have got missed because he was so sick otherwise. Well - they just called and sure enough - he's testing postive for Epstein-Barr - the virus that causes mono.

Now - on the upside - the "ratio" looks good (whatever that means!). She said it indicates the accute episode was anywhere from 4-6 weeks ago and is on the downslide of it feeling the lingering effects. We're able to let him do what he can tolerate. He can go to school providing he's not fevered or wiped out, and he's not sharing food/drinks with other kids. She does discourage sports or excessive activity - as that can increase his exhaustion and prolong the illness.

So - there ya have it - Chase manages to add yet another illness to his already 4 inch thick medical chart!

Congratulations Jill and Kurt!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are so excited for our good friends Jill and Kurt!!

They began the adoption process of little Caleb last July when he was born in Guatemala. They've encountered lots of red-tape, law changes, email mess ups, and finally today - they received their "pink slip" saying they can go and get their son!!

So - they'll be flying out early in the morning and landing in Guatemala tomorrow afternoon. By evening they'll have their precious little boy in their loving arms!!

Jill and Kurt have waited many years to be parents and this dream is finally coming true!!

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can She Nap In Kindergarten?!

We've been very lucky with Paige and naptime! She's never fought us and 75% of the time she puts herself down for a nap right after lunch. I'm not talking about 30 minute snoozing either - she sleeps for 2-3 hours!!

We've been trying on the weekends to let her stay up through naptime, or just "rest" for about 30 minutes. She'll attend full day kindergarten in the fall and I'm pretty sure a 2 hour nap is not part of the curriculum!

Well, as you can see . . . we're not getting very far! I think she's the only 5 1/2 year old around who still needs and WANTS her nap!

So . . . any tips on getting her to STOP napping!?!?

(Mandy and Carrie . . . I suppose I shouldn't complain considering you're both in the middle of boot camp "nap" with your little ones!)

Andy is Driving Us Nuts!

OK - we LOVE our Golden, Andy. He's such a good dog and the kids have a blast with him down in the woods running up and down the creek.

BUT . . . he's terrified of storms and tonight he's driving us crazy!!

He's pacing all around the house, coming back in and sitting on Paige's old couch (gonna have to wash the cover tomorrow!), then pacing, then coming back . . . it's as bad as an expectant father on the labor/delivery ward I tell ya!

Take a look at the pics closely - he's on Paige's couch each time, but in a different position!! Any time the wind howls, lightening strikes, or thunder roars he's right back up again - which is about every 30 seconds tonight!!

Geesh! TGRR never told us he'd be like a baby with the weather - LOL!

Friday's Favorite Five . . .

Here's this week's Favorite Five . . .

1) RAIN!! I know it sounds absolutely crazy to be thankful for the rain we've been getting all week . . . but we have been in an extreme drought for a year straight now. Even WITH the 3 inches of rain we received in March we are still almost 13 inches behind where we need to be! Yikes! So - bring on the rain!!

2) Date Night again! Mike and I had been neglecting our date night and this week put an end to it. We had a very nice dinner out with good conversation and spent the evening shopping for OURSELVES for a change. We had a great time!

3) I had a wonderful time this afternoon shopping with my girls for spring and summer. It's not often that I get to take just the two of them out for a day. We had a great time trying on summer church dresses and picking out things we liked, and things that were ridiculous!

4) We all had a blast roasting marshmallows and making smores in the fireplace this week. With the cold, damp weather we've had - we had a last opportunity to light the fire in the house this week to stay warm. The kids keep asking when we get to do it again!!

5) It's been a wonderful week of miracles as well. If you've been following the Lawrenson's story (see Miracle Family on my left side-bar) - you'll see that Tricia received her double lung transplant two nights ago and is doing very well! Up, alert, walking, communicating, and so much more! Wow! God is good!!

So - there ya have it! Hope you are able to pick out 5 wonderful things from the week as well!

Crean & Crimson!!!!!!

Ok, so I do not usually have anything to do with posting the family blog, but tonight I'm hijacking this beast for the news that my family and friends expect me to contribute. My beloved Hoosiers now have their new leader in place....Coach Tom Crean!!!

After suffering through six years of mundane apathy under Mike Davis, and the horrors of NCAA infractions brought upon us through two years of a great coach but wretched telephone addict in Kelvin Sampson, I am confident that we have now have the right coach in place.

Coach Crean spent nine years as the Head Coach of Marquette, accumulating a 190-96 record that included five NCAA appearances and a Final Four appearance in 2003. He believes in discipline, hard work, and the concept of the student-athlete (every player that has spent their entire college eligibility playing for him has graduated). He is renowned for taking "average" players and turning them into NBA-caliber talents. In his press conference today he also presented himself in a way that has all IU fans inspired...he was very much like Coach Hep in his demeanor, language, and enthusiasm to not only represent IU, but also the State of Indiana. This is a coach that even my Buckeye loving relatives will respect and enjoy having in the Big Ten.

I have no false illusions of what the first couple of years may be like for him...we haven't even heard the final say from the NCAA regarding Sampson's infractions, but after the first few years I am certain that IU will be in the running to see a heck of a lot of this:

Our "Little Angel" !!!

This is what Paige looks like after she's been put on the couch with no toys, no TV, no books, no anything. So many people laugh at our Paige stories and say "not little Paige, she's a little angel".

Well - got news for ya! Here's the rap sheet for our 5 year old "little angel" between 7pm and 8pm this evening:

• kicked her brother Chase for not letting her write on his wall with a red pen
• threw a golf ball at Chase after he came for help
• shoved Chase over right in front of Mom when she realized she was busted
• threw the books on the table onto the floor when she was in time out
• ran out of the living room and locked herself in the bathroom
• when Paige got out of time out and Mom went to the bathroom she snatched the bag of marshmallows and a hershey bar out of the cabinet and ran to her room where she was later found with them and said "I didn't get them. I didn't do it. LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Funny thing is - she actually HAD a nap today!!

Baby It's Cold Outside . . .

And what a way to warm up!! The temps here in NC are unseasonably cold this weekend - been in the low 40's with rain. Yuck! Mike and I decided to light a fire rather than turn the heat back on and the kids wanted to make Smores. My hubby is so sweet that he ran to the store and bought all the fixin's!

The kids had a blast making our camping favorite - smores - inside by the fire tonight! Paige got a little freaked out by the burning marshmallows, but once she got a bite of them . . . yummo!!

Friday's Favorite Five . . .

So many times in life we get focused on what's going wrong in our life, who's sick, why it's been a bad week. I know I fall culprit to this many times . . . more often than I care to think about.

Soooooooo - I've decided to start something new - Friday's Favorite Five. Five things that happened this week that stood out as great, amazing, wonderful, and true blessings.

Here goes it - Friday's Favorite Five: Volume 1

1 - I realized again that I have an amazing husband who is always there for us! He took care of the kids and me this week by cleaning, cooking, chauffeuring, doctoring, and cheering us on.

2 - Devin ran a great race in track Tuesday night. His 4x8 team took 1st place, and although his 4x4 team didn't place, Devin ran a personal best for the year of less than 60 seconds. He's such a funny kid about it though! I had to PRY the information out of him TONIGHT to even be able to post how well he did!

3 - Spring is . . . well, springing! Flowers are blooming everywhere and they're absolutely beautiful!!! Really lifts your spirits when you look outside and see the new colors that appear daily!

4 - Health!! We were very blessed to get a good report on my Dad's health this week! He's even able to participate in a Diabetes study now and his cardiologist feels he's doing great! AMEN!!

5 - And who can leave out Easter! A reminder to us that all of our blessings are because of our Savior, because he Loves us so!

And Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?" John 11:25,26

Gonna Brag on My Daddy!!

Sorry Dad - Have to brag about your good report!!

Dad had his 3 month check in Ann Arbor with his cardiologist. According to him - as the doc walked in she said "Wow! You look great!". Heart sounds good, blood pressure is good, sugar is good (when he eats the way he's supposed to!), and he's at a good weight with no excess fluids (in other words - no CHF right now). She even told him he doesn't have to keep going every 3 months - he can now go every 6 months!!! This is way awesome news!!

He gets most of the credit for this good report - but there are others to credit too! His wife (my amazing step-Mom) does a great job of keeping the most stubborn man I know in line with his diet and exercise!! And of course my Mom - the Angel in Heaven that I know has been watching over and protecting him since the day she left this earth almost five years ago.

Love you Daddy!

Home Yet Again!

Today marks day 3 of staying home from work because of this flu, day 5 of not leaving the house! I do feel better and am slowly starting to rehydrate. I was able to stay up for most of the day yesterday in the recliner - dozing on and off while searching the blogs out of complete boredom!

I have an amazing husband! He has been able to keep the house in order, laundry done, kids fed, track meets met, school work done, work his own 8 hour a day job, and take care of me. I am Blessed! What a good man he is!

I miss my patients and my work though! Three of them have been discharged home since I was there last and I didn't get to tell them good-bye or good luck. In the back of my mind - I know that if I were to be there I'd be spreading these germies to even more people who don't have the immunity to fight it. But I miss them all!

So . . . Until tomorrow I sit back and rest some more! Ughh!

Thank you Nikki!!!

It was time for a personal look to our blog and I found the perfect person to help me do that!! I was struggling with making it look too femine (the boys hated that!) or to masculine (the girls hated that!). She did a great job! Thank you, Nikki!!!

For info on how to get your blog customized - click on the Blogs for a Cause link to the right!!

Blessings!

This Story Touched My Heart

Having a premature infant is a tough struggle to get through. Mike and I learned that the hard way with our daughter, Paige.

This blog is that of a friend of a friend. This family has faced many struggles that I cannot imagine. With their Faith they have made it soooo far. But - there is so much farther to go and so many prayers needed.

Please take some time out of your day and pray for this family. For healing, strength, and for a transplant opportunity to come soon. Also pray for the continued Faith in God to get through whatever comes their way!

http://www.cfhusband.blogspot.com/

Happy Easter 2008!!!

Kayleigh's Makeover by Mom!

(These are the Before Pictures)

Kayleigh asked me to cut her hair tonight. I asked if she was sure - and she said YEP! So . . . I did! It did end up a bit shorter than she hoped. But, after a few tears, a good shampoo and blow dry, it's definitely growing on her! I think it makes her look soooo much older!

As for Daddy - well - he's not home to see it yet. I may need a place to stay tonight though!! He's not gonna like it and he's not gonna like it even more when he finds out I'm the one who did it!

Here are some after pics!

We're Bleaching the Whole House!!!

What a week it has been around here! It all started Sunday with Chase's raging fever - by Monday night he had a horrible rash down his stomach and we immediately thought the worst fearing a relapse of Kawasaki. Turned out - he had strep but no sore throat. Very strange - but with that kid nothing surprises me anymore!

The next through the pediatrician's office was Kayleigh for a fever, constant cough, and stuffy nose. Picked her up from school and went straight to the pediatrician's office - turned out she had strep too!! She was actually MAD at me for taking her because it meant she couldn't go to school for a day!

Then - Wednesday night - Devin comes in at 2am "Dad I'm sick and throwing up, I need Pepto"!! Nice to know even nearing 15 he still needs Mommy and Daddy when he's sick! Well - today he woke up not only sick on his stomach, but sore throat and fevered!!! Off to the pediatrician for the 3rd time in a week!!

As for Paige - She's too hyper to be sick these days! We've been keeping her at pre-school all week and FAR away from her sick siblings!!!

I guess if they're gonna all get sick - it's better they do it all at once and get it over with . . . right???

Anyhow - Mike and I decided this weekend was spring cleaning weekend and we are sanitizing everything in sight!!!

Devin Drives for the First Time!!

"Uhh . . . How do I put it into drive again???"

I took Devin to the church parking lot this afternoon to drive for the first time! Paige decided she wanted to go as well. The parking lot has circle drives, one way aisles, a few cars were parked, and there are various types fo parking places - good place to go and learn! He did soooo well!! He was thrilled!

We left there and headed home - he thought he was done! Ha! After we turned onto Summerglen Drive - I pulled over and said - "OK - now take me home.". He yelled "No way! There's mailboxes here" to which I replied "Yep - and a dog on the side of the road right there too - better be careful"!

He cautiously drove the 1/2 mile down Summerglen towards our drive into the woods. I jumped out to move Paige's bike and told him to go ahead and pull in the garage - he looked terrified! Then - Mike comes out and looks just panicked!! Mike said "No Way! Don't Let Him!". But - he did - and he did it perfectly!

My baby boy is growing up sooooo quickly!! I'm so proud of all he does!!

"Holy Cow! I'm really doing this!!"

"Please Mom - Don't stand in front of me while I'm parking!!"

(if you look closely you can see Paige in her carseat smiling from ear to ear!)

Nurses, Pediatricians, and POISON CONTROL!

Chase woke up this morning feeling dizzy and burning up . . . 104.3 fever!!! I yelled for Mike to come help me get the ibuprofin and in his half awake state of mind - Mike grabbed the tablespoon medicine cup instead of the teaspoon medicine cup! So . . . Chase was supposed to get 2 teaspoons of ibuprofin and instead got 2 TABLESPOONS (or 6 teaspoons!!).

We called the nurse first, then she had us call the pediatrician, who in turn had us call poison control!! Fortunately - they said he'd be ok but we had to watch for certain things like an even higher fever, uncontrollable vomiting, and convulsions. As long as that didn't happen - we were good and told no more ipuprofin until after 5pm (duhh!!).

Mike felt sooooooo bad!!! The look on his face when he realized what he had done was awful! He kept a watchful eye on Chase while the girls and I went to Palm Sunday service at church. The nurse and poison control have both called a few times to check on things - very nice to know they follow up!

As for Chase - even with 6 teaspoons of ibuprofin - the fever only came down to 99.4 and now is back up in the 102/103 range. Looks like we'll be going to see the pediatrician in the morning!

Spring Snapshots

The kids and I went back into our woods today and snapped lots of pics. Here's a few of my favorites. To see them all you can click the "Spring Pictures" slideshow on the right side of the website.