Halloween!!!!

So here are my kiddies all dressed up and ready to "trick or treat". As you can see Robert has made a remarkable recovery and I thank you again for all your prayers! So..... Robert was a vampire, Shane was a blue power ranger, and Cecelia was a "dancing with the stars" dancer! She obviously has to work on those thighs a little more to make it on the show! Kara "Ya Ya" came out to see the kids go trick or treating. Robert really wanted her to come. I honestly don't know if I could function with out her. I made some chili (it is finally getting cold enough) and then after dinner the boys could not wait any longer to get out the door. We did the block and they racked in the candy.
As you can see-- Cece is a natural! I was trying all night to get a good picture of her and she pulls this perfect centerfold picture! Geez, we are going to have to watch out for her! Daddy is in for some serious gun shopping to keep all those boys away! If she looks anything like my niece Hannah (who is beautiful) Brian has already said she is never leaving the house.






On Saturday when Kara had her annual Halloween party Robert was having severe headaches from the spinal tap and he could barely stand for more than a few minutes before he would be screaming in agony. It was really hard to see him in so much pain. He basically laid on my sisters bed and watched TV while the kids ran around. He would try to get up and play but then would have to lay down. He even had to eat his pizza laying on the couch. Cecelia I guessed could sense something was wrong so she crawled up on top of Robert and just cuddled with him for about 5 minutes. It was so sweet.
That same day Cece found the chocolate bowl and decided to help herself. Hence.... the thunder thighs!!!






This is Shane being oh so mean! Yeah right! He has the cutest smile and just melts my heart. He was so funny because he has two Power Ranger costumes, a blue and a red. He had real issues making a decision on what color he wanted to be. Red is his favorite color but the blue one is the "coolest on the show". So blue won out.







I had to add this one. After trick or treating and bath they decided to have something "healthy". Popcorn! What am I teaching my children?! HAHA Anyway, this is Cecelia "praying" over her popcorn. I have no idea what she is really doing but it was too cute not to add.

The Scariest Night of my Life

Have any of you had a really sick child? It is probably the worst and scariest thing you can go through. So.....this is how is all started. Robert woke up Tuesday morning at 6am saying his throat hurt so I gave him some Motrin and he was fine. Brian thought it might of been because he left his window open all night and it was chilly. Anyway, he seemed fine and I kept his play date that morning. Wyatt came to play and Robert was his normal self. They played pirates, skateboarded and the usual boy stuff. Wyatt's mom came to hang too and I made the kids some homemade brownies. Well, as the brownies were cooking we went and sat outside while they played. I noticed Robert was laying on the ground with the soccer ball and not really playing. When we came in to get the brownies out of the oven Robert laid on the couch and fell asleep within 2 minutes. I thought to myself "Oh crap..... he's getting sick." Robert will be sure to tell you he "DOES NOT TAKE NAPS". He woke up an hour later with a 103 temperature. My pediatricians office has after hours from 5-7 so I called and got him in. Robert was laying on the couch screaming to me that he needed to go to the Dr. He was one sick little boy. He refused to walk so I had to carry him everywhere. When we got the Dr's office an hour later he was complaining of a terrible head ache and he said his neck hurt. He wouldn't really move his head and he was having trouble staying awake for the Dr's to talk to him. The Dr's were no joke....the had him admitted to the hospital before we even left the office. I knew if was bad when I heard the Dr talking to the hospital on the phone outside our room. He came in and said that Robert was "text book meningitis". My heart stopped. He said we were to go to the ER and they would do a spinal tap then he would stay for a couple days. I called Brian from the office and told him to call a friend up the street to come stay with Shane and Cecelia. I went into mommy survival mode.
When Brian got to the hospital I took his cell phone and called my sister Kara. Robert was asking for "Yaya" (what he calls Kara). Unfortunately she was the first person I called. I had held it together pretty well up until then. I called her and said "I am at the ER with Robert and they think he has meningitis and they have to do a spinal tap". At that point I lost it and sat there crying for a second. Then all I could get out was "I need you, come." Then I hung up. I then called my mom and Brian's mom. My mom came out to relieve my friend and stay with the other two kids. When I got back they called Roberts name. We then played musical chairs for a while as they decided whether they were going to do the spinal tap in the ER or in his room in the pediatric ward. It was very frustrating. When we were finally taken to an ER room one of Brian's friends showed up from church and they gave Robert a priesthood blessing. I am so thankful that I have the priesthood in my home and a worthy husband who can give his child a blessing. Yaya showed up and Robert perked up a little bit. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have her. The Dr's came in and administered some medicine to make Robert "relax" and go to sleep for the spinal tap. As you can see in the first picture, they had to stick him several times to get the IV in. That probably was the worst part-- Robert looking up at me screaming and crying telling me to make them stop and there was nothing I could do. They asked us to leave the room while they did the procedure. When they were done they said that his spinal fluid was exceptionally clear and it probably wasn't bacterial meningitis. Viral meningitis takes a couple days for the results to come back. It was actually quite funny when Robert was coming out of the the "sleep".

We knew he was OK when we finally got to his room and the first thing he said was "This is a girls room. There are butterflies on the wall." And sure enough the border on the wall was butterflies. He informed the nurse that it needed to be sports. Oh Robbie, Robbie. He also immediately noticed the Nintendo as well. Brian then stayed with him while I ran home and got some clothes, Robert's sleeping bag he wanted and some pajamas for him. I went back and relieved Brian and he came home to sleep and help my mom the next morning with the kids. When Robert woke up (or should I say when the nursed came and woke him up) and they took his temperature it was almost 103. They gave him some Motrin and it went down to 101.6. His Dr came in to see him and said they had almost definately ruled out meningitis. They allowed me to take him home if I promised to make him drink and count how many times he peed. They made him drink a huge glass of apple juice and use the bathroom before he left the hospital. We came home yesterday and he slept for 4 hours. He then went to bed at about 10pm and slept until 10am this morning. He still has a fever and still is one sick little boy. BUT NO MENINGITIS!!! :) I have never been so scared in my life.
I must say things like this put things back into perspective. I am so thankful to have three beautiful children and a husband who honors his priesthood. We have a couple more days of being sick as they think it is just some horrible virus. I don't know what I would do if something ever happened to one of my babies. I am so thankful to be near my family. I will keep you updated on Robert's recovery! Thank you for all your prayers and support.

So cute I could eat them!

I love putting Cecelia to bed at night because she is such a cuddle bug! She wraps her arms around my neck and holds on for dear life as I sing her two songs. I swear she thinks if she holds on as tight as she can then I won't put her down in her crib. She is my only child that will go down without being cuddled or rocked. Don't get me wrong-- she is spoiled beyond belief! She already knows how to look at Daddy to get what she wants. And if we don't shovel the food in quick enough (especially ice cream), she screams to let us know.

Here she is being a big goof ball. She makes the funniest faces and noises. She has this guteral laugh that cracks me up. Robert can make her laugh like no one else. She goes to Shane for a hug. If he is laying on the floor watching TV she will just crawl to him and kiss him.

As I said-- she LOVES TO EAT!!!

Shane is my sweet one. He has such a sweet spirit and is the biggest goof ball. He honestly could run for miles. I go walking almost every morning with some women from my church and the trail is 2 miles. He gets out of the stroller about half way through and literally runs the rest of the way. It amazes us! Shane will sit in the back of the van and sing as loud as possible to Hannah Montana (he knows every word to every song) and if there is no music or not any music he likes he will just sit there and sing to himself. He also talks to him self constantly. I mean full on conversations! It is so funny to hear. I will purposefully turn down the music in the car or stand there where he can't see me just to listen to what he is talking about. Most of the time I can't understand it but he is having a ball none the less. He makes me laugh EVERY DAY!!! He is truly a joy to have around!

This picture perfectly exudes ROBERT!!! Sadly to say he is the most like me! Robert has no problem voicing his opinion as well. He has a sweet spirit as well. He does not like it when anyone is upset or hurt. He also dotes on his baby sister. He was the same way with Shane when he was a baby. Now he is just his annoying little brother. Robert also seems to think he is older than he really is. He feels he has the right to run around the neighborhood with the older kids. I have explained that this is not acceptable but he lets me know that it is because he knows how to "take care of himself". Which he does. When I put Shane and Cecelia down for nap I will come downstairs and there will be ice cream bowls in the sink and chicken nuggets on the counter. He has heated himself up chicken nuggets in the microwave and scooped himself out some ice cream. I should have known he could do whatever he wanted when "Yaya" asked him at about 13 months to go get her a diaper and he did it! Now speaking of Yaya (Aunt Kara), they have a special bond!!! He will inform me at Target that..... "if you wont get me the toy then I will call yaya and she will get it for me". And usually he is right! He lives for her weekend sleepovers. His other interests are skateboarding and video games. I am extremely against video games but he does get some time when he is good to play. He can olley on a skate board already. He NEVER ceases to amaze me.

Holy Harry Potter!

Hello-- OK--so I was asked to make a cake for this Harry Potter party. I decided to attempt making it in the shape of the "sorting hat". Now remember, I am not a Harry Potter fan. I have only read 1 book and yes, I have seen the movies. But, that is as far as my Harry Potter knowledge goes. I did not realize how coo-coo people were for Harry Potter. Everyone had to dress as a character from the books. I went on line to look up pictures of the sorting hat and got like over a million results. Anyway, here is the cake I made. The pictures do not do it justice. I have to say, it looks pretty awesome!

finally......

So.... you would have thought that I of all people (being married to the biggest computer guy ever) that I would have one of these by now! I guess it is time to join the masses! This year has been crazy! Cecelia just turned 1 on the 13th and boy is she SPOILED!! I can't believe it has been a year already. I almost didn't make it through the labor so I am happy to have been able to enjoy the kids. Robert and Shane are both in preschool. They are on opposite days so I get some "alone" time with each of them. Robert is Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Shane is Tuesday and Thursday. They have the same teacher, Miss Michelle, who is the BEST! Shane is a little attached so I was afraid he might have some issues but he has been great. It has been nice for them to have their own thing to look forward to with out the other one being around.

Brian is still working for Anystream and wears many hats! He has had the opportunity to learn many new things. I am still doing massage but mainly just get to play with the kiddies. Kara (or "yaya" as the kids call her) spends a lot of time out here and I am not sure what I would do with out her. My mom has moved to Woodbridge a little over an hour away and I still haven't gotten over it. Hopefully we will be closer to everyone soon.

The family has been through many changes the past year and half and it has been extremely hard but we have learned to rely on each other and the Lord. We still miss Bob (grandpa Doc) dearly but Robert makes sure we keep his memory alive! :)

I will try my best to post as often as possible and have new pictures for you to see!

Love -
Dori