More cousin withdrawals

My mom took this picture of them with their faces painted (aside from Alyssa) when she was with them in Chicago. Actually, it may have been in Minnesota but I am sure it will all be covered on Dana's blog. Mom brought us all shirts back that say, "Wheaton College" on them. We have been wearing them together. So cute! Wish I could show you a picture but my camera is being sent back for repair again!

This morning I overheard Bailey in the kitchen saying, "I'm walking to Chicago." Then I heard lots of patters of feet. Then I heard him say, "Hi, Alyssa!" Then Samantha chimed in, "Hi, Alyssa!" I have an imaginary Alyssa in my kitchen! I'm sure imaginary Caden and imaginary Mia will be here soon...

Why Can't Oklahoma be France?

My brother, sister-in-law and the cousins (Mia, Caden, and Alyssa) are raising support to go and be missionaries and be involved in Church Planting in France. We always talk about how much we are going to miss them and we talk about their old house and their new house and if their cats are going too...The kids and I were reading and out of nowhere Bailey said in a troubled voice with squinted eyes, "I wish the cousins could be here...(then he interrupted himself) I wish this was France." It was so cute and no one would know how exactly cute it was except for the one who heard the original comment. So sweet. Oh, how we will miss them. They are gone for 6 weeks right now doing some training which is probably why it is so on Bailey's mind right now.

If only...Oklahoma were France...

Little Bella and her 5 day hospital stay

\ (Bella when she was a newborn)

We went for a weight check at the doctor for Isabella (which we do often. I was very shocked at the appointment to be sent to the hospital! Isabella was hospitalized because she had lost weight the last two times we went to the doctor. She is 19 months (on the 10th) and went from 20 pounds to 19.6 and then down to 19.4. We have not been concerned about her and could go on and on with stories of small people in the family. They took lots of blood from her (that was very sad :( ) I had to help hold her down and she kept crying, "Mama! Mama! Mama!" When she realized I wasn't "helping" her she began crying, "Dada! Dada! Dada!" And then, finally, "Papa! Papa! Papa!" They stuck her in 3 different places before they got it. She lost a pound while she was in the hospital and we were trying so hard to get her to eat and gain that she would just see me bringing food to her and shake her head no. The doctors wanted to put a feeding tube down her nose and into her belly and even send her home on it for awhile. We were not very comfortable with that (especially when all her tests that they've been running on her have been coming back fine and we think she's just little). After praying, consulting with others, and getting a second opinion from another doctor, we had the order canceled. We heard it would have been very traumatizing for her and she could have pulled it out and bled. My mom, being a nurse, has seen these first-hand. They also wanted to try giving her an antihistamine that had a drug in it that would stimulate her appetite. We didn't want to do that either. We basically just tried to feed her anything we could get her to eat at the hospital (Derrick did great bringing her food such as fried mozzarella sticks and a shake) and she was weighed every morning and waited on test results to come back (still pending on some). We are continuing to work on this at home and charting everything she eats for her follow-up appointment. Derrick, the kids, and I all stayed the night every night up at the hospital and, thankfully, they got to hang out with some of the grandparents and have some fun. The great thing about being up there was all the people that came to visit and show their love even though we had a healthy baby in the crib! We had some sweet time with many family members and some friends! We had a lot of people coming in our room such as a dietician, a social worker, a speech therapist (to see if she had any diversions to texture or anything), nurses... Many commented that she did not look like a regular "failure to thrive" child (that is her diagnosis). They watched her run around the room and some said, "She probably burns it off!" We were actually on the oncology floor and saw some, such as a baby that had cancer, being pulled around in a wagon. My heart broke for those parents and I felt so bad for worrying about something so minor as Isabella's situation.

I just realized the last post was about a trip to the emergency room! Are you beginning to think that all we do is spend time at the hospital? ;)

Baked apples and a trip to the emergency room

This is from a Rachael Ray cookbook (thank you, Barb!). The kids and I made it last night and they were so yummy I made some more tonight. Last night we used Fugi apples (I think) and tonight Granny Smith. I have yet to taste them though because I was interrupted by a trip to the emergency room when I was in the middle of making them!

Well, the kids were "practicing golf" in the backyard because Derrick and Bailey are going to go golfing with some guy friends from church & one of their sons (about Bay's age) in the morning. They were playing with Derrick's set that I THOUGHT Bay had permission to play with. Bailey got in the way of one of Samantha's swings and the next thing I knew (here I was coring my apples in the kitchen) was that Bailey was crying a cry that sounded very serious. When I looked out the back door at him I saw a whole bunch of blood coming from his head! It was very scary! I called Derrick for help and he took the part of wiping the blood. There was blood all over Bailey's shirt, some on his shorts, some on the floor, and the bib I grabbed in a panic and gave to Derrick. Then I gave him one of those little boo boo stuffed animals you keep in the freezer to hold on it. Samantha was so sad and crying and wanted to make sure we knew it was an accident and he was "in her way!" Samantha, Bailey, and I headed to the emergency room. At the emergency room (Bailey Medical Center) the doctor decided he needed a couple of stitches and said the dermabond (glue) wasn't enough to hold it.So, they put some stuff on to numb it and left it on for 20 minutes. Then, when the doctor came back he decided to dermabond it instead saying it was on the muscle that helps him frown. I wanted to say, "Oh, we don't want him to frown anymore anyway!" We stopped for a treat like we do anytime we have a trip to the emergency room! It was way past their bedtime when we got home. When we got home Bailey told Derrick, "I feel much better now!" He thanked me for "taking care of him" and ran to his room to get a surprise for me (One of his stuffed animals. ;) ) On the way there he was not feeling well and was also worried about getting a shot and stitches and if if it hurt.

So, still want that recipe for the apples? ;)

4 McIntosh apples, all about the same size (As I was typing this they came out of the oven and I have decided I like Granny Smith best...which I suspected I would).
2/3 Grape-Nuts cereal (very healthy!)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 nutmeg
2 TBS brown sugar
2 Tablespoons cold butter
1/3 chopped walnuts, a couple of handfuls (I have not made them with nuts yet but bet they'd be awesome with pecans).
2 TBS currants or raisins
Oats ( I added this part and it was really good. I didn't really measure the ingredients but added more of everything and we ended up having extra granola to eat which was really good. We just scooped it from the pan.

Preheat oven to 350. Cut an X at the stem end of each apple, then use a spoon to scoop halfway into each apple, making a cavity and removing the core. Place apples in small baking dish. Mix the cereal with the oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, butter, nuts, and currants. Stuff the cereal mixture into the apples and bake for 30 to 35 min., or until the apples are tender and the filling is brown and bubbly. Serve hot as is or top with ice cream for an upside-down apple sundae.

Note: You can make this recipe with tart and tangy Granny Smith apples, too, but you will need to bake them for 45 to 50 min. because they are much firmer apples.

Another note: If you have children have them help you make them so they are not off getting into harm's way! ;)

YouTube - Paul Washer - Shocking Message (full length)

YouTube - Paul Washer - Shocking Message (full length)

Congratulations, Derrick!

Derrick graduates with a Bachelor's degree in Health and Promotions from OSU today! He has worked hard going part time a lot of the time and has persevered all the while being a wonderful father and husband, among accomplishing many other amazing things!

My surprise from Derrick!

Yesterday Derrick called and asked what my plans were for the day. It was the last day of co-op and after lunch I had to take Isabella to the dr. I told him that I needed to hurry home so I could start cooking and cleaning for Samantha's birthday party. He said not to come home and that he would clean for me. So, we stayed gone until we met my gma Bobber and Papa Mitchell to go to dinner for my birthday (Sam's is on the 12th, mine the 9th). I unwrapped presents at their house including some yummy, yummy soap and lotion in a holder from Mikaela (Japanese Cherry Blossom from Bath and Body works). We went to Casa Bonita and that was a lot of fun. I won't tell you the embarrassing number of how many sopapillas I ate! We sat in the cave and I saw Bailey's eyes brighten when we were walking in to be seated! At one point Derrick noticed Sam was unusually quiet during dinner. We found that it was due to the fact that she had a bowl of queso in her lap and was licking it off of her fingers. She eventually dipped chips in the cheese and proceeded to just lick it off without eating the chip.
Back at home Derrick forbid me to go into our room. I knew he had a birthday surprise for me and I thought, "Oh, wow! He's painting the bathroom!" This is something he knew I really wanted. I had no idea what I was going to step into when he finally emerged (sweating) from the room he had been working so hard in. He was disappointed that he couldn't show me a finished product but said he'd be up until 5 a.m. if he finished. Before we went in he said, "Now, don't panic! There's going to be some things out of place but I know how to put them back." I marveled at the new tile he had put in and the paint. Then I said, "The toilet is in the bathtub!?" He again assured me he could put it back and apologized that I saw it unfinished. I said, "No, this is priceless to see the toilet in the bathtub and I wouldn't have wanted to miss seeing this!" Plus, I got more of a picture of how hard he worked. He went all out! I couldn't believe it when I saw the floor too. Then he showed me a whole bunch of other things like new rugs, a shower curtain and hooks, some drawers, towel hangers, a fancy shower curtain holder, a new toilet seat...He always gives me the greatest surprises! The first year of marriage he enlisted his mom and Mitchell to bring a treadmill (that he knew I really wanted) for Christmas. Not too long ago he surprised me with a new car! Now, that was fun and a very funny story too because he and the car salesman tricked me! I only wish I could surprise him with a new truck or something. I always try to win drawings for them but I think it just gives telemarketers a chance to call though! ;)
So, he was so busy with that the house never did get cleaned and I stayed up until 1 a.m. just cooking for the party. This morning I cleaned a little but didn't have time to do everything. Ryan and Dana were the first to arrive and they cleaned like crazy! Ryan did my sink of dishes! That was incredibly sweet. I went to scrub the sink and he said, "I'll do that. My hands are already dirty." They brought me a package of my favorite tea, Caramel Apple Torte (Teavana) and my gma brought some she had made too. My mom brought her yummy baked beans, a beautiful bunch of peonies (maybe they are my favorite flower. I LOVE them and the smell), and a really great present. After the party my mother-in-law cleaned the kitchen faster than I could even notice to try and stop her! I am feeling very blessed right about now! I'm sure Samantha is too! I made her a pink stawberry "princess" cake that she wanted with a tiara and princess on it. She had so much fun opening her presents and the kids had fun busting a big and pretty pink pinata. After the party we spent time playing with her presents before we rested. Tonight we will go to dinner.