Soccer Player

Our little man started soccer. We have some great neighbors who informed us of an opening on their team. (I totally missed the registration deadline.)

He was so excited to go and play. He didn't really know what he was doing but he did know that he was suppose to kick the ball into the other teams goal.

As he was running he would sing and yell things like "Oh no you don't blue team!" 

He has some very interesting moves out there on the field. I am pretty sure half of the time he had no idea where the ball was.

During the game he was sitting out by me. I had dropped something on the grass and asked him to pick it up for me. He said "Mom I am a soccer player not a picker upper!"

At one point he just started doing yoga moves. When I asked him what he was doing he said " I am just trying to get as much exercise as I can."

He was so excited when I told him he had a coach. He said " REALLY? I have never had one of those before!"

They didn't win. Not even close. I think the score was something like 6 to 0. Haha but he had a good time. :) We have since worked on his soccer skills and I am expecting significant progress at his next game.

This is Kadens friend Mason that got him on the team.

A Scare

Ah my pretty little Taycee Lynn.

This picture was taken about an hour before we drove down to Salt Lake to get Taycee's Lab Results back.  I had no idea what I was about to go through.

I should back up and start at the beginning. About a year ago I started noticing that Taycee's hair was falling out. With even the slightest bit of tension clumps of hair would come out. Any time I put an elastic in her hair when I remove that elastic it is covered in hair. Her head is covered in hair that is broken. She has dry brittle hair. It has always seemed a bit strange to me, but I had no explanation so we just treat her hair with extra TLC. My sister-in-law started working for a clinic in West Jordan that deals with thyroid problems. She started to tell me about the symptoms of  patients with thyroid problems and a few seemed to fit Taycee. She told us that the initial blood work and consultation was completely covered by our insurance so we decided to give it a shot. Can't hurt right? Wrong. 

When we went to the first appointment I could tell that the doctor seemed skeptical. He said it was extremely rare to see a thyroid problem in someone so young. But he did agree that many of her symptoms were not normal. So just to be safe he ordered the blood panel. 

Taycee was a champ when it came to the blood draw. She had to be fasting so she couldn't eat any breakfast and they missed her vain on the first arm so they had to poke her twice. She didn't flinch at all and no tears were shed. When it was all over she said "I was so brave mommy! It only hurt a little!" and she was so proud of the pressure wrap they put on her arms because they were like daddys when he donates plasma.

Fast forward a week and we are driving back to West Jordan to get the results. They had requested that Chris and I both be there so I picked him up from work on my way down. When the doctor walked in he started asking about Chris and my health. After a few questions he said "your daughter has what is called Hoshimotos Auto Immune disease" He said lots of other stuff after that but the main bullet points were this

• You need to remove gluten and dairy out of her diet they are like "rat poison" to her ( his exact words)
• She will have it her whole life 
• Her immune system is "destroying" her thyroid (again his words)
• She probably feels awful every day but just doesn't know any different
• You (as in me) probably have it too.
• You shouldn't go see a normal doctor because they will just put her on thyroid medication not fix the problem 
• This is the reason for all of the things you were concerned about

I was shocked and devestated. I felt like a terrible mother for not figuring it out sooner. I felt guilty that she was feeling awful every day. I asked several times if it could be something else. The doctor showed me the level on her blood results and said "She definitely has it. And she will always have it."

We left the office with an order for my blood to be drawn and lots of worries and questions.

That week was awful. I was having a hard time accepting the idea. I was overwhelmed at the huge life change that faced us. I was so grateful that it was something that WASN'T life threatening and that COULD be managed. The more I thought about all that the doctor had said the more I started to question things. That "HIGH" level that the doctor told me meant she had Hoshimotos no matter what ( his exact words were " It doesn't matter if that level is 15 or 150 she has it") was only 2 points above  the normal range. Everything else on her blood panel looked relatively normal. The doctor seemed almost happy or excited that she had this life changing disease. 

I called primary children's to set up an appointment with a pediatric endocrinologist. I wanted a second opinion before we made life altering decisions. When I made the appointment I was told I needed to meet with her pediatrician before hand to get a referral. So I called Wee Care that night and the appointment was made for the next day.

On Friday I printed off her lab results and we headed to her appointment. I wasn't sure what to expect because I had no idea how much her doctor would know about the illness. The first doctor we talked to said that he was a specialist on Hoshimotos and one of the leading doctors in his field. 

When we sat down with Dr. Silas I explained how things had happened and what we were there for. He took her labs, looked at them and laughed. Like literally let out a laugh ( okay maybe it was more of a scoff) we talked about lots of things too but here are the bullet points from that appointment

• The other doctor is crazy
• Don't go back to him ever
• She is fine, that one level  that is MARGINALLY high doesn't mean anything
• There are many other more telling signs of Hoshimotos none of which she has
• Even if this was Hoshimotos we wouldn't treat her til it started affecting her thyroid ( which is completely fine)
• There is no evidence that supports the idea that cutting out gluten and dairy help.
• Did I mention he said never to go back there again ( after which he said, well that is what I would do, you are free to do what you want. :))

It was like a night and day difference. He did agree that she is probably deficient in some vitamin or nutrient and that is probably why she has the hair problems and dark circles but he saw no reason for life altering changes. He offered the referral to the endocrinologist in case we still wanted a second opinion but we declined, everything he said made sense. He went over everything on her lab results and explained all the numbers. He showed me the other main things they look for in Hoshimotos disease, all of which were completely normal.

I left there extremely relieved, and also incredibly annoyed. I could not believe I has spent the week agonizing over something that didn't even exist but I was so grateful that Taycee was okay. Sassy, and spunky and normal.

I like to give people the benifit of the doubt so I would like to belive that the first doctor we talked to honestly thought she was sick. I would hope that he wasn't so desperate to create a revenue for himself that he would mess with a little 3 year old girls life. ( the treatment plan there is almost 6,000 dollars none of which is covered by insurance) In the end we are just so grateful that all is well. But we definitely will never be going back there again.

Now just to lighten the mood a bit, some of Taycee's latest funnies

We took Chris to the train station to pick up his car one night and Taycee said "How did that get here?" I said "I don't know what do you think?" she said "I think someone stole it! I think the Lamenites stole it, drove it here and then got on the train and ran away."

While we were talking at the dinner table she said "mom do you remember when I had go to the dentist because my tooth fell out and I needed a new one?" This has never happened so I said "no, when did that happen?" She said "you renember last morning ( which is what she says for any date which is in the past) I went to the dentist and he put on a new rubby tooth for me." as she said that she rubbed her front two teeth.I could tell she really thought this had happened so I asked her who drove her there to which she replied "I did, because I grew big and you and daddy were just little so you had to be in the carseats in the back, RENEMBER?"  haha. She must be a very vivd dreamer. I still think she believes that happened.

Too fast

This is an old video, but it shows a few of Addisons latest accomplishments. I feel like she woke up one morning and decided it was time to grow up. Yes, I do realize that most babies start crawling when they are 8 months. Yes, I do realize that she has stayed a baby far longer than most babies do but it still just feels like it's all going too fast.

Stay little Addi Boo, Please?

Addison Crawls from Jill Clayton on Vimeo.

I should also mention that...

• She is cutting all 4 molars right now. So we have had lots of sleepless nights at our house. 
• She has learned the phrase "all done" and says it whenever she doesn't like what she is doing. The other day I was asking her for more kisses and she swatted my lips and said "all done"
• She pulls up to all the furniture but is still trying to figure out how to move along it.
• She is into EVERYTHING and never sits still. Her favorite past time is pulling out ALL of our games and dumping them into a huge pile on the floor.
• She knows how to crawl up stairs but usually gets up about 3 of them and then gets scared and start to scream.
• She likes to spin circles on her bum. She sits and kicks her feet around and around and thinks she is so tricky.

Tony Grove

There is a little piece of Heaven in the North East corner of Utah. It's a little place that I have visited since as early as I can remember. I have pictures and videos from my childhood there. Each time I visit I worry that the place won't live up to the memories I have tucked away. But it does, every time.

Tony Grove. If you haven't been there you should go. I will share it with you, I am that nice.

I only took my crappy point and shoot camera that apparently had a finger print on the lens the entire time. So the pictures are a little less than sub par. :/ but still you can see the beauty of the place.

 This doll was an angel the entire time.( Except for the hours between 9 pm and 7am) She spent lots of time in that little play pen.

 It was extra fun because my entire family was able to be there. We haven't all been together since Christmas so it was fun to all be together again.

We left late Saturday night because we didn't want to spend another sleepless night in the trailer with a baby cutting 4, YES 4 molars.

"Whenever I hear the song of a bird or look at the blue, blue sky, whenever I feel the rain on my face or the wind as it rushes by, whenever I touch a velvet rose or walk by a lilac tree, I'm glad that I live in this beautiful world Heavenly Father created for me."

xoxo-me

Temple and Camping

Over memorial day weekend we were lucky enough to have Chris's family come up and go through the Brigham City Temple open house. I am always in awe at the beauty and peace found within those four walls. Being able to walk through with my kids seemed to solidify even more in my heart the immense gratitude I have for the sealing power that has bound us together for eternity. 

Watching Addison through the temple was an experience I will never forget. She was so alert and aware of where she was. While we were in the sealing room I know that I witnessed a conversation between her and a few friends she remembered from Heaven. As she pointed towards the ceiling and smiled and talked I was reminded of just how thin the veil is and how many loved ones we have on the other side surrounding us to help us through. Needless to say I didn't make it through with dry eyes.

So grateful for these incredible places on earth where we can go to be so close to our Heavenly Father. So grateful for these experiences that remind me of what is most important. 

After the temple we went up Provo Canyon to stay in a cabin with the Clayton family. 

Saturday everyone went fishing. Taycee called her pole a swimming pole. Lots of different bait was used for fishing but the most successful bait was twizzlers. I think we caught about 6 fish (small fish, but fish none the less) with a small piece of licorice on the hook.

The babies were all a bit dirty so they all got to take a bath together.

KaitLynn wasn't super excited about the entire experience. Addison becomes a wild woman in the tub and she scared KaitLynn a bit. :)

Grateful for family.

Grateful for the gospel.

Just Grateful.

xoxo-

me

I remember.

I remember every moment of that day. It is almost as if someone took a chisel and etched the feelings and images from the day onto my soul. I will never forget September 11, 2001.

---

The day started like all of my days. I was up at 5:30, I got ready for school and met the family upstairs for breakfast scriptures and prayers. Dad told me I needed to take him to work before I went to school. I was running late. I sat in the car and watched dad as he walked to the truck and got out his sunglasses then continued on to clean them. I was annoyed. And my 16 year old self thought " If he was late and I was taking time to clean my sunglasses he would just leave me." I was agitated and worried about being to school on time.  Little did I know of the catastrophic tragedy that was happening 2,300 miles away. I remember.

Once we finally left and headed to school dad remembered that he had left something he needed for work. I had to turn around and go back for him to get it. He also needed me to stop so he could drop off something at a house on the way to school. He told me about 100 feet from the turn that I needed to stop. When I braked abruptly he told me "I had a braking problem that I needed to work on."The annoyance grew, the frustration mounted. I, in my self consumed dramatic world, couldn't imagine the day getting any worse.

---

I arrived at school. Late. I made my way up to Mr. Workmans Health class on the second floor. I walked in and instantly knew something was wrong. The rest of school was spent in whispers of hear say. Who had done it, why they had done it, warnings we should have seen, when the next attacks would be.We watched footage of days events in 4 of my classes, the other two teachers made attempts at following the schedule outlined the day before. The attempts were in vain because I remember nothing taught. 

---

I remember going to work and seeing the sign on the door "We are closed today due to the current events happening in New York."

I remember the feelings of fear and confusion.

I remember sitting on my grandma's porch with her and my mom. I remember grandma saying she had heard it had been planned to be on 9/11 because our emergency number here was 911.

I remember listening to President Bush's address to the nation and feeling proud to be an American and realizing for the first time in my life the cost to be free. 

I remembered the goosebumps that rose on my arm as he made this statement, "Tonight I ask for your prayers for all those who grieve, for the children whose worlds have been shattered, for all whose sense of safety and security has been threatened. And I pray they will be comforted by a power greater than any of us spoken through the ages in Psalm 23: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me."

I remember. 

And I will never forget.

Can we skip Tuesday?

Tuesdays are cursed at my house. You may think I am kidding, let me assure you, I. AM. NOT.  At the end of each Tuesday I fall into bed physically and emotionally spent. And my prayers are full of words that sound something like this, "Thank you for keeping us alive throughout the day. Please let tomorrow be nothing like today." In case you still think I am exaggerating I will give you a brief description of the last 2 Tuesdays at our house.

---

Last Tuesday

The day actually started out okay. I was up with my alarm at 6:30 I had my scripture study done before the kids got up, breakfast was made and eaten, showers were taken and we were to school with plenty of time to spare. That is where the good luck ended

When we came home Addison was not interested in her usual afternoon nap but I desperately wanted to exercise so I put her in her bouncer turned on a little Yo Gabba Gabba and headed upstairs to hit the elliptical for a half hour. When I was finished and came downstairs the smell hit me immediately. "That is one smelly diaper" I thought. Then I saw the carpet. Somehow Addison had pooped out the side of her diaper right onto her foot which she then proceeded to jump around in for, well, I don't know how long. A half hour maybe? Long enough to make about a 2 foot wide circle of mushed poo into the carpet. No amount of scrubbing could remove the ground in poop. A carpet cleaner had to be used.

When I picked Kaden up from school he informed me that he had gotten in trouble. Apparently Quinn, (naughty Quinn who sits next to him) had been smacking him with his pencil. Kaden decided to give him a smack back and they both spent the rest of writing time with no pencils and their heads down on their desk.  Awesome. 5th day of school and he's already got a record. (Is it bad to request a different desk partner for your child? haha.)

Later while I was helping Kaden with his homework  Taycee was practicing writing her name on the dry erase board. She accidentally forgot she hadn't put the lid on the marker and wrote all over her dress and the couch and my bed. (I am not sure how accidental that forgetting was.)

When I was working with Taycee on her letters I told Kaden he could play a little wii til we were done. When we were finished I looked down into the family room and noticed a huge wet spot on the couch. I was confused how it got there because I hadn't given the kids any drinks. Then I noticed Kaden was wearing completely different clothes. My 5 year old peed his pants on the couch. WHAAAAT? He hasn't had an accident since he was 3. Then he tried to tell me it wasn't him and he had no idea how the wet spot got there. When I told him I was going to go check the laundry basket upstairs he came clean. He was so excited to finally get to play the wii that he didn't want to waste any of his time going potty. So he peed. On the couch.  After he scrubbed the couch we had a long conversation about lying. He spent a good portion of the evening in his room.

Chris arrived home at 9 oclock that night. Did I mention he left that morning at about 6?

---

Fast forward to this Tuesday

The day started out with a cracked tooth. Yep I cracked my tooth in half. How? Well how everyone cracks their tooth in half of course, taking a bite of a twix bar. Ridiculous. So I found a new dentist because the one I went to last time is the most awful incompetent dentist on planet earth and called to get the earliest appointment possible. At 10 am I was sitting in the dentist chair. The next two hours that followed were neither fun nor cheap. In case any of you don't know I have a fear of the dentist that is both irrational and unmatched. I shake and cry and use every ounce of will power I possess not to scream "STOP!" punch the dentist in the face and bolt out of the chair. So add those emotions to a whopping 1,000 dentist bill that insurance pays exactly 0% of and it is safe to say it was a painful 2 hours.

After I got home and Addison screamed at me for 2 hours for no apparent reason, all of my children were finally sleeping. I was tired and in pain so I decided to take advantage of the rare quiet moment in my home and laid down too. When I woke up an hour later I noticed Taycee wasn't in her bed. I was surprised because usually the kids sleep for at least 2 hours in the afternoon. I found her downstairs with a spray bottle and comb. She had a guilty look on her face but I didn't see anything suspicious. About 15 minutes later I was on the phone with my mom when I came across a PILE OF HAIR. Long blond locks laying all over my kitchen floor. I about died. I ran to Taycee and sure enough a large section of the front of her hair was missing. I have no idea how I missed it earlier. I wanted to cry. She told me that she was combing her hair and it got stuck so she cut it out. We have been growing this child's hair since she was born. Each strand is an accomplishment. Her hair is awful, fine and thin and it breaks with any tension. I baby her hair to try and get it to grow and be stronger, and she chopped it off. :'(

CURSE YOU TUESDAYS!!!

Do you believe me yet?

Oh and Addison also pulled the piano bench down on top of her later in the day. 

I also found out Taycee swallowed a penny sometime during the day. 

One good thing about Tuesdays is that they make my Wednesdays seem super productive.Yesterday I

Exercised

Went grocery shopping

Made 5 loafs of bread (which was more like making 10 because my yeast didn't work the first time around so I had to do it twice.)

Made a batch of caramel oatmeal bars

Read for 20 minutes with each child

Did homework

Made a new wreath for my front door 

Did my visiting teaching.

AND had the house clean by the time I went to bed.

WHEW, now that is a successful day.

So if it is okay with everyone can we just cross Tuesday's off the calendar and skip straight to Wednesdays?

All of us at this house would really appreciate it.

For your viewing pleasure here are a few more shots of the hack job. 

** sniff sniff**

Doesn't she look so innocent? Ha!

Some of the locks I found.

The culprit of it all. The comb.

Goodbye fair locks. 

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Next Tuesday maybe everyone should send a little prayer my way.

Getting Smarter

We are getting smarter around here...

Well, at least two of us are... : /