Thursday, November 12, 2009

What we've been up to

Making homemade pretzels, popcorn cake, personal pizzas. Sponge painting, finger painting, water color, plain old coloring, making titles for our pictures - like "Bird and Butterfuly Holding Hands" by Eleanor, and "Bagel and Cream Cheese" by William. Eleanor getting "Cubbie of the Month" in Awana - we were so proud! Jack rolling, drooling, laughing, drooling, sitting alone for 5 seconds, drooling, going on a nap strike. The rest of us listening to lots of screaming during "naps". Will's new word: UM...UM....so cute! Will pretending to talk on the phone: "HELLO! Yeah. Good. Um, um , pumpkin patch. donut shop. costco! All righty, bye-bye!" Growing, growing, all three kids growing! Jack in the 93rd perentile for height, Eleanor gaining half an inch in a month and Will gaining a quarter inch in one week! Eleanor calling her Uncle Mike a "rascal becuase he juggles!" William wanting to marry his Aunt Polly. Eleanor wanting to marry her Daddy. Eleanor telling us that when she has kids someday and they want to get out of bed she will tell them, "You sleep until I say it is time to wake up!" Eleanor and William in bed at night, chatting....Eleanor says "No more questions, William! I will just say 'I don't know'! Unless it is really important, like saying 'Please forgive me.' " William asking her more questions. Everybody loving on Jack, can't remember life without him. Eleanor up at night with growing pains, needing drinks, wanting to chat it up. Watching Sesame Street. Hearing William refer to both Bert and Ernie as "Bernie" - hey, I used to get them mixed up, too, never thought about just calling them Bernie! Me wondering about H1N1 vaccines, feeling like I can't get to the bottom of loads of conflicting information. Giving all three kids a bath at once. Doing the weekly grocery shopping with all three kids. Taking a meal to sick friends, meeting Todd after work, playing at the park. Making little "obstacle courses" in the backyard. Never ever getting caught up on laundry. Finding Will playing on top of his changing table, reaching up to push his airplanes hanging from the ceiling, checking out the Vaseline. Calling poison control for MYSELF after licking dishwasher detergent (long story). Becoming hand washing fanatics. Enjoying Jack sleeping in my arms at church. Buying new running clothes - have yet to go for a run. Eating an AMAZING chocolate peppermint milkshake Todd brought me from Chick-fil-a. Needing to run. Going to eye doctor appointments, well check-ups, random appointments. Saying the words "No whining" 902,783, 042 times - at least! Enjoying snuggling, tackling, laughing, singing, reading, playing, pretending, hugging, loving. Praising God daily. There's a smattering of what we've been up to.
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Thursday, October 29, 2009

if it's pictures you want...



...here are a few cute ones! but you can find LOTS more on my facebook page, so look there if you want to look at more shots of these adorable faces!

today we had a few inches of snow, so the kids (minus jack) and i braved the cold wind and played in the backyard for a few minutes. we had a blast! the snow wasn't wet enough to make a big snowman, so we opted for a tiny "snow baby." eleanor chose leaves for the eyes, a pencil for it's nose, and a carrot for the mouth. luther promptly tried to eat the carrot, then peed on the snow baby...well, fun anyway! *grin*
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Tuesday, October 20, 2009

the things they say...

Eleanor told Todd tonight she was afraid of giants. How does she know about giants?! Wise Daddy told her they were just pretend, and that she could squish them in her mind (insert sound effects and hand motion). Eleanor laughed, "I can?!" Todd said over the next 10 minutes she would randomly pause what she was doing and "squish" a giant! Poor girl, she must have kept having the thoughts pop into her head...but she knows what to do! *grin* On a more serious note, you would not believe the questions this girl asks about spiritual things. Like this one in the middle of the night recently: "But what if I don't like what God knows is best?" Or, "Will some people not go to Heaven when they die? Why?" What opportunities to talk about the Gospel and the character of God with our little girl!

Will is enjoying telling "jokes". Like this, "ABCD...Daddy Jack!" or "ABCD...doggie!" or "ABCD...lamp!" You get the idea! Then tonight he came up with a new one as were reading a bedtime story about dump trucks - "Dirty book!" He did get a good laugh from us on that one!

Jack, sweet Jack, his hair getting long enough to stick up like little duck fuzz, laughing and smiling all the time, content as can be.

All's well on the kid front.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Chit-Chat














A little conversation I overheard Eleanor and Will having tonight, after we tucked them in:

Will: Costco, Eleanor, Costco!
Eleanor: Maybe we'll go to Costco tomorrow, William.
W: Trash day tomorrow!
E: I don't know William, I have to ask my Mommy and Daddy.
W: What you doing Eleanor?
E: What are you doing?
W: Looking.

Made me grin.


Also, Jack rolled over for the first time today! And then he couldn't stop. He rolled 12 TIMES!
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Saturday, October 10, 2009

William and Too Much Birthday!

Today was Will's 2nd birthday, observed (really it's the 12th). He has been looking forward to it all week! "Birthday! Yellow cake! Macaroni and hot dogs!" he's been saying. Talking about the grandparents coming, Miss Amy, the presents, the birthday song. I asked him what kind of cake he wanted, not surprised when he said yellow, his favorite color! I of course added some chocolate, but there was plenty of YELLOW. When he came downstairs after his nap, we had yellow and blue balloons up, he loved them! When we served up the macaroni and hot dogs (per his request) he could hardly wait. "Excited! 'Caroni!" he said. Then the cake came. We dimmed the lights, lit the two candles, and sang. He soaked it in and began picking M & M's off the cake while we were still singing! Then, with a little help from Mama, he blew out the candles. THEN we realized that the video camera wasn't working, so we repeated. *grin* And he gobbled up the ice cream and asked for more, but decided to leave the cake, funny boy!
Present time came. He opened a few gifts, enjoyed them, wanted to play. And then the gift from Aunt Polly. A big box, "Love it! Love it!" William was saying even before he saw what was inside. He must have had a hunch. He pulled out a REAL trash can and two REAL orange cones....and the rest of the night was history!!! Obssessed, that's the word. And possessive! He transferred the cones and trash can up and down the hall, over and over. Took the lid off, put it on. Stacked the cones, unstacked them. He could not contain himself! "Trash!! Cones!!" He forgot that anyone else existed. Several other wonderful presents were waiting to be opened, but he couldn't tear himself away! It was so precious and so funny, a memory I'll certainly carry with me! Eleanor was trying so hard to be patient, waiting for him to open the rest of his gifts!
Then bedtime came. "This is not going to go well" - Todd's words, prophetic! I can think of only one tantrum to possibly rival this one. As he was being hauled up the stairs, we told him to say goodnight, and he complied, screaming through his tears, "NIGHT NIGHT JACK!!! LOVE YOU PAPA!!!" The drama and distress lasted a while. Eleanor had to join in by crying for more cake as we tucked her in. OH MY. Well, Polly, you hit a home run!! More pictures coming soon. I praise God daily for William, for his energy and his sweetness. I adore that boy, my boy. Happy birthday to my sweet Will!

On another note, I just finished sewing patches on Eleanor's Awana vest. SEWING. This is coming from the girl whose husband had to show her how to sew a button on! True story. I did sew once as a child - a pillow stuffed with DOG HAIR. Another true story. GAG!!! Anyway, I think tonight I started to redeem myself!
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Saturday, October 3, 2009

addendum

How cute is he?! This was supposed to be in my last post but didn't show up.
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Bits and Pieces


A couple of weeks ago we visited our family in WA and had SUCH a great vacation! We all stayed healthy and the kids traveled extremely well. I packed lighter, getting the hang of this! We went to the Puyallup fair, where we ATE scones, saw a huge pumpkin, ATE BBQ, petted lots of animals, ATE ice cream, saw dogs do crazy tricks, ATE crusty pups, watched a great juggler, ATE more scones, rode the carousel...as you can tell, going to the fair involves eating a lot of amazing fair food! We played at the park and spent great time not only with the grandparents but with Todd's brothers Scott, and Mike and wife Julann, and new baby Nora - our first neice! She and Jack are just a month apart. I have a ton of pictures from our trip on facebook if you want to see more!


The kids are always changing, always doing or saying so many great things! This stage of life, as well as being somewhat tiring, is so amazing and fun and precious. Sometimes it hits me how fast it is going, and I want to hold on! Eleanor is truly a little girl - no baby left in her! She is a perfect big sister. I love hearing her talk to her brothers, sometimes using the same phrases/voices I use...a little mother! She and Will are such playmates...pretty inseperable. It is fun as Will's vocabulary expands and the two actually converse! Eleanor is also quite dramatic these days! And she can debate like no tomorrow! She asks some wonderful questions about Jesus and salvation. I pray that God is working in her heart!

William will be two in just over a week! His love of trash cans and orange cones continues. He thinks Todd can fix ANYTHING! "Daddy fix it" is a phrase he says often. He loves yellow, loves to jump with extreme athleticism, loves to tackle and hug his sister, wants both to hold and kiss Jack and also poke his eyes and squeeze his head! Loves "I spy" books and trying to find things faster than Eleanor. He is a great talker. He loves nicknames. He refers to his grandparents both as "Papa and Mimi" and "Grandpa and Grandma." In fact, in WA one day he pulled out "Grampy"! Very funny, he came up with it himself. Jack he also calls "Jacky", and Eleanor is "Ellie-boo-boo" and "Sister" as well as "Eleanor." A few days ago he even asked me for a "nanny" instead of a "banana"! We continue to have bloodtests for his blood disorder, and things are looking very good, praise God!

Jack will be three months this coming week! He smiles all the time - more and more lately at his siblings. He has started to laugh, enjoys baths, and sleeps throught the night . I recently discovered he loves books! He smiles and coos at the pages and has begun trying to touch the book and bring it to his mouth. He came to our church's women's retreat last weekend and was the perfect little snuggle buddy for me. God has blessed us greatly with all three of our children!

I have thought more and more lately about the culture we are raising our children in, praying for God's wisdom. I read recently that in 2008, almost 50% of children in our country were born out of wedlock! Society is changing in so many ways. And just yesterday, I was heartbroken in learning that in cases of pre-natal diagnoses of downs syndrome, 92% of babies are aborted. I am horrified at the "culture of death" around us. I wonder what the world will hold for our children, and I just pray and pray for God's saving power in their lives!

My to-do list is so elusive these days, but I keep learning that that is okay! Trying to figure out daily how to best "redeem the time."

This week we are looking forward to a visit to the pumpkin patch, and family in town for Will's BD. Should get some good pictures!

There's a tiny taste of my world. And now I'll finish the laundry, pack a bag for church tomorrow, feed my sweet baby, and hit the sack! Hopefully all THREE kids will sleep through the night, and the toy chiauaua in our neighborhood won't be making any nose in the wee hours of the morning!
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Monday, September 14, 2009

a day in lake city with my parents


a quick trip, but a great one!! complete with dinner with friends; the park, the soda fountain, and the pond for fishing and rock-throwing. the kids even got to sit in grandpa's huge yellow frontloader (the bucket could almost pick up our van!) and see mimi's kindergarten/first grade class. todd got up early and went looking for wildlife with my dad. we didn't want to leave!

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Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Friday, August 28, 2009

177, 000

Will endured another "poke" today at his follow-up appointment, and this afternoon we received the fantastic news that his platelet count is 177,000 - completely normal!! Praise God!
We can go 10 days or so before the doc wants another count done. This is much better than we hoped! My soul is giving thanks to the Lord who is good and mighty in all His deeds.
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Thursday, August 27, 2009

Update on Will


I have been reminded this week that we don't know what tomorrow holds! BUT that our sovereign and loving God does.

On Sunday morning as I was getting the kids breakfast before church, I noticed that Will had a rash on one arm - tiny little purple-red pinpricks. Getting him into PJ's for his nap, I noticed more, and also several bruises that were in odd places. I had no doubt that something was really wrong, and spent most of the afternoon and evening in tears, praying that God would help me think on that which was true and real instead of what I could not know! By bedtime Will had more bruises and a blood blister on his lip, and by Monday morning things were worse. That's not saying that my little guy seemed sick...he was acting completely himself, praise God! We had a Dr's. appointment by 9:15, were told that whatever the cause of his bruising it was probably significant, had bloodwork and a chest X-ray, and were sent home to wait. By mid-afternoon we got the results and were sent immediately to the hospital - William's platelets were too low for the lab to measure, somewhere under 10,000 (normal is 150,000-300,000).

We all went to the hospital only to find out that NO one under 18 could be in the room with Will. Praise God that He had moved in the heart of our sweet friend Elaine and she was there at the hospital, waiting to see how she could help! I was able to stay with Will and just head to the family gathering room a couple of times to feed Jack and say hi to Eleanor.

Will was diagnosed with pediatric ITP - Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura, which means that his immune system is destroying platelets much , much faster than his body can produce them. This puts him at risk for dangerous bleeding from something like falling and bumping his head, from a nosebleed, etc. During his 2 night hospital stay he was given 2 treatments called IVIG, which by the time we left had boosted his platelet count up to 54,000, more than enough to safely come home! We have to be careful of activities where he could sustain a hard bump to his head, etc. It could get a little tricky with our boy who is built on springs!

On Tuesday we met with a pediatric hematologist who explained the blood disorder to us more thoroughly. It is the result of either a virus or a vaccine, and in most children it corrects itself in time - usually a few weeks to a few months. The treatments Will received will not help his body stop destroying platelets, but will definitely make life safer for him until the disease remits! In about 20% of kids ITP does not just go away, but becomes a bigger problem, but still treatable. The specialist was very positive in the sense that Will's other blood cell lines look great, meaning no cancer, etc.

We have a follow-up appointment tomorrow to check his platelet levels again and discuss the next month or so. Will will probably be having some bloodwork done once or twice a week to track the disease, to know if he needs more treatment or restricted activity (I am thinking a helmet and a padded room?!?!) and to know if/when his body corrects this problem.

I was not able to stay overnight in the hospital because of breastfeeding Jack, but I was there as much as I could be! Todd and Will had a bonding experience - "kind of like camp" says Todd. *grin* I have the greatest husband and kids have the best Daddy! Will was quite the trooper and never acted sick. He got tired of being repeatedly poked by needles and hooked up to IV's, but he was a brave little boy! One of the blood draws I was there for broke my heart as I watched him laying there, chin quivering, trying not to cry. "Hurt, Mommy" he kept saying as he saw the needles and blue rubber bands coming out. I was NOT as brave as he was!

He was so excited to come home! You'll see him in the picture with his backpack on, looking for Mommy and Eleanor and Jack to pick he and Daddy up! Eleanor really missed him. She was fine during the day, playing with friends, but in bed at night cried and missed her brother. The first night it was late when we got home and I told her we were going right to bed, no bath or book, and she said, "But we can talk and laugh, right? OH NO! Will isn't here, that's not fun!"

We had a great few hours here together before he developed a fever and started throwing up. Another call to the doc, and back to urgent care, where they said it was most likely a bug he picked up at the hospital. *sigh* God graciously allowed him to sleep well and today he does not appear sick. And the rest of us are okay, too!

I am weary in just about every way, but very hopeful! I am so thankful for the prayers of the saints, for our loving families, and for our church family who have met our needs very practically by caring for Eleanor and Jack, even bringing the baby to me to nurse him, by visiting at the hospital, by preparing meals, by grocery shopping for me, by taking care of the dog, and by numerous offers to help. It has been so encouraging!

I will update as we know more. Please keep praying for sweet Will! (who thankfully, doesn't know he's got a problem)!


Thursday, August 13, 2009

aaawww...

isn't that a sweet picture?! taken last week, jack weighing in at 10 lbs...such a cute little chunk!


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Monday, July 6, 2009

Jack Charles Faris

Jack Charles Faris was born at 2:56 AM on July 6th. He was 7lbs, 2 oz and 20 1/2 inches long. Mom and Baby are doing great!!



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Thursday, June 25, 2009

Sunday, June 21, 2009

37.5 weeks

Getting close! I feel like 38 weeks is my due date, I always feel like that! Come on, little Buddy, come soon!
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