Chuck Norris eats the core of the apple first.

Last week we were down in Provo visiting friends, family and doctors. We had such a great time and really miss everyone down South. Here are a few of the highlights.

-Alex really enjoyed Archie, but I think more as a toy than as a person. One evening we were all sitting around talking, Archie was laying on his back on the floor and Alex was sitting by his head. All of a sudden I hear this loud "Slap" and look over to see Ben rolling on the floor laughing. Apparently Alex had gotten really excited and smacked Archie right on the forehead. This delighted her so much that she laughed and did it again. Archie seemed like he could care less, he was quite the trooper the whole week.

-On Thursday Tyler and I were running errands and poor Alex had been in the car seat for awhile. We were sitting in the car waiting for Tyler in the UVU parking lot and I smelled something awful! I thought it was just the sewage plant a few miles away and didn't think much of it. 10 minutes later I couldn't take it any longer and rolled up the windows, thats when it got worse and I realized it was ALEX! She had been sick and so there was the nastiest diarrhea all the way up her back to her neck. It had soaked through her clothes and into the car seat. So here I am armed with nothing but a pack of wipes and a baby blanket, striping her down layer by layer and trying to keep this squirming kid from getting poop everywhere! I literally gave her a bath with wipes and when each one was used up I would drop it out the window. In the meantime I gave her a cookie to occupy her hands. So instead of having poop spread all over the car, we have cookie paste in all the radio and climate control cracks. She couldn't have been happier.

-I'd been hearing about this amazing Spanish dish called Pie-aye-a (phonetically spelled) for awhile now, and Ben and Devin were nice enough to spend the 2 hours making it for us! I was thrilled and it tasted SO good! Poor Ben was all alone outside cooking for the whole time because no one wanted to get all smokey (we all had good excuses). It was wonderful, one of those dishes you are bound to crave, but really have no way of making. Just looking at the picture makes me hungry.

-Watching LOST with Kate was wonderful, much better than streaming it on the Internet the day after alone. We even had DHARMA initiative soda's and candy bars to complete the episode.

-One morning I was getting ready and Alex was hanging out with Grandma. They went downstairs to visit Archie and when they all came up, Alex and Archie had switched clothes.

-Kate and I had a variety of adventures. She taught me how to make truffles and we made the most amazing cupcakes ever. We went shopping at my new favorite store, Sunflower Market, and made a game of family Jeopardy. We made cards and talked about everything, Alex even got her hair trimmed so it would stay out of her eyes. I love the expression on her face in this picture. Even though Kara was sick, she cut both Alex and Tyler's hair for me. So sweet.

Chuck Norris is the reason why Waldo is hiding.

Tyler and I have a curse when it comes to sentimental holiday's. Every single Valentines Day, New Year's and a few of the birthday's have all been marred by sickness or absence. This year we were babysitting 4 kids plus our own on Valentines day but still were able to make the best of it. We all had heart shaped chocolate chip waffles for Breakfast and then took everyone to the Art Museum for it's free day. The 10 and 2 year old did NOT want to be there, and made sure we remembered every step of the way, but over all the 20 minutes it lasted was somewhat fun. On our way to the museum we stopped by a park to feed the ducks. It was SO cold, but the ducks were like pets and had us surrounded before we were all out of the car! They were literally eating the bread out of our hands, and one almost got Alex's finger (she was not holding bread). Tyler even caught one! The kids were thrilled about it and if it wasn't freezing and we had taken more bread, we could have stayed there for hours. Our outing finished at a Chinese buffet. We were planning on going to McDonald's with the giant play place, but when a screaming match ensued in the car between the 3 older children over McDonald's or Chinese, we decided we would console the 6 year old some other way. I think the greatest moment of the whole weekend was when we all walked to our table and every head in the restaurant turned to see the young couple with the 5 kids. While I was at our table with Alex, a man asked Tyler if the 13 year old was his wife, and the mother of the crew! I thought it was hilarious but she was horrified (she looks a LOT older than 13). The lovely day ended with Alex vomiting all over her crib, and me, multiple times. Apparently she has caught the flu from the 2 year old who had just gotten over it. By Sunday Tyler was sick, Monday I got it, Tuesday my Mom got it and then we headed on our happy way to Utah. Where we ended up passing it on to my brother, Tyler's father and Kara, his sister.
Regardless of the less 'traditional' Valentines festivities, Tyler and I still exchanged gifts. I got Tyler 2 bottles of the hot sauce he talks about constantly. Special ordered from Texas which I guess is the only place you can buy it. Tyler got me two vintage lockets, a heart and a diamond (in case I didn't want a heart). I was thrilled.

There is no 'ctrl' button on Chuck Norris's computer. Chuck Norris is always in control.

About 2 weeks ago Tyler and I were asked to house/babysit for a family in our ward. I was not very keen on the idea of watching 4 kids (ages 2,6,10 and 13), plus Alex for 2 days, but Tyler thought it would be fun. So we agreed. The house we were staying in was probably the biggest I'd ever set foot in, 3 stories, theatre room, gym, huge kitchen, a master bathroom that is probably twice the size of the room we are living in (and its a big room). The kids weren't so bad either. Over all it was a great learning experience and money making venture, but would we do it again? I don't think so. The 2 year old would only communicate by the most minuscule head shakes and by saying "I want mommy". When she would cry, she was inconsolable until the 13 year old appeared, so that was a bit frazzling. Alex LOVED her and followed her everywhere. Unfortunately the 2 year old HATED her and would push her over and take toys away. Luckily Alex was oblivious to anything other than the attention she was getting and didn't seem to mind. The 6 year old was just darling and the only problem with her was that she could not concentrate on any task for more than 30 seconds. This was very hard when I was trying to get her to find her shoes and it took about 15 minutes of us both walking through the house together. The 10 year old was, difficult. I'm not even going to go there. The 13 year old was very helpful, but with quite an attitude. Looking back, there were no huge catastrophes or really anything overly eventful, but it was completely emotionally and physically draining! I will never complain about the trials of having 1 child again, and I am glad kids grow up slowly because I am not at all ready for Alex to be any older than she is.

Alexandria's Hip Checkup

So much to update, but the important things first.....
We took Alex to her Doctor apt. at Shriner's in SLC on Thursday. The doctors told us that she is doing Great!!! If they were grading her they would give her an A!
One thing I wasn't prepared to hear was that we are not actually in the clear, yet. apparently the first 4 years are critical, and the first 8 they like to keep an eye on the hips. So for the next 4 years at least, we will be going in for a check up every 6 months to make sure all is well. Since we have lots of family in the SLC area, we don't mind at all. We got to see the X-ray and it looked great! Both hips are about the same and developing well. The doctor said we don't need to do anything special or prevent her from doing anything, so we get to continue to enjoy our normal child! Things are expected to progress normally and only rarely do the hips start to digress after the harness corrects them. We are just thrilled!

Peanut Butter

I'm a pretty skeptical mom. At the same time, I am still a first time Mom, so I've been having issues on what to be skeptical about.

I let Alex put leaves in her mouth, and pet the cat. I've caught her eating dirt a few times and probably didn't freak out as much as I should have. I feed her Cheerios straight off the floor for breakfast (they end up there anyway, and this way I don't go through the 'baby escape artist out of the high chair screaming' routine).

I guess I figure that millions of children have not just 'survived', but lived happy lives before things like 'antibacterial' soaps, spray's and wipes were invented. I have also been reading some of Tyler's science books that talk about how children raised on farms, or in houses with pets, are less likely to develop allergies later in life. It turns out that if you are exposed little by little to things like germs and dirt, then your body builds up an immunity.

So, when it comes to honey and peanut butter I've heard nothing but the extreme NO! since day one. Everything you read says "DO NOT GIVE YOUR CHILD PEANUT PRODUCTS BEFORE THEY ARE 1!" Well, a scientific journal printed a study (done by a Harvard doctor and social scientist Nicholas Christakis in the British Medical Journal) came out with a report in January that pretty much says..........

"Children who are not exposed to peanuts before their first birthday are 10 times more likely to develop serious peanut related allergies later in life." It is strange how peanut allergies are only an issue in rich, lefty communities. My favorite part was....

A study of Jews of similar demographics and genetics in Britain and Israel found that British kids were 10 times more likely to have peanut allergies than Israelis. That's probably because Israeli kids have other things to be afraid of.

So there you have it. Take it for what you will. As for me and my house, we will eat peanut butter.

How much wood, could a wood chuck chuck, if a wood chuck, could chuck norris?

For those of you who haven't heard of 'Freecycle', it is the most wonderful thing ever. In an attempt to keep things out of landfills, a group got together to recycle the old 'junk' that might end up there. It is sort of like the Free ads in the newspaper. I check every once in awhile to see if there is anything I'd like, or could contribute (you can post and ask for items as well). For Christmas Tyler gave me a coupon that entitled me to a $30 fabric store binge. So we went out on our weekly date and I was completely unimpressed with the selection at the local Joann fabric. I ended up just buying sewing necessities, but walked away feeling a bit sad I didn't have any fabric to play with.

I decided to try out Freecycle, So I posted a 'want' ad and WOW!!! In one day I got 3 replies and a bunch of fabric! Now I can play!

So I had been toying around with the idea of making a stuffed robot for quite awhile now, but never really had the fabric or the know how. So yesterday I got the urge and started cutting up some of the reject fabric I was going to give away anyway. I figured I would just mess around and probably throw it all away after I had experimented. Well, my little robot which was suppose to be about 7 inches tall in my imagination, ended up being bigger than Alex, and actually pretty cool! It wasn't that hard and only took me a few hours to make. Now imagine what I could do with fabric that wasn't puke green and grey corduroy!

Pay it forward

I saw this on Rachelle's Blog, and thought it was a neat idea.

SO--Here's how it works-the first 3 people to leave a comment on this post will receive, at some point during the year, a handmade gift from me. What it will be and when it will arrive is a total surprise! The catch is that you must participate as well.Before you leave your comment here, write up a pay it forward post on your blog to keep the fun going. Then come back, let me know you're going to play, and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift! Remember that only the first 3 comments will receive a gift from me, so be quick!

If you spell Chuck Norris in Scrabble, you win. Forever

Tyler trying to catch our mischievous little angel.

When the Boogeyman goes to sleep every night, he checks his closet for Chuck Norris

Alex's Hip Dysplasia

When Alexandria was born the doctors told us that because she was breech, firstborn and a girl, she was a prime candidate for hip dysplasia (unstable or dislocated hips). When they checked out her hips they thought they heard a clunking (hips moving in and out of position) and 2 weeks later when we had an ultrasound done, we discovered that indeed her hips were dislocated.

A. is a normal hip

B. Is about what Alex has. The socket is shallow. Alex's is a bit more extream. She didn't have a socket at all and at first her hips were more like C.

C. Shallow socket with hip out of socket

D. Dislocated Hip

A week later we were up at Primary Children's Hospital having Alex fitted with a Pavlik Harness (a brace that holds the hips in a position that keeps the joint reduced. Over time, the body adapts to the correct position, and the hip joint begins normal formation).

Tyler was leaving for 6 months of firefighting in a week, we didn't have the money to pay for Hospital bills, let alone weekly doctor visits, and I was just learning how to be a mom, it was a crazy time. The biggest blessing of our lives was when a friend told us about Shriners Hospital. They specialize in orthopedic cases in children, so our doctor called and recommended us as candidates. Alex was accepted, and because of that all care from that point on was free. Alex now a patient at Shriners until her 18th birthday and any appointments, equipment or procedures are all free for us. A miracle.

For the next 4 months Alex lived a strange life. All she could wear were onsies, so all the adorable outfits I got from showers were never used. She had to stay in the harness for 23 hours a day for months, until the last one when I could take her out for 6 hour stretches during the day. She couldn't be swaddled or cuddled or have her legs pushed together in anyway. Every week we drove to SLC and had her harness readjusted and her progress checked.

Tyler was always gone but my mother in law Susan willingly drove us every week and helped me out. I couldn't have done it without her. At our last check up Alex got an x-ray. By this point I had gotten pretty good at reading ultrasounds and x-ray's of hips, and knew what we were looking for. The doctor said that things looked like they were progressing well and that she was on the right track. It didn't look as great as I was hoping, but I'm not a pro. He told us to come back in 6 months (Feb. 18th) once she was starting to stand and walk and put weight on her hips, then they would check again.

So here we are on the eve of another life changing doctor appointment. In two weeks we will be driving back to Utah and Alex will be getting another x-ray. At this point one of two things will happen........

1. Alex will be given a clean bill of health. We will be told that her hips have formed like we hoped, and she will be a normal little girl again. There is always the possibility of early arthritis or hip troubles later on in life, but nothing way out of the ordinary.

2. We will be told that the harness did not work and Alex will require further treatment. This could happen in one of 2, or both, ways.

a. The doctors will try a procedure called traction which uses strings, weights pulleys, and metal frame attached over the bed for 14 days, to stretch the tissues around the hip and allow the femoral head to move back into socket.

b. surgery, a cast worn for 3-6 months and then a brace worn for another few months along with physical therapy.

Naturally we are hoping for number 1 as our outcome, but we will learn and grow with any trial that comes our way. I am amazed that we made it through those harness days. At the time I thought life would never be normal but now that we are past it, I can hardly remember what it was like. I am grateful that it was detected so early and that we were able to receive the best care available through Shriners. They have the nicest, most genuine and caring staff I have ever met, I think all of them must be angels.
I have tried not to think about it the last 6 months, but now I can't help but dream about how wonderful the good news will be, and well, I'm just trying not to think about the other outcome.