Four Months

We have survived 4 months!!!!! I mean that more medically than anything, for if you have met Evee, you know that she is a pocket of sunshine. She really is so wonderful and I would not trade her for anything in this world. What I meant was that there was a rocky point that I wasn't so sure that I would be able to have her here with us for long....okay, TMI, this is a happy post, not a "please feel sorry for me".

Evee sleeps in a bassinet right next to my bed, I mean that there is literally 4 inches from the side of my bed to the side of hers. It makes me feel more calm having her close to me, but it also makes sleeping hard for she relaxes her breathing when she sleeps and her strider is so much worse (it's almost embarrassing when she falls asleep at church for no one around me can hear the speakers).

 Evee still has bad reflux. One thing that we do to try to minimize the pain and occurrence is that we have her mattress on an incline (by putting blankets under one side). Some mornings she will slip to the bottom of the bed, but because of her low muscle tone, she doesn't move around much when she sleeps.

She was sleeping through the night, but she got a little congested, and since then wakes up once or twice a night. Kind of a mean trick, if you ask me, but she is definitely worth getting up for.

Speaking about her reflux, she is currently on two medications for it. Her GI doctor is baffled by this for he has never had a patient needing both. He even had me try weening her off of one of the medications, after two days of only giving her half dosage of one of the medicines, I had to put her back on. Evee doesn't complain about much, but when she's in pain with her reflux, she shows it and I am not okay with letting her deal with it.

I never knew too much about our health insurance plan, but now I have become very aware of it. It is a very good insurance, but I do have one complaint. If you are taking any medication for more than 3 months, you have to get a mail-away order in a 90 day supply. This means an entirely new prescription has to be written and everything. The most frustrating thing about this is you are not informed about this policy until you call to renew the prescription for the 4th month. Ya, it sucks and now we have to wait for Evee's medicine to get shipped to us. Not cool!

Evee is still incredibly social. She just loves people and will get anyone to love her. She displays two-way communication (smiling when you smile, etc.), which has been so much fun to experience.

 
She really likes the bouncer. It seems to hold her in a nice position. I will put the bouncer up on the counter while I'm working in the kitchen, or while the boys and I eat meals together. Evee loves the interaction that goes along.

Once a week we go swimming, and Evee joins us. I've been trying to get her to move her body around a bit in the water, but she's not big on any movement. But we're trying. Because she doesn't have much rigidity in her body, she can be difficult to hold. Even in the water this can be true, but it is easier than out of the water.

We have been working on Evee improving her muscles. We call this her "exercise". Sometimes she tolerates it, other times she hates it. Her "exercises" can be tummy time, holding her arms a certain way, holding her in different positions, and such. The boys love to be around her while she exercises, and cheer her on.

She has started to hold her hands together, which her OT (Occupational Therapist) has been pushing for her to bring her hands together. She loves to hold this position, and I think it's so cute and dainty.

I have absolutely loved having a girl. I think more about what she is going to wear every day more than I think about what I am going to wear. And I am not even that concerned about clothes! Girls, even though she is quite young, are so different than boys.

Her brothers sure do love her. As it has been said, she sure is not in need of stimulation in our home. The boys love to talk to her, play with her, hold her hand, touch her, kiss on her, etc. The poor girl gets no PS (Personal Space). For the most part, she loves it.

But there are times that she has had enough.

So grateful for my little princess

10 4 Little Buddy

Evelyn can now only count to 10. That's right, we had her sixth "finger", whom we lovingly referred to as "Little Buddy", removed.

I will be honest, it was a little sad. Up to this point, it has just been a part of her. She would swing her hand around so that she could catch her finger and she would squeeze it in her fist.  Mikey even asked if we could make her a little squishy for her to play with after she lost her finger.

 The first time William held Evee he was squishing the finger, for it did have a joint. Seeing this disturbed me a little bit for I wasn't totally use to the finger. I soon found myself holding it and squishing it in a loving manner.

But it did need to be done. Besides the potential teasing she would get from other kids, I was scared that at some point it would fall off. Actually, at first I was really nervous that it would fall off, but after being with it for awhile, I realized how securely it was on her hand and no longer feared that it would be ripped off.

Because of her more concerning health factors, getting Evee's finger removed has not been a priority. Since everything has somewhat subsided, and since we've already paid our deductible for the year, we decided to go ahead and get her surgery.

The hand surgeon, Dr. E, whom Todd is in contact a lot with different consultations in the ER, wanted to have the surgery performed in the OR instead of his office. Though it was a very minor surgery, he wanted a more controlled setting, especially with all of Evelyn's health risks.
We went to the hospital and got signed in on October 1st. The nurse that was helping us was very nice, and like most of the doctors/nurses that we have been seeing, was shocked by two things, first, that Evee is our 5th child, and second, that Evee's breathing is so noisy.

They knew Todd was a resident, so he was allowed to go with Evee into the surgery. The nurse, wanting to warn a concerned father, asked if he was sure he would be able to handle seeing his baby get her finger cut off. Silly nurse had no idea of what Todd has had to witness with his daughter, the worst being the resuscitation.

She zonked out, high on milk, before going into surgery

Her feet out like this is her normal position

Everyone commented on how alert, happy, and social Evee was during the entire process. I was told that she gave just one short cry when she got the local anesthetic, but the rest of the time she just looked at Todd.

Todd said it was a little strange to see them just place the extra finger on the surgical plate after they were done. Little Buddy has been a part of our life and something very special to us. It has been something that the boys have told people about, in a bragging sense, excited to tell people how cool and special their little sister is.

After the surgery, Evee had to wear this wrap around her hand to protect it from getting hurt or infected. Of course she loved to lick the wrap, which was bumpy.

Evelyn recovered well and is still the same, minus Little Buddy

Laundry Days

 After getting fed up of finding clean clothes in the laundry basket, plus coming to the realization that I had a lot of laundry to be in charge of, I decided to start teaching Mikey and Roger how to do their own laundry.

It has been such a good decision. The boys are having to be more aware of when they will run out of clothes (I still have to help them, but there were many times that they would come to me in the morning and inform me that they didn't have any clean pants, now it's their responsibility and their own consequences). They also are more aware of the work that goes into making sure they have clothes.
I have been supervising them starting the washer and putting the detergent in, but this last week Roger did it all without me saying a word! Yay!! Then after the clothes are washed, they are in charge of folding all their own laundry and putting it away (nicely) into their drawers.
We have arrived!

Fashionable Ware

For a baby gift, a friend of mine gave me a package of white onesies and fabric markers. The idea was to have my boys color onesies for Evelyn. I loved this idea and the boys and I had a great time making them.
I actually didn't give the boys much help. I set up the supplies, but I didn't want my coloring to disturb their child-like masterpieces.
Of all the different clothes Evee had, from the pink frills to all the ruffles, I think I liked these onesies the best.
Here are the finished products:

Grant's:

His has a picture of Grant and Evee on it

William's:

William's has a picture of the family, but since there wasn't enough room, he had to put two of the people on the back

Roger's:

Roger followed Mikey's example by putting animals (turtle, lizard, and a duck) on it

Mikey's:

His had the duck, turtle, and lizard on the world in a new planet. One of Evee's doctor's commented on how much she liked this onesie and said that it looked like something you would find at a popular clothing store.

Big Help

If you know Mikey, you know that he can be incredibly helpful and very compassionate. He really has helped make our lives so much easier.

The other day I was doing the dishes while Evee sat in her bouncer. Mikey had come into the kitchen so I asked him if he would talk to Evee while I finished up (Evee is incredibly social and loves to be talked to).
Soon Evee started to cry even though Mikey was giving her his best effort. Finally he said to me, "Mom, I'll do the dishes so that you can feed Evee"
I was so touched by how he was so self-sacrificing while noticing what needed to be done to help someone else.

Last week William lost a little toy at the park. We allowed William and Mikey look for it for a few more minutes before we left.
Mikey was pretty sure that he knew where the toy was, which I didn't totally believe for he is notorious for loosing and misplacing things (not his strongest point). Finally it was time to go so I called the boys back to the car.
William came back in tears while Mikey said, "Mom, I've got some good news.....Someone else found William's toy and it is making that person happy"

Poor Math Skills

Roger: Mom, I think we should just have 6 kids, not like 10

Me: 6 kids, huh

Roger: Ya, 'cause 10 is like a lot of kids

Me: So, we should only have one more kid after Evee?

Roger, after thinking for a minute: No, we should have one more, then one more, then one more, then one more, then that's all

Me: Ya, because ten kids would be a lot

In a household of 4 brothers

Life can be a little dangerous

Note- The toy bullet was placed on her head, not actually shot at her. Had to let you know in case someone was picking up the phone to call CPS

Perspective

Todd: Are you okay with me not going with you to Evee's appointment tomorrow?

Me: Ya, don't worry about it, it's only Oncology (cancer doctor)

Todd: Are you being sarcastic?
Pause
Me: No....but I can see how you would think that

On top of Evee's many specialists she is seeing, she is now seeing an Oncologist. This is because she does have an increased risk of develping a childhood cancer, but I really am not too worried. If she were to develop a tumor, she is being screened with bloodwork every 6 weeks and ultrasound every 3 months so it would be discovered very early.
The difficult part of going to the oncologist was being in the waiting room. It's a Pediatric Oncologist, so of course all of the patients are under 18 years old. I saw 4 other patients in the waiting room, but by looking at them I felt very grateful for Evelyn's health. One playful 10 year-old bald girl was helping with her younger sister, one 14 year-old (I am estimating their ages) girl had really short hair and was sitting between her parents, and one 16 year-old boy came in and though he had a full head of hair, it seemed that he was well known by the nurses and staff - something that only occurs if you are there frequent enough. My heart went out to these cheerful kids. They knew what it was like to go through hard things, yet they all seemed very kind and happy. I held Evelyn a little closer and felt so thankful for how well she is doing.
I have also had many other opportunities to ponder and reflect on how blessed I am by God, how fortunate I am, and that I have very little room for complaining or even to feel as though I have experienced some hard trials.
Today my thoughts have been on a friend of mine, and her family. This friend, Dawn, had moved to the Cleveland area at the same time Todd and I did. She and her husband did not have any children yet, but they were anxiously awaiting for the day that God would bless them with dear angels. Todd was soon called to be a counselor to Dawn's husband in the Elder's Quorem, and Dawn was soon called to be Mikey's Sunbeam teacher, and my Visiting Teacher. With all of these things that brought us together, we were fortunate to get to know Dawn and Colby (her husband) a little better.
Soon Dawn and Colby were blessed with their first son. He was born just a couple of months after Grant and we would swap stories of pregnancy ales, but nonetheless, Dawn was thrilled in every way to be becoming a mother. Three years later she had a second son.
Fairly soon after becoming a mother of two, there was talk of Dawn and Colby purchasing a house on the other side of Cleveland. I couldn't blame them for they had lived in a condo for the past three years and Colby had been very successful in his work. They ended up moving, without giving too many details. They were wonderful people in our church who gave so much service to so many people. They were always sincerely asking how everyone else was doing or seeing how they could help rather than trying to steal the "show" themselves.
Just a couple of weeks ago I learned that Dawn had actually had breast cancer, stage 4, untreatable, and was on hospice. My heart ached for her and her little family. Because of my beliefs in the Resurrection and the Plan of Salvation, I felt comfort in knowing where she was going and that all would be well, but I did feel sorrow for her for I knew that she loved her husband and boys so dearly and I knew she would grieve over the thought that she would not be able to be physically with them as they grew and matured. She knew first-hand the sting of having a mother pass before her time for her own mother had died of breast cancer as well.
But my biggest heartache is for the family Dawn leaves behind. Her husband loved her so much, which who could blame him. And I know that her boys (ages 4 and 1) love her and will miss her. I know that it isn't going to be just a week or a month away from their momma, but rather they are going to have to learn how to deal with the rest of their mortal life with out having physical contact with her.
My heart aches every time I tell my boys that I will be away from them for a couple of hours as I will be taking to Evee to another doctor's appointment, but my ache and my trial is nothing. Learning of Dawn's situation helped me put a real perspective on my "trial". I have no room to complain and rather am incredibly blessed.
Dawn passed away last week and her funeral was held today. She was such a beautiful woman, a strong yet soft spoken woman that was admired by many. She had many reasons she could have been prideful, but she remained humble and loving all her days.
The next time we feel overwhelmed, or that our lot in life is hard, may we all squeeze our children a little tighter as we think of this angel who had to leave hers to return to live with our Heavenly Father. May we put real perspective in our own lives and realize that the menial things are not important but rather our faith and family is where our joy lies.
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/deseretnews/obituary.aspx?n=dawn-winegar&pid=160369691#fbLoggedOut

Marriage Plans

William: Mom, when I get old, I am going to live by you.

Me: Oh, I would love that. I will watch your kids for you. Whenever you go on a date with your wife, I'll watch your kids.

William: Okay.....Do you know who I am going to marry?

Me: Who?

William: Julia....Mom, do you know who Julia is?

Me: Yes, you did Joy School with her

William: Yes, I know I did, but do YOU know her?

Did he forget that I was one of the teachers of his Joy School experience?!

After William's friend, and Julia's betrothed, Tyler, moved away, Julia has determined that she is going to marry William. She informed William of this months ago, and on that day William asked me, "Mom, can people marry their friends". I told him that I married my friend. William then informed me that he was going to marry Julia.

This is great news. We love Julia's parents, Greg and Amy. There are 4 girls in their family, the oldest being Mikey's age. Todd has told Greg that he is Ishmael and Todd is Lehi. We decided that we would have our sons marry their daughters. Glad the boys are understanding their future.

Julia, the third child, is on the left with her sister, the fourth child on the right