Happy Birthday Grandma!

Happy Birthday Mom! Where do I begin on expressing my gratitude to you for being my mother and my friend?
Mom,
*Thanks for always being there
*Thanks for always listening
*Thanks for never judging and showing me how (not to judge)
*Thanks for forgiving and teaching me how to forgive
*Thanks for being a great mom and showing me how to have those qualities (which I definitely haven't mastered)
*Thanks for showing me and my family unconditional love
*Thanks for being a great GRANDMA!!!!

Mom there are so many more qualities that I love you for and am grateful for. I just want you to know. I love you and am so thankful you are my mom. Happy Birthday!

Today is my mom's birthday. Since Scott is out of town yet again this week, my mom came to help out while Emmett is still recovering. The kids and I decided to take Grandma out for her birthday, she chose McGrath's Restaurant. My kids love to go there because the staff comes out and sings to the birthday person and makes them wear a fish hat. My brother Brian and his family joined us for dinner.

Here is grandma with her fish hat.








Here is the gang after enjoying dinner.

Garhett earns his Bear

This has been a busy overwhelming week for me and to boot Scott is traveling. Tonight was pack meeting (which also happens to be the same day as Emmett's surgery). I wanted to be present for Garhett receiving his Bear badge, so I had my parents sit with Emmett in the hospital while I took the kids to pack meeting.

I am so proud of Garhett. He has worked very hard and diligently on earning his Bear in cub scouts.

Will it be enough...

The day has finally come, Emmett's surgery. No parent is ever excited for their child to have surgery. But in this case, I have to say, that I am happy Emmett is finally going to be able to breathe easier. After his second sleep study results with no improvement from the first sleep study, the Pulmonologis recommended that Emmett have his adenoids and tonsils removed.

So we made our appointment with the ENT. She agreed that his adenoids were too big. Back in November when we met with the ENT about Emmett's first sleep study results, the ENT said that Emmett's adenoids were fine and he was too little for them to be removed. So I didn't push the issue. The ENT then pointed the finger over at the Gastro doc saying that the acid reflux is what's causing the sleep apnea. The Gastro doc is convinced that Emmett will grow out of the acid reflux, and we should repeat the test in 6 month. So again, I didn't push the issue.

So 6 months later, we repeated the test and still no change. Well that isn't entirely true, Emmett registered not only obstructed sleep apnea, but central sleep apnea as well. Central has to do with his brain. A completely other ball game that we aren't playing yet.

Back to current day. We met with the ENT, she looked up his nose and said that his adenoids are at 90% and back in November they were registering at 60%. WHAT??? Emmett's adenoids were at 60% back in November, you mean to tell me we could have taken care of his sleep apnea back in November. So my blood is starting to boil a little as we are talking with the ENT. So she says, the adenoids need to come out and that will help him to breathe a lot better.

I then suggested that his tonsils need to come out as well. Again, with the answer, he's too little. The ENT suggested that we take only the adenoids. I persisted that the they both come out. I didn't want to do another surgery in a month, two or 6 months down the road. Just get it all over with in one swoop. She was trying to negotiate with me, but I held strong. I wanted both out.

So now for the surgery day. The ENT came out 20 minutes after the nurse took Emmett into the OR. The ENT said that Emmett's adenoids were so big that they were actually blocking his nasal air way. Oh and his tonsils were rotten. WHAT? They were rotten and had grown up onto his dangle thing that hangs down to your throat. You know what I am talking about. Don't know the technical term and I am not looking it up. She explained that when she removed his tonsils, they just fell apart. She also said that WE made a good decision to take them out. Are you kidding me? If you remember right, you didn't want to take them out. I didn't say it to her, but I sure thought it. The ENT was concerned that Emmett had toxins in his lungs from the rotten tonsils, so we are keeping an eye on him for that. PHEW!!! We are over one hurdle.

Before surgery the nurses told me that I wasn't going to be able to be with him in the recovery room since he was spending the night in the hospital. I was devastated and tried again and again for permission to be with him. No such luck. Recovery didn't go as well as the nurses hoped. Emmett didn't do very well coming out of the anesthesia. So they brought me back to calm Emmett down.

While I was holding Emmett and calming him down, he started to choke, then he stopped breathing, and in my arms turned blue. The nurses panicked and said for me to get out of the room. Absolutely not, I am not going anywhere. They suctioned him out and I talked him through it. They were surprised how calm I was. Calm, I wasn't calm on the inside. I needed to be level headed for Emmett and the nurses. The one nurse that stayed with us for the rest of the recovery was awesome. She didn't feel comfortable sending us to our room until Emmett was stable and able to remove the flem on his own. So 2 1/2 hours later, we headed to our room.

We've had so many stays in the hospital that the nurses all remembered us. How sad is that?! Well it's good in a way as well, because they took good care of us. We were able to go home the next day. Even though it seemed easy in the hospital I knew that coming home was going to be whole different story. And it was.

Emmett had several episodes of where he stopped breathing. So I set up the pack-n-play in our room and I slept on the floor next to him so I could be there to make sure he kept breathing. Along with the breathing issue, Emmett would refuse to take his pain medicine and drink. It got the point where he was running a fever, and starting to get dehydrated, so we had to force him to drink with a syringe in his mouth.

After a lot of crying and sleeplessness, the sun rose and it was a new day. Phew, we made it. The recovery has been hard, but I have to say it's getting better. Emmett is starting to drink on his own, which is half the battle.

So will it be enough? We won't know for 8 weeks when we can repeat the sleep study. I hope and pray that as he heals, his sleeping pattern will get better.

Third Grade Invention Creation

After a long day at the zoo with Trent's kindergarten class. Garhett informed me at the dinner table that his 3rd Grade Science project is due tomorrow. WHAT????!!!!! The project that he and Scott were supposed to create together. Now Scott was out of town and the project creation was left for Garhett and I. I know what you are thinking, cause I was thinking the same thing. Poor Garhett. (that's what you were thinking right?).

Garhett had the task of creating an invention:

• That would be stable enough to sit on top of his school desk.
• The invention must contain two or more simple machines.
• The invention must have a function.
• Be creative!!

Are you kidding me right now??? All I can say is I am so glad that we live in the age of technology. The internet baby! I did many searches on 3rd grade science projects. Garhett chose the project and we went to work. Well not exactly, we went to Walmart. Oh and then half way through, we went to Michaels Craft store.
Here is the final product. It was an assignment not a contest, so everyone is a winner!!! Garhett came home from school beaming that everyone loved his project!!! That's really all that matters, the beaming smile that comes from your child. I love you Garhett.



A special thanks goes to Deidra for coming to my rescue. Deidra played with Emmett, Paige and Trent while Garhett and I busily created his invention. What would I do without my friends? Thanks FRIEND!!!!!

Kindergarten Field trip to the zoo

Today was Trent's kindergarten field trip to the zoo. He's been looking forward to it for a couple of weeks. He wasn't too sure at first if he wanted his mom to go along and chaperon. Some of his comments he made was, "Well, you can't ride the bus. My teacher said it is just for the kids." I answered back with, "She told me that I could ride the bus so I could be with our group." Trent, "Oh!" Then he piped up with, "Well you can't bring your purse. Mrs. Anderson will not let you bring a purse on the bus. What are you going to do? I guess you better not ride the bus."

Funny things from Trent, but today was the day. He was excited to go to the zoo and was actually excited for me to go with him on the bus. When the kids would ask if I was his mother, he would smile and say "yes!".

Now for my "can't get a grip" life lately. Trent and I were supposed to be at school by 12:55 to get on the bus for the zoo. My babysitter for Paige and Emmett was late, which through me off. I then realize I forgot the camera. Oh well, I don't have time to turn around as it was it 12:58pm. Yes, I know we were late. I called the school to see if they had loaded the bus and to see if I should drive and meet them at the zoo. Fortunately they hadn't loaded or left, so we hurried.

Phew!!! We made it. Our group was the Tiger's. I think we had the smallest group of all. That's okay. Here is Trent and I on the bus. Since I forgot my camera, I had to rely on the cell phone.








When we arrived at the zoo, the teacher told us that we basically had an hour to look around the zoo. That should be doable. She told us to meet back at the bus at 2:30pm. So we were off. We were cruising through the zoo at a pretty good pace. I didn't even let the kids stop for snack time, they ate on the fly. They didn't care. As we were finishing up the last part of the zoo, I hear over the loud speaker, "Cindi Morgan of Spalding, please come to the zoo entrance". That is when I took out my phone and saw the time. Yep, we were late. Once again. The time was 2:55pm. OOPS!! We were supposed to be back at the school at 3pm and weren't leaving the zoo until 3pm. The Tiger group had a great day at the zoo.


















Sometimes I think I have it all together and then I have a day like this and I get so kindly reminded, that I don't! LOL!!!

Blog Worthy

This week has been an especially hard week, wow and it's only Wednesday. Take aside that Scott is traveling and that Emmett is having surgery. I just feel like I am floating and can't seem to get a grip. You'll see what I mean as I add more posts from this week.

Anyway, I have noticed as I am floating and not seeming to get a grip, that the Lord shows me tender mercies for me to remember: God loves me and knows who I am. For that I am thankful and I get through each day.

I received the below in an email from my dearest friend, Deidra, who seems to know when to pick me up. I found that this woman truly got it right.

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio
"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me..
It is the most-requested column I've ever written."

My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood... But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else, we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

Remember that I will always share my spoon with you!
Friends are the family that we choose for ourselves.

Can you believe it???

Our little peanut is 18 months old today: June 7, 2009. Can you believe it? I know I sure can't.


Today Emmett went into nursery at church. He did fabulous. Most 18 month old kids are frightened and notice that their parents have left them. I think Emmett was more elated to be left with kids and toys instead of being corralled by his parents during Sunday School and Relief Society. Remember that in the doctor's/therapist's eyes Emmett is just 16 months old, which in my eyes is the perfect age for nursery because they don't care about leaving their parents. Ask me again in a month or so if he's still so excited to go to nursery.
I have to admit that I was the paranoid mother today. I felt like it was my first child, well that's not true, cause I didn't feel like that with Garhett. Maybe I should have but Garhett was in daycare during the day, so nursery wasn't a big deal. Anyway, back on topic. I felt nervous to leave Emmett because nobody knows Emmett very well.
So I was a Nervous Nelly, checking on Emmett throughout Sunday School and Relief Society. The first time I peeked through the window, I noticed Emmett sitting on the floor eating something. So I rushed in and immediately started fishing out a blue crayon from Emmett's mouth. He had chunks in his mouth. The men that are the nursery leaders asked me what he had eaten, I explained a crayon. One of them said, "Well I told him not to do that?" (REALLY???? I don't know what world you live in, but generally an 18 month old doesn't stop when you say don't do that. Just my thoughts, I didn't say it out loud.) No worries, my first thought was to take him out, but I didn't. I cleaned him up and left.
Then a little bit went by and I checked on him again. Now it was snack time. All the kids were sitting around the table so nicely. I noticed that Emmett was sitting half on the chair, oh wait, there he goes, he fell off on to the floor. So I rushed in again. The men said, "Oh he's doing great, he's fine." I said, "Well he hasn't ever sat on a chair by himself before." One of the men said, "Where is he?" I said, "Oh Emmett, he just fell off the chair and is under the table". "OHH!"
Okay, so I left. I am sure the men in my ward, think I am crazy (or probably some other words), but you know what I don't care. Emmett seemed to do well. As soon as I picked him up at the end of church, he clung to me. He passed on lunch and went straight to nap time.
I still can't believe Emmett is old enough for nursery.
Emmett remember when you were just a little peanut.

• Remember when you were taken out of me at 31 weeks 6 days.
• Remember when you only weighed 3lbs 3oz.
• Remember when we could only touch your head and the bottoms of your feet for the first 5 days of your life.
• Remember when dad put his wedding band around your hand, and we both cried.
• Remember when you fit in your Christmas stocking and you wore a Build-A-Bear outfit.
• Remember when you came home from the NICU after 5 long weeks.
• Remember when you weighed a whopping 5 pounds.
• Remember when you came home from the hospital with an apnea monitor that would go off several times during the night and so many meds that we became a pharmacy.
• Remember when you had 3 different therapists working with you 3 different days in one week.
• Remember when you found out your bones were fused together at your elbows and there was nothing the doctors could do to fix it.
• Remember how amazing it was to watch you learn how to maneuver your shoulders to accommodate your bone fusion.
• Remember when we took you on a family vacation to Disneyland - you did awesome flying and being transported everywhere.
• Remember when you started wearing a helmet to help reshape your head.
• Remember when you kept failing your hearing tests until tubes were put in your ears at 9 months old.
• Remember when we took you to Primary Children's Hospital in Utah for a sleep study.
• Remember when the pulmonoligist was appalled at your sleeping/breathing and recommended that you now sleep with oxygen.
• Remember when you saw every doctor under the sun so it seemed.
• Remember when you had every procedure done under the sun so it seemed.
• Remember when you sat up first before laying on your tummy and rolling over.
• Remember when you laid on your tummy, rolled over, and pulled yourself up within two months time.
• Remember when you turned one and you were still thriving.
• Remember when you proved the doctors/therapists wrong when they said you wouldn't crawl, but would go straight to walking - AND YOU CRAWLED.
• Remember when you walked on Mother's Day.
• Remember when you went in for your 18 month check up and you weighed 22lb oz and were 30 1/4 in long.
• Remember when Dr. Ally told you at your 18 month well check - you were in the 10% for your length, 30 1/4 and 12% for your weight, 22lb 12oz.
• Remember when you lived with Heavenly Father and Jesus and chose us as your parents

Remember that dad and I are thankful everyday for your sweet spirit joining our family
We love you Emmett!!! You are such a blessing and a strength to me.