The Next Thing

I always think that after "the next thing" coming up in our lives, we'll be less busy and things will settle down, but I'm coming to realize that there is always something else waiting in the wings. We recovered from Halloween, this weekend had the pleasure to host my friend Janna, and next weekend we'll be off to San Antonio to visit with Mike's family!
Despite a busy schedule during her short time here, Janna and I were able to squeeze in some catching up, ate some yummy meals and Mike and I asked her TONS of questions about cameras (because she is after all an expert). Oh yeah, there may have been a few photoshoots involved too (try 7 AND a workshop!). Janna is one of those people who just makes you feel comfortable and good about yourself and I'm keeping my fingers crossed she'll move down this way eventually (you may have noticed, we do have a magnetic power to get our friends and family to Houston :-). Thank you so much for coming Janna...and a big thanks to her family for letting us borrow her for a weekend!
I only took a handful of pictures while she was here because really, what's the point when someone who is SO amazing is taking them too?! Obviously, I will like Janna's better! I'll post the ones I did take tomorrow. Here are some of each of the kids from last week though...
Ella Bella
(since she is gone all day long, her before school pictures are often the only ones I get of her)

Miss Adeline
(whose mean streak continues...hitting at church, school and home - and an occasional bite too - any suggestions?!)

and Prestont
(yes, I meant to put the "t" on the end)
(who wiggles and moves CONSTANTLY now and can always bring a smile to anyone's face...just look at his!)

Gluten-Free For Good

So, it's official (yet again)...I have Celiac Disease and will remain on my gluten-free diet forever. I just went in for a follow-up with my doctor yesterday and went over the results of the blood test and the endoscopy. She thinks the reason the blood test came back negative is because my levels of the antibodies it tests were very close to the normal range. The endoscopy however did show that I still have it, although she said the damage wasn't terrible. When the nurse told me things looked good, they meant no signs of cancer, which is of course good news. I will be having one more test done to make sure there are no tumors (lymphoma of the small bowel is a main concern that she wants to screen me for) and then I will be meeting with a dietitian for a refresher course of my diet. My mom did an amazing job of teaching me to follow my diet as a child, especially considering being diagnosed was so rare then, but it will be good to have a professional address me personally about it all. The website I linked to at the beginning of the post has great information about Celiac if you are curious (the genetics of it, the testing for it, etc), but I thought this would particularly interesting for everyone (I had lots of questions regarding whether it could go away):

I was diagnosed 15 years ago and have never received follow up testing. Why should I start now?
It's never too late to begin follow up testing and to learn from the results. Food manufacturing practices change often, and even the most diligent celiac cannot keep up with all the changes. In addition, some celiacs find that current health problems may be related to celiac disease, such as anemia or bone density. The reverse is also true-some find that current health problems they've attributed to celiac disease aren't related, because their antibody levels indicate that celiac disease isn't active. In either case, the patient and physician have received valuable information.
While follow-up testing is especially important for people in the first five years after diagnosis (this is when the most serious complications of celiac disease can occur) testing can help all celiacs know that they are doing well with the diet or need to make changes to protect their health.

So, I'm going to be more strict about following my diet (no more bites of cookies, etc) and every few years will go in to have everything checked out again. I'm all for being cautious!
So, that's the update on me :-). I'll try and post some pictures later tonight.

(and also, when I asked her about getting the girls tested she suggested waiting until they get a little older, unless of course they start to exhibit symptoms. she told me to let their pediatrician know though so she will be more aware of any changes in weight gain, etc.)

Sunday Pictures

Thank goodness for Daylight Savings the day after Halloween when you have church early the next morning!

Some Tricks, but mostly Treats

We met up at my parents' house Halloween night for my mom's traditional Taco Soup dinner and some pictures while we waited for darkness to fall. Although my dad was out of town for the holiday (so sad), Kayley and Scott were here trying to find Kayley a job so they can move here sooner which was so fun! Also joining us for dinner were some of Scott's family and Grammy too.

It's amazingly hard to get a picture of all 3 kids smiling, or even just looking, at the camera. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for our photo shoot with Janna this weekend. We will be bringing lots of bribes for Addie!
(I swear Preston knows he looks like a chili pepper -
he always smiles for me and I was unable to get even one smiling picture of him in his costume!)

Our small contribution to the dinner...Mummy Dogs (with eyes by Hope).

We tucked Preston in bed (one of the many, many perks of trick or treating at my parents'...I could also mention not needing to buy candy to pass out, Mike and I BOTH being able to go with the girls, a yummy dinner and fun with family)
and Finally! Let the trick or treating begin!!!

Our first stop is always my parents' sweet neighbor Julie's house - it's great practice! Addie broke her pumpkin as we walked over to their house though. Luckily we were at Nana's, and not at home, and she ran back inside to find an even cuter replacement bag to use the rest of the night.

Their son Kyle walked out while we were there dressed as quite the caveman! Another neighbor had a real black cat, which we all thought was much more exciting than Addie did.

I thought of Chrissy and Zach when we saw this pumpkin...they'll have to make their own next year.

Addie took her role as a cat very seriously. She was hilarious walking like a cat and following her shadow. The only problem with her cat walk was that it was really slow!
Ella taking a little rest before heading to the next house. She tripped and fell on a walkway and skinned her knee and hand. She was mildly upset and quickly recovered until we were under the light of the next porch and she saw that her hand was bleeding. She wanted to go home immediately after that...the power of the mind is amazing :-).


Addie was a master at getting candy. She would either keep standing there after receiving her first helping until the person at the door gave her more or she would happily grab a handful more before the unsuspecting home owner knew what happened. No one cared of course, she was a cute little black cat with white fluffy hair after all, and they usually offered even more after that!

The Costumes

Ella the Ballerina

Addie the Black Cat

The Last Ones

before the Halloween pics of tonight.
Friday fun at Ella's school...we hung out during reading time (it was my week to watch the kiddos) and then I went back later to help with Ella's Mad Lab (thanks to Emily watching Preston and Addie).
The lab, in kindergarten terms, was about heavy things sinking and light things floating.
After our small group did some experiments, the kids were shocked when the "mad scientist" put the pumpkin in water and it didn't sink!

Ella had pictures for soccer this morning and then a game not too much later.
I've been really trying to get her to have a better attitude about soccer (she has started a pouting thing that drives me crazy) and I told her as we drove to the game that she didn't have to play soccer again next year if she didn't want, but that while we were playing she should do her best and have a good attitude about it. I went on to say that we have to try different things to see what we like and what we are good at. We had just passed a little kid football game with little cheerleaders and she told me,
"Mom, I would be really good at being a cheerleader!
They made the parents wait far away, but I did get a picture of Ella waiting in line for her individual picture...she's #4.

On the way to the game Ella asked, "Is Grandad going to be there?!"
But no Grandad today - he is out of town :-(.

Watching a beetle in the grass - much more exciting than the game :-).
Ella is definitely making progress though. She is getting more comfortable on the field and doesn't hesitate when it is her turn to go play. And hey, falling and getting mud on her face and arms without freaking out is amazing :-)!

I was hoping Addie would take a nap since we would be up late tonight...
she had other plans...
much BIGGER plans.

Preston's Par-Tay

The number of babies in attendance at story time triples on the day of the Halloween party...
you can't even see half of the people in this shot.
(that little Charlie Brown behind Miss Judy was the cutest little costume - they even had the hair drawn on his head)

I woke up Preston from a deep sleep to get to the party - we've got priorities around here - and he definitely didn't appreciate it. I couldn't get one smile out of him for a picture the whole time...so un-Preston like! Maybe it's the costume? He sure doesn't like how it confines his little legs, which are constantly kicking or moving him around.
He did enjoy inspecting the hay though.

I don't give up easily and kept trying...hoping a new location would help, but no luck.

I'm sure Preston was very jealous of Addie, who didn't have to wear a costume and got to eat cupcakes instead.

We gave the pictures another shot with Taylor and she wasn't quite sure what to think of a baby chili pepper being propped up next to her...she definitely did NOT want to hold him, that's for sure :-). (notice her pushing him away in the last picture)


Miss Venitha thought he was adorable though :-)

Here's hoping picture taking tonight turns out much better!

How Much

We've been squeezing as much into each day as possible. After Preston's appointment on Wednesday, we were too late to make it to the meeting at Ella's school I was supposed to go to, so we headed off to the mall to look for outfits for our family photo shoot with Janna next weekend. Who knew trying to coordinate and plan outfits could be so stressful?! I had a look in mind but didn't really know what else I wanted and it seemed the individual pieces I would find for each person didn't mesh well together. Finally I saw a shirt for Ella that I loved in a window of one of the stores and it was the inspiration for the rest. We spent over 3 hours shopping that day and I must say I am very pleased with how it is coming together! Once I got Preston to fall asleep (he LOVES his bed! which makes sleeping on the go tricky) and bought Addie an ICEE to keep her occupied, the shopping was a breeze :-). (although after she had been drinking it for awhile she told me she needed a new drink because this one was too cold)

Hope stopped by that afternoon to use Addie as a model for a photography project she was working on for school...
(she was trying to capture "curiosity" and these were my favorites of the ones she took)

and the girls later showed just how curious they really are while I was making dinner later that evening.

Thursday after putting Ella's hair in 2 french braids for school I decided to give Addie's a try and it really stayed! She's getting so big! Her hair is still very fluffy (she is affectionately called "fluff head" by Mike), but it is thickening up slowly but surely.

The typical scene as I make dinner...of course, a video would better represent it, the picture looks almost calm and peaceful :-).

It's always exciting when Mike gets home. We are definitely spoiled by his typically early arrivals (one of the perks of teaching), so when he has other work to do in the afternoons the girls are thrilled when he finally gets back.
"I think I heard Dad!"

The daddy's home celebratory dance.

Time for welcome home hugs.

And a photo by Ella...Preston enjoying his first taste of food - squash - and he loved it. If I wasn't so lazy/busy he would have eaten much more by now.

Preston's 5 1/2 month stats...and his crawling action

Wednesday morning was Preston's check up. Never super exciting for him, but I was curious to see how big he was. He weighed in at 14 lbs. 15 oz (10-25th percentile), was 26.5 inches long (50-75th) and his head circumference is 43 cm (25-50th).

So basically, he is a long, lean, crawling machine...as we already knew :-).

Preston is still the happiest little guy around. He loves his bed, his pacifiers and soft blankets and animals to cuddle with (no preference for a particular one yet). He has to be part of the action and is VERY easily distracted when eating his bottles. He loves to talk, put things in his mouth and move all over and explore. Ella is still his biggest fan, but Addie has been warming up to him over the past few weeks. He smiles at her a lot and that has definitely helped :-). The poor little guy gets woken up from naps and towed around constantly on errands and activities, but he seems to be surviving. I love kissing his neck, night time cuddles when he has his last bottle of the night and making him laugh (which isn't very hard).

Addie's Halloween Party

Tuesday we had a little Halloween party with Addie's school group. The night before I was trying to help her pick a costume out (we have so many in her size - Elmo, Carebear, Poodle, all the princess stuff- that I was trying to avoid buying anything) and she freaked out. She was crying and did not want anything to do with any of them. Eventually she settled on Snow White shoes, a leotard with a skirt attached and the tutu Nana made for her last birthday outfit. I think she really wants to be a cat, so today I'm off to figure that out - we do have the ears. Hopefully tomorrow dressed as a cat she will be excited and feel cute :-)! I completely forgot to get a picture of all the girls together - ahhh! That day was CRAZY and Preston was so tired, poor little guy, and I was a little frazzled. Here are the pictures I did take.
Preston climbing over Irelynn, who is only a month older than him, but twice his size. Addie was fascinated by Emily's dry ice rootbeer.

April made these cute spider cupcakes and Addie REALLY like them :-)! She tried to eat some of Hannah's when she wasn't looking - I have to keep me on her at all times!

And my only picture that has all the little girlies in it.

I didn't take a picture of Ella in the morning but she looked like a real kid in her outfit - I would wear it! - so I got one after school. She was really excited about it :-).

How we found the girls later that night. Who needs a bed?

"Please Don't Bring Home a Baby."

Monday I spent most of my day with no children, laying in a bed, people came to see if I was thirsty or cold, I was actually able to read a book, I took a nap, it was almost like heaven...except for the IV in my arm :-).
I had my endoscopy and it truly was a nice little break from reality, although being in a hospital was weird. I have only been in hospitals recently to have babies, so walking in with the sounds and smells was a strange feeling. It really seemed like I should be having a baby! I emailed Mike while I was waiting and told him that and the response I got was simply, "Please don't bring home a baby." :-)
We are definitely still adjusting to 3 and I've been thinking about it a lot. I don't think it is the three kids who are overwhelming (most of the time), it's keeping up with everything else that gets hard - the laundry, the house, the appointments and activities. I'm finally coming to accept that my house just can't be clean all the time - it's impossible - and it's hard for me to accept.
The endoscopy went well though and the doctor said things looked fine, so we'll see what the biopsy results are. I even got to bring home pictures of my stomach, esophagus, intestine, etc. I thought about scanning them and posting them because I think they are pretty cool - I mean, who gets pictures of their own organs! - but Mike thinks they are gross and I decided many others may feel the same way :-). I will be shocked if the results come back that I don't have Celiac anymore, but I guess we'll just wait and see.
It truly was a nice little break - I kept joking with the nurses that I was going to come in every other week for one just so I could relax in a quite room (not to mention I even was given gifts from the hospital!). My grandparents took care of Addie and Preston and my mom took me to the hospital and picked me up...it is definitely nice to have family nearby.

So Much to Say

We are alive and well.
We are VERY busy every day,
which leaves us VERY tired by the time it is all over.

I'm almost ready to start catching up on the week before Halloween arrives though
and just had to post this picture of how I found Preston tonight.
(and he is officially crawling as of yesterday- no tummy on the ground - he's not even 5 1/2 months yet!...video post coming soon)

More Saturday Fun

Friday first though...
Heading off for reading at Ella's school, experiments with our ChickFilA toys, and Preston's before and after shots (I borrowed my mom's hair thinning scissors...well, my mom brought them to me with strict instructions to fix poor Preston's hair)...

(it's hard to tell from these pictures (the last one is the after), but it really does look a lot better in person - much less nerdy than what I did to him before...sorry Preston!)

This Saturday Ella played the whole game without any problems! She still doesn't really want to actually touch the ball for the most part, but at least she's out there running around! Grandad came to help us cheer again too (and keep Addie entertained)! It is so fun having him at her games- it reminds me of what a priority he made it to come to all my sports events growing up!

I think Addie may be our true soccer player. Ella is warming up to it, but it's definitely been a slow process. Before we left on Saturday for the fields she told me, "I wish I was Addie so I didn't have to play soccer." I think Addie would love to trade places too :-).

Ella's first throw-in!

Preston got worn out playing soccer with Grandad and Addie and the instant I snuggled him up he fell asleep in my arms...it was such a nice little treat for me!

I can't tell if Ella has any fun with her Grandad, can you :-)?!

And the end of game tunnel.
I had to post this because I was holding Preston, who was sleeping, so I couldn't participate which meant Mike had to go by himself (and if you know Mike you completely understand that he really didn't want to do it). There was this old guy by himself so I told him to go do it with him but when he got there he ended up with some lady :-). I know he really loves Ella to do it for her :-)!

And as if Saturday had not been exciting enough yet, the girls were invited to a special Halloween treat making afternoon with Nana! We dropped them off after the game and look at this set-up! Now you know why I was so proud of my library treat wrapping...I have this to live up to :-)! The girls had a blast! I heard Addie stuffed as many treats in her mouth as she could when no one was looking, they got McDonald's for lunch and ended up staying all afternoon watching movies and having fun. Preston took one of the longest naps of his life so I was able to get my lesson all ready for the next day, it was perfect!

The finished goodies...
Addie had a thing for the dark green sprinkles and Ella for the Hershey's kisses :-).

I can't believe Halloween is THIS weekend already!!! CRAZY!!!

Ella's Line

No pre-church pictures today...we had to be at church early for Ella's Primary program AND I was teaching in YW, so there was a lot going on. Not to mention that minutes before we were ready to head out the door Preston spit up all over himself AND me. The problem is that I only have a handful of things that actually fit me right now and I wanted to look cute since I was teaching. Oh well. We still made it on time and I managed to get a quick video of Ella's line...
"I can comfort people when they are sad."

And she did AWESOME in the program by the way!!!! :-)

What in the world?!

Someone STOLE our Sunday paper!
It was there before church this morning but we never had a chance to run out and grab it...
and when we got home it was gone!
THE NERVE!!!