More Birthday Madness

Riley Megan Grandstaff turned four!!! When she was born we were told she failed her hearing test. No biggie. Did it mean much? Within two weeks of her birth she was hospitalized because she had a seizure and had been running a fever. We spent several days at Children's Hospital waiting and seeing. She never jumped or startled when children screamed around her, or doors slammed, or thunder rolled. Nothing. Nada. She couldn't hear. She ended being fine after the hospital stay and two mega drugs being pumped into her little body for days on end. She just couldn't hear. People around me began to ask me if I was worried about her being deaf. My gut level true answer was no. No way. You see, we were told early in my pregnancy that we had experienced a miscarriage. They were so "sorry for your loss" as they discharged me from the ER one night. Pretty cool thing that about 7 months later (and lots of pounds) we were blessed with sweet, perfect, beautiful Riley Megan. The theory? She has a twin waiting in heaven for her. Neither can I explain how the night before a major appointment to discuss what to do with our little deaf baby that when her brother slammed a door and she jumped and cried!!! Yeah! She's a miracle and has been since God weaved her together in the darkness of my womb. She is, indeed, fearfully and wonderfully made. Trust me, the girl is not deaf now, although there are times that I wish I was!!

Happy birthday sweet, loud, bossy one.

Sweet Baby Thomas

I fell madly and helplessly in love with Thomas the moment I saw his perfect little head. It was peeking out of a little white blanket and he was 19 hours old. He's number 6 in a family of practically perfect children. Don't tell William that I lumped all of them together. He's 5 and he thinks he's the only perfect one.

Happy Birthday to you...Happy Birthday to you...

Happy Birthday Isabelle the Mae! Seven years ago today I was admiring God's handiwork yet again by counting ten chunky toes, ten chunky fingers, and wondering what color your eyes would be when the swelling went down enough for you to open them!!! You were nine pounds, ten ounces of screaming wonder with jet black hair. Oh how I loved you then and I love you now. Happy birthday, sweetie.

Toad named Toad

We have had many pets come and go this spring. All named Toad. Toad the turtle. Toad the Toad. Toad the caterpillar. Toad the bee. Toad the fly. Toad the spider. I love little boys and their boyness. Check out my friend, Shannon's blog (shannonofthewoods.blogspot.com) --- her little guy likes toads, too.

ABC News: Vote for the Best Scoops In America

ABC News: Vote for the Best Scoops In America
Hey all! Moomers (near my hometown in northern MIchigan) is nominated for the Best Scoops in America award! Follow the link to vote!! If you haven't had Moomers Ice Cream - trust me, it's tops!

Half Way There

I Love Love Love it when my kids lose their teeth - especially the top two!!! Isabelle is half way there!!! Keep wiggling little Mae - keep wiggling!!

I write about

rain, baseball, my cute (healthy) kids, vacations, dumb camera tricks. I live a charmed life. We are healthy. Every day we have food to eat. My kids have started telling me they are "starving" and I have started telling them that since they have had food today - they are not starving. Starving means you don't get food at all today, maybe not yesterday or the day before. They aren't buying it, but I'm still selling it.
Every night we go to sleep on a pillow, in a bed, in a warm room, under a safe roof. We can buy gas (not much, but some) and drive to the store. We put clean clothes on each day (if we choose). Granted, most days Nicholas pulls out the dirty baseball pants he wears EVERY day, but that's his choice.
Where am I going? I write about insignificant things, mostly. There are very real things that need attention. My husband has two friends that he graduated with that have lost children to cancer. I know of many more children who are living with and fighting cancer currently. One of them is Tyler Alfriend from Dublin, Ohio. Jump on his blog and read about him and then follow the links to some of the other people he knows battling cancer as well. Most of them are children, but one is Stef - check his story out. He's a dad with two small children and he's battling to see them grow up. There's a link on Tyler's blog to a petition. Read about it and sign it if you are so willing. I'm sure you can afford four minutes to check it out and sign it - people are DYING not because there isn't an answer - but the money isn't there to fund the answer. All it costs is a few clicks and your name to show you support more attention being given to research for childhood cancer. Tyler's dad keeps this blog and I'm telling you, he speaks eloquently and intelligently about the world of childhood cancer. It is far worse than I imagined. Parents should focus on supporting their children and helping them beat cancer, not fighting the system to get the right treatment for them when it is readily available. I'll get off my box now. Go read. Sign. Pass it on. Refuse to Lose!!

TYLERALFRIEND.BLOGSPOT.COM

Season of Life

Here are two of my beautiful little people. This month we are focusing on two birthdays and lots of baseball! Coming soon - pictures of Nicholas playing ball and Isabelle's Birthday Picture!