To the Pumpkin Patch!

We went to Liepold's Pumpkin Patch last weekend as a family. What a fun place... for the kids, that is! And that means it is fun for the adults too, right... I think I much prefer the traditional pumpkin patch with maybe a hay ride, but I know the girls enjoyed this. Now that Tennyson is '2', it seems like she is experiencing everything for the first time. She's looking at things with fresh eyes. Amaya takes every opportunity to get some loves in, even if they are not reciprocated by her sister!

From Orchard to Oven to Mouth

What a great time we had! This was my first time doing the Hood River Fruit Loop with the girls. We went to two farms. The weather was perfect, the apples were huge, and the girls (yes, all six of them) were happy. A great combination for success.
We started at Donut World in Gresham for the kids, drove thru Starbucks for the mamas, and began our qwest for apples. We picked about 200 pounds of apples in about a half hour... and that time even included some good sample tasting, some potty squatting, and some apple squashing! Thanks for the fun Friday morning, Holly and Heidi.
Amaya, Tennyson, and I made our first apple pie of the Fall. Poppy was over for dinner. Daddy and Poppy gave their thumbs up as they splurged on pie and ice cream.
Can't wait to can some applesauce for this winter. Thanks to you, Holly, if all else fails, we'll have blueberries and applesauce all winter! Mmmm...

Jagger Update #4

Jagger is doing much better! He finally got a small stretch of sleep last night, which provided Emily the opportunity to get some sleep as well. His pain is being pretty well controlled. It makes him a little wobbly when he is trying to walk, so he's been out of his room, mostly in the stroller. When I talked to Emily this morning, they were expecting to be discharged sometime today. All of his tubes were out, except the IV. Praise God for a quick stay in the hospital. I think everyone involved is eager to get Jagger home.

Jagger Update #3

Jagger had a good night, medically speaking. He barely slept, and was quite restless, but mom reports this morning that he finally took a 2 1/2 hour nap. His catheter is out, he is off his blood pressure medicine, and the nurses are trying to wean him to Tylenol with Codeine so that he can go to the regular floor. He has been able to have some liquids, and everyone was hoping he could have some solids this afternoon. He is quite hungry!
The rest of the family is doing well. Emily was going to try to get some sleep this afternoon while mom and Candy and Josh were in with Jagger. She had some contractions yesterday, as well as some swelling in one of her legs. Please keep praying.
Despite some inconveniences (minimal sleep and food!), Jagger is recovering well. Praise God! I will update again tonight.

#2 Update on Jagger

Jagger is in the PICU, off the ventilator, and doing well. Mom reports that the nurses have all been great, and Jagger has been a real trooper. The nurses indicated that one-year olds are usually a difficult age group to care for, but they have been impressed with how sweet, laid back and 'distractable' Jagger is.
He still is hooked up to many things, some of which need to be discontinued before he can go to the regular pediatric floor. His blood pressure is high, but it seems this is fairly common after this extent of surgery. He said 'hi' to Josh, and smiled for mom (you know that made her day!)... hard to believe! I can say with absolute certainty that I would not be smiling so soon after getting my chest cut open. Aren't kids wonderful!!
Emily and Josh say the Ronald McDonald House is wonderful... a huge answer to prayer. The church that Josh works for lavished gifts on them... books for Jagger, restaurant gift certificates, paid for all expenses at the Ronald McDonald House, and much more. Praise God for these acts of kindness in such a time of need.
Mom said she would call in the morning, unless something changes tonight. She said Em was feeling quite 'helpless' tonight, as Jagger was having some pain. Please keep her in your prayers as well.

Update on Jagger...

Jagger came out of surgery well. The surgeon reported that there was not anything unexpected except that they found another small atrial septal defect, which they stitched together. The other defect is now patched, and the arteries that were joined together on the right side have been separated and rerouted. They were trying to get Jagger off the ventilator before they took him to the PICU.
When I talked to mom, Emily and Josh had not been able to see Jagger yet. They were hoping they wouldn't have to wait much longer. Lots of family and friends were there to support Josh and Em during surgery. Thanks for praying. Let's continue to lift them up in prayer as the next few days will be crucial to his recovery.

Little Jagger's Surgery... please pray!

My nephew, Jagger, is scheduled for open heart surgery tomorrow, Wednesday, at 11:00am. Jagger has to be at the hospital at 10am. Mom and Josh's mom, Candy, will get to see him for a bit before surgery, since the start time is later now.
Today, Josh and Emily, along with Jagger, met with the surgeon, went on tour of LA Children's Hospital, and had a myriad of tests done. They found out some new information about Jagger's condition. Not only will the surgeon be repairing the large hole, he will also be rerouting an artery which is not in the right place. They will be using some of his pericardium (the sac which encompasses the heart) to repair the hole. Once in surgery, they will better understand the extent to which this artery needs to be repaired.
Emily and Josh were able to see another patient who had the same surgery. Emily felt like she would now be better prepared for that initial time of seeing Jagger after surgery.
The surgeon maintained that Jagger will only be in the Pediatric ICU for about 24 hours, with an expected hospital stay of 3 days. Please pray that everything will go smoothly tomorrow for Jagger, and the rest of the family. Emily has had a couple of difficult weeks with her pregnancy, so please pray that God's peace will be with her at every turn.
A praise is that they did get into the Ronald McDonald House, so they will be close to the hospital, and only have to pay a minimal charge. Mom and Candy are down there now, along with other members of Josh's family that are in the area.
It's hard to understand why such a little guy has to endure such a trial as this, but I do trust that God's hand is on this family, and am believing that His purposes for us to bring him glory will be accomplished. Please continue to pray...

One of those days...

Conversation with Amaya on the way home from school:

Amaya: Why are you going around the block this way?

Mommy: Because I wanted to stop and get the mail.

Amaya: But the mail box is back there.

Car goes in reverse, and we travel backwards for a half a block.

Amaya: Are you having another one of those 'lose your brain' days, Mommy?

Mommy: Yes, honey, it appears I am.

Thanks for pointing that out, my sweet four year old!

Amaya's first day of school

Amaya's first day of preschool at Phonics Phactory was a huge success. Tennyson didn't quite know what to do with herself (neither did mom, for that matter). We feel blessed with her teacher, Mrs. Barham. She has already been sensitive to the parental concerns we had about Amaya starting school. Amaya has responded well to her, and we look forward to the upcoming year.

Amaya's horse obsession

Amaya had her first, and long awaited for, horse riding lesson last week. After we made sure that this interest in horses wasn't just a phase, John found a stable for her to take lessons at. Amaya was all smiles as she donned her boots, and loaded her tack into the back of our car. On one hand, I think we are hoping it is a phase, based on the cost of every small thing associated with these 4-legged creatures; on the other hand, we have heard from more than one person that an interest in horses often replaces an interest in boys during the teenage years.

So, while mom would much rather have her involved in something a little more athletic, or musical, I will bank on the trainer's promise that this will be instilling some sort of discipline into her little 4 year old soul.

Something I said I would never do...

I have loved reading other families' blogs, but swore I would never create one myself (who has the time, I thought); however, with the passing of Tennyson's 2nd birthday, and Amaya starting preschool, my guilt was no longer bearable. I needed to start doing a better job of recording, and preserving some of those 'once in a lifetime' moments from my girls. So, if no one actually reads our blog, that's ok. My personal blogging goals will still have been met.