Six and a Half

Eden-
Today you turn six and a half!  You have had such a great year in kindergarten and it has been fun to watch you grow, especially socially and emotionally.  You have come so far in just a few short months and you don't even seem like the same timid little girl that started school back in August.  Here are a few things I always want to remember about you at this stage of your life:

-You are still tall and thin.  You are the tallest girl in your class and are taller than most of the boys too!  You weigh about 52 pounds and wear size 6/7 clothes and size 1 shoes. 

-You hate clothes and would be happy wearing shorts and a t-shirt every day.  I have to force you to wear a dress to church every week and you cry if I make you pick out something nicer than "play clothes".  You constantly complain that everything, including socks and underwear, "doesn't feel good".  I'll be happy when you outgrow this stage!

-You are the most loving little girl I've ever met! You LOVE to give hugs and kisses to everyone you meet.  If I am ever in a bad mood, I know I can count on you to give me a hug and kiss and cheer me up!  You are always telling me that I'm the "best mom in the world" or that you "love me to the moon and back". 

-You have started playing video games with Parker after school.  Your favorite game is Mario Kart 8.  You also love to watch Octonauts, Sophia the First, and Ninja Turtles.

-You are still a very picky eater. You have a hard time with new textures and don't like to try new things.  You always eat a good breakfast but lunch and dinner are hit or miss.  You love eggs, bacon, biscuits, manicotti, peanut butter and honey sandwiches, beans, nachos, nuts, yogurt and applesauce.  You are still not a fan of fruit, vegetables or meat which can make coming up with meal ideas seem impossible at times!

-Your curls are freckles are still two of my favorite things about you!

-You are not a very girly girl.  You would rather play with cars and swords or wrestle with Parker than play dolls with Lily.  You can occasionally be found playing with Barbies or stuffed animals, but not very often.

-You are a great student and have excelled in kindergarten.  You are a wonderful reader and love to read, especially at bedtime.  You are currently reading on Level 21 and are moving into reading early chapter books.  You are also a very good writer and are writing 2-3 sentence stories every day at school.  I hope you will always have a love of learning!

I feel like the luckiest mom in the world getting to spend my days with you!  You are such a beautiful little girl on the inside and out!  I pray that the next six months would be full of wonderful blessings for you!  Thank you for being such a wonderful daughter and making my days brighter!

I love you to the moon and back, Mommy

Last Day of Preschool/ Splash Day

Today was Lily's last day of preschool for this year and she couldn't wait to get her Splash Day started.  I had to go on an AR trip and was sad to miss her fun day but I was thankful that Granna was able to go watch her.  Cory was also able to stop by for a few minutes on his way to work. 

 

They started with a picnic lunch and then headed outside to start the fun!  Parker and Eden never really participated in Splash Day when they were in preschool so I was so excited when my mom texted me a picture of Lily joining in and trying all of the water activities! 

Lily had such a great time at Splash Day!  She had a wonderful year and we are so thankful for her teacher Miss Tammy and everything she did to make this such a memorable year! I can't believe we only have one more year of preschool to go!

AWANA Award Banquet

Tonight we had our end of the year AWANA awards ceremony.  The kids have all had a great year in AWANAs and they all three earned their book completion awards.   

Eden was so proud of herself for walking on stage to get her award without crying.  She's come a long way since her Cubbie days!

Parker also received the Clubber of the Year for the Sparks!  Mr. Eugene said some very nice things about him as he accepted his award.  We are so proud of him for all of the hard work he put into learning all of his verses the past three years.  He is the only 2nd grader that finished all six books and is truly deserving of this award!

It was a fun night celebrating the kids achievements in the AWANA program!  It is going to be strange to not have Parker in my class next year but I know he will learn a lot as he moves into the TNT program.

A New MS Treatment

Several months ago, Cory was switched from having relapsing-remitting MS to primary progressive MS. It was something that we knew in our hearts, but it was still hard to hear and accept.  We also found out that the current medication that he was taking was no longer being effective at keeping his MS stable.   

 

After several discussions with his neurologist, we made the very difficult decision to try a new MS treatment that came on the market back in December.  The drug is called Lemtrada and is basically a chemo drug that has been used with MS patients.  It pretty much wipes our Cory's B-cells and makes him immunocompromised for several months.  The decision was hard because there are several potentially undesirable side effects associated with this new drug.  But the possibility of providing a couple of years of stability for Cory outweighed the possible risks so last Monday we headed to Dallas to start the treatment.  It is a five day infusion and Cory was required to be at his neurologist's office for 7-8 hours a day for the infusions.   

 

As I type this, Cory is at his neurologist's office getting his final infusion!  We were in Dallas last Monday-Wednesday and then came back to finish up this yesterday and today.  Overall, he has done well and has had minimal infusion reactions.  His biggest challenge has been dealing with extreme fatigue.

 

We are so grateful to my sister and brother-in-law for opening up their house to us while we were in Dallas.  We've enjoyed lots of good food, a comfortable bed and I even got to meet their chickens!

We were able to work it out for Lily to come and spend one night with us while we were in Dallas.  She loved getting to meet Aunt MerMer's dog and help her with the chickens!  I think she would move in with them if I'd let her!

We are also so thankful to my parents who have been keeping our kids while we've been in Dallas.  It's nice to not have to worry about them so that I can focus my attention on taking care of Cory and his needs right now. And to all of our family and friends who have been praying for us and checking in with us daily- we appreciate all you've done to make the past two weeks easier!  We are hopeful that this new treatment will help Cory gain a few more years of stability in his MS journey.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day! 

I am so grateful for these three great kids who call me mom!  They are each so unique and add so much to our family!  They challenge me to be a better person and teach me more than I could have ever imagined!  Their hugs and kisses make even the hardest days bearable!

Today the kids showered me with homemade cards and gifts they made at school and Cory helped them pick out a Starbucks gift card- my favorite!

I may be old but at least I'm skinny!  It must be all of the those salads that I'm eating!!

I'm also so grateful for my mom who encourages me and is always willing to lend a hand.  I couldn't make it through this motherhood journey without her! 

I saw this online today and I found it to be so encouraging!  There are days when  I go to bed discouraged because I haven't been as patient or loving as I need to be.  I beat myself up about what I could have done better or compare myself to the other "perfect" moms that I see around me.  But God gave Parker, Eden, and Lily to ME.  He chose ME to be their mom.  There is no one out there who can do a better job raising them.  What an encouragement today!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!  I am so blessed to be called "mom" by these three great kids!  Being a mom is by far the hardest job I've ever had, but it is also the most rewarding.  The hugs, kisses, and hearing "I love you" at the end of the day make even the hardest days worth it!  Their personalities are all so unique and I can't imagine my life without each of them! 

Cory and the kids surprised me with skittles and Starbucks- two of my favorite things!

I am also grateful for my mom who has shown me the true meaning of selflessness.  She is always willing to do whatever she can to help out and I would never make it without her!  Happy Mother's Day, mom! I love you very much!

April Little Things

With two family birthdays and Easter to celebrate, April was a very busy month for us.  Most of the big events got their own posts, but I had a few smaller things that I didn't want to forget as we move into May.

 

- At the beginning of the school year, Parker told me that he wanted to earn a Kindle Fire by reading 1.5 million words.  This was an almost unobtainable goal for a second grader because the largest book he had ever read was only about 25,000 words.  But Parker is the type of kid that once he sets his mind on something, he works hard until he achieves it.  Cory and I continued to encourage him and keep him updated on how many words he had read, and by the middle of April, Parker had reached his goal!  We are so proud of him for setting a goal and working so hard to achieve it!  He can't wait to get that Kindle in his hands in a few weeks!

 

The same day that he earned his Kindle at school, Parker finished his sixth and last AWANAs Sparks book at church.  He has been so diligent to work and memorize hundreds of Bible verses over the past three years.  To celebrate both of Parker's accomplishments, we let him choose what he wanted for dinner and of course he picked Taco Bueno! 

- One day I asked Lily to help me fold some laundry and she quickly told me that she couldn't because she had to finish her "paperwork".  She worked diligently on that "paperwork" for quite a while and even told me, "Mom, this paperwork is HARD work!".   She got out of doing laundry that day but I can guarantee that her "paperwork" won't get her out of her chores next time!

The eye clinic hosted a local softball tournament to raise money for Relay for Life and they asked Cory to come play on one of the teams.  He had such a fun time playing with Heath and his buddies and came home feeling so proud that he was able to play and even get a couple of good hits!

Lily is my little sidekick during the day while Parker and Eden are at school.  I drag her all over the place and she rarely complains.  One day while we were at Family Nutrition Store, she found this cute sock monkey and begged me to take her picture with it.  How could I say 'no' to this sweet girl?!?!

Cory is such a good daddy!  One day, Lily asked him to color with her so her did what any good dad would do... her pulled up a chair and started coloring!  I hope they will always appreciate everything he does for them, especially when he is tired and not feeling well.

And that does it for April!  Now on to the crazy busy month of May!  Only a few more weeks and we will be relaxing on the beach!  I can't wait!