BYU Sports Camp

 Driving back and forth twice a day from Alpine to Provo in order to get Ethan to sports camp was totally worth it.  He was lucky enough to have his cousin from Texas, his first best friend from Florida and his best friends from Sunnyside at the camp too.  I was so excited that it worked out that Heidi and I would finally be able to meet up. Heidi was one of my dearest friends from our time in Florida during Kent's dental school.  Life has not made it easy for us to meet up.  It had been five years since we last saw each other and we picked up like we hadn't missed a beat. I love that girl and it was good for my soul to catch up on all the details of our lives.

 Last year the football camp day was held on the field across the street from the stadium so the boys were super excited they got to play in the stadium this year!

The first day of sports camp, Heidi had a connection to the BYU football players so they pulled Ethan and Lincoln out of the training facility to run a few drills and play on the practice field.  I told the players about Cannon and asked if I could get a few pictures of them with him.  The players took it a step further and played a quick game with Cannon.  This is Justin Sorensen, the BYU kicker. He held our little Bubba- ran him down the field, caught the ball, helped Cannon make a few tackles and then threw the ball.  It was a tender moment to see my little guy playing football under the "Y" on the mountain with the BYU football players.  A day Ethan and I won't soon forget. Thank you to those young men that took the time to spend a morning creating a memory of a lifetime. 

 Even though you can't see Ethan's face here, you can still see how big he is smiling right then.

Teddy girl

 So Teddy is sick. A week ago she threw up but I thought it was because we had given one too many hot dogs at our backyard BBQ.  She has been lethargic all of this week.  The past couple of days she hasn't been eating or drinking and I couldn't get her to go running with me last night- so I knew she wasn't feeling well.  The plan for today was to leave at 5:00, when Kent got off work, to head to Boise and finish up the drive to Utah in the morning.  I took Teddy in to the vet today to get her checked out before we left town. Her mucus membranes were white so they ran a blood test which told us she's losing blood somehow. She's in the pet hospital hooked up to an IV for fluids and nutrition. They want to run the IV all night and do a complete blood test tomorrow. I feel so bad knowing that she is in a cold room, alone (I guess it sounds like her accommodations out in the garage, right?).  There are a few things that could be causing her red blood count to be low; she may have an auto immune disorder, it could possibly be she that she ate an onion (I saw an onion in her vomit- sorry for sharing that information), or possibly that she came in contact with rat poisoning (which could be likely since my dad put rat poison on my garage shelves for mice several months back- but they are placed where Teddy couldn't reach). No matter what the cause, we aren't leaving for Utah until tomorrow. I knew we loved Teddy but I didn't realize just how much we love that sweet, shedding ball of fur until we had to walk out and leave her at the pet clinic. She wanted to follow us out the door and it broke our hearts.  I'm praying it all works out ok in the morning. Ella said "Someone might've prayed for Teddy already and she's going to be fine"  Then again, she also told me today that, 'Cannon's wife is going to have to feed him through his feeding tube.'   Anyway, I've been looking up online what they think Teddy might have- it's called Auto Immune Hemolytic Anemia. If it is so, it does not look good.  I hope for better news tomorrow.  The vet thinks it is very serious. I'm praying he's wrong.  I remember when Teddy found her way into our lives. . . through the garage door.  This little ball of fur joined our family just one week before we received the diagnosis of our little Cannon.  I can't help but think somehow Teddy is here for a reason.

Angels Among Us

There really aren't words to use that can describe the feelings of honor and humility I have as I post these pictures and think about the blessing of holding these beautiful babies in our arms.  Jeff and Carly have been dear friends of ours since undergrad at BYU.  Jeff and Kent served their missions in Guatemala together and stayed in contact when they got home.  Our lives have paralleled each other more than we would ever have thought they would.  We were fun friends as young childless couples at BYU and then we both started having children and moved on to dental school. We went to Florida and they went to North Carolina.  After dental school we moved up to Sunnyside and they went on to Orthodontic specialty at University of Washington in Seattle. Whenever they drove from Seattle to Utah they would stop in and let the kids play for awhile and then get back in the car on their way.  Months before I got pregnant with my third child, Cannon, they got pregnant with their third child, Samantha.  We both gave birth to beautiful special babies and since have learned many things about ourselves such as; what it means to be told your worst nightmare is now your reality, how to function in life with close to no sleep, feeding tubes, oxygen machines, hospital visits, endless appointments at Seattle Children's hospital and even a trip to the NIH.  Above all we have learned the miraculous blessing of having an angel in our home.  We have witnessed the beauty of our older children looking beyond the physical limitations and seeing the significants of a little smile or the lifting of their arms.  Kent and I were so happy when we heard they were coming through for a visit, since it has been over two years since we saw them last. Samantha has a rare condition call Joubert's Syndrome. Not only that but it is coupled with another extremely rare disease.  There are only 3 other cases like Samantha. She is writing her own history and let me tell you- she is amazing!!! 

Pony Dip

Ella loves her pony cookbook she got for Christmas.  Every so often she wants to make a recipe out of it.  Luckily they are easy enough for her to do them with a little help.  This time was peanut butter and chocolate cream chip dip.  Yum.  Once the fruit was gone, Ella went ahead and dipped her fingers in it and licked the dip off.  

Time with Laura

We were so thankful to have Laura here with us.  We hadn't seen her since Christmas and Cannon has changed quite a bit since then.  It was an emotional reunion for her when she saw that he has lost so much weight.  His poor little wrists and joints are much tighter and more contorted than when she last saw him.

She soon realized that even though he looked more fragile and weak, his health has been stable and we couldn't be more thankful.  We have his medications mostly regulated and he is more comfortable and able to sleep better than he used to a few months ago.  We are so glad he doesn't scream all the time so it is easier to get out and enjoy family time such as confetti fireworks.  Kent went to the store to get fireworks to light off for the Fourth of July.  He lit the string on one and ran back to join us on the sidewalk.  The flame blew out.  No explosion.  He lit the second string on the second one and ran back to join us on the sidewalk.  The flame blew out.  No explosion.  On the third one, Ethan accidentally pulled the string out and out came confetti!!  Haha.  Kent didn't buy fireworks, he bought confetti poppers!  We had a good laugh. Luckily we had plans to go watch the firework show that the High School was putting on anyway.

Here we are bundled up like Christmas to watch the Fireworks.  It was freezing!  Cannon has two blankets and a hat on.  Laura ended up holding him in the car and they watched through the window.

Before Laura left she worked through the night to make these beautiful curtains for our front room.  We have only lived here for five years so we thought now is as good of a time as any to "finish" the decorations.  We were up until 3:30 in the morning and Laura had to leave at 5:30 in the morning to catch her flight.  That is one dedicated woman!  I felt horrible that I was forcing her to do me such a big favor.  I hope she will come back to visit again after the treatment of slave.  

Look how they just complete the look!  Thank you Laura.  You are amazing.  We miss you!