We got some snow!!!

When we finally got some snow in March, we decided it was time to break out Mason's snowboard and Peyton's and Tanner's sled seats that they got from Grandma Randee for Christmas. We took the kids to Rock Canyon Park and they had so much fun sledding over and over again. And the best part, somebody gave us their sled! They didn't want it anymore and just gave it to us. So then we had a bigger one that Montana and I could ride on and take the kids with us. Tanner was not a fan of the snow and just wanted to be held the entire time. We did take him a couple of times on the sled and he wasn't a happy camper!

Temple Trip

This year, our stake has asked that once a month for Family Home Evening, we focus on the temple. For our February temple FHE, we decided to head up to the Salt Lake City Temple. We rode the TRAX up since the boys haven't been on them. They thought it was so much fun! We went inside the Tabernacle and talked about the building. Then we went into the Visitor's Center and walked up to the Christus. Peyton thought it was so neat. Mason was kinda being a stinker but we survived. After that, we walked around the temple. We let the kids go up the stairs to one of the doors. It was really neat to be able to talk to the boys and answer their questions while being right next to the temple. And the boys really liked being able to climb up the stairs and touch the doors.

Then we rode the TRAX back to the car and went to dinner. It was a fun family home evening and fun being able to spend time together!

Talking Tanner

Here is a cute video of Tanner talking to me. He is growing up way too fast!



And then he got his apple!

Montana's Eventful Hospital Stay

Montana went to the hospital due to chest pain on Wednesday evening. I met him there around 7:30. They were doing an IV, labs, chest x-ray, and an EKG when I arrived. They first thought is was a mild heart attack (but it wasn't). The pain was always there but it would get worse and then a little better. The ER was very busy that night so they were kinda slow with Montana. All of his labs, the EKG, and the chest x-ray came back normal. The Cardiologist came in and didn't think it was heart related. But since he came in with chest pain, they had to figure out what was going on if it wasn't his heart. And they also have to check the heart. So, at about 10:45 they admitted him and moved him to the heart floor (with all the old patients!). The testing would begin first thing in the morning. They gave him some dinner (or what they could find at 11PM when everything was closed) and told him he couldn't eat after midnight. I decided at midnight that I needed to go home and sleep. So, I left him there and came home to be a mom. Thanks to Eric and Kassie, the boys were taken care of and sleeping peacefully when I got home.

I got about six hours of sleep before it was time to be up and getting ready and getting Mason to school. I didn't have anybody to watch Tanner and Peyton so we dropped Mason off at school and headed to the hospital. When we got there, Montana had just been given a dye drink to drink so they could see things on the CT scan. I found someone to watch the boys since Tanner was not so good confined to the small hospital room. I dropped the boys off to Amy as well as a load of laundry and said to call me if she needed anything. And away to the hospital I went!

At about 11:00AM, they finally took him downstairs to have a CT scan done. After the scan was done, they had him walk/run on a treadmill while they monitored his heart. When that was over, we headed back to the CT room to have one more scan done. The whole process took about 2 hours cause we had to wait for other patients. Montana still hadn't eaten anything but did so well on the treadmill. And they got what they needed. The results didn't show anything abnormal. So, on to the next test.

At this point, the doctor ordered a scope of Montana's esophagus and stomach. And he was still in pain and still STARVING! I got something to eat while Montana waited. The nurse came in and said they couldn't get the scope done until Friday afternoon. I was a little mad since they told us in the ER the night before that they would most likely scope him. And I wanted to know why they hadn't ordered the scope before now. The nurse was frustrated too. I went to get Mason from school and by the time I came back, the nurse let us know that Montana was the last patient on the list for the day.

At about 5:00, I took Mason to Amy's where she fed us dinner. We hung out for awhile and let the boys play. Then I took the boys home, got them in bed, and waited for Kemarie to come and sit with them so I could go back to the hospital. I was hoping that by the time I got back up there, Montana would be having the scope done. When I got there, they were ordering him food and said he had just come back from the scope. The doctor then came in and told us the results of the scope.

THEY HAD FOUND A REASON FOR THE CHEST PAIN!

Montana has erosion in his esophagus due to eating spicy foods, acid reflux, and heartburn. He was informed that he would not be able to eat spicy food :( The doctor also told us that Montana didn't need to stay in the hospital any longer. So, the discharge papers were written up and we were getting our final instructions. We left the hospital around 9PM, got Montana's prescriptions filled and headed home.

Montana will follow up with the cardiologist in two weeks. He is on a medicine for acid reflux, one to coat the stomach and esophagus, a baby aspirin, and one for his high cholesterol. He is on a bland diet until he goes in to his appointment. Hopefully, at that point, he will be able to eat regular foods again and be taken off the one med that coats the stomach and esophagus.

We were really grateful that it wasn't heart related! And now we just watch what we eat and take it one day at a time.

Valentine's Day 2012

For Valentine's Day this year, I thought it would be fun to have a bunch of people from the ward over for a little valentine exchange. It turned out to be quite a party. I think we had about 25 kids that did the exchange and that didn't include all the baby siblings. It was chaos at the house but I didn't worry about anything until it was over! We had a finger food lunch with everybody bringing something to share. The kids had a blast and it was so fun to interact with all the other young moms in the ward.

I also made pink heart pancakes for breakfast and the kids got their traditional box of chocolates.

Montana and I wrote notes to Mason on napkins for his lunch. He wasn't too excited when he found out. I think it embarrasses him a little bit.

Funny Conversation with Peyton

I was cleaning up the kitchen after dinner tonight and Peyton was still eating. Tanner had made a mess of the kitchen so as I was cleaning up after him, the following conversation took place.

Me: Oh Tanner, what are we gonna do with that kid?
Peyton: Get a new one.
Me: A new kid?
Peyton: Ya, from your body.

Oh, Peyton, if only it was that easy!

I just laughed....I couldn't say anything else. And I wouldn't trade any of my kids for anything. Even though they do tend to drive me crazy sometimes....but that's what kids are for!

CHD Awareness Week

Today starts National Congenital Heart Defect Awareness week. About 1 in every 100 children born will have some type of CHD. Peyton was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome and diagnosed at about 10 hours after being born. He has undergone three heart surgeries, two non-heart surgeries, multiple heart caths, testing, and Cardiology visits. We love you Peyton and couldn't have asked for a better little 4 year old. We are so lucky to have you here with us!



And, in honor of CHD week, here's a poem that I like!

What is a CHD?

You passed me in the shopping mall…(You read my faded tee)
You tapped me on the shoulder…Then asked…`”What’s a CHD?”
I could quote terminology…There’s stats that I could give…
But I would rather share with you…A mother’s perspective.
What is it like to have a child with a CHD? it’s Lasix,aspirin,Captopril…
It’s wondering…Lord what’s your will?…It’s monitors and oxygen tanks…
It’s a constant reminder…to always give thanks…
It’s feeding tubes, calories, needed weight gain…
It’s the drama of eating…and yes it’s insane!
It’s the first time I held him…(I’d waited so long)
It’s knowing that I need…to help him grow strong…
It’s making a hospital…home for awhile…
It’s seeing my reward…in every smile.
It’s checking his sats…as the feeding pump’s beeping…
It’s knowing that there… is just no time for sleeping…
It’s caths,x-rays and boo boos to kiss…
It’s normalcy…I sometimes miss…
It’s asking…do his nails look blue?
It’s cringing inside… at what he’s been through.
It’s dozens of call to his pediatrician…
(He knows me by name…I’m a mom on a mission)
It’s winter’s homebound…and hand sanitizer…
It’s knowing this journey…has made me much wiser.
It’s watching him sleeping…his breathing is steady…
It’s surgery day…and I’ll never be ready.
It’s handing him over…(I’m still not prepared…)
It’s knowing that his heart… must be repaired…
It’s waiting for news…on that long stressful day…
It’s …praying…it’s hoping…that he’ll be okay.
It’s the wonderful friends… with whom I’ve connected…
It’s the bond that we share…it was so unexpected…
It’s that long faded scar… down my child’s small chest…
It’s touching it gently…and knowing we’re blessed…
It’s watching him chasing…a small butterfly…
It’s the moment I realized…I’ve stopped asking…why?
It’s the snowflakes that fall…on a cold winter’s day…
(They remind me of those…who aren’t with us today)
It’s a brave little boy…who loved Thomas the train…
Or a special heart bear…or a frog in the rain….
It’s the need to remember…we are all in this plight….
It’s their lives that remind us… we still need to fight!
It’s in pushing ahead amidst every sorrow…
It is finding the strength to have hope for tomorrow.
And no…we’ll never be the same…
It’s changed our family…
This is what we face each day…
This is…a CHD
--Shannon Arnold Smith

Mason's Field Trip

Mason's first grade class took a field trip to the Bean Museum at BYU. I was able to go with him. It was a lot of fun watching him interact with his friends and enjoy the animals! They had a reptile show set up for us so we watched that before wandering the museum. Mason had a blast riding on the bus and when we got back to the school, he even wanted me to eat lunch with him and his friends.

New Year's Eve

(The boys reading to each other waiting for dinner to start.)

I was still at my parents' house when New Year's Eve rolled around. That morning, my mom said that she thought it would be fun if we had finger foods for dinner and did a little party for my boys. So, we got Mason and Peyton involved and they made a Happy New Year 2012 sign. My mom even let them use glitter!



I hopped in the shower quickly and when I came back out, my mom was blowing up balloons. So much for a little party :) We hung up the balloons and the sign and got working on our food spread. We ended up having chips and salsa, a veggie tray, chicken fingers, deviled eggs, oranges, crackers with cheese, olives, and green chilies, rice krispie bites, and brownie bites.




The kids loved the food and ate a ton of it! Ashley even let us drink her Martinelli's and Sprite that she got from her class.

Before Ashley headed out to party, she attempted to teach the boys and Trent the worm. We got a few cool shots....even Tanner tried it!





We then rang in the New Year at about 7:45 PM so that the kids could go to bed. My parents got involved in the celebration and were such good sports! Trent set a count down on his ipod so we hurried and cleaned up the toys before the 'New Year' began. And then we counted down from 10 and made LOTS of noise.




(And, yes, Peyton's hat says the year 2000....we recycle things at my mom's house!)




Then the kids went to bed and we stayed up playing games. And at midnight, we watched the ball drop, said goodnight to each other and went to sleep. We had lots of fun but missed Montana who was working double shifts!

Christmas 2011

This year for Christmas, we got to spend it with my family. I took the kids to my parents' house a few days before Christmas and we stayed through New Year's Day. Montana came for about 5 days with Christmas being right in the middle of his stay. It was such a wonderful day. The boys were so excited! We let the boys open their stockings before church, then we ate, got dressed, and headed to church. My parents' ward had a wonderful Christmas program. And Mason was very excited that church was only an hour that day! Then we came back to my parents' and opened presents. Later that afternoon, the rest of my family showed up for our celebration. We ate dinner (yummy homemade Cafe Rio salads!), opened up our presents to each other and from Grandma and Grandpa, and then played our traditional Bingo game. The white elephant gifts were AMAZING! We had so much fun and our tummies hurt from laughing so hard. It was such a wonderful day. We went to bed late but it was totally worth it!