Ben's doing good

Ben came through the surgery just great! He went into surgery at about 9:00a. We got to go back with him when they put him under anesthesia. He didn't like the mask on his face, but it only took about 30 seconds before he was out cold; they quickly ushered us out and then we waited. The surgery took about 3o minutes and then we waited about another 30 minutes to go back to see him in the recovery room. Ben was groggy, but already asking to eat ~ that's my boy! Shortly after they took us up to his room and we were allowed to get him some lunch. Ben ate mac & cheese for lunch! They said he could eat whatever he wanted, so that's what he did. He also had chicken nuggets and french fries for dinner. He was drinking tons and peeing like a champ! He also went down to the playroom and played for a while. I did notice that he got tired very easily and the color in his face wasn't right. He was asking for pain medicine and was very grumpy.

Our night, however, was rough. Not so much because of Ben's pain, but because it's a hospital and someone was coming in about every four hours. Also, Ben's pulse thing on his finger kept coming off and then the alarms would go off. Ben slept about five hour total (but not all at once) and I slept about half that. By mid-morning, Ben was stir-crazy and ready to go home. Thankfully, they let us out around 11a.

Yesterday was also rough. I think the pain has caught up with him and we are having a hard time staying on top of it. Ben is on Lortab ~ liquid Vicodin + acetaminophen ~ and he can only have it every six hours. However, the pain starts coming back at about four hours. Ben won't eat and is having a hard time swallowing ~ even his spit. He won't even eat ice cream ~ his favorite ~ or Jell-O or pudding or Sprite. He will suck on a popsicle, but that's about it. We found these suckers with a numbing agent in them and that has worked to get us closer to the six hour mark when we can give him more pain medicine. Also, he gets tired really easily.

Here's the thing. I am pretty strong, I think. I can handle seeing him in his little hospital gown. I can handle seeing someone force a mask over his nose and mouth and then watch his eyes roll back and then seeing him completely unconscious. I can handle the little blood that he coughs up or the whimpers of pain or the bruise on his hand from the I.V. Here's what is bothering me ~ A LOT: Ben's voice has changed. They told us it would and I believed them ~ but I didn't imagine it would change so much or that it would bother me so much. His voice is higher and whiny, now. It just doesn't sound like my baby. He says all the same words, but the words sound like they are coming from another child. I am searching within myself, trying to figure out why it is making me so sad. It's still Ben, he made it through the surgery, his recover is going relatively well ~ I couldn't ask for anything more. But, I was so attached to that voice. I miss it and now I am trying to get used to this new voice. I know I will, with time, but it's still weird when I hear it.

We're all set

Ben's surgery is set. We are supposed to arrive at Children's Hospital at...wait...this is good...6:30 AM!!!! AAAHHHH. Ben can not eat anything after midnight tonight and can have clear liquids until 5:30a. After 5:30a, he can not have anything!! That's going to be the tough part ~ denying Ben food is really, really rough. We will need to check in at the hospital and prepare Ben for an 8:30a surgery. The surgery will last approximately 45 minutes. He will stay in recovery for about two hours and then they will move him to a hospital room. He will have to stay over-night at the hospital. We will stay with him at the hospital overnight and hope that all goes well for a Friday morning release.

Cailey is going to spend tonight with her friend Lauren (thank you Terra! You are the best!). I didn't want to have to wake her up and get her ready that early in the morning...Cailey is NOT a morning person, so I think this is a really great solution. We will pick her up tomorrow afternoon ~ after surgery and after Ben is moved to his hospital room.

I am sad that we have to put Ben through this. My head tells me it is best in the long-run, but it will break my heart to see him in so much pain.

Stay tuned. Wish us well.

Camp

Cailey was off to Girl Scout camp this morning. I thought I would be much better about it. But, as the day drew near I found myself getting more and more anxious. The anxiety finally took it's hold this morning when I woke up at 4am and couldn't get back to sleep.

She will be gone for two nights. I am okay with her being overnight somewhere else (we've been apart overnight many times). The problem I am having is that I have NO contact with her for three full days and two nights. I can't tell her goodnight, I can't say "I love you", I can't remind her to put sunscreen on, to be nice to her new friends, or to drink lots and lots of water so she doesn't get leg pains in the middle of the night. My head tells me it's for her own good ~ for my own good, for that matter. I know she is old enough ~ old enough to start learning to take care of herself and solve her own problems. Maybe that's the problem ~ maybe the realization of her growing up and not needing me is setting in. I was a mess on the inside (I don't think Cailey saw) when we left, but Cailey seemed to be at complete ease with camp ~ wanted us to leave almost as soon as we got there. She doesn't know anyone in her cabin, but that didn't seem to bother her. She was actually excited and was not timid at all...that's Daddy's girl...she is certainly not like me in this area...I am painfully shy. I know she will have a good time and I know the camp is run really well. They go into complete lock-down for the three days and there are four counselors to every cabin. They do this every summer, all summer. I just can't wait to pick her up on Tuesday evening! I will be a mess until then.

Renaissance Festival 2008

Another year, another day at the Renaissance Festival. However, this year, about 30 minutes in, we started to believe we may have made a BIG mistake. It was HOT and Ben HATES to be hot. He was crabby, whiney, and irritable...which made Scott crabby, whiney and irritable...okay Scott wasn't whiney...it just fit what I was trying to say :o). Ben didn't want to ride in the stroller, didn't want to walk, and didn't want to be carried. To make things worse, Cailey had a bad case of the Can-I-Have disease. Seriously, at nearly every booth we heard..."Can I have..." Within 30 minutes, it was like hearing nails on a chalk board. We decide to give her a pseudo budget. She decided to get her hair braided ($25!!! ouch!) and ride one ride. Ben, at least, hasn't been infected with the Can-I-Have disease (yet) ~ we just had to wrangle him the whole time. After we fed the beasts (Cailey and Ben!) and calm our nerves with the wonderful beer (mine and Scott's!), we managed to stay for five hours. Ben fell victim to the RF and fell asleep (hard!) on the way home and then slept another 2 hours when we got home. So, it turned out to be another successful Renaissance Festival!

Cailey's favorite things from the Renaissance Festival:

• getting her hair braided


• all the shows (especially the Washing Wenches)


• the fountain


• macaroni and cheese on a stick


• the ship swing

Ben's favorite things:

• the fountain


• the drums ~ a booth selling bongo-type drums


• macaroni and cheese on a stick


• the swing ship

Scott and Alicia's favorite things:

• beer


• beer


• beer


• beer


• sausage on a stick


• glass blowing demonstration


• beer


• beer


• the ride home

Happy 1st Birthday, Dane!

Make sure your sound is on!

Yearly pictures

We have a tradition of having the kids pictures taken each year on their birthday ~ at least until they start school...after they start school we go with the school pictures :o). This year we were in Arizona for Ben's birthday and I didn't have the energy to locate a Kiddie Kandids in Arizona or spend the day of our vacation having pictures taken...since it can be a big ordeal. So, we waited until today to have Ben's pictures taken. I kinda decided at the last minute to run over to Kiddie Kandids. I plopped Ben into the bath and picked an outfit, planned on putting our name in (since there is usually a wait) at Kiddie Kandids, grab some lunch, get pictures, get home in time for nap. That was the plan...it sort of worked out that way. First, Ben wanted Scott to come with us and I had planned to leave Scott at home. Scott has zero patience for picture taking and he makes it more stressful for me. Unfortunately, Ben was adamant that Scott go with us, so we were going to have to work together and get this done quick :o). At Kiddie Kandids, Scott jumped out of the car and put our name in (30 minute wait) and then we headed over to Arbie's for lunch. We got back to KK just in time for an open booth. The shirt I picked for Ben ended up being too small, so Scott searched Babies R Us for another shirt (the KK is in the Babies R Us!). We found one that was cute enough and both agreed on quickly. Other than that, the whole experience was virtually painless and we were out of there is record time...even ordered and received the pictures!!! Wham, Bam, thank you Mam! But, it was still 1:30 and I had to get Ben down for a nap because we were going to watch Zach play in his Little League World Series at 4:00!! YIKES!

Unfortunately, when Scott jumped out of the car to put our name in at KK, he dropped his glasses and they got run over!! Scott had to drive back to KK and retrieve them. Some nice person had picked them up and left them with the service desk at Babies R Us. Luckily, they are in pretty good shape...just kinda crooked on Scott's face :o) :o) :o)

CONGRATULATIONS, ZACHARY!!! Zachary's baseball team won the World Series Championship! They won 17-10 in a great nail-biting game. Zach pitched the first three innings. Yeah, Zach!!! They got a big fat trophy, too!

Ben's pictures:

Ben

We went to see Ben's ENT doc today. Surprise, surprise...Ben is now scheduled for surgery. No big surprise for us...we knew this was coming. The doc is going to remove is tonsils (they are so big that they touch that little uvula thing in the back of his throat), put a second round of tubes in his ears, and possibly do a little touch up of his adenoids. Ben had his adenoids removed when he was one but, apparently, they can grow back. So, while the doc is in there, he is going to take a look at the adenoids and do a little "touch up" if needed. Ben is scheduled for surgery on July 24. I hear the recovery is pretty rough, so we are bracing ourselves for a hard couple of weeks after surgery.

Ice Skating

Cailey started ice skating lessons today. It's her first lesson and it was only 30 minutes. She was tentative at first, but kept trying. By the end of the lesson, she was moving really well. She gets to stay for open ice time for 30 minutes after each lesson. Cailey stayed the whole extra 30 minutes and was getting around the ice remarkably well by the time we left. I am genuinely impressed. She says she really had fun. I love watching her try all these new things. We just want to expose her to all these activities so she can get a general skill for each of them. She can decide later if/what she really loves and wants to pursue. Ice skating lessons will continue through August and then we will see how she feels about it.

July 4 and Ben's Birthday

HAPPY JULY 4TH!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BENJAMIN!!

We decided to go to the Phoenix Zoo to celebrate Ben's birthday and July 4th. I was struggling to find something to satisfy both Ben's birthday and do something for July 4th. Also, I wanted to include G&G Anderson and G&G Adams and the O'Briens, so I wanted to find some place about half way for everyone. Because we are in Arizona, I did not plan a birthday party and I didn't want to just go to dinner. I wanted to do something special for Ben. I was looking for something indoors, like an aquarium, but we couldn't find anything like that in Arizona (hhhmmm, weird.). We found that the Phoenix Zoo was having a Safari Nights program from 6p-9p. The heat was still a problem...102 degrees at 6pm...and made things more than a little toasty :o) But, we pushed through and, I think, Ben had a good time. A representative from the Zoo bought Ben a snow cone and some popcorn ~ that was really sweet. The only thing Ben asked for was a "Finding Nemo cake" and I felt really bad that we didn't go all out getting the cake. Instead, we opted for store bought cupcakes and a Finding Nemo candle. I still think Ben enjoyed himself. We left at 9:oop and only saw a few fireworks on the way home ~ I think it might have been too dry and they cancelled some of the firework displays...not sure, though.

Some favorite things from the Zoo:

• The baby orangutan
• The otters
• The fountains
• The turtles
• Watching the small giraffe run...really run...all over the enclosure
• Watching Ben open gifts...he really, really liked the hot wheels race track from G&G Anderson
• Spending time with the O'Briens
• Spending time with both sets of Grandparents

For Ben's actual birthday today, we went out to breakfast and then let him finish opening some gifts. We went for another swim and then Scott and I decided to take advantage of having the grandparents to watch the kiddos while we went out to dinner. It was a quick outing since it was Ben's birthday...I didn't want to stay out too long. It was nice to get out and have dinner with just the two of us.

We are packed and ready to head home tomorrow. I am already sad. I want to stay in Arizona.

Grandpa Gar and Grandma Mer's house

We drove down yesterday morning to visit Grandpa and Grandma Anderson! They live about an hour and 1/2 from Grandma and Grandpa Adams. Grandpa Gar and Grandma Mer have a very warm and comfortable home and we are enjoying our visit. Yesterday, we went to lunch and then went to see the new movie, WALL-E. Funny: Dad and Scott went outside in the backyard. Mer and I were inside when we heard a huge BANG! Mer saw Cailey run (I believe) full speed into the sliding glass door!!! Apparently, she thought is was open (that's why I leave my glass doors dirty! It's a safety reason. HA HA HA HA!!!). Poor Cailey was standing outside looking up at the sky...I figured she was okay because she would usually start SCREAMING if she was hurt. Unfortunately, she was hurt (a little blood coming from her nose!), but she was so embarrassed that she was trying not to cry. I felt so bad for her! But, it was still kinda funny because there was a face mark on the door!! Sorry ~ but it was funny...we tried not to laugh. Luckily, Scott has a way of making light of the situation and Cailey was laughing at herself in just a few minutes. After a good nap for Ben, we met Jamie, Cody, Dylan, and Chris for dinner and then went night swimming at the club house. Cody looks so different and so much older and really handsome! Dylan is a cutie and got along with Ben really well. Ben liked having someone to play with!

The house also has a great back yard off the 16th fairway. Cailey and Scott got up this morning for a 7:50a tee-time and played 18 holes! This is Cailey's first time playing 18 holes and she was really, really tired. Scott called us when they were coming up to the 16th tee so I could take pictures (see attached video slide show). Cailey has been taking golf lessons and this is the first time Scott got to see her progress ~ I think he was pleasantly surprised and very excited about having a new golf buddy. Cailey really enjoyed her day with Daddy ~ that makes my heart melt to see Cailey and her daddy spending some good, quality time together. If nothing else, golf lessons have given Scott and Cailey a special activity they can do together. Dad, Ben, and I met them at the Club House for some lunch. We had a good time.

We went swimming again this afternoon at the community pool. It was so hot that when Scott got into the pool and swam over to us, the heat was still radiating off of him! I believe the temp was over 100 degrees today, but it feels hotter down here. I like the heat, so I don't mind.

On our way to pick cousin Cody up from his house, Cailey stepped into a cactus in Dad's front yard...put big cactus needles in her toes ~ oh my! She screamed SO loud! I think there is still a needle in her big toe, but it went straight in and I can't get to it ~ here's hoping it works itself out and doesn't get infected. She's so dramatic though and keeps talking about it! After we picked Cody up, we all went grocery shopping to get supplies for a little BBQ dinner with the O'Briens. I made fresh salsa ~ yum, yum, yum!!! Love salsa!!!

Dylan showed up with a swim vest like Ben's ~ how cute is that! He was so excited to show Ben his swim vest...it made me smile. The kids tried to go swimming again, but the pool was closed due to lightning ~ poor Dylan didn't get to use that new swim vest. Oh, I sure hope we get some rain!!! I love the rain storms here!

We are back up to Grandpa and Grandma Adams' house tomorrow morning for July 4. We are going to celebrate Ben's birthday tomorrow night at the Phoenix Zoo!

More...

Just more swimming and hanging out with family. Rich and Scott built a fort out of old boxes for the kids on Sunday. They each staked claim to a "room" of the fort ~ who would have thought that would happen! :o) The Mann Clan left on Monday. We got a little surprise visit from Aunt Laurie and Uncle Dusty on Monday afternoon ~ but Laurie left her purse and we didn't notice it until they were about two hours into the drive back to Utah ~ doh!

There is a great Outlet Mall in Anthem that we went to on Monday. Robert left to go back to Atlanta. Juli and the kids came to stay at the house. It's been great getting to know the kids and spending time with Juls. Check out the video slide show (make sure your sound is on) to see pictures of Ben DIVING into the pool...yes, diving! This kid is going to give me a heart attack some day. My little adrenaline junky. Scott dove into the pool and Ben jumped out of the pool, ran to the exact same spot that Scott jumped from, and...jumped in...head first! No fear. We also did a little night swimming tonight!! Such fun.

Monday we went out for great Mexican food! We love our Mexican food! Then, tonight we drove around town tonight to find a Carneceria and get Carne Asada. Juli makes the best Carne Asada...we always look forward to it when we are visiting with her!

Juli, Lily, Cailey, and I had a girls' day today! We went back to the Outlet stores for some shopping, some lunch, and then we had our nails done together. Wonderful spa pedicures for me and Juli! Cailey and Lily played in the little fountain thing and cooled off from the 100+ degree temperature. I really enjoyed our day. It was so much fun!

Tomorrow we are off to see Grandpa Gar, Grandma Mer, and the O'Briens!