Family Visit to Astoria

On Saturday we decided to make a last minute trip to Astoria, OR. It is about 1.5 hours from our house, and we headed out without much of a plan other than spending some quality family time together. It was drizzling all day, but other than that was pretty good weather. Unfortunately, our camera battery died shortly after we arrived, so we didn't get many pictures. Also, because we decided so last minute to go, some of the sites we wanted to see were closed. We still had a wonderful time, and will just have to go again to see what we missed.

One thing that we did find was an old armory that had been used from the late 1800's to just after WWII. It was really neat to wander freely through the structure. The boys loved running around and exploring as well.

We were going to hike to a lighthouse, but opted not to since it was pretty wet. Mike ran up and got a photo of it for us to look at later...

And for any fans of Goonies, we stopped by the Goonies House and snagged a picture before the camera died.

There were many more neat things to see and do in Astoria, but our trip was not as much to sight see as it was to spend some fun time together, and that mission was accomplished. Also, as you can see, we do have some interesting things to see out here, so it might be worth a visit... :D

The Wheels On The Bus...

Today was Korben's first day riding the bus to school. I wasn't too worried about his first time, because each day I had picked him up from school he was begging to ride the bus home. Still, I spent much of the morning preparing him for what to expect (with the Little People bus) just in case. :D

His bus comes between 11:45 and 11:50am. We waited on the front step so Korben would be able to see it coming down the road. It was raining pretty hard, and Korben thought it was funny to run out into the rain and "get wet" and then run back to Mom. He also kept singing the part of Mary had a little lamb that says, "it followed her to school one day, school one day, school one day..." I have never seen Korben wait in anticipation for anything that he couldn't see; it was a real treat to see him so excited.

This is the picture of him excitedly waiting for the bus to come...

When the bus arrived, Korben didn't even glance back to see if I was following him. He walked very purposefully towards it.

He climbed up the steps...
still not bothering to look back at Mom...

...And he tried to head straight for a seat- until the bus driver had him turn around to look at the camera.
You can see how stoked he is...

All buckled in and ready to go - still beaming with excitement...
(Each of the kids are buckled up in a booster seat so that they can't escape.)

His bus only holds 6 passengers plus a wheelchair. It is the cutest little bus I have ever seen. He was dropped off at 3:00pm, and the bus driver said that he didn't cry once. He looked out the window, sang with Mickey Mouse, and loved the whole experience. Yay Korben!

Korben's First Day of School

Korben started school last Thursday (the 19th). Woohoo!

The night before, we went to Target to pick out a backpack for him. Mike liked the Elmo one, but gave Korben a choice between Diego, Thomas and Elmo...and Korben agreed with Dad. :D He loves to help get his bag ready, filling it with diapers, an extra set of clothes, a sippy cup, and a snack each day. It is so cute to see him zip his bag up, try to swing it over his shoulder and announce that he is "ready to go!"

He has attended 3 days so far. I was able to take him to and from school all 3 days because the bus driver wasn't ready for him yet. It was nice to get to see his classroom and meet some of the teachers before sending him off to school all on his own. He has had glowing reviews after each day so far. He plays really well with the other kids in his class (he can have up to 12 in his class, but the teachers have to keep a maximum of a 4 to 1 ratio), enjoys learning, and hasn't thrown a tantrum once. His teachers are really pleased with how excited he is to learn and I am really pleased that after 4 months of waiting, we are finally able to help him learn.

Korben attends from 12:10pm - 2:40pm, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Each day he has a 20 minute session alone with the speech therapist, a 30 minute session with the occupational therapist, and the rest is class time. We are keeping him in his private therapies as well and the therapists are working together to make all of the time spent with him effective.

Ready for his first day

Trying to show off his backpack

His Elmo backpack

Proud as a Peacock

Yesterday was visiting teaching day. Which also means: drag unhappy kids around, try and keep them entertained, their hands off everything, and appear to have it together as a mom day... (You all know what I'm talking about).

One of the women we visit is an inactive elderly lady that lives in an assisted living home. She has a memory loss issue, so never remembers anything about us (including our names) when we come. She is a total sweetheart though and we love her dearly. We usually just visit with her and her husband for about 10 minutes, sharing a short lesson,
and then we are on our way.

I was nervous about taking the boys into their little apartment, with good reason, since Logan thought that the oxygen tubing was the most amazing toy in the world. It was also nearly 100 degrees in there, so trying to keep both boys on my lap while wearing a sweater resulted in some serious perspiration on my part. In my mind I was wondering what in the world I was even doing there since the Spirit couldn't possibly be present with all the craziness going on around me. Somehow I got a short lesson out, we were able to exchange pleasantries and my partner asked if we could leave with a word of prayer.

Whenever Korben hears the word prayer, he yells out "prayer, fold your arms" which of course is very cute (but can be a tad embarrassing when blurted out before a sacrament prayer or something :D ) We followed Korben's lead and all folded our arms - all except me, who was trying to shush Logan so Nikki could say the prayer... And then it happened.

A little voice said, "Heavenly Father".

We all got quiet and watched in amazement as Korben said the entire prayer. He said "thank thee for this day", and "please bless the food" :D and then closed "in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen." It was one of the proudest moments I have had as a parent. We have practiced the prayer over and over, but he won't say it for us...yet something clicked and he was so excited to pray for this couple. Of course there was cheering and high fives afterward to show him how proud we were, but inside I was crying with happiness. My sweet little boy knows how to say a prayer...a huge milestone for him. But more than that he was able to bring the Spirit into their home-
something I wasn't able to do.

I am one proud Momma!

5 Years

Engagement Photo & 5 Year Photo

Last Saturday (7th) Mike and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary! Craziness!

For our anniversary trip this year, we have decided to go to California and see some of the sites, ride a few coasters, and have some quality alone time. With the trip planned, we decided to have a low-key anniversary day. We went to Applebees and got dessert, and then went to the theatre and watched "He's Just Not That Into You". We both really liked it - lots of laugh out loud parts (althought if I was going to buy it, I would want to edit at least one scene that made everyone feel uncomfortable). It was nice to have a day to hang out together, and we are looking forward to much more R&R on our trip at the end of March.

A recap of the past 5 years:

Home: We have moved 5 times in 5 years. We have purchased 2 homes and sold one

Job: Mike has had 5 different jobs, 3 with Eclipse, 1 with Mascot, and now he works for Terminix.

Family: We have brought two beautiful boys into our family.

Health: We have had good health (except for my pregnancy puking). Mike and I have each gained 20 lbs in 5 years. Yikes! Korben had many ear infections and numerous tests done and Logan had a surgery, but all in all we have been pretty blessed in the health department.

Fun: We have been on 2 cruises, as well as a trip to Washington DC, a trip to Atlanta, and a trip to Mexico.

Plans for the next 5 years:

Home: Who knows??? We are happy with where we live and we love our home. We would be content to stay for another 5 years.

Job: Another big ??? Mike is happier at work now and with the economy the way it is, we are grateful to just have a job. I guess we will see huh?

Family: I'd be happy to have another 2 little ones in the next 5 years, and I'd even be happy with 2 more boys, (but I'm keeping my fingers crossed for at least one girl :D)

Health: Hopefully we can avoid any weird accidents in the next 5 years; but with our little accident prone Logan...well, here's hoping. Gaining 20 lbs every 5 years is not a trend I'd like to keep up, so I foresee a little more exercise in the future. :D

Fun: One trip to California on the list...hopefully many more to follow.

So basically, we have no idea how the next 5 years will end up. It doesn't really matter to me as long as we are together. I can't speak for Mikey, but the past 5 years have been the best time of my life. I love you babe! Thanks for picking me.

Ouchie Mamma...

Korben has a little problem of not watching where he is going when he runs. This particular accident happened because Logan moved a pillow to the middle of the kitchen floor to play on, and I didn't move it when he was done. Korben was running to show me something, tripped on the pillow, and crashed into part of the train set (also hanging out in the kitchen) directly onto his chin.

I gave him kisses and we moved on with the day...these things happen all the time. It wasn't till Mike got home that night and asked me what was up with his chin, that I even noticed the horrible bruise. I felt so bad for not giving him more kisses when it happened...poor kid.

Third Time's The Charm

Many of you already know the drama of getting Logan's compression glove, but for journaling purposes, here is the story:

We ordered Logan's glove the first time a few weeks after his surgery (sometime the beginning of October). It took 3 weeks to get here and was WAY to big on him. The therapist realized she had switched two of the measurements, apologized and said she would rush order the next glove. Meanwhile, we kept Logan in his brace to keep the graft covered (this is what all of you saw in November).

The "rush order" made it the week before Christmas (during the horrible storm) and our appointment was cancelled. Mike was able to pick the glove up from a receptionist and we were to see if it fit and call the therapist that ordered it. The glove was still too big, and I was instructed to sew it up myself until we could get in again (after the Christmas break of course). I sewed it up, but Logan was still able to get all of the compression pads out, so it was pretty much useless.

Fast forward to the first week in January. We had another doctor's appointment (and yes, I get to pay for each of these appointments even though all I hear at them is...whoops I made a mistake, we'll see you again in a few weeks), and Logan went back to the brace while we waited for another three weeks for his new glove. I did request that they make the new glove go over all of his fingers so that there was no possible way to get the padding out.

So on the last week of January, we finally got two gloves (they fixed the first one and made a new one) that FIT! WOOHOO! Of course it was only woohoo for a few hours until Logan decided to play in the toilet and I already had to wash one...but at least they fit right? I'm happy to say they are working well and he is finally getting some good compression on his graft. We won't have to go in again until he grows out of the gloves he has...and hopefully when we measure him for his new ones, it will be done right the first time. :D

Glove #1

Glove #2

In other random-things-my-kids-have-to-wear-news...

Korben has flat feet just like his momma, so we were instructed to purchase inserts for his shoes. His feet were measured by the physical therapist and I was given a phone number and a size - Oh, and a little starred note saying that insurance doesn't cover them...

The cute little inserts came last week and I assume they are doing their job. Korben doesn't seem to notice them except when we are putting his shoes on and it is harder to get his feet in. I'm glad they have the foam top, because, speaking from personal experience, the plastic can get cold.

So in the past week, I have added one Michael Jackson looking compression glove and two cute yellow inserts to the list of things I never thought I'd have to purchase for my kids. :D