Thanksgiving 2012

      We had a really nice Thanksgiving this year.  My sister had to work, and my brother-in-law was in California with Ella.  So, we got to watch Jameson for the day.  It was great being part of his first Thanksgiving and he is the easiest baby in the world to watch.  I have never met a more mellow and content baby.
   I took part in what is becoming an annual tradition for me, a Turkey Trot race.  We wanted to get right on the road afterwards, so Joey sat in the van with the 3 kids while I ran it.  I love the idea of starting my Thanksgiving with a nice race, but I absolutely hate the course.  It is the same course every year and it is so hilly and full of twists and turns through a neighborhood.  I complain, yet I am sure I will be running it again next year.  This year they had a record number of people.  It is always nice to see so many people wanting to get active on what is such a gluttonous day! I didn't PR or run my fastest race ever, but I was basically just doing it for a speed workout.  I am running another half marathon next weekend, and that race has been my focus.  I took 47th out of 1,564 women.  Not too shabby I guess.
     I literally crossed the finish line, then ran to the car.  I hopped in and we headed to Joey's dad's house in Buena Vista.  We go there every year for Thanksgiving.  The kids always love seeing their grandparents.  We spent the day relaxing and visiting with family.  Joey's dad and step-mom are awesome cooks and the food was amazing as always.  We all ate too much! We headed back home early in the evening.  We needed to get Jameson back home when my sister got off work. 
    My mom and I decided to live on the wild side and hit up some of the sales.  We went to Walmart first, and I can honestly say I have never seen anything like that frenetic scene.  There were people everywhere, and it was making me very claustrophobic.  We got what we wanted, and hightailed it out of there! We then headed to Target and waited in a line that went around the building.  It doesn't sound fun, but my mom and I actually had a great time talking and laughing at people's reactions to the long line.  Target was much better and so much less chaotic!  We were able to get everything there that we wanted too. 
   The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing around the house.  We put up the Christmas tree.  On Friday, our elf, Eddie Buddy made his grand appearance.  Ashlyn was literally screaming from excitement.  He has been causing all sorts of chaos around the house.  He is a very mischievous little elf!
   On Sunday, we went over to my parent's house for another Thanksgiving meal.  My side of the family was apart on Thanksgiving, so we decided to have a Thanksgiving on Sunday to  make up for it.  We had a great time watching the Broncos win.  We were more than happy to eat another yummy Thanksgiving meal. 

Going on a family walk Thanksgiving weekend.

    We had quite the Thanksgiving.  I like Thanksgiving because it always reminds me to be thankful for the bounty of blessings that I have been given.  It's a time to not focus on the negative, but on all of the good and positive. 

5th Birthday

     Last Tuesday, Ashlyn turned 5 years old.  I was fortunate enough to have the day off and Joey took it off as well.  We have been talking with Ashyln for months about what she wanted to do on her very special day.  She said that she really wanted breakfast in bed like I got on Mother's Day.  She insisted that we use this old breakfast tray that used to be mine when I was a kid that she found at my parent's house.  We started the day by serving our special princess a very special breakfast that she got to enjoy in bed. 

    After eating, we got ready to head up to Denver.  Ashlyn had a very special request.  She wanted to go to the American Girl store and pick out her birthday presents.  So, that's where we went.  We had a great time looking at all the amazing things at American Girl.  That store is a little girl's haven! I had an American Girl doll as a child, and I am always amazed at all of the stuff they have added and how much is the same.  Ashlyn faced the very difficult decision of deciding what to get her Bitty Baby twins.  After much deliberation, she picked two new fall outfits, new pajamas for each twin, and a movie watching set complete with movie watching chairs.  She was one happy girl when we left the store.  The American Girl store is right next to the mall, so we headed over there and did some window shopping.  I got some great ideas for Christmas!

    All this shopping has caused us to work up quite an appetite.  Ashlyn decided that she wanted to go to Sweet Tomatoes for lunch.  The unlimited macaroni and cheese and jello is what got her.  We head a great lunch and stuffed ourselves silly full of delicious food.

     Before heading home, we made a quick stop at our favorite cupcake store to buy cupcakes for later that night.  Ashlyn got to pick hers out and was too excited to eat it.

     We asked Ashlyn where she wanted to go for her birthday dinner, and she picked her favorite, Red Robin.  She loves their corn dogs and we don't go there often.  It was a wonderful birthday dinner shared with all of Ashlyn's favorite people: Gram, Papa, Auntie, Uncle Bryan, Ella, Jameson, and Uncle Steven.  After dinner, we headed back to our house for cupcakes and presents. The cupcakes were enjoyed by all.  As usual, Ashlyn's favorite part was having everyone sing to her.  She got some great gifts including a bunch of Littlest Pet Shop stuff from her grandparents which is her newest obsession. 

    Ashlyn said she had the best birthday ever and I don't think we could have had a better day.  It was full of fun, family, and birthday love.  

Ashlyn's special breakfast: birthday pancakes and hot chocolate complete with lots of sprinkles!

So excited to get her breakfast

Yum!

Ready to go shopping! She wanted to wear the same outfit she wore to her party.

Ashlyn's favorite store

She couldn't wait to go in

Checking out the choices

Trying to decide what to get

Mommy and baby

Dawson wasn't as impressed with American Girl

Carrying her purchases

It was a beautiful day, so we enjoyed the fountains outside

Cute

This is the sign I got for Ashlyn's first birthday,and I have hung it every year since.



The family at dinner



She was so excited for her cupcake

Loving hearing everyone sing to her

So pretty!

Yummy!

Dawson loved it too!

Ella enjoying her cupcake

Present time



Our Sick Boy

    I blogged the other day about Dawson having pneumonia.  We gave him his full course of antibiotics and he was doing so much better.  Thursday night we gave him the last dose.  Yesterday morning, he started coughing.  It was an awful cough.  He was literally coughing continuously.  He didn't stop hardly at all.  It was really bad timing since it was also the day of Ashlyn's party.  We tried to put him down for a nap before the party.  Poor guy couldn't even sleep because he was coughing so badly.  When we got to Ashlyn's party he started running around and seemed to be doing much better. 

       We put him to bed like normal even though his cough his was pretty bad.  Joey and I had planned on watching some movies.  Dawson woke up around 9:00 crying.  Joey went and got him from his bed so he could lay with me.  I immediately noticed that he was breathing really heavily.  I got very freaked out.  I sent my sister a video of his breathing.  She said that it looked pretty fast to her.  I decided to call the after hours line.  The person I talked to said that we would need to bring him to the E.R since he had recently had pneumonia and wasn't breathing well.  I called my brother and he immediately came over to be with Ashlyn so both Joey and I could go.

   When we got to the E.R., I told the receptionist he was having difficulty breathing and they brought him right back.  The nurse checked his respiratory rate and it was 72.  Normal for his age should be 20-30.  She told us it was very high and he was definitely a sick kid.  They took us to a room right away.  They came in and did a test for RSV and did a chest x-ray.  They got him a breathing treatment  and steroids to help his breathing.  Then we sat around and waited forever.  Luckily, they had a t.v. to entertain us.  Dawson didn't sleep, but he was such a trooper. 

     Around 1:00 a.m., the doctor came in and said it wasn't pneumonia but they wanted to keep him overnight.  We got up to his room in the peds unit around 2:00 a.m.  We were all exhausted at that point, especially Dawson would did not nap earlier in the day.  They peds unit was very nice and the nurses were great.  There was only room for one parent to sleep and Joey needed to get home so my brother could go home.  Dawson and I did manage to get some sleep and the nurses didn't come in too much. 

    This morning he was already doing much better.  They gave him another breathing treatment and more steroids.  Ashlyn and Joey came to the hospital first thing.  The doctor came in around 9:00.  He said sometimes when someone is getting over pneumonia it can cause them to have a restricted airway.  He also said that it could be asthma.  Joey has very bad asthma, and I am praying its not that.  He said that we would have to see if it is something that happens again or not.  The doctor said he was doing much better and could go home with medicine.  By that point, poor Dawson was becoming very stir crazy after being couped up in a little room.  We were very happy to get out of there! 

    Dawson has been doing much better today.  He came home and took a 4 hour nap.  I hate seeing him so sick and it just seems like he has been sick so much this fall.  It is very weird, because Ashlyn was hospitalized at almost the exact same age for severe croup.  I remember being very scared that she would have breathing issues and be in and out of the hospital, but she has since never had another problem.  I pray that Dawson is the same way.  Please pray that Dawson continues to get stronger and better and that he doesn't give us any more scares!  I am thanking God for helping him heal so quickly and allowing us to go home so quickly.  I know lots of children and parents aren't as lucky.   

They had a toy phone in his crib and he immediately grabbed it.  He seems to be having a very important conversation. 

Dawson playing withe the Ipad in the E.R.  Yet again, the Ipad was invaluable for keeping him entertained.  He seems so happy for how sick he was. 

Ashlyn's 5th Birthday Party

    Yesterday, was Ashyln's big 5th birthday party.  She went to a birthday party last spring at a trampoline place.  She loved it and immediately asked us if she could have her birthday there.  We of course said yes.  She has been so excited for her party for weeks.  She even got to invite some of her classmates from school.  Her two closest friends from school were able to make it.  She had a great turnout.  The trampoline place has a private party place in the upstairs that was perfect.  There were trampolines, balance beams, a foam pit, and lots of other gymnastics things.  It was so convenient to have her party there since we didn't have to clean or decorate.  We only had to worry about the cake, favors, and drinks.  The kids had a wonderful time running around and exploring.  Dawson and Ella even had a blast.  I got the most enjoyment from the look of happiness that was on Ashlyn's face the entire time.  The kids got to play for an hour, and then they had cake and ice cream.  Ashlyn ended the party by opening her presents.  I definitely think a great time was had by all.  In the car, Ashlyn said that it was the best moment of her life.  That is definitely a success in my book! Next year's birthday will be hard to top. 





Ashlyn also had an Ariel party when she was two.  She said she wanted another one this year.  She also insisted that she wanted me to make the cake again like I have every year.  Since I made her cake for her first Ariel party, I knew it wouldn't be hard.  My sister got the great idea of buying a plain, frosted cake from Costco that we could decorate.  Costco cake is amazing and it was a cinch for us to decorate.  Ashlyn even helped and she was very happy with her cake. 



The birthday girl.  I have always thought Ashlyn looks so much like Joey.  My brother commented the other day that he thinks she is starting to look like me as a girl.  I can definitely see myself in her in this picture. 

Birthday princess

Sweet Ella bouncing. 

The girls jumping

The foam pit was a hit

Ashlyn had to do some flips

Caitlyn swinging on the rope

Dawson

He wasn't feeling well, but still had a great time

Crawling on the balance beam

Flying

Upside down boy

Enjoying some drinks

Lighting the candles

So happy

This was when everyone was singing Happy Birthday.  I will never forget the smile she got on her face at her first birthday when everyone sang to her.  She told me tonight that this was her favorite part.  She hasn't changed one bit!

Blowing out the candles

Waiting on cake

Fun with friends

Eating cake

Dawson and Ella enjoying their cake

She got some great gifts

Ashlyn and her friends from school

Upside down girl