A Bit of This and That

1.  Hannah was "Star of the Week" in her classroom a few weeks back.  She and I worked on her poster that she got to display in her classroom.  It was supposed to show all about her life and her favorite things.  She included her siblings, parents, grandparents, pets and house.  Those are some of my favorite things too!  Leah has her turn to be Star of the Week in January.

2.  Today is the 43rd day of my mom's hospital stay.  Update:  Her chest xrays show that the pneumonia is still there, but is getting better.  She had a tracheotomy done last week that is connected to a ventilator which helps her breathe.  She cannot talk with the trach, but her lungs are getting a break from working so hard and she doesn't have the bipap mask on her face all of the time.  In addition, she had a peg tube inserted in her stomach so she can receive nutrition/medicine directly into her stomach.  This gets the feeding tube out of her nose which we are all so grateful for.  She is doing physical therapy every day, but is very, very weak.  She can barely stand on her own without support.  All in all, she is making progress, but we recognize the long road still ahead.  At some point she will probably move out of the hospital and into a rehabilitation center before eventually coming home. 

3.  This is a weird Christmas season for us.  With my mom not around as she usually is, it just seems like a dark cloud is hanging over us.  Just a little bit.  I am determined to not let is ruin the holiday, though.  We have our tree up, the stockings are hanging over the fireplace, and we've taken the kids to go look at Christmas lights.  So we will open a few presents at the hospital this year-- it's not the end of the world. 

4.  Speaking of Christmas, our church has embraced something called "Advent Conspiracy".  The theme of advent conspiracy is

Worship Fully

Spend Less

Give More

Love Freely

With this in mind, we have been rethinking how we "do" Christmas.  We've cut back on the amount of gifts we are giving our kids.  And instead are looking at things like adopting a Compassion International Child or looking through the World Vision catalog to purchase a year's worth of medical care for a child in a third world country.  I want our girls to know that in order to help others, we sometimes cut back on what we do for ourselves.  And that everyone is VALUABLE!   For more on Advent Conspiracy, go to http://www.adventconspiracy.org/.

5. Hannah and Leah turn 6 this coming Thursday.  SIX!!!!  Oh my.  We actually celebrated their birthday back on the weekend of December 3-5 when we took them to Great Wolf Lodge in Dallas for the weekend.  We went with Mike's parents and our good friend,s and we had such a great time.  Sometimes when I see Lucas running around looking at everything with awe, I can picture two little girls with thick, black hair toddling around with the same expression.  They continue to be such a joy!  

That's it for now!  Have a wonderful Tuesday! 

The Road That Led Us Here

In 1974 my mom lived in Texas, celebrated her fourth wedding anniversary, turned 26, and was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma.  It started when she discovered a lump in her neck, which led to a series of tests, a painful exploratory surgery and then the official verdict-- cancer.  I'm not sure what she felt or what she and my dad discussed during those early stages because I was not born yet.  I'm not sure what the word "cancer" meant 36 years ago.  I do know that my mom was scared about the future, but determined to not go down without a fight.  She fought hard through two years of chemotherapy and radiation treatments. She lost her hair.  She got really sick.  And the upper-mantel radiation she received five days a week for six weeks burned her throat and ruined her sense of taste.  I can't imagine going through something so horrible. 
But after two years of fighting, she won the battle and heard that wonderful word-- "remission".  And friends, thirty-six years later she is still in remission.  She kicked lymphoma's rear end to the curb and it has never returned. 

Fast forward to February of 1998.....I was a junior in college.  Mike and I were dating (and were soon to be engaged).  I had just returned from a fabulous trip to Spain when I got a phone call that I will never forget.  My mom had been rushed to the emergency room with shortness of breath and an irregular heartbeat.  I immediately came home, and after a week in the hospital it was determined that my mom had dilated cardio-myopahty.  Her valves were not functioning properly and would only get worse with time.  There was no way to reverse the damage to her valves.  She could take medication to help treat the symptoms, but eventually those valves would have to be replaced.  Why?  We all wanted to know the answer.  Was it genetic?  What would cause this?  The answer came in time....radiation.  It was the high doses of radiation that my mom received back in the early 70's that ruined those valves.  So the thing that we praised for ridding her body of cancer actually did more damage than we ever realized.  Radiation turned out to be a double-edged sword. 

Over the next twelve years many things happened:  Mike and I got married, we welcomed three wonderful children, my mom retired from her job as an elementary school librarian, Mike advanced his career, while after eight years I quit my teaching job to stay home with my kids.  Vacations were taken, holidays celebrated, and time marched on.  But this year, as my parents celebrated 40 years of marriage, it became clear that my mom was going to need that valve replacement surgery soon.  She was tiring out easily and having difficulty breathing.  Her cardiologist put it this way, "She is basically walking around in congestive heart failure all the time."  So after much thought, family discussion, and prayer, my mom elected to have the surgery now before things got any worse. 

One hopes that when a major life decision is made that it is the right decision.  We are on day 25 of my mom's hospital stay, but we still feel we made the right decision.  Her recovery has been harder than we ever dreamed it would be.  We didn't foresee pneumonia sneaking in and causing such problems.  But looking back over the road that led us here, we don't regret our decision to have the surgery done.  It needed to happen.  And when my mom kicks this pneumonia to the curb like she did with cancer over thirty years ago, we will look back on this difficult season and know that we are stronger as a family for having gone through it. 

Shauna's Visit to the OKC National Memorial

Last week my dear friend Shauna came to visit me.  She is an amazing ER nurse at a hospital in Dallas, and I have known her longer than any other friend.  We met before we even remember meeting.  I was three and she was two the summer our moms met at the Women's Club Pool in Graham, Texas.  And it turned out that Shauna and her family lived right across the street from us!  Thus began a lifelong friendship between Shauna and me.  I cannot remember I time when I didn't know her.  And I could not even begin to add up the hours we spent playing together:  Barbies, dolls, dancing in the front yard (embarrassing, but true), vacations, swimming, riding bikes, being silly, loving New Kids On The Block, fourth of July at the lake.  The list could go on and on.  Even after I moved to Oklahoma we still saw each other two or three times a year. 

Since my mom has been so sick, Shauna and I devised a plan for her to come up to OKC to help my mom as she transitioned out of the hospital and back into her home. Since she is a nurse, we thought we could use her nursing expertise!  Our plan got derailed when mom my developed pneumonia and required a much longer stay (she is still in the hospital...we're on day 21).  Regardless, I still wanted her to come, and she still wanted to come...so she did!  We visited my mom and she played with my kids.  But we also fit in a little bit of sightseeing at the Oklahoma National Memorial in downtown Oklahoma City. 

Entering the 9:02 gate

The beautiful Survivor Tree

Lucas and the Reflecting Pool

It was a beautiful, crisp fall day.

One of 168. 

Afterwards, we went to Bricktown to see the canal and eat lunch.  Fun was had by all! :)

Halloween Pics In November? Why Not!?

Me and Yoda on Halloween

Yes, I know we are halfway through November, but I am determined to get my Halloween pictures up here anyway!  My mom has been in the hospital for seventeen days.  She is still there and will likely be there through Thanksgiving week.  She had a very scary weekend last Friday/Saturday as she suffered a major setback.  But thankfully, she is slowly making progress toward a full recovery once again.  I will blog more in depth about that at another time, but for a while my life has been nothing but eat, sleep, home, and hospital.  It was survival mode and blogging was put to the side. 

Now that my mom has turned a corner and I don't have to be at the hospital quite as much, I thought I'd look back at some of what we've been up to over the past three weeks or so.  I thought my butterfly, fairy and Yoda all looked mighty cute.  We celebrated by going over to our friends' house for a little pre-trick-or-treat cookout/playtime.  The weather was gorgeous and the kids wasted no time running and playing in the mellow evening light.  Finally, at sunset, we set out to claim our loot. 

Some of the "big kids"

Leah Fairy

Yoda

Swinging action

Yard View

One More Update & A Few Bad Jokes

Lucas examining a pumpkin

I am so thankful for today.  For the crisp fall air, my family's beautiful faces, and for the fact that I got to visit my mom in the hospital today.  Would I rather have visited her at her home?  Well, sure.  But I am so thankful that she is still here, and doing so well after her risky surgery.  November 2nd used to be a big, black cloud looming out in my future.  My mind had a mental block when I would try to think past "surgery day."  I wanted it to never get here and yet I wanted it to be over and in my rear view mirror.  Now that the dreaded day is in fact over, I feel an immense amount of relief.  I can almost physically feel the weight of my weeks of worry lift off my shoulders and vanish into thin air.  My heart is incredibly grateful that her surgery went so well.  And my heart is just about near overflowing in thanks because her recovery is also going so well.  Today she is eating normally, walked around the loop on her hospital floor twice, and she is in good spirits.  She is still tired and sore, but she is definitely on the right path.  A path toward restored health!  Thank you, Lord!

Last night after visiting my mom, Mike and I took the kids out for pizza.  While waiting for our food to arrive we sat around, talking and laughing.  I noticed that Mike was still wearing his "I Voted" sticker from Tuesday.  We got a good chuckle out of that one.  The girls were busy drawing pictures of our family on the back of their kids' menus.  I love that they always draw me with blue eyes while everyone else has brown.  It has been such a draining week both physically and emotionally that it felt great just spending time with each other.  And we even told a couple of silly jokes. 

Why did the pretzel call the police?
Because it got a salted.

Why did the porcupine cross the road?
Because it was stuck to the chicken.

I hope you had a good week and thank you for keeping our family in your prayers. :)

Surgery Update

Quick update:  Mom's surgery went as well as could be expected.  Praise God!!  They started at 7:30 this morning and were done by 10:30.  The surgeon replaced her aortic valve and was able to repair her mitral valve.  I was able to see her in the intensive care unit after surgery.  She was sedated and had a breathing tube in her mouth.  Her ICU nurse said she lost a lot of blood and her heart rate is still a little low, but overall she is stable and at the beginning of a long healing process. I am so thankful that she survived the surgery and is on that healing journey though! 

After seeing her, I came home for awhile.  I wanted to check on Lucas and try to rest a little.  I didn't sleep well last night and just felt emotionally exhausted.  I think I've had every emotion possible today:  I've cried, I've felt afraid, I've prayed, I've felt at peace...all at the same time if that is even possible.  I think I am going to try to take a short nap while Lucas is sleeping, then I will head back to the hospital later this evening. 

Thank you for your prayers.  We are over a big hurdle, but still have a long road ahead. 

My Mom's Surgery

My beautiful Mama

Dear Blogger Friends,

Tomorrow, November 2nd, my mom is having open heart surgery to replace her aortic and mitral valves.  It is a major, invasive surgery which will require 10 days in the hospital and weeks of recovery at home.  Tonight Mike, the kids and I met up with my parents, my aunt, two uncles, and cousin at a local restaurant to have dinner together.  Afterwards, we went to my aunt's house for dessert.  We spent the evening in good spirits, laughing, and telling stories.  But there was also a seriousness to our discussions and extra long hugs were given when it was time to leave.  I won't lie and say I'm not worried-- because I am.  If I let my mind linger on the "what ifs" I start to panic a little.  So I am spending a lot of time praying.  And praying some more.  I am choosing to trust God and lay this fear at His feet. 

Please join with me in praying for my family tomorrow.  I will post a brief update after her surgery to let you all know how she is doing.
 
Love,
Emily

Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.



Isaiah 58:7-9

Tenkiller 2010 (Warning: lots of pictures!)

Fall Foliage 

 A Lake House Surrounded by trees.

What does it all mean?  Why it's the Fall Lake Tenkiller trip of course!

We are back from our third annual Lake Tenkiller Trip with our good friends The Reutlingers and The Millers.  With six adults and eight kids in a three bedroom lake house, the quarters were tight, but always cozy.  There is just nothing better than lots of time + friends+ playing outside + good food + practical jokes + games + laughing hysterically.  I am so thankful for times like these.

As soon as we arrived the kids got busy building things with sticks, small branches and rocks.  Nature provides endless entertainment opportunities.

On Friday we headed to the water's edge to skip (or throw) rocks and to get our feet wet.

Leah and Hannah

Brian and Angie brought their sailboat, so we took turns going out on the water. 

Our sailing adventure was followed up with a lively game of soccer in the front yard, and.....

a walk to watch the sun set over the water.

Our mornings were spent lounging on the back deck in front of the chimenea.  I could snuggle with this boy all day long.

Self-timer group shot!

Getting the kids organized from oldest to youngest:  Eli, Leah, Hannah, Parker, Silas, Madison, Lucas, & Marlee.

I sure love these girls!

And a final parting shot:

My family!

Pops!

Last week in our girls' take-home folder, we got a nice surprise.  Both Hannah and Leah's teachers had nominated them as Terrific Kids for the month!  They were both nominated for showing the life principle of integrity, and they would each receive an award in an assembly later in the week.  We were so proud!  I was simply beaming. 

So we decided to immediately turn that news into a celebration.  I always want the girls to know that good behavior is something we make a big deal out of.  Mike and I thought about it, and decided to take the family for dinner at Pops in Arcadia, OK.  Arcadia is just a few miles east of Edmond (the suburb of Oklahoma City that we live in), and it is situated on a strip of the original Route 66.  Arcadia is a small community near Lake Arcadia.  The town is famous for The Round Barn (featured in the movie Elizabethtown) and Pops.  Pops is a very large, futuristic gas station that has literally thousands of different rare and interesting sodas from around the world.  Question:  do you say soda or pop?  This is a matter of great importance.
Anyway, we let the girls each pick out whatever drink they wanted.  Leah chose a super sweet strawberry soda while Hannah opted for chocolate milk (the girl does not like anything carbonated), and Mike and I chose root beer.  We sat and sipped our sodas (or pops!) and ate some burgers and then ordered a giant chocolate chip cookie for dessert.  When we left, it was just getting dark, and the giant soda bottle outside was starting to light up.  It was a great way to celebrate their accomplishment!

 Leah and her jelly belly strawberry pop

Hannah and her non-carbonated choice:  chocolate milk

Me and my Jack Black Root Beer

The Pops Bottle at sunset

Do you have a favorite place to go for special celebrations??

One Week Later

I am finally emerging from nearly a full week of sickness.  The entire puke-fest started with Lucas last Tuesday.  He woke up at midnight and proceeded to vomit off and on until 4:00 am!  From this point on, our week was a downward spiral of sickness.  By Thursday night, I was throwing up.  Friday night Leah and Mike joined in on the fun too.  Hannah escaped with just a fever and stomach ache, but no actual puke.  The stomach bug we all caught lasted about 48 hours and came with a terrible fever too.  Fun times at the Galloway house! 

While we were all either throwing-up or laying under ten blankets shivering with fever, my house became a disaster area.  It looked like an episode of Hoarders in my bedroom/bathroom.  Seriously.  I had sorted out all the laundry on my bathroom floor the night before I got sick.  Then I didn't touch it for four days, but continued to add sheets, towels and such to the mess until my entire bathroom floor was covered.  I am finally making progress though!

Toward the end of the weekend, as we were all starting to feel a little better, we proceeded on with our plan to walk in the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Light The Night fundraising walk.  We walked to support and honor two specific people:  my mom (who is a 30 year survivor of Hodgkin's Lymphoma) and our friends' son, Brock (who is currently battling Leukemia).  Thanks to so many generous friends and family, we personally raised over $500.  Our team, "Brock Rocks", ended up raising over $5,000 to go toward cancer research!  Woo hoo!

Here are some pics from our fun night:

Getting ready to walk

Cotton Candy Girls:  we took a risk with their freshly recovered stomachs, but they loved it!

Moving with the rest of the group

I hope you all are all healthy and doing well!

New Piece

You may recall that way back in August, on the girls' first day of kindergarten, Mike and I went on a little daytime date.  We did two of our favorite things:  eat and go to an antique store.  While shopping that day, we came across a dresser that we both fell in love with.  We loved the color (a cross between robin egg blue and sea foam green).  We loved the shape (the drawers are curved).  We loved the subtle flower details (well, I loved those.  not sure if Mike loved them.)  And it fit our need of more drawer storage.  But, we didn't buy it because we didn't want to make a spur of the moment purchase that we might regret later.

Well, weeks went by and we kept talking about that dresser.  It would look great against that wall.  I could store the girls' art supplies in some of the drawers.  We even went back a second time and measured it and then returned home to ponder it some more. 

A few more weeks went by and we finally made up our minds to go back and see if it was still for sale.  We did and to our surprise the price had been significantly reduced!  It was a sign!  So we bought it, brought it home and it fit perfectly in our home. 

Since this photo was taken we've hung a collage of photos over the dresser and it looks nice!

Here's a side view.  Can you see the flowers?

Right now we have linens, art supplies and photo albums stored in the drawers.  I love things that are both aesthetically pleasing and functional! 

Do you have a favorite piece of furniture in your house?

Keeping It Short and Sweet, Plus A Few Photos

It's been a very busy day today, but I wanted to let my faithful few readers know about a book giveaway my friend Maria is having over on her blog.  Check it out!

And here's a photo just to make you smile.

It's blurry because this handsome fellow has started running everywhere!  And he keeps that sweet grin on his face the whole time.  I am so lucky to be his mom!  Oh and he started saying "Mama" officially today! Literally, all day long I heard, "Mama! Mama!"  I couldn't wait to come home from work to hear him say it again.  So sweet.

And guess what else.....These two are READING!  It happened so suddenly, but they are plowing through simple books slowly, but surely.  They are SO proud of themselves.  And so am I. :)

The girls wore their OU cheerleader outfits for "Wear Your Favorite College Gear" day at school.

Some Things From This Week

http://www.vimeo.com/15412754
1.  Go check out this video that Mike shot of Lucas on Wednesday night while we were at the park.  We took the girls to a nice open field to practice some soccer skills and when they were finished, Lucas took over.  That boy LOVES to kick a ball.

2.  Monday we were driving home after running a few errands when traffic came to a halt.  I thought maybe there had been an accident, but as we creeped ahead slowly, it became evident that all the cars had stopped so that a little turtle could finish crossing the road.  How cool is that?  And he (or she?) made it across!  Of course my girls thought it was a Mama turtle trying to get home to her babies. 

3.  I am officially ready for fall.  I'm going to bake some pumpkin bread today in hopes that the smells of cinnamon and allspice waft out my window and enourage the leaves to start changing around here!  We don't get the pretty fall foliage until later in the season since it stays warm here for so long. 

4. We have started a new tradition on Friday nights called "Family Movie Night" (not the most creative name, but it works!).  Now that the girls are in school, they have come to realize the importance of Friday night.  So to make it special and relaxing, we instituted Family Movie Night.  The following things must occur: 1.)  Homemade Pizza for dinner 2.)  A pallet on the floor big enough for everyone 3.)  A big bowl of popcorn  and 4.) A kid-friendly movie!  Tonight's selection is Furry Vengence.  Mike picked it out and I sort of cringed because I know that the silly factor is going to be off the charts.  But the girls will like it, I'm sure.  And if I get to snuggle up with them for an hour and a half, I'm good with that.

What do you all have planned this weekend?

Afternoon Snack

It never fails that around 4:00, my stomach starts growling and my mind starts wondering what I have in my pantry to fix for an afternoon snack.  Lately I have been grabbing some awesomely good avocados at the grocery store, so it has been guacamole time in my kitchen.  I love guacamole.  When I was little, you couldn't pay me to touch the stuff since it was gloppy and green, two very bad things to a picky little girl.  But at some point in my life, I had the guts to try it and was pleasantly surprised at how great it tasted!  Had I been missing out or what!?  If I'm just making a quick snack, I go for simplicity:  one mashed avocado, salt, pepper, done.  But if I'm making a "fancy" batch, my favorite things to add are:  onion (finely diced), cilantro, fresh lime juice (or fresh orange juice is good too!), and sometimes tomatoes.  Throw in some corn chips and you are good to go!  For something different, Mike's aunt taught me how to make a delicious "GLT" sandwich.  Just make my simplified version of guacamole, spread it on whole grain bread, add sliced tomatoes and lettuce (and if you're feeling crazy some thinly sliced red onion) and you have a very yummy sandwich.  It's all good, my friends!

What are some of your typical afternoon snacks?

First Day of Work

Ready to go

I started a new job today!  You may recall that this past spring I worked part time at a local elementary school as a reading tutor.  Well, I am basically doing the same thing at another elementary school this fall.  I am just working five hours a week (2.5 on Monday and Wednesday afternoons), but it is enough to help out with the family finances and keep me in the teaching world a little bit.  People ask me all the time if I miss teaching full time.  I do miss it a little bit, but not enough to want to go back just yet.  This time with my three little ones is so precious that I don't want to trade it for anything else.  But, the school needed certified teachers, I enjoy teaching, so voila!  5 hours a week and it's a deal.  This year, however, I will be tutoring some sweet second graders in both reading and math.  I think I can handle second grade math.  I think. :)



The Wide World of Sports

When it comes to athletics, I am not very gifted.  At. All.  I am not great at hand/eye coordination for starters.  And I lack the raw aggressive nature to jump into the action.  Example:  Back in 2003 our church was coordinating a sand volleyball league for the summer.  We decided to join a group of friends in forming a team.  We met at various local parks to practice, but when it came to actually playing a game I did not fare well.  I would look up and see the volleyball coming down precisely in my direction and instead of stepping up and going for it, I would scream and go another direction.  It was embarrassing. 

Growing up I never played any organized sports.  Maybe if I had, I would not have faltered so badly at volleyball.  But by high school I was comfortable in my own niche of activities:  piano and ballet, which both suited me just fine.  With this in mind, I wondered how my own children would fare at sports.  This past Saturday we got a small glimpse when the girls played in their very first soccer game.

The night before we laid out their jerseys, cleats, shorts and shin guards.  We discussed the fundamentals and even practiced kicking the ball around in our own backyard.  Mike is a huge soccer fan, so he was pumped.  I was a little nervous for them, but still excited.  When we arrived, we found our coach and other teammates and got ready to watch a bunch of kindergartners run up and down a field. 

Leah really surprised us as the more aggressive player of the two.  She had such a great attitude.  She didn't get embarrassed if she accidentally kicked the ball out of bounds or in the direction of the other team's goal.  She gave it her all, running with wild abandon, piggy-tails flying in the wind and her cheeks red as tomatoes.  On the sidelines, she cheered loudly for her teammates and yelled encouraging things like, "Way to go, Hannah!"  Hannah did a great job too, but unfortunately, she may have inherited some of her mother's timidity toward getting into the action.  She ran fast, but stayed on the outskirts of what was happening.  She also got really embarrassed when she did something wrong.  I think she has amazing potential, but will have to grow and mature the longer she plays.  That is something I never had the opportunity to do. 

Ultimately, I just want them to have fun and try new things.  We're not trying to push to have two professional athletes.  If in a few years they choose never to play sports again, that's fine with me.  I just want them to try.  To learn to roll with the punches if you lose and to win with grace and respect. 

Did you play sports growing up?  What did you do?

Beach Baby

Do you remember your first trip to the beach?  Do you remember the way the sand felt between your toes?  The sound of the waves rolling in and out?  The smell of salt in the air?  Maybe you lived near a beach and were lucky enough to visit often?  Living in a land-locked state like Oklahoma did not afford me many chances to go play in any ocean waves.  Lakes, yes.  Oceans, no.  My list of oceans/seas/gulfs visited is pretty short:  Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, Mediterranean Sea, and The Atlantic. 

My first trip to a true beach was when I was five.  My parents took me down to Galveston, TX to build sand castles and chase sea gulls.  I remember the squishy feeling of the sand.  And I remember that I loved my new red bathing suit with tiny white polka-dots all over it.  I felt pretty spiffy. 

My daughters, sadly, have never been to a beach, but dream of playing in the water and hunting for sea shells.  Lucas, however, got to experience his first beach trip last month.  It was a beautiful 85 degree day.  Bright sun. Gentle waves.  It was near perfect (except for the fact that Hannah and Leah were not with us).  Watching him take in his new surroundings was priceless.  I loved the way he picked his feet up high as he tried to walk in the shifting sand.  He showed a big, gap-toothed grin when he felt the cold water tickle his chubby feet.  He is a very thoughtful kid, staring intently at things as if he is really trying to figure them out.  He spent a lot of his time sitting on a beach towel or on a comfy lap just taking it all in.  I am so glad we got to have that experience with him!

At Sandy Hook Beach

Two great smells:  salt water and sweet baby

Checking things out

Coming back to mom

Love this boy, boogers and all!