Monday, May 2, 2011

Swim Classes



























































































We are enjoying another 7 weeks of swim classes at the Y! I didn't get as many pictures of Zach and Jord because during their hour of lessons I am with the younger girls and they would rather play and eat lunch in another room.....I make them go in and watch sometimes!

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Colonial Days





We took a few Wednesdays and studied colonial life along with the American girl Felicity. We had lots of girlfriends come over to learn with us and watch the Felicity movie!








































Thursday, April 21, 2011

Pottery Wheel































So....Jord got this for her birthday LAST year and we finally tried it out, but I think that it was dad who enjoyed it the most! I guess I didn't get pictures of the final project, but it was a cute little bowl that Jord painted blue!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

No-Bake Cookies




This recipe was in Rachel's Abeka Math book. Zach and Jord both did the same Abeka Math and I never took the time to do the recipe (even though I remember them asking). So, this time around we pulled out the indgredients and made the cookies. Not sure where the "final product" picture went, but they were very good! Oh yeah, and Rachel's measuring skills were terrific!

Monday, March 14, 2011

Abby's 5!



Abby celebrated her 5th Birthday on our last day in Florida! This was Feb.12th....I know, I know how behind I am....I'm trying to catch up! We gave her presents all week long and had cake/ice cream Friday night. Can't believe that my baby is 5! She is still very much the baby though.....gets her way with everyone in the family! She brings us so much joy! We only celebrated 1/2 of her birthday because we are celebrating the other 1/2 in the summer with everyone else's birthdays.....last year was tough for her so this year she will be included in the celebrations!

Monday, March 7, 2011

More Vacation Pics














































At the resort, we enjoyed paddle boating, putt-putt golf, swimming in a heated pool and Thomas the train!









Sunday, February 27, 2011

Abby's Asthma

The baby of the family is the only one who has ever struggled with allergies or asthma. We keep it under control most of the time by watching for the triggers of a stuffy or slightly runny nose and immediately begin breathing treatments with an albuterol filled nebulizer. I have said no to her taking a daily steroid as a preventative measure and have decided to face each attack with the nebulizer option and prayer.... she has always recovered quickly this way. Her attacks have been fewer as she has gotten older, but Wed night we woke up to a crying, "barking" Abby desperately trying to breathe. We recognized the cough as a sudden attack of croup, which had triggered an asthma attack as well.....she was gasping for every breath. I fumbled to assemble the breathing machine(we had not had to use it for a long time) and find the tubes of albuterol. Finally we started the treatment but the breathing only barely improved....she was shaking and her breathing was still very labored. We began to prepare for a trip to the ER.....praying as we hurried to get dressed.....then Kevin suggested a call to the pediatricians office....someone would be on-call and could give advice. The nurse who answered immediately patched me through the the doctor on-call and she calmed me down and gave me simple instructions that would bring immediate relief......a 2nd breathing treatment as we ran hot water in the shower to produce steam for her to breath in....the combination was just right. Kevin held her in the bathroom for nearly 20 minutes as I stood outside the door and prayed. When they came out she was breathing much better.....still not back to normal, but definitely better! Praise the Lord for Kevin's quick thinking about calling doctor.....we would've spent precious time driving & waiting.
She was exhausted and fell asleep.....I stayed awake right beside her and noticed her breathing steadily calming as she slept. So glad that the even in our panic the Lord can still speak to us and calm our fears.

She had been doing better over the past few days as we have tried to keep her still and quiet while continuing breathing treatments until this morning when she woke up coughing and just couldn't stop......we tried several things/medicines but she continued to cough and choke uncontrollably at times. Remembering that my pediatricians office was just a phone call away I sought advice and they recommended an urgent care.....she had developed a fever and they were concerned that it might have turned into something else since she had been improving over the past few days. So, off to urgent care we went and the doctor was concerned from the moment she saw her, heard her coughing and labored breathing.....she listened to the lungs and immediately called for an x-ray, but before they could do the x-ray they gave her a breathing treatment with a stronger steroid so that they could get her breathing slowed down.

Well, the x-ray showed pneumonia in the left lung......the croup triggered the asthma and while treating the asthma, the croup virus made it's way into the lungs and settled in resulting in the swelling and constriction of all airways.

She is sleeping peacefully now.....steroids (which I dislike giving them to her) and antibiotics are in her system and she should be well on her way to recovery.......however I am prepared with nebulizer and necessary meds at my bedside for any nighttime attacks.

Lord, please help my baby girl sleep peacefully and breathe with ease.....and her momma too.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Florida Vacation 2011 ~ Busch Gardens











We had free Busch Gardens tickets that came with our Discovery Cove tickets....so we loaded the BG bus in Orlando and headed to Tampa for the day! It was chilly, but that didn't stop us from roller coasters, kangaroos and Big Bird!




Florida Vacation 2011 ~ Discovery Cove
















We started off our week Monday morning bright and early at Discovery Cove....swimming with dolphins, stingrays & tropical fish. We enjoyed the warm waters of the lazy river (although, not so lazy if you ask me). It's one of the best kept secrets of Orlando!