Friday, December 31, 2010

On the 12th Day of Christmas...


The last day.  Our family loved the message that the family that has been doing The 12 Days of Christmas left for us on the last night.  It was testimonies of Jesus Christ from the president of the Church and other leaders.  We decided to save this and read on Christmas morning to our kids.  Glen and Levi started a fire and we got our hot cocoa and read beautiful testimonies of our Savior.  These messages helped to bring a stronger spirit of Christmas to our home.  We are so thankful and have felt so blessed by this kind act of service. I don't know who did this, but I am so thankful for the time that the family took out of their day to bless our family this Christmas season. We love the little plaque as well and I am excited to hang it up next Christmas Season.



On the 11th Day of Christmas...


This was perfect!! We ended up getting a bag of mini marshmellows and hot cocoa (which our family loves in the winter!!)  I didn't get a picture of the orginal items that the family left on our doors step because it was gone the next morning, we used it all up, so I grabbed some out of our pantry for the picture.  So Good!!!



On the 10th Day of Christmas...

This was perfect for those movie nights that we have together as a family.  We put on a movie and started popping popcorn.  What could be a better combination?!? :) We all snuggled in warm cozy blankets and watched some of those Christmas classic cartoons.


On the 9th Day of Christmas...

On the 9th night we got... :)


Monday, December 20, 2010

On the 8th Day of Christmas...

Tonight when we heard the knock at the door Levi was so excited to run and open the door as well as yell, "Come in..."  I guess that he has picked that up from me because if I know who is at the door I say that from time to time.  I think that it is time to stop saying that and just go and answer the door.  Tonight we got some more goodies!! :) We got a bag full of carmels, as well as a super cute story called, "Grandma's Red Wagon".  Both Glen and I hadn't heard it before, but we really enjoyed reading it to the kids.  Levi and Kimberly were getting ready for bed but when they saw what the treat was, they of course wanted some.  I opened the bag and let them have some before bed.  This has been such a fun time and we look forward to the last few days! :)



On the 7th Day of Christmas...


On the 7th day we recieved 2 boxes of Swedish fish.  Levi when he saw what we recieved said, "Mom...I know how to open these."  I then asked him if he wanted some and he was like... YA!!! So FUN!!  We've been getting lots of goodies :)



On the 6th Day of Christmas...

I was out running errands the during the night when this 6th day came, but when I got home Glen told me that the kids where on the back of the couch peeking out the window with the blinds opened waiting for the family to come and drop off the gift.  I guess they would go back and forth looking out the window.  After a little while of doing this one of the kids said, "DAD....there's a bottle of rootbeer outside on the sidewalk." Glen's favorite!! We plan on having rootbeer floats sometime this week! Yummo!!   The little stinkers, peeking outside :)


On the 5th Day of Christmas...

On the 5th day we recieved a can of golden pinapple rings.  Our family has loved the 12 Days of Christmas being done.  Kimberly and Levi anxiously wait for that door bell to ring so they can go out and get what was left.  It is so much fun to watch the excitement that has been brought to their eyes this Christmas season through the service of another family. The stories have been nice to read in the evening and have helped to bring an extra touch to the spirit of christmas to our family this holiday season. 



Thursday, December 16, 2010

On the 4th Day of Christmas...

Today Glen was getting ready to head out the door to take the movies back to the library, he opened the door just in time to see someone running away in a black coat.  He said that he quickly looked down and saw the gift of day 4 on the step. He shut the door and waited a few minutes before he left.  He told me that he didn't want to ruin the fun for the family that is doing the 12 Days of Christmas on us this year and we enjoy the fun of having it be a mystery. They brought us two boxes of candy and a dollar for the "Red Box".  The story that they brought tonight was "Three Trees". It a great story and has come to be one of my favorites. We will enjoy the candy and movie tomorrow night with our babies.

Day:4

The 3rd Day of Christmas...

The third day of Christmas we were left a can of tomatoe soup and a story called "The Gift of the Magi" by O Henry. We read that story to the children tonight as well and they enjoyed it.  This soup that our mysterious family left for us will sure come in useful this holiday season.

Day:3

On the 2nd Day


The night that we were in the hospital when Glen came home for the evening he found a package of Dove candies, this note and a story "Under Santa's Cap". We read the story to the kids tonight and they enjoyed it while laughing through most of it. It's a cute Christmas poem!


Day:2

Home from the Hospital

Levi has been home from the hospital for a day now and he is doing much, MUCH better! He was excited to be home when we got home and he was even more excited when he found out that Auntie Nicole was bringing over Mc Donald's.  He wanted a hamburger, so that is what he got.  Nicole got Kimberly and Levi a happy meals and Glen and I big macs with fries and a root beer for Glen. (of course) We visited with Nicole for a little bit and then she had to go because Dash was out in the car sleeping. We were very thankful for the dinner that she brought, because I so exhausted from the night before to cook anything.   We ate dinner, I gave Levi a bath and then we all went to bed.  Levi was out right when he laid down and so was I.
This morning when I woke up Glen came in and said that Kimberly just threw up. Glen was a trooper and cleaned it up while I helped Kimberly.  Levi was doing much better even though he is still really sick.  Now I not only have one sick child, I have two.  Kimberly was throwing up all day as well as having diarrhea really bad.  I just checked her temperature and she had a low one of 99.8 so I gave her some ibuprofen.

Levi and Kimberly sitting on the couch eating popcicles.
We were blessed to have Corinne and Mom (Wendy,my mother-in law) come and bring us dinner.Aunt Corinne made taco's with all of the fixens. She also brought Superhero Popsicles with a set that included Ironman (which Levi loves right now!!) frosted animal cookies, coloring books for Levi (Ironman), Princess coloring book for Kimberly and many goodies for the kiddo's.  Mom picked up Krispy Cream Donut's, an Ironman/Superman toy (that's what Levi likes to call it) and a pink ballerina Barbie for Kimberly.  It was nice to see Corinne and Mom and we are very thankful  for all that they have done for us.  Dinner was Super Yummy and very filling. It was nice to have a real meal. :) I believe that my kids are on the mend and only hope and pray that what Kimberly had was a 24 hour bug, lets just say I DO NOT want her to get any worse.


When we came home last night we found out that my Grandma Lloyd had a stroke yesterday and she is in the hospital right now.  We have also had other family who have been in the hospital this last week.  Jandy and Cinda both lost their babies and had to have a D&C.  They both are at home right now and are recovering well.  Our thoughts and prayers are with a lot of family right now as different things are going on in all of our lives. We love our families and friends and are praying for each of them.  Last night as I was tucking Kimberly into bed I asked her what song she wanted me to sing to her and she said, "The Wise Man and the Foolish Man".  As I got to the end of the song where it say's,
"The rains came down and the floods came up
The rains came down and the floods came up,
The rains came down and the floods came up,
and the house on the ROCK stood still." 
I got really chocked up because of everything that has happened the last week with not only my family but my extended family as well.  There has been a flooding of rain, but among the rain even when it has been pouring there has been an out pouring of blessings! I am so THANKFUL to know true principles of the gospel.  I have felt that I have remained strong during everything that has gone on and I know that it has only been possible through the knowledge that I have of my Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ. As I talked to my dear friend Kristin on the phone today and told her everything that has happened she reminded me that the Lord won't give us anything that we can't handle. You know she is right, he won't and I know that to be true. 
As I opened a Dove candy that someone who is doing the 12 days of christmas to us left on our door steps the night we were in the hospital on the inside of the wrapper it says,
"Enjoy the miracle of friendship."
I feel that Heavenly Father is sending an out pouring of tend mercies our way. I have seen new meanings to things that I have known for years.  Like the last section of the primary song above and the affects that sayings in candy wraps can are having on me. As well as the true meaning of service and friendship. The friendships that I have are miracles. There are many of you who have touched and changed mine and my families life's only for the better. We love you! We appreciate you and we are so thankful to have you! I look forward to my kiddo's getting better and hope that they will both be well enough to enjoy Christmas in a few days.  I wanted to say Thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU for the phone calls, the texts, the visits, the dinners, the gifts, the prayers and the love that each of you have given. We are so thankful for the miracle of friendship and love that we have recieved this holiday season! 

Night at the Hospital

This is a photo of Levi the morning after he was admitted into the hospital.  Because he was so sick he was in a solitary confinement room were the nurses and doctors had to get all suited up with masks and coverings before they came into the room..


After everyone left from the hospital Glen stayed for a little bit but then needed to go so that he could get clothes for Kimberly because she was staying the night at my mom's house.  He also needed to feed the horses and get to bed because he had three finals all back to back the nest day.  The first final started Wednesday morning, it was from 8AM-10AM, second final was from 10:30AM-12:30PM and his last final was from 1PM-3PM. 
Glen gave Levi a kiss, told him he loved him and then headed out.  Levi laid down for a little bit, but had a hard time going to sleep.  I think that he might have had a cat nap.  It was around 11PM and he still wasn't asleep he said that he wanted to watch a movie but I was a little hesitate at first because I wanted him to go to sleep.  After about five minutes of thinking it through, he is away from home, staying the night in a strange place, feels like crude, and has all of these cords hooked up to him I told him that if he wanted to watch a movie that it would be okay.  He chose Bambi and we watched Bambi together.  After the movie was over it was close to 1 in the morning and I asked Levi if he could try and go to sleep for me.  He said that he would.  During the night Levi was being monitored with his oxygen levels and they were mostly in between 92-94.  Every now and then the machine would start beeping because it would go below 90 to 88 or 87.  I was concerned because of the way that he was breathing.  To me it just sounded like he was really struggling to get air down his passage way.  I let the nurse know of my concern several times and every time she just keep saying he is just so congested, but his breathing is fine. She would listen to his chest and lungs and she said that they were okay, which was good.  I understood that he was congested and couldn't breath through his nose, that wasn't the issue, he wasn't admitted into the hospital because he was congested, he was admitted because his throat was extremely swollen and his pediatrician was concerned about his breathing.  I felt like I was trying to be patient with her and it was probably the same with her trying to be patient with me.  I was just concerned for my little boy!! His breathing sounded to me HORRIBLE, like he needed help.  But he was breathing, so that was good.  Maybe they wanted him to be breathing on his own to make his lungs work, I don't know.  I did ask what she meant by congested because she kept saying he is just so congested. I told her that I understood that he was congested, that wasn't my concern, my concern is the way he sounded when he took breaths, that was my concern.  Levi ended up waking up in the middle several times and one time he needed to go potty really bad so I called the nurse that was caring for him and she came into help. She helped him out of bed and he went potty.  I ended  up helping her change the bed sheets because they were so soaked from his sweat, that they needed to be changed.  She was really kind to get him a hospital children's gown because his shirt was soaked.  She said that he was sweating so bad because his fever broke and it was his body reacting to everything. We got the bed all made and I tucked Levi back in. I tried to sleep the best that I could and not worry about Levi.  His oxygen monitor would start beeping because his levels would go down to 87-88 and then they would go back up shortly after.  I talked to the nurse again a few times about his breathing but she keep saying the same thing, that he was just really congested. She said that she could send in the respiratory therapist and I said that would be nice. The respiratory therapist finally came in at around 5 in the morning, and she said the same thing, "he is just so congested." YES I KNOW THAT!! MY GOODNESS LADIES....DO YOU BOTH NOT UNDERSTAND, THATS NOT WHAT I AM CONCERNED ABOUT!!!.....LISTEN TO HIM!!! HE SOUNDS RESTRICTED IN HIS THROAT!!. The respiratory therapist asked he snored at home and I told her that he didn't (because he doesn't snore at home) she then goes on to say that some children snore at home and it just sounds worst because he is congested.  I felt like they didn't give a crap about what I was saying or feeling and that they were not listening to me.  I just told you that he doesn't snore at home!!! Geesssh!!!!  He was admitted because of  the swelling  in his throat. She said that her and his nurse were monitoring him closely and that I should contact them if I needed anything. I felt hat his nurse was concerened about my feelings some what, but she wasn't as concerned as I was.It was sad to see Levi the way that he was, but I again tried to go to sleep.  At around 6:15-6:20 the monitor started beeping again but this time his levels didn't go back up, so the nurse came in and told me that she was going to give him oxygen.  Finally at 6:30 in the morning he  received that oxygen that I felt he needed all night.  His levels immediately went back up and stayed at 96.  Levi was up at 8 in the morning and he said that he was hungry so I ordered him pancakes, scrambled eggs and bacon with a banana, which is what he wanted.  When the food came up I prepared his pancakes and he took one bite and his face started to get blotchy from him swallowing his food. He took one bit of his banana, one more bite of his pancakes and his face did the same thing.  He told me that he didn't want anymore because it hurt so bad. I told him that he could try and eat some more at lunch time, but I wanted him to try and drink juice.  The nurse brought in some Popsicles and he ate both of them, which was a good sign.  They took him off the fluids from the IV because they wanted to see him eat and drink on his own, that would be the determining factor if he could go home or not. He had another Popsicles and drank some juice, which was a step in the right direction because I know that he was ready to go home.  He asked me a few times, "Mom, when do we get to go home?" He was ready. I took a few pictures of him before breakfast, he was coloring and and wanting to be a little bit more active then he has been in the last week.



Levi thought it would be nice to watch a few movies while he was there. But before we watched the movies we played a few games of "GO Fish".  We had fun playing it together and every time I didn't have a card that he needed he would say, "Oh MANN!" in his raspy little voice, because he would have to draw from the Go Fish pile.  We played three or four games and he beat me every time, with out me trying to let him win.  He thought it was fun to beat Mommy :)  We watched the Bee Movie, Incredibles and The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.  While we were watching these movies we had one of the doctors come in with some new resident doctors so that Levi could be their Teacher and allow them to look in his throat so they could see his tonsils. Dr. Thompson came in right after I ordered lunch for Levi and I, he looked in Levi's throat and said that his tonsils looked much better, still swollen with puss patches , but much better to the point where he could see a space in between his tonsils.  YAY!! That haven't looked that well in a week! He wanted to see how Levi did with lunch and if he did well then he would allow Levi to go home later that afternoon. Levi had Mac and Cheese, broccoli and a chocolate shake. He ate probably 6-7 bites of his mac and cheese and a couple bites of brocilli and then he was done, but that was the most he had eaten in days. He drank probably a quarter of his chocolate shake off and on. But the Dr. Thompson  gave the okay for him to be discharged.
As we were waiting we played a few more games of Go Fish and then Glen came to the hospital after his finals and he played a few games with us as well.  We left the hospital at around 5:30PM.  
I am so thankful that we went to the hospital because the fluids from the IV helped to hydrate Levi and the steroids helped the swelling in his throat to go down significantly.  I know that the Lord has been with us and I am so thankful for all of the prayers in Levi's behave. Stephen went to the temple on Wednesday morning and put Levi's name in and I know that helped a great deal as well as all of the other prayers.  I believe that we have family to be there to help support us through our ups and our downs.  I believe that we need to inform our families when situations arise.  When we were in the hospital and I was talking to Ashley she said that she was so thankful that we let them know about what was going on.  She talked about a lesson that she just had on Sunday about the power of prayer in numbers and how we need heavens help in numbers and that families need to be close and situations like these make us stronger as individuals and as families. I am so glad that she said that to me, because I feel that it was something that I needed to hear.  What she said is something that I will remember and will keep close to my heart.  Levi was so excited to go home.
When we got home my good friend Nicole brought over dinner from McDonald's for the whole family.  I am thankful for her service that she provided and appreciate it VERY MUCH! :)  Sometimes I feel that it is hard to accept help from others, but I am so thankful and humbled by the service, love, prayers, dinners, and support that our family and friends have given to Levi, Glen, Kimberly and I. 

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Admitted into the Hospital

After we came home from Dr. Garners we got the prescription that would help the swelling in Levi's tonils go down.  After about an hour of being home Levi was out and fell asleep on the couch, but I noticed that his breathing seemed to be bad, almost as he was gasping a little bit for each breathe.  I called Humphrey's office and had the oppurtunity to speak to her over the phone.  She told that she would like to see him right away and so we were off to the doctors for a second time today.  At Carrie Humphrey's doctors office Levi's vitals were low, his oxegon level was at 89-90 which concerned the nurse.  After his doctor examined him she said that she feels that it would be best for Levi to admitted into the hospital, so she called St. Lukes in downtown Boise and admitted him in to stay over night.  Here we are at the hospital again.  They had to put in an IV because he was so dehydrated, for the steriods as well as other meds if they are needed.  This time the IV experience was not nearly as dramatic. They numbed his hand with what they called a "J Shot" which isn't a shot at all but puts lydicane into the hand threw a force of air.  There were three nurses there and once it came time for the IV to go in, Levi sat on Glen's lap and I read him a story about Elmo and friends.  The nurse put in the IV and I subconiously waited for him to scream, but.......he didn't scream, twich, move, nothing. I was so proud of him.  He is one brave little boy.  I know that I hate IV's and the last time I had one I had silent tears.  After the were done taping the IV down and his hand on to the board (so that it would stay straight) the nurses let Levi pick out a toy from their toy bucket.  He picked a 35 piece Nemo puzzle. Once he got back to the room Glen opened the puzzle for him and he had it put together in less than 10 minutes.  One of the nurses brought him in a coloring book, crayons and some toy cars that he could play with.
I just wanted to say that through out this process we have told a few people about Levi's condition, but tonight I felt that it would be approperiate to inform all of the immediate family so that they could pray for him.  I feel overwhelmed with being blessed with an AMAZING family.  Allan was one of the first to respond to the text that I sent out and he was very concerned for Levi as well as Glen and I. Corinne, Ashley and Donny and Ann also all responded are were very concerned.  We were blessed to have the company of Donny and Ashley for a little bit and enjoy their company while we were visiting.  They brought Levi a balloon, twisty crayons, notebook, and a go fish card game.  They also brought me a People magizine and some M&M's.  We appreciate everything that they do for us and we are very thankful to have such close family that can be there and support each other.  My mom, dad, Stephen and kimberly came over to visit as well.  Levi told me that he wanted to see Kimberly before he went to sleep.  It was nice to have family with us during this struggle in Levi's life and Glen and I appreciate the love, prayers and concern for our son.   

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Update on Levi

We took Levi into Dr. Garners office this morning for him to be seen and the doctor check out his throat.  Levi is still extremely swollen and if the swelling doesn't go down then they will consider surgery to remove Levi's tonsils.  Right now at this point his tonsils are to big to do anything, so Dr. Garner gave Levi a prescription that would help with the swelling go down.  The nurse is going to call and see how Levi is doing and he has a follow up appointment to see Dr. Garner in a couple of weeks.  As for now Levi is resting, he sleeps a lot and he is able to have all of the Popsicles that he wants.  Right now our goal is to get the swelling down, fever down and to keep him hydrated.  Both Glen and I were really worried about him last night with his breathing and we set the alarm so that we could wake up to check on him.  The doctors say that it will be a while before he start to really get to feeling back to his normal self.  I glad that I am done with classes.  I just want to be home taking care of little guy.

Monday, December 13, 2010

12 Days of Christmas...

We have wanted to do the 12 days of Christmas on someone for the last few years, but it hasn't ever fallen into place for it to work out.  With school being so busy by the time that we think of it again it is too late to start because we wouldn't get through all of the days.  Well I really wanted to do the 12 Days of Christmas on someone this year, but with the recent sickness of Levi and the fact that we only a one car family now for a while I am at home taking care of my babies.  Instead of us having the opportunity to bless the lives of a family this year with doing the 12 Days of Christmas someone is blessings our lives by doing the 12 Days of Christmas to us. To be honest it is humbling to have this done. We will take this time and allow this service to be ours this Christmas and feel the joy and love that others have to give to our little family, as well as teach our children that it is good to give service just as it is to except it to allow others the blessings of doing so. 

I am going to take a picture of the things that are left on our step to document this Christmas experience.

DAY: 1

Sunday, December 12, 2010

After a Doctor Visit and TWO Hospital Visits, Levi has.....WHAT?!?!

Levi with his new teddy from the hospital, sleeping in his Ironman costume (of course) and the story of his illness.


On December 10, 2010 on a Friday evening I started to notice that Levi was sounding differently. I thought that maybe he might just be starting to get a cold and I wasn't to worried about it. On Saturday morning he sounded a lot worst and was complaining of his throat hurting so I looked in his throat with a flash light and his tonsils were HUGE with puss patches all over them. I decided to take him into the Primary Health that is near our house on Eagle and HWY 44. I was sitting at the desk up front filling out paper work, when he told me that his tummy wasn't feeling very good. We had luckily brought with us a throw up bag from my surgery a few months ago that the hospital gave to me. Needless to say he ended up throwing up in the bag and thankfully all of it went in the bag. I am so happy that it did because I know that I wouldn't have enjoyed cleaning it up and I am sure that the ladies working that day wouldn't have enjoyed it either. Since Levi throw up out at the front desk they were able to get us in right away, back into a room. The nurse took his temperature and he had a low one at 99.8 degree's F. They ended up swabbing his throat to test it for strep, but they said that it came back negative. The physician ended up giving him a prescription for amoxicillin and sent us home.
I ended up going out with some friends for lunch at the Olive Garden and when I came home I looked at Levi and his neck was HUGE. I told Glen that the swelling had gotten much larger from the time that I left until now. We decided that I would take him into the hospital to be check out. We got in right away. The nurses took his vitals and he seemed to be okay. His temperature was only at 99.1 which wasn't to high, but his throat was really swollen. Since his throat was so swollen they decided that they would need to give him a steroid shot. Before they gave him the shots they gave him a cute cuddly teddy bear, a coloring book and some crayons to help make him feel better. After they gave him his teddy bear he looked up at me and said, "Look mom... they gave me a teddy bear, I have a teddy bear now." He looked at the teddy bear and then gives it a big hug while saying, "I love this teddy bear." He is so sticken cute with some of the phrases that he says and is always so thankful for the things he receives. They ended up dividing the dose into two and giving him two shots one in each of his butt cheeks on his bottom. Needless to say the dose they gave him was the maximum amount that they could give to a four year. He did not like the shots and I had to hold him on my nap facing me while the nurses gave him the shots. They didn't have any band-aids by the bed, but they stopped the bleeding and put his pants and underwear back on. He insisted that he needed a band-aid because then it would make it better. I asked the nurse (Grandma Lue)if she could find him some. She found some normal band-aids and then got some stickers to put on top of the band-aid to make it fun for him. Lets just say that after the bands were on he felt much better and was asleep less than five minutes later. After a little cat nap of maybe 15-20 minutes he woke up screaming about his arm hurting. He just keep on saying, "My arm...it HURTS...IT HURTS...MY ARM....MOMMY MY ARM HURTS!!! It just broke my heart to hear him scream like that. One of the nurses came in to see what was the matter and I told her that his arm is hurting, but that I thought it might have just fallen asleep. She checked his neck and then his back to make sure that he wasn't having an allergic reaction to the steroids. When she was checking him she mention that he was really warm and I asked if they wouldn't mind rechecking his temperature. She checked his temp and it had spiked from 99.1 to 104.4 in less then an hour. As I mother that was scary to me because if his temperature got to high it could be a concern with brain damage. They didn't seem to concerned because he wasn't acting abnormal. I guess that children can have their temperature spike like that. After about three hours of being in the hospital they discharged us and we were able to go home. They wanted Levi to come back if anything had worsen and they wanted to see him on Sunday to make sure that his lymphoids hadn't become infected because of how swollen they were.
When we got home I asked Glen if he could give Levi a blessing, we ended up calling my dad to see if he was available to come and help. When my parents got to our house we got ready for them to give Levi a blessing. Glen asked Levi if he wanted Daddy to give the blessing or Grandpa. Levi said that he wanted Grandpa Lloyd to give it. My dad gave him a nice blessing that I will record later. My parents stayed and visited for a while and we all had hot coco to enjoy together.
On Sunday morning Levi seemed to be doing better. His throat was still swollen, and he had a low temp, but was up being active and playing. One of the nurses called from the ER to see how Levi was doing and I told her that he was doing better and that we probably wouldn't be coming in. She told me to call if anything changed. Later that evening after I gave Levi some amoxicillin his eyes started to water really bad, he just keep wiping them and complaining about them stinging. The his lips started to swell, he ears got really red, and he started to get blotchy red patch's on his neck. I called the ER and informed them of what was going on and they told me that I should bring him in right away. We called a friend to see if we could drop Kimberly off and she said that was fine. We ended up dropping Kimmi off at a good friends house Kara Stiek. When we got to the hospital they took his vitals, his heart rate was pretty high and his temperature was at 100.4. They ended up wanting to do an x-ray of his neck to make sure that there wasn't a mass that was pushing on his tonsils to make them swell more. As we were waiting to be taking back our nurse Mike put on the movie Racing Stripes for Levi. (He had started it yesterday, so he wanted to start the movie were we left off the night before) We watched the movie for about 20 minutes before they wheeled him off. I was able to stay in the room with a shield on while the technician took x-ray pictures of Levi's neck. Levi did a really good job standing very still while he took the pictures. We then went back to the room to wait for the results. While we had been at the hospital Levi eyes were draining so much that he had gone through a complete whole role of toilet paper to wipes his eyes and nose. He was able to enjoy a Popsicles, and a can of apple juice while we waited for the results from the x-ray. We had a couple of nurses come in and check Levi's vitals a couple of times. His fever had gone up to 101.8. One of the female nurses came in to tell us that she was going to need to put in an IV to get some blood from Levi because they needed to test him for mono and they wanted it there just in case they needed to give him some more meds. We finished watching Racing Strips and then we started it again so that Glen could see it from the beginning.
It soon came time for the nurses to prep Levi for the IV and they put some numbing cream on his arm and then put a clear medical tape on top of it, that Levi pocked at for a little bit. It was a squishy feeling that Levi though was cool to play with. I remember Levi laying down in the medical bed and then turning back to look at me, he then said, "Mom I had a surgery on my butt, just like YOU, one right here (as he gently pats his left butt cheek) and one over here (as he pats his right butt cheek)and now I just had one right here on my arm, just like you mom. He hadn't yet gotten the IV in, but the way he said that was so stinken cute!! I couldn't help but to chuckle a little and tell Glen what we said. We just let him think that the shots that he got the day before was his own little surgery. The nurses came in, turned on the light, we stopped the movie and I think that Levi could sense that something was going on because as they sat down and told him to was time to take the tape off he started to get a little bit scared. They took the tape off and then when they started to wipe off the cream he really started to freak out. He keep saying, "NOOOO....I DON'T WANT IT!!!! NOOOO!!! (little tears just came racing down his little red cheeks and face, as he tried his hardest to let them know that he did not want the IV) NOOOO!!!, HE SCREAMED...."PLEASE DON'T DO THAT .....PLEASE I DON'T WANT THAT....NOOOO....MOMMY....PLEASE.....NOOO!!!!" He turned his back to them and just held on to his little arm for dear life. He didn't want them to touch him at ALL!! He then laded on his stomach gripping his arm as tight as he could. Glen and I tired our best to reassure him that everything was going to be okay and that the nurses knew what they were doing. I told Levi to look at me and then said, "Mommy and Daddy are right here and everything is going to be okay. You need to turn over so the nurses can help you." "No, Mom I don't want too." It took everything I had to fight back the tears from streaming down my face because of the reaction from my son. I needed to be strong and I wished that I could take his place but I knew that he needed the IV. I told him that I was going to turn him over, but that I was there. I picked him up and turned him onto his back. One of the nurses grabbed his arm as the nurse putting the IV got ready. I told Levi to look at me and a second later it was in. They drew he blood that they needed and then he looked down at the IV and told the nurses that he wanted a band-aid to put on it. Everyone in the room kind of chuckled, because he wasn't concerned with the IV in his arm he was concerned about a band-aid. They ended up putting on a bright green wrap around the IV and his arm. After all of that he asked if he could have another Popsicle. They told him that he could have all of the Popsicles that he wanted, that he did a great job and was a brave little boy. After about an hour of waiting Dr. Wyatt came into the room and informed us that Levi was positive for Mono. They gave him a dose of steroids through the IV and then discussed with us that we needed to see Dr. Garner to have further treatment for his throat. We were discharged soon after. He was given a couple of prescriptions and we were told that he was to stop taking the amoxicillian. He has an appointment for tomorrow morning with Dr. Garner and we'll see what he says about the swelling in his throat. He has been resting pretty much the whole day. I haven't seen him sleep this long since he was a baby. I know that this isn't that most positive entry, but it is one that I felt I needed to record. I guess that Mono can last up to 50 days being contagious and that we just need to be extremely careful with him. One of the things that I won't forget about is Levi referring to his shots and IV as a "surgery". I just laugh every time that I think about it and the way that he said it with his little muffled voiced, just brings a smile to my face. I took a couple of pictures of him sleeping and you can see his eyes are still a little red, but they are much better from last night. I will definitely keep this situation updated with entries. The doctors and physicians that we saw have been absolutely wonderful!! Grandma Lue called this morning to see how Levi was doing today. I really appreciate their care and concern for him. I feel that they have been extremely professional and sensitive with our situation. I know that with prayers, faith and rest he will get better soon.

Almost DONE!!! & Heavens blessings upon us...

The semester is almost over and we have been through quite a few challenges, but we have received some many blessings as well. Glen has been cramming hours upon hours of school and when I say that I am not kidding. He has been working on the Lego graphics drawing assignment that has completely consumed his life, as well as his other studying for his 5 classes and two labs that he is taking. For the last week or so he has been getting up at AM (if not earlier sometimes) and then he doesn't get to bed until like 1 or 2 in the morning. He is literally going ALL day non stop. He finally got the project done yesterday (December 11, 2010) at around PM in the evening. He had to print a whole bunch of papers that we might as well call it a book. He has two finals on Monday and then three finals all back to back in a row on Wednesday. I think that he might have a half an hour break in between each final, but then after that he is done for the semester!!! YAY!! He has worked really hard and deserves a nice break from all of that studying for a while, all though he does have work full time with the Research Department at Boise State University that will keep him busy. He needs to work 60 hours the first two weeks to catch up on some time from the semester. Glen only has three more semesters left and then he'll have his bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering. We are excited for that time to come :) I am extremely PROUD of my husband!!! I know that he works really hard to get the best grades that he can and on top of that he still works extremely hard to be able to provide for the family.
With this semester it has been so busy, and we have hardly had time to breathe let alone do anything else. There was a month during the semester where we were concerned with making our mortgage payment. With my surgery I wasn't able to bring anything in for a month if not more than that and Glen took some time off to help me. November mortgage was coming up and we had maybe a few dollars in our bank account, not nearly enough to pay all the bills and mortgage. We needed to pay tithing and decided to do so, having faith that things would work out. The next day Glen received a call from Doug (from the Home Depot Window installs that Glen subcontracts for) he was calling to inform Glen about two jobs that he had coming up that he was wondering if Glen could get done that week on Thursday. I remember Glen calling me telling me that he just got a couple of windows jobs and that it would help bring in some money to pay for some of the mortgage. We felt blessed and excited that the Lord had heard and answered our prayers. Thirty minutes went by and Doug called Glen again saying that he just got one more window job for Glen that was scheduled on Saturday. With the last call that totaled three window jobs for the week. Glen was able to juggle his schedule around with school and work with Research to get the jobs done and still keep up with all of his responsibilities from school. About a week later when it was time for the mortgage to be paid, Glen got paid from the Home Depot for the recent window jobs that he did, totaling $795.00, well it just so happens that our mortgage is $795.00. We received an answer to our prayers with a temporal need to help keep a roof over our heads to the PENNY. Some people might say that it was just a coincidence and some what say that it happened out of sure luck. I don't believe that it was either. What I do know is that we have a Heavenly Father who knows us and the things that we need. I know that we were blessed from paying tithing and I am forever in debt to my kind and Loving Heavenly Father. I feel blessed to be a part of this gospel, to know of it's truths and to know that we have a Heavenly Father who knows us, our needs, desires, worries, wants and he loves us. What a great blessing it is to know these things in my life! I know that with faith all things are possiable and that when we pay tithing it is a great blessing that blesses us with both spiritual and temporal needs.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Summer Trip to San Diego Zoo: Part I

I was just on here and I had my post all reading to publish when I accidently pushed a button on the key board and just like that.....everything I had typed out was GONE!! Oh technology, my relationship with you is a love/hate!!! There are time that you work so well for me and other times when you delet everything out of the blue that I worked so hard on. In attemps to repost here I am going to try it out again. ;)
This year Glen and I decided that we were going to start a family tradition of going on vacation every year with our children. This is something that we both feel strongly about is an experience that we would like to share with our children year year as they are growing up and maybe even continue when they get married, but that is years down the road and only time will tell to see if it conitues into the adulthood.
This past spring Glen and I were trying to decided where we would like to take our children on vacation. I have heard wonderful things about San Diego and how there is so much to do there, but didn't really think that it was in our budget, so the thought went to the side and I was planning on going to the Orgen coast, which is absoluetly beautiful. I was looking into vacation homes on the ocean shore and different activities to do while we were there. There is a really fun acquirium to go to, whale watching tours, site seeing, and of course playing on the beach. I was getting all of the pricing ready, when Glen came up to me one day and asked what I thought about going to San Diego. I told him that I would love it but I didn't think that it was in your budget this year. He then asked me if I had a choice to go to San Diego or to the Orgen Coast which one would I chose? After we talked to the kiddo's we decided that San Diego was going to be the place for our vacation this summer. I went online and started to shop around for a quality hotel at a reasonable price. I found the Sherdaon Hotel and Marina on the shore of the ocean and it fit with our budget so I booked us for three night. I found an awesome deal at Costco for 3 for 1 passes to the San Deigo Zoo, Sea World and the Wild Animal Park with unlimited visits to each for 5 days. There were other activites that I looked at but needless to say or time down there was filled with more activities then we had schedule time for.
We arrrived in San Diego in between 6 and 7 in the evening,checked into our Hotel and rested from our drive from Las Vegas. There was a lot of landry that we needed to do from the Purnell Bear Lake Reuion and our Las Vegas trip with Ann and Alex. We bought some laundry soap and Glen stayed up super late finishing our laundry at the Hotel so that we would have clean clothes to wear for the rest of the trip. We started our day of adventures going to the San Diego Zoo. We first went on the Bus Tour where we sat on top of the bus going around the park over looking the zoo animals and beautiful that was there. While on the tour we saw....

Vegas Bound......

After the family reunion was over we met up with my sister Ann and her son Alex in Las Vegas and spent a day there with them. It was some much fun! Glen, Ann and Alex went on "Speed the Ride" and Alex was a little nervous to go on it in the first place. For those of you that have ridden this ride you know how FAST to goes the whole time. I wish that I would have had a camcorder when they took off and the react of Alex when they got back it was pretty funny. It totally took him by surprise. Ann ended up Jump off the Space Needle in Vegas called Sky Jump, which she absolutely loved! We did was site seeing, shopping and swimming. Rainforst Cafe Speed the ride.
Alex's face was PRICELESS when they came back from what seemed like less than a minute ride. I believe that it was a little FAST for him.....Ann and Glen thought that it was pretty fast as well.
























Ann did the Sky Jump in Las Vegas and ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT!!! She couldn't stop jumping around after she hit the ground. I do believe that it was quite a thrill for her. Great Job Ann!!! Better you than me, because I know that you wouldn't see up there.