Happy Thanksgiving....

Since I am not sure if I will have a chance to write tomorrow, (highly unlikely!!) I wanted to take a moment now to share with all of you some of the things that I am grateful for. I have so much to be grateful for and if I should be required to list everything I would not have space enough here to do it and I am positive that I would not be able to do it complete justice! So I am going to stick with just a few of the most important things to me!
Without overstating the obvious, I am so grateful for my family. Specifically, I am grateful for my husband and my three sweet little boys! I can't imagine how I got so lucky. Despite the fact that I am woefully imperfect, they love me unconditionally! I am grateful for their perfect love. I am so grateful to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Anything and everything that is a blessing in my life is as a result of my membership in the true church. I have the opportunity to partake of the sacrament every week, I enjoy temple blessings, I had the priveledge of serving a full time mission, a knowledge of the Plan of Happiness, and plenty of opportunities to serve in the church.
One of the blessings I am grateful for is the power of the priesthood. I have always had faith in priesthood blessings and yet over the last 6 months my testimony has grown, I have witnessed miracle after miracle as a result of worthy men exercising the priesthood power on behalf of Ian. I know without a doubt in my heart, or mind that it is the power of God to heal and to bless, bestowed upon worthy men to act in His name.
I am grateful for loving friends and family who have prayed and fasted for our family. I am grateful to a loving Father in Heaven, who has not left us alone through this scary time. Truly we have not been required to shoulder this burden alone. All of you have carried it with us. Thank you! It would have been unbearable without all of your love, thoughts, prayers, kindness and service. I look forward to the day that Mike and I can be on the other side of the fence, serving and loving others in need and not having to think of this challenge.
I know that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ live. I know that They know us individually and that They love us with perfect love. I know that the church is true, that the gospel has been restored in its fulness. The Book of Mormon is the word of God and I am so grateful for my knowledge of the truth. I love you all and I hope you all have a very wonderful and happy Thanksgiving!

No more "Hank".....

Well, Ian finally did it....did what you ask, he yanked his NG tube (aka: Hank) out this morning around 4am. He woke me up calling for me and by the time I got to his bed, he had already thrown up all over his pajamas and his bed. So I turned off the pump (aka: Fred) and held the puke pail for him to finish. Anyhow, when he throws up, his tube usually comes out a little, no big deal I just push it back in... not this morning... it came out quite a bit and as I was trying to gently put it back in, I must have hit a tender spot because he slapped my hand away and yanked the tube all the way out at the same time. I just looked at him and laughed. To be a little honest I am kind of glad to have it out....

Of course I called his doctors this morning and explained what had happened and to my complete delight they said we could see how he does over the next few days without it. I am so happy! He ate really well this morning and when I say really well, I mean for a kid who has undergone chemo and transplant. At any rate, I hope he doesn't have to have the tube put back in. Now all I have to do is convince the doctors they can have his Broviac line (aka: Gertrude) taken out. YAY! That probably won't happen for awhile though. It's amazing how just having the NG tube out has brightened my day.... it's hard to see my little guy walking around with a tube coming out his nose and not think "he's sick".

Bryce

Computer time for Bryce
Bryce all ready for bed after a nice warm bath


Bryce helping grandma Jackson carve a pumpkin

Bryce playing pilot at the Air Museum here on Hill AFB

Pilot in training!

Yesterday, Bryce and I went to see Madagascar 2. The movie was good and the company was even better. It has been so long since I have had the opportunity to go do something with just Bryce. I really enjoy spending time with him, he's becoming so independent and he loves to hold a conversation and he asks tons of questions. What a neat kid! The last six months have been hard on him and he has had to give up so much. He kept asking me yesterday if I was going to take him to school. I love to see his enthusiasm for school and so we talked about it for awhile, why he likes school and why he wants to go. He asked me "Will my teacher love me?" I assured him that his teachers would love him. On the way home from the theater Bryce was quitely singing one of the songs from the movie ("I like to move it move it, you like to move it move it"), he was so quiet about it and so I asked him to sing louder. That is one of the things that I love about him, he loves to sing, and he has a beautiful voice, of course you realize I am biased. He loves to play on the computer at DisneyPlayHouse and he is really good at figuring out how to play the games. One of his favorite activities of late is to go with his grandma Jackson to the Air Museum here on base and try on flight suits and get into the planes. He continues to have a TON of energy and is all over the place, laughing and running and most of the time not following directions. Sometimes I wonder if he will ever learn to follow directions the first time...??? Most of all I love to see him playing with his brother Ian and asking me if he can hold Spencer. He loves being a big brother. I remember when I was pregnant with him, I asked Heavenly Father to bless me with a little boy with a great sense of humor, and I got it. He has a great sense of humor and more often than not he cracks himself up. LOL! To Bryce everyone is his friend, while I love that he is not shy, I certainly hope that he learns stranger danger. I am so blessed to have Bryce as my little boy and I love him so much!

Spencer

I write so much about Ian, that sometimes I forget to update on my other sweet little boys. I thought I would share a few cute pics of Spencer. He is growing so fast and I am convinced that his first year is going faster than either Bryce or Ians. He has brought us so much happiness. Truly he has been the joyful distraction amidst all the ugliness of the last 6 months. He is a crack up and such an easy baby. He has been so spoiled by all the attention at the hospital. Doctors and nurses want to take him home with them. As a result of being loved on all the time, he thinks that he needs to be held all the time, not an easy thing to do when I have three kids crying for my attention. Bryce and Ian just adore him and I love to watch them as they make Spencer laugh. I feel so blessed to have all three of my boys. I certainly have done nothing of myself to deserve their unconditional love. I hope that I can always be worthy of their trust and love. Outside of my membership in the Lords true church, and my temple marriage, my boys are my greatest blessing!!!

One of the most recent pics of Spencer - 10 months old!

9 months old - what a cutie!

Three days shy of his 7 month B-day

About three and 1/2 months old -

Spencers Birthday-just hours old...

Update....

Notice the Ben 10 watch, he wasn't completely dressed for his clinic visit without his watch.

Just a quick update on Ian. He will be home a week tomorrow and we are enjoying every minute with him home and we are especially happy to not have to take him back to the hospital! He had a clinic visit this last Friday and he has grown, so now he is 38 inches tall and he isn't even three yet. All of his lab work looked good, although his liver enzymes were slightly elevated, along with another measurements, called bands. I don't understand completely what that measurement is, however the nurse practioner said that between the two, with them both being slightly elevated it could indicate the start of a bacterial infection. I didn't think it was but they drew blood to do cultures. I was right it wasn't anything, the cultures didn't grow a thing in 24 hours. I am so grateful that all is well. Ian is doing better everyday! He drinks more everyday and trys to eat. He will be on an NG tube for awhile, but the good news is that he seems to be tolerating his feeds better and better. We had to start giving him his prevacid at night because he was having such heart burn and acid reflux. Poor kid! Otherwise he is having the best time playing with Bryce.

Going Alien....

Ian and grandpa, notice the watch and his phone. They're always with him.
Bryce and his watch.... can't play on the computer without it. By the way nice hair Bryce. LOL!

Bryce watching Ben 10, he's preparing to go Alien.
A nap isn't a nap unless you have THE watch.

So Bryce and Ian are HUGE fans of a cartoon called Ben 10. One guess who got them hooked on this one, Mike of course. We don't have Direct TV anymore (thank goodness), however, Mike was able to track down 5 seasons of Ben 10 on disc at Toys R Us. The last couple months have been one never ending watch - a - thon of Ben 10.
So what is Ben 10 you may ask, briefly, it's about a boy named Ben who comes across a watch that allows him to become 10 different super hero aliens. The watch is permanently attatched to his wrist and along with his cousin and grandpa they save the day from bad guys and other aliens. There is also some small lesson to be learned. It isn't a bad cartoon, although if you don't want your kids watching a cartoon about alien heros, then this is definitely not the one to watch.
The point of my sharing all of this with you is because Mike found Ben 10 watches at Toys R Us and now Bryce and Ian are the proud owners of their very own Ben 10 watch. The funny part is that both boys eat, sleep, and play with these watches. The only time they take them off, is with bath time and then I have to talk them into it. The good part is that if they are being naughty, then all I have to do is threaten to take away their watch and suddenly they are better, at least for about 5 minutes. We have actually taken their watches from them and you would have thought the world had come to an end. Anyway, I took a couple of pics with the boys and their beloved super alien watches.

SURPRISE!!!!

We got the biggest surprise today. Ian got to come home two days earlier than expected. We are so happy to have him home finally. Just knowing that we don't have anymore scheduled hospitalizations makes us so happy! Of course if Ian should get seriously ill, then he will have to be hospitalized again. In the mean time, Ian will have to be seen at the Oncology/Bone Marrow Transplant clinic weekly for the next hundred days. After that, he will be followed closely but will have less frequent visits to the clinic. We have officially entered the wait and see phase of Ian's treatment. I wish everything could just go back to "normal" today.... but I'm not sure if I know what "normal" is anymore. Ian still requires nutrition assistance, he isn't getting TPN (IV nutrition anymore), but he does have an NG tube (tube down his nose to his stomach) through which he will be receiving nutrition. They say it could be as much as two months with an NG tube, also if things don't go well with the NG tube feeds, then they will have to start TPN again. I pray and hope that Ian's appetite will return sooner than later and that his mouth, throat and belly will heal sooner than later. The doctor said that Ian will have to relearn what it means to be hungry and feel full. At this point, I would rather be dealing with teaching Ian how to eat again, rather than dealing with a malignant brain tumor. It's interesting how my perspective has changed most things just aren't that scary anymore or even difficult!
I just want to thank all of you who have prayed and fasted for our family and for Ian. I know that Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers. Please continue to remember Ian in your prayers. He still has a long way to go before he is completely healed. We love you all!

A Ghost....

On Halloween, grandpa Jackson stayed with Ian at the hospital so that Mike, grandma Jackson and I could spend Halloween with Bryce and Spencer. I took Bryce to Wal-Mart earlier in the day to pick up some candy for the ward trunk or treat and also look for a costume. I asked him, "What do you want to be for Halloween?" and he replied "A ghost!!!!" Well that should be easy enough I thought, white sheets were expensive and so I just bought white table cloth and trimmed away the excess material and cut out some eye holes. Bryce was thrilled to pieces! Every door he trick or treated at knew exactly what he was. This year was so much fun with Bryce, he really got into the whole experience! What FUN!!!! Spencer was not amused with his crab costume! We had Ian wear that costume last year and funny enough Ian didn't like it either. LOL! We also visited Ian up at the hospital and brought him a Halloween gift bag, with some of his favorite activities, like wooden puzzles and a Ben 10 Sticker book. He wasn't interested in candy, mostly because his mouth is so tender and also because everything tastes so funny!

Our Biker Boy....

So just before Spencer was born, Mike, Bryce and Ian made a trip the Harley Davidson store in Boise and purchased this cute outfit for Spencer. He is finally big enough to wear it. We think he is adorable.....

Tagged Again.... this time a little different....

I am: a daughter of God, a wife, a mother, a sister, a friend, an individual, a return missionary, a student, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints....
I know: that all will be well if we follow the prophet....
I want: too many things...LOL! On a serious note I want my boys to be safe, love the gospel of
Jesus Christ, for them to be faithful, and to know how much their mommy and daddy
love them and how grateful we are to be their parents.
I have: a wonderful family and amazing friends!
I dislike: anything that makes Satan happy!
I miss: Mt Home 3rd Ward, my extended family who live in other states....
I feel: hopeful and happy. Occassionally I feel overwhelmed and disappointed....
I hear: Bryce and Ian laughing and enjoying eachother's company after being apart for days...
I smell: the scent of freshly laundered clothes and a clean house....
I crave: Chinese Food....
I search: for lost toys, new gadgets to add to this blog, and the scriptures to find peace....
I wonder: about a lot of things!!!!
I regret: not being kinder, more patient, more forgiving, more understanding, a better mom, a
better wife, a better friend.... so much to work on!
I love: the gospel, my Savior, my family, traveling, being with friends and family, scrapbooking,
journaling, and sewing....
I care: about family and friends....
I worry: about Ian's cancer coming back.... even though I know the Lord has promised to heal
him. I need to show forth more faith...
I remember: when all I had to worry about on my mission was teaching the gospel of Jesus
Christ. Oh to be worry and distraction free.......
I dance: around the house with Bryce and Ian .... cheek to cheek to the tunes of Brad Paisley...
the boys love it!
I argue: with Mike... more often than I would like to admit, mostly because I am opionated and
bossy....
I write: on this blog and in my journal and sometimes an email....
I win: most games of Boggle I play with most everyone.....
I lose: most games of Monopoly I play with my sister Chloe...
I wish: Ian was home, there wasn't so much hate in the world, I wasn't in debt, I could go back
school, I had more time to sew.....
I listen: to episode after episode of Ben 10 and Scoobie Doo, sometimes my I-pod when I do
housework or when I am driving to Primary Children's Hospital....
I can usually be found: at the hospital taking care of Ian and Spencer.... at home I am
usually found cleaning, playing with Bryce or on the computer.....
I am scared: of evil, and of Ian suffering....
I need: more sleep, more hours in a day, more routine, more patience, more faith.....
I forget: stuff at home that I need to take to the hospital.....
I am happy: when I am doing what Heavenly Father wants me to do...when I am with my
family....
I tag: whoever wants to be tagged.....