City Deals

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Citydeals.com If you haven't shopped there before, you should start! I get tons of restaurant certificates for half off and also places like Sparetime Family Fun Center in Roy and Surf and Swim. Its a very affordable way to spend time doing fun things as a family or for fun cheap dates. If you haven't ordered from there before, use this link:

http://www.citydeals.com/?ref=CDUNTU4NTk

I will get credit for referring you...which I would LOVE. Thanks in advance, happy shopping!!

XTERRA

David had the brilliant idea to run in the Xterra race today. He registered for it over the summer figuring he would have plenty of time to train. Well, it sounded good in theory but didn't happen how he wanted. He would run a mile to 4 miles a few times a week and every now and again he would add a hill to his run. He also wanted to diet so that he was in better health overall....which didn't happen. He loves to eat and when he eats, its a large portion! He loves drinking pop and drank it right up until 5 days ago. So it seemed like the odds were against him. He decided to set realistic goals:

1- Finish the race alive

2- Finish in under 2 1/2 hours

3- Run the entire race

This is one of the most difficult races around. It features a 2,300 foot climb from pineview resevoir to Snowbasin Resort. Now I'll remind you that 2,300 foot climb is in 12.5 miles. David made me proud! He finished the race alive! He completed the race in 2 hours 5 minutes coming in 98th out of 225 participants. He did have to walk and said it was a gorgeous trail. He said that when he was walking it was more like he was hiking. He met 2 of his 3 goals which I think is absolutely amazing! I'm so proud of him and I know without a doubt I couldn't have finished if you gave me all day. I just found out that he actually qualified to run in the Xterra Trail Running World Championship that is held in Hawaii on the island of Oahu on December 5th. Too bad we don't have the funds to go, because thats an opportunity that doesn't come often.

Great Deal

Ok, I usually don't post about things like this but this is a great deal! I was going to be buying Beauty and the Beast because it is Davids favorite of the princess movies...and we only have it on VHS. My friend let me know about a great deal on Freebies2deals. Go check it out:

http://www.freebies2deals.com/2010/09/tinkerbell-and-great-fairy-rescue-blu.html

It would all need to be done tonight or tomorrow in order to make it work right.

I'm not a huge fan of Tinkerbell, but the girls like her and why not when its so cheap?! I hope this has helped at least one person out there save money.

Babies

Ok, my girls are absolutely OBSESSED with the idea of having a baby. They have been this way for a week straight. I on the other hand am not a fan of the idea and neither is David. Kadence came into the kitchen the other day while I was making lunch and showed me her doll wrapped in a blanket. Then she told me, "Look at my baby mom, isn't she cute?" Of course I played along and told her how beautiful her baby was. Then she asked, "Can I keep her?" I was shocked and I have to admit I instantly prayed to never have that conversation again. She has said many similar things since and is just obsessed with having a baby. It's so obsessed that David has started to stress to her that she has to wait until she gets married. She asks all the time if she can have a baby. Now she tells us, "When I marry my prince I will have a baby and I will love it." (I love that she wants to marry a prince.) Shelby follows right in her sisters ways. She isn't as verbal because of her age, but she is also pretty fond of the idea of babies....and having one in "Shelbys house." Tonight she saw a picture of a baby and told me, "I hold it?" I told her that we couldn't hold it because it was only a picture. Then she told me, "We'll get a baby at the store." I told her the store didn't have babies. She then told me, "A baby at our house." Meaning she wants a baby at our house. Man, I really hope they aren't on to something because my oldest brother (or possibly sister I'm not sure) told my mom she was pregnant before she even knew. David and I are perfectly content and happy with our two princesses and wouldn't mind keeping it that way. I'm hoping this is just a phase and they will out grow being so insanely obsessed with wanting a baby. But for now I'll laugh about it and enjoy how cute they are when they rock, feed, and sing to their pretend babies.

Preschool!

Wow, I am now the mom of a preschooler. It's weird for me to say that! Kadence has been so excited for weeks now to go to preschool. Her Aunt Barb called yesterday (Because the 3 year old class started yesterday) to see how her first day was, and Kadence told her she loved it and had a lot of fun. When I told Barb that she hadn't gone yet, we both had a good laugh. I think Kadence was talking about when she went to meet her teacher, Miss Jill, last week.

Here are both girls ready for preschool. The other day when Kadence was talking about going to preschool Shelby told me she wanted to go too. I explained she had to be 4 to go, and that she was only 2. She was quiet for a second before telling me, "No I'm 5!" She has been insisting she's 5 since then and that's all I heard all morning. She wants to be big like her sister...ok, she is as big as her sister...she wants to be as old as her sister. :)

Shelby even insisted that she wore a backpack too!

Here's the big girl, ready to go to her first day of preschool!

David was able to talk a teacher into watching his class for 5 minutes before lunch so that he could use his lunch to come with me to drop Kadence off for school. He has always wanted to be there for the first day of preschool and Kindergarten. (What a great dad!) When we walked to the door she hung up her backpack and ran off to play. Then she ran back, gave us a quick hug, then went back to playing. She didn't have the slightest bit of hesitation leaving us. As some of you know, that is a BIG improvement from a few years ago. She used to barely make eye contact when people talked to her and never left my side. She really has come out of her shell.

I thought that I might have a hard time leaving her, but I did amazing! No tears from me. Although things like this make me so grateful that our sweet little miracle is attending preschool with other children her age and will fit right in developmentally. It blows my mind that she is so 'normal' compared to what we thought she might be at 4. I feel incredibly blessed!

Now, I didn't have a hard time and neither did David but her little sister Shelby did. She just kept saying that she wanted her Kay Kay. (She knows how to say Kadence, but calls her Kay Kay instead) I tried to distract her by asking if she wanted to go shopping with me, "No thanks mommy" Then I asked if she wanted to go get a drink, "No thanks" I asked if she wanted to get a book, "No" The poor thing is absolutely devastated by her sister leaving her. Luckily the preschool has a 3 year old class so Shelby only has to wait until next year. It will be nice for me to have 2 1/2 hours without kids two days a week so I can take a class up at the college....but lets not get ahead of ourselves.

While Kadence was at school I tried to keep Shelby busy. We went shopping, went to get some lunch, and came home to watch Little Mermaid. (Her favorite movie) It didn't really work. I was hoping that I would be able to do some homework while Kadence was at preschool, but I'm thinking I will be paying 100% attention to Shelby.

On the way to pick Kadence up, Shelby told me "I missing my Kay Kay" She was so excited to go pick her up! Kadence was excited to see us too. She didn't have a lot to say other than she had fun. I asked her if they learned the rules, she said "Ya". I aksed her what she learned and she said, "I don't know." She made a foam visor that you are supposed to put stickers on, but it came home without any stickers on it. She said she didn't want them on there.

Kadence's MRI

Ok, so when we went in to get Kadence's brace adjusted we called ahead and asked Angie (Kadence's Care Coordinator) if she would mind asking the Dr what Kadence's MRI actually meant. I had called the Monday following her MRI and was read almost word for word what the radiologist had noted, but not much of it made sense to me. David and I tried to figure out what it all meant on our own and really don't want to wait until her next casting (November 11th) to figure it all out. Angie was nice enough to talk to the Dr, who said that there was fluid on the spine but at a glance he wasn't able to see it. He isn't a radiologist, and didn't have a ton of time to look. They did assure us that the fluid was stable which was great! They told us that we just will continue to do MRI's to make sure that the fluid stays the same. If it changes at all then we will be referred to a neurologist at Primary Childrens for treatment. Angie could tell we still weren't quite satisfied, so she told us she could print off the actual MRI report so that we could take it home and google our little hearts out. Not her exact words of course, but she knew we wanted our questions answered further. The printout has sat on our counter for the past 2 weeks. I think in the back of my mind I didn't want to know what else could be wrong and want to talk myself into being confident that everything is fine. Unfortunately, I got the paper out today. There are two things that they are debating between for a diagnosis.

"Stable appearance of linear fluid focus in the upper to mid ventral portion of the cord diagnostic considerations include a partial ventral cord schisis versus anterior localization of the central canal."

Ok, I know that sounds like a lot of medical jargon, but when I broke it down into sections it kind of started to make sense. The linear fluid in the upper to mid ventral portion of the cord is stable....GREAT!!! But then it is saying that she either has partial ventral cord schisis OR anterior localization of the central canal. I of course googled a bit and haven't been able to figure too much out on my own. All I have found suggests that the partial ventral cord schisis points toward a tethered or split cord. That would be absolutely devastating. It is actually what we have feared the most in all of this. We would most likely have to un tether her cord in order to move forward with treatment which is very risky. I hope and pray this is not what she has. I couldn't figure out what the anterior localization of the central canal means at all other than I know the word anterior means at or near the front.

I don't know why I wait to look these things up until I am at home alone. I just want to break down and cry....then I realize crying doesn't make it go away, nor does it make me understand it any better. All I can do at this point is wait until November 11th when we get Kadence's next cast put on and we can talk to the Dr's, and pray.....A LOT!

Fountains!

We took Kadence down to Shriners to get her brace looked at. It had given her pressure sores, and they needed to try to fix it. They took part of the pads out of it, and she has been doing great since. After the appointment, we wanted to waste a little time so that we didn't have to drive in rush hour traffic. We decided to let the girls go play in the fountains at Gateway. The girls had tons of fun, and it was nice to do something spur of the moment for once. I get so caught up in planning...and over planning everything that we don't ever do anything spontaneously. We all had a blast, and I even ended up in the middle of the fountains with the girls. When it was time to leave, Kadence told me "I think I got wet enough mom." So it was a success! Plus, I learned that I need to relax and have some unplanned fun once in a while.

Day Care

I know that most people have to send their children to daycare and it's not supposed to be a big deal, but it was really hard for me. I've been fortunate enough to have a mother in law who loves watching the girls for me so I can work, or go to school. Unfortunately the first week of class she wasn't able to watch the girls one of the days I needed her. So of course I asked my neighbor who does daycare....who is amazing with kids...who the girls absolutely adore if she would watch the girls for 2 hours. (Again, 2 hours shouldn't be a big deal!) It was really hard for me to know that they were going to daycare. I felt a little guilty for having to leave them, a little nervous because I was afraid they would cry, and a little sad because deep down I knew they wouldn't miss me at all. In the morning as I got Shelby ready I was trying to prepare her so it wasn't a surprise when I left her. I told her, "You're going to go to Brendas house and play, ok?" She said, "Ok." Then I told her, "Mommy is going to leave and go to school and then I will come back and get you ok?" She told me, "But mommy, I'll miss you!" When she said it I just about burst into tears. She said it with the sweetest, saddest little voice EVER! Of course when I dropped her off it she was completely fine and couldn't have cared less if I stayed or went.

The girls right before leaving for their first trip to daycare:

The Things Kids Say...

Recently my girls have been making me laugh so hard. They are at the age where they come up with some of the funniest things, and say things that you can't avoid laughing at.

The other day Kadence was looking at a picture that hangs in my front room. In it I am VERY pregnant with Shelby and Kadence is hugging the picture. (Although she calls it listening to it because her head is against my belly) She asked me if Shelby was in my belly. I told her yes. She then said, "Did you eat her?" It cracked me up!

Shelby walks around the house saying "Bibby bobby BOO!" (Bibbity Bobbity Boo) The way she says it makes me laugh every time.

Tonight David went to hand Kadence to me so I could bring her to bed. He bounced her on his knee thinking I would catch her. Instead he just rammed her head into the underside of my boob. He then asked me if my boob was ok. (Not worried about me of course, just my boob.) I told him, "Well it wasn't comfortable, but its not like it fell off." To which Kadence very quickly replied, "If your boob fell off mom, daddy would have to help you fix it!"

When Shelby wakes up in the morning she yells, "Mommmm, Mom, Mommy..." When I get in there to get her, she says "Here I am!!" Its like she thinks I can't find her which is better than the truth...I'm too lazy to get my butt out of bed.

These are just a few things they have been saying lately that crack me up and make me so happy that they're mine forever!