The Guys

I just came across this picture on my camera from Christmas. Grant continues to talk about his uncle Bry and Uncle Hal even though he doesn't see them very often. They play rough and do only things that guys can do.

Still Mopping

Yes, Grant is still into cleaning. He probably mops the floor over an hour a day. The great thing about it is that he's really getting pretty good so our floors have never looked better. He loves to do art projects so most days while Kate is still napping we get to do a project or two. He's in a really fun phase and is doing a great job being obedient so he is a joy to be around. We're in week 4 of potty training. Ugg! We're down to one accident a day.

Kate continues to mimic what she sees her older brother doing. Several times a day she'll run to the potty and yell, "potty!" She's yet to actually go on it, but I wouldn't be surprised if she did one day soon. She is all girl and sleeps at night with her doll which she can see burping often throughout the day.

Nicknames

I thought it would be fun to record the nicknames we have for the kids:

Kate: Katerator (we're not sure how she got this, but we've called her it from birth), Rator (short for Katerator, pronounced raytor), potato, monkey, cutie (called this by Grant)

Grant: Grant Samuel (when he's not listening), sockman (when he puts his socks on his hands, treseur (called this by Jim when he jumps off high platforms)

Christmas

Christmas was really fun this year because Grant actually "got it." He did a great job taking turns while everyone opened presents. His favorite gift was a kid-sized blender that actually works. (The blades are dull.) Kate mostly just wanted to climb all over everyone and stand on boxes.

Snow Days

The four of us went to a field near our house on Sunday and played in the snow. Grant made a snow angel and told us it was the angel Gabriel coming to tell Mary about Jesus. Kate mostly wanted to play in the slush in the street. You might notice a bandage peeking out through Grant's hat. It is because he ran into the corner of our kitchen counter the other day and split his head open. He felt left out because Kate went to the hospital and without him last week. :)

Grant's 3rd Birthday

Sharing a gift

Grant's wonderful babysitter, Peggy, gave him a special puzzle for his birthday. He was playing with it on Saturday morning when he said to Jim, "Dad, I think I should give this toy to a boy or girl who doesn't have any toys." (The two of them were getting ready to go to Open Hands Food Pantry and had been talking about why people go there.) Jim said, "Grant, I think that idea was from God, so when we get there why don't you ask God who to give it to." A few minutes after they arrived Grant pointed out a young girl and told Jim that was who God wanted him to give it to. And he did!

Health Update

Kate battled a high fever over the weekend and today the doctor tentatively diagnosed her with roseola. Roseola symptoms include a high fever and a rash when the fever breaks. 10-15% of kids with roseola have febrile seizures like Kate did. Kate is still on antibiotics and motrin/tylonal around the clock. Please pray that her fever breaks!

Grant was diagnosed with pneumonia last week. This is a pretty big deal for Grant because of his lung condition. He's on breathing treatments 5x/day and his third round of antibiotics. I'd forgotten what it is like to have to wake a child in the night for meds and have a mini NICU in my living room.

I know it could be much worse but it feels really overwhelming in the midst of it. There is something about spending so much time in doctors' offices and hospitals that really stirs something up in me. I am trying not to be shaken. God continues to be my Rock.

Thank you, Jesus!

Today was one of the scariest days of my life. Around 3pm Kate woke up from her nap crying. I went in her room and she was covered in throw up. We took her temperature and she had no fever. I put her in a warm bath to calm her down and clean her up. About 30 minutes later Jim got her dressed and when she was in his arms she started having a seizure. He yelled for me and when I saw her her eyes were rolled back and she was convulsing. I called 911 and they were there in less than 5 minutes. That entire time she did not stop seizing.

When the paramedics arrived they gave her oxygen and started an iv. She stopped seizing after about 6 minutes total. Jim and Kate were ushered to the ambulance and rushed to the ER. By the time she reached the hospital she had a fever of 104. The doctors explained that it was probably a febrile seizure, cause by a quick rising in body temperature. Kate had tremors for an hour and eventually fell asleep. They got her temperature down to 100.4 and sent us home.

Apparently about 5% of kids have them under the age of two and they tend to run in families. We're supposed to keep a close eye on Kate and check on her throughout the night but she appears to be fine. For all those of you who prayed for us throughout the day, we can't thank you enough. We felt the "peace that passes all understanding," the peace that only Jesus can give.

Christmas Program

Grant was in a Christmas program through my Community Bible Study. This video was captured before he tried to knock down the projection screen and pull the cord out of the electrical outlet that played the music.

Happy Birthday Grant

Last night Jim and I were playing "remember when" in Grant's life. It went something like this:
Remember when...

Grant got life-flighted to U of M,
the oxygen guy came to our house to set up Grant's tanks,
we had to feed Grant with a medicine dropper bc he wouldn't take a bottle,
he got taken by ambulance to U of M bc he was retracting so much,
he was taking medicine 12 times a day,
we had to feed him through his nose,
he wasn't allowed to go to the grocery store for fear of germs...

Remember when...
Grant's doctor took him off oxygen,
Grant started taking a bottle,
Grant graduated from physical therapy,
Grant's chest xrays were referred to as "good",
Grant stopped all medications and breathing treatments,
Grant started gym class with other kids his age...

Wow. God is faithful. Grant has come so far. He is full of life and joy. We are beyond thankful.

Bedtime

All kids have bedtime quirks. Kate loves to take her blankie and rub the bottoms of her feet. She is in a horribly uncomfortable position to make this happen, but she is giggling as she does it.

Sometime between putting Grant down for bed and morning he takes his socks off his feet and puts them on his hands like sock puppets. When I greet him in the morning he yells, "I'm sock man!" The other night when putting him down Jim was concerned that his feet were getting cold in the night so he put a pair of socks on his feet and another pair on his hands. Problem solved, right? Kind of. When I went to get Grant in the morning he had taken the socks on his hands and put both socks on his feet.

Don't touch the tree

Background: My kids are loving the Christmas decorations around the house, malls, grocery stores etc. Kate broke two bulbs on our tree the first day we put it up (we've since moved all the bulbs up)and Grant has now made it his mission not to let Kate touch the tree. The other day he called grandma Ned in Florida and asked for her help in keeping Kate away from the tree. However, Kate always seems to find a way, climbing up on the couch and lunging for the top branches of the tree if she has to.

Grant: Mom, what is a catastrophe?
Me: When something really bad happens.
Grant: Oh, like when Kate touches the ornaments on the tree?

It's all relative! :)

Play dough time

Grant and Kate are slowly learning to play independently. The other day I got the play dough out for them and they sat at the kitchen table and played for one hour. I got the whole dinner prepped. Unfortunately, Kate didn't eat much dinner because she had ingested so much play dough.

Thanksgiving

This year we enjoyed Thanksgiving with Jim's side in Midland. I wish we took more pictures, but I guess we were just having too much fun. (The picture of Grant is with his cousin, Amy.) Grant got to sit at the "kid table" for the first time with all of his cousins. He had a blast following the gang around all day acting like a real big boy. When we were getting ready to eat we all held hands as aunt Jill said a prayer. Everyone was quiet when Grant looked up and asked loudly, "Is this Thanksgiving?" Kate was a little more pensive, observing the crowd and occasionally letting someone else hold her. She mostly enjoyed trying to grab the dog's tail.

A Heart to Heart

Jim hasn't seen the kids since Thursday because he's been really sick and in bed. Last night he was feeling a little better and really missed the kids so he came out of his cave to put Grant to bed. Before he laid Grant down in his crib he was feeling all sentimental and started telling him how much he loved him, how he would always be there for him, how he wanted to raise him into a strong man of God etc. Grant turned to him, put his hand on Jim's cheek and whispered, "You need to shave."

Quote of the week

"Dear God, thank you that you are Santa. Amen."

P.S.

Grant's cold never went to his lungs. He's on the mend. Thanks for praying!

Biter

Kate is starting to get a very strong personality. She is not quite as laid back as she used to be. The other day Grant had a broom that she wanted so she went up to him and bit him really hard in the arm. (This has continued to happen several times since- we're working on it!) Grant became hysterical but when I finally got him to calm down he asked me, "Mom, why did Kate bite me?" I said, "I think she wanted your broom." He answered, "No, I think she thought I was her food."

Grant started a basketball league for 3 year olds last night. He's the only 3 year old in the class who can't dribble. Do parents of 3 year olds really teach their kids to dribble a basketball? Jim felt like a failure of a dad (not really) so they are going to work on it this weekend. Gosh, this whole sports competition thing starts young. I swore I'd never be a part of it and I only signed Grant up for it so he'd get some exercise. But, now I feel like I'm being sucked in. The weirdest part is that there was a group of moms on the sideline who brought juice boxes and snacks for all the kids as they came off the court. I remember that happening after tennis matches in high school, but a 30 minute 3 year old basketball practice?! It was a nice gesture but the whole thing weirded me out. But, I'm sure we'll go back next week.

The Learning Tower

Lindsay bought this thing called "The Learning Tower" at a garage sale for $15. This is such a steal because it is usually around $200. Oliver is a bit young to use it so she let us borrow it for a little while. It is basically a structure that allows kids to participate in the kitchen helping cook, doing dishes etc without the risk of falling off a chair. My kids love it! Kate played in the sink the other day for two straight hours! The floor (and kids) end up quite wet but it is worth it.

Get Well Prayers

Grant seems to have come down with a cold/cough in the last few days. Last time this happened he ended up in the hospital with pneumonia. We are hopeful that it is just your average cough, but with Grant's lungs it always risky. Please pray for healing for him and that everyone else stays healthy. Thanks!

House Guests

Jim's best childhood friend, Corey, and his family came to visit us last weekend. Corey and Katie have infant twins and a two year old. In case you haven't added it up yet that made 5 children under the age of 3 under one roof! We had an absolute blast. Kate and Grant were intrigued by the babies. Grant is still talking about his new friend, Gavin. We hope to make it up north to visit them one day soon!

Taking a break

Grant: Mom, tell me the story about when I was a baby. (for the thousandth time)
Mom: Actually, my mouth is taking a break.
Grant: Again?? Your mouth already took a break today.
Mom: Well, it looks like it needs a break again.
Grant: Oh. My mouth never needs a break!

Halloween stories

Halloween was a blast. Grant pounded furiously on every door as he yelled, "Trick or Treat." When people came to the door he literally ran past them into their houses. Then, when they said, "take a candy" he put down his pumpkin bucket and dove in with both hands. Thankfully everyone thought he was pretty funny. We ended up with a lot of candy for only hitting a dozen houses.

Another funny thing has been happening concerning Grant. You see, we named our kids Grant and Kate because we purposely wanted short, easy to spell names to go with our long last name. But, somehow we've ended up giving the kids long nick names. Jim calls Grant "Granteous Maximus" (don't ask) and I call Kate "Katerator". The other day at the park Grant introduced himself to someone as Granteous Maximus and his sister Katerator.

Halloween

Peter Pan and Tinkerbell

Two Lunches for $.50

The other day I took the kids grocery shopping at 11:30am. In the produce section there were samples of nectarines. In the bakery there was french bread. Halfway through the store I was about to stop giving them samples when I realized that if instead I continued giving them samples I could count this as lunch! In the end there was not enough protein so I bought some salami and they ate it in the checkout line. All in all I spent $.53 and there was no mess at home to clean up. What a treat!

McD's Playland

Tonight we wanted to do something as a family to get out of the house. Because it was raining our options were limited. Being the germ freaks and health nuts that we are this probably seems like a crazy idea, but we ended up at McDonald's playland. It actually turned out to be quite fun. There were only two other kids in the whole place and Grant and Kate could both navigate their appropriate terrain pretty well. Afterwards the kids even got to eat fast food (in my defense I did bring cut up veggies). All in all it was a great night!

It seems that Kate has transitioned to one nap which is making my life way more enjoyable. She actually sleeps in until 7 (as opposed to 5) and takes a nap in the afternoon at the same time as Grant. It is so much fun to be able to do an activity in the morning with both kids instead of waiting around for Kate to wake up. Grant's napping is hit or miss these days, but I at least make him hang out in his crib for a while so I can have some down time. Yesterday he was talking away in his crib so I went up and told him to please quiet down and go to sleep. He responded, "But, mom, I'm just talking about my day."

California

Jim and I took a long weekend (without kids) to visit my brother, Bryan, and his new wife, Kristen, in Los Angeles. We had many laughs, which is always guaranteed when Bryan is around. The first night Bryan and Jim wore the same shirt out to dinner. But, because it was LA no one thought it was that weird. The next day we drove to Santa Barbara Wine Country and visited the beautiful vineyards. We rented a surrey and drove around the little dutch town where we stayed the night. In the morning we went for a hike and then Bryan and Kristen dropped us off in Santa Monica where we spent a night overlooking the ocean. It was a busy weekend, yet we came home feeling refreshed. Thank you mom and dad for looking after Grant and Kate so we could enjoy this special weekend!

Happy Birthday, Grandma Koss

Here are a few fun pictures of the kids eating Grandma's birthday cake. The best part of the evening though was when Grant pushed a chair into the burning fireplace. The flames grew huge very quickly before anyone noticed. (We were eating dinner and Grant had just excused himself.) Thankfully, Papa thought quickly and picked up the burning chair and threw it outside. Jim and Mom followed close behind with buckets of water. The alarms were going off so the kids were screaming and I was just trying to keep them calm. It looks like my parents are out a very nice chair and a gorgeous rug. But, both grandkids are burn free. Whooh.

A New Cousin

Sweet baby Oliver was welcomed into the world this morning. Mama and baby are healthy and happy. Congratulations Lindsay and Josh!

A day at the zoo

This is the first fall that Grant is officially allowed to be out of the house. We're taking full advantage of it going to the zoo, gym class, swimming and the mall. I even went to the park with him the other day without hand wipes. :) It is hard for me to believe that last winter I couldn't take him places. Someone asked me the other day what I have done inside the last two years. I don't remember. It is all a blur. God got me through it though and now I'm just thankful that Grant's health has improved so much.

Scratch and Sniff

Both of our kids did some scratching this weekend. Grant got ahold of a sharp rock and "colored" all over the back of my car. It looks like someone keyed the car. Jim took it really well and recalled a story of when he was little and found himself in a room with a can of paint and a brush. He said he remembers thinking this probably isn't okay, but he kept doing it anyway. When I told my brother, Bryan, he recounted two stories of coloring on walls growing up. One was with a can of spray paint. In one instance he used a marker to write his name on the walls and when he was asked if he did it he adamantly denied it. Boys.

This weekend Kate noticed a new tattoo on Derme's leg. At first it looked like she was blowing on the tattoo but then we realized she was sniffing it. She thought it was a scratch and sniff sticker!

Grant's mouth

So...last night I finally decided to take Grant's complaint seriously and I looked in his mouth. Much to my surprise I found a giant white sore in the middle of his tongue. Ouch! I took him to urgent care this morning and they think it is a yeast infection. Poor guy. He's not up for eating, so it is a good thing protein shakes flow like rivers over here.

This morning, I saw a very concrete of how different girls are from boys. Kate and Jim were quietly having a tea party when Grant found them. He came blazing through with a hanger, knocking every cup and saucer over yelling, "I'm Captain Hook and I'm going to wreck you."

Grant also has this new saying if you ask him to do anything. He says, "I'll try my best and that's all you can ask."

Peter Pan

Grant seems to be having a lot of ailments lately. I can't tell if he really is in pain or he's just saying it. Every time we are in the car he says his stomach hurts. I pretty much ignored this until he puked in his carseat the other day. Lately he is saying his mouth hurts when he eats. I wasn't really taking this seriously either but yesterday he was sobbing saying he couldn't eat. Please pray for Grant to be healthy and for wisdom for me.

On a different note, Grant and I watched Peter Pan last night. The kids are going to be Peter Pan and Tinkerbell for Halloween so I thought they should at least see the movie. When I was taking Grant up to bed he asked, "Mom, why is Captain Hook so mean? I want to throw the hooker in the trash can."

Hugs

Grant loves to give Kate hugs and say, "Kate, you are such a cute yittle (little) baby!" I love this picture where she is trying to escape his hug.

Samuel

It makes me smile to hear Grant talking about God and the Bible. Last week at Community Bible Study Grant learned all about Samuel and how God spoke to this young boy. I was able to tell Grant that his middle name is Samuel after this boy and just like Samuel answered, "Here I am Lord, your servant is listening," we want Grant to follow God's voice. He thought this was very interesting and asked what Samuel's first name was. I said, "Samuel," so he said, "oh, his name is Samuel Samuel?" I guess he only thinks Samuel is a middle name.

Last night I had a really bad headache and I said, "Let's ask God to heal my head." He said, "Just like Hannah asked God for baby Samuel?" Yes! So, he prayed for my head and then he said, "Aunt Lindsay prayed for Jesus to make your headache feel better." (He had just been at my parents with Lindsay.) Later when I was talking to Lindsay I thanked her for praying with Grant for my headache. She laughed and said that she never prayed with Grant for my head. What a cool imagination he has!

Overpacked

Thank God for dads. Me? I just play with whatever toys we have in the basement. Jim gets creative and last night it took the form of putting Kate in various compartments of the suitcase and zipping her around the house. She's having more fun than it appears.

Time Out

Grant thinks it is funny to put his feet on the table during dinner. We have repeatedly told him not to do this so tonight when he did it he got an immediate time out. I didn't want to unstrap him from his booster seat so I just pushed his whole chair facing into the wall. He was very composed during this whole process and when I went to get him he calmly told me that he was busy thinking about his day and would I please leave him alone. I didn't know what to do with that so I just left him alone. A few minutes later he called for me and said he was all done. Who is giving who a time out here?!

Doctor Visits

Last week Kate would not stop crying for like 24 hours. I took her to the doctor because I was convinced that something must be wrong with her. Nothing wrong- just cutting 6 new teeth at once! She had a rough few days but she seems fine now. While she was at the doctor's office they gave her a flu shot and told me that Grant is old enough for flu mist. We went yesterday, and what a treat! No tears. I wish we had that option with all vaccinations.

Our little chatterbox is back from Disney. (Thanks grandma and grandpa!) Here are a few things he's been saying:
Grant: the snake told Eve to take the apple
Mom: Why did he do that?
Grant: He was hungry.

Mom: Did you know that I have a mom, too, just like you? Who is my mommy?
Grant: Derme.

Mom: Grant, you'll do it right now because I said so and I'm the boss.
Grant: You're not the boss. Dad's the boss.

Where's Grant?

I was wondering how Kate would do without her sidekick around. She's surprisingly joyful. She now calls me "mom" instead of "mama," so our days have been filled with her yelling, "mom," and running over to me with a big wet kiss on the lips! I think she is really loving all this attention. I hate to admit it but Grant often takes center stage because of his larger-than-life personality. It is great to get to know Kate in a whole new way!

Hello Disney

Grant left for Disney World this morning with Grandma and Grandpa Koss. I'm not sure who is more excited. I'm pretty sure the grandparents since Grant has no clue what Disney World is. However, he had a huge grin this morning when we woke him up early and told him he was leaving for Disney World.

Jim is working a lot this week so that leaves Kate and I with a lot of alone time. To be honest, it started out kind of rocky. She woke up several times in the night screaming. She would quiet down as long as we were holding her but whenever we put her back in the crib she would scream. I thought something serious must be wrong with my sweet child so I took her to the doctor's this morning. The culprit: 6 new teeth, including 2 molars. Thankfully, after a dose of Tylenol things got better and Kate and I had a great day. We went shopping, watched Beth Moore on tv and went out to dinner. Daughters are great, even at one year old!

Dot

Kate has a name for Grant. It's Dot. Kinda funny, but it's what she came up with. In the above picture Jim is walking out of church with Kate and Grant. It is so much fun to be able to go to church now with the kids. Kate is not sure whether or not she likes it yet, but if they stuff her with graham crackers she usually stops crying. Grant loves his classroom and equally enjoys playing on the band's drums after church. Whenever he sees a cross he says, "Do you know what the cross means? It means Jesus loves you."

Haircut

Yesterday Kate got her first haircut! When Grant was little and couldn't leave the house because of germs we had a hairdresser come to our house to cut his hair. She has been gracious enough to continue doing this. It is so much easier than a salon because the kids can watch movies. Last night they actually ate dinner while watching tv and getting their haircuts..until Grant told me he didn't want to eat his chicken because it was hairy! Whoops!

Scrapes

My active children keep getting bumps and bruises. On Grant's face there is a cut from falling face first onto his guitar, and a bloody lip from tripping over a tree root at the park. Kate is in tears from slipping on the bathroom floor. Hopefully this is just a stage.

Question of the Day

Grant is into asking "why?" Today he asked, "Mom, why can't we eat poop?"

On the way home from the park...

Grant: Where are we going?
Mom: Home, to eat lunch.
Grant: I want to go to a restaurant.
Mom: I didn't bring any money with me.
Grant: Check your wallet.
Mom: We're not going to a restaurant.
(long pause)
Grant: I miss Grandma and Grandpa.
Mom: You do honey?
Grant: Yes. They would take me to a restaurant.