Doctor

Kate and Grant's newest thing is to play doctor. They play on each other, on Grant's stuffed dog and on Kate's baby (that she named Oliver). Their favorite thing to do is look in each other's ear and say which animal is hiding in there. Grant's pulmonologist does this and Grant thinks it is so funny.They are doing a great job playing independently these days.

Mono

Big bummer- I seem to have caught mono! My doctor said to let my body guide me so I'm alternating between resting and playing with the kids throughout the day. Please pray for a quick recovery.

Oh Happy Day

Sleeping

Grant: Mom, who are you sleeping with these days?
Me: What?
Grant: I know you used to sleep with dad, but you don't seem to be sleeping with him anymore so I wondered who you are sleeping with?
Me: (brief explanation about how dad goes to work before he wakes up)

Flying High

Sweet Peggy

Sweet Peggy was sent to us by God while I was on bedrest with Kate. She and Grant had all sorts of adventures while I laid at home with my feet up. During this time we all grew very close to Peggy and she became a dear friend. Yesterday she came over to visit. This picture captures what Grant looks like when he sees Peggy.

Kate's birthday

Kate's birthday began by opening a special box from grandma Ned that contained all things princess! (See photo of Kate in her pink tutu and slippers.) Then we went to a park where we met family for a picnic. Grant's highlight was getting to have his first can of pop. After playing at the park we went back to our house for cake and presents. Kate was enamored with both her new pink shoes and her fabulous pink tea cart. She also got some giant paint brushes that looked like mops (to Grant). Grant stole them right away and calls them his "dusters." Kate didn't quite understand the concept of eating the whole cupcake but she did manage to lick the frosting off of four. They are just coming down from their sugar high today.

Fresh Veggies

We are trying to teach Grant to be generous and give to those who are without. Today during dinner he looked up and said, "I have an idea. See those vegetables on my plate? I think we should give them to someone who doesn't have any." Good try buddy.

Potty

Mom: Grant, hurry up and go potty before we go to the park.
Grant: No thank you.
Mom: Yes, Grant. They don't have a potty at the park.
Grant: Yes they do. They are called trees.

ABC's

Out for ice cream

Swimming

Kate and Grant continue to take swim lessons on Tuesdays at Goldfish. We always try to get dressed as quickly as possible after naps to arrive early to play with the chalkboards. At 4:30 Kate and I head to the small pool and Grant goes by himself to the big pool. He grabs some goggles and immediately starts talking to his instructor. Even as he is swimming he's trying to keep his mouth above water so he can keep talking! His teacher tells me he's making huge improvements. He can swim a little over half the width of the pool by himself and he loves doing cannonballs. Kate is in a phase where she doesn't like to get her face wet, except when she's going down the slide, because it is worth it!

My Sweet Kate

Today Grant, Kate and I were having a stuffed animal fight. Grant took a big wack at me with a dog that had a hard collar on it and I doubled over wincing in pain (it was a bit of an exaggeration, but it hurt!). Grant ignored my pain and continued throwing things at me while Kate came over and asked, "what happened mom?" When I told her she said, "hug, hug," and gave me a big hug. I started down a train of thought centering on how much more compassionate females are etc and was trying to explain to Grant what he should do if he hurts someone when Kate came up behind me and slammed a giant hardcover Bible against my head. :)

Hike

Today we took the kids on a "hike" along the Rouge River trail and then had a picnic under a shady tree. The kids spent most of their time throwing sticks in the river. Grant was so happy he literally galloped through the woods singing. He said he wasn't very hungry until I told him how sad it was because we were going out for ice cream afterward. When he finished his ice cream he came over and snuggled up to me and said, "if you want to share, I'm here."

Junk Food

Today I took Grant for his pulmonology check up and then out to lunch. (The doc put Grant on new meds bc his cough is still not gone.) When I was paying for lunch I bought Grant a mini Reese Peanut Butter Cup. Here's what he said when I gave it to him:

Grant: Mom, is this bad for me?
Mom: Well, it's not the healthiest thing, but I thought you'd like a treat for doing so well at the doctor.
Grant: So, you mean this is like, junk food?
Mom: It is okay to have a treat once in a while kiddo.
Grant: Wow. I can't believe you are giving me something to put into my body that is really bad for me. I don't know if I should eat it.

He did end up eating it. Is he his father's son or what?!

What they're into

Grant-playing "kitchen", mopping and doing dishes (hopefully this theme will continue when he's older), playing in sandboxes, eating watermelon, playing in the water fountain at Shain Park, swimming at Goldfish (can almost swim the width of the pool), adding a "ie" to most words (ball = ballie, book = bookie etc.) and continuing to be just about the most joyful kid I know!

Kate- riding her big wheel, using the "big" potty, trying on my shoes, going down the slide at the park over and over, doing the "hot dog dance", making calls on her cell phone, talking in complete sentences, watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and rocking in the rocking chair with me after she naps while we sing and pray.

Happy July 4

This year on July 3 we went to grandma and grandpa's lake house with our cousins and their families. Unfortunately, Kate had to be quarantined because she was just getting over the hand-foot-mouth virus. The kids had a blast playing in the water, running through the sprinkler and taking boat rides. Grant even got to ride on the jet ski for the first time. What a treat! Oh, and did I mention Grant liked the dessert?

Call to Papa

Home Alone

Single moms, I don't know how you do it. God bless you! Jim just got back from being gone for 5 days. We are all so glad to have him back on the scene. Grant is still fighting a cough. We're doing breathing treatments twice a day and have two weeks to go until we see the doc again. Hopefully he will be better by then. In the mean time it is not slowing him down.

The Persistant Cough

Grant's cough is back. It disappeared for only a few days when taking the antibiotic for his pneumonia. Thankfully, we got in to see his pulmonolgist today. After listening to Grant cough and wheeze he was pretty sure it is asthma. We are going back for allergy testing in a couple of weeks to find out what Grant's triggers are. Most likely he's been dealing with this since back in October when he first came down with the cough. (He's been complaining that his stomach is hot which was probably the only language he could come up with for what was going on. Poor guy!) The many antibiotics and brief breathing treatments over the last 9 months have temporarily supressed the asthma but now we can actually deal with it head on. Grant will be on steriods for the next few weeks and then use a nebulizer as needed.

The pulmonolgist was a bit concerned by the chest x-rays that were taken recently at the ER. He wants us to repeat the x-rays again in four weeks to compare the two. Please pray that Grant's lungs totally heal and that the asthma would be gone!

Hearing God

Grant typically wakes up from his afternoon nap singing. I mean really belting it out. His joy continues to amaze me. When I go in to get him I always ask him what he dreamed about. Most of the time he says "salad." Weird. Today I tried something new. When he woke up I asked him to close his eyes and ask God to speak to him- to tell him someone to help or some way to obey today. At first he said "I can't hear anyone." Then I told him to listen with his heart. Then he told me that God told him two things. (1) that he was a soldier and (2) that he was never supposed to steal money from anyone. You can't really go wrong with either of those things!

Guitar Nudist

Today Jim took the kids to a park near our house that has a huge water fountain that they allow the kids to play in. They had fun splashing around trying to retrive pennies from well wishers. As you can imagine they came home soaked. Before I got a chance to put Kate's clothes on she bolted for the guitar. I had to snap a shot.

A Vist to Spring Lake

P.S. We moved back into our house last night. Air test came back all clear!!

Movin' Out

I took Grant to the doctor yesterday for a recheck on his lungs. The doc said that his right lower lung didn't look good and we'd need to see his pulmonolgist. I told her about the flood in the basement and she said, "GET OUT!" It is too dangerous with Grant's lung condition to be around that much moisture and possible mold. So, last night we moved in with my parents. The kids are enjoying it, although they are having a little trouble not being in their own bedrooms to sleep. Hopefully they will adjust tonight and we'll be back in our house before long. We are very blessed to have parents nearby that are kind enough to open their home. :)

Pneumonia round 3

Yesterday we were at the lake all day playing and Grant was acting perfectly normal. He has had a cough for a while so I had scheduled an appt with his pulmonolgist for later this month. After he got out of the lake he kept saying he was cold. We just thought he was being kind of wimpy (sorry Grant) and went on with the day. Soon his lips turned blue and he just didn't seem right. We got in the car to go home and his eyes rolled back in his head and he passed out. We woke him up and he did it again. I screamed, "drive to the ER NOW!" So, Jim went into racecar mode and we drove to Royal Oak Beaumont. The whole drive I was doing everything I could to keep Grant from passing out. His eyes kept crossing and he kept saying he was tired. Jim was praying continuously and Kate was looking on with curiosity.

At the hospital they quickly found out that Grant had an extremely high temperature. They think it was a febrile fever (temp rises extremly quickly and eventually causes a seizure). Yes, this is the same thing that happened to Kate a few months ago. It tends to run in families. After getting xrays and running a few more tests they concluded that Grant has pneumonia. They were able to get the fever down and then Grant was acting great. (While he had the fever he was moaning and crying.) I picked up the guys and we went to CVS for Grant's prescription. It was about 10:30 at this point and Grant was incredibly chipper for all that he'd been through. We pulled in the driveway at close to 11:00pm and Grant looked and Jim and said, "Dad, can we go ride bikes?"

Grandma's new hat

Potty Training Day 2

Lately Kate has seemed really irritated when she has a messy diaper. A few weeks ago Kate starting stripping herself naked in her crib before she went to sleep. This included her (sometimes full) diaper. We decided to start potty training this week. I think potty training is kind of like labor. Just as I forgot what a pain it was to potty train Grant I felt ready to take on Kate. What a chore. Here are the results so far:

Day 1:
Hits 0
Misses: 9

Day 2:
Hits: 4
Misses: 7

Soccer

Grant plays soccer at the YMCA once a week. He actually plays more of a form of rugby, diving onto the ball, picking it up and running. Regardless, it is a good way of getting him to run around. He adores the coach and is building a special relationship with him. There is a playground right next to the soccer field for Kate to play on so she always looks forward to soccer days too.

Focus on the Good

Last week
Grant: (in a very whiney voice) It's so sunny out. It hurts my eyes.
Jim: It is important in life to to learn to focus on the positive. Let's focus on what is good today, like the fact that it is a nice, warm day.

Today At Lunch
Grant: I don't want green peppers. I only eat red peppers.
Cindy: Too bad. You are going to eat your green peppers.
Grant: I don't have to. Dad told me to only focus on the good things in life.

1st visit to the Lakehouse

We make our first visit of the year to grandma and grandpa Koss' cottage. (where there was no rain or snow) The weather was warm and the kids loved the water, rafts, and and boat.

Stabilized

Thank you for praying for Rhyer. He is stabilized and even coming off some of his medications!

Pray for our friend

If you've been following the blog a while you may remember that our good friends also had a baby boy born with a congenital heart defect. His name is Rhyer and he needs our prayers. His heart condition is exponentially worse than Grant's and today he had his third heart surgery. To sum it up he is not doing well. Not well at all. The doctors may have to go in and undo the surgery that they did earlier this morning. His parents have asked us to pray for a miracle. Please pray with us for Rhyer today.

Bee

Kate is cracking me up these days. She's become really attached to a lego recently. It has a bee painted on it and she takes it everywhere she goes. She even eats with "Bee", holding it in one hand. She still refers to herself as monkey and introduces herself as monkey to kids in the park. Today she asked for her milk (I took it away for throwing it) and when I said no she asked, "milk for monkey?"

She and Grant are the best of friends. When she runs into the middle of the field during his t-ball practice he gets all excited telling all the other boys, "this is my sister, Kate." Then he gives her a big hug and kiss. The other night Grant was crying in his crib for me and when Kate heard him she yelled, "It's otay, Bruder (brother). Mama back."

Snuggles

Welcome home, uncle Hal! Here's to our last summer together before you graduate and have to get a real job.

Florida Vacation

No new pictures of the kids this time. Jim and I spent 5 days alone in sunny Florida! We went to Boca Raton for a wedding and then stayed a few extra days in Delray Beach. As much fun as we had we were ready to come home and see the kids. They had a blast with grandma and grandpa Koss. Grant greeted us with huge hugs and kisses while Kate gave me the cold shoulder. I think it is pretty standard for kids her age to be "mad" at their mom for leaving them and Kate was no exception. After a couple of hours she was back to her normal self. I feel refreshed and rested!

Joy

Grant still explodes with joy on a daily basis. Yesterday when I picked him up from gym class I asked the teacher how he did. She responded, "he is just so joyful! I've never seen a kid joyful all the time." I'm so thankful. Ever since he was 6 weeks old, even through all the poking and prodding of needles and tubes, he's been joyful. What a gift.

What they're into and up to

Kate- Loves to put on chapstick, speaks in 3 word sentences, doesn't eat much during mealtimes but constantly asks for candy, can count to 10, is particular about the shoes she wants to wear, enjoys her weekly swim lesson with mommy, loves to hang from things and yell "Kate monkey!"

Grant-can put on his own shoes (hooray!), skins his knee every other day from falling off his bike, likes to "look for clues" and go exploring outside, loves library storytime, always asks for a hug and a kiss before mommy and daddy leave, when he hurts himself says, "shake it off, shake it off," through his tears.

Kate's great date

Tonight we had some friends over for a bbq and everyone brought their kids. We ended up having 7 kids ages 3 and under and Kate was the only girl. She marked her territory early in the night by putting on a tutu and strutting about the house. The boys mostly chased each other around. As the night drew to a close we were all pretty exhausted so we put on an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. The guys worked on cleaning the kitchen while the moms went on a walk. All and all a great night!

Two Habits

Kate has picked up two new bad habits. The first is pooping in the bathtub. Poor Grant, he just sits there and counts them as they float up next to him. The second is calling me by my first name. She also yells, "Hal! Hal!" when she's at grandma and grandpa Koss' house.

Happy Easter

my little chefs

Dress Up

"Shwim!"

Like I've said before Kate loves to swim. The other day she was riding her bigwheel when she saw a puddle. She yelled, "shwim!Shwim!" and then drove head first off her bike into the puddle. This photo was taken a few days later and doesn't really do it justice, but she has 6 different cuts on her face. Overall, she is a really tough girl, but this spill caused some tears.

Kate and Dad

Words

The other day when Kate was brushing her teeth I told her, "make sure you get the back." She took her toothbrush out of her mouth and reached around to brush her back. I laughed out loud and now she "brushes her back" every time she brushes her teeth.

Grant: Mom, I visited heaven the other day.
Mom: How exactly did you do that?
Grant: When we were in the airplane coming home from Florida, when we were in the clouds. I saw Jesus.
Mom: Really?
Grant: Yep. And God too.
Mom: It's not often that we see God, but if I are very quiet we can hear him.
(silence)
Grant: I heard him. He told me we need to go to the gas station and put gas in our car.
(I'm surprised God didn't tell him to visit a carwash.)

Round 2

We just got back from visiting grandma and grandpa Koss in Florida again. Unfortunately, the kids were sick the whole time. They did not sleep through the night a single night while we were there. While everyone was exhausted by the week's end I was really thankful to have the help with the kids.

Sing about my day

Grant is the king of stalling when he's going to bed. He asks for water, begs to brush his teeth again and requests us to sing songs while we play with his hair. He consistently makes the request, "sing about my day." We have to pick a catchy tune and recall all the fun things he did throughout the day. When we leave him in his bed we remind him to think about his favorite things.Tonight when I got done he said, "but I don't want to go to bed. I don't want to think about my favorite things. I can only think about sad things. I was tired and not up for cheering him up so I said, "fine. Just think about sad things." He got all cheerful and said, "okay. I'll think about disobeying, that is very sad." (said with a grin)

Making people smile

Yesterday Grant received a toy from his treasure box for going potty in the toilet. He chose a mini guitar. He insisted on bringing it everywhere. When we were driving to the grocery store he asked if he could bring it inside. He said, "I'm going to look for people who are sad or angry and I am going to play my guitar for them to make them smile. I love making people smile." So, off we went into the grocery store with Grant searching the crowd for unhappy people. But, everyone he interacted with was smiling and complementary of his guitar playing. We got in the car and he said, "Mom, I didn't find any unhappy people. Are you unhappy?" I told him "no, I'm very happy today." He then asked, "Could you pretend to be sad so I can cheer you up?" So, for the rest of the ride home I fake cried so he could play the guitar and sing. I am so thankful for my boy who is so filled with joy!

Kate and play dough

See ya Snow

It has been so nice out lately so we've been spending a ton of time outdoors. Both kids like to ride the big wheel and Grant likes his training bike that we got him last summer but he never rode. Kate loves to blow bubbles and pop them in her hands. Today we made it to the park. Whenever we pass a park Kate yells, "Weeeee." Grant can finally go on a regular swing but hasn't quite figured out how to make himself move. I'm really looking forward to summer when we can spend more days like we did today.

Pet Store

Today I took the kids on a special adventure to the pet store. The whole experience turned out to be a bit of a bust, but we surely started out on the wrong foot. From the moment we got on Woodward Grant began yelling, "easy, mom, easy." I asked Grant what he meant and he said that is what you are supposed to say if someone is going over the speed limit. No idea who taught him that. Jim, if you are reading this I was not speeding.

We got to the pet store and it wasn't long before Grant discovered that they had a vacuum. I allowed him to pretend to vacuum for 5 minutes(it wasn't even on) before the manager got really upset and we had to quit that. Then Kate stuck her hand in a fish tank (they should keep them covered) and we got another scolding. The last straw was when Grant found some lettuce on the floor and tried to feed the 2 foot tortoise crawling around the ground. Okay, so it was my idea. The science teacher in me should have known it was dangerous, but it seemed like a great way to pass the time. The manager didn't think so. We'll dress in disguise next time we go.

Tidbits

Kate's favorites:
Book: "Teeth are Not for Biting" (now if only she would listen)
Song: "B-I-B-L-E" (she pats her legs as it plays in the car)
Activity: swimming (pronounced "shwim, shwim!")
Food: cereal (this is a great way to keep her occupied after dinner)
Phrase: Me Tate! (while patting her chest)

Grant's favorites:
Book: Arthur and the Trouble with TV
Song: "All you Need is Love" (dancing with mom or dad)
Activity: climbing the structures at Kiddie Klub in Rochester
Food: mac n cheese
Phrase: "I love it when you call me Big Papa." (don't ask)