Where has summer gone?

I haven't been on this site in a long time but now just realized its been a whole month since I last updated. It really does feel like its only been a couple weeks. We have had a great summer! Last week Scott had the week off of work and we had company from Tatum's foster parents, Gary and Diane from Mississippi. My mom and brother also visited the weekend Gary and Diane got here so it was great to have them all meet each other. We had hoped that a lot more of our family would of been able to meet them but it just didn't work out. While they were here we went to the wild life safari between Lincoln and Omaha. It was a lot of fun and I can't believe that we had never been there before. We also made a trip to the Omaha zoo again. The first time we went we never made it through the whole zoo and yet again this time we still didn't see everything. Its a great zoo and there is so much to see there really is no way to see it all in one day especially when its scorching hot out. The middle of the week Gary and Diane left to go to Grand Island to see another family that they were foster parents for their little boy. We decided to meet them all at the water park in Grand Island one of the days. It was so much fun and Keely loved the wave pool. Tatum still isn't crazy about water other than our pool but did work up some courage to go down the kiddie slide. We all went to the couple from Grand Islands house after supper so both our families could meet each other. The girls and I had met the family while we were in Mississippi last summer but Scott hadn't. We had a great supper and it was great catching up with everyone. They have two boys and they played so well with the girls that us adults actually got to talk the entire time! Gary and Diane ended up coming back through Lincoln on Friday evening and stayed with us until Saturday afternoon. Diane and I spent the morning Saturday going to garage sales since it was our neighborhood sales going on. WE found so many good deals and it was so much fun. Scott and Gary went to Cablelas in Omaha and took the girls with them. We always hate it when they have to leave but hopefully we get to see them again at the end of the year in Branson. Tj got home from Chadron last weekend also. He was gone there for 3 weeks and seemed to really have a good time. While he was there he got to take some golf lessons and participate in a golf tournament where he got 3rd place. He also met a friend while he was there and spent one of the weekends in Rapid City SD with him and his family. Hieu got done with summer school and never missed one day! It was a huge relief that he got through and passed his classes. He is doing very well right now and hopefully once school starts he continues to do so well with going to class. He is gone this whole week to Missouri for a religious/camping trip with his mom and a bunch of friends. He also is now getting overnight visits with his mom every weekend so it doesn't seem like he is around much. Haley has been doing well and staying out of trouble for a while now. She is such a great help with the girls when she is home. She has been working a lot of hours the last few weeks so she keeps pretty busy with that. The big kids start school the 19th so now we are trying to get everything done before school starts. I have got most of their school supplies already and just need to get a few more clothes for each of them. Tatum is also going to get to start preschool this year but she doesn't start until September 2nd. I had originally signed her up for preschool through Lincoln Public Schools but since she is only three there wasn't an opening for her this year. She is on a waiting list so in case something does open up but I am not counting on that. So we decided to that she would go to the YMCA preschool. It's only Tuesday and Thursdays but will be good for her. She can hardly wait to start so I hope when the time comes she is still so excited for it. It will also be nice to have some one on one time with Keely while Tate is gone at preschool. Keely is growing up so fast I can hardly believe it. I am going to try and get Keely into swimming lessons because she loves to swim so much. We went to a pool party last week and Keely wanted to go off the boards and down the slide. She had her floaters on and once she jumped off once she just kept wanting to go back for more. Tatum just hung out in the kiddie pool but still had a great time. WE have been in the water a lot lately and Tatum has not had any pain crisis from it so I am still glad we didn't start her on the drug they wanted her to start for her sickle cell. It has been 3 months without a crisis and we are so thankful she has been able to enjoy the summer without being sick. As I write this I am away from home staying a a facility here in Lincoln participating in a clinical study of a pain medication. I had to check in yesterday and will get to leave on Monday morning if all goes well. We had to get up at 4:45am this morning to get a drink and then at 5am our water restriction started. Pretty much the whole morning is going to be full doing stuff and at 7am we actually take our dose of the medication. Then there are lots of blood draws between now and when we go home. If we get sick from the medication we are eliminated from the study so I'm really hoping I don't get sick. If all goes well this weekend I have to return and do the same thing over again next weekend. I really hate being away from everyone but at least I can have my phone and Hieu let me bring his laptop so it does help pass the time. Scott, the girls, and Tj have a busy weekend planned so the time will go fast for them at least. Last night Scott's dad and Julie came to town and stayed at a motel so Scott took the girls over there so they could swim. This morning they are going to Husker fan day at Memorial Stadium. Then later this evening they will all go to Eagle Raceway because Tj's football team is doing a fund raiser there. Its fan appreciation night so there are a lot of other activities going on also. I can't wait for Monday morning to get here and Haley and the girls to pick me up! I miss everyone so much.

Lots of updates

Now that we are all back from our vacations I think I have a bit of time to update you all. Tj went on his trip to Alabama and loved it there and can't wait to go back and visit again. He got to meet his cousins and great grandma he had never met before. The induction ceremony sounds like it was very nice and we are so glad he got to be part of it.

We also had a great vacation in Las Vegas the weekend after Tj got back from Alabama. Everything about it was great except for the heat of course. All the kids did great considering all the walking we did and the 110 degree temps. The first night we got there we walked the entire strip for the most part. We stayed at the stratosphere and made our way all the way to the MGM Grand stopping off for supper in the middle. On our way back to our room the kids were so tired of walking they decided they wanted to go back to our rooms so they got on a bus that went right to our motel. Scott and I sat and watched the pirate show at Treasure Island then we got on a bus also and went back to the room. Saturday we got tickets to ride the rides on top of our motel so we did that early in the day and did more walking. Later everyone was tired so we went back to our rooms and Haley and Hieu took naps while Scott just relaxed. Tj and I decided we wanted to go to the pool. It was a great pool and so relaxing. We were only there about an hour but it was so hot I got a good tan in that short amount of time. Tj found some people to play volleyball with and had a great time. When we got back to the room everyone got ready for the evening out. We had supper at our motel buffet then headed to do some sightseeing. We started off watching the pirate show at Treasure Island but it was still light out so it wasn't as good as it is at night. Then we stopped at the Mirage volcano, Bilagio dancing fountains, and made one last stop by Treasure Island again so the kids could see the show in the dark. By this time it was getting late and Hieu was tired of walking and Tj wanted to go ride the rides at our motel again since it was dark. Hieu called it a night while Scott, Haley, and Tj rode the rides again and I just watched from the observation deck. During the day nobody really said much about how scary it was being up so high but at night it was a whole different story. Scott was actually scared and they didn't even ride all 3 rides again because they all thought it was so scary. After they rode during the day they all wanted to do the sky jump that was also at our motel but after being up there at night Scott said there is no way he was jumping off the building and decided he didn't want to do sky jump. Nobody ended up doing it because it was so expensive! We could watch people jump from our window and I can't believe how many people did it considering it was $100.00 a jump and only took 16 seconds once you jump to touch the ground. After we were all done riding the rides Haley went back to the room and Tj, Scott, and I went to McDonald's for a midnight snack. By that time were all so tired that everything seemed funny and we had a great time. After getting back to our room we stayed up talking and laughing until 2am which was 4am Nebraska time! Needless to say we all slept in Sunday morning. We got our stuff all packed up and went up and had breakfast before heading to the airport. Once we got to the airport and all checked in we had lunch and just relaxed before boarding the plane. Our flights both ways were great and nobody got sick. On the way home most of us slept most of the flight so it went fast. Before we went I didn't think Tj would have that much fun but in the end he had more fun than any of the big kids. We are so glad we got to take all of the big kids and hope they have great memories of the vacation. When we got back to Grand Island I could not wait to see Tatum and Keely! They were so excited to see us and had a great time with their grandma's while we were gone. I don't plan on leaving them again for a long time but the vacation was great and I couldn't have imagined having them there with all the people and heat.


Now I need to update you about Tatum since I did start this sight to keep people updated on her health. She is doing well and hasn't had any pain crisis for over a month. She did have her regular check up a few weeks ago. While the results of the transcranial Doppler and blood work were good the suggestion from the doctor was not what I wanted to hear. He believes that Tatum has crisis too frequently for how young she is and for the form of sickle cell she has. So he has suggested she start a drug called Hydroxyurea. It is suppose to help her not have crisis so frequently. I can't really explain how it stops the red blood cells from sickling but there have been studies done on it in ADULTS with the most severe form of sickle cell disease but not on children. This drug was originally a chemotherapy drug that is now being used a lot in people with sickle cell disease but you can imagine the side effects that come along with it. I have joined some yahoo groups to try and research the use of this drug in children especially 3 year old children. I haven't come up with much reassuring information. So for now we are opting to not start her on the drug. If things do get worse or her Doppler's come back with bad results we will consider it but just don't feel like all the risks are worth it right now. We feel like we have been able to control her crisis very well and she hasn't been hospitalized in 6 months so it seems that we have it under control. She has also never had any transcranial Doppler with bad results meaning she isn't at risk for stroke right now. Below is some information about this drug if any of you want more specific info about how it works.

Hydroxyurea
HbF, also called fetal hemoglobin, is the form of hemoglobin present in the fetus and small infants. Most HbF disappears early in childhood, although some HbF may persist. Fetal hemoglobin is able to block the sickling action of red blood cells. Because of this, infants with sickle cell disease do not develop symptoms of the illness until. HbF levels have dropped. Adults who have sickle cell disease but still retain high levels of hemoglobin F generally have mild disease.
Hydroxyurea (Droxia) is a drug that reduces the severity of sickle cell disease by stimulating production of HbF. It is currently the only drug in general use to prevent acute sickle cell crises.
Hydroxyurea is recommended as frontline therapy to treat adults and adolescents with moderate-to-severe recurrent pain (occurring three or more times a year). Hydroxyurea reduces the frequency of acute pain crises and episodes of acute chest syndrome. It is taken daily by mouth. Hydroxyurea can be taken indefinitely and the benefits appear to be long-lasting.
Hydroxyurea is not a cure-all. Not all patients respond to hydroxyurea, and the best candidates for the treatment are not yet clear. Many patients who can benefit from it are not receiving it. Hydroxyurea is still being investigated for younger patients. To date, the response to the drug in children with sickle cell disease is similar to the response in adults, and few severe adverse effects are being reported. Recent research also suggests that hydroxyurea is safe for infants.
Side effects include constipation, nausea, drowsiness, hair loss, and inflammation of the mouth. More severe side effects include reduction of white blood cells (neutropenia) and clot-forming platelets (thrombocytopenia). Hydroxyurea should not be taken by pregnant patients as it can cause birth defects. There have been concerns that long-term use of hydroxyurea may increase the risk of developing leukemia, but the significance of this risk remains unclear. Still, for some patients the risks of untreated sickle cell disease may outweigh the risks of hydroxyurea� ' s side effects.
Patients should handle hydroxyurea with care and wash their hands before and after touching the bottle or capsules. Household members who are not taking hydroxyurea (such as caregivers) should wear disposable gloves when handling the medicine or its bottle.
Transfusion

Summer break is here!

The kids finally got out of school June 3rd for summer break. It sure has been busy already and it looks like the rest of the summer is going to be busy too. Last week when we went back to Sargent for the fair Haley, the girls and I are the only ones that ended up going. The boys really didn't want to go and I was afraid they were going to be really bored. Tj and Hieu stayed home with Scott. We did have a great time while we were there and thankfully the weather was good for the most part. While I was back in Sargent I was able to go out to our other house and mow some. My brother has been doing it the last few times and since I was back I thought it would be nice to go help him. Being out there mowing really makes me miss living on a couple acres but I definitely don't miss the small town. Maybe someday we will have a house here with a couple acres.... The girls had a lots of fun both nights riding rides at the carnival and getting candy from the parade. We came home on Wednesday and then Thursday Hieu had to start summer school. It didn't really seem like much of a break but I'm sure glad we got away for a couple days before having to get up early and take him to school again. I know last time I told you I thought we were going on vacation to KC but there has been a change of plans. We are now going to Las Vegas June 25-27th. Scott, me, Haley, Hieu and Tj are all going! It should be a great time and since we won't be there that long there shouldn't be time to get bored. Tj has flown once when he was a baby but doesn't remember it and Hieu has never flown so it should be an interesting flight. We will be flying from Grand Island straight to Las Vegas. We are going to miss the girls so much and I have never been away from both of them for even one night! They are excited though because 2 of their grandma's are coming to stay with them and taking them to do some fun things while they are here caring for them. It's going to be sooo hot when we are there I really don't think the girls would be much fun and really doing something fun to them is going to chuck E. Cheese or to a special park we never go to. We may still try and make a small trip for the entire family later in the summer but haven't decided yet. They are really excited right now for Tatum's foster parents to come and ask almost daily if it's time for them to come see us or not. This weekend we really aren't doing too much. Haley is working all weekend, Hieu is at a birthday party, and Tj went to his moms for the day. Scott, the girls and I went to some garage sales this morning and found some bargains. Next Friday Tj is going on a trip to Alabama with some of his family who lives in Chadron. Tj's dad passed away about 4 years ago but is being inducted into his high schools football hall of fame and they will be there to accept it in his honor. He has never been to Alabama or even met a lot of his family who lives there. It's going to be a short trip but should be a great experience for him to learn a lot about his family history. Tj's dad died much too young at the age of 47 from heart problems. I don't think Tj knew him really well still look up to him and wants to follow in his foot steps. His dad was recruited from his high school in Alabama to play for Nebraska in college by Tom Osborne and played all 4 years for Nebraska. After college he went on to play for the Miami Dolphins for 4 years before a knee injury cut his football career short. We have read many things about him and he must have been a pretty amazing athlete...His name was Andra Franklin in case any of you may remember him. Tj actually has a team mates mentor who was his dad's coach in Alabama in high school. It's great because he knew his dad so well and tells Tj of the many great memories he has of him. He is also going to be at the induction next weekend. We are so thankful that Tj has so many great people in his life that want to help him be successful. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Some good news...

We finally got an offer on our house and came to an agreement with the couple. We should be closing sometime between July 1st and the 15th. What a huge relief it is to know that we will no longer have that to worry about. We really loved that house and the land all around it and are so glad that someone who will love it just like we did will be buying it. So far we haven't had to go back to Sargent and have been able to email paper work back and forth for signatures. I'm sure once our current tenants move out we will go back to make sure everything is good for the closing. Actually I am planning on taking all 5 kids back to the fair in Sargent the 7th and 8th. I took the girls last year and they have literally talked about it for the last. They are very excited to go back to ride all the rides and go to the parade. I know there are a lot of different fairs around here we could go to but there's just something about going back to the fair in Sargent. Probably because it's my home town and it brings back a lot of memories for me. As long as the girls like going we will try to make it a yearly tradition until our schedules just get too full for it. The big kids get out of school on June 3rd and I can hardly wait! I think we have all decided that our vacation this summer is going to be going to worlds of fun and oceans of fun in Kansas City. All the big kids want to go there and it's been a long time since Scott or I have been so it should be a good time. I'm not sure if the girls will have that much fun but really can't stand the thought of not taking them. I'm sure though they would be just as happy going to the museum here in Lincoln or even something new in Omaha. We haven't set a date yet but will probably be over some weekend because Hieu will have summer school most of the summer. In July another very exciting thing is going to happen..Tate's foster parents are coming to visit from Mississippi! We are so excited and can't wait to see them. We have been to MS a couple times since we got Tate but they have never been here. I'm not sure what all we will do while they are here but we are hoping that we can meet both our families somewhere for a picnic so everyone can meet them. They will also be traveling to Grand Island for a few days to visit another family that they were foster parents for their son. I have met them once when the girls and I were in MS last summer but haven't seem them since so it will be nice to see them again too. Seems strange we live a little over an hour away but have only managed to meet up while we were both visiting in MS! The whole last week of July Scott has to take vacation and that is the week they are planning on visiting so it should work out great.

Over the last couple weeks Tatum and Keely were both sick with colds/sinus problems. Actually everyone kind of had a cold but the two girls just couldn't seem to get over it. Last Tuesday during the night Tatum was up a few times saying she was having pain. We were a little surprised since every other time she has had a pain crisis it's been from her getting to cold or something like that. I ended up having to start her on her hydrocodone when I couldn't get the pain under control with just ibuprofen. I took both of them to the doctor and they were prescribed antibiotics and more pain meds for Tate. All day Wednesday I was having trouble getting the pain under control. That evening I was finally able to get it so both meds could be given at the same time and it worked great! That has been the answer to controlling her pain the last couple times she has had crisis at home. Finally over the last weekend we were able to quit the hydrochodone and now she is feeling much better. Both of the girls are feeling great now. I think everyone might quit getting sick if the weather would make up its mind. I am really getting tired of all the rain but did enjoy one great day of sun this week. It sound like it's going to be a very nice weekend and hot next week. This Saturday all of us are going to meet all my family on my mom's side for a picnic in Kearney. It should be a very nice day so the little kids can play together. I'm sure my big kids will be bored but oh well its good for them. Sunday Scott's mom will be coming through Lincoln so we are going to have brunch with her too. Going to be a busy weekend. AND..Friday night they are having a kids night out at our YMCA from 7-10 so Scott and I may get to go on a date! Haven't decided what we will do since we really don't know what a date is anymore but we will figure out something. The two oldest kids have been grounded again a lot lately it seems and I am really getting tired of grounding them and having them home with us pouting all weekend. Surely someday they will learn to do what they are suppose to?? Tj is doing pretty well too even though he has had some consequences for not so great behaviors. All in all he is a very good kid and we are so lucky to have him in our family. Tonight our whole family is going to a light/music/choreography/ show at Haley and Hieu's high school. It's called electrophonics and Hieu has been to it before and said it's really good. I sure hope it's exciting enough to keep Tate and Keely entertained. Well now that it feels like I have been rambling on and on I better end it here but still have more topics I want to write about one of these days. Have a great weekend everyone!

Stressed out!

Well, thanks to my husband I am having a much needed quiet night at home. He took Tj, the girls and Tj's friend all to the YMCA for a while so the boys could swim, he could work out and the girls can get some playtime in at the daycare there. Haley is working tonight so its just me and Hieu here and he's playing his video games so I decided now was as good of time as any to update everyone. Things have been kind of crazy here lately. We are still trying to sell our house back in Sargent and although we have actually had a few people look its still not close to being sold. I made a trip back to Sargent last week to check on the house and also to show it to two different potential buyers. They showings went well and one of the people even came wanted a second look a few days later. Then Sunday my mom was nice enough to show it for us again to a couple and they too are coming back on Saturday to look again and share some of their concerns with us about the house. Scott is planning on going back to Sargent early Saturday morning to meet with that couple and is also showing it too another couple who haven't seen it. We are happy there is still some interest but just want to get it sold and are willing to consider any reasonable offers if someone would just make us an offer! There is someone living there and paying us rent so it's not like it's empty but we would just rather get it sold so we don't have to worry about it anymore. We have a blog also to hopefully help us sell our house if anyone is interested in taking a look the blog address is 81158roundvalleyroad.blogspot.com Also on Saturday our social worker who has done our private home studies is coming to Lincoln to do a home study for our friends. While she is in town we are suppose to meet with her too so we can get our home study updated as well since ours will expire in June. Hopefully this year we actually use the home study for an adoption of a baby boy but really who knows what will happen. There is a huge incentive now though to adopt. Usually there is just an adoption tax credit to help with adoption expenses but it was just passed that anyone who adopts between January 2010 and December 2011 will actually get back a refund for their adoption expenses up to 13K! That is such a huge help especially when money is what holds a lot of people back from adoption. So before Saturday Scott and I need to go get our finger prints done and also get to the court house to get our background checks done. I'm hoping tomorrow when Scott gets home we will have time to go since there is nothing planned right now. Last week things around here weren't too good and I was about to pull my hair out. On Tuesday Hieu got sent to a higher level of care for a while for not following his court orders and then was suppose to be sent somewhere else if we weren't willing to let him come back to our house. On Thursday our whole family talked and the decision to let him come back was unanimous, everyone wanted to give him another chance. I had the chance to talk to him almost everyday he was gone and was even able to go visit him on Saturday. We had a very good talk and I'm hoping that this second chance to prove he can do what he is suppose to will be enough for him to continue to do well. He really is a great kid and we love having him here. Too bad teenagers have to get that really horrible attitude that makes them say stuff they really don't mean! He was released to me Monday morning and things have been pretty good since he got back home. Even though we were very mad/disappointed in him it was strange having him gone and WAY quieter than usual. Now things are back to being loud and him and Haley fight just like brother and sister, getting along one minute and tattling on each other the next. I know I am counting down the days until they are all out of school and it can't come soon enough! Well now I'm off to relax a little more and watch American Idol. Hope everyone has a great Mother's Day this Sunday!

Greatest day!

Today has been one of the greatest days I have had in a long time! The morning started early and we all headed to Omaha to the zoo. Hieu didn't get to go with us though because he had been up most of the night not feeling well and decided he wouldn't be much fun. I felt terrible for leaving him and still going because he is the one of the 3 older kids who has been asking about when we would go. But after talking to him, he didn't want us to stay home and ruin our whole day. So we will be making another trip so he can go with us. Of course we didn't make it though the whole zoo but did see a lot of really cool animals. The girls were amazed at everything there was to see. After we all had enough walking for the day and were starving we went out for lunch at Hooter's. Of course Scott and Tj picked that but the food was good and since there isn't one in Lincoln we never get to eat there. Everyone was tired after eating so we headed home. We didn't even make it out of Omaha and everyone was asleep. The girls continued their naps when we got home for a while longer and the rest of us just relaxed. About supper time Haley and Tj went and got one of Haley's friends and they went out for supper. Scott, the girls and I decided we would go out too and ended up going to the same restaurant as Haley and Tj! It was HuHot and is everyone in our houses favorite place to eat obviously. Another great thing about the day is that Keely has been potty training and went the entire day with NO accidents even with all the activities going on. Then this evening she even went in and went on her own without being reminded. That is so huge for her because we have been having to remind her about every hour and she would go but not if we didn't remind her. I would of loved to had her potty trained by the time she was 2 but it just didn't work out that way so I'm glad it's finally looking like she is catching on and loving all the praise. She even got to go pick out big girl panties for having such a great day! All the kids have had great attitudes the past couple days and that is always a great feeling. Tomorrow is Scott's little brother's 7th birthday so everyone will be going to his party in the afternoon except me and Haley. Haley has to work and I will be heading back to Sargent for the day. I'm going back to check on our other house there that we are trying to sell and will also be showing it to 1 or 2 people while I'm back. We are very hopeful that one of them is interested and will buy it because we are starting to get a little nervous that it's not going to sell ever. I haven't been back since October so it will be a good trip but also very quick.

Long awaited post

Hello everyone who is still following this blog after my long break from updating it! I'm not even sure where to begin since it's been so long since i updated last? We have been busy as ever but everything is going pretty smooth at this moment in time. Haley got her license at the end of February and that has been the best thing ever for me anyway. She drives Tj to his school now and then her and Hieu go to school after they drop him off. That means I don't have to get out at all in the mornings to take anyone to the bus stop or school anymore. Since having the freedom to driver herself around we have had a couple instances where she decided she wasn't going to follow the rules and was lucky enough to spend a few weekends home with Scott and I instead of going out being with her friends. I'm hoping one of these times she learns to do what she is suppose to! She is also working now at the new Amigo's store that opened right by her school and is getting way more hours. She had been working only about 10-12 hours a week at the store she trained at but is now working about 30 hours a week at the new store. She really likes it and loves getting an actual income so she has her own money. Hieu is doing well and we really love having him in our family. He has also had to learn the rules the hard way a couple times when him and Haley decide to come home late. After spending a weekend home with us he too has been doing great. Since the weather has been a little warmer him and his friends have spend a few evening fishing and hanging out at the park playing football. He loves his video games and now has Scott and Tj hooked on Xbox live. Tj and Scott went golfing last week even though the wind was terrible. They both had been anxious to get to go golfing again so I'm sure there will be a lot more golfing this summer. Tatum and Keely are doing good and keeping me on my toes. They are at the stage now that they love to play pretend with each other weather it's playing doctor and patient, puppies, or pretending under the kitchen table is an airplane, they are so much fun to watch. I registered Tatum for preschool a couple weeks ago and we won't know until the end of august if she gets accepted or not. I put down 4 different elementary schools in our area we would be willing to take her to so hopefully that gives her a better chance at getting accepted. She talks about going to school all the time and I hope that continues! The baby is still here with us but will be leaving Friday. She is the happiest little baby and our whole family is really going to miss her. It was a very hard decision for Scott and I to make but after a lot of discussion we decided it was best for her and our family that she go to another foster family. It's likely that she will not be able to be adopted and will return to her bio parents after her 15 months out of home and we weren't willing to go though the heartache nor put the rest of the kids through that after her being with us that long. That will make her about 2 years old and I can't even imagine what it would do to everyone to see her have to leave and go back to where she was hurt at in the first place. We did get to meet the family that is going to take her now and we really liked them so that makes it a little easier. We also learned from having her with us that we will not foster any babies in the future unless they are in the process of being available for adoption. When we started the foster care journey we originally said we would only to infants and toddlers but now have totally changed our preference for what age of kids we will take. The older kids are really great and we have had a great experience fostering them. Our house is almost full though. We have several openings for our license but we are only willing to take one more teen girl and that is likely to happen in July. I will do another post one of these days about that because this one is going to be long the way it is. Our whole family got the chance to go to Mahoney state park a couple weekends ago and had a great time. We had never went there before and really wish we would have found out how much fun it was at the beginning of winter instead of the end. They have a HUGE activity center and also an ice skating rink. Scott, Tj, and Haley went ice skating while Hieu watched and I took the girls in the activity center. The activity center has a big jungle gym type thing with ball pits, slides, mazes, and stuff like that. After Scott, Tj, and Haley were done skating they came over to the activity center and got in and played also. It was fun having all 7 of us playing in there and it really made me feel like a kid again. Tate then decided she wanted to try ice skating so Tj, Scott, and Tatum went back and ice skated a little bit. Tate didn't stand to well on her own but with daddy's help she got to at least try ice skating. It really was a great day and we hope to do some more fun stuff like that this summer. Right now we are trying to decide where to go for vacation this summer? Anyone have any ideas on an affordable vacation for 7 people? Last Sunday we all went to my friend Roxanne's for Easter. It was fun and the food was great. The big kids hid eggs filled with candy for the little kids to hunt. Scott and I are doing good and try to keep up with every one's busy schedules. I'm hoping this weekend we can take advantage of Haley being grounded and have her keep the girls a couple hours so Scott and I can go out and do something with just the two of us. I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying some warmer weather! I will be posting more often and have a couple different things I have on my mind that I want to write about.

Easter- Not a great pic but the best one I have. Boys didn't want their picture taken and the girls couldn't quit looking back at them.

Tate with her ice skates on and ready to go!

As usual we have had a busy last couple of weeks. Not too much going on today so I thought I would try and get this updated. Just after I wrote last time we got the 17 year old boy and things are working out really good with him. His name is Hieu and he is a little quite but has started to speak up a lot more lately. He likes to hang out with his friends a lot and also goes on visits to his moms a few days a week. Last weekend he spent much of the weekend with family and friends celebrating the Vietnamese new year and had a great time doing that. Tj spend last weekend with his mom since he hadn't been there for a while. He also got to go skating with one of his friends that doesn't usually get to go skating and then spent the whole night up hanging out and playing video games. Surprisingly when he came home Sunday afternoon he was in a pretty good mood after sleeping all afternoon. Scott, Haley, the girls, and I all went to Kearney last weekend to meet my mom and brother. Since my sister is going to be 16 this week we decided to buy a car from some friends of ours back in Sargent. So when we met mom and Clint we got the new vehicle. Scott and I also got new tattoos while we were in Kearney since that is where we have got all our other ones and like the work they do there. Scott got Keely's name on his forearm and I got the beginning part of the adoption creed down my whole left side over my ribcage. Gosh it sure hurts when I get them done but I love it so much now that it is done. Every time I get one I think there is no way I am going through that pain again but then after a while I think I forget how painful it is and decide to get another one. They really are addicting! Since Monday was presidents day Scott was suppose to be off for the day. I was really looking forward to him being off so he could do all the running of the kids to the bus and to and from school. But, Sunday afternoon he got a call to see if he would want to work. He couldn't turn it down since it was such good pay for getting called in on a holiday so it was just another Monday. Wednesday was a very big day that we had been waiting for. We went to court on Wednesday and became Tj's legal guardians! There isn't a whole lot that will change with us being his legal guardians but the biggest thing is that he is no longer a state ward. That is so awesome now as it was such a pain with so many people from the state having to come over all the time and if we wanted to take him out of state we had to get permission. Also there was a lot of documentation we had to fill out every month for them and now we are done with that. Our whole family went to court and then went out to our favorite restaurant for lunch to celebrate. Since Haley had gone to court with us and didn't go back to school after court I took her to take her driving test. She didn't end up passing so we will go back this week and hope like crazy that she passes! Yesterday we took Tatum and Keely to the children's museum for a couple hours while the baby was on her visit. Haley is usually working 3 days a week and hopefully will get more hours once she is 16. The baby is doing really good and is eating a lot better than she was and now has been gaining weight really good. Everyone in the house has been healthy and we are so thankful for that!

February Already?

Things are still going great here. There has been so much going on that I can't believe that February is here already. We are still waiting on getting the 17 year old boy I mentioned last time and now it is suppose to be on Friday that he will be coming to live with us. We have his bed all set up and ready to go. It will be nice that he will be here over the weekend before going back to school on Monday so we will all get a chance to know each other a little better. We did end up getting to have Keely's party since the weather didn't get too bad. Some of our family that came for the party also got a motel room to spend the weekend and it was a lot of fun getting to hang out with them. The kids swam and got in the hot tub at the motel and had a good time doing that. I'm so glad we decided to have the party for Keely because she really loved it and getting all the attention for once. It normally wouldn't have been a big deal but she has NEVER had a big birthday party since her birthday is so close to Christmas. On her first birthday nobody was able to come because it was the day after Christmas and this year the weather was so bad nobody could come again. She was going around during the party saying "I'm so excited!" Last weekend Haley and Tj went skating on Friday night and Tj also went on Saturday. Haley went to a hockey game Saturday night so needless to say both Friday and Saturday night were spent running kids here and there. They both had a great time and Scott and I had a great time spending one on one time with the little girls. Sunday Haley and the 3 little girls and I went to my aunts sons birthday party. He turned 4 and the girls love to go there and play with him and all the other kids. Haley started her job this week and seems to be liking it so far. She says it's not too bad but the cash registers are the hardest part to learn. She is training at the location close by our house and hopefully when the new location by her school opens she will start working there. I know she can't wait to get her first pay check so she can have some of her own money to spend. Everyone has had a little runny nose lately but doesn't seem to be turning into anything more than that. Scott and I got to go our for supper last week and then went to the foster care closet. That is a place where you can go if you have foster children that need clothes. When you go there you can pick out whatever you want and it doesn't cost anything. We had never used it before but since the baby came with nothing and we didn't have anything other than what our friends gave us we decided we would try it. It is a great place and they had so much to chose from. Now when she outgrows her stuff we can just take it back there and pick out more stuff. Since the kids missed so many snow days Lincoln Public Schools decided they would run an extended schedule for 2 weeks rather than go one extra day at the end. So now they are going 15 minutes early in the morning and 21 minutes later in the afternoon this week and next. It is really a pain and messed up every one's schedules. The kids are already tired and they have only been doing it this week so far. It is working out that Scott takes Tj to the bus since it's close to the time he has to go to work and then he also has been able to pick Haley up after school some too. Him helping out has been great for me and not having to load the kids all up as much as I was. I guess I really don't know much else and glad that everything is going good here. Hope you all are doing good too.

New addition!

I know some of you already know that we have a new addition to our family, at least for a while we are told. Last Friday we got a call from our agency to see if we would be interested in a 4 month old baby girl. We did talk about it and decided that yes we did want her! We were told at the beginning that it will most likely be a long term placement with the possibility of adoption. If any of you know about the state foster care system it may be a very long time before we really know if she will be going back to bio parents or if she will in fact be available for adoption but in the mean time we are going to be here and be her family no matter what the outcome is. Everyone loves her and she is getting so much attention since we got her home. The girls are my little helpers and always want to help feed her or change her diapers. Haley has been great even before we got the baby and we probably couldn't manage without her. When we found out we were getting the baby and told Tj he was not excited at all but the day we brought her home it was amazing to see his response. He wanted to hold her right away and couldn't stop smiling! He said "I guess we do need another baby!" We had been talking for a while about getting another baby but he really wasn't sure about it since Tate and Keely can really be a handful at times. Since we had not kept any of our baby girl stuff we really had nothing when they called us about her. Thankfully our friends here in Lincoln who we had given a lot of the girls stuff to had kept some of it. So we were able to get everything we needed from them and it worked out great. Things have really been crazy around here again but we do really love it that way. Tj has been going to his conditioning for football more lately and went skating both nights over the weekend. We had a boy for respite over the weekend again and him and Tj went skating together Saturday night. Haley applied for a job last week at Amigos and the very next day she got a call for an interview. They then called again after her first interview and asked if she could come for a second one. She had the second interview yesterday and got hired for the job! There will be a new store opening right across from he school and that is where she will be working once it opens in March. She is going to train at another store that is close by our house so we will be driving her there until she is 16 next month. Can't believe my baby sister is going to be 16 already! Also, if the weather cooperates this weekend we are having a party for Keely on Sunday since we never really got to celebrate her birthday with all our families. My mom and Scott's mom will be coming down on Saturday and staying in a motel so hopefully the kids can go there and go swimming Saturday night. Sunday Scott's dad and step mom will be coming also for the party. It sounds like there is another storm coming so it may be canceled again but we hope not. Later this week we may be getting another placement of a 17 year old boy that goes to the same school as Haley. We are just waiting on the judge to OK him to come here. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed at the thought of our house have 8 people in it but I think it will work out just fine if I get a little better organized. When Haley is 16 things will be much less hectic because she will be able to driver herself and hopefully the boy we are getting to school. I guess that is all for now and I will try to update later in the week or this weekend.

first post of 2010!

Things here seem like they have been very busy and I never seem to make time lately to update this blog. Since Christmas it seems like a lot has gone on but then again not really. The weekend after Christmas we of course had to cancel all the plans for celebrating with Scott's dad and my dads side of the family. We also had to cancel the big party we were going to have for Keely's 2nd birthday. On Keely's birthday our family just had a little celebration here at home with cake and presents. It was a good time but we sure missed everyone else being able to celebrate with us. So we will be having an official party for her the 23rd of this month if the weather cooperates. We went to Branson the 30th and met Tatum's foster parents. We had a great time but unfortunately Tatum's foster mom got sick the day after we got there so we didn't get to see her much. On New Year's Eve we did go out to supper with Tatum's foster dad, their daughter, and one of her friends who were also staying at the condo. We had planned on coming home on the weekend but since Diane didn't feel good again on Friday we decided to head back to Lincoln. We did take our time and make a couple stops along the way. We stopped in Springfield at the HUGE Bass Pro Shop there just to look around. Then we also stopped in Kansas City and saw Keely's foster parent. It was great seeing them as well since it had been over a year since we saw them last. It was late Friday night when we got home finally. Luckily the weather was pretty good the whole trip and no snow to deal with in Branson. We took it easy all weekend and by Monday the girls started not feeling well and running fevers. Wednesday I finally took Tatum to the doctor because she was just getting worse and started not drinking and hadn't ate much since Sunday. I also wanted to get her spleen checked since the last couple times she had been to the doctor it was enlarged a bit. Well when we got to the clinic the doctor planned on just getting her some IV fluids there then sending us home until he felt her spleen. It was about double to triple the size it normally is. I hadn't felt it at all that day but a couple days before it was a little enlarged but not too bad. Wednesday I couldn't believe how big it was. So our doctor called Tate's doctor in Omaha and they decided that she should be admitted and make sure she wasn't having a splenic sequestration. Below is information about this condition that does happen in people with sickle cell disease. After we got to the hospital and the blood work results were back they determined that wasn't what was going on but there was some signs of infection so she was started on an IV antibiotic along with fluids. Her fever did go down in the evening but then came back up after she went to sleep. She was also very restless and waking up every 30 minutes or so complaining of something hurting but wouldn't say what. It was weird and seemed like she was kind of out of it when she was crying and complaining. They did finally give her some hydrocodone and she slept the rest of the night. When she got up she seemed to be feeling better and no fever. When the doctor came around she decided that we could go home on antibiotics. Tatum and Keely both seem to be feeling better now so hopefully they are about over whatever they had. All our schedules have been so messed up since the middle of December because of the kids being out of school so much. Before Christmas they had three snow days and then were off 2 weeks for Christmas. They returned back to school the 4th but since we had another snow storm with very cold temperatures they didn't have school last Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday. I'm wondering if we will ever get back into a normal schedule. Since they have missed more than five days now they have to start making them up. I'm hoping they just take away from the week they are suppose to be off in March for spring break or just make some of the days longer. Their last day isn't until June 3rd already so I would hate to have them go farther into June. We did some respite a couple different weekends in the last month and that all went well. They were all boys and Tj really enjoyed having other boys his age in the house and is anxious for a brother. Scott and I went on a movie date this weekend and saw Blindside. I had went to it with Haley a while back and loved it and Scott wanted to see it so I was glad to see it again. Hopefully everyone is well enough this week so we can all go to the YMCA again. Haley and I have been going but since the girls have been sick Scott has had to stay home with them. They seem anxious to go back to the daycare there. I can't think of anything else exciting that happened since I last posted so I guess that's all I have for tonight.

ABOUT SPLENIC SEQUESTRATION

An organ in the upper-left area of the abdomen, the spleen filters out abnormal red blood cells and helps the body's immune system fight infection. Sometimes, as in the case of sickle cell disease, red blood cells can be trapped in the spleen, a condition known as splenic sequestration. The body reacts as if it were bleeding internally because the blood trapped in the spleen cannot circulate to the heart or brain. This condition can range from mild to life threatening, depending on how much of the body's red blood cells are sequestered.How can we detect splenic sequestration?When red blood cells are trapped, the spleen grows tender and becomes enlarged enough to feel in the upper left part of the abdomen. Doctors detect splenic sequestration by feeling for this enlarged spleen and testing for low red-blood cell counts. You do not need a medical degree to learn how to feel for an enlarged spleen, but it does take hands-on training and practice. Your doctor can teach this when you bring in your child for a checkup.How often should we feel for an enlarged spleen?If your child is doing well, then just feel for the spleen several times a week just to get practice. You should feel for an enlarged spleen if your child: Looks pale. In darker-skinned people, this may be easier to detect by looking at the lips, the inner eyelids, and the fingernail beds. Usually these areas are red or dark pink, but if they look light pink or white, then the child is pale.
Seems unusually tired.
Is unusually cranky or irritable, and perhaps has a headache. When the red blood cell count is very low, oxygen delivery to the brain may be inadequate, causing a headache.
Is sensitive to the touch in the upper-left part of her abdomen-the area above the spleen.If you detect an enlarged spleen or if your child is displaying any of the above symptoms, you should get her in immediately for a medical evaluation. This can be an extremely serious situation and speedy evaluation and treatment may save her life.Does splenic sequestration happen again and again?It might. The treatment options are:
Treat each recurrence.
Start a monthly blood transfusion program to prevent recurrence of splenic sequestration.
Schedule surgery to remove the spleen, which is called an elective splenectomy.