Group hug

A group hug before our paper cranes fly off to New Jersey to join
hundreds more to become 1,000 paper cranes for Neil.

Updates on my cousin Neil

Neil's mom, our Aunt Lori, is now posting at http://neilstoneupdates.blogspot.com/ to provide information and updates as they come. This is a slow process and I am sure she wishes she had more to report more often.

So, we hurry up and wait. Thank you for your continued prayers and well wishes. We love this guy so much. He has brought so much joy and laughter to our family for 18 years. He is seriously the funniest, sweetest, well-intentioned, swooping hair/crazy shirt/skinny jeans/txting dude I know.

The light of our lives.

Doesn't this just make you happy?

Time to update Baby Kate and her progress towards gaining weight and correcting her feet. We just love this tiny little thing. I say, "who cares that she still has not doubled her birth weight? I get a tiny baby for just a little longer." But, the doctors get concerned when they start out life off the charts (big) at birth and are steadily dropping growth curves and falling off the charts (small). It could signal allergies, nutrient absorption issues, etc. Other than low weight, she is healthy so I have not been too concerned but did start squeezing in an extra nursing per day (usually late at night when I was the last to go to bed...nice quiet together time.) We were back again for a weight check mid January. Kate was able to gain 1 whole pound in 3 1/2 weeks clawing her way into 5-10% percentile range. She weighed in at 15 lbs 5 oz at 8 months. Way to go, Fatso!

At the pediatrician office for her weight check.
I told Dr. W. that the needed to bill us for a roll of table paper.

3 days later we were at the Pediatric Orthopedic for her first follow up for her Metatarsus Adductus - her curving in feet. She wears the AFO splints/braces at least 20+ hours a day and we try to remember to do her Physical Therapy - stretching of her feet - when we play with her. They said to keep on doing what we are doing - so far it is working. I don't see a huge noticable change but there is some. As soon as I take the braces off her feet curl right in again but it is getting better. It is a process like watching paint dry or water boil - it takes a long time. We will need to address a slightly new approach when she starts walking - either a brace structured differently to wear with shoes or a "reverse last" shoe that she wears for walking with the braces like we have now while sleeping. So far, the don't think she will need any casting but they don't make that assessment more until after 1 year of age. Let's hope for no casts!!! The orthotist who makes and adjusts her braces is great - we have been in several times to adjust for pressure points or to adjust straps or most recently, to drill holes into the heels of the braces to allow for more moisture to escape. She had already had the signs of pressure sores on her heels and had a fit adjustment to fix that so I had been checking them carefully and was surprised when I saw new issues develop - turns out it was the moisture issue.

At the doc getting her feeties checked out. Dr. H. and the PA were fantastic - they got on the floor where she was playing and examined her feet while she played.

Baby Kate is such a joy, a truly happy baby. She lights up the room and puts a smile on our faces all day long. Steve loves coming home to her - holding her after work is his "Calgon, take me away!" moment.

If you would, say a prayer for my cousin, Neil.

My cousin Neil (mentioned this past summer in THIS post) was in a terrible car crash last night and I don't know a whole lot but he is on a ventilator with severe head trauma. We adore and love him immensely and of course our entire family is devastated. He is a senior in high school and his family lives in New Jersey. If you would, say a prayer for my cousin, Neil. Thank you so much...












Neil (aka Fatty), Lindsay and Caroline
Summer 2008 in Oregon

Hello Hot-Lanta!

That title is a joke. It is sooooooo cold here! I knew it was going to be on the chilly side but it was 16 degrees this morning when my nephew left for school. Kate I are staying toasty warm as we spend lazy days with my dear sister in law Jeannie and her sweet family as we anticipate celebrating her 40th birthday Saturday night. I am so grateful to sweet overworked and under appreciated husband for giving me this early birthday gift. I think I needed a little re-charge and this is fitting the bill! I have so much gratitude in my heart right now, words cannot describe it. I love my family, my dear friends, and oh my goodness - have you seen that Nie Nie is back? And one more shout out to the amazing pilot and crew that miraculously landed a US Airways flight in the Hudson River. Just as I was sitting on the plane with Kate on Wednesday, heading out here, I said my usual prayer (thank you for the privilege to be able to fly to visit family - please bless the crew, the plane, and my child not to cause a raucous) I was trying to remember the last time there had been a domestic plane crash. Well, thanks to skilled pilot and co-pilot, I will not be in fear as I also fly US Airways back home to Phoenix on Monday.

Anyway, I think I have had the post holiday blues, having felt like a hamster stuck in a wheel not getting anywhere and felt like I was in an unmotivated "funk" so I have yet to blog our SC trip after Christmas. I will. And I will blog about why Caroline wore a red towel on her head to dinner. And I may blog a bit about Lindsay's outstanding report card. (not too braggish though...) And I will blog about Kate and all her doctor updates. (The quick version - she gained 1 pound and her feet - keep on doin' what we're doin'.)

Christmas Eve & Christmas Day...finally!

Our family was invited to the John's family Christmas Eve celebration and we were so excited to attend. We really have fun when we are with Debbie's family and we knew this would not be a party to miss. They always have an Italian themed dinner - I don't think there could have been more pastas or bread and it was so delicious!! The kids all participated in a "draw names" gift exchange and my kiddos received Star Wars and Hannah Montana gifts - big hits. The adults do a gift exchange where you bring a $25 gift for either a woman, man, or neutral. Then, we draw names to pick the gifts and the fun part is all the stealing, wheeling, and dealing that goes on - gotta love a good gift exchange game! On the drive home we discovered a fantastic neighborhood to drive thru that is decorated to the hilt - for you local readers, the Circle G Ranches neighborhood off Lindsay South of Baseline is AWESOME!!! We stopped at a convenience store on the way home because Doh! We were out of milk and how could we put out milk and cookies for Santa without milk???

Upon arriving home the girls found Christmas jammies and new slippers laying out for them under their Christmas tree in their bedroom. (Little did we know how much more we would be seeing these jammies in the coming week...)


We all snuggled together and read some scriptures and "Twas the Night Before Christmas", milk and cookies and Christmas Wish Lists taped to the tree for Santa...

Santa (and Mommy and Daddy) slipped a few gifts under the tree. Lucky ducks. But the girls got a note from Santa that a usual item included in their stocking was left out - he said that he has noticed they leave candy wrappers around the house too much so...no candy this year!

Christmas morning mahem!!!! Some favorite gifts of the morning...the gifts we handmade for each other, Lindsay LOVED the tiny tiara, chandelier for the ceiling fan, and a real artist manual and sketch pad. Kate loved her seahorse that lights up and plays soothing music and sippy cups, and Caroline LOVED LOVED LOVED her real light saber!! Daddy really liked his new iPod which is really cool...much nicer than his old one...that I lost on an airplane last summer.

Molly's family joined us for our traditional Christmas morning brunch. This is NOT a dress up affair. The food is always awesome when we throw out a brunch spread...except for when I screw up the sweet rolls....like I did that day. Oh well. We still had plenty to eat - Thanks Molly!!

Our favorite Christmas Elves!

Dad helps us keep a Stone Family tradition alive...Chinese food for Christmas Eve is the exact tradition but since this year we spent Christmas Eve with Debbie's Family we went out for Chinese Christmas night. So yummy and such a fun tradition! Thanks Dad!!

Debbie has a tradition of giving thoughtful personalized ornaments for Christmas gifts and we so appreciate the thought and time she puts into this every year! Caroline loves the R2D2 ornament that nailed her current Star Wars obsession, Lindsay adores her Hannah Montana ornament, Kate's is a darling "first Christmas" ornament, Steve got a car representing his new purchase this summer, and I got a tool chest that says "Mrs. Fixit."

Someone got the Hannah Montana mother load!! Dad and Debbie and Auntie Molly, you did great!

These are quite possibly my favorite Christmas gift this year. Dad and Debbie gave each of us several of these for our pantries. They have A) made gift giving easier and choose a theme gift to give all of us because they figure we don't need a bunch of stuff and B) feel very strongly about preparedness and want to help us in ways they can. Last year, Molly and I each received pressure canners. This year, the Shelf Reliance Pantry rotation system. I LOVE LOVE LOVE them. (Oh, and Steve got a couple of "Scene it" games - Seinfeld and Pirates of the Caribbean editions. I guess a guy can only get so excited about pantry stuff and need something fun!)

Debbie made flannel "rag" quilts for all the kiddos. With her grandchildren combined, I think she made 12 blankets!!! WOW!!! This is one amazing gift for the kids to treasure. (We will try hard to forget that Caroline pouted because her blanket is princesses and neither Star Wars or Tinkerbell...we need to work on the manners...) Seeing as I didn't complete a couple of my sewing Christmas gifts in time, I know how much work this was for Debbie and we all appreciate it sooo much!

And wait...there is more....

A preview of things to come in my next post - our trip to South Carolina!!

Doc Marilyn

Pay a visit to Doc Marilyn's blog. She is a pediatrician and an LDS mama of 4. She blogs brutally and honestly about kiddo health issues, like when to (and more importantly NOT to) bring your kiddos in, truths about strep, the annoying things parent's do during a visit, etc. It's a great read and offers practical, real advice. I really love her real life philosophy. A little motherhood woes thrown in for good measure.

A sampling of our handmade Christmas gifts

This year I wanted the girls to experience making a gift for each other instead of going to Target with a $5-$10 allowance/earned money and picking out a toy. Sure, that is a nice thing to do but making something is fun and very special. I tried to think of projects that were at their skill level and I could assist (without completely doing it and taking over) that would be a great addition to their bedroom and personal space. Caroline can cut and glue. A modge podge project it is! Lindsay is learning to sew...we made a pillow together. I also made a few other gifts for cousins - instructions for some of these will make it to the Tuesdays blog. I promise. :)

Caroline and I picked out a 24" tall paper mache letter "L" to decorate for Lindsay. We selected scrapbook paper that would match their room and got to work painting, cutting, gluing, and embellishing a darn cute mongo huge letter "L." I did help with the fine details like final trimming the paper but Caroline did most of it and was so proud. We are planning to make a letter "C" for herself this week.

Lindsay is really loving to sew and thought a snuggly pillow would be a fun gift. Together we picked out the silky fur, the fabric for the applique initial, and came home and got to work. Cutting the fur was an adventure, I tell ya! I did help with the applique (Lindsay did some practice appliques and it was a little tricky but she tried hard.) We have all the pieces cut out for Lindsay to make one for herself this week. We also made the same pillows for cousins in SC!

One night when Daddy was working late, and all the craft items were still all over my kitchen, we decided to make a Christmas present for Daddy to hang in his office. The girls painted a prepared canvas (from a 2-pk at Hobby Lobby) a fun tangerine orange color and each picked a color for their handprint. It was a whole bunch of messy fun. Doing the handprint of a 7 month old is not easy. Just to let you know.

This was a late night project and I didn't photograph it very well - this is a pennant/flag banner I made for our nephew Everett. He IS Mr. Baseball and his room is decorated in plaids and his grandmother had recently painted a sailboat scene for his room. I thought this would be a perfect fit. This is made from old plaid shirts - even the applique "E" is from a striped dress shirt.

I made a couple of these for the little nieces - it was a quick project. It is a 24" board with scrapbook paper modge-podged, chip letters and tiny binder clips and ribbons. It say "Look what I made" and is a place to hang their masterpieces. How stinkin' cute is this? My girls have requested ones of their very own.

Just a few of the fun projects from Christmas. I really love making gifts. Since I have been crafting for so long, I usually have a stash of supplies that makes a project inexpensive. If you have to buy all the supplies from scratch, then sure, it really adds up, but a steady supply of scrap wood, fabric remnants, a large ribbon stash, and assorted papers and you can really have some fun with personalized gifts.