Today we decided to take a picnic and go for a long drive. We went up Emigration Canyon, and then decided to stop at East Canyon Dam....
It was the perfect spot for a picnic, and a great place to wade our feet!...
When we got home, Chloe decided she wanted to swing....
Then we stopped by our house renovation project to check out a few things, so Chloe had to play on Grammy's trampoline for a minute as well. The static electricity was in full swing this time - how funny is this pic!....
Initially the number three seems small, but trust me - it's big.
I had given up on ever falling in love at least three times before meeting Oby. It took only about three seconds after meeting him to know that there was serious chemistry between us. After three hours into our first date, I was pretty sure there was something special there. It took Oby three dates to give a kiss, three weeks to say those three little words, and three months to pop the question. It took me three months to get the wedding details just right, and three minutes to promise ourselves for eternity. It was three months after the 'I Do' that I found out I was unexpectedly pregnant. Three trimesters later Miss Chloe was born. And then there were three. The three of us have lived in three houses. Oby has changed career paths three times. I'm pretty sure since all this went down, I've got at least three gray hairs, and I think Oby might be missing three hairs (cough, or more, cough)....
You may have guessed it by now. Today is our third anniversary. Three years of wedded bliss - or as Oby puts it, 'It feels like only three minutes....under water!' Of course he's kidding! You're kidding, right honey??? ;O)
Happy Anniversary to my perfect husband! It's truly no wonder you snagged the perfect wife! LOL - I kid! I kid! =)
Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass... It's about dancing in the rain.
We took this saying to heart and didn't let the rain ruin our fun at Sally's birthday party! ....
To help the little kids not be afraid of the thunder, Oby's grandma told them that thunder is the sound of angels bowling. LOL - this totally cracked me up because that really is what it sounds like!!! Hmmmm... maybe she's onto something! =)
Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers the other night! I truly felt the strength and power of your prayers, and it added to my testimony that prayers are answered.
I am so glad we did the sleep study, AND I am SO glad it's over! It was a very hard night. It was so hard on me because it was really hard on Chloe. She was covered in wires from head to toe - literally!
She did almost all of the weird things she does at night, so it was captured on film and monitors for doctors to see and evaluate. With my crash course in neurology, I'm pretty sure there was some seizure activity on the EEG. Of course I wish she weren't having seizures, but if she is, I'm glad they captured it so they can give her proper treatment.
The sleep lab assistant said she has never seen someone scream that much during the study. Needless to say, neither of us got much sleep. And fortunately there were no other patients on the floor that night! Chloe and I are still recovering from the rough night, and looking forward to the upcoming tests - two MRI's & an EMG - all under sedation. I'm so anxious to get all the results from all the tests. I've been doing a lot of research and have a few ideas of what is truly going on. I just need the tests to let us know for sure so we can get proper treatment. Of course I will keep you all posted, but don't hold your breath. All of this will take several months, but it will be worth the wait!
Update on the house remodel: We're coming right along! The windows are in, most of the concrete is done, some framing will be done tomorrow, then the roofing and siding will be done next week. And we plan on having the inside pretty much done in about two weeks. Wow, we can hardly wait!
Tonight Chloe and I are having a slumber party at Primary Children's Medical Center for a sleep study. I have been fighting/begging for this sleep study since I can remember. Finally we are here! She is all hooked up to the wires and cute as ever....
(yep she's cute, but also red-eyed from screaming while they put her headgear on)
So onto my request.
We can plan on Chloe having a terrible night of sleep 3-7 nights a week. My fear is that tonight will be one of those nights that she sleeps well. I know it sounds strange, but please send prayer requests that she will have a bad night. Not because I have munchausen syndrome and want her to have problems, but because she does have problems, and I want her caregivers to capture it so they can diagnose and treat the problem(s).
Thanks! And here's to a TERRIBLE night!!! (So far, it really is bad. There's no TV in this room - but at least I've got my trusty laptop!) ;O)
(Yes, the title of this post is a play off a Jonas Brothers song. You can tease me all you want!!!)
Today was Oby's cousin's birthday party at the park. Happy Birthday to Weston!....
This was Izzy's first time seeing Chloe in her wheelchair. Izzy loved it and wanted to help push (or maybe she just wanted the Pepsi?)....
All the kids were playing either in the playground or on the skate park. I kept thinking, 'Okay, this is exactly why I need to get an all-access playground in our area, so Chloe doesn't have to just watch from the sidelines!' (more on the status of my playground planning another day, but just know I'm working hard on it!)
Papa took Chloe, I thought for a walk, but then I glanced over and saw that he was wheelin' her around the skate park!....
At first it was just Chloe and Papa cruisin' around, but then Henry, Max & Izzy joined in. They didn't have wheels, but nothing stopped us tonight!....
Chloe had SO much fun! The entire drive home she was just babbling and 'telling' me all about her exciting time at the skate park. She just kept laughing and kicking in excitement! We'll have to hit the skate park a little more often I guess, because, really, how can I say no to this face....
Here are a couple videos so you can get the full effect. You can see at first Papa was a little timid....
Then he got a little more daring. He would push her up the little hills, then LET GO of the chair, and let gravity take control. Chloe loved it! Mommy, however, wasn't quite sure how she felt about Chloe's wheels leaving the ground, but Chloe's big smile and laughs afterward forced me to just laugh it off! Hopefully when Nana and Grammy watch this, they can laugh it off too (crossing fingers that Papa won't get in trouble)....
Today was our appointment with the geneticist. This day was a long time coming.... it took over a year to get it scheduled! Our meeting with the geneticist was very thorough, going over every little detail of our medical history as well as Chloe's. He told us he didn't believe Chloe's issues are genetic. He did say even if there is some sort of mitochondrial or chromosomal mutation, the chance of recurrence is only 1-5%.
Chloe enjoyed the appointment! She loved hanging out with Mommy and Daddy (and being the center of attention, of course!)....
But she did NOT like having blood work =( ........
It didn't take long for her sweet smile to come back. We buttered her up with hugs, kisses, and by taking her to the butterfly statue outside the children's hospital. This always works!....
We kept trying to make it up to her by letting her hang out with her cousins at Nana's house afterword. Smack dab in the middle of all those boys with Calvin letting her listen to Zip-a-dee-doo-dah on his ipod is pretty much heaven to Chloe!....
We also gave her a piece of her latest favorite treat - slim jim. I tell ya, this girl looooves Slim Jim's! They're tasty and she can hold them and feed herself! It makes her feel like such a big girl. Oh, and Aunt Taylor styled her hair so cute!....
We also let her wear some posh sunglasses....
And go on a walk with Nana!....
Hopefully we made it up to her enough that she'll consent to going to the hospital ever again. Especially since the geneticist ordered several other tests and we'll be going back a lot in the next few weeks! Our plans are to have a sleep study, a follow-up Brain MRI, a spinal MRI, and an EMG. I'll have to keep lots of Slim Jim's on hand! ;o)
This weekend was just my style. We weren't in a hurry. We took our time. We headed up to the cabin with my parents on Saturday after sleeping in. We stopped for lunch. Then we got there, we dropped off the refrigerator (which was the reason we went in the first place). Then we just sat around, ate, watched movies, relaxed, and enjoyed watching the rain. It was perfect!....
Our rennovation has been put on temporary hold. For the exterior updates, the weather has to decide if it's going to start acting like summer. For the interior updates, everything is waiting on the windows, and they're being installed not next Monday but the next.
So what have I been doing with all this time on my hands? Aside from preparing my playground presentation, I've been planning our home decor, of course! I don't know why, since I doubt once all the rennovations are done that we'll have any money for decorations, but it's fun to think about anyway! I came across the ADORABLE idea to update a simple white bedspread with pom poms, and I knew - that will be what I do in Chloe's room!....
Then I got thinking what I could do to take the circle theme and run with it. How about this gumball machine on a nightstand....
And vinyl circles on the wall (I could easily make them with my Cricut!).....
A lantern light.... Or this chandelier.....
So give me your honest opinions..... Too many circles? If so, I also really like this butterfly chandelier. Plus, hello, Chloe is my butterfly girl afterall!....
Or instead of the vinyl circles I could go with vinyl butterflies....
And if I do anything with butterflies, I've got to have a caterpillar in there somewhere also. And look, this one has little circles on his antenna and feet, to go back to the pom pom/circle theme!....
It was a great way to spend our 3rd anniversary! 
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Or instead of the vinyl circles I could go with vinyl butterflies....
