The Zoo

June 9th, 2011

Cole's preschool class had a fieldtrip to the Point Defiance Zoo, so we made it a family affair. We were so happy that Rusty could take the day off to spend with us!

Some highlights included: up-close time with the polar bear, a camel ride, chasing the birds who wanted to share lunch with us, and enjoying the play area.

Hunter and our big scare

This is the condensed version of our recent happenings with Hunter, though it is still a long story:

He has had a few "episodes" (I call them)-- just 2 that we know of. One earlier this year, and then the second one in early May while here at my parents, that have caused concern for us. Basically out of nowhere, he loses his balance and the whole left side of his body goes limp. It leaves him with no muscle control and he doesn't appear to be present in the moment-- like he's spacing off. It's a little scary to witness. I didn't really see the whole first episode (Rusty did), but I did see the 2nd from start to finish-- and so did my mom (who's a nurse). Though I had explained to her about the first incident, and had even called into the Dr. office at the time, it was another thing to see first-hand. Anyways, my mom felt strongly enough that I should take him in to be seen, and while I felt scared witnessing it, the episode is brief and he seems just fine afterward. Seriously, he is such an energetic kid that I found myself pushing away any concerns. I admit that the thought of taking my kids to the ER scares me a bit, but I did take him the next morning. To summarize: he's had a series of tests since then-- neurological tests and visits, an EEG (studying his brain waves during a 40 min. sleep period), and most recently an MRI (brain scan) up at Children's Hospital. All tests have turned out normal, so many concerns of tumors or other major brain blockages, etc. have been eliminated. Those were some of the worse-case scenarios. We are not sure what the cause is, but our neurologist doesn't feel concerned, now that the scary stuff has been ruled out. His speculation is that it is a mild type of seizure (apparently quite common in children and they grow out of it) where the child stares off a bit (hello, all kids do that!) and that we are only seeing the after-effects of his body recovering or processing whatever his brain needs to (the part most parents don't see). So at this point, we are not pursuing anything further unless another episode happens, and then we will repeat the EEG and go for blood work.

Anyways, he has been a huge trooper through it all....

These pictures are from our visit to Children's Hospital.

Hunter was so excited to wear a backpack filled with several special things; Playing with trucks in the waiting room

This picture breaks my heart! He could tell something was going to happen when I changed him into this nightgown. It was right before he had to be held down for sedation. What an awful moment! Rusty was meeting us at the hospital, but hadn't gotten there yet. It was hard for me to see Hunter's eyes and hold him down while they put a mask on him for sedation. I've never heard such sad cries. I thought I'd be okay emotionally, but I guess I should have known better. The anesthesiologist looked at me once Hunter was out of it and said, "well, would you like to kiss him goodbye before we take him?" Something about the way that was said, or me being on the verge of emotion and pregnancy and scary 'what if' thoughts about what they could find made me totally lose it. I could not see to walk away to the family recovery room where we'd wait for him. I went straight to the bathroom and got myself under control, only to come out to find Rusty waiting for me. Hello, more tears! And then it was tough for both of us when they brought him back after the procedure-- still unconscious, a tiny body strapped to a big gurney and hooked to lots of wires. It was nice to hold him and help him wake up, hoping he wouldn't remember the last time he saw me as I'd helped to hold him down when he was sedated. Then we got to spend the whole day with just the three of us. And I think he could feel the special treatment Rusty and I gave him. I am so grateful for healthy children, modern medicine, and for a Heavenly Father who heard an extra dose of prayers for our little guy.

Life at Grandpa's

While remodeling our house, we are staying with my parents and my boys are loving all of the outside time they get to spend with Grandpa Jack. It's especially fun when a tractor is involved!

Seriously, could Hunter cheese any bigger?? / Working the bucket controls

These two especially love digging

____________________________

Another favorite activity at Grandpa's has been re-living Zorro. My dad introduced my boys to the masked hero who saves the day months and months ago. Well, my boys are still obsessed and constantly dress up and masquerade around:

I had to add this one of Hunter, too, though it is so close-up. While taking pictures of Cole and Mason, he kept coming in front of the camera saying "cheese"-- guess he was feeling left-out.

Nudity from the 2 year old

Sorry friends for a few nude photos.... I just couldn't resist! Let me preface this by saying that Hunter is constantly taking off whatever clothes he can, which also often includes his diaper. And he is super quick about it! On this day, I was loading some things in/out of the car so the car door was left open for a time. When I came back outside, I was greeted with a little 2 year old naked body (only wearing boots) in the driver's seat (hey, at least he was buckling up for safety; I must be setting a good example for him). He seemed so pleased with himself; I couldn't help snapping a few pictures of the bribing variety.

(June 1, 1011)

Fun at Home

(May 20, 2011)

Hunter turning 2!

I can't even begin to tell you how much joy and excitement Hunter adds to our family. He keeps us on our toes-- he's the busiest, most into everything kid I know! He turned 2 on April 4th and we spent that time working on our house. While I was packing up, he was loading/unloading popcorn from his tractors and sneaking a snack here and there-- hard work, for sure. And then even took a nap for me-- which is mostly unheard of. (I was wondering if maybe it was my birthday too.) We also celebrated at a local carnival; he loved the rides.

We love you, Hunter!

House Remodel- Part 1

We have now started our house remodel and as of yesterday, our master bedroom looks a little something like this: Yikes, I know. Let the projects and craziness begin!!

Starting Our Garden

We enjoy having a vegetable garden each year-- some years I am better at tending to it than others, but we still always do one. It is a lot of fun to plant and work out there together as a family. Being in the garden is one of the things that we love most to do with the boys during the summer, as well as enjoy the things we grow. A few saturdays ago, Rusty and I took the chance to get the ground tilled up and ready to plant after the neglect of winter. We had some great weather and the boys really loved being outside in the dirt. Typical boys, that's for sure. (Just too bad much of that dirt accompanied them inside each time they used the bathroom or needed a drink). They collected worms into buckets for future fishing trips and got out all their farming tools. I love seeing my boys try to work along side Rusty; it's adorable watching them imitate him as they throw out rocks and shovel dirt. Needless to say, it was a productive day and we are now ready to plant. I'm glad that Rusty is helping to motivate me to plant a little sooner this year than I did last, since I'm pregnant and am trying to make the most of my feel-good time. And I'm hoping that our garden doesn't get too neglected during the summer months when this baby is due and my energy most surely will be lacking.

The Circus Came to Town

We were so excited to take the boys to the circus a few weeks ago at the fairgrounds. They've been asking to go to a circus or zoo for months it seemed and with free child tickets, I didn't want to miss the chance to go. We asked Rusty's parents to come with us and we all had a great time and were very entertained. Some of our favorite performances were the tiger tamer's tricks, watching all the dancing dogs and horses, and the stunt guys driving their noisy motorcycles around the big metal ball. The boys also enjoyed walking around before, after, and during the intermission on the main floor to see the elephants, the bear, the ponies, and the rest of the face painting and other vendor booths. (You know, all the things that cost a fortune that we didn't take advantage of.) Oh, and of course all the typical fair foods to snack on, which we did take part in. Talk about candy heaven for them! Sadly, I forgot to charge the camera before leaving so I only took one picture. So here is documenting that we attended at least: Exciting picture, I know-- this is the truck bringing out the tiger cages. Cue: camera dying and the end of any further photo opportunities... Mason had wanted pictures of the elephants. I told him he'll just have to wait 'til we go to the zoo this summer to see some. So, they are now looking forward to a nice, sunny day for a zoo visit. I'm hoping the weather will bring those kinds of days soon.

Our Mother's March B-days

I know, March is almost over--- but I wanted to mention that it is a special month for Rusty and I to celebrate both of our mom's birthdays. My mom's is on March 11th:

(Her and my dad were on a trip to Arizona on her special day where she got to spend the day with my older sister (her first-born), who also shares her b-day).

And Rusty's mom's is on March 14th:

(Her and Rusty's dad came over for dinner and dessert to celebrate).

We love you both, and are so grateful for all the help and love and support you both give to us and our boys!

I guess I've kept this secret long enough...

It's official-- we make boys. We're expecting our 4th one early July 2011 and could not be more thrilled!

WARNING: This will be a long, all-over-the-place post as I attempt to cover the last few months of Raban living for our family. Here are some items worth mentioning:

Snow-- we didn't see a whole lot of snow, but we enjoyed it while it lasted for a few days mid-November:

Hunter's snow suit reminded me of the little boy from 'A Christmas Story' who couldn't put his arms down; it was fun to see him meet snow for the first time.

Christmas-- we had a great Christmas season. Even though Rusty and I kept our gifts simple for the boys (they each got 3 gifts), they were spoiled still as both sets of grandparents and other family members were in town. It was great to see many of our siblings and cousins, and the boys loved all the excitement of the season-- the tree, lights and decorations, and waiting for Santa.

Our tradition-- opening jammies on C-mas eve; me with 2 of my sisters

Hunter, the C-mas grump (after being scolded by g-ma); still sulking much later with daddy (he does the "mean look" really well)

Mason's Birthday- hard to believe, but this guy turned 4 on Jan. 8th. Can't imagine life without him! He is so happy and upbeat all the time (except for this one time I can remember). His favorite things to do are to put together puzzles and hang out with Cole. With only 17 months age difference, they are close, and I love that! Usually he loves to be around Cole (except for this one time that I can remember):

Here is the "one time I can remember"; Dressing up as Peter Pan around Christmas-time. Mason likes costumes.

Rusty's Birthday- Rusty turned the big "32" on Jan. 29th. What an old man! Actually, I'm 3 months older than him, so I guess I can't talk about age. The boys and I had a surprise planned for him that he'd briefly hinted at months before-- wanting his truck windows tinted. I had it all figured out, but getting it done was quite the challenge. To make a long story short, our 12:00 appointment that was supposed to take 2 hours (and was planned perfectly as we'd play with friends during that time), ended up taking until about 6pm. Fortunately, Rusty's parents were in the area and came to get the boys from me as I was stuck in the tinting place's lobby with the 3 boys (and their carseats and gear). It was much easier to wait alone, without trying to occupy my boys in a waiting room for 4 hours. I was unhappy with the waiting game and the unexpected changes, but Rusty had to work late that night so we still made it home before him and he was surprised, so our crazy day was worth it. We enjoyed dinner with his parents and brothers the next night. Low key and perfect. Happy Birthday to a great husband and father!

I should have done a before/after picture of his truck, but I forgot and only managed to capture this one a few days later.

Feeding baby cows- Rusty's mom helps distribute bread to some needy families and often ends up with more than she can handle. With them living out in Enumclaw, there are plenty of farm animals and farmers who take the left-overs. Jan 31st, we went with her to give some to a farmer, who in turn had us help him feed the newborn cows their bottles. The boys loved the animals we got to see. Cole and Mason wanted baby cow #10 to be theirs. "Why can't we have a cow?" Ummm, how do you explain to a 4 year old why a cow can't live at your house? They weren't buying any of the reasons I gave.

Mason gets glasses- Cole needed his '1 year since getting glasses' check up, so I just lumped on an appointment for Mason since we'd already be there. I didn't expect it, but Mason's eyes are very similar to Cole's-- they even have the same prescription, just Mason has a slight astigmatism. While Cole was at school, Mason and I went to choose out his glasses. I showed him the whole wall of children's frames and said he could choose any that he wanted. He quickly pointed at one saying, "I want that one!" I didn't care what he chose, as long as he liked them. I remember thinking that they looked similar to Cole's, but it wasn't until we picked them up a week later and got home, that we saw that they are the exact same. And with the same prescription, we've already had to color-code them for the boys. They really look like twins most days-- both so darn cute when they put on their glasses in the morning!

And luckily, we've ordered some back-up pairs. Their glasses sometimes take quite the beating from their rough-housing episodes.

Busy Body Hunter- I wanted to add a bit about Hunter. I can't believe that he will be 2 very soon. He is talking more, loves playing with his brothers, and is a lot of fun for us. But he is one busy kid, as anyone will tell you. He keeps me on my toes! We gave up naps months ago because he's been climbing out of his bed for that long, so unless he falls asleep while in the car... let's just say we have some long, rough days and just do the best we can 'til he crashes!

Before/During/After
I promise, Hunter was not harmed during this (despite the desperate look on his face). He recently got his first haircut/buzz. Sad to see the baby hair go, but it was all over the place and driving me crazy how I'd snip at all the little fly-away pieces whenever he wasn't looking. I'm hoping it grows back soon and a little more evenly this time.

A little about this kid's daily activities-- which mostly include climbing (on what, it doesn't matter) but usually pushing a chair to the counter and playing in the kitchen sink or cupboards. I know the sound of a chair going across the floor well, and headed to the kitchen the other day when I heard it. I was too late, and found a powdery mess. He'd found a box of doughnuts and was helping himself. When I grabbed the camera, he looked at me and stopped mid-bite to say "cheese". Funny kid-- always the entertainer!

Another thing Hunter likes to do is be in just his diaper, like many little kids. But the first thing he usually does without clothes is crawl in someone's bed and get under the covers, or grab a blanket and pillow and snuggle up with them on the floor somewhere. It's really cute to see, just wish somedays he would get sleepy while doing it-- say, around nap time!

Hey, I can wish, right?