Becca's Hospital stay

As I mentioned in my email, Becca really enjoyed her hospital stay other than the 3 procedures she had done. There were plenty of people to play with her and the nurses and doctors and respiratory therapists we dealt with were all wonderful. Many of them let her "help" with the procedures and taught her how to be a good doctor and nurse.


Yes, this fire truck is way too small for her- really intended for the toddler set, but she had a great time cruising the hallways and checking in on the other kids and babies.

Playing doctor to her new care bear. "It's ok care bear. It's only going to hurt for a minute. Stay very still! It's ok, you're doing such a good job. You're being very brave. Don't cry, I promise it will only hurt for a minute, and after that, you won't get any more needles."

Going off to the XRay in a wheelchair! So cool. ...This was the last smile for a few hours after this picture... You can click on the picture for a more closeup view of the pic line if you're interested.

This is Becca posing with just SOME of the presents she received from the hospital staff. After each of the procedures, she got a present, and each day she received presents from the Child Life staff whose job it is to entertain and play with the sick kids. Nancy brought some paper dolls that helped us pass the time for several hours during our stay. They had many adventures and of course several "fashion shows." Becca told me that the dresses in the book were very "fashionable." The beautiful flowers are from Grandmommy. Becca was so excited that she had received a bouquest of flowers "all for her!" She cut a few of the lilies off and gave them to the nurses to say thank-you.

Hoggetowne Medieval Festival

Last weekend we attend the Hoggetown Medieval Festival. We had really enjoyed it last year and had been looking forward to going again this year. The kids loved riding the camel and elephant, and meeting the king and queen. Rebecca LOVES getting her face painted and hounds me to let her get it done whenever we go anywhere that offers it, so she was very happy that we let her get it done today. We all had a great time for about 45 minutes. After that Ryan was very...two. We left shortly after he had a terrible temper tantrum and had to be carried to the car first on my back and then over Art's shoulder while he was trying desperately to beat us with his hands and legs while screaming and crying at the top of his lungs. Terrible twos...ugh.

Silly girl

Becca and I needed to run out to Blockbuster to return some movies. She happened to be naked at the time, so I asked her to go put something on so we could run out. This is the outfit she chose... Ryan's "Woody" costume he received at Christmas. Silly.

The foursome

Here is a picture of Becca and her best friends Kaitlyn, along with both the little brothers. These 4 play together at least once a week and if it were up to them, they would play together every day.

A few more pics of the Hanna visit

On Saturday it was wet and rainy, so we headed over to the skating rink where they also had rock climbing, miniature golf and arcade games. Becca tried roller skating, but wasn't quite ready for the big rink as she kept falling down. She like skating on the carpet much better. She tried the rock wall for the first time too. On the first try, she burst into tears about 3 steps up because she was afraid she was going to fall. After we got her down, she watched the other kids and noticed how when they were done climbing, they "flew" down to the ground. After that, she did it over and over again, only taking 4 or 5 steps- just enough to get her high enough "to fly like a fairy."


We had one of our nicest vists ever. The girls got along perfectly, no bickering at all. They spent most of the visit playing ponies together. Justin didn't want to feel left out, so he joined the girls on the floor. Of course, ponies weren't really his style, so he brought along pirates instead.

Hanna visit

The Hannas came for a weekend visit and we headed to Disney for a day with just the 3 oldest kids. Too see more pictures and read more about our visit, click on this link to check out Deb's blog. By leaving Ryan at home we were able to hit a lot more rides and do more things together as a group. The girls got to meet both Cinderella and Belle. Becca was in awe, and hardly spoke a word, but Jessica asked the princesses questions and had quite a nice chat with each of them.

All the kids were excited to get on the Buzz Lightyear ride again, but I think that the grownups had just as good a time racking up the points.
When we got to Tom Sawyers's Island, I asked the kids to stop for a picture by the bridge...so you can see Rebecca and Justin in the distance completely ignoring my request, because DUH there was a bouncy bridge to run across. Of course, sweet Jessica stopped and posed for a picture for Aunt Kathy.
The Indianapolis 5oo ride is one my kids favorites every time. Becca takes her job as driver quite seriously...actually she loves to crash the car from side to side as we drive. Luckily, there were no police officers on the course.

Countdown to noon

Happy New Year...a little late I know. The kids and I attended a "Count down to Noon" party at the playground with a few other families. It was a little chilly and cloudy, so we had a small turnout. Ryan LOVED blowing the noise maker and parading around the park.