Update on Grandma Gail

In a few days, it will be 3 months since we heard my Mom's breast cancer returned. It is has been a tumultuous few months, but the Lord has stayed close to my parents and the family. Friends have been incredibly supportive in every way, especially prayers for her healing if that is the Lord's will - it certainly is ours! Yesterday we attended a mass which was said for my Mom thanks to my sister-in-law Annamarie.

The first round of Mom's cancer five years ago was diagnosed as HER2 positive. The 'HER2' strain is serious and there is even less information about it than other cancers. The 'positive' part of the cancer means that it is aggressive but treatable. Mom went through difficult chemo, but her body prevailed and she has been healthy the past five years. Chemo was the obvious action to take at that time and there was little to no question about how to proceed.

This time around, however, Mom's cancer is diagnosed as HER2 negative. The negative means that it is slow growing, but there is really no treatment available in the medical field. This time around, it is crystal clear that the Lord is in charge of Mom's situation. Mom and Dad have found a wholistic approach which a man by the name of Doctor Ralph Anderson created. Mom eats a great deal of garlic and some other natural ingredients that help protect the body against cancer and also help get rid of radiation from years ago that remains in her body. This approach is really quite fascinating based on the idea that the body can heal itself if nourished correctly.

Mom and Dad have regular pray times, often people pray over my Mom, and they often go to daily mass for strength and wisdom in this situation. The Lord is good and he provides each day whatever they need.

Life seems like it is starting to return to 'normal' for them. Tough decisions that needed to be made are out of the way and we continue to pray to see what the Lord has in store.

My Dad started a blog to keep track of daily life (you will hear a LOT about grandkids!) which you can find at grandmagaill@blogspot.com - note there are 2 'l's.

More than a 'Growth Spurt'

In fact, our Saturday evening and Sunday morning turned into a visit to the urgent care and then at 3am in the morning a visit to the emergency room! Our first experience as parents with a sick child.

When Faustina woke up from her nap around 4:30 on Saturday, she definitely was not acting herself; we figured she was just tired. Well, she kept laying on us and she was hot; when we tried to encourage to her play with her toys, she just layed on the floor with her head on a stuffed animal. Her eyes started to look a bit glassy. We took her temperature on our cheap little thermometer which showed she had a fever of 100.5. We called the nurse line and she thought we should take her in. She said we should take her to the ER, but when we arrived at the address she gave us it was an urgent care center.

I must admit, I don't get worried very easily, but Faustina really looked terrible. And it was scary. At urgent care, the nurse took her temperature and I watched as the numbers climbed to show a fever of 104.1! Well, they took a blood sample and her white blood cell count looked fine. And then they told us to 'just keep an eye on her' and they sent us home. This advice was not very satisfactory, but we did head home.

We got home and my Mom thought we should take her in to the ER (which was also Mike's inclination), so I got her ready to go again. Well, this was pretty crazy, but all of a sudden Faustina woke up (I had put her down to bed since it was 10pm) and she was chipper and back to her old self! She was laughing, giggling, smiling which was a huge relief. I talked to my Mom again to let her know we weren't going to the hospital and my Mom told me they had just been praying for Faustina (along with some relatives who were over) right around the time Faustina perked up. I'm sure it was not a coincidence and the Lord heard their prayer!

We all went to bed, but around 3am she still had a fever. We decided to take her in and get her checked out to see if she may have a urinary tract infection. It was a mini little adventure - not necessarily the kind you want to have. But in the end, fortunately everything checked out and Faustina really is fine.

We did learn a bit about what to do for sick little ones if this were to happen in the future. The reason for Faustina's high fever still remains a mystery, but she is back to her normal self which is the most important thing.

Growth Spurt?

This little child of ours has been sleeping like a log yesterday and today. Yesterday she took 3 naps (2 of which were over 2 hours) and today she took 2 naps (one of which was 4 hours!). When she woke up from her long nap this afternoon, she just layed on Mike for about 20 minutes and if Mike propped her up she fell back on his chest. She has seemed to be growing a lot lately, I hope that is all that is going on.

Spring Roll Fest

We spent this morning with family friends making LOTS of spring rolls, egg rolls, and cream cheese puffs. It is a fun way to spend time together while chatting and being productive! We made about 120 egg/spring rolls and about 110 cream cheese puffs. Some were already eaten :), some are fresh waiting to be eaten, and the vast majority will go in the freezer to be enjoyed in the weeks to come. If anyone is looking for some nummy egg rolls, you know whose door to knock on. :)

4 Sleeping Babies

Today is my second day of having 4 under 1. That is four babies that I am taking care of under 1 year (actually Isaac's first birthday is this week). Yes. I know, most people think I am crazy; that may be partly true.

Aidric Axvig is the new guy in the house and he is just the sweetest little guy. He is a very good baby and his cries usually have a reason and can be taken care of. He is 2 months and I'll start taking care of him full time April 20th. His Dad works at Trinity so he will drop Aidric off in the morning, and then Mike & Matt can carpool to school together which is convenient.

Right now, as I speak, all four babies are fast asleep; I am a bit in awe and am savoring it. I, however, don't expect it to last too long.

Tuesday I had a sharp learning curve with so many little people around and there were definitely a few moments when more than one baby was crying. Perhaps this is the reason why God gave me such a laid-back, phlegmatic temperament. :) Both Mike and I asleep that night at 7:30pm; he got up later, and I just went to bed for the night!

Nonetheless, it is fun to see the kids interact with each other; Faustina and Isaac love the two little babies. Maybe a little too much sometimes when they really like to touch the babies faces! I like a phrase a friend used when I got married, having little people around will be our 'new normal'.

The Zoo

On Tuesday we ventured out to the Minnesota Zoo. Monday-Wednesday of this week I only had Ella and Faustina so I felt as free as a bird to go out and do activities, especially with the nicer weather.



The Zoo is such an absolutely fascinating place. Seeing the beauty of the different animals, their habitat, watching them interact, seeing the diversity in the species, and even marveling at how strange some of the animals appear at first glace truly is breath taking. You know there is a God when you witness such magnificence and creativity.



I don't remember the last time I'd been to the MN zoo, but it had been a loooonnng time. In fact, I think the last time I was there was my 7th grade field trip. Of course, going with all your close friends in school is all fun at that age (well, any age I guess). I landed myself a 30 minute detention as a group of us girls were looking at the fish in the aquarium and I said really loud, "Look at its tes-" well, instead of saying tentacles, I said a word that sounds like it and happens to be quite inappropriate; and the thing is, I honestly did not know the definition of the word I did say! 7th grade innocence. Everyone else thought it was pretty funny and I definitely turned red when I learned what I had said. One of those embarrassing moments.

Anyway, we went with our friends the Grams and had a great time. I cannot wait to go again when the weather is even a bit warmer out. Faustina stared at the animals a lot, but she is just figuring stuff out. It will be fun to go with her as she is more and more aware.

Our Puppy Dog

Faustina is currently our little puppy dog. She wants to know everything we are doing at any given moment; and I mean everything. 90% of the time Mike and I spend in our very small upstairs. Faustina crawls back and forth, back and forth, back and forth between us to see what we are doing. She crawls really fast to one of us, gets up on her knees and starts half laughing half grunting, then she takes one of our legs and stands up until eventually we pick her up and spoil her with kisses. Then she gets down on her knees, falls forward as she slams her hands on the wood floor and on all fours quickly crawls to the other parent. If we are eating she waits for us to feed her while she hangs on our pants. If I'm cooking she waits until I pick her up to see what I am cooking. If Mike is on the computer, she waits until Mike picks her up to see the computer. This afternoon I watched her for about 10 minutes as she peacefully played in the crib by herself after a nap. She was talking to her teddy bear and she was fascinated with her right had. She examined it and then slowly licked her palm. She then put her left pointer finger on each of her fingers on her right hand. Then she stared at her hand and then she jabbed her right hand up in the air and stared at it up there for awhile. It really was very amusing and clear that she is absorbing all sorts of new information. She really is all fun right now. She is an easy baby, sleeps well, and she is so much fun whenever she is awake. I wish this stage could last for a loooooooonnnnnnnnnggg time. The thing is, I believe her days of walking are soon approaching; today we watched Faustina stand all on her own for about 20 seconds or so just looking up at us!

Pals

Could it be?

This past week I have not been able to figure out whether I am imagining Faustina sounding out words or if she truly is. I am now convinced that she is! Mike, Auntie Kim and Grandma Lee are all witnesses. I thought 9 months was way to early for that sort of activity - but she has proven to be quite a social little one. She is not imitating only simple words like 'ball' or 'dadda' (although 'dadda' is her favorite word at this point), but Kim and I heard her repeat 'zebra' and 'hamburger'. Crazy! She is quickly turning into a 'little girl' instead of baby with her interactions and her tiny person body. Each day proves to be more entertaining than the last. What fun these little people are!

First tooth!

This morning when I got Faustina from her bed and started playing with her, she grabbed my hand, put it in her mouth and bit. Normally this feels like a goey chomp, but today I felt a little, sharp tooth jutting out!

She's growing up fast!

I found this hilarious picture on the internet... are people really this dumb, or do the 'experts' just think we are? Who knows...