Labor Day Weekend and The Snowball Effect

Tonight I was switching over Kylie's clothes to the next size up like I've done many times before with all our children, one thought began snowballing into another (and thus this blog is created)...

1. Heidi was wearing the size 4/4T clothes I was pulling out for Kylie when Kylie was still a baby... and now my baby is big enough to wear them! Not only that, but I just made a size switch for her at the beginning of the summer. Really, that's all I get out of 3T's... one measly summer? Whatever happened to wearing a size for a good portion of the year? My "baby" isn't supposed to have growth spurts that often!

Heidi's wearing one of the dresses I just pulled out for Kylie in this picture!

2. Heidi was wearing these clothes just before we moved to Illinois, just before she started Pre-K (the same grade that Drew, who was a fresh 2 years old at the time, just started)... have we really been here that long? When we moved here, our plan was to stay just long enough for both of us to finish school, and then move back to Nebraska... a time period we expected would take no more than 2 years at the longest. As we approach the Fall season, I realize it has almost been 3 years already! Three years later, despite MANY setbacks for us, I now hold 2 Bachelor's Degrees and am a practicing registered nurse and Dan is just 2 semesters away from graduating! What does this mean for us?  Come Spring/Summer time next year, we will finally be making the move back "home"! And, three years later, after questioning our decision multiple times, we can truly understand the reason we actually came down here and see that God had a grander plan for us and the purpose in it all has finally unfolded to our eyes!

Heidi's 1st day of Pre-K

Drew's 1st day of Pre-K

3. My "baby" boy, Drew, will be turning 5 tomorrow! Every year at Drew's birthday, I seem to have the same thought... "Wait, is he seriously just turning ___ (insert age here)? It seems like he's been ___ (insert previous age) for two years!" I'm not sure if it's because his birthday comes at the opposite time of year from the rest of my children (their birthdays are in Jan, soon to be Feb, Mar, and April) or if it's because he so dominantly has the "height" gene that the other kid's didn't get. Either way, I'm always amazed at him and the fact that he seems to fool me every year :-) Although, for my little goof ball, it's probably all part of his master plan! Dan and I decided to let him pick out his own birthday supplies this year... and in true Drew fashion, it's all mismatched and he loves it that way! Cars birthday cake plates and napkins, Scooby Doo cake/cupcakes, and a special request for a Curious George shirt to wear on his birthday! Should make for some interesting pictures at his party tomorrow, but that's the only way this anal retentive / perfectionist mom could imagine remembering the occasion :-)

A seemingly thrilled Heidi and Zach meet their new baby brother at the hospital

4. Two years ago, this weekend, my uncle passed away from the same brain tumor my dad is currently fighting, and fighting extremely well at that! I'm so greatful of the time we were able to have with my Uncle after we moved here and before he passed. Without those months, my kids really wouldn't have gotten to know him; and now, they talk about the few memories that they do have often. I have the luxury of driving passed the cemetery where his burial site is located each and every day I go to work. I can see his plot from the road and say "good morning" and "good night" each time I pass. It's now been 5 months since my dad had his first seizure and was diagnosed with cancer. My family has adjusted and has learned to take each obstacle as it is given to us and to treasure the "down" time! Right now, we are in a "down" time... Dad finished his final radiation treatment at the beginning of August and has had a break from both it and chemotherapy since that time. Last week, he had a follow up MRI that showed NO NEW tumor growth!! By no means is he out of the woods at all, but for now, it's the best news we would imagine! He will be re-scanned every 2 months to follow the tumor's progress. In the mean time, he will begin his week long chemo (once a month) as maintenance therapy. The doctors say it will take about 6 months to see the cumulative effects of radiation and if after 1 year of this plan of chemotherapy the tumor remains controlled, he will get a break from treatment. That's right, the doctors are talking about a year from now!... to someone who has a terminal brain tumor where the average life span following diagnosis is just 2 years. You can imagine how elated my parents were and how they took this thought and ran with it! So, as we remember my Uncle this weekend, we remember the good times, and as we watch my dad fight, we rejoice in his "good" times!

the older three with my Uncle approx 6 months after his diagnosis (June 08)

And on that note, I'll have to continue this blog on another date! This once again pregnant momma is exhausted and needs to get to bed before yet another big day tomorrow!