Take a minute...

I just wanted to take a minute to just write about these wonderful PKS kids and how this has been a very difficult winter for them.  We have seen so many in the hospital with different infections, flu, etc.  We have also seen too many gain their little angel wings over the last year.   It's just so heartbreaking. Parents work so hard to keep their kids healthy and do everything we think is best for them, but yet sometimes their little bodies can't handle it.  Our PKS kiddos are such a precious mystery, constantly keeping us on our toes.  Please take a minute out of your day to just pray/send positive thoughts, or whatever you believe in, for our little kiddos and their families.

I love my bubby:)

Updates...

It's been a busy week for us!  Appointments, working on the new house, trips and the never ending demands of 3 kids!  Well, I will start with the much needed adult trip to Chicago last weekend for Tim and I.  It was the 10th annual Tom Hanks Day!!  If you don't know what it is, look it up on Facebook:). Basically it has turned into a charity event created by Tim and his friends, but kept going and was made super big by his friend Kevin.  They basically raise money for Tom's charity, Life line energy.  They help supply schools in Africa with radio technology, among other things, I am giving you the very short version ;). So,  he sends things, they auction them off, sell shirts, drink beer.  It's a great time for a great cause.  Check it out:  http://thetomhanksday.com/. http://lifelineenergy.org/

So for Tim and I, it was a much needed trip!  This trip made me realize 2 things. First, I've realized, that to be a good mom, I need to take more time for myself.  And I know some people will think that is not true, but I have come to a firm conclusion, that being solely just a mom, is not healthy.  Now, before you freak out on me, I love my kids more then life.  That is why I spend most days putting them first with everything!!  But, I also have realized over the past few months, that I still need to be me, not just a mom.  I also know that Tim and I are still a couple and I don't want my kids growing up in a house where we are just robots, working, cooking, cleaning, blah, blah, blah....I know they need to see Tim and I, actually liking each other.  And me smiling, not freaking out about whether the laundry isn't done, or how we are going to get to all of our appointments.  I know that I need to take a step back and detox and rejuvenate.  It makes me come home feeling great and ready to play with my kids!  That's exactly how I felt Sunday when I came home!  Relaxed, not hungover and ready to play :). So don't think I am saying I don't want to be a mom, I have been a much better mom this week, because I actually took some time for myself and didn't feel guilty about it:).   And this trip wouldn't have been possible without both of our parents coming down and taking turns watching the kids, so we didn't have to pack them up!!  We are so lucky!!  Thank you xoxo

I tell people all the time how lucky I am to be married to Tim!  He is a pretty nice guy, I guess:). When I married him, I inherited an awesome family, which I am grateful for, but I also inherited an amazing group of friends!  Tim's friends have always just made me feel like I was just part of their group.  I have never been with a group of people who are so welcoming, easy to be with and just fun!   Every time we are with them, it makes me want to hang out more:)  So I have to thank them for helping us have a great weekend too:)

So my bubby boy is doing great!!!  This week he got his ankle braces to help him with standing and keeping them in the correct position.  They are pretty snazzy:).  He had a check up with the cardiologist and everything is great!  He has 2 tiny holes, but they decided to wait for another 2 years to re check them because they don't do anything to correct them at his age when they are that tiny.  So  that can be checked off for a while.  Yay!!  Then yesterday Tim and I spent over 2 hours at U of M getting some equipment picked out for him.  We ordered a bed and a bath chair, pending insurance approval, so keep your fingers crossed please:). We are waiting on ordering him a gait trainer (walker) because we want to his legs to get stronger first, so we are starting some therapy boot camp next week.  He will be going to U of M once a week.  We also have a meeting with the new school district Monday, to see what services he will get there too, so I am excited about that!!  We also learned how to actually use his modified stroller and how to work the base in the house too!  We have been using it, but it has so many things we could use, we just didn't know how.  So that was great info!  We felt majorly accomplished this week!!  We wouldn't have been able to do all of this without my aunt Barb and Jason coming down to help babysit!  Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy with his new ankle braces!!!

Jameson trying to get a cereal puff off of his chin...

Avery is good.  She is starting softball next week (so am I actually:)). She is excited!! She also has middle school open house next week and will get to pick her classes.  She hit a small rouh patch last week, but that was to be expected.  She is doing much better this week.  Jameson is great too.  Causing trouble, in to everything, but we couldn't be happier about it.  He is a little character!

On another note...Please keep Tim's mom in your thoughts, she is having surgery Tuesday.  If you want more info, message me, because I don't know how much info she wants me to tell.  Just keep her in your thoughts and prayers please:).  I will update in a week.

We're still here...just in a different place

You're probably wondering where we've been.  Well it's been quite a ride for the past month.  I have gone to write several times, but things happen, and I just couldn't.  It's been a month of happiness and pure sadness.

This is how Bubby spent his last couple days at school.  Cruising around and snoozing in his wagon with his friend Jacob.

First, the happy part is we finally closed on our house and moved in...yay!!!!  It was awesome of my parents to let us live with them until we found a place, but let's face it, they needed their house back and there are just too many Kelley's!!  Our move was not as organized as we would've liked(but which one of our many moves, has been?).  I like to call it a drive by move.  We literally drove the truck down and threw our stuff in the house and came back to my parents.  Why?  This takes us to the sad part I was referring to....

The week we were scheduled to move, we lost 2 important people in our families.  First was Tim's grandma Kelley.  The sweetest woman you will ever meet.  Someone that I strive to be like and hopefully someday can come close to her awesomeness.  I admired her for many reasons, mostly just the great mother and wife she was.  To be in a room with her, was almost intimidating, because she didn't have to be the center of attention, but she was always the center of the room(if that makes sense).  She raised 5 amazing children, who absolutely adore her, and a husband who worshiped her until the day he died. I truly hope I can be half the mother and wife that she was!  Truly an inspiration!

So a week after Granmda Kelley passed away, my Uncle Ted passed away as well.  This was a long road for my Aunt Barb and Jason.  Caring for Ted in his declining health and watching them, so dedicated to caring for him.  He was an amazing man!  Truly loved his family, including his nieces and nephews.  But his unconditional love for my aunt was an amazing thing to watch.  He adored her!  Even when his mind was going, and he didn't really remember who I was, he would still tell me how wonderful his wife was.   Our family didn't just see each other on holidays.  Our family was always together.  Always!  So uncle Ted wasn't just around us sometimes, he was around us all the time!  This was pretty hard on all of us, but will continue to be hard on barb and Jason.  So please keep them in your thoughts!

There were several things brought into perspective during this time.  One, I am glad that Tim and I decided to move back.  Being closer to family is so important to us.  Growing up and being around my cousins and aunts and uncles, and talking about all of these memories, really made us realize, that that's what we wanted for our kids too.  Not just seeing them at holidays.  Spending summers together and random weekends at grandparents houses.  All of those things that we experienced growing up, we wanted for our kids.  I mean....what else is there?

The second thing I realized, is that I am surrounded by some amazing and strong women in my life.  Both my family and Tim's family!  I looked at how strong his grandma was and how Tim has all of these amazing, strong women in his family and then when my uncle passed, I looked at my own family.  My aunt, mom, my sister, sister in laws are just such strong and amazing women.  I am truly lucky!  Even though some of them have not always had the best situations in life handed to them, they handle things with such grace....much better then a man ever could....haha, just kidding (not really).

So we are trying to get situated here in our new pad.  It wasn't easy, considering the day after we moved in, all of us got sick(except Tim).  It took 2 weeks to get it all out.  Most of it was strep throat and the flu type virus.  Mind you we are not a sick family.  Patrick had never been on an antibiotic before this and Avery had only been on it once.  But the strep was a nasty bug!  This flu season was not kind to us.  It may have been a welcome back to Michigan present.  Avery had the actual flu in December and now strep, Jameson had a double ear infection a few weeks ago and then this virus, and my little bubby boys first ear infection.  I had strep too.  So we are all FINALLY feeling better this week!!!!!

Avery has adjusted wonderfully to her new school.  I told her it was more exciting to be the new kid in the middle of the school year.  The kids get so excited!!!  And they had been waiting for her.  She made friends right away, joined the school newspaper and loves her new teacher!!!  She's already had challenging homework, which makes mommy and daddy happy!!

Next week it's on to getting bubby situated.  We had to reschedule several appointments over the past month, so we are back to the grind.    And Tim is loving his 20 minute commute:)

Well there ya have it....the reasons while we hadn't written in so long!!!  I've missed it:)