Christmas Cheer and New Year Tears

Hi all! Had a very fun Christmas up in Susanville visiting Caleb's parents, brothers and families, my grandparents, and friends. We ate a lot and played dominoes, Blokus, and checkers most of the time, and went sledding on Willard Hill! Aiden LOVED the snow and he schooled us all on sledding as he sailed gracefully over the many bumps and slowed to a controlled stop at the bottom of the hill, while the rest of us (adults) crashed and teetered and wiped out at the bottom of the hill. We all had fun though! Caleb hit the suicide jump pretty hard and knocked the breath out of his lungs which wasn't so fun, but he had no lasting damage from that (other than stiffness the next day). Both kids loved playing with cousins, Joslyn, Kayla, and Kortney. I think Aiden was getting bored of combing the My Little Pony tails and manes and watching Tinkerbell after a few days, but he had fun visiting with everyone nevertheless. We all had a great time and were really thankful for the opportunity to travel up to Susanville and visit with family. The snow was beautiful! We were also excited because we took that opportunity to tell family up in Susanville that we were expecting a baby in August '09 (actually Aiden prematurely spilled the beans to them, but anyway...). Unfortunately, that excitement was short-lived because I started bleeding on January 3rd and didn't stop until the 5th when I went to the OB. I was scheduled for surgery to have a D and C that day. By the time I had the D and C Caleb and I had grasped the idea that this baby was not going to make it and we had cried a lot by then. It was a very sad weekend for all of us, but having gone through it before helped us accept it more quickly. However, the really shocking news came when my OB called the day after my D and C to tell me my pregnancy had been a molar pregnancy. This is a complication of pregnancy that causes overgrowth of the placenta and no viable baby (it is actually quite complicated but I really do not want to go into details here). The result is a sort of benign placental tumor that must be removed as it can become malignant and it requires very close followup for about a year afterward (weekly blood tests, ultrasound exams every couple of weeks, and no trying for a baby for a while-6 months to a year or so). I go in for my first ultrasound tomorrow and find out about the blood tests over the last few weeks. My doctor has been very vague to me on the details of this, but I hope to get more answers tomorrow. From what I read, this is a very treatable condition. My doc did mention that they may need to treat me with chemotherapy to treat this which freaks me out, but from what I read online these cells are very receptive to the chemo and the treatments are usually pretty light. I will hopefully know more tomorrow. I am saying my prayers that these placental cells disappear quickly and we can be back on track for another baby in 2010 maybe (if it is the Lord's will)?! We never know what is in store for us in life, right!?

Saying good-bye

Aimee, Jim, and Trip are moving to Louisiana.  We did not have very much time with them, but they were really great friends and we will miss them very much!  We had a last hoorah at Jack's for lunch.  Aiden will miss his little buddy!

Thanksgiving in Forest Ranch

Okay, playing catch up here!  Been having 

technical difficulties with pics not loading.

We had a great time at the Annands' for Turkey Day! Cousin Breanna and boyfriend Chris brought Buttons (the bunny) and the kids had a great time "loving" on him! We played lots of Cribbage and dominoes and Sorry. Uncle Dave taught Aiden electrical circuits. Aunt Patti and Grandpa Tom played pranks on each other the entire weekend. Grandpa Tom secretly filled auntie's hood with artichoke leaves throughout the Thanksigiving meal. Mom, Aiden, and Liam picked and ate many raspberries (as they have not had a frost yet-unusual). We marveled at the beautiful red maple tree and fall foliage in Great-grandpa Bob's yard. Caleb's smoked turkey that he carefully tended all day tasted yummy! Aiden got to take a spin in Aunt Patti's Lightning McQueen speedster! A great weekend with LOTS of great food!

Happy Thanksgiving

Getting ready to head to Forest Ranch for the Turkey Day festivities tomorrow. We are loading up the kids, the dog, our BBQ smoker (to smoke the turkey), and a whole lot of gear to see great grandparents, grandparents, parents, cousins, aunts, uncles, and family friends. The cat and 5 chickens will stay home and hold down the fort.

Aiden and Liam made pine cone turkeys to celebrate the holiday. Liam decided he was ready to pluck his turkey!

Day Trip to Elkhorn Slough (pronounced slew)

Liam, Aiden, and mommy went to the slough for a big adventure! The boys got to feel molted snake skin ('feels like plastic' says Aiden) and match loose feathers with pictures of local birds in the visitor center. We then hiked down the Long Valley Loop where we found a wasp nest, sighted a true rat's nest in an oak tree (dusky-footed wood rat we are told) and 3 herons and lots of plovers. We heard 2 hawks shrieking overhead, but we did not get a good look at them. We also spotted several of the local plants we are learning about like coyote brush, poison hemlock, poison oak, and the very peculiar pickleweed (how does it survive in that salty marsh?). The best part was walking out on the boardwalk over the marshland. Aiden accidentally dropped his hat off the boardwalk but happily retreived it with a long stick. That little procedure led him to discover thousands of tiny seashells washed up in the marsh that he could fish out with his hat stick. Aiden found a 'family' of shells (mommy, daddy, brother, and baby). Liam's taste test revealed the seashells to be not so savory! After that, we took a cue from Liam and headed up to the picnic spot and ate lunches and goofed around on the grass. Liam also preferred looking for rocks with his hat in his mouth rather than atop his head! (: A great day was had by all.

Just Hanging Around

Digital Camera and Field Mice

Aiden is having a great month of poetry and drawing birds and reading and learning good sportsmanship in playing Sorry and dominoes with mom and dad. He just finished a very strong soccer season. The Redhawks (Aiden, Christian, Danny, and Chase) played so well together and really had a lot of fun together. Caleb was their coach and he did an outstanding job! Aiden is looking forward to next year's season already! Little Liam also got his exercise pushing his stroller out onto the soccer field during the games and honed his fine motor skills of collecting all the cones marking the perimeter of the field (during the games, of course)! He also enjoyed trying to sit and play with his toy car inside the net while the boys practiced kicking drills into the net (no fear!).

Ahh, so it is November 2008 and we have finally gone digital! Testing out mama's new camera was lots of fun tonight!

Where are the field mice? Big question inspired by Aiden's favorite poem "The Field Mouse" by William Sharp. Little Liam did not have the opportunity to add his input to the discussion as he was already in dreamland by then.