Life lately

I have really been neglecting our little blog! What can I say? Life has been busy, as usual. Here’s a quick run-down of what our little family has been up to:

*Emily turned the big 0-5. She thinks she’s pretty big stuff! She graduated from preschool and is all ready for kindergarten to start. She’s super bummed that she has to wait all summer. She is still in gymnastics and loves every minute of it. Her favorite things are the trampoline and tumbling…..she does not like the beams or bars!! I’m amazed at how well she has done in just a year! She has tried a back handspring all by herself! Hopefully buy the end of the summer she’ll be confident enough to do them without any fear.

*Abby turned 2 in March. I’m pretty sure a switch was flipped the minute she turned two, cause man can she throw a good tantrum! She’s pretty darn sweet though, and always keeps us laughing. Last month, after a follow up with her ENT, we discovered that she has Congenital Subglottic Stenosis….on top of her Laryngeal Cleft, narrow airway, and kidney reflux. She will need to have a surgery soon so the dr can measure her cricoid cartilage and possibly have to widen it. On top of all of that, she has a terrible ringworm rash and a staph infection that she got from taking amoxicillin. She’s doing a lot better now and will hopefully stay healthy long enough to get her surgery done this summer.

*It’s so hard to believe that our sweet little Sophie is going to be 1 next month!! This year has flown by!! She is such a sweet baby and loves to cuddle all the time. She has been crawling for about a month and is into everything! She can say “da-da”, “ma-ma”, and “wasss-at?” About a month ago she was very sick with croup. She was having so much trouble getting enough air and started going blue, so we got her into the dr. Her oxygen averaged at 81 and her heart rate was 207! Scary! She was diagnosed with Reactive Airway Disease (asthma) and will need an inhaler for who knows how long. She is such a happy baby and has brought such a sweet feeling into our home.

*Geoff and I have just been trying to get through each day. The goal is to end the day with a smile….but that doesn’t always happen. Sometimes just finishing the day knowing that we all survived, is enough. Geoff amazedsme, though. He works hard and never complains! He always tries to have a positive attitude and is willing is jump in and help with whatever needs to be done. I love that man! I wish I could be more like him! I’m not gonna lie….life has been tough. Really tough. Dealing with Abby’s (and now Sophie’s) health problems has kinda knocked the wind out of me. It’s been hard dealing with people’s opinions and judgements. We’ve lost close relationships because we’ve been brave enough to stand up for our little family. But I know that that’s what is important right now. Not what my neighbor thinks, or someone from my ward thinks, or even what a family member thinks.  What matters, is what I think. What Geoff’s thinks. And what my beautiful daughters think. And most importantly, what my Heavenly Father thinks. I know that we are doing the very best that we can with the circumstances we have been given. And that’s what’s most important. Life really is good! We are happy and everything seems to work itself out. Here’s some quotes that have really touched me lately and helped me get through those hard days:

"It isn’t as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out. Don’t worry. I say that to myself every morning. It will all work out. If you do your best, it will all work out. Put your trust in God, and move forward with faith and confidence in the future. The Lord will not forsake us. He will not forsake us. If we will put our trust in Him, if we will pray to Him, if we will live worthy of His blessings, He will hear our prayers." - Gordon B. Hinckley

 “Only you know your circumstances, your energy level, the needs of your children, and the emotional demands of your other obligations. Be wise during intensive seasons of your life. Cherish your agency, and don’t give it away casually. Don’t compare yourself to others — nearly always this will make you despondent. Don’t accept somebody else’s interpretation of how you should be spending your time. Make the best decision you can and then evaluate it to see how it works.” ~Chieko N. Okazaki