March Randomness

Im sure I have said this before but we are slowly but surely getting settled in and making new memories in our new home.

Liam has decided the dog bed is a great place to relax. I think he probably lays in it more often than Milo does.

I love that all my kids love books and reading. The piano room sits on the south side of the house and gets some great sun in the mornings. I often find these 2 just hanging out reading some books.

We finally got around to putting up the basketball hoop. All of the boxes had been delivered to the garage so we used sleds and the 4-wheeler to move them down to the gym.

Hallie goals for the year. I love this girl and her drive in life.

Its that time...super weird. Hallie is registering for junior high. I can't believe she is growing up so quickly.

Work has been pretty terrible. With covid the hospitals have basically decided that a nurse is a nurse and they have been floating everyone. Luckily with Liam in cancer remission I am exempt from floating...at least for now. The mask and goggles are a pain in the but and the day after I work I always have a sore throat and a runny nose. They says that is probably from the breakdown in the fibers in the mask. That sounds really healthy...right??

I love all of the one on one time that I get with this little buddy. He is my little sidekick for sure.

Liam's Journey-1 Yr Off Treatment Scans

 Oh man what a year it has been since we were given the great news that this little guy is in remission. The rollercoaster of the entire situation is hard to explain but overall we just feel grateful. Currently we have been doing scans every 3 months and now that things continue to look good we will move to every 4 months. That is a double edged sword. I hate that we have to do scans at all but it totally freaks me out that we are spacing them out more than before. We will continue rotating between CT scans and US/Xray to keep his radiation exposure down. There were several changes this go around with all the changes put in place the beginning of the year. Primary Children's got rid of their nurse practioners that did their sedation in an effort to save the hospital money and so they brought in an outside 3 party anestisia group to take over that. It was not a decision that was made in the best interest of the patients and so maddening as a mom. Liam had to be tested for covid a couple days in advance and of coarse came back negative. I asked to talk to a supervisor when I got there to see what the changes would mean for Liam. The nurses felt as though their hands were tied....they weren't thrilled with thte changes either. They decided they would try some versed and see if it would work but they gave it before they put his iv in. The IV team came in to put his IV in and missed twice at that point I felt like I was going to lose it. Liam was so upset and we had basically gotten nothing done. I asked for a new member of the iv team and they sent someone more experienced this time. She got it in the first time but by this point Liam's versed had worn off and it was a lost cause. They ended up having to give him more meds to get his CT scan done. It was terrible to see him terrified like that. He was so young when he was diagnosed and I don't think he remembers most of it but he is getting to the point that he knows he doesn't like the hospital. No child should have to go thru this. But on the flip side Im so grateful that the results continue to be good. Liam loves that he gets a rootbeer slushee and goldfish when he wakes up and the cuddles after are always the best.

We always meet with Dr. Fluchel after our scans to go over the results. They always order labs the times he gets a CT to make sure everything remains looking good so we get those as well. The waiting for the Dr. is terrible. My anxiety always gets the best of me. At this point I just ask the nurses if he is running behind so I know that something worse isn't going on. Liam loves to get to pick different toys to pass the time. If you have to have a oncologist I really like Dr Fluchel. He explains things very well and is good with Liam. Im so glad that he is doing so great and I really do think  and feel like his fight with cancer is over and he is going to live a long and healthy life. We love our sweet little caboose.

Brower Girls Lunch

 We were able to get together for lunch while everyone was in town. We went to Roosters and our food was delicious. I often feel a disconnect with Matt's family. I just don't get the opportunity to talk or connect with them often like I do with my family. I find sometimes when we get together that I am unusually quiet because I 'm not sure where I fit in or what type of conversation to start when I really have no idea what is going on in their lives and they the same with mine.  But it was nice to visit for a bit.

1st Movie Premier

 

Now with the house done we were excited to have a movie party. We invited Nic and Kyle up to do dinner and watch the new Raya and the lost dragon. It was such a fun night and everyone slept so well that night. The movie was pretty good but the reviews seem mixed about how much everyone liked or didn't like it.

Disney On Ice

Disney on ice has been such a fun thing to do with the kids. All of the kids are still in the stage of enjoying it. Matt was out of town so it was just the kids and I this time. The kids decided they wanted to have Applebees for dinner and they all ate very well. 

 

They were all excited to get dressed up with their glow wands

Although covid sucks the spacing at the even t was awesome. No one sat in the row in front, behind, or on either side of us. It made it really convenient when someone needed to go potty or when we got treats at intermission.

I love the flexibility and financial stability to be able to do things like this with the kids. The memories made are well worth all of it.

Zoo Day With Cousins

 I can't explain how much joy it gives me to see my kids with their cousins. I grew up close with my cousins. I felt like we got together pretty regularly for birthdays and holidays. I have so many great memories of that. My kids also ask regularly and get so excited to spend time with their cousins. 

Checking out the otter...he said it was his friend

I hope these guys are friends for life. I love them all so much...like they are all mine. 

Growing up Kimber and I didn't get along great. I think Nic was young enough that we didn't feel the need to compete against each other. Kimber and I always seemed to annoy each other like many younger siblings. I wasn't the nicest but now Kimber and Nic are 2 of my best friends. I love them so much and wish that we got to spend more time together. 

Life As Of Late

 The kids have been having a great time with the little bit of snow that we have gotten. It has been really sad we need more snow to help keep our water supply stable. 

  

This little guy is obsessed with construction vehicles. It started when we were building and he has continued to love them more and more. Its pretty fun to see how different he is from his sisters with his likes and interests. I don't feel like we have done much differently but he is very much a boy.

Donut hair is the girls favorite when it comes to crazy hair day. I love that they enjoy dress up days still. I'm sure the day will come sooner than I want that they wont love it as much anymore. 

Gracie is still trying to find something she really enjoys. For activity days they made cookies and she loved it. She has done some weekend cooking camos but were looking into getting her into something weekly like you would with a dance class. I love when my kids can find things they really enjoy.