A Tribute
Well a lot has been going on recently - some of it is fun stuff, and some is serious. I'll start with the serious and end on a positive note.
A short while ago I got some bad news from several people. First I learned that a friend of mine's mother in law was diagnosed with breast cancer and then her father in law with colon cancer. I am participating in the Susan G Komen race for the cure walk with their team. So far its looking good but still - scary news! What I know of Kathy Crim is that she is a very energetic, vibrant woman and I'm sure that while this has been a shock to her and her family, she is probably attacking it head on with a defiant attitude! I know she has a great support group and that always helps. Shortly after hearing that I got news that a very close family friend had gone in for a 6 month check up after having a cancerous kidney removed and there was another tumor on his intestinal wall. They have since found a few other growths as well and he will soon be seeing an oncologist. But the outlook for the moment is bleak as renal cancer is very resistant to treatment. Don is the family jokester and has always been the source and provider of much teasing. We all love to get picked on by Don because its his way of showing love - or at least thats what we tell ourselves. To even imagine reunions without him is well, unimaginable and therefore I am praying HARD for a miracle. I know I am not alone! Even though the reality seems bleak and the statistics are not good, that doesn't mean God won't come through and do something awesome. Then a few days ago a friend called to tell me her father, who was already in frail health, had broken his hip and was going in for surgery. They initially weren't sure he would survive the surgery but as of right now he is recovering albiet slowly. Its one day at a time but so far so good. Lastly, today we had a near tragedy on the ranch that is still potentially bad. Casey, Andy's youngest daughter who is 17, accidentally backed over Jack, the jack russell terrier. He was sleeping behind her car and didn't wake up when she started it. She frantically tried to find a vet, anyone to help her and no one would. SHe was turned away by 4 vets! Gidget didn't have her phone with her in the sanctuary at church so Casey finally called me and I felt mine vibrating. by that time it had been an hour since the accident and miraculously Jack was still alive - poor thing was in the back of Casey's car on a towel, bleeding and shaking from shock. Gidget took Andy's car and left him to get the baby, and I took my car and we met up with Casey. Gidget then took the dog to her vets who she had already called and later we got the news that basically it was a miracle he was even alive and it appears he doesn't have any badly broken bones. Because Casey was with him they believe she kept him from succombing to the shock. There is still a good chance he has internal injuries and possibly a pelvic fracture but he used the bathroom at the vets which was a good sign and means his bladder was not ruptured. He was sedated and given i.v fluids and seems to be responding well and even tried to sit up for a little bit. This dog is a miracle dog - his is about 12 years old, he was abused in his past, and he has been run over before and got no medical attention because he ran off and hid himself for 10 days. 10 days with an injury and no food or water and he survived! We believe God has a purpose for him! Pray that he makes it through the night and gets better.
Enough of the sad stuff. Evy is officially cutting a tooth - she has been drooling like crazy, has had a sporadic appetite and has been attacking anything she can get into her mouth (mainly my fingers/arms/legs). Gidget has felt the tooth, I haven't yet but will try! She is such a delight and learns new things every day and continues to just be a happy, hilarious baby! She is really starting to roll around and will hopefully figure out how to crawl soon! Our summer is quickly filling up with activities and we don't have a single free Saturday for quite awhile! But thats good, keeps me out of trouble haha! Anyway, I am out of time and my battery is running low. But I am LOVING the warm weather. THe cats and I are enjoing early evenings out in the yard - I let them roam around and I sit in my chair and read. Ahhh country life. I have some great pictures of some wildflowers that I just know you would love to see but those will have to wait as I don't have time to load them now.
April Showers bring May Flowers
Well I never understand that saying because really, April showers bring April flowers. By May its too hot and lots of the flowers have withered up and died from heat stroke! But anyway, we finally got pictures of Evy in her Easter dress playing in the bluebonnets. She had a blast - although she broke the law and uprooted several while sitting there. I snapped a TON of pictures but these are my personal favorites!
St. Jude Trail Ride fundraiser
When I remember I will post the actual sign I made up for this but until then, this post will do!
Saturday, May 19 is the Blue Stem Ranch 4th Annual Saddle Up for St. Jude trail ride! It is a 10 mile trail ride, broken up into 2 five mile rides with a lunch break in between. I've raised quite a bit of money in the past because I worked at a corporate office with a lot of great people who supported the cause. I am hoping that this year I will be able to raise as much as I have in the years past so I'm reaching out to my readers! Most people are familiar with what St. Jude does but if not, please check out their website
. They do amazing work with sick children and the parents who cannot afford the treatment. Fundraisers like this one are what keep them going. This year I will not be able to ride because I will be taking care of Evy so that Gidget can lead, but she is old enough that I will have her out with me in the tent, running registration and the lunch. If you would like to donate, or if you have your own horse and would like to come ride please email me at janleighw@gmail.com
Thanks!
Pictures
Okay not much time to type but many of you know about the "Easter Snow Phenomenon" so I wanted to share my pictures of the bluebonnets covered in snow. I measured 3 inches worth on the rock in front of my little house but I'm sure we got more than that, it just didn't accumulate due to the warmth of the earth. Craziness! Evy is SO MUCH fun these days - it just keeps getting better and apparently this ain't nothin yet!!
this is where we will take Evy's picture in the bluebonnets but on Easter, it was covered in snow!!
This is a normal sight - she loves to chew on her own hands and mine when I let her!
In her cute Easter dress, with a onesie underneath because it was so cold!
She likes to touch my coffee cup every day. I bet she's an early coffee drinker!
The sun always rises
Well I hope all of my readers are enjoying the sun shiney warmth that we are enjoying here in Stephenville!! Its GORGEOUS!!
Last week was slightly miserable because I got sick Saturday night and was pretty much bed/couch ridden Sunday and Monday. Tuesday I worked half a day and then the rest of the week until yesterday I was living with a constant sore throat and a hoarse voice. Finally, I have recovered about 95% and hopefully by tomorrow I’ll be back to normal! I look forward to being able to sing again, that’s for sure! Evy who has also had a cold for what seems like forever is finally past it and only has an occasional cough now and then. She is a blast to be with these days because every day she seems to learn something new. She will be 7 months old in a few more days and she is babbling like crazy, holding on tight, putting things in her mouth (finally!!), eating like a champ and is just plain funny. We have started enforcing more tummy time to encourage the possibility of crawling but we have heard from a few parents who’s children never crawled – they went straight to walking. Evy can hold herself up on things like the table and the couch, standing without help. We are thinking she just might walk early! She is tolerating the tummy time much better than previously, though – she used to scream bloody murder any time we put her on her stomach. The other day she lasted 10 minutes before getting really mad and I just let her get mad hoping it would be even more incentive for her to try to move herself. She went through the anger and chilled out again so she ended up staying on her tummy fairly contentedly for 20 minutes. That is a record in the Hanson house! Today I put her on her tummy and she tolerated it even better than before, until she got hungry. So I think from now on I will make sure she gets as much tummy time as possible (when she’s not hungry) and we’ll see what happens. We are feeding her naked these days because well, its just easier! She is eating more and occasionally manages to slap the spoon (with the food in it) and it goes everywhere. Oh the joys of feeding a baby. Also Gidget has begun the weaning process starting with the 3 o’clock feeding so I get to give her a bottle every afternoon now. She absolutely LOVES the formula – she sees that bottle and gets excited. She chugs it down! Its pretty funny to watch.
We are back to taking our afternoon walks and yesterday she crashed in the stroller almost as soon as I got out the door, even though she had already taken her afternoon nap! But she was still adorable in her pink sun hat and sunglasses. For any mom's out there, the roll on sunscrean IS SO GREAT! We didn't get our walk today due to many other things that had to be taken care of but hopefully I can keep it up every single day now that the warm weather has moved in. I'm already enjoying the benefits of walking a lot!
Many things are planned for the upcoming weeks such as the sunrise service for Easter Sunday, a women's retreat with my mom's church lades, a baby shower for my friend Julie, a Spring church picnic with volleyball, and our annual Saddle Up for St. Jude trail ride on May 19th! Its fast approaching so I have made a flyer and we are organizing teams for advertising, etc. Each year has been more and more successful so we are excited to see what this year will bring.
I have also been hired as a financial secretary for the church part-time starting this week. I am excited about the extra income and also working for the church - it will be a bit challenging since I will be handling/entering all the tithes and offerings and paying bills, but I know I can do the work!
Sorry for the lack of pictures but its been a hectic week and I didn't get any downloaded, but I will get one of Evy in her sunglasses - everyone calls her "Hollywood"! Also, we will be getting some of her in the bluebonnets soon - there are some great patches around here. Yesterday she got to play in the dirt at the arena and Gidget and I got a glimpse into the future - she LOVED it!! SHe will love the beach when they take vacation in June!!
Pictures coming soon!
