Happy Birthday, Teri!

We love you and hope your day is fantastic!!!

A Few More....

I just came across these cute pics from the last time Ty was in the hospital.

New Pictures of The Kids

Tyler was VERY relaxed in his sleep last night!

Emma too!

Is that not the cutest smile ever? Nate is so happy!!

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to everyone. My emotions today have been very close to the surface. I can't help but reflect on the path my life has taken and the amazing way I became a mom. Many people think I became a mom when we adopted Tyler but that simply isn't so. I became a mom the day Brent and I got married.

I am mom to an awesome, talented, handsome, funny fourteen-year-old son named Collin. Technically I am his step-mom, but I have never liked that term. Don't get me wrong, I could never take the place of his mom, nor would I want to. I know where my place is in his life. I also know that we share a great relationship and for that, I am eternally grateful. I am thankful for his love, for his sweet and gentle personality and for the fact that he has always chosen to call me mom, even from the first time we met. He truly made me a mom. I so wish that we could see him more often. I miss him every single day. Collin was our only child for five years and every time he was with us he would pray for a baby brother or sister. He always wanted to be a big brother and he is so good at it!

Our sweet Tyler is simply a gift and an answer to so many prayers. Tyler came home to us when he was ten weeks old. Our journey to him was long and sometimes painful. However, I have come to realize that the journey was necessary. Tyler was meant to be in our family. He was meant to be our child. Not a single day goes by that I don't realize that. He is an amazing child and stronger than anyone should ever have to be. He has been through more in his almost four years of life than most people have to experience in a lifetime. Through it all, he continues to smile, to giggle and in that incredible way he has, to make everyone around him feel better. He never ceases to amaze me. He has the ability to soften even the hardest of hearts. That is, without question, his gift. I can't imagine my life without him as my son.

Emmalee is the comedian in our family. She keeps me hopping and sometimes makes me want to pull my hair out. :) I will never forget the call from the adoption agency asking us to consider adopting her. It was one of those moments in life when you KNOW, without question, what you are supposed to do. We never doubted for one moment that she was meant to be in our family. She is the funniest little girl. She knows she is funny and is always able to make me smile, even when I am sad. She is also sassy and full of spice. I wouldn't want her any other way, (even during the hair pulling moments!) We know that it is her strong personality that will get her through any trial she faces and will help her grow into a strong woman. She gave me one of the best Mother's Day gifts today...she hugged me and told me that I am a good Momma. Talk about melting my heart!

Nathaniel is an incredible little guy. He is a fighter, just like Tyler. He is also the easiest baby. He is very happy and smiles all the time. His smile just lights up his entire face and makes me cry happy tears. He is growing so much and seems to do something new every day. Once again, there is no question that he was meant to be in our family. What an incredible gift he is!

I won't lie, getting to this point in my life was not easy. There were many tears, many hours of prayer, many struggles along the way. No, the path was not straight or easy. It was difficult, full of twists and turns and many steep climbs. It was not the way I would have imagined it. And now, on the other side, I look back and can't imagine it any other way. I wouldn't change a thing about who I am now, or how my children came to be mine. I can't imagine loving them any more or any differently if I had carried them and given birth. I know that this is how it was always meant to be, that this was the plan all along. What an amazing journey this has been so far. I can't wait to see where it goes from here!

Baby Carriers

I never really used a carrier for either Ty or Emma. I did a little with Tyler, once in awhile, but he always seemed uncomfortable. Emma simply hated the whole idea so it only lasted for a few minutes and I just gave up. With Nate, I wanted a carrier for many reasons. Mostly because he was such a preemie and in the hospital for so long that I wanted to bond with him even more once he came home. Also, with two toddlers, I needed to have something to carry him in when the bigger kids were both in the stroller. So, a friend who owns a store selling all sorts of "earthy" type things like fancy carriers, gave me a super nice one as a gift. I LOVED the idea of this thing. It is one of those fancy, no buckle, all material, multiple position, carry-your-kid-until-they're-ten type of carriers. You know the kind? I got it a few weeks before Nate came home and practiced a little. It was VERY complicated and I had to follow the online instructions a lot. I figured it would be easier once he was actually in it. It wasn't. I just never could get the hang of it and by the time I finally got him in the darned thing, he never felt secure to me and I always worried that he wasn't getting enough air. Plus, all that material was just plain hot. Maybe I got the wrong size. I don't know. Needless to say, I never really used it.

Thus my search for a new carrier began. I looked online and the one with the top ratings is the Baby Bjorn. Great. I can't afford the Baby Bjorn. They're nice but really, are they any better than a Snugli? They must be because I had a Snugli and hated it. I guess I am just not destined to be a baby wearer.

Lo and behold, the beauty of yard sales. Yesterday I found a Baby Bjorn for $20. I was hesitant, $20 is still kind of pricey. But given that they are upwards of $60 or more new, I decided to give it a shot. The lady was very nice and showed me how to wear it, how to put Nate in, etc. I walked around for a few minutes and thought, hey, I can do this one. And the best part? I really CAN do it, even on my own. No more gymnastics trying to figure out how to wrap him correctly. No more worries that he isn't getting enough air. No more thoughts that he may fall out. He is secure and he is really in love with it. He doesn't cry, he doesn't fuss, he smiles and really enjoys his time in it. HOOORRRRAAAYYY.

So, for all of you debating weather or not to spend the money on a Baby Bjorn, I say go for it. Knowing what I know now, I should have bought one long ago. And, as you probably know, I'm not exactly thin. I was worried it would be too tight but it isn't. It adjusted well for me. I won't lie, it is a little tight but maybe this is just the motivation I need to lose a few pounds. :)

Awesome Articles Regarding Adoption

I rarely buy magazines but I was in a long check out line today and picked up a copy of Woman's Day. I was thrilled to see a story about trans-racial adoption. It was the story of a black family who adopted a white baby. Hooray! I was so happy to see things from this perspective. You can check out the article here,

http://www.womansday.com/home/13067/the-color-of-love.html

Also, my friend Gen shared this story, which is also just incredible.

http://www.happyhealthypregnancy.com/info/lib/articles/article.aspx?article_id=2342&section=library&_nc=633452236550343833&_nockcheck=true&_nc=633452297926874895&_nockcheck=true

What Were They Thinking??

Do our children have no role models left? I am beyond disgusted by a news story on the Today Show regarding Miley Cyrus. Although Emmalee isn't old enough to watch Hannah Montana yet, she still knows who that is and recognizes Miley Cyrus in pictures. So imagine my frustration when they showed a half naked Miley from a picture taken for Vanity Fair magazine. Emmalee knew right away that it was "Hannah Tanna." Obviously this is not the type of role model I want for Emmalee. This just adds to the long line of celebrities who are letting our children down. My other issue with this is the fact that her parents allowed her to take such a photo. Honestly....what were they thinking?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24342953/

Happy Birthday, Emmalee!

Emmalee celebrated her third birthday on April 6. We had a family party for her that day but decided to wait until Tyler could attend to have her party at Chuck E Cheese. She was thrilled to finally have her Chuck E Cheese party yesterday. She is one loved little girl!!

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

Catch Up!

I have neglected my blog for so long, for obvious reasons. Life has been beyond crazy these past few weeks. The good news, though, is that Tyler is doing well. We are so thankful for all the calls, emails, cards, phone calls and visits we have received. People have brought gifts and food. We have had help from so many, especially child care for Emmalee and Nathaniel. We have also had countless prayers said for Tyler and for our family. We know that it is the prayers and faith of so many that have gotten us through. There are simply no words to express our gratitude. Although we know that this journey is not going to be easy, we know we can make it because of the love and support we have from each of you. Thank you!

Tyler

Thanks to all our blogging friends who have mentioned Tyler on their blog. You can keep up with Tyler on his Caringbridge site...

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/tylergardner

Interesting News Story

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/health/2008/04/05/rowlands.down.syndrome.cnn

Bonus Time!

We got some good news yesterday. We have a few bonus days at home. Tyler was scheduled to go in this morning for his next round of chemo, the G-Tube, bone marrow biopsy and lumbar puncture. But, because there was a problem scheduling the anesthesiologist, they are switching him to Monday. Hooray! We are thrilled to have three more days at home. I know he will be so glad to have the weekend with his Daddy.

Ty is starting to perk up a little at a time. I know he still hurts and is still very weak. But, every so often, his personality shines through a little. He is not as sleepy as he was the first few days. He crawled a little yesterday and that was great to see. He is using his signs a little more and even used his voice a couple of times yesterday. Slowly but surely he is starting to feel better. I hope next weeks hospital stay doesn't set him back too much.

Tupperware Fundraiser

The kindness of others never ceases to amaze me. My friend Teri has a good friend named Jeana. Jeana is a Tupperware rep. When she heard about Tyler, she took it upon herself to organize a fundraiser in Tyler's benefit. It is an online Tupperware party. Jeana is not taking any profit from this party and is working to raise funds to help us with some of the expenses. We are so very touched by her kindness and generosity.
If you are interested in purchasing any Tupperware to help us raise funds for our expenses, you can go to this link -
http://order.tupperware.com/coe/app/eparty.open_parties?fv_item_category_code=48000
The current party closes on April 2 but Jeana said if there is further interest, she will open it again. Thank you so much!!

Homeward Bound

After one month and two days, we are finally headed home from the hospital. Soooo thankful that I get to sleep in my own bed tonight, with my husband and ALL of our little ones. Ty will be back in the hospital on Friday for five to seven days. After that, there are no "scheduled" hospital stays. Thanks to everyone for all the emails, calls, cards, visits, etc. Thanks especially for all the prayers. Please keep the prayers coming. We're just at the start of this very long journey.

Please Pray for Rhett

We have a blogging buddy named Rhett. :) Rhett also has Down syndrome...some of you may recall my pleas for prayers in behalf of Rhett before. Well, Rhett needs our prayers again. He is having surgery tomorrow and his family is asking for extra prayers. Please visit his blog here and say a little prayer for him. Then spread the word. :)