Team Slaughter

First Day of School - 2010

2010-08-23T11:21:00.004-04:00

Whew - I feel like it has been such a marathon trying to get to this point, but it is finally here. Both kids had their first day of school in our new neighborhood. Crazytown.

The kids were very excited about the new school, and we were so thankful that Barrett got one of the few spots that opened up in the small public school. There were about 10-15 kids and their moms waiting outside when we left the back to school coffee this morning at 9 . . . those were the overflow kids that were waiting to find out if an enrolled student didn't show up.

Anyway, on to happy times, Cleo knew one person in her class, and she was definitely not interested in us hanging around too long. She was a little worried about being the only one who brought her lunch, but I saw many other lunchboxes, so I think she will be ok. Barrett went right in and found his name. No hesitation with him at all. Of course, this is the kid who had the idea to go up by himself and introduce himself to the principal at Back to School night. He is sooooo like his daddy.

Here are the pics from day one.

Canton Road Trip

2010-04-03T22:07:00.004-04:00

Today was our big road trip to Canton for Cleo's birthday. We had 4 girls, 3 moms, 2 grandmothers (Cleo's Nana and Hannah's grandmother), and 1 dad (Tim). it took all 6 grownups to keep up with the 4 girls, and we are really glad that Tim came along to be our cart wrangler. The girls had a blast shopping for their own party favors. The most frequently purchased item was a headband, with each girl buying 4 or 5. Several got stuffed animals and other hair accessories. There is just so much to look at, we didn't even see 1/10th of it.

After Canton, we headed to Dairy Palace for some yummy bluebell. then we headed back home. Big fun for Cleo's birthday. She is already planning her next trip!

It's Cleo's Birthday! April Fools . . .

2010-04-01T16:05:00.003-04:00

Cleo and I wanted to do an April Fool's joke for her birthday this year. If you were born on April 1, what else can you do but go with it? I went to one of my favorite websites - bakerella and found inspiration in her Father's Day post from last year. This is what I took to school - it's a hamburger and fries made out of cupcake, brownie, and sugar cookies. It was so much easier than it looked.

Her teacher didn't want me to serve them until after the kids had eaten lunch, so we waited. When they were finished, we came around asking who wanted a hamburger and fries? They looked at us like we were nuts. One girl even said "no, I'm too full . . . wait, is that CAKE?" Of course, then they all started squealing and laughing, and it was totally worth the effort. Too funny.

Cleo has chosen to do a girls trip to Canton instead of a birthday party, so we'll have to post pics from that later.

Here are a few pictures from the big day:

Cleo wins at PSIA

2010-03-27T18:56:00.003-04:00

Today Cleo competed in the Private School Interscholastic Association regional meet in the Creative Writing contest. She came in first and will compete at the state level meet in early May. We are so proud of her!!

Cleo and Maddie

2010-02-12T15:13:00.004-05:00

Here is a cute pic of Cleo and Maddie playing down at Maddie's grandparent's house. Apparently, they are "gathering food for puppies" now, since they have already built a few snowmen.

Snow Day Two

2010-02-12T12:40:00.003-05:00

Official count in our backyard this morning is 10.3 inches. A record for big D! A big tree limb broke and is hanging off one of our trees blocking the street, so Tim wrestled with that all morning. Got his chainsaw stuck in the frozen branch, then got the ax out to chop. Kind of a mess. One of his partners is w/o power, so they are coming over here this afternoon with their two daughters. I am cooking up some bacon wrapped chicken bites and defrosting soup. It’s actually kind of a fun day! Not a bit of work going on here – everyone is digging out.

Cleo is loving playing out in it, but Barrett is getting over pneumonia and says it hurts to breathe when he is outside. He is playing a lot of wii today, which really is like any other day. :)

Snowman!

2010-02-11T12:55:00.004-05:00

The kids made their first snow man this morning. With more snow on the way, I'm sure there will be others, but I had to post this one.

Cleo's Photography

2010-02-11T12:52:00.003-05:00

Cleo took some pictures for her science project. She is making dye from fruits and vegetables, so she had to take pictures of the outside and inside of the items.

We asked our pro friend Erin about the best color for the background, and Cleo took it from there. She did everything on these pictures - staged them, decided where to stand, the whole bit. I think they look pretty good! I'll post the project once it's completed.

Runges and Slaughters

2010-01-25T09:53:00.002-05:00

We were playing with the settings on the camera for the Runge Christmas and didn't get as many good ones, but there are definitely some cute pics of Adalyn from the Slaughter Christmas!

Paris Christmas

2010-01-24T11:37:00.003-05:00

Pictures from Christmas at my parents house, with Grandmother and Granddaddy, plus Dudleys and Hendricksons.

Santa pictures

2010-01-24T11:34:00.000-05:00

Here are a few pictures of Christmas morning-

Avery the Entertainer

2010-01-23T15:45:00.001-05:00

When Uncle Mike bought the kids harmonicas for Christmas, I bet he didn't think that Avery would be the breakout star. In this clip, she starts out playing her little song, and then, by the end of the video, she has fallen in love with the applause. So cute!

Fishing at Christmas

2010-01-23T14:49:00.001-05:00

We got lots of cute pics of the kids fishing during Christmas break. Robyn and Jack were the only ones to actually catch a fish, but the rest of us had fun trying!

Barrett conversation before bedtime Christmas Eve

2009-12-24T22:44:00.001-05:00

Mommy: "Barrett, are you on the naughty list or the nice list?"

Barrett: "Nice."

Barrett: " We'll see . . . "

The favorite gift so far

2009-12-22T11:53:00.003-05:00

We opened presents with just Team Slaughter this weekend, and the favorite gift was the one that we spent the least on. Of course. Tim and I made little study centers for the kids to have when they do homework. We bought one piece of science fair cardboard and cut it in half, then scrounged around the house for office supplies to decorate it with (saw it in a magazine a few months ago).

We did a note present around the house that allowed us to put it in place. This video shows their excitement.

Grace Keltner Bday

2009-12-21T13:27:00.002-05:00

Grace had a super cute cheerleader birthday party last weekend. Barrett went out there to play with Sam, and Cleo got to meet all of Grace's new friends.

The result of some very hard work

2009-12-03T22:56:00.004-05:00

My friend Debby did the finishing work on my needlepoint pillows for me, and wow, they look fantastic! I'm just loved the colors and the retro look to these two pillows. Now i just have to figure out where to put them that grubby little fingers don't get all over them!

A big upgrade!

2009-12-02T10:22:00.004-05:00

Tom and Lee gave us an early combo birthday present - a new camera! I played around taking pictures of the kids last night, and the quality is amazing. Note the difference in these pics compared to the New Moon ones. Huge! Hopefully this will encourage me to post more often.

From testdelete

Twilight New Moon-apalooza

2009-12-02T09:37:00.013-05:00

Even though I know my cousins will make fun of me (shoutout Courtney, Catherine, and Donna) I decided to post my pictures from the ridiculously fun Twilight New Moon weekend. I don't think I have ever laughed as hard as I did that Friday night as we prepared to see New Moon on Saturday. It was so much fun.

The decor at Amanda's was Twilight chic, with apples and candles all around. Also, a Full-Size Edward provided many a funny joke during the weekend. He pretty much glared disapprovingly at everything we said and did.

We spent Friday night "honoring Twilight" (quote by Tammy). We started the night off with a mushroom lasagna (Bella orders mushroom ravioli on her first date with Edward) and it was delicious. Recipe can be found here. We also served a cocktail made with pomegranate syrup that dripped down the side into the drink.

After dinner, we opened our goodie bags! Each person brought little trinkets of fun to add to the bags. Oh, the bags. Amanda couldn't find bags that met her expectations, so she just decided to make some. When she couldn't find the right parrot tulip that looked like the cover of New Moon, she HAND PAINTED HER OWN!

We really started acting like 12 year olds when we opened the bags. Would you believe we actually traded the trading cards? Maybe that's more like 9 year olds. Actually, I wonder if Cleo would even do that with her friends . . . Anyway, it was really fun. Leta bailed on us for Friday night, so we picked over her cards and traded out our worst. Leta ended up with a really great picture of Eric.

Of course, we watched Twilight. The movie Twilight has some really awful parts mixed in with some awesomeness. There was much pausing and discussing.

After the movie, we attempted to play the Twilight board game. The rules were complicated and it was not all that fun, but the questions were ok. We decided to call it a night so we could rest up for the big event the next day.

We got to the theatre about two hours early for the first showing on Saturday. We were first in line! Clearly all the superfans had seen it on Thursday or Friday. We had our special badges on that made us look official.

We all loved the movie, but I do think the hours we spent preparing for it just made the whole thing so special. Yes, it was ridiculous and over the top for a bunch of mid-30s women to get together for an entire weekend to celebrate teenage vampire romance novels, but it was so fun to cut loose and act silly. We are already planning for Eclipse on June 30th!

Barrett Works Out

2009-12-02T09:11:00.003-05:00

Barrett was playing Wii Fit this morning and it was just too cute. I used our new camera (Thanks Tom and Lee!) to take this video of him.

Girls Weekend!

2009-10-25T21:21:00.002-05:00

Last weekend, we had a small halloween party for our friends that helped out while I was sick over the last few months. Nana and Mamaw came to town to help out and to have fun. After the party, we went to get a mani-pedi. It was both Mamaw and Cleo's first time!

Tim, Grampsie, and Barrett escaped to Uncle Mike's house to watch the OU/UT Game. Unfortunately, they did not have a camera to record Barrett rooting for touchdowns and eating queso with the rest of the family.

Coolest thing ever at a festival

2009-10-25T21:08:00.000-05:00

At The Kessler School Pumpkin Patch two weeks ago, we saw the coolest thing ever. The fire truck extended the ladder as far as it would go, then allowed children and parents to walk along it. They ended up making it a little shorter, as there was quite a line to participate in this ultra cool activity.

This is the side where you climb the ladder to get on.

This is Barrett walking down the ladder. You can see that he is pretty far off the ground, and he is actually having to step on "rungs" that make up the side of the ladder.

The best part was the joy on the kids faces when they realized that they made it through a pretty big challenge.

FUN STUFF!!

Y Guides Campout

2009-10-06T10:10:00.002-04:00

Tim and Cleo went on the first Y Guides campout of the year this weekend. They had a fantastic time!

A visit from halloween past

2009-10-05T21:02:00.005-04:00

This set of pictures is one of my absolute favorites. Barrett was a happy baby. Once we got his reflux under control, he was easy going and all smiles.

Like in this photo - typical Baby Barrett (these three pictures were taken within minutes of each other)

Then one year, I decided to try a Hershey kiss costume for halloween. He was not happy.

He's an angry kiss!

Halloween decorating . . . and a health update

2009-09-30T21:12:00.007-04:00

First of all - we decorated for Halloween over the weekend. I found a lot of stuff I bought on clearance last year, including these coordinating pajamas for the kids. Just had to include a fun picture in this post. Yea!

On to part 2 -I know it doesn't seem like it, but I actually do hold back some of the medical updates. I could do a new post practically weekly about the ups and downs of having lupus with blood issues. but seriously, how many platelet counts can you hear before you zone out? You can pretty much assume at this point, when you talk to me, my platelets have either just dipped a little, a lot, or come back from a little or big plunge. Last count - 100K. Low, but not too low. So that makes me frustrated, but not too depressed. Still on pred. Feeling good, so that is a bonus.

Today's medical update is actually from Cleo. She woke this morning, thought she was going to throw up, fainted, and then hit her head on the tile. She was out for a few seconds (eons in mommy-time) then woke up, then passed out again. So, I started freaking out. I called and woke up the best pediatrician ever on his one day a week that he gets to sleep in and he called around to find the pediatric er with the shortest wait. How nice is that?

Cleo proceeded to faint two more times while at the ER: one after the second attempt to get an iv in, and the other when she got up to go for a urinalysis. Moving on to good news - CT scan was normal, bloodwork and EKG were fine. So, she's a fainter, and most likely she was dehydrated, which contributed to the drop in blood pressure. This is a good article about what is happening with her- vasovagal syncope. I can't remember if I posted this before, but she has fainted a few times over the last few years. We saw a pediatric cardiologist about 6 months ago who examined her and said her heart was ok, and warned us that it probably will happen again, and it's "not a big deal." Of course, it seems pretty big when her eyes roll back, she is drained of all color and won't want respond to you at all . . .

So here we are. She is ok. She was tired for most of today, but her big worry is whether she can go on the campout this weekend. We are loading her up with gatorade, adding a little salt to some of her meals and pressing on. A scary day, but all is good now.

Teeny Tiny Kittens . . . and a health update

2009-09-22T21:36:00.004-04:00

We have a lot of stray cats that like to hang out under our house. If you search the blog for a post about mice, you will see why we don't mind having a few hungry cats around . . .

Anyway, it was only a matter of time before one of these stray ladycats found herself in an unfortunate situation and sought our crawlspace as a refuge for her growing family. We came home to 4 precious mewing kittens trying to climb through the removable screen door to the crawlspace. Let the weeping begin.

Tim is not anti-animal or anti-pet, even though he often comes across that way. He is really just anti-stressing out the wife that he absolutely adores and cares for often. The timing for these precious kittens was just uncanny. We cannot, absolutely cannot, take on the fostering of 4 kittens. Barrett's pulmonologist has recommended we not get a pet for a few more years until his lungs are better at handling irritation (more on that in a sec.) Plus, we are just coming off of a time where I pretty much sat on the couch every day all day, and we traded off with friends and all three sets of grandparents to help care for the kiddos. So, Tim's comeback to "can we please keep one of the precious kittens?" was "two weeks ago you could barely take care of yourself. you really want to bring a kitten into this mix?"

The answer is no, and so the kittens went to the spca along with their mommy. Many, many tears were shed by sweet Cleo when the neighbor left with the cats. She is left with the promise that someday, maybe in a year or two, we will get a dog.

Quick health news - Barrett saw his pulmonologist this morning, and his lungs are doing really great. He has bronchitis, but he is not wheezing even though he is on the lowest dose and lowest number of meds he has been on since he was 1. Praise God!

News for me - after having a relapse of pneumonia last week, my lungs are now clear. I was still having some wheezing with activity, so we increased the prednisone to 60 mg for 5 days to try and knock that out. Unfortunately, the prednisone is causing two bad side effects in me - increased blood pressure and reflux, to the point that I had to add three additional meds today to try to get a handle on those. I now have a schedule of medicines that i have to take at 1 to 2 hour intervals throughout the day to keep them from either interacting with each other or with food. It's a little complicated, but it's only for 6 weeks. Hopefully by then, the stomach stuff will settle down, and I'll have tapered down enough of the prednisone to get off the blood pressure med. At least the pneumonia is gone, and we think that the lupus is quiet. I'm feeling better - I wore makeup today and jeans instead of sweats. That's a big change!

Cowgirl Cleo

2009-09-11T17:23:00.004-04:00

Here is Cleo in her pink boots and new jeans - she is going with my cousin Catherine to see Skye, Catherine's horse. I found these boots at the JBF consignment sale on Wednesday, and I just knew that Cleo would love them. As soon as she saw them, she put them on and started begging to go see a horse, now that she has appropriate footwear. it's all about the shoes, of course.

We are sending Cleo out of the house to escape all of the sickness that Tim and I have been dealing with. I have moved directly from a pretty bad lupus flare right into pneumonia, and then Tim fell ill with bronchitis this week. Luckily the kids have been doing just fine. Lots of tv and wii, but hopefully we haven't scarred them too much.

Cleo told me today that she would like to be a singer/cowgirl when she grows up. If she has my singing genes, we have looooong road of disappointment ahead for her.She refused to pose for this picture, btw. I told her I was just taking a picture of the boots. Maybe I need to tell her that singing cowgirls have to let people take their picture . . .

August visit to Bossier City

2009-09-06T12:40:00.002-04:00

We haven't been very good about taking pictures lately. Our camera is dying a slow death, and the cell phone pics just aren't very good. I pulled the pictures from our last visit to Tom and Lee's to post here. Barrett is riding his first bike - he looks so big! and Cleo is getting better at roller skating.

Lousiana Downs

2009-09-05T19:51:00.003-04:00

Now returning from a long blogging vacation . . .

Today we went on a guided tour of the stables at the Louisiana Downs in Bossier City. Lee's friend's husband is a trainer there for 28 horses, and her friend took us to around to each of his horses. The kids got to feed carrots to the horses (although some of them had never had a carrot before, so they didn't know that they wanted one.) These horses weren't scheduled to race today, so they had finished their morning workouts and were about to eat their mid-morning meal. It was so fascinating to get a behind-the-scenes look at the races.

At some points, Barrett seemed to prefer the dirt and mud that surrounded the stables, but Cleo is definitely infatuated with the horses. We got to see the different bits and saddles that they use, and also the silks that the jockeys wear when they race.

Cleo's Science Project

2009-03-30T17:23:00.004-04:00

Cleo turned in her very first science project today, and I don't know who was more excited about it - Cleo or her parents. It was a fun family project, and I'm very proud of her hard work.

Her project was called "Changing a Recipe." We made 4 cakes and changed the number of eggs in each one - 0, 1, 2, and 4 eggs. The one with 0 eggs had the largest sunken hole in the middle, and 4 eggs was the tallest. She had samples of the cakes for the judges to try.

It is a very similar project to one I would have made as a child. I was always interested in the science of baking . . . and any excuse to have cake!

Daddy / Daughter Dance

2009-03-28T19:51:00.007-04:00

Sorry it has been sooooo long since the last post. Things seem to speed up as the kids get older. Cleo is coming up on her 6th birthday next week and Barrett is 6 weeks from his 4th. They are both about to start up in t-ball next week - that should make more some entertaining blogging.

Cleo's Y-princesses program hosted a daddy/daughter dance at the beginning of the month. We had a great time, but, it was more of daughters hanging with daughters and daddys hanging with daddys. I guess that is the way it goes. We had a great meal and then the girls danced to Abba and other great hits from one of the dad's iPods. Toward the end of the evening, the glow necklaces and balloons from the centerpieces were a big hit!

So funny - the kids are making me do this. :)

2008-12-14T17:43:00.001-05:00

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2008-12-14T17:20:00.001-05:00

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Cleo's first Indian Princess Campout

2008-11-17T22:28:00.009-05:00

Cleo (aka Sunflower) and Daddy (aka Orange Tiger) had the great pleasure of spending the weekend together at Camp Grady Spruce on Possum Kingdom Lake. Cleo and I joined several of her school friends and their dads for our first Indian Princess weekend. Each year, until she is about 11, there will be 3 of these outings and we can't wait for the next one.

Cleo (as you can see in the pictures below) got to hike a mountain, ride horses, shoot bows and arrows, make smores, shoot bb guns, throw a ceremonial wreath into the fire, and on and on. Her and her friends practiced remaking High School Musical in their pajamas with flashlights for microphones. They ran around like a bunch of wild Indians while the dadies tended the fire and got to know each other. The highlites for Cleo were definitely riding the horse and getting a special patch (in front of the whole nation) for bravery. The horse was much bigger than the Shetlend ponies she had ridden before and she had to wear a helmet, lest she bust her precious noggin. Our horse was named "Pilgrim" and he was quite a stubborn animal, shaking his head up and down and stalling in the middle of the path several times. As for the award, Cleo earned it by being so brave after slipping on the hiking trail and accidently plunging her hand into a cactus plant. She screamed and cried, but her recovery was quick and she maintained a great attitude, even as I plucked the barbs out of her hand and forearm. The big chief gave her this award and recounted the story in from of the whole Oak Cliff Nation. She was beaming from ear to ear at that one!

One other great tradition is the induction ceremony for the new tribe members. The elders built a large fire deep in the woods that we had to hike to by torchlight after dinner. We prepared for the ceremony by painting our faces with warpaint, sharing our new tribal chants, and preparing a wreath that represented the new tribe member. Once at the fire, a prayer was offered, the fire was lit, and the new members were introduced. The wreaths that we made were thrown in and made one with the fire, thus indicating our acceptance into the nation.

Our next trip is the Winter campout in January and Cleo and I can't wait to do it all over again. More pictures below:

Cleo receiving her award for bravery

Cleo and Daddy at the top of Johnson's Peak - 1,800 ft above sea level.

Cleo learning how to shoot an arrow - by herself :)

Lilly, Vivian, Lucy, Grace, Hanna, Cleo, & Kelsey - ready to hit the trail

Cleo looking for good skipping rocks.

Sarah Palin - eat your heart out!

Painting daddy's face is fun!

Cleo's First Lost Tooth!

2008-10-20T22:31:00.003-04:00

From Lost tooth

Here is Cleo with her lost tooth.

From Lost tooth

Barrett is pretty excited about the lost tooth, too.

From Lost tooth

Cleo wrote a note to the tooth fairy to let her know where she was when the tooth fell out. "Lost tooth in Jack's car."

From Lost tooth

The note is under the pillow along with the tooth.

From Lost tooth

Pretending to be asleep. Such a big girl now!

The many faces of Barrett

2008-09-28T12:04:00.005-04:00

Family night this week was pretty simple. It was based on Luke Chapter 10, where Mary listens to Jesus and Martha continues to work. We did a simple illustration involving PB Ritz, and oreo, and a hairbrush. At first, Barrett was way too mesmorized by the fact that an oreo was on the table to listen to the story. Then, he started making faces.

First, he was angry that he couldn't eat the oreo.

Then, he was surprised that Jesus walked into where Martha and Mary were.

Next, confusion as to why Martha didn't stop working.

Last, he was happy that it was Oreo time.

Super fun train day

2008-09-18T21:25:00.003-04:00

“Let’s do something super fun today.” These are the words that my daughter says to me daily right before she goes to her room for rest time. Usually I try to sell her on a trip to Target or the grocery store, but on Saturday, Tim had a better idea - a fun day that would not break the bank. It involved escalators, trains, parks, food, and big smiles.

Our group of two families (us + Keltners) -4 parents, 2 girls (4 and 5 years) and two 3 year old boys started at Mockingbird station. My husband informed me that the station is the home of Dallas’s longest escalator ride, which was thrilling enough for the munchkins that we probably could have headed home after that. The ticket situation was cheap and easy - all day adult passes for $3 each, $1.50 ticket 5 and up, kids 4 and under ride free. Trains come every 20 minutes, so we did not have to wait long.

From keltner pics

We rode the DART all the way up the Downtown Plano station, the second to last stop on the Northbound Red line. The total trip was about 25 minutes. We had contemplated starting the trip at the zoo or Hampton station, but because of the many stops in downtown, it bumps up the one way ride to an hour, which is definitely longer than the kids would have lasted.

From keltner pics

When we pulled into our stop, the playground was in our sights. The park has multiple play areas for various ages, and lots of tables and benches to watch the kids play. I would say that the park is roughly the size of playground off Cedar Hill in our ‘hood. There was a fountain, and an old train car that looked like it was part of a small museum.

A block or two away, we could see the back of Georgia’s Farmer’s Market. We did not get to check it out on this trip, but next time it would be nice to pop in there to check out their local produce and other Texas-made products and perhaps purchase a picnic for the park.

From keltner pics

The kids worked up an appetite swinging and sliding, so we walked across the tracks to downtown plano. Our group was not up for exploring downtown, so we went into the first restaurant we saw. Jorg’s Vienna café, with its inviting and kid-friendly back patio, looked like a great place for our crew to grab a bite. Although we spent a little more there than we had planned, the service was friendly and quick and the food was absolutely delicious. They had great beers on tap, and the whole restaurant felt so authentically European, we thought we might have to ask for ice in the water! There are several other restaurants in the downtown area, and we didn’t see any chains, so it would be nice to go back and explore more.

From keltner pics

It’s never fun to end a playdate, but it is a little bit easier when a train ride is involved. Whether you go budget-friendly and pack your own picnic or splurge on a schnitzel, a day trip on the DART is a great way to enjoy the cooler weather and make “super fun” memories with the family!

Dart
Downtown Plano
jorgs cafe vienna

First Day of School

2008-08-28T14:50:00.005-04:00

Cleo started Kindergarten on Monday. Wow - I can't believe that. Barrett also started school. He is in Preschool, and he has Cleo's first preschool teacher. So nice! Monday morning was a blur of emotions, as you will see by the slideshow. We had some attitude, anxiety, and excited anticipation. Cleo was up and dressed early, but her "stomach hurt" too much too eat breakfast. Awwww, haven't we all been there?

Dropoff wasn't too emotional. Cleo really didn't want me to leave, so by the time she got comfortable enough for me to walk out (i wasn't even leaving - just going down the hall to work on computers that crashed during our vacation) I was so happy that she was ok that I couldn't be sad. She has been doing better and better each day. Barrett went right in to his room without a hitch, of course. He has mostly been getting good reports, which is a slight change from his summer school. He can be a bit trying. His teacher has a great attitude about it - bring it on, she says!

Here are just a few pics from the first morning. Big kids!!

Family Night - The Ten Commandments

2008-08-12T21:17:00.003-04:00

Tonight was family night and the topic was the 10 commandments. Cleo already has the memory verse down - We will listen and obey, Deut 5:27- so we focused on listening to commands. This week was extra special because Nana and Grampsie were here for it. First, we cut ears out of paper. Then, we put sticks on those big ears so we could hold them up to our own ears. After that, we played a game where mommy gave commands and daddy did various other things to distract the kids from my commands, like play music or giggle loudly. We all danced, hopped, and did various activities around the living room.

We ended the family night with a round of hide and go seek. Pretty tricky with 6 people in a 1400 sq ft house!!

Fun time pictures. The last one is another video of barrett - you may have to click on it again to play it. "What do your ears do?" "Dance?"

Sam's Birthday

2008-08-11T22:20:00.005-04:00

Today was Sam Keltner's birthday. He's Barrett's best bud, and we were so excited to help him celebrate his 3rd birthday. It was outside in the Keltner's backyard, so if it looks familiar, it's because it is! That's where Barrett's birthday was. Who would have thought that it would be hotter for a May party than an August party? It did rain a little bit, but it kept the temperature down, so that was very nice.

Cleo and Sam's sister Grace lounged in the pool.

I made the cake for Sam. This was my first time to try piping, and I was pretty proud of the way that the grass turned out. Don't zoom in - it's not perfect by any stretch. I also must be holding the pastry bag wrong as my hand seriously cramped up while doing it. Must do more reading on cake decorating before my next attempt.

The moms chill while watching the kids play.

Happy birthday Sam!!

Family Night - Red Sea

2008-08-07T08:39:00.007-04:00

For Family Night last night, we talked about Moses parting the red sea. The kids were super excited about the night after we had missed last week's.

First, the kids cut a blue piece of paper in half and decorated it like the ocean. The ocean sparkled, of course.

After constructing the paper ocean, it was time to act the story out. Cleo gathered up stuffed animals to be Israelites and Egyptians, and Barrett brought in trains to be chariots for the army. Hildi, Cleo's lovey, was Moses (obviously) and Hildi raised her paw to ask God to split the "red sea" of blankets in front of the Israelites. The blankets raised up, and the Israelites marched through to the lightning mcqueen blanket, which Cleo called "the promise land". While that is not actually where they ended up at this point, I guess she realized that was the ultimate destination, so we'll give her points for that. Anyway, the egyptian army with their chariots raced after them, and the red sea blankets came crashing down. Barrett dove on the Egyptian army to for added effect. It was pretty fun.

When it was all over, we asked the kids what happened. Barrett summed up the story using his favorite actors from the scene - Barrett, Boo Bear, and McQueen. I guess he understood it???

doing better

2008-08-03T15:07:00.003-04:00

Just wanted to post for those that are following this that I am feeling better. I went in to see my doctor last week, and he did a quick blood test. My platelets were back up to normal, so that's fantastic. The level they were at before wasn't even something that he would be concerned about in most people, it's just that mine have dropped so fast in the past. We are glad that they have bumped up to normal on just 10 mg of prednisone! Prednisone is helping my fatigue, too, so that's nice. My levels did go up and down last summer, so i'm just going to hope that they will stay normal now.

The other good news on the lupus side is that we discussed another medication that I can take to control the lupus. It's not quite as immunosuppressive as imuran, so it's not as likely to cause melonoma, and it's actually not as strong as imuran so the side effects are less. Anyway, if we have more platelet drama in the next few months, that's probably what we will try, after using IVIg to get the platelets up.

Cleo just returned from Tom and Lee's, so we are happy to be back to the full Team Slaughter. Fun times ahead!!

Family Night Mishaps

2008-07-30T12:14:00.004-04:00

Well, we were supposed to do a family night on the 10 plagues on Monday night, but a few plagues of our own hit us and derailed our Family Night train. First, my platelets dropped a little last week and we were awaiting test results - more on that later. Second, Barrett did not nap (never a sign for a good evening.) Third, we had a tire blowout on the way to swimming lessons.

Luckily, Tim was leaving work soon anyway and he was able to get the tire changed while the kids and I swam. He joined us for a cooling dip in the pool, and then we rushed home to get Barrett to sleep. Cleo was devastated that we weren't doing our planned activities, so Tim read her the Bible study as a bedtime story. She was really looking forward to it, but she is going to be out of town the rest of the week with Tom and Lee, so this was our only chance to do it with her. Oh well, there is always next week. Good news that she was so excited about it, though!

So, back to the platelet issue. It's been about a year since my platelets last fell, so i guess it's time for another flare. They are only about 110,000, so that's not too low, but they have a tendency to drop quickly. Last year at this time I did Rituxan treatments, but we have since learned that that drug did not make it out of clinical trials. I had been wondering about it, since I had annual lupus flares before I was on the drug, so it didn't really seem to be working for me.

Anyway, we bumped the prednisone up a little, and hopefully that will do the trick. If not, when the platelets drop below 100,000, my doctor will do an IVIg treatment. Because it takes 3000-10000 blood donors to make one dose of IVIg, it is in short supply. the easiest place to get the drug is in the hospital, so he will most likely hospitalize me for 2 days to do the treatment. The good news is that IVIg was pretty easy on me and I should be able to resume activity pretty quickly.

Now I wait. We wait to see if my platelets bump up to normal (hopefully,) stay the same, or drop lower. I'll have weekly tests unless I observe symptoms that make me think something else is going on. I have been feeling ok lately. Not great, but not terrible. I definitely can feel that something is going on, but I'm able to continue with most of my everyday activities with just a little increased rest.

Fun times - Platelet Watch 2008 Begins!

Kids like your undivided attention, who knew?

2008-07-23T21:51:00.003-04:00

We started a new tradition tonight - Family Night. I went to a parenting class at the church on Sunday, and they suggested doing this once a week and told us that the kids would be nuts about it.

Here is the deal: Family night is a meal together, a lesson from the Bible, and activity to go with that lesson, and game time. No phone calls, email, or other interruptions. Total togetherness. Oh, and the other bonus- the dad is supposed to lead and plan it. Niiiiiiiice.

Luckily, our church - Watermark Community Church - sends these emails each week with activities and crafts to reemphasize Sunday's lesson. Perfect for Family night.

This week we did a lesson on Exodus 3, Moses and the burning bush. We found branches outside and planted them in a pot. Then we cut flames out of paper and taped them to the leaves. Tim asked Cleo questions from the lesson, and she totally remembered everything from church on Sunday. She is definitely listening on Sundays!

After the craft, we moved to the game. Moses was hiding from God, so hide and seek fit right in. We played all over the house together and had a total ball.

As soon as we were finished, Cleo asked if we could do Family Night tomorrow night. As Tim put her to bed, she hugged him and said "Daddy, this was the bestest plan. Thank you!" Awwwwwww.

Here is a video of the kids with their craft. They are trying to tell us a little about it, but they trailed off at the end.

Grandma and Grandpa's Big Adventure, by Barrett Slaughter

2008-07-23T21:14:00.000-04:00

Lee wrote this about Barrett's trip to visit them last week. It was so cute, I had to post it.

On Tuesday morning Grandma met Mommy and me at McDonald's in Canton so I could go for a visit. Grandma was really impressed at what a good boy I was on the drive to her house. We weren't too far from the state line when I announced "I need to go potty". She kept telling me we'd find an exit, which we did pretty soon. As we left the restroom at the Valero station, I proudly announced to the people there that "Grandma poopied in the potty!" I'm always happy when congratulated about this new skill and wanted to share it with these strangers for her, but for some reason she didn't seem thrilled at my announcement and we left pretty quickly, with Grandma mumbling something about at least she'd never see those people again.

When we got to her house, we walked around and when we got to the utility room, I pointed out "this is my room" but she said this time, because Mommy and Daddy aren't here, I'm staying in the big queen sized bed in the guest room all by myself. I'm really a big boy.

She made ham, biscuits, potatoes, and gravy for dinner that first night but I wasn't having any of it and chose yogurt and fruit instead.

On Wednesday morning we went to see the big airplanes at Barksdale Air Force Base, but on the way we had to wait for a train - that was great! We walked around a bunch of old planes and fire trucks and I touched every one. In some of them you could look up where the wheels go when the airplane's flying and it was neat. I got tired before the end so Grandma carried me. It was hot outside too. On the way home we stopped at the grocery store and I got to ride in a car with a steering wheel.

Then Wednesday night when Grandpa came home he blew up the new inflatable pool we got and after dinner I got to go swimming. I also played a lot with the new James train we got me from Target and the switching station with a roof that comes off.

Thursday morning we went to Sci-Port and were there for over 2 hours! I wasn't ready to leave even then but Grandma said she was ready for lunch, so we went home and I had a peanut butter sandwich. At Sci-Port, this time I only went in the truck with the horn and lights one time, but I did get my courage up and went on the chair where you push the buttons and it goes up about 6 feet or so. I waved to the people down below. It was fun so we did that a bunch. We also played on the shadow wall, checked out the planetarium, I crawled through the tunnels there - Grandma started through one of them but then said she'd meet me at the other end - the flooring was hard! We saw the snakes and baby alligators, ran the paddle wheel on the boat, and flew like Superman on the slanted board with the camera. I spent a lot of time threading a length of lamp chain through a series of these bolts with an eye at the top. There were 7 of them and I did it over and over to show Grandma how smart I am. Of course, she thinks I'm gifted. Let's see, what else, oh, I played in the 2 story house, sounding the notes going up the steps. Also we made things out of blocks and I played with the circuitry stuff. Grandma used the rope pulley to pull me up on the wood step which was fun. I threw a ball in the cage and we arranged the arms and legs of the puzzle guy. They even had short potties that were just my size! I always like the balls at the entrance that go all around and make things move.

Friday was really good - we went to the new Jumpin' Jupiter bounce house for over an hour and Grandma went down the slides and bounced with me and everything. She was really mad at herself because she forgot to bring the camera on Thursday AND Friday. Silly Grandma. The bounce house makes you wear socks and neither one of us had any on, so we bought some there. The lady said they didn't have any for grownups but that was OK, Grandma got kids' socks and they fit her! One thing, though, even though they had 6 neat houses, they also had a little playhouse with a doorbell - but it didn't make any noise! I think if only Grandpa had been with us he and I could have gotten it wired up to work…

After that we went to Boardwalk and put on my swimsuit and shirt and I played in the fountains that shoot up. I ran from one to another and got all wet - it was fun. I kept looking in the ones with no water coming out and once the water shot out right in my eye, but it didn't bother me. There were 2 other little boys that came in for a while and I played with them sort of. I left the fountains twice to go potty! Once we got there, Grandma realized she forgot to bring me a towel, so we dried me off with paper towels and I changed back to my shorts and t-shirt and we went to Fuddrucker's for lunch. She ordered chicken bites for me (told her I wanted crackers but that seemed to go ignored!) and a hamburger for her. When the order came, I wanted the burger and ate most of it just plain with no condiments or anything. It was GOOD! Daddy said later he didn't think I'd had one before, but I loved it. I got some raspberry drink that I liked too with a straw in it. There were men there in uniform which I liked to see.

After all the Friday morning stuff, I fell asleep in the car on the way home with the garage door remote in my hand! Grandma thought surely after that I'd take a nap but I insisted on watching Curious George like she promised. I watched in laying on the couch and then after it was over she put me down for a nap but I never did sleep. I did take down some hardcover books that needed their covers off and played with my airplane transformer from McDonald's. Finally she got me up and I swam again.

Other highlights of my visit included draining and refilling the pond with Grandpa. I was lots of help and pointed out where he needed to put the water as well as stirring around the rocks in the bottom with the skimmer. He likes to wake up early like me so we'd hang out for a bit a couple of mornings before Grandma got up. He even remembered to put in the gel stuff to my apple juice! They can't believe how much I love yogurt and bananas. I watched a lot of Thomas the Train, Letter Factory (Grandma knows the words now too!), and George. Even some of Cars with Grandpa.

On Saturday we drove to Tyler to meet Daddy at Mickey D's and I had pancakes without syrup - they were good but Grandpa kept snatching little pieces that Grandma had helped me cut with the knife and fork. MINE! Then there was this little girl about my age there with her dad outside near the play area and she was just standing there and started tee-teeing on the ground! Her daddy obviously didn't know what to do - it was so unexpected. Glad that wasn't me.

I was really a good boy at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Even cynical ol' Grandpa said it went much better than he expected, which is high praise from him. I used the potty almost exclusively during my waking hours. The first night I did wet the bed through my overnight diaper, but after that, Grandma put down a plastic bag between the sheet and mattress protector but it didn't happen the next 3 nights! It may have something to do with the fact that Grandma didn't provide me with endless apple juice after the first evening…you'd think she'd be smart enough to understand cause and effect.

Turning on lights (using my stepstool that I had to get up in that big bed) and pulling out the recliner foot rests was fun. And checking the mail. I liked the 1/2 bath with the solartube where it was light in there all the time. And I LOVED opening and closing the garage door whenever we went out. Sometimes I wonder how in the world Grandma and Grandpa make do when I'm not around - it must be boring and quiet….

I enjoyed my time there. Grandma played with me a lot during the day while Grandpa was at work. We ran James the train underneath the couch and it got stuck a bunch of times but she could always get it out for me. I stood on the couch arm and jumped down on her and she caught me. We also played catch with Boo Bear a lot - making him fly. We even made some one handed catches. She said I'm getting pretty good at throwing and catching. Played with that airplane that goes around on the track you make. She even had me wearing my Cars shoes on the correct feet a couple of times, but I didn't let her get away with that much. Grandpa says I probably need to wear them the way I like to be sure the headlights are properly aligned?!? Grandma says I'm lots more outgoing when meeting other kids that I used to be - I guess that's good?

She said Cleo gets to come stay with her soon too - then I'LL get some alone time with Mommy and Daddy and that'll be fun.

Happy 4th

2008-07-06T14:57:00.005-04:00

We had a fantastic 4th of July weekend this year. It started with a trip to High School Musical at Fair Park on the 3rd. Cleo is practicing her singing in the above picture.

Then we joined the Denisons for the Park Cities parade on the morning of the 4th. After that was over, we headed to Cedar Creek just in time to decorate the golf cart for the parade around my grandparents/parents neighborhood. (pictures from the parade to come) Cleo and Barrett rode with my parents and Tim and I watched from the shade.

We ended the evening with a fantastic fireworks display. Mamaw's sister Aunt Patty and Uncle Gene, their daughter Diane and husband Jim, and their three children (my second cousins) came over - Michael and his wife Anna ran the show, and their son ran around with Cleo and Barrett and Kim and Damon's 5 children. Everyone had a wonderful time, and I think we may have discovered a new annual tradition.

You could tell that Barrett goes to sleep early most of the time. At one point he turned to us and exclaimed, "I LIKE THE NIGHT!!!" I'm not sure he has ever been outside the house at 10 pm. It was pretty funny.

Mom and I went to see Mamaw in the hospital on Saturday. She looks really good and will hopefully get her chest tube out tomorrow and possibly go home Tuesday. We sure missed her at the celebration, but we told her that she will have to help us decorate the golf cart for next year's parade!

Are we ready for this?

2008-06-30T22:11:00.004-04:00

We bought Cleo's uniforms for school today. I still cannot believe that she is going to kindergarten. This is Cleo modeling the dress uniform that she will wear once a week to chapel. The other days they wear a side-pleat khaki skort and embroidered polo shirt. She hates that outfit - and she wouldn't even try on the shorts. It's really so plain compared the usually fancy way she dresses. This is a girl who will wear a velvet and chiffon dress to the grocery store. I think it is safe to say that she will accessorize her hair to the max. She convinced me to buy this hair band and a few bows, and I may end up adding sparkle to them. It will be interesting to see what she changes into when she gets home from school!

New Developement Unveiled - It's Really Cool

2008-05-26T21:07:00.000-04:00

A new real estate development team unveiled a city plan today in Dallas, and mass transit was the crown jewel of the amenity-filled urban oasis. Lead Developer, Cleo Slaughter, described the city as "really cool." A list of features were outlined, including a race track, playground, dinosaurs, pandas, and even a giant. Head contractor and brother of Ms. Slaughter, Barrett Slaughter, could not contain his excitement as he declared the trains as his favorite part of this new city.

Ms. Slaughter's real estate mentor, Daddy, beamed with pride as he discussed the Slaughter-Slaughter team "leading the way" in transit-oriented development for the pre-school set.

Some big name investors were part of Phase 1 of this "super fun" city. S. Claus, Mommy and Daddy, and the grandparent trifecta of Nana and Grampsie, Grandma and Grandpa and Po and Lollie are all listed as major donors.

Unfortunately, The Slaughters' spokesperson, Mommy, informed the public that current market conditions along with spring birthdays for both Slaughters mean that Phase 2 may not be up and running as soon as Ms. Slaughter hopes. Funding is scarce, and unless they discover a garage sale or two, they will have to wait for Christmas 08 to begin Phase 2 construction.

Here are excerpts from our rather extended interview with the team:

Tell me about your city.

Why would someone want to live in your city?

What's your favorite thing about the city?

Show me your favorite thing - this one shows Barrett's attitude that he usually gives his speech therapist.

Which house is your favorite house? Barrett answers his favorite house in the real city, and the answer there is Sam's house, not ours.

Tim's new favorite game to play - who's house? Run's house. Nothing like teaching your children 80s rap songs.

Is it like moving to Six Flags?

Barrett sums it up

2008-05-25T21:22:00.003-04:00

We went to visit the Dudley's house on Lake Granbury this weekend and we had a total ball. Barrett looked like this before we even turned onto the highway on the way home.

This is even more remarkable when you consider that Barrett has fallen asleep in the car one time in the last 12 months. What a tired boy!

Baby B becomes Big B

2008-05-14T21:56:00.005-04:00

We had a discussion over the weekend, that Barrett has always been Baby B. Now that he is three years old, we may have to change his name to something a little more grown up. What a big boy!

Barrett had a birthday at our friends Tom and Amy Keltner's backyard. They have a double lot with a fantastic place to play, and a killer inflatable bouncy waterslide. The kids were asked to bring their favorite car, scooter or push toy, and we created a track to ride around on. Fun was had by everyone. Barrett is still singing Happy Birthday to himself.

The first video here is of Barrett when he gets to the party. He is so excited that he breezes by all the grandparents and goes into destructive mode.

This video is an adorable clip of Barrett and Spencer when Spencer first arrives at the party. Spencer has obviously been practicing saying Happy Birthday Barrett on the way to the party. So cute!

Here is a slide show of pictures from the party.

Here is a slide show of pictures from Tim and Cleo's trip to the fantastic cake place. They donated a gift certificate to The Kessler Derby, and I won it. Cleo picked out a gold cake with gold flowers that she would like for next year's party. See if you can find it. :)

Easter Pic

2008-04-18T16:49:00.003-04:00

I realized that I never posted the cute pictures of Cleo and Barrett in their matching Easter clothes. Apparently, Barrett was not very excited to wear this shirt, but Tim prevailed. I was already at church, thus not available for assistance.

Barrett painted a lovely green blob that day, and when Tim picked him up, Barrett proclaimed, "I paint Jesus!" Of course, we have labeled that picture "Jesus" and filed it for scrapbooking.

Cleo had her own funny that day on the way to church with Tim. Tim was telling the kids all about Easter and reminding them what we were celebrating that day. Tim was going through the crucifixion and all of that, and Cleo asked, all wide-eyed, "Did that REALLY happen?" It was pretty sweet.

FTBT Barrett

2008-04-03T19:19:00.003-04:00

I get extremely annoyed with people who wear their Bluetooth headsets all the time. Tim and I call them FTBT for Full Time Blue Tooth, and the phenomenon drives me crazy. I know they are super handy (Tim has one for his long commute) and it's great to be hands-free and cord-free, but seriously, can you take it off while you are at the grocery store? Is the 2 seconds it's going to take for you to put your phone up to the ear so critical that you can't spare it while you are eating your hamburger in the McDonalds Playland? We saw a guy being INTERVIEWED ON TV that was still wearing his headset. He then went up TO THE MICROPHONE ON STAGE and still had it on. Really? Who is going to call him that he is going to take that call at that moment? It may have grown to the skin on his ear.

Ok, back to the point of the post. Sonic has these toys in their kids meals that are all the parts for dressing up like a robot. One of the parts is a thing that fits over the ear with a light on it. It looks just like a blue tooth headset, and even has a button you push on it that turns the light on. Barrett adores it, and he looks like he's available for calls at all times. He's FTBT Barrett at dinner.

Happy Birthday Cleo!

2008-04-01T17:41:00.005-04:00

I can't believe Cleo turned 5 today. So amazing. Today was a great day for her. She started the day by opening cards that I made to be from her favorite High School Musical characters. She quizzed me on whether the cards were real and if they were really from the characters (a theme that started with both the Easter Bunny and Jesus last week - a natural skeptic?) and it just made me realize that she is really growing up! She had a special breakfast and blew out candles, and then headed to school in a special dress (one we would normally only allow her to wear to church) and had rice krispie treats with her friends at the end of the day. She had her theater class after school, and she and Barrett are watching the Bee Movie right now as another special activity (movies are not an everyday thing) Tonight she has requested spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. She had a pretty specific menu in mind - a side of pineapples and strawberries, with chocolate cake for dessert. She is a menu planner, just like her mommy!

We celebrated Cleo's 5th birthday on Saturday with a party at Museum of Natural History (The Science Place) with many friends from school, church and other places. Cleo and her buddies enjoyed the backyard , dress up, construction, farm, and dinosaur areas before heading to a party room for snacks and cake. She wanted a High School Musical and Dinosaur theme party, so we had HSM decorations and dinosaur shaped sandwiches, along with a combination cake. it was pretty wacky and funny -perfect for five year olds.

Avery is here!

2008-03-31T18:09:00.000-04:00

Check out Brad's blog - link in the previous post - for pictures of the newest member of the Paris family. We are so excited about Avery Elizabeth Paris!

More Blogging Friends and Family

2008-03-18T15:51:00.005-04:00

My brother's family started a blog and are updating regularly, especially with the upcoming birth of their baby girl! Check them out at Paris Peeps

Also, our friends Ken and Jenn Dawkins (Jennifer Jeffers) started a blog for her first pregnancy. She totally has a celebrity belly. Super cute preggo!
Watch the Dawkins Grow

Lastly, I always like to remind everyone that my cousin is a super cool photographer. She recently snagged a great internship at the Austin American Statesman, which is awesome. This first link takes you to a picture she took of Cleo and my cousin Catherine. The second one is a pic of Cleo, Barrett and Jack celebrating my aunt's birthday on Christmas Eve.

Tickle Fight

Kids and Cake

What a lovely day!

2008-03-14T13:31:00.003-05:00

I was feeling pretty good today, and it was a gorgeous day, so we went and got a bunch of flowers for my annual planting of many beautiful flowers that will be left to die by the end of summer. Cleo helped me pick them out, although she only wanted pink, and I was thinking more white and purple. We decided that she could plant her pink flowers in the back yard, and I would plant my white and purple in the front. We'll see how they do.

While we were planting, Cleo had a lot to say. She took her shoes off and loved the warmth of the deck on her feet. She begged me to take my shoes off so I could feel it, too. She said, "This feels so much better than, like, winter." Indeed.

I was watering the lawn with our newly replaced faucet (Thanks, Tom!) and putting my thumb in front of the stream. Cleo asked me why I was doing that, so I showed her how putting my thumb increases the force of the stream causing a spray, and when I took it away, it would not make it to the flower bed. She exclaimed, "COOL! It's like a video game, but with squirts!" Again, so true! We played quite a while with Barrett turning the water on and off and me putting the thumb in and out and Cleo guessing where the water would go. Fun times in the warmth of spring! This is when it is great to live in Dallas!

Solidarity

2008-03-11T11:56:00.005-05:00

Barrett's best bud Spencer came over today to play. While he was here, Barrett needed a breathing treatment, and Spencer wanted to wear a mask, too. So cute!

"Snow" Day

2008-03-08T15:19:00.004-05:00

Dallas received a dusting of snow on Friday, and the kids went bonkers. It didn't even stick to the sidewalk or the roads, but it was worth an early morning run outside.

Cleo's new room

2008-03-07T16:53:00.006-05:00

Well, Tom and Lee were at it again. We (Cleo) have been talking about painting her room for a while now, and we (Cleo) casually mentioned it to Tom and Lee. Guess what - they were on board with painting yet another room in our house. Cleo was still using my bedspread from college, so we decided that perhaps it was time for her to have a cute room. My cousin Donna tipped me off that Pottery Barn Kids was having a sale on this bedding line and it wasn't coming back, and Cleo got her birthday present a bit early. We went for it for the color - PINK. That was the color she wanted, and now there is no mistaking that a little girl lives in that room. It looks pretty great - the color really makes her antique white furniture stand out. Thanks again to the very hardworking Grandma and Grandpa!

We already had one pillow like this and Barrett went bonkers because he wanted one, too. Apparently only girls like these because Target only carries them in pink. So, Barrett has a pink pillow that he keeps on Cleo's bed next to her purple one. You got something to say about that?

Cowgirl Cleo

2008-03-03T07:15:00.000-05:00

Cleo's class had Cowboys and Cowgirls day at school last week. They pretended to camp and eat beans under the stars. I used the bejeweler that Aunt Nancy gave us to make cleo's tshirt sparkley (by her request of course), and she wore a jacket that I bought at a garage sale 3 years ago just for this purpose. I'm glad she finally got a chance to wear it! She also wanted braids in her hair like the cowgirls she has seen in books. She had a little bit of trouble putting on her boots, and she informed me that "real cowgirls don't have trouble putting on their boots, but pretend cowgirls do sometimes."

Teacher Tim

2008-02-28T13:08:00.003-05:00

Tim did a presentation for Cleo's class on Tuesday. He talked about building a house and picking a lot for the house. He also made a neighborhood with different transportation options. Each kid got to pick out a house and then a lot according to what they wanted to be near. Cleo chose the airplane so she could go visit her cousin Jack. So sweet!

It must have been a big hit because Cleo's kindergarten teacher already booked Tim for next year!

Barrett's Fishy Pole

2008-02-24T22:35:00.006-05:00

We went to Mamaw and Papaw's this weekend and Barrett got fish for the first time. He had a Lightning McQueen pole with a tire hanging on rhe end, and he could push the button to drop the tire, and then reel it up again. Over and Over. He loved it. He talked all about his "fishy pole" and how great it was. This is Barrett saying Fishy pole.

Nana Turned 60

2008-02-24T22:17:00.003-05:00

We celebrated my mom's 60th birthday this weekend. First, they got in town in time to pick up the kids from school. barrett recognized them right away and started yelling MINE MINE MINE to let the other kids know they were not to play with his grandparents. Cleo, of course, was excited to tell them all about her friends.

We then had a fashion show from Cleo with all her new clothes, over and over. No pictures were allowed.

Friday, mom and I went to Dr. Quiceno for a family rheumatology visit, and then we met up with her sisters for shopping and lunch. Then big family dinner, with cake, then a trip to the lake where they received the plans for their new addition to Mamaw and Papaw's house. Very exciting! It was a super fun birthday weekend, and i hoped my mom had as much fun as we all did.

This is a picture of the cake I made for her - I hope it captures at least some of roles mom has played over the last 60 years. She had exceled at them all and we are all very lucky to have her in our lives!

My new favorite sale

2008-02-20T17:20:00.002-05:00

I went to the Just Between Friends consigment sale on Monday and found some awesome things. They have sales nationwide (www.jbfsale.com) and have an amazing system that runs the whole thing. It's all volunteers (except the owners) and the volunteers do it to get in to the presale. I consigned a few things, which meant that I got to go to the presale, too. It was huge, and I found some great things for the kids, but it was amazing how fast the good stuff went. I had some friends that came 2 hours after me, and it was pretty picked over. I had a ball though, and I will definitely be back.

Then, I found out that the Fort Worth sale is even BIGGER! It's not until April, although I think I will be out of town during the event. Probably a good thing, though, because I have enough clothes for Cleo for two summers.

Here are some pictures of some of my loot - all for less than $150 total.

Back again!

2008-02-19T21:52:00.005-05:00

So, we have been gone from blogging and picture taking so long, our kids don't know what holiday they are supposed to be celebrating for pictures.

The real reason is that I have been feeling pretty crappy lately. The kind of crappy that sneaks up on you slowly until you absolutely cannot deny anymore that something is wrong. I reached the level last week when soreness in body reached the point where I could no longer raise my arms above my head or squeeze the gas pump with one hand. But, I started taking Celebrex again, which I have not taken regularly in about 4 years, and after about 4 days on it, I feel great. Seriously great. So great I walked to The Kessler School twice today - once to pick up Barrett and once to pick up Cleo.

Soooooo, I'm back to doing what i enjoy doing, or at least the things that I had pushed off on Tim. Like dishes and laundry, but also, blogging! The one thing I can't get Tim to do.

Anyway, I hope to do more updates this week. Good to see you again! My, how the kids have grown!

Barrett's Dutter Foot

2007-12-14T11:14:00.000-05:00

We have discovered a pretty funny "routine" with Barrett. We put one sock on, then say "other foot." Barrett's mind and mouth have processed this as "dutter foot." My favorite game is to say "Barrett, where's your dutter foot?" and Barrett promptly holds up his (usually) right foot and grins for me. My mom and Tim think this is only marginally funny, but Tim's mom and I both think it is hilarious. We spent a siginicant portion of Thanksgiving doing this with Barrett.

Cleo gets a medical drama post!

2007-12-10T10:59:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm not excited about that, but we had some drama with Cleo on Saturday night. Tim was putting her into bed and she took a bad bounce and hit her head on the window trim. Split her scalp about 5 cm and started bleeding everywhere. I ran to get our neighbor who has watched our kids before, and when her husband answered, I remembered that he is an orthopedic surgeon! Score!

He came over and checked out her head and said we needed to get staples, so we went into the referral care center at Children's and they stayed at our house with Barrett until Aunt Dianne and Donna could come relieve them. (thanks guys!!) Soooooo glad we went to children's over a regular ER. They were great. They gave Cleo a Cinderella sticker the moment she walked in and she clung to until it was crumpled and sweaty. We debated about whther to sedate her for it, but we would have had to wait 6 hours to do that and it was already 9, so Cleo said she would try to be brave and still so she could go home and sleep in her bed.

They put a cream on it to numb the area before the shots, and that took about an hour. Because we had to wait so long, they opened up an infusion room for us to wait in with tvs and comfy chairs. Then, after all of it was over, they gave her a rainbow popsicle. Her favorite!! THe referral center is different from the regular children't ER in that a doctor has to call to get you in, and I am now a huge fan of the place. Go Children's!!

We took a picture of Cleo's head and she thinks it's pretty cool to have silver "jewelry" in her scalp.

Mouse Hunt Pictures

2007-12-08T15:34:00.000-05:00

These are pictures of the night Tim stayed up trying to shoo the mice outside. I heard the mice about 3 am, Tim never went back to bed that night.
Cleo got up about 5:30 or so to help with the hunt by holding the flashlight and asking "Is that him?" She was never grossed out at all by all of this.

She is expecting Remy from Ratatouille to come out and make her some soup.

The Mouse Diet

2007-12-07T14:51:00.001-05:00

We have had little furry friends in our house for a few weeks. First, we heard them in the walls a little, then we heard them every night. They would get so intent on whatever they were doing that they would wake us up at night. Then, we started finding evidence of them in our house. NICE. We have been up with Barrett a lot lately, and I saw one at night one night. I went to wake Tim up and he stayed up all night trying to get the two he saw to run out of the door. There is a reason mice-in-house scenes are in movies and TV. It would have been HILARIOUS to watch the events unfold from outside. Tim ended up falling asleep with a broom in one hand and a flashlight in the other.

We finally resorted to poison after the mice avoided all kinds of traps. We hid the poison behind the microwave where they were hanging out a little and it was out of Barrett's reach. We saw two mice staggering out of our kitchen the next day after they ate all the poison (Mouse Party!) and they crawled into one of the kids toys to die. YUCKO. We thought we were finished. Nope - we saw another mouse the next night. I was beside myself with what we were going to find - a dead mouse in the dollhouse? Train table? Cereal? Ugh.

Finally, we ran our dishwasher two nights and in the morning it smelled. Hmmm - that breakfast casserole must not have been all cleaned off that dish. so I ran it again on HOT. I came home from volunteering at the school later that day, and our house stunk so bad. I searched the dishwasher and didn't find anything . . . then I saw it. Little gray fur sticking out of the gap between the dishwasher and the cabinet. the mouse must have gotten stuck trying to get out from behind it and the dishwasher ran and killed it. Then I steamed and cooked the sucker while we were gone.

Tim, my hero, came home early to take care of it. I had the window open in the kitchen (the only one that actually opens) and air fresheners and candles lit everywhere, along with a towel draped over the dishwasher. It made it tolerable, although I still am having touble eating anything in that kitchen. This mouse diet is the best ever.

Long Time, No Posts

2007-11-26T14:44:00.000-05:00

I haven't posted in a looooong time. Not because there hasn't been anything going on, but rather because we have been so busy.

In the last few weeks we attended Dad's family reunion, Cleo sang in the choir for the first time, we visited friends in Austin, I had 2 biopsies and a surgery (all dysplastic - yea!), we visited Tim's family in Shreveport, we discovered mice in our house, published a cookbook with The Friends group, and I'm sure there are more things that we have missed.

I'm working on getting pictures together but until then, we had two firsts from the kids over the weekend that showed us shades of things to come for our children.

This is Cleo with her very first "grown up drink" from Starbucks. It's hot chocolate, of course, but I think this picture just makes her look so old. She looks like she is about to meet her friends to go shopping!

Here is Barrett tucking his juice under his arm and running for the first down. Maybe he'll be a tight end like his Uncle Brad!

Halloween Pictures

2007-11-06T14:13:00.000-05:00

Here are the pictures from trick or treating last week!

Halloween Parade

2007-11-06T07:56:00.000-05:00

These pictures are from the parade at Cleo's school last week. Cleo really does not like pictures!!

Boo!

2007-11-01T06:29:00.001-05:00

More pics to come, but here is one to scare you until I post them.

Pumpkin Patch 2007

2007-10-29T15:03:00.000-05:00

Tim took the kids to the Flower Mound Pumpkin Patch on Saturday. Lollie met them there and they had a great time while I was at home nursing a cold. He got some awesome pictures of the kids. Looks like it was fabulous fun!!

Coleman's Halloween Party

2007-10-25T09:01:00.000-04:00

Coleman surprised his mom Tammy several months ago, telling her, "Mom, I want a Halloween Party. With cupcakes. Costumes for everyone. And a pinata." He had it all planned out, down to the cups and paper plates. It was pretty funny. Tammy, being the fab mom that she is, tried her best to make it happen, and a wonderful time was had by all.

All the kids dressed in costumes and ran around while the parents mingled and talked about how big they've all gotten. I hope this is a new annual tradition!!

Marriage is Funny

2007-10-14T10:06:00.000-04:00

Tim and I went to a marriage conference put on by our church on Friday night and all day Saturday. Tom and Lee watched the kids all weekend and allowed us to extend our relaxation a few more nights. Yea!!

The conference was awesome, and we took away a lot of tips and materials that we can use to help make our marriage stronger. We went into it thinking that we were doing pretty well, but there is always room for improvement.

The lead-ins to the different sessions were really funny videos that they had found on youtube. Both of these are songs that I can't get out of my head. I decided to post them here so I can watch them whenever I want. Enjoy!

Spanish Love Song

Business Time

Monster Cake

2007-10-12T08:44:00.001-04:00

I made a cake for the Pumpkin Patch at Cleo's school, and I'm pretty proud of it. Well, not the cake as much as I am proud of the little frankensteins that are on top of it. They are supposed to go on cupcakes, and I think they would probably be cuter on cupcakes. I'm making desserts for Coleman's Halloween party next weekend, so I was practicing. I may do these again, or I may try something else. The internet is FULL of Hallween cupcake ideas!!

If it looks like I took the picture through fog, it's because I had to take the picture with Tim's old phone because he took the camera with him out of town.

A beautiful butterfly

2007-10-05T08:12:00.000-04:00

Finally I have figured out a way to get Cleo to pose for a picture again. Paint her face, put glitter on it, and ask her if she thinks the sparkles will show. It's a magic formula!

We went to Mommy and Me Monday at the Arboretum this week, and Cleo decided she wanted her face painted. You have to act quickly when you see the face painter come. The line gets long VERY quickly. We jumped in line and were the third family to go. It should not be surprising to anyone that Barrett wanted no part of sitting still and getting painted on. Not even a spider on his arm. Cleo loved her butterfly so much that she wanted to keep it "forever" but she settled for being able to go back next week and get another one!

From butterfly

Oooowwww!

2007-10-03T20:46:00.000-04:00

Tim stubbed his toe in Barrett's room last night, and the kids thought it was sooooo funny. They spent the next 15 minutes re-enacting it for us. Watch Barrett's face - he really gets into character here. It gets funnier each time I watch it.

Barrett and Kristen - no news is good news!

2007-09-20T11:44:00.000-04:00

I haven't posted a medical update in a while because I have been doing so well. I was kind of just waiting for my platelets to drop or for things to start going south after only doing two Rituxan treatments, but the good news is - they haven't! I saw my dr last week and we both feel like I'm doing just great. I was still not feeling all that good even three weeks ago, but I'm really feeling good and have lots of energy now. Dr. Quiceno said there is sometimes a lag time between treatments and when the total effect can be seen. My platelets have stayed around normal for 5-7 weeks now, so I'm considering the flare over and mentally moving myself into remission.

Barrett has been doing well with his health, too. We are continuing to taper the thickening in his drinks, and he has not experienced an increase in coughing or wheezing. We are hoping to see a big difference in his breathing as we enter into cold and flu season. Hopefully he will handle his colds much better this year with the new medicines and less lung inflammation. We'll see how it goes!! Thanks for all your prayers!

Train, Train, Train, Train, Train, Train, Train, Train,

2007-09-16T17:40:00.000-04:00

We took the Trinity Railway Express to Fort Worth on Friday so the kids could ride on a real train. It is a double-decker, which the kids thought was soooooo cool. Barrett could not stop saying Train. He was pretty much beside himself with all the trains going by while we were waiting, and then an airplane flew overhead and he just about exploded with excitement. All we needed was a helicopter and we would have had a trifecta of transportation fun!

We had lunch in Fort Worth, then rode the train back. It was a great way to celebrate Tim's last day off before he starts his new job tomorrow. Side story - Tim took Cleo up to the INCAP office on Thursday to sign some paperwork related to his departure. Tim told her, "We're going to my old office." Cleo replied, "but Daddy, I thought this was your NEW office!" She can't keep up with Daddy's job changes, but who can?

This video is of the kids on the train. Cleo asked about the emergency button, and she gives a pretty funny reaction to Tim's explanation. Also, at the end, we hear Barrett say a SIX word sentence. Go Barrett! For those of you lacking a Barrett-to-English translator, he says, "There he is, some more train."

Labor Day Lake Fun

2007-09-03T22:38:00.000-04:00

We headed out to Mamaw and Papaw's house this weekend to see Mom and Dad and try out their new Sea Doo. We had so much fun, and we were able to pack in so many different activities. Cleo went on her first ride out the water, both kids swam in the lake for the first time, Cleo caught her first fish, and her second one two times, swam in the country club pool, and then they went down slip n slide downhill for extra fun.

The kids were so worn out from all that fun that Mom and Dad even let us go back in town for a night to celebrate Tim's new job. We went to see Bourne Ultimatum (awesome!!) and have dinner out. The kids kept right on doing the lake thing, and we came back to Mamaw and Papaw's house today to pick up two worn out, but happy kids. It was a great weekend!!

Two of us quit our jobs, one of us will start another

2007-08-31T10:33:00.001-04:00

Tim has been job-searching for about 6 weeks now, and he decided to accept a position at Realty Capital Corporation doing real estate development. He's been doing more of finance thing for the last 9 months or so, but he really loves development more and has been wanting to get back to doing that. The company is based in Colleyville right now, but Tim is going to be doing mostly urban development, i.e. around where we live, so moving out there doesn't make much sense. He is going to have to commute about 45 minutes to an hour a few days a week, so we'll see how long that lasts! They have talked about finding space for him close by to work out of, so we'll grin and bear it until that happens. They are planning on moving their office to a more central location like Las Colinas in two years, so that will be nice. That's only about a 30 minute drive from us.

I was helping Tim do spreadsheets for about 5 hours a week, so I had to quit my job, too! His next role probably won't be as "numbers intensive" so I may not do that again, but I've recently taken over some duties with Cleo's school's website so I'm sure I will be able to fill my time with that. I wish I got paid contractor's rates for that though!

All in all, we think it's a great move for the Slaughter Family, and we are really excited about Tim's potential projects and future colleagues. The plan is to stick with this job for a while and see some great projects be built and filled with people!

The Diary of a Mad Tinkler

2007-08-29T08:33:00.001-04:00

This is the Mad Tinkler, aka Barrett. Every night I like to take off my diaper after my parents put me to bed. Sometimes, I take it off and pee all over the floor right away. Sometimes, I take it off, fall asleep, then wake up all wet. Sometimes, I don't even have to take my diaper off. I just pee out the side. I'm very flexible.

My parents are tricky. They have started taping me up every night using a really big tape contraption. It makes it harder to get my diaper off, but I can still do it. I'm SO SMART!

You should see them when they find me in the middle of the night, covered in my own urine. They are sooooo cute when they are angry. I have heard that my mommy has been talking to her friends trying to get help, but it won't work. I'm the Mad Tinkler - It's what I do.

Lollie's Birthday!

2007-08-29T08:27:00.000-04:00

We celebrated Lollie's birthday last Wednesday in grand fashion. We had swirl margaritas at El Fenix, then cake and party hats at our house afterwards. It was also the first day of school, so it had been a bit of a crazy day, and Barrett was not able to stay awake for the cake and festivities. We did get some pictures of everyone else, though.

Happy Birthday Lollie!!

First Day of School

2007-08-22T13:39:00.000-04:00

Cleo had her first day back at The Kessler School today. She is going to be going Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 8:15 until 3:30, and boy, is she ready to get back. She has been bouncing off the walls at home. I think she was bored. Tim took pictures, which I don't think we'll be letting him do again. Not many in focus, but you can still see her super cute outfit.

Here they are eating back-to-school chocolate chip muffins. mmmmmmm.

Our annual wicker chair pictures. Cleo wouldn't pose without Barrett. She has become so camera shy lately!

Cleo made us coffee in the home center and Barrett came over to help.

From 2007-08-22

Go ahead and book a few years of therapy for this one

2007-08-20T16:15:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I find myself saying things to the kids that I just know will be repeated to a therapist, community group, or trusted friend years from now. Saturday we had one of those times.

Cleo has some foam rollers that we have put in her hair one time - for Aunt Casey's wedding back in the spring. Since Cleo has a new short 'do, I thought it might be time to try those out again, thinking her hair would actually dry this time. After much cajoling, I convinced her to let me roll it. She let it dry for a short time, then decided she had enough and asked to take them out. "Noooooooo!" I said. "It will be so beautiful!" "Leave them in!" "It will be so pretty for church!"

She took the curlers out anyway.

Right before bed, she came in and asked if I would re-roll her hair. I told her no, and that she had to go to bed. She fell apart and starting crying, simply sobbing.

"BUT I WANT TO BE BEAUTIFUL!!!!" "PLEEEEEEEASE, LET ME BE PRETTY FOR CHURCH!!!"

Ugh. What had I done? No amount of reassurance that she is beautiful no matter how her hair looks, that her hair doesn't make her pretty, it's her attitude, etc etc, could stop the flood of tears and the loud wails. Part of it was because she wasn't getting to stay up later, but it wasn't all that. I had set it up that the rollers were crucial for pretty presentation, and that wasn't happening. She seems to be over it now, after gushing comments on the hair from her teachers and friends at church, but the scars remain, at least for me. Choose those words and admonishments carefully. They are taken to heart!

Back to School Hair!

2007-08-16T21:41:00.000-04:00

I took the kids to get their back to school hair cuts today. Cleo was not super excited about it, but I convinced her that she wanted a big change. It was so cute, we just had to go show it off to daddy and Mr. Ken at lunch, but by the time we got home, she was not interested in having her picture taken. I told her that her grandparents want to see her new "do" and she said, "well, they can just come here if they want to see it." Temper temper. I finally got her to pose when Barrett woke up.

Yea for a change in plans

2007-08-09T10:16:00.000-04:00

Dr. Quiceno called me yesterday to tell me that new research has shown that two infusions of Rituxan might be enough in a mild lupus flare. Well, three patients in the study showed that, but he felt that since my bloodwork has been stable, he wants to hold the other two treatments and see how I do. We were waiting for bloodwork to come in this morning, and my platelets were at 142,000, which is normal, although on the lower end. Yea! We're going to wait and see over the next few weeks, but hopefully my bloodwork will stay stable and perhaps this will be it for 9 to 12 months!

We are going to take the kids to school today and Mom and I are going to play! I am feeling mostly pretty good, although I still have times where I don't feel fab. Each day is better than the day before, so I am sure today, and this weekend will be great.

Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers. Things are looking up!

Product Reviews - Car Seat and VOIP

2007-08-07T12:06:00.000-04:00

The Coolest Safest Car Seat Ever

It might be news to those who don't have young kids that you don't just buy one car seat for your baby and keep it forever. That's way too easy. There is a typical car seat progression that most parents discover. Carrier - Convertible Seat - Booster. Typically, the convertible seat only goes to 40 lbs, unless you buy a big ol expensive model, and the booster is not as safe because it just uses the regular seatbelts instead of a five point harness (see you tube for a super sad video showing why.) The bad part is when your kid is older and wants a big kid seat, but it's not as safe . . . So you have to choose expensive safety or cool but cheaper, and it can be tough.

HOWEVER - a new seat that my friend Jessica showed me solves this problem completely. Jessica is a super smart girl in her own right, but her choice has even more weight because she is married to our pediatrician. It's a folding, portable booster seat with a five point harness that goes up to 60 lbs, and it's about $100 cheaper than the big seats. It's super cool and safe. We ordered one and have been 100% thrilled with it and I highly recommend it. We do have one of those expensive Convertible seats that Barrett is in now, but I bet we'll get another one of these in a year or two. It's so awesome.

You can read about it here. Safeguard Go

The Worst Money Saving Idea

So, I just have to put this out there in case anyone else is being enticed by the cheap phone service idea. Tim and I have always been "early adopters" of technology, and I felt like we got on the Voice Over IP bandwagon a little late. This is the thing where all your calls from your home phone are over the internet so it's cheaper than traditional phone service. We got ours from earthlink and it didn't require any special equipment. HOWEVER, it has been terrible. We have had choppy calls, dropped calls, echoes, and all sorts of issues since we signed up. It's like having bad cell phone reception from your house. We have had numerous technicians check it out, received months of free service due to our problems, but i think the technology just isn't there yet. In the words of one of the technicians - "you get what you pay for with your phone service." Smart thinking. We switched back to traditional phone service.

I don't wanna grow up

2007-08-06T14:01:00.000-04:00

Several weeks ago, Tom and Lee helped us reorganize our closets. We had several baskets of clothes that the kids had outgrown that I needed to go through and sort as save, give away and throw away. I finally did that yesterday, and Cleo's "Lucy Coat," given to her by Lollie and Po and named after their Dalmation, was in the Save box. Cleo found it and threw a gigantic fit because she didn't want to give it away. I tried to tell her that the box was full of clothes we were keeping, and the jacket was too small anyway (it's a 2T) but she wouldn't hear of it. She immediately put it on and claimed, "See!! It still fits!!!" I really hope that 3/4 length sleeves and midriff jackets are in this winter, because Cleo is refusing to let go of this coat!

Another one down, tough day

2007-08-02T22:16:00.000-04:00

Today I had my second of four rituxan treatments. The treatment itself went smoothly, and I didn't even have the minor allergic reaction I did last time. I slept much of the morning during it, so it went by quickly.

This afternoon was much tougher than last week, though, for some reason. Headaches were worse and I just generally don't feel very good. Consequently, I am not in a very good mood with the kiddos, which is kind of starting to backfire on us all. Cleo is giving us quite a bit of attitude and grief, plus she is frequently complaining of feeling sick or coughing or something which I am sure is directly related to all the attention I am getting because I am sick. Ugh - it's hard to deal with both in the moment and emotionally afterwards. Like I said, it was a tough day.

I am heading to my aunt's house to sleep (or not sleep, most likely the case) so I can sleep in tomorrow morning. Mom is heading back to Beaumont tomorrow afternoon to get ready to come back next week and do it all over again!

If you have me on your prayer list (and I am grateful if you do!) please pray for patience with the kids when I am feeling sick.

Barrett gets a good report, too

2007-07-31T18:49:00.000-04:00

Angela, our Early Childhood Intervention case worker, came by for her first visit since the evaluation and Barrett did so great! He has clearly made tremendous progress since her intake visit and the evaluation, stringing together 2 and 3 words and repeating pretty much anything she said. He also had improved in his cognitive abilities in his puzzle solving and the way he responded to her various activities. Basically she said that if the evaluation was today, there is no way he would qualify in any area, which is great! Also, apparently it is a good thing that he is able to take off his clothes, although I would like them to say that when he has taken off his diaper for the 4th time at night and peed off the side of the bed. We have started duct taping his diapers on at night. I really need to take a picture of that because it's pretty funny.

Anyway, she is going to come back every two weeks for another two months, then we'll have another speech evaluation. At that time, assuming he continues to progress like he is now, we can decide if he needs to continue to be followed.

She said this does happen a lot that when you finally evaluate a child, they just take off. They compared language development to that of a cup that needs to be filled before it can spill out. Barrett filled his cup, and now there is no stopping him! Great news!!

better and better

2007-07-31T18:48:00.001-04:00

I'm doing pretty well today. The kids were in school most of the day, after Cleo had a stellar trip to the dentist. A+ for brushing and flossing, which is mostly due to Tim's efforts in that area. Yea Cleo!

I look forward to feeling pretty good tomorrow, too, then of course, Treatment #2 on Thursday. Thanks for all the prayers and good thoughts!

Feeling ok

2007-07-27T19:36:00.000-04:00

The treatment went well yesterday. I had a little allergic reaction about halfway through so they had to give me a little extra Benadryl in my IV, which pretty much knocked me out for the rest of the day. Dr. Quiceno did warn me that there is an increased liklihood of that this time, but I don't know if that means each week they will give me more or if we'll just wait and see what how the next infusion goes. I had to throw a bit of a fit to get my treatments scheduled on Thursdays, and they ended up asking someone in their Mesquite office to drive in each week especially for me. She was very sweet and was basically a dedicated helper to me the entire time, getting 7up, blankets, and watching movies. She was awesome. Tim ran to Chick Fil A and got us all lunch and she refused to let us buy. I think next week I just won't give her the choice!

Today I feel much the same as I did with the last one, with headaches that are managed with pain medicine, which in turn makes me sleepy, but its manageable and all in all not too bad. I did get to go watch Barrett and Jack at Soccer Tots this morning and go to lunch with everyone, and then everyone went back to the hotel with the rest of the family reunion folks and I came home to sleep. Tomorrow I am hoping to head to Mamaw and Papaw's house with Mom, Dad, Brad, Robyn, Jack and Tim and the kids. Mamaw just got out of the hospital a few days ago and is doing very well. Mamaw and I trade patient stories about every other day. Hopefully soon we will both be feeling great! She sounds like she is already on her way.

Tim is heading back tonight so Barrett can sleep in his crib and also to give everyone at the reunion a break from him. Sounds like he has been his usual challenge in only wanting to play with things in the hospitality room that are off limits, like the sliding glass doors and minifridge. Barrett can be such a pain sometimes. When you add that together with the fact that apparently neither child slept last night due to teething (barrett) and coughing (Cleo) I think Daddy is a bit on edge and will be crashing about 8:30 tonight. It's been a rough week for all of us with all the job drama and the medical drama.

That's the news. I'm sleepy and a bit out of it sometimes, but I answer the phone if I feel like talking and won't if I don't. Feel free to call or email, or check back for pictures of the family reuinion.

treatment started

2007-07-26T11:10:00.000-04:00

This is Tim. KP has started her treatments (as of 9:45) and is doing well. There was a little bit of drama getting the IV to work, but the plumbing is good now. She is on quite of bit of Benadryl and will probably go night night soon.

here I go`

2007-07-26T08:45:00.000-04:00

I'm off for the first treatment this morning. There is an increased risk of reaction with this one because I was on it before then off again. Didn't really understand why, but that's what the doctor said. Still low risk so he wasn't concerned. I should be there all day long today because today they will start very very slowly to monitor for reaction. Tim or I will post when I return later!

Also, Tim gave notice at his job yesterday and is officially transitioning out his current role. His last day at INCAP will be sometime toward the end of August. He has a few frontrunners and an offer, so we'll see where that goes.

Send some prayers our way today! Thank you!

Cleo's While You Were Out

2007-07-24T17:48:00.000-04:00

Cleo went to visit Lollie and Po Sunday until today (thank you!!), and we had a mini-Cleo room makeover while she was gone. This seems to be a theme in our household.

We saw this idea in Wondertime magazine a few months ago and have been meaning to do it ever since. We cleaned out the hall closet - donated clothes, found new homes for appliances, and threw away junk - to make a reading room for Cleo to retreat to during "quiet time." She naps some days and doesn't on others, and this little space will be a special hideout that will be all hers during this time. The closet is only 20 inches by 55 inches, and it's somewhat awkwardly arranged so it wasn't efficiently used before, but Cleo loves it. I bought a fuzzy bathroom rug, a cheap little dorm floor chair that has 5 reclining positions, a battery powered click-on nightlight, and painted a stripe on the wall with leftover bedroom paint. Voila! She actually fell asleep in it today!

Finally, finally

2007-07-24T17:14:00.000-04:00

Well, it was a bumpy road this week with the Rituxan treatments being scheduled for Thursday, then rescheduled, then scheduled again, but they finally are set in the calendar for Thursday starting at 8:30.

Genentech's Access to Care non-profit company will be paying for the treatment, so it won't be going through our insurance company at all. No copays! Definitely an answered prayer.

Mom is already in town and is ready to help with the kids. In addition, Tim is taking off Thursday and Friday to be with us and help get everyone ready for Mom's annual family reunion this weekend. I am hoping to rest on Friday and then be ready for fun on Saturday. We'll see how it goes!

2007-07-19T11:46:00.000-04:00

In celebration of Brad, Robyn and Jack's upcoming trip to Texas, I have posted a video of Barrett discovering Jack in a picture. Robyn sent us a picture from our trip to Disneyland, and he had a great time looking through the picture and pointing everyone out. Of course, by the time I got the video camera out, he wasn't saying everyone's name, but he does say Mommy and Jack in this video.

Can't wait to see you guys!!