For instance, how will I ever remember the day Genevieve shoved a rock the size of a marble up her nose and I had to take her to the ER to have it removed, if I don't blog about it?
That was today, by the way. Just before Ryan got home, with me at the stove and three pots simmering, browning, and boiling, which I had to walk away from with a shout to Owen to take care of things. He did, of course, and Ryan was in the driveway as I was pulling out anyway. Thankfully, the doctors acted quickly and got it out and G-girl is just fine. Also thankfully, the process wasn't without some trauma (Picture three doctors and a nurse pinning her down from all sides while shoving metal instruments of various shapes, sizes, and functions up her nostril. And let's just say they didn't get it on the first try. I didn't actually know a nostril could stretch that much, and she did end up with a bloody nose and some broken blood vessels around it.), which I'm hoping maybe will deter her from ever thinking about doing it again. Seriously, what was she thinking.
I find it kind of hilarious/ironic that we've survived almost 15 years of parenting six boys with no trips to the ER for objects in noses, and here's my dainty little rose who shoves a rock halfway to her brain.
So besides the traumatic milestones, we've had lots of good things happening too. Like Oliver making his First Holy Communion.
Oh, how I do love witnessing my children receive Christ for the first time.
We got a gluten-free/dairy-free cake for the occasion from a local specialty bakery, so that Oliver could share a special dessert with all of his guests on his big day.
Bonus picture. Because it was in the same file as the cake, and... seriously. I know.
That's her latest Sunday Sweater. I've made it in several sizes for her now, so she always has a pretty, neutral sweater to wear over dresses. This one is the size 2/3 - too big for her right now, but I didn't finish it until April and I wanted to make sure she'd still be able to wear it in the fall.
Bonus #2 - unstaged. This is truly how I found them eating popsicles on the back porch.
Let's see, what else...
Oh! Isaac turned six and Sebastian turned four. Brothers who are born one year + 363 days apart are destined to share a celebration. We did pirates this year.
Peyton made them matching treasure maps, which led them around the backyard and to a treasure box (see modified pizza box below), which Blake made, filled with their presents. It was a simple party, but they loved it and we all had fun.
And then just last weekend, we participated in a fundraising walk for CCFA, the foundation whose mission is to cure Crohn's disease and Ulcerative Colitis, and to improve the quality of life of children and adults affected by these diseases.
Like him.
(Please ignore his outfit. He got his last decent t-shirt dirty just before we left and had to change into this. I've since bought him some new clothes, he was in desperate need.)
The fundraising walk was awesome. I have no words for what it feels like to know that we have that kind of support. Just look at the number of people who were there:
Walkers stretched as far as the eye can see, down 11 Mile Road:
The guys, just before we left for the two mile walk. (We took the shortcut. The full distance is three miles, but between toddlers and pregnancy, we felt justified.)
Our loved ones contributed to help us raise our goal amount of $500. We did it.
This picture makes me sad, and I flinched a little at even having taken it.
But reality is, this is what we're dealing with. And reality is, he's doing awesome. We'll continue to say our prayers and count our blessings, and God will take care of the rest.
The park we met at before and after walking was set up like a huge festival, with a DJ, races, bounce houses, food, and freebies. We told Sebastian that it was all for him.
Because it was.
One more, for good measure.
And that's all she wrote.
