Amazing news!!!!

Another update:

The Denke Twins found a bone marrow donor! They had their bone marrow transplant last Friday!

So what do they need now? Like, Hailey, they are in desperate need of blood and platelets ASAP. These products need to be donated at Children's Hospital Los Angeles and should be donated in Keane and Ethan Denkes' name. If you are local and can donate, PLEASE do. Be sure to emphasize that the donation is for these boys.

Thank you to all who are willing to help and to those who keep them in their thoughts and prayers.

Update on baby Hailey

For those who may be interested, there was an article run in the Simi Valley Star on Hailey Kent the other day. Here is the link:

http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2007/sep/23/patient-of-leukemia/

Have a good day!

We're going to Disneyland!

I LOVE Disneyland! I love it even more when my kids behave well there. Today was a great day. We surprised the kids and took them to Disneyland. They thought they were going to the airport to pick up Daddy who had been away on business, but instead Daddy drove from the airport (with his car that was parked there) and met us at Disneyland. They literally didn’t know until we pulled up and Jadon was saying, "Hey, why does the airport look like Disneyland? And HEY! Why do all the poles have characters on them?" Too fun! The park was pretty empty and we waited no more than 7 minutes for anything and got to walk on almost everything. Cole rode the roller coasters that he is tall enough for 7 times! Jadon tried Splash Mountain and I think he liked it. We got to the park at 3pm and it was only open until 8, but I think we rode at least 17 rides. All the kids changed into their PJ’s at the car and fell right to sleep on the way home. I took them all right up to bed. Too easy! Enjoy the pictures.




Jadon tries the Tea Cups for the first time and decides he likes them!

The three boys hang out near the 100 Acre Wood after discovering Pooh's honey stash.

We meet Pluto and Jadon tells him something "very important."

Disney is getting all dressed up for Halloween. The official Halloween party doesn't start until tomorrow, but we got to take advantage of a few decorations that were already set up.

Good night Carter, sleep tight! I hope you have some very sweet Disney dreams tonight.

Updates

Hello!


So here is an update. We had busy week with the holiday and Arnie being out of town the entire week. I had lots of extra kid work. Cole had a check-up with his endocrinologist and we got 'sort of' good news. He is still growing normally for his age. So basically, he grew as much as any child his age would have, but he isn't making any catch-up growth either. He is still in the 1st percentile for height and his projected height is still 5 foot 3 to 5 foot 4 inches. The more I think about it, I realize we have A LOT of male friends in that height range and they all seem normal and well adjusted so I am not too worried. I am still not caving to the pressures of the doctor to put him on growth hormone!


We went to temple in Thousand Oaks with cousins Stephanie and Samantha for the holiday. We had a play date last Friday at Under the Sea with our twins club. Carter's Mommy and Me class, which was on hiatus, started up again this week and he and I had a great time seeing our old friends and singing songs with his teacher. The boys enjoyed "B" week at school and brought their baby dolls to share. Next week is "C" week and they are really looking forward to bringing their CD's to share. We are also planning a trip to Disneyland and the L.A. Zoo for next week, so I'm sure I will have some fun pictures of those adventures to post soon.

Cole and Jadon driving around Under the Sea at the twins club play date.

Carter with some red toy at Under the Sea.

Carter with our friend's 5 month old son during our babysitting adventure with 5 boys ages 4 and under! Notice how similar the "babies" are in size!

At temple with cousin Samantha. It was so hard to get all 4 kids to stay in the frame for more than a second.

Cousin Samantha kindly shares a cracker with Jadon.

School is going REALLY well. I had tests or quizzes in all my classes this past week and I am proud to say I aced everything! Woohoo! Knowing I can do well and still be a Mom feels amazing and it is also nice to know that I can probably ease up on the studying a bit and still do well enough is all my classes. The pressure lies in the fact that if I don't maintain a 4.0 I probably won't get into the program I want to, but after this first round of tests, I'm no longer worried about the grades. Ah...



Keep posted for more info. Oh! A quick update on my kids...Hailey Kent went home from CHLA a few weeks ago (after months and months in the hospital) and I haven't heard anything since. The doctors reiterated to her parents that her odds were not great, so if you have room in your prayers, please include her. Fyn's Mom posted that his AFP is down to 7.7, which is normal! It appears that the removal of the tumor several weeks ago did the trick and they are hoping it stays down. Again, prayers are awesome!

Why I Love Being a Mom...

...Because when I am sorting through the laundry basket, not only do I get to separate darks from lights, but I also get to separate Legos from plastic bowling balls. Those moments put a smile on my face that lasts all day. I truly love it!

He made it!

The Hanna Andersson winter catalog came out in stores in the last several weeks and Cole IS on the cover! We had checked online while I was in Baltimore and the winter catalog online does not have him in it, but my aunt just called me from the mall today to tell me he is on the cover in the store version. For those who have asked, you can go to http://www.hannaandersson.com/ and at the bottom there is a link to order the catalog. My aunt picked up several copies for me, so when I get one I will try to scan it and get it up on the blog.

Yay Cole! Good job buddy!


Cole on the set all dressed (minus his cape) chatting with the photographer who subsequently hired him for another job for a magazine about a month after this shoot.

Busy, busy, busy

Taking 12 units may have been a mistake. I have SO much work. Actually, all my time is primarily being consumed by my Antatomy/Physiology class. I study from 5-7 am, 2:30-4:30 pm, 8-10pm, and almost all the time on weekends (so far). That said, during the week when the boys are awake and I am not in class, my time is totally theirs. It is nice because our free time is so well defined now that I actually think we are making better us of it. The weekend before school started we went to the L.A. Zoo for a 'member's only' early morning visit (while the animals were actually awake). Monday we went swimming at my parent's house in the morning, Wednesday we went to an indoor play place with huge inflatable climbing structures with two other sets of twins (Carter's age), and Friday we had a great play date with some of our cousins and friends. The kids played with water, toys, and we got to see our Cousin Erica's beautiful new house! I really enjoyed having so many well defined, scheduled events. I look forward to more in the coming weeks!

Jadon and Cole (a bit blurry) on the giant slide!

Carter wants to climb up the giant slide. I can't wait until he can! It was hard work carrying him up there, but a good workout!

Jadon, up close and personal, with an orangutan.

Cole and Jadon hanging out in an animal sculpture at the zoo.

Sunday Pancakes

The end of the week? The beginning of a new one? Does it really matter? Anytime is a great time for pancakes and since I have been most neglectful of my children this weekend while studying like crazy for my insane Anatomy/Physiology I wanted to surprise them this morning. I try to make pancakes at least 2 times a month on the weekends for a treat. Today I made chocolate chip for Cole and Carter, Blueberry for Daddy, and plain for Jadon (which I accidentally burned while making eggs). I pulled a camera out to take pictures of Carter's chocolate chip face (one of my favorite subjects - Carter with chocolate) and ended up taking pictures of all three boys. Jadon decided to 'model' with a pancake and a bottle of syrup...bizarre, but funny.

Carter and Cole play peek-a-boo through the handle in the back of Carter's high chair.