Here are the pics I promised.

Mike figured out how to get them off my camera and onto our computer.

Our tree 2007, before we had to redecorate because Aaron wouldn't leave it alone. Now only the top third has ornaments.

Some of my cute boys.

Before-

-and after.

Ten inches gone.

I looks a lot better when my hair is dried and fixed, I promise.

Emma the toothless wonder!

Aaron as he's being admitted to the hospital.

He did a lot of this in the almost 26 hours he was there.

Enjoying his first ever popsicle. His mouth and teeth were orange for the rest of the day and most of the night.

He looked so small in that bed!

Feeling a little better. At least he had some energy.

Aaron waiting in his little hospital gown for them to put new sheets on the bed.

Hey Mom! Can we leave yet?

Hey, I'm back!

I feel like a total schmutz for not writing for so long. I have been so busy trying to just keep up with life that the blogging world has been left out of the picture for awhile.

First I had this huge Primary Training Meeting to get ready for. I had to have all the class lists for next year and all the new lesson manuals, pictures, lesson plans, etc. ready to give to all the primary teachers at the meeting. We have over 150 kids in our Primary and 28 new Sunbeams entering Primary this next year, so the class lists were no easy task. We kept realizing that we had missed a kid here and there that we needed to find a class for. The average class size is 18 kids. Anyway, I'm glad that that task is taken care of for now. Now I just need to write the annual history for our Primary so it can be turned in by the first of the year, put the new class lists into the ward computer so that all the rolls will be correct, and line up when each class will be giving the talks in Primary for the year. Piece of cake.

That meeting was on Saturday. On sunday Emma didn't feel good, I was exhausted, and Mike had pulled a muscle in his back and could hardly move. Needless to say, we skipped church. Monday we had a Shepherd's Dinner and invited my cousin Taren and her family (six in all) and my friend Kris (the Primary President) and her family (five of them) to join us. We had a great time and a successful dinner. Aaron threw up right at the very end of the meal just a little. I thought it was because he had almost an entire orange in his mouth at once. We put all the kids in bed around eight o'clock and cleaned up before we went to bed. Just after midnight Ben came into our room and said Aaron was snoring and wouldn't stop. I went in there and tried to wake him up. He was breathing really wierd and fast and snoring with each breath. He wouldn't wake up so I rolled him on his side so he would stop snoring. The snoring lessened, but didn't stop. About five minutes later Aaron started screaming. I ran in there and he was thrashing around, kinkof like he was trying to kick off his blankets. I untangled him from his blankets and tried to pick him up. It seemed like he was stuck in a nightmare. I couldn't wake him up. Mike used to have night terrors when we were first married that I could never wake him up from, and I thought maybe Aaron was having the same sort of thing. I took Aaron into my bathroom and shut the door so he wouldn't wake up the other kids. After I turned on the light I noticed that his fingers were all gnarled up, his arms were pulled back, and his eyes were rolled back. He was kicking his legs and screaming. Mike called 911 and I put Aaron in the middle of our bed and changed my clothes. I knew he was having a seizure even though it looked nothing like the seizures you see on T.V. The paramedics got here and checked him out. His temperature was slightly elevated (100 point something I think they said) and his blood sugar level was 240 ish. They couldn't get the seizure stopped so into the ambulance we went. Mike stayed with the other kids (all of them were awake and freaking out, by the way) and I went in the ambulance. I was in front with the driver so I couldn't see what was happening, but I could hear what was going on back there. The hospital is seven and a half miles from our house, and even though it was almost one o'clock in the morning it still took almost 20 minutes to get there. Aaron screamed almost all the way there. He stopped when there was only a couple of blocks left. By this time it had been almost 40 minutes since he started screaming. I assume the seizure lasted the whole time he was screaming. When we went into the E.R. he was sitting in his car seat (they took his car seat and strapped it to the gurney in the ambulance) and he looked like a doll. I stood right in front of him and talked to him, and it was obvious that he wasn't in there. He looked right through me and didn't recognize me at all. It was about 2:30 am before I KNEW that he knew who I was. It was so scary seeing my baby laying there in that big bed and having him not know who I was. I felt like he was going through this alone and there was nothing I could do about it, even though I was right there. They did blood tests, a CAT scan, and a spinal tap. Through most of these tests I was grateful that he wasn't in there, because they were very painful and he had to hold very still. It really helped the doctors that were working on him because he just laid there and didn't flinch or cry. It was so sad. The CAT scan showed that there was no damage to his brain from the seizure or from anything else (tumors, etc.), and the spinal tap showed that he didn't have meningitis or anything else like that. The blood tests were normal, his electrolytes were good, and so was everything else. His blood sugar level was still high (it is supposed to be between 70 and 130 they said, so it was about twice the normal), so they wanted me to see my pediatrician the next day to get his blood sugar level tested again. By this time, he was acting more normal and there were no more tests they could do so they sent us home. We got home just before 5:00 am. We slept for about an hour and a half then got up to get the kids ready for school. Mike called in to work and stayed home that day (Tuesday). We slept and tried to recover from the night before. I took Aaron to the doctor (his regular doctor was unavailable so I saw another one in the same office, the one that was on call the night before that had talked to the E.R. doctor) and his blood sugar was 96, so they said it wasn't diabetes. There is a stomach flu going around here, so the doctor guessed that Aaron had a touch of that and had a fever that we didn't notice, and the fever caused the seizure. We have an appointment with a neurologist from Primary Children's Hospital on Jan. 19 (the first available time) just to make sure that he doesn't have epilepsy or something else. The doctor told me to watch him closely for anything out of the ordinary and get him right in if there is anything else. Aaron was acting fine on Tuesday except for being tired. On Wednesday I got the kids to school and Mike to work and sat down at the desk to update this blog. Aaron climbed on my lap and threw up. He threw up all day everytime he had anything to eat or drink. He slept through the night and woke up the next day (Thursday) not wanting to do anything except lay on the floor. I called the doctor and got an appointment for 9:20 am. We took the kids to school and went right over. The doctor looked at Aaron and almost immediately said that he needed to be admitted to the hospital. The doctors office is hooked on to the hospital so we walked over. By the time we got to the pediatric floor, Aaron was so listless and pale that he couldn't move at all. They had a hard time finding a vein that was plump enough to put an I.V. in. When we got into the room he immediately fell asleep and slept for a few hours. He woke up feeling a little better. The rest of the day and night went about the same. Aaron would sleep a few hours then be awake for a few hours. After he got some fluids in him through the I.V. he was able to keep some things down. He drank a lot of apple juice and water. After awhile they let him have jello and chicken broth. By dinner they changed him to a regular diet and he ate quite a bit of macaroni and cheese and part of a milkshake. He kept everything down. The doctor came in around 7 pm to talk to me. He said that it was a good thing that we were there today because Aaron's electrolytes were way out of whack. The other night when they checked them they were at about 4500 - normal. This day they were over 10,000. He was so dehydrated that the doctor said that a few hours more and his organs would start shutting down. My aunt died from having messed up electrolytes. She got really dehydrated quickly and her electrolytes got messed up and her organs shut down. I am so glad I decided to take Aaron to the doctor that morning. The other appointment they had available was at 2:50 in the afternoon. By then who knows what would have happened.

Anyway, Aaron did so well keeping his food down and getting rehydrated that we were able to check out around 11 am. We went and got the kids from school (today was an early out day) and came home and Aaron and I fell asleep on the couch for an hour and a half. He is doing SOOOO much better. Thank you for all your prayers. I know they helped. I am going to make sure that he keeps getting lots to drink and has lots of wet diapers. If he doesn't he will have to go back, and none of us want that.

I have lots of pictures of him in his hospital bed looking small and pathetic, and of the family decorating the tree, and of me donating ten inches of hair to Locks of Love ( two weeks ago tomorrow). I have cute pictures of Emma with three missing front teeth. We have something wrong with our computer and it won't let us download our pictures from our camera. It thinks they are a virus. So, maybe I will post a lot of pictures when we get it fixed.

Anyway, for the moment we are all well and good. I hope we stay that way.

My kids saw the last blog and wanted to play too,

so here they are-

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1217125671

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1217355930

Hey, Watch this-

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1200546644

Have a Great Day!

(p.s. I think I'm a better dancer than Mike.)

Thoughts of the Day - Musing of my Mind

I thought I would write a little something on the blog today to shock my wife that I would actually contribute to this little site of our lives. I just wanted to thank my wife for the past month of her things to be grateful for. She is pretty amazing and I kinda like her. I am sitting her pondering that there are wet clothes in the dryer and I have an expense report to complete and I just want to be mindless right now. I know this is wasteful and has little purpose but it is what it is. I am also thinking how much I dislike cold weather if it is not snowing. If it is going to be cold, lets bring on the snow. It's like fishing and not catching any fish. My dad thinks I'm nuts but if you are going to go throught the trouble of getting out the boat and hauling your butt up to the river the fish should be obligated to snag the line so you can feel like you accomplish something for the day. I am also pondering the framing of my basement so I can get 2 additional bedrooms and a bathroom finished before to much longer. I also am thinking about the coin I just shelled out to pay of braces for JUST Kim and Josh. I really should have exploited them as younger kids and got them into acting so they could help pay for some on this stuff. And lastly I am considering the fact that I am going to night school with Ben on Thursday in order to assist him in making up a class for this semester. So on top of trying to run a business, sell to companies that think I am to high priced, trying to help a pregant wife feel at least somewhat less overwhelmed, and posting this blog, I think the world is swell and I can't wait to do a jig to a Scottish melody sung by Mike Meyers. If this could be any more random it would have a purpose and I just want to wish everyone a great holiday and to let everyone know that the things that matter are the things that are forever. May we all think of forever and how we can make it there together. CIAO!!!!

November 30, 2007

This is my last "grateful" blog for November. I can't believe I set this goal almost a month ago and now it is the end of the month. I have written all the things I'm grateful for this month on paper and I am adding it to my journal. That way I can look at it often. I have noticed that throughout this month I have become more aware of things around me that I would have a difficult time living without, things that I totally take for granted and don't even think about most of the time. I have also become more aware of my circumstances and how lucky I am to be where I am, living with the family I have, and being a member of the true Church on the Earth. There are so many people in this world that don't have a home, or clothes, or warmth. There are people who are so oppressed that they are told what to believe, where to live, what work they can do, how many kids they can have, and what to wear. I have become more aware of how people in other countries live. I read an article in the paper this past Sunday about North Korea. The reporter told about his trip. They were told where they could go and were escorted everywhere they went. They were not allowed to talk to anyone who lived there. Every where they went they noticed that all the people had to wear buttons with Kim Jong-il's picture on them. Certain kinds of technology are not allowed there. Cell phones are illegal (the reporter's cell phone was confiscated when they got there are returned to him as they left the country), all the newspapers are filled with anti-other country (especially America) propaganda, and the few houses that have televisions or radios only get a few government run channels. People are not allowed to travel outside of the country, and they are completely cut off from the rest of the world. Every house, hotel, and building has pictures on the walls of their leader. Soldiers are allowed to enter any home at any time to make sure there are no illegal internet, or television, cell phones, etc. and to make sure the pictures are on the walls. If you are caught breaking the law, you are severely punished. I can't imagine living in a place that is so oppressive, but this is how these people were raised, and most of them don't know there is any other life. I feel for these people and I am glad that I have the freedoms I do. I feel extremely blessed that I was allowed to be born into a family that lived in America, that already had the Gospel, and that was already sealed in the Temple. Out of all the billions of people who have been on this Earth, why am I so blessed? Maybe one day I will know.

Anyway, here are my last five things for this month-

1. I am grateful for my talents. I have been blessed to be able to meet people throughout my life who have helped me discover some of my talents. I can't imagine what my life would be like if I had never met these people.

2. I am grateful for the schooling I have received. I wasn't grateful at the time, and I'll admit that I didn't take advantage of the opportunities that were given to me and for that I'm very sad. I hope to go back to school one day.

3. I am grateful for patience. I don't have a lot of it some days, and I always wish I had more, but I am grateful for what I have.

4. I am grateful for the November and the May Ensign magazines. I am blessed by the words of the living prophets that I can read over and over. I need to do more of that.

5. And finally, I am grateful for the last six weeks of the year. I get to hear Christmas carols on the radio, and there are reminders of my Savior everywhere. I think about Him many times a day during this part of the year, and I am grateful for those reminders.

Bonus: 6. I think I already mentioned this, but I am grateful that I made this goal. I have been blessed because I have kept this list and thought about my blessings. I am more grateful for the things I have now than I was at the beginning of the month. I read the blog of a lady named Lisa Bearnson (http://www.lisabearnson.com/). If you don't know who she is, she is an LDS lady who lives in Highland, and she started the magazine "Creating Keepsakes". It's a scrapbook magazine. Anyway, yesterday she wrote about an activity they did for Activity Days. She is one of the leaders and they have about a dozen girls. They got some simple composition books and had the girls cover the front with their favorite patterned paper and add a piece that said "Gratitude". They put a quote in the front of the book from Henry B. Eyring and challenged the girls to write five things every night before bed that they are grateful for that day. Here is the quote-

"As you start to write, you could ask yourself, 'How did God bless me today?' If you do that long enough and with faith, you will find yourself remembering blessings. And sometimes you will have gifts brought to your mind which you failed to notice during the day, but which you will then know were a touch of God's hand in your life. Preserve (these memories) for the day that (you) and those you love will need to remember how much God loves (you) and how much (you) need Him."

It works, it really does. Try it. I have 151 things on my grateful list. I never thought I would be able to think of five things a day, but then I thought "It's only five things. That's not very many." It isn't very many things, but when you are counting different things everyday, they add up. If you are ever having a bad day, try thinking of all the things you have that others don't. I have realized that I don't need to think of those in Africa, or Guatemala, or North Korea. There are homeless people here in Utah, and some of my neighbors and even some of my family who really struggle every day. There are people I know who don't have a kind and gentle spouse. They have a spouse that they are afraid of.

I am so blessed!!

November 29, 2007

1. I am grateful for doctors and the miracles that they help perform.

2. I am grateful for modern technology.

3. I am grateful for umbrellas.

4. I am grateful for sharp knives and scissors.

5. I am grateful for artwork. I am grateful for people who can draw and paint. People like Clark, James Christensen, Liz Lemon Swindle, etc. They inspire me. I wish I could be like them.