Halloween pics

Before the Halloween pictures, here are a couple from when we visited home.
Josh wanted a candy pizza for his 2nd birthday dessert (one dessert in Seattle and one at home).
He chose brownies topped with Reese's Pieces, Butterfinger, and sour worms.
The first two would have been maybe ok on brownies, but the sour worms made it so nasty!
He loved it though.
On our way back to Seattle, we stopped at the train interpretive site (bathrooms next door).

For Halloween, the Seattle kids got spoiled BIG TIME.

At school, they went trick-or-treating on Friday to the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and came home with big, full bags of candy.

Then, there was trick-or-treating at the offices here at the House, followed by a Halloween party and dinner put on by Side-By-Side.

Josh is Link from Zelda, Lilly a rockstar, and Maggie is a cute witch.

She wears the hat EVERYWHERE.

Between all the excitement of Friday, we went swimming at the hospital.

There were floating pumpkins!

Josh and Maggie with pumpkins

Maggie's about to make a basket.

Lilly with her pumpkin, and Josh waiting for his turn.

We are moving out of the House for a few days and will return to a new floor in our room!

So, hopefully we'll get to visit home again. If not, we'll be staying at a hotel.

Tomorrow, we'll know what's happening.

Did you know that after tomorrow is November?! That marks 11 months being in Seattle, and probably no more than 3 more months here?!!!! We're almost to the end of our stay!

Visiting home again!!!

Home again, home again, jiggity jig...
We're visiting home again!
The children and I came by train this time because we knew Andy was planning on going to visit us in Seattle this week.
So, we got an adventure, and he'll just drive us back.
Let me tell you though, we won't be going by rail anytime soon again, with a toddler who is tired and used to getting his way ALL the time! 4 hours of fussing/screaming was so hard to deal with, and I'm sure the other passengers were not too impressed, even considering the complete cuteness of the fusser.

We had the baggage cart full.
The Seattle station is in the process of being remodeled.
It'll be so beautiful when it's done.

Listening to the iPod Shuffle while waiting for our train.

The children loved the trays, foot rests, foot recliners, reclining seats, the roominess of the seating, and just about everything else.

Josh saw some great blue herons, and the girls enjoyed standing together while looking at the scenery whizzing by.

Playing games on the old computer at home.

Maggie saw her best friend tonight. She lives next door!

It was her friend's birthday, so Maggie and Lilly got to go over for ice cream cake!

Daniel still doesn't think he needs a haircut, but thought the camera was lying because his hair doesn't look like this in the mirror...

The adoption really is getting closer and closer. I truly think before the end of the year.

The baby still isn't quite walking alone yet (away from furniture). But, he discovered the piano yesterday. He stands up by the piano and pounds away. Funny thing is is that it actually doesn't sound so much like pounding but more like something musical! Maybe we have a musical prodigy?!

My mother-in-law gave Andy a George Foreman grill. I wasn't excited or anything, but tonight we had chili powder burgers. I cooked half in the skillet (had to have some grease to saute the onions in) and half in the grill. I LOVE THE GRILL!! Less fat, cooked faster, and cooked to greater doneness. I like my meat very well done, but not carcinogenic. The grill made the burgers perfect!

Presidential visit

The baby and I were the first in our family to see a Motorcade and the President today!

Just the beginning of a whole MESS of police motorcycles.

They went faster than parade speed, so my camera was never quite fast enough.

Got the ambulance and the last two police cars though.

Hugs & kisses quilt~brown kisses, green hugs

Lots of pictures

RMH Internet is WiFi now that is extremely slow. So, we're uploading pics while visiting my mother-in-law's house.
The first several are from the Pacific Science Center.

The spider below is hanging above the therapy pool at the hospital.

The lifeguards get a a kick out of raising and lowering it during swim time.

The kids after church today.

I love the colors in Mudd's kitchen!

Catching up

Wow...it's been awhile, again!
The baby was in the hospital for fever and for fluids at two different times in the past month.
So, I've been tired.
Finally though, we were able to visit home last week for a couple days!!!
We went on so many errands, got so many things done, but relaxed so much in the midst of it all.
I had to go buy a new camera, so we've been taking a bunch of pictures to figure it out.
The last day we were at home, the girls and I got our hair cut and styled at Lisa's salon, Alexander's.

Lilly loves to dress like a rocker girl, and wanted this fun, new style for her hair.

Lisa loves to cut Lilly's hair because she likes big change.

In the picture above, you can see Lilly's new boots too. She thinks they are so cool.

Maggie needed new shoes too. Her bubble gum pink Converse shoes were falling apart on top, bottom, and the sides!

Maggie's teacher, Christie, said that when she got new shoes, she'd give her $2 for the old ones so she could use them for an art project.

So, we got Maggie these Converse-like boots/shoes from Children's Place. Maggie loves 'em, I don't.

Publicis brought the supplies to make Halloween bags this week.

Here are the girls working on theirs.

Don't Maggie's lips look like Julia Roberts' lips?!

I think JR is pretty, but when I zoomed in on this on the camera, JR was my first thought!

Josh's bag

The front of Lilly's

What Lilly's bag looked like inside

Back of Lilly's bag

Maggie and her bag

Witchy Maggie-with this picture, I think her nose and smile loook like a cat's face.

Andy, Daniel, and Kelly came to visit! I love it when the whole family is together, even if only for a short time.

Lilly's eye

Kelly, Lilly, Maggie

Fighting cabin fever at the Ronald McDonald House

This 'n that~

While we were at home, we got to enjoy some yummy, homegrown TOMATOES and veggies from Mary and Lisa (different Lisa than hair stylist)!!! I was missing real homegrown tomatoes this year since we aren't allowed to have a garden here.

I'm done with Athena's baby quilt finally, and am just about done with the baby's and Jacob's! As soon as they're done, I'll be posting pics of those!

The adoption is coming along! It really should be complete within weeks now. I can't wait!

I realized today that all conversations I have with other people revert back to the topic of leukemia...someday that'll change.

This week, I ask that if you pray for our family, please continue to pray specifically for no delays. No delays would mean that we'd come home weeks before we would if there were delays in treatment.

Delays happen when counts aren't high enough to give the next dose of chemotherapy.

I also ask that you would pray for the little ones and their families, who are up for significant procedures this week, that will either bring elation or a closer relationship with mortality. It hurts to watch good friends go through such pain.