Busy times

Kelly got dressed up in school colors to help at orientation day.

 I got out of the shower one day and couldn't find Anthony.

he had climbed into Josh's bed.  Poor Josh!

 We finally gave up on our two sets of washers/dryers and bought a pretty much new set.

So, we had the children help get the old ones out of the downstairs.

 I don't remember why he was upset, but Anthony was fussing that night.

 Helping, Anthony-style

 Virginia sent some zucchini home with us when we went to visit a few weeks ago.

I finally got it all shredded and frozen.  

This is going to make some yummy muffins or bread!

 We have a man in our ward at church (congregation) who grows tomatoes for local restaurants.

I haven't wanted to can ANYTHING this summer, but for some reason was craving the feel of canning tomatoes.  Weird, I know.

So, Ed supplied an extra box than what we paid for, and I got lots canned!

They are so pretty in real life!

 Last week was open house at Anthony's preschool.

He walked right in and had so much fun playing!

 Anthony loves babies.

It makes Andy NOT happy.

But, I think it helps Anthony learn to be gentle with real babies too.

 Anthony was watching another child get into trouble, and when the child was picked up and carried away by the parent, Anthony's face just crumpled up and he started BAWLING.

The teacher thought the other kid had kicked Anthony, and I told her no, it's Anthony's sympathetic crying.

He knew the other child was sad or mad and started crying in support.

 There was a child with a snotty nose, and even though Anthony has a "normal" immune system now, I don't want to invite illness.

I told Andy to get Anthony away from the other child.

This is how he did, but a minute later, Anthony was playing with the other child again.

*sigh*

Now, a week later, Anthony, Kelly, and I are sick.

 Not happy that Daddy put the baby away.

 Fun with cubbies

 When we left, Anthony SAID a sentence, not just signed!

"No no, bye bye!"  

He really did not want to leave.

 We put the washer/dryer sets on craigslist.

We received an email from a friend who was responding to the listing.

They didn't realize it was ours.

I called them up, and we were able to give them the set.

In return, they brought over a bunch of apples and we made our first applesauce of the season!

Red jars have red hots in them, and the lighter ones are sweetened with sugar.

Playing

We decided to finally go to a play area at Burger King.

Anthony's first time!

He loved it!

Our friends were there at the same time, and they played with him, like he was just one of them.  

Lilly and Maggie made some Cub Scout pinewood derby cars.

They are going to race them next week.

Lilly's is a really cool skateboard, and Maggie's looks like a keyhole. 

 Auntie Jenny and Jim came to visit!

Anthony busted out some moves.

 Then, he was Link.

Scout and getting ready for school

Anthony received a My Pal Scout way back in January, when he was in the hospital.

He never really played with it, so I was getting ready to just put it in the yard sale.

Anthony saw it, squeezed the paws, heard the music, and hasn't put it down since...except when we took it away at bedtime.

And, he does the song motions!

 Maggie and Lilly were trying make up and clothing looks the day before orientation and pictures.

Nice pajama pants with the sweater, eh?

 Helping Josh play Wii

 We needed to go shopping or something, and the girls really wanted to go.

I told them all the things I had to get done in order to get out the door.

So, they worked on Anthony's orthotics and shoes.

This is how they kept him from squirming and running away.

5-Day Tour (Day 4 & 5) Everett and Seattle

The last leg of our busy, busy weekend was visiting Nana, Grand-Nana, and Aunt Di, plus Seattle Children's.

Anthony needed a dental appointment.

We actually have pediatric dentists locally, but when I called Children's to see about Anthony needing antibiotics for his dental check-ups, the cardiology office was very concerned about Anthony receiving dental treatment anywhere other than the hospital, due to Anthony's "complex medical history."

So, we went to Seattle to see the dentist.

I was certain we'd be there for 10 minutes, then they'd tell us to come back for a sedated visit because Anthony does NOT cooperate with anything and his mouth.

I even had a guessing contest on FB for how long the appointment would be before they'd give up.

Happily, I was proven wrong!!  

(And, we didn't even have to wait more than 3 minutes in the waiting room!)

Anthony does NOT need sedation!

Did you know that a full dental exam every 6 months does NOT have to include teeth cleaning??!

I didn't know that either.

The main thing is to have a dentist look at the teeth and check for problems.

Sedation would happen if there were any trouble spots seen.

And, x-rays can just be scheduled anytime he'll be sedated for other procedures.

Although, no procedures coming anytime soon!

Our appointment was 27 minutes long with the doctor.

20 of those minutes were spent discussing Anthony's medical history...I forgot to include his diagnosis of Down syndrome because in the grand scheme of things, it just isn't a big deal compared to everything else he's been through!

Afterwards, we went to visit our friends at Ronald McDonald House.

While Anthony and I were at the hospital, Josh, Lilly, and Maggie had fun school shopping with Nana.

Totally got spoiled!

Having fun on Grand-Nana's wheelchair.

5-Day Tour (Day 2 & 3) Tri-Cities

We went to Tri-Cities, WA, to visit Grandpa, Grandma Virginia, and the temple.

Oh, and for Kelly to go on a date with her friend from EFY (Especially For Youth).

Andy had to work, so it was just the kids and me.

We did great on the drive over and actually drove into Pasco an hour early!

It was a good thing though, because I forgot to bring the GPS direction thing and my cell phone (which I bought for this purpose!) was not working the way I needed it to, to give me directions!

A little back story--during the past 3 1/2 years while Anthony needed monthly trips or more to Seattle for chemo or other appointments, we'd sometimes stay in a hotel.  Or, when we'd travel anywhere else, we'd have to stay in a hotel versus staying with family members because of low immunity.

So, to save money I used Priceline to book hotels.

Typically we'd get a good room at Red Lion or Holiday Inn Express hotels.

I'd typically call the day or two before and ask if we could have a room with 2 beds.

So this time, in Richland, the hotel we were supposed to stay at was in a sketchy area to start with.

I had called beforehand-two times!- to see if we could have a room with 2 beds.

They said they could only do a room with one bed because that's all that Priceline had reserved for us.

I didn't reserve/pay for 2 rooms because this is how we'd been able to do it for so long!

We finally arrived at the hotel, and I was checking in. 

The front desk lady couldn't upgrade the room because the computer wouldn't let her.

I was ready to just bite it and stay in a room with 5 of our children with me with just 1 bed.

I said something about our children, and she asked how many I have...

dumb me, I answered honestly (which I wouldn't have been dishonest anyway).

She freaked out and said they couldn't have us all in one room because it isn't legal.

So, I asked if we could rent another room and have them together.

We could get two rooms, but she couldn't put 2 rooms together ANYWHERE in that hotel.

There's no way I'm having some of my children in a hotel room that isn't connected to mine, especially in a sketchy area!

So, we called Holiday Inn Express in Richland. 

HIExpress is a Make a Wish supporter, so they always come to mind.

They are also clean and have free breakfast in the morning, plus usually there's a pool.

Yes, they had a suite we could stay in.

$150 later we were in what to us is luxury!

I've learned my lesson, and that is 

DO NOT USE PRICELINE in the future!

They would not give a refund of the money I had paid for the other hotel, that we weren't able to use.

The suite was so nice.

Huge jetted tub, microwave, refrigerator, tvs in each room, table and chairs, plus a sink for food stuff, and dishes.

And, the pool was great!  Anthony was willing to float on his back in it!

He thought the tub was cool.

 Watching tv together

 What's a hotel stay without climbing into one of the drawers?!

We went to the Columbia River Temple the next day.

Lilly was posing on a wall.

 Anthony played on the huge lawn, and I didn't worry about him because the beautiful fence....

 I happened to look over, and he had found a gap.

I couldn't climb over the fence to get him.

Lilly couldn't.

My dad couldn't.

Anthony was looking at the road and then at me, and was starting to walk toward the road.

I ran over and dropped my camera (on purpose) to his side of the fence, trying to lure him toward me so I could hold onto him while Lilly and my dad walked around to get him.

Luckily, Anthony fell for it.  Normally he wouldn't do it.

I held on and even though Anthony tried to squirm out of my hand on his wrist, I did not let go!

Lilly and my dad made it over there, and walked him back.

My little escape artist.  Only Anthony would be able to find a gap in the corner of the fence with just an extra inch to be able to squirm out.

 Walking to the play room in the church building next to the temple.

 Grandpa and Grandma Virginia

 Anthony with Tia Maria

He loves snuggles with her.  :)

5-Day Tour (Day 1) Ephrata Pool and Rotary Park in Wenatchee

We did not get to as many pools and water parks this summer as we normally do.

In August though, we were able to go to Ephrata Water Park.

(a little over an hour away)

We tried out this flotation device we bought for Anthony.

Andy and I thought it would help Anthony keep his face out of the water.

Nope.

We'll continue to hold him at all times in the pool, or have him within arm's reach.

 Lilly on the lily pad course

 Maggie

 Josh

 Kelly splashing as she fell in the water

 Just chillin' together

 Demanding asking for chips

 The container was FULL of watermelon and cantaloupe.

 He thinks he's getting away with something.  ;)

 King of the mountain!

 We went to a Frisbee Golf party with several families in Wenatchee when we returned from Ephrata.

Other kids were climbing on this and spinning around.

Anthony kept whining and I thought he was just tired.

My friend, Kati, knew better.

She asked if he would hold on pretty well.

I thought he might, so we helped him up, and she spun him slowly.

He LOVED it!

Kati's good.  :)