I'm A Winner!!!!!

Yes, I won two VIP tickets to a taping of the show. How did I do it as it's practically impossible to get tickets? I simply signed up for her online community and entered a few of her contests and won. Can you believe it? I actually won something. Dan and I are headed down to Burbank for a weekend without our kids. (Thanks Grandma Sandi and Papa Tim!)

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I've been watching the show since Noah was a baby. I think Ellen is so funny and I find her very entertaining. She also does a lot of good for a lot of people. I can't wait to see the show in person, I'm just hoping its one filled with good prizes. The taping is on Monday, May 4th. I'm not sure when it will air, but you just may be seeing Dan and I dancing away on TV real soon.

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One amazing 6th Anniversary Trip.

A Visit from Ernakell

That would be Erin and Mikell - Noah just likes to run their names together. After completing another semester at BYU the girls decided to take a road trip to unwind before facing the real world. We were fortunate that they chose our lovely city of Fernley. We had several relaxing, yet fun days with them. I enjoyed their help with the kids and it was fun to stay up late and laugh about total random things. The kids hated to see them pack up and leave, and can't wait for them to come again.

Here are a few pictures from our adventures with them. Noah insisted on taking them to the Chocolate Store - known as Scheel's to the rest of us. They were such good sports as he showed them all of his favorite things.

Dan and Erin enjoying the indoor Ferris Wheel....
Zoe waiting for the ride to end. She isn't tall enough , for some reason you have to be 36 inches.
Noah and Mikell enjoying the ride. I think Mikell is Noah's new best friend.

I think Erin and Mikell have been promoted to Auntie status, instead of cousins. I really appreciated Mikell's help earlier in the day when we went shopping at Old Navy, as she entertained Noah and Zoe while I was trying on clothes.

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Noah, Mikell, and Zoe playing ghosts. Did you know in order to make a ghost disappear all you have to do is laugh - or was it tickle? Both seemed to work pretty well. I didn't get a picture, but Erin does a mean airplane trick.

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Thanks again for all the fun times and many laughs, the kids had a ton of fun playing. Come back anytime.

Noah's MRI

The night before Noah's MRI Grandma and Papa came to Reno, so they could help out with Zoe. They decided to spend the night at the Peppermill and had the coolest room ever according to Noah. It had a giant bathtub right in the bedroom. Noah wants one in his room now. The kids had fun playing in it after dinner. I'm so glad they live close enough to help out in times like these. The MRI went as well as can be expected. Noah wasn't to thrilled with the whole process and didn't want anything to do with the hospital gown. He insisted on wearing his jeans and in the end he won the battle. As the anesthesiologist put it, "he was the most uncooperative patient of the morning." The nurse very enthusiastically reminded us that "we all have to be good at something." What do they expect? He hadn't eaten since the night before, he was in a strange environment, and they were running a little behind schedule. After a failed escape attempt and a small struggle, he drifted off to sleep and things were back on track.

When we got word that he was awake the nurse said: "he's angry, but then again he was angry when they put him out." One of the nurses decided to break the rules and allowed one of us to be with him a lot sooner than the standard procedure. Dan got the privilege as I knew Noah would want his Daddy as he was the last one he saw before drifting off to sleep. All the nurses got a big kick out of him being such a "daddy's boy." He was very grumpy and all he wanted was the IV out - the tape removed - and his hospital ID bracelet off. Once we finally convinced him to drink a little juice and to eat an Otter Pop they cut us loose.

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We were all starving by this point and all Noah wanted to eat was Shrimp and Crab. Unfortunately we had missed the "lunch" buffets and dinner wasn't for another 2 hours. So we ended up at the Pirate Ship for lunch. Yes, we ate inside a Pirate Ship. The food was surprisingly good. Probably because we were too tired and too hungry to care much. The important thing is that Noah enjoyed it and had fun.

I am happy and very relieved to report that his MRI came back normal. So we now have ruled out a Brain Tumor or mass. As his doctor put it we have ruled out all of the "really scary stuff," but the cause of the vomiting is still a mystery. We have an appointment on Wednesday to figure out where to go from here and what to do next. I have a few theories I want to present (thanks Jennifer)- hopefully the doctor will be a little more open to them in person, than she was on the phone the other day. She seems to think we need to decide between an Allergist or a GI Doctor; I'm not convinced. On a positive note we have gone almost 4 weeks without throw-up (knock on wood) so maybe the Zantac is doing the trick.

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Thank you for all the prayers in our behalf. We feel truly blessed and know they are working. I'll let you know what we decide to do.

Uncle Cameron

As part of our Easter trip we were going to spend an afternoon with Uncle Cameron. But, when the day finally arrived I wasn't feeling well so things got changed to a "boys day out".

Look how excited Noah is to finally spend some time with Uncle Cameron. To our surprise we were actually able to kidnap him for a few days. On the way back up the hill to Placerville they decided to stop at the Jelly Belly Factory. Noah got to learn all about how jelly beans are made as well as taste test a few flavors.

Here he is with Uncle Cameron.....
Out front with the giant Jelly Bean.....That evening we had dinner at McDonald's so the kids could run around and hopefully get tired out. I don't think it worked too well.

Zoe peeking out from the top of the structure along with Chelsea.... Cameron was such a good sport to play with the kids. Here they are enjoying the slide.... Noah and Zoe were very sad to see our few days with Uncle Cameron come to an end and are looking forward to spending more time with him this summer. Cameron's Dad agreed to let him come visit us during Hot August Nights and possibly even sooner. We can't wait!

Happy Anniversary/Easter!

Once again our Anniversary (4/11) fell in the same weekend as Easter. This year things were a little different than last year. We were in the same state this time around however, Dan spent the day at work , while the kids and I attended a few Easter celebrations and got ready for our trip to Grandma Sandi's house.

After spending the morning finishing up the laundry, cleaning the house, and last minute packing we headed to WalMart to get a few last minute items for an Easter Egg Hunt and BBQ at a friend's house. Noah saw the Easter Bunny from a far and insisted on getting closer and taking a picture. However, when it was our turn both kids quickly changed their mind and insisted I sit with them.

Here is a copy of our free picture - not the best of any of us, but at least we have the occasion documented on film. Plus, I can't complain as it was free!
Then we rushed over to the party. Here are some pictures from the egg hunt.
After the party we rushed home to load up the car, so we could go meet Daddy at work and head over the hill to Grandma's house. We had a nice Anniversary dinner with our kids at the McDonald's in beautiful South Lake Tahoe. Before you feel too bad for us - our actual anniversary plans will be revealed shortly. We are both amazed at how quickly the last 6 years have gone by and all the experiences we've shared together.

Easter morning arrived too early when Zoe managed to throw-up all over me at 5:30 am. We think it was a combination of food poisoning, too much candy, and the fact that she tends to get motion sickness pretty easily. So, we didn't manage to get any pictures of the kids in their cute new Easter outfits that Grandma Sandi got them - we hopefully will do a photo shoot soon.

Here's a picture of a very disappointed Zoe, who had to stay home from church...(Thanks Grandma for staying home with her!)
After church and with everyone feeling better we got to have Easter Dinner at Auntie Charlynn's house.

When we arrived we saw these wild Turkeys walking down the street....

Noah, like always, had a lot of fun playing with Grandpa Woffinden.We are so lucky to have added him and Grandma Woffinden as well as all our new Aunts, Uncle, and Cousins to our family. We've had so much fun getting to know them and being part of new traditions.

Here's Zoe playing with Uncle Ed....

I guess you can say, Easter was pretty memorable for us this year.

Too Small....Too Big

Zoe got dressed all by herself the other day. As you can see she managed to get into the too small box. I still thought she looked cute dancing around. She seems to be getting more and more independent everyday.
Here's a look at the other end of the spectrum. Too Big.....
She thought it was funny to parade around in Daddy's jacket.

Funny Things

Funny Things overheard at the McDonald household. Zoe:

"I'm going to sleep in my own bed!!" (if only that were true.)

"You're not like a giraffe, you're my Mom Mom." (uttered when she first woke up one morning)

"I washed my peanut!" (upon getting out of the shower) Sometimes I think she forgets that she is a girl.

"Don't talk to me mom, don't talk to me" (as she covers up my mouth)

"Shampoop" (Shampoo to the rest of us)

"Tomach" (stomach)

"The powder makes me poop" (she gets MiraLax added to her drinks once in awhile)

"Shh! We're at the Library." (uttered everywhere, but the library - it's the funniest when she says it in her sleep.)

Noah:

"Does it have lettuce, onions, carrots, or tomatoes?" (asked before every meal)

"That's not making me happy!" (when he doesn't get his way)

"Is Ameriquin Idol on tonight?" (American Idol to the rest of us)

"I just hate prophets!" (didn't appreciate conference on TV)

"What is he/she wearing?"

"Mom you are squishy!" (he reminds me often, how fat I am)

"Mom you are not very smart!"

"Mom you can't go on the Ferris Wheel...your tummy is getting bigger and bigger...there is a bar that you have to be careful with...and you won't fit..." (yes, he thinks I'm too fat for the Ferris Wheel; little does he know I hate the Ferris Wheel anyway.)

Can you feel the love he has for me?
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We had the missionaries over for dinner the other night...during the meal Zoe was explaining to me that she ate her noodles. They were in her mouth and now they are in her tummy. Well not to be out done Noah added: "and then they'll make you poop!" Needless to say we made it into the Elders book of random quotes. We were all laughing so hard I think tears were rolling down our cheeks. Gotta love my kids - even if they are slightly embarrassing. Luckily the elders had a good sense of humor. Noah was sad to see them go that evening - he wants them to stay at his house forever; or at least eat dinner with him every night.
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I'm excited that on good days they are playing more an more with each other. However, I don't necessarily appreciate the mess they make in the bedrooms but I guess it is a small price to pay to have a few moments to myself. Here is a picture of Zoe sharing her food with Noah the other night - she insisted on feeding him with her fork.
They sure keep ordinary things exciting.

Another Medical Minute

Yes, there is more medical drama going on in our family. This time it centers around Noah. We are not sure what is wrong with him and are in the process of doing a lot of testing. He has several strange symptoms that on their own are nothing, but when combined can mean a number of things. He has this random AM vomiting thing he does. He'll wake up, throw up, sleep for awhile, and then be fine the rest of the day. Sometimes this is repeated the next morning, or he will be fine for a day or two and then do it again. He's probably been doing it for about 6 - 8 months, but it has gotten more frequent the past three months. He has also lost 5 lbs in the past 1 1/2 months. He eats non stop some days and other days it's hard to get him to eat anything. He also has major mood swings. Some days he is so tired that he begs to take a nap after only being up for an hour or two. The doctor also found a soft spot on his head that should have been gone by the time he was 18 months old (a symptom of thyroid problems). He passed an in office neuro exam the best a 3 year old can do. She wonders if he suffers from headaches, but at this age it is so hard to get a clear straight answer from him. We've been told it can be anything from a food allergy to something wrong neurologically as AM vomiting usually means neurological.

So far we have ruled out diabetes, his thyroid, his liver, leukemia or cancer with his recent round of blood work and urine sample. He is scheduled for an MRI with anesthesia on April 17th. If that too comes back good we will discuss sending him to an allergist to do skin testing for food allergies or a GI doctor to do a work up on his stomach.

Here are some pictures taken after his blood draw last week. He didn't even cry. Half way through he simply stated: "I don't like this!" Afterwards we took him to breakfast as he had to go in fasting to check his glucose level. He chose the Black Bear Diner and insisted on taking his Teddy Bear with him. I think in this picture he thought he would fall off into the street as I lifted him up on a retaining wall platform.
Here he is inside with his Teddy...

Showing off his battle wound...

The tech drew a nice smiley face on his bandage.

The only tears we had the entire morning are from his tape bothering him and the fact that his Daddy had to go to work. We are very proud of our Brave Boy.

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We are also feeling very blessed through this trying time. Zoe's Nursery teacher / my visiting teacher happened to be in the same Doctor's office at the same time when we first took Noah in about this and has been a big help to us. She's managed to help guide us through this as she's been in our shoes before. She picked up Zoe the morning of Noah's blood work and Zoe can't stop talking about their adventures at the park and feeding the goats. We have also received many phone calls wishing us well and offering to help in any way that they can. I feel very fortunate to be a member of the ward we are in. It truly has been an extended family and big support system for us. Here's a picture of Noah enjoying a piece of Turtle "Cheese Steak" (aka cheese cake to the rest of us) that Summer dropped off the night before his ordeal. We are so lucky to have great friends that have made us feel so loved and have made Noah feel special.

So, to all our blood relatives who look at this let us know if you have or know of any food allergies in the family. I'm supposed to be doing a little research before our next appointment. To all others if these symptoms mean anything to you, or you have an idea of what it could be, we are open to all theories.

How does your garden grow?

Here's the latest on our garden. It is still too cold to plant things outside, so our extra room has been turned into a greenhouse. As you can see our plants are doing so well that they had to be re potted. We are hoping to move things outside later this month. I keep hearing Mother's Day is the soonest we want to plant outdoors due to the freezing night temperatures we are subjected to here in the desert. Here is a glimpse of Noah helping Daddy build the garden boxes. We all had fun painting the finished product. Some of us were a little bit better at it than others. And some of us were a little more focused than others. Some even could follow directions better than others. All in all it was a good, messy time.

Zoe insisted on helping, but lost interest fast. What can you expect from a 2 year old. The only thing she can remember is: "Daddy said stop painting!" She loved laying her roller down in the dirt. She got three strikes and then she was done.

Noah was very focused on the task at hand. It was hard to get him to stop a second for a picture.She's such a cute helper....

Can you tell he loved dipping his brush in the paint can? He wanted to make sure everything was good and covered. We finally had to put the paint away in order to get him to stop painting.

All add more pictures of the finished product, once we get them filled with dirt.

Fire!

This is what we saw out our front window the other morning.... And this was the cause..... I guess the city has decided to do a little fire prevention - or maybe just clear access around the water lines and electricity transformers. I'm not sure what there intentions were, but I am sure enjoying being able to walk on the sidewalks again. Too bad they couldn't clear the whole field so we wouldn't be attacked when we are outside and it is the tiniest bit windy. The dried form is not friendly at all - they are full of thorns - and some are so large that they can cause damage to your vehicle.