Trust in the Lord...

Okay, wow, sorry it has been months since I've updated. I'm just going to assume anyone reading this has been keeping up with us through Facebook or family and friends. Too much has happened since my last post and I really want to cut to the chase with this post. So here goes... Aaron's cancer is back. I know...it sucks. Believe me, I know. But I also know that God has a plan, and I am not going to let my fear get the best of me. Here's how it's all gone down... Two months ago (in February), he had a CT scan that showed one tiny nodule in his lung, but it was so small that there was no way to tell yet if it was in fact melanoma. So the doc decided we would scan again in 2 months, and if it grows, then we know what it is and we will proceed with treatment. We discussed a plan of action if that did happen, our number one choice being an Anti PD-1 trial that would depend on if there were spots available in the trial. Then we went on our merry way, and just ignored it for the next 2 months. No use worrying over something we're not even sure we need to worry over. Fast forward 2 months to April... He had the CT scan on April 11, and we met with his oncologist April 18. He and I went to lunch before the appointment, and we talked about how we were both expecting the news to not be good, but that we were ready to move to the next step if it wasn't good news. I think we were both prepared emotionally and mentally this time around. Which is something I prayed for--that God would give us both a peace that passes all understanding and get on with what needs to be done. Maybe that means we're a little bit mad at this disease at this point and don't have much time for being sad. Whatever gets us through, right?! So we went into the appointment knowing full well what was probably coming. And sure enough, the doctor delivered the news that the nodule found in the scan in February had grown a bit (to 10mm) and there is an additional small nodule in his lung and one in front of his liver (not in his liver, so they're not even sure it's melanoma but we're going on the assumption that it is). So we did what we came to do--we said, "Okay, what's next?" The doctor initially thought Aaron didn't qualify for the Anti PD-1 trial because he thought the qualifications stated that if you had had an adverse reaction to Yervoy, you could not participate in the trial. Aaron quickly reminded him that the qualifications state that as long as you haven't been treated for the reaction in a certain amount of time, then you are good to go on the trial. (A lesson in being your own best advocate--there are great doctors out there, but no one is going to advocate for your health as much as YOU!) The doc said he would re-read the paperwork to verify, so he left to go do that. In a few minutes, he came back and went into the room next to us where another patient was waiting. We noticed a woman in a doctor's coat standing in the hallway waiting to go in to that room with some paperwork. Didn't think much of it, but then Dr. C came in with the lady (who turned out to be Christine), and said that yes, you are right, you do qualify for the trial. We were just about to offer the last spot IN THE COUNTRY to the patient in the next room but they had one thing disqualify them from the trial, and Christine has the paperwork you need to sign to get in this trial. Folks, I have NEVER in my life felt God standing right next to me, but you better believe I did in that moment. I've never felt so protected throughout this whole ordeal. Unbelievable. Aaron and I were almost speechless, but I sure could speak enough to say, "You better sign those papers as fast as you can!" Another "God" thing--one of the qualifications is that you have to have "measurable disease", which is having nodules of 10mm and above. His largest one is exactly 10mm. If it had to grow, I'd say that's a good number to stop at! If it had been one millimeter smaller, we would not be in this study. So...next step, they need fresh tissue to work with for the study, so he has a biopsy scheduled this Wednesday. This week, we should find out when he will start infusions. Which brings me to what he has to do to get what some are calling a "miracle drug" (I'm not making any promises--that's just what I've heard.) The trial is called MK-3475 anti pd-1 and it is administered through an IV infusion once every 21 days over a 30 minute time period. We don't know how long he will be doing this. It's actually quite fascinating how it is supposed to attack the cancer, but it is getting late, and I need to head for bed so I may post a blog about the "science-y" part at a later time. In the meantime... "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding." Proverbs 3:5 And pray! :-) Love you all! We could not get through this without you!

Quick Update

Aaron started feeling side effects over the weekend (GI issues, severe abdominal pain). I felt really bad for him. He basically stayed on the couch all weekend. He felt better yesterday, but not 100% so he stayed home from work. He went in today and so far has felt okay. Still not 100%, but MUCH better than Saturday. Our street had a block party Saturday evening out in our cul-de-sac and he didn't get to go out and enjoy it. The boys and I had a wonderful time--kids were FILTHY! I'm surprised the bath water didn't turn black the night! Great time was had by all. Really enjoyed meeting all the neighbors. It really created a great vibe along the whole street. Hope we do it again soon so Aaron can go. It would have been a lot more fun if I had gotten to share it with him.

Right now, we are waiting to hear from Lackland AFB (San Antonio) about orders to move us back to Texas. There is a "patient squadron" there that he will be assigned to, but obviously we need to be in Houston, so we are working on getting that squared away with tremendous efforts from his old boss in Houston. (Thanks, Mr. Hess!) :) Will keep ya'll posted on that as I get more information. I don't have any idea when this might happen, but we both have VERY mixed feelings about it. If you had asked me a year ago if I would ever choose anywhere else on Earth to live besides Texas (if I were given the choice), I would have laughed in your face. But now that we have been in California for 6 months...I LOVE it here. Our neighbors are the BEST, hands down. The weather is incredible--our kids can be outside playing almost every day of the year. There is so much to do here--and a lot we haven't gotten to do that I really wanted to do in our 4 years here. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to live here forever. But we at least wanted 4 years. That being said, with regard to Aaron's health, I feel we will be in much better hands at MD Anderson. Honestly, UCLA has not instilled much confidence in us that they are doing the very best to treat Aaron's illness. I know at this point MD Anderson will do the same treatment (Yervoy) that UCLA is doing, but it's the patient "care" at UCLA that makes us question their ability to do the very best. MD Anderson is the #1 cancer treatment facility; UCLA falls in at #10. We have seen the difference between #1 and #10. And this just isn't cutting it. We are understandably scared, and we need the best right now. Okay, I'll get off my soap box. :) Like I said, I will keep you all informed on what I find out regarding Aaron's medical reassignment. (This turned out a lot longer than I intended!) Have a blessed day!

The News We Were Expecting...

I'm just going to blurt it out...it's Melanoma. Aaron had the biopsy on Wednesday, and he had an appointment to start immunotherapy infusions on Friday. We're still not sure why they made the appointment when they didn't know whether the pathology report would be back yet. We are pretty frustrated with the lack of communication that goes on at UCLA. Someone in the office where the infusions take place called on Thursday to confirm the appointment, and when Aaron asked if the biopsy results were in--because why would we start the treatment if the biopsy came back negative for melanoma--the lady "looked it up" and said, yes, the results are back. We were quite surprised by this because this was only about 24 hours after the biopsy took place. So...she obviously couldn't tell us what the results were--that has to be done by a doctor, so we asked if she could have the doctor call us. We never heard anything. We went in Friday morning for the scheduled (but unneeded) infusion appointment, and since we didn't have biopsy results yet, we spoke to the doctor first (Dr. Chmielowski--pronounced Him-a-lou-ski). He told us Aaron would not be starting the Yervoy infusion (which is immunotherapy, not chemotherapy as some genius at UCLA misinformed us) because the biopsy results were not back yet and probably would not be until Monday. We were obviously very anxious before we spoke with the doctor and I am almost glad we didn't have any news at that point because it gave us the clarity to ask Dr. C all the questions we needed to ask. We also had time to relax and just put this out of our minds until Monday. Let's just enjoy our weekend, is what we decided.

Then we got the call that confirmed our suspicions. Dr. Chmielowski called around 4:30 on Friday afternoon and said that yes, the cells they took in the biopsy tested positive for melanoma. However, they were not able to perform the genetic mutation analysis that they needed to do in order to determine if Aaron could get the latest drug that was just approved by the FDA last week (Zelboraf) because the cells they took out were dead cells. Which, in my understanding, means that Aaron's body is already fighting this nasty disease and is killing them off. Even without the immunotherapy. As I said, that is what I took away from that--I am not a doctor, so I could be totally wrong. But we are ready to fight whatever remains in his body with healthy diet and the Yervoy treatments.

Aaron will begin the Yervoy immunotherapy infusions on Monday at 2pm. It takes 90 minutes to receive a full dose, and he will receive the doses every 3 weeks for 4 total doses. (So a total of 12 weeks.) The side effects of the therapy are very minimal especially when compared with traditional chemotherapies. There won't be any hair loss, nausea, lethargy or other completely debilitating side effects. The most severe could be some gastro-intestinal issues and potentially a skin rash. This will be quite appreciated as the Interferon treatments he received last October were very rough, with respect to side effects. At the end of the doses, they will perform another CT scan to see if anything remains. It WILL be gone! God WILL see us through this!

I am completely humbled and overwhelmed at the amount of prayers being lifted up on our behalf. We want you all to know that we love and appreciate every single one of you, and your prayers are not going unheard! We feel God's presence every minute of every day! I will never be able to express how thankful I am that you all care so much about my husband and our family. Thank you thank you thank you! Praise be to God, our Great Physician!

What we're facing...

I have been dreading writing this post for a couple of weeks now, but I want all of you to know what is going on right now and I thought this would be the best way to make sure everyone knows all the information I have about this ugly monster that is rearing its head in our lives again.

Just to recap: As most of you know, about a year ago (almost exactly), Aaron was diagnosed with Stage 3 Melanoma. He had surgery to remove a cancerous mole from his back as well as 2 lymph nodes to determine whether it had spread to those lymph nodes. One of the lymph nodes came back with less than 10 cells testing positive for melanoma. So the good people at MD Anderson performed a 2nd surgery on him to remove all of the lymph nodes from his left side. They all cam back free and clear of cancer. He also underwent 4 weeks of immunotherapy infusions to further combat any rogue cells that may have been lurking in his body. We got through that and put all of this behind us. He goes to the dermatologist every 3 months to get checked for moles, and he also has to have regular CT scans to look for any masses in his body. Which brings us to the last 4 months...

Back in April just after we moved to California, he had a CT scan at UCLA Medical Center, which is where his doctor at MD Anderson referred him to. They found a couple of spots on his lungs that had not been there before (both were 4mm in size), so they said it could just be an infection, so we'll do another scan in 3 months to see if they are still there and whether there has been any change. Which brings us to the last 2 weeks...

On August 9 (Tuesday) he went in for his CT scan. On August 10, he went in to go over the results with his doctor. The spots in his lungs have grown, one is now 7mm and the other is 12mm. Panic immediately set in (for us anyway, not for the seemingly incompetent staff at UCLA Medical Center--don't even get me started on them), and my mom flew out on Thursday and Aaron's mom got here on Friday. My mom stayed that weekend, and Aaron's mom is still here to help with the boys and whatnot while we go to appointments and make decisions. Aaron had a brain MRI last week that came back normal, which means nothing has spread there, thank God. But the big indicator of what our next move is will be the biopsy he is having tomorrow morning. The biopsy is on the actual spots on his lungs and will determine whether it is an infection or we are dealing with cancer. We are obviously praying for the former, but with his history, it's most likely the latter. He already has an appointment scheduled to begin chemo infusions on Friday. I'm not sure why they are beginning the infusions when we may not even have the results of the biopsy by then, but maybe they just want to be ready for it. We're not sure when we'll have the results of the biopsy. I assume they'll tell us tomorrow when we go for the biopsy. The chemo they will be doing is Yervoy, and there is also a new drug that was just approved by the FDA (you've probably seen it on the news in the past week or so) to treat melanoma. It's called Zelboraf, and they are talking about doing that too. You can click on both of those links to learn more about the treatments.

Another possibility is that if the biopsy comes back saying it is cancer, we do have the option of returning to MD Anderson in Houston. We have already been consulting with his doctors there and we want to be treated by the best. I think what will happen is that if they have a different plan of attack than UCLA does, we will go with theirs. We're not sure of the logistics of getting back to Houston right now, we are just trying to make one decision at a time.

Please pray that we will be strong but at peace during this time. The scary part of the biopsy is that the outcome is already decided. It's not like a test you can study for and either ace it or fail it. God already knows whether there is cancer in my husband's body, we just have to wait and find out ourselves, and then be ready for battle if needed. We are ready to fight and we will win. I will accept no less than a win. Thank you all for your support and constant prayer. I know God is hearing those prayers and He will take care of us in our time of need. We love you all, and we could not do this without you.

I will try to keep this updated frequently so that you all know what is happening. I will post on Facebook any time I do an update on here so if you are on Facebook, you will see there when there is something else to read.

Oh my, it's been a while...

Oops! I have obviously let this blog go to the wayside a bit. Oh well, better late than never. Not making any promises, but I am going to try to revive this thing. Starting with...

I am now a California girl! And no, I do not wear Daisy Dukes with a bikini on top. I just threw up in my mouth a little bit! We have made it to our next adventure in our Air Force life. Aaron is now stationed at Los Angeles AFB in El Segundo. I am quickly falling in love with this place. It is absolutely gorgeous here! We can see the water and Catalina Island out our back door--amazing! This was a hard move to make considering we are Texans and always will be, and we made such a great life in League City. But I have felt God's presence comforting me throughout the whole process of getting here. Before we moved here, I had never even visited California, so this was quite a scary jump. And I'm still scared, but it has been such a great experience thus far. We have absolutely wonderful neighbors! We live in a cul-de-sac, and literally within 30 seconds of us driving up to our house when we rolled into town, our kids were playing with the neighbor kids. They've been having a blast.

Our trip out here couldn't have gone any better. The kids did great on the road--such little troopers! And Boone did great too! We left our house in League City on March 11 (after a good cry) in 2 separate cars and drove to my mom's in Celina. Trent rode with me, and Drew rode with Aaron. We spent the night there and the next morning, a lot of our family members came over for breakfast/brunch and to say our goodbyes before we went further on our journey. A great time was had by all, and the only time I cried was when my sister and my new brother-in-law had to leave to go meet with their realtor. They just got married on February 25 after being together for 5 (or 6?) years, and I am so saddened that I can't be right there close to them to share in this special time in their new life together. They are currently searching for a house to buy, so keep them in your prayers. We do get to Skype with them frequently so that helps!

We took off from my mom's some time Saturday afternoon (this time, both boys rode with Aaron so I could get some quiet time!) and headed for Lubbock to stay with our best friends, Laura and Kyle (and Garrett and Carson). We stayed there a couple of nights because we wanted to take our boys to the Tech campus and take pictures. I really envy Laura and Kyle being in Lubbock and getting to take their boys to games. All 8 of us went to eat lunch at Spanky's on Sunday and then we went over to the campus and walked around to all the different landmarks that Trent has read about in his "Hello, Masked Rider" book. He knew what all of them were. The weather was perfect! We took tons of pictures, and it was one of the best days I have had in a while. To be able to walk around my alma mater with my best friend and watch our kids play together...wow. That's a memory I will always cherish. We went to Red Raider Outfitter to see if there was anything we just couldn't live without (Trent got a really cool hat), and then we went to The Arrogant Texan (quite appropriate--love it!), which is a candy store right across from campus. They have Amy's Ice Cream, which is made in Austin, and they have so many awesome flavors--even Shiner Bock and Guinness! Aaron got the Shiner ice cream and I tried it--I am not a beer drinker, but if Shiner tasted like that ice cream, I would drink the heck out of it!

Monday morning, we got up and headed for Albuquerque. Both boys rode with me that day. As soon as we got there, we headed for Aaron's sister Jenn's new kid's play club, Red Light Green Light, so our boys could play with their cousins. The place has really turned out great, and I am so proud of Jenn for having this vision and making it happen! Trent, Drew, Kody, and Jaxson had a great time together. We had good old Dion's pizza (Aaron's absolute fave) for dinner, and Jenn made us "Bull's Eyes" for breakfast Tuesday morning--yum! We weren't there very long, but we packed a lot of fun and catching up into that very short time.

After breakfast, we got in the car to head for Florence, AZ (Drew with me, Trent with Aaron), where Aaron's mom just built a house. Literally--they just moved in March 1st, so we were their first guests. The house looks amazing, and they have a great playground in their neighborhood that we took the boys to Tuesday evening. Again, we weren't there very long, but we had a great time, and we are glad we are a bit closer to Sally and Dennis so we can visit a little more often!

Wednesday morning was our last and longest day of driving--450 miles from Florence to San Pedro. Whew! I sure was glad to be out of that car!

So, 1800 miles later, we are now living in California. I never imagined I would live in California, but I am so glad to be here! Come to think of it, I also never imagined I would be glad to be here! Aaron and I have talked about how much League City meant to us. So much about who we are was formed in League City. We bought our first house there, had our 2nd (and probably last) child there, we found and fell in love with our church and both grew in our relationship with Christ, Aaron was diagnosed with and overcame Stage III melanoma...the list goes on and on. Yet here we are on the next leg of our journey, and we're so happy to be here, and I am so glad I have him to do this with! More soon...

Video: Happy Trails

Am I on top of stuff or what?! This stuff just happened TODAY and I'm already done blogging about it! There are several posts below.

Video: Goodbye Kindergarten (to the tune of "The Mickey Mouse Club" theme song)

Video: I Just Can't Wait For 1st Grade (to the tune of "I Just Can't Wait to Be King" from The Lion King)

Video: The Kindergarten Class (to the tune of "The Addams Family")

Video: Nursery Rhyme Rap

Kindergarten Graduation/End of the Year Hawaiian Luau

Today was an emotional day for me. I watched my first-born complete the milestone of getting through his kindergarten year. I cannot express how proud I am of him. I am also very freaked out by how quickly this school year passed by! It makes me scared that the next 12 years are going to go by as quickly as this one did, and before I know it, he will be heading off to college and becoming a man. I'm not ready for that! But people, it's coming!

This year has been such a wonderful opportunity for my Trent. He got to go to a brand spankin' new school and if we were staying here indefinitely, he would be a part of the first class to go all the way from Kindergarten through 12th grade in the Education Village. What an honor to be part of that! I wish we could stay here forever. But the Air Force obviously has different plans for us.

Trent also had the privilege of having who I think is one of the best teachers I have ever met, for his introduction into his school years. Mrs. Nicole Duckett is simply the BEST there is! I can't say enough good things about her. She has truly been my dream-come-true teacher for Trent.

Trent has become an awesome reader, writer, story-teller, scientist, and just an overall great person. I'm so excited for what the future has in store for this boy. Now let's get to the pictures from this momentous occasion!

They had a presentation first, where the kids sang songs that they have been practicing, and then everyone headed back to their respective classrooms to celebrate with diplomas, awards, and food!

Class of 2022 Kindergarten graduation--the first at Mossman Elementary



I told Drew to say "cheese" and this is what I got! LOL



4 of the 6 Kindergarten teachers (Mrs. Duckett is the 2nd from the right)


Principal Stephanie McBride

He caught sight of his Bubba, and his face just lit up! :)

The whole Kinder class

My sweet boy!

Back in the classroom

Trent got the "Awesome Achiever" award! So proud of him!

Kindergarten diploma and Awesome Achiever award

Chowing down

Trent and Mrs. Duckett :)

Trent and Jackie, sittin' in a tree! :) I was remarking on how cute they are, and Jackie's dad said, "Yeah, it's cute now, but in a few years, watch out!" LOL!

Me and my big baby and my little baby!

Soccer party Spring 2010

The FC Rockets had an end of season party and trophy presentation last Thursday (May 27th) at Mr. Gatti's. Here are a few pictures from the evening...

Trent with Coach Rick and Coach Sean



Coach Rick, our "team Mom" Rachel (she rocks!), and Coach Sean



The boys dancing



Drew dancing




Trent, Jayden, and Drew

3 visits from the Tooth Fairy

Trent has now had 3 visits from the tooth fairy!

The top 2 adult teeth are coming in!

Urgh! This is a long post!

I am so not doing well keeping up with this blog. We have been sooooo busy lately! I swear, once your kids are in school, May is just another Christmas-time-in-hiding...except you don't get any presents! Ha ha. We've been having lots of fun, and I absolutely CANNOT believe that Trent's kindergarten year is almost over! How did this happen?!

I totally missed posting about our trip to Florida for the shuttle launch. Back in April, we flew out to FL to meet Aaron (who had been there for a few weeks preparing his payload to go on the shuttle). My mom drove down to Houston to fly with the boys and me, thank goodness. I would not have made it without her! Aaron's mom and sister and our nephew flew out there too. We had such a great time. We stayed in a condo right on the beach and woke up every day to some of the most beautiful sunrises I have ever witnessed. And of course, the shuttle launch was pretty much the coolest thing I've ever seen!

This is a crappy picture because we have a crappy camera, but let's face it...no picture will ever do justice to seeing it in person!

I want to go back and see another launch! As soon as it was over (which was very quickly), I immediately wanted more. Too bad the shuttle is being retired. :( We are going to try to go to maybe the last launch, just Aaron and I. And he won't be working for that one, so I may actually get to see him while we're in Florida! :) I didn't see him much while we were there, other than the day of the launch. We woke up at 1am that day to go get on the shuttle bus over to the VIP viewing area (pretty much the closest you can be to the launch pad without having your eyebrows singed off!) so we spent the rest of that day just recovering from being up so early. Poor Trent didn't take a nap all day, so during dinner he fell asleep at the restaurant in his chair, in the middle of eating a roll! It was quite funny! Moving on because I have a lot to cover...

Trent's class field day was May 7. Fun, fun, fun, and the weather was pretty perfect. Aaron got to go with us too, which was an awesome bonus. Now that his shuttle payload is done, he has lots more time to be with us for fun stuff like that.

Potato sack race!

Trent's class won the Spirit Award! Out of 6 kindergarten classes! I was so proud!

On May 14, my sister graduated from the Collin College Dental Hygiene program! Since it was a Friday and Trent had school, Drew and I drove up to Dallas that Thursday evening and got to attend the pinning ceremony. She has waited for and worked toward this day for a long time, and I could not be more proud of her! She ROCKS! Today is her birthday, and she is also starting her 1st day as a dental hygienist. I can't even begin to describe what this huge step means for her. Did I mention I am super proud of her?! :)

My beautiful sister Traci with her 1st place Table Clinic award and also the Golden Scaler Award! (Google it--it's a BIG deal in the hygiene world!)

Granny, Mom, Traci, and me

On May 20, Trent's class went on a field trip to Space Center Houston. I volunteered to be a chaperone and was in charge of these 3 sweet boys...

Aidan, Trent, and Bodin

Seriously, when I saw the list of what kids went with which chaperone, I said, "Yes! I got the quiet ones!" :) We had lots of fun, and they were all so well-behaved. Trent got to volunteer to see what it's like living in space! Here he is, "sleeping" in space...

The very next day (the 21st), we headed back up to Dallas to go to the Jimmy Buffett concert on May 22. We went with my sister, her boyfriend John, and my aunt and uncle, Donna and Kenneth. We tailgated before the concert and had so much fun, drinking margaritas, eating chips for dinner--LOL--and talking. The concert was awesome...it was my first time seeing Jimmy, as well as Aaron's, Traci's, and John's. Donna and Kenneth are big parrotheads so they have seen him several times. Here's a few pics from tailgating. I didn't get good pictures during the concert because we were kind of far from the stage...we didn't care though! :)

Me and my hubby

Me, Donna, and Traci

Traci and Aaron

Donna and Kenneth

John eating something, I think!

And one more quick photo...On May 26, Trent's soccer team--the FC Rockets--along with their siblings and some friends, got the opportunity to play soccer with 3 of the players from the MLS team, the Houston Dynamo. How cool! The 3 players were #16 Craig Waibel, #2 Eddie Robinson, and #5 Danny Cruz. They were really good with the kids. They ran some drills with the kiddos, and then the 3 of them took on about 20 kids in a game. It was hysterical--they had the adults cracking up, and the kids had SO much fun! Anyway, here's a picture of the guys with Trent's soccer team (plus a few extra kids).

And that's all I will write for now...More to come...I hope! :)

Running

I obviously have not kept up with my blog for anything, and that includes the progress I have made in running. I have actually worked my way up to running for 30 minutes without stopping. The other day I ran outside for the first time (I usually run on the treadmill), and it went great. On the treadmill, I usually only get about 2.5 miles in 30 minutes. So I was quite nervous about ever running a 5K because I didn't want to embarrass myself. But I knew that running outside was completely different. I wanted to get a baseline for running a 5K, so I mapped out a 3 mile route on Map My Run. I was finished in 32 minutes! I was so proud of myself. I guess I have been holding myself back on the treadmill. It really is a mental thing. But when you don't know how fast you're going when you're outside, you can surprise yourself. And I totally did! I was shocked when I looked at my watch when I was done, especially because I felt like I was crawling at some points when I was running into the wind.

So...my next step will be to run a 5K. I haven't decided when I will do that, but as soon as I find one and sign up for it, I will be sure to write about it here!

Shuttle launch

This has been in the works for quite some time, but I have not had time to blog about it. But I am so excited--we are going to Florida from April 1-6 to see the STS-131 launch of space shuttle Discovery!


Aaron's payload that he has been working on for it seems like forever is going up on this shuttle. I can't even tell you how many hours he has spent on this--being out of town almost every other week, "getting off work" only to come home and work for the rest of the evening and weekends via computer and phone...he has sacrificed a lot to get this done. Don't ask me what it is though, because I have no idea! :) Most of what my husband does is way over my head! All I know is that it is a DOD-approved science experiment. That is the extent of my knowledge. Hee hee!


Anyway, so he has to go to KSC (Kennedy Space Center) on March 22, and we will be joining him April 1. My mom is coming down here to Houston to fly with the boys and me (thank goodness--I was not looking forward to flying alone with 2 children), and we will be meeting Aaron's mom and sister Jenn and our nephew Kody there. We have a few days to do some fun stuff with the kids, and then the launch is on April 5 at 6:30am. I am PRAYING that it doesn't slip because planning this trip has taken a lot of effort and time. If we get there and don't get to see the launch before we have to come home on the 6th, I am going to be so upset! This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing for us, and I am so excited that it is something Trent will actually remember. How cool is it that he will be able to say he saw one of the last shuttle launches ever! And we are so excited to get to share this with our families. We haven't seen Jenn and her family in a few years, so they have never met Drew in person. It's going to be such a fun trip! Can't wait!

Losing teeth

Trent has now lost 2 teeth! He lost the first one on December 30.

He really started to talk with a lisp after he lost the first one. It was so cute!! He may still do it, but it may not be as noticeable to me anymore.

The second one he lost was at the Houston Marathon that Aaron ran on January 17. This is him when we first got there, waiting for Daddy to cross the finish line...

You have to look really close, but you can see that there's still only one tooth missing. After Aaron was done with the marathon, we were all hanging out celebrating, and I gave Trent a crunchy granola bar. That must have been when the tooth came out. We had some friends there that we hadn't seen in a while and we told Trent to show them his missing tooth. So he did, and I did a double take and said, "Where is your other tooth?!" Apparently it's somewhere in downtown Houston...or he swallowed it. Only God knows! So this is him after we realized the tooth was gone.

So...what do you do about leaving your tooth under your pillow for the tooth fairy when you have no tooth? This is what parenting is all about...improvisation! We had Trent write a letter to the tooth fairy explaining the situation. Here's what it said:

Dear Tooth Fairy,

I lost a tooth. No really, I lost my tooth. I cannot find my tooth.

Love,

Trent

HYSTERICAL!!! I love that son of mine!

Kindergarten Drama

I know I haven't blogged in FOREVER, but I just had to write this story down so I could have a record of it.

I went to Trent's school today to volunteer and to take some boxes of Kleenex to his teacher. As I was walking to the classroom, they were on their way out to go to recess. I stopped to say hi to Trent and I could tell something was wrong, so I asked him what was wrong. He didn't really respond. About that time, Mrs. Duckett was passing by me and said, "Lover's quarrel." (Trent has a girlfriend in his class named Jackie. They've been an "item" for quite some time.) I just said, "Uh-oh" and went on to the classroom to drop off the Kleenex's. Mrs. Duckett came back in real quick while I was in there, so I asked her what happened. She said she wasn't really sure but apparently they were yelling at each other at lunch. So I went on about my volunteering and she came and found me a little while later and said, "Ok, I got the scoop at recess!" :) Trent had to sit out for a few minutes (because he was talking--surprise), so while he was sitting there, she said he looked so sad so she asked him what happened with Jackie. He started crying! He said that Jackie said Ethan was her boyfriend and not Trent anymore. Mrs. Duckett told him that she loves him and his mommy loves him, and it's going to be okay. I went to the classroom later to talk to her about something else, and the kids were in there so I got to see Trent and give him a hug, and he actually seemed fine at that point.

Fast forward to a few minutes ago when Trent got home. He told me that he had a little trouble today, but that it was all worked out now.

Me: "Oh? What happened?"
Trent: "Jackie changed her boyfriend to Ethan, but then Ethan changed it back."
Me: "How did she change her boyfriend?"
Trent: "She did Eeny Meeny Miney Moe, and it was Ethan." (I about fell out of my chair at this point laughing!)
Me: "So how did it end up?"
Trent: "Ethan told Jackie, 'I'm not yours', so it changed back to me."

Sounds like Ethan is a pretty good friend! :)

All because of an ill-fated game of Eeny Meeny Miney Moe!

I promise I will catch up with my blogging soon!

Week 1--Done!

1 week down, 7 to go in my beginner's running program.

I already posted Days 1 and 2, so I'll start with Day 3...

Day 3--12/15 Tuesday
Run 1 min, Walk 2 min, repeat 10x=total 30 minutes
On the treadmill--I went 2.27 miles and burned 227 calories.

Day 4--12/16 Wednesday
Walk 30 minutes
On the treadmill--1.92 miles, burned 173 calories.

Day 5--12/17 Thursday
Run 1 min, Walk 2 min, repeat 10x=total 30 minutes
On the treadmill--2.32 miles, burned 235 calories

Day 6--12/18 Friday
Run 1 min, Walk 2 min, repeat 10x=total 30 minutes
On the treadmill--2.37 miles, burned 246 calories

Day 7--12/19 Saturday
Rest

Weight loss: -2 or 3 lbs. (I fluctuate about this much anyway, so I'm not sure if it's actually weight that I've lost, or just fluctuation.)

I feel pretty good so far. I increased my speed just a tad on my "run" days. I feel like I could push myself a little more when I'm running, but I'm taking it easy so I don't overdo it.

The quote for the week in the article is this...

"Sit as little as possible. Give no credence to any thought that was not born outdoors while moving about freely." --Friedrich Nietzsche

I don't know about the outdoors part because it's been a little chilly lately, :) but I'm trying to follow the "sit as little as possible" part. I tend to get in ruts where I feel like all I do is sit...in front of the TV, in front of the computer (which is what I'm doing now!). And then nothing gets done around the house--the laundry and dishes pile up, the house is a mess...and then I get so overwhelmed that I don't know where to start to get any of it done. It's a vicious cycle. So I'm trying to keep moving. I may be exhausted at the end of the day, and I may not get it all done, but if I just keep moving, something is bound to get done! :) Okay, enough deep thought...time to get moving!

Halfway to 1st Grade

I didn't really think of this as a milestone. But when Trent came home from school today, it hit me...he's halfway through his kindergarten year. How can that be possible? It seriously seems like maybe a month ago that I was fighting back tears as I dropped him off for his first day. I know I'll be saying that again at the end of the year, and again at the end of every school year after that. He brought home a bag full of things that he's worked on this first semester, and it makes me so proud. There were a couple of gifts in there that he made in class (with a little help from his teacher--you can tell she put a lot of time into them). There were 2 ornaments that are so perfect and so touching. It's reasons like this that I adore his teacher. Mrs. Duckett has been wonderful to him and to me. I try to help her out as much as I can because I truly appreciate everything she does for her students. She is an incredible teacher with such a passion for what she does. It seems to come so naturally to her. I appreciate her more than she'll ever know. And Trent adores her too.

I'm so proud of my kindergartener! He's so smart and creative and funny and sweet!!