The Month of May

Before I get started on May, I want to tell you about 2 special events that happened in April.  I cannot believe I forgot to mention these in the last blog post. 

Brylee's Baby Dedication was April 21st, and John Reagan had been asking to be baptized for a while.  So we did his baptism the same morning.  So so sweet!

I will have more pictures and a separate post on these later when I get my pictures downloaded.  I happened to find these 2 mixed in with some pictures of my mom's I downloaded.

As for May, therapy started for Evie.  We made it through our 12 visits fitting them in between 2 separate school pick ups.  Whew!  It's amazing how a one hour appointment 3 days a week can exhaust you.  They have exhausted everyone.  We have had some whiny kiddos from all the running with baseball, therapy, Pre-K graduation, 6 doctors appointments, and sickness galore.

Evie's therapy has been extended, and this time we don't know for how long.  She will be doing PT with her OT as well.  Now we have 2 hour visits.  Thank God school is out!  The sickness started with Brylee at the first of the month.  She had an ear infection thanks to congestion we cannot seem to get rid of.  Then Averi's tube fell out of her left ear.  We suspected an ear infection caused it, and sure enough, she had 2 ear infections.  I have yet to dig out the right tube.  Our follow up appointment is Thursday, and they will get it out.  We can see it.  It's just too far back to get with tweezers.  John Reagan was next to get hit with the allergy bug.  Then Evie got a stomach bug; now, Greg and I are running fever, swollen glands, sore throats, nausea, and anything else you can think of in between.  Since we got sick, Evie and Averi have thrown up.  I can honestly say since we have had children this is only the second time it has been bad enough to say, "Are we ever going to get better?"  The first time...this last fall.  As a tribute to the sickness post I added pictures of the kiddos passed out.

We found Evie curled up in her tee pee one night.

 And this is Averi's thing.  She usually sticks a pillow under her or stuffed animal to go to sleep.  She decided to try the couch a few times.  And yes, she is passed out!  She made Greg move, so she could do this.

I couldn't find one of John Reagan asleep, but I believe this shows his true personality.

We have had about all we can stand of this Louisiana weather.  If we are outside for more than an hour at least 2 of us come in with swollen throats and runny noses.  Needless to say, we are ready to leave this month behind and all be well.

A First!

The new year brought about a first in the Hasley Household...a broken bone!

Evie broke her elbow on February 25th.  And when she broke it, she fixed it up good.  We had an extra couch in the living room (that was supposed to already be gone).  This couch was in front of the door with the small basketball goal on it.  Sister was mocking brother and trying to dunk the ball by climbing on the couch. When she came done, she lost her footing and fell.

I was about to lose it because this was the fourth time she had fallen on this day doing random things.  Thank God I caught myself and told myself to wait and see if she was really hurt.  When she came up, I knew it wasn't good.  There was no drama!!  For Evie, that speaks volumes.  She had a look of shock on her face while holding her left arm.  When I moved it I could feel shards of bone shifting. 

Daddy wasn't here.  He was out getting supper.  I was feeding Brylee, Averi was beside me crying, and John Reagan was in my face talking.  Let's just say...whew!!

The local ER confirmed broken arm, sent us home with a sling, and set up an appointment with the orthopedic the next day.  While trying to work out insurance stuff at the appointment, the orthopedic was nice enough to go ahead and look at her x-rays.  He immediately said she would need surgery and told us we needed to head to LSU Health Center in Shreveport.  After a ridiculous 9 hour ER visit, they had us scheduled for surgery and put us in a room.  Poor Evie!  She was such a big girl.  Basically Evie broke her elbow, shifted it to the wrong side of the arm and fractured her upper arm bone.  She screamed more over the IV than she did her arm.  She ended up with three pins in the elbow shooting up thru the upper arm with a splint.  We were in the hospital one more day.  She didn't want to go home because we were doing everything for her, and everyone was being so sweet to her.  She said it was lots more fun in the hospital than at home.

A week after surgery, she finally got her pink cast!!

 

The pink cast lasted for 3 weeks, then we got the pins out exactly a month after they were put in.  We are now in occupational therapy because she can't stretch her arm out all the way, and she can't lift it in and close it all the way.  I know Evie's case is an exception, but I asked Greg one day, what happened to breaking your arm, going to the ER, getting a cast, and 6 weeks later going to the doctor, getting the cast off, and being done.  We have been through 2 surgeries, had 7 doctors appointments, and 6 therapies.  We still have at least 2 doctors appointments and 7 therapy sessions left.  Then we will have a yearly follow up because with this injury there is a high risk of the growth plate not forming right.  So to say Evie did this well is an understatement.  I even asked the doctor how she ended up with such a severe injury because I saw the whole thing and was having a hard time grasping what was going on.

I cannot end this blog without adding a side note about our experience with LSUS Hospital and Clinic.  Oh My Word!  Awful!  Our first clinic visit...our appointment was at 8:30.  We got there at 8:00.  At 3:00 p.m. I asked for pain medicine for Evie because we had not been back yet.  We left at 5:05 p.m., and they jumped us up in line by at least 10 people.  A 4 year old was left to sit there 9 hours without being able to leave for lunch.  Evie was such a big girl and really did great!  I will leave the complaining with that story.  There is so much more to be said.

Evie is making great strides in therapy, and we are hopeful that this journey will soon end.  We are believing that her growth plate will form normal, and she will not need any more surgeries.   

...And baby makes 6

Brylee Keegan

arrived December 27, 2012 at 11:00 am.

She weighed 7 lbs. 8 oz. and was 20 1/2" long.

From the moment she arrived she was ready to eat.

This was a great blessing because it helped us go home in 24 hours instead of waiting the usual 48.

Big brother and big sisters were so proud of her and still are.  Greg took them to the nursery to see Brylee, and Averi did not want to leave.  She wanted to be with Brylee at all times.

As you can see, she is a growing girl.  We only thought Evie was our chunky baby.  By 2 months, Brylee weighed 13 lbs. 2 oz. and was 24" inches long...2 lbs. more than Evie at that age.  She is a great baby.  She wakes up smiling and is usually smiling when she goes to sleep.  She is extremely calm.  She doesn't pay much attention to the loud activity taking place around her unless the wild activity comes to her face.  It often does.  As with the other 2 girls, no one can keep their hands off.  Many family members were concerned about how Averi would react when Brylee arrived.  She has been an awesome big sister.  She can't keep her hands off Brylee and is constantly kissing on her.  Averi loves when Brylee smiles at her.  

Twice in the past week I have said I don't know how we would be surviving if Brylee wasn't such a happy baby.  When the 3 older ones are falling apart at the same time, Brylee's just sitting there looking around like nothing is going on.  When she has her occasional fussy time, it seems to always be when the other 3 are content.  This is a huge THANK GOD since Evie broke her arm.  God always knows what we need when we need it, including calm babies.

December

We had a fun and festive December this year. We stayed busy but tried to slow down and enjoy the kiddos before we brought baby Brylee home.

The girls had a good 'ole time grooming daddy one night. Can you see the 2 brushes in Averi's hand? Brother even got involved temporarily. The girls love to brush and fix hair. They just don't want you messing with their hair.

We did our annual gingerbread house! However, this year it was not a "traditional" gingerbread house. Averi is not a good shopper, especially in the mornings. So I grabbed the kit one morning in a hurry and didn't realize until I got home that it was a chocolate kit where I had to melt the chocolate, pour it in the mold, then put it together. I was quite frustrated, but it was the easiest one yet.

 
The kiddos loved it! I wouldn't let them touch it until I got a picture. Thirty minutes later I was very thankful for this "wisdom" because one side of the roof was gone. The house survived all of 3 days.
You can see how much Averi cared about what was going on. As long as she is in the vicinity of what you are doing, she could care less if she is involved or not.

We also painted Christmas trees on white ceramic plates. This was the kids' favorite activity. I didn't include any pictures because they are not allowed to play with sharpies with their clothes on. Get my drift?

Our next big event was Evie's school Christmas program. She played Mary and loved every minute of it. Afterwards, Mrs. Steffanie asked me if Evie played with baby dolls very much. When I said no, she replied with, "I didn't think so." She said she had to "coach" Evie on how to rock the baby. Evie didn't stop rocking the baby until she handed the baby over.

John Reagan played Joseph in the church Christmas program. He was less than excited about it. He had to sit on stage for 20-30 minutes. He played with the hay. He played with his fingernails. He did anything and everything he could to preoccupy himself. We could tell he was very bored.

I had to throw in one last picture of Averi. This is how she dressed herself to play outside one night while Daddy, brother, and sister were doing fireworks. How nice!

We had a great Christmas...the best one yet with the kiddos. Then we rushed to get decorations down and get ready to bring Brylee home, who arrived 2 days after Christmas.

I realize I am a little late on this post.  I have been working on it for over 3 weeks now.  I always forget how little time I have to get things done once a newborn gets here.  We are finally starting to get our routine back now that it has been 8 weeks.

Busy Times!

Things went a little crazy on us around here, and I had forgotten to blog.  I am back for now.  Averi went into the hospital the night of December 2nd with croup.  It hit her hard and fast, and she had the whole emergency room staff freaking out.  Thankfully she responded to the medicine quickly.  It wasn't anything 2 days in the hospital didn't cure.  The doctor said it is not common to have a recurrence of croup, but if it does happen it is never as bad as the first time.  Thank God for that!

Now to play catch up since August:

Evie had her first day of Pre-K in the middle of September.  It started 2 weeks later than normal because they just built a new children's wing that is great.  Evie loves every minute of it.  She has the same teacher as John Reagan had.  Poor Mrs. Steffanie has found out real quick that Miss Evie is not like John Reagan.  She has even commented several times on how Evie likes to talk.  Evie is also one of those who hears every word you say; however, it is questionable on whether she will actually do what is you say.  So you can imagine how that goes in the classroom.

 We celebrated Greg's and Averi's birthday in September as well.  Averi turned 2!  I still can't believe Little Miss Petite is 2.  She is a fireball to say the least.  And fearless.  She will attempt anything.  It is only by the grace of God we have not made several trips to the Emergency Room.  That and the fact that we pray over her all the time because she is just like her daddy, who by Averi's age had already experienced multiple broken bones.

We did our annual pumpkin carving in October with Greg's parents, Pawcaw and Nana.  Last year Pawcaw missed out because of work, but he made up for it this year.  John Reagan had Daddy's help with his pumpkin.

Evie had Nana's help.

Averi could have cared less about what was going on.  She spent all her time chasing Max with the dump truck.  Max loved it, of course.  Anytime he can get attention from the kiddos, he is in heaven.

Mommy spent my time taking pictures galore.

The finished products...

We also did a family campfire in October.  This is a favorite activity of the all 3 kids.  Anytime the weather gets slightly cool, they start asking and hagging until we get around to it.

How John Reagan likes to eat his campfire supper!

Averi just used the bread as a plate.  She picked everything out of it.

This is the season of the year we make and keep our family traditions, from pumpkin carving to campfires to gingerbread house making.  That will come next blog if baby doesn't come first.

August

I wish I had lots to say about the month of August, but truth be told, I don't remember much about it.  That is not good. 

The big event for the month was John Reagan starting 1st Grade.

 I look at these pictures and think, "Wow!  He has really grown."  But these pictures don't do justice to him right now.  He has grown so much since.  He looks like a 1st grader now and acts like one.  My buddy is growing up.  Sniff, sniff!  You know with John Reagan, there always has to be a silly picture.  Like his daddy he just can't help himself.

I'm a little worried Evie is the same way!

I thought you would be able to see the girls a little better in this picture.  This is mostly what August consisted of...playing outside as much as possible before school started.

I am having a hard time fathoming that this was 3 months ago.  All three of the kids have grown considerably since then.

John Reagan is doing well in school and loves it.  We have not had any problems with getting him into class this year.  Thank God!  His favorite part of it...he gets 3 recesses.  This is a very big deal to him.  He is so funny!

Evie and Averi have enjoyed their time together...just the 2 of them.  They have played extremely well together and honestly needed this time to bond. 

The biggest deal has been that we have all turned into morning people.  Greg's mom said not too long ago that she never thought she would see the day we were morning people.  It is true!  It is scary!

Evie turns 4!

Our Evie girl turned 4 this July!  It doesn't seem possible that she is already this big.  She was anxiously anticipating this day and wanted everything Hello Kitty!

Like her daddy, she doesn't mind being silly.  She loves to laugh and loves life in general.

She had a blast and got lots of Hello Kitty clothes and toys.  She likes being the center of attention when it is birthday celebration time.  She has grown so quickly!

Catch and Release

It's the beginning of last summer...

We had a turtle show up at our doorstep.  John Reagan and Evie wanted to keep the turtle and put it in the kiddie swimming pool.  So they fixed the turtle up.  The only problem was this was not an aquatic turtle.  When Daddy noticed the turtle swelling, he positioned a log "just so" for the turtle to escape.  Evie was devastated!  She went on and on and on and on (get my drift?) about this turtle telling everyone who would listen. 

Then came birthday time...

Uncle Anthony decided it would be a good idea for him and Aunt Paula to give Evie a turtle for her birthday, tank and all.  How sweet of them!

 A year later...

Mommy is tired of taking care of this turtle.  Do you know how nasty turtles like their tanks?  Too nasty for Mommy!  I moved the tank outside.  At this point, we had been working for months on convincing the kiddos to release the turtle into the lake.  We had been telling them how he needs to go "find a family."  Finally just before Evie's 4th birthday they decide the turtle would be better off in the wild.

Off we go as quickly as possible...

 Turtle took off like a bolt of lightening!

 We had to take what turtle food was left and dump it for turtle.  They wanted to make sure he was well taken care of.  Here they are taking turns dumping the food.

Since Averi somehow missed all the picture taking, I figured I would add one in for good measure.

As you can see she could have cared less about the festivities of the day!

We are happy to report there has been no sadness about turtle's release and very little talk about turtle.  For anyone who knows Evie, you know this is a BIG deal!  She still talks about the cat who ran away almost 2 years ago, and we STILL have to pray for the cat's return.

Baseball Fun

John Reagan played his third year of t-ball in the spring.  His birthday falls exactly 1 month after the cut off day for moving up.  They are pretty lenient in this area, but we chose to let him stay in t-ball and move up at the appropriate age.  We figured it couldn't hurt.  He had his best year as a result and as usual loved every minute of it.

I have no idea what that look is about.  Apparently we caught him in action.

I don't know if you know this, but t-ball takes a great deal of thought and concentration.  T-Ball ended in June.  Since August we have heard the question, "When does baseball start?" on a regular basis.  The boy loves it!  Daddy loves that John Reagan loves it.

Evie was still too young for t-ball this year...not that it mattered.  She informed us she did not want to play.  Oh my!  Even if she would have, we would have said no.  One practice would be all that it lasted.  We will see how she responds this next go round, but I am pretty sure the answer will be a firm "NO!"