HeAPPENINGS

Last week we took our cats in for their annual check-up. Taking them to the vet can be a little pricey, so we waited for our tax refund to come. We knew that both cats would need shots, but we also knew that Ty Dye would need his teeth cleaned. Addy and Ethan headed to vet with a few things in mind to ask the doctors; mainly Ty Dye's weight loss and increase in drinking water. The doctor was concerned and wanted to do some blood work, but seemed optimistic.

Addy had a sneaking suspicion that Ty had some kidney problems. We used to have a cat, Nikita, that had to be put down from kidney problems. Ty Dye has always reminded Addy of Nikita, but this seemed a little too familiar. Nikita wanted fresh, running water so much that he found a house in the neighborhood with a fountain and ended up spending the last several months of his life there. Ty Dye was starting to always be at our feet when we were in the kitchen requesting cold water from the fridge. The doctor called us on Friday and confirmed our suspicions... Ty had kidney problems, but continued to sound optimistic.

We went through the weekend, pampering Ty and giving him ALL the fresh water he wanted. We even gave in and bought a new water filter for our fridge. Addy loaded up Ethan and Ty and headed back to the vet Monday morning. We ended up seeing another doctor who didn't seem as optimistic. Ty had lost about a pound over the last few days and he was letting the doctor scrape at his teeth. The doctor felt like we should wait to do the dental procedures (avoiding anesthesia) and focus on hydrating our skinny little cat through the day and overnight. The plan was to do more blood work on Tuesday and go from there.

We waited and waited for the doctor to call us with an update. It was about 5:30 when we got the call. Ty was NOT doing well. The levels in his kidneys had risen and he continued to show more signs of kidney failure. The doctor wanted to keep him on fluids overnight once again, but we were getting concerned about cost. We didn't want to continue pumping money into a cat that was going to have to be let go. We decided to leave him one more night and bring him home the next day to say our goodbyes.

Wednesday we waited again for a call and finally called the office around 11:00. Ty was still not doing well and we were told that we could pick him up around 1:00. Addy and Ethan headed to Petsmart to get Ty some things that would help him be more comfortable - a water dish that circulates the water and some canned food. The doctor we saw was the same one that saw Ty at his check up the previous week and seemed extremely concerned. We left the office with some kitty anti-biotic, cat food for kidney problems, and Ty Dye. He seemed very depressed and was anxious to get out of the carrier when we arrived home. After getting settled, Addy walked into the Master bathroom and found Ty lying in the sink. More deja vous... Addy's cat, Teedles, from growing up spent his last few days lying in a cold bath tub. Not a good sign.

Today he seems happy to be home. He is very thin and seems that he has a stiffer neck than usual. We're hoping things change, but are preparing ourselves for the worst. Our fingers are crossed, but things don't look good.

Making a tent... getting ready for Fathers and Sons.

This is only half of the fun... Edith had the other half of the 'hat' on her head.

Ethan has been doing even better this week. We told him that he could earn one sticker for #1 and two stickers for #2. He has caught on and has been about a day and a half ahead on the chart. Tonight we went to the Mickey Mouse Store (a.k.a. the Disney Store) to pick something out. Like Target, Ethan browsed and then wanted to go out to the Play Place. Once we used the phrase 'take home', he quickly ran over to some bins with various plastic figurines that would make great bath toys. He selected five (Buzz Lightyear, Lightening McQueen, Red the Firetruck, Nemo, and Bruce the shark) and was ready to check out. The best part... he is more willing to take a bath knowing that some of his favorite characters are waiting for him.


We can say that Ethan is 90% potty trained! His bladder is getting stronger - using the bathroom every 3-4 hours. Once we see an increase in dry diapers when he wakes up, we'll tackle wearing underwear at night. Until then, we'll continue on being more independent in the bathroom.

Well, he's doing it! Ethan is doing so well using the bathroom. He still hasn't grasped #2, but is doing very well with #1. He filled up his chart and got to pick out a toy from Target. Since we usually just look at toys, books, and movies, he didn't quite understand that he could take one home. We gathered some toys that he may like and let him pick. He picked a set of figurines... Snow White figurines... the only 'girl' toy in the bunch. Ethan loves the Seven Dwarfs and was ready to check out when we told him that he could choose one to take home. He anxiously held the box the whole way home and insisted on watching the movie upon arrival. He layed all the characters on the ground and then stood them up when they were on the screen. We're so excited for him and his progress. Now, if he can just master #2!

Since there were some problems with schedules Easter weekend, the Bowman side of the family postponed a get together for today. We enjoyed a nice meal - ham, cheesy potatoes, salad, green beans, and rolls. The kids were anxious and excited for an egg hunt. Ethan, on the other hand, was prematurely woken from his nap and was not in the most pleasant of moods. He was put in time out right before the kids lined up and had a hard time waiting for everyone to gather. He decided to hit and didn't get to start when everyone else did. After the other kids were out gathering eggs, he realized he was missing out and changed his demeanor. He had fun looking around for them on the Ranger, in the sandbox, on the ground, and in trees. He was super excited to find one egg with a smile on it. He was even more excited to find that there was candy inside! Apparently he forgot from last year... maybe next year he'll wait better since he knows what is coming.

This afternoon we went to Desert Breeze Park in Chandler for a wedding. One of Addy's best friends from Junior High, Nicole, was married to her Mr. Perfect, James. Nicole has done an awesome job of keeping in touch with so many of her friends from Elementary, Junior High, High School, and College. It was almost like a mini-reunion. It was great to see her so illuminated and happy. We know that she and James are going to have a wonderful life together.

Addy, Nicole, and Jami

Ethan had some fun at the wedding. He did a great job and sat during the ceremony. He enjoyed playing with Jami's little boy, Jacob, and had some fun at the park. He did, however, have a few spills. Once when he was running around the ramada area - he fell and hit his head. The other was while playing on the playground - he fell from a 6+ foot slide and got a goose egg on the back of his head and a bloody nose. His head is sensitive, but he is doing well.

Ethan and Jacob

We started potty training Ethan the Tuesday after we got home from Utah. He has been hesitant to sit on the potty chair with a bare bum and didn't want anything to do with underwear. Before the trip north, we had him wear his underwear for 10 minutes at a time and then talked about starting when we got home. On Monday, we went to Walmart and picked up some necessary bribery - M&M's, Skittles, and baby marshmallows. He had several accidents and never made it to the toilet the first few days. On Saturday something must have clicked. He went pee in the toilet and we celebrated! He has been doing so well since. He went poop in the toilet on Sunday, but has seemed to have been holding it for nap time (he gets to wear a diaper in bed). He has also showed fear of the 'big' toilet, but went on the toilet at Walmart. Yesterday he even told Addy that he needed to sit on the toilet. We're excited that Ethan is doing so well and hope that the progress continues. We would love to have him be a pro by the time the baby arrives.

Easter was a little different this year. We have 8:00am Church, so we left Ethan's goodies next to his basket - a new Church outfit, an Old Testament Lift-the-Flap Book, and some Play Dough tools. He was thrilled to see his new book, since he helped pick it out the night before. We had a quick breakfast of donuts and headed off to Church. We enjoyed listening to some awesome talks and appreciated those who prepared so well. The Bowman side of the family decided to postpone a get together for next week and the Heap side of the family had celebrated the week before when we were headed home, so we called the Pouts to see what they were doing. Anjie prepared some Lamb, chicken, potatoes, carrots, peas, and homemade bread. Both Anjie and Daniel served missions in Greece and were having a traditional Greek meal. Grandma Louise and AnaLyn also joined in on the celebration. After dinner the kids partook in some egg dyeing. It was fun to see how the different ages of kids were interested in it. We also had some strawberry shortcake - a spring must have in Addy's mind. It was nice to spend Easter with family - thank you Pouts for letting us invite ourselves over.

A few weeks ago we got a call from Addy's oldest sister, Ally. She and her husband will be celebrating their 20th Wedding Anniversary this year and were looking for someone to watch their children while they enjoyed a cruise in the Caribbean. With another little one on the way and no vacation in sight, we thought it sounded good. They were willing to fly all three of us up there and made things even easier by making meals ahead, leaving chore lists, and little incentives for the kids to earn each day. We knew there would be some challenges, but thought it would be fun to spend a week away from home hanging out with some pretty cool kids.

The week before we arrived we were told that temperatures were in the 70's, but that all changed by the time we got there. We enjoyed snow fall almost every other day. Ethan has had little exposure to this winter treat, so seeing it fall was fascinating. However, when we went to the park to play one day he wasn't very happy of having the white powder thrown on him making a mess on his jacket or it sticking to his shoes. Poor Arizona boy.

While the kids were in school, we took advantage of family time and went on a few outings. On Monday we went to a children's museum in Ogden called the Treehouse. After going to Phoenix Children's Museum, this did not compare. Ethan did enjoy playing with the wooden trains, when he wasn't defending his territory, and crawling through a 'mouse' hole in one of the houses in the village. We were pleased with the price... it was Toddler Day so we all got in for $5!


On Tuesday we headed south to Sandy and visited The Living Planet Aquarium. It was pretty close to lunch time, so we enjoyed some Pei Wei first. The aquarium was a little different than we expected. When we pulled up it looked like an old 'Skateland' type building that had been converted. It was small, but Ethan enjoyed dashing from one exhibit to the next and then back again. The aquarium did have some cool exhibits - jelly fish, an octopus, sharks, piranhas, and of course, Nemo. For some reason Ethan kept asking to have his picture taken next to the exhibits, but he didn't want to pose he wanted a picture of him looking at the fish.

On Wednesday we spent the day at home. Addy had to go to 7th Grade Registration at the Elementary School - with only a few weird looks from other parents. Ryan and Ethan hung out playing fooze ball and air hockey. Ryan also got some laundry done. It was good to take some time to hang out and relax.


On Thursday we had planned to visit Temple Square in Salt Lake, visit the Deseret Book Store and get some lunch. Downtown Salt Lake is getting a huge makeover and we were only able to do the first two. Ethan enjoyed looking at books and gave Ryan and Addy good ideas for his new Easter/religious book. After a little reading, we walked to the Temple. It was quite brisk and windy, so we made our way to one of the visitor centers to see the Christus. Ethan was excited to see the statue of Jesus, sat down, and was finished - all in about 1 minute. We walked around the visitor center for a little while and then headed back to the car. We're sure that there are some great places to eat downtown, but Ethan wanted McDonald's so we headed back to Ally's. We enjoyed lunch at McDonald's, got another Monsters vs. Aliens toy, and then Ethan got some lovely scratches on his cheeks from an out of control little boy.

On Friday we hung out at the house since Addy wasn't feeling too well and the boys had early outs. Ally and Eric left some play money and we decided to treat the kids to a movie. Alyssa was tired from her crazy week and decided that sleep was better than a movie, so the rest of the kids joined us and headed to the movies. We saw 'Monsters vs. Aliens'. It was good... not as good as 'Kung Fu Panda' (Addy) and would be better with better sound (Ryan). Chances are, we will be seeing it again on the big screen. We went to the movies early enough for the older kids to go out, so we watched 'Bolt' that night.

Saturday and Sunday were spent watching Conference. It was nice to be up in Utah with the Isom's for Conference. We have a tradition of going up in October, but don't think that we will be making it this year. It was great to hear from the leaders of our Church and feel the Spirit. We flew home on Sunday afternoon before Ally and Eric got home. We found the best thing in the terminal of the Salt Lake Airport - a play area! Only in Utah! We had a good flight home. Ethan watched movies and then fell asleep while landing and through the airport. Grandma Louise picked us up and were home in time to join the celebration of Alisha's birthday with the Bowmans. All 13 cousins in one day!

Overall the trip was good. Everyone was healthy and safe and seemed happy most of the time. We enjoyed spending time with our nieces and nephews and we're happy that Ally and Eric were able to enjoy a well deserved week of relaxing!