2. Speaking of phones, do you follow Jon Acuff on Instagram? His books are great, but his posts crack me up just about every day. 

3. Benji is with me all day Monday - Thursday so we have lots (and lots and lots) of time to talk in the car while shuttling his siblings around. Last week I started taking note of all the funny and completely random things he says while we drive around, and these were two of my favorites.

"Mom, did you know that 'cool' is fancy for boys? Like if a boy wears something fancy you just say it's cool instead." And.... "Ducks can be mad at you in real life." Good to know.

Here he is eating a stuffed hamburger at Target. Sigh, if only he would eat a real one....

And before you roll your eyes at me being in Target again I have to say that I've only been in there twice since before Christmas. Go me! Baby steps...

4. Anna's imagination is always a favorite.. A few days ago I was helping her lay out all of her homework and found these two at the tops of her math pages. If drawing little animals in the corners keeps her happy and on task, then I'm all for it. This first cat is holding a sandal in one hand and a sock in the other, because cats wearing socks with sandals is the funniest thing ever.

She has the tiniest handwriting! Those squares on the graph paper mean nothing to her.  ;)

5. For a while now I've been wanting to rearrange some stuff on my kitchen counters. Nathan and I are both creatures of habit, and once we set things up in our house we tend to keep them that way for oh, 15 years or so. Nathan bought this little coffee maker on a whim a while back and accidentally turned me into a coffee fiend. I don't even want Starbucks anymore because I so prefer my home coffee....at least until they bring back their holiday flavors next year. So this little coffee maker was kind of shoved in a corner behind our sink and I knew I could make it better. Went to Hobby Lobby yesterday (I blame you Rachel!:), saw this sign, and came home and made my own little coffee bar. Again, easily amused. This makes me really happy and my little mini me Anna also squealed with delight when she came home from school and saw it yesterday. There are things that I love about my kitchen and a few things that I don't like, but this little spot is good. I may spruce it up more with a candle or something, who knows.

 There's a batch of icing in that mixer. Don't judge.

6. Is this photo creepy? Yes. Yes it is. Last night just before we turned out the light I told Nathan that I hadn't tested the camera on my new phone yet, so of course he gave me the creeper eyes. I could barely stop laughing long enough to take a picture! We're on a mission to go on more dates this year, because he's my favorite every day of the week.

But oh my little sensory boy does NOT enjoy the buzzers...or the whistles. He spends a good part of every game just like this, with his hands over his ears just waiting for the super loud noises. He has learned to watch the clock and know when it's getting close, but unfortunately he can't see the clock for the other court and it catches him off guard sometimes. Even with his extreme dislike of the buzzers, he still stays out there and smiles at us and participates in the game. Such a sweetie.

Noah's team is older and there's a lot more actual playing going on over on his side. Those kids can get pretty aggressive, but they're also good about helping each other out when needed. 

Noah will pass and shoot when the ball comes his way, but his main goal seems to be showing how fast he can move those speedy long legs. Cracks me up!

*video*

This season is short, only 5 weeks, but I think we will try to find another one after this. At least until Spring soccer is back!

When they did come to get her she wasn't completely zoned out and she called for me as they wheeled her away. It broke my heart, but she wasn't crying and I knew she would be out soon.

I was feeling worried and trying to distract myself on my phone since I was alone, and I pulled up the First 5 app (get it!). I have to admit when I saw the photo I thought it wasn't going to really apply to me today.

But then I read Exodus 16:4 and the commentary to go with it and HELLO of course it applied to me! There I sat, hoping that the doctors could fix whatever was causing Kate's problems and if they couldn't then I would need to do XY and Z to make things better for her. If it's not their job, then it's mine. Whatever that means, I'll make this better for her. But God loves to meet us right where we are and he met me on that folding chair and reminded me (because deep down I already knew) that it's no one's job to solve Kate's problems. My only job is take care of her and love her where she is right now. Of course we will do what we can to get her the medical care she needs, but her health and happiness doesn't solely depend on whether or not we plan perfectly and get everything right. 

Yes, please stop my crazy "But what if...?" mind right in its' tracks!

Once she was finished the doctor came in to talk with me. He said everything looked great, as he expected it would. Then he began to tell me about his own 3 children, all adopted internationally, one of whom had this exact same situation as Kate. He told me about the tests and the worries and the years and years it took until things were "normal". He didn't tell me that to scare me. He wanted me to know that he had been there and he understood where we were mentally as her parents. He also talked with me about her background and what a big part that plays in how things are going now. SUCH a gift to have not only a skilled doctor but one who had walked this exact path with his own child. We talked about a follow up appointment and what to do between now and then and you guys, it was the BEST advice I've gotten in almost a year of worrying about this! Totally simple, totally practical, and best of all it's easy and gentle for Kate. I'm so glad he came to talk to me today! Total answer to prayer.

After that they let her sleep for about 30-45 minutes and then came to get me once she opened her eyes. She has been under anesthesia twice before today and one time was awful and the other was calm, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Unfortunately we got awful this time. Poor girl was so upset, so confused, and more than anything MAD. She never calmed all the way down, so once her vitals were good they let us leave. She stayed mad but eventually got too sleepy to fight anymore and took a good long nap. She woke up happier and very hungry, so she got some lunch and finished off the juice that the hospital had given her. This was her happy face that she told me to send to daddy.  :)

So today was good. More definitive answers on the physical side of things, a very understanding and supportive doctor, and an end to tests and doctors for hopefully quite a while! I'm happy to move forward with this peanut and just get back to being 3....for only a few more weeks because her birthday is coming so soon! Thanks to everyone who was praying for her today!

My uncle had given the kids some McDonald's gift cards for Christmas so we headed over there for a while. It was nice to talk to my mom while the kids ran and climbed somewhere warm.

The doctor called and rescheduled Kate's procedure for Thursday morning and luckily Nathan was back home. Our oldest two had school so grandpa dropped them off and then stayed with Ben until we came home. Just like her lip revision day, Kate was super happy when we left the house. She sang in the car and kicked her feet and just felt happy to be out with mom and dad. Once we arrived they did some basic evaluations and then had her drink some contrast dye mixed in a Capri Sun. She loved that part! She also loved playing with the TV remote.

After talking with the anesthesiologist, it was decided that they would try it without sedation. They said she seemed "pretty calm" and that they thought it would work out fine. Ha! The part they were mostly concerned about was getting her IV in while she was wide awake. She's had plenty of blood drawn before, and although she never likes it, I knew she wouldn't physically fight them off. The first hand they tried didn't work and that got her really upset. They quickly tried the second hand and it worked. She cheered up significantly when they gave her a Valentine wrap to  cover it once it was in place. After they left the room she said, "I got two boo boos. But it's for my birthday!" meaning Valentine hearts. Such a sweetie! And no, we don't ever allow her to sit in the W sit...except when she's just been poked by needles! 

Since she wasn't sedated they let me go into the room with her. They kept telling me that she could not cry or the images would blur and it was only a one shot deal because of the dye. I was confidant we could talk and keep her still for the 5 minutes they said it would take. What they did not tell me is that they would be injecting 3 vials of super cold liquid into her hand IV during the scan. She was fine and calm until that started. She was even calm for the first vial, but as they did numbers 2 and three she started crying that it was cold. Then a nurse kept calling to her to stop crying and stop moving. Yeah, good luck with that. She's three years old! When it was over the technician seemed frustrated and said the images had a little blur, but we just had to take what we got and hope for the best. We were glad that we didn't have to sedate her, but we were also frustrated that we might have to do it all over again another day if the images weren't good enough.

Because of the rescheduling from earlier in the week they told us we could just drive straight to the other doctor for the results. Yay! But since we didn't have an appointment and Kate hadn't eaten since the day before, we stopped for some food. Bacon saves the day! 

We were told we might have a long wait since we were sort of a walk in, but they got us back in just about 15 minutes.

The great news is that the images were clear enough and they saw nothing "alarming" in any of them. A previous ultrasound had some shadows they couldn't identify and that's what led to this scan, but now everything looked clear. A concerning test also came back negative at this appointment, so it was all good news! The doctor was very straight forward and told us exactly what the next step is and what they'll be looking for at that time, so Monday at 6:30am we go back for another test and this one absolutely has to be sedated. I don't like putting her under, but I'm glad she won't know what's happening for this one. Unfortunately we have to wait until February for the results. The doctor said repeatedly that he expects to find nothing, but if we didn't do it we would still have some unknowns. We appreciate their willingness to turn over every stone to figure out what she needs but of course we also hope we can give her a break after this next one is completed. Mostly we are thankful that she is a healthy girl and that she's got such a happy little spirit about it all. It's nice to get definitive answers, even if they only address the physical side of things. We appreciate your prayers for her, for the doctors, and for mom and dad to know what's the best next step.

Anna didn't go out at all and the boys only stayed out for maybe 15 minutes, but Kate could have stayed out all day. The Inner Mongolia is strong in that one.  :)

The next morning we had a snowy preschool carpool. I remember when Anna first started I was sad that I couldn't walk her in every day. Now I adore carpool. Love it. And I'm sad that Ben's enrichment class doesn't have one.

The longer we sat there the fluffier and fatter the flakes got.

But by the time Ben and I headed to the grocery it had already stopped. This is the very best kind of snow - the trees and yards look pretty, but the roads are completely clear.

By the time Kate was out (just 3 hours later) it was half way melted. The next day was in the mid-50s and we took a walk just to crunch up any leftover ice that still lingered in the shade.

This week has a few low days and flurries predicted but then it's back to the 50s again, which is more than okay with me. We got spoiled not needing coats for so far into last year that I'm already eager to get rid of them again. Though I'm happy to let jeans and sweaters stay around indefinitely.  :)

American Kestrals

But he hopped right into my lap when the vulture came out. Yikes. Especially with all the talk of him eating dead things and how his beak was designed to "rip flesh". Eww. Anna was loving every second. The first part of 5th grade science was all about birds, so she and her friends were busting out the answers to every question that was asked. 

When they pulled these two tiny owls out of their carrier Anna almost exploded with delight. She actually applauded, ha!

This barn owl made some sounds in response to a recording that they played. Ben was not happy. ;)

Even though Ben and Kate both sat on my lap for almost the full 90 minutes (they're about 75 pounds combined!) and Ben asked 42 times when we could leave, I was glad we went. It's not every day that you get to see these kinds of birds up close!

5. We did love our time off from school work, but it's been really sweet getting back into it too. Ben is extra motivated (he really was happy in this picture!). On Tuesday he went ahead did all of his math for the whole week, and then on Thursday he asked for an extra reading lesson! I just love having him home this year. His little Friday enrichment class doesn't start up again until next week, so he gets an extra long break. Even the big kids have been moving quickly through their work. Just this past week I mailed in the registration for Kate's next year of preschool and for Anna and Noah's next year at their current school. I had been having some serious moments of indecision about next year and had just about researched myself crazy over all of our options. In the end I stuck with our original plan, and Ben will  be staying home with me again next year for Kindergarten. I am really trying to focus on one year at a time and not let myself go down the path of worrying over the next 18 years. And when we did school that next day and he climbed up in my lap to read Snow, I felt so sure that we had made the best decision. I'll never regret more time with this lovey boy.

Yay first blog post of 2016! I didn't think I had too much to say about these things, but you know me. I like the words.  :)