A Happy Birthday Treat for Me!

A few weeks ago I celebrated my 29th birthday! We didn't do much that particular weekend because that was the time we were in the hospital taking care of our sweet Brooklyn. This past weekend however, we were able to celebrate in a very special way.

Every year during this time I see these guys being advertised on t.v...

I have ALWAYS wanted to go. I am not sure why, but I just have! Ha! I guess it just looked like a lot of fun. We would always check to see how much tickets were and just never wanted to spend the money. However this year, Matt found us a great deal and we got to go!

We had a pretty rainy weekend around here, so it was the perfect thing to do inside!

Out tickets ended up being pretty good. We were pretty close up and enjoyed our time together as a family!

The Harlem Globetrotters are very talented and pretty funny too!

The tricks they do are amazing! This year they added a 4 point shot to the game! Wow!

Jake loved eating hot dogs and popcorn and watching all the entertainment! He is all about anything basketball...just like his daddy:)

My sister Allison came with us too.

It was so much fun and a real treat!

I was so thankful to have a day celebrating with my favorite people!

What We've Been Up To Wednesday

This has been a really busy week for me. School has been non stop with TONS of stuff to do. We finished up our third quarter last Friday which means a few things...the end of school is very near and...report cards. I have been busy averaging grades and making comments on my report cards. I have gone into school early and brought stuff home in the afternoon. I really try hard to stay on top of all my school things and to not bring anything home, but this week hasn't been quite like that. I am hoping things will slow back down a little after this week.

My Sweet girl is also feeling tons better as you can see...

We went to the doctor yesterday and she took a listen and everything sounded MUCH better. She is still a bit congested, but that will soon clear completely up.

She hasn't been sleeping to well the last few nights. She lost a little bit a weight while she was sick, so I think she is trying to catch back up.

She has also started rolling over this week! Sometimes she can't quite get her big 'ol belly over, but she is getting better! It is so fun to watch her do new things! This isn't her favorite trick to do though, because once she rolls over onto her belly, she starts crying.

Oh how she hates her belly!

When we got home from school this afternoon Jake and I heard some familiar music playing in the distance. The ice cream man was not to far away!

We ran in to get some money and headed out to wait until he got to our street! It was 5:00 when he decided to make his rounds, but a little ice cream before dinner never hurt anyone...especially when it is Dora ice cream!

What a special spring treat!

A Sick Little Girl

This past week was quite a week for our family.

My sweet baby girl was admitted to the hospital Tuesday evening for RSV.

It all started last Friday when she developed a really yucky sounding cough. She seemed ok other than that and I knew Jake had a cold the week before so I thought she had a touch of that.

She wasn't getting any better so I finally took her to the doctor on Sunday morning. I wanted her to be seen before the week started. Sure enough, she tested positive for RSV. There is not much you can do for RSV. It just has to run its course. They did try a breathing treatment in the office that morning and it did help a little so she sent us home with a nebulizer and told us to try the treatments every couple hours.

Baby girl did pretty good with it, but still wasn't getting any better.

By now she couldn't keep her bottles down and she developed a fever. I thought she perked up a little Monday evening though and was hoping she was on the mend. Tuesday she seemed to get worse again, but thankfully we were already scheduled for a recheck at the doctors office.

They listened to her and did chest x-rays (which were pitiful to watch) and said they could do nothing else for her and that she needed to go to the hospital. My heart just stopped. I couldn't believe it!

We came home, got all our things together and we were on our way.

I just couldn't believe that we were on our way to the children's hospital. I wanted her to feel better, but didn't expect to have to admit her to the hospital!

Well, Wednesday came and by the afternoon time, she was at her worst. She was dehydrated and needed an IV started. Poor thing had to get one in her little head because the veins in her legs and arms were collapsed. My heart just couldn't take anymore. I was hurting for my baby girl. She was sooo sick.

They had to put a cup over it so she wouldn't mess with it. Poor thing!

They did more chest x-rays and now they were showing a spot of pneumonia on her right lung. She also developed an ear infection too!

She had been through so much! I didn't leave her side.
I wasn't seeing much improvement at all except when they would suction all the junk out of her lungs. They call it deep suctioning. It wasn't fun to watch her have this done, but it was the only thing I saw that gave her some relief after it was finished.

By Thursday she was definitely better. Still not 100% (she still isn't), but a ton better. She didn't have a fever anymore and for the most part kept all her milk down. The doctor said that it could still take a while for her to feel all better, but we were discharged Friday evening and were so happy to be home. Since Friday we have been trying to rest and enjoy our time around the house. We are so thankful for all the doctors and nurses and teams of respiratory therapists that worked so hard to make sweet Brooklyn better. We had so many people praying for us and for that we will always be grateful!

I love you Brooklyn bear and am so glad you are getting better!

You were so brave and were such a trooper through it all!

I am glad we are HOME!

Love, Mommy

XOXOXOX

All The Way From Argentina

Back when I was in college I was involved in a campus ministry called Campus Crusade for Christ. In 2003 I had the amazing opportunity to spend my summer in Argentina sharing the Gospel with the college students from LaPlata. That summer our team met a vibrant and outgoing girl named Florencia. She spent lots of time with our team showing us around the city and making us feel at home while we were there. She was not a believer at the time, but God worked in her heart and after several conversations and questions one of my teammates led her to the Lord. After we left she was discipled by some of the missionaries that lived there and soon became on fire for the Lord.

She is now on staff with Athletes In Action which is also a part of Campus Crusade. This organization works with college athletes.

We have kept in touch over the years. She came to the States a few years ago and I was able to meet up with her and see her. Well, a few weeks ago I received a message from her letting me know she was coming to Charlotte again and wanted to see me! I was so excited!

(Me, Flor, and Summer- all apart of Summer Project 2003)

Last Friday, we were able to get together for a bit and catch up and encourage one another! It was so neat to see how much God has done and is doing through her. She is still praying that God would work in the hearts of her family so that they, too, would become believers. She has a passion for the national teams in Argentina and trains with them often hoping that they would see her passion for the Lord and be open to the Gospel.

Please pray for my friend, Flor, and the people of Argentina. In Sunday school this past week we were challenged to be a part of the work of the Lord. Some can go, some can send, but we all can pray!

Brooklyn is 3 Months!

Today my baby girl is 3 months old!

She is still such a great baby! She smiles all the time and will smile, coo, and talk to her daddy the most. He is so silly to her!

She is a still a big girl:). Look at that belly! She loves her bottle and will now eat 6 ounces easily and we may be getting to 7 ounces soon. Our nights are getting better too. She usually falls asleep around 9:00pm and will sleep until about 4:30am. Matt and I take turns getting up. I usually get up around 5:00 anyway, so it isn't to bad (most mornings) to get up 30 minutes early to feed and hold my girl before I head into school. I LOVE the cuddle time.

Brooklyn HATES being on her belly. She has gotten a bit better with it, but she definitely prefers her back.

We don't go back to the doctor again until she is 4 months, so I don't know how much she weighs or how long she is. I don't think there is any concern with her growing though:)

Jake does pretty good with her. He can be a little rough sometimes and can forget that he can only wrestle and give knuckle sandwiches to his daddy and not his little sister. Ha. It won't be long though and I think she will be able to hold her own:). The other day she was in her swing sleeping in the playroom when Jake and I came in from school. The first thing he said was "Where's my sister?".

I am so thankful and blessed to have 2 sweet children.
Matt and I remind each other to take in every moment! It goes by so fast!

Mommy loves you sweet Brooklyn!
Happy 3 Months to You!