Happenings

I have been severely neglecting our blog lately...so it's time to catch everyone up. This first photo is one of Nicholas practicing the joystick on one of his toys. Because there hasn't been a power chair at Shriner's for him to practice on for several months, this toy has been helpful in getting him use to the joystick motions.
This is a photo of Jeff's finished truck project. He lifted his truck and converted it to 4 wheel-drive. It took him about 2.5 weeks to finish and now all it needs is new exterior paint. I think he did a great job!

Here's a picture of my two sick boys. Jeff couldn't muster a smile, but Nicholas always grins for the camera...even if he's feeling yucky. It was a short-lived virus-all three of us were congested for about 48 hours and Nicholas is still hanging on to some of his phlegm, so he's been getting suctioned everyday to take care of the excess.

One of Nicholas's silly grins :)


Last week I received my master's degree certificate in the mail from Washington State University Vancouver! I was so excited to receive that piece of paper. I am officially done with school!

Nicholas has been wearing his brace for the majority of the day now in order to keep his spine as straight as possible. He loves playing with his pegboard stacking blocks. He sticks his fingers in the small holes and pulls them out one by one.

Therapy with Julie. She wore cute bunny ears to try to get Nicholas to lift his arms and grab them...only it looks like he was more interested in his cousin Zoie who comes over on Wednesday afternoons now for early release.
After Julie wore the ears, Nicholas got to put them on for awhile.


Last Thursday-Sunday my wonderful co-worker, Jamie, and I went to a religious education conference in Anaheim, CA. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed soaking up some sunshine! We got to eat dinner with my bestie, Lyndsey, we attended several awesomely inspiring classes, went to two amazing masses, walked to Disneyland (but didn't buy tickets because spending $97 for 5 hours in the park seemed a bit crazy), ate at yummy restaurants, and met some lovely people. The highlight of the trip was listening to a keynote speech by Mitch Albom (the author of several books, most well-known for Tuesdays with Morrie). He was so inspiring and so well spoken that the two hours he talked seemed to zoom by. There were over 40,000 Catholics there which makes it the largest Catholic conference in the world. All in all we had a wonderful time and while I enjoyed a break from the normal routine, I was so happy to get back to my two guys on Sunday!
Also, Nicholas turned 22 months while I was gone and since I have never missed a monthly birthday...Happy 22 months sweet boy!