UPDATE ON LAITH:

UPDATE TO POST BELOW: Laith's prayers have been answered. Although the full donation of $1.5mill has not been met, a Pittsburgh hospital has agreed to help the family by providing the use of a heart pump to keep him healthy until a new heart can be found. You can read the story here.

Our vacation has been going very well. We have had a few injuries along the way, mainly in the form of bumps and bruises but it's been great. The beach house is spectacular and so far I've enjoyed my afternoons quietly while Fin is asleep - while the boys go down to the beach.

We did have a scary experience yesterday, however. The Oregon coast is notorious for their sneaker waves; you have to be very careful. Without warning, Maysen took a run for the water, Nate had Fin, and I noticed just in time that it was one of those waves where it was going to travel a ways up the beach before receding. The wave caught Maysen, pulled him down and I got there in time to pull him out of the water before it's receding. I got him up and out, Nate was able to get him back to the sand. I unfortunately was caught in a 2nd wave right after pulling Maysen out and was drug down. I held onto the sand underneath until all of the wave had receded and was able to get out but I have had my share of water-close calls. 2 years ago while White Water Rafting on the Trinity river in California, I was thrown out of the boat and held under by a current under the river. Amazingly I'm not afraid, per se, of the water, rather I just have more respect for it's power.

We're heading home tomorrow where hopefully our new shed will be ready and waiting for us. We decided to have it built by some contractors vs Nate building it himself. In the end it was worth the money to have it done compared to the length of time it would take for Nate to complete it. More on that later! Hope you have enjoyed your weekend thus far...

for anyone who has a heart to help ...

Do you remember the movie John Q starring Denzel Washington whose son was going to die because his insurance wouldn't pay for a heart transplant?

Please read HERE about the living and breathing John Q, a baby boy named Laith. Without $1.5 million up front for a heart transplant, no hospital will touch this little boy and have prepared his family with the statement that essentially they just need to start deciding how he dies. All because of money. His family is desperately trying to raise this money to save their little baby. Having had a sick baby in the NICU just this past year, I can't imagine the terror this family is experiencing.

It is a harsh, harsh world out there we live in these days and I'm hoping that all of you who are able will give to this little boy. If nothing more than a few dollars - it will all add up in the end. And if you're the praying kind, please stop and say a prayer right now for this little boy named Laith. I know I've done both ... please keep this story going ...

CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO THIS LITTLE ANGEL.

Maysen's Day Out

We had a wonderful day yesterday with our little Mr Bean. It seems like we don’t get all that much alone time with Maysen with both daddy and mommy so that was made a priority and he ate that up. Fin got his own alone time with Grandma while we were out.

Our afternoon started with Put-Put golf in which Maysen blew us out of the water! There were several times that Maysen “accidentally” hit his ball in the water, because I think fetching it out was more fun than focusing on hitting it right.

Then it was on to our own private slide-ground. No one was there yet so we enjoyed having free reign over the place. Even the Slide-Tickle Monster came out once, and only once. Dad even enjoyed going down the slide, which I’m sure was prohibited somewhere in the rule book.

Love the reflection ...

Next door was bowling which is always fun. Maysen was the Ball-Keeper-in-Line’er. I think we have a smidge OCD act going on there …

Good shot 'o Nate. I think he looks pretty pro. He said he was trying not to fart during this throw ...

Doin' the success-jig. It took exactly 18.4 minutes for the ball to hit the pins. I think that was the success part. That's got to be a record!

I posted this picture purely for shock-value. Isn't she our perty-piggie?

This morning we went to Open-Gymnastics with some friends of ours. They have a 6wk class for Maysen’s age that I think T is going to enroll A into along with Maysen. He really picked up on the trampoline and by the end of our hour was going across the high monkey bars by himself above the huge foam pit. Since our karate disaster, I am thinking this is something he’d be really good at, a way to expend energy, and something fun for him to enjoy with his friend, A.

I got some interesting news last night. Some other friends of ours D&R have been invited to be on Dr Phil. They start filming on Monday. The topic of the show is very interesting as we learned a bit of information about them we hadn’t known! As soon as I get her OK, I’ll share all of that with you, including the date of their airing! We now know celebrities (not really).

The rain is setting back in for a few days. I hope it clears up before our trip on Thursday. Then again, who cares because I can't wait to snuggle up to our fireplace, playing games drinking hot chocolate. Then again, grilling steaks outside throwing a frisbee with iced tea after returning from building sand castles on the beach sounds just as appetizing. Ok, now I am excited ...

In light of a few afternoons that have been filled with never-ending Time-Outs for Maysen, tomorrow Nate and I are going on a date with Maysen. We haven't done it but for a few times since Griffin has been born and it's about time. Grandma Bobbi is going to have some alone/cuddle time with Griffin while Daddy, me, and Maysen go do some mini-golf, pizza, and bowling. I'm hoping his acting out lately is only in response to needing some Mommy/Daddy attention.

Then it's off with some friends to take the kids to gynmastics, which really is like taking them to psycho ward ... padded walls for them to go nuts on, scream, kick, and bounce insanely around. Seems a little demonic. But to those who have kids under the age of 5 you know exactly when I mean when I say that it sounds heavenly. Better the padded castle/room/pit than my tiny-walled house.

I think we'll all sleep well tomorrow. I'll have pics from our special day tomorrow.

Why my mirrors are dirty ...

This is the reason I don’t wash my mirrors …. Just kidding. I do. But I can’t hardly stand to wash away such baby handprints. Someday I’ll look up at my mirror, my clean mirror, and wish I had those baby handprints back so I’m allowing it to be dirty a bit longer!

I think our toilet paper addiction has continued to new lengths. Wonderful little progression …

And doesn’t this just scream Linus from Charlie Brown? Isn’t it Linus who plays the piano? That mini-grand piano? Well, Linus minus the clothes.

And lastly we decided that our little family of four needed a vacation so we have booked a Beach Cottage on the Oregon Coast to enjoy 4 days on the beach! We’re even taking our dog, Bailey. After the week Nate had last week (big conglomo politics .. need I say more?) and the fact that I've decided to do another massive fund-raising Garage Sale for Maysen's Christian School. I tried to find the link from where I talked about it last year but I must not have explained or announced it via blog last year. I am planning to do things different this year, including a two-day Garage Sale. Last year we did it all in one day and came close to $2000 and we still had a ton of stuff left. With the US Economy in the dumps, I think people need it more than ever these days ... so it feels good to be dedicated to giving back. So, in light of everything from last week, and what we're facing over the next few months with being busy with that, we need to get away from the hussle-bussle -- we’re going to go and veg, cozy-up (as Maysen would say), and just relax some Scovil time. You can see where we’ll be staying here.

My favorite things:

1) Feeling of jumping into bed with new/clean sheets

2) Smell of crock-pot chili on a cold/rainy day

3) tick-toc of an antique clock in the otherwise-silent room

4) Listening to the rain/wind from my warm bed

5) Hearing Nate come home at 5:00

6) putting away groceries (I know .. shush)

7) Freshly popped popcorn

8) Baby snores

9) Unexpectedly turing on a TV show from your childhood

10) Watching Maysen sing in the shower/school programs

11) .. Via mom ... Watching snow fall on Christmas Day 2008. Considering we never get snow, let alone 3 constant hours of huge-white-flakes on CHRISTMAS DAY was very magical.

My Cooker

Isn't this a beautiful Amaryllis? I got 2 bulbs for Christmas and got them planted in planters shortly after and they bloomed last week. Very beautiful!

Maysen decided to be a little baker today. He has always loved getting out the bowls, plastic spoons, but today it took a new mold. He wanted the pot holders out, the apron on as he was going to cook lunch for everyone.

He's making "candy" (aka: Griffin's spoons).

Such precise measures ... check that tongue out!

Ahhhh .... delicious! The timer has gone off and the food is done. He finishes this off with, "Careful, it's really hot!" What a good husband this little man will be some day!

So many people have asked how I'm losing my weight so I thought I'd share. It's slowing down (to my dismay). I started on 1/1/09 walking 5x per week in the evening when Nate gets home. I walk about 1.5 miles those days and on weekends when Nate is home we walk longer (ie: did a 4mi walk this weekend). I had lost about 13lbs doing this within 3 weeks. I joined Weight Watchers Online 1/23 and have lost 5lbs more. It's slow but sure -- I have to remember it's taken me years to put on, it's going to take a while to get off. So that's that :-) If you want more info on it ... just email me.

Until then ... I have to make my little Baker Man lunch. Or did he already make it? He probably didn't fill up too much on the candy spoons ...