Our Lives

So we've been busy these last few months.
I've had a few health problems, Ben's still had his, Thanksgiving, traveling, and we are just trying to survive each day.

Dane is grateful that finals are OVER!! He also is glad to spend some time each day with us as he doesn't have classes anymore. Ben won't leave his side and barely let's him use the bathroom without fingers under the door and saying, "You in there Daddy?"
I personally think it's way cute, but Dane get's tired of it after a while.

I am still working on Christmas Cards, YW's stuff for next year, and trying to get Ben to all of his various appointments. I hope to have it all done in time. He is going in for an Endoscopy on Dec 18. They will be scoping his esophagus, stomach, and duodenum, and taking biopsies along the way. They will only be sedating him for a short while and we should be able to leave that afternoon. We will receive more information once the test results come back. Which should be that day, except for the biopsies. We are hoping for answers as to why Ben is not eating and drinking very well. He's also in pain at nights and sometimes nights are long and full of tears. Ben's so used to going to the Dr's that when we get there he asks the nurse, "Which one my room?" The painful episodes haven't gone away, but he is doing better at dealing with them on his own. Which helps me to get a little bit more sleep. He'll eat, with a few bites here and there. Then he'll tell us he's all done and sometimes he'll tell us that his belly hurts. He also sips on fluids here and there. He MAYBE drinks 2-3 oz of fluids in a DAY. He's also been put on Pediasure to help him maintain his weight. So far he enjoys his "Chocolate Milk" everyday.

For the last few months we've been hoping, fasting, and praying that we'll find something to help Ben. That the Dr's will be skilled and knowledgeable to help Ben get better.

So life has been a whirl wind, but we are grateful to have this time together as a family and look forward to Christmas Day. Ben is so excited and way cute! He keeps asking for a little sister. I don't think he's going to be getting that one this year, no matter how good he's been. Let's hope that he'll be ok with a little computer instead!

I plan on updating as much as possible, but it will all depend on how close we are to a computer.

Happy Holidays to all!

Hello Everyone!

I hope that you got here. Please comment so that I know you made it!
Thanks!
~Britt~

My Privacy

Dear Fellow Readers,

I would like to inform you that I am making my blog private.

I have finally come to this decision because I would like to share more intimate details about my little family's life, but I don't want the whole world to know about every detail of our lives. Creepy stockers, child abducter's, you know the kind.

So please send me your email address or leave a comment. I would LOVE to have all of you keep reading. This will remain open until December 8, 2008.

Sincerely.

Me
PS My email address is brittysue2@gmail.com.

Happy Halloween

Here are a few pictures from our Halloween!
I hope that everyone had a wonderful time!

High School

1. Did you marry someone from your high school? Yes. I thought I would marry someone from college, and away from SV.
2. Did you car pool to school?Well I rode the bus for 2 years. Got rides from my Mom my Jr. Year, and drove my Sr year because of "Family Health Issues". Otherwise I got a ride from friends.
3. What kind of car did you have? Aries "Specail" K Car
4. What kind of car do you have now? 97 Pontiac Grand Prix
5. It's Friday night...where are YOU?(then) Practicing for the Half Time Rountine, and trying to watch as much of the game as possible. Then after the game hanging out with friends
6. It's Friday night..where are you? (now)Lonely, I'm so lonely. Ben's sleeping and Dane's well, where ever he's suppose to be.
7. What kind of job did you have in high school? NONE I was too busy with extra curricular activities that I didn't work except during the summer.
8. What do you do now? I'm your average Domestic Engineer.
9. Were you a party animal? Nope, usually was the first one to leave parties, if they got crude.
10. Were you considered a flirt? No, I was kind of quiet when it comes to those things. I thought boys were a waste of my time, so I was just friends with everyone.
11. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir? CHOIR, even the top one for 2 years in a row! My first year I was the only Junior girl in there. The rest were Seniors.
12. Did you get suspended/expelled? Yup almost. I was allergic to some of the vaccines and every year they tried to expell my from school until I got my shots. My poor Mom was always having to straighten it out every year.
13. Can you sing the fight song? I think in English Class. We didn't even know it had words until then!
14.Who was/were your favorite teacher(s)? Um, Mrs. McKim
15. Where did you sit during lunch? In the middle or on a large table.
16. What was your school's full name? Star Valley High School
17. What was your school mascot? Braves
18. If you could go back and do it again, would you? Dane tells me that I would in a heart beat. I miss being so involved and active in everything. I also miss all the people that I knew and spent time with in High School.
19. What do you remember most about graduation? I sat next to Travis Hokanson and he spilled his guts and told me his life story of High School. Don't ask!
20.Who did you go to prom with Sr yr? Ethan Felix
21. Did you have fun at Prom? It was my favorite dance, date, and dinner!
22. Do you still talk to the person you went to Prom (Senior Ball) with? No I wish I could be in touch with them more.
23. Are you planning on going to your 20 year reunion? Yes!! I can't wait. I know I'll be thinking I'm getting really old but it will be so much fun to see everyone!
24. Do you still talk to people from school? A few, but I wish I could talk to more.

My Baby Boy

My baby is now a 2 year old! But he's so handsome.

Pieces of Heaven

Sometimes life comes along and leaves an unexpected gift on your front step. You look at it unbelieving and afraid to open it. With out any explanation it opens itself and presents itself to you. Whether you wanted the gift, or not, it's there. But being ungrateful to something that seems so awful in the beginning, is sad.
Why do we push ourselves away from the horrible things in life?
Why do we try to ignore it, cover it up, or imagine it's not really there?
Are we coping?
Are we dealing?
Or are we trying to forget and move on?

What would happen if when we saw this gift, we squealed with delight.
Quickly scooped it up into our arms and held onto it so tightly that we didn't want to let go.
Knowing that it was from Heavenly Father.
Every experience we have is a sweet and beautiful gift from God.
If we will but take it, accept it, and USE it.
Life would be so beautiful.
Amazing.
Hopeful.
Breathe taking.
Awe inspiring.
Charitable.
Spectacular.

One day I hope to look back and find that my gifts that were left on my front step were not rejected at first sight.

But taken up fully into loving arms.

Trick-or-Treat

It has taken us all summer long to grow our little pumpkins! We have been so excited over them because we were lucky and got 3 Pumpkins off of 1 plant!! Just enough for each one of us to have our own.

Ben already picked his out and has been very attentive of it's changes through the seasons. Every time he goes outside he'll quickly go and check out "His Pumpkin". He has just been so cute!

Well today was a bad day. This morning when Dane got home around 3:30 am he said that all of our pumpkins were here. When I put Ben's diaper outside at 7:00 am I noticed that they were gone!? I thought maybe Dane had picked them and put them in the shed because we had a heavy frost last night. I went grocery shopping and came back home to find Dane upset. He asked me what I did with the pumpkins. I told him I did nothing, and thought Dane had done something with them.

Well we have concluded that they were . . . . . STOLEN!!!
How rude can you be!!! If Dane ever finds out who took them, the "Punks" will have to face an "Angry Father".

We were hoping that Ben wouldn't notice. Well he did. We are going to have to "BUY" pumpkins this year instead of enjoying our own home grown.

(If you have any information about this case please call 1-800-GIVE-IT-BACK!!!)

5 1/2 weeks

My mind has been racing these last few weeks.
Many concerns weigh on my mind.
What if . . . doesn't seem to go away.
Reality is hard to face.

What does life have in store?
What does Heavenly Father want me to learn?
What will the outcome be?
How much will I cry when I learn the truth?
Tears of Joy?
Of Sorrow?
Of Pain?
Of Heartache?
Of Happiness?
We'll know by Friday.

BLANKETS!

A friend of mine has a goal of making a lot of blankets to deliver to Primary Children's Hospital down in Salt Lake City. She is looking for anyone that is willing to donate, make, or help with the creation of blankets!! She is getting some more information about regulations (if there are any) and is trying to get them all before Christmas. She wants to be able to deliver them about Christmas Day. So if you would like to help please email me at brittysue2@gmail.com and I will keep you updated on information as it comes in.

Let me know if you are willing or able to help out!
Thanks!

Dr. Appointments

Ben was stung by a wasp of some sort and it was just fine for days. But about 6 days later he woke up that morning and his little hand was SOO swollen that he couldn't grasp or close his hand!? So we headed to the Dr's office for some advice and left with some advice and antibiotics because it was infected. We also discussed how Ben's health has been doing. So far we've upped his medication dose for the second time this year. Our Dr was concerned that maybe we were just putting a "big bandage" on something that could be more serious. So he suggested that we see another Dr in that clinic and if he doesn't have anymore ideas we were back to Salt Lake City for some more testing. (Oh boy! I personally thought we had this all figured out!?)

So today we saw the other Dr in the clinic and got his advice. We are now monitoring Ben's eating habits along with the medication. We are no longer suppose to force feed him but let him decide if he wants to eat. So we are suppose to provide 6 meals(breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack) a day and let him choose if he eats or not. If he gains weight then we just keep going. If he doesn't and starts to loose weight then we are back to Salt Lake for further instructions.

Just thought that all of you who are wondering how Ben is doing would like an update!

Unkown

My heart aches.
I wish, I want, I desire.
I hope, I dream, I believe.
But something keeps nagging at me.

Will another one ever come?
Or am I done.

You made what?!

Ben: Mom I makin cake!

Mom: Oh what kind?

Ben: Green Corn! Mmmm so good!

Mom: Really?!?(I was a little disturbed.)

Mom: Is it hot?

Ben: Yep. Careful!! (Two little hands in the air waving.)

Mom: Ok, I will.

Ben: Ok.

This is what Ben made me for breakfast today! I just couldn't resist taking a huge bite!? (or maybe just pretending to bite.)

Of course we had to sing "Happy Birthday" to a little boy before we could even cut the cake to eat it!

School

Spring has sprung, Autumn is about to come and Dane is back to school!

So our lives are changing quickly with a new school year. I said I was going to watch twins for the year, but things aren't working out. So they are going to be babysat by someone else. They are such cute little buggers, but I'm admitting that it's just too much for me to handle right now.

We are excited about going to SV in 9 months and being able to have Dane "Student Teach" in the High School that we both went to. Plans have changed a little bit and things are working out so well that we can only call them "Tender Mercies" from the Lord. We are blessed.

p.s. We will be posting some more pictures soon! (Say tuned)

Our Days

So our lives have been so overwhelmingly crazy at times, beautiful at others, tearful and sorrowful, but yet full of laugher during others.

These last few weeks have been so new and somethings that we as a small family have never really experienced before. Dane's Grandmother Maxine Hepworth passed away a little over a week ago. She was diagnosed with cancer while I was attending Girls Camp with our ward. She was told that she would have only a year left. Three weeks after her diagnosis she passed peacefully away after a family prayer with all of her children around her. Some mourned deeply while other's rejoiced that she was no longer in so much pain.

She was an amazing person that had so much love and compassion. Whenever she was aching for her husband that she lost when she was 41, she would make dozens of pies, cakes, cookies, or pots of soup, meals, casseroles. Then she would deliver them to someone else. As each food item left her hands and entered into someone else's, her sorrow would melt away to eternal joy knowing that she would be with him again. This is how she coped and dealt with this worlds sorrow and joys. She always shared.

Ben has been struggling trying to let Mom and Dad go while we've attended Girls Camp, Youth Conference, Young Men High Adventure, and our various meetings. The cherry on the top has been that in July we changed our church time to the mornings. He still is trying to figure out if we are abandoning him for several over nights and long days. So needless to say his enthusiasm that he once had for nursery is quickly fading!? But I have to admit that he is doing so much better, and he now knows that we are coming back for him in a few hours. This helps Dane and I to fulfill our callings on Sundays without a crying 2 year old hanging onto our side.

We are excited to know that we are going to have twins in our home starting next week. No we aren't expecting or adopting. We, I mean "I" am going to start babysitting them. Ben is thrilled as we are preparing our little home to support 2 more little ones. He's so excited to have new baby's in our home! We are painting the "Family" toddler bed bright blue and just purchased a sale item of "Go Diego, Go!" toddler bed set to go with his new bed. We are also pulling out our baby stuff again. He has been very occupied playing with all his old toys and will chant over and over, "Toys. Babies. Comin'. My house.Shh, quiet. Sleepin. No cry. it's ok." I don't know where he got some of those words because I haven't even told him that he has to be quiet when babies sleep. He's just too smart?!

Well enough of my rambling. I'm so happy and blessed to be alive and to be healthy. We are all doing well and couldn't ask for life to be more beautiful. May your life be wonderfully beautiful as well.

Peanut Butter!?

Never just assume that your 2 year old child has recently been in the peanut butter.

Assume the worst! Think how did he get into the peanut butter . . .or worse what is that!?!? EWE!

Yes, Ben just finger painted my arm with his fecal matter because we've been asking him to tell us when he's pooped. I have to say that I was grossed out, but had to quickly pull myself together because he was doing what he was told, in a way?!??

Parenting 101, any tips!

Like Son . . . Like Father

Where did he go?

There he is!!

Where did he go?

No really where is he!?

I guess that's one way to use the decoration pillows?!

Happy Father's Day!

Dear Dad,

I just wanted to tell you how much I love you. You have always been so good to me. You have always been quick to correct me and to teach me the right way. You have also been firm when I've done something wrong, but also just as soft and kind when I've needed to know that you love me.

Thanks for all the hard work that you do at school, work, and most importantly at home. You make my life wonderful! I hope that you like your new apron! Know that I love you and that I always will.

Love always & forever,
Ben

8 Random Facts

So Tiff tagged me for this. So here I go . . .

1) I love tulips! I can't seem to get enough of them and they never last long enough! I've told Dane that when we get our "Mansions in Heaven" we will plant Tulips everywhere and command them to bloom all the time! But that might not happen so for this lifetime I just take them in completely during Spring Time.

2)I also love Cherry's! It's funny that I think they are so cute and love products or "things" that have cherry's on them. But on the flip side. I dislike getting gifts with either Cherry's or tulips on them because I don't want to be known as the old lady with Cherry everything. I like them but just don't want them!? Strange I know.

3)I cannot stand to do dishes!! It's so hard on my sensitive hands and everywhere we've been we've had to hand wash!? We had a dishwasher in 1 apartment but it never drained well and so we always had yucky stuff stuck to our "clean" dishes. I will leave the dishes until we start to eat burritos with paper plates and plastic wear because there is nothing left to eat off of or cook with. I know this is a weakness and I am working on it. It's sad that i have to be the one that works on it!? Isn't this a family effort?!

4)I love to do laundry! I don't know why but it's relaxing to me to pull out clean laundry from the dryer and fold the warm clothes and put them away. I love to do it?! I don't know why but it has never bothered me. I'm always wishing I had more laundry to do.

5)Cheesecake! Is my ultimate weakness! I love the rich and creamy texture that just melts in my mouth! All kinds fruity, chocolaty, plain. You name it and I'm there. Other than the fake fast cheesecakes that aren't baked!? I hate those!?

6)I wish that I could get the recommended 8 hours of sleep a night. Period. But I guess that comes with being a Mother to a child with health problems. Sleep becomes a coveted luxury around our house! Those who have to stay awake and watch a little boy allow the "sleeping" to be awoken after a short period. Why? I don't know.

7)I wish that I could have better health. I've never been blessed with it and I guess that's my trial in this life. I can control myself in just about anything, but my health has had moments where is was out of my control. It's kind of scary, but I've realized that if I "Just keep swimming" through life I'll make it in the end.

8)I'm allergic to the metal in razors!? So shaving my legs has always been a dreaded and PAINFUL experience. I would go all week in High School without shaving my legs. But once Sunday came I would dread having to get ready because I knew I had to shave!? I've found that electric razors are my friend. I no longer dread shaving my legs. Someday maybe I'll try that Laser Hair Removal! I'll let you know how that goes!
I tag Mindy, Meg, Emily M., and Rogue!

Sleep for Lunch

Ben has never really slept in anything. . . but his crib. In Ben's entire life he has only fallen asleep in church twice! That was since he's been born. But we now have captured a moment in Ben's life that may never happen again!
We came home from church after the 3 hour block and several meetings. He ate one sandwich and asked for another one. Dane and I were discussing the event's for the week and looked over at Ben to find this.


Yes he was sleeping so hard he was snoring! May he rest in peace.