A Whole Lot of DRAMA

It has been one CRAZY month!! Don't feel like any of you have to read it all. I just was getting things all jumbled together, so I had to write everything down. Here's the breakdown of all that transpired:

Feb. 1-3: Pax and I flew down to AZ for my Grandpa's 80th Birthday party. We had fun seeing a ton of family, and I left Paxton with my mom to handle for the next 2 weeks so I could get packed.

Feb. 7: Justin's 29th Birthday! Kaybri had doctor appointments, so Justin took the day off and after we went to her appt. we dropped Kaybri off at his parents and we got to go to dinner and a movie. Fun!

Feb. 10: Kaybri's 3rd Birthday! We celebrated birthdays before Paxton left, but I did keep a couple of gifts out for her to open on her birthday. We had a fun day relaxing and doing whatever Kaybri wanted. (Really what we do everyday!)

Feb. 13: Load up the u-haul. It started snowing, and never stopped! The few inches that were predicted for Tooele turned into about 2 Feet!!! I'm pretty sure we picked the worst days to move!! We left that night to go to Justin's parents in Pleasant Grove and stay the night with them, since our house was totally empty. It was a scary drive, but we were totally blessed and all made it safely to their house. There were a lot of wrecks on the way and tons of people pulled off on the side of the road. We were listening to the radio on the way and they just kept saying if you are on the roads to get off and go stay in a motel or find a friend to stay with. Roads were closed and it was taking people 4-6 hours to get from Salt Lake to Lehi/Eagle Mountain areas. I can not believe how lucky we were because it probably only took us an 1 1/2 hour. The next morning on the news it said I-80 was closed for big vehicles, so we totally would've been stuck in Tooele if we didn't leave that night. Tooele schools were also closed for the only the 2nd time in 40 years! Craziness!!

Feb. 14: We spent a very romantic valentines day by driving. :) The storm we had in Utah followed us to Flagstaff, and we had a lot more very tense, 'are we going to die?' situations.

Feb. 15: We made it to Thatcher! Hallelujah! Our plan was to stay with Cory and Dawn while we got the apartment in order.

Feb. 16: Boys unloaded the u-haul. We were pleasantly surprised with our little boy! We didn't think we would get him for a couple more days, but my mom, dad, and grandma brought him early! It was so hard/weird to not see him for 2 weeks. We missed him so much! He looked bigger/fatter! He must of hit a growth spurt, because he was popping out of his shirts and his pants are too short. That night Paxton started getting sick. He had a fever, a runny nose, a cough, and he walked around sounding like a wheezing old man. The next few nights we didn't get much sleep, but by Wednesday (the 20th) he was doing a little bit better.

Feb. 19-20: Justin was in Phoenix for training.

Feb. 21: Justin's 1st day at his job in Safford. Kaybri got in our bed early in the morning and she was getting sick with whatever Paxton had. I thought 'oh well, good thing I scheduled a doctor appointment for Pax today; I'll just get Kaybri checked too', but that is when the real drama of our life began. Kaybri started having a seizure a little after 4 a.m. We had to give her some medicine to stop it. It helped slow her seizure down, but didn't stop it, so after 15 minutes we started getting ready to go to the ER. I called my sister to come over and stay with Paxton (Dawn and Cory had left on Wednesday to go to Phoenix). Right before we got in the car, Kaybri vomited and then it looked like her seizure kind of stopped. We got to the hospital and decided her seizure stopped (25 min seizure), and since we have done the ER thing many times and all they really try to do is stop the seizure and then after that poke and monitor her, we decided to go back and let her get some more sleep and then take her to the doctor in the morning. Well, I was still pretty worried because she didn't come out of the seizure like she normally does. She usually takes a deep breath or cries or something, but she didn't do anything. She was sleeping, but kept holding her breath off and on and having little twitches. By about 9 a.m. I tried to wake her up and she opened her eyes and looked at me, and then her eyes rolled to the side and her tongue started to click. I could tell she was starting to have a seizure and then it looked like she went back to sleep. I tried to wake her up again and the same thing happened. This happened a 3rd time, and then I called Justin to tell him we needed to go to the ER. Who knows if she had been going in and out of seizures since the first one at 4. We arrived at the ER and she was having seizures pretty much non-stop for about 45 minutes. Although the ER staff were very nice, I don't know if they were very sure what to do. Any other time we have gone to the ER they are trying to get the seizure stopped as quickly as possible to prevent brain damage, and they were asking me questions like "So, is this pretty typical how she usually looks after a seizure?"
Me: "well no, you see she is having a seizure right now, STILL!"
And then the question, "What do you they usually do for her when you take her to the ER?"
Me: "Well, they give her Ativan? through an IV and that usually stops the seizure."
Doc.: "ok, well I'm going to call up to Phoenix and talk to some of my team mates to see what they say."

Kaybri was still not breathing good and her oxygen kept getting down to 60 (normal is between 92-100). Doctor comes back and says I think we'll give her some Ativan. They give it to her, and her seizure instantly stops. I was just thinking, duh....you think we could've given it to her 30 minutes ago and stopped this whole thing. I kept my cool though and stayed calm during the whole ordeal, amazingly. I was frustrated, but they were nice and were trying at least; you can't expect people to know everything, right?

Kaybri was now totally knocked out and sleeping and breathing good. She had about 104 degree fever, her test for RSV came back negative, but her chest x-ray showed pneumonia. So they were trying to get her fever to come down and they started her on antibiotics. They also still wanted to life flight her out to a doctor that could check her out better. They tried Tucson and Phoenix Children's Hospital because they're closer, but due to all the sick kiddos they didn't have any beds available. So we went to St. Josephs Hospital in Phoenix. This actually turned out to be a good thing, because I remember when I was researching where to go for doctors before we moved that St. Josephs looked like a good hospital with good specialists but I was undecided because the Barrow Neurological Institute looked really good too. Well, we fly to the hospital and it turns out that the Barrow is a part of St. Joes! That worked out good, huh!

Anyway, Kaybri was in the PICU from Thursday(21st) to Monday(25th). Since they have more experience working with sick kids, they wanted to do another RSV test. It came back positive, so they then did another chest x-ray and decided she probably didn't have pneumonia, it was just RSV. She was one sick little girl. She could barely open her eyes and she said very, very few words for about a week. We were wondering if there was brain damage from all of the seizures, but they did an EEG and it showed everything to be a little slow but totally normal considering all of the drugs that she was on, her sickness, and she was still recovering from the seizures. They also did a MRI and the doctor said the brain looked really good, but the was a small subdural? hemorrhage (a bleed) on the right side, where they did surgery last October. They thought the bleed was either from a recent fall, or they thought that it was possibly not a bleed but an infection which would require emergency surgery. Well, they kept a really close eye on her to make sure she could move her neck/head around and wasn't too stiff. As of now they think that it is probably just from the surgery and will do a repeat MRI in 4-6 months.

We stayed the rest of the week in Phoenix and came home on Saturday(March 1st). We wanted to stay close to the hospital because she still wasn't back to normal and she also had some follow-up appointments and another MRI scheduled for later in the week (which didn't happen for even longer, complicated reasons). Justin also had training the entire week in Phoenix, which was quite convenient. Oh yeah, he also got sick for the whole week with what Kaybri and Paxton had. And Paxton got picked up by my mom and Joni while we were in Phoenix. Poor guy, we only saw him 4 days out of the month of February. However, I think it was harder on us than on him! It didn't faze him at all.

March 3-11: We get PAX back! yay! Brother and sister were super excited to be reunited! Kaybri started becoming more herself and we had a lot of fun being all together again. We were actually able to move into our apartment and relax for a bit.

March 12-13: Justin had a meeting in Phoenix the next day, and I wanted to go do some shopping so we decided to head up Wednesday evening. We stopped in Globe to grab a bite to eat, and as we were about to leave, Kaybri had a seizure. It was one day short of being 3 weeks since her last one, and we were so grateful for that time to let her body adjust and actually start to be "normal" again. She had been having about 4 seizures a week before this point, so 3 weeks really was incredible. We couldn't get the seizure to stop, so we headed to the ER. It stopped around 45 minutes. We thought she was fine and that she would recover on her own like she usually does. But the ER doctor thought she needed to be seen by specialists, and so the next thing I know they came in and said they have a helicopter outside waiting for us to go to St. Joe's. So yes, Kaybri and I took another ride in the helicopter. It wasn't as scary as the first time, but still nerve wracking. Kaybri did recover fine and they discharged us the next afternoon.

March 20-23: Kaybri had been doing really well, and then she had another seizure while she and I were out shopping. After about 10-15 minutes the drugs I had given her still weren't having an affect on her, so we went to the ER again... This time they got it to stop in about 35 minutes, and she was sleeping pretty good afterwards. We were just waiting on her bloodwork to come back and then they were going to let us go home. Well, her lab came back normal except one number, and it was totally off the charts, so they thought it was a mistake and took some more blood to re-test it. It came back super high again. It was an Alkaline/Phosphate level, and the normal high-range is about 300. With kids its fairly normal to be high, but her level was over 4,000! The test is checking things dealing with bones, liver, and kidneys. There were no more hopes of going back home, the doc wanted us to see her specialists right away. We were life flighted out at 3:30 a.m. to St. Joe's ER because all of the pediatric beds were full.

We got into a normal room later the next day, and they did the usual take some more blood, get an IV in her, and watch her. They also took some x-rays of all of her long bones, etc. The x-rays got read on Sunday and they are 95% sure they look fine (waiting on the expert radiologist to take a look at them). The bloodwork that is supposed to check what areas of the body have ellivated Alkaline/phos levels didn't get done and they had to re-do it on Sunday and it will take a few days to get back. So basically, we still don't really know anything, just that she has a crazy high number that the doctors have no idea what from, a totally different issues than the seizures. They let us go home on Sunday, so we didn't have an Easter bunny at our house. The Easter bunny did come visit Kaybri at the hospital though and he gave her a basket of goodies. She kept calling him "Rabbit". And Paxton got to be spoiled by Aunt JoJo, Uncle Tristan, Grammie, and Papa. What more could a little boy ask for. He loved it!

We are all back at home, healthy, happy, and a little tired. I think I have worked on this post probably 10 times. I always got interrupted and would have to save it for later, and then something major would happen that I would want to include. I hope I am not depressing anyone by telling all of our hospital visits. Justin said I shouldn't write everything (which I couldn't) because it makes it sound like we have it really bad. And we totally don't. Through all of these trials there have been tremendous blessings and a lot of learning.

Oh, yeah...The House Situation: Feb. 29th our house was finally listed. We were waiting on things to get fixed. We had a super, super horrible wind storm come through in January. We had winds around 100 mph, and as you can imagine it did some damage. We had a window broken, holes in the siding of the house, and lots of shingles blown off. With the help of insurance we were able to replace an entire side of our house's siding, get the window replaced, and a put a brand new roof on. Within a week we had accepted an offer and it was under contract. We were incredibly surprised and excited, but a few days later it fell through because of their credit. So, it is back on the market! We are currently living in a pretty small apartment that Justin's parents own. 2 bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom. It's an adjustment, but we're grateful that it's available and it has helped us out a bunch.

We're MOVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep, that's right we're out of here in just 2 weeks!! Out of the cold snow into warm, sunny Arizona! If you know us, I'm sure you're not surprised we're moving....AGAIN! We have been married 5 years, and this will be our 6th time to move (however, a couple of the times were only for a few months and most of our stuff was in storage). I think this time will be longer though. Justin accepted a new job as the manager of the Arizona State Credit Union. We are moving back to the little town he grew up in, and where we actually met and dated. It's what we have always considered "home" and so we are really excited to go back!! Of course we are still going to miss a lot of things here, but mostly our family and friends. I'm sure we will be back to visit. Anyway, I better go pack...not our boxes, but our suitcases. Pax and I are headed down to AZ for my grandpa's b'day party this weekend. So many things to do, so little time. I can't promise to keep my blog updated, but I'll try to give you all more information later. I appologize if this post is really all over the place, but that is indeed how I feel!!

Snow Day!

I know we live where we get snow all the time, but very very rarely do we go out and play in it. I'm sad to say that Paxton has never gone out in the snow to just play. I have a lot of excuses for it though-- Last year Pax was just a tiny baby and couldn't go out, Kaybri always seems to get a cold after freezing in it, Kaybri's been having a lot of seizures already and I don't want to cause her to have another one by getting too cold, and well probably the most important reason...I just don't love it. I'm a mean mom I guess.

Justin had Monday off, we had 5-6 inches of new snow, and it was sunny outside, so we thought we better let the kids experience playing in the snow. They were all bundled up and walking out the door when Paxton face planted it on the porch. ouch! Luckily he had a fuzzy beanie to protect his forehead! He just stood in the snow for a little while, not sure if he should move. Once he decided he should go for it and run, he face planted again! This time he couldn't get up by himself though, all you could see was his little bum in the air! Justin picked him up and his whole head was covered in snow except for his eyes and mouth (which was screaming bloody murder). It was hilarious! Justin was nice and brushed him off before I could snap a picture, so all I got was the after-shot. He hated the snow for the next 10 minutes, but once we let him walk on the sidewalk and decide for himself when he should or shouldn't jump in the snow he liked it a lot. He actually threw a major fit when we brought him back in the house, so I guess we'll have to play again. As for Kaybri, she loves the snow too, but for different reasons. She loves to eat the "cold ice". She would just sit down in the snow and shove handfuls into her mouth. I know, probably not the best thing to let her eat, but I checked and it wasn't yellow!

The kids now have nasty colds, but we now have pictures and memories to last a lifetime!

News from the doc

Kaybri's neurologist finally called back yesterday and basically told us we need to do some more tests. The video EEG in December showed that most of her seizures are coming from the left side of her brain. This still puts her as a "maybe" candidate for epileptic surgery. They had thought/hoped that her seizures were coming from her right side of the brain (where she originally had surgery for the cyst) because that would've explained why they couldn't see any abnormal brain tissue in that area on her MRIs. But since it's from the opposite side they looked back at her last MRI to look at the left side really good, but it turns out that there was some movement artifact on the MRI so they couldn't see it clear enough to say whether it is normal or abnormal. So, we are going to do a higher resolution MRI soon. If it shows abnormal then there is a higher probability that she will have surgery. She is now having an average of 4-5 seizures a week. Anyway, that is the update, so now I'll add some of the latest pictures to satisfy all your cravings!

Kaybri's totally fake laugh. She's trying to be funny, and of course we fell for it.

My little cutie pie has been such a whinner lately, it's driving me crazy! He's also learned to throw fits when he doesn't get what he wants. He falls to the floor and will begin to bang his head, I try not to laugh. Anyway, when I see these sweet pictures I forget all about the things that drive me crazy.

Tag

Ok, so I never do these, but I thought since we bailed on seeing you last weekend Becca, that I could at least fulfill this request. :)

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

10 years ago: It was my grandpa's 70th birthday, so we probably had cake or something with him?? I have no idea?! Umm...I was 15 and a freshman, so I was probably passing notes in the hall to my old crush, bringing a ton of books and homework home every night and staying up late until it was all done (yes I am that much of a nerd/perfectionist), going to basketball games, and being involved in a lot of extra activities-BPA, FHA, Student Council. I think I got my first email address when I was a freshman too-I know, random.

5 things on my to-do list today:Well, since the day is nearly over I shouldn't have any to do's, so I'll probably carry it over into tomorrow.
1.) catch up on blog
2.) go to bed before 12 am
3.) fold laundry
4.) take care of my sick, whinny kids
5.) try to be nice to them :)

Things I would do if I were suddenly made a billionaire:Find the best doctor out there and have them study and study until they can fix Kaybers. Go on lots of vacations/travel the world. Buy a home in AZ and visit our families more often. Help out family. Pay off any debts. Invest. Give money to the church.

3 of my bad habits: Being late to everything (although I've been doing way better this year-so far), Staying up too late, Eating way too much sugar!

5 places I have lived: New Mexico, Arizona, Utah (3 different cities), California

5 jobs I have had:Waitress, Admin. Assistant at EA, car hopper for Sonic, Admin. Assistant at BYU, MOM

Things people don't know about me: I am such a sucker for "good deals" while going shopping; I am super indecisive and over-analyze things; I swear I used to be kinda smart, but most of my brain left when I had babies!

I tag: Karli, Mel, Nicole, Jennifer, & Brooke

Goodbye Curls

As you've probably noticed, Paxton's hair is getting really long. I LOVE all the little curls, but Justin has been saying he looks too girly. I agree that he did need some cut off; his bangs were constantly in his eyes, and I was having to comb his hair as much as Kaybri's. I was too afraid to try to cut his hair all by myself, so I decided to have my mom help while she was here.

Here are some before shots:

The cut:

I tried to keep him entertained while my mom cut. Suckers worked great. He had 3 because the sticks kept getting so soggy.

And when all else fails, pick your nose. It seemed to keep him occupied. :)

The finished look:

It took a little bit of getting use to, but I like it. And it's just hair, right? I'm sure I will let it grow and get curly again though!

Christmas 2007

Well, we did manage to get our tree decorated, despite the flu that took over our home. I think it was decorated for 8-9 days and then we took the decorations off the day after Christmas because the tree was so dry. Paxton loved the "balls" on the tree and was constantly asking for them. And Kaybri would go up to the tree and point to the lights and say "hot, don't touch it".






Paxton started feeling better and was back to eating a lot of food about 5 days after he got sick with the flu. He even managed to climb up into the chair and finish Kaybri's breakfast one morning. However, by the end of the week he was sick again, running a high fever; I think because he was cutting his bottom molars. Anyway, I missed church....again. Kaybri and Justin did make it though; she looked so pretty.





My parents drove up to Utah and got here on the 23rd. We got to keep them here for a whole week!! Justin's mom, dad, and brother were also planning on coming here for Christmas Eve/Day. Those plans changed a little bit when Britni (Justin's sister) went into labor Christmas Eve, so his mom didn't make it here. But, we got a new little niece for Christmas! Congratulations guys!!

We were just about to do our Christmas Eve tradition of reading about the birth of our Savior and opening up one present (Christmas jammies), when Kaybri had a seizure. She had been doing so good; we were a little surprised. She had gone 10 days without any, so we thought she'd probably make it through Christmas. We had to give her diastat to come out of it, so she was knocked out for the rest of the evening.



BEDTIME!! Paxton now lets us know when it's past his bedtime by asking over and over for his "ba ba".

POKER TIME!! The boys have a tradition of playing poker when they all get together.

Kaybri woke up early the next morning and was still out of it and very irritable for the majority of Christmas. The smallest thing would set her off and through her into tears. I did manage to get a few pictures of her with smiles though. Kaybri opened up a couple of presents, but we opened up a lot of them for her because she would throw a fit if we tried to get her to open any. On the other hand, Paxton was full of grins and giggles. He loved opening his presents (and hated sitting still for pictures)! They both got lots of toys and clothes; they're two very loved/spoiled kids! (Sorry for posting so many pictures, I have a hard time making decisions!)

The kids had a lot of fun playing with Grammie and Papa. Thanks for coming to stay with us! Kaybri kept asking/looking for them for several days after they left! And Paxton learned how to say "papa"; we're still working on "grammie".

Several days after Christmas, the kids got a couple more presents. This time Kaybri was very into unwrapping the her present. I guess we should have waited a few days to let Kaybri open all her presents when she felt better.

Paxton HATES to sit still for pictures!

It was so funny to watch Paxton and her. She did not want Paxton to come near her while she was tearing off the paper. You can see in the picture that she's holding onto his arm, while she's unwrapping with the other!

Pax is a big boy now though, and can hold his own!!!