It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

The house is all decorated and the kids are anxiously awaiting a visit from Santa! Santa made a little video for Mr. Dylan.......and WOW, you should have seen the look in his eyes! Santa made this especially for him, he didn't quite know what to think. The excitement has been building ever since! Click below to see the video:

http://www.portablenorthpole.tv/watch/guest/zrLJNKdEZUPtv6Nq1-_mDA

We went and picked out the perfect tree!

It took a little searching, we went up the hill and thru the woods!

And finally we found it! We went for a short needle tree this year and it is perfect!

And Daddy and Dylan drug it down the hill to the truck!

We decorated it and the kids LOVE it! Something about a decorated tree with the fresh smell in the air. The Holidays are here! Danielle just loves the lights and Dylan loves coming home seeing the lights on as we pull in the driveway!

Incredibly Thankful...

The time of year has come, the Holidays are here. WOW, time sure has gone by so quickly. This year I feel this more than in previous years. We have so much to be thankful this year, our children top our list!

We are thankful for many things each and every day of the year. The trials, tribulations, life's tough moments, all of those we are thankful for...why...because they make us stronger. Stronger husband and wife, stronger parents, stronger sons and daughters, sisters and brothers, friends and coworkers. I feel like we have been tested this year, we have made a few life changing decisions this year, and for the ability to make those decisions....to talk them over and set goals and move toward the goal we have the option to make decisions, and for those moments we are so thankful.

For our children, the light in our days, the laughter in our minds and the love in our hearts. Parenthood is not easy, some days it is challenging, some days we cry, some days we laugh, but we have the most precious gifts and little miracles that some people never get to know.....and no matter how hard some days are, for the gift of life we gave our children, we are so thankful.

For our alarm clocks going off 5 days a week so we can put in hours at the 'office'. For our jobs where we can do silly things like trash our bosses office for his 50Th birthday and surprise him with someone jumping out of a cake....or for Brad facing his biggest challenge this year, searching for a new employer, a similar job yet so many new things to learn, a new career path which we talked and prayed that it would be the right decision, and thankfully it was. For our employers, our jobs, busy and chaotic as some days seem, our hard work provides the home for our family....for each and every day, we are so thankful.

And when times are slow, we give each other a much needed laugh...for these laughs we are thankful! For our family, our extended family. Our parents, whom with some we do not agree, some we are at different places in our life, we have different priorities, we lead our lives in different ways...but they are still our parents regardless of our relationship with them on a day to day basis. For those people, our parents who gave us the gift of life, we are so thankful.

For girls night out with my Aunt and cousins...I am SO thankful!

For our friends. The close ones we hold to our heart, we laugh with, we cry with, we think of every day. We vent to and relax with and party with too, for those who are 'family' in more ways than one....for you, we are so thankful.

Each day brings something new, another obstacle, another day we have each other, another hug and kiss we can give each other and our children, the breaths we take meaning we are alive....for each and every day, WE ARE SO THANKFUL!~

BIG surprise!

Back on a sunny Spring day in May, I was browsing online and came across an advertisement for Mickey's Rockin' Road Show. I was a little curious and browsed a bit further. I quietly called Brad over and we looked and read reviews and decided that this would be perfect to get tickets and take the kids. So I typed in the number of tickets we needed and the request came back with tickets for the 6Th row.....I ran to the kitchen for my purse and hit 'purchase' as quick as I could! The anticipation has been with us since way back in May, this past Friday night that anticipation became a reality!

We both decided we wouldn't tell Dylan where we were going. Brad picked Dylan up from school around 2 that day, and that in itself was quite the surprise! I picked up Danielle and headed home to get the boys, packed up the car and we were off. We headed to Gringos for a quick dinner, good thing we had reservations because the place was packed with families also eating dinner before the big show.

So while at dinner, Dylan was thinking that going out to dinner was his big surprise. Well the little girl at the table next to us started talking with her parents about Mickey Mouse....so we looked at each other and decided at this point we had to tell him what he was about to see. So I said, 'Dylan guess where Mom and Dad are going to take you after you eat aaallll of your dinner?' He looked at us with these inquisitive eyes, 'where mommy' he said. I said well, ' Mommy and Daddy are going to take you to see Mickey Mouse and his friends', his eyes could not have gotten any bigger and at that very moment he raised his voice and said, 'you mean I get to go see the Mickey Mouse show...OH BOY' he said! It was priceless!. At that very moment our hearts melted, seeing the excitement in our child's eyes was the most precious moment ever. He could not have been any more excited to go and see his favorite Disney character in real life.

So we ate up our dinner and headed across the street to the US Cellular Center. We walked in, to what seemed like a Disney Extravaganza! There were vendors everywhere and Disney this and that and everything! We quick got in line and Dylan got to pick out his most favorite toy, the light up, spinning Mickey Mouse. We grabbed a soda for Mom and Dad and headed to find our seats. The 6Th row seemed like the 3rd row because the rows were small and the stage was huge. We were so excited and the kids were captivated right away. Soon after we sat down the music started and a performer came out and started singing songs and a couple characters came on the big screen. Dylan was, 'awww Mom' this and 'awww Dad' that, it was so cute!

Soon after the MC came out and the show was under way. There was a ton of singing and dancing and flashing lights. Danielle was captivated right away. She was smiling from ear to ear, loving the lights and I am sure also recognizing some of the music.

(at this point, sadly my camera battery died, so we resulted in pics with our phones)

Dylan was all eyes on the stage for the entire show. He was extremely sad at intermission thinking it was already over. When we convinced him it was going to start again he was just fine, oh, and after he got his BIG bucket of popcorn! During the second half a bunch of kids from around us went up front to dance and sing along. Dylan wanted to go up but also wanted Mom right by his side. So I kneeled on the floor and he went up front for a little bit to be right beneath ALL of the action.

The finale was really neat! Donald Duck exploded his big 'surprise' and confetti started flying everywhere. It started like this......

and then it continued like this!!!!! The confetti was everywhere, as you can see it was like we were in the middle of a blizzard!!!!!! Being right up front we got the full effects! It was covering all of us. Dylan put his head down and covered his eyes because it was almost hard to see! Such a great ending to a perfect show!!

The show was a huge hit! Brad and I loved it almost as much as the kids did. The show had a great story line and the backdrop, props and costumes were amazing, the talent was pretty incredible also! We are very happy we were able to do this for the kids. We definitely look forward to another show of some sort in the near future! What a great family night, memories that will be cherished forever!!~

Raising Awareness....

Today is National Prematurity Awareness Day. A day to educate, raise awareness and help to get people on board, to support organizations which help babies who are born far too soon.

My heart hurts on days like today. Days where I feel so incredibly responsible for the loss of my son and the pain and suffering that all three of my children went thru when they were born and several months after. I have always been told, since the minutes after I found out I was in labor, 'it isn't your fault, don't blame yourself, you are not responsible'. But as a mother, the bearer of my children I feel, yet, SO responsible. This guilt will be with me, deep down in my heart.....for the rest of my life. It is a guilt that I can't even explain but it is there. I can't help it, it is there, nagging, tugging, pulling at me on certain days, today being one of those days. 1 in 8 babies is born premature. More newborn babies die from premature birth than any other cause. The rate of premature birth in America is higher than that of most other developed nations. Iowa received a grade 'D' for it's Prematurity Birth Report card, that is unacceptable. If you would have asked me 6 years ago what a preemie baby was, what gestation a child could survive if born early or how small preemie baby's could be.....I would have not been able to answer one of those questions, I had NO idea. It is not something most people make themselves familiar with until prematurity affects them, someone they know or someone they love. The March of Dimes and Children's Miracle Network help fund research, they help parents like us, with educational materials while in the NICU, and so much more. Thank the lord for those organizations and the wonderful people working every day to raise awareness.

We have been thru a lot with our babies, we really have. It is not dwelled upon, or even thought of every day....but these trials have affected our life...forever. We miss our first born. We think of him every single day. I am at peace knowing he is our angel watching us from heaven. He gives us signs that he is surrounding us every single day. Brad has struggled with his loss quite a bit more recently, that makes me sad. But we talk, we work thru our pain and we look at our other two babies and snuggle them extra for their brother from above. I want our children to know that we do everything possible for them and have since conception. I don't want them to remember the pain but I will one day tell them where there strength came from. Life is different than we could have ever imagined, we are stronger people because of our struggles and we are so thankful that we have the 3 most beautiful children ever. We know the love of a child as Mom and a Dad, some never get to feel that love....we are fortunate we have and do.
So today we hug our little ones a little tighter. We pray a little harder. We cry a little longer. And we love more and more and more, each other, every....single....day. We are blessed. We love you Dalton, Dylan and Danielle, more than words can say. I'm sorry you have been thru what you have, I'm sorry you will not all three be raised together. But know that your Mom and Dad will fight for you to the moon and back, protect you and love you every single day....and we will raise awareness so hopefully one day, all babies will be born at term.~