Halloween

I love Halloween! Actually, I love all holidays! I love decorating my home for the holidays, I love making holiday foods and having a reason to celebrate. Anthony's favorite holiday is Halloween.

Some of the fun things we did to celebrate Halloween this year were: carved pumpkins, made Halloween cookies and boo'd our neighbors, had a family Halloween party with cousins, went to the corn maze & a haunted house (The Castle of Chaos), went trick or treating for almost 2 hours and Anthony & I went to Thriller put on by the Odyssey Dance  Company at Kingsbury Hall. I actually didn't go to the corn maze or the Haunted House but Anthony went with the kids. (I stayed home with Blake.) 

We really enjoyed Thriller. My favorite dance number was called "Dem Bones." It was amazing how they did it - to see the dancers look like real skeletons was quite amazing. They sure did have amazing lighting and incredible choreography. 

For Halloween, Zach dressed up in a black wig with all black clothes and cool sun glasses. People thought he was either Michael Jackson or Al Capone. He wasn't really trying to be anyone, he just did something fast for a costume so he could go trick or treating. Kaeden was GI Joe and Blake was Spiderman. Kassi didn't dress up for Halloween. She spent the night at Grandma Evans' home giving out candy. 

We had very few trick or treaters last night - so I have a lot of left over candy. (Reeses, Kit Kat and Hersheys.) Now, I have to hide the candy so I won't eat it.

Life and Back Surgery

I am behind in my blog due to Anthony's back surgery. On July 21st, I got in the shower and when I got out, saw Anthony crawling on the floor. I asked him what he was doing. (I thought at first he might be playing with Blake but then I noticed Blake was not nearby.) He was in so much pain, he couldn't walk. Being a man, he told me he would take Blake to his bus stop and then go to work. Being a woman, I knew there was no way he was going to be able to do either of those things.

Zach and I got Anthony into the Sienna, I dropped Blake off at the bus stop and drove Anthony to the Emergency Room. It was 7:00 am. The Emergency Room was empty. The Triage Nurse took us back to room 9. There was no one in the rooms we passed. We did pass by the Nurse's station. There were quite a few people there, talking and working, I assume. We were in our room for 45 minutes and no one came. Anthony was draped over the bed writhing in pain. He was in so much pain (and very frustrated that no one came to help him) that he pressed the code blue button. We had about 20 hospital staff in our room in about 30 seconds. (People actually work there.) A Dr. came and asked if someone was dying and Anthony said, "Heck (he didn't use that word but a stronger one) yes, I need pain medication.!" The nurse chastised Anthony was pushing the code blue button. The Dr. did come in and help about 5 minutes after this little episode.

After a MRI, it was determined that Anthony had ruptured or herniated two discs. L4 and L5. He tried to avoid surgery by seeing a Chiropractor - it just didn't work. Anthony was originally scheduled for surgery on July 29th. We went in for the surgery at 6:00 am. Anthony's mom met me at the hospital around 8:00 am. We decided to go get breakfast at the hospital cafeteria, since Anthony's surgery was going to be for 3 hours and then recovery for 2 hours.

Well, long story short, Anthony did not have surgery. He was knocked out and taken into the OR. Unfortunately, they were unable to get his catheter in. (Three different people tried.) The Surgeon decided the surgery was too risky without a catheder, so they took Anthony to recovery. The Dr. called my cell phone, Anthony's cell phone and sent someone to the waiting room to find me. (Unfortunately, I never heard the cell phones.) Finally, after 45 minutes, the Dr. called Anthony's mom's cell phone. The Dr. advised me what happened and said that Anthony needed to see a Urologist before he could operate as he may have a blockage. By the time I went to see Anthony, he was ticked off. He thought that his mom and I had taken off and left him at the hospital.

We were able to see a Urologist the same day. Thank goodness, my kidney cancer Dr. was available. He scoped Anthony (which was quite painful for him) and determined there was no blockage. It was a relief that there was no blockage but it was also annoying knowing there was no blockage, then why could these people in the OR not able to insert the catheter. (I was really annoyed when I received the bill for the failed surgery.)

The Surgeon had other surgeries scheduled, so Anthony was not able to have his back surgery until August 11th. This time we were smart, we called the Urologist and had him insert the catheter the day before surgery so there wouldn't be any problems. All went well. Anthony stayed in the hospital overnight - more due to his diabetes. They had a hard time controlling his diabetes after surgery.

Anthony's hip, leg and foot pain was gone by the time he was brought to his hospital room. He is up and walking. He just can't bend, lift or twist. He will be going back to work in the next few weeks, which I am grateful for. 70% pay is no fun!!! Family and friends have been good to us. We have received several meals. My mom has been a life saver with helping out with Blake. If is wasn't for her, I don't know what we would do.

In the midst of Anthony's back drama, I have been getting the kids ready for school. Kaeden started 2nd grade last Wednesday. Zach started 10th grade today. Blake is suppose to start 1st grade tomorrow but since he has diarrhea and is really sick today, I don't know if he will make it. Kassi starts 8th grade on Wednesday. Life has been hectic but good. I am sad to see the kids back to school. I love to have them home, plus I am not a fan of the hectic school schedules.

Our Service Dog Buddy

We just got a service dog for Blake yesterday. His name is Buddy. He is a 1 1/2 year old black lab. He is relatively calm with a good disposition, house (potty) trained, does really well with children, never has chewed up anything, and listens to simple commands like sit, lay down and fetch. Buddy will be trained to keep Blake safe - basically to keep Blake from continually running away. My greatest fear is that one day Blake will escape and either we won't ever find him or he will be found dead. (Blake has no fear - he darts in fronts of cars, jumps off of the roof of a tall jungle gym, etc.)

I have to be honest - I am not an animal person. I do not love animals or even really like them. I don't mind an occasional trip to the zoo but to have our own pet is liking having another child to me. (4 children is enough. Blake is like 3 children all by himself.) I definitely do not like the idea of an indoor dog but Buddy must be with Blake at all times for his protection.

It is almost comical because since we got Buddy, he keeps coming up to me and licking me. I guess he is trying to get me to like him. I seem to have this animal to human attraction. I will do visits and it is like the dogs and cats have a sixth sense. They will come up to me, want me to pet them, cats love to walk their bodies across my legs, etc.

Buddy goes to the Trainer today. Training takes about 9 months to be a service dog. Buddy will come and visit every now and then until he is fully trained. My kids are so happy to have a dog. They love Buddy. Blake is even starting to like him. He is petting Buddy and trying to ride him like a horse. Buddy hasn't barked or tried to bite Blake once. He just takes the punishment.

Am I happy we have a dog? Not really. Will I do anything to protect my child? Yes, even if it means making a dog part of our family.

Harry Potter Party

I decided to do a Harry Potter party for the kids. I saw on Good Things Utah on how to make edible magic wands and chocolate covered frogs. I love doing fun food projects with my kids, so this was just up my alley. I invited over two of my sisters (Traci and Trica) and they brought their kids. (Shellie and her family were away on vacation.)

The wands are made out of pretzel sticks, the ends were dipped in carmel and then chocolate and rolled in  sprinkles. The frogs were gummy frogs I found at Harmons dipped in dark chocolate. (Actually, the frogs were pretty tasty.) The kids and adults seemed to have a good time. Grandma and Grandpa Evans even stopped by. It was nice for a last minute get together.

I didn't leave out the adults. I made Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno appetizers. They were really yummy! One bite about killed Traci off. Her eyes were watering. Thank goodness for vinegar. She gargled vinegar and it took the burning sensation away. My only regret is that I didn't take any pictures of our Harry Potter projects. I had the camera on the counter, all ready to go and I forgot to take pictures. I quess I am getting old because my memory is not what it used to be.   

A Family Blog

Well, I finally I have created a family blog. If for nothing else, so I can use this as my journal. Life goes by so quickly, things happen and you think you will never forget, yet I forget. I want to enjoy and savor the sweet memories. My family is the most important thing in my life. My family is everything. I have an awesome husband and fabulous kids. There are trials and challenges but they are what make the good times, so good!