Gracie Surgery

Unfortunately Gracie had to have surgery on Monday to remove a cyst on the bottom of her tongue. The good news is that she was actually able to have the surgery, we have had to reschedule a couple of times because she was sick, but she finally stayed healthy for a month straight which is pretty incredible.

Primary Childrens wanted us there at 6:00 a.m. so we had to wake Gracie up at 5:15 to get there on time. Despite waking up too early Gracie was very happy and did very good waiting until her 7:30 surgery. For kids that need it they provide this drink that has valium or something like that in it and it helps calm them down so when the doctors take them away they don't freak out. The problem with it is that it takes them longer to wake up from the surgery, so we opted not too give it to her. We thought she would be ok going but just crossed our fingers that all would go well, and she did great. We put her in a wagon and she let the doctor pull her into the operating room without crying, we gave her kisses, and she was gone.

The surgery was quick, less than 20 minutes, and all went well. The only problem was when Gracie woke up from surgery and didn't have her Mom there, she was pretty upset. So upset that the nurse tried to give her a sippy cup and she threw it back at her, Gracie's fiesty side came out! After an hour in recovery we were on our way home, and thankful that there were no problems.


Gracie getting her surgery clothes on and looking very happy about it!



Gracie loved playing with this car before her surgery, we could barely get her out of it to go with the Doctor!


The start of the walk to Surgery. I had tried to put her in the wagon about 20 minutes before and she didn't want anything to do with it but when we put her in it to go with the Doctor, she gladly got in.


The anesthesiologist was very good and as they walked he pointed out the items on the ceiling and walls to keep her occupied. Here she is pointing to something on the ceiling.


Looking very relaxed like she doesn't have a care in the world


Maybe in this picture she is staring to realize what is going on!! She is not crying but she looks pretty upset, or maybe it is just confused. She may never go in a wagon again, because they take you away from Mommy and Daddy into a strange world where people are dressed in funny outfits!


They had to wrap her IV really well so she wouldn't take it off, it almost looks like she has a broken hand


Life is good, she's watching Micky Mouse, she has her binky and blanket and this experience is almost over!


Removing the IV and she didnt' even flinch!

New Baby in the Family

On Tuesday, April 14th, Todd & Morgan had their new baby and called him Preston Todd Ferran. The next day we went to the hospital to see Preston with Isabelle and Gracie.




Afterward we went to the mall and the Cheese Cake Factory for dinner, here is Isabelle and Gracie trying on sunglasses in Build a Bear. I thought it was a cute picture.

Easter

Well it has been weeks since an update, so there is a lot too catch up on. For Easter weekend we went to St. George with Grandma & Grandpa Barker, Ben/Shannon, and Nick/Mariah. We went down on Thursday night and after leaving Salt Lake we quickly realized Isabelle isn't a "drive in the car kind of girl." After only an hour we started to hear the "are we there yet," "how much longer" talk and luckily after about half way we got her to fall asleep to make the drive go quicker. It was a fun weekend, even though it wasn't the greatest of weather. We flew kites, went on a Easter egg hunt, went shopping, went golfing, went swimming and just relaxed. Here are some pictures:


Isabelle just waiting to go swimming, I think she was in this outfit for a couple of hours!


Isabelle's first time flying a kite


Gracie and Isabelle at the park


Isabelle helping Gracie fly the kite


At the very wet Easter Hug Hunt in St. George, despite the weather, the kids still had fun. Question though: If you know that it is going to rain, why do you put out candy that has a paper shell? Aren't they just going to turn soggy?


Easter morning getting ready to go find all the eggs and their baskets


Gracie finding her basket


Isabelle and her basket


Picture after church with everyone looking very springish except for Dad, I guess I should have bought a new tie!


We got home about 6:30 on Sunday night so we headed over to Aly's parent's house to finish the day with another Easter Egg Hunt, here are the cousins after finding all their eggs.

Isabelle Helping Gracie Ride a bike

With Spring and Winter swapping back and forth here the last month, whenever the girls get to go outside, they take the chance. Isabelle has been dying to ride her bike and Gracie wants to be just like her so she has to ride one too. Despite Isabelle wanting to do her own thing she has been good at helping push Gracie on this little trike. Here are some pictures from a few weeks ago.





Both of the girls are continuing to grow up too fast. Isabelle has started to read in school and after watching "Hannah Montana" has the attitude of a teenager. She also can't keep one outfit on for more than an hour because she wants to be like the characters in the shows and movies she watches. If you are a pair of Mom's shoes, look out, because Isabelle wants to wear every one.

Gracie has been starting to say two syllable words in the past month. Before she should say "Bye" but now she can say "Bye Bye." Despite our trying her binkie is still called her Do Do, even though she can say her B's really well. Please is tough for her to say so she just makes a hissing sound that is similar, and her nod of the head is her "Thank you."' She is a lot more independent that Isabelle was at her age, and if something is not to her liking she will let you know. The constant struggle is getting clothes on her, she likes to be naked. She also is very friendly saying "Hi" to people walking buy and not willing to sit still for anything besides getting her hair done.

New Laundry Room

Here are pictures (Finally) of what the new laundry room looks like.


Looking in from the Garage, there will be hooks here for coats and there is a little place to put your shoes on.



There are a ton of cabinets here, and it is a tight space, but it flows well. We needed lots of cabinets to take over the pantry we lost. It is so nice to have a full laundry room.

Reunion

I was able to put together a reunion for my mission over the weekend and thought I would post a picture. It was good to see everyone again, and despite it being kind of crazy at the house for a couple of hours, I think everyone had a good time.