Life Without a Tube

Life without a tube in my son's chest has been: Amazing, rejuvenating, relieving, and just plain great!

 

We came back the same day Mack had surgery and as you see above Mack and Lincoln passed out on the way home after all the excitement.  Avery stayed back to have one more day with mum and papa.

I started the evening by watering my plants, this in turn, gave Mack the idea to get soaking wet with the hose.  We then turned on the sprinkler.  Mark and I both saw the heaviness lifted off his chest.  He doesn't have to be so careful (granted he still has low platelets-so he needs to be kind of careful).  It was like he had forgotten how much fun being a normal kid was!

 

As we were playing his Aunt Heidi, Uncle Scott, Cohan and Ireland came by because they were going to decorate our house for when Mack came home.  We ruined that surprise by coming home early.  It didn't matter though because he loved his sign and now it's hanging in his room!

 

The next night the Clifton family brought over dinner and a special present for Mack...

A new Slip n Slide!

This meant everyone got their suits on and enjoyed the fun!

Then Mark came home with a new pool! 

These kids haven't spent a night inside without getting wet! 

During the day, they have met friends at the splash pad.  He hasn't done that in a few years!

This picture shows the new Mack!

The week didn't end.  Aunt Meagan and Uncle Jack brought him a new water gun, and not just one, one for every kid! 

We now have everything that has to do with water!

 

Life is good! We are thankful for all our friends and family who came by, took care of our other kids, sent text messages and called! It amazes me every time how lucky we are to have so many wonderful people in our lives!

A New Place in our Journey

Life got really busy there and the excitement was high in our house.  We started Memorial Day weekend off with my family supporting me in running my first half marathon.  It was a hard 12 weeks of training and my husband supported me through the entire thing giving me all the time I needed to fulfill this goal of mine.  I took this journey with my friend Lindsey and couldn't have done it alone.

 I started the race with hundreds of other woman as we hit mile 3 I started to get really emotional when Mark surprised me with the kids waiting on the side holding signs.  What a great sight!  I thought he would only be at the half way mark and then the end... nope!  He had them placed throughout my race.

the boys surprised Avery and I with flowers.

Since starting my training, I envisioned my daughter crossing the finish with me.  I'm not sure why, but I think I figured it out when I saw her waiting for me-stretching and getting into a running position.  Since starting my training she has been begging to run.  The feeling of crossing with her was one I will remember.  My hope is to pass this lifestyle to her!

 

We immediately packed the car up and headed to the lake!  The kids were ready for some fun!

This picture was one of my favorite-my Aunt Sharon loves Oke-Doke Popcorn and it became a staple at the lake.

This summer is different.  There is no rushing out and getting back before naps.  In fact we didn't even get to the pool until 12:30.  We ate, swam and relaxed.

Then we took a slow ride home where they all napped.  It makes life much easier!

 

On Monday our real journey began.  We drove to St. Louis for Mack's central line to be removed.  We met up with my brother's family and enjoyed a night celebrating this amazing thing...I'm not going to lie and say there wasn't a lot of anxiety from Mark and I, but we tried to relax. 

Mark and I got up at 4:00 a.m. to make sure he took his medicine and then left the house a little before 6:00 a.m.  We got there and they moved him along.  He left us at 7:30 and we had him back with us by 8:00!

They scheduled an hour which made us a little nervous...

But instead he woke up as if wakening from a nap.

He was so great when we got home and bouncing off the walls, we had to get him out.  My mom suggested running to the zoo for a short while to walk around. 

It was the best idea!  We spent over 2 hours there.

And hit the train.  They sat in the back to say, "All Aboard!" over the speaker.

We put them back in the car and headed home!  What an experience.  We had built it up so much and in the end it was fine.  Our family has a lot of important people around us not doing well and I think that caused a lot of anxiety with Mack.  This little dude woke up and said, "Mommy, it feels so good with out my Tubbie!"

 

Our new place in our journey has begun...up next-life without tubbie!!!

That's a Wrap

Our school year came to an end on Thursday and I couldn't be more ready!  We had a busy week leading up to a busy weekend.  First the kids got to play with a friend we haven't seen in a long time.  They played outside until dark and that's when it hit me-summer nights are upon us!

 

 

The next day we were invited to an event where the kids could go on a bounce house, get their face painted (which they never want to do) and fish.  They enjoyed the lake even though they didn't swim in it.  It amazes me how much they entertain each other. 

On Sunday we finally made it to the nursery where we were able to get EVERYTHING we needed for our garden.  The kids were very helpful picking out plants.

This year it was my goal to add more flowers to our yard.  I am not a flower person and have never been about potting plants.  I want to kids to appreciate gardening for the veggies and fruit, but also for the beauty in flowers.  They all picked unique flowers out and we shall see how everything holds up.

 

Then Thursday was here fast!  I have to leave before the kids get dressed so I love seeing pictures and sneaking peeks of them at school.  I got these adorable pictures of their last day of preschool.  Granted Avery still has one more year and Mack has two more, but it was their last year in the same classroom...at least until Mack comes to Kindergarten!

Our preschool won Preschool of the year.  That came with a bounce house on our playground, a balloon artist, and Shaved ice!

I love the kid in front of Mack-so annoyed with my picture taking.

Of course mommy was able to give the three of them a long time in the house by themselves and Lincoln had a blast!

 

Our first day off included relaxing in the morning and then heading to the park with Kalen and Miss Lindsey!

 

Up next Memorial Day weekend!!! 

Summer is here (starting tomorrow)!!! I haven't posted about Mack because honestly I feel like every time I do something happens. We have one more day of school left and then I will let myself get excited for the big event!

Mack had to postpone getting his tube out because of our last hospital stay. It was for the best because we want him to be healthy and there has been other health problems in our family. Tuesday Mack will finally get his tube out!  We will hopefully go into surgery in the morning and bring him home later that day. Our entire family is ready for this summer-it's going to be the best!

Happy summer break everyone!