A Fun Week

This last week was our final week of our summer break, so we made the most of the week and tried to do something every day.

On Monday, the girls played at a friends house while I had a dental appointment. We then ate lunch together and had planned on going roller skating, but the rink was closed. That's okay though, we went and got our swim suits and towels and headed back to their place for an afternoon of swimming. Not a single person from their complex was in the pool! We had the entire pool to ourselves in the 106 degree day! It was awesome!

On Tuesday afternoon, we met Uncle Bart at Disneyland and stayed into the evening. We had a great time and enjoyed spending time with Uncle Bart. The parks weren't terribly overcrowded and we managed to do a lot of fun things. We stayed into the evening and watched The Electrical Parade which brought back some of the original floats that had been missing the last seven years since coming back to the Disneyland Resort. It was definitely a great way to spend a Tuesday afternoon/evening! Singing Karaoke and having a great time!Midday Wednesday, we met the same friends at the house of another friends with a pool and went swimming most of the afternoon again. The pool was refreshing and the jacuzzi was great! That evening, we went to the local park where Uncle Robbie and his band were playing. The girls were excited to play and see their cousins. It was a nice evening of music and it cooled off enough and was enjoyable to be outside. On Thursday, the girls each had regular dental check ups. And then we went roller skating again. Ever since we went last week with Auntie and McKenzie and Haylee, Rachel has been asking to go again. She loved it THAT much. So today we went to the skating rink that I grew up going to. They refused to tighten Rachel's skates like the rink did last week, so Rachel was a little more wobbly than last week, but that didn't stop her....she just kept going round and round the rink. Gramma came by and watched for a while too and was impressed at how well Rachel was doing. Perhaps a future roller derby queen in the family!?!? LOL. Yesterday, was a kick back day. Hannah spent the day with Gramma, and Rachel had Mommy all to herself. We didn't do much, or anything too exciting, but I think she enjoyed having the break from Hannah and vice versa.

It's definitely been a full and fun week. Come Tuesday, things will be a little different around here...Rachel will be going to school everyday of the week!

Dental Appointment

I absolutely LOVE our pediatric dentist. She's amazing with children and both the girls absolutely adore her. Rachel had completely forgotten about her last visit (to have fillings) and showed no signs of distress or anxiety when it came time to go to her appointment.Rachel got a clean bill of dental health, which is always a relief to me whenever any of us go to the dentist. And Dr Hoffer once again put some extra sealant on a few of her upper teeth, including the one in her cleft gum which is extremely hard to brush. Aside from a little upset when it came time for the vitamins, she did a great job and we'll be back in February!

Roller Skating for the First Time

My sister-in-law, Grace, invited me and the girls to go with her and the girls roller skating today as she had free admissions to one of the local skating rink. Roller skates and I have a history of not getting along (I broke my collar bone when I was in Jr High), so I opted to stay on solid ground in my tennis shoes while the other five of them dawned roller skates. Look at Grace in this picture, she's laughing so hard and struggling to stay up right. She did a couple slow laps around the rink and then sidelined it in fear of falling on her rump and breaking her tailbone. Rachel wasn't too sure once her skates were all laced up. But once her wheels got tightened up a bit, she was off and skating on her own. She even got tired of waiting for Auntie and passed her up at least once, if not twice? She absolutely LOVED it and was the last one of the five of them to take off her skates. She just kept going round and round and round the rink. When she got behind someone who was hugging the wall, she passed them up. Grace and I just sat there laughing and in awe of how great she took to it first time out. It's most definitely something we'll do again!!

P.S. Would you believe our four girls, besides one other little, little girl were the only ones wearing helmets? Gramma would be proud! :)

Pismo Vacation 2009

Rachel was just a month away from turning 2 years old the last time we went to Pismo Beach. She remembers nothing. We're hoping this trip made some lasting memories for her.

We were to leave Monday morning and head to Pismo Beach and join our family that had all arrived on Sunday. We were anxious to get out of here and get away on vacation. So Steven and I packed the car on Sunday night in anticipation of perhaps starting on the road early the next morning. We started on the road early, and made it through Los Angeles without hitting any Monday morning traffic. We put the girls in the car in their jammies and had hopes of them perhaps going back to sleep, but no such luck. In fact, we weren't even 20 minutes away from home and Rachel started jabbering. Thus a movie was put into the DVD player. LOL. We arrived to the hotel about 9:30 and surprised our family at how early we had arrived. It was great getting up there so early, it gave us a full day to enjoy our family and the hotel.

It wasn't long after arriving, that the girls wanted to go swimming. So into the pool they went. Rachel is quite the little dare devil. By the end of the week, she was jumping into the pool from the side! After a swim in the pool, we walked downtown for lunch and a stroll on the Pier. And then we walked about to our hotel via the beach. For dinner, we went to McClintoks, a favorite and must every time we're in Pismo. Out behind the restaurant, there is a little play area for the kids. I wish this picture of Rachel wasn't so blurry, she's hilarious. And the picture below is of her 3 years ago when we visited. She's changed a lot!!!Tuesday, we hung out at the hotel all day. It was fabulous! The girls played with their cousins, went swimming, played some more, swam some more, and ate lunch and dinner on the patio overlooking the ocean. It was a great day.Late Wednesday morning, we went down to the beach to build a sandcastle. The girls gave up and played in the water and buried one another instead. Rachel loved the water and has gotten used to the beach because of all our camping trips to San Elijo over the last year. It was overcast and a bit chilly, but that was okay, and it didn't stop the girls from taking off their cover ups and splashing about.We ate dinner on the patio once again that evening. And later that night, Gramma and Papa had all four of the girls in their room while we enjoyed the hot tubs that sat overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It was NICE!Thursday was supposed to be the day we all headed home, but we extended our stay until Friday, as did Uncle Robbie and Auntie due to having to have their car towed to the mechanic. Gramma and Papa headed for home that morning and it was sad to see them leave. Thursday we hung out at the hotel again. Enjoying the cool weather, despite needing jackets and tennis shoes and socks, we were enjoying it. The girls played games and swam and then we went to dinner and came back and swam one last time for this vacation. Another great day, that's for sure!Friday morning rolled around and we were up and packed and ready to hit the long road home. We enjoyed one last breakfast compliments of the hotel and then we were off. And so were the cousins and Uncle and Auntie. Rachel, as always, had a hard time saying goodbye and the first couple of minutes in the car was a tearful one. Both the girls wanted to stay longer, not understanding that we had already extended our stay. I hope that with as much fun that Rachel had, this will be a vacation that will hold many memories for her.

Sunscreen Stick

Tis the season for sunscreen!

And for those of you who are cleft affected friends, it's important to remember to put sunscreen on that lip repair scar. You don't want it getting sunburned.

What I have found to be the best remedy in making sure Rachel's scar is covered are these handy dandy sunscreen sticks. I have on in my camera case (cause that's always with me), in my purse, in the backpack, and several other handy places. it's so easy to bring it out and apply to her lip as well as the rest of her face several times throughout the day when we're out in the sun. They can be pricey ($3.97 at Walmart), but they are defiantly worth having!

Kindergarten Welcome Letter!

I sent Hannah out to get the mail this evening and Rachel followed behind her.

When they returned, Rachel was holding an envelope and had the biggest smile on her face. We opened it up and just as I was expecting it to be, it was her "Kindergarten Welcome Letter" telling us what teacher she got and what class she was in.

We got the teacher we requested and come August 4th, Rachel will be attending Kindergarten every morning from 8:00-11:30am! She is SO excited!

Disneyland with Mom

Rachel has been out of school now just over a week. Hannah's last day is a week from today, we cant' wait to officially start summer fun until she's out! Therefore Rachel and I went to Disneyland today! The weather was absolutely beautiful!!! The crowds were getting bad by the time we needed to leave to head back to home to pick Hannah up from school. So we were leaving at a good time.

Today was the last time in the foreseeable future that it'll just be me and Rachel on a trip to Disneyland. So while we weren't exactly celebrating that, we were celebrating being out of school! Thus the picture in front of the balloons, etc. :)We did all a lot of Rachel's favorites - waited in line to see Tinkerbell, her most favorite Disney character. She's so cute when she approaches characters these days. She told TInkerbell she saw her in the Fireworks last week and carried on a conversation with her and hugged her and was happy to see her. She's so stinkin cute.And of course there's the usual picture taking of the beautiful flowers and landscapes, although I put Rachel in a few of the shots this time. She's used to it. We had a good morning. Looking forward to some long days and into the evenings once Hannah is out of school next week!!

Recovery Following Surgery

The recovery phase following any surgery on our cleft affected babes is difficult.

All of us been there, done that Moms can testify to that. The constant worry and stress as to if our baby is getting enough liquids to avoid dehydration. The constant fear that our babes are in pain. The bothersome arm restraints. And the list goes on and on.

Imagine if you were just days, two days to be exact, following a lip repair on your babe. You had feeding issues following surgery. Your anxiety level is already high. And you get the most devastating phone call of your life....Your Mom had been killed in a plane crash. Your biggest supporter of yourself being a Mom, your biggest supporter aside from your husband in the recovery phase following surgery. Now gone.

Just the thought, just knowing it happened to one of our own cleft affected families moves me to tears.

On Wednesday, Kelly, Gavin's Mommy, received that phone call. Her Mom had been killed in a plane crash late that afternoon.

For anyone who's ever prayed on behalf of Rachel, I come to you with a saddened heart and ask you to keep The Rogers Family in your prayers. It's hard enough dealing with the recovery phase following surgery, let alone adding a death in the family to the mix.

Gavin Update

I've gotten a few people asking about Gavin.

I got a text from Kelly Monday night with a picture of Gavin's new smile. He's adorable! He was having trouble nursing, so they were resorting to feeding him by medicine dropper.

I didn't hear anything today. I'm gonna try and call Kelly tomorrow (Thursday) for an update!

Prayers for Gavin

Gavin is having his lip repair Monday morning.

Please be praying that all goes well and for the Lord to guide Dr Martin's hands and all the nurses and residents whom will care and have contact with Gavin in the course of the next day or two.

Please also be praying for his Mommy, Kelly, and his Daddy, Matt. Those of us who've sent our babes off to surgery know how hard surgery day is for the parents!

Last Day of School..

Well, it's official, our baby is no longer a preschooler! This morning was her last day of preschool an our preschool days are behind us!

Everybody was the special helper on the last day of school!One last 'trip' in the motor home. Both our girls have enjoyed this toy!One last picture of all the Sunny Sunflowers together.Taking a picture with Mrs. Vasquez, one last time.One last phone call in the super cool phone booth. One more day of school together.
Next year it'll be different schools for the both of them.It was a good morning. One filled with tears (all the Mommy's of course), laughs, hugs and lots of pictures. This preschool has been a great place for both our girls and while it's sad our days at the preschool are gone, we'll be back to visit when the girls are off track. FUMPS will always hold a special place in our memories.

New Adventures this Week

Just a couple pictures of some new adventures from earlier in the week....

For the first time, Rachel rode the canoes at Disneyland with Daddy on Sunday. She loved it!! And can't wait to go back on them again. The nearby parking lot for the jurors in our county is currently being worked on. So for the last month or two, the city trolley transports jurors from our preschool parking lot to the courthouse. Several times throughout the morning, the preschoolers gather along the playground fence and watch as the trolley passes through out parking lot. On Tuesday, the trolley actually stopped and let the preschoolers all have their turn in sitting on the trolley. Something I'm sure the jurors sitting on the trolley loved, being joined by 75 preschoolers! LOL. The kids all loved it.

Fun Times at Preschool

The Preschool year is quickly coming to an end and they are jam packing these last few days together.

On Tuesday, the preschool went on their final field trip to a nearby Nature Center where they hiked and made a fossil imprint, etc. I have no pictures (gasp!!) of that event as I was unable to drive like normal because I was at Hannah's Magnet School Open House.

Tuesday afternoon, we hosted the class year end picnic in our backyard. There were eight of the eleven classmates that showed up with their Mommies or Daddy and even some younger siblings too! The kids all had a great time playing, and Rachel LOVED having her Sunny Sunflower friends over to play at her house.Today was a fun day. There was face painting, a popcorn machine, balloons, and the morning ended with a visit from a very special someone! I hung out at the preschool all morning, helping Rachel's teacher out by taking down all the arts and crafts the kids had made for the Open House last month and putting them into bags for the kids to take home. The classrooms are starting to look really bare. It's sad really. I also helped the director blow up 78 balloons for the kids and just helped where I could. There aren't too many days left that I can do this and I was most happy to be at our preschool today. With her friend, Kaylee. At the end of the morning, Bubbles the Clown paid a visit to the preschool and she was a lot of fun. It's the same clown that was doing these visits over four years ago when Hannah attended the preschool and she was happy to hear that! Bubbles was hilarious! She really knew how to keep those preschoolers laughing, at some of the most simplest of things. LOL. She periodically needed volunteers to help her out with a trick or two, and my niece Haylee was lucky enough to be chosen for the final trick. Check out the expression on her face. It's as though her little mind is saying "My Daddy told me to be weary of anyone with pink hair". LOL. It was a fun morning. It's been a fun week. And next week proves to be another week of fun with water games on Tuesday and our very last class party on Thursday, ice cream sundaes!

Meet Gavin

This is Gavin. He was born in March with a unilateral cleft lip and alveolar ridge. And I have actually had the privilege of meeting this little guy and his Mommy and Daddy in person!

Long story short, Gavin's Gramma goes to the same church as Rachel's Gramma and once his parents found our about his cleft on an ultrasound, someone in the church referred his Gramma to Rachel's Gramma because they knew of Rachel and her birth defect. Got that??

In March, days after his birth, I learned that Gavin had been re-admitted to the hospital for dehydration issues. Not having ever met his parents, Kelly and Matt, I wasn't shy about making my way to the hospital to meet them and offer any encouragement or advice I could. I always go back to how we would have felt had someone done that for us when we had Rachel, and I went with my emotions and feelings for how much we would have appreciated a visit, advice, encouragement from a "Been there, done that" family.

What wonderful parents the Lord has blessed Gavin with. Both Matt and Kelly were nice and accepting of my visit.

I've emailed with Kelly a few times since and I look forward to a day when we can see each other in person again and have her see Rachel in person and how the Lord has done wonderful things in her little life. But for now, I am able to keep up on the going ons of Gavin on his family blog, The Rogers Family.

Less than 3 months old and he's already proving to be quite the character with the ability to be soothed simply by the sound of the hair dryer and/or the running of the vacuum! One in which his loving Grandparents recorded and looped onto a CD! LOL. Check out his blog and watch him grow!

Cleaning Without Interruptions

This afternoon, I kid swapped with my brother and sister-in-law. They have Rachel and she is spending the night, and I have McKenzie. So the two younger cousins can play together, and the two older cousins can play and do 'older' girl stuff without the inquisitive little girlies.

But with Rachel gone, I was able to clean her room without any interruptions or struggles, etc. I cleaned out the toy box and straightened closet shelves and the toys on the shelves, cleaned out all the toys that were just shoved into the cupboards of the Little Tykes kitchen and put them into their proper homes. It feels great to have it clean and organized and having gotten it all done in less than two hours because Rachel wasn't here to 'play' with whatever I had out organizing and cleaning.

Now, if only her room can stay that way until after Tuesday, when her preschool class comes over for the year end party/picnic in the yard!