Happy Birthday, Dad! =0)

To a man I greatly admire

for his honesty, integrity, and wisdom.

. . . a wonderful role model

. . . an awesome Dad & Ye-Ye (Grandpa)

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Friday Fun =0)

While I thought about doing a Flashback Friday post, I thought this one would be more fun . . . because I just took these pictures and I have been itching to write a post ever since I took them. =0)

Anyway, at one point today, it was actually cool enough for Isaiah to be outside for a little while . . . as the weather usually does in Florida, it quickly warmed up and Isaiah had to come back inside to stay cool. =0) So, what did Isaiah do this morning??? He helped his Ye-Ye. =0) He loves following my dad around, helping him do whatever Ye-Ye's do. =0)

Today, Isaiah had a lesson in carpentry . . . of sorts. =0) Anyone who knows my dad knows that he loves to salvage what other people throw away - he sees a use for everything. Now, of course, he's not into garbage, garbage, but the screws, nails, wood scraps, metal scraps . . . stuff he sees that can be used again, but still the stuff most of us would overlook. Our across-the-street neighbor has been working on some kind of building in his back yard, and happened to be throwing out some lumber that just wasn't working for him. My dad, in true dad fashion, seized the opportunity to collect the unwanted scraps. The lumber was tightly stuck together with a large screw that had broken off and an insane amount of staples . . . that didn't stop my dad a bit. He quickly began working with the stuff to pull it apart and salvage as much of the supplies as possible. =0)

Well, Isaiah decided he needed to help, after all, he's a "super helper." =0) He ran outside to see what he could do, then returned to grab his "whammer-hammer" and his "rusty saw," along with a few other helpful tools (a screw driver, a pair of pliers, a wrench, and another saw). Isaiah didn't waste any time, hammering away as soon as he got back outside. It was adorable! Just watching my dad and son working together was priceless . . . of course my dad has a few bruises on his hands from Isaiah's plastic "whammer hammer" . . . and the poor "whammer hammer" is cracked beyond repair . . . but he oodles of fun! =0)

So, what was I so eager to share with you? These . . .

My Boy and his "rusty saw" =0)

"Gotta hit that staple juuuuuust right" =0) (when he's concentrating, he sticks his tongue out)

"I'll help you pull out those staples, Ye-Ye!" =0)

I can't forget these, either . . .

"Male Bonding" ;0)

Working side-by-side

Wow, it has been a while. =0)

Sorry about that - no worries, though. =0) Things have been going well around here, I've just been busy.

So, what has been going on??? Well, a few weeks ago (yeah, I know, I should have posted sooner), I finally finished my master's degree - an M. Ed. in TESOL (Teaching English as a Second Language). I was so excited to go back to school, and I am equally as excited to be finished! ;0) If my mom has her wish, I will be a life-long student somewhere. ;0) I was also asked to be part of Kappa Delta Pi, an international honors society. God is awesome, isn't He?

Last week, we also had a few days where Isaiah could actually go out and play . . . really play. He could stay out for longer than 5 minutes and really enjoy himself. Of course, he is still recovering from the cold I passed on to him 2 weeks ago, but he still enjoyed the time outside. Poor guy - I think he was starting to get a bit of cabin fever because he also hasn't been able to go to church either (because he has been sick and because of the whole 5 months of steroids thing . . . with the flu season and swine flu issues going around, we've had to be extra careful). Hopefully, soon, Isaiah can return to church to be with his friends. I feel so bad for him, yet he really can't get sick either. It's bad enough that he caught my cold and his body is still fighting it off. Grrrrrr, steroids. =0) I think they may have even stunted his growth a little, but he has been in the 98th/99th percentile for so long, that I don't think that's too bad of a thing. =0)

Apart from that, Isaiah is doing well - no huge reactions since the last one almost 3 weeks ago (that was the 6th anaphylaxis episode this year). He has gained weight (yay!), and his appetite still seems rather ravenous - though it waned a bit because of the cold. He does have that annoying rash around his mouth (really, all over his face), again, along with eczema flair ups on his legs and arms . . . with a little bit of rash on his back. He's not sleeping well because he is itching at night, but you wouldn't be able to tell based on his energy level during the day! =0) His feet, thankfully, haven't gotten nearly as bad as they were a couple of years ago - the rough patches still remain, but he hasn't had any blisters on the bottoms of his feet. Flushing . . . well, that still comes and goes on a daily basis - I think that's just something we'll have to deal with regularly. As long as the flushing doesn't turn into swelling, rashes, and bone pain, it doesn't seem to be a horrible thing to deal with.

My dad had one appointment for his blood test results. His results weren't too bad, but the doctor still wants him to see his hematologist/oncologist - which will be in the next couple of weeks. He has been irritable, tired, and in pain . . . but he at least has been sleeping well (I haven't heard him up late at night anyway). He has also had times where he just feels awful, but that usually comes and goes. Thank you for your continued prayers for him. I know that he usually tries to hide all of this from people, and he can do a good job of that, but it's when you catch him when he's unaware that you find he really hasn't been feeling well . . . if that even makes sense. Cancer stinks!

I think I have caught you up on just about everything . . . I think. =0)

Midnight Snacks & a Prayer Request

No, this is not about me and my midnight snacks. Sheesh! ;0) I am writing this about Isaiah and his midnight snacking lately. I'm sure you're thinking, "why would Isaiah, a 4-year old, have a midnight snack?" First of all, this is my child you're talking about - he loves to snack. =0) Secondly, the steroids are now taking over. =0) A child who loves to snack has just formed a stomach with a bottomless pit.

This isn't altogether a bad thing - I mean, he wasn't eating well before his last episode. And what he's wanting for a "snack" isn't all that bad, either. It's just the time and his snack of choice that seems to be more of the issue. Take, for instance, last night. He wanted chicken. Yup, chicken. Not the frozen pieces that are easy to stick in an oven and are done in half an hour or so. Not even the Isaiah-safe chicken nuggets or special chicken hot dogs, either. Nope, he wants the real deal. The big, mouth watering, delightful-smelling, roasted chicken - two legs, two wings, the golden brown skin . . . you get the picture. =0)

Well, on to tonight. For dinner, Isaiah wanted this chicken, again. Well, since we just had chicken the previous night, we didn't have the chicken thawed for dinner tonight - I might add that we had leftovers the previous night, with the real deal cooked the night before. =0) So, I convinced him that he really wanted pasta with some extras (veggies and such). Well, he picked "noodles with da gar-wic, and da odder stuff" (rice pasta with garlic, oil, and spices). =0) So, I made his pasta . . . and he ate all of it - I had even made extra for the anticipated midnight snack, and he ate all of it. =0) Thinking he wouldn't want the noodles, again, I was hoping he would just want an apple or one of those special hot dogs.

I couldn't have been more wrong. =0)

Not only did he want the noodles, he wanted the long noodles (spaghetti noodles) tossed with the sauteed minced garlic and spices . . . at midnight. I couldn't convince him to choose a different snack, either. I offered, and gave, him chocolate ice cream (that I made from rice milk) and a fruit juice Popsicle. To top it off, he also had some cinnamon applesauce. Apparently, that just didn't do it for him. He wanted those noodles. So, at 12:30, I had to make the pasta.

And this is him enjoying the pasta . . . served with our best white grape-cherry juice, of course. =0)

And, yes, he is now resting peacefully, all snuggled up in bed while I type this. =0)

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And on a sadder note, my Aunt Sis (my dad's sister) went to be with Jesus yesterday. She was a wonderful person with a huge heart - someone who would invite you into her home and cook a huge meal with whatever she had in her cabinets. She was a wonderful cook. It's hard to think that she's no longer here on earth, but now in eternity with Jesus. It almost seams surreal - we were going to visit Aunt Sis and Uncle Ivan on our last vacation that was cut short (they have never met Isaiah). I know Isaiah would have loved her, just as she would have loved to meet Isaiah in person (she spoke to him on the phone once). I know that she will be greatly missed. Please keep Uncle Ivan (her husband), her sons (Danny and Chuck), their grandchildren, and the rest of the family in your prayers.



My dad has been mostly silent since yesterday - you can tell he's really bothered by this. He's also not feeling the greatest either and has an appointment as soon as he gets back with his oncologist - some tests came back with some not so great results. I will keep you posted on the labs and the appointments. I know you guys will pray for him as well (as you already have been).