The Fritsch Adventures

James turns 2

2012-02-13T12:58:00.002-07:00

Friday February 10th James turned 2!

I still can't believe he is already 2. Not because he isn't acting like a 2 yr old, because he is ALL about being a 2 yr old. It just doesn't seem like it was 2 years ago he was born, Bill and I at the hospital, Ethan at the Thomas' and both moms ready to head on up.

At 2 he:

climbs on, over and under everything.
thinks he is tall enough to see over the counter no matter what he brings to stand on.
loves mac and cheese, quesadillas, chips, popcorn, grapes, apples, bananas, juice and ice cream.
hates any kind of orange, meat, vegetables and pretty much anything we make for dinner.
is the sweetest thing, constantly giving everyone hugs and kisses. If you get hurt or upset, he is the first one there to comfort you.
has the best pouty face ever. He doesn't like to see you when he pouts so he will hide his head or leave the room.
loves to wrestle and play with Ethan and Papa
loves to draw on anything he can. Including walls, couches, recliners, tables...
is getting better and better at speaking every day
favorite words: Juice, Eat, Papa, Mama, Ethan, Adam, Buzz, Woody, Banana
can't go a day without playing with Buzz, Woody, Mater or Lightening McQueen and basketballs
loves playing and being next to Ethan
loves kissing and hugging Adam

(29 lbs)

(35 inches tall)

James, you are such a delight and joy to have in our family. You are the epitimy of boy and always on the go. You already keep us on our toes and we love everry moment we have with you.
We Love You!

Our precious blessing

2012-02-10T10:34:00.004-07:00

Monday we had Adams 3 week follow up with Dr. Skarda.

I was hoping Adam would be upwards of 12 lbs or more. He was eating well but he had lost so much from the surgery. He weighed in at 11 1/2 lbs. Dr Skarda was pleased with his weight and explained with that major of surgery it would take 3-4 weeks to get back on track. I still wasn't happy but content that things were progressing.

Dr Skarda said his incisions looked wonderful and lungs sounded great but wanted to check the fluid to make sure it wasn't building.
As long as the chest X-ray looked good then we wouldn't need to come back and see him.

On the way home he called letting us know the X-ray looked great. The fluid pocket had actually receded and he was extremely happy with everything. What a blessing. There has been so many the past 6 months I can't count them.

Thank you Dr Skarda for taking Adam into your heart, loving him and wanting what was best for him. It was such a mercy that you happened to always be the Dr in when we needed help.
Forever, thank you.

Adams surgery

2012-01-24T16:20:00.004-07:00

For two weeks I've been mulling over what to post about Adams surgery and still come up with a blur of 7 days. Here is my attempt to put days into words.

We were at Primary Childrens Hospital at 6:30 on Tuesday (Jan 10, 2012) morning. Adam was more than wonderful. He could not feed after 4 a.m. and even though he was awake and should have been wanting to eat, he was smiling and talking.

He was adorable in his little gown.

The anesthesiologist came in and gave us the run down on what to expect. Then we gathered everything up and headed out of pre-op. We walked down to the end of the hall and stopped. Then we handed over our little sleeping Adam to anesthesiologist and went seperate ways.
I have no words to describe how heart wrenching it was to turn around and walk away from him.
.

.

.
Dr Skarda had told us to expect at least 4 - 5 hours, so we took over a corner of the waiting room and began the waiting. Grandma Fritsch and Grandpa Ellett waited in the waiting room with us.
About 2 1/2 hours later one of the ladies at the desk came over and informed us that she had just spoke to Dr Skarda, they were finished with the surgery and he would be out in a couple minutes to speak with us.
We were all very shocked that they were finished already. Dr Skarda brought us all in one of the conference rooms and gave us a breakdown of how the surgery went.
Adam went under the anistetics great and they had no problem getting both pic lines and the IV in. They got in his chest and found the growth was only about 1/3 the size it showed on the original CT scan taken the day he was born. They were able to remove it without any complications and in half the time.
That morning we had asked him if it would be possible to see the growth once it was removed and he said he would be happy to bring it out. After he told us how the surgery went, he brought out the container with the growth.

We couldn't believe how big it was, and to think it was only 1/3 its original size. The best way we found to describe its size was to compare it to a 6oz uncooked steak.

They let us into the PICU a little while after we spoke with Dr. Skarda.
It was hard seeing Adam so swollen and pale.

Day 2
6:00am chest x-ray
They were only able to keep him awake long enough to eat about .5 an oz through the night. So in the morning they were hoping he would latch and breastfeed instead.
Luckily he was a little more alert and latched for a little while.
The rest of the day he was awake on and off but not enough to eat more than 2 oz.
He was still really swollen and really pale, but moving more as the day went on.

Day 3
6:00 am chest x-ray
Adam was eating better, moving more and opened his eyes.
Every day he was getting better and better.

The incision and chest tube.

Day 4
6:00 am chest xray
More and more improvements, until around 4:30 pm. In the usual vital checks the nurse heard a different noise in his right side. She called in the respitory therapists and they were baffeled as well.
5:00 pm chest x-ray
There is a leak in his lung. It isn't large, but still a leak.
Vitals every hour, different drs, therapists, nurses come and go.
2:00 am chest x-ray
no change, air and fluid pockets are still there.

Day 5
6:00 am chest x-ray
fluid and air pockets are smaller, one more x-ray later in the day and maybe the chest tube will come out.
2:00 pm chest x-ray
no change. chest tube will stay for another day. The sound in his lung is quieter now so they are not as worried as they previously were.

Day 6
6:00 am chest x-ray
X-ray looks better, they pulled the chest tube out and find one of the little holes in the tube had moved outside the skin. Which means when Adam sucked in a breath as the tube dressing was pulled off, air went into the tube and into his chest.
4:00 pm chest x-ray
the x-ray showed an air pocket in his right lung so he needed to be watched and have one more x-ray the next morning.

Day 7
6:00 am chest x-ray
The x-ray looked better so we were discharged but we were not allowed to leave the valley until the xray on tuesday morning.

It was great to be out of the hospital, even if I wasn't at home.

Tuesday we went in for a chest x-ray about 9 am and then met with Dr. Skarda.
We got the okay to head home with a follow up in 2 weeks. My sister-in-law drove us up to Inkom to meet Bill.

It was so wonderful to be home, together and not have to worry (as much).

We go back on the 6th. Hopefully I will be able to update that post sooner than this one.

When Ethan came up to visit Adam I took him down to the play area they have at Primarys. He had a blast playing with all the toys.

Adams Blessing

2012-01-24T16:16:00.005-07:00

Since Adams surgery was going to be now instead of in 6 months we decided to have his blessing the night before. That way all our family was able to be there to participate.
I didn't want to worry about getting pictures so I handed over my camera to my niece (still feels weird to say that because she is not that much younger than me) and let her take pictures as she pleased.

He was blessed in the same outfit James was, so it was a little big. Cathy Thomas offered the beautiful Bethlehem Blanket for Adam to use.
Thanks Cathy! The whole family loved it.

This is probably the last time that Grandpa Great will be able to participate. It was neat being able to have 4 generations of Fritsch's in the circle.

Sledding

2012-01-20T12:06:00.009-07:00

After Christmas Bill's sister Leslie and her two girls, Sara and Shelby, and Mom came up to visit us and see Adam. Leslie lives in AZ so it was killing her that she couldn't be here for Adams birth.
While they were here we took them sledding.

This picture is significant. If you look just above the windshield wiper you can see Ethan's head as he is headed straight for the car.
Yup, he went right under the car.
Bill was at the top of the hill and I was sitting in the RUNNING car nursing Adam when he went under the car.
It was mercy he only suffered a bruised elbow. We are not sure what stopped him from going further under the car, or how he managed to not get hurt or have any of his snow suit burned. I think it scared all of us, Ethan most of all. However he was back up on the hill within a couple minutes.
*Note to self: Don't park so close to the sled hill.

Christmas 2011

2012-01-20T12:05:00.004-07:00

Christmas this year was a great time to finally be together as a family.
James and Ethan were overjoyed by all the gifts given by their family.
Bill completely out did me this year with a set of recliners, which are heaven in case you were wondering.

For the most part we were just grateful to have Adam with us and doing as well as he was. (he was sleeping when we took these)

Trying to process..

2011-12-31T11:26:00.002-07:00

[Once again I thought I had posted this and I saved it instead.]

We headed down to Salt Lake this past weekend to meet with Adams surgeon. Overall the appointment went great. Dr Skarda was really happy with how well he is thriving and his weight gain. Weighing in at 9lbs 3oz.
He was a little surprised he was on oxygen, and balked at the 1/8th of a liter he is on. He showed all of his colleagues the CT scans and they have agreed this is the largest growth they have seen.
I even got to see the CT scan from when he was born. I could not believe how big this growth really is. It takes up at least 1/3rd of his chest.

Then we got blind sided when he said they have also decided to do the surgery within the next month.
........ (Bill and I trying to process)
With how well he has grown and the risk of Adam getting sick they want to take it out sooner than later.

Right now we have an appointment on the 4th to get a chest x-ray and to finalize the details on the surgery.

Updates to come...

1 month!

2011-12-14T10:08:00.005-07:00

[sorry I forgot to post this when I wrote it.]

We (James and I) took Adam in for his weight check last week.
At 1 month he finally passed his birth weight and weighed in at 8lbs 6 oz.

He is growing and doing great. We go back in to see the surgeon in a month, hopefully he will be right where they want him to be.

Adam Bradley Fritsch

2011-12-05T16:56:00.003-07:00

Adam made his appearance on November 8th at 10:17 am. He was born at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City by Dr. Janice Byrne.

When they pulled him out, Bill only saw a flash of him because he had not taken a breath yet. But as they passed him through the window into the NICU he gave a soft little cry that put everyone a little more at ease.

Once the assessment was finished by the NICU team, Bill was able to go back into the NICU to be with Adam and get the run down on how he was doing.

I on the other hand got sewn up and headed back to the recovery room where both moms and grandma Jackman were waiting for news. I don't remember much about the recovery room but here is what I do remember:
Feeling the medicine go up my arm every time they took my blood pressure (apparently it was a little too low)
Laying there, listening to what was going on and wondering why the monitor alarms were going off. Then the nurse would come shake me and tell me to breathe.
Scratching at everything especially my nose. I hate the medication wearing off.
Mindi came in and joined us.
Asking how Adam was and the nurses not knowing. Then finally one came in and said he was doing well. On oxygen but breathing on his own.
Finding out he was 8lbs and being delightfully surprised.
Being wheeled down to the NICU with Mindi so I could see Bill and Adam.

It was hard to see him with the oxygen tubes, the monitor wires and the IV in his head, but I knew it could have been so much worse.
What was funny to see was how big he was, especially for the NICU. He dwarfed the other babies.

There is a lot more to this story, but for right now I have run out of computer time. I will post more a little later.

School pics

2011-12-05T16:53:00.003-07:00

Ethan's Kindergarten pictures turned out great. Love this kid!

I love the cheesy smile years.

Soon I promise!

2011-11-19T13:22:00.001-07:00

I know I've been horrible at keeping this updated the last little bit. I promise I will update with pictures of Adam as soon as I can make time for the computer.

Update...

2011-10-28T18:21:00.003-06:00

I have to first start by apologizing about not keeping this up to date like I said I would.
I send the texts, post on Facebook, and forget to update the blog.

As you can imagine, Adam is still cooking despite his attempts to make an early appearance.

Yesterdays appointments were interesting. But let me back up.

Let's just say it has been a week and leave it at that.
Adam is still doing great and getting bigger. They moved measurements to next week so it will be closer to the delivery on the 8th.

We were monitored on thursday for most of the day with (again) a possible outlook of delivery since the contractions were so close and erratic. However they got slammed with patients and since my contractions don't make me dilate they sent me home with restrictions and to be uncomfortable there instead.

So I'm still here with consistent contractions, pain and the urge to throw up. As long as I keep up on the meds things are a little better.
I'm good with him coming any other day but today so I won't be doing anything but laying on the couch.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-08T11:23:00.003-06:00

This last week it was Harvest Break in Idaho. That meant Ethan was out of school for the entire week and got to spend it down here with James and me.

Luckily I was feeling really good this week so we were able to do a couple things throughout the week.

On Tuesday I took him to the barns that my sisters friend keeps her horses so he could finally ride one. He had a great time and talked all the way home about how much fun it was.

34 weeks and still counting

2011-10-07T11:29:00.001-06:00

Appointments went great yesterday.

NST showed a great heart beat and consistent contractions.

Ultrasounds showed the C-Pam still measuring the same as before, which is still good news and no hydrops anywhere. It also showed how big Adam (yup, we decided on a name) is getting. Right now he is measuring between 35w2d and 38w (Yes the 38w is his head size). His average measurements showed him at 36 weeks. His estimated weight is 6lbs 8oz with a 1 lb variance.

Needless to say he is growing and is healthy.

We have now passed the pediatric surgeons goal of 5lbs and only have a few more days to hit their goal of 35 weeks.
As for me, same ol' same ol'. Watch contractions and take it easy.

Thank you again to all those who keep us in your prayers. We have been so blessed.

Baby update

2011-09-30T12:30:00.000-06:00

Well, I'm officially in Utah for the duration of the pregnancy. Yeah, yeah I know I was supposed to be 2 weeks ago, but last week the I was able to go home for about 5 days. Yes, I did ask permission first. My dr said as long as my contractions were alright then I could make the decision but she didn't want to know.
Knowing that this would probably be the last chance I got to go home, I took advantage of it and went home.

It was great to be home with Bill and Ethan for a few more days. I think I needed a little more time to be alright with staying in Utah. This time, coming down was very different. I'm okay with being here and know it is in the best interest of me and the babe.
It also helps that I have Ethan for the next week due to the Harvest break.

Had my appointments today and all is going well.

He cooperated this morning with all the testing so they were able to get good shots in the ultrasound and the NST test only took 20 min, which is the regular amount of time.
His heart looks great, no hydrops anywhere, the c-pam is staying the same size. However it is getting harder to measure it as he is getting bigger. He decided to move into a transverse position instead of being head down, which is fine since he has a swimming pool to move around in.

Everything looks the same for me, keep monitoring contractions and baby movement.

Because all the appointments were on time I was able to go over into the NICU and take a tour. It was nice to be able to see where he will be and what will take place. When they tell you that they will take the babe (once born) and pass him through a window into the NICU to be assessed they aren't kidding. It looked like a nice drive through window, with the surgical room on one side and the NICU on the other.

I was able to meet two of the nurses and I have one more that I need to meet. She happens to be neighbors with my sister-in-law, but took a shift over in delivery when I was there. It will be nice to at least recognize some of the staff while we are there.

Here's to another week of growing!

I have pictures from the ultrasound that I will post as soon as I can get them scanned.

a slight change in wheels

2011-09-06T22:14:00.001-06:00

Since one or both of us will be heading to Utah every other week until after the lil' guy is born we decided it was a good time to do some swapping on the automotive side. Unfortunately that meant selling our truck.

We have had this truck for 6 years and it has been wonderful, but we really needed something with a little less gas consumption. I stayed down in Utah for a week to see what I could find that would work for us.. Do you know how hard it is to find a car that will fit 3 car seats in the back seat??? And I mean a booster seat (the smallest one manufactured according to Walmart) James' car set and a infant carrier. You wouldn't think it would be that hard, but oh no! it is! 2 days and several cars later we had only found one option. Luckily for us there was one available.

With out further adieu.. Our new 2006 Ford Five Hundred

Update

2011-09-06T19:36:00.000-06:00

Here are the happenings of the past 2 weeks..

My appointment last Monday in Utah went great. The c-pam has stopped growing, it is the same size it was 3 weeks ago. This means so much is the same but so much is beginning to change. As he continues to grow, the growth will start to give more room for all his insides including his right lung and his esophagus. Which means he will be able to swallow more fluid. My fluid level has also stayed the same which means he is definitely getting more fluid circulating through his little body.

Last Friday I ended up at EIRMC (er-mac) the hospital in Idaho Falls. But first let me give you the chronological order of how things went; Thursday night I came home from a baby shower and blamed Bill for giving me his back pain. I laid on the floor and tried to stretch it any way I could think of. It felt a little better and I fell asleep on the couch. Woke up to a jolt of pain in my back and decided it was time to go into bed. Several jolts later I was laying there thinking "Hmm... I wonder if this could be back labor.." Then fell back to sleep. Woke up late, rushed around getting the boys, mainly Ethan, ready. Made it to the bus stop with just a min to spare. Cleaned up breakfast thinking "man I wish I could stretch my back out.. this hurts" then sat on the couch and relaxed as my contractions were getting a little too frequent. Once they slowed down James and I headed out to the post office. On my way I thought maybe I should call the nurse and see what the difference is between back pain and back labor. The nurse was great and wanted to rule out any type of infection before making me drive all the way to Idaho Falls to be seen, so off we went to the clinic in Driggs. At this point my back was really hurting. I'm sure it didn't help that I had a 25 lb 18 mo old sleeping on my shoulder, but whats a mom to do? In the clinic my blood pressure was high 140/100 and my test came back negative for any type of infection, however it did show protein and glucose. Tess, the doctor I saw, came in and said" I'm sorry you don't have an infection, we are sending you to Idaho Falls to see your OB." How often do you hear a Dr say "Sorry you don't have an infection!" Back to the story, I call Bill and let him know what they said. He met me at home ready to head down. An hour later we were at my OB's office. The pain in my back was blaring at this point. It obviously showed on my face because one of the front staff checked me in and put us in a room. Then she went and told the nurse I looked like I was in labor so she put us in a room. HA!! The PA came in and went through all the normal stuff. Tested me again to make sure there wasn't any blood in my urine, in case of kidney stones. There wasn't, so she checked to make sure I wasn't dilating and they sent us on our way to Labor and Delivery for some meds. The Labor and Delivery nurse was awesome. The pain on the other hand was excruciating. I couldn't even stand up straight. After they got the monitors on and called my OB to see what she wanted them to do. She came back in with a shot and an IV. She said they hadn't received the orders yet but my contractions were about 4 min apart so they were giving me the meds right then. Luckily it worked and they all but went away. They let us go after I drained my IV bag and had only had 2 contractions in 1.5 hours. The pain in my back was back to what it had felt like the night before and I was able to ride home in a little more comfort. By Saturday evening I didn't have any pain in my back. For those of you that have had back labor I'm so so sorry and I empathize with you. I would never wish that upon anyone.

We go in on Thursday for the next ultrasound. I will have an update hopefully by the weekend.

Communication..

2011-09-06T19:29:00.000-06:00

On our drive to Utah that fateful August day, we had a lot of time to think and talk about everything. Enevitably you get to a point where there isn't much to say and all you do is sit and think.

This is never good, it allows your emotions to take control and your thoughts tend to snowball out of control.

When Bill was on the phone I was struggling with this and decided to pray instead of just think. After I calmed down a bit I looked out my window and was astonished at what I saw in the sky.

Yup, that was our angel. Giving me comfort and letting me know everything was in His hands.

Isn't that incredible? I'm forever grateful for the way Heavenly Father communicates to us when we are in need.

Faith, Prayer and Miracles

2011-09-06T19:27:00.000-06:00

August 2, 2011

I got up early in order to make it to the 8:30 ultrasound appointment in Idaho Falls. Unfortunately Bill was unable to make it to this appointment so I asked my good friend Nancy to come with me.

The lil' guy was looking great. He was cooperating and moving just the right way in order for Leslie (the u/s tech) to get the right shots she needed too. Unfortunately that all crumbled to dust when we looked at his heart. He had fluid on the side of his heart.

When you have had 1 or more ultrasounds a week for 5 weeks now, you get pretty used to looking at your child. You know what you’re looking at and what you’re looking for. When she moved over to his heart, my heart stopped. I saw the pocket of fluid before she even said anything.

She took measurements of the pocket and stepped out to call Dr. Ball with the MFM group. When she came back in, she took more pictures and waited for Dr. Ball to call back. In the mean time I called Bill and let him know what was going on and that it looked like we would be heading to Salt Lake as soon as I got back.

Dr. Ball's instructions were exactly that, go straight to the University Hospital and see Dr. Byrne. They also prepared me that there was a good chance we would be delivering him today and even though he was small there was still a good chance of survival with the doctors and teams at the U and at Primary’s.

So instead of spending the whole day in Idaho Falls checking items off my "to do" list, Nancy and I went to Walmart for my pills and headed home.

At this point I was a little foggy in knowing what to do or calling anyone so Bill took over and started letting people know and getting things planned out.

During the drive home, our wonderful friend Cathy came over to the house and got the boys all packed up as well as my bag all packed. Which I'm sure was a feet since looking back on the phone calls I dont know that I actually gave a straight answer as to what to pack.

When I got home we were pretty much ready to go. Bryan and Cathy so generously kept Ethan for a couple days until they headed down to Utah as well.

Bill, James and I all headed down to Utah with no idea about what was going to happen when we got there. I'm pretty sure we made record time getting down there and Bills parents met us at the University Hospital so they could take James back with them.

As things would go, we got there just after the Ultrasound Center closed and Dr. Byrne had just left. Still knowing the situation, they checked us in and put us in a room where they could monitor the lil' guy. After a little bit they had a team of doctors come in with a portable ultrasound machine to see what was going on.

They started the ultrasound and I could not believe what I was seeing. Where there had been a large pocket of fluid that morning was now just a sliver of fluid that you wouldn't even see unless you knew what to look for. It almost made me second guess what we had seen that morning but I knew what I had seen and I knew the miracle that had happened.

We learned a lot about C-CAMs and C-PAM's that night. Those doctors were very knowledgeable and explained things so we understood more of what was going on. After they got done with the ultrasound they conferred with each other and decided they didn't see any reason to keep him overnight and sent us home with appointments to come back the next day.

We were in shock, we basically went down thinking we may be having this baby today and ended up leaving the hospital that night. The miracle we witnessed was just incredible. Had we been able to get down before everyone went home things could have gone very differently. A testament to the power of prayer, faith and blessings.

The next couple days were a whirlwind of ultrasounds, heart echos, Dr. appointments and information. We were able to meet Dr. Byrne, who will be the delivering Dr., and review everything with her. She shocked us both when she said her goal was to get us to 37 weeks before he would be born and that I could stay in Idaho as long as I came down to Utah every other week for an ultrasound at the U/S Center and had an ultrasound on the off weeks in Idaho Falls.

Driving home Friday was one of the best days I have had thus far. I could not believe the change in our situation from one day to the next.

We are eternally grateful for all the prayers and faith that were sent our way and to our Heavenly Father who answered those prayers and gave us miracles.

I promise... ;-)

2011-08-23T17:03:00.004-06:00

I promise, at some point in the next two weeks, I will update the blog and ya'll will be sick of my posts.

We have had a very interesting last couple of weeks full of heart ache, tears, fear, blessings, peace, mercy, miracles, faith, love and prayers.

Thanks for being patient!

Update on the lil' guy

2011-07-28T14:30:00.002-06:00

On Monday we went to St. Marks (MFM group) and had another ultrasound. So far things are the same as before.
The CCAM is still growing at the same rate as the lil'guy is, but it is not affecting him or his growth. His est. weight is 1.7 lbs, can you believe that?

The only thing that is changing is the growth is starting to push on his esophagus. Which is making it more difficult to swallow amniotic fluid. He is getting enough, but that means i have excess fluid. Yes, even more than I already had. Another thing to add to the watching list.

Knowing things could be worse we are grateful for no change and more time spent at home.

Again thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers.
Here are some pictures from the ultrasound. I'm not one that has to have the 3D ultrasounds because really, I think they are a little creepy. However the tech turned it on while he was in a good position. Even though I still think it is a little creepy I do think it is cute, because he is mine and is inside me.

Complication

2011-07-21T10:17:00.004-06:00

At our 20 week ultrasound they found a complication with our lil' guy.

He has a growth, known as a CCAM, on the outside of his right lung. It sits in between his lung and the ribcage.

To find out more details of what we are looking at, they sent us to the MFM of Utah at St. Marks. There we were able to get a better view of the growth and they were able to give us some scenarios for the upcoming future.

Basically there are three ways for the CCAM to develop:

a. (promising and what we are all hoping for) Around 28 weeks the growth will cease to continue to grow along with him and will stay as it is until birth. After birth we would meet with a pediatric surgeon and schedule a time for it to be removed.

b. (not a good as the first but manageable) It will continue to grow at the same rate as he is, without any fluid building up around the abdomen, heart and lungs. After birth the growth will be removed so the right lung will be able to continue developing and so it will not inhibit his breathing.

c. (trying not to think about it) It will grow at a faster rate or fluid will develop putting stress on his organs, mainly his heart, and send him into heart failure. There are two options for this: they can go in and put a shunt in and drain the fluid, however it will leave pockets that will eventually fill again. second there is an in-utero surgery that can be preformed to remove the growth. Both come with high risks and lower survival rates. Both options tend to start pre-term labor and if it cannot be stopped then the baby is delivered. Both of these options usually take place around the 28 week mark so you can see the risks there.

For now the lil' guy is doing remarkable. He measures exactly where he should be. His organs, including his heart, are all functioning perfectly normal. He is more active then Ethan or James to the point where it wakes me up already. Ethan loves to feel him kicking. He puts his hand on my stomach and waits. Then laughs and laughs when he gets kicked.

So what do we do now?

We have weekly ultrasounds with the Tech at my OB office to measure, check for fluid and make sure the heart is not under stress.

We go into the MFM office whenever we can so they can see the progress.

We keep going day by day and week by week watching for the signs of distress.

We fast and pray that everything will go as it is supposed to.

We pray for strength and rely on the prayers and support of all those we love.

We are heading to Utah for the 24th and will see the Dr at MFM on the 25th. I will keep updated as much as I can.

Thank you for the prayers and support.

A moment not captured very often

2011-07-15T14:52:00.002-06:00

All we can figure is that Ethan got into the camera on my phone and took this shot while we slept.

I love it. I didn't even change or edit it.

Thank you Bill for these moments.

Hiking Henderson Canyon

2011-07-15T14:47:00.004-06:00

A couple weeks ago we went with the hiking group up Henderson Canyon. We knew due to the rain clouds that there was a good chance we could get rained on but wanted to go anyway.
Needless to say it poured on us. Luckily James didn't mind at all and Ethan loves playing out in the rain.

(from my iphone again, sorry)

My Garden 7-5-2011

2011-07-15T14:46:00.002-06:00

I'm so excited to have a garden this year that I will be posting updated pictures as regularly as I can. Here are the first pictures I took (sorry iphone again).

Cars 2

2011-07-06T16:43:00.004-06:00

As I said before, for Ethans birthday we let him pick 4 friends and we took them all to see Cars 2 in Idaho Falls.

(Again.. taken from the iphone)

Baby Fritsch #3

2011-07-06T16:31:00.003-06:00

Last week we had another ultrasound and the lil' guy cooperated enough to give us an awesome profile shot..

I would have to say.. He looks a lot like James.

My three sons!!

2011-06-29T09:38:00.004-06:00

On Thursday we went in for the 20 week ultrasound and found out we are having another lil' guy..

We didn't get any pictures but hopefully I will get some from the ultrasound tomorrow and I can post them.

In the mean time I thought ya'll would like to know!!

p.s. I also have pics from Ethan's swimming lessons that I would love to have posted this week but in all honesty it wont be until after the 4th..

ZOORASSIC PARK

2011-06-20T10:12:00.003-06:00

Since it had been so long for any of us, Saturday we all went to Hogle Zoo. The weather was great and when we got there we got a special treat... it was Zoorassic Park.

Needless to say Ethan was loving every bit of all the animals, the train (even though it got derailed while we were eating lunch and we weren't able to ride it), and all the dinosaurs scattered around the park.

We had a great time and enjoyed being in the warm sun.

not sure what this was all about.. All Ethan would say was he went in the cage.

A weekend in Utah... part 1

2011-06-20T10:06:00.002-06:00

Last weekend the weather was supposed to be cold and rainy so we decided to head down to Utah for some sun.

On Saturday Bill and Grandpa E took the boys to the park.

it is June 9th right??

2011-06-09T15:42:00.002-06:00

because it sure didn't look like it this morning...

Yup that is SNOW!!!

anyone have a warm beach they can send me??

Land Slide

2011-06-09T10:09:00.002-06:00

As I'm sure many of you heard a couple weeks ago there was a big land slide that closed down the Hoback Junction on US 26. This happens to be the route a lot of people take to get to Jackson.

Needless to say our traffic was, at times, ridiculous! You could sit at our blinky light for ages (alright I'm sure it was only like 5-7 min) waiting to turn left onto the HWY.

When they finally opened it back up we went for a drive to see what the devastation was..

As you can see, the effort to clean it up and the residual effect on the landscape was pretty immense.

priceless...

2011-05-23T14:56:00.004-06:00

priceless destruction.. what more can I say?

Ethan's Preschool Program

2011-05-21T20:28:00.002-06:00

Ethan's last day of Preschool was Tuesday the 17th.

ON the 19th his class put on a preschool program for all the parents. It was so funny and so much fun. Miss Cathy did such a wonderful job all year round, but the program was the best.

Introductions:

Singing ABC's from the Jackson 5

The "Freeze" dance

Singing "I just can't wait to be King"

They put on a play of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Graduation and treats..

Apothecary Table

2011-05-18T08:41:00.004-06:00

After several months of looking we finally finding the look we wanted for a t.v. stand. Only it wasn't the stand, it was only the plans to build it.
Luckily Terry (who works in the back shop in Bill's building) said he could build it for us.

So with out further adieu...

THE APOTHECARY TABLE

Ethan wanted to be in a shot..

T-Ball Time

2011-05-14T07:26:00.002-06:00

Easter Fun!!

2011-05-14T07:25:00.003-06:00

Easter this year was a blast as always!!

This is a picture that Kim took and I'm so glad she got this shot. I got it with the video but I didn't have a good zoom to get a good pic.

The boys in prayer before the ride.

Isn't that just an awesome picture?

We rented a motorhome and went out on the west desert of Utah with the Fritsch side of the family. This is a tradition that has been around since before bill was around.

The weather cooperated sometimes, but it didn't snow so I'm not complaining.

We played by the camp, rode around on the bikes and 4 wheelers, hid and found candy and eggs filled with candy, all in all had a great time.

There are so many pictures so I put them in a collages... Enjoy!

On Sunday we went over to the Ellett's for another easter egg hunt, food and games. It was great to spend time with everyone, and of course the boys got loaded with candy (they were the only two kinds in the hunt)!

Oh the pictures are all taken from Bill's phone since I remembered I left my camera about 2 hours into the trip.

My surprise..

2011-05-04T11:19:00.002-06:00

On Thursday I spent a good part of the day in Idaho Falls running errands and when I got home I got a great surprise!

It took all of 30 seconds for me to notice. Just long enough to walk into the kitchen and turn around.

Finished laundry in half the time yesterday!! Thank you Bill!!!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-27T15:16:00.002-06:00

Unfortunately I completely forgot my camera for our Easter vacation this year so all our photos are from Bill's phone. I will be posting a separate Easter post later this week with all our pics from the vacation.

However, we were able to send this wonderful Easter message to our family....

HAPPY EASTER! Love the Fritschs

Yup that is right!! We are expecting Fritsch Baby #3 around Nov 15th.

April 7th

2011-04-08T10:28:00.003-06:00

Yesterday morning we woke up to snow, and lots of it.. If anyone is wondering what spring is like in Teton Valley, here you go...

After I dropped off Ethan at Pre-School James and I went the long way to the grocery store to take some pictures.

Aren't the red trees just awesome!

Playing outside and the snow...

2011-04-04T13:19:00.005-06:00

Here are some shots of the boys playing on the 4 wheelers. (Notice the snow level as of last Monday).

On Saturday it was windy enough to get the kite up and to keep it up.

If you notice the difference in snow that is because we actually had a couple days where we got in and higher than 40 degrees!!

I did it! I did it!! well kind of...

2011-03-18T14:07:00.002-06:00

Alright so my picture wouldn't go as big as I wanted it to and it was cutting most of the picture off so I just made it smaller and tiled it instead. At least this way we get to see all of it!!

Oh how I can't wait to be there.. Enjoy the wonderful scenery of my background!

New background

2011-03-18T13:52:00.003-06:00

I'm temporarily putting this background up.

I know, I know, jelly beans? They made me think of Easter.

I will be changing it to the desert, which is where I know everyone wants to be right now!!

Cross your fingers that I can get it right...

Two things...

2011-03-16T16:27:00.004-06:00

1. This morning I was doing my hair and I heard birds chirping outside my window. It was wonderful, until I look out the window at breakfast and it was snowing huge flakes.

2. Ethan's new toy! Can't wait to get out on the desert and try it out!

James turns 1!

2011-02-17T11:12:00.004-07:00

The first weeked of Feburary we headed down to Utah to celabrate James first birthday. Yes I know there isn't much a 1 yr old can do so we made the most of it and went bowling.
What do you get when your whole (minus those in other areas and other lands) family bowls??

3 lanes
7 people on each lane
42 bowling shoes in sizes ranging from toddler 9 to 11 mens (I think)
14 bowling balls
a number of people that have not bowled since I have known them or since I can remember
Lots of butt shots
and even more fun!!

since I'm sure you are all wondering, yes I beat my high bowling score with a 144 and a 154 plus a turkey!

We did take a cake for James.. Needless to say he wasn't interested in eating it. He just played with it until it was making him sick and he was trying to get it off his hands.

Snow and misc..

2011-01-24T11:06:00.003-07:00

Everyone is asking how much snow we have so I took this picture (the back of our neighbors house)..

Yup those are his lawn chairs on the back of the deck.

Here is the icicle Bill pulled off the front of the house.

misc..

Warewolfs beware!

2011-01-21T11:53:00.004-07:00

Wednesday was the full moon. At 10:30pm it was so bright out side, it was amazing. So I took my camera and bared the bitterness to get a couple pictures.

Lately I have been playing with the apeture setting and this was a perfect oppertunity to see how well it would do..

Tadaa!!
This really was taken at night.. See the stars??

Then I couldn't feel my fingers or my nose so I decided get out of the -4 degree temprature.

E & J

2011-01-21T11:42:00.003-07:00

Ethan had a friend Jeremy come over to play in the snow. Ethan loves the snow and loves playing in it, he would stay out there forever if I let him. I feel bad that I can't really go out and play unless James is asleep. He plays out in the snow by himself just fine, but it makes us feel like he is lonely.

Not on Wednesday!!

After I put James down I went out and helped them build the tube slide and a couch to relax on the other side of the slide.

Saturday Morning

2011-01-16T17:24:00.012-07:00

We had all these wonderful plans Saturday; Idaho Falls, errands galore, bowling and hang out time with some friends in rexburg.

Instead we woke up at 4 a.m. to Ethan throwing up everywhere and again every hour for the next 12 hours.

and after a clothes and blanket change...

While wanting to stay in the room with Ethan, incase he didn't make it, and needing to give James a bath I decided to give James a bath in the kitchen sink.

Oh how he loved it. Smiles and splashes the whole time. *this also worked out well since we needed to mop the kitchen floor*

Christmas Morning

2011-01-16T17:14:00.004-07:00

We had a great Christmas this year.

Here are pics from Christmas morning.

Christmas Eve

2011-01-02T16:06:00.003-07:00

We spent Christmas Eve with the Thomas family this year. Dinner, Dessert (English Trifle, Acting out the story of our Saviour Jesus Christ's Birth (home made costumes:o)) and watching Tangled at Pierre's Playhouse (our awesome theater that only holds 100 people). It was a great night.

Christmas Eve Day

2011-01-02T15:53:00.004-07:00

On Christmas Eve we went over to Allen's Hill for some sledding. It was a beautiful day to be outside enjoying where we live and we had such a great time.

Ethan and Bill absolutly love sledding and we would go more often but if you have ever had to hike up that hill while carrying the sleds and children you would understand why it is better to go when someone has a snowmobile to take you back up the hill.

We went with three of the Crow Families (Thanks Chad, Brad, Erika and Darren for bringing your snowmobiles!)

my morning drive to IF

2010-12-22T14:29:00.005-07:00

2 weeks ago I had some training in Idaho Falls that lasted the entire week. Every morning I was out before 8 on the highway. One of the mornings I got the best view in Swan Valley. It definitely made my morning. (these are taken from my phone so the quality isn't very good)

And then it turned to this..

Randomness from my camera

2010-12-22T13:59:00.003-07:00

playing in the snow

2010-12-17T10:31:00.002-07:00

This is from a while ago, but most of my posts will be that way today. I finally downloaded pictures off my camera.
Out shoveling the drive.

I don't think James was too happy about being out there.

Ethan was!

I love it when they are marshmallows..

Watch out!!

2010-11-16T10:14:00.005-07:00

Our new car!

2010-11-16T09:12:00.001-07:00

We finally got a new car and we love it!!

Tired?

2010-11-04T09:18:00.004-06:00

A quick little post..

How cute is this??

Halloween night sky

2010-11-04T09:05:00.005-06:00

This was the view of the sunset in Victor on Halloween night.. Can I just tell you how incredible it was? Like the sky was on fire.

Halloween!!

2010-10-31T17:42:00.006-06:00

On Thursday Ethan has his pre-school Halloween Parade. He came out and said Arg! it was adorable. They sang a witch song and had a little parade around the parents. All the kids were so cute!

Halloween was great this year. Both of the boys were adorable pirates. Friday we went to a Halloween party were Bill and I dressed up as well.

Saturday we took the boys over to the Carnival at the school, Ethan played the games and got some prizes. Then we came home and had Andy, Nancy, James and Amanda over for dinner and games. While dinner was finishing up Bill took Ethan Trick-or-Treating down the street and back up. He had a great time and we are looking forward to next year!!

More carving!

2010-10-31T17:39:00.004-06:00

We had some more carvers over, I didn't get any pictures of the group but here are the pumpkins:

We went over to Thomas's and carved pumpkins, they turned out great if I do say so..

I will update the pics when I get them

Another spider and my awesome camera

2010-10-31T17:29:00.004-06:00

** Warning** creepy crawly things pictured below.

Last week I found this crawling across the garage floor and of course had to grab my camera..

Isn't my camera AWESOME!!

Halloween season is in the air.

2010-10-07T10:46:00.004-06:00

Friday we had some friends over for our annual October 1st pumpkin carving. This year there was a little smack talk through out the day on who's pumpkin would be the best.

We had a great time!

Bet you cant guess which one is Bill's!

A pirates life!

2010-09-23T09:51:00.004-06:00

Halloween costumes are done!! James was asleep so only Ethan got dressed up.

Once again these are from my phone, sorry about the quality.

Teton Village Tram

2010-09-21T13:12:00.002-06:00

These pictures were taken with my phone so they aren't the best but they work.

This weekend Bill's parents came up for a visit and we went over to Jackson/Teton Village and rode the tram to the top of the mountain. Ethan and Bill loved it so I'm sure we will be going again.

Self portrait with the phones. I think we did pretty good.

The Snake River
There was a controlled burn over in Yellowstone so it made the air a little yucky.
The Grand Teton

First day of school, first day of school...

2010-09-08T17:17:00.002-06:00

Tuesday was Ethan's first day of preschool. He was so excited to go and wear his backpack.

Over all we had a great morning. The biggest drama was when he had to get in the car. He wanted to ride the bus, so it was a little disappointing to ride in the car.

After I picked him up from school we picked up Papa and went for pizza.

Not sure what face he is making here..

Water Fun

2010-09-08T15:40:00.003-06:00

After Bill got off the mountain a couple weeks ago he and Ethan were playing outside. What started out so innocently, see who can run.. touch the fence.. and back without getting wet, ended like this.

They all had so much fun playing in the water.

Aren't those eyes just beautiful?

This is one of my favorite all time shots. His face is perfect.

Cabin fun

2010-09-02T08:30:00.003-06:00

The Bow hunt opener for Utah was on the 14th so we dropped Bill off at the mouth of the canyon and headed down to the cabin. We had a great time there and came back up to Salt Lake for the rest of the week.

Bill came off the mountain an armed hiker so we will be going down again this week, but he had a great time and needed the time up with Scott.

Sara showing me her silly face

Ethan and his rock

Porter and James. There is a 6 week difference between them.

I packed both of the boys and went for a ride. James loved every bit of it and even fell asleep on the way back.

Lauras boys came down and helped stain all the posts and decks so it only took about an hour to finish.

Ethan trying to figure out the "pumping" thing

Ethan and Sara playing on the swingset.

Nana and Shelby. Shelby is wearing a kimono that Scott brought back from Japan for Leslie.

Everyone Chillin'. The cabin is the best place to just hang out.

The yard update

2010-08-30T10:27:00.005-06:00

Here are some updated pictures of the yard!

Bill's Hand

2010-08-10T07:48:00.005-06:00

It's 6:30, Tuesday morning. I'm already out the door warming up to jog. Talking to Bill on the phone, knowing he was up and on his way to Rexburg already. "I'll call you after I stop and fill up the tire to the hand truck" he says. So I start jogging, thinking, I'll jog until he calls. I'm still jogging... yup still jogging... Finally when I'm almost back my phone rings. "Don't panic but I'm in the ER." "Whatever." I tell him. "I'm dead serious, I was filling up the tire and it exploded and sliced open my hand. I'm here waiting for them to stitch it up." Of course I don't believe him. Then he starts getting upset because I'm not believing him, but in reality he was going into a slight state of shock. When he started stumbling over his words and sounding funny I realized he wasn't joking. Just to make sure I believed him he sent me this photo from his phone.

I wait and wait for him to call me back... nothing. So finally I call him. "Susan is getting ready for the Dr to stitch me up, I'll call you back." Then a bit later I get this photo.

This is the piece that exploded off and sliced his hand.

He sent me a pic of how swollen his hand was.

This is what it looks like this morning.

He gets to go in Friday and have the stitches removed.

Swimming lessons in SLC

2010-08-10T07:18:00.004-06:00

Last week we (the two youngest boys and I) went down to Salt Lake for swimming lessons and some family time.

That is the tip of his head poking out of the water.

It was Bill's dad's birthday so the kids got together for dinner (just the adults!) and I surprised Dad by being in town. I have a picture but I think I need to ask permission to post it first.. Laura?.?.? Mom?.?.?

Please?.?.?

Anywho, there is a little park outside Crestwood Pool so we went a little early and Ethan played before swim lessons.

Stinky..(sometimes literally)

2010-08-10T07:11:00.004-06:00

I took James into the dr 2 weeks ago to see if we could get some control on his reflux. The medicine he was on first time around actually made things worse. His Dr didn't like that he was spitting up green (I'm convinced it was from the peas the day before, but what do I know) so we had the upper GI done to make sure there wasn't any kind of blockage. He did great. He was so hungry he sucked down the bottle of white stuff in no time and as long as he had the bottle in his mouth he held still for them. Thankfully no blockages but they did see that the valve at the top of the stomach doesn't seal like it is supposed to so they put him on a different med to see if it will settle things down enough for the valve to mature and start sealing. So far he still has good days and bad days.
When we took him in he was weighing 16.12. Can't wait to see how much he has gained since he is holding more down throughout the day.

Random Skyscapes

2010-08-10T07:09:00.003-06:00

If you know me, you know how much I like taking pictures of the sky. I was looking through my skyscapes folder and thought I would share some of my favorites.. So here you go..

This sunset was taken in Tremonton on my way home last weekend. It was stunning.
This was taken with my phone so it isn't the best quality but I love it. The rainbow, the Tetons, the water, the field.. everything.

Ethan and the Caterpillar

2010-07-27T15:16:00.003-06:00

The other day we found a caterpillar crawling around on the deck. Ethan loved it. He talked to it, tried to pet it, and even tried to feed it. Here are some pics...

Ally's baptisim

2010-07-08T15:07:00.002-06:00

On Saturday the 3rd our niece was baptized. She was so excited. Here are some pics, I will be posting more pictures as I get them.

Mila and Ethan being monsters...

The cabin

2010-07-08T14:55:00.002-06:00

Here are some fun shots from our trip to the cabin.

The toy box

2010-07-08T14:42:00.002-06:00

For Ethan's birthday Nana and Poppy gave Ethan a toy box. Not just any toy box mind you, a Toy Story toy box.

Colby built the box in AZ and they hauled it to Moroni so Nana could paint it. Yes you read right. Nana painted the entire thing by hand.

Ethan was so funny, he was excited about the whole Toy Story part of it but he didn't really get what it was. I finally told him when we got home we could put all of his toys in there and his mouth dropped and he said "Oh my gosh" and covered his mouth. It was great.

Thanks again Nana and Poppy!!!

Ethan turns 4!!

2010-06-28T21:18:00.005-06:00

4 years ago (on the 20th) I was having a baby surgically removed after making no headway with the progression of labor. Not to mention all the other problems that arose as the day went on.

At 4:20 Ethan was brought into this world. 6 lbs 11 oz and 20 1/2 inches.

Honestly I don't really remember much. Bits and pieces of that night.

Here is what I remember:

Laying on the surgical table
Freezing cold
Arms stretched out and strapped to the arm boards
Shaking uncontrollably
Slipping in and out of awareness
Being really frustrated that they insisted on putting a stupid partition up so I couldn't see a thing
Turning my head just in time to see them holding a blurry blue baby around the partition and then realizing he was gone again
Being so thankful that Bill was there to support me and then to hold our little one and beam with overwhelming joy

Watching the Bill and the nurse move my legs to a different bed and not being able to feel a thing
Holding the most amazing part of humanity you will ever encounter
Being afraid of dropping this beautiful bundle because I was still shaking and asking Bill to hold under my arm
People coming in and out of the room (keepsake pictures are such a wonderful thing)
Waking up in a completely different room, with completely different family members, and no child
Having Bill call again to find out where he was and how long they were planning on keeping him from us

He didn't join us again until 1:30 in the morning. Something about his temperature not being stable. I think I tried to block it out.

And 4 years later I can't believe how big he is, how fast it has gone, and how much more life he has to live. He amazes us every day.

too quiet

2010-06-28T21:02:00.002-06:00

The other day I was finishing up the dishes while Bill was out delivering some lights when I noticed it was a little too quiet in the house. James was asleep so I wasn't concerned there. But when Ethan didn't answer I decided to see what he was up to.. this is what I found...

The Jungle Gym

2010-06-16T17:43:00.003-06:00

After reading a post of a fellow blogger on making a jungle gym, I have been waiting until I had the time and the hula-hoops came out.

Well they did, and with the World Cup going on I have found the time!

What do you think?

One of the best parts? They both can play under it together and there is enough room!

Whispies

2010-06-16T17:36:00.002-06:00

Before:

After:

I know, you really can't tell the difference, but trust me, there is a difference. We trimmed all the long (and I really mean long) hairs on the sides and the back. Then we trimmed a good half inch off the top.

Sorry the pictures are fuzzy. My camera and I are not getting along lately.

Cereal

2010-06-12T14:37:00.003-06:00

James did pretty good with cereal last night. Didn't like it but didn't hate it either.

Random Family Shots

2010-06-12T14:11:00.004-06:00

I love taking a picture of someone else taking a picture. It's fun!

This photo was a great surprise. Thanks Gary!

Cousins.. There is such a great bond between the boys and thier cousins.

I think this is the only picture I was in the whole weekend. Maybe that is the reason I'm usually taking the pictures.

My brother likes to hold all babies... Yeah right. When Ethan was only months old I ended up shoving him in Uncle Bubba's arms to run in the other room. When I got back in the room he was still in the same position with the same shocked face (mind he was only 18). He has loosened up a bit, but he also has a rule about spit up.. As you can see, James doesn't care for rules very much.

Brownies and Games. We ended up playing Apples to Apples till late that night. What an awesome game when you have the right crowd!! Of course it helps when I win the first game.

Pre-Birthday party

2010-06-11T23:07:00.004-06:00

Since we had so many family members here with us, we dicided to celebrate Ethans upcoming birthday.
He loved everything!

You'll notice there was no cake. Ethan only eats the frosting so I asked him what he wanted.

Brownies it was.

Swimming

2010-06-11T22:53:00.003-06:00

For memorial weekend we were lucky enough to have most of our family visiting us for Jameson's blessing. This also meant we were able to use one of only a couple swimming pools in the valley. So we made a party of it!

Mornings

2010-06-11T22:40:00.004-06:00

There are very few reasons for anyone to get up before 6 am. Here is one of mine. Now that it is starting to get light earlier I get to enjoy the wonderful sunrise and all it brings with it.
Most mornings I drag myself out of bed to go running, but when I know it is worth it when I get outside. Smelling the clean air and getting to take in all the scenery.

Enjoy!

We are breathing better!

2010-06-11T22:04:00.003-06:00

Trees, trees and more trees!!!

A couple weeks ago we were able to plant some trees in the yard. When I say some trees I mean 12!

Bill picked up the trailer with the trees and our friend pulled the excavator over. While they started digging the holes his son came over with the skidster to help.

Ethan didn't get out of the excavator until they were loading it back on the trailer. He had so much fun digging the holes.

It was such a blessing to have the equipment there as the weather was not cooperating.

Slowly but surely we will get them all covered. How wonderful it is to look out the windows and see the beautiful trees.

This was a surprise tree!! A Canadian Cherry.. Only Bill would get a Canadian tree as a surprise.

Visiting Grandma and Grandpa Great

2010-06-11T21:52:00.004-06:00

Random pics

2010-06-10T21:08:00.002-06:00

Here are some of the random pictures since the last post in April.

4 months old

2010-06-10T20:45:00.004-06:00

Today our little guy is 4 months old. Crazy how fast it goes by.

14 lbs 4 oz 50%

24 1/2 inches tall 37%

17 inch head circumference 52%

He gets to start eating cereal, fruits and veggies.

He is a wonderful baby. Sleeping from about 11 pm until 6-7 am most nights. His laugh is hilarious, smiles all the time and loves giving kisses to everyone. He loves to grab anything within arms reach and has recently found his feet. He also started rolling from his belly to his back.
He is such a delight, we are so grateful he is a part of our family!

eww

2010-06-08T11:53:00.002-06:00

sorry I just realized the background I choose is pink. Sorry to have enforced such a hideous background on you. It will be changed today.

unforgivable..

2010-06-08T11:49:00.002-06:00

Alright, I know it has been over a month since my last post but this last month has been very busy and we got a new internet in which I cannot plug my pc into to get my pictures on shutterfly to make a proper post. Yes this is still unforgivable but I promise once I can, you will have more posts than you will know what to do with.

New bike + warmer weather =

2010-04-21T15:42:00.006-06:00

While in Wally World Ethan saw a boy riding a bike around the store and decided he wanted a bike too. This was a wonderful surprise to us considering last year it was everything we could do to get him on one. He had no desire what-so-ever.

When we went down a couple weeks ago, Ethan and I met up with Bill and Jameson in the bike area of Wally. Bill had put two bikes down on the ground to see if Ethan would want one.
We didn't even have to ask him. As soon as he saw them he went right over, climbed on and started pedaling. He rode it all around the store, out to the car and all over the parking lot.

Since then, if it is warm enough outside, he asks to go out on his bike. He is doing great. Learning that you can't go down a hill and put your feet down to stop you. Learning if you turn too sharp the bike will tip over. Learning when you ride in the dirt with training wheels you will eventually get high centered. Learning all the fun (and sometimes painful) new tricks that go along with owning a bike.

Loading the bikes

2010-04-20T16:18:00.004-06:00

Ethan was out while Bill and Dad were loading up the bikes and wanted to try loading his 4 wheeler so they let him.

Riding part 3

2010-04-20T15:53:00.002-06:00

Here are some more riding pics:

Riding part 2 Teaching 'em young

2010-04-20T15:13:00.008-06:00

Ethan rode the 4 wheeler by himself for a good portion of the morning. He does really well as long as he doesn't get going too fast. You see, he can't reach any of the brakes so all he can do is let go of the throttle and let it stop on its own. He had a blast and will get better and better the more he rides.

Riding part 1

2010-04-20T14:12:00.005-06:00

Let me just start off by saying we didn't ride as much this year as we normally do. Several factors contributed to this:

It was COLD!

Bill's bike wasn't working.

(note the rope in between the 4wheeler and Bill's bike)

Brian wasn't able to make it out (congrats on the baby!)
Dallin left for his mission 10 days prior.
And I'm in no kind of shape to head out for a good ride.

Ethan however got some good riding time in. Of course he doesn't seem to care if it is freezing outside.
We were the first to arrive in camp, so after we got everything situated and the trailer all set up Bill got Ethan's 4 Wheeler out. First he had him follow him around showing him where not to ride (into the tall sage, across the cow poop as examples).

After dinner Bill and Ethan played follow the leader up the hill.

2 month check up

2010-04-20T14:08:00.006-06:00

Yesterday was Jameson's 2 month check up.

He measured 12.2 lbs and 23.25 inches

He is so adorable and fun. He has started smiling and talking to anyone that is around him.

Here are some pics from this morning.

This picture made me laugh so I thought I would share it..

Pennies on the track

2010-04-20T09:20:00.004-06:00

With this long standing tradition of going out to the desert to spend our Easter holiday we also put pennies on the track.

For those who have never heard of this before it is very self explanatory. We all walk/ride down to the railroad tracks and lay out pennies.

Why do we do this?

You see out there when a train comes barreling down the tracks it likes to blow its horn several times (even in the middle of the night). What they don't know is they are actually smashing the pennies flat.

Now we have been doing this for some time now so the elders (Yup Maddi that is you!) try to be creative in how we set up the pennies to be smashed. We don't want the mundane single smashed penny, what fun is that?

The Wildlife

2010-04-19T09:43:00.005-06:00

Well not actually wild.

Every so often we get visitors of the four legged kind into our camp coming to see what we are all about.