The Penny Worth THOUSANDS Of Dollars

Do I need to say more?

Our Little Piggy Bank

You've heard us say it before, but here it comes again: We are awful, horrible parents. Make excuses for us all you want - "Oh, I'd make the same mistake too," "It's not your fault, it sounded like a cold to me," "Nobody could've seen that one coming," whatever - but it doesn't change the fact that our little ten-month-old had a penny stuck in his throat for at least two months and we knew absolutely nothing about it.

We'll say this for Spencer: he sure is a trooper. Imagine living your life with something cutting off your airway, making it hard to swallow your food, let alone breathe. The worst part is, the little guy must've gotten used to the feeling as a necessary part of his everyday life, and he dealt with it as best he could. (In retrospect, despite the general orneriness and night terrors, he probably dealt with it better than anyone. If only he'd been able to say something useful, like, I don't know, "Mommy, Daddy... choke choke... I think I've got a little problem here...")

Wish we could show you the x-ray of that dark circular object lodged in Spencer's tiny esophagus, but that'll have to come at another time. Instead, here's a photo record (of sorts) that we took during his harrowing two-day adventure from piggy bank to copper-free tyke.

This is 4:30 in the morning. He's strapped in and ready to take that loooooooooooong ride up to Primary Children's Hospital. Note the red, sleepy eyes. Looked just like his Mom and Dad.

Spencer in his hospital gown in the waiting room, approximately 7:30 (still a.m.; the drive up wasn't that long). Elisabeth wishes we'd gotten a better picture of him in full hospital regalia, but the nurse ushered us out too soon for us to remember to do so at the time. (Trust us, he was really, really cute.)

Spencer after the operation (does an endoscope really count as an operation?), approximately 8:30. The nurses called Elisabeth into the post-op room shortly after Spencer woke up from being sedated. Boy, was he ever glad to see his mommy! So happy, in fact, he wouldn't let daddy even attempt to cheer him up. For the entire day.

Another post-op picture, a little later. Still clingy, still trying to gnaw that bandage off his little thumb.

This is the TV they let us watch. Note how it's almost laid flat against the ceiling, which hurt our necks worse than sitting in the front row of a crowded movie theater. (We realize the TV is there for the patient more than anyone else, but still. Do chiropractors get hospital referrals?)

Spencer on the way home, approximately 11:30. Yes, it DOES look an awful lot like his "trip-to" photo, with backgrounds added during a hectic post-production schedule. He's strapped in and ready to take that loooooooooooong ride back to Springville after removing all the loose change from his body. Also note the red, sleepy eyes. Still looked just like his Mom and Dad.

 

The next morning, around 8 a.m. at home. As Daddy laid on the floor in front of the TV to play with him, Spencer rested his head on the pillow and fell asleep just like this. (Apparently, Daddy isn't all that bad after all.) You tell us which picture looks faked, the one above or the one below?

Gotcha. He's actually asleep in both. One picture's just a lot cuter than the other. Either way, it's good seeing our baby boy in such good spirits. Here's hoping he gets a real piggy bank sometime in the near future. Over and out.

Silly Pekah!

This is Digi in Pekah's bed......

This is Pekah finding a new bed!

Silly Pekah, that's Spencer's bouncy chair!

More Easter

I had to take pictures of them in their new Easter clothes.  Too many cute ones, but at the same time I wish I had Jocie's and Bec's talent for taking and editing pictures.

Bunny Time

Like most people, the night before Easter we dyed eggs.  Tanner and Savannah LOVE doing this and we are always stressed out they might spill the dye on their clothes and stain them forever.  Thankfully they always do a great job.

On Easter day we usually wait until after church to find what the Easter Bunny left for us.  But since this year it was General Conference the Easter Bunny came the night before and hid everything.  Our Easter Bunny sends us on a treasure hunt with clues.

First here is the note he left for us to prove that he was here.  It says:








Dear Tanner, Savannah and Spencer,

     Hey, Guys!  Looks like it's Easter time again!  How was your year?  Have you been nice to each other?  Tanner and Savannah, I hope you know you need to set a good example for your little brother.  Spencer needs to see you being nice and not fighting, so he'll be nice to you when he grows up.  Be nice!  Anyways, I've been really busy this year.  I had to drop off some of your stuff with your Mom this week to save time.  I hope you didn't see any of it too early!  Please thank her for me - it's sure nice having her help!  Well, I've got to get going.  Again, please be good and listen to your parents.  And be good at school!
     Have fun on our hunt!

                      Love,
                      The Easter Bunny

He usually leaves us a first clue that leads us to a certain room in the house.  There, the kids find three to four eggs (hard-boiled or candy-filled - yum), plus the next clue that leads us to the next clue, and so on.  The first clue said, "Where did you get such a big box of new diapers?"  Which, naturally, led us to Spencer's room. Here they are.

The next clue said, "Why is this your only white bookshelf?" We have four bookshelves in the house, but the one in Savannah's room is the only one that's white.

The third clue said, "Where Trans- formers sleep." We have only one themed room like that - Tanner's of course. (Look closely. That's the nose and chin of the Autobot symbol on Tanner's wall. Darin's masterpiece, as he calls it.)

(As an aside, here's a picture of Spencer's big two-egg find in the upstairs hallway.)

The fourth clue: "You guys sure don't eat in here very much. Why such a nice table?" Obviously, that means our dining room.

The fifth clue: "Where you keep your new satellite receiver." Since the kids just watched us install the thing the day before (DirecTV sent us a replacement receiver when they found out we had an outdated version), they rushed to the family room.

Here is Savannah finding the last egg in the family room:

The sixth and final clue said, "Where your home teachers sit when they come to visit." Tanner and Savannah ran to our living room where they found the "treasure" (the big gift that the Bunny leaves for them at the end of the hunt.) Here are the kids with their rewards.

(Here's a outtake picture of Spencer wondering, "How come I didn't get anything as cool? All I got was stupid baby toys.)

All in all, a fun Easter morning. Glad the Bunny took time out of his busy schedule!