The ladder of ... success???

We were doing some painting in our livingroom and much to the happiness of our babies - we were using the ladder.  They thought that they needed to climb up anytime we were off of it or too high up to matter anymore.  But, as cute as they are, who could possibly mind one bit!!

Bryant's Basketball Picture

I just couldn't resist sharing. Anyone who knows Bry knows that ... this is Bry!! :)

Home Sweet Home

Doesn't she look better?
After 4 LONG days in the hospital, the doctor hesitantly sent us home. He said Grayce still had her pneumonia and didn't sound great, but she was keeping her oxygen levels up on her own and was starting to drink too. So, the official quote was, "We can't do anything for her here that you can't do for her at home." So, we grabbed our stuff, signed some papers, and ran out the door (actually Grayce got to ride out in a wagon). We (Grayce and everyone else) were all ready to go home.
Grayce has done amazingly well now that we are home. She has been eating well (she had lost 1 1/2 pounds - and for a 22 pounder, that is a lot!) and sleeping well, and is more and more back to her normal self again. It is such a great thing to watch (on this side of it anyway).
She has had two follow-up doctor visits in the last week and they both went really well. The doctor told us on Thursday that we are out of the woods with her now. However, his orders were to keep her away from other people for another 3 weeks. That means the kids' friends don't get to come over, no visiting teachers, no church, no taking her to the store, etc. It has made for long days of being completely stuck inside. I didn't realize how nice it was to get out of the house every once-in-a-while until I couldn't do it anymore. But, if it keeps her well...
Anyway, we just want to say thanks again to all of you that called, visited, helped us with our other kids, prayed for us, etc. You will never know how much help that was to us. We are truly blessed with great friends and family.

Grayce Update...

Well, I have to admit that I didn't think we would ever be staying in the hospital this long. But, we are seeing improvements. Grayce spent most of the evening yesterday playing on the floor and on room air - no extra oxygen. She had to have some oxygen during the night because everyone has lower oxygen levels when they sleep (we take shallower breaths). But, she only had 1/4 liter/hour. To put it in perspective, she had to have 2.5 liters/hour the first couple of days. So, we are looking better. They told us that she has to get better with her oxygen (than the 2.5) and drink more on her own before she could go home. She is still on IV, but they lowered that from 60 mL/hour to 40mL/hour. So, we are making improvements for sure. Nick and I are getting really good at reattaching the oxygen monitor, and have even had to reattach the IV connection. They have lovingly nicknamed Grayce "the tornado" because she is constantly getting her cords twisted and off. At least that means she is moving around. The first couple of days she was so lethargic and just laid on my lap. So, I don't care how many times we have to reattach or untwist cords/wires if it means she is moving and happy.
We finally have seen her smile come back last night and this morning. She is starting to seems more like her regular self again. :)
Thanks for all of the kindnesses - notes, messages, phone calls, visits, etc. It is so nice to have good friends and family that obviously care about us and Grayce.
The other kids are doing well. They are with Nick's parents at our house. They have been so good to take care of all of the other necessities of life for us at home. The kids are starting to feel a little anxious and I am sure they will benefit from Grayce being home and things getting back to normal too.
We are meeting with the doctor when he does his rounds sometime early this afternoon. Hopefully by then we will know if we can go home or not.
Thanks again for all of your concern and especially prayers on our behalf.

A Trip to the Hospital

Yesterday we had to admit Grayce to American Fork Hospital. She has RSV, pneumonia, and a sinus infection. She is on a lot of oxygen right now and that is the main thing they are trying to manage. She is on a good antibiotic for her bacterial infection. The doctor says she can go home when her breathing/lungs sound better and she doesn't need oxygen. They want her on no more than .25 liters/hour of oxygen - she was up to 2.5 liters/hour. So, we could be here for a while. Nick and I think that she is going recover quickly and will turn a corner soon.
It is absolutely no fun having a child in the hospital. It has to be the hardest/saddest thing ever. She can't leave her room, so that has been hard on her too. They had a really hard time getting her IV in because she was dehydrated and little. They finally got it in her foot. So, that has been interesting too. My heart breaks for her everytime I think about it.
Needless to say, our world has turned upside down these past couple of days. We went from a regular visit to the doctor to a long-term (at least for us) stay in the hospital. We just keep talking about how grateful we are that it is only RSV and not something more serious. We'll keep you posted as the days go on.

Mac n Cheese

It is official - I make the world's best mac n cheese!
The pictures speak for themselves...
Come on over, we'll whip you up a box!

?Simple Machine?

Over the Christmas break Abby was given a school assignment to make a "simple machine." I decided that the title of the project is all relative.
She and Nick had a lot of fun making it together. I think that they did a great job and Nick got to go to the school on the day of the presentations and see her present her machine to the class.
They made an elevator using a pully.
Pretty awesome, huh?

Itty Bitty Ball - Tyler

This year is Tyler's first year to sign up for basketball. The 3 and 4 year-olds get to play what the city calls, "Itty Bitty Basketball." He loves it. They teach them early basketball skills and have them play mini-games against each other. There are no real teams, but the kids have so much fun - obviously!! It helps that he has his own basketball to go to just like Abby and Bry!

Choir

Abby sings with the Lehi Children's Choir. This year they did their normal holiday performance at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and the American Fork Tabernacle. But, they were also asked to perform on the Sunday before Christmas at the Tabernacle on Temple Square. It was such a neat place to watch them sing. The atmosphere was incredible. So many people were there and everyone seemed so happy (except Emma and Grayce at times). Anyway, they only performed 3 of their numbers that night, but one of them was the one Abby had a solo part in - and she did so good. It was one of those payday moments as a parent. We are so proud of her for so many reasons, not the least of which is her ability to sing. She has a beautiful voice and it is fun for her to be able to sing in the choir.
Abby, Bryant, and Tyler were asked to sing together, "Picture a Christmas" from the Primary Songbook for our ward's Christmas Sacrament Meeting on the Sunday before Christmas. They each had solo parts and did great. So many people commented on how touched they were by their song - even Tyler piped right up and sang his parts so sweetly. It was really neat. (can you tell we are proud of them :)


The top picture is Abby with her choir director, Catherine Stambaugh. The bottom picture is of Abby's whole choir (she is in the older choir which makes up about 1/2 of the group) at the American Fork Tabernacle.

CHRISTMAS!

I am not going to bore you all with a long entry...
I know it is late, but I wanted to include a little about Christmas.

We have had tons of snow here this season.  It has been so much fun (even the shoveling has been a good workout).

Christmas Eve was filled with:

7-layer dip for dinner (special request of the kids).

New PJs for the kids.

Feeding the reindeer.

The nativity story and stickers.

Christmas morning was fun too (especially since we didn't get up until 8a.m., and we had to wake up Abby at that!!  Abby got her dolls, Bryant got a basketball game, Tyler got a new bike, Emma and Grayce got some tents and tunnels and bears too!

We stayed in Utah for Christmas. A couple of days after Christmas we went to Idaho for about 5 days.
It was full of fun visits with family and friends.
We went sledding - a special request of Bryant and Abby's.





We had fondue - a family tradition for the Axford's on New Year's Eve and we had a game day with cousins and grandparents.




Gram and Papa made Clam Chowder for Bryant (his favorite).

I also decided to try to expand my limited knitting abilities so Nick's mom is teaching me hats and socks!  Stayed tuned - I will let you know if they actually turn out wearable!
It was a lot of fun - from which we are still recovering!!!