Happy Halloween!

Walker is back to being Walker.... (Brad this is what was happening while we were on the phone this a.m.) He was in the garage playing while I put away some groceries and started laundry. I leave the door propped open so I can hear if it gets too quiet! He was riding around the garage then rode his coaster car into the house trailing the coloring paper... with orange paint all over his hands. Its good to see him be himself! And he only had Tylenol 2x today!!!After watching, "Its the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," Wilson thought it would be fun to have a Halloween Party after trick-or-treating--you know, like Lucy. And because I am a bit of a sucker, plus his Daddy is gone, and to top it off the Fall Party at school was pretty low-key... I tried to fancy things up a bit at home. So when he got home he decorated some cupcakes.Then we had some Mummy Dogs for dinner...And got ready to hit the streets for some treats. Logan and Barbie came to join us...

And we went down the block to get Spiderman and his mom and his grandparents and we were off...
There were a LOT of people out trick-or-treating, but not all that many home actually passing out candy... (Guess that is what happens when you live in a neighborhood where everyone has the same job and are in the same age-range with nearly the same age kids... not to mention half the parents are deployed...) It was fun - for the most part...
After trick-or-treating we ran (drove) over to the chapel on-post where we meet for PWOC and the kids got a big bag of candy. It was almost over when we got there, if we are here next year, we might skip trick-or-treating all together. They call it "No Scary Costume Party."

After that party, we went back to our house, for the remainder of our "Party". (I use the term loosely, and I think Wilson may have noticed that it wasn't quite as fun as Lucy's.) Of course, we had to get a good look at the candy... Walker is all about the suckers because I think he can unwrap & pop them in his mouth so darn fast. I don't let him eat them yet, too afraid of him biting off a sharp chunk and cutting his throat open (maybe next week...) Wilson was THRILLED to pose for this picture...

Logan was a good sport and bobbed for apples... Wilson's idea. He wanted the youngest to go first but I said, "Let's let the oldest go first, they NEVER get to go first..."

Something freaked Wil out about bobbing for apples, so he picked a sub...
She liked her treat too!

The kids had a fun day... I am hoping their little bodies will sleep in tomorrow, what with all the walking tonight... but you never know! We don't have much planned for tomorrow aside from an EXTRA hour of sleep tomorrow night! I ♥ Fall Back.

Can you believe its November???

I guess there's an upside...

...to the economic down-turn. $1.97 a gallon. For everyone, no strings attached - not if you buy the $10 car wash or if use your credit card or anything... $1.97! Technically, I didn't HAVE to fill-up today... probably could've watied another day or two... Part of me didn't even want to fill-up, because the gas in the tank was put there by Brad when he was home... I kind of like to savor things like that. (Don't worry, I still have the steak seasoning out on the counter from when he grilled some steaks while he was home. It'll stay there awhile longer... I'm still savoring the idea that he was in our house not too terribly long ago.)

Ok, back to the gas. I heard on the news that gas prices might go back up because the value of the dollar is dropping (oh my!), so I figured if I wanted to pay less than two dollars a gallon I had better do it today. I had to snap a picture with my cell phone, just so I could remember it =)

When I went to pick up Wilson from school the price was $2.08. Gas prices don't impact our budget too terribly much because we only fill up twice a month and our tank is only 16 gallons... But still, every bit counts...

happy moments

so, last night Walker was in our room at bedtime. Trouble is, bedtime is usually my free time. I thought maybe he was just laying on the bed while I did some blogging and emailed Brad his nightly note. Ummmm... I was wrong. Even on his belly. So I HAD to snap a few pictures last nigth before bed! I didn't notice until today, but page 128 in my Bible study book is sort of hard to read now too... Today was just about ideal weather. Not too hot, not too cool. A slight bit of brisk, but lots of warmth from the sunshine. The boys enjoyed playing outside before dinner... Walker even had to take off his shoes and socks to get his little piggies in the sand...

And for some reason, Wilson had to bust out his climbing routine today. Because, I really want Walker to try all that out this week... good grief! At least Walker got distracted by the idea of getting his little piggies in the sand! (You can see him taking his shoes off in the background of this picture)

We have resumed our nightly routine of walking around the block with Nicole and Gavin. Tonight after our walk we had some hot cocoa on the patio and lit our Jack-o-lantern. The boys were pretty impressed... especially the little man. Shhhh... I used a candle for tonight, but I promise I will use a glowstick on Friday! (We can't burn candles in our houses on post. Maybe that will change when the privatization is complete Nov. 1)

Here are the boys and their cocoa as well as our finished Jack-o-lantern.

Walker was still a cranky-hank most of the morning, but seems to have improved a lot this afternoon. He even took a 2-hour nap, which he hasn't done in quite a few days. I peeked in his throat, I got the best look yet, which I think means more of the nasty-scab-stuff has fallen off. I could actually see past his uvula which is a first since the surgery. {and yes, I had to google that to make sure I had the right word =)}

Thank you again... for the many prayers. They are deeply appreciated!

God is good...

...all the time.

Here's the big super trooper with his 'dinner,' vanilla honey bee ice cream. And this is the Big Brother of the Year.

Many of you know, we ended up taking a late-night trip to the ER last night. Walker woke up about 11pm. I heard him in the hallway, and when I opened my door, there he stood with blood all over his chin and in his hands. You can imagine my response. Borderline hysteria. He had a good amount of blood on his pj top and on his blankie as well.

I won't include all the details (mainly because Walker is sleeping in my room tonight and he will not go to sleep until I turn every light off in the house). Barbie met me at the hospital and Wilson went to Nicole's house... we were in and out of the ER in about an hour. They decided that he bled because part of the scabbing came off one side of his throat. He wasn't actively bleeding at the time that they checked his throat. So they sent us home.

He had another rough day today, although I think it was a bit better than yesterday. His ENT called today and told me that we did the right thing. And let me know that IF there is a going to be a bleeding problem now is usually the time it would start. She confirmed that it is common to do very well and then decline for a few days. So, I know what to watch for and I am keeping a close eye on him (needless to say.) She also told me that she often advises parents not to look in their kids' throats because it is so "nasty." No joke. And ewww.

Wilson has been so helpful through this, even with getting his sleep disrupted last night. I know these have been some hard days for him too.

What a scary hour last night. And what a reminder of how truly blessed we are. Beyond measure. Beyond words.

"I sought the Lord, and he answered me; He delivered me from all my fears."

Psalm 34:4

hold up, wait a minute...

After so many days of rapid recovery, Walker had a down day. (The picture above is from when Brad was home, it was much too chilly for that get-up today!) He was super clingy and cranky. I don't even think he put on any random clothes today...and only wore his cowboy boots for an hour or two all day. Certainly not himself!

Thankfully, he is NOT running a fever, NOT dehydrated, and NOT bleeding. I found out (through some very careful internet research) that this is somewhat common in the recovery process. Between days 5 and 7 the scabs start falling off (ewww, I know), and this is painful. So, we appreciate your continued prayers for the little man.

Wilson was fantastic this afternoon, and chose after school snacks that his brother could also eat. And when Walker had a Popsicle right before dinner, Wilson said, "I am not going to ask for a Popsicle right now." (While looking longingly at Walker's of course) Oh, that kid is so cute!

One of the ladies from PWOC called me today to touch base about some of the planning details, etc. And before we got off the phone she prayed for us. All of us. She prayed for Brad, she prayed for Wilson, she prayed for Walker, and she prayed for me. I am so thankful to be well-cared for by so many. God is good, all the time.

nearly perfect...

Our Sunday started slowly with some fort-building in the living room... and even though there was a lot of arguing to start with in the end the boys were having a good time "sleeping" in their little fort.

Afterwards, we headed out to the back patio to get to work on our pumpkin. It was sunny and warm (and rather windy). It was so fun to watch the boys working...

Wilson thought it was SO cool that he "got to carve it all by himself." (his words, of course)

He even helped Walker carve a little bit...

OOPS! I forgot to take an 'after' picture! Maybe later this week!

After naps we met some other ladies from PWOC with deployed spouses at a park on-post. The kids played games...Including a tiny round of duck-duck-goose...There were even a few non-deployed daddies on-hand to play with the kids! And at the end, all of us mommas got to bring home a frozen lasagna! What a blessing!

its the great pumpkin weekend, charlie brown

Friday evening started with Pumpkin Smoothies... Wilson REFUSED to try them, and Walker liked any of it that had whipped cream with it. They were just so-so. We won't try them again... For dinner we had pumpkin pancakes, and even Wilson liked them - he ate 3! Wilson wished we could freeze the leftovers for when Daddy comes home... (We had the leftovers for breakfast, I told him I could make more for Daddy). After dinner we got some treats together and printed off some Boo poems and signs! So fun! Really, you should do this in your neighborhood... you can go to this website to get printable "BOO" signs and the poem. Wilson is getting so fast and bold with his delivery!Today we went out to a little pumpkin patch with Nicole and Gavin. It was a pretty small-scale pumpkin patch, but the boys had a blast...There were little pedal tractors - of course, there were only 2 tractors and we had three boys, so there were a few squirmishes...
Wilson even got a roping lesson...

Later that same day... Dale Jr and his sidekick Crazy Eyes - the new sheriff - rolled into town. (Is it just me, or is there a picture somewhere of me with that same exact look on my face???)
They had a "Pumpkin Glo" on post tonight. All the classes from the 2 on-post elementary schools entered a Jack-O-Lantern and they had them all lit up outside the library. We met Nicole and Gavin again for some fun! Spiderman spooked the new sheriff a bit...

Here is Wilson with his class' pumpkin. I asked him if I could call him "Dale" for the rest of the week, but he emphatically declined. Maybe tomorrow I'll ask him if I can call him "Junior."

Here are the boys watching "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown." From the looks of it, that hat weighs 10 gallons...

And, I just thought they looked cute from behind...

As you can tell, Walker is recovering at an awesome pace! Grandpa & Grandma left yesterday and called today to tell us they made it home safely. It was such a blessing to have them here - not only for the surgery, but also during the good-byes.

I am not ready to put Walker in the care of anyone else yet, so we will not be going to church tomorrow. We have more pumpkin on the agenda tomorrow though - we gotta do some carving!

getting back to normal...

Our little patient is recovering quite rapidly! He continues to drink as normal and is eating here and there. Praise God! I thought the boys looked so cute stretched out across the floor coloring... Ironically right in front of the little desk and little folding table...

Yesterday when Nicole & Gavin stopped by, a snowball fight broke out... a PAPER snowball fight that is!

Gavin and Wilson had a blast throwing "snowballs" at Grandpa. (The roll of coloring paper accidentally unrolled and somehow the snowball fight started...)

Here's the little man in his robe. If you think he looks a little puffy, its because he has his newest blankie wrapped around him under his robe... Seriously, its ALWAYS something with him! (Check out his new blankie here... such a clever idea, thanks Miss Barbie!!!)

home sweet home!

We got home about an hour ago. Walker is doing really well - thank you for the prayers. Here are few pictures from yesterday...

Pre-surgery, Walker was playing with the phone with Daddy's recording on it. Obviously in a good mood!

Showing a last glimpse of those big tonsils of his!

I am not exactly sure what he is doing in this picture, but he looks happy, I was listening intently to the doctor... Barbie was faithfully snapping pictures =)
This is a shot of him after the versed, which is the drug they gave him to alleviate the separation anxiety before they wheeled him away. You can tell it did the trick!
He grabbed his daddy doll before they wheeled him out. He did so great!
He was thrilled to have Gavin come by for a visit. I was thankful for the portable DVD player at the hospital. Walker watched the same Little Einstein's DVD 4 or 5 times!

Last night around 9pm he was chowing on cheese and a popsicle. Miss Barbie was kind enough to get me a burger because I kind of forgot to eat when I went home to tuck Wilson in. While she was at Burger King she asked for some cheese for Walker too - boy was he thrilled!(Brad, you can kinda see the reddish-pink under his eyes in this picture.)

little walker j

oh, our little man, he isn't so little anymore...

He was twisting the swings around this afternoon, and just giggling his little head off! His giggle is incredibly contagious, and has gotten him out of many sticky situations!And besides that, he cracks himself up too... and people that are always laughing are so fun to be around!
Until you ask them to look at the camera for a picture! He gives me THAT look! How could I insult his insatiable appetitie for activity by asking him to stand still???
But of all the pics I clicked today - this one captures our little Big man best... His {crazy} eyes tell the story - he is ALWAYS formulating his next move. Big plans, big dreams, this one, I just know it!
We are going to the hospital at 0630 (zero six-thirty means 6:30 am) to get those pesky giant tonsils out and his big ol' adenoids too. We appreciate your prayers for a flawless surgery and speedy recovery.

Also, please pray for Big Wil. He is having a bit of a hard time with this, and even said tonight, "This is the first time I've ever spent the night without someone from my family." Ok, that statement is untrue from every angle; which is telling because he is a kid that adores accuracy. I am sure he is a bit more apprehensive because Daddy just left last week (seriously, feels like 3 weeks already - and not in a time-flies-when-you-are-having-fun kind of way). I know Grandma & Grandpa will take great care of him - and cater to his every need even better than I do (ok, that should probably say his every want), nonetheless, I would appreciate prayers on his behalf as well.

And OF COURSE, Brad is a few thousand miles away and this is difficult for him. Thank you in advance for your prayers for peace and confidence for him!

Did I mention that I love you all and appreciate the fact that you pray for us?? I do.