Double Dose

This is probably a boring post for most of you, but this is life.

(Preston before his dad cut his locks off--it was needed!)

My boys have had non-stop ear infections the past couple of months.  I'm sick of going to the doctor and giving them antibiotics everyday.  Found out today at the ENT that Michael's ear drum ruptured and is still rupturing and that's why his ear has been draining blood and puss for the past month.  Preston's has been draining too, just not blood.  Both boys will have tubes put in next week and their adnoids taken out.  Yippeee!! This will be Michael's second set of tubes, and hopefully he will outgrow ear infections before he needs them again.  The doctor said both boys have a 30 percent hearing loss in both ears because of the amount of fluid in their ears, so hopefully they'll be able to hear better too, not that they've been complaining.

The funny thing is Michael is so used to his ears hurting that he doesn't even complain.  He did have a rough night last night though, and this morning when he woke up he told me, "Mom, I don't want the bubbles to pop in my ears anymore."  Maybe we will all get a little bit more sleep around here because quite frankly, I need it!

Today I took the boys to the ENT for both of their appointments (Preston had another doctor appt, yesterday too), Costco, the surgery center for their pre-op appointment, and then the eye doctor to get Michael's glasses fixed....all before 12:30!  They were so good for me, so that made it a lot easier.  Thank goodness it's nap time because now I need to clean the house, fix dinner for the missionaries, and then Kyle and I both have a meeting tonight.

At Costco the boys were being so good....I didn't know what to do with myself.  They were enjoying how their voices sounded when they yelled/sang in the wide open spaces of Costco, so they were hollering and singing the entire time we were in there, but it was actually really funny, and everyone was loving it.  I could not believe how much noise those two could make.  I would try to get them to be quiet, but they weren't having it.  People kept telling me I was lucky to have such happy boys.  I agree, especially two boys with ear problems.

  

This, That, and the Other

Michael giving me his best cheesy grin.  

Ornaments the boys made in nursery.  LOVE THEM!  Also love that Preston is now in nursery.  It is the best!

Preston enjoying the great snow we had this week

Here are the boys with our dear neighbors Bobby and Sandra.  They are such great people and we have gotten very close with them.  Michael and Bobby are great friends.  Sandra is battling cancer is a great example to us, and we've had some neat experiences with her lately.  They spoiled the boys and gave them Christmas presents.  Why have I not bought a Mr. Potato head before?  Michael is holding Preston's toy and Preston's holding Michael's.  

I've been making way too many cookies and Preston decided to take matters into his own hands and taste test when I had my back turned.  He is so much fun lately.  The little stinker won't say anything, but he points, motions, and pulls us so we can understand what he wants.  He does say Mamma and Dadda, but that's it!  Kind of nice to have a quiet one :)

Merry Christmas everyone.  Thank you for all of the sweet Christmas cards you have sent our way.  I feel guilty since we haven't sent any out before, but we still get them, which means we've got great friends!

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Saturday was the best day for our family.  We didn't have any cleaning or chores to do (well besides Kyle and Michael going to clean the church in the morning), so we played in the snow all morning.  It was the perfect temperature for the boys, and the snow was ideal for making snowballs and snowmen.  After that we each took a boy and went Christmas shopping.  I can't really describe why it was so perfect, but it really was one of those days I will always remember.  Luckily I got my neighbor to snap a picture, so we can always remember it.

On a completely unrelated note, Kyle and I are attending a marriage and family class taught by our Bishop during Sunday School with about 6 or 7 other couples in our ward.  It is the BEST class.  It's basically group marriage therapy, and it's so much fun.  The manual is awesome, our Bishop does a great job teaching it, and we all sit around in a circle and participate. We're bummed we are going to miss it a couple of weeks in a row while we're attending other wards for family things during the holidays.  Kyle said he wouldn't mind going to that class every week just because it's so entertaining!  As I said, completely unrelated to this post.

They Gave Up Their Christmas

My sis-in-law Andrea shared this with us. Talk about a tear-jerker. I remember when I was young going to a vineyard that our church managed here in Pasco, but it was definitely not on Christmas Day.  What a great example these people are.  Merry Christmas.

Awesomeness

If you went to BYU or Ricks (I still have a hard time calling it BYU-I), then you'll love this video.  So funny and so true for so many BYU co-eds.  I'm pretty sure I had a few roommates just like this.  Still laughing....

Fun Fact: I had 36 roommates by the time I got married.  HOLY SMOKES.  If you count living with 40 girls while I was in London then that number would increase significantly, and really I should count them!

Picking Grapes

This picture is from the fall when I took my boys out to pick grapes so I could juice them.  They had so much fun on the farm, and Michael even helped me pick grapes.  Preston tried, but ended up juicing them with his fists.  It was a beautiful day, and one I won't forget.  I love taking my boys out to farms because it reminds me of my childhood.  I love the grape stains on their face and hands, so cute.

Play Date with Michael

When people talk about "play-dates" it always sound so glamorous, but I'm pretty sure we have a different definition of play-dates around here.  I wonder if their moms had this in mind when we invited them over to play with Michael. Never a dull moment around here.  I think they should all take really good naps for their moms.  Currently they are running around in circles, except Michael and Bex keep getting mad at one another and start shoving each other, which is actually pretty funny (but I don't let them know that), especially when Bex rips Michaels glasses off in revenge (Michael deserves it).  My favorite is the top middle picture when Michael came flying off the couch head first.