Not sure what to do

As many of you know, I am married to a wonderful Troy and I have a wonderful brother named Troy.  At the end of October My brother Troy started to have some mild shoulder pain and difficulty swallowing.  He went into the Dr. and they did an x-ray and gave him some medicine for acid reflux.  He was not improving and has continued to have difficulty swallowing and has lost about 65 pounds.  We have become increasingly concerned about Troy as he was just not looking good.  The week before Christmas he was home (lives in Fargo) and he was going in for some more testing the following week.  One thing has led to another and he had a body scan on Monday.  Today he went in to find out what the scan revealed and it was not the news we were hoping for.  Troy has an 11cm tumor (larger than a baseball) pushing on his esophagus and chest. He has only a sliver of an opening into the stomach and his having difficulty swallowing even liquids. They feel it is a form of lymphoma and he will go into the hospital on Monday for another biopsy and will start treatment as soon as possible.  

Needless to say I am heartsick for him.  My parents left today to stay with him and I am planning to go too, just not sure of timing yet. Can you please pray for a miracle?  My brother is also going through a divorce which has been very stressful...his kids mean the world to him and he means the world to us!

The year is winding down...

I haven't been blogging much lately, not sure that I am going to keep this blogging thing going.  Time is the biggest challenge that I am facing.  Trying to prioritize, I enjoy it, but feel as though I should be doing other things.  I have a few things to share as the year approaches it's end.  I must say that I am thankful for so many things...Jesus Christ, my Husband, Kids, Parents, Friends-new and old, Jobs, Health, Home...just to name a few.
In December we celebrated Syfah turning 13!  Which means we now have 6 teenagers!  17,16,15,14.13 and 13!  We are blessed by the "young man" that Syfah is.  Syfah is loved by ALL, he does not lack confidence, and is very social.  We love Syfah to pieces-he is sensitive, he is a great friend to many and a great son!! Syfah has also been the one that  has challenged us and made us question our parenting skills...I do not mean questioning being his parent, I  mean questioning my skills...Syfah has given me grace many times- as it has felt at times as though we are the "bearer of rules and consequences"...Is that what parents do best?   We are starting to see and appreciate his personality-differently....that has been a good!    We are letting Syfah be Syfah ....within reason  :)  Thankful for Syfah and the growth in him!  I am also so, so thankful for great teachers, friends and grandparents who have "partnered" with us to parent our kids!    

Syfah's 13th Birthday!

Another fun event in December was the Christmas Dance at School. Troy and I were asked to chaperone and it was loads of fun!

Morgan, friend Roselyn, Shelby and Seble!

One of the snow days the girls and I made cookies!  Many, many cookies...I had forgotten that last year when I rewrote the recipe for Peanut Blossoms, I had wrote it down doubled as I thought it seemed like it was a small batch...well, I forgot about that and then I tripled the already doubled recipe...needless to say as I added the 6th cup of peanut butter I realized something seemed odd.  Troy had to help mix and we baked the same kind of cookies for about 5 hours...no kidding! 

Araya=Awesome!

Many of you may recall that about three months after Araya arrived from Ethiopia, one of the first things that needed attention was his ears.  They had been chronically infected, full of scar tissue and an ear drum that was ruptured, which required treatment.  Araya's hearing was very poor in one ear and not the best in the the other....so we did a major ear repair in the Fall of 2008...we were able to get out of the hearing aids, which was a huge deal for Araya.  Anyways, we had been really pleased, then we had a change.  Araya's hearing was slowly decreasing again.  We really were not sure what was going on, so, his dr. (whom we think is great) thought that we needed to do some exploring.  It had been a huge challenge for Araya to wear hearing aids in the first place, and the thought of going back to them was not something that he was real excited about... Yesterday Araya and I arrived at the hospital at 7:15 a.m...He was once again a trooper.  He had been in surgery about 2 1/2 hours and I was getting a little nervous.  I was just going to go and ask about him...his doctor came out...Yeah!  Well, we went into the surgery hoping that we could find something to fix, but also hoping it would be an easy fix.  This is what the ENT found.  Araya had a little growth in the ear, it appeared as though it was pushing on one of the inner ear bones, and those bones were already fragile, due to past infections.  It had started to erode the bone, so the bone was removed and replaced with a new bone!  Araya also needed to have some skin removed from behind his ear and placed in the ear for some new tissue growth...it is amazing!
The incus, malleus, and stapes are the bones of the middle ear. They are the smallest bones in the human body. The three bones are connected by hinges and are levers that carry the vibrations collected from the eardrum to the inner ear. The mechanical advantage gained in this system increases the volume of the sound 5 decibles, or about 7 times.  The stapes was the bone that was removed and replaced, we are so hopeful that this will be the answer to the hearing loss.

I will say that Araya handled this so well, his head/ear are wrapped to protect the ear, he tells me about every 3 hours that it hurts...I give him some good drugs and he sleeps for an hour, then he has about 2 more hours of no/little pain, then we start the cycle again.  Araya will be out of school for the week, his sister Morgan took great care of him today!  For now I am enjoying sitting next to Araya reading some of his homework to him.  Thankful to be his mom!

Boys and Forts!

I remember back in the day when it was so fun to play in the snow and build a fort! A couple of weeks ago Troy and I were completely entertained while peeking out the window at these two boys of ours! While they initially did not know we were watching, we were soon "caught", then the posing began! Nothing like making a place to call your own~ even if only for a couple hours!

Mall of America

 On Monday we left at 9:00 for a trip to the Mall of America!  Corbin will be 14 on Monday and she had wanted to bring a couple of friends to celebrate and we didn't have school.  Well, the other girls wanted to go also, so I picked up Corbins friends, my mom joined us..so off we went ...two car loads full!  We had a great day!  Rainforest Cafe, shopping, ice cream and lot's of laughs!

First Deer!

Syfah and Araya took Gun Training in October- I was really not ready for this, but, Troy thought is was as good of time as ever!  I just haven't been able to grasp the fact that they are old enough!

Well Syfah proved me wrong, while he was sitting in his stand with my Dad tonight he had the perfect shot and went for it! SCORE~6 POINTER.

Araya had a shot at one today and missed, but tomorrow is another day!

Venison, her we come!  (not my favorite)

Syfah's First Deer!

Syfah and Araya

                                                

One Republic and Maroon 5

Last Thursday Morgan, Shelby, Seble and a friend from CCS has BIG plans to go to the "One Republic and Maroon 5," concert.  They are both great  bands, and I even like them! I was planning to let Morgan drive to the concert.  I got nervous.... Morgan has not done a lot of "city" driving, although I think she is a good driver, I was worried about construction and mostly "weirdo's downtown.  I decided to bring the girls!
My good friend Julie offered to go with me, so off we went.  I gave the girls the rules.
1)Don't talk to strangers and if you do don't tell them anything personal..name, school, age...etc.
2)Don't put your purse on the floor or in the seat unattended...Shelby then said, "should we put it around our ankle?"  Sure, I said!
3) Don't go to the bathroom alone!
 I asked Julie if she had anything to add.."nope, I think you covered it!"  .
So we dropped the "giddy" girls off. 

Julie and I went to Rosedale...Concert starts at 7:30..Mall closes at 9:00.  We had dinner, started to shop.......mall closed...attempted a movie...nothing worth seeing...went to Borders Books for a while...chatted in the car for a while..(girls can chat anywhere)..Not much to do in the cities after 9:00...Surprising I know..but really not into the night life ya know...    :)
Anyways, picked up the girls, heard all the stories...drunks, weirdo's offering to buy them beer..etc...I am thankful that I have girls that share this "stuff" with me....frightening though!
I think Julie and I could of been easily entertained by "watching" all the people downtown...gives ya a new sense of what "fashion" is all about.
Anyways, the girls had a blast!  I am glad that Julie offered to go with me,  we were up way past our bed time but it was fun...Thanks Julie! 
Also super glad that we decided to drop the girls off and pick them up at the door!!

Volleyball

On Friday night and Saturday we headed over to St. Croix, WI for the end of the year tournaments for volleyball.  We went in ranked #2 and ended up with a 4th place finish....not quite what we expected, but a great season anyway. 
This was Seble's first year playing volleyball, she enjoyed it and is excited for next year!  Shelby had a great season and is the setter for the team...she actually runs around like a crazy person on the court, getting her hands on the ball at every play!  Shelby was also voted "All Tourney" for the tournament, which is quite an honor for a 10th grader!  Morgan finished out her senior year strong, she also enjoyed being one of two Captains on the team!
The best part of the entire season was having all three girls on the same team!

My Girls!!

Mustering Up Motivation!!

I am getting ready....yep, Monday is the day....gotta get back at it....been taking a break far too long....yup, for sure....is is bad to pray that God will give me the desire and motivation I need to get back to exercising?  I really want to love to exercise....I really want to get addicted...I am worried that is isn't going to ever happen!!!!!!  Seriously, have to start back at it!  The only reason I am even posting this is...accountability!!!

Strange but true!!
Can't wait for Monday...can't wait for Monday...can't wait for Monday....can't wait for Monday!!

Apple Orchard Anyone?

Today, I awoke to the phone ringing..."Hi, Jody, It's Dad, It's Saturday!  Do you all want to go to the Apple Orchard?"  Well, times are changing at this house...Morgan had to work, the other kids wanted to sleep in and "relax" today....so, Troy and I went with my parents!  Just the four of us!  It was really a beautiful day, we went Caribou, followed by a beautiful drive to two Apple Orchards, Pine Tree in White Bear Lake and Aamodt's in Stillwater!  We ate doughnuts, kettle corn, bought pies and Apples!  We then went out for lunch followed by malts at a Malt Shoppe in Stillwater...fyi we shared!  Had lot's of fun! 
Another highlight of the day...we came home to a very clean house.."Thanks kids- you are awesome!"
A great day!

Hayride, Bonfire and Volleyball!

On Saturday night we had the 9-12th graders over from the Christian School! It was a beautiful night, the kids played sand volleyball, cranked up the tunes, went on a hayride and cooked hot dogs and s'mores over the fire! We couldn't of asked for a better night! Makes me wonder why we don't do this sort of thing more often! The kids were great, which makes it even better!

Oops........

This morning when I was in the bathroom I heard a little "chirping" noise...I asked the girls if they heard it they said they thought it was the chair squeaking or the boys doing something.  For a second I thought..is it the carbon monoxide detector? The girls thought it wasn't that, as we had the radio on, the computer, someone was blow drying their hair etc...Well, about an hour after I got to work Morgan called and said that the carbon monoxide detector was beeping about every 2 minutes.  I called Troy, called her back and I told her that I was going to call the gas company.  They told me to tell her to open the windows and go outside..which I had already told her to do...so...she waited and waited...about 2 hours outside, she could not leave, they said if someone isn't home when they arrive they call the sheriff and enter.  So, she pulled out the lawn chair and brought out her Literature book and read..for 2 hours, entering once to get some warmer clothes on.
When the gas company came, they went in together.....guess what?  It was not the carbon monoxide detector it was the fire alarm batteries.....Oops!  When she called me to tell me, she said, "how embarrassing!"   Well, our detectors are next to each other and neither one of them was acting like it was a battery issue...anyways, the nice guy checked out the furnace, water heater...etc...then said, "do you have any extra batteries?"   He replaced the batteries and away he went!  "Thanks Mr. gas man!"

Concert

Me and Morgan



Addison Road and Girls



Leading man of Tenth Avenune North



amazing guitar player..switched out guitar about 10 times!



Last night we were able to attend a concert at Northwestern College.  There was 6 of us that attended a fun-filled night of worship.  We left Cambridge at 2:15, stopped for Chinese food, then went to N.W. for a time of question and answer with the bands....that was fun!  The concert started at 6:00, it started with a bang, with Matt Maher, then cute little Addison Road-she was a delight to watch, followed by Tenth Avenue North- boy can they entertain!  It was so fun to have a night out with Morgan and her three friends and one of the other moms.  I loved to stand next to these girls with their arms held high in worship...a wonderful night.  One of the highlights was the conversations on the way home....4 girls that appear to have crushes on various band members....Morgan said, "how far is Nashville?"  I won't mention any of the girls names but I also heard one say.."I wonder if they need someone to do their sweaty laundry?" Anyways....A wonderful  night with great girls!  Thanks Mich, Sheila, Megan, Ellie and Morgan..let's do it again!

Waiting to get T's signed

band member of Tenth Avenue North

Frogs

We have a new obsession at our house!  It's watching the frogs on the front door every night.  I know what you are thinking....and yes, we do have better things to do...but, it is really quite a sight. We have watched these frogs for a couple of years now... I really don't even like frogs, but, these have grown on me..I don't think I would even touch them.  Anyways, just wanted to share my frogs.  Maybe everyone has these on the front door of their house?  I am left to wonder when the frogs will go to bed for the winter...anyone have an aquarium I can borrow?  Just kidding!

Sitting on the door ledge..every night!

An escapee..didn't like the camera!

The worst part about these frogs on my front door is the "frog poo" that I have to clean off the window the next day..that is quite a sight too!

Seven Girls

If you have ever thought about older child adoption, this is worth reading.  It is a glimpse of what is happening in Ethiopia- It is a brief story about 7 girls that are now too old to find forever families!  They were moved to a "boarding school,"  this week...so glad that they have each other, but, so sad for them. AAI is the adoption agency that we used to adopt our kids. I believe that they do everything they can and more for the kids in their care...just struggling with the fact that we are eliminating these kids from finding forever families because of their age.
http://aainews.blogspot.com/search/label/Layla%20Girls%20at%20School

Whirlwind of a week

Last week was a crazy one..I actually think maybe it was one of the busiest we have ever had!
We had 6 volleyball games and 7 soccer games!  We have two girls on Varsity Volleyball, 1 on JV and 1 on JH.  We have 1 boy on the 5-6th soccer team and 1 on the 7-8th grade soccer team..we traveled from Foreston, to Farmington and then to Corcoran this week!   
We also started out with our Wednesday night programs at church. Wednesday we had 85, 6-8th graders..We love Junior High! I get to work with the 6th grade girls and Troy is working with the 7th grade boys!
I also had the first "beginning sewing class" at CCS, only 17 more to go!! 
One of the "highlights" of my week was meeting 3 High School girlfriends for supper and laughs!