Lot of Treats...No Tricks....Well just one:-(

The kids enjoyed a night of Trick or Treating on Tuesday. It was very cold and windy, but they didn't mind. Hayden would yell "Trick or Treat" before he even got to the doors and once they opened the door for some reason he thought he was suppose to enter every house. He would then root through their candy dish. Let's just say Hayden's manners were NOT up to par. I think he was over excited and he wanted to do everything by himself. He only fell about 5 times.....that's pretty good for a visually impaired kid walking in the dark, huh?! Jaxon was especially good (I guess Jax and Hayd wanted to switch roles that night). He would say "trick or treat" the whole time we were walking but then would not say it to the person giving him candy. He did say "Thank you" very sweet though. Maddie, well she just wanted to get to as many houses as possible. She even used her sweet little smile to get a regular sized candy bar from someone. That's my girl!

Sharpay(from High School Musical), A New York Yankee, & A Little Fireman

Of course we had to stop at Nana & Papaw's for some treats!

Cousin Kayla came to join in the fun!

Wow! Do you think they got enough candy??

Jaxon enjoying a chocolate bar

Lots of good CHOCOLATE.....for Mommy!!

The trick was that some kids stole two of the kids painted pumpkin masterpieces that we did last week and smashed them down the street :-(( That's the only thing I don't like about Halloween. Darn kids!! Maddie was very sad.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

P.S. Did you check out the miracle at MckMama's Blog? How sweet is that precious MckMuffin?

Baby Stellan

I know some of you follow MckMama's blog too. Baby Stellan is going to be born this morning. Please pray that his little heart is well and that all is perfect with this precious new life. Happy Birthday Stellan....we are praying for you!!!!!

Not Me Monday

I did not stalk MckMama's blog last Monday so I could try to be in the top ten of the Not Me Monday Blogger's. I did not get to be #10 and then realize I didn't link my site right. So I had to re-enter and ended up being #14. I so DO NOT want to be #1 one day!!

I did not laugh during my son's ultrasound last week because he ripped one while the tech was scanning him. (The tech laughed too)

I did not suffer two and a half weeks with a sore throat and then finally go to the doctor because I finally had time too. The doctor did not instruct me, "Next time, don't wait two and a half weeks to come." I am not on an antibiotic and a steroid now.

I did not pat myself on the back when I hit the jackpot at the grocery store and bought tons off the 1/2 price dented can shelf.

I did not yell at Jaxon and put him in his crib for 30 minutes because he took the body wash out of the bathroom and squirt it all over the up stairs, in our bedroom, of course.

I did not find the boys playing under the table with blankets and a pile of diapers I JUST put away.

Lastly, I certainly DID NOT have a total blast with my daughter and my friend Andrea and her daughter Friday night at the opening night of High School Musical 3. The girls did not dress up like Sharpay and act goofy. I am a total nerd.....the movie was great! After the movie we did not pig out at Damon's and then go home and go to bed!

Check out MckMama's blog for some other "Not Me Monday!" posts!!

*Another post below*

Last weekend the kids and I enjoyed a Halloween Parade and a trip to the Pumpkin Patch with my Mom, Sister & my niece Kayla. We all had so much fun. The kids behaved very well....surprisingly. We then had a pizza party and painted our pumpkins. I love FALL!!! Mama & Hayd

Me & Kayla

The girls being silly Hayden started dancing when he heard the band start to play

Using a little of my photo editting skills Jax wasn't fond of the scary masks Yes.....that would be Santa......already!

So many pictures from the pumpkin patch I HAD to make a video. You will have to pause the music below to hear the music in the video. Enjoy.....

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

God is Good!

Hayden's scan was clear!! No sign of tumors...Praise God! For those of you that are new to our story. Hayden has a 50-60% chance of developing Wilm's Tumor on his kidneys because of his genetic disorder. He has to have kidney ultrasound every three months to check for these. Visit Hayden's website for more info, www.caringbridge.org/visit/hayden. A lot of people say. "I don't see how you do that every three months. I would be a mess." Well I might put up a good front, but a few days before the ultrasound my anxiety takes over. I am moody, emotional, & I call no one because I just don't want to talk. I clean and organize my house, just in case. I am superstitious......before Hayden's first surgery on his eyes at eight weeks of age I did this. I had to have the house perfect in case our worst fear came true...something went majorly wrong and we had to have family or friends here with the other kids. If this did happen I wanted the person caring for Maddie and Jaxon not to be burdened and for it to be as easy as possible for them to care for the kids. Everyone tells me I'm crazy and it wouldn't matter, but I would worry about it. That's just how I am. I know you think I'm nuts and maybe I am, but it is working for me......Hayden's appointments have been good and I am sticking to MY WAY! We hear a lot, "You guys are stronger than I would be", no we are really not. When you are told there is something wrong with your new baby of course you ask "why?" and you are absolutely devestated, but when you are put into this kind of situation your instincts just take over and you just do what you have to do. It took me a little while to get there though. I remember coming home from the hospital with Hayden hoping everything would just disappear. Hoping and praying we could live a "normal" life with our baby boy. We came home on a Friday and we had an appointment scheduled to see an eye doctor that Monday. After we were home a few hours that doctor called and told us he didn't feel he was experienced enough to provide Hayden the best care and referred us to a doctor at The Children's Hospital in Philadelphia. He also mentioned that he thought Hayden had something called WAGR Syndrome. He went on to say there were only 300 cases in the world of this. My husband said to him, "You mean 300 in our state, or the US?" He said, "No...the WORLD" We immediately started researching on the internet. I know they tell you not to do that, but how can you not. Brian found an organization all about WAGR Syndrome and a lady named Kelly who's daughter had WAGR. He phoned her...she wasn't home, she was on vacation. He left a message and a few hours later Kelly called back. I answered and immediately started crying telling her I couldn't talk to her and that she would have to talk to Brian. Little did we know Kelly and this Organization would totally change our lives. When you have a child with special needs you will do everything in your power to provide the best care medically and educationally to help them live a normal life. With help from the IWSA we are doing that. And I hope by being an officer now for the IWSA I am helping to make the next family life who's child is diagnosed a little bit easier. Okay, that got a little longer then I thought it would, but moral of the story. You can do anything when a situation that looks bleak is thrown in front of you out of the blue. You don't think....you just do!!!

Here is Hayden DOING what he HAS to DO, getting his ultrasound......

Thumbs up!!!! Getting the ALL CLEAR from the doctor! Mommy with thumbs up and relief!!!! (Hayden took this pic by the way....pretty good huh?!) Two of my favorite guys! I love this picture! Can you see the relief and joy in our faces? It was a long day but in the end......it doesn't get any better than this!!!!!!!

Not Me Monday & A Prayer

Another addition of "Not Me! Monday" Check out MckMama's blog for her lastest post and to read other "Not Me! Monday" bloggers. My Not Me's for the week.... I did not pray for five o'clock to come last Monday so I could go to work and get a break from the kids. I did not rush to get the kids to bed Thursday night so I could watch Grey's Anatomy with my friend Andrea. While at the store, I did not wipe Jaxon's nose with his shirt because I didn't have a tissue.....that would be gross! I did not tell Hayden to crawl in bed with me a 7am Friday morning because I didn't feel like getting up yet, even though I had a lot to do. I have been getting this really good, fresh salsa at the store and I am addicted to it. So, I did not eat two containers of it and only share a small portion with my hubby last week. I did not make my daughter give me $10 towards a Halloween costume she wanted online because I thought the price was ridiculous. And last but not least I most certainly DID NOT steal candy from the kids that they got at the Halloween parade on Saturday and tell them, "I'm not sure where it is!!" __________________________________________________________________ Please say a prayer for Hayden today. He has his three month kidney ultrasound to check for Wilm's Tumor. Pray for clean kidneys!!! I'll update when we get back!

Pumpkin Cookies, Pumpkin Cookies....Yum, Yum, Yum!!!

Pumpkin cookies are a staple in our house this time of year. When I think of fall I think of leaves turning color and falling to the ground, Halloween, & cool crisp mornings with a cup of coffee and a dozen two pumpkin cookies. I got the recipe a few years ago from my friend Jen's mom and have been making them ever since. I put them in gift baskets for teachers, family, and friends and everyone loves them.

The boys helped me make the last batch

Jaxon sneaking a butterscotch chip

I didn't eat anything mom....seriously!

Still not eating anything.......

After about 11 minutes........lots of pumpkin yumminess!!!