Monday, January 21, 2008
Sunday, January 20, 2008
A little background of sweet little McKay
Today I stayed home from church because McKay is still trying to get over that cold. He's doing fine, I just don't want it to get worse. I didn't mind staying home one bit because i don't want Tyler to get sick. My older three kids got RSV at one point or another, and I would hate for Tyler to get it. Today I have done a lot of thinking. Mostly about McKay.
Here's a little history about McKay
He was born on Aug. 7th 2000
~ We found out there was going to be a problem at the beginning of the third trimester. My Doctor- Dr. Coppin Had a feeling to do another ultrasound. So he did it and during it he found a black spot in the brain. He said to us "I don't want to speculate so I'm going to send you to a specialist named Dr. Oshiro at McKay Dee Hospital.
~ Dr. Oshiro then did an in depth ultrasound and said that our child's problem could be something as little as not being able to multiply three digit numbers or it could be to the other extreme which would be severely handicap. possibly dieing shortly after birth.
~ We had just moved to Montpelier and were in the middle of building a house. We drove to ogden a couple times a week for stress tests. McKay didn't move much so there was some concern.
~ To relieve the pressure off his head they wanted him to plan a c-section a month early.
~ they prepared us, as well as all the family there to support us, with the news that our child could have either a very large head or a small head. due to the fact that there was fluid on the brain.
~ He was born.... didn't make one sound. He still to this day has never cried. When he turned 3-4 months he started to coo. He coo's quite a bit now. He looked perfect. The doctor couldn't believe it. I lost a lot of blood and had to have a blood transfusion, I was so dizzy and sick. so I didn't get to actually see him for 4 days. I could only see pictures. When the doctor brought me a picture of him, we just couldn't get over how perfect he looked.
~ right after birth he was swept away from us and put on a ventilator. Several days later once he was a little more stable they did a MRI. This is what they said- It was either a blood clot or an arachnoid cyst. The technical terms for it are... Thrombosis of the AVM. Cysticencephelomalasic. So whatever it was in his brain- burst- or thromboses. Taking all the blood and oxygen that the rest of the brain needed to develop. Therefore he has- Hydrocephalus- Which is fluid on the brain- Developmental delay- Developmentally he is on the level of a 0-1 month old. Cortically and central blindness. and has severe hearing loss. He can hear a little but not much. As far as his sight goes- we treat it as though he can see something. From what I understand his eyes may be seeing something, its the brain that might not be processing it. so we just keep pretend and show him things anyway. We never know when something will click.
~ He stayed in the NICU at Primary Children's Hospital for 18 Days. He was doing really well with his breathing and was taken off the vent on day 15. They then sent us home. To let him die at home. They wished us luck and off we went. There was really nothing more they could do for little McKay.
And yet he continued to thrive and capture the attention of others with his blond hair and dazzling blue eyes.
Although he has spent several visits in the hospital he continues to improve and beat the odds!
This picture is interesting! Why? because it's the one and only family picture we took That McKay made some kind of facial expression. It almost looks like he is mad or frustrated. In all the other pictures you see his calm face. We mostly see his calm face when he is comfortable. When he gets this other look on his face you can tell that something is not right. He may be uncomfortable or he could just be thinking- "okay! I'm done with this picture taking stuff. Please can I go home and lay down."
He is so patient with us! Such a sweet boy
And here we are today. I can't believe he's seven. He's beat all odds. Our goal all along this journey has been to make his life as comfortable as possible. and to love him. When we returned to the hospital for a follow up appointment. There were a few doctors and nurses who said the reason they think McKay was still living was because of the love. They said that it was the love McKay was feeling that was keeping him alive. We all understood that if it was God's will he would take this little boy. But for some reason he is to be with us, and he is still with us. And we are so grateful. We love him so much. For not saying a word he teaches us so many things. Are little family needs him so much. He has taught us all so many lessons. I will be forever grateful for that.
So in a nut shell, that was a little history of McKay. I'm off to clean up the kitchen, close down the fort and hopefully soon- dive into bed. Keep smiling!
Here's a little history about McKay
He was born on Aug. 7th 2000~ We found out there was going to be a problem at the beginning of the third trimester. My Doctor- Dr. Coppin Had a feeling to do another ultrasound. So he did it and during it he found a black spot in the brain. He said to us "I don't want to speculate so I'm going to send you to a specialist named Dr. Oshiro at McKay Dee Hospital.
~ Dr. Oshiro then did an in depth ultrasound and said that our child's problem could be something as little as not being able to multiply three digit numbers or it could be to the other extreme which would be severely handicap. possibly dieing shortly after birth.
~ We had just moved to Montpelier and were in the middle of building a house. We drove to ogden a couple times a week for stress tests. McKay didn't move much so there was some concern.
~ To relieve the pressure off his head they wanted him to plan a c-section a month early.
~ they prepared us, as well as all the family there to support us, with the news that our child could have either a very large head or a small head. due to the fact that there was fluid on the brain.
~ He was born.... didn't make one sound. He still to this day has never cried. When he turned 3-4 months he started to coo. He coo's quite a bit now. He looked perfect. The doctor couldn't believe it. I lost a lot of blood and had to have a blood transfusion, I was so dizzy and sick. so I didn't get to actually see him for 4 days. I could only see pictures. When the doctor brought me a picture of him, we just couldn't get over how perfect he looked.
~ right after birth he was swept away from us and put on a ventilator. Several days later once he was a little more stable they did a MRI. This is what they said- It was either a blood clot or an arachnoid cyst. The technical terms for it are... Thrombosis of the AVM. Cysticencephelomalasic. So whatever it was in his brain- burst- or thromboses. Taking all the blood and oxygen that the rest of the brain needed to develop. Therefore he has- Hydrocephalus- Which is fluid on the brain- Developmental delay- Developmentally he is on the level of a 0-1 month old. Cortically and central blindness. and has severe hearing loss. He can hear a little but not much. As far as his sight goes- we treat it as though he can see something. From what I understand his eyes may be seeing something, its the brain that might not be processing it. so we just keep pretend and show him things anyway. We never know when something will click.
~ He stayed in the NICU at Primary Children's Hospital for 18 Days. He was doing really well with his breathing and was taken off the vent on day 15. They then sent us home. To let him die at home. They wished us luck and off we went. There was really nothing more they could do for little McKay.
And yet he continued to thrive and capture the attention of others with his blond hair and dazzling blue eyes.
Although he has spent several visits in the hospital he continues to improve and beat the odds!
This picture is interesting! Why? because it's the one and only family picture we took That McKay made some kind of facial expression. It almost looks like he is mad or frustrated. In all the other pictures you see his calm face. We mostly see his calm face when he is comfortable. When he gets this other look on his face you can tell that something is not right. He may be uncomfortable or he could just be thinking- "okay! I'm done with this picture taking stuff. Please can I go home and lay down."He is so patient with us! Such a sweet boy
And here we are today. I can't believe he's seven. He's beat all odds. Our goal all along this journey has been to make his life as comfortable as possible. and to love him. When we returned to the hospital for a follow up appointment. There were a few doctors and nurses who said the reason they think McKay was still living was because of the love. They said that it was the love McKay was feeling that was keeping him alive. We all understood that if it was God's will he would take this little boy. But for some reason he is to be with us, and he is still with us. And we are so grateful. We love him so much. For not saying a word he teaches us so many things. Are little family needs him so much. He has taught us all so many lessons. I will be forever grateful for that.So in a nut shell, that was a little history of McKay. I'm off to clean up the kitchen, close down the fort and hopefully soon- dive into bed. Keep smiling!
Friday, January 18, 2008
Tag, Your it!!
I Love this guy so much! He Amazes me!
Tag, I'm It!!
My SIL Robin tagged me so here it goes....
What's his name? John Wilford Roe, John boy, John Dear, Cowboy,
How long have you been together? 10 Years!!
How long did you date? about 1 year. We would have been married sooner, but I needed to graduate high school first. (One small detail!)
How old is he? 34
Who eats more? ummm.... let me think about that one... John does! I can eat quite a bit myself, but John can put it down more than anyone I know. I don't know where it all goes? He has a hollow leg maybe!
Who said I love you first? John did. But I was sure thinking it way before he said it.
Who is taller? John
Who is smarter? I would say John. That's why he's getting the PHD and not me! But I'd have to say that there are area's where I'm smarter. but, to be really honest- John's probably the smarter one
Who does laundry? That would be me. but, I have to tell you... If he wakes up in the morning and can see that I'm a little behind in the washing and he has no clean white shirt to wear, he will do a load without saying a word. He doesn't mind doing laundry it's just one of those things I do.
Who does the dishes? most of the time it's me. several months ago when I was pregnant he did them almost every day. Now that I'm back to my old self, I do them. My new thing lately is Matthew is to empty it out every other day, and the whole family takes part in loading the dishwasher after we eat.
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? John
Who pays the bills? I do. But we go over our finances together several times a week.
Who mows the lawn? John (and Matthew)
Who cooks dinner? That is something I like to do. That's one of my favorite things, when the whole family is finally seated and eating together. There are many times when John will cook something up. He's quite the good cook! as of lately, John won't be coming home from the Church office till about 7 or 7:30. He stays there and gets his studying and school work done. that makes for a late family dinner, but it works for us.
Who drives when you are together? John
Who is more stubborn?. Oh I don't know for sure. I think it's a tie!
Who kissed who first? He made the first move, but I was quick to follow!
Who asked out who first? This is a hard one to answer. I was still in High School when we met so the whole situation was a little difficult. We couldn't just go out on a date living in small town Smithfield. BUT, When we finally went to a movie on our first official date- John did the asking
Who proposed? John asked me to marry him in the one and only church parking lot in cove, Utah. He parked the car and turned on a CD of George Strait "The Nerve". He asked me to dance with him and during the song where it says "I get down on my knee, and ask if you'll marry me" (or something like that.... It's been a long time since I've heard it!) He got down on his knee and proposed. That was a fun day!!
Who has more siblings? That would be john. He has 9 siblings. I have 2
Who wears the pants in the family? I believe that would be me. due to the fact that he's not home much! When there are big issues- He does.
Now I'm going to tag.... my SIL's Michelle and Megan. Heidi, Joanna, Mindy, Rakae, Erica, Ashley, Alana, Koriann, Kelli, Laurie and Vanessa :) I know that's a bunch, but do it anyway!!
McKay's surgery canceled
January 18, 2008
I'm a little frustrated because my computer won't read my camera. We can't figure it out, but hopefully we'll get that fixed soon. This has been an interesting week though. On Wednesday McKay was going to have a little surgery. In December of 2006 McKay had surgery on his hips. They were both out of the socket real bad and the doctor said that it's quite painful if we don't fix it. So he went in for surgery... the doctor put them back in place and he was in a spika cast, from waist down to his toes. Not very convenient and very messy. The day that we went in to get the cast off they did another X-ray to see how they healed up. they saw that the left one was still not in properly. So they did a second surgery on it in January of 2007. As I look back this was the worse time ever. I was pregnant with Tyler and so sick. I was also not able to pick McKay up. He weighed about 55 pounds alone, but with the cast on he weighed a ton! So with friends, family, the Relief Society's help I got through it. I again want to thank all who helped us through all that. You truly saved me!
This Surgery that was to be on Wed. was to remove the pins from his hips. I can't believe it's been over a year, but the doctor's say that it's not harming him to have them in still. So the reason I canceled was because he woke up on Monday sick. Tuesday same thing. the funny thing is the second I canceled it McKay wasn't sick anymore! I couldn't figure it out. I asked my mom if I should call and say never mind we can do it, he's fine. She calmed me down and said you never know... maybe there's a reason. just reschedule and hope he's really healthy then. Wednesday morning he was doing so good We sent him on the bus to school. the same with Thursday! The little stinker.... I think he knew he had gotten out of surgery! I think He knows more than we give him credit for! Next time we're keeping it secret from him! Now it's Thursday.... and McKay is home sick. Early this morning he was running a little fever and struggling. When he coos you can tell that his little voice is raspy. He's sleeping comfortably at the moment. So it's nothing major... It's just not fun having sick kids. No mother enjoys sick kids! but on the positive note- I do like the little break that it offers. when whatever is on the calender just doesn't matter as much. You can justify the fact that it's 12:00 and the kids and I are still in our pj'S! I may have to go shower here in a minute because I still might take Tyler to his 4 month app. that should have been 3 weeks ago! We'll see how the day goes!
I'm a little frustrated because my computer won't read my camera. We can't figure it out, but hopefully we'll get that fixed soon. This has been an interesting week though. On Wednesday McKay was going to have a little surgery. In December of 2006 McKay had surgery on his hips. They were both out of the socket real bad and the doctor said that it's quite painful if we don't fix it. So he went in for surgery... the doctor put them back in place and he was in a spika cast, from waist down to his toes. Not very convenient and very messy. The day that we went in to get the cast off they did another X-ray to see how they healed up. they saw that the left one was still not in properly. So they did a second surgery on it in January of 2007. As I look back this was the worse time ever. I was pregnant with Tyler and so sick. I was also not able to pick McKay up. He weighed about 55 pounds alone, but with the cast on he weighed a ton! So with friends, family, the Relief Society's help I got through it. I again want to thank all who helped us through all that. You truly saved me!
This Surgery that was to be on Wed. was to remove the pins from his hips. I can't believe it's been over a year, but the doctor's say that it's not harming him to have them in still. So the reason I canceled was because he woke up on Monday sick. Tuesday same thing. the funny thing is the second I canceled it McKay wasn't sick anymore! I couldn't figure it out. I asked my mom if I should call and say never mind we can do it, he's fine. She calmed me down and said you never know... maybe there's a reason. just reschedule and hope he's really healthy then. Wednesday morning he was doing so good We sent him on the bus to school. the same with Thursday! The little stinker.... I think he knew he had gotten out of surgery! I think He knows more than we give him credit for! Next time we're keeping it secret from him! Now it's Thursday.... and McKay is home sick. Early this morning he was running a little fever and struggling. When he coos you can tell that his little voice is raspy. He's sleeping comfortably at the moment. So it's nothing major... It's just not fun having sick kids. No mother enjoys sick kids! but on the positive note- I do like the little break that it offers. when whatever is on the calender just doesn't matter as much. You can justify the fact that it's 12:00 and the kids and I are still in our pj'S! I may have to go shower here in a minute because I still might take Tyler to his 4 month app. that should have been 3 weeks ago! We'll see how the day goes!
Saturday, January 5, 2008
New Years Eve 2007
The Lows and the Roes bringing in the New Year!!!!
Along with Joel Stewart! It was a party!
Along with Joel Stewart! It was a party!
Matthew's first piano recital
Matthew played a version of Jingle Bells and sang as well. It was pretty awesome!!!
Jim's Birthday Party
Hanging out in Jim's kitchen
All the cousins
Blowing out the candles. 32 years old!
All the cousins
Blowing out the candles. 32 years old!
Friday, January 4, 2008
December Adventures
We want to thank everyone for your love and concern for Mckay. He his home from the hospital and doing well. He actually came home after four days in the hospital and has had a slight increase in seizure activity. We are trying new medication to help him.
December 15th
Hannah had a princess birthday party for her 4th birthday. Her birthday is actually on the 26th but we had plans to be at her Grandma's over the holiday break. So we had her friend party a couple weeks before Christmas.
.
Hannah with all of her friends who came dressed as their favorite princesses. Each one of these girls trully thought they were princesses. Hannah loves to dress up like a princess and was so excited to see all of her friends dressed up. She decided long before that she wanted to be Aurora and made sure that her dress was pink!
This is Hannah getting ready to blow out her candle on her donut. She thought this was pretty cool!
She had a great time! Some of their activities were pin the crown on the princess, string fruit loops for a neclace, and dance around the room waving their wands singing bibbity bobbity boo! It was fun! Thanks to all the Mom's that stayed and helped out.
December 21st
Our good friends the Hucks and Herberts came to visit
We all went out to eat at Chuckarama! They gave us our own room because we were such a reverent, calm, peacefull group! John and Brett really enjoyed the steak, and JD had a few bites of it as well! The kids loved the icecream and anything else with sugar. It was a great time!!!
Dallin Hucks and Matthew were both holding their little brothers. It was pretty cute so we had to get a picture.
December 24th CHRISTMAS EVE PARTY
Every other year we spend Christmas with Grandma Linnea. Santa always shows up at our Christmas Eve party some time around 6:00 p.m. every year! We each sat on his lap except Hannah. However, when Santa came close to us to give Hannah her treat she somehow found a little smile and quickly waved through her tears. It was pretty cute!!! She tried so hard to be happy for Santa! Matthew and Hannah were so excited to spend Christmas at Grandma's this year they started packing one week in advance and were counting down the entire month! Matthew played the piano and sang a cute rendition of jingle bells at the party and Hannah joined in with Grandma and sang her own rendition of bippity bobbity boo and we all sang a few songs.
December 25th
Hannah and Matthew playing with their favorite gifts!
December 26th
Hannah loved this birthday present from Uncle Riley and Carly. She was so excited!!!
Later that night we all decided to run around the house in our bear feet. Some kind of polar bear challenge. CRAZY!!!
Getting ready for the run.
Grandma Leah started feeling the groove and began dancing. This will be a great memory for those of us who were able to watch our 86 year old grandma cutting the rug!!! She actually calls herself the recycled teenager.
December 15th
Hannah had a princess birthday party for her 4th birthday. Her birthday is actually on the 26th but we had plans to be at her Grandma's over the holiday break. So we had her friend party a couple weeks before Christmas.
.
Hannah with all of her friends who came dressed as their favorite princesses. Each one of these girls trully thought they were princesses. Hannah loves to dress up like a princess and was so excited to see all of her friends dressed up. She decided long before that she wanted to be Aurora and made sure that her dress was pink!
This is Hannah getting ready to blow out her candle on her donut. She thought this was pretty cool!
She had a great time! Some of their activities were pin the crown on the princess, string fruit loops for a neclace, and dance around the room waving their wands singing bibbity bobbity boo! It was fun! Thanks to all the Mom's that stayed and helped out.
December 21st
Our good friends the Hucks and Herberts came to visit
We all went out to eat at Chuckarama! They gave us our own room because we were such a reverent, calm, peacefull group! John and Brett really enjoyed the steak, and JD had a few bites of it as well! The kids loved the icecream and anything else with sugar. It was a great time!!!
Dallin Hucks and Matthew were both holding their little brothers. It was pretty cute so we had to get a picture.
December 24th CHRISTMAS EVE PARTY
Every other year we spend Christmas with Grandma Linnea. Santa always shows up at our Christmas Eve party some time around 6:00 p.m. every year! We each sat on his lap except Hannah. However, when Santa came close to us to give Hannah her treat she somehow found a little smile and quickly waved through her tears. It was pretty cute!!! She tried so hard to be happy for Santa! Matthew and Hannah were so excited to spend Christmas at Grandma's this year they started packing one week in advance and were counting down the entire month! Matthew played the piano and sang a cute rendition of jingle bells at the party and Hannah joined in with Grandma and sang her own rendition of bippity bobbity boo and we all sang a few songs.
December 25th
Hannah and Matthew playing with their favorite gifts!
December 26th
Hannah loved this birthday present from Uncle Riley and Carly. She was so excited!!!
Later that night we all decided to run around the house in our bear feet. Some kind of polar bear challenge. CRAZY!!!
Getting ready for the run.
Grandma Leah started feeling the groove and began dancing. This will be a great memory for those of us who were able to watch our 86 year old grandma cutting the rug!!! She actually calls herself the recycled teenager.
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