Grace

Tonight for FHE we talked about Grace.

This topic has been on my heart for the past few days. After Mike and I had our date night which we watched the movie, Grace Card, and read in our scriptures about Grace I started feeling an indescribable emotion in my heart.

But it wasn't until Sunday during ward conference that my mind really started to take it all in.

Our bishop spoke on Grace and the meaning of what it meant to him. He told of a story of when he started running again; him and his friend trained for a marathon together. And even though his friend was faster, better trained, and more experienced his friend was right by his side encouraging him to continue on. He never left his side. And they finished the race together.

His story really helped build me up on what lesson I needed to learn. But the topper to my cake was when I looked up at our family rules. We have a board in our family room just like this one that I seen on Pinterest



And Rule #3 " Show the same Grace to others that God showed you"

I thought I understood this one. To be show love and kindness to those around me. But after these past few days I realize that I had NO CLUE what it meant.

In the movie Grace Card a man talks about how his great great grandfather was a slave. And when he was child the slave owner lined up all his slaves and freed them even before the war ended. And before anyone left he asked each one for forgiveness. Forgiveness for all the wrongs that he had committed towards them but he also asked them to forgive those who had trespassed against them and won't ask for forgiveness.
The great great grandfather, Wendell P. Wright, wrote a note to himself that said

" I promise to pray for you every day, ask your forgiveness, grant you the same, and be your friend always"

In scriptures it reads that, " But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain....." 1 Corinthians 15:10

So I talked with the kids that when either we or some we know makes mistakes, acts in a way that God would disapprove of, or turns their backs away from God......right when that person says "Please Lord help me" God is there right by your side.

I gave the example from the Bishop as well as the experience that Mason and Lily had earlier. The kids had to clean up their rooms and Lily was throwing some things around and ended up hitting Mason in the head. He came out and as he told me what had happened. I empathized with him that I understood that it frustrated him but then I heard the words come out of my mouth before I even realized what I was saying to "Show Lily God's Grace" He looked at me in a confused way so I took a second to explain that she had asked for help before anything hit him. He agreed, so I continued on saying that since even though she might not deserve his help he should still be there for her since she asked.

The kids just sat quietly so I took that moment to share my testimony that I had no idea what Grace meant. And some might not agree on how I view it or what it actually means. But through inspiration I know it's not wrong for my personal growth. I shared that in the Bible Dictionary it reads "Grace: .......divine means of help or strength given through the bounteous mercy and love of Jesus Christ".

So with God's help I can show his love and mercy to not only those that are around me but also those that aren't around me. Those who have done wrong towards me, who have hurt my feelings, or really don't know me very well that I can live my life with the power of forgiveness. That I can tell that person that

" I promise to pray for you every day, ask your forgiveness, grant you the same, and be your friend always"


I know this might of been a tad too deep for them but I needed to share this with everyone. I need to get this off my chest and out into the universe.

I asked Mike if he wanted to add anything to it; he thought for a moment and said No. So I guess the spirit was present and all was said that was needed.

I know that there is alot I need to learn. I am only scratching the surface on where to begin. But my first order of business is to forgive, love, and show grace towards others.

Getting the test

After much thinking and praying we're getting Cati tested for her Celiac. I'm sure that she has it but the reason for the test is because of what I've read while doing some research.

There's 2 types of Celiac. The one where you can't eat gluten. But the one I feel that Ducati has is called DH Celiac.
According to this website DH means Dermatitis Herpetiformis. It's a type of Celiac that effects the skin. It causes intense itching, a burning sensation, and forms clusters of small blisters that cause the person to itch their effected spot until it's raw and bleeding.

And it's sad to report but that's exactly what Cati does. 

She'll wake up scratching herself until she bleeds and still needing to scratch some more. So we've done everything we could to keep her gluten free. And for the most part she's pretty good. But with visiting friends, playdates babysitters, and church she's gotten another outbreak. 

So she's on house arrest until it heals. But I called a local family doctor for an appointment for tomorrow. I'm sure that he'll want to rule out some other things before she's diagnosed with Celiac. So we've expected a few co-pays and several more sleepless nights. But if he's able to give her this cream that helps soothe that itching feeling then it's all worth it. 

Another Year

I am now 28! I don't feel 28. But I guess that's what 4 kids can do to you. You never have to grow up when you have little kids in the house.

With my birthday being on a Sunday Mike took the entire weekend off. This was really great! I've missed him that I was really excited to have him home for 5 days! Best gift ever!

But he didn't stop there. He planned a Twilight Date for us on Friday.
We were going to go donate blood at the stake blood drive but when we got there the wait was over 90 minutes so.......we skipped it. (We'll donate another time) So we headed to the theater to see my favorite movie-BREAKING DAWN!

I know we've seen it already. But let me be honest- I can never see Twilight too many times. So this was great. But we were alittle early we grabbed a cold treat. A GF Strawberry Cheesecake Sundae from Coldstone. I love it when restaurants have a GF list. I really enjoyed my night.

But my birthday gift wasn't over yet! When Mason and Hailey came back home on Saturday we all went out for dinner at Winger's. As you an see Cati was really happy to be eating at a place that offers a gluten free menu.

My kids were so cute. They kept singing me ♪Happy Birthday to Mommy♪

And my clever husband hid in his jacket my gift, Zumba 2 for our Wii!

I'm really excited to play this!

But again my birthday wasn't over....when we got home Mike had all our kids help him clean and vacuum our house. Wow- I really enjoyed sitting on the couch and just watching this amazing site.

In the evening we watched a few Redbox movies. And I fell asleep on the couch watching Mike shake his Zumba bum. He's actually really good at it!

Sunday- we tried to keep it holy. So we still went to church. I was finally set apart in my new calling of a member of the Relief Society Mid-Week activity board. That's a mouthful but still really fun to get to know more ladies in our ward. When we came home my parents came over for a few minutes to give me a cake and a new sewing machine. I am such a nerd! I am really excite to get sewing again. My last one broke a couple of months ago and it's been really hard to not sew all those wonderful things that I've seen on Pinterest.

Anyways Mike was hometeaching while my parents were here. So I was trying to wait for cake until he returned since I knew he wouldn't be very long. But they needed to run so as they left he was able to wave to them as he walked in. Anyways  Mike and our kids sang to me and just stared at the cake as you can see on Hailey's face below.
 
My Hubby and Cati had themselves a gluten free muffin with chocolate frosting. So she didn't mind not having a piece of my cake.

So being 1 year older what does it mean to me? I know it will bring me many new things. I will be more wiser in my life choices. I know I will grow stronger in many areas in my life. I know I will see things more clearly. I know I will learn alot more about myself and those that are in my life. I know that my house will be diaper free by the time my next birthday comes along. I know that I will my husband  more than ever before. I know that I will love myself more.....it's just going to be a great year. So Happy Birthday to me!

New Week

With Mason having a less than great week last week Mike and I did as much as we could to help Mason have a more successful week at school.

Besides being grounded for 1 week- Mike and I talked to him about being kind to others. We've prayed for Mason. We've talked to his teacher about some simple phrases that Mason automatically knows like "Nice hands". He's known this phrase since he was around 3 years old and something about it helps him remember how to behave with his hands.

But I also wanted to do something that would help Mason remember all his good qualities and that would help remind him to show those to others at school. So I made him this little card that he just keeps in his pocket.

 I know it's a bit blurry. Mason has a hard time standing still... but that's OK.

All the card is is some scrapbook paper and I wrapped some packing tape around it to prevent any rips.
But it says:

I am smart
I am kind
I am important
I am special
I am a child of God
and mom loves me


I made it so when times arise that he gets angry, sad, overwhelmed, or just needs something to pick him up again he can look at it. So far it's been a great success. He's told me that he looks at it while in school. Which I thought was really great but the biggest success is when I drive him to school.

Our family is a big believer on affirmations and how positive words can influence someone. So when I drive him to school we go over these statements. I say them and then he repeats the sentence. Yesterday morning while driving to school I asked him to say " I am brave." He looks at me and says," Mom I am brave." (in a confident sort of way) It was so wonderful to hear him say that.

 I've never notice Mason's confidence levels before since I was always with him. But he has some real fears that contribute from having autism and from past experiences. So to hear my son say, "I am important and special" , is an amazing feeling.

But back to Mason's school week. This week he received all G's (Great) in his behavior notebook. So from U's (unsatisfied), to A's (average) to G's that's a big accomplishment. Mike and I are so proud of him. And Mason's really proud of himself too.Which I think is the more important than anyone else's opinion of him since he's learning to validate himself first.

Free Cake

After being prompted to share my talents I put up an ad on KSL that I would decorate someones cake for free. All they would have to do is buy the ingredients. So far I've done 2 separate cake orders. 1 for a small "smash" cake and the other order for 2 smash cakes and a regular sheet cake.

I've had so much fun doing these cakes. It makes me miss my cake business but not all the time restraints.

And the best part is that both families chose this cake. Simple. Cute. And Mickey! So I've pass the info along that I'll do anyone's cake with only a few requests. A few days notice. Not Sundays. Pick up only. And I only work with frosting- No fondant. So we'll see who else calls.

Martin Luther King Jr.

On the morning of Martin Luther King Jr.'s holiday I asked my kids if they knew why they had the day off of school.

The answers I received were:

Christmas Break. Spring Break. My teacher needs a break. 

The last one might be true. So I ask Mason and Hailey if they knew who Martin Luther King Jr. was? They thought he was either one of daddy's friends or someone from the Bible. So this gave me the idea of a great FHE.

I researched so many articles, new clippings, speeches and finally just settled on YouTube.

Mike and I found some videos that helped us really paint the picture of loving thy enemy and standing firm to your beliefs even when fears stands right in front of you.

We had our opening prayer, skipped the song since we were eating dinner during FHE. (late start) Anyways I showed our kids the video of Rosa Parks. Mike explained that during this era people were not treated equally. That people who had darker skin where treated very badly.

I asked if skin color matters to God? Hailey said that some people have light colored skin and some people have dark colored skin but we're all child's of God. Mason added that we all have red blood, a heart, a brain so we're all the same we just have a few things different about us. I was really happy that they knew this.

Back to videos. We showed how Rosa Parks said No to being moved to the back of the bus. That even though she might of been scared or nervous she knew that it's wasn't right on how she was being treated. The kids just sat there and watched the video like sponges.

Next was a video about Irene Sendler. A nurse during the Holocaust who knew it was wrong on what was happening to the Jews so she stood firm to her belief and helped rescue dozens of children and helped hide them. 

Then a video of Gandhi and his march to the sea. The video showed the army coming to arrest Gandhi and his protest followers and they were being hit and pushed by the army. And one protester said to another to do not hit back. Non-violence only. That was powerful to Mason. I could see the wheels in his head turning. 

Mike asked our kids if they could think of a story that showed a person who stood firm to their beliefs. Hailey talked about Moses and how he asked the Pharaoh to set his people free. And how he kept trying and trying to help all those people. 

Mike talked about Joseph Smith and all the cruel treatment he received and how he stood firm to his beliefs and testimony. 

Mason talked about Jesus and when he was being crucified. How Jesus still loves all those army guys even though they helped kill Jesus. 

I was so happy that they were able to share their examples. 

Lily and Cati didn't add much to FHE. They just sort of giggled and wiggled during it. It may not have been a picture perfect FHE but at least we had one.

Anyways I ended with showing the video of "I have a Dream" and explained that since Jesus walked the earth that all these people we've talked about and even more all had the same dream. That we were to be treated equally and with love, respect, and kindness.

The kids seemed to really understand who Martin Luther King Jr. was and what he did for this country. 

After the last YouTube video Mike picked up the movie, "The Help", to help demonstrate how people where not treated fairly and why MLK fought to help people. 

It was a wonderful FHE. Like I said before I really love it when ideas for family home evening just fall into our laps.

Home Make Over

I am a creature of habit. However I do like change. I do like to change things up alittle especially in our home. Being in a small twin home with 6 people- things have to be kept clean, simple and decluttered. If not- this mom will go crazy which leads to some home changes.

So after all holidays and birthdays Mike and I have found our house overflowing with.....things.....EVERYWHERE!

And this started me on search for some ideas on how to declutter, reorganize, and decorate all on a budget.

My first project was the kids bathroom.

The kids/guest bathroom is somewhat on the smaller side. But with 4 kids it needed to work. So it may not be fancy but it was all FREE! ( all reused and recycled items)

Towel rack up top that my hubby installed for me today. It use to be Cati's crib siding that he cut to fit above the storage box.....which was part of a headboard that we no longer needed.

Hotdog tray is filled with headbands, plastic pickle jar (washed of course) filled with hair ties, and a Crystal Light container filled with Q-tips. Each storage compartment is labeled. Cati has her shelf with all her gluten free soaps and lotions. Mason has his shelf with all his boy scented soaps. That kid....he's so funny! He'll use the Strawberry Dora shampoo and doesn't even mind it that he smells like a berry. So I made it a point to add his boy items in there so he doesn't grab one of his sisters items. And the middle shelf- Hailey and Lily are sharing- it has all their gluten, girly, fruity scented soaps and lotions.

I am really excited about this new set up. Tonight's bath time it was really easy. I was able to grab Cati's items, wash, and return. Then grab Lily's items without mixing them up.

Later when I find some paint I'll paint the rack and storage box but for right now...it will due.

So now onto another room in our house.

Sentences

Mason was studying for a spelling test when I suggest that he write out sentences for them to help him understand and remember them. So that's what he did.

I'm not going to be one of those parents that keeps every little paper, drawing, or assignment. But sentence #19 really cracked me up. "I'm quit of homeschool". Besides some grammar issues with his homework this made me laugh so hard that I just dismissed it all and handed it back to Mason. He's so funny.

Q and A with my 6 year old

I love my mom and dad. I was going to type that in. I was.... Mom! My mom is silly.

Q:Tell me about your friends?

A:I have friends at my school. My friend Emmie doesn't play with me anymore. Oliver B kicked me in the face. He had to go to the principal office. It hurt so bad.  Ashley- I really want to go to her house. She is my best, best, best friend. I love Ashley! Me and Anna always play at the sandbox. She will give me a kiss when I hurt myself. I have a whole bunch of friends.

Q: Tell me about your teacher?
A: My teacher she is a wonderful teacher! I love her so much. I tell her her magic words of "Please" and "Thank you".

Q:How do you feel about Mason and seeing him at school?
A: I am happy because when I see Mason at school he gives me a wave, a hug or a kiss. I really don't like it when he's late to recess because I have to go back to my classroom. Mason always, always, always sees me so we play together. But we don't have alot of time. Mason always, always gives me a hug when I get hurt. So when Oliver B kicked me in the face he gave me a hug. Mason  promised me that he would clean my room. But he didn't do it.

Q: How do you feel about church?
A:At church  I always learn about Jesus. I love him so much. Even when I do a bad thing he will always love me. God-he is so wonderful. I love him! I can't stop thinking about him so I always pray. I prayed for something and he answered my prayer.

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
A: When I grow up I want to get married and I will be take my kids to the park with a playground. Or anywhere they want to go if they asked me and if they cleaned their room. Or I will clean their room so we could go to the park.

My mommy is silly again.

My interview with Hailey :-)

Where are we?

A few days of not posting I just wanted to record what's been happening in our house before I forget....

- Hailey has been doing well. School is great. Friends are great. Reading books not so great. I'm noticing that she is having a hard time hearing certain words like..."Sim" not "Sam" or "needs" not" neeedddzzzz". I know that it's all due to her ear so Mike and I are trying our best to keep Lily and Cati quiet while she reads so we can help her. But we go to a doctors appointment today to get her ear molded for her hearing aid.

- Lily and Ducati- they are a bunch of hams! Since Mason is in school they are bored! He would play with them for alittle bit while I did a quick clean of our house. Then we would start lessons in the afternoon. So since he's gone I've become the best playmate :-)  I've earned all the names of the puppets on Sesame Street, built a few forts, and read every book in our kids library. But it's been fun...to an extent. I really want to clean my house without having a mess follow me.

- Mason.....(sigh)...Not so good. He's been aggressive at school. So aggressive that he was sent to the Asst. Principals office. Mike and I did everything we could do to keep our cool while we talked with Mason. We got a note from the teacher and a phone call telling us that's he's hitting, pushing, kicking, arguing, etc....everything that we've taught him not to do- he's doing. So Mike and I we talked without Mason and reflected that this isn't Mason's usual behavior. And realized that he's getting too stimulated. In the morning he goes to a resource class so he has 30 minutes to calm down and regroup before he goes back into his huge classroom. But then comes RECESS.....the most dreaded 30 minutes ever! With his autism this has always been a struggle for him; either at school or home; to play, run, jump, chase and THEN it's time to go in! He doesn't know how to calm himself down. Other kids can click right back to being in classroom mode but he doesn't understand why everyone changed so he keeps going. And I know that with recess he needs an exercise that will calm him down so he can re-enter the classroom. So we didn't punish Mason harshly-but to him being grounded for a week is pretty harsh for him.

This morning Mike, Mason, and I all went in to school and talked with his teacher and gave her some tips and well as him some tips so hopefully the rest of the week will be more successful.

Mike and I- we're doing well. Getting into the new routine of school, carpools, scouts, callings, work, classes, etc. It was a rough start but we are a great team that within a few days we are pretty settled now.

So hopefully my next post will have better news.

Love thy Neighbor

I really love it when a Family Home Evening lesson presents itself. During the past 2 weeks our little circle of the world received 3 new neighbors. So after the last moving trucks left I planned a fun and simple FHE that we all really enjoyed.


We had our opening prayer, sang a song, and read the scripture Mark 12:30-31.


"And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. "


For the Lesson: Mike and I asked our kids to name some ways we show love inside our family. After everyone gave examples like making someone's bed, helping eachother with chores, sharing our snacks with babies that cry,etc. So after everyone had a chance to express their thoughts Mike and I explained that the list of love that we share with each other; we are to show these with our neighbors. We are to be friends with our neighbors. Help them with whatever they need..... might it be helping to fix their car( Mike did this past week), taking their trash cans to the curb, fixing a fence, a baby gift, or if they just need a friend to play with. 


So for our family activity I was inspired by this lady's ideas on Pinterest.....she made these nice tags with some local info like doctors, stores, etc. and attached them to a bag of cookies.

 But I didn't make these fancy tags.  I just used some scrapbook paper and wrote on the tag "Welcome to 50 West" and included our phone number just in case they need help or just want to chat with a neighbor. And made a batch of cookies.


So everyone was excited to spread some love to our new neighbors. Since we only had 3 bags of cookies Hailey agreed to be the official door knocker while the other kids held the cookie bags. Within 5 minutes we knocked, chatted, and met our new neighbors. The funny part was Mike and I trying to remember their names when we got back home. I was successful at remembering all but 1. 


After we had our closing prayer we had ourselves a nice bowl of GF popcorn and juice. (Everyone has been wanting popcorn but I didn't have any in stock so I purposely purchased a box for tonight. We were all very happy!)


I love FHE! :-)

Sugar High

9 weeks! From Halloween to New Years Eve it's 9 weeks. And in those 9 weeks there's 4 holidays, 4 birthdays, 3 parties, a few get-togethers, about 2 dozen  paper plates all filled with SUGAR!!!

Our bodies are all whacked out. Ducati can bleed sugar now. She can probably name 5 different candies before she can name 3 different fruits.

A few of us gained a few pounds ( I won't say who is was....but let's just say we plan on walking everyday after school drop offs). A few of us get withdraws if not enough sugar is eaten in a day ( I won't name the boys on this one). Either way we need to get back on track with our healthier eating.

Being a homemaker on a budget I made alot of food from scratch. Pizza dough, homemade breads, our own pasta sauces. etc. With having 2 gluten free people in the house and 5 picky eaters the only way to get nutritious foods in their bellies is by hiding it. Like Ducati's juice popsicle above.  Everyone in this house gets so excited when they see dixie cups all lined up on the counter. Whole or soy milk, a splash of honey, and some juice and VIOLA! A naturally sweetened popsicle.

So this month it's my goal to get us as a family back on track with a much healthier eating lifestyle. On occasion this mom will make her "Family Favorite Carrot Cake" but it will be a once-a-month thing instead of 4 times a week.

So I welcome the challenge of headaches, mid-day sugar craves, and the constant snack grazing because I will be prepared with fruit salad, carrots with homemade ranch dressing, and tons & tons & tons of popsicles. (Gotta' love a 50 degree winters)
Bon Appetit!

First Day Back

Mason started regular school today. 

I woke him up at 7am. For the past 2 years he's never woke up before 8am but today he was dressed, fed, and packed all by 7:15am. I'm going to guess he was really excited!

In all honesty- he was really excited but also nervous. Last time he was in school he didn't have the best experience. Kids ignored him, a few bullies won't leave him alone, and teacher just let him slide by without caring. No one seemed to understand what autism was and how to help him. So this lead us to homeschooling him

But Mike and I each had the prompting that it was time that he go back. We've had the thought come and go for awhile now that we were to prepare him. But then the feeling would go away. So all I could do was teacher him so he would be caught up academically with his grade level when the time came for him to reenter regular school. (Which he is actually alittle ahead on some things :-).....but who's bragging, right?)

But the time came right before Christmas break. The prompting came to us like a slap on the back that is was time....RIGHT NOW...to sign him up. So I did.  K-12 was out for winter break so no one knew he was withdrawing until today but oh well. I'll deal with them later.

Anyways this morning Mason, Hailey and I went to school 30 minutes early. We re-toured the school so he would know where everything was at. He met his teacher, checked out the classroom before all the kids went in, and just took everything in. Sort of like when a new parent just stares at their baby for the first time. Speechless. Just touching everything softly. Soaking it all up. After about 5 minutes of this Mason ventured back to the teacher and I, where we were talking about teacher stuff, and said he was good now. 

There was still a few minutes before school so I showed him where Hailey's class was. He was pretty excited to know that she was down the hall. Afterwards she stood in class while I walked him to where his class lines up. While there he seen a few kids from church and scouts and made instant friends. He was all smiles when I left that playground. It was really awesome seeing my son laughing and joking with other kids. With kids who knew him and of his autism and didn't care. Pretty awesome mom moment!

Anyways Mason wanted Mike to come at lunchtime to make sure that he was doing OK. Mason said if their were any bullies that Mike could take him back home. I admit that I passed my worry gene down to my son. So at lunch Mike went to his school with his homemade lunch and had lunch with him. They had a great lunch date but most importantly Mason said he was doing great. He hated that he had to wait for lunch since he's use to eating whenever he wanted but other than that- he was great! 

When he came home after school he went right to work doing his homework. It took him about 6 hours to complete it. But that's due to our fault. Mike and I didn't realizes that the homework packet is meant to last a week. So he did a week's worth of homework in 1 night. Oops! Oh well.....he's enjoying all his free time. He'll still need to do his 30 minutes of reading but after that he can kick back and relaxing. Mason said that he plans to do this more often so he can have more free time. Smart kid!

Well in all... I miss him like crazy. Lily and Cati- miss him like crazy. But Mason- he's doing great!

2012 Already

In 2011 our family had alot of experiences. Most really blog worthy and some.....I would just rather forget. But either way it was all in all 1 great year. So now to start off this new year with a BANG!

Mike and I stood up until 12:01am. Had our New Years Kiss then I went to bed. Yup- I am getting old :-(
Well...actually my energy levels are all wacked out due to staying up really late during our birthday season.

But Mike and I did overlook our 2011 resolutions to see how we did...
Mike- have an overnighter with Angie       √ check
          build a custom engine                      incomplete
          go to temple 26 times                     incomplete by only a few
           1-on-1 time with each kid             √ check

his 2012 Resolutions
THE SAME THING! Easy enough :-)

My 2011 Resolutions-
take more photos of my family                √ check
read 1 month a month                             √ check
plan an overnight trip with Mike              √ check
geology                                                  X incomplete

So this years Resolutions
record my family's insights on activities
read 48 books
have $1,000 in savings
stick to my calendar!

My calendar....This will be my little Mommy helper in the year 2012. I am a scatter brain. I forget so many things that my life consists of post it notes which I later lose. I have good intentions of completely dozens of ideas and dates....but then I forget them.

So this calendar is going to be run my life. I wrote which days I will have individual kid dates, Mike dates, Me time, Visiting teaching ideas crafts that I want to make but forget until an hour before my appointment. I holds the gift cards for dates, household duties like changing the air filter or changing the batteries in our smoke detector. So far so good... I know it's only the 3rd....but the fact that I even filled it out 3 months ahead is an accomplishment all in itself. 2012 will be the most fun, fulfilling and cheapest  year we've ever had. It's going to be wonderful ♥

MRI

 MRI Day! I talked with Hailey over and over again how it all works. How she'll fall asleep and then a team of doctors and nurses will take her into a room, where I can't go into but will stay close by, where she'll have her brain and ears photographed. She felt good about it all.......UNTIL she heard a kid down the hall scream bloody murder. Then she was nervous. 

So I tried my best to calm her down. To talk her nerves down by joking how she's such a lucky girl to be wearing her PJ's. :-)

But then 2 nurses came in and then the tears starting coming. She realized that the screams where from kids getting their IV's. So I did the best thing I could do..... cry with her. I held her, talked to her but I still shred a few tears. I think hearing your kid cry is the worse sound in the world. 

But after the nurses left and we had a moment alone she felt alittle better. One nurse came in and let her pick a prize from their treasure box.  She picked a make up set that went well with her new bumble bee accessories.

Not even an IV can stop my daughter from beautifying herself. :-)

So after waiting a couple of hours she was giving the medication that knocked her out. It was so sweet. I held her hand and right before she fell asleep she told me "Momma I love you" and before I could reply with an "I love you" she was asleep. But both the nurse and I were teary eye from her sweet gesture.

After her MRI she slept for an hour, ate a Popsicle and then we were able to come home. The results were sent to her specialist. So we waited :-(

But we got the call from the specialist that she has a small cochlear. 

photo and info from kidshealth.org

She was born with it and there's nothing that caused it. And after a few web searches here's what I learned:

The ear is made up of three parts, and sound for a person who has normal hearing passes through all three on the way to the brain. The outer ear is made up of the outer, visible part of the ear and the ear canal.

When a person is exposed to a sound, the outer ear captures the sound vibration and sends it through the ear canal to the middle ear, which consists of the eardrum and three tiny bones. The sound vibration then causes motion in the three tiny bones, which makes the fluid in the cochlea move. The motion of the fluid stimulates the hair cells, which are thousands of tiny hearing receptors inside the cochlea. The hair cells bend back and forth and send electrical signals to the hearing nerve, and the hearing nerve then carries these signals to the brain, where they're interpreted.

 And since her cochlear is too small it doesn't pass the vibration onto the nerve. So all the sounds and speech she hears is distorted. 

So the doctor wants to test out a hearing aid first. She'll get a loaner from the doctors office to see if it helps. Since hearing aids helps amplify sounds it might not helps since her sounds will be loudly distorted. But one thing at a time. 

In all of this Hailey has been such a champ. She's fully informed on everything and is fully on board to all these doctor appointments and hearing aids. She's aware of her ear so she's embracing the fact that her ear was born "broken". She just amazes me.