Doctors, Doctors, Everywhere!

So don't you hate those days where you have to plan every minute of the day from sunrise (in my case before sunrise) to sunset just to make sure it runs smoothly? I'm exhausted just thinking about it! We had three major Dr. appointments today from one end of the city to the other. I think I would have been just plain retarded to try to take Izzie & Lexie so THANK YOU Malisa & Karyn for chilling out with them so we could run around with Viviana!

Vivie had her liver/kidney ultrasound this morning down at Rady Children's Hospital next door to where she was born...always brings back a flood of memories when I'm down in that neighborhood--did we really live that life at the hospital for 4 months? Still seems more than a little bit surreal!

But on a side note a nurse today told me of a mom who actually had it more difficult. I know everyone handles his/her stress in different ways, but this one takes the cake. This mom had a 24 week old preemie that survived and then didn't practice good birth control, got pregnant again right away and then delivered a 23 week old preemie so that her x-micro-preemie children are 7 months apart...and she also has a 3 year old. How's that for a lesson in birth control? At least the next oldest in our family is almost 2 years older...even if it is Izzie (those who KNOW her know what I'm talking about) and even if there's 6 of 'em!

So back to Vivie's day with the Doctors. Vivs ultrasound went well and in fact her hemangiomas appear to be the same in number and in size in her liver. The one adjacent to her kidney looks like it has reduced in size which may indicate that these hemangiomas could be involuting, or decreasing in size. A follow-up ultrasound in January will tell us for sure what's going on.

Then it was off to the GI Specialist in Escondido...pumping & feeding Vivs somewhere along the way. I'm so unimpressed with this group of specialists. They called me this morning on the way to the ultrasound to change my 2:00 appt to mid-afternoon because the Dr. didn't want to take later appointments (which was scheduled 6 weeks ago). I was a little ticked by the phone call and wasn't paying attention on the freeway and took the wrong turn-off and ended up going towards Ramona...don't you hate it when you're in a hurry and do stupid things?

Anyway, it worked out fine and we made it to an earlier GI appointment. Viviana's liver enzymes from the blood tests we did yesterday are a little elevated, which indicates that her liver is a little out of whack. It may also be due in part to passing this crazy sickness around for the last few weeks at our house. So we'll repeat those labs in 3 weeks to make sure. Because of the good news on the ultrasound and overall on the lab results she doesn't need another GI appt until February. Originally they wanted to repeat the MRI (which would require Vivs to go under) in February but I'm crossing my fingers that it won't be necessary!

So I dilated Vivie's eyes and off we went to see the Opthamalogist. Vivie's eyes look the same. The ROP is completely gone and the ridge that was created by the ROP has dissolved as well. The blood vessels still need to grow past that ridge in her right eye, but her left eye is perfect. So we won't go back to that Dr. for another 6 weeks which is a beautiful thing!

With all the needle poking, proding, rubbing, pulling at her eyes, tummy, liver, head...no wonder she's so exhausted tonight and spitting up all her yummy milk that took so much effort to make!

Both of us are exhausted and Vivs is conked out in her carseat---wish I could join her! When's it my turn? I mean really...when's it my turn??! The kids just walked in from their first day back at school since the evacuation (can I say how much I loooove school??)

Because I was a procrastinator and didn't get the kids' costumes in order I get to run around and do that tonight to fill in the missing pieces. Rapunzel & Cinderella without crowns just don't work too well and poor Mons doesn't have a costume! He refuses to be a pirate for the 3rd year in a row. When did they start getting opinions??!!

What's for dinner? Forgot to plan that part of the day...whoops. Chicken dinos? Mac & Cheese? burritos? Wendy's drive-thru? Mmmmmmm good, yikes! Another day in the life of Shay, mom of the McLaughlin Clan. Wow...and that's a pretty big momma flower I have on her head! Doesn't look that big in real life!

Home Again Home Again Jiggidy-Jig

We made it back home late Friday night after Vivie got sick and I felt like she needed to be seen by her Dr on Saturday morning. Her lungs are fine--she just sounds gurgly and congested in her upper respiratory area.

A BIG shout out to The Collyers for their amazing hospitality and for putting up with SIX monkeys for a few days...well, five--Vivie hasn't reached 'monkey' status yet!

Upon returning, our home did smell of smoke--so the fans went on and we lit the scented candles. I have to order an air filter/ionizer for our home to help with those particulates in the air which should help get the kids healthy and keep them that way!

Potty Talk!!

I'm sure that Lori & Glen just thought we were a little strange tonight while feeding Vivs she strained and then blew out her diaper. Curt and I were shocked and we literally shouted for joy! SHE POOPED HER DIAPER...you're thinking...what's the big deal???? Vivie has had a struggle in the poop muscle department for quite a while and this is one of those 'firsts!' Not a sentimental first, but reason for celebration! YAY! She did it without babylax! C'mon....you can't underestimate a good BM--you ALL know what I'm talking about! I spared you the picture of the real deal...it's tucked inside that diaper. And from the picture of that happy baby face you can tell Vivie will sleep like a baby tonight...which means I will sleep like a baby tonight too. Ah, the pillow's calling!

A little R and R from the Fire!

So we ended up being blessed to take refuge at my mom's husband's daughter's home...so my step-sister. What an incredible family they are! Now I know why I have to 'fight' for my mom's time when she comes to Cali--who wouldn't want to hang out with Lori & Glen???

The kids are all on the mend and we really needed to be in the clear air so their lungs could get a chance to heal and the anti-biotics and all this medicine can take effect before we return. The question is, though, how we're going to get these kids away from this 'vacation' house and Lori & Glen's hospitality!

They swam in this amazing pool with a rock waterslide, watched Nemo on this massive theater screen downstairs, played Wii with their new-found idol, 14-year-old step-cousin, Stacy, and are sleeping in most this amazing playroom. Oh, Izzie & Lexie get to sleep on a tempur-pedic bed...no wonder they got some zzzz's last night! Not to mention a 3-hour nap this afternoon. I think I need to try their bed:) Many thanks to Lori & Glen and their amazing open-arms!

Blazing & Smokin'!

Fire, Fire, Fire! Well it was an unexpected So Cal orientation for Curt as he quickly saw what Santa Ana winds were and what can become of October in So. Cal! Unbelievable! Even for me, a veteran of October winds and fires having grown up here. Maybe this was a good run to know how to REALLY prepare ourselves for...say....a major earthquake? Fire season 2008?

We received the 3 am phone call from our friend, Sean (it was one of those things where I heard the phone and thought it was part of a dream that Vivie needed to be fed). Once I came-to...we learned we needed to get packing and prepare to evacuate. So we shifted into emergency mode and loaded up our 72 hour kits, two outfits for each of the kids, blankets, water, and a few precious momentos and off we went...BUT WHERE? We didn't know! We just knew we needed to get out not knowing what lie ahead.

We did have a mandatory evacuation and our community was very much in threat of two different fires: the Coronado Hills Fire and the Witch Fire coming through a different direction. They have both since been contained, but the ash, soot and poor air quality is what will keep us away due to our kids' lung issues right now. When I went home to gather some clothing for the week the upstairs smelled like it did outside. So apparently the balcony doors don't have a tight seal. There's no threat of fire in our area anymore, but the air quality is what we're worried about.

Curt was worried that if we hung out too long there may be some kind of gridlock getting out of San Elijo being that the road at the top of the hill was closed so there was one way out. We didn't want to evacuate to the church because it seemed like that was just going in the wrong direction...towards the fires. So we opted to go coastal and ended up in the parking lot of the Albertsons in Carlsbad where we filled up on gas. 1/2 of San Elijo also was waiting with laptops and police scanners with the latest info. Funny way to meet your neighbors for the first time! But great to see a community come together and help one other. It was comical and sad at the same time to see what people deemed 'precious' to bring along in such an emergency (or maybe they were the smart ones who knew they'd be bored and needed something to pass the time). We saw lots of surfboards, jetskis, motor bikes...all the latest and greatest toys.

After we realized that a parking lot with 6 kids just wasn't going to work, we called some friends and ended up going to Fit West, a training center that is managed by someone in our ward. The kids hung out and played football, baseball, ran around and thought this was the coolest thing since Disneyland...Fire? What? IT'S PLAYTIME! Great way to keep things 'normal' for the kids as much as possible I suppose!

Exhausted from the events of the night, we were invited to a pancake breakfast at the Hoopes' home (our home teacher not affected by the evacuation, Thanks Tim & Maggie!!!!) with 4 other families and just hung out until we could figure out a place to lay our heads. We called a few hotels and got our names on an evacuation wait-list, but everything in San Diego and even north was booked from the LA fire evacuees and SD vacationers!

Sean and Karyn arranged for us, Hendricks & Searles to find shelter at their cousins' beach house in Carlsbad--not too shabby! Thanks Sean & Karyn!!!

In the middle of the night Bray woke up just holding his chest tight and gasping for air...he was having an attack and just felt like his heart was sinking into his chest. He literally couldn't catch a breath. We feel blessed that our friend staying with us had an inhaler so I woke her up at 2 am to use and that's what saved Brayden long enough to rush him to the ER and get help. When Curt got there it had police tape all around and was about to evacuate, but there was still one doc left in the house who helped Bray. Now he's on steroids, has his inhaler, antibiotics and is good to go...another night lost of sleep. Sleep is apparently over-rated in our family!!! What's sleep anyway????

Four of the six kids have bronchitis so even if the fire is not burning our house down, the smoke, ash, and soot is deadly for kids with lung problems. McKenzie has reactive airway disease, Vivie has chronic lung disease and the other kids are dealing with bronchitis, so we had to get out of dodge quickly! NOTE: VIVIE IS DOING FINE...she's had a low-grade fever that she hasn't been able to be seen for, but we've sheltered her from the air and she's not suffering from the horrible air quality.

We had three offers for housing and the place with the clearest air is where we went...The I-15 headed north was already shut down and luckily we got out before the I-5 closed down. We escaped to La Canada to Lori & Glen's house (Kelly's daughter). We are so grateful for their hospitality...what angels they've been to let us and all six of our monkeys in and it's turned out to be a vacation for our kids as their gaining their strength...I don't think any of them want to go home now! See the next post.

McKenzie's Talents

The Activity Days Talent Show

When you think about talents, singing and playing piano come to mind as common talents. While McKenzie can sing in the shower and has mastered every H.S. Musical song and can rock out with her friends, her real talents are 'spiritual gifts.' They can't be performed, but they can be shared and she can continue to develop them and bless others' lives in service with these skills. They are:

• Communicating with people (she's GREAT at this. Sometimes it's in the form of yelling matches, but she gets her point accross always and is not afraid to speak up.)
• Complimenting others on their achievements. McKenzie is always the first one to root on other friends and family when they do something well.
• Nurturer...McKenzie is a mother-in-training as she helps to change LOTS of diapers in our home and rock, cuddle, read, take little girls to the potty, etc. She is my right hands much of the time.
• Being an example to others and playing with kids who are lonely at school. When McKenzie sees a need she is not afraid to be the first to help!

This is McKenzie's Activity Days Group..with the addition of a few extra non-member friends:

These talents already bless her life as well as our family. They will help her one day to become a great mom as well. I think she's getting great training right now as the oldest girl of six kiddos...reminds me of someone else I know:)


A magnet board full of photos showing McKenzie as a nurturer, friend, and big helper.
How grown-up and beautiful is SHE??!!! Heavenly Father knew I needed you first! I LOVE YOU, McKenzie!!!

Sleepless in Seattle...R E A L L Y

So what could be more insane than two moms (Tallie & me) taking FIVE active kids ages three and under, two of which are nursing babies, through an airport, luggage, baby 'stuff' and car seats in tow from San Diego to Seattle? How about the return trip trying to carry very sleepy and sick Lexie and Izzie off the plane solo at 10 pm with Vivs in the front pack....large carry-on bag on shoulder through the terminal to meet Curt at the curb! Actually, it wasn't all as bad as it sounds. The kids all did really well on the flight and things went more smoothly than one could hope...thanks to Tallie being a veteran with this flying thing! (at least on the trip from SAN to SEA-TAC).

Isabella had a fever in the airport on our outbound trip and it quickly developed into a croupy cough and she just felt yucky much of the time while in Seattle. It's no fun to be up in the middle of the night making a 'steam room' in the bathroom because Izzie couldn't breathe then feeding Vivs two hours later and trying to keep Lexie quiet when she woke up at 5:30 am so that she wouldn't disturb Luke & Hank, Izzie & Vivie! I sure missed Curt's helping hands in the middle of the night! Who needs sleep anyway when you're supposed to be 'on vacation!'???? What really is 'vacation' when you have six kids?

We actually managed to have a good time thanks to fun Aunt Tallie & Uncle Mark! We drove all over Tacoma and Seattle and I've decided that I COULD move there and like it. Maybe it's because the sun poked through the clouds at some point everyday we were there (just to tease me?!) and it just didn't seem as dreary as they say. Tallie was excited to hear that and quickly pulled up listings so we could get an idea of affordability. Who knows what the future holds!

The kids all had tons of fun running around the Puget Sound at Fort Nisqually touching dead jelly fish on the shore, sloshing around in a very muddy pumpkin patch, walking around and around the Seattle Temple, driving by The Needle and Pike's Place (kids were snoozing & not feeling well). Looking back, I was either pumping or feeding Viviana in the shelter of the car during most of these fun things! Hooray for fun Aunt Tallie- my kids LOVE her! Luke had his fair share of teasing little girls and pushing their buttons. I think our kids act more like brothers and sisters than cousins because they're so familiar with each other and love one another so much! Of course Lexie is ultra sensitive and Izzie is a screamer so it as a lot to handle teaching 2 and 3-year-olds how to love one another nicely! We got home and Lexie said she misses Luke already so
I guess the hair-pulling and 3-year-old stuff wasn't as bad as it seemed! It's fun to have family to visit and it's also good to come home to a routine....like visiting the Doctor! That's been pretty routine in our family for MONTHS. The good news is that Izzie doesn't have pneumonia. It's just croup so now we'll just pray that Vivs can stay healthy!

A BLESSED VIVIANA FAITH

Very few things in life really matter...family, my faith & beliefs, and relationships are among the top on my list. Curt has given each of our children a name and a blessing and today was the last time he did this, as Viviana Faith is our LAST. It was an emotional day for me as Curt and Mark Menzie, Matt Weenig, Sean Parry, Rob Hazen & Glen Berry laid their hands on Viv's head to officially give her a name & a special blessing to start off her journey on earth. We waited until she was healthy to do this...she has come so far since that unknown road in the hospital It was a monumental occasion for us. Curt gave her a beautiful blessing and it was very clear to us that Vivie has a unique journey and will be a special influence upon many in her life.

My mom lovingly crocheted the dress that all my girls shared on their blessing day. It seems to get more beautiful with each daughter that wears it. I never imagined I'd be blessed with four girls after my experience of being the only girl with five brothers. Certainly it's also a dream come true for my mom with all the dress-ups, hair to braid, tea parties, and loves & kisses. Of course boys are great...they're MUCH easier than girls and I love my two to death...what a great balance it creates. But I never imagined I'd have more than one girl. It's a dream come true even with the drama, emotions, outbursts, etc!

IT'S A BIRD...IT'S A PLANE...

My brother, Mark, is a pilot and so his passion is obviously planes. So we couldn't resist going to the Miramar Air Show this weekend while his family was here from Tacoma. It was an excuse to try out my handy dandy new camera! We had a great time sitting in traffic and watching the jets and other flying things do their thing. Izzie thought her head was going to explode from the insane NOISE. I hope Hank & Iz don't have permanent damage from the noise!--I'm SO glad Curt offered to have Vivs stay home with him while we did our thing (of course I don't mess with football Saturday if I want to be loved in this house!) I think he was glad to have the chaos leave for a few hours while he sat back and enjoyed his McD's, Vivs and the remote control.

Let's Celebrate Viviana!

So Viviana is our sixth child...fourth girl and I needed a baby shower (of sorts)! Some people gauk at moms like me but hey, back off....it wasn't my idea! Viv NEEDED to be celebrated...and so my darling friends put on a party for our sweet little angel last Thursday! Why did I NEED a baby shower? Let me explain.

Back when we first learned we were expecting, I was just beyond SURE that this little caboose was a BOY! Anyone telling me otherwise or not accepting my inspiration just didn't know what they were talking about. It was that 'mother's intuition' everyone talks about...and everyone who knows me knows that I just KNEW it was a boy! Get the picture?

So when we moved from Utah to Cali we lost 2/3 of our storage space and had to pick and choose what we'd keep. Because I thought I was being so organized and thrifty I kept most of the kids clothes from birth--current ages and stored them in plastic bins. We just don't have that kind of space for boy/girl newborn -10 years old in our garage so we had to give away the things we weren't going to use. I went through everything and gave away about 3/4 of the things I had so diligently moved from house to house and stored away (you know, with the intention of saving money on clothing even though I'd never use 1/2 the things in reality because it's just one of my 'things' to make sure my kids are cute and current.....but for some weird reason it made it feel better to keep these things even though I knew I wouldn't use most of them..come on, you know you're the SAME way!) We had probably 8 big black yard bags full of clothing and about 4 plastic bins of shoes....kind of disgusting...ya think I like clothes? I kept only a few newborn-12 month girl items and so I am starting over with our last! Lucky Viv--she'll get a fresh new wardrobe without all the pukey and blow-out poopie stains that McKenzie, Alexandra, and Isabella left for someone else:)

So onto the reason for the post...I needed a Vivie celebration...I love my friends! Thanks Lisa, Allison, & Malisa (and everyone else who helped) for suggesting it and making it happen! Thank you for all you did-it was beautiful for those that were able to come:) I think I need to be better with what I eat--or I'll have to be part of the chubby buddies club soon:) yeah, yeah "I just had a baby" ...FIVE months ago!!!!

Rudolph, the toughest girl in town

Izzie is THE TOUGHEST two-year-old I know. Mark, Tallie, Luke, and Hank came to visit us from Seattle for Viv's blessing this weekend. It's been wonderful to have them around as always. The cousins LOVE each other and play 'rough and tumble' even when the girls are done with the rough part! Izzie ended up being pushed off her trike and onto the ground NOSE first...didn't phase her too much. She was walking on the trail to school with the kids and Aunt Tal ...Izzie gracefully tripped over herself and fell not once, not twice, but THREE times in the matter of seconds...got back up, and kept on going and came home all beat up to show me her 'ouchies'. How cute is she!!???!

Life happens!

Wow so I have like 5 big posts to do and NO TIME in which to do them! Imagine that! Being a blogger has definitely made me snap more pictures than I otherwise would have and it's made me think I'm some sort of professional with my handy dandy new Nikon 40Dx digital SLR. Actually I'm 'in training' to become a photographer (the self-training kind) because you know me-I can't sit still and I'm apparently not busy enough with six children and their comings & goings. So I have to be onto another big venture which will hopefully be a little business of my own since life has somewhat settled down since Viviana. We'll see how this goes with all the 'Extra' time I have! So blogspot doesn't like the pics I just took with my new camera! I hope it's not a 'sign'!!! It won't let me upload....to be continued.

Ten Pounds of What???

Ten pounds of pure....
yumminess
CHUNK (well, at least the cheeks)
joy
eat-'er-up
SQUEAKY
kissy
cuddly
beautiful
squeezy
bundle-of-love
Viviana!

HOORAY! Vivs turned 5 months old yesterday! and she is 10 lbs...that's a long ways for a little girl from a measly 1 lb 12 oz!!! It's hard to believe that we're well into October and that the CRAZY life as we knew it from Feb until, well....NOW is getting easier. Well, at least we're getting used to our 'new' normal, our 'new' level of chaos that goes on in the McLaughlin household! Vivie is sleeping 5-6 hours some nights which brings me great JOY...sometimes I just thought I wouldn't make it to this milestone! She is smiling and cooing, and has even let out a belly-laugh and giggles....pure yumminess! Yes, I know it's not a 'real' word but it describes my baby. Sometimes I think she's looking off yonder at the angels who are telling her jokes. We are SO blessed to call Vivie our daughter!

I have to remind myself that all of these 'firsts' for Vivs will also be 'lasts' for me as a mom. I'm not tearful about it...sometimes reflective, not sad, but ready. Ready to move to the next stage and welcome the next milestone. I'm sure one day I'll look back and I hope I don't have regrets. I hope I can enjoy every one of Viviana's stages (and all my kids for that matter), savor the memories so that in 10 years I can say that the stress and overwhelming task of mothering six children didn't get the best of me!

Well THAT'S a lofty goal! ...as two of my children to be unnamed (take a wild guess) are in 'time-out' for the rest of the evening in their beds for mouthing off and calling each other the 'S' word after a stern warning that I won't stand for it. I should have just put the timer on to see how long it would take as I knew it would happen again--they use the word like it's going out of style! (the 'S' word in our house is 'stupid'--I'm just sick of hearing them degrade each other). So now I'm the mean mommie who sent them to bed and followed through with my 'threat' which I hope will always send a message..."don't mess with THIS mom!!!" Oh, joys. This was supposed to be a Vivie post...well, more than just Vivie is going on in this crazy household of eight!

Dancing Queen #2???

Today was Lexie's first day of kinderdance! It was my way of compensating for the fact that I'm the lame mom who didn't get online early enough to get her registered for pre-school. Now she's 7th on the wait list and will never make it in! Granted, registration was the day after Vivie came home from the hospital so my hands were a bit full and my head was a bit heavy from the lack of sleep to even remember to wake up at 6am for the first-come, first-served registration.

Izzie is our resident dancing queen so maybe Lex will learn some moves and get some groove with this new class. The hardest part of this dance class was prying Izzie away from the room since she's not 'of age' yet. She did her 'Izzie scream' that everyone on Glencrest Dr. probably knows all too well....that high-pitched shrill that could ruin anyone's hearing within earshot FOR LIFE! I'm surprised Vivie even passed her hearing test after living with Isabella for a few weeks. We were lucky enough to find the hand-me-down ballet slippers, tap shoes, and leotard from McKenzie's preschool dance days and saved a bundle. Now I think we'll have to enroll Izzie in the kindertots dance class right before Lexie..you know, equal opportunity for six kids!? Impossible. Who does a budget these days anyways....?????

NICU Reunion

So it's only been 6 weeks since Viviana was discharged from the NICU at Mary Birch. The annual NICU reunion was held this weekend where oodles of little kids came out to see the nurses that once-upon-a-time took care of them in their fragile states. So we went and the kids had fun getting their faces painted and enjoying the little petting farm. It was great to see Tara & Donna especially. Tara took care of Vivie from day one and really is a big reason why things went as smoothly as they did. Donna was a heaven-send from the time we were in labor and just became close to our family during our NICU ordeal. We are so grateful for the level of care that we received for the 100 days Viviana was in the hospital...and we're even more grateful that she's home now for all of us to enjoy! This is Mons enjoying the furry baby chick...or whatever the heck that animal is!!!

Dodger Blue

Kevin & Brooke took Brayden, McKenzie & Monson to the Dodger game on Friday night and quickly remembered what Southern California traffic was like! They were late, but of course, due in part to stuffing their faces at Titos first.

McKenzie was all excited about going and said I can't wait until I see the Dodgers make a touchdown!" We all busted up laughing...who knew that at her age I was subscribing to baseball digest and memorizing then the AL & NL teams, players and probably stats too (eat your heart out Curt). I guess she has a long way to go to understand the game...but at least she's happy-go-lucky and full of heart!!!--and the ticket was less than 10 bucks!

Not sure why they kids are growling...probably just for the camera but a great time was had by all! Curt and I enjoyed our so-so quiet night at home with the three little girls, which doesn't happen very often. We have been social misfits lately because of Viviana...but she's well worth us being recluse!

Kevin & Brooke come to town

Kevin & Brooke flew into LAX after their Guatemala trip...en route for their fall/winter temporary move to Hawaii (spoiled!!!) They hung out with us Friday & Saturday and met Viviana for the first time! We really couldn't do much since Viv is immunodeficient, but we had fun. Lexie & Izzie especially loved giving Aunt Brooke loves and she quickly stole their heart by giving them little pedicures & manicures...complete with painting little flowers on each pink nail! Lexie & Izzie so affectionately refer to Uncle Kevin as "the other Uncle Mark"...because he and Mark share similar good looks! Everyone loves it when aunts and uncles come to town.