the silver lining

The only good thing about dad being in the hospital is that Nick, Allison, Nayeli and Karyna came to visit. Dad is a miracle. He regained consciousness somewhat on monday, but could only remember his immediate family and old memories, nothing recent. He didn't know any of his kids were married or had kids. Then over the last few days he slowly began to remember our spouses and kids and more recent memories. He even retained some of his wit. His kidneys have started functioning a little more, still not nearly enough, but at least they are improving. His liver is doing very poorly though, and his arm is going to require surgery. Thank you for your support and prayers.

We spent the afternoon with my family while dad rested.

We couldn't tear Reagan and Karyna away from the easel!

Attempting to get a picture with all of the grandkids... Yes, this was the best I got!

Reagan's first ice cream cone.

The gang enjoying their cones in the grass.

A little bit messy?

Reagan wore a lot of hers...

Karyna wore some of her ice cream too...

Reagan was on a sugar high after eating most of her cone, and was a little bit giddy!

not again...

Dad is back in the hospital for the third time. That puts him over 70 days in the hospital since Mid-May. Poor Guy! He fell on thursday, gashed his head and broke his right arm. Now he is in congestive heart failure, renal failure, is having seizures, isn't cognizant... the list seems to go on and on. He could really use some prayers right now, along with my mom.

another busy month

Whew, I am finally sitting down to update you on our past month. We were lucky to be able to have lots of family come visit. Amber and Dallas came during the 4th of July weekend, and were tons of fun - as always! Dorothy, Katelyn and Kimberly came to visit a week ago, and we loved visiting with them too! We wish our family lived closer so we could see them more often, but we are grateful for the time we do get to spend with them. We have had lots of pool dates at the Hargroves, but when gas is too much we have to settle for our backyard. We try to have fun as much as we can...

Reagan Update: She memorizes and mimicks everything! She has started reading sentences, and points out all of the words she knows in every book. I try to make her more word flashcards every few days, and so far we are up to 240 words that she can read. She loves talking to Kennedy, and immediately looks for her whenever she wakes up from her nap. When Kennedy cries she says "Shhhhh... It's okay Kennedy!" She is a great big sister!

Kennedy Update: She sleeps well, as long as she sleeps on me. I am trying to get her to sleep that well in her bassinett, but the longest she has slept consecutively in her bassinett was 5.5 hours. She started rolling over now, and looks so proud when she makes it onto her back. She laughed at me today, which was so cute! She laughed so hard she got the hiccups. She loves to watch Reagan, especially at dinnertime - we stick her in the bumbo on the table and she watches her eat. She is a great little sister!

Rick Update: He golfed in a memorial outing for My Uncle Howard with three of my cousins. They came in second to last, but had fun. Rick fell out of the golf cart at the second hole with a little help from Kevin. Nerds!

Katie Update: I finally gave in to Molly and read the first three Twilight books. I borrowed them all from her and read them in less than a week. Man, I forgot how much I love to read good books. Now I can't wait till August 2, when the last book in the series comes out.

Now here are LOTS of pictures from our past month. Sorry I am so slow at posting...

Dallas and Amber with the girls

Katelyn, Dorothy and Kimberly with the girls

Kennedy's first winter hat, made by Katelyn

A relaxing day at the pool

Kennedy loves the bumbo, can you tell?

Here are some shots of Kennedy at 2 months

She is such a happy baby

4th of July fun at the pool

Backyard fun

Reagan didn't know how to use her potty seat

Playing in the fort

Popsicles with my best pals

a mom of two

Wow, these past two weeks have been super busy! Being a mom of two is wonderful, but completely exhausting! Last week we had three doctor appointments (one for each of us), plus a not so happy trip to the lab for Reagan to have her blood drawn. On Friday our power was out for the day, so we went to Haslett to relax at Sue and Jack's pool. Skyler and Steph came over for a playdate, we went to the park for a playgroup, went to a birthday party for some of Reagan's friends, put in a garden, started painting the trim on our house, visited Dad at the hospital, and still managed to sleep a little. Here are lots of pictures of our past two weeks. Happy 7 week birthday tomorrow Kennedy!

My big girl, she looks so grown-up with a ponytail!

Reagan's surfer girl swimsuit!

She does manage to eat a little of her popsicle...

Being a big sister is tons of fun!

Our first attempt at painting. Our dainty girl didn't like getting her fingers dirty, so she opted to use a paintbrush!

Reagan asking to share Kennedy's blanket...

Kennedy said that would be okay...
She may be a little big to actually share the blanket, though!

My sleeping beauty!

She is a beauty when she is awake, too! Check out her crazy hair!

Reagan's playdate with Skyler. She really likes Skyler, she even shares her toys with her!

What better way to beat the heat than at Sue and Jack's? Reagan even got in the big pool and loved it! Hopefully we will be there again tomorrow, if the storms miss us!

I told Rick, I may be more exhausted than him at the end of the day, but my job is way better than his! Staying at home is the best!

great news

More promising research news for Cystic Fibrosis, READ HERE!

Thanks so much to everyone who has donated to the CF Foundation, and to those who are praying for a cure! We truly appreciate all of your support!

blessing

On Sunday Rick was able to give Kennedy a beautiful blessing at church. We were fortunate enough to have some family and friends that were able to attend. Dad is still in the hospital, though, so he wasn't able to make it. My mom somehow found the time to still make Kennedy a blessing dress, so both girls have a keepsake from their blessings. It was a wonderful day!

Everyone after the blessing.

Our family of four.


Miss. Kennedy

grins and bubbles

Great Grandma came to visit last week and we spent Memorial Day with her. We had a wonderful barbeque at the Crosses, and the kids had a blast with the pools, water, and bubbles. Here are a few highlights...

Kennedy grins in her sleep! If you look close you can see her dimple.

Reagan loved the bubbles!

She couldn't get enough of them!


Kennedy napping in Granny's lap.

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Reagan enjoying her popsicle.