My Mother's Day Surprise 2011!

This is what Kimball and Hazel came up with all by themselves as a surprise for me for Mother's Day. It them quite awhile to pick all these blossoms off the tree in the backyard. Then they called me outside to see what they had done. It doesn't get any better than this!!!

Bedtime Stories with Dad

Kick'n It

Kimball and Hazel are both in soccer this spring, and seem to be loving every minute of it. They both made a goal at their games this week. (Hazel's "goal" was really more of the "right place at the right time" though.)

Kimball has played for three years now, and is really getting to be a good little player. He was particularly proud that his team voted on the name that he suggested, so this year his team's name is "Fireballs". His team is BRIGHT neon yellow, so they are not easily missed.

This is Hazel's first year playing soccer, and she runs around the field with a perma-grin on her face. We've gotten a few good laughs when she is running hard after the ball and then just stops with a big grin on her face so she can wave at us. It really made Andrew's day when she came running from all the way across the field just to give him a big hug and kiss and then turn and ran back toward the mass of kids crowded around the ball. Hazels' coach gave the kids three names to choose from for their team; yellow jackets, bumble bees, or stallions. I'm sure I don't have to tell you which one she voted for.

Henry enjoyed sitting outside watching the kids play soccer too. As Andrew got louder and louder yelling for the kids, Henry would get more and more excited and make more noise himself.

Kidney-versary Party

To celebrate the big 10 year anniversary of Andrew's kidney transplant we had Janine's family over for dinner after church. I had wanted to try the "knock off" Cafe Rio recipes that I found online for sometime. I knew it was a big success when Kimball said, with a mouth full of food, "Mom this is better than Cafe Rio, let's have this everyday."

I made cilantro-lime rice, black beans, pork, pico de gallo, guacamole, tortilla strips, & dressing from scratch. It turned out better than I thought it would. Of course everything was served in the kidney shaped hospital basins.

I chickened out on trying to make tortillas from scratch and resorted to raw ones from the store that have to be cooked. I cut them into the shape of kidneys before cooking them.

10 year Milestone!

10 Year Kidneyversary!

April 17, 2011 is an important date around here. It's Andrew's 10 year kidney transplant anniversary. (Technically 2 of his kidneys are 33 years old and one is almost 39 years old.) Yes you did the math right. . . Andrew has 3 kidneys. What most people are not aware of is that in a kidney transplant patient the doctors don't remove the non-functioning kidneys they leave them in the body. In Andrew's case his kidneys were diseased, and the doctors waited until his kidney function was almost completely gone before doing the transplant. Another interesting part about a kidney transplant is that the transplanted kidney is placed in the front abdomen, not in the same place as the other kidneys. Therefore the only real restrictions Andrew has in his physical activity, is no full contact sports. Football is out, the doctors frown on several hundred pounds swishing a kidney that is not as well protected in the abdomen.

So we will be celebrating the big 10 year milestone with Janine's family on Sunday while we still live here in Utah. I think that the menu is going to be something like Cafe Rio pork salad knock offs with homemade kidney shaped tortillas.

Happy 10th Kidney Day!

Sunshine Hug

The other day as we were driving in the car Hazel looked out her window and said,

"I love the sunset. I'd like to just give the sun a great big hug!"

Happy Henry

Henry is 2 months old and such a happy little camper. He's starting to smile and giggle, it is so cute. Oh I love this little man!

Henry is such a good baby. He is sleeping anywhere from 9 to 11 hours at night. He is a pretty content guy most of the time. It's so fun to have an infant again!

you've got to be kidding me. . .

how long do i have to sit here for pictures?

I love this expression on Henry's face!

Idaho-ans Again!

Andrew will officially be done with residency at the end of June. We have been on the job search for quite some time, and it has caused many sleepless nights for us, especially Andrew. We have had a deep desire to be in Idaho or at least close by, but we knew that the Lord knew better than us what would be best. So. . . . after months of praying for whatever situation would be best for our family our prayers have been answered.

We are so excited to announce that Andrew will be employed with St. Alphonsus Medical Center in Ontario Oregon!

Ontario, Oregon is on the East side of Oregon on the Idaho border. Fruitland, Idaho is where we are going to live; it is on the West side of Idaho on the Oregon border. The Snake River is the dividing line for the two states. Ontario is about 30 minutes northwest of Nampa/Boise area. We are thrilled to be a short distance away from Andrew's older brothers, Kim & Randy. We can hardly believe that we have the chance to be Idahoans again! Andrew will start work in Ontario in July. We are currently looking for a place to live in Fruitland.

We haven't used the words lucky with this job offer because we feel that it is so much more than luck. We know that the Lord has blessed our family and answered our prayers!

Dad +3

Last week after Andrew got home I walked down the stairs and found all three kids piled on his lap. Andrew says that his favorite time of the day is when he walks in the door and they come running and yelling, "Yeah, Daddy's home". They love their Dad!