Where Is Our Number

Preston was telling me how old he was when he got a little confused. He said, "Mom, where is our number?"

Mom - "What to you mean?"

Preston - "Where is the number that tells us how old we are? Where is it on our body?"

Mom - "We don't have a number on our body - we just have to keep track of how old we are in our minds."

:)

The Shoulder Surgery...

I have a little more time now to explain a little about the shoulder surgery Danny had on Friday. The doctor called it a "classic Bankart repair". Basically, Danny's labrum was torn. When surgery was performed, the torn labrum of the Bankart lesion was reattached to the socket of the shoulder. This was done arthroscopically; but that's pretty much all we know right now. I didn't get much of a chance to talk to the doctor after the surgery so we are anxious to talk to him tomorrow for Danny's post-op checkup.

As for my end of the surgery, I had been a little nervous since his knee surgery. Not only did EVERYONE tell us that the shoulder surgery was much, MUCH more painful than the knee. I was also worried about Danny going under with the anesthesia again. Last time it took him 50 minutes to wake up after he was taken to recovery. I know, for some that number doesn't sound like very long. But most people wake up almost instantaneously. Everyone called Danny a "light-weight" with the anesthesia. He is just SO sensitive to it. Plus, they (the doctors) have deduced that his fever (the one that lasted a whole week) last time was an effect of the anesthesia because he is so sensitive. Therefore, I was quite nervous of the post-op effects of the anesthesia.

This time I was waiting for over two hours while Danny was "in" recovery. And every second of that time made me more nervous of how his body was handling the anesthesia. When they finally called me back, they told me that it took him 30 minutes to wake up this time. Yes, that is less time than last time, but they also gave me one more lovely piece of information about what the anesthesia does to him. I found out that both times Danny came out of surgery, he was not breathing on his own and it took them the full time to get him to start breathing on his own. On top of everything, for the first 12 hours at home, Danny says he has to CONCENTRATE on breathing because if he lets himself relax, he catches himself not breathing.

Again, everything is fine and he is doing pretty well considering he has had two surgeries in three weeks. I have just wanted to record these experiences since Friday.

Danny does have another fever so we are trying to stay on top of it with tylenol and pain killers. I personally am hoping it doesn't last for a week like the last time - as I'm sure Danny feels the same. He is still doing physical therapy for his knee and he will start PT for his shoulder soon as well. His knee seems to be doing really well. He is able to walk slowly by himself if he has his knee-brace on. So I only have to be by his side when he doesn't have his brace on.

I am very grateful for everyone who has helped us out and supported us. Our neighbor was so amazing to bring us dinner on Friday and it somehow lasted all weekend long. It was such a good dinner for Danny too! Mashed potatoes and gravy tasted so good to him and it helped with his nausea on Friday. We feel so blessed with wonderful friends, family, and even fairly good health.

Danny's Surgery

Danny had his shoulder surgery today. He is doing fine. It took him forever (again!) to wake up from anesthesia. He is exhausted. And he can hardly walk with his knee yet. I am having to support him everywhere he goes right now. We'll see how long that will last.

A Morning at the Park

This morning I decided to let Preston ride his bike to the park. So we strapped Ellie in the stroller and took off. We had lots of fun swinging. And I love how sweet Preston is with Ellie. They are going to be such good friends!

Pictures

(ok, so Preston isn't always sweet with her - but he was this morning. Maybe if I mention it enough, he'll stop beating her up.) :)

Preston and His Bike

Preston has been doing extremely well with figuring out his bike. He can finally get on and off by himself, pedal by himself, and even get started by himself. He has only fallen once, and he just got back up to continue on his bike. What a trooper! Way to go Preston!

Pictures

Ellie's Growing Up So Fast!

Ellie has been reaching all sorts of milestones lately. In the past two days, she has mastered crawling. No more army-crawl around here! She is up on all fours.

She is also standing up against furniture, and then walking along the furniture. She's going to be taking off pretty soon!

I was doing the dishes today and realized that I didn't know where Ellie was. I looked up the stairs and could only see her feet dangling from the landing. What? When did she figure out how to crawl up the stairs? So here goes the "watch her very carefully" stage.

She has at least ten teeth now, that I am aware of. She talks everyone's ears off. She blabs, and laughs, and throws tantrums when she doesn't get her way. She also likes to show everyone her tongue- she is always sticking it out. She's getting so big and I feel like she's entering the toddler stage. No more little tiny baby!

I love this little girl and enjoy every single milestone she reaches. Even if she is reaching a new one every single day!

Pictures

If All Else Fails, Use Bribery

Preston needed a bath, and therefore was getting into the bathtub. As he sits down, he says, "Mom, if you wash me then I'll get a treat for me and for you."

Mom: "You can wash yourself now, Preston. You're a big boy."

Preston: "But don't you want a treat, Mom? If YOU wash me, I'll get us both a treat. Do you want a candy?"

Oh, the things he will come up with!

Halo Buddy

For the last week Kaden has come home and told me about his friend, Dylan, who wants to come over and play Halo. He has even been given little cards drawn by Dylan with Halo characters on it and talking about how fun it would be to play Halo together. I called Dylan's mom on Thursday night to see if he could come over Friday, but he wasn't able to come until today. It turned out that Kaden has been drawing "Halo cards" as well to give to his little friend.

So they walked home together today and they spent the evening playing video games. Kaden has never had a buddy with the same interests as himself, that he has been able to play with outside of school. We lived by so many girls in Mapleton; I think it's about time that he found a little boy to play with. It was fun to watch them together!

I Have A Brain

Preston climbed up on the counter to wash and dry his hands. As he was precariously walking along the counter top, the following conversation took place...

Mom: Preston, you be careful so you don't fall.

Preston: I won't fall mom. I will be careful.

Mom: Ok.

Then after he had gotten down and thought for a minute...

Preston: You know why I wouldn't fall, mom?

Mom: Why?

Preston: Because I have a brain.

Preston's Birthday

Preston had a birthday on the 9th. He was a little spoiled and had a lot of fun. A couple of times, out of nowhere, he has said, "Mom, my birthday was so much fun. Thanks for my birthday. It made me so happy."

He asked for a "Halo guy" cake this year. I think it has been my biggest challenge for cake decorating yet. But I managed to find a picture to copy and I was able to fake a Halo cake.

Thanks to both sets of grandparents for the presents. He loved all of them. He calls all his birthday presents his "cool toys" as opposed to his regular toys. :)

Pictures

What A Fun and Busy 2 Weeks!

My brother Wes came home from the Tokyo Japan Mission on September 2nd. It has been so fun to see him and we have really enjoyed some "Hyde family time" the last two weeks. He looks the same, but is totally grown up and we are all so proud of him.

The Saturday after he got home we went paint-balling. It was lots of fun! Then this last Friday we enjoyed a wonderful day together. We went to the courthouse with my sister Jill in the morning. Her little baby Noah is officially theirs! And Friday night we enjoyed going to the temple with my nephew Zack. He will be going to the Brazil Belo Horizante Mission in January. It was wonderful to see him go through the temple for the first time. And on Saturday we enjoyed seeing little Noah sealed to his parents. What an amazing experience that was! And then on Sunday we were able to listen as Weston reported his mission in sacrament meeting. What an awesome and emotional two weeks it has been. I'm so grateful I was able to participate in all of these events! All I can say is, "I love my family!"

Airport Pictures

Paint-balling Pictures

Noah's Sealing Pictures

Hyde Family Pictures

Update

It's been kind of crappy around here the last couple of days. Yesterday (Sunday) Danny woke up with a fever of 100.7. We were concerned about an infection so we called the doctor's office. The doctor on call assured me that it most likely was not an infection in his joint. It usually takes at least a week for an infection to present itself in the actual joint. He explained that he might have some kind of virus or an infection in his lungs from the percocet, etc. However, Danny hadn't taken many of his percocet and he didn't feel the need to cough or anything like the doctor had explained. He did however feel sick to his stomach.

By yesterday afternoon, I had a small fever and felt sick to my stomach. Yippee. So we figured there was a possibility that we both had the same illness. But by last night, Danny's foot and ankle was a little more swollen and it looked quite red. I called the doctor once again (just to be safe) and the doctor reassured me that it was very unlikely to be an infection in his joint. He did say there was a possibility of a blood clot and he asked a lot of other questions. By the end of the conversation, the doctor had somewhat ruled out a blood clot and basically said to loosen the wrap a little so his leg could have good circulation. He said the wrap might be too tight and that's what was causing the redness and swelling. He also told us to continue Danny's leg exercises to ensure good circulation.

So in review, we have 1 disabled Danny along with 2 ill parents and 3 young children that we would like to have entertain themselves while we lay out on our bed for 2 days. This equation equals a not so fun holiday weekend in the Bradshaw house. BLAH!

At least there is one good way to look at it - I've lost 3 lbs in the last 4 days! Gotta stay postitive. :)

Successful Surgery

I finally have a second to sit down and let everyone know that Danny's surgery was a success.

The medial meniscus had a very slight tear, so the doctor put a couple of stitches in it. The lateral meniscus had some tearing and damage and the doctor basically had to "trim" that torn portion of the meniscus. His ACL was completely torn through and therefore the doctor had to completely reconstruct his ACL.

Danny isn't in too much pain. He has to keep his leg elevated and iced. He is also on percocet and in his words, "it makes me loopy." He's pretty out of it and kind of tired. He will be on crutches for a couple of weeks and we will see the doctor again next week.

As for the other surgeries, because his right knee is asymptomatic we are waiting to see how it handles all this weight for the next few weeks to determine whether or not to have surgery on it as well. The doctor says that if it isn't bothering him, he probably shouldn't get it fixed (in fact we've had 2 doctors suggest that); so we are going to make sure the extra work for this knee - while he is on crutches - doesn't bother it at all, and then possibly forego the surgery on the right knee. We just want to get the surgery done this year (because of the deductible being met) if he is ultimately going to need the surgery anyway. We will be praying about it to make sure we do the right thing. The shoulder surgery is scheduled for 3 weeks away (we might move that date back, depending on how this knee recovers).

Anyway, thanks to all who have expressed their concern.

Gangsta

The boys decided to put their hats on and this is the picture we got... :)

(click on the picture to see it in full size)

My Big One-Year-Old

Ellie had her first birthday on Sunday! I can't believe it's already been a year!

I let her open a present before church (earrings and bracelets). And of course the boys had to help her with EVERY present. They simply couldn't just sit back and wait.

After church we were lucky to have Grandma and Grandpa Hyde come and help her celebrate. We enjoyed some grilled chicken and shrimp, twice-baked potatoes, corn, and rolls. Ellie REALLY enjoyed her meal. :) Then we opened the rest of her presents. All I can say is I am destined to have a girly girl when she grows up if I continue to buy dolls and jewelry for her birthdays. :) It is so fun to do girly stuff with her after having the two boys. I guess, hopefully, the boys can keep her from becoming too girly. :)

As for the cake and ice cream, well, she wasn't quite sure about using her fingers. It was pretty messy, and apparently she just didn't want to get her hands all dirty. So she started just putting her face directly into the bowl. It was hilarious! Finally, I got her a spoon and she actually did pretty good at trying to feed herself with the spoon. By the end, though, she just wanted a bite and she just couldn't stand waiting until she had the spoon thing figured out. She picked up the cake and munched it down.

Happy First Birthday to my little girl!

PICTURES!