Drue at 6 months

Drue is almost 7 months now...but thought I'd do a brief photo update on him. Our sweet friend is an amazing photographer and as a gift gives us pictures for his milestones. For his 6 months, we took pictures of him, and had Tommy join him for a few. Here's a few I love. 

Drue had his 6  month evaluations on Wednesday with all the professionals working with our family. tehy all met and we talked about his progress. It resulted in a not just me in tears, but some of the other who have been working so hard with us and his progression. Drue is testing as of now, right on schedule for most everything. This is a true miracle, and we know it. there are many things we need to work on, and we know that there are hurdles ahead, but to be where we are right now, is a mothers prayer and dream come true. We will continue to work and hope for his progress, and thank you all for your love and support. 

with out cameras on our Phones, where would our pictures be?

Lets be honest...we all have little time and lots of guilt about the photo taking of our children! Maybe its just me. Thank goodness phones now have great cameras and even video cameras on them! I remember my parents lugging around briefcases with their cameras in them to capture our moments! We are lucky! Things are always crazy and good here... just hard to update. But heres a photo update...Im getting pretty good at instagram, so I guess this is kinda like that. A picture is worth a thousand words. 

Drue is doing well, and constantly improving and hitting milestones we are praying for! We have wonderful Physical therapist, occupation therapists and nurse and child development specialist who work with us weekly. Hes rolling over! He started solids! He's holding things! He's on a roll!! 

And he has blue eyes...

He loves baby Mum Mums

We love where we live... especially when it starts to get cold, and others have cabin fever. We have fun play dates. heres one with cookies and hot cocoa. 

HUGE first snow storm of the year hit...It was unlike Ive seen in 9 years. Tommy was loving it. 

Maybe my favorite picture ever...My three boys in a tubby. 

Halloween this year was fun....The boys were a pair...Tommy a knight, Drue a dragon. We had a few parties, Depending on what was appropriate  we had a pair costume as well. One where Rob was a lactation specialist, and I, a lactating mother. Based on my Depending life male lactation lactation specialist. Rob was a sumo the other times.

We went to "Thriller" where our niece was Chuckie this year 

We decorate our pumpkins with Mr Potato Head pieces cause Tommy cant handle the real pumpkin guts. Dry heaves the while time. this was our solution. 

Drue sporting his "D"

Rob got pre season Jazz game tickets and Took Tommy...in His knight costume of course!  Tommy started Soccer this year and was easily the star (Im not just saying that). Averaged 4 goals a game!! 

Robs last years with student season tickets with his med student buddies

Rob is in the thick of Residency interview season. people keep asking where we want to go or where we applied. EVERYWHERE is the answer. He is going to a new state almost weekly it seems. When hes not traveling, he's soaking up time with the boys, and trying to adjust to the downtime while it lasts. 

We kill time at McDonalds playland when its cold...his Girlfriend Maylee and jealous sister Sophie in background

We started a map for Tommy to understand where Daddy is this week by stars on the states he is flying to...

Rob was back East for a while and saw my little Brother Collin and my week old niece born during Hurricane Sandy

A fun Sunday afternoon activity. Tommy loves making wishes in anything with Water.

The Many faces of Tommy

Tommy started his second year of preschool...I cant believe it! He loves school! He's a social bug, and he loves playing. He's such a fun kid, and loves to play pretend. Hes known around our neighborhood as the kid with all the costumes. Really, he has a bin full of costumes Hes loved them since he started imaginative play, but now is really getting into the roles. Boys must be born with "sound effects" installed, cause I didn't teach him any of the sounds he makes as he pretends to be whatever he is that hour. Here is a glimpse of what Tommys has been this week...

A star Student... devastated to learn that costumes weren't allowed at school except for halloween

as a Power Ranger...at the dentist. there are some battles just not worth fighting for me right now. 

 With a gas mask...

As Peter pan

Photos missing from this week: Tommy as a Pirate, Tommy as Spiderman, Tommy as a White Ninja

And Here a picture of Drue showing off how good his balance is getting!

We are still here...

Lately, I've been harassed by friends (Alicia, mainly) to post something.  I feel like I don't know my butt from my head, some days due to lack of sleep and exhaustion. We are all alive and well for the most part. We just got back from two weeks in Lake Tahoe. Rob took the part one of Step 2 of the Medical Boards for Med school at the beginning of August and he'll take part 2 of Step 2 the beginning of September... so its study mode at our house. I'm trying to be give Rob as much time as he needs to study, but he's such a good man that he wants to help me more around the house...and I need to tell him "No, go study!"

Tommy starts preschool on September 6th. He is so excited and we are lucky that the school is so close and kids from our complex will be in his class. Tommy does so much better with a routine and loves being with other kids. Who would have thought we would have had a social child? He has recently started riding his bike with no training wheels!

Drue is three months old. He's stayed out of the hospital for weeks! People often ask what is really going on with his health, and why we are vague when we talk about him. We are because we really don't know whats going on either. He's had many potential diagnoses, all of which are perplexing. As far as we can tell at this moment, he is a healthy boy. He has some physical development issues we hope will be worked out through weekly physical and occupational therapy and having him monitored by wonderful doctors. They won't deny the possibility of cerebral palsy for at least a year and even then we aren't 100% out of the woods. We hope the doctors are just being overly cautious due to all the previous mistakes that were made on  their part. But so far he's hitting all his milestones, including smiling and laughing. Rob reminds me daily to enjoy all the things Drue is doing and to treat him like he isn't sick at all -- treat him normally and dont freak out cause most likely, he is just that, normal and perfect. So, despite my anxieties, I'm trying to soak up these baby moments knowing they will pass quickly, thanking the Lord for our boys.

On a side note, I turned 30 this week. Never thought I'd be 30, married, and have two kids. I still feel like I'm 20 at heart. This was evident today when Tommy was singing at the top of his lungs the song "Call Me Maybe," while we were driving in the car. I don't feel different at all.  It's just weird to say that I'm 30 now. That does seems old... What will I do my next 30 years? Who knows, but I'm sure it will be as exciting as the first 30!

Rubicon Bay, Lake Tahoe. Our dock and beach.

My Mom (Manna as the grandkids call her) loving on Baby Drue.

Tommy and I taking a picture while we "try" to bond. Hes not much of a snuggler. 

Drue, 3 months old and asleep, FINALLY! 

Heavenly day

We anticipated a much easier entrance into the world for Drue. Things didn't go as planned at all, but a day doesn't go by that we aren't aware that he is our miracle baby in every way. We are blessed, and truly when this baby was born and when he was able to come home in our arms, it truly was a HEAVENLY DAY. We are grateful for all your fasting, prayers, and support. We hope this little guy will continue to progress.

We are all under one roof...

Thought I'd update really quick. Drue was released from the NICU, and we were all home together for a few days. Then the night of his circumcision, it hemorrhaged. We were put back in the hospital to have his little privates worked on. Turns out they accidentally nicked an artery, a 1/25,000 chance. We love to be the one, dont we? So, we are all home now...and hope to stay that way for a long time. We are getting is baby pictures today....a month late due to circumstances...so more Drue to come. Again, thank you for all the prayers, fasting, and love. We have needed them.

Baby Drue is here...but not home

As many of you know, we had Drue on May 9, at 9:07 am. Immediately followed a rush of concerns for him, that have not ceased. We have been to the depths of dispair at many moments these past few days, and still have little idea of what is wrong, or when we will get to have our baby be healthy and home. This song was shared with me a while ago, and I shared it with Rob the first few nights in the hospital. It couldn't express what we are feeling more right now inside.

Please keep us in your prayers. Pray for Drue to improve.

Tommy turns 4

Yep...I have a 4 year old. Crazy to say that out loud. Tommy has dove into his imagination full throttle this past year, and changes his costumes at least twice a day. If you live near us, you will see Spider man about 3 pm, batman about 4:30 pm, and a lion or pirate about 5 pm. It was hard for me to see a birthday go by without celebrating him, despite my snapped pubic bone. There is going to be a lot of new attention in the baby, and I wanted to make sure that he felt special right before. he decided early on, like December, that he wanted a Pirate party. I prepared as early as I could, and pulled it off. The real hit was my parents gift to him which was a bounce house for the party. This was also a huge relief to me as all i had to do to entertain was have the kids jump really! With the rain and snow forecast, we moved it to the church. Not ideal, but worked great. Rob helped decorate the gym and ran the popcorn machine. We played pin the patch in the pirate, and had a treasure chest pinata. Then it was jumping time. We had the whole sunbeam class and a few other friends, and parents of course. We had an Italian soda bar for the "big pirates" and it was like we were on an island! Thanks to Jeni and Victoria, we got the gym cleaned up, and were done! My pelvis is not so good now, but pain meds help. Only a few more weeks they say, but I'm measuring two weeks ahead. My doc is pro baby, not mom really and only threatens to hospitalize me for my pain before he takes the baby. So, I stopped threatening, and hope to stay out of the hospital until I actually have the baby. Rob refuses to pop my water, so even though its safer, I'm still pretending to be furious with him. I wont complain anymore, just celebrate how great it is I got through four years without killing my first child.

There are days I just want to wear this around my neck.

Proof Im a good mom...besides the mohawk

We went to meet the Easter bunny this week. I wobbled through it, and felt better that he had a good Saturday because of it. He doesnt know what all these hoilidays are really for yet, but if it involves candy, he supports it.

The Mohawk...yes. Thank Rob for ordering new clippers of the internet and saying that he will never go to the hair cutting places again as he is pro. He was cutting his medical school friends (who are all in to save $) then took it to Tommys head. Just in time for his hair to look great for all the pictures we will be taking when the baby arrives. Tommy calls it his "peahawk". Whatever, he's fed and clothed. Thats my only goals lately.

iPhone Pictures

If you're like Rob and I, most of our life is captured on our iPhones. Yes, we have a very nice camera, and video camera, but the phone is always there to capture the moment. Sometimes I realize that I have so many fun things we've done and the only way I can prove to Tommy one day what great parents we were is to document it. They are always random, but still need to be posted for the lack of scrap booking and photo book skills which I don't possess. Printing the blog is an easy way out, and well, that's perfect for me.

I also find pictures and videos which Tommy captures himself and I don't know they are there until I randomly find them. This is a real treat, and hilarious to us cause we are catching him start to lie a little. He tattles on himself constantly saying he "didn't" do something right after or while he is still doing it. This is great 'cause for some reason he knew it was wrong to take a picture of his butt, and was doing it anyways and telling Rob he "wasn't taking a picture of his bum Daddy". Enjoy.

Tommy loves to dress up. Whomever said girls were the only ones who liked to dress up did not have boys. Tommy's imagination is blossoming, and with it comes so many fun memories. We have a dress up box in his room with things I buy after Halloween clearance, second hand stores, ect. Rob came home from work early the other day, and Tommy asked him to dress up too. I said, "Sweetie, daddy can only dress up as a doctor." Little did I know what Rob had up his sleeve...



Tommy has also had some issues with his eyes lately...like putting things in them. Last week we heard a blood curdling scream from the bath tub. We found him with an empty bottle of shampoo and the rest in his eyes and mouth. We thought he learned his lessons after flushing his eyes with tons of water and eye drops...but no. We found him the next day with a WHOLE bottle of toothpaste in his EYES! Ouch. Rob to the rescue again. Then last Thursday I got a call from the preschool that Tommy had shoved a stick in his eye and needed to go to the ER to make sure he didn't scratch his cornea. Really Kid?? Lay off the eyes. Hes fine luckily, but I'm hoping the lesson has sunk in.


I know that I say this a lot, but really, my husband is a total rock star. He has had to kick in to ultra rock star mode since my pelvis separated. He is always asking to help, do laundry, make beds, and clean. He took Tommy to a family weekend without me, and made sure I rested. As soon as he got home, its not Dr Stoker, its Mr Dad 100%. He's dressing up, taking Tommy and four other 3-year-olds to the zoo and helping me with physical therapy. He's just too great, and I only hope he can hold out for as long as we will need him. He's already doing so much!! Oh, and going to Medical School on the side.

Top 10 Signs Kate is Ready for Marriage

Kate's Dad was digging through some old files today and emailed me a copy of his "Top 10 signs that Kate is Ready for Marriage," which he read at our reception on our wedding day. I hadn't heard them for a long time and and I had other things on my mind at the time, if you know what I'm sayin'.

Here's the Top Ten:

10: Finally confessed to bishop of secred marriage to Ecuadorian Doctor who saved her life

9: Allows Robbie to call her Master and Commander rather than Lord Vader

8: Was recently allowed to drive her own car at the Disneyland Autopia

7: Has cut Diet Coke consumption to tow gallons per day

6: Slowed down her speech so chipmunks can now understand her

5: Now engages in small talk with dad before hitting him up for money

4: Has memorized the recipe for boiling water

3: When driving Montero, no longer refers to pedestrians as "prey"

2: Has changed her college major to math to feel more challenged at the U

And the Top Sign that Kate is Ready for Marriage...

1: No longer arm wrestles in sleazy Provo Bars for quarters

Thanks Tom. We had some great laughs tonight.