Our Move, from Cali to Colorado!

Wow, so we had quite a move. Didn't really go as we had planned but we made it to Colorado. We are so happy to finally be back here and with everything that has gone on even more so. We now know God was working and planning things to get us here for more reasons then we thought, not so much happy reasons but we know God will work everything out and has a reason for everything. We headed out on Thursday morning (July 30th) made it only 500 miles to Elko Nevada and had to take Koen to the ER.

We could tell something was really really wrong. He was having major pain, fevers, and a racing heartbeat. Not even Tylenol or Ibuprofen were working anymore. So at 11:00ish (can't remember the right time) we took Koen to the ER. We weren't sure what was going on but knew something was really really wrong. The doctor that was on call took a look at Koen and didn't know what to think. Thankfully there was a pediatric doctor there from Boston that walked into the room and with in five mins was ordering a CTscan for Koen's belly. He literally put his hand on Koen's right side and said "this little boy has enlarged liver" Thank GOD he was there! Not only cause he knew to order a CTscan but also because the reason Koen went down hill so fast was cause it had ruptured and he was bleeding internally. So with in 30 mins he was coming back into the room to tell us what could be wrong with our little boy. Two things it could be either some kind of bacteria infection in his liver or be a cancers tumor. When he told us this we literally lost it, it felt like my chest was going to exploded! In a matter 30 minutes Koen and Grant were being life flown to Salt Lake City, Utah Children's Hospital while my dad drove me and the boys the three hours car drive. (Longest three hours of my life) He was admit into the ICU and had to have two blood transfusions. We met with the oncology team there and were told that they were 99.9% sure it was a tumor called Hepatoblastoma. They then decide that since we were on our move to Colorado that it would be BEST to get us on to Denver, CO. Which has one of the best Children's hospitals in the world. So Koen was life flown to Colorado and admitted to the ICU again. Sunday August 2, they took him into surgery for a biopsy and to put in a central port. He spend 11days in the ICU and then moved to the oncology floor on Aug 12th. Still remains in the hospital and is receiving chemo treatments. You can follow more of his story and fight against cancer on his website www.koenslovek.blogspot.com SO needless to say we here in Denver! We have maybe spend 24 hours totally in our new home since. But we are so Thankful we at least had my family that could move us into our new home. Grant, Koen or I can't wait till the day we can finally live in our AWESOME new house. It was a very scary move but we did make it here and like I said, Have our little boy being treated in one of the best hospitals in the world. No telling what it would be like if we were still in California. Could be even more scary considering how broke California is. Praise GOD we have an AWESOME GOD that is always looking out for us. For those of you that have been praying for us. Thank you so so so much!



Sorry no pictures of our DARN CUTE Kaitin, he road in the moving truck with Uncle Quinton. Something funny though, I guess he kept having episode were he would just freak out and be like "I'm dizzy" Screaming it at the top of his lungs! I think he kept Quinton Very Busy!

A sigh of relief!

So I BELIEVE Koen is finally on the road to recovery! We finally figured out what it was Thankfully we had already start antibiotics before we did figure out what has caused all his sickness so he started getting better sooner. He has been sick now since May 25th. It was a really odd sickness for us. It first start on the 25th with not only him but Kaitin and Gavin also all having diarrhea, throwing up, fever and just down right sick for five days. Then Kaitin and Gavin got better and it had seemed Koen had gotten alittle better also the diarrhea and throwing up had stop. But he would go a couple days and then get a fever have no appetite and throw up sometimes. This went on for weeks! Then as time had went on it just seemed to get worse and worse and we could tell he was losing weight, so I was like we have to do something. So we consulted with Grant's dad (who is a doctor) cause we didn't have insurance with grant switching jobs right now. Since we're not a fan of antibiotics and didn't even really know what he had. We did awhole lot of reading and trying to match his symptoms with something, we also did some allergy testing (cause we could tell when he drank milk it would get alot worse) and he was allergic to milk so we took him off that. So Grant's dad told us to give him pepto for a week along with colloidal silver and see if that worked, thinking that maybe because he's allergic to milk and had alot of it that it could be causing bacteria to grow in his stomach. (Milk was the only thing we could get him to eat). So we gave that to him and he seemed alot better but with in three days he was sick again. He woke up in the morning just screaming and holding his tummy, and it was hard as a rock. Scared the crap out of me! His sickness was obviously not only back but back like a raging monster in side him. So Grant's dad got him on a antibiotic. Then three days after him being on the antibiotic I was talking to my friend Sarah and she asked me if what Koen has could be campylobacter. I was like I don't know, why?!?! She told that our friend Dena and her family had all came down with it and that it was from them drinking colostrum. Which I had bought colostrum back on May 19th for the boys to drink (thinking it would help their immune system not make them sick). So I started thinking and I realize that Koen had been sick since then! Now there was no doubt in my mind that's not only what Koen had but also what all three of them had. Most of the time it takes antibiotic to take care of the camplyobacter, some how Kaitin and Gavin's bodies fought it off just not poor Koen. So now I feel like a horrible mother for letting my poor baby be sick for so long and having to go threw so much. But I do feel very relieved to know what caused this and that there's nothing very serious wrong with him. SO FYI don't give kids raw colostrum unless you know for sure where it's coming from and how and who it's handled by.

This is Koen on the Forth of July, see how skinny he has gotten. He didn't not feel well this weekend. This was when we started the pepto and colloidal silver!

Memories!

I have to post about this just so I can remember it... The boys LOVE helping me with laundry so when I was doing it the other day Gavin was helping me. I was letting him hand me the stuff out of the basket to put into the washer. He was taking every piece out one at a time, so he grab something of grant's and said daddy's, then something of mine and said mommy's, same with the boys he told me who the pieces belong too... I was shocked he new every single thing and if it was something he didn't know, like he grab a gray t-shirt that was inside out, so he goes t-shirt... It was so darn cute! Another thing he's gotten really good about is everytime he asks for something or you give him something he says THANK you! He's getting so BIG!

Weekends just fly by!

Don't your weekends just seem to fly by?!?!?! Ours do, I guess were just having so much FUN most weekends they just seem to fly right by us and we find it to be Monday again... Which I've gotten to where I kinda look forward to Monday to get back into the swing of things.. Me and the boys are really just loving our routine of school, activities and swimming... A few things I don't like about Monday's... I don't like that my house is a wreck and it seems like it's going to take me all week to get it back in order again... I don't like that Grant has to leave us go back to work, all five of us just have so much FUN together and I don't like that Monday means 5 more day until our next weekend... But were learning to like them! This weekend we had a Birthday Party for our little friend Harper. Here's a few pictures!

He was not to sure about the Carousel, not a fan of going in circles!


Nor was Koen sure about the Carousel!



Gavin getting a ride with the Birthday Boy!

Gavin's Big Boy Bed!

Gavin's in a BIG boy bed now... He's done so well! He hasn't got up once! He for sure thinks he's as BIG as his brothers and should be able to do anything they do. The five nights before I changed his bed, when we would put him in bed he would just scream and not go to sleep forever. I think he was protesting that he did not belong in a baby bed anymore. Can't believe how fast 2years have gone. He'll be 2 on the 31st! I no longer have a baby anymore... He's such a happy fun little boy and bring so much JOY to our lives!

School!

The boys just LOVE to do school. We try to do it everyday, but sometime miss a day here and there. Like yesterday we didn't get as much school done as I would have liked cause I was converting Gavin's crib into a toddler bed. Which I still need to blog about, LOL! But it's AMAZING how fast they catch onto things. They both recognize all their letters and know the sounds of the letters. Their numbers from 1-20, my phone number and kinda Grant's phone number. They know how to write each number from 1-10, and how to write their names. The work books we use are Kumon workbooks. As soon as we get moved I'm hoping to order Sing, spell, read and write and get them reading. I'm still trying to figure out what our plan is going to be for the boys for school. We're pretty sure we'll put Kaitin in preschool 2-3 days a week. Mostly for the social part of it! But I'm not sure if I'm ready for Koen to go and I think I could probably teach him awhole lot more one on one with me. Also it would help Gavin to learn everything easier too. Things are more fun when there's two, I think Gavin would probably get pretty lonely. I know with Koen, he's learned everything at the same speed as Kaitin with them only 13months apart I might as well expect the same out of Koen as I do Kaitin. Which Koen has had no problem doing. Just like Gavin knows how to count to 10 already and almost recognizes the numbers too, cause he does flash cards with Kaitin and Koen. For those of you that I know will probably ask what our routine is, here's the low down.

* Flash cards- either numbers or letters

*Counting or singing the ABC's (Kaitin & Koen are both GREAT at both of these, we do it more for Gavin's benefit)

*Singing songs

*Workbooks

"Numbers or Letters" (I trade off days on these)

*Cutting Workbook and then pasting

*Tracing workbook

*15mins of reading

This all takes about an hour and half or so depending on how many songs they want to sing that day. LOL!

Kaitin working on his numbers

Finished Product!

Hard at work, I LOVE his faces!

Finish Product! Check out his name he wrote...

Gavin has quite reading time of his

own when the boys do their workbooks

Or Paints mommy a pretty picture!

Gavin's faces!

I had to do a post for just Gavin cause this was really his first 4th of July that he has cared about. Considering he was only 11 months old last year he didn't really care to much about it then. This year though he LOVED it. Grant and I just LOVED seeing his faces and hearing what he had to say about it. You all missed out! It was priceless! The joys of being parents is so GREAT! Couldn't ask for anything better! Here's my ADORABLE BABY BOY!

Waiting on the Fireworks!

He was running in circles around us

when the firework started!

"Shocked look when the first

one went off! Hilarious"

He just keep saying WOW, OH, Pretty!