Information Overload

It appears that I may have been a little slack in my updates... well, this post will cover a few bits and pieces of our lives over the last weeks..

Jasper has started his Gardisil immunisations. This is for the HPV virus. It is usually for girls to protect against cervical cancer, but there is also a good strong link to the prevention of head and neck cancer. Jasper, having FA, is at a super high risk of these types of cancer, so a series of 3 needles is not too much for him to suffer with! A dead arm for a day or so is as bad as it gets!

On the weekend, Jasper had a bye with baseball, and this coincided with Cubilee! Once a year, all the Cubs get together for fun and play. It was awesome!
We have had a park visit for Moxie's first outing.
We went to the Royal Show.
Jasper had Baseball Camp - where he learns more about how to play!

Here are some photos to show you what we have been up to.

Ahhh, the picnic table with the much needed bottle of wine! Moxie's first outing.

 My babies cuddling at the park

 one very unimpressed Jasper with Moxie hanging about

 Wrestle time on the trampoline - it's how they roll!

 At the Royal Show.
Molly and her chicken.

 Jasper got tired, so sat in the stroller for a while! (what other 9 year old can fit in a toddler stroller!)

 Jasper's new favorite obsession... bumper cars! Poppie looks a little scared!

 Sneaky Poppie telling Jasper who to ram and smash into!

 Then he looks so innocent, like butter wouldn't melt, while Jasper gets all the flack!

 Cute as a button.

 Watching some of the horses with Poppie.

 Jasper and Grandy cuddles

 Molly on the carousel with Poppie

 Waiting for the lads to get off the bumper cars, my mummy and my baby.

 Jasper waiting for his turn on the bumper cars...

 All geared up for baseball..

 The new baseball shirt from the back.

 and the front pocket side.

 At Baseball camp, taking a catch.

 Molly chasing the birds at the end of one of the baseball camp sessions.

 Cubilee - the climbing wall.

 Molly and I at Cubilee.

 Jasper and some other Cub on a balance beam with stuffed pillows,,, smashing each other!

 Jasper and his Cub mate Sam, on the go carts.

 Archery

 On the combat course

 Jasper and Sam.

 Another gun game!

 Melbourne Cup day at my house... the kids were the horses, and they raced! (yes, Molly was topless, and diaper-less... just  a skirt)

 and raced some more

 and a little more racing!

there has been a bit going on, and not many photos... some are on the camera, and some are on my phone, so today, you get what I can download...
we are in the midst of assignment time with Jasper. He has 2 big projects due this week, and the last couple of weeks, we have had some suprise assignments due... I say suprise, as they were given out when Jasper was off school for 4 weeks last term (our USA trip), and we hadn't been told about them... They are all complete, so it is just the current ones now...

Nothing else to report, that I can think of!!

Thanks for reading.

Brooke

October Blood Counts

Ok, so I have been slack and haven't yet finished off the entries for the end of our August USA trip... I might get to it at some point...
I also have school holiday frivolity to share, but again, not today...
This is the post about Jasper and his quarterly blood counts...

It's pretty good news!
The past 9 months have seen a slight but steady drop in Jasper's platelet counts... I don't need to explain to any other FA parent out there that I had 2 sleepless nights coming into Monday's counts.

I was so stressed out about it, that when some wally stole my car park (it was one I waited 15 minutes for - and he WAS in the wrong), I put my window down, and told him off... he started back at me, and I told Jasper to block his ears, and cursed at this man!
I drove off and burst into tears! MADNESS! This guy was in the wrong, and he knew he was, but seriously? I yell and curse at him? Over a car park?? I was slightly stressed...
Poor Jasper! He kept saying "It's ok mum, he was an idiot" (usually I tell him off for using that word, but I wasn't really up to it!).
We parked (eventually, and a long long way away in a super expensive carpark), and went to see our favourite 3B nurse, Sister Lee.

Blood paperwork was handed over, and off we go to the vampires...
then the wait begins for the results.

We weren't sure if Jasper was getting a thumb prick, or a vein drain, as I had asked for a lot of additional information about his blood, so you can imagine his relief when they only wanted a thumb prick.

The results were in, and they were good...

Platelets went from 105 to 122 (normal is 150-400)
White Cells went from 4.1 to 4.5 (norm is 4.5 - 14.5)
Haemaglobin went from 125 to 130 (normal is 115-155)
Red Cells went from 3.49 to 3.49 (normal is 4.0-6.0)
Neutrophils went from 0.94 to 1.39 (normal is 1.5 - 8.0)

So all in all, not really much change, but the jump in platelets made me smile a really big smile!

I forgot where I wrote Jasper's height and weight down, but I remember he put on about 500g, and grew nearly 2 cm in the 3 months... all in all, I am one happy momma!

SO no photos this post, but more fun stuff at some point in the future!!!

Thanks for reading,

Brooke

The White Mountains Part 2

Ok, so this post is about a walk with the kids (bear hunting, as you do with a 9 and 2 year old), and Santa's Village.

The funniest thing happened on our way home from Santa's Village.. Paul got pulled over by a State Trooper. He was travelling too close to the car in front.
I was wearing my tie-dye Camp Sunshine t-shirt, and once the State Trooper had Paul's license and the rental car paperwork, he asked if we had ever been to Camp Sunshine...
We said we had just been, and that was the reason we come from Australia to Maine.
He said he goes there too with his son, who is 16 and they go for Kidney week. He donated his kidney when his son was an infant.
I think it saved Paul from the local lock-up (well, from a ticket at least!). He was a real nice trooper.. even when I asked him if I could have a photo with him, he was polite when he said they weren't allowed :(

Ok, so onto our bear hunting expedition...

this is obviously not the bear... but Molly wanted me to take a photo of her with my new camera... works pretty good, I think!

 Off we go!!!

 Ahhh, the serenity...

 SHHHH MUM!! There's a bear...

 where???

 no bear... but a nice panoramic, yes?

Ok, so bear hunting was an epic fail (thank goodness - I told Paul that if we saw one, I would throw the children first... he said "no, you throw yourself..."  what a choice!!)
Santa's Village was on the menu for the day. We set off at 8.30am, as the park opened at 9.30am, and was about an hour away.. we got good parking!

Molly banged her head, and was all upset... this was in the line to go in the entry... nothing a kiss from #1 daddy wont fix!

 The kids getting their exam from Elfabet University...

 Finding our first answer on the exam,,, (there are 26 elves dotted about the Village... you put your card into them as you find them, and they punch out a letter that is on the card. the result is a Christmas tree shape of holes!)

 My little cupcakes!

 Jasper and his peanut elf... Our first trip here (I'm guessing it was 2007??) Jasper had his photo taken with this elf... we loved it because Paul's pet name for Jasper is Peanut...

 Molly and Jasper on the snowman. Molly wasn't too sure of him!

 On one of Santa's sleighs

 How tall is she? 3 foot!

 How tall was he? 4 foot 2 inches!

 driving me crazy....

 driving her daddy crazy....

 Molly and her own elf... Volly Molly was her name!!!

 Jasper and I on the roller coaster!!!

 Putting out fires

 Over the bridge to the Little Elf House

 My giant son on the Elf Chair

 Miles Family meets Big Bunny

 carousel ride for the carousel addict...

 Jasper pretends to not like it, but we know he loves it all!!

 Paul and his covered bridge!
and yes, Jasper is 9 and sitting in the stroller...

 The first (and only other) time we came to Santa's Village, we went on this ride first... we call it the "poop your pants ride". Needless to say, we didn't go on it this year!!!

 Gingerbread family of 3.

 Molly unsure about the reindeer

 Jasper being brave to feed one (for about 2 seconds, then he threw the carrots on the floor for the poor reindeer to sniffle for)

 brave girl feeding one! they are little carrots, and big mouths!

 on the sleigh sky ride. it takes you up high over the park.

 posers

 these penguins are trash cans... lift the hat and drop your trash in! Molly got obsessed towards the end with photos and trash...

 We are also obsessed with squirrels and chipmunks... can you see the teeny chipmunk by the tree? we were so excited!

 penguin (not a trash can one, but still obsessed, none the less)

 Jasper in Santa's chair at his workshop

 Molly had a go too

 snuggle time on Santa's chair

 Molly made a t-shirt with hand prints for reindeer antlers. Jasper had one when we came here before, so he made something else, but it is a gift for a friend of mine, so no images were taken!

 my kind of balance!!! (btw, I had a gingerbread man, and he was DELICIOUS!)

 Waiting to see Santa.. Molly got told off for something, and who comes running to the rescue? Big Brother (AKA Little Dad).

 Aw, Santa loving!!!

 Did you make the list? (Couldn't see my name on there...)

 Molly and her cookie with Jasper the long legged boy!

 On the train, self portrait

 Water park fun

 for some, and not for others!

 Lime snow cone? Gross.

 I made Jasper go on the ferris wheel with me... it was awesome. Not too fast, and spectacular views!

 See Paul and Molly? There they are, down on the ground!

 Family snap on the way out the door... thank you random Santa's Village worker.

This is what the conversation with "Rudy" went like:
Jasper: hello?
Rudy: hi
Jasper: whatcha doing?
Rudy: nothing. what about you?
Jasper: nuthin
Brooke: say "going home"
Jasper: goiong home
Rudy: well, drive safe then
Molly: bye bye
Rudy: bye bye
Jasper: would you be quiet
Brooke and Paul: stop being so rude!

Ok, thanks for reading, time for bed. It's been a long day!!!

Brooke