Brian's diagnoses...

So, we had an appointment with the ENT on Monday to find out the results of the MRI and other tests Brian has done. The prognosis is......none of the above. Apparently Brian's symptoms touch on all of the before mentioned medical problems but none point to one definite diagnosis, so we are off to yet another doctor, a neurologist this time to hopefully find out what is going on in Brian's head.

Salome Annual Chili-cookoff

Well, today was the McMullen Valley Annual Chili and Salsa Cook-off. The community showed up in droves. There were art exhibits, entertainment, music, singing, dancing, a classic car and hot rod show (Brian's Favorite) and even an exhibition on precision motorcycle riding. There were also model airplane shows and a huge water balloon fight for the kids. It was all around a good day.




This thing threw us for a loop...it's called a t-rex, if you
want more angles of it Brian got a bunch (of course) Maybe
I'll have him post some more of his favorite cars he saw.

Our life in February

So, a couple of months ago Brian had a few days where he was dizzy and a little uncoordinated with a plugged ear. The episode passed and things went back to normal. The ear stayed plugged so we rinsed it out with warm water and peroxide and that seemed to help. At the end of January beginning of February Brian got a cold followed by what we were told was an ear infection, with the symptoms of dizziness/ nausea, ear blockage and the ringing. Brian went on an antibiotic and ear drops hoping they would help the symptoms. After a week they hadn't helped and his dizzy episodes were getting worse so we took him back into the Doctor and were told there were a few explanations for his symptoms. The first and least invasive is positional vertigo, the next is meniere's disease, and after seeing an ENT (ear, nose & throat) specialist were told it could also be a tumor. So after several visits and an MRI, balance and hearing test...the doctor will tell us on Monday. But until then if you could keep Brian in your prayers and ask that he might be able to return to work soon we would appreciate it very much.

A new baby update...

Well, I have waited my allotted time and now I have to post something new.
The pregnancy is going well. I had an appointment 3 weeks ago and got some pictures I kept meaning to put up of Skeletor baby. In the first one you can see "his/her" eye sockets and face and such. In the second one the baby is actually cuddling with the umbilical cord. It was actually really interesting to see. I had a medical student doing the ultrasound and she said she had never seen anything like it (probably because she was a medical student).

The Pregnancy

I figure I should let everyone know how baby #3 is doing. I have signed up for a weekly e-mail updating me on how the baby is growing and the like. My favorite part is a section where they compare the baby's growth to different foods. http://www.babycenter.com/slideshow-baby-size. Week twelve has the baby at the size of a lime. you can check out the rest of the slideshow...it's pretty funny to see what fruit or vegetable they compare the baby to next. More to come. My first Dr's appointment is the 27th. Wish me luck.

Christmas & New Years

Well, I figure it's about time for another update.

Brian and I have had a parade of people through our house over the last month. Christmas eve came with a sick Devyn, and most of Brian's brothers and sisters. We had a birthday dinner with 13 people in our small Salome home. We borrowed quads from a member of our ward and entertained most everyone that way. Christmas morning was a whirlwind...I may have been opening presents but for the most part I didn't realize what I had gotten until Monday the 29th, after all the traveling was done. We had everyone leave by Saturday the 27th along with me and the girls who headed down to Tucson to see little Liam's blessing. It was great to see everyone and spend time with family and friends. On Monday we went to the park and got some fun pictures.






We left Monday night, Dad and Viv stopped by for the night on Tuesday and left Wednesday morning for Utah and Becca decided to come visit us on New years day! The girls loved having her here and it was nice to have her company. She left on the 9th. Then Brian's sister Cassey came for a visit Monday the 12th intending to leave Wednesday morning but we sucked her in 'till today (Friday). We took her out to Quartzsite to see a huge swap meet that takes place there every year. (we also took Becca but we went too late in the day and didn't get to see much) We saw lots of shops found some great t-shirts that change color in the sun (from a shop called Del-Sol that has locations all over) and even got a chance to see baby turtles. We have decided that they would make great pets and are going to get three. We just need to buy the tank and some other supplies, then we'll go back and buy our cute little guys. They already have names too. Devyn will name hers "Mr. Pettybones" Koris will be called "Turtle" and Brian and I will name ours "Tank"(as in a steel vehicle with a gun not a fish tank). They are Red eared sliders if you want to look them up. Way cute and very friendly. The girls won't be able to play with them much for the first year until their shells get thicker and the turtles are hardier but after that they will be hands on!

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving this year was wonderful. Because Brian's schedule is wacky he doesn't get to spend many holidays with Family unless the family is willing to come out here. Well, this year they did. We had My Dad, my three sisters Sariah, Lizzie and Becca and Sariah's fiancee Brian all here for Thanksgiving. Sam and Jenn couldn't make it. Their new baby was a little too young to be making the 4 hour drive, plus they were just getting him on a schedule. We missed you Sam and Jenn!

The weekend started for me on Tuesday when I got to go into Phoenix to pick up Dad from the airport, we then did all of our shopping, and drove the hour and a half back to Salome. On Wednesday we hung out...Dad did some work, I did some cleaning and the girls played. Wednesday night I drove back into Glendale to go see Coldplay in concert with the three girls! It was amazing! We were all crazy excited! After the concert we went to get road munchies and didn't end up on the road until midnight. I took the two younger girls with me while Sariah traveled back to Tucson for a Thanksgiving with her soon to be in-laws. It had been raining earlier in the day and a lot of the roads into Salome were flooded, we ended up taking a detour that added almost an hour to our drive time. We made it home around 2:20am.

Thanksgiving Day was fun, we made a Ham, rolls from scratch, mashed potatoes from scratch, yams, green bean casserole, and of course pie. Sariah and Brian came up on Friday and we had 2nd Thanksgiving with a Turkey, leftovers from the day before with the addition of cranberry sauce and gravy. Two wonderful days! Saturday we went out shooting (a must if you know Brian at all) and then all our company left. It was wonderful to have them here.

I am Thankful for:

My wonderful Husband who supports us,
My beautiful daughters who brighten my life,
The home we live in,
The Gospel that leads us,
And the many many blessings we have received in our lives!