Sewing and Christmas fun!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

My cutie pies before church! Kenton is always serious, really...I don't have many pictures where he is smiling. Mostly he has 'angry eyes'.

Aunt Sandy (Dan's talented wife) made this personalized blanket for Audree a long time ago. Sandy and I recently found the left over fabric so I made this cute nightgown for her to match it. It is a little big because I made it in a size 7, but at least it will last!

Audree got this mural from my mom for Christmas and lots of little butterflies to put all around her room. She loves it and now her walls are not bare. Thanks mom!

These were the kids Christmas jammies, even though the print has nothing to do with Christmas. It is just cute fabric that Sandy had and it says "I am a Child of God". Kenny is too little for real jammy pants so I made his like overalls with button shoulders. I love matching siblings!! So fun.
I hope that everyone has felt the love of our Savior this Christmas Season. I know that I have many times. It really helps me to keep an eternal perspective on life and always remember what is most important to me: loving my family! I really do have the best family ever and I am so glad that we will be together forever. Always say 'I love you!' to the people who matter most. And if you didn't get a Christmas card from me, I am so sorry, but we ran out of stamps and money or maybe I just don't have your address but either way, here it is:

Tribute

This past week has been very sad for my family. My cousin, Kari, lost her husband a week ago today. The sad story is explained here: http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/local/tempe/...firefighter-laid-to-rest-12-12-2009

It is hard to see how a Higher Power didn't have a hand in this tragedy. It was Skylar's time to go. He was described by his father to be a great son, and by his Firechief to be the best firefighter, and by his mother as a miracle. I am so glad to know of our Father's plan for us and that we will all be together again. I don't know how people survive tragedies like this without that knowledge. Kari is an amazingly strong woman. Five years is not long to spend with the love of your life. Those precious kids will only have the memories of others to remember their father with, but they are good, strong memories. So many people are comming together to help Kari and her family. If anyone feels the desire, an account has been setup at Wells Fargo in the name of Stock Family Donation Fund to help support Kari short term as needed. The acct# is 7218152986. Skylar we love and miss you. An excellent father, husband and selfless example to us all. http://www.a...bc15.com/content/news/southeastvalley/tempe/story/Tempe-firefighter-dies-when-tree-falls-on-tent/qz0klcUsR0exyQK8Hcs1HQ.cspx

Here is a link to another blog who is helping them out: http://summertimedesigns.blogspot.com/

We love you Kari and you will always be in our prayers! Rest in peace, Skylar.

I Hope You Dance

I read something today that I hope I can pass on to my kids, not just by saying it, but by living it.

"...I'd also like to think that time and age are like cousins -
they're relative.
Who said you have to go by actual miles?
If you didn't know how old you were, how old would you be?
(me, I'm sticking with five.)

I'll even argue that you can bottle youth.
What you store it in is all up to you.
(I suggest your heart)
If you can figure out a way to keep
the energy and gumption and fire alive,
you'll always stay young.
And where there's youth, there's hope...
where there's hope, there's wonder...
where there's wonder, there's faith...
where there's faith, there's chance...
where there's chance, there's love...
where there's love, there's music...
and dancing."

I hope that I can find all these things in my life. I want to always choose to dance, to overcome myself and live as I was intended.

Almost 4 Months Old!

He is so fun! I love him so much.

Here we go again

Dear Hospital,
I hope I never see your stinking face ever again!
Love Always,
Stefanie

It came back! I never welcomed it either. Optic Neuritis can kiss my lovely cheeks. This time I was 6 days in the hospital for a longer treatment of steroids. My doc hopes this was actually the same case I had before and that I just wasn't treated long enough last time to totally cure me. Lets just hope so, 'cause every two weeks in the hospital is going to wear on me. Plus the stupid drugs are giving me such bad acne! I feel like a pubescent teenager all over again, yuck. And he said it is most likely MS, so I'd rather not talk about it.
Anyway, Halloween was so fun. I had a blast making all our costumes, and they fit our personalities perfectly.
This was taken at our ward party on Halloween night. And now that its over I am making plans to put up our Christmas tree ;)
Christmas is my favorite. I hate to put Thanksgiving to the side either, but Christmas is about being thankful too! So for our next family night we will be putting up our tree, and talking about all the symbolism involved in this great season of remembrance.

sneaky boy!

So our new house has an interesting layout. One side of the house has the family room/kitchen/dining room and the other side has two bedrooms on either side of a bathroom. Kind of like the bathroom is a hallway, but not quite a 'jack and jill'. The kids' rooms are on one side of the bathroom and the office and master bedroom are on the other side.

Ethan has figured out that he can sneak from his room through the bathroom into my room and not be seen! I think it is so cute. I see him do it almost every night within minutes of me putting him to bed. He only thinks he is sneaky! Whenever Clark catches him he gets put right back in his own room, but I dont do that. He always falls right to sleep and he is not doing anything mischevious, so I just think it is so cute! Something about daddy and mommy's room makes falling asleep easier. I can totally relate. Whenever I couldn't sleep I would always end up on the floor in my parents room, even as a teenager (I am surprised I never saw or heard anything I would not have wanted to see or hear!!). So tonight when I was about to retire I found this and it made me happy:

My Bucket List:

So I was glad to hear that I am not going crazy and there really is something wrong with me.

I saw my family doctor last Friday about my right eye. It is super blurry and painful to move it. I guess my eye wasn't dialting right and she sent me right down to the E.R. But I was sent to a crapy E.R. and they did two lame tests to check for scratches, even when I told them that I didn't scratch my eye and it was not red, and also they checked the pressure, which seemed to be normal, then I was sent home with a vicodine perscription and told to see an opthamologist. I called my insurance to find an eye doctor and they told me, basically, that I wasn't covered unless I had diabetes, glaucoma, cateracts, or if I had a special note from my doctor (apparently a note from the E.R. isn't good enough). I called the opthamologist just to see if I could afford to pay cash for a visit just to rule out any big problems and turns out that I cant afford it ($220 just to make an appt, then more for any tests). So I was pretty frustrated with the whole thing and decided to just wait a few more days and see if it goes away on its own, at least I had a vicodine perscription if I needed it. Clark kept telling me not to give up, so Monday I was at Wal-Mart (I love Wal-Mart) and saw that they had a coupon to see their optometrist for only $35. I made an appointment for the next day when the doctor would be back. If nothing else I would just get a new glasses perscription to compensate for my bad eye. At my appointment I did the basic 'look into the light' test then the doc came to talk to me and get a better look into my eye. At first he said that my astigmatism has gotten 3x worse probably due to having a baby, then he looked inside my eye and started freaking out. He was saying that my optic nerve is pushed forward but he doesn't know why. Then he started asking me if I have been loosing my balance, speaking differently, or blurting random things. I said no then he left the room. He came back in a panic and said I should go to the E.R. After I told him about my last few days he called some more people, including my family doctor, who was already closed for the day. He told me to call another doctor right away who would see me today and send a refurral to this eye center in Mesa. My insurance was retarded and despite the urgency from my doctor they told me I would just have to wait a few days for an authorization number. They said there was nothing else I could do so I decided to wait. Later the next day the optometrist called me to follow up and I told them about the lame insurance deal and she told me that I could not wait and I needed to go to the E.R. right away. I kinda started to panic at this point because I was guessing the worst (a brain tumor) because the doctors were so urgent about it. I called my wonderful, always-there-for-me mother and she took my kids while I went to the E.R. I was pretty surprised at how quickly I was called in because the place was packed, which scared me a little more. They preped me for an M.R.I. and found a lesion/mass behind my optic nerve in the lining about the size of a large pea. Then they told me I needed a steroid treatment that would take three days, so I was moved upstairs and settled in. Lots of tests and three days later there is still no sure diagnosis, but this is what they tell me: I definately have optic neuritis (an auto-immune disorder) which could mean a few things. I could just have optic nuritis and that will clear up on its own and that's all it would ever be with no other effects, or optic neuritis could be an effect of M.S. (a lifetime problem), or I could have a tumor, which would need to be removed by cranial surgery. The streoids have brought my sight back up to about 90%, but I still have pain and odd color perception. The spinal tap on Monday will give a better diagnosis of M.S. (but it will take about a week for results) and I will see the opthamologist on Thurday. The neurosurgeon wants another MRI in four weeks to check the mass and I guess we should know more by that time, unless my symptoms dont improve or if they worsen before that time. So I am finishing my steroids here at home and hoping for the best. I would be happiest to hear that it was just the neuritis and nothing else, if not I think I would rather have a tumor that could be removed, despite a crazy scary operation. I would be most sad, I think, to have M.S. because of all the problems it could cause.



So now starts a bucket list:

I will express more love

I will pray harder

I will forgive all

I will serve more often

I will cherish everything about my little children

I will be more alive in every day

I will let the little things go

I will take better care of myself



Of couse I am kidding when I say 'bucket list' because I plan on sticking around for a long time. But I now feel more dedicated to being a better person and growing stronger in my faith. You never know what tomorrow holds...



I was able to see my kids out in the parking lot of the hospital yesterday and it lifted my spirits to the sky!!

Kenton's Blessing

The little man of the hour:

In his tux, looking so handsome!

What a special day for our family! People came from far and near to bless and celebrate our beautiful boy. We have such a loving family.

Uncle Daivd took the last of the yummy juice.

Ethan, Clark, Geoff and my dad enjoying sandwiches and my new lovely curtains that the talented Sandra helped me with!

Clark's family: Brit, Uncle Kim, Lisa, Kristen, Kendra and Kimball.

More happy family. It was a full house!

We have been counting our blessings and we feel so rich!

Love for the kids

Ethan is always so much fun. I love this age, I guess it seems that he is just getting more fun every year. He says the darndest things and keeps us laughing, and he is so sweet. He is interacting a bit more with his little brother, but mostly he just says 'YOUR BABY IS CRYING MOM!!'

Audree is such a good sister to her brothers. She and Ethan will play together all day long, I might have to help with a few disagreements but overall I think they get along great and I only hope it lasts. She loves to hold Kenny and seem to think she can walk around with him just fine, but I am following close behind. She has had a rough start with first grade, but I am learning to give more love and patience. I love this girl.

Kenny is a wonderful addition to our family and I just love him to death!!

archives

The birthing experience went very quick. I was scheduled for an induction ealry on thursday so when I went in they just broke my water because I was aldready dialated to a four. I opted for the IV drugs beacuse I was nervous for the epidural, big mistake!! The drugs knocked me out, but I could still feel ALL the pain. I must have been making a lot of noise because someone finally asked me if I wanted an epidural and I was able to shake my head 'YES!' So by that time I was at an eight and about an hour later was able to start pushing. Four hours in all and three pushes later we could hear him crying and it was all over. My doctor had to use suction to get him to turn because he was sunny-side-up, but it was quick and he came right out. But let me tell you: IT HURT!!! right up unitl I was able to have the epidural I thought I was going to die. I couldn't get my eyes open or speak to tell someone how much pain I was in from the labor. I must have gotten the epidural early with my other two kids beacuse I dont remember it hurting THAT bad. Yikes! At least I didn't have to get stitches. Whew, but it's over and I am so glad that I did it! I love my baby, even when he wakes me up from a deep and much needed sleep.

I did it! It was very exhausting, but I managed in the end to birth a healthy little boy.

I LOVE this boy!

Our new complete family.

Ethan would not hold him. He hardly looked at him!

We are so happy that he is finally here and not causing any more trouble for my body.

Proud daddy!

7lbs. 5 oz.

Here he is, a few days old, in his swing at home.


Audree is so happy to have a new baby to hold!



He's here! Kenton is such a joy. The love in our family increases with every beautiful child! Heavenly Father has blessed us with a healthy bundle of cuteness! That's all we wanted.

cute sleeping kenny and crayons

If you can't read these prices, let me tell you: sixteen crayons will cost you one dollar and twelve cents, or twenty-four crayons will cost you thirty cents. For real???!!!???

This is my heart melting:

still pregnant

My amazingly talented cousin Kendyl was gracious enough to shoot some photos for us. I think they turned out to be my favorite ever! Thank you Kendyl, this was fun.

Ethan is 3 1/2!

Audree will be six in two weeks!

They grow up too fast... I only hope I can remember how much fun they are when they are all grown up and gone

Updates

Well, it has been quite a while since I have been able to log on to blogger. I am not sure why but I wasn't able to get to my account for some unknown reason. I don't even know how it is fixed now, but it is and so I have lots to say.

I did go into labor again last friday. I was at my parents house watching the kids on the pool when I thought my water broke. It wasn't this big gushing thing so I wasn't sure. There was just a puddle on the chair and when I stood up it went down my leg. I smelled it and was sure it wasn't urine (I have been dehydrated so its been smelly) but there was never a big gush so I wasn't sure what it was. I thought if it was my waterbag then I would go into labor soon so I waited about an hour before calling the doctor. Of course they wanted me to come and just to be sure. It turned out that I had a small leak that plugged itself up, but that put me into labor. So we started the crazy trebutaline shots again. My wonderful mother was able to stay with me in the hospital and witness the side effects of that drug. The alarm was going off every other minute because my heart rate was so fast, they almost gave me oxygen because I was kinda freaking out. But we made it through and the drugs worked again to stop labor and I was able to go home. We just want to make it at least two more weeks then the doc wont stop labor if it comes early. I did get the steroid shots, so I feel less stress about having a premie, but man did that hurt! My rear was sore for days! Well the nurse wasn't very nice about it either. It was my second dose so I knew what to expect, but there was no warning and she stabbed me with the needle! I totally jumped and wanted to cry (I am such a baby). I am just glad that it's over. Now I am nervous about going through labor after all this 'bed rest' because I am so out of shape and gaining weight like crazy. I dont want to think about it, changing the subject:

Clark is doing so well in school, on every honor list, I am so proud. We have our seven year wedding anniversary this month, and we are happy to report no itching. Audree will start first grade in August! She now has her yellow belt in Tae Kwon Do and is almost six years old! Ethan is a very busy three and a half year old. He says the darndest things and keeps us laughing everyday.

Close call

Last night I started having contractions after work at about 11pm. I thought they would go away if I tried to sleep, but they only got worse. So we dropped the kids at dad and moms and went to the hospital at about 1 in the morning (thanks guys, youre the best!). I was contracting every minute and a half (they were very painful) and dialated to a one. I heard two other babies being born in the rooms down the hall which made me very nervous. I am so greatful for modern medicine. The contractions finally slowed after three doses of shots and lots of IV fluids and I stopped dialating. I am home now, still on medicine to stop the contractions, but if they dont go away completely by tomorrow morning I have to go back in. Bed rest is no fun. If any one wants to visit me this week, I would love it!
I have to say that I am very frustrated with my body right now! Why can't it just work right! Ugh!

Kenton Dale Burningham

top left: face profile, top right: boy part, bottom left: full front, bottom right: foot on knee

29 Years Old! yikes

You are a great dad and a wonderful husband. I am so glad that I have you forever!

Happy Birthday honey! (I can't believe that I married such an old man) I love you.

Phoenix Zoo

It was freezing outside! The water acutally felt warm. It was fun to touch the stingrays, but no fun to be wet all the rest of the cold day at the zoo! We got the year pass so if anyone wants to go with us call me!

Ethan

Ethan, I love you. You bring so much joy and laughter to our family. From your rough beginning, yet quick recovery, to the joys of potty training. From the nights I hear you pray, to the days I can see the world through your eyes. All this wonder in growth and learning has made our forever family closer. These three years have been better for me because of you. Happy Birthday son!

My best friend, Zofran

I haven't thrown up in a week! I hope this is the end of it. I am in my second trimester now, so I should start feeling better on my own, but I dont dare stop the medication just yet. And I gained one pound this week! I am not showing yet, which makes me sad. I am a little anxious to have a big belly and get to the fun part, but, I know, all in good time. I got to hear the heartbeat this morning and Ethan was with me. He thought is was pretty cool, but I am not entirely convinced that he has any idea of what is going on. He keeps telling me that he has a baby in his tummy too.

Totally random, but I wanted to post this picture of my family from December. I cant believe how we have grown!

The News

So we are expecting baby number three this July! We are so excited. I think I will be a little more excited when I am feeling better though. I have been so sick. I was really nauseous with Ethan, but not this bad. There were about 2 days where I couldn't keep anything down so I went to the ER to get rehydrated, which helped for about two days, but I am still loosing at least one meal a day. While I am not feeling well at all, I am glad to be able to carry my own children. I just keep telling myself that this is a blessing, and maybe my last pregnancy. It seems that each one just gets worse for me, so I am not sure if I will be up for another round. I am due on Audree's birthday so she is so excited. She keeps telling me that we can put the baby in a box with a beautiful bow and thats all she wants for her birthday. She says the darndest things, but she is so sweet. Tonight when she was on her way to bed she told me that I should dream about already having the new baby and that I am not sick anymore. She has been a great helper for me lately. I know this is gross, but Ethan pooped on the carpet this morning and she was so nice to clean it for me while I was loosing my breakfast in the bathroom, and she did a great job too! What would I do without her! We had a yummy breakfast too. I made sweedish pancakes with fresh strawberries and powered sugar! Yummy! too bad I had to loose it, at least it was good going down.