Jam packed weekend!

We went to the Iowa Homecoming Parade Friday night and had lots of fun! After the parade was over, we went and grabbed a pizza and took it down to the capital lawn so that we could enjoy the music...Chuck Berry was there and he was awesome! I just wish we could have stayed a little longer.
Saturday my dad and I worked on Mark and my bedroom. We had this dark green wallpaper up that I didn't like since we moved in (8 years ago!) so I have been ripping it down for the last 3 weeks. I had the majority of it done, so dad started painting for me. HE DID AWESOME!!! I love it! Just the kind of thing I needed to give me motivation to put laundry away and keep my bed made...ha!
Sunday was spent going to church, cleaning the rest of the house, and relaxing.
I love weekends when I feel like I got a lot done, and this weekend was perfect.

Funky, Junky Hat

Quinn is such a Disney Channel fan. She likes to watch the show Witches of Waverly Place. The girl Alex and her best friend Harper have a funny saying every time they see someone wearing a funky hat. Quinn knows the whole thing and says it. She also has a funky hat so we had to film her doing it.

One year ago today...

I can't believe it has been a whole year since Maclain had to have his surgery to fix his ureter. I remember going into that day with such dread and nervousness, but also an excitement to get it over so we could move on. Today was finally the day that I could stop worrying about my little baby's kidney and he could be on the road to recovery. It was a very long wait while he was in surgery...it was over 5 hours. That seems forever especially when it's on a 2 month old. I guess when you think of fixing something as tiny as that little tube, you do want them to take their time. He had a wonderful surgeon, Dr. Austin, and I was so happy when it was over. I think I was the most scared when they took me back to recovery. Maclain was screaming because he was hungry after coming out of the anesthesia and I was scared to even hold him let alone nurse him with the 50 tubes and cords coming off of him. I was glad to get to a room and settle in. He slept so much the next few days and recovered so well. A few months later we went for another scan and it was great news. The kidneys normally function at 50% each. Going into surgery the left kidney was at 38% and the right was at 62%. They said it probably wouldn't improve but that the surgery would save his kidneys. When we got the report the left was at 48% and the right at 52%. We were so happy! We go again this December to see that everything is still functioning properly and that we won't have to worry anymore. Thank God for ultrasounds and that they were able to catch this so early. Thank God for my healthy little Makerdoodle! And thank God for my wonderful family who were by my side for it all. I don't think I could have handled going for the testing without my Mom and Mark. My Dad and Mom were there waiting through this surgery with us, and my sisters and Matt both came to visit. Thanks also to friends who all were supportive with phone calls and e-mails. Beth sent a really cute get well email from her, Addison and Nate. Jenny called the morning of (Very early) and cried with me and told me things would be fine. These are the times when I realize I am so blessed to have family close and friends who care.

Our Weekend

We had a great weekend! We went to the Balloon Glow on Friday night and even though it was fun hanging out with our our friends, it was sprinkling a little and they NEVER put any balloons up to glow. BUMMER! But it was fun listening to the music and watching the kids play. On Saturday we went to a parade and Maclain loved it. Of course he did..he watched a lot of cars driving by and got candy on top of it.
Saturday night at dinner Maclain finally said the most anticipated word...Quinn. I was able to capture it...yeah!
The rest of the weekend was spent cleaning, yard work, and I worked on removing wallpaper from our bedroom. It's going to be a long process, but it'll be worth it.

CAR!!!!

Maclain's favorite word in the world right now is "CAR!" His babysitter Judy may have to get earplugs for walks soon, because he says it so often. This video is very mild on what he usually does. What is it about turning a camera on a child and they stop doing what you are trying to capture?!?
Anyway, even though we all wish he would use more of the words he can say right now (mama, dada, Bella, Sissy, sit, papa, tree, owl, duck ) it is his favorite. And I love how excited he says it everytime he sees one.

Quinn went to her first Swing Crew concert Thursday night and had a blast. The band was so great and really kept the kids entertained. They even let the kids get on stage for a little dancing, so I had to share(and I will when I have time to wait for a movie upload). I think it is so cute! Notice Kade up there with her too. They were so proud that they got to go up on stage.
The weekend was very relaxing. We went out to a kid area on Sunday after church and Quinn jumped, bounced and did a reverse bungee jump ride. Maclain was perfectly content to just ride in the stroller. On Monday we went over to mom and dad's for a grill out and swim. Katie and Matt brought ribs, we brought party potatoes and mom and dad did the rest. It was a fun day.
We finished the weekend by driving down to see the fireworks tonight. We went late and ended up driving right where they were shooting them off. That was a little too close for comfort, but it was very cool. Quinn fell asleep on the ride home and I am glad so she'll be ready for school tomorrow.