A STORY BY GRACIE

Here is a story written by Gracie:

Did you no? Sharks eat dolphins. If you dident no, now you no. And Dolphins like pepol. Did you no that? Well I new that for a long time. Did you no? If you see a dolphin laying on its back that means its not alive.

*I thought this was just too cute not to share!

CRASH, BANG, BONK

The other day Gracie ran into the slide playing at school. She never has been very graceful, but makes up for it with charm and overall cute factor!

BEYOND PINK BARBIE PARTY

Today, Gracie was lucky enough to go to a "Beyond pink Barbie party" held at Gonzaga University. She went with her friend (and our neighbor) Carollynn...and these two sweet girls had the time of their lives! Carollynn's mom did the girls' hair and took them to the party. There was a dj, fashion show, barbie crafts and dancing with "real barbies". All the tables were decorated in pink, pink, pink! There were pink balloons everywhere.  Each table had their own Barbie who sat at their table and visited with them. They also made their own perfume, had their nails done, and rode in a limousine!! When they got home Gracie said "I just had the best day of my life"!

This is a "kids-helping-kids" fundraiser where all proceeds support local children's programs. You can't beat that!We will definately be back next year!

ONE YEAR AGO

One year ago, we had the scare of our life when Gracie became drastically ill. She was having severe headaches, neck pain and temperatures of 104-105. After several visits to her pediatrician, two traumatic visits to the E.R, eleven I.V attempts and a mommy breakdown when I cried to her doctor that I was scared for my daughter, she was diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia. Little did we know that would be the least of our concerns, as a few days later we discovered that she also had meningitis.

Our sweet little 5 year old went through sedation, MRI's, CT's, and ultimately a spinal tap to determine what was wrong with her. When the neurologist told us his diagnosis, I felt my world spin. Late at night, after Paco had left to be home with Cole, I sat and just stared at her, feeling scared to death that we would lose her. Meningitis is an inflamation of the tissue around the brain. It is a very scary thing. There are two types of meningitis, viral and bacterial. Viral meningitis is common, and often goes undiagnosed since it bears the same symptoms as the regular flu. Bacterial meningitis, is much, much more serious. Left untreated, it will be fatal, in a very short period of time. Gracie was treated for bacterial meningitis, due to the fact that her spinal tap was inconclusive because there were already antibiotics in her spinal fluid that were treating her pneumonia.

The first few days, she was sedated because her head pain was so bad...

then, we started out slowly by going for rides in the wagon...."play time" with a therapist....who was assessing her thought processes, cognitive thinking, and checking for any long-term damage to her brain. (none!)going for a walk along the fish bridge....working on spending more time sitting upright....this was a big factor in her being able to come home.
Her last day in the hospital, feeling better and happy to have gotten a bath!! It's funny, every time she wears these pajamas it brings back all of these memories...After 5 days, we were able to bring Gracie home with a picc line, which is an I.V that is inserted in your arm, and snaked through your veins to your heart, so that your heart can mix the medication quickly and distribute it throughout your body. Madge, our home nurse, brought us an I.V pump, $5000.00 worth of I.V antibiotics, and all the supplies we would need to go along with that. She taught us how to flush Gracie's line, and how to use the I.V pump to administer meds for 30 minutes twice a day, for 10 days. Thank goodness for this technology that allowed us to do this at home, otherwise she would have spent an additional 2 weeks in the hospital getting the antibiotics.

She missed nearly a month of Kindergarten! Her wonderful teacher called her daily after school, and her classmates sent her 23 cards that they made. She was (and is!) very loved by many. We were so thankful to our friends and family who were there for us! It was a scary time for our family, and only by the grace of God, and the prayers of many were we able to stay strong through it.
Now, she is back to her happy, sweet little self and we just couldn't love her more!!!

A LETTER BY GRACIE

Yesterday, I found this letter written by Gracie in her take-home folder:

"Dear family,
Hi this is your daughter speking. To day at school Im feeling home sike. Case I miss you and I love you. To Jesus's heart and back. I cry becas I love you verry much. And I like you gise in my family. I like dad becase he gives us monton dew. And I like it about my mom she looks just like me.
Love, Gracie

Isn't that sweet? So sweet in fact that I will overlook the fact that Daddy is giving them mountain dew when I'm not around. Who in their right mind gives a kid mountain dew? :)

MRS. M

Last year, we put Gracie in all-day kindergarten. Yes, it was expensive, but we needed the flexibility with our work schedules and she was SO eager for school. Needless to say, she was tremendously successful, and, even with missing a month of school due to illness, she graduated from Kindergarten with flying colors. I credit alot of this to Mrs. M, her teacher.

Mrs. M is a gentle, caring, patient and all-out amazing teacher who will have a spot in our hearts forever. When Grace was hospitalized with meningitis and subsequently home-bound with an I.V line for 2 weeks following, Mrs. M spoke with her every day. She kept her up to date on the fun things that were going on in the classroom. Her classmates made her 22 get-well cards. When we stopped by to visit and pick up some school work, she was greeted with loving hugs and "I missed you's". In their "end of the year" scrapbooks, she included a letter to be opened on the day they graduate from high school. Over this past summer, she sent all her Kindergartners postcards from Maui. She made "her kids" feel loved and full of self worth. She was willing to put forth alot of extra effort to do the extra things. This is what makes her remarkable. To Gracie, all of these things meant the world to her. The last day of Kindergarten was tough on all of us. We really felt like she was family to us. We talk of Mrs. M all the time.

Fast forward to today. As we were perusing the apples at the grocery store today, we heard a familiar voice behind us saying "Is that my Gracie?". There she was...Mrs. M. Gracie ran to her and they had a big hug. It was a wonderful moment. She asked us what class Grace was in this year, and when we told her she was in a 1/2 combo class she said "Oh I am so glad! I recommended that she be placed in that class because it would be more challenging for her. It's a privilege for her to be there." Mrs. M was so good about recognizing Gracie's ability and eagerness to learn. We had a wonderful visit, lots more hugs, and a promise to go and visit her old classroom soon. As we parted ways, I had a bittersweet feeling of affection and appreciation for how she has changed our lives.

Thank you, Mrs. M. We will never forget you.

SHE WHO HAS STYLE

Need I say more? This girl has got it going on!All that cuteness AND a brother who adores her? She's got it made!

GRACIE'S SCARF

I finished Gracie's scarf, and she is SO proud! She wore it at school the whole day after I gave it to her. I asked her if she wasn't a bit too hot with it on inside, and she replied "Yes, but I just knew it was so full of Mom-love that I had to wear it! Awwwww....I love me some Gracie. and Daddy.

GRACIE