Fabulous Fall Days

  Fall is here and it has been so great getting to spend many evenings outside. Allison wants to be outside all the time, which gives me many days of enjoying this beautiful weather. Lately we have had a very busy schedule. We have had several weekend trips planned. When I look at my calendar I am surprised how quickly October is speeding by. I wish it could be Fall all year around but, unfortunately winter will be here before we know it. 

  A couple of weeks ago we spent the weekend in Kentucky visiting my family. Allison had so much fun getting to spend time with her cousins. She played all weekend long and slept most of the way home on Sunday. She was exhausted when Monday rolled around. This past weekend we spent the weekend camping with our other side of the family at Fox Ridge. It was one of the best weekends we have had this summer for camping. The weather was absolutely gorgeous. All weekend Allison enjoyed playing outside, stroller rides, bike rides, running around with her cousins, etc. We even found time to squeeze in the apple orchard and pumpkin patch. Since the weather is so beautiful we are planning another weekend camping trip to Giant City State Park in Carbondale. We are excited and can't wait for another weekend of fun. :) 

                                     Allison loving the pumpkin patch

                                                                relaxing and enjoying the day

                                                               She picked her very own pumpkin

                                                         Looking at everything in amazement

                                    Hanging at the pumpkin patch with my cousins Haley, and Alyssa

Home Sweet Home

     A week has passed since Allison has made it home from the hospital. It is such a good feeling to be home again. Allison is doing so much better. She is starting to get back to herself again. She is running all around the house none stop babbling and smiling. It makes us smile just seeing her so happy again. Ever since she has made it home from the hospital she has been very clingy to mommy and daddy. She was a little clingy before but now it is even more. We love it right now just knowing that she is okay and we can make her feel even better. She has been getting extra spoiled lately by many people. I think she is soaking up all the extra attention. 
     Now that school has started we are starting to get back in a good routine at home. Oh how I love routines. It makes things go so smoothly for all of us. Allison seems to do so much better on a steady routine. Although I do miss spending my days with Allison in the summer, it is nice to get back in the classroom. This has been our first full week of school so far and I absolutely love teaching 5th grade. I have a great class this year and I am looking forward to spending the year with them. Even though I am back to work there is not a minute that  goes by that I am not thinking about Allison. 

     I can't thank all my family and friends enough for all their support and prayers these last few weeks. It has been a bumpy road but, we are now hopefully on the right track. Thanks for all the cards, balloons, gifts, phone calls, texts, etc. A big thanks to all of those who came up to the hospital to visit Allison. It means so much to our family. I thought I would share some pictures of Allison during her week at Children's Hospital.

She was just fine with her blanket and puppy

She is excited she finally gets to eat again

Uncle Doug and Aunt Carissa came to visit me

My favorite thing is to go on a wagon ride

 I am so happy I get to bring my milk and blanket

 Allison loved to go to the garden 

Artwork by my cousins Nolan and Gavin and Aunt Kim

Our Little Trooper

  Tuesday was such an ordinary weekday for all of us. Allison went to the sitter in the morning while I worked in my classroom. I remember leaving work that day feeling like I got a lot of things accomplished but, was looking forward to getting to spend the rest of the day with my little Allison. Once I picked her up at the sitter she was her typical self. She was smiling and excited to see her mama.
   As the evening progressed she started refusing to eat or drink anything. She did not want to be held and was having difficulty breathing. She was even coughing and sounded like she had some congestion.It shocked me because Allison hadn't been sick last with a cold since the winter time. Once Tony got home we both agreed we better call papa at the clinic and see if he suggested we bring her up there for him to check her or what. He decided he would come by and take a look at her. Once he made it there he listened to her breathing and heart rate and instantly said we need to get her to the ER. Since this was Allison's first trip to the ER both Tony and I were extremely scared. 
   Once we made it to the ER was when our whole world turned upside down. We knew something wasn't good when the registration lady told us to go back immediately. When we brought her back the nightmare began. Right away they found that are oxygen level was at critical level and they had to do something very quickly. For Tony and I to see all the doctors and nurses running around was so scary. I remember asking the doctor if she was going to be okay and he looked at me and said, "I can't tell you if she is going to be okay. She is not getting much oxygen to her body." I also heard in the background the doctor saying we have to airlift her quickly this is not good. I was crying hysterically and feeling so helpless seeing her laying there and them hooking her up to so many tubes. In the mix of everything the x ray did come back showing her right lung had also collapsed. They thought that something was blocking her passageway to her lung. 
    About 1:00 in the morning is when the helicopter arrived and she was then airlifted to Children's Hospital in St. Louis. They were hoping they could keep her stabilized until  we could make it to the hospital before they took her back into surgery. Luckily we were able to make it there and get to see her before they took her back to the operating room. Waiting for her to come out of surgery was one of the hardest things I have had to do in my life. I was scared something was going to happen and she wouldn't make it. After many family prayers she came out of the operating room and was put in intensive care. The surgeons had found that she aspirated a pea that was causing her passageway to be blocked to her right lung. We all couldn't believe it, a pea of all things were what caused this tragic nightmare. 
   Once she made it to intensive care she was put on a ventilator to help with her breathing. They have also found that she has pneumonia on top of this. Which the doctors said isn't rare for having a lung collapse. Yesterday she had to go back into surgery in the afternoon so they could try to clear out her lung and try and get as much out as they could. 
    As of today she is still in intensive care until hopefully tomorrow. They want to keep her in intensive care until she gets off the ventilator and can fully breathe on her own. They have had her sedated since Tuesday night. It has been so hard on us to not be able to see our little girl open her eyes, babble, sit up, etc. It is really hard to see her hooked up to so many machines and we are so helpless. We cannot do anything but pray and allow her time to let her lung heal. They are hoping a few more days in the hospital. Once she is able to get off the ventilator and in a regular room, she will be able to go home fairly soon.  We cannot wait to be able to take our little girl home. Living in the hospital for the last week has been so hard on all of us. 
    Overall, she is gaining strength. The doctors have told us numerous of times that she will not have any health related problems after she goes home.  They said she should be back running around and into everything. I can't wait to be able to hold my little girl in my arms. The doctors have told us this is very rare and is more likely a one time thing. Thanks to all of our family and friends who have prayed and been there for us during this tragic time. I never realized how your life can change in an instant. Also, a big thanks to all the staff at Children's hospital. They have been incredible. I have never felt so comfortable in a hospital. The nurses have been wonderful in intensive care. All the nurses on Allison's floor have named her "The Princess and the Pea." They have done her hair and nails. I will try to update my blog to keep everyone posted. Our next step is to continue and pray for a fast recovery for Allison.

                                              
                              We Love You Allison!!!

Michigan Vacation

      Vacation, vacation, vacation.... It is so relaxing to getaway for a week and do nothing but spend time with your family. I have always loved going on trips whether they were short trips or long. For our summer vacation, Tony and I decided to go to Grand Haven, Michigan. We had an absolute blast. Since we just purchased our camper last month, we decided to use it. We stayed at a Yogi Bear Jellystone RV Resort. It was a great place to stay with children. I highly recommend it. It has so many things to do. If Allison was older we would have taken advantage of the mini golf course and go carts and all the other activities they had going on throughout the day. We did enjoy the pool and jungle gym.
     Once we made it to Michigan and got settled in, we spent time walking the boardwalk and seeing all of the beautiful shops and scenery. Allison also enjoyed some ice cream on our little adventure. The following couple days we enjoyed taking Allison to the beach. At first she was a little afraid of the sand. She didn't want to put her feet in it so she spent some time on her beach towel until she got use to it. Then once she started playing with her sand toys she forgot all about it.  
     During the day time we did a lot of sightseeing. Allison enjoyed her stroller rides by the water. We were able to walk to several lighthouses and see them at night. They were so beautiful lit up. The last night of our stay, we went to watch the musical fountain at night. It started once it got dark so it was a late night for Allison but she stayed awake for the entire show. It was beautiful to see the fountain lit up and hear the music across the water. Allison kept smiling and pointing. Once we made it back to the car she was asleep in no time. While we were on our trip we were able to eat at some nice restaurants on the boardwalk. The weather was gorgeous. I could really get use to the weather with very little humidity. 
     We all enjoyed our vacation very much. Even though we came home to very hot and humid weather, it was nice to be home. Like they say there is no place like home. I totally agree. 

 

Beautiful View

 Playing in the sand

Watching the waves

Family picture at the beach

New Addition

     Tony and I recently decided to purchase a camper. We both absolutely love camping and use to do it all the time before we had Allison. We use to do nothing but tent camp. Now that we have Allison, we have found that taking a 1 year old tent camping is extremely difficult. When we were looking for campers, we both wanted to get a camper that wasn't to large for our first one and that would be easy to take long distances. That is why we chose to get a new pop up camper. It is just the right size for our family of three. Even if we add to our family in the next year or so, we will still have plenty of room.  

     We decided to try our new camper out this weekend. We wanted to go somewhere that wasn't too far since it was Allison's first time camping. Just in case we had to make a trip back home. We ended up camping at Fox Ridge State Park with some of our family. It was a very warm weekend but, we had a great time. Allison did very well for her first time camping and seemed to really enjoy the new camper. It was a great fourth of July weekend. Even though the summer is flying by, we are looking forward to planning some more weekend camping trips. 

New Addition

Ready to Eat

 Cousin Gavin, Allison, Daddy

 Playing before bedtime

 Exhausted after a long weekend

Father's Day

     Father's Day is such an important day to help appreciate our fathers and stop and realize how important they are in our lives. I would have to say I have been blessed with a wonderful father that has helped make me the person that I am today. I have always told myself that I wanted to marry someone who has the same qualities as my father. I have been fortunate to do so. Tony has been a great father to Allison. It is great to see him raise Allison with great family values, protect her, guide her in the right direction each and every day. It makes my heart melt seeing how much love he shows her. Yesterday was Tony's second Fathers Day. We had a very relaxing day at Lake Shelbyville. The weather was sunny and nice. Allison enjoyed being able to run around at the park. We stopped at the new visitors center and Allison enjoyed their exhibit hall. Before we came home we spotted several deer while driving through Wolf Creek campground. Allison kept pointing and babbling words. It was so cute to see her face and reactions. We had a great day but was pretty tired when we made it home. Overall, it was an awesome Father's Day!! 

 

Allison's 1st Birthday Party

     On June 5th my little Allison turned a year old. I  am thinking mommy is still in denial that my little munchkin is a year old already.  We had such a wonderful day with our family. The weather was warm but gorgeous.  We had an elephant themed party with pink and brown polka dotted balloons and decorations. We had a nice meal, cake, and ice cream. Allison got lots of fun toys and clothes. She has been occupied all week long playing with all of her toys. In some of my spare time this week, I have found myself looking back at picture albums of Allison. Seeing her grow from only 7 lbs 11 ounces to now being 22 lbs has been amazing. It has brought lots of mixed emotions. I would have to honestly say it has been one of the best years of my life. We have created so many memories together as a family. I am looking forward to celebrating many more birthdays with our little girl. Each day I get so excited to see her grow and have to say I am so proud to be her mommy. Below I have shared some pictures of Allison's 1st birthday party.

Happy 1st Birthday Allison!!!