Dave's New Camera & Austin's Adventure

Dave got a new camera for our anniversary and his upcoming 42nd birthday. So today, being a beautiful spring day in Colorado, we took Austin and went to a nearby park of sorts. It's a little spot off of I-25 and Meridian with little ponds and gazebos.Pictures from the park ... We let Austin off the leash since we were alone at the park and he would run up ahead and then come back. He seemed to have a great time. Then came the funny part! Dave was taking some pictures and I was across the pond from him with Austin and Austin decided he wanted to go see his daddy so he decided to run across to him. Well, that was an adventure because there was a pond which Austin apparently didn't realize and he's NEVER been in the water outside. You should have seen his face! It was like, "oh my gosh ... what do I do??!!" I was scared to death thinking he'd drown, but Dave assured me from across the way that he was a dog and all dogs know how to swim. So we watched Austin quickly turning himself around and swimming back to the shore on my side. It was the funniest thing!! Here are a couple of pictures of the pretty area as well as our wet Austin. Hope you enjoy!
Shaking the water off ...

Chris & Dave w/Austin

Chris' Back/Hip Pain

Well ... not much fun to hear negative things, but I've been asked by several people what is up with my hip/back problems. So here's the latest ...

• Last Monday: MRI ... went fine ... I wasn't scared like I thought I'd be
• Last Wednesday: met with orthopedic surgeon ... he informed me they'd taken the MRI incorrectly. Was supposed to be my back AND hip (since that's where the pain started), but they only did back. GRR! So needed to reschedule for ANOTHER MRI. This MRI showed, however, that I have a disk herniation between L5 and S1 with ganglions (whatever those are) toward the hip. So since he didn't have a full MRI, we don't know if the hip is causing back pain, vise versa, or both. Gotta wait. In the meantime, he referred me to an anesthesiologist for an epidural injection for the back pain (I know, no big deal for you since you delivered Charlie, but I'm scared to death!). The doctor can't get me in until April 17th to top it all off so pain in hip, buttock and lower back stays for now! GRR again!
• This Monday: had second MRI ... they had to inject dye in my hip at the point between the groin area and leg. Because I'm so inflamed, it hurt REALLY bad! And I've been a wreck ever since. GRR!!
• Orthopedic surgeon can't get me in until this Friday to review the MRI and make decisions ... hip replacement, back surgery, pain injections, all of the above? Won't know until Friday so I'll update you then.

On top of all this, as I said on my last week, I opened Sammy's crate Thursday morning and he just laid there. Then once he got out, he walked completely to the right. So I was certain he'd had a stroke. Dave came home from work and we took him to the pet ER ... ends up he pulled his back in the same place mine is messed up. Guess he didn't want me to feel alone! :) He's on 3 meds ... 2 are the same as what I take! He's doing a lot better now though. Thank goodness.

A Night of Play

The kids came over tonight for dinner and play. Ryan and Hayley were "big kids" eating at the breakfast bar. Dave then watched "Peter Pan" with Ryan and Hayley while Mira and I ran around like goofballs! A great night as always!!

Our 7 Year Anniversary

Dave and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary last night. Gabriel's is a quiet little restaurant in Sedalia, CO about 40 minutes away from our home. This is where we also went for our one-year anniversary 6 years ago. It was still just as wonderful! It started out as a rough day as our dog, Sammy, injured his back somehow so we were at the pet ER for a few hours, but we got him taken care of and were still able to go and enjoy our special evening. Can't believe it's been 7 years already! Time sure does fly!!



D

Happy Easter

Howdy Everyone! So ... update on our lives since I last blogged. We've had both bad and good news. First, Friday before last, March 14th, Mom (Karen) was admitted to the hospital after having had chest pains and shortness of breath for several weeks and a pacemaker was put in. She did really well and was released from the hospital on Friday, but then on Sunday, the 16th, she was having horrible pain in the middle of her chest, shoulders and chin so the doctor said to meet him at the ER. Dave and I went over there as well and after several tests, it was determined that she had 2 blood clots in her lungs. They may have come from the pacemaker surgery, but it's not really known. Luckily they saw what was wrong and were able to put her on some blood thinners. She finally left the hospital last Thursday, the 20th, and seems to be doing really well now overall. Praise God!!

In the midst of all this, I saw my doctor for some odd pain I've been having in my hip. My hip has been "giving out" if you will for the last year or so at odd times when I'm walking. But in the last 3 weeks, it has become more and more frequent and I also started having pain in my lower back. Probably caused by the odd limp I have when walking. So ... saw the doctor and based on the symptoms I gave, he guessed arthritis and possible hip replacement surgery. Wow! That was a shocker! So he sent me down to the x-ray lab and the tech told me he saw the joint out of the socket and very little cartilige left, but he'd let the doctor diagnose. I went to the orthopedic surgeon the next day (last Wednesday the 19th) and after another set of x-rays from right before my appointment, he said I had moderate to severe arthritis, very little cartilige left, bone spurs and will likely need a new hip. He ordered an MRI to confirm everyone's thoughts which I had this morning (March 24th) and I see him again Wednesday afternoon to discuss options. The cool thing is that if I do need the surgery, he and his partner are the only doctors in the state of Colorado and only 5 nationwide that do a minimally invasive procedure and I will have the surgery and be out of the hospital the next day and then trade in my cane 2 weeks later! How fortunate I am to have been referred to these guys!! I'll keep you posted on the final decisions made after Wednesday's appointment.

On to happier things ... Happy Easter! Ours was beautiful! Mom & Dad went to church with us and sat with Dave ... I somehow managed to stand with the choir and sing even with my pain. I wanted to repeat the performance on Sunday AM with the 3 services, but decided it was just too much. But Saturday night was terrific! Then Mom & Dad came back to our house for an Easter Eve dinner. And then yesterday, Easter, we went to Jen and Ralph's and watched the kiddos hunt their Easter eggs and open their Easter baskets. We had a wonderful brunch with French toast, turkey bacon, fruit salad, banana bread, and juices and coffee. It was great! And we had a wonderful time. Here are some pictures of the kids.

We then had our friends Liz & Geoff over for a traditional Easter dinner last night which was wonderful fun as well. What a great weekend!

Hope everyone else enjoyed the time with family and friends too. Talk to you again soon.

Hayley

I hung out with Hayley and Mira for a couple of hours yesterday and Hayley was playing princess. Here's my little princess!

Welcome!

Hi family and friends! Well, apparently, these "blog things" are all the rage so here I go! We begin this blog as aunts and uncles of 6 nephews and nieces and parents to 5 animals. I'll add some recent pictures of all so that you can see everyone grow.

So what's going on in our lives right now? Well, we're super busy with fun things. We start our week off right on Sunday nights with a wonderful group of friends from church. There are 6 families in this Bible Study group and while we've only met 2 times so far, we have a great time and look forward to our upcoming 3rd meeting this Sunday night. We're about to tackle a short book by Max Lucado called "A Heart Like Jesus" for the next 4 weeks.

On Tuesday and Friday, I (Chris) get the wonderful pleasure of being with my sister and playing with my nephew and nieces, Ryan, Hayley and Mira. We are anxiously awaiting summer for swimming, the zoo, playgrounds, etc.!

On Wednesday nights, I (Chris), go to church choir practice where I once again have an awesome time praising our Lord with my voice and the wonderful voices of my friends. For those of you that know about my illness, this has been such a terrific therapy for me. I've always known music can change everything, but I think I'd forgotten these past few years. We sound great and perform one weekend every month ... Saturday night and Sunday AM services. I keep hoping Dave will join us, but he has a bit too much on his plate right now. Someday soon!!

On Thursday nights, Dave has joined a bowling league so he gets to show off his bowling skills. I haven't been to see him play as yet, but I know he's really enjoying it! He's been on a league before, but it's been awhile. They bowl 3 games and he keeps having great 2nd games in the 200's, but his second and third games seem to need some help. It will come with more practice I'm sure!

Friday nights, Dave and I are taking our second set of dance classes at our local Parker Rec Center. We took the first class last Nov/Dec in 40's Swing which was fun, but hard! This time is ballroom dancing where we're learning the waltz, tango and one other dance (can't remember which one). Tonight is class 2 of 6. Our dear friends Barb and Tom are going with us which makes it even more fun!

Saturday nights are church service (sometimes Sunday AM if we have plans Saturday night). If it's "choir weekend" as I call it, I have to be there at 3:00 rather than 5:00 due to rehearsal which is fine with me. I LOVE to sing!!

So if you then add visits with friends and family in there, you can see we're leading busy, but fun, lives!

Hmmm ... upcoming events ... Dave and I will celebrate our 7 year wedding anniversary on the 27th of this month. My how time flies! And Dave is going to Boston with Dad Mudron in April as the pit crew for Dad's Boston Marathon run. Additionally, our great friends Mike and Maria are coming out from Virginia and we have tickets to the "Frozen Four" (which is the college hockey equivalent of "March Madness" for those of you that don't know). So that will be tons of fun too!

I think that's it for now. I'll try to stay up to date and you do the same!