The last three weeks have been busy. I have traveled a lot with work. Our family traveled to Eastern Idaho to watch a college football game. To top it all off, we have had some unexpected things arise. Kevin has been having a lot of trouble with his port for the past year. The oncologist told him it had to be replaced immediately. UGH. During the surgery, they tried to replace it on the same side. Unfortunately, there was too much vein stenosis. The surgery took about 4 hours. The recovery has been a bit slow. Ever since the surgery, he has been getting extremely dizzy. My internet research tells me that this is not uncommon. It should go away in 1-2 months. That being said, we have the oncologist looking into it as well.
All told, we have been doing pretty well. Our lifestyle has adjusted. We spend more time at home. We enjoy our time and our lives. The girls keep us busy. Family travel is limited, as Kevin still has a tremendous amount of joint pain and mornings are tough.
I am not sure if I have mentioned this, but we bought a riding lawn mower. I think this was a rather ridiculous purchase, as I have grown quite accustomed to taking care of the lawn. In fact, I kind of enjoy putting on my headphones and tuning out the world. I knew that it was really bothering Kevin. He had mentioned hiring someone to mow the lawns on several occasions. I was having none of that. Then he started flooding me with links to riding lawn mowers. Finally, I caved. We are the proud owners of a super awesome, super tiny riding lawn mower. It is perfect for a lawn of our size, and Kevin has mowed the lawn three times in a row now! The "Tim, the Tool Man, Taylor" in me was disappointed, because for the same price we could have gotten twice the horsepower and 30% more cutting deck. However, we would have never been able to move around our lawn and all of its glorious flower beds.
As I mentioned, I have been traveling a lot. Kevin was mostly out of commission. So, Terrell has helped out in a big way. She has driven me to the airport. Yes, I could have taken a cab or driven myself, but it gave me a few more minutes with the girls.
She has been coming over to the house in the mornings to get the girls up and ready for school. To top it off, she has sent me a few pictures when she wakes them up. It feels like I am right there. Sidney is all smiles and ready to go.
Then there is Kendall, keeping her eyes closed as long as possible and asking for the light to be turned back off.
The girls had their picture day while I was on a trip. Grandma took a snapshot of Sidney, so I could see her picture day choices.
Kendall opted for a picture day selfie.
They take a lot of pictures and send them to me while I am away. We also have this awesome app called "Maro Polo" which allows us to send video text messages. It makes travel so much better.
The girls had a few days off this past week. Terrell and Kevin kept them busy. They went to Jump Time one day, Planet Kid the next and Ice World the last day. It makes me tired just thinking about it. Are you wondering where their helmets are? So am I:) While Mom's away, the kids will play.
As much as I hate being away, the travel has been pretty awesome. I love spending time with my team and seeing some fun places. I took a ferry from Bremerton to Seattle a couple of weeks ago for a meeting.
We arrived a bit early, so we went to visit a few architects and took a walk through Pikes Place Market. It was the first time I had been there. It was lovely, except $5.98/ lb for Honey Crisp Apples. You have got to be kidding me!
The girls and I exchange cards before each trip. This past week, Sidney made me the best necklace ever.
I adorned the necklace while getting ready for a lunch meeting in Pasadena. It made my day!
The girls put a smile on my face always. Sidney all dressed up for no apparent reason.
Kendall always a fashion leader. She can pull off styles that most of us would never even dream of.
In other medical news, Sidney has been having migraines for the past three years. They were coming on just before Kevin was diagnosed, but they have stuck around. We had an MRI in the beginning to be sure there were no abnormalities. The pediatrician has assured us that the fact they continue is a good thing, in the sense that it indicates there is nothing too serious. He said that serious illness in children will present itself very quickly. She often vomits from the headaches. They come on super fast and can be quite debilitating. The pediatrician recommended that we see a neurologist to get a second opinion and discuss migraine medication. We did that about a week ago.
The neurologist also reassured us that there is not a serious illness. They presented us with a number of options and suggested that, at this point, medication might be a good choice. The migraines have disrupted her life quite a bit as of late (missing school, activities, etc.). We started her on a medication last week. It will take a couple of weeks before it is totally on board. We are hoping that she will get some relief!
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