Long time without a post...

It has been a while since we posted anything on this page...December, I believe.  I am not sure how many people were following this website and most people that would are also on Facebook, which we update ALL the time.  So, that is our main reason for lacking on this site.

It is now August and we are gearing up for the school year.  Supplies are being purchased and the excitement is beginning to build.  As teachers, we would love just one more month :)

Ashlyn will be going into 4th grade, hard to believe.  She is still singing with the Allegro Choral Academy, involved in church (both classes and choirs), may be trying volleyball again this fall, and finding time for homework.  She has enjoyed swimming lessons this summer and is swimming pool lengths all on her own and with pretty good form.  She is already 4' 9" (maybe taller now), but looking forward to being taller than her mother some day.  Ashlyn is still exploring her love for the theater.  She was able to be a part of a dinner theater show in the area...they choose 2 kids each show...she was beyond excited and took a theater camp this summer.

Aubrie is looking forward to 1st grade.  She finds out who her teacher is in a week or so...exciting times!!  Aubrie has also enjoyed swimming lessons and is catching on quickly.  She is 6 and swimming on her own...what every parent wants.  She just finished her soccer season and is looking forward to fall soccer starting in a month.  She loves the sport and we love watching her play.  She runs all over the field and never complains about being tired.  She is also involved in church choir and enjoys being part of a "big kid" activity.

Sabrina is beginning preschool this year and is excited for school.  She picked her back pack out, but had a hard time choosing just one.  She just finished soccer and that was a joy to watch.  She would kick the ball and stop to look at us so we could cheer for her.  She also enjoyed holding Kadence's hand while they were playing.  Sabrina also celebrated 4 years cancer free!!!  We celebrated by supporting Alex's Lemonade Stand at the 3rd Annual Lemon Run and the ALS Grand Stand at the Mall of America.  Sabrina's last scans were last August, she graduated to yearly appointments and no more scans.  Later this month, she will meet with her oncologist for blood work and a check up.  As much as we didn't like the scans, more for the sedation part of it, we will miss having the scans this time around.  They did bring anxiety, but also reassurance of her tumor free state.

Kadence is also extremely excited for preschool.  She has been practicing writing her name and is very good...at least with upper case letters.  I know they will want her using lowercase, but at least she has her name down...one way or another.  She also has our address and phone number down.  She also loved soccer and loved chasing the ball, or the person with the ball.  Kadence and Sabrina may be starting dance this year...still thinking about it.  They also took swimming lessons and both have been working hard.  Kady  has moved up 2 levels since starting last Spring.  She can swim on her own and float like a master :)  She is one strong cookie.

Jim will be at Eagan High School again this year.  He enjoys teaching choir and music theory, as well as being the music director for the school musical.  Megan will be traveling between Eastview High School and Black Hawk Middle School teaching choir to a variety of ages.

Kadence's Injury

Well, yesterday we made a little trip to the ER.

The girls were sitting with Jim watching you tube videos...videos of homes with Christmas lights set to music...Kadence wanted more space so she swung her arm toward Sabrina.  Jim stopped her by grabbing her wrist and Kadence yanked her arm away from him.  She immediately started crying and we thought someone pinched her and she was crying so hard that she couldn't explain what happened.  She finally said "Daddy did it" and we tried to put it all together.  Jim said he felt a crack when she pulled away and thought her wrist cracked...so being good parents, we thought that Kadence was over exaggerating her injury...because her wrist cracked.  Then she kept crying and wouldn't straighten her left arm.  She would point to her wrist and then her elbow...we were confused and didn't know what to think.

In our house, when we don't know what to do medically...we call Nana.  She is a nurse after all, although she delivers babies.  She came over and after checking Kadence out...she thought we should take her in.  She volunteered to drive Kadence and I to the ER while Jim got Ashlyn ready for her choir concert in an hour and a babysitter for Sabrina (Aubrie was going to the concert).

After figuring out how to put a coat on a child with a hurt arm...and putting a seat belt on her, we were on our way.  She did NOT want to go to the doctor!!  She fell asleep on the way there and then cried when she woke up.  She cried in the triage room and the nurse asked, "Does your arm hurt" and she said "No, it is feeling better.  Me go home now?"  Then the nurse asked her "what happened?", Kadence responded with, "Daddy did it."...try explaining that to a medical professional.  I was waiting for child protective services to be called.  We were taken in right away and the doctor knew exactly what was wrong..."Nursemaid's Elbow"....a partial dislocation of the arm.

It is very common and very painful.  The child life specialist and doctor worked together to gain her trust with Dora books and bubbles.  The bubbles were a HUGE hit!!  The doctor then asked to see her good arm, she showed him and gained some more trust.  Then he asked to see her sore arm...she cried when he started to straighten it and then he did a quick twist...a small pop...and then she needed a hug from Nana and Mommy.  We waited for her to calm down a bit and then the bubbles were being blown again and she started popping...this time with both hands.

It was a miracle, just like that and her arm was better and she was a new child.  They don't expect any long term issues, although it could happen again with more ease since her tendons are stretched out a bit after this.  We do feel better, and Daddy feels a little less guilty, now that many people have come forward saying it happened to them to...including one of our hospital nurses.  It makes us think twice before pulling arms, swinging kids around, and just simply playing.  We are a little over-anxious....okay, Mommy is a little over-protective and anxious and tries to protect her from everything...don't grab that, don't hang on that, don't hold anyone's hand...ugh.

We made it to Ashlyn's concert and Kadence is happy...a great ending to a stressful evening!!

A quick update...

Life is very busy right now...concert season is in full bloom.  This website won't let me add any more photos...imagine that, I exceeded the photo limit :)  I need to figure out something, or you can just follow us on Facebook.

The kids had a great Halloween...a lot of fun.  The little girls are now old enough to go up to the door on their own...so we wait at the bottom of the driveway...easy.  Dora joined us this Halloween...she was a hot dog.

We enjoyed a relaxed Thanksgiving.  We spent it at Grandma's with Nana and Grandpa as well.  We watched the parade, played a little, and enjoyed a nice meal and dessert.

Ashlyn is busy with 2 church musicals, piano lessons, school, and Allegro Choral Academy.  She is working on reading a lot (400 minutes a month is required for 3rd grade).

Aubrie loves learning to read.  The first thing she does when she comes home is take out her class book and ask us to read with her.  She is also involved in 2 church musicals, luckily not too much extra work for her.  Aubrie has been ill a few times.  In the middle of October she was sick with a virus...which we found out in early November was actually Fifth's Disease.  Her rash showed up a couple weeks after the physical illness and it spread fast.  She is finishing out November with strep throat...'tis the season.

Sabrina loves giggling and being mischievous.  She gets a little naughty, but then looks at us so innocently and asks "who did it"...she is lucky she is so darn cute.  She is doing well staying dry during the day, but we are still working on the over night.  It is hard to believe she will be 4 in a couple months.

Kadence is our wild child, but also very sweet.  She is also doing well at staying dry during the day...not so much in the night.  Both Sabrina and Kadence have joined a church choir for pre-school kids.  They have their first performance this Sunday.  Kadence enjoys picking out her own clothes, which leads to some interesting outfits.

Dora's "birthday" is coming up.  When we adopted her, no one knew her birthday, but they could guess at her age.  We knew she was around 10 months- 1 year, so we made her adoption day her birthday.  On Dec. 4 we will have a little celebration.

December will bring 17 concerts between the girls and us...bring it on.  Sorry for no more photos :(

Busy Life...So What's New?

You know when we have been busy because I don't take 100 pictures a day :)  

Sabrina spent the night with Mommy and Grandpa on Sept. 27...we attended a special event in Minneapolis.  The "new" 35W bridge can light up at night and often times it will light up a certain color for a special cause.  A group of women on Facebook called the MN Momcologists (mothers of kids affected by cancer) got together and were able to get the bridge to light up gold for Childhood Cancer Awareness month (September).  We went down to support this cause and it was so beautiful, even Senator Klobuchar came to support the lighting of the bridge.

                                                                    The Survivors!!

Sabrina and Kadence also got their haircut in the past couple weeks...only their 3rd time.  Sabrina got a small trim (we are always worried about losing her curls) and Kadence got a few inches cut off.  Both girls look adorable :)

With fire prevention week, the Apple Valley Fire Station always has its open house.  The kids love climbing in the fire truck, police car, and ambulance.  They also love getting free Culver's custard :)  Uncle Scott always makes it fun for them...they love to see him at work.

Ashlyn and Aubrie are doing well in school.  We just finished conferences and their teachers love them.  Ashlyn is doing well at reading, writing, spelling, and math.  Aubrie is very sweet, working hard to learn all her letter sounds, and she is able to read a few words now.

The girls all got hit with illnesses over the past couple of weeks.  Sabrina started with Asthma issues, so her doctor pumped up her medicine...she was on four medications a day, we are now down to three.  She did spike a small temp tonight, but she is already asleep for the night, so I hope she sleeps it off.  The other girls all took turns with fevers and coughs.  Kadence missed three days of daycare, Aubrie missed a day of school and Ashlyn missed two days.  In Minnesota, we have a fall break for teacher conventions, but for us, this is a good time to regroup and get healthy.

Speaking of our "break", Jim is in France...yes, the country.  He and his co-worker are looking to take a choir tour to the Mediterranean part of France so they are on a pre-tour trip with the touring company to see what they think.  We have only talked to Daddy once, but we know he is doing well and having fun.  He will be home on Monday evening....yippie!

We will probably update again after Halloween...our girls are so excited to wear their costumes!!

September

Even though September isn't quite over yet, I thought I would do a September update.  School is in full swing and the kids are finally adjusting to a new schedule.  I am enjoying my mornings off so I can get Ashlyn and Aubrie on the school bus, drop the little girls at daycare, and then come home and get things done (Dora enjoys the extra walks).

Ashlyn is enjoying 3rd grade, she is beginning to learn responsibility.  She is learning to use her school planner, we are working on remembering her glasses case, and she has nightly homework...her favorite (sarcastic).  She has to read 400 minutes each month and so far we are just over 300 for September.  I am not sure how much she is actually comprehending, but we are beginning to find chapter books she enjoys.  We ran into her teacher at the grocery store today and Ashlyn said "great, now she knows I am not home reading"...I thought that was funny.  Ashlyn also received her Bible this month.  At our church kids receive Bibles at age 3, grade 3, and grade 6...each time they get more age appropriate.  She was quite excited and loves reading the "stories" inside.  As if she isn't busy enough, Ashlyn continues to take piano lessons, she started volleyball this fall, and she is in a church choir as well as a community choir for children.

Aubrie is loving Kindergarten, but doesn't share too much when she gets home.  It does eventually come out, but we have to wait until she has time to wind down.  She is beginning to learn sight words and so far she can read the words "yes", "no", and "I".  She loves reading with us and is beginning to track words as we read.  Aubrie continues to enjoy soccer, although this cold MN fall weather makes it hard.  We found that she is really great at playing goalie.  Aubrie is going to miss her first day of school tomorrow...she has the first fever of the Cox family fall/winter illness season...and so it begins.  She should get an award for starting the "season".

Sabrina and Kadence are busy playing with their friends at daycare and love watching their sisters play sports...although, I think they are anxious to get in on the action.  They are now both potty trained during the day...most of the time at nap too...we just need to work on the over night.  It is so fun to watch them interact...I took a video the other day of the two of them under the table discussing a Princess magazine.  They both started Sunday School this year as well and enjoyed their first "real" class today.

The video of the girls discussing their magazine...under the kitchen table.  I uploaded this different than normal, so I hope it works.

                                                              Ashlyn receiving her Bible

                                   They had people on hand to write in her name and the date

                                                          First day of Sunday School

           September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month...Sabrina has a sign in our front yard.

                               Aubrie playing soccer....she is the one in the green sweatshirt.

This past weekend we were able to take our annual trip to the apple orchard.  This is the first year all four girls were really into walking around, finding "good" apples and picking them all by themselves.  Grandma and Nana were able to meet us there and join in the fun.  The girls enjoyed riding on a hayride, although Kadence found the tractor a little loud.  It was a perfect fall day and now we have plenty of apples, which the little girls like to try to eat in secret...I prefer to make pies.

The little girls already found some apples to snack on...

The girls off finding apples

Each girl tried to carry the bucket, but it always ended up in Jim's hands.

The family

Ashlyn and Jim

                                                        Kadence and Sabrina on the hayride

                                                                 Another family photo

                                                   Enjoying some warm mini doughnuts.

                             What are the girls up to??  This is them being sneaky...they grabbed
                                                    apples out of the bag without asking.

                                                                          BUSTED!

           

Back to Routine

Well, we are getting back into our routine.  The big girls go to school, the little girls to daycare and the adults to work.  You add in volleyball, soccer, Allegro Choral Academy, church choir, bell choir, and soon church school and evening rehearsals...we have a full schedule.

Ashlyn is enjoying 3rd grade.  She is getting use to a daily planner, reading 400 minutes each month, and trying to remember all those math skills from last year.  She is enjoying seeing all of her friends and already making some new ones.  She started volleyball this week and she discovered muscles she didn't know she had :)

Aubrie started all day kindergarten and seems to enjoy it.  She doesn't talk too much when she gets home...too exhausted.  We know they have been reading books, working on school routines, and they also get a little nap time :)  She is a little more shy than Ashlyn, so she doesn't talk about meeting new friends...yet.

The little girls love waving to Ashlyn and Aubrie when they get on the bus...we walk them to the bus stop each morning...when winter arrives, that may change.

Jim and I are getting back into the swing of things at our schools.  It is nice to see the students again, but that first week is tough.  The students are more interested in seeing their friends and talking about their summers than they are about learning and listening.  It will get better, but I think every teacher (and student) would agree Friday was well deserved!

Back to School!!

Four of us will be heading back to school on Tuesday.  Jim will be full time at Eagan High School and he is looking forward to all his choirs and AP Theory.  I will be half time at Black Hawk Middle School teaching 6-8th grade choir.  I lost a few FTEs so money will be different, but I am hoping this decision will be better for the future.  Ashlyn will be heading into 3rd grade.  We went into school the other day for orientation and to meet her teacher and we were amazed at how old the kids look in 3rd grade compared to the past couple years.  It is fun to watch all the same kids grow up year after year.  Aubrie will be starting Kindergarten.  It is hard to believe we have another child in school.  Aubrie will be going all day and she is looking forward to it.  Her teacher seems very nice.  Aubrie has said "I am going to be a little shy"...she is a little worried, but she will figure it out quickly.  Sabrina and Kadence will head back to daycare and they have one more year before we enroll them in preschool.

Since getting back from Leech Lake we have been busy.  Ashlyn was in zoo camp for the first time.  She spent 4 hours every day (Monday-Friday) taking pictures of animals and learning about the countries they all come from.  She had a blast and looks at the zoo differently now.  We will definitely sign her up next summer for another zoo camp experience.

Aubrie, Sabrina and Kadence finished their summer gymnastics and can't wait to continue later this winter.  Aubrie really got better at her handstands and cartwheels, Kadence is a little monkey, and Sabrina is beginning to strengthen her core...she still has muscles to grow, but she improved her balance for sure.

                                                              Last day of gymnastics

                                               Sabrina crossing the beam (with some help)

                                                    Kadence hanging from the bars.

                                                             Aubrie on the beam

Throughout the summer we have been able to spend some "big girl" time with Ashlyn and Aubrie.  Our last outing this summer was a short trip on the light-rail to Minnehaha Park.  We took the girls to see the falls and the gardens.  They enjoyed their time and always like being with mom and dad.

On August 17, Sabrina had her routine scans and oncology appointment.  She did really well for being 3.  Getting an IV is never fun, but for a 3 year old it really stinks.  After one try, they asked us if we were okay using some Nitrous Oxide...we said that was fine and we are glad we did.  What a difference.  Sabrina was relaxed and they were able to get an IV in without her pulling away or grabbing at it.  Her scans looked great and her blood work came back the best they have ever been...great news!!  We knew if this appointment went well that Sabrina would be moving to yearly appointments, but we got better news, not only are her appointments now once a year, there are NO MORE SCANS!!!  She will still have to have blood drawn, but no sedation.  Every big step like this makes us feel better about the cancer never returning.  We are now 3 years out, which moves her to the next step of being a "survivor".  I think 5 years will be the next big milestone.

                                                                   Blood pressure check

                                     Waiting for the EMLA cream (numbing) to take affect.

                                               That was quite a nap...well a sedated nap.

                          Yay!!!  Celebrating her scan graduation with a toy from the shop.

Jim celebrated his 34th birthday on the 19th.  The girls chose his birthday theme, a huge deal for birthdays around here.  They chose a dog theme and Sabrina had been dying to buy him a dalmation.  We weren't going to get him a real dalmation, but we found a way for Sabrina to give him her gift.

We had a wonderful get together with some college friends.  All 6 of us are Luther grads, we all got married and between the 3 couples we have 8 children, ages 8, 5, 3, 3, 3, 3, 1 and 9 months.  Talk about a busy time when we all get together.  It was great watching the kids play together and the four 3 year olds did really well with one another...you never know :)

                                                                The four 3 year olds

We took our first family trip to the MN State Fair a week ago.  Jim and I have gone with the two older girls, but never the twins (unless you count the time they were in my belly).  It actually went pretty well.  We stayed for a few hours and only made it half way through the fair, a little disappointing, but it made for a happy day with happy children in the end.  They enjoyed fishing, rides, and pronto pups :)  I think the little girls liked the bus ride the best!!

                       The girls loved Grandpa's alligator...I did not try it, but they girls ate it up!!

       Kadence caught a fish and the rule was "you catch a fish, you kiss the fish"...she had no hesitation.

                Aubrie liked the slower rides...she did try some faster ones, but did not enjoy them.