Baptism

This Sunday we had the boys baptized at our church.  My parents and Meghan and Luke were able to come into town, and it was nice to have them there.  The boys were "sprinkled", and we had a nice little brunch for friends and family at our house afterward.

Apparently we have developed a habit of having "baptism drama".  Four years ago we planned to have Colin baptized the morning of his second surgery.  We had a lot of family coming out to California for the surgery, and we felt it was a good time to do it.  Of course there were flight delays, and we ended up almost having to baptize him rolling down the hall to the OR.  It all worked out, but it was close. 

Well, this time we got to church early (a miracle for us), we all got seats up front (another miracle), and we were ready.  The service started.  The baptism was going to be right after the praise music and creed.  Clayton was sitting on the aisle, and about halfway through the music he tripped and fell, which is nothing out of the ordinary.  I didn't see it, but Ryan picked him up, and everything seemed fine.  A minute later a man sitting behind us informed Ryan that Clayton was bleeding.  Ryan looked, and there was very definitely blood dripping from Clayton's head.  He had a pretty good gash above his ear, and Mr. aspirin therapy was really bleeding. 

We ran him to the restroom and did what we could.  I was so nervous we weren't going to make it back in time.  Of course Clayton somehow managed to rub blood all over Ryan's pants, and Ryan had attempted to clean himself up, making it look as though he'd had a little accident.  Luckily we were able to slip back into the service just in time for the baptism.  I was actually concerned that Clayton might need a stitch or two, but we kept an eye on it, and it stayed clotted.  He does still have a monster bump on the side of his head.  Drama, drama. 

Anyway, pictures from the event:

Baptismal vows

Clayton's baptism

Eli's baptism

But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.

Joshua 24:15 (NIV)

Um, Just Kidding!

So February is a no-go for Clayton's Fontan.  Yes, sorry to get you all emotionally worked up and then change the plan on you, but that's the way it is.  After consulting with the surgery team at Stanford, they've decided against February because a) it's flu season, and b) they want Clayton to gain a little more weight (the story of his life).  Guess who will be force fed all the holiday goodies this year?  Rough life.

The plan is to see Clayton's Oklahoma cardiologist again in April, and we'll try to nail down a date at that time.  I'm thinking it will be late summer, but that's just a guess at this point.

It's a bit of an emotional rollercoaster.  Of course it's nice to put this off, but now again there is still so much unknown looming in the future.  We're just praying for God's perfect timing in all this.

My Pumpkins

February

...is the tenative month for Clayton's Fontan.  I think I'll go throw up now.

At least February in Palo Alto will be much more pleasant than February in Oklahoma City.  You can say that about practically every month of the year.  This has to be the reason why people pay millions of dollars to live in tiny houses on tiny lots out there.  No offense if you happen to live there or happen to have lived there in the past.

This is all I can say on this subject for now.

PS If you live near the bay area, visit(s) will be required!

Our Failed Pumpkin Farm Attempt

Our church toddler group all met out at a local farm last Monday.  Mom, Meghan, and Lizzie were visiting, so they tagged along too.  This place was quite large and looked really cool.  They had a wide variety of pumpkins, hay rides, corn maze, hay bale maze, tricycle races, petting zoo, and more.  Unfortunately, the weather went from bad to worse, and about an hour in, most of us bailed.

1.  Here's the lady who greeted us with a presentation all about pumpkins and gourds.  How can I say this halfway nicely?  Seriously, this woman was out in left field as she attempted to explain the word origin of pumpkin to a bunch of 3 to 5 year olds.  She then described and named no less than 20 different types of pumpkins and squash to our group.  She practically demanded audience participation, and not one of these kids had any idea what she was talking about.  I don't think she had any toddler experience. 

2.  We finally moved outside where the winds were starting to pick up.  I had packed somewhat thick jackets and hats.  I felt prepared.  Here's our pumpkin, Clayton.

3.  Happy to pose at the "How tall this fall?" sign.

4.  Happy to ride the tricyles around the little race track through the corn field.  Here's Clayton's Nan lending a hand. 

5.  Starting to get pretty chilled in the hay maze.  Now refusing to smile or even look at the camera.  Mom feeling really bad she didn't pack mittens.

6.  I usually keep two heavy blankets in the car for the boys in the winter.  They can't wear big coats in their carseats, so this is how we keep warm.  Somehow, Clayton's blanket had escaped the car, but luckily we had Eli's with us.  Here's Eli trying to keep warm.

7.  I thought surely a horse tire swing would cheer up my boy.  No such luck.  He was really getting cold.  His circulation is so poor in the winter, and at this point I started to become a little concerned about his hands.  From this point on, he had to keep his hands in his pockets.

8.  We were about to call it quits when the nice farm folks fired up the hayride.  We really debated, but we finally decided to give it a try.  At least we'd all be snuggled together.  This actually turned out to be the best part of our morning.  We covered ourselves with the blanket and hay.  Apparently animals are onto something when they nestle down in the hay in the cold.  It was slightly warmer.  As you can see from the picture, the winds were relentless.  I have amazing hair in this picture.  The children were a little happier at this point.

9.  After the hayride we practically ran (as much as you can run with a double stroller on dirt) to the parking lot.  I was sad about not having any pumpkin pictures, so I paused to get just one picture of the boys with these white pumpkins, but this was all they gave me.  Clayton was not in a happy place by this time.

So this was our pumpkin patch experience.  We will definitely try to go back next year because the place had serious potential for many hours of fun.  We will, however, be going on a much less windy day.