New Year's Eve 2011

Today has been one of the longest days I've ever experienced. The day looked hopeful - there was a small chance Dad would get to come home today and join us for the Christmas celebration we've been postponing for the last few days. However, all of that changed this morning. My mom arrived at the hospital around 6:00 AM and my dad did not wake up or respond to her as he always does. She immediately notified the hospital staff. He was able to squeeze her hand but was not moving the left side of his body and was not communicating verbally. At first it appeared that he may have had a stroke sometime between 2:00 and 6:00 A.M. A CT scan was performed and two subdural bleeds (bleeds outside of the brain) were discovered. They are thought to be a result of the Coumadin he has been taking for the blood clot in his neck. Within a few hours the doctors took drastic, life-saving measures to prep my dad for emergency neurosurgery. Thankfully, the surgery went as smoothly as we could hope. The neurosurgeon was able to drain most of the blood which was pushing on the right side of his brain. He put drains in place to keep the area around his brain decompressed. There is a 20-30% chance of blood reaccumulating which would require more surgery. It has been one of the most emotional days since this all began in mid-December. All of my siblings gathered today at the hospital and later we found ourselves at the house (mostly) together. Dan and I put the kids down to sleep at my parents' house so that we could just spend time with the rest of the family. But, the kids weren't settling down and it was finally decided that now was the best time for kids to at least open their stockings from my parents. So, we got the kids out of bed, opened presents, and headed home. It's been quite the day.

Visit with Papa

After our morning at the GRCM we stopped for some lunch and then spent some time with my dad. My aunt Cindi stopped by while we were there and gave my dad a unique cow balloon that entertained our kids and many other passersby in the hospital!

Trip to GRCM

Today we took the kids on another trip to the Grand Rapids Childrens Museum. Our first stop was the craft room where the kids got to make shrinky dink keychains!While we waited for the shrinky dinks to cook and cool, Caleb had a grand time exploring the fire truck exhibit.Lillian had fun making more crafts and checking out the other exhibits.
Caleb, of course, spent some time at the train table and in the convertible.
It was a great morning!

Cinnamon roll

This is definitely one of our favorite phrases of Caleb's right now.

Time with cousins

Today we spent some time at my parents' house with some my siblings who are in town. The kids had lots of fun playing together.

Rapunzel

Lillian is really enjoying the Rapunzel doll and dress she got from her aunt Mindy!

Lillian's gift

Lillian was so excited to give Dan and me our Christmas gift that she made in preschool. I love things like this that preserve her hand print, so it was perfect!

Merry Christmas!

This morning the kids woke up just in time to head to church for rehearsal before the service. Thankfully they are pretty good at finding ways to entertain themselves while Dan and I are busy practicing.
We had packed the car (including Abbey) earlier this morning so we could leave right from church. We ate our festive PB&J sandwiches and the kids napped on the way to Swartz Creek. We arrived at the same time as Dan's parents and siblings and the fun began!
We opened presents, ate a delicious dinner, and spent the rest of the evening relaxing and enjoying each other's company.

Merry Christmas Eve!

Christmas will be a fun but busy day as we have church in the morning and then will leave immediately from there to spend the rest of the day with Dan's family. With that in mind we had our family Christmas celebration today. The morning began with the opening of stockings.
After opening stockings we had a yummy breakfast together, read the Christmas story, sang songs, and lit the Advent wreath.
Next we went back into the living room to open presents.Later on we went outside so the kids could play in the dusting of snow on the ground.
We warmed up with some hot cocoa, tomato soup, and grilled cheese sandwiches. After spending the afternoon napping (the kids, not us) and playing, we drove around town to look at Christmas lights before tucking the kids in bed.

Christmas Lights

This afternoon we took the kids to visit my dad at the hospital. He has made incredible improvement since last week and the doctors are talking about him going home very soon. Afterward we grabbed some dinner and took the kids around Hudsonville to see some of the Christmas lights. The kids also got to wear their new Christmas jammies.
At the end we stopped to pick up some free Jr Jamocha shakes. Yes, we let our kids split a jamocha shake right before bedtime. I guess that makes us "those" people. The good news is they went to sleep just fine!

Preschool Christmas party

This morning I was able to attend Lillian's preschool Christmas party. She and her classmates sang songs for the parents and then we had time to do a lot of crafts together. We had a fun time!

Roommates!

Yesterday we began moving Caleb's things into Lillian's room and the two of them shared a room for the first night. This was also Caleb's first time in a big boy bed. Thankfully all went well and the kids settled down pretty quickly to sleep. Here are some morning shots of the two kiddos in their bunk beds.

Small group Christmas party

Today our small group got together for a little Christmas dinner after church. The kids were highly entertained by their dog, Abner, and by all of the adult attention they received.

Care Page for my dad

My dad was admitted to the hospital late last night with a diagnosis of Cerebral Malaria. I started a Care Page, which can be accessed here. To view and/or receive updates, simply start a free account. We appreciate all of the prayer that have been offered on his behalf.

Christmas letter 2011

Dear friends and family,

We try to sit down at about this time each year and reflect on all that has happened in the past twelve months and the ways God has blessed, stretched, and changed us. 2011 has brought a few significant changes and 2012 certainly will as well! Just before 2011 began Dan was officially hired as the Music and Ministry Coordinator for Sunrise Ministries in Hudsonville. This keeps Dan busy as he plans the music and various other aspects for Sunday worship each week as well as helps direct other areas of ministry. We have enjoyed getting to know more and more families from the church and have gotten involved in many ways. Dan's position is flexible enough that he is able to be home with Lillian and Caleb when Karissa is at school.

Karissa returned to the teaching world in the fall of 2010 as the elementary music teacher for Coopersville Area Public Schools. She does her best to balance her time between her 900+ students at school and her 2 very important kiddos at home! She also has been active in ministries at church and enjoys the opportunities to serve. She continues to chronicle the lives of the family through this blog, so check back often!

Lillian turned four in May and began preschool this fall at Zeeland Christian School. She attends school just two mornings a week and LOVES it. She has been on several fun field trips already this year and enjoys the activities and special events she participates in each week. Lillian's favorite hobbies are drawing and coloring, which she does several times on a daily basis. Lillian had some special moments at church this year as she participated in a dance on Palm Sunday and the Christmas musical this month.

Caleb turned two in July and continues to be our cute, sweet, mischievous little boy. He loves trains, garbage trucks, Elmo, doughnuts, and following in the footsteps of his big sister. His curly blonde hair and smile make him the charmer of many strangers.

We have enjoyed many fond memories this year through vacations to San Antonio, TX, Murfreesboro, TN, and Houghton Lake, MI. Each trip involved fun time for us as a family and with our extended family as well. Perhaps the biggest news of 2011, however, is the news that is still underway. We are very grateful to be expecting the fifth member of our family, a little boy, in March. We are thankful for his continued health and the excitement of Lillian and Caleb about their new little brother. We wish you a merry Christmas filled not only with fond memories made with loved ones, but with the truth of God's love.

With love,
Dan, Karissa, Lillian, Caleb, and baby boy

Bedroom train

Tonight Caleb made quite the extensive train in Lillian's bedroom. I couldn't even fit it in one picture!