Munchkin Inc.

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Lagoon

The kids love spending time at Lagoon with their cousins. There is no better recipe for happiness.

Ryan and Laney Sitting in a Tree...

This is Laney. She was one of Ryan and Markie's best friends in kindergarten. Surprisingly, she also applied and was accepted to the Mandarin program at Spring Lane Elementary. She and Ry have maintained their close friendship. We had Laney over for a play-date after school one day. I took the kids to TCBY for a frozen yogurt treat. It was a blast. On the way home I glanced in my rear-view mirror and saw Ryan motioning to Laney to come closer. Then closer again. Eventually she was close enough for him to quickly reach her with his lips and plant a kiss on her cheek. This made Laney blush at first, then she returned the gesture. Before I knew it they were exchanging kisses on the cheeks, foreheads, and lips. FIRST GRADE? I was not prepared for such acts of kindness this early. Don't girls have cooties anymore? I thought I had at least four more years before I had to worry about kissing. Kids these days!

1st Grade

Ryan started first grade this fall. He was accepted to the Mandarin Immersion program in the Granite School District. During each school day he spends half his time with an English teacher and the other half with a Chinese teacher. They study the traditional elementary curriculum in both classes and learns with a teacher who only speaks Mandarin in one of his classes. He is completely immersed in the Mandarin language for about 3-4 hours, five days of the week. This program boasts fluency in reading, writing and speaking by the completion of 6th grade. It truly is an amazing opportunity. Ryan absolutely loves this program. He is a few months in now and can count as high as you can imagine. He can also have a conversation with his teacher about who knows what. I try to keep up with him, but there is just no way for a 34 year old to absorb the language the way a 6 year old does. He is well on his way to greatness. Congratulation, Ry. *Wa-I-Nee*

Lynne Patrice

Only four weeks after taking drastic measures to prevent myself from developing the life-altering sickness of breast cancer, my beautiful sister Lynne Patrice lost her battle with the disease. She fought for eight years and at times seemed to have conquered the illness. In the end, her body just couldn't fight anymore.
I drove with my parents to Klamath Falls, Oregon to attend her memorial service. Klamath Falls is a small town in a rural area of the state. It appeared that the whole town came to honor Lynne at the service. She had definitely made an impact on the tight-knit community of Klamath Falls.
It is a heart-wrenching event to loose a family member. I know that in the end Lynne had come to terms with cancer. She was aware that she had fought as long and hard as she could. She certainly had accomplished many wonderful things in her short life. She had a loving marriage to Thom, the father of her four children. Only six weeks before her passing she danced with her oldest son, Matt, at his wedding. She will be missed terribly by her family. She was only 54.

Monday, August 08, 2011

BRCA 1

My Dear Ryan and Sarah-
I have recently tested positive for a genetic mutation which puts me in an extremely high-risk category for breast and ovarian cancer. My sister, Joanie, is currently going through the struggles of breast cancer and found this mutation in our family. I have been presented with options to deal with this mutation. The option that I feel most comfortable with is a complete mastectomy (removal of breast tissue) and an oophorectomy or hysterectomy (removal of ovaries and/or uterus). These surgeries will greatly reduce my risk of developing these potentially terminal illnesses.
You, my sweet children, are so important to me. It breaks my heart to think of you dealing with the severe sickness of your mother that cancer would provide. I feel very certain that I am making the right decision to go through with these preventative surgeries. If it gives me the ability to watch you grow up and love you longer then it is worth it.
There is a 50% chance that either one of you could also have this mutation. I have been encouraged by the team at Huntsman to not worry about you now. There is very aggressive research taking place on this mutation every day. It is entirely possible that 25 years from now when you are faced with this same situation there will be advanced treatment for you.
Ry and Sis, you are my motivation in life to do what is right. I love you both so, so much. I will pull through this tough time and we will go on with our lives unscathed. I look at this as an amazing opportunity. I am given the chance to navigate around this horrible illness that is headed straight for me. So many people have illness ahead of them and never get this chance. I am so incredibly lucky to have been given this heads-up and I encourage you to both find out about your own possibilities when your time arrives.
With all the love in the world,
-Mama

4th of July

The kids enjoyed a fireworks demonstration given by Ferin at home before walking down to the Holladay city center to see a big, professional show. It was fun, loud and beautiful. The weather this year has been atypical to what we are used to. We have had cool, cloudy days and evenings. It even sprinkled on us during the fireworks show.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Happy Birthday, Ry!

Happy 6th birthday, Ryan.
June 1st is such a wonderful day for a birthday. It is during the last week of school and that is always a party in and of itself. I brought treats for your class, which you passed out. You chose eclairs and they were delicious! Good job!
You had a fun party, once again. We had your closest friends and family over for back-yard fun, cake and ice-cream.
We all love you so much, Ry. You make your family so happy every day!

This is Ryan doing "arm-farts" before school on his birthday. Only three days of school until summer vacation! There is a buzz in the air.

What could be better than awesome water guns for a boy?

Ryan and his friends scoping the birthday cake. YUM!

After the party we had a fire and roasted marshmallows.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

My Family

I love these people so much. My life is beautiful!

Sarah

Sarah is a sweet and complicated little girl. Sis is concerned with having every "owie" kissed better. She can count to five, but insists that the number three doesn't exist "1,2,4,5"! She is motivated and determined to get her way at all times. She is a girlie-girl, always dressing up. She is in the midst of the terrible-two's and she can throw a tantrum with the best of 'em. This girl will never be the under-dog. I am so proud her!

Ryan

Ryan is a compassionate big-brother, an athlete, an excellent student just finishing up kindergarten, and the most amazing son. I LOVE THIS BOY!

Complacency

I have become complacent with my blog here on Munchkin. Due to sources such as Facebook and texting I am able to communicate with friends and family regarding my day-to-day happenings. This, however, will not satisfy the need to communicate with my children years from now when they look for stories of their past. This blog was originally designed as a venue for me to tell stories and create memories of my life with my wonderful children. It is important to me that both Ryan and Sarah know exactly how much they mean to me. If I can capture images and tell tales of how much beauty they bring to my life everyday, then I will feel satisfied. That is my intention when blogging here on Munchkin. Ryan and Sarah, you deserve to know that I am so proud to be your Mama, that I look forward to every day of life with you and that I wouldn't change a single thing about either one of you. You, my sweet children, make me happy! I am looking forward to telling you exactly how wonderful you are. I apologize for the hiatus.