Give this girl a break (or fractured wrist) already!

We wanted to celebrate the kids milestones of graduating from 6th grade and Kindergarten so we threw them a class party. Grace had a park party and Tanner had a rollerskating party. It was SO much fun...that is until Grace fractured her poor little wrist. Her bones are very brittle from chemo, so it wasn't too surprising that even a slight fall could do that to her. It makes me want to keep her in a protective bubble, but where is the fun in that? Grace will go back to the doctor in a week or two to determine if she needs a harder cast. It was really interesting to see the x-rays of her bones. They look similar to the diagrams you see on hair commercials where you see the waves of damaged hair. Her bones literally had "waves" in them. We believe it's from chemo, but we'll have to do more research on that. Grace was tremendously optimistic and brave though. Despite how much she is hurting, she is such an optimist. The only time she even complained was at night when she was tired beyond belief. So....here's how this girl's weekend will go down in history-or on our humble blog:
-Did her jobs, practiced piano, got excited to party rollerskating style, started to feel unwell from her chemo meds, fell down the stairs when she was tired, went to the party, fractured a wrist, headed to chemo/spinal tap Friday... just a regular day in the life of Grace. Uggghhh, I'm tired just thinking about Grace's life!

Evidence that Tanner NEVER willingly lets us snap his photo.

Eva was AMAZING on skates! She had such a blast!

Grace had a blast and really worked the skating department! That is until the fated fall...

It was Eva's first time rollerskating and she did great. She wanted to do it by herself and she did.

SUMMER....we welcome you with open arms!

The summer weather finally visited Portland. We have had the second wettest May on record, so when the forecast said Saturday and Sunday would be 80, the kids had their swimsuits set out and ready to go. What a difference warm weather has on them, and how fun the yard becomes when water balloons and wet trampolines are the norm.

I am sure it was very hard for the doctor to find some extra thigh for her needle.

Gracie, right before she performs at her last day of school assembly. We tried to get a picture of T, but he hid every chance we had. For some reason, having you whole family hanging out at your assembly, cheering really loud, and taking lots of pictures is not cool?

T and G before their last day of school. We cannot believe that Tanner is now a 7th grader and Grace is a 1st grader!

Grace announcing the last day assembly

Tanner being announced as the new National Honor Society President.

Teeth are Great!

Grace lost her first Tooth last night while brushing her teeth. It was very loose and she was worried that it might hurt to pull it, so it was a great way to loose it. Here is the note and her tooth. Before we were able to scan it, Grace had already scrapbooked about her first lost tooth. How could the toothfairy not let her keep her tooth. I am sorry it is fuzzy in some parts, but scanning her whole scrap book turned out to be tricky with a tooth taped on it.

This week, Grace received the Integrity Award for her school. Here are some pictures. The assembly was outside and a little rainy so Eva decided to take advantage of the puddles. We are so proud of Grace and her good example. To see what was said click on the video below.

Tanner had his Shakespeare club performance on Friday. It was great. Tanner did amazing and was such a versatile actor. Instead of doing one Shakespeare play they did a handful of them. Here is Tanner as the Duke of Morocco in The Merchant of Venice. Grace and Eva were so excited to watch Tanner act.

I have been loving my new camera. We decided to play with it on Sunday. Here are some pics...

Ben's Half Bday and Friday's Chemo

Grace had chemo last Friday and has since not felt well. It's amazing how it slows her down physically, but her mind is right in "kid mode." She has been so sad this week missing birthday parties, playing, and school-particularly because there are so few days left until summer vacation. But, despite feeling unwell, Grace still wears her smile and lights up when her siblings are around. She's found great solace in some chapter books she got at her school book fair. Nothing like a good book to take you to another world....and a world far away from chemo aches is not a bad place to be!

Benjamin! Oh my goodness...he makes time feel like it's at warp speed. He has grown SO quickly, but every moment spent with him is time spent in good company. On the 20th, he turned half a year old! Shele described Ben perfectly as everybody's buddy. So true! Ben brings a smile to our whole family's faces. He is SO tender and precious and at the same time absolutely hilarious and bright. He can say so much with his giant blue eyes and his padded curvature called a baby body. He started off his half birthday by rolling over, saying "na na na" which I attribute to his vast love of bananas, and getting two highly adorable bottom teeth. Ben loves reaching for toys, loves the texture of his green "wooby" blanket, LOVES watching his siblings do anything at all, and smiles and laughs constantly. He's definately more quiet than my other children, but even in utero, I suspected he'd be a more quiet, calm spirit. I think he's an observer (plus, with three others before him, he knows he will hardly get a word in edgewise). Ben came into this world under some challenging circumstances, but he is like a breath of fresh air, a reminder that joy is in abundance, and proof that heaven exists! In the words of my favorite book, thank you Pride and Prejudice, "from the very first moment I beheld him my heart was irrevocably gone."