Tahoe Trip

We were lucky enough to be able to take a trip to Tahoe from Sunday to Wednesday. My parents came along with us and we stayed in their friends cabin right at the foot of Heavenly. On Sunday we were lucky enough to see the snow fall and woke up on monday morning to a beautiful blanket of snow. It was so fun to see how excited Avery was! We were all really excited to just be there! We were blessed with perfect weather. We hung out and sledded on Monday, then Jaron and I went snowboarding/skiing on Tuesday at Sierra at Tahoe. The day was gorgeous! We are so lucky to have gone at the perfect time and so thankful to my parents for setting it up and watching the kiddos so we could have a break! We are ready to go right back up!!

Snow fall on Monday morning

Snow bunny Riley

Grandpa and Avery

Whoa!!

On the chair lift ready to hit the slopes!

Jaron boarding down the mountain.

Exhausted!

For less than a dollar a day...

...you can make a difference in the life of a starving child. Does she not look like one of those kids from a Feed the Children commercial?? Ahh! It is so gross. Thankfully we can post this knowing that she is doing so much better. Just check out the picture below it and compare! In just a short time she looks incredibly healthy (or at least healthier than before). She is back to her normal playful smiling self and we are so thankful! We had some rough days, but we have had some great ones lately and are praying it continues. Thanks for all the prayers and well wishes!!

1/26/09

2/6/09

Cute Girls

This is Riley's lion face. When asked what a lion says, she opens her mouth wide like a roar, but no sound is made. :)

Way to go, Riley!

Riley did it, she gained 7 oz. in the past 5 days. That was enough to keep her out of the hospital. She has been doing great during the past week, eating well with minimal vomiting. She gained back the weight she lost when she was so sick, plus a couple ounces. I think the real test will be if she can keep gaining at this rate for the next couple weeks before her next weight check. We are super excited about this small victory and hopeful for continued progress.

A new post because we need one

I have no pictures to show or much news for that matter, but I needed to post something! We have all been coping with sickness here in the Olson home and are now finally feeling normal again. The stomach flu made its way through the house and blessed each one of us with a visit. How lovely! Riley and I were also lucky enough to get bad colds. I feel as though my house needs to be disinfected and aired out.
Riley visited the GI doctor and we have 5 days to gain 5 ounces or she is headed for the hospital and a feeding tube. We are stuffing her face and so far we have been successful. She has been eating well and drinking her nasty pediasure so I am hopeful. She only threw up once on Thursday and did not throw up at all yesterday! Pray for 3 more good days.
Avery is as sweet as ever and loves on her sissy so well. She is just so protective of Riley. I signed her up for Preschool in the fall and she is excited about that. She will also get to take swim lessons at Harker in the summer and I think I am going to sign her up for ballet lessons in the spring. Lots of fun is coming her way!
Once I am 100%, I am going to try and get back to my spin classes. My dear friend, Sarah is getting married in May and so that is my new goal date for getting to where I need to be. :)

Riley

More doctor visits for Riley this week. Tuesday she saw her pediatrician again, who started her on some inhaled medication and a cough suppressant to try prevent some of her coughing fits (these often trigger vomiting). It seems like it may be helping a tiny bit, it's only been a couple days. Today she saw another GI specialist. He seemed to think Kaiser had not ruled out food allergy/celiac disease completely...so more stool and blood tests. He also helped us with some feeding strategies and supplement/medication advice.
Last week her pediatrician brought up a pretty serious condition as a possible diagnosis, that was pretty heavy and has caused some stress. After consulting the endocrinologist further, that now seems like a less likely diagnosis based on where she is developmentally.
Combined with her breath holding spells, all of this has been pretty nerve-wracking...but we are hanging in there.

Birthday Princess

On Monday the 12th, we celebrated Avery's birthday Tinkerbell style. We had everything Tinkerbell and Avery loved it! We had our playgroup friends over along with a few other friends and we had a blast. It was so fun to see Avery having so much fun. I cannot believe this little girl is 4 years old aready. It has gone by so fast.

Avery still loves everything girly and when asked her favorite color it remains to be pink and purple. Anything glittery and sparkly is sure to make her smile. She still remains a bit shy at first, but as soon as she is comfortable is a complete goof. She loves to tease her daddy and says the most hilarious things, most of which he has taught her to say. Example:

Avery: "Guess What?"

Me: "What?"

Avery: "Chicken butt!"

This is then followed by much laughter.

She loves imaginary play and can keep herself occupied for a long time making up stories. She is in love with her sissy, and though she still can be a bit jealous and selfish, especially when it comes to time with Grandpa, she is very protective of her. She just told me today that she loves her just the way she is. How precious and sweet! Oh how we love our beautiful Avery Lynn!

On Tuesday, her actual birthday, we started the day off with presents, and pancakes with frosting and m&ms made by daddy. We then went and spent the day in Gilroy with my parents as Jaron had a night of basketball games to cover. When she went to bed that evening, she asked, "How old am I going to be next?" I said, "5." She then giggled loudly squealing, "Oooh...I'm going to be 5!!" How's that for living in the moment?

Catching Up

For New Years, our good friends Matt and Rachel and their son Joey came to visit. We had a great time catching up, playing some games, and ringing in the New Year with good ol' Dick Clark.

Just FYI...I was only drinking apple cider :)

We were also able to spend some lovely time with my college roommate and her hubby Rex and daughter Ruby. It was so good to see her and laugh with her. I miss you, friend!

Ruby and Riley


Jaron getting in some tractor time at my grandparents house. :)

Beautiful Avery

Update on Riley

I am just doing a quick post since today has been an especially rough day.
Jaron took Riley to see her new pediatrician yesterday, Dr. Vereschagen. She weighed in at 17 pounds 10 ounces. She had a chest xray and some bloodwork done. Jaron said she did such a good job. The doctor called us that evening and told us her chest xray was clear...no signs of inflammation or asthma. Her calcium levels came back high so we are being referred to an endocrinologist at Stanford to have some further testing done. We are also being referred to a pediatric GI.
For now, she will continue her prevacid tablets (for the reflux) and we have to try and get 400 extra calories in her per day. This, of course, is easier said than done. We are pushing the pediasure, but with the throwing up, I am still having a rough time.
Pray specifically for gaining weight and a decrease in her throwing up.
Pray also for my sanity.

Bowling

The Olson fam decided to go bowling this year so that we could spend some fun quality time together. We were not very good, but sure had a ton of fun trying!

Christmas with the Olsons

Cousins: Trevor, Riley, Avery, and Kaylin

Avery and Kaylin

Endoscopy Results

The GI doc called today with the news that the biopsy results were normal. There are no signs of damage or allergies. This of course is good news, but puts us back to not having any clue what is wrong. More to come after we see her new pediatrician on the 5th...

A Family Christmas

This year it was just the 4 of us on Christmas. My parents left for Costa Rica early that morning and we were celebrating with Jaron's family later in the week. We really had a wonderful time not having a schedule. We started with presents, of course and then went out to the movies to see Madagascar 2. That evening, Jaron cooked a prime rib dinner, which was delicious.

Riley with her new plush Dora backpack

Avery's ruby slippers

The Christmas Angel

Santa delivered Avery a late Christmas gift...a lump of coal! She kept teasing Jaron that all he was going to get this year was a lump of coal. I guess teasing your daddy puts you on the naughty list.

Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve we went to church and then out to Black Angus for dinner. Jaron received a gift card from his boss...sweet! We then drove around to look at some Christmas lights before heading back to open one gift. Avery was so excited and had picked out her gift earlier in the day. She opened a gift from Aunt Kari and Dave...the Kung Fu Panda DVD. Riley also opened a gift from them...a boat filled with animals for bathtime fun.

After gifts, Jaron read the Christmas Story to Avery out of her Childrens Bible. We then watched the Nativity Story DVD, which we had never seen. We enjoyed some great family time and were looking forward to the following morning!

First Christmas

We celebrated early with my parents and uncle on Dec. 21st. We had a tasty brunch followed by presents. The girls received wonderful gifts. From my parents, Avery got a kids digital camera and has not stopped taking pictures since and Riley received a baby leapster with a few books to go with it. They also got some Dora instruments. My uncle got both the girls some fabulous wooden puzzles and games and a beautiful velveteen rabbit and book for Riley. She also got her first piggy bank. :) It was a very relaxing and enjoyable way to start the Christmas celebrations!

Riley's endoscopy

Riley had her upper endoscopy with biopsy this morning. She did great. She had to get an IV and general anesthesia, but the procedure was only about 15 minutes long. We were home by 10:45am and she is eating, drinking, smiling and watching Dora the Explorer. The doctor saw no abnormalities during the procedure, but the lab results on the biopsy will take a few days. She did weigh in under 18 lbs, which means she lost some weight again. That's not great news, but we weren't surprised since she has been a little sick for the past week or two. (That makes her cough, gag, vomit more frequently)

The Nutcracker

My mom took Avery and I for a very special day out yesterday. We headed to San Francisco for a very yummy lunch at Citizen Cake and then walked over to see the Nutcracker Ballet. Avery had been super excited and loved getting all dressed up for the event. It was family day so she got to take pictures with some of the performers. She loved the flower fairy, but would not go near the Mouse King. He was too scary, she said. We had wonderful seats and Avery was able to see everything. She was so well behaved and had a spectacular time. Thanks Mom for a perfect day!

Scrunch

Riley makes the funniest face when she needs her nose wiped. When I say, "Do you need a kleenex?" She scrunches up her nose in preparation.