Madisen Turns Four!

Since Madisen's Birthday is Tuesday and Grandma and Grandpa Newman brought the girls down to visit Christy in the hospital. we decided to have her Birthday Party a day early in the hospital. Here Madi demonstrates that she is ready for the big FOUR!

Sunday when they came up Christy was pretty out of it and had an oxygen tube on which was a little scary for Avery but today Christy looks and is acting like Mom again so the party mood was set. I made some tissue paper flowers to decorate the room and the Newman's bought a yummy chocolate cake.


Madi received some fun presents that she shared with Avery. We had so much fun that you would have never guessed we were stuffed into a hospital room.

The girls were very well behaved but I can't say the same of all the guests (you know who you are).

Avery even got in on the gift action.

But of course the packaging is always more interesting!

Madi even gave Grandpa Hodges and Grandpa Newman a lesson in jump rope etiquette which I'm sure they needed.



A great time was had by all...

Surprise - They're Here!

I have tried to figure out how to explain this last two days but Ryan has explained it so well in his blog that I will quote him:

"Hey, this is Ryan with some very crazy news. Christy and I were sitting in the hospital on Sunday when we were asked whether or not we wanted to attend sacrament meeting here at the hospital. We thought it would be a great idea, seeing as we can only escape the room once a day for a half-hour wheelchair ride. So Christy got some makeup on really quickly and went to use the bathroom when I heard her yell frantically for me. I ran to the bathroom to see what had happened. Christy told me that she felt something bulging down below. I hurredly called the nurses over and we loaded Christy up on a gurney and ran down the hall to the labor and delivery section of the hospital.

Right away we knew these babies were coming out a little earlier than anyone expected. The decision was made by the doctors to deliver the twin via C-section ASAP. I was rushed out of the room (fighting and screaming) and Christy was given general anasthetic, knocking her completely out. I paced back and forth in the recovery room for the next hour. It was easily the longest hour of my life. I kept going through it all in my mind trying to understand what was going on and what were the possible outcomes.

Soon the delivering doctor came in and told me that Christy was doing really well (she's a little doped up, but she's doing just great) and both the twins were in critical but stable condition. We are a little stunned and shocked right now, especially not knowing how thing will turn out with the twins. We named them Emily Jean Hodges (1 lb. 4 oz., born 11:08 am April 19th) and Ethan Ryan Hodges (1 lb. 7 oz., born 11:11 am April 19th). We are grateful for the time we have with them and hope that we can have many years to come with them.

We also wanted to express our love and appreciation to each of you for your prayers and thoughts. We plead with you to continue praying for the sweet little twins and for Christy."

Ethan Ryan Hodges (1 lb. 7 oz., born 11:11 am April 19th).

Emily Jean Hodges (1 lb. 4 oz., born 11:08 am April 19th)

Aren't they beautiful! We are just taking one day at a time and are grateful for any progress the babies make or problem that is solved. Those are Ryan's fingers holding Emily's hand and as you can tell they are so tiny. I thought 3 lbs. 6 oz. was small but these two together don't weigh as much as their father did!

Needless to say, I will be here for a little while. Ryan is going back to school tomorrow afternoon and I will stay here with Christy and the twins. The Doctors say not to expect the twins to come home until their due date which is August 13th so we will all be taking turns helping out and traveling a lot. I apologize for being so late with an update but as you can see we've been a little busy. Thank you for all of your well wishes and support. We love you.

Premature Babies - The Next Generation!

Sitting her in the hospital with Christy has brought back a flood of feelings and fears because 30 years ago I lived in SE Idaho and had to be transported by Air Ambulence to the exact hospital that I was currently driving to. Back when I was pregnant with my middle son, Nathan, I went into labor and dialated to a five. Nathan was only about 22-23 weeks gestation just like my grandchildren. I remember the fear that I had as the Doctor and Nurse in the plane tried to stableize my labor. I remember the helecoptor ride across the city from the airport. This was all so surreal and terrifying. My husband and I had one sweet little boy named Ryan who was only about four months old at the time. The same Ryan who just called me and asked me to get to his wife while he made arrangements for his two little girls and school.

Ryan is in the PA (Physician's Assistant) program and it is a very intense two years. If he were to fail a portion of his schooling they would have to start the process all over again. Christy had told Ryan to stay home and go to school until they knew what they were dealing with because she had only dialated to 3 cm and didn't think that the babies would be born yet. So Christy's parents took the girls and I went to be with Christy.

I remember how scared my husband and I were as we learned a whole new language of drugs to keep the labor at bay, medical terms that we tried to comprehand and a fear that we never knew existed. I couldn't believe that my son and his wife may have to go through that whole experience. All the babies in Christy's family are full term.

The Doctor's were able to keep me from delivering Nathan for four months. I had to stay on medication that made me shake and also had to stay flat in bed in the hospital. I was willing to do whatever it took because Ryan had been born nine weeks early and spent six weeks in Intensive Care and I remember how scary it was to watch him be so small (3 lbs. 6 oz.) and have the Doctor's tell us that he may not live. His lungs were inmature and he was on a respirator. I would sit in the Intensive Care Unit and watch as babies larger than Ryan would not make it. I was willing to do whatever it took so that Nathan didn't have to go through that. We were fortunate, Nathan was born only six weeks early and only had to spend two weeks in the hospital after he was born and he grew to be a strong and loving son and husband.

As I sit at my Dauther-in-laws bedside and watch her try to comprehend what may happen I am so scared but I also know what is possible. If they could keep Nathan from coming so early there is hope for the twins. With help from Heavenly Father and our supportive family and friends we will take one day at a time.

Twins Trying to Make An Early Entrance

For those of you who don't know, Ryan and Christy (my son & his adorable wife) are expecting twins. Yesterday at the Doctor's office they were doing an ultrasound and found out the one of the babies was trying to make an early entrance. His/Her foot was sticking out into the birth canal! Fortunately the sack was still in tact but they immediately Life Flighted her to a regional center in Salt Lake City, UT.

Ryan called me and I drove up last night to be with her. Christy and the babies seem to be doing fine for now but Christy will have to stay flat in bed for the next month or so. I'm having flash backs because I was Life Flighted to this same hospital 29 years ago when I was pregnant with Nathan and had to stay flat in bed, in labor, for four months. Now I'm sitting here with the next generation of babies in our family who are having a hard time waiting. We seem to be an impatient group.

We are so lucky that in her new room we have internet access on my laptop. Needless to say we are taking things one day at a time. I'm not sure how long I will be here but we will do what we need to. Christy and I have so much fun and laugh over the silliest things and fortunately we have had some things to laugh over.

Please include Ryan, Christy and their family in your prayers.

WOW - What a great surprise!

If you haven't heard Susan Boyle's audition you need to. It was amazing and also a great lesson not to judge people too quickly. Go Susan.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PPlkOyaqaQ

PopRocks, Mercy River & David Osmond Sing!

Ryan is on the left holding the microphone

I wasn't able to make it to the benefit concert for Lori Udy and her family (because of a surgery) but I am so excited that my Brother-in-law taped the concert and is sending me a copy. In the mean time here is a short clip of PopRocks singing their last song. David Osmond comes in and sings the last verse with them. Mercy River also sang and I hear they were phenominal. In the Video my son Ryan is the tall center cutie rocking with the music. My other boy Alan (Ryan's best friend) is on the far right (blond).

Pop Rocks & David Osmond Click here!

I hope that they raised enough money to help the Udy Family. I am so proud of Ryan and everyone who lent their talents to try to help out someone who needed it. Ryan said that it started snowing during the concert and that by the end of it there was pretty much a blizzard. I'm glad that they sang inside. The first time they sang in Rockland (10 years ago) they sang outside in the park. If you would still like to help out go to their webpage for information where you can donate to a very good cause. http://www.loriudy.com/index.php?p=1_11_Lori-s-Benefit-Concert

365 Days - Day 95 - Taste

I decided to list our favorite tastes partly to get Bob to participate. He doesn't Blog so unless I ask specific questions it is hard to get information of this sort out of him. I did learn some new things though.

Bob's is very simple and he doesn't really have strong opinions. My list on the other hand is more diverse and I kept adding things. Bob is so easy to please. I thought that I was too.

______________________
"Taste" - sweet, sour, salty, sharp

Warranty Expired!

Bob LOVES his big-screen TV! When we got married and moved to our new house Bob bought this HUGE Mitsubishi TV (2002). I remember the glaze that came over his eyes and his jaw dropping when he first entered the electronics area of the store. Most men have that same look but Bob is a gadget guy and he had never had a gadget this big. Since we were both working I thought that he deserved to have what he wanted even though I thought it was a bit of overkill.

I have to admit it has been a fun. We can all see exactly what is going on and video games are a lot clearer on the big screen. WII games are a blast!

Luckily we purchased a good warranty because when we moved to S. Utah, where we have frequent brown-outs and black-outs, our TV had problems. This TV lives in the basement and every time the repair guys have had to come out and haul this monstrosity up the stairs they always ask if we wouldn't rather keep it in our living room (on the main floor). Of course I don't want that black hole in my living room (sorry men, I know you don't understand) so they have to lug it back down the stairs after they have repaired it.

Well, the inevitable has happened. The warranty has expired! With the recent snow storms we have had quite a few power fluctuations and finally the TV died. A moment of silence please.....

In usual Bob style he took the TV apart. I know that he has wanted to take this a part for a long time (Bob likes to see how things work) but couldn't because of the warranty.
Bob immediately got online and did some research as to how to fix the problem. He found some symptoms that matched our TV exactly and ordered some parts. We waited for them to come in the mail and then Bob soldered them on. And .......they didn't solve the problem!

So now Bob thinks that it might be a power problem. Sorry guys but I don't speak electronics very well. Give me some software and I can talk fluently but hardware lingo is Chinese to me. So now Bob is testing all electrical sources or something like that. Bob is in his element, he is using gadgets to test gadgets.

What a pain! Poor Bob has to do research, order parts or manuals, go to work for a week, come home try to fix the TV, it doesn't work so he starts the process over again. Long story even longer, our family room has a HUGE TV taken apart in the middle of it and the bedroom next to it strewn with parts. I know that Bob hates that the TV is down but I also know that he is doing what he does best. Problem Solve. Bob is happy.