Las Vegas Grandma and Grandpa

Although my dad was having open heart surgery my mom still took the time to have Christmas for my kids. She is an amazing grandma! Kam got 100 of these huge over size block that are really fun.

Avery loves horses and got this huge horse with a doll.

Kasen got Dragedor battling set and they all got hex bugs which they love. My mom and dad gave me and Nick the x box kinnect. We are always so spoiled. I want our family to know that we love and appreciate all that they do for us. We are lucky to have two sets of grandparents who just adore our children! What a blessing it was that my dad was able to hsare this holiday with us.

* Looking back on the year there is always going to be ups and downs and trials we all have to face that might not always be easy. I am so grateful that I can say that I love my family, my friends, my job and I love my life! Happy 2011!!!!

Pahrump Papa and Grandmas Christmas

After we open our gifts at home we head down to grandma and grandpas for breakfast.

Avery got new pajamas and a karaoke machine.

Kasen got a real guitar. He has always loved music. Kam got a new train set but was in no mood for pictures! Thanks grandma and papa!

Christmas

It is tradition that the kids always open a gift on Christmas Eve.

Of course it is always new pajamas and slippers!

The kids were spoiled as usual. A couple of things Kasen got was a DS game with 150 different games on it, WWF wrestling ring, clothes, basketball hoop, rip stick, new blanket.

Avery got a new bike, clothes, DS game with 200 different games, a doll head she can do different hairstyles on, nail polish and manicure set, a huge baby and the LuLu the kitty. It is really creepy. It moves, rolls over and purs just like a real cat.

Kam got clothes, this power wheels Mater truck and a toy laptop and some wrestling action figures so he can play with kasen.

They loved all their gifts and said it was the best Christmas ever! On a side note they did not write letters to Santa this year. They both said let it be a surprise. Santa made these three kids very happy this year!

Power of Prayer

Christmas with my mom and dad was a bit different this year. My dad has been in and out of the hospital since June with a bad heart and lungs. They are thinking the damage was done from the radiation he had several years ago due to his cancer. The las Vegas team was unsure of what steps to take with my dad so they made him where an external defibrillator so if his heart stopped it would shock it and hopefully restart. His heart was only working at about 20% percent at this point but the problem was he had this weird puss pocket on the aorta valve they were needing to replace. At any moment he was told that if it breaks off he will die of a heart attack or have a massive stroke. The doctors told him they would not due the surgery until the puss pocket was gone. After 7 weeks on the strongest antibiotic they make it was still there.

My mom asked my dads cardiologist if it would be a good idea to get a second opinion because they felt everyone was kind of just waiting for him to die. The doctor agreed. They referred him to Cedars Sinai in Beverly Hills California. It is one of the top ranked cardiac hospitals in the US. Within just a couple of weeks my dad had an appointment to have a aortic valve replacement done. They said my dad was in extremely bad shape and there was a very high chance he would not make it survive the surgery.

My dad is very optimistic and said if I don't do it I will for sure die so I might as well try it. Of course the rest of us just went into a panic. I knew that it would be extremely hard for me if my dad didn't make it but I didn't feel like my kids could handle it. They are so close to him and he is an amazing grandfather. The anxiety set in and every time the phone would ring I would panic thinking something was wrong with my dad. Every night my kids prayed for their papa to make it through and they made pictures and cards for him daily.

On December 12 me, mom and dad drove down to Beverly Hills to prepare for the surgery he had the next day. I was just shaky and uncertain and simply panicked thinking of a life with out my dad and how would I ever tell my children that their grandpa didn't make it. I felt that it was very important that we all got priesthood blessings. My two uncles and aunts were able to meet us at the hotel. My uncle Lynn and uncle Eric gave each one of us a blessing. The minute they laid their hands on my head I knew my dad would make it through the surgery just fine. I just felt at peace. I am so grateful for them. My dads family also did a family fast and the calls flooded my moms phone saying each one of their friends were praying for my dad.

As my dad entered surgery the next day I never had an uncertain feeling. I had faith he would make it through. He was in surgery for 6 or 7 hours and finally we were able to see him at about 8:00 p.m. His surgical team was amazing and his doctor was actually the one who created the new procedure to harvest the heart for transplant. Crazy enough he is only about 35 years old. They said the puss pocket was just about to break off and if he had waited any longer he would not have made it. He was in the hospital for 10 day and stayed down in California for and additional 5. The hospital and staff were amazing.

What a great experience my children had this year that did not include presents. They were never worried about presents only bout their papa. They were able to see our testimonies and see that Heavenly Father loves us and answer our prayers. I am so grateful for all of the support we had from our friends and family. We were able to celebrate our Holiday with them a few days after Christmas WITH my dad. There was no greater gift!

Christmas Concerts

Each of the kids sang a couple of songs for their school Christmas concerts. There were so many people we were not able to get any pics of the on stage. Kasen sang I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas and one of Avery's was Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. They did such a good job and what a wonderful way to get in the Christmas Spirit!

Christmas Family Pictures

I Love my Family!

Football Banquet

Kasen had his end of the year football banquet at one of the elementary schools. The coaches bought the kids pizza and soda. Kasen got an academic award for being on the straight A honor roll and also received a trophy.

The coaches said, Kasen was one of the hardest workers on the team and a real go getter. They also said he had alot of determination, and that even if he was hurt he wouldn't give up, quit, or go out of the game.

Kasen had a great football season, we are very proud of him for working so hard and never giving up.