Here are some new pics of Madison, Tanner, & Camden taken today at the park.

She's 6!

Last week we celebrated Madison's 6th birthday!!

Mads at her party

Where does time go?!?!

Maddy is a fun, loving, caring, motherly, helpful little girl. She is easy going, but can have an attitude! She loves to dance, anywhere and everywhere she can!

Her nicknames include: Maddy, Mads, and sissy.

Her favorite color is purple.

She likes peace signs & pink zebra stuff.

We celebrated her birthday on Oct 1st with a cookout at our house. The weather was a little chilly, but we had lots of friends and family over, so we had lots of FUN! For her birthday, she didn't ask for much, but she did tell us that she wanted a American girl doll, so Chad and I got her a doll that is similar. She loved it! She had a great time at her party!

Cake done by Grandma Rose.

On Wednesday when Chad got home from work, she had a few more gifts to open from us. Tanner bought her gum (I think he wanted the gum for himself, but her knew she would share it with him), she got a few new shirts, but her other "big" present was a radio. She loves to play in her room and listening to her CDs.

After unwrapping her gifts, we meet our family at her favorite place, Carlos O'Kelly's for dinner. Madison had a great birthday!!

Happy 6th Birthday Madison Renee!!!!!!

Camden Ryan

Camden Ryan is 4 months old! Time sure does fly by!

He went last week for his 4 month well baby check up and to get his shots. He weighs 11 lbs and after being measured at least 5 times, it was determined that he is 25 inches long. Our doctor didn't think that he could be 25 in, so both nurses remeasured him just to make sure. He is a healthy baby, but our doctor is concerned about his weight, Camden loves to eat, he drinks 4 oz during the day, and usually 5 oz before bed and when he gets up in the morning. I have to take him this week to get his weight rechecked, then we will see what the doctor is wanting us to do.

School Days

Well it's official...we have 2 kids in school.

Maddy started kindergarten at Grimes on August 19th. She wasn't so sure about going all day when they started, but she loves it! They are reviewing letters and learning what sound they make, so she has been trying to read to me. She loves taking her lunch, can't say I blame her some days! So far she has stayed on purple (they have a color system for their behavior, purple means she hasn't gotten into any trouble), we will see how long she can stay on purple though, because we all know how much she loves to talk! Madison's teacher is also very nice, so I think she is going to have a great year of kindergarten!

Camden, Maddy, & Tanner on her 1st day of school

Tanner started 3 year old preschool on Tuesday at Messiah. He was very excited to go since he has been with me for the past 2 years when we dropped Mads off there. He knew of all the teachers, and the playground very well. On his first day we dropped Maddy off and I let him play at the park before school started, he ran into the building as fast as he could. He was the first one in the door. He put his bag in his cubby, washed his hands, I walked him around the corner, then he started to cry when I told him goodbye. When I went back to get him, he told me that he had fun, so hopefully he will do great when I take him to school tomorrow!

Tanner before school

T at school

Camden has also been busy while the kids are at school. He has started rolling from his stomach over to his back:-( This makes me sad...my baby is getting to big to fast! He is a very happy baby who loves to talk, smile, giggle, and try to put both fists into his mouth. He goes back to the doctor next Friday for his 4 month well baby check-up.

I had my camera ready to try to capture him rolling over, but he wouldn't...so here he is holding his head up really high.

Catching Up....

Yippee!!!!! Chad finally got our laptop fixed after more than 5 hours on the phone with HP, so time to catch up!!!

Summer is quickly coming to an end:-( Next week Maddy starts kindergarten:-( I know she will have a blast....but I'm going to miss her. She has been with me almost every day all day long. She is nervous about starting school, but I know she will love it! Tanner also is all registered for preschool. He will be starting in the 3s class on the 30th. He is having mixed emotions about starting school. He knows the teachers since Maddy has been at Messiah for the last 2 years, but he is also a momma's boy. Camden is 3 months old & growing like a weed. He loves to smile and "talk," he is such a happy baby! He loves to watch his big sister & brother, & the daycare kids.

Chad is still busy working & I am trying to enjoy the last week of summer vacation, before the crazy schedule begins with 2 kids in school & dance classes resuming. Hope you all have had a great summer, I'm trying to upload pictures of what else we have been up to, but it doesn't seem to be working right now....I will try to upload them tomorrow.

Going to the doctor

I wanted to post this while I had a second....
Last Tuesday the kids went to the dentist, & then last Friday in the middle of Chad replacing the gravel in our driveway...all 3 kids had doctor appointments....what were we thinking?!?!

Actually it wasn't that bad, we survived, & I'm glad it's done!

Madison had a small cavity, I took her back & they filled it, we were in & back out within 5 minutes. Dr. Moore also told us that she has 4 loose teeth. They aren't super loose, but she has been trying to eat different things to help them fall out soon.

Madison had her kindergarten physical, & shots. She is doing well and survived her shots, which she was dreading (& so were mom & dad!). She had to have 3 booster shots in her legs, she has a big red spot from 1 of the shots, I have been having her hold ice on them to help with the swelling, other than that she is ready for school to start.

Tanner also had his preschool physical. He got his teeth cleaned at the dentist for the 1st time. He is a healthy boy & is very excited to start school.

Camden had his 2 month check-up also last Friday. He weighs 11 lbs and is 22 inches long. He is right on track and doing everything he should be doing. He also started shots this time:-( He cried for just a few minutes, then he calmed down when I picked him up. He goes back in another 2 mos for his 4 mo check-up.

Camden also has been smiling more lately. He will smile back at you and has been starting to "talk" a little. Maddy & Tanner love to talk to him and try to get him to smile back at them.

I'm glad that all 3 kids are healthy! Until next time....

Our 4th

Our Fourth of July weekend was a busy one! We had lots of fun, but we were all worn out after the weekend.

Friday night we enjoyed an evening on the Mississippi. We played on the beach and enjoyed a boat ride. Camden got to spend some quality time with Grandma Rose.

On Saturday, Chad & Tanner went fishing. It was T's 1st time and he caught 4 fish! He was so proud and still tells everyone who will listen about going fishing with daddy and Uncle Matt. Maddy went to a birthday party for her friend from preschool, she enjoyed getting to see all the girls from preschool.

On Sunday we went to my Grandparent's for their annual 4th of July fish fry. It was nice to be able to spend time with all our family, & the fish was also good! The kids had fun running around playing football & looking at my Grandparent's fish pond.

Monday was a very busy, but fun 4th! We started the day at 9 am at the West Burlington Fire Station for the pancake breakfast. From there we went to a ceremony honoring past & present firemen and women. Chad's Uncle Bill was honored, he passed away while fighting a fire at Ryan's Fitness Center. It was a very nice ceremony. From there we let the kids do a few of the activities before we headed home to relax and cool off for a little bit.

After we rested, we headed back to WB for the parade. The Klein family was the Grand Marshall of the parade. It was a great honoring to be honoring Chad's grandma, Pat Klein. We all had a blast tossing out candy to all the kids along the parade route, but it was HOT!!! When the parade was over the semi took us to Longmeadow Park. The mayor of West Burlington renamed the park to Chad's grandma, the park is now called the Pat Klein Memorial Park. She helped get the park started, so this is a great honor! After the dedication, we headed to Rick's for a PICNIC....Pat's favorite thing! At least it didn't rain. After eating we headed uptown to watch the fireworks. Poor Tanner was so wore out, he ended up falling asleep in a lawn chair, we tried to wake him up so that he could watch the fireworks, Chad put him on his shoulders, & that's where he stayed till we got back to the car. He used Chad's head as a pillow! I'm not sure how he slept through the fireworks, when thunder usually wakes him up....

We had a great 4th, but I think we all could of used an extra day to recover from the busy weekend!!!

Our family: Chad, Kystal, Tanner, Camden, & Madison

Maddy

Madison, Katelyn, Tanner, & Ethan riding on the "train"

Tanner & Ethan

Maddy & Katelyn

Maddy trying to hit the target

Tanner's turn

4th of July parade

Tanner waiting for the parade to start

Camden's 1st 4th!

It's A Boy!!

This past month has flown by....

Camden Ryan was born Friday May 6th at 7:46 am, he was 8 lbs, 5 ozs, & 20 in long. His first week of life was a bumpy road...here's his story.....
Camden Ryan 8 lbs 5 oz 20 in long

Chad and I arrived at the hospital at 5:45 am so I could be prepped for my c-section. After the nurses got me settled and my IV started (which wasn't easy), & I signed the rest of my papers, I was ready to go to the OR. Everything went well with my c-section, Camden did have some fluid on his lungs when he was born, but other than that he was a healthy baby boy with lots of hair. Once I got back to my room, they brought Camden in. Soon after Grandma Rose, Grandpa Bob, Nana, Papa, Maddy, & Tanner came to my room. We got to hold him for a short time, then when it was Madison's turn he started having "tremors". They started off not to bad, but then they got worse, so we called the nurse and she thought she should take him back to the nursery and put him in the warming bed. Next thing we know our boy is hooked up to monitors, has an IV, and has to stay in the warming bed in the NICU. Our family doctor turned Camden over to the Peds doctors, & they decided he needed to be monitored.

Camden in his bed....poor baby boy!

Mommy with Camden

Daddy & Camden

Camden was still having these tremor episodes, so they decided to do a CT Scan. Chad was able to go & stay with him while they did the scan. He had to stay in the NICU Friday night, so I went to the nursery every 2 hours when he needed to eat. On Saturday he had to stay in the NICU all day, but Chad & I were able to go and sit with him whenever we wanted. We also were able to hold him some, but for the most part he stayed in his warming bed. On Saturday night they brought Camden to our room so I could nurse him, but then we had to call the nurse to come and take him back to the NICU. He was still having episodes, but not as bad or often.

Sunday was Mother's Day and we were hoping we would still be able to come home on Monday after Camden finished his last dose of antibiotics. Chad and the kids came out to see us, and we were hoping to spend much of the day together as a new family of 5. Once when Camden was in my room to eat he started having tremors again, so we called the nurse and she took him back to the nursery. Everything went down hill from there, they ended up doing a EEG on Camden and he was back in the warming bed.

Madison holding Camden Monday am.

Tanner holding Camden on Monday before they took Maddy to school.

On Monday a new doctor saw Camden, and he never came to talk to me, so we ended up requesting that he come and talk to us. he wanted to keep him at the hospital for 7 more days on antibiotics, but we still weren't getting any answers on what these tremors were. We wanted answers, so after talking to the doctor, we brought up that if they couldn't tell us what were causing the tremors, then maybe it was time to discuss taking our boy to IA City. He called Ia City, and they accepted Camden as a patient, then we had to play the waiting game...we had to wait for the ambulance to come get Camden. I was stressing over what we were going to do with Madison and Tanner, all this was hard on them, I was worried about where they could go during the day. everyone had to work, & I didn't want anyone to have to take off work to help with our kids, but at the same time Chad and I needed to go with Camden. My mom, Rose, & Leah took over our kids which was a blessing. The ambulance came to pick up Camden around 8:30 pm Monday night. I kept questioning if we were doing the right thing, I know in my heart that we were, but I felt pulled in every direction my the kids. I've never been away from Maddy and Tanner for so long.

Camden getting ready to go in the ambulance....

His bed for his ambulance ride.

We arrived in IA City around 10 pm Monday night. Once they got Camden settled we were shown around the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and met his nurse and after a few minutes the doctor was in telling us what her plan was for the night. Finally I felt at ease we were finally going to get answers! She told us they were going to monitor him, do a LP test, and of course more blood work, but they would have results for us in the morning. Chad and I left the hospital around 12:30 am, and headed to his cousin Nicole's house. We were going to try to sleep some and then be back to the hospital before the doctors did their rounds.



On Tuesday we got to the hospital around 7:30 am, when the doctors came around, the resident told us they were going over his tests & all his lab work that he had had since birth and we would go from there. They decided they just wanted to monitor him, the neonatalogist came in and did an evaluation & he said from what we told him about his tremors that he thought it was just an exaggerated reflux, and since Camden didn't have control over his muscles that it would get better as he got older. The nurse also got orders to take him off of his IV, his blood sugar was high and he wasn't nursing well since he was getting pumped full of sugar water. His IV was about to blow, so it was a good thing she was able to take it out. The NICU resident came back and told us that the plan was to watch him for the rest of the day and into Wed and then we might be able to take our baby home. I could of hugged the doctor!!



That afternoon Camden had an episode, his nurse was busy with another baby, so Chad recorded Camden on his cell, so we could show the doctor what he was doing since they hadn't seen it for themselves. On Tuesday night we left the hospital around 8:30 & went back to Nicole's, we wanted to get to bed early so we could be back at the hospital for rounds.

Wednesday we were there early, the resident came in and told us, that they would be doing rounds shortly. Then the head doctor came in and told us that they were waiting for the EEG to be looked at by a peds neurologist, and if all looked well then we would be going home!! Then we were back to waiting....Camden's room had his bed, a recliner, & a desk chair....waiting was not fun, but we were able to sit and cuddle all we wanted with our boy. He was still hooked up to the monitors, but Chad and I took care of him when we were at the hospital. Again the resident came in and said that they were running behind & that Camden's EEG would be read around 11, and it would take about an hour and he would be paged when they were done reading it with the results. We showed him the video and he said it didn't look like seizures, but he thought it was exaggerated reflux. He then said if all looked well, we were going home! Back to waiting again, so we knew what time we would maybe have answers, I think I looked at the clock every few minutes...time felt like it was standing still!!!

Camden was sleeping Wednesday morning when we got to the hospital.

Snuggling with mommy waiting on the doctors to come in.....

Finally the doctors, residents, and whoever else does rounds were outside Camden's room. They do the rounds in the hall and Chad and I were able to stand and listen to what they were saying. When the resident was discussing Camden's EEG, he stuck his head in so we could hear that the EEG was NORMAL!!!! Our baby boy just had a exaggerated reflux...he would outgrow it as he got older!! We finally had answers!!! Then the head doctor came in and said we could go home. I don't think I could of dressed Camden faster!

Getting dressed to go home!!

Daddy, Mommy, & Camden before we left the hospital! We surprised Madison and Tanner, they didn't know we were coming home!! Best day ever!!!!

On our way out we saw his doctors again and thanked them for all that they did. The doctors and nurses went above and beyond in IA City, Chad and I were thankful for all that they did. I know that they see babies that were much sicker that Camden was, but they still were there to answer any question that we had.



Today Camden is almost a month old. Madison and Tanner love him, they always want to "help" with him and love to hold him. Chad and I were blessed with 3 great children. I will try to put more recent pics of the kids on soon, but no promises...our household is a little crazy lately!

Camden Ryan

Tanner, Madison, & Camden

I would like to say a special thank you to my mom & dad, Rose, and Leah & Matt...Chad and I appreciate you helping with Madison and Tanner. I was relieved to not have to worry about them and to my mom and Leah for both making arrangements for the kids during the day while everyone was at work. And to everyone else for your thoughts & prayers...your kindnesses and words of encouragement helped us get through this. And also a big thank you to everyone who called and texted us during this hard time in our life, we truly found out who our "real" friends are!! We are so grateful for all the wonderful people we have in our families life!!!!!

Eggs and Bunnies

We colored Easter eggs last night (even though Chad and I will be the only ones who eat them), the kids had so much fun!

Today while Chad was at work, I took them out to the mall to see the Easter Bunny. I was getting Tanner dressed this morning and I told him, I wanted him to wear his plaid shirt. His response...the Easter Bunny is going to laugh at me! Oh my...never a dull moment with this little boy!

Madison loves the bunny and Tanner stood in line waving at him. While waiting Tanner told me he was going to ask the bunny for a dinosaur and batteries. Not sure why he needs batteries, but he is soooo funny sometimes!

Madison climbed onto his lap, & Tanner hesitated for a few seconds, then he was ready to sit by sissy and have his picture taken. They both did a great job smiling at me, & I was able to quickly snap a few pics.

Hope you all have a Hoppy Easter!!!

Where do I begin?

I'm not sure where to start...a lot has happened since I last updated, so here goes....

Chad's brother, Andrew, had his back surgery last Friday (April 15th) in Iowa City, it took over 10 hours. He was in IA City for a week, but I'm happy to say, he got the best birthday present yesterday (April 22nd)...he was able to be transported back to GRMC for physical therapy. He isn't sure how long he will be in the hospital, but it's nice to have him back close to home! We took the kids to see him last night, he is in good spirits & doing well, but it will take some time to rebuild his strength.

Last Sunday (April 17th) heaven gained another angel. Chad's Grandma Klein past away. It was a very unexpected phone call to get first thing in the morning. Everything happened quickly with it being Holy Week, the visitation was held Monday night and her funeral was Tuesday. We were able to visit with all the family over the past week, and it was good to be with everyone, but it's still hard to believe that she is gone. She was an amazing women, and it breaks my heart knowing that the baby never got to meet her, but I'm glad Madison & Tanner got to know her. She will be deeply missed by all of us.

On Tuesday (April 19th), I received a text from my cousin, Kim, about my Aunt Bettie, she wanted to let me know that my Aunt was being moved out of ICU! After a long few days, it was nice to get some good news! She still has a long recovery ahead of her, but she is a fighter & we are all hoping for the best.

I also had my 37 wk appointment this week, and all is well with the baby. If he doesn't come before I am scheduled to have my c-section May 6th. Next week will be my last full week of work, I'm really going to miss my daycare kiddos while I am off, but I know I will need a few weeks to recover after having the baby. I have most things ready for the baby, I have thought about starting to pack my bag...but....I haven't done it yet. I go back Wednesday...so I am trying to hang in there, but it has been hard since there has been so much going on this past week.

Ok I think I have got you caught up, but please continue to keep my brother-in-law, Aunt, and all the Klein's in your thoughts and prayers as this has been a very emotional week.

Oh my....

I don't even know where to begin...but here goes. I am asking for prayers for 2 important people in our families lives. The 1st is my Aunt Bettie, she has been in the hospital fighting a kidney infection, pneumonia, she also had to have surgery to drain fluid off her lungs, & also has been on a vent for 7 days. She was able to breath on her own for about an hour today, but still has a long recovery ahead of her. My cousin was told for every day that she is on the vent, to expect a week of recovery. She is a fighter though, & the doctors think her condition is slowly getting better. Another member of our family is having surgery tomorrow, & he could also use some prayers. My brother-in-law has been having issues with his back, & tomorrow he will be undergoing surgery on his back and spine. He is only 22 (23 next week), & we are all praying that this surgery gives him his life back. Chad will be in Iowa City tomorrow and will be keeping me updated since I will be home with the kids and since I can no longer travel that far due to being 36 wks pregnant. These are 2 very important family members and any prayers are greatly appreciated! This week has also been a busy one with Tanner going back to the ear doctor and my 36 wk check-up. Tanner's hole in his ear drum hasn't gotten any smaller, but his doctor told me it was up to us if we wanted to have the surgery to fix the hole, or we could try to wait a little longer. It was a tough decision, but as the doctor told me, we can't predict if he is going to have more ear infections or not, or if he is past the worst of the infections, it also doesn't seem to be affecting his hearing or bothering him. Chad and I discussed it and we are going to try to wait till he is a little older, then he will get the hole repaired. Given his age, & that this would be his 3rd surgery we decided to try to wait unless he has problems before he goes back to the doctor in 6 months. I also had a dr appt this week. My blood pressure was a little high (but I think with everything going on this past week I probably have been a little more stressed out), and I had a little protein in my urine, I'm just hoping that it doesn't get any worse. I had this when I was pregnant with Madison and they ended up putting me on bed rest, so I am hoping for the best. I asked the doctor what she thought the baby weighed and she guessed 6 lbs, so she said he could be 8 lbs if I don't have him before May 6th. I start going every week till I deliver, so we have 3 weeks left as of tomorrow. Well I hope this blog makes some sense, I'm getting tired and I feel like I'm going in about 100 different directions right now, so until next time, thanks for all the prayers!

Busy Times

Spring is here (well maybe not temp wise)...but now we are starting to be crazy busy!

Tanner has been having issues with his ear. He might have to have surgery to repair a hole in his ear drum from his tube, we go back to the ear doctor next week. I am hoping if he is going to need the surgery, we can do it before the baby comes. Chad's brother, Andrew, is having surgery on April 15th, we are hoping and praying that this will help with the problems he is having with his back.

Madison is keeping us busy with school, swimming lessons, and dance. We had her conference a few weeks ago and she is doing very well, & is ready for kindergarten.

Tanner had his first soccer game last Saturday, he even scored a goal! He was worn out by the end of the game, He needs to work on staying on the field, but they are 3 yr olds, so they still don't have the longest attention span.

The baby will be here a month from tomorrow. I go to the doctor again next week, then I will start going every week till he arrives. Chad didn't work last Saturday, so we went on a major shopping spree and bought the last of the items we will need right after the baby is born. Now I have a mountain of laundry of baby stuff to wash, but I still have a few weeks to get everything done.

Chad is still working at P & G in Iowa City, they have been working just about every other weekend. I'm looking forward to him being home with us for a week after the baby is born!

Until next time enjoy the new pics of the kiddos...

Tanner before his game...team pic (it was freezing!!)

T (with the hood on) kicking the ball down the soccer field.

Maddy's spring pic from preschool.

It's done

Madison's room is done! Chad finished painting it this morning and I finished decorating it while she was at school this afternoon. She was so surprised when she got home and saw it! It looks great and Chad did an awesome job!