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Thursday, August 6, 2009 6:43 AM CDT
Summer is winding down, but we're not. I've posted a link to new photos and a link to Ally singing at the NFED Conference. I'll try to find more time to update the journal later... for now, here's a little taste of what we've been up to!
Love,
Kristin
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 10:24 AM CDT
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MORGAN - EIGHT YEARS OLD TODAY!
You're such a sweet sister to Ally and we all love you very much!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!
Saturday, May 2, 2009 6:51 AM CDT
Happy MAY!!!! Where has the time gone???? Obviously, I can't catch you up on everything that's happened since my last update, but I've posted new pictures... here are some of the "highlights" of the past few months...
The bottom line is that "All is well with us". No news is good news, right? We've been busy with Spring activities, battling seasonal allergies with Morgan, and many, many doctor's appointments for Ally. She's doing fine, just a lot of "stuff" that we're addressing right now.
In the past 6 weeks, she's been under anesthesia twice for eye exams and also for dental work - three cavities filled and two root canals. I think we've finally found the "right" specialist to help us address the vision loss and cornea scarring. We're contemplating having a procedure done called a keratoprosthesis where Ally's damaged corned would be removed and a prosthetic cornea would replace that. First we need to keep her eyes (and body healthy) before we do anything. She's on continuous antibiotic drops for her eyes and also an ophthalmic eczema cream. She's had two strep A skin infections in the past two months, so we've been aggressively treating her skin and body with antibiotics as well. Through it all, she's been a trooper!
Both girls are looking forward to the end of school in about 6 weeks. Morgan's end of year activities are winding down (which means things winding down for Mommy too!). We have lots of exciting things planned for summer, but I'll save talking about those until I get around to posting my "summertime" journal update. (ha ha!) Morgan and Ally are both singing in the spring musical, "Let's Rock!", at church this weekend. Morgan has a solo and a speaking part and Ally is singing "Jesus Loves Me" with her choir group. Mark is going to be starting a new job within the Joint Chiefs Staff in June. His office will be in Crystal City (Arlington) instead of at the Pentagon. It's a great opportunity for him and he's excited about the change. The BEST part is that will be staying here for 3 more years!!! We're all excited about that!! Now that we know we're not returning to California, we'll focus on selling our house there after our tenants' lease is up in December. Anyone interested in buying a "beach house" in Port Hueneme?
Hope you all enjoy this May weekend! Thank you for your continued support even when I was giving you any info about us. I'll try to do better in the future... it's not a good enough excuse to say that "life" gets in the way, is it?
Love you all!
Kristin
Thursday, March 12, 2009 2:55 PM CDT
NFED RAFFLE TICKET UPDATE:
AND THE WINNER IS...
ALL of US! Our family sold a total of 5755 tickets this year and were the top sellers for the third year in a row! Thank to everyone who helped us achieve our goal and surpass last year's sales despite the depressed economy.
As an added bonus, BOTH the 1st and 2nd place winners of the drawing were friends of ours. Beth and David Lutz won the 1st place prize of $1000 - Beth and I have been friends since our freshman year of high school and the Lutz's have been continuous supports of Ally's since the beginning! Cathy Clark, a teacher at Franklin Middle School, and former co-worker of Teetay's won the 2nd place prize of $300. We're thrilled that after four years of vigorous ticket sales, we finally sold a "winning ticket."
A zillion "thank yous" to you all! Hope you're having a good week. All is well here - I'm fighting off the aches and chills associated with the flu - hopefully I'll be back to feeling good again soon!
Love,
Kristin
Sunday, March 1, 2009 6:55 PM CST
She's HERE!
Reagan Frances George
February 27, 2009
12:37 PM
7 pounds, 10 ounces
20 inches
Fuzzy, dark hair
Cute as a button and doing great!
Mommy is doing well too...
Ashli and Reagan should come home tomorrow... in the midst of a March snowstorm in Washington, DC and the "biggest" snow we've seen all season!
Thank you for the love and prayers~
Aunt Kristin
Friday, February 27, 2009 5:29 AM CST
TODAY IS THE DAY! Baby Girl "Rodni" George will be delivered sometime after 12:00PM today. WELCOME TO THE WORLD and HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
We'll post an update and picture as soon as I can - later this evening, most likely. Teetay, Geep, and I will be at the hospital with Ashli and TG for most of the day. I'll be on "Thomas duty" this afternoon and will pick him up from school, feed him dinner, and put him to bed. Teetay will spend the night with Thomas at his house tonight while Ashli, TG, and Baby are at the hospital. Thomas will get to meet his baby sister Saturday morning! What a fun moment that will be!
We're all so excited to welcome the newest addition to our family and to finally know her name so we can stop calling her "Rodni"... although I'm guessing that Ally might still call her "Baby Rodni" - four year olds don't really understand "fake" names. :-)
Thank you for keeping the George family in your prayers today.
And thank you to all who have bought raffle tickets too. We've sold close to 4000 tickets so far... there's still time left (ONE MORE WEEK!) if you're interested in helping us reach our goal of 6000.
Love to you all on this rainy (but warm) final Friday of February. Happy Birthday to my niece!
Love,
Kristin
Tuesday, February 17, 2009 10:40 AM CST
HAPPY BELATED VALENTINE'S DAY! We had a fantastic weekend celebrating Thomas' 2nd birthday (a few of weeks early before his baby sister arrives!)... the link to some photos is posted below. Morgan had a private sleepover with Teetay and Geep on Friday night and both girls spent the night on Sunday. We also celebrated Geep's birthday (was Feb 10) and Teetay and Geep's 38th wedding Anniversary on Valentine's Day as well. The girls both sang at church with their choirs on Sunday. Ally was in full meltdown-mode minutes before her performance, but managed to sing happily with her group. Morgan did a great job as well and is looking forward to trying out for a solo in the choir's spring musical planned for May 3rd. Yesterday, Morgan and Ally joined Thomas at his weekly music class and all three of them had a ball! Mark and I joined the gang of musicmakers for lunch - it was a great way to round out our weekend!
Many of you may recall that February is Ectodermal Dysplasia Awareness Month and the time of year that our family sells raffle tickets to benefit the NFED. If you're interested in helping out OUR favorite charity, please read my letter below and respond as your heart dictates. Thank you all, for your never-ending support for Allyson and our family.
Dear Friends-
It's raffle time again! February is Ectodermal Dysplasia Awareness Month. Allyson has faced many challenges over the past four years as she's lived with Ectrodactyly-Ectodermal Dysplasia - Clefting Syndrome (EEC)... nine surgeries, numerous invasive procedures, hundreds of doctors appointments with dozens of doctors and specialists, and thousands of dollars spent on care and treatment... Her spirit is strong; she's triumphed through it all; and has developed into a "typical" four year old. Over the past year, Allyson has continued to thrive at Preschool and is known as the "social butterfly" in her class. She is incredibly smart, inquisitive, and has a fantastic memory! We are amazed daily with the amount of information she can retain and recall. After being off the g-tube for over a year now, she continues to eat well and has gained back the weight she lost during the transition to oral feeding. She has grown taller and even tacked on a couple of extra pounds! The biggest challenge we currently face is understanding and treating Allyson's vision loss. Her eye health and vision have continued to decline over the past year. She's learning Braille and now travels with a cane at school. Despite appointments with several cornea specialists and an eye exam under anesthesia last year, we're not any closer to understanding why Ally's eye health deteriorated so quickly nor what can be done to reverse or correct the damage. She'll have another exam under anesthesia on March 12th and perhaps we'll have a treatment path following that exam. We had an "eye opening" (pun intended) moment during a syndrome-specific workshop at the NFED Conference last year. Everyone in the group of 15 affected individuals (ages 1-57) had experienced major issues with their eyes over their lifetime. We were all surprised to discover that the biggest challenge/concern for individuals affected with EEC and AEC Syndromes was eye health. This revelation proves that there's much more research needed to help address and understand the problems that are occurring with eye health and vision loss in individuals with Ectodermal Dysplasia. On the "good days", Ally will get very close to my face and say, "Mommy, I can see your smile." On the "bad days", she only wants to have her head buried in my shoulder as she complains that the "lights are too bright" even when we're sitting in a darkened room.
Through all of life's ups and downs, Allyson's tremendous spirit shines through in everything she does and hopefully those who have met her have witnessed that as well. I rarely talk about her medical "issues" and challenges because I want people to "know Allyson as Allyson" and don't want her defined by this syndrome and the challenges she faces everyday. I am writing you today because I'm asking for your support in honor of Allyson during Ectodermal Dysplasia Awareness Month.
I have become involved with the National Foundation for Ectodermal Dysplasias (NFED) as a result of Ally's diagnosis. In support of the NFED, I am selling raffle tickets and raising awareness through sharing information about Allyson's condition which is just 1 of 150 Ectodermal Dysplasia (ED) syndromes. I'd also like for others to know how the NFED helps families through research, education, and alleviating the financial burden created by some medical treatments. While we have not personally had to call on the NFED for financial assistance, we've continued to raise money for the foundation to fund research programs and help others seek treatments that may not be available otherwise. Because of supporters like YOU, our family has raised over $40,000 for the NFED between raffle ticket sales and the annual Rally for Ally fundraisers over the past 4 years. Please visit the NFED's website at www.nfed.org for more information about how YOUR generous gifts help affected families.
So, how can you help Ally SEE a better future for herself ... AND win some CASH for yourself?!?!?
Raffle tickets sell for just $1 each and there are five in each book. The drawing will be held on Thursday, March 12th at 12 PM CST at the NFED office in Mascoutah, IL. Prize winners will be notified by telephone, with a confirmation letter to follow.
Prizes are as follows:
1st place = $1000
2nd place = $300
3rd place = $200
In addition, the family who sells the most tickets receives a voucher for the Annual NFED Family Conference (we've won this two years in a row!), which is an amazing three-day event where hundreds of families who lives are touched by ED connect, learn, play, and are involved in research studies. This summer's conference will be held in Williamsburg, VA - just a couple hours south of us. We're looking forward to attending the conference for the third time. As Ally gets older, she's starting to recognize her own differences and it's essential for her social/emotional well-being to reunite with many friends facing the same challenges she does living with EEC Syndrome.
I understand that times are tough and many of us are facing economic challenges... If you are able to participate this year, please send your contribution to me in the form of cash or check (checks payable to: "NFED" and are tax-deductible). You can mail the checks to me and I will mail the tickets back to you after filling out the stubs. Also, if you have address labels (one for each ticket purchased), please include those with your check. Name, address, and phone number are needed on the ticket stubs in order for the NFED to contact the raffle winners. If you don't have labels - no worries - I can make them for you! Please e-mail me in advance if you'd like to purchase raffle tickets and need labels so I can plan to have enough on hand and start working on the labels ahead of time!
Because the ticket stubs need to be mailed back to the NFED headquarters in Illinois by March 10th, I need to have all checks and money accounted for by FRIDAY, March 6th.
In 2007, we sold 4550 raffle tickets and received honors for being the top ticket-sellers. In 2008, we sold 5605 tickets and won top-seller honors for the second year!
Will you help us reach our goal of raising $6000 this year and make us a three time winner of a conference voucher?
The NFED is a non-profit organization and is the ONLY organization in the country dedicated to serving individuals affected by ED syndromes. It does not receive any federal funding. Your support - no matter how small or how big - is GREATLY appreciated. Even if you're unable to purchase raffle tickets, please help me spread the word by telling a family member or friend about the NFED or Ectodermal Dysplasia. Direct them to the foundation's website www.nfed.org to learn more about this life-altering condition that affects so many individuals, yet often goes undetected for years. Please feel free to forward this e-mail to your friends and family members as an education and awareness tool.
Thank you for your support!
Kristin Matus-Kelso
6509 Legendgate Place
Burke, VA 22015
703.440.9779
ca.kristin@verizon.net
Tuesday, February 3, 2009 5:35 AM CST
Greetings and Happy February!
Allyson is having surgery today to insert a new ear tube into her left ear and routinely replace the one in her right. The left ear tube has been blocked for sometime and it's uncertain whether it even worked at all since she last had surgery in June. The right was has been fine, but will be replaced anyway while she's under.
The surgery is scheduled for 11AM at the Children's Hospital Surgical Care Center in Rockville, MD. I'll post an update later tonight and let you know how she's doing.
Also... many of you may remember that February is Ectodermal Dysplasia Awareness month. I'll be posting info about raffle ticket sales in the coming week. Teetay has already mailed out letters to her "peeps", so thank you to everyone who has already purchased tickets! We're hoping to break last year's record (5600) with a new goal of 6000 tickets sold this year! We hope you can help us get there!
Thank you for keeping Ally in your thoughts today... it's minor surgery and should be over quickly, but it's surgery nonetheless... and her 9th one!
Love,
Kristin
Monday, December 29, 2008 5:56 AM CST
MERRY CHRISTMAS! HAPPY HANUKKAH! HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Hope you all have been enjoying holiday festivities with your families. Ally had a terrific birthday and is no longer wearing diapers "now that she's four." She may this "promise" to us in the fall and put her in panties on her birthday... kind of a "cold turkey" approach, but it's working. She only had a couple of accidents early last week and has been great ever since! We still have to conquer the night 'training' and the #2 'training', but it's a start. HOORAY!
Christmas Eve was very special for us. Not only were we able to share the day with Grandma and Grandpa AND Teetay and Geep, but both Morgan and Allyson sang in their choirs at church during the afternoon service. Ally sang "I'm Tellin'" with the Cherub Choir and was the loudest and most "animated" singer! Morgan sang "Jesus, Precious Jesus" with her choir and did a great job as well. I have the video of Ally posted on Facebook and I'll post it here as well. I'm apologizing in advance if Facebook "makes" you open an account to view the video... trust me, it's worth it! We were all so proud of Ally as her "performance" in church is just one more example of how far she's come.
I'll also post some more Christmas pics later... we had a great day celebrating with everyone and feasting here at our house!
Mark is back at work this week... Morgan is attending a mini-theater camp at a local high school for the next three mornings. Ally has a playdate with a friend from school today and Morgan is having friends over later in the week. We're planning to have dinner out with Ashli and TG on my birthday Wednesday night, but will return home to Ash's house to ring in the New Year with Teetay and Geep who will be babysitting all the grands there. After a New Year's EVE sleepover, we'll gather again to watch Penn State in the Rose Bowl... and then?!?!? Who knows, but I'm sure it will be fun!
Warm wishes to all of you as we close out 2008 and look ahead to a happy and healthy 2009!
Kristin
Monday, December 22, 2008 6:52 AM CST
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ALLYSON, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!
Four years ago you entered this world and changed us all forever... You have blossomed into a spirited, funny, smart and loving child who has taught us about strength and determination. Because of you, we have learned to enjoy life's little moments and to celebrate small victories... the "big stuff" will always be there and "we'll get to it when we get to it"!
Thank you for being our blessing. We ALL love you so much! Have a WONDERFUL FOURTH birthday today!
Love,
Mommy, Daddy, Morgan, your grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and all of your "fans" near and far
Wednesday, December 10, 2008 9:02 PM CST
Yes, I know it's been awhile. I've attempted to post an update several times, but "something" always got in my way.
We're gearing up for a fun holiday season! The girls finish up school on the 23rd. The weekend before Christmas, we'll celebrate Ally's 4th birthday with a "Dora" party on the 20th. All of her aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents will here for the festivities as well as her friends from school. We'll also exchange Christmas gifts with Mark's family that weekend while everyone is in town. Grandma and Grandpa Kelso will stay with us through Christmas. I'll be cooking the "feast" on Christmas Day and Teetay, Geep, Ashli, TG, and Thomas will spend the afternoon with us.
No plans for New Year's or my birthday... unless there's something brewing that I'm not aware of yet!
Need to head to bed soon, but at least I got some new pictures posted and a brief update on what the next couple of weeks hold for us. I'll try to back track and tell you about our busy November when I can.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU ALL!
Love,
Kristin, Mark, Morgan, and Allyson
P.S. Click on the link to the video of the girls singing. I promise it will make up for my lack of updates - you're gonna love it! :-)
Thursday, October 30, 2008 8:52 PM CDT
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
Hope you have a safe night of trick-or-treating and a great November weekend!
We're off to Charlottesville, Richmond, and Jamestown over the weekend and then the girls have Mon. and Tues. off from school. Should be a fun time!
Love,
Kristin, Mark, Morgan, and Allyson
Saturday, October 25, 2008 8:26 PM CDT
IT'S
A
GIRL!!!
Ashli had her ultrasound on Friday and we were all surprised to learn that Thomas was going to have a little sister! All bets were on another boy for the George Family, but we are THRILLED to be "seeing PINK" again and that she is growing and healthy. Baby "Rodni" (the in-utero name that TG chose will now have to end with and "i" instead of an "ey") will make her appearance in late February 2009.
Hip, Hip Hooray!
Love,
Kristin
Tuesday, October 21, 2008 5:29 AM CDT
Good morning! I'm finally finding a few moments to update the journal and catch everyone up on what we've been doing this month.
Our weekends have been full of activities! We had a great time at the Cox Farms Pumpkin Fest earlier this month. Morgan, Ally, Thomas, their parents and Teetay enjoyed sliding down the huge slides, climbing on the bales of hay, bumping along on the hayride, and sipping apple cider. It was a great way to start out this month of harvest and Halloween fun!
The following weekend, Grandma and Grandpa Kelso were here overnight. I got some holiday shopping done with Ashli and Teetay at a HUGE consignment sale called "Dani's Duds". Morgan now has fall/winter clothes to wear and I picked up a couple of things for Ally and Thomas for Christmas gifts. Morgan has grown 2 sizes since this time last year and was in desperate need of clothes! Speaking of Morgan... all four grandparents got to hear her sing in the choir at church on October 12th. She stands "front and center" with the choir and did a great job! Following church, Mark and his dad went to the Redskins game against the Rams and had a great time (despite the 'Skins loss - oh darn!). On Columbus Day, the girls and I enjoyed their day off from school with a trip to the park with our neighborhood friends. The "Legendgate Place Kids" - there are 8 of them total - had a great time playing together on the playground, scootering on the paths, and picnicking at the park. Us three moms enjoyed our time together as well!
We headed to Charlottesville this past Saturday for UVA's game against UNC. What a thrilling game with UVA getting the win on overtime! While Mark had attended one other game this season, this was the first game for Morgan and I in seven years. We met up with Glenn, Merideth, and Spencer and our college roommates, Jennifer and Steve and their kids, for a fun tailgate! Of course, Morgan didn't remember her last trip to Charlottesville when she was just 4 months old, but she had a great time and loved cheering for the 'Hoos! Ally spent the day with Teetay and had fun going to the movies, having lunch with Thomas and Aunt Ashli, and staying at Teetay's for a sleepover. We're all planning to go to the next home game against Miami on November 1st.
Last Sunday, we officially became members of Burke United Methodist Church where we've attended for most of this year. Now that we've gotten involved with the church family - I've been teaching Sunday School and Morgan continues to be involved with the children's music programs - we felt that it was time to make our formal membership commitment. Ally and Morgan did great through the whole service (they're usually in Sunday School during worship time) and proudly stood up with Mark and I infront of the congregation. We're looking forward to getting know our new church family better as we become more involved as members.
Morgan has added a couple of additional extracurricular activities to her plate. She's now taking gymnastics once at week at Capital Gymnastics in Burke and loves it! She's in the beginner level, but still gets quite a workout during her classes. She loves her Coach, Brian, and has fun with all the girls in her class! We've already signed up for the next session, so I'll keep you posted on how things go. She's started piano lessons as well. Her teacher is an 11th grader named Sean who happens to live across the street from us. Morgan can conveniently walk to her lesson with Sean each Tuesday after school. She's already learned to play several songs in the beginner book and LOVES to practice! The challenge is finding a good time for Ally to "let" her practice... Ally likes to "play piano" as well and often interferes with what Morgan is trying to do!
Ally has been doing great in school. Each day her teacher reports, "another fun day!" Ally talks non-stop about her teachers and friends and the things that she does each day. She loves eating lunch at school and regularly asks me each night, "what's for lunch tomorrow?" The Orientation and Mobility Specialist has been helping Allyson use her cane at school. She regularly uses it at school to navigate through the hallways and out to the playground and back inside again. She's been more resistant to using the gain with me when we're out and about, but we'll continue to work on it. This morning, the O&M Specialist is meeting us at the grocery store across the street to practice! I'll be able to work with Ally and pick up bread and milk at the same time! :-)
We're gearing up for Halloween and will carve our pumpkins this weekend. Morgan is dressing up as a black cat this year and Ally chose a Tinkerbell costume for herself. We'll go trick-or-treating with our neighborhood group and all the kids are looking forward to that!
Hope you've all been well... We always appreciate the support and love you so generously give us!
Have a great Tuesday!
Kristin
Monday, October 6, 2008 6:44 AM CDT
Happy October!
We had a fabulous fall weekend... hope you all enjoyed the same!
The girls are starting to stir, so I'll have to write this later... at least I got some new pictures up!
Have a great Monday!
Kristin
Friday, September 26, 2008 5:57 AM CDT
Happy Friday! It's raining outside, but we have lots to be happy about and hope this has been a great week for everyone!
Baby updates/adoption stories - Aimee and Jim have been the parents of Zachary James Moore for a week now and are still in Florida awaiting the completion of all the state's paperwork. Rebecca and David now have Tessa Nicole Lacki in their care and will stay in California until all the legalities surrounding her adoption are complete. I spoke with Heather last Saturday and she thought she'd be induced this past Wednesday if "baby boy" didn't make his appearance on his own, but haven't heard an update. Baby "Rodney" George is growing strong and we'll find out in 4 weeks whether "more blue" or "new pink" will be entering their household! Many prayers have been answered and we thank you for your part in that!
Ashli posted a link in her recent guestbook entry about a family here in northern Virginia DESPERATELY needing your prayers for a miracle. We don't know them - they are friends of friends... It's a tragic story that could have happened to any one of us... I started reading the blog last night before bed and had to stop because it was so heart-wrenching. But prayers are needed for the Nolan family during this time... You can visit the blog at: http://www.hyatt911.blogspot.com/ to follow the story and offer your support.
Ally has recovered from the viral infection/fever that she had last week. I've gotten back into my "gym groove" and now leave the house at 5:20AM to get in my workout before Mark leaves for work. I'm not enjoying it (the early rising), but I'm doing it and getting into a routine which is a start (and I like how I feel after the workout)! Ally has had a great week at school and comes up with the funniest things to say. Yesterday afternoon, I was putting away groceries from a BIG commissary trip when she got home. When I told her that I had gone grocery shopping, she said, "but Mommy, I didn't go with you." I said, "No, Ally, I went while you were at school." She beamed at me and replied, "Mommy, I'm so proud of you! You got all this food for us all by yourself!" We shared many laughs afterwards and it just got funnier and funnier as I told Morgan and then, Mark, when they got home.
This weekend is not quite as busy as last... tomorrow Thomas will be joining for most of the day while Ashli gets some much-needed errands checked off her list. They both might even stay here for a sleepover while TG is in PA at the Penn State game tomorrow night. On Sunday, I'll be teaching Sunday School and then Morgan and I have another Brownie meeting. Everything is off to a good start and we're both excited about embarking on this scouting adventure together.
Thank you for your continued support and love for us and all those who are close to us. Have a great weekend!
Love,
Kristin
Wednesday, September 17, 2008 7:54 PM CDT
BABIES... BABIES... BABIES...
There's lots of good news to share about our friends! Congratulations to Josh and Kim who welcomed their daughter, Elinor Cody Reyher, on Sunday. Congratulations to Aimee and Jim who will welcome their son, Zachary James Moore, who was born today in Florida and will be welcomed into his "forever family" when Aimee and Jim fly in on Thursday. I'm waiting to hear about my friends in Virginia Beach, Heather and Ryan, who will be welcoming Baby Boy Carstens any time now.
Finally, it's time to tell the world that I'm going to be an AUNT again in March. That's right, Thomas will be a big brother right around the time of his 2nd birthday when Ashli and TG welcome a new little one. Hooray! There's lots to celebrate!
I apologize for not updating Ally's website in so long... my newest addiction (Facebook - look me up if you want to be "friends") has taken me away from Ally's site as has prepping for Sunday School every other week, and gearing up for Brownies. All is well - just the usual busy-ness associated with back to school and getting everyone situated and scheduled again! Don't worry - I'll find a way to make time for all of Ally's "fans" again!
School is going well for both girls. Morgan has struggled a little bit with handling the work load of 2nd grade. She's been having trouble going to sleep at night because she's worried about not finishing her work the following day. To my knowledge, she hasn't been disciplined for not finishing - just getting anxious about it. We're working through it though.
Ally is doing well at school, although she cries everyday when I put her on the bus and says, "I don't want to go to school." Her teacher, Ms. Brenda, has told me that she's fine by the time she arrives at school. She's talking and singing a lot in the classroom and all of her Specialists love her! (Of course they do... what's not to love?!?!)
I finally joined a gym - Washington Sports Club - yet am having trouble working "gym time" into my afternoons alone. This, too, will work out - I need to get my OWN schedule in order now that the girls are squared away. I'm also volunteering in Morgan's classroom and have cut, stapled, xeroxed, ripped out pages, etc. for just about every project imaginable. Mrs. Barrow seems to have the most parent volunteers and we end up doing 3x the work to accommodate all 3 of the 2nd grade classes. I'm happy to help out and it's fun being in the school and having an "ear" to what's going on in Morgan's class.
Mark and I are headed to Norfolk this weekend for the annual Hawkeye/Greyhound Ball - a Navy formal for the E-2/C-2 community. We'll see Glenn and Merideth and many of our friends from the west coast who are now living "back East" like us! Teetay is headed out of town to Atlanta to attend her High School Reunion and celebrate Aunt Dale and Uncle Loren's 50th Wedding Anniversary on Sept 27th, so the girls will be staying overnight with Ashli and TG and Thomas. Ash had a "taste" of two toddlers last Sunday when she babysat Ally for us while Mark, Morgan, Teetay, Geep, and I went to the Redskins' game. Hope she's rested and ready for 3 kids THIS weekend!
Hope everyone is doing well and thanks for your patience while I lapsed at updating... Please keep all of our friends in your prayers as they welcome their new babies and I'll keep you updated on the "status" of Baby George as he/she grows bigger and stronger!
Love,
Kristin
Monday, September 1, 2008 7:45 PM CDT
Happy first day of school! I'll post some new pictures of the girls after they leave in the morning, but wanted to post this "send off" tonight. Morgan and Ally have their clothes picked out and are excited for the "first day"... well, at least Morgan is VERY excited!!!! Ally's not so sure...
Both girls met their teachers last Thursday. Allyson will be in the same classroom as last year, but with a different teacher - Ms. Brenda this time. She'll go to preschool Tuesdays-Fridays from 12:15 to 3:30. The bus will pick her up around 11:30AM and she'll be dropped of back at home at 4:00PM. There are 6 kids in Ally's class. Most are already 4 years old, but she was placed with them because of her high cognitive skills. Her classmates are Anna, Colin, Nicholas, Mitchell, and one another boy whom we didn't meet at the Open House. Some kids only attend 2 or 3 days, so the class will be smaller on those days.
Morgan will head to the bus stop at 8:45AM. Her school day is 9:00-3:40 and she's usually off the bus by 3:55PM. If she walks fast (her bus stop is at the top of the street), she'll be home to see Ally get off the bus at our driveway. Morgan's teacher is Mrs. Barrow. There are 24 kids in her class and 5 or 6 others were her classmates last year in 1st grade. She met a couple of new students at her Open House - one girl moved from Colorado over the summer and another went to 1st grade at a school just a few miles away. She remembered being "new" last year and thought she'd be a good friend to these new girls. She's very excited and has decided that she wants to buy lunch almost everyday this year - well at least in September! We'll see if that continues or not...
We have new neighbors across the street who have two girls attending Morgan's school. The oldest is Camryn who is in 2nd grade, but has a different teacher than Morgan. The next oldest is Morgan (really, TWO Morgans!) who will be in Kindergarten. Morgan is also looking forward to "helping" these new girls get to the bus stop in the morning and showing them "the ropes."
For all of those starting school tomorrow... Have a GREAT DAY! To all the Moms who will have their houses (and sanity!) back to themselves - ENJOY! To all the retired teachers who remember what this day used to be like - smile and reminisce! To everyone who's already been in school for 2,3, or 4 weeks, I hope things are going smoothly!
Happy Tuesday!
Kristin
Friday, August 22, 2008 7:55 AM CDT
Summer is winding down and we're gearing up for the start of school on September 2nd. While other kids across the country have already started school, we still have 10 days left (which the girls are counting down!). We've shopped for school supplies, new backpacks, and school clothes and are ready to go!
We returned from our final trip of the summer on Wednesday. Morgan spent a week with Grandma and Grandpa Kelso in Southport, NC. She had a terrific time and her days were filled with going to the beach, swimming at the pool, visiting the NC Aquarium at Ft. Fisher, waiting/watching for sea turtles to hatch, fishing and crabbing off the dock at Grandma and Grandpa's house, soaking in the hot tub after a "long" day, playing miniature golf, and staying up late (past 9PM!!!) to watch the Olympics each night. Last Saturday, Mark, Ally, and I joined them in NC along with Glenn, Mer, and Spencer, and the whole family enjoyed a long weekend together. This was the first time we'd ALL been together at Grandma and Grandpa Kelso's house since they moved to North Carolina six years ago, so it was a very special time for all of us!
Yesterday we spent the afternoon at Thomas' new house and helped rearrange furniture and catch up with Thomas and Teetay. Ashli and TG are settling into their new home and we're excited to have them closer to all of us in northern Virginia rather than "so far" away in DC! We're looking forward to many get-togethers at their new digs!
This weekend I'll be training for one of the new roles I'm taking on this year. I've volunteered to be a Co-Leader of Morgan's Brownie troop and will receive my CPR/First Aid certification and Leader training this weekend. Next week, I have meetings for another new role... Sunday School teacher! While the girls are busy heading back to school, I'll be able to jump into my new jobs as well!
We'll be staying in town for Labor Day weekend. Mark has to work all weekend on the "graveyard shift" (6PM - 6AM) each day, so Morgan, Allyson, and I will "escape" during the days so he can get some sleep.
The RALLY total is IN! Thank you for helping us raise $11,850 for the NFED at this event! It just keeps getting better and better!!!! Hooray!
Please continue to keep the Woodzells in your prayers as they grieve the loss of Susan's mother. I know they appreciate your support as they've been so supportive of our family throughout the years.
Love,
Kristin
Sunday, August 10, 2008 9:04 PM CDT
THE 4th ANNUAL RALLY for ALLY was a HUG success! With over 100 people in attendance and nearly 200 raffle and silent auction items, we raised close to $11,500 for the National Foundation for Ectodermal Dysplasia.
WOW! WOW! WOW! WOW! WOW! WOW! WOW! WOW!
Thank you all who made it to the event and gave so generously...
Thank you mostly to Ash and TG, Teetay and Geep, Susan and Steve, Gene and Sharon, Theresa, The Scott Family and ALL of our families (Kelsos, Matuses, and Boves/Dotsicases/Georges) who were there and helped with donations, food, set-up/clean-up and everything in between!
It was amazing... to say the least...
There's a link below with the first batch of pictures. Enjoy and thanks again!
Kristin
Friday, August 8, 2008 6:10 AM CDT
It's Rally "Eve" and we're so excited about tomorrow's event! Final preparations have been ongoing all week from making posters and distributing flyers, finalizing silent auction and raffle items, and organizing all the stuff. This afternoon we'll transfer everything to the "staging area" at Ashli and Tom's new house (they move into it next week, but can take occupancy today). Our best estimates indicate that close to 130 people will be attending the 4th Annual Rally for Ally. We have over 60 silent auction items valued at over $11000!!!!! WOW!!! We're sure to break $10000 in money raised for the NFED this year!
More updates to follow after the event tomorrow... it's not too late to come! Can't wait to see so many of you on Saturday at Nottoway Park!
Thanks, as always, for your love and support~
Kristin
Thursday, July 31, 2008 5:38 AM CDT
We're back after another wonderful 10-day adventure to Iowa City and Chicago!
The NFED conference was a terrific experience for all of us. I'm glad Mark and Geep were able to attend this year and meet so many of the people we befriended two years ago at the last conference we attended. Of course, new connections were made and existing friendships were strengthened. Morgan jumped right into reuniting with her NFED friends and making new ones as well. She definitely "understands" more that she did two years ago and any questions or fears she might have had then have gone by the wayside. We enjoyed ice skating one night, the swimming pool another night, staying up late and talking with other families and just "being" in the moment and learning all that we could to help Allyson.
Our "side trips" to Naperville and Chicago were enjoyable as well. The Leis family treated us royally during our overnight at their house and the girls had a ball at the DuPage Children's Museum and park near their house. I fell in love with Chicago and all it has to offer... from the Navy Pier to Millenium Park to the Hancock Building to American Girl Place... we squeezed in a LOT in less than 48-hours in the city! We even ate some Chicago-style pizza, but will have to wait until next time for a "famous" hot dog!
Yes, our trip home was full of delays and we were pretty tired by the time we arrived at Teetay and Geep's late Tuesday night. The bags are now unpacked and the laundry is done. The girls had a playdate together with their friends, Keara and Camille yesterday afternoon. Morgan was planning to play with her friend, Keara, alone, but when Ally and I dropped her off, Allyson decided she wanted to play with Keara's little sister. It was her first playdate without Mommy and she did great! Guess we'll be swapping kids with the McLoughlins often in the future!
We're off for another quick trip this weekend... back to Mountaindale Farm in Pennsylvania for Mark's family's reunion on Saturday. We'll drive home on Sunday. Then, Morgan has Vacation Bible School and swimming lessons next week and I'll be helping put the finishing touches on the Rally for Ally! After the Rally, Morgan will spend a week in North Carolina with Grandma and Grandpa and Mark, Ally, and I will pick her up on August 16th.
With all of our travels and activities, summer has flown by for us! With just four weeks until Labor Day, Morgan is getting excited about school starting and already wants to pick out her clothes and buy her school supplies! I've told her that we'll have time for that after she gets back from North Carolina in a couple of weeks.
Happy August! Thank you for continuing to keep up with Ally and the latest happenings in our family. We love and appreciate YOU and your support!
Love,
Kristin
Thursday, July 17, 2008 1:09 PM CDT
Hello! We’re back from our travels and have less than a week at home before we’re off again…
The services last week for Mark’s grandma, Janet Kelso, were lovely. We met so many wonderful people from her church in Waldwick, NJ, and spent time connecting with her nieces and nephews (who are cousins of Mark’s dad) and their kids. Morgan and Allyson (and their cousin, Spencer, too!) did very well with traveling to both NJ for the funeral and central PA for the burial and staying in a different place each night. They were well-behaved at all the services and “glowed” when Great Grandma’s friends called them by name because she had talked so much about each of her “great grands.” Mark’s parents, John and Lydia, and his Uncle Tim, are continuing to sort through the house in NJ and make final plans for her estate. Please keep them in your prayers during this difficult time of cleaning and sorting and taking care of loose ends… We were able to visit Janet’s house last week and select some of her treasures as keepsakes of our own. Morgan and Spencer enjoyed seeing all of her collectables and chose some special items on their own as a memory of their Great Grandma. She was a wonderful lady who lived a full life and will be greatly missed.
We're off to the pool this afternoon for an escape from the heat and humidity. Allyson now jumps off the side of the pool without holding my hands and Morgan is a non-stop diving board girl! I'll try to post a more thorough update before we leave for Chicago and Iowa City on Tuesday.
Kristin
Sunday, July 6, 2008 8:11 PM CDT
Greetings all! We're back from our beach week at Nags Head and had a wonderful time. I will update you all on our travels and doctors' appointments as soon as I can.
Before I head to bed tonight, I want to ask for your prayers... we learned earlier today that Mark's grandmother, Janet Kelso, passed away in her sleep last night. She was at her home in New Jersey and was carried away by the angels peacefully. She celebrated her 90th birthday last August. We're all in shock (as her health had been good), but are comforted knowing that she passed as we all would like... without pain and without burdening her family.
Final arrangements are still being made, but we anticipate traveling to New Jersey later this week. Please keep Mark and his brother, Glenn, in your prayers as they grieve the loss of their grandma... pray especially for their dad, John, and his brother, Tim, who have lost their mother... and for all of us who loved Grandma/Great Grandma/Janet so much.
May love surround you today and always~
Kristin
Wednesday, June 25, 2008 9:00 AM CDT
It's nearly the end of June already and so much has happened since my last update...
We celebrated Morgan's birthday at least 5 times over the past 10 days and she's loving being a 7 year old!
Our trip to Atlanta was great... lots of quality time with "Aunt Grammy" and "Uncle Poppy" as well as all the cousins...
More later as Ally has just emerged from the basement and needs to get dressed.
Happy Wednesday!
Kristin
Saturday, June 14, 2008 6:42 AM CDT
Ah... it's already mid-June.... time flies when you're having fun and are super-busy with family, friends, end-of-school, birthday prep, vacation prep, etc., etc.! We're now in full-swing to kick-off Morgan's birthday weekend and celebrate Father's day with ALL (almost!) the dads in our family. Morgan's birthday party is this afternoon and tomorrow we'll have a Father's Day brunch in honor of Mark, Geep, Grandpa K., and TG. Glenn would have joined us, but he and his family are on a cruise to New England and Canada.
Here's what we've been up to: Mark and I had a great time in Annapolis over Memorial Day weekend. It was great to relax, see some historic sites, enjoy good food, sleep-in, pedal-boat around the river, etc. We enjoyed our get-away weekend and Morgan and Allyson had a ball with Teetay and Geep and didn't even seem to miss us! The following weekend, Aunt Mer and Spencer came to visit. We enjoyed a trip to the nature center, a picnic in park, and playing on the playground. An afternoon thunderstorm sent us inside for the rest of the day and the kids played, read stories, and enjoyed some cousin-bonding time! Allyson took a tumble during that afternoon and slid face first onto the marble around the fireplace. She scraped the bridge of her nose and had some bruising across the top of her nose. There was a lot of blood and we thought it might be broken, but it wasn't. While Mark and I tended to Ally... Aunt Mer helped keep Morgan (who was very shaken by the incident) calm and Spencer occupied. It was great visiting with them!
Allyson's last day of school was June 6th. Morgan's last day was supposed to be yesterday, the 13th, but because her school was closed due to a power outage on the 6th, she has a make-up day on Monday, June 16th. She'll only be at school for 2 1/2 hours and then we'll head to Red Robin for a special birthday lunch and perhaps to the pool in the afternoon.
We've enjoyed going swimming in the afternoons during theses hot and hazy days... After "freaking out" in the water on the first day we went, Allyson has relaxed and now likes be twirled around in the pool. The shallow end is just 2-feet, so she can even stand up and walk through the water. She's become comfortable on the steps and will even jump in off the side sometimes. Morgan has taken to the water like a fish and loves going to "our Burke pools".
On Tuesday (June 17th), Allyson will go under anesthesia for her dental treatment as well as ear-cleaning and possible ear tube replacement. We were able to add on the latter procedure after a regular visit with her ENT at the end of May. The tubes in her ears are impacted by wax and debris and need to be cleaned out. Once the ear canal is cleared, the ENT will determine whether a new set of tubes needs to be placed.
The following day (June 18th), we'll head to Atlanta to visit Aunt Grammy and Uncle Poppy and all of our cousins. The "little" cousins have never met Allyson and we haven't seen most of the them since Ashli and Tom's wedding almost three years ago. We're looking forward to seeing everyone and taking trips to Stone Mountain, local parks and museums, and swimming in their backyard pools.
I'll close for now and get back to my last minute party preparations... Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there and Happy early birthday to Morgan!
Have a great weekend!
Love,
Kristin
Friday, May 23, 2008 8:30 AM CDT
Happy Memorial Day weekend to you all! As we prepare for a long weekend and the unofficial kick-off of “summer”, I’ll hope you’ll pause to remember why we REALLY celebrate Memorial Day and pay tribute to those who have fought in wars past and present and who have given their lives for our country… and for our freedom…
Looks like I have about a month’s worth of updates to provide, so I’ll get right to it. First the “fun” stuff… we’ve had visitors and have been visiting with others these past few weeks. We had a great time with Grandma and Grandpa Kelso before Mother’s Day. Grandma got lots of one-on-one time with the girls while Grandpa attended meetings in Quantico, VA. After a day “break”, we saw Grandma and Grandpa again at Spencer’s 5th birthday party on May 10th. Morgan and Allyson played with their oldest cousin and enjoyed all the indoor soccer activities at his party. What a treat for Spencer to have his mom and dad, both uncles and aunts, and both sets of grandparents at his party! We had a ball (pun intended…) and then headed to Corolla, NC for a long Mother’s Day weekend retreat. Unfortunately, the weather was cloudy and cool (and VERY rainy one day!) most of the weekend. We managed a few dips into the hot tub and BRAVE “super Morgan” even swam in the pool which was heated to a mere 61 degrees! Most of all, it was relaxing and some much-needed “down time” for all of us. Teetay and Geep provided us with great meals (of course!) and they loved just “hanging out” with Morgan and Allyson with no agenda… that’s the best kind of vacation, right? After spending last weekend at home catching up on housework and laundry, we’re headed out of town again this weekend. Mark and I are going to Annapolis, MD for a couple of nights. I won an “Annapolis get-away weekend” last year at the Rally for Ally and we’re redeeming it now. We’ll spend Sat. and Sun. at a local B&B and enjoy dinner at a waterfront restaurant. There’s also a gift card for a famous deli where we’ll dine for lunch one of the days. Morgan and Allyson will stay with Teetay and Geep this weekend and are looking forward to going to their community pool when it opens up on Saturday. The weather looks promising, so it should be a good weekend for us all!
Aside from all the fun stuff we've been doing, we’ve been dealing with some new medical stuff with Ally – this time it’s her teeth. Morgan and Allyson both had dental check-ups with our new dentist earlier this month. While Morgan’s teeth were in great shape and she sailed through her check-up, Allyson had some problems. Our new dentist pushed his way into her mouth (she is still very orally defensive) and examined, cleaned, and applied fluoride to her teeth. Although she’s had many dental visits, this was the first time a doctor and gotten all the way in to do a thorough exam and cleaning. I appreciated his efforts and despite the squirming and crying by Allyson, he got the job done. Unfortunately, Allyson has quite a few cavities (4 or more) in the 10 teeth that she has. Some of this is to be expected in conjunction with having ectodermal dysplasia. Her teeth are poorly formed and most don’t have the protective enamel that helps to prevent cavities. Of course, poor dental hygiene is to blame as well. Because of her oral defensiveness, teeth brushing has been sporadic and “on her terms”. While she continues to eat well, Ally still isn’t drinking enough by mouth and therefore doesn’t get food and debris “washed away” like other children benefit from.
So... Where do we go from here? Because of Allyson’s behavior in the office (mostly age-appropriate and unwilling to sit still without being in a “headlock”), the severity of the cavities, and possibly needing extensive treatment (nerve damange, lesions, extractions), our dentist recommended treatment under general anesthesia. Since he doesn’t do that in his office, he referred us to another dentist who does. After seeing her, she didn’t feel comfortable having Allyson anesthetized in the office because of her cleft palate history and potential risk for an airway obstruction. So, it’s been a run-around and a lot of coordination on the 2nd dentist’s part. After talking with three more dentists and looking at availability in the O/R at Children’s hospital in DC, we finally found one who can treat Ally sooner rather than later. We have a “date” for treatment under anesthesia on June 17th with Dr. Steve Grimm. I’ve spoken with him twice on the phone and will get Allyson cleared by her pediatrician before going under. Depending on the amount of decay, Dr. Grimm may cap her teeth (upper molars) with stainless steel caps. He’ll do whatever he can to preserve the teeth she has and will also take x-rays to see if there are any other baby teeth yet to erupt and how many permanent teeth she has lurking beneath the surface. Once these cavities have been treated and we know how many permanent teeth are there, we can plan out her long-term dental care. Of course, after meeting with so many dental professionals over the past couple of weeks, we’ll have our “pick” as to who we’ll see for further treatment.
On a final note… the school year is winding down for both Morgan and Allyson – just 3 weeks to go. Last Wednesday I accompanied Morgan’s class to Green Spring Gardens for a “Bugs, Bees, and Trees” field trip. The kids were so well behaved and we had a great time. I have meetings with Allyson’s team of teachers over the next two weeks to discuss her goals for the summer and to write her IEP for the next school year. Her teacher called me this week to let me know that she was recommending Ally for the afternoon preschool class (vs. morning) and said that it would be a better “fit” for Ally based on her high cognitive level. Allyson will also go to school 4 days/week in the fall, so there will be several changes for her. Today Fairfax County announced that they were ending this school year early – a first in as long as we can remember! The last day of school is now June 13th instead of June 17th. When I told Morgan, she was excited that she didn’t have to go to school on her birthday (June 16th) now!
One more thing… Mark found out this week that he was selected for promotion to Commander (O-5 for you non-Navy types). He’ll pin on his new rank in early October and we’re planning a ceremony and reception at the Pentagon to celebrate this milestone. Although we were expecting to “see his name on the list”, it’s still an honor and achievement in his military career.
We have already planned a FULL summer of activities. I won’t go into all the details now, but suffice it to say that we’ll be on the move from the south to the Midwest to the north to the coast and you’ll be along for the ride, I’m sure! If you’re thinking of seeing us during this summer, mark your calendars for August 9th which is the 4th Annual Rally for Ally at Nottoway Park in Vienna, VA. We’d love to have all of Ally’s “ralliers” there. More details to follow…
Enjoy this special weekend and thank you, as always, for
keeping all of us in your thoughts and prayers!
Love,
Kristin
Sunday, May 4, 2008 9:04 PM CDT
Yes, that's Allyson asleep with spaghetti falling out of her mouth. Before I "saved" her from choking on it, I grabbed my camera for this funny shot. ;-) Just had to...
Sorry it's been so long since a real update. All is well in Virginia. Allyson continues to have some good days and some bad... they're mostly "good", but she is still often bothered by her eyes and doesn't always sleep well at night. That affects how her eyes feel the following day and then she'll nap in the afternoon which doesn't help the eye issues. She seems to be most sensitive when she first wakes in the morning or after a nap - she'll often tell me her "eyes hurt" at those times of the day. We haven't been in touch with the cornea specialist since her exam under anesthesia a few weeks ago. I'll update you all when I have new news in that regard...
Morgan has had her share of "issues" lately too. After trying over-the-counter allergy meds for a few weeks, I took her to the doctor last Monday. She's now on Singulair and antihistamine eye drops for her seasonal allergies. In addition, she has had a recurring (non-bothersome) rash on various parts of her legs since January. We had it checked out once, but wasn't able to see a dermatologist for it yet. So, when we went for the allergy appointment, we also saw the dermatologist who put her on a steroid cream for the rash (and still didn't know what it was...). It's cleared up now and we have plenty of cream on hand to use if it reoccurs. Morgan's allergies are better since the new meds, but her eyes are still itchy and puffy most mornings, but she's better later in the day. Over this past weekend, we had another issue to deal with when I discovered lice in Morgan's hair. Her hair is very thick and we spent a good chunk of Saturday afternoon going through it trying to rid her of the "bugs". NOT a fun task at all, but I think I got them all! Tomorrow I'll have to deal with the school and let them inform her classmates, etc. and possibly keep her out of school for a couple of days. The good news is that Grandma and Grandpa are coming to visit this week, so if she has to be out of school, at least she can still have fun with them!
We had a visit this weekend from my friend, Heather, and her two girls, Brenna (4) and Laney (1 1/2). We were squadron spouses together in California and she's now living in Virginia Beach just a few hours away. Our four girls had fun playing together at home and at the mall on Saturday. Our trip to the mall was quite eventful as we both had to deal with "meltdowns" with each daughter during our two-hour trip. We laughed it off saying that you could only share that kind of morning with a good friend who had "been there, done that." After lunch at McDonalds's this afternoon, we said good-bye with the hope of seeing them again soon!
We're looking forward to seeing Mark's parents this week. We'll head to Richmond next Saturday for cousin Spencer's 5th birthday party and continue onto Corrolla, NC (on the Outer Banks) for a long Mother's day with Teetay and Geep. We're all looking forward to some R&R and splashing in the waves, swimming in the pool, and soaking in the hot tub. Mark has been putting in some long hours over the past few weeks working on various time-sensitive projects, so we can all use the break!
Happy May! Thank you for your continued support and love for our family!
Love,
Kristin
Monday, April 28, 2008 9:29 PM CDT
On Tuesday morning, everyone sing...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO AUNT ASHLI! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
Having fun in rainy Northern Virginia. Hope all our friends and family south and east are safe tonight after a string of tornadoes today.
More later... busy, busy, and all is well...
Love,
Kristin
Friday, April 18, 2008 10:26 AM CDT
Hello and Happy Spring - I think it's finally here and going to stay! We had a beautiful day yesterday and are looking at 80 degrees again today and tomorrow. We have a beautiful red maple tree that's beginning to show its leaves in the front of our house. It's providing lots of good shade in the living room (or Ally's playroom) which is nice as well...
Our trip to Baltimore on Wednesday went well. We were out of the house at 4:15 AM and were checked into the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins by 5:30AM. Allyson was awake during the entire car trip and started saying she was hungry at 5 AM. Of course, she couldn't eat or drink because of the anesthesia, so I kept distracting her from her "hunger" until she went into the O/R around 7:20 AM. She had fallen asleep in my arms, so the hand off to the anesthesiologist was mostly uneventful. She was in pretty good spirits leading up to the exam, other than refusing to put on her hospital gown. I forced her into it and she was screaming and pulling at it saying, "I don't want it. I don't like it. I want jammies on!!!" So, I undressed her and left her in her diaper only. She pretended to wrap her blanket around her like a dress. We laughed and sang songs and jumped on the bed and tickled each other to pass the time.
The entire exam lasted just 10 minutes. Dr. Behrens spoke to me right away and said that the damage to both corneas was pretty extensive. The entire surface is affected and the damage goes pretty deep. However, the anatomy and function below the surface looks normal which is good. In addition, she has an ulcer on her right cornea and some thinning in the middle - that's the "red spot" we've noticed in the middle of her right eye for the past few weeks. When I asked him if all this could have been caused by chronic dryness, he said "yes" and also from chronic infections despite our regular usage of antibiotics on and off for the past six months. He recommended that we think about a corneal transplant. Because of the extent of the damage, there are no other intermediary alternatives that would help. She also has an infection now and he prescribed a heavy duty antibiotic drop for that. He said once the infection clears, she won't be in as much pain and then we can talk about "what's next." There are a lot of risks associated with a corneal transplant - the biggest being a high rejection rate (up to 80in children. He's not sure if the transplant would restore any of her vision, but could make her less symptomatic with infections, etc. He's going to call us next week and we'll go from there. Of course, we were hoping for a miracle, but we expected this prognosis. So, we'll press on and do whatever we need to do.
The rest of Wednesday went great! We were home by 10:30 AM and Ally was in good spirits the rest of the day. Yesterday was okay - she participated more in music class than in previous weeks and was happy at the park and at Thomas' house, but didn't open her eyes all day (until after we put her to bed and she was playing in her room at 9PM!). Today has been good so far... hopefully the new drops will start working soon and she'll be feeling better as far as her eyes are concerned!
We don't have a lot of plans for this weekend... maybe some family time at the park on Saturday. We'll just play it by ear...
Thank you for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers as we address this newest prognosis concerning Allyson's eyes. We appreciate your support.... always!
Have a great weekend!
Love,
Kristin
Monday, April 14, 2008 5:47 AM CDT
Good morning! Another week gone by and lots of stuff going on, as usual... I can't believe that it's only been one week since I ran the Cherry Blossom 5K. Seems like it's been longer than that!
Monday began with a trip to see the cherry blossoms downtown in Washington, DC. Other than the "umbrella incident", we had a nice time despite the cold weather and yucky rain.
Tuesday was back to school for the girls and the start of some spring-like weather. We enjoyed playing outside a couple of afternoons and getting to know our neighbors.
After school on Wednesday, Morgan attended her first children's choir practice at our church followed by rehearsal with the kids' music/theatre group. She was so excited to learn new things and sing and play instruments at church! I think this new activity will "catch on" and she'll love it!
Thursday was the start of a new session of music classes. We're attending an earlier class to accommodate Thomas' new nap time. Allyson did pretty well at class although she was having "bad eye days" much of the week. After class, we had a picnic and played at the adjacent park. Thomas, Brooke, and Allyson all had a good time! We hope to continue our picnicking throughout the spring.
Friday marked our first trip to Johns Hopkins Hospital. I took Allyson to see a cornea specialist who may be able to help diagnose and treat her eye issues. The drive to Baltimore was uneventful and took just over an hour. Allyson was having a particularly bad day and refused to open her eyes for the exam. In fact, she didn't open her eyes the entire day I was with her (not sure if they were open at school in morning or not). Anyway, the doctor was very nice and eager to assist. He recommended having Allyson's eyes examined under anesthesia. We had previously discussed this with another specialist, so we knew it was coming and necessary to get a good look at her eyes and determine exactly what's occurring on the surface and beyond. So, we'll return to Hopkins early Wednesday morning for the procedure and hopefully have some information to share by the time we get home. Today I have to scramble to Ally's pediatrician to get her cleared for anesthesia. The EUA appointment was confirmed around 2:30 Friday afternoon and they need the clearance by noon today (Monday), so I'll have a busy morning ahead...
Speaking of BUSY.... Saturday was birthday party day around northern Virginia (at least among Morgan's friends...) First we went to Pump it Up in the morning and both Morgan and Allyson had a good time jumping, sliding, and crawling. It was Allyson's best day of the week by far... Afterwards, we headed to an ice rink for another party and Morgan put on her skates and made her way around the rink. She was tentative (especially after a spill on her bottom!), but she managed to get around and have fun! Then, we had a three hour break until the next party. However, since it was such a nice day (near 80 degrees!), Morgan played outside with our neighbors and tired herself out (even more) by playing freeze tag and monkey in the middle and frisbee. Allyson rode her bike outside for awhile and then headed inside to play. I made Morgan come inside to rest around 4:30... we had been going, going, going since the first party at 10:30 in the morning! She took a bath and got in her pjs so she'd be ready for the final party of the day - a "pretend" sleepover! By 9PM, the partying was done and we were back home again with both girls fast asleep. Mark missed out on all the fun because he had to go into work Sat. morning and then headed to Charlottesville to see the UVa-Duke lacrosse slaughtering (I mean, game). He got home just after the girls went to bed and was ready for some sleep as well!
Sunday was our RELAXING DAY... I think we'd forgotten what that word meant... After church, we had absolutely nothing to do and nowhere to go. It was the first time in many weekends that we had a chance to hang out at home and enjoy some family time -just the four of us! Of course, there was laundry and cleaning to be done, but in between, we played and watched cartoons, and read books, and laughed and tickled and giggled. Allyson had a great day on Sunday, so let's hope this is good start to the week will last!
Hope you all had a fun weekend as well. We're looking forward to having our friends from Virginia Beach visit at the end of the month and having Mark's parents here again in early May. Then we'll be travelling to Nags Head for Mother's Day... and before we know it, summer will be here and we'll be busier than ever, I'm sure!!!!
I'll let you know about Allyson's eye exam as soon as I'm able to later in the week. Please keep her in your prayers! Thank you!
Love,
Kristin
Sunday, April 6, 2008 2:41 PM CDT
I participated in my very first running event today - hooray!
Today was the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler and 5K Run/Walk... after training to about 5-miles in the past 2 1/2 months, I decided last week to run the 5K instead of the 10-miler. There were pretty strict time-constraints associated with the 10-miler and I wanted to be able to finish what I started without getting kicked off the course. While Ash probably could have completed the 10-miler, she hasn't been training at all and stuck with me in the 5K. It was a miserably cold (around 45 degrees) and rainy day, but we hung in there and I ran the whole race in "record" time (for me personally). I feel really good about it and want to run another event... maybe a 10K next time and then work up to the Army 10-miler in October for which I'll have more time to train. Mark hung in there cheering us on and freezing and getting soaked! TG ran the 10-miler and finished that about the same time we finished our 5K.
Morgan, Allyson, and Thomas had a great time at their sleepover with Teetay, Geep, and friend, Doris, who was visiting from Hampton. Everyone played well, ate well, and slept well. Teetay was happy to have the help from Doris yesterday afternoon/evening while the various bath and betime routines were carried out for each child. All the little "peeps" were happy when we picked them up this afternoon and enjoying playing together.
Morgan has a day off from school tomorrow because of a teacher workday, so we're thinking about heading downtown to see the Cherry Blossoms and do some site-seeing. The rain is supposed to end, but it's still chilly, so we'll make our plans based on the weather tomorrow. Our Spring session of Music Together class begins this Thursday and we're looking forward to bringing Ally and Thomas together for that!
Hope you're all having a great weekend and Happy April!
Kristin
Monday, March 31, 2008 7:58 AM CDT
***** HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO TEETAY! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!!! ****
AND MANY MORE....
We had a fun weekend with Teetay - lots of celebrating for this "big" birthday of hers! Allyson and Morgan had a sleepover with Teetay and Geep on Friday night. Morgan, Teetay, and I attended an American Girl fashion show to benefit the Blueridge Speech and Hearing Center - no personal affiliation with this center, but a good cause and a fun event... especially for Morgan! After Teetay joined us at church on Sunday, Ashli and I treated her to a birthday brunch and surprised her with five of her closest friends dining with us as well. Morgan got to join all the "ladies" for this grown-up event while Allyson and Thomas got to spend some "QT" with their dads. After the brunch, we all gathered at Ashli and TG's house to open presents and have dessert. Teetay was surrounded and climbed upon by all three of her grands... in her words, "it doesn't get any better than this!"
Hope your REAL birthday today is terrific! Have fun subbing today and enjoy your massage this afternoon! We love you lots!
Kristin, Mark, Morgan, Allyson, Ashli, TG, Thomas, and of course, Geep!
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
Tuesday, March 25, 2008 5:26 AM CDT
HAPPY BELATED EASTER! Hope everyone had a great weekend! We had a busy week with the girls on Spring Break last week - see Teetay's guestbook entry for details... I will catch you up soon from "my end" sometime this week bot that the girls are both back in school today!
Hugs to you all and HAPPY SPRING!
Love,
Kristin
Sunday, March 16, 2008 9:00 PM CDT
************ HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY! *************
An Irish Blessing
I wish you not a path devoid of clouds,
nor a life on a bed or roses.
Nor, that you might never need regret,
nor that you should never feel pain.
No, this is not my wish for you. My wish for you is:
That you might be brave in times of trial
when others lay crosses upon your shoulders.
When mountains must be climbed and chasms crossed,
when hope scarce shines through.
When every gift God gave you might grow along with you,
and let you give the gift of joy to all who care for you.
That you might always have a friend who is worth that name.
Whom you can trust.
And hope will be, in times of sadness,
who will defy the storms of life by your side.
One more wish for you:
That in every hour of joy and pain, you may be close to God.
This is my wish for you and those who are close to you.
This is my hope for you now and forever.
There's a link to this blessing set to music and pictures - it's really beautiful if you have the time to watch today! Thank you, Aunt Dale, for sharing it with us... and I do agree, that G.G./Gran in heaven had something to do with its production. :-)
Love,
Kristin
Thursday, March 13, 2008 5:58 PM CDT
WE DID IT!!!!
I received a call from the NFED this afternoon and once again we were the top raffle ticket sellers!!!! Thank you all for your support! We'll receive a $300 voucher to use towards conference expenses (adult registration is $150 per person) so it will definitely help defer those costs! Unfortunately, none of "our tickets" was pulled as a "winner", but we KNOW that we're ALL WINNERS because we've helped the NFED tremendously! Again, we appreciate the support from so many of you.
Please keep Susan and Stephen Woodzell in your prayers... they are dear friends who have been through a series of "rough times" lately. This week, Susan's sister suffered the loss of ALL her personal belongings in two fires deliberately set at her two properties in Richmond. Because of the nature of the crime committed against her, insurance is not expected to compensate her for the losses. She literally has nothing left... If you'd like to help out the Woodzells and specifically Susan's sister in this desperate time of need, please contact me (ca.kristin@verizon.net) or Teetay (teetay43@yahoo.com) and we'll let you know how you can help. Again, your prayers are most needed at this time... The Woodzells are very close friends of ours who have been extremely supportive of our family throughout the years. Thank you for remembering them during this difficult time.
Wishing you all a good weekend... and happy early St. Patty's Day!
Love,
Kristin
Monday, March 10, 2008 7:13 PM CDT
DRUM ROLL, Please... Not only did we ACHIEVE our raffle ticket sales goal of 5000... we EXCEEDED it by 10%!!!!! Thank you ALL who helped us raise $5500 for the NFED. We sold 1000 more tickets than last year... hhhmmm, I wonder what we'll do next year to top that?!?!? Thank you to Teetay, Aunt Ashli, Aimee, Merideth, and Grandma and Grandpa Kelso who helped with selling tickets and raising awareness amongst your friends, neighbors, and colleagues. The last batch of tickets and checks were express mailed today so that they'd arrive at the NFED office on time Tuesday afternoon. The drawing will be held at 12:00 CST on Thursday. I'll let you know as soon as I hear if we were the top ticket sellers again this year and if anyone of the 145 people who purchased tickets from us was a lucky cash winner! Thanks a million for making this fundraising effort a success again this year! Now it's time to focus on the 4th Annual Rally for Ally, so start putting your raffle/silent auction/event "idea hats" on so we can raise another $10000 (or so) for the NFED on August 9th.
Yes, we've had a busy week. It was wonderful having Aunt Grammy here for so many days. She got to spend LOTS of quality time with each of her grand "N"s (nieces and nephew) and we made a bunch of memories together. Thomas' birthday party was terrific and Allyson had one of her "best days" in awhile at his house on Saturday. Her eyes seem to be bothering her more lately and she's had fewer days of having her head up and eyes open. Don't know if it's the ointment we've been using for about three weeks now or if her giving up her nap has started to take its toll on her eyes, but we'll continue to monitor her well-being... as always! We finally got new blinds purchased and hung in our open and light-filled family room, so hopefully that will alleviate much of the glare in the main living area that seems to bother her so much.
Mark and I had a fun night out on Saturday with Glenn and Mer and our college roommates, Steve and Jennifer. We met half-way between here and Richmond at The Melting Pot in Fredericksburg and enjoyed a four hour dinner together... lots of laughs and good food was the order for the night! Hope to make a regular "date" for the six of us to meet up while we're back on this coast!
Thank you again for your continuous prayers and well wishes. We all appreciate it so much!
Love,
Kristin
Thursday, March 6, 2008 5:45 AM CST
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAY TO THOMAS... HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
We call remember a year ago when we were waiting and waiting and waiting for you ("Lester") to make your appearance in this world...
You have taken our lives by storm and we love you so much! See you later at music class at then out to lunch at Whitlows!
Hope you have a great day, "Bubbas"!
Love,
Aunt Kristin, Uncle Mark, Morgan, and Ally
Tuesday, March 4, 2008 7:43 AM CST
Please keep Sydney Richmond in your prayers... she is the niece of Aimee's sister and brother-in-law, Robyn and Aaron Hopper. (Aaron's sister, Andrea, is the mother of Sydney). Syndey is the oldest of three girls and was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia last year at age 4. Her younger sister, Lauren, was diagnosed with the same disease almost two years ago. Both girls have been fighting such a courageous battle and we pray that Sydney will recover from this latest setback and hospitalization. Here's the link to a news article published in their local paper in December. Thank you, Aimee, for your post... we'll get Ally's "pray-ers" to storm heaven" for Syndey and her entire family. Love you!
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07358/844064-54.stm
Sunday, March 2, 2008 1:29 PM CST
Happy March, everyone! Thank you for all the support with raffle ticket sales... the latest tally is $4750 raised for the NFED... with a week to go, I'm confident that we'll reach our goal of $5000. Thank you ALL so much for your donations!
We've all been battling colds this week and Morgan has been "entertaining" a fever on and off this weekend. She's hoping to be well enough tomorrow to attend "Pajama Day" at school and participate in the Dr. Seuss "Read In" that's happening tomorrow. We also have Easter pictures scheduled in the afternoon, so let's pray that everyone is feeling up to that as well!
We all attended a birthday party yesterday for Thomas' "girlfriend", Brooke (and also one of Ally's music class playmates!). Morgan sold Girl Scout cookies with her Brownie troop in the afternoon. Today, Ally and I got to babysit Thomas while his parents went shopping for his 1st birthday presents. Ally and Thomas had fun playing and eating lunch together and Aunt Kristin "survived" as well! Tonight we're having dinner with our friends, the Lutz's - "old" high school friends of ours who live nearby. I'm sure it will be fun for all!
We're all gearing up for Thomas' birthday celebration on Thursday and big Curious George party next Saturday.
Aunt Grammy/Aunt Dale is flying up on Tuesday and will get to spend lots of quality time with her grand nieces and nephew throughout the week. We can't wait!
Hope you're having a great weekend!
Love,
Kristin
Tuesday, February 26, 2008 5:47 AM CST
WOW! Has it really been 12 days since I updated the journal... I have lots of GOOD excuses... Here they are:
1. Raffle tickets sales have exceeded 3000!!!! That's a lot of money for the NFED and hopefully someone in our network will win one of the cash prizes too. If you don't know what the heck I'm talking about, click on "journal history" below for details or send me an e-mail. We're raising awareness for ectodermal dysplasia and supporting the NFED as well!
2. Visitors... visitors... visitors... Beginning Feb 15th, we've been honored to visit with Aimee, Jim, and Tyler from Minnesota. Our time together was brief, but so enjoyable catching up with "old" friends! We also had Glenn, Merideth, and Spencer here last weekend and we filled our time together with trips to the Natural History and Air and Space Museums. Morgan and Allyson loved playing with their cousin, Spencer, and us grown-up "kids" enjoyed hanging out together during a visit that wasn't centered around a major holiday. We're planning to see Glenn, Mer, and Spencer often now that we're less than two hours away from each other! Mark's parents drove up from North Carolina last Thursday and we just spent the weekend with them. Morgan and Allyson got a lot of play time with Grandma and Grandpa... we also went out to dinner at a new Mexican restaurant and tried out a new church which we all loved! Another fun-filled weekend spent with family!
3. Allyson has given up her NAP! It all began last week when I was finding it harder and harder to get her to nap after school. I chalked it up to Ally wanting to play with Mommy a little longer since she'd been at school all morning. So, for a couple of days, she went down for a nap later than normal, and even though I didn't let her sleep too long, she wouldn't go to bed on time at night. We'd put her in her bed before 8PM and she would play in her room until 10PM. We were continuously going upstairs to remind her to "get back in bed and go night-night". So, with all these napping/sleeping issues, I decided to STOP putting her down for a nap each afternoon. She's still a little tired in the late afternoon, but is going to bed on time at night and sleeping all the way until morning. Of course, now MY "work" time has been eliminated now that her nap is gone! So, I'll have to find other ways/times to get all of "my stuff" done.
4. I'm volunteering at Morgan's school each week on Wednesdays and reading with the first graders who need extra one-on-one attention. I worked with two children last week who are "emergent" readers and were SO eager to learn and tried SO hard ro pronounce their words. They are new to the United States this year and are speaking English for the first time. I was so touched after reading with Betol, who came here from Iraq in January, ans told me "I couldn't read before and now you've helped me." How awesome is that??? I'm looking forward to working with other children during my weekly visits and sometimes I'll even get to stay and have lunch with Morgan - her FAVORITE part of school! :-)
5. I'm training for a 10-mile run that's scheduled for April 6th. Months ago, Ashli and I signed up to "participate" in the Cherry Blossom 10-miler. I'm not sure if I'll be running or walking or a combination, but I've been pounding the pavement as often as I can trying to prepare. Between the weather and the girls' schedules, I haven't trained as much as I should, but I'm proud of my progress and confident that I can complete the event.
So there you have it! The last half of February in a "nutshell." I'll get better with my updates once we all adjust to yet another "new" routine! Oh, one more thing... Allyson's appointment with the cornea specialist last week went well. He didn't have a lot of new advice to offer us, but promised to consult with other specialists in this field to determine the best course of treatment for Allyson's eyes. He may want to examine her eyes under anesthesia in order to get a thorough look at the corneas and determine the extent of the damage to her eyes. He promised to be in touch and we'll follow up with our regular ophthalmologist as well in a month or so. Recently, her eyes have been "open" most days and seem less irritated... as Spring arrives and pollens enter the air, we'll see how that affects her.
Thank you, as always, for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers... and a HUGE thank you to everyone who has purchased raffle tickets! We're still hoping to reach our BIG GOAL of 5000, so if you're interested in supporting the NFED, please contact me at the e-mail address below.
Have a great day! Happy Birthday to Aunt Dale/Aunt Grammy today! We'll see you next week! :-)
Love,
Kristin
Thursday, February 14, 2008 6:08 AM CST
HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!!
Hope you all enjoy this special day of LOVE... Allyson and are off to Music Class this morning. Yesterday's Preschool was cancelled because the schools had a two-hour delayed opening. So, it's back to school for Ally tomorrow!
Looking forward to reuniting with Aimee and Jim tomorrow night for dinner - should be a fun "grown-up" night out for all of us! Wishing you safe travels today!
Mark has been in classes all week learning various computer programs and "need to know" stuff. He had a horrendous commute home on Tuesday night... was stranded on the "express" bus from the Pentagon for FIVE HOURS! The Springfield Interchange "Mixing Bowl" was shut down due to icy conditions and traffic was completely STOPPED! He finally got home around 9:30 PM! Anyway, his commuting has been "easy" up until that point, so I guess he was "due", right?
HAVE A GREAT VALENTINE'S DAY and enjoy your long weekend coming up (If you should be so lucky!)!
Thank you also for all the support with purchasing NFED raffle tickets... "The Matus Girls" have sold over 1000 tickets in the past week and we're still reaching for that goal of 5000. If you are interested in purchasing raffle tickets, please see the info below and contact me as soon as possible! We appreciate ALL of your support for Allyson and the NFED!
Love,
Kristin
Tuesday, February 12, 2008 9:14 AM CST
Good morning! Allyson had a good check-up with her new Opthalmologist yesterday. Dr. Bazemore did a thorough history and examined Allyson's eyes. Ally cooperated for the most part... up until her eyes had to be forced open and held in place with the specula so that the doctor could take a look. We spoke extensively about the increased cloudiness in her right eye and decreased vision. Because of the cloudiness and scarring, Dr. Bazemore could not see through that to get a good assessment of her vision or her eye health. She did note that there was dryness inside her eyes and recommended that we increase our efforts to lubricate her eyes. We'll try Genteel drops and Erythromicin oitment at night. We've used these before without much improvement, but we'll try again. Dr. Bazemore also recommended a Cornea Specialist for Allyson to see. We have an appointment with him next Monday, Feb 18th. So, there will be more to report then, I'm sure.
It's bitterly cold here today... hope you're staying warm wherever you are!
Love,
Kristin
FEBRUARY IS ECTODERMAL DYSPLASIA AWARENESS MONTH
Dear Friends-
It's raffle time again! February is Ectodermal Dysplasia Awareness Month. For those of you who know me and my daughter, Allyson, understand the challenges we have faced over the past three years... seven surgeries, numerous invasive procedures, hundreds of doctors appointments with dozens of doctors and specialists, and thousands of dollars spent on care and treatment...but I can't imagine our lives any other way! Allyson's diagnosis of Ectrodactyly-Ectodermal Dysplasia-Clefting Syndrome (or EEC Syndrome) opened a door to a new way of life... and of living. This past year has been especially rewarding as we've seen Allyson grow and mature... she's now "talking up a storm" and "eating us out of house and home"! After an intensive therapy program last summer, she was weaned off of her feeding g-tube in the fall and continues to eat well and thrive on her own. Since our move to Virginia two months ago, Allyson has started Preschool three days/week and is loving it! She continues to amaze us with her energy and all she can do! Unfortunately, Allyson's vision has dramatically declined over the past year and she's now receiving services for the visually impaired as she is legally blind in one eye (and possibly both). We are meeting with a cornea specialist in the coming weeks and surgery may be recommeded/necessary in the near future. Through all of life's ups and downs, Allyson's tremendous spirit shines through in everything she does and hopefully those who have met her have witnessed that as well. I rarely talk about her medical "issues" and challenges because I want people to "know Allyson as Allyson" and don't want her defined by this syndrome and the health risks she faces everyday. I am writing you today because I'm asking for your support in honor of Allyson during Ectodermal Dysplasia Awareness Month.
I have become involved with the National Foundation for Ectodermal Dysplasias (NFED) as a result of Ally's diagnosis. In support of the NFED, I am selling raffle tickets and raising awareness through sharing information about Allyson's condition which is just 1 of 150 Ectodermal Dysplasia (ED) syndromes. I'd also like for others to know how the NFED helps families through research, education, and alleviating the financial burden created by some medical treatments. So far, we have not personally had to call on the NFED for financial assistance, however, because of supporters like YOU, our family has raised over $25,000 for the NFED between raffle ticket sales and the annual Rally for Ally fundraisers. That's enough money to pay for 10 sets of dentures so that 10 children with Ectodermal Dysplasia can start Kindergarten with a full set of teeth. That's an awesome feeling, isn't it? Please visit the NFED's website at www.nfed.org for more information about how the foundation helps affected families.
So, how can you help... AND win some CASH for yourself?!?!?
Raffle tickets sell for just $1 each and there are five in each book. The drawing will be held on Thursday, March 13th at 12 PM CST at the NFED office in Mascoutah, IL. Prize winners will be notified by telephone, with a confirmation letter to follow.
Prizes are as follows:
1st place = $1000
2nd place = $300
3rd place = $200
In addition, the family who sells the most tickets receives a voucher for the Annual NFED Family Conference (we won this last year!), which is an amazing 3-day event where hundreds of families who lives are touched by ED connect, learn, play and are involved in research studies. And this summer we'll all travel to Iowa City, IA where Ally will reunite with many friends (whom we met at two years at the conference in St. Louis) facing the same challenges she does living with EEC Syndrome.
If you wish to participate, please send your contribution to me in the form of cash or check (checks payable to: "NFED" and are tax-deductible). You can mail the checks to me and I will mail the tickets back to you after filling out the stubs. Also, if you have address labels, please include those with your check. Name, address, and phone number are needed on the ticket stubs in order for the NFED to contact the raffle winners. If you don't have labels - no worries - I can make them for you! Please e-mail me in advance if you'd like to purchase raffle tickets so I can plan to have enough on hand.
Because the ticket stubs need to be mailed back to the NFED headquarters in Illinois by March 11th, I need to have all checks and money accounted for by FRIDAY, March 7th.
In 2006 (our first year to participate), our family sold 2280 tickets. Last year, we sold 4550 raffle tickets and received honors for being the top ticket-sellers. This year I've set a goal of selling 5000 tickets equaling $5000 for the NFED.
The NFED is a non-profit organization and is the ONLY organization in the country dedicated to serving individuals affected by ED syndromes. It does not receive any federal funding. Your support - no matter how small or how big - is GREATLY appreciated. Even if you're unable to purchase raffle tickets, please help me spread the word by telling a family member or friend about the NFED or Ectodermal Dysplasia. Direct them to the foundation's website www.nfed.org to learn more about this potentially life-threatening condition that affects so many individuals. Please feel free to forward this e-mail to your friends and family members and an education/awareness tool.
Recently, the Unilever Company funded this promotional video for the NFED to illustrate how the foundation helps to enrich the lives of individuals affected by an ectodermal dysplasia syndrome. The video is quite compelling and I urge you to share it with your friends and family as a means of raising awareness. http://www.grippedhosting.com/unilever1/nfed/index.html
Thank you for your support!
Kristin Matus-Kelso
6509 Legendgate Place
Burke, VA 22015
703.440.9779
ca.kristin@verizon.net
Thursday, February 14, 2008 6:08 AM CST
HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!!
Hope you all enjoy this special day of LOVE... Allyson and are off to Music Class this morning. Yesterday's Preschool was cancelled because the schools had a two-hour delayed opening. So, it's back to school for Ally tomorrow!
Looking forward to reuniting with Aimee and Jim tomorrow night for dinner - should be a fun "grown-up" night out for all of us! Wishing you safe travels today!
Mark has been in classes all week learning various computer programs and "need to know" stuff. He had a horrendous commute home on Tuesday night... was stranded on the "express" bus from the Pentagon for FIVE HOURS! The Springfield Interchange "Mixing Bowl" was shut down due to icy conditions and traffic was completely STOPPED! He finally got home around 9:30 PM! Anyway, his commuting has been "easy" up until that point, so I guess he was "due", right?
HAVE A GREAT VALENTINE'S DAY and enjoy your long weekend coming up (If you should be so lucky!)!
Thank you also for all the support with purchasing NFED raffle tickets... "The Matus Girls" have sold over 1000 tickets in the past week and we're still reaching for that goal of 5000. If you are interested in purchasing raffle tickets, please see the info below and contact me as soon as possible! We appreciate ALL of your support for Allyson and the NFED!
Love,
Kristin
Tuesday, February 12, 2008 9:14 AM CST
Good morning! Allyson had a good check-up with her new Opthalmologist yesterday. Dr. Bazemore did a thorough history and examined Allyson's eyes. Ally cooperated for the most part... up until her eyes had to be forced open and held in place with the specula so that the doctor could take a look. We spoke extensively about the increased cloudiness in her right eye and decreased vision. Because of the cloudiness and scarring, Dr. Bazemore could not see through that to get a good assessment of her vision or her eye health. She did note that there was dryness inside her eyes and recommended that we increase our efforts to lubricate her eyes. We'll try Genteel drops and Erythromicin oitment at night. We've used these before without much improvement, but we'll try again. Dr. Bazemore also recommended a Cornea Specialist for Allyson to see. We have an appointment with him next Monday, Feb 18th. So, there will be more to report then, I'm sure.
It's bitterly cold here today... hope you're staying warm wherever you are!
Love,
Kristin
FEBRUARY IS ECTODERMAL DYSPLASIA AWARENESS MONTH
Dear Friends-
It's raffle time again! February is Ectodermal Dysplasia Awareness Month. For those of you who know me and my daughter, Allyson, understand the challenges we have faced over the past three years... seven surgeries, numerous invasive procedures, hundreds of doctors appointments with dozens of doctors and specialists, and thousands of dollars spent on care and treatment...but I can't imagine our lives any other way! Allyson's diagnosis of Ectrodactyly-Ectodermal Dysplasia-Clefting Syndrome (or EEC Syndrome) opened a door to a new way of life... and of living. This past year has been especially rewarding as we've seen Allyson grow and mature... she's now "talking up a storm" and "eating us out of house and home"! After an intensive therapy program last summer, she was weaned off of her feeding g-tube in the fall and continues to eat well and thrive on her own. Since our move to Virginia two months ago, Allyson has started Preschool three days/week and is loving it! She continues to amaze us with her energy and all she can do! Unfortunately, Allyson's vision has dramatically declined over the past year and she's now receiving services for the visually impaired as she is legally blind in one eye (and possibly both). We are meeting with a cornea specialist in the coming weeks and surgery may be recommeded/necessary in the near future. Through all of life's ups and downs, Allyson's tremendous spirit shines through in everything she does and hopefully those who have met her have witnessed that as well. I rarely talk about her medical "issues" and challenges because I want people to "know Allyson as Allyson" and don't want her defined by this syndrome and the health risks she faces everyday. I am writing you today because I'm asking for your support in honor of Allyson during Ectodermal Dysplasia Awareness Month.
I have become involved with the National Foundation for Ectodermal Dysplasias (NFED) as a result of Ally's diagnosis. In support of the NFED, I am selling raffle tickets and raising awareness through sharing information about Allyson's condition which is just 1 of 150 Ectodermal Dysplasia (ED) syndromes. I'd also like for others to know how the NFED helps families through research, education, and alleviating the financial burden created by some medical treatments. So far, we have not personally had to call on the NFED for financial assistance, however, because of supporters like YOU, our family has raised over $25,000 for the NFED between raffle ticket sales and the annual Rally for Ally fundraisers. That's enough money to pay for 10 sets of dentures so that 10 children with Ectodermal Dysplasia can start Kindergarten with a full set of teeth. That's an awesome feeling, isn't it? Please visit the NFED's website at www.nfed.org for more information about how the foundation helps affected families.
So, how can you help... AND win some CASH for yourself?!?!?
Raffle tickets sell for just $1 each and there are five in each book. The drawing will be held on Thursday, March 13th at 12 PM CST at the NFED office in Mascoutah, IL. Prize winners will be notified by telephone, with a confirmation letter to follow.
Prizes are as follows:
1st place = $1000
2nd place = $300
3rd place = $200
In addition, the family who sells the most tickets receives a voucher for the Annual NFED Family Conference (we won this last year!), which is an amazing 3-day event where hundreds of families who lives are touched by ED connect, learn, play and are involved in research studies. And this summer we'll all travel to Iowa City, IA where Ally will reunite with many friends (whom we met at two years at the conference in St. Louis) facing the same challenges she does living with EEC Syndrome.
If you wish to participate, please send your contribution to me in the form of cash or check (checks payable to: "NFED" and are tax-deductible). You can mail the checks to me and I will mail the tickets back to you after filling out the stubs. Also, if you have address labels, please include those with your check. Name, address, and phone number are needed on the ticket stubs in order for the NFED to contact the raffle winners. If you don't have labels - no worries - I can make them for you! Please e-mail me in advance if you'd like to purchase raffle tickets so I can plan to have enough on hand.
Because the ticket stubs need to be mailed back to the NFED headquarters in Illinois by March 11th, I need to have all checks and money accounted for by FRIDAY, March 7th.
In 2006 (our first year to participate), our family sold 2280 tickets. Last year, we sold 4550 raffle tickets and received honors for being the top ticket-sellers. This year I've set a goal of selling 5000 tickets equaling $5000 for the NFED.
The NFED is a non-profit organization and is the ONLY organization in the country dedicated to serving individuals affected by ED syndromes. It does not receive any federal funding. Your support - no matter how small or how big - is GREATLY appreciated. Even if you're unable to purchase raffle tickets, please help me spread the word by telling a family member or friend about the NFED or Ectodermal Dysplasia. Direct them to the foundation's website www.nfed.org to learn more about this potentially life-threatening condition that affects so many individuals. Please feel free to forward this e-mail to your friends and family members and an education/awareness tool.
Recently, the Unilever Company funded this promotional video for the NFED to illustrate how the foundation helps to enrich the lives of individuals affected by an ectodermal dysplasia syndrome. The video is quite compelling and I urge you to share it with your friends and family as a means of raising awareness. http://www.grippedhosting.com/unilever1/nfed/index.html
Thank you for your support!
Kristin Matus-Kelso
6509 Legendgate Place
Burke, VA 22015
703.440.9779
ca.kristin@verizon.net
Monday, February 11, 2008 5:48 AM CST
Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to Geep! Happy Birthday to you!
We had a wonderful brunch at our house yesterday! Geep said it was the BEST birthday he'd had all year. All the kids were great and played and ate and had a ball. We celebrated Valentine's Day early and exchanged our gifts with one another. Teetay and Geep got a special anniversary gift (also on the 14th) - a digital frame full of pictures of all of us as well as many from the past as well. It was a great day and I'm so glad we could share it all together!
Allyson has an appointment with her new opthalmologist, Dr. Bazemore, at DC Children's this morning. We have an early departure, so Geep is coming over early to stay with Morgan until it's time for her to get on the bus for school.
Hope you have a great day! I'll post another update after Ally's appointment.
Love,
Kristin
P.S. Brrrrr.... it's COLD out there!
Friday, February 8, 2008 1:33 PM CST
Happy Friday! Yes, we are off to yet another show this evening... Morgan is SO EXCITED about seeing High School Musical on stage tonight. She's also VERY EXCITED to finally meet Brooke Woodzell, the grown-up daughter of our dear friends Susan and Steven whom Morgan has adopted as her "Webkinz Cash SugarGrandparents". See if you can decipher THAT one!
Allyson had a great week at school... today was the BEST. She only gave a little whiney cry when I handed her off to her teacher this morning. Up until today, she was crying, screaming, kicking and saying "no baby school" in the mornings. She's happy in the afternoons when I pick her up and is full of things to say about school. I think this "note" from her vision teacher today sums it up best...
"Ally did much better today. She played and participated the whole time... the ball pit, puzzles, books, blocks, made a Valentine project, had snack... Baby Elmo helped facilitate at times. She got tired around 11:00, so I let her rest a little on the floor and then she went back to her book. Her head was up most of the time. She walked by herself to all the areas she wanted to get to. She fed herself yogurt with a spoon and ate all the pizza we had to offer her."
Just a note on the pizza... Allyson does love cheese pizza. The Preschoolers who order hot lunch eat around 11:30 before school gets out at 12:15. Allyson usually eats her snack during this time and she and I have lunch together at home after school. I'm not sure how she "acquired" pizza today since I didn't purchase it for her... every Friday is "pizza day", so I'll have to remember to send her with lunch money from now on!
Hope you have a great weekend! We'll be celebrating Geep's birthday on Sunday with everyone at our house for brunch.
I'm still working on my NFED raffle ticket letter, so don't worry if you haven't heard from me yet. I'll post it soon! For anyone who has a check burning a hole in your pocket... you can send a check to me made out to the "N.F.E.D." and I'll send you raffle tickets ($1 each) equal to the amount of your check. IF you happen to have address labels, please include those with your check. If not, no worries, I can make them for you! Make sure you've included your name, address, and phone # with your check. This information is needed for the ticket stubs in case you win one of the cash prizes! Yes, that's right! The winning raffle ticket holder gets $1000!!!! Second prize is $300 and third prize is $200. Your odds of winning are approximately 1 in 30000! That's MUCH better than playing the lottery and it goes towards a good cause! Thank you!
Mail your check to:
Kristin Kelso
6509 Legendgate Place
Burke, VA 22015
Please contact me via e-mail if you have questions. Thanks in advance for your support!!!!
Saturday, February 2, 2008 6:57 AM CST
Happy February! The sun is peeking out here... I bet that means that ol' Groundhog will see his shadow and crawl back into his hole. Morgan told us yesterday that she WISHED for 6 more weeks of winter! I'm sure all you Midwesterners have already had enough of winter already, right?!?!
We had some freezing rain/ice yesterday morning, so school we're delayed 2-hours. That meant that AM Preschool was cancelled, so Ally will have to wait until next week for her second day of school... kind of like Mark did with his new job!
Allyson and I joined Teetay and her friends for lunch which was lots of fun and felt very "grown up" for me! After school, Morgan had an impromptu playdate with her new friend, Keara, who lives down the street. The girls played Littlest Pet Shop and Pretty, Pretty Princess before deciding to watch "Ratatouille" (sp?). They had a fun time together and I'm sure will play lots and lots! Keara has a three-year-old sister named Camille. We're hoping to get the little girls together to play soon as well!
Today Morgan, Teetay, and I are going to see the Hannah Montana 3-D concert at our local movie theater. Morgan has new Hannah "duds" to wear and is so excited about the show! We don't have any other big plans for the weekend, so those of you who have been wanting to "catch up" with me might get a chance to this weekend!
Have a Happy Saturday and Happy Superbowl tomorrow!
Kristin
Wednesday, January 30, 2008 12:44 AM CST
She DID it! We survived our first day of Preschool. The day went pretty well - all things considered... Allyson is used to having "lazy" mornings and doesn't really get going until 10AM, so being at school ready to start the day at 9AM this morning was a big change for her! I woke her earlier than normal with the hope of making a smooth transition into our new routine. To my surprise, she did eat a little breakfast before we set off for our new adventure. She was happy about "going bye-bye" and kept asking me when it was time to leave the house. Once we got to school, she stayed in my arms and wasn't the
"adventurous Ally" who eagerly walked by herself to the classroom yesterday. I continued to hold her while the other Preschoolers arrived off the bus... there is one adult for every two children arriving, so it was good for me to see how the transition off the bus played out at school. Allyson continued to cling to me and said "no" to playing with toys, meeting friends, having fun, playing at school, etc. Whatever I said to motivate and excite her was met with rejection. When all the children were off their buses, I walked her back to the classroom. Her teacher asked if I wanted to stay for a little while and I declined. I felt that Allyson would do better if I just left and let her work out her "issues". She screamed and cried when I handed her over to her teacher, but I knew she'd come around with some time.
When I picked her up at 12:15PM, her teacher told me that she cried for about an hour and then warmed up to the classroom and other kids. They had a special music class today with the Elem. Music Teacher and I was told that she enjoyed that. In her notebook, her teacher wrote that she also played dress-up and with the baby doll and stroller. The vision specialist also worked with her today. Allyson was happy and content when I picked her up. We ran a couple of errands and she asked for a cheeseburger for lunch. She's wasn't clinging to me at all after I picked her up which is a very good sign. We'll be back at school on Friday and she'll hopefully have an even better day!
Tonight is my "girls night out" with Teetay, Ashli, and Theresa. We're going to see the Dancing with the Stars on tour show. We'll be meeting for drinks and apps before the show in D.C. and I'm sure it will be a great night!
Geep is coming over this afternoon to hang with the girls until Mark gets home from work. Morgan was lamenting last night, "oh no! I'm going to have TWO MEN taking care of me! That's going to be weird." I'm sure she'll be just fine and thrilled to have the attention from "two men." hee hee!:-)
Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts today as we hit another milestone! Have a great Wednesday!
Kristin
P.S. "Sushi" is still alive! No new news to report...
Tuesday, January 29, 2008 6:08 PM CST
So the BIG news of the day is....
Allyson starts Preschool on WEDNESDAY, JAN 30th! Our visit today went very well and she played easily and interacted well with the therapists and teachers who were there to meet her. She "sort of" played with the kids as well... but that will come...
We turned in all of her registration materials and she's starting on Wednesday! Next week we'll have an IEP meeting to set up goals and determine how many days she'll attend. Most likely, I'll have her in school Tues, Wed, Fri. We'll continue our Thursday "Music Together" class with Thomas and Teetay and Monday's will be "free" - it's also a shortened school day for Preschool and Elementary, so she'd only be going for two hours on Mondays anyway...
I'll drive her this week and we'll try out the bus next week. Keep your fingers crossed and say a prayer that all goes well with Ally's first day of school!
More tomorrow...
Kristin
Sunday, January 27, 2008 7:17 AM CST
Happy Sunday and almost end of January...
We've had a good week and feel like we're finally into a "routine" of sorts. Mark worked two REAL days (Thursday and Friday) and even though Morgan only had three days of school last week between the MLK Jr. holiday last Monday and a teacher workday on Friday, it felt normal.
Allyson and I had a good meeting with the Preschool teachers last week. On Tuesday, we'll go to the elementary school and visit the preschool classrooms there. Most of the specialists (OT, PT, Speech Therapist) who will be working with Allyson will also be at the school that day, so we can meet with them as well. We'll have to sit down with the team and write a new IEP for her in order for Allyson to begin the classroom-based program, but it seems like that's the direction we're headed. This school also has a teacher for the Visually Impaired who is currently working with another preschooler and would be able to work with Allyson as well. That's most important to us at this point. The school has asked me to complete all the registration forms and bring them with us on Tuesday when we visit the school. I think the process will move pretty quickly after Tuesday and hopefully Allyson will start school in a couple of weeks at the most... The classroom program is five mornings/week, but Allyson might not attend everyday. That will depend on what services she's getting and which days those specialists are there. Most likely, Allyson will also ride a BUS to her school. I'll probably take her initially, but the teachers prefer for the students to ride a bus which helps them transition into the classroom and away from their parent... It's hard to imagine putting my little three-year-old on a bus to go to school, but I'm willing to give it a try! I'll keep you posted after we have our visit on Tuesday.
After having a couple of weeks of "good eye days", she's been a little crankier, clingier, and uncomfortable this past week. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it, but we're working through it. Her BEST day last week was on Thursday when we attended "Music Together" class with Teetay and Thomas. We'll be joining them weekly for the next 8 weeks. She perked up immediately when we got to class and had a great time!
The girls had a great time with Teetay and Geep on Friday... even sleeping over Friday night while Mark and I went out to dinner and then home alone to watch a movie. Yesterday, Morgan and Mark went to the Marine Corps Museum at Quantico and met up with Uncle Glenn, Aunt Mer, and Spencer who drove up from Richmond. They had a great time and said the museum was "awesome" and a "must see". It's great being so close to both of Morgan and Allyson's cousins now! We can have frequent and spontaneous visits which is already a lot of fun!
We're new pet owners as of yesterday! Morgan has reincarnated her fish tank that she got in the summer while staying with Teetay and Geep. We now have a beta named "Sushi". He's a beautiful, deep blue color with touches of red in his fins. He seems to like his new home and survived his first night, so we're off to a good start! I'm sure there will be plenty of "Sushi news" as the days (and hopefully weeks and months!) go on...
Today the girls and I have a birthday party to attend - Ashli and Thomas will be there too! We're looking forward to another fun day together. Morgan has another day off from school on Monday and Teetay will stay with her for part of the day while Allyson and I visit her new pediatrician. She's due for a "school entrance" check-up and we're fortunate to be seeing the same pediatrician that Thomas sees and Ashli loves! Just another reason why it's great to be living in the same area! :-)
Hope you've had a great weekend and are enjoying "warmer" weather... even if "warmer" is TWO degrees, right, Aimee?
Lots of love~
Kristin
P.S. I'll be sending out my NFED raffle ticket letter (and posting it here as well) soon. February is Ectodermal Dysplasia month and we are selling raffle tickets to raise awareness and support the NFED. Also, the 4th Annual Rally for Ally will be held on August 9th at Nottoway Park in Vienna, Virginia. We'd love to see you all there to support Ally and the NFED. More info to follow in the coming months...
Wednesday, January 23, 2008 8:20 AM CST
***************NEW DATE for RALLY FOR ALLY**************
The 4th Annual Event will be held on Saturday, August 9, 2008. There was a scheduling mix-up and we had to shift gears and change dates. Hope many of you can attend...
Also, Ectodermal Dysplasia Month is right around the corner! Raffle ticket sales will begin soon. More info to follow...
Thanks in advance for your support!
Allyson has her meeting with the Preschool teachers this morning. I'll provide an update once that's complete!
Have a great Wednesday!
Kristin
Thursday, January 17, 2008 6:12 PM CST
Allyson HATED being out in the snow at first... She didn't mind getting all her gear on, but once we were outside, she only wanted to be in my arms. I sat her down in the snow and she screamed, of course (as seen in the picture)... after a few minutes and several futile attempts at pictures, she wanted to go back inside. Once Mark joined us outside, she came around and seemed "interested" in the snow. She sat down on the "snowy mountain" and we put snowballs in her hands. She threw the snowballs up in the air and laughed out loud. Morgan had a blast in the snow... it's the first real snow she's played in since she was 2 1/2 and we took a ski trip to Big Bear, CA. She couldn't wait to get dressed after school and play in the snow. Morgan and Daddy had a snowball fight after I brought Allyson inside.
What a treat to have TWO days of snow in the same week. Morgan is wearing her pjs backwards tonight with the hope that school will be delayed or cancelled tomorrow. Her bus driver told the kids that was "the thing to do" if they didn't want to go to school. What fun!
More snow is expected on Saturday. I'm sure this will get "old" after awhile (right, Aimee?), but the novelty still exists for us, so we're going to enjoy every minute of it!
Mark was home today and will continue to be home until the 24th. After reporting to work yesterday, he was told that he couldn't come back until he had completed the security clearance class next week. He literally had to have his hand held yesterday by his sponsor while he was in the work spaces... signed in, signed out, always accompanied, etc. Once he's "cleared", he'll be able to rejoin his colleagues at the Pentagon. He said it was a good day and he saw a lot of cool stuff... I think it's going to be a good experience for him!
Happy (almost) Friday and have a great SNOWY weekend!
Kristin
Tuesday, January 15, 2008 1:27 PM CST
OUR FIRST SNOW!!!!!!
I knew that if I left the snowmen up on the homepage long enough that REAL snow would follow!
It didn't last long - about a 10 minute "blizzard" but Ally thought it was neat and kept looking out the window and telling me, "snowflakes. white. cold window. white snowflakes." I'm sure Morgan will be bummed that all the snow had melted before she gets out of school. Hopefully there will be more soon!
All is well. Allyson is continuing to do well and seems to be enjoying our house now. She's going up and down the stairs (all 35 of them!!!) without hesitating very much. Her eyes have more open over the past week and she's been eating well. Drinking has still been a challenge, so we've been giving her water through her g-tube at night which has helped hydrate her eyes as well.
I've been busy this week setting up Allyson's medical services and talking with a Case Manager to help me navigate her care in VA. I've also registered her with Child Find which will direct her education and therapy services. We have our first meeting with the preschool resource teacher on Jan 23rd. After that meeting, we'll decide whether her services - preschool resource, speech, OT/PT, etc. will be provided in our home weekly or whether Allyson will be placed in a school-based preschool program.
Mark starts work at the big 5-sided building tomorrow. He had a trial run yesterday and a mini-tour of the Pentagon. He seems excited to be starting work again and probably happy to be away from "honey do's" for a few days... at least until the weekend! hee hee :-)
Happy mid-January! (Didn't we just celebrate the New Year?!?!?) Hope you're all doing well!
Love,
Kristin
Monday, January 7, 2008 7:42 AM CST
My "old" e-mail address is up and running now... you can contact me at
ca.kristin@verizon.net
Please disregard any other e-mail addresses. Mark's e-mail is the "old" one as well - mark.kelso@verizon.net
More later...
We're BAAAAAACCCKKKK!!!!
After ten days of traveling to North Carolina and then to Texas, we are home again and ready to settle into our usual routines.... whatever they may be!
We had a great trip to Texas and enjoyed visiting with all my cousins and their children and extended family members. Morgan and my cousins' kids (four boys ages 6-9) played great together despite not having seen one another in over 4 years. The wedding was a beautiful affair and we loved being there to celebrate with LeAnne and Scott and the Chaloupka and Henke families! Thank you for including us in your special day!
Our New Year's trip to Nags Head was relaxing and fun as well. We enjoyed visiting with Mark's family and celebrating a belated Christmas, mine and Allyson's birthdays, and ringing in the New Year together! Thank you to Mom and Dad K. for making the vacation so terrific for all of us!
Morgan said it "best" last night as we were driving home from the airport around 9:30PM... "Wow, Mom... we've really done a lot in the past ten days. And we got to see almost everyone in my whole family. That's really cool, isn't it? But it's also good to be back in Virginia at our new house because I really need to go to school again. They've missed me, I'm sure." A pretty good summary, don't you think?
So, she's at the bus stop with Mark right now... Allyson is still sleeping... I have laundry and unpacking to do and then we'll finally be settled! Hooray!
Happy New Year OFFICIALLY to everyone! Your love and support is what keeps us going when I can't make heads or tails of this crazy life and sometimes don't know whether I'm coming or going... Here's to a great start to 2008 and many more happy days and months ahead!
Love,
Kristin
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