Can you help? Know someone who can?

This is a plea from a wonderful family related to me through marriage. Ryan Hess is my sister-in-law's brother, who I have met before and have supported through prayers and fasting during his chemo and bone marrow transplant (from his brother!). I am so grateful he is getting healthier and want to do whatever I am able so he can spend every moment he can with his sweet wife and beautiful children. Please read below to see if there is something you can do to help. Just read please. :)

My name is Ryan Hess and I was diagnosed on June 12, 2009 with a rare and aggressive form of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Over the past 7 months I have received enough donated leave from federal employees to help me keep a paycheck and health insurance throughout 3 rounds of chemotherapy and most recently, a bone marrow transplant. After meeting with my Dr. last week (1/12/10), he said that I could possibly be back to work in July.I have finished one year of residency at the Veteran's Hospital in Tucson, Arizona. All of your generosity with donating leave and spreading the word has kept food on our table and kept a lot of stress out of our lives during this time. I am now doing well enough to watch our two children so that my wife can work part time to help with the bills. As difficult as it is for our family to have to ask for help, we have realized that we must do so at this time so that we can keep our health insurance and so that I can hopefully continue with work later this year. Thank you so far for your help and prayers. We are beating this together!We were told that any federal employee (ie: civilian military- not active duty, Border Patrol, DEA, FBI, IRS, Dept of Justice, EPA etc. EXCEPT Post Office employees and active duty military) can donate vacation time to be used as sick leave for another Federal employee.We would be so thankful for any number of extra paid days we can accumulate.Thank you so much.How can you help if you ARE a Federal Employee?Go to your HR department and request to donate leave to Ryan Hess who works for the VA. (Your HR person will know the form that needs to be filled out- each Federal agency has their own form to donate leave)Once filled out and signed, the HR person will then need to fax or e-mail the form to:Brenda Joy - Benefits Specialist (TUCSON V.A.)Phone #: (520) 792-1450 x 4409Fax # : (520) 629-1849 attn: Brenda JoyE-Mail : Brenda.Joy@va.govALSO, for those who are federal employees, please print out this message and post it in break/lunch rooms to help get the word out as well as emailing it to co-workers!How to help if you are NOT a Federal Employee:PASS this along to ANYONE and EVERYONE that you know and then ask them to pass the message along. Post it on blogs, Facebook, e-mail...whatever you can think of.Visit:http://teamryanhess.blogspot.com/

Family Photo

(you can click on the picture to see us bigger)

While in California, we took a family picture. ALL siblings and grandchildren were present! wow! My efforts at securing a professional photographer failed so we were forced to fend for ourselves. We did the best we could with what we had, but, you get the point. It is Parents, every sibling, all in-laws, every grandchild and even two aunts and two uncles! I was hoping my grandmother (only surviving grandparent) would be well enough to come but she was not though we were thinking of her. By the way, this is at LEAST what it looks like every Thanksgiving/Christmas/Easter or every first Sunday of the month for Break the Fast because sometimes extended family even comes. :)

"Reading"

first, this is two days ago when evan is still not feeling well with his, super cool, "i'm not looking at you" look. definately james dean-esq. (btw, thanks aunt heather for this pull over WE LOVE IT and wear it every other day it seems)

Ok, for the real story. Evan was playing in his room while I was folding laundry and watching T.V. He was being so good, you can tell he's feeling better finally, playing quietly. Then I realized he was 'talking' a lot, so I listened more carefully to see if he was happy or complaining. Upon closer inspection, I saw that he was turning the pages of his book and looking from left to right on the pages as he turned them, "READING" the book! :) He's really trying hard lately to talk. A lot of it sounds like Hebrew, which I think is extra genius personally. Luckily I was ready with the camera to capture it for ALL to enjoy. ;)

you'll have to turn your volume up to hear the 'reading'. sorry, i didn't want to risk him stopping if he heard me get up and get closer.

Four Wheelin'

My parents helped Mike and I pay for this 4 wheeler for Evan for Christmas. I had originally not planned on getting anything for Evan, since he just had his Birthday and didn't need anything but then... I saw this car. "I" had to have it (maybe 'someone' loved their big wheel when they were a little girl and this is something she would have liked too.... hmmm hmmmm hmm hmm hmmm...). Of course I saw it too late and it was out of stock but here it is, finally at our house and the kid loves it... can't you tell? :) Merry Christmas Lil' guy. :)

psst... happy 15 month birthday baby! ;) xoxo

Time-Zoneitis

So I have diagnosed our baby with 'Time Zoneitis". He had teething (4 new teeth coming in right now) or a little cold or something before we left for California for Christmas. Once we got there he had a really hard time for the first 2 days adjusting to the 2 hour earlier time change from Tennessee. Add dry warm weather, runny noses and excitement and that sweet baby started getting a horrible cough and runny nose. Once home, he got worse and even had a fever on top of it. We took him to our Pediatrician today for his 15mo check up and he was still not well so it turned into a wellness visit. The poor kid has a pretty bad Ear Infection. ;( So he's on an antibiotic now and hopefully he will get better quickly. Good news... he's still adorable even though he doesn't feel 100%. He jumps up and down every morning with a smile on his face and for that we are grateful. What a joy.

Christmas Vacation (part 2)

(part 1 tomorrow maybe but here's some of it...)

My Grandmother Nona, 94 has always been healthy and taken very good care of herself. Age is finally catching up with her I'm afraid. Recently, she was in the hospital for the first time that I can ever remember and is currently trying to get healthier at an assisted living facility. We were able to visit with her and take pictures. We had a good time.

while taking turns taking pictures with my grandmother, evan was showing off his tucking his sock in his plug trick. uncle isaac had not yet witnessed it for himself. we see the obvious reaction to my childs amazingness. ;)



Cousin Luke and Evan Chillin'


Thanks to my friend Heather, Mike and I were able to go to the Temple in Los Angeles with Ashley and Isaac. We had a great day.

Impromtu family dinner of "Lalo's Mexican Food" 7 of us were here for this, which is funny. If you want to know what family dinners looked like at my house growing up... it was a lot like this. Only we were smaller. ;)

I bought decorations for my parents mantle.

MY MISSIONARY BROTHER! This is #11 child in my family, Isaac. He is in the MTC headed for a 2 year mission in Ft. Worth Texas for our church. www.lds.org I got to give him his last haircut before entering the mission field and starts cutting it himself I'm sure. LOL. ;) Good luck Elder Wutkee! We love you!

Scored tickets to the Laker game while home. The biggest score for me?... I saw one of my best friends of all time that was even sitting in our exact section. ERIC SHARP! I keep in touch on email but haven't seen him since our 10 yr h.s. reunion in 02'. I got to meet his wife (who is beautiful and they look wonderful together!) and we took a buddy shot on my phone (post it later?) since my camera was with my hubby who was in his seat (we were in the lobby talking after we saw each other). Although they didn't have their 8mo old with them, we talked all about him as his name is.... EVAN! :) couldn't be happier to share the name with anyone else. :)

Yet ANOTHER haircut for my baby! What's going on with him!? I feel like I'm gonna have to start cutting it as often as michaels! ;) Well , here's a before then a close up of 'after' when I also added a "racing stripe" like in the 80's when the guys would get all kinds of designs cut into their hair. ;) Evan loves it cause it makes him SUPER fast! (speaking of fast... the kid is practically running now! sheesh! he was going up and down stairs, jumping in place or on the jog trampoline and without holding anything people! babies can't do that!? ;) lol, ok, he's a toddler, i admit it ok! he he he)

the racing stripe. can you see how fast he looks with it? probably, not cause he just went so fast, he's back already before you could blink!

Here is a short series of pictures of Evan with his cousin Liam. Liam is a January 08 baby and Evan is October 08 baby. My sister Jenalyn and her husband currently live in a guest house of my parents so we got to see her the most. She is a very good mommy and has taught her son to be very sweet too. Liam was waking up every morning saying "I want to see Cousin or play with cousin", which is adorable of course. Here are only a few of their moments together:

good bye auntie ashley, i love you...

One last hurrah before getting in the car to go back to tennessee. ;)

a

remember that time...

that we've been stuck in L.A. traffic for 2 1/2 hours with a bored & hungry child (not to mention hungry irritated parents) and all I had was a straw I found in my dad's truck to feed evan applesauce? just call me macgyver. lol ;)

This message was sent using the Picture and Video Messaging service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime� 6.5 or higher is required.

Don't mess with my Sippy Cup,Neeeeew Haircut, Preds game and Messes.

This says to me: Don't come between a man and his sippy cup. ;)

So I didn't just trim Evan this time. He now has a bonafied little boys haircut. I cannot believe I just trimmed it a month ago and it was already a big mop. Something in the landfill water? (he he he). Then we have the Predators v. Red Wings game we attended last Saturday with Aunt Nanci and Uncle Matt. We heading up to our seats in top deck when a Preds Rep stopped us to give us tickets 2 rows behind the Red Wings! oh, on center ice! (we still like our tickets better for seeing the whole rink). We had a blast down there so close and Evan was completely mesmerized by the jumbo tron (of which he appeared again but we didn't get a picture :( boo). Lastly, I often leave Evan to explore by himself, this time in the kitchen (he's walking 70% of the time now fyi). There was only laundry in there and he was 'playing' with a 'secure' q-tip holder (i know, my husband is CRINGING right now with you, that I'm typing this). I was of course conducting official fb business or something important like that when I realized, something was wrong... SILENCE. I took the 10 steps to the kitchen to find... THIS:

Dear Aunt Lo Lo....

Dear Aunt Lo Lo,

Thank you for my gift. Since you are a faithful watcher and commenter on mommies blog, I asked her to take a video of me opening your gift and post it. I LOVE my basketball hoop for the tub and have already played with it outside of the tub for 30 minutes after I opened it! I'm getting good at it already! I am so smart. I can't wait for you to see me in person in January so you can see how much cuter and how much more smart I've become since you last saw me. I hope you can see how cute my new haircut is too. :) I love you aunt Loretta, thank you for being so thoughtful and sweet. I wish we lived closer to each other so I could hug you whenever I wanted. xoxox

Evan

GUILTY!!

"Someone" has learned how to climb up on the table by his bed. (she wags her finger) :) so cute.

Look at my big boy, standing (dangerously) by himself on a table, holding his cat toy. he he he

Caught red handed. Filming 'the act'. he he he he he. SoOO cute.

Last Years Month

We wanted to go see Santa today but he wasn't there till the evening. We'll go again next week or so. It got me thinking about the picture I posted of Evan with Santa last year and instead, I got to also see the whole months posts. If you would also like to stroll down memory lane:
http://michaelandlila.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2008-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-06%3A00&updated-max=2009-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-06%3A00&max-results=50

Today

I am thankful for my new schedule at the Chop Shop that allows me to have 3-4 days off in a row with Evan.

Christmas Craft IDEA

So I was invited to a Homemade Christmas Ornament exchange coming up December 11th. After first feeling overwhelmed (perfectionist) by what I agreed to do: make 13 of the same ornament to exchange with others at the party, I was excited when I found my idea!! Well, not that the hostess has time to check my blog but If you are reading this DO NOT FOLLOW THIS LINK OR YOU WILL SPOIL WHAT SMALL GIFT I AM ALSO BRINGING YOU. :) Also, not that my brother Bennett or his wife EVER (I'm not bitter) read this, but in the event you are, also don't follow the link cause I'm making it for you too as part of your gift. For everyone else, follow the link to my craft blog to see what I've made and you TOO can make! :) Let me know on that blog if you make it too.

http://mulhollanddrivecrafts.blogspot.com/2009/12/free-christmas-craft-idea.html

Coccinellidae & Lampyridae

Coccinellidae: aka... LADYBUGS! Lampyridae: aka... FIRE FLY's!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coccinellidae

Coccinellidae is a family of beetles, known variously as ladybirds (UK, Ireland, Australia, Pakistan, South Africa), ladybugs (North America), or lady beetles (preferred by some scientists). Lesser-used names include ladyclock, lady cow, and lady fly.[1]
They are small insects, ranging from 1 mm to 10 mm (0.04 to 0.4 inches), and are commonly yellow, orange, or scarlet with small black spots on their wing covers, with black legs, head and antennae. A very large number of species are mostly or entirely black, grey, or brown and may be difficult for non-entomologists to recognize as coccinellids (and, conversely, there are many small beetles that are easily mistaken as such, like tortoise beetles).
Coccinellids are found worldwide, with over 5,000 species described,[2] more than 450 native to North America alone.
A few species are pests in North America and Europe, but they are generally considered useful insects as many species feed on aphids or scale insects, which are pests in gardens, agricultural fields, orchards, and similar places. The Mall of America, for instance, releases thousands of ladybugs into its indoor park as a natural means of pest control for its gardens.[3]
A common myth is that the number of spots on its back indicates its age.[4]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly

Lampyridae is a family of insects in the beetle order Coleoptera. They are winged beetles, and commonly called fireflies or lightning bugs for their conspicuous crepuscular use of bioluminescence to attract mates or prey. Fireflies are capable of producing a "cold light", containing no ultraviolet or infrared rays. This chemically-produced light, emitted from the lower abdomen, may be yellow, green, or pale red in color, and has a wavelength from 510 to 670 nanometers.
There are more than 2,000 species of firefly found in temperate and tropical environments around the world. Many species can be found in marshes or in wet, wooded areas where their larvae have abundant sources of food. These larvae can also emit light and are often called "glowworms", particularly in Eurasia. In the Americas, "glow worm" also refers to the related Phengodidae.

or

(3rd picture shows:) Photinus pyralis, known by the common names Common Eastern Firefly[1] and Big Dipper Firefly,[2] is the most common species of firefly in North America.[3] This organism is sometimes incorrectly classified as Photuris pyralis, which likely results from mistaking the similar sounding genus Photuris.
The species' common name refers to the characteristic flight of the male, which flies in a J-shaped trajectory, lighting on the upswing.[4]

"WHY DO YOU POST THIS", do you ask?... I've been wanting to post about this for some time cause I think it is cool and educational. Unfortunately I get distracted. Ladybugs and Fire flys are the state insects of TENNESSEE!! (agricultural official insect of the state is the "European Honey Bee", Butterfly is a "Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zebra_Swallowtail_Butterfly)

We are the coolest! Every fall we get an infestation of Lady bugs in our homes (seeking warmth? I haven't researched that. If anyone knows, please comment) which to many DOESN'T seem like the 'coolest', lol, but I personally still think it is neat. :) Fire flys are in the summertime and are just the most fun to watch and catch! Wanna know YOUR state insect/s? Well, here you go:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._state_insects

I hope you enjoyed this educational blog post. I hope to add more random posts like this one throughout the next year. :)

Yay for December!

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!