Va-nan-ah

Katie and Sevannah were able to come for a visit, and we had such a good time! I only wish I had taken more pictures - I was a complete slacker! Our little ladies had so much fun playing together, and Emee even cooked up a little nickname for Sevannah - Vanannah. Cute huh? These two little girls are a couple of the funniest, most adorable kids around! Just love 'em!

SpUd DaYs

Every September Shelley, ID hosts Spud Days, a celebration of - you guessed it - potatoes! There's a parade (with oodles of candy,) tons of booths full of yummy fair food and wonderful handmade finds. This is the second year we've gone and we really enjoy it!

Emee absolutely loved the parade! She thought running after candy was the greatest thing EVER! (And yes, the picture on the left is her mouth full to the brim of candy. Shh...don't tell her dentist.) :)


Emslee and Grammie Jo, enjoying the parade.

Aunt Jannie and one of her biggest fans. Sorry about this pic, Nick, it was just too cute to pass up.

One of the booths had a bubble machine, which equals HEAVEN for a little girl. Her Grandpa pointed it out to her and she was smitten! (Notice the half-eaten corn dog in her hand. Deep-fried fabulousness!)

Emee playing in the bouncy house. She wasn't quite sure what to think of it, but she did decide she liked it after a moment or two.

Two of the cutest little ladies in the world, going for a fun-filled ride around the ball park. Emee had a blast!

GO PHS INDIANS!

Go number 60! Our Todd plays defensive and offensive line for the Preston High Indians! We have had a great time attending a few of his games and have loved watching him play! These photos are from the Preston v. Bonneville game, and yes the scoreboard says 34 to 6. It was a great game!


Grammie and Grandpa with two of the world's cutest granddaughters, watching the Indians stomp the Bees!

18 months!

Emslee is officially nursery-age! She has grown up so much in the last few months, it is amazing! She is completely self-sufficient, and even convinced that she can diaper herself. (I'm trying to convince her she may as well just potty train. It's a work in progress.)
At 18 months, Emslee:

• loves, loves, LOVES puppies and babies! She is obsessed with both, and begs to see YouTube videos and pictures of them all the time. She is in heaven when around a baby. She loves touching them, talking to them, and cuddling them.
• talks like a little grown up. She surprises me every day with at least two new words, and her pediatrician tells me she is extremely advanced in her vocabulary for her age.
• is a complete neat freak! She has to clean everything she sees, including other peoples' feet, her baby doll, etc.
• loves to read! She will grab her doll, a book, and sit on the floor and read to her baby. She is so adorable!
• is a DANCING QUEEN! Anytime music comes on, no matter where she is, she starts dancing. Case in point - today in sacrament meeting she started dancing to the hymn "Be Still My Soul." Appropriate? Probably not. Funny? Definitely.
• is quite the aspiring artist. She loves to draw pictures and beams with pride when I hang them on the fridge.
• may as well be a fish. While I'm getting ready in the mornings, she insists on sitting on the counter and playing in the water in the sink. She loves baths and going swimming at the rec center. She would be happy as a lark if she could live in the water!
• is a brilliant mimic. She copycats everything she sees. (I guess I need to be super careful what I do and say around her....)
• adores ice cream. She is definitely her father's daughter. When she sees Jason headed for our deep freezer, she gets almost beside herself with excitement.
  
• could change her name to Evil Knievel. She is such a daredevil! Just the other day she was standing on the bed, and she spread her arms out like wings and proceeded to walk RIGHT OFF THE EDGE. She nearly gave me a heart attack! She, however, thought it was downright hilarious. Crazy girl.
• still has every one of us wrapped around her cute little pinky finger. She is the center of our world and she loves it!

Stem Cells = Happy Heart

Today Jason and I met with Dr. Amit Patel, a cardiothoracic surgeon at the University of Utah. I read about a clinical trial he's doing for patients with congestive heart failure, and was excited by the prospect of not just "managing" Jason's heart failure, but actually curing it.
Over the past few weeks, we collected and sent in all of Jason's many medical records and today we were able to finally meet with Dr. Patel.
So far, Jason meets all the requirements to qualify for the research study. In this study, they extract bone marrow from the patient and send it to a biosciences firm where the stem cells are cultured and grown for 12 days. Once the strong cells have flourished, the patient is brought back in and the stem cells are injected into the damaged heart muscle via a catheter. The cool part is, these stem cells have actually been shown to repair the heart muscle. Nothing like this has ever been a possibility before. It's amazing how far medical advancements have come, even in the last 5 years.
Jason signed the pre-screening consent form today, and now the sponsor has to approve his participation. We should hear back by Friday, and if he's approved they'll start doing tons of tests on him to make sure he meets all the physical requirements.
I am trying so so hard not to get excited about the possibility of my husband being strong and healthy again. We've faced so many disappointments, and I'm trying not to get my hopes up.
So can I just cross my fingers, just a little?

If you're interested, here's the link with the news article and video clip about the study:
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=9861660