Granpa

As some of you know, my grandfather, Harry Breckley, went home to be with the Lord on Sunday, Sept. 21st. He had been living in Oklahoma for the last few years, so Sis, Nic and I left Wednesday morning and are headed back to California tomorrow morning. The visitation/viewing was in Mtn. View, OK on Thursday night and then the service and graveside was in Gotebo, OK (my grandmother was born and raised in Gotebo--it's small!) on Friday morning. The services were very nice. It was also nice to have the family together again and we were able to visit with some cousins we had not seen in a LONG time. Granpa will be missed greatly, but we know that he is with the Lord, now, and that we will see him again someday. (My camera battery died Thursday night and I didn't bring my charger, so I don't have any pictures beyond Thurday night, but I'm sure my sister will be blogging the ones we took, soon!)

Thursday night, after the visitation service, everyone went back to the home of a cousin for some food. We ended up gathering in the living room and singing out of the "blue book" (Heavenly Highway Hymns). It was a lot of fun and I was able to meet some famliy members that I had never met before.

Aunt Liz with Winnie, my grandma Doris' cousin. Winnie is 94 (and someone correct me if I am wrong) and spry! She is really funny and has some great stories about the family!!

Nicholas, my brother, Ken, and my dad singing!

The next posts are of Travel Pig--Christina now has 2 Travel Pigs and they travel with the family when Christina has to stay at home. So, I chronicled Pig's journey until, like I said, my camera died!

Pig Goes to Oklahoma, Oklahoma, Oklahoma, Oklahoma, Oklahoma.....

And Pig thought she would travel in my carry-on! She was sad because of why we had to go, but excited to see the family and the sights of Oklahoma!

As soon as we checked into the hotel room in Weatherford, Pig thought she would take a little nap on the comfy, cozy bed....

And then Pig thought she would sit in the window and enjoy the view......of the Weatherford Regional Medical Center! At least Pig knew that if anything happened, she was in walking distance of the hospital!!

Pig enjoying salsa at the "Mexican Restaurant" we ate at--although it only served Mexican food in theory, in reality it was, unfortunately, bland and dry and disappointing (but, I won't mention who chose the restaurant.....they know who they are ;-) ). But, Pig enjoyed visiting with the family, anyway....

Then Pig decided to take a nap in the chip bowl when we ran out of chips....

And then Pig went to Wal-Mart with Nic, Greg and Brian.....wa-hoo!

And Pig also went to Mtn. View with us on Thursday night. The scenery was very nice, albeit flat!

Casting Crowns

Scott and I saw Casting Crowns when we lived in Wisconsin, but we didn't take Annie. So, when I found out that they would be in concert in Corona, we decided to take the girls and then we decided to just make it a big outing and so Scott, Sis, Tony, Nic, Kay, the girls and I went. We had such a good time and the music was incredible and now the girls would like to go again!

I guess I caught Samantha by surprise!

Sis and Tony

Aren't they sweet!

I figured I should include a picture of Scott and I.....

Nic and Kay

Tony proving that he and Scott are the most patriotic as they were they only ones that wore their red shirts for "Red Shirt Friday". Or maybe they just wanted to be matchey-matchey...

One of Annie's favorite things is to hold the camera out in front of us and take a picture.... I wonder where she got that from....

Vegas, Baby!! And George, too!

Scott and I were able to get away for a few days a couple of weeks ago (thank you Sis and Tony, Moms and Dads!!!). We decided to go to Vegas and then really lucked out because Sonny and Kari were there for a few days, too! We had such a great time. We went to a really great dinner and then saw Cirque de Soleil-Love at The Mirage. It was AMAZING!! But, everytime we left the hotel room, I would forget to get my camera!! We had a nice picture taken at dinner one night and we actually bought it from the lady since we hadn't taken any pictures at all!! So, I'll get around t scanning it and then I'll post it. But, it was so nice to get away and relax. We sat down and thought about it and we had not been away together since our first anniversary--10 years ago!!!

Also, I drug Scott, Sis and Kay to a concert in June--George Michael in San Diego!! YAH YAH!! I've loved George Michael since 8th grade and I always told Scott that if he toured in the US again, we were going!! (Actually I told him that I was going and that I would go alone if need be!!) It was awesome and I'm so glad we went (and I think they were too!). But, of course I had to ask if cameras were allowed so that when I was told no, I had to leave my camera in the car so--no pictures!!! UGH!! So, I snagged a picture below for you to enjoy ;-) It was well worth the late night (in bed at 2am on a Tuesday!!) I would say it was one of the best concerts (if not the best, actually) I've ever been to.

So Big

Well, I'm blogging-like I promised! But, we are well into summer and we have our bouts of being extremely busy and then a little less busy. So, one thing about not blogging in so long is that I have to try to remember what has happened. Let's see.... Mia saw her GI doctor and we have been working on weaning her from her two medications for her GERD. Right now, she has been taken off one medication completely and the other is down to half of her previous dose. So far, so good. (But, to get to this point, we had alot of gurgling and discomfort and even a few episodes of barf!!). She will go back in two months and then we'll see what to do next. Mia's teacher still comes for play therapy once a week (with a few breaks for the summer) and she is very happy with Mia's progress. She's doing great with her shape sorters and blocks. And today, she was able to do great partial animal sounds for cat, dog, horse, cow, pig and sheep!!! I just about fell over! But, she's always surprising us with how incredibly smart she is--she just has to do things in her own time......

At the end of June, Mia saw an Occuaptional Therapist to be evaluated for her fine and gross motor skills and what appeared to be some oral sensory issues (overstuffing her mouth with food, not consistently chewing her food on her back teeth.....). It was a great appointment!! Mia was reluctant but Annette, her OT, said that that was normal. Basically, Mia does have Oral Sensory Aversion, but Annette feels that with some home therapies, she'll do fine. She said that she could see Mia once a week in clinic but that she's afraid Mia wouldn't be very cooperative and I agree!! So, she gave us a big packet of instructions and I've already seen Mia making progress.

Probably the big news is.....SHE'S FINALLY WALKING!! Mia's been walking on her knees since February or so and became really good at it actually. But she took her first steps in March and then would only waddle from here to there for awhile. That turned into a little more stable waddling and cruising between furniture. Mia was evaluated again by the physical therapist at the beginning of June and she said that she couldn't see much wrong except for a little wobbling in Mia's ankles. She suggested some Stride Rite shoes for support so we zipped over to Riverside to get those. Now, I don't know if it was the shoes or she just decided it was time, or......But then, when Scott and I were in Vegas, she took off. Now, the girls are teaching her to run and she's getting pretty good at it! She will still drop down to her knees with some occasional crawling, but she looks so big walking around the house.

And before I forget, the stats: Mia is now 21 months (18 months corrected). As of June 18th, she weighed 25 lbs. 6 oz. and was 32 1/2 inches.

Tent Time

When Annie was little, she loved to play in this tent. So, when Mia started Gymboree, I noticed she didn't like to go into any of the tubes or under anything. So, then I remembered the tent. So, Scott went to storage and brought it home. Well, she loved it.

Kissy-face......

Here's her sheep......

She actually kissed her baby instead of throwing it on the floor!! And yes, it worked--she now crawls through the tubes and under the play equipment at Gymboree.

Give Me Television!!!

I know that I posted awhile ago that Mia found the TV. Well, now she has REALLY found it!! She has a little outside chair that was in the living room for awhile and she would sit in it and point at the "Big Black Box" (as we call it--if you say "TV" she knows and makes her way into the living room!!). Well, that chair was a little too unstable for Aunt Cathy and so she came home one night with the big comfy chair that Mia is sitting in. :-) And not only is it comfy and stable, but it has Pooh and Tigger on it (who are quickly becoming Mia's favorites). So, now she sits in the comfy chair, grabs her babies and points at the TV ;-)

I bought Mia sunglasses a long time ago in Wisconsin. But, she would never wear them for me. But, like alot of things, she will wear them for the girls.

I guess it's all about food....

In looking at the posts below and now this one, you might think Mia lives in her high chair. And there are some days when it feels that way. But, anyway, Scott's parents came for a visit last week and one night we grilled some really great steaks. (They were obviously bone-in.) Well, my dad Gene always told me that the best meat is closest to the bone, so I LOVE to eat all the yummy meat that sits right on the bone. So, on this particular day Mia was in the "I want to hold the big food myself" mood, so I handed it over.

And she went to town!!! She ate a HUGE section of meat and cleaned the bone...

We're so proud of our little carnivore!

(And, yes, that is an alligator sticker on her head!)

Guess What I'm Eating...

We are also trying to expose Mia to alot of diferent textures and tastes to help with her sensory issues. So, I offer her anything we are having (even some spicy things). And to add as many calories as possible, we are trying to get her to dip her foods in things (ranch, etc...). And dipping also strengthens her fine motor skills....

She continues to do great with her fork and spoon... So, what's she eating?? Maybe whipped cream or....?? nope. It's sour cream! YAH!!! I love sour cream and apparently so does Mia because she'll eat it by the spoonful!!!!!

The Big Burger!!

Mia's so big....and so is the burger we got her at BJ'S recently. She vacillates between wanting to hold the food herself and having it torn into little pieces. So, I thought we would try a burger. Needless to say, we ended up tearing it into pieces, but she was a good mimic when Aunt Cathy showed her how to take a bite..... And then there is always the "Chucky Face".......

A Big Red Bird

Well, here's the girls. Needless to day, the girls and I love Red Robin and recently, the Big Red Robin was there. The girls were really good sports about posing with (him/her/it?). Mia liked the Red Robin from afar, but anytime it would come near her, Mia would freak out a little. But, the girls have had a busy summer so far. The first week after school got out, they went to Sports Camp at the University of Redlands. Each day they did traditional (tennis, soccer, etc..) sports, non-traditional sports (football-dodgeball, land/sea/air) and swimming. The very next week was church camp. Annie stayed in a cabin with the girls and Sis. Tina and Sis. Dondra and such a great time. Annie went to church camp every year before we moved but she vaguely remembers, so it was a brand new experience for her. Scott stayed from Tuesday through Friday night and helped out building the derby cars (there is a CampTown Derby Race each year.). By the time the girls came home, though, they were FILTHY!! Mia and I stayed home--yeah, I woosed out. I decided to keep her home--but she ended up getting the appointment with the Occupational Therapist moved up to that week, also...... But, we are going next year, for sure. Christina and Samantha are getting ready to go into the 7th grade and just turned 12 a few weeks ago. It's really hard to believe that they are so grown up!! School for all three girls starts the 13th of August--2 days after we get back from Wisconsin!!

Coming soon.....

will be a new post. I'm off school for the summer and I had planned on blogging like crazy, but alas, I have not! But, the Lord has blessed and we're all doing well, and the REAL plan is to blog this week.....really.