Wisconsin, here we come!

My grandma was diagnosed with terminal cancer and so we have decided to drive out to see her. She lives in Wisconsin, so this is quite an undertaking. I'm not sure if we will be able to blog any pictures along the way, but I'll upload them as soon as we get home. -P

July 4th Weekend

I thought I would take you through what a typical trip to the cabin is like.

This is the gate that tells us we are there.

This is the sign that cousin Tom made for the cabin. Now everyone will know which gate is ours.

This is the path that leads to the cabin.

This is the big canopy of trees that always is there to welcome us for the weekend.

This is the meadow of "wild flowers" we always need to mow before we can play baseball.

These are the children that are excited about coming here for WEEKS

before we are even ready to come.

This is the beginning of a good game!

This is one of the many cousins that are always ready to play.

This is sunscreen that needs to be applied to keep the weekend happy.

And this is happiness.

These are the creatures that are everywhere to be found.

Some just like to hang out with Anna. They become her best friends.

And for this trip, these are the fire works that we set off to celebrate the freedom that we have in this country to be able to have this kind of joy and happiness.

This is the blessed family that gets to enjoy it together.

We are so blessed.

Huffin' n' Puffin'

No, I'm not talking about the big bad wolf. I'm talking about me. The day after Father's day I came down with a terrible cold, maybe the flu. I had a fever of 103 and chills and really gross nose and cough. The fever got better after 3 days, but was not quite gone until 5. I felt a little better, but had the worst pain in my sinuses and was experiencing congestion in my chest and extreme tiredness. I went in on the Tuesday before the 4th of July and was told I have a sinus infection and that if my cough didn't get better after some Ammoxicillian, i should come back for a chest ex-ray. After a weekend out at the cabin with the family, I was feeling so tired. I had a few close calls jumping in the water. The coldness of the water made my chest constrict, which made me feel like coughing immediately. I had to fight to the surface and then float on my back to cough, but still jumped in a few more times. :) way too fun. There were so many times that I just had to sit down, I was so tired. So after the weekend I went back in for the chest ex-ray. I have pneumonia! Who gets this sick in the summer?! What a way for my poor kids to spend a summer vacation. Nap time in the afternoons is no longer just for Evan, but for me too. They put me on a second antibiotic, along with instructions to finish the first antibiotics as well. My doctor told me this will make the cough go away within a week (it's already improved a ton), but that I will still experience shortness of breath from exertions like going up stairs for up to a month! This sure has made me appreciate my good health before this illness. So I'm telling you all of this to explain why I haven't posted in so long. But I do have some great pictures from our weekend, so I will try to get those on the computer and blogged soon. I just need a nap or two first. :)Pam