Hansen Update

Hello Family!!!
You'd think I would utilize own blog now and then, but I know that most of the family reads this one. So I thought I would do a quick update.

It's been a really hard 6 months since we lost Daniel. I can't even believe its been that long. My six week postpartum appt in January was with a specialist who informally diagnosed me with cervical insufficiency which basically means my cervix wasn't doing what its meant to do during pregnancy which is staying closed and keeping the baby safe. It's proven to be ineffective the last two pregnancies I've had. He said that for me to have any chance at success would be to have a cerclage, which is basically sewing the cervix shut and not giving it an opportunity to fail. He said even though there were risks, the benefits were greater, we had about an 80% chance of success. It sounds high, but I was dwelling on the 20% chance of failure which seemed glaring. I was not going to bury another baby. That was devastating enough to only do once.
But knowing we weren't a complete family, Jesse and I decided to take the chance. I found out I was pregnant in February and I've decided to see the specialist during this pregnancy just because I know I need extra care.
I had my cerclage procedure on April 8th. It was an in and out process. The procedure actually only took 15 minutes to do. (I had a good view of the clock!) but I was in the hospital for a few hours following waiting for the spinal block to wear off. The dr said he felt very confident that this was going to be the solution we had been looking for. The cerclage stitch will be removed at 36 or 37 weeks.
At 15 weeks Nancy and Dad took me to fetal photos to find out of the sex. Surprise surprise, it's a BOY. So this is my 4th pregnancy and my 4th boy. Wow, we just don't know the recipe for girls I guess.
Then at 16 weeks, my Dr suggested I start weekly progestrone injections. Not that my levels were low, but that he felt it could only help in my case. Its a hormone that helps prevent preterm delivery. So having a shot in the bum is great way to end my weeks on Fridays.
My due date is 10/10/11. Funny because that means I will have had a baby in 2009, 2010 and 2011. And I'm thinking the toll its taken on my body is showing. I just hope this one is the one we've been trying to hard for. Little Jesse was so excited for Daniel to arrive. It's funny to watch him be so guarded with this new baby, even being 5 he seems to want to keep his excitement in check. That just breaks my heart! I've told him countless times that Mommy and Dr's are doing everything they can to keep this baby safe.
So that is the update. I had an ultrasound and a transvaginal ultrasound today. They baby looks perfect and my cervix looks long and closed. I'm only 17 weeks 4 days but it's still a huge relief to hear that kind of news.
I appreciate all the love and support my family has shown us during this difficult time. You have no idea what it means. I can only hope and pray that we'll be welcoming our son safely into this world where he belongs sometime this fall. Keep your finger crossed for us!
Love to All
Kalie.

June Wedding

Hey guys, its Erica sending out an Allen Snow Family update

Alright, I'm sure most of you have heard either through the grapevine or through facebook that JESSICA IS GETTING MARRIED! That's right, my baby sister is going to take that plunge!! (Makes me feel so old - eek!) Her fiancé Cory is a pretty swell guy and he fits into our family nicely.

Who is Cory Downward you're asking? Well I'll give the run down.
- He's 22, born July 31, 1988
- Served a mission in West Virigina (He's got some great stories - including one about eating road kill!)
- He is the youngest of four and the only boy.
- Loves ALL things outdoors
- His family 'hunts' so he also enjoys going shooting
- He is currently attending Utah Valley University
- Likes playing 'Call of Duty - Black Ops' when not glued to Jessica's hip
- Chews gum occasionally
- Wears more plain white T-shirts than Jessica. Oh wait, no one beats Jessica!
- A little high strung about his hair cuts, but you'll get no complaints from me here. In my mind EVERYONE should care about their hair.
- He has aspirations to be anything in the health care field. He was interested in being a Fire Fighter/EMT, but is realizing there is a better/stable future in other areas of health care.
AND
- He loves Jessica and treats her right! (And really thats all that matters, am I right?)
I'm sure you'll all fall in love with him when you get to meet him. He has a contagious smile, he's sarcastic and goofs around a lot. Like I said, he fits in so well!!

The wedding is set for Tuesday June 14th - Jessica & Nancy are deep in wedding plans. She already has the temple time, reception center, cake, dress (being altered), shoes, colors, bridesmaids picked & dressed, showers planned AND a killer girls weekend in Vegas planned at the end of this month!

I will be hosting a Snow family shower for Jessica sometime in May. Probably a Friday night since Saturdays are hard for hair-dressers. ;) I know many of the family are out of state, so if you'll be traveling to SLC in May, let me know and we'll see if we can schedule it accordingly. And as for the Utah family, you'll ALL be invited - stay tuned for more information.

So many exciting things for the Allen Snow family this year. I'm not going to post any news - that isn't mine - that hasn't been announced already...so look out for more posts/updates to come.

P.S. Congrats Reese & Chris on baby Finley. She looks like the perfect mix between Paige and Brynn! I can't wait to cuddle her in person. Much love!!
And, Congrats to Rochelle & Trevor on the house sale & new purchase! Plus baby #4 is almost here!!!

LOVE TO ALL! - Erica

Pine Valley

[photo's from the inter net]

Happy 2011!

Excited about our Snow family reunion coming up in July! If you haven't already mark your calendars for July 2o-24th, 2011.

We hope the location of this reunion isn't too much of a disappointment for y'all. After our amazing experience in the OBX, it seems rather dull. That was a wonderful experience, we still talk about it often! We talked about having it in Pine Valley this year while in Pine Valley this past summer. It was so fun having almost everyone there. Almost all of the grown up grand kids were able to make it and it was really wonderful. It was suggested that we have it in Pine Valley so everyone could try to be there. So here we are!

We know most every one's favorite Pine Valley past times are lounging, snacking, playing pounce, fishing and we will do plenty of all of those. But we think it would be fun to have optional activities on days also. Here are the suggestions so far.

A day trip to Zions, catch a show in Vegas, and of course a day at Veyo Pool. It would be fun to see if the temple was open and catch a session for anyone interested in that. I know Al and Nanc catch a play at Touacan[sp?] that would be a fun optional activity too. If you have any ideas to add please comment and let us know!

We would like to plan a fun play day for the kids, with bouncy toys, water games etc. etc. this may involve contributions, we will let you know. I do know that we would like to plan meals together those details will be coming also.

We are so excited to see everyone, all of the new babies, beautiful kids and celebrate this amazing family we have. Please feel free to e-mail us snowcpa.az@gmail.com with any questions, suggestions and concerns.

Love, Aim

Thank You!!

Jesse and I wanted to let the family know how much we appreciate all the love and support we've receieved! From the cards to the facebook posts, even flowers. We have been so touched by you all!
Even though some days are difficult and the tears don't seem to want to stop, we know our sweet baby Daniel is in a beautiful place. Even lil Jesse loves to tell us that his brother is with Jesus. We're trying so hard to be strong, espeially now that the holidays are here. And it's the prayers and love from our wonderful family that I know is carrying us everyday, every hour. Thank you family! It's so nice to be reminded of the wonderful people we have in our lives, scattered all over the country. No amount of distance had stopped you from thinking of us and we are truly humbled! We love you all!

Jesse, Kalie & Jesse II

Sending Our Love

Congrats to Charise and Rochelle on their wonderful news! Congrats to Camille and Becca on beautiful babies! Congrats Jessica on her first performance with Synergy! It was incredible! Amie, I absolutley love the bracelets you sent Erica! What an amazing idea and so much fun! Sending love to Kalie and her Jesse boys! We're here for you always! Happy Birthday Nancy, Camille, Sara, and Arti! Hope you all had a great birthday!

I'm sure I'm missing so many things. So for those, I say...

CONGRATS! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! GET WELL SOON! GREAT JOB!

Sending our love, Andee Kelly & Baby Girls!

Girls turned 5 months the weekend of Halloween! We can't believe it!

Click HERE to read more!

{Pettingill news....}

We are adding two little feet to our family!

Head over to our blog for details on our new little bundle of joy on the way!  It was so crazy to have my two sisters and sister-in-law all pregnant at the same time...I had to join in on the fun! Okay, really it was just a coincidence, but still so fun to add 4 little cousins in such a short time.  We are loving little Jett! We saw him at just one day old.  So incredibly tiny and sweet. And little Claire has won our hearts from afar! 

So fun to be pregnant along side my sister, Charise again.  Except this time she is due 6 weeks before me! I love having her so close so we can swap stories, pregnancy woes, and happy times too! 

That's our big news!  And baby will be born early enough so we can still make it to Pine Valley for the Snow reunion in July...SO excited about that!!   

Apken Update

Lots going on in the Apken household as of late and we wanted to bring you all into the loop.

Brynn turned two last week...she is our dress-up loving, pink loving, emotionally tricky, trying-to-break the binky habit, snuggly little girl. I can't believe two years has flown by so quickly!

Paige turns five in ten days. She is our soccer-loving, sports watching, loves to stay up late, big girl. She is back in her same preschool for another year and enjoying her time to socialize. She is still signing her name "PaigeL4"...I will keep you posted if she changes that to "PaigeL5" with her upcoming birthday.

For those that have been aware of Chris' unique work situation the past six months know it's been the strain of the year...or maybe decade. Chris' boss has now been formally charged with nine counts of wire fraud and money laundering. He was operating a "ponzi" scheme on the other side of the company (outside the scope of Chris' responsibility) and has stolen close to $100 million over the last ten years. The boss is obviously facing the rest of his life in in prison, but Chris has spent the past six months dealing with investigations, interviews and cooperating with the FBI and US Attorney's office. He's working with potential buyers to sell off the one legitimate company (the bus company) and is in the job market if you have any leads! We will move for a job!

For me, I've been trying to cope with the emotional stress of the job situation. In April when Chris came to me with suspicions he had about his boss, we had some very anxious times. And, to add to that, at the end of July, shortly after returning from our Pine Valley trip, we had some other unexpected news...one that has brought on some physical changes...

Yes...that's baby #3 in there! Surprise! We were equally shocked and have spent the past almost three months adjusting to the idea and dealing with the all-day sickness of that horrid first trimester (plus a few extra weeks). I am 17 weeks, due March 29, 2011, and feeling MUCH better the past two weeks. We will find out the sex of the baby in three weeks. I have an inkling it's a girl, but we will be happy with either (although the mere thought of a boy totally freaks me out). 

We haven't been too public about this baby on our personal blog or Facebook, but that's mostly because this has been a hard concept to wrap our brains around (well mine mostly...Chris has been fine). We will probably be more public once we know the sex of the baby, but it's not super secret, so it's not a hush hush thing. Does that make sense??? Sorry...I've been emotionally weird about announcing this pregnancy.

We hope you are all enjoying the fall weather and prepping for your Halloween festivities! We look forward to hearing about all the spooky costumes and pumpkin carving fun! Keep updating your blogs! We love and miss you all!

Love - Chris, Reese, Paige and Brynn