Amen

Nick's Lymphoma test has come back benign. We feel a weight has been lifted off our shoulders. We go back to the doctor for a check-up on Monday the 10th and will decide the next steps in our journey to get Nick 100% healthy.

In the mean time - we will sleep very well tonight!


PS - Stay tuned for Trick or Treat pictures...


AMEN!!!

Blast from the past -- this is Nick at 7 months...

No news is good news

Hi everyone -

I'm going with no news is good news at this point in regards to Nick's pathology report...

We have been busy doing a whole lot of nothing around here. Nick isnt really 'allowed' to do any sort of physical activity. Tell that to a bored and cranky 3 year old, ya know?? I have been trying to find things to do around here that dont involve running and yelling... and/or FIGHTING! Sheesh. There is only so much Dora the Explorer a mother can watch.

Yesterday we made a Haunted Halloween Gingerbread House.

Today when David gets home we are going to go make a run out to the Apple Orchard again... maybe pick up some apples to make apple sauce this weekend. We are planning on going over to Grammie and Grandpa's for Trick or Treating tomorrow - as long as Nick is feeling up to it.

Mia is really smiling now - check out her new pictures...

Thanks again for keeping us in your thoughts! We know we have kept everyone on their toes the last 6 months. Hopefully soon our lives will get out of survival mode and back into dull and boring!

Deep thoughts by Nick...

The pros and cons of getting your tonsils out

by Nick Wray

Pros
I get to sleep in my mama and daddy's bed with ALL of my pets!
I get to eat ice cream and Popsicles when ever I want
Everyone brings me new toys - so far I have gotten a great tool set, a new monster truck, a new yellow toy corvette, a new stuffed rhino (I named him Ray the Rhino), some new movies and Wall-E.
I get to watch WHATEVER I want, whenever I want, all the time on TV - meaning Dora, Diego, Curious George, and Clifford the Big Red Dog. I have also watched Madagascar THREE times.
I get to have lots of hugs and kisses
I get to stay in my pj's all day long
I dont have to pick up any of my new toys... haha
I get to stay home from school all week
Daddy took off 3 days this week from work!
Lots of visitors - Grammie, Grandpa, Auntie Nicki, Uncle Kyle and Gramona and Grandpa Gene have come to see how I am feeling

Cons-
The obvious sore throat
I have to take medicine around the clock. I have to take an antibiotic 2 times a day, pain medicine every hour hours -- even in the middle of the night I have to get woke up, and I have to take Zofran so I dont throw up anymore
Did I mention the sore throat?
I cant eat pizza or quesadillas
I cant run around or play hard
My throat hurts

Hmm - if it werent for the sore throat, this wouldnt be all that bad, ey?

Tonsils. Who needs 'em anyways?

It's Mia - hello all!

I am writing today on behalf of my biggest, bravest, toughest, bestest, most lovable brother.

Nick is sleeping in Mommy and Daddy's bed right now, so I thought I would take a moment and update everyone on Nick's surgery. Nick did great! The surgery lasted about 30 minutes and everything went as planned. Dr. Becken, our ENT, sent his tonsils to the Pathologist and we should have the results next week. The waiting is hard. But, Dr Becken said that just by looking at them he didn't see any Lymphoma. Thank GOD. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. So far they are working! Mommy or Daddy will update once we get the tests back. For now, keep the positive energy flowing, please!

Anyways - let's back up a minute here and I'll tell you about our weekend so far. On Thursday we went to Chuck E Cheese. Apparently this is one cool place - because Nick could hardly wait to get there!! Look at the boys - drinking juice and eating pizza. Nick ate 3 pieces of pizza! WOW! He is a good eater, don't you think?

Cheers!

Nick rode on some fun rides - his favorite one was Scoop and Bob the Builder.

Mommy carried me around while I took a nap. You should see Mommy play some of these games! Man, she won Nick a bunch of tickets. Nick picked out a pirate patch and 2 silly straws with his tickets! (Good idea with the Silly straw, ey? Nick has been using that to drink today!)

So - anyways - we had fun at Chuck E Cheese. On the way home, we had to make a stop. Mommy whispered in my ear where we were going -- but it was a surprise. We didn't tell Nick we were going to the toy store!! Daddy picked out a very special toy for Nick for right after his surgery. More about that in a little bit. Then when we got home, we had another special surprise. We had a slumber party on Thursday night at our house! Grammie came and slept over! I think it was because Nick had to be at Children's Hospital so early in the morning. When I woke up, I got a surprise - Grammie gave me my bottle! How fun! Also, all this sleep is still really helping. I am growing like a weed! Everyone keeps telling me how strong I am! Look at this...

So, onto Friday morning - the surgery day. Nick left at 5:30 in the morning and he gave me a kiss and hug - I miss him now, because I have been over at Grammie and Grandpa's house. Don't get me wrong, I love being over there - I get oodles of attention. But, I am missing my big brother! Ya know what I heard? I heard he gets to eat popsicles and ice cream ALL day long! WHAT?!! I cant believe it. When I get bigger I am going to eat those things too.

Here are some pics of the big day...

Nick is now recovering at home... it's hard work, but he is doing a wonderful job. You know what I think is cool? When I was in the hospital, everyone brought me presents - and now everyone is bringing Nick presents. It really helps - it helps you forget about the owies and boo boo's. Nick got a really cool Tool Set from Grandpa Mark. He has been playing with it on the couch. And, the gift Daddy got him was Wall-E. Wall-E is from the movies. He is a robot and he does all kinds of things. Nick thinks it is super cool...

'All done... No more Popsicle.' Isn't he so brave? I just love my big brother.

So - I guess all in all it has been an okay weekend. They say that day 3 is the hardest, that is tomorrow. We will see how it goes. I cant wait to give him a big kiss... and for him to start feeling better soon.

Thanks for all the good thoughts for my favorite brother. Talk to you all soon--

Bye for now,
Mia

Hangin Tough -- ahh nostalgia

I am looking a bit sleepy in this picture... but I did make it out until 1 am!


With every craziness going on in our household lately I had the opportunity last night to get out of the house and let loose. That's right - I treated Nicki for her 30th birthday to the New Kids on the Block concert. Amongst about 13,000 screaming '30 something' fans (and I would say oh about 999 of them were the poor husbands that got dragged along) I was able to scream like a teenage girl and dance my heart out! It was great spending some time with my little sis. We also shared some good laughs as we reminisced about my obsession with Joe McIntyre

re-lived my claim to fame with my old friend Jordan Knight (most of you have heard my story...)

and laugh at the memorabilia. A lot of the girls wore their huge NKOTB pins, (come on, I know you remember them) old t-shirts on (yeah, if mine could have fit...) and we even saw NKOTB fanny packs. Nicki and I laughed so hard when we saw a group of girls with their hair crimped! Add in a training bra and we could have all been 13 all over again! SO FUN. I am really proud of us too - we got home at 1am! That is the latest I have stayed out in forever! Whoever said that peace and quiet was best for the soul?? I found my peace and not so quiet while laughing my head off to songs I knew by heart over 15 years ago! Ahh, the sound of the ears ringing...


Video from the concert... we were 27 rows from the stage...


http://www.xcelenergycenter.com/videoplayer.jsp?IS_PLAY=Y&MM_FILE_ID=48

Isnt it funny how a song just reminds you of something or some place in your life? Pretty amazing to be put right back in time...

Nick's surgery update

Nick's surgery is now on Friday morning at Children's Hospital. Much better than 12:30 in the afternoon at the Surgery Center in Woodbury. I guess - it pays to bleed... What I mean by that not so funny joke is that due to my hemorrhage after surgery my children will always need to be monitored after surgery to make sure they wont have any complications. So - we have upgraded to the Children's Hotel!

Lets all hope this is the final surgery for Nick and that Mia never has to have a surgery at all!

Stay tuned...
Caris

Nick, knack, paddy whack give a dog a bone...

Hi everyone - it's Nicholas Bonin Wray here today. Yup, when people ask my name that is how I respond these days. I am really proud of my name! The other day we had company over for brunch and when they asked me when I had turned three, I told them 'After I turned 2!' And everyone laughed! I still don't know why everyone thinks I am so dang funny. I mean it was obvious to me... Mommy asked me to tell them when my birthday was. Sheesh. I mean, if that's what they wanted to know, why didn't they just ask?? I am a bit of a trouble maker lately. Can you tell?

Anyways, I have been able to meet lots of dogs these last few weeks... Amy's dog Mocha, Melissa's dog Tanner, Daniel's dog Fred, and Megan's dog Abby. I really really really like dogs. When Mommy picked me up from school the other day, I asked her 'Did we get a dog yet or what?!' Well - she tells me no. She tells me that we got a baby instead. Okay - since I really like Mia - I can wait a little tiny bit longer for a dog. Here I am with Abby...

Anyways, like Mommy says, I am a mischief maker... Here I am with my 2nd cousin Megan Elizabeth. She is 4. We are just laying around, watching a little cartoon action... ahem.

Okay, okay, so I wouldn't necessarily say, we were laying low. But we were having lots of fun rolling down the stairs and running around the house...

And - onto my little sister. Mia rolled over. Mommy had the camera and caught it on film. She is like the paparazzi - only I call her the mamarazzi. Look at Mia... (well, she just got the first part - she had to catch Mia, ya know?!)

Mia also finally got a picture taken with Grandpa Gene -

And Mia also has a new boyfriend - Mommy's friend Melissa had her baby on October 17th! Mia and I go play with Melissa once a week - so we are really excited about Rylan joining us for our next play date. Melissa and baby are doing great! Congratulations to Melissa, David and handsome Rylan!

Gotta run - Nick

So -Mommy's note here - onto the big news. Nick will have to have surgery on Thursday. He is getting his tonsils out. YUCK. We had planned a really nice family weekend get a way up to the lake this weekend as Dave had taken off both Thurs and Fri. But he needs them out asap, as time is of the essence. One of his tonsils is huge. The other one is sorta huge He doesn't have a fever or an infection - so they just gotta get em out and see what is up. The right one is the culprit - and is blocking half of his throat. Once the tonsils are out - they are sending them to a pathologist to determine why. They have also recommended we see a Hematologist - a blood doctor - to run more tests. Keep Nick in your thoughts and prayers this week as he has to endure his 4th surgery in his 3 years. Also- good thoughts and well wishes for the pathology report to come back quickly and guide us in the direction we need to go so we can get him healthy soon. I'll update when we know more!

Aunties and Uncles and Cousins -- OH MY!

Cute new picture with Daddy!

It's already Sunday night??

This weekend was really really great! Nick was invited to the lake with Grammie and Grandpa - he left Friday morning and had a blast. He made home made applesauce, played with toy boats in the lake, jumped in leaves and slept in a tent! While we missed him dearly - it turned out to be a perfect weekend for his excursion!

David and I had an impromptu date on Friday! Woohoo! Yea, long time coming right? We figured it had been December since we had gone out alone. Well, there was the bedrest thingy starting in May and then... BABY! So - at the last minute my wonderful husband bought tickets to see Rascal Flatts and Taylor Swift. AND you know those are my two most favorite bands in the entire world (and if you know David, not so much his favorites!! But, as he said, this was MY NIGHT!!) He called his sister Heather to babysit Mia and we went out! I had the best night. I had some beers, saw my friend Kara, danced my bum off and sang until I was horse. I loved every single minute of it. Then, to top it all off Mia slept through the night! That a girl!

Saturday morning, Mia and I headed out to brunch at Angel's house - this time Angee and Sarah - two other high school friends joined us. It was fun to catch up. Crazy though that we graduated in 1995. Time flies. Angel's daughter Morgan is adorable - she loves Mia and I love Morgan! :) Angel took some great pics of the girls, once she emails them I will add them in! Dave got the morning all to himself. Now that is a treat!

Talk about spontaneity - a bunch of our friends were having a little shin dig in Wisconsin at one of the couples family farm... so David, Mia and I drove on over... It was wonderful - Mia got to meet all of her "honorary aunties and uncles"

Mia and Uncle Geoff

Mia and Aunt Sarah

ps-- happy one year anniversary geoff and sarah!

Mia and Uncle Josh

Aunt Zoe, Aunt Becca and Aunt Sarah!

Mia was on her very best behavior - as usual! She snuggled with every one, had some drinks (her bottle, duh!) and shared some really good smiles with everyone! David and I are so glad she finally got to meet everyone. Only one picture missing... UNCLE RAULIE. We will have to make sure we get one with him next time. Mia slept from 11pm until... drum roll please... 8am today. We are feeling rested!

Today - we rounded out the weekend with the Wray family birthdays - all three of the kids: Heather, John and David are 'fall babies'. We also celebrated our niece Katie's birthday. Dang, it is hard to be on weight watchers with all the good food around... but I am happy to report - I didnt even eat a piece of cake!

Auntie Jill with Mia

All of Mia's 'Wray' cousins: Justin, Kevin, Katie and Daniel

Finally... a picture with Gramona!

So, as you can see - it was a whirlwind of a weekend, but a damn good one! It is amazing how easy it is with just the little one around... Have baby -- will travel!

Truly...

In the middle of the night... Rolobots, Monsters and... Crabs??

She did it! Mia slept from 9:45pm until 6:30 this morning!

And... Nick woke up screaming at 1:30am with nightmares of "ro-lo-bots" (robots), monsters and "there was a crab crawling towards me. It was in my bed. Must have come from the ocean." ????????? I swear one of these days a full 4 hours of sleep is in my sight! We are bringing Nick back into the doctor again - he is still having the pain in the knees, the sweating (while it comes and goes), and the extremely large tonsils. Now, with these nightmares he has been having, I cant help but wonder if this is another symptom? Okay, so I have been watching "House" re-runs - but I am determined to get to the bottom of this... any ideas?

Well it is a very rainy day out - which is good, it forces me to do laundry, clean and make a nice home cooked meal for the boys. Ugh.

Brrr - I think Fall is really here now... I had an interview yesterday at Medtronic for a Contract Recruiter role. It did not go well - but I am okay with that. Practice makes perfect and the right job will come along. For now - I will just enjoy the kids and the, ahem, um cleaning.

Bye for now...

Here are some of my favorite pictures... 'oldies but goodies' (can you tell I am procrastinating...)

Nick's first time at the ocean - Easter 2007

Nick at the Brew House Triathlon in "duloof" (Duluth) August 2007

Nick sledding for the first time at the cabin in Hayward, WI

Nick and his cousin Daniel - January 2008

Busy Busy Busy!

Happy October!

Nick here- It has been such a great start to fall for us! We have been really busy. With Mommy feeling all better we have been running around doing all kinds of fun things. Last week Mommy took me and Mia to the Como Zoo. Pretty ambitious ey? I mean, I know we are good kids and all, but we are kind of a lot of work. Dr Chow called Mommy to see how she was feeling and he was really impressed that she was already running around! Yeah Mommy! We had fun at the zoo. I showed Mia all around. We saw monkeys, and firaffe's, and lots of fish too. Anyone know why they dont have any felephants??

Nick and the firaffe's

Do you see the monkey?

I behaved really really well. I mean, I only ran ahead a few times and when Mommy yelled FREEZE, I sure did. Then, guess what. Mommy did something really really nice. She brought me to the McDonald's playland. AND you know that is not Mommy's most favorite restaurant. She watched me scarf down 6 chicken McNuggets, fries, milk and an ice cream cone. You should have seen the shock on her face. I guess I am a really good eater - and of course this is a humongous treat for me. Then, I played all around the play land while Mommy fed Mia. We sure were tired when we got home, but it was really fun.

OOOH - and this is important too. I am in the Frog room at school now. Full preschool now! Isn't it cool? I am learning all kinds of really interesting things. Next time you see me ask me all about the Spanish words I know and how to spell my name!!

Three of Mommy's favorite things in the whole world... Nick, Mia and coffee!

Kay, Mia wants a turn now...

Yes, I know I sleep a lot. Here I am sleeping at the Zoo. Here I am sleeping at Underwater world. Here I am sleeping at the Apple Orchard. Yeah, I get it. But, all this sleeping is working!! I weigh 10lbs and 11oz and am 22 inches now! I am a big girl!




I went in for my 2 month check up and I look "really really good!" I am a good eater - but the reflux was still really bothering me. Dr Gobel put me on some medicine and wow. After just 3 days I am feeling so much better. The "gurgle" is getting better! Also, I get to add rice cereal to my bottle. This helps with reflux and it makes me full longer. Last night I slept from midnight until 5:30am. Mommy was really proud of me.

On Wednesday Mommy brought us to Underwater World at the Mall of America. Of course we had to invite Grammie with - it just wouldn't be as much fun with out her!! Here are some pictures of our great day!

Nick with Mommy

Nick with Nemo and Dori

Nick and Grammie with Vincent the String Ray

First bumper car ride at the Nickelodeon Theme Park at Mall of America

Mommy here - And, just to round out our really great start to fall - we all headed to the Apple Orchard today. It was not very nice weather, but that didn't dampen our moods! We shared a caramel apple and Nick and Daddy had Apple doughnuts! Nick picked a pumpkin out of the patch - it was a special fall day for us!

Nick and Daddy enjoying the beautiful scenery

Picking the PERFECT pumpkin is hard work!

Our little punkins...

And just because it makes me laugh...

Hope everyone is having a great start to Fall!