Half the Man He Used to Be

Our Andrew LOVES the Beatles song Yesterday. I play it almost every morning on the way to school for him. If I try to play something else, I hear about it. He LOVES the song.

Sometimes we can get him to sing it, which Robin and I love. We’ve been working on getting him to sing it for us on camera for a while. It looks like we are going to have to wait a while longer. After trying to get him to sing it on camera, he had a little accident and is now a little camera shy.

Here is the video we took of him singing and playing guitar back in September 2008. Let’s just say that thankfully no one was seriously injured in the making of this video. And despite the title, Andrew is really not half the man he used to be. This one never ceases to make Robin and I crack up. We hope you enjoy!


If the video does not appear above, here is the link.

Dylan's First Month

This is just a quick entry about a few things about Dylan’s first month - eat, poop, cry, sleep, pee, eat, sleep, cry, poop . . . you get the idea.

The couple of days after we got home from the hospital were crazy. Something was not right with Dylan, but we did not know exactly what. He cried all the time (as if in pain) and needed to be held 24/7 though that did not provide comfort. We thought it might have something to do with his complete lack of bowel movements. On his first Saturday, we went to see the doctor about the problem. She suggested giving Dylan a glycerin suppository - can you say "Daddy job." This worked fine to help generate one movement, but after that, the problem got worse. On his first Monday, we went back to see Dr. Rubenstein about the problem. Dr. Rubenstein checked him over thoroughly and said that some babies are more difficult than others, but that it could be a gastrointestinal issue. Within two minutes after Dr. Rubenstein handed Dylan back to us, we were chatting with the appointment scheduler, who we know very well, and Dylan loudly "cleared" the blockage. Since then, Dylan has generally been just fine. Evidently Dr. Rubenstein can do it all - he can even make babies poop!

Crying is one of Dylan's activities. He's not so bad, but he's a baby - they cry. We got at least one good shot of him letting it all go!

Dylan Crying

Robin, as she did with both other boys, is breastfeeding Dylan. I don’t have a vivid recollection of this with the other boys, but since Dylan is right here right now, I see it. His tongue is very white. It’s the milk. But it is not white on the end, it is white way back in his mouth. I had been trying for days to get a good picture of him sticking out his tongue, but that is a game of patience. Something Robin is more than willing to tell you that I am lacking. But then, at about two weeks of age, I finally got it.

Dylan’s White Tongue at Two Weeks

Dylan’s brothers just love him. Andrew wants to hold him all the time. Noah always wants to “see Baby Dylan’s eyes.” This is only problematic when he is sleeping – which is most of the time! Both of them are incredibly gentle with Dylan, which is truly a blessing. Both of them are also somewhat willing to help with things for Dylan – get diapers, get wipes, throw away diapers, etc. Trust me, we need all the help we can get!

Dylan had his first bottle at 4 weeks of age. I fed him first and then Andrew joined in to feed him. It was great. And Dylan took the bottle just fine. He downed over 4 ounces of milk in 10 minutes. The kid loves to drink. Noah got a shot with the second bottle too - everyone joins in the act!

Daddy Giving Baby Dylan His First Bottle

Up Close and Personal

Andrew's Turn

Noah's Turn on the Second Bottle

Dylan just started smiling at us near the end of his first month. We finally were able to capture it. It’s sweet. Here are a couple shots of the smiles.

Dylan is also growing like a weed. At his one month doctor visit, he had gained 3 pounds and grown 2.5 inches. They stay small for such a short time. One month down, hopefully zillions to go.

Andrew is Six and in First Grade

Andrew turned six years old on August 5, 2008. While it is hard to believe he’s six, he shows no signs of slowing down! First grade is in full swing, he is enamoured with Star Wars, and I am quite sure that he is one of the most persistent six year olds around. After recently spending a week with him, Nana refers to him as tenacious - ya think!

Right around his birthday, we headed down to our local Picture People to get a couple of shots of the boys at the year (Andrew 6) and half year (Noah 3.5) mark. Conveniently, Andrew’s birthday is August 5th and Noah’s is February 21st, so this works out great for us.

Here is the Picture People handiwork - not nearly as good as the Brigitte Patel handiwork…

On August 25, 2008, Andrew started First grade at Ocean Air School. This year there were 200 more kids at the school than last year. The morning of the first day, we walked ourselves up to the school. Everything felt very familiar and Andrew was right at home. We had gone up to the school on Sunday to make sure we knew exactly how to get to his classroom. He was ready – Darth Vader backpack and all. We arrived at the school early enough to give him time to find a few friends and make it into class no problem. He has several good friends from his Kindergarten class in his new class. His teacher is Mrs. Julie Cunningham. So far, it has been a great year.

Running Off to First Grade

With His Darth Vader Backpack

Andrew and Pregnant Mommy Outside His Class

Andrew and Daddy

Andrew and Noah Playing Tether Ball Before School Starts

Andrew and Annika (by Brigitte Patel)

Andrew Walking Into Class

Andrew at His Desk

Mrs. Cunningham (After a Semester, We Know That She is Awesome)

Working Away in First Grade

Just after lunchtime on his first day, we got a note from a friend of ours, the mother of one of the kids in Andrew’s class, indicating that she had been up at the school at lunchtime and seen Andrew “wondering” around the lunch tables. She helped him find a friend and he sat down to enjoy his lunch. While she probably just mistyped, boy is that our Andrew – wondering around – he is one of the best wonderers we know!

Andrew's Special Time with Nana & Grampster

On August 10, 2008, Robin, Noah and I left Andrew in the capable hands of my parents. The three of us took off on a drive back home to San Diego from the Slade Family Reunion 2008 and left Andrew for a week of adventure.

From what I gather, everyone had a good time and Andrew did pretty well. He tired out his Nana & Grampster; he caught two rainbow trout (Nana and Grampster did not catch any, so Andrew skunked them); he enjoyed clapping and calling for Tiska (my parents Samoyed dog); he picked a few fresh berries from the garden; he learned how to put a washer and a nut on a bolt (to hold up a mailbox); he caused Nana & Grampster a little frustration – all as it should be. We got periodic updates from Andrew and from my mom and dad as well, but we did our best to just let them all share time together. My memories of my time with my grandparents have always been important to me and we certainly want our boys to have their own.

My mom sent a couple of cell phone photos of Andrew catching his trout. I think it was the highlight of the week for Nana & Grampster – and for Andrew too.

Andrew's Trout

Meanwhile, back in San Diego, Robin, Noah and I had a VERY quiet week. It is amazing how quiet the house was with just little Noah around. Not that I liked it better than normal mind you, but it was interesting to have such a quiet house. Occasionally we’d have to look around to make sure Noah was still there…. Every time, he was.

I flew up to Reno in the evening on Friday, August 15th. My Dad picked me up and we drove up to Susanville. It was very nice to have some down time to chat with my Dad. Both he and Mom are taking well to a less pressure filled life in Susanville. Thankfully.

When we arrived at the Roseberry House, Andrew was all ready for bed, but waiting for me. I got one of those, “I REALLY MISSED YOU DADDY” hugs, which I love. It was a little past bedtime, so I put him to sleep right thereafter and my parents followed.

The next morning we had some breakfast trout (my mother’s favorite meal). Andrew tried it out and had 10 or so bites before deciding he’d had enough. After breakfast, we all piled into the car and headed to the Plumas-Sierra County Fair over in Quincy (about 60 miles away). The fair was a small old time county fair. There were a couple of rides, some food, some crafts and some animals. Andrew was most taken by the rides, which allowed Nana & Grampster some time to relax (after they bought enough ride tickets to keep Andrew busy). Andrew’s favorite ride was the bumper cars – which I rode with him so that there was someone with a leg long enough to hold the gas down (barely).

Andrew Ready to Ride at the Fair

Andrew also picked out a few goodies from the U.S. Forest Service camping demonstration area. Typical Andrew, he picked out 4 things when the limit was 2. After negotiating with the Ranger for 5 minutes, he somehow accepted that he was only going to get 2 things “right now.” Thankfully the lure of another Icee drink made him forget about going back for more. In fact, it even kept him still enough to take a picture with my camera phone of Nana, Grampster and Andrew.

Grampster, Andrew & Nana at the Fair

On the drive back, we stopped right near Canyon Dam on Lake Almanor for a quick break. Andrew had been sleeping, but he woke up as we pulled into the rest spot. I asked if he wanted to get out and he said yes, so we did. As we walked over toward my parents, we started to notice several large birds circling overhead. And then more and more and more. All told there must have been between 20 and 30 golden eagles or some type of hawk (Cooper’s, Red-tailed, Rough-legged) circling overhead. Several of them swooped down to within 30 yards of us. It was quite a sight to behold. If only I had my SLR with the new 75-300mm Image Stabilization Lens!

After we got back to Susanville, we washed up and enjoyed dinner. As an encore, we did some Susanville Special Fireworks. Always a Nana & Grampster treat.

Andrew Double Fisted Sparkler

Andrew Enjoying

Andrew & Nana Doing Fireworks Together

Spinner in Action

On Sunday we played around with Tiska, watched Fox and the Hound (at least Andrew did – first time ever), and enjoyed the time with my parents before heading back down to Reno for the flight home. Andrew did just fine on the flight home. After we got over to baggage claim, Andrew saw Robin and Noah. He gave Robin one of those “WOW – I AM SO GIDDY TO SEE YOU” hugs, which she loved. He also gave Noah a big hug – to the point that they were falling down on the ground just outside baggage claim. Andrew confessed to having a lot of fun with Nana and Grampster and wanting to go spend time with them again sometime. As it should be….

Never a Dull Moment

Things are never calm for long in the Sorem household....

The night after Robin, Dylan and I came home from the hospital, Andrew and Noah were running around the family room after dinner. Andrew slipped and fell and cut his chin open on the hardwood floor. After determining that the wound was pretty deep and likely needed stitches, Robin, Andrew, Dylan (with bili-blanket in tow) and I headed off to urgent care. Thankfully Nana was in San Diego (for the birth and to help out) and was able to stay with Noah.
Thankfully the wait time was not too bad for a Saturday night. When Andrew was triaged, the nurse taped a numbing solution to his chin and let us know that it was going to take some significant measures to fix up. The doctor came in a few minutes later and gave us a choice of staples or stitches. As staples go in quicker, we opted for that. Of course, as with all things Andrew, the nurses had to strap him down. First they put his arms behind his back into a pillowcase and then they wrapped a sheet around him. Kind of like a mummy. That didn’t stop a ton of kicking and screaming. But it did allow us (two nurses and I) to hold him down enough to let the doctor staple him twice and close up the wound.

Here is a picture of Andrew’s chin with the staples….

Never a dull moment.

Dylan All Lit Up

Dylan (like Andrew, but unlike Noah) was a little jaundiced just after birth. Jaundice is a condition caused by excessive bilirubin levels in the blood that are not able to be processed normally by the liver. Our pediatrician, Dr. Rubenstein, kept us in the hospital for a day longer than we had hoped (we hoped to go home after one night) to give Dylan a chance to get his bilirubin levels down.

To treat jaundice, they give the baby phototherapy. At the hospital, they put Dylan under these large lights so that the light will cause the bilirubin to break down and then processed by the body.

Here are two pictures of Dylan under the lights at the hospital.

After a little intense phototherapy at the hospital, Dr. Rubenstein let us go home with Dylan on a bili-blanket. He was on the bili-blanket for about a week. The blanket is really a flat pad with a jacket that goes around the baby. It is attached by a long grey hose to a special machine that makes the flat pad light up on the baby's back.

Dylan on his bili-blanket - see what I mean...

Andrew and Noah kept asking us why Dylan had a tail (the grey hose constantly attached to him). Fortunately we got rid of the tail after a week!

DYLAN JOSEPH SOREM

By now the word is out. We are now a family of five. Andrew said it best the other night when he exclaimed – “Mommy, Daddy, we are a big family now.” I don’t know if big is the right word for it just yet, but it surely isn’t small.

On December 10, 2008, Dylan Joseph Sorem arrived. Our life has not been the same since. Dylan was born at 3:05pm at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, CA. He weighed in at 7 pounds, 12 ounces and measured 20.5 inches long. Dylan was right between both other boys on both counts (Andrew was 8 pounds, 2 ounces and measured 21.5 inches long and Noah was 7 pounds 5 ounces and measured 20 inches long). Dylan’s head measured 13.75 inches in circumference and his chest measured 14 inches in circumference. We are blessed to have another healthy boy.

Five days before the birth, my mom flew in to be here for Dylan’s birth and to lend a hand thereafter. We were concerned she might not make it in time as Robin started having some fairly significant and regular contractions a couple days before she arrived. But she made it and has now been with us for Andrew, Noah and Dylan’s births. How special that Mom could be there with us and share in the birth of her three grandsons.

Our dear friend Theresa Pollock attended Dylan’s birth as well. Theresa and I go back more than 18 years now (we met at our Freshman Dorm at UC Berkeley). Theresa has a Master’s in Public Health, spent many years as an educator for Planned Parenthood and has attended many births. I think eventually she wants to become a doula to assist other women with their childbirth. She was with us for Andrew’s birth and was a tremendous help. She had to miss Noah’s birth because she had just delivered her daughter, Lauren, 18 days earlier. But she was there for this one. We owe her an incredible debt of gratitude for being there and for supplying many of the facts and figures of this shortened version of Dylan’s birth story.

On the morning of Wednesday, December 10, 2008, we dropped both Andrew and Noah off at their respective schools and headed to the hospital for a scheduled “induction.” Because Robin had gestational diabetes during this pregnancy, she was not allowed to go past her due date. We arrived at the hospital at 9:45am and were checked into Labor and Delivery Room number 238. Our nurse put a heparin (hep) lock in – so that they’d have a line into Robin just in case – and we waited for Dr. Wendy Buchi, Robin’s OB, to come in. Dr. Buchi came in around 10:15am, checked Robin’s cervix and declared she was 5 cm dilated already. At 10:30am, Dr. Buchi broke Robin’s bag of water to induce labor (her fluid level was indeed low and there was meconium present). We had used this same method (breaking the bag of water to induce labor) with Noah and it worked out pretty well. From 10:30am to 11am, the nurse had Robin on the fetal monitor. Everything was just fine.

With Noah, after Dr. Buchi broke Robin’s bag of water, we walked the hospital stairs to get labor rolling along. We had planned on doing the same thing this time around. When we inquired about walking stairs, the nurse told us that the stairs were blocked on this floor and they did not recommend it. I asked if the stairs were accessible from other floors and the nurse said that she guessed they would be. I told her that we would go and walk stairs for 30 minutes and then be back. She begrudgingly agreed. At 11am, we all walked out to the hospital stairs and began the process. With Noah, Robin and I walked up and down the 7 flights of stairs 8 or so times. At the end I was exhausted, Robin was fine and it had moved labor right along. So we followed a similar path for this labor. From 11am to 11:30am, Robin walked the 7 flights of stairs up and down 4 times. I did 2 sets and Theresa did 2 sets. It pays to have friends. At 11:30am, we went back for more monitoring. Again, everything was going fine. From 12pm to 12:30pm, Robin did the 7 flights another 4 times. Again Theresa and I split duties. My Mom watched over us and took a short banana break.

Robin on the Fetal Monitor After the First Round of Stair Walking

The Stairs

Walking a Set with Theresa

Robin then took a short break. My Mom and I ran down to the cafeteria and picked up some food for the helpers but not the laborer. We were hungry and the least we could do was feed my Mom and Theresa. During this time, Robin and Theresa walked around the Labor and Delivery area and Robin was starting to feel more significant contractions.

After my mom and I returned with food, Robin and I went back and did one final set of 7 flights of stairs. We were planning on doing 2 sets, but Robin said one was enough. At about 1:45pm, we arrived back at Room 238 and real significant more painful contractions had now begun. You could see the changes in Robin.

Group Discussion of the Pain

Trying to Help Work Through the Pain

Breathing Through the Pain

The nurse checked Robin again and she had progressed to between 6 and 7 cm. We were moving along. Labor seriously picked up from there. The contractions were coming a mile a minute (each lasted about 40 seconds, but they never really died out and came on every 2 minutes) and Robin was giving all she had to handle the pain. But she was doing it all by herself! No epidural, no nothing. There was a lot of side rocking back and forth to get through each contraction. After about half an hour of seriously intense contractions, during which Robin was being monitored, Robin took Theresa’s advice and got into the shower. The water of the shower on Robin’s back made the pain a little more bearable – a little more. Robin stayed in the shower for about 20 minutes and worked through many more contractions.

Working Through Contractions in the Shower

After Robin got out of the shower, Dr. Buchi checked her and she was at 9cm. Robin was really struggling at this point to work through the pain.

Serious Pain

Dr. Buchi and the nurse started preparing the room and trying to get Robin in position to give birth. Dr. Buchi tried EVERYTHING (birthing chair, bar, standing up, over the top of the bed, etc), but nothing was working for Robin. And I mean nothing. And Robin was in MASSIVE (back) pain at this point. At one point, Robin screamed out – “Why is no one listening to me?” We were all listening, but nothing was working. Dr. Buchi finally had Robin laying on her side and burying into me.

Dylan is Seriously Close to Coming Out

That’s when Robin screamed out that Dylan’s head was crowning. Robin started pushing on her side and then was flipped onto her back. With two pushes Baby Dylan was born.

Mommy & Daddy Greeting Baby Dylan

Daddy Cutting the Cord

Daddy & Dylan Having a Talk

Nana Meeting Baby Dylan

Pretty Cute for Son #3

Dr. Buchi and Dylan

The Pout

The Pain Pregnancy is Over!

Aunt Theresa Meeting Dylan

We chose Dylan as his first name in respect of my grandmother (Deon) and Joseph as his middle name in respect of my grandfather (Milton Joseph) and both because of their meaning and origin. The meanings of his first and middle name are below:

Dylan - Meaning: a legendary sea-hero; Origin: Welsh

Joseph - Meaning: God shall add (another son); Origin: Hebrew

Another son we have… Perhaps he’ll be a legendary sea hero…

An hour after the birth, Dylan started to nurse for the first time. Robin is an old pro, so everything went very well with nursing. Another hour later, we placed the call to my sister, Karin, to get the word out about the birth. She took down the info and sent off the mass email about the birth.

A bit later that evening, our dear friend Brigitte Patel, who had watched over Andrew and Noah for the afternoon, brought the boys down to the hospital to meet their baby brother. How sweet it was.

Andrew & Noah (The Big Brothers) Greeting Baby Dylan

The New Family of 5 (Our "Big" Family)

Dylan Resting Peacefully

Now we’re a family of 5 and we have our Dylan Joseph. Our family acronym is now – ERAND (in order), EANDR (E and R), RANDE (R and E) or ERDNA (ER DNA – which is exactly what made all this happen…)

A couple of days later we took him home from the hospital. We were delighted to be home with him.

Dylan in his Carseat - Ready to Go Home

We'll leave all with a parting shot of Dylan, taken on day 2 of his life, by our photo expert friend, Brigitte Patel. Just two words for this one - Simply Beautiful....

Slade Family Reunion 2008

Back in June of 2006, the four of us, my parents and Karin all went out to Mustang Island in Port Aransas, Texas for the Slade Family Reunion 2006. As reported then, my Mom, Charmy Sorem, was nominated to plan the 2008 reunion. Mom planned the reunion for the weekend of August 8 -10, 2008 in Ravendale, California at the Spanish Springs Resort. Given the turnout and all the smiles throughout the weekend, a good time was had by all.

My maternal grandmother, Deon Slade Evans, was one of five siblings, Arlee (Slade) Seaverson, Frieda (Slade) Fiero, Shirlee (Slade) Blackner, Deon Slade Evans and Joseph (Buzz) Slade Jr. Those five produced 18 “Slade” first cousins. We call them the Slade cousins. Instead of a secret handshake, the cousins can do a rousing version of the Wyoming fight song – Ragtime Cowboy Joe.

On Thursday August 7, 2008, just after 1pm, Robin, Andrew and I picked up Noah from his camp at Beth Am Preschool and started our drive north to Susanville. While the drive is always long, we managed to make it in less than 12 hours this time (thank you cooperative boys)! We arrived at the Roseberry House at about 12:30am. The boys had fallen asleep just after 10pm outside of Minden/Gardnerville, Nevada and both transitioned into their beds in the house very nicely.

We woke on Friday morning to Andrew coming into our room (he had slept in a different room downstairs) with a cute card and six one dollar bills. Richard and Judi Ernst, co-proprietors of the Roseberry House with my parents, had given him the card for his 6th birthday and he was very excited. He laid out the bills one by one. After Andrew got us up, Robin and I went downstairs (Noah continued to sleep) to say hello to Debbie and Curt Swiger (Aunt Debbie is my Mom’s only first cousin on her father Milton Joseph Evans’ side of the family) and Michael and Lynda Evans (Uncle Mike is my Mom’s younger brother). For us, the reunion had begun.

Around 10am, we all got into cars and caravanned the 50 miles from Susanville up to Ravendale. To call this place remote is a significant understatement. While for the rest of the world, the 2008 Olympics were opening, Ravendale was in the dark (no TVs, no opening ceremonies, no gymnastics, zilch). The darkness prevailed during the five or six hour power outage on Saturday! Since my Mom served as the reunion host, we wanted to be the first to arrive and setup shop. My immediate family all stayed in one large structure called the Conference Center and Bunkhouse. It was a nice setup and allowed us all to be together and have a little of our own space as well.

As afternoon rolled around, more and more people started to arrive. I was especially looking forward to seeing other members of the Evans branch of the Slade family, Michael and Lynda Evans (mentioned above), Kirk and Donna Evans (Uncle Kirk is my Mom’s older brother), Holly, Shiraz and Lyra Cupala (Cousin Holly is Kirk and Donna’s daughter and one of my three true first cousins), Ginger, Dan, Nellie, John, William and Molly Wilcox (Cousin Ginger is Donna’s daughter). It was very nice to see everyone and how they are all doing and growing up and also for them to get a look at the boys and how they have grown.

Before all of the others started to trickle in, we took the boys for a swim in the “pool.” Average daytime pool temperature – 68 degrees F; percentage of pool clean enough to swim in – 10%; amount of time spent in pool – 15 minutes; amount of time needed to stop shivering after visiting the pool – 30 minutes. Regardless, our Noah actually wanted to swim again on Saturday. He did – same results.

After swimming, we put the boys down for a nap. As folks arrived, most people were hanging out down in the main bar/clubhouse area. After the boys awoke from their naps, we headed down there. Noah was excited to join in the fun, but Andrew was very shy to start. After a couple of hours though, he started to warm up.

Uncle Kirk, Mom & Uncle Mike

Wilcox Kids - Will, Nellie, Molly & John

Uncle Kirk & Holly

Uncle Mike & Aunt Lynda

We played a little pool and found a little TV to play some video games – all was well.

Andrew really warmed up after the kids went outside and started doing some rock climbing with Cousin Lyra.







Friday night dinner was a family favorite – Chicken and Spaghetti. Evidently it is a Fiero family recipe that was passed down from Frieda (Slade) Fiero to my Mom. I heard no complaints and saw many people washing down their plates with a frosty beverage or two. We even managed to get the boys to eat a fair share! Great work by Mom & Dad – the cookers (as the kids call people who cook the food).


As dinner finished up, Shiraz Cupala brought out a case of Champagne he had brought along to celebrate a major event for Cousin Holly. Shiraz proposed a toast to Holly for her first major novel publishing deal with Harper Collins. Shiraz’s toast was very sweet – Holly blushed. Several people helped to pour the Champagne, but lots more helped to celebrate!

Boys on Wagon After Dinner

After dinner, the resort staff started a bonfire and out came the marshmallows. Everyone had fun and Auntie Karin really got into the roasting act; the boys got into the eating act; later Karin got into the twirling act with Noah!

After all that fun, we hit the sack. Getting to sleep in foreign environments is always a little challenging. Overall it went all right. Only 30 minutes or so until they were fast asleep. Robin and I followed shortly thereafter.

Saturday morning, we got up, had breakfast and trodded around the resort for a couple of hours. We hit the swings and the teeter totter, checked out an Indian teepee, climbed up a log structure and the boys watched me slide down a big pole. We then headed over toward the horseshoe pit where we ran into Aunt Debbie and Curt who were walking their cute little white dog named Chantilly. Apparently Chantilly had befriended a little black cat (later named Skip, because that’s what you name cats when you don’t know their name – at least according to Molly Wilcox). The boys took to the little black cat. So much so that Andrew said he loved the kitty and he wanted to take it home. Unfortunately for Andrew, Robin is allergic. So we spent the next several hours explaining to Andrew how it just was not going to happen. But in between our explanations to Andrew about how his latest plan to keep the kitty would not work, we played all around – horseshoes, shuffleboard, train crossing (a game that involves tennis racquets and a shuffleboard run) and the like. The boys’ new kitty followed us back down to the clubhouse area (with a little help I might add).

Noah Helping Kitty

When we got over to the clubhouse, the crafts were in full swing. Cousin Ginger was working with kids making craft cowboy hats and Cousin Holly was painting faces. Andrew put Ginger’s patience to the test (she passed with flying colors – after all, she has four of her own), and made a great cowboy hat. Noah did as well. Holly painted a darling train on Noah’s cheek and then painted a train on Andrew’s left hand and a wolf (with a moon background) on his right hand. Very cool!

After all this action, the boys (and Robin) took a much needed rest. I wandered around trying to setup a spot for family photographs. I found a decent spot right near the dining area and tried to plan it out a bit – Karin provided some much needed support.

After naptime, we took Noah swimming again (insane boy) and showered everyone up for dinner and pictures. We all headed down to the clubhouse before dinnertime. Uncle Kirk & Aunt Donna had bought the boys a little remote control car, which provided some great amusement! I also practiced snapping a few pictures of folks in advance of the family photos.

Andrew Playing Cars!


Holly & Lyra Resting

Uncle Mike & Aunt Lynda

Alas we had the family group shots. To say I took a dose of medicine for trying to put this all together is to put it mildly. The shots are fair (I chose to go with the sun in the face and I’m still not sure that was the right call). We got a shot of each of the groups of families and then a shot of all the Slade cousins who were there.

Fiero Family

Evans Family

Slade Family (and Slade Fiero)


Seaverson Family


The Slade Cousins

For dinner on Saturday, Spanish Springs put on a Tri Tip BBQ that was pretty darn good. As dinner was winding down, my mom (with a little help from my sister) served as MC for her self created awards ceremony. The awards were all things my Mom made up – like who traveled the farthest to attend (Uncle Mike), who traveled the shortest to attend (Uncle Kirk), most marriages (Cousin Kenny), the oldest (Cousin Laurian), youngest (Cousin Jeff) and so on. There must have been 30 awards, so lots of people “won.” The prizes were jars of my parents homemade jams. The prize is well worth the price of attendance. We’ve been eating my parents jams for years and they are the best. If you have never had a jar, you are missing out. Perhaps you should consider a trip to Susanville for one….

Mom Doing Her Thing


Hello Karin

Uncle Mike Scores


Uncle Kirk and His Jam


Aunt Debbie is Jammin'


Old (Laurian) & Young (Jeff)

After the awards, my mom handed off the family banner to the host of the next reunion in 2010, Cousin Jeff Slade. The handoff could not have gone any better. Jeff plans to hold the next reunion at Lake Powell down in Arizona. Nice! As a bonus, Jeff announced that the next reunion might be a little more expensive so the cousins (my parents) might need to help the kids out with the cost. I piped in that I thought this was a wonderful idea. My parents, however, evidently have other plans as my Dad piped right back saying that they’ve already created a special exception for us. I think it is called the “no subsidy” exception.

The Handoff - Mom to Jeff Slade

After all that fun, most people headed back down to the clubhouse/bar for some dancing and singing. While everyone had fun, I think my parents had the most fun dancing. The old folks have some moves. Far more than me, that’s for sure….

Mom & Dad Groovin'

Andrew Walking the Line

Andrew Getting Some Love from Nana & the Grampster

Grampster's Got Andrew by the Ears

Shake Those Bootys Ladies

To cap off the evening, some of the Cousins belted out Ragtime Cowboy Joe. While it was not the best version ever, it sure was spirited!

Back & Forward on the Saddle . . .

The next morning, Robin, Noah and I left Andrew with my parents and headed southward to San Diego. Andrew was a little sad, but he was set for a good time for the week with his grandparents. Just as any little six year old boy should…

On the ride home, just south of Bishop on US-395, Homer, our lovely Honda Odyssey, rolled right past 60,000 miles. We bought him in December 2005, so 4 months shy of 3 years and we’ve got 60,000 on him. He’s a trooper.

Lake Powell 2010, here come the Slades!

It Would Have Been Enough

As Robin’s pregnancy wore on and on and on, we began to call this the “Pain Pregnancy”. Since the baby is now about to come, we are now finally getting around to telling the tale of the journey through it. This is obviously largely Robin’s journey. I just got called in to captain her ship from time to time when she had to head to the infirmary. She's taken a few trips there.

At first all the things that were happening to Robin were new and different. With Andrew, Robin was a delightfully happy pregnant woman. I even remember her saying things like, “I am going to miss being pregnant” and “I feel great today!” With Noah, there were a few more aches, but overall, Robin was still a happy pregnant woman.

Not this time around. It all started with the early (6.5 weeks) concerns about a blood clot behind the placenta and the chance that it could cause the placenta to pull away from the uterus and the pregnancy to spontaneously abort. Finally at 11.5 weeks, the clot disappeared, but that took a toll on Robin’s psyche. At about 10 weeks, the usual early pregnancy malaise morphed into strange upper abdominal pains. We were never able to obtain certain diagnosis on these pains (as true diagnosis requires exposure to radioactive materials that is not appropriate during pregnancy), but most think the pains are gall bladder related or possibly pancreatitis. Robin is not one to complain about pain, but this was different. IT REALLY REALLY HURT. The pains would come on almost daily and put her pretty much out of commission in the evenings. Fortunately, that is when I would be home to take over the helm.

At about 20 weeks, a new pain arrived. This one we had fully diagnosed - pubic symphysis pain. The cause is an early separation or loosening of the joints preparing for labor due to Robin’s body producing too much of the hormone relaxin. Relaxin’ was exactly what Robin was not doing once this pain hit. It was a ringer. Fortunately for Robin, it only hurt her when she would move (roll over in bed, pull on a pair of pants, walk, run, etc). She saw a chiropractor for many weeks and the sessions helped, but the pain persisted.

Next, at nearly 27 weeks, Robin felt a new very sharp pain. We went to Robin’s OB who sent us to the hospital to have it fully checked out. It turned out that Robin had a kidney stone which she passed five days after diagnosis. Unfortunately, her left side kidney pain continued and several weeks later, we think Robin passed a second stone. Since then, thankfully, no kidney pain. Phew! I think that was the most painful part of the pregnancy.

At the time of kidney stone diagnosis, they ran an abdominal ultrasound and determined that baby was in a breech position. Since both boys were vaginal births, Robin really, really wanted to avoid a C-section if at all possible. While the baby’s breech position provided some relief for Robin’s pubic symphysis pain, there was now the immense concern over whether he would flip to a head down position to avoid the possible need for a C-section. Baby stayed in a breech position for 8 weeks. Thankfully the little guy flipped at about 34 weeks and has stayed head down since.

The night the first kidney stone passed, Robin started running a fever. The next day, she started coughing horribly and coughing up blood and was having a difficult time breathing (she would say it felt like an elephant was sitting on her chest). Robin went to the doctor for this as well and they indicated it was tonsillitis, bronchitis or possibly walking pneumonia. They couldn’t do a chest X-ray to verify the pneumonia. We think she acquired this malady from being in the hospital for the kidney stone. They gave her some antibiotics and an inhaler and prescribed rest. After a week more, this finally cleared up.

Oh, and then of course, at 29 weeks Robin was once again diagnosed with gestational diabetes (she had this with Noah too).

The toll this all has taken on her psyche has been immense, but she is a trooper and has hung in there.

At one point, in early September, Robin sat down on the floor to build Lincoln Logs with Noah. Here is what she said about that experience:

“So, I sat down on the floor tonight to do Lincoln Logs with Noah. We made our fort, had a nice time doing it and Evan took a picture of us. I was hurting a little and uncomfortable while sitting but managed through. Then I tried to get up. Oh my! Talk about seeing stars....”

Brave Faced Robin, Noah and Lincoln Logs

As all the maladies came together, Robin wrote a riff to the Passover song Dayenu. Roughly translated, it means, “it would have been enough or sufficient.”

“If it was just a normal pregnancy, it would have been sufficient.

If it was just a pregnancy with a blood clot behind the placenta, it would have been sufficient.

If it was just a pregnancy with a blood clot and gallbladder pain, it would have been sufficient.

If it was just a pregnancy with a blood clot, gallbladder pain and pubic symphysis pain, it would have been sufficient.

If it was just a pregnancy with a blood clot, gallbladder pain, pubic symphysis pain and a kidney stone, it would have been sufficient.

If it was just a pregnancy with a blood clot, gallbladder pain, pubic symphysis pain, a kidney stone, tonsillitis, bronchitis and maybe walking pneumonia, it would have been sufficient.

If it was just a pregnancy with a blood clot, gallbladder pain, pubic symphysis pain, a kidney stone, tonsillitis, bronchitis, maybe walking pneumonia and gestational diabetes, it would have been sufficient.”

But that could not be everything. At 32 weeks, Robin found a lump on her left side rib cage. She saw three doctors concerning it and while none of them think it is malignant, none are absolutely certain. After the baby is born, Robin will have it removed and biopsy it to be sure. Just to add another thing…

Amusingly, I asked Robin at what point we give up on having a fourth kid and I get a vasectomy. That might be a good question... We’re not sure a fourth kid is in our future.

But thankfully this pregnancy is now almost over; the reward almost here. We’re hopeful for healthy. We’ll let you know when we do!

Happy Thanksgiving 2008

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We were here in San Diego, just the four of us and the one in the oven. It was very nice to have special time with the four of us before we become five.

My parents were off in New York with Karin. Howard & Stacy took a surprise trip to Paris - HOW NICE!

To cap off our day of being thankful for each other, all that we are blessed with and all that is to come, Andrew gave us a special gift.

Andrew sang this little diddy (Albuquerque the Turkey) to the tune of Sweet Clementine at his school for his Thanksgiving concert and just loved it. On Thanksgiving he gave us a repeat performance. On the first take - he could not quite get it all out without laughing. Pretty funny.

Below is the video and here is the link.




And on the second take, he got it just perfect! Below is the video and here is the link.




Happy Thanksgiving all.