Thursday, February 26, 2015
Kind Kadyn
Our Kadyn turned eleven a few weeks ago. We celebrated as a family with
Olive Garden and ice cream cake, then later in the week she enjoyed
painting and treats with some great friends. Kadyn is such a huge
blessing to our family. She is our homes thoughtful peacemaker and
strives daily to bring a little more happiness into the lives of all
those she meets. We feel extremely blessed to have her. Happy Birthday sweet
Kadyn!
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Hero Haley
So far 2015 has proven to be a learning year for the Ballard family. Let me go back a few weeks to set the stage.
Christmas break was upon us and all the kiddos were running from school to the van in great excitement to enjoy two weeks of nothing! Kadyn and Haley were running at me pretty quickly, but Thatcher was walking slow and had a frown on his face. He was not feeling good and I could tell he had a fever and chills so we returned home for rest and Tylenol.
Over the next few days the majority of our household took turns getting sick, including: Azure, Steven, and Haley. After a few days of rest and fluids everyone was back up and running full speed through Christmas break, everyone that is except for little Haley. For some reason her body was taking much longer time to recover, and by the end of the week we noticed massive amounts of sleep and a crazy thirst for water. (Anyone familiar with this "world" might already know what I'm about to say).
We took her to the clinic and immediately urine and blood was taken. We had barely walked through the front door when the phone rang with urinalysis results and a strong recommendation to take Haley immediately to the ER. From there everything is sort of a blur. She was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and admitted to the hospital for the next four days in order to get her blood levels normal again. This also gave Steven and I the opportunity to learn the in's and out's of blood checks, insulin shots, and carb counting.
It was a crazy few days where this new "reality" began to set in, but more importantly, those days were filled with amazing blessings from above. Prayers from family and friends across the globe, cards, and visitors to the hospital at the exact moment you needed them with the exact words you needed to hear. While I admit this new diagnosis seems to put a major "shift" in her path of life, we have never seen a kid handle a situation of this magnitude with such grace and ease.
Heavenly Father must be carrying her (and us) because she smiled through every blood test, giggles through every finger prick, and say's things like "great job mommy, that hurt even less than the last one", with each shot I give her. While we are currently in a fantastic routine of daily finger pricks (which Haley does all by herself) and insulin injections, we cannot deny our great excitement for her soon to arrive glucometer and insulin pump. These amazing devices will be a game changer for Haley's long term health in managing a life of diabetes. We are so very grateful to understand what was making Haley sick and to have the technological advancements of knowing how to keep her strong and healthy. How wonderful it is to have the sweet smiles of children and for this wonderful life in which we can grow and have joy as a family.
Christmas break was upon us and all the kiddos were running from school to the van in great excitement to enjoy two weeks of nothing! Kadyn and Haley were running at me pretty quickly, but Thatcher was walking slow and had a frown on his face. He was not feeling good and I could tell he had a fever and chills so we returned home for rest and Tylenol.
Over the next few days the majority of our household took turns getting sick, including: Azure, Steven, and Haley. After a few days of rest and fluids everyone was back up and running full speed through Christmas break, everyone that is except for little Haley. For some reason her body was taking much longer time to recover, and by the end of the week we noticed massive amounts of sleep and a crazy thirst for water. (Anyone familiar with this "world" might already know what I'm about to say).
We took her to the clinic and immediately urine and blood was taken. We had barely walked through the front door when the phone rang with urinalysis results and a strong recommendation to take Haley immediately to the ER. From there everything is sort of a blur. She was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and admitted to the hospital for the next four days in order to get her blood levels normal again. This also gave Steven and I the opportunity to learn the in's and out's of blood checks, insulin shots, and carb counting.
It was a crazy few days where this new "reality" began to set in, but more importantly, those days were filled with amazing blessings from above. Prayers from family and friends across the globe, cards, and visitors to the hospital at the exact moment you needed them with the exact words you needed to hear. While I admit this new diagnosis seems to put a major "shift" in her path of life, we have never seen a kid handle a situation of this magnitude with such grace and ease.
Heavenly Father must be carrying her (and us) because she smiled through every blood test, giggles through every finger prick, and say's things like "great job mommy, that hurt even less than the last one", with each shot I give her. While we are currently in a fantastic routine of daily finger pricks (which Haley does all by herself) and insulin injections, we cannot deny our great excitement for her soon to arrive glucometer and insulin pump. These amazing devices will be a game changer for Haley's long term health in managing a life of diabetes. We are so very grateful to understand what was making Haley sick and to have the technological advancements of knowing how to keep her strong and healthy. How wonderful it is to have the sweet smiles of children and for this wonderful life in which we can grow and have joy as a family.
Friday, January 2, 2015
Bryson City '14
We surprised the kiddos with a trip to Bryson City for a ride on the Polar Express, a few days of R&R, and snow tubing. We accomplished everything we set out for...except the snow tubing. It seems there is no snow to be found (or even made) with the warm temperatures that NC has been producing. Nevertheless, the Polar Express was an awesome adventure that did not disappoint, and our quiet time spent in the solitude of the Great Smokey Mountains just playing games and enjoying each others company made for a fantastic family get away. We returned home just in time to ring in the New Year with Red Robin and lots of confetti!
Christmas '14
Christmas came in two sections for the Ballard family this year. Steven spent the first three weeks of December training in Texas, thus, before he left we got the house and tree decorated and ready to roll for the holidays. He returned home on the 19th, the same day all the kiddos finished school for Christmas break. It was great timing, and we spent following two weeks enjoying one another and the wonderful spirit this time of year brings.
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