The Birthday Day

Saying goodbye to six!

Pretending to be sad she's seven!

Hutch trying to show how old he is!

Birthday present hunt is underway

Awesome clues

Another gift

Whoa Nelly, a Nook!

The cake we all decorated together.  I loved doing that with them.

Making wishes

Enjoying a homemade ice cream sandwich!

Swimming

Once the weather warms up, we hit the pool as often as our schedules will allow.  This was our first trip and the water was still a bit chilly, but we made it through and had lots of fun.

 

 

Love this face!

I will never get tired of your crinkly nose smile Finny girl!

A split second after this Hutch was in the water.  He was slightly traumatized but eventually got back on the turtle and tried again.

Bathing Beauty

Last Day of School

Here are the last day of school pictures for 2011-2012.  Don't they look so much bigger and way more mature?

Cute

Cute

Oooops!

The First 500

I am in the process of clearing off my iPhone so I can fill it back up again. Most of my quick everyday pics are now on it because it's surgically attached to my hand. :)These are some of my favorites from the first 500!

Googly Eye Fun

Beautiful Eyes

Chloe showing off her moves

Face Paint Fun by yours truly and the ever impressive TeeTee

Country Girl At Heart?

J.B. crashed during a long wait at the doctor's office.

Hutch showing his strong and sweet sides as he sleeps.

How Chloe fell asleep in the swing I will never know.

So full of life and always on the go!

One of the last pictures of Finn with all her baby teeth!

Kite Flying 101

J.B. was looking up at his crazy siblings playing on the swingset.

Safety first!

So pretty!

Seven is fabulous!!!!

For Finn's big number 7 celebration, I gave in and allowed a skating rink party.  It's the only place in town to really have a shindig other than the park and it was hot.  So we had the most awesome puppy party ever. 

 The adorable and very yummy cake!

 Playing on the floor---notice the distinct lack of skaters.

Present time brought lots and lots of smiles.  Her favorite gifts were shiny, dog themed, and colorful. 

And just so I don't forget one day because they are few and far between now:

Finn says "japaneeno's for jalapeno's".  That's just cute.  What hurts my heart is the fact that she has recently begun saying meatball instead of "neatball".  I'll miss that one and the top of spaghetti song won't ever be as cute as it was.

A Whoooole Neeeewww Woooorrrrlllld!!!

This title has nothing to do with our Disney trip , which you will read about later or maybe have already read about if you followed our trip blog.  It is the place we have found ourselves since a day in May.  Throughout the beginnings of this year, we have worked hard to get to the bottom of some medical issues with Finn.  The most pressing one being a constant sniffle and/or runny nose.  Sometimes it would have a cough and sometimes dark eye circles.  I long suspected allergies of some sort but had no proof.  In April, we had her tested for environmental allergies like pollen, dust, mold and animals.  She tested positive to 6 of the 8 trees, all 6 weeds, dust, and the three grasses with bahia being the worst.  So, since I thought we might be on the right track, I requested food allergy testing to rule out any issues there.  I honestly believed that we would leave that appointment thinking we had wasted every body's time.  Much to my surprise though, she tested positive for peanuts, all the tree nuts, lobster, crab and codfish.  We were handed

and told to avoid all of the things on the list. Ummmmm, what? That's not what I wanted to hear. So I went into super research mode, talked to several doctors, and every one else who would listen while I tried to get my footing in this new land. Here is what I have either been told or read: She could grow out of it or grow into it. It's like flipping a switch and you never know if or when it will happen. Some people can eat those foods just fine even though they tested positive for them. You have to combine tests with actual reactions to get a clear picture of how allergic you might be. Some people just have sensitivities or intolerances but are not truly allergic. (This is great advice and makes me think Finn will be fine because she has yet to have a severe reaction to anything. But, if her only reaction is a runny nose then what does that mean? Is she or isn't she?) Allergies are tricky and scary and confusing. A definite positive on a skin test is an 8mm wheal and Finn's were 5mm wheals. This was an old system of categorizing reactions but does it again give me hope? Maybe some. It's not fun. And if we were truly in a life and death battle right now, I don't think I would ever sleep or feed her anything but bread made in a nut-free facility and water. So that's where we stand, epi pen in hand, and always watchful.