Brett's Surgery Tomorrow

Hi my blog readers :)

Hope y'all had a wonderful weekend. Brett's surgery at MD Anderson is tomorrow morning, around 11am. We will arrive at 10 and be there a night or two. I will be sure to keep everyone posted on how things went and Brett's status.

Again, many of you asked how to pray! Thank you thank you! We need prayers for peace of mind, calmness, wisdom for the surgeons, let us trust God during this challenging time and strength for Brett during the recovery time. Our state of mind has been very positive and we are looking forward to tomorrow! We are fortunate to be surrounded by SO many loving, supportive and helpful friends and family. We have never felt alone during this journey. It's amazing how if you trust God and ask Him, He gives you the strength and support you need (and much more!). We see Him in everything around us and are so so humbled.

I will send a quick e-mail tomorrow from the hospital to let you know Brett is ok after surgery. We love you all!

Patricia, Brett & little O

Buddies

I caught Orien in a sweet moment with his puppy:

Every time Leah bothers me and I think of getting rid of her, I just remember how Orien adores her. I'm not sure I have the heart to give her away, especially since they're such good buddies now. Leah will let O crawl ALL over her. He pulls her jowls and ears and she lets out a tiny yelp, but doesn't move a muscle. I've always read that boxers are perfect dogs for families with kids, and it seems Leah fits in that category! I grew up with dogs and have a strong (and sometimes, obsessive lol) love for dogs! I want Orien to have that as well.

Is the photo above the sweetest thing you've ever seen? I think so!

PMB

Ahh-CHOO!

Sneeze. Sniff. Cough. Repeat.

With age, I seem to have worse and worse allergies. Houston, unfortunately, is probably the worst place for people with allergies. The pollen hit the air this week and I have been miserable! My head pounds, my throat itches, my eyes are dry and my sinuses are clogged. No over the counter meds work. So I'm thinking about visiting a allergy doctor soon. After Brett is fully recovered, I'm gonna head to the doc and see about long-term allergy care.

Orien seems to have the allergy gene too :( His nose starts running every time mine does. It would be nice to go out and enjoy this RARE rare Houston 70-degree weather, but it makes us sick sick! We sneak a trip outside for a few minutes here and there, but I keep them short. I hope everyone else in Houston isn't suffering like me! Count your blessings if you DON'T have allergies!

I'll check in soon...

PMB

Toddlerhood

This is what it seems I have to deal with lately:

Orien's personality has really developed lately. Well part of this development stage is trantrums! Fun stuff! He doesn't quite get what "discipline" means, so it's tricky to get him to listen. When we say "no", get looks at us and giggles or just does what he's not supposed to anyway. So we've started saying "no" and removing him from the situation. Consistency is the key!

It really tests your patience though. Babyhood was difficult, but I can see how toddlerhood will bring an entire new set of challenges. Of course the positives out-weigh the hard times!

But some days, I really just want to punch something. Thank God for naptime :)

Busy Week

This week my dad is visiting from Colorado. When he learned about Brett having cancer, he wanted to fly down and see us for a few days. We're going to pick him up soon and he'll be here til Thursday. We don't have much planned, which is perfect. I want a relaxing week before next week's craziness begins...

This weekend we have Orien's friend Leah's 2nd birthday party!! We can't wait. Leah is the sweetest and cutest little girl. Sunday I look forward to seeing my mom and fam again. They're in JH all week for Spring Break! I always miss them when they're gone. I'm sure they're getting some good skiing and boarding in.

This Sunday we have church and I set up a massage for Brett before his big surgery. He deserves some relaxing time before next week. Keep us in your prayers please! Hopefully this weekend I'll have some photos to post!

Patricia

Yeehaw.

GIDDY UP!

Last week we went to the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo - only the LARGEST rodeo in the world! We did the typical rodeo thing...ate cheesy nachos, cheered for cowboys, laughed at the kiddos riding the sheep, and sang to some good country music. Brad Paisley was the performer that night and he was AMAZING! We shared some good times with Kris, Laura and Kristina that night. I can't wait to bring O to his first rodeo next year!

Patricia

Preschool Already?

Orien is off to Mother's Day Out this fall!

I am so excited for him (and me). We signed him up for preschool two days a week from 9:30am - 2pm. He will be 18 months when he starts this September. It will be an adjustment for him at first, but I know he will learn to LOVE it. He's already so social and enjoys interacting with other kids and babies. I will definitely enjoy having some Mom time. It will be incredibly nice to have time to organize, file, workout, run errands, go have lunch, clean, etc. ALONE! I never thought I could get so excited to file bills :)

Sugar Creek Baptist is the preschool he'll be attending. It's only 10 min away and RIGHT next to David's office! They are extremely welcoming over there. The entire facility is clean, bright and colorful. Orien's class will have a limit of 10 kids (age 12-23 months) with 2 teachers. We peaked in the class during our tour and they were utterly adorable!!! I love that age, from 1-2 years old. They seemed so sweet and cuddly. The lady giving the tour reminded us that the class does NOT quite look this serene and calm in the fall...the little ones have to adjust first to being left with their new teachers! I have no worries though about my little man.

Ok, off to get things done while he naps. Love to all!!

Patricia

Today was a GOOD day!

MD Anderson answered our prayers!!

We were fortunate enough to already get an appointment at MD Anderson today. We went into thinking, "we'll just see", since we already liked the thoracic surgeon we've been meeting with at Memorial SW. Little did we know...the thoracic surgeon at MD Anderson had some good news for us. He said he does NOT think the entire lung will have to be removed - just the bottom lobe or two. He said he will most likely be able to leave the top right lobe, which will immediately fill the entire space that the other lobes occupied. He also said Brett will have ZERO problems after this surgery as far as breathing. He will be able to play basketball, ski, be in high altitude, jog, etc!!!! This is life changing. Brett was told before he wouldn't be able to be very active the rest of his life! Yikes!

The way the MD Anderson surgeons perform this surgery is far more advanced we learned. Their methods are 10 years ahead of the others we were looking into. The recovery time was cut down by 6 weeks!!! Our MD surgeon said Brett will go home the VERY next day (or two) and be good to go after a week or two. The previous doc said 6-8 weeks of doing nothing at home. And our MD surgeon said he will feel barely any pain, where the other doc said it was the most painful kind of surgery you can have. Big difference. We were stunned. Sorry if this sounds all jumbled! I'm so excited still! :)

We signed up right then for surgery for Monday, March 22 early that morning. I am so grateful for the MD surgeons! That entire facility is a world of its own in a league of its own. I was impressed from the moment I walked in. Everyone we encountered was helpful, courteous and HAPPY! We are so blessed to have this hospital in our backyard. People come from all over the world to MD Anderson and we couldn't be happier to be so close to it.

Thank you to everyone who has sent us encouraging emails, letters, etc. I read ALL of them to Brett and it helps us through each day - truly! Every day brings new challenges and worries but because of all of you guys we have been strong. All of you at RPC have made a huge, positive impact on us throughout this experience. We thank you for that. Our faith has grown tremendously during this and you all have been there every step of the way. Thank you to our friends and most of all family! Y'all are the BEST and more supportive family ever. We would not be able to go through all this without our wonderful family :)

We love you all so much! We'll keep ya posted.

P, B & O!

PS. If any of yall reading the blog want to email us, send it to: pbrame@gmail.com!

Lazy Afternoon

Today was the first day we felt some real HEAT! It was humid, sticky and warm. Hmm Houston :) Despite the heat, I really can't wait for summer. SO many awesome things to look forward to.

Here's a few photos from this afternoon. Sorry I haven't had much time to write lately. Life is BUSY. Enjoy!

P

Orien does not like anything in his way while crawling...

Daddy & Orien

11 Month Milestones

The ONE YEAR mark is just around the corner...I can't believe it! Here's a list of some of Orien's newest things he's doing to entertain mom and dad.

1. pretend like he's talking on the phone - says "hey" into the phone

2. babbles a lot more, adding new syllables

3. pulling up on everything

4. getting better at using a sippy cup

5. speed crawler!! not interested in walking yet

I know there's more but I can't think right now. He is crying in his crib and there are groceries waiting to be unloaded! I'll check in soon to upload a video.

Love,

Patricia

Kemah and Around the House

The first two photos are Orien and I playing with our Mac camera on the computer. We look so much alike I love it.

The next batch is from our Kemah day trip two weekends ago. We went with some of our home team (church) group and it was a blast. Orien passed OUT on the way home. We all had fun and the weather was perfect.

The last photos are of Orien's first try at spaghetti!!! It was a mess of course but went over fairly well. A bath immediately followed :)

Patricia