Overheard

Background - We had a Family Home Evening on goals and we each set a few so that we could follow up in a month or two.

Me: Jocey, get your pajamas on... I'm sick of asking!

Jocey: Mom, you aren't reaching your goal. REMEMBER... BE MORE PATIENT!

~~Now a supplemental from Chad, until Cherisse erases it:

Me (Cherisse): [Rebuttal] Oh yeah, well you should obey... it's a commandment!

Jocey: I'm going to tell dad on you!

Me (Cherisse): So! He's on MY team!

Me (Chad): Ha!

Two Years Ago

We were told the worse news we could ever imagine. It felt like life just needed to stop for a while and let us enjoy our adorable baby. Unfortunately, life doesn't pause and slowly our baby's abilities started slipping and some completely vanished. We have saved Lucy's life more than I would like to think about and we have had many hours and even days of uncertainty. There have even been times that we have thought that Lucy would leave us.

When I think about all of the things we have gone through, I am completely overwhelmed with gratitude that Lucy is still with us. She is talking, singing, counting, and bossing us around. I never would've thought that Lucy would go to school, drive a power chair (and order one of her own!!), go to Disneyland and wear Jocey's hand-me-downs.

We feel so, so lucky that she is with us and doing well. We realize that we can't give Lucy everything this world has to offer but we do know one thing.

Lucy is loved.

She has all of the love that she needs and then some!

Photo by

Jingle Bells

Lucy is so much fun, especially at night...when she doesn't want to go to bed. She also celebrates holidays whenever she wants! Besides singing Jingle Bells all night, we read Gingerbread Baby.

The last several days/weeks

are behind me. I am very grateful and happy and completely wiped out.

At one point we were minutes away from taking our 102.2 temp, 200 heart rate, 92 O2 level baby (who was on the highest oxygen we had available) to the hospital but after a special visit from our Home Teacher and a treatment, Lucy miraculously turned around and we kept her home (after speaking with her Dr.'s, of course). We didn't leave the house all week and my days were spent constantly caring for her, which is okay because I love taking care of her.

One day I was out with a migraine and then this morning, I woke up completely stiff and I tried to get up and then I passed out (so Chad says). My neck is very, very sore but at least I am functional. Okay, now that I am done feeling sorry for myself I will try to sum up our Disneyland Trip. I do keep a personal journal, so don't worry that I waited too long and now I have forgotten all of the details.

I have a feeling I won't get done tonight so here is Disneyland Part I.

We were so excited to get to spend this time with family. Dallin, Jocey and Lucy were so, so excited to see their cousins AND to go to Disneyland. We were stuck in traffic for a while so everyone else got to the park before we did.

Here is the picture of everyone, except for my dad and our family (My mom, sister, Celeste and her family and my brother, Ryan and his wife Meagan)

We settled in our hotel (which was on the park grounds) and I lead D and J in a huge circle (I may have lead them astray) and we made it to our family just a minute before Chad and Lucy and they did a treatment before they left, D and J were a little mad at me.

This is Lucy excited to see everyone, she even remembered all of their names.

We got the "accessible pass" which was super duper handy and we didn't have to wait in lines with Lucy.
She kept waving to my parents and saying "Hi Grandma, Hi Grandpa". It was so sweet.

And this was Lucy's reaction after every ride. She wanted more!

On Dumbo, she kept saying "Go higher, Mom!" In a really demanding voice.

And then she cried when it was over.

She still wakes up and says, "Go Disneyland, right now, right now!" We didn't get pictures but Lucy loved the Peter Pan ride and kept exclaiming "Wow!" Oh and I got to play night nurse and I was up many hours every night, so excuse the half-done hair:)

Chad was so sweet and every time Lucy needed to go to the hotel for a treatment/nap, he would take her so I could spend time with my family. They would stop at the store on their way to the hotel and spend tons of money on Princess movies, figurines, fingernail polish, books, etc. Lucy was in heaven.

Back By Popular Demand

In the last few months, several people have told me that they go into the Lunt Family Blog Archives to find this video. To make it easier for you and me, I put it on our youtube channel and I added a bit of baby Lucy because she is too cute to cut out of a video.

Overheard

In Lucy's best efforts to not go to bed, she asks for a hug (who could resist a request like that, especially from her?)

Her tiny arms are around my neck and although she is too weak to squeaze, I feel some tension in her arms.

She starts yelling, "Chad!" "Chaddy!" until her dad enters the room.

She lures him in, "Hug, daddy."

While they are hugging, she looks up at me and says, "Picture, Mom."

So, I took a picture.

Jocey

is feeling much better. After she gets home from school, she is wiped out and her legs hurt so much she doesn't move a lot and she has been taking naps, which is nice but not nice that she stays up late.

There are other indicators that Jocey is feeling better. Like the time she told us that we were "meaner than a crocodile". I don't know what it is about girls, but she really tries to make us feel bad for disciplining her when she does something that deserves punishment.

Well, the other day she got mad and she came out of her room with a short ribbon and some scissors. She said, "If.....then I will cut a piece of my ribbon." We always try our best to not react and Chad responded, "What are you going to do when you run out of ribbon?" She said, "I am going to run away for one day."

I was in her room today and I found this...

Obviously, she gets mad at us a lot.

Princesses

I don't have much time (I have a very high-maintenance Lucy right now) and I even left it to Flip Video to compile a short video of all of the videos we took at the Princesses Castle, so here is the video that Flip made for me. Disney went over and beyond by letting us have all of the time we wanted with 6 princesses and not letting us wait in the 90 minute-wait-line. Depending on how things go this week, I will try to catch up on our trip.

This Autoimmune Disease

is beating Jocey up.

It totally stinks.

Lots of hurting.

Stomach Pains.

Spots all over her body.

Swollen Joints.

Hard to move.

Throwing up.

Itchy skin.

No appetite.

Tired.

Completely bored.

Weekly urine tests.

5-7 more weeks to go.

I wanna be where the people are...

The only way I could get Lucy's mind off of watching Caillou in bed was to sing her princess songs. I really need to brush up on my lyrics.

I promise I will post on our trip to Disneyland but I am patiently waiting for family to send me their pictures:)

Accessible

Our place is going to be accessible by tomorrow afternoon. No more bruises on my legs, back strains or 100 million trips between the front door and the car. Yea!

*Lucy had to see what all of the fuss was about so I placed her next to the window and she just yelled "Hi!" over and over and over to the landscapers.