Christmas Card ~ 2009

To our friends and family that we may not have addresses for..."Merry CHRISTmas from the Richardson Clan!"

Update on Drew's Surgery

Thank you to ALL that have called, text messaged, emailed and left messages on facebook and my blog...we have certainly felt the love & concern y'all have shown our precious little Drew. It means so much to know that our family is loved by so many dear friends & family.

It has been a difficult and tiring day but God has been so faithful to give us peace. Our doctors, nurses & other staff were awesome and very professional.

The surgeon's concern with Drew's surgery is that his cyst was very large and that he could potentially damage the ear bones during removal. If that happened he would remove the damaged bones and put in an ear prosthesis.

Thankfully, he was able to access the cyst and remove it all in one piece WITHOUT damaging the bones...NO prosthesis necessary and NO hearing loss! Praise the Lord!!!

Drew did well in surgery but had a difficult time in recovery. He was very combative and uncomfortable for quite awhile. He did not like the protective cup covering his ear and he kept trying to pull it off. Once he was able to keep some juice down his nurse gave him some pain meds and he calmed right down.

Drew was an absolute trooper today. I am so proud of how he handled all of this. He did much better than I ever would!

We are currently in our hotel and planning to drive the 3 hours back home. Hopefully, Drew will just sleep!

Thanks again everyone for you prayers, love & concern...we greatly appreciae y'all

Drew's Surgery

Thank you ALL...your prayers, phone calls, and warm thoughts have truly encouraged us. It's so awesome to know so many of you are thinking of our precious Drew and his upcoming surgery.

We are at our hotel in Little Rock and have an early 5:30am show tomorrow. Drew's surgery is scheduled for 7:30am and will take about 2 hours. Thankfully, he is the surgeon's first patient of the day so he won't have to go long without food & drink!

If I have computer access I will try to update from the hospital tomorrow.

Thanks again for the love you've shown us...all over the country!

Please Pray for Drew

Would you please pray for my sweet little Drew? He will be having surgery Wednesday at Children's Hospital in Little Rock to remove a cyst in his ear. The cholesteatoma is a serious condition that can damage the delicate ear bones and cause hearing loss, facial paralysis and even meningitis. Thankfully, our Ear, Nose, Throat specialist caught it before any of this occured. The surgeon will have to cut the entire length of his ear to access it so it will be a large incision. Drew won't be able to get his ear wet for 3 weeks so for my boy that likes to swim in the bathtub every night, this could be a problem!

Children's Hospital doesn't allow siblings in the waiting room due to lack of space and the influenza risk so thankfully, Papa Jim flew down from Seattle to help out. He can hang out in the hotel with Bryce so Jimmy and I can both be with Drew.

I will post some updates and thank you in advance for praying for our Drew.

Conversations

My days have been so busy lately, it has been difficult to find the time to blog.

I just have to take a minute though and blog about some of the funny conversations we've had lately!

Prayer time before bed last night...
Drew: "Dear God, thank you for lollipops, candy & m&m's"
Bryce" "God, we are not thankful. Those are not healfy for us!"
Drew: "God, I still love them anyway!"

Yesterday, the boys were talking about having a baby sister.
Drew: "Mommy, I want to have a baby sister. I will share my toys with her."
Bryce: "Mommy, I want to have a baby sister, too. But I DO NOT want to share my toys with her."
Drew: "Bryce, you will too share...we need to love our baby sister!"

Just for the record, there is no baby sister or brother in our plans! Life is VERY busy and tiring with these 2!
They sure are cute little boogers though!

Summer Vacation - 09

We are just returning from an awesome 3 week vacation in The Pacific Northwest...and are exhausted! I'll be back in a few days with some new posts!

Family Food Faves

My 14 yr. old niece Teal is visiting us from Seattle this week. One of our traditions is to spend time in the kitchen together trying out new recipes. We both love to cook and love to eat! Today we made this new yummy recipe I came across on this awesome blog Live.Love.Eat

Greek Pasta & Chicken Salad
1 Carved Chicken Breast, Original Roasted
1 cup grape tomatoes
1 6oz jar marinated quartered artichoke hearts, drained & coarsely chopped
1/2 medium cucumber, quartered lengthwise, seeded & cut into 1/4 inch slices
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives, drained & halved
1/3 cup coarsely chopped red onion
1 cup coarsely crumbled feta cheese
Freshly ground pepper for garnish

For the pasta:
6 ounces (2 cups) penne pasta

For the dressing:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tblsp finely chopped fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 tsp pepper, or to taste
1/8 tsp salt, or to taste

Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Meanwhile, whisk together the dressing ingredients in a large bowl. Stir in the chicken, tomatoes, artichokes, cucumber, olives, onion & feta cheese. When the pasta is done, drain well. Rinse with cool water; drain again. Add to the salad mixture & toss. Taste & adjust the seasoning.