Better late than NEVER!

While Ricky was away at meetings I was chilling at home with my 3 best buds and quite possibly the cutest kids on the planet! What did we do? We did the one thing any sane person would do, we had a PARTY!!! I ordered them thier most favorite food of all time, pizza (this is a no judge zone, according to a freind it is FATURDAY after all..;) and watched The Polar Express. :-)


The most EXCITING thing that resulted from our "pizza party" was that Hannah ate her first full meal without needing to supplement with pediasure through her feeding tube, she ate an entire piece of pizza and an 8oz glass of whole milk!!!! She also used her potty chair with success for the first time today, and can count to 10! EXCITED doesnt even begin to cover the joy I am feeling.... tomorrow she may be feeling sassy and refuse to eat or drink enough by mouth to keep her hydrated and full. We have had many in the medical and educational feilds because of her "syndrome" lable her as a failure to thrive along with informing us she may never cognitavley be "there" and may never lead what what society considers a "normal" life.

I am one of her biggest fans and while I have not doubted her abilites for a second I did not forsee this certain event taking place for some time but tonight she reminded me of the things I have always known in my heart concering Hannah and her sweet spirit. Strength, and courage are two of the many beautiful traits she posesses, she has exemplified strength and courage in every sense of their definitions. Hannah started fighting with her first breaths of life and has continued to fight to this day for all the many simple things we take for granted on a daily basis, if that isn't strength and courage I don't know what is? She is so beautiful, she has such joy and love for life!

I would also like to make a point of saying that yes, while there were and still are those that limit Hannah in life there are many more idividuals that advocate, fight alongside her, and continue to cheer her on never once putting a limit on what she will or will not "acheive" in life all because she has been diagnosed with a "syndrome!"

This leads back to my two other children who are her biggest cheerleaders, Caleb and Zoey. I could go on an on about what they do and have done for their sister but I will spare you the hours upon hours of reading if I were to do so and leave with they are AMAZING!!!

HELP AMELIA

Amelia needs your help! Please read this mothers blog post I have enclosed and then if you feel as I hope you would please go to the next link and sign the petition to help save her life!
http://www.wolfhirschhorn.org/2012/01/amelia/brick-walls/

http://www.change.org/petitions/executive-vice-president-and-chief-development-officer-allow-the-kidney-transplant-amelia-rivera-needs-to-survive

With much love,

Samantha

May 2011

Zoey Elizabeth

May 2,2011

8lbs 13oz 20 3/4 long

Zoey is such a sweet addition to our family. She is such a happy baby! If Zoey is crying it is 1 of 2 things: 1 she is in her car seat or 2 Hannah is invading her personal space :) I was so worried about how Hannah would respond to another little person in the house... I dont know why I was so worried, she loves her! Zoey was my biggest baby thus far and I am so glad they took her early :) Zoey had jaundice so she got to sleep with a billy light for about a week. She was a our little glow worm.

Zoey is usually content to be on the floor as long as Hannah isn't around to attack her!
I love it when they are this small and can sleep in any position :)When we first brought Zoey home I was up with her every 2 hours and then my mother-law came to help for a week , laid her on her tummy one day and it was like magic...she has slept through the night since then. Zoey is a snacker when she eats. I feel like am feeding her all the time but I love it! Such an amazing feeling to be able to nurse your child :)
First time having a baby carrier and I love it! So nice to have your hands free and much nicer on the back. Zoey is our chunky monkey! She has roll after roll on her legs! She is so yummy...I could eat her up! We weighed Zoey and Hannah last night to see how they compared... Zoey weighed in at 16 lbs and Hannah weighed in at a big whopping 19lbs. LOL! Hannah is going to be getting Zoey's handme' downs..so cute!
Zoey with her friend Adric...he is 4 weeks younger and super cute! We love you Zoey and feel so blessed to have you as apart of our family! You are such a joy to be around and we love your smiles..keep them coming sweeterpeters!

Bone Age

We went to the endocrinologist yesterday for Hannah and we learned a lot of interesting things about the human body. A couple of months ago we took Hannah into the hospital to get a bone age scan. I was expecting a large x-ray of the entire body, but that isn't what they did. They took her right hand, layed it down on the table, and took an x-ray. I was puzzled, how can they determine the age of one's bones by an x-ray of their hand? Well, I found out how today. Back in the 1930s they followed a several people from their infant stage on through their adulthood and every year they would take an x-ray of their hand. The results were compiled and they were able to determine that the average age of the bones by which bones started to develop in the hand.

2 months ago Hannah had a bone age scan which showed her bones to be that of a nine month old when she was 18 months. She is short in stature so this is could be a good thing. It will allow her body to grow over a longer period of time.

It has been forever since I last blogged! I feel like winter dragged on forever and that we would never stop getting sick. I am happy to report that spring is in the air :) We have been super busy, who isn't these days?
I am 39 weeks pregnant and I go in on Monday for a c-section. We are really excited! After tearing my house apart a month ago I am pleased to say that as of last night it is all in order and clean again.I love a clean home!
Ricky has been staying busy with work, church, being super dad, and an amazing husband! He is the best :)

Caleb is so much fun! He is the best little boy ever. He amazes me every day and find my self wondering when he got to be so big. He will do or say something and I don't even know where he learned it. He loves to play outside and has become a pro at riding his bike.

We were able to attend an event for our local TARC where they had tons of fun activities for the kids one being taking a ride on a horse or pony. I thought for sure Caleb would freak out once he got up and change his mind but he didn't, he loved it! One of those moments where I stop and realize just how big and brave he is getting. He plays soccer on Saturday mornings, he is so fun to watch. He has been potty trained since the first of April.. I am loving it! We tried on and off for quit some time but he just wasn't ready.... we decided to try again one weekend and he has been in underwear since. Love it!

He has such an imagination! He will go from being a dog one day to a super hero the next. He cracks me up! He has been asking for a small dog, the answer is no but he keeps asking. I wonder when he will figure it out ;) He makes me laugh everyday! He reminds me to be kind and loving towards all... he has the sweetest, purest spirit!

Hannah! Where to begin? She has been through a lot lately and is still making leaps and bounds of progress! We are blessed by this sweet girl who always keeps us close to the spirit. She also got to ride a pony and was smiles the entire time. We are going to see if we can get her into hippo therapy. It is supposed to help her balance. We also started water therapy with but have not really been able to go much due to her surgeries and how busy we have been. That to should help her balance as well.

We decided in February to go ahead and start the process of opening her right nasal passage so she could breath better, eat better, and have more stamina overall. We scheduled the 1st surgery in March knowing that there would be a few more to follow but somewhere communication was lost and we failed to really understand how closely spaced the surgeries need to be. We thought 3 months apart...nope more like 3-4 weeks apart. What a mess! The 1st one was so hard on her body and we were there for 5 days. The second went great, and the third I canceled due to how much we had going on and the baby coming. So pray that the hole will stay open and she will only have to have one more surgery :)

Hannah also loves to be outside! She can walk and stand with assistance. This is huge! She is so close to doing it on her own but she has to learn confidence in her surroundings and abilities. She doesn't have a sense of balance so next you would use your vision to balance but since that is weaker than the average person as well it has been a more difficult process. She can pull her self up in crib... this is huge as well! She gets stronger each day and I am so excited for her to walk on her own. She is one sassy frass of a girl! I could give those cheeks of hers kisses all day if she would hold still long enough to do so. She is amazing!

I love being a mom! It is one of my greatest joys in life :) They teach more about life than I could ever learn else where. I understand why Heavenly Father says to be as a child. They are loving and kind towards all and so forgiving. They bring Ricky and I happiness and peace each and every day! Enjoy your sweet children... they grow so fast!

With love,
Sam

Thank You

Thank you to all for supporting Sweets for Hannah. We had a successful bake sale at Wal-mart on Saturday where we raised over $900. We baked about 90 dozen cookies for the event, which was extremely exhausting, but well worth it. We sold almost everything except for some snicker doodle cookies (which are Ricky's favorite).

Between the two fundraising sources we were able to raise a lot more money than we had ever expected, $2,700 in total. We will treat this money with great respect and appreciation and we will make sure that it will be used for its intended purpose.

One thing that is critical when caring for a child like Hannah is that parents need to be proactive instead of reactive. We have already seen a huge improvement in her overall health because of our efforts. Her vision is a great example of why we need to be proactive. She has one weaker eye that use to wander a bit, but because we noticed it and worked with her ophthalmologist we were able to correct this potential impairment with daily eye patching of the stronger eye. Her balance (vestibular dysfunction) is much more complicated, and it will take a lot more work to help her live with no sense of balance. Because we learned about her vestibular dysfunction early on we have been able to start early with certain therapies to help her walk and cope with this impairment. If we can manage these two impairments properly then her abilities to learn and receive a normal education will be extremely high. Many people hear the word “syndrome” and correlate mental development issues, but that is not the case with CHARGE and that is why we are working so hard with Hannah in these early years. We have no doubt as parents that she will surpass all other expectation and have a higher than average learning ability.

CHARGE Syndrome affects each CHARGEr differently and has numerous possible physical and health disabilities that accompany the syndrome. Some of the funds will help us attend the International CHARGE Syndrome Conference. This conference brings together many of the professionals that research and work with CHARGE Syndrome to teach parents about the advances that have happened over the last two years. This is still a fairly new syndrome and there is a lot happening in the field of CHARGE. It wasn’t diagnosed as a syndrome until 2004 when they discovered a gene that plays a major role in why many of the symptoms of CHARGE occur in a child.

You have made a great difference in Hannah’s life! We feel so grateful and overwhelmed by the generosity and love from others!
Thank you!

With much love,
Ricky, Samantha, Caleb, & Hannah :)

Sweets for Hannah

We are organizing a fundraiser in Hannah's behalf. The proceeds would go towards her educational and medical costs that we will be incurring this year. Hannah has a rare health disorder called CHARGE Syndrome, which affects all of the major senses and gross motor skills. Fortunately CHARGE does not affect the cognitive ability if she receives the correct interventions.

Hannah has faced many obstacles in her life and has already overcome more than a person should ever face in ones life especially a child. She is always happy and never complains. Some of the things she has had to endure include open heart surgery, ear tube surgery, hand surgery, and the most current nasal surgery. At 19 months she is currently learning to walk and she is almost there. We work daily with her on language skills and sign language. Due to her complex disorder overcoming the communication barrier is only half the battle. The other half is for us to learn as much as we can about Hannah so that we can provide the best treatments to help her achieve her highest potential. We love our little Hannah! She brings love, hope, and pure joy to our family every day.

The fundraiser will be a bake sale on April 23 at the Wal-mart on Wanamaker.

There are several ways that you could help us have a successful bake sale:

1.Donate items to sell

2.Let us use your oven a day or two prior to the event. We are planning on making large batches of cookies or brownies and we could use additional ovens to bake them.

3. Let us borrow some equipment such as: folding tables, money boxes, or money bags.

4.A babysitter for Caleb

5.A volunteer or two to help man the tables

6.If you are not able to help in any of the ways listed above or you live out of town you may contribute to our “Bakeless Bake Sale”

What exactly is a bakeless bake sale you might ask...

A bit of news we have today... A BAKELESS BAKE SALE is on the way. In these busy days, who wants to bake, A pie or cookies or even a cake. You’d be surprised if you counted the cost, of ingredients, heat, and the time you’ve lost. Baking for sales is extra work. Yet nobody really wants to shirk. So we’ve thought of a plan that’s really grand, and feel quite sure you’ll understand. In an envelope, if you like, please include the price... of a pie or cake or anything nice. Without fuss or bother, you’ve done your part. We hope you’ll give with a willing heart. Wishing success for our BAKELESS BAKE SALE, This is the end of our little tale.

Please email or call us if you able help in any of these ways.

sammyteed@hotmail.com

richardteed@hotmail.com

785-272-2391 (Home)

563-299-8867 (Cell)

Thank you and we appreciate all the support and prayers offered in our family's behalf!

With Love,

The Teed Family

Happy Anniversary!

5 years ago today I was sealed to an amazing man for all time and eternity! He is my best friend, he is everything good! I feel so blessed to be married to such a wonderful person. When Ricky proposed to me he used a scripture form the bible in Galations 5:22 which says But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. He said he knew when he had read this scripture that he wanted to marry me because I posses all these qualities but it is he who posses these traits. He is a man of God. He is giving in every way possible there is to give. He is a hard worker, talented in many ways, and honorable. I couldn't have asked for a better man to be my husband or the father of my children. He loves them dearly and shows them everyday. He tells me I am beautiful and that he loves me every day. I look forward to life with him, he is a rock. I know that no matter what challenges we may face in life that we will always face them together and that we will be stronger because of those trials in life. This passage is from 1 Corinthians 13:1-8 and 13 in the bible “Love is patient; love is kind and envies no one. Love is never boastful, nor conceited, nor rude;never selfish, not quick to take offense.There is nothing love cannot face;there is no limit to its faith,its hope, and endurance.In a word, there are three things that last forever: faith, hope, and love;but the greatest of them all is love.” Thank you Ricky for making me laugh and smile all my days! I love you!

All my love,

Samantha

Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday. ~Don Marquis

Is it obvious that I have been avoiding my blog? What is it about this time of year that makes us feel like we go none stop and then by the end of the day we are all exhausted? We have been busy these last four months. We celebrated Caleb and Hannah's birthdays, Hannah had a minor surgery and is eating solids, Ricky got a new project at work that has had him traveling quit a bit, and Caleb started pre-school.

I have been trying to stay on top of life and its many demands but until recently I had found myself struck with pure exhaustion! We have found that life throws curve balls when least expected and you just have to roll with the punches ;) This particular punch being that we found out we will be welcoming a 3rd child to this world May 7, 2011! I am 16 weeks and so glad to be done with the first trimester. We weren't even going to try for another baby until Hannah was at least the age of three maybe older but I guess God has other plans for us. We are nervous and a little scared but we feel blessed that Heavenly Father has entrusted us with another sweet child and find ourselves excited for this added adventure in life!

We had alot fun of this Halloween! Caleb was a cowboy and not just any old cowboy but a deputy sheriff! He go to dress up 5 times... fun times! Hannah Was a butterfly :) She was so sweet and sure does enjoy those dum dum suckers.

Hannah turned the big 1 in September. I must say it was wonderful to celebrate her 1st year of life! She has overcome so much in the last year. When she was born we didn't know what to expect... we had doctors telling us what a poor quality of life she would have. I knew as mother that was not so and the spirit testified that to me. We believed in her from the moment she was born. Hannah can see, she can hear, she plays like any other 1 year old, she is INTELLIGENT! We are so proud of her! She is going to do great things in life! She has taught me many things about life... what it means to hope, to have faith, courage, and how truly special the gift of life is! Children are one of the closest things to Heaven! She is a total daddy's girl. When her dad is home I am chopped liver...she wants absolutely nothing to do with me. She is a spit fire! She loves to do what Caleb is doing and often times makes him scream because she has messed up his toys he was playing with....she is going to be a mischievous child just like her brother :)

Hannah plum tuckered out after her big day
Such a big girl!

She had surgery to remover her extra finger... all gone!
Such a sweet face... I could kiss those cheeks all day!


Caleb turned 3 in August! I cannot believe how big he is! He is so full of life. He has the sweetest little spirit... he always wants to help me with whatever task I am completing. He adores Hannah, one of the first things he does in the morning is give her kisses. He started pre-school in September and has so much fun. He gets so excited when I tell him its time to go play with his friends. He is one smart little boy. He understands all that goes on. His three years of life have brought us so much joy! Kids make life worth living, it would be so boring without them. He had a Curious George party with friends. He had so much fun. They danced, played pin the butterfly on the log, and I let them finger paint on one big sheet of paper. He loves tents! Ricky will build him a tent every so often and he will spend days playing in it and as the days go on he will add to his "house". He loves playing pbskids.org on the computer. It is so much fun to watch him play. He has an amazing imagination. I am not sure where he picked this up but he calls me mother all the time! It is so funny because it comes out more like mudder...cracks me up! He is amazing and I love him!
First day of pre-school

The big 3!Life is wonderful!

With love,

Sam

Summer Fun

Whew! I feel like its been forever since my last post... no news is good news :) We have been busy having ourselves some summer fun! Caleb refuses to take naps during the day so more times than not I find him zonked out on the floor somewhere. He really likes to go to the cool (pool). There was a time we were spending almost everyday at the pool. The kids would be so tired they would fall asleep for the rest of the evening. I have no complaints :)

Hannah absolutely loves the water. She is such a water baby! I will sit down with her and she lays in between my legs then proceeds to kick and splash in the water all while letting out squeals of pure joy. She is growing so fast! She crawls on her back and is a little more tolerant of foods. She will let us put the bottle in her mouth and if she is in the mood will take a few sucks. She liked her bubble gum sucker and we have even caught her eating a Graham cracker. The food thing is slow but every step counts and I am so proud of her. I started writing this post last week and since then I am happy to report that Hannah actually ate some oatmeal! This is a huge step for us. She has yet another double ear infection but is on the mend.

We took the kids to Shawnee Lake one evening and had a picnic. Caleb loved it! He is such a good little helper. He loves life and it shows in all he does.
This is one of my favorite pictures of the kids. She is looking at him like he is the coolest thing in her little world!Ricky is an amazing dad! He is a wonderful example to our kids and myslef. He is so giving of his time and self. He is also the best husband a girl could ever ask for! I love this man!
Learning how to sit up. Such a little lady!Eating her first sucker...yum :PThis is what happens to our back yard when it rains...it floods:( My engineer of a husband is figuring out how we can solve this problem.

Our library has blockbuster Wednesdays for the kids. We went to one that was all about birds of the rain forest.

For the 4th of July we went to Iowa to celebrate with the Teed family! A fun time was had by all :)

Caleb, Hannah, Mabel, Charlie, and Faye... they sure a cute bunch!

We have been having a wonderful summer! Some days it has been so hot that we just stay inside with all the curtains shut and play. On days that its not unbearable to be out and about we go do stuff around town. One of our favorites is swimming and going to the 2 dollar theater when something good is playing.I love these kids! I am so grateful that I am able to be a stay at home mom. They are so full of life and love! I learn something new from my kids everyday. I would like to say that it is me who teaches them but in reality they teach me so much about life and whats important. Caleb helps in any way possible. He is going to be one that serves others through out his life. He gets this from his dad. His spirit is the sweetest! Hannah is a fighter. She works hard at everything she does and she accomplishes some new mile stone everyday! She shows us everyday that the medical facts we were given just to dont pertain to her... she is amazing. Being a mom is not always easy or the most glamorous but it is the most fulfilling job I have ever had. It brings joy to my life every day! I hope all have been enjoying their summer as we have!

Hugs,

Sam

Loving Life

These last few months have been crazy busy. What have we been doing one might ask? We bought and moved into our first home

(pictures coming soon), we have been to two conferences for Hannah, one in Kansas City and one in Iowa, and in our spare time we have been trying to keep up with all the other day to day stuff.

Hannah sure does loves her daddy. Little does he know she has got him wrapped around her little finger. She is a daddy's girl.Caleb is such a sweet boy. We go to the zoo once a week, he loves playing outside, he is natural at sports( I think he can kick a soccer ball better than me), he enjoys going to nursery, he loves reading, is into all sorts animals, helps with baby Hannah, wants to help with us everything, he has so much energy, and is just growing into an amazing little boy! I love his smile. Caleb is such a smart kid. He has a memory like no other. We have a routine when we go the zoo and if you try and skip anything he knows. Some fun things that he has been saying:

monney (mommy)

delicious..everything is delicious :)

whats dis (this) mess? Clean dis (this) mess up.

tops (stop) He cant say his S's so it ends up on the end of the word that starts with an s

He cant say his S's but he can say argentinasoures.

Ricky is really enjoying his job. Rick is loving being a home owner and all the fix it up things that came with the house.... our front and back yard being the biggest project of all. He is out there in the morning before work, after work, and on the weekend. He is playing on two softball teams this summer, and still manages to spend time with his family. He is simply amazing!St. Louis ArchHannah has been doing wonderful! Last weekend we went to a CHARGE conference in Iowa. It was wonderful. We learned so much! CHARGE kiddos are all different but the one thing that is true for all is they are amazing! We were able to meet a few kids and they were delightful. Hannah is rolling all over the place, she can definitely see, making all sorts of baby noises, and has even started playing on her tummy. She does this scoot thing to get her toys that are out of reach... it is so cute! Currently we are working on sitting up (all most there) and oral feedings. She is doing better with solids but not so much with the liquids. We will get there someday :) Her heart is doing fantastic. Her cardiologist is slowly weaning her from her meds. August is going to be a busy month for us. She has all her check ups and will also be getting her extra finger removed!

She has come so far since her birth. I am so grateful for Hannah's team of professionals, friends, family, and all that are cheering her on.... thank you!

We told him he could not go outside to get his ball because it was muddy and he didn't have any shoes on... this is what we found shortly after. Smarty pants!
Playing in the rain. He looks so grown up in this picture... STOP!

I have been busy with getting the house organized. It has been a little challenging the last month. Ricky went on a 4 day business conference the day after we moved in, Hannah was sick with a double ear infection, We have had doctors appointments in Kansas City, and we were gone for two of the weekends of the month. This last week has been extremely productive. I love being a mom. I am enjoying my new home and being able to do whatever I want to it :) I haven't done much jazzercise lately but I really enjoy going so it is my goal to make time for that during the week. I am doing great!

We really enjoyed spending time with our families in Muscatine this last weekend. We are looking forward to more road trips! Once the house is finished we will post pictures. We love you all and are so grateful for all the support and love we continue to feel daily! May you all be enjoying this thing we call life... we are!

With love,

Sam