Goodbye October...

Halloween is over (but the candy is still lurking in my pantry) and the Holidays are almost here! I'm counting down the days! I could hardly wait until November 1st so I could break-out the Christmas music! And as you know, only crazies play Christmas music BEFORE Halloween.(That's why I waited until the day after!!) Or, maybe I'm crazy too because most people think it's against the law in America to play Christmas music before Thanksgiving. If you are one of those people, I say, "Bah-humbug" to you! But, I do it with a smile on my face and Christmas music playing in the background. ;)

Farewell October...bring on the Holidays. That being said, here are a few pics of the October happenings at the Dance home.

Cooper's First Birthday...and the Lucky Penny (Ugh!)

October 28th, 2010. Coop's very first birthday! I got him all dressed in his birthday outfit (not to be confused with his birthday suit:)) & planned for a really fun day.
(I still get a little weepy thinking that my baby is already 1! Seriously? How did that happen??)
We had a fun day with a lot going on. Around four o'clock I noticed Cooper was kind-of wheezing. I watched him for a while & figured he must have been coming down with a cold/little cough. Then about two hours later I was in the emergency room. It was when he started crying and couldn't catch his breath that I knew something was seriously wrong. I don't think I have ever been so afraid of anything, ever. His lips started turning blue, and I had to try and remember anything at all that I had learned in infant CPR/choking training. Which was honestly years ago and did not help ease panic button.
I held him face down and started pounding on his back to see if there was something in his airway. Landon looked at me like I was CRAZY! He started crying and said, "Mommy, what doing? What doing? Copper okay?" So sad, and sweet at the same time. Ben still wasn't home from work, so I did the only thing I could think of, as fast as I could think to do it. I grabbed Landon in one arm & Cooper in the other & drove to the E.R. calling Ben and my mom on the way.
After a pretty intense half hour, and a chest/neck x-ray, we discovered that Cooper had swallowed a penny (on the x-ray it looked like a quarter) and it was lodged in his throat. A family friend (Dr. Hinckley) rushed to the ER and performed the surgery to remove the penny.
Poor Cooper. It was heartbreaking to have to see him get an IV & go into surgery. I was just so thankful that I was able to get to the hospital in time. Dr. Hinckley said we were really lucky, and it easily could have been tragic. (Ugh! Don't even say that!) I thought kids who swallowed pennies just found them in their diaper a day later. I guess Cooper is the exception! :) As the mom of this family I am making a new rule: No more trips to the ER on your birthday!! No...let me amend that rule. No more trips to the ER EVER! Please and thank you!

P.S. The next day Cooper was eating his birthday cupcake(a day late) like nothing had ever happened. We are, and were so blessed.

How could you not fall in love with these faces???

Mother of All Posts

So, after nearly six months away from the blogging world, I have been reprimanded. It took several people "nudging" me, two lessons on journals (one given and one received), an audio book about life's legacies, a comment in Stake Conference, and a journal I found from my parent's dating experience. I decided that someone was trying to tell me something. No promises, just the best I can manage. :)
So much can happen in six months. So... here's a quick recap with lots of pictures.