milestone catchup

we have hit a few milestones the Koch household that somehow missed the blog.... so a few catchup pics of those.

This is the reward Braders picked out for potty training. You can see his "poo poo" chart in the background. he earned this back in July and has done great. Phew. One kid down.... one to go. Unfortunately when Braden has to go potty- Camiron usually runs to the potty with him and procedes to pull up her shirt and pee out of her- I don't know- belly button. She could be a little more difficult since she is pretty set that you do not sit on the potty. Now that Braden is trained, when he has to go he is big on "mom get out- i need my private time". How come he can go to the potty by himself, but if I have to go its a party in the potty?! The joy of being a mom.



Here are a few pics of Troy and Braden's backyard campout. Funny enough, Braden slept great, but they came in around 2 since Troy couldn't sleep a wink.




And of course I have to document Camirons first Piggytails. Poor thing has a double calic in the back so no matter what it looks like a wreck back there all the time. In hawaii they say that a double calic means they are a rascal, so I would say that is true, and that Bradens must be made up of a million! But she is pretty cute with her little piggies!

a few firsts

Camers had her 18 months apt..
Camiron- you are in the 50th percentile for weight and 75th percentile for height. Keep up those height genes- because i sure don't know where you got them!
You are such a fun little girl. you have to do everything Braden is doing. I have given it to buying 2 of every toy so you two will quit fighting! You are talking like crazy, and know hundreds of words. it just amazes us. Some of my favorites are Baden for Braden, apple, turtle and Freka for Fresca.
You love the phrases
Baden where are you?!
i wuv ew for I love you
You are the first to the table and into your seat where you state- I ready I ready.




Bradens first day of preschool
Braden started preschool 2 mornings a week. He loves it.... and i love having him there! It is fun to have a little one on one time with Camers.



The first time I could see
Lasiks is amazing. It is really amazing that after a 15 minute procedure and a 5 hour nap, I can wake up and see just like if I had contacts in! I love it :) These are my highly fashionable eye protector glasses that I "got" to wear at night so I wouldn't injure my eyes for the first few days.


A new little beach
we branched out from our favorite beach spot and came across this little spot. The kids had a great time looking at the fish in the little ponds on the rocks. It is great for a Sunday afternoon hangout.






Just another day at the zoo.... and a little lick on Troys head from dear Camers

my heart is heavy

I should have updated this sooner, but I just couldn't seem to do it.
My last post was asking for thoughts and prayers for my little niece McKensie. Unfortunately, the day she was to begin her radiation for her transplant they learned her cancer had come back. To proceed with transplant, she must be cancer free. This is the second time her cancer has returned just days before going to transplant. She began a new round of chemotherapy this last week instead of having her bone marrow transplant.
I know the Lord only asks a family to bear the burdens that they can carry, but I also know that the Lord must truly be carrying Brandon and Tiffany at this time.
Currently, Brandon is in Graduate school for his Masters in Social Work, they have 3 children 5 years old and under, and the hospital where McKensie is "living" is over an hour from their home in Kansas. They don't have any family in the area, but thankfully both grandmothers have been able to spend a good amount of time flying between Kansas and Utah to help them. They constantly trade off staying with McKensie since someone must be with her at all times.
With McKensie's last relapse she spent 43 days in the hospital and was to go home for 2 weeks before transplant. (for her transplant she would be in the hospital for at least 2 months). She was home 18 hours before they realized she had an infection..... and was right back in the hospital.
For those that know Brandon and Tiffany and would like to help, you can check on the side of my blog for their updates under Family. Their link has a spot for donations if anyone would like to help in that way. But I know that they just appreciate if you could keep McKensie in your prayers.
Her road to recovery is starting over again, and with each relapse becomes more dangerous and she is in more pain. We feel so blessed by the strength Brandon and Tiffany and especially little McKensie have shown. We love you guys more than words can say and know that McKensie's path is in the Lords hands.

Our Real Life Heros

Our cute little neice McKensie is getting started on her last round of radiation and Chemotherapy before having a bonemarrow transplant on September 8th. (well as long as everything goes as scheduled). It isn't often that I write about others on my blog- but I had to let them know how proud we are of them. It has been a tough road. We feel so blessed to have their amazing family as an example to us. With her bonemarrow transplant coming, they could use all the prayers they can get, so if you could remember their cute little family in your prayers, i know it will give them so much extra strength.


This cute little guy will be her donor. He is her special angel, her older brother Coleman.