Matt Gets His Braces Off

Matthew finally got his braces off.  This is the before photo.  He has had them on for about 20 months now.  He just turned 14, so he is growing into a big young man.  He is even taller than his mother now.  Matthew has grown up and blossomed into such a great helper at home with his younger brothers, and also does really well in school.  He and Nicholas completed their black belts last year and the year before, so now Matthew is working on achieving his 2nd degree black belt.  Watch out!  You don't want to run into him in a dark alley! ;)

Matthew looks so grown up with his braces off.

Krew thinks he is grown up like his older brothers.  He likes to wear their shoes and pretend that he is big.  What a cute and silly boy!

Kurt, Krew, Axel, and Kory.  Krew and Axel look like cousins, don't they?

Krew with big brother Blake.

Losing Weight and Feeling Great

Here are the "after" photos: My good friend Jana and me. I am about 15 pounds lighter here.

Kurt's after photo: He is about 20 pounds lighter here. You can see the weight loss in his face. He looks almost as young as Brandon here.

After photo: I am about 20 pounds lighter here. Here is our secret: Good old fashioned diet and exercise. A strict diet, that is, and exercise 5-6 days a week with cardio, weights and yoga. If anyone would like more info on our diet, let me know.

A "before" photo.  The before photos were taken at the beginning of our (Kurt & me) weight loss journey in November, after the baby was born. Here is a photo of my good friend Jodi and me. This was taken right after Lexi was born.

Before photo: Kurt and Krew (after Krew's 2nd haircut).

Before photo: Kurt & Krew & Ashdon.  Awww, they're all so cute!

Krew's Tooth Ordeal

Krew had quite the ordeal the other night.  He was playing and twirling.  Then he lost his balance, fell forward and landed on his face, knocking his left front tooth backward.  Not just a little back, but way back.  He was bleeding, crying, and clearly in pain.  We called my sister, who is a dentist, and she said that we must pull the tooth forward that night or Krew would lose the tooth.  She explained to Kurt how to do it.  Then I held Krew down while Kurt pulled the tooth forward.  Krew cried so hard that he lost his breath.  This photo was taken the next day.  You can see that the tooth relaxed a little backward because of the trauma and swelling.

We took Krew to the dentist in the morning to have him looked at in person.  The dentist repositioned the tooth again.  He said that Krew broke his pallet bone.  And because he has been having random bloody noses from both nostrils since, we think he also hurt his sinuses.  His lip was so swollen that he was almost unrecognizable.  The dentist said that this injury will take weeks to recover from.  

Krew didn't sleep very well that night (and so neither did we), so he fell asleep while playing. One of the hardest things about this ordeal is that it hurts Krew to eat, or to drink from his sippy cup. We tried to help him to eat, he wanted to because he was so hungry, but he wouldn't because of the pain.  We had to make sure we kept Motrin in him, then we resorted to feeding him liquids and applesauce from a syringe.  This turned out to be quite the ordeal for mom and dad too because it's hard to see your child suffer.

We really are a "House of Boys," aren't we? Here are father, 2 sons, and a grandson. (Can you tell who is father and who is son? Who is son and who is grandson?) Brandon, Ashley, and Ashdon came over for a visit. Ashdon is getting so big and can crawl now. Maybe he and Krew will grow up to be buddies.

Loving and Losing Lexi

As I reflect back on the birth and death of Lexi, I remember how I felt when we found out about her condition before she was born. We were completely heartbroken and devastated.  We were in so much emotional pain, the sting of which I had never before felt. We did not know how we would make it through the experience.  I thought I would literally die of a broken heart.  I had previously heard of other parents who had lost their babies, and I remember thinking that such an experience would never happen to me because God knows I could never make it through that.  

Here we are on the other side of the experience. We are still alive. We are OK. We are humbled. We are changed. We are happy. We are more grateful. Grateful for the little things. Grateful for the big things. Grateful for our family. Grateful for Lexi. Grateful, even, for our trials. We are stronger because of this trial. Trials can strengthen us if we allow them to. 

I have learned that God doesn't give us a trial which we cannot endure. The trial may seem unsurmountable, but if we trust in the Lord and ask for His help, he will help us through it. And we will be stronger people for having endured it. 

I would venture to guess that most of us don't have an accurate understanding of the depth of what we can endure, with the Lord's help. I think each of us is stronger than we think we are. Our potential is infinitely greater than we comprehend. There isn't anything we cannot endure, nothing we cannot achieve, with the Lords help.  If we tap into the Source that is the Lord, ask for His help and trust in Him, there isn't any mountain we cannot climb, no goal we cannot achieve.  As long as we are in tune with the Lord and heading in the direction He wants us to go, He will help us to accomplish and endure anything.

And life is to be enjoyed, not just endured!

Alexis Kate Anderson

My name is Alexis Kate Anderson.  My family calls me Lexi. My parents are Kurt and Karen.  I have 6 brothers.  I was born on October 5, 2009.  I look like my brother Krew.  I have my daddy's thick hair and my mommy's nose.  My mommy says I am soo beautiful.  I lived for only 57 minutes because  I had a condition known as "Thanatophoric Dysplasia,"  a lethal form of dwarfism. My lungs were too little when I was born so I could not breath. My daddy gave me a blessing right after I was born. I got to meet my grandparents and brothers and other family members before I went back to heaven. My daddy and mommy were heartbroken when they learned I would not be staying with them for very long, but they understand that I have another mission to fulfill.  And they know that they will see me again.  My family loves me very much.  My family is a Forever Family. I get to be with my family forever. What a great day it will be when we can all be together again.

Klondike

Kurt, Matthew, and Nicholas went on the Klondike campout.  Krew and I stayed home, though Krew was very sad about being left behind and wanted to join them.  Kurt loves to go camping and is an avid camper.  However, the campout was snowy, cold, and wet. It snowed 8 inches and got down to 5 degrees.  They came home shivering and tired.  I think Krew and I had the better time.  What do you think?

Home

We are Kurt and Karen.  This is the house Kurt built for us.  We have 6 boys.  They keep us busy.  We also have a daughter, Lexi, who is in heaven now.  We feel so blessed. Life is good.  This is our new blog:  House of Boys...   Enjoy!