Food provided by BRIO, Bounce Houses for the kids, lots and lots of shopping, the new teamASHER tshirts revealed, and making Great Strides towards finding a cure for Cystic Fibrosis.   That’s a lot of reasons to come to our auction :).  We have so many wonderful donations for you to bid on!  Check out the link below, I’ll keep it updated as we have more donations coming in every day. Come bid on some fun activities for you and your family, and finish your Christmas shopping all at the same time!

Join us as we CRUSH CF this year!

Saturday, April 2nd from 4-6p at The Commons at Redemption Church – Gilbert (1820 West Elliot Rd, Gilbert, AZ 85233).  Silent Auction ends at 5:45p.

2011 Donation List
http://bit.ly/teamAsher2011

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IMAGINATION MOVERS – Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Necas, Asher and Jeremy got to go and see the Imagination Movers – one of Asher’s fav shows.  And, if Jeremy and I are being honest, we’re big Movers fans too, ha!  So, I didn’t need to pull Jeremy’s arm too much to take Asher to the show.  They had a great time together on their “Asher Daddy Day”.

DINOSAUR TRAIN – We also got to go and see Buddy from Dinosaur Train at the Riparian in Gilbert.  Asher is still really into dinosaurs, and knows the names of several of them.  It’s adorable listening to him say, “Pteranodon”. It was a cute little morning letting Asher make some dino crafts and run around.  He definitely did not want to get close to Buddy The Dinosaur though.  I’m not sure what Asher’s deal is, but he can’t handle the whole idea of “forced friendships”.  Every time we try to convince him to stand next to someone else (whom he loves on tv!) for a picture, he turns into a ball of nerves and refuses!  I don’t get it.

The picture of Asher behind Jeremy pushing him cracks me up.  They had a huge Eagle there for us to look at, and Asher wanted Jeremy to get close to check it out before he moved in.  We were so proud of Asher, he raised his hand and asked two of the bird people what kinds of food the birds eat.  He’s getting so big.  Love him.

Jeremy bought Asher his first glove.  I’ll probably never get rid of this glove.  It’s adorable, and I love that we can start playing catch with him.  Jeremy and I were both tossing the ball around with Asher, and he probably caught the ball about 10% of the time, but he didn’t want to stop trying.  His throwing though, holy smokes, I think we have an outfielder on our hands…is that a compliment, ha!  I meant it to be :).

“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”  James 1:12

Jeremy emailed this verse to me a few weeks ago, and I’ve pulled it up so often just to read through it and let it sink in.

The 25th.  The 25th was a little hard to see on the calendar this month.  He would have been two months old this week.  And, instead of being able to hug and kiss his little body, and write a post about him being two months old, Jeremy and I needed to decide what we wanted to write on his gravestone.  This is an awfully painful thing to do.  And, last week the funeral home called to tell us that Paxon’s death certificate is ready for us to pick up.  I’m not looking forward to that for obvious reasons, and may put that off for another week.  New insurance cards with Paxon’s name on them.  Insensitive medical bill collector people.  The number eleven.  The number four.  Baby owls.  So many reminders.  I don’t mind reminders and thinking about him.  I just miss him.

I’m not sure if I’m being too open in sharing this.  We just have so many people asking us how we’re doing, and praying for our family, that I thought I would ask you to keep praying for us.  We’re still grieving the loss of our son.  I guess we probably will be for awhile.  I’m not sure how someone “gets over” losing their child.  And, to be honest, I’m not sure I want to…or I’m scared to…I always want his life to matter and be remembered.

My friend, Krista, shared this article with me and I thought I would post it here for others to read.  It was good for me to read, because it really put words to the emotions I’m feeling and made me feel normal.  Please don’t read this and think that you need to do anything me.  That really, truly is not my intention.  I just know it’s hard to find the words or know what to do for someone in this situation, and I feel like I’m honoring Paxon’s life by passing this along.  Hopefully it helps someone to know how to better love a friend through this all.

How to Help a Friend Who is Grieving

Our family also lost an incredible man this month.  Grandpa Hoverson.  Jeremy’s Grandpa went to be with the Lord on February 13th, and we will miss him more than I can explain in this post.  Grandpa left a beautiful legacy, and impacted more lives than he knew while he was here on earth.  He showed us how to love people, and how to live a life in service to God. The memories and the stories that each of us have with Grandpa will last forever.  He truly was a wonderful man, and so very special to our family.  We love you, Grandpa Hoverson!

We’ve arrived!  We are now officially in the world of PFT’s, and keeping an eagle’s eye on Asher’s numbers.  Pulmonary Function Tests (PFT’s) are lung function tests that evaluate how well your lungs work.  The tests determine how much air your lungs can hold, how quickly you can move air in and out of your lungs, and how well your lungs put oxygen into and remove carbon dioxide from your blood.  The two numbers we’ll most be focused on are his FVC, and FEV percentages.

~Forced vital capacity (FVC). This measures the amount of air you can exhale with force after you inhale as deeply as possible.

~Forced expiratory volume (FEV). This measures the amount of air you can exhale with force in one breath.  FEV1 is the amount of air you exhale in 1 second.

Quite honestly, this is a new road for us, so we’re just getting used to all the numbers and what they really mean, and I sort of tuned out after the doctor mentioned “120 percent”…Ok, that sounds pretty good to me.  We were just so delighted he was able to do the test this time!  They are brilliant to make it into a game of blowing out candles!

The last time we dealt with these numbers were when we put him in “the box” for his Infant Pulmonary Lung Function test.  We tried that contraption a couple of times when he was a baby, and gave up on that thing and the numbers for awhile.  I can barely even type about “the box” without having a rash of emotions because it was such a horrible experience.  So, we are so so so thankful Asher can finally do his PFT’s, and we can really get a good sense of how his lungs are doing!

Asher keeps growing at a great pace, and we’re so thankful!  He’s 36.7 lbs, and 40.6″.  His dietitian was hoping that he would be 38 lbs by now, so of course we left there with another charge to pack on the calories, but overall he is doing great with his growth.

We did leave there with a new drug added to Asher’s regime, and unfortunately this is a “forever” drug.  It’s an antibiotic called Azithromycin, which is pretty common in the CF world.  Our doctor said that we don’t want to ignore the fact that Asher is again culturing for Pseudomonas.  So he thought it would be a good idea to add this drug to help Asher with inflammation, and hopefully aid in the effectiveness of the antibiotic Tobi that he’s already on.  Our doctor said that we should do a back to back round of Tobi with Asher too, so we’re hoping we’re not giving this Pseudo crap a chance to colonize in his lungs.  Thankfully Azithromycin is a pill that Asher will take 3 times a week, and it doesn’t add to his treatment time.  A pill.  Piece of cake.  This kid chucks hand fulls of pills down his throat all the time.  So we’re praying for negative cultures over here!!!

Police cars + Fire trucks + Black Hawk = Three very happy boys!  Asher joined his buds, Chase and Carter, and went to a local school to check out a Black Hawk.  And, to our surprise they also brought in policemen and firefighters.  The Black Hawk was pretty epic.  It circled over the school and then landed in an open field right by us.  The kids were freaking out!  Then they just let the kids roam wherever their little hearts led them.  It was pretty unbelievable.  But, I guess if anything is built strong enough to handle rambunctious little hands, it’s a Black Hawk.

The school was also having a race for…something.  Shoot.  I should have asked about that.  But all the kids had numbers and they were keeping track of their laps.  Of course as soon as Asher saw the running he wanted to be a part of it.  I stood on the sidelines for awhile watching the flow of things and realized it was a pretty loose competition, so I freed Asher and he took off like the wind!  I have to say it (because I want him to read this one day), I was so proud of him.  I just stood there with tears in my eyes.  There he was, running in his long-sleeved, flannel shirt, jeans, and his semi-dress shoes, and so happy to be running.  He went around one time and I thought that was about all he could handle because it was really far, but he said he wanted to go again.  So he went again.  And then he went a third time.  Again, I just stood there with tears.  I got all sentimental and kept thinking about what a fighter he is.  I prayed that he will always be able to run, because it truly is his favorite thing to do.

I found out afterwards that he ran 900 yards.  That’s 9 FOOTBALL FIELDS!!!  I’m pretty sure CF lost that battle!

This kid owns the word cool.  Here he is, not trying, not caring.  Just cool as can be.

I think some of the best memories I have with Asher are the ones that we haven’t planned.  The ones when the car makes that “eeeeerrrrrrr” sound.  When nothing else matters, but stopping to take a train ride and play at the park.  Those are the best.

Daddy got a new job, and we couldn’t be more proud of him.  He’s the new Children’s Pastor at our church, and we’re thrilled for him, and thrilled for the kids at church because they scored someone who loves God, loves them, and loves to have fun!  We’re so thankful, and look forward to seeing what God has in store for all of us as we begin this new journey together.

This has been fun…kind of.  I bought Jillian’s Biggest Loser workout, and Asher is WAY into it!  We work out together and it’s the cutest thing watching him doing jumping jacks and situps.  I had to go and buy him his own little 2 lb weights, so he’s really into it now.  He told me today that I can’t use his weights because they’re too heavy for me.  I’m only using 5 lbs, so he’s pretty much right, ha!  He’s kind of a slave driver.  He’s constantly asking if we can do our exercises.  Exercise is a huge part of his life with trying to keep his lungs as clear as we can, so bring on the Jillian :).

Busy Town by Richard Scarry

I just have to recommend this game.  We’ve been playing it since October and love it.  Asher and I play it together, and we also play it as a family.  It’s a great cooperative game.  We have to get all of our people to the picnic before all the pigs eat the food at the picnic.  Part of the game involves a “Where’s Waldo” component as well which is fun for everyone.  Anyways, it’s a great game if you have kids of different ages.  Definitely a winner in our house, and I just wanted to share it!

First off, is this not the coolest logo you’ve ever seen!!!  Of course I’m partial, but Jeremy is also a genius, so it’s a great combo :)!  And, the little “11” is in memory of the number of days we had to love and kiss and hug our precious gift, Paxon.  We’re fighting this year for him too.  Our two boys have been stricken with this terrible, life shortening, life stealing disease.  This has GOT to stop.  We are NOT backing down.

So, it’s time.  It’s time to start promoting and getting excited about this years Silent Auction.  I have to warn you up front, the gloves are off for Jeremy and me, and we’re not taking any prisoners.  Our drive and our need for this cure is even greater this year.  So look out because we’re feisty about this cure :).

Please consider joining us as we fight for our boys.  SATURDAY, APRIL 2ND FROM 4:00-6:00P.  The Commons.  Redemption Church (1820 West Elliot Rd, Gilbert, AZ 85233).  It’s going to be a great, totally casual time with lots of great shopping!!!  All proceeds are going directly to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for research (90 cents of every dollar goes towards research for a cure).  Jeremy and I mean this from way down deep – if you cannot afford to donate, please don’t feel any pressure to, just come and be with us!!!  Mark your calendars!!!  And please help us by sharing this blog, or this information with everyone and their 4th cousin, ha!

Check back on this blog for updates and specifics on each donation item we have received, total value, and starting bid.  I’ll be posting it soon.  For now, let me just wet your whistle with some of the amazing items and businesses we’ve received donations from…

Ruger;  Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa;  Desert Botanical Gardens;  Tony Romo (QB for Dallas Cowboys) signed football;  Grand Canyon Railway;  Joe’s Real BBQ;  The Legacy Golf Resort;  Phoenix Art Museum;  Adrian Wilson (Arizona Cardinals safety) signed jersey;  Liberty Market;  Phoenix Symphony;  Regis Hair Salon;  Roy’s;  Designed by Emily;  Reid Park Zoo;  Stratum Laser Tag;  Simply Ravishing Salon;  Serrano’s;  Skateland;  Texas Roadhouse;  Verde Canyon Railroad;  Lorraine’s Lovely Cleaning;  Whitfill Nursery;  Daisy Bowtique;  Creations by Beth;  Heritage Makers;  Whitlatch Photography;  Arbonne;  Vintage Rose Wraps;  Joy Frameworks;  Canvas on Demand;  Melissa Trottier Interiors;  Lisa Leonard Designs;  Coach;  Piano Lessons by Jennifer Whitlatch;  Tastefully Simple;  Norwex;  LuvARoo;  Scentsy;  Mya Bruce Designs;  JesterZ;  Kristie Braselton;  Bower Salon;  Uppercase Living;  Some Enchanted Eating…

See, told you it’s amazing!  And, this is just a handful of the items.  Seriously, JOIN US.  Oh, and let me just remind you of one of the little cuties you are helping out…

If you’re not able to attend our event, but you would still like to donate to teamASHER, just follow the link below.  You can also sign up through this link to join our team in walking with us at the Great Strides Walk on Sunday, May 22nd at 8:00a at Tempe Beach Park.  We would love to have you!

http://www.cff.org/great_strides/dsp_donationPage.cfm?registeringwalkid=7450&idUser=351422

Thank you SO much for all your love and support of our boys!

THE CURE IS OUT THERE. FIND IT.

Jeremy, Rachel, Asher, and our heaven baby, Paxon

Please email me with any questions – rachelolimb@gmail.com

Friday the 4th was one month since we said goodbye to Paxon.  It’s been a busy few months, and knowing we were coming up on this anniversary, we needed to get out of town for a joyful distraction.  So, we decided to make a quick trip to California and take Asher to SeaWorld.  We had a great time together as a family, giving Asher some undivided attention, and building some new memories.

Jeremy landed us a beautiful resort thanks to a smokin’ deal on Hotwire.  We were surprised when we pulled up and saw how beautiful the grounds were, and couldn’t believe that our room was right off the Mission Bay beach!  Any resort that has antique carousel horses with blown glass bulbs hanging from the ceiling has stole my heart forever!!  It was perfect.  And, I just have to make mention of the picture of Asher standing next to the tree.  He wanted me to see his scarecrow :).

We had a great day at SeaWorld!  Shamu was definitely not a disappointment, by far the best show we had been to.  That place really has you on a tight show schedule if you want to see everything.  We were all pretty showed out by the end of the day, but enjoyed all of them…except the Sesame Street thing, that was pretty lame, ha!  I guess a lot of the special effects weren’t working that day.

Asher’s favorite exhibit by far was the sharks.  So much so that I was cursing those things when he asked to see them again and we were on the other side of the park, ha!  The first time through the exhibit he clung onto Jeremy and was so leery about everything, but of course thought they were the bees knees once we left.  He was so proud for walking through the whole thing by himself.

And the picture of Asher on the ropes was cracking us up.  We were trying to coach him through laying down and rolling down, but he just couldn’t figure it out.  He kept saying, “like this?” and then getting into some weird position.  He literally looked like a fish flapping around out of water, it was great.

The one really NOT great thing was eating lunch at this restaurant that looks like a ship.  We thought we had found this quiet spot to have our lunch, until we were introduced to the winged vultures with the red beady eyes, and a spear for a nose.  Ack. One in particular sat on top of a table next to us just peering through our souls!  Of course he had to be right behind me where I couldn’t see him, so after every bite I was whipping my head around to make sure he saw my eyes and knew I was planning my attack just like he was.  I was a nervous wreck, ha!  I asked the waitress if the birds ever attack people and her eyes got all wide and said, “oh yeah.”  Sheesh.  How long are we just going to let these birds feel like they can ruin us at any moment!  Of course I was sitting towards Jeremy (who said he would watch for him) and of course he flinched (because he thinks he’s funny) and of course I screamed (really loud).  Wow, this is really long, all to just warn anyone going to SeaWorld to stay away from the big white birds with the red beady eyes, and a spear for a nose.  They have no mercy.

You can’t go to California without spending time at the beach.  There are so many great places in Cali, but Coronado Island is by far one of our favorites.  And, the Del has the most manicured beach and the softest sand!  We spent the day living it up beach style, and then headed home.

As we were walking off the beach a little something flickering in the sand caught my eye.  I noticed it was a piece of a page from a book and couldn’t help but take a picture.  It felt a bit poetic as we were turning this page and wrapping up our weekend.

Since we spent so much time at the beach we decided to try doing Asher’s nebs in the car on the way home.  We walked up this huge tower they had at our resort, and Asher climbed rocks and literally ran a mile in the sand on the beach, so we skipped his vest knowing how much cardio he had gotten that day.  It worked out great to give him his meds while we drove and he watched a movie instead of having him do his treatment when we got home at 10p.  I’m sure we’ll be using this little technique in the future!

I did get a whole new appreciation for what Asher, and every cfer goes through every day, several times a day.  I could barely catch my breath sitting in the back seat with him, and getting some deep breaths of the Hypertonic Saline and Tobi, before I had to crack a window.  Those meds are potent.  My lungs and my throat hurt and I couldn’t stop coughing.  It’s making me pray harder for strength for all the cfers I know, and even harder for that cure!!!!

Asher and I decided this week that we needed a little color and life in our backyard.  He was so cute with his little gloves and shovel, and surprisingly enough a big help!  He kept saying, “what next?” I love a hard worker :).

Jeremy and I were just talking today about how big he’s getting.  He’s able to do so much now by himself, and it’s been a blast doing older things together like playing board games.  We have had some challenges with this new little 3 year old attitude and tone he’s developed, but I guess this parenting thing would be boring if he never challenged us (L.O.L!!).

The three of us went today to buy a tree for Paxon.  It’s a dwarf orange tree, and it’s beautiful.  We’ll always think of our sweet boy when we look at it.

We made another trip with Daddy to the AZ Museum of Natural History.  Asher loves this place!  And, he really loves it now when he’s wearing pants or a jacket with pockets so he can put his hands in his pockets.  It’s just about the cutest thing.

Asher has a new compressor that we are very excited about!!!  He has had the same model compressor to run his nebulizers since he was about a month old, so he was ready to hit the big time.  This new compressor will last him forever, will give him the proper flow and pressure for his meds, and we’ve seen a bit of a decrease in the time it takes to administer each drug.  We’re back on our Tobi rotation again, so with having to do Albuterol, Hypertonic Saline, Pulmozyme, and Tobi, every minute we can shave off is a victory!  This thing is legit, and we love it.  It’s pretty comical how excited we can get about new medical equipment :).

These beautiful children (you have to read about them below!) are to thank for Asher’s new compressor…

Are they not adorable!!!  Here is Asher trying in his best 3 year old, cute and goofy, way to thank them and show them his new compressor.  Apparently I had my finger over the mic for part of it and I’m noticing now it’s really shaky, but it was early in the morning, ha!  We just wanted to thank the children and show them how they have loved and cared for Asher…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Yh3Q0y5fso[/youtube]

These children are students of Tapestry of the Desert Home School Co-op.  This past November, they hosted an art show and sale with all the money going to our family to help with medical expenses for Asher and Paxon.

These incredible children spent hours and hours lovingly using their talents and interests to bless our family.  There were paintings, crocheted items, pens with flowers on them made out of duck tape, photography, drawings, art made out of magazine pages…everything was beautiful!  The love, time, and heart that these children put into making each piece of art blew Jeremy and I away.  I wish I had pictures of everything they made for a keepsake.  It brought us so much joy having the children walk us around and show us the pieces they had created.  And, on top of the children filling the room with their beautiful art, they were also asked by their parents to each use their own money and purchase art that their friends had made.  So after many wonderful friends stopped by to support the event, the children were scrambling around the room so excited to buy their favorite pieces.  It was so sweet.

Jeremy and I were literally at a loss for words when they revealed the grand total to us that night.  The children raised for our family, $2,033.30!!!!  We still cannot get over this number.  We are forever grateful to these children, and their wonderful parents who worked even harder at planning, organizing, and promoting this event!  We love you all so much!

They have also continued to follow our family and have faithfully prayed for Paxon and all of us.  These children have once again been a reminder to me about how much God has a purpose for children.  They may be little, but they are so mighty and can impact this world for Christ.  This week they all made us beautiful sympathy cards, and completely ministered to my heart.  Children truly are a gift.

My parents planned to be here for a month to help us out with Asher and free us up to take care of Paxon when he arrived.  Little did we all know that my water was going to break 3 hours after their plane landed, and they would be pretty much on full-time Asher duty for about a month.  We are so thankful for my parents being here to take care of Asher so we could love Paxon, and grieve him.  Asher loved spending time with his grandparents, and experiencing new things.  He was all over the city checking out new parks, going bowling, he went to two movies (which he sat still for!), he learned how to fish, built a Darth Vader bear at Build-A-Bear, went on many walks, and perfected his beeshing and pillow fighting skills.  Thank you, Dad and Mom, for being here for us.  And, thank you (insert lots of sarcasm) because now Asher is bored out of his mind!

~.~

We’re so thankful that the whole Olimb family was able to be here with us for Paxon’s funeral.  They all took off of work, paid the ridiculous airline fees, and lugged their families across many states to be with us.  We’re so thankful to all of them, and for the family memories we were able to share in together.  They also chipped in to help put together Asher’s awesome new backyard toy, and made one little boy really happy!  And, all us girlies had the chance to go to the Phoenician for a fancy tea date.  We are so thankful for the joy they brought in the midst of all the hurt and pain.

~.~

We’re so thankful that our Hoverson family lives close to us now, and we’re able to share in life together.  Asher is especially LOVING his cousin Rush.  They are buds for life for sure!

~.~

We’re so thankful for how much Jeremy and I are still hearing about how our sweet Paxon has impacted people’s lives.  On top of all the emails/cards/calls/texts, we had over 20,000 visits to this blog during the 11 days that Paxon was here on earth.  It blesses us to hear and see that people loved our boy, and thanked God for his life.

~.~

We’re so thankful that Jeremy and I were able to get away for a day to take a road trip to beautiful Sedona.  We went for a hike along a river and were surprised to find that we were hiking in a winter wonderland.  It was a beautiful day.  Jeremy brought his hammock and camping gear for us to have some hot chocolate while we listened to the river run…and a very obnoxious whistling hiker…don’t be this person…ever.

On a side note, I’m so thankful for Jeremy, and our marriage, and our like-mindedness throughout everything with Paxon.  Jeremy and I were forced to make some pretty heavy decisions with Paxon, and those decisions were hard enough for us to make in unison, I can’t imagine if we were in disagreement.  I’m so thankful for how God protected us and kept us one.

~.~

We’re so thankful for how God has used extremely generous people to bless our family.  All of the door gift droppers have been had!  We know who you are!!!  We’re not really sure how we could ever thank all of you for your constant love to our family every day for months and months.  You’ve taught us a lot about being selfless, and holding someone’s hand as they walk through great suffering.  We’ll never forget your sweet acts of kindness to our family.

After we met with the funeral director, Jeremy transferred $2,500 from savings to checking to pay for part of the funeral expenses.  That day we received two checks from some more extremely generous people totaling $2,500.  This is not a coincidence.  Just another example at how God has used friends to provide for us.

Jeremy received a letter at work the week of Christmas from an unknown individual saying, “In honor of Paxon, my Christmas gift this year is a donation to Smile Train. Surgery costs for four children born with cleft palates, paid for with love for Paxon. Your son is impacting other lives. With much love + prayers, Your friends in Christ.”  It makes me cry just thinking about the four children who have been blessed with these surgeries!!!  We’re so thankful to whoever you are, and your generosity to love others through Paxon’s life.

~.~

This week family left, and Jeremy started back to work.  It’s been an emotional week for me.  Life is moving on, but I don’t want it to move on without my Paxon.

I have to keep reminding myself that Paxon is the Lord’s child, and He chose Jeremy and I to love him for the short 11 days he was here.  We wish the time would have been much longer…but, we’re so thankful we were chosen to be his Daddy and Mommy.

Our friend, Travis, sent us an email and we love what he said, “I believe Paxon knows better than any of us the sound of pure laughter only possible after the great shadow over life has departed. I look forward to hearing that sound, even coming from Paxon himself through perfected lungs!”

~.~

We’re trying our best to keep fun and laughter a high priority in our home for our other Asher boy.  So, what better way to do that than to have a silly string fight!  We’re so thankful for our Ash-man.