WE ARE BACK!

LOVE THIS FAMILY!!! We had our family photo taken while we were in Montana for the Alfrey Family Reunion! Super Fun!

Why can't I post? I think I need help!

This site won't let me post anymore? Any ideas?

She is back in the Game!

The results are in and Tayla has been cleared to participate in all sports! She started track practice on Tuesday and I feel such joy just watching her come home from practice all happy! Running makes her sooooo happy! What a gift!

Here is the Latest on TAYLA

I have had quite a few of you ask me about Tayla. I thought that blogging might be the easiest.

We have seen a cardiologist. He is almost positive that she has a syndrome called POTS. What that means is that her heart is always beating very fast. He had her wear a HOLTER which monitors her heart for 24 hours and then we mailed it back. That happened last Thursday and the Doc said it can take up to 3 weeks to get the results. He had her do that so that he could rule out any other possibilities. Our hope is that is comes back normal and then we know for sure we are only dealing with the POTS and can treat it with beta blockers. We have another Doc who is an internist and he is going to put her on some pills that will help with the brain. He is suggesting that she has some post-viral symptoms in her brain that are not firing completely to the heart which in turn causes the heart to behave the way it is. We feel very confident in this process. I am horrible at relaying the medical terminology and getting it to all make sense, but I can tell you this: I know we are on the right track! Between the 2 Doc's we are currently working with, I know in time Tayla will be healthy!

In the meantime, Tayla is still struggling with headaches, dizziness, & fatigue. I think when your heart is beating up to 135 bpm ALL DAY LONG that it might cause your head to hurt. She is super sad that she can't participate in any sports at this time. We are hopeful that it won't be long until she is running again! Running is her absolute love and passion!

They say that everything happens for a reason and so I have contemplated what the purpose of this trial might be. Here is what I have come up with. Before Tayla ended up in this position, I don't think her heart was as humble and open to the teachings of the spirit. Due to this trial, she has really opened her heart up and appears to be more willing to know what the Lord has in store for her. This lead her to getting her Patriarchal blessing today and WOW, what a gift! I wonder if she would have been as receptive had she not had to put her own agenda aside and listen to the Lord.

For me, I have learned many lessons, but the one I feel the most passionate about is the following. Tayla's YW leaders fasted for her and they told Trever & I so that we could fast along with her. As I was fasting, I, of course was starving. I had a thought during one of those moments when I wanted to cave and it went something like this: Would you not give up anything in this world if you knew it would help your daughter? At that moment I was given strength beyond my own. If my fasting would in turn help my daughter, then I could do it & do it happily! I think I might have had a little micro understanding as to how much our Savior and Heavenly Father love us. I always knew that, but I understood it just a little bit more! I love that girl! She is amazing. She has gifts that I marvel at and at times I wonder, "How did I get the honor of having her come to me? She is a gift in our home!"

i'm in love, i'm in love & i don't care who knows it!

I love February! I love it! I love it! I love it! I don't even need a box of chocolates or fancy jewelry or fancy dates, I just love that there is a month set aside for me to remember how much I love to LOVE and how good it feels to be LOVED! I always want to do something for Trever to show him how much I love and appreciate all that he does and all the he is, but I stink at thinking of creative fun ways to show that. I know that some people feel pressure to do & be, NOT ME! I just think it is a time to open your heart and FEEL THE LOVE!!

I do want to do a little tribute to Trever even though he NEVER gets on the computer. This is more for me than him, I guess!

I think a list of my top ten favorite things will do, so here it goes!

MY TOP 10 FAVORITE THINGS ABOUT MY MAN:

1) I love that he makes me feel like a woman!
2) I love that he isn't opposed to folding laundry & helping around the house with "my stuff"!
3) I love that he loves his Savior & Heavenly Father!
4) I love that he cares about what makes me happy!
5) I love how protective he is about his children!
6) I love that he would rather be with his kids than play in a church basketball game!
7) I love that he can fix anything!
8) I love how I feel when he walks into a room!
9) I love that he remembers details and all the things I say!
10) I LOVE THAT HE LOVES ME!

I'm just recovering!

We made it through Halloween, Trever's parents visiting, Abi's birthday in November, Thanksgiving, Trever's brother moving out, switching rooms around, Talan's birthday on December 21st, Christmas, the Banker Family Reunion, Elli's birthday on December 31st, New Year's Day, Ryder's birthday on January 18th, & Trever & Deanna's birthday on January 24th! In the mix of all that life happens! I can't believe that the laundry fairy and the dish fairy don't magically show up! I think it should be mandatory that with the wiggle of a nose you can keep up with life!

What great memories we made though! I know that this time of year gets super crazy for our family, but I do enjoy it! I welcome the break when it all ends just so I can catch my breath!

Here is a picture of all of us at the Banker Family Reunion. We are only missing Beau & Chelsea!

I know that we don't go any where fancy, or do super exciting events, BUT I can tell you that my kids have the best time playing with their cousins! All of them love the reunions! It's their favorite time of year and something they look forward to every year! I can't thank my mom & dad enough for making the sacrifices necessary to start and carry on such a legacy! What amazing parents! I also want to thank my siblings & nieces & nephews for the sacrifices they make! This just doesn't happen folks! All these people make huge sacrifices to come. Whether they be financial, personal comfort, vacation time, sports, physical labor, mental labor, SLEEP & everything else that goes along with this! I'm just filled with such love for them all! Thank you! Thank you!

THE COATS!

This is the bass singer in the group! You can see that Ryder could not make it! He fell asleep at the very end!
Elli & Abi with grandpa Banker
Abi with grandma Banker
Tayla & Skyler with little Ryder's face poking through! He is so funny!
Here is the whole clan, showing their suprise faces!

The White Family; Deanna, Paul, Skyler, Hunter, Cooper, Dallis, & Lexis decided to surprise our family with a night on the town. Them & my parents took our WHOLE family to dinner & then bought us tickets to go see THE COATS. They are an all male acappella group. It was amazing! We all had the best time!

Walk for Tayla

Let me start out by giving a great big SHOUT OUT of "THANKS" to our amazing YW leaders! These leaders decided to gather the YW from the Green River Ward and participate in our local area 'Christmas Rush' which is a little fun run/walk. This was decided based on Tayla's recent health diagnosis and because she can no longer run, they decided to walk it with her! They tie-dyed shirts in her favorite color with the circle being over the heart, they encouraged other yw in our ward to participate and they completely loved her to the fullest! As a mom, I feel such gratitude to these ladies! They fasted for her, prayed for her, text her, & constantly care about her! What more could you ask for? I hope these ladies feel the love of their Heavenly Father in their lives for the service that they render!

Happy Halloween

Homecoming 2009!!!

This is Tayla, my oldest daughter, and her date Michael! This was Tayla's first homecoming!

This is Michael, Tayla (my daughter), Meagan, & Skyler (Deanna's son). This was such a fun night for these kids! We decorated the shop for dinner and Trever's brother, Ollie, made dinner.
Tayla & Michael eating their salads! OOOHHHH.......so much fun!

Pure Relief!

So, the neurologist saw Tayla today and here is what he said. The spots on Tayla's brain are benign. Many people have them, but because they are benign, they don't study those people. So, they just are there and we have no need to worry! All of her other symptoms are from a very severe virus that she had. He said that her body was still recovering from this viral infection and that it sometimes settles in different places in the body causing months of pain. He suspected that it had settled in her neck which was causing the other symptoms such as her headaches, dizziness, & nausea. The spots are not in any way related to her virus. It just so happens that her body started to shut down because she was pushing it too hard, or her parents were pushing her too hard!

We feel so much relief! Tayla feels validated. She thought she was so mentally weak because we kept telling her that in order to progress as an athlete, you sometimes have to push through the uncomfortable times. Good one mom & dad! Every time we said that, she felt like she must be crazy. Now she knows that she is not crazy, but that her parents are! I have learned that the these children are so physically active and that there will have to be more down time. Good lesson to be reminded of!

A big THANKS to all who cared and prayed for her! She felt so much love! It is amazing to see what power Christ like people have when they rally! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Love to you all! Dani

How to trust the UNKNOWN!

Well, I guess I should blog since there are many who have asked about Tayla and her current health situation. First off, I just want to say Thank You to all who care so much about our family. We feel your prayers!

In the middle of July of 2009, Tayla had a little cold. She muscled through it and we carried on. In August, she started training for Cross Country. She was getting up in the early mornings, running, doing yoga, strength training, and more running. She continued to do that until one day she just quit getting up. Her training slowed down and she just did the bare minimum which was going for a run. As time went on, she slept more, had lots of headaches, lots of nausea, dizziness, & zero energy. I needed to get the girls their physicals for school, so we saw the Dr. and at that visit I expressed to her Tayla's symptoms and she ordered a blood test. The blood test came back negative for mono, but the Dr. said that she had the Epstein Barr Virus in her system so it was likely that she had had mono. We didn't think much of it. Tayla tried to rest and stay hydrated and we figured that she was on the road to recovery. School started, cross country started and life just pushed forward. Tayla mentioned here and there that she was still having dizziness and headaches and how she is frustrated because she doesn't feel the same. After one of her cross country meets, she had a side cramp and she came over to me crying. Her times weren't getting any better and she was super super frustrated! So, we made an appointment with another Dr. and this is where we begin!

This Dr. described Tayla's body as being completely fatigued. He diagnosed her with POTS. Her heart rate continues to rise when she stands. He also mentioned that her parasympathetic system in her body was not responding to help her recover. He then did and ECG and diagnosed her with Wolf-Parkinson-White syndrome. He put her on some pills and told her that she had to stop cross country and that she would not be playing basketball. The goal was to get her body healthy so that she could participate in track in the Spring. We left his office feeling peace, but sadness. We knew Tayla was going to struggle with not running or playing basketball or snowboarding. We also felt relief that we were on the road to recovery. This appointment was on October 9th, a Friday. So, Saturday night Tayla started to complain that her chest hurt. I figured that it was probably anxiety from not being able to do what she loves. We made it through the weekend. Let me add a little background info here: Trever & I read scriptures with the girls in the morning before school. Tayla is very self disciplined & self driven. Even though she doesn't need to be up that early, she gets up without complaining. On Tuesday morning, the 13th, Elli came into our room and said that Tayla can't get up because her chest hurts too bad. This was a red flag. She always gets up. We finished reading with the other girls and informed them that we would be taking Tayla to the ER. In the ER, they ran every test possible to figure out why her chest hurt. They decided to do a CAT scan and the result of that test came back that she has multiple calcifications on her brain. They did a MRI and that test came back 'clear'. The ER Dr. sent us back to our family Dr. and had her refer us to a pediatric neurologist. We see the neurologist on Wednesday. Most of the time, I feel like everything will be ok. I have tried to research as much online as I can, but there are too many 'things' it could be. I will admit that I feel scared at certain moments just because of the unknown. So, here we sit. Just waiting for Wednesday to come. I wish I had more definitive information, but there you have it!

Back to School!

Well, I have been pretty busy lately, just trying to stay focused. I have decided to go back to school and get a degree! I struggle a little trying to accept this new adventure. I also struggle with trying to wake my brain up! I'm pretty sure that after the first semester my brain with be warmed up and ready to go! Let's hope! I am leaning in the direction of finance. I am surprised by that! I never really thought I would actually go in that direction. I was actually headed in the "medical assistant" direction when the Lord rerouted me. I'm sure I have some fine tuning in my listening, but I knew without any doubt that being a medical assistant wasn't His plan for me! So, here I sit, just going back and hoping to find my niche!

Life continues to move forward. Tayla turns 16 in 11 days! She is pretty motivated to finish her Young Women's Personal Progress Program. That is a precursor for driving and dating! UGH! Did you know that was more of a punishment on me then her? I NEED HER TO DRIVE!!!

We are all healthy and happy! I can say that life is good! It's not what I had envisioned for this stage, but I'll take it!

Ideas for Spring Break?

With Spring Break fast approaching I am searching for some low budget ideas. I feel this desire to do something simple, fun, & cheap! I'm usually not up for road trips due to the cost of fuel, but it seems reasonable and if I didn't have to travel too terribly far then why not? I don't seem to be good at finding something that entertains the "teenagers" and the little kids! So, I'm open to some ideas. I think we need to mix it up a little bit over here. It'll just be me and the kids since Trever will be working! So, let's hear it folks! Spice up my life!

I LOVE YOU MARA!

I just want to let the Adams know how much we love Mara and miss her! Please know how much we love you all!

Back In the Game

We made the big move! I just wanted to post that we are in and "settled"! Anyone that would like our new address, please email me! The kids are adjusting and so am I! I have been having such a hard time feeling guilty because I couldn't believe that I would do so much grieving! BUT my mom summed it all up when she said that leaving our home was probably tough since that is where Trever & I "grew" up! So, with that we continue to move forward and adjust! Thanks so much to all who helped us move and listened to me when I needed to vent!

Trever is 40!!

It actually happened! Trever celebrated his 40th birthday on January 24th! Deanna, my sister who shares a birthday with him, threw him a party! She 'interviewed' him prior to the party to find out if he wanted a theme party and what his favorite colors are. He answered that if he could really have a theme party he would have a "THONG" party. We all laughed and knew that that would never happen, so she went for his favorite colors, which are blue & orange! Here are some pictures of her fun decorations! Apparently she went for the theme!

The Highest Form of Giving!

With Christmas over and the new year behind us I wanted to take some time to update y'all on how amazing our holidays were! I can say that I know without any doubt that my Heavenly Father is completely aware of our family! He seems to keep sending us little miracles that say, "I know you are there and I haven't forgot about you, so hang on and keep trusting." I can't even explain to you how many miracles have blessed this home! I would love to list them, but I know my mind couldn't even do the Lord justice in recalling them! I will just say that people have given to our family in ways that we could have never imagined! The crazy thing is this: we aren't even worthy of them and we don't need them like so many others. I stand amazed!

I should also report our new path! Trever has chosen to become a firefighter! He has passed his written and the physical test and now we are waiting & hoping that he will be chosen for an interview and make it through that process! I couldn't be any more excited for him! He is so much happier & feels like he is finally on the right path! The process of becoming a firefighter is undetermined in length. Some get on with departments quickly and others it has taken years. So, there really isn't any rhyme or reason to how long this will take. In the meantime, he continues to work for All American Chimney and truly loves the physical labor and working with his hands!

There has been a lot of silent suffering going on over here. I am not so silent about our trials and Trever tends to be very silent! We have grown to a place that I never knew existed. I love that man more than I knew possible and I can feel his love for me more than ever before. We pray that he will be hired quickly and know that the Lord has a plan for us and whatever happens will be His will. In the meantime, we pray constantly for answers in how to maintain a family in this economy and hope that we are learning the lessons that are being placed before us!

So there's my first post back into the new year!

Merry Christmas!

I decided to blog our Christmas Card! My amazing neighbor and friend, Nichole Jessee, designed our card! Thank you Nichole!

I added a picture of Trever & I when we were engaged. I thought it was fun to look back on the years. Our family has definitely grown! We have had so much fun over the years!

I'm not sure where to start in recapping our year! It has been the most memorable year to date! Our family has grown in ways I didn't know existed. Our marriage has grown to heights unimaginable!

So, here is what each of us in our family has learned this year:

Trever: How much my wife & family truly mean to me.

Dani: My trials have given me a relationship with my Heavenly Father that I would never trade!

Tayla: Boys mental age is 6 years younger than girls.

Abi: We all have dreams.....Follow them!

Elli: Your best friend can sometimes be your worst enemy.

Talan: You can never create too much funky junk!

Berkley: Girls make my cheeks blush!

Ryder: Fruit snacks should count as one of the four food groups!

We love our Savior and we know that He loves us! We feel His love in our hearts and home more than we can express!

Merry Christmas to all of you! We think of you often and hope that your lives are full of love!

Love, The Alfrey's

We Love Fancy Nancy!

Mrs. Claus had an idea! Since Fancy Nancy was Mara's favorite book, she thought that each of the kids should own one for their "book library". To make the book more meaningful, Mrs. Claus had Heather, Mara's mommy, sign each of the books. I can't tell you how special it was to watch these kids read what Heather wrote to them. My little Abi just cried. It truly was so special! My favorite part is the very first page when Fancy Nancy shows us a picture of her room before she made it "fancy" and then how it looked all "fancified"! So stinkin' adorable!
Abi, Elli & Tayla with Ryder, Berkley & Talan!
Abi, Elli & Tayla! These girls are so fun! I love watching them grow up! They just seem to grow a little faster than I would like!
This is Abi, Elli & Tayla with Dallis & Lexis. TOO CUTE! Dallis is 22 months and Lexis is 5 months. They are Deanna's girls. We love them!
Here is Ryder, Talan, & Berkley! They wanted footed pajamas soooo bad! Good thing they made the nice list! Mrs. Claus did them right!

Santa's Coming! 9am!

Tayla asked for a boyfriend and world peace! She's something else! She really wants a letterman's jacket but I don't think Santa finds that to be something he can decide on. That particular gift requires too many personal choices. So we'll see what he comes up with!

Abi doesn't know what to ask for since she just buys whatever she wants with her babysitting money! Someone help Santa!

Elli would like unlimited texting. I don't think Santa wants her to grow up that fast! We'll see what he decides in the end! He's holding strong!

Talan asked Santa for "all the spy gear in the world" along with the new ripstick (the one with the metal in the middle so he can "grind"! Good thing Santa is multilingual since his language is hard for even me to understand. Grind? what is that?

Is this not the cutest picture? Berkley asked Santa for a hot wheels set, a bike, new leapster games, a yo-yo, zero gravity car, and the list goes on! So cute!

You can see in this picture Santa is questioning Ryder to make sure he fully understands! He would like a really big choo choo train that goes round and round and is THIS big!

So, I have to admit, I love Christmas! I know the true meaning and I think we do pretty good. We're going to let Santa bring one gift for them this year so that he has some toys to take to the other kids. We told them that Santa would leave a few things in their stocking and we would add to it. There's this part of me that wants Christmas to be so magical! I want Santa to break all of the "rules" that we have decided on as a couple and let him go crazy with those cute kids! They are so fun! I feel so blessed to be THEIR mom! What an honor it is to me!

So tomorrow is our big TURKEY BOWL!!! I better get to bed so I can be on my game! This is serious business!

It was just a puzzle!

Well, tonight my little Berkley and I had a chance to do a puzzle. At bed time, I asked him and Ryder to choose a story. Berkley didn't want a story, he wanted a puzzle instead. In my mind, I kind of complained, since I knew a puzzle would require more time! Let me back up and explain my little Berkley. He is probably my most lovable child. He loves routines, hugs, order, kisses, down time, hugs, books, kisses, puzzles, hugs, games, kisses, and for his siblings to not ruin his stuff! This type of personality is not always conducive to a family of 8. It's hard to keep the same routine with teenagers, everything is constantly out of order at some time, down time only exist when you are asleep, and trying to keep your toys sacred with a little brother is virtually impossible. So we try hard to help Berkley stay functional, but frankly, it is a chore!

I read Ryder his books first, since he didn't nap. Then Berkley and I moved on to his puzzle. It was so amazing. That little 5 year old put that puzzle together, corrected my mistakes and stayed focused until the whole puzzle was finished. I was in awe! Then when we finished, he pushed his puzzle against the wall to try to protect it and just sat and stared at his work. He hugged and kissed me so sweetly and then crawled up to bed. I thought to myself, "it only took me a few minutes and I can't believe the results." He was so happy! It was just a puzzle!

MIRACLE OR GLOVE?

To some of you this might just be another picture of a little boy sleeping. NOT SO AT THE ALFREY HOME! I have to admit that I am one of those moms that could never listen to my babies "cry it out." Therefore, they all just slept in bed with us. Yes, that made for some very creative intimate nights. The worst part is that I have been sleep deprived for years and am just now realizing it! I knew I lacked good sleep, I just never knew how good! So, for the last two nights Ryder has been going to sleep in his bed. I'm not sure if it's the glove that has helped him or what. (ok, i have no idea why he wants to wear a yellow 'glub' and at that, only one?) He hasn't stayed there all night, but it's a start! When we started talking to him about this, he said, "how about dad just stay and watch me sleep." So, Trever puts him & Berkley to bed and Ryder is at least staying in his bed for some amount of time!

Is 14 really old enough to go to Stake Dances?

Abi is in the pink and Aly is in the yellow? We took the girls to the "DI" and had a little fun dressing up in the worst outfit they could come up with. I think they accomplished their mission.

This is my little Abi doodle! She actually turned 14 on November 7th. I am in A LOT of shock! Two girls that can go to the stake dances. She did a fun little party with her friend Aly.
Good morning girls! Dad bought them doughnuts! Lucky!

And the winner is?

Is this gross or what? Our pumpkins didn't make it very long here in the humidity. And to top it all off, it was very warm here. Team #2 is the camouflage hat wearing pumpkin and Team #3 did the rocker pumpkin.
Trever is such a romantic! I would have never done that, but I find it fun and cute! Luv ya babe! The little pumpkin is Ryder's, also known as Team #1. It is disgusting with the fur growing out of the eyes! OOOHHHH! The pumpkin behind these two is the one that "Team #1" should have carved together. Tayla would have to actually stay home for a change.

So, I declare Team #3 as the winner. They took the most time to really create a pumpkin. They also worked the best together as a team.

Our First Cross Country Runner!

Tayla had a great year running cross country. We are so proud of her accomplishments: Team captain, co-captain, Most Improved, Most Inspirational, Most Valuable Runner! Wow, we couldn't have asked for a more complete year. Ok, so she was the only one on the team, details! I have to admit, that I'm not sure I would have done this sport without some sort of team camaraderie. Yesterday was sub-districts. 13 schools, each with a team of 7, except Mountain View. Top 35 runners qualify for District! Tayla is a sophmore and has done great for her first year. One of her greatest accomplishments is breaking the school record. In this photo, she is standing with her coach! Just the two of them!

Here is view of all of the teams lined up with lonely Tayla in the middle in orange.

Here she is finishing the 3.2 mile race coming in at #34! She made it to districts! Go Tayla! She made Mountain View history, being the first girl to ever qualify for districts!

We finally made it to the Pumpkin Patch!

So, Trever decided to have the "First Annual Alfrey Pumpkin Contest". This means that we divided the kids into three teams and they have until Halloween to carve, paint, decorate, or do whatever they would like to their pumpkin. Only rule: you have to do it together! Grandma & Grandpa Alfrey and Grandma & Grandpa Banker will be the judges. Stay tuned for the results!
Back row: Ryder, Trever, Abi, Me, Tayla
Front row: Berkley, Talan, Elli
Team #1: Ryder & Tayla Tayla thought this was very unfair! I think she will make the best of it!
Team #2: Berkley & Abi These are two peas in a pod, so this should be interesting!
Team #3: Talan & Elli These two are so competitive that if they can keep from fighting then we should be in good shape!
Ryder really didn't want to be on Tayla's team. He wanted a 'little' pumpkin!
Team #2 had more fun with getting their picture taken than picking a pumpkin!
Team #3 was focused! They set out to accomplish the task and didn't stop until they were satisfied!
We ended with a hay ride and scary faces! Ryder was trying sooo hard to be scary!

Dateless Homecoming!

So, in my day, we would have never dreamed about going to Homecoming without a date! Now a day, the kids just want to go like they were going to a stake dance but all dressed up. There were two "official" dates in this group and the rest were just friends. They had such a great time! Tayla is the one in the light purple dress and white shrug. I think she is so beautiful!
The whole group!
Just the girls!

Tayla made corsages for her friends that were so hideous!
Tosh & Tayla
Jamie & Tayla
Natalie & Tayla
Tosh & Grandma Banker! Tayla's friends LOVE my mom!

They were all blindfolded so they wouldn't know the big surprise!

So, I had to pull an idea out of my head that Tayla would actually go for. Trever actually came up with the idea of doing a 'formal dinner' at Wendy's. So, we had such a great time with this! I actually typed up a one page menu that looked nice. Skyler, Tayla' cousin, was the waiter. He started them all out with drinks and then moved to a salad option and then the main course. We transferred their food to plates and served their drinks to them in nice glasses! So fun!

Tayla and her friend Natalie resorted to tennis shoes by the time dinner was over. Tayla's are the pink shoes she borrowed from Aunt Deanna!