We are so thankful that Val is so good with the kids. This picture was taken on Christmas evening when Luke and Val decided to play chase. Luke loved it as you can see by the huge smile on his face and Val had fun too - she would wait until Luke rounded the corner to bolt out of sight and then continued that for about 10 trips around the house. It was fun to watch.
We had a nice Christmas this year. It was a pretty quiet morning. Brian went to the gym while I slept in, we enjoyed a french toast breakfast together, and opened presents between the three of us - Val made out pretty well this year with lots of fun toys. We weren't going to do presents this year, but Brian insisted once we put the tree up that we had to exchange something on Christmas morning. We later headed out to Bob & Mary's and enjoyed our time together with everyone.
We celebrated Christmas in Philly this year. What that means is we miss the Christmas Eve celebration in the Burgh. It isn't the feast of the 7 fishes, but it is fried butterfly shrimp & homemade raviolis. And while it isn't a feast of 7 fishes, it is a feast we were sad to miss. In fact, Brian asked if my cousin Kathy could Fed Ex us some because it is that good.
We always say we love a good blizzard and love lots of snow - the silence, the comfort of staying inside with the fire and family, as well as seeing others helping others plow out of the snow. I'm not so sure Brian feels that way after the blizzard of 2009. 12 inches into it, he looked out the window after three bouts of shoveling and said, "stop the madness!" After 23 inches he asked me to get him a chiropractor and hernia surgery for Christmas. He did all the shoveling himself since everyone told me to take it easy being pregnant and all. While he didn't really enjoy it this time, Val had a blast frolicking in the deep snow. We thank Brian for all his hard work.
As planned we spent our Sunday cooking up a batch of chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter cookies. They were delish and I'm surprised we still have them left over after a few weeks.
Last time I saw my sweet Alana and adorable Gavin was early October. We never made it into the Burgh for Thanksgiving and are hanging back in Philly for Christmas. I'm not sure when we'll get to see them, but my mom sent these pictures from a photo shoot that my cousin Rebecca D'Angelo shot. They warm my heart. Hugs and kisses!
As a kid we would always go over the river, through the woods and mountains to my Grandparents' house. We would arrive and many times would make sugar cookies with my Grandma, Aunt Charlene, and cousins. We would decorate the cookies with lots of icing, sprinkles, and those little silver balls.
We received some very good news about Val this week. After a few months of medication, bottled water (per Jimmy), prayers, love, and more prayers, it seems that Val's condition is stable and in the mildest form. Her urine protein went down and the vet said if she presented that number at first he wouldn't have been inclined to put her on medication. Her blood protein went up and is in the normal range. Brian and I were ecstatic to hear such good news. And Val has been jumping for joy lately too - she is obsessed with her ball and plays catch all night long with us. So thank you to all for praying and sending good healing vibes because it is working - keep it coming.
We celebrated Thanksgiving this year at our house. Mr. Kenney, Bob, Mary, and the kids joined us in our thankfulness for an awesome 2009 and to an even more awesome 2010. Brian made a succulent turkey and we enjoyed all the sides of the great feast. Pictured above are shots from the evening - Brian and his masterpiece, the Kenney boys, and what would an event be without a picture of Ava draped over Val. Love and happiness to all!
Jim was in DC for work and was able to stop up to Philly for about 18 hours to celebrate Bob's 40th birthday. Bob's birthday is in December, but Mary threw a party a few weeks early. It worked out great since Jimmy got to come. We don't get to see Jimmy that often so we headed out to Bob & Mary's to spend some time with everyone. Bob told us a funny story about what Ava said on their way to pick Jim up at the train. Ava wanted to see the train come in, but Bob said she wouldn't be able to see it. So Ava said, "Is it a pretend?" Bob said, "no." And then Ava said, "Is Uncle Jim pretend?" I probably got it a little wrong, but we thought that was funny since we don't get to see him that often and she wondered if he was pretend.
I have hated being pregnant so far - ask Brian (or anyone else for that matter). I've been the biggest complainer on the face of the Earth...considering all the women who have gone through this very similar experience. But the one thing I absolutely love is getting to see our baby on an ultrasound. It is my absolute favorite! Brian and I check a website every week that tells us how big the baby is and they always compare it to a type of food. This week we call Baby Kenney, "Limey" because that is how big they say it is (the size of a Lime).
Since I have been working from home, I have had the pleasure to take Val on her afternoon walks. Every day around 12:30 we would pass the postal truck at the end of the street, and every day Val would pull me toward it to just about jump in the truck. For the first few weeks I thought it was cute that Val just thought it was Brian's jeep and wanted to go for a ride.
So I captured this picture on my Blackberry on 10/8/09 and sent it to Brian in an email at work telling him we are pregnant. It may be the 2009 way of telling your husband you're pregnant. I took two tests that day cause I just couldn't believe it and wanted to make sure it was real.
And when we got home from Stone Harbor, we found out there was another Blessing of the Animals at our church, so we are taking all the blessings we can get. Grandpa Kenney also got a medal blessed and Val is currently wearing it around her collar. We head to a holistic vet on Friday and then back for another check in to the vet who diagnosed her on Saturday. Pray for the fluke and that she is healed! Thanks all.
As many of you may know, we received some not so positive news about Val's health. She was diagnosed with PLN (protein-losing nephropathy) a few days before we headed to the beach. Basically it is a life-threatening disease that can't be reversed. To say the least, Brian and I were devastated and I will admit that I cried myself to sleep the night we got the diagnosis. What we do know is that we caught it early and it is not in a progressive stage and currently she is being treated with medication.
One of my favorite parts of the shore is getting in the ocean and riding in the waves with my family. Much of my family are pros at body surfing - my Gramps taught my dad & aunts, and they taught all of us. But one thing I noticed this year is while we all have the same goal of catching the perfect wave, we all have a very different way of getting into the ocean to enjoy the surf.
Val just loves her vacation at the Jersey shore - freedom from her leash with a run on the beach, chasing the foam of the ocean, walks all over town, and relaxing in the sun after a long day of nothingness.
With Alana approaching 3, David & Ellen took Alana for her first bike ride around Stone Harbor. Geared up with her helmet, Alana was ready for an adventure. From what I understand, she talked the entire way and enjoyed the ride.
Grandma Morse is the matriarch of the family. She has pretty much run the show the majority of her life. And one thing I am very grateful for is her insistence of having her family with her for special occasions - whether it was Christmas, another holiday or vacation to Stone Harbor, her family was always there. It was kind of an unwritten rule in her family handbook that everyone just seemed to follow. Which is why it just makes sense that her entire family continues to head down to Stone Harbor each year to celebrate being together. Pictured above is Grandma with her 6 grandchildren (David, Josh, me, Jessa, Brendan, & Ryan), our significant others (Ellen, Brian, John, and Krysten), and her 6 great grandchildren (Marissa, Grace, Brendan, Alana, Gavin, and Alexa). We look forward to continuing to make great family memories for years to come - thanks to our Grandma.
Sunrise on last day at the beach. 
Above: Brian & Ryan enjoying one of their cocktail concoctions.
Above: Me, Marissa, Brendan, and Alana in a perfect photo opportunity.They all jumped on my lap to be a part of the picture
Above: Grandma with her girls (Jessa & me with Baby Alexa)
Above: Beach day - Aunt Charlene, Grams, Dad, Aunt Tina, Aunt Marilyn, Kathy, and David
Above: The Morse Family - David, Ellen, Alana & Gavin on their last day at the beach 
Above: Beach bocce - Brian & Josh 
Above: Our friends Jeanne & Abby came down.
