The Sorenson Family 2009: Part I

I look at these pictures and my heart sings.
These are my three daughters:

~Elisabeth Elva~

~Lorelai Leigh~

~Alexandra Louise~

Lee Ann did a beautiful job of capturing their unique personalities.

Can you tell which girl keeps things lively around our house?

Tomorrow: The Sorenson Family 2009: Part II - Sisters

Remembering

2 years ago I was in the midst of the darkest week of my life. Sadness, grief, and confusion were consuming my every thought. I had learned that my unborn child had a serious and most likely fatal birth defect. And even if she were to survive I would be left with the burden of raising a severely handicapped child. I felt like I had fallen into a terrible nightmare that I couldn't wake up from.

Now here it is, 2 years later, and I still feel like I am asleep. But instead of a nightmare, I am living a beautiful dream. The kind that you never want to end. Elisabeth survived; I survived. And oh what I have learned! About myself, about hydrocephalus, and about children with disabilities.

The truth is that raising a handicapped child is not a burden, but a blessing. The privilege of caring for a child so pure, so innocent, and so untainted by the world brings a daily reminder of the importance and purpose of life.

Do I regret the pain and emotions of 2 years ago? Never. It was an opportunity for self-discovery and growth. Having experienced that degree of heartache has made the joy that I feel now so much sweeter. Elisabeth has changed my world, and as I count my daily blessings she is always at the top of the list. I have said it before and I'll say it again....lucky, lucky me.

{photograph by Lee Ann}

***To read my account of the happenings 2 years ago, click here.

Tuesday Tidbits

• Elisabeth's development is so confusing. Skills come and go. She used to roll over...and then she stopped...and then she re-learned...and then she stopped...and now she's rolling again. She used to say 'Mama'...but I haven't heard it now in weeks and weeks...maybe it'll come again? She was starting to get better at eating...but now she's struggling; especially with her bottles. Her suck has gotten very weak and she chokes on the milk every few swallows (this makes for a very frustrating feeding).
  

• Tonight is American Idol. Woohoo! I wait all week long just to hear Adam sing. And then I rewind his performance and watch it over...and over...and over...
• The perfect way to spend an afternoon is probably playing Memory while snacking on pretzels and cheese:

• Thanks to Donald's Uncle Mike, the Sorenson's are now addicted to playing Dr. Mario on the Wii. And I am proud to say that in the Sorenson home, I am unbeatable! This of course is very hard for a certain husband to deal with. Ha! (Does anyone out there want to challenge me to a match? Email me. Game on.)
• I injured my knee during the half-marathon. It's probably time to call the doctor.
• We planted a new tree in the backyard on Saturday. I love it.
  

Happy Tuesday!

Car Show

On Saturday the Nova was entered into its 2nd car show.

Do you know what goes on at car shows?

A lot of car talk. Men 'oohing' and 'aahing'
over things like engines (boring).

Me on the other hand,
I judge cars on how shiny they are.

"Ooh...Donald, look at that one," said Lisa as she
pointed to a shiny red 1960-something corvette.

Sadly, the Nova drove away empty handed.

(Did I ever mention that it won a trophy
at the last show we entered it in?)

One more thing:

Real men push pink strollers.

An Artist and His Art

Grandpa and Walt, working on Pirates of the Caribbean.

My grandfather, Claude Coats, was a Disney artist and imagineer for over 50 years. He took part in creating timeless classics such as Snow White, Cinderella, and Alice in Wonderland, as well as Disneyland rides including The Pirates of the Caribbean, The Haunted Mansion, and It's a Small World. He truly was a Disney legend and his art continues to inspire.

With that said, I am pleased to announce the opening of ClaudeCoats.com . Prints from his private art collection are available to the public for the first time ever! Hop on over and check it out....and maybe buy yourself a print....or two....or three. Click here.

My favorite is this number:

The original hangs on a wall in my mother's house. I can remember being a child and studying this painting. I loved everything about it; the rolling green hills, the trotting horses, the whimsical trees, and a dirt road leading off to a little house where I am sure there must have been a homemade pie baking in the oven.

In all honesty, I felt a twinge of sadness when I saw that this was one of the prints available. It holds a special place in my heart and I wasn't sure I wanted it made public. However, I now realize that it would be a shame to keep this treasure hidden from the world. After all, art is to be shared and enjoyed.

My grandpa was a world traveller. In his art studio there was a map where he drew lines from Los Angeles to every destination that he travelled. It was COVERED in lines. I was inspired. I knew that one day I too would have a map; and I do. Mine only has a few lines of course, but there is time. I imagine that most of my travelling will happen after the girls graduate. Donald and I will spend our golden years exploring the world....with Elisabeth by our side, of course.

But back to my grandfather. Many of his paintings are of his travels. I think that you might really enjoy this one:

And especially this one:

(Inspired by his vacation to Antarctica.

I told you...he travelled everywhere!)

Want to see more???
(click below)

ClaudeCoats.com

Sleeping Arrangement

Barbara over at TherExtras posed a question on her blog last week asking:

How have you arranged your home

to enhance your child’s development?

This question immediately had me thinking of my Elisabeth. Her development is severely delayed due to brain damage and we are completely dedicated to helping her reach her fullest potential.

So how have I arranged my home to help enhance her development? Here is my answer:

*********************************************

Three little beds are arranged all together.
Close.
Safe.

Three little girls get tucked into those little beds.
Hugs.
Kisses.

One baby girl listens to her big sisters

whisper back and forth in the dark.
Excitement.
Giggles.

And then she drifts off to sleep knowing that she's not alone....

that she's never alone....

that she is always surrounded by her family....

that her big sisters will keep her close and keep her safe.

What could be better for a child's

development than a sense of security

and the feeling of love?

The 'Half Birthday': Part II

Lorelai's half-birthday fell on Sunday.....the day we travelled the long road from Salt Lake City to home. Needless to say, not much celebrating occurred.

No worries though, we made up for it yesterday by presenting her with a unique gift; a half-present for a half-birthday! (FYI....it was only wrapped to look like half of a present....the gift under the paper was whole! lol)

Lorelai Leigh at age four....and a half.

For part one of this 'half-birthday' series, click here.

***On a side note.....this reminds me of that scene at the end of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory where everything in Willy Wonka's office is cut in half.

High School Musical

I love music. I love musicals. I love all things Disney. And.... I have a 6 year old daughter.

All these things together mean one thing:

I love High School Musical (and I am not ashamed to admit it).

So imagine the excitement I felt this past week in Salt Lake City when my older sister informed me that the high school where they filmed High School Musical was a few blocks away.

And being the total nerd that I am.....I had to go see it. And then I had to be an even bigger nerd and pose for pictures while cars drove by.

Exhibit A: The Sorenson's being High School Musical-ish

Exhibit B: The real cast of HSM being
High School Musical-ish

We then went around the back to peek in the windows.

It was there that we found.....the cafeteria!

Exhibit C: The cafeteria

Exhibit D: The cast of HSM dancing in said cafeteria:

Here is where it gets really exciting.

My nephew will be starting high school next year and lives in the boundaries for East High!

But.....apparently it isn't so 'cool' to go to the school where High School Musical was filmed.

So....he wants to go to the 'other' school in town.

I told him that I would take this vote to the people. I present you with your choices.

Exhibit E: East High School

Exhibit F: Highlands High School
(the 'other' choice...boo hiss)

Don't you agree that the right choice is East High?? I mean, come on....who wouldn't want to go to a school where the students break out into song and dance between classes?

I Made It....

Across the finish line!

Salt Lake City Half Marathon
April 18, 2009

The distance was worth it for this moment:

To my siblings Kristin and David,
and my nephew Matthew ~

Thank you! I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to share this experience with you all. Each of you inspire me in your own way and I start this week off feeling motivated to challenge and improve myself.

I am looking forward to next year. Go Cantaloupe!

With love,
Lisa

Color 2009

I have been actively working on my 2009 resolution to add more color to my life. A big part of that has been taking boring, everyday objects and making them more beautiful.

For example:

We keep all of our balled up grocery bags in a leftover garbage bag box. Practical.....but far from pretty. So I decided to give it a quick and easy makeover:

Color.

(I love it.)

Our Little Tree

This little tree lives in our backyard.

We planted it there last summer.

I love how it's blossoms are white and fluffy like clouds.

Right now our tree is still small and skinny, but one day it will be big.

And its blossoms will blend with the clouds in the sky....and I won't know where one begins and the other ends.

Giveaway!

Enter KaTrina's Giveaway!

click here!

Family Portraits

Our friend Lee Ann was kind enough to photograph our family a few weeks ago. She took hundreds of pictures! Click here to see just a few of them.

More later :)

An Adventurer

My sister is everything I'm not.
She is an explorer, an athlete, an archaeologist, an adventurer.

For the past month she has been in Belize studying ancient artifacts. Can I tell you how proud I am of her? My little sister....off discovering the world. Amazing.

Jennifer,

I hope you are having the time of your life.

I can't wait for you to come home so I can hear stories of Belize! Be safe and try to keep away from those tick nests! Ewww...

Love, Lisa

Easter 2009

Baskets.

Dyed eggs. Hunts.

Candy. Bunnies.

Pink dresses.

Food. Church. Family.

A Little Cellist

Click here to see a portrait of my little cello student, Lilly (who also happens to be Alexandra's best friend). Simply lovely.

Saturday

• Watch Alexandra's soccer game.
• Dye Easter Eggs.
• Begin planting our garden.
• Buy hair ribbons to match the girl's Easter dresses.
• Shop for groceries.
• Organize music in the parlor.

The Sorenson Family Garden

Last weekend Donald built a beautiful

raised garden bed in our backyard.

This shall be our first attempt at growing vegetables

{and hopefully not our last}.

Any tips and advice for first time gardeners?

Elisabeth's Favorite New Pastime:

Swinging.

A Story About A Cradle: Part II

Yesterday was lovely; the air was fresh and the sun was bright. I put Elisabeth down for a nap in the late morning and opened the window next to her. Then I turned on her lullaby music {thank you Marilyn} and gently closed the door.

A few hours later I heard happy squeals coming from the bedroom that she shares with her sisters; she was awake. As I went to get her out of bed I thought back to a post that I wrote last fall titled, A Story About A Cradle. In that post I discussed the fact that Elisabeth was about to outgrow her cradle and that we were making preparations to transition her into the crib.

Confession: It's been nearly 5 months since then and she still sleeps in the cradle.

'Why?' you ask? Because Elisabeth loves her cradle; it's comfortable, it's familiar. A look of contentment always spreads across her face when we tuck her in to bed. And while I agree that the time to advance her to the crib is long overdue, it's just been so easy to put it off.

You see, Elisabeth is still very much a baby. She doesn't walk or crawl. She doesn't chew food or even hold her own bottle. We often forget just where she should be at {developmentally} because we are so comfortable with who she is.

Last night we took the girls to the park to eat dinner and play. While there we saw some friends that had a baby born the exact same day as Elisabeth. What a wake up call! We watched her climb all over the jungle gym, play with her siblings, and run away from her Dad when it was time to go home.

I wonder what Elisabeth would be like if it hadn't been for that one little problem? One little blockage in one little passageway in her brain. So much damage from one little problem.

I try to imagine her running and playing and exploring. Would she have walked early like Lorelai? Would she have spoken in full sentences at 17 months like Alexandra? What would her potential have been?

But then I see who she is and all she has overcome and those thoughts quickly fade away. I feel my heart burst with pride at the very sight of her. She is the greatest source of joy to our family. A small piece of heaven living in our home.....sleeping in that little cradle. Lucky, lucky us.

{Coming Soon: Elisabeth's move to the big girl crib.}

Just Jammin'

We had a jam session in the Sorenson home.

And not the kind with drums and guitars....

Boy....this post goes hand in hand with my post last Friday.

Sandwich anyone?

***A huge thanks to my mother-in-law, Susan, who taught me the art of making jam.

Half Way There

Children always seem to count their age in halves. Have you ever noticed that? Three....and a half, seven....and a half, etc. And so what an important day it was on Saturday when Alexandra awoke to find that six months had lapsed since her birthday. She could officially proclaim her age as six....and a half.

To celebrate this oh-so-important occasion I had a little surprise up my sleeve. I shooed Alexandra out of the kitchen while I got to work on a very unique cake....a half-cake....for a half birthday.

Topped appropriately with six and a half candles.

Delight spread across Alexandra's face when she was allowed access to the kitchen again.

That night after dinner we sang a round of Happy 'Half' Birthday To You....

....and she made wishes to last another six months.

{Lorelai celebrates her half birthday in just a

few short weeks and I have another idea brewing...}

Just Jiffy

I love opening up a brand new container of peanut butter. It's like a blank canvas inviting some sort of artistic design. Too bad my artistic efforts don't go beyond hearts and flowers....

The Story of the Dollar

Yesterday's post left several people wondering about the framed dollar in the background of the picture. Here's the scoop.

For my 6th birthday my grandmother gave me the gift of music {in the form of violin lessons}. That was in January of 1986. 2 months later I went to my grandma's church and performed for a group of children. For the next 18 years my grandma would re-tell the story of that day....word for word. And it always ended with her saying, "I asked, 'were you nervous?'. And you said, 'no'."

My grandmother passed away in 2004 and shortly thereafter my mom came across an envelope containing a dollar. On it she had written:

March 27, 1986

Lisa's first concert for the Merry Music Makers at Grandma's church for about 28 or 30 children and 4 adults. Her first concert dollar.

That envelope and dollar are among my most prized possessions. I framed them in a shadow box and hung it in my parlor. {I feel that prized possessions should be displayed in a place where you can enjoy them daily}.

And that is the story of the dollar.

A Candid Moment

Often times my children find ways to push each others buttons {if you know what I mean}. And then other times I happen upon them like this; enjoying sisterhood to its fullest:

Lorelai and Alexandra, playing a duet.