The Hanks Family

I wanted to post a quick update to our friends and family and let you all know how we are doing. Spring is finally here after a very long, long winter for us and we couldn't be happier to have it arrive. It is ironic that while I'm typing this though we are having a spring snowstorm, but I'm not going to let that get me down. We are happy to say that we have made it this far and though RSV season isn't quite over (not until Mothers' Day) we are glad that the number of cases in the state is dwindling. We look forward to finally being able to leave the house and to see friends and family again after our winter in seclusion.

On the homefront, Dusty is still working at IFLY in Ogden and enjoying it and is excited to have a new skydiving season arriving. He and Beau are excited to continue to be sponsored by MonaVie this year as well and to now be distributors for MonaVie. We've all been drinking it (even me) and have felt an improved difference in how we feel each day.

As for Aidan, he is as funny and crazy as always. He has had a bit of a growth spurt this winter (thank goodness) and though he is still small, he is growing up. He is an amazing big brother to Cole and though he is very normal and fights for his independence (especially at bedtime) we are very, very proud of him. We are also happy to announce that we got lucky and Aidan's name was picked in the lottery for admission to Wasatch Peak Academy, the charter school in our neighborhood. He gets to go to a "round-up" meeting for his kindergarten class in a couple of weeks and we can't wait to see where he will be going to school. We can hardly believe it! He will be five years old in July! Time really does fly!

As for me, I've just been spending all of my time at home with the boys in seclusion until the end of RSV season and continuing to work from home doing marketing. In my spare time (I don't really have any, but I have been trying to carve some out since January to keep myself from going crazy) I started a food blog called Phe/MOM/enon. It has been absolutely incredible and I love doing it. I've made many friends over the internet this winter which has allowed me to still feel somewhat in touch with the outside world - and since my friends are scattered as close as Orem, Salt Lake and Logan, and as far away as India, Malaysia, and New Zealand, as well as all over the U.S., I do mean world. It is such a joy to me to find all these like minded, wonderful people that share my same obsessions with baking and cooking.

Cole is doing very well and will have his six month checkup later this week. I don't know how much he weighs now, but his nurse with the State Health Department that reviews his case each month to check his development says that he is right on track. He is a friendly and funny baby and we can't wait (but will) to show him off. At his four month appointment he was 12 lbs 9 oz now and not quite caught up with the smallest of his peers for his age, but he is doing well, so we try not to worry about it too much and just keep in mind how grateful we are to have him with us.

Well, other than all of the updates, I'm here with a mission. It's that time again. Time for the March of Dimes March for Babies (formerly WalkAmerica). Some of you may recall that Aidan and I (and Cole in spirit since I was pregnant with him at this time last year) participated in the March at Wheeler Farm last year along with Aidan's preschool. A lot has changed in our lives since then, but our commitment to the work the March of Dimes does has only increased. For those that don't know, or know all of it, you can read more about our story on the rest of our blog.

Here is a little of what happened:

Last October, when I was seven months pregnant with Cole, I was very, very sick. It is difficult (impossible) to manage a high-risk pregnancy when you don't know it has become high-risk until you are suddenly having an emergency c-section. That is what happened to us due to an uncommon form of high blood pressure (with complications) that sometimes happens in a small percentage of pregnancies. Cole was born seven weeks too early at 3 lbs 6 oz, which was underdeveloped for being 33 weeks along in the pregnancy. My doctor had to deliver Cole to save my life, which in turn put Cole more at risk, but there was nothing else they could do, since otherwise neither one of us would have made it.

After only 28 days in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit at McKay Dee in Ogden, Cole was able to come home - 20 days before his actual due date. He had a complicated schedule and feeding arrangement to keep, but it was still so much better than it could have been. I say "only" 28 days because, even with as difficult as this experience was, I am grateful that it hasn't been worse and that Cole is now happy, healthy and developing well at six months old (and around 4 months of age for development purposes). Not all babies are as lucky as Cole has been, and not all families are as blessed as we are. There is no rhyme or reason to it, but it is a simple fact that without research and knowledge from the March of Dimes that this experience could have turned out very differently for all of us. Little did we know that when we were raising funds for the March of Dimes last year we would end up needing their research for our family.

So, to celebrate Cole and our family and to help other families to hopefully never have to experience what we did, we are participating in the March for Babies again - this time as a family. The March is being held at Wheeler Farm in Murray on Saturday, April 26th. If you are able to sponsor us at all, please visit our Little Wonders Team Page and follow the link to make a donation to the March of Dimes.

Contributing to our March online is fast, easy and secure. You can donate directly from our personal webpage with a credit/debit card or PayPal. If you prefer, we can also accept cash or check. Just click the appropriate box on our team's webpage. Just go to:

http://www.marchforbabies.org/hhanks

The money we raise helps save premature and sick babies. Premature birth is the #1 cause of newborn death and the biggest threat to babies' health today, and through March for Babies, the March of Dimes is funding important research to find out why premature birth happens and what can be done to prevent it. I've joined with millions of compassionate people across the country who support March for Babies each year. Won't you please help me in this worthy cause? Visit my webpage and sponsor me in the march that saves babies! With your support, there's hope.

Here is a little video of our past few months you can watch if you are interested.

Any amount is welcome, and every penny counts. Thank you for your support!

Love,
The Hanks Family
Holly, Dusty, Aidan and Cole