More Great News!!

Wonderful, amazing, terrific, super...all of the above!! Andon continues to defy the odds and is still cancer free!! He has been cancer free since last November and his latest scan showed that his scar tissue has continued to shrink. He will not have another scan for 6-8 months (that is the longest they've allowed between scans so far)! Thank you (once again) for continuing to pray for the Zehring family, we know that has made all the difference!

In this market?

Are we crazy? Maybe...we have decided to put our house on the market to see what happens. Our goal has always been to move into a different school district by the time our kids were in elementary school. We know we have a lot of time before that happens, however the town we're hoping to move to has been hit by the market just like everywhere else which means we can buy a house there for quite a bit cheaper than we could have 5 years ago. So...if our house sells, we'll move to Libertyville. We don't have to move right now, but we're hoping to. Nothing seems to be selling in our neighborhood at this time so we're hoping to be the lucky ones! The house is going up November 1st so this week we have to dig in and make it immaculate!

On another note, we spent the weekend with family from southern IL. Thank you Jamie & Marcia for making the long trip up to visit! We'll head your way next!

Mommy/Daddy & Me Swimming

We've been taking Dane to swimming classes on Tuesday evenings. Usually I am the one in the pool with him because Cameron can't get out of work and make it to the school by the time the class starts. He can watch from a viewing window when he gets there. This past Tuesday I asked the instructor if Cameron & I could swap once he got there, even if it was after the class started. So...Cameron finally got to join in on the fun in the pool instead of just viewing from the window! Dane seems to love the class and splashes around A LOT. The instructor has been having us blow in their face & dunk them under, but luckily Dane has saved me from doing that so far. For whatever reason, every time the dunking begins Dane starts crying and clinging to me like crazy...he apparently knows that mommy doesn't want to dunk him and is saving me from it. Anyway, one more week of swimming and then onto music class.

Football, Football, Football!

This weekend was full of football fun for the Hattens! Cameron went to watch some highschool football on Friday evening - our friend Luke is the head coach of the Lakes football team in Lake Villa, IL. Congratulations to Luke on Friday's win and on making the playoffs! Saturday Dane attended his very first football game...our nine year old neighbor plays and we went to watch him. Dane & I only lasted outside for about 2 quarters...it was really nice when the sun was out, but of course right when we got to the game the sun went under and didn't come out again. So - Dane & I went back to hang out in the car while Cameron finished watching Brian's big win. Don't worry Mom...we had Dane super bundled!Meanwhile, in the car...On Sunday, Cameron had some of the guys over for chili, italian beef and you guessed it...FOOTBALL!! It was also Eric's 33rd birthday (Eric was the best man at our wedding)! Happy Birthday, Eric!!

Barley & Roscoe waiting for our guests:

Zombie Walkin' & Motor Boatin'

Just in time for Halloween, Dane decided to put together his own little dance...the Zombie Walk! Too bad the "Thriller" video was made in the 80's because Dane is a natural at Zombie walkin'!! I still cannot believe that at 8 months old he is doing this! I've been warned by a couple relatives that their kids were walking at 9 and 10 months...I think we're in for the same thing! Also Dane has been motor boating for quite some time...it all began when we started feeding him baby food. If he didn't like what he was eating, he would motor boat it all over me and himself as if to say "this is dog food, why would you feed me this junk??" Thankfully, he really liked most of the things we fed him (except peas) and the motor boating didn't occur too often with food in his mouth. He has continued the motor boat habit, although not for any reason other than he seems to like doing it! I've included another Dane video for your viewing pleasure with this post...you will witness his zombie walkin' and motor boatin' for yourself!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

The Sweetest Sound...

Dane is constantly saying momma, ma, mooooom and has been for a few weeks now. It's just now that I fully believe he knows what he's saying and it is music to my ears. Dadda has been replaced, much to Cameron's disappointment. Dane absolutely adores Cameron and follows him with his eyes as soon as Cameron walks through the door, but momma is much more common in his vocabulary than Dadda...

On a completely separate note - on October 29th, Andon will be having another wellness scan on his brain. We ask for your prayers that he continues to be cancer free! Thank you!!

Punkin at the Pumpkin Patch

We decided to take Dane to the pumpkin patch to get our fall decorations. He seemed pretty indifferent to the whole thing...just kind of looked around, but never really thought any of it was too exciting. However we did snap some cute pics of the little man.

8 seconds...I think I can:Dane looks like he ate something sour:

Dane's Dedication

Today we dedicated our first born to the Lord. This marks an important milestone for Dane and for us. Our church does the baby dedication a little differently than churches I've attended in the past...they do private dedications after the church service. So we first celebrated with a brunch and then we proceeded to the church for the dedication. We kept the invite list small, only including our immediate families. After the church service we headed back to our house for sandwiches and cake. Thanks to all who made the trip from IN, it meant the world to have you all here for such an important event! Warning: lots of pictures below from the day...didn't want to take the time to make a slideshow.

As part of the service, Cameron & I had to write a promise to Dane:
Dane,
We wished...we wanted...we waited. Then when He knew we were ready, we were gifted. We are so grateful for this gift and will make sure that you have the very best life we can provide. That is the promise.
We promise to be caring
We promise to be your parents first and your friends second
We promise to be teachers
We promise to be spiritual models
We promise to be good examples
We promise to be great listeners
We promise to be protective
We promise to be supportive
We promise to be laughing
We promise to be hugging
We promise to be present
We promise to be capable of letting go
We promise to be tolerant when you inherit your mother's taste in music
We promise to be sympathetic as you continue to look like your father
Most of all, we promise to love you everyday.