It's a new year and I am cruising around my house! I am fairly proficient at walking now. In fact, I am sporting my official, "unofficial", Olympic gold medal around my neck as I trek around the place. Oh yeah baby, I am mobile to the extreme and loving it. This walking stuff is way cool. No more crawling around and getting outpaced by snails or sloths. No more being the only little kid at school that can't dunk the ball in the mini-hoop. No sir, not me. I am a giant among giant, or at least baby midgets. lol.

I feel so happy everyday too. I am able to run up to Mom and Dad and tackle them, or pretend I am a monster and grab their legs, or jump on their backs. I love being vertical!

I also love food! You name it, I love it. This food stuff ROCKS! Such delectable choices and tastes overflow at my place, due to my parents excellent culinary skills and palates. Even my oldest sister Savannah has started to cook for me every Friday evening. Yahoo! I am in Heaven, and my meal plates are the angels that carry the blessed morsels of tasty goodness to the table.

I am so glad to participate in games and fun activities with my brother Mark and my three sisters Savannah, Nalana, and Janae. They are always doing something to keep themselves busy. I just happen to assist them in achieving that task, (snicker). Often times I allow them to have me around, other times, for reasons I cannot fathom, they are closing their doors and telling mom to come and get me? It couldn't be that my diaper is sort of squishy could it? Or I just destroyed the Lego fort that took them the past two hours to construct? Nah, I know if they didn't want it torn down they wouldn't have built it right? (snicker again)

It is so nice to have mobility at my church class on Sunday. I love learning about Jesus, especially when they give me snacks such as grapes, berries of all sorts, crackers, and bananas on occasion. Then I join in on singing songs, the best I can with my trachea tube still sticking out of my throat. So glad when that thing will be gone, hopefully this coming year. I do love singing though. The tunes are in my head always as I am inundated by the children's songs at church and home. They are quite enjoyable to sing, hear, listen to, and even dance to. (big smile)

I am loving life and so look forward to being poked less as I still have many doctors appointments and blood draws. OUCH! That hurts already! Dad and Mom tell me that I still need some surgeries, but not yet. I guess I'll just keep on keeping on. And enjoy everyday as they come. Today is a gift, that is why we call it the present! God bless and be with you until next time. This is Jared signing off, peace and doughnuts!

I came across this again and although I did write this, I feel it so worthy to be added to the story of Baby Jared, and our family. I'm confident you too will find this heart warming and touching.


The Price of Children

This is just too good not to pass on to all. Here is something absolutely positive for a change. I have repeatedly seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way. It's nice.

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family.

Talk about price shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition.

But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:

* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month,
* $171.08 a week.
* A mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice is: don't have children if you
want to be 'rich.' Actually, it is just the opposite.

What do you get for your $160,140.00?

* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how
your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up. You get to:

* finger-paint,* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,* catch lightning bugs,
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
* go to Disney movies, and
* wish on stars.

You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets

and collect spray painted noodlewreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck.

You get to be a hero just for:

* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and
* coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the:

* First step,
* First word,
* First bra,
* First date,
* First time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal.

You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great- grandchildren.

You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God.

You have all the power to heal a boo-boo,
scare away the monsters under the bed,
patch a broken heart, police a slumber party,
ground them forever,
and love them without limits,

so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren!!!!!!!

It's the best investment you'll ever make!!!!!!!!!

Let us first start out today by saying that Baby Jared is alive and slowly improving month to month. He is twenty months old now and is doing things that a twenty month old boy does. What are these things you ask, well to start off, he totally loves to attack me with Kung Fu Panda like chopping quickness whenever I am within his ever so extending reach. Sometimes it's just a tap, how ya' doing, sort of hello, to my arm. While other times it's a smack in the head, woah that hurt really bad, can anyone find out where my eyeball is, sort of wake-up call. Jared laughs, giggles, smirks, and holds his right hand up to his mouth to try to emphasis his humor he has inflicted so painfully upon on me. Alas, I cannot be mad at the little guy. Jeepers, he is alive! No anger at all comes from me as I cringe at the pain still encompassing the impact point and surrounding area, should I say areas.

Savannah, Mark Jr., Nalana, and Janae, all his older siblings also find it belly busting funny when Jared practices his ninjitsu on me, and even Amber will start to crack up. To see how Jared's face and whole demeanor just light up the room though is so worth all money one can fathom in my imagination.

Jared also is able to be off his ventilator now for up to nine hours a day. Praise God above! He is able to tolerate the lack of pressure support from the ventilator with no adverse apparent symptoms for this long. This is wonderful. I cannot count the times I have cried out to God through prayers, pleading to Him to grant Jared improvement and allow him to be off his tubing, both digestive and respiratory assisting tubing.

how he loves to ride his Flintstones like feet powered car outdoors in the cul-de-sac upon these mild winter days we've been having. He loves being included in family singing, prayer, book reading, supper, activities of all sorts. And we love to include himtoo. Of course we do, he is our baby boy. He is my son.

So different my priorities in life have become. So more of an eternal outlook has my vision broadened into, since we found out over two years ago that our Jared had a congenital heart defect, and also almost loosing him to deaths' grasp back on Easter weekend and a few other times since then. I have so thankfully come to a new joyous level of gratefulness for my family, for the gospel of Jesus Christ, for His church on this earth today, for a Prophet called of God, even Thomas S. Monson, of whom which is alive even today in this day and age.

I am so grateful for the beautiful and intelligent lady that has choosen to be marriedto me for all time and eternity. She is such a blessing in my life. Amber is a wonderful daughter of God. A women that exemplifies love, and kindness to boundaries undefined by human language. Would she ever admit this? Heavens no. She'll probably get on me for writing such praise of her, she is to humble for acknowledging her divinity and near celestial ways. She is a marvelous mother to our children, whom adore her ever so much.

Jared had to go to the hospital yesterday, the ER at Mary Bridge in Tacoma. We all have colds here, and sadly, colds always affect him more so than the normal heart kid. He was extremely dehydrated, and vomiting.

He also has, as most of you that care know, a bad lung, the cold he has exsaparated the flem and secreations he puts out, which could lead to airway obstruction, bad juju. Gladly he was sent home late last night with another prescription, this makes about 101 prescriptions he is taking, to stave off his upchucking.

His brother and sisters are at various stages of the cold themselves. It would be nice if we had family to help, but alas, we don't. Thank you though to all of you friends of ours in and out of the church that help in so many ways, we couldn't be here without you. Untill later, have a great day, and thank you to all those once again who are so full of a loving heart.

In Christ,

Mark Proudlock

Jared Laughing, child of God.

Have you seen the new pics of Baby Jared? He is such a happy boy!

I love to breathe the smell of his hair into my lungs, and put his face next to mine. To hear the breath escapes his lungs and to feel his hands grab my skin. He is so smooth, and so soft. Such love iminates from his smile and eyes. To have him laugh today to the point the tears came to his eyes was a million dollars. Savannah put her head down in front of him then flung her head and hair back quickly while laughing, made him just burst into laughter, of course we all then did too.

He knows only love, only innocence, only a world of happiness and peace. Though hardship his body has encountered, his spirit is strong. For the Spirit of God is ever so present within him. Its so easy to feel the expression of love around him for he is sent to earth with love. Love that our Father in Heaven has for each of us, a child of God, and is filled with the light of Christ.
As you snuggle with your children tonight, and pray with them, kiss them, stroke their hair and kiss their cheek, concentrate on the fact that they are sent from our Heavenly Father. Sent to earth to learn love from you as their mommy, as their daddy,
So that they might return to him some day and feel the arms of our Saviour wrapped around them them saying "welcome home, job well done".

We truly have no idea how powerful our Father in Heaven is. We as humans, cannot, and will not ever be able to grasp the infinite capabilities that God, our Father in Heaven has, and is blessing our life with. We only need to turn to Him through the Son, Jesus Christ, in faith. The problem isn't that there's no evidence that God loves His children. The problem is we're afraid to believe it!

At the Lake with the family, great nursing!

Hello to you all,

How so we love your friendly calls and little visits. Your time and service to us is immeasurable by anyone's standards. What a rocky road you all have been on with us over this past year. Wow, has it been that long already?

Time flies quickly, as does adversity pass, as we face it head on, with Jesus Christ as our ally, and not shove it aside.

What a lovely Fourth of July we just celebrated that allows us to once again remember all that this country stands for and where exactly it is that we live. We live in a country that has allowed our child Jared to be alive! Savannah, Mark, Nalana, Janae, his siblings, are all so happy to have him in our lives, as are Amber and I.

We are at that point in which Jared is back home with us once again, although this time with a set of complicated medical issues that he didn't have four months ago when he was able to be at home for a full six months! His little heart, after undergoing muliple surgeries ( with more needed in the future), is stable for now, but his lungs need support through an exterior ventilator breathing machine attached to Jared constently through a trachea tube. We have been blessed to have aquired wonderful nursing assistance in our home, that are able to provide Jared with quality medical care outside of the hospitals. Jared is so happy to be home and see all our faces everyday, and hear the voices of his family.

This is the time more than any in which we will be needing your love and support. To be there as you can, to offer those long conversations of love and Christ like caring that so many of you have done so already.

Come look into Jared's loving blue eyes. Come see his eager smile and feel of his breath on your face. Come rub your fingers through his every so soft silken blond hair. Come experience a little miracle baby that Heavenly Father has given us, and of whom we have accepted to take care of.

One cannot order a perfect baby from the catalog of heaven. We have been allowed by our creator to have been given five wonderful children. Children of God that are all different, that are all here. Here to gain a physical body, and to to experience good and the bad of life. Amber and I are doing our best to raise our wonderful angels in a manner pleasing unto the Father. This can only be done through following His Son Jesus Christ.

As we do our best to accomplish this task, we might ask you for some help now and then. If we do, and you are able to, we are so grateful. Let us grow, you and us, closer to one another through this angel, Jared, that our Father has put here for us to help. Let us forgive each other of things that have burdened us in the past. Let us look into the future with a brightness and hope of things yet to come.

Our Father knows us, He loves us, He wants us to be happy and have joy. A new time is now upon the us, the Proudlocks, and with you by our side we will both grow in spirit and love.

In Christ,

The Proudlocks