Rod (aka. Dad)- Hemophilius Prime. Husband. Father. Hemo. 1950-1990 (just in case you wonder why we are always speaking of him in the past tense.)
ps- I miss you Dad. You finally got your boys.
Denise (aka. Mom/Grammy)- Rod's wife and mother to daughters Endre, Keely , Awny, and Nika. Likes: jumping out of planes, swimming in deep oceans, playing the piano while her grandchildren bang on the low keys. Dislikes: chipped toenail polish, genetic diseases we knew about, genetic diseases we didn't know about.
Endre - Oldest child and mom to Avery (our girl) and Henderson, Hurley and Harris (our boys). Harris was diagnosed shortly after his birth in Fall '09. Our other children do not have Hemophilia, although there is a 50% chance that Avery is a carrier. We are not having her tested until she is old enough to make that decision for herself. My goal is to help Harris live as a normal active boy. I very much want his hemophilia be the "ps" to his life instead of the whole story. (If I fail in this, as I do most of my goals and resolutions, hopefully it will be good for a laugh... and a few tears.)
Derek- Endre's husband and Baby Daddy to all of her children. Free of any genetic diseases... that we know of.
Avery- Derek and Endre's daughter. She has the good fortune of having three little brothers that love her so much that they will never leave her alone. Bruises and needles "gross her out". She likes that idea of giving her opinion on this blog.
Harris- Derek and Endre's youngest. Holder of the family record for biggest baby, longest gestation and youngest bleeder. His mom thinks he is one of the most beautiful things she's ever seen.
Nika -The youngest daughter to Rod and Denise. I have two kids, Ayda ('06) and Zander ('09). Ayda knows that her brother has Hemophilia and knows he can get "bleeds". She also thinks she can get "bleeds" and is found with ice packs on her limbs often. Zander is an active little boy. As much as I want to wrap him in bubble wrap, I am trying to let him explore and live life. We expect bumps and bruises along the way but we also expect lots of fun and laughter!
Travis- Dad to Zander and Ayda and husband to Nika. Rocks a sweet mini van and is currently tied for second place in the "favorite son-in-law" competition.
Awny- Daughter number 3 and the family trailblazer. Mom of the first (and second) grandsons - twins. One with hemophilia (the athlete). One without (the genius) ... and a daughter, whose personality is like a star covered in glitter. Her son is the oldest grandchild to have dealt with this disease/condition/adventure and has cheered (not silently in his heart either) as he was finally joined by his two little hemo cousins. Awny answers a lot of sistery kinds of questions that begin with "Should I call the center if..." and she's pretty good at assessing injuries by phone.
Jack- Awny's son and first hemo of the new generation. Lover of baseball, basketball and dodge ball. Twin to Grady.
Grady- Awny's son, twin to Jack, although not a hemo himself. He shares his daily adventures with his brother, his little sister and the dog that Santa brought to his house two Christmases ago. (His mother's complaint is pending.)
Keely- Second oldest daughter. She's made it through 5 babies with only one son and no hemophilia to speak of... although one of her children is the reason we found out that we carry the gene for cystic fibrosis as well. She is the bringer of many flavors of gum and big boxes of Capri Sun... and is therefore the best auntie ever. The good photography on this blog belongs to her.
