Poor Addy

My poor little girl! She blows my mind sometimes! Yesterday she slept in until 9 o'clock, which is about 2 hours later than usual. At first I was like Woo Hoo! Then a little while later it happened. Yep, she's sick! Scott was holding her and sure enough she had blood coming from her left ear. Mind you she has not fussed a bit, complained or run a fever. So we head to Urgent Care. We signed in at 12:15pm and was called back in about ten minutes, before three other children that were waiting. I guess that's one of the perks to having special needs, we get seen faster! The doctor was really nice and my little one weighs 22lbs and 4 oz!!!!! Big WOO HOO on that one! He tried to look in her ear but it was so nasty he had to do a little cleaning. He was very gentle and was able to get a little stuff out. No tube came out though but I'm pretty sure it's already out and so was he. He was unable to see her eardrum because the outer ear is so swollen and infected there was no way he could see all the way down the ear canal! Poor thing! So she now has an ear wick in and is on Augmentin (bring on the poo) and an ear drop that has an antibiotic and numbing medicine in it. We go back and see her Ped on Wednesday to have the wick removed and to see if he can see the middle ear at all. The Urgent Care doc said that with an infection this bad she really needs to have tubes again. I agree but I guess we'll have to convince Dr. Ears who discharged her in August! So here's my happy girl with her poor little ear!

Blogging Slacker

Addy LOVES a Parade!

I know I know, I haven't blogged lately! I've just been too busy or too tired I guess! Everyone is doing fine and we had a wonderful Thanksgiving at my brother's house. It was different this year though, my sister-in-laws parents are in St. Louis. Not for vacation, but because her dad had surgery last week that involved removing a part of his kidney. The surgery went fine but he's developed some complications so it looks like they won't be home until next Tuesday or so. We missed them! They are some of the best people ever! I love how my nieces and nephews love Addy so much! My nephew, John, is 16 and he is amazing with her! It was so cute, Addy was signing "star please" to him and he was "What does she want?" and I told him that she wanted him to sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". He just laughed and said "I don't sing." Sure enough, when he didn't think we were paying attention, he was singing to her! How sweet is that! Holidays are always a reminder of my dad too. I miss him so much. I think everyday about how much he would have adored Addy. It makes me so sad to know that she will never know the love her has for her! I love watching the Macy's parade and so did Addy! She was so cute dancing along with the musicals and marching bands. She would wave at everyone too, very cute! These are just misc. Thanksgiving pics of my gang, enjoy!

Pulling Up

This girl cracks me up, you gotta love how she pulls up! Just look at her feet!

Addy Torture

Footie Pajamas!!!!!

Jake singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" just might distract her for a bit, until she realizes again that she has them on!

Blessed weekend!

Oh my goodness what a weekend I had! Friday morning I was talking to my BFF, Susan, as she was coming home from a doctor appointment. We were talking about our day and weekend and I jokingly asked her if she wanted to go to Columbia (Missouri) for Jarika's cheerleading competition. She asked when I was leaving and I told her not until Scott got home around 6:30 and it's a 3 hour drive. She said "Let me think about, I just might!" I was so excited! I didn't think she would be able to escape for a jaunt and juggle her three kids and hubby but she did! We had SOOOO much fun! We drove and laughed and laughed. I am so blessed to have her in my life! We work together and share a classroom and office but we just never get tired of each other! It was so nice that I didn't have to drive alone at night that far too! Jarika was surprised to see her, it was really cute! Luck would have it my hotel room was right next to Jarika's! She ended up crashing with Susan and I because naturally when you have nine teenage cheerleaders you are going to have some drama so she stayed with us! Jarika's squad did a really good routine but just couldn't compete with the bigger squads but I was very proud of her! It was kinda sad knowing that it's her last competition of high school though!

This morning we met my entire family (missing Jarika and my oldest nephew for a bit because they were at work) at Old Chicago for the fall birthday celebration! It was really good! My mom had a good time with all of us and I am so thankful that she is getting around a little bit better. She found out on Friday that she has severe Neuropathy in her left arm, hand, leg and back. The doctor is going to do some more tests but we are prayerful that they will find the right treatment for her! She even felt up to taking Cooper, Laura, Jake and Liz to go see A Christmas Carol! They liked it but said it was kinda scary! Thanks for taking them mom!

I stayed at her house and worked on building her a dollhouse that she just bought. It was a bugger! My sister-in-law and nephew worked on it with me a little and it still took hours! Scott had to come back from Geocaching to help me finish, I was worn out! Addy tried to help, it was quite adorable, don't you think? She was so tired! She didn't get a nap but thought the dollhouse was a perfect place to try to sneak one in!

Susan texted me while I was working on the house and told me that in church this morning she stood up during the sharing of Joys to let everyone know how blessed she and her family are and just that's she thankful for all God does in their lives. During lunch she prayed that angels would continue watching over her family. This afternoon she was backing out of her driveway and hit her daughter Caroline (you may remember her, look below!) with her van!!!! Caroline has a scratch! Not a cut, scrape, bruise, broken bone or anything else, a SCRATCH!!! God definitely heard her prayers today. Thank you Jesus for keeping these wonderfully important people safe today Lord!

Mom update, Beautiful Weekend and Leaves!

This weekend was absolutely gorgeous around the Ozarks! It was sunny and in the mid 70s, absolutely perfect! Saturday the boys and I went to go see Little House on the Prairie, the Musical! It was so good! Melissa Gilbert played the role of Ma, that was pretty cool, she can actually sing a bit too! Her son played Willie Oleson, he only had a small part, but what fun starring in a musical with your famous mom! When it was about to start my brother called to let me know that our mom had fallen, again! Please continue prayer for her! She got quite a goose egg on the back of her head but was okay. She had also fallen in the morning but said it wasn't bad. I went with her to the neurologist on Thursday and it looks like she has had some damage to her brain from atherosclerosis. Her MRI also showed some nerve problems so that could explain some of the pain she's been having and balance issues. She's going to have an EKG, ultrasound of her carotid artery and a nerve conduction test performed this week. Her meds having been changed so we are hoping to see some improvement with that too. We also convinced her to sign up with Lifeline. Lifeline is an emergency necklace or bracelet that she can have at home in case she falls or needs help. She wasn't too keen on the idea but once she realized how stressed out Kent (my brother) and I get worrying about her she thought it would be a good idea since she is on her own. She has trouble at night when she has to get up and go the bathroom and falls so this way she can push a button and voila, help is on the way! They don't call 911 unless they have too, they will call Kent and I first and go from there.

After the play we met our entire family at my sister-in-laws parents house for a birthday party for my beautiful niece, Laura. My kids LOVE going to their house! They are the coolest grandparents ever! All of the little kids (7 of them) got bouncy balls in their goody bags and were having wars with them in the hallway! They were flying everywhere! They had a blast until, yep, one got hurt. Actually two, but they were minor injuries! It was a fun time, we haven't all been together like that in a long time!

After church and a meeting about the kids Christmas pageant (Jake is going to be a shepherd and Cooper is one of the three wisemen) meeting, Scott and the boys spent yesterday afternoon raking up the leaves and sticks in the backyard. He didn't tell them that their last job of the day was to play in them! It was too funny, Jarika went running full speed and smacked into the leaves on her hip! I don't know what we're going to do with this girl! Jake LOVED the leaves, big surprise there! Cooper tolerated them for a bit, Addy HATED them! No surprise there either! We made her play in them for awhile then she got out, must do more sensory with this girl!


Please pray for Gavin's family, he went to his heavenly Father last night, I'm so thankful he is no longer suffering, but so sad that a little boy is no longer here.

Thinking about Gavin

A dear blog friend of mine is going through something no parent ever wants to face. Her beautiful little boy Gavin is nearing the end of his time on earth. Please pray for this beautiful family.

Wordless Wednesday

Addy 3 Year Check Up

This morning I took Addysen in for her three-year check up. The doctor came in and picked up her file and said "This must be a mistake, I've got to have the wrong file because this one says that our little Addy weighs 20 lbs. and 14oz.!!!" Yeah!!!! My girl is catching up! The Elecare is definitely doing her good! I just wish it wasn't so expensive! But it's helping make my daughter healthy and nourished and that's what matters. Since Addy has tolerated this formula and is gaining weight we are now going to try a probiotic again. The hypo-allergenic pro-biotic mind you! The nutritionist is going to be ordering it for us, I'm anxious to get it started to see if it helps her stomach bloating. I need to get a pic of Addy standing with just her diaper on, I kid you not she looks like a malnourished orphan! Fortunately I do know that she is now being properly nourished and is absorbing into her body, but she still has the bloating issue so hopefully that will help.

My friend Rissa came by tonight with her computer to have Scott work on it for her and she took some adorable pix of Addy while she was having therapy last week at school. I think she was having fun!

Angel Tree 2009

Many of you know that I have a HUGE heart for children with Down syndrome. During our journey to adopting Addy I came upon Reece's Rainbow. My heart went nuts! I was staring into the faces of many many orphans that have no mommy and daddy to love them and teach them what a family is. I do feel that in some time in my life I will be able to bring one of these precious angels to join our family. Unfortunately I know that is not God's will at this time, but I have FAITH. So I am doing what I can to prevent these children from being transferred to an institution where they will most likely die within a year. For the past few years Reece's Rainbow has held their biggest fundraiser for these precious babies, the Reece's Rainbow Angel Tree. Go check out these beautiful faces and ask yourself if you are their Mommy or Daddy.

I am a Christmas Warrior for two beautiful children in Eastern Europe, Andrijy and Anne Marie, aren't they beautiful? Anne Marie reminds me of a precious little girl whom I got the pleasure of meeting over the summer. Ava Urban is so close to my heart, she is the most beautiful, loved little girl and she is such a blessing to her family. Ava was adopted from Eastern Europe almost two years ago. If she would have stayed there I wonder if she would even still be living. My goal is to help raise $1,000 for each child to help cover their adoption expenses. International adoption is very pricey and every dollar helps.

For a $35 donation to any child, you will get a Christmas ornament with that child's picture on it. It's a good reminder to pray, and makes an excellent Christmas gift for friends and family. Don't miss this opportunity to fall in love with these special children... and pay close attention to the names in red, as these are the children who face going to an institution VERY soon. Their fate is unimaginable. I have sponsored children for the past couple of years and continue to pray for them, one of them is Liza who will be coming home to her forever family very soon! I am so thankful for that! You can click on Andrijy or Anne Marie's buttons to the left of my blog and it will take you to the sponsorship page too, please give a little that gives so much!