Did you think........

I would ever go this long without a post?!!! I know, it's been crazy busy around here and it's not even December. For those of you who I haven't talked to lately, we had a relaxing (as relaxing as parents of 3 boys can have) trip to St. Louis over the Thanksgiving weekend to visit with family. A HUGE THANKS to my Aunt Jackie who let us invade her house - thanks to ALEX who gave up his room for us :) We ran into virtually NO traffic, accidents, weather issues, etc. Though the turkey ALMOST caught fire, it was a delicious dinner - Reece slept through the whole thing, but filled up on pie later in the evening. It was good to see everyone - how quickly time flies!!! After catching up on laundry, cleaning, haircuts (yes, all 3 of my kids had one this week - Jackson's "faux" hawk was getting a little unruly, so I took a bit off the top so it looks more proportioned - never thought I'd cut any of my kids' manes before a year old, or even 6 months old) I took the kids to the Frederik Meijer Gardens http://www.meijergardens.org/ today (sorry about this run-on sentence all you grammar teachers :). This put us all in the Christmas spirit. The boys LOVED the trains - they could have watched them for hours. It's nice having a membership there b/c we don't feel we have to stay to get our "money's worth" all in one visit. It's truly a beautiful place (excellent learning environment) and you notice new/different things each time you visit. Included are a few pics from our adventure today - enjoy!

AOK

So our latest visit with a craniofacial surgeon revealed that Jackson's cephalohematoma is "normal" (in the sense of hematoma's). Dr. Mann has seen several of these, though not as many that are "calcified" as Jackson's is. He said because his bump (in lamens terms) has calcified, we have to wait for his body to breakdown and absorb the calcification (is that a word?). He said it could take up to a few years and does NOT suggest operating on it as he has no "case" to do so (if it were on his forehead or side of head he might have reason to remove/reshape it). We are thankful that his is not as noticeable as it could be. We also thank God for giving him so much hair to camouflage it :) We will only go back for a recheck if it is quite prominent by the time he enters school (which will come way too soon!). Thanks for all your prayers and concerns as we seek many 2nd opinions with Jackson.

WMU Christmas Exchange

Ladies, don't forget to post your ideas for our annual Christmas exchange by clicking on the comments tab under the body of this post. I'm going this route as I'd like to TRY to keep them SECRET santas :) Thanks!

It really works!

So, I'm sure you've all seen the email circulating about the Vicks Vapor Rub quieting children's coughs by applying to their feet at bedtime. It truly works! I applied some to both Jackson and Lucas and it immediately stopped their coughing. Of course it's only 11pm, so we'll see how this pans out through the night. I'll keep you posted (literally)!!!

Baby Botosan Bash

Two down, one to go!

Here's a quick update on Jackson. Most of you know we've been getting second opinions regarding Jackson's Torticollis (stiff neck), Plagiocephaly (misshapen head) http://www.maryfreebed.com/media/asktheexpert_torticollis.pdf, and Cephalahematoma (bump on his head) http://www.drhull.com/EncyMaster/C/cephalohematoma.html. We met with a member of the helmet team at Mary Freebed Rehab Hospital last week. They did a light scan on his head and examined his head. He decided a helmet was NOT necessary, though his head is not perfectly shaped (he's human, thank God!). We saw a team of therapists (OT and PT) from the Torticollis Program at Mary Freebed this week. They gave us a LOT of exercises/activities we can do with Jackson to create more of a "structured" and "developmental" play session. They are going to begin an intense (most likely brief) program of therapy with him (2 times a week for 5-10 weeks). They complimented him on his ability to learn. We had to actually ASK our pediatrician for a referral to this program because he did not think Jackson seemed like he needed additional treatment (while Jackson's "abnormalities" are quite mild we are glad we have resources such as these available in West Michigan). The therapists were fantastic and very thorough at evaluating Jackson (and he loved working with them - he didn't even cry, well, not until the end - he had about an hour workout! baby Pilate's :) Our next consultation is with a Craniofacial Surgeon (if you're thinking of a career change, this one must be in high demand as we only found 2 in Grand Rapids, neither of which is in our network - expensive second opinion for us, but priceless in the eyes of parents). This evaluation will be for his hematoma that has calcified (according to our pediatrician this hematoma is harmless). By no means are we complaining about any of Jackson's minor "issues." We are so blessed to have such a healthy baby - we really see how BLESSED we are when we see others with much larger disabilities, abnormalities, etc. We praise God for all he's given us as we PRAY for others going through struggles in life.

Wintery Weather Tease

Today we received a BRIEF episode of sleet. Fortunately Lucas was awake and was thrilled to run out onto the deck barefoot to witness the white stuff firsthand. Here's a picture of him trying to collect some of the mini white balls in his hands - no luck Lucas (but we did capture a few in a Tupperware container to watch melt inside - who knew a science learning moment could be so fun?!). I'm sure the 60 degree weather will make an appearance before Christmas - it's Michigan :)

Do carseats really EXPIRE?

Maybe you're wondering what all the hype is about "expiring" carseats as I am. Do carseats really expire?.............or is it just a ploy to get us to all buy new ones? I received a brand new car seat/travel system as a shower gift with Lucas. The expiration date on it is Dec 31, 2008. We all know Jackson will not be in the seat that long, so I guess we're safe :) I've done a little research and stumbled upon this website that answers many questions:
http://www.childrestraintsafety.com/manufacture-expiration.html#list

Infant carrier carseat $59.98
Toddler carseat $59.99
Booster seat $14.99

Child's safety..............................PRICELESS!!!

WANTED: All prayer warriors!

Just wanted to share a short prayer request with you all. My brother in law, Randy (Tim's brother that's a pastor in Lowell, MI) was called to the hospital tonight to baptize a 20 week old baby. Lynae (my sister in law) was under the impression this baby was being called home to his/her eternal Father tonight. Apparently the mother has an incompetent cervix and had complications with her other two births (both these other children are well). The mother was headed to the hospital with her husband tonight and they could not stop labor. I don't believe there are any reported cases of a baby surviving so early in life. Praise God for giving this family the faith to make it through such a tough time and giving them the life they have with their two other children. May we never take anything for granted - praise God for what He's given us...........please pray for Randy as he baptizes this child of God who was called home tonight.