7 days to go!

 

Written by Keith

Thanks for all the prayers for Hannah!  We have been quarantining the family as much as possible.  We have all been pretty healthy so far.  Hannah had a day bug last week but thankfully it came as fast as it went.  We have been debating this but we are going to do some light trick or treating tonight.  Prayfully the open air & antibacterial wipes will prevent infection.  This is the first year that Eli fully grasps the concept that trick or treating = candy & fun.  So we didn't want to rob him of the experience.  

 

If you have an opportunity to pray for Hannah this week.  Here are some things that have been on my heart.

- Please pray that the family stays well this week in preparation for Hannah's surgery.  Also pray for the health of my parents as they are coming up on Sunday to watch Eli for the surgery & to provide helping hands post surgery.  

- Pray that God directs the surgeon's hands during this delicate surgery.  

- Pray for Hannah to have a speedy recovery.  In many cases cochlear implants can be an outpatient procedure.  Hannah is staying the night because of the issues with her brain.  There are unknown risks.  Specifically pray that she does not have any seizures.  Kids with her brain condition are more susceptible.  

- Pray for Ellie and myself to love each other during the additional stress

- Pray the surgery is successful and that Hannah will be able hear!  This is really exciting for me.    

This is step 1 for Hannah's hearing & speech recovery.  The link below is a first hand story about what Hannah will go through.  Cochlear implants are not the same as glasses or lasik.  They will help her hear but the hearing is different.  I don't really understand what different means but she will have to learn to hear in a different way.  Learning to hear is not something I really ever thought about.  

http://handsandvoices.org/deafhardofhearingchildren/inspiringdeafandhardofhearingteens/

Lastly please pray for Ellie & Hannah post surgery.  Pray that Hannah will learn to hear & speak.  This learning means more doctor & therapy appointments.  Ellie is a trooper & doesn't talk about this much but it is physically taxing on her.  Hannah has already had a 100+ appointments this year! Pray for endurance and patience as she will need to have more speech therapies post surgery to go along with the other physical stuff.  

 

Thanks so much for remembering our family during this time. We will keep you updated!

"And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him."

           1 John 5:14

2 weeks to go!

We're in the final countdown until Hannah's surgery. 

2 weeks. 

I know for most people the autumn season flies by and for the most part it has with us too, but waiting for this surgery has seemed long. We are anxiously awaiting the day. 

 

Starting Monday we are initiating a kid quarantine. Eli will be home from school, no playgroup, no nursery, etc. 

Don't worry we'll still get out of the house, but we are trying to do all we can to avoid infection especially as flu season begins and it just started getting cold here, uhum yesterday.

 

I think I'm 95% ready for the surgery. I know this will help her hear and it has proven over and over amazing results, but seeing my girl in pain is worrisome. We know she will be in good hands with the doctors and nurses at Cincinnati Children's but it's still hard. 

 

The next two weeks will be fun for all of us. Actually, Hannah and Eli have started to really play well with each other. Hannah misses Eli when he's at school and Eli constantly asks me when Hannah's going to get up from her afternoon nap so he can play with her. It's sweet. 

 

Today we had the pleasure of dedicating Hannah and Suzi at church. 

We are thankful for the church the Lord has placed us in and the way they care for us and our children. Since Hannah is Hannah almost every kids ministry worker knows her. I often here "you're Hannah's mom, right?" I don't think I've ever heard that about my other two.  I hope that's a good thing. 😊

 

But more than just their care we know people pray for her and us. Someone I barely know even came up to me this morning and asked when Hannah's surgery is, that's amazing to me--that people think to pray for her and she, in her unique way, is having an impact on others. 

 

So, 2 weeks. 

Thank you for your continued prayers for health and the upcoming surgery. 

As we wait we can only imagine the great things the Lord has in store. 

Sweet Suzi

Suzi. 

 

Yes, she doesn't get much press. 

It's hard coming after an older sister who always seems to have something going on with her. Also, when all you do is eat, smile and cry there isn't a lot to capture. Of course being the 3rd child has its stereotypes, but you are not forgotten, sweet Suzi. 

As I've mentioned Suzi was a surprise blessing and she is a blessing in every way. 

She waits for me to feed the other two before I nurse her and put her to bed. 

 

When she wakes up in the morning and starts looking around for another person and catches my eye her face is transformed into a gigantic smile. 

 

When Eli is bouncing all around the room and saying something in gibberish she laughs. 

 

Yes, she hates the cast, but has lots of patience for her big sister. 

 

I so look forward to what kind of girl this sweet baby will turn into. I pray she's just as patient and full of grace as she is now. 

 

I will miss this baby. 

Casty

Yes, she's still with us. 

She's proven frustrating. 

She's been used as a club and other not nice things. 

She's been a pain in more ways than one. 

But I really think she's helped. 

 

I now can leave Hannah to eat her yogurt all by herself! Of course it's still messy and I have to help her at the end but it's a big accomplishment. 

We have been doing as many things as possible to help that hand and use that side of the brain. 

 

Since she is such a determined little girl having no right hand has not stopped her. Even her occupational therapist thinks she will miss the cast. I probably wouldn't go that far, but I am glad we went ahead and did it. 

 

Not everyone in the house is a fan. 

Just a few more days and she will be back to two hands and we shall see how she uses them. 

Today also marks one month until surgery. Right now Hannah is healthy and everything is still a go for the procedure. Yesterday we received her last earmold for that left ear, in a month no more molds!!

Thank you for your continued prayers. Most importantly for her health and that everything works for the surgery to take place on November 7th. Also, please pray for our family as we will leave Eli with grandparents and I'm sure Hannah will need some extra holding during that time. Jealousy can run high in this house!

 

"As for God, his way is perfect: The LORD's word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him."

Psalm 18:30

Just More Life

Constant. 

That's how I describe life right now. In this season with 3 kiddos 4 and under there is not much downtime. 

On Tuesday, Eli had some quiet time with me on the couch. We snuggled (which I love) and as soon as we both got comfortable, Hannah cried out so I slid Eli over and picked her up and she rested her head on me watching the movie. A few minutes later I heard Suzi, so I slid Hannah over next to Eli and went and got Suzi. I fed her, she fell back to sleep, I laid her back down, came back out and life was back into full gear. 

I love it when my children are sleepy.  They are so snuggly and super sweet. But it does seem sometimes I put one down just to pick up another. 

This morning I woke up early before everyone else...to shower. 

I know it should have been to spend time with Jesus. But, alas I showered. 

If I'm not giving a hug because someone got their feelings hurt, or helping one off the potty, I'm feeding or rocking to sleep. 

And that's only when we are at home. 

It really is priceless time and I'm basically writing this post so I don't forget these days, but at this moment I'm tired. 

 

It's hard to get everyone in the same picture. 😊

Lord,

Help me enjoy these days so I can remember them with fondness. Even though I love who my children are becoming and all they get to do my heart aches for the slow-paced days of baby snuggles. Thank you for entrusting me with these little loves. 

 

Real Life

As fall starts, we are getting into a rhythm, somewhat.

My littlest girl surprises me with how much she is changing every day.

Suzi has started smiling when she sees a familiar face or is just in an overall good mood, which is often.  She loves her brother and sister and is always busy watching them.  She has started batting at hanging toys on the playmat and oohing and ahhing.  The only thing that she seems to dislike is being strapped in her carseat, which can make for some long car rides, but we are trying to remedy this quickly.

Oh my!  She is really getting fun!

And has a brother who adores her.

 Eli is doing well in preschool.  He started the year only knowing 2 kids in his class, but now comes home most nights talking about other kids who we don't know.  His teacher is also really nice to send me pictures during the day so we can look at them later and he can tell me who his friends are and what they were doing.

Our second and most eventful child (79 medical claims for this child so far this year) also had a big week getting a cast on her arm.

"No, it is not broken, its therapy."  If I said that once I said it a hundred times this week.

That's the short answer.

The complete answer is we put Hannah's dominate arm in a cast to make her use her left hand.  Since she was born we have known that her left side is weaker, but it is very obvious in her hand.  Because of this weakness she can completely disregard this hand and only use her right for most things.  Putting a cast on her right makes her use the left and also does a lot for her brain.  The first day she was not happy at all.

Yes, this is real life.  

Thankfully Keith took off a few days to help me with the kiddos while Hannah adjusted to having her hand taken away.  

By day 2 she had started to eat by herself and was even reaching out for things with her left.  This just goes to show how powerful the brain is.  

She's becoming a little mama.

She can even pick up a baby doll and rock her to sleep.  Of course, this baby gets dropped a lot, but we are so proud of how much Hannah is learning.

The bubble wrap is for our protection.  Hannah's arm is very heavy and is very strong so we must wrap it so she doesn't hurt herself or others.  

It doesn't always help.

So, she will have the cast on for 4 weeks and then off until after her CI surgery.  We will repeat this process a few times to give her more practice using her left.  We are hopeful this will help her start using her hand more.  Of course, we do not expect her to ever use her left hand more than her right, but we do want her to recognize that hand and use it to assist her right.  Like climbing a ladder or holding a plate.  

Just taking life one step at a time.  

"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.  Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it."

Hebrews 12:11

Celebrating

Hannah, 

Today you turned two!

It was fun to see how you got excited about this birthday. About the balloons and the people and the cake. 

How you waited in anticipation as we sang "Happy Birthday".

How, just like last year, we had to give you a bath after you finished your cake. 

How you wanted to play with and explore every gift you got, not just play with the paper. 

You are growing up my sweet girl. It is so fun to see your personality come out more and more but still know how much you need your mama. I pray you never lose the God given JOY you have for life. It sometimes scares me to think about you growing up in a hard world, but I know there is someone who will always help you even more than your Dad and I. The Lord will be your helper and your guide, may you know Him early in life and love Him with your whole heart. 

I love you Hannah Joy

You are sweet, special and so beautiful!