Maddie's appt. update

The sedated echo has finally been set up for Maddison. She will go to U of M on Tuesday, May 5. I have been praying really hard about this and now that the appointment is set up I feel a real sense of peace. I know as the day draws nearer I will have some anxiety creep back up. If you could keep Maddison in your prayers most of all I know it would help Bret and I to the utmost.

I look forward to reporting the findings to you and pray that it will show all is well with my little fighter.

Prayers and a farewell

A couple of my friends have recently lost their parents. And I have recently lost a great uncle. So many people are facing so many hard times. What a comfort to know the Lord and that it is only a temporary goodbye. I am sending out extra special prayers tonight for those who's hearts are aching at this moment. May God comfort them in a way human hands never could.

If you can...

Check out my friend Rachel's blog. You can get her on my list of followers or click on the button of Noah to the right. You can get the full story there and she tells it so much more eloquently than I ever could. On her blog you will see that something special is brewing in honor of Noah. If you could join in the effort it would mean so much to us. It will likely cost you nothing but be priceless in the end.

Maddie's Heart

Yesterday Maddie had her cardiology appointment. It has been one year since her last check up. Time really flies. I am writting this with such mixed emotions. I am so proud of my little girl for being so tough through all of this. She is such a fighter and a strong little girl.

To say that Maddie has stranger anxiety is an understatement. She doesn't even like anyone to look at her much less touch and examine her. The doc did get a good listen to her heart and said she sounded good. We know that she is doing well developmentally and emotionally. Her growth is right on track. She is bigger than Ella at the same age. (Not saying much since Miss E is a peanut.) The doctor wanted to try to do an EKG since it is standard procedure for a check up. Maddie didn't want much to do with it. I was holding her and Bret was trying to hold her feet still. She was struggling and crying (SCREAMING) loudly. But, they got the test in. It showed a slight abnormality on the right side of her heart. The Dr. said because she was so upset it could have been inaccurate or there really could be a slight problem. Bottom line is she has to be sent for a sedated echo cardiogram. We opted to send her back to the hospital that she had her surgery at. It's a better set up, it will be easier on her and they can compare her old films directly. The hospital should call me soon with the date and time for her appointment. If you could please say a prayer for her and for our strength. I need to keep in mind that the doctor said she would be, "surprised to see anything on the echo." And she said IF they do find something with the right side of her heart they will likely watch it for a while. This does NOT mean she needs surgery right away or again at all. It's a precaution. We may even be able to tell if she is "out of the woods" after this test.

I do not like the idea of her being sedated again but I know it is necessary. There is not much chance of her being still enough for them to get good pictures or for her to be calm. Like I said she is really struggling with the stranger anxiety so it would be a true shock for them to be able to do it with out. The sedation medication is given orally. I remember the look on her face and the struggle she had at one month old when she was given the medication. I do not look forward to her doing it again. The plus is, she will not need an IV.

Thank you all for your thoughts and love and concern for our family and epically for little Mads. The Lord had blessed her and we trust He will again.

Had to try it...

I knew I could post from my cell phone but I wasn't 100% sure how. So tonight I played around and figured it out. I had a couple requests to see my hair from the front so here it is and posted from my cell phone no less. :) Technology...how wonderful.

I did it

I cut 9" off my hair today. I have been saying for some time now that I would donate it. The last few weeks I realized just how long it was getting. I've been getting headaches when it was in a pony tail because of the weight. I also noticed no matter how hard I tried to pile it up on top of my head it is falling down and getting into everything. I was helping at E's school one day and leaned over the table and the poor kid got a face full of hair. It takes so long for me to blow dry it and I just loathe doing it. So today I made the call to see when I could get in to see my girl. Turns out...I could get in tonight. So off I went. Please forgive the pictures. They were taken with my cell phone. And my hair has the lovely "bump" in the before picture from a pony tail. Another thing I realized...I never wore my hair down because it was just EVERYWHERE.

So, I am sending my hair tothe Pantene Beautiful Lengths program. You can check it out here if you'd like.

Goodbye, Hello

Goodbye old car, hello new car. It may be a used car but it's new to us. I got a new car today. :) It's a silver Buick Rendezvous. Hello third row seats!!! Finally, the girls can spread out a bit and we no longer have to pull car seats in and out to be able to go anywhere with my parents. Up until now we've relied on their van. Now they can just hop in with us. Ella was a bit sad to say goodbye to the Equinox but Bret and I were not. B finally has some room to move with out being squished between two car seats. The best thing about the Equinox was that is the car we brought Maddie home from the hospital in. Both after being released from the NICU and from U of M after her surgery. I am looking forward to taking Grommet for a drive in the new car tomorrow. After all, what's a car with out some dog snot on the windows?

Prayers for the D family

There is a family from my church that really needs prayers right now. I won't go into too much detail but they had a daughter born at 27 weeks. She passed away Easter Sunday. I know this family can really use prayers right now. They were very good to us during Maddie's surgery and sickness. They hold a special place in my heart. If you could see the faces of their other beautiful children you would melt in an instant. Could you join me in saying a prayer for them?

Bad Blogger

I know I have been terrible lately about blogging. It seems like I have been very busy with out really knowing what I've been busy with. Maddison is sick again. I don't know what the deal is with that girl and colds. I do know that this time she is teething along with it so she is a very UN happy camper. Of course she has shared her germs with me so I have been run down myself.

Ella had her spring break last week and this week is B's. We will enjoy the time we have with her. Not sure what we will do yet but whatever it is will be fun.

I bought myself a drop spindle and some wool roving. I am hoping to teach myself to spin yarn. If I can't do it it will be a good laugh and maybe the girls will be able to pick it up. It was a pretty cheap investment to see if I can get myself into a new craft. :)