Thankful Thursday

I like doing Thankful Thursdays because it helps me to focus on everything I have instead of what I do not. But this week, boy do I have a lot for which to be thankful!! I don’t even know where to begin.

I am overwhelmed with how wonderful our care at UMD-B has been. We have had nothing but a fabulous experience here and we know we were in very competent hands. Our nurses and doctors went above and beyond the call of duty to get to know us, calm our fears, and take care of my girl. If there was ever any doubt about whether or not this was a good hospital choice, those thoughts have vanished. I think what Matt and I loved most of all was how everyone treats Abby as a person…because she is!!! I’m not going to start in on a debate, but there is a true little person inside of you from the moment of conception and I am not going to act like she doesn’t exist yet. Her picture is hanging up on our bulletin board and we show everybody who comes in. We talk to her, play with her, chastise her when she doesn’t behave (like when she runs away from the fetal heart monitor and causes my nurses angst!), and tell her how much we love her. The staff has done the same, and we love it. Our daughter exists and matters, and I love when people acknowledge that.

The love we have felt from our families and friends has been amazing. Tons of people have texted, called, emailed, and sent messages to let us know that they are praying for us. This is not taken lightly by us, and we have felt totally wrapped in love. It is so much easier to choose joy when you know that so many people are thinking of you! Among the people who have come along side of us to help out: My sister and my mother-in-law have taken turns caring for Caleb and bringing him up here so that we can visit. My parents have been up to visit just about every day, bring us clothes and other things we need, and take care of sweet Becky-Dog. My amazing 5th grade team and principal have stepped in to help my sub and create lesson plans for my class in my absence. My aunt and grandmother took charge of creating an awesome thank you basket of snacks for the nursing and hospital staff on the LD floor. The church and youth staff have worked together to cover everything so that Matt could stay with me. Everyone has just been amazing. Thank you!!!!!

Now I’m going to brag on my husband a bit. He’s pretty great to begin with, but he has seriously been amazing during this. Matt has truly proven his love for me in the way he has cared for me. I won’t go into details, but some of what he has had to do has not been pretty! J Plus, he has been incredibly sweet and encouraging throughout the ordeal. During my amnio reduction, he held my hand and whispered how proud he was of me throughout the entire nerve-wracking procedure. He has been such a blessing to me and I don’t know what I would have done without him. He is my rock. I tear up when I think about how awesome he has been through all of this.

Lastly, I am so incredibly thankful for my baby girl Abigail. If nothing else, she has brought a lot of excitement into our lives thus far! She will not be a dull child, that’s for sure. I want her to know how much she is wanted and loved by us and that we are willing to do whatever it takes to make sure she is healthy and safe. I’m a proud momma showing off my pictures of my beautiful baby, and I am falling more in love with her every day. I cannot WAIT to see what God is going to do in her life. I’m pretty certain it’s going to be incredible!

Cerebrocostomandibular Syndrome

If you happen to pick up the latest Reader's Digest, there is an article in there about Piper Breinholt , a four year old with CCMS. If you've been around here a while, you'll remember wayyyyyy back when we first received Abby's diagnosis that I was able to speak to Piper's mom, Reagan. The article is more about their story and not as much about the ins and outs of CCMS, but I think it's probably enough to get some people googling it and I'm hoping a few will end up here. Every once in a while, I give a blog post the title of Cerebrocostomandibular Syndrome so that it would show up in Google. My ever-present hope is that people will stumble across my blog and 1) be encouraged by the hope we have in Christ, 2) feel a connection with someone in a similar situation as them, or 3) get excited over the miracles that have been performed in Abby's life!! (a combination of all 3 is great too!) :) Notice that it's not to get famous and it never wi

Bath Time Photos!!

As promised, here are lots of photos of Abby's first bath. Caleb was supposed to be in bed, but the bathroom is right next to his room... "I'm not too sure about this..." Once she learned how to splash, she was all smiles! Her first good hair wash! Gotta protect the trach! She really liked getting water poured on her head. It was cute! Smiley (and bubbly) for Daddy while he dried her off. All clean!! (Note the Lysol wipes in that last picture. They are NEVER far away!)

Imagination Movers Photo Recap

Seriously, The Imagination Movers were so much fun! They played lots of their own music, with some classic rock mixed in for the adults. There were also quite a few jokes and references to Baltimore, which was kind of fun. The whole night centered around this robot named Rock-o-Matic, or "Rocko." This is Mover Scott, and he wears Wobble Goggles that help him see new ideas. Caleb and Abby have a pair of goggles too. :) There are 4 main Movers that are part of the TV show, but they have 2 extra movers to play instruments and do back-up vocals in their live tour. Abby finished up her feed before the show started so that she would be free to dance! My dancing queen did NOT want to sit in my lap. The row in front of us was empty, and that is where she stood almost the entire show--dancing the night away. My Imagination Movers Caleb did his share of singing and dancing too. He knows most of the words to the songs, so

Life as a Leach

Search This Blog