Friday, July 27, 2012

Izzy and her Papa


Papa and Izzy have a special bond.  He has prayed for her from the beginning of her existence and began praying even harder once we found out she had DS and a broken heart.  Along with Daddy and Mimi, he followed the ambulance to the NICU an hour away the night she was born.  He just needed to be there.  He sat with her bright and early so others could get their sleep and so they could bond. 

He traveled with us to Orlando for her OHS and was there every morning to speak with her nurses and sit with Izzy so we could again get a few more hours of sleep.  Papa is just there without even having to ask.  That is the type of person he is.


Also, Papa does Izzy's exercises when they spend time together so she gets physical therapy once a week and Papa therapy a few times a week.  He expects a lot from Izzy just like he does his other grand kids and I like that.  He knows DS doesn't mean our expectations should be lowered.  It just means we just have to work a little harder for things.
Around our house, Papa is known as the baby whisperer- he is also a master at teaching kids to ride bikes.  Izzy will try things for him that we can never get her to do.  See for yourself...
Look Papa- no hands!

4 point crawl position



We are so excited to see her putting pressure on her knees and legs.  I can't wait for her to start moving around!  Soon...very soon.
I am one very lucky girl to have been blessed with such a wonderful Daddy and Izzy is one very lucky girl to be blessed with her Papa. He will always have her back and also be there to help her reach her fullest potential. 

We love you Papa and appreciate everything you do for us!

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Isabelle update...


Isabelle is 14 months (as of yesterday) and she is weighing in at 17.4 lbs (according to the home scale).  I don't have her height but sister is long!! She loves table food but she still doesn't have any teeth which limits her variety of foods.  I have been saying this for months but I think she might be truly teething now.  Miss Stubborn might not be popping any teeth out just to keep proving to me that she does things when she is ready! 
She isn't a big fan of the stage 3 baby food.  I can't say I blame her... it definitely doesn't look very appetizing.  She really prefers any food that you have and she is fast.  She will swipe it right out of your hand if you aren't watching.
Late night of partying with her bloomers on her head.
She is doing great with her therapies- physical and speech.  We should be adding occupational soon.  We are still working on crawling and getting into a sitting position.  I am ready with my camera each morning just in case I walk in and she is sitting up in her crib.  She has mastered sitting on her own and spinning around in circles.  This past Monday, she was witnessed scooting on her bum.  She chooses to do this when I am not around (church nursery/therapy session) but Mommy is still so proud! 
This is what Izzy thinks of her hip helpers!
Give me some kisses brother!
She is wearing her hip helpers 24/7 except during sleepy times.  We just ordered the next size up because her first pair was starting to cut off her circulation.  Chunky thighs!  We are trying out some new colors as well- snazzy purple for home and black for daycare.  She is doing great with the hip helpers and doesn't seem to mind them all too much.  I am sure she would much rather do the splits all day long but it is time she works on strengthening her core.  She did manage to get into a sitting position but completely wrong format.  She was lying on her stomach, did the splits and pushed herself up.  While I did think that was AMAZING... she found the easy way out and was being a little lazy.  Yes, I said it... doing the splits for her is being lazy.  While I would have to make a visit to the ER if I tried to do the splits, they come all too natural for Izzy. 
Come here brother... I think you have something in your hair.
Izzy is learning new signs and also learning to drink from a cup.  She definitely prefers the bottle over the cup.  Give her a chance, and she will swat the cup across the room.  But...slowly but surely she will learn these new things.  She has moved on from formula to whole milk without issue.  Yay Isabelle!
Her Speech Therapist is wonderful and working hard with signing/flash cards/transitioning to a cup and many more things along with teaching Mommy and Daddy how to help her at home as well.  She has her hands full!  Izzy is still needing to strengthen her jaw stability so we are continuing our daily exercises with the NUB and her chewy toy.  However, Sister has no issues with her vocal cords.She is learning new sounds and imitating all the time.  She absolutely loves mirror time and will jabber with her look alike all day. 
Can you still see me?!?

A late night + early morning = crashing in Mommy's bed for nap time.
I love to see the progress Isabelle is making and we see changes all the time.  We celebrate her smallest accomplishments as well as her biggest accomplishments all the same because she works so hard  for each and every one.

Silly Izzy

I know I have said this before but this girl is quite silly.
Does anyone else's kid insist on covering their face only to freak out and flail around until someone else removes the object?? It is quite entertaining and she will eventually remove the object but then she will put it right back on and start the whole process over again.
Silly Izzy!

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Girl time...

Last night, Izzy and I did some girl bonding while the boys played on the PS3.  We ate our dinner in bed (That didn't go over so well... Izzy got her food all over Daddy's side of the bed!), did a little girl talk and laughed until she feel asleep.  We took lots of funny pictures but most had to be deleted so there wasn't evidence of our craziness. 
I sure do love this little girl!

Monday, July 16, 2012

Beach pictures

My friend- Angie- took some great pictures of the kids over the 4th of July holiday. (thanks for leaving me out of most of the pictures... Mama isn't ready to be in pictures just yet!)  She captured the kid's personalities perfectly and now the hard decision... to choose which ones to hang in the house.  Decisions...decisions. 
Isabelle loves the water and her Daddy!

Her BFF- Ethan- is always close by.


Ethan and Aiden



Sister loves to eat sand. Gross!




Isabelle has had a little too much sand at this point.  She is looking a bit tipsy.

It didn't take long for them to start wrestling in the sand.  It is what they do best!

Love my babies!


Aiden's personality shining through!



Jordan, Sydne Kate and the kids

Jordan and Izzy- Izzy's first little crush!

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

My silly kids...

All three of them are so silly.   See for yourself...
I just can't take it anymore!

Where's my arms?!?  (Izzy is playing in Aiden's favorite shirt after going for a swim)

Can you guess who this is??  Yep...Sister got in the folded laundry again!  At least they were clean.

The boys finally got a haircut.  Thanks Papa!!

Being silly at the movies with their Aunt Amy

She should be sound asleep but instead she is wide awake laughing.

Doing a little stretching during feeding time.

Isabelle has been forced to wear her hip helpers 24/7 (minus sleeping times) and she is pouting and refusing to move.  Don't worry... Mommy is going to win this battle!

Cupcake time

The boys and I made cupcakes last night.  Well... I made cupcakes and they added the sprinkles.  A little Mother/son bonding is always good.

Forget the icing.  Must.eat.cupcake.now

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Special bond

These two have a bond like no other.  It is special and it is strong!
I love seeing their relationship grow!

A night out...

A few nights ago we went looking for ghost crabs at the beach.  Well... they were hiding and according to the boys they only live at one beach - and we were at the wrong beach!
                   

At least we had some fun in the sand for a bit and then we enjoyed a nice dinner.  Luckily we picked a restaurant that didn't have too much of a wait.  Summer time in Destin = long waits at Restaurants.  

Seeing who she can wave to next.

Don't even think about it!  All mine...