Update!!!!!!!

Hi everybody ~

We have all been busy around here. Connor has been working hard on reaching a new milestone.....crawling! We're not there yet, but we are working hard on getting him to use those knees and arms to get him around. He's sitting up for hours at a time now and it is so fun to watch him be independent and play with toys on his own. We feel that he will become a much more content little guy once he has movement. He expresses great frustration when he can't get to his next activity on his own. We are so proud of him and his progress. We had a disappointing hearing screening a week ago, but we believe that their findings were misinterpreted and not accurate for what we know Connor can do. They, however, want Connor to undergo another hearing screening under sedation so that they can accurately assess his hearing levels. We are confident that it will be fine and we are praying that Connor will get through this with flying colors. At the same time they do the test, they will also be putting ear tubes in as they found that he had a bit of fluid on his right side. I'm told that ear tubes are nothing to be scared of, so we are trusting the Lord that this will be the case for Connor.

We are all anxiously awaiting the Buddy Walks coming up on the 6th and the 13th. For all of you who have sent Connor a donation to Team Little Bug, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We know we set quite a lofty goal in raising $2500, so if you have been considering a donation, it is not too late. We have a ways to go in our fund raising efforts and every contribution will be greatly appreciated by this great organization. The information you need to donate is this.
Please make checks payable to The Arc of Whatcom Co. attn Down Syndrome Outreach & send them to:
1309 57th Drive SE
Auburn, WA 98092
Thank you so much for the contributions to Team Little Bug!!!

Mackenzie is growing like a weed and she is definitely cutting teeth. Tonight she has a fever of 100.9 so we know that it may be a long night of fussiness. She is generally a happy kiddo who loves to smile. She is very observant of everything around her, especially her brother. I think she believes that Connor is there for her pure enjoyment. She laughs at all of his funny sounds and squeaks and smiles at him when he jumps in his jumperoo. Sweet Pea will be 6 months old next Tuesday. It's hard to believe she is growing so fast. She's rolling all over the place and likes to sit in her brother's Bumbo chair and sit assisted in the Boppy pillow. What a big girl.
She's still nursing, but we all look forward to introducing food to her after the Doctor's OK!!!!! Sleeping is still a rough go for everyone. Mackenzie will go for about 5 hours and then it's up every 2 1/2 to 3 hours (insert a big yawn from Mama!!!) Connor does fairly well at nighttime, but he often wakes up with fits of crying that we have been chalking up to teething, but we wonder sometimes if it could be something else.......like a bad habit to get us to come in and check up on him. So, sleep is something we like to dream about, but it doesn't seem like we get long enough stretches to allow our minds to dream. Oh well, Randy always says we'll get plenty of sleep when we're old. Hey, wait a minute, I already feel old!!! Hee Hee

Randy is busy about working out at the base and he has been informed that his military active duty orders will be ending here at the end of the month. He has been called back to fly with American Airlines, which is a blessing, but it all comes with the bitter-sweet reality that that means Daddy will be gone an awful lot. We are praying that God will help us with the right direction to move forward and for a decision that will be beneficial for all of us!!! He remains faithful in his commitment to us and he is so helpful when he can be. I am blessed beyond measure to have this man that I love so dearly!!!!

I am currently busy with the duties of Mommy hood!!!! Our days are spent doing the normal Mama and baby things and, I'll be honest, sometimes I feel a bit buried by it all. But, thankfully I am rewarded day after day with kisses and hugs and smiles that melt my heart and cause me to want to do it all again tomorrow. I have also taken up a new venture that I'm thrilled about. For all of you that are Mom's to little kiddo's you might want to check out a very fun line of kids clothes that I'm representing in Washington State. In fact the trunk just arrived in my home about 2 days ago, so my whole living room looks like a children's boutique.....It's Beautiful!!!! Anyway, if you live in our area here, feel free to stop over and see the kids and check out this new stuff.....we'd love to see you. Or if you'd like to check it out online go to http://www.chezami.com/ to see it. I think it will be fun to meet other moms of kids and provide a fun outlet for me to play dress up with the kiddos. Hey, if you like what you see and choose to pick something up, just enter my ID #447203 and I will make sure to inform you of future sales and specials or the dates that new merchandise will be out!! Ok, that's the end of my commercial.....I'm having a good time and trying to be creative with my time and efforts so that I don't get swallowed up in the long hours of baby days!!!!

Update on Grandma Nanny. My mom is doing much better and is home from her 10 day stay in the hospital. What a scare that whole thing was, but she is back up on her feet and she is trying to get back to her normal activity levels. The doctor is monitoring her closely so that they can get her blood levels at the right place, but other than that, there are no changes to her lifestyle. We are so thankful that God saw fit to place his healing hands upon those blood clots and now we just have to continue to pray that she would become stronger day by day.

I think I have updated everything for the moment. I will try to post new pictures soon. We are working out the kinks of a new camera so be patient!!!!!

Lovebug Hugs,
Lori

PS ~ We want to send out our deepest prayers to the Collins family and their extended family in Riverside, CA. Many of you have seen comments from our dear friends Rip and JoAnn . The Lord saw fit to call one of his mighty warriors home to be with him a couple of weeks ago. Rip Collins was and is a man that I personally looked up to and saw as a great man of faith. Our hearts go out to JoAnn at this time and to the entire family. How we wish we were still in Riverside so that we could give you all of our love in person. May the splendid character of this great man live on in the lives of his family and those that were closet to him. We are all better people and stronger in our faith for knowing and loving Rip!!!