Growing

They grow too fast. Tomorrow they'll be going to college. May God grant me the ability to appreciate each day, not wishing for next week (so I can go on vacation) or next month (so Charlotte will be doing new and more exciting things) or September (so Owen can go back to school and stop asking me every single morning, "Where are we going today?!").

For those who want to know, we've had a lot going on with Charlotte and doctor visits. The visit to the orthopedist was very encouraging. She should be a great candidate for pollicization when she is about a year old. We also had a visit with the geneticist. They have connected us with a physician at the NIH who is doing a study on VACTERL. Charlotte only has three of the seven birth defects, but they are still interested in having us participate. This means more doctors, possibly more advanced tests, and hopefully more answers. As for her heart, she will have to have a repeat cardiac cath in July. The scar tissue in her aorta is not stretching as they would like, so the plan is to balloon it open during the cath. Please pray for her. We have so appreciated your prayers up to this point and truly need you to continue to lift us up.

On the non-medical front, Charlotte is doing really well. She has found her hands, so she spends lots of time holding them or sticking them in her mouth or reaching for her giraffe and spider (on her play mat). She loves looking at funny faces, rewarding us with huge smiles, or watching us make noises. What do you call those anyways? Seems sort of crass to call them fart sounds, but that's the best descriptive I've got. She's even pretty good at replying with her own.

As for Owen, he's always very busy. And his mouth seems to be lacking a mute button. I got so tired of the non-stop soundtrack one day that I asked him to tell Charlie, our dog, about it instead. So he did. He's really interested in letters right now. He wants to know every word I can think of that starts with P or B or whatever letter he is currently interested in. Also, we're learning to tell time. Mostly so I can get him to stay in bed until 7:00 am. He's really sweet with Charlotte. He wants to hug and kiss her all the time. Whenever I put her in a dress he declares, "She's a princess!" Such an amazing little boy.

Well, I have a squirming little girl in my lap, so we're off for nap time.