Funny things

I love the cute little things my kids say. The other night I took the girls out to dinner before we went to my sisters choir concert. Mady was drinking a fruit punch, she looked at me and said "Mom fruit punch is really good for you because it has fruit in it." Right sweetheart.

Our little Ellie is giving us a run for our money lately, and her sister is not helping with that very much. The other night the girls were playing and Mady did something to make her sister sad. Ellie came crying into the kitchen, fell on the floor and while sobbing said "I have a broken (big wail)....a broken heart." She is so very dramatic.

I love my girls, I am just hoping that I can keep my Santa is not bringing presents threats to a minimum this week.

My little Dax

It has been a while since I have given a Daxton update. He has progressed so much in just the last month it is incredible. He has just conquered the skill of standing up by himself. He loves to walk holding on the furniture, hands or using his walker. He is so incredibly proud of himself when he stands up. He looks at us and just laughs-it is like he is saying ha, I knew I could do it. It is so sweet.

He is still my little butt scooter, although the craziest thing happened. Thanksgiving night we were at my Grandpas house just sitting around talking when we looked down at Daxton and he was crawling on all fours with his head on the floor. It was so bizarre. It was like he always knew how to crawl. He must think his head is too heavy because holding his head up seems to be the biggest obstacle for him.

His eating is going really good(minus my emotional meltdowns). We have clinic on Thursday so I am praying so very hard that he has gained some weight. He is really liking shakes. Thanks to my sister-in-law Myca we use a magic bullet to make his shakes. We will put a thing of yogurt, banana, carnation instant breakfast, a couple scoops of duocal, whole milk and some carrots and he drinks it up. This past week he figured out how to drink from a straw so that is fun. It took him a while to realize that he has to swallow after he sucks it up. But he is getting the hang of it.

He is such a happy little man. He loves watching his sisters dance and play. Yesterday Mady was home sick with pink eye and literally for hours he just sat and watched the girls dance and he just would laugh and giggle at them. It was one of my favorite mom moments.
I am just thrilled at how far he has come. I wish I could go back a couple months and tell myself to relax, he will develop at his own pace. Yesterday I read a quote from an email that said

"Did you know that 90% of what we worry about happening never actually happens? Most of the time, however, the damage has already been done. The stress and anxiety has a devastating impact on us - physically and emotionally. How silly is that? We worry about things that will probably not happen to the point that it hurts us.

What are we afraid of? What is so scary about troubles in life? We have been given a guarantee that life will indeed have trials. But we have also been given a guarantee that God will never give us more than we can handle - in His strength. It is also during the troubles in our life that we grow and learn about God's perfect timing, love and faithfulness.

So why do we worry so much? You know what? I think we are not worried about the troubles at all. I think we are worried that God won't be there. Or that He will turn His back on us because of our mistakes, because of our sins.

If you knew for certain, absolutely, without a single doubt, that God loves you just as you are, has forgiven you for everything you have ever done and will ever do, and will never, ever, ever leave you, no matter what - would you be as afraid as you are now?"

That was just what I needed to hear yesterday. Thanks for checking up on us. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas.

Next question

Thank you so much for your help and advice. So far we are on day 4 of no tube and things are going well. He has stayed steady on his weight actually gaining 1 ounce-I'll take it. So here is my next question. What are some really fatty foods that kids(18 month olds) will eat. I tried sausage and eggs this morning and he would have nothing to do with it. He absolutely loves mac and cheese. And he loves yogurt. What are things that your kids like that are higher on the calorie list. I think I will start feeding him ice cream for every meal. He is still drinking Nutrin Jr which has a lot of calories and I tried to add Duocal with his chocolate milk, he didn't like that too much and I don't blame him I tried a taste and it was nasty. I thought Duocal was supposed to be tasteless. Any thoughts or info would be very much appreciated. Thanks so very much.

Questions about 18 month olds

At Daxton's last cardiology appointment we discussed not feeding him through his g-tube during the day and see how he does. He has done relatively well. He had a little bug for a few days and was throwing up a couple times. Besides that the eating has gone well. We were still tube feeding throughout the night until the other morning I went in to get Dax up and he was wrapped up in his tube. It was all around his body and around his neck. Needless to say this has scared me to death. I haven't tube feed him at night since that happened. Overall he eats way better during the day with out the tube feeds at night. So now my questions and concerns are these.....

Heart moms-
Why are the cardiologists so concerned about weight gain with transplant babies? Does it have to do with their heart, does more weight make it function better? Or is it because he is not on the chart? He is on a steady curve upward but I honestly feel it will be a long time before we are caught up with the "normal".

All moms-
What is "normal" for an 18 month old? How often do you feed them and how much? We were just told by our pediatrician to take him off of the bottle so we are doing sippy cups now. How much do your kids drink? Are their diapers still full after a nights sleep? I know that Daxton is my third child and I should know all of this but I can't remember and honestly my girls were not great eaters.

I am going with my gut on this and I hope it is right. I am nervous for when he gets weighed in. Any help and advice would be so very much appreciated.

A New Heart For Miss Madison

Another of Gods great miracles!! We are so happy for Madison and her family! Please pray for her and for their Donor family that has given the gift of life in the midst of their sorrow. There are no words to describe the gratitude I feel for our Donor Family. We are forever grateful for them and their selfless act of service. You can follow Madisons recovery and adventures with her twin brother at http://cooperandmadison.blogspot.com/