A Very Long Catch-Up Post (with many pictures)

I want to apologize for not updating more lately.  I have been working on my PhD and had 4 important papers that were due in August, so needless to say I have been a little busy.  Scott has been working like crazy and we spend the rare, yet treasured moments as a family playing with Miss Priss.  Speaking of Emma, she is SO MUCH FUN right now.  So here it goes…

July:

Scott and I took a vacation, a cruise more specifically, at the end of June.  We had a fantastic time.  Emma however, wanted to take a vacation as well.  She developed a UTI that landed her in CMC for a week.  Gramma Sharon and “Aunt” Darla were amazing.  They knew exactly what to do and took great care of my baby.  A big thank you also goes out to Becky (a wonderful friend/nurse) and the staff at CMC Dallas that helped Emma get better while we were out of the country.  We are blessed with such a great medical team (they even threatened Scott and I if we left the cruise early).

July also brought intense heat to the Dallas area, which has meant a lot of indoor time for Miss Emma.  We did make a trip to Lake Texoma for the annual Jamar Reunion.  This was Emma’s first trip to the Lake.  She did pretty well considering all of her new surroundings.  Due to it being so hot, Emma spent the majority of her time inside the trailer.  I guess she was so excited about being at the Lake that she did not want to sleep, so Scott, Gramma, Grampa, and I all took turns walking Emma around the Lake from 1am-6am both nights…..so much fun right??  Emma did great at the Reunion activities.  Emma was even awarded a “silver dollar baby award” for it being her first year at the reunion.  Everyone was so respectful and welcoming.  It is so great to have an amazing family. 

We went to worship together for the first time as a family—another long awaited adventure we have anxiously been awaiting   .  We recently placed membership at McDermott Road church of Christ in Plano, TX.  Everyone has been so welcoming and accommodating.  It has been so good for our hearts and souls to be a part of a group worshipping our GOD together.  Emma has done very well and always enjoys the singing part of worship.  They have even offered to do a special Bible class for Emma so that Scott and I can attend Bible class together for the first time in two years.  Although viral season is lurking around the corner, we are enjoying this time together while we can.

August:

August has already been a busy, but fun month for our little family.  Emma has been doing great in therapy.  It is amazing to watch her learn so many new things.  It is not always easy for her and she sheds her fair share of tears from time to time, but Emma works hard and we will always push her to be the “best her” she can be.  So, I bet you are curious as to what new things Emma has learned…..

1.     Emma can sign “all done” and she uses this to her advantage whenever she wants to get out of therapy.

2.     Emma is continuing to eat well.  She is getting to use suckers, icee drinks, and fizzy sodas to encourage her drinking skills.

3.     Emma is waving like a pro and is getting really good with understanding when it is appropriate to wave.

4.     Emma is clapping for herself now, which is really cute.

5.     Emma’s sitting is much better and she is really playing with her balance when she is sitting up.  She will reach way out of her comfort zone to get a toy.

6.     Emma can kneel all by herself now.

7.     Emma babbles all the time.  She “talks” to her toys to Scott and I.  It is so much fun to interact with her.

8.     Emma is a rolling machine.  Let me clarify: she still hates being on her tummy, but with a little help getting on her tummy, she rolls right over to her back without any help, and she does this over and over again.
9.   Emma has been working with water in OT.  She is doing really well and should be taking a bath in the bathtub real soon!

10.   Emma is really giggling and belly laughing.  It is so cute.  Scott and I will spend a lot of time just making her laugh.  It makes our hearts swell to hear her enjoying life. 

Emma attended her first friend birthday party.  We made a trip to Oklahoma for this party.  It was AMAZING.  Emma had a fabulous time.  We enjoyed visiting with dear friends, and it is always a joy to celebrate a heart warrior’s special day. 

August is also our anniversary month.  Scott and I have officially been married for 7 years.  It is hard to believe that it has been seven years.  Little did we know what adventures we would be on together when we started our journey?  It is not always easy, but we are doing our best to be the best to be the best parents we can be for Emma while being the best spouses to each other.  The balancing act can be overwhelming at times, but I can’t imagine being on this journey with anyone else. 

I am in the process of becoming a volunteer at CMC in Dallas.  I am really looking forward to starting this process.  I will be volunteering on the heart floors at the hospital.  I pray, that I can be an encouragement to these families and bring some sunshine to their day.  

We had a great cardio check-up this week.  Emma’s labs looked good and we are getting to decrease her nebulizer treatments—YAY!  She had lost some weight, so we are increasing her feeds.  We are all sure it is from how active she is becoming.  We are also getting to wean Emma’s oxygen because her O2 sats have been trending up.  Emma also had testing done to see if there was a physiological reason for Emma having UTIs (she had 2 in under 2 years).  The good news is that her testing showed no bladder reflux and she only has one kidney stone now.  YAY!  Check out the picture below of her during this test.  They put her on a very skinny board, strapped her in, put in a catheter, and rotated her side to side.....she loved it...(insert sarcasm here)

Wrap-up:

As you can see, we have been busy.  We are enjoying Emma so much.  She is constantly amazing us with all of her new accomplishments.  She is also amazing her medical staff.  Her cardiologist told reminded us this week that medically, Emma should not have made it this far and that he is done making predictions about her.  He said that she looks better than she ever has and he is very happy with her progress.  We know who is watching over Emma, and we thank HIM daily for taking care of our sweet little girl.  Thank you for your continued prayers!

As always, God is Good!  All the Time!  God is Good!

Sarah

Lots of Pictures......

Sweet cousins!

This is my "I'm not getting my way" face! 

The speech therapist said that Emma needed an iPad, so....she got an iPad!

Emma's first time on a boat!

Going on a boat ride!

All tucked in at Gramma and Grampa's camper!

Ready for some fun in the sun!

Both babies were entranced by Baby Einstein 

Kid Day at the Jamar Reunion!

Bathing Beauty!

Hanging out with Coen at the Lake!

Jamar Reunion 2012

Supporting CMC by eating a DQ Blizzard!

Working on Water play therapy in OT

My messy little girl!

Emma trying an ICEE!  She really liked it!

This is NOT FUN MOMMY!  I do not like being a rotisserie chicken!

Two Heart Heros making silly faces!  

***Please do not crop or copy pictures in any way without asking us first.