13th Anniversary

13 years ago...

 I would have never imagined this family of mine...

 I am SO glad God is in charge, my dreams were much too ordinary ;)

I am blessed beyond measure to be walking alongside this man through it all.

We bought this sailboat ornament during our honeymoon in St. Thomas. Gone are the days of smooth sailing and calm waters. Most days we are like 2 boats passing in the wind and the winds are blowing wildly. Thankfully God is with us and throws us an anchor every once and awhile. Tonight my sister is the anchor, so we can go out for a late dinner. We have not been on a date since JULY. Oh my!

Besties and Worsties

Watch closely :) Be thankful there is no sound.

They are 16 months apart according to birthdays. When Avery came home they were more like 24 months apart in age. Their age gap has decreased significantly and quickly. Aside from language delays and being a little extra clumsy, Avery is suddenly a TWO yr old. Ryan on the other hand has lost his place as the baby in the family and has regressed a little in behavior.

They are quite the pair these days. I have a feeling it's going to get A LOT worse before it gets better.

We are thrilled Avery is catching up and we are glad she feels comfortable to be herself, but my oh my does she have a set of lungs.

I know all you mom's of girls are laughing. Go ahead! I knew it was coming. I asked for it :)

Encouraged

We were thrilled by the Doctor's findings yesterday. We are so very thankful for God's goodness and grace. EJ and I were able to stay with Avery the entire time. Aside from the hospital visit in (hina, I don't think she has had Mommy and Daddy all to herself. That seems crazy!

She was the cutest little thing while she woke up from sedation. Thankfully she won't remember us laughing at her :)

As of now, Avery will not need surgery. We are relieved. The Doctors will just keep tabs on her for now and we will re-evaluate when she is able to communicate with us a little more.

4 Months Home

I wish I had the time or energy to put towards this post. Today, marks 4 months that Avery has been home. Last night, our family was at the airport welcoming home the Smith family and their new daughter, Irina. I have pictures, but I will let Jill have her moment! I remember our first nights home vividly and I must say I am so glad I am 4 months in :)

Avery is still doing really well. We are beginning to see some change in temperament that we can only assume means she is a lot more comfortable with us. Her "real" self is showing ;) It's not always pretty. She has a nasty sounding yell if she doesn't get her way or her point across. Fun times! Thankfully it's still pretty short lived. I know there is plenty more drama coming. Gotta ease this momma in slowly.

She has done great in the church nursery. She is definitely a momma's girl. She is trying to make up for lost time and wants to be held ALL THE TIME.

 

Today, we had a visit with our social worker in preparation of the 6 month report. It was fun retelling all the progress Avery has made physically and verbally. 

Words to date:

Up, Help, More, Uh Oh, Momma, Dada, Ryan, ouch, ball, thank you

Signs for:

Help, More, Want, All done, Milk, Please, Thank you, Share

Avery did really well meeting new family members over Thanksgiving. I wasn't sure how she'd handle new homes and people. We are THANKFUL for their one arms and hearts toward our new daughter. EJ's dad commented, it's like she's been in our family all along.

 Thanksgiving Day- Her First

She has another appointment on Friday. This one involves fasting and sedation and leaving at 6 AM. EJ is coming with us this time. Hooray! Please pray Doctors are encouraged with what they see.

Full Thanksgiving

If I had blogged in real time, the 10 loads of dirty laundry would not be tainting my post. Oh, how quick I am to be dissatisfied. We traveled over the river(s) and through the trees to 4 grandmothers' homes this Thanksgiving. My children are blessed to have 2 grandmothers and 2 great grandmothers.

I am very disappointed in myself for not getting better pictures. I was trying to BE present, but I also just took lousy pictures.

First stop, EJ's mom's house. The weather was raining and COLD, but we had lots of fun indoors.

We played this really fun game called Rummikub. Mason needed a little help, but he understood the game. Later, when the kids went to bed, EJ and his mom and I played :) EJ's sister was also visiting. The kids loved having her around too.

This was the 1st year in 20 (?) years that EJ did NOT play football on Thanksgiving morning. Last year, the group was too small and his best buddies decided to "retire." Sadness!

The dad's did organize an annual game with all their sons the afternoon before Thanksgiving. Despite the wind and sleet, they played, dads included! I was indoors where it was warm and dry, hence no photos!

 

Next, we introduced Avery to EJ's maternal grandmother. Avery was looking at a photo collage of our family that we gave Mimi for an early Christmas present. Love her expression!

Then she met EJ's paternal grandmother and EJ's dad. 

The kids enjoyed an early Christmas. Nana in the background with big smiles.

We ate Thanksgiving dinner at Nana's house. Avery was a big fan of Nana's famous escarole soup.

The boy's table.

Friday night we bundled up and watched the town Christmas tree lighting.

Last night, we went to my parent's house for a very nice dinner. I didn't get any pictures :(
Quite a lot for 4 days! We were ALL thankful to crawl in our own beds Sat. night!