Whew...

Time goes by fast, so so fast. I can't believe that next Thursday April 2nd, my little man is going to be half a year old! I miss being in the hospital with him, I miss holding him as a newborn and watching him sleep (heck, I miss getting things done while he slept), I miss his "first smile," "first giggle," "first tooth," and all the other firsts I won't get back again. I love all the new things that come with the next stage....but man oh man do I miss whats passed already. I adore being a mom...and people are talk talk talking about when I'm gonna give Landry a brother or sister...well...as much as I loved being pregnant, I still want to enjoy my time with Landry a little longer. That and the fact that we're too broke! :-) I am praying God lets it work out sooner than later though.

We took Landry to Couer d' Alene, Idaho over Spring Break so he could meet his 93 year old great-grandmother. We were so proud of how he did in the car. What a long long drive for such a little man. He was fantastic! BUT...we're not doing that again. It was just too much for him and too much for us....so airplanes or shorter visits!

Landry is getting bigger, he's trying as hard as he can to crawl and is pushing up super far when on his belly. The big kicker.....he's not even 6 months yet and he's got 3 teeth and 3 more about to break thru any day now! I've heard its better to get them all at once, goes by faster....so, I'll be grateful! He's doing pretty darn good for getting so many teeth at once. Robert got news that his school will not be terminating any positions next year, so his job is safe. I'm going to be starting a new job that will hopefully keep me home with Landry permanently (more to come on that later). We are looking for a new church, and start the search this Sunday, I am excited and hope that God shows us to something that will be perfect for both Robert and I!

All in all, things are going great....busy busy busy, but great!

Landry laughing

I'm still working on time to figure out how to add Landry's dedication video here for all to see....but I wanted to add this video. I've never done this so I hope it works. I took this with my cell phone, and didn't realize the shutter was closed, so all you hear is the background noise. This was Landry just laughing away the other day. He has a cold, so I was shocked when I went to get him from his nap and he just started laughing at me...lasted about 5 minutes! Of course, I'm in here laughing too....but if you listen, you can hear Landry just going crazy! :-) It's the most precious noise in the world! Turn your volume up, its low from recording on the cell phone.

First Family Vacation

I know, I know...I'm not good at updating this thing, but its really been an insane month. Robert, Landry and I flew to Chicago and drove to Madison, Wisconsin for about 5 days. It was a gift to Robert for Valentine's Day and our 2nd Anniversary. I arranged for him to sit in on two of the Wisconsin Badgers basketball practices. Coach Bo Ryan was very gracious in allowing Robert to come and observe, he even called Robert down on the court and talked with him for a few minutes. The pic is a bit blurry, but I attached it. We had a blast! The basketball department got a ticket for Robert for the Ohio State game, and it was 6th row....they really were unbelievable! Landry had his first flight...did great, slept about an hour both ways, and his first snow. Of course we didn't play in it with him, but he did good with the cold. I got drive in snow for the first time!!! All in all, it was a great trip for the 3 of us...our first "family" vacation. We ate a ton of food, took a ton of pictures, and just thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I'm posting a few pics.

4 months

It's hard to believe my little man is 4 months old already. He has made such a drastic change in our lives, that I can barely remember what I did with my time before him! We adore him like all parents adore their baby, and swear he is the cutest one alive! :-) His heart is healing, he's sleeping 10-12 hours a night, he's eating good, he's growing great...(doc says hes 86% taller than kids his age~news we loved hearing), the other two holes in his heart are closing and we know God is healing them as well, and he's a happy baby! We are so blessed! Instead of work, gossip and drama, my days are filled with cooing, smiles, and the occasional half giggle! I wouldn't trade this for anything in the world! Being a mom was something I've dreamed about since I was a little girl, and actually having him here, holding him....far surpasses my wildest imagination! Sometimes I wonder why God thought I deserved him...but I'm happy that he did! I thought I prayed for him a lot BEFORE he got here, wanting a baby so badly....yea right, I've never prayed so much in my life as I do now that he's here. I pray he's a good boy, a smart teenager, and grows into a loving, strong Christian man. I pray Robert and I are good parents, that teach him about God, and show him thru our relationship what a healthy, loving marriage looks like.

He is more responsibility than I've ever had in my life, and I cherish every minute. From him grabbing my nose and smiling cuz he found it, to sucking on his thumb, to cooing at himself in the mirror, to talking to himself in his crib, watching him roll over, reach for his bottle, his first true smile, and the moment I first got to hold him in my arms.....these are memories I will cherish deep inside my heart forever! He's my hunny bunny, my little man, and my miracle.

Thank you God!!!!!!

First Illness

:-( It's official. My baby boy has had his first round of antibiotics...he has an ear infection! I hate seeing him so sick, but really, he has been pretty good for feeling so miserable! We are so blessed to have him...I love him so much it makes me sick! I can't believe God gave us such a gorgeous, smart, well behaved little man! I hope we are wonderful parents that teach him to be a strong Christian man....who hopefully plays sports well. :-)

We're still waiting to hear on the chronic care coverage, so keep praying for that. His dedication went great, we recorded it, and I will try and upload it soon.

New prayer request

So, we finally got approved for BCBS, but of course they declined coverage on anything related to his heart defect. Now we are filing for Chronic Care Coverage thru the state of Arizona. I am told that it is NOT income based, which is good news for us...but there is actually an application process. So, new prayer request....please pray that we are accepted. Landry would then get to see his great cardiologist, he'd just have to see him at a clinic instead of his nice office. Sucks, cuz the clinic is in Central Phoenix, but it doesn't suck enough to pay $3000 everytime we see him....so we're really hoping it works out!

He's getting so big, its unbelievable how quick he's growing up. This week, he's started grabbing the bottle and is trying to put it in his mouth. He usually ends up getting it somewhere around his nose or eye! :-) He also rolled from his back to his belly! A couple times....but he's being sneaky and when I brought the video camera out...wanted nothing to do with it! :-) I love him so much it scares me! I never thought I could love anything the way I love him. I'm so glad that Robert and I married and started a family!

An answer to prayers...

God is so great...I just want to say that and get it out there before I go on. Yesterday I called Blue Cross Blue Shield to find out if there was any progress on his insurance application, and was told it was ACCEPTED!!!! There is a catch though...they are excluding anything related to his heart. Which, we actually expected. So, Landry's pediatric cardiologist gave us information on Chronic Care Coverage to cover his heart condition. We have been told it is not income based, so we're going to be praying that when we apply for that it goes thru, then he will have FULL coverage!

Anyway, this half coverage is such an answer to prayer because COBRA was costing $439 a month and it was just too much! It was cutting out of our savings that we had for me to stay home and making that time short....so we are so happy, so excited and feel so blessed that God answered this prayer. The ironic thing is, we wanted BCBS to begin with, and they told us to not even bother applying. Then thru the time that passed while we applied for Golden Rule, the doctor updated his diagnosis to the point where BCBS would take him. So, all we needed was a little time to heal, and then we got what we wanted in the first place. (Except we didn't want any problems with the heart)! But, we'll take these blessing one step at a time. Next cardi visit is March, and we're praying to hear he's COMPLETELY healed! :-)