Natalie Update

How is Natalie doing? She is doing fine, I don't think she has any clue her body is different...

What Natalie has been diagnosed with is Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. She has been given medication called a beta blocker to slow down her heart rate, and relieve some of the symptoms.

The prognosis includes open heart surgery, called a Myectomy, the first part of next year. The surgeon will go in and remove the large tissue build up in her heart that is blocking a valve in the left ventricle.



Her next appointment at the Mayo is January 7th. She will have a more thourough ECHO under sedation (an ultrasound of the heart), see the surgeon, pediatric cardiologist, and a genetic counlser also. I anticipate we will be scheduling surgery that day as well. Meanwhile, she has a follow up at the Children's Heart Clinic in St. Paul on Friday. Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Natalie will all have ECHOs done.

Matt and I were screened yesterday, and we will have our results on Friday. How are we holding up? Good days and bad days. Sometimes I can hardly believe what we are going through, and the thought of loosing Natalie is tangible. Other days I ignore it, and other days my faith tells me that she will come through this. I also fear that the boys will have the same condition, or Matt...I just try to ignore all the bad things. Please pray that Natalie's heart has no change for the worse, and that the medication carries her through to her surgery without any problems. And pray that Jesus would carry all of us. I am scared, and worried and angry. I PRAY THAT WE ARE ON THE VERGE OF THE MOST WONDERFUL STREAK OF BLESSINGS! And that God would open my eyes to see what they are.

Thanksgiving Week

While Matt hunted this year, the kids and I had a few adventures of our own. We spent one afternoon at the Mall of America's Underwater Adventures. Thanks to Aunty Chelsea for coming with!

Jeremiah finally gets the nerve to pet one of the sharks, when it pops up out of the water and scares the crap out of him! He didn't try again.

Isaiah loves petting the stingrays and sharks, and thinks it hilarious when the come up out of the water and splash. Thanks to my mom too, who kept us sane at home during hunting week!







After a rough road trip (the van broke down, and Grandpa Jeff had to come rescue us!) we made it to Wisconsin and had a great Thanksgiving. Lori knows how to cook! We even had an encore dinner the next night: RIBS! Wonder Woman strikes again...

Natalie telling GaGa her Christmas List...I think she'll get everything on it if GaGa has anything to do with it!



Our attempt to take a group picture...a thousand words...

All the cousins spent lots of time in the play room making "Camp Sites." Aunty Taba supervised, and things got a little crazy...but we like it that way!

CRAZY FUN!

We stopped at the mechanic on the way home to pick up the van, and Lightening and Mater were there! It was almost worth it! Thanks Chris, for going out your way to get us to the van.

Jeremiah is potty trained! Here he demostrates his newly learned trick on the side of the road on the way home.

Sunday we went out to get our Christmas Tree. It was fun picking out the most expensive tree on the lot. Apparently we wandered into the Frasier Furs...they gave us a deal! Hopefully the tree next year will have a different van under it.

I hope everyone enjoys the Christmas Season! Look for blog updates on Natalie coming soon.

Natalie's Well Check

Smile Natalie!

Practicing her sitting

Natalie is 6 months old already! Today she weighed 19 pounds, 13 ounces and

was 27 inches long. That puts her in the 90% for her age. She also got her first shots today-4 of them, and took it like a pro.

The doctor did discover that Natalie has a significant heart murmur. We will see a cardiologist next week to rule out anything dangerous, and they will most likely do an ultrasound. The pediatrician reasured me that is is nothing life threatening, and that Natalie is fine to wait for the appointment. It is most likely a small hole between her ventricles, which is not uncommon, and will most likely close on it's own. I will keep you updated on our little one. Your thoughts and prayers are appreciated.

Halloween

This was the first year we have gone trick-or-treating. Jeremiah was a pro, yelling, "TRICK OR TREAT!" and striking up conversations with people. He told several people, "That is not enough. I need MORE candy." Eventually he learned to just say thank you. One lady had two dogs, and Jeremiah asked if he could see them. She happily obliged him. Rock Star

Isaiah, on the other hand, thinks Halloween is kind of silly! He doesn't like dressing up, because he thinks he looks goofy...but I think he kind of likes it. He also doesn't eat the majority of the candy he got, so basically he got candy for Matt and I. Although he was very excited when one lady was giving out pudding cups and Teddy Grahms!

Batman
His switch said trick or treat and thank you!

Jeremiah keeps asking if we can go for another walk and get candy. I tried to explain that that is just one day a year...but I think I'll get to explain that every time we go outside!

Fall Fun

Traditional "Field Trip Friday" at Fall Harvest Orchard in Delano, Minnesota

Little Sophers watching baby cows that go "Moooo!"

Annie and Isaiah petting the bull calves. They cut pumkins in half and feed them to the cows. It is hilarious to watch them slurping up the seeds and eating the rinds!

Jeremiah driving the tractor. The owners of this orchard are a local couple who run this farm year round. It is free and you can get up close and personal with all their animals. It was a blast to visit. We went twice this year, the second time with the Annie, Sophie, Brianna and Emily.

Grandma and Isaiah getting corn in their pants. There was even a sign that said, "If you get it in your underwear, take it home with ya!" I still find corn in the lint catch of our dryer!

Emmy and Brianna causing a rucus.

"BURY HIM!"

Natalie enjoying the corn crib.

Annie said she had never seen a pumkin this tall before!








"Come on Sophie, let's walk in the pumpkins!"

This little piggy stayed home . . .

Three cute chicks!







Listen for the cow mooing in the background! Isaiah battles the goats for his shoes and Jeremiah gets up close and personal. I hope you enjoyed the pictures. We sure had a great time!

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

Thank you so much to everyone who joined us for Isaiah's 5th Birthday Party! It was so fun to see everyone, and get to show off the new house. I hope you all got enough to eat, and enjoyed to fall weather outside. I know the bouncy thing was a big hit with the kids! Jeremiah woke up Sunday and said, "Mommy, where is our bouncy thing?"

Thanks to aunty Chealsea for the silly string! It was definitely a highlight of the evening!

Presents, presents, presents! Isaiah was so blessed by all the gifts he recieved. We spent Sunday playing Batman and Spiderman and trying on new clothes. On Monday we went to Target and spent all that Birthday money ON MORE NEW TOYS AND CLOTHES!

Isaiah was ready to "Rock n'Roll all night!" And Jeremiah wants to "Party everyday!"

THANK YOU EVERYONE!

I WANT TO DO IT AGAIN NEXT YEAR, MOMMY!

A special thank you to grandma Lori for bringing all that food! And a a great BIG thanks to grandpa Paul for the bouncy thing! Blessings on your week. Check back later to see our trip to the Apple Orchard.

Videos of the Kids...Scroll Down for Isaiah's Birthday List!

I finally got a picture of all the kids together! Not bad...

Isaiah celebrated his 5th birthday at home with mommy, daddy, Jeremiah and Natalie on Monday. He decided sundeas would be a good treat-he loves Cool Whip! He can't wait for the party on Saturday. Isaiah wants to spend the day with all his cousins in the moon walk!

Isaiah is driving a power chair with a "Head Array." The back moves him forward, and you steer with the pads on the side of his head. This is great, because it frees up his hands, and you go wear you look. This is the first time he has ever made it through a door way with out running in to it!

Jeremiah is really hilarious thesse days, and a great kid. He throws his fair share of tantrums, and we avoid going out to eat with him, but I think we are on a small upswing of the terrible twos. In most of the pictures I have of him he has food on his face!

Jeremiah rocks out to one of his favorite songs!

We met "Underwater Guy" at the ranch this year. Jeremiah insisted on putting on all the gear and anounced to Grandma, "I'm Underwater Guy!" So cute...

Natalie is the perfect baby and is content to sit and suck on her fingers or a toy. Grandma Kelly rescues her often...she is so good, I forget about her! She puts herself to sleep, and only fusses when she is hungry. Jeremiah always makes her laugh.





Natalie started cereal. She gags some, but I think she is getting used to it! Anything to help her gain some weight...

She loves her bath time, and I love to watch her! She kicks all the water out of the tub so I have to keep the water running!









I hope to see all of you at the party on Saturday! If you are looking for Isaiah's birthday list, it is below.

Isaiah's Birthday List!

Some of these are a little crazy, but Isaiah picked out everything himself! All of these items were found at Target...

Spiderman Battle Car
Transformers
Diego Dinosaur Rescue Mountain
Diego Sea Glider
Diego Sky Glider
Hot Wheels Power Loop Stunt Set
Teck Deck Ramps and Skateboards
Command Force Micro Helicopter and Big Chopper (These are remote control helicopters on a base-Carter had one like it.)

Super Soccer Ball Pit and extra balls
Markers
Giant Cars Movie Activity Pad
Tatoos
Zoom-O Brand Power Pitch
Zoom-O Brand Disk Launcher
Wild Time Pin Print (the thing you press your hand on with all the pins and it makes your hamdprint)
Diego Play-doh set
O-Ball Football
Geo Trax High Flyin' Airport and extra plane (the blue and orange one)
BatCave by Imaginext and Batmobile

Movies: Backyardigans (any of them-he doesn't have any)
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Storybook Surprises
Upside down Show
Play with Me Sesame

Clothes: 5T Pants or adjustable waist in XS Boys
Shirts Boys XS or 5/6 He likes the guitar themes and "handsome" stripey button up shirts
Socks for Shoe size 10
Undershirts or A shirts 5/6


Okay, thats it! Hope it helps in your searches. Have a good week, see you at the party!

Isaiah Update

I can hardly believe Isaiah will be 5 this year! It goes so fast. He has grown a lot in the past few months and is now over 35 pounds and 38 inches tall. The downside to a fast growth spurt is that Isaiah's muscles were not able to keep up with his bone growth. All of his muscles are now shorter then they should be, and Isaiah is very tight and stiff these days. He out grew braces and no longer tolerates them well, and his physical therapist, Julie, is recommending a serious round of botox and close following with an Orthopedic Surgeon. So the following 6 weeks are busier then normal with appointments. The goal is to get Isaiah a better seat for his wheelchair, get new braces and do some botox to loosen him up.

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Isaiah will be starting preschool in September, although I do not have details yet, I do know he will be at the Montrose Elemantry, just a mile away from home. Also starting in the fall will be a series of modifications for our home and van. We will put a ramp on the house, as well as install a stair lift. We also hope to purchase a new van. The state will be giving us a grant to put a ramp on it and install a system that will enable Isaiah to stay in his chair while riding in the van. Isaiah will also be getting his first adapted potty chair and a therapy bench to help with those stiff muscles.

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In August, we will be spending some time at Gillette in St. Paul while Isaiah is fitted for a new seat for his wheelchair. It is three days of appointments while they take a mold of Isaiah's body and sculpt a seat to fit his precise needs. The same seat can then be used for his power wheelchair. Isaiah will be doing a trial at the power mobility clinic at Gillette on August 27th. After that appointment, we will hopefully be ordering Isaiah's first power wheelchair! And by the time we could hopefully receive it, our van and home would be equipped to handle it. It sounds too good to be true...so we will see how it goes!

Last of all, Isaiah will be learning to use several communication devices during his speech therapy at Gillette. Dana (speech therapy) and Marno (occupational therapy) will be working with Isaiah weekly, teaching him how to use computers to communicate with the people around him.

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So, I ask for prayer that all these things would run smoothly together, and that Isaiah would show leaps and bounds of improvement in all of these areas. Please pray, also, that the insurance company would give us favor, and that all the needed approvals and grants would go through in a timely manner.

Love you all!

Thank you,

Tabitha

Strawberry Season

Summer is finally here! Which means get the pool out and make some jam. Emily and I spent last Tuesday picking strawberries at Apple Jack's Orchard in Delano. A great place-we will be back in the fall for late raspberries and apples. Here is our final product. Yummy! I also made a fresh straberry pie and shortcake which we will be eating tonight...

Hot stuff! Of course we picked during the heat of the day!

14 Pounds!

Pool Time! I love having a yard we can enjoy this summer...and Matt loves to take care of it...

"Mom, hurry up and get my wet suit on!"

Drying off in there red chairs..."just like Isaiah!" Jeremiah says.

Back for one more splash before mommy forces him in for a "nap."

So sweet...and a good baby too! Natalie is sleeping eight hours at night now!

She is getting so cute and chubby! She is now over 15 pounds and 23 inches long.

Who's lippy is that?

Here is a video of me trying to get Natalie to crack a smile. I took it for you Yaya! Enjoy.