Growing up...way to fast!

It never ceases to amaze me how fast children grow...and right before my very eyes too! I try to never miss a moment though, and truly enjoy every stage in their lives, because I know that in no time at all this too will pass. Israel and Jaxon have shared a room since the beginning. And with having a crib and a bed in there very small room, there wasn't much room for playing. We decided a while ago that maybe it was time to try a big boy bed with Izzy. We toyed over different ideas, and decided to just move him straight to a twin size bed. Jaxon has an awesome bunk bed from Ikea in which the bottom bed lays directly on the floor. It is PERFECT for Izzy because he can climb in and out of it on his own. The day we got it all set up Izzy was beyond excited about his new big boy bed and couldn't wait to sleep in it! We put a side rail on it he can't fall off, but he is still able to get in and out. He is such a good boy and has done amazing since night one! Never getting out of bed or playing with toys or anything! He lays right down and falls fast asleep. It's crazy to see him sleeping in such a big bed...but then again...he isn't a baby anymore. He is my big toddler!

Izzy May 2011 ~ 2 Years Old

Izzy July 2009 ~ 4 Months Old ~ First time in his crib

One Whole Year!

Yup...that's what she said! I am speaking of course of Izzy's surgeon! We went and saw her last week for Izzy's post op appointment. She is SO pleased with how the surgery went and how well Izzy is using his tongue that she doesn't even want to see him back for a whole year! I asked her for clarification...and said...so you mean he won't be having surgery in a year? She said NO surgery in a year! She said she isn't sure if or when he will need another one. We will reevaluate in a year! I was SUPER encouraged by this, it was honestly hard to believe! THANK YOU everyone who remembered us in thought and in prayer over that past month during Izzy's surgery and recovery. He is doing wonderfully! His speech is starting to improve already and he is trying new things like licking his lips for the first time ever! Its amazing the things we "normal" people take for granted some times! I had never even thought about not being able to lick my lips, an ice cream cone or  a chocolate covered spoon!

45,000!!!

Ok...so I don't do this blog for publicity or "hits" or anything other then sharing our story with family and friends and anyone else who happens upon us during our journey...but I do have a little counter on my page that I put up just for fun. I think it's neat to look at every now and again. Today I happened to look at it and it said 45,000!!! WOW! It's amazing to me to think that over the past two and a half years my blog has been looked at that many times! Thank you everyone who faithfully follows my blog, prays for Izzy and remembers our family. We are very grateful for each and everyone of you!

Surgery Update #3

I realize I haven't posted an update in a few weeks...and I have been getting lots of message asking how he is doing, so I figured I better get an update out there!

Izzy is doing GREAT! Finally! This time around recovery went much better than last year, as I mentioned in my last update. We were exactly one week out of surgery and I was very hopeful for a full and easy as possible recovery...until he woke up with blood all over his bed and himself. His mouth was bleeding and not stopping. After two hours of being up and bleeding I called the surgeon. She gave us some instructions on how to try and get the bleeding to stop at home. We tried (Which felt like we were torturing him...it was terrible!) with no luck. She said if we couldn't get it stopped we needed to take him to the ER. So off we went. To sum that experience up in a few words...it was terrible. We were there for four hours...and all the doctor did was send us home saying he wasn't going to bleed to death and that the bleeding should stop. Poor Izzy was miserable and not eating or drinking much. He had even vomited from swallowing so much blood. I took him home and loved on him as much as I could. After 12 hours of bleeding, it finally stopped! Other than that though he has been doing great! Started eating food again after two weeks. We still have him on PediaSure a few times a day to help him not lose weight since he struggles with that too.

We go back for surgery post-op appointment next week and we are looking forward to hearing how the doctor thinks things look. It's still hard to me to tell just how much has changed. Although Israel does seem to be using his tongue more and trying to do things like lick his lips, which he has never done before! We are hoping his speech will really improve soon too!

Thanks for all the love, support and prayers!