Sunday morning, and Grace and I are sitting at the kitchen table. She's eating Life cereal, singing songs, and telling me the last names of all her classmates at pre-school. She's better at learning names than I am! Also, Grace is reporting some bad news to me--her imaginary friend Hannah is sick with a broken arm. This probably means a round of Doctor Grace and Nurse Daddy after breakfast.
As if our lives wouldn't be interesting enough with Michelle's upcoming amniocentesis, we sold our house last week (to the very first person who looked at it). So now we're freaking out, because we hadn't started looking for anything. We were under the wrong assumption that it would take awhile to sell our house. Because our current house is a raised ranch, we reached the conclusion over the winter that it wasn't going to be practical for us as Grace continued to grow, as we used her Standing Dani and wheelchair more and more, and as Michelle became more and more pregnant. We're looking for a ranch-style home, which as anybody who's been in the hills of Sioux City knows isn't as common as you'd think here. We're not worried yet, but if we're still looking a few weeks from now, things might get more urgent (we're supposed to be out of here by June 17).
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
April 20, 2009
Monday night, and Grace has been in bed for about 45 minutes. Tonight we read the standard two books at bedtime, including one that was about an older sibling adjusting to his new little sister. It was probably wasn't an accident that Michelle checked that one out at the library. We do think that Grace will adjust very well to the baby, although not always being the center of attention will be a challenge for her.
I had sent this in a big email a few days ago, but it bears repeating. Michelle is scheduled to have an amniocentesis on April 28, and we'll find out within 7-10 days after that whether our new baby has SMA. It will be a stressful time, but we're prepared either way. We continue to pray for good news, and we appreciate all of the prayers and thoughts that so many of you have sent. We'll be sure to get word out as soon as we know!
I had sent this in a big email a few days ago, but it bears repeating. Michelle is scheduled to have an amniocentesis on April 28, and we'll find out within 7-10 days after that whether our new baby has SMA. It will be a stressful time, but we're prepared either way. We continue to pray for good news, and we appreciate all of the prayers and thoughts that so many of you have sent. We'll be sure to get word out as soon as we know!
Sunday, April 5, 2009
April 5, 2009
Sunday morning, and Grace and I are sitting at the kitchen table. Grace is stalling during breakfast time, which is not suprising as the stall is one of her favorite mealtime moves. Today her breakfast is cinnamon rolls and bananas, so I don't understand what's taking her so long.
We had Grace's final parent-teacher conference of the preschool year this past week, and Grace received a favorable report. She's learning a lot, she's very receptive to teaching and very eager to learn, and she's doing well socially. We also learned that at times she gets a little too talkative, so I guess we'll try to work on that.
We have decided to sell our house. We love our home, but the fact that it's a raised ranch has become an increasing problem as Grace gets bigger and as we use her equipment more. We're going to take our time selling the house and then look for a more standard raised ranch that will allow Grace to come in on the main floor in her Dani or wheelchair. Part of the issue is that we're concerned with Michelle having to carry Grace up and down our stairs while she's pregnant or after the new baby is born.
On that note, and this probably repeats an earlier post, but Michelle is scheduled to have amnio testing the last week of April. Supposedly we'll know in 7-10 days after the testing whether the new baby has SMA.
We had Grace's final parent-teacher conference of the preschool year this past week, and Grace received a favorable report. She's learning a lot, she's very receptive to teaching and very eager to learn, and she's doing well socially. We also learned that at times she gets a little too talkative, so I guess we'll try to work on that.
We have decided to sell our house. We love our home, but the fact that it's a raised ranch has become an increasing problem as Grace gets bigger and as we use her equipment more. We're going to take our time selling the house and then look for a more standard raised ranch that will allow Grace to come in on the main floor in her Dani or wheelchair. Part of the issue is that we're concerned with Michelle having to carry Grace up and down our stairs while she's pregnant or after the new baby is born.
On that note, and this probably repeats an earlier post, but Michelle is scheduled to have amnio testing the last week of April. Supposedly we'll know in 7-10 days after the testing whether the new baby has SMA.
Friday, March 27, 2009
March 27, 2009
Grace and I spent the last couple nights alone together, because Michelle was away at the funeral for the father of an old friend. I realized in those few nights how much I can't do. Tubby night was a big-time adventure, but it paled in comparison to hair time in the morning. Grace was crying big tears yesterday morning when she realized that mom wasn't going to be there to put her in a pony tail. So I made a valiant effort, but by the time we arrived at preschool the pony tail was gone. Thankfully her preschool teacher was willing to help out.
On the baby front, everything is going well. Michelle is definitely feeling better the last couple weeks. We're scheduled to get the amnio test done the last week of April, and it's only supposed to take 7-10 days for us to get the results on whether the baby has SMA or not. Those will be a nervous few weeks, but we're prepared for the news either way.
Grace's names for the baby change daily. For awhile it was Dylan for a boy and Peppermint for a girl, but then it was Josh for a boy and Emily for a girl. Then, on the way to preschool this morning she told me the new baby should be named Pepito, regardless of whether it was a boy or girl. I'm not sure how much of a say she'll have in the final decision, although sadly it will probably be more of a say than I'll have.
On the baby front, everything is going well. Michelle is definitely feeling better the last couple weeks. We're scheduled to get the amnio test done the last week of April, and it's only supposed to take 7-10 days for us to get the results on whether the baby has SMA or not. Those will be a nervous few weeks, but we're prepared for the news either way.
Grace's names for the baby change daily. For awhile it was Dylan for a boy and Peppermint for a girl, but then it was Josh for a boy and Emily for a girl. Then, on the way to preschool this morning she told me the new baby should be named Pepito, regardless of whether it was a boy or girl. I'm not sure how much of a say she'll have in the final decision, although sadly it will probably be more of a say than I'll have.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
March 15, 2009
Just checked the site for the first time in awhile and noticed the new design, which looks really good. My sister Beth started Race 4 Grace and the website a couple years ago, then last year Michelle's brother Austin began running the website. He does a great job, and hopefully we'll get him some current pictures to get on the site (now that basketball season is over, our lives return to more of a state of normalcy!).
I feel some momentum building for RAGBRAI. My good college buddy Pat is planning on riding a couple days, and that will surely cause others to want to ride. Michelle is definitely planning on being around, although her pregnancy will keep her from riding this year. On that note, we're planning on getting our new baby tested for SMA via amnio testing. If we stay on what we think is the schedule, we should know sometime in May whether our new little one has SMA or not. We are praying every day for a healthy baby, but we're fine with either outcome. If you have any prayer leverage, please pray for our new little one to be SMA-free.
I feel some momentum building for RAGBRAI. My good college buddy Pat is planning on riding a couple days, and that will surely cause others to want to ride. Michelle is definitely planning on being around, although her pregnancy will keep her from riding this year. On that note, we're planning on getting our new baby tested for SMA via amnio testing. If we stay on what we think is the schedule, we should know sometime in May whether our new little one has SMA or not. We are praying every day for a healthy baby, but we're fine with either outcome. If you have any prayer leverage, please pray for our new little one to be SMA-free.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
February 28, 2009
Big news: Grace is going to be a big sister. Michelle is expecting our second child, with the tentative due date in late September. We are really excited, and Grace is over-the-top excited. We were talking the other day about changing our guest bedroom into the baby's room, and Grace said she had decided that the baby would just be moving into her bedroom with her.
There is a 75% chance that this baby will be SMA-free, and a 25% chance that we'll have another child with SMA. We have been well aware of these numbers when trying to decide whether we wanted another child, but in the end we decided it'll be well worth it. We'll rejoice if we we have a healthy baby, and if we have another SMA child, we'll hope and pray that it's another one with Grace's personality. Plus, Grace will be able to teach her little sibling all about driving wheelchairs and other cool things.
There is a 75% chance that this baby will be SMA-free, and a 25% chance that we'll have another child with SMA. We have been well aware of these numbers when trying to decide whether we wanted another child, but in the end we decided it'll be well worth it. We'll rejoice if we we have a healthy baby, and if we have another SMA child, we'll hope and pray that it's another one with Grace's personality. Plus, Grace will be able to teach her little sibling all about driving wheelchairs and other cool things.
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