Memory Lane

For those of you I haven't talked to yet, my grandpa died last Wednesday. I will post details on another post soon but I wanted to post these pictures from the weekend. We went to Palmdale for the viewing and funeral and couldn't help but walk around the property to take a trip down memory lane. It was great to remember all the good times out there but sad at the same time and then also strange to see Noah out there exploring and playing like I used to, and my dad used to.
Anyway, enjoy the pictures and watch for a post about my grandpa in the next couple of days.
















Here's my grandpa's barn. As kids we spent countless hours exploring and playing back here, imagining my grandparents, dad, aunts and uncles out here as kids. From anyone else's perspective it's full of dusty relics but to our family it's overflowing with memories.



















Here's the old swing set my dad and his brother and sisters would play on when they were kids. As a child myself I would play for hours out here on this thing. It was rusted when I was young so you can imagine it now. In fact I was reminiscing with my dad about the time my stepsister, Tara, and I were out here listening to Pet Shop Boys on our "ghettoblaster" for hours. It was surreal, to say the least, watching my son play on the swing set while my dad and I looked on. Time flies!!!

















Here sits the old Model A that has been out back (in the same spot) since we were kids. I can't remember sitting in it because it was so dusty so you can imagine the condition it's in 25 years later.















Tractor parts out there, still in the same place I remember them.

















I'm not sure if any of you have special memories of certain Christmas presents but I sure do. This is one of them. If any of you have ever seen the classic movie, I think it's called The Christmas Story, where the boy is dying for a BB gun then you'll understand. This doll house was on my list and I can remember as if it were yesterday opening it up. It was the most beautiful thing ever! Imagine my surprise when I found it, furniture still carefully placed the way I left it, 25 or so years later. I took the furniture out to save for Jordan but I think the house itself has seen its last day. So sad.

Just some funny pics from our concert time today after naps...so fun!

Update on Jordan's Therapy Progress

I have so many things I'd like to blog about personally but I figure many of you are checking in here to hear about Jordan, not my latest musings.
Two weeks ago I was getting discouraged once again. I tend to go up and down with discouragement as we work so hard with her and see no progress. God inevitably gives us a milestone or two to keep us going (every good and perfect gift comes from God).
Speech:
Jordan was not babbling, not using jargon (intonation of speech with no real words), not attempting words - only signing (more than one year delayed). Suddenly on Easter she started saying Papa (all the grand kids love their Papa so of course this is what she started saying). Then on Monday she just took off. She began babbling all kinds of consonants, and actually trying to say words. I was ecstatic. Her speech therapist told me later that she cried on her way home from work that day. Truly these milestones are so touching when you watch kids struggle for such a long time to meet them. I remember watching a 3 year old take her first steps without her walker last summer. I had seen her doing the hard work week after week in therapy and when she took those steps there wasn't a dry eye in the house.
Physical and Occupational Therapy:
We've had some problems with Jordan's leg brace she wears at night to stretch her foot down so she'll be able to walk later. Basically insurance hassles, financial burdens and appointments all over the place to figure out what will be the best choice for her. We are sending back the brace she has now at the end of the month and are starting with a new one. We aren't sure this one will work as well but it's a fraction of the cost so we're giving it a shot. We should have it next week to try and they said she can wear it more hours through the day so hopefully it'll be aggressive in it's stretch. If not, then we'll work to get the current brace back.
Development:
Her developmental specialist we see once a week has also been really excited about Jordan's progress. She is really pleased by her attention span and her skills that just keep getting better and better. We love Kathleen and are so happy to have her come to our house each week.

We are truly blessed beyond measure for Jordan's specialists. They love her and she is smitten by all of them. She works hard and they are commited to her success. Each and every person Jordan works with on a regular basis (including our pediatrician) really go above and beyond to help her.

Kathleen and Jordan


That same week she made such strides in Speech she started cruising along furniture. We were amazed. She just took off. I had the usual bribes waiting for her at the end of the table in therapy and she just headed down to me, took the treat, turned around, went back the other way then looked at me as if to say, "Well, aren't you going to come over here and give me my reward??" We were laughing so hard. Since then she's seen a higher level PT who gave us some great suggestions and now she is even walking along parallel bars and holding with only one hand. We have a bet going - I say 5 weeks until she's walking and Brian (her therapist) says 3-4.



One funny thing I laugh at is how much Jordan makes her therapists laugh. Her PT and OT call it the Jordan Party when we're there. She's so hilarious.

Quick Update on Great Grandpa

For those of you who were or are praying for my grandpa (my dad's dad) I wanted to update on what God has been doing in his life.

As a recap - he was gardening in the warm winter sun, driving his mower, and tinkering in his garage one day then in having his second triple bypass the next. He went in for a check of his heart because of chest pain and they needed to do another bypass. He hasn't been home since and that was mid-December. He had minor breathing trouble so they put him on a breathing tube and sedated him (buckets of Morphine) so he ended up on the breathing machine sedated for a number of weeks, maybe over a month. His 86 year old body grew weaker so when the family finally insisted the Morphine be reduced he was somewhat dependent on the breathing machine. They did a tracheostomy and continued to sedate him. In the process his heart has had some ups and downs and one week he decided to cease all measures. We went to see him, to say goodbye and my dad insisted they recheck all heart and breathing stats before making such a final decision. Ends up they hadn't checked his heart for months. Uggg. Upon hearing his heart was okay and the breathing issues were mental he was then ready to fight again. Within a week he was off the trach and breathing machine (with the help of a little Atavan (spelling?) - that stuff is great, Jordan was on it in the hospital too. He's since been moved to nursing/rehab facility and is doing oral motor exercises hoping to be off the feeding tube eating a hamburger and drinking an ice cold Coke soon. :)

Everyone is wondering if his muscles can regain enough strength for him to go home and if he'll be able to swallow enough to enjoy a Double Double but if it keeps going the way it has for him it shouldn't be a problem.

Personally I love going to see him. :) I love having time with him just to talk and encourage him and help him with his exercises. It's a long drive to Sylmar but well worth it. It's become a Sunday event now and this past weekend I took Shan and the kids with me. It was great and I would guess so good for him to have the kids there. Noah said that all Great Grandpa needed was a Band-Aid and he would be all better. Jordan just loved bouncing on the bed and pulling at the tape on his hand.

We really have so much to learn from older generations. As the younger ones we tend to think we know so much and that older family members couldn't possibly have anything to teach us that 's relevant or noteworthy. That couldn't be farther from the truth. My Grandpa still says that he doesn't think much about what happens after death so I'm praying that he will recognize God as his creator and Christ as his savior before his day comes to leave this world.

Pray for this please.

Here are a few pictures of my first official baby sling. I'm making one right now for a friend but I'm waiting for the metal rings to come in the mail. In the meantime I decided to whip up a sling for anothe friend's daughter. Tonight I gave little Reese Woodward her first baby sling to carry her baby doll in just like mommy. It was fitting considering the fact that Reese's mommy, Staci, gave me my sling. I will post a picture of all three of us with our babies in our slings. I made this one to fit Reese (a three year old) so it didn't take much material and I was able to find the smaller rings at Lowe's. It worked well as a trial.

Alison - yours is coming soon. I wonder if I should start taking orders...hmmm.

Before you jump in line you may want to look closely to see the lame stitching. :)

jen