80 degree April Day...I survived

Today Kelvin went back to work for the first time since Cora made her debut. All the kids were out of school for Easter break, and I SURVIVED! Yippee! It was a good morning. Emma was in a realitively good mood, and Cora wasn't too impatient. I remembered to make a couple of phone calls I needed to make, started filling out some paperwork, and did some web design research. I also fed everyone breakfast, except Luke who couldn't wait for me and helped himself, as well as lunch, and put a load of laundry on to wash. I'm feeling pretty good about the day. I just hope things stay calm around here tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that...

Stay tuned for pictures of Cora in her Easter dress. I didn't get her dressed in it yesterday, so I thought I would do it today. It'll be fun to play dolls. ;) Carleigh has baby dolls bigger than Cora. She is so tiny! I can't believe I forgot how small they are! Precious!

Happy Easter and other things

He is risen! Aren't you glad? I am. That means there is hope. There is peace. There is comfort. There is joy in the midst of sorrow. Thank you Jesus!

The kids got an egg hunt in this morning before the bottom dropped out. Thank you Easter Bunny! Grandma and Aunt Terry are great egg helpers! The big kids had fun finding the eggs and gifts in the flower beds. They looked so cute in their Easter clothes this morning.



I have discovered that holidays don't have the same spark as they once did since Emma has been sick. Now that we have Cora, there is even more bittersweetness...I'm watching one baby girl grow and thrive while the other one is being consumed with a disease that has taken everything precious from her. I don't understand. But, I do have the love of Jesus to pull me from the depths of my grief and get me through another minute...hour...day. I am scared too, though. As I read about this ugly disease called Batten, I wonder how much more she will lose? How much worse will things get for her? How much more pain and discomfort, frustration and irritation will she have to endure? I'm sure my wonderings are selfish too. This is not what I signed up for as a parent. I want to see all of our children thrive and grow into adults with dreams and apsirations. I realize our children are really not ours at all. They are on loan to us. God has entrusted them to our care, and we are to raise them to the best of our human ability. But, I would have really liked to have had more of a chance with Emma. For now, all I can do is accept what's been given to us, and love her through each step. I hope she feels our love. I'm glad we have her to teach us how to love differently than we've ever had to before.

Happy Easter from the Dunnams...all whopping 6 of us!

Goin' Fishin'

Kelvin took the big kids to the sporting goods store the other day to get some fishing poles. They were so excited and came in to show off their new goods! A little while later Kelvin came in to tell me he had attached some little weights to their lines and they were practicing casting. After a few minutes he was checking on them to see how they were doing with the casting, and they had both thrown their lines out and were just sitting there looking at them. When he asked what they were doing, they told him they were practicing patience. They said they knew it took a lot of patience to fish, so they were practicing. How sweet is that?! Love those kids of mine! They had a good time fishing this afternoon. No big fish fries today, but I'm sure we'll have one some day.

Cora had her two week check up today! Can you believe it? She is doing fine. She has gained one ounce shy of one pound! Little piggy is doing very well with the nursing, thank you very much!



Emma is doing OK. She continues to fuss a lot without us knowing what to do to comfort her. We've increased one of her medications again, per the doc. I hope it starts helping ease her soon. Her sweet Miss Myrtle brought her a darling Easter bunny today. She liked snuggling with it.






Kelvin wins the best daddy in the world award. Emma woke up at 2 a.m. the day before yesterday and never went back to sleep. I was in our room with Cora, and Kelvin stayed up with Emma all night long. What a guy! I love that man!

Tomorrow Kelvin and I are heading down to the beach house slab to check out the progress of the clean up in the area. One of our friends who had a house there too said we would be amazed at the difference. I'll take pictures.

We have so many friends bringing us yummy food lately! I'm really enjoying the fare. Tonight one of our sweet friends brought homemade lasagna, and another friend brought the cutest dessert! It's a catepillar cake, complete with coconut for the fuzz! The picture doesn't do it justice, but you'll get the idea.



Looking forward to Easter weekend. I've gotten a couple of good recipes for our Easter dinner. I'm still open for suggestions if you have any though. Hope you have a great Easter, even if the weather doesn't cooperate. I think we're looking forward to thunderstorms. Oh well, hunts in the house are fun too! Have you heard about Resurrection Eggs? Our kids love them. Each egg has a symbol which tells the story of the death, burial and ressurrection of Jesus. Happy Easter!

Filling the Landfill

I had forgotten how many diapers a newborn baby goes through in a day. The other night I changed 5 diapers. Sometimes I forget who I've changed last. It's a diaper fest around these parts, people! I feel bad that I'm contributing so much to the landfill, so I'm trying my darndest to recycle everything else I can. We even have a compost bin working!

Kelvin has been working like a dog getting our yard looking pretty. The flowers are blooming now and look beautiful. I hope they stay pretty and it doesn't rain on Easter Sunday so the kids can enjoy hiding eggs for each other all day long in the backyard.

We're having brisket for Easter dinner. Yummy! I just need to come up with some good sides to go along with it. I'm wanting something besides bbq sides...any suggestions?

We had a fun night last night roasting marshmallows and wishing on stars. We cut down a couple of trees in the backyard, so we can see the stars now. Of course, they're not quite as bright here in the big city, but we can still see some, nonetheless. All of the kids' Easter parties are today. I hope either Kelvin or I get to make it to at least a few minutes of each one.

Don't you just love spring? I especially love Easter. Thank you Jesus for your promise of new life for everyone!

Getting in the groove

Cora's a week old now. YIKES! I know the time will fly by all too quickly. I hope I can savor the moments while she is so little and sweet. I've thought about how neat it is that God provides such a wide variety of life for us to enjoy. I don't know how to answer the question, "what is your favorite season," because I like them all. I enjoy the unique aspects each one brings. I love summer...hot days, swimming, playing at the beach, finding a cool creek or spring, and all the things summer brings. Fall is great...crisp nights, changing colors, roasting marshmallows, sweaters. Winter is always welcomed around here with the cooler weather, occasional coats, fires in the fireplace, Christmas, soup. I love spring too...beautiful flowers, a newness of life, Easter, clean feel, resurrection! So, I think God knew we would need the different seasons of change to keep our lives from the mundane. So it is with these precious babies. I love each season...the helpless, tiny newborn with all the feedings and funny expressions, the smiles and coos from a several month old baby, the cuteness of their crawls and toddles, their first words and experiences. I love the next stages of toddlerhood and preschool. Now that Carleigh is in school, I love her new personality (most of the time) and how sweet and sensitive she is becoming. I hope I will not get so wrapped up in the hurriedness of life that I miss something. I hope I will soak it all in...every smile, every coo, every hug, every cry.

Guess who likes watermelon?





Kelvin and Luke went grocery shopping the other day and came home with a watermelon. It may be a little early for those, but it was a fun treat anyway. Emma and Kelvin really enjoyed theirs.

Better

Emma had a much better night last night. She slept straight through the night until about 6 this morning. No complaining here! Cora still thinks it's a great idea to nurse every hour or less. The little piggy ate so much last night she was starting to spit it up since her tummy was so full. She's gonna be a chunky monkey like her big sister, Carleigh. When we went in for my six week check up after Carleigh was born, my midwife said, "What are you feeding that child? Straight cream!?!" Kelvin used to say she didn't have ankles, she had cankles. The tops of her feet were so chunky I couldn't get shoes on her. She weighed the same at two years old that she weighed at one. Oh well, it's all good. Now I have to buy Carleigh's pants in a slim so they will stay on her little bubble boody! ;) Little bit will get adjusted soon, I'm sure.

Emma's home bound PT from school brought a neat tumble form chair. She likes it sometimes. We found out last night she really liked sitting in it and listening to the Celtic Women dvd. Her little arms and legs are going ninety to nothing while she's listening.



I'm looking forward to an evaluation Friday with a new PT. She will come once or twice a week and work with Emma. I think it makes such a difference. Emma doesn't necessarily like to work with the therapists and tends to fuss at them a lot, but I think it makes her muscles feel better. I'm on the search for a new OT as well. Slowly but surely we'll get the folks here to work with her that she needs. My advice for graduates these days is to major in the field of physical, occupational or speech therapy. There is a huge demand, you will never want for work, and I think the pay is pretty darn good too.

Questions...beware of a little complaining

What does a parent do when his/her three year old daughter, who has a rare disease effecting her in ways unknown, cries uncontrollably and inconsolably for several hours straight during the night? What does he/she do when he/she has a newborn who has her days and nights confused and wants to wake every hour to eat at the same time her three year old sister is crying uncontrollably and inconsolably? What does that same parent do when her husband has to go back to work and has to get sleep during the night so he can function at work?

I'm feeling a little bit anxious right now. The previous questions sum up our night last night. My head hurts from lack of sleep, and I am hoping and praying we can figure our something so that Emma will be more comfortable or whatever it is she needs so she'll sleep through the night. I'm also hoping and praying Cora begins to get her days and nights turned around so she doesn't have the need to nurse hourly at night. A little more like every two or three hours would be great! Thank goodness Kelvin is off for a while longer.

It's just so frustrating not knowing what Emma needs to comfort her. I don't know why she is crying. I don't know how to make it stop, and very little seems to make her happy anymore. I wish there was a parent handbook with the ins and outs of dealing with a child with Batten Disease. My friend Jenni and I are just wishing most of all we could take our girls shopping for the enzyme they so desperately need. Wouldn't that be nice?

Something neat...the night before last Emma was laughing in her sleep. I miss hearing that.