Time for an Andrew update :)

Even his new brother, Isaiah loves him.....

This is how we found his room this am...Guess what he has figured out ? How to get out and back in to his bed...stinker.

He is so mobile now. It is amazing and we are busy keeping up with him. He loves to go all around the house...He can open doors and let himself into areas that he wants....and when he knocks things over he does the biggest laugh...even if it is something he broke...even more giggles. So we watch him like a hawk now....but it is a great thing to see. He is walking , trusting and interacting with his enviromnent- Yeah!

He has preferences and can find them even when we think he would get mixed up and not be able to. We also took him to a new GI specialist and I am happy to share that he is doing super with his eating, vomiting and GI issues. I had Joseph, Cate and Rachel meet me at Johns Hopkins when Anna had her surgery.  They brought Andrew and Lila down. Rachel stayed with Anna while the rest of us went for our appointment . I really liked him- Dr. Karnsakul. He explained things well to me about why he is still vomiting- He believes it is the acid Andrew produces that caused him to vomit after he was over the H. Pyloria. He also thinks that he is over it with the tests we did that were negative- Praise God for that. He also told us we should not stop the previcid abruptly like we did because the cells that produce the acid are smart and they will produce more acid the next day...we needed to wean him off of it and then go to Zantac and wean off that. So we started on the Zantac since he was already off the previcid...He took it once a day for a wk. but had a few times of throwing up so we had to do it twice a day and then we will eventually wean him off of it...and the best part is it seems to be working and we can all tell in the past week he seems a whole lot happier !!!!! Also Dr. K had a very good reason as to why he did not start vomiting until he was home with us for 8 months...He said that our flora changes if we change the area we live in...So coming from a diff. country, Bulgaria and moving to America his flora ( natural bacteria ) changed and it irrated his GI tract and the H. Pyloria which we all can have and not show symptoms started to just that- be symptomatic. I always knew the first GI specialist was just blowing us off about this and I am so glad we changed doctors....I have done this before with some of the kids and it has always paid off to go with my momma's gut feeling about stuff ( no pun intended ) .

Next week we are having an evaluation done on him at our home with the local school system. They are coming to also do an evaluation on Gracie. We met them 2 weeks ago and we are excited to see what they have to say. Home 1 yr and 9 months and how much he has changed...He is now a happy guy most of the time instead of being very unhappy. I am sure his GI issues contributed to his discomfort and now that we are on the road to getting it taken care of he has been so happy.

Selah- an American Ghana girl :)

The girls were playing dress up and having a blast as you can see from her wider than ever smile. I love these pictures because it is such a mix of America pioneer and Ghana momma Although most of the time the baby is wrapped on the back of momma. This one ability to balance things on their heads amazed me the most while I was in Ghana. I love that Selah can do it.

Just what are we doing at Walmart- A Scavenger Hunt

Today was a very rainy day . We had been inside all day and needed to go out. So we packed up all 23 of us who were home and drove to Walmart. We divided the kids into 4 teams with this list and a camera. They had one hour to get a picture of the things on the list or things that represented one of them. While they went out to hunt Paul and I had lunch at the Subway that is in the front of our Walmart. It was such a fun thing to do and it helped build some problem solving strategies and group building.

We have also played hide and seek in Target but that was just fun :)

My Broadway Stars

My kiddos decided they were ready for Broadway :) So they climbed up on this table. A table that was bought as a dining table but I had Paul cut it down for a play table for the kids to sit on the floor and be able to color, play, build with blocks...but today it was a "Stage" and perform they did :) Singing, dancing and playing around.

Our Darling Mady and some baby news

Mady is working on 15 months...and she is so old now. We are sure enjoying her to. These were all taken last Sunday when we were playing outside .  She is also an eater. I have never seen a baby eat so much and handle all of it well. Her biggest motivator is food. She is also talking and can express her needs loud and clearly. So much fun having a baby around....It is a good thing that she has gotten so independent because Mary Kate and Keith are expecting their 3d child in Dec. ( Our 9th grand baby)- a girl :)

Apparently He does...and I am filled with the peace of His presence

From the beginning of my day to the end I have lots of reminders that the Lord's presence is here. My son, Jonas made this sign for me to hang at the beginning of our Peace Garden and walk into our home. I love it. I have shared before how many times the presence of doves is a reminder that the Holy Spirit is around me. I see these birds all the time and I know in my knower that He is here.

Anna week one update

 This is how she has spent most of her days this past week...She is not allowed to do much and nothing active. She has done puzzles, colored and her DS game and even met some of her friends for a visit which made her very happy.

Anna now 1 week post op

 Anna pics taken 8/24 - l day before her surgery.

 The pins that come off the mouth piece are what I distract with this instrument - 2 turns on each pin daily. We met with the surgeon yesterday and he gave us the ok to start moving her jaw this way. She does not feel any pain from it and by Tuesday,  9/6 we will have moved her another 5to 6 mm.