New Bike

The other day my sister in law suggested that Grant is old enough to ride a bike. This really excited me because I imagined hours of fun in the driveway this summer. So, all weekend long we told Grant that mommy was going to take him to pick out his very own bike. When we finally arrived at Toys R Us Grant was thrilled. However, the idea of a bike quickly got lost in the rows of balls, trucks, hammers, spaceships and legos. Why did the bike section have to be at the back of the store? We finally made our way back there and he picked out his very own 10 inch florescent green bike. When we got home I jumped out of the car, ripped the tags off and sat Grant on the seat. I was pushing him around in the driveway for a few minutes when he jumped off the bike and went running for the garage. By the time I caught up with him he had a broom in each hand. "Let's sweep, Mama!" So much for the bike. If it's not vacuuming, it's sweeping the garage.

From Grant's mouth...

"Kate, you look so pretty today!"
"Mom, why does dad call you honey?"
"Mom, watch out- Kate's trouble."
"Let's keep our eyes peeled for car washes."

Quirks

Every kid has their quirks. Grant's had quite a few of them, but one of his most recent really cracks me up. You see, he's had a sound machine in his room that generates white noise since he was a baby. Recently he's discovered that the sound machine also makes other noises, most notably a heartbeat. He calls this "mup-mup," and wants it on constantly. When we're reading books in his room he requests "mup-mup" on in the background. When he's playing with toys he quietly goes over and turns the dial to "mup-mup" and then looks at me with a wide grin. Isn't it ironic that our little boy with the repaired heart loves the sound of a healthy heartbeat in the background?

We call her spiderwoman

Kate loves to climb everything. Here's what happened yesterday when Jim was trying to get something out of the fridge while holding her. She's a little monkey.

Remember when...

Today Grant "graduated" from the Early On program. Since Grant was 3 months old someone from the program has been coming to our house on a regular basis to evaluate Grant and work with him on various goals we set. Today his teacher announced that he has met all of the goals and she was going to close his case. This makes Grant officially "normal" in every area. He's right on track in all areas, he can be in group situations that may have germs and he doesn't have any further medical treatment. (He does have to have tests done on his heart once a year as a preventative measure, but no further surgeries are needed.)

Over dinner tonight I sat with Jim delivering the good news and he began to play, "remember when...", thanking God for how far Grant has come. Remember when he laid unconscious in the hospital bed? Remember when he was on 14 medications? Remember when we had to pin him down to do his breathing treatments? We went on and on. He has come so far. We are beyond thankful. Go God!

Doctor's Visit

Kate went to the orthopedic surgeon today for a more complete examination of her leg/foot. The doc was really positive and said that she will most likely outgrow both the bow-leggedness and the intoeing. He even said that physical therapy isn't necessary. Yippee! That give us much more time to do fun activities of our own.

We've been playing at the nearby parks as much as possible. Grant loves the slides and the tire swing. He also loves to jump out and say "peek-a-boo" to all the older kids. I think it is adorable but the kids think it is a little weird. Kate loves the baby swing and could sit in it for hours. She loves to watch the kids, especially the other babies. I am starting to love having the kids so close in age. It is really nice to do the same activity with both of them.

Random Pics

Here are a random smattering of pictures that I've been meaning to post. We have everything from Charleston to a visit from Uncle Hal and a few pictures in between.

Walking

A peek at baby Kate's first steps..