Sweet Grant

Here are just a couple photos of Grant recently. He is in really sweet phase. Kate has been sick lately and has had a hard time sleeping. The past two nights he offered to sleep on the floor next to her bed and he actually fell asleep. He woke up saying his back hurt but it was worth it to help Kate.

Hosanna

Yesterday when Grant's "alone time" was over he told me he had a surprise for me. I walked into my room (where he was playing) and in front of me were a ton of hangers, towels, washclothes, bathmats and hand towels zig zagged around the room. I was about to express my frustration with the mess that I had to clean up when he interrupted me. "Do you know what this is mom? These are the coats and palm branches we put on the ground because Jesus is coming! Hosanna! Jesus is coming!"

Florida in April

We had another amazing visit to Florida. This time we spent the first half of the trip with the Koss grandparents and the second half with Grandma and Grandpa Ned. The kids loved zipping around in the golf cart, playing with Snickers (the dog), swimming in the pool and eating in a restaurant where they could throw peanut shells on the ground.

Another one bites the dust

It seems like just about everyday Kate's climbing antics get her into trouble. Tonight at a restaurant she climbed to the top of the booth (after being told not to) and fell off onto her face. She has a nice large welt on her left cheek. Earlier today she decided to put on my high heels and walk down two flights of stairs before tripping down the last three steps and landing on her head. This lovely photo was taken after she tripped on the driveway and landed on her face. I thought Grant was active!

Bathtime

Marshmallow fight

Back in December I read a magazine article about a woman whose favorite Christmas tradition was having marshmallow fights on Christmas Eve. So, I went out and bought 4 bags of marshmallows, put them in the cupboard and decided it would be our new favorite tradition too. Then I forgot about them...until last night. Grant spotted them and asked if we could have a marshmallow fight. So, we divided up our ammo and started throwing. It was fun until Jim decided he was in 8th grade dodgeball and I was his enemy. :) Really, though, it was a lot of fun and a lot of laughs. Kate kept asking if she could eat them. We told her no bc they were dirty. But, whenever we'd turn our heads she'd sneak one in. The chipmunk cheeks gave it a way a little bit.

March in Florida

The kids and I just got back from 7 wonderful days in sunny Florida. While Jim was here working we were visiting grandma and grandpa Koss in Naples. The kids loved playing in the sand and pool. When it was cold out we visited Chick-Fil-A, the library and the stripmalls. We ate well (when don't we in the Koss house?). Grant vacuumed the whole place and scrubbed both showers for us (voluntarily). We went on several "bug hunts" and Grant was brave enough to let a giant bug crawl up his arm. We played baseball and trucks in the sand. Papa was an all-star and went in the Gulf with Grant everyday. On the last day two sting rays were inches from their legs. Grant then reported to everyone on the beach that he saw a "sting bat." A good time was had by all!

ahoy!

Every morning Grant wakes up and tells us his new name. Some days it is superman, others it is Captain Hook or Peter Pan. Jim gladly joins in the fun and makes pirate ships, rocket ships or whatever is needed for the adventure.

A note on Kate- the doctor said to try Mylanta and it seems to be working.

Health update

Good news in terms of Grant's health! He's only complained a handful of times about a "hot tummy" since we started the anti-fungal medication, and I think a few of those were to get attention. So...I think it is working! His cough is now totally gone so he's gone from 4 breathing treatments a day to just one. Yeah God!

Kate has been complaining of her tummy hurting for several weeks now. No, I honestly don't think it has been to get attention. There are several reasons for that, but no need to go into them. When we ask where it hurts she points to her chest area. It is almost always a few minutes after she starts eating. She is really starting to avoid eating these last couple of days. The doctor put her on zantac last week but I don't think it is doing any good. I am going to call tomorrow for the next step. Please pray for healing for Kate!

"Adult Words"

Grant is constantly repeating words and phrases that the adults around him use. Today he tried a little too hard:
"Mom, can you buy that toy for me? You'll probably say no, that we need to save up 50 degrees first. So, why don't we just text the owner and ask him to put it on hold for us?"

Pancake Night

Breakfast is Jim's favorite meal. The Original House of Pancakes is his favorite breakfast place. The other night we took the kids there for the first time. They were super excited about it, mostly because they've heard Jim talk about it. On the way home we passed a huge snow pile and Jim suggested he and the kids climb to the top. I resisted, reminding him we didn't have boots, mittens or hats with us. He encouraged me by saying, "this is what's all about." So, we pulled up in front of the snow pile and they climbed to the top. I'm glad Kate and Grant have such an adventurous dad because if it was up to me we'd be inside eating chicken.

Playdate with Oliver

Yesterday cousin Oliver came over for a play date. Its so much fun to finally have all three of them interacting. They are going to have a blast as they all grow up together. Kate often calls her doll Oliver. (It vacillates between Willa and Oliver.) When it is Oliver Kate pretends she is Lindsay and Grant is Uncle Josh. "Josh" is always talking about bonfires and lawnmowers.

There's a Fungus Amongus!

The doctor called today and they are pretty sure it is a fungus that can be treated by medication! Thank you, God! He'll start the treatment on Friday (it lasts 3 weeks) but we should know within 3 days if it is working. If he's not better in 6 days we are supposed to call the doctor back. Please pray that the fungus goes and Grant can live pain free again!

Scope Results

Everything went really well with the scope. Grant went down and came to very happy. The doctor found some polyps that he thinks are either a food allergy or fungus. Fungus would be our number one choice because that is easily treated with medication and he would feel relief within just a few days. The doctor will call on Monday with the biopsy results. We are so thankful it was nothing serious!

Why everything is okay

Grant: Mom, my ear really hurts whenever I burp. But, it's okay; I'm tough.
Me: You're the toughest guy I know.
Grant: You know why it is really okay, mom? Because God is always with me.

Health News

Grant went back to the doctor today because his ear hurt...again. He still has a double ear infection. We are on our third round of antibiotics in just under a month. The doctor said if this doesn't clear it up he has to go to injectable antibiotics. Please pray with us that Grant's ear infection goes away completely!

Thursday is Grant's scope. 10am. Please pray for everything to go smoothly and for wisdom for the doctors. We need answers!

Silly Kate

Lung Report

We just got back from the pulmonologist's. He is treating Grant for whooping cough. He said he is not sure if he has it, but he has some signs. The biggest being the coughing fits that Grant has where he can't seem to get air and eventually vomits. However, Grant is wheezing and that isn't typical of whooping cough. There is only a 2 week window to treat whooping cough before it gets really bad, so he said he'd rather be cautious and get Grant on medication now. The good news is Grant continues to be joyful and embrace life. The doctor did say no running around for now so we'll see how that goes over. We're thankful to have such great doctors who genuinely care about Grant.

Upper Respiratory Infection

Grant, Kate and Jim all caught some kind of upper respiratory infection. Kate and Jim are on the mend, but Grant still has quite a cough. Over the weekend he coughed so hard he gave himself a bloody nose. Yesterday at the YMCA he was coughing so hard he threw up on the bleachers. :( He's back on the nebulizer and qvar inhaler twice a day. He has licked this kind of thing so many times now we are confident he will make it through it. It just takes him a little longer than the average kid. We will head to the pulmonologist on Friday just to check in.

On a side note- Grant's new answer to everything is "you bet." If I say, "Grant do you want a snack?", he comes back with a quick, "you bet, mom." It melts my heart... and reminds me of his ever so enthusiastic dad. :)

Scope

After a long day of Grant complaining about his tummy being hot yesterday, we finally scheduled the scope for February 10. He has to eat all foods until then. Does anyone want any gluten free food from our pantry? :)

Inside Time

I try to get the kids outside as much as possible, but sometimes it is just too cold. If it isn't obvious by the photos, they've gotten rather creative about how to keep busy indoors. Grant loves dressing up in Kate's princess costumes. The worst part about it is that he is insistent on wearing the high heels all the time. He calls them his new "house shoes" and doesn't want to take them off.

Today they decided to give all their cars a carwash. I let them have a couple of spray bottles and told them to get some rags from the laundry room. Kate came back wearing a mop cover on her head. She said it was in case some water sprayed her hair.

P.S. Cutting out eggs and dairy did not seem to help Grant's tummy. This week we've cut out gluten. So far no improvement. We're going to keep at it for another week or so. Please pray for wisdom for us about what next steps to take if a gluten-free diet is not the answer. Thanks!

Let it Snow

Eggs?

After a couple of weeks on no dairy Grant started complaining of a hot tummy again. It has gotten pretty bad and now he is in pain probably 10 times a day. We are cutting out eggs now to see if that makes a difference. We are kind of at a loss. He is scheduled for food allergy testing the first week in February. If the food elimination and food allergy tests don't give us the answers we need we'll have to reschedule the scope. Boo.

Bye Bye Cindy

A week ago we said good-bye to our au pair, Cindy, who has been living with us for the past year. She has been a huge blessing to us and we will miss her. We won't be getting another au pair this year. Everyone is healthy and we are ready to embrace life as it comes. So far the kids are adjusting great and we are keeping busy with basketball, bootcamp, gym class, swimming, Bible school and playing with friends. All is well.

No Scope!

I called today and officially canceled Grant's scope and biopsy on Monday! So much has happened in the last 3 weeks since we scheduled it. After talking with others we decided to try a food elimination diet with Grant to see if that would have any impact on his "hot tummy." The first group that I cut out was dairy because he already hates milk so I thought it would be easiest. Within one day he stopped complaining about his tummy. Prior to this I don't think he went a single day without complaining. We tried to add cottage cheese to his pancake mix on Sunday and by afternoon he was in pain. Our suspicions were confirmed. So, we're going to keep him away from all dairy for now. I made an appointment for food allergy testing in February (first appt I could get). But, for now we are praising God for a (relatively) easy fix. Grant is being a great sport about giving up his chocolate chip cookies but I suspect it is because he doesn't have to drink the milk that goes with them!

We're finally all together!

Merry Christmas

We had an awesome Christmas! The kids slept in until 7:00, which is always a good way to start the day. After breakfast they put on their antlers and Jim read them the Christmas story. Then, he put on a Santa suit and made a surprise appearance. We opened our stocking presents of which the favorite was chapstick! After we finished the gifts under the tree we sang happy birthday to Jesus and headed over to grandma and grandpa Koss's house for brunch. Later that day Willa arrived and the kids got a chance to hold her. As I just tucked Kate into bed she was still gushing about Willa. Mostly she was interested in whether or not Willa had lips and would she like to borrow her chapstick.

Tea time

Health Update

I haven't posted on Grant's health in a while, mostly because we didn't have many answers. This week we went to a GI doc that Grant used to see as a baby. His "hot tummy" has persisted and treating him for reflux didn't bring him any relief. After updating the gastroenterologist he concluded it is definitely not reflux. He said the next step is to "scope" Grant and do a biopsy of his esophagus. This is scheduled at Beaumont for January 10th. We are first on the waiting list for an earlier date. We are praying for the procedure to be done earlier in the day (his current time is 4:00pm) because he can't eat all day! Try explaining that to a 4 year old!

Today Grant went to the pulmonologist who said that it might just be a way of life for Grant to have an intense, wet cough 9 months out of the year. He has been coughing heavily since late September and they have tried every remedy possible for the asthma. He said that with so many different viruses in the winter and allergies in the spring and summer Grant's asthma is almost always triggered. We are praying against this!

We know that God has the ability to heal Grant totally and completely. If you are a pray-er we ask that you would join with us in praying for total healing for Grant's lungs and GI tract. Thanks!

Grant's dino birthday party

Christmas Program

Happy Birthday Grant

4 years ago today...
-My baby boy was born with a very soft cry
-A dozen doctors piled in and tried to explain what TAVPR was
-Jim and I watched Grant's helicopter take off from the window in my delivery room
-Family met at U of M to pray and support us through Grant's surgery
-Surgery was a success but we were told that we still had a very, very sick baby

Today..
-Nothing can slow my boy down
-God continues to show His character to us through Grant
-God is faithful to provide through each health trial
-God's people have shown us a love we would have never known had it not been for our son.

Bethlehem

On Sunday we went to a live nativity at a church in Royal Oak. It was amazing! They had real camels, about 75 people dressed in costume and a petting zoo. All this, along with a marketplace for the kids to buy food with fake money, belly dancers and a real live baby Jesus. Grant's favorite was the Roman soldier because he pretended to be mean to people but then winked at Grant. Kate was most curious about the leper who kept yelling, "unclean." When we got home she went straight to her Bible to find pictures of the "people with boo boos." The funniest part of it all was the next day Grant kept trying to reference the whole thing but the best description he could come up with was, "mom, do you remember the Samaritan at the circus?"