Merry Christmas!

My Beautiful Christmas Angel

Tickle Tickle:)

Sneak Peak...:)

Here's a sneak peek @ Laney's Christmas outfit:) I just couldn't resist...I mean look at those shoes...I want those shoes!

Day #2

Day #2- peed in the potty once, on the floor once, and now thinks the potty chair is her royal reading chair. Oh geeze I don't think I'm ready for potty training.

Success!!

Day #1- Success

posing after going in the potty!

Big Girl Potty!

So today Laney and I ventured out to Buy Buy Baby (one of my new favorite stores here in TX) to buy her a big girl potty chair. I know she is only 18 months old but she keeps telling me when she has to go potty, then she leads me to her room to change her diaper. So, I figured I should take advantage of it and see if we can start the potty training process! I also bought her a book with pictures of a big girl using the potty and some stickers. Of course she had strong opinions when it came to choosing a potty chair. I found a cute one that sang songs and even made a flushing noise but when I asked her if she wanted that one she said, "No, no". She, of course, picked out a pink one with a nice comfy seat and hugged it all the way to the check out counter. She kept doing the baby sign for potty the whole way home it was so funny. I told her after her nap we would start using the big girl potty. And so the process begins! I will let you know how this adventure goes!

What a day!

Well today was the day Laney was supposed to have her MRI... that's right I said supposed... it almost didn't happen. Somehow there was some sort of "miscommunication" between radiology and us... (eye roll). We showed up this morning bright and early 30min prior to our appointment time as directed by the the hematology nurse. As we checked in to register the lady held up a post it that said, "reschedule- Late". Garrett and I both looked at her confused and then we were directed to the radiology dept. where they told us we were supposed to be there 2 hours before our appointment. At this point were were still 45 min away from our appointment time. Of course Laney was not able to eat since the night before and so she was cranky asking me for milk and crying while Garrett had a "discussion" with the man from MRI. (Garrett was told he needed to be respectful when he raised his voice and told the man he had to take time off work) ...(eye roll #2). So after a brief "exchange of words" in the waiting room he told us we had missed our appointment and we would have to reschedule for some time next month. We headed up stairs to see Laney's hematologist since we were supposed to have an appointment there after the MRI. At this point Mommy was crying, Laney was crying for food, and Daddy was pissed!!
As we checked in for our appointment they asked us why we weren't in MRI... we relayed the whole story and watched as one of the doctors picked up the phone walked out of the room and back in a few minutes later saying, "someone will meet you here in a few min to pick you up for the MRI." Of course it was the same guy... elevator ride was very awkward! 6 hours later and a few more bad moments (lost a diamond earring, they forgot to draw labs and to had to poke her while she was awake, and more) we were finally able to bring her home. Raspy little voice from the breathing tube and drunk from the medicine.
The good news is the mass appears to slowly be shrinking and not getting bigger! The latest plan is to just keep watching it. We dont have to go back until May! yay:) Thanks everyone for your prayers today we really needed them to stay sane:) (I will try later to upload the video Garrett took of drunk Laney:)

Then & Now

We are in the process of organizing and saving our photos over the last year or so. As we looked through them we were so surprised at the pictures of Laney. A year ago Delaney was on her highest dose of steroids... she was a fussy eater, was retaining water, not gaining weight, and had high blood pressure. Most of which were side effects from the steroids. Her face was so swollen she couldn't close her mouth and the skin on her cheeks was so tight it was starting to crack. Now fast forward to the present, a year later... our beautiful baby girl is happy... strong willed, but happy:), off all her meds, she eats, and she has finally hit 20 lbs! She is still only in the 8th percentile for weight, but 60th for head circumference! (that explains her balance issues:). I look at these photos with mixed emotions... I won't list them all... it's pretty much every emotion, but mostly gratitude. To God for allowing us to be her parents, and continuing to heal her body, to friends and family for all their prayers and support, and of course to Laney for loving us.














November 2009...






November 2010! (this is what she does when we say "smile")

New Chair & Crazy Hair!

Laney's new chair from Grandma and Pop pop...

This is what happens when Daddy gives her a bath...

and this is the face she makes when you say "smile" ... haha close Laney.

Trick or Treat!

Happy Halloween! As you can see my little Laney was a Seahawks cheerleader for Halloween (daddy's favorite team). The costume was provided by Aunt JoAnne and was perfect! Laney can even throw her arms up cheer "Go stangs" for the Mustangs which is Daddy's football team. She likes to watch the cheerleaders and mascot at the games. She went trick or treating around the block and held a hersey kiss in her hand the whole time... we didnt know and when she got home it was quite a gooey mess. We only got one trick or treater so the huge bowl of candy turned into the best entertainment...if you know Laney you know she is a sorter. She sorts bark at the park and leaves in the yard so a bowl of candy was like her dream come true! She put piles on chairs on steps and everywhere else. Then she would collect all the piles and start all over.

Lip gloss and blush!

Mommy and Laney..."cheese"

Being a cheerleader is serious!

Loves to ride on Daaa dah's shoulders
Let the sorting begin!

Wake Up!

Yesterday I was going through the videos we have taken and trying to organize and save them. I came across this one. It is so funny! She seriously wakes up like this from every nap and in the morning I have to chase her around to even get her out of her crib. She is such a happy girl after a good nap:)

Pumpkin Farm Fun!

Saturday Morning Garrett, Laney, and I visited the Celina pumpkin Farm in the heart of the Texas hill country. After some research I decided this one sounded the most fun because it wasnt a carnival but an actual farm. After about 30 min of country roads we were there! We took a turn at the orange painted rolled hay into a field and parked our car. The first thing we did, and I think most exciting thing for Laney, was feed the animals! We fed some cute long eared goats, some cows and sheep. Laney was so good she held her hand out flat and let the animals lick the food off. She wasnt scared at all and she even reached up to pet them while they ate. After getting animal slobber all over her we decided to take a hay ride! It was quite a hay ride... a tractor pulled 3 trailers with hay bales around the farm. We saw the pumpkin patch, a lake, a little church, and the barn. They also had little signs posted with pumpkin facts and a story about a pumpkin farmer. After the hay ride we went pumpkin hunting and found 3 perfect pumpkins to take home! It was so funny Laney would inspect each one before she finally picked up hers. Then we ate hot dogs and of course Laney wanted to pet more animals. We took lots of pictures here are just a few! It was such a fun place and we had a great day!

Dallas Zoo

Last weekend Grandma and auntie Jen Jen came for a visit and we went to the Dallas zoo! It was a little warm but we got to see some of Laney's favorite animals. Her fav was the old camel that a mad just walked around in a circle and gave kids rides. She liked it because it kept chewing and sticking its teeth out so she kept sticking her teeth out...so funny. And of course she cried when we all got bored and walked away. We also saw giraffes eating leaves. She sticks her tongue out now like she's eating leaves whenever she sees or hears giraffe. We also saw monkeys and she talked to them in her monkey voice, and elephants with loooong noses. And then there was the ghost of the bayou an albino crocodile ...ewww!

She's so smart! She knows the elephant has a long nose
In her stroller with her "wa wa"
Grandma and auntie jen jen

Poor Laney!

So now that Laney thinks she has mastered walking, she has started running. Its more like a wobbly out of control burst of momentum that usually ends with all fours on the floor. I knew sooner or later she wouldnt listen to me say "walk" or "careful" or "slow down Laney you're going to bonk your bonker"... and that day happened last week. Yes, Laney bonked her bonker. She was running in her room towards the window and tripped. She landed forehead first on the windowsill. It was so loud! My poor baby...:( Right away a HUGE bruise appeared and it just started to grow bigger and bigger!! I tried to put ice on it but of course she wouldnt let me. Poor baby!! As she calmed down I snapped a quick picture. You might be thinking how cruel!! But I didnt take it to remember the moment...believe me I'd rather forget. It was the nurse in me that made me do it! I wanted to take a picture so I would have something to compare it to. If it got bigger, smaller darker, redder, or changed at all I could look back at the pic and see. So, on that note I present Laney's first walking related injury... :(

Beach Trip 2010

I know it's been forever since I updated the blog!! Our lives have been a little busy with summer travels and of course the big move... don't worry I will dedicate an entire blog entry to the move. For now I just wanted to share a few pictures of our family beach trip and Laney's first Trip to the beach! We had lots of fun, stayed in a cute house about a block from the beach in downtown Cayucos. Along with Laney's first trip to the beach came Laney's first time with the stomach flu. Not fun! She threw up ALL night and cried and looked at me like what the heck is going on?? I'm trying to sleep! My poor baby. The next day she slowly became her normal wiggly busy self so we went to Moro Bay and explored. That night Laney threw up again! But only a few times...and then auntie Jen got sick...then uncle Jonny got sick... ewww hopefully next year we can leave that part of the trip out! Other than that Laney LOVES the ocean she wasn't scared of the water at all even though it was freezing!! She wanted to stand with her toes in the sand and let the waves wash up to her feet... but her legs are a little short so the waves ended up washing up to her diaper... haha. She loves the birds... ate a little sand...collected seaweed sticks and rocks...dug a hole with her shovel... and went on the swings! What a fun trip!

My little Laney loves to stick out her tongue... and this picture proves it! It has been a while since we updated the blog... so here's the latest. Laney's last Stanford appt was a couple weeks ago. She was such a big girl! It was the first time she didn't cry at her appointment!! She played with the Dr.'s stethoscope and even showed her piggy face. She now weighs 15lbs 9oz at 11 mos... so she continues to be well below the growth curve. But she is growing so we will continue her calcium and vitamin supplements. The doctor can still feel the mass and it doesn't feel like it has changed since stopping the steroids a few months ago. We were hoping that it would continue to shrink after stopping the steroids. So the plan is for another MRI in May. Not fun.
Speaking of not fun, on the way home from our trip we had an interesting adventure. We stopped at Harris Ranch to feed Laney. Garrett climbed in the backseat to get her out of her car seat and I hear, "What's that on your face?" I froze. Yep sure enough it was poop. A major blowout. And there she was sitting happy in her car seat her paci in her mouth with poop streaks on her face and her hand gently kneading a pile of poop that had somehow shot out the side of her diaper. We just stood there staring at her for a while not even knowing where to start. After some maneuvering we sat her down in the trunk while we cleaned the carseat. She rolled around in the trunk naked and giggling thinking it was the funniest thing ever. For us it was funny (we couldn't help but laugh) and gross.
On a lighter note:) we are planning Delaney's first birthday party!! The theme is lady bugs, or "Laney Bugs" as we call them. Can't wait to see her face when she eats her first cake!

Happy Easter!

Today we celebrated Laney's First Easter and The Resurrection of Our Lord! He is Risen! We went to church, and then had lunch @ grandma and grandpa's house. We learned today that Delaney does not like bubbles:) Such a scaredy cat! Laney's dress was a gift from grandma Nancy (california grandma. so confusing with 2 grandma nancy's)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Going for my daily walk

He's here!

Little baby Zo is here! He is so cute and tiny! Well, 8lbs 5oz & 20in tiny:) Courtney was so brave! Such a long labor for her, but she and her little man are doing well. Hoping they get to go home today. Can't wait for Laney to meet her new little cousin. This is a pic Jen took @ the hospital.

Happy 9 month Birthday Delaney!

This is a little clip auntie Jen took of Delaney the other morning after just waking up. She has her favorite blanket from uncle Blair and aunt Amber and if you look closely you can see her teeth!

Tutu!

Delaney's last day of steroids was Saturday! yay! The swelling in her face has gone down so much. These are some pictures auntie jen took of her in an outfit from great grandma Donna.

Look @ my new teeth!

You can only see her little bottom teeth in this one. She doesn't show her giant top teeth much:)

Happy New Year!

I know it has been forever since the last post! The holidays always have a way making life a little extra busy... at least that is my excuse:) Well, today is Delaney's 8 month birthday! We kicked off the day by visiting the pediatrician. Delaney wore her new red lady bug pea coat of course:) Luckily for her no shots this time. She is still on high doses of steroids and she can't get any of her vaccinations yet because she wouldn't be able to build immunity. Overall it was an easy visit. Delaney did well she only cried a little... no screaming this time. His biggest concern is her growth. She is now 3% for weight and less than 3% for height. He recommended we see an endocrinologist who might have some insight into how the steroids are affecting her growth. We go back to Stanford next week so this is something we will have to mention to the hematologist. Lately Delaney's favorite things are rolling around, snorting like a pig, licking her books, yes licking not reading, sleeping in her crib, skyping with grammy and paw paw and flying with Daddy. She thinks that is she kicks her little legs it makes her go. So funny. She now has four teeth! Two little bottom teeth and two giant top teeth with just the corners popping out.