It is so cold and blustery today. Lizzie and I are staying home while Stacy and the other Ross girls are at volleyball games. Lizzie's allergies have been acting up and she absolutely hates the wind. Talk about your irony!

In January of 2011, Lizzie will start school! She will go to what I've nicknamed Handicap Headstart. She can't go to NCS b/c we aren't equipped with enough space or staff to help her. I balked at putting my three year old daughter, who is totally dependent on someone else for everything, in school. But after talking to many of the moms who have had their children in this class, they assured me it was best for Lizzie. Many said their child made tremendous improvements when they started going to school. That said, we start our transitioning process from in-home care to school care. It can be a big, ugly mess at times, so I'm asking you all to please start praying for this now. I'm sure Lizzie will love it, but her Momma will probably cry before it's all over with. Stacy and I cried when we took the other girls to K-3, why not cry on #3 too?

There is also a sweet lady at our school who has been diagnosed with a rare brain tumor. It will be treated with radiation for six weeks b/c it's inoperable. She is pretty close to my age or younger and has three small children. Her husband is taking wonderful care of her. Many times I've prayed for a person that I did not know and probably never would. God absolutely hears those prayers. However, when you see someone and their family every day, it becomes a lot more personal. They are praising God through this storm. It is amazing to read their blog and hear them giving testimony to the awesomeness of our God. I ask you to please pray for this family. Their blog is theronnes.blogspot.com

Sunday we had more dance, dance, dance. When we awoke that morning, our clock was already set to the correct time. However, some of us thought it was an hour behind. Amidst the "discussion", Sarah called down the Front Desk to ask for "the correct time please." After being humbled by a child, we all went down to breakfast where Lizzie ate more than my sister! At the dance competition, the Ross girls (not Lizzie) were called down by the announcer. In fact, they were told to "Sit down." I was horribly embarrassed, but too tired and cranky to care:) We ended our stay at Lawrence by eating at Wendy's. And, after many prayers for our safe travel, we made it home having to only stop once! We are just now recuperated from that trip:)

Lizzie and I stayed home from church tonight. She is having trouble with her allergies and it's making her somewhat cranky and clingy. When the girls came in from school today, they ran right over to Lizzie and pronounced she was ill. They could tell by her red eyes and lack of smile. Katelyn and Sarah were acting like such good little nurses. I am very proud of them.

Well, we are having more Spring time weather here in Guymon. It has been snowing and raining all day. We should have beautiful flowers in the yard after this winter.

I think we may finally be caught up on our sleep. Last Friday we left right after school and headed for Lawrence, KS. (Go Jayhawks! jk) My sister, Kayla, had a dance competition so the four Ross girls and Poppy took the eight hour trip up there. On the way up, we had to stop FIVE times. Lizzie was not happy in her car seat. We finally made it in to Kansas after midnight. Saturday was full of dance, dance, dance. Lizzie absolutely loved it! The loud music, the flashy costumes, the shouts and applause. She was so good. Katelyn and Sarah enjoyed it too. After Kayla finished her dances, she would run up and sit with us until time to go backstage. Her group did a great job.

Later that night we went to On the Border with like 13 other people. Lizzie ordered some grilled veggies and ate a whole piece a squash and 1 and 1/2 pieces of zucchini. Yum!

Sunday will be it's own new blog. Talk about a crazy day!

Today I took Lizzie to school with me so I could get ready for next week's Parent Teacher Conferences. She really enjoyed it. The children I teach had to come and see her. "Hey-where'd you get that baby? Is that you baby?" is what they asked. It was precious.

At Sarah's PTC we found out she has...ALL A's! Yay Sarah! It was a nice meeting. No stories of how she's been acting like her daddy:) Katelyn's will be next week. I'm sure her PTC will be a good one too.

This morning, Lizzie said da da just as plain as day. I promptly scolded her for saying that word instead of momma. Not really:) Later in the afternoon, she said momma. I'm so excited. I do pray this is the start of her talking. She can understand a lot of what we say. In this house, there are times when all five of us are talking at the same time. If Lizzie wants to get a word in, she's going to have to yell it:)

Happy Birthday to Sarah! She is 8 years old today. What a precious "little Stacy" she is. She had her birthday breakfast: biscuits and white gravy; eggs and sausage. Then she was selected as Student of the Week today! Finally, we got to party with Poppy here at the house. Sarah prefers cookie cakes and sherbet to cake and ice cream.

Right now Poppy Kevin is feeding Lizzie while Lizzie is helping. I'm afraid they are both going to need a bath when this is over:)

Tomorrow will be a buy day for the Lizzie Tater and me. We actually have to go to the school on our day off to get ready for Parent Teacher Conferences. The girls (all 3) and I are going to Kansas this weekend with Dad to see the rest of family. Kayla is in dance recital. We are so excited to go and see Bubba, Kayla and Nana Diane!

Has it really been 5 months since my last update? I cannot believe it. Well, let's bring everyone up to date:)

Lizzie is 2 years old now! We are so thankful for birthdays around here. She is still very hypotonic, but has a great immune system and her vision is improving. She can definitely hear and vocalize, but no words consistently yet. She is eating like a little pig - still mainly baby food texture. Her favorites seem to be KFC mashed potatoes and Stacy's pancakes. We are planning on going back to OKC to see a new Neurologist and to meet with an Opto Neurologist, and also swing by the Ear, Nose, and Throat Doctor. We've met the Neurologist once before. In fact he recommended the last round of testing Lizzie had. (Everything normal there.) We've never been to the Opto Neurologist, but Lizzie's eye muscles are still really weak. Her vision seems to be fine, but she has the hardest time focusing and maintaining muscle control. And the Ear, Nose, and Throat Doc will hopefully stitch up Lizzie's stoma from her trach. She is still making whale communication sounds with it from time to time:)

Lizzie is still one of the sweetest babies ever. She is so pleasant until it's time to eat! She has a stander on order that we are really excited about. We are using an "ancient stander" to help her now and she tolerates it pretty well. She can stand for about 10-12 minutes before she melts down. Liz is fully supported while standing, but must hold her head up by herself. She has these tiny baby splints for ankle supports. It's one of those cute, but sad things she has in her life.

The rest of us are doing well. Katelyn is in volleyball now. For the most part she likes it... sometimes. Sarah is too young for volleyball, but is into everything else:) They are still Lizzie's favorite people.

It will take many days of consecutive posting to bring you up to date. I will stay with it this time. God has blessed us way too much for me to remain silent. In the NICU, Stacy and I promised to give God the glory in everything: life or death. Now that Lizzie is alive and improving, the normal everyday life has made me lazy. No more near death episodes each day. No more twice a month trips to the City. Improvements each week. God is so great! He is so faithful and true. All three Ross girls are the most precious gifts from a loving God we could have. And His people that pray for us are such blessings as well. Your words to me bring encouragement, but your words to Him keep us going. God bless you all:)