Liz had a check up today. She weighs 15.15 lbs. and is 27 1/4" long. He thought she looked really good. We are scheduled to meet with an opthamologist in Amarillo on October 6th to check her vision. Our pediatrician thinks that would be a good idea. We do too. And Amarillo is a lot closer than the City! As for her "blowhole", he said it looked fine. This is pretty common from what I have read. We go back to the ENT in November. Maybe then we'll decide what to do about it.

The issue I couldn't name for fear of retaliation when she's older, is being taken care of with apple juice:) For the first time, we let her drink it through the bottle. She did great! Stacy took pics. I'll have to add those later. She didn't get strangled at all. In fact, when I would take the bottle out to give her a break, she would stick her tongue out and lift her head toward the bottle for some more!

Katelyn and Sarah are the best big sisters. They take care of Liz and make sure to check on her when playing. Today she stayed down in their room to play. Liz was very interested in the doll house. Kate and Sarah were playing and "shouting" in their Barbie and Pet Shop voices, so Liz shouted as well. It was sweet. I was a bit concerned about bringing this fragile baby home that would take up so much of our time, but the girls treat LizBeth just like any other baby sister. "Oh gross Lizzie. I can smell your dipey." "Aw, Liz, don't slobber on me." And my personal favorite, "Dear God, Please help Liz to stop crying so we can sleep tonight."

This is the Monday after Katelyn's birthday party! We might have to call it the World's Messiest, Yet Funnest Room!

Today has been a busy, bustling day. My little school children are getting sick with allergies and colds. Lots of little noses to wipe! The girls went to Spanish and Art. One of their friends came over to play and watch the new Barbie movie. Liz is right up there with them. Four girls, all in a row. It's too cute. Before the girls came home, Liz was playing with her best friend, Minnie Mouse.

And finally, while getting ready for school this morning, Sarah did this:

She organized the shoe drawer. She said she couldn't stand it anymore! My mom would be so proud! Oh and one more thing, Liz is blowing air out her trach hole. We covered it up with a Barbie band aid until we can ask her doctor about it tomorrow. It's just a routine check up. We're going to discuss her "blowhole" and one other thing that I'm sure she will appreciate me not mentioning when she gets older. :)

Today has been a good day. Liz and I slept in. Then we called the Nanas and talked to them. LizBeth likes Katelyn's birthday balloons. She turned herself over this morning trying to get one. She could only get a hold of the string, so she would jerk it around and yell. It was pretty funny. I took one of the big Mylar balloons and tied it to a wrist band; then attached it to LizBeth's arm. She just played and talked to that balloon. Now she's napping.

Our appt. to view the adaptive stroller and equipment has been postponed until the 30th. So Liz will have regular PT today. She does pretty good now. No more crying or faking sleep when the PT comes.

Katelyn and Sarah are no longer going to get up for school in the mornings. They will only get up for church on Sunday:) We've not had anymore homeschooling conversations. But they do think it's unfair that I get Tuesday and Thursday off. The week of Fall Break and the State Meeting of FWBs coincide this year. So we all get to go to Ada! Nana and Papa may be just a little excited. I'm sure it's b/c they will get to see Stacy and me. Ha! It doesn't matter if we go to the Ross' or to the McCullough's (my parents), we are only allowed to stay b/c we brought the grand kids! I'm pretty sure this is universal! :)

Tomorrow starts a new school/work week. I took a very long nap today for my birthday present. It was nice.

This morning in church, the congregation clapped and yelled when it was time to take up the offering. "The Lord loves a cheerful giver." After the applause ended, LizBeth added her opinion of the whole thing. She wailed and pouted. It was great! Tonight, she was just plain old spoiled. She cried and whined unitl I took her to the nursery to rock her. If I would quit rocking, she would open her eyes and look at me. So I would rock again, and she would doze.
While in the nursery, the girls snuck back there to "find" me. Katelyn played quietly, while Sarah tried head stands on the couch. We have one daughter (Katelyn) that acts like me and one daughter (Sarah) that acts like her daddy. We are anxious to see who LizBeth will act like!

Katelyn had her birthday party today. It was at the arcade room in the movie theater. She had a blast!

Stacy scored with his present, the new Barbie movie!

She took a moment to say "Cheese."

Sarah the Skee Ball Champ. It's not rather you win or lose, but how hard you can throw that ball!

LizBeth stayed with a babysitter! That's exciting too. A friend of ours came to the house and babysat while we were partying. She said Liz did great! (That's a milestone for Stacy and me.)

Has it really been over a week since I last updated the blog? For Heaven's Sake, as Sarah would say. Time has gotten away from me. LizBeth is doing well. She's almost only wearing the pulse ox at night. (Stacy is the reason for the almost :) She is holding her head up much better. She likes to lie on her tummy, pull her head up and look around. Her trunk is still weak though. We are trying to help her strengthen her lower back and ab muscles. (I recommended crunches. Our PT didn't think so :)

We are scheduled to go next Tuesday to pick out LizBeth's adaptive stroller. They look a lot like little wheelchairs. This was a hard pill for me to swallow at first. "We are resigning her to a wheelchair at seven months old?" The PT explained that it would be beneficial for Liz, because right now, as weak as her trunk is, she can't sit upright. These adaptive strollers offer a 45 degree angle for Liz to sit at. This way, she can be "vertical" when she's awake instead of lying down all the time. I can see that she's improving, but some days it's not as fast as I want. She is definitely on her own time table.

Teaching 3 year olds is definitely fun! The girls are enjoying school... some days. The other morning, they asked me to just home school them. That way they could sleep in, not have seat work, and not have to play with boys. Once they get to school, Katelyn is just fine. Sarah asks me every time she sees me, "How many more hours?" Depending on my response, she will either jump and down or sigh in exasperation. We are only into our fifth week?

Katelyn has a birthday coming up on Thursday. She is so excited to be 8 years old. We are having her party on Saturday. Sarah is excited for her too. However, Stacy and I are in denial over the whole thing. How can she be 8? Good grief (another Sarah Saying), where did the time go?

LizBeth made her first trip to Wal-Mart this evening. She is officially a part of the Ross Family now! She talked and napped and watched as we shopped. All in all, it was a good experience.

We have enjoyed our long weekend. We finally got the yard mowed and the house cleaned. The laundry is even finished. That may sound boring to most folks, but as for us, we are terribly excited. The girls and I have started Scrapbooking. Well, we've sorted pictures, but are well on our way!