Braska Bear

On Monday, Miss Judy was here to play with me, and she had a neat toy. It's all soft and feels nice on my hands, and it makes a fun noise, too. She put me a bunch of pillows around me so I could see things better and play a little, but I don't like that so much. Mommy says if I learn how to do it, they call it sitting, then I'll like it. I'm not sure she knows about that though. On Tuesday, Miss Robin came. She made me do some sitting too. She was telling Mommy how she wants me to practice this, and I just kept wondering why she wants me to do this so much. But then when I tried to do it with this ball to help me, it wasn't so bad.

Today after church, lots of people came up to see me and Grandma C. Miss Jo came over to give me hugs. She's tough like me when it comes to hospitals and doctors and stuff, so we had stuff to talk about. Everyone is always so nice at Grandpa John's church.... Hi South Side friends! After we left church, the whole family put on shirts with my name on them that Grandma C and Miss Karen got for all of us, and we took a picture. I can't show it to you yet, because it's going to be used later by Grandma C and Grandpa J... so you'll have to wait. But here's our little family part of it. I was pretty tired of smiling. For some reason, somebody thought I should sit on Cooper. He didn't seem to mind, so that's good, but I thought my hand was still the better entertainment. We went to Miss Cindy's again after the pictures, and we had lunch and played over there. I didn't get in the pool this time, but we sat and watched the others play for a whi...

This weekend we went back to St. Louis. I know! It's been alot of driving lately. But this time it was to see Miss Karen, and that's really worth the trip. She moved back to Kansas, and we miss her alot, but we know she'll be having a good time with all her old friends. Mommy says I should say "old" friends, but I think she knows what I mean. We got to play, and we talked about some stuff. I showed her my new tricks and she was pretty impressed I think. I also spent plenty of time playing with the rest of the gang. They had just seen me, though, so they didn't seem as impressed with my tricks this time. Grandma C fed me some yummy bananas, and Uncle Levi makes a great comfy chair! Tonight we played some games, and Uncle Levi played with my yellow bunny too. I didn't know it could do these tricks, but I think it's going to teach me how to do them too. Won't everyone be impressed!?! Grandma C is always ready to play with me, and I just don'...

07/25 and 07/26/07 I'm almost done with doing these stories from this last week. Me and Mommy were so busy that I didn't have time to keep up. I'm sorry about that! I'll try to do better. On Wednesday, I went to see Miss Luann. She tries to get me to eat better. This time, she played with me alot with weird things on my mouth. One of them was a funny looking little green thing that shook back and forth really, really fast. It felt kind of neat on my tongue. Miss Luann said most kids don't let her do it so much, but I thought it was pretty cool. Miss Luann told Mommy I like foods with stronger flavor. I'm not sure what that means. But Mommy says I get to start trying new things, better than regular baby food. I'll have to let you know how it goes. Thursday we went to Toro with Connor and his mom and dad. Miss Martha wasn't there, so that was sad. Soon I'll get to try beans, but not quite yet.

07/22 and 07/23/07 We go to St. Louis alot so I can see doctors and stuff, and we get to see Grandma C and Grandpa J most of the trips too. This time we got to have some extra fun times. On Sunday, I started by taking an early nap with Pop. Then Grandma C got me dressed and ready for church. After church, we went to Miss Cindy's house to play in the pool. I hung out most of the time with Grandma C, but I did get in the pool for a little bit with Mommy. The water was pretty cold for me though. I napped for a while by the pool too. On Monday, I had to go back to the hospital for a test or something. It wasn't so bad at all. I didn't hardly notice they were doing anything. Here's what they used on me. Pop talked to me while we were waiting. We parked on the Zebra this time. It didn't rain as much as it did on Thursday when we were here before. Here's what Pop looked like on that day when he went to get the car.

7/20 and 7/21/2007 While Pop went with his brothers and Grandpa J for a getaway, Mommy and me picked up Auntie Rachel and went to see Grammy Jan and Papa Beagle and the Squeaks. (That's what Mommy and the older ones call Aunties Julia and Joy and Uncle Ryan, because they are alot younger...but they don't look young to me. They're big kids, 18, 16, and 12 by the end of this year.) These are just some pictures of us playing and stuff at their house. Papa Beagle got down on the floor with me while I was napping. Auntie Joy likes to talk to her friends on the computer alot! Auntie Julia played with me some while Mommy was making me practice my exercises. I didn't like being on the Boppy that way, so I figured out how to roll even on it! Mommy was surprised that I could do it. Mommy makes me practice sitting up, and I don't much like it. But I did try a little, and she was happy about that. After all that work, I took a bath with Grammy Jan in the kitchen! I ...

We're home, and I apologize for the long break in posts. Braska's been busy being a curious little one, and I've been trying not to drown in my to-do list. The weekend went pretty well overall...lots of family visiting, some laughs, alot of driving for me and Braska. The biopsy on Monday morning went well too. Super quick, and she didn't even flinch. She's such a tough little cookie. We'll get the results later this week, I think. Alot of tough decisions to make right now, so that's the foremost priority at present. Prayers for wisdom in all things would be appreciated. I don't really think a win-win situation is so much one of our options anymore, so it's time to decide what's most important. I promise lots of pics in the next day or so... today, I'm not feeling the greatest, so I'll probably be sneaking in mini-naps whenever a free minute presents itself.

We met Dr. R, the pediatric gastroenterologist, today for consulation regarding the G-tube. My issues with it are really just trying to determine how to decide when it's time to look that direction. He was very informative about what it entails and it's risks and benefits. But the good news is that he said, although she would be a candidate, she is not at the point where she NEEDS to go that route. That's good, as far as I'm concerned. Since she is not having any necrosis concerns in the nose or throat, and since she doesn't seem to eat or nurse any differently when the tube is in or out, we are not at the point where we need to get the NG out for good right away. She has eaten (breastfed) much better the last few days, so that is encouraging. She was going to spend this upcoming week with Grammy Jan so I could get some much-procrastinated work done, but since she's doing better and being more consistent, I'm not going to give up on her yet. Dr. R agreed tha...

I met Dr. R today, and he was really nice. Mommy tell you more information tomorrow, but I wanted to tell you that things went pretty good today. Mommy seemed pleased with the stuff the doctor said. Here's a few pictures.... Me waiting for the doctor. (We didn't wait long, it was just a few seconds!) Here's what I was looking at while I was waiting in the room on the table. (I played with the paper again!!) And we parked on the Kangaroo! I'm tired, so it's bedtime. Mommy will tell you more tomorrow.

We're headed to St. Louis again today for a consult with a GI about a G-tube. Just to get info and see what he thinks. Hope to see a nutritionist as well. We'll be visiting with family over the weekend, but I'll try to update after the appointment tonight. I'm really feeling like we should wait to do the g-tube itself. I can't say why, but it's a very strong feeling. Prayers for guidance and a clear idea of what we should do would be appreciated. Have a great day!!

Most days when Pop comes home from work for lunch, Mr. Tom comes too. They watch shows and eat lunch, and I usually get to hang out with Pop for a little while since Mommy is fixing lunch....and that's what I did today. Tonight Mr. Randy, Miss Karen, Maddy and Gracie came over to watch our shows. They watch singing shows with Mommy and Pop. Mr. Curt and Miss Sara might come sometimes too.

This morning Miss Robin came and worked me alot! She made me do stuff I don't like, but Mommy says it will help me grow big and strong. (That's what she always says, but I just don't know.) We worked on sitting up with a bench again, like I did with Miss Judy yesterday. It's kind of neat. They put toys on a little tiny table thing that I can sit at and if I put my hands on the table, I can kind of hold myself up. Maybe it will be a fun thing sometimes. I also spent a little bit of time playing with my legs and feet. Everyone seems to want me to do that for some reason. This afternoon, Mommy, Pop, and I went to see Mr. Jim. Mommy and Pop say he is the smartest guy when it comes to how to take care of our money and make good plans for when I'm bigger. He is really nice, and Mommy said I'm going to get to go and play with his family sometime soon. I'm sure that will be fun times! Check out Pop's post about our visit with Mr. Jim.

This morning Miss Judy came to see me. She asked Mommy lots of questions and tried to get me to do all kinds of things. I think it was one of those evaluashuns again. Mommy says I did good. And I heard Miss Judy say that I was a whole different baby than two weeks ago. I don't know how I did that, I thought I was just me still, but Mommy says it's a good thing. Our pictures from this morning didn't look very good, so no pictures of Miss Judy's visit today. Tonight Mommy, Pop, and me went to a big place with dirt on it and a bunch of guys were throwing a little ball at each other. Mommy says it's called softball, but the ball didn't look soft to me. Mr. Skip was playing. He works with Pop, so we went to watch him play. (That's Mr. Skip if you can see him.) While we were watching the game, there was a nice girl there looking at me and smiling at me. She was very cute. Her name is Addy. Her mommy was there, and I think her grandma was there to see her grand...

Before I talk about today, I have to say thank you to Miss Laura who took us to dinner last night at a very nice place. She is Mr. Bip's friend, but she always makes sure to visit with Mommy and Pop too, which is nice. So now, she gets to see me too! Today I spent the morning with Pop while Mommy and Miss Laura went to a place they called the Farmer's Market. Then Mommy and I worked around the house to get things cleaned up. Seems like we have to do that alot! It was a pretty simple day, since Pop was gone most of the day to Miss De's card shop for some game stuff. We did get in the pool, me and Mommy, for a while, but we didn't take any pictures. Mommy said it's not good to get the camera wet. We did take some other pictures later, but they were on a different camera, and Mommy says she can't find the thing she needs to get the pictures onto the computer. So I'll have to show you the pictures later.

Finally I'm showing Mommy all about how I can roll around. I can go from the couch to Mommy's chair in her room really quick. In Pop's room, I can go from the couch to the TV before he even notices! That is...if they put me the right way. I only like to go one way. If they put me the wrong way, I just run into the couch and have to tell them that I don't like that very much at all. If I get turned around, I roll under Mommy's chair really quick. Today she had to climb out the side of the chair because she said she would smash me if she put the foot down to get out of it. This morning, we went on the bank run, and we went shopping at a store we don't usually go to. Mommy's friends are telling her alot that she should go to this place and save money. Let's play a game! Can any of you tell which place it is? Miss Mindy? Miss Karen K? Miss Sara? When we got back from the store, Mommy gave me some big people applesauce, and I really like it! She says I never ...

After some interesting research, green print in Times New Roman italic on yellow background was determined (by some scientific people) to be the easiest to read for web pages. I'm not so sure how valid that is, but I thought it was time for a change, so we'll give it a shot. I'm working on finding something that fits us more, but who has time?!? Just thought I'd let you know how this color scheme was conceived. :o)

Today I went to see Miss Yolande and Kahlilah next door while Mommy did some work. We walked around outside and Miss Yolande sang to me, which I like alot. They are so nice when I go see them. And Mommy is always happy to see me when she comes back, too. Thanks for letting me come visit!!

Sometimes I watch things on the TV that Mommy says help me learn. I like Baby Einstein shows and I have a new show that teaches me letters. Mommy calls it Love and Learning. I like that one the best! Mommy loves how much I watch the letters so close when they're on. There's a book that goes with it and we read that every day too. I like it alot, which makes Mommy surprised since it's so simple, she says. Today I got to watch my shows on Pop's TV for the first time. And it is a BIG TV! The pictures were really big, and I thought that was neat! See how big it is?! This afternoon we went to the store for food shopping. The lady who helped us at the place where they cut the turkey that we get for Pop's sandwiches was really nice. And there was another lady there who was getting turkey too, and she was talking to me while I was waiting with Mommy. Then another lady came over and talked to us too. Mommy says they just came to see me, and I think that's nice. I hope th...