January! And a bit of February!

Filling in the gaps...and, spoiler alert...there are quite a few photos of our pets! I am not sure why I've taken so many pictures of them lately?

Walker and Brayden, at Brayden's birthday party

I seriously love their friendship. That friend that you can immediately reconnect with after not seeing them for months? That's these two... :) 

Reagan has been making me laugh a lot these days...she was so tired one day that she didn't notice that I had left the room! She just kept snoozing!

And here she is, asleep at the dinner table.

And here's a very artistic shot of Belle from the back. :) 

Hehe. She's cute.

Reagan loves heating pads.

And she loves to roll in the dried-out grass! In this photo, she has approximately 8, 542 pieces of grass on her back. I've even taken a handheld vacuum to her body a time or two. ;) 

Yelling at me...as always.

refusing to let me make the bed

Hi, little bunny. 

Walker and his soul brother, Knox. Even though they don't realize that they are "soul brothers" they are so, so, SO alike in so many ways. 

:)

frowning during a haircut

A sweet friend compiled a book of my "updates" about Ben. Man, it's hard to read! I can't do it! Especially those first few weeks or so...it's way too hard for me to "revisit" right now. It's very real, very raw, and amazingly...still quite fresh in my mind. I'm so thankful for this gift, however. I'll treasure it forever.

And! Here's a picture! The trach is OUT and we're so excited! I'm so excited! Ben is rid of ALL plastic tubes! :) YAY!

And, as we prepare for Ben's return home...we're purchasing equipment to help him be as independent as possible. Here's Walker, sitting on Ben's "new" shower bench. ;) 

A Couple of Throwbacks

Cally found this picture the other day and texted it to me...look at that tiny boy. Walker was SO challenging around this time; but man, he was cute! This was taken at his baptism in November of 2010.

This is just a cute photo of Lainey. :) She makes me smile. This was taken on company audition day back in August of 2017.

Taquitos, Snap Circuits, and the Flu

As most everyone knows, we sometimes call Walker "Taco" because it rhymes with "Yacko" which is how he said his name when he was little. Anyway, a friend of mine has taken it a step further by referring to him as "Taquito." Well, the kids played "taquito" the other night, and it was hilarious. Also, it should be noted that it's extremely hard to stand with a yoga mat and exercise band wrapped around your torso.

I think Lainey is trying to jump up and down. Or Walker may be "leading" her by grabbing onto the exercise band and dragging her around the room. I'm not sure. 

This is a highly entertaining toy...Snap Circuits. There are lots of circuits to build (over 100) and it helps kids with spatial awareness and problem-solving...I love it! Lainey's really good at putting them together. Walker does pretty well with assistance from either myself or Lainey.

Reagan had fun watching us from her perch. 

And yesterday (Tuesday), Walker was diagnosed with Flu type B. :( Thankfully it's a pretty mild case,  and he feels pretty decent with regular doses of Ibuprofen, but once the medicine starts to wear off he starts to feel miserable again. :( Lots of laziness for this one and we're hopeful that nobody else in the family (especially Ben) gets it!

Lainey's Goals...

The girl has some high expectations! Her New Year's resolution is to go upstairs by herself. I, for one, am really hoping that she can overcome that fear at some point in 2018! :) 

Belle + My New Lens

I received a new camera lens for Christmas (thank you, Mom and Dad!). It's so beautiful. I'm learning when and where and how to use it.

Belle was the perfect subject to shoot outside in natural light on an overcast day. :) However, she moved a lot. So not all of my pictures were very good! :)

She liked the leaves!

sweet baby

I think she was trying to hide from us...

trying to escape (naturally)

Walker thought it was hilarious that she was near his "bottom."

While playing in her outside pen, Belle went a bit nuts. She would be calm one minute, then she would suddenly hop up and zoom around the pen, thumping and kicking her back legs. She had so much fun being a crazy bunny.

Belle is a very sweet, very loving bunny. She doesn't bite, she is playful, and she seems very tolerant of us. She even allowed us to "groom" her! :) Belle has sharp nails, and she tends to freak out sometimes (as is her nature), but - in all honesty - she's a sweetheart and very docile. :)

little legs...mid-hop

my favorite picture

curious

more zooming round

in her sling (being used as a blanket)

squishy bunny

*****

Some inside playtime...photos were taken with my iPhone. :)

 My aunt Sarah said Belle looks like a Siamese cat in this picture. I completely agree! :)

cute :)

Lainey loves her bunny. As do we!

Bat Mitzvah Fun

Lainey had an AMAZING time at a friend's Bat Mitzvah! I sent her along with a friend of mine, and thankfully, I received many pictures throughout the night! :) 

Lainey wore her first pair of "heels" (one-inch block heels) and MAN, she felt AMAZING. :) 

The panda head makes me laugh!

Lainey, Morgan, and Faith :) 

Update on Ben

I sent this message to our friends and Family on January 3rd... :) 

*****

Hello friends! Happy New Year! I have some fabulous news! But first — thank you. Y’all have been so patient…and faithful…and even when I’ve neglected to update all of you! I think, in my head, I was waiting for some BIG stuff to share - and I officially have some BIG news to share. And truthfully, the holidays totally “got” me. Ran me over with a truck. Thanks to everyone for your support, your help, your prayers, and your thoughts - and now, we’re ready to officially make some big strides. Ben has been off the ventilator for a solid 10(-ish) days. He still has his trach (although it’s been downsized after a temporary, perhaps somewhat premature removal) and oxygen support when his heart rate increases/decreases suddenly. However - after a stressful few days dealing with various issues, we’re at our final “stop” before coming home. Ben is at Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation (BIR) in downtown Dallas. (THANK YOU to everyone who may have encountered my “crazy” the past couple of days…y’all are truly special people.) Bottom line…we are very thankful to be at BIR at this point. In terms of “Why BIR?” it basically comes down to the  on-site doctors and specialists that are on the BIR campus as well as the equipment that is available for Ben to utilize. (A pool! A real car to work on driving!) He will most likely be in this facility for 2-3 months (this can change, obviously!), gaining strength and building endurance. Ben is settled into his new room, he’s ready to work, and they will get after it tomorrow morning. They provide a daily schedule, friends! A schedule!!! I love them already. I’m SO excited for him. If I can leave you with two thoughts… first….never, ever underestimate the good that can be found in people. Put your energy into those people (thanks to a conversation with a good friend tonight, this became even MORE apparent). However, please do your part, too - go be “good” for someone, even when it may be hard to do so. And second…God is good. Even when you are stressed. ;) Never lose faith that things will work out according to HIS will. Alright - signing off time for me. As always, feel free to reach out to me (maybe tomorrow!) but please don’t “reply all” to these texts. Thank you for everything, friends. Thanks for being with us for 4 months + 1 day. :) xoxo.

New Year, New Goals

I let the kids stay up until midnight to ring in in the new year. Thus, this is what I got on New Year's Day. Two exhausted kids (for the record, Lainey is a bit better at handling it than Walker is!). Anyway, they both fell asleep on the way to Emmy and Tuck's house for dinner (black-eyed peas, rice, sausage, and collard greens, of course). 

Lainey

Walker (featuring Lainey's baby in the background...that kid should be in a carseat!)

Emmy with her grandkids: Lainey, Tom, and Walker. Happy New Year, everyone. May this year bring you abundant blessings and peace! We will bring Ben home in 2018. This is an event to be eagerly anticipated and celebrated, once it happens! He will get there!