Hard at Work

Ava is such a hard worker. She loves to problem solve and figure out how things work. She gets really frustrated if she can't figure something out, though. She loves to sit and do puzzles and she was trying to learn how to strap herself in to the stroller here.

We have been busy around here, as usual. And sick, as usual. Ava had her sleep study, then Ellie had strep again, then I had a stomach bug, then Ava got the stomach bug and Jeff says his stomach isn't quite right today...I was hoping it would end with Ava and me.

I did get a new camera and have loved taking pictures with it, just haven't had enough time to post many of them. I did put them on shutterfly, so I'll share them one day soon.

Please pray for my aunt, Tishie. She is back in Arkansas to try to get her cancer under control.

Sleep Study update

oops - I uploaded in backwards order - this was this morning after they took everything off and we were at the hospital to get x-trays of her adenoids - smiley as ever!

my sweet girl, wrapped up like a mummy

the lady worked around her ponytails, which worked out nicely because she could get to her skin easier, plus Ava could still twirl her hair in the night

I had to be super careful and didn't sleep much because Ava kept turning over in the night and all of those wires would wrap around her neck - she did so well, though!!!

Ava and I went to her sleep study last night to check her for sleep apnea. Although the dr. hasn't read the results yet, the unofficial word from the lady doing the testing is that she will for sure have her tonsils taken out because at the very least, her oxygen levels dropped way too low several times last night. Ava was such a trooper. She never cried, just didn't like some of it, but sat and let me read to her while the lady put all the wires and gauze on , the I told her which colors people liked on the wires, since there were probably 30 or more. She would grab a pink one and say Papa and a blue one and say Sissy, which was opposite, but she had fun listening to me tell her that Nonee liked yellow and Daddy liked gray.

The Wheels on the Bus

sleep apnea?

on our way to the ENT check-up

I found the girls like this, laughing hysterically!

can she get any closer without falling off??

Landy and Ellie :-)

Landy came to visit Sunday and went to church with us,
so I had to get some good shots of everyone dressed up!!

So, we found out yesterday that our girls' tubes look great and Ellie took her failed hearing test (after her left ear ruptured twice) and passed with flying colors. However, we talked to the doctor about Ava's sleep cycle and some concerns we were having. I had discussed with our previous pediatrician the fact that she stops breathing sometimes and was assured that it was not sleep apnea. I was not convinced. For several reasons similar to this one, we switched doctors, I had a conversation with Ellie's old Occupational Therapist, and decided to ask the ENT about sleep apnea. Sounds like our sweet girl has a classic case, so Ava and I are headed to do a sleep study. Not sure when yet, but I'll let you know. More than likely, she'll get her tonsils taken out and that will be the end of it. Seriously?? I wish we had known that in December when we had her put under for tubes in her ears?!? Oh, well. If any of you have any insight on sleep apnea, I'd love to hear it. The only comments I've heard so far are, "I didn't know someone so young could have sleep apnea" and "it's only sleep apnea if she doesn't breathe for at least 20 seconds", which is not true. That is way too long to stop breathing, especially consistently! I'll keep you posted...

Valentine's Day, a little late

Ellie's class at Mother's Morning Out:

she and I took cookies to decorate and a tub of goodie bags.
My cousin Landy came to play with the girls, so that Jeff and I could go out for Valentine's Day. We ate dinner together at home (I don't even remember what I cooked), then Jeff and I went to a friend's house to watch Fireproof. Great movie, especially if you are married!!

My sweet Valentine's!

I just think my girls make holidays that much more special!!!

I do remember what I fixed for breakfast.

I (heart) U pancakes for Ellie and chocolate chip and peanut butter pancakes.

And our favorite, strawberries!!

My pictures are a little out of order, but this was Valentine's Day morning. Our girls play so well together!! This rocking horse was made by Jeff's "Uncle Buddy". He is also fighting cancer right now, so pray for him and his family. He makes our kids such great wooden toys - a pull toy that is a duck, a truck to push, a pull toy that is a grasshopper and his legs actually move...and I think there is a baby cradle for the girls in the making. I don't always talk about Jeff's family on our blog - I don't mean to leave them out and it's not to say that they aren't as special to us, it's just that we don't see them as often, so I don't always have stories to tell or pictures to share.

What a great Valentine's Day! Our girls enjoyed our gifts to them - new art smocks and paint to use with the easel they got from Jeff's parents for Christmas. They also sent them money, and so did my parents and my Nannie, so we put that money toward tickets to see Playhouse Disney Live!!! Fun times - pictures coming soon...