I'm Back.....

Really, I can't believe I haven't blogged in nearly two months! The craziness of the summer surely got the best of me. I am truly in shock that school is starting in about a week. Last time I wrote I was just getting used to the new schedule of summer, and now it is about time to adjust to the school routines. I have to admit I am not ready for my girls to go back to school. Prior to the start of summer I was really worried about how I would keep the girls entertained, get to all of Caden's appointments, and keep my sanity. In reality, it has been a great summer. We have been able to do a lot of great family things. We have taken another trip to San Diego and Sea World, went back up to the mountains, had a lot of beach days, and I just returned from a beach house with Natalie's Girl Scout troop. Another reason I am not ready for the start of school is that I will really miss the girls. They are so great with Caden. It is a joy to see them interacting with him. Natalie has been very hands on by changing diapers, clothes, and carrying him all around the house. He is now eating for an hour and getting two hours off so he is a much freer man!

Other news with Caden is that he is a candidate, at this point, for cochlear implants that could go in as soon as November. This is very exciting news for us that Caden may be able to hear. It will be a long process, but we think it is definitely worth the work. He is doing so awesome with the condensed feeds. He is taking 135 cc's in an hour 4 times a day with continual food at 45 cc's an hour through the night. Having him off for two hour stretches has been wonderful. He is also getting very close to crawling. He is such a busy boy moving from one end of the room to the other. This gets a little difficult when he is hooked up to the feeding tube. He is saying, "mama", too, which is incredible considering he can't hear. He wants to be held constantly and is in my lap as I am trying to type this. We are very impressed with his progress and are excited about what he may accomplish in the future. It is still a struggle with his 4-5 therapies a week, but definitely proving worth it.

The girls have now started soccer (all three of them), and Chad is coaching their teams. Once the games begin our weekends should be quite full. We have also added another member to our family. A few months ago one of our dogs ran away, so now we have a new little puppy, Maximum Oliver better known as Max. Yeah, I probably needed to add a puppy into our crazy life as much as I need another hole in my head, but things are actually going quite smoothly. I am starting to think I may be drawn to chaos!

Lately, I have overheard some funny things said by the girls that would probably only be heard in a home like ours. I thought I would include a few of my favorites:

- "Girls, what are you playing?" They respond,"Oh, we're playing therapists!"

- The coffee maker turns off and beeps for a few seconds. Cara yells out,"Caden's feeding tube is

beeping!"

- As I am packing up the diaper back Jenna says,"Wait! You forgot the bulb syringe!"

-I forget the sign for ball and Cara shows me the correct sign!

-Natalie said,"Caden is so cute! I love him just the way he is!"

Hope this finds you all enjoying the last days of summer!

Mary