It's a No Go...

Well the surgery did not happen and we were reminded this morning that although Ellis Anne is doing wonderfully, she still is a very fragile child when it comes to going under anesthesia.

Ellis Anne has developed a runny nose over the past couple of days (no fever), and after the anesthesiologist knew that and combined it with her heart history, as well as her having down syndrome, he advised that we not do the surgery. This particular surgery requires her to be intubated and he was concerned that she may have some breathing problems coming off of the vent. Obviously, we took the doctor's advice and we will reschedule in the next couple of weeks (or when the doctor can squeeze us in since this is not an emergency).

As I said in the first paragraph, we were reminded of Ellis Anne's health and how fragile she is with her heart history. Ellis Anne's heart is doing so well and she is on ZERO medications...so, I think it took us a bit by surprise that the doctor advised us to wait. We are so thankful to God for the doctors and that they really do put Ellis Anne's health first -- they do not want to take any chances and neither do we.

We are headed home!!!!

Eye Surgery

This sweet little girl is having eye surgery.

Ellis Anne was born with an eye condition known as nystagmus.

Our little Ellis Anne is having eye surgery on Wednesday in Little Rock. As some of you may know, Ellis Anne has poor vision. We don't think it is as bad as we once had when she was younger, but we do know that she cannot see very far. You can walk in her room when she is in her crib and she does not know you are there. The surgery is supposed to help the movement of her eyes, but not her vision per say. However, if the surgery helps her eyes work together in their movement, then we are praying that her vision WILL BE BETTER in the NAME OF JESUS. Ellis Anne also has nystagmus, often called dancing eyes or a constant movement of the eyes. Nystagmus is not curable; so this surgery will not help her nystagmus.

We will be in Little Rock for three days as we have a pre-op and post-op appointments on Monday and Wednesday. Surgery is on Tuesday.

Ellis Anne is no stranger to surgeries. She had 2 open heart surgeries before she was 5 months old. However, mom is still a little nervous as always.

Please keep us in your prayers. Praying for a improved vision.

Thanks!

Stephanie

On the Hunt...

Anya and her brother and sisters had a great Easter. Everyone had fun trying to get Anya to hunt the eggs, and well, I am not sure she ever caught on, but in her perfect Anya way she had a wonderful time with all the activities she got to attend.

First on Friday, she had her pre-school party. This was her first official hunt.

I think she found her first egg.

Here she is with her class. She is TINY compared to the others and they are only 3 years old. Anya turns 5 in May.

On Saturday, Reed had to work, but I took all the kids to our church hunt. Everyone had a great time...hunting or not.

Ellis Anne trying to get on the bike.

The bounce house was a hit with both of the girls. I let them jump while many of the kids were hunting for eggs. It was the perfect time because it was not so crowded. Anya and Ellis Anne both loved climbing the wall and there was a slide that they could go down. Good for therapy too...that's always nice, therapy without thinking about it.

We dyed Easter eggs on Saturday afternoon...

Best lookin' eggs ever!

Cheese!!!!

This one was daddy's egg.

Easter morning goodies

Off to church

Avery and his little sister!

He loves them both so much.

Ellis Anne looking at a new Barney tape. Man, we love Barney!

It rained almost all day on Sunday. In the late afternoon, the clouds finally broke and we were able to head outside for a final egg hunt or two.

Before the official go...

Yep. We are hunting eggs with our pull up on.

Easter outfits are overrated anyway, don't you think?

I found one.

Forget the eggs, I like walking in my big sister's high heels much better.

Wishing they could go for a ride.

Avery showing us some of his break dancing moves.

Wish I had more pictures of this, because it was pretty entertaining.

And at the end of day, she laid down to relax.

This sure does beat the orphan life.

God blessed us this Easter with the gift of having Anya with us. She continues to do amazing. And yes, it is true...that she is a mess (in case you have heard)....but my oh my - she is a good mess...we cannot imagine not having her with us. She makes us laugh and she blesses our spirits everyday. We love you ANYA and are so glad you are with us.

Thanks for stopping by!!!

Stephanie