Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Four Months!

The Panda has been home for 4 months.   It feels like a long time, in a very good way.  Just like his big siblings, it feels like he's always been a part of the family.  He is such a good little fellow, but the few "no-no's" he's done so far have helped him learn some family skills, and he knows he's supposed to stop when I say "no" now.  He doesn't stick his finger into his ear at "no" anymore.  His most important family skill is handing a person a book and frowning and gesturing until he gets his story time.  The Very Persistent Panda should be a book.

The night terrors have nearly stopped, and going out isn't causing his after-nap panics like it used to.  He understands English more and more.  He can bear some weight and walk if I hold his two hands and give him a little forward momentum.  He can cruise along the coffee table a little, but he still gets tired quickly.  He's got some more muscles that need work before he will walk on his own, but I'm very confident that he WILL walk.

Our big news came yesterday- THE HOLE IN THE PANDA'S SOFT PALATE IS CLOSED!  Praise God.  I'll admit that my faith was way too small for the size of our God.  Dr. Boyajian is very pleased with the whole surgery (and so am I!), and says that he'll just need to come to his cleft team appointments every 6 months until he's ready for bone graft surgery.  He said to use silicon scar medicine on the lip scars, although he doesn't really think it makes a very big difference.

The Panda has learned to swallow undiluted baby food if we squeeze it into his mouth from a pouch- another huge praise.  I really should move on to spoon feeding, but I'm having a little trouble working up the courage to do another new, uncomfortable thing.

The Penguin learned to crochet this week, thanks to Aunt Kendra.  Have you ever seen a cartoon where someone is knitting and yards of cloth are flying out of their lap?  That is what I feel like is going on here.  We can't even get her to sleep- she is obsessed.  She can crochet, double crochet, and triple crochet, and crochet in a circle.  The Penguin also very recently learned how to make several new patterns of friendship bracelets, so there just isn't enough time for her to express her inner craftiness.

The Bunny finished reading Great Expectations last week.  That is truly an accomplishment and a rite of passage.  The Puppy got his Tiger Cub badge at the Blue and Gold dinner last week.  Very proud of these children.

We are down to two weeks before Matt's deployment.  I have no words for this one.  It could be so much worse, but it isn't great...  so here are verses that I need to hold on to, so that I can replace a complaining attitude with thankfulness.


Philippians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.



Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.


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