A note of thanks

I am sitting here in Liam's hospital room just listening to him breathe while he sleeps. I am thankful that he won't remember any of this. I am thankful that this was not worse than it could have been. I am thankful to our family who have been such a constant source of support and a reminder that they are never more than a few hours away. I am thankful to our friends: The Kuykendalls for taking our dogs in; The Fischers for providing food, and chauffeuring my car around; to Daniel for the coffee, bagels and prayer; to the Hendersons for taking the time to bring us food and company; to so many that I can't even remember them all right now...and for that I apologize.

I am thankful for our health. I am thankful for our home. I am even thankful that Eric is not currently working so that he can be with Liam while he recovers. I am thankful that Eric was laid off before the baby and not after, because I might have left my job beforehand to be a stay-at-home mom. I am thankful for our health insurance. I am thankful to have my job and coworkers that understand the importance of family.

I am especially thankful and grateful for the prayers we have received: from Washington DC to Puerto Rico, from Louisiana to Kansas, from New Mexico to California. I am thankful that God is in control, even when we don't know what his plan is. Thank you.

From our humble hearts, thanks.

Back to Plano

We are back to our hospital from the downtown hospital transfer. After several delays and one very cranky Liam, Liam was finally seen by the doctors and nurses that needed to see him and he was able to get his PICC installed. With a PICC, sometimes a person can have "at home care" and be released from the hospital. Sadly, Liam is not able to do this for his age. So what that means is that he will be in the hospital till about Thursday of next week.
Again thank you to everyone who is keeping our family in your prayers.

Update

We were transported downtown this morning for Liam's PICC line procedure which was supposed to take place at 9. Almost 11 and still no procedure. He has not had a bottle of formula since 10pm so needless to say he is crying and fussy. No liquids until afterwards but how do you explain that to a baby that already feels sick. Sigh. Hopefully he will be next.

Prayers for Liam

Thank you to all of our family and friends who have been praying for Liam. As some of you know, Liam was admitted to the hospital yesterday for meningitis. He will need 10-12 days of intense antibiotics. Tomorrow he will be transported from our hospital in Plano to Dallas to have a PICC line inserted for his extended antibiotic therapy. A PICC line is a catheter that is inserted through the arm and extends to above the heart so that the antibiotic can be released directly into the bloodstream. After the procedure we will be transported back. We are hopeful that there will be no long term effects of this condition.

Needless to say, we have our hands very full so I will post any updates I have on the blog. Thanks again to all our friends and family who have sent us food, taken in our dogs, and most importantly kept us in their prayers.

Liam sometimes likes to sleep with his feet in the air. One leg is wrapped with a diaper since his current IV is through a vein in his foot.

Catching up

The past few weeks have been pretty busy around here. While Eric was doing contract work the days all seemed to blend together. Liam is still getting over his double ear infection, but otherwise he has been getting bigger everyday! Here are some pictures since my last entry.

Our neighbor's twins, Gracie and Tristan.

They are about two months older than Liam.

The twins sharing their cool "wheels" with Liam.

Going on a date at the farm.

Once the dowry is figured out, Gracie and Liam will be promised.

Liam trying out rice cereal. More of it gets on him than in him.

Liam has started sitting up on his own within the past few weeks.

Inevitably, on our family walks, Liam always abandons his stroller for his daddy's arms.

Liam as a duck.

Eric's costume was a "chick magnet."

Eric's parents, Ron and Becky, came for a visit in late October. The leaves have finally started turning colors here. However, it is still in the upper 70s.

Six Months

Within the last month Liam has been:

• Starting to sit up on his own.
• He is becoming interactive with other babies around him at school.
• He can reach for his baby bottle, our glasses, Eric's nose, the dogs tails, etc.
• We can feel that his bottom teeth are about to emerge.
• He has discovered his feet.
• Interacts with his Baby Einstein videos (i.e. laughs at the puppets, etc.) while standing in his Baby Einstein activity center.

Since Liam has started school, he has seemed to be sick the whole time. The first week he came home with a stomach virus and couldn't keep anything down for a day and a half. The second week he developed a horrible cough and a lot of nasal congestion. He was diagnosed with an ear infection, but is now on an antibiotic. However, now he is on the upswing. While we know that Liam being sick will ultimately strengthen his immune system, it is such a helpless feeling to see your child sick.

The caretakers at his school are really sweet and they have a pretty funny schedule set up for the babies like funny face time and puppet time built into the day. Liam even came home with his first piece of artwork. Of course, Eric and I aren't dumb, we know that they let him hold a paint brush, but guide him in doodling on the paper. Still, we have it proudly displayed on our refrigerator!

Congressional Medal of Honor

This past weekend my boss was honored with an award from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. As a result, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting several Medal of Honor recipients throughout the course of the weekend.

The Congressional Medal of Honor (MOH) is the highest military decoration awarded by the U.S. government. It is given to a member of the military who distinguishes themselves "conspiciously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his (or her) life above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in action against an enemy of the United States." It is often awarded posthumously. The MOH is presented to the recipient, or their next-of-kin, by the President of the United States.

David McNerney, John Baker and Hershel Williams

Saturday night at the event, I was practically stalking the 30+ MOH recipients who were in attendance. Eric and I managed to get 16 of them to autograph our Medal of Honor book. Fox News' Bill O'Reilly was also an honoree that evening so it was neat to get to hear him speak. It was really amazing to be in the presence of such American heroes. Their sacrifices to our country remind us that freedom is never free. Words cannot express what a life experience it was.

Former honoree, Ross Perot