And so it begins...

Chick-Fil-A - How do I love thee?

Let me count the ways

One bonus of the day - meeting my Uncle John
for the first time

The Starbucks in Gaffney - The perfect halfway stop
for Mom & Dad's caffeine fix & my diaper/outfit change!

Mommy's new reality - An 18 month old = a messy house!

Yesterday we took the first step in the process of Gracie's cleft treatments. After a lot of prayer, and meeting w/ three different surgeons, we decided to proceed forward with a surgeon located in Charlotte. His method of treating Gracie is different from many surgeons and we feel confident that this is the best plan for our little girl!

Generally, a surgeon will repair the lip before the palate, but we are taking a different route. Our surgeon really values speech and palate development before the cosmetic aspect with his patients. In Gracie's case we're dealing with a significantly wide cleft palate and she's also a thumb sucker which doesn't help matters! Yesterday Brian and I took miss Gracie to Charlotte to have an impression made of her palate. Fascinating stuff - kind of like one of those plaster craft kits! Anyway, she was quite upset for the one minute it took to complete the process, and was soon in her Mama's arms to be consoled. She was not allowed to eat for three hours before the appointment, so she was starving when we left. We ate lunch @ Chick-Fil-A and on our way home we were able to catch up with our brother-in-law John who was in Charlotte on business. He got to meet his new niece and Gracie got the chance to run off some energy in a Waffle House parking lot before the ride home!

A device called the Latham Device will now be custom made for Gracie's mouth. It is a plastic and metal device attached to the roof of the mouth. A metal screw, which is part of the device, will be periodically tightened to bring the palate closer together prior to the actual palate surgery.
Within two to three weeks we will hear back from the doctor when the device is finished and we will then schedule a date to have it placed in Gracie's mouth. This will be considered her first surgery, but will not require an overnight stay.

Life seems crazy between school schedules and all of Gracie's various doctor's appointments. Last week was her first visit to the dentist...not pretty! This Friday we see an ENT to find out if she will need tubes in her ears or not. She's such a trooper, but is tired of people taking her from her Mommy and looking in her mouth and ears! She is also having some serious sibling withdrawal as her sisters and brother are now back at school. She is my shadow and seems to think she should be held all day long. Who am I to deny her that?! :) I wouldn't trade this new normal for anything. We are so blessed to have her home, and as our friend Tricia said, so thankful that she is in a place where she is able to receive the medical care she has needed. We can't imagine our life without her!

Sorry to have written War and Peace Part Two , but it's been awhile, and so much has been happening. Would you take the time to go HERE and pray for this family today? They need to see God move mightily on their behalf.