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I took will downtown on Wednesday for his one-year follow up with the cranio-facial surgeon.  The appointment started at the hospital with a formal speech evaluation.  That was pretty simple & easy on both of us.  The hospital we use is very family-friendly & the entire staff really tries hard to make life pleasant for the families. 

Next, we headed to the cranio-facial surgeon’s office.  They are so compassionate, too.  I am so happy with the choice we made last year – totally God’s hand guiding us to the best possible care for Will.  The surgeon confirmed that Will’s palate is far too short.  Imagine that your palate stopped right where the hard part ends.  Feel up there with your tongue right now — there is a definite difference between the hard & soft palate.  Can you  feel it?

Will has basically NO soft palate.  The surgeon says that he is ready to do a surgery called a z-plasty to lengthen Will’s palate & help him develop the muscles necessary to create speech.  Without this surgery, Will would never be able to speak properly.  Of course, the dr. wants to do the surgery ASAP (translate into JUNE).  I might have been rude & laughed a little too hard.  We were sitting across a desk from each other, so he must not have seen my enormous belly – ha ha!

In addition to the z-plasty, the surgeon will also reconstruct Will’s upper lip, which he says was poorly repaired in China.  This part of the surgery will also assist Will’s speech development, but will have larger cosmetic implications.  We’re not doing anything to Will’s nose right now (that’s an out-patient procedure we’ll go through about 18 months after this surgery), but it will change a little in appearance, simply due to allowing for all of the growth & consequential stretching that has occurred in the upper lip since the initial repair. 

After some tears, a few contractions on the  car ride home, and a lot of serious discussion, Brad and I have decided that we might be able to handle another surgery in early October.  There is no good or easy time to schedule surgery for one’s precious child – but we feel that by October, we will be settled into a bit of a routine as a family of 6 & the baby will be big enough to spend the day with a trusted babysitter.  (Harder on mommy than baby, I’m sure.)   

Let me know if I’ve lost you.  I know it is a lot to process.  My head is still spinning at the thought of ANOTHER surgery on my little man SO SOON after the last one.  But I just remind  myself that Will is not sick, his life is not in danger, and he is not in pain.  It’s just a part of the process.  We knew that he would need at least 5 surgeries, so this is not a surprise. The timing is just a little overwhelming right now. 

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Are you hot?

Thirsty?

Maybe you could spend some time cooling off in the sprinkler!

Or you could try a treat from Will’s favorite food group – PopCicles!

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In spirit of one of Will’s favorite games — Where’s Will???  Can you find him in this picture?  Here’s a hint:  this is what happens when Mommy takes the morning to do housework & leaves Daddy in charge of the kiddos.

Here I am!

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When Will is especially proud of himself, he tends to throw out a little, "See that?" to make sure you are paying attention.  Some days I don’t hear it much, if at all.  Well today Will remembered that he knows how to swim.  Not only does he know how to swim, he LOVES to swim!!! 

So far, we’ve been off to a cautious start in the pool.  Today I insisted that Will wear his "floatie suit"  (it’s a tank-style suit with inflatable inserts around the torso) into the pool.  Well, he screamed & screamed about it.  But being the meanie that I am, I laid down the law — either wear the suit or sit on the chair & watch everyone else swim.  He howled all the way into the pool.  I dragged him into the water, down the steps, and into the deep end and then let go of him.  (See, I told you I am sooooo mean!!!)  And instantly the howls turn into rolling laughter.  STINKER!!!

So within the next 15 minutes, Will remembers that he can 1.) jump into the water without anyone catching him — "See that?", 2.) put his face in the water & blow bubbles out his nose or mouth — "Mama!  See that?", 3.) retrieve toys from the bottom of the pool if someone gives him a push — "See that Margaret?", 4.) have fun, feel safe, and take risks with Mama nearby.  I can’t tell you how many times he flopped into the water face-first, swam all the other side, and popped up with a smile & a "See that?"  It was like a light switch went off in his head!

Here’s the Stinker, himself, ready to roll in his new car seat.  Don’t panic, I realize he isn’t buckled yet.  But pictures this good just can’t wait for all of those straps to be adjusted – they need to be taken right NOW! 

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Brad and Jack had their first arena football game tonight.  It was a very different experience than we are used to at football games, but in a good way.  The arena field is smaller, the stands are small and enclosed, and most importantly, the arena is air conditioned. 

Seriously, though, the guys did great.  Jack brought his A-Game and made some incredible tackles.  I overheard some other spectators talking about how it doesn’t matter how big you are because "that little guy’s gonna get you!"  Ha! 

The boys lost 14-13 in the last 45 seconds of the game.  Bummer.  But with only 4 practices under their belt and absolutely ZERO experience at arena play that really is not so bad. 

Sorry the pictures are so bad — they were all taken through glass.  The field is similar to an ice hockey rink, so there is a glass wall & net all the way around.   Jack is #20, by the way

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