Long time, no see

Well I have taken a month hiatus from blogging...so it is time for a catch up post. Fasten your seat belt, you are in for a wild ride.

Since we last spoke, we have...

danced in two recitals

 gotten married for the 983rd time

 tie dyed shirts and onesies

 painted ourselves with colored vanilla pudding

 let the wind blow through our hair

 taken the time to enjoy each other's company

 watched a little television

 welcomed Daddy home...

 ...then said good-bye three days later

 put our pudgy toes in the sand

 caught up with MC crew

enjoyed story time with pop pop

designed cake masterpieces 

saved Koi fish from the brink of starvation 

enjoyed each other a little more 

 found a lense cap...

... and solved the mystery of where is belongs

 added 'duck' to our vocabulary

 created our rural version of krispy kreme

tried out for the circus, got rejected

 played a game of six year old socialite diva

 discovered our third type A personality in the fam

 buried dogs in the sand

 attempted a family shot...

 ...somewhat successful

increased the country's metal emissions 

 attempted to save the grass from the attacking sprinkler

 skipped backyards in our July 4th parade that only we attended

 but it was a parade a lot were sorry to have missed

 there were even patriotic parade princesses

 rocked our new hairdos

 visited with our first Navy BFFs

 took a shower outside

 readjusted our smiles

 readjusted our hallway wall

 discovered the advantages of mobility

 experimented with the load capacity of the radio flyer

 breastfed and watched breastfeeding

did a little school supply shopping

completed the complexity of all three girls chasing the same boy

 babysat

 wore GP out

 enjoyed the view from up there

 squealed at the sight of our main man

 proved that walking is overrated, just climb instead...

 ...or drive, really

 attempted to cuddle with daddy, it at least smelled like him

 did PT on second floor banister

 celebrated our anniversary together, kinda

 sailed through the Panama Canal, yes one of us really did!

 found our inner picasa 

 altered our smile again

 played hide and seek

 tried to be a fish.

So now you know why we haven't been at this darn computer!

Now off to zoo camp tomorrow!

From the mouths of babes

I asked the girls their ten favorite things about Daddy...

Elli's list:

10. You are an early riser and take care of me when mommy is lazy

9. You will carry me around and the diaper bag.

8. You love baseball too. Take me out to the ballgame...

7. Your nickname starts with D. 

6. You save me from aliens...sometimes (Stitch).

5. You make bath time fun...naked baby and shake shake.

4. You like mommy's hair to be long too.

3. You let me watch TV.

2. You gave me your good looks. 

1. You love me too.

Brady's list (quoted from her)

10. "helps me on the rings"

9. "gives me lots of hugs"

8. "takes me to ballet sometimes"

7. "makes money"

6. "gives me my bath"

5. "brushed my teeth"

4. "making my monkey"

3. "built me a playset"

2. "let's me wave good bye to him when he leaves for work"

1. "he loves me too"

Reese's list (quoted from her, she listened to Brady give her list first)

10. "helps the bad guy don't be in our country"

9. "brush my hair"

8. "building"

7. "makes banana sandwich"

6. "always gives me McDonald's"

5. "drives the car for us"

4. "take bath or shower"

3. "makes money"

2. "lets me say good-bye to him"

1. "he loves me very very much"

I loved Brady's #1 and Reese's #10. 

Six.

Six is Respectful.

Six is Fun.

Six is Proud.

Six is Sassy. 

Six is Cool.

Six is Goofy.

Six is Inspiring.

Six is Adventurous. 

Six is Beautiful.

Six is Now.

Six is Brady.

Happy Birthday Brady BOO! I love you!

Decade Dewy

Dewy is ten years old, so we decided to do a mini photo shot in honor of DECADE DEWY!

He still has his very regal but now slightly thinner frame

 Always on attention for food.

 His eyes still look like he is 2 months old. Those puppy eyes steal your heart.

THE OWL BLANKET PROJECT

Well, the owl blanket project is complete. Twelve months old, my sweet baby girl, that is.

Here is all the pictures on a video... with a collection of other special moment caught on film

Elli's Medical Update

I am so so so behind in updating this blog. Life is happening at full speed, in a wonderful way of course. But I do want to fill everyone in on Elli's recent doctors appointments.

Lets start with her gross motor skills:

As I mentioned before, she has hypotonia. She is on a waiting list to start physical therapy to help her strengthen those walking legs. However, Elli has made great strides on her own in the recent weeks. She did about 2-3 months of skills in a week's time. YAH! She was evaluated by an Pediatric Orthopedist. Her hips are great, no hip dyplasia, YAH! She is going to be fitted with Sure Steps, an ankle brace, to help with her stability while learning to walk. They want her to wear them until she is two and then get re-evaluated. If you watch the video on the above link, you can get a better understanding why she can benefit from these. It is a 7 minute video but worth it.

Now for her kidney:

Right before her birthday, Elli had testing completed to evaluate her current condition of her left kidney. She had an ultrasound and VCUG. The pediatric nephrologist said she is still carrying fluid on her left kidney. They will keep an eye on it and continue ultrasounds every 6 months. She stated that growing could make it worse or better. However, the VCUG showed NO REFLUX AT ALL!!! YAH YAH YAH YAH!!!! This means no more VCUGs. From what I hear that is great news because 2 year olds are mentally scarred by the process. Elli is no longer on the daily antibiotics and no longer at risk for UTIs. We are very pleased with these results!

Dear One Year Old

Dear Elliot, Elli, Elli Dew, Little Elli Belli,

You are one year old. You are my daughter. You are my third daughter. You are most likely my last daughter. You are my baby. You will always be my baby, no matter how old you are. You are my world. You are my hug. You are in my heart. You are in me. You are one.

You are one today. You are a reflection of your father. You are a daddy's girl. You are a mommy's girl. You are the lover of hair. You are my motivation to style my hair. You are a lover of momma's milk.  You are my check in the box. You are my high metabolism. You are 12 months old. You are one.

You are one today. You are my thumb sucker. You are my big eyed darling. You are my observer. You are my dog lover. You are quick to speak your mind. You are happy go lucky. You are happy being the little sis. You are the Orthner Caboose. You are one.

You are one. You are my captive audience for my nightly choral concert. You are my lover of music. You are the beat of my drum. You are the missing link to our band. You are my idol. You are amazingly awesome. You are one year old.

WAIT... YOU. ARE. ONE. YEAR. OLD. TODAY.

Go get em girl. Watch out world, Elli Dew is on her way. There is no looking back now!

Love,
Mom, but not just any mom...YOUR mom...thank you

I will close this note to you with the last words you here each and every night. Will you let me hold you and sing to you when you are 2? 5? 13? Always?

"Take me out to the ball game, take me out to the crowd. Buy me some peanuts and cracker jacks, I don't care if I ever get back for its root root root for the Giants. If they don't win its a shame. For its one, two, three strikes your out at the old ball game.

I love you ELLI DEW!"