It's been almost 2 years since we last wrote and it would be an understatement to say just a few things happened over the course of that time. Not sure we'll ever catch up but we'll at least try to keep up as best we can.
Gwendolyn is almost 5 and about to start Kindergarten. She is still in speech and occupational therapy but has graduated out of ABA therapy, although she'll still get that support at school. We're finally getting more original thoughts out of her and some are pretty hilarious. She loves to make up songs and make her brother laugh. She is a very good big sister and Alexander adores her.
Alexander has been our challenge. The little monkey just won't eat so he's been on an NG tube since February to keep him alive. The feeding tube is working to keep him alive and help him grow but he has a lot of catching up to do still. He is the challenge child at his speech therapist's office where they work on feeding therapy with him. He loves going and occasionally will cooperate however he doesn't always at home which is why we met with a surgeon this morning. In the next few weeks he will be fitted with a button attached to a tube that will go directly into his tummy so we can do his tube feedings that way rather than dropping the tube through his nose each week which is traumatizing for him and really no fun for us either. I've gotten really good at it but it will be nice to not have to do that anymore. Other than the health issues he is a very active and otherwise healthy little boy. He is extremely curious and bright. It seems like each day he learns new words and skills. Yesterday he learned how to open the backyard gate and I had to chase down a naked 20 month old boy down our driveway. He was playing outside with his sister in the pool in just a diaper and decided to ditch the diaper. We got a lock for the front door as he's mastered opening that one already, looks like we need a solution for the gate too. Not sure what we'll do once he learns to climb over the fence which is only a matter of time.
Jeremy has since changed teams which has been a good change for both him and our family. He does travel more in this role but he traveled a lot too when we lived in England but it's easier when he does travel now because we have family near and friends both from church and our neighborhood which are a good support. Also we have access to therapists and medical care we wouldn't have otherwise had if we had stayed in England and if we had moved to Australia which was a possibility at one point, that part is unknown what would have happened. Usually his travel is for less than a week so it isn't too bad. He's also learning to be a handyman as I haven't been able to do as much these last few months. He installed 2 toilets just a few months ago. He also finished Gwendolyn's bed that I had started but was unable to finish because I needed to avoid the chemicals.
As for me, I had lost all the baby weight before Alexander turned 1 only to start putting it back on with baby number 3. Right now I'm in the home stretch with only a few weeks left to go. The baby was due September 11 but my doctor pushed it out to the 20th because the baby is measuring small, even at 2 1/2 weeks late I measured small with Gwendolyn but she was most definitely fully done so this is nothing new. I'm just running out of room and uncomfortable but the end is in sight. We just need to get Alexander taken care of before this baby arrives so we're hoping to get his surgery very soon so I can be with him in the hospital without making the staff uneasy about possibly delivering a baby at the children's hospital. Apparently that has happened once before.
Overall we are doing well. We're optimistic for the future especially these next few weeks which will bring new and exciting changes and challenges for our family.
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