Now THAT'S what I'm talking about!

We had the absolute perfect weekend. Very low-key. It's the kind of weekend we had planned for last weekend as well.

Papa Chip left yesterday mid-morning. First he made some artisan bread for us. Yummy! We're still enjoying it!

First time I ventured out was this evening. With Carson's health we even stayed home from church & Sunday School. Yesterday I was in my jammies until about 5:00 p.m. I showered and then put jammies back on again. Oh, I love those days. And I love when all four of us are having that kind of day. I showered because, well, I think I was starting to scare the kids with my 'scary mommy' hair. Grace looked at the 'pretties' in her room at one point and I think was plotting on how she could tame my mane. So, I got the hint. :-) It was a wonderful day though!

We did get a few projects done around the house - some pictures up, some touch up painting after moving some pics around, etc. Plus some house cleaning. It's so wonderful that both Trav and I love the feel of a clean house! Have I mentioned that I love my hubby?

Miss Grace is going through a major growth spurt. It feels like if she is awake, she is eating. The past several nights she has woken up somewhere between 3:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. needing a sippy cup. She gulps it down. Before 1:00 p.m. today, she had had four meals. Not snacks, meals. She is a great eater, so is quite delighted by whatever menu we put in front of her. Ham, steamed veggies, and cheesy pasta are the favorites right now. Speaking of food, Grace has denounced her high chair. She now sits on a booster up at the bar. Apparently, high chairs are for 21 month olds and younger? Such baby stuff!

She is putting more and more words and signs together. "More, please" and "Yes, please" are two we hear quite often. She says 'oh, oh, oh' every time she looks at the kids' picture with Santa. She is doing so well. She's essentially been discharged from physical therapy. If we need something, we can call her therapist, but she is doing 'wonderfully' in the words of her PT. She's also on 'maintenance' visits from her OT, who will check in every six months. We still have speech and early intervention following her. We're great with that - we want to ensure she doesn't regress. That's the whole point of early intervention!!! We know Carson would not be where he is today without those early sessions.

Carson's appetite is fully back. He still craves bacon. We may hold off on cholesterol checks from his monthly labs for a bit. I also bought Pringles - he loves them and even though they aren't great calories, they are calories. He needs to fatten up!!! Still trying to figure out how I can transfer some weight his way. He really had a great day today. We do plan to send him to school tomorrow. We're going to let him sleep in and take him mid-morning. We will see how the week goes. I'm sure he'll be up to full days before too long.

He has really taken a passion to Yahtzee. He is so quick and smart with it. It is a great math and strategy game. Tonight I got my first Yahtzee ever and the only time I've ever beat him.

We had very fun visitors this afternoon - the parents of a great friend and classmate of mine from high school - Dwight and Shelia Vannatta came to visit while they are in town. Since we didn't want to truck Carson out anywhere, they (plus Grammy) came over. It was fun to catch up.

Then Mom and I went to see Great Grandma. She looked great tonight and isn't using oxygen. We played our favorite game "Spite and Malice" (despite how awful it sounds, it is a fun card game that Carson has caught on to as well). Grandma won the first round and I the second. Mom walked away 'The Biggest Loser' and accused us of cheating. Grandma was very sharp and 'on' with everything. She so badly wants to get back to living at Mom's. She has a lot of strength to regain and needs to stay off of the oxygen. We'll see and time will tell...she is so amazing!

This week is the start of a new semester at NDSU and MSCTC. I'm also back to work full-time now. This will be a big adjustment. I've so treasured the past few months and all of the time I've been able to spend with Grace and the extra time with Carson as well. With the uncertainty of Carson's week, along with the fact Trav needs to be teaching and I need to be in office all week, Nana Jane is coming for a stay! We are so excited!!! We're closely watching the weather, as she plans to make the trip from St. Cloud tomorrow. Prayers for a safe trip for her. I know she won't like me sharing this, but it is also her birthday tomorrow. While we were uncertain about pulling her away on her birthday, she is quite fine with it. I'm sure Carson will want to plan a 'themed' birthday party for her...perhaps Disney Princess? ;-) We know it will be a special and very fun week for all of us and we are so blessed to have such wonderful support systems in our lives!

That's all for tonight - thank you for the continued prayers.