Master Davis

My little man is now a red belt! I am so proud of him. He's being taking tae kwon do lessons for close to 2 years now & is progressing very well. He still enjoys it even though there are weeks he doesn't want to go. But, I think that's normal given his age.
Eliza runs around trying to wear his gear, his belts, & yelling "HI YAY" while she kicks! LOL It won't be long till we have another black belt in training in our home.
I have been looking for a display to hang all his belts up in his room. If anyone knows where I can get one, please let me know!

My 6 month old

Today we had Molly's 6 month pictures made. Christi Arnette came out to our house & did a in home photo shoot. WHY have I never did this before? It was amazing! Molly took a great morning nap & got up just after Christi arrived. She was in the best of moods & ready to be a model.
It was so easy & so much fun. I would recommend this to anyone with kids. Here's a sneak peak of today's shoot. This turned out so great I can't wait to see the rest of them.

Identity

Today we took a break in our day & headed to Chick-Fil-A for some lunch & playtime.
While we were enjoying our chickens as Eliza calls them, I noticed a pretty little blonde girl wearing glasses. As the mother got up to go in the play area I asked how old she was when she got her glasses. I can't help but feel a connection to another parent who has a little one wearing glasses.
We chatted for a bit & then the mother said to me "Her glasses will become her identity & that is just who she is.". I can't shake that comment. I don't want her glasses to become her identity. They are just plastic, wires, & screws.
I want her identity to be within her.
What is in her heart.
Most importantly, who she serves. I want her to find her identity in things that can't be touched or held.
The Webster's dictionary defines identity as: condition or character as to who a person or thing is.
Her glasses are not who she is. They are what she wears to see better.

Let me tell you who she is.
She's the funniest little girl I've met. Just ask her! :)
She has the sweetest heart I've seen on a 2 year old.
She's a little Momma. Always wanting to take care of others.
She's learning about the one we serve.
I'm shocked everyday at how smart she is. She is picking up things so quickly.


Eliza happens to wear glasses, but glasses don't wear her!

Our new family memeber

This year we welcomed a new member of our family & a new Christmas Tradition.
Freddie is our Elf on the shelf.
He arrived after we came home From Grandpa's on Saturday night. We awoke on Sunday morning to find him in Molly's stocking. This morning he was hiding in the tree w/ a Santa hat as a gift to the kids.
Wonder where Freddie will end up in the morning?
Davis is loving this new tradition. Eliza & Molly have no idea what is going on yet. I'll have to post pics soon of what our little Freddie is up to!

Eliza's surgery

On Monday, Eliza Bear had strabismus surgery on one of her eyes. I have been worried sick since we found out that she needed the surgery.

We arrived at Kosair Children's Hospital at 7:45 for her 9:15 surgery. Everything went smoothly before the surgery. She was calm & in a good mood. The hard part was that she couldn't eat or drink after midnight Sunday night. At one point Danny said that Molly was fussing & I said "I need to feed her soon." & Eliza said "No, feed Lizie"! It broke my heart!

She was given some 'happy juice' to help her relax & not remember anything. It worked well & she went on back w/ the nurses w/o any complaint. I however, walked out crying.

She was in surgery for about 1 hour. We were called into a room & the Dr said the surgery went well & gave us post op instructions.

We were able to see her fairly quickly. She looked so pathetic laying there w/ her eye dressings on.

They gave her some juice in a sippy cup & then brought her a RED slushie! She was so funny w/ it. She didn't want anyone to help her or even hold the cup. Needless to say her gown & bedding were covered in the red icy drink.

Right before we left, I noticed that her breathing seemed labored. I asked our nurse to check her breathing again. There was some concern & they called the anesthesiologist back in. She decided Eliza needed a breathing treatment before she could be released.

She fell asleep on the ride home & slept for a few minutes once home. She was sooo grumpy all evening. Nothing seemed to make her happy & we did whatever she wanted. I just didn't want to see her cry.

Baby girl is doing well & at our post op appointment Tuesday the Dr said that the surgery was a success!

We are so thankful for everyone who prayed for us during this time. I had more peace that I can explain. Looking back we can see God's hand in this journey for our little girl. He is in control at all times!

Eliza's eyes

Eliza has her Mommy's eyes....

not in color

but in the way she sees.

Danny was noticing her eyes turning.

I was in complete denial.

Then, Papaw noticed.

Off, to the eye specialist we went.

Eliza has strabismus & is far sighted.

The Dr gave us a prescription for eye glasses with the instructions for her to wear them all the time.

It took us a while to find glasses to fit her little face. Maybe, I didn't want to find glasses to fit her sweet face.

She took to the glasses better than we could have expected! She has done great!

We had a follow up visit with the specialist to see how Eliza was doing in her glasses.

This was to be a quick appointment.

Just look at her eyes.

Check the prescription of the lens.

Then we get to go.

That's not what happened.

The Dr wants to do surgery.

Did she know she was not even 2 yet?

Apparently, the glasses are helping w/ her vision & keeping her eyes from turning when she is looking around or looking far out.

But...

Her eyes still turn when focusing on something up close.

She won't grow out of this.

Surgery is set in just a couple weeks & I am sick thinking of it.

Getting the surgery won't mean she won't have to wear the glasses.

Also, the Dr wants to start patching.

I let Eliza pick out one.

She picked a pink one w/ a purple butterfly on it.

She won't wear it!

Today is her birthday & I won't dare put her through that.

There's tomorrow.

I will make her wear it, even though it breaks my heart.

I will b/c I don't want her to have Mommy's eyes.

Eliza's glasses

My little princess is now the proud owner of a pair of pink glasses.

We had some serious concerns when we would have her try on glasses at different places. She'd wear them for 10 seconds & then throw them off.

We picked them up & I put them on her face to adjust them & she became terribly upset. She kept crying & saying "don't like glasses". I felt so sorry for her & it made me cry. I just knew this would be a hard road for us.

However... she's done amazingly well! I am so proud of her. I think the difference in her vision scared her at first. But, now she's loving it. We notice her seeing things that she probably never saw before. She is far sighted, so she probably didn't notice things that were so close to her.

Here's a picture of my princess! I just love her little face!