Mini-March Madness

Well, we have our own March madness going on in the Creek household----busy, busy, BUSY! But in a good way! The girls are enjoying the nice weather, lots of school activities, play dates, and now SPRING BREAK! (We are all ready for a week of being together and not playing beat the clock. ) Darth has been introducing Braden to the wonders of college basketball for some father-son bonding. Don't worry, we aren't turning him into a TV baby! His time is monitored!

Braden is just doing fantastic. He has gotten so busy with his arms and legs, making diaper changing time quite the event, like trying to capture and contain a hurricane. Today he had an appointment with an occupational therapist (OT) and a speech therapist (SP) to evaluate him based on age-appropriate development. Overall the results were good. He does qualify however for the intervention, so we will be having a monthly visit from the OT to help Braden with his fine and gross motor skills. The OT was pleased with his neck control when he was in a supported sitting position. She wants us to help him build endurance on his tummy, working on multiple short sessions during the day instead of just a few long ones. We were pleased with the assessment and are ready to implement the activities for Braden's floor time. The SP didn't have any concerns at this point. Braden was "talking" and responding to voices just fine, very much in line with another baby his age.

Cute discovery this week: Braden discovered Darth's goatee. He looks at Darth's face, grasps the chin hair with his hand, and gets an interesting look on his face, kind of like, mommy doesn't have this . . . (Thank goodness!) He is in a really fun discovery phase and we are really enjoying it! I understand why having kids later in life can be good. Not that we are old, but we are considerably more relaxed this time around, really taking the time to enjoy the "moments".

We are definitely looking forward to nearing the time when Braden can be "out" more. The cold and flu season is almost past and baby is scheduled for one more RSV shot. By Easter, we hope to be able to take him, cautiously, to church and other public places. He definitely won't be a nursery baby and I will likely have to guard him carefully; tough to do, he's just so incredibly cute.

The coming of spring is mirroring an emotional spring for us, a time of new life and hope. I was mentioning to several people this past week that the season of winter was an emotional winter too, cold and depressing, with a lot of dark days. The heaviness we have felt, starting with the news of Braden's heart defects in July, until just recently, is just starting to lift as Braden becomes more and more healthy. He feels more "normal", like we felt when raising the girls as babies. Not totally normal, obviously, but more so than days past. Less doctors' appointments, decreased medications, transitioning to regular formula, weight gain, physical development, it is all bringing the hope to our hearts and home that spring is bringing to the natural world. It is a beautiful thing. We have never been entirely without hope, there has always been a thread, a whisper of the Lord that we haven't been abandoned, that He has been there every moment. It's just that before, we were holding our breath; now we can take a deep breath, sigh, and relax a bit. It feels REALLY GOOD.

From our home to yours: HAPPY SPRING! Praying that this season of spring will bring new hope and life into whatever season you are experiencing now.

God bless you---Darth and Jenni