Tuesday, March 30, 2010

I'm back... sorry.

Sorry it's been awhile.  We have been in Ponchatoula for my grandpa's services.  Everything went well and the services were beautiful.  I will miss my Pawpaw so much.  He was such a wonderful and loving man.  Tripp was an absolute angel through it all.  I brought him to the wake and the funeral because I didn't want to have to worry about switching out because I knew we all wanted to be there.  He showed off like you wouldn't believe and had those squinchy smiles for everyone who walked by.  I guess he enjoyed all of the different scenery.  But he did have an "episode" the morning of the funeral.  His trach collar (the big blue tube humidifier I put him on at night) obviously wasn't working right and when he woke up, he was completely dried up.  I tried using the saline to break up the plug, but that wasn't working.  He had turned completely grey and if he was breathing at all, I couldn't tell.  I got the ambu bag and gave him breaths and gave him oxygen.  I'm guessing the bag helped to push down the plug, because he slowly started coming back.  Not fun.  And when you're child turns grey, it's a vision that you can't ever get out of your head.  Randy and my mom were both with me to help, thank God.  And then he started the day all smiles after that.  I just don't know how he does it.  What a miracle.

Being at my parent's house has been great.  They are so much help to me.  And I've gotten to see a lot of my family that I don't get to see very often.  My sister's bridal shower was Saturday, so that's why we just went ahead and stayed the week, instead of me having to go home and unload, then pack everything up again.  But we are back home now.

Tripp has missed his last 2 OT visits because of the eye first and then my grandpa's wake.  He is really doing well as far as using his hands and a lot better than I thought he would be doing standing with us holding him.  We just need to be working with him more and letting him practice standing.  I want him to be able to get around so bad, poor baby.  He wants to be moving around and exploring things so bad but he can't crawl or turn over.  He is sitting up SO well now and loves being on the floor playing with his toys.  But you can tell that he just wants to do more by the way he tries to move around.  He will lean alllllllll the way over to try and reach for something in front of him or he will shake his whole body... arms, head, and all.  I have been trying to put him in his walker a lot more so he can start getting used to being on his feet.  He likes it a whole lot more now for some reason.

He is just so doggone adorable these days.  I really could eat him alive.  He is SO much fun and learning and listening to every single thing that we say and do.  I know he can't talk or can't communicate, but we can tell how smart he is.  And even though he can't talk to us... we can tell exactly what he wants by his facial expressions and actions.  He is hilarious and really makes me laugh so hard sometimes that I cry.  I'm just so grateful that things have been going well and that he has been so happy lately.  I know it only takes a second for something to change, but right now I am enjoying every single second of him.  When he wakes up each morning and starts smiling and kicking his feet, it melts my heart.  I could hardly even take a picture of him this week without getting a squichy smile! See?
















This lasted about 5 seconds.


I put this outfit on him not knowing that it was too small and I would have to CUT it off of him.  
At least I got a picture! 




Helping Grammy cut the cookies...




My ALL TIME favorite pictures.  
This was the best bath he's ever had.  He was even kicking his legs! 
Yay for SALT!  
(the backs of his legs are where the sores are... but the tops of his legs, O my!  They're gorgeous!!






I love love love love love this kid!!!!
   Love,

19 comments:

  1. OH MY GOODNESS. He is the SWEETEST thing!!! I LOVED seeing him in all his nudey nudey goodness. I'm so happy he got to have a happy bath. And I love his little dressed up outfit, and Jonah has those same I'm a Catch pajamas. They have SO many of the same clothes and blankets. And the cookie cutting! Too Cute! And Jonah is the same way with the wanting to crawl and move. He's frustrated a lot, but is getting better about playing on the floor. And he does that completely leaning over thing too. Aren't they amazing?

    Matt's Aunt Katherine wrote about Tripp a while back (a prayer request maybe... I can't remember), and she referred to him as "Jonah's brother from another mother." I thought that was so funny and ABSOLUTELY true.

    Love you guys so much. This may just have been my FAVORITE post ever (as you can probably tell from all the emphatic caps.)

    HUGS!!!

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  2. We love him too!! (((HUGS))) and prayers for your family always! So sorry to hear about your grandfather.

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  3. Oh my goodness, he's SO cute! Those squishy smiles just melt my heart!! His legs look really good, and I think his face is looking good too! He's in my prayers- and so are you and Randy! So sorry for the loss of your grandfather - praying for strength and peace for you and your family.

    Love from TX,
    Laura

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  4. Not sure how you can stand so much cuteness! Love that smile. Bless him.

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  5. Great pictures! Tripp is so cute! Glad to hear he is feeling better.

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  6. oh my goodness! his skin looks so gorgeous in those bath pictures!! wow. it's good to know that under the bandages he really does have good skin. his squinchy smiles are SO. FREAKIN. ADORABLE. they're awesome. i noticed in one of the open-mouth pictures that he still has all his teeth. weren't you thinking at one time you would get all of them pulled? why did you decide not to do it? Is he hurting his mouth less than he was in the beginning?
    i don't have a little one with EB but i am a future pediatrician; hence the reason for my interest in tripp and the questions!
    ~ashley

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  7. Oh Court...This post makes me soo happy! He is amazingly adorable and I can't wait to see him! By the way...I'm hoping for a visit early next week while I'm in town (I'll call ya).

    I'm glad to see that Tripp is thriving...I believe that his wonderful MOMMY and family have played a HUGE part in that!

    I love you guys soo much!! Have a great week!

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  8. Hi Courtney:
    Oh My he looks soooo great. The bath pictures are awesome. His skin looks so good and what a smile. Gotta love that boy!!! So glad that everything is going so well for you and Tripp. Prayers are still going your way. Give Tripp a big hug and kiss for me. Love you guys!!! Love Leah's Nana

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  9. So glad to see a post today! This is truly one of my favorite blogs just because of what a truly incredible little boy Mr. Tripp is. I just adore him!
    Prayer works! AMEN!

    Hugs,
    Lisa

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  10. I thought of something reading your post last night. Have you ever heard of the show called "Signing Time?" My son was very delayed in walking...and the doctor said that he would not talk unless he walked. He was nearly 2 before he really said more than mama and dada. He would become super frustrated, and I knew he understood us but just could not communicate back. I saw this show on PBS and my kids loved it. It is done by a mom of a hearing impaired little girl and she teaches sign language through songs and practice. We all watched it, and the things I picked up I decided to teach to my son. He ended up learning over 50 signs...colors, feelings, places, foods, directions...everything! So much stress was relieved because he could tell us what he wanted and needed and how he was feeling. I wonder if you could teach Tripp some signs? My kids have all learned "more" and "all done" by 9-10 months old. He might be at the perfect age. Just a thought! Praying for you guys...you are a wonderful mommy. :)

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  11. This post just made my week! I love that squishy smile! It is THE BEST! And what a Happy Bathtime Baby :) I just love that lil guy!

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  12. Awesome post! I had been curious where you've been ;) So many cute smiles, and THE BATH! He looks so happy, and his skin looks amazing!!

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  13. He is such a sweetheart. Your family, especially Tripp are such an inspiration. He is so adorable. I can see how you want to eat him up. What a cutie!!!

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  14. You have a gorgeous baby I love your pics of him he looks so active and really enjoying that bath. Glad to hear your days are better with him, he is so sweet. Your a great mom!:)

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  15. Love his adorable "squishy smiles" and he looks great in his bath!!! He is so cuuute!!! SO sorry about your grandfather. Aren't services like that bittersweet? It can be so hard to say good-bye, but then it is nice to be able to catch up with long-distance family. Praying for Tripp's continued good health.

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  16. You have a darling little boy. Thank you so much for sharing that squishy smile! It brought such a smile to my face.

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  17. Hey Court! So Glad we got to see you and the little prince! He is just the cutest thing ever! I LOVE that baby! Girl, talking or not - his smiles say a thousand words. I am just sooooo happy that he is able to communicate with you period. It must be awful for parents who log in as many grueling mommy hours as you do, but arent able to get back all that loving like Tripp gives you. But the sign language is a GREAT idea! My kids learned it VERY quickly at the daycare they went to. It was taught to all children around one year of age to help them communicate before they could speak - and let me tell ya - talk about melt your heart. My kids would ask please, say thank you, and sign "more" like it just came natural to them. It was so cute!

    I love you all and we r still praying! Did ur mom tell you about Amree seeing the cross in Aunt Missy's room then instrucing Caitlyn and Abbie to get on their knees and pray with her? It was so cute - and of course they all prayed for Baby Tripp.

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  18. I loved all the pictures & was so very happy to see his bathtime pictures. His skin looks great,Great Work Courtney !!!! He's getting so big too. He is just so very "HANDSOME". "HAPPY EASTER" TRIPP, COURTNEY AND RANDY, I LOVE YA'LL. MY PRAYER'S CONTINUE.

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  19. Oh my goodness, I love those pictures!! He is so stinking cute!!!

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