Vacation

We are on vacation right now taking lots of great pictures to share!!!! Once we are home, I will upload and post!!!! Hang on friends!

Apologies!!!!

First of all, my apologies! It has been WAY too long. I have found that I post a lot on Facebook because it is simply where a lot of our family goes to view pictures, but I want to get back into the swing of things here, and continue my "photo journey" of this kids through Blogger.

So, there is a lot to catch up on, and I will go back in time and dig out some pictures to share here later. I wanted to share though these current pictures from today of Reid's preschool graduation (May 2011).

I had a lot of mixed feelings about Reid going to preschool so young. He turned 3 in November 2010, and zapo-presto....preschool began. I felt with all the language that he would be exposed to and all the speech opportunities, I could not hold him home. Although, sending your little one at 3 yrs. with a backpack and supplies was more difficult that I thought it would be. I went back and forth several times in my mind really wondering if this was the best decision for Reid....and I definitely think that sending him was something that turned out to be wonderful. Reid seemed to bloom into this little person who needed the structure that was given to him in a preschool setting. He behaviors changed for the better, his attention span got better, his speech was being worked on constantly, and he has made friends who we hold very dear to our hearts. Without further introduction.....here is Reid's graduation day in pictures.

Reid with Makenna, his buddy. These two have come a long way together. I was grateful to find Mak's family after Reid was born. These two are bound by cleft, but their friendship is much deeper than that. Mak and Reid share the same surgeon and we are grateful that we live so very close to each other. We are traveling this journey together, and it will be so different to not see Mak in school next year with Reid. She is moving on to Kindergarten. We are so blessed to have Mak and her family in our lives, and Reid loves her like no other! Congratulations, Mak!!!

Reid and his teacher, Mrs. McClusky. It's been a great first year of preschool!

Reid and Miss Jan, his aide. Reid has a MAJOR spot in his heart for Miss Jan!

Reid and Grandma Karen. We were grateful she could go to graduation today. Brian and I were on a field trip with Ellie and could not make it in today! Double booked! So, Grandma came to the rescue!

Pappy was also there! He comes to the rescue for us a lot! We have been blessed to have had Pappy take Reid to school each day. It has created a very special bond for Reid, and I would say for Pappy, too!

Ice cream goes great with graduating!

Preschool Class 2011

Reid- 3rd from the right

Actually sitting down!!!!

We are proud of you Reid, and love you much!

Daddy-Daughter-Dance 2011

Ellie is so excited today. She is getting some major one-on-one time with her daddy. It is the Daddy-Daughter-Dance this afternoon, and Ellie has been asking all week if it is time to go, yet! I am positive that Ellie and her daddy are both in their glory today.

Tonsil and Adenoid Surgery

On March 18, we hauled Reid to the hospital at 5 am for his tonsil and adenoid surgery. He was a trooper, and I am always amazed at how well he does.

Reid in the pre-op room all set for surgery, and as you can see, he was in good spirits. He was even more excited when he realized his bed was on wheels and moved!

Getting all set to be wheeled back. The dazed look is from being up so early in the morning!

Brian had his I-Pod with him which was a good time killer while we waited for the prepping of the OR room.

Made it through. This was in the recovery room. He was just waking up, and he was very happy that Mom brought blankie along to make everything better.

My little man....He has been through a lot over the past 3 years. This marks surgery number 5...and I am not even counting all the other little procedures he has undergone in the past. A trooper, no doubt.

Going home to rest and recover. Blessed by our family, friends, prayer warriors, and medical team that again have held us in their arms. We thank you.....

Once in awhile....

....they love each other enough to pose for the camera for me in all smiles. (Ellie was holding Reid and looks like she is pain while doing it! No wonder, Reid is just a few pounds and inches shy of looking eye to eye with his "big" sister!)

Yeee-Haw!

Reid is obsessed with being a cowboy. He loves cowboy boots and has made mention of having some of his own when he has seen them on someone else. Here is my happy little man after getting his wish.....real cowboy boots.

As you can see, it was bedtime here, and no chance of him taking off his boots. I really thought that he was going to wear them to bed, but we did manage to get them off before bedtime.

Quite the look.....western and pj's! You wear them well, Reid. You wear them well!

Another Surgery Scheduled....

....and this is how Reid feels about it!

We scheduled Reid's adenoid/tonsil surgery for March 18th. This is really the first step in a 2 step process for Reid. We are doing this in preparation for a much more involved surgery 3 months post op the tonsil/adenoid repair. Our plastic surgeon wants to complete Reid's palate by lengthening it and completing the closure (there is still a small gap in the very back of Reid's mouth) this summer. In order for this to be done, our p/s wanted all material clear for him to get the best results possible. Therefore...step one will happen on March 18. The summer surgery will help with Reid's nasality issues and will help also in terms of speech progress. Reid's speech is really pretty amazing, and with this repair, it will help things along even more so. I don't worry too much about the March surgery, but I am concerned simply about Reid getting older and understanding more. I actually think it was easier to hand over my infant to our surgery team because I knew that Reid would not remember. Now that he is 3 and so observant about so many things, I have more fears. I just ask you to keep Reid close in thought as we get closer to our surgery date....We will continue to keep you posted as we again journey through this hand in hand.