Hi everyone. So sorry that it has been so long. I guess I should start with our Feb. visit to the stroke clinic. Finley was such a charmer... flirting with all of the nurses! All of the specialists came into our room one by one and "assessed" Finn - as much as you can really assess a 1 month old. However, they all said that they felt that Finley is in a really good place and the best thing to do will be to watch him closely in the future to catch potential "problems" early. After the stroke clinic, Finley seemed to get more and more fussy with every day. Finally, I couldn't do it by myself anymore so on a Monday I got one-way plane tickets and Tuesday morning we all flew to Dallas. I am sure that we were a sight to see. My friend dropped us off at the airport on Tuesday morning and when she drove off, I was standing curbside with J.T., Finley, a double stroller, a snugli, 2 car seats, 4 suitcases and 2 carry-on bags! Ha! We did it and to make it even better the flight attendant swiped her card on the back of all 3 seats and gave us complimentary direct tv and pay-per-view movies because "I think you are really brave." God sure gave us grace that day because not only were my children perfect on the plane, but also on the 3 1/2 hour ride to Shreveport from Dallas. WOW! We spent the next few days with family and visiting friends and then drove to Alabama for a few weeks with my mom. Finn never got any less fussy, but we sure had a few extra pair of loving arms to hold the little screamer with. After a few rashes and J.T. having strep throat, among other things, we got everybody healthy and came back to Shreveport to spend some time with Pappaw and Nannaw before going home. What could be funnier than my scene at the airport curbside? Loading all of our stuff in Melony's compact car!!! Melony still jokes that she had to buy clothes and everything once she got to Denver because of all of our stuff. However, once again the Lord provided because we fit everything that we needed and drove straight through to Denver. We only stopped 2 or 3 times other than gas fill-ups. Amazing huh?
Once we got to Denver, things calmed down for about a week or so. Then, everything went crazy. Long story short, we were going to move back to Louisiana and needed to be there by May 7. I am going to be working at Christus Schumpert in their NICU and John will be transferring with Cintas. Needless to say, we had a lot of work to do in a short amount of time. I thought we had a lot to pack when we moved to Colorado in the first place.... boy was I wrong!!! 2 small children and 1 million toys later, I know that the first move was CAKE! Why is it that a 3 month old baby that you can hold in your lap requires no less than 2 tons of equipment and we won't even talk about J.T.'s requirements. Oh yeah, one other thing.... J.T. was in the middle of potty training. I postponed it for this long with the excuse of having a new baby, waiting for summer, anything really to not have to do it. But, with me going back to work, as a nurse no less, the boys will need to be in daycare at least 2 days a week. This is no small miracle then that I was able to get them both into the same place to start around the same time.... with 1 exception..... J.T. has to be fully potty-trained by September!!! Talk about incentive. However, the Lord came through once again because J.T. is well on his way and in fact had NO ACCIDENTS during our 20 hour drive to Louisiana this past weekend.
Now, we are trying to get settled into Johnny and Melony's house until our rental is ready in July - we are working on trying to rent or sell our home in Aurora. But for now, things are good. I put Finley in the church nursery for the first time on Sunday and you would have thought that I was a first-time mother because it took me a good 20 minutes to work up the nerve to take him in - then I changed my mind and packed up all of his stuff to leave - then I thought I was being silly and just left him, determined to do the right thing. 10 minutes later I was back in the hallway, crying like a "first-timer" but too embarassed to walk by the window to peek in for the umpteenth time. So I did what any rational person would've done at that point. I went and found someone to do it for me. And not just anyone, mind you... Melony! This way I was able to send her in and tell her what I wanted them to know, and I didn't have to show my splotchy, mascara streaked face again. Needless to say, I made it through church and it felt really good. Really good to have a moment of spiritual renewal, good to be able to meet the Lord in His house and worship Him for who He is, good to be back in the church home that I grew up in with the same friendly and loving faces of the family of God that I have always known and will forever love.
I want to end this update by again, thanking everyone who has been praying for Finley and our family. Please continue to pray for us as the effects of Finley's stroke will not be fully known for sometime. Pray that we will recognize any problems early and be wise in seeking the appropriate treatment or therapy. Also, please continue to pray for John and J.T. as they are still adjusting to another male ego in our home! I promise I will post some pics just as soon as I figure out how on this computer!!!!!!
Love,
Meredith
