update and some pictures

Well for starters EJ is now 21 months old! Bitter sweet! I love that he is growing and changing, but just can't seem to wrap my head around the fact that he is almost two years old. How is it possible that my baby is almost two?

He had his regular hematology appointment yesterday. His ANC was the highest it has ever been and our Dr believes he is on the cusp of growing out of his neutropenia! We are hoping for a complete recovery by this time next year! Can you believe that? This a answered prayer in a most amazing way.
In other news, he did lose some weight (more on that in a moment) and weighs 25 lbs even and is 32 inches long. Still my small fry :)

EJ has been referred to speech therapy though, for two reasons. They believe he has a language/speech delay and he has some eating, swallowing, and chewing issues. The speech delay I am not too sure about. He has about 25 words he can say. Most he can say pretty clearly. He does mumble "baby talk" most of the time with these words mixed in but I think that is pretty normal? The thing they are concerned about is the fact that he doesn't group any words together. He has never made a phrase such as "ball please" etc. So we will see what the speech therapist say.

The eating issues I totally agree with. EJ has had food issues his whole life. His current problems are that he doesn't eat and when he does he wont swallow. If it is something he really likes (like grapes) he will put it in his mouth then spit it out. Grab another bite it and then spit it out. He does this with the majority of his food. Or the other extreme is that he will swallow it whole. I don't know if he just don't know how to chew or if it is a texture thing. I am not sure but I am hopeful they will help up work it out. He needs to gain weight! I can handle picky but this is just a whole different level. Anyways...

He is a super sweet, active, playful, creative, and energetic little guy. I just love him to pieces and am thankful everyday he is mine.

Austin is doing great and I had a moment yesterday that made me burst with pride! Yall know we are homeschooling and he started reading a little over a month ago. All along when he wants to write a letter or a word he asks me how to spell it. Yesterday for Veterans day (his favorite holiday as he lives and breathes everything military and wants to be a marine) he made a picture. On it he wrote "US ORME". Do you get it? o-r-m-e spells army! He wrote his first word all by himself! I could not be any prouder of him. He continues to blow me away every single day.

Soccer has ended and he is looking forward to next season already. We displayed his trophy in his room and he is beyond proud he was able to score a goal that final game. I just could not be more proud of either of my boys.

In some random news, the foliage here is peaking and is gorgeous. Fall is such a beautiful season. I was driving around yesterday just admiring God's beauty. I think it really reflects on who He is.

Oh and also, the gnats are just about gone. Thank goodness. I have regained some sanity and am feeling much better. Finley still does not sleep at all. Up every morning by at least 4am. Adam did take him though for two whole days so I could sleep. It is amazing what difference sleep makes. Thank you Adam!

Yesterday we went to the park and had a picnic and it was wonderful. The weather was amazing at 74 degrees and we enjoyed it so much. Austin caught a little fish out of the lake with a net and that just made his day! They played on the playground, and we had a nice walk. I love the outdoors. Today it is storming (another cold front coming through) and I am glad we got to enjoy that yesterday.

One final thing. My "cool cloth" event will be starting soon and I will have a lot of reviews and giveaways planned. I can't wait to dive into cloth diapering and share it with you!

(the sun was in our eyes something awful, that's why Austin's arm is up and we are all squinting)