Albuquerque Aquarium and Biopark

Friends

We are so thankful for our friends and our kids friends. Here are some pictures of them playing with friends at a birthday party. These will probably be reposted on Facebook in 20 years. I am sure that the time will fly by!

The Latest Developments at the Caprons

Here's what we've each been up to:
Caleb has learned how to make his own snacks. He loves peanut butter crackers and was quite proud of himself when he made them all on his own. He used a ton of utensils, but it is fun to see him becoming more independent!

Abby is sleeping in a big girl bed! She has done great at bedtime and okay at naptime. The first day when I put her into bed for a nap, I thought that she had done perfectly. She stayed in her room for several hours and then came out seeming quite rested. I figured that she had slept. Then I discovered that every single book from her bookshelf was in her bed. Clearly she didn't sleep a bit, but at least she stayed put!

Luke is out of his casts! He is now wearing a set of shoes with a bar in between them. He will stay in these 23 hours a day for three months. I haven't gotten a picture of him in them, but I did take one of him and his sweet legs and feet without any gear. It is so nice to be cast free. We are enjoying being able to give him real baths now. So fun! And as his doctor said yesterday, now his foot doesn't smell like belly button! So very true!

And Jon- he has been trying to come up with clever ways to 1. water the grass 2. stay cool and 3. keep everyone clean! The kids loved his idea!

Hello out there...

The Lake with the Durands

One of the highlights of each summer for us is when we get to visit the Durands at their lake house on Possum Kingdom lake. Tricia was my roommate in college, and she and Jeff have three kids, Addi (6), Jackson (4), and Laura (1). Add in our three kids, and things were certainly lively. This was Caleb's third visit and Abby's second, and Jon and I have been going since before we were even married (nine years this summer). It is fun to see how each of our families have changed and grown each year. It was a little harder this year with Jon and I running the zone defense, but we had a great time; and of course, I still managed to take some pictures!

Bedtime

Our life is CRAZY right now! Last night Jon had to work, so I was in charge of getting everyone to bed. Here is a look at the craziness!

Faces

Luke's Foot Week 5

Yes, Luke's foot is all that I seem to write about lately! It is on our minds constantly, and we are spending a good amount of time driving back and forth to his appointments. So thus there are a lot of updates! Here is a picture from this week after Luke got his fourth cast off. His foot looks wonderful! Can you even tell what foot we have been working on? It is the one on the right.

We had been thinking that Luke would get his heel cord surgery at this appointment, but the doctor was so happy with the movement and position of his foot that she said that he will likely not need it at all. This is a relief, and we pray that it will continue to be the case. Next week, Luke will likely be fitted and put into his shoes and bar. This is like a brace that will keep his foot from relapsing. He will wear it for 3 month for 23 hours a day and then at night until for 3 or more years. We are very happy with his progress. Dr. Karol stated that he doesn't have a clubfoot anymore. Thank you for all of your prayers for us! Time to say a prayer of thanksgiving!

One other prayer request- Luke has several fingers that he tends to keep in a clenched position when his other fingers are opening up normally. This is something that we have been watching and doing our own "therapy" on at home. He can move them fine, but they just don't open up quite like the rest of his fingers. Our doctor will likely be referring us to a hand doctor to get this checked out. Please pray that Luke will continue to open these fingers more and more on his own. He is already opening them a lot more than when he was born. I am hoping to avoid any kind of major treatment for his hands.

All About Abby

* I took this picture of Abby because she wanted to do just what her brother was doing. I had brought a basket and blanket outside to take some pictures of Luke, and Abby went to find her own basket and blanket. The pictures of her turned out better than the ones of Luke- silly girl wanted some attention too!
* Abby wants to be like her big brother too. She plays with Caleb a whole lot and often repeats whatever he is saying. She also fights with him. She will often disagree with him without really even knowing what he is talking about.
* Abby is just nearly potty trained. God must have known that in this stage in our lives, we needed this process to be an easy one. She just started going on the potty and has done great ever since. I will say that we've had our accidents, but overall she has done this a hundred times more easily than Caleb did! YAHOO!
* Abby has starting throwing fits- and really good ones at that... welcome to the terrible twos- which in my experience roll right into the terrible threes.
* When Abby wants to eat, she is ready right at that moment. If we don't get her food fast, she starts one of those lovely meltdowns. Jon says that she gets this trait from me! I completely agree and show her sympathy because I know how she feels. She gets to drink her milk before meals quite often.
* She is very mothering towards others. She will often get stuff for Caleb when he is asking me to do it. She wants to make sure Luke is okay at all times- especially when he is getting his cast. Today she told the doctor that Luke just wanted to keep his old cast on rather than getting a new one.
* Her favorite thing to play with is her dress-up princess clothing. Caleb rather enjoys playing this too.
* We love her so much and are totally enjoying seeing her personality coming out more and more!

Luke's Foot 3 weeks in...

Luke got his fourth cast today. The doctor was very happy with the progress that his foot is making, and they said that we may be ready for his heel-cord clip surgery next week. This would be a week ahead of schedule. Here are some pictures of his foot and how it has improved in just three weeks:

Luke's Foot before any treatment was done

Luke's Foot after one week of casting

Luke's Foot after 3 weeks of casting- it is just nearly the same as his other foot. His leg and foot looked kind of puny when the cast first came off, but that was just from being in the casts for 3 weeks. It actually was already looking more normal after he had this cast off for just several minutes. Of course then he got a new cast put on. I am so looking forward to the day (about 4-5 weeks from now) when he will be done with the casting. He will wear a brace then for 23 hours a day, but I am excited about bathing him and being able to see his sweet foot more often!

We are very impressed with the Scottish Rite's Hospital each time we go there. Today we were in and out of the building in less than 45 minutes. In that time frame, Luke had a cast removed, had his foot evaluated by 2 doctors, and got another cast put on. Caleb and Abby even got to "help" with putting on the cast. It has been a really great experience so far... not something that I would pick for Luke to have to go through, but really I feel like we are all growing from getting to be in this environment with all sorts of kids, parents, and doctors.

Sweet light, sweet baby

Luke got his third cast today. He was more awake this time and cried while they manipulated his foot and put the cast on. His foot looks great and is much closer to the correct position than it was a week and a half ago when he got his first cast. I love it when I take a picture and the light is just perfect. It is much easier when Jon is around to hold the baby in just the right position versus when I am telling Caleb or Abby to stand in a certain spot. Aren't this light and this baby just beautiful? And the daddy quite handsome?