I've been trying to write this post for a few weeks now, but I always seem to get distracted. I realized that I haven't posted any updates on Camden's health, therapy, and just life in general. I'm going to try and squeeze it all in, so it may be a bit long.
We have finally had a break from all the rain! Texas saw record rainfall totals for the month of May, and there were times I thought we were going to float away. There were several areas with flooding and damage. It felt like it would never stop. We have spent the past 5 years praying for rain, and we finally got it! Lakes that were 20 feet low are now full, and some lakes are even 10-20 feet above normal. The great thing is that our ponds are full for the first time in 5 years, and our wheat crop is the best it's ever been.
Carter finished up his year of Pre-K and really loved it. I know it's only Pre-K, but he went every day with the rest of the school. It will definitely make Kindergarten a lot easier for him and me. We live in a very small town, and the school is small as well. I'm talking Pre-K through 12th grade in the same building kind of small. This was very strange for me at because I always lived in the big city. I will admit that I was hesitant at first to send him, but I really love this school. Really really love it. I'm hoping and praying that Camden will be able to attend this school with Carter. I get much anxiety thinking about Camden being somewhere else. (I'll save all that for another day.) Carter also played T-ball for the first time this year. I have to say it's pretty fun watching the little kids chasing butterflies and playing with bugs during the games.
Camden had a cardiology appointment back in January, and it went very well. All of the previous appointments the doctor always said "I don't think he will need surgery." This time was the first time that he said "I'm confident that he won't need surgery." This was music to my ears!!!! He does still have the hole in his heart (VSD), but it's restrictive and is not causing any problems. The hole has gotten a bit smaller, and we will continue to follow every 9 months.
Camden had his adenoids out and got a new set of ear tubes in February. It was just a day surgery, and he did very well. He did end up getting sick a couple of days after, which was a bummer. Hopefully he won't need his tonsils out, but it's a possibility.
He also had a GI appointment recently and he weighed a whopping 22 pounds! I know it doesn't seem like much, but it was huge for us! Camden has always had difficulty gaining weight, but the doc was pleased. We have also weaned him off of his reflux medication. He is currently taking no meds. Yay!
The boys have been able to spend a lot of time with their big bubbas.
We have been lucky enough to visit with some Rockin' Moms and their littles. One mom recently moved back to Texas which means we will get to see more of them! I love our little family!
We own a fireworks business, and the month of June is spent getting ready for that. Richard has been working hard on building two new stands. A couple of our fireworks stands were blown over and ruined by the storms that came through last month. We start selling June 24th and sell every day until July 4th. It's a long and brutal 11 days, but luckily we have had an awesome couple that has been running our stands for the past several years. With all the rain, it should be a good year.
We've been spending time outside when we can. With it being close to 100 degrees every day and the humidity being out of control, it doesn't happen often.
We took a little 4 day vacation down to Kerrville, TX with one of my hubby's good friends a couple of weeks ago. The kids had a blast and it was Carter's first time to fish by himself. He was so proud of all the little perch he caught. The only thing he wouldn't do is bait the hook with the worms. He said it was too yucky. We did learn that Camden is not a fan of live fish! We may or may not have thrown the fish at him a few times. I know...we're bad parents.
We are still doing Neurodevelopmental therapy with Camden. I do like it, but it can be time consuming. I haven't been consistent with it the past couple of months, but I'm working hard on getting back on track. Honestly, it's nice to take a break from it all every once in a while. We are going to start private physical therapy because he is lacking in that area. We will probably start in a couple of weeks. Camden is still not walking or even standing independently. He is getting stronger and cruises everywhere and will hold our hands to walk. I'm not concerned since he is progressing, but it's just been such a slow process. I know he will do all of those things. I don't doubt that. It's just hard to know that you have a 2 1/2 year old who can't do those things yet. I would be lying if I said it didn't bother me. I hate that it has to be so hard for him. I hate having to explain why he isn't walking yet. Sigh. It will happen.
Speech has been improving a lot lately. I feel like he is verbalizing a new word almost every day. They don't always come out properly, but you can tell what he's trying to say. We have been doing sign language with him since he was a baby. Correction...Rachel Coleman with "Baby Signing Time" has been teaching him how to sign. That is his favorite show to watch and he could watch them all day if you let him. He easily knows over 100 signs, and even knows ones that I don't know. That makes for a very frustrating conversation between the two of us. He now tries to verbalize a lot of the words that he signs. He recently said his first two word sentence. He kept saying and signing "car go" over and over again when we were at the grocery store. I didn't really think anything of it until he wouldn't stop saying it. He was not happy being in the store and was trying to tell me that he wanted to get in the car and go. Silly boy. I don't like grocery shopping either!
One of the exercises that we do on his therapy program is Auditory Direction. It works on getting him to follow commands and direction. He has always loved this activity and we both have fun doing it.
Sheesh. Sorry for the long post. I could write more updates, but I'll save that for another day. The summer has started off crazy busy, but we're enjoying it. Once fireworks ends, we will go to California for 9 days. We are all looking forward to this trip. Disneyland, the San Diego Zoo, San Francisco, and Long Beach are just a few things that are on the agenda! We'll also get to meet some more Rockin' Moms in person. Hopefully we'll survive the heat and craziness before it's time to go!
