Swimming with Jackson

This past weekend we went swimming with Jackson while daddy was at a conference. Braden really didn't protest getting in the water this time, in fact, you will see how relaxed he is in the pictures!! Mommy was teaching him to float - and he can do it all by himself when Mommy holds his head!! I just couldn't believe how relaxed he was in letting me pull him around like that!!!

As you can see, Jackson was really enjoying the water too - he is such a cutie and a ham. He even protested with fervor when it was time to get out of the pool:-)

We are busy getting qualified for additional therapy that will be provided at no cost to us, and they will do therapy at Braden's daycare too... that should all be set up for late August. We are looking into adding aquatherapy to Braden's routine in the fall as well. We are looking into adaptive equipment, and what insurance will pay for and won't, so Braden can have a fully supportive chair to sit in during parts of the day, as he is showing early signs of scoliosis...

Enjoy the swimming pics!
Kodi, Brad, & Baby Bee

The Bumblebee

My friend Doris called me from her convention, this was a quote the keynote speaker shared with the crowd of parents of children with arthogryposis... proof that their children can overcome what science says they can't do. Of course she knew how much it would mean to us, as we have referred to our little Braden as Baby Bee for quite some time.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we wait for test results to come back - it is always difficult and an anxious time when waiting for test results. We continue to pray that God will lead our medical team to answers for a diagnosis with a positive outlook.

Kodi, Brad, & Baby Bee

Greensburg Pics, as promised

As promised, here are some pictures from the tornado damage done in Greensburg, KS. What stuck me the most is how every tree in it's path was ripped down to it's bare trunk, and no tree stands more than 15 feet tall.


Someone with a sense of humor has posted their land "For Sale".



The Dillons was the only grocery store in the town, and you can see that the entire left side of the store is gone.

This is the INSIDE of a local parts store, you can see the counter, the poles where the outside walls and windows were, as well as the staircase inside the store.

This building managed to keep it's roof in tact, one of the only ones in the whole area to manage that.


These buildings are now the local hospital. They remind me very much of the MASH units we used to see on TV.


I thought this was one of the most interesting pictures I took... the foundation still stands, and a few glass bricks from the front room window remain. This house also managed to keep most of it's green carpet on the stairs.

Braden is doing well... but please keep us in your prayers as they continue to run tests on him to find a diagnosis, and not all of the outcomes would mean good news. We pray that God continues to give us the strength to love and care for our little man every day we are blessed to care for him.

Thanks for visiting,
KBB

Kansas Vacation

We are back from our Kansas trip with lots of fun memories to share.

We took two plane rides to Wichita, and Nana picked us up from the airport. Once again I was much loved by the plane crew, as I am a great example of how well babies like me can travel - I only cried for about half a minute when I was making a diaper on the second trip:-) I was so happy to see my Nana, and of course, she had plenty of lovin' to do on me. Nana took mommy to see the Wichita Theater production of "Cats"... but neither one of them could really tell me what it was about.

I stayed with Nana and Grandpa and Uncle Brent most of the week - I have my own room upstairs, mommy and daddy next to me, and a bathroom - so it's like having our own little suite:-) I got to know all the doggies pretty well, Dixie like to lick my feet, Diego likes to sniff and lick them when I am in the swing, and Domino mostly leaves me be. Uncle Scott and 'aunt' Patty also introduced me to their new puppy "Shocker"... she is so cute, and rambunctious in a fun way.

Mommy's Best Friend Nicole and her husband Rob took mommy and daddy out for dinner on their anniversary. They must have enjoyed themselves, they were gone over 3 hours while Nana and grandpa babysat. Then daddy surprised mommy with her presents... a hair color appointment the next day, and that night, a hotel stay!! Mommy was anxious to leave me for the first time overnight, but Nana was a wonderful keeper - she slept upstairs with me, and sent mommy and daddy a pic of me once I was in bed, so they would know I was just fine. Daddy had more surprises in store - flowers and chilled champagne once they got to the hotel. Mommy tried holding back the tears, and they enjoyed a romantic evening to celebrate seven years of marriage together, and reflect on the day they chose to start a family. They got to sleep in the next morning, which was a nice break from the schedule I try to keep them on:-)

Mommy went with Aunt Shala to pick up cousin Paxton on Tuesday, so they drove through the tornado-ravaged town of Greensburg, KS, and mommy will be sharing pictures from the town where she had high school friends, pageant sponsors, and family friends.

The next few days were spent enjoying time with my family... cousin Paxton and aunt Shala came over to see me most days, and Gram came from Ashland to see me on Independence Day. I got to spend some quality time with them, and cousin Paxton kept us all busy. She took aunt Shala, mommy, and Gram outside to eat watermelon, blow bubbles, and run around the yard with my little piano - which provided Paxton with running, skipping, and "extra-sizing" music:-) I got to spend good times with uncle Brent, uncle Scott, and future 'aunt' Patty. Scott now works with uncle Brent at Coca-Cola, so we all had our picture taken in our 'uniforms'.

Mommy and daddy took me to meet their friend's new baby Ethan, whose parents Heather and Chris live in Derby. Due to all the rain in KS, they were having some house issues fixed. Then their friends Aaron & Stacey treated us to a nice evening and dinner at their house in Andover... I think they like me just a little bit, and are talking about maybe having some babies of their own in the coming years - yeah... maybe soon I will have some new friends to play with on my next visits!!

Our last day in Wichita, nana took us swimming at the YMCA, and man did I take to the water... at first I was resistant to the changing sensation, but once I figured out I was in the water, and I would float, I got really relaxed. Mommy and daddy took me to the deep end to float in my new pool lounger, and then enjoyed some time in the bouncy swings. mommy took me to the spray fountains, and I really enjoyed that too - except the one that was chilly, and it made me curl up like a little pill bug against mommy to be 'protected' from the cold water. All that swimming tuckered me out, but really made me quite relaxed.

Cousin Paxton and Aunt Shala came over our last night in Wichita for dinner, and mommy played a lot with Paxton. She almost made mommy cry when she was saying her good-bye's she started crying that we would not see her for awhile - but then Aunt Shala showed her how to speed dial mommy on the cell phone, so she could talk to her any time she wants. She left us messages and called us almost every day since!

Saturday grandpa and nana rented us a spacious mini-van to drive to Kansas City. Grandpa got to use his christmas gift from nana - a NASCAR experience at the Jeff Gordon (grandpa's favorite) Driving School. Grandpa got to drive his own car at the track, and he even got to PASS another driver too - it was so cool!! Grandpa's whole family showed up to watch, and aunt Jenny and Uncle Brian flew in from Colorado and brought Jenny's sister Liz with them to watch too!

Saturday afternoon we drove up to St. Joe, MO to see nana's family - and got to see all my great-aunts and uncles, and my great-grandparents too. I even got to see great-aunt Jeannie and Jerry in MO, which was new, as we usually visit them in Pensacola, so it was neat that we could all be together. That evening we drove back to Kansas City to stay with great-aunt Robin and great-uncle Jeff... and what a nice set-up we had there too... again, I had my own room, mommy and daddy next door with a bathroom right there. Second cousin Jason was home from school, so we got to have dinner with him, and with great-grandma Lavon and great-grandpa Stan too. Of course, Brian and Jenny and Liz were there too, until we could hardly keep our eyes open anymore, and aunt Jenny kept sneaking in more turns to say "good-night" to me:-)

Sunday was a long travel day home from Kansas City, as we got bumped 3 flights in Houston, and the handlers misplaced our luggage for a few hours, but it was nice to be home again in my own room. We had such a nice time, and were so blessed by everyone we got to see while we were home. Thanks for checking in with us!

Hope you enjoy the pics!!
Braden (Kodi & Brad)