There really is a God

It's so easy to give up on God when things get tough. Why do bad things happen to good people?

I read a story today that made me realize that there really, truly is a God. And he is good.

Austin Hatch, a 16 year old boy from Charlevoix, Mich., was in a fatal plane crash 8 years ago which killed his 2 siblings, his mother, and left him and his father alive and alone. Over the last 8 years, his father re-married..

On Friday, that same family was in another plane crash that killed his step-mother, his father, and his dog Alli and his other dog, Brady, is missing.

Austin Hatch survived. He is in a medically-induced coma because of bruising on his brain.

Now the amazing part.

This poor kid is going to wake up from his coma to learn that his father and step-mother are dead, and that he has been in yet another plane crash (I'm willing to bet that he will have quite the plane phobia after this!). He is going to learn that his one dog, Alli, has died in the plane crash.

And then he's going to learn that his dog, Brady, has been found 3 km from the plane crash site completely unscathed. Wet, frightened, but completely fine.

So while I sit here reading this story, I can't help but think that this is nothing short of a miracle. It reminds me a bit of Job. God took everything from Job - his family, his flock, his farm, any and all income... and then blessed him greatly. This poor 16-year old kid had his mother, siblings, father, and step-mother taken away and God left him his beautiful white labradoodle to be his companion through, what can only be assumed, will be a lot of mourning.

So... thanks, God, for leaving this kid with someone to love!

First Big Allergic Reaction!!

My dear baby girl... you are your father in so many ways. You were blessed with his red hair, his fair skin, his tree trunk legs, and ... his allergies. This may not be that big of a deal right now, but as you get older, you are not going to like this fact. You are going to have to steer clear of so many foods and environmental factors.

On Saturday, June 25, you had your first big allergic reaction. And it wasn't even bad - mommy just freaked out. You had a small reaction to almond oil a few months back, but even then, comparing to what happened on Saturday, that was nothing (and mommy is still not convinced it was an allergic reaction as opposed to just super red cheeks).

Mommy was feeding you breakfast - your regular banana, cheerios, and then I gave you some pieces of pancake. You had pancake the night before and LOVED it, so I thought I'd give you a bit more. They are milk-free pancakes, made with orange juice as opposed to milk.

Well.

You ate it up. Gobbled it up, really. And then your chin was red. And it was spreading. Daddy then noticed you had a hive on your neck. So, I decided to take you to the hospital.

By the time I got there, your entire face was bright red and you had hives on your face. They bypassed admitting and brought you right in to the back room. They checked to see your breathing, and you were breathing fine. Your right eye was a bit swollen and they drew a line on your face with a pen to be able to confirm if the infection was spreading.

They then ordered Benadryl. By the time we got the Benadryl, your face was clearing up, but the infection was now on your neck. By the time we left, the neck infection was gone and you had broken out into major hives all over your tummy.

We got home, I put you to bed (you were so exhausted you fell asleep in the 3 minute drive from the hospital to our home!) and when you woke up (and after I checked on you 8 times in your 1.5 hour nap) your entire reaction was gone. No more hives.

Whewf!!

The nurses and student doctor were awesome - they checked on you repeatedly, they made sure you were very looked after and they made sure everyone knew how super cute you were!

You were a trooper, and everyone loved you. Mommy was so proud of you!! We don't know if it was the orange pancakes, or the fact that daddy was eating Cheeze Whiz near you (ew!), or what caused it... but I do know now how to react to these outbreaks and to keep a good eye on you!!

Scary stuff!!!

I'm SO GLAD you are ok, and I love you so much!!

Here are some photos for you!

First Big Allergic Reaction!!

My dear baby girl... you are your father in so many ways. You were blessed with his red hair, his fair skin, his tree trunk legs, and ... his allergies. This may not be that big of a deal right now, but as you get older, you are not going to like this fact. You are going to have to steer clear of so many foods and environmental factors.

On Saturday, June 25, you had your first big allergic reaction. And it wasn't even bad - mommy just freaked out. You had a small reaction to almond oil a few months back, but even then, comparing to what happened on Saturday, that was nothing (and mommy is still not convinced it was an allergic reaction as opposed to just super red cheeks).

Mommy was feeding you breakfast - your regular banana, cheerios, and then I gave you some pieces of pancake. You had pancake the night before and LOVED it, so I thought I'd give you a bit more. They are milk-free pancakes, made with orange juice as opposed to milk.

Well.

You ate it up. Gobbled it up, really. And then your chin was red. And it was spreading. Daddy then noticed you had a hive on your neck. So, I decided to take you to the hospital.

By the time I got there, your entire face was bright red and you had hives on your face. They bypassed admitting and brought you right in to the back room. They checked to see your breathing, and you were breathing fine. Your right eye was a bit swollen and they drew a line on your face with a pen to be able to confirm if the infection was spreading.

They then ordered Benadryl. By the time we got the Benadryl, your face was clearing up, but the infection was now on your neck. By the time we left, the neck infection was gone and you had broken out into major hives all over your tummy.

We got home, I put you to bed (you were so exhausted you fell asleep in the 3 minute drive from the hospital to our home!) and when you woke up (and after I checked on you 8 times in your 1.5 hour nap) your entire reaction was gone. No more hives.

Whewf!!

The nurses and student doctor were awesome - they checked on you repeatedly, they made sure you were very looked after and they made sure everyone knew how super cute you were!

You were a trooper, and everyone loved you. Mommy was so proud of you!! We don't know if it was the orange pancakes, or the fact that daddy was eating Cheeze Whiz near you (ew!), or what caused it... but I do know now how to react to these outbreaks and to keep a good eye on you!!

Scary stuff!!!

I'm SO GLAD you are ok, and I love you so much!!

Here are some photos for you!

9 Months

Weight Update

Weight: 22 pounds 9 3/4 ounces

Height: 30.5" (up 2" from last month!)

My dear girl,

I can honestly say without a doubt in my mind, that this has been my most favourite month yet. You have made me laugh and smile - literally - all day every day. You are the happiest, funniest, silliest, and absolute CUTEST little girl I have ever seen in my entire life. This past month has just been a breeze!!

Updates:

- You are THISCLOSE to crawling! Over the past month you've gone from somehow moving from Point A to Point B while sitting on your bum, to now you go straight onto your stomach from the sitting position and then the next thing I know you're straight across the room! You haven't figured out being on your knees yet (there is a lot of weight your poor legs have to hold up! haha) but you push yourself across the floor pretty good. Did I say "push"?? Yes, PUSH. You push yourself in circles over the floor and you have learned that with every spin, you get closer and closer to your destination. Sometimes you spin 18 times just to get from the middle of the floor to your toys. And you do it the entire time with a big smile on your face. Today, on your 9 month birthday, you have learned to pull yourself across the floor and you made quite good time in your inspection of mommy's office. You're SO CLOSE to crawling!!! Everyone tells me that I should enjoy these no-crawling days. But I honestly can't wait until you can learn to crawl. The things you'll learn about. It's going to be tougher and a lot more work but I just can't wait!

- You are still in love with that dog. And any time you get even remotely close to him, he runs as far away from you as possible. If your little chubby hand even touches his, he pulls it back. If you get in bed with us, he jumps out of bed - no matter how tired he is. If you come in the room, he runs out of the room. The only time he likes you lately is when you have food - and that's because he knows you're going to give him some. And you do - on purpose! You throw food down, then look over your high chair to see Bauer gobble it up. Then you throw him more. He "loves" it. Personally, I think he thinks it's his vendetta for you coming into his world!

You have become quite the little sleeper! At 7pm you're ready for bed, so I put you in bed as close to 7 as possible. I then sleep feed you at about 10:30pm, and then you sleep straight through until about 7-8am. Mommy LOVES it. You have the odd night where you get up but you fall back to sleep quite quickly. Sometimes it takes a couple minutes, sometimes it takes an hour. But all in all, you're an amazing sleeper. Last night I tried to skip your sleep feed and you woke up at 2am crying, so I fed you, and then you were up at 6am. But I blame the 6am on the crop sprayer airplane that was SUPER loud. Mommy was not happy!

This month you had your first big trip to Montreal, but I already talked about that. I still can't get over how great you were!! And your great granny Bina keeps the high chair in her kitchen because every time she sees it, she thinks of you. You are so, so very loved. I wish your great grandpa was here because he would have loved you so much as well.

Morning breakfast is my favourite meal for you of the day. In the morning you are SO HAPPY. I get smiles and giggles and coos. Mind you, I get those throughout the rest of the day as well! Your meals are pretty planned out. You like me to feed you, you like the same things, and you prefer veggies. You are still being nursed anywhere from 3-5 times a day (sometimes less) but I am constantly offering you the nursing option before solids but you just prefer solids. Breakfast is banana, pear/mango and apple sauce with oatmeal. Lunch is 1/2 an avocado and a cup of baby yogurt. Supper is 3 veggies (sweet potatoes, squash, broccoli, carrots) with multigrain cereal. I tried giving you chicken one day and tofu the next, and you didn't sleep well either night. So I went back to veggies and you slept awesome. So... we're sticking with veggies for now.

Hmm.... what else. You are brilliant. I mean, SO smart. And lazy, which is hilarious. If there's a toy you want to reach and you can't, you'll pull the blanket towards you. If your bath toys are on the other side of the tub, you'll splash the water until they're closer. If I'm holding something you want, you'll grab my arm and pull it until you can reach it - which is usually my phone. You sure do love mommy's phone!!

You have really made this past 9 months such a joy, Aryn, and I can't wait to see what else you'll learn this month. Mommy and daddy love you soooo much and we can't imagine our lives without you in it!!! Bauer... he'll grow to love you haha!

Happy 9 months, baby girl!!

And here are some videos!

Aryn and Daddy:

Aryn Laughing:

Aryn "Crawling":