RobertsFamilyBlog

We finally have our computer back - yea! :-) Things are going REALLY well these days. Just 45 min. after I wrote my last post, Dr. Carlson (Kahlia's Cardiologist) called and left a message for us. She said that because her oxygen sats are going lower, we will be doing another Cardiac Cath probably mid September - and she is hoping the Surgeon will place the stent this time to help her sats stay higher longer. That is good news.
Kahlia is now crawling more then she is scooting - that is GREAT news! She is getting stronger and stronger - and with that I am getting many more "mischief alerts"!! It's all good though - I like to see her "getting into things" - that means she is getting around enough to be able to get into mischief! Brendon and Makenna always yelled "mischief alert" with David (and boy did I have PLENTY!) - and now David LOVES to be able to yell those infamous words. :-)
This morning the physical therapists came out to the house to evaluate her. She did better then they had expected - so that's good! They said she is fine cognitively, and with her fine motor skills (though she has some catching up to do). She has VERY weak ankles - which very well could be why she has not begun to bear weight on them. She also has very low muscle tone which is linked neurologically, so all you can do is make the muscles stronger - she will always have low muscle tone. We need to buy very good quality leather, specifically Stride Rite shoes, for her which we hopefully can find in Eugene next week when I go for Kahlia's appt. there. The only concern is whether we can find supportive shoes in such a small size - she basically wears size 0-1. Hard to find something that is not soft and flexible when it is designed for a newborn! If we can't find a pair, or if it doesn't seem to help her, then we go to plan B - make something for in her shoe or actually have an orthotic made. We'll see, and we'll hope plan A works... :-)
Tonight she blessed me beyond words. As I was holding her in the dark getting ready to lay her down for bed - she reached out to feel my face, then leaned in and gave me a kiss!! Her kiss means mouth open wide and right on my lips!! It was the first time she actually initiated a kiss - I was absolutely amazed, but so excited to see her show signs of love, affection, and attachment to me and our family. She is now hugging stuffed animals, and pats me on the back when giving me a hug. Words cannot describe how happy and blessed that made me feel tonight.
Earlier today, Makenna made the comment "I wish I was Kahlia". I told her no you don't, why do you say that with all that she has to deal with? She said, "because she gets all the love and attention". Oh my - I never expected that from my quiet Makenna. It was actually good to hear that from her because she often doesn't let me know how she feels (unlike her big brother!) and I needed to hear that so I know to make extra efforts to let her know how much she is loved. It will be nice for Kahlia to begin walking, get through her heart and cleft palate surgeries so we can finally get back to a sense of normalcy with our family. Sadly, I don't see that happening anytime soon, so we will do our best to love ALL our kids the best that we can while giving Kahlia all the love and help that she needs to get well, and feel completely a part of our family. God is so good, and I know we are going through this journey to make us ALL stronger for it - including the kids - this is growing them more then they realize, and will look back on these days as good. There is enough love to go around. :-)