Video, Day 4 ~ says "Da Da" and "Ma ma"

Since the day I brought Cayman home from the hospital I have always snuggled her next to my side to read her all the comments posted.

Mike and I find everyone's comments and emails so uplifting. It feels great to know people care. Reading the comments to Cayman has been my way of making sure she knows you all love her so much too!!

Lisa recently said in this post:

What could be better for a child's development than a sense of security and the feeling of love?

I believe that is so true and is the very reason why I have always read Cayman the comments that are left on this blog. It is just another way I can surround her with that developmental feeding love!

Now that she is getting older, it's becoming a bit more difficult to snuggle her next to my side and have my laptop sitting there with us. Her legs are getting longer and stronger, and she finds it hilarious to kick the keyboard.

Correction; she finds it hilarious when I tell her "No" when she kicks the keyboard. She is so darn cute the way she does it, I have to force a stern tone. Not that it matters because to her, Mommy is just playing another game.

So in this video you will see her doing that, as well as playing some Peek-a-boo {she's getting very good at it and does it all the time now}, and she even says, "Da" {Dad}.

At the very end I added another video of her saying, "Ma ma", which was her first word a few weeks ago.

No matter how many hundreds of times Mike and I watch this video, every time our hearts just melt!

Video, Day 3 ~ Eating by Herself

Today's video was filmed by Mike.

I now know why whenever he is in charge of feeding Cayman, how food ends up everywhere...in her hair, on the walls, on the floor...

In the beginning part of the video Cayman continuously picks up her wash cloth and brings it to her face. She does not put it in her mouth or chew on it. She just keeps putting it to her face. We think she might be trying to wipe her mouth with it like we do after she is finished eating.

Mike started to film this video from a far. Cayman did not know he was there. A little bit into the video Daddy speaks her name and she instantly looks up. She could just be responding to a voice breaking the silence but there has been enough encounters of her responding specifically to her name that we do feel confident that she does know it. Either way, it's always a comfort to see her react to noise. Remember back in the fall when the medical professionals thought she might have hearing issues?

Another unique part of the video is when Cayman's exploring and playing with all the items on her tray. When Daddy speaks to her, she sees him and holds out the item in her hand, as if to show him what's she got.

The absolute best part of the video though is when she tries to feed herself. She's a smart little cookie and figures it out. Spoon feeding herself is something that rarely happens. In this video is the first time she has ever done it.

Video, Day 2 ~ Ice Cream

Cayman's reaction in this video is simply priceless!!!

Daddy gives Cayman a bite of ice cream. Her little brow raises, she begins to make a nasty face, and at first you think she's not going to like it, but then a big smile of satisfaction stretches across her face and she wants more!!

Video, Day 1 ~ Therapies

I love to take pictures! I have oodles and oodles of files on my computer full of pictures and videos. My scrapbooks and frame displays throughout our house reveal that obsession too.

It never gets old looking back through them all.

That is what Cayman and I were doing last evening. We watched several of the videos taken in the last 13 months. It's incredible how far she has come.

Lately, she's hit a stretch where she is doing so many new things. We've been getting out the camera a lot and capturing it all!!

This week I will be sharing a different video each day.

The video I picked to share with you today is from last week's therapy session.

Cayman meets with her Physical and Occupational Therapist once a week, and her Speech Therapist joins them every other week. The video was taken during a week when all three of them were there.

Ohio State Spring Game

On Saturday we traveled to Columbus, OH to join Mike's family at The Ohio State University's Spring Game. On the way we picked up my brother {Uncle Tyson} and he joined us as well.

It was a beautiful day, very warm {85 degrees}, sunny, with a strong breeze that kept the hot day comfortable.

95,722 Buckeye fans showed up for the Spring Game, setting a new attendance record.

Here's a slideshow of the momentous day.



Before we opted to take Cayman out for the whole day, I called the Neurosurgeon's office just to make sure it was OK. I talked to the receptionist and left this message with her:

We would like to attend a college's football spring game and wanted to know if it was ok for Cayman to go with it only being 12 days post-op for her.

Notice I only said, "a college's football spring game." It felt a little awkward to call U of M and ask for "permission" to attend an Ohio State game. So I decided to leave out the extra details and go for the bare minimum. However, my plan did not work out so well.

A few hours later when the nurse practitioner returned my phone call, she asked where we were going.

She just had to ask.

The nurse practitioner had a good sense of humor and chuckled over my awkwardness.

She told me to have fun, Cayman was great to go, just keep a hat on to protect her scar from the sun, and she hopes both sides lose! :)

It's Official

In the last week I have talked to the Orthotics Clinician, the P.T., and the O.T. It was a unanimous response...

no more helmet for Cayman

Cayman returned to therapy this week for the first without the helmet since February. Her P.T. and O.T. marveled over the difference in Cayman's cooperativeness and happiness.There is a small bit of disappointment that the helmet did not work out.

The clinician suggested referring her to a surgeon that could perform cosmetic surgery to fix her bumpy forehead. But in my opinion, who cares about a bumpy forehead. There are so many things in life that have great value, and my thoughts are outward appearance is not one of them!

It's official...Cayman is beautiful just the way she is!!

Cayman's Room

Little by little, I inch my way to complete Cayman's room. It is not finished yet. I have a few more projects to complete, but it's getting close to being done.

Do you remember the before?


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Here's the After


{more pictures to come when I have it completed}

Easter Saturday

Cayman's shunt revision last week put a different curve on my posting events for that Easter weekend.

We sadly could not join the Stamm's for their family festivities on Easter Sunday, but we were able to enjoy most of the day on Saturday with my family.

Here are some pictures from that day.A cheesy self portrait of us driving to Grandma Cindy and Grandpa Kary's house.

There's Cayman in the back, safely strapped in and playing with her most favorite toy.

Here's my feet, basking in the warm sun, modeling a pair of socks I knitted a few years ago.

Playing some basketball - Uncle Tyson, Daddy, and soon to be new cousin Shon {Aunt Stacey and Uncle Dan are adopting him. We are happy to have Shon in our family.}

Cayman cuddling with her Aunt Stacey.

Cuddling with Daddy. Cayman slept most of the day. She just was not feeling well.

Shon and Madison getting ready to hunt for Easter eggs.

Their Easter baskets!

A little fire pit for making smores....yum!!

My most favorite Easter tradition, egg coloring.

About five minutes into it, Madison left the table, sat down on the couch and began to cry. It was the sounds of a long day filled with fun, but no nap!!

So Cool

How do you take your bottle?

Cayman prefers to take it in a leg crossed, so cool position!

Cayman's Favorite Toy...

Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes

They are inseparable.

Mike

My husband.

Anyone that knows Mike or at least has seen pictures of him, can know right away, that this man is a proud Ohio State Buckeye fan. His wardrobe mostly consists of:

• Buckeye hooded sweatshirts.
• Buckeye T-shirts.
• Buckeye gym shorts.
• Buckeye hats.
• Buckeye watch.
• He even has Buckeye Crocs.

You can imagine the attention his wardrobes brings to us when we are at the U of M hospital. I always explain to people that he truly is not trying to be a rebel on their grounds. The man just has nothing else to wear.

There are so many more things I could share about Mike. Here are just a few more:

• He loves his job. He is an Engineer for a Candy Company. Some days he gets to be a candy taste tester too. He likes that. :o)
• He graduated from The Ohio State University.
• He is the love of my life.
  
• He is an adoring father.

• He will never get too old for video games. He has an XBox 360 and a Wii.
  
• His new favorite toy...The Ipod Touch, bought with his winnings from The Biggest Loser Contest at his work. He lost 45 pounds!!
• He needs me to keep him organized {that's my gentle way of saying, he's a slob}.
  
• He wants his own boat someday.

• He is a fantastic cook! He could seriously create his own cookbook.
• Everyday he makes me laugh.
• His favorite baseball team...Cleveland Indians.
• He is adventurous. He loves roller coasters...the faster, the higher, the better.
• A Loving Husband...everyday he melts my heart.
• A Proud father...everyday Cayman melts his heart.
  
• An Amazing man.

And today is his birthday.

I would love it if you hopped on over to his SEVERELY neglected blog {he's more of a facebook kind of guy}, and leave him a comment. He has been telling me for months that when he receives 10 comments he will post again.

Please help me out on getting him to blog again! :o)

Click here.

Blocks

I really wanted some blocks for Cayman to play with. Not just any blocks. They had to be small enough for her petite little hands to hold and pick up. For her birthday, Cayman's Aunt Stacey and Uncle Dan gave her this beautiful block set. They are the perfect size for her tiny hands. She loves them!!

**Cayman has made a 100% turn around. She is feeling great. We can see that through her smile and laughter. She is eating well, no vomiting, no fussing, and she stays awake with lots of energy-kicking her feet, clapping, and rolling. Her noises fill own home with so much joy!

There's No Place Like Home

We have enjoyed being back home and having Cayman feeling much better. With the stress of all that behind us, we are ready for some R & R to recharge our batteries.

I noticed today, our batteries are not the only ones that need recharged after this last hospital stay.

Have a listen...

Going Home

Cayman is getting unhooked from all her wires and tubes and we are going home!!!

{A balloon from her little boyfriend Matthew}

What's Up with the Feet?

Cayman has very messy hair, dried Betadine, and a bandage all on her head . But she doesn't notice any of that......She just wants to know, What's up with my feet?

Cayman had a great night. She was up late {til 1 a.m.} but once she went to sleep she slept the whole night. What an encouragement that is. Hopefully that means her normal sleeping pattern will not get messed up from this hospital stay.

In rounds this morning, Dr. Maher said discharge would most likely occur today! :o) That calls for big smiles!