The Mini Mister Eating

I may be a bit obsessed by his eating but after so long in the hospital and even longer being tube feed I'm very excited to watch him eat. He is doing so well.

He is learning to eat with a fork and is getting very good at it.

Photos of the Mini Mister

I love these pictures of the Mini Mister. He looks so sweet and adorable. He is definitely entering 2 though. I think he heard he has to be terrible when he is 2 and decided to practice. So, don't let these pictures fool you.

Cheese Toast -- Yum!

This is a new favorite of the Mini Mister. He loved it and ate it up. So, I guess we will have cheese toast often.

My new nephew

Isn't he adorable. He isn't here yet but this is the ultrasound picture (of course). I just think he is already too cute for words. It is amazing the pictures they can get with ultrasound these days. You can see so much detail. He is due to arrive Thanksgiving. I can't wait to hold him and kiss those sweet little cheeks. Keep on growing sweet little Houston and when you get here I will spoil you rotten.

A Very Sad Story

Sunday morning on my way to church I stopped by my parents' house to pick up something. My Granny lives with them so I spent a few minutes talking to her. As I was leaving I looked at her and she looked so distraught. I asked her what was wrong and she began sobbing into her hands. I have NEVER seen her cry like this. I ran to her and knelt at her chair and asked her what was wrong. She told me that she was depressed because she woke up this morning. She had prayed she would die in her sleep. We sat there just sobbing together. She said that she is in the way and a bother and that her body and mind are falling apart. I reassured her she wasn't and that we take care of her because we love her. She can hardly walk and spends most of her day in a wheelchair. She is so weak she can hardly go anywhere. She hurts and is just plain miserable. She is dependent on others for her care. She began to feel better after a good cry and I finally went to church. I just wanted to stay with her but Leopold was depending on me to bring him something. After church we picked her up so she could see Yellow Bird in her gymnastics competition. She was so tired when we were done but she loved every minute of it. I kept asking her the whole time if she were OK because I told her I would take her home whenever she needed to go. She said she was fine but I could see in her eyes she was so tired. She wasn't leaving for anything. I hate that she feels like she is a bother to us. I feel that taking care of her is honoring her the way Scripture commands. She has been such a wonderful Granny that caring for her is a blessing. Life gets so busy but I'm making more of an effort to spend more time with her. She is lonely and loves the company. Just keep praying for her. I don't like my Granny suffering so much.

Organ Donors

I've taught my children a kind of bad thing. When driving down the rode and I would see someone riding a motorcycle without a helmet I would call them organ donors. I didn't think much about it until my children started in on it. In adult ICU work that is what we call people who ride motorcycles without helmets. It seems so senseless. What really made this come to light for me was when I worked in the adult ICU. I was taking care of a 21 year old guy who was in a motorcycle wreck. His body was amazingly unharmed with the exception of massive head trauma. I spent the day caring for him but more importantly comforting his grief stricken mother. He died. It all seemed so senseless. Had he had a helmet on he would have been fine. Probably would have walked away. Instead I was left to comfort his mother whose grief was overwhelming. I have never understood the need to ride a motorcycle without a helmet. Medical science can fix a lot of injuries but your brain is the only one you have and ever will. If it gets messed up you are messed up. You have to wear a seat belt in a car but not a helmet on a motorcycle. I guess the motorcycle lobby is stronger than the car lobby. Anyway, I've explained to them why I never want them on a motorcycle without a helmet (I really don't ever want them on one period). I never want to be that grieving mother.

Sophie

Texas City Dike -- Gone!!!

Well the TC Dike is still there but all the buildings are gone. So sad.

I love Quasimodo

Leopold was helping a friend with the downed trees in her yard and got into some poison oak/ivy. His eye got so swollen. He is on steroids now and getting better. I told him he looked like Quasimodo. He laughed. Glad he has a sense of humor.

Random Pictures

No one can rock the Mini Mister to sleep better than Grampy.
A ride in the wagon with Yellow Bird.
Yellow Bird relaxing in the pool.

Sasha and the Mini Mister swimming together.

The Mini Mister is walking all over the place now. Another wagon ride.

I'm not sure why but the Mini Mister likes putting shoes on his hands and crawling around.

Playing ball with a friend at church. They were rolling it back and forth. The Mini Mister is really learning to play well with other children.

The Mini Mister loves Granny's dog Missy.

Shopping at Home Depot.

At a park.

Hanging out.

Granny and the Mini Mister. She adores him so much.


Leopold and the girls rode out Hurricane Ike by learning to play poker. They used baby blocks as chips.

More hanging out.

Wearing his sister's heels.

Reverting to the Motor Boat days.

Hiding in the cabinet.

I Survived Ike

Most of the fences around here look like the first picture. But... the fence Leopold has been building for the past month stood up to Hurricane Ike! He is so proud. As we drive around seeing all the fences down it is nice to come home and see ours standing tall and proud.

A Favorite Past Time

This is a favorite past time for the Mini Mister. He likes to take all the wipes from the box and spread them around. Of course when I put them back in they don't pop-up like they should. He also likes to throw something on the floor and then say "uh-oh". I keep telling him that if he throws it down on purpose it isn't an uh-oh but he still does it. It is hard not to laugh. He is so cute.

Weariness abounds

As I look around there are so many weary faces. I think the reality of the devastation of Galveston is settling in on many. They are saying it will be 2-4 weeks before the hospital opens again. I'm not sure about the schools. Leopold and I are blessed in that we are paid during all this but there are many who aren't getting paid because businesses aren't open. Continue to pray. This is going to be a long ride. We still don't have power at our house and are staying with my parents. With the look at the amount of trees down by our house I'm sure it will be a while before power is restored. One small blessing, Sonic opened today. It may seem like a trivial thing but it never tasted so good. Continue to pray! There are a lot of pictures of all Ike did at www.galvnews.com.

Sophie

Pray for Galveston

This picture is of Seawall Blvd. Please pray for those on Galveston island. The island has been devastated by Hurricane Ike. UTMB will be at least a week without power and it is the number 1 priority. There is no power, water, sewer, food. They are busing people off the island who chose to stay now. There has been loss of life. The causeway was damaged so with Surfside and Bolivar inaccessible there is no route to the island. It has been completely shut down with the exception of an emergency lane. I wondered if we were doing the right thing evacuating the hospital. I'm so glad we did. Life there is miserable. Pray for all those who are there, for the rescue workers on the island and all those stranded there. Leopold and I will not be able to return to work for some time. I'm sure the hospital will be up and running before the schools. They are trying to figure out how to relieve those workers who are at the hospital now. Just pray for peace and for safety. It is far worse than anything anyone could have predicted. Complete buildings and homes are gone as if they never existed. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks,
Sophie

Here Comes Ike!!!!!

Ike is getting closer and it looks like we will be a direct hit. We are about to head out to my parents' house where we will ride it out. The girls are scared so pray for their little nerves. They think it will strengthen to a 3 before hitting but it isn't as organized and strong as they had previously predicted. There is some flooding already in Galveston and there isn't any rain, it's the storm surge. That is the biggest fear, the water. I will update you all as I can. My parents will have power thanks to the generator but I'm not sure an Internet connection will be available.

Sophie

Please Pray for my Granny

This may seem like a strange prayer request but please pray that God will call my Granny home. She is in so much pain and suffering greatly. I love her and will miss her more than my words here can say but she is ready. She said she has lived a long, good life and is ready to go home and really wants to see my Granddaddy again. He died 20 years ago and she misses him so much. Her doctor says there isn't anything she can do for her and that her body is dying. I just don't want her to suffer anymore. So, please join me in this simple request that God will call her home and end her pain. Also, please pray for my parents. She lives with them and is beginning to require a lot of care. My parents aren't young themselves and it is physically demanding on them.

Sophie

Proud of Where I Work

You can read the story in the Houston Chronicle here. Here are some pictures from the evacuation. I thought you might enjoy them. Makes me proud of where I work and all those I work with. We all pulled together to get this done. We may not be the fanciest hospital in the world but we offer some of the finest medical care around. This has never been more evident than today.

Sophie

Battening Down the Hatches

Here's a rather menacing picture. Isn't he getting so big. That's not a good things BTW.

Well, we dodged Gustav but it doesn't look like we are going to miss good, ole' Ike. He is on his way and we look like we will get a pretty direct hit with the wet side of the storm hitting us. I spent many hours during the night and this morning helping evacuate the hospital. This is the second time in history we have done this. We had 53 babies alone to evacuate but received a lot of help from Houston hospitals and such. It isn't easy getting that many babies plus all the other patients in the hospital out of harm's way. But, it is being done. After being awake for over 30 hours I headed home. I was wiped out. Absolute team work was the only way it could be done. I've never seen so many ambulances and aircraft in one place. It was insane.

We will be staying with my parents as of now. They have a mighty fortress for a home. Please pray for everyone involved. Hurricanes aren't fun and can be very dangerous. Our computer is now fixed so I will post very soon. Well, as soon as Ike allows.

Love,
Sophie

Oh Gustav!!!!

As of now we aren't to be a direct hit but I'm not so sure I trust this storm. It is a monster of a storm. I've lived on the coast all my life and I'm use to hurricanes. This one is so big and strong. Let's pray for those who are impacted. As of now things are business as usual for us so I guess they are pretty sure we aren't getting it. We aren't evacuating the hospital and with 50 NICU babies I'm thankful for that. Don't want to do that again. I'll keep you posted. Our computer is still not working, partly because I've been too busy to get it taken care of. I'll post soon. Tons of pics to get on here.

Sophie

I'm a 10!

I'm not bragging, although my sweet Leopold would think I'm a 10. I'm referring to the fact that my hemoglobin is now 10. Yeah! I never thought I would be so excited to have a double digit hemoglobin but I am. My iron levels are still very low so I will receive IV iron again this week and then next month. My hematologist says if that doesn't do it then he will drop the "atom bomb iron" on me. My comment to him was "say what!!!" He very casually said that it could cause a fatal allergic reaction (like that was an every day occurrence in my life). He then told me that is why he would admit me to the hospital to give it -- so I could be monitored. My Ob-Gyn called me a medical marvel because I seem to do the most remotely possible medical things. Those small chances of 1-2% of the normal patient population are usually 100% for me. So, to say the "atom bomb iron" makes me a tad nervous is an understatement. Hopefully the regular (non-fatal, allergic reaction) iron will do the trick. Let's all pray that. The first dose did very little so I'm concerned. I'll keep you posted. Life is never boring.

Sophie

Update

We are alive and well. Both girls were at camp last week. Sasha at Youth Camp (she can't be old enough) and Yellow Bird at Horse Camp. Leopold was at a teaching conference all week that he likes to refer to as Teacher Camp (he was a wee bit jealous of the girls). So, keeping in line with the rest of the family, The Mini Mister and Mommy had our own little camp.

I did receive my blood transfusion and am feeling much better. I'm now in the 9's. Yeah me!

I have pics to share but the computer has died and I can't find the installation disk. I will either have to find it or order a new one. So, as soon as things are fixed I will post.

Just letting everyone know that we are alive and well.

Love,
Sophie