Introducing Pac Man

Many of you already know. A lot of you have seen the video. Haddie's expression is priceless. In case you missed it here you go:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYanSY2HyLc

Yep. That's a heartbeat! And it's not mine, Kate's or Haddie's! We are expecting! Haddie's brother or sister has a due date of August 18th which currently puts Kate at 13 weeks. We found out before Christmas but decided to keep it quiet until we met with the doctor, had the ultrasound, and heard the heartbeat.

Obviously we are a little nervous. If you couldn't tell from the previous 113 post...Hadassah Marie has kept us on our toes for almost 3 years! But we are excited and blessed to have this opportunity again. The doctors at CHOP told us in 2013 that we'd have to wait two years to try again and we'd have to have a C-section. Otherwise everything should go fine for our second pregnancy. And so far, so good. Both the ultrasound and the heartbeat were good. Our doctor says we will probably deliver a couple weeks prior to Aug 18th to ensure Kate doesn't go into labor.

We have also decided not to find out what we are having. We tried that last time and it didn't work out. Every ultrasound we had before Haddie was born we told them not to tell us the gender. We forgot to mention that when a doctor asked us to read through an MRI report. So this time we will go for the surprise again. So until then, Pac Man will be the name. (Some of you video game types will make the connection from Pac Man to Frogger) If we end up having a girl we'll just tell her she was "Miss Pac Man" all along and we didn't know!

God is good and we are very happy to let you all in on this. We ask for your prayers. Most issues occur in the first trimester and we are almost out of that. But we didn't find out about Haddie's condition until the 22 week ultrasound...so obviously we are still a little nervous. Kate has been feeling okay. No morning sickness but she has had some pretty rough headaches and even a couple of migraines the last few weeks. But all in all she is doing well.

We thank you for your prayers and support. It means a lot to us. And as always...God is good.

Quick February Update

Thought I'd just share a little of what's been going on with Haddie for those of you that want to know. She's doing pretty well these days. Still scooting when she crawls and she gets in that mood maybe 3 times a week. She's doing very well with her therapies and working her switch toys. She seems to be more alert than ever. We've lowered her seizure meds a little bit and she's reacted fine. We met with a dietician this past week and she felt Haddie was doing well. She's plateaued a bit so we need to increase her calories some but overall Had is eating and drinking well.

And that's about it really. It's so crazy to have a sense of normality considering how hectic the first year or so was. I was reminded of this when I was at Akron Children's hospital this past week. Haddie and I hopped in an elevator and a guy my age walked in as well. He looked beat. I asked him how he was and he said "so, so. We've been in and out since August". I knew what that meant. In the hospital, things get better, you get out and before you can get settled you're back in the hospital. I told him I'd been there and simply encouraged him to hold on and hang in there. I wish I could've said more before he got off the elevator.

People often ask why I don't update this more. The main reason is there isn't a ton to update. Haddie continues to impress us with her growing abilities and her funny personality. We are so blessed to have calm and uneventful days and months. We know full well that could change in an instant so we try not to take that for granted. But I am humbled that people still ask and ant to know. That tells me that Haddie has a special place in a lot of peoples hearts.

Thanks for your prayers and thoughts!