Happy Saturday!

I'm happy to say that I think we are all on the mend at our house! What a crazy couple of weeks of being sick! Rebekah ended up having an ear infection before all was said and done, but she is feeling much better now after a few days of antibiotics. Please pray that Rebekah (and the rest of us!) stay well between now and next week!

We received "official" papers in the mail this week regarding Rebekah's heart catheterization. I know it's been scheduled for months, but it always makes it seem more real when we get the official paperwork. I still don't know what time Rebekah's cath is scheduled, but I'm hoping that it's first case. Last March Rebekah was scheduled for 2nd case (11:00) and the first case went long. It was between 1:00 and 2:00 when she finally got back for her case. We also don't know what to expect from the case itself. The last cath Rebekah had was strictly exploratory. This time, there will be procedures done, if there is anything that can be done to help relieve Rebekah's high pressures. As of the last discussion our cardiologist here had with the surgeon, Dr. Bradley did not really think there would be anything that could be done in the cath lab to relieve the pressure, but they will be checking. Dr. Baker will be the doctor doing the cath. He has done all of Rebekah's caths so far.

In other (great!!) news, Rebekah has tested out of occupational therapy!! We love Rebekah's OT, but are thrilled that Rebekah has made such great progress in just 18 months. When we looked back at Rebekah's goals from last April, there were things such as "clap hands" and "roll over" listed for her goals. Now, Rebekah is almost age-appropriate in every area. We are so thankful for our great therapists and their hard work with Rebekah. We're pretty proud of our little superstar, too! Rebekah has so much determination and desire to do more. She rarely lets anything slow her down!

Rebekah's speech is exploding by the minute! I'm going to attempt to list words and phrases that Rebekah says. I'm sure there are words that I'm forgetting, but even so, it's getting to be a long list!

Words Rebekah Says

mommy

daddy

zac (sounds like gac)

justin (ju-in)

aaron (sounds like "hen" without the "h")

caleb (sounds a lot like bubba)

baby

up (means up or down)

please (peese)

thank you (ga-ooo)

eye

bye

night-night (ni-night)

apple

buckle

bubble

outside (side)

drop it

got it

all done

love you

grampy (sounds like bampy)

grammy

dog (woof-woof, yep she barks for dog)

nana

papa

uncle david (day-ya)

no

look

potty (this one compliments of potty-training Caleb!)

Words Rebekah Signs

play

eat

milk

yes

no

jump

ball

cookie

please

Rebekah's receptive language is astounding. Even though she can't say a lot of the words, she can recognize most common animals (pets and farm animals), almost all her colors, and most of her toys. We're working on her choosing between two or three things. For example, if she has a doll, a ball and a book in front of her, we ask her to pick up the ball correctly the first time.

Rebekah is really walking all over the place now! She is walking at least half of the time without prompting. We are so excited that she is getting stronger and more stable. What a miracle this little girl is!

The other night at dinner, Aaron was playing with Rebekah. He was holding his nose and snorting, so this is Rebekah's attempt at holding her nose and snorting. I thought it was so funny! Then Rebekah shows off her knowledge of body parts. See? Even though she doesn't say the words for all of those things, she knows what they are and can point to them.

Better get some Saturday chores done now. Hope you all enjoy this beautiful weekend!!

Nancy