It occurred to me today that I have not given a progress report on Lyla for a very long time! So here goes–

• On Dec. 28th she had another ultrasound to check how her kidneys/bladder are doing. It was encouraging–the hydronephrosis (swelling) of her right kidney has gone down, but is still not gone. Her right kidney will probably never be fully functional, which is okay because her left kidney is still in perfect working condition and is compensating for the right one. Also, the dilation of the right ureter has gone down. We are praying that both the right kidney and right ureter will continue to improve. You can join us in that if you want! She will have another ultrasound in May.

• She recently had her eyes checked and the opthalmologist still thinks her vision is fine and doesn’t think her occasional eye-crossing warrents any intervention. Also, next Wednesday (1/20) Lyla will be having a small procedure done to open up her tear ducts so her eyes won’t be watering all the time–I am looking forward to not having to always be wiping gunk out of them! She will be sedated for the (10 min) procedure, so after it’s done he’s going to do a thorough eye exam and the audiologist will be doing a hearing exam also–we’re going to get as much done while she’s sedated as possible! Please pray that all goes well that day. I’ll be working so Daddy gets to take her in.

• As far as physical development goes, Lyla is still not sitting up on her own. She is inching closer and closer though. I’m trying to work extra hard on her sitting up with a goal in mind–I’m hoping she’ll be able to sit up by May 1st because this is the day of Josh (Joel’s brother) and Bryana’s wedding and she is going to be in it! Bryana’s friend’s son will be pulling her down the aisle in a wagon–cuteness! Lyla’s arms and legs are getting stronger–you can tell if you watched the jumparoo video–she really likes to jump. 🙂 A few days ago the physical therapist from the Birth to 3 program gave us a stander for Lyla. We put her in it for about 20 minutes a few times a day. This will help her hip and knee joints to develop correctly. She looks SO tall in it! She will also soon be getting a neoprene (like wet suit material) onesie to help her posture–should be interesting. Joel just laughed and laughed when I told him about it (Lyla’s orthopaedist prescribed it)–Joel said we should take her scuba diving. 🙂

• Lyla’s personality is starting to come out more and more. She’s beginning to realize that she can make people laugh by making silly noises and faces. She likes to give super corny smiles once in awhile too. So funny! She still is not saying any words but likes to have funny sound conversations back and forth. I think she will be starting to work with a speech therapist pretty soon. She also likes to play gimme five. 🙂

• Lyla has been eating really well lately. She basically eats all things Gerber and about 2 or 3 bottles a day. We are starting to give her table food too–she loves little pieces of meat–she’s our little carnivore. You’d think she could eat a steak with all the teeth she has! We think she’s getting a molar on the bottom already.

• I am back to a scheduled position at the hospital. I’ll be working two 12-hour shifts a week. On days when both Joel and I are working, Joel’s mom will be taking care of Lyla–what a blessing! Also, we are strongly considering moving to Arizona this summer or fall. Now that Lyla is so stable and doing so well, we would like to give it a try. It would be so nice to be able to live close to my family, but there is also so much that we would miss here. I often feel very torn. But we are working toward moving there. Many pieces would need to fall into place–we would need to sell our house, and of course Joel would need to find a job with comparable pay in AZ. Then we would need to find a place to live there! (Though we could live with my parents in the mean time.) Anyway, we would covet your prayers in this area too-we are praying for wisdom in our decision-making. It is shaping up to be a very big year for us!

Anyway, here are some cute pics of Lyla Jane…

Lyla’s stander

Mommy & Lyla being silly (and staring at the lighted fan)

Lyla and I with our friends Michele and Bella 🙂

Thank you in advance for your prayers for Lyla and for us. And while you’re at it–send up a prayer for my dad–they found a spot on his lung when he had a chest x-ray done–he’ll be getting a CT done on the 25th to investigate further. Thanks and love to you!