Friday, April 18, 2008

Lukey looks good in orange

Yesterday, lookin' good in his World Vision orange, Luke was finally introduced in person to my team that has prayed so diligently for him the past year and a half.

Each morning, teams at World Vision meet for 15-30 minutes for devotions. This is a time of small-group reflection/prayer/praise with co-workers before the start of the busy day. Yesterday was the first time I led a devotion since my maternity leave back in January of 2007. Since we are mostly through the nasty cold and flu season and have no upcoming surgeries, I felt comfortable bringing Luke into the office for the first time since he was born. To say this was a blessing and a celebration is an understatement! I was overwhelmed with emotion as I looked around the room at these faithful friends who had supported Rog and me through prayer. Prayers said on behalf of a little boy they had never even met. It reminded me of the great work World Vision does, helping the poor, the hungry, the oppressed — whom we may never meet — half a world away.

Luke is such an example of God's faithfulness, His trustworthiness, and His love for us. May his story of his heart always lead people to God through Christ.

Luke wearing his World Vision name badge

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Fun in the Sun

Puyallup saw it's first warm, sunny day in ages, so Grandma Yvonne took advantage and let Luke play outside all day. Here are a few pictures from his time in the sun. He is happiest when he's outside getting dirty. We also think he said two new words yesterday, "stick" and "dirt". Is he all boy or what??






Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Daddy's project

Rog spent several hours over his spring break building Luke a fantastic new play set! Luke has a lot of energy and likes to move from activity to activity, but when it comes to the swing, he's in no rush to get down. So, it's great that we can head out to our backyard to play instead of packing up to drive to the park. Thanks, Daddy!

Thought I would share a few photos of our new addition!



Monday, April 7, 2008

Happy Birthday Sweet Maddie

Today is Miss Madeline Lester's 4th birthday and she is celebrating with Jesus. We miss you, Maddie.

In honor of her, the Lester's church families in both Washington and Kentucky have organized blood and toy drives. You can donate blood in a location near you in Maddie's name and donated toys will benefit Seattle Children's hospital. Click here for more information if you are interested in donating (new, washable and non-toxic) toys in Maddie's memory.

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Our new best friend

I'm not sure if any of you have ever tried soynut butter, sibling to the more famous peanut butter. If not, I'd like to introduce you to our new best friend. We add it to bananas, toast, muffins, waffles and apples and Luke loves it. What's not to love? It's got fat, protein, calories and a not-too-horrible taste. The best part about our new friend? It's helped Luke hit the scales at 20 pounds 9 ounces this morning! That's up from 19 pounds 12 ounces two weeks ago. Putting him again at the 10th percentile for weight.

If you could see his growth chart, Luke's curve likes to be right around the 10th percentile, although he has been a bit above and below (well, waaay below in the weeks after his first surgery). This past month, he sat down around the 5th percentile, which caused some anxiety in the Smith household. Was this dip a symptom of Luke's heart function? Was his heart working overtime again? It was so nice to see this morning that Luke can dip a bit and then come back up, telling us that his heart is doing okay. Judy pointed out this morning that this is the danger of being weighed so often. Most kids probably have these exact same ups and downs, but the parents just don't know, eliminating some unnecessary anxiety ... the old "ignorance is bliss" expression comes to mind.

Rog and I are very thankful this morning to see Luke's weight gain, and are giving thanks again for the resource we've been given in Judy. She called him her poster boy for heart babies today. It's nice to hear someone else say what we have known all along!

Luke had his last RSV (Synagis) shot this morning for the season. Dr. Stefanelli will make the decision next fall whether he'll receive the shots next year. Mary Bridge is so fantastic, they gave Luke a Synagis "graduation" present and it couldn't be more appropriate: A froggy antibacterial soap dispenser!

We ask for prayer today for good sleep for Luke over the next couple of nights as some months after this shot he has had trouble sleeping through the night.

We give praise for Luke's continued healing from his cold (he's doing much, much better), for a great dietician's appointment, and for the medical technology to prevent kids like Luke from getting RSV.

Recent pictures

I wanted to post a few recent pictures of our little hero.

Tooth report: Luke has his 4 top teeth, 2 bottom teeth,
and 2 molars have just come through (ouch!)

He loves to play with his blocks! How could he
not? One of his grandpas is a home builder and
another is an architect!

He loves to "read" his books

Enjoying his bananas and soynut butter

Luke's Synagis "graduation" gift — very apropos!

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Tomorrow's Weigh-in

Tomorrow's the big "weigh-in" with our dietician. I asked Rog this morning what techniques wrestlers use who have to put on some quick pounds before their match and then suggested we do likewise =) I am feeling okay about the appointment — not an overwhelming amount of anxiety. I know that's because the Lord is working on my heart to continue to trust in Him. I would love to see an increase, but I also know that Luke looks fantastic, he's happy and has loads of energy. Those factors "outweigh" what the scale says. Wow, so many pun opportunities!

We make a quick stop at the infusion clinic first at 8:45am for Luke's last Synagis shot of the season. One more, buddy! Then we head upstairs to meet with Judy, our dietician at 9am. I'm thankful that Rog gets to go with me tomorrow, since he's on Spring Break. I will post after our appointment to let you know how it goes. Thanks for your prayers!