Hey! Hey! We're the Gramkows! Long OVERDUE Update

Hello Spring! We are SO glad you are here!
So here we go...quick Team Gramkow UPDATE! Long overdue...my apologies! The boys (Beckett and Davis) are napping, and Ellie is having reading and rest time, so here we go!

1. Beckett boy is now 18 months old! AHHH! He's growing up way to fast! He just hit his "adjusted age birthday" so developmentally he is 15 months! AND WE ARE FULL-FLEDGE WALKING! And he is even a climber now-a-days! Oh BOY! Boys are so different! For example: This morning we strolled to the park. Turns out it's a little different watching 3 kids at the park by yourself.
And with Beckett aka climber, brave pants, he may or may not have:
1. gone down the slide by himself head first where Ellie in front of him luckily caught him.
2. Lost his footing going up the stairs where mom caught him just in the nick of time.
3. went head first down the stairs where mom caught him just in the nick of time.
4. ate woodchips
5. licked the rock climbing wall as if that would help his leg lift
6. tryed to cimb and gnaw on the cement perimeter surrounding the playground.
7. ran NON stop like a wobbling zombie. (It's so cute. He is doing GREAT with uneven ground and different ground textures though!)
8. while swinging leaned forward so far I thought he was going to jump ship.

See I'm exhausted just writing about it. Talk about some boot camp training for this germ-a-phobe/worry-wart mom. I give up. Boys are just going to be boys. I guess this is part of it!

2. Yesterday was a SWEET day for Team Gramkow. And although it might not seem like a huge deal to everyone, it was to us. We went to church ALL FOUR of us! And mama was brave, well half-way brave. I kept Beckett with us during our Young/Marrieds class, but then did put him in the nursery during church. There were only two other kiddos in there, so that was comforting ;) But WOW...I can't believe how much I've missed that...missed sitting with Ben in church. We even stayed afterwards and "talked" to people. Like normal people do. It was a bit of a mixed emotion basket for me. It's almost like I was wanting to show off my baby...now that it was "safe"...but people don't notice an 18 month old like they notice a new baby in an infant carrier. Granted, our church has gone through a lot of turn over, but we're excited now that we've hired a new pastor! So not everyone knows our story...and that's ok...it'd not that they have to...I'm just sharing some perspective how it was a bit of mixed emotion. And I am so thankful for those who HAVE journeyed with us and celebrated with us when the Bman showed up for church with his new skills walking like a big boy down the hallway. It was a little hard though dropping him off. He did great, but as I looked at the other two kiddos...I knew who they were. I remember seeing one of their mamas pregnant when Beckett was in the NICU. It's hard because in some sense I feel like life has been on pause for the past 18 months. And I feel like I've missed out on a lot of my friends' kids' growing up! And I know I was where I needed to be, keeping Beckett home, but just hard. Constant re-focusing battle about choosing to celebrate where we are at NOW instead of grieving what we missed out on these past 18 months. So excited to get back into the swing of things that is for sure. AND after church we even went out to eat at a restaurant INSIDE (gasp). I know...growing experience for all of us. Beckett also chose to gnaw on the table that I had so kindly disinfected beforehand. But it was so good. It was a great FAMILY day for Team Gramkow out-and-about.

3. Bman's eyes are healing so well, and I do feel like his left one doesn't turn in as much. The bloody-ness is almost completely gone! We are back in a month, and we'll be able to tell more then if the surgery was a success. In the Physical Therapy world, Beckett is doing AWESOME! We actually got to decrease therapy to once a month, and then he might be discharged in a few! We are still watching his hips, as they are slightly misaligned when he walks, but this could also be a part of the learning and getting more comfortable. Our homework was to practice different walking surfaces like being outside, and I'd say he's passing with flying colors. He even likes to try and walk up slides. AND April 30 is our last Occupational Therapy visit, if he performs well on that day! We will miss Debbie so much since we've been with her since Beckett came home, but it's bittersweet! So proud of how far Beckett has come in the gross and fine motor skills!

4. Speech Therapy: We have felt that his Beckett Speech has progressed. He tries copying us a lot more with intonation and influctuation. Still no concrete animal sounds. (I seriously need to just move on, and get over that he might never say animal sounds!) But Ellie and I swear he said "Neigh" once. Also, we've incorporated the snake sound to the barnyard family. So he will copy and say "ssss" which is super cute! So it's a snake. I don't really like snakes, but I'll take it!
So his words are: All done (which he does sign too) which sounds like "Ah-du", daddy
He has quite a few in the jabber category. And he does sign All Done, "more" kind of...and he has done MILK once! (Well, repeated at one supper, but we haven't gotten him to do it again since!)
So I'm thinking next time our Speech Therapist comes we'll start increasing his frequency since he is making some steps forward with talking. Again, they say that this usually is the last to come after the gross and fine motor skills are developed.

5. Ellie. Oh my princess has actually been sporting the Rapunzel outfit daily for the past week. She prefers us to call her Rapunzel, and we usually get assigned a character as well. Even Davis. She also told me that she wants to grow her hair as long as Rapunzel's, so we shouldn't have to worry about any future scissor accidents, PRAISE JESUS! Her hair is growing out some, but she still asks me if it's long yet. :) I have to constantly remind her that "nope, not yet..it'll take a long time." She is reading SO well, and will sound out any word! We love going shopping together, although we have had to talk about manners, and I have gotten the occasional "Mom, shopping is boring" comment. She has really had a hard time lately with not having any friends her age to play with. This breaks my heart. I guess she's at the age where Mama, Beckett and Davis just aren't cutting it anymore. Hopefully if all goes well, she'll be back in "school" next year. I know she loves school! But man, I have so realized how impressionable she is at this age. Wow. Tough job for a parent at this age. Lot's of questions which require lots of on the spot answers. I so love how Ellie is just an encourager by nature. She cheers on her brother, and still will thank me when I bring home food from the grocery store. She's pretty much in love with Jon Jon, and does talk and SING about him often. It's a good thing their love is mutual. ;)

6. My life: Crazy busy, and I love it! I've really enjoyed getting my businesses off to a good start. I love learning about the scientific/medical side of the Rodan+Fields Dermatologists Skin Care stuff, and the Pixie Dots has been a fun creative component for me. I LOVE helping people, if you haven't noticed. I love that the Rodan+Fields products give hope for people who think there is none for their skin. I love that Pixie Dots hand stamped jewelry is a sentimental piece that has meaning for someone. Some have asked why I signed up for Pixie Dots. Well, through out my preemie journey x 2, I have encountered many mamas who have lost their babies. And I so wanted to give them something. Something to remember their sweet baby. I came across a website that talked about a necklace being a good gift, personalized....to remind mama that their sweet baby had life, had weight, and they can be reminded of that when they wear their mama necklace. So I also figured, if I'm going to gift these anyways, why not become a distributor to share this sentimental gift with everyone. So, this is it though. Only R+F and Pixie Dots for me. I love that my new jobs have so much personal meaning, can help bring in some income to Team Gramkow, and that I can still stay-at-home with my kiddos.

7. NICU Helping Hands. Oh, how I love giving back through this organization. I think we have about 30 walkers signed up with the NHH Team for the March of Dimes: March for Babies on April 20! This will be so fun to meet the families and miracle babies of my fellow preemie mom's group members! The mom's group meetings continue to be such a great healing component for me, and I just love connecting and encouraging other preemie mamas! AND what's even more exciting is that NHH has allocated more financial resources for our NICU Mom's CONNECT in next year's budget! WAHOO! So the main NHH fundraiser is coming up on May 9, Burgers for Babies, and Team Gramkow is going to try and get a table again this year! $3000 to raise...so we shall see! If you'd like to donate to this cause, please let me know! I will have more details about this tomorrow, as it will be one month out! If you want to come with us this year too, let me know!!

8. NHH Angel Gowns - Does anyone want to donate their wedding dress to NICU Helping Hands to turn them into angel gowns for our babies who have gone too soon? If you do have a daughter, or want a keepsake, they will also make a bridal piece for her bouquet out of your dress for you to have. And the coolest part...some of my fellow preemie mom's group members are helping sew them! But we need more seamstresses too!

Isn't this such a beautiful thing? I'll be donating my dress once my mom can dig it out of the closet!! :) I'm so thankful that Ellie will have a little keepsake from it though.

Ok...well, time is up... I hear a crying 4-year old who is probably bored of reading and rest time. ;)
More later,
Mandy