Now for something completely different

A post about my kids. Shocking, I know.

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Four months. That's how long it has been since my daughter had a seizure. That makes me wanna do a happy dance. Jiggity jig. That's the easy answer to the question about how Ella is doing. If you want to focus on things like development or long-term prognosis it requires no less than ten minutes of your time and an internet connection to better assist me in diagramming the brain (just ask Sara who asked about Ellie last night--thanks, my friend, for wanting to understand the full picture). I jest. Mostly.

It's complicated though. I have adopted the phrase, "she's doing great, considering. . ." and then I trail off. Because we have been to the brink and know how devastating infantile spasms can be, but it's hard to paint that picture for anyone else who is removed from the situation. I really don't want to be overly dramatic or doomy and gloomy about it. But without showing people just how catastrophic IS can be, they don't have context for understanding how well Ellie is really doing.

Even so, I've learned that other folks just want the cliff's notes version, and that's okay too; sometimes it's enough just to say, "Yep, she's doing great--4 months without seizures. Thank you for praying." and leave it at that.

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Cooper went to the dentist for the first time today. He did really well, and I am completely proud of him. I know that I'm not objective in the least when it comes to my kids, but I kinda think he makes a really good impression on other people--like his zeal for life rubs off on them and brightens their day. I could be wrong (and again COMPLETELY biased), but I think people remember interacting with him. I just love watching him work the room; it's something to behold, that's for sure.

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Jackson continues to be a little sponge, soaking up as much information as possible. His thirst for knowledge is unquenchable (is that a word? i typed it and now i'm all unsure about it). He asks about God and the world and how babies get into mommies' tummies (yeah, pretty much asked about sex the other day) and so many other things and has this amazing empathy for others all of a sudden. Like he can understand that other people experience things differently than he does and that their lives are separate from his. I don't have a sophisticated enough vocabulary to explain it unfortunately, but it's like a switch came on and he can take ideas and run with them to predict future occurrences. He asks a. lot. of questions, but they are such intelligent ones that I am really enjoying the conversations that come from answering them. So neat to see the world through his eyes. I really hope I can continue to choose to answer them honestly and not grow fatigued by the sheer frequently and quantity of them.

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Let's try not to psycho-analyze my choice to put the following news to the bottom of a lengthy post about my kids too much, but I would be remiss if I did not mention that today is our eighth wedding anniversary. God has been faithful to us, and we are so blessed. I love you, Chris! Thanks for walking through this life with me. I wouldn't have it any other way.

♦