Wonderlab

Yesterday we went to the Wonderlab Science Museum in Bloomington. Ellie's favorite part was the water table and Josie LOVED digging in the rock pit.

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Blueberry Picking (and eating!)

I was determined not to miss blueberry season this year and we finally were able to go picking on Friday. It was the first time for myself and the girls and we all had a great time! We found a wonderful place in the country near Lafayette and it was FULL of the best blueberries I've ever had. The absolute best part of it is that they are completely organically grown and therefore they encourage you to sample some right off of the bush since you don't have to worry about washing off any pesticides first. Josie took WELL advantage of this and ingested more blueberries than you could possibly imagine her little tummy could hold. She was in blueberry heaven!







Look how many blueberries she's eating! This went on almost the entire time we were there...

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Good News!

I just spoke with Josie's neurologist and the MRI showed no hydrocephalus and nothing else concerning. The only thing found was a small spot of something called a "nonspecific T2 white matter hyperintensity" on her left hemisphere of her brain, but the doctor said it is nothing to be concerned about and that she sees them often...usually without any explanation of why they are there. So, very good news! We still don't know what is causing her head to grow at a rapid rate, but at least we have now ruled out most of the bad things that could be causing it.

Only 3 of the 11 blood tests have come in and they are all normal so far, also. I will be sure to keep updating as we get the rest in.

Hurray for our healthy, amazing Josie!!!

MRI

We are already home (at 12:30 PM)! Everything went great. Josie came out of the anesthesia just fine and started asking for juice right away. She is, right at this moment, happy at home, sitting in her chair with a juice and a new Elmo coloring book...while her favorite Super Why episode is playing on TV. She couldn't be happier! And neither could we...I am so thankful that it all went well and that it is over! Thanks to everyone who was thinking and praying for her.

Oh, and the best part...they were able to get ALL her labs! It took them four tries, even though she was out, but they got them. Hurray!

Love This Dog...

Ellie has learned to do back flips over Charlie!


Josie likes to use him as a pillow.


Even baby Celia loves Charlie hugs.


These were all taken on the same day... We all sure love our Charlie Dog! :)

Josie Update

Josie will be having a MRI and MRA, with and without contrast, of her head and neck on Monday morning. She was referred back to her neurologist after a routine doctors appointment because her head size had increased, again, not just in size but in percentile on the chart. She also has some very prominent veins showing on one side of her face and neck that could indicate some kind of pressure building up in her head. One of the things they will be looking for on Monday is hydrocephalus (fluid on the brain). I'm a little nervous about the procedure because this is the first time she will have to go under general anesthesia and, also, the first time she will have contrast die put in her. The good thing about the anesthesia, though, is that they agreed to take her labs while she is out. After eight months of not being able to get any, we hopefully will finally get all the blood work we need to rule out a whole lot of things!

Please keep Josie in your thoughts and prayers on Monday!

(On a side note, Josie is still as much of a genius as ever... I have some videos I will work on compiling in another post of her telling her letters, numbers, shapes, colors, and some really cute singing ones. She is definitely not being delayed by whatever is causing her increasing head size!)

Art Museum

This morning we went to the Indianapolis Art Museum and, oh my goodness, it was awesome! The grounds, alone, are so amazing that we could have spent an entire day just doing those. The kids loved it! Every place your eye could see was something new and beautiful to try and take in. I did take a few pictures, but there was really no way to even come close to capturing the beauty of this place! And that was just the outside...










The inside was just as incredible!








We will definitely be going back to the art museum. It was only a 15 minute drive and free, believe it or not. It wore Josie out in a good way and made Ellie so happy. She has been talking about it non-stop all day and is already asking if we can go back tomorrow. :)

Barbie Ballerina Princess Party

Ellie had a great time celebrating 4 1/2 with her family!

WE LOVE SUMMER (June pics)

Ballerina Ellie

Ellie's professional pictures in her recital outfit... (taken 2 months ago)