Freedom!

Well, it was a joyous morning last Tuesday when I was finally able to take the arm immobilizers off and give Anna her bottle again.  I had thought about how great it would be if I cut back on her bottle, since she hadn't had it for the 2 weeks after her surgery, but I gave in pretty quickly.  Anna is still pretty attached to her bottle, so I am happy to give in at this point.  She has lost about 2 pounds since her surgery, but I anticipate she will gain those back quickly.  Poor Anna has had a rough couple of weeks, which was anticipated.  She certainly is happier to have those terrible things off her arms, but I will say that she is not as overjoyed with life as I had hoped.  I think she is still adjusting to all the changes in her mouth, and I also think she got used to me holding her ALL the time.  I am thankful, however, that she has found such comfort in my holding her after this past surgery.  While I think she took comfort with us after her first surgery, we had only known each other for a few weeks - but now I can tell a huge difference in how she responds to me, David, and the boys.

In other news, I attempted put her sweet little hair into 2 tiny ponytails tonight.  Some friends inspired me to try it, and I think it actually helps take away from the mullet look that she has been sporting.  I am thankful that her hair is growing out, but it has been growing out into a pretty serious mullet.  I have had a few people ask me if I have had it cut like that - and the answer is definitely NO!  So, despite Anna's protests, she ended up with 2 uneven ponytails.  I anticipate some serious hair battles ahead of me...

Not too bad for my first attempt with a squirming baby

It is clear from all the tears that Anna did not appreciate my hairdressing attempt

When Will walked into Anna's room, he was very impressed with her new ponytails and said (with a lot of 4 year old expression), "Oh, Anna, you look SO pretty!  You are BEAUTIFUL!"  He then promptly attempted to add another ponytail without success.

Oh, Mom, I can't believe you are letting Will fix my hair!

My sweet little Alex helped me with dinner tonight, and in an effort to be kind, I let the boys have hamburgers with bell peppers on the side instead of the stuffed bell peppers that David and I had.  Alex participated happily in cooking, and he was very proud of his results.  

Hooray for Alex!

And one last thought - it has been pretty amazing to me to think that I saw Anna's picture for the 1st time a little over a year ago.  I got the call on January 18th last year, and I'll never forget waiting for her pictures and information to pull up on my computer, sitting there with David.  It is pretty nostalgic, and I'm so grateful to have this precious little girl in our family.