For the first time in 80 years, we had a white Christmas in Dallas, TX. Can you believe it?! There is snow everywhere! The storm came through on Christmas Eve and started to melt by the next day, but there are still some patches of ice and snow on the ground. It has been very exciting for the boys…Evan and Daddy made some snowballs and threw them in the street (or at least Manish claims that is what he threw them at). Ethan, on the other hand, would not touch the snow because it was “dirty,” and he was very concerned about it getting the cars dirty! Aiden, of course, is more interested with his little toy cars than anything else. The boys are in love with the Christmas lights, and every time we see a light display, they beg to “find more Christmas trees, pleeeeeeeeeeassse?” As we were driving the other day, we saw a lighted nativity scene, and were trying to explain it to the boys. As we drove away, Ethan very sweetly said, “Find more baby Jesus, please?”
The boys loved opening their Christmas presents, and ‘helping’ everyone else, too! They are old enough now to enjoy opening gifts and are beginning to understand the concept of gift-giving. Although it was a very hectic day for everyone, the best part by far was watching the kids enjoy opening their gifts.
Aiden Update:
The doctors in Boston helped identify the cause of the bleeding and it has now almost completely stopped. He is still having some episodes of pain, but they are not as frequent as they were previously. They believe that the undiagnosed J-tube problems caused so much trauma and irritation to the tract that he developed ulcers in his large intestines. Unfortunately, there is not much that can be done other than correcting the problem and waiting for them to heal. Because the site was so inflamed and irritated, the surgeon had to put in a longer tube until some of the swelling had gone done. Since the swelling has gone down, that tube is now too large and has started causing some irritation. On Monday (12/28), Aiden will have a minor surgical procedure to replace that J-tube. Please pray that everything will go well and that the combination of the ulcers healing and new tube will help him feel better.
In January, Aiden will go back into the Intensive Feeding Program at Our Children’s House (a pediatric rehab hospital) here in Dallas. The program will be all day, every day for 5 weeks. This is the same feeding program that he started in March, but was unable to finish due to respiratory issues. Aiden’s medical team feels that this is the best ‘next step’ for him at this point, and we will see how well he does and how much he can handle. It would be wonderful if he is able to start eating more by mouth, and could get to the point where we would only have to use tube feedings supplementally. He desparately wants to eat by mouth, so please pray that everything will go well and that (health-wise) he will be able to handle it. This will also be hard on Ethan and Evan, as they cannot understand why Mommy and Aiden are suddenly gone all day. We are still trying to work out coverage so that we have someone to care for them throughout the program, which is another prayer request. Please pray that all of these details will work out and that the program will be successful for Aiden.
As we count our many blessing and begin a new year, we are so grateful for each of you, our family and friends, and so thankful for your continued support,kind thoughts and faithful prayers for our family and specifically for Aiden’s health. From our family to yours, we wish you a very happy and healthy New Year in 2010!
Christmas fun with Aunt Amisha: Evan helped decorate the gingerbread house
Ethan was also a big helper
Good job, boys! They are so proud of their work!
A rare picture of all three together
They loved looking at the Christmas trees at the Great Wolf Lodge
Wow, they all sat still long enough for a picture
Of course, Aiden thinks he is a little king
And another one…this is a record
A very rare picture of everyone together
Evan was a little frightened of the Christmas Carousel at first, but had a good time
Aunt Aleta stood with Ethan
Aiden loved it!
Ethan is ready to stop
They also got to look at the bear
Frozen water
Snow is everywhere
Evan is loving Christmas!
Ethan too
And of course…
Boys, that is not your gift
Time to unwrap
Nothing is better than cars
Especially for Aiden
They love their Aunt
Evan explores his new toys
Another one to open
Aiden was too busy with his new car to care about any other gifts
Loving them!
Another one for Ethan
DVDs (or as they say, “V-V-D”)
Aiden finally moved on to his coloring pad
You too, Aiden! I had no idea you could write!
Evan explores…he loves coloring and this is perfect
Bedlam!
This picture describes the day…messy, bedlam, crazy…but happy and full
Aiden loves playing with the bus
Ethan has gotten very good at building towers
Evan is so adorable
What a mess!
He hates having dirty hands
Mommy and her babies
Wild man
So cute!
The boys getting their medicine right before bedtime
Time to brush
Ethan, are you up to no good?
Cute little bear (with a milk mustache)
Don’t stick your hand in front of the camera
Amisha takes Aiden for a ride
Ethan is so excited to get to the playground 
Evan, are you showing off again? 
Grammie gives Ethey a push 
Evan loves posing 
The twins were looking for things in the mulch 
His nose was running so this is how he deals with it - that is why he is sometimes called “Nosey E” 
You look like you are about to do something you should not be doing 
My Ethey is growing up so fast 
Of course, he still does his cute little gestures 
Nosey E! 
Trying to climb up the hard way 
No standing on the bench 
They love being outdoors 
What are you pointing at? 
Go get them and tell them it is time to go home 
He is making sure that Evan is following along 
Aiden in Boston 
