Brooke's Visit

For the last three days, Brooke came to stay with us! She was a great help to us--taking care of Gracie, weeding the yard, cleaning the house...we even got to go do pottery and walk around the park. Gracie was so excited to bond with her cousin Brooke!

More Wedding Photos...

Another Lochhead...

YAY! Annie is officially a Lochhead! We were blessed to have a beautiful day for Drew and Annie's wedding which was held outdoors at Mitcham's Barn.


Drew and Annie with Scott and Colleen


Grace and Dad with Gma and Gpa...Gracie had a great day of being passed from person to person!

Uncle Drew and Aunt Annie

Uncle Drew and Aunt Annie came over from Longview over Memorial Day Weekend, hoping that Miss Grace would make her appearance on her due date. Of course Grace thought it would be humorous to start her venture into the world on the day they were heading home--that's what Uncle Drew gets for talking to her in scary voices through the womb walls! So Drew and Annie made a special trip over just to see Gracie when she was almost two weeks old.


Grace LOVES to take baths in the kitchen sink! (at least we keep trying to talk her into it!) This is G'ma Colleen helping Grace get clean...

Gracie Meets Her Cousins

The Saturday after Gracie was born, her cousins made the trip to Spokane to meet her. Abby, age 4, was the first one to run in and hold her. She shared lots of kisses with her and held her just right!


Brooke, now 11 1/2, was patient to wait her turn and looked like a pro holding Grace. She even brought Jeff's favorite baby gift: her first soccer ball! Someday we hope Grace will play soccer like her cousin Brooke!


Little Megan,who's almost 3, didn't look so little holding Gracie--she finally decided it was her turn after they'd been here an hour. This was the only picture we were quick enough to take--as soon as Gracie "tooted" on Megan's lap, Megan said, "Gross!"and swept her off her lap and was off to the next activity. Good thing Mom and Aunt Katie were there to catch Grace! :)

Gracie Update

A lot of our fears were relieved when we spoke to an expert from the PKU Clinic at UW. She has been looking at Grace's reports and has worked in this specialized field for over 20 years. She told us several things to keep in mind:

1. Don't worry. Our baby is perfectly fine--enjoy her!
2. Her levels are very low and have remained low. We can continue feeding her as we are!
3. Best case scenario: Her level of 3 declines over time. 2nd best case scenario: Her levels stay at 3 and she just may not be able to eat as much protein as the average person. Other possibilities: Her levels may go up as she starts to eat solids...we'll just have to keep an eye on her levels in the years to come.
4. More tests are being examined--we'll know more specifics in the weeks to come. We will probably go to Seattle to meet with the people at the PKU Clinic sometime after that.

Thank you all so much for your prayers. We really do think that this could all disappear with time, but know that if it doesn't disappear it is definitely manageable.

On a fun note, the lab at Sacred Heart felt badly that she had to go in twice on Thursday for different tests--blood draw, foot prick, urine sample--so they called us yesterday and said they had a little present for her because she did so well (she almost fell asleep during the blood draw!). Jeff stopped by the lab and came home with a teddy bear that is twice her size! She's pretty amazing! :) -LE

Trust...

The last thirty-six hours in our life has just been a glimpse into the trust we must have in our Heavenly Father if we are going to make it through this parenting thing sane. Yesterday around noon a nurse from our pediatrician's office called to inform us that Gracie's PKU test came back positive, and because it is a general panel screen another blood sample was needed for retesting. After giving blood and meeting with our pediatrician, we were told that we would receive the results today...after two phone calls from us, a doctor called at about six pm this evening to inform us that Gracie's levels were exactly the same on the retest. Her levels are just above what is accepted as normal (3 mg/dl). To give you an idea 1 mg/dl is desired, >3 mg/dl is when concern arises, upwards of 30 mg/dl is what our doctor would have expected to see if Gracie was in fact positive with PKU. He says at this point her levels are not causing any problems, but what comes next is determining why her levels are slightly heightened.

As parents, or nerves are heightened as well!! Thinking that something might be wrong with our beautiful Gracie, even if it is manageable, calls for great strength from God. We are indebted to those of you who have been praying for us, and would ask that the prayers continue as we continue to seek medical assistance. Ellie and I continue to remind each other that God is in control, and loves our baby more than we could imagine.