Baby Girl Turns TWO!

That's right, baby girl turned two on Saturday! I can hardly believe my baby is TWO already! Where, oh where, does the time go?




We had a wonderful Christmas! Gigi and PopPop came in town for a few days and we had lots of fun spending time with them, not to mention the countless trips to IKEA and games of Banagrams!





Although I hardly ever make new years resolutions (primarily because I am so bad at keeping them), I've got a few on my list this year, including keeping this blog a little more updated:) Oh, and have I mentioned that Eden is standing some by herself!

Happy Halloween

Happy *belated* Halloween from the Carrolls:)

And until I figure out how to upload video to blogger, visit these links for these adorable videos of Eden.

You've been warned... there are no photos of E in this one:)

I have managed to find some time to craft lately, I know... surprising! Its amazing what a little crafting can do for my stress level! I will start by saying, when we moved, I quickly realized there was little crafting space in this "small" apartment of ours and was quite disappointed when my five day a week job left me NO time to sew. After a little rearranging and changing jobs, my life now seems a little more balanced as the sewing machine has found its rightful place back in to my home!

I've got a few new Bible covers in the shop, including my own personal favorite (which just so happens to be on my Bible right now). This one is made from a vintage 1940s Wedding Ring Quilt bought HERE. Go ahead, hop on over and check them out! CLICK HERE





I'm also working on a bunch of TRUTHlets that will be displayed at a craft show in TN (thanks Mom!) in November (details to follow for all you Tennesseans).

Enjoy the week, hopefully I'll be back soon with more pictures of the *not so little* girl!

Pigtails = Big Girl!

I'm not sure how well my math is, but we discovered pigtails this week and already, she's looking more like a big girl!

Working on the Parallel Bars for PT

Many of you have heard, but in case you haven't - we received WONDERFUL news from Eden's Neurosurgeon here! We met with Dr. Tuite last week and he reviewed her chart, repeated her MRI and reassured us that her surgery Dr. Fuchs did in February has done its job of keeping the fluid stable and some areas even appeared to be smaller than her previous scans! Praise to God! I have to admit, I was a little surprised when he shared the good news with us. We have prayed so much for healing, I had convinced myself that she would need another surgery. I know its probably a lack of faith, but every other scan has lead us to the OR, so I expected another surgery and for the Lord to heal her through surgery. I can't even begin to describe the emotions in my heart when Dr. Tuite said the MRI looked great and that if she makes it to 1 year past her surgery with no fluid accumulation, the chances of her needing a shunt in the future are small!

Not much else new here... just wishing for a piece of NC and TN fall:) Pumpkin Spice Latte + 90 degrees does not equal fall!

And a few pictures from our weekly visit to the park:

new table, new skirt, new skill

Gigi and PopPop bought E a new little table when they were here... she absolutely LOVES sitting at her table! When we are in her room playing, she will crawl right up to it and do the sign for "help" - precious!

I've had this fabric for a while now, and have been saving it for a new skirt for baby girl... it makes me think of fall (which I'm eagerly awaiting!). For some *crazy* reason, it also makes me think of this dress I had growing up which makes me laugh:)

And her new skill - Miss Jenny would be proud! She is learning to bend down and pick things off the floor when she's standing... its adorable to watch her try to so hard and be so proud of herself when she is able to pick it up!

Oh, I love this little one... more later... I'm pooped... today was my first day at the hospital and I'm back tomorrow night!

its been a long day...

"More"? Maybe tomorrow, Eden, Mommy's tired...

lots to say

It seems Eden has had a lot to say both "vocally and with sign. She's taken off with the sign language the past few weeks! Her vocabulary now consists of "more", "all done", "help" and we're working on "thank you". I've found myself saying the words over and over just to watch her make the sign and look at me so proudly! I have prayed so much for the ability to communicate. There were definitely times in the past year I wondered if I would ever get to communicate with her, thinking she would never catch on to this whole signing thing, but its so amazing to see how the Lord has continued to prove faithful in her development! She's also got her own little language as well - even though it only includes the consonants "m" and "n". It seems like she can make a hundred different sounds just from those to letters and her vowels! Talent, I tell you!

Eden had her evaluation last week for therapy services here. We're going to start speech/hearing therapy and physical therapy soon and I am so glad! We're praying for our therapist that will be placed in our home. We were blessed with the most amazing therapists in Raleigh, I can't imagine any better ones! This was one of the hardest things for me to give up before we moved, was not knowing who are therapists would be when we got here. But, God knows and I know that He will provide the way He has all along!

Many of you may have heard by now, but I'm changing jobs! The job I was (and will be for two more weeks) was such a blessing to have for our move and obviously God's provision in helping us get to Tampa. It wasn't however, a job I enjoyed, nor a job I wanted to do long-term. Sitting behind a cubicle, staring a computer screen was not my forte. I had been talking with a recruiter at the children's hospital and they were hiring for their Peds Oncology/Hematology/Bone Marrow Transplant unit. Um, yes, I would like that job please! So I interviewed and was offered the job last week. I start on Sept 14th and am so excited to get my feet back into the hospital. There's just something about hospital nursing I have always been attracted to and love this aspect of nursing more than any other I tried my hand at!

Enjoy the pictures, more to come early next week - we're planning a morning trip to the beach tomorrow - hopefully I don't forget my camera:)

And yes, she's started the doll phase!

holland...

a dear friend of ours sent me this video yesterday. what sweet perspective it gives...

http://www.cflparents.org/presentations/holland/index.htm

(in order to view, you have to select an option from the drop down box, but you do not have to give an email)

from frowns to smiles...

I'm not even sure why she was mad at me here... maybe because I was making her practice standing from the chair, but this was the face I got...

And as soon as the pouty face came, this face appeared.... oh my, she's approaching two too quickly.

we're back... and now blogging from tampa

I can't believe I let another month go by without blogging... okay, yes I can... this has been the craziest month I can remember. As most of you know, we have been planning and praying through moving to Tampa since January. All along, our "goal" (I use that term loosly) was to be in Tampa in August. Less than a month ago, with no jobs or place to live, we were beginning to get a little discouraged. Within of a few days, the Lord orchestrated all those details and had us moving to Tampa two weeks later!

We arrived to Tampa on the 19th, I started my new job on the 20th, Josh's sister, mom, and dad have been to visit, as well as my dad! Did I say we'd had a busy few weeks! Now that we're getting settled though, we're loving Tampa (though I can't say I'm loving the heat just yet)! We're meeting our neighbors which is our first step in building relationships here! Our church plant will also start meeting in the next few weeks - I'll have more blog posts about the church soon!

So, for the sake of not making this the longest post every, I'll end for tonight with pictures as promised (to Grandma, GiGi and Aunt Linda for starters). Check back this week, I'm planning a few more posts with Eden updates!

Eden and PopPop

(and yes, Dad, I do brush her hair)

We're official members to the Florida Aquarium

our itty-bitty living room/dining room/kitchen!

(photos on the walls are next weekend's project)

Kitchen...

Eden's Bathroom

the "view" from our back patio... we thought it was a "garage", but we're beginning to wonder...

our LARGE bathroom!

Our Bedroom

Eden, trying to find her drum under the bed...

This one's for Jodi - Eden's trying to take her index finger and move her lips to make a sound Jodi was always trying to get her to make:) (instead of her finger though, she uses her whole hand!

Eden's room, from Eden's view

communication

In the past few weeks, we have seen Eden signing more and more each day. We have been signing to her since she was a few months old, but until the past few weeks, we really didn't know if she was understanding what we were saying and signing. From a developmental standpoint, this is HUGE! I now feel sure that she is starting to process language (both spoken and signed). She signs "more", "all done", "bye, bye" and claps (for "yah" and "good girl"!). It is so sweet to see her do this and is such an answer to our prayers for the Lord to continue to develop and mold her mind. She is learning and I couldn't be prouder!

We had Eden's 18 month well check this week and she weighed in at a whopping 18.5 lbs:) I forgot how long she was, but she's only in the 30% for height, so I'm not sure if she got the tall gene or not! Dr. Herriott was pleased with how she is progressing with her milestones and we walked out of there with only one referral! Nothing new though, Eden just needs another renal ultrasound to check her kidneys. When she was a few months old, she was diagnosed with Grade 1 Hydronephrosis - which is likely related to her tethered cord issue. Its nothing that we will have to do anything about and could even improve with age, but they just want to do a renal ultrasound every year to check and make sure its not getting worse. We'll have that done this week, as well as Eden's ENT appt and hearing aid check. We also had a follow up appointment with Dr. Rice (her general surgeon) this past week and he gave us the all clear and said we didn't need to follow up any more unless she starting have problems - this was bittersweet too as I'm glad to mark another doctor off our list to see, but truth be told.... besides Dr. Herriott, he was our favorite:)

So, I promised details about Tampa a few posts ago. At this point, we are still hoping to be there by August... we are following up with job leads and praying that the Lord provides a job(s) quickly. We will keep everyone up to date as soon as we have more definite plans! We would certainly appreciate your continued prayers!!!!

many faces of Eden

just a few of the faces we've seen alot of lately:)

happy i just had a bath face

i'm trying to make a fishy face face

i'm gonna get you face

saying 'mama' face

i'm so happy i could scream face

twitter?

I'm trying to figure the whole twitter thing out, but just in case you twitter and want to follow me (and my many shameless store plugs!) my twitter name is "edensmama".

Nothing new this week. Josh has Runners Camp (which sadly got rained out today) and I'm looking forward to the next two days at home with Eden. We've got one playdate/lunch planned with an old coworker and I can't wait! I think its going to be a low-key week, at home, with lots of snuggling and crafting:)

The next two or three weeks will be filled with follow up appts, including her 18 month check up!!! Crazy its already almost been 18 months... I know, I can hardly believe it either.

More pictures soon:) I promise.

a day with dad...

School ended this week for Josh (school = job). Since he is home for the summer, I decided to work a little more (two more days to be exact = three days total). I know it may not sound like a lot to many of you, but frankly, I was a bit overwhelmed this week with all the little things I ordinarily get done during the day. After a little rearranging, and Eden's fever canceling a few therapies, the week turned out to be a little less hectic than I anticipated.  Josh has Eden duty when I'm at work and he documented part of their day on Friday: 

The day started with a visit to Waffle House... I'm not sure by the picture if she was having fun or not, but according to Josh, she had a blast and loved the waffles (minus the syrup - I gave clear instructions that she was NOT to have syrup).

Josh had his first real experience taking Eden to one of her therapies alone! According to Josh, Eden took a 3 hour nap that afternoon - I think he wore her out... she never naps that long for me:) 

It has been so hot around here, so we've put up a SMALL kiddie pool outside and today was the perfect day to spend in it. Eden LOVES the water, but the sun is another story... if I could get her to wear her little baby sunglasses I think she'd do better!

Eden is standing so well on her own, though she still can't get to standing by herself... YET! She's starting to TRY to cruise along her toys, but is still very unstable. Her braces should be in this week, which will hopefully help with this too. Its still so amazing every time I see her do something new. I'm so proud of her! 

2 days left for the YART SALE... free shipping on everything in the shop. And lots of Buy 2, Get 1 free sales... check it out for more details... today, I've been on ETSY for 1 year and yesterday i hit 200 sales!!!!!