We're Godparents!

Amalia June Ward was born at 9:27 pm on June 26, 2006. Isn't she beautiful? She'll be baptized this weekend. Keep an eye out for pictures....

posted by Karianne | 6:14 AM, Thursday, June 29, 2006 | 0 comments

Ear Tubes: What They Do, and Why Doctors Are Awesome

Kaeta has had recurring ear infections, so today she got ear tubes. Thanks to a poster in the ear doctor's office, I learned (more or less) how they work.

Behind your eardrum, you've got 3 small bones -- they have latin names, but on the poster they were called the hammer, anvil, and stirrup. Sound waves vibrate your ear drum, which passes the vibration along these 3 bones. The last bone (the stirrup, which really looks like a stirrup) is connected to your cochlea.

The cochlea looks like a snail, and it's full of liquid. The sound vibration now passes into that liquid, and it's somehow converted to an electrical signal that passes through your cochlear nerve to your brain.

Meanwhile, your eustachian tube connects from your throat to somewhere behind your eardrum. Its purpose is to equalize the pressure behind your eardrum. The tube widens when you yawn or swallow, which is why that can make your ears pop when you change altitudes on an airplane.

Kaeta's problem, as I understand it, is that her eustachian tube isn't developed enough yet to really be doing its job. When she gets an ear infection, her middle ear (right behind the eardrum) gets inflamed and filled with puss, raising the pressure, and there is no way to release it.

Sometime between Friday and today, Kaeta's left eardrum ruptured. It will heal back, but I'm sure it was really painful for her, and that explains her attitude the past couple of days. But it just confirms that getting tubes was a good idea -- by rupturing her eardrum, her body was doing (in a less controlled way) the same thing the tubes do -- poking a hole in the eardrum to help the pressure equalize and to let the fluid back there drain out.

Already, Kaeta is seeming to feel somewhat better, and I'm sure that will continue as her eardrum heals. One thought I had was this: This operation wasn't something we could do for her; we had to rely on the doctors and nurses. They studied hard for years and went through a ton of training to be able to do this for our daughter. God gave them the skills, interests, and drive to become excellent doctors, and they are using those skills to love and serve their neighbors -- us! We're really thankful for them!

posted by Derek | 9:41 PM, Wednesday, June 21, 2006 | 1 comments

Goodbye, Grandma

It was a call I was not expecting. I don't think any of us were. But nonetheless I knew exactly what it meant: packing up the car and setting out on a whirlwind trip to Kansas. And the reality of it didn't sink in until the visitation, when I saw my Grandma lying so still, so smile-less. I think that may have been the longest I'd ever seen her face without her sweet smile, or hearing her sugary "Hm-hmm" chuckle (yes, just like the Pilsbury Dough Boy).

It's hard to fight the "if-only" thoughts in moments like that. If only I had given her one more hug the last time I saw her.... If only I had sent her more pictures of Kaeta... If only I had called her on Mother's Day.... If only we had made the trip to Kansas sooner, so that Kaeta could have met her Great-Grandma Berniece. I take comfort, though, in the realization that someday Kaeta will get to meet her and I will get to hug her again, though maybe not for a while. In the meantime, she will be sorely missed.

We had another girl's name in mind when Kaeta was born, but I have absolutely no regrets about naming her Kaeta Bernice, after her Great-Grandma (her first name was Katherine, so they are both K. Berniece, just spelled differently). Grandma was without a doubt one of the sweetest, most loving people I've ever met. The thing I remember best about her is that smile of hers, and how she was always ready to drop anything for a hug. Hers is a legacy of love and thoughtfulness that I pray will live on through my daughter. Who knows, maybe someday there will be another K. Berniece in the family.

Dear family and friends, I invite you to share your best memories of Grandma here in the comments. What will you miss the most about her? Got any good stories to tell?

posted by Karianne | 7:53 PM, Friday, June 16, 2006 | 0 comments

Remember that Memorial Day?

...When Kaeta tried to help Mommy do the laundry? And she climbed into the laundry basket all by herself??

Well we weren't quite quick enough with the camera to capture her actually climbing in, but honest to goodness, I sat there and watched her do it. She pulled herself up on the side, and oh-so-gracefully dove head-first into the basket of (clean) towels I was trying to fold. Oh, was she proud of herself.

Then she proceeded to STAND in the laundry basket, as if it was a completely normal thing for her to do in a completely normal place for her to be in the first place.

...And she gave me this hybrid expression of utter innocence and mischief.

THAT'S our girl!

posted by Karianne | 5:28 PM, Sunday, June 04, 2006 | 0 comments