Goodbye Dr. Grant

Shelby and I drove to Durham on Sunday afternoon because we had an early Monday morning MRI appointment to get the new baseline on Shelby's brain and then a post-surgery follow up with Dr. Grant. We spent the night with my cousin Katy and had a good time hanging out with her and her boyfriend Pat. Pat's yummy mojitos helped me shake off the 6-hour car ride due to the interstate being shut down for bridge work. The MRI was at 6:30 in the morning Monday. Shelby did not have to be sedated, but the whole thing was a horrible experience for both of us. I had to lay on top of her to pin her down and hold her head in place and as still as possible while she thrashed and screamed for daddy (going into the machine with her) so that they could get a decent scan. My daughter is strong--and terrified of medical people messing with her, which is completely understandable. We had a nice breakfast after that with Katy and then headed to clinic to see Dr. Grant. Shelby's brain tissue has grown back amazingly well since the shunt revision. We're hoping to see lots of progress in her motor skills because of this over the next several months. We're also hoping Shelby can keep this new shunt for a good long time. This was our last visit with Dr. Grant, who has been Shelby's neurosurgeon since she was an infant. From the very beginning he has been kind, patient, easy to communicate with, and full of hope for our Shelby. We will certainly miss him and wish him luck at his new position as chief of pediatric neurosurgery at Stanford. We're switching Shelby to Dr. Muh at Duke, and will follow up with her in a year to check on Shelby's shunt.

Shelby and me killing time in the car while we sat on I-40 for TWO HOURS...we listened to Justin Timberlake and some other faves (Trip wasn't in the car to fight us on music choices). 

Yummy Mojito...thanks Pat!

Art Camp

Harding attended Roots and Wings Art Camp all week with his buddy Jackson. The day camp had an African theme and the campers performed with various percussion instruments today before pick-up. It was so fun seeing all the kids with their faces painted. H alternated between drumming and smiling or waving at me. Shelby danced throughout the entire drum performance--she loves any kind of music with a beat. Even though Harding was stingy with specifics on how his days were at camp, I know that he had a good time because he got to do some of his favorite things: art, music, and hanging out with Jackson.

Showing off his African Mask made from a plastic milk jug.

Jackson and Harding after their performance.

The Graduate

Rocky has completed his puppy training course that we signed up for at PetSmart. He knows how to sit, stay, lay down, come when called (most of the time), and leave it. He is also really close to being able to roll over and army crawl across the floor. Of course, when we are eating meals or there is food on the counter, then he seems to be immune to all rules and commands--but we're working on it and trying to be patient and consistent. Rocky is turning into a great running companion for me and trots happily along for the beginning part of my runs. I haven't taken him farther than 3 miles yet, but I have a feeling that he can hang with me just fine. This little doggy makes such a nice addition to our family--I'm so glad we got him!

Kinnaird Kiddos Portrait Session

As soon as I found out Shelby was having surgery, I booked a professional photographer to come take pictures of the kids. I was thinking they would have to shave a whole lot more of Shelby's hair and that I would be forced to chop it off post-surgery (thankfully I didn't). Our go-to picture takers (and good friends), Chris Chromey and Julie Gilliland were all out of town, but luckily Bren was available and willing to come out to our land to take these precious pictures of my babies. It was hot, we were all sweating and working hard to get the kids to cooperate, but Bren did a wonderful job of capturing Shelby's gorgeous curls and silliness, Harding's sweetness, and my nephew Landen's adorable 18 month goofiness. With so many good ones, it was hard to pick which pictures we wanted to order. Thanks so much Bren--loved working with you and love your work: www.brenphotography.net.

Handsome boy.

Love them.

I was probably tickling her here.

Hobbit Landen...18 months old and completely precious!

We really needed a picture of all three. Harding did his best to get Shelby and Landen to cooperate. Not too bad!

This one makes me smile!

The Kinnaird boys.

My new facebook profile pic. :)

Love how they are holding hands in this one.

True Story

Harding's teacher encouraged him to keep a journal this summer and it has been a great quiet activity for him while Shelby naps in the afternoon. It has also been fun seeing his interpretation of things--especially his and Trip's encounter with the lifeguard at North Myrtle Beach. We were not aware of the rule that you can't swim past waste deep. Those of you who know Trip well can guess how he felt about an authority figure telling him how far out he was allowed to swim with his son (especially since Harding had on his life jacket). Trip and Harding managed to follow the rules the rest of our vacation and they didn't get into trouble again--but the experience obviously made an impression on Harding.

Back to our regular scheduled programming...Summer!

Shelby is fully recovered from surgery and we were back at it with enjoying summer this past weekend. I started my training for the Asheville Citizen-Times Half Marathon with a group of girls on Saturday morning and am looking forward to the next couple months of Saturday long runs. Its always more fun when you train in groups.

Last week my dad helped me stain the front deck and I'm planning on getting the back deck done this week. We are about to kick it into high gear so that we can get the house ready to list this fall. I'm trying not to get overwhelmed with all the work that will need to be done. Whew!

 We went to the Asheville Tourists game on Saturday night and had a really great time. Shelby loved the music they played in between innings and every time a player was at bat, Harding had fun watching the mascots walking around, and Trip and I enjoyed the large selection of local craft beers they had on tap.

When we left the game after the seventh inning stretch, the Tourists were losing 10-0. However, they kept Augusta from getting any hits in the sixth inning, so all the fans got vouchers for free Krispy Kreme doughnuts after the game. This was Harding's favorite part of the night! Is there anything better than a Hot Now Krispy Kreme?

Thanks so much to Carolina Pediatric Therapies for the baseball tickets!

We went to church Sunday morning and I really wanted to get a picture of the kids in their Sunday clothes (especially because my mom made Shelby's dress), but Shelby did not want to pose.

We almost always go eat at our favorite restaurant, El Que Pasa after church. Shelby was a bit more tolerant of the camera between bites of chips. Harding took this one of us being silly.

And last night, we attempted to watch Trip's soccer game, but there was a torrential downpour. Shelby and I tried to stay dry under the umbrella, but Harding ran around and had a blast getting soaking wet.

Welcome July! We are looking forward to many more summer adventures this month in between working on the house.