Our Little Cooper: Thankful

Reading his Snowman Book

The last few weeks have been like a rollercoaster for me. Usually I'm "The Strong One" who can usually keep a straight face even in the toughest of situations, but for the first time since Coop was born I broke down. We were using the nasal stents faithfully for 2 1/2 weeks after surgery. Must I say BIGGEST pain ever! The rubber pieces going into his nostrils were soo long, each time they were inserted, he would start bleeding from his sinuses. Cooper did not sleep, and would sneeze every 4 seconds constantly while crying his little eyes out. He did not take to the stents at all and believe me we tried our very best. I am all for keeping them in to keep shape in his nose, but it's not worth it to see how absolutely miserable he was. There was NO letting up on his misery. My little boy who pretty much tolerates anything let me know he had finally had it. So, after my breakdown while trying to calm Coop down after putting in the nasal stents, I came to the conclusion that some babies don't even wear nasal stents after surgery or use the NAM so Coop should be just fine. The doctors were already planning on doing a revision anyway when he has his palate surgery.
So any way. We are now looking at our baby with absolutely nothing on his face! No tape, no wires, no stents-he is just my sweet baby boy with his crooked little smile.

I am absolutely so thankful for everyone who has helped with Cooper over the last 7 months. I often get caught up in what I'm doing and forget what everyone else has done for us. My brothers and their families are so wonderful with Coop and love him dearly. My Grandma still can't get over talking of how much she's in love with him and kisses his pictures daily! And then there's my mom. The only person I feel can handle taking care of Coop as well as I can. She's there to help whenever we need and I am truly grateful for her. We also have the support of Joel's family which is great with Coop being the first grand baby. One more thing I absolutely love, I love days when I take Coop out and strangers stop to admire him. Although I know these people for no more than a few minutes, they brighten my day when they lay their blessings on us. So thank you to those out there that aren't afraid to speak up to the families of cleft babies. It really is much better to ask questions than to stare awkwardly!

On that note, I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season. Keep in mind, little gestures go a long way when doing something nice for others. Here are some holiday pics.