Happy Holidays! FAMILY UPDATE

Well, here is a quick update and we'll go on from there!

MOM: No Chemo, No radiation! Praise the Lord! She's doing great and looking great! She was also able to take a test to see if she carried a mutated cancer gene that could be passed down to daughters/grandaughters (and there are many!) AND... she does not have it! All great news!

DUSTY: He is busy with his commercial painting business. He was building houses but with the housing crash (or whatever it is!) he branched out and is running painting crews. They work all over the southeast and have recently painted a Pottery Barn, Chic-Fil-A, Ann Taylor, Office Depot, Men's Wearhouse, Longhorn Steakhouse... the list goes on. The great thing is that he does NOT always have to travel with them so he is still home a lot! He's really enjoying running the business. He's still an avid reader, a fisherman, and an all around great guy! :o) He's the best Dad and loves playing with the kids, too!

ARIN: (Me) I LOVE being a stay at home Mom and I'm very thankful I get to stay home! Anson and Ella keep me busy! I enjoy going to the park, shopping, taking a class at church once a week, and doing Dusty's bookkeeping. Just before Ella was born I pulled out the old sewing machine and started making handbags! I really enjoy sewing and making customized bags, mostly for gifts. So that is what I do during the sacred "naptime" at the Rollins Home!

ANSON: He loves being alive! He has so much energy and is always on the go. He is 2 1/2 now. He enjoys building with blocks, lining up his toy cars, watching videos (we still don't have a TV!!),playing with anything that resembles a bat and ball, and tormenting our Chihuahua, Bella I have to keep them separated most of the time for my sanity! He also likes to help and has a very sweet heart. His imagination is starting to kick in too... the other day he went into great detail about how his elephant threw his lollipop on the ground so Anson had to punish him. After he did, he hugged him and told him he loved him! Wonder where he got that idea?? Dusty has taken him a couple times to the Atlanta airport to see the jets take-off and land. And this fall we've been having fires in the backyard which he loves! He is adjusting very well to being a brother. He hugs and kisses Ella everyday without my prompting and is very helpful getting things for me. On to Ella...

ELLA: She is now 3 months old and is such a sweetie! She's already sleeping through the night from 7:30 to 7:00! And when I go in to get her in the mornings or after naptime, almost always she's just laying there sucking her thumb, smiling! What a blessing! At her 2 month chek-up, our pediatrician found a click in her hip. He referred us to an orthopaedist. We were pretty "freaked out", but the orthopaedist, after taking x-rays, said it is a very mild case of DDH (Developmental Displaysia of the Hip) very common in girls (1 in 3000). She goes Friday for a more detailed ultrasound and then back to the Orthopaedist to get a hip sling that she will have to wear from 8 to 12 weeks. It is a contraption that keeps her hips flexed outward until they fully develop. BUT, the good news is that it is not serious since they caught it so early. Cases that they don't catch end up with a limp (one leg shorter) or more serious hip problems. Next week some time we'll have all the results and treatment info. It does not hurt her at all, and other than that, she is fine!!