Feeling Grateful

Seriously, what a difference one month makes! See the dates on the pics??

While Austin was napping yesterday, I started fumbling through Hurricane Ike aftermath photos online. I was so curious about the damage in Orange and Bridge City...not to mention Crystal Beach and Galveston. Some of the photos just blew my mind. These places where I either visited frequently or did business are literally gone...or unrecognizable. Although it's been a while since I've been to Crystal Beach or Galveston, just seeing those places in that state was heartbreaking. I couldn't get the image out of my head of how I remember it...full of life, parties, beautiful homes and businesses. It truly brought back an unsettling yet very familiar feeling I had about three years ago after Hurricane Rita.

That's when I realized how grateful I am to be able to return home (after getting power of course!) and resume as normal. We weren't able to do that after Rita. It was about six months before we had our house back the way it was (well, slightly improved). Cutting out drywall, disinfecting furniture and belongings, remodeling, and UGH, living in that tiny travel trailer!!! Gosh, I'm sooooo glad we aren't doing that again! I've been getting the urge to take a drive out to our old neighborhood in Vidor to check on everyone out there. I just know they have suffered another flood. I haven't been out there since our old house was leveled either. I'm not sure if I'm quite ready to see what's out there...whether it be the vacant lot where my house once stood, or the piles of debris and moldy furniture on the curbs from everyone cleaning up.

Chad commented last night on how much I've done around the house the past couple of days...I told him that I just feel blessed that I'm able to do that this time around!!! I simply cannot imagine having to rebuild a house all over again with Austin and Bailey.

Oh, this blog is supposed to be about Austin, right? Well...he's about the same on his spasms. No word from the neuro yet. On the bright side, his eye is already looking better and it seems his ear infection is improving also. Oh, and he's sleeping A LOT better now that he's back in his bed and Mommy finally gave him some medicine for his ear! Two nights in a row that he only woke up once! Both were when Chad got up to go to work. Last night was a little more involved than the night before. It took him nearly an hour to get settled back in, but still an improvement! I'll take it!

It's also been confirmed that he's lost a little weight. In August he was weighing in at a whopping 28 lbs, but Friday he was 26 1/2 lbs. Still a big boy, but not quite the little chipmunk anymore! His cheeks are the obvious change so far. Oh, funny story about that...I had to locate another pediatrician to take him to about his eye since his regular one is still not back up and going in Beaumont. I took him to the big town (not really) of Jasper. It was so funny to compare the two! At his normal office (very large -at least five different pediatricians) the nurses weigh and measure him, and then you wait and wait and wait on the big bad doc to make his grand entrance. In Jasper, the doctor actually called him back herself and just jumped on the scale with him to weigh him (I never even saw a nurse there at all)! Gotta love the small-town!! I thought it was great...she was very focused on just him and if her English was just a little easier to understand, I might would consider switching!