Christmas morning.....

...at the Hollingsworth house........10 days early. Because of travel plans, we decided to have our family Christmas this morning. We have done this every year (except one) since Reagan was born. It doesn't matter the day on the calendar, there still is something "magical" about the kids waking up and seeing their presents. Caed kept saying, "this is the best day of my life." (ha! He says this every year!) I guess for a child, it probably is. It was fun getting to experience Caleb's 1st Christmas too. Even though he didn't really have a clue, Reagan & Caed sure made up for it.

The excitement was short lived as Caed had to get dressed and go to the dr. to get blood drawn. Poor thing. I will sure be glad when these days are over! He is doing much better with it. Still cries (of course....who wouldn't), but understands this is just a weekly duty he has now. He continues to make slow progress. He still is on his tube feeds 24/7 (except for early mornings and before he goes to bed - while I'm mixing and getting the new bag ready.) This week we are slowly increasing them by 1 ml / day. (he is currently at 102) When he gets to 110, he will be allowed 2 "free hours" a day.........120 - he will get 4 hrs. without backpack. However, we will also be watching his lab work and stools to make sure his body agrees with the changes. He has been on the antibiotic Vanco for over a month. We are now down to just twice a day!! (started as 2 weeks / 4x day.........2 weeks / 3x day.........2 weeks / 2x day) We will stop on Christmas Eve. His stools have also continued to improve a little in consistency and frequency. He gained a little weight the last week and 1/2. Today he is at 41 lbs. even. We know he still has a long way to go, but he is definitely improving. Thank you God for answered prayer!!!!

We also have more good news!! The Make-A-Wish Foundation contacted us this week and said Caed qualified for "a wish!!!" They will come to our home sometime after Christmas to talk further with Caed and get the process rolling. Oh!!! How this little boy deserves some real fun after ALL he has been through. We thank God for allowing us to have this special time together as a family. Lifetime memories will definitely be made!

The kids and I will leave out for Lubbock tomorrow morning. We will be picking up Megan and Xan (sister n law and niece) 1/2 way and taking them on with us. This year is going to be a big year for the Everitt side. Stan and Megan (Xan) haven't been "home" for Christmas in 5 years! We are all so excited to have this time together. It's sure hard when we only get to see them once a year.