Peter

Peter LOVES being home with his brothers and sisters. Michael missed him so much and Peter had an immediate connection with him. I think Michael is the only one Peter will reach for if I'm holding him.

Life for Peter is much different here than in Seattle. In Seattle our apartment was very tiny and he was the only kid I had to pay attention to. He is now enjoying free range of the house and all the mischief he can get into. He's in that stage where I wonder if he will live until his next birthday. He enjoys climbing on things and, even though he hasn't been eating the food I give him, he has eaten laundry detergent three times. I know I sound like a bad mother for allowing that to happen, but really, after the first time I didn't think he would try it again. He has this crazy intense desire to get into the laundry room and eat that stuff. I think I finally found a way to secure it though.

For a few months now I've been trying to teach Peter baby sign language. He would just look at me with a sly smile that said, "Yeah, right Mom, that's not happenin' but keep going because you look so funny when you do that." I had stopped trying but it turns out he just needed the right motivation. Eliza was eating a piece of Halloween candy when Peter walked up to here saying and signing, "more! More!"

The kids love to hear him talk and are always trying to teach him new words. His favorite words are: ball (everything remotely round is a ball), water, more, uh oh, and ta-dah! Both Michael and Derek, unlike the girls, were really late talkers. This will be interesting to see what it is like to have a little boy that talks.

Peter loves the vacuum cleaner, just like Derek did. He uses Derek's old toy vacuum cleaner when I vacuum. Tonight when he saw Tallia's he went up to it and started making brooming noises.

Peter is still a snuggeler and I love it. He is learning to share me with Norah, Eliza and Derek.

Days +95 - +100 and beyond

It's been an amazing year that started with a diagnosis, was consumed by cancer, and ended with all signs pointing towards remission. We have been amazingly blessed by our mothers, our families, our church, co-workers and community. People are awesome! Looking forward to a year of recovery and life getting back to normal!

Silly things to remember:

• After being in Seattle the sky here looks so BIG and blue!
• I don't have to worry about not having a place to park and it's always free.
• Nathan's eyelashes have grown back so long, thick, dark, and perfectly curled.