Update! Our first ever vacation!

RECAP for anyone new to the blog.   In October of 2012, we realized that Claire was not reaching the normal milestones for kids her age. She wasn't talking at all, she wouldn't make eye contact, she didn't sleep all night and often woke up with horrible night terrors, she only ate specific foods (anything sweet, cheese, cheerios, bread, raisins, turkey loaf, and that's about it!!), she pulled awful tantrums that lasted hours on end, and she had a horrible immune system.  So, I decided to do as much research about this as possible.  I read tons and tons of books, forums, blogs, you name it!   We immediately cut out all bread and dairy.  Within two weeks, we noticed immediate results.  So we kept it up.  Then we started the GAPS diet (Gut And Psychology Syndrome).

Here we are 7 months and one day later!!!!  At the beginning of this month, Dietrich, Claire, Ethan, and I flew from Dallas to San Francisco for a family reunion.   Considering the circumstances of the trip alone (Waking up early, our flight being delayed 4 hours, riding the shuttle during rush hour), Claire did AMAZING.  She was sleepy, but up until the day we flew home, she was calm, pleasant, and overall a happy little girl.  She enjoyed seeing the beach for the first time, loved the walks, the scenery, and most of all, the fresh food!! She even visited with everyone in the house telling them "hi" and "bye" appropriately.  I was sooo proud of her.  She took a special liking to her Great Uncle Mark who she met for the first time that week.  She played with him and showed him her flash cards.   God is definitely healing her!  Since my last blog post, Claire has started spelling words out loud  enunciating her ABC'S (The letters don't sound as scrambled as they did when she first started saying them), she can recognize a square, circle, triangle, and rectangle.  She openly gives affection to her Oma, Opa, Pa Pa Hut, Grammy, GiGi, and Uncle Jonny.

She fights over toys with her brother, but is learning to share here and there.  Aside from her vocabulary (which is steadily improving every day), and her sensitivity to Ethan's loud screaming, she is almost unrecognizable amongst her peers as being behind developmentally and socially.  She laughs when she should, shows emotion and recognizes emotion, and is eating more and more new (healthy) foods every week.  She wakes me up every morning with a smile on her face and a sweet little " Hi" or "hello".  She hugs me tightly before pulling me to the kitchen to make her breakfast.  I love my little girl so much.  I am taking her to see her very first movie this week! I will blog about the experience (even though I know it's going to be a good one!!).

Here are some pictures from our trip:

Sleeping on the plane

Strutting across the yard

Enjoying the view with her Auntie Gretchen

Her first time to see the ocean

Picking flowers in the garden at the house we were staying at

She got soaked when the tide came up!