Christmas Letter 2009

Ouch! More than 2 months since my last post. For now, here is our 2009 Christmas letter:

Christmas 2009

Hello and warm greetings to you all from the Northwest Walkers — Brian, Deb, Meghan, Jacob, Finn, Tank, and Tug.

Did you notice the addition of a new name to the list and the picture? 2009 started with the early appearance of Finn Zachary Walker, born six weeks early in Bellevue, Washington. On the morning of Thursday, February 26^th, downtown Bellevue was covered in four inches of snow, rare for that time of year and location. Brian and I had been at the hospital since Tuesday night when I started leaking fluid and having contractions. We knew this was it. The docs were preparing for a c-section; they were just trying to perfect the timing. Maximize the length of time for the steroids to work on his lungs, minimize any danger or mid-night emergencies. Since the contractions were increasing in intensity, Thursday afternoon was chosen. During preparations, we were a bit giddy and giddy led to silly. Our nurse had to reprimand us a bit to keep us moving!

It’s strange to walk into an OR, to your own operation. Typical us, we were cracking jokes through our tears of anticipation. This birth was very redeeming for us. You see, Brian missed Meghan being born because she came early, and he had to fly home from Oklahoma (business). Then, he just missed Jake’s birth because I told him to wait before coming to the hospital and the elevator was broken when he arrived. Brian was determined not to miss this one. And, he didn’t. He only missed one appointment (high risk=LOTS of appointments), and that was supposed to be a simple blood pressure check. Back to the story … so, we’re cracking jokes. The docs and nurses are laughing with us. Is it weird to say that it was magical? Well, it was. I won’t go into the gory details (and there ARE details). Finn was pulled reluctantly out at 3:07 pm. He weighed 4lbs, 3oz and was 18 inches long. Due to complications, Finn stayed in the NICU (Neo-natal Intensive Care Unit) for almost a month.

That was the start to 2009. On Thanksgiving, Finn turned 9 months old and is a sweet, happy boy who loves to laugh and jump and be held. We have had quite a time with a newborn and two older children. This year is quite a blur due to our lack of sleep and busy-ness.

Meghan finished 3^rd grade, started 4^th, and turned 10 in 2009. She’s growing into quite a remarkable young lady. This last summer wasn’t nearly as busy for her as the previous one although she did spend almost three weeks with her grandparents in California. This last November, she competed in NaNoWriMo (www.nanowrimo.org) and completed her first novel. She wrote over 3000 words and crafted a clever pirate, fantasy story!

Jacob finished 2^nd grade and started 3^rd this year. He also lost his first tooth and became even more proficient with a computer. He’s been quite the trooper, enduring lots of testing so that we have an official diagnosis for school and other caregivers. Official diagnosis? Cerebral Palsy with secondary Autism. We’re hoping that this diagnosis will provide us with more treatment options and support, to help him get the most out of his life.

Brian and I? Taking care of our babies has occupied most of our time this last year. We both enjoy our jobs, work and home. Brian has been able to arrange “telecommuting” privileges so that he works from home most of the time. And my job is 99% work from home, so we’re able to keep Finn out of daycare, and be around for all the appointments and fun activities.

For more details, go to our blog: movingtoazonedefense.blogspot.com. I often fall behind in keeping it up to date, but it’s better than what I was doing before — nothing. Going to the older posts in the blog, you will get to read about our adventures and Finn’s early days.

That’s our year in a nutshell; we would love to hear about yours. We hope that you feel the real majesty of Christmas this year and that 2010 brings you love, joy, and peace. God bless you all!

Love,

The Walkers

Brian, Deborah, Meghan, Jacob, Finn, Tank, and Tug