Grayer's favorite things to do

Grayer loves to take his medicine, he thinks it tastes pretty good! He always gets a surprised look on his face the first time he tastes it. Here he is getting his daily dose.

Grayer loves to go to church, he sleeps right through it! Here we are ready for church. Thanks Christensen cousins for his cute green sweater. He was the rave at church!

Grayer loves bath time, it doesn't matter if he is hungry or tired a bath always makes him happy no matter what! Here he is just after his bath in his cute lion hooded towel ready for some lotion.

Grayer loves to go on walks, here we are just getting back from getting the mail and walking around the apartment complex.

The other day I wanted to go on a walk but it was really cold outside so I decided to try on Grayer's snow outfit... it fits him pretty good from head to toe but his arms only fill about 1/8 of the sleeve. In the picture of him in his car seat his arms aren't even in the sleeves that are folded across his body. I would say the outfit was made a little out of proportion! :)

Grayer loves to sit in his swing, it usually puts him to sleep. Here he is just lounging away!

Grayer loves being with his Daddy, especially when he can snuggle up next to him and sleep. Here they are taking a nap before Dad has to leave again for rehearsal.

Grayer loves to let his Mom dress him up in cute clothes. I usually try at least two outfits on him each day. It is just so fun to have my own "real live" doll! :) Here he is not quite sure he wants his picture taken but looking cute in his new shirt and pants he got from Grandma G.

A Blood Orange

Have you ever heard of a blood orange? I sure haven't, at least not until this past week when Andy brought one home. Somebody at school gave it to him. I had no idea what to expect when I peeled it, and this is what I found...

I thought it was really cool to be eating a red orange :) and it tastes just like a regular orange!

Andrew in TIGHTS!!!

Promptly after we returned to Tennessee from our visit to Idaho, Andrew has literally been running like a chicken with its head cut off between his classes and his rehearsals for opera. For the past month now Andrew has been rehearsing for two operas that he is in this semester, which has reluctantly brought him home each night at about 11:00pm.
He is now relieved to say that at least one opera is over with. This past weekend was the performance of Rigoletto, in which he played the part of Ceprano - (said like Soprano but the C makes a CH sound). I was not able to go to an actual performance because of Grayer but I did make it to the dress rehearsal and it was fantastic!!! Grayer even liked it, he slept right through it except for when the orchestra suddenly got loud and startled him awake! - oh well I guess he better get used to it now.
I love watching Andrew perform, especially when he has to wear tights!! Royal blue ones to be exact :) But in all seriousness he really did an amazing job he even got mentioned in the review stating that, " he more than held his own". Did I mention that this is the Knoxville Opera Company we are talking about? So it is a professional company and he was mentioned, by name, in the review - amazing right? I think so. He is definitely very talented!! Well I thought you all might enjoy a few pictures of him in his costume!! (The other two guys in the pictures are his friends - Evan is on the left and Stefan is in the middle.)

Meet Grayer!!

Here are some pictures of our little Grayer Wayne Gilchrist.

When he was born he weighed 8lbs 4oz and was 22 inches long.

Two days ago we took him into the Dr for his 1 month check

and he now weighs 9lbs 12oz and is 22 1/8 inches long.

It has been so fun watching him grow and start to interact

with us. It is hard to get anything done in the day because

all we want to do is hold him and play with him.

He is such a joy in our lives, we love being parents!!

Miracle of the Whitings

My sister Megan and her husband Justin and their little girl Maggie came to visit us this past weekend and of course as luck would have it Grayer ended up going to the hospital while they were here. I felt so bad that they made the long drive just to have our fun weekend together ruined, but as I look back over this whole ordeal they could not have come on a better weekend. Both Andy and I felt so alone and scared as we watched our little boy be so sick. We longed to be home in Idaho so our parents could be near. But, the Lord knowing our need blessed us with a visit from the Whitings. You see, Justin normally has class on Saturdays but it just so happened that this past Saturday his class was canceled so they planned the trip to come visit us, coincidence? I think not. Having them here was such a blessing of comfort. They stayed with us at the hospital for hours, they brought us meals, they watched Grayer so we could go home and shower, and they took our minds off of worrying ourselves sick. Thanks so much you guys, you made this past weekend bearable. We love you!! Also, thanks to all of our other family members that have called us everyday to check up on us and to give us your love and support.

Our Weekend at the Hospital

This past weekend we had to take Grayer to the hospital. It all started on Wednesday when he wasn't acting like himself. He wasn't eating well, sleeping well, and was fussing more than usual. In the middle of our sleepless night due to crying and fussing I decided to take his temperature and it was 100.4, so naturally I called my Dad to ask him what we should do. He told us to give him some Tylenol and then to take him to a doctor the next day. So Thursday afternoon into the doctor we went with fears of Grayer having RSV--(ti's the season). The Doctor told us Grayer did not have RSV, but that we were supposed to stop giving him Tylenol to see if his fever progressed any and if it did to take him to the ER. That night at about 9:00 his temperature was 101.5, so into the ER we went. I of course was bawling and wishing more than anything we were home so that my Dad could take care of him. How spoiled we are to have Dad be our Doctor!! Grayer had to have what is called a septic work up where they check his blood, urine, and spinal fluid for infection. So we had to watch our 3 week old baby boy get a catheter, an IV, and a spinal tap. This of course was heart wrenching and made me cry even harder. (I'm even crying right now as I type this). After all of his tests were done we were told that he would have to be admitted to the hospital so that he could be monitored and treated with antibiotics. Oh, we also had to be transferred to the Children's Hospital so Grayer and I got our first ride in an ambulance! After a day of being in the hospital we were told that his urine test had come back positive for infection and that more testing was needed. He had to get an ultrasound and x-ray of his kidneys and bladder to check for reflux in his kidneys. The test came back positive for reflux. Simply put, reflux is when urine in the bladder does not stay in the bladder and goes back up into the kidneys which then causes kidney infections. Finally after 3 days of being tortured with eating hospital food and sleeping in hospital beds we were released Sunday morning. Eventually Grayer will grow out of having kidney reflux but until then we have to give him a small dose of antibiotics everyday and take him to a urologist every 3 months. How grateful I am for the miracle of modern medicine that can help treat and heal our bodies so quickly.
p.s. Thank you to all those who kept Grayer in your prayers and fasted for him. We truly have seen the hand of the Lord in our lives as we have been through this trial.

Baby Gilchrist is here!!!

After nine months and 3 days we have a beautiful baby boy. Susan is resting so it is my turn to post. The old saying is a picture is worth a thousand words, so here's a few thosuand words.