Pediatrician Change

I made a switch-a-roo regarding Bear's Pediatrician. There were some concerns that we had regarding Bear and I needed a Pediatrician who was on the same page as us when it came to the well-being of our son. I'm not saying in the least bit that the former pediatrician we had was bad, she was just more of the "wait and see" approach, and, well, that's not exactly how I "roll."

I was introduced to our current pediatrician by a lady who works with my mother-in-law. She told me Dr. Dickerson was phenomenal and was up-to-date & very knowledgeable about children with special needs.

So, I made an appointment with her as I felt it was necessary to interrogate her just a little bit. :) Oh.My.Word. I was overly impressed and the fact that she applauded me for being on top of things reassured me that much more that she was for the well being of my son too! Can I get an Amen?

She had a plan in place for Bear and it was one that we had already decided on for him...we just needed a doctor who believed what we believed and she did! It honestly was an answer to pray.

I didn't care that her office is in Newnan...as a mom I am willing to do whatever it takes, go wherever I need to go to have that peace of mind that my son is being seen by someone who cares about his health and well-being just as much as we do.

She was patient, took her time with us and even shed a few tears with me! Ummm...hello?

Needless to say, I was convinced she was God sent and we are thankful that Bear is under the right care for his needs moving forward.

HE DID IT!

I obviously have  a lot of catching up to do but as my boy continues to grow and various things transpire in the Sheneman household I will definitely have to squeeze those in. So......

Here's a squeeze in blog!

BEAR TOOK HIS FIRST FEW STEPS ON THURSDAY!!! 

Trey was at work...and, well, I couldn't hide it from him and I knew he would see him anyways...so I called him! His response, "did you push him down?" Umm...NO! I certainly didn't want him to think that he shouldn't walk...instead I held out my arms and he came "running," a little wobbly but he did it nonetheless.

He showed off his skills to his daddy later that night at the gym. Trey watched as he, more confidently, came to me taking at least 5 steps that time. His posture was more controlled and he looked like a pro!
Quite honestly he should look like one...the boy is able to sprint with his walker. I laugh because he seems to be so dependent on that walker as an older person is to their's. Not worried though as I know that his walker will soon be a thing of the past as he runs around the house chasing me and Trey!


As I type, can you guess what Bear is doing?!??! You got it...pushing his walker around at lightning speed! He tires me just watching him. :)

Happy Saturday...enjoy your time with your loved ones!

~Jenni~

Playing Catch-up!

So, my last post was about the highlights from the end of last year till now. My goal is to play catch-up and really detail those highlights with pictures and more than just a sentence description.

All about our "1" year old and his "1st" BIRTHDAY BASH...A Winter ONEderland...was his theme! 

 We were blessed to have some pretty awesome people in our lives who helped us make his day so special! The cake was made courtesy of Amanda Cabe & the wonderful photography was done by Courtney Wilkerson over at www.twinklingeyephotography.com

 My hubby had a wonderful idea...he went and bought cupcakes to ornament Bear's cake table. I love that man & his creative ways.

 You can't have a Winter ONEderland with out some make believe SNOW AKA Epsom salt. Courtesy of Pinterest.

 Our Winter ONEderland banner that I made..l.because I refused to pay $25- or more from etsy. I just hated that you can't see it in the picture! My husband wrote the words out...and he did great!

 Party favors for Bear's friends...Bear even personalized it, on the back of their stocking, by thanking them for coming to his party...which they can hang on their Christmas tree every year as a remembrance of Bear's 1st Birthday! :)

 Courtney is great & so creative...have I mentioned that before?!?!?!

 I wanted those who were in attendance to write something special to Bear that he will be able to open (hence the box wrapped in Winter Wonderland paper) on his 18th Birthday!

 My beautiful family. Who I thank God for everyday.

 This sweet face makes our lives so much richer!

 Seriously. Is that not the cutest picture you ever did see?!?!? LOVE it.

For the adults & kiddos--cake pops! Something sweet for them to indulge their sweet tooth!









After just one taste he had officially become a lover of sweets...too bad for him he won't get anything like that until his 2nd birthday! Ha. Remember via my last post we are on a journey to eat healthier as a FAMILY.



We were so very thankful for all of those who came out to celebrate with us! Bear has some pretty wonderful & supportive people in his life and we couldn't ask for anything more!

Totally love this picture of these two! Shiloh is Courtney (our friend & family photgrapher) & Jeff's daughter. She was born just a few weeks after Bear was born. I sure hope that their friendship will be life long as well as all of Bear's other friends.

Son, here's to your 1st year of life. We celebrate you, your accomplishments (even at this age) & all that God has set before you in the years to come.

We are blessed to call you ours. We love you to infinity and beyond!

Momma & Daddy

The.New.Year.

So, do I have lots to write about? Of course. However, blogging is the last thing I ever think about doing, so kudos to those of you who make it a priority in your life.

A lot has transpired now that we are in the year 2012 and the last time I blogged was in 2011, November to be precise...22nd I believe. Maybe? I dunno. It's.been.that.long.

Some Highlights:

-Bear turned 1 back in December 2011
-Changed Pediatricians
-Trey took me to Savannah for a few days (without Bear) towards the latter part of December--it was awesome...BUT I definitely missed Bear...we both did.
-Celebrate Christmas Eve at home..Gigi & Poppa were with us this time around.
-Rang in the New Year at home with friends!
-Started letting Bear cry it out (New Year's Eve).
-Bear has made remarkable improvements in so many areas. God is good!
-Bear loves him some carrots & apple sauce and he is growing fonder of table food
-I completed the Love Dare
-Reading a book titled "Made to Crave"-AWESOME...so far!
-Currently on a 21 day fast with my church
-Trey asked me to join the Gold's Gym Challenge with him, so I said sure!
-More aware of what Trey and I are eating. I can't say that sweets will no longer enter my mouth because I would be lying...however, they are much less.
-I'm refraining from Facebook and have for the last several days...and may be for awhile. So, if you need me email me, text or call! :)

I think that sums up what's been going on in my life. Eventful.I know.

Happy New Year to You and Your's!

~Jenni~

Teacher.

I miss the classroom and kids but there's no greater joy I get then teaching my son.

I truly believe the 2 years that I taught were in preparation for teaching Bear. Other then having a love for teaching (why would you do it, right?), patience is a HUGE factor in teaching.
I taught kids who were incredibly smart to kids who struggled.daily. However, the rewarding part of being a teacher is seeing the "light bulb" go off & the huge smile on your students' faces when they realize that it finally "clicked" for them.

I feel the same way when it comes to Bear. When he gets it or does something that took him a little longer then others to do it's a HUGE deal for me & Trey. Just recently Bear clapped on command (I know it sounds like I am referring to a dog but you get what I am trying to say) & I kid you not I screamed, I cried and I jumped up and down. He sat in his high chair with this BIG smile on his face as if he knew--the "light bulb" went off for him!

I was so glad Trey was there to witness it as well. It was a big day for us Sheneman's. We are believing the Lord for daily breakthroughs when it comes to the "little-big" things regarding Bear.

He is faithful.He sees.He hears.He cares.He knows--my constant reminders.

Thank you Lord for Bear...and for these "little-big" breakthroughs!

Thankful for Gigi and Poppa!

Why? For many many reasons.
Besides from the fact that they take care of Bear's every need Gigi is the person that Bear sees most other than us.
I really wish that Bear could see all of his grandparents and great grandparents as much as he sees her but unfortunately that is not the case. :(

Can I just say that the boy loves him some Gigi. When Gigi is around & you ask Bear, "where is Gigi?" he looks straight at her! Not to mention the GIGANTIC smiles that he gives to her pretty much every time their eyes meet.

Bear loves his Gigi and so do we! Can you see why we are so grateful for her?

We appreciate the monetary things that she & poppa do for Bear, but what matters most to us is all the time she spends loving on our boy. Love trumps any outfit & toy.

Although I know she has worried & probably has cried herself to sleep questioning God about all that we have been through, at the end of the day she looks at her grandson, as Jesus would, and sees "perfection."

And Poppa has been so steady with his reminders about what God has told him about Bear and how confident he is that Bear is just fine. We know they have prayed for him since conception & continue to pray for him daily... what more could a parent ask for?


For that we are extremely grateful and thankful for Gigi & Poppa and we know that Bear is too!

WE LOVE YOU GIGI AND POPPA!

Bear, Jenni & Trey

"If the mountain was smooth, we couldn't climb it...."

I often wonder if that's what life is really about...climbing the mountain AKA going from glory to glory to glory. The process of sanctification is no easy one...as Christians we have to "put up our dukes daily" to prevent the enemy from invading our territory.

Now that I am a mama, I "see" the enemy that much more at work, trying to invade my camp so to speak. Well, I got news for him, I may shed a few tears, OK A LOT, but he must not know who he is coming up against.
I don't back down...well, I may grow weary every now and again, but quitting is not an option. I have a race to "run" and I will finish strong. Why? Because I have a husband and a son who need me.

For those of you who don't know, Bear was born with Bilateral Microtia Atresia (BMA), and with that comes some complications, his speech being the most affected. He may be slow to speak but I declare that when he does that wisdom and understanding would flow from his mouth. In Jesus name.

Over the last several months I have noticed some unusual behaviors that of course I googled and googled until I was pretty much sick to my stomach. I was a basket case for a few days but I regained my strength & sanity. The internet can be a great thing and a horrible thing all at the same time. However, I am glad I did it because I have an understanding now of what lies ahead for us as a family.
We took Bear to see a developmental pediatrician today and he was WONDERFUL! He even told us that the name 'Sheneman' was German and it meant 'beautiful person.' He obviously was referring to our son; little did he know he was prophetically speaking over him...
We know he is beautiful both inside and out. He also mentioned that when he looks at Bear he sees such determination. Amen. We receive it.

So, for the last few months I have been very open about what I think was going on with Bear...and I am pretty certain a few people thought I was a hypochondriac, over paranoid, not thinking clearly...you know- "CRAZY." Even my pediatrician with out saying it thought I was a little extreme in my thought process. However, if you are a parent, excuse me- a mama, then you know when something is going on with your child. It's instinctive. Ya know?
With that being said, Dr. Rubin "diagnosed" Bear with Pervasive Developmental Disorder-not otherwise specified. Bear shows characteristics of autism but not enough to label him autistic. Obviously, speech plays a huge role but that has to do with his hearing and the fact that he doesn't want to wear his hearing aid. :/


So, I ask that you would pray for my family daily as the road ahead will be long but promising. We believe that God has given Bear to us for so many reasons and we will do whatever it takes as his parents to see that he flourishes in every area of his life.
There will be lots of doctor visits involved as well as speech therapy and occupational therapy and at home visits from medical professionals, but all in all he is 10 months old and intervention is starting now! The brain, at this age, is so "moldable" that the things Bear does now can "easily" be fixed with help, so that's what we will do. It won't be easy and I'm sure there will be days that I will be exhausted but my help comes from the Lord and I will draw on his strength that much more.

Thankful that I don't have to do this alone and that I have a husband who is just as much involved as I am, family members who love Bear more then anything in this world and friends who are there to help.

I'm sure you all will want frequent updates as they come, so I will do my best to be more consistent. Not making any promises. Ok? Ok.

I will close with this verse:

Joshua 1:5-9
"5 No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.

7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Blessings to all of you,

Bear, Jenni & Trey