Emily’s two!! Wow, time sure does fly. She’s wearing my favorite new flowery dress in this shot and grinning a sort of clever/sly grin that reminds me of a look my grandmother used to get. Of course, grandma was a troublemaker but Emily’s just a sweetie.

We didn’t do much for Emily’s birthday except breathe a sigh of relief that our taxes were done and go to the park. We’re having a big party next month for both Ana and Emily (Ana turns 5 in May), so it was just the four of us this weekend. Emily loves to sit on the “big kid” swing (with Jim’s help). She even kicked her legs a little to try to get it going.

Here’s a shot of Emily in her Easter outfit. We don’t actually celebrate Easter (except for the basket and egg part of it). Emily’s wings and pink grass skirt seemed appropriate for a Sunday spent at home.

There’s that sly look again. She’s standing in a pink playhouse in the park. She had a great birthday playing with her sister and hanging out.

I had the pleasure and privelege of attending the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association’s 63rd annual meeting in Vancouver last week as an honorary member of NYU’s Institute of Reconstructive Plastic Surgery’s cleft palate team.

This is my second year attending the meeting with Emily’s team and it’s just as much of an honor. The team presented a study session titled, “Team Management of a Family In a Nasoalveolar Molding Program.” Our presentation was on Thursday, April 7th at 4 pm (PST).

It is hard for me to describe the honor of presenting with such a renowned team of experts. The respect each member of the team has shown to me and my family over the past two years is truly without comparison. It is clear that they were all very grateful to have me there to discuss nasoalveolar molding from a parent’s perspective to a room filled with their peers, as much as I was grateful for the chance to tell Emily’s story and advocate use of NAM to the people with the most power to implement it across the country.

One thing I think I need to clarify is that NAM is not widely accepted or utilized among cleft teams due to several barriers including insurance coverage, the question of whether this is a dental or medical procedure (it’s medical), adoption of treatment via surgeons (who are the ultimate decision-makers) and the amount of work and travel required of families who choose NAM for their babies. Our job, as a unified team, was to explain how NYU has come together to form a solid resource for NAM by taking the approach of “sharing the work” among the three key players – the surgeon, the orthodontist/cleft team, and the family (no, not just the parents). Everyone who spoke discussed how to get things done – how to get insurance to reinburse patients for the cost of the appliance (Margy, NYU’s insurance GODDESS, even knew the NAM code by heart), how to get families to commit to the treatment for the full length of therapy and the type of work involved in making NAM successful during the short window when the baby’s face is most pliable (you read it right).

Thanks, NYU, for allowing me to sit at the other side of the table for the second year in a row. It really means a lot (as a parent and a person) to know so many people are dedicated to creating a beautiful smile for Emily.

I first posted about Noelle last August when she was fresh from her lip repair and looking fabulous. I have an update on little Noelle, who just turned one.

Laura, Noelle’s grandma, says: “Noelle celebrated her lst birthday on March 26th…she is an absolute delight, has been walking for over a month and her vocabulary consists of the following words: DaDa, MaMa, Cat,Car, Ball and Bir (without the d). She absolutely loves her books, dogs, playing outside, hide & seek, music and to dance her (bouncy, bouncy quick step). She took her first vacation to Florida with her family and so loved the ocean and sand. With a sunny disposition, playfulness, those eyes the color of blueberries, strawberry blond hair and, last but not least,that incredible smile…our Noelle Antonia will surely melt your heart. It has now been 8 months since her surgery last August and as you can see, she is doing just great.”

Noelle, fully aware of the power of cuteness, flutters her eyes at the camera. Is it me, or is that dimple the BOMB??