32!

My favorite hubby (and only hubby) just turned 32!  He continues to amaze me at what an incredible husband, father, and overall man he is and continues to become.

We spent his birthday at home this year.  E made him a card, we ate chicken marsala (his favorite), had some delicious wine, and topped it off with two bundtinis from Nothing Bundt Cake.

He received some new "going out" clothes from us, but his other gift has yet to arrive.  I can't wait to see what his reaction is when he gets it.  :-)

Happy birthday, Paul.  I love you more than ever!

birthday card for Daddy

Paul just had his 32nd birthday.  I helped E make a card for him.  When I asked what he wanted the card to say on the inside, he replied with "The bust stops".  So that's what I wrote.  E did the drawing and decorating himself.  The illustration on the left is a Dubba.  For those of you who don't know what a Dubba is...neither do I.  According to E, it lives in the ocean and walks on all fours. Okay...

As he was drawing, I was asking him if a Dubba had hair/head/feet/etc.  I've labeled where he drew the body parts.  I'm impressed that he knows where they go in relation to the image he is drawing.

Paul loved his card.  I do too.

hip dysplasia

At G's 9 month well visit, the pediatrician was asking me questions about his development.  I had mentioned that he wasn't crawling on hands and knees yet, but rather army crawling.  In addition, I let him know that he tends to drag his left side and is stronger on the right.  He made a note of it, but didn't say to worry.

Fast forward a few minutes to when the pediatrician is checking G's hips...the doctor let's out a "Hmm."  When I ask what he's thinking, he says that G has a large crease on his right thigh that he doesn't have on his left.  He proceeds to tell me that they look for symmetry between the two sides.  The doctor continues to examine G and stretches his legs out. He tells me that his right leg looks a little longer than his left and shows me.  He flips G over, but G just isn't having it. Nevermind that the appointment is taking place at naptime and G is hungry, so,  no, it's not going over well with G.


Our pediatrician recommends that G gets some X-rays taken of his hips.  The pediatrician says he just wants to make sure as to what's going on, but that if something were there, he may only need a brace and not surgery. Oh, thanks.  That totally makes me feel less freaked out. He says that they recommend we go to Cardons Children's and that the office will call to schedule the X-rays.

I take G home and call Paul, who of course has a ton of questions that I never thought to ask our doctor.

After dropping G off, I head in to work and anxiously await a call from the pediatrician's office.  Just after an hour of getting in to work, I get the call and they say we can take G in whenever we'd like.  I tell my teammates (who are phenomenal) and they tell me to leave and just take care of it.  When I go to tell my principal that I will be out the reminder of the day, she is completely understanding and agrees that I should leave.

On my way back home, I call Paul and he agrees to meet me at home so we can take G to Cardons together.  G did exceptionally well while we waited and during the X-rays.  He laid there quitely while I held his arms and Paul held his legs.  We both had to wear lead jackets that went from neck to knee. I was also asked if there was any chance I was pregnant, to which I replied no. The nurse/technician was very kind and sweet.  I'm thankful she was that way and not mean like the lady at admitting when we arrived. (That's another story.)

She told us that our doctor would call us in the next 24-48 hours with the results.  That night (and day), Paul and I have already been Google-ing hip dysplasia and everything that goes along with it. From needing surgery after the child is 6 months old, to wearing a spica cast for three months, to needing to rent a car seat that fits the cast, to what life for him will be like if he's in a cast, and more...

We talked about it that night and prayed that he was ok, but I prepared myself for the chance that he wasn't.

The next day at work, I got a call around 10:45 from our pediatrician.  He said that G's results came back normal. I was incredibly relieved and thankful and ecstatic.  I called Paul and let him know the results. And again, he had a ton of questions that I never thought to ask. I pretty much told Paul that after the doctor said his results were normal, I stopped listening.

I'm so glad he's ok.

G is nine months!

Our sweet (and terrorizing) little G is now 9 months old!  And like the busy momma I am, the amount of photos I have taken during the month of May is ZERO.  That was until I took chair photos.  Now the count is at 15 or so.


We have been dealing with some illnesses around the house lately. G is finally feeling better after a rough weekend of having a fever and wanting to be held only by me.

At nine months, G:
-weighs 18 lbs., 9 oz
- 29" long
- has 6 teeth
- has been sick with a fever and vomiting this past month
- is army crawling all over the place and is quite fast.  He will get onto his hands and knees, rock a bit, can move each knee once and then topples over.

- is getting quite good at scooting and then sitting up on his hip while supporting himself with his arm.  He's SO close to sitting back up on his toosh. (as of 5/25, he can now do this!)
- was found this morning trying to pull himself up in his crib (danger, danger!)
- likes to bite and we have bruises to prove it
- recognizes his name and "no"
- squeels with delight at his brother and the dog
- will come running, er...scooting, to me when he hears our voices or sees us.
- pulls himself up in his crib to his knees and will get to standing if he is using a person for support
- has been waking at night at least once around 4:30, but sometimes twice a night...grrr
- enjoys all kinds of food after having Mommy milk
- screams when you try to take anything away from him

- screams/cries when his brother knocks him over, bites, or hits him
- cries when his brother makes a loud pitched fire engine siren noise
- does not want you to sit down while rocking him as he goes to sleep. Don't even try it.  He'll scream.
- can fall asleep on his own sometimes. The rest of the time he screams, so I pick him back up.  It's not worth waking his brother.
- will close the animals on this game:
- has the cutest little toes

- is the sweetest, most cuddliest little rascal

Happy 9 months, G-unit!

Love

My favorite moment of the day: G started crying in the car, and E leans over to him and says very quietly, "It's ok baby. I'm here."

What a week!

I write this while a sick baby sleeps on my chest, so I apologize in advance for any errors in conventions. This week started off well, and seemed to go downhill quickly. Good things I was looking forward to this week: -I received some news from a friend of mine that the preschool where E will attend next year was looking to hire a teacher. -I was going to meet some friends for dinner. -A haircut for myself was scheduled and I had a bridal shower to attend. What ended up happening: -Tuesday afternoon after school, I saw a text from my dad saying to hurry home because E wasn't feeling well. I get home and within the hour, he vomits all over my mom and our floors. He seems to feel better after that, so my mom said she would stay until Paul came home so I could go to dinner. While at dinner, I get a message from Paul saying that Grayson is now vomiting (all over my mom, of course). -Wednesday morning, at our staff meeting, we are notified that our principal is being promoted. The room was silent and people started crying. Including me. She is the best administrator and we are so sad to see her go. After hearing that news, I sent my resume for the preschool opening. Later, I receive a message from Paul saying that he took E to urgent care because the rash on/around his penis had gotten considerably worse overnight. The doctor at urgent care said that what had started as a yeast infection had now become a bacterial infection (impetigo). He gave us some cream to apply. -Thursday,my mom called my school around 10am telling me that E had developed a rash all over his body. I came home and took him to the doctor after his nap. He was diagnosed with Hand, Foot and Mouth disease. It's pretty common amongst kids. Poor little guy had these puss filled blisters that looked like bug bites/pimples. His thighs (inner and outer), butt, and backs of his arms, and genitals were the worst. He really enjoyed taking oatmeal baths to calm the itching, though. That afternoon, I spoke to the preschool, but declined an interview because the position wa not offering enough money. -Friday, I signed my contract for the next school year. I came home and then went to my cousin's bridal shower. I came home at 9 to an awake G with a fever. This weekend, I have spent about 90% of my time holding G. He will not sleep in his bed and fusses if we put him down or if I pass him to Paul. I miss Evan because I feel like I've spent little to no time with him this weekend. I hope everyone starts feeling better soon.

Potty training

Well, he's gone and done it. Big E can pee in the toilet! He started 8 days ago and has done really well. For the past several months, we've been having him sit on the toilet at bath time and watch us go to the bathroom. We talk about how big kids use the toilet and have read books to him about it too.recently, he's been wanting to go without a diaper or pants on around the house. Last Saturday, he was in his usual nudeness, when he wants to go that side with me and help me change out the carseats. I told him that he had to put pants on or wear his underwear. He didn't want pants. I told him that underwear slip on just like shorts and he put them on. (This was a great first step because he has not wanted to wear underwear until that point. Since then, he has only worn a diaper to poop or to sleep in at bedtime. We didn't even put a diaper on for naps, which I was a bit worried about at first. The first day he had one accident outside. The second day he had another accident outside. The third day he had two inside. From day 4, he hasn't had any. Although today he trickled a few drops on the floor, then Paul rushed him to the bathroom. I'm quite impressed how well he has done. I definitely thought it would be worse and I was not looking forward to this stage. However, we couldn't get E to poop on the toilet...until today. Just before bedtime, Paul was able to et him to go! Only a mother and father would be excited about pooping IN the toilet! Way to go, E! E are so proud of you, big boy!