May 12, 2008

Happy Late Mother's Day to all my blogger friends out there and to all my other friends and family, and most important to my mom.. We LOVE You!!!!!!

Also Happy 6 year Anniversary of being together to Chuck! (which also fell on Mother's Day this year) I love You Spanky!! xox Can't wait to get married, it's getting close..

here are some recent pics I promised every one.. We move Saturday into the new house so we might be MIA for a little while..

YES my mom put me in red to match my sisters AGAIN!!! lol

Happy on the swings..

Funny Kisses.. I Love this face..

The Easter Egg Hint.. he LOVED the bunny!





Aiden with my broom thinking he is cute sweeping, but he's more like a bull in a china shop LOL

Hey Look NO MORE G-Tube!!! Yay!!

May 7, 2008

Kill the bug already would ya!!!

The bug has come to visit again and attacked Aiden. The poor kid, he finally gets his tube out and then gets the flu or what I thought was the flu but man it lasted a lot longer then 24 to 48 hrs. It started last tuesday and then I got him to the docs this tuesday when he still was sick. Over the week end I thought it was going away. Saturday he got up felt better ate some, played, had a little lunch and then about 7pm it started all over again. Severe poops and puking. He had the poops so bad that I was changing him every 30 mins at one point if not more. I don't know how he lasted if it was me I would of been such a bigger baby then he was. So Tuesday we took him to the pedi and they drew blood to see if he was dehydrated cause he really wasn't eating. I was pushing fluids the best I could, and he could keep down crackers, toast, and as funny as it sounds coffee rolls from dunkins, so when I could get out we'd get him some. I gave him pedialyte but he refused it after the first one, then I started with the vitamin water cause he likes them. Well the doc said to keep up what I was doing, that he wasn't dehydrated, and his weight was fine, he weighed in at 25.2 after a week of hardly eating and poopin it all out.
So as of today we only pooped once, and he is back to eating, but still not 100% himself. By night time he gets worn down cranky and whiny. He gets clumsy too and it sometimes takes a little snuggle to get him to sleep. Tonight was worse then most nights. He fought it and then was just cranky but finally went down at 11:21pm.. THANK YOU..

Here is hoping he is back to himself by the week end. I hate when my bug is sick.. Grrrrr

And a Happy Birthday to my Oma (from Aiden) That is grandma in German, today is her Birthday and we had intentions of stopping over but with my bug having the bug and me tripping over toys, kids and packing boxes I never did get out of the house after Chuck went to work.

April 21, 2008

SO.... Can we say GOT G-TUBE?

And the answer would be NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO !!!!

It's gone, it's out and thank god... Pictures to be posted later cause I am just too lazy to load them on the computer and post them now.. Sorry

Other news is Aiden has been doing well with E.I. , however we had to push a bit to get a speech therapist. We finally got one out to do the evaluation and she will be coming back to write up his IAP. As usual once we finally get something we want, something puts a kink into it. We also got something else we wanted ( a house) which means Aiden will now be put into a new program in the new town when we move. We close on the house May 16th so I am hoping he will have E.I. until we move, and then we will have to wait and see how long the waiting list is at the next place. The good part is, that his IAP for speech will already be written and that means he will get a speech therapist from the next place a lot faster. YAY for that!

I know they said once he started walking it is very common for talking to take a back seat, but it has really taken a back seat I think, and I'm his mom. I see him more then anyone so I think I'd notice more then E.I. would.

Before he'd say Momma, Dadda, Nanna, Cat, Buttons, Up, Ya, Aiden, and a few times we got hi, cup, pup (for puppy), and baby. Now we are down to Momma, Dadda, Ya, and Nanna. Big bummer.. You can say a lot of things to him and he knows what you mean, or ask him to say words he use to say for example "buttons" which he said all the time, and now he just smiles and laughs this cute little laugh like I can say it but I'm not going too.

Other then that he is the typical child. Into EVERYTHING, tries to eat EVERYTHING, and just is a delight to be around. He is very well natured, smiles and giggles all the time. Loves, I mean LOVES to play peek-a-boo, or I'm gonna get you.. It's hilarious..

As for the tube, I don't even think he knows. It hasn't changed anything he does, (however I have noticed he eats more at times. Like today he had dry cereal for breakfast, then 20 mins later a beechnut banana pudding and 1/4 of a cin/ras bagel. Then for lunch at 3 he ate 2 whole hotdogs himself, he didn't share any with the cat lol. At 6:30 since right after lunch I took him to the park for 2 1/2 hrs I figured I'd treat him to Mc D's (daddy's no no) and he ate 1/3 of a double cheese burger, 2 chicken nuggets and a small fry.. You would think the kid is huge but he is still skinny to me. He has gotten taller so he thinned out a lot (he was a fat baby) lol.
He now floats back and forth between 25 and 26 pounds.

Well that's about it. I'llpost more pics soon.. I promise..
Hugs to all..

April 1, 2008

It's been a rough week.. We had pop's wake (my dad) on Thursday. Aiden and I went down to my moms after I got a sitter for the girls on Monday and saw my dad before they took him away. Aiden as he always did went over to him and kissed him. It broke my heart!
We came home that night and then the kids and I went down on Wednesday and stayed until Sunday. I took this week off from work too. I am so physically and mentally exhausted. Sunday night I went to bed early but it took me a while to fall asleep. I kept waking up so in the morning I was still so tired. I set my alarm to go to work and slept through it. By the time I got up and could function it was too late to attempt to get ready and make it to work in time. I figured since I had to take off Wed for Aiden's GI check up and then I was already taking Thursday and Friday off to go back down to moms and spend with her, what was the point of going to work for just tuesday so i took the week off. I'd like to say it will give me time to rest but with three little ones it doesn't ever seem that real rest is possible. Tonight I did however get a few hours to watch a movie and it was nice to just forget about everything for two hours, not have any crying babies and just veg out. Thank you to Chucks parents for taking the kids. They are going to watch them Sunday too for a few hours so me and Chuck can go to a movie. It will be nice to spent time with just me and him. I miss him, and we don't ever seem to have any alone time at all any more.

Before I was down at my moms as much as I could be with the kids so my dad could spend time with Aiden. I'm grateful he got that before he passed. He loved that little boy and Aiden always made him smile. Now with him gone, I want to spend as much time with my mom as I can until things settle a bit. It's going to take her a while to get back into the swing of things. She was with my dad for 31 years and 90% of everything she did was to take care of him. If it was making dinner or getting his meds ready. Running to the store or takign his blood sugar readings. Everything my mom did was for my dad and it's going to be so different and so quiet with out him. I still wait for him to be there when I get there. To wake up and have it all be a dream. It's weird and although he isn't with us anymore I'm not ready to say good buy yet. I have my pictures and I look at them like he is still here and it's not registering completely that i won't see him again. It hurts and it kills me even more to see my mom go through it.
I can't imagine. I know what it felt like when I lost Chase and I only had him alive for 27 minutes, I can't imagine having him and being with him every moment of 31 years and then it all being over and him being gone.
My heart broke when I lost Chase, it's still broken, and it hurts to think about. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss him and want him here with me.

I know my mom will never forget and a part of her will be changed forever, I just hope she is ok at the end of all this. I could not imagine her not being here with me. She is my best friend, my everything, she is my mommy and I only hope my children will love me like I love her. She is the one who made me who I am and I would not be the same with out her.

As for my dad, we had many differences and he was a hard parent to grow up with. At times life was aweful, but in the end he was my dad and for that I love him, and I miss him. I hope now he is in a better place with out all the suffering he had while he was here.

RIP Dad.. I love you and I will miss you and I promise I will remind Aiden of you often. Watch over mom and tell Chase I love him so much.

March 24, 2008

Today has been a rough day.. It was my first day back to work after 8 months of being home on either bed rest due to being pregnant with the twins and then extended maternity leave. I enjoyed the time I got to spend with my kids and family.
Then I got the phone call.. My dad passed away today..
Ironically he told me on Friday when he came home from the hospital that not to worry, he knew Monday was my first day back to work and he would wait til Monday to pass so i would get my four free days off. Both me and my mom have state jobs serving the public and get four days off paid for the death. My dad thought it was funny and I told him to shush cause he wasn't going any place just yet.. Boy did he know something cause I got out of work at 2pm and he passed at 2:30pm

Me an my dad had our differences but he was still my dad and the one thing I can say is that no matter how he treated us kids he made up for some of it with the way he treated mine. He loved my kids and enjoyed Aiden more then any kid I have ever seen him around. It kills me that Aiden will not remember that.

In memory of my dad I am posting and old pictur I took with my cell phone camera. It was when Aiden was littler and I didn't get a chance to take a recent one. It's bad quality but it's all I have.

I love you dad, and thank you for being my Daddy!

March 10, 2008

Bit by the BUG!!!!
I haven't posted because it's been a crazy week at the Russell household. I got the bug which I thought was food poisoning until Aiden got it and the the girls.
Lets just say I felt so bad I wanted to run into on coming traffic. I spent the day in bed miserable and unable to keep anything down. Then the next day when I felt some what better Aiden got it. The poor little guy puked and puked all night. It's the first time he's been sick like that so he didn't know what to do when he kept throwing up. I felt so bad for him. The day after he stopped throwing but then got the poops. Man, it's been nuts here and he still has them. He still isn't himself. He's very clingy, whiney, and just not my little Aiden. I hope it's gone soon and he's back to 100% cause this has been a week from HELL!!!!

February 28, 2008

Well here is the out come of yesterdays appointment. Sorry for not posting sooner. I seem to be getting another cold and just felt ikky yesterday.

Aiden had his doctor appointment with GI and it was to discuss having his tube out. The doctor told us that they usually make a child wait 6 months of not using the tube before they remove it. UHHHH NO!! Please take it now.. !

So with that said, they agreed that Aiden has to go back April 2nd for another check up and if he is still not using the darn thing then they will schedule to take it out the following week.. YAY..

It would be one thing if it was the button but it's the original tube and it's long and a pain in the butt. I have to pin it to his diaper, he is always pulling on it when I change him, every so often the pin comes loose and falls off. Besides that it always looks nasty around the site no matter how many times you clean it.

Most kids have the button put in after a year but they chose not to since we assumed he would not have it much longer.
The doctor said that the hole will close up with in just a few days and thats it. It will be gone and healed and over with.. I can't wait to be able to take him to the beach this year and in the pool with out having to wear a swimmie, shorts, and a onsie to cover the tub.. What a pain in the G-tube.. haha.. Ok that was a bad joke..

February 26, 2008

Well Aiden has started EI with the new place and so far we have had one session. I like the new person, she works really well with Aiden and is very nice. Too bad once we find a house we will be moving and have to shift to a new company once again since we will be about 40 miles south of here. So for the time being we have EI on Thursdays and Swim on Wednesdays. Then we will be having PT but I'm unsure on what days yet.

A few new things.. We got a new tooth that FINALLY cut through the gums. It's taking it's sweet time showing but it's there, so now we have 3 teeth at almost 21 months old.. (that's just funny to me) We can also stand up from a sitting or crawling position without crawling to something and pulling up on it. My boy is now off and running.. (well he attempts to run... lol)

Not much more new news. We have an appt with GI tomorrow to talk about getting the G-tube removed YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This we are all siked for, I can't wait and neither can daddy, or nonny, or anyone else. Aiden on the other hand may miss playing with it, the kid is insistent on playing with it when I change his diaper and fights with me to let go of it. I told Chuck we're going to have to cut him a piece of tubbing to keep..

So that is about it, I'll post more tomorrow and let you know how the GI appt goes but in the mean time here are a few older pics I just love..

February 14, 2008

Happy Valentine's Day !!

February 13, 2008

We had our first swim session today. Daddy took Aiden for 9am and when they got home he said "He Loved It!" I knew he would, he loves the water, so now the plan is to go every Wednesday morning for the 30 min session.
We meet tomorrow with the new Early Intervention agency too. So after that we should have a rough idea of who will be working with Aiden and on what days. I am hoping that if he is going to have PT, OT and Speech that two of them can at least come on the same day. If they all com on a different day and we have swim on wednesdays then we are going to have a hectic week every week and feel like we are always stuck in waiting for E.I.
Guess I'll know more tomorrow...

February 11, 2008

What a busy week it's going to be.. We have either appointments for Aiden, us, or the girls every day this week. Today we saw the eye doctor. I didn't get to go, I stayed home with the girls since they kept me up most of the night. I was just too tired and knew if I went to the appointment with Aiden and Chuck that I'd get no sleep until after Chuck got home from work and the gym tonight which is midnight. So the bad part about not going to an appointment is that I don't get the full mouth full of what she said. I usually get the short version. The VERY short version, lol. Chuck said that the doctor didn't mention that Aiden's eyes got any worse, which is good. However since wearing the eye patch wasn't a big hit with him. (He's just peal it off) we are now going to put eye drops in his right eye once a week, which will dialate the eye and force the other eye to work more to see close us. (So it helps the lazy eye get stronger) The doc said that kids react different to the drops. Some kids the drops last for 24 hours and others it last up to 3 days, so for now we only have to use them once a week and then we go back to see her in 3 months.

As for the rest of the week, well we will be meeting with the new Early Intervention team this week to set up a schedule. We also start swim on Wednesday mornings at 9. It's at the YMCA but the calss is held by his E. I.
I was going to take him but gave Chuck the option to go and he wanted to and i think it will be good Aiden and Daddy time. Besides Aiden loves the water so I think it's going to be fun for both of them. Then to finish the week up, tomorrow we meet with the realtor, wed is swim as I said, Thur I have a eye appt and we meet with the E.I. team, and Friday my little Riley has an appointment with the foot doctor.

Next week however we have nothing scheduled except Mommy gets to go out on the 23rd.. YAY for mommy.. I love my kids but man I need a break and some serious Adult time with no crying, no diapers, no messes, and no stress... and I'd take a few nights of great sleeping in something comfortable since my bed and my futon are no longer cutting it for me since I had the girls.

SO that's about it. We are still house hunting and hope to find something we love and can afford soon. We are still not sleeping, and we are still loving the fact that we have 3 beautiful healthy kids who in the end will make up for all this not sleeping business.. LOL

February 5, 2008

SO we are under construction too.. As we have updated the looks of the girls blog, Aiden's is getting a face lift too.. I uploaded the header of what it will look like and will be doing the rest soon.. Stay posted to see the new look. It should be done by the end of the week.. And a BIG THANK YOU to Hilary.. Our Blog friend who helped out.. You Rock Hil!!!!!!!!!!!!!

February 4, 2008

We lost weight!!! That is a first, and I will chalk it up to Aiden's cold but we are now 24.2 pounds... I'm also chalking it up to the cold and MAYBE a few new teeth coming that Aiden hasn't been eating oh so well this week. Even the things he LOVES he sometimes won't budge after a few bites. From the look of things, his two front teeth look like they are pushing there way through the gums. They are not yet at the bottom to push through or feel ridges, but you can see the "bumps" there. If they're anything like the two bottom teeth, they will take forever for the final cut through.

Other then that, I think his cold might be on it's way out (knock on wood), he seems to not cough so much which is good, and the fact that I have had two humidifiers running in my small little apartment 24 hrs a day on and off with vicks in them seems to have helped us all.
Mr Man also got his RSV shots today. I know its for his own good but I'll be happy next year when he doesn't have to get jabbed with two needles every month, not to mention if he has to get any other vaccines.

We have a few more appointments this month too. We see the eye doctor on Monday the 11th and then I made an appointment with GI to talk about and schedule Aiden to FINALLY have his G-tube out!! YES OUT!!!! The doctors told me before once he was drinking a normal amount on his own and staying hydrated then we can have it out. They don't usuallu like to take them out during winter in case a kid gets a cold, it's the easiest way to get them liquids with out forcing them to drink when they are sick. BUT since Aiden just had his first cold ever in 19 months and did fine drinking and I haven't used his G-tube since November I think it's time.
On a good day he'll drink 24 ounces on a bad 12 ounces, and some days more then 24. Either way he's done fine keeping hydrated and healthy so we will see what GI says.. This I am so excited for this. I can't wait for him to have this thing removed for good.

He's also walking so much more and so much better. He's so cute when he does it that i can't help but smil ear to ear and he is so proud of himself. He's such a happy kid and loves to laugh. I look forward to him talking more and more in the future too.

We are currently on the waiting list for the new EI place. I'm hoping it happens soon and doesn't take forever. I have a feeling it's going to take a while and by the time they get things going and we get a routine running we will have found a house and be moving, then we'll have to do this all over again and it's going to Aiden who suffers. That just sucks!! I want him to get the services he needs and should get and not have to wait weeks on end for the "system" to kick into action and get there crap together.

January 28, 2008

I'm a bit bummed out.. Today was Aiden's last day with the E.I. program we had been working with. Because he needs speech and we are not in there service area we had to switch companies. We will now be working with the company that services Wakefield. We were lucky enough to keep the people we had because they live in the next town over and didn't mind coming to Wakefield on there way out in the morning or home in the afternoon. I know it's all in the best interest of Aiden, but it just stinks to lose two very special people. Nancy and Jean, you both gave Aiden so much. Thank you so much for all you have done, all you have taught him, and for as much as you have loved my little boy. He will have you both smiling at the end of all this, when he is talking up a storm, running all over, and telling me what he wants to do next.. haha
You both will be missed not only by Aiden but by me and Nancy i will miss our little talks. It was good to have an "outsider" to talk to. I do hope you both keep in touch.

On another note, Aiden's new word is "buttons" and today he said "up" for Nancy (on her last day how nice). He is doing so much better walking too. He will now walk from room to room with out holding onto anything. It's so great to see him so proud and excited about it too.

We are all currently battling colds. I have had one for almost 2 weeks and shared it first with Aiden and Morgan and now Riley. We are all doing better but still have them. Not too bad though considering Aiden is 19 and a half month and this is his very first cold. Hopefully it will be gone soon and it will be another 19 months before he gets another one.. :)

January 22, 2008

Nose Picking, Colds & Sniffles, 3 kids, and a sick Mommy..

That is a recipe for a much needed vacation I tell ya.. I've been battling this cold for a week and still have it. i now have my voice back and the"junk" inside is breaking up but I shared it with the kids. Aiden's got a runny nose and Morgan has a junky nose and a little cough with watery eyes. I feel so bad for them. The only one so far not effected (besides dad) is Riley.

As for Nose picking, it's Aiden's new thing. He has discovered he can stick his finger in his nose and does so often. He doesn't actually "pick" it, but just puts his finger there and sits there waiting for who knows what.. lol

He's getting better and better at walking now too. he will let go and walk across the kitchen and from the bath room to the living room with out falling.

He's drinking like a champ, most days 12 to 24 ounces all on his own. I've finally got him drinking milk again too because he was starting to prefer juice or water. Today he drank 8 oz of strawberry milk with no issue and now is drinking coffee milk. I figure that if I have to flavor it, it's not a big deal, as long as he drinks it. Besides he's not over weight, he's not even chubby anymore like he was when he was a baby so I'm not worried about it.

All in all he is a normal toddler to me. He even tried to say I Love You, which is a big deal considering he is behind on speech. i think he'll catch up soon though. He's come so far, my once tiny little boy.. Now look at him...

January 11, 2008

Aiden is 19 months old today, can you believe it!
It's been a crazy 10 days or so. Last week we had our appt with the pedi and he got his boosters and RSV shots which meant he got poked with 5 needles that day. :(
Then Wed of this week we had his scheduled MRI. He wasn't allowed to eat 5 hrs prior or drink anything 3 hours prior so I tried to set a schedule to get him fed and full at the very last minute I could fit in. Well we all know my schedules never seem to stay on track. He woke up early on his own (too early) 4am, and finally after 2 hrs of being awake and not getting him to go back to sleep I fed him at 6 (I was planning 7:30-8:00 since his MRI was scheduled at 1:15).
He didn't eat much, had some juice and finally fell back to sleep at 6:30 so i wan't going to wake the poor kid up at 7:30 to try and feed him again. He got up at 8:30 and I squeezed in an apple sauce (what a few minutes and i didn't want him to starve) He ate it right up and had some more juice. We got ready and Nonny (my mom was here to watch the girls) and we planned to leave about 10:30 since he had an appointment with the child shrink at 11:45 first (part of the MRI study they are doing along with his regular MRI)
Well Daddy was wiped out and exhausted cause the girls were up all night and as much as he wanted to be there he ended up staying home with the girls (assuming they would sleep since they were up all night) and he could get some rest too, so Nonny went with us.
We left the house at 10:15, got to Children's Hospital at 11:20 and checked in. We had our appointment with the "shrink" and that took about an hour and then we walked over to MRI to check in. We waited a little bit and then they came to tell us they are an hour behind cause one of the scans are broken so we could go get something to eat. (Not Aiden though, the poor kid)
Me and my mom went to the cafe with Aiden and grabbed a bit and I was so happy that he didn't fuss for food, he didn't really care which was good cause it would of broken my heart even more to not be able to feed him if he was really hungry. We went back to MRI and waited about 45 more minutes and they called us in. We weighed him, talked about this and that and prepped for the IV. (I was not looking forward to this since it's been a wile since he has had one and he use to be such a hard stick. i have a 2 stick minimum before I refuse to let them poke him.
They got it in on the 2nd stick which almost got pulled out cause he was fighting and the nurse holding him who I guess is really good at it, didn't anticipate him being so strong for such a little kid.
SO the IV is in, Aiden now thinks they are all evil I am sure and he is getting some love from Mommy and Nonny. Then about 15more mins and they come to put the meds in. Those took about 4 to 6 mins and he was out like a light.
Off he went to sleepy land and into the MRI for 2 hours. All went well til the end and the last set of films (a 7 min series) he woke up for so they had to redo them which meant they had to give him a little more sleep stuff. The got the films all done and we waited in recovery. he had to wake up, drink some juice and be awake for about 15 mins before going home. Well he didn't want to wake up and it took a while
Well after all that we finally got to leave the hospital at 7:15pm.. 9 hours people... Oh what a day, I am glad Chuck didn't go cause even if he wasn't tired he would of never lasted 9 hours there.

We should have the results in a week or so and I assume all is fine. They did it as a follow up because of the bleeds he had in his brain when he was born as 98% of preemies born that young do, and they did extra films for the study they are doing about kids who have the bleeds and how they progress through the years. We figured he had to haev the MRI anyways so why not let them take a few extra pictures if some place down the line it could help out another little kid.

On the EI side of things, Aiden was suppose to have his 1 year eval on Thursday at 8:15 in the morning. Well since we didn't know the MRI was going to mess up the entire day and his entire sleep schedule. (She was in and out of it all night til about 10:30pm and then awake til 4am) So EI showed up and we all talked but let AIden sleep and rescheduled to do it next week. In our talkes we talked about getting him a PT and speech. PT to help build mor trunk muscles which are tied into speech believe it or not and speech because, well he's delayed.
The problem with this is that Tri-City the company we go through doesn't service our town since we moved, and the only reason we still have them is because his 2 awesome EI workers that come every week live one town away and have no problem keeping us. However now that we need and want speech we can't get a speech person willing to travel to wakefield. It's not far from the service area but what can ya do. This means we have to switch to Criterion and get all new people and lose the people we have which kills me but I know we have to do it cause it's the best for Aiden to get him the services he needs.
Other then that he is doing fab with EI and learning new things all the time. He is now walking better then last week and I am sure in the next few weeks he'll be walking all on his own.

We've come so far, it's hard to believe he was my less then two pound baby that almost didn't make it and spent 5 months in the NICU before coming home. He's an amazing child, and wonderful son, and i love him more then life. (even when he is tearnign apart the living room and the computer desk as I try to type)

I will have more pics soon, I've taken tons just haven't put them on the computer yet.

January 6, 2008

Aiden & Riley

Go Pats!!!!

I think at this point the girls have had enough... They are looking at each other like Hey when is this over..

It's now a new year.. Can you believe it? How time flies by is just crazy...
Aiden had a wonderful Christmas and was SPOILED ROTTEN by my parents. (What is an 18 month old going to do with a drum set) Oh Lord!!!! So lets just say the closet is enjoying a few of the toys until we find a bigger place to move to (hopefully by summer).
He really wasn't into opening presents like I thought he'd be. He like to tear paper and make a mess so I thought it would be right up his ally, but nope.. Maybe next year.. Eh...
We still had a nice Christmas though. We spend it and have dinner with my family and then the following weekend we have a mini Christmas with Chuck's family. Both were nice days.

Aiden is walking a lot better. I wouldn't say he is officially "walking" yet because he still falls and still needs assistance by holding a hand a lot, but he did walk across my moms kitchen Friday night and Saturday morning all by himself. The funny thing is, he thinks it is hysterical. He cracks up laughing and then gets himself going that he laughs so hard he can hardly stand up. It's the funniest sight and ends up making me laugh so hard I cry. He is such a giggly kid, i love it.
As for EI, he is doing wonderful with drinking. We haven't used his g-tube in a few weeks to bolus him with fluids at all. He's done enough to keep himself hydrated all on his own. What a kid! He learns so fast sometimes. All you have to do is show him someting once or twice and he has it down packed. Like getting on and off his bouncing zebra (by fisher price) at first he didn't realize you had to hold yourself on. Then once I showed him, he did fab and learned to get off it with out falling on him bum with no trouble at all.

In doctor news, he now weighs 24 pounds and 12 ounces and is 31 inches. He is no longer my Chubby baby. He's still got some meat on him, but nothing like his baby chub he had and the boy can eat when he wants to. He's just a happy healthy boy, what more could you want..
He got his booster shots and RSV shots on Thurs. I felt so bad I almost broke down. The poor kid had to get 5 needles.. FIVE!!! all at once.. Oh my heart broke and HE CRIED!! but soon after he was ok. He did however stare at his nurses for a while when we were making our next appt as to say "back off ladies, i don't like you two anymore"
He also has an MRI this week on Wed. He was enrolled in the study for preemies who had brain bleeds when they were born. Most preemies do, but not all i the area he had them in. When they asked to enroll him, me and Chuck agreed figuring it's not going to hurt him and if it can help out someone else going through what we did then why not do it.
The only kicker is for the MRI they have to sedate him. It's always scary when a little one gets sedated for something, but we will be there right by his side and my mom is coming up to stay with the girls til we get back since we'll be at the hospital for about 4 hours or so.

Other then that there is really nothing new. He's just a "normal kid" doing "normal things" as far as I am concerned. Oh and we have a new word.. CAT!! After me saying it 1000 times a day he finally says it. I might have mentioned it before but I can't remember.
he doesn't say much still, but I know in time it will come. It is the one thing he is a bit behind on (talking) I think, but EI isn't worried about it so i guess I shouldn't either.
out words are (of course) DUDDA!, and then sometimes MUMMA (not as much as he use to say it), NUNNA, YA, HI, CAT, actually none of them he says a lot, besides Dudda, but we talk to him all the time and you can see him trying to copy you. I think once he does talk we are not going to be able to get him to shut up.. LOL

December 24, 2007

Always KISSING my sisters..

It's Christmas Eve already.. It's 2:14 AM and I just finally got AIden to bed after 2 hours of crying and screaming. I got fed up and rocked him to sleep with a little bit of a fight but not much cause he was so over tired and worn out from crying. I thought we were getting a handle on this (just this past week) cause he started going down between 9:30 and 11 pm which is FINE with me!
No such luck, once again the last few nights he's been up late and that is with no late nap. He usually naps about 4 hours after he gets up in the morning for 30 mins to 2 hrs, depending on how tired he is and how early he got up, and how late he was up the night before. Now he still does that but hasn't been taking a late nap which means from 1 or 2 pm he is up and active until 2am. I don't get it. By this time I am exhausted I don't know how the kid does it or what he runs on but give me some.. REALLY!!!! LOL
Every one keeps telling me to let him cry, but when your stuck in a one bedroom apt (til summer only we hope) and you also have 2 three month olds, it's hard to let him scream it out. Like I said it went on for two hours tonight and one of the twins slept through it (Riley) the other (Morgan) was awake and not happy either so it was not fun. In the mean time Chuck was trying to sleep to so he could get up early and let me sleep since one of us is always up at night cause the girls still don't sleep through the night.
Added to the fact I have been trying to make my homemade truffles for xmas which consist of hand dipping each one in chocolate. This is not fun with 2 crying kids and at one point all 3 were up in arms. UGGHHH!!!!
So anyways.. My christmas shopping is done which is good considering I wasn't sure we'd be able to really do christmas presents this year. With me still out of work on leave (with no pay) we only have the one income so it's tough at times. Christmas is a big deal to me and I LOVE to buy gifts for everyone, but this year I sucked it up knowing that it wasn't going to happen. Then I came into a little bit of money that I didn't expect so it gave me a little cash to get a few gifts for the kids and Chuck and my parents. YAY!! Now if I could just finish these truffles it would be nice. With two down and one still awake I'm still not able to get much done since Morgan doesn't want to sleep and is a bit fussy. Let's just say her scream cuts right through you.. Eeekkkk..

As for my littel Aiden, he is doing wonderful. He is drinking SO much better and I am positive we will have that G-tube out come spring. We hardly ever use it to bolus him now.
The other news is.... He took 5 steps.. FIVE !! They were tiny little steps but he still took 5! It was awesome and the most he has taken. He'll stand on his own but usually won't take a step, he'll whine or sit and crawl cause he's scared. He walks well holding just one finger most of the time too and if he can just muster up the guts to take off on his own I think he will be off and running. I can't wait!! People keep telling me I don't want him to start walking with 2 little ones but trust me I do. To be able to put him down and just have him stand for a second would be so helpful just getting out of the car for example. It's tough loading up the car (alone) with two in infant car seats and one in a big boy seat. Just thinking about it makes me tired (not to mention these darn snow banks that make it such a hassle now but that is another story.)

Elfed....

I Elfed the kids... Watch them go.. It's so cute..

Aiden, Morgan & Riley.. Elfed

December 5, 2007

Aiden took two steps today all on his own. He is getting better and better AND he stood up with out holding onto anything for 56 seconds, then started "dancing" which is more like bouncing in place lol. He was just amazing and made me smile.

We had a pedi appt last week and he weighed in at 25 pounds 4 ounces. He's gotten so much better with his juice box cup and now we are just working on quantity.

Today we had his neurology follow up appt. He is also enrolled in there study. We figured if it can help someone else out why not. The appt was quick. They asked questions like what is he doing now and is he walking and talking, then did a few eye following exercises and reflex checks and then we were out of there. We have to go back and have an MRI done for the study and Aiden has to see they "shrink" for the study too. That part kills me (in laughter) cause as I said to the doc what does a psychologist do to interview and "shrink" a 17 month old.. He was a bit stumped there too and said really i have no idea. He's so young that I don't know what they see him for. So I guess i will find out when they schedule the appointment. I keep you all posted on that, i am still baffled by it.

We also went to the mall last week to see Santa. Aiden loved him. He sat on his lap with the girls and was just amazed by him. I was waiting for him to try and pull his beard off (it was real) but he never did (thank god).

Aiden 17 Months
Morgan & Riley 2 Months