October 31, 2008

Happy Halloween !!!

Tonight we went trick or treating and Aiden was a pirate.. We had a blast and he loved it all.. He's becoming such a "big kid" now..

I will post pics soon..

For a recap on him: He is doing well with play school and E.I.
He has E. I. at the house on Mondays and Wednesdays for an hour and then goes to play school on Friday for two hours. His E.I. worker is the one who runs his play school class so he gets some good one on one time with her too. He has finally started to pick up a few words.. There a bit cloudy I guess you could call it, but there words. So far we have Play, Baby, Buddy.. It's a start..

I know in due time. It's just hard when you sit back and look at the fact he is two and doesn't talk yet. I know the words are in there. i can see him get fustrated at times wanted to say it and he can't. We just have to push along and help him get them out.. SO here is to fighting the battle.

Other then that he is a wonderful two year old. He gets into just about everything lol and loves to run, jump, climb, and fall.. lol He is doing better with a fork and spoon now and makes less of a mess.. ha ha.. but what fun is that right.. (to him, not me)
The only other worry I really have is he still mouths things.. EVERYTHING goes in the mouth. I call him my PICA baby, and if you know what PICA is then you know why. Sometimes I wonder, but I'm told not to worry about it yet. So it's just another thing I watch and re direct to not try and eat everything.

Well it's been a long day, so once again Happy Halloween to all my trick or treaters out there and I hope you all had a great, fun, happy, night..

September 26, 2008

Aiden is now receiving E.I. at home twice a week and then going to play group aka school on fridays for 2 hours. He LOVES it. They do crafts, learning skills, go out side, have snack and have lunch.. A lot in two hours but he is doing really good.
He is such a smart kid in so many ways but I still worry about him so much. i worry that he does things a two year old should not do ie: put EVERYTHING in his mouth. Toys, paper, leaves, anything he can pick up. Its fustrating. He still isn't talking either which is hard. I am hoping that the words will start slowing soon and once the girls start talking he will pick up more.
His last eye appointment went well and the doc said that his eyes are actually better then before, so that was good, he will probably still need glasses later but as I always say, that is a trait in my family so it's no big deal. We see the pedi in a few weeks, the girls went today, with aiden as a tag along. (That was such a bad scene, thre over tired kids in the pedi office when they are running way behind) UGH!!
That's about it for now.. Here are a few pics of Aiden taste testing his sisters cake at the party sunday..

August 9, 2008

It's been a while since I posted but things have been crazy.. Aiden got 7 teeth in 3 days so we are now up to 13.. Five which are molars and those are 5 of the 7 he got so he was not a happy camper, got a terrible fever and wasn't sleeping very well.
I think I also posted in the last post that we had our first ear infection and big cold. Then this week was my birthday and like I said it's just been hectic. The weather has been humid and rain which prevents us from going out too much too and we have still been trying to nail down a schedule with Early Intervention.. UGH...

As for my little man he is going good. learning, growing and just being a 2 yr old.. He climbs everthing he can, eats everything he can and chases his sisters all over the house. If he isn't chasing them he is running them over with his wagon or trying to stop them from climbing on HIS box that he uses to see out the window.. Oh it is too funny how much he is NOT a baby anymore.

On another note (about me sorta) there has been a tattoo I've wanted to get for the last 3 years. I wanted Chase's footprints tattooed with his name and birthday and eventually I was going to add the rest of the kids. Well I came up with a design and FINALLY got it done.. YAY

I forever have Chase in my mind and in my heat and now forever carry his footprints with me..

I know it's a little shiny but it was right after i got it done... It says...
Charles Preston III
"Chase"
6-23-05

Aiden Kristopher
6-11-06

Morgan Kennidi ~ Riley Lorene
9-22-07

It has wings and a halo around Chase's name as you can see and has Chase's actual footprints, size and all...

July 21, 2008

It's been a while but I needed a break.. Not that blogging takes a lot but with 3 little ones to chase now and a new house and a new commute to work, I've just been to lazy to update..

So we moved in and have gotten settled. Aiden loves the new house. He has so much room to run around like a crazy kid compared to the old apartment we lived in. Best part is he has his own room, and yes his own TV.

OMG I let my child have a TV.. lol, I get a mixed reaction to that one but hey it's my child and he likes his cartoons. Besides he plays a lot and only gets TV a little during the day and at night.

We have a new pedi and we like him a lot. We also had our first ear infection. Part of the reason I didn't blog too was cause the bug ran through the house. Actually he stayed a while with me, Aiden, Morgan and Riley.. UGH..

All is back to normal now after 2 rounds of antibiotics and a few trips to the doctors office. I'm so glad mine is open 7 days a week.. YAY

Last weigh in was right after his birthday and we were 26 pounds 1 oz and 32 inches tall..

We have also gotten back into the E.I system for this town. They started up today. We has the intake, and the eval and today was his first appointment. They will come once a week to work on everyday skills and then a speech therapist will come once a month to evaluate him. Although as of the other day we now have two words. Duck... and Baby... that's about it, and just try to get him to say it on your terms.. Haaaa.. Duck was a surprise.. He picked up the rubber ducky and said DUCK! lol now he laughs if you try to get him to say it again and just when you give up he says DUCK!!! lol As for baby, well he knows Morgan & Riley are the babies and he says baby and kisses them, it's so cute..

I do have some pics but you will have to wait until later this week.. But thy will be up soon..

June 23, 2008

1096 days ago today was just another ordinary day until 5:25pm.. My son Chase rushed into the world to be with us for the longest 28 minutes of my life.

Chase,
There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think of you. I see Aiden everyday and wonder what crazy things you two would be getting into together... I truly believe that a part of you is in him and that makes me smile. I will never understand why things had to happen the way they did nor will I ever except that you were not meant to be here. You were such a little person but changed me and my life in such a big way. You taught me the meaning of unconditional love and so much more. My world and my life will never be the same again...

I ask the angels to carry you my kisses.. Know that every day I LOVE and MISS YOU soooo much... You are the missing piece in my heart that will never be filled..

Until we meet again..

Happy 3rd Birthday Chase !!!!!!!!!!!!! xoxo Love Mommy

June 22, 2008

Here are the pics from Aiden's bday before my camera died.. Grrr
One is his actual bday and the others from his party of him eating cake.. Mmmm

June 11, 2008

At 2:22pm, 730 days ago my little boy came into the world weighing 1 lb 6 1/2 oz..
After five months in the NICU and an emotional roller coaster ride and he came home and I am happy to say that today he turns 2!!!

Aiden,
I can not express how much I love you in words. Not a million kisses and a million hugs would ever be enough. You are a wonderful, smart, beautiful little boy and you mean the world to me. I cherish every moment you give me, every challenge and every smile. You are a piece of my heart that makes my world spin..

Happy Birthday My Little Superman!!! I love you soooooooo very much!!
xoxo
Mommy

June 6, 2008

Just in time for his 2nd birthday we got two new teeth today. My little man has been cranky pants on and off for the last 2 weeks. Some restless night, sleepless days, falling down and bumping all over. Just a complete whine bag and all because of those teeth (so I think, cause it's so not like him) and some days he just wouldn't eat and my child likes to eat.

He is doing great though. HE LOVES the new house, the outside, and the fact he sees his Nonny a lot more.

We have not started our new E.I. so I am going to call them Monday and see what is up. I think we fell through the cracks cause no one has called us yet. I wasn't in a rush cause I am still unpacking, but now I am well over 70% done so there is now room for them to work.

I'm still in awww my little man will be two. I wish my dad was here to see him and to see the new house. He'd be proud that we finally did it and I'm proud we finally have OUR home too!

That's about all to report for now. I will be sure to post pics of the party next week.
Happy almost birthday baby boy!! I LOVE YOU!!!!

May 25, 2008

We are all moved and FINALLY have the internet back. It was tough (moving I mean) It was such a lot in one day. People coming to hook things up, trying to unpack and find stuff you need right away, getting the new place painted, and not to mention watchng the 3 kids while doing most of it. My sitter had an emergency and so Mommy had to be a Mommy while moving, and unpacking and waiting on the new couch, comcast, and Lowe's to all show up..

I thank eveyone who helped us... It was soooo appreciated !!

Now although we have our internet back and didn't change carriers, somehow comcast lost my entire address book and all my old emails. YES I am ticked off and they said they will work on getting it back for me. i had things in my email that I've had in there for a while that are important to me. I had pictures that I can't get back, and I had my address book of email addresses of blog moms i try to keep in touch with, all Aiden's nurses from the NICU, friends, family and none of them I know off the top of my head and the bad part is I have no way of getting in touch with those people to get the info back. Email was our communication and lets just say if comcast doesn't get back my info I will be one ticked of momma bear..

So if your reading this, and you are one of the people that I use to email here and there. That read Aiden's blog or the twins Please email me your email address. You don't have to comment, cause I wouldn't want everyone having your info, just email my normal email at ChuckJess@comcast.net so i can resave them...

Thank You!!!

As for settling in, we are getting there. Aiden now has his own room and he likes his little space. He also loves the fact he can run up and down the hall and around the kitchen. He loves he can look out the front window and watch the traffic go by, and he loves being able to go outside and walk around (our yard is fenced in) and I love the fact he loves it and that we have a house now.

As for the new E.I. we have not heard from them yet so I am waiting another week and I'm going to get in touch with them. I need the break to finish unpacking and find the paper work and just breath a little before booking appts with them. We already have the new pedi who we see next month and we still have a few specialist who we have to see in Boston, Waltham and Peabody that we have to keep. Well the Waltham doc (his eye doc) I am looking to change, I am not happy with her any longer. I strongly think she should of put Aiden in glasses long ago so he could get use to them and she wouldn't. At this point even if they help him see I think all he is going to do is pull them off and it's only going to get harder until he is old enough to understand that he needs them and they help him. by then his eyes could be worse and that is so unfair to him. If anyone has a really good kids eye specialist who has seen kids who formally had ROP and is in the south shore area please let me know, or even at Children's in Boston.

Well I think the little ones ar up from there nap (just as mommy got tired enough to try and take one herself) and Daddy isout doing errands, so i will touch base later.

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