Fabulous Christmas!

It was so great to see everyone, and the kids were on relatively good behavior :-)! Katie was still a little stranger shy, but she warmed up better than she has been. We are back in town and spent the day today trying to straighten the disaster area that is our house and spending time with the kids. They were extra cute today - Tyler learned to "hide" behind his hands or a hat and it was really funny to watch him try to peek around or over without us seeing and thinking we couldn't see him. Katie was back to her clown self walking around making the craziest noises and faces, including saying ooohhh to everything - have no clue where she got that. We managed to give the kids a bath tonight with minimal freaking - at my Aunt's house we turned the jets on in the bathtub because we thought it would be fun and it traumatized them so bad that they wouldn't calm down for a bath until tonight! We are officially the worst parents when it comes to photographing special occasions. We got very, very few of Christmas morning - luckily we have a little video and I think some others got some pictures. Here are a couple of those, and some from today when they were enjoying their new "couch" and Clifford the Big Red Dog dolls. We went on a trip to the grocery store and put their sweatshirts (gift from their Uncle) on - they are obviously too big but they looked so cute and grown up wearing them!

They discovered their new chair/couch under the tree!

Then their new ball pit (thanks to So So and Grandpa) got put together and they LOVE it.

They like their couch that they can share quite a bit too.

Watching them dance makes me smile no matter what!

Just two random ones of them being "too cool"

Warning!

The kids are miserable and for at least Tyler it will continue through all of the holidays and visiting family :-(. The steriods that he is on just really make him uncomfortable and grumpy. It is a rare evening when we are counting down the minutes until bedtime, but tonight was definitely one of those nights. Katie has a cold and is teething so she may be over it soon, but of course she still has her "stranger anxiety." Tyler has to be on the steriods, and breathing treatments, and antibiotic for ear infection through Sunday so he is not going to be a happy camper for a while. He is such a sweet and happy little guy the majority of the time, so it just breaks your heart even more when it is obvious that he just doesn't feel well. The steroids, in particular, make him dizzy (according to the side effects list) and jittery and he just gets so upset that he doesn't know why he feels so bad and why he loses his balance so easily when he actually does try to play. I couldn't get him to eat anything tonight and he didn't even like his bath and the crying didn't cease from the minute we walked in the door. I hope he feels better in the next couple of days, but just consider this a warning that they might not be that fun to be around this Christmas - so sad. No new pictures, but soon we will have Christmas picks!

Our Little Superman!

Well, we had our first (and hopefully last) visit to the Vanderbilt Children's Hospital ER last night. When I got to daycare yesterday afternoon Tyler was breathing really fast and shallow and the breathing treatments did not seem to be helping. We made an appointment with our pediatrician, or actually the doctor on call that we had seen before (so great that they have night hours). The doctor was concerned about how hard Tyler was having to "work" to breathe and decided to give him a breathing treatment and see how he responded. He also has another ear infection :-(. After the breathing treatment (like the ones we do at home) his wheezing and counts (of how many times he breathes in a minute) did not improve so she decided to test his oxygen saturation levels. They like the levels to be at 92 or above and he was wavering between 89 and 93 - not too bad, but just enough when combined with the other things going on for her to send him to the hospital. We (just me and Tyler - Lance was staying home with Katie) left straight from the doctor and went to the ER.

I was initially upset because we waited for almost an hour in the waiting room and if that was any indication of how serious they thought it was I did not want to be there keeping baby boy awake and spending money that we don't have (I now know that my new insurance isn't that great - $250 co-pay and 20% of hospital costs but I'm glad we have it and it is the same as my old job). When we were finally called back to the triage room the pace picked up quite a bit and the nurse labeled Tyler a "working wheezer" and got him into a room. From there a respiratory therapist and a physician and a nurse listened to him breathing and decided the first course of action would be to deep suction his mouth, nose and lungs. Tyler HATED it, but was so so good all night. Everyone commented on what a good (and cute :0) baby he was just sitting and talking and playing amid screaming babies all around. He was up, with no sleep, until 1:30 AM and did great - he really is a trooper (better than mom). The first suction seemed to help a bit, but it made the wheezing more pronounced and they needed to try to get that stopped. So they let him sit for a while and then tried the suction again which resulted in a gushing nose bleed (that is still happening this morning). That was probably the scariest part - I am a bit of a spaz and I was calmer than the nurse. Blood was gushing down the back of his throat and the room looked like something really bad had happened because as we were trying to stop the bleeding Tyler was thrashing and crying which made it go literally everywhere. A new set of sheets, a mopped floor, and a wiped down baby with a book and a piano made everything better!

They then decided to give him some steriods, a little motrin (for the fever from the ear infection), and another albuterol treatment with some other medication in it that he had not had before. That made 5 treatments for the day and he didn't really get better after the last one so the doctors said no more to that. Poor little man was so wired and jittery - that is A LOT of albuterol for one day. The final treatment (at about 11:15) was a 20 minute saline treatment combined with a medication that worked similarly to albuterol to open the airway. That seemed to clear out some of the congestion and really helped him breathe a lot better! He had to be watched for an hour after that and then the therapist and the doctor had to see him again. They all listened to him breathing and said it was much, much better. My pediatrician happened to be in the hospital and came down to see Tyler and we will go to him on Wednesday for a follow-up. We came home with some steriods, more albuterol and antibiotics for the ear infection and a very, very sleepy boy who seemed to be feeling better. He was very grumpy this morning when he woke at his usual time, but that is to be expected. The steriods make him crazy so I can expect a few rough days in our future!

The hardest part of it all (other than seeing my baby boy not feel well) was that my cell phone was dying, Lance was at home on pins and needles waiting for updates that I didn't really have, and the hospital wasn't really set up for little ones and there was nowhere to set him to go to the bathroom or get anything to eat or drink (and no offers from nurses to watch him for a minute). Oh well, we are all home (well, actually I am at work) and doing better and hopefully these steriods and the breathing treatments with clearer lungs will help my Superman get well. Funnily, the most stressful part of the evening (other than handing over my credit card at discharge) was the drive home in major fog! I was grateful that Tyler was still jabbering and "singing" because it was pretty eerie.

Gosh, that is a long post! I guess that makes sense considering it was a pretty long night!

Santa and Miss Claus

The kids had their Christmas party at daycare yesterday and got their picture taken looking festive! Tyler still fit into an on loan (thanks Aimee) Santa costume that said it was size nine months so he went in full garb (minus shoes, of course). It was really cold yesterday and I didn't want to put Katie in tights again two days in a row so she isn't as decked out...

They are both making odd faces in this picture (these pictures were taken individually but I photoshopped them together since I wanted one of the two of them - that explains it if they look odd :-)). This is Katie's "evil" smile that she has taken to doing a lot lately and Tyler was obviously trying to make an obscene noise with his mouth (also something he really enjoys these days)!

More Pictures - Santa Visit Attempt #2

Well, I forgot to mention in the last post that we went out to Bass Pro Shops on Saturday to try to get the kid's picture taken with Santa. The line was two hours long on the first try at skipping the morning nap so that was a no go! Still no good pictures in their cute little outfits from So So :-(. We had a good time though strolling around Opry Mills although we were on constant shoe patrol - neither of them wanted to keep them on and preferred to throw them every five seconds. I really want to invent some shoes that they can't get off - surely other people have this problem!!! No less than five people commented that they needed shoes on when we finally gave up and let them go barefoot. Well, duh but I am not spending $50 per pair on tie tennis shoes that I am not even sure will work because I can't figure out how they get these others off (Robeez, Bipeds, and others that they aren't supposed to be able to get off) - I think they are helping each other!!! It isn't too cold here this evening so we also let them wear their no feet Christmas pajamas and of course had to take some pictures. We also all went to lunch with Lance's dad after Opry Mills and got some shots of Tyler and Katie using "real" cups and having a ball making a big ole' mess.

Their hair still hasn't grown much and Tyler has a hybrid mohawk/"chicken" hair

One Nap = Double Trouble!

We finally started letting the kids skip their morning nap (that they were fighting taking for the last month anyway) and more awake time seems to equal more time to get into trouble! They are actually doing pretty well, but there is a definite transition. They are still funny little boogers, even when they are up to no good.

They are both testing just how much we will let them get away with when it comes to tree touching!

They are climbing into EVERYTHING, the wagon, the dump truck, the magazine rack, onto the couches... Very scary since they are proficient at getting into these things but can't get out and most of them have WHEELS!

They've both discovered our shoes, love "talking" on the phone, and Tyler has quite the throwing arm already!

I still can't get a good picture of them together. Tyler gets irritated if Katie touches him and Katie thinks it is hilarious to annoy her brother. This is about the best I can get these days when they are both distracted by Marley long enough to sit next to each other. Marley, who I swear they both think is named "No." Tyler has started saying it to her too - I guess we discipline Marley too much - a little too late I think!

"Leashes"

My mom is going to think I have lost my mind when she reads this, but I really do think we are going to have "leash" kids. I am thinking of purchasing these:

I figure I should start putting them on them now everytime we get out of the car and they aren't in the strollers to get them used to putting it on when we are out and about. I know that people think it is treating your children like pets, but I think the embarrasment (kind of like driving a minivan) is worth it to make sure I can keep up with the kids in crowded parking lots, todder enticing stores, etc. I was against it for a while ( like a lot of things that I was against before I actually had children), but all along we have made parenting decisions that others don't agree with - letting them Cry It Out (CIO), putting them to bed for the night before it is even dark out in the summer, giving them formula and now non-organic milk, refusing to pick them up and cuddle if they have a minor fall, and the list goes on and on. I guess I am slowly, but surely, learning that we have to do what feels right for us.


I am very excited about this evening! Lance's parents are watching the kids (woohoo - many thanks) and we are having a real night out. Going to dinner before a Vanderbilt basketball game at the Sommet Center. It is another late game so I feel bad about that, but it will be fun to be downtown and see a hopefully good game in a fun, new environment. I probably don't deserve to have a date night since I have a to do list a mile long and no time to get things done (another reason I think weekends are too short), but oh well! We still have not gotten the kids picture with Santa and I tried in vain to take the kids picture in their cute Christmas outfits (courtesy of So So). I absolutely could not get them together in one shot, much less both looking at the camera. I even tried holding them but still no luck and unless it is a fabulous picture of them I would rather not be in it! I also have done very little Christmas shopping (yikes). We have gotten a few little things for the kids and I hope to do some tomorrow. It's been a pretty rough year financially (but definitely not in any other way), and I guess that is why I am procrastinating so bad on gift buying this year - gotta get into the spirit though with only a couple of weeks left now! Speaking of procrastinating - that is what I seem to be doing right now instead of working on the grant that is due so I'm gonna get back to it! New pictures soon - I got some cute ones of them individually, just not together!!!

A tree!

Well, for the first time in 10 years (since Lance and I have had a tree together) we have an artificial tree and I LOVE it! It was a great solution that we did not even think of!!! No branches that can be eaten or pine needles all over the floor, sturdier and less of a topple risk, less hassle relatively speaking, and it looks nice and will be around for years to come. The kids think it is pretty great too. Lance had put outside lights up too (great surprise) and when we came home I was carrying Katie in and she was mesmerized and pointing at them all. Then, when we walked in and the kids saw the tree with lights (undecorated in these pictures although now we have ornaments on the higher branches) they thought it was awesome.

Tyler eventually lost interest and decided to vacuum (a hobby I encourage)!

Today was "interesting." The kids woke up with runny noses (again) which did not bode well for a jam-packed day. We planned to go to pictures with Santa at Bass Pro Shops this morning, but decided against it when the kids were excessively snotty and were determined not to take a morning nap. We went to the birthday party of a friend's one year old where they were better than expected, but super sleepy. We were supposed to let them come home and nap and then go to a baby shower for some other close friends. I went to the shower without Lance and the kids when it seemed that the runny noses may be more cold related than teething (as we first hoped) and that the kids really needed a nap more than they needed to be around other children and pregnant women. One of Tyler's molars has finally cut through and he may be getting more and you gotta think that Katie will have another soon. This evening the kids were miserable!!! I think a combination of being over-tired, a little under the weather, and in a clingy stage anyway made them just extremely fussy and interested only in being held or having a tantrum. Let's hope they wake up tomorrow feeling better and maybe I will be able to take some Christmas pictures in front of the decorated tree!!!

There is no doubt that Katie looks just like her daddy, but I think He and Tyler look a lot alike here!

15 Month Appointment

Wow, these appointments are getting more and more difficult as the kids get more impatient, independent, and squirmy! They were over it after about 30 minutes and they still had to get two shots each. They are still small little things. Tyler is below the 5th percentile in height at 29 inches and between the 5th - 10th percentile in weight at 21 pounds. Katie is about the same percentile wise at 28.5 inches and 20 pounds. The doctor wasn't concerned about their growth or weight gain but did say that it was by no means great. He said that they were probably just getting finicky with their foods - which they aren't really - but we probably do need to start giving them more snacks and letting them eat more throughout the day rather than just at meals. They love fruit which is good for them but isn't high in calories and that has been our go to when they won't eat anything else which would explain why they aren't gaining rapidly. Growth does slow down some at this point, but since they are on the smaller side and the increased activity will mean even less gain, we want to make sure they are getting plenty of fattening foods! I think the babies look healthy and are good weights proportionally - they are just short - so I'm not going to dwell on it too much and am just going to try to diversify what they eat a little more and keep offering them new things in hopes that we find something they really love.

One area of concern was their speech development. I see improvements every day and I do think they are developing well, but they are behind in their talking and comprehension. At this point (even for preemies) they should be able to identify and label Mom and Dad at minimum, and they don't or can't (not sure which). They should also be saying 3 words minimum, preferably 5 and things like Uh Oh don't count. They are getting better at following simple directions like go get the ball, come here, bring me that, pet nicely, etc. so I do think they are beginning to understand commands but at this point they should be pointing to things they want, have more consonant sounds (other than just B and D), and should really also know the names (or their own version of the names) of their siblings and pets, which they don't. So, we were referred to the Bill Wilkerson Center to have their hearing tested professionally (they should call within the next week to ask some questions and schedule an appointment) and then we could possibly be referred to Early Intervention Speech Therapy or if we don't qualify for that private therapy (I hope if they need it they qualify for the state program because private is expensive). I really do think their hearing is good - they have responded to their name and noises for months, will look for noises and sounds, dance and rock to music, and enjoy toys that make noise, have not had numerous ear infections that could hinder hearing, etc. but you never know. We'll keep our fingers crossed that all is A-OK, and I truly do think they are doing just fine but it will be good to make sure. In the meantime, even more book reading, some flash cards, and more talking to them is in order. Oh, and they asked us today if they could scribble and we don't know - we've never let them try - so that is on the agenda too!

Dancing, snapping and stomping

Tonight Tyler laughed harder than I have ever seen him - he was having so much fun trying to stomp/run in place/dance like dad! Katie was dancing to her own xylophone playing and trying to learn to snap and then when we started "dancing" too they thought it was hilarious, and it probably was pretty funny watching us be fools. Katie got the hang of it and was doing it pretty well - Tyler couldn't stop laughing hysterically long enough to figure out how to do it! Thanksgiving was great - it was wonderful to spend time with family. Unfortunately, Katie's stranger anxiety/separation anxiety was in full force but it was manageable (just exhausting). I guess visiting Santa will be difficult for her this year! I just have to keep reminding myself that this is just a stage, just a stage, this too shall pass!!! Really, it is just upsetting that friends and family can't see her as she really is - just so funny and happy and a little clown - otherwise I could probably better enjoy this brief time when she actually wants to cuddle with mom.

Tyler Update

Well, Tyler is still extremely irritable and I just do not think it can be only caused by the ear infection. His fevers are gone but tonight I noticed a rash on his belly and back and I truly think he is at the end of roseola. It is an illness characterized by sudden high fevers, extreme fussiness, and then a rash when the fever breaks. It sounds like exactly what he has and the only reason I question it is because Katie doesn't have it and it is contagious whereas an ear infection is not. My little Tyler is just not acting like himself at all and I hope we are at the end of it because I want my smiling, happy baby boy back! He, typically, has not been horrible - he has been sleeping fine and is pretty content if held - but he is usually a wild man who would rather play and laugh than sit in your lap so it has been a disconcerting few days. Not to mention that we ticked off a fellow daycare mom because we took Tyler to daycare after the doctor told us he had an ear infection and was not contagious. Well, she found out he had a fever and now her son is sick and thinks it is our fault :(.

Scary Stuff

I have said it before and I am sure I will say it many more times - this parenting thing is hard! Yesterday when we got home and I was giving Tyler a breathing treatment he felt very warm. He always runs a little hot though, especially lately as he is cutting a new tooth, but I took his temperature just to be sure that he was ok. I was shocked when it was 104.2 since he was playing and eating well and the only thing off about him was that he seemed a little more tired than usual. I called the nurse (why do they always make you feel like you are overreacting - especially in flu season) and she said that she thought it was because of his ear infection. I just didn't think ear infections could cause temperatures that high, but we did what she told us to and are watching him over the next two days and if his fevers don't subside then they'll want to see him in the office. Poor little guy went to sleep pretty well but woke up at about 3:00 whimpering and moaning so we got him up and took his temperature again. It was down to 103, but he was still obviously uncomfortable. We let him lay with us in the bed for a while until the Motrin took effect and then he fell asleep at almost 5:00. He woke up with about a 101 and got more antibiotic so I hope he starts feeling better soon. We are investigating something that I cannot believe we didn't think to do sooner. With Lance's allergies and Tyler's asthma and probably allergies our home could probably benefit from an air purifier. We are looking into it and seeing what we can do - I hope that by getting some of the dander from Marley and other air pollutants out everyone in the house will breathe better!

Here are some pictures of the little troublemakers that Pam took at her house! They obviously like the off the shoulder look that they work on during naptime AND apparently enjoy the highchairs at Pam's that they can (but are not allowed) to stand in!

Too Tough

Tyler is too good at being a little tough guy! Lance took him into the doctor today because we have been using the breathing treatments for two weeks now and wanted to see if he needed steriods, if we needed to continue to do the treatments and refill the prescription, etc. Well, the good news is that the doctor said that his breathing sounds great and that we can cut back to once a day for now. The "bad" news is that he had a temperature of 101.1 and has had slightly elevated temps like that for a couple of days. It ended up being an ear infection that we didn't even know he had. Most babies will let you know if their ears are hurting (Katie especially), but Tyler just hasn't found a really good way to tell us. At the doctor Lance said that he had tears when he laid him on his back to change him so he was obviously in pain, but still no howling or whining to really tell us that something is off. It makes us feel like bad parents, especially since we have been really lucky so far with their ears and should be on the look-out for it, but I have come to the conclusion that Tyler is just too tough! Oh, don't get me wrong - he will definitely cry and whine if he has a toy taken away, if he goes to bed sooner than he wants, or if Katie bullies him but just not when he is in pain or doesn't feel good :-(.

Speaking of Katie the bully, I am consigning some of their old clothes and toys and got to go to the pre-sale last night. Katie is still in 12 month clothes more than anything so none of her cold weather clothes fit her yet. I bought her a couple of play outfits but the selection wasn't that great (if you are going they do have a lot of really cute things it was just either dresses or sets of 12 month or 18 month and I really need 18 month tops and 12 month bottoms). I also intended to get some toys and things for Christmas since otherwise it will be pretty slim this year, but I ended up giving them the two main things that I got when I got home last night! Katie loves sitting in chairs so I got her a little Princess chair and Tyler a Mickey Mouse beanbag. Neither of them would I have purchased had they not been super cheap, but I figured the kids would at least play with them $5 worth. Well, I sat them in the living room and they both made a beeline to them and loved them! Unfortunately, Katie's chair is a bigger hit than Tyler's and that's where bully Katie rears her head. She absolutely did not want Tyler sitting on her chair - even if she got up to go check something else out - and fighting ensued everytime Tyler tried to see what it was all about. I definitely think they will love the lounger thing I want to get them and might be able to share it better, but since it is pretty spendy for now may the best bully win :-)!

Braves Fans

I came home last night to Lance playing with the kids and trying to get them to sport their Braves hat!

Lance and his mini me pointing.Lance and Tyler with crazy eyes.