FUN WITH PAPAW!
SCORE!
BASKETBALL!
SHOOT!
DINNER WITH PAPAW
AND GRAMAW WEESA!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
More doctor visits...
Well, we went to the doctor yesterday for two follow-up appointments... Mostly good news!
Graden: Doc says Grado is growing like a weed! Still a little short, but we can live with that. Of course, he's built like a brickhouse already, so she's curious to see how that changes (and if it doesn't, just how good of an offensive lineman he can be!). Landen too was always on the big side, but his body changed so much about this time (before his 2nd birthday)... even his looks changed. Doc listened to his chest and it was clear! This was GREAT news because we were allowed to go this morning to get his tubes in at the hospital. (Yes, we're already back home!) It went well... ENT Doc says that Graden's ears were more infected than he even thought so a lot of fluid drained out. (This is a good thing.) He also said that he was surprised Graden could hear at all! Poor kid! So, all in all, we're over a big hurdle... Graden will be sensitive to sounds for 5 days or so and we should notice a BIG change in his vocabulary - he should begin learning/hearing all sorts of new tones/sounds... This is VERY exciting for Mommy. We've been working like crazy with a speech therapist and on our own. Graden is picking up new words, but still needs help with certain vowels and such. I can't wait to see how this all changes and watch his progress. He's playing right now as I type - jabbering tons already. Thank goodness! Our regular Doc says that he's "tough"... his coordination and motor skills are excelled (I think he has to make up for the language barrier) and that his personality is just wonderful. (Mommy already knew that!) :) Graden has been watching Landen "potty" and is showing a big interest! I asked Doc what she thought and she said go for it... So, we'll be doing a little potty training early. Graden tells me if he went in his diaper and wants a new one... plus, he's been taking off his pants and sitting on the little potty... Wish me luck!
Landen: Well, we're on a bit of a roller coaster with Landen. For the past month he's been taking Singular every night before bed. Originally, I noticed an improvement for his breathing. He could definitely play longer without getting winded as easily as before. This was great! However, now that the "counts" (pollen and such) are up, we've been having trouble controlling his "allergy" symptoms - which in turn affect his breathing (asthma symptoms). He's been downright miserable by the end of the night. So, instead of just going straight to an allergy/asthma doctor - who will perfom "allergy tests" (which will be painful for Landen) we're going to try some "seasonal" allergy meds. This just means we'll be increasing our daily steps. We'll be doing nasal spray, eye drops, an allergy specific medicine and keep the Singular. The issues lie in that if his allergies flare up, his breathing does too... and we have to keep the breathing under control. So, we've got it mapped out. We do a large combo to start, then will stop one and then eventually another and keep on the allergy specific med or just Singular (which can be used for allergies - not just asthma). Then, once it's been in his system, hopefully we can just maintain his symptoms. The goal is to see if it is in fact "seasonal" - with hopes of it being that - so that we don't have to go to a specialist just yet... hopefully we can maintain it on our own. (And, hopefully he can grow out of these allergies.) We'll still do breathing treatments as needed... but we're on the path for gaining an inhaler (when he comes of age). The poor kid! It's definitely affecting his lifestyle, which as a mother is hard to watch. He's so good about taking breaks. I taught him to feel his chest and heartbeat. He knows if it's hard and/or fast, that it's time for a few minutes of rest... He tells me about how he checks his "heartBEEP" all the time. :)
Landen will be four in September! I can't believe how fast it's gone. Depsite that we've had ups and downs regarding his health, he's been a great kid. Graden followed in his footsteps and even as we approach the "terrible twos" ... NOTHING has been "terrible" about it! How did I ever get so lucky? :) Landen wants to be "independent" and Graden is trying stunts that his big brother does, but overall... they're great kids! :) Ah, I love these boys.
So, all in all, I feel like we're moving in the right direction. Every night before I drift off to sleep, I say a little prayer for my doctor! We are so happy with her (and the ENT)! It's such a wonderful feeling to know that both the boys are in great hands! Both boys are happy as usual... and every day I'm home with them, they teach me something new. Being a mom is fantastic! :)
Love to you all... Enjoy the beautiful weather and long weekend!
Graden: Doc says Grado is growing like a weed! Still a little short, but we can live with that. Of course, he's built like a brickhouse already, so she's curious to see how that changes (and if it doesn't, just how good of an offensive lineman he can be!). Landen too was always on the big side, but his body changed so much about this time (before his 2nd birthday)... even his looks changed. Doc listened to his chest and it was clear! This was GREAT news because we were allowed to go this morning to get his tubes in at the hospital. (Yes, we're already back home!) It went well... ENT Doc says that Graden's ears were more infected than he even thought so a lot of fluid drained out. (This is a good thing.) He also said that he was surprised Graden could hear at all! Poor kid! So, all in all, we're over a big hurdle... Graden will be sensitive to sounds for 5 days or so and we should notice a BIG change in his vocabulary - he should begin learning/hearing all sorts of new tones/sounds... This is VERY exciting for Mommy. We've been working like crazy with a speech therapist and on our own. Graden is picking up new words, but still needs help with certain vowels and such. I can't wait to see how this all changes and watch his progress. He's playing right now as I type - jabbering tons already. Thank goodness! Our regular Doc says that he's "tough"... his coordination and motor skills are excelled (I think he has to make up for the language barrier) and that his personality is just wonderful. (Mommy already knew that!) :) Graden has been watching Landen "potty" and is showing a big interest! I asked Doc what she thought and she said go for it... So, we'll be doing a little potty training early. Graden tells me if he went in his diaper and wants a new one... plus, he's been taking off his pants and sitting on the little potty... Wish me luck!
Landen: Well, we're on a bit of a roller coaster with Landen. For the past month he's been taking Singular every night before bed. Originally, I noticed an improvement for his breathing. He could definitely play longer without getting winded as easily as before. This was great! However, now that the "counts" (pollen and such) are up, we've been having trouble controlling his "allergy" symptoms - which in turn affect his breathing (asthma symptoms). He's been downright miserable by the end of the night. So, instead of just going straight to an allergy/asthma doctor - who will perfom "allergy tests" (which will be painful for Landen) we're going to try some "seasonal" allergy meds. This just means we'll be increasing our daily steps. We'll be doing nasal spray, eye drops, an allergy specific medicine and keep the Singular. The issues lie in that if his allergies flare up, his breathing does too... and we have to keep the breathing under control. So, we've got it mapped out. We do a large combo to start, then will stop one and then eventually another and keep on the allergy specific med or just Singular (which can be used for allergies - not just asthma). Then, once it's been in his system, hopefully we can just maintain his symptoms. The goal is to see if it is in fact "seasonal" - with hopes of it being that - so that we don't have to go to a specialist just yet... hopefully we can maintain it on our own. (And, hopefully he can grow out of these allergies.) We'll still do breathing treatments as needed... but we're on the path for gaining an inhaler (when he comes of age). The poor kid! It's definitely affecting his lifestyle, which as a mother is hard to watch. He's so good about taking breaks. I taught him to feel his chest and heartbeat. He knows if it's hard and/or fast, that it's time for a few minutes of rest... He tells me about how he checks his "heartBEEP" all the time. :)
Landen will be four in September! I can't believe how fast it's gone. Depsite that we've had ups and downs regarding his health, he's been a great kid. Graden followed in his footsteps and even as we approach the "terrible twos" ... NOTHING has been "terrible" about it! How did I ever get so lucky? :) Landen wants to be "independent" and Graden is trying stunts that his big brother does, but overall... they're great kids! :) Ah, I love these boys.
So, all in all, I feel like we're moving in the right direction. Every night before I drift off to sleep, I say a little prayer for my doctor! We are so happy with her (and the ENT)! It's such a wonderful feeling to know that both the boys are in great hands! Both boys are happy as usual... and every day I'm home with them, they teach me something new. Being a mom is fantastic! :)
Love to you all... Enjoy the beautiful weather and long weekend!
Monday, May 18, 2009
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Mommy's Day!
Our family on Mother's Day! The boys took me out to a nice dinner and then we stopped at a park on the way home to play outside! It was a wonderful day and weekend! Landen kept telling me all day we were "best friends" and "happy mothers day"... I loved it!
Playing on the slide...
Ring the bell, Landen!
CUTE STUFF!
Weeee! Mommy & Grado on the swing!
Monday, May 11, 2009
Thursday, April 30, 2009
MY NEW JOB!
This is my new job:
Yes, I am staying home with the boys now! :) What a great feeling to be able to be home each day with these two boys... I should've done it years ago. I'm also going to be watching a few kids during the days, so if you're looking for someone reliable and fun to watch your kiddos; let me know! Yay for being a MOMMY!
breathing treatments and more...
Landen and Graden have both had a rough winter! The picture above shows Graden doing "the mask" as the boys call it... which is a breathing treatment. Graden got diagnosed with atypical pneumonia (we caught it when it was just starting) the first of April and Landen followed behind him getting pneumonia for real. The poor kids can't catch a break! Pneumonia isn't even contagious, but apparently the boys both started with the same strand of cold/cough that turned into something more serious. This was the "crossing the line" according to our doctor!
Graden went in to see an ENT this past Monday. He had two types of hearing tests performed. Our fears were confirmed, yet we were pleased. Graden can hear, but he has trouble hearing certain tones. This is ok, and should be fixable... We will be going in for "tubes" on May 14th. He has fluid in his ears constantly and even though his ears are red/sore inside, they don't always get infected. This should be treatable and is a normal, common procedure. We are not worried and trust our Doctor very much. This ENT is the same doctor who took out Landen's tonsils and adnoids not so long ago. He's wonderful with kids and gets straight to the point when he speaks to us about the boys. Throughout the time Graden has his tubes, we'll perform more hearing tests to be sure he's improving. Most likely, tubes will be all he needs... but there is still a concern that the "drainage tubes" beyond his ear drums may have an issue. Right now, though, that doctor thinks that is a small possibility. All of this is a side effect (after effect) from when Graden was so seriously sick with RSV (when he was 3 weeks old). Apparently, breathing with the support for so long can hurt your ears... They did tell us there were several side effects/concerns when Graden was in the PICU, but at that point - we just wanted Grado to BREATHE! Look at him now... thank goodness for wonderful doctors and FAITH.
Now, Landen... dear Landen. My little red-faced stinker! :) Landen took medicine for pneumonia for one week. It was a rough week! It's hard to keep such a busy boy down, but he did just what he was supposed to do and took his medicine without any compliants! During that time we also started taking one Singular pill before bed each night. He's going to continue this medicine for one month. On May 20th, we'll be going back into our doctor so she can report how he has done (I'm keeping a journal on when he takes his meds and his activity). She then plans to send us to an Allergy/Asthma doctor that she's worked with in the past. She believes that Landen will in fact have asthma, but wants to eliminate that he also has "allergies". Of course, this can change... sometimes kids grow out of this and sometimes adults gain them later, too. Landen may also develop an allergy to something even after we do all the testing... Either way, we know for sure that his breathing affects Landen's life drastically. I'm happy to report that I have already noticed a difference with this medicine! He still needs to take breaks to catch his breath, but it's better overall. We watch him closely and he's really good at knowing when enough is enough! This process for Landen will take time... lots of tests, medicine trials and visits. Most importantly = patience. This is harder for Mommy than it is for Landen. We do our breathing treatments on a regular basis... the boys are so good at them. Again, we are thankful to have great doctors and strong faith.
Of course, there are days I don't understand why both my boys have to have breathing issues. Somedays I wonder why both boys have had such a tough time - I mean, who can say they've had 5 hosptial visits in 16 months? :) (Three of which were by way of EMS?) Graden is better each day and shouldn't have near the problems Landen does... but it still hurts me to see them struggle. I'm telling you, there is nothing worse than seeing Landen GASP for air. Nothing. I know their illnesses could be worse, I do... so, I squeeze them daily (more than once!) and thank God constantly for bringing them to me and for watching over them as they go through this up and down ride. I know it may be awhile until we find out what exactly we need to do to make them comfortable... and I am okay with that. In the meantime, I will just keep enjoying them and doing what I can to keep them healthy in all other aspects. Thank goodness they're strong little guys! I know I shouldn't complain, but there are days when I just want my kids to be healthy... how selfish of me when there are kids that have it much worse. It breaks my heart... for my kids and others! Why should ANY kid have to suffer at all? Sometimes, I just don't understand.
My thoughts and prayers go out to our friend, Carley (4 years old)... who battles neuroblastoma (cancer) daily. I read her Mommy & Daddy's blog/Caringbridge website daily and I say a little prayer for her. I admire Carley's strength and courage... and I find it heart-warming just how tough an innocent little girl can be! I'm proud to say that I know her and her family. It's girls like Carley who keep me moving forward... who remind me that my life is good and that God is good, too! Carley's parents are amazing in my eyes and I love that they are so open and share their personal story... thank you Joel & Christina!
Visit Carley's page:
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/carleyhoffman
EASTER
Izzie, Graden, Emma, and Landen...
Posing for an Easter picture!
It's hard getting them to all sit still
long enough for a picture! Ha!
Mommy and her handsome boys!
(Yes, you too, Phil!)
Graden is trying to make sure
that Landen got the same things
from the Easter bunny!
COLORING EASTER EGGS!
LET THE EASTER EGG
HUNT BEGIN!!!
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