I called the Doctor yesterday to find out the results of Caleb's CT scan. I think I talked with a receptionist so I didn't get many details but she said everything was normal! His head is developing normally, just slowly as far as the sutures closing. They did see some fluid around his ears and sinuses. She said that if he had symptoms of an infection to call.
Well, he has had a fever for the past 3 days of 101.1 or so. I decided to take him in and he has an ear infection. His fever was 103 at the doctor! I honestly would not have thought he had an ear infection because he was not crying any more than normal. He just felt like he was burning up and I thought it was just the new teeth that were coming in!
The only reason I thought it was something more was because they said he had fluid by his ears.
He is starting to act more sick, very letargic, tired, and in pain but we have an antibiotic and everything should be great in a few days!
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Imaginary Friend
The other day Adrianna says she was going to go play with her friend Marsha. First of all, we do not know any Marsha's so I asked her where she met her and what she was like. This is what she said:
Adrianna: "I met her when Eliza was in your belly. She has the same color skin as me, the same hair color, the same red/pink lips, and the same voice. The is older than me, like 18, but she died.
She fell down and landed on her elbows and she died."
She totally made this up with such conviction that Marsha was a real person!
Quite cute for her first imaginary friend!
Adrianna: "I met her when Eliza was in your belly. She has the same color skin as me, the same hair color, the same red/pink lips, and the same voice. The is older than me, like 18, but she died.
She fell down and landed on her elbows and she died."
She totally made this up with such conviction that Marsha was a real person!
Quite cute for her first imaginary friend!
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Caleb's CT Scan
At Caleb's 6 month appointment I expressed some concerns about his motor development. His doctor was also checking his fontanel that extends down into the middle of his forehead. By this age, that should be closed. There is always a concern that it will close too quickly and then it will have to be opened. This was not the case with Caleb. His is closing VERY slowly and is cause for some concern. She has been watching it at every appointment and mentioned we might have to do a CT scan to see if there was anything preventing it from closing, such as fluid. He is also still a little wobbly with his head control, is not sitting very well, and his trunkel support is not as strong as it should be. All these things combined make her want to do the scan.
We originally had an appointment at 2pm tomorrow. That means that we would have to be there at 1 and Caleb couldn't have anything to eat past 8 am! ARE YOU KIDDING ME! Fortunately I was able to reschedule it for this past Friday at 8:30am. There was no way I was going to try and console a breast-feeding baby for 5 hours! We had to be at Devos Children's Hospital at 7:30 and this was the morning Caleb decided it would be great to wake up at 5! Shawn rocked him and eventually he fell back asleep and did pretty well until we got there.
Devos is amazing! Of course it is geared towards kids but it really shows. They really have thought out every possible thing that you would need while being there.
We got into the room and the doctor examined him and said he was okay for the sedation. I was very happy to find out that it would be an oral sedation, NOT an iv! It would take longer but that's better than trying to stick a needle in a 6 month old!
Caleb was tired anyway so the sedation worked in about 10 minutes or so. They were so nice as he was trying to go to sleep! They dimmed the lights and gave him a warm blanket. They even had movies, books, puzzles, and games in the room in case people have older kids and have to stay longer. It was so great!
The actual scan only took about 5 minutes. It was a little pitiful to see Caleb completely still and not having any idea what was going on. He was so peaceful!
Afterwards they said it might take up to 2 hours for the sedation to wear off so the nurse watching him while we went to get some coffee. An unexpected date in the hospital!
After about an hour and a half we took the warm blankets off of him and he woke up right away. The nurse said if you wake the babies up too quick they are REALLY cranky! He did so great! He of course wanted to eat right away! He was still wobbly for the rest of the day and very tired, but that actually worked out for the plans we had. Read the next post for that!
He did not have any sort of reaction to the sedation so that was good. It went better than my little mind thought it would! We just have to wait for the results by the end of this week.
Thanks to all who prayed for him. I'm pretty sure it is nothing and he is just developing slower than normal. It really makes you seek the Lord on a more intimate level when your child might have something wrong. We have been given many opportunities from the Lord for our relationship with Him to grow stronger and more intimate. I have been praying more fervently and more frequently lately and I have seen God's hand on everything he brings into our lives. I would not want to be in any other place! This child was given specifically to us! He is an incredible blessing and just pure joy. I know God has his mighty hand on our sweet little boy!
We originally had an appointment at 2pm tomorrow. That means that we would have to be there at 1 and Caleb couldn't have anything to eat past 8 am! ARE YOU KIDDING ME! Fortunately I was able to reschedule it for this past Friday at 8:30am. There was no way I was going to try and console a breast-feeding baby for 5 hours! We had to be at Devos Children's Hospital at 7:30 and this was the morning Caleb decided it would be great to wake up at 5! Shawn rocked him and eventually he fell back asleep and did pretty well until we got there.
Devos is amazing! Of course it is geared towards kids but it really shows. They really have thought out every possible thing that you would need while being there.
We got into the room and the doctor examined him and said he was okay for the sedation. I was very happy to find out that it would be an oral sedation, NOT an iv! It would take longer but that's better than trying to stick a needle in a 6 month old!
Caleb was tired anyway so the sedation worked in about 10 minutes or so. They were so nice as he was trying to go to sleep! They dimmed the lights and gave him a warm blanket. They even had movies, books, puzzles, and games in the room in case people have older kids and have to stay longer. It was so great!
The actual scan only took about 5 minutes. It was a little pitiful to see Caleb completely still and not having any idea what was going on. He was so peaceful!
Afterwards they said it might take up to 2 hours for the sedation to wear off so the nurse watching him while we went to get some coffee. An unexpected date in the hospital!
After about an hour and a half we took the warm blankets off of him and he woke up right away. The nurse said if you wake the babies up too quick they are REALLY cranky! He did so great! He of course wanted to eat right away! He was still wobbly for the rest of the day and very tired, but that actually worked out for the plans we had. Read the next post for that!
He did not have any sort of reaction to the sedation so that was good. It went better than my little mind thought it would! We just have to wait for the results by the end of this week.
Thanks to all who prayed for him. I'm pretty sure it is nothing and he is just developing slower than normal. It really makes you seek the Lord on a more intimate level when your child might have something wrong. We have been given many opportunities from the Lord for our relationship with Him to grow stronger and more intimate. I have been praying more fervently and more frequently lately and I have seen God's hand on everything he brings into our lives. I would not want to be in any other place! This child was given specifically to us! He is an incredible blessing and just pure joy. I know God has his mighty hand on our sweet little boy!
Blessed for our Anniversary
While we were on our way to Caleb's CT scan, we opened an envelope that was given to us by our dearest and best friends the Howells. It said that Amber would be picking up our girls and then sending us on an afternoon of remembering, relaxing, renewing, and reflecting! Amber told me about a week ago to keep this day set aside so I was VERY curious to see what she had planned.
She gave us some envelopes and gifts to open on our afternoon together.
STOP #1- Cornerstone University
This is where we met, fell in love, had our first kiss, and got engaged.
The first gift included snacks and some questions to ask each other as we walked around campus.
Wow..we have not been to campus in a while and just walking around brought back so many good memories! We had forgotten about the goose poo that is EVERYWHERE around the sidewalks! Shawn just had to demonstrate how gross it is!
STOP #2- Find a park and have some fun together. We decided to go downtown and walk around AB-Nab-Awen park and try and find all the places we used to make-out at. Tee hee..:)
It was just too light out and too many people around to do anything THIS afternoon!:)
STOP #3- The purpose of the first 2 stops was to reminisce about our story leading up to our engagement. After we got engaged one of the 1st people we told was my mom! Our next stop was her house for afternoon coffee and yummy cinnamon rolls. We had some questions that we could ask each other and talk about as we remembered our engagement.
We had Caleb with us so it was a perfect stop for feeding him!
Don't these look yummy!
STOP #4- Go to the church where we got married. My mom also had the wedding album she had made of our wedding for us to look at.
After this stop we went back to my mom's to pick up Caleb and then headed to our next stop.
STOP #5- Our house for a romantic candlelight dinner. Dinner was already in the crock pot and it was FABULOUS! This stop was to remind us that our home is where God is building our house!
After our great dinner we headed over to pick up the girls and end our evening with coffee, ice cream sundaes and amazing friends!
All I can say is WOW! Thank you so much for a great afternoon and for giving us a much needed gift of time. It was exactly what we needed! All your planning and thoughtfulness is so much appreciated! We love you guys!
She gave us some envelopes and gifts to open on our afternoon together.
STOP #1- Cornerstone University
This is where we met, fell in love, had our first kiss, and got engaged.
The first gift included snacks and some questions to ask each other as we walked around campus.
Wow..we have not been to campus in a while and just walking around brought back so many good memories! We had forgotten about the goose poo that is EVERYWHERE around the sidewalks! Shawn just had to demonstrate how gross it is!
STOP #2- Find a park and have some fun together. We decided to go downtown and walk around AB-Nab-Awen park and try and find all the places we used to make-out at. Tee hee..:)
It was just too light out and too many people around to do anything THIS afternoon!:)
STOP #3- The purpose of the first 2 stops was to reminisce about our story leading up to our engagement. After we got engaged one of the 1st people we told was my mom! Our next stop was her house for afternoon coffee and yummy cinnamon rolls. We had some questions that we could ask each other and talk about as we remembered our engagement.
We had Caleb with us so it was a perfect stop for feeding him!
Don't these look yummy!
STOP #4- Go to the church where we got married. My mom also had the wedding album she had made of our wedding for us to look at.
After this stop we went back to my mom's to pick up Caleb and then headed to our next stop.
STOP #5- Our house for a romantic candlelight dinner. Dinner was already in the crock pot and it was FABULOUS! This stop was to remind us that our home is where God is building our house!
After our great dinner we headed over to pick up the girls and end our evening with coffee, ice cream sundaes and amazing friends!
All I can say is WOW! Thank you so much for a great afternoon and for giving us a much needed gift of time. It was exactly what we needed! All your planning and thoughtfulness is so much appreciated! We love you guys!
Graduating from Preschool
One thing I love about our church is that no matter what program they have, they always do it well! Adrianna had her preschool graduation on May 18th. Each class sang a song and the whole group sang 3 songs together. They were so cute! It was just the right amount of time and it went very smoothly. It brought tears to my eyes to see her walking out with her little cap on.
Ready for Kindergarten!After her last day of preschool she came in the house and starting packing her bag for Kindergarten! She had an extra outfit and a drink all set to go!
Shawn and I debated for a long time whether or not to send her to preschool, where to send her, and how many days to send her.
We are SO HAPPY with our decision! Explore and Grow has been an amazing experience for us and for Adrianna. She thoroughly enjoyed each day she went and looked forward to it. One other reason Adrianna loved it so much was because she had amazing teachers! Ms. Bev & Ms. Nancy were so wonderful. They really made her feel safe and loved and really did great things with their class throughout the year. I can hardly believe it is over! It was the best thing for Adrianna and she has grown so much this year. I see her becoming more sure of herself in social settings and showing more interest in letters and reading. It was bittersweet as we left preschool for the last time last Tuesday. She is starting her school career and the time I see her will be different now. My sweet pea is growing up! Can't I hold on to her a little longer....
1st lost tooth!
Now you see it......
Now you don't!
Adrianna lost her 1st tooth already! And she has her 6 year molars! Growing up too fast!
Thursday, May 14, 2009
6 Months Old Already!
Where oh where has the time gone? My sweet precious boy is 6 months old! He fills our home with so much joy! He is content and happy most of the time and REALLY loves his sisters. Oh yeah, and his mama!
Here are some milestones he is doing:
Activities he likes: the floor gym, the exersaucer, sitting up while being held, laying on the floor kicking, and being outside in his swing.
Foods: Mommy's milk, pears & applesauce, pancakes, carrots, squash, & sweet potatoes
Dislikes: Peas
Favorite toys: Any toy he can chew on, and is starting to look at books
Other tidbits: has 2 teeth and is working on the top 4, starting to say the sound "ma-ma-ma", loves to look around at things
Mother's Day
I told Shawn that I did not want to cook on Mother's Day and I was so blessed to not have to do that! I woke up to coffee and a hot breakfast. Shawn had some meat that he fanned out on a plate and then put some yummy eggs in the middle of the fan. Very creative and yummy!For lunch he actually had put in the crockpot the night before so it was ready for us when we got home from church. For dinner he made fried egg sandwiches which is actually a standard at our house! He even cleaned up all the mess too! The rest of the day was spent doing our normal Sunday routine but it was nice to just be together.
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this picture!
For me, it is really hard not to have big expectations for Mother's Day. Yes, it is a special day to honor Mother's, but why can't that be done every day of the year? I really had to step back and remind myself of the simple things in life. To be thankful for what I had and have right in front of me.
Shawn even bought me a book about being a stay-at-home mom. He knew I have been struggling with my identity for a while and it was very thoughtful of him to think of encouraging me in that way. The book is by Dr. Laura and she doesn't pull any punches! She gets right to the honest truth and I really like that!
So, thank you honey for making me feel special even though I didn't show it very well. Thank you for loving me as a wife and as a mom and for coming along side of me so we can raise our children in God's love.
Tulip Time Parade
Us crazy folks decided to go to the Tulip Time parade on the last day of the festival. At first it looked rather dreary and rainy out but as the parade began, the sun came out! It was still very cold in the shade and we really could have used our mittens and hats!
My family from Detroit drove over to spend the day and also to celebrate Mother's Day. I LOVE having them come to things and I'm so glad we can still build relationships even if they are 3 hours away! We HAD to indulge in an elephant ear, cheesy fries, and a polish sausage! Definitely shared by all! I think this was the kids first parade that they actually watched and knew what was going on. They seemed to have a good time. Either that or they were just frozen in their seats! It was amazing to see how many people were there and how pushy they can get just to get a seat! It's a good thing we staked out our spot the night before! We had great seats right on the curb!
I thought this was so precious! On the way to the parade Eliza and Caleb fell asleep holding hands!
Caleb loves his Grandma!
The whole clan! All 16 of us!
My family from Detroit drove over to spend the day and also to celebrate Mother's Day. I LOVE having them come to things and I'm so glad we can still build relationships even if they are 3 hours away! We HAD to indulge in an elephant ear, cheesy fries, and a polish sausage! Definitely shared by all! I think this was the kids first parade that they actually watched and knew what was going on. They seemed to have a good time. Either that or they were just frozen in their seats! It was amazing to see how many people were there and how pushy they can get just to get a seat! It's a good thing we staked out our spot the night before! We had great seats right on the curb!
I thought this was so precious! On the way to the parade Eliza and Caleb fell asleep holding hands!
Caleb loves his Grandma!
The whole clan! All 16 of us!
Mother's Day Tea
For the past 3 years my Mother-in-law's church has had a Mother/Daughter Tea. Last year I was pregnant with Caleb and this year was one of the first times I went somewhere without him! The girls and I had fun with Grandma Sylvia and we missed having Sheryl there! We enjoyed an array of salads and desserts as well as a really nice program of music and speaking.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Some "Firsts" to Celebrate!
Caleb finally rolled over at almost 6 months!
Daddy took both girls to Home Depot for the 1st time for their building day. They made wheelbarrows and the girls got me some Gerbera daisies, my favorite!
Caleb has graduated to the ducky tub! He is so content I think I could sit him on top of the roof and he wouldn't make a peep! He did tip over a few times but seemed to like trying to reach for his toy.
1st time in the swing outside! He almost fell asleep he was so relaxed!
1st time all 3 kids used the swing set and the 1st time Adrianna can pump herself and not need pushing!SUMMER IS GOING TO BE A BLAST!
Moms and our Supposed-to-Be's
I have a subscription to Today's Christian Woman. It is such a great magazine! There are so many encouraging articles that seem to be right where I am every time I read the bi-monthly issue.
I wanted to paraphrase an article is the latest issue. It is talking about how mom's try and live their life as a "supposed to" instead of what God has given them.
Here are some excerpts from the article:
"This question was asked, 'Why don't Christian moms, especially younger ones, feel free to do their thing, regardless of expectations of their elders, their pastor, and the women at church? Why are they so conflicted about following their instincts, or what God tells them to do, when those things contradict so-called authority figures?
The answer simple could be because of fear. We love our kids so much, and are so afraid of making mistakes, being bad moms, and living out of sync with God's will, that we put more weight on what the 'expert's' yell than on what God whispers.
We need to trust what God can do in our maternal hearts. We know our babies better than any book or expert. It is okay to live the life we have instead of the life we are "supposed" to have.
"Supposed to" messages come from everywhere. To spank or not to spank, etc... We can function better if we just step back and listen to God's whispers, pray, and follow that way that is right for our family." (Carla Barnhill & Caryn Rivadeneira)
Following God means weighing those "supposed to " messages against what the Bible says and what our culture says we should do. It all goes back to the comparison thing. There are so many ways to do the same thing. If I just sit back, give my life to Christ everyday, he will lead me in how I should raise my kids. I am not saying that the "experts" do not have important things to say or that we should disregard everything else we read. They do have helpful things from time to time. I'm saying that our standard for our family should be Christ and His word. Not all those parenting magazines out there or the way our culture says we should raise our kids.
Believe me, I will continually be working on the no comparison thing!
God provides everything we need. Everything that is just right for our family. He is our custom builder!
I wanted to paraphrase an article is the latest issue. It is talking about how mom's try and live their life as a "supposed to" instead of what God has given them.
Here are some excerpts from the article:
"This question was asked, 'Why don't Christian moms, especially younger ones, feel free to do their thing, regardless of expectations of their elders, their pastor, and the women at church? Why are they so conflicted about following their instincts, or what God tells them to do, when those things contradict so-called authority figures?
The answer simple could be because of fear. We love our kids so much, and are so afraid of making mistakes, being bad moms, and living out of sync with God's will, that we put more weight on what the 'expert's' yell than on what God whispers.
We need to trust what God can do in our maternal hearts. We know our babies better than any book or expert. It is okay to live the life we have instead of the life we are "supposed" to have.
"Supposed to" messages come from everywhere. To spank or not to spank, etc... We can function better if we just step back and listen to God's whispers, pray, and follow that way that is right for our family." (Carla Barnhill & Caryn Rivadeneira)
Following God means weighing those "supposed to " messages against what the Bible says and what our culture says we should do. It all goes back to the comparison thing. There are so many ways to do the same thing. If I just sit back, give my life to Christ everyday, he will lead me in how I should raise my kids. I am not saying that the "experts" do not have important things to say or that we should disregard everything else we read. They do have helpful things from time to time. I'm saying that our standard for our family should be Christ and His word. Not all those parenting magazines out there or the way our culture says we should raise our kids.
Believe me, I will continually be working on the no comparison thing!
God provides everything we need. Everything that is just right for our family. He is our custom builder!
Custom Designed
Psalm 127:1 says: "Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor over it in vain; unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays alert in vain".
We recently studied this Psalm of ascent during our Beth Moore led Bible study. We had adopted this verse a while ago for our family but until I did this study, it hadn't really set deep with me.
Basically it means that if we do not let God build our house, and all of the people in it, it is meaningless! We might as well take a nap because it won't matter what we do! We will live in utter frustration if we try and do things in our own way or with other people's expectations on us. Nisi Dominus Frusta! (Without the Lord, Frustration!)
Christ is our custom builder! He designs our house, not the other way around! In the study, a thought stood out to me..."Be careful not to expect your marriage, parenting, or even your singleness to be exactly like someone else's".
I often struggle with comparing our family to others. Sometimes I feel that if we don't do things the way others do them, and it's working for them, that our family isn't good enough. A total lie from Satan I know! It was such a great reminder that God designed Shawn and I as we are, he gave us our 3 beautiful children as they are, and He put us where we are for a purpose. It might not be the same as someone else, but that doesn't mean it is not right. I will keep working on this and realize every day that Christ has a plan for our family that He custom designed!
We recently studied this Psalm of ascent during our Beth Moore led Bible study. We had adopted this verse a while ago for our family but until I did this study, it hadn't really set deep with me.
Basically it means that if we do not let God build our house, and all of the people in it, it is meaningless! We might as well take a nap because it won't matter what we do! We will live in utter frustration if we try and do things in our own way or with other people's expectations on us. Nisi Dominus Frusta! (Without the Lord, Frustration!)
Christ is our custom builder! He designs our house, not the other way around! In the study, a thought stood out to me..."Be careful not to expect your marriage, parenting, or even your singleness to be exactly like someone else's".
I often struggle with comparing our family to others. Sometimes I feel that if we don't do things the way others do them, and it's working for them, that our family isn't good enough. A total lie from Satan I know! It was such a great reminder that God designed Shawn and I as we are, he gave us our 3 beautiful children as they are, and He put us where we are for a purpose. It might not be the same as someone else, but that doesn't mean it is not right. I will keep working on this and realize every day that Christ has a plan for our family that He custom designed!
Saturday, May 2, 2009
No Arguing!
Shawn and I were having a discussion last night and Eliza looked up at us, pointed her little finger and said, "No arguing! The Bible says Jesus loves you. It is the truth. NO ARGUING!"
We weren't even arguing but at least she knows what it is!
We weren't even arguing but at least she knows what it is!
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