{Skinny Dipping}

 

{Scares}

Ben has been giving us a few scares lately.  The past week has been filled with ups and downs, but two defining moments that really had me concerned about my big man.  There is nothing worse when you think that your baby might be in trouble.  Let me share...

Friday Night -- I put Ben down at his normal 8:00 pm bedtime. He was fine, no issues at all, just a normal night.  Around 10:45 pm he woke up.  I was frustrated when I heard him making noise through the monitor because...well...it is Ben and he doesn't sleep well and it was only 10:45 and he was waking up already.  So I let him cry for a few minutes, but then he started coughing and it sounded really bad.  I could tell something wasn't right and rushed to his room at that point.

When I got him, the poor boy was wheezing really bad and was having some trouble breathing.  Then he coughed again and I heard it...the croup.  I started to really get worried and we made our way to the bathroom and turned on the hot shower.  I called my pediatrician and waited for one of the nurses to call me back so I could explain the situation and get direction on what I should do.  This was the first time he had trouble breathing since he was hospitalized for RSV.  I was shaking as I rocked him in the bathroom.  All those feelings when he was in the ICU that I have pushed away came flooding back.

My parents made there way over as we waited for the nurse to call just in case we needed to bring him in.  My mom heard his wheezing over the phone and was just as scared as I was.  Finally the nurse called and we talked through everything.  He said that if we heard him wheezing with every breath from several feet away, we needed to bring him to Texas Childrens.  When he first woke up, this was definitely the case but his condition was started to improve.  Once I got off the phone and we observed Ben for a while longer.  I feel that we finally got to a point where he was okay and my parents left around midnight.  (P.S. Don't know what we would do without them.)

I rocked my sweet Ben back to sleep and woke with him several more times that night since I didn't want to take any chances with his wheezing.  I thought all of this was in the past, but realized that I need to be extra careful with him this winter.  I also need to talk to his pediatrician about what could happen and when to be really worried.  Children who have been hospitalized due to RSV/breathing issues as a newborn have a higher risk of breathing problems later.  I was hoping Ben wouldn't be in this category since we have had no issues since last February, but I realized we still have to be careful and keep a close watch. 

Monday Evening -- Chat and Luke went to the park so I could cook dinner.  Ben was crawling around the kitchen at my feet and I was cutting potatoes while talking to my mom on the phone (clearly not watching Ben with a close eye).  All of a sudden, Ben starts making this horrible wretching noise and he seems to be choking.  I slam the phone down (my mom still on the line not knowing what is going on...only hearing Ben's scary noises and me screaming "Oh no!").  I immediately put my finger in his mouth to feel for anything he could be choking on.  I feel something but it is far down there, so when I say I put my finger down his throat, I mean all the way.  My knuckle that is closest to my palm was all scratched up because of his teeth and I have very long fingers.  I fish out what is in there pull out what seems to be a ball of fibers from our rug.  But blood comes up with it too and he is screaming like crazy.  I bounce and walk him around trying to call him down and nothing seems to be working. 

After about five minutes of screaming, I finally nurse him and he starts to calm down.  I am still thinking about the blood, so I call the on-call doctor.  In a nutshell, he thinks that I might have damaged his soft tissue in his throat trying to fish out the fibers.  He said it should heal on its own and to not worry...just watch him closely. 

We finally get back to normal (well, Ben, I am still shaking) and try to go about our night.  I am not really sure if he could have really choked from the ball of fibers, but I have never experienced Ben or Luke making noises like that.  I thought his skin around his lips was a little blue but that could have been from my finger being down his throat for so long as I tried to pull it out.

All in all, one of the most scary moments of my life.  It was a little bit of a wake-up call that I need to watch him more and sweep our floors more often to pick up the dirt and other things that it collects.  I also need to get refreshed with infant CPR.  My poor mom heard everything and had no idea what was happening.  I think it took her just as long to recover as it did me. 

After all that, we ended up going to Baskin Robbins with the boys to take our minds off of the experience.  And Ben got his first taste of chocolate ice cream -- much deserved I think...

 

 

Don't worry, big brother got some too!  He loves him some rainbow sherbert :).

 

 

I think I needed wine more than ice cream, but the ice cream was a close second.  These little boys are my life and I just don't know what I would do if something happened to them.  I am counting my blessings that nothing more serious happened and hoping for some low-key, scare-free days ahead :).

 



{Big Boy Bed}

Well my first-born is officially a big boy and practically shocked the heck out of me this week. 

 

{First let me begin by saying that I had not planned to put Luke in a big boy bed until he was around three in Febraury.  He is the only one of his friends that was still in a crib, but he slept well in it and seemed secure and happy, so I didn't want to rock the boat, especially when his little brother wakes up all night long.  I didn't want two children who weren't sleeping well.}

 

On Thursday, I went to put Luke down for a nap around 1:00 pm.  When I put him in his crib and turned to leave, he got hysterical.  Like really hysterical.  He cried like hadn't cried in a long time.  It got me worried, so I went back to him and asked him what was wrong.  His answer?

 

"That bed."  And he points to the twin big boy bed that has been in his room the past year. 

 

The bed that we never have talked about.  That we never even have really acknowledged.  The bed that I didn't even really know he noticed until Thursday afternoon. 

 

So I responded, "Do you want to sleep in that bed?"  "Yes."

 

And so he went.  I laid him down and he asked to read a few books and we did.  Then I kissed him and told him to have a good nap and I closed the door.  This is what I found about 10 minutes later.

 

He slept about two hours and then I woke him up because I wanted him to go to bed at a decent time that night.  I was shocked that he asked to sleep there.  Dumbfounded actually. 

 

I didn't know what to do about the night that was quickly approaching, but I wanted to be prepared in case he wanted to sleep there that night.  We ran out and bought some bed rails and got them set up.  Then we waited for nighttime to see what would happen.

 

And what happened?  He chose the big boy bed.  And he slept there all night without a peep.  And he waited for us to come get him out this morning.

 

And guess where he is right now?!?! Yup...in his big boy bed for the second night.

 

I am actually really surprised by how this happened, but so happy how this all turned out.  He ended up telling us when he was ready and he took the lead.  It was unexpected, but so nice.  We were so proud of him and told him so, but overall it really it wasn't a big thing - just another day but in a different bed. It felt right and that is sometimes hard to feel when dealing with a two year old at times. 

{What Happens..}

This is what happens when Luke doesn't nap for several days straight.  He passes out and takes a three to four hour nap in which we can't even wake him.  He finally crashed.

This is what happens when Ben gets ahold of a mirror at the pediatrician's office.  He sure did like lookin' at his reflection!

{Ben: 9 Months Old}

Another month has passed and Ben is nine months old!  What is my big man up to?  Lots of things!

 

1.  We visited the pediatrician yesterday and Ben got a great report.  He weighed in at 28 lbs and 6.3 ounces (99.7%) -- a little less than a week or so ago, so I think he is finally starting to thin out a bit!  He measured 30.5" (96.9%) in height, so he is still a tall baby.  No vaccines this visit, but they did take blood and he did get a flu shot. 

2.  Ben is crawling up a storm...but at his own pace.  He is a slow crawler in my opinion (or at least compared to how Luke crawled).  He gets to where he is going at a little bit of a slow pace.  Not sure if it is due to his personality or maybe all that weight he is carrying!

3.  He is pulling up on everything and cruising around anything he can stand near.  He has had a few falls, but nothing major yet.  Just a few bruises here and there.  I think Ben likes to be vertical more than anything.  He will stand holding on to something for 30 or 45 minutes at a time.  I guess he just likes to see what is going on!

4.  Ben is already standing independently!  He started this about 3 or so weeks ago.  He would be standing holding on to the coffee table or something stationary and then pick up a toy, let go and hold it with both hands.  Now he does it all the time and will stand independently for almost a minute or so before grabbing back on to something or squatting down.

5.  He is nursing about 3 times a day and drinks a bottle of pumped milk at night before bed.  He does nurse in the middle of the night too, but never a full feeding...it is more for comfort and to get him back to sleep.  I never had the intention of nursing this long, but it works for him/us so we are just going with it.  I am already thinking about how I am going to get this baby to wean at 12 months -- it might be a challenge!

6.  Six teeth have officially popped up -- four on top and two of the bottom.  I just love his goofy, teethy smile.  It sure does change a baby's look.  Teething has caused some sleeping problems, but has been helpful with eating table food.

7.  Speaking of table food, Ben loves it!  He will really eat anything I put in front of him -- toast, strawberries, cereal bar, cheerios, banana (his favorite!), blueberries, waffles, etc.  He never took to pureed baby food, so we just moved on and it is going very well.  And he is loving his sippy cup (and his brother's that he finds lying on the floor -- who knows what this baby has drank!). 

8.  Ben started school this month!  He goes once a week on Wednesdays for five hours.  And he also went to the nursery so I could attend my MOPS meeting.  Such a big boy :).  I have enjoyed the time away and I think he has too.  And there is nothing like missing your baby and feeling the joy of picking them up. 

 

9.  Ben still struggles with sleeping through the night.  I feel like a broken record.  Some nights he wakes up only once (amazing!!!), sometimes it is three times (arghh!!!!).  We have tried crying it out, soothing, etc.  I really don't know what else to say except that I really hope he starts getting the hang of it soon.  My pediatricion thinks that the mobility and eating more table food might help the situation in the next month or two.

 

10.  Napping is going well.  He takes two naps a day -- his morning one around 9:30 or 10:00 am and his afternoon one around 2:00 pm.  It is wonderful when Ben and Luke nap together and I get about an hour or so to get stuff done.  Luke is starting to drop his nap though so these days are limited. 

 

That's about it!  He is still the most smiley, happy baby.  I can't say it enough of how much joy he brings to me and our family.  I am starting to think about his first birthday already and that seems almost unreal.  I am also trying to figure out what Ben and Luke are going to be for Halloween.  It is a bit tough when Luke won't wear anything on his head -- no Mickey ears, no train conductor hat, nothing.  So I think I might have to be real creative or real boring as far as costumes. 

 

Love you Ben!



[Future Mower}



{Ben's First Day}

My sweet Ben is nine months old today!!!  I find it almost hard to believe.  He goes for his check-up on Monday so I will post more about what he is up to developmentally then.  Right now, he is currently rocking a two hour nap since he started school today!  So many big changes :).  Ben is going one day a week to the same Mother's Day Out program that Luke is in.  Overall he did great today...besides not taking a bottle the whole time he was there.  But he was still happy as can be, so we will just work on it.  I sent him with just formula hoping he would drink that instead of sending pumped milk, but no such luck. We will get there eventually.

After about an hour of him being there, one of the director's there emailed me this picture...

Soooooo cute!!!  Apparently he almost didn't make the stroller ride because the straps were almost not big enough.  He gave all the teachers a little chuckle and apparently was the talk of all the other parents who got this picture.  What a little big ham!

Here is to a great school year!

{That Amazing Mouse}

Guess who is dropping his nap?  It has been several days with Luke singing, talking, jumping and playing in his crib for hours during naptime.  But no sleeping.  And so do you want to know what not napping looks like after a few days? 

We had a good day today.  Actually a great day.  Until 6:30 pm.  Guess several days with no nap finally caught up to him and tiredness got the best of Luke because he lost it.  He lost it during dinner.  He lost it during his bath.  He lost it in the den.  He lost it...well you get it.  The poor boy was tired.  So after 45 minutes of straight sobbing, I held up my white flag and called in the big guns.  Mickey Mouse and his whole dang, weird-talking crew.  I put on that darn show, sat Luke on the couch with his milk and blanket, and let that little mouse do his magic.  Within 2 minutes, Luke was relaxed, fixated on some dance that Mickey, Donald and Pluto were doing as they jiggled a peanut so a baby elephant would come down from a tree. 

I love that mouse.  He saved the night. 

Luke went to bed after one episode and I haven't seen him move an inch in his bed. 

Motherhood kicked my tail tonight. I am bringing this to you from the couch in my living room as I inhale a whole box of Nila Wafers.  I sure do hope Luke naps tomorrow.

{Best Buddies}

When Courtney and I ended up pregnant together, everyone always asked me if it was fun being pregnant at the same time as my sister.  It was fun -- but more importantly it was special.  Very special. 

 

 

We were going through similar and also very different pregnancies.  We had no idea what kind of babies were in those big bellies, but it was incredible to be on the journey together.  How many sisters get lucky enough to get a picture like that??

 

But I will tell you, although being pregnant together was so amazing, nothing compares to sharing having a child the same age together.  I realize how lucky Courtney and I are to have two little ones that have each other.  They are buddies.

 

I love Ben and Molly individually so much, but put them together and the cuteness just explodes.  They LOVE each other and light up when they are near.  It is about the cutest thing I have every seen.



 

With each passing month, they get more and more into each other.  Making it more and more fun for us and the family to watch them together.  

 

 

They couldn't be more different.  And I mean different.  They have very different looks, personalities, likes/dislikes.  But boy do they have fun when they are together!  There is a lot of sucking faces, climbing up on each other, funny squaky/dolphine-like noises and tons of smiles!

 

 

I know we will be taking pictures of these two together everywhere for the next few years.  Luckily they don't mind it too much right now, but lets see how they do at 2 years old :).  We all look like fools when they are around -- we just sit and stare and ooh and ahhh over the two of them together. 

 

I feel so lucky that Ben has Molly.  I know she is going to be his best pal for the next several years.  She brings so much joy to his life.  I know the fighting and fits will start eventually, but for now, we are just lovin' these two kiddos together.

{Holiday Weekend}

Nothing says a holiday weekend like a good slice of watermelon. He sure does make this look good! 

Happy Labor Day!