Grins, giggles and lots of teeth

What a rough month and a half we have had with you, Little Man! It all started back in August with you throwing up, which was quickly followed by a bout of the runs that lasted for days and days and weeks and weeks. Your poor little body lost two pounds in one week! That is a lot of weight when you only weight 20 lbs.

Over the past month you have been poked and prodded and put under anesthesia, and you have been such a trooper--you have constantly kept a smile on your sweet little face. It seems we could all learn something from your demeanor during this time.

Needless to say, here we are with not many answers. The good news is that your liver function is normal, you were negative for Cystic Fibrosis, and your blood work looks pretty good. Now we are awaiting results from a biopsy that was taken during an endoscopy last week. And let's just say you were AWESOME for that! You went 22 hours without food and were still in a good mood. Mama would have been cranky and crying after that long.

This Thursday you will be 15 months. You have a zillion teeth (as seen in the photo), you have fabulous (long) hair, and this infectious smile. Many times you are mistaken for a girl. People stop me quite often to comment on your beautiful big eyes. They are quite fantastic!

You do not say too much (I think Charlie does all of the talking for you), but you love to laugh. You can kick and throw a ball like no other 15 month old, and you are fast on your feet. You and Charlie are interacting more and more, and I love it. You love going in his room in the morning to wake him up before school. Your favorite game with him is hide and seek--he hides and you look for him. When you do find him, you squeal with delight and run the other way, and he chases you.

I am sorry that you have had to have all of these tests. Dr. Book and Dr. Baar just want to make sure it is nothing too serious. We are very lucky to have two incredible doctors looking after your well being. Plus, you have many angels above watching out for you as well. How lucky we are!

Alright, Little Man, I love you too, too much. I wish you health and happiness and good test results.

Love,

Mama

Charlie's First Day of School!!!

Charlie getting ready to leave for school! Ryan trying to get back in the house.

Charlie's first moments in his classroom as a Cosgriff Tiger!



Charlie and his buddy Alex waiting for Alex's big brother Michael to get out of school.

My Sweet Charlie,

I cannot believe that you started your first day of school today. What a big day it was for all of us! You are in the three-year-old program at Cosgriff, which is where Mommy went to school. I am so happy that you will also be a Cosgriff Tiger.

It was a great morning. You had some yogurt for breakfast and then we got you dressed in your outfit that you picked out last night. You looked so handsome--you always do! I loved how excited you were to pack your new Toy Story lunch box into your Thomas the Train backpack.

We got to school at 815 and waited for Mrs. Cimbora to open the door. You already met a new friend today...Jett Rimando. You also have some friends in your class who you already knew like Luca Crosswhite and Kate Dunn. And your good friend Thomas is also at Cosgriff but in a different class.

Your first day was spent getting to know the other kids and your teachers. You also talked about your favorite foods, which you said was pizza ( I am not so sure about that!).

After school, you went to Extended Day for a bit and then Heather picked you up and took you to their house so that you could play with Michael and Alex. You will be going over there every Monday, and I think that will be a lot of fun for all of you!

Mommy is so proud of you. I love how excited you get to try new things. You were one of the few kids who did not seem scared or cry when they got dropped off. I also cannot believe that you are old enough to start pre-school. Were you not just in my belly not that long ago? The time goes by so quickly, and we are enjoying every single moment of it. You are so much fun! You are so smart. And so sweet.

Thank you, Charlie, for making me smile every day! Have fun my little tiger. Enjoy every day!

I love you too, too much!

Mommy

The Simple Joys...

It is amazing what can make a child laugh so hard. Here is Ryan laughing as he throws "Baby" at Grammy Pat. Pretty cute!

Happy First Birthday!

As Charlie would say, “Holy Guac” Baby Boy! We cannot believe you are one already. You had a nice birthday yesterday. You woke up to us singing to you, and you clapped and clapped after we were finished and gave us all kisses. Your kisses are too funny. You open your mouth and head straight for our faces—slobbering on us, but we love it. Charlie laughs and laughs when you kiss him, so you just keep doing it.

On Sunday we are having a bit birthday bash for you at the house. I hope you have fun and are not scared of all of the people. We will post pictures later. I have enlisted Atha as the photographer. If she wasn’t so good at it, I would not ask her all the time. Ha! It will be a fun day with lots of good food and lots of people who love and adore you.

I thought a lot yesterday about the day you were born and what a wonderful—and scary—day it was. You were born at 2:35 p.m. and weighed 7 lbs. 12 oz. and were 20.5 inches long. And you came out “blue.” Thank goodness for the amazing NICU team who resuscitated you so quickly. On Monday we will find out your height and weight now. I cannot wait!

You bring so much joy to our lives with your sweet smile, your silly laugh and your constant chatter. You move all over the place but are not quite confident to take those first unaided steps…even though I know you could do it. You love it when we play “Mommy’s gonna get you” and you crawl as fast as you can away from me and squeal the whole time. You also love to be outside but do not like the way the ground or grass feels on your knees, so you walk on your hands and feet, which is quite comical. Ms. Teresa says that you love to go out to the courtyard at school with the big kids and play.

You are eating like a pro, and you have liked most everything we have given you. Your most favorite thing is berries, especially raspberries and blackberries. Last night for your birthday dinner you had fish, berries, pasta and sweet potatoes. Charlie said the prayer and he prayed that you would have a good birthday and then he prayed that he would have a good birthday…in January. I hope he, too, survives your party on Sunday. Charlie, you are certainly accustomed to being the center of attention.

Daddy and I cannot wait for the upcoming weeks when you start walking on your own and start using words other than Mama, Dada, Nye Nye, hi and Ba Ba. The other new thing you are doing is brushing your six teeth. You open your mouth really big and say “ahhhh.” It is too funny. You are definitely in the stage of mimicking things you see us do.

Happy first birthday, Sweet Ryan. Thank you for being so wonderful. Daddy, Charlie and I love you too, too much!

Mommy

Friday FUNday

Hi Charlie…My little sunshine,

How is it that we are so lucky to have two wonderful little boys? My heart grows every time I think of you and Ryan. You two are pretty amazing!

I am so thankful that I am able to spend my Friday mornings with you. We have so much fun trying new places for breakfast. I think your favorite thus far is Over the Counter on 3300 South. You loved sitting at the counter and watching the guys cook. “Momma, they are cooking so much eggs. I cannot believe it!”

Last week we went to Blue Plate, per Miss Christina’s suggestion. You picked a table outside. Every time we go to breakfast, you always want “cancakes” and scrambled eggs. When we were leaving Blue Plate, you said to me, “That was a fun place to eat, Momma. Thank you for taking me there for breakfast.” I am amazed at how sweet and polite you can be. You are a very thankful child, and I hope you always stay that way.

In fact, the other day we passed by Judge, and I told you that I went there for school. You said, “Can I go to Judge when I get bigger?” To which, I responded, “yes.” You then said, “Thank you for letting me go to Judge when I get bigger. I want to play football there.” That, my sweet boy, is something that we may have to re-think down the road. How about soccer or lacrosse, instead?

Charlie, I say thank you to you for being my little buddy, for filling my heart with joy and for making our lives that much better. I hope when you are all grown up that we can still enjoy our little “dates.” I look forward to our next outing…where will breakfast be this Friday? No matter where we go, I know it will be fun!

I love you too, too much!

-Momma

p.s. Here you are this past weekend on your bike in PC. You rode for two miles...boy were you tired!

Happy 11 months

Hi Ryan! Happy 11 months to you! Daddy and I are starting to talk about what we are going to do for your first birthday. We are so excited to celebrate your first year. What a great one it has been! Charlie thinks we should all fly to Hawaii for your birthday, and I really wish that we could but maybe another year.

What new things have been going on with you...

You are still all over the place, and you get into everything. You are not yet walking on your own, but you pull yourself up on whatever is close to you (a chair, my legs, one of the doggies) and walk around. You even try to crawl up the stairs. You make it about three steps up and then fall back. We have to be around you at all times to make sure you stay safe.

You have six teeth--four on top and two on bottom. They are so cute! Daddy said that at this rate, you will be shaving in the 3rd grade. Ha! You detest having your teeth brushed. You clamp down on that toothbrush the minute we put it in your mouth. You are are great eater. The only thing I have given to you that you will not eat is rice cereal. When you are finished eating, you shake your head no until we quit feeding you. We call this move "shaky, shaky." I can get you to do it on command as well.

You are babbling a lot. You say mama and dada quite a bit. You also say ni ni when you are ready to go to sleep. You go to bed really well at night. If you are not tired, you will just hang out quietly in your bed until you do fall asleep. It makes our lives much easier, especially when Charlie will not go to bed (like now, as I am writing this).

The newest things that you love to do are play peek-a-boo and do "kissy kissy" where you make kiss noises over and over.

You are such a gem. You are still super mellow and super easy. You have this big beautiful smile that just lights up a room. You are in your stranger anxiety phase right now. You will only let me, daddy and Grandma Lynn hold you. You are not quite sure about anyone else. And I love the fact that you are such a snuggle bug. It makes my heart melt every time you snuggle up to me.

Well, my beautiful boy, I hope you always know how much you are loved. You are amazing and wonderful and so much fun!

I love you too, too much,

Mommy

and thank you, Alethia, for the photo :)

Two more months to ONE!!!

Happy 10 months, Sweet Ryan!

What a time we have had over the past month! Let’s see…a few days after you turned nine months, you had to have tubes put in your little ears. You were such a trooper! In fact, when Dr. Child came out to see us after the surgery, his first words were, “I am shocked!” Apparently your ears were filled with so much fluid that they basically burst when he cut into them. He could not believe that you had such a happy disposition through all of that. Even the day of the surgery you were in good spirits. It is amazing how much louder you are now. I am sure your hearing was not the greatest. I am sorry, Little Man!

You babble a lot and like to say “mama,” “dada,” “nye-nye,” and “baabaa.” In addition to the loudness, you are also all over the place. You are so curious and love to pull yourself up on everything. You also love to get into to everything, especially the things that you should not be touching.

You love to eat! Other than plain rice cereal, you seem to like all foods. Lately, you have loved to eat raspberries. I cannot wait for the Farmer’s Market, so that we can get lots of yummy fruits and veggies for you to try.

Dancing is your other new thing. You will pull yourself up on your toys that play music and you will bounce and bounce. When you are in your car seat, you move your legs to the music in the car. You love it most when Daddy dances around the living room with you, or when Charlie dances, you like to clap for him.

As you get bigger, you and Charlie play more together. Charlie likes to tickle you and hold you and share his toys with you. Charlie, you are such a good big brother. Ryan loves you so much. I cannot wait until you two can really play together and talk to one another. It will be so much fun to see.

Mommy loves both of you too, too much! Ryan, I cannot wait to see what is in store for us this month. No matter what…I know it will be fun!