No Tubes Needed

So after a hectic morning, which included a fender bender caused by me, we received good news at Braxton's ENT follow-up appointment.  It has been about 3 weeks since he had any cold symptoms and his ears were free of fluided so no surgery needed.  YEAH!!!!!  His doctor said there was no need to see him again unless constant ear infections started back up.

Back to my fender bender, again like Matt says I only get in accidents under 5 miles per hour.  Luckly the other person's car only had a pushed in bumper and they didn't see the need to call the cops.  She let me go.  I guess that is my payback for the 2 people that have hit my bumper and I have let them go.  My bumper wasn't as lucky, my FSU tag broke and my front bumper cracked.  I will eventually buy a new one but at this time it isn't my top priority.

Still no news on Liam's test from last week.  I don't think I updated on how it went, but Liam was great.  He listened so good to the nurses and techs and we were out of there in just a few hours.  We should hear something by the end of the week but with the holidays so close I am not sure that will actually happen.

Looking forward to Christmas vacation which starts Friday.  The boys are getting excited as the Hallmark Christmas countdown gets down into the single digits.

Christmas is here...

This weekend has been a busy weekend getting ready for Christmas.  On Friday night we went to pick out our Christmas tree, we have always bought a Fraiser Fir but this year went with a different kind.  Unfortunately neither Matt nor I can remember what kind it is.  It is either a Grand or Concolor Fir but what ever it is we will be looking for it next year because we prefer it over the Fraiser.

The today we got up early to go see Santa.  It was nice to finally have a year that no one was scared, Braxton is still to young to realize what Santa is about.  I asked them what they asked for and they said a Nintendo DS.  I said nothing else no games, Liam said he will go back and tell Santa another day. 

This afternoon Matt and I put up our outside lights, along with our blow up Santa and Frosty.  Frosty is a hand me down from my Mom and we have had him a few years.  It looks like we might retire him this year, when I was putting him up I saw he had a bunch of little holes in him.

Tonight it was time to decorate inside, we decorated the tree and set up our Christmas village.  I put the village up after the boys went to bed so they will be so excited to see it in the morning.  They absolutely love it.

I really can't believe that Christmas is almost here.  This year has really just flown by.

Oh and Braxton is getting really brave with take steps.  I think he will be walking pretty soon.  He is getting so big.

Sick Boys

This week has been filled with sick boys, both Liam and Nathan had high fever for about 48 hours with no other symptoms.  That meant that Nathan was home sick from school for 2 days.  Not fun for me when I have errands to run.

Liam was better by Tuesday so he was able to go on his first field trip to a Jack Hartman concert.  I had previously scheduled Braxton's doctors appointment so I was able to go with him.  He said he had a great time and loved riding the bus.  His teachers said he loved participating in the singing and dancing.

Liam's labs were set for December 9th at Wolfson's.  They will be doing a upper and lower GI x-ray and also a stomach ultrasound.  I am hoping to get some answers on why he keeps having vomiting episodes.

Braxton's 1 year pictures are tomorrow, looking forward to getting them done.  Hopefully we will get some nice ones.

1 YEAR ALREADY!!!

Braxton's birthday came and went, can't believe it has been a year.  Where has the time gone?  We celebrated his birthday on the 20th since his actual birthday was on Thanksgiving Day.  We wanted to make it a special day for him.  We had family and friends over to the house and had a bounce house for the kids.  Braxton went on it for a few minutes with Matt and I but really didn't enjoy it.

Had his 1 year well visit today he is now 22lbs 7oz and 30 3/4 inches tall.  He always is in the 50% in weight and 75% in height so it looks like he will be tall like Liam.   

We spent Thanksgiving Day in Ormond with family and then my Mom and I went black Friday shopping even though it started on Thursday night.  Most of my shopping is now done, just a few more items and then some giftcards.  Have a lot of wrapping to do.

Nathan has been questioning us a lot about if Santa is real.  Can't believe first graders are already talking about it.  For now we are going with if you don't believe you don't get but I think we will have to tell him soon that way he doesn't ever ruin it for his brothers.

Going to go get our Christmas tree this week and get the house decorated.  Can't believe Christmas is almost here.  I am totally ready for Christmas vacation.

Afterwards, he would of ate it all if I would of let him

Braxton's Ears

Well went for Braxton's ear checkup and like I thought the ear infection was not clear and now was in both ears.  We were given another antibiotic and referred to the ENT.  Luckly we were able to get in on Thursday and though we didn't get definitely answers we are closer to knowing if he will need tubes or not.  When he looked at his ears on Thursday we had only been on the new antibiotic for 2 days and he thought it might be working.  We go back mid December and if his ears are not clear we will be doing tubes come the first of the year.

Matt and I were able to get away for the day/night on Saturday.  We spent the day at the Orlando Calling music festival, my cousins husband is a member of the Racontuers so we were able to go backstage and watch them perform.  It was really a cool experience.  We also saw Parachute and O.A.R perform.  Then we spent the night in Orlando, just the two of us.  I think it was the first time we had spent away from Braxton.

Braxton's 1st birthday party is on Sunday and I haven't bought anything for it.  So it looks like this week will be filled with cleaning and preparing for it. 

Doctor appointments

This week Liam had his UPOC (updated plan of care) for his speech theraphy at Wolfson's and also his follow up for his throwing up.  Between all three kids I have practically been living in the doctors office over the past month.

We had a great UPOC meeting with his therapist.  Like us she is seeing big improvements in his speech but his consonant deletion continues on multi-syllable words.  His problem with fluency continues to come and go depending on the day.  We have also become aware that his tongue itself has some weakness to it and has since birth.  It makes sense to us now looking back because he word store food in his cheeks and have his tongue sticking out all the time when he was little.  Matt and I would joke that his tongue was too big for his mouth. 

His follow up appointment at his doctors went okay.  He has now been on Zantac and Flonase for a month, his tonsils are still swollen and he had two episodes of vomitting last month.  She ordered some blood work and depending on the results from that will determine which route to take.  She is deciding whether to go to a allergist or a GI dr.  Previously he was only vomitting in the middle of the night, this month it was only first thing in the morning.  If it does happen during the night again she wants me to call her because she is concerned about that.  Good news is we went for the bloodwork and there wasn't any problems with drawing it, he just sat in my lap and the lady did it.  He didn't flinch or anything, afterwords I asked if it hurt and he said no.  He is braver than me for sure.

This week coming up Braxton goes for his follow up on his ear infection.  He is still congested so I am hoping it cleared up, like I said before this is our second antibiotic in 2.5 weeks.  Then Nathan has two fillings to get done, I am sure that won't go as good as Liam's blood draw.  Nathan is usually a scaredy cat.

Other than the doctors appointments we had a pretty normal week, swim practice almost every day and a swim meet yesterday.  It was the coldest day by far this year but the boys did great with it.  I was proud of them, just dried them off and bundled them in blankets until there next event.

Halloween

Braxton's first Halloween is finally here, it is the last time we will celebrate a first holiday.  It is one of the Mommy sad moments.  We got all three boys dressed: Nathan was a vampire (for the second year in a row), Liam was frankenstein, and Braxton a pumpkin.  Then I took all three down the block while Matt passed out candy.  On the way back passed the house Liam took a pit stop and stayed with Matt to pass out candy while Nathan and I did a few more houses.  Braxton just enjoyed sitting in the stoller as I pushed him around the neighborhood.  They all had a fun time.

Matt and I have talked about redoing our shower tile for a few years now.  It was done in all white ceramic 8x8 tiles back when the house was built but the craftsmanship wasn't very well and we had some leaking problems.  Last month we finally decided it was time and started ripping it out.  My Mom came up to finish ripping it out and to retile it.  She has been up here two weekends over the past month and it is just about finished.  It is looking really nice.  We are now repainting, going to tile the floor, and take out the large mirror.

Took Nathan to the doctor last Wednesday for a rash he has had for over a month.  Turns out that it is molluscum, which is just viral and will have to run its course but the thing is it could last over a year.  While there Nathan mentioned his brothers are sick with a cough, so the nurse pratictioner checked them and Braxton had an ear infection.  This is his second in just over two weeks.

Looking forward to what the doctor has to say about Liam this week when we go for his follow up about his puking.  In the last month he has had two episodes, but one I believe was a stomach virus because he actually acted sick.

Baby Gate Installed

We have lived at our house since before Nathan was born and have only ever had the standard wooden baby gate with the plastic mesh.  We would put it at the beginning of the hallway so the boys could only play in the living room and kitchen, they did have access to the front room but never went in it.  Now Braxton gets into everything, he is constantly going down the hall, in the front room, and everywhere else that he can get to before someone goes running after him.  Matt and I have had enough and decided that it was time for the baby gate the only thing was I knew I would have to get an extra wide one because he always goes in the front room and the opening from the living room to the front room is large.  Seventy dollars later the gate is up, he is napping now so hasn't seen it yet but I am sure he isn't going to like it.

This past weekend we also started ripping out the old tiles in the master bathroom.  It was just the standard white ceramic ones and they weren't installed properly so we had some leaking.  Matt and I took down the glass enclosure and my Mom and I ripped out the tiles and started installing the new ones.  We are also putting some around the tub so that when the boys splash it doesn't ruin the drywall.  I will post pictures when the job is complete but it probably won't be for a while.

Been a while

I have been keeping busy so no time to write.  Nathan and Liam did great at their swim meet.  Both their times have improved drastically since joining the Amberjax team at the beginning of August.  Over the summer Nathan averaged about 58 seconds for free and just over a minute on back, at the meet he had 39.77 on free, 42.05 on back, and 46.38 on breast.  Liam also did great with 59.13 on free, 1.19.67 on back, and 1.33.25 on breast.  When we started in August Liam couldn't swim 25M without stopping for a rest on the lane rope.  I am really amazed in both of their improvements.

Braxton received his first head bump, a result from standing up and holding onto Liam.  Liam decided that was enough and pushed him off only for Braxton to fall and hit his head on the corner of the wall.  Luckly it was mostly a bruise with a surface scratch so no ER visit required.  It definitely gave me a scare.

Nathan was off of school for half of Wednesday, Thursday and Friday last week.  It was nice to have a break and not have to wake up so early.  Darlene and Ralph came up on Thursday to take Nathan out for his late birthday celebration, with school starting the week of his birthday they never got to come up.  He had a fun time at Chuck E Cheese, the mall, and Toys R Us.  Then on Friday I took them both to JumpZone since we had a groupon that was expiring soon.  Now today he is home from school with a stomach virus, I am so sick of these things.  This is the third day he has been out this school year already.  I hope it is only 24 hours and no one else catches it.

I am not sure if I had mentioned it in the past but Liam has been having stomach problems for months now.  Since July he has woken up 4 times and vomited on numerous occasions, but it is only stomach bile.  After the last incident in late September I called and made an appointment to talk to Dr. Mary about it.  He also complains a lot that his stomach hurts.  She looked him over and we talked about what happens, she isn't exactly sure why it is happening but we did start Zantac and nasal spray.  We were told to keep a food journal for a month and come back.  Since we started over a week ago he has only complained one time that his stomach hurts, which is a drastic change.

Braxton also had his first ear infection about 2 weeks ago so we go for his recheck tomorrow.  When it rains it poors.

10 Months Old

Saturday Braxton turned 10 months, time is really flying by .  Looked in his baby book today (yes even being the third child I fill out every page of his book) and at 2 months he was 11lbs 4oz and 23.25 inches long.  Now he is 22lbs 5oz and about 29 inches, he has almost doubled his weight in 8 months.

Yesterday Braxton was on a crying fit, cried for 1.5 hour and there was nothing I could really do to console him.  Decided to call his dr office to make an appoint, turns out he has his first ear infection.  He has had a cold for over 2 weeks so I am sure that has something to do with it.  I just can't believe he has gone this long without one, credit that to breastfeeding because the other two had tons felt like I was in the office every couple of weeks.

Today is the boys first swim meet on the Amberjax team.  We all are excited about it, they get to wear there new team suits which makes so much more special for them.

Other than TCA homecoming parade today, not much else is happening.  Looking forward to the start school week next week, maybe we will get to sleep in one day.

Braxton's First Hair Trim

On Thursday the whole family took Braxton up to Salon 21 to get his first haircut.  He has very fine hair and it was just getting too long around his ears.  So we just had it trimmed up a bit.  He didn't really like being held still but he was moving around too much so I had to hold him down.

Nathan and Liam are really doing great in swim practice. Liam is able to swim the whole 25M without any trouble now. I am excited about the swim meet on Friday to see how much they have improved in the past two months.

2nd Tooth Gone...

Nathan lost his 2nd tooth tonight.  It was hanging by a thread and Matt pulled it out for him. He is so excited because he gets to put his name on the list at school for loosing a tooth.

Hope the Tooth Fairy brings him something good.

Great weekend minus the cold.

Saturdays FSU vs OK football game was great.  Matt, Christina (my cousin), Nathan, Darin, and I all went.  Liam and Braxton stayed with my friend Lisa.  The stadium was packed and the crowd was crazy loud.  Even though we didn't win it really felt like our old Seminoles were back.

Then Sunday I woke up after only 4 hours of sleep to cook breakfast for the boys.  I felt horrible, the little cold I had on Saturday was a lot worse.  I made breakfast and then went to bed for most of the rest of the day.

Even today I don't feel 100% I am just exhausted. Staying home today and just trying to relax, besides taking Nathan to school and the boys to swim practice. I am hoping it is just Braxton and I who get this.

3 Week Progress Report

Nathan came home with his 3 week progress report on Tuesday.  It was really good, the lowest grade he had was an 80 in reading/phonics, unforunately I think he is going to be like me in school.  Always great at math but average in reading.  I guess it could be worse.

Another football game this weekend.  It is going to be a really good game FSU vs OK.  I am really hoping FSU can pull it off, but with the past few ears we have had there is always doubt in my mind.

The boys have there first swim meet of the season on the 30th.  Both their team suits came in, Liam insisted on the little speedos so that is what I ordered him.  The smallest size the had was a 22 and it was still a little big on him.  Nathan wanted the jammers but when they came in he complained that he wanted the same ones as Liam.

Braxton woke up with a cold this morning.  I am hoping by Saturday he will be fine.  I came straight home today so that he could get some rest in.  I hate when you can just see how sick they are by looking at there little red watery eyes.

Start of a new week

It was a great long weekend, on Saturday we went to the first FSU game of the season.  All three boys did great and Braxton actually feel asleep for a short time.  We got there a few hours early so we were able to go to the bookstore and buy Nathan a new jersey, since his one from last year is now too small.  Then we had a picnic lunch.

On Monday, Matt's Mom and Ralph came up for a visit.  The boys really enjoyed spending time with Nana, we all went to the mall and she took them to the play area and on the train while Matt and I did a little shopping.  I found Liam's halloween costume, a Frankenstein from The Children's Place.  We also bought a freezer chest in preparation for our 1/4 cow we bought.  It is nice to be able to have tons of freezer room.

Then last night Nathan woke up in the middle of the night with a stomach bug.  He spent most of his night in the bathroom.  Then this morning Liam woke up saying his tummy hurt.  Both boys are home from school today.  I am hoping that it is just something they ate so the rest of us doesn't come down with it.

It's been a busy 2 weeks

Been a while since I have updated you all, it has just been so hectic with back to school and getting into a routine again.

Nathan's First Day of 1st Grade



Nathan started first grade last Monday.  He totally loves it and reminds me everyday that he gets to go outside two times a day.  I guess that is what is important to a 6 year old.  His behavior has been great and I am very happy about that.  One top on starting school he also turned 6 last Friday.  We had a birthday party for him on Saturday and he had a few friends over in addition to our family.



Then Liam started school this Tuesday, is the 3 year old class and goes twice a week for half the day.  He was so upset that he had to wait an additional week to start school.  So far he really enjoys it.  This week he also started back up speech with the school district.  He goes twice a week for 30 minutes in addition to the twice a week he goes to through Wolfson's.  His speech continues to improve, which I am grateful for.



Liam's First Day of School



Braxton turned 9 months this past week, three more months until he is one.  It is kind of depressing.  He had his 9 month well visit and was 21lbs 11oz and 28.5 inches long.  I was finally able to talk to his dr about his MRI results.  She explained that sometimes small cysts are just found on the pituitary gland and at this point in time there is no need for concern.  In a few years she might have them take another look or if he shows any signs of growth or thyriod problems.



Matt has started up swimming at least 3 mornings a week.  It is a little weird nor having him home when the boys and I wake up to get ready for school.  He seems to be enjoying it.

I am back to my workout routine, once the cool weather sets in I would really like to run a 5K.  I am not the best runner but hope to be able to do it before the end of the year.  I just want to get back in shape now that we are done having kids.



The boys swimming is going good, Liam has improved greatly since the beginning of the month.  He can now swim 25M without touching the lane rope.  They have there first meet on the new team at the end of September.



9 Months



Other than college football starting this Saturday not much else happening here.  We are just excited to take the boys and for Braxton to experience his first FSU game.  I will post pictures this weekend. 

Big Achievements Today...

Well today my two youngest had some big achievements.  As most of you know Nathan and Liam have been on a swim team since May, last week we switch to a team closer to home.  They practice almost everyday of the week.  Since May Liam has gone from not being able to swim at all to being able to swim for very short distances.  Well today he surprise be BIG time, he swam 50M doing breast stroke without stopping.  He has never even swam 25M freestyle so he shock the heck out of me.  I just couldn't stop smiling.  He was so proud too.

Now Braxton has really been growing this past month, I think he is going to be our earliest walker.  Nathan was 12 months and Liam 14 months when they started walking.  This evening we were sitting in the living room and Braxton pulls up on the couch.  My baby is growing up, can't believe he will be 1 in just a few more months.

Tomorrow is meet the teacher for Nathan, he is excited to see who she is and who is in his class.  Then school starts Monday.

Goodbye Tally

I have never really experienced the death of a pet, when I was a kid we always got rid our pet before that time came.  It definitely hurts.

I brought her home to Matt one afternoon my freshman year in college.  I went to Walmart and as I was getting in my car there was a man giving away puppies.  I went to look and grabbed the last female of the bunch.  She was so cute.  When I got back to Matt's apartment I told him I had something to tell him, he thought I had wrecked his car.  No just a puppy.

She really was the best dog a person could ask for, hardly ever barked, was really friendly, and great with the boys.  It was funny the day we brought Braxton home this past November, we were sitting in the living room and down the hall she came.  Took one look at Braxton and turned around and went right back down the hall.  All Matt and I could do was laugh, it was like she was saying not this again.

About three years ago we brought her in to get two tumors removed from her leg, the dr didn't think it was anything.  They did her pre-op bloodwork and it came back bad, her liver enzymes were too low to operate.  The vet was afraid if she put her under she would never wake up.  We did a x-ray to see what was wrong and it should some damage to the liver but without more test she couldn't tell us for sure what it was.  We decided not to do additional testing.

In the past year things have slowly gone down hill.  From the outside she was a lively dog, for 12.5 years, but on the inside things weren't right.  Over the past couple months she had become withdrawal from us.  She hated being away from us but when we were home she didn't really want to be with us. 

After Matt brought her the the vet last week to discuss the problems she had been having we decided it was the time.  He brought her home so we could have a couple more days with her.  Then this evening he brought her in to be put down.  I didn't think I would be so sad but I am.  You get very close to your pet after spending 12.5 years with her.  It make me sad to think Braxton will never remember, I hope that both Nathan and Liam do.  She was there first pet and a great one.  Goodbye Tally.

We have a new tooth

To my surprise they other day I looked at Braxton's two bottom teeth and there was a third one poking out.  That seemed totally weird to me since both Nathan and Liam cut their top four after their bottom two.  I guess Braxton has decided he is going to be different.

Nathan and Liam both started on their new swim team this week.  It has been so nice not having to drive across town every morning.  Next week practice will change to the fall schedule which means we will have evening practices.  I lasts through October and then at that point we will see if they want to continue through the winter or wait until the spring.  They both enjoy swimming and have improved so much since May, I can't even imagine if they continue through the year how good they will be by next summer.

Next Thursday is Nathan's orientation, he will get to meet his teacher and see who is in his class.  He is really excited about starting back.  I am sure that will only last a week.  Then Liam starts the following week.

Nathan's 6th birhtday is just around the corner.  Can't believe my little boy has grown up so fast.  Just in the past year his look has changed now when I look at him he a kid not my little boy.  Just waiting for the day when he is embaressed to kiss me in public.

Visiting family

Been a few weeks since I last updated, was in Ormond for a week visiting with family.  The boys really enjoyed spending time with their cousins.

Nathan had asked a couple of weeks ago about going skating so we decided to take Nathan and Liam and Valerie, Christopher and Jonathon joined too.  The boys were actually pretty good, after falling a handful of times.  Nathan could even go around the rink without falling. 

We also spent one day at Wet n Wild with my Mom, Darin, Anthony, Dena, Christopher, and Jonathon.  The boys loved it, there was only a few rides they couldn't do because of height restrictions.

Of course we spent a afternoon at the beach, Braxton really enjoyed eating the sand. Everytime I turned my head for a second there was Braxton with a handful of sand going straight for his mouth.  Nathan loved boogie boarding, we really need to go more often it just is so "far" from our house.

In addition we went to the Orlando Science Center and the movies.  Matt and I actually was able to get a true date night, usually Braxton has to tag along because he is too young for KidsPark.  So we went to Bonefish for dinner and went to go see the finally Harry Potter. 

While away Braxton learned a new trick, he sits up in the crib now.  It was so weird the first time I walked in to get him up from his nap and he was sitting up sucking his thumb.  I almost cried, he is growing up too fast.  We also had to go buy him a new carseat today because his infant seat is just about too small.

Just wrapping up the last couple weeks of summer.  We start swimming again on Monday, going to try it for a week and then decide if we are going to join the new team.  I am hoping that both Nathan and Liam can do it but I am not sure if Liam is advanced enough to.

8 months

Can't believe that it has been 8 months since Braxton was born, time has flown by.  He is now sitting up, crawling, eating food, and drinking from straws and sippy cups.  My little boy is growing up, won't be too long before he is running after his brothers.

Since late January Liam has been studdering very frequently, even closing his eyes when doing it.  I had voiced my concern to his therapist and she has been working with him on it even though she wasn't sure if it was a true studdering problem.  Then over the last few weeks it has almost stopped.  I no longer see him closing his eyes and only notice it a handful of times during the day.  He also is getting a lot better with consonant deletion at the end of words.  It is so nice to see progress. 

Swimming championships are this Thursday, Nathan will be doing freestyle, kickboard, and backstroke and Liam will be doing freestyle and kickboard.  I had been debating whether or not to let Liam swim freestyle but on Friday he swam 25M with grabbing along the wall when needed.  We will be practicing a couple more times before Thursday just to make sure he will be okay.

Finally the tooth is out

The last two days Nathan's tooth has been extremely wiggly, like it was holding on with a thread.  I told him I could pull it out for him, something my Mom always did for us.  I told him to go get a washcloth and to lay on my lap.  He did, I pulled of a few seconds and his hands pushed mine away.  This has happened more than a handful of times to both Matt and I.  I finally told him that I wasn't going to do it anymore if he wanted it out he would have to pull it out himself or just let it fall out by itself.

Well I leave to go grocery shopping this evening and as I pull into the parking spot my phone rings.  It is Matt saying my son wants to talk to me.  Nathan gets on the phone and tells me Liam pulled out his tooth.  I couldn't believe it after all the fussing he has been doing everytime I go to pull on it he let his brother do it without any problems.  Matt said that they both walked into the living room Nathan holding his tooth and Liam holding the washcloth he used to pull it out.  It will he a story Matt and I will never forget.

Stomach Bug

Been pretty fortunate that with 3 boys we really don't get too sick but this week Braxton, Liam, and I all caught a stomach bug.  Braxton started us off on Saturday and finally was feeling better by Wednesday.  This is the second time in a month period that he has caught one.  Luckly I was able to keep the diaper rash under control this time around.  Nathan and Liam never were sick with stomach bugs at his age, I think it has to do with him being a thumb sucker.

Then on Sunday I woke up sick as a dog and stayed in bed most of the day but felt better by the evening.  I was so glad it was a weekend so Matt could take care of the boys.  Then on Wednesday Liam was sick, acted totally normal but just had to use the bathroom quite a few times then towards the evening I felt the same.  Told Matt last night that he will probably be lucky and catch it time for the weekend:)  Hopefully it will skip him this time around since last time Braxton had it, Matt was the only other one to get sick.

Other than the stomach bugs Braxton has really been pretty healthy.  Both Nathan and Liam were always sick they would start out with colds that would then lead to ear infections.  I told Matt I really think Braxton's health has to do with me breastfeeding for the first 6 weeks, something I never attempted with the others.  Looking back I do regret not trying with them as well as not going longer with Braxton but I can't change the past:)

Looking forward to a lazy weekend, first one in a while.

Alligator Farm

Yesterday we went to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm, not exactly what I expected.  It was over crowded and extremely smelly.  Defintitely not worth the $40, thankfully I only paid half price for my ticket otherwise I would of been mad.



Valerie, Braxton, Nathan, Liam, and Vincent



The kids had a good time overall, since it took less time than we had thought it would take we did a little shopping.  We went over to the St. Augustine outlets and found good deal on school shoes at the Striderite outlet, got two pairs for $50.  Nathan picked out a pair of Slimmer light up shoes and Liam picked a pair of Slimmers that has slime that changes color when you touch it.  They wanted to wear them home but I told them they had to wait until the first day of school. 

Braxton has finally finished all the veggies and fruits so the other night we tried beef and gravy.  He totally hated it wouldn't take more than a few spoonfuls before he started gagging.  I then tried the chicken and gravy and the same thing only this time it wasn't just a gag, up came some formula.  After cleaning him and the chair up he had his normal veggies and rice cereal for dinner and later that night I returned all the rest of the meat and gravy jars.  Wasn't going through that again.  Last night we tried Chicken and Rice dinner and he enjoyed it.

Cousins came to visit

On Wednesday Vin and Val came to stay with us for a few days.  They had a blast playing 4 players on Super Mario.  I tried to play with them but it was mass chaos with them jumping around like maniacs and dying every two seconds.

Then on Friday my brother, Anthony, his wife, Dena, and sons, Christopher, Jonathon, and Landon, all came up for the day.  In the morning, while Matt was at work, we went to the zoo.  Thank goodness it was only in the low 90's.  That evening we went to the Freedom Fest at our church.  They had tons of bounce houses, fireworks, and food.  The boys jumped all evening long and were exhausted by the time the fireworks started.  To my surprise both Braxton and Landon loved the fireworks and just stared at the different colors.  We finally got home around 10:00.

With our family over a hour away, the boys really enjoyed spending a couple of days with there cousins.

Oh and yesterday I got my new washer and dryer.  Been wanting a front loader for years and finally decided to purchase them.  Have been doing laundry most of the day and totally love them.  Can't believe how little water they use.  It will be interesting to see if it effects our water bill at all.

Picturing Your Life

When you are little you picture how your family will be when you become an adult.  I always new I wanted to be a stay at home mom, I am not sure why exactly, maybe because my stepmom stayed home with us growing up.  I enjoyed not having to go to daycare and summer camps were for fun, not something you had to go to everyday.

I always pictured myself with 4 kids, 3 boys and a girl.  The girl was the third child.  So when I was pregnant with Braxton and kept the sex a surprise I was truely shocked when I was laying on the operating table and the doctor said through the sheet it was a boy.  God had a different plan for me.  Don't get me wrong I totally love my boys and couldn't imagine one of them being a girl but I do miss the girly things. 

Then I think its okay one day I will have a granddaughter to do those things with.  Is that what Matt's Mom thought her whole life and then Matt and I give her 3 grandsons?  LOL.

A Busy Summer

I though summer time was for relaxing but for some reason my summer has been really busy.

Friday was my birthday, I am offically 31.  Can't believe it.  I was just thinking the other day that it feels like yesterday that I graduated from college.  It will be 10 years next summer.  Where has the time gone?  Matt and I have been together since 1996, it will be 15 years next Friday.  Almost half of my lifetime.

This weekend was my youngest brother's wedding.  It was really nice and we all had a great time especially Nathan and Liam who danced all night long.

Then today was Father's Day, Happy Father's Day to all the Dads.  We celebrating this morning by going to breakfast with Darin and the this afternoon we had lunch with Dad, Grandpa, and the rest of the Oliva's at the club.  There was 34 of us, our family is getting huge.  Afterwards the boys went swimming at my Dad's with their cousins, then we headed back to Jacksonville.  The boys gave Matt all the things they had made for him.  I bought him a Krug that he started using a few weeks back, he is really enjoying it.

Beach Day

Had a great day at Anastasia State Park where we met Aunt Tricia, Christian, Vin, and Val for a beach day.  The kids all played in the sand and water while we relaxed under the canopy with Braxton.  It was his first time at the beach but he has a horrible diaper rash so I didn't want to bring him in the water because it would have burned his bottom.

Afterwards we changed and the kids played at the park for a little while.  We finally left just before 7 and stopped at Steak N Shake for dinner.  Our day was exhausting but we all had a great time.

Braxton's Appointment

Braxton's PO appointment went well today after a delay with the eye drops.  The person who called me last week told me I had to pick them up right before the appointment downstairs at the pharmacy.  I arrived 15 minutes early so I could get them and be upstairs in time for his 2:00 appointment.  Well when I arrive they didn't even have the prescription, since it was a narcotic (cocaine eye drops) the pharmacist had to have someone bring it down to him before it could be filled.  After waiting 30 minutes it was finally filled which made us 20 minutes late to the appointment.

The PO explained that with the drops if he had Horner's Syndrome the effected eye would not dilate with the drops.  So the drops were applied, then 5 minutes later they were applied again.  After an additional 25 minutes the PO looked at the eyes and both were dilated.  GREAT NEWS, he doesn't have Horner's Syndrome.  He said there is no reason for him to see him back unless something changes.  I am still worried about the eye drooping (ptosis) but since it only happens on occasion the PO has never seen it.  If it is truely ptosis then it will happen more frequent as he gets older and at that point we will make an appointment.

There actually was a small finding on his MRI.  The radiologist noted a small cyst on his pituitary gland.  Neither the PO or his dr seemed very concern about it.  Seemed to be one of those things that if any thing comes up then it will be addressed at that point.  I will talk to his dr at his next well visit appointment about it in detail.

Thanks again for all the prayers.

Loose Tooth

Big news in our household, Nathan has his first loose tooth.  He is so excited that he will finally lose a tooth.  All year I have been given the updates on classmates that have lost teeth.  Can't wait for the tooth fairy to come.  I wonder what the going rate is.

Busy Saturday

The swim meet yesterday went great, both boys really had a good time and Nathan placed 2nd in his freestyle heat but 11 out of 19 over all.  He probably could of placed a couple of spots higher but kept on looking around as he was swimming to see if he was beating people.  The backstroke results weren't up since we didn't stay for the whole meet.

Afterwards we went to a boy scout informational meeting.  It looks like boy scouts takes a lot of time so I am not sure if Nathan will join, we just can't commit to something else that requires weekly meetings.

Then Liam and I headed to a birthday party.  He had a lot of fun playing with his friends from school in the water and on the bounce house.  It is so neat to watch him interact with his friends, he looks like such a big kid.

MRI Results

The PO office called yesterday and said the MRI looked normal.  Which means there was nothing effecting the nerves leading to his eye, which is wonderful news.  The next step is to do the eye drop test to confirm Horner's Syndrome, which will be done on Tuesday.  From there I am not sure what the next steps will be if he has or doesn't have it.

It will be a busy Saturday, Nathan and Liam both have there first swim meet of the season.  Nathan is doing 25M freestyle and backstroke and Liam is signed up for 25M freestyle but I am not even sure if I am going to let him do it.  He can use a kickboard but I don't think he is to that point yet.  Then Nathan has a Boy Scout event, his first ever, and Liam has a birthday party for the triplets in his class. 

Thankfully we have Sunday to relax after church.

Nathan's Graduation

It was a busy week followed by a busy fourwheeling weekend, just now getting around to writing about Nathan's graduation on Friday night.  Everything went great, he wasn't nervous at all.  His class was the last out of the five to do their performance and he said his line nice and slow just like he was told.  After he walked in his cap and gown on to received his diploma.

He also received his SAT scores back and scored at the first grade level from almost every category except listening.  On that he scored at a 3.7 grade level, don't ask me how because at home he doesn't listen very well.  I had to laugh when I saw that.

So it is the first day of summer vacation and everyone slept until 7, YEAH!!!  Now on to laundry and Nathan's dentist appointment.

Braxton's MRI

Well things went well today.  I woke Braxton up at 2am for a feeding before his 3am deadline, he drank it all a fell right back to sleep.  Then at 6:30 I tried to give him the pedialyte but he didn't care for it at all.

We left for the hospital around 8:30 and checked in a little after 9.  I changed him into his gown, they took his vitals and weight, then asked a bunch of questions.  Then we had to go back out to the waiting room.  Matt stayed with us until around 10:30 when he left to go to Nathan's last day of school party.  We didn't want Nathan to miss out because of Braxton's MRI.  So around 10:45 our nurse called us back and we walked to the MRI area.  There the anesthesiologist and MRI Tech both came out to talk me and sign some papers.  The nurse came and took Braxton around 10:50, ten minutes before our scheduled appointment.



About an hour later the anethesiologist came and got me in the waiting room and brought me back to Braxton, he wasn't happy at all.  The was screaming because he was waking up from the anethesia and at the same time was starving.  They asked me if I had an extra bottle so they could give him pedialyte but I didn't because they didn't tell me I needed one.  Just had one bottle of formula, so for about 5 minutes he screamed while we waited for the anethesiologist to walk up stairs and grab one, you would think they would have one on the same floor but all the stuff in the drawer was for older kids, cookies, apple sauce, juice boxes, etc.  As soon as he go the bottle in his mouth he was happy.  The nurse just took his vitals again, had me get his clothes back on, removed the IV, and gave me discharge instructions.



Sleeping on Daddy in the waiting room



The nurse said that our PO should receive the results in about 5 business days so since Monday is a holiday we probably won't receive them next week.  Thank you everyone for your prayers, we appreciated all of them.