Sorry...

I have been slacking lately, looked at my last post and it was at the end of September.  I never even posted about Halloween.

I have just been so busy with everyday stuff, with a mini vacation thrown in. 

Matt and I celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversay, on November 2nd.  Just Matt and I had a little getaway to Orlando, we stayed at the Hilton near Downtown Disney and went to the Cirque de Soleil show.  For dinner we ate at Fulton's Crab House, which I loved their shrimp and cheese grits.  Then the next day we went to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventures.  We really had a good time, just the two of us.

Halloween was fun.  The boys were the Mario Bros theme this year:  Nathan was Luigi, Liam was Mario, and Braxton was Toadstool.  Braxton loved going up the each house by himself to get candy.  If they put it in his bag he waited until they gave him a piece for his hand. 

Matt and I also did a 5K this past weekend.  He did great with 26:32, coming in first for our Run For God team.  My goal was to beat my time from last years 5K of 40:32, but unfortunately I came in at 41:03.  I was expecting to do a little of 12 minute miles, but the incline of the course just killed me.  I hope my next race will be better.  We are running the Color Me Rad 5K in December.  Nathan will hopefully be running it too.

Nathan went back to the Orthopedic doctor last month, which was a follow up from his tip-toe walking appointment about 18 months ago.  He recommended us putting him in casts for 6 weeks, so on Tuesday we will start the casts.  He is going to be able to walk in them so the only thing I am worried about is taking showers.  He will go back every 2 weeks for new casts.

Liam also went to the neurologist last week for his migranes.  He agreed with everything his GI doctor has done but just wants him to get an EEG done since the migrane episodes only occur at night.  The problem with that is he has to be up 7 hours prior to the EEG, so I will be waking him at 2 am and staying up with him until the appointment the next morning.  Scheduled it for the day after Christmas, that way we will have tons of new things to keep him busy.

Braxton's Test Results

Surprisingly there was a message last night from the endocrinologist about Braxton's test, I think that is the fastest any doctor has gotten back to us. 

Even though the results came back normal, we still don't have answers and might not for a few years.  She said they talked to the neurologist and he does believe Braxton has a cyst on his pituitary.  As of now based on the blood test results the cyst isn't effecting his pituitary gland.  Due to his age they don't want to do a repeat MRI to take a look at the cyst.  Instead they will wait for at least a year and then reexamine him, unless some symptoms occur before then.  The plan is to wait until he is at least 4 then do another MRI scan. 

Braxton's Appointment

I feel like the only thing I have written about lately is doctor appointments, well today was finally Braxton's endocrinologist appointment.  They look all his measurements and of course he is still in the 90% for height and weight.  The first time they measured him he was only at 50% so I told the doctor that he is usually at 90% so they remeasured and of course he was at 90%.

I guess things went good, it was a standard new patient appointment so we won't find anything out until the bloodwork comes back.  He was referred by his doctor after I brought up the cyst found on his pituitary gland.  The endocrinologist, ordered bloodwork for all pituitary hormones along with a urine test.  He did great with getting his blood drawn but the urine test was a little difficult.  They had to put a bag on him since he isn't potty trained, well he wouldn't go so we ended up leaving.  By the time we got home he had peed but instead of all the pee staying in the bag some ended up all over his shorts.  Luckly there was enough in the bag that I didn't have to put another bag on him.

The endocrinologist is also going to send the MRI to neuro to have them reread the MRI.  If they believe that the finding looks like a cyst then she will order a new MRI to see if there has been any change in the cyst. 

The only area of concern she has at this time is the size of his scrotum, she believe it looks a little underdeveloped.  She said that can be a cause of the pituitary gland and by looking at it, it looks as if the actual testicles don't descend very often.  Of course at this age it really doesn't have any effect on him but she mentioned having urology take a look at it. 

We should hear back in the next few weeks, so just keep him in your prayers.

On a lighter note, the FSU game was great on Saturday.  Nathan, Matt, and I all went while Braxton and Liam stayed with my friend, Lisa, who still lives in Tallahassee.  I love those 8 o'clock games but the drive home is always a killer.

Open House

Liam had open house last night, which meant I was able to go see what he has been doing so far this year.  I am not sure if I have mentioned before that I have started to worry about Liam and letters.  He has been in school almost a month and they have been working on their vowels.  The only letter he can recognize is a U.  He can tell me what ever vowel makes but not that a "a" is an "a". 

Well last night after everything was done I went to talk to his teacher, Mrs. Coll, to set up a conference.  Surprisingly she told me not to worry about him he is one of her best students.  She said sometime in November they will start some reading and at that time she will have conferences.  She thinks Liam is a great student and a great listener.  If only he would listen at home.

Since Matt stayed home with Braxton and Nathan I took some video so Matt wouldn't miss it.  So here are a few of them for everyone to view.  As you can see he participates great.

After open house there was a bake sale, where we bought something for everyone in our family.  Guess what Liam picks for himself....a Florida Gator Pop Tart.  I told him his Dad is going to kill him.

Liam's Dr Appointment

Liam had his 6 month follow-up with Dr. George yesterday and after speaking with him Liam symptoms have envolved to a classic migrane pattern.  He recommended Liam to see a neurologist so he sent his information and we should be setting up his appointment sometime next week.  I am assuming it will take a few months to get in.  In the mean time he is still taking the cyproheptadine to manage his episodes.

Tomorrow is our first trip to Tallahassee for the season.  I am excited but not looking forward to dealing with Braxton.  He is at that age now where he isn't doing to sit still and with it being a noon game he will be missing his nap.  Hopefully during the 2.5 hour drive he will get some naptime in.

The room switch is still a success.  Braxton definitely enjoys his new bed and the freedom with it.  He was giving up some problem staying in the bed but the last couple of days I just had to remind him a few times before he fell asleep. 

Room move was a success

 

Well Saturday was the offical room move, Nathan moved to what was Braxton's nursery and Braxton moved in with Liam.  The first day Braxton stayed in his bed for both his nap and bedtime.  Then the second day he got up during naptime and played but was fine for bedtime.  Last night he got up during both naptime and bedtime.  After a few times of putting him back in his bed the did fine.  The funny thing is the first night at around midnight I heard him crying, went in his room and he was standing up stuck between the footboard and the mattress.  I think he was looking for his blanket and got his feet stuck.  Just had to push the mattress closer to the footboard and now we keep a pillow down there so it doesn't happen again.

Just have to get a few more things to buy for the walls, like shelves and pictures, and then some bigger baskets to go in the under part of his bed. 

I am really happy how things turned out and so is Nathan.

New Era

Well there was big changes in the Glass household this week, the crib was officially taken down.  It wasn't our plan to take it out this soon but for Nathan's birthday we ordered him new bedroom furniture and was told it would be in in 6-8 weeks.  Two weeks later the furniture store called and said it was in, so this weekend I went to pick it up. 

I took down all the nursery furniture, Nathan is moving into Braxton's room and Braxton is moving in with Liam.  Matt and I took the bunk beds down and made them into two twin beds.  With Braxton loving to climb we were just to worried with him climbing up into the top bunk and falling.  The room is definitely very crowded but it will do for now.  We will probably change it back towards the beginning of next year.

We also bought Nathan a new bedding, Star Wars.  I am hopping to get the mattress tomorrow so that he will be able to sleep in his own room tomorrow night.

Nathan also had his first classical conversations class this week.  We brought donuts to his class for his birthday.  He also did his first oral presentation about his family and favorite things he like.  He was very nervous but ended up doing it.  They have to do a presentation each week and I think that is really good for him.



We also had Nathan's 7th birthday at O2B Kids.  They did rock wall climbing, made gak, and had gym time on the big trampoline.  The picked out an Angry Bird cake from Publix and we had pizza.  He really enjoyed himself and said it was his best party every.  Liam even wants to do his party there.

School

This week marked Liam's first day in VPK at Trinity and Nathan's second week of homeschool.  Liam was so excited about his first day, I think it made him a little stressed because he ended up getting a migrane on Sunday night which of course lead to him vomitting.  His first day went well and his teacher said he is such a good listener.  At church on Wednesday she again told me that he was such a good listener and I responded I wish he would listen to me, she laughed.  Later I asked him why he is listening so good at school and he said, "because Mom I want to get to the top of the board."  I swear he is too cleaver.

School has been going good for Nathan too, he is getting used to the routine and the whinning has almost stopped.  Thank goodness it was driving me crazy.  He had his first phonics test in which he scored a 99.  He is almost through every lowercase cursive letter and even though he complains about all the cursive practice he has to complete, he is getting pretty good for only doing it a two weeks.

Nathan had is classical conversations orientation on Tuesday, there are 7 kids in his class.  Turns out he know one girl from the YMCA and boy from church.  He has his first class on Tuesday.

Braxton of course is sick again, I am just over it.  I know I have said this before but everytime I get into a good gym routine he ends up sick which means I can't go.  On Wednesday he came down with a high fever, then Wednesday night it broke and Thursday he woke up with a rash.  I know it is just viral but praying it isn't hand, foot, and mouth again.  I cleaned all his toys just in case.  With Nathan's birthday party on Saturday I just want it gone so both Matt and I can be there, otherwise one of us will be staying home with Braxton.

Nathan received his desk in the mail that we ordered from Pottery Barn Kids.  It is really nice and we set it up in the front room for now.  Once his bed comes in, should be about 8 weeks, we will move it into his room.  Not sure if I mentioned it before but we are moving Nathan into Braxton's room and Braxton will be moving into the boys room.  We are doing Nathan's room in the Star Wars Theme.

Not much else happening besides the normal swim practice.  Looking forward to Nathan's birthday weekend, will post pictures of it next week.

The Start of a New School Year

Today marked the start of Nathan's first day of homeschool.  He was so excited this morning, I made him his favorite yogurt parfait and then we got to work.  Most of it was review from last year which made it a little bit easier for the both of us as we adjust to homeschooling.  The only new material we covered was the lowercase cursive e.

Swim practice is back to the afternoon this week which is nice for a change.  Liam went to Saturday practice at the home pool on this past weekend and the head coach was very surprised by his swimming skills.

Liam's orientation is on Thursday and then school starts on Monday for him. 

Other than Braxton and I recovering from colds, not much else happening here.  Looking forward the getting into a schedule again after a busy summer.

River City Championships

Thursday was River City Champs and both boys did really well.  For 25 yard free Nathan got 30.34 and Liam got 39.34, Nathan cut his time by a second and Liam by 4.  Nathan would of gotten under 30 seconds for the first time ever but prior to the horn sounding a lady said stop so when he jumped in he turned around to see what was going on.  Even after that he came from last to place 2nd in his heat.  Both Matt and I were very proud of him.  For 25 yard back Nathan got 38.66 and Liam 50.91 and in the mixed relay, which they both were on they placed 1st in their heat with 2:47.29.

Sorry for the lack of pictures, Matt had the camera and I thought he was taking some but I later found out he wasn't.  Oh and check out Liam's fashion statement, speedo briefs, swim cap, and fireman rain boots.  Every where I walked with him everyone was commenting on his outfit.

Summer Vacation Continues

Man it has been a while since I last wrote.  We had a great time in TN, it is just nice to go up there and relax while visiting family.  We did some shopping, I got a new Coach purse and sunglasses and Matt finally was able to make that bow purchase he has been wanting to do for a while.  On the 4th of July my uncle had a cookout and we did a bunch of swimming.  I even went on my first hunt, be it for rabbit.  It was actually not bad to eat either.
 
While playing outside Nathan had the privilege of getting his first tick.  Thankfully it wasn't on him too long and I was able to get if off very easily. 

On our way to TN we stayed the night in Atlanta and went to a Braves game.  It was super hot and Braxton didn't really enjoy sitting there for that long of a time period but overall the we all had a good time.

Both Nathan and Liam are both swimming in the River City league, championships are this Thursday. It is nice that the summer league is coming to an end and we will have a break from the weekly swim meets again.

Nathan also started piano lessons last week with Mrs. Dismuke, his music teacher at Trinity.  She said he was very smart and did an excellent job.  Nathan said he really enjoyed it.  It looks like it will be something we continue when school starts at the end of August.  She does lessons for the homeschool kids on Thursday mornings so we will be able to just drop of Liam and then walk over to piano.

Both Nathan and Liam both caught some sort of bug last week.  Liam was the first to get it but for the first four days he was just really tired, just looked out of it.  I was starting to worry so I schedule him an appointment with the doctor.  She did a strep and flu test and both came back negative, so not sure what it was.  She ended up giving him an antibiotic because it could of been a different type of strep and after one dose of the medicine he was 100% better.  Then Nathan got sick two days later, he still has a cough but feels fine.

Other than that just gearing up for school.  Almost done with the school shopping, uniforms and lunch boxes purchased along with most of the homeschool items for Nathan.  Went through the first 6 weeks of the A Beka curriculum and wrote out a weekly plan for each subject.  Looking forward to starting and the changes ahead.

Busy Summer already

Summer has just begun and I feel like we have been so busy.  Swim practice is 8-9 Monday-Wednesday with a meet on Thursday, then practice Friday.  I have been trying to make it to the gym at least 3 mornings after swim practice, but that isn't always successful.

The boys have joined the summer reading program and we started going to the Tuesday library program.  Nathan finished his first "real" chapter book this week, he was so excited about it.  I promised him a new Skylander when he finished so he picked out Sunburn.  They also earned a Taco Bell coupon for all their reading.

Nathan's school books came this week, I went through them and started to look at the lesson plans to see what else we would need for the school year.  I also signed him up for the Classical Conversations program so he will be doing that once a week on Tuesdays from 9-12. 

This weekend Matt is out for a boys weekend, pig hunting.  Our boys and I are headed to visit my old neighbor in the panhandle.  She has 3 boys and a girl so the boys are going to have a blast.  We are planning to take the boat out on Saturday and go to Shell Island which is near Panama City.  It will be a new experience for them and I really think they will enjoy it.

Braxton has started to use the puddle jumper in the pool.  He is going really good with swimming, if you tell him to kick his legs he will and he actually swims.  He hasn't quite gotten the whole idea of keeping his mouth shut so he is constantly choking on water.

Next weekend we are heading to TN to visit my Uncle, Aunt, and cousins.  My Mom, Darin, Melissa, and Grant will all be coming along.  It is so nice up there and the boys love playing outside all day long.  On our way up Matt, the boys, and I will be staying the night in Atlanta and going to a Braves game.

First Swim Meet & Changes Our Way

The boys had their first swim meet of the summer against FFST, their previous team.  They both did great, I was so proud of them.  Nathan even came in 1st place for 6U backstroke.  I was trying to post more videos but for some reason it gave me an error everytime.  Here is the freestyle for both Nathan and Liam, Nathan is at the bottome of the screen and Liam is 2 lanes above him.

The Glass household is having some changes coming our way.  We have really been praying about it and God has led us in a direction that we never thought we would be headed, homeschooling.  With Trinity tuition this year for both boys over $7500 and next year close to $10,000, we have decided to homeschool Nathan.  He is so excited about it since some of his friends are doing it this year too.  Duval County has a large homeschooling community so with that and his sports he won't miss the interaction with other kids.  We also are enrolling him in the Classical Conversations program so he will still go to school once a week for 3 hours, so he won't miss holiday parties and get to do fun things like science experiments, speeches, projects, etc. 

If homeschooling doesn't work out then our next option is to put out house on the market.  With the housing market the way it is now we would be lucky to break even at this point.  If we were to sell we would move to St John's County or even look to move to another state.

The start to the summer is going great.  Both Nathan and Liam are enrolled in the summer reading program and both checked out a handful of books.

 

18 Months Old

Thursday Braxton turned 18 months old, I don't know where the time has gone.  Dr Mary said he is looking great and has a great temperment while being very independent.  He weighed 26 lbs and was 34 1/2 inches long, has height is in the 95% percentile. 

While there I talked to her about his MRI results from last year where they foun the pituitary cyst.  After the appointment she talked to another doctor and they both agreed that he should see an endocrinologst to have some bloodwork done to see if the cyst is effecting him at all.  She said it could talk a few months before we get in for an appointment.

Braxton has also said a few new words this week which came as a total surprise, they were go, ball, and dog.

Liam's last teeball game was last night, after winning the second game of the double elimination tournament, they lost their second to the Yankees.  The game was at 7:20 so they really were done before the game even started.  We are planning the team party for the 5th of June.

One more week of school for Nathan, his last day is the 1st.  He is super excited so the summer break.  Liam's last day was this past Thursday, followed by his picnic lunch on Friday.  He had a great time playing with his friends and having lunch with Braxton and I. 

The boys first swim meet is on Thursday, they are both really excited for it.  We actually are playing their old team the Flying Fish.  It will be nice to see old friends.  I will post pictures and maybe videos later next week.

Just have a Memorial Day party at my in-laws house on Monday, so it is our first relaxing weekend in a while.

Legoland

Well our Legoland day started off very early with my 5am alarm.  All three boys and Dad didn't enjoy it at all, especially Braxton he loves his sleep.  We stopped at the Ormond Beach exit for breakfast at Chick-fil-a, Liam ordered the little sandwiches or what we call chicken minis.  We arrived at 9, right when the park was opening.  Anthony, Dena, and the boys arrived shortly after.

Nathan, Liam, Christopher, and Jonathon all really enjoyed the park.  There was only one ride that Jonathon and Liam couldn't ride which was good, meanwhile there was only one ride that Braxton could ride, the carousel.  He actually had a blast on it.  Other than that he could only play on the toddler playground and do the shows.

I think Legoland is a great park for boys 5-8 years old but not if you are paying full price for admission.  Once the waterpark opens maybe then it will be better for older children.

There was a ride for kids 6-13, where they taught them to drive and then the kids went out on an open road course.  Nathan actually did really well.  Matt and I could stop laughing at him waving people through at the stop signs.  I hope that good driving continues when he is a teenager.

Braxton face started bracking out in a rash on Saturday and has continued through today.  Since it is just contained to his face I am hoping it is just a reaction to the sunscreen I put on him.  I guess we will see on Thursday when he goes in for his 18 month well visit appointment.

Liam had his first game of the double elimination tournament tonight, of course they lost but his team has gotten so much better in the last two months.  We are hoping to win on Thursday.

School is wrapping up, Liam's last day is Thursday and then on Friday we just go in for a picnic lunch party.  Then Nathan's last day is next Friday, June 1st.
 

Mother's Day

Well Matt's exact words to me last night were I must of had a pretty crappy Mother's Day since I haven't posted about it yet.  No Matt just too busy with my kids and their end of the year activities.

My Mother's Day was good.  When I woke up the boys gave me there school made gifts, they were both so excited to have me open them.  Then we had breakfast and got ready for church.  After church we came home and relaxed before going out to an early dinner.  I always pick Japanese on Mother's Day because they don't seem to be too busy and the boys love having them cook in front of them.  Unfortunately Liam will tell you he loves Japanese but only ate about two bits of his chicken before he complained that it wasn't good.  That boy never likes to eat.  After dinner we went out for ice cream, at Bruster's.  I really enjoy their ice cream.  Afterwards we came home and relaxed again.  I love days when I can just lay around and relax.

Nathan's last game was last weekend, like usual they won.  After the game they had a pizza party and all the boys received their trophies.  Liam's team still has a tournament at the end of the month so we are still practicing and plan to have the party sometime after the season is over. 



Looking forward to Legoland on Saturday, they boys are going to love it. 

Oh and have to post this picture of Braxton.  We went to recently went to Sonic and ordered like we usually do, which includes large blasts and shakes.  Well after we ordered we noticed that the large was now a 32oz size, Matt and I nearly died laughing.  It took Matt 3 days to eat his blast and half of mine went down the sink after Braxton got as chance to get his hands on it. He cried so hard when I took it from him.

Liam's Spring Performance

Today was Liam's spring performance at SJPK and for the first time he actually participated with his class.  In previous performances he would just stand up there and say a few words here and there but today he talked and sang the whole time.  I was so proud of him.

Meanwhile Braxton and I had to stand in the lobby out front because Braxton wasn't behaving.  While I was filming the performance Braxton decided to open my Chick-fil-a tea and poor the little bit left onto himself as well as some of the ice on the floor.  He is usually very well behaved but definitely not today.

On Wednesday Braxton had him follow up ear appointment and they looked great.  I had her look at the rash that he had broken out into the previous day and it turns out it was hand, foot, and mouth disease.  Luckly it is a very mild case and I have Lysoled all his toys so I am hoping that no one else gets it.

Our first week back to swimming has gone well, only made it to two days of practice but both boys are doing good.  Nathan impressed me on the first day and I told him that if he keeps that up he might win some heats this year since he is still in the U6 division.  Baker's was also having a sale on suits so I bought the boys 3 each and 2 for Matt and only paid $84, $10 bucks a piece is a great deal.

Busy Day

I am totally exhausted, it was a busy day for me and the boys.  This morning Braxton and I met an old coworker and her 20 month old grandson for a playdate.  The boys had a blast, we had breakfast and then headed to the park.  While at the park Braxton thought it was a good idea to sit down on the playground bridge and fell about 2.5 feet to the ground.  We tried to stop him but he tumbled and everything was in slow motion.  He cried for about 10 minutes and then realized it was time to play again.

Afterwards Braxton and I met Matt for lunch at Moe's, our Tuesday lunch spot.  Braxton didn't eat much and that isn't like him.  He was running a low fever yesterday and I thought it was just his teeth coming in.  Doesn't look like that is what it is.  After lunch Matt headed to Pensacola for a business meeting, which leaves me and the boys alone until Thursday.  Then Braxton and I headed to pick Liam up from school. 

Once we picked up Liam we headed to his speech appointment and of course something was going on on the Fuller Warren bridge and traffice was backed up so we had to go through downtown to get to his appointment.  When Liam was done at speech we went to pick Nathan up at school.  Do you see why my day has been so hectic. 

We picked Nathan up from school we went home for snacks and homework, at least part of it.  While Braxton took a very short nap, he was extremely exhausted.  Forty-five minutes later we headed to swim practice, the first one after 3 months off.  Both boys did excellent, except for a little bit of playing with the other kids which resulted in someone getting hit by a kickboard.  After the hour of swim practice we went home for a quick dinner before heading to Nathan's batting practice.

Finally at 7:15 we got home, took baths, had a snack, put some laundry in, and the boys all were in bed by 8.  Thankfully tomorrow won't be as busy but to top it off Braxton has broken out in a rash again, good thing he has an ear recheck tomorrow so he can be looked at for that too.

FUN RUN

Thanks to all that participated in Nathan's Fun Run fundraiser, it was greatly appreciated and he did awesome.

 
Today was the actual run, all the guys with Boosterton did such a good job making it fun for the kids.  They had different themed laps, some examples were the penguin walk, the air guitar, high five lap.  Nathan ended up doing 40 laps, but there was a maximum of 35 laps he was allowed to count towards his pledging.  Braxton, Liam, and I cheered him on and Liam was able to run the final lap with Nathan, which made him so happy.

Happy Birthday MATT!!!!

Well Matt made it home safely last Wednesday and by then I was finally feeling better.  Meanwhile Thursday Braxton broke out in a rash all over his body after talking to the doctor I decided to wait and see how he was on Friday.  Well on Friday it had spread so since I didn't want to make a ER visit over the weekend I took him in.  Thankfully I did because he had an ear infection and the rash was just viral, she thought it looked like strep but it came back negative.

Baseball on Saturday was fun, Liam did fairly well and by that I mean he was paying attention and not playing in the dirt.  He was excited to get a slushy and the gas station afterwards, bribery works great.

Then the rest of the weekend we just relaxed and went to church it was a raining weekend from Saturday evening through Sunday, which brought some nice cool weather on Monday and today. 

Thanks for everyone who made a pledge for Nathan's Fun Run.  He has the most pledges in his class and was so exicted to get all the prizes he received.  Tomorrow is the actual run and Liam, Braxton, and I will be there to cheer him on.  He said I have to cheer Go Jungle Joggers, that is what his team name is.

Happy birthday Matt!!! Hope you enjoy you Carrabbas and cake the boys and I got you.  Can't believe you are 34, we are getting OLD.

Baseball

Well we are half way through the baseball season and Nathan's skill level has grown drasically.  He is on one of the best teams in the league and one of the few kids on the team that has never played baseball.  This week he had two games and at both games he had at least two hits.  I was so proud of him and he was of himself.

On the other hand I think Liam has gotten worse.  He used to be really interested but the past few games he has been more interested in playing in the dirt.  UGH!!!

Matt left this afternoon for a business trip to St Louis and it couldn't be at a worst time for me.  We all have been battling a cold/cough for about a week and mine is now at its peak.  On the bright side at least I won't have to cook over the next few nights. 

Easter

Our Easter week was fun but definitely busy.  We decorated eggs, had school Easter partys both included egg hunts, a baseball game, Disney of Ice, church, Easter dinner with the family, and another two egg hunts.

On Sunday morning we headed to the early church service, which was great.  It was so packed, I can't even imagine what the later service was like.  Afterwards we headed down to my Mom's for a egg hunt with all the grandchildren, Braxton and Landon didn't do much hunting.  Then we headed on to Aunt Kelly and Uncle Lar's house for the Oliva Easter dinner, where the kids had another egg hunt.  I definitely have enought eggs for the school hunts next year.


Easter morning Nathan woke up with a cough, the next morning I went to get him up for school and his face was very flush and he was burning up.  I took his temp and it was 104.5, told him to lay back down that he wasn't going to school today and got him some Advil.  It went down within 30 minutes.  I figured he just had some sort of cold and emailed the teacher that he wouldn't be in on Monday.  She wrote back that a girl in the class had the same symptoms and she was diagnosed with walking pneumonia and had been in the hospital since Saturday.  I immediately made a doctor appointment for him, by noon we were at the doctors and his fever was back up to 103.  They gave him some Tylenol, did and strep and mono test, both which came back negative.  His lungs were clear but she did give him a prescription just in case.  Now on Tuesday Nathan is fever free and going back to school tomorrow and I have Braxton with a cough and a fever and Liam just with a cough.  Totally expecting Liam to have a fever tomorrow. 

Our garden is sprouting, the beans and the cucumbers just came up this week.  Just starting working on the third bed tonight but had to stop because the mosquitos almost took me away.

Hurricane Braxton

It's official we finally experienced Hurricane Braxton and it definitely wasn't a good experience.  Braxton is normally a great baby, always very happy but the other night it wasn't so.  After Darlene and Ralph took Nathan and Liam to Disney on Ice we had plans to meet at BJ's Brewhouse.  Matt and I got there about 30 minutes early to get a table since it was a Friday night.  We got our drinks and were eating our appetizer when out of nowhere Braxton started crying uncontrollably, it was so loud I had to take him outside.  He continued to cry for over an hour, still not sure what exactly happened.  The only thing I can think of is that his teeth all of a sudden started to hurt.  When we finally got home I gave him some tylenol and laid him down for bed.  Praying we never have to experience that again.

Visit to the Easter Bunny

Today I decided to take the boys to see the Easter Bunny.  For some reason the last week has just flown by and I knew if I didn't take them this afternoon I probably wouldn't, then of course I would be upset that I didn't get their yearly photo. 

Braxton was fine with Santa this year and I thought maybe we would get lucky and he would be okay with the bunny too.  I was totally wrong, not only did he not like the bunny from 10 feet away he didn't even like me unbuckling him from his stroller.  The moment I put him on the bunny's lap he started to cry.  After a few pictures that didn't turn out at all, I decided to try him on Nathan's lap.  He still cried and then cried harder when he looked at the bunny but it was better than when the bunny was holding him.  So I purchased the picture, it will be a memory years from now.

We also are 2/3s of the way done with our garden.  We usually do a garden about 8x10 but the cucumbers and watermelon always take over half of it.  So this year we decided to build two smaller gardens one for the cucumbers and one for the watermelon, then in the larger garden we planted green & orange peppers, salsa peppers, strawberries, and green beans.  We still have not yet done the watermelon garden but will complete sometime this week.

Been a while

I know it has been a while since my last post the main reason was my router.  Everytime I went to post something the internet went down.  Hopefully now I will update more frequently.

Last week was spring break, we took a trip to the Charlotte area for 5 days spending 2 days in Salisbury visiting family and the other 3 at the Great Wolf Lodge, which we absolutely loved and will return in the future.  They had an indoor waterpark, bowling alley, the Magiquest game, a gameroom, and miniture golf.  Then we went 4 wheeling for the weekend, even though it rained everynight we kept dry and had a fun time.  Looking forward to school getting out for the summer.

Nathan also lost another tooth so he is missing his two top front teeth, he looks totally different without them.  Meanwhile Braxton is cutting his top eye teeth.

Today we also had our follow-up appointment with Dr. George.  Liam has been on cyproheptadine for a little over a month.  It seems to be helping, not eliminating the episodes but making them less severe.  He believe that Liam has cyclic vomiting syndrome and that most likely it will disappear around puberty, until them we have to just watch for triggers, one I believe is something in hotdogs.  We will follow up in 6 months unless something new happens.  We also have an appointment with the allergist next week.

Braxton's 15 month well visit

Braxton had his 15 month well visit on Friday and everything looked great.  He is now 24lbs and 32 inches long, which is 50% for weight and 75% for height.  I believe that is what Liam was at his age.  He was so happy with Dr Mary but he wasn't so happy with the nurse when he received to vaccines.  Poor little guy.

The boys are still practicing baseball, I believe their first games are next weekend. 

We had a lazy weekend, just relaxed and went to church.  Looking forward to Monster Jam on Saturday and finishing up our bathroom, the tile floor is going in this weekend. 

Another tooth down

Nathan lost his third tooth last night, his first top one.  He looks different and it feels different to him too.  The tooth fairy brought him two gold dollar coins.

Never Ending Dr appointments

I consider myself lucky, having 3 boys who are fairly healthy.  It seems like over the past 5 months we have been at doctor appointments every week, in addition to normal speech appointments for Liam.  Lat week I received an email from Nemours letting me know that some test results were in for Liam.  I looked it up and it was results from back in November when Dr. Mary had blood drawn.  Unfortunately all the results were never sent to her and she wasn't aware that his IGE results were a little hight, the normal range is 1.5-22.5 and Liam was at 83.3.  This means that even though the allergies he was specially tested for came back normal it is likely that he is allergic to something.  So now I am waiting to hear about setting up an appointment at the allergiest.

He also had another stomach migrane episode last week, woke up at 2am cry that his stomach hurt.  Fortunately he didn't vomit, not sure if it was because he has been on the medicine for a week and a half but he was restless for about an hour.  Turned out he had a corndog for dinner, I really think hot dogs are a trigger for him.  I know he has nitrates regularlly, like in ham, but for some reason everything he has had a hotdog in the past 3 months an episode has occured.

Nathan is collecting money for the American Heart Association by doing Jump Rope for Heart.  I sent out emails about a week ago, thanks for everyone who has sent in a donation.  Donations ate due by March 2nd so if you are still going to donate please do.  I can send you the link to where you can make an online donation if you didn't receive an email. 

Our shower is officially done and we are back to using it.  I am so happy to have it back and so is Matt.  It turned out really good.  Now just have to change out the medicine cabinet, replace the light fixture, tile the floor and paint and put up some new molding.  It is looking really good.  I will post pictures once it is complete.

Booked our spring break vacation, we will be headed to the Charlotte area for 5 days.  Going to stay a few nights at the Great Wolf Lodge.  It is going to be a surprise but I am sure the boys are going to have a blast.  Liam is like me he loves staying at hotels so he will just love that nevermind the indoor waterpark.

Baseball/t-ball practice started this week.  Nathan is on the Twins, 7U league, and Liam is on the Reds, 5U league.  The 5U league was short on coaches so Matt was talked into coaching.  Nathan is on a pretty good team so hopefully he will improve some.  He really has never played before so everything is new to him, just have to keep him focused and away from playing in the dirt. 

Results Are Back

All of Liam's endoscopy results came back normal.  I put a call into Dr. George after seeing online that everything was normal but have been playing phone tag since Friday.    I had asked the nurse a bunch of questions since other than knowing he has stomach migranes, I have no idea on how to try and prevent them.

We also went to see the ENT on Friday, Dr. Maddern definitely thought that his tonsils were enlarged and even with the flonase they are still large.  He said he would take them out but it was totally up to us.  I put a call into his pediatrician and she agrees that taking them out is best.  I know it will be an easy surgery now and I would hate to delay it and him have problems with them later in life.

I can't remember if I mentioned Nathan got his report card, all A's & B's, with an S- in handwriting.  However he is having some problems with staying focused and on task.  I know it is because he is the youngest in his class and it will eventually get better as he gets older. 

Nathan and Liam are taking a 3 month break from swimming and starting baseball next week.  Matt is excited to finally have them play and I am excited the fields are only down the road.  They will be in different age groups so it will be interested to see how they play along their peers.

Braxton is officially walking, he now walks more than he crawls.  He still falls at time but it is so cute to see him try and stand up without holding onto anything.

Liam's Endoscopy

Had to wake up at 5:30 this morning to be at Wolfson's Childrens Hopsital by 6:30, Liam's endoscopy was schedule for 8:30.  He was really great about the whole process, Liam can be so stubborn at times he just shocks me when he does what the doctors and nurses ask of him. 

They had him dress in a hospital gown and took all his vitals, while asking us all the questions.  Then we were sent back to the waiting room until they were ready for us.  When we were called to the back we were able to sit in another playroom where Matt and I discovered the weirdest kids book ever, it was called Walter, the Farting Dog.  Matt and I couldn't stop laughing as I read the book to Liam, of course he wanted me to read it.  Dr. George and the anesthesiologist both can to talk to us about the procedure and asked us if we had any questions.  Then it was time for him to go back, the nurse had him pick a cart to ride back to the operating room in, he picked the tugboat.  We both kissed him and he just went down the hallway in the tugboat.

About 30 minutes later Dr. George can out letting us know everything looked totally normal and that the biopsies would be back by Wednesday.  He said he totally expects everything to come back fine and thinks that it is just stomach migranes.  If it is stomach migranes he will probably grow out of them by puberty.

We were called back about 15 minutes later and waited for him to be wheeled into recovery.  He smiled at me as he was rolled into the room.  He did great waking up, just a little crying that he wanted to go home.  He drank some Gatoraid and had a blue slushy, a little after 10 he was finally discharged but not until they gave him a beanie baby for bring such a great patient. 

Liam is 4

I can't believe Liam is 4, how time flies when you have children.  We had a little family celebration on Wednesday, he picked out chocolate cake with chocolate fudge icing and Pizza Hut for dinner.  For being so skinny he sure loves his chocolate.  Matt and I gave him a Radio Flyer Big Wheel Tricycle that he loves riding.  He actually can ride it pretty fast.

On Sunday we are having his birthday party, have invited family and friends over and going to have a bounce house.  He can't wait, every day I get the question is it my party yet.

Today we go for his 4 year well visit and I am sure he will be getting shots.  I have prepared him for this and he did very well with his blood draw so I am hoping it won't be too bad.

Almost walking

This afternoon the boys came running to get me and said Braxton walked from the dining room table to the living room couch.  I just dismissed them thinking that he probably just took a few steps.

Well tonight after his bath I brought him to Matt in the living room and he walked about 6-7 steps from him to me.  I went to get the video camera and try and get it on video and of course he didn't want to perform on demand, but here is what I was able to get.  It won't be too much longer before he is walking regularly.

Holidays finally over

Man it has been a while since my last update, been so busy with the kids on holiday vacation.

We spent a week in TN visiting family and everyone had a great time.  We did some sight seeing, going to the Hermitage and Downtown Nashville along with some play centers for the boys.  Our last night in TN Braxton came down with an ear infection and luckly we had his prescription refill from the ENT.  Unfotunately he was still sick through Christmas running an extremely high fever in the 104 range, which I believe was a result of the ear infection and cutting his first molar.  I am just glad we didn't have to make a ER run.

Everyone had a great Christmas.  Santa brought Nathan and Liam each a DSiXL and Braxton a Radio Flyer Wagon.   All three of them love their gifts.  Like always Christmas was hectic, driving to St Augustine on Christmas Eve to spend the evening with Matt's Mom and stepdad and then traveling to Ormond on Christmas Day to spend it with my side of the family.

We finally were able to pick up the enclosed trailer we bought from Matt's Mom and stepdad so that meant we were able to take the 4-wheelers out of the garage and put them in the trailer.  We spend all New Year's Day cleaning out the garage and now we are finally able to walk around in there.  I don't know how I was able to park my car in there at one time.  Now just waiting to get a letter from our HOA that says we can't keep the trailer in the yard because it is higher than out fence line.

School starts tomorrow, I happy to get back to our routine but I will miss the extra sleep.

Oh and Liam's tests results came back normal, now we go on January 18th and he will have an upper endoscopy done.  We had another episode our first night in TN and a lot of stomach aches over the break.  I really hope that we finally get some answers.