Wordless Wednesday

Leave a caption.

But first you ought to know that this dolly's name is "Baby Sannal" (Samuel)as opposed to his brother who is known as "My Sannal" or "My Sam" or just Sam.

Good Riley Days, Excellent Actually

As you know, things have been a little crazy around here lately. I must confess I've been a bit more lighty than usual. Last month, I totally flaked Christopher's monthly appointment with Sara on the Feeding Team at Riley. So, we rescheduled for yesterday. Well, Tuesday I came home from a bit of play to find a message from Riley reminding me of my Feeding Team with Dr. D appointment today. Doh!
So, we went in yesterday , and the first thing we did was a weigh-in. Chris weighed 26 pounds and 7 ounces. That's a gain of a whole 1 ounce since May. I was pretty content with this because a. it's more than he's ever weighed and b. Chris had been not drinking too well the last couple weeks. Eric, was Not Happy with this weight. He had expected more of a gain. Eric told Sara his theory, that Chris was drinking well in June, almost 4 cans a day, and then, because of his tendency to chew on the straw of his cups, we had to buy new ones. We picked up some cheapies at Target. Chris repeatedly told us they were "boteen" or broken, and he didn't drink much. We reverted to some other plastic cups, not the juice box style ones but the round plastic ones that look just like a regular cup with mix and match lids. And he was up to averaging almost 2 cans a day. Sara had encountered the problem before and told us how Rubbermaid has a patent on these cups and the generics just don't work for some kids. Like mine. She recommended giving Chris a vitamin, half a Flintstones, and gave pointers in how to make him take it. She also told us to let have Chris have more water since he's probably sweating it all out being so much a boy on the go as he is through the summer.
We even discussed potty training, and when we left I felt SO much better about how we aren't having much luck there. Also, she eluded to the fact that this was technically 3 months of weight gain, and we may get some good news when we saw Dr. D today. And so we did!
Thanks to Sara's new cup, Chris downed his first cocoa of the day, 8 ounces Bam! Then to sneak a little extra bulk into the boy we went and got some Chick Fil-A nuggets (and breakfast for Mommy and Daddy)'on the way' to the hospital. Well, by gum it worked! Chris weighed in today at 27 pounds and 1 ounce!!! That's a record! AND it put him on the map, he was up into the 3rd percentile, Plus his height has increased to 35 and 3/4 inches. Thanks to all this great news and increase weight we got the OK to pull the feeding tube. The doctor walked in and asked us if we were interested in "Graduating". As in Not Coming Back to Developmental Pediatrics unless we feel the need. We discussed how dinner is easier, and it seems that his current behaviors are Very Typical of the 3 year old crowd. And we got some hints and suggestions on how to continue the Potty Training. She told us, that we have to make it worth his while, that he's of such a strong will, that why should he work if we'll do all the work for him. Sort of true. First of all, she suggested blocking off 3 days, stay home, and doing a chart with 9 blocks, 3 times a day, morning, afternoon, night, and when the chart is full, give a prize. We opted not to do it today, because we found out that it has to heal, and while that hole is open, he can't submerge it in water, not in a deep bath, and No Swimming. Sprinklers would be OK, but Chris would have to miss swim lessons and no backyard pool. Oh no. Even at the mere mention of 'swimming', Chris began calling out to go swim while we were still in the doctor's office. They said we can come into the clinic to have it pulled by the pros or since it's just a mic-key button, we could theoretically pull it ourselves. (Yipes!) So,we need to prayerfully consider when/how we want it done.
I feel happy, like we have crossed a new threshold, and taken a new step. Yet at the same time I feel sad. My boy is still growing up so fast.

Fear Not

This week we seemed to get sucked into a Black Hole, also known as VBS, Vacation Bible School. Though Chris has tagged along the last couple years as Mommy and Daddy have helped at our church's VBS, this year was Christopher's first time being an attendee. It turns out Chris's preschool's church (where Chris's grandparents attend) was doing the same VBS as our church, and quite a number of Chris's classmates were going to be in attendance, so we signed him up. He did swimmingly and had such a great time that he asked us today to go to "cvS" again today.
Chris's young group was in the front row at the church during that first night. Pastor walked out to lead the group in prayer, and a certain little pipsqueak piped right up "Hi Pastor!!" so loud we could hear him at the back of the church. I was worried about him, I mean I know he's been in school for a year already, and rides the bus like a big boy, but he's pretty isolated with the preschool kids in that environment. I was worried he wouldn't be ok surrounded by older kids. When he got home that night, he came up to me, a fist outstretched, and in fullest fight voice told me "WATCH!!! For DOD!"
I said OK. I didn't know what he was talking about. Then I noticed his new bracelet, it read, Watch for God. He calls it his Watch.
The next night we went early so that we could participate in the supper too. Chris and his friend Bryn ran wild around the fellowship hall. It was like old home week, Chris saw his teacher Mrs. D. and gave her a hug, and we saw a bunch of his classmates, and got to see them having so much fun together. I know he'd missed them. I sat down when they got started, and listened as the leader told them that God was Everywhere, and all the kids put their fists up "Fear Not!", they yelled. Apparently they learned something new each day about God, and everytime they heard it they'd yell Fear Not!
Wednesday night they made T-shirts, we hadn't much notice to find Chris a t-shirt so we picked up one at the dollar store, the smallest they had was a Kids's small, which I must say looks a bit like a dress on Chris, but he is thrilled to have his own t-shirt. He'll tell you it says Fear Not! Chris bats about 50/50 with saying it correctly, to me it sounded like he was saying Fear Dod (which is his way of pronouncing God), not exactly what we were going for, specifically, but if he thought he was saying Fear Not, then OK.
The folks who know the family have always loved when Chris has come to visit the church. This week was no different. Friends of the family came up to us all week long, telling us how great it was to have Chris. This extended church family has prayed along with us since Christopher's birth just like the folks at our church, and he's become a family member at St. Andrew's just like at Messiah. Everyone was so kind, telling us how "full of Energy" he is. They would look at us, and just smile, or laugh. They were surprised at how much he just goes and goes and goes. Sometimes his rambunctiousness wears me out or gets on my nerves, but they just loved it. I think that just seeing him in church on the rare Sunday didn't give them a chance to really get to know him, until this week. Now they know him a bit better and love him even more.
The last night, we settled in for their program. And the kids would all get up and sing, and each time Chris would battle his way to the front row, and come running out into the pews. He wouldn't sit with us, but instead go up to other people and growl or sit next to them or just do the motions of whatever song they were singing. At the end of one song, they did the Fear Not thing again. In a brief moment of silence following that cheer, I saw Chris buckle down arms bearing his muscles and he growl to whoever was sitting next to him, FEAR DOT!!!! Everyone at the front of the church started to snicker. Later, one couple (who has experience in such things) paid us a compliment, they said he was such a ham, (which we knew) but that he was so energetic that we really should get him into Junior Civic Theatre as soon as we can, because he would thrive there. No doubt. Eric just wonders when he'll learn to take direction....
We've known what an amazing soul Christopher is, and this was a neat chance for us to share his gifts with others who love him.
We've always referred to Chris as an Enchanter, breaking hearts of girl's everywhere. Well, this VBS was no different. At the closing Thursday evening I noticed a young child pick up Christopher by his armpits, and lift him as high as he could over his head. It looked a bit scary, I mean this kid had to be like 7. Chris smiled, laughed, and put his arms out and I swear the combination looked like a cross. Chris was having a great time with these kids. Perhaps he thinks he's a big kid. Maybe they think he's a great toy. As worried as I was that he wouldn't fit in, these kids were just as enchanted with him as everyone else who meets him. But he got along great with the kids, and had fun with the adults. It was refreshing to see all these people loving on him.
Fear Not, they said. Sometimes it was like they say, Mommy don't be afraid to see me Grow Up, I'm doing great. Plus, most importantly, Chris was not afraid.

That doesn't mean that he isn't afraid of anything. It seems odd to say it, but Chris is afraid of dogs. We've suspected it for a while, but I guess we were dwelling in disbelief because, Hello?, we have a 50 pound Boxer. How can someone who lives with a 50 pound dog be afraid of dogs? Well, Chris is. He's been known to flip out when we visit Bryn's house, she has 2 big very loving dogs, and they get so gung ho they have been known to knock Chris down. They have a rat terrier staying with them, who is littler than our cat, and he goes running from her. I just figured it was because she's tiny and yippity and he didn't like her getting in his face. It is such a sweet face, I can't blame any puppies for wanting to get into it. But, Chris has the same problem with his Nana's dogs, I just figured they don't know him well, nor he they, and they are constantly sniffing him whenever he's there. But last weekend, his Opa got a new puppy, a German Shepard named Schnitzel, and Chris was scared of her. She'd try to play with him, and she'd come bounding up to him. (Eric has long suspected that when Chris doesn't know what to do in social situations, he'll growl like a monster) When Schnitzel came up to Chris to play, Chris would turn to her and Growl, which scared her, to the point of peeing on the floor and then she'd grump right back at him. Great. Then this week Chris went to visit his friend Brett's house. Brett has 2 black lab -ish type dogs, big and black with big barks. And Chris FREAKED OUT! He was climbing up me, trying to hide behind me; at one point he climbed up into a giant chair and covered himself with a blanket, and they were behind a baby gate. Yeah, he's afraid of dogs.
I just want to say, honey, Fear Not.

Wordless Wednesday

Potty Training Stinks

Well, it's official. Chris is the last one of his friends to get potty trained. When he was born and he his colon didn't go all the way through, they mentioned to us, almost in passing, that we may have trouble with potty training. That in some worst case scenarios, it is not possible. We were all Scarlet O'Hara, not thinking about that today, we'll deal with that tomorrow. Well, tomorrow is here.
My friends say, oh no, don't worry about it until he's in Kindergarten, but I do. Last week, a couple of my friends got Serious about potty training. By the end of the week, both toddlers were in underpants, and only diapers/pull ups at night.
Last Monday, we tried using underwear, I had heard that naked time was good. He blew through all three pairs in an hour and a half. The rest of the week, whenever I asked if he wanted underwear, he said no. We tried pull-ups but he treated them just like diapers, i.e. filling them. Useless. It took me a couple days to a. do laundry, and b. find more. Finding underwear to fit someone wearing 24 month clothes is tricky. We finally settled on 2T/3T, the smallest we could find. We stocked up.
So, I got back on the bandwagon yesterday.
Statistics: 11 pairs of dirty underwear, 9 due to wetness, 10 instances of pooping in the potty, 1 diaper used at naptime, 2 shirts and 1 pair of shorts dirtied, until I gave up and just let him run wild in underwear (Hey it's summer). 3 pee spots on the carpet.
1 Exhausted Mommy. My back is So Angry. I was venting about how utterly defeated and useless I was feeling, and I got some suggestions. It's like he doesn't understand that it's coming out of him. He seems to pick up on the main idea of pooping in the potty, he definitely put more poo in the potty than in his pants yesterday, but he still gets smears in his undies. He likes wearing underwear, at least. I think it's a treat for him. It was recommended to me to hose him down with cold water when he has an accident, since he's so unphased by the whole thing. I did, the first time yesterday afternoon, and not cold, I went for lukewarm. He told me, "Fank you Mommy, for teaning me." (Thank you for cleaning me.) Darnit, he has to be sweet and polite! We were giving him bits of candy as a reward, but he was hyped up on sugar and it was recommended to stop that too. I tried cold water later, but with 80 degree temps out, cold isn't that cold. He wasn't fond of it, but he wasn't exactly tramautized either...until Daddy tried it at right before bedtime. Perhaps the thought he wasn't going to get a bath, just get hosed down instead. That'd be crummy.
We had a play date yesterday, and he was on the potty at their house for the majority of our 3 hour visit. He did make it to and from the house clean in underwear. He pooped 4 times at their house, and peed on their floor a couple times. More there than at our house. Luckily, they'd just finished up potty training last week, and it was all still new and fabulous. Not so fabulous for me.
We're trying today too. This morning, I've been taking another recommendation of putting him on the potty every so many minutes, it was recommended 20, but we're trying 15. He hasn't had any urinary incidents, just smear marks in the undies.
But we have a lunch date this morning, maybe I'll try a pull up.

Summer Begins! aka Friday Fourteen

Well, summer is here! Chris has been out of school for just over a week now. He's loving summer, I think, he really enjoys being able to play with his friends. He's down to only asking me once a day now to "ride bus", or to go to "Miss 'Aboar school". But he's really thrilled at being able to go outside and play, or play with friends. Mommy's pretty happy at being able to get outside with Chris too!

First we started off with a bang at the end of May meeting Chris's friend Emily and her quite preggers Mommy for a picnic. The kids behaved so sweetly.



Then that same night, we went to Olive Garden with Bryn and Shay and their parents. The wait was insane. The kids didn't care, they wanted to spend their time in the rock garden. Bryn is an organizer, she'd either take the rocks in or out of the plants, and Chris and Shay would do the opposite, usually throwing them.



To celebrate Emily's soon status change upgrade to big sister, we all went to Chuck E. Cheese. Chris hadn't been since his 2nd birthday, and he REALLY LOVED it! He had a lot of fun. He was too short for the steps up to the top of the slide and fun tubes, so he opted to take his socks off, and walk up the slide backwards, then play in the tubes. He's found a new spot for fun!



Emily came over in the evening last week, and the two kids took a bath together. I suppose I could post some of the more racy pictures, but this one is the most G-rated.



Last Friday we went Berry Picking with friends up at Spencer's near Noblesville. We had a lot of fun, and though the adults didn't eat their weight in strawberries, the kids did.



Chris had a great time, but Sam didn't enjoy the process. While Mommy was messing with Sam, Elizabeth worked hard at teaching Chris how to pick strawberries, rather than eating the ones that we'd already picked.



Chris ate LOTS of strawberries. After watching him for an hour with a strawberry in his hand or mouth constantly, I watched him an entire strawberry, greens and all. I have no idea how many he ate. I've NEVER seen him eat so many strawberries.



Swim lessons started last weekend. It's a big boy class where Chris goes off to the class and Mommy and Daddy sit on a bench in the sun. Not in the water with him. Felt a little weird, being so far away from him. Here he's being escorted to the class by his lifeguard teacher.



But he did well. It's hard to tell he's so far away, but they had him by the hands and he was kicking in the water. As usual, he flipped out when they tried to get him on his back. Mommy and Daddy barely manage to do it on land let alone in the water.



Our MOPS group had their annual end of the year carnival Sunday afternoon after church. And Chris had a great time! He had the most fun on the playground!



Rather than all the games, Chris loved the photo booth best.



Sometimes he's just been playing around the house. Rather than putting sand in his bucket. He's been putting it on his head. I was worried about him putting the strap around his neck, so I broke it. Didn't stop him from putting it on his head, and making deep noises (Ho Ha Ho Ha) It took us only a bit to realize he was doing his Darth Vader impression.



Chris gets to play with his friend Bryn. She came over to play and the two sat down for a little piano duet.



Today we got to enjoy the park. Chris convinced all kinds of older kids to push him in the swing, he even managed to get himself into the handicapped swing.



To the park and back again, a very full circle. Don't you just love summer?!

Potty Boy

So, we got motivated around here this week. A bit motivated anyway. My friend was talking about now that she's off for the summer, she's going to get serious about potty training, so that it's done by the time school starts up again. She was going to start this week, she called it Potty Training Boot Camp.
I felt it may be time to do something similar.

So, Monday we broke out the underwear. There were three pee-pee accidents, but I think that he'd stop peeing as soon as he started, one was floor worthy, the other two prompted him to tell me Poo Poo's coming, and ask to go potty. Our 3 pairs lasted only an hour and a half. I wished we had more underwear, unfortunately, it's hard to find it small enough to fit 24 month bottoms. He only has the 3 Bob the Builder pairs, which he loved, and you could tell he felt very bad when Bob got dirty. Now he's got to wait for that load of laundry to try again, until then he wears pull ups. Pink pull ups actually. During my non-shopping pregnancy Daddy bought a bag of pull ups, and didn't notice the red package had Dora on it, until I opened it up. Then he found the Diego pullups, so the Dora ones are used exclusively at home.

I was pretty proud that in that span of 1 1/2 hours, he pooped on the potty 4 times, then again after he was wearing a pull up in the evening for a total of 5 times in 1 day. Not too shabby!