Th winds of change.....

"You hear that?"...You hear that?...It's the winds of change..."

And...oh boy, it looks like a tornado!

Life is about to take on another great change! We're excited....we're nervous...we're just plain scared. But....ready or not, here it comes!

We have been preparing for "The Big Event" with a few minor changes around the house.

Gabe got a brand new bed...Cael got new sheets (random, I know) and Isaac inherited a "big boy bed." We wondered how Isaac would receive his new found freedom and, just like moving him in with Gabe, have been pleasantly surprised by how well he has adjusted.

I went in to check on him the other night and found him like this, with his face smashed up against the bed frame. This is a long standing, very long standing, habit for him. Since he was a month or so old, he would wiggle up to the corner of the pack n' play that he slept in and smash his face up against it as well. He has awaken several mornings with crib bar marks on his face. Old habits die hard. I guess my hip bones must have been super comforting to the little guy.

Cael took a crack at Gabe's bike this week. We lowered the seat and put the training wheels back on. He did a fantastic job and was really proud of himself. We are going to go out this week and get him one of his own. The poor kid hardly gets anything new so we are very happy to be able to do this for him.

Next week Rob and the two oldest are going out of town for a wedding. Isaac and I are going to go " all nest-y crazy!" I plan on washing all the baby clothes/blankets/etc., fixing up the corner of Cael's room that will be his "nursery" (even if he wont be sleeping in it for a short while...although the "in-room service" time gets shorter and shorter with each kid), cleaning like crazy and hanging out with my "baby" who will not be my "baby" for much longer.

tick tock, tick tock....33 days and counting.

Radiation, road rash, and burnt teriyaki

Yesterday was a particularly awesome day! (sarcasm in italics for those of you with less than sarcastic humor.)

Gabe went to the hospital for a "barium swallow" test? What's that, you ask? Well...it's a test where they expose the unsuspecting patient to a lead skirt and a radiation bath, serve them some super tasty, thick, goopy, white stuff (known as barium) in the form of a smoothie (in other words, plain...with a straw), spoon it down mixed with apple sauce, and top a yummy saltine cracker with it too. They video tape the "swallowing" action, all the way from the mouth to the stomach, in an attempt to detect any problems in the upper G.I. tract.

Luckily Gabe cooperated superbly (even though the stuff was "nasty") and it was over in 10 minutes. I, myself, got to hide behind a wall with a big glass window (both deemed "safe from radiation penetration") and was even given a lead jacket to wear "as an extra precaution." Awesome!

As far as it looked...things are okay. Any problem Gabe is having with reflux is NOT occurring as a result of a faulty swallowing mechanism. Good news but....now where do we go?


On another note, we will rewind to about an hour earlier when Issac took a tumble into the pavement. He was running across the street on his way to "Wacy's" (Lacy) house and tripped on his cool, new, rubber-toed shoes (courtesy of "Wasy's" son "Wucus" (Lucus)). I saw his knees hit the ground and still cant figure out why he didn't use his hands to brace himself but....he didn't. Bloody nose and everything. Poor guy cried and bled for a good long time. He still says "owie" when he touches his nose. I'm sure it's good and bruised.

To top it all off...while I was gone at the hospital I decided it would be a good time to air out the house after my "Monday night stir fry disaster" and ended up freezing us out instead (56 degrees when we got home, which is only accentuated with the wood floors. BRRRRR!).

You see....Monday night I attempted to cook stir fry and did a bit more frying than stirring at a temperature that was apparently a little too high. Smoke billowed....Teriyaki sauce turned to black paste....meat stuck to the bottom of the pan. It was disastrous! I can still smell it. No joke...it is embedded into every crack, crease and fabric-y think in our house. The airing out didn't do as much as I had hoped....except run up our heating bill. On the bright side, I did manage to salvage the meat. Not that it tasted very good but we ate it anyway.

Today ran a bit smoother....of course, I have yet to attempt dinner.

Here's hoping!

Oh! The joys....

4 beautiful things I saw today that brought me joy!

A blue sky ("with cotton ball clouds"...Gabe said)

Green sprouting amongst the yellow

My windows open (air...fresh air!)

My children out playing in the midst of it all (except Cael...at this point, he had already been banished inside for being naughty)

I am so glad that spring is on it's way!

Poor sad little dude!

I took Isaac to the doctor the other day. For some reason his doctor thought he should be checked for anemia. Not just a "drop of blood finger poke" test but a "test tube of blood" test. Great...just what we wanted.

We had two options...prick the finger and massage it for several, several minutes to get enough blood out (while the child trashes around and flips blood everywhere) or try to find a vein in the arm big enough to draw the blood from (a bit more traumatizing but much faster). I assured the tech that I am not one of those weepy moms that would pass out from the experience and she suggested finding a vain. I agreed. Isaac was already squirming to get out of there and I wanted the fastest solution possible.

Unfortunately, attempt #1 didn't work. He jerked as the needle was inserted and the tech lost the vein. She tried and tried to get it again but, because she was holding him with her other hand, could not feel around to find it. Ugh!

So...plan B. Finger poke/massage or try the other arm. Call me mean but after considering the options....I chose to try the other arm. The tech called in another nurse and we were much more successful that time. She finally got what she needed. Thank goodness.

The poor kid just kept asking for daddy.

We called daddy when we got out to the car and Isaac tried showing him his owies over the phone. It was cute. I took him to get a treat, "to make it all better" and he was fine. He was very proud of his war wounds and showed everyone.

After all that....I'm telling you....he better be anemic.

Cael is 4!

January 24, 2006

6 mo

1 year

2 years

3 years

4 years

Grandma G, Grandpa G, and uncle Kyle were able to join us for the party. We watched football, ate pizza, cake and ice cream, and opened presents. It was super fun!

(A little distracted by the football game...just like his daddy)

Just a silly face!

I can't believe it has been 4 year since Cael was born. After 21 hours of labor he made a very quiet and peaceful entrance into this world (hard to believe for anyone that knows him). He's quite the fire ball, very strong willed and has more energy than anyone I know. On the other hand, he's very affectionate and likes to give "loves" and kisses.

We love you buddy! Our family wouldn't be complete without you. :)