Brendan hit a big milestone today, and he did it in the most wonderfully subtle way.
Lately Brendan has been REALLY walking...no more scooting as his preferred mode of transportation, and it is so incredible to see how proud he is of his accompishments!
The milestone came this afternoon as Brendan, Jack and I were running into the Commissary to pick up a few things for dinner and it had just started to rain, so when I got the boys out of the car my natural instinct is to pick up both of them and carry them through the parking lot in order to get out of the rain. Once we got to the covered area in front of the store I put Brendan down and grabbed his hand and off we went. Then it happened. He let go. He let go and he brushed my hand away. He brushed it away again, and he walked away, all by himself.
To anyone walking by, it was a typical 3 year old wanting to do it all by himself, I don't need to hold your hand mom. To me, this was Brendan doing it all by himself, and I didn't need to hold his hand.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
R&R Recap
So many wonderful things happened while Bryan was home on leave, but mostly we had fun reconnecting, as Rory would say "Our family all back together."!
Some highlights:
*Rory was thrilled that Daddy was there for her school Christmas Program.
*We celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary together.
*Rory took Daddy to lunch at school and was able to show him off to all her friends.
*We got a new car! I am finally a member of the minivan parade, and for all of the times that I swore I was NEVER going to be that mom, I can't tell you how much it has improved the quality of life in our family!
*We surprised the kids with a super fun mini family vacation at Great Wolf Lodge. It's still hard to tell who had the most fun, us or the kids!
*Christmas together as a family. Rory was beyond excited for this because Daddy not being home for Christmas was a huge thing for her, and she had a really hard time dealing with that, thankfully it was not her reality..he was here! She told us the day after Bryan came home that "I knew the Army was going to send him home for Christmas! Well, at least I hoped that they would, and they did!"
*Bryan took Rory for her first venture ice skating, and I'm afraid it's her last for a while. Poor Bryan was heartbroken when after she fell 2 seconds after she stepped on the ice, she went into a hysterical fit and declared "I don't ever want to ice skate again!" Poor Bryan, you would think that the Bruins just lost the Stanley Cup in triple overtime. Hopefully next year will be better!
*We visited a house all decked out for the holidays, and Rory was wondering when we were going to do the same thing at our house....hmmm....
*We prepared to ring in the New Year with a trip out for Chinese food, and of course our little celebration!
Then it was time to bottle all of those wonderful memories so that we can pull them out when we are missing Daddy, and then start planning for when he is home for good!
Some highlights:
*Rory was thrilled that Daddy was there for her school Christmas Program.
*We celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary together.
*Rory took Daddy to lunch at school and was able to show him off to all her friends.
*We got a new car! I am finally a member of the minivan parade, and for all of the times that I swore I was NEVER going to be that mom, I can't tell you how much it has improved the quality of life in our family!
*We surprised the kids with a super fun mini family vacation at Great Wolf Lodge. It's still hard to tell who had the most fun, us or the kids!
*Christmas together as a family. Rory was beyond excited for this because Daddy not being home for Christmas was a huge thing for her, and she had a really hard time dealing with that, thankfully it was not her reality..he was here! She told us the day after Bryan came home that "I knew the Army was going to send him home for Christmas! Well, at least I hoped that they would, and they did!"
*Bryan took Rory for her first venture ice skating, and I'm afraid it's her last for a while. Poor Bryan was heartbroken when after she fell 2 seconds after she stepped on the ice, she went into a hysterical fit and declared "I don't ever want to ice skate again!" Poor Bryan, you would think that the Bruins just lost the Stanley Cup in triple overtime. Hopefully next year will be better!
*We visited a house all decked out for the holidays, and Rory was wondering when we were going to do the same thing at our house....hmmm....
*We prepared to ring in the New Year with a trip out for Chinese food, and of course our little celebration!
Then it was time to bottle all of those wonderful memories so that we can pull them out when we are missing Daddy, and then start planning for when he is home for good!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
The big surprise reveal!!!
The time had finally come, and all the pieces were falling into place for the big Christmas surprise! Bryan was coming home!!!!
We had known for a little bit that Bryan would be in Washington, DC for 10 days with his bosses for meetings to update everyone on how things were progressing in their neck of the woods. We didn't know if he was really going to be able to come home for Christmas from there. I never breathed a word of the possibility to Rory, because if it never happened I didn't have any idea how I was going to pick up the pieces of a very crushed little girl. Poor Rory has been having a hard time with Daddy gone, there are more good days than bad days, but the bad days are pretty bad. She couldn't get past the fact that when Daddy left in August that he wouldn't be home for Christmas, I remember the look on her little face the day before Bryan left and he had to answer her question about when he was coming home. Just breaks your heart.
Now, the day was here! Brendan and I were home from the tube surgery, he was cranky, uncomfortable, and only resting in my arms. Jack was being Jack and having fun! Mom had gone to pick Rory up from school, and as soon as they pulled in the driveway I picked up the phone and called Bryan to tell him to come home! (He had been at his brother Kevins house down the street since Kevin was able to get him from the airport.) Rory came home, Ann and Dave picked up and left just as our well choreographed plan had called for.
Rory and I were at the kitchen table doing her homework, as we did everyday, when I saw the car pull into the driveway, and the butterflies starting doing loops in my stomach. This is what happened..
Things I will never forget from this moment...
The poor look of utter confusion on Jack's face when he's trying to decipher who is Daddy and who is Uncle Kevin, and then him running to the refrigerator to look at the pictures of Daddy, then he comes back and it's all better!
Rory's quotes: "Our family is back together!" "It feels like a dream, but I know it isn't"
Brendan coming out of the post anesthia haze and tackling Bryan on the living room floor.
I always get a lump in my throat and crazy butterflies in my stomach when he comes home...I love him so much and was so happy to be back in his arms.
We had known for a little bit that Bryan would be in Washington, DC for 10 days with his bosses for meetings to update everyone on how things were progressing in their neck of the woods. We didn't know if he was really going to be able to come home for Christmas from there. I never breathed a word of the possibility to Rory, because if it never happened I didn't have any idea how I was going to pick up the pieces of a very crushed little girl. Poor Rory has been having a hard time with Daddy gone, there are more good days than bad days, but the bad days are pretty bad. She couldn't get past the fact that when Daddy left in August that he wouldn't be home for Christmas, I remember the look on her little face the day before Bryan left and he had to answer her question about when he was coming home. Just breaks your heart.
Now, the day was here! Brendan and I were home from the tube surgery, he was cranky, uncomfortable, and only resting in my arms. Jack was being Jack and having fun! Mom had gone to pick Rory up from school, and as soon as they pulled in the driveway I picked up the phone and called Bryan to tell him to come home! (He had been at his brother Kevins house down the street since Kevin was able to get him from the airport.) Rory came home, Ann and Dave picked up and left just as our well choreographed plan had called for.
Rory and I were at the kitchen table doing her homework, as we did everyday, when I saw the car pull into the driveway, and the butterflies starting doing loops in my stomach. This is what happened..
Things I will never forget from this moment...
The poor look of utter confusion on Jack's face when he's trying to decipher who is Daddy and who is Uncle Kevin, and then him running to the refrigerator to look at the pictures of Daddy, then he comes back and it's all better!
Rory's quotes: "Our family is back together!" "It feels like a dream, but I know it isn't"
Brendan coming out of the post anesthia haze and tackling Bryan on the living room floor.
I always get a lump in my throat and crazy butterflies in my stomach when he comes home...I love him so much and was so happy to be back in his arms.
Monday, December 27, 2010
What a day...
..what an incredible day...one for the record books!
This day, Thursday December 16, 2010 began at about 4:30 for me. This was the day that Brendan was to have his second set of ear tubes put in, and his adenoids taken out. His surgery was scheduled at 7am, which meant that we had to be there by 6am, and the hospital is about an hour away, so it was a very early morning! Luckily my parents were out visiting, so they were going to take care of getting Rory to school and keeping Jack entertained....that's a BIG job!
I woke Brendan up, well I wouldn't really say I woke him up, as much as I picked him up from his bed. This child was not at all interested in what was coming his way, and he was going to be less than thrilled that there was no breakfast involved either! We did a quick diaper change, got his jacket in, strapped in the car seat, and off we went!
We arrived right on time, when does that ever happen?? We did all the check in that we needed to, and then were called back to the pre op area. They were nice enough to let Brendan stay in his feety pajamas...and doesn't he look nice and comfy..
I was really hoping that this surgery was going to go as well as it did when he had his first set of tubes in 2 years ago, but I was preparing myself for the fact that it might not.
After all the pre-op work was done and all the questions were answered, we made that walk once again. I know that it was just a set of ear tubes and the removal of adenoids, not even close to hear surgery, but I still hate the walk. It's the walk to the operating room doors, where I have to kiss him goodbye and hand him over. It still makes my stomach drop....
About 30 minutes later, Dr. Christensen came out to the waiting room to talk to me. With a very reassuring smile on his face he told me that everything went well, but there were a few surprises...uh oh. First of all, one of Brendan's ear drums had burst from his last ear infection and it had failed to heal, and it didn't appear that it was going to heal, but that was a good thing in Brendan's case..no need for a tube there. In the other ear, the tube went in just fine, but it turned out that he had a severe ear infection in that ear. Nice, nothing like that news to make you feel like a horrible mother! He also said that his adenoids were really swollen so it was a good thing that they came out!
I was able to go back and be with him about 20 minutes after the surgery, and he was one very unhappy kiddo. I just held and rocked him and tried to make him feel better, but it just didn't seem to be working, until one of the nurses brought out a TV and put in a Dora video. The tears stopped almost immediately! tell me that Dora isn't magic!
About one hour after that we were on our way home...and what a surprise would be coming to our door later!
This day, Thursday December 16, 2010 began at about 4:30 for me. This was the day that Brendan was to have his second set of ear tubes put in, and his adenoids taken out. His surgery was scheduled at 7am, which meant that we had to be there by 6am, and the hospital is about an hour away, so it was a very early morning! Luckily my parents were out visiting, so they were going to take care of getting Rory to school and keeping Jack entertained....that's a BIG job!
I woke Brendan up, well I wouldn't really say I woke him up, as much as I picked him up from his bed. This child was not at all interested in what was coming his way, and he was going to be less than thrilled that there was no breakfast involved either! We did a quick diaper change, got his jacket in, strapped in the car seat, and off we went!
We arrived right on time, when does that ever happen?? We did all the check in that we needed to, and then were called back to the pre op area. They were nice enough to let Brendan stay in his feety pajamas...and doesn't he look nice and comfy..
I was really hoping that this surgery was going to go as well as it did when he had his first set of tubes in 2 years ago, but I was preparing myself for the fact that it might not.
After all the pre-op work was done and all the questions were answered, we made that walk once again. I know that it was just a set of ear tubes and the removal of adenoids, not even close to hear surgery, but I still hate the walk. It's the walk to the operating room doors, where I have to kiss him goodbye and hand him over. It still makes my stomach drop....
About 30 minutes later, Dr. Christensen came out to the waiting room to talk to me. With a very reassuring smile on his face he told me that everything went well, but there were a few surprises...uh oh. First of all, one of Brendan's ear drums had burst from his last ear infection and it had failed to heal, and it didn't appear that it was going to heal, but that was a good thing in Brendan's case..no need for a tube there. In the other ear, the tube went in just fine, but it turned out that he had a severe ear infection in that ear. Nice, nothing like that news to make you feel like a horrible mother! He also said that his adenoids were really swollen so it was a good thing that they came out!
I was able to go back and be with him about 20 minutes after the surgery, and he was one very unhappy kiddo. I just held and rocked him and tried to make him feel better, but it just didn't seem to be working, until one of the nurses brought out a TV and put in a Dora video. The tears stopped almost immediately! tell me that Dora isn't magic!
About one hour after that we were on our way home...and what a surprise would be coming to our door later!
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
God gives you an extra chromosome....
...and he takes away 2 teeth?? That's right...well at least in Brendan's case!
I took the kids to the dentist for the regular 6 month check up, that alone was exciting! Let me just tell you how much I love the kids dentist and how much I'm going to miss them when we finally have to move! First, the office staff is awesome, they are always so nice even if all they heard were your kids screaming! Also, they have the coolest waiting area, there are toys for the little kids, and video games for the bigger kids! Then when it's finally time to get into the chair, there is a TV in the ceiling, they let you watch what you want, and they give the kids sunglasses and ear phones! No wonder why Rory does a song a dance whenever I tell her we are going there!
Anyway, back to the teeth! One of the many treasures of down syndrome is that it does funny things to your teeth! A lot of kids with down syndrome may get their teeth really late, and one reason is because they might have really thick gums which makes it harder for the teeth the break through...let me introduce you to Brendan! Brendan's first tooth finally broke through while I was in the hospital after having Jack, so that would mean that Brendan was 14 1/2 months old. I realize that's not terribly late, but it's still late. Then when his teeth finally started coming in, it was in a very irregular pattern, not your typical 2 front bottom teeth, then 2 front top teeth, his were all over! The good news was that they were coming in, and the pattern didn't really matter. Until our recent visit....
Dr. Kittle took an x-ray of Brendan since his 2 incisor teeth on the bottom still had not come in and he didn't feel them coming in either. Let me tell you, the taking of the x-ray was a scream to behold! Brendan even made Jack cry because Jack was so worried that Brendan was crying! It was done and over in 20 seconds...and there was the picture....
Okay, so that's not the x-ray, but you can kind of see where he is missing at least one of the teeth..and with good reason, it's just not there! No baby teeth to come in, and no permanent teeth that Dr. Kittle could see either. I was slightly panicked until he said "All this means is that he'll have more room on the bottom and his orthodontic bill won't be too bad!" Gotta love a that little dose of humor!!
Rory and Jack did fairly well, Jack was a typical 2 year old, didn't want to be held down and didn't want someone looking in his mouth without leaving any food behind! Rory was ready to go all by herself into her chair while I was with the boys during their visit with Dr. Kittle in a room in the back, but don't worry it had glass doors and I could still see Rory out in her chair!
I love that the kids all got two thumbs up on the brushing and we are good to go for another 6 months!!
I took the kids to the dentist for the regular 6 month check up, that alone was exciting! Let me just tell you how much I love the kids dentist and how much I'm going to miss them when we finally have to move! First, the office staff is awesome, they are always so nice even if all they heard were your kids screaming! Also, they have the coolest waiting area, there are toys for the little kids, and video games for the bigger kids! Then when it's finally time to get into the chair, there is a TV in the ceiling, they let you watch what you want, and they give the kids sunglasses and ear phones! No wonder why Rory does a song a dance whenever I tell her we are going there!
Anyway, back to the teeth! One of the many treasures of down syndrome is that it does funny things to your teeth! A lot of kids with down syndrome may get their teeth really late, and one reason is because they might have really thick gums which makes it harder for the teeth the break through...let me introduce you to Brendan! Brendan's first tooth finally broke through while I was in the hospital after having Jack, so that would mean that Brendan was 14 1/2 months old. I realize that's not terribly late, but it's still late. Then when his teeth finally started coming in, it was in a very irregular pattern, not your typical 2 front bottom teeth, then 2 front top teeth, his were all over! The good news was that they were coming in, and the pattern didn't really matter. Until our recent visit....
Dr. Kittle took an x-ray of Brendan since his 2 incisor teeth on the bottom still had not come in and he didn't feel them coming in either. Let me tell you, the taking of the x-ray was a scream to behold! Brendan even made Jack cry because Jack was so worried that Brendan was crying! It was done and over in 20 seconds...and there was the picture....
Rory and Jack did fairly well, Jack was a typical 2 year old, didn't want to be held down and didn't want someone looking in his mouth without leaving any food behind! Rory was ready to go all by herself into her chair while I was with the boys during their visit with Dr. Kittle in a room in the back, but don't worry it had glass doors and I could still see Rory out in her chair!
I love that the kids all got two thumbs up on the brushing and we are good to go for another 6 months!!
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Thanksgiving....The Recap..
Our Thanksgiving morning started at 5:45, courtesy of Jack's wake up, 15 minutes earlier than usual. The clock had started and so had we! I had finished the pumpkin pie, the butterhorns and the apple pie on Wednesday night, and I still have no idea how I got all that done! I started making the stuffing at 6am while Jack was very interested in some show on Disney with a lamb..
Wednesday morning I had decided that it would be fun to invite our neighbors overs to watch the Macy's parade and to play parade Bingo! I know, it's a little odd, but it's fun to have the kids run around and have fun and tucker themselves out a little bit! 9am, the parade starts, the neighbors arrive, and the Bingo has started! They were all so cute with their cards and crayons...watching intently, and then running around when the commercials came on!
After parade Bingo, Rory was invited over to play at the neighbors and Brendan and Jack went in for a nap! Quiet house, turkey was in the over, table was already set...what is a girl to do! Well, the time went very quickly, 2pm arrived, our neighbors (who do have names by the way, Molly & Ryan and their children Audrey and Ben!) arrived, Jack was up, Brendan was waking up, the Turkey was out and resting, the gravy was thickening, stuffing and sweet potatoes were warming in the oven...this is good! Time to sit down, say grace and eat our meal!
The kids were so good, they ate, well not that much, but Brendan and Jack sure did clean up and went back for seconds! Rory just kept asking, "Can I have dessert now?" That girl knows the best part of Thanksgiving! Finally it was time for dessert, the table had been cleared, the dishes almost all done, so that meant it was time to bust out the pies! Apple Pie, Pumkpin Pie, Cranberry Pecan pie, cookies, ice cream and whip cream! I won't tell you how much they ate for dessert, but you can guess!
All in all, it was a wonderful day, especially since we were able to Skype with Bryan in the morning, after he had had his Turkey dinner! We missed him being here, and he missed being here, but we look forward to doing it all again once he gets home for leave!
Wednesday morning I had decided that it would be fun to invite our neighbors overs to watch the Macy's parade and to play parade Bingo! I know, it's a little odd, but it's fun to have the kids run around and have fun and tucker themselves out a little bit! 9am, the parade starts, the neighbors arrive, and the Bingo has started! They were all so cute with their cards and crayons...watching intently, and then running around when the commercials came on!
All in all, it was a wonderful day, especially since we were able to Skype with Bryan in the morning, after he had had his Turkey dinner! We missed him being here, and he missed being here, but we look forward to doing it all again once he gets home for leave!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Out of the mouth of babes...
On this day to give thanks, I have to give thanks to my dear Rory for the quote of the day. "Mama, I love Thanksgiving, it's a day when God tells us how thankful he is for what we do." I said "I think it's the other way around" Rory, "That's what I said."
You know, I think she may have something there. Maybe it isn't just about giving God and others our Thanks for what they have done, but maybe God is thanking us for what we do with what he gives us. Just something to think about.
We had a great day today, and I'll write all about it tomorrow....I'm hoping to go to bed soon...the remainder of the dishes can wait...
You know, I think she may have something there. Maybe it isn't just about giving God and others our Thanks for what they have done, but maybe God is thanking us for what we do with what he gives us. Just something to think about.
We had a great day today, and I'll write all about it tomorrow....I'm hoping to go to bed soon...the remainder of the dishes can wait...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
