I was listening to a radio show today....Bob and Sheri out of Charlotte NC. Sheri was discussing how her daughters waste food and sometimes destroy new toys in 30 seconds without any regard to how wasteful that is. And it got me thinking. I remember Christmas as being a wonderful time. The excitement of decorating the tree. Checking all the strands of lights with my Dad. The anticipation of Santa's visit. In my little kid mind the living room was filled to the brim with toys on Christmas morning. But looking back I realize my parents did a wonderful job with very little. When I wanted a life sized Wendy Doll I got a child size mannequin from a store that went out of business. When I wanted a hard to find and afford Cabbage Patch doll I got a home made adoption doll instead. I still have her in my room to this day. Most of my Barbie clothes were handmade by my mom but looking at them now they are more beautiful than any of the store bought Barbie clothes. But back then I wasn't always grateful when I didn't get what the other kids got. I didn't really realize how lucky I was.
I have been Christmas/birthday shopping for Alex. Its difficult because I want him to have lots of fun things to open. But he already has so much that he doesn't play with.I want him to have everything he wants and everything I had. But I don't want him to be spoiled and take things for granted.
The thing he plays with most of all is my old wooden blocks. I don't even have the full set anymore. They have groves on the top and bottom that helps when building tall towers.

Hold the Benadryl please

Wow we have had a few nightmare-ish nights with Alex. First let me point out that Alex has taken Benadryl plenty of times in the past without any reaction. He seems to have our allergies...oddly so does Lizzie the cat. We have all felt the onset of Ragweed. But Byron and Alex also seemed to have shared a cold. On the day of his 18 month (a little late) well check he woke up sick. I asked about giving him Benadryl to help with the symptoms and was given the okay. So for several nights I gave him a dose before bedtime. And for several nights he did not sleep. Put him down and an hour later he was up. Try again and repeat. So I snuggled in the guest bed with him thinking he needed a little extra comfort. Not only did he root me to the very edge of the bed he popped up awake every time I moved. Then about 3 or 4 am he decided it was time to play. I was becoming a zombie but he was full of energy at daycare. So last night we skipped the Benadryl and he stayed asleep all night. I can't express how much we all needed that sleep.

At the well check he was 29 lb, 35 inches high...75-80% in weight and 95% in height. Everything looked good except his vitamin D levels. So we were instructed to give him Vitamin D3 tablet every day. Poor little guy also got 4 shots.

We took him to the fair on Saturday. He loved the goats. He also got to see a camel, turtles, wallaby, emu, parrots, lamas, baby cows and big cows, horses, mules, donkey, and pigs. He even made piggy noises at the pigs.

He rode the pony but wasn't at all sure he liked it. Oh we also saw the chickens and the bunnies. And he rode the merry go round twice. Once so I could take pictures and again so I could record. Which of course made me car sick both times :-)

He refused the funnel cake and the cotton candy.

Alex likes to close doors. And he likes to close the bathroom door and close himself inside. Since he doesn't know how to turn the door knob he ends up alone in the dark. But he doesn't get scared. He just knocks on the door until I come and open it. Then more times than not he closes it in my face so he can knock again.

Hot Summer Days and nights

Last week Alex's sitter was on vacation so he had some backup sitters. He had a great time but I think he really missed his sitter and was happy to fall back into his daily routine.

Alex loves being outside no matter how hot it is. It is a common fight to keep him indoors lately with the temps to high. And Saturday evening out AC went out making it almost as hot inside as out. Luckily my dad knew someone with the part we needed at 10 O'clock at night. I can not express how grateful I was to feel the cool air once again. I don't know how Alex managed to fall asleep.

Sunday we went swimming in the above ground pool at my parents. I love my old pool and wish it was closer so I could enjoy it more than on the weekends. This pool is 25 years old and I know every year could be its last. Since it is a big pool I set up a little wading pool for Alex no the ground beside the big pool. Again since it is an above ground pool there was no way for him to fall it. The only way in is from the deck with has a locking gate. In all the years I have enjoyed the pool I have never know the water to be as warm as it was yesterday. 92 degrees!!

So for a while Alex played in the baby pool. Since we keep his pool put up when not in use I had to fill it and he loved playing with the water hose as the water flowed. He splashed himself in the face with the hose several times before he figured out how to aim it. Hopefully the ear plugs did their job.

Then he got in the big pool with us. The dolphin toy he was afraid of is now his dolphin toy. He is just about to outgrow his little boat float. And he had a ball. I hope his ears clear up after these tubes fall out and I hope he will not need them again. I would love to see him take swimming lessons next year.

And speaking of ears he was his post op appointment tomorrow. I hope we have good news.

Doodlebug Doodle bug are you at home

When I was a kid we did not have cable tv. We had a couple of Atari games thanks to our cat who won the Purina Cat Chow Calendar contest. But those games have always kind of bored me. And living in the country I didn't really have any neighbors my age to play with. So I spent a lot of time outside exploring. One of my favorite things was Doodlebugs aka Antlions. In their larva state they make cone shaped sand traps. The goal was to trap ants and other small insects for food. I would take a small twig and stir the center of the trap and sing "Doodlebug Doodle bug are you at home?" When I stirred one up I would hold him and let him scoot around in my hand for a minute before putting him back in the trap and watching him scoot behind first back into the sand. Then can slip into the sand so quickly.

Most of the time Alex sleeps in his crib in his room. We also have a guest bed in there that will one day be his. It has my old mattress which is so very comfortable. So sometimes when Alex is having a hard time sleeping I will put him in the guest bed and sleep with him. One night recently he was teething and needed so extra comfort so I crawled into the guest bed with him. The next morning I hoped to ease out of the bed and make a quick dash to the bathroom before waking him up. He looked sound asleep. But the instance I sat up he started scooting behind first towards the edge of the bed beside me. And my mind flashed to that song "Doodlebug Doodlebug are you at home" He was barely awake but he was scooting towards freedom with the speed of a doodlebug.

One week after tubes

Alex has said a ton of new words and his balance has improved. The downside is the no water in the ears rule. This means ear putty at bath time and he hates it. It is a fight every time to get the putty in and sometimes it takes several attempts because as you put it in the second ear he is pulling it out of the first ear.

This week the sitter is on vacation so we are using other friends to fill in. I realize now how lucky we are to have a sitter so close to our home.

Next week we have his post-op appointment with the ENT. As well as a trip to the lab for blood work. I recently found out that for his 18 month well check the doctor requires blood work. We have to take him to the lab before his well check up. Since its in the same building as his ENT we will just combine it all in one visit.

And we have tubes

Yesterday was the day of surgery. It was a very early morning for us all but Alex took it in stride. Barefoot and in jammies he took his spot at the front of the line in the waiting room. I was fine in the waiting room but once we moved to the pre-op area I was fighting hard not to cry. I really didn't want to do anything that might scare Alex.
Alex was watching everyone and everything with an intense look. He was really more curious than anything. I thought handing him over to the nurses would be the most difficult part but it wasn't. Sitting in recovery and waiting for him to wake up was the worst. Every minute seemed to last a lifetime.
When he did wake up he was only upset for a minute. Once we gave him some juice he settled into drinking and watching. And before long he was playing with his toys and wanting to get down and move.
The event didn't seem to hamper his appetite any but he was a little fussy. But with teething pain on top of everything else it was to be expected. He did say 3 new words and made 2 new animal sounds. He also started walking on his tip toes. I am not sure if he is copying his cousin or if it is a balance issue. And by bedtime he looked like he had been attacked by an octopus due to the monitor patches. At first I thought it might be a mild latex allergy but the nurse said the patches were latex free. So its just his skin being sensitive to the adhesive.
He also woke up with a low grade fever today but I blame it on the teeth. Poor little guy has been chewing on his finger and drooling like mad.

Today he went to Deeda's wearing a shirt that said "Whatever it is I didn't do it". And his friend Bryce was there for a visit so that should make for a good day.

Days of tears

Poor little guy is working hard on those stomach teeth. I have now seen 3 out of 4 poking through. But all the work and discomfort have made him a grumpy little guy. The last couple of days everything seems to make him cry. At least I think its just the teeth but it could be him gearing up for the "terrible" twos.

We didn't get out of the front door quick enough for him this morning so he started to cry. But by the time we reached Deeda's house he was all better. I walked him in the door and off he went running back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, around the recliner and back to the kitchen. I think he did at least half a dozen laps before I left. She only had 2 other children this morning...an older kid and a baby. Both were asleep but Alex was ready to run.