It's been a busy Fall and Winter at our house. The big news is I'm pregnant! We are expecting another son in March and we're all excited. I think Seamus was more excited earlier and just wishes it would be over already. When I ask him to come feel the baby kick, he rolls his eyes and says "Mommy, I don't need to feel the baby again." Mommy also wishes it would be over soon. This is hard work for a "mature" lady like me.
Seamus was sick the entire month of November. He started the month with an endoscopy because an x-ray showed a piece of his old g-j tube stuck in his stomach. They went in to remove it but then couldn't find it. However, the breathing tube used for anesthesia seemed to stir up gunk in his lungs because two days later he ended up in the ER with pneumonia. He stayed for a week and then went home on IV antibiotics for another two weeks. After that, he still wasn't better and has been on oral antibiotics hoping to finally kick his cough that he's had since July. He finishes on Christmas Day and hopefully he can get a Christmas miracle and have it be gone for good.
He's been enjoying school a lot this year. He's a big Kindergartner and is really learning a lot. He told me today he can't wait for Christmas break to be over so he can go back to school. We're having a very difficult time trying to find a school for him next year. His current school is just Pre-K and K. Our local elementary school has class sizes of 30-35 which would definitely not work for him because of all the germs.
He's still taking dance class, tap and ballet, and even though he's not the most coordinated, he still loves it. And of course, he still spends hours each day drawing and cutting his "paper dudes". I think art is going to be his thing.
Seamus is very excited about Christmas but I think he's catching on about Santa. He keeps talking about how the Santa he saw this year didn't look like the one from previous years. He's too smart for his own good. Yesterday, he ran around the house and collected all the tissue boxes and drew family portraits on all of them. Then he wrapped them up for Christmas presents and said "Now when they blow their nose, they can look at pictures of their family." He's very thoughtful.
Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
I'm back
I'm just going to pretend it hasn't been two months since I last posted and start the New Year off right.
Our holidays were very nice. We went down to North Carolina and saw lots of people. We saw my brother and his family who we haven't seen in more than a year. Seamus adores his cousins, Alex and Cassidy. We celebrated Christmas and Alex's birthday the week before actual Christmas day. We spent some time with James' sister Carol too whom we hadn't seen in a long time.
We visited with our old friends Trish and Joe and their kids. They are much older than Seamus but are they were so nice to play with him for hours. At the end of the day, he send "Mommy, this is a great play date!"
Santa was nice to Seamus. The big present was Pluto (guess who named him?), our new doggie. He's the sweetest thing but he came with a long list of unexpected ailments: heartworms, kennel cough, vomiting, and enlarged prostate. We're working on getting him better.
Uncle Rick came to help us celebrate New Years. Seamus always loves to see him. We spent New Years Eve playing the Dr Seuss ABC Stretching Game, which is like Twister for little folks, even though most of us are not so little. And of course, we made hats which is the tradition in our house for any special occasion.
Seamus' newest obsession is Shrek. He asked for Shrek toys for Christmas but Santa had a very hard time finding any so instead he got the first two Shrek movies. We've discovered Seamus is a very good impersonator. He does a mean Shrek walking around the house saying "dawn-kay" and you've never heard anything as cute as "Jingle Bells" in a little Scottish accent.
Our newest hobby is drawing and cutting out all kinds of paper "dudes". We've made hundreds, everyone from Santa to Buzz Lightyear to all the kids in his class. There is a whole sub-genre of super heroes like Super Sponge Bob, Party Man (whose super power is throwing great parties), and even Super Pillsbury Dough Boy. Today, we made Dancing Man, whose ability is to change bad guys into dancers and Bow Bear who is a bear but can change into a bee and turns bad guys into logs when she stings them.
Reading is going really well. He's picking up lots of words and is starting working on writing his letters. We still do words-of-the-day and his vocabulary is pretty impressive, if I say so myself. We were playing a game the other day that I found frustrating and I said "This is maddening". Later that night he was getting annoyed with something and told me it was "bald on the head, that means frustrating Mommy."
He started taking a tap/ballet class. He's the only boy with 14 girls but he doesn't seem to mind. Some days I can tell it takes a lot out of him but he has fun.
His health has been relatively good. We've been really lucky respiratory-wise, no bad colds to speak of but he's gone back and forth a lot to the GI doc and had another scope. Even though he's in pain, they couldn't find anything new so he's still on the same regimen. Everyday it's a struggle with pooping and we know it can't go on like this. It shouldn't have to always hurt and you can't imagine how hard it is to have nothing comforting to say when he says "It hurts Mommy."
I have lots of pictures which I'll update soon, I promise.
Our holidays were very nice. We went down to North Carolina and saw lots of people. We saw my brother and his family who we haven't seen in more than a year. Seamus adores his cousins, Alex and Cassidy. We celebrated Christmas and Alex's birthday the week before actual Christmas day. We spent some time with James' sister Carol too whom we hadn't seen in a long time.
We visited with our old friends Trish and Joe and their kids. They are much older than Seamus but are they were so nice to play with him for hours. At the end of the day, he send "Mommy, this is a great play date!"
Santa was nice to Seamus. The big present was Pluto (guess who named him?), our new doggie. He's the sweetest thing but he came with a long list of unexpected ailments: heartworms, kennel cough, vomiting, and enlarged prostate. We're working on getting him better.
Uncle Rick came to help us celebrate New Years. Seamus always loves to see him. We spent New Years Eve playing the Dr Seuss ABC Stretching Game, which is like Twister for little folks, even though most of us are not so little. And of course, we made hats which is the tradition in our house for any special occasion.
Seamus' newest obsession is Shrek. He asked for Shrek toys for Christmas but Santa had a very hard time finding any so instead he got the first two Shrek movies. We've discovered Seamus is a very good impersonator. He does a mean Shrek walking around the house saying "dawn-kay" and you've never heard anything as cute as "Jingle Bells" in a little Scottish accent.
Our newest hobby is drawing and cutting out all kinds of paper "dudes". We've made hundreds, everyone from Santa to Buzz Lightyear to all the kids in his class. There is a whole sub-genre of super heroes like Super Sponge Bob, Party Man (whose super power is throwing great parties), and even Super Pillsbury Dough Boy. Today, we made Dancing Man, whose ability is to change bad guys into dancers and Bow Bear who is a bear but can change into a bee and turns bad guys into logs when she stings them.
Reading is going really well. He's picking up lots of words and is starting working on writing his letters. We still do words-of-the-day and his vocabulary is pretty impressive, if I say so myself. We were playing a game the other day that I found frustrating and I said "This is maddening". Later that night he was getting annoyed with something and told me it was "bald on the head, that means frustrating Mommy."
He started taking a tap/ballet class. He's the only boy with 14 girls but he doesn't seem to mind. Some days I can tell it takes a lot out of him but he has fun.
His health has been relatively good. We've been really lucky respiratory-wise, no bad colds to speak of but he's gone back and forth a lot to the GI doc and had another scope. Even though he's in pain, they couldn't find anything new so he's still on the same regimen. Everyday it's a struggle with pooping and we know it can't go on like this. It shouldn't have to always hurt and you can't imagine how hard it is to have nothing comforting to say when he says "It hurts Mommy."
I have lots of pictures which I'll update soon, I promise.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Long time
Well, I've let it go too long again.
Seamus had a nice birthday party, even though it got rained out. Somehow we crammed 16 little kids with parents and siblings into our house and still had a good time. It was Spiderman themed so he had a Spiderman decorations, Spiderman Pinata, Pin the Sticker on the Spiderman Game, and of course a yummy Spiderman cake made by his Aunt Meghan. The kids all made super hero masks and had to pick out a super hero name for themselves. Seamus was "Doggie Man."
My birthday was the next week and we had a nice weekend again. Seamus has become obsessed with Toy Story so we went to the 3-D double feature of Toy Story Parts 1 and 2. In that last few months, I've seen both those movies at least 20 times each so having to sit through a marathon was pretty rough, but Seamus loved it. We came home and the first thing he wanted to do was watch Part 2 again. He got Woody and Buzz dolls for his birthday, and he is truly never without them.
He had a pretty rough week after that, GI-wise. He had about 2 good weeks after his hospitalization before the same old symptoms came back. He had x-rays last Friday which showed lots of gas but supposedly not too much stool. Since he's complaining about pain again (it hurts like wood again, no more soft pillows), his doc put him back on the suppositories. It it the worst torture for him but he knows they help. Even while he's sobbing when we do it, he says through the tears "that's better, that's better." He is still not eating or pooping much and his stoma around his feeding tube is leaking which I don't think could be related to rectal ulcers so I think we'll be returning to the doc soon.
I meant to write this story down weeks ago so I wouldn't forget it. For a few days in a row, I could not get the theme song from "The Imagination Movers" out of my head. It was making me crazy. Seamus was trying to help me and said "Why don't you draw a picture of the song so then it will get out of your head and onto the paper?" I thought that was a pretty clever idea.
Seamus had a nice birthday party, even though it got rained out. Somehow we crammed 16 little kids with parents and siblings into our house and still had a good time. It was Spiderman themed so he had a Spiderman decorations, Spiderman Pinata, Pin the Sticker on the Spiderman Game, and of course a yummy Spiderman cake made by his Aunt Meghan. The kids all made super hero masks and had to pick out a super hero name for themselves. Seamus was "Doggie Man."
My birthday was the next week and we had a nice weekend again. Seamus has become obsessed with Toy Story so we went to the 3-D double feature of Toy Story Parts 1 and 2. In that last few months, I've seen both those movies at least 20 times each so having to sit through a marathon was pretty rough, but Seamus loved it. We came home and the first thing he wanted to do was watch Part 2 again. He got Woody and Buzz dolls for his birthday, and he is truly never without them.
He had a pretty rough week after that, GI-wise. He had about 2 good weeks after his hospitalization before the same old symptoms came back. He had x-rays last Friday which showed lots of gas but supposedly not too much stool. Since he's complaining about pain again (it hurts like wood again, no more soft pillows), his doc put him back on the suppositories. It it the worst torture for him but he knows they help. Even while he's sobbing when we do it, he says through the tears "that's better, that's better." He is still not eating or pooping much and his stoma around his feeding tube is leaking which I don't think could be related to rectal ulcers so I think we'll be returning to the doc soon.
I meant to write this story down weeks ago so I wouldn't forget it. For a few days in a row, I could not get the theme song from "The Imagination Movers" out of my head. It was making me crazy. Seamus was trying to help me and said "Why don't you draw a picture of the song so then it will get out of your head and onto the paper?" I thought that was a pretty clever idea.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Happy Birthday #4
My Darling Seamus,
Today you turn four, such a big boy! Sometimes I think the time has flown by but when I think back to all you have gone through, I can hardly believe it has fit into four little years.
This year has been another eventful one. You have learned so much and have matured in so many ways. Everyday you show us, beyond our wildest imaginations, how brave and strong you are. On days that I do not feel very brave or very strong, you are my inspiration to keep fighting even when it seems impossible.
This year you have made leaps in your education. You have mastered letters and numbers and are taking the first steps in reading. Your imagination and curiosity are immense and everyday you pick a new "word of the day" about something you're interested in.
You continue to be the most empathetic child I've ever known. Whether it's comforting Ga or stoppping to help the kids at soccer class who have fallen, you are always thinking about how others feel.
This is one of our favorite verses from one of our favorite books:
"If you'd never been born, well what would you be?
You might be a fish! Or a toad in a tree!
You might be a door knob! Or three baked potatoes!
You might be a bag full of hard green tomatoes!
Or worse than all that... why, you might be a
WASN'T!
A Wasn't has no fun at all. No, he doesn't.
A Wasn't just isn't. He just isn't present.
But you... you ARE YOU! And now, isn't that pleasant!"
-- Dr. Seuss, from Happy Birthday To You!
I love you, my little porcupine and I am so glad you are you. You will always be my bestest boy.
Love-
Mommy
Today you turn four, such a big boy! Sometimes I think the time has flown by but when I think back to all you have gone through, I can hardly believe it has fit into four little years.
This year has been another eventful one. You have learned so much and have matured in so many ways. Everyday you show us, beyond our wildest imaginations, how brave and strong you are. On days that I do not feel very brave or very strong, you are my inspiration to keep fighting even when it seems impossible.
This year you have made leaps in your education. You have mastered letters and numbers and are taking the first steps in reading. Your imagination and curiosity are immense and everyday you pick a new "word of the day" about something you're interested in.
You continue to be the most empathetic child I've ever known. Whether it's comforting Ga or stoppping to help the kids at soccer class who have fallen, you are always thinking about how others feel.
This is one of our favorite verses from one of our favorite books:
"If you'd never been born, well what would you be?
You might be a fish! Or a toad in a tree!
You might be a door knob! Or three baked potatoes!
You might be a bag full of hard green tomatoes!
Or worse than all that... why, you might be a
WASN'T!
A Wasn't has no fun at all. No, he doesn't.
A Wasn't just isn't. He just isn't present.
But you... you ARE YOU! And now, isn't that pleasant!"
-- Dr. Seuss, from Happy Birthday To You!
I love you, my little porcupine and I am so glad you are you. You will always be my bestest boy.
Love-
Mommy
Monday, July 6, 2009
Update from the hospital
Well, it finally caught up with him. All these months of home clean outs that never fully cleaned him out has left Seamus almost totally blocked and back in the hospital. It never fails, every July he ends up in the hospital. For those who don't frequent hospitals, that is the worst month to be in one. All the new doctors start and there is lots of confusion. Last year, we had a nightmare hospitalization but this year, it's been okay so far.
At first, we got quite a scare because when I called Seamus' GI doc and he heard Seamus sobbing in the background, he said "That is not the Seamus I know. Get to the closest hospital and get an x-ray now." When they looked at the x-ray, we were told he had a full obstruction and needed surgery but that hospital didn't have a peds surgeon so we were going to be transferred to Hopkins, which is our normal hospital. They wanted us to go in an ambulance because if he "coded out", they could help him. That was pretty hard to hear but after waiting 4 hours for them to come, we decided we'd risk it and drive the 40 minute drive ourselves.
When they looked at the x-ray here, they said it wasn't completely blocked and no surgery was needed. This has happened to us on numerous occasions. I really think they need to have better classes on reading x-rays in medical school because no one seems to agree on what they are looking at. Seamus was put on the full blown Go-lytely treatment to break it up. He's doing well, just hanging out watching Toy Story over and over and over, pooping, lots of pooping and charming all the nurses.
Prior to all this, we had a nice holiday weekend. On Friday, we went to the University Town Center for a picnic lunch and Seamus ran through the fountains with lots of new friends. Then we came home and made brownies topped with bright blue frosting, four kinds of sprinkles and jellybeans to get ready for Uncle Rick's visit.
Seamus and Uncle Rick spent lots of time playing football, tennis, the Wii ... I think Uncle Rick had a hard time keeping up. On Saturday, we started at our town's Fourth of July celebration and then headed over to our pool. It would have been a really nice day if Seamus hadn't woken up at 11:00 PM crying in pain, begging us to turn off his feeding tube.
Hopefully, we won't be here too much longer but Seamus has said he will not go home until we get the Toy Story DVD.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Mothers Day and Littlest Heroes
I had a great Mother's Day yesterday. We met with Mary Kate McKenna, a fantastic photographer who did Seamus' Littlest Heroes photo shoot. If anyone needs a photographer in the DC/Frederick MD area, I highly recommend her. Here are just some of the great pix she took. Seamus absolutely loved it and was vogueing it up. I think I saw a few "Blue Steel" moments.
Tonight, we had our fundraiser at Franklin's. It went well, we'll find out tomorrow how much we've raised. It stinks that his nursery school is doing a fundraiser at the same restaurant tomorrow so lots of his classmates didn't come tonight but I think it was successful anyway.
Tonight, we had our fundraiser at Franklin's. It went well, we'll find out tomorrow how much we've raised. It stinks that his nursery school is doing a fundraiser at the same restaurant tomorrow so lots of his classmates didn't come tonight but I think it was successful anyway.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Easter 2009 and Fundraiser
It was nice to have a little break from the CF world and just concentrate on toddler life. We had a nice relaxing Easter weekend. Saturday, we went to a birthday party for Seamus' friend, Brigid, and had an Easter egg hunt. Then we came home and decorated our own eggs which Seamus loved. Sunday, the Easter Bunny made Seamus work for his jellybeansby leaving him clues like Blues Clues. He came downstairs and found the first egg with a picture inside of the washing machine. At the washing machine, he found another egg with a picture of the computer. Then at the computer, he found an egg with a picture of the tv. Finally, under the tv he found his basket. He got a big kick out of figuring it out. Later in the day, we all went to the park and had a picnic and rode the carousel and train.
Today, we got some great news! One of the local restaurants in our area, Franklin's in Hyattsville, has agreed to do a CF fundraiser for Team Go Seamus Go! It's a great place with microbrew and yummy food, especially the potpie. It's going to be on May 11th. They will donate 20% of your bill to CF all day. They also have a really fun general store with all kinds of funny gifts, jewelry, wine, etc all of which will be included in the fundraiser! I'll post more details later but if you're in the Hyattsville MD area on May 11th, stop by.
Today, we got some great news! One of the local restaurants in our area, Franklin's in Hyattsville, has agreed to do a CF fundraiser for Team Go Seamus Go! It's a great place with microbrew and yummy food, especially the potpie. It's going to be on May 11th. They will donate 20% of your bill to CF all day. They also have a really fun general store with all kinds of funny gifts, jewelry, wine, etc all of which will be included in the fundraiser! I'll post more details later but if you're in the Hyattsville MD area on May 11th, stop by.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Highlights of our week
Since I've been so bad about keeping up with the blogging, I thought I'd give the highlights of what we've been up to:
- Doing extra "shake and bake" vest treatments to help fight off the cough Seamus' has had for almost 3 weeks.
- Losing lots of sleep; Seamus, because of coughing and Mommy and Daddy, because of worrying
- Switching oral antibiotics to no avail (we're finally going into clinic tomorrow)
- Having Wii parties with our friends (alive and stuffed)
- Making and eating lots of dairy free brownies
- Planning for a trip to Disneyland and Los Angeles
- Learning to play soccer at the Community Center
- Celebrating Ga's 67th birthday
- Taking bike rides with Daddy
- Spending lots of time at the playground and riding the scooter
- Celebrating St Patrick's Day, having fun but thinking about all the CF'ers in Ireland. Ireland has the highest case of Cystic Fibrosis in the world and yet the life expectancy of those with this disease is in the mid twenties because the quality of care is so poor.
- Doing extra "shake and bake" vest treatments to help fight off the cough Seamus' has had for almost 3 weeks.
- Losing lots of sleep; Seamus, because of coughing and Mommy and Daddy, because of worrying
- Switching oral antibiotics to no avail (we're finally going into clinic tomorrow)
- Having Wii parties with our friends (alive and stuffed)
- Making and eating lots of dairy free brownies
- Planning for a trip to Disneyland and Los Angeles
- Learning to play soccer at the Community Center
- Celebrating Ga's 67th birthday
- Taking bike rides with Daddy
- Spending lots of time at the playground and riding the scooter
- Celebrating St Patrick's Day, having fun but thinking about all the CF'ers in Ireland. Ireland has the highest case of Cystic Fibrosis in the world and yet the life expectancy of those with this disease is in the mid twenties because the quality of care is so poor.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Valentines Day 2009
I woke up this morning with a scratchy throat, feeling achy and congested in my chest and sounding like Scarlett Johannson. I decided to stay home not so much because I felt bad but didn't want to spread anything around my office. It's a weird kind of feeling, it doesn't really hurt to breathe, but it definitely takes more of an effort to take a deep breathe and I'm very phlegmy. I wonder if this is how Seamus feels every day and thinks every one else does too.
We saw a really good movie this weekend, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. On the surface, it's about some teenagers running around New York City looking for an underground concert but really it's about the two main characters looking for more out of life and finding each other. At the end (Spoiler Alert!), they don't end up seeing the concert and Norah says to Nick, "I'm sorry you missed it". He replies happily, "I didn't miss it, this is it." That's my new motto.
We had a very adventure filled weekend. I had a meeting in downtown DC which let out early so James and Seamus met me at the Natural History Museum. Seamus loves it there and we thought he was ready to handle the 3-D Dinosaur Imax show. Well, he disagreed. We went in with our 3-D glasses and as soon as the first meteor came at us, he yelled "This is scary. I should not be here." We left and got a refund and went to the butterfly exhibit instead. It's a big greenhouse with tons of butterflies flying around landing on people. Then we went to the American History Museum and saw the old trains and cars. We ended the day eating at a little French bakery where Seamus ate more food than I've ever seen.
Saturday was Valentines Day and we spent the day decorating cards and going with Ga to the University of Maryland to take pictures to share with her friends back home on her blog. He had celebrated V-Day at school on Thursday and loved the whole idea of it. All day, he kept wishing us all Happy Valentines Day. He told me when the sun went down it would be Valentines Night so then he kept wishing us Happy Valentines Night.
Sunday we went back downtown to the National Building Museum which has a Kid's Building Zone, where Seamus played with huge Legos and other building blocks. Of course, I ran after him with sanitizer all day, but still with all the exposure he's had lately, I'm surprised he's not the one sounding like Scarlett Johannson.
We saw a really good movie this weekend, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. On the surface, it's about some teenagers running around New York City looking for an underground concert but really it's about the two main characters looking for more out of life and finding each other. At the end (Spoiler Alert!), they don't end up seeing the concert and Norah says to Nick, "I'm sorry you missed it". He replies happily, "I didn't miss it, this is it." That's my new motto.
We had a very adventure filled weekend. I had a meeting in downtown DC which let out early so James and Seamus met me at the Natural History Museum. Seamus loves it there and we thought he was ready to handle the 3-D Dinosaur Imax show. Well, he disagreed. We went in with our 3-D glasses and as soon as the first meteor came at us, he yelled "This is scary. I should not be here." We left and got a refund and went to the butterfly exhibit instead. It's a big greenhouse with tons of butterflies flying around landing on people. Then we went to the American History Museum and saw the old trains and cars. We ended the day eating at a little French bakery where Seamus ate more food than I've ever seen.
Saturday was Valentines Day and we spent the day decorating cards and going with Ga to the University of Maryland to take pictures to share with her friends back home on her blog. He had celebrated V-Day at school on Thursday and loved the whole idea of it. All day, he kept wishing us all Happy Valentines Day. He told me when the sun went down it would be Valentines Night so then he kept wishing us Happy Valentines Night.
Sunday we went back downtown to the National Building Museum which has a Kid's Building Zone, where Seamus played with huge Legos and other building blocks. Of course, I ran after him with sanitizer all day, but still with all the exposure he's had lately, I'm surprised he's not the one sounding like Scarlett Johannson.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Finally, Christmas pictures
We finally got our computer back so I could upload the pictures from our camera.
I also wanted to post about New Years. The four of us went to dinner and then Ga went to church so the Colemans had a little celebration at home. We all made hats (that seems to be a big thing lately) and had sparkling grape juice in wine glasses. Seamus really liked his glass because when we went around and made toasts about things we liked, he kept saying "Here's to Cups!" Then we all clinked our glasses and said "Cheers!" After about ten rounds of that with increasingly harder clinking, we had a little countdown and he went to bed in his brand new big boy bed. He really felt like a big kid.
On Saturday, we had a big party to celebrate our new addition. Seamus was in heaven again. He just loves being around people and being the center of attention. He's such a ham.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Christmas 2008
Christmas was great. Seamus oohed and aahed over every present, at least until he got to the socks, "Ohhh, socks." He loved his stuffed Spiderman who talks and even snores, the Wonder Pet stuffed animals who have been attached to his side, the Hungry, Hungry Hippos game (thanks Uncle Woody and Aunt Chris) and his Honey Bee game which is just a bee on a stick that you jump over as it revolves around. He's been playing that for three days and the "Flight of the Bumblebee" is quickly becoming my least favorite song. He also got a set of plastic food and dishes because he loves to play restaurant. For months he's been taking our orders and delivering invisible food. Now he can actually give us "real" pretend food.
Mommy and Daddy got a new great big tv from Ga which will be great to play the Wii on. It was nice but also sad, especially for Ga, since it was the first one without Pa.
But the big news is Seamus has been wearing big boy panties since Wednesday! He said he didn't want to wear diapers anymore and he's doing great. There's only been a few accidents and with all the liquid we push through his g-tube all day, that's really amazing. Today was the first time we went somewhere while he was wearing underwear and it went well. Tonight he's been having some of his GI issues and asked to wear diapers so it will be slow going but we'll get there.
Mommy and Daddy got a new great big tv from Ga which will be great to play the Wii on. It was nice but also sad, especially for Ga, since it was the first one without Pa.
But the big news is Seamus has been wearing big boy panties since Wednesday! He said he didn't want to wear diapers anymore and he's doing great. There's only been a few accidents and with all the liquid we push through his g-tube all day, that's really amazing. Today was the first time we went somewhere while he was wearing underwear and it went well. Tonight he's been having some of his GI issues and asked to wear diapers so it will be slow going but we'll get there.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Quick Update
Seamus is getting x-rays today. I'll keep you posted if he ends up being admitted.
I don't know what it is about December but if he goes back in, this will be the 4th year in a row that he's been in the hospital right before Christmas. I'd hate for this be our family tradition.
I don't know what it is about December but if he goes back in, this will be the 4th year in a row that he's been in the hospital right before Christmas. I'd hate for this be our family tradition.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Today was a good day. We started out getting our Seamus' new playroom all organized. He was a big help and loves to help vacuum. The house is finally starting to get in order.
Our friends from music class, Isabel, Sam, and Gigi, came over this afternoon for a playdate. I'm very proud of Seamus for being so good at sharing his toys. He even gave one of his old baby dolls to Isabel's little brother, Oliver.
Then we all went to our town's Holiday Festival. Everybody got their faces painted (Seamus got a nice Xmas tree on his cheek) and we saw the big guy. Seamus had a lot to tell him and just want on and on but Santa wasn't too interested. He barely said a word to any of the kids and kept taking off his beard. What the heck, Santa? Seamus didn't notice his lack of enthusiasm and thought he was just great.
We also had been invited to an Xmas party Johns Hopkins puts on at the airport with Santa flying in but Seamus wasn't up for it. It's a big deal, someone has to actually nominate you from the hospital but he's still complaining about his tummy hurting and the blockage is getting worse so we didn't want to go too far from home. His cold has also gotten worse and lots of the kids at the party are really sick so I didn't want to expose them to anything.
Tomorrow we're going to try to bake some cookies and gingerbread but I think we'll be doing a lot of resting too.
Our friends from music class, Isabel, Sam, and Gigi, came over this afternoon for a playdate. I'm very proud of Seamus for being so good at sharing his toys. He even gave one of his old baby dolls to Isabel's little brother, Oliver.
Then we all went to our town's Holiday Festival. Everybody got their faces painted (Seamus got a nice Xmas tree on his cheek) and we saw the big guy. Seamus had a lot to tell him and just want on and on but Santa wasn't too interested. He barely said a word to any of the kids and kept taking off his beard. What the heck, Santa? Seamus didn't notice his lack of enthusiasm and thought he was just great.
We also had been invited to an Xmas party Johns Hopkins puts on at the airport with Santa flying in but Seamus wasn't up for it. It's a big deal, someone has to actually nominate you from the hospital but he's still complaining about his tummy hurting and the blockage is getting worse so we didn't want to go too far from home. His cold has also gotten worse and lots of the kids at the party are really sick so I didn't want to expose them to anything.
Tomorrow we're going to try to bake some cookies and gingerbread but I think we'll be doing a lot of resting too.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Pressure
The whole Santa and present thing is all a little too much for Seamus to handle. We talked about the naughty vs nice thing a few weeks ago in a very short conversation and we realy don't talk about it all the time but Seamus has become obsessed.
He's constantly talking about being a naughty boy and if James or I raise our voice to him at all, he'll break down crying and say "I'm a good boy, not a naughty boy." He puts himself into timeout even for things I wouldn't make a big deal of and gets all worked up, and he has, on a few occasions, woken up in the night, crying out "I'm a good boy, I'm a good boy."
It's really too much for him to handle. He's so sweet and sensitive and I feel very guilty. We reassure him as much as we can that he is good boy but I think we have to stop watching the Christmas specials and focus on other things.
On the health front, we did a home clean out treatment last week which helped somewhat but the last few days he's started vomiting again. I'm not sure which doctor to contact because he still has his cough, although it's much better, which is producing lots of sticky mucus that he ends up swallowing. His stools are already super sticky but now they are even stickier and he vomits because things can't go down because he's blocked below. So is it a GI issue or a pulmonary issue? We can try to get him really cleaned out but until he stops producing so much mucus, it will just keep happening. He has a clinic appointment next week. I hope we can wait until then.
He's constantly talking about being a naughty boy and if James or I raise our voice to him at all, he'll break down crying and say "I'm a good boy, not a naughty boy." He puts himself into timeout even for things I wouldn't make a big deal of and gets all worked up, and he has, on a few occasions, woken up in the night, crying out "I'm a good boy, I'm a good boy."
It's really too much for him to handle. He's so sweet and sensitive and I feel very guilty. We reassure him as much as we can that he is good boy but I think we have to stop watching the Christmas specials and focus on other things.
On the health front, we did a home clean out treatment last week which helped somewhat but the last few days he's started vomiting again. I'm not sure which doctor to contact because he still has his cough, although it's much better, which is producing lots of sticky mucus that he ends up swallowing. His stools are already super sticky but now they are even stickier and he vomits because things can't go down because he's blocked below. So is it a GI issue or a pulmonary issue? We can try to get him really cleaned out but until he stops producing so much mucus, it will just keep happening. He has a clinic appointment next week. I hope we can wait until then.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Thanksgiving 2008
We started the day watching the Macy's Parade. Seamus was in awe. "Mommy, who's that? Who's that?" I don't think he could believe that Big Bird, Underdog, Dora, Thomas the
Train, and Mickey Mouse could all be in the same place. And with Santa, are you kidding me?
While Daddy made dinner in our brand new kitchen and Ga was out being very nice serving dinner to the homeless, Seamus and I decided we would surprise them with a craft project. We made Pilgrim hats and Indian headbands and turkey name place cards for dinner. Here are some pix of our new kitchen and our artwork.
The next day Seamus decided we all were super heroes (including Super Bunny). We all spent the day with capes, or what non-super heroes would call towels, on and big letters attached to our shirts: S for Super Seamus, M for Super Mommy, D for Super Daddy and G for Super Ga (obviously). All day, we could only answer to our Super name.
We didn't leave the house much all weekend except to go to Watkins Park to see all the lights. They have one of those drive through light displays with thousands of lights. It really is amazing and of course Seamus loved it.
He hasn't felt like doing much lately because the cold he's had pretty much since school started has now turned into a nasty cough. On top of that, his GI issues are acting up. We're watching him closely on both fronts but basically he's feeling pretty crummy but even with all that, I still couldn't ask for a better kid.
Train, and Mickey Mouse could all be in the same place. And with Santa, are you kidding me?
While Daddy made dinner in our brand new kitchen and Ga was out being very nice serving dinner to the homeless, Seamus and I decided we would surprise them with a craft project. We made Pilgrim hats and Indian headbands and turkey name place cards for dinner. Here are some pix of our new kitchen and our artwork.
The next day Seamus decided we all were super heroes (including Super Bunny). We all spent the day with capes, or what non-super heroes would call towels, on and big letters attached to our shirts: S for Super Seamus, M for Super Mommy, D for Super Daddy and G for Super Ga (obviously). All day, we could only answer to our Super name.
We didn't leave the house much all weekend except to go to Watkins Park to see all the lights. They have one of those drive through light displays with thousands of lights. It really is amazing and of course Seamus loved it.
He hasn't felt like doing much lately because the cold he's had pretty much since school started has now turned into a nasty cough. On top of that, his GI issues are acting up. We're watching him closely on both fronts but basically he's feeling pretty crummy but even with all that, I still couldn't ask for a better kid.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Tall tales
On the one hand, I feel bad about lying to my son, but on the other hand, boy I wish I had thought of this before.
With Christmas coming, Seamus has started seeing Santa all over on tv, in stores, etc and it has really peaked his curiosity. Yesterday we looked at the toy catalog and talked about how Santa gives presents to good boys and girls. He's not my baby anymore, he kept picking out "bigger boy" (he's a big boy, the older kids are bigger boys) toys like Spiderman and Ironman stuff.
At first this struck him as very cool, free presents, but as the day wore on it started to concern him a little more. Every so often, he'll make a comment like "So, bad boys and girls don't get any presents?" or "How does Santa know if you're being bad?"
I expect things to be pretty tame around our house between now and Dec 25th.
With Christmas coming, Seamus has started seeing Santa all over on tv, in stores, etc and it has really peaked his curiosity. Yesterday we looked at the toy catalog and talked about how Santa gives presents to good boys and girls. He's not my baby anymore, he kept picking out "bigger boy" (he's a big boy, the older kids are bigger boys) toys like Spiderman and Ironman stuff.
At first this struck him as very cool, free presents, but as the day wore on it started to concern him a little more. Every so often, he'll make a comment like "So, bad boys and girls don't get any presents?" or "How does Santa know if you're being bad?"
I expect things to be pretty tame around our house between now and Dec 25th.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Halloween Part 1
Well, we've been very busy lately. The house is getting nearly completed and over the weekend we moved in all my mother's things. Seamus loves running around the "new house" and has found lots of good hide and seek places.
The weekend was busy with Halloween activities. We went to a party at the local musuem in town on Saturday. It was fun but poor Seamus was squeezed pretty tightly in his "chihuahua" costume. I say that in quotes because the only dog costume I could find was a pug but every since we saw that horrible movie, Seamus has had nothing but chihuahuas on his mind. I got a 3T which is supposed to be for 32-37 pounds. Seamus is barely 32 pounds but there is no way it fits. We could literally squeeze him into it only after cutting a hole in the crotch because his torso is too long. The feeding tube adds to the tightness too. It was the biggest one they had and he loves it. If we went up in size, it was into the big boy costumes which were all pirates and ninjas and I'm not ready for my baby to do that.
On Sunday, we met Seamus' friend Neve and her cousin and parents at a pumpkin patch. The corn maze was a hit with the kids but the best was the hayride. It went through the woods and had all the characters from Shrek, Winnie the Pooh and a bunch of fairy tales. The kids loved it. We also picked out pumpkins which we took home and carved last night.
I have to mention a cute story. Seamus and I went to Burger King yesterday and he got a toy that looks like a miniture tv with a couple pictures that you scroll through. When we got home, James was watching football. A little while later I went into the room and saw Seamus sitting in his Diego chair next to his daddy holding hands with him. I asked him if he was watching football and he said no, he was watching the puppy show. He had put the little BK tv next to the real tv and was sitting there staring at the picture of the dog. He told us the whole story of the show, "It's about a puppy who lives in a house with his mommy and daddy."
I could just eat him up. Pictures of the chihuahua to come.
The weekend was busy with Halloween activities. We went to a party at the local musuem in town on Saturday. It was fun but poor Seamus was squeezed pretty tightly in his "chihuahua" costume. I say that in quotes because the only dog costume I could find was a pug but every since we saw that horrible movie, Seamus has had nothing but chihuahuas on his mind. I got a 3T which is supposed to be for 32-37 pounds. Seamus is barely 32 pounds but there is no way it fits. We could literally squeeze him into it only after cutting a hole in the crotch because his torso is too long. The feeding tube adds to the tightness too. It was the biggest one they had and he loves it. If we went up in size, it was into the big boy costumes which were all pirates and ninjas and I'm not ready for my baby to do that.
On Sunday, we met Seamus' friend Neve and her cousin and parents at a pumpkin patch. The corn maze was a hit with the kids but the best was the hayride. It went through the woods and had all the characters from Shrek, Winnie the Pooh and a bunch of fairy tales. The kids loved it. We also picked out pumpkins which we took home and carved last night.
I have to mention a cute story. Seamus and I went to Burger King yesterday and he got a toy that looks like a miniture tv with a couple pictures that you scroll through. When we got home, James was watching football. A little while later I went into the room and saw Seamus sitting in his Diego chair next to his daddy holding hands with him. I asked him if he was watching football and he said no, he was watching the puppy show. He had put the little BK tv next to the real tv and was sitting there staring at the picture of the dog. He told us the whole story of the show, "It's about a puppy who lives in a house with his mommy and daddy."
I could just eat him up. Pictures of the chihuahua to come.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Birthdays
Seamus had a great birthday party. It was outside at a local park and it rained off and on all day. That just made it messier and more fun. Everybody was caked in mud by the end. Here are some pix.
I also had a nice birthday on Friday. It was a milestone birthday so I thought I'd be pretty upset but it was actually very nice. I took the day off of work and James, Seamus and I went to WV. I was sitting at lunch watching my two favorite boys when I realized my life couldn't be better. Forty shmorty.
I also had a nice birthday on Friday. It was a milestone birthday so I thought I'd be pretty upset but it was actually very nice. I took the day off of work and James, Seamus and I went to WV. I was sitting at lunch watching my two favorite boys when I realized my life couldn't be better. Forty shmorty.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Happy Birthday to You
My Darling Seamus-
Today you turn three! You are such a big boy now, steadily gaining weight and growing taller despite many obstacles this past year. You have started nursery school and love being with all your friends. Miss Terri says you are a very good student.
This year, you have learned so much. You can count and say all your colors in both English and Spanish. Chinese is next. You love doing jigsaw puzzles and playing with your trains. You've even figured out how to use the the computer.
You walk around singing all day and music class is one of your favorite activities of the week. Rhyming is another favorite thing to do. You can amuse yourself for hours on end coming up with new rhymes, some of them very clever.
Socially, you have grown so much. Your favorite thing is to play with other kids and you are very good at making friends. And what an independent little boy you are. You have no problem leaving Mommy or Daddy when we drop you off for school or being in a group of strangers. And even though you love being with people, you do so well playing by yourself with all your toy friends.
You are wise beyond your years, my love. Often, you say to me "Mommy, are you frustrated?" or "Do you need to talk to someone?" And you are always right.
We are so proud of you, my little pumpkin pie. You are my bestest boy.
Love-
Mommy
Today you turn three! You are such a big boy now, steadily gaining weight and growing taller despite many obstacles this past year. You have started nursery school and love being with all your friends. Miss Terri says you are a very good student.
This year, you have learned so much. You can count and say all your colors in both English and Spanish. Chinese is next. You love doing jigsaw puzzles and playing with your trains. You've even figured out how to use the the computer.
You walk around singing all day and music class is one of your favorite activities of the week. Rhyming is another favorite thing to do. You can amuse yourself for hours on end coming up with new rhymes, some of them very clever.
Socially, you have grown so much. Your favorite thing is to play with other kids and you are very good at making friends. And what an independent little boy you are. You have no problem leaving Mommy or Daddy when we drop you off for school or being in a group of strangers. And even though you love being with people, you do so well playing by yourself with all your toy friends.
You are wise beyond your years, my love. Often, you say to me "Mommy, are you frustrated?" or "Do you need to talk to someone?" And you are always right.
We are so proud of you, my little pumpkin pie. You are my bestest boy.
Love-
Mommy
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