Smoothie!

This photo is horrible resolution (it's from Patrick's phone) but I had to share it. Drew loves smoothies and tonight Patrick took him to get one as a treat (he has a bit of a fever so we're pushing liquids). He ordered the kid's size but asked them to add yogurt to it for some protein. They misunderstood in the drive-thru and Drew ended up with a full size smoothie! It's as big as him!

A Different Look!

Drew reading to his little brother...can't beat that for a good 2-year old!

I thought I'd mix things up a bit and change the look of the blog...maybe it will inspire me to post again!
We had Drew's allergist appointment today and after 3 hours and a few sticks, we came away knowing not much more than when we started. He is allergic to Elm trees. Great...that helps so much! Nothing else came back positive (Maddie can stay!) but there is a 30% false negative rate at this age. The doctor adjusted the dosage of some of his medications, but otherwise we go back in 4 months for a check up.
Christmas is quickly approaching and I'm not ready at all! We did manage to get the tree up and decorated and Patrick got the lights up outside. Otherwise, everything is just a mess and not too festive right now. I'm hoping to get there soon!
We have a busy weekend planned so I'll try to post again next week. Oh - Allen gets to be Baby Jesus at the preschool nativity next week! Won't he be so cute?!

Good News!

Drew's sweat test results came back normal so we can officially rule out CF. That is great news for us and we were very thankful to hear it today. Now we are on to the allergist on December 6 to see what they can tell us.

Happy Thanksgiving!

More Medical News

Today, Drew and Mommy visited Children's Hospital for a Chemical Sweat Test. Daddy is in Kansas City again so we embarked on the adventure alone (Nana kept Allen for me - a HUGE help!). The test itself is painless and non-invasive. They just put a piece of gauze on his arm and wrap it in a plastic wrap-type stuff and we sat and watched cartoons for 30 minutes. Unfortunately, there was a miscommunication up front and we ended up waiting an hour before they came to take it off, but Drew was a trouper through the whole thing. The test is to rule out Cystic Fibrosis. I know - it sounds scary and I have just decided not to think about it until we know something. Drew has very few symptoms of CF, but since he keeps getting (and keeping) these horrible sinus infections and chest congestion, our doctor just wants to rule it out. We should know something tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow...I go for my 6 week check up. It's time for my doctor to give the the "all clear" to start working out. It's my one last excuse for adding in another time-consuming activity to my life. Oh well...this baby belly won't go away on its own I guess!
Here is a photo of my awesome OB - if anyone is in the area and needs a doctor, I highly recommend her!

News from the boys...

We have had a busy week. Allen had his one month check up on Tuesday (yes, he is actually that old already!) and is growing like crazy. He was 11 lb 5 oz (95%) and 22 inches (75%) and his head was 75% too (don't remember the measurement). So he is growing right on track. He is having some issues with returning some of his meals so we are undergoing the great formula switch. We started a new one on Tuesday afternoon (Enfamil Gentlease) and it seemed to make things worse. So this morning we started another one (Enfamil AR) that supposedly will help reduce the spit up. He screams if you lay him down to soon after feeding him, so I'm guessing it's true reflux. It makes for a long feeding session though! I broke out the Baby Bjorn on Tuesday and have used it a little every day so I can continue to function while holding him upright. He is having more periods of awake time and his nights are getting a little longer. Thursday night he slept 7 1/2 hours! It's not happening every night, but I'll take what I can get.
Patrick was out of town for most of this week so the boys had to put up with just me for a few days. It was hard, but we made it through. On Thursday, Patrick flew from Kansas City to Asheville for a meeting and I drove over with Allen for the night. It was nice to get away and enjoy a wonderful hotel (The Inn at Biltmore), a fabulous (and free!) dinner, and some adult conversation. Luckily Allen is still at that stage where you can tote him along and he just sleeps in his carrier. He was a really good boy and he loved the car ride. I was able to see Cary, a sorority sister and friend from college, on Friday morning. It was great to see her and catch up on her new life in Asheville.
Drew got to spend Thursday and Friday with Nana and Grandaddy and had a blast. When my dad called us Friday evening, he said "I think we have a problem." Drew did not want to come home - he was in the background saying "No go home - stay at Nana's house! Play trains!" It was cute. He did come home and was excited to see his trains. He didn't really care too much about Mommy, Daddy and Allen. But he is two so what can you do?!
Patrick travels tomorrow and returns Tuesday evening so we'll have some more Mommy time this week. We'll be getting ready for some special guests scheduled to arrive on Wednesday - Auntie Maggie and Uncle Jim are headed down from Indianapolis for Thanksgiving. We are looking forward to seeing them and spending some time together. And we're excited to see Maggie's belly...she is almost 19 weeks pregnant! Granted, she still looks the same, but I'm determined to find a belly in there somewhere!
Have a great week!!

Drew's Birthday Party

Sunday evening we had Drew's birthday party with our family. It was a Thomas party (of course) complete with lots of balloons and train themed items. Patrick made his cake - and no one would eat it! Everyone was convinced it was too awesome to actually eat and that we should somehow save it. (I think Patrick was a little sad that no one enjoyed all his hard work!) There were extra cars that the kids decorated and ate so at least some of the baking was consumed.
Drew got lots of new Thomas trains, books, puzzles and movies. He also got a Drew sized table and chairs and a new bookcase for all his books. While he didn't get excited about it, I loved the new clothes Nana got him - especially his Christmas train sweater!
Allen slept through the entire party and I didn't even get a picture of him...sad, actually. And I failed to get a family photo for the second year in a row. Someday I'll get my act together!!

Happy Birthday Drew! (with Photos!)

Drew is 2! Yesterday morning Drew woke up to Mommy, Daddy and Allen singing (lovely wake up call!). Daddy and Drew went to Dunkin Donuts to pick up a nutritious birthday breakfast to start our day. Drew opened his presents from Mommy and Daddy, with Gordon's Express Coaches being the biggest hit. We all played trains for a while and got ready for a special outing - a trip to Jumpity Jump for Drew to bounce and slide to his heart's content. (Nana kept Allen for us at home - thanks Nana!) After lunch and a VERY long nap, we had yummy pizza for dinner and Drew had his birthday cake. Daddy made Drew a special Gordon cake, complete with a tender. It was awesome and Drew loved it! Wednesday was our regular night at the Little Gym and Amelia and Aunt Celeste came as Drew's special guest for his birthday. It was a very fun end to a very full day!

My Little Monkey...

I'm working on getting Halloween photos downloaded and posted, but here is a preview of our little monkey! Drew loved being a monkey this year and had a great time at all 3 outings! These are from his first trick-or-treat experience at the zoo - he got the hang of it quickly!

We're Still Here...

Now that we have completed the second week of life with two boys, I have discovered very little down time to do things like update the blog. And that is with almost full time help from my mother-in-law and my mother! So, while I promise I will post new photos of Allen as soon as I can, I cannot promise when that will be! Here is one to get you by until then...

We're Home!

We were discharged Wednesday afternoon and had a good first night home last night. Allen had a check up at the pediatrician this morning and his bilirubin level increased dramatically overnight so we started light therapy today. It is not fun, but we are hopeful for lower levels in the morning so we only have to do this for one day!

We will continue to update the blog with new photos as we have time to download them to the computer!