Friday Night With My Boys

Wow...lots of comments and good ideas. I'll have to try some of those. Y'all don't feel too sorry for me, Reed completely redeemed himself with the mother's day card he made at school. He drives me crazy but he makes up for it in so many ways and keeps me laughing all the time.

About the sleep, I don't have a problem really getting either of them to bed...its just the mornings. Reed goes to bed at 7:30. We had him going to bed later the last time we had this problem and his pediatrician said he should be in bed between 7 and 7:30...considering his wake and nap times. I know you can't do everything by the book/doctor but our pediatrician has never lead us wrong so I'm trying to stick to it.


Speaking of pediatrician, Gaines had his one year check-up today. They're going to let us keep him. He did not gain as much weight as I'd hoped...17 lbs 3 oz which means he's in the less than 5th percentile on weight. The good news is that he's in the 55th percentile on height. After talking to our superdoc today (I just love him), I've decided that I'm going to sort of change philosophies on Gaines. We are so nutrtition focused that we aren't letting him progress on foods. Because bottles have more calories, we'd rather him have those, and those are so concentrated and thick, he has no desire for actual food...baby or soft table foods. It's time that he's venturing into all of that. Plus feeding himself would help develop his fine motor skills.

I won't bore you with everything but I am asking for prayers on this. Its kind of a leap for me. The nutritionist and pulmonologist he sees every two months have him on all these extra bottle calories so they might not be impressed with the new plan but the way I see it is, what can it hurt. It's not like he's breaking the scales doing it their way. I guess he can always go backwards but that's where your prayers come in. Please pray for weight gain and interest in actual foods.


In other news, I took the afternoon off for today's appointment so afterwards we went to visit our old nurse friends in the NICU. It was so great to see them and I think they were all excited to see Gaines. He jabbers non-stop these days but he just stared at them in awe. I wondered if he knew where he was. Probably not I guess but it was still a fun visit.

It's been just me and the boys this afternoon so I've been a little bit of a supermom. It's crazy when you have them both by yourself but I love the feeling when they are both in bed and the house is in order. I feel like I accomplished something. Granted, we had a frozen pizza for dinner and there were no baths (Friday baths are not mandatory here...I'm sorry if you think that's gross) but I do have my sheets in the dryer and a couple other weekend projects in the works. I'm hoping to do some planting in my flower pots tomorrow amongst a few other things. Its my first full weekend at home in weeks so I plan to get some projects done and do a little relaxing. Beau informed me earlier this week that I had a problem just letting things sit "undone" and relaxing (he does not seem to suffer from this same disorder) but I plan to prove him wrong this weekend.

Oh...something I was thinking about earlier in the week. This will make up for my snide Beau comment above. I travel some for my work and people always ask me who takes care of my boys when I'm gone. Uhhhh...their dad? I continue to be baffled that I get asked this question ALL the time. I've always known that I'm blessed with an awesome husband but from these questions, I've come to learn that he's even more above average than I'd originally thought. I am very, very lucky to have a husband who is an active father/partner in raising two little boys and who I have complete confidence in when I'm out of town. I couldn't have my current job without him.

Now, nobody tell him I said that.

Happy Mother's Day Weekend!

Brittany

Roosters

I just thought I’d give y’all a little peak into my morning today. This is the account (best I can remember) from 4:17 a.m. to 5:43 a.m. The sad part is, this sort of thing happens on a regular basis. If any of you know how to get my children to sleep later, please let me know. I’m in search of a wake/sleep clock for Reed. I was looking for a reasonably priced one but after this morning. I’m willing to pay a small fortune for one if it works.

4:17-Reed is at my door reading a book that makes noise.

4:18-Reed is back in bed with a threat on his life if he gets out of his bed again. He tells me he wants breakfast. I tell him it is still dark outside and not time for breakfast. I do not win points for this.

4:19-Back in my bed.

4:22-Gaines is awake and crying. Trying to be tough and let him cry it out but he’s right next to us and the pillow over my head is not cutting it.

4:32-I give up and move to the couch (Beau’s night with Gaines…my turn with Reed) but can still hear Gaines…through my pillow that is on my head again.

5:00 or so…crying stops

5:13-Reed needs to go potty.

5:14-Reed tells me he wants a banana next week. I say fine and don’t ask any questions.

5:15-I almost gave in and let him watch cartoons until 5:45. He wanted Berenstain Bears or Veggie Tales DVD. I offered Disney channel as I was not about to find and start a DVD.

5:16-Disney does not cut it and Reed freaks and cries on the floor. There are convulsions involved. I tell him fine…he can watch nothing and turn off the TV with as much authority as you can turn off a TV with one finger. I am the meanest mom.

5:17-Reed cries for a while…”I want my daddy…I want my daddy”.

5:18-I’m back on the couch pillow over my head again plotting his punishment if he wakes up Gaines.

5:26ish-The cries turn from “I want daddy” to, “I found money”…still crying. I don’t know why that was sad.

5:32- I realize that he is standing at our bedroom door in serious jeopardy of waking up Gaines…again.

5:33-I get off the couch and go get him and let him put the dime he found in his piggy bank.

5:34- Turn on the light and offer to let him read in bed. He wants to read his Bible. That’s awesome, but I can’t find it. He tells me he put it behind his headboard so I get on the floor and scrounge around under the bed until I find it.

5:35-I leave him in his bed “reading” and threaten his life again if he leaves his room in the next 10 minutes.

5:36-I am still holding strong on my new “Do not leave your room before 5:45 a.m.” mantra. I feel a little self satisfaction despite being bitterly tired.

5:43-I hear Reed in the dining room and give up. 5:43 is pretty close to 5:45.

Say a prayer for my sanity.

Brittany

Made My Week

I've been out of town so I'm a little behind and will have a more extensive report soon but I had to share this quick conversation at dinner tonight.

I said, "Reed, who is your girlfriend? Do you have a girlfriend at school?"

He just pointed at me and said, "You!"

Made my week.

More soon.

Brittany

Some New Pictures

Below are a few recent pictures of the boys.

Rock Star

Reed has been taking music classes at school. He has become our little rock star. Below is a video of "Five Little Freckled Frogs", the Reed Daniel version. In case you aren't a parent with small children, the lyrics are below. Enjoy.

By the way, he is holding a bath toy in his hand and strumming it while he sings. He told me it was his "giddar".

Five little freckled frogs,sittin' on a speckled log, eating the most delicious bugs.

Yum! Yum!

One jumped into the pool, where it was nice and cool. Now there are four little freckled frogs.

Good Excuse

Sorry...no post yesterday because my computer is sick and is in the hospital. Its just as well...yesterday was one of those days where your two year old throw major fit because you couldn't read his mind and know that when he asked for milk...he really meant lemonade (even though you thought you were being a nice mom by fulfilling his milk request when you originally offered him water).... And one of those days when your pitifully sick one year old isn't quite his usual sweet self because the steroids he's on have taken over his body, attitude and vocal cords.

Back to work...more when my computer has recovered.

Brittany

Poor Baby

I had to take Gaines back to the doctor today. The poor little thing just did not seem to be feeling so well this morning. Basically he just has a cold that has triggered his asthma (gosh, go figure…Gaines has asthma…who’d have thought?). Usually a cold just has to run its course but with Gaines we try and be proactive. Because of his airways being tightened from the asthma flair up, fluid could get trapped in his lungs and it could turn into pneumonia (which I guess could have been the case with any of his colds) so he’s on a preventative antibiotic and a steroid…for whatever it is steroids do. Oh, and increasing albuterol treatments to every four hours during the day for a couple of days. Keep him in your prayers. I hate seeing him feel so bad. On the positive side, he gained 2 ounces in 2 days which is great. I swear we have the best pediatrician. He and his staff are just really great. I’m sure it doesn’t hurt that their patient is so stinking cute.

Ok…now something about Reed. We were all in the car Saturday night and Gaines was just babbling away. Reed looked at him and said, “I not know what you’re sayin, Gaines”. And Gaines just babbles back at him and says something about “Dada”. Reed says, “I not know what you’re sayin. You want daddy? Daddy’s driving.” And on and on for the ride home.

Also, Beau took Reed to the bathroom at a restaurant this weekend and had him in the bathroom stall. As Reed is sitting there some other man comes in to use the urinal and Reed says loudly “Somebody else goin potty.” I think Beau waited it out before he and Reed made their exit.

So funny to me.

The Gaines

I missed posting about Gaines yesterday on his actual birthday but I've got a good excuse. The poor guy has been a little sick. He had a 101.8 fever Friday night so we took him in to the doctor Saturday morning. Turns out it was nothing major...just a little viral infection but he hasn't quite felt himself so he and I took ourselves a nice little rest yesterday afternoon.

Anyway, back to my birthday post about the Gaines (I like to call him The Gaines sometimes...I just think it suits him). His baby dedication was today at church and it was so great. It was awesome to be able to have Gaines in front of so many people that prayed for him. We also had lunch this afternoon with lots of family. I would have loved to have invited about 50 more people but we had to draw the line somewhere.

I've been thinking a lot about Gaines lately and the journey we've been on the last year with him. Last night he crawled from the den, up two stairs, through the living room, down the hall to Reed's bathroom. It wasn't so long ago that I was worried Gaines wouldn't be able to hold his head up on his own and now he's crawling all over the house. He has just come so far the last year. I mean, from a tiny little thing on a ventilator to a crawler that only needs a little help breathing.

People ask me all the time if the last year has just flown by. I want to laugh in their face. No-the last year has not flown by. Parts of it have been faster than others but early on there were some very long, very hard days. Not just when Gaines was still in the hospital...although that was loooong and there were many, many days that I just cried and cried because I didn't know how much longer I could hold out. But even when he first came home the days and weeks were long. I was so worried about his devleopment and wondering if he would be "normal". It was hard for me to just enjoy him and not always be analyzing him. That's hard enough, but you top it off with him not eating as well as he should and spitting up multiple times a day (spitting up puts it mildly...whenever I say Gaines spits up, I mean he vomits large quantities). There were many, many days that I cried once he was home. And there were days that I yelled at him and got frustrated and had to leave the room...and then I'd feel so guilty for not loving him enough. I think early on I resented him some. There I said it. I know it sounds awful but I did. Don't get me wrong, I've always loved Gaines with all my heart but I couldn't live my life like I wanted to live it because Gaines couldn't go anywhere and Gaines required so much time, energy and money and Gaines was just SO much work...and I felt constant stress and worry about him not developing like he should. I faked it pretty well because I was supposed to be happy that he was finally home but it was a rough time for me.

I don't know what did it but I was able to finally snap out of it. I guess he just got easier and and started meeting some of his milestones and gradually I was able to relax and realize that he might not do things on my timeline, but he was doing them. I was able to actually enjoy him.

Lately Gaines has gotten so much fun. He's playing with toys and giving Reed a run for his money. He's got an attitude like you wouldn't believe. He is sweet as pie when he's doing what he wants to do but don't cross him. He was born with some fight him and its still there. There are times when I have to physically overpower him to get a bottle in his mouth. Or change his diaper. Or clothes or whatever I want him to do that he doesn't want to do.

But...he can be so sweet too. I love the way he grabs onto you when you pick him up. He just squeezes you and loves you. And he loves to laugh. He laughs at anything Reed does. He loves his big brother (and Reed tolerates him pretty well).

This past year with Gaines has been a roller coaster. We've had lots of dark, hard days, but we've also had lots of amazing ones raising two little boys. When I was on bedrest last year, one of the things that kept me going was bringing Reed home a little brother and the thought of being a mom to two little boys. It might have been harder than I'd thought (and required a little more equipment, medicine, effort, etc)...but we are doing it. It's been a crazy year but I could not be more thankful for it because it means we've got our little brother...and he's awesome.

Love to all,

Brittany

New Blogging Philosophy

I think I’m going to try and post one quick post everyday and maybe one good long one a week. Both boys are just changing so much and are so funny right now that I want to try and remember as much of it as I can. So…this is my attempt to do that.

Also, I think I’m going to try and be more the “real” Brittany on here and less of the “sugar-coated, people I work and go to church and pass in the grocery store read this” Brittany. Not that I’ve never been myself on here, (Hello, you’ve seen me at my lowest lows and highest highs this past year)…I just sensor myself some because it might not be appropriate to mention things that regularly come up with my children or because I'm afraid that people might take me the wrong way and think I’m a bad mom or don’t love my children or whatever. Or, you just might not get my sense of humor. Just ask Beau…it’s weird. Very few people actually do get it honestly. If I’m going to keep this blog up, I want it to be an accurate depiction of our life. I’ll try and ease y’all in. Here we go...

I took some medicine over to Reed today at lunch before his nap because this pollen is really getting to him and there was a note sent home yesterday that he coughed all through nap (just call me supermom). I walked in and squatted down next to him at the table and talked to him for a minute. He promptly told me, “I not ready to go home yet”. I say, “That’s fine, you can stay and play with your friends for a while” but in my head I’m thinking, “Good, cause I’m not taking you yet”. Anyway, as I’m there all the kids are eating lunch and they think of course think I’m super cool (as I'm sure they do any stranger that interupts their day) and are talking to me and what not but I notice that Reed is being really quiet. I think he was embarrassed that I was there. Like I was cramping his style or something.

While I was there his teacher told me they’d just had “Wobbler Idol” where they each get to get in front of the class and sing their favorite song into the “microphone”. Reed sang his ABC’s which is in direct contrast to what he told me his his favorite song was yesterday, “O’Donald”…or as you may know it, Old McDonald.

One other Reed thing that is too funny but a little of my venture into what may not be appropriate. This morning Reed woke up at 4:57. This is the norm but I'm desperately trying to un-do it so I put him back to bed and told him I'd be back in an hour. Fifteen minutes later I hear, "Daddy, I pooped" over and over. I finally get up and go check on him (as it was my morning with Reed) and walked in the bathroom where he sat. You'd think he'd be thankful that I was there to help him but all he says is, "I was calling Daddy". I cannot tell you how close I was to getting back into bed and telling Beau that Reed needed him. I might next time.

Gaines is starting to get an appetite again thank goodness! Please pray that it keeps up. We need to fatten that boy up! Today’s Gaines anecdote is a sweet one. Last night Reed was going to bed and he gave me a goodnight hug and kiss while I was holding Gaines so he kissed and hugged Gaines too (he doesn’t usually) and Gaines got the biggest smile on his face. He loves his big brother. Made my heart smile.

Sweet boys.

Stay tuned for a Gaines post tomorrow in honor of his birthday!

I’m out for now…Brittany

Random...

Let's see...what's been going on? Beau and I were able to get out of town for the weekend for the first time in...well I guess a year. We just went a couple of hours away to The Grand Hotel in Point Clear (LOVED it) but it was so nice to be able to have conversations and to not have a million things to do. I got to get a little (probably too much) sun at the pool so now I have a little pigment in my skin...which we can all be thankful for. I needed it badly. My parents came up and stayed with the boys...I think they enjoyed it.

Gaines has been having a problem with his reflux again so we've been dealing with that the last few days. I think I reported that in my last post but since then, its gotten better and then gotten even worse. My guess is that it's got something to do with his teeth coming in. The second one just broke through so I'm hoping it gets better soon. I got so frustrated with it all yesterday...I just feel so much pressure for him to gain weight and not only is he not doing great with it, he's doing pretty terrible. I think its (now bear with me...crazy talk about the devil here) the devil putting that in my mind so that I forget about all the progress that Gaines is making. He's doing great on his oxygen and developmentally he's doing awesome. Actually he pulled up to standing tonight (another milestone, check!)...so far he's done it 3 times so its not a fluke. I got off track there but the moral of the story is that I'm trying to focus on the positives rather than the not so positives...which only seems to be gaining weight at the moment.

Now that Gaines is a little more mobile with his crawling, big brother is having to learn to share "his" toys (of which, several belong to Gaines). I thought I might have to break up a fight over a dinosaur book tonight. We've also had a couple of instances of Reed watching cartoons in his little chair and Gaines crawling over to him and...get this...touching him...the nerve. Reed will sit perfectly still and call one of us in the room and say, "Gaines is touching me". If we ignore it and don't immediately move him, he'll tell Gaines, "Stop touching me Gaines!...Move Gaines!" And Gaines just laughs. He loves his big brother and deep down, Reed loves him too.

What else...Gaines' baby dedication is this Sunday...the day after his first birthday. I think the date is very fitting as he was originally dedicated in the hospital on the day he was born when they didn't think he was going to make it. I kind of feel like this is him coming full circle. His dedication is at the 11:00 service at our church and we are having brunch for our family afterwards.

But speaking of birthdays...can you believe that Gaines is going to be one on Saturday. It blows my mind. I'll have to do a special post dedicated to that but wow...a whole year of Gaines and all that's come with him.

I stayed home from work today because Kristen was sick and couldn't keep Gaines. It was kind of nice being a stay at home mom for a day. I'm pretty worn out but I got SO much done. My house is spotless at the moment but I bet it doesn't last very long. Either way, its a good feeling. A clean house with windows open and two sleeping boys. Life is good.

I guess that's about it for now. After all my scurrying around today, I'm going to relax.

Love to all,

Brittany

Happy Birthday Beau

Happy Birthday to my wonderful, wonderful husband.

You all may remember that Beau celebrated his 30th birthday last year in DC. Thankfully, we will be celebrating 31 here at home.

Beau is the best husband that anyone could dream of but I think his best quality is how wonderful of a father that he is. I am so thankful that my boys have such a wonderful role model in their lives.

We love you Beau! Happy 31!


Brittany and Boys

Tooth

So...guess who's got a tooth? Well, all of us I guess...but now that includes Gaines! You can't see it too well yet but you can definitely feel it. He's had a pretty good week the past week except with his eating. He's kind of been on strike and spitting up whatever he decides to eat...yes, the reflux is back. No idea what got into him but we started back on the breathing treatments in case there is something in that medicine tied to his appetite. Anyone got any ideas on this? I love that they day we hear he needs to gain weight, he goes on an eating strike. I'm this close to "medicating" him with some sweetened condensed milk 3 times a day for some extra calories.

Reed has been great this week too. In between a couple of tantrums that is. He is really such a good child and has not really been into this "terrible twos" business...until this past week. In he last couple of days he's thrown two fits that just came out of no where and were over the craziest things. One, because he couldn't decide if he wanted to run to the grocery store with Beau so Beau finally left him and the other, because he didn't want to leave school when I picked him up one afternoon. Both times it was constant crying and screaming, "I want to gooooo...I want to gooooo...sob sob sob...." or "I want to stay here....I want to stay here..." Falling out in the floor and everything. I ignored the one at home but didn't know what to do when he did it at school. I pretended to just leave him but he called my bluff and I had to go pick him up. Also, I wasn't sure if the other mothers were looking at me with a "Way to be strong" look or a "Do something with your child" look. One of them said, "Is he two?" How could you tell?

I'm sure those will not be the last tantrums I see out of Reed and I'm a little afraid of what is to come with Gaines. That boy has a temper. To say he's spoiled is putting it mildly. I guess the world (at least our world) has kind of revolved around him the last year so I guess it makes sense but wow...that child will let you know when he's less than pleased with you. Just try walking out of the room if he doesn't want you to. And don't even try to change his clothes. He won't have it.

I guess that's about it for now. I just realized that this kind of turned into a post about the flaws of my children. Sorry...just keeping it real I guess. As crazy as they drive me sometimes, I promise...I really do love them. Especially now that they are both asleep. Love me some sleeping babies and a still house.

One quick thing, speaking of driving me crazy. I told Reed this week (when he decided that it was hilarious to not wear his pants) that he drives me crazy sometimes. He said, "I dub (love) to drive you crazy".

Love to all,

Brittany

Beautiful

Happy Easter! We are about to start our mad dash to get ready for church but first HAD to share these pictures. A friend with an incredible gift for photography (and taking pictures of children!) very generously offered to take some pictures of Gaines for us. Here's the link to the first three he sent us. I LOVE them.

I hope I can get this to work. There is probably an easier way but this is the best I can do. You know I'm not so computer savvy.

Go here:

www.britsnapphotography.com

Then scroll to the bottom of that page and click the facebook logo. Once the facebook page is up you can see the note Gaines-God's Miracle. Click on that and you can see three of the pictures that Martin took yesterday. I'd highly recommend him for anyone in the area wanting pictures done of their kids. He even got Reed to stand still for a few!

Happy Easter and Love to all,

Brittany

Big Day

Before I get to Gaines' big day, I just wanted to thank all of you who still read this blog...even if you just check in from time to time and especially for those of you who have prayed for Gaines and our family. Today's good report was due to your continued prayers. Reed and I visited Andalusia over the weekend and actually got "out" a little. I ran into so many people...some that I do not even know well...that would ask me how the zoo was, or if Gaines was crawling yet. I was just amazed at all the people that actually cared about my little boy and family and were still keeping up with us. I tell you, there are a lot of bad and crazy people in this world but for everyone of them, their are five good ones.

Moving on...

Our little Gaines has had a big day. He had a doctor's appointment in Birmingham today with his pulmonologist (more on that in a second) and when we got home this evening...he crawled! I cannot even begin to tell you how proud I am of him. As soon as I saw (and confirmed that he was actually doing it...you know how I feel about giving him false credit) I got the biggest smile on my face. I have not been that excited in a while.

I know mothers are always proud of their kids' milestones but Gaines' are just extra sweet. There are so many things that we haven't been sure about for so long and to see him do something like crawl just makes me so happy. There is just no way to know if Gaines will have any sort of problems from his spells of not wanting to breathe correctly until he actually marks something off his milestone list. Let me clarify...he's not crawling marathons or anything, but he crawls a few little "steps" at a time. Beau got it on video...its at the end of this post. Also, I think he might be pulling up in the next few weeks. Things are just really starting to click for him and I could not be happier.

In medical news, Gaines had a great check-up today. We've been given permission to turn him down to a half liter on his oxygen. I'm waiting on him to go to sleep tonight before we do it. He's just still when he sleeps and we can get a good sat reading on him and really tell if he's handling it ok. Say a little prayer that it will go well.

The plan oxygen-wise is just to leave him at a half liter until his next appointment (in two months). Hopefully by then he'll have gained enough weight (he was 16 lbs 13 oz today) that we can cut his other two diuretics. Once he gets big enough, he'll have sort of outgrown them. I'm hoping that at his next appointment we can cut the diuretics and have a plan to wean oxygen over the next couple of weeks. They explained to me today how they will know when he is ready. I won't bore you with all of it but one part was by watching his carbon dioxide levels. At his first appointment his was at 39 and today it was at 33. When his is around 28, we'll know he's ready to go without oxygen. So...prayer requests, 1. Weight gain! We want to lose those diuretics. 2. Lower carbon dioxide levels and just all around lung development. All in all, his doctor only had great things to say and even commented on how well he was doing developmentally. A gold star appointment.

Oh, we've also gone to albuterol treatments as needed and not twice daily...yay! Hate it for you CVS.

On a more serious note...I never leave Children's Hospital without being thankful that we are only dealing with Gaines' lung issues...problems that will get better. There are so many kids at that hospital that would be grateful to have Gaines' problems. I mean, you see those little kids with bald heads and you know what they are there for and it just breaks your heart. Or kids in wheelchairs or you hear your doctor talk about his chronic ventilator patients. Everytime I'm in the parking deck there I think, everyone of these cars is here for a sick child...and that is just on one given day. Be thankful for healthy kids and please say a prayer for all of those that are not...and the ones dear to my heart, the ones who aren't born yet but are fighting to have a chance to try. Little ones like my Gaines who is not only trying but succeeding. Was that a little cheesy? Sorry...but he is. That little joker is a miracle.

Now...I hope you all appreciate the sacrifice I made for you tonight. I will wake up in the morning and my house will not be straight and no one's clothes will be picked out and I'll be rushing around with a little extra "my house is a wreck" stress but at least you all will be updated. Kidding of course...but my house really has been neglected tonight. Does my sarcasam come through or do I need to specify the kidding? Either way...

Oh...I turned Gaines down to a half liter and guess what? He's satting 99. Granted he's sleeping flat on his face which could account for a 99 but wow! Please pray that it continues.

Love to all,

Brittany

The Zoo: Pictures and a Video

Yesterday the weather in Montgomery was 70 degrees and sunny. A perfect day to be outside. So, we made our first venture out as a family. We all went to the Zoo. This was one of the first times we have taken Gaines anywhere other than the doctor. Certainly the first time we have gone anywhere as an entire family. It was pretty funny, as we were parking the car Reed said, "Gaines is gonna stay in the car". I guess Reed just isn't used to Gaines going anywhere with us. Anyway, all in all it was good day and it felt so normal to be able to all go somewhere together.

Below are two pictures from the Zoo and a video of Gaines attempting to crawl. He is so close...he will be scooting around the house soon.


Our Family at the Zoo

Reed at the Zoo


Gaines learning to Crawl

One Year Ago

Wow...so tomorrow it will have been one year since my water broke 900 miles from home and changed our whole world. I looked up some of our earlier posts just now and and I'm flooded with the memories. The posts that we made right after Gaines was born made my eyes sting. I guess the memories have faded but reading some of that brought it all back. I remembered how hard it was. How scary. How every day seemed like a week. How I just wanted to throw myself in the floor and give up some times. How I'd just cry and ask God why.

Its amazing what a year does.

Right after Gaines was born and was still fighting for the non-critical label, I wrote something about him opening his eyes and looking at us a few times. Now, that same baby looks at me and says "pllthtlth"(you know that noise) and laughs when I try and give him medicine or a bottle. Stinker. I tell you, Gaines is just so precious and I could not be prouder of how hard he's fought this past year. He's incredible. I just tear up when I think of all he's endured and pushed through the last year. Its been a looooong year but it could not have been more worth it. We have Gaines...and I know he's going to be fine. (I'll update more on Gaines later...I'm running out of battery).

We've been through the hardest year of our lives but we've come out ok. We have had incredible ups and downs the past year but we've made it. I would never ask to re-live this past year but I'm thankful for it. It has done so much for me and my family. We are stronger, we appreciate each other more, we take less for granted, we have more compassion for others...and I'm thankful for all of that. Thank you all so much for keeping up with us and praying for our family this last year. We love you for it.

Love to all,

Brittany

A Few New Pictures of the Boys

Below are a few pictures of our boys being silly. In the next couple of days we will try and post a video of Gaines attempting to crawl. Also, if you haven't logged on to our blog lately, there is a new post from Brittany below.

Good Excuse

I know its been awhile but I have a good excuse. Beau was out of town Sunday morning through Thursday afternoon so I've been a little occupied. My mom stayed with us and helped me with the boys for part of the time but it was still pretty busy around here. By the way...my mom is awesome. She's always willing to help us out anyway she can. Lots of people are actually but the list is too long...my mom just gets the credit right now because she just spent 3 nights with us.

Anyway...I was by myself Wednesday night with both boys and had a momentary lapse in judgement and decided to let the boys take a bath together. I figured...two birds with one stone. To say it was a disaster would be an understatement. We weren't 30 seconds in when Reed dumped a huge cup of water straight in Gaines' face. Of course Gaines screamed...and Reed got a spanking (he had just been told not to do it) so he screamed. Both of them were looking at me crying (Reed screaming "I want to get out!!!") and immediately I questioned my sanity for putting them both in the tub together. We made it through, but it wasn't pretty...and we won't be attemting that again for awhile. I told Beau later on the phone what I'd done and he said, "You did what?" Not my best idea.

Other than that things have pretty much just been rocking along. I had a cold last week which means Reed and Gaines had colds this week. We took Gaines in for a steroid shot/prescription yesterday just to get a head start on his cold. I think the key with him is just to not let the cold get ahead of you. He seems much better today thank goodness. We got the ok on Monday to discontinue Gaines' Lasix but I haven't done it yet. I want him to get over this cold first. I kind of feel like we'd be setting him up to fail if we did it right now. Please say a little prayer that he handles it.

In other news, our little Gaines is trying his best to start crawling. He gets on all fours and rocks back and forth. I even think he goes backwards a little bit. He has physical therapy again on Monday so please pray for another good report. He's really starting to be pretty fun...and he's definitely cute. He makes the funniest little faces. I tell him all the time that he's lucky he's so cute...especially when he's being a little "trying". Remember that fight that he had when he was born...fighting through all of is obstacles...yeah, he's still got it. Only now he fights taking his medicines, breathing treatments, leg stretches, etc. I'm trying to be thankful for it.

Reed has turned into quite the song bird lately. He was singing something about "way down yonder in the paw paw patch" in the tub the other night. I don't remember it but apparently its a classic. I must have been absent the day we learned that one because I don't believe I've ever heard it. He also sang our blessing tonight for us. Sweet boy.

I talked to Reed's teacher this week and asked how he was doing. She had all good things to say about him (obviously) and mentioned what a good eater he was. She went on to say, "he's messy...probably the messiest one, but he's a good eater". At least he's consistent...because he's pretty messy here too. Another teacher said this week that she wanted whatever I was feeding Reed because he just always had so much energy. I told her I thought that was just him being a little boy and she said, "Well, some boys are like that." Glad to know we ended up with one of the "active" ones. I wouldn't trade him for the world though. He has the sweetest spirit and is just always so joyful.

I guess that's about it for now. I haven't slept great the last few nights and it's my turn with Gaines tonight so wish me luck. I cannot tell you how badly I wish for a night of uninterrupted sleep.

Love to all,

Brittany

P.S. And how about some comments? What's the deal with the lack of comments these days?

Answered Prayers

We’ve had a pretty good week this past week. Reed and I took a little trip to Andalusia over the weekend and I think we both gained about 12 pounds each. I’m sorry but my grandmother is one of the best cooks around. Not only does she cook delicious food but she cooks a LOT of it. We had a good time down there. Reed got to “drive” a few tractors which he loved. He’s the center of attention whenever he visits and he eats it up. Plus my sister was down there and that made it even better for him. I love being down there…it just makes me so thankful for my family. I can’t wait to be able to take Gaines.

Gaines by the way has been doing awesome on ¾ of a liter and we actually noticed last night that he somehow had gotten bumped down to a half liter. And wouldn’t you know that little joker was handling it fine! Beau was fiddling with the concentrator (turns room air into oxygen) and noticed that Gaines was only getting a half liter of oxygen. Now, a few weeks ago I wouldn’t have put it past myself to “accidentally” turn him down and ask the doctor if it was ok after the fact, but we really and truly have no idea how that happened, or how long its been like that. Now that we are actually in the process of weaning I’m a lot more patient with the process so I’m fine with going slow. We debated about whether or not to leave him alone or to put him back to ¾ and finally decided to go back to ¾. Only because we reduced his Lasix yesterday too and we didn’t want to push too much on him too fast. The good news is, when the time comes to cut his oxygen to a half liter, we are pretty confident that he’ll be able to handle it. And you can be sure that next Monday, once we are sure he’s handling the cut in Lasix, I’ll be on the phone with the doctor asking for the next step. How exciting for Gaines!

In other positive Gaines news, he had physical therapy yesterday and got what I think was a great report. His therapist was very pleased with the progress in his sitting and gave us some tips on helping him learn to crawl. She felt like he’d be crawling in the next month or two. We think it could be sooner than that. You can see it in his little eyes that he’s trying to figure out how to get his legs under him. Also, she was very pleased with the improvement in his legs and gave them an 8.5. Not quite the 9 I was hoping for but definite improvement. She told me that she “definitely saw walking in his future”. I was so glad to hear that! She said that at this point she couldn’t promise that it would be without a limp or something but until now we haven’t had a vote of confidence like that in the walking department.

Now, she felt like he wouldn’t be walking until September at the earliest and said that it could be next spring but that it would happen. She based that on the fact that she thinks he’s about 2 months behind his corrected age (which is 8 months…so she thinks he’s about a 6 month old right now…and p.s., according to my figuring that’s a little conservative…I’d put him at about 7 months but that’s just me) and that on average kids walk around one year (some earlier, some later) so that would mean 2 months after his due date of July 7 which is September. Now, the reason that I’m ok with that is this. They base preemies’ adjusted age on their due date which is about the time most preemies leave the NICU (their due date)…Gaines didn’t leave the NICU until 2 months after his due date. I just really don’t think that’s a coincidence. While the nurses held him and loved on him as much as they could (as did we on our visits), it’s just not the same stimulation, etc that he would have gotten if he’d been at home in July. Plus he’s progressing at a consistent rate so I’m happy with it.

AND…then there was this part. The therapist was showing us some new moves to do with Gaines to help with his balance when standing. She was explaining that when you lean him forward he should get on his tip toes to balance and that when you lean him back wards, he should flex or lift his toes off the floor. When she saw him do the toe flex business she was really excited for him and said that seeing that, she could give me even more confidence on the walking. She said that it showed his front calf/shin muscle (whatever it’s called) was working. She said that muscle was very hard to stimulate and that the kids who couldn’t really use theirs were the kids you see in leg braces…and Gaines can use his!

If you don’t believe that all of this is God answering prayers…then I don’t know what…I’ll have to call you crazy. I mean, Gaines should not be here and here he is weaning oxygen and medicines like a champ and making steady progress on his development. Every night I pray that God will make Gaines an example of His faithfulness, mercy and compassion and that people will see a complete miracle from Him in Gaines. I pray that Gaines will grow up to be as smart, active and verbal as his big brother. Getting these good reports just fills my heart with joy. Please keep him in your prayers as we continue down this road.

Love to all,

Brittany

3/4 Liter

Gaines blood work came back yesterday and looked good so his doctor had us turn his oxygen down to 3/4 a liter. I was so nervous because I knew I'd be devastated if he couldn't handle it but he did awesome! His sats were 97-99 last night while he was asleep. Please pray that this "takes" and that he doesn't get tired and have to go back up. Also, if he's still doing well next Monday we'll cut his Lasix back to .25 ml. If that goes well I'm supposed to call them back in two weeks and we might make another cut before we go back for clinic at the end of March. I am cautiously optimistic about all this. Afraid to get my hopes up too high but so excited that this first step seems to be going well. Please keep Gaines in your prayers. Wouldn't it be awesome to have a cordless baby by summer?

Love to all,

Brittany

Physical Therapy

Hello all. Gaines had a PT appointment Monday so I thought I'd update you on that and ask for a few specific prayers. Oh, and, PS...a huge thank you to all of you out there that still pray for our family and little Gaines. He is doing great and we are managing to stay fairly sane but there are days when we need lots of prayers...ok, maybe I'm the only one that needs them. You know I'm working on my patience (and doing fairly well if I do say so myself) but there are still days when I get overwhelmed...trying to be all things to all people. My guess is that a lot of you have days like that, I just had one today. When did life get so hectic?

Anyway...enough of that...back to Gaines. His therapist thought that he had a really good appointment. She loves how much time he's spending on his belly and was impressed with his arm strength. She got some new exercises to be working on. One that puts him in a crawling position (he does not love it) and one is just standing at the couch with flat feet and un-bent legs (he didn't seem to love that either this afternoon). When she tried it with him he wanted to be on his toes with bent knees. With some help he'd straighten out with out really fighting her, but that was still his go to position. We want to correct that.

I asked her how she thought his hamstrings were doing and she thought they were the best they've ever been. A good answer but I wanted specifics. I asked what she thought they were on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the best. She said probably a 7-8. Good, but not what she wanted yet. She said he probably started as a 5. That means he has definitely made progress but is not quite there yet. So, one of my specific prayer requests is for Gaines to be a good solid 9 by his next appointment. I know that with our prayers, God can make him a 10 (and he will eventually) but I'm trying not to be greedy. I just want a 9 for now. I'm really trying to do everything I can to get him there. I've increased his stretching and massage and using heat to warm his muscles when stretching. Gaines is not quite so crazy about my new determination but he'll thank me one day. I'll keep you updated.

My other prayer request these next two weeks is for Gaines to finally master this sitting up business. He is so close but according to his therapist, his back muscles are still a little weak. He sits up, he just doesn't sit up as straight as we'd like. Please keep that in your prayers as well. As I see it, Gaines has 4 big milestones left before I can breath a sigh of relief (if that's even a reality with children!)...sitting, crawling, walking and talking. I'd love to get that list down to 3 very soon. He has a big exercise ball that we use to strengthen his core. It's pretty tough to use but I'm starting to get the hang of it. Please pray that my determination continues. I love hearing from all of you out there have have dealt with these same frustrations. They remind me that I'm not alone in having to do this stuff. Some days I just want to crash on the couch but I know that Gaines needs me to do these exercises with him. Hearing your success stories or tips helps keep my head where it should be.

I really hope you all don't mind hearing my inner thoughts...I don't hold much back on here. I know I come across as complaining and probably ungrateful sometimes...I promise I'm not, I just try to be honest. Being a mom is hard sometimes!

Back to my boys...In other Gaines related news, he said Dada today. Not just Da...a full Dada. His poor Mama will probably have to wait a while to hear her name. I swear it took Reed forever to say "Mama".

Also, I haven't mentioned it in a while but Reed is pretty much potty trained. He only wears diapers at night. Every so often...like less than once a week, he'll have an accident but he has really done great with potty training. Honestly I feel like it's even less than that. Sorry...just had to brag on my big boy for a minute.

This is kind of funny...Beau just put Reed to bed and they said his prayers. They went through the list of thank you for mama, daddy, Gaines, Jack...Amen. Then Reed said, "What about my horse?" (his rocking horse that was the ONLY thing he told us Santa was going to bring him but that he never plays with), so Beau said, "And thank you for Reed's horse".
Reed: "What about my bike?"
Beau: "And thank you for Reed's bike."
Reed: "What about my scooter?"
Beau: "And thank you for Reed's scooter".

Then Reed got a big smile on his face and rolled over to go to sleep. His priorities might be a little skewed but at least he's thankful for his "bessings".

I'm out for now. I've got a boy out of bed that needs a talking to.

Thanks for keeping up with us. I mean it.

Pictures below if you haven't checked in in a few days.

Love to all,

Brittany

New Pictures

We took the boys outside today for a very short walk. The weather was okay and the fresh air has to be good for Gaines. Here are a few pictures from the walk.

Randomness

I don't have too much too much to report tonight. Both boys are doing really well...Reed has been recovered and Gaines is almost totally clear. Thank goodness. Friday we'll go to have some blood work done and will find out what the plan is as far as weaning medicines and oxygen. Gaines' RSV kind of put a kink in the original plan.

We are all hanging out watching Charlie Brown Valentine tonight. Reed doesn't understand the commercials. Every night we let him watch Backyardigans from 7-7:30 to sort of wind down before bed and there are no commercials on Nick Jr. So, we get lots of whining every time it goes to commercial. We'll have to work on patience with him...poor boy...he get's it honest.

Let's see what else...I think Gaines may be teething. We cannot keep his hands or oxygen cord out of his mouth. Oh, I think he's saying "Da" now. We've been getting "Boo" for a little while but now we've moved to another consonant. That's a good sign for his verbal and cognitive development. All these therapists have warped my mind. They ask all these questions and now I overanalyze every little thing. They'll ask something I've never thought about so then I start watching him like a hawk looking for whatever it is they've asked about. In this case, is he babbling consonants or vowels?

Reed is so funny these days (do I say that in every post?). He asked me the other day if I wanted to get my face painted at the circus (like he just did a few weeks ago). Also, he must be picking up on Valentines Day because last Sunday we were eating lunch and he said, "Mama, what about Val-tines Day?" I didn't know what all he was asking about but I told him a few things and that maybe I would make pancakes for breakfast on Valentines Day. He said, "Oh, I yove pancakes".

Another day I told him that a shirt he wanted to wear that had a stain on it would have to be a Saturday shirt. He said, "Oh, I yove Saturdays".

One last Reed story...this one is really sweet. One day I said, "I love you Reed" and he said "I yove you Mama." We went back and forth a few times (me loving every minute of it) and finally I said, "I love you the most". He said, "the most?" like he didn't know what that meant so I explained it. Now when I say, "I love you Reed" he says, "I yove you most". I love it.

I guess that's about it for tonight. I told you I didn't have much.

Love to all,

Brittany

P.S. During the typing of this post I've learned that deviation from the usual routine of Backyardigans is not the best idea. We had a major meltdown after Charlie Brown. Not worth it.

The Miracles in Everyday Life

Brittany's last update on the boys was Tuesday night. We were fighting RSV, 4 infected ears and 2 infected eyes. We went to sleep Tuesday night prepared for the worst. The plan was for me to wake up at midnight to give Gaines a breathing treatment and for Brittany to wake up at 4 AM for another breathing treatment. We were also prepared to wake up to find Reed with his eyes matted shut.

Well, we both woke up at our designated times for the breathing treatments and were pleasantly surprised when Gaines slept through the night with very little coughing. Wednesday morning I immediately went to Reed's room so he wouldn't be scared when he couldn't open his eyes. I was shocked to find his eyes to be normal. I kept looking at him and asking to see his eyes...I was sure I was somehow missing something. I even asked him if his eyes hurt and he very quickly responded "No, they're feeling better".

Long story short...both boys are on the road to recovery. Reed acts as if he is fully recovered and Gaines is getting there. It will take Gaines a little while to get over the RSV but I think he is holding his own right now. It was amazing to go to bed Tuesday night fearing eye infections for one child and a possible hospital stay for the other...only to wake up Wednesday morning and for Reed to be well and Gaines to be much better. Sometimes the miracles in everyday life go unnoticed.

By the way, for those of you who like irony:

This journey started last March when Brittany went to Washington, DC on a 4 day business trip. I just found out that I will be leaving in March on a 5 day business trip to...Washington, DC. Weird.

Four Infected Ears, Two Infected Eyes and a Case of RSV

First of all, let me just tell you that the four warm chocolate chip cookies (with milk!) that I'm eating right now are delicious and well deserved. It has been one heck of a day. I'll start from the beginning.

When I woke up this morning I thought Gaines was almost fully recovered from his cold. He slept all night without coughing and when he woke up for his usual 4:00-4:45 (A.M!) play time (he likes to wake up around 4, play for a little while and go back to sleep until 6...I love him but it is a touch annoying) he was just awake and playing...no coughing which had become pretty standard the last week. When I left for work he was playing on his mat and I was not worried about him at all. He still had the occasional coughing fit but they were fewer and fewer each day.

Fast forward to 11:30. I'm working away getting ready for lunch and my phone rings. It's Reed's daycare. Deep breath before I answer. They think he may have pink eye and I need to come pick him up. Awesome.

I quickly call Beau since he is at the doctor's office with Gaines for Gaines' 9 month check-up and monthly synagis (RSV vaccination) shot. He calls me back on my way to get Reed and tells me to bring him on, the doctor can squeeze him in too. We hurry to the doctor and find the exam room. The scene is not what I expect. Everyone seems kind of worried about Gaines and Gaines does not look like he did when I left him. Beau tells me that as they were getting in the car he started a coughing fit and his sats dropped and he was obviously not feeling well at all. Beau even turned his oxygen up some.

Long story short, both of Gaines' ears are infected (even though he's on antibiotics) and he has RSV. (Yes, even though he's been being vaccinated for it the last 5 months and despite the fact that he comes into contact with very few humans). The doctor thought he should be admitted to the hospital and was trying to decide if Gaines should go to Children's in Birmingham or if he could just stay here. He called and talked to the pulmonologist in Birmingham and somewhere in that conversation they decided he could be treated at home. He responded well to an albuterol treatment and had come back down to a liter of oxygen with good sats so they both felt pretty good about it. He got a steroid shot in addition to the oral ones he's been taking for a week. We have been giving him breathing treatments every two hours this afternoon and will be going to every four after the 8 p.m. one. That means we'll be waking up at midnight and 4 a.m. but at least we are avoiding the hospital for now.

He seems great right now. That's the thing. He'll seem totally fine rolling around and really playing but then he starts coughing and it takes him a few minutes to get over it. It obviously hurts him to cough and his face turns red and he gags and it's just bad. You feel so sorry for him. Anyway, right now he seems to be doing well so please pray that he gets over this without a hospital visit. He goes back to the doctor tomorrow for a check-up. Pray that it goes well.

Someone asked the other day what all medicines Gaines was on so here is the current list. Keep in mind that the antibiotic and steroid are only temporary. Here goes. Lasix, Diuril, Aldactone (all diuretics to keep him from retaining fluid), Baclofen, Prevacid (both for reflux), Vitamin D, Sodium Chloride (both supplements because of all the diuretics), Orapred (steroid), Augmenten (antibiotic), Albuterol via nebulizer (usually just twice daily), IP Bromide via nebulizer and Flovent. I can't decide if CVS loves us or hates us. Either way they definitely know us.

As for Reed, he does not have pink eye. He has two infected ears that apparently can cause eye infections. I've never heard of this happening until today but it seems that it can. He's not contagious so as long as his eyes aren't all matted shut tomorrow he can go back to school. I'm just not sure they aren't going to be all gross tomorrow. His eyes did not look good when he went to bed and are both of them are looking goopy now. Hasn't slowed him down though.

Actually, I was at CVS with him this afternoon picking up his medicine and ran into a lady that works at my company. I don't know her well but well enough to speak. She asked if Reed was mine and I looked at him with his crazy hair from his nap, crusty nose and swollen and running eye (let's just say he was not looking his best) and said, "Yes, but he's normally cuter than this". Does that make me a bad mother? Oh well if it does.

I washed my hands like crazy before I took my contacts out but I still cringed as I did it. Reed isn't contagious but it still grossed me out touching my eyes right after I wiped nasty goop out of his.

I guess that's about it for now. I've got the 4 o'clock shift so I'm headed to bed. Please keep my little patients in your prayers.

Love to all,

Brittany

Life This Week

Life this week has been a little on the rough side. I think Beau thinks I'm probably overstating things but I am just slap worn out. The nanny (who will now be referred to as Kristen. "Nanny" sounds a little pretentious to me...we are not "nanny" people) and I took Gaines to Birmingham for his pulmonologist appointment (more on that in a sec) on Monday and didn't get home until 7:00. This might not have been quite so bad if a large portion of the time from 4-7 had not been spent stuck on the interstate with my sweet angel "singing" in the back seat.

Beau went out of town Tuesday so I had the boys by myself Tuesday night, Wednesday morning and Wednesday night. Let me just say right now that Beau has me trapped. There is no way I could be a single parent. (That is obviously a joke about being trapped...sometimes I feel like I have to clarify my jokes on here...Beau and I are very happily married...99% of the time...another joke...I'm on a roll tonight...we are always happily married) ANYWAY...back to the point, the two nights were constant but doable...Wednesday morning killed me. I hadn't been so happy to see my desk chair since we got back from DC. Gaines' cold didn't help because it meant he had to have a breathing treatment first thing which means 30 minutes of me just sitting there with the nebulizer. In the mean time, my angel Reed climbs into my bed and has an accident. Awesome. Strip the bed, start the laundry...Oh, Jack has thrown up four times on my rug. Double awesome. I'll spare you the rest but suffice it to say, it was a long morning.

So, Thursday rolls around and Gaines' cold is in full force. I mean he's pitiful...not eating, wining, sleeping and I can tell that Kristen is worried about him so I leave work early (where I had plenty to be doing) and come home to check on him. Thankfully since the pulmonologist had just seen him he called in a steroid and antibiotic for him. I was so stressed and worried about him (he's really pretty sick) that I called Beau right at 5 and begged him to come home. He does and by the time he gets there, the little joker is all smiles and bouncing in his jumperoo. My only guess is that the Tylenol had kicked in (and yes I got permission to give it to him, I would have never just done it with all the other meds he's taking). So, being the total loser that I am, called my friend I was supposed to work out with and begged out of it. I really did (and still do) have a terrible headache...I'm typing through the pain. Your welcome.

So, now that I've filled you in on way too much of my week...Gaines' appointment. Gaines had a great appointment! He was a touch sick but I think the doctor was able to tell that he's improving. So much so that after this cold, we are going to try and turn his oxygen down to 3/4 liters! Now, I'm trying not to get too excited because he may not be able to handle it but at least the doctor thinks its worth trying. Also, after about a week of that, we are to get some blood work done and if that looks good we can cut back on the Lasix to .25 mL. So, please say a prayer that all will go well and that he'll be on less oxygen and medicine soon. He also said that if his weight gain and labs look good when we go back in 2 months, we can come up with a plan to start really weaning oxygen and meds! AND he reconfirmed my hope of Gaines being off oxygen by June...at least during the day. I'm so trying not to get my hopes up about it (Beau thinks it will take longer) but wouldn't that be awesome? Also, we are increasing the volume of his bottles in an effort to help his weight gain...it was good this time but not quite what we'd love. I was not surprised being as it is next to impossible to go 24 hours without some sort of spit up. We did however just up one of his reflux meds so maybe that will help.

Just a side note, I normally hate saying things like meds instead of medicines (don't even get me started on AC and OJ...I almost couldn't marry Beau over those two) but I've just given up on un-shortening things. I only have so much time in the day.

Oh, this is kind of funny. Reed finished his milk at dinner the other night and asked for water so I gave it to him. This was a night I was home alone with them so he was eating while I was tending to Gaines (I normally prefer family dinners but you do what you can when you're a single parent). I went back to check on Reed and he had spit water all down the front of his shirt. He looked at me and said, "I spit up".

Reed also likes to test his boundaries these days but I hadn't realized how much "discipline" he was getting until the other day I heard him talking to his truck. He said, "You do NOT do that. Do you need a 'pankin, truck? You go to timeout." He really is a sweet boy, just being two and trying to figure out what he can get away with.

I think that's about it for now. I'm tired. Please pray for our little Gaines and that he gets over this cold quickly and that he can handle 3/4 liters.

Love to all,

Brittany

Two New Videos

Reed has learned his ABC's and Gaines' physical therapist said it was okay for him to use his jumperoo...He loves it.

PT Report

Good Morning! Just a quick post during breakfast to update on Gaines' physical therapy appointment yesterday. By the way, how awesome is it that the therapist comes to our house?

Gaines got a good report yesterday. She was very pleased with his sitting up while propped on his hands. I think he's getting better with that everyday. You can really tell his trunk is getting stronger. Hopefully in the next few weeks he won't need to prop on his hands and will be able to sit straight up playing with a toy.

His legs are still improving but are still not there yet. There is still some tightness in his hamstrings. So, I'm asking for that specific prayer request. Please pray that at his next appointment in a few weeks, his hamstrings are not as tight. So far Gaines has overcome every obstacle he's had and I pray that this will be the case with this.

He was also approved to use his jumperoo. They are controversial among physical therapists but she felt like the pros outweighed the cons for Gaines. He loves it. It took him a little while to figure it out but now he's jumping like an old pro. I'll see if I can get my technical assistant to post the video soon.

Also, please pray that Gaines avoids Reed's cold. Reed has a pretty good cough and runny nose that I'm hoping we can keep Gaines from catching.

I'm off to the shower.

Love to all,

Brittany

Priceless Video

Brittany and I were in the kitchen making dinner when we heard Reed "reading" one of his books. We peeked around the corner and couldn't believe what we saw. He was reading to Gaines.

Sitting Up!

Just a quick post to let you all know that Gaines sat by himself in the floor yesterday (propped on his hands) for a full minute. The first time was 15 seconds, then 30, then a full minute. I'm so proud of him and just wanted to share. If you haven't read in awhile, there is a post from Saturday below.

Love to all,

Brittany

Endurance

Well we are in a new year. The holidays are over and we are busy getting focused on a new year. I PRAY that 2010 is better than 2009. I feel a little weird saying that because a lot of good things happened to us in 2009 but it was definitely a tough year for us.

As of now, 2010 is looking promising. Right now I'm sitting in the den floor watching Gaines actually play in his exersaucer. He can spin himself around and fiddles with all the little toys in front of him. It's progress for Gaines and that makes me happy. Beau and Reed are out buying a little bookshelf for Reed so he'll now have a place for all of his books. When your mother is a librarian, your child ends up with a lot of books. Its great because Reed loves to read and now we'll actually have a place for all of them.

In honor of it being a new year (albeit 9 days in) I thought I'd talk about what I'm working on as my new year's resolution. I'm working on my patience (among other things) but patience is definitely number one. A week or two ago I was really struggling with being patient...particularly with Gaines and particularly with his reflux. I'm sure it was combined with a lot of other things but I've just been so concerned about it and I get frustrated because there is nothing that I can do to fix it. Now, I 100% know that it is terrible for me to get upset with him because I know he can't help it but when you are cleaning up vomit (sorry to be gross but that's what it was) for the second night in a row...for the second time that night (and I'm talking middle of the night, sheets and pajamas changed, everything...twice) you tend to get a little annoyed with your child, no matter how much you love them...and I promise I do love him.

Anyway, it hit me that night as I flung myself in the floor crying and feeling so sorry for myself (yes, myself and not the poor baby with throw up in his hair...I know, no criticism needed..I'm terrible) that maybe I could use a little more patience. And maybe that I should be praying for it, and maybe I might should just be praying a little more anyway, and maybe being more diligent about reading my Bible and spending time with God. Crazy concept, huh?

Anyway, I know most of you don't visit this blog for my crazy ramblings so here is the update on the boys. Gaines' reflux does seem to be getting some better. It's not totally gone but its improving...some. We have finally changed his formula to Alimentum as per his nutritionist. It's a hypoallergenic formula (which PS, smells like what a cheese flavored dog food might smell like) and as soon as I realized that, a light bulb went off in my head. Beau was allergic to cow's milk when he was younger and Gaines has been on cow's milk based formulas. I don't know that Gaines is allergic too since the formula change hasn't been an instant fix but I do think its helping. Also, I read a while back that babies with Chronic Lung Disease have a higher instance of reflux because they have to breath so much harder and it stretches (I'm paraphrasing of course) that muscle at the bottom of the esophagus that is supposed to keep food in the stomach.

But anyway, the other Gaines news is that he thinks Reed is hilarious. If Reed is in the room, Gaines is watching him and usually laughing at him. His hair is growing in and he looks to me, just like Reed did. It's weird how much they look alike. He loves to stand up with you holding his hands and his therapist was very impressed with that. The hamstrings still have a little way to go but are progressing. The goal we are working on now is sitting up. It's just hard to work on that because we are so careful with him for fear of him spitting up. The spitting up got pretty bad and he lost a good bit of weight. I'm hoping that he's back on track now.

Reed moved up to a new class this past week at school...probably because he's so advanced (or maybe because he was one of the oldest and they needed his spot...and it wasn't just him that moved up but I like to go with advanced). He's doing really well in the new class which I'm happy about. I was a little worried because now he's the youngest with a lot of bigger kids and he's had a hard time adjusting to new classes in the past but he seems to be doing great. This class really focuses on potty training and I can already tell a big difference. I'd say he's gone from about 85% there to 90%. He still needs to work on telling us when he needs to go although that is improving and we haven't attempted naps or nighttime yet at all. I'm not complaining one bit though...the amount we spend on diapers has dropped dramatically.

Reed is so funny these days. He talks like a grown up and at the grocery store this morning he said, "Your doing awesome mama, your doing a great job." Is that funny or do I just have a false sense of how hilarious my child is? I'm going with funny. It's crazy that I have one of the smartest, cutest and funniest children around. That is a joke...I know I'm totally biased. And I haven't forgotten about Gaines. He's absolutely beautiful. Sorry, but he is. I'm so lucky to have this family. I think it would be hilarious to read a post that I might type at about 7:35 a.m. as we are struggling to get out the door and neither child wants to cooperate. I know for sure that that post would be a far cry from this one.

Speaking of Suzy-Sunshine, I read something in a little devotion book the other day that really stuck with me given our last year. It was about endurance. I'm about to plagiarize it but maybe it might stick with some else that's had a rough year.

"As you know, we considered blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy." James 5:11

Endurance in faith, hard as it may seem, brings happiness. Trials are not a sign of God's disfavor or his will to carelessly punish his children. The tenderhearted Savior never acts cruelly. But through troubles, we draw close to Him and see God's power at work in our lives. Then, like Job, When we persevere in faith, God rewards us bountifully.

If you have any doubt that that is true, just look at my life.

Happy New Year to all...I'm off to organize toys and outgrown clothes. Don't be jealous.

Love to all,

Brittany

Christmas Recap

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas. We sure did. We started out the day seeing what Santa brought the boys. I'd say from the looks of things, Santa is a sucker for these two boys. Reed got the "horsey" that he'd been telling us Santa was bringing him. Santa was not planning to bring the "horsey" until the last minute because Reed is really too big for it but he caved two days before Christmas fearing that his parents' would hear, "What about my horsey?" if it wasn't here.

Quick side note, I just got interuppted from typing this because Reed TOLD me he needed to go potty and he did! That's big. He's been doing great with it but the hold back has been him telling us. He told Beau the other day at Publix that he needed to go too. Maybe we are on track to be 100% trained soon. Awesome way to start the day. I would have NEVER in a million years guessed I'd be so excited about this kind of stuff. If it means less diaper changing (and purchasing) I'm all for it.

Anyway, we had a great Christmas. After a super delicious breakfast (if I do say so myself) we read the Christmas story in Luke, opened presents from my parents and both boys got even more spoiled. Their aunt Abby (with no children) got Reed a scooter. Yes, you read that correctly. He's two with a red Radio Flyer scooter. In her defense it said ages two to five but I am really looking forward to Aunt Abby having children of her own one day.

Gaines wasn't super into it because he's still too little but I can't wait until next year...it will be twice the fun. He got some good stuff too. Santa brought him a jumperoo (that may or may not have been previously owned by his brother...is that tacky? I mean we had it, should we have bought a whole new one? Buying for second kids is hard because you already have so much stuff.) Anyway, he really seemed to like it but we are sticking with the exersaucer until his therapist approves him using it. She doesn't want us using anything that would have him on his tip toes so she wants to see him in it before he uses it much. We are sticking with the exersaucer for now and he is still doing awesome in it.

Speaking of awesome, the other day when my parents were bringing all of their presents in our house, Reed said, "Mama, this is awesome." I didn't know he knew the word awesome.

On another yet sort of related topic, I have been fighting a toy invasion with every thing I've got. I was never going to be one of those people with toys all over my house. My children were going to keep their toys in their room and we'd have decor friendly storage options for the few that I let them keep in the den. We hung a bulletin board in Reed's room for all of the artwork he did at school. I'd keep one particularly nice or seasonably appropriate piece on the fridge, but I was not going to one of those people with all kinds of junk all over their refridgerator. I surrendered yesterday when Reed's alphabet letters took up residence there. I just do not have the will to fight anymore. Guess that makes me a mother. I'd say its worth it.

Ok...Better run. Reed and I are headed to Andalusia today to visit with some of my extended family. Crazy, I haven't been home since March. Beau always tells me that Montgomery is my home now and yes it is, but Andalusia will always be my home too.

Thanks to all of the comments about the reflux. It is so helpful to know that we are not the only people dealing with this. It hasn't been a huge deal other than being super frustrating but he lost weight last week for the first time. I'm sure part of it is him being more active but the other part has got to be him eating less and spitting up more. Please keep this in your prayers.

If you have read in more than a week or so, there is a new-ish post below.

Love to all.

Brittany

Brothers

Hello world. I'm back. I've set aside time tonight to type up a good blog...we'll see how it goes. I started a post yesterday morning while Reed and Beau were getting ready for church (Beau's turn to go) and then life happened...Reed managed to have two accidents (potty training) and Gaines had a major spit up. Doesn't seem like much now that I type it but Gaines' reflux is back and as strong as it ever was so I was (and still am) super frustrated about that. Also, I had just taken Reed to the bathroom and he swore he didn't have to go...he lied. I tend to be a little over dramatic at times (which probably comes as a suprise to people who know me well) so in the midst of all this, I pick up Reed's plastic plate from his high chair and kind of toss (or threw) it into the kitchen sink. Of course I missed and the mandarin oranges that he chose not to eat that morning went every where and I had to scrape oranges off the backsplash for fifteen minutes.

Anyway, I scratched that blog because no one would have wanted to read what I would have had to say after all of that...and there is really no telling what I might have typed. Like I said, Gaines' reflux is back and I just get so frustrated over it...angry almost which I know is terrible because I know he can't help it. It's just that he was over it. I mean, he was good for a whole month. I have no idea what triggered it again or what to do to fix it. We've already upped his Prevacid another mL and its not helping. He's going to the doctor tomorrow to get checked for ear infections etc. I'm afraid if we don't get this cleared up soon we are going to end up in some specialist's office. I hope I'm over exaggerating.

The good news is that Gaines started baby food this weekend. He's had squash the last three nights and will have sweet potatoes tomorrow. I'm hoping that the move towards solid-ish foods will help things stay down. He's also doing really well in his exersaucer these days. He was in there last night while we were eating dinner and he was playing with some of the toys and standing up...putting weight on his legs. He actually looked like he was jumping a couple of times.

Let's see...what else? His therapist has us working on strengthening his arms to get him ready for sitting up and crawling. We also work with him on an exercise ball (which is a workout for me too...my arms are going to be so toned) to help strengthen his core muscles. Tonight I was able to get him to sit with his hands on the floor propping himself up for a few seconds. He couldn't have done that last week. It is so good to see him making good progress. He's getting stronger everyday. Hopefully he'll be sitting up on his own very soon.

We are hoping that Santa brings him a jumperoo for Christmas. I think he'd probably really enjoy it. I can really tell a difference in his hamstrings. They are really loosening up. The therapist thinks the exersaucer is really helping his legs. Yay! God is answering our prayers for Gaines and while I'd rather Gaines be a boring old baby that I didn't have to worry about, it's exciting to watch what He's doing.

Reed has been doing well too. Despite yesterday's accidents, he's doing really well with the potty training. I'd say he's about 85% there. He's also gotten big on manners lately. I push the please, thank you and yes mam type things but I asked him something the other day and got a "No thank you". I about fell out. I'm guessing they are pushing manners at school right now. I'll take it. "No thank you" is a lot nicer than the "No way!" I was getting.

Santa came to Reed's school last week and he got to wear his pajamas for Polar Express day last Friday. He really loves his school and all of his friends and teachers. He's into all things transportation these days...trucks, school bus, choo choo "rain". This morning on the way to school we passed an older man riding a motorized scooter type wheel chair. I noticed it because it was kind of weird. We just don't see that everyday and he wasn't really riding on a side walk...more like main road...on a Rascal type thing. The next thing I knew, Reed said, "Look mama, motorcycle. Motorcycle, mama". I about died. That boy cracks me up.

Oh, the best thing happened this afternoon. I was feeding Gaines his squash and Reed asked if he could help. He sat in my lap and after every couple of my scoops I got a "What about my turn mama?" So, I let Reed have a few turns. After a couple of spoon jabs to the back of the throat, he got the hang of it...sort of. I actually heard him say, "Open your mouth baby".

Gaines is into making the "Pththtthfff" sound with his mouth (which I think I did a decent job of spelling by the way) lately and he did it once with squash in his mouth. Reed thought it was hilarious and did it back...so then Gaines did it back...and then Reed and so on. They were both laughing at each other and I was loving it. I think I got my first taste of life with two boys. Brothers...I love it.

In other news, Gaines' sweet nanny will be leaving us in a month (which we knew when we hired her). We are so sad to see her go and I know that we'll have the toughest time finding someone to replace her but we are on the nanny hunt again. Keep us in your prayers. It's really important to us to find the right person to take care of our little Gaines.

I think that's about it for now. Please keep Gaines in your prayers. Please pray for his continued progress and for this stupid reflux to go away for good.

Love to all,

Brittany

A Good Report and a Visit with Santa

Brittany took Gaines to his appointment on Friday and came back with a good report. He had several physical and medical evaluations (many of which he has pretty often anyway). He did have a cognitive evaluation, which is something he has never had before. He tested as a 6-month old. This is right on track for his adjusted age of 5 1/2 months. Praise God for another test with positive results.

On a different note, we took Reed to see Santa this morning. After visiting Santa, Reed went to an "arts and crafts" area and made a snowman. Below is picture of the "example" snowman and then a picture of the snowman Reed made.

Two Good Reports

We've had two pieces of good news this week concerning Gaines. His physical therapist saw him Monday and while I wasn't able to be here, I spoke to her on the phone and she thinks that Gaines' hamstrings are not as tight! This is great news and I know that it is due to people praying for his little legs (and our constant stretching and massaging). We are still working on them just as hard but I feel like I can breathe a little easier this week.

Also, we had a follow-up appointment with the pediatric cardiologist this week. The report was that his heart is working great, and while his VSDs are still there (just two of them), the doctor fully expects them to be closed by the time he turns two. He doesn't need to go back to the cardiologist for a year. Great news.

Tomorrow we go to an appointment that the NICU doctors set up for us. Its kind of an assessment for high risk kids. From what I understand, he'll have several therapists looking at him and they will point us in the right direction of any other therapists or doctors that Gaines should be seeing. I really expect it to go well tomorrow (he's meeting all of his milestones right now), but I've mentioned before how having these therapists pick Gaines apart makes me nervous. Please pray that it goes well. I'll try and report back on this appointment soon.

We are looking forward to a weekend of Christmas activities around here. Beau's mom and dad are coming for the weekend so that we can take Reed to some things together. It should be really fun. He is just so much fun right now. The potty training is going very well and he is even wearing big boy underwear to school and around the house everyday.

I think that's about it for now. I'll try and updated some more later. I'm still kind of catching up around the house from being gone last weekend. Eventually I'm going to have to unpack and put away my suitcase.

Love to all,

Brittany

Good News!

Brittany has been out of town since Saturday morning and will not return until Tuesday afternoon. Fortunately, Brittany's parents took Reed for the weekend. The big news is that while Brittany and Reed have been gone, Gaines has figured out how to roll from his back to his tummy and how to stay upright in his exersaucer! These are two major milestones that are very good signs regarding his development. Just call me Super Dad.