Freddie Update

Thank you everyone for your prayers and good thoughts.

Freddie is doing well. We arrived at the hospital just after 7 and they took him back a little after 8. Around 8:40 he was asleep and in the machine. They called us back to come get him around 10:15. So it took longer than we thought. We won't know any results until we hear from the ENT tomorrow.

He did very well not eating for so long...the Lord definitely answered my prayers on that one! I fed him in the middle of the night extra long, then he slept until after 6 this morning. At that point he was actually very calm. He didn't start losing it until right before 8 when the nurses and doctors were taking his temp and listening to his heart/breathing.

It was extremely difficult to hand him over. I guess I didn't realize how nervous I was until the time actually came. I didn't want Ainsley to see me upset so I went straight to the bathroom. I was afraid she'd be scared if she saw me upset. She was very concerned about her baby brother and why people were taking him away. Clif reassured her and she was good as new by the time I got back to the waiting area.

We are home now and Freddie is sleeping away. He will probably do that most of the day. Perfect for a rainy, cloudy, cold-for-May day.

Cloth Diapers

I started using cloth diapers this week and so far so good. I like them and I feel like they're not as much work as I had anticipated. I guess I'll have to get back to you in a few weeks.

Here's a picture of Freddie in his cute little diapers. He looks like a little sumo wrestler! We had a doctor's appointment today (which I will explain in a moment) and he weighs 13 lbs 15 ounces!! Goodness he's a little monster!

So the doctor's appointment...We had a follow up with the ENT last Friday and now they're not so sure that the growth in Freddie's ear is a hemangeoma. It's gotten really big and now completely fills his ear canal. So they want to biopsy it, however, before they do that they need to make sure that it doesn't run deeper than they think. So tomorrow we go for an MRI. Today's doctor's appointment was a "pre-op appointment" because little Freddie has to be put under anesthesia. A person has to be perfectly still for an MRI...which is not really possible with an 8 week old.

So please send your prayers our way tomorrow morning. I'm kind of worried, because he's so small. Also, I can't feed him after 2:30 AM tonight. So that should make for a very fun morning filled with the sounds of a screaming hungry baby boy!

Well moving on to other things. Last weekend we went to visit my mom and meet my new nephew Austin. We had a great time and it was nice to see all the kids together. Freddie is way bigger than Austin!

Everything is going really well. Clif is still looking for a job every day and we are keeping our fingers crossed that he'll find something soon. I just started doing jewelry shows again, but I gotta say that I'm probably not going to do as many as before. Life is so busy and I just don't know if I'll find the time.

Ainsley is such a little mommy. And if we thought she mimicked us before, well we were very mistaken. She is literally on my heels all day long. She nurses her babies and puts them in the swing and swaddles them. We even caught her pumping one day! I wish I had that on film. She is growing into such a wonderful little girl and I'm so lucky that I get to witness it. She's so imaginative...even has some imaginary friends...and she really is a good girl. Don't get me wrong, she's not perfect...but she's about as close as they come. And she loves her baby brother.

Maymont

Last week my sister came to visit. She was just here overnight, but we were able to take her and the kids to Maymont park. It's a park in Richmond that has farm animals and bears and a Japanese garden and a bunch of fun sights.

We spent the day walking through the animal and garden areas then had a picnic under a big tree before heading home.

We also picked up Ainsley's flower girl dress for Cam and Amanda's wedding. Ainsley asks to put it on every day.

This weekend we are heading to my mom's house in NC to meet cousin Austin and just spend some time with family. Then next weekend we will head to NOVA for Nanny's birthday. Then I'll be heading back to work soon after that. I'm pretty bummed about it, but I guess it's better than the first time. I absolutely dreaded going back to work after Ainsley. This time, I'm not dreading it as much, but I'm still sad to be going back. I feel like I have to pack as much as I can in to these last 3 weeks. And Ainsley is still not potty trained. I promised myself she would be by the time I went back to work.

Well, that's all for now. Not much exciting going on. Hope everyone has a good weekend.

I Hate Potty Training

As you all know we've been trying to potty train Ainsley for some time now. We haven't seriously pushed it because the two times I did she got a bit constipated so I backed off. Well then, while Clif and I were in the hospital having the baby, my mother in law had Ainsley going consistently on the potty. Number 1 and number 2. However, I read a bunch of things about how kids regress when you bring a new baby home so it's probably a bad time to do it then...plus who has time to put a toddler on the potty every 30 minutes when you've got a brand new baby at the house?

So we put it off again because it was just bad timing. So I decided that this past week we would stay home as much as possible and really push the potty training. My mother in law did a great job so I thought, ground work is already in place, now we just need the consistency.

Well Monday, we had 1 accident. Not bad. It was really my fault because I just blanked on the whole thing.

Tuesday, we were doing well all morning and then around lunch time I realized she hadn't gone number 2. So I sat her in there for a very long time and I left (she likes her privacy for that one). Well next thing you know she's flushing the toilet so I run in there to find her crying for a diaper. And that was the end of potty training this week. Every time I suggest big girl panties, she gets all teary-eyed.

So once again we are putting it off a bit. I'm not really sure what triggered it, but also she's now asking to be held like a baby and fed like a baby and wants baby toys and wants to lay in the crib when we're upstairs. I know this is all a normal part of a new sibling, but it's not easy and I'm just not really sure how far I should indulge it. I mean, yesterday she asked for a binky! She hasn't had a binky since she was 5 months old! Plus, I feel like I've been really conscious of spending one on one time with her. I still try to put her to bed every night and I always try and do something with her while Freddie is napping. So, again, I know it's normal, but I've really tried to make her feel special still - so I guess I was just hoping it wouldn't get too bad. I don't think there's a lot of jealousy with Freddie...she adores him. But, I'm sure she is missing 24/7 undivided attention from both parents.

Well, on to more positive things. I finally finished Freddie's letters! Only 5 weeks late :) It was not easy to do when I only had a small window of time between Ainsley's bed time and my bed time and part of that time Freddie needs to eat and be changed and held upright so he doesn't loose his whole meal. Anyway, here they are...

We hung them yesterday, so the nursery is just about done. Now I just need to put away clothes and finish washing things. I'll take pictures of the nursery this week to show you. Funny how ready I was for Ainsley and how now I'm half way through maternity leave and still don't have the nursery complete! Poor, neglected, second child. Yeah, he looks neglected, right?

Last Friday we had a bit of an incident. I noticed some dried flecks of blood in and around Freddie's left ear while I gave him a bath. I assumed he had scratched himself, so I cut his nails and then while I was nursing him I looked for a bad scratch. Instead, I found a black bulge in his ear canal. First thought...tick. I was horrified that my 4 week old baby possibly had a tick. Clif came in and thought it was fuzz so he tried to pull it out with tweezers and it started bleeding. Bleeding enough to where I realize it's not a tick but some sort of growth in his ear. Well, his ears have been checked at least 2 or 3 times since he's been born...and that's not even counting the hospital time. Plus, I spend a lot of time looking at his ears while nursing. So Clif took him to the pediatrician. They think it's a hemangioma. But because of the location, he should see an ENT and since it's still bleeding, we should take him right away so it doesn't bleed all weekend. So Clif drives him to the ENT where they drain it a bit and confirm that it is a hemangioma. And it's not uncommon for it to show up a month after the baby's born. Anyway, it's harmless, but it is very vascular so it bleeds easily, so we just have to be careful. However, I feel like it's gotten bigger and there is a concern that it could block his ear canal and affect hearing...but it's also supposed to disappear by the time he's 3 or so. We'll see, we have a follow-up in a couple of weeks.

We had Auntie Keek here for a week, which was so nice. We're hoping she comes back to visit for awhile this summer. We also got to have lunch with NonNon while she was here...

Well that's about all that's going on right now. Hope everyone had a nice weekend.

I will get better at this...

So it's pretty tough to get on the computer these days. Clif is often looking for a job and I am often busy with the babies. When I was working I would load pictures the night before and write the blog the next day. Or write it and then add the pics later. I am not really a computer obsessed person so if I'm not forced to sit in front of it all day, then I barely even think about it being there.

However, I know I have adoring fans out there, so I will try and post on a more regular basis. And if not, maternity leave is only 12 weeks, so I'll be back before you know it :)

Anyway, life has been busy but fun. I have to say that the whole baby thing is much easier the second time around. I mean, two kids takes a bit more work than 1 and it always seems that we have 2 dirty diapers and 2 hungry mouths to feed at the same time...but the craziness will eventually work itself out.

We don't spend a lot of time at home...we are often on the move. We go to the mall or the park or take walks or run errands. I get stir crazy in the house all the time so I can really only take about 1 or 2 days a week inside all day. Which is probably why my house is always a mess :)

Last week we spent a day at the mall...and somehow we are able to not shop. On this particular day they had a petting zoo that Ainsley loved and she got to ride the train and throw pennies in the fountain and go to all of her stores: The Bed Store (Pottery Barn Kids), The Bear Store (Build A Bear) and The Toy Store (self explanatory).

Freddie had a doctor's appointment this weekend hold on to your seats folks...the little Buddha has gained almost 2 pounds in 2 weeks!!! He weighs 10 lbs 7.5 ounces. New born diapers are a thing of the past and his new born clothes are getting a bit snug. But he does have short little legs so his pants are still working out for him. Just the onsies are getting a little tight!

Well I gotta run, but I'll try to update again soon.

Happy Easter - Late :)

Things have been busy, so I'll use this post to catch you up.

Freddie had his first play date about a week and a half ago. I mean, not really. One to two week old babies don't really play. Maybe we call it a nap off or a feeding frenzy. However, we did get to meet the baby of our very good friend's Sean and Kristin, who is just 8 days older than Freddie. Baby Jack is very cute and we are very excited that Freddie has his first friend.

The weather has been beautiful so we've been spending a lot of time outside...only drawback is my allergies...brutal! But I'll take it. I'm not sure how many children we will end up having (don't worry, I'm not trying to be the Duggers or anything!) but I'm so glad that both of ours have been born in nice weather. It would really suck to be stuck inside all day and night through the cold months. I will definitely keep that in mind for the next time as well.

Sunday was Easter. It's not super easy to get pictures of the kids together. Ainsley can't really hold Freddie yet, so it takes a lot of propping up and being very quick with the camera.

Ainsley enjoyed finding her Easter eggs and digging through her basket. That afternoon we went to a festival downtown with Clif's friend Corey and his two daughters. Ainsley is right between them in age, so they often play together well.

That's all for now...I think I'm going to grab a quick nap while the baby's still asleep. Night Night!