Thursday, May 17, 2012

A Year of Gratitude #138

A Year of Gratitude #138: Spare Cat Food

Tuesday night the cats were going CRAZY. They were out of food. 

You can always tell when they're out of food because they become obnoxious and annoying. They won't leave you alone, and try to trip you as you walk. They do whatever is needed to get you to notice them, and they all gang up together and make it FIVE TIMES WORSE than just one annoying cat.

I had wanted to go to the grocery store yesterday after my run, but Michelle was coming over and I wasn't in the mood to deal with lugging Gus into the store after being strapped in the stroller for my run. He hates the transition from the car to another thing and back to the car... so I try to minimize it as much as possible. I had to hit the post office, so that was too much.

The cats would have to wait.

If you've never seen my cats, let me just clue you in on a secret. They're FAT. They can go a day (or two) without food and be just fine. Don't tell them that though... they think they're starving if they can't gorge themselves on the cat feeder.

So, when I had a chance to talk to Steve last night, I asked him if we had extra cat food anywhere (I had been looking all day). Thankfully, we had about 1/4 of a bag left and it was in the office closet. MIRACLE!!!

I was able to fill the feeder and I didn't see the cats again until this morning. I'm so thankful that we had extra cat food and I didn't have to endure ANOTHER night of them driving me crazy. >^..^<

What A Day

Our Morning Captured in a Picture

We had Gus's two year appointment today. I was quite eager to talk to the pediatrician (Dr. Bear) about his speech and language development, and just to get more info on how he's doing. 

We waited in the lobby for maybe five minutes and this is what Gus looked like while we waited. FUN. And we had not even gone back yet. 

Now, you'd think that his reaction is from associating getting shots (pain) and the doctor, but he hasn't had a vaccine since his appointment in November, and he was just in last month to see Dr. Bear. So I don't know what caused the crying, but he was not a happy boy as we waited to go in.

Once inside, he cried as I undressed him. He cried while the nurse tried to weigh him. In fact, she tried to get me to hold him and weigh myself and then weigh myself without him. I passed on that... no thanks!!

In the end, he was able to get on the scale and he weighed in at 29 pounds. This puts him at the 63rd percentile. His height is now 36 inches (THREE FEET TALL!!!!) and that's the 87th percentile. Lastly, his sweet little head is 18.9 inches, which is the 32nd percentile.

Here are some pictures while we waited for Dr. Bear to come into the room.


Today we discussed Gus's eating, she said he's exactly where she wants him to be with his weight. Not too big and not too small and she said to keep up the great work on that. That's a HUGE relief actually.

Then we talked about his behavior and she said that the "terrible twos" are caused by their brains working quicker than their mouths and their not able to speak their thoughts, so it causes a lot of emotion and stress and frustration. She said the baby sign is helpful and obviously it helps Gus get his needs met.

I told her I was worried about his language development, so she recommended we get his speech and hearing evaluated to be on the safe side. She said she's 99% sure he's okay, but it's better to find out and be 100% sure than to risk not catching something sooner. He has fallen a few times (could it be balance or just being a toddler??) and hates a lot of loud noises (he can obviously hear... but is there something else causing this??). 

I called the Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and made appointments for a hearing evaluation (it's an hour long) for June 7th and then he'll go for a speech evaluation on June 20th. The speech eval is two hours long!!

Then we talked about vaccines. I'm so glad that we did, because now the info that I have and the info that they have is aligned. We're moving to a catch-up schedule with Gus and I'm totally fine with that. He'll go back in November for an appointment with the nurse to get his Flu shot and another round of catch-up vaccines. Then when he goes in for his three year appointment, he'll be caught up. :-)

Today they drew blood from his finger (every year they do a Hemoglobin check) and then he had the Pediarix (a combo of DTaP/IPV(Polio)/HepB) and then the Hib (meningitis).

I just got a new train app the other day and I'm SO GLAD I have it. It's just video clips of trains but Gus was sucked into it. He watched while the nurse pricked his finger and drew blood and while he didn't like the blood draw (who does???) he wasn't screaming as I expected.

She was fully expecting him to fight her on the vaccines, but he was watching the train videos and was fine. He cried a little (maybe ten seconds at the most) and then was okay. It was incredible. He cried and cried when he was being weighed and they got his head size and height... but nothing for the real pain.

So we left the doctor's office and headed to Costco so I could get some cat food, tp, ground beef, and snacks. We left and went across the street to Wal-Mart and I picked up a few things as well and we headed home.

While I was at Wal-Mart, Dr. Bear had called and left me a VM. Gus's blood work was back and she wanted to talk to me about the findings and wants him to come back in three weeks to check it again. She said I could call her and talk to her, or just call for an appointment. Hmmmm.

I called her as soon as I was home and waited on hold for about ten minutes. They said she'd have to call back because she was with a patient. Fortunately, her nurse (that did the vaccines) called me and said that Gus's white blood cell count was low. They don't know what's the cause. It could be anemia, could be Leukemia, could be nothing. The protocol is to go in again and have it done and if there's STILL an issue, we go see a blood doctor for more work.

I'm trying to stay positive, but it's still pretty scary. I just pray that he's okay and healthy. I literally do not know what I'd do if there was something seriously wrong with him.  :-(

After we got home and I unpacked the groceries and Costco goodies, Gus took his nap and I talked to my mom on Facetime. We talked for a while and then I hung up and started to attempt to clean the house a bit. It's a disaster.

Gus got up from his nap and we called my mom back so she could see him. We're excited to see her in two days!! WHOO HOOO!!! It's been nine months since I last saw Scott, Christie and the kids and it's been four months since I last saw my mom and dad! It's a long-overdue trip!!

It was like 5:30 and I wasn't sure what I was making for dinner yet. I decided to call Christie and get her enchalada recipe, but I got her voice mail. I decided that by the time she called back and I got started with dinner, I could have been at Taco Thursday and home already. :-) So Gus and I headed out for a date night.

We had a great dinner together. We played trains, cars, and drew together. He seemed to really enjoy himself. He ate well and it was a very enjoyable experience!
Nosey Walker


Choo Choo!!



My date



We headed home and shared a strawberry milkshake. :-)  It started to really rain so we went to the front door and watched the rain. It was a perfect ending to a stressful day.


We are more than ready for daddy to get home tomorrow afternoon. It's just not the same when he's gone, and hopefully he won't be traveling away from us for a long time.

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

A Year of Gratitude #136 & 137

A Year of Gratitude #136: Safe Travels & #137: Visit with Michelle

#136- I'm grateful that Steve was able to fly safely into Canada and arrive at his destination for the week, without any problems. I pray that he enjoys himself and returns safely to us on Friday.

#137- Michelle and June came over today for a visit. I took some three month pictures for Michelle and we sat and talked for several hours. It was nice to spend my afternoon with her and laughing. I'm so thankful to have her here in GA. <3

Monday, May 14, 2012

A Year of Gratitude #135

A Year of Gratitude #135: Playgroup

We had our last playgroup today. We will start back up again in the fall, but today was the last one with all the same kiddos. Some will be going to preschool in the fall and won't be able to be together. We'll have new kids added, and we'll lose some, so today was a day to celebrate the time we've shared as a group.

I just joined the group in January, but I feel like I've known these women (and their kids) much longer. Maybe it's because I see them every week and we do a lot of things together during the week. We had a potluck brunch and it was a lot of fun to just sit around and chat while the kids played.

I don't know what the fall will bring, but I'm hoping that Gus and I are in a playgroup with some of the same kiddos as now. They all play so well together and us mamas get along really well too (which is very important)!!

I'm grateful for the conversations, laughs, and support that we've gained from our playgroup, and I'll miss the ladies and kids that aren't with us in the fall.

I'll miss not having a weekly playgroup to attend, but with it being summer, hopefully there will be a lot of time to see everyone during the week at MOMS Club events!!

A Year of Gratitude #134

A Year of Gratitude #134: Mother's Day

I'm grateful that I was able to celebrate being a mother yesterday. For a really long time I didn't think I'd ever get to be anyone's mother, and here I am, Gus's mama.

It was a wonderful day being pampered. I didn't change a single diaper. I didn't make a single meal. It was great. I'm thankful that Steve (and Gus) took care of me.

<3

A Year of Gratitude #133

A Year of Gratitude #133: Gus's Birthday Party & Friends


This past Saturday we celebrated Gus's 2nd birthday with some friends at Gymboree. I have to devote this gratitude entry to this party because I can't even express how thankful I am to have the friends that we have here in GA.

When we first started to weigh the options and seriously consider moving, I didn't care where we moved, as long as I could do things with Gus and make friends. I'm not a solitary being, and I've always loved having people around me. I love people-watching, going out to dinner to be surrounded by people, and I just love being around a bunch of people. Don't get me wrong, there's a time and a place for it, and there are plenty of times that I quite enjoy alone time and no crowds. But for the most part, I like being around others.

When we decided to see what opportunities were available elsewhere, I was so nervous about relocating to a new place. What if we didn't make friends? We had established some great connections in NC and I was worried that we'd move to GA and be miserable.

I'm so thankful that I joined my MOMS Club and AAM. While I'm not involved in AAM, I met Dina through it and I'm glad to call her a friend. MOMS Club has changed my life. It's changed Gus's life.

We had a birthday party for Gus on Saturday and he had eight friends there. He was so excited to be surrounded by all his buddies and playing together. When it was time for his cupcake cake and singing Happy Birthday to him, he KNEW it was his birthday and was full of joy. It was the sweetest sight.

I'm thankful that Gus and I have made friends here and we were surrounded by people who love us and care about it. It's an incredible feeling. Especially since we have no family here. We are so blessed and I am so grateful and thankful that God has brought these amazing people into our lives.

Here are some pictures from our day:
All the kiddos enjoying some music fun

A train ride (it was a train themed party)

Riding on the caboose

Bubbles!!!

King of the mountain
<3

Playing with Aubree and the silks

Fun with daddy

The little Gussy that could

<3
Gus's cupcake cake

All the kiddos ready to sing to Gus

Ready to make a wish and blow out his candle!

Gus's friend Ryan

Becca loved the cupcakes

Helping everyone wash up after eating cupcakes

The end of the party

Passing out his goodie bags and saying goodbye to his guests


We are so fortunate to have made such great friends here. Our first of three birthday celebrations for Gus was a smashing success!