"I need to test her"

As some of you know when Dylan has high sugar levels or is sick we have to check his urine for ketones. In simple terms ketones are sugars that dump into urine. And usually we have to tell him to wait to pee until we get in the bathroom because we need to test him (his urine).

Well for Christmas Aidan got a Little People bath toy that has a girl, a raft, and a dolphin. Since the Little People person is made for the bath she has an extra hole underneath to help drain the water out. Well last night in the tub we were playing with her and I noted to Dylan that when the water came out it looked like she was peeing. Well a few minutes later Dylan was playing with her and while the water was draining out Dylan said, "I need to test her". Dave and I thought it was pretty funny.

Christmas gifts

It was a wonderful Christmas and we all had a wonderful day. Dylan is at that lovely age where he thinks it is all about him and getting, getting, getting. But all in all he was good (besides having a terrible congested cough) and did very well for himself. Thanks to all :)

I too did very well this Christmas but wanted to post about two of my favorite gifts this year. One of them is the nomination charm I got from Dave. It says "I Love Someone With Diabetes". Not sure why, but it made me tear up. And the other gift that I truly love and that made me cry is the necklace Dylan got for me. At his school they have a Santa sale where the kids bring in money and can buy gifts for relatives. The volunteer parents wrap them and everything. On Christmas morning he handed me a jewelery gift box and when I opened it there was beautiful heart necklace in there. It was the sweetest gift. It just brought tears to my eyes to know that he picked it out himself for me.

Aidan's finally saying.....

"mama"!!!! YAY!!!!!

Though he doesn't always say it for calling me, but I am just super excited that he is finally making the effort and can say it. I was starting to worry about when he would start talking and if it would be an issue at the next doctor appointment, but he is really starting to try to say different words and make different animal sounds.

Yay, for Aidan!!

No luck this time of year for us

Well as you all know Dylan was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes last December and now we have another family member that has been struck ill at this time of year. Yesterday we woke up and noticed that Baxter was limping and not putting pressure on his front left paw. We thought maybe it was just bruised so we let him relax yesterday. Last night it still wasn't better and during the night he was shaking at times, especially when he inhaled. I was quite upset not knowing what was wrong. The shaking did stop but this morning he was still limping.

I decided not to put it off any longer and called the vet. We, yes, we meaning all four of us, took him to the vet. The vet examined him and said his ankle was a bit swollen and he had a bit of a temperature. He said it could be lymes disease and that they could do a quick 15 minute test to see if that was what it was. If not then they would move on and do an xray. Well we waited 15 minutes and the vet came out with the tester and showed us it was positive for lymes disease. Luckily it is treatable with antibiotics but he did say that some people believe you can't really cure it and about 20% of dogs will have recurring cases. So we just pray that after 21 days of the antibiotic he is all better.

It just bugs me because we use Frontline (a flea and tick preventive medicine) on him and he hasn't really been anywhere in the past few months except our backyard and the boarding kennel where he could get a tick on him. A gentleman in the waiting room did tell us that birds tend to carry the deer ticks around as well so maybe that is how one got in our backyard. Dave and I are going to be so much more deligint about checking the boys even when they are in our own backyard.

It's SNOWING!!!

Who could ask for a more perfect backdrop to us decorating the tree today. Just wanted to share :)

December 1st---a date we will always remember

Hard, and sad, to believe that tomorrow marks one year since Dylan was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. I didn't think I would be one of those moms that thinks about the pre-D days, but for the past few days I have been thinking about those days and the days leading up to his diagnosis. I will never forget that shocked feeling I had when I took him to his pediatrician and he told me the news. It was utter shock and I don't think I understood the huge turn our lives were about to take. And then seeing my poor little boy spend the next 5 days in the hospital.

Luckily we are spending the weekend busy with Christmas decorating so it won't be such a downer of a weekend. We have plans to have portraits taken tomorrow, visit with Santa either tomorrow or Sunday, decorate the tree Sunday and build a gingerbread house. Quite a busy weekend but at least we won't be thinking about what a horrible time it was for us a year ago.

I just hope that soon we will be able to remember a more important date----the date he gets a cure.

Our first fever

Well it finally happened, one of the boys has a fever. Aidan woke up several times last night and we thought it was just from his teething. So Dave would go in and give him back his pacifier since he was having a hard time finding it. Around midnight nothing Dave did could console him so I went in to see if there was anything I could do. I sat down in the glider with him and immediately could tell he was really warm. At first I thought that maybe it was because Dave was holding him (Dave tends to run on the warmer side) but after a few minutes he was still warm. We gave him some motrin and took his temp. It was 101.8 degrees.

Since this was our first experience with one of them having a fever we weren't sure what constitutes a high fever so we called the on-call nurse and she told us it was a low grade fever and to continue to give him motrin. She said the fever could spike again before it goes away and that it could be the result of his flu booster shot he got yesterday.

He had a hard time sleeping last night so he slept with us from 3:30 on and was acting fine today besides being a little cranky (probably from the fever and fatigue). He has eaten okay, not great, and is nursing fine. His temp at 9:00 this morning was 101.2 degrees. Hoping it continues to go down and is back to himself soon. He fell asleep early for his nap and hopefully it will be a nice long one to help him get better.

"Trick-or-Treat; what's this?"

So yesterday was Halloween and Dylan was all excited about going trick-or-treating. He knew exactly what to do: knock on the door and say trick-or-treat. We told him that after he got the candy/treat he had to say thank you. Well, instead Dylan would get the candy and ask, "what's this?". And it wasn't just the first few houses, it was every single time he got something (unless it was M&Ms which he recognizes). After awhile we told him to say thank you and then come down to me or Dave (whomever was down at the sidewalk) and ask us what it was. He said, "okay". But of course he never did. He continued to say "what's this?" Dave or I would answer him and then he would say thank you.

Another funny note about the evening was toward the end we went to a house and the owner put the bowl out for them to pick something. There was a bunch of candy in the bowl and some juice boxes. Dylan said, "ooooh, a juice box, yay!" and grabbed a juice box. As we were walking away I reminded him that he can't have juice. He said, "I know unless I am low". Dave and I chuckled and told him that he was correct and he could have some when he was low.

All in all it was a fun night and they both got to sample a treat or two while we were out and about.

A Sweet Moment

Every night when Dave or I put Dylan to bed we sing him some songs before leaving the room. On Saturday night Dylan wanted both Dave and I to sing to him. So Dave was standing in his room and I was standing by the doorway. Dylan said, "No, Mommy stand IN my room". So I moved into the room next to Dave and, with our arms around each other, we started singing. Dylan then said, "I have an idea. I will sing with you" and proceeded to stand up in his bed so we could hold him. So, both Dave and I held Dylan up and together in a big hug the three of us sang Dylan's bedtime songs. It was a really sweet moment for Dave and I.

Boy it sure has been a long time since I posted. And since I have a quick moment without Aidan hanging on me by the computer I can sit and post.

This past Thursday Dylan had his Halloween party at school and I signed up to help in the class. I got to be there the whole 2 1/2 hours he is there and watch him with the other kids. It was a lot of fun. I helped the kids glue together a witch craft and then they got to make a pumpkin with a rice cake, orange icing, and candy corn. I was worried about what would happen when the other kids ate theirs and Dylan wouldn't or only would get a piece of it. Well lucky for us they don't allow the kids to eat them (or other food projects) because of allergies that some kids might have. They pack them up and send them home. It was such a relief and it makes me more comfortable for future party crafts if I am not able to be there. I also got to witness him dance around with the other kids. It was a nice experience and hopefully I will be able to do it again. I was thankful Grandpa was able to watch Aidan for me so I could do it.

Well that is it for my post for now because Aidan is whining in the living room which means that Dylan is probably trying to take something away from him.

Next week Dylan gets to dress up in his Halloween costume and partake in a Halloween parade at school.

My big boy has started school

Well the day I have not really looked forward to all summer has come and gone. It was this past Tuesday when Dylan started school. Wiat, let me change that, I guess the real day I wasn't looking forward to was last Thursday when he had orientation and I had to discuss with the teacher about his diabetes. That went just fine and the next day Dave and I sat down with the school nurse, teacher and principal of the pre-K program and showed them how to check his sugar levels. Luckily he is only there from 9:00 until 11:30 and the only issue would be to make sure he has his snack at his normal snack time. The teacher was kind enough to arrange the schedule so that snack time was at 9:45. And the nurse has experience with diabetes because there is a little girl in 3rd grade at the school that has it. So, after this meeting I was a little more comfortabel about him being away from me.

So Tuesday morning comes and I am excited for him but nervous at the same time. How will he be when I leave, will he wonder where I am, will he make friends. Dave took the morning off and we both dropped him off. As soon as we took his book bag off his back he went right over to play with the toys and didn't look back. We stuck around for a few minutes and then said our good-byes. He was really good about it. However, there were about 3 other kids in the class that were clearly not happy about the situation and their mom leaving them. I thought that I would get upset walking back to the car and on the drive home, but I was okay. I think I was more nervous; wondering how his sugar levels would be.

We went back at 11:30 to pick him up and the teacher said he was just fine. He told us he loved school. We checked him when he got in the car and his sugar level was just fine. So no worries. He did tell us that he asked the teacher where we were at some point during the day and that she told him we were right down the hall.

Today was day #2 and I was again worried how he would be after I had told him that I would be going home when I left but would be back later to get him. Once again as soon as the backpack came off he left me. This time there were only 2 other kids screaming. As I walked out this moring I was a bit more emotional; maybe because I didn't have Dave to talk to to keep my mind off of things, but it was definitely more upsetting for me this morning.

It's hard for me to accept that there is now a part of Dylan's life that I am not involved in 100%; that he will have experiences I won't get to see or hear. I am, however, glad we made the decision to send him at this age; I couldn't imagine the emotional wreck I would be if I waited until he was of kindergarten age (5) before sending him off.

To CFL or not to CFL

I have been debating the issue on whether to convert all of our light bulbs to CFLs. I know the pro is cutting down on the use of energy, but the con is that they have mercury in them. I have read that when it comes time to dispose of them there really isn't a safe way to do it without risking the mercury leaking into the environment. I know that the bulbs will last a long time and maybe by then they will have a safe way of recycling them, but will they?

Here is an article I found on the subject if you are interested:
article

A mixed blessing

So, now in addition to Aidan being able to climb he is walking about 90% of the time. This has made some things easier but other things a bit more difficult. It is now easier at the parks because he can actually get out of the stroller and go and climb on the apparatuses and interact with the other kids. However it is now harder for me to keep an eye on two kids. Today, at the library (yes I have said in a previous post that we go weekly) I let him out of the stroller to play with the stuff the library has for kids. Well Dylan goes down one aisle of books and Aidan turns the corner to go around another. So I scamper off after Aidan while Dylan calls out my name to help him pick a book. I do believe I will be keeping Aidan in the stroller as much as I can for my sanity.

Maybe I should let him walk through the airport when we go to California in 4 weeks so he tires himself out enough to sleep on the plane :)

Oh, and to add to the insanity of the climbing fascination he now decides to walk on the couch.

Bows on frogs????

Today we took our weekly trip to the library. On our way I noticed something blow/hop onto the road so I stopped not knowing what it was. I backed the car up a bit so I could see it and it was a frog. I got out of the car to try and startle it to go back into the grass on the side of the road. Well the darn thing wouldn't budge. So I got back into the car and drove around it. I looked in my rearview mirror and saw that when the next car passed it it hopped back into the grass. Anyway...Dylan asked me what it was so I told him it was a frog. He asked me if it was a boy or a girl frog.

I said "I don't know" (an answer I give him frequently).

He said, "It was a boy frog Mommy because it didn't have a bow on it; girl frogs have bows".

I said, "oh, like Daisy Duck has a bow and Donald doesn't?"

He said, "yes"

I did tell him that real ducks don't wear bows but he swears he has seen a real duck on television with a bow. Not sure where.

Yo Gabba Gabba---some strange tv

Okay, so today is a dismal rainy day and I decided to let Dylan watch a little bit of television and the only channel with anything appropriate for him is Nickelodeon. Well at 10:30 this morning this horrible (in my opinion that is) show Yo Gabba Gabba was on




Dylan seemed to enjoy it. Did some research and discovered that Elijah Wood filmed an episode as did Tony Hawk and Biz Markie, as well as some other musical guests. To me it seems a bit on the strange side.

Aidan and the couch

OMG, Aidan is such a daredevil and just loves to do the things Dylan does. Up until last week Aidan was not able to get up on the couch on his own and would just see Dylan up there. And let me tell you that Dylan doesn't always just sit on the couch, he will hang/climb/sit on the arm of the couch. Well Aidan has finally been able to figure out how to get himself up onto the couch and will now do exactly what Dylan does (which Dylan is no longer allowed to do).

Aidan will use all his strength and pull himself up onto the couch. At first he will just sit there like a good boy, but then if I turn my head and then look back at him he is sitting on the arm of the couch almost falling off or he is dangling head first over the arm. The best is when I go to take him off and yell at him "No" he gives me a sh*t a$$ grin.

And he has no reservations about getting off the couch no matter how he does it. Just now I believe he fell off (not sure how as when I turned my head I heard him hit the floor) and just climbed back on up. He will also scoot in a sitting position to the edge and then just dangle his feet over and slowly inch forward until he falls off.

Definitely won't be getting much peace now that he can do this and I am sure once he is walking 100% things will just get worse.

Say goodbye to the trees

As of this morning our house and yard will no longer have any shade. We have been fortunate enough to reap the rewards of the large trees growing in our neighbor's back and side yards. They provided shade for the kitchen and den and some shade in the backyard for the boys when on the swings and in the sandbox in the early half of the day.

Yesterday we got home and found a note on the door to call our neighbor. Dave called and was informed that they were going to be cutting down the two trees in his backyard and the one on the side yard this morning. They arrived at 8:30 this morning and began the work. It is now 9:30 and the one on the side is already cut down and my kitchen is so much brighter now.

The pros to the situation are that my den will be warmer in the winter (but hotter in the summer) and we may have more success with grass growing in the one bare spot in the backyard.

I really hate to see trees getting cut down as I love the green foliage; we may just need to plant a tree in our yard somewhere to make up for the loss.

And now there is one

Last year right before Aidan was born Dylan received 3 goldfish from a friend of the family. Within two months of getting them all set up in their tank one of them jumped out of the tank and didn't survive.

Then there were two which Dylan named Nemo and Jaime (not sure how he came up with those names) and things have been fine. Then about 2-3 weeks ago I was in the living room and Dave and Dylan were in the den (Aidan was in bed) and Dave went into the kitchen and called my name, sort of panicky. I ran in and there on the kitchen floor was Nemo, or was it Jaime (who could tell). I quickly picked him/her up and put him/her back in the tank and he/she swam around just fine.

This morning I went in to start our normal breakfast routine and while pouring cereals into bowls I noticed only one fish. Now sometimes the tank will play tricks on my eyes and the other one is just laying low in the corner. Well not this morning. The other one, once again no idea whether it was Jaime or Nemo was laying on the counter behind the tank. I grabbed the net and got it up off the counter and put it in some water to see if maybe it had just happened. Nope, it was all over for him/her. Since it was 7:15 in the morning we chose not to mention anything to Dylan, plus he never even notices them. So I put Jaime or Nemo in a plastic bag and put him/her out for the garbage men this morning. And now there is one.

I did tell Dylan that there is now only one fish in the tank because the other one jumped out and couldn't breathe and is now in fish heaven. And of course because Dylan always asks questions, that was followed up by 3 minutes of questions like where is fish heaven? up above our house? and so on.

Pictures

So, a month after his first birthday I finally got around to taking Aidan for pictures for his 1st birthday. I had thought about going to Picture People because I hear they are really good with kids that move around a lot (the photographer moves around with the camera). But since JCPenney's is only 10 minutes away I opted to go there this morning (and it is cheaper so if the pictures aren't great I won't waste a lot of money).
Now, Aidan is teething and been quite cranky, but I figured he would be okay, might not smile much (doesn't do that anyway when out in public) but would give it a try. Well it was just as I thought, not one smile. I think we got one good shot of him with a birthday cake with a slight smirk, that looks like a smile. Then I had the photographer get a couple of Dylan and Aidan, which went just the same. Dylan kept saying cheese, but Aidan was emotionless. Out of the 4 he took of the two boys I only liked one. The photographer wasn't overly kid friendly; he put a puppet on his hand and kept squeaking it, but didn't do much to try and get Aidan to smile. I kept trying and even tried to recruit Dylan, but it didn't work.
Luckily I only spent $8 and will be taking them to Picture People to see if I can get some really good pics of them.
Oh, and while I was reviewing the pictures learned that having Dylan play peek-a-boo with Aidan makes him smile and laugh; now if I had only known that 1/2 hour earlier :)

New pics

Here are some recent pics as well as some from Great Adventure (just click on the picture to see all of them)

July 29

A Great sweaty Adventure

Saturday was the official kick-off for the JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) 2007 Walk to the Cure (see the link on the side for making a donation; just click on the "donate" button near the thermometer). All team captains were invited for a day at Great Adventure (of course after a meeting and a free lunch). So how could we pass that up. We got there and as soon as we stepped out of the car at 10:00 in the morning you could feel the humidity. There was a nice breeze blowing so we thought it wouldn't be too bad. After we checked in and they let us all into the park we then proceeded to follow the committee people through the park to a picnic grove at the other end of the park. This was when I was kicking myself for not bringing the double stroller. Poor Dylan had to walk the whole way. Luckily at lunch time his sugar level was okay.

So we got a free lunch and after some motivational speakers about raising money for the cure we went our own ways to enjoy the rides. Now we had to make the walk back toward the Wiggle World section that Dylan kept bugging us to go to. By this point Dave and I are soaking wet with sweat from either pushing the stroller or carrying Dylan on and off to get there quicker. After a few Wiggle rides and us trying to find shady spots for quick stops we headed off to Bugs Bunny land (which of course was on the other side of the park). We went on a few rides there and luckily there was a "water tower" that released water every few minutes so we all cooled off before heading for ice cream and an end to our day.

Luckily Dylan was a trooper walking as much as he had to in the heat and humidity, as for me and Dave we couldn't wait to get back to the car and crank the a/c. Oh, and Aidan , the poor kid was exceptional for being stuck in the stroller the whole time, even without a nap for the whole day. And they both fell asleep on the ride home.

Finally I see white

That is, the white of Aidan's third tooth. Yes he is just over a year old and is just getting his third tooth. I believe by this point Dylan had 7 already. But that is okay because they say the longer it takes for them to come in the stronger their teeth are.
Well anyway, Aidan has discovered that he has this new tooth poking through and will now grind the bottom two against the small amount of tooth cutting through the gum. Such a delightful sound....NOT!!

He likes it, he really likes it

The other night right after dinner I quickly sat at the computer while Dylan was in the living room watching tv and Aidan was with me in the den. Being the little boy that never sits still Aidan made his way toward the kitchen. I heard him crawl through the kitchen and then heard him in the living room. I got up to go and be with them in the living room and noticed Aidan had a bunch of drool coming down his chin; he is teething, but this was not teething drool. Then I noticed he was playing with something in his mouth with his tongue. I opened his mouth and discovered a half dissolved/half chewed piece of dog food. I guess as he made his way through the kitchen he made a quick stop at Baxter's bowl for a bite to eat.

So proud of him

Today we had a mommy group get together at one of the mommies' house. It was a get together to celebrate those who had a birthday in June. All the other kids sat down to have lunch at 11:15 (Dylan eats at 12:00 and has to because of his insulin regimen). Then at 11:30ish we all sing Happy Birthday to the birthday kids and they bring out munchkins and brownies. Dylan says he wants one and I tell him he can have a munchin with his lunch later. He says okay and goes off to play. I was just amazed that he didn't have a fit because the other kids all ate lunch already and were eating the treats. 12:00 rolls around, he eats his lunch and then nicely asks for his munchkin.
I know it won't always be like this with the diabetes but I was just so proud of him today.

He's not getting away from us now

Yesterday Baxter had his annual appointment with the vet. While waiting I saw a sign for the chip that they put in pets so that if they ever run away/get lost they can be scanned and returned to you. It stated that it only cost $19.99 which included the chip and your first year subscription. Dave and I had discussed getting it done last year but at that time it cost $59.99. I thought about the possible future reactions Dylan and Aidan might have if Baxter ever got loose and we couldn't find him and I knew Dave and I would be upset as well (as much as we say he drives us nuts some times, we still enjoy him being a part of our family). So, for those reasons I decided the $19.99 was a good deal and had the chip implanted in Baxter.

So, if Baxter ever gets loose and an animal control officer or vet or shelter get a hold of him all they have to do is scan him and we will get a call to come and get him. He's not getting away from us now.

7-7-7 Aidan's 1st birthday

Okay, so where did the past year go??!! I can't believe my little boy is a year old. He had a wonderful birthday party to celebrate the big occasion with friends and family. We went with a "Lucky 7s" theme and served 7-up, 7 layer bean dip, 7 layer salad (and sandwiches). I made cupcakes (took 3 hours; from 8 pm until 11pm Friday night; to make about 60 cupcakes) and arranged them to show 7-7-7. I had also purchased Lucky Charms to serve but totally forgot to put them out. I was running around all day and it just slipped my mind.

All in all I think he had a wonderful time and was such a good boy the whole day. He had little interest in opening his gifts, which was just fine with Dylan because he got to open them for him :)

I am just still amazed that his first year has come and gone.

Jumping humor

So the best thing lately with Aidan is how he finds his brother so humorous. Dylan just has to do some little silly thing and Aidan cracks up at it. For instance today when Dylan and I went to get Aidan after his nap we found Aidan holding onto the side of the crib and sort of practicing jumping/bouncing on the mattress. So Dylan held onto the railing from the outside and started bouncing and Aidan was cracking up at it. I wanted so badly to get the video camera but knew once I got back with it it would all be over.

Getting started

Okay, so this is my first post and I thought I would start with a cute tidbit from Dylan. Yesterday I was reading him a Curious George book before his nap and there was a line in there that read "Thank you, you saved my grandson's life". After I read that line Dylan wanted to know where the "life" was in the picture. He thought it was some sort of object. I had a hard time trying to explain exactly what a "life" is. The next time I read it I am going to omit the word "life" to stop any future questions :)