The Haskin Clan

Time...it sure does fly by...

2010-08-10T19:50:00.002-04:00

I can not believe it is already almost the middle of August. Logan's birthday is this coming Monday, but we are having his party this Friday night. Lots of exciting things going on with us right now but you will have to wait a little while longer to find out what that is.

School will be starting back in the next couple of weeks and then things will probably be even more busy because Cub Scouts will start back as well. Hopefully, we can get Laney in gymnastics soon and get Logan some guitar lessons as he is obsessed with playing his guitar that one of his grandpas gave him.

I will post more in a couple of weeks but now I must go and prepare for the upcoming surprises for our family...

Summertime is here...

2010-06-23T23:27:00.002-04:00

Since school is out now, we have been staying just as busy as usual if not more so. We have been preparing for our fundraiser yard sale/hot dog sale we have started having each year to raise money for the Buddy Walk and then also trying to keep the kids entertained so they don't drive us crazy. It has been unusually hot here in the South; it usually isn't this hot until around the end of July or August but man has it been scorching. The humidity is wild and the temperatures are soaring. Thank goodness my in-laws live two houses down from us and have a pool we can relax in (when we have time).

Not only have we been collecting donations for the fundraiser and trying to sort through them and price the items so I do not have to do it all this Saturday morning before the sale starts, but we have been trying to keep up with the daily routines we have as well. Throwing Logan into our daytime routine has been a bit difficult since school let out because Laney just is not used to him being home all day yet. He is such a wonderful big brother but man it can get aggravating having to tell him to leave her alone all the time. He wants to help her so much but she is so independent it is proving difficult to teach him how to balance assisting her and teaching her. I am so grateful he is so loving and caring with her, sometimes he is jealous but after all, he is only 6 years old (almost 7).

I have also been trying to figure out the best options for me as far as school goes. I am having some trouble deciding the best place for me to try to go for my Nursing degree. Each school has different requirements and it is so frustrating trying to meet all of them so as not to waste a lot of time before I can apply to the program. At least I passed my state certification exam for Nursing Assistant earlier this month. I was very nervous about that but thankful it was not as bad as I anticipated. In North Carolina, you must be on the NA registry before you can be eligible to begin Nursing classes even if you are accepted in the RN program so I do at least have that requirement out of the way. These decisions are really hard when you have a family to think about...sometimes I wish I had went on to RN right out of high school but I would not change things if I could because I have a wonderful husband and children...hind sight is always 20/20 though...

Laney is becoming quite the stubborn little princess. She is very head strong and will tell you NO in a minute. She despises having her diaper changed but is completely not ready to potty train yet...very frustrating. She is very independent too. She will eat just about anything usually. She had her first dentist appointment last week and it went pretty well other than her screaming to the top of her lungs because they wanted her to lay down and she hates that because she thinks she must go to sleep if she is laying down. It will get better each time I hope though. Developmentally she is doing pretty well...her fine motor skills are more delayed than her gross motor skills and speech is doing somewhat better now. She likes to sign "apple" and "banana" now and she LOVES to perform the chicken dance...too cute.

Well, I suppose that brings you up to date for now...hopefully I can be better at posting this summer since I am not in school...hopefully...until next time...

Preschool, ending of the school year...etc...

2010-04-28T09:46:00.002-04:00

Things have been a bit wild around our house lately. Logan's school and scouts, my school and clinicals, Laney's therapy and now a preschool meeting. I wonder sometimes how I manage to get it all completed and still have the time to shower and eat...lol. Let's get the updates going...

Logan is nearing the end of first grade and he is doing awesome. He has made the straight "A" honor roll twice this year and made the "AB" honor roll once. I have expressed my concerns about him being bored in class to his teacher but she seems unconcerned. I will be very glad when this year is over. When he is doing his homework, he wants to rush through it and makes careless mistakes so I think he is bored with his work because it isn't challenging enough for him. He is almost on a third grade reading level. He loves to read!!! His favorite thing to read right now is Junie B. Jones books. He is also becoming quite good at hitting the baseball. He will play tball again this year at the city park. He says it is baseball, not tball because he doesn't hit off the tee. He is so funny. You never know what he will say. He is very quick witted and very very curious and attentive (unless I am telling him to clean his room and then he can't seem to understand the words coming out of my mouth or the sign language I do for him since he acts like he can't hear me...lol).

Laney is doing wonderful. She continues to amaze us daily. She is still not talking much but our amazing ST "J" says she is beginning to make more sounds to combine for words. She has said some new words but won't really repeat them so it is still just random. She has learned to climb a ladder to a small slide and loves to try to climb the ladder to the slide on their swing set. (I help her of course) She had her eye surgery on April 5th and did great. Her eyes both appear straight now and the eye doctor said it looks like a success. She had no complications or troubles with her anesthesia or the surgery itself. We have scheduled her meeting for preschool admission for today. I wanted to go ahead and get things rolling with that since it is almost the end of the school year and then once school starts back, things are always hectic for the teachers. I know where I want her to go and I have already spoken to the teacher there to ask what I needed to know to get prepared for her to begin next January. I know I am way ahead of the game, but time really flies by so I wanted to get a head start.

We have also been busy redecorating our sunroom. We replaced the outdoor carpet so that it is more padded for the kids. It is awesome! Both the kids love playing out there. Laney will go to the sliding door and knock on it and say "knah knah det ouh" which I interpret as "knock knock get out" meaning she wants me to open the door so she can go in and out playing. We have also been doing her therapies out there since she loves it so much and so far it is going great. The weather has been pretty nice here, not too hot yet, but the mornings sure are chilly.

We went to the beach Easter weekend. That was the second time Laney or Logan had been. Of course, Logan remembers the last time and was so excited to go to the ocean. We are so very fortunate that my husband's stepdad's family owns a house down there so we can go pretty much anytime we want (as long as the date is available in the book....lol). The kids both loved the beach house and they both loved the ocean and playing in the sand. Laney loved it so much that she sat there, shoveling sand into her bucket for 45 minutes without moving or saying anything. That is an accomplishment for a 2 year old!

I have also been on a diet! This is month two and I have lost about ten pounds so far. I can really tell a difference in the way my clothes fit (most of them are too big now...woohoo). Also, I just finished my last day of clinicals for CNA on Monday and only have two more days of class in which we are going to be doing mock testing. After that, we can take the state exam. I have also taken the PSB for the LPN program but no one has heard anything yet on who gets to go back for the interviews. If I don't get in the LPN program, I plan to take CNA II in the Fall and then apply to the RN program in January for the following Fall. I still have to take Chemistry before I can apply. I have decided to take the summer off from school and spend it with the kids and Ricky. I may try to find a part-time job working as a CNA just so that I have my foot in the door somewhere once I do graduate.

Oh!!! Almost forgot...the week before we were going to the beach, Ricky totalled our van when he hit a huge deer. Thankfully he was not hurt at all and thankfully it was him and not me that did it. The insurance process was very quick thank goodness. He wrecked on Wednesday morning (I mean like 3:45am) and on Saturday, we had a new car. Thank goodness for GAP insurance...lol.

Who knows what our futures hold but right now, I am very happy with how ours is looking. I will try to post some pictures soon. I just haven't had the time to work on them lately with all my Anatomy homework...for some strange reason, I took that class online...not a good idea but I am passing so I guess it is okay.

Until next time...

2010-03-17T23:32:00.002-04:00

It has sure been a long time since I have posted on my blog. We have been busy people around the Haskin house...

I am a full-time student, mommy, and wife so that is alot on me. I have been doing lots of homework and studying this semester. I actually dropped one of my classes because I took way too many hours. I am truly enjoying my CNA class and sign language class the most. I have completed the first 8 weeks of sign language and since I am taking a hybrid course, we pack into two 8 week sessions what you would normally do in 2 seperate semesters. It is fast paced and hard work but I love it! We went to a workshop about using clasifiers in the medical setting and I had a blast (right up my alley there). I start clinicals next week in my CNA class and hopefully I will find out soon if I get to take the test for placement in the LPN program. If I do not get in, I plan to apply for the CNA II class in the Fall and continue with my prerequisites for the RN program.

Laney is truly a 2 year old toddler now. She is sassy and can throw some temper tantrums. She is wild and free and lots of fun. She is really into messing in everything and we really have to watch her close. Since we have finally had some days of nice weather recently, we have been able to take her outside to play and she absolutely loves it. She loves to just walk around the yard and explore. The pure joy of discovery on her face is amazing. She is still pretty delayed in her speech and is becoming a little stubborn about using her signs so we have to really work with her in the speech department. She is getting quite good at removing her diaper and pants now. This is NOT cool!!! She was recently in a fashion show with The Arc of Gaston County. It was awesome. We always have so much fun doing that. They have lots of vendor booths and information for any person with special needs. It is awesome to go and interact with the other parents. Laney is also scheduled to have her eye surgery on April 5th. We were scheduled before but had to postpone once Laney was diagnosed with RSV. We have to wait 6 weeks after that before she could have anesthesia. So hopefully when we go next week for her pre-op she is still going to be able to go ahead with the surgery. I would have to have to reschedule again for any reason.

Logan is still Logan. He is becoming quite the little smarty pants and gets in trouble alot for talking back. Guess he is a typical year old huh. He is doing amazing in school and is almost on a 3rd grade reading level and he is only in 1st grade. We are so proud. He is amazing with Laney. He loves to take her outside and explore with her and race her on his bicycle (I am usually pushing her in her car). He is still doing really well in Scouts and has now completed everything to earn his Tiger Cub badge. Hopefully he gets it at the next pack meeting.

Here are a few pictures just to update you from the fashion show...

Laney after the show playing with her shoes

a proud big brother

see how much he loves her...

the diva on stage

before the show...

Another Year Older

2010-01-26T09:08:00.003-05:00

Wow!!! I am another year older and so is Laney. I turned 27 on Jan. 7th and Laney turned 2 on Jan. 19th. What a whirlwind month this has been. I am still in school and will be for at least a couple more years. It is hard work being a full time student, mommy, and wife. But enough of that...Let's talk about Laney and Logan.

Laney had a wonderful birthday party at the hotel. It was a swimming party and everyone had a blast. She got some amazing presents and her favorite was money. I made her cakes and they turned out wonderful if I do say so myself...lol. Laney was also scheduled to have her eye surgery but because she had RSV the first week in January (I told you it was a whirlwind month), we had t post pone for at least six weeks. Now the surgery is set for April 5th. Today we return to the pediatrician for her 2 yr well check.

Logan had his first Pinewood Derby this past Saturday (I will post pics after I upload them...). He didn't win but we had lots of fun. Ricky helped run the computer part of the track and I helped with concessions and took lots of photos. Logan and Ricky did win a ribbon for the cupcakes we baked. They were blue and gold so they won "Most Scout Spirit". Last night, Logan recieved a patch for participating in the Christmas Parade and two certificates for participating in the Derby and "Dad & Lad" Bake Sale for their cupcakes. The next big thing coming up for Logan is the Blue & Gold Banquet on February 22nd. I am super excited about that as I am on the committee to help plan that. I really enjoy scouts with Logan and hate that I have to miss his meetings on Monday nights because I have Sign Language class at that time.

I will try to post more pics soon and also let you all know how Laney's well check goes this afternoon.

Reflection

2009-12-31T19:54:00.002-05:00

It is New Year's Eve and I am home with the kiddos while Ricky is working. As I sit here thinking back over the past year, reflecting over our accomplishments, I am amazed at how far we have come in such a short time. Let's break it down:

This past year, Laney: had her 1st birthday, started babbling and talking, started signing, started crawling, started walking, and is feeding herself, drinks from a straw, she has had 2 set of tubes in her ears, had her adenoids removed, had multiple hearing test (she finally passed the one under anesthesia), had multiple eye exams and has endured drops being put into her eyes to help strengthen the weak eye, became more of a mommy's girl, went to her first professional baseball game and first minor league hockey game, had the flu, and celebrated her 2nd Christmas....

In the coming year, Laney has to look forward to her 2nd birthday, beginning the transition from Early Intervention, hopefully she will begin to speak more words, get better at feeding herself, drink from an open cup, will start running and maybe jumping and do even more climbing. We have high hopes and expectations for our daughter and hope for nothing but the best for her in the coming year....

This past year, Logan: played soccer in the Spring, Tball in the summer, and Golf this fall, joined Cub Scouts, earned his Bobcat badge in Scouts, earned multiple other badges and awards in Scouts, was in the Christmas Parade, passed Kindergarten and started 1st grade, made the A honor roll for the first time ever (it was the first time he was able to earn letter grades, not just an "S" or "I" or whatever other letters the use for kinders), got his first loose tooth (although it has yet to come out), stayed in a hotel for the first time in his memory, went to his first professional baseball game and first minor league hockey game, learned to read so well he has now moved on to chapter books at age 6, became more independent...

In the coming year, hopefully, Logan will continue to read more and more, continue to want to play sports (golf is his love right now), continue to be an amazing big brother and help teach Laney the things she needs to learn. We high hopes and dreams for our son...he is an amazing child and so loving and caring. He is my baby and always will be.

I love both of my babies with all my heart and hope for the best for them and our family in the coming year...

Happy New Year everyone!!!!!!!

Gingerbread Lane

2009-12-18T12:00:00.004-05:00

Last night, the hubby, kiddos, and I headed out to a local high school to make gingerbread houses. It was called Gingerbread Lane and was sponsored by the schools Early Childhood Education students. It was also completely free which made it even more awesome. The kiddos even got to see Santa while we were there. We had alot of fun....

Winter

2009-12-10T20:51:00.002-05:00

It is really feeling like winter here in the South although we have no snow (the kids are sad about that but not me because when we get snow, we loose power and that is no fun). The Christmas decor is up and the presents are wrapped and under the tree. Logan received a letter from Santa the other night and I am so glad because he has really improved with his behavior and listening.

Laney is walking everywhere now and still jabbering up a storm. She is signing more now and is getting better at it each day. She got the H1N1 vaccine last week when I went for my TB test and Tetanus shot (from which my arm is still sore and it has been a whole week now). I have to go back for more vaccines for the CNA program I was accepted into for next semester. I am super excited.

Logan is doing great in school...he was on the A honor roll and still is. He is super smart and loves reading; this makes me very happy. He loves to read books to Laney and is a superb big brother. He is really enjoying Cub Scouts and received his Bobcat badge a few weeks ago. We are so proud of him. Now they are working on their Pinewood Derby Cars...not my forte so Daddy has to handle that...lol.

I will try to post some pics throughout the holiday season but we will be a bit busy so I will just try my best.

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

The Farm and Other Photos

2009-11-14T19:52:00.004-05:00

Today, we went to a farm not far from our house with the DSAC we are involved with. We had a blast playing with the other children and also doing the fun things on the farm. Below, I have posted some photos from over the past month or so...enjoy!!!

Logan on the big slide at the farm
Logan and Laney on the pony

Laney...drinking through a straw (learned today)

Logan riding the pony ( I was so surprised and proud)

and again...

Laney on the big slide

Logan again

Laney in the hay maze

riding the car thing...

Daddy and Laney ( i love this pic)

Logan at golf lessons

Laney prior to her 2nd set of tubes

Laney again before her surgery

Laney-bug

Sheriff Logan

Update...

2009-11-09T22:13:00.002-05:00

Wow! It has been a month again and the time as flown by so quickly. I have so much to update it is hard to know where to begin. Let's start with Laney and then I will update on Logan. It is easier to remember if I think one at a time...lol.

Laney: did not have her eye surgery but goes back November 24th for a recheck; went to the ear doctor for a follow up hearing test, which was inconclusive again and one of her tubes had come out and the other was almost out. The decision was made at that moment to insert a second set of tubes and do an ABR (a hearing test done while Laney was under anesthesia). She had this done on November 3rd and she did great and she passed her hearing test!!! WooHoo!!! She has started all of her therapies at home now. We just felt safer because of all the flu germs having her home for therapy and I am so glad we made that decision. We have the best therapist! She had amazing therapist when she went to rehab for therapy but the therapist we have now have clicked with Laney. She is sailing right along. Laney is taking many steps now on her own. I am sure she will probably be walking alone by Christmas or soon after. We got her a new set of SureSteps (her braces) and those are helping so much. In speech, she is learning more signs and catching on so quickly. She loves the praise she gets when she does her signing. In OT, she is really working hard on sorting and stacking objects. She will do great as long as I am not in her room with them. I like to go in at the end to see what she has been working on and she will not perform for me...stubborn girl.

Logan: golf lessons just ended this past Saturday and he had a blast and learned so much. He is also in Cub Scouts and will be receiving his Bobcat badge next Monday night. We are super excited. He won 2 games of simon says tonight and earned the honor to lead the Pledge next week at our Pack meeting. He just got his first report card last Wednesday and he was on the straight A honor roll, received an award for perfect attendence, and got a Kid with Character award. He is growing so much right now and it is amazing watching him transition into a young man.

Lastly, this past Friday afternoon, we had the honor of having our portraits taken by a professional photographer, for free as part of The Littlest Heroes Project. It was amazing! She was awesome and if the preview photos are any indication, I am not going to be able to choose between all the pictures taken. She is so talented and Laney was "in the photo mood" and took wonderful pictures. I will share the link to the proofs as soon as I get it. I can't wait to see them. If anyone is interested in applying for The Littlest Heroes Project, go to www.littlestheroesproject.org. This project is available to families with children that have chronic illnesses and diseases. It is a wonderful opportunity and we are so grateful to have been a part of it.

Where did the time go?

2009-10-08T15:22:00.003-04:00

Wow! I can't believe it has been so long since I have posted on here. Lots of things have been happening and we have been pretty busy with no end in sight it seems. So what have we been up to you might ask...

Laney did not have her eye surgery. Dr. Eyeballs determined that when he took the last measurements, when she looks across the room, she doesn't have the problem of her eye turning inward, that only happens when she looks at something up close. We go back in November to check her again. We may not have to do the surgery at all but still not sure. We may be able to try bifocal glasses to try to correct the problem since she is getting a little older now. It is just a game of wait and see.

Laney has started her therapy at home now. We decided this might be the best for her because of all the flu and H1N1 going around, we want to limit her exposure to those germs. We had our first visit with the OT yesterday and she was great. I think she is really going to work well with Laney. Our first visit with the new PT is tomorrow morning. I hope that goes well also. Laney has started saying more words now...she can say: mama, dada, pawpaw, bite (or bak bak we arent sure but it does mean food), bubba, bye-bye, oh, uh-oh, and she has said something that sounds like thank you once. She is also using her signs more effectively now. She only signs "more", "drink", and "bye-bye" but we are still working on it. Our next sign to implement is "eat". She is really starting to take off walking as well. She can still only take a few steps with no assistance but if you are holding her hands, she wants to run. She is cruising a good bit as well and climbing into the recliner. She is just really making great strides in her fine and gross motor skills here lately.

Logan is still not liking first grade. He says he doesn't like his teacher. I am not sure if it is because he is bored or what is going on there. We have our first teacher conference next week and I plan to discuss this with her at that time. She has booked her conferences for every 15 minutes but I will discuss everything I want with her at that time and not feel rushed so she can hurry home. He is doing really well on his grades and things like that but the reading is boring to him I know because his reading level is well beyond what they are working on now. He was reading things like they are working on when he was in preschool. He is an awesome reader and he loves to read. I am so glad of that. I hated reading when I was little but I love it now. Hopefully because he sees Ricky and I reading he will continue to enjoy it. My parents never read books or magazines so I didn't have that influence.

Also, my husband's grandfather passed away last week from cancer so we were not able to participate in the Buddy Walk this year. I was very sad about that but we needed to be with the family and that is what is most important. We will have a big blast next year though. I am already looking forward to it. We have been busy with Logan playing golf and being in Cub Scouts as well. We are having the big fish fry we put on every year with my in-laws next weekend and that will be awesome and so much fun. I have also been staying pretty busy with school as well for myself.

As for now, that is all I have to share but I will try not to let it be as long between post next time. Laney has a hearing test tomorrow so I will try to post tomorrow evening how that goes. I think she can hear me just fine but whether she listens or not, well that is another story...

There was a little Princess...

2009-09-13T20:55:00.002-04:00

There once was a little princess whose name was Laney and now she has turned into a monkey...she has started climbing today. She cruised over to Ricky's recliner and climbed right in and sat down. It was so cute. Of course when I was recording it, she fell out so we have that and my scream on the video...as soon as I have a chance, I will upload those to share with everyone but just wanted to give the update that we now have a monkey in the house.

Yes, We are still here...

2009-09-12T22:41:00.003-04:00

I know everyone was wondering where we were since there have been no blog posts lately but boy have we been busy. Here is the recap:

We took Laney back to the eye doctor for her follow up week before last. Dr. Eyeballs decided that we should go ahead and schedule her eye surgery for whenever was convenient for us. Unfortunately, he only does surgery on Mondays and I am in school on Mondays and Wednesdays. So, we scheduled the surgery for Monday, October 5th, the only Monday I am out of school until mid December. I didn't want to wait until December because I didn't want to do her surgery around the holidays. We did her ear tube and adenoidectomy a couple weeks before her birthday this year and I didn't like that so in a few weeks my little princess will have the operation on her right eye to correct the exotropia strabismus. She has to go back to see Dr. Eyeballs one more time before surgery on the 24th for one last measurement. We have also discontinued the eye drops we were using to "patch" her left eye to strengthen the right eye.

Also, Laney has taken a few steps here and there but nothing too major and nothing to get excited about...until yesterday. Last night, we were playing around with Laney and she took several steps. The most she took unassisted was 5! Yes, that is correct, she took 5 whole steps before falling into my arms. We were so excited. She is getting more and more confident and gets so excited when we get her to walk to us. I can't wait but then again, she is going to be into everything. She is a bit destructive ya know. Ricky and I were talking tonight that her PT will be so excited to see her Monday and see what she has now learned how to do. I am just super thrilled I was home to see her first steps. I was scared she would take them at therapy and I wouldn't be there (since I have started back to school, Ricky now takes her to PT/OT). She is also signing "more" regularly now and we have started working on adding a few more signs. She knows how to do them but is too stubborn to use them when we want her to. Oh well, it will happen, sometime.

Another reason we have been MIA is that my mom had surgery and had some complications from that and ended up in the ICU and eventually on a ventilator. She was very ill for over a week and then we started seeing improvements and she is lots better now. She was finally sent to a regular room and still doesn't remember everything that went on. She did say that it scared her to know she "missed" a week of life and can't remember anything from then. She is on the road to recovery now so we are very happy. It was very hard to see her so sick and to know that she could die from the complications. It scared us and her as well. Thankfully, she improved and is healing nicely now.

Still, we have another family member that is terminally ill and we have been dealing with that as well. It is my husband's grandfather (his stepdad's dad). He has cancer and they have now called hospice in for him. He is having a rough time and his children are alternating spending the night with him and grandmother. It is very difficult to watch him suffer but we know that he will be in a better place when it is his time. It is so nice to be able to spend this time with him and we do cherish it. We are so thankful we are allowed this time because we know that is not always the case. Please keep the family in your thoughts and prayers.

On to Logan now. He has started Cub Scouts and is very excited. We have bought his book and will start working on earning his first badge this week. This will be something that Ricky and Logan do together (I will fill in as needed but I think it best that Dad deals with all this out doors stuff...we all know I am an inside kinda girl). He also starts his golf lessons this week. He is super excited about that as well. He doesn't understand why we haven't bought him his own set of clubs yet. We have decided to wait to make sure he likes golf and if so I think that will be a great gift to ask Santa for.

So, I have lots of pictures and videos to load and share with you but just haven't had the time to do that yet. I will soon though...I hope...

Slacker

2009-08-29T23:41:00.002-04:00

I know I have been a slacker but I do have a good excuse...we have been super busy here. I started school and then Logan started school. My mom is sick and has had to have surgery and is currently in the ICU and probably will be until sometime next week. Laney has had therapy as usual but Ricky has been handling this on Mondays while I am in class. Busy busy busy!

Laney has her follow up eye exam this coming Thursday. We will see how her eye has changed and I guess talk some more about the surgery. Rick's mom is going with me and Rick's dad and step mom are coming to our house to get Logan off the bus in case we aren't back in time since the appt. is in Charlotte. She is doing so great though. She is getting really brave and bold and has taken a step or two here and there. She is finally signing!!! She has had the ability to do it for a while now but she just wouldn't do it for us. I would see her do it randomly but not in context but now she is doing it...she is signing "more". I have a video of her doing it that I will upload soon. Now hopefully she won't be stubborn and will keep up the momentum and pick up the other signs we want her to begin using. She really likes the praise I give her when she signs for me so I think it will be smooth sailing now. I am super excited.

Logan had his first week of 1st grade last week. He does NOT like it. He has homework every night and they don't play everyday like they did last year in Kindergarten. He has reading every night and unfortunately, the books they send home for him to read are way below his reading level and are very boring to him so that causes some conflict. Logan is a great reader and has been reading level 2 books since early Spring. We don't want to move him up to level 3 until I am sure he gets the comprehension part of it first but I think he is pretty much ready now. I can let him read me a book and then ask him questions about it and he can answer them correctly so I think he is retaining the information he is reading. This is very important because they have AR test on library books that he earns points for. He is also already watching "toy reviews" on youtube and telling me things he wants for Christmas. Boy he is prepared huh...

I have some photos of Logan's first day of school but I have yet to upload them to the computer so as soon as I do, I will post those along with the little video of signing Laney.

Until next time...

Wordless Wednesday

2009-08-19T16:08:00.001-04:00

Please vote

2009-08-18T17:10:00.002-04:00

Please go to www.wsslfm.com and click on fearless fathers. Once there, click vote now and vote for TIM BUCHANAN! He is trying to win Taylor Swift tickets for his 2 daughters and backstage passes. He did an awesome job portraying Taylor Swift! Vote as often as you can and as many times as you can until Aug. 28th! Please support Tim!

Thanks bunches. Oh and don't forget to watch his video as well. (his is the last one on the 2nd page of videos)

6 years old

2009-08-16T09:30:00.000-04:00

Happy 6th Birthday!

Sassy

2009-08-13T17:15:00.003-04:00

It seems that Laney is a nosey and sassy little girl. She loves to be all in your business. It is really cute but when she gets older boy are we in trouble. She is such a social butterfly. She loves getting attention and will show herself to make sure she gets it. Hmmmm, I am so wondering where she got this from...

Logan is getting excited about school starting back but he is even more excited that once he turns 6 years old he gets to do chores. I am sure this excitement will wear off but I am amazed he is looking forward to it. He didn't even care that I told him he would earn money for doing chores but later he said he could take his money to buy toys. We will see how long it takes him to catch on that he has to do it on his own without us assisting all the time. His starting chores are: brush teeth, take bath, and clean room daily. The first two are a given but sometimes he shows out when it is time (because it interupts playing) so the goal is to make it more of an uneventful habit. He starts this on Monday (the day after his birthday).

Wordless Wednesday

2009-08-12T23:45:00.001-04:00

New

2009-08-06T23:59:00.000-04:00

Today Laney had a new ST come out since her last ST bought a home in another town and is longer working in our area. (We were sad to see her go) I had met this new ST once before today but couldn't really remember her but I am so pleased. She is going to be just exactly what Laney needs. She has a louder voice than the previous ST and Laney responds better to someone that can be more firm sounding. Keep in mind I loved our previous ST. She was awesome and made so much progress with Laney. I was so sad to see her go.

Alas, today was also the 6 mth IFSP. Perfect timing since the new ST wants Laney to have speech twice a week instead of just once. She wants to be able to work on oral motor/language one day and feeding the other day. We kept most of our goals because we generalize them so that we don't have alot of picky little detail goals and we added one. These meetings are always so love/hate for me. I hate having to put a time frame or "schedule" on my daughter's abilities and progress but I know that it is just for her benefit so that we have a regimen for her to follow.

We also bought Laney a new pair of tennis shoes. They are her first official pair of big girl shoes...LOL. She did NOT like it when I took them off so my MIL could pay for them. She also was pulling boots off the shelf like she liked them too. I think I may have a shoe diva on my hands...she is truly her mother's daughter.

I also found out today that "Grammy's" son and his girlfriend are expecting...it's a GIRL!!! I am so excited for them. I told them that now Laney will have someone to grow up with.

These next few weeks are going to be busy and hectic. We have a birthday party this weekend at the skating rink for my friend's son...he will be 5. Next week is Logan's birthday and he will be 6. We are having his party on Saturday and he keeps telling people that I am changing his birthday. Too cute! We will have his friends at the party and then on Sunday his great-grandparents are coming over to eat cake (Sunday is his actual birthday) and play with the kids. I will post plenty of photos and probably some videos too. Oh and I start college and Logan starts 1st grade. Lots of things going on here the next few weeks...

Wordless Wednesday

2009-08-05T18:54:00.002-04:00

A video of Laney

2009-08-03T00:12:00.004-04:00

Here is Laney...she has learned how to dance and she loves Elmo. Too cute. We pressed the button and she just started dancing. We had never seen her to it before (and this was the first time she played with this Elmo...thanks Grammy). We laughed because it was so adorable. Sorry if the quality is poor but I recorded with my phone. Hope you enjoy! I have other videos too (now that I figured out how to upload them from my phone) that I will share another time.

The Princess' Eyes

2009-07-30T22:37:00.002-04:00

We took the princess to the eye doctor yesterday for her follow up exam. Ricky was able to take off work and go with me to this appointment (finally). This was the only doctor he had not met so far...he was glad to go and I was so glad he was with me once we arrived.

Before I tell of the appointment, I should tell our sightings...we have noticed she has been turning her right eye inward for awhile now, hence the repeated visits to the eye doctor. Now for the past couple of weeks, we have noticed she is also turning her left eye inward but it is at the same time as the right eye. We have been thinking it was getting worse instead of better even though we have been putting drops in her left eye once a week (this is supposed to be like patching the eye but she won't keep a patch on her face so we had to go this route. It makes her left eye really blurry so that she is forced to use her right eye. It is supposed to make her right eye stronger). So here is what we learned at the visit...

Laney did great for Dr. Eyeballs. He said it was the best reading he had gotten on her so far. He saw her right eye turning inward lots of times and said to us that he thinks it is getting more pronounced. We agree. So since her vision is great and she is not far-sighted, glasses or bifocals are not an option for her. (that is good and bad...lol. if she had vision problems, glasses would be the first thing to try and it usually works but since no vision problems, we can't try that route) He said sometimes they will try a botox injection but that is a temporary fix and he doesn't think we should try that and neither do we. She is way too young to start cosmetic surgery...LOL! His recommendation is that she have surgery. I almost cried when he said it even though in my heart I knew we were headed that way. The thought of my baby girl having surgery is just scary. I know we have been so blessed and fortunate that she didn't have to have heart or intestinal surgery but it is still hard. We have had ear tubes but that was a hard day for me too. I can't imagine what other parents go through with the major surgeries. We are so thankful we haven't had that (yet...you never know what the future holds). So below I will post an explanation of what is wrong with her eye and some information about the surgery. He said he anticipates her having the surgery within the next 6-12 months. (we have to wait until she is using both eyes equally and a few other things he mentioned but I forgot.)

*Laney has what is called strabismus but the type of strabismus she has is called esotropia (this means her eye drifts inward).

*Having eye muscle surgery will strengthen the eye muscles which changes the alignment of the eye

*The surgery is considered outpatient and she will be put under general anesthesia. She will get to come home the same day. There is no patching of the eye required afterwards. We will only have to use antibiotic eye drops (this is the normal protocol...something could always change or go wrong)

*The surgery consist of Dr. Eyeballs making an incision in the tissue of her eye called conjuctiva to get to the sclera (wall of the eye) to reach the muscles that are attached there. He will then cut the tissue and reattach in a different location (this is called recession).

*Dr. Eyeballs will cut on the eye itself, not the skin around the eye and the eye is NOT removed from the socket during this procedure.

I got all this information from this website: http://www.childrenseyefoundation.org/getdoc/7efd480b-4e92-42a5-84ec-9b813054ae95/Patient-and-Parent-Guide-to-Strabismus-Surgery.aspx

It has lots of information so check it out for more information. I gave just a bare bones overview explanation of what happens.

Dr. Eyeballs wants us to start putting the drops in her eye every other day for now instead of just once a week. We return in 4 weeks for a follow up and they will dilate her eyes at that exam to recheck her vision and so forth again.

Time

2009-07-28T23:18:00.002-04:00

Time...it just seems to evaporate in front of my eyes. I have great intentions of all the things I need to get done but most of them never come to be because I simply run out of time. Where does it go???

I have now signed up for classes at the local community college. I aim to get my Associates Degree in Early Childhood/Special Needs. I am taking 4 classes this semester along with trying to work some as a substitute teacher and Logan will be in 1st grade and of course all of Laney's therapy and doctor appointments. I will be busy but I am confident I can handle it...hope Ricky's up to the challenge of me being a zombie...LOL.

Laney goes back to see her eye doctor tomorrow. Ricky took the day off to go with me this time since he has never met this doctor (he has at least made an appearance at all appts so far except this one). I am a little worried because her eye seems a little worse and the other is turning in alot now as well. I don't know what all this means but I am anxious to see what he recommends. I am not sure if I will get a second opinion right away because Laney goes to the Down syndrome clinic in November for evaluation by all specialist (they are all at one place and it takes the whole day almost...so I am told) and I may just wait until then. I guess we will decide once we here what Dr. Eyeballs has to say about it tomorrow. (Side note...I am giving all her doctors nicknames because it will be much simpler to blog about it that way and of course I don't want to use their real names without permission).

She is trying really hard now to walk. She will take steps but only holding on to your fingers or cruising. She is too scared to let go yet. I am hoping she will be able to take a couple steps at the Buddy Walk this October. Just a few steps is all I ask...

We got the report today from her developmental evaluation last week. It shows she is having some mild to significant delays but as I understand from the lady that came out, some things are dependant upon others and if she can't do something just yet, then she can't do the things that come after it. Once she learns to do certain things, her scores will come up because she will be able to do more. I know that makes no sense but it is the simplest way to explain it. For example, if she can't walk yet then of course she can't run so she doesn't get those points and it counts towards her delay. They said she is really high functioning it appears and they think she is doing really well. I struggle with these test because they are so conforming. Of course no toddler is going to perform on command...they never do. I just try to keep that in mind when I get results.

Logan is getting closer to his 6th birthday and starting 1st grade. I am more upset about him starting 1st grade than I was him starting kindergarten. Strange huh. I told Ricky earlier today I just might cry when he starts this year because now it is "for real". He gets letter grades instead of just and "S", "N", or "I". He only ever got "S" of course but you know what I mean. Now he has to start reading books to take test on them, not just for the pleasure of it. All big changes coming this way; let's hope I am ready for them.

Loganism

2009-07-23T16:51:00.002-04:00

I was browsing through some new blogs I found last night (while Laney was napping) and Logan came in here...this is the conversation that followed...

Logan: "Moma, who is that little kid?"
Me: "Just a little boy on a blog I found. He has Down syndrome like Laney."
Logan: "Like in that book we read?"
Me: "Yes, like that ."
Logan: "He kinda looks like Ben." (ben is the boy in the book we read.) "What is Down syndrome again?"
Me:"Down syndrome means that they have an extra chromosome."
Logan: "What's a chromosome?"
Me: "It's what makes us who we are."

Anyone out there reading this have any suggestions on how to explain to my very inquisitive almost 6 yr old son what a genetic disorder is? We have read books about Ds but he ask more difficult questions...aka...the chromosome question. How do I explain something I didn't learn about until high school to my 1st grader?

My Life

2009-07-23T10:46:00.004-04:00

Logan's Tball trophy...He is so proud

She was sick the day of his trophy get together...can't you tell

batter up...at his last game

this is just too cute!

she found herself in the mirror...she was kissing herself

Summary

2009-07-21T14:06:00.002-04:00

I know it has been a few days since my last post. We have been busy. This past weekend we went to Atlanta to see some baseball games. It was really nice and we all had fun. We got to see Greg Maddux's number retired and some fireworks after the game and then on Saturday, we toured the CNN center and got an autograph from their rookie pitcher. The kids enjoyed it as well. I will post some pictures as soon as I upload them from my camera.

Yesterday, Laney had a developmental evaluation and a visit with her caseworker. They tested her cognitive development and her language skills. Per the test they used, she is at a 13 mth age equivalent for her cognitive abilities and at a 11 mth age equivalent for her language abilities. Last week at therapy, they tested her using the Peabody test and she is averaging 11 mth for Physical Therapy and 14 mth for her visual motor skills and 7 mth for her grasp. She is doing really well overall and it is hard to hear these numbers from these test because she is a toddler...she has a mind of her own. Some things we know she can do the correct way but she is stubborn and won't do it when they want her to so that affects her scores sometimes.

Logan has decided he doesn't want to play soccer this Fall but he wants to play golf. What a strange kid he is...LOL. I can't believe it is almost his birthday and he will be 6 yrs old and starting 1st grade. He is growing way too fast.

Memory

2009-07-09T11:36:00.003-04:00

Well, I am such a nerd!!! I was so excited about making the cupcakes in ice cream cones that when I finished I totally forgot to take a photo. I am so mad at myself. They were so pretty. I made them red, white, and blue since it was July 4th and everyone seemed to like them especially the kids.

That night after the birthday party cookout and swimming, we took the kids to see some fireworks. We were so close to were they were shooting them from that we kept feeling the ash fall on us. The kids were tired but they made it through and after it was over, Laney passed out. She liked them until the finale when it was really loud. Before they started, they had bands playing and they even did a small re-enactment of the battle of Kings Mountain. It was awesome! They even had the canons there and let me tell you...LOUD!!! They fired off their muskets too. I have never seen a re-enactment before and now I really want to see a full on one done maybe at Gettysburg or somewhere like that...you know, one of the big battles back then. (If you can't tell, we like history here)

I took a few pics that night but haven't uploaded them yet. I will try to do that soon. Logan has had a tball game every night this week and we have one tonight as well. None tomorrow but we do have one really early Saturday morning and that is the last one. Tuesday they will get their trophies when we all meet at Dairy Queen. He is really getting the hang of this ball thing now though and he also says he doesn't want to play soccer this Fall but he wants to play golf. We shall see. Currently he is pretending to be a Ghostbuster and we all have to pretend to be different people from the movie...thanks Ricky for playing the video game and letting him find out about that...haha.

Laney is doing really well. She is walking while holding on to your hands now and when she is tired she will sometimes turn around and look at you and say "UP". It is so cute.

Last, I want to share with you some funny things Logan has been doing lately. Last night at the tball game, we switched dugouts from the one we normally use and after he finished running the bases, he started to the wrong dugout. We all started yelling at him to come to our side and he looked right at me and held up his thumb and first finger to make the "looser" symbol. We all died laughing and we asked him what that meant and he said "winners, duh". Too funny. Also, last night when Ricky was leaving to go back to work, he gave me a kiss and Logan jumps up and says "alright, enough with the kissy kissy". Don't know where he heard that from but it was hilarious. He says some of the funniest things. This weekend they are going to "Grammy's" house and I told him that last night when he was going to bed. He responded with...

Logan: "Am I spending the night?"
Me: "Yes"
Logan: "Do I have to behave?"
Me: "Yes"

I then shut the door and busted out laughing.

Wonder

2009-07-03T23:14:00.005-04:00

Well, this is me of course...lol

Logan playing outside

Laney...she wanted me to pick her up

they play so well together

see...he is a great big brother

this is mostly how Laney spent her time at the yard sale fundraiser

family photo at yardsale fundraiser

Logan taking a break at the sale and wearing Laney's sunglasses

me and Laney at the yard sale

Just wanted to share a few pics with you since I am finally getting around to uploading them on the computer.

The kids are both doing well and loving going swimming everyday. Laney is being devoured by mosquitos even though I am spraying her with repellant. So sad and I know they itch but we are trying all sorts of things to find something to help. Any ideas, email me or post a comment. Logan is learning how to tell jokes now...they are really cute too.

Tomorrow is July 4th and we are having a cookout/birthday party for my FIL whose birthday is this coming Wednesday. Busy day. I have made a cake I saw in a book. They are supposed to be Liberty Torches but I am changing it up a bit and just making them with red, white and blue icing and putting tiny flags on top. I will post pics after I get them finished. I will just say so far too cute...they are baked in ice cream cones. Can't wait to share them with you.

Why???

2009-06-25T00:24:00.002-04:00

Why is it that one little extra chromosome can cause such a problem for some people. I am so upset that this is an issue and especially to some folks in our family. I have been thinking about this for a couple days now and didn't want to post too quickly about it because I wanted to be less upset when I did.

IT'S ONE CHROMOSOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Down syndrome occurs in 1 out of every 800-1000 births. It is mostly "chance" but sometimes it can be genetic. (if it is genetic then there will be others in your family that have Ds as well-and you will know about it!!!) Laney was born to us with one extra chromosome 17 mths ago. Why is it a problem??? She is a beautiful, happy, healthy little girl that is doing everything every other baby does...maybe in her own time but still she will do it if she isn't already. When we first found out, I know there were some that held out hope that maybe the amnio was wrong and she really didn't have Ds and Ricky and I did as well in a small back part of our heads cause let's all face it...science is science and nothing or no one is perfect so you always allow room for errors. Anyway, once Laney was born, I didn't think of it. All I could think was how chubby she was and she was 4 weeks early!!! Of course, once she headed to the NICU (low blood sugars because I am diabetic) I started worrying about my baby even more but that is NORMAL! We stayed with her everyday except one and that is because I was sick (cold or something) and the nurses told me to go home and get a good nights rest since she would most likely be coming home the next day.

Laney had some feeding troubles but some babies do. We resolved those. She has had tubes put in her ears and her adenoids removed...I can't tell you how many people in our family have had this done. It is so annoying to hear that some people think that my daughter has Ds b/c it came from someone on my husband's side of the family or my side of the family or that maybe she doesn't really look like she has Ds...are we sure she really has it...she is out growing the features and it isn't as noticable anymore...

COME ON PEOPLE!!! This isn't how we define a person. She is a little girl that just happens to have Ds and yes I am sure because I went through the amnio process and the genetic test came back that she has 3 number 21 chromosomes which means Trisomy 21 otherwise known as Down syndrome. She is not a Down syndrome baby so don't say it.

Please stop worrying about where it came from or what features she has that are typical Ds features. She is our daughter and we love her no matter what and are sick and tired of hearing about this crap. If you can't accept that she has Ds or are ashamed of it or whatever it is that is causing you to say these hurtful things...yes they are hurtful...then don't feel obligated to be subjected to her beautiful, infectious laughter and the overall joy of her life as a baby and toddler and growing into a beautiful, smart, young woman!

Buddy Walk

2009-06-21T22:25:00.003-04:00

I just wanted to post the link to the buddy walk registration and donation site just in case anyone was interested in joining our team or making a donation for Laney.

http://dsac.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=316683

Our team name is Laney's Alliance. I will be updating that site soon and will try to update it often so that it tracks our progress.

Thanks to everyone again!!!

Fundraiser

2009-06-20T22:49:00.003-04:00

So today was our first "fundraiser" for this year's buddy walk. We decided to have a yard sale and hot dog sale to raise some funds. It was AWESOME!!!!! We had tons of stuff donated to us for the yard sale (a whole enclosed trailer full!!!) and then we had the hot dogs which my mother in law and father in law cooked and donated the hot dogs and buns and fixin's for. We went from 7am until 2pm and boy was it hot. We sold all the hotdogs we had bought for today (including the ones we ate...lol) and I only have about half of the trailer full of stuff left to sell at the next one. We still have people that said they have more stuff to donate to us to sell for Laney's team and if you have anything, just let us know. We really appreciate everyone that helped and donated stuff and their time and energy today!!!

So I guess you would like to know how successful we were today....

We raised a total of $770.00 (after we subtracted the money we started with)!!!! How awesome is that. Amazing right. We have a wonderful community here and everyone was so sweet today and generous as well.

I will post some pics later (when I have time to download them from my camera) and I will let you know when the next sale will be as well. We might have biscuits and coffee at that one cause apparently we had alot of folks asking if we had some coffee this morning. (I really don't understand how you can drink something so hot when it is 90 something degrees outside at 7am...lol.)

Picture Perfect!!!

2009-06-09T12:18:00.004-04:00

Logan at his 1st tball game

Daddy and Laney at the DSAC picnic

Mommy and Laney at the DSAC picnic

I love this picture!!! she was eating cake

Logan in the jump house

Hey you...wanna swim with me?

Logan aka water boy

Logan on the boats at Carowinds

Laney at Carowinds

Laney in the kiddie pool again

Logan at one of his soccer games

Doctor update and Tball Too

2009-06-04T20:51:00.003-04:00

Laney went to the eye doctor last Thursday. Her vision is still great and there were no changes...this is good and kinda bad in a way. If she had a vision problem, we could get her glasses and that would help fix the turning in of her right eye but since there are no problems with her vision, at her age, glasses would just be a headache for me and Rick to try to get her to wear. Her eye isn't any worse but it isn't any better either. We go back in 2 mths for another recheck.

Logan was supposed to have his first tball game tonight but all this darn rain keeps messing things up. Game was cancelled tonight but our next one is on Monday. He is so excited to start playing. I will post some pics once we have our first game because we all know I will take a million that night..LOL.

Time

2009-05-27T16:20:00.002-04:00

It seems time just flies by so quickly. We have been a bit busy and some lazy around here. The weekend was pretty lazy but the week days are busy.

This past Friday I helped at water day at the school where my sis-in-law works. We served the younger kids hamburgers and hotdogs. They seemed to have a blast. I took Laney with me and of course everyone had a fit over her.

It has rained so much here that we have cancelled tball practice this week so far. We were supposed to get our uniforms and our game schedule but I guess we have to wait. Laney goes to the eye doctor again tomorrow for a vision recheck and to f/u on her right eye turning inward. She is teething and not sleeping well and just becoming a rowdy little toddler. She amazes me everyday. Logan is almost finished with Kindergarten!!!!!!!!!!

Time truly does fly by so quickly...

Torture Classes

2009-05-20T19:57:00.002-04:00

It's official...my torture classes are over. I lost a total of 12 inches between my hips, thigh, bicep, waist and under bust. I am pretty pleased although I really wish it was more but I will just keep working on it and I will eventually get to a point where I am happy with my body again ( that is my goal anyway...lol)

Logan had tball practice yesterday and again today and he is doing pretty good considering he has never played tball...only soccer. He got to hit tonight and he did good at that considering they pitched it to him rather than him hit off the tee...(that was his choice)

Well American Idol is on and it's the finale so I must go...

The Weekend

2009-05-17T22:24:00.003-04:00

This weekend was pretty calm and quiet. NO KIDS!!! They went to my cousin's house who we call "Grammy" on Friday night after the Relay for Life here in town. Saturday, Rick and I went to the movies and saw the new Tom Hanks movie...AWESOME!!! Then we went out to eat and hung out in G-town. Today we cleaned up a bit and then went to get the kids and came home and cleaned some more and then we played the Wii with Logan.

I so can't believe our anniversary is 2 weeks from tomorrow...7 years...wow! Logan only has a few more weeks of school left as well. Time is really flying...he will be in 1st grade next year. I can't believe it.

He has t-ball on Tuesday and we get put on our teams that night so hopefully we will get our practice and game schedule then and also find out what color baseball pants I need to buy him.

I am planning a yard sale fundraiser for the buddy walk. If anyone around us wants to donate anything, please let me know and I will announce the date soon. It will be in June I know, just wanting to finalize the location. I hope we do well. I already have a pretty good bit of stuff donated so it is looking pretty good.

Retro

2009-05-14T16:59:00.002-04:00

It appears I may have travelled back in time to a place where video games were not what they are today and as kids we didn't care about how long it took us to beat the game and we sure didn't have strategy guides to help us breeze through the boards and cheats to help us win easier. Ricky downloaded The Legend of Zelda on the Wii...I am so addicted. I am gonna beat this darn game as an adult but ya know what...I'm not as smart as child Tasha was. I have to look crap up on the internet to see what I'm missing. So sad right!!! It has taken me over a week to beat level 6 alone. Finally figured out I was supposed to buy that darned blue ring and it would help me not die as fast...lol. Anyway...just thought I would share how sad it is to be here right now knowing I am trying to beat Zelda...hahahhaha.

P.S. Don't be jealous...hahhahaha

Pics

2009-05-13T16:23:00.008-04:00

Logan and I on the roller coaster at Carowinds

Logan on the roller coaster

Laney chillin in her hat

Laney playing on the ground while Logan was practicing T-ball

Laney sitting at therapy

Logan on the way to a soccer game

Laney making a silly face

Another One and T-Ball Too

2009-05-12T21:45:00.002-04:00

Well, this morning when I was changing Laney's diaper, she laughed and I saw something out of the corner of my eye...another tooth. This one is on the top. She is like a teething machine. So now she has her top two molars and one front bottom tooth and front top tooth. Sooo cute.

Tonight was Logan's first t-ball practice. They haven't given us teams just yet but they broke them up into groups to practice some fundamentals. Logan had a blast. He is so excited. Turns out we know several people playing this sport...different than soccer..LOL! We saw one of Rick's cousins, my hairdressers son, a boy from our soccer team, and a kid from Logan's class. We have practice again tommorrow night for an hour and maybe I will get more info then.

My last exercise class was supposed to be tonight but the instructor has a stomach bug so it has been post-poned until next Tuesday. I hope she feels better soon. She is awesome. She was there in case anyone wanted to go ahead with their measurements so I did mine but I am going to try to go again next week (depending on our t-ball schedule) so I will not post my progress until then. I will say that I have lost some inches but I really wish I had lost more so I am gonna try really hard this next week to work out some more.

So Sweet

2009-05-08T15:15:00.002-04:00

I went to Logan's class today for a Mother's Day Tea. It was so sweet!!! They had made a video of each of them saying why they loved their mom. Logan said he loves me because I tuck him in at night, fix him cereal and help him with his homework...isn't that so sweet! They also gave us little flowers they planted and sang songs for us. Of course I cried.

On another note...to try and ruin my afternoon...we ordered Laney some sunglasses a week ago Tuesday when we took her to the eye dr. They said they would mail them to us once they got them in and that I should have them by this Tuesday...well, that has come and gone and no sunglasses yet. I called on Tuesday to see if they had been mailed and they said they should be mailed on Wednesday. Well, Wednesday rolled around and no sunglasses so I waited until after the mail run yesterday and still no sunglasses, I called them back and they said they had went out yesterday but guess what...I still didn't get them today. I called back and they said they had made a mistake and they were still sitting there on the desk NOT MAILED YET!!!! I am so furious. I was told I would have them in a week and now I won't have them until Monday at the earliest. Those dang things were $30.00 for her and we ordered them because when we give her the eye drops to help with her strabismus, the drops make her very sensitive to light and we wanted to make sure we got her some good UV protection. This is so riduculous and URGH!!!!

Anyway...I will try not to think about that and just think about how cute it was Logan singing songs for me and the little video they made.

Happy Mother's Day to everyone!!!

Kindergarten is not for me!!!

2009-05-06T16:14:00.002-04:00

Today I volunteered to take Logan's class to lunch so his teacher could have a "duty-free lunch" since it is Teacher Appreciation week. So when I signed up I thought to myself how bad can this be, its almost the end of the year the kids should know what is expected of them and we should be great. WRONG!!!!! Those kids are wild! They wanted to talk and run and jump in line and that's before we ever got to the lunch room. It was alot and I give major kudos to my son's teacher for dealing with these kids every day!!!

So, if I had ever thought that maybe teaching was for me...I don't think that now...well as far as kindergarten goes anyway...

Teething!!!

2009-05-05T10:41:00.002-04:00

It appears that Laney getting her molars in first was the cake walk. Now she is cutting those bottom front teeth. YIKES!!! Those suckers are sharp and she doesn't want you checking them out. She has one that has popped through just a little bit but still waiting on the other one. I forgot how bad this was but of course Logan didn't really make a fuss when he teethed...he did it and got it over with...LOL!

This week is a busy week at Logan's school. It is teacher/staff appreciation week and tomm, I am going in to take his class to lunch so that his teachers can go eat a catered lunch without children. I am also taking in some brownies for them. Then on Friday, they are having a mothers tea in the afternoon so I will be going to that with my little monkey. On Sunday, we have decided we are going to a theme park close to Charlotte since we have season passes this year and not going to go see our mom's on that day, we will see them a different day. This is what I wanted for mother's day, to spend the day with the kids and my hubby doing something totally fun.

I have been going to a class with an awesome teacher at the gym and it is a 6 week course. She took our measurements at the first class and then again at the third class. This is week 5 so we will be getting our measurements done again next Tuesday so I only have this week left to kick some "fat cell booty" and try to be the one that looses the most inches to win the facial/massage prize. I have been going at least 3 times a week although last week I went 4 times and this week I plan to go everyday except Sat and Sun. Last night I did zumba and I am a little bit sore. I am really trying to get some weight off and get back in shape mostly because I hate the way I look but also b/c I need to drop some weight so that my diabetes stays under control. I will update on my progress after class next week.

Quick side note: wanted to tell my buddy good luck today on her surgery and I am thinking about you and way to go on the new job!!!

Curiosity

2009-04-28T23:30:00.002-04:00

Okay so when we took Laney to the dr yesterday I totally forgot something he told us until this afternoon...Here goes...

Pedi: "If she shows an interest in potty training you can go ahead with that"
Me: "Ummmmm. Okay"

So I am wondering here how I am supposed to know she is interested in potty training...she is 15 mths old, doesn't walk yet, and really doesn't have many words in her vocabulary just yet. Is she supposed to army crawl to the bathroom, do her bizness and then yell out Mommy I'm done...GEEZ!!! I thought about this and I just laugh. I am soooooo confused as to what he was thinking. I know she doesn't go back until her 2 yr checkup (he said 18 mth well check is optional and he will see her when she gets sick again anyways) so maybe he just meant between now and then...I have no idea.

Just thought I would share this random craziness with you all since I live it everyday!!!

Eye dr

2009-04-28T12:29:00.002-04:00

Laney's right eye is crossing more and more it seems. She went back for her recheck this morning and he noticed it as well. She can see far off but it crosses up close. When they checked her vision last time there were no problems there but she just has an issue with her focus in the right eye. He wanted us to patch her left eye (since its dominant) and make her right eye work harder and see if that would correct the problem...Laney was having no part of that patch going on her eye. She pulled it back off. Oh well whats next. Today he gives her eye drops that we put in her left eye once a week and it will cause her vision to get really blurry so she has to use her right eye to make up for the left eye not working (with the drops in). They last a few hours and they will make her very sensitive to light. (he said if we have to take her outside while they are in she will prob need sunglasses and a hat to help block the sun) My MIL bought her the cutest most adorable pair of sunglasses. They will be mailed to us by next week and I will of course post a pic as soon as I can. We take her back at the end of May for a recheck and he will dilate her eyes then and recheck her vision to see if glasses will work or if she will just need the bifocals (if they drops dont help and the bifocals she gets are not like for adults).

15 mth wellcheck

2009-04-27T22:06:00.002-04:00

Laney had her wellcheck today. She is still in the 10th percentile for height and weight. She weighs 20 lb 7 oz and is 28 3/4 inches tall. He said that if she just starts walking she will be just about perfect for her age. (LOL) She has two bottom front teeth trying to break through although her top molars on each side are pretty much almost all the way in now. She can throw down on a cheeseburger...hahaha. She had to get one vaccine and then we had to go over to the hospital to have her thyroid checked. He should have those results within 24 hrs he said. Tomorrow we go for her follow up eye exam. Pedi dr said he thinks her right eye crossing has gotten considerably worse since just January so we shall see what Mr. Eye Dr thinks.

Tonight Logan had his last soccer game this season...he scored a goal!!! We were so excited. After the game we had pizza for the kids and stupid coach didn't even bother to stay. He said he had to run because he had someone playing soccer and needed to get to that game to watch it. I understand that but geez it was your teams final game and he didn't even say anything to the kids. NOTHING!!! He totally sucks as a coach!

I went to my cousin in laws jewelry party tonight and I am planning on having one on May 21st at 630 if anyone would like to come...please email me or comment to let me know.

Hows about some photos

2009-04-27T08:29:00.005-04:00

Well, I thought I should finally get around to sharing some photos with ya. Here are a few I took over the past little bit. Tonight is Logan's last soccer game of the season (thank goodness we will be done with the coach from hell!) He can't wait to start tball now. Laney has her 15mth well check today. I will post later how that appt goes.

Here Logan is holding (torturing) Laney at the bowling alley after we picked Uncle Charlie up at Camp Lejeune. This is the first time Logan has bowled in real life. He decided it is much easier to bowl on the Wii.

This is Uncle Charlie, Logan & Laney

This is how she spent most of the trip out to Camp Lejeune...must be nice.

and this is how Logan spent his trip (wouldn't it have been awesome to have this stuff when we were kids)

Daddy, Logan & Laney riding on the carousel

Me & Laney on the carousel

Logan at the soccer game

He got to do the throw in

Guess What!!!

2009-04-23T20:23:00.003-04:00

I had to take Laney back to the doctor yesterday to make sure all the congestion hasn't settled in her chest...good news...it hasn't. They also weighed her yesterday and finally she has gained some weight...she is up to 21 lbs 11 oz (that is with diaper and clothes on though). I was so excited. She goes back on Monday for her 15 mth checkup and I will have an official weight then.

Logan has begged me all day to please not send him to school tomorrow...wonder where this is coming from. My munchkin usually loves going to school so not sure what is up with that. Guess he has Spring fever from being out a week. Oh well, I get to torture him the way my mom tortured me by sending him to school...hahhaha (thats my evil mom laugh)

Soccer

2009-04-21T07:32:00.002-04:00

Last night was Logan's soccer game...they did amazing!!! NO THANKS TO OUR COACH THOUGH!!!! He was not there at the game last night and we got an email an hour before the game was supposed to start reminding us of the game and that we would have practice Tuesday (aka tonight) and Thursday night at 6:00. The last time anyone heard from the coach was at the last game on April 7th!!! (we had a break with games due to spring break). I have complained 2 times to the soccer association and so have other parents but I guess it doesn't matter. I mean, I paid my money just like everyone else did on the other teams but we get stuck with the crappiest coach ever and it doesn't seem to matter to the people on the soccer board that run this. One of the other parents even offered to take over coaching since the person coaching our team doesn't seem to be able to commit to it and the coach said no he was fine but he has missed a couple games and won't schedule practices except week by week. I am sorry but us parents have a life too and most of us have other kids that we have to run around and just take care of in general. URGH!!! If this man is coaching in the Fall season...someone else can have him cause I won't let my kid play for him again!!!

Now that that is off my chest...our kids won last night!!! They really had to play for it last night though cause the other team had some skills I tell ya!!!

Another Doctor Appt!

2009-04-20T15:33:00.002-04:00

Laney woke up this morning with a fever so I left a message at the pedi office and he called back and said he needed to see her. Took her in and she has a sinus infection. She is pitiful...her eyes are watering and nose running and just a little sluggish all around. Of course I have been having a terrible time with my allergies the past two days.

Saturday night, Logan ran into a table at my in-laws house and busted his nose and bit his tongue...our first major catastrophe with him...lol. He bled a pretty good bit but we got it under control and now he is laughing about it and making jokes. BOYS!!!!

Tonight is another soccer game for Logan. If anything interesting happens, I will post but otherwise it may be a few days before you hear from me again...gonna be a little bit busy...(I might try to post tomm night after my exercise class...she is doing our measurements again so it depends on the results...hehehehhe)

update time

2009-04-16T11:58:00.002-04:00

My brother Charlie is finally out of the Marines now and home for good. He has been to Iraq and has a purple heart to show for it so now he has done his duty and is home to stay (still can't quit worrying though...LOL). He got to come home Tuesday night and he is staying with us right now. Logan is loving that.

Logan and Laney went to the dentist this morning. It was Laney's first time. She did awesome. They took some x-rays to make sure she has all her teeth since she doesn't have the front ones yet but is getting her molars already. All is well. He said it probably won't be long before she gets the front ones because they are there and look like it will be soon. Logan did okay considering he had a horrible experience when he had to have his cavaties taken care of. He was very excited but got scared once we were there so they just brushed his teeth for him and he goes back in 6 mths to try again. Hopefully it will be better then. He was scared of all the equipment they have and I think it just reminded him of having the dental work last year.

This Sunday is the Down syndrome picnic in Gastonia. I can't wait to see everyone again. I am sure I will have some photos to post. I actually have some from our trip last weekend to see Charlie in Jacksonville/Camp Lejeune. We drove down to Wilmington and saw the USS North Carolina battleship. It was amazing!!! Logan loved going up and down all the stairs and seeing all the stuff. He had a blast. Laney seemed to enjoy it as well. I will try to post some of those pics soon.

I had my exercise class...aka torture...on Tuesday night again. I am not as sore as I was last week. Last night I did pilates and then spent some time on the eliptical. Tonight I am doing a class thing that is 2 hours long. It is like a sampler class where you do like 20 minutes or so of each class they offer so you can see what you might be interested in trying out. I can't wait...

She Did It!!!

2009-04-14T13:20:00.002-04:00

Well this morning I had put Laney in her crib for a little nap (I have just in the last week started raising the side rail to the highest setting). When she started making noises, I opened her door to get her and there she was...STANDING in her crib against the rail...tears filled my eyes and I ran to get Ricky (still in bed before working tonight) and after he saw her, I sat her back down and she did it again in front of us. We brought her to the living room and she was pulling up to stand at the recliner..we are so in for it now...next she will be walking. I can't wait to tell her PT next week.

Relief...somewhat

2009-04-09T21:48:00.002-04:00

Well today was another painful day for my legs but I pushed through it and went to the gym again and did a spinning class. I sweated in places I didn't know you could sweat but it was worth it to look to the future and think about not being fat anymore...LOL! I am not going tomorrow and I probably won't go back until Tuesday because I am not sure when we will be home on Monday from getting Charlie.

Logan had his class easter stuff today. Those kids are wild and we jacked them up on sugar and pizza...what were we thinking. He got lots of candy and made some cute stuff but he was more excited that I signed him out and brought him home when I left instead of making him ride the bus.

Laney stayed with my mom and grandmother today. She apparently had a great time and my mom said she hardly made a sound all day other than a little jabbering. My grandmother was so excited that she had Laney all day today so that was nice too.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter!!!

Torture

2009-04-08T20:03:00.003-04:00

Another night of torture at the gym!!! I can barely walk today but still managed to get to the gym to do some working out. We did a little cardio on the treadmill cause no way could we do the eliptical and then we did a little arm weights and then we did a pilates class which was great although I was skeptical at first.

Tomorrow is Logan's Easter party at school so I will be busy tomorrow cause I have to take his cupcakes and then do the egg hunt.

We are getting pretty excited about going to Camp Lejeune this weekend to get Charlie and I am sure I will have lots of pictures to post when we get home.

Also...can't wait to see idol tonight...so mad I didn't get to see all of it last night...stupid fox people should have just made it an hour and a half show instead of an hour...they knew they would run over the time if it was an hour. URGH!!!!!!! My prediction is it will be one of the following: Anoop, Kris, Scott or Lil ( I like Scott so hope it isn't him but last night wasn't great for him)

Pain!!!

2009-04-07T22:30:00.003-04:00

Well tonight I started a workout class that last 6 weeks. My legs are hurting so bad!!! She asked us when she did our measurements if we worked out or not...I of course said NO (I try to go and have good intentions but they never come to be) so she put me in the low impact group...thank the lord!!! The ones that said they worked out looked like they were about to die doing what she had them doing so I am so glad I said I don't work out. My friend and I have plans to go again tomorrow and just do some working out without the class (the class is every Tuesday at 7 and last an hour so I have to DVR American Idol). I hope I loose some inches and weight because if not, I am giving up and having it all surgical removed and fixed and I will be a barbie doll. LOL!!!

Logan had a soccer game tonight and he did AWESOME!!! He scored one goal all on his own (actually he scored two but one was in the other teams net so I didn't count it as for our team). He went to kick the ball into the net and his foot kinda rolled across the top and he fell down but still hit the ball into the net. He was so proud and I was jumping up and down screaming. Can't wait for the next game so Rick can go and see how much he has improved.

Laney stayed at MawMaw and PawPaw's house while we went to soccer and the gym because it is so cold. They said she played so well and was pulling up on everything. When I got there and was holding her, she started to pull my hair and of course I told her NO-NO and she just laughed at me. This is going to be so much fun I can already tell. She is really into pulling hair or messing with your earrings and laughs at you when you tell her no. The Diva's personality is already there!!! LOL!!!

It is starting...

2009-04-06T22:54:00.003-04:00

Well, Laney is really starting to pick up on what her PT is teaching her. Today we worked on walker with a little walker (Laney's size) and then on pull to stand. She is catching on really quickly to the pull to stand because that is all she wants to do now. I am glad it only takes her a few times to learn things but now I am the mother of a typical child in my thinking of oh no here it goes. She is going to be into everything even more that she already is. She will just cackle if you tell her no-no when she is getting into something she shouldn't be and then go faster to get there or just laugh at you. It is so cute. Tonight I let her try to walk with her walker (it converts from one you sit in to one you can walk behind) and she did it all on her own. It was awesome. Of course I made Ricky video tape it. All I did was hold the walker so it wouldn't get away from her and she moved her little legs all by herself. SO excited!!!!

Logan is getting ready to sign up for tball and he only has 3 more soccer games left. He is doing really well in soccer this season. I can't wait to see how he does in tball this summer. The easter bunny is bringing him a tball glove, bat and ball. We have already bought his cleats and will just have to buy his pants once we know what color we need. He got his report card today and got all "S" which is good and his teacher wrote on there that he loves to answer questions...we thought that was funny because it is so true. He loves being the center of attention almost all the time. They are having a easter party at school on Thursday and we are responsible for taking the cupcakes. We went to wal-mart and ordered them tonight. He wanted a cupcake cake in the shape of an egg. He is getting extremely opinionated now.

A week in review

2009-03-31T23:06:00.002-04:00

Sorry it's been a little wild around here. Let's see whats been going on...Laney has learned something new...she can say Bye-Bye and Bubba now (the bubba refers to Logan). The little princess still refuses to say Ma-Ma though. (she has said it before but won't say it for me or for anyone else that tries to get her to say it).

I am so excited that my brother gets to come home on April 12th (Easter). We will be going out to Camp Lejeune to get him that day and taking the kids with us. He has only seen Laney a few times and it has been awhile since Logan saw him too. I can't wait. He will be out of the Marine Corp now and thank the lord too because he got changed from one company to another in the Fall and the company he used to be in was deployed a few weeks later to Afghanistan and last week several of his buddies were killed in an explosion. He of course feels guilty because he was not there but I am so thankful that he wasn't because that might have been him and I just can't fathom loosing him.

Anyway...Logan is almost finished with soccer. The end of April and then we are going to sign him up for Tball so we will still be busy.

Finally!!!

2009-03-23T21:29:00.001-04:00

Laney is finally cutting some teeth. I noticed them this morning. Unfortunately, they are not her front teeth which we all assume kids get those first...well, not Laney. She is cutting her molars on the top. I called the dentist and the pediatrician and they have assured me nothing is wrong she is just getting hers in a different order than normal but not to worry the rest should follow pretty soon. We shall see.

We went to the zoo yesterday and I will post some pics from that soon.

3/21 World Down Syndrome Day

2009-03-21T20:09:00.001-04:00

Thought I would share this with everyone since today is World Down syndrome day. Hope you enjoy...

The Creed of Babies with Down Syndrome
My face may be different
But my feelings the same
I laugh and I cry
And I take pride in my gains
I was sent here among you
To teach you to love
As God in the heavens
Looks down from above
To Him I'm no different
His love knows no bounds
It's those here among you
In cities and towns
That judge me by standards
That man has imparted
But this family I've chosen
Will help me get started
For I'm one of the children
So special and few
That came here to learn
The same lessons as you
That love is acceptance
It must come from the heart
We all have the same purpose
Though not the same start
The Lord gave me life
To live and embrace
And I'll do it as you do
But at my own pace

More Photos

2009-03-19T09:18:00.004-04:00

Laney and her cousin Kaylea

Laney in the fashion show

getting ready to go up on stage

Laney and Daddy before the fashion show(after the girls curled her sprout on her head)

Logan cheesin again

Photos

2009-03-18T22:47:00.004-04:00

Laney and her beautiful smile

Laney and Logan chilling on the bed at the hotel when the power went out after the big snow

The beautiful snow we got

Laney going out to see the snow

During the snow

Logan enjoying the snow

Cheese!!!

I will post more later. The site is being really slow so I will try at a different time cause I have lots more to share with you.

Update

2009-03-18T22:36:00.002-04:00

Well, the sickness has spread to Ricky. Here is a recap of the past week or so...

Laney: got the flu last Tuesday, ear infection on Friday, went to ER on Sunday and found out she had the croup; went back to pediatrician today for recheck and he said ear infection is in both ears now and gave us an antibiotic. We have to go to her ENT tomorrow and they are going to suction our her tubes to remove the infection and make sure there are no blockages in there since the antibiotic ear drops they gave us on Friday didn't clear it up.

Ricky: got the flu on Saturday and still isn't much better; went to doctor today and she put him out of work all week and gave him an antibiotic because she said his lungs didn't sound very good. He is coughing alot so she also gave him some cough meds. He was dehydrated when we went earlier and she told him if he wasn't able to eat tonight and drink more fluids he would need to go to the ER to get IV fluids. Thankfully after taking the meds this evening he has been able to eat and is still eating right now. Hopefully he is on the road to getting better.

Logan: Thank goodness he hasn't gotten sick (yet!!!). He did fall down today while playing outside and scrapped his arm. We were concerned he might have done more (aka broken it or something) but he began using it and playing again after a bit so I think he is fine. He had his first soccer game a week ago Monday and he scored a goal so he was very excited.

Me: well, thankfully I haven't gotten sick yet either but I am not counting me as safe just yet. My luck will probably be that once Ricky and Laney are better, I will get it and have to just deal with it (LOL). I have spent my past week spraying Lysol all over everywhere all day and scrubbing the kitchen down since that is where Ricky is going alot. He has been sleeping on the couch so I have been spraying it down everyday too (LOL)

Last Sunday morning, Laney seemed to be feeling a little bit better so we decided to go on to the Charlotte Checkers hockey game as planned (without Ricky of course). Now, Laney started running a fever while we were there and that night is when we took her to the ER but Logan had a great time at the game and so did my niece and nephews. Also, my mother in law and father in law went with us and my uncle and his boys. We all enjoyed ourselves and just wish the Checkers had actually won but oh well.

Laney was also in a fashion show the Saturday before she got sick. I have some great pics that I will post after this.

Sickness

2009-03-12T23:04:00.002-04:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. We have been busy and now Laney has the flu. I will try to post some pics of her in the fashion show this past weekend soon. She is starting to say the "N" sound now so it sounds like she is going to be saying "no no" soon...lol.

Eye Doctor Appt

2009-02-26T14:43:00.002-05:00

Well today was Laney's eye doctor appt (after having to change doctors because we waited 5 mths for an appt with the only pedi eye dr in Cleveland Cty and she called in sick on the day we were supposed to go so I took her to Charlotte). The doctor said that she can see really well and that we just need to watch the strabismus with her right eye (she crosses it sometimes) but he sees no need for glasses right now. However, he does want us to put a patch on her left eye for about 30 minutes each day so that she has to use her right eye and can't develop a dependence on her left eye. We go back in 2 months for a recheck and I am supposed to take photos of her crossing her eyes if I have any...well, I do have some already and I am sure I will have plenty more in 2 months.

Our new addition...

2009-02-24T13:34:00.004-05:00

Well I know its been a few days but we have been very busy. We adopted a new dog named Sadie from the local humane society. Logan has started soccer for the Spring season so we have to add his practices to our schedule and I have started going to the gym at night with a friend (trying to loose some weight...lol). Logan starts his games next Monday so I will have some pics from games after that. Laney has been doing great in therapy. She is really starting to try to pull to stand now and took a few assisted steps cruising yesterday as well. Her therapist say that all they have to do is show her a few times what to do and she picks it up and starts trying herself. We have a "crawler" from the CDSA that we are going to work with her on to make her crawl on her hands and knees. We shall see if this works...lol. Below are just a few update pics from my babies and the newest addition to our family.

Laney eating a banana

Our new dog...Sadie

Logan acting silly...

Logan and Sadie on the couch

meeting the neighbors puppy

Surprise!

2009-02-17T16:32:00.003-05:00

Well, we have decided to get the kids a dog. We went to the Humane Shelter yesterday and looked and pretty much fell in love with one so the kids and I went back today to play with her once Logan got home from school. We are so excited. They came out last night and made sure our fenced in yard was good and we are approved to adopt Sadie!!! She will be coming home with us on Thursday (the vet will double check her tomorrow) and I will post some pics then.

She is beautiful and so good with the kids. She is not hyper and Logan's jumping around her never bothered her. I am so excited and Logan is too...

monday

2009-02-16T14:42:00.005-05:00

Well, it's Monday again and of course Laney had therapy today. I actually took a few photos while we were there and they are posted below. She tries to get out of working by loving on her therapist but it doesn't work. It's funny to watch though.

Laney loving on her PT

swinging

working on climbing stairs and pulling up

A funny thing from Logan the other day. We were in the van going somewhere and out of the blue he says to us "When I am a badult (he adds a b to the front of adult) I'm gonna say bad words." Of course we bursted out laughing...what do you say to that. It was so funny. We just let it go, no need to further that line of thought...hahahha

some photos

2009-02-11T22:01:00.006-05:00

Here are a few photos of the kids from this past week. I used my new digital camera since I dropped my old one on Christmas Day and broke it and have since been using my trusty old film camera.

Logan getting off school bus

Laney outside in her walker

Logan

Laney and her pigtails

Hearing Test

2009-02-09T21:13:00.003-05:00

Laney had her follow up hearing test today and the doctor was very pleased with the results. He said she did a lot better today and was satisfied with the results because she is where she should be for her age and development but he does want us to repeat it again in 3 months just to keep a close eye on her hearing. He also gave us some nasal wash for her congestion. He said we shouldn't use a decongestant or anything because at her age, the mucus needs to come out so she gets better. We are supposed to squirt this wash in her nasal passages every morning for 2 weeks. He said once we squirt it in, goo will pour out. I will let you know how this goes. He said children and adults can use it and that it is really good. He quoted a study about it but I won't go into that on here except to say that it was way better than any prescription he could have give her (according to the study).

On another note, Logan is very excited about Valentine's Day because he gets to give his friends cards and suckers. He ask me each morning is it Valentine's yet. It is really cute. Oh and we were in Pizza Hut tonight and I had gone up to pay and Rick was at the booth with the kids and suddenly I hear "I'll kick your ass!" I turn around because I know this voice and it is sure enough coming out my Logan's mouth. I couldn't believe it. He says he heard it on youtube so I think he is going to be restricted from that site from now on. (we pull up what he can watch and it is just super mario galaxy walkthroughs so not sure how he heard that) We really got on to him about saying a bad word and he apologized...it was kinda cute and funny because he had no clue but I think we scared him from saying it again. LOL!!!

Blah

2009-02-04T20:17:00.002-05:00

Well, not much is going on this week amazingly enough. I am working all week so my mom is here keeping Laney during the day so Ricky can sleep. My mom says Laney won't let her put her down all day and if she does, Laney whines to be held again. We think we feel a tooth trying to come in on her bottom gum but we aren't really sure. We have thought she was teething several times since she was about 5 months old so apparently we aren't very good at making that decision. LOL.

I will post again Monday if not before then.

And the Dr said...

2009-02-01T12:33:00.002-05:00

Well, we took Logan to the doctor this morning. She said it isn't an ear infection and since he had the flu it is unlikely it is that and he also doesn't look like he has the flu. She said she thinks it is just a virus and has to run it's course to continue giving him Tylenol and Motrin intermittenly. She gave him a note for school tomorrow in case he starts running a high fever again tonight.

Sickness...

2009-01-31T21:20:00.003-05:00

Well, it seems we have a plague in my house (LOL). Logan woke up with a fever this morning but I just thought he may have caught a bug at school because his teacher said a few kids had been out sick this week. I gave him some OTC meds and we went on with our day. We went to see Rick's dad and stepmom as we had planned. While we were out to eat, Logan said his ear hurts. I finally called the pediatricians office to speak with a nurse and they said I should call in the morning and take him to the weekend clinic. I checked his temp and it was 104!!! I called them back and they said to give motrin and tylenol alternately to help bring it down. It is down to 101 something right now and he feels a little better but I am sure it will be a rough night here. Laney is still a little fussy at night with the chicken pox so hopefully we will get a little sleep tonight.

I will post tomorrow after we go to the doctor for Logan.

Doctor visit

2009-01-29T20:40:00.002-05:00

Well, I had to take Laney to the doctor this afternoon because she was still running a fever. We thought maybe it was from the vaccines she recieved last week but when she still had it today, her pediatrician wanted to check her out due to her history with ear infections and such. So last week she got the chicken pox vaccine and apparently some kids get chicken pox from this...I had no idea. Well, it happened to Laney..She has the chicken pox vaccine strand. URGH!! She has little red bumps all over her chest and tummy and in her head. She is so pitiful. He said that we should just keep giving Tylenol for the fever, which should go away in a few days, and give her benadryl for the itching. He also said that any adults that haven't had the chicken pox and children who haven't had them or the vaccine could get them from her...well...Ricky has never had the chicken pox so we have to watch him now. I don't know what I will do if he gets them.

I also talked to him about the hearing problem with Laney. He said he would be concerned but wouldnt loose sleep over it. He said we should probably be aggressive just because of her succeptibility to ear issues anyway and I agree.

Laney's next checkup

2009-01-28T18:22:00.002-05:00

Well, the ENT finally called today and Laney's next hearing test will be on Feb. 9th. Hopefully she will cooperate and we will be done with this.

I won't write much tonight because I am baking brownies for a fundraiser for North Shelby School. The fundraiser is so the seniors can go to the beach free of charge. They do this every year and it is awesome. The kids love it. They have a bunch this year graduating so we need to raise lots of money.

Just another day

2009-01-27T20:38:00.002-05:00

Well, nothing much happened today. I had to work ( I substitute teach) so my mom kept Laney and Logan was in school of course. Laney had ST today and Ricky talked to her therapist about her tongue protrusion. It has just started in the past couple of weeks and we think it is just related to teething and so does our therapist. I guess if it continues once she gets some teeth we will then start to work on correcting it. Of course no one knows when Laney might ever get some teeth...haha. The pediatrician said she will get them just not sure when.

Well, I guess that is all I have to share for today. Until next time...

Laney's post op appointment

2009-01-26T19:05:00.002-05:00

We took Laney to her post op appointment today at the ENT (she had tubes put in and her adenoids removed on Jan. 6th). They automatically do a hearing test at this appointment just to make sure all is well. The doctor says her ears look great and she has healed great from the surgery and he is not concerned with anything other than the fact she didn't do very well on her hearing test. We have to go back in 3 weeks for another hearing test and hopefully she will do fine. He said he isn't sure if she just wasn't interested in what we were doing or if she is having some trouble hearing. It is her right ear. She can hear but some noises she just didn't respond to so that is why they are a little concerned.

She also went to the orthotics place today to have them check her braces and make sure they aren't causing any skin problems on her feet (she got these called SureSteps in December). She is doing great with those and really improving on how well she can weight bear on her feet the proper way.

She has been crossing her eyes alot lately so we have an appointment with a pediatric eye doctor in February to get her vision checked (this is routine Ds checkup anyway).

Logan went on a field trip with school today. They saw a play at the high school. He says it was about the three little pigs and the big bad wolf. He won't tell me anything else because he says he is shy. He is so silly sometimes.

Welcome!

2009-01-25T22:49:00.001-05:00

Hello and welcome to our blog. I hope you enjoy all the chaos that we call normalcy. (lol) This is the journey of our lives with our two beautiful children Logan and Laney.

Logan is our 5 year old son and he is "all boy". He loves school, reading, drawing, playing video games or computer games, watching cartoons, and most of all playing with his little sister. He loves to play in her room with her toys and show her what they do and just be around her. He is in kindergarten this year and has flourished since starting school. He amazes me at how smart he is sometimes. He is a wiz on the computer and all things electronic. (His cousin teaches him alot)

Laney is our little princess and she just turned 1. She has Down syndrome and we say that she is 50.5% Mommy and 50.5% Daddy. (lol) She is a Daddy's girl all the way and so very spoiled. She is doing so great. She has had no health concerns other than having tubes put in her ears and her adenoids removed so we are so very thankful and lucky. She is crawling (commando style) and sitting up all on her own. Everyday is an adventure with her. She is very bubbly and loving and smiles and loves life in general. She also really loves her brother. She is very tolerant of him kissing and hugging her.

Ricky and I have been married for going on 7 years. He works full time and I am a stay at home mom except I sometimes work as a substitute teacher for our county school system. I mostly work at our school for children with special needs. I love it and I love interacting with all the children there. I learn so much from them every time I go whether I am working or just visiting them (my sister in law works there).

Hope you enjoy our blog and I will post some pics soon as I figure all this out...