Cheerio Confessions

It only took me like a week and a half and 30 quick capture pictures to catch it...but here it is! :) lol

Take 1 sleeping baby

Add 1 bored, silly with sleep deprivation mommy

= Equals =

Fun with Pictures!!! :)

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Okay, so this isn't a "Binkie Baby" photo. But look at that expression...it's just too cute to resist.

(Notice the sleeping twins in the upper right corner.)

2 hours of sleep makes. I am thrilled to say I got FOUR HOURS of sleep (albeit non-consecutive hours) last night!! It's amazing how two extra...nay additional hours of sleep can fool your body into feeling like you got eight hours. lol

Now we're on our way to a local flea market/farmers' market to pick up some fruit for my dairy-free diet. Even though I'm only supposed to avoid the major milk products (milk, ice cream, yogurt etc.) it still makes meals a little more difficult. So it'll be nice to have a few more options for sides and snacks.

I figure about the time we get home my body will realize I didn't actually have eight hours of sleep. Then I'll crash and burn. lol

***Update***
We came. We saw. We bought gobs of fruit and I'm in Heaven. Elliott Richard is napping. (We wore him out and he didn't even have to walk. lol) Emmett John is in his swing. (I've probably just jinxed myself by telling you that.) Rob is on the phone. (Don't ask.) And I am eating lunch with lots of fruit. (Yum.)

As predicted, my body is slowly figuring out I only got 4 hours of sleep. And I think after my belly is full my brain and body are going to slip into a food coma.

***PS Be sure to take note that Emmett John is smiling in his picture! Not his full on grin mind you but at least I caught his sneaky grin. :) Whereas Elliott Richard was less than thrilled with me for taking his picture. lol

No, I'm not pregnant. Yes, I know the title was misleading. Yes, I did it on purpose. It was fun. :)

Meet Blue and Cosmo, twin Seal Point Siamese kittens. (The names were chosen from two of the boys favorite Nicktoons. Blue = Blue's Clues ad Cosmo = The Fairly Oddparents)

Gavin is deathly afraid of mice. We don't have any, however, our house is 105 years old so at one time we did have a mouse. Gavin remembers this and is convinced the mouse is still here even though it was killed long ago by one of our previous cats. So Rob and I decided to get kitten.

He found free Seal Point Siamese mix kittens in the paper. We picked one and left his twin brother behind because he had been promised to someone else. At around 10-11pm that night she called us wanting to know if we wanted Blue's twin since the other lady never showed up. We figured what's a little more insanity and took Cosmo too. The cool thing is they share a birthday with Mr. Emmett John! :)

What Tiny's up to this week: Has your baby smiled at you yet? If not, he will soon. At 6 weeks, about half of all babies can recognize their parents, and many of those babies are so delighted that they welcome Mom or Dad with an excited, gurgly grin. This is one of the first signs that your baby is developing an ability to socialize.In fact, it's called a "social smile," and it's one of the more emotionally gratifying milestones you'll see your baby reach.

Well, here we are working our way through Week 6 already. I can't believe my Tiny has been here for a month and a half already. Already it's harder to remember life before Emmett John. The memories of labor and delivery are fading fast too. (Memories or not, we will *not* be having any repeat performances. Ever. lol) We had our first smile in Week 5. I can't wait to see the next big milestone.

Just a few pics of Emmett John. (I have no idea why the one is blue.)

What can I say, six plus hours at various doctors' appointments tends to bring out the bored ADHD kid in me. ;)

Okay, for future reference, here's the list. The key is as follows:

Orange ~ Rob
Purple ~ Lizze
Green ~ Gavin
Blue ~ Elliott Richard
Red ~ Emmett John

Our Support Team (family, doctors, therapists, teachers etc.):

The Family
Rob's Side
Grandma G (Rob's Mom)
Pa-Pa G (Rob's Dad)
Uncle Brian (Rob's brother)
Uncle Jon (Rob's brother)
Aunt Teri (married to Uncle Jon)
Aunt Kate (Rob's sister)
Uncle Tim (Rob's brother)
Aunt Jenn (Rob's sister)
Grandma Gene (the Great-Grandma/Pa-Pa G's Mommy)
Grandpa B (the Great-Grandpa/Grandma G's Daddy)
Uncle Rick (the Great-Uncle/Pa-Pa G's Brother/Elliott Richard's Godfather)
Aunt Carol (the Great-Aunt/Pa-Pa G's Sister-in-law/Elliott Richard's Godmother)
Cousin Grace (Uncle Rick & Aunt Carol's older daughter)
Cousin Hannah (Uncle Rick & Aunt Carol's younger daughter)

My Side
Adoptive (I don't differentiate but it can be confusing so just for clarification purposes.)
Grandma W (my mom)
Grandpa W (my dad)
Uncle Zach (my baby brother)
Grammy (the Great-Grandma/Grandma W's Mommy)
Po-Po (the Great-Grandpa/Grandpa W's Daddy)
Biological
Aunt Trisha (my sister)
Uncle John (Trisha's hubby - my brother-in-law)
Cousin Danny (Trisha & John's oldest son)
Cousin Dyvin (Trisha & John's youngest son)
Cousin Payton (Trisha & John's daughter)
Grandma Mary (Trisha & I's mother)

The Medical & Educational Team
Gavin's
Patty ~ Psychologist
Mollie ~ Psychological Testing
Dr. R ~ Psychiatrist
Dr. H ~ Pediatrican
Dr. Jon ~ Pediatric Dentist
Neuro ~ Developmental Neurologist
Mrs. C ~ Teacher
Miss L ~ Teacher's Aide
Miss F ~ Social Skills Teacher
Mrs. S ~ Principal
Andrea M ~ MRDD Special Services Administrator
Kathie W ~ Wraparound Project Coordinator
Lori ~ MST

Elliott Richard
Dr. H ~ Pediatrician
Dr. G ~ Urologist (saw when he was an infant and has since been released from treatment)
Dr. Jon ~ Pediatric Dentist

Emmett John
Dr. H ~ Pediatrician
Dr. Tim ~ Apnea Clinic Pediatrician (saw between birth and 3 months, has since been released from treatment)
Dr. KR ~ Ear Nose & Throat doctor (seen for hoarseness & tubes in his ears)

Misc Pediatricians & Nurses in the Practice
Dr. Beth
Dr. M
Dr. K
Dr. C
Chris ~ Dr. H's main nurse
Linda ~ floating nurse
Mel ~ floating nurse

Lizze's Team
Dr. D ~ OB/GYN
Mollie ~ Therapist
Dr. T ~ Pain Management
Dr. E ~ Primary Care Physician
Dr. L ~ Gastroenterologist
Dr. G ~ Rheumatologist

Rob's Team
Mollie ~ Therapist
Dr. E ~ Primary Care Physician

He's quite a good teacher. ;)

(And I still have no idea why there is a blue hue to some pictures/movies and not others. It's not me. I swear.)

Elliott Richard's been obsessed with circles ever since he learned what they are. Usually he brings his Magnadoodle to either Rob or I and asks us, oh so sweetly, to draw circles. Today I had my hands full with a spitting up Emmett John so I explained that he would have to draw the circles himself. This is the end result. I swear just when I think he's as cute as he can get, he gets cuter.

Dr. H's office called us back. And I'm thrilled to have two pieces of good news (for once)...

First, Emmett John's ultrasound of his hips came back as perfect! Yay! He does not have hip dysplasia!

Second, Dr. H over-ruled Dr. M's no milk and soy protiens order! Yippee! I am now back to my "no main milk products" order, which is much easier to live with.

Here is the list of products with milk or soy proteins...un-flippin-real!!!

How to Read a Milk-Free DietAvoid foods with the following ingredients:
1. artificial butter flavor
2. butter, butter fat, butter oil
3. buttermilk
4. casein
5. caseinates (ammonium, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium)
6. cheese
7. cream
8. cottage cheese
9. curds
10. custard
11. Ghee
12. Half and Half
13. hydrolysates (casein, milk protein, protein, whey, whey protein)
14. lacalbumin, lacalbumin-phosphate
15. lactoglobulin
16. lactose
17. lactulose
18. milk (any derivative – powder, protein, solids, malted, condensed, evaporated, dry, whole, low-fat, non-fat, skim, goat’s milk)
19. nougat
20. pudding
21. rennet casein
22. sour cream, sour cream solids
23. whey (including all forms, such as sweet, de-lactosed, protein concentrated)
24. yogurt
25. “D” on a label next to “K” or “U” indicated presence of milk protein

The following may contain milk proteins :
1. flavorings: caramel, barvarian cream, coconut cream, brown sugar, butter, natural
2. chocolate
3. luncheon meats, hot dogs, sausages
4. high protein flour
5. margarine
6. Simplesse®

That's how long it's been since I woke up with Emmett John at 3:00am. 17 incredibly long hours. Here's the Tiny Update from the past few days. I apologize up front if it doesn't exactly make sense. It's completely inadequate for me to say I'm running on less than fumes.

I already posted the update from Emmett's appointment with Dr. H on Monday. You can read it here. Dr. H asked me to call yesterday morning with an update on how Emmett had done through the night. So yesterday morning I called and left a message with the nurse. Yesterday afternoon Dr. H called me back.

We discussed Emmett's spitting up episodes (three in an hour and a half yesterday), his fussy behavior during the day etc. I explained how I had given Emmett the dose of Maalox between doses of Zantac and he spit up it and half of what he'd just eaten all over the both of us. Then I explained how we tried for over half an hour to give him the Pedialyte but Emmett refused to take the bottle. He asked me if I felt Emmett needed to be seen. I said "no". He decided to increase the dose of Zantac from 0.5mL to 0.7mL BID and he wanted me to call this morning with another update.

Last night started off so well. Then he woke up at around 3:00am. I figured he was upset because the side he was nursing on was empty so we switched sides. Nothing doing. He nursed. He fussed. I hed him. He fussed. Put him in the swing. He fussed. You get the idea. He wasn't full-on screaming his head off fussy. It was more a grumpy, generally unhappy kind of fussy. This went on until about 6-6:30am when he finally passed out and I was able to doze.

Then when we were all awake for the morning I nursed him at about 8-9:00am. About 10 minutes later at least half of it came back up. Over the course of the next hour he continued to spit up, leaving little puddles in his wake. So as we were getting ready to leave for his appointment for his hip ultrasound I called the nurse and gave her the run down.

The doctors office called back a little while later because Dr. H felt that Emmett needed to be seen again. He was booked solid yesterday so we saw one of his partners, Dr. M (different from Gavin's ped Dr. M).

In the end, she said that it's most likely just his reflux acting up. Plus although we had increased his dose of Zantac it could take up to 10-14 days before we really see a change. She also sent him for an ultrasound of his stomach to make sure he didn't have any stenosis of the valves in the stomach. Then she informed me that I now have to cut out ALL milk and soy products. No milk or soy proteins what-so-ever!!! (Do y'all have any idea how many products have milk and soy in them?!?! I'll post a list for you later.)

So first, we had the ultrasound done on his hips. Then we saw Dr. M. Then Dr. M sent us for the stomach ultrasound.

The stomach ultrasound turned out perfect. He has no signs or symptoms of stenosis of the valves. So that's awesome. And now we just wait for the Zantac to either kick in or not.

Go on, tell me my boys aren't stinking adorable. I dare you! lol

You can't do it, can you? Nope, that's because he's the cutest darn 2 yr old around. ;)

(Yeah, the quality of the video is pretty crappy. But what do you expect from a video taken in semi-darkness with my phone? lol)

Since we all need an Emmett John fix now and again, here are a few pics of Emmett during his "tubby time" yesterday. (They are all G rated.) For the record, he usually *loves* his tubbies until I begin to wash him. Then he screams. Yesterday he was just a giant fuss-pot so he screamed from start to finish. That's why his face is all scrunched and funny looking. Just so ya know.

Now...on to the fix. ;)

Chilling on Mommy's chest this morning

"Do I appear to be in the mood for this?!"

Again I ask you, "Do I appear to be in the mood for this?"

"Didn't think so!"

"I'm still not amused."

Post-tubby and no happier than during the tubby

It has been one ridiculously long day.

It started late last night/early this morning. As Julie's husband Bob put it (so perfectly in my opinion) when referring to their son, Cooper a few weeks ago; the Gremlin in Emmett John came out last night.

He nursed and nursed and nursed some more. Then when there was nothing left to be had while nursing, when I was completely drained, he screamed. I kept trying to get him to nurse anyway because that's the only way to increase my supply. He wasn't having it. Period. End of story. Finally, he was exhausted (he wasn't alone here) and fell asleep (he wasn't alone there either).

We spent most of today with Emmett still channeling his inner-Gremlin. The Zantac wasn't helping much. He didn't want held or put down. He didn't want rocked or bounced. He wanted to nurse. No wait, he didn't want to nurse. It was exhausting.

Then he nursed at about 10:30am. By noon he was doing this funky "gagging" that he does sometimes. I kept an eye on him. Tried to calm him down, since it freaks him out sometimes. But it wasn't working. Next thing I know, he's spitting up all over the both of us. Then the fussing got worse because he had basically emptied his stomach so now he wanted to nurse again. I wanted to distract him so I gave him a bath, which served double duty because he needed it anyway after spitting up all over himself. Typically, he loves baths until I start washing him. Then he hates them. Today, he continued to scream from start to finish. Totally unlike himself. Grand total between noon and 1:30pm Emmett spit up 3 times. The first time (all over the both of us). The second and third times were just after he ate. He gave about half of everything he'd just eaten back to me.

At 2:30pm Emmett and I took Gavin to occupational therapy. He fussed and screamed the whole way there. Then when we left to do some running around. At that point my gut was screaming at me, "Something is wrong here!" So I called Dr. H's office.

The nurse had me take him in at 4:45pm. First, we weighed him in the "bucket scale" which is just a scale that he reclines in rather than the flat scale. He's gained another 7 1/2 oz in 4 days!!!!Craziness I tell you. Dr. H checked him out. He said that he's pretty sure it's just a really bad reflux day. So we're supposed to give him the Maalox between Zantac doses for the time being. If that works, then he'll increase Emmett's dose of Zantac. He's on call tonight so if Emmett gets worse (more forceful spitting up, blood or bile in the spit up, inconsolable or completely lethargic) we're supposed to call ASAP. Other wise I'm supposed to call his office with an update in the morning.

So far he's been pretty good since we left Dr. H's office. Of course, what better way to make a liar out of Mommy. lol I'm still floored by the weight gain...but I'm going to go be floored in my sleep. I'm exhausted and I'm fighting to keep my eyes open at this point...

Get it? It's a play on the old television show "Hawaii Five-0" only it's Two-0 because Elliott Richard is 2 and Emmett John is (technically) 0. Okay. Okay. Yeah, I know I'm lame. lol (Although, hopefully you'll get the reference once you see the onesie Emmett John is wearing.)

I keep trying to catch Emmett smiling. I also keep missing. On the bright side, I'm getting some down right adorable pictures of the E's. That said, here's another daily dose of "The Dueling E's". I know you were having withdrawl symptoms. ;) lol

Here's your fix. :)

"You want me to do what?!"

Emmett John, the Archer...strike a pose!

(otherwise known as "Vogue-ing" lol)

Sportin' the "Hawaii 2-0" look courtesy of Apple :)

"Mom, I'm serious. No more pictures."

Deep thoughts

(No, I didn't pose this picture. Seriously, you try posing a 5 week old. lol)

"I take it."

(That's what Elliott Richard says when he wants to hold Emmett. Obviously, Emmett was less than thrilled with the arrangement. lol)

How many of you have siblings? Now how many of you are close to your siblings?

My Mom is 1 of 6. She has 4 sisters and 1 brother. She doesn't really see or talk to her brother much. But she's pretty close to her sisters. She sees them as often as possible and talks to them at least once a week if not more.

Rob is the oldest of six. He has 3 brothers and 2 sisters. He's pretty close with them too. We see them as often as possible and he talks to them on the phone once every week or two.

Enter the reason behind this particular blog. I, being the odd woman out, have one single baby brother. Although, admittedly, he's not a "baby" anymore at 17 years old. There are 10 1/2 years between us. All I ever wished for growing up was "a baby brother or sister". Every fountain wish. Every birthday wish. Letter to Santa. You name it and I asked, begged and wished for a sibling to/from them.

Somewhere around my 9th birthday I came to grips with the reality of being an only child. Not long after I had made my piece with my sibling-less station in life, my parents announced they were surprisingly pregnant! (It was a much more traumatic experience than that but we won't go there. Right Mom? lol) Now I was thrilled the whole pregnancy that my wishes were finally coming true. Then he was born. In that moment I realized that I did actually care if it was a brother or a sister. And I suddenly found myself wishing I had been a bit more specific in my wishing. Lol (I actually told my Dad to "put him back" but he said Mom wasn't going for that. At the time I didn't completely understand why. Needless to say, I understand now. lol)

There I was 10 1/2 years old with this new little brother. Who, for the record, was *nothing* like what I had imagined. He wasn't the least bit fun. And then as we grew up, he was mildly spoilt. (Okay, so was I but at 10 1/2 years old I didn't see that. lol) In all honesty, I spent a large portion of the rest of my childhood either ignoring him or giving him a hard time. I'm growing to regret this decision.

I see my mom with her siblings and Rob with his siblings; and I'm envious. I wish I were closer to Zachary. At this point, I don't even know how to go about trying to build a relationship with him. He's 17. My Mom said to give him a few years. That she became really close with her youngest sister only after they had grown up and married, started working on starting families.

Maybe it's the ADHD in me. Maybe it's the fact that everyday I stare down the idea of losing my family. Or the fact that he has a chronic disease and as his big sister I just want to make it all better and protect him. I only wish I knew how. Even on a basic, almost superficial level. I wish I knew how to connect with him, befriend him. I wish I knew how to be a better big sister.

Tonight our hometown had it's big firework display, which was the follow-up to the parade this morning and the ending of a week long festival. And just let me tell you this, there's nothing quite like hearing every high school marching band in the county peppered inbetween every fire department and their sirens and then wrapping it all up with a float playing nothing but heavy metal rock music. Yeah, that was my Saturday morning. Did I mention we live just off the parade route? Yeah, we do.

Anyway, back to the fireworks...Grandma and PaPa G and Aunt Kate came over to watch with Emmett John and I. Daddy stayed home with Gavin and Elliott Richard. Gavin couldn't go because the noise and excitement would have set him off. And Elliott Richard didn't go because he wore himself out playing Grandma and PaPa's house tonight so he actually fell sleep before 9 o'clock tonight. (Yippee!)

So the four of us: Grandma G, PaPa G, Aunt Kate and I took Emmett to his first set of fireworks. I don't know if he enjoyed them or not though because he slept through them. The big, loud "booming" ones startled him at first but he got used to them. lol

It was too dark for me to get any pictures of Emmett but I did manage to get some pictures and video of the fireworks. Enjoy! :)

This was a smile only my reflexes aren't what they used to be before sleep deprivation. lol

"Party at my crib 2 a.m."

(Sportin' the onesie from "Auntie" Nikky. I wonder if she was trying to warn me of what was to come....)

Brotherly snuggles

Sportin' his "Finding Nemo" bandaid

Sportin' his crazy, silly face

I know many of you are patiently waiting for an update to the Please Pray blog. I appreciate all of your prayers, thoughts, emails, etc. It helps just knowing that y'all care. When I have something definitive to post...y'all will be the first to know. After Rob, of course. ;)

Mr. Emmett John had a follow-up appointment with Dr. H today. Dr. H wanted to check him out now that he's been on the Xantac for his reflux for a little over a week.

We got there. Checked in. Went back to the room. Weighed Emmett John. And this is where things get crazy. My Tiny...Mr. Exclusively-Breastfed...now weighs 9lb 15.5oz!!! He gained 1lb 2oz in 8 days!!! I asked Dr. H if that was normal and he said, "It makes him an over-achiever." lol

Dr. H checked Emmett out. And I asked about a zillion questions...

Emmett's belly button still bleeds a little bit from time to time. Dr. H said he has the tiniest little bit left to heal but he doesn't feel it needs cauterized.

He's got a rash across his shoulder blades. It's heat rash, nothing to worry about.

The Xantac is working great! As is the milk-free diet and I've never wanted a milk shake or bowl of cereal so badly in my entire life!

Then during his exam Dr. H noticed that the fat rolls on Emmett's legs are uneven. (I didn't even know they looked at stuff like that!!!) He said that it's probably just one leg is chubbier than the other but it could also be his hips. Apparently uneven fat rolls can signify an issue with loose hips. So now Emmett needs to have an ultrasound done on his hips (x-rays don't help right now because his hip bones aren't calcified so there's nothing there to show up) to check his hips. If it is his hips (and not uneven chub) he'll have to wear a special "pants" to hold his legs in a certain position while nature takes it's course.

Overall, Tiny is practically perfect in every way. Again. :)

We've got smiles!!!

Emmett John gave Daddy and I our first real social smiles this afternoon!

I've been trying get an enchore performance all day so I could take a few pictures to post but he hasn't been playing along. lol