flashbacks

Texas

We just returned from our family reunion in Texas. We survived the 24 hour drive, and the 110+ temps, and had a great time.
Josh and Bill "helped" the kids cool off. The kids cooled off Josh and Bill later on.We celebrated Grandma's 85th birthday.

The sisters.

Colton made some new friends.

Tyson was his cute little self. Aunt Shirley taught him how to squeal, and he hasn't been quiet since.

Andy brought a bouncy house which the kids loved when they could stand to be out in the heat.

These girls just about ran the wheels off of the poor wagon.

The great-grandkids...most of them anyway. Tyson is #18 and there are 2 more on the way.

The grandkids minus 2. One was working the other passed away, we missed you Eric.

What a great bunch of people, I couldn't have asked for a better time. Grandma estimated 73 people and 5 dogs were there for lunch Saturday. If you couldn't find some fun you weren't looking very hard.

Sick and tired...

....of being sick and tired. Tyson says he has had enough of being sick. He now has bronchiolitis and an ear infection. Oh the joys of having a baby in the prime of respiratory season. He avoided being hospitalized, but we have to visit the outpatient respiratory clinic at the hospital every few hours for suctioning and nebulizer treatments. It is so not fun climbing in the car at 4 am to drive to the hospital. I have driven 150 miles back and forth in 3 days. Hopefully he will improve quickly. This picture was taken before one treatment. For some reason he finds the things hanging on the wall terribly amusing.

What was I thinking?

easter fun

Easter was great. I really was able to relax and enjoy my family this year and not be worrying about work. What a gift. It will be so hard to go back next week. Here are some pics of our fun.

Why does the dog have racing stripes?

You know things are out of control when your dog ends up looking like this. They all deny doing it, but I have my suspicions. I have a child who has a fettish for sharpies, but then I have another one who likes to decorate things she shouldn't. Poor Max, at least it washed off easily.

Back to normal?

Well, we have returned to normal around here, at least as normal as we ever get. Tyson has made his place in our home, and we are really enjoying him. It has been a real adjustment to get used to having a baby in our home again. So far he is a real mellow and easy going guy, as long as his tummy is full. Keeping him fed is a challenge for me since he isn't a real good eater. It takes a really long time to get the necessary amount in him. As of this morning he is 6 pounds 1.4 ounces, so my efforts are paying off and he is growing well. Here are some new pictures for you all to enjoy.

home sweet home

Tyson was discharged on Friday and now resides under the same roof with the rest of us crazies. He keeps me very busy, as does putting my house and older children back in working order. I sooo appreciate all Erik did to keep things going, but it isn't easy to get everything done all by yourself, especially when you aren't used to it.

As of today Tyson weighed 5 pounds 9 ounces and has no current health concerns other than continuing to gain weight. He is well loved by his siblings who just can't get enough of him. I have a hard time getting everyone to leave him alone so he can just sleep. I will post more pictures soon.

on the right track

We have made tons of progress the last few days, which is why I haven't had time to update everyone. At this point our only hurdle left is feeding. We are hoping to be home in a few days.

progress

This was taken late this evening. Today we removed the chest tube and made progress weaning off the cpap. I was finally able to hold him for a few minutes. Tomorrow we are hoping to go to a regular canula for his oxygen and make some progress toward beginning feeding him. Keep your fingers crossed he continues to improve.

Tyson Robert

Tyson made a somewhat unexpected appearance on Sunday afternoon at 2:34 pm. At 2am that morning I was at work and having contractions when I started not feeling too great, and I discovered that my blood pressure was sky high. So I called Erik and he came to get me and we came to the hospital where I was admitted and started on medication for my blood pressure. After a couple of hours observation, they decided to go ahead and induce labor. Things rocked slowly along most of the day. Once they broke my water Tyson started to have trouble tollerating the contractions, but we had a great nurse who kept a close eye on things. About 2 pm he really started to get stressed and we discovered we were ready for delivery. I had an epidural, but it was only marginally effective. They probably would have adjusted it, but I didn't really want all sensation gone,just some relief, and that is exactly what it did. The delivery was quick but scary, his heart rate dropped like a rock with pushing so it is a good thing it only took 5 pushes to get him out. Once out we found he had the cord wrapped around his body several times which explains the distress. He immediately started to cry and did well right off. He was 5 lbs 4.5 ounces and 19 inches long, not bad for 35.4 weeks. He held his own for a couple hours until just after the other kids left, and then he started to have trouble breathing. They took him to the special care nursery and started him on oxygen and then on CPAP. He did well for a little while and then developed a hole in his left lung, so then he got a chest tube. That improved things for a while and then the tube stopped working so they had to put a new one in. That brings us up to Monday evening. Last night and today he has rested quietly and made a little progress in the right direction. We are just watching him close and hoping for a "quick" recovery. More to come when I am less sleep deprived and can do this properly.

34???

I hate to say too much, but Monday is 34 weeks and I am still working and keeping a semi normal schedule. We feel like at this point we don't have to worry too much about him coming. My only wish is that he manages to miss the three family birthdays we already have this month and chooses a day all his own. Just watch him wait until his due date, that would be just like one of my kids to keep me guessing that long. Thanks for all your prayers and well wishes!

defiant

Just when I think all is going well and we just might be in the clear, this baby decides to show his personality and act up. I was woken up at 2:30 Saturday morning by a contraction. Not an unusual thing, except that is was followed by several more. I spent the next couple hours timing contractions and weighing my options. Finally about 7:00 I decided they weren't going away and we ought to call the doctor, so I woke Erik, called the doctor, called my mom to come get the kids, and headed in. I was sure they would laugh at me and send me home, I am always afraid of looking like an idiot. To my surprise they hooked up the monitors, and went oh my goodness you really are laboring. Not the best news, but at least I wasn't over reacting. So we then spent the next six hours getting fluids, doing tests, and giving medications to stop the contractions. They never did stop them completely, but they are significantly better, and all signs point to things staying as they are for a while. For the time I am on bedrest at home and awaiting further instruction from my doctor today. It is funny, but after all we went through with Colton, this doesn't seem like such a big deal. Even if he were born today, he would do so much better than Colton that it would hardly be a comparison. Here is hoping for a quiet couple of days and approval to go back to work.

29 weeks and still counting

Just wanted to let you all know we are still here and doing well. The baby is now 29 weeks gestation and doing well, we had another ultrasound last week and they think he is about 2 pounds 10 ounces which is 50th percentile. We had a good Christmas with lots of fun and family, and are just hoping for a few quiet weeks to get settled back into life before our little one arrives. All the kids are doing well in school and are healthy other than the minor colds and such. Can't ask for much more.

Should have listened to mom...

Remember all those times you did something and then thought...I should have listened to mom? Colton had one of those experiences on Friday. When he came home from school he told me he had a bead in his ear. I grabbed the flashlight and sure enough, way down in there was a red bead. We tried to flush it out with water for a while, I knew I couldn't dig it out because it was too deep. I finally decided there was no way I could get it so I took him over to the instacare. They tried to flush it out with no success, and then tried to dig it out, again no luck. So they sent us to the ER at Primary Children's. Just where I did not want to spend my Friday night.

When we got there they checked him in, weighed him(which is always kind of funny since he is so tiny, we tend to get a lot of raised eyebrows), and sent every doctor, resident, and student in to look in his ear. It was at this point I took the picture. Then they started to dig, and dig, and dig in the poor kids ear. After three rounds of digging, accompanied by some of the worst screams I have ever heard, they thought they had moved it enough that they could flush it out. So again they tried the water torture treatment, except this time it hurt because his ear was so traumatized. Once again it did not work, so they dug again, at this point I just about told them to back off for a while because he was hurting so bad. Luckily the nurse had also reached this point and told them he needed pain meds, so they gave him some fentanyl. Then they tried some skin glue on the end of a cotton swab, but the bead was too smooth and wouldn't stick, that would have been too easy. So they retreated to the hall to think. A few minutes later the doctor comes dancing in, "I found what I need, I know this will get it!" he waves a long metal tool with a tiny loop on the end. So once again we pin the poor boy down and they start to dig, except this time the doctor immediately starts saying "It's coming, don't move! Don't move!" and after about 30 seconds or so they finally get the stupid thing out.

They had him lay with that ear down so the blood and stuff could drain out, and then checked to make sure the eardrum had not ruptured. We were lucky and there was no significant trauma to the ear and we were able to go home after a few more minutes. The nurse who discharged us looked at Colton and said, "Next time when Mom tells you not to do something, it might be a good idea to listen." Colton quickly agreed and said "I won't ever put anything in my ears again."

Boy, oh boy , here we go again!

Just a quick note to all our friends to let you know the gender of our upcoming arrival. If you haven't guessed by now it is another little boy. It wasn't our first pick, but we are glad to have him anyway. I just pray he does not take after Colton and is patient enough to wait until his due date or there about. The ultrasound showed a healthy, active little guy, who is eager to please. Anytime the doctor said something about not being able to see, the baby moved into the perfect position. Once Alyssa got over the disappointment of it being a brother she resumed her love affair with being the big sister and has been making big plans for this baby. Poor little guy will have more mommies than he knows what to do with.

more to love

This is someone Rylan has named "Gummy Bear", because that is what he thinks the pictures look like. This is to be the fourth and final installment in our family. He/she will join us in March, hopefully no sooner, been there, done that don't wanna go back. We are all very excited for this little one to join us.

more new stuff...

like 5 stitches and a nose that is broken in 2 places. They actually checked to be sure his brains weren't leaking out his nose. Poor kid was sooo freaked out at the idea of stitches I thought we were going to have to tie him down. He got through it okay though, and as you can see is crashed in the recliner, hopefully for the night. Here he is two days later. His eyes are nearly swollen shut, but he felt much better than he looked. He just was a little low energy for a few days. We took the stitches out at one week and within two days after that the scabs and swelling were pretty much gone. Today he looks pretty much normal, just a small scar and some pink, new skin, and of course some tenderness. Let this be a lesson to you kids out there, when riding your bike you should wear a helmet and not try to do stupid stunts to impress your friends.

Another First

Today we experienced a few firsts. Today was the first time I spent $60 on dance clothes, including ballet slippers. And today was our first time sitting through parent, student orientation for the Ballet West Academy. Rylan has been offered, and has accepted, a scholarship for the upcoming year at the academy. Apparently he must have turned a few heads over the last year with the workshops he was involved in. He will dance three days a week for an hour and a half...wow what a commitment for all of us. I never thought the first pair of ballet slippers I bought would be for my oldest son. Congratulations to Rylan on a fantastic opportunity. I hope he really enjoys it.

birthday girl

It's hard to beleive but my sweet girl is 5 years old. Where does time go? The biggest desire of her heart was to go to Build a Bear. So she took the birthday money she got from various relatives and we took her to fulfill her wish. After much deliberation she settled on a brown pony. Afterward we took her to dinner and Grandma Tove treated her to some ice cream. On Sunday we had dinner and a little party with my family. Grandma Vera got her a bunch of clothes for school. She is sooo excited. She loved her cake! What a great birthday.