In lieu of my last post, I thought I would post something a little more positive and happier. Although the immediate results of his tests were all normal, still, the day was long and tough for all of us! Here is Elem doing what he does every day! Runnin circles around me, and the house-literally! Here he is doing it with his lawn mower-one of his current favorite toys. Yes I know my house looks like there was a toy explosion in the living room area-but hey what can ya do? just pick it up when they go to sleep, and admire the cleanliness during that sweet short time. So laugh if you must! At all the disruption! haha! Also, please take note of how my sweet, kind hearted, loving, and perfect genius of a son addresses me towards the end of the video. he was done, and showed me he had enough of me. :)
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Monday, September 29, 2008
The day of the GI procedures
What a day it was! And not a fun one at that. Surprisingly, last night I was actually not too worried about Elem having his procedure today. I was pretty confident in the doctors, and tried not to focus too much on his being put to sleep. I was mostly preoccupied with his not eating after midnight, and trying to think of what all I needed to take to the hospital so early in the morning. Our day went pretty much like this....we woke at 5am, he did well, and did not take a bottle or cup or anything, and pretty much headed to the hospital starving and in need of his bottle (his security item) Nonetheless, we made our way, me, Seth, Elem, and my mom in one car, and Grammy and Ali in another car. :) We needed as many people possible there, don't you know! We arrived around 5:30am, checked in, and pretty much just waited. We had been instructed to arrive at 6:10am and that the procedure would be at 8:10am. Which I assumed, that was super early, so Elem must have been the youngest patient that day and he would most likely be going first! Uhm, no. There was 11 other children about his age or younger that were told to be there by 5:30am, so they were already lined up before we even got there. For then, like I said, we just waited:
Luckily, being a Children's Hospital, they did have a few stationary toys around, plenty of kids to watch, and some cartoons on for background noise. This made it much easier than just the yucky ole regular waiting room in the ER-that we have visited several times during this whole thing.
At first a little timid and grumpy about the no bottle and no breakfast thing, but the toys were tempting and took the mind off the other stuff for a little while.
After a little waiting, we headed back for a quick consult to check in, and off to get Elem's stats. He weighed in at 25lbs and 9 ounces (slightly lower than the past few months), and about 32 inches long. Not sure if that was accurate cause he wasn't thrilled to be laying on a hard table with some strange woman hovering over him. A few tears and a lot of screaming, but overall a pretty easy process for station one. Then we headed to our room, Seth, myself, and Elem. Here was his set up. The little bed is so pitiful! They shouldn't have to have them in those sizes. Basically a lot of machines, wires, and a huge window! Thank goodness!
When getting measured he had to get stripped down and put on the official hospital gear. He was so not into the outfit they chose for him. Yellow scrubs for my itty bitty man! The nurse came in to get some more vitals, which is always hell for us. He is sooo strong it is ridiculous, and no one is getting a blood pressure, or a heart beat without a fight. And I mean that! After several tries, and consoling with bubbles, gloves, etc, they got what they needed. He was-to say the least-not a happy camper. (this one is so fuzzy, but it shows his true feelings at that time)
Hard on mommy too to hear her baby screaming and people asking me to "please hold back his arms and what not". haha. So sad. He is terrified of the stethoscope (any ideas on curing that one?) and takes a while to calm down after all that trauma.
After about 15 minutes, the anesthesia nurse came in, asked us some questions, and got back in there with something equivalent to Valium for kids. It was oral, so I was able to get that down super quick. She let us know it would kick in about 10 minutes later and he would be super lupy. About 20 minutes later, we had one chilled out little dude. This was the only humorous part of the day.
His eyes were barely open, and he was giving out unlimited kisses to mommy and daddy. We couldn't help but giggle uncontrollably, as did he! It was good to have a moment of laughter on such a hard day. Seeing your child doped us for the first time, is quite a site. He was wobbly, and chilled, and actually calm for a few minutes-which I hoped to last when they took him away from me.
And so they came to get us. We walked down a hall, and the nurse took him from me. I had totally held it together so well, and was really wanting that medicine to make it easier for him to go without a fight. But it didnt go that way. He went screaming and crying, yelly, "mo-mmy", "mo-mmy". And looking at me over the nurses shoulder, with his hand stretched out. He did not understand what was going on at all, and looked so scared. The nurse assured me he would not remember any of it, but it still hurt. They quickly pointed us to the waiting room exit, and out we went. Seth and I at first giggled, because he was screaming so loud, we heard him out two sets of doors and all the way down the hall into the waiting room. Not a good feeling. And it was at that point, that I started to cry. :( Not too much, but that was just all I could take. His screaming was so heart wrenching, and just took it out of me. Seth did good, (he is usually the crier!), and held it together for me so I could be the one vulnerable. AFter that I needed to get out of that waiting room, so I got a pager from the nurse and we headed to get something on our stomachs. By this time it was 8:30am.
Before we knew it, it was about 9am and the pager was going off! So we quickly put down our food and ran back up to the surgery center. I actually was a little scared because it had gone so fast, but they assured us when we got to the desk that it was all done and we could head back to consult room number 2! Talk about fast! We headed back, and met with Dr. O'Conner, who proceeded to show us several pictures of what she had seen. Let me interject here the actual name of the procedures he had because I was incorrect in what I thought was going to happen: he had Esophagogastrodudenoscopy (tube down the throat into the intestine/stomach to see that there was no damage or anything strange going on in there), and then he had a Flex Sigmoidoscopy (which I believe was only the area around the colon and a limited area inside the colon-not a complete colonoscopy). They retried small tissue samples from each area and drew blood to do additional tests at the same time. Dr. O'Connor informed us by showing us the pics, that everything appeared normal! Which is fabulous news! That means everything on his insides, at least this part of his insides are doing okay! She proceeded to show us a snapshot of what was in the colon and said it appeared to be a normal stool-so we would see later.She also let us know that the blood work and biopsy tests would take about 5-10 days to get results, and they would be calling us at a later time with those results.
After the consult, I headed straight back to the recovery room to find my baby boy surrounded by 2 nurses poking and prodding, while he was screaming and hitting, in utter confusion of what he was feeling and what was going on. I walked down the room as quickly as I could to get to his bed, and with all the wires and things he was hooked up too, I was at first scared to get him. The nurse assured me I could pick him up and I just sat there and held him, while he screamed. It was- Awful. Sad. Pitiful. And with everything he was going through, all I could say was, I am here and try to console him. Nothing worked. Finally, they got us all finished up in recovery and we headed to our own recovery room.
Nothing seemed to pacify him at first, and it seemed that the anesthesia was just making him all confused every few minutes or so. But the offer of a popsicle did seem to calm him here and there for a few minutes at a time. :) ALthough I am smiling here, this is about 20 minutes after straight crying, and shifting around, trying to get him in a comfortable position.
A couple of moments of peace with mommy, daddy, and the popsicle.
What aggravated him the most, was the IV in his foot. It was placed on top of his foot, and a small splint like cast was in the inside of his leg, with just about a whole role of tae around it to ensure he could not rip it off. On the other foot, he had the little temperature thing around his big toe, and he wasnt too fond of that either! They were driving his crazy, and he wanted them off so bad. If we could have just taken those off sooner, I think I could have worked with calming him down regarding the anesthesia.
We eventually found a nice position chest to chest, and legs spread, where he calmed down, and I guess found his "center". he did so good, and I was so proud of him. I cant explain how scary it must have been for him to not understand what was going on, and who the people were, and that we really were trying to get some answers to make him a healthier and happy baby. One day, hopefully, we will get the answers we need and he will understand. Hopefully, not too much more of these kinds of trips or pain for Elem. No more of this if I have anything to say about it! :) The nurses quickly came in about 45 minutes after we got into the individual recovery room, got the IV out, got his vitals, and gave us the go ahead for discharge. I have never been so happy to leave a doctors office in my life! Elem fell asleep on the way home and went straight to his bed as soon as we got home. He slept for about 2 hours-as did I! :) Played for a couple of hours, and ate a TON of food, and then went back to sleep for over a 3 hour nap! Hims was tired!
I just want to say a personal thank you to all family and friends who have been praying for Elem, and sending your kind words and thoughts our way. We appreciate it more than you could ever know, and it feels so good to have such a great support system for our family, and most importantly for our son. Although he doesnt know it yet, hopefully you will all continue to play such a special role in his daily life over the years! Kinda sappy I know, but I mean it. We luv you so much, and it always feels good to know that you got good people on your side. As for the diagnosis, I will keep you all posted. Not much info from today-not as much we would have liked to get, but the news we got was good. SO better than the opposite! A very long and tiring day, but a much anticipated day, that our little family is so glad to have over!
Luckily, being a Children's Hospital, they did have a few stationary toys around, plenty of kids to watch, and some cartoons on for background noise. This made it much easier than just the yucky ole regular waiting room in the ER-that we have visited several times during this whole thing.
At first a little timid and grumpy about the no bottle and no breakfast thing, but the toys were tempting and took the mind off the other stuff for a little while.
After a little waiting, we headed back for a quick consult to check in, and off to get Elem's stats. He weighed in at 25lbs and 9 ounces (slightly lower than the past few months), and about 32 inches long. Not sure if that was accurate cause he wasn't thrilled to be laying on a hard table with some strange woman hovering over him. A few tears and a lot of screaming, but overall a pretty easy process for station one. Then we headed to our room, Seth, myself, and Elem. Here was his set up. The little bed is so pitiful! They shouldn't have to have them in those sizes. Basically a lot of machines, wires, and a huge window! Thank goodness!
When getting measured he had to get stripped down and put on the official hospital gear. He was so not into the outfit they chose for him. Yellow scrubs for my itty bitty man! The nurse came in to get some more vitals, which is always hell for us. He is sooo strong it is ridiculous, and no one is getting a blood pressure, or a heart beat without a fight. And I mean that! After several tries, and consoling with bubbles, gloves, etc, they got what they needed. He was-to say the least-not a happy camper. (this one is so fuzzy, but it shows his true feelings at that time)
Hard on mommy too to hear her baby screaming and people asking me to "please hold back his arms and what not". haha. So sad. He is terrified of the stethoscope (any ideas on curing that one?) and takes a while to calm down after all that trauma.
After about 15 minutes, the anesthesia nurse came in, asked us some questions, and got back in there with something equivalent to Valium for kids. It was oral, so I was able to get that down super quick. She let us know it would kick in about 10 minutes later and he would be super lupy. About 20 minutes later, we had one chilled out little dude. This was the only humorous part of the day.
His eyes were barely open, and he was giving out unlimited kisses to mommy and daddy. We couldn't help but giggle uncontrollably, as did he! It was good to have a moment of laughter on such a hard day. Seeing your child doped us for the first time, is quite a site. He was wobbly, and chilled, and actually calm for a few minutes-which I hoped to last when they took him away from me.
And so they came to get us. We walked down a hall, and the nurse took him from me. I had totally held it together so well, and was really wanting that medicine to make it easier for him to go without a fight. But it didnt go that way. He went screaming and crying, yelly, "mo-mmy", "mo-mmy". And looking at me over the nurses shoulder, with his hand stretched out. He did not understand what was going on at all, and looked so scared. The nurse assured me he would not remember any of it, but it still hurt. They quickly pointed us to the waiting room exit, and out we went. Seth and I at first giggled, because he was screaming so loud, we heard him out two sets of doors and all the way down the hall into the waiting room. Not a good feeling. And it was at that point, that I started to cry. :( Not too much, but that was just all I could take. His screaming was so heart wrenching, and just took it out of me. Seth did good, (he is usually the crier!), and held it together for me so I could be the one vulnerable. AFter that I needed to get out of that waiting room, so I got a pager from the nurse and we headed to get something on our stomachs. By this time it was 8:30am.
Before we knew it, it was about 9am and the pager was going off! So we quickly put down our food and ran back up to the surgery center. I actually was a little scared because it had gone so fast, but they assured us when we got to the desk that it was all done and we could head back to consult room number 2! Talk about fast! We headed back, and met with Dr. O'Conner, who proceeded to show us several pictures of what she had seen. Let me interject here the actual name of the procedures he had because I was incorrect in what I thought was going to happen: he had Esophagogastrodudenoscopy (tube down the throat into the intestine/stomach to see that there was no damage or anything strange going on in there), and then he had a Flex Sigmoidoscopy (which I believe was only the area around the colon and a limited area inside the colon-not a complete colonoscopy). They retried small tissue samples from each area and drew blood to do additional tests at the same time. Dr. O'Connor informed us by showing us the pics, that everything appeared normal! Which is fabulous news! That means everything on his insides, at least this part of his insides are doing okay! She proceeded to show us a snapshot of what was in the colon and said it appeared to be a normal stool-so we would see later.She also let us know that the blood work and biopsy tests would take about 5-10 days to get results, and they would be calling us at a later time with those results.
After the consult, I headed straight back to the recovery room to find my baby boy surrounded by 2 nurses poking and prodding, while he was screaming and hitting, in utter confusion of what he was feeling and what was going on. I walked down the room as quickly as I could to get to his bed, and with all the wires and things he was hooked up too, I was at first scared to get him. The nurse assured me I could pick him up and I just sat there and held him, while he screamed. It was- Awful. Sad. Pitiful. And with everything he was going through, all I could say was, I am here and try to console him. Nothing worked. Finally, they got us all finished up in recovery and we headed to our own recovery room.
Nothing seemed to pacify him at first, and it seemed that the anesthesia was just making him all confused every few minutes or so. But the offer of a popsicle did seem to calm him here and there for a few minutes at a time. :) ALthough I am smiling here, this is about 20 minutes after straight crying, and shifting around, trying to get him in a comfortable position.
A couple of moments of peace with mommy, daddy, and the popsicle.
What aggravated him the most, was the IV in his foot. It was placed on top of his foot, and a small splint like cast was in the inside of his leg, with just about a whole role of tae around it to ensure he could not rip it off. On the other foot, he had the little temperature thing around his big toe, and he wasnt too fond of that either! They were driving his crazy, and he wanted them off so bad. If we could have just taken those off sooner, I think I could have worked with calming him down regarding the anesthesia.
We eventually found a nice position chest to chest, and legs spread, where he calmed down, and I guess found his "center". he did so good, and I was so proud of him. I cant explain how scary it must have been for him to not understand what was going on, and who the people were, and that we really were trying to get some answers to make him a healthier and happy baby. One day, hopefully, we will get the answers we need and he will understand. Hopefully, not too much more of these kinds of trips or pain for Elem. No more of this if I have anything to say about it! :) The nurses quickly came in about 45 minutes after we got into the individual recovery room, got the IV out, got his vitals, and gave us the go ahead for discharge. I have never been so happy to leave a doctors office in my life! Elem fell asleep on the way home and went straight to his bed as soon as we got home. He slept for about 2 hours-as did I! :) Played for a couple of hours, and ate a TON of food, and then went back to sleep for over a 3 hour nap! Hims was tired!
I just want to say a personal thank you to all family and friends who have been praying for Elem, and sending your kind words and thoughts our way. We appreciate it more than you could ever know, and it feels so good to have such a great support system for our family, and most importantly for our son. Although he doesnt know it yet, hopefully you will all continue to play such a special role in his daily life over the years! Kinda sappy I know, but I mean it. We luv you so much, and it always feels good to know that you got good people on your side. As for the diagnosis, I will keep you all posted. Not much info from today-not as much we would have liked to get, but the news we got was good. SO better than the opposite! A very long and tiring day, but a much anticipated day, that our little family is so glad to have over!
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Bath-time = FUN
Seriously, who knew baths could be so much fun?? Especially in this time of frustration, a bath is exactly what the doctor called for! Ever since Elem started with this whole diarrhea thing, I am sure you can only imagine what it has done to his poor "bobo". :( It has not been kind. But a good ole bath is just the cure.
**TIP OF THE DAY** And a little secret I learned from my Mother In Law, which has saved us many a sore booty, is to throw in a handful of baking soda into the warm bath. Making sure that the kiddo soaks in it for a while. It somehow normalizes all the burning that is going on, and soothes it. Great mommy tip for those of you with a baby with a sore booty-and who dont know which one of those thousands of cremes to put on your kid first. There were so many that I could never choose! So I stick with good ole Aquaphore and a nice soda bath to calm my babies booty!
Although it has been quite pitiful to see him in pain and struggling to walk he is so raw, its good to know that the bath is a place to see some smiles. Puts a little peace back into your soul to see your child go from miserable to giggling. :) Which is what we all want for our children right?
And when in the bath, I tend to be what you might call a free play bath time mommy. :) I feel like it is a great time to explore and be messy, I mean it is only water right? One of Elem's favorite things to do is to empty and fill up cups, over, and over, and over again.
He also uses this time to practice swimming skills. I believe he is a natural in the water, but then again, I am his mom.
Be it in the bath tub-
Or in the sink-
Water is water so its all the same to him. With the increase in baths he has developed somewhat of an obsession, and he tends to take at least 1-2 per day, sometimes even three. haha. Each time going, "I wan baa". It is so cute. WHatever makes him happy for now will just have to be acceptable right. Hey at least I know he is squeaky clean too! And he comes out a happier, not so irritated little boy. So I am down with it.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Longing for a day of normalcy.
I have been totally MIA recently (in the blog world that is), but with good reason. My baby boy has been super sick. For a quick update, over the course of the last month, Elem has gone from steadily being sick, to worse, to even more worse, and then back to somewhat tolerable these days. For the time leading up till last week he basically continued to have 6-7 diarrhea/day. Sunday night of last week, that changed to what I would like to call as projectile vomiting. Not exactly sure if that is what it was but it was vomiting none the less. Also, let me mention that the first one was totally unexpected around midnight while I was holding him chest to chest, trying to console a fussy baby, at which point I was immersed in vomit. From my face, to my shoulders, to all over my clothes and down to couch and the floor. I have cleaned up a lot of vomit in my line of work, but this was just plain awful. And too make it worse, its like, what move do you make first? Do you try to hold the crying vomitting child even though you are both covered in it and it feels so grose to both of you. Do you put him down and take his clothes off or your clothes off first while he screams. Do you call for help (unfortunately Seth was out of town and we were home alone :( ) What do you do? I of course held him for a brief moment to calm him down form the shock of what had just happened to him and then immediately got up off the couch and put him in the floor. As he screamed I stripped us both down, wiped the puke from my face and his, got us each a drink of cold water, and tried to sooth him as much as possible. That day turned into 5 more days of vomiting, no eating, barely any drinking, and no pooping (which I believe was a result of everything coming up before it could get digested).
Starting on Monday, I began calling the GI specialty clinic at Childrens'. My hopes were to speak with someone who could point me in the right direction, as to if I should bring him in, give him something, and over all, I wanted to move his procedure (that he is having on Monday September 29th) up to Monday of this week. After multiple calls and no call back, we headed off to the ER. With Seth being out of town, Phyllis went with me to assist in the waiting and care of the little man. She is a blessing with things like this cause she is always willing to go, even if it means a lot of waiting, which it usually does. Once at the Er I proceeded to literally tell the following people, every single detail of his medical history in hopes for answers. Those told include: The nurse at the check in desk, the nurse at the next check in desk who took his temp and attempted to get his vitals, blood pressure and what not, The next lady who walked us back to our room, the pediatrician on duty in the ER, the nurse assigned to our room, and then the attending on duty. The most frustrating part to me, each person had no idea what was going on. They did not relay anything from person to person, and all kept assuming it was a stomach virus. Which every time I would respond with, well this is his 13th week of diarrhea straight and now it has turned to vomiting. They would then gasp, and give there apologies and inform me that it was not on his chart! How frustrating can one dad gum place be?? Seriously people? I am not exaggerating when I tell you my baby is sick and I have a gut feeling. Someone, anyone please listen to me.
It was almost like a waste of time. We got no where. Each and every person told us there was nothing they could do because he was not bleeding from the rectum, and because there was no blood or anything coming from the intestines. In the back of my head I wanted to be like, uhm yeah actually I did see blood, just to get someone's attention, but I didn't. I know that would be totally wrong. So we wait, and wait, and wait. For them to contact the GI doc on call, and give us the answer we expected to get. Since it is not an emergency, all we could do was call the following day. Much like I had done the day before.
And so I did. I called, and I called, and I called. All week, multiple times a day, never with a response, or any type of any sympathy for my situation. Finally on a Friday night around 5:00pm they call me back, after the whole week, and I get no info. Elem continues to be sick and get worse, and no one in the medical profession cares. I am furious. I am so angry, and if one more person tries to tell me that I am a first time mom and my kid has some kid of stomach virus, I just might flip. And if you know me very well, I dont do that. I am super calm, and very level headed especially when it comes to my head. I mean lets be serious here, nobody wants a pissed off doc going in and working on their kiddo. So we wait. And finally on Saturday the vommitting ceases. Elem finally begins eating again, after about a 3 day fast, and slowly starts getting his energy back.
In the midst of all this, I was supposed to go to my 10 year high school reunion, as well as a baby shower for one of my dearest friends. And we had to cancel on all of them For now we are putting our lives on hold till we find out what is wrong with Elem. We dont want to chance anything or chance him being around anyone who could get him sick before this procedure. Although it is no fun to miss out on those things, it is worth it, knowing that hopefully the rest and relaxation will benefit our baby boy. He started out the week pretty weak, but has become stronger as the days have gone by. He is a little fussy and is getting pretty used to being spoiled by everyone around :) Which isnt too bad of a thing. And we just cant wait till Monday to get the upper and lower GI tests done, and get him home with some answers. My greatest fear is that they will not find anything. That the tests will come back just answerless, and then we will have to start from square one. For now, I will be calm, and strong for Elem, and continue to pray for a healthy and easy procedure, and a fast and safe recovery. No one looks forward to seeing your baby put to sleep, but seeing your baby in daily agony is no fun either.
For now, that is where we stand. He is currently having about 2 diarrhea's a day, and does seem to be full of energy. Including several fits. So that sounds about right for his age huh? :) Thanks for all your kind words and happy thoughts you have been sending our way. Friday we will call the clinic and find out what time his procedure is and then he will go in on Monday morning to get ready. My mom is coming in town so that will be a good extra helping hand, and I am guessing Elem Zane will get whatever he wants for the days following. We are just hoping to hear something small that can be fixed with antibiotic and nothing to major. Ill do my best to keep everyone posted. As far as milestones, I am going to try and do those in the next day or so.
Monday, September 15, 2008
He makes me happy.
Seth had to go out of town this week for a shoot in Fort Smith. It always seems like I dont realize how weird it is and how much I miss him being gone until he is already gone. Once he gets back in town I am so glad he is here and everything just goes back into the normal routine that I forget how much I missed him. Little things like falling asleep on the couch and then getting up to go to bed later on together, seem so weird to do on my own. haha. Sounds silly, because I dont think of myself as a needy person. But when Seth isnt here all the weird sounds come out for me to hear late at night, I cant ever find anything to eat, and I cant ever seem to catch my breath from the end of the day. When he is hear I just run smoother-I guess you could say. So, since I am missing my hubby, I thought I would let you all in on 10 little reasons why I love my man. :)
(This one not included***He gives sweet baby kisses to Elem. So sweet. )
1. He lets me have the big side of the couch! We have one of those "L" shaped couches with one long side and one side like a love seat. Ever since I was pregnant he has always let me have the big side, and I guess it just stuck! We are one of those couples who, when we get home and Elem is in bed, we lay down in the same spot, with the same pillows, and the same blankets-every-single-night. I love it.
2. He takes care of dinner. He is my chef. And when I say he cooks every night, I mean he cooks every night. I never have to touch a thing! I do the cleaning and he does the cooking. It works out good that way since I am so not a master in the kitchen, unless you count mashed potatoes as a big time course! whoo! Thank goodness for a man who is good in the kitchen.
3. He lets me have my slave blanket at night. I have held on to this crazy, old, quilted blanket for about the last 10 years. I think I got it sometime in college, not sure to be exact, but it has these slave like looking people all over it, and it is hideous looking! And is totally falling apart. But it is one of those blankets that keeps you cool when you need to be cool and warms you up just enough when you are cold. I love love love it. And although we laugh at it every night, he always comes around the corner at just the right time, with the ole slave blanket. Thanks baby.
4. He lets me hang my pictures on the wall. Crooked. :) And then he fixes them. When he has time. :) I am one of those people that when I have a decorating idea, I totally want to do it right then and there. If I have everything together or if I rig it to look cute, I want it up and I want it up then. So he lets me hang my photos and what not all around the house, and then he either laughs and fixes it, or just continues to laugh. Either way, I appreciate the allowance to decorate as I please.
5. He understands my geographical challenges. In that I mean, I am horrible at geography and anything pertaining to geography-including but not limited to: states, capitals of states, where states are located, recognizing north, south, east, and west, cities and populations, countries, etc. I could go on and on, but you get the point. I am horrible at it. And I just have come to the understanding that I will never get it. No matter how many times Seth tells me, what state a city is located in, I just cant remember it. And when I mistake a city for a state or something like that, he just giggles, and then tries to quiz me till I get it right. He is so cute!
6. He loves my directions. Or my lack there of. Lets just say, I dont get directions either. Most people include streets and interstate names, north or south, miles and feet. Not me, I have to stick to landmarks, and they usually arent the staple ones. My directions are vague but they make sense to me. And even though he laughs when I start to tell him where something is, he knows me so well that he usually can follow what I have told him. I laugh when I hear myself trying to give directions, so I know it must be funny to hear it from another perspective. But hey, thats just how my brain works. :)
7. He gets me surprises. This might be silly too, but I love it! Seth hates to go to Walmart, Target, well shopping in general, but he always seems to get me something small where ever he goes! When he goes out of town to Chicago, he always picks me out something from Michigan Ave. Or when he goes to Walmart for milk for Elem, he always seems to come back with a little something for me. Be it dip in dots, oreo pie, a flower, or some spinach dip, all girls like surprises, and they make me feel special!
8. He watches reality tv with me. I hate to admit it, but I am a reality TV junkie. I try not to watch too much TV because I do think spending time playing with Elem and chillin with Seth is much more fun! BUT I do love me some reality TV. Thanks to DVR I get the best of both worlds, and can watch my shows commercial free! Of course I cant ever get enough of shows like The Hills, The Real Housewives of Orange County, and the Real World (even though its like season 99!) but he still watches them with me. Not all of them, but if I have recorded it and I want to chill, he is totally down to do it with me. I think he secretly likes the Hills, but dont say that to him. He will always deny it!
9. He is the best dad! I could go on and on about this one, but I will keep it short. Seth is pretty cautious when it comes to Elem and he looks to me for decisions, just since little kids are my field and what not. But what he doesnt hardly ever know is that just about every decision he makes on his own is just as good as the ones I tell him to make. haha. He giggles, and chases, and talks in silly voices, he sings, and acts goofy, and even changes those diapers when he himself is gagging! :) He is such a fun and great dad, and I love to see him and Elem together. I wish they didnt look like the spitting image of each other sometimes, but heck Ill get over it one day!
(As you can see below, he was not afraid to go swimming me Elem and I in our 2 foot high baby pool this summer.)
10. He plays with my hair and scratches my arms. I like to call it petting. And I love to be pet! I cant ever get enough of someone playing with my hair, or scratching my back or my arm, giving me a massage, ANYTHING! And just about every single time I look over to Seth and say, :You wanna scratch my arm?" He just giggles, and does it. So sweet. Sometimes it only lasts for about 2 minutes, but it is better than nothing! And I love it. It makes me relax.
That was so fun! Those are the cheesiest reasons ever, but they were just the first 10 that came to mind! I could totally go on and on, but I actually need to try and get some rest. For now, there is a little snipet into the mind of Mindy. Here are a couple of pics of Elem and Seth! But the one at the top of the page is my favorite. :) Its so sweet. Daddy and Bubba during a football game right after a nap. So sweet.
(This one not included***He gives sweet baby kisses to Elem. So sweet. )
1. He lets me have the big side of the couch! We have one of those "L" shaped couches with one long side and one side like a love seat. Ever since I was pregnant he has always let me have the big side, and I guess it just stuck! We are one of those couples who, when we get home and Elem is in bed, we lay down in the same spot, with the same pillows, and the same blankets-every-single-night. I love it.
2. He takes care of dinner. He is my chef. And when I say he cooks every night, I mean he cooks every night. I never have to touch a thing! I do the cleaning and he does the cooking. It works out good that way since I am so not a master in the kitchen, unless you count mashed potatoes as a big time course! whoo! Thank goodness for a man who is good in the kitchen.
3. He lets me have my slave blanket at night. I have held on to this crazy, old, quilted blanket for about the last 10 years. I think I got it sometime in college, not sure to be exact, but it has these slave like looking people all over it, and it is hideous looking! And is totally falling apart. But it is one of those blankets that keeps you cool when you need to be cool and warms you up just enough when you are cold. I love love love it. And although we laugh at it every night, he always comes around the corner at just the right time, with the ole slave blanket. Thanks baby.
4. He lets me hang my pictures on the wall. Crooked. :) And then he fixes them. When he has time. :) I am one of those people that when I have a decorating idea, I totally want to do it right then and there. If I have everything together or if I rig it to look cute, I want it up and I want it up then. So he lets me hang my photos and what not all around the house, and then he either laughs and fixes it, or just continues to laugh. Either way, I appreciate the allowance to decorate as I please.
5. He understands my geographical challenges. In that I mean, I am horrible at geography and anything pertaining to geography-including but not limited to: states, capitals of states, where states are located, recognizing north, south, east, and west, cities and populations, countries, etc. I could go on and on, but you get the point. I am horrible at it. And I just have come to the understanding that I will never get it. No matter how many times Seth tells me, what state a city is located in, I just cant remember it. And when I mistake a city for a state or something like that, he just giggles, and then tries to quiz me till I get it right. He is so cute!
6. He loves my directions. Or my lack there of. Lets just say, I dont get directions either. Most people include streets and interstate names, north or south, miles and feet. Not me, I have to stick to landmarks, and they usually arent the staple ones. My directions are vague but they make sense to me. And even though he laughs when I start to tell him where something is, he knows me so well that he usually can follow what I have told him. I laugh when I hear myself trying to give directions, so I know it must be funny to hear it from another perspective. But hey, thats just how my brain works. :)
7. He gets me surprises. This might be silly too, but I love it! Seth hates to go to Walmart, Target, well shopping in general, but he always seems to get me something small where ever he goes! When he goes out of town to Chicago, he always picks me out something from Michigan Ave. Or when he goes to Walmart for milk for Elem, he always seems to come back with a little something for me. Be it dip in dots, oreo pie, a flower, or some spinach dip, all girls like surprises, and they make me feel special!
8. He watches reality tv with me. I hate to admit it, but I am a reality TV junkie. I try not to watch too much TV because I do think spending time playing with Elem and chillin with Seth is much more fun! BUT I do love me some reality TV. Thanks to DVR I get the best of both worlds, and can watch my shows commercial free! Of course I cant ever get enough of shows like The Hills, The Real Housewives of Orange County, and the Real World (even though its like season 99!) but he still watches them with me. Not all of them, but if I have recorded it and I want to chill, he is totally down to do it with me. I think he secretly likes the Hills, but dont say that to him. He will always deny it!
9. He is the best dad! I could go on and on about this one, but I will keep it short. Seth is pretty cautious when it comes to Elem and he looks to me for decisions, just since little kids are my field and what not. But what he doesnt hardly ever know is that just about every decision he makes on his own is just as good as the ones I tell him to make. haha. He giggles, and chases, and talks in silly voices, he sings, and acts goofy, and even changes those diapers when he himself is gagging! :) He is such a fun and great dad, and I love to see him and Elem together. I wish they didnt look like the spitting image of each other sometimes, but heck Ill get over it one day!
(As you can see below, he was not afraid to go swimming me Elem and I in our 2 foot high baby pool this summer.)
10. He plays with my hair and scratches my arms. I like to call it petting. And I love to be pet! I cant ever get enough of someone playing with my hair, or scratching my back or my arm, giving me a massage, ANYTHING! And just about every single time I look over to Seth and say, :You wanna scratch my arm?" He just giggles, and does it. So sweet. Sometimes it only lasts for about 2 minutes, but it is better than nothing! And I love it. It makes me relax.
That was so fun! Those are the cheesiest reasons ever, but they were just the first 10 that came to mind! I could totally go on and on, but I actually need to try and get some rest. For now, there is a little snipet into the mind of Mindy. Here are a couple of pics of Elem and Seth! But the one at the top of the page is my favorite. :) Its so sweet. Daddy and Bubba during a football game right after a nap. So sweet.
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Shoes are a MUST
At what point down the line did someone say, "Hmm I think we should make tons and tons of fabulous girl shoes, and none for boys!"? HUH??? It is soo not fair! this is the every returning question that I continue to ask myself every single time I walk into any shoe store, Target, Walmart, anywhere! Every way I turn I see pink, and white, flowers, and swirlies. Enough wonderful shoes to fit all the little girls ever to walk the earth. And then you have the one pair of boy shoes. Yes the one pair in the whole store that have been there for about 4 months, never to be updated, and they are so cheesy. Where are all the famous boy shoe designers! Hello?? Boys gotta look good too. Heck, they gotta wear shoes every day, so you would think, someone would have decided to throw them a couple cute pairs here and there!
If you cant tell I have been thinking about this very topic for a long long time! In my search for cool trendy shoes for my child, this is what I have discovered. There are basically 4 kinds: the brown dorky boy sandal, the white or black tennis shoe with possibly a white or black stripe on them (way over priced, yet I dont know why), and the black and white stiff and uncomfortable dress shoe (very old school, and hurt to bad to wear), and the cartoon character flip flop/shoe (ugh.). So what to do for all us trying to keep our kids in style even though they are what you might call a waddler. You basically have to search, search day and night till you find a good pair, and then buy them at that very moment. It is sad that every time I walk into a store, no mater what kind of store, I am like a vulture always on the look out for a good shoe buy!
I am happy to say that I feel like, despite the shoe dilemma put in my path, I have successfully dressed my kid in fabulous shoes. haha! Well I think they are fabulous and I wanted to share the great boy shoes I have found, if there are any more of you mothers of little boys needing shoe ideas! And also to make note that I need suggestions! This is Elem's current choice of shoes!
The stride right tenni. Velcro ae good for him due to his chubby little foot. And I love the orange and blue! They go good with brown outfits.
The classic black and white converse. Need I say more? (I still wear these exact shoes about every other day during fall and winter!)
Nice clean Js, as daddy is calling them. In other words, some Jordans. What little boy cant have a pair of baby Jordans!
The black and white pumas. These are an every day favorite-to go with more of an athletic outfit versus choosing the converse. I got really lucky on these, a friend gave them for Elem's 1st birthday! Of course when I went to Journeys to try and find another cool pair of them, they had no other color choices. boo.
And finally, the alligator eccho sandal. As I mentioned before, I am totally against the cheesy brown boy sandal that is for sell in every shoe store in america! These are courtesy of memaw-it was between the stride rights and the sandals and memaw made them both happen! I think these are cute.
All that said, we are going to be in need of some fall and winter shoes here very shortly. So far I have found this awesome site called piperlime. ANd they have so many great shoes, and they are pretty decent prices. I mean some are a little pricy for us, but most are reasonable. ANy thoughts on which ones we should get? He is a size 6 and 1/2 these days and I am afraid I should get size 7 to ensure he actually gets good use out of them. Geez. size 7 at 16 months, that even sounds insane as I tyoe this! My big boy! And I am kind of out of luck unless the shoes have velcro or strings on them, because Elem's foot is to chubby for slip ons, which I love! So any ideas are greatly appreciated!
Piperlime
Check out the site if you are in need of cute baby shoes. I cant stop looking. It is way more addicting buying for your kid than it is for shopping for yourself! Everything looks fabulous on them. hehe.
If you cant tell I have been thinking about this very topic for a long long time! In my search for cool trendy shoes for my child, this is what I have discovered. There are basically 4 kinds: the brown dorky boy sandal, the white or black tennis shoe with possibly a white or black stripe on them (way over priced, yet I dont know why), and the black and white stiff and uncomfortable dress shoe (very old school, and hurt to bad to wear), and the cartoon character flip flop/shoe (ugh.). So what to do for all us trying to keep our kids in style even though they are what you might call a waddler. You basically have to search, search day and night till you find a good pair, and then buy them at that very moment. It is sad that every time I walk into a store, no mater what kind of store, I am like a vulture always on the look out for a good shoe buy!
I am happy to say that I feel like, despite the shoe dilemma put in my path, I have successfully dressed my kid in fabulous shoes. haha! Well I think they are fabulous and I wanted to share the great boy shoes I have found, if there are any more of you mothers of little boys needing shoe ideas! And also to make note that I need suggestions! This is Elem's current choice of shoes!
The stride right tenni. Velcro ae good for him due to his chubby little foot. And I love the orange and blue! They go good with brown outfits.
The classic black and white converse. Need I say more? (I still wear these exact shoes about every other day during fall and winter!)
Nice clean Js, as daddy is calling them. In other words, some Jordans. What little boy cant have a pair of baby Jordans!
The black and white pumas. These are an every day favorite-to go with more of an athletic outfit versus choosing the converse. I got really lucky on these, a friend gave them for Elem's 1st birthday! Of course when I went to Journeys to try and find another cool pair of them, they had no other color choices. boo.
And finally, the alligator eccho sandal. As I mentioned before, I am totally against the cheesy brown boy sandal that is for sell in every shoe store in america! These are courtesy of memaw-it was between the stride rights and the sandals and memaw made them both happen! I think these are cute.
All that said, we are going to be in need of some fall and winter shoes here very shortly. So far I have found this awesome site called piperlime. ANd they have so many great shoes, and they are pretty decent prices. I mean some are a little pricy for us, but most are reasonable. ANy thoughts on which ones we should get? He is a size 6 and 1/2 these days and I am afraid I should get size 7 to ensure he actually gets good use out of them. Geez. size 7 at 16 months, that even sounds insane as I tyoe this! My big boy! And I am kind of out of luck unless the shoes have velcro or strings on them, because Elem's foot is to chubby for slip ons, which I love! So any ideas are greatly appreciated!
Piperlime
Check out the site if you are in need of cute baby shoes. I cant stop looking. It is way more addicting buying for your kid than it is for shopping for yourself! Everything looks fabulous on them. hehe.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Hog Season is here!
I am thrilled to announce that as of 2 weekends ago, Razorback Football season has begun! For all us Arkansans-thats about as exciting as any pro team suit-in' up to play! One thing all Arkansan's have in common-the Razorbacks. Always have, and always will. (we wont count those weirdos from Louisiana that have somehow ended up on this side of the state line by accident, and are still pullin for those LSU losers-I mean tigers. Whatever they are. :) And my family and friends couldn't be more ready! With every new season, comes 2 much anticipated Razorback games played here in Little Rock at War Memorial Stadium. And along with the game, comes much much tailgating! This time last year, I had a 4 month old baby who wasnt too keen on straying too far from the boob, so I staid home during the games, but this year we were ready to go and ready to have a blast!
We headed out to War Memorial to find our friends Troy and Tommy who always have the BEST spot. Before actually getting to the golf course-which is where everyone tailgates, we spent a good 15 minutes or more driving around with a much annoyed 16 month old trying to find some place to park. Finally we made a quick trip to the ATM, grabbed a little cash and just paid for a parking spot. Much more with it than driving till you find that perfect free spot. Time was ticking for Elem so we needed to make good use of the time we did have! ha!
As soon as we got to the tent, several of our friends were already there! We grabbed some drinks, some good food, listened to some music, and mainly talked about how excited we were about the game! Oh, and then the most obvious, chased Elem Zane around everywhere he wanted to go, and tried to keep him busy busy to ensure a longer stay and a much anticipated long afternoon nap after we left!
What better way to begin a tailgating party, than....Baggo! A game we have somewhat obsessed with, and I must add are really good at! Go me. :) Elem always knows whats up on the baggo-any time any place. He is the man.
Sometimes they let me play. If there are not enough boys around. (I mean I bought the thing!) Although Elem was running away from me here. He needs me.
After a little baggo, Daddy trying to persuade with a little football excitement.
Under the tent is where all the cool kids were hanging out. And trying to keep our babies cool! Those who tended to stray are below. hahaha! Neh, the daddies did good. Below is Seth, Tommy, Spoon, and Paul.
Me and Ali. Showin our Razorback spirit like we should be!
Chattin away and takin up some much needed chairs-Elem and Cecilia-
But just look at those faces-who in the world would make them get up. (Not to mention if they did I would have told them to move aside and give my child back the big red chair he so desparately wanted.
I mean they ARE all Razorback Red-ed out. :)
We did end up staying from about noon till 4:30 or so, which if I do say so myself is quite an accomplishment with a 16 month old, who is still suffering from chronic diarrhea (if you will). Dont think we made it through the day home free either-3 diapers were changed during the tailgating, and it wasnt pleasant! haha. But after a few more minutes of play time with the boys....
Checkin out the band with grammy and poppa...this was totally a highlight of the day for the kids-they loved it! (oh and every boy who walked by Elem that was in the pep band, was all like..try out for band, pick band. uhm..maybe not. :( Mommy is hoping for a football or basketball star! ha! But whatever makes him happy. :):):)
Seth and I actually got some alone time (well if you call it that!) while the kids were watching the pep band. I wuv you daddy.We had such a fun day!
Finally the day came to an end for the Shelby family! If you can tell, someone in the middle is quite the tired little man!
It was such a fun day, and I forgot how much I missed out on last year! Of course spending time with Elem last year was so way more important that tailgating, but it is such a great and happy time! And simply a tradition in hog land! We wouldnt have missed it for the world. And wouldnt have let Elem miss it for anything! It is great to have him out there supporting those hogs before he even knows what the hogs are! We tried throughout the day to get him to say Go hogs! And he did say something, although I dont think it was recognizable to anyone but me and Seth! So here we are, raisin a future Razorback. :) Lovin life, and happy to be in such a great place to raise our child.
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