Here's to HEARING!!!

This was Reed before we left this morning. He did not want to sit still for his picture. He was also a bit confused as to why his Mommy did not feed him when she woke him up! Poor guy! He was looking mighty cute in his baseball PJs, in honor of the Ranger's opening day tomorrow! They called us back to pre-op pretty quickly, where we met all the nurses and doctors who would be taking care of our little man for the 25-30 minutes that he would be out of our hands. They had a little red wagon that I wheeled him around in until the doctor and operating room were ready for him. (I wish I had a picture!) He also met the anesthesiologist (who took care of Mommy a time or two when she's had procedures there), and his name was Dr. Phil. He was SO good with our little guy and the two of them were really fascinated with each other! (Another photo I missed! :-( ) Daddy was sure to get some extra snuggles before they took his boy away.

As soon as his procedure was over, we could hear him crying all the way in the waiting room. Our doctor was trying to update us on what they found, but the poor nurses were ready for me to get back there and feed that starving baby! Basically, the left ear was in the worst shape. There was "debris," which I'm assuming means ear wax, that had to be removed first. Then, he found that the ear drum was 3 times thicker than normal due to scabbing that had to be removed. There was also a large amount of thick fluid. The right ear still had fluid but was not as bad.

He was so happy to get out of there! He fell asleep in the car and spent the first hour at home snuggled on Mommy's shoulder. I didn't mind that one bit!

His doctor said his little ears would be very sensitive to sound now that he can actually hear! I know he has heard us before because he would copy certain sounds we would make even if he couldn't see us, but I'm sure his hearing has greatly improved now! He took a long nap, but was happy to see sister when she got home from school! He was back to his old tricks of playing with her toys when she wasn't looking!

I know Eric and I are so glad to have that behind us! I am very optimistic that it is going to help our little man be so much more comfortable! We were very blessed to have such wonderful doctors and nurses caring for our baby this morning!!

Springtime celebrations!

Our family has LOVED the beautiful weather we have enjoyed recently! We've spent many afternoons/evenings out on the playground or eating dinner on the patio. Edee and Reed even shared a brief moment of sibling bonding! That is until Reed decided to annoy his big sister, which is not hard for him to do these days! Reed is finally up in his hands and knees crawling! He was so fast at army crawling that we decided he had no motivation to try the more common technique! Much to my surprise, here he was crawling all over G-Ma and PawPaw's yard when I went to pick the kids up on Friday!

I took the kiddos to celebrate Brooke's 3rd birthday on Saturday. She had an adorable Minnie Mouse party and the kids had a ball playing, bouncing, eating, etc.!!

I had never seen a pinata like this before, but then again, I don't get out much! ;-) Instead of hitting it with a bat, each child pulled a ribbon and the bottom fell out! So clever!

All of the kids scrambled for candy, except my little Edee. She picked up a couple of suckers and then went back to the sand table. I need to talk to her before the next party and remind her that Mommy likes candy too! HA!

Edee and Reed will be celebrating their birthdays before we know it! Where does the time go? Hope you are enjoying every precious moment as much as we are!

XOXO

Doctor, Doctor...Give me the news!

I had to wake up this precious snuggle bunny for his appointment with the ENT on Tuesday afternoon. We saw his pediatrician on Monday, who recommended that we get the ball rolling on the tubes. We were able to get in quickly with the same ENT I saw this summer about my thyroid nodule. They had an awesome area for kids! It was like a little carpeted play pen with a spongy floor. Edee and Reed didn't mind waiting while they read books and played with huge Legos! Dr. Edee was ready with her medical bag to give us a second opinion, if necessary!

I think Reed is starting to figure out that this is not just a play date! He has that, "What's going on here?" look!!

He is going to get tubes next Thursday. I am very optimistic that it will relieve some of his discomfort, which in turn will allow him to sleep better at night. It breaks my heart that he has been suffering through ear pain since October! The doctor advised us that he may be having trouble hearing us well, and that we should really speak clearly and enunciate our sounds to make sure that he is hearing words correctly. Edee must have known this already because that is how she talks on a regular basis! She has been a very concerned and supportive big sister by accompanying brother to his doctor's appointments and advocating for his quick recovery! :-)

Cute couples (and a few more posts)

I had a few moments to catch up on some blogging, so I'm trying to make the most of it with several posts at once! I also need to state a disclaimer that I realize iPhone images are not the best, but at this point of Mommyhood for me they are better than no photos at all! Enjoy some updates from our family!

This little honey belongs to our dear friends Brad and Katy! Little Miss Hadley is growing too quickly, but I can't wait to see her interact with her future husband, Mister Reed, this summer! Hopefully, they can join us in Red River for their first family vacation on Fourth of July!
Don't you think they will make a smashing couple??

This pair of dollies sat on my bed for a BIG portion of my life! They arrived at my house this week in a bag of garage sale items that Eric picked up from my mom on his way home from Longview. There is no way in the world I was going to sell them! Three of the four arms had fallen off, but my mom had lovingly sewn them back on before sending them. When I brought them in to Edee she said, "Should I play with them?" It made my heart melt! The little blue gown was also sent from Nonna's house and Edee WILL NOT SLEEP in anything else!

Edee and Reed were a stylin' couple in their new school shirts!

Read on for a couple more new posts! XOXO!

Big ol' garage sale!

The shop was transformed into garage sale central for the last week. This was taken as we were setting up a week before the sale. Believe it or not, more "stuff" was added as the week went on. By the time the sale day arrived, we had to create an additional clothes bar and line the driveway with many treasures! We had at least 6 plastic tubs of baby clothes! Most of those belonged to Edee Sue! I guess she never wore the same thing twice!

By Saturday afternoon, this was what was left of the clothes! Even though it looks like there are still many items, we sold a TON! I also sold Reed's bassinet and Edee's bouncy seat to my neighbor who is expecting a new granddaughter, and Reed's bouncy seat and play gym went to a friend in our playgroup who is expecting twins. It makes it easier for me to see things go to special friends rather than random strangers! I'm a bit sentimental about baby things right now!

Elkee was supposed to be guarding the cash box, but it was just too much responsibility for her!

If you look closely at the back of the shop, there is a small divider screen where we put some of Eric's tools and such that we wanted out of the way. We also put a small potty seat for Edee so she wouldn't have to get all the way to the house to potty. Well, she took full advantage of it and would disappear into her own little outhouse. At one point while the shop was full of customers, I looked to the back of the building and there she waddled with her pants around her ankles holding the little container to be dumped out. Another time, I found her sitting on it and said, "Did you have any luck?" to which she screamed, "YES! I pooped!" I'm sure that may have scared off more than a few customers! I know she will hate me for writing this later, but those moments are priceless!

Spring has sprung!

It took some blood, sweat and tears, but we were able to get a handle on the leaves in the backyard! WOW! 120 oak trees can sure shed some foliage!! We have all loved the results, though! We have white iris flowers blooming everywhere and it is a great place to enjoy our little ones! Reed is a happy guy in the swing! Our little monkey loves to...climb...slide...REPEAT!

Edee is such a helper these days. She likes to do so many things by herself. She has just about mastered potty training. HOORAY! She is very independent and doesn't appreciate the constant reminders from Mommy. She would much rather take care of her business on her own! (I'll tell a funny story about that in my garage sale post!) Her teacher, Miss Danielle, even told me that Edee will disappear to the bathroom on her own. :-) She had a couple of great Saturdays of training, so her reward was getting to help make a pizza and have a movie campout! That is where we put blankets on the floor of the living room and watch a movie. Nothing thrills this child more, that is except for black olives! She must be kin to her Aunt Tee!

Edee's teacher at The Little Gym emailed this picture to me. It is a little blurry, but I love it anyway! She is such a big girl!

Reed is battling ear infections, so we'll be back at the doctor to discuss tubes soon. I'm hoping that will help my little man sleep better, which in turn will help Mommy and Daddy sleep better. Elkee excused herself to a chair in the backyard one night recently. She had enough of the crying, and decided she would rather sleep outdoors. If you know Elkee, that was a HUGE sacrifice for a dog that only sleeps on the bed or a couch! Edee is the only one who doesn't seem to be bothered, thank goodness!