What will we see at the ZOO?? Part 1

We started Reed's birthday morning off with a trip to McDonald's before heading to the fabulous Fort Worth Zoo!! We were greeted by a chimpanzee who was munching on a breakfast of broccoli, carrots and lettuce. Edee wasn't sure what to think, but Reed wouldn't take his eyes off of this unfamiliar creature! The flamingos are so fun! You just have to stop and stare!

The penguins were being fed just as we entered their building. Edee was fascinated!!

We had the perfect spot for lunch: shade, a wonderful breeze, and the sounds of a nearby waterfall.

We were able to get a glimpse of a very elusive creature who rarely makes it into pictures: the Mommy! :-) As we were going through the pictures we took today, Edee kept asking, "Where is Mommy?" I need to try and do a better job of having someone else take pictures every once in awhile just to prove that I WAS there!

What else did we see...?

What will we see at the ZOO?? Part 2

Edee had so much fun riding the carousel. Her horse was named "Prinso," of course! When she plays pretend, that is ALWAYS the name of her horse! She told Eric she really liked the music. They were playing classic Texas country swing! My absolute favorite exhibit is the Texas Piney Woods area. There are otters, huge turtles and bears in the coolest aquarium style set-up. Edee loved climbing into this otter window and was pretending to swim when she was joined by one of the two little fellars!

I love the look on Reed's face! He was really studying everything today, including Mommy! You can't see it from the reflection, but there are two HUGE turtles in the bottom of the tank. I will think twice when I step on what I think is a rock the next time I am in a lake! YIKES!

We entered the bat/reptile building and it was so dark and cold. It didn't take long before our little birthday boy was OUT!

We had such a great day! It wasn't too crowded, the weather was perfect and both kids could not have done better! It was one of those days where I just felt so blessed and thankful for my family!

Happy FIRST Birthday, Reed!

Dear Mister Reed,
How is it possible that a year has gone by since you came into this world? One of the first things I whispered to you was that you were MINE! Well, you really took that information to heart! You are a Mommy's Boy and you will never know how much that means to me! I know you won't always need me around as much as you have the last year, but I am going to enjoy every moment that you do!

I wasn't sure what it would be like having a little boy after having your sister, but you've made it so much fun! You even wore the same outfit home from the hospital that your Daddy wore WAY back in the day!

If I could keep you in this gown forever, I would do it! You looked so precious, even if you were sleeping on that ol' billi-blanket! Those first days of having you and Edee at home were some of the best days of my life. I felt like the most blessed Mommy in the whole world!

The past year has been incredible! You make our family complete, even if you are a little bit demanding at times! ;-) I wouldn't trade a single sleepless night! Your snuggles and smiles are worth more to me than anything I could dream of!

Happy Birthday, Reed! We love you SO much and are so blessed to call you our little man!

Mommy, Daddy, Edee and Elkee

Lunchbox Love Letter

Edee usually buys a lunch from school each day, but she came home recently going on and on about a little girl with a lunchbox and ALL the things she ate! I immediately got on-line and ordered her a cute little lunch sack, and she has been taking her lunch every once in awhile. Well, she loves to get cards in the mail, so when I saw these little notecards at Target, I KNEW I had to get them for a little lunchbox surprise!

I wrote a special note that I thought she could probably understand and put it in a baggie with one of the cookies she and G-Ma baked on Tuesday.

When Eric picked her up from school after Reed's procedure, several kids ran up to him and said, "Edee had a note in her lunchbox!" It was apparently a big hit! When she got home, I asked her what the note said and she told me, "I love you!" I asked her who gave her the note and she instantly exclaimed, "Ms. Danielle!!" Oh well! It was the thought that counts, right??

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! :-)