Pumpkin Train - Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!!

Well, it's been a long time since my last post - it's been tough to keep up! I returned to work last week and it was bittersweet leaving all of my boys (including their father!) Things went well and Jack seems to be adjusting very well to having both boys at home. I didn't hear alot of complaints about not being able to get some work done, so I'm taking that as a good sign. I'm sure having Elliott in school 2 mornings is helping quite a bit.

We were able to ride on the pumpkin train last weekend with some of our friends and Elliott had a BLAST! I really wish it would have been warmer so that he could have enjoyed the pumpkin patch a little more. It was FRIGID! Here's some outtakes:

Elliott and his buddy Charlie!

On the green tractor:

Until next time.....

Sara :)

Date with Mommy

Today I was able to get out for a few hours and take Elliott to see Toy Story 1 (we didn't stay for the double feature) in the movie theater. It was actually his 2nd movie - his Aunt Shanon took him to his first one several weeks ago ("Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs"). This one was 3D - and he didn't wear the glasses the entire time - but seemed to enjoy it anyways.



Getting ready for the previews:



Not loving the 3D glasses too much:


Until next time.......

Sara :)

Skyline

Today will be a banner day - two posts! I took out our more portable digital camera and realized that I had forgotten about the pictures I took at Skyline Chili (one of our favorite places!) - just days after Oliver was born. (I'm thinking he was 6 days old - we went in for the Labor Day special - 1/2 off). It was Oliver's first restaurant outing and we took pictures and some video of Mr. Elliott. Here you go:



Shielding his brother from the mamarazzi:


Elliott had also recently learned to give the "thumbs-up" sign - in his own style of course. Enjoy!

We start them early on Skyline! :)

Until next time......

Sara

1 month

It is so hard to believe that one month from yesterday, little Oliver made his way into the world. I have enjoyed my time with my family SO much - and am very thankful that I have almost a month left!

Already tiring of the many photo ops:

On another happy note, the results from Oliver's nuclear study were wonderful! It was very hard to see him restrained with an IV in his head and catheterized, but once those procedures were done, he slept through the imaging (which lasted about 40 minutes total). They injected the IV with a radioactive dye to make his kidneys light up and about 20 minutes later they injected the IV with Lasix so they could watch the kidney and bladder drain. Then we had an appointment with the pediatric urologist. The results were the best we could have hoped for. As we had surmised, the left kidney is pretty much defunct (only about 2.7% function.) It's only about 2cm long. The right is very healthy, doing what it is supposed to be doing, and doing virtually 100% of the work (97.3%). We have a clean bill of health and don't need to go back for anything until 6 months. They'll do another renal ultrasound at that point to monitor the cystic kidney (left) and make sure that it's not increasing in size, etc. Hallelujah! :)

We also got some photos taken when Oliver was 3 weeks old by our friends, Dan and Brooke Brand of Brand Photo & Design. Head on over here to check them out: http://brandphotodesign.blogspot.com/ .

Preschool continues to go well for Elliott - yesterday there was no whimpering or fussing when Jack dropped him off. I think we're turning a corner!

Until next time.......

Sara

New Toy

Well, it's official. Elliott has his first motorized (battery-operated) vehicle. We went to the Lockerbie Square Rummage Sale last weekend (with Sarah, Matt, Ada, and Evie) and Jack found a Power Wheels 4-Wheeler for $30. After some tweaking with the battery and back end, Elliott took his first ride. His foot easily reaches the pedal, but I don't think he's quite gotten the concept that continuing to press it will make him go. He seems to like it - his own "motorcycle"! Here are some snapshots:

Getting ready to ride it out of the shop:

Out in the gravel:

On the loose:

I imagine there will be many more fun times where that toy is concerned! :)

And as for the "little man" - he continues to do wonderfully. Jack and I have bets going to see who's closest to his weight at his one month check next Friday. We do go to Riley on Monday for what's called a "nuclear study". They'll cath him and what this test will show is how much function (if any) the left kidney has and how well the right is working. It will be the final test of the initial tests that they need to determine a treatment plan for his case of Multicystic Dysplastic Kidney. All the results up to this point have been perfect - so here's hoping for more good news.

And for your viewing pleasure:

Until next time....

Sara

Whirlwind

Wow - what a ride - and an amazing 3 weeks it has been! I've decided to create a blog for friends and family to follow that live far away. I promise to try and update it at least once a week. This way you can stay informed on what's happening in our world! Some of you are on Facebook and I know can stay updated that way, but this will be another option.

We welcomed our second son, Oliver David, on September 1, 2009 at 12:46pm. He was a WHOPPING 9lbs 3oz and 21 in long. I forget what his head circumference was, but it was BIG. I was very happy with how the induction and birth went - and I was able to go without an epidural again, as I had wished. Recovery has been wonderful - it really is easier after you've done it once already! I don't have to go back to work until the end of October, so we're really enjoying our time together as a family while I'm home. Here are some photos of Oliver.

Snoozing in the bassinet his first night:

The men in my life:

Brothers chillin' on the couch:

Elliott's really been great with adjusting to life with a baby brother. He's interested, but not to the point of smothering. He also doesn't seem to be jealous - YET. He likes to "hold him" on the couch - with mommy and daddy's help. I look forward to seeing them grow up together! ;)

Another big adjustment for Elliott was that he started preschool the week that Oliver was born. He was supposed to start on the 1st, but that was just too much for us to handle! He's done great so far - loves talking about his teachers, Mrs. Bernhardt and Mrs. Satterfield, and the "boys and girls" in his class. He still is having some separation anxiety at drop-off in the morning, but his teacher tells me that it's getting better every time.

With his puppy backpack outside the classroom:

Notice the expressions on the other kids' faces...nice. That's my boy!

Well, that's it for now. I promise that the posts won't always be this long, sometimes they might just be little snippets.

Until next time.....

Sara