Saturday, October 29, 2011

Happy Oxygeniversary!

I was trying to come up with an appropriate title to mark the one year anniversary since Lochlan no longer needed to have additional oxygen to help him breathe. (October 29th - Grandpa Bud's birthday!)

One year.

It seems so long ago and yet not all at the same time. I can still remember the struggle to carry around an oxygen tank and be limited in what we could do or where we could go. Little things that you take for granted such as carrying them around to go get something from a different room, giving him a bath, or going to the store.We couldn't do those things without lugging around the oxygen tank which was very awkward. Or worrying that his nose prongs were going to come out and we wouldn't notice right away. Or worse - they'd come out overnight and he'd just slip quietly away. There were a few times as Lochlan got stronger and older that he did pop the prongs out of his nose. Luckily, we were able to put them back in almost immediately and he was fine.

The prongs would get clogged with mucus if he had a cold and needed to be changed frequently. Which was not an easy feat either. I can still hear his cries as we tried to gently take the tape off his cheeks. No matter how slowly you tried to take it off, it still seemed like we were ripping it off. Poor thing!

Lochlan has come a long way. We all have.

These days he is fighting a cold. Last night was a bit brutal. He woke up around 9pm. (which he has done for the past few nights) I gave him some Tylenol since he wouldn't settle and seemed uncomfortable. It took us almost 2 hours to get him back to sleep. Rob went to try to get a filter for the humidifier. (why I hadn't bought one before now is beyond me!) The store didn't have any so he came back with a brand new humidifier! Bless him!! That did the trick. A few sips of water and some more snuggles and Ventolin and Lochlan settled back in for the night! I was worried that it was going to be a rough overnight too but thankfully he slept through until 7:30am!  He seemed to be feeling much better this morning and was less congested/snotty. Hopefully he is on the mend. I've had a bit of a scratchy throat the past 3 or 4 days. I keep gargling and taking vitamins in hopes that it doesn't amount to anything. Abby has a bit of a nasty cough too. But it's pretty sporatic.

This past Monday, Lochlan had an eye appointment with Dr. Arthur. He said that his left eye is a bit slower to react to light... or something....just not as strong as his right. He's not doing anything yet, but will see him again in 6 months for a full exam. Praying it gets stronger! No more surgery please. Although I think it would probably be covering his eye with a patch or baby glasses. But I don't know. I wasn't at the appointment so I'm just guessing what would have to be done to help - if anything at all!

My iPod is full so I need to transfer and delete phone and videos. Yikes!!! I wish I'd done that all along! It's a bit daunting when you have 3, 360 files to deal with! Most of them are already uploaded to Facebook or the computer but I want to back them up to DVD or USB. So unfortunately I won't be able to take any pics or videos for a bit. MUST GET ON THAT TRANSFER!!!! Holidays are coming  - FAST!!

Anyway, I think that is all for now. Happy Halloween everyone! Have a SPOOK-TACULAR weekend!

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Too early for chores?

Lochlan stood up all by himself without pulling up on anything on Saturday. Oct 22nd. I haven't seen him do it yet but Rob, Abby, and Granny can vouch for it. (It may have been on the Friday actually when he first attempted it!)  He's definitely getting close to walking! He also occasionally lets go briefly after he gets himself standing. He stood for about 5 seconds the other day before losing his balance and landing on his bum.

As promised, here are some pics and video from the last week:

Abby and Lochlan playing "store" together at the playground
Diggin' his new hat courtesy of Kerry, Blake & Clara
"I'll take a wood chip please!"

Lovin' each other
Love this pic
And this one too! Playing "Superheroes!" Video to come!


My friend, Kerry came for a visit last week. We had a great time catching up and watching our kids play with one another. It was the first time they had all met. Super cute moments! She was so sad when it came time for them to go home! (as you can see in the picture!)
I have no idea where Abby came up with the game "Jungle World" but she loved playing it with Blake.  Towards the end of the video, Lochlan shows off how he can climb down and up the stairs!

Abby was a little sad as you can see that Blake was leaving! Poor thing!


Look closely!

YES! Cheerio legs! Still have no idea how that happened!
The gang! And Lochlan colouring!

Abby being her hilarious little self! Love her! Mind the messy toy room!


Lochlan helping with the laundry!


Is it too early to start chores?! ha ha


Friday, October 21, 2011

Snuggle monkey

Lochlan  is a bit under the weather these past few days. Something is just a bit off. His two new teeth are taking forever to come up entirely but I don't think that is the issue. He has had a low grade fever but sometimes is happy and content and other times he just wants extra snuggles.

He really gives good snuggles. He wraps his little arms right around your neck and snuggles in. I love it. One of my favourite moments in when I get home after being away for either work or whatever other reason and Abby runs to me and gives me a big hug and Lochlan comes crawling as fast as he can for me to pick him up. And he gives me the best hug too! *sigh*

I weighed Loch last night and if my calculations are correct, he is 18 pounds. It's not a digital scale so it was tough to look down and see while holding him but I know he's at least 18 pounds, if not 19. So I'm going to go with 18 1/2 pounds!!! lol

We'll find out for sure next month when he sees Dr. Moore.

On Monday, he has an appointment with Dr. Arthur. I hadn't for some reason put it in my calendar so I knew he should be having an appointment soon but didn't realize it was for Monday until they called. I am scheduled to work but hopefully Rob can take him as it's a PA day even though he still has to work that day. Or else I'll have to try to switch my shift or get someone else to take him. It'll all work out I'm sure.

I encourage you to check out my other  blog about all the funny things that Abby says as todays post is a good one! Abbyisms

Abby, Rob and I had a special movie night the other day. We watched Beauty and the Beast in 3D. Loving our new TV. And I still love that movie! It's nice that she can sit through an entire movie now. Might have to schedule a movie date at the theatre soon! (when the right one comes along of course)

I've got a few cute pics to post and I'll try to put them up soon. And a video too I think if I remember correctly.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Copycat, Hopscotch & Thanksgiving

Lochlan continues to be a champion! He is so incredible. Sometimes I just look at him and smile. Quite a normal thing to do when you look at your children. But with him, I find it sums up so many emotions and blessings in that smile. I am in awe of him. He has quite the personality. He is mister copycat these days. You say "caw" or "quack" or whatever, and he does it right back! It's hilarious! And the best thing is, he finds it hilarious too! He's like, oh yeah, look at me!!!

He will point to some of his body parts now too when you ask him. Such as his nose, ears, mouth, head. He's also doing the finger over the lips sound. So funny!



And he's quite chatty. I'm sure he's trying to carry on a conversation. Oh, soooo cute: Lochlan said "Poppa" last Thursday. (Oct 6th)



And God bless him, he's finally sleeping consistently through the night! I tell ya, we are blessed! I feel like my days are less tiring and I am more focused and patient! So for all the moms and dads out there that are in sleep deprivation mode - I feel you!!! Hang in! It gets easier.

Abby still occasionally wakes up at some point in the night and comes crawling into our bed. Most nights that happens, we move her right back after a few minutes of snuggle time. But lately, it's been early morning like 5am, so we're okay with her staying snuggled up in our bed for the last hour. This morning I slid out of bed to get ready for work and Abby and Rob were still sleeping and I took a moment to just watch them sleeping. Just a moment - nothing creepy!! I didn't stare at them for 5 minutes or anything!! Just a quick glance and then a smile. Then I heard Lochlan stirring and chatting away probably saying something like, "mommy, I'm awake - come and get me!!"

My family. *sigh*

He loves his giraffe.

Cheese!



Trying to feed himself!

Lochlan popped two more teeth in the past few days. The lower stomach teeth. So he now has a total of 8 teeth! And believe me, he knows how to use them!
*Note: Do not put your fingers in his mouth or they will get bitten!*

I really need to get him a toothbrush because when I try to brush his teeth, he just bites me!!!! (I just use a wet face cloth) I remember being way more proactive and consistent with Abby's teeth when she was 1. I really need to take care of Lochlan's!

Waiting for mommy with Granny.
He looked so big sitting on Granny's knee! Nice lip buddy!

Her new favourite activity: hopscotch!
Thanks Max & Ruby!



Lochlan probably watching 4 Square.
He loves climbing in and out of the chair.

Up, up and away!

He briefly let go the other day and was standing all by himself!

We had a great Thanksgiving weekend. The weather was incredible. So warm and sunshiney. Really made me crave summer again! But I love the fall colours and cooler weather and wearing comfy sweaters and pants. The only downside for the weekend is that it went by too fast! I feel like you visit with your family, but there's never enough time to truly get in a good visit.

The other day, between teaching and going to work at Costco, I had a few hours and met up with my best friend, Danielle and  her two boys, as well as with Abby and Lochlan at one of the parks. The kids had a blast! Running around, playing in the sand, the slides, swings, hide and seek. It was so nice. I love seeing the kids running around with huge smiles on their faces. Makes me happy too. I managed to get a few pictures. Abby was a bit reluctant to get her picture taken but I managed to get a smile out of her by telling her not to smile!!

Don't smile! Don't you do it!
Ta da! Love this pic of her!
Love this pic too! Handsome boy!


Abby keeps talking about Halloween. She wanted to be a princess for the past few months and now she's saying she wants to be a duck! What? A duck? Where did this come from? Hopefully the princess idea will fly because I already have the costume. (Not that she wouldn't get use out of it since she can use it for dressup) Lochlan is going to be a monkey. And I can't wait to show you pictures!!! They are adorable! In the meantime, I'll show you the pic of Abby trying on Lochlan's costume! ha ha
Cheeky monkey!