A lot has been going on since the MOD walk…picture wise that is! Thankfully the great weather held out on Mother’s day and I was able to spend an awesome day outside with all 3 of my boys. Daddy made us all a big breakfast, Evan and Daddy spent the majority of the morning outside while Jacob and Braden napped, and then we all went to Ada Hayden, the man made lake/walk area in Ames, and went for a walk/bike ride. Evan wanted to ride his Thomas bike, Adam “hiked” with Jacob on his back while walking Bailey, and I pushed Braden. It was pretty windy so we had B covered up but after awhile we slowly peeled back the “blanket bubble” to get him used to the wind. By the end of the walk, he was completely uncovered and in awe of everything around him.
Jacob loves being on daddy’s back so he rarely made a peep except for when he was thirsty. He also carried Bailey’s leash most of the way on the walk. Evan rode his bike the entire way around Ada Hayden which is probably about 2.5 miles. Not bad considering the head wind he had. He did walk the bike the last 1/4 mile so for a 3 year old that’s not bad!
We really had a fantastic day. When we got home we all got popsicles and took naps…well Jacob and Braden did anyway. Evan of course fell asleep 2 seconds into the car ride and then promptly woke up 5 minutes later when we arrived at home surprisingly well rested. His overtiredness showed through later that night though when he threw a temper tantrum because he wanted to pee in the downstairs bathroom instead of the upstairs one. We had the pleasure of watching him do the “potty dance” naked in front of the upstairs toilet while screaming “I hate this potty I NEED to go downstairs!” Never again will naptime be missed after that lovely display of dramatics!
The boys also enjoyed playing with their water table last Tuesday during our 100 degree May day weather! I was hesitant to bring B out but he did great. We set up shop under our big tree in the back yard near the other boys and he had a great time
Sorry folks…you are about to get picture overload…I put my Valentines Day present to good use these days :)
We may have a future ball player on our hands. Adams friend Bruce, from work, gave Evan his son’s first ball glove and Evan LOVES playing baseball. He’s pretty good at hitting the ball too. He got a T-ball set from our friend Sarah and her daughter Aubrie and he would rather we pitch it to him and man can he hit it far. Don’t get carried away though…we aren’t one of THOSE parents…yet! He’s just having fun. But, I did catch Adam telling Evan to “square up” and by god he did :)
If he needs improvement on anything it would be to block his face from the ball. He hasn’t quite mastered moving his hand to the ball, instead using his face to stop the ball half the time. He will get it though. He’s got a heck of an arm on him too! Good thing it’s the one sport Adam and I both love to play!
The weather last weekend was pretty crappy so we hung inside the house and played. Above is the boys and daddy watching Tangled…or “Tangled Bell” as Evan is confusing Tangled with Tinkerbell. I think we watched it 5 times between Friday and Saturday. Evan also likes to read his brothers books (Braden is a more attentive audience than Jacob-mainly cause he can’t run away) “Brown Bear Brown Bear” is a favorite for everyone! Braden is getting to spend some time on his tummy these days and doesn’t mind it to bad if you help hold his head up. He has flopped onto his belly a couple times on his own and tends to get pretty mad but he also face plants and doesn’t know how to get back over so that is part of the reason he gets so crabby. Jacob is working really hard to walk. He can walk along furniture now, pulls himself up and lets go and “practices” standing without help, and wants desperately to be able to climb onto the couch. He won’t take any steps on his own yet. I have tried and he won’t even reach for me, he just slowly crumbles to the ground and then yells at me.
We had all 3 boys in the bathtub this week which was interesting. Jacob is really rough with Braden but he doesn’t seem to mind. The more Jacob smacks him the harder he laughs. We also had to implement a new rule at the Byersdorfer’s. Who knew having 3 boys meant laying down the law at bath time. I’m sure my neighbors loved hearing me tell the boys “if you are going to touch a wiener, at least touch your own!” Geesh! Its tough being the only female in the house most days! The pic on the bottom right is right after Jacob smacked Braden square in the face! At least B’s a good sport about it.
Bottom Left – Jacob sticking his tongue out after daddy yelled at him for smacking Braden
Bottom right – clearly didn’t learn his lesson as he’s going back to do it again!
I call this photo
“Hand Check”
Noticed the horrified look on Braden and Jacob’s face…as Evan proudly sports a smile ;)
Every year my work puts on a school for international visitors who want to learn more about Veterinary Biologics testing and regulations and every year they have a kick off reception at Reiman Garden’s in Ames with food, drinks, and admission to the garden. I thought this would be a great time to take the WHOLE family to enjoy the butterfly garden and the “Big Bug” exhibit and it was FREE so you can’t beat that. The boys had a great time and LOVED seeing the butterflies and “BIG BIG Bugs” as Evan called them. Evan laughed especially hard at my “hitchhiker” in the butterfly garden. Here I was walking along and Evan yelled “Hey Mom! Its on yours butt!” must have been a nice cushy landing cause that butterfly didn’t budge an inch the whole time we were in there.
Bottom left – the “Yucky Squito” as Evan calls it
Bottom Right – did you know its illegal to kill a Praying Mantis? Learn something new everyday!
So… that brings us to today. My mom is staying with the boys today and tomorrow while we admit Braden to Blank Children’s hospital to do a bronchoscope, sleep study, swallow study, and hopefully do some vent changes to start the weaning process. Don’t get too excited, it will be a S-L-O-W process which Braden will hopefully be willing and ready to try. Its kind of weird being back in the hospital. We miss our girls from Mercy bad but can’t really complain about the room here at Blank. Its twice the size of his NICU room and we have a TV, DVD player, and our own bathroom (sorry girls we love you but this is the Taj Mahal of hospital rooms! ) Adam and I of course are rookies to overnight stays. We came in this morning lugging every piece of equipment he owned not knowing what he needed here and turns out we just needed him and the vent. Piece of cake for next time (hopefully on our terms not due to illness!)
BIG thanks to my mom for coming down this week and last to watch the boys when we didn’t have daycare and for when B is in the hospital. Here’s to hoping - hoping for good things from his sleep study/bronch, he tolerates vent changes, he doesn’t knock out the OT therapist when she tries to do the swallow study and tries to get in his mouth, and HOPING they can find a vein for his IV for sedation on the 1st try! :/
BIG prayers to Miss Grace, our CD friend who is 6 months older than Braden. She goes in today for a bronch and for her cleft palate repair surgery today. Hoping everything goes smoothly for her and for quick healing! And BIG CONGRATS to our friends Kristin and Tim on the birth of their baby boy Alex. We are so glad to hear everything went well and that everyone is healthy and happy…helps that he is super adorable too :)
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