Has it really been 2 months since my last post????

So yeah, I guess its been over a couple months since I last posted. With the holidays, illnesses, and the like, its been pretty hectic. Both boys (Jake and Evan) came down, weeks apart, with the same virus. This fun filled virus was full of “my tummy hurts REAL bad” and 105 fevers for 5 days straight. Jake couldn’t get close enough to me all week and Evan was hard to keep still when the Ibuprofen kicked in…when it wore off it was like trying to pull teeth to get him to take his medicine again. It was a long couple of weeks. Luckily Braden never got it but I got some sort of stomach virus which reared its ugly head halfway through my hair being highlighted. Luckily it was only2 days of walking around with half my hair colored before I tried to get my hair done again.

Braden has had a good couple of months. He has had a couple rounds of antibiotics due to trache infections (in and around his stoma). He also got a bigger, longer trache  (4.0 diameter, 44 mm length) which has allowed him to be able to sprint for up to 2 hours at a time. We are so glad that he has the freedom to chase, or in his case, scoot Michael Phelps backstroke style, after his brothers. He has also been rolling over really well, with some assistance of me pulling on one of his arms. He does an awesome job and also loves to clap and laugh frantically when he rolls completely over and gets very upset if he doesn’t get a full round of applause from everyone afterward. He has also started therapy at Childserve in Ames 3 times a week for OT and Speech. His first trip didn’t go so hot and ended up with me getting uninvited because all he did was cry hysterically and reach for me the entire time and wouldn’t you know, the day Adam took him without me, he did great!

All three boys are really getting good at sign language. They all like to sit around and ask me “What’s the sign for _____?” and we look it up online and practice learning our new words. It amazes me how quickly they pick it up and really use it around Braden, its great! The boys know all their colors, a plethora of animals, most fruits, feelings, and a number of other objects and simple responses (Yes, No, Mom, Dad, Please, Thank you, bath time, all clean, I want, sorry, chocolate milk, etc) And….our all time favorite “GO CYCLONES!!!!” Adam and I also spent one whole evening learning the alphabet and then quizzing each other by spelling different words and trying to guess what it is. We quickly learned that Adam has a tough time memorizing letters long enough to guess what I signed him :) We had Evan whisper words tous to spell and then we both quickly realized that we were signing the names of all the characters from the movie “Cars.” We had a good laugh about it. We also have taught the boys the first letter of each of their names to symbolize their brothers (“E”-for Evan, “J” for Jacob, “B” for Braden.)

The holidays were amazing for the boys! We FINALLY did Christmas traditions as an entire family for once. Even though it was raining, we had the entire family this year at the Christmas tree farm to pick out and cut down our annual Christmas tree. The boys had a blast and were OBSESSED with trees this year…so much so that Jacob and Evan had their own 12 inch trees in their room and have yet to take them down. Braden loved the big tree too which was fun. Anytime he was on the floor he would scoot under it and scoot around it to stare at it. It was incredibly fun this year to see their reaction to Christmas lights and decorations.  We also started a new tradition of watching Santa on NORAD and then spreading Reindeer food out in the yard. I have never seen two little boys get to bed so quickly without protests!  Their reactions to the presents under the tree was so fun!  And, Evan got his “big big BIG BATMAN car” so he was incredibly excited about that!

All in all, its been a great couple of months…especially with the amazing spring like weather we’ve had! And, before I forget, the boys will be TURNING 2 in less than 20 days!!!! I can’t even believe it!

Before ending with an abundance of pics I need a HUGE favor from everyone. On Wednesday I will be going under the knife and having a complete hysterectomy (sorry probably TMI). Ever since having the boys, I have been plagued with ovarian cysts that have caused quite a bit of pain, heartache, and stress for me and my family and we need this to be over! So I definitely need some prayers for (A)-knowledge and skill for the team of doctors working on me, (B)-that there is NO sign of cancer, (C)-that I am not in a ton of pain and recover well and (D)-that my boys don’t feel like I have abandoned them. If you aren't into praying, please send good thoughts and vibes to me I would really appreciate it. At first I was incredibly bummed but then realized how selfish that was considering I am pretty lucky I have my 3 beautiful boys when most women who undergo this type of surgery may not get the chance to have kids so I am holding on to that as a HUGE positive! I’m not going to lie that it still stings a little that I’m 2months shy of my 31st birthday and I am having to do this huge surgery but hey what can I do right?  Oh and before I forget….pray for Adam’s sanity once the hormone therapy begins ;) Big thanks to my sister for offering to bring the boys back to Waterloo so Adam can be at the hospital with me during the day and to my parents for letting them stay at their place and for offering to bring them back on the weekend. Also, BIG BIG thanks to all my amazing friends and family for your words of encouragement, support, love, and generosity in helping with the boys while I’m in the hospital. Adam and I are truly blessed to have you all in our lives!

And….here are the pictures from the holidays!

Thanksgiving with our cousins

Great Gma and GPa Pitlik with their 7 great grandkids

  Meeting baby cousin Mitchell for the 1st time

Picking out a Christmas Tree with the whole fam!

             

Playing around and bath time fun

         

CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

             

Christmas with the Boesen clan

                     

Evan crashed in his tent at 8 pm after coming back from Waterloo after Christmas

 

 

 

 

 

Ringing In 2012! (Please take note that I DO dress my boys ;) )