Coming out the other side......maybe......hopefully

It has been a rough week around here but I'm very hopeful that we're coming out the other side of it. Whew....let me see if I can accurately recap.

Friday: I stayed home with Cole and Eli was ok to go to school. Tim came home early so I could go to Eli's school Christmas party. Santa stopped by school in the morning and they had parties in the afternoon. Then after I got home, Cole's fever spiked so we ended up on the phone with the nurses. They told us to wait 48 hours (Sat morning) for his new antibiotic to kick in. It was another rough night.

Saturday: Eli & I made chocolate chip cookies. It's so funny that now he can tell you almost every ingredient to make cookies. How many 2 year olds can recite a cookie recipe? Only the cookie monster ones!! The rest of the day was uneventful until the night time. Eli started going downhill and his fever crept up. By 9pm, he was over 104 and croupy coughing. I called our neighbor Amy for expert guidance. We called the doctor's office again and the nurse called us back. She gave me all the usual croup instructions (steamy shower, fluids, etc) and we were alone for the night. I slept in the playroom with Eli while Tim dealt with Cole. It was a very scary night because his fever was just so high. He woke up about every half hour asking for something to drink but that was it for food or drink.

Sunday: Cole seemed to be doing ok (still fussier and needier than usual) and Eli was somewhat better but still had a bad cough and wheeze. In the morning, we made some doggie treats (again staying busy with baking!) and then Tim took Eli back to the doctor. They checked him out and then sent him for chest x-rays. Fortunately there was no pneumonia but a lot of goop. This was also the day that I decided to change Cole's name to "Joey" because he thought he was a baby kangaroo and had to be constantly attached to me. This night I slept in Eli's room with him and Tim slept in the play room with Cole.

Monday: Eli stayed home with Tim because he still had big fevers Sunday night. Cole went to school and I went to work. Monday night was hard (again) and I can't remember if we slept in our own bed at all.

Tuesday: Eli stayed home again with Tim after more fever Monday night, Cole went to school and I went to work. Tim called the doctor again about Eli and she was concerned that his temp was still as high (104-105). She made us an appt for Wed.

Wednesday: Tim went to work, Cole to school and Eli & I stayed home. Doctor's appointment revealed that he now has double ear infections so he's on the same antibiotic that Cole is on - just a higher strength. I'm so hopeful that this will help and get us past this yucky phase.

Tomorrow I'll be home with both boys while Tim has to work until lunch. Hopefully they'll sleep better tonight and be good for me tomorrow. It would also be nice if we could sleep in our own bed - we've only been there about 2 or 3 hours since last week. I must say that I wasn't sure I would make it through their double sickness without losing my sanity but now that I can see some daylight, I'm doing much better. I can't think of much more stressful than sick kids and when you add work, daily stuff and the holidays with expected visitors, it's even more so. Grandparents are all coming tomorrow so I'm hopeful that the boys will be better and that the extra hands will give us a break.

Now, of course, some photos...

Eli's school Christmas party

He was so happy when I showed up (and so was I, I loved being there)

Ms Jessica - one of Eli's teachers

He shut the table down - last one eating

A little snow Friday night

Saturday morning - he decided the bowl was a helmet

Working on a puzzle with Daddy

Making Christmas treats for Belle

Belle's going to be so happy with all these treats

Pitiful little boy on Sunday morning

Watching 'Cars' with Mommy

Cole spent a lot of time in the bean bag chair. This is from his video monitor - we put the bean bag in his crib. I know it's not AAP approved but hey, it worked for us that night!!

Sick Day

This face pretty much sums up life right now

We're battling sick and lots of fussiness in our house right now. Tuesday we took Cole to the doctor because his ear infection didn't seem to be gone after he finished his antibiotics. Turns out it was still there so doctor put him on a different antibiotic. Tuesday night Eli said his tummy hurt and he was very cranky. Wednesday morning both boys seemed normal, no fever and Eli was running all over so we sent them to school. About 10am I got a call that Cole had a fever of 100.6 and then two minutes later, they called me about Eli - he had a fever of 100.3. So Tim picked both boys up and stayed home with them for the afternoon. I took Cole back to the doctor this morning and it was scary that his temp at the doc's office was 101.3 under the arm. She said it looked like his right ear was worse than Tuesday so she switched him to a different (3rd) antibiotic to try to get it cleared up. Eli was with us and was very well behaved. We managed to go to Target to get Cole's prescription without incident (whew!). The day was tough in that Cole didn't want to be anywhere that wasn't on me (he has even been fussing right now for Tim). It's obvious that he's miserable and we're trying to keep him as comfortable as we can. It was tough being home with both of them today and, I must confess that Eli got way more tv time that I normally like but it was an extreme circumstance. The plan is to send Eli to school tomorrow (weather permitting) but to keep Cole home again. He still seems hot tonight and if this is a virus, his fever should break soon. If not, we've been told to go back to the doctor's office this weekend. I hope it doesn't go to that - I'm having flashbacks of January when Eli had to be admitted to the hospital.

Unfortunately, in all of this, we cancelled our trip to my parents' house for this weekend. We were supposed to see my grandparents for Christmas but it wouldn't be good for the boys to travel sick or take that to my grandparents' house. We'll miss the celebration, good food and family but it's necessary. We do hope to get this all cleared up before Christmas Day - keep your fingers crossed for us.

One of our happier moments today - Eli creating with Play doh

Christmas Card photo outtakes

It's quite a challenge to get a decent photo with a 2 year old, 5 month old and a 13-1/2 year old dog. Thank goodness for digital technology! Check out some of these faces......

Eli looks mischievous here - imagine that!

Eli's DONE with picture taking

Trying to compose himself - it didn't work!

Houses - Gingerbread and Jump

After Tim's parents left, Eli and I took to working on our Gingerbread House. This time we did much better with decorating it but Eli's love of icing and the candy treats was just the same!!

Mommy decorating, Eli eating

Icing thief! I redid the icing multiples times!!

Our cute little house

For lunch, Eli decided to climb into the high chair. He looks so huge in there compared to Cole!

After nap time, we went to meet our friends Noah and Maddie (and families) to make pottery. When Eli was a few months old, we did some handprint ornaments so thought it would be fun to do again. Well, the pottery thing didn't work out so we ended up taking the kids to Jump Zone - lots of jumpy bouncy houses. I think they were much happier there anyway. Daddies had toddler duty while Mommies had baby duty (me with Cole, Robin with Kylie and Janet with Mason). Yes we were quite the crew in there!! It's so much fun having friends with kids the same age. Makes a big difference to know that you're not alone in the world of raising two little ones.

Come on Daddy - let's go!

Down the slide through the obstacle course en route to the big slide

S-Q-U-E-E-Z-E.....funny thing is that Tim had to go through there too!

Down the big slide - Eli & Daddy

Maddie, Noah & Eli - aren't they all so cute?!

Weekend with the Grandparents

This weekend we started our three weeks of family visits for the Christmas season - something I'm really looking forward to. Grandma & Grandpa N came to visit us for the weekend to see the boys and hang out with all of us.

First things first, Friday morning I had an appointment with an orthopedist about my knees. I have arthritis in my knees and it turns out that a lot of my problem is actually my knee caps. I have cartilage build up under them and they also don't track properly. Looks like I'll be scheduling arthroscopic knee surgery for late Jan / early Feb. Physical therapy hasn't helped me in the past and based on my problems, cortisone injections will be useless. Something fun to look forward to huh?

Friday afternoon, Tim's parents arrived and all of us hung out together and had a nice pasta and meatball dinner. I think we all fell asleep pretty early - they were probably tired from travel and I was tired from trying to get a million things done that day.

Saturday morning I took Eli to the "Y" while Cole stayed with Grandma and Tim worked in the garage with his dad. It was a good thing that Cole stayed home because they had a case of hand / foot / mouth in the baby nursery at the "Y". I took a spin class while Eli played with friends. It was a nice to get a little exercise in. Once we got home, Eli had snack and Tim's mom, Cole & I ran out to see if I could find something to wear for Tim's work Christmas party (that night) - no luck there. Saturday night, Tim & I went to the President of his company's house for their Christmas gathering. It was nice to see Tim's coworkers again and also have some kid-free time. After that, we stopped by a neighbor's Christmas party and said hi to all our neighborhood friends. We got home pretty early to find out that Cole gave Grandma a hard time going to bed. Eli, who we were worried about, went to bed easy but Cole was tougher.

Sunday, we had a nice breakfast and hung out for a bit before Tim's parents headed home. Eli and I then put together and decorated a gingerbread house. Not too much else that day but family hang out time.

Eli & Daddy swinging - had to get Eli out to burn some energy off!

Baby Cole swinging with Sophie

Eli & Grandpa - Monster Trucks of course!

Cole hanging with Grandma

Tim & I before heading out to his Christmas party

Update - Gingerbread Choo Choo, Cole's ear infection

Last night Eli and I worked to decorate his Gingerbread Train. We had a lot of fun playing in the icing and with the candies. He was so proud when we finished. Hopefully we can do something gingerbread every year!

Santa's Helper - check out that pouty lip! He practices it a lot!!

Decorating with gumballs

Eating icing

Finished product

Today Tim took Cole back to the doctor to recheck his ears. We weren't convinced that the ear infection had gone away because he has still been a little fussy and "off". The doctor said that there's still redness but it's not fully infected. The redness could be him getting rid of it or it could be coming back. We're just going to watch him for a few days before we decide to do any more medications. The biggest news is that he GAINED A POUND in less than 2 weeks!!! Remember I mentioned that growth spurt on I85? I wasn't kidding. He WAS visibly bigger after Thanksgiving!

Survived the weekend

Whew, what a busy weekend. Every Monday morning, Tim & I count our blessings that we've survived the weekend. Don't get me wrong, the weekends are WONDERFUL but we need a weekend to recover from the weekend. =) Keeping 2 kids happy and keeping up with Eli is a busy job.

Friday night we hung out at home. We were supposed to go to an open house but just couldn't get it together so we ended up staying home. It was much less stressful that way.

Saturday was a whirlwind. Some play-room hang out time in the early morning, then the Y for a spin class and back home for snacks. Cole ended up falling asleep so Tim stayed home with him while Eli & I started our errands. We met up with Tim & Cole at Barnes & Noble and then continued doing the rest of our errands together. Both boys were superbly behaved and we got a lot accomplished. It was a good day.

Eli the acrobat

1st set of matching anything - Cole got these pjs as a gift

Jumping onto the bean bag

Cole hanging in his exersaucer

Today was a very exciting day. Elfie Jim delivered our Christmas tree last night and Eli was so thrilled to see it. He kept telling us all day long that we have a Christmas tree in the house. We spent some time this morning hanging ornaments. Eli wanted to play with each one. As the day went on, he became less and less interested in pulling the ornaments off. Expectedly, this year is one with no glass balls on the tree. I have another idea in my head - stay tuned! Late morning we went to Ryan's house to build our Gingerbread Train. Carol & I succeeded in constructing the trains but that's about all that happened. The boys enjoyed playing together. Home for nap time, Tim ran out for groceries and then a little family walk before dinner. Baths, books and kisses later, both boys are sleeping soundly. We hope tonight will be better than last night - Cole was fussy and up a lot. We had some fussy moments today but reflecting back, it was a good family day.

Elfie Jim hanging out in the tree waiting to say hi to Eli

So happy to see the tree - it was like Christmas morning!

It's a BIG Christmas tree

Hanging his Thomas ornament

Hanging ornaments with Daddy

Helping to unpack

Taking a break, enjoying the lights

Photo during their 2 minutes of interest in gingerbread construction - actually they were just eating the treats that we were to use for decorating the train!

waiting to be decorated - will have to do one night this week

Little Smurf boy - ready for family walk

Smurf boy fell asleep on the walk - the fresh air was great!

One last thing I forgot to post on Eli's random thoughts. We have been singing 'Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer' A LOT lately. He repeated asks for it. The first time we sang it, he determined that Rudolph hurt his nose and that's why it's red. Every time we sing it, he interjects that Rudolph hurt his nose, it's pretty funny!

Random from the week

Catching up on some photos from this past week. I have no idea where the time goes!

Making food for Baby Cole. Eli doesn't like the noise of the food processor so he wore his ear muffs.

Belle playing Monster Trucks with Eli

My little heart breaker - how cute!

Eli showing Cole his trains and how to play

Cole checking out Thomas the train

5 months old

Happy 5 Month Birthday Cole!

You're inching ever so close to half a year old. Highlights this month:

• We started you on solid foods. So far you've had acorn squash, sweet potatoes, rice cereal, oatmeal cereal, pears, applesauce and butternut squash. You seem to like everything we've given you with acorn squash being your favorite.
• You got your first ear infection and have been kinda fussy ever since. We're going to take you back to the doctor because we're not convinced it is gone.
• You're still trying to roll over. You're getting soooo close but not quite there yet.
• You've discovered your feet and love playing with your toes and putting them in your mouth.
• Lately, you want to be held all the time. We think it might be related to not feeling good. The girls at school definitely spoil you as you're quite the snuggler!
• We celebrated your first Thanksgiving. We are very thankful for you.
• We upgraded your bathing accomodations to the rubber ducky tub as you are too big for the plastic baby tub now.
• We started you in cloth diapers at night and on weekends. It's Mommy's new fun thing and your bum looks so cute in cloth!
• You're sitting up pretty well with support and do well in the Bumbo chair.
• You have started trying to stand up and can put weight on your legs for quite a while.
• You & Eli are turning into silly brothers. He loves to entertain you and make you laugh. I love watching it!

From the mouth of a toddler

Random things out of Eli's mouth today:

4:45am - "Mommy, Mommmy, Mommmmy". I went in there and laid in the bed with him.

6:05am - "Hey Mommy, time to get up". Me: "No buddy, let's lay back down". Gets out of bed, points to the clock "See Mommy, time to get up." I responded that since there was a "6" that we could get up (even though his clock is a little fast).

We went to the playroom, Cole woke up so we took him into the playroom with us. Next thing, Eli is on the couch. That exchange went like this:

Eli - "Would make me so happy to watch Monster Trucks"

Me - "No buddy, we're not watching tv"

Eli - "Would make me so happy to watch Thomas"

Me - "No buddy, we're not watching tv"

I have NO idea where he got that. It was so funny and cute.

On the way home from school, he was so excited to see the Christmas lights and Christmas trees. He proceeded to tell me that he wants a Christmas tree. But not only does he want a BIG tree in the living room, he wants a little one for his room and said that Baby Cole needs a little one in his room too. We'll see what happens.

He is always talking to Baby Cole and tells me what Baby Cole needs / wants when he's fussy. Every single day Eli comes up with something new - it's so much fun!