Yay for Monkey!

No picutres for this post b/c it would be just PLAIN gross...but......


MY BABY JUST POOPED IN THE POTTY!!!!


:)

Too stinkin' HOT to be outside

We haven't been too busy this summer. It's just too stinkin' hot to get out and have fun! Landen doesn't do well with the heat and having asthma doesn't help the situation. We went outside the other night (at almost 8pm) and we were out maybe 30 minutes cleaning out his pool and taking a wagon ride around the yard. He was pouring sweat so we went inside...about 20 minutes later....the throwing up began. He just gets over heated and then starts vommiting. Needless to say, we won't be going out until winter! :)

Other great news...

We got the results back from his MRI and he DOES NOT need the decompression surgery...yet...and we hope he won't EVER need it. Now I am just crossing my fingers that next week Shriners visit goes well. (He has CMG, CT head, Ultrasound scheduled) I'm hoping there is no reflux and we won't have to cath yet.

We FINALLY finished our homestudy through DSS minus the final fire inspection that will be completed in 2 wks. Now we can start looking through some profiles and see what that leads to! :)  Exciting and stressful time! We are ready for our family to grow again and their are SOOO many children that need loving homes. God has blessed us with 3 amazing children and we are thrilled to see what else He has in store for us.

Last but not least~ We found a speech therapist that will be coming to our house to start VITAL STIM TODAY!!! She will come 3 days a week for the Vital Stim and she'll also come for speech therapy!  This is certainly the best news we have gotten! Now I can see the future without a feeding tube! hip hip hooray! :)

Here are a few pictures of what's been going on...inside the house.

Landen likes to be "work" on his train with his tools. He basically just hammers all over! :)

Monkey LOVES to eat some grits! He makes a huge mess, but what fun is it if you don't make a mess? It just tastes so much better when messes are made!

Landen loves to "boo-boo" on the potty! Although he has never pooped in the potty, he did however pee when daddy was taking this picture...hence the big thumbs up!!! He usually sits on the potty before bath time in the am and pm. His potty training will not be like every other toddler his age. His will eventually consist of catherizing on a timed schedule. In the meantime though, we will sit him on the potty as much as he wants!

Nap time! This is where we end up both during nap time and bed time or even in the middle of the night. Who needs a bed when we have a floor :)

Sis and monkey watching tv from our bed. He sure does love his sissy!!

Allstars!!

Just want to give a little "shout out" for my baby boy Zach! He's 12 1/2 so he's not really a baby boy, but he'll always be my baby...even at 21!  Zach is really competitive, loves playing all sports, and is an all around athletic kid. He has made the allstars team the past several years and this year he passed up his vacation to NY with his dad over the 4th of July to be able to play in the Allstars games! It is a great honor to be chosen as an Allstar! Zach will also be trying out for JV baseball with the Highschool kids next year (he's only in the 7th grade). I know that this kid will be getting a scholarship to play baseball at College. (Let's hope it's with USC~ Gamecocks) :)

Way to go Zach, Moms is super duper proud of you!

B.R.A.V.E.S!!!

Me and the kids gave Ron an early Father's Day gift. He loves the Braves and Dale Murphy has ALWAYS been his hero so we thought we'd get some tickets to see the Braves PLUS they were having a concert afterwards... American Idol winner of season 10, Scotty McCreery! Lexi was super excited! Landen however, I knew would not be as excited. Landen doesn't like loud noises and he tends to freak out. I was right! I knew he would HATE it!  We took the 4 plus hr drive to Atl which wasn't bad at all for Landen. We got there,  unloaded the van with all our goodies, wheelchair, diaper bag, etc and started our way to the gates...Upon arrival Landen started crying/freakin out before we even made it through the gates...2 seconds later....V.O.M.I.T. all over the place. (embarrassing) Finally calm Landen down for a brief second, enter the gates, crying starts again. Finally, after making our way to our seats, Landen is now "semi ok", Landen wants his "wa wa". Few minutes after the Braves start, Landen is already soaked in sweat, ill from the heat, has had a cup of yummy, thickened, pediasure and  blows chunks everywhere...even splatters on the back of the chairs in front of us. (Sorry people) I apologize to the people in front of us...they leave and don't return until the very end of the game. :(
I smelled of spoiled vanilla pediasure(not a good smell) my watch had dried vomit all in the creases, I had stains of dried vomit on my shirt and shorts and  Landen was sweaty and smelled horrible and it was miserably hot!!! The rest of the family had a great time though and the girls loved Scotty McCreery! Let's just say I will not be making any more plans to see the Braves for a long time.

To make our trip even better, on the way home, a little after midnight, Ron gets a speeding ticket. Not just a little speeding ticket. AND, the Trooper was- a -Jerk!!!!!
What a terrible,horrible, sucky, wonderful trip we had!
Happy early Father's Day sweetheart!!

My security "blanket"

Most kids have either a passy (which Landen NEVER took) or they suck their thumb (which I had WISHED Landen would have done...because it is oh so stinkin' cute) or they have a special blanky that looks all ragged b/c they carry it everyhwere (Landen has never cared for any of these items) HOWEVER, his security blanket is a....... BASEBALL!  Landen has ALWAYS loved a ball...any ball. He has really grown attached to his baseball though. He takes it everywhere we go and even sleeps with it. He still loves his "moe moe" doll and still sleeps with it as well, but he HAS to have his baseball with him all day! 

So, even though Landen is not attached to a ratty little blanky that he has carried with him since birth, I guess I can deal with his "security blanky" being a baseball! :)

Zach's baseball coach gave Landen a team baseball hat the other day. Landen LOVES watching his bubba play ball and his coach has grown to like Landen (Duh, who wouldn't). Landen cheers for his bubba during the game and likes to wheel his chair over to the dugouts to give his bubba a good luck "fist bump" So, I guess it was only natural to make Landen a "part of the team" by giving him an extra team ball cap. Landen's #....16!   :)

Gosh, i love this kid!

This too shall pass...

In the past 2 years of Landen's life he has had many surgeries. I believe 7 surgeries to be exact. He has bounced right back from all of them. He typically keeps a cold, runny nose, etc. He has had bladder infections and continues to suffer from aspirating his liquids. He has a feeding tube that was placed about 7 months ago. Needless to say, he has had many hurdles to jump over in just 2 short years. I have expected lots of these things...these are things that just "go with living with Spina Bifida." I always worry when my baby gets sick and I worry when he throws up several days in a row b/c the possibility of shunt malfunction, I worry when he falls and gets a bump on his head(typically from pulling himself up on things he shouldn't), I worry when his temp is over 102 and thoughts of another bladder infection crosses my mind...BUT, I know that everything will be just fine and he will bounce right back like he ALWAYS has. I've always known that he would need a wheelchair, walker, or some sort of walking aid. These are things that I have expected with Spina Bifida.

Last Friday, we went to Greenville to see our wonderful speech pathologist for a swallow study. Landen is STILL aspirating honey thickened liquids. He needs vital stim therapy to help those weak muscles, otherwise he will DEPEND on the feeding tube. He needs VS therapy 3 times a week but no one in our surrounding area, Charlotte NC accepts  Teffra/SC Medicaid. There is only 1 clinic that even offers it in Charlotte. We can't financially afford to travel to Greenville 3 times a week for possibly 1+ years. SO, our next step is another MRI next Thursday then an appt with our Neurosurgeon, Dr Troup to discuss if decompression surgery will help him at all. THIS I WORRY ABOUT! I keep telling myself that "this too shall pass" and he will bounce right back like always. I have expected lots of things with Landen but I most definitely did not expect the fact that he might ALWAYS require a feeding tube. :(

Now...enough depressing news.

                            TERRIBLE TWO'S

Landen is in his terrible two's! I never went through them with Lexi or Zach. I think it was more like terrible 3's with them. Landen is VERY and I mean VERY independent and likes to do things his way! It's his way or  the highway! If he doesn't get his way, he gets mad and throws things or tries to slap at your face.(not so cute)  I have always taken pride in my house "usually" being clean and neat. Now, it's just a struggle to even find the floor of Landen's playroom. He likes to throw all of his toys out and not play with ANY of them. I think he just likes to see me pick them up so he can do it again and again and again...you get the point.

            ~MY GUIDE FOR SURVIVING TODDLERHOOD~

1.Give up the delusional dream that you may in fact at some point get your house clean. It's NOT going to happen.

2.Put everything away in your home that may be of value. This is the first thing that they go for...it's the most inticing to them. Believe me, it WILL get broken.

3.Naps are NOT just created for kids, they are for moms too! Yeah right, I'm laughing at myself as I write this. It sounds oooh soooo goood though. :) But, since us moms never get time alone, take time to "ALLOW" yourself to eat, read a magazine, surf the web...it's "you" time, so enjoy the little bit of break you can!

4.Never underestimate the power of icecream. Yep, that's right! Icecream makes it all better when I am stresed. peanut butter chocolate chunk...yummmm!!

5.Non-judgemental BFF with a toddler. She can relate. It is imperative to  be able to complain, have a meltdown, cry discuss the challenges with someone who can relate!

6. Have very very very low expectations of what you will be able to accomplish in the hrs that your sweet toddler is awake. This way, when by chance, you actually get some much needed things done, you will feel like your day was a success! :)

Toddler hood....This too shall pass!!

Enjoy your toddler while you can...they grow up so fast! :) 

Landen's Walk N Rollers

On Saturday, May 5th, our team, Landen's Walk n' Rollers, is participating in a walk to benefit the Spina Bifida Association and All proceeds are used for programs and services for people living with Spina Bifida.

Spina Bifida is the most common permanently disabling birth defect in the US. An average of 8 babies every day are born with Spina Bifida or similar birth defect of the brain and spine. The majority of these babies, like Landen, experience major back surgery within the first few hours of birth.

When we started Landen's team a few weeks ago, our goal was to raise $300.  We didn't have enough time to raise alot of money so we didn't want to make our goal out of our range. We are VERY pleased to say that within 2 weeks of started our team, we have raised over $1200. We are soooo very excited to turn in all that money this Saturday!

Here is a picture of the shirts we designed for Landen's Walk n- Rollers!