Maturity

Something I deem as close to amazing happened this morning. I was getting the kids ready to get in the car to take Alex to school and then go to the grocery store. Alex was getting dressed on his own and I was changing Mackenzie's pullup when I saw Mackenzie had an old braclet of mine (a really old one I didn't really care about), Alex saw the braclet too and went to take it from her and in the process pulled it and broke it and beads went everywhere. Alex immedietly appologized to me, which was good in itself, but then Collin came in the room from the bathroom and asked to no one in particular "What did Mackenzie break?" assuming it was his sister who had committed the crime, Alex spoke right up before I could say anything and said "Kenzie didn't break it, I did". OMG!!! My 5 year old who loved to lie and manipulate, because well, he is 5! Just took personal responsibility for something he knew he might get in trouble for. I couldn't get upset about the braclet, I was so happy and proud. Ok OK I know, in the long run is it that big of a deal? No, not really, but It is such a thrill when you see your kids finally showing the morals and behaviors you have benn trying your darndest to instill in them. :-)

Happy 5th Birthday Alex!

On 3/12/2005 at 3:04pm (a saturday) my oldest was born. Alex was a fighter from the beginning. I had developed preeclampsia at 28 weeks and was put on bedrest at home and then full bedrest in the hospital a few days later. I had been in the hospital for a week, had gained 20lbs of water weight, and was on magnesium sulfate all the time (which makes you feel like garbage, let me tell you!) when on the night of 3/11/05 I told my nurse that I was having trouble sleeping and was uncomfortable. She went and got permission to give me an Ambien, and when she returned she decided to do a quick assessment on me. When she listened to my lungs she said it sounded a little rattly and that she was going to get me a chest x-ray. Maybe 2 hours later, the chest x-ray ws done and I was immedietly put on oxygen, I had fluid backing up into my lungs. I didn't sleep at all that night, every time I would doze off my oxygen sats would drop and the alarms would sound, everytime they would up my oxygen levels. Finally by about 7am I was on almost 100% oxygen and even with that could barely think about anything else but breathing, all I wanted was to take a deep breath and I couldn't. My OB told me today would be the day, but because of 2 other emergency c-sections I had a to wait a few hours. Luckily through all this only I was suffering, Alex was always fine, his heart rate stayed normal. Finally a little before 3pm they took me back and the docs tried to put in an epidural, but I was too swollen and after sticking me twice they had run out of time. My hubby was allowed to come in and give me a kiss as they prepped me, and at 3:02pm I was put under general anesthesia. At 3:04 little Alex was born, screaming so loud they could barely intubate him. He was 2lbs 14ozs and 15 inches long, but he was all fighter. He spent less than 24 hours on a ventilator and another 4 weeks on gradually weaning levels of oxygen. After a very uneventful 6 weeks in the NICU our little man came home. The only intervention he needed was support for his little body to grow, some time under UV lights, and one blood transfusion. He was 4lbs 8ozs when he came home, but was an excellent baby.

Today he is the picture of health and happiness. He has no lingering effects of his early birth and is smart as a whip. Today I take my little man to be registered for kindergarten. What an amazing journey his little life has been, and the blessing is, it has only really just begun.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALEX!!!! WE ALL LOVE YOU!!! :-)


Alex today with his little sister

Alex on the day he was born.

Pictures and Update

Collin, alseep. cutie-pie.

This is what happens when you leave this little girl alone for 5 minutes. LOL I was talking on the phonein the kitchen, and when I walked back into the living room, here she was. :-P

The boys playing on Hubby's drum, they loved it!

Our little drummer girl!

Thank goodness spring is almost here!! Today it was 60 degrees and bright and sunny. After this horrible winter it was absolutley fantastic. Right now I am trying to get ready for Alex's birthday party this coming saturday. This past saturday I took him up to Strasburg to ride the big steam engine they have up there. We road in the dining car and had lunch during the hour long ride. it was really a lot of fun! I do have some pictures of that, but they are in my phone, so I gotta go through the extra effort of e-mailing them to myself and, well, I just haven't done it yet! LOL. Then on the 12th Alex has his kindergarten registration, and on the 22nd Collin has his pre-k registration/testing. This month is definitly going to be busy. But, as long as this nice weathe sticks around I can deal with anything. :-) Happy Spring ya'll!

Snowmagedon!!

Snow, snow snow!! Between last night and today we got 30 inches of snow. 30 inches!! Absolutely crazy. The kids tried to go out in it today but only spent a few minutes before they were frozen. Plus they could barely walk in it! Luckily we had Sophie, our dog, who was brave enough to go out first and make some paths for us. Man's best friend! LOL. I am so ready for Spring!!!

Blog Recommendation

I have fallen in love...with a blog! The blog is called FreeRange Kids and while it is a 'parenting' blog, I think just about anyone could read it. It is run by a woman named Lenore Skenazy, who now has a book out by the same name, FreeRange Kids. Some may know her as "the worst mom in America". She was dubbed that because she wrote an article a couple years back about how she let her then 9 year old son ride the New York Subway alone from a department store to their home. There is a whole story that goes along with that that I won't get into here, but what the main point of her blog (and her book is) is that we need to trust our kids and let them experience the world according to their own abilities, not by what society lays down as what is appropriate. She goes into a lot of crime statistics and talks with a lot of experts about everything from baby toys, to the media. And while her brand of parenting may not be for everyone, I know she goes a little farther than I myself would be comfortable with, I don't think it could hurt to take a look at what she says. She is snarky, funny, and very informative. And on her blog she posts a lot of letters she gets as well as newstories. So, if you have a mind check her out!

www.freerangekids.wordpress.com Or just look for the link on the right of my page. :-)

Everyone is growing up!

It is hard to believe that I don't have any babies anymore. Not that I necessarily want anymore. But still, having 3 back to back I felt like I constantly was doing the baby thing, now my munchkins are growing up! Alex's kindergarten registration is on March 12th, and he turns 5 on the same day. I am also trying to get Collin's preschool paperwork done, which means getting a million forms filled out by his pediatrician and dentist. He will be in the same class next year that Alex is in this year. And to top it off Mackenzie is potty training!! I just bought her her first set of little girl underwear, with princesses on them (cause that is what she picked). The idea of not buying diapers again is so exciting and yet kinda sad. Now instead of screaming babies, diaper changing, and naps (why do those have to go too!!?) I have three arguing, opinionated, little kids who are too smart for their own good. You can't pull one over on them anymore. Oh well, at least I get to sleep all night. :-)

Rediscovering the Library

Ok, so I am a child of the information age. I am 26 and I think mine was the last generation to write papers in elementary school with blue or black ink, cursive, double-spaced on college ruled paper. By high school is was all typed. And today, even my four year old can use the computer. But even so, it still surprised me when low and behold, I rediscovered an old friend, the library!! Imagine it a whole building full of PAPER books, all available to borrow for FREE!! LOL I know I felt stupid that I hadn't even thought of going to the library for probably close to 10 years, but yesterday I made the leap and got myself a library card and took Alex and Collin with me. They loved it!! For our first check out we picked some kids audiobooks to listen to in the car. Last night I couldn't help going on and on about all the cool stuff they offer, and what kind of stuff I could check out. It made me realize, there really is no excuse these days not to read to your kids. I mean come on, it is the simplest thing that can give the most pleasure and really change a child forever. I know I would not be who I am today without books, reading has always been a tremendous part of my life, and even today I feel rather empty if I don't have a good book to read. So go ahead, rediscover the library, for yourself and your kids, they really are amazing places! :-)