Yesterday the boys and I left the house at 8 a.m. and didn't return until about 2 p.m. That may seem like nothing for most people, but for me, being out with them for that long was...well...long.
First we went to my mom's school. (She's an elementary school principal at the BEST school in the world.) It was Fall Picture Day and Andrew is an honorary student. LOL. He had to get his picture taken. So we hung out a little (and ate Alphabits cereal) before the picture and then a little bit after the picture.
Then we drove to our church. Wednesday morning Bible studies started back up yesterday. Last year, I participated in the large-group study, MEMs (Moms Encouraging Moms). But this year I will be doing a smaller-group study that is just for moms of special needs children. It is really great to have a place to go with moms who "get it." No offense to any moms who don't have special needs children; it's not your fault that you don't get it. Heck, I wish I didn't get it. But I do because I do. Follow me? Anyway, I kept Benjamin with me because I can't put him in the regular nursery with the other kids b/c of his heart condition. We can't risk his getting sick. Also, it's not just his heart; Down syndrome babies have very small nasal and ear passages, meaning it is very easy for them to get upper respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia or bronchitus. So we were told no nursery for now. On Sundays, there are workers in the King's Table Nursery (the special needs nursery), and he is the only baby, so he's the only one in the room right now. (There is another KT nursery for older kids.) It is SO nice to have that available on Sundays so I can worship and go to Sunday School. But on Wednesdays, the resources simply aren't there to have a worker in there. Which is totally fine. But it was a little stressful to have him with me during the study b/c I was paranoid b/c he was a little loud. But I'm sure the other moms were probably fine with it. It'll get easier I'm sure.
We're doing a Beth Moore study, "Believing God." The premise is that many of us believe in God, but do we believe God? Do we take Him at His word? Do we believe all that He says and all that He promises? The five tenants of this study are very powerful:
1. God is who He says He is.
2. God can do what He says He can do.
3. I am who God says I am.
4. I can do all things through Christ.
5. God's Word is alive and active in me.
"I'm believing God."
Might seem a little cheesy, but it's good stuff. I actually already did this study (well, the majority of it--for some reason I didn't finish the last three weeks or so) in the fall of 2004. Man, was my life different then! My only association with suffering and really depending on God revolved around boyfriends and relationships, and those were years in the past! I am looking forward to redoing the study with the "new me." :)
Andrew had a blast in his room at church while I was in Bible Study. Last year during MEMs, he went to the toddler room, but now he's in the "Twos" room. He did a craft and colored and they had a lesson. It's SO neat! I was putting him down for his nap yesterday and randomly, out of nowhere he blurted out, "ADAM AND EVE!" I almost busted out laughing! I said, "Did you learn about Adam and Eve at church today?" He said, "Yes, and other Bible stories." I said, "Great! Let's talk about them when you wake up; it's time to sleep!"
After church we drove to the hospital for breastfeeding support group (BFSG), which we do every Wednesday, to weigh and feed Benjamin. The timing is a little off, but we make it work. We got there early and Andrew ate his lunch (cereal bars, Goldfish, and animal crackers) in the stroller while I fed Benjamin.
This week, he weighed 12 pounds, 3.0 ounces. Last week he was 11.15.6. So he gained another 3.4 ounces! He ate well and gained 4.3 ounces in the feeding. Yay!!
OH MY GOODNESS!! I just realized I haven't updated about the eye doctor. WOW what a day. First of all, thank God (literally) for my sister-in-law Edie. I seriously would have died if she hadn't agreed (just the day before) to come watch Andrew at home while I took Benjamin to the eye doctor. We were there for THREE HOURS. UGH! Long story short...they just had a bunch of people there and it took forever to do all the different steps. (Let's see, it was...wait, see the nurse, wait, see the attending doctor, wait, see the real doctor, wait, get eyes dilated, wait, get eyes checked, Oh, they're not dilated enough, wait, get more drops, wait, nurse, wait, wait, wait, see the attending doctor again, wait, see the real doctor again. The bad thing is that most of the times I typed the word "wait" above, we had to go back into the waiting room. So I hauling a backpack (diaper bag/purse), a car seat, and Benjamin, who didn't want to sit in the carseat. Sigh. It was just a really long and frustrating morning. (Guess that wasn't really a 'short' long story, was it? Sorry.)
The eye doctor (who was very nice, by the way) said that Benjamin does have a fair amount of farsightedness (+4.5? +0.45? The numbers didn't mean anything to me so I don't remember them) BUT many babies are farsighted this young b/c their lenses are short. We'll recheck him at a year and see how he is doing. The doctor said that he has an excellent chance of growing out of it but that if he doesn't grow out of it and the numbers stay the same, that he'll definitely need glasses. The doctor was very impressed, however, at Benjamin's eyes. He said that even for just a normal (non-Down syndrome) baby at four months, Benjamin has very good eye control and that the nerves looked very good. YAY!!!!
Let me see if I can dig up some pictures. I haven't posted any in awhile. Been a little occupied. :)
Here is Andrew at the mall playarea. We met some friends. It's funny how even at 2 1/2 they don't really play with each other; they play around each other.
Daddy and Andrew Time in the back (side) yard. Nothing like being swung back and forth in the air!
Going up the stairs. :)
Benjamin's four-month picture
Whatcha talkin' 'bout, Willis?
Nancy only thought she was getting a nap on the back of the couch...
ATTACK!!!!! (It was only a kiss, but she doesn't know that...)
6 comments:
Oh my gosh, your mall's play area is HUGE! I am super jealous! The boys are adorable as always! I love that you take picstures in the same chair every month! What a special way to document their growth! I wish I had done something like that with Nico!
Yay for gaining weight (I never thought I'd say that lol)! I'm glad Benjamin is continuing to grow well and that breastfeeding is still working out for you!
I'll admit it, I am a blog stalker! I love reading about you family's adventures!!
Hey Angela! You probably don't remember me but we met years ago through Cara Stephens (Burgener now). She gave me your blog address as a cousin of mine just had a baby with Down Syndrome. They did not know about it until after he was born. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you I think you are a super MOM! You obviously are totally in love with your boys. I also wanted to tell you how much I admire you being able to handle all those MD appts. I have just one, and I always found it such a struggle to take him for MD appts. and I just had him with me, so taking two- COURAGEOUS is all I can say. I also wanted to tell you that my son (almost 2) has eczema. His started with terrible cradle cap as well. We finally had to take him to a dermatologist who told us- moisturize, moisturize, MOISTURIZE. He also recommended we use the lotion CERAVE which you can only find at like Walgreens. It has been the best!!! It is expensive, but it has really helped Caleb's skin. We found our after Caleb was a year old that he was allergic to milk, wheat, eggs and oats, which had been making his eczema worse. Now that he is avoiding all those things in his diet, his skin is much better although he still has problem areas (ankles, behind knees). The dermatologist also gave us 2 prescriptions that have really helped the eczema. The first is Desonate, which is a steroid gel. It is a lower dosage than hydrocortisone and supposed to be safer for kids- we used it 2x/d on the bad areas. The second one is Hylira, which is a very, very expensive lotion. We use it only on Caleb's scalp and it has been great. Regular lotion just didn't seem to get into his scalp, it just seemed to sit on his head and this seems to really soak into his scalp. The dermatologist also told us to go fragrance free, dye free for anything we could (soaps, lotions, detergent). I use California kids baby wash (available at Target) for Caleb's baths. It's also expensive, but you only have to use a little so it lasts a long time. I just thought I'd share this with you as I remembered feeling so helpless when Caleb's eczema was bad and our pediatrician just didn't seem to help. I know you've got bigger problems on your hands with Benjamin's heart condition, so just ignore me if you've got his eczema under control.
All good news, girl!!
If it helps, I'm darn near blind (nearsighted) and I'm a -5.5 and -4.75. Well, not blind, but can't get out of bed without glasses on!
Beth Moore is awesome! What a great study. And your short "long" story wasn't that long -- not 3 hours anyway.
love,
eunice
Angela, I love reading your blog! You are seriously an inspiration! I'm so so happy that Benjamin is growing so well! Yay Benjamin!
Hey Angela,
Glad to hear that you guys are doing well. I too applaud your inspirational stories. It sounds as though yesterday was a long day. I'm sure it is refreshing to be in a BS with other Moms that can relate. Thanks for sharing your heart and your stories. Keep up the good fight.
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