Monday, October 27, 2008

Yay for the doctor!!

Hooray! Dr. Stephanie tried a couple of times and was able to get a blood draw from Benjamin's left arm! I was praying up a storm as he was screaming his little head off, and it worked!

Andrew was already gone at this point. When he got his flu shot, all he did was kind of furrow his brow a little. What a guy!! Then he was easily distracted by getting a purple frog (color of his choice) and a Percy sticker. Yampa then took him in his truck to the bank and "Mall-mart."

Benjamin had his hearing rechecked. He passed the right ear with flying colors but will have to have his left ear retested in a month when we return for his second flu shot. (The first time you get a flu shot, you have to get a booster a month later.) He will also need another one of his vaccines b/c they were out of it. (Sara, I did ask the doctor and she said it was fine to get his flu shot and vaccines on the same day.) Poor little guy. He is such a trooper.

He weighed 13lbs, 3 oz, and was 26 1/2 inches long. For the Down syndrome charts, that's 25th percentile for weight and 80th percentile for length. (On the "normal" chart, that's 10th for weight and 25th for length.) He's only gained one pound since his four month checkup, but we'll cut him a break. He *did* have open-heart surgery. ;)

His hemoglobin level was 11.9 (normal is 10 t0 15), so we can cut back on the iron vitamins a little bit, which is good. They totally constipate him! On Friday, I decided not to give it to him for a day, and the next day...POOP EXPLOSION!! Lucky for me, Matthew was out running when I discovered the ten-pound diaper. Yay me.

We started Benjamin on a little baby cereal on Saturday! He had a little on Saturday and a little on Sunday. While he is still clueless about what he's supposed to do with it, he seemed to like it, diving for the spoon. We'll start with some stage one baby foods this week. The doctor said we can start with prunes or peaches to help combat the constipation. I'll be sure to give him those when Matthew is around so he can reap the benefits. Hee hee

Below are some cute pictures. Please forgive the cloudiness. It seems my camera is on the fritz. We bought it in 2004. In digital camera age, that's ancient. I only hope I can make it until Christmas!

Emma's Halloween Party 2007

Our babies were 1 1/2.

L to R is Taylor (a fireman), Andrew (a duck), and Evangeline (a ladybug). We were lucky to catch a peek of Evie in her costume. She kept taking it off. :)



Taylor and Andrew hanging out on the hearth.



The famous hearth pics. As you can see, Andrew is crying *and* his outfit is too short for his long legs. Sigh. What can you do?



Okay. L to R is Andrew, Taylor, Emma (a tiger), and Evangeline.



Fast forward one year. Emma's Halloween Party 2008

Our "babies" are now 2 1/2. (Just as a note--there are *lots* more kids at each party; these are just some of the playdate friends.)

The same hearth and mostly the same kids. Matthew (on the far left) had already removed his Dumbo costume. He wasn't at the 2007 party; I believe he and his parents were stuck in the Miami airport on the way home from a mission trip!

L to R is Matthew (the toddler formerly known as Dumbo), Andrew (Elmo), Taylor (a pirate), Evangeline (Cinderella), and Emma (a ladybug):



Inside the bouncy house. "Ummm...Mom, I'm not so sure about this..."



Elmo, a pirate, and Cinderella. Ready to par-tay.



A couch + a cookie = a happy Elmo



Waiting to play Pin the Nose on the Pumpkin:



Almost got it!



Elmo and Dumbo hanging out by the window:



No, they're *not* supposed to be capri pants...



Nothing says Halloween like black Play-doh and a Mister Potato Head with fangs!



His favorite thing at the party (other than the cookies obviously) was the purple sand. Here he is with Evan (a racecar driver) happily pouring and scooping.



He's talked non-stop about the purple sand. (Diana, we need to find a time for the kids to play in it again!! Let's see if there's a day when it won't be too cold so we can sit outside w/the babies while the "kids" play.)



Finally getting the hang of the bouncy house. Emma (far left) told her daddy to buy one of these. He told her to get a job.



Goodbye, Emma! Thanks for the cool party!! :)



Benjamin's six-month pictures. He still needs *lots* of assistance to sit up in the chair.











Benjamin's first baby cereal
Six months and one day
October 25, 2008








Thanks for looking!! Hope you all have a wonderful day. :)

12 comments:

Megan said...

Stella's boyfriend is SO DARN CUTE. And they sit the same way, lol! It's so nice to have someone in the exact same boat as us (starting foods, same milestones). :-) Oh, and Stella also has an iffy left ear. I'm praying for them both.

JaybirdNWA said...

Those are some cute pictures of both boys. It sounds like Benjamin is doing well. As a fellow sojourner of your husbands, I thank you AND mothers everywhere for your willingness to share in as much of the experience as possible. During the prenancy, my wife would have shared her pregnancy with me if it were possible which I am very thankful the Lord didn't make that possible.

Unknown said...

TOO COOL!! I love all the pics. You tell us the day and we will be here purple sand in hand (well actually in the sand box). Pic #3 is my fav or Benjamin. Are you sure that is the same kid that had open heart surgery a few weeks back?? HE LOOKS SO GOOD!!! Listen there is open dinner invitation at our house for you, Matthew, B, and A! I will acutally cook something you eat sitting down with a fork!! MISS YA!

Amber said...

I am particularly enjoying the gangsta lean in the rocking chair! LOL...what a cutie.

Sara said...

Mall-mart. Yikes. :P

Have fun with the food. Honestly, it is one of my least favorite stages. It is SO messy and gross. Thankfully both of my kids (with a lot of pushing from me) have switched to table food really really fast. I HATE babyfood. They always manage to make a mess out of it...no matter how neatly I spoon it in. Lily loved to stick her hand in her mouth...then her hair. Gross.

Sara

Lora Leigh said...

Mommy, plug that outlet! Just kidding :) Your boys are adorable! I loved all the pictures!

Christina said...

Yay for the blood draw! Benjamin is just TOO cute sitting in that chair! He's gonna steal some girls heart!

Jennifer Talley said...

Don't you just love Dr. Stephanie...McLean Medical right? She is our pediatrician also!!!Love her. Precious photos!

heidi marie said...

such cute pictures. i love the ones on benjamin in the chair! is he going to be anything for halloween this year???!!!

The Hicks said...

I can't believe how great Benjamin looks. He is so cute in that chair!
I loved the pics of the older kids. I miss seeing them so much. I'm so blessed to have had you great young mom's in my life! What a great bunch of kids you girls are raising! Keep up the good work and have more babies, it keeps me a job! :)

Sandi said...

I have been blog stalking and today you were my favorite! I am the mommy to fourteen and five of them have special needs. I have spent many many weeks and in one case months in the children's' hospital. Oh, I don't miss those days, but reading your story reminds me how much I have to be thankful for.

By the time mine were two and a half to three, the dr appointments and hospital visits became few and far between. It turns into IEP meetings and therapy sessions. Anything beats the pokes at the hospital.

I would love to follow your story. It brings back so many bittersweet times. Thanks for sharing.

BTW love your music!!!!

Stephanie said...

love your little peanuts and can't wait to see them Saturday!!
I am so glad you got sucked into the blogger world!!
I strugge with 'comment-envy' when I come to your blog.
Love you! Still praying before school for Baby Benjamin to get stronger and stronger!!!