Beautiful weather...

As I type this, Logan is down stairs in bed falling asleep, and to help him, he's going through his entire repertoire of songs... Jingle Bells, Happy Birthday, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, ABC's, Old McDonald... Very cute. And his mumbling has turned into talking so it's fun to hear. "Happy Birthday to me... Happy Birthday to Mommy... Happy Birthday to not Tistian, not CaCa, not Lola... Happy Birthday to Daddy." Very very cute.

After all that snow, the weather turned to record temperatures. With 58 degrees, Logan and I made it out to build a snowman without snow pants and no coats. I don't think he quite knew what I was doing but he saw the end result and that sure got him excited. I got him to hold some snow in his mittenless hand after some coaxing. "It's cold," he said. But he held it for a little while. Since our snowman day, Logan has decided he's the snowball fight champ. He gets me every time.

Logan's vocabulary continues to grow. He is starting to tell us how his days are and what he did. If I ask what he did at Lola's, he'll answer, "Play toys." And he does elaborate, and with some guidance, we can really find out what he's been up to while we've been working. He'll often ask me questions about what I'm doing, where we're going, where everyone is, etc. It's fun to be getting to the point of having a conversation with him.

I broke out the 3T clothing tonight and it's in the drier right now. He's growing out of 2T slowly, but surely. Maybe if I give him more room in his clothes, he'll fill them up faster. ;)

Lola has now been helping Logan with the potty and she's had some success, but nothing more than we have. But now we're doing it on two fronts so progress will be more swift, I hope.

Today, I had a Special Ed meeting with his EC teacher, OT, PT, elementary psychologist, and the Director of Special Ed. It was interesting and at the same time, a little disappointing, but just a little. All year, Logan has been working with this team of people to achieve some set goals, and he has not met very many. His progress has slowed significantly and we can't figure out why. We have theories like he has a hard time transitioning, likes to be a tease, is having a hard time grasping concepts... What we know for sure is Logan's attention span is insufficient to do what we need him to do. He has some days where he's just on and others that he can't do a thing. For example, about 6 months ago, he was stringing beads. They haven't been able to get him to do it again since. He still is having a difficult time matching colors to the same color, naming colors, categorizing shapes, etc. On the other hand, he is able to do some amazing things. For example, we have this puzzle set that has about 40 different pieces that make 20 separate puzzles - 2 pieces per puzzle. The puzzles are of animals and their homes. A dog in a dog house, a bat in a cave... I can spread them all out and he can find the matches. Amazing. We will continue on with his SPED services as always but I think I really need to work more with him too. This fall, he'll start preschool already. I get to see the classroom sometime soon. To think he'll be riding a school bus soon.

Gage... well. He's Gage. A funny delightful little boy who loves mommy. He's walking around furniture all the time and will walk all over if I hold his hands or give him the walker. At 11 months old, he still has no teeth, but maybe in a month or so we'll see a pearly white. He's been nursing or getting a bottle just 3 times a day now so we're getting there. The cool thing is he is no longer belly crawling and is instead a full-time normal crawler, except when he's walking.

Next week, Logan see the specialist about his eyes. I am VERY excited about this opportunity.

Let it snow...

Well, the big February snow storm left us with 15 inches of new snow. Unbelievable. Lots of shoveling but also lots of fun for Logan. We did get out to enjoy it a little bit but with all that snow, there's not much for Logan to do. We pulled him around in a sled and Dan built a little snow fort with him. All this had such an impact on him that at day care today, all he could talk about was going to see Daddy to play in the snow.

We're supposed to get more snow throughout this week. Considering that we had really none to start with, a few inches will do us some good. By this next weekend, we'll be making our first snowman.

This past weekend, Daddy and I were wrestling in the living room. I looked over at Logan and he was staring at me all concerned. When I smiled at him, he smiled right back and came over and hugged me so tight and asked, "What Daddy do do?" It was cute to see how much he cared about me. Then we got Logan involved in the wrestling match. Also, Gage showed his concern by crawling on my face and grunting at Daddy. Very cute.

Gage recently started showing that he can crawl the right way. For the past months, he's been "GI Joe" crawling but lately, he's gotten his belly off the ground. I never thought I would have a child that would crawl-crawl. Nice to see.

I am soooo hoping Gage will start sleeping through the night soon. For a while now, he's been waking up about 2 times a night. I am getting soooo tired. I don't know what the trick is. I can't let him cry it out because he will keep on crying. When I get him in the middle of the night, he just eats real quick and back to sleep he goes. He was doing so well for a while. I don't know what's happened. Maybe he's teething. By the way, he still has no teeth and he's 11 months old.

Chirstmas is over...

It was a good Christmas this year, as usual, and I can only imagine what the years to come will be like. Little Logan kind of comprehended the concept of the season, but even more so, was really into opening his presents. We bought Logan a GeoTrax train that he showed little interest to, yet, and also bought him more musical instruments, of course. Gage got mostly clothes since the clothes big brother wore during his 12 month era were all summer clothes.

Gage is getting huge, and I mean big. He's still his same happy self and continues to sleep through the night. He isn't crawling yet, and I'm thinking he never will. His GI Joe crawl is totally working for him. He still isn't sitting up but I'm not too concerned with this as we've learned every child develops at a different rate.

Logan starts his PT twice a week soon. I'm interested to see how this is going to go. It will just add one more thing to our weekly events.

My hand is healing well. I got the stitches out yesterday and will go back in two weeks to have more X-Rays taken. I really hope it heals this time because I can already tell that my hand will never be the same. A lesson learned.

I'll try to include more pictures soon.

I think we're ready for Christmas...

All the shopping is done and the presents have all been somewhat unwrapped over the last week or so, between Curious Logan and Cruiser Gage. Tomorrow we head up north to hit our families, then it's home for Christmas Eve and Day with just us 4. Looking forward to it. :)

My hand has begun to mend nicely. I cannot yet make a fist but my pinkie is starting to bend. I think I'm about where I was when the injury first happened. I am hoping in 2 weeks, I will be where I was before surgery. I think in a week or so, I'll be cleared to start PT - just for a pinkie. LOL.

Today, Leslie, a friend from work, came over to help me bathe Cyrus, since I can't get my stitches wet. Cyrus may be moving in with Leslie and her family since I am not able to give Cyrus the love and attention he so very much deserves. We are heading to their house today for dinner to try it out. I think he'll be a good fit over there.

Logan will start PT twice a week now. We'll add Friday mornings into our routine in St. Cloud as we continue to work on his legs and feet. The hopes are that since he's still so young, therapy now will make a huge difference in his future. This past Tuesday, Dan was able to attend Logan's PT for the first time. It was amazing!! Logan was a total show off for daddy. He rode the tricycle like a champ and jumped on the tramp like there was no tomorrow. It was really neat to see. He was so wound up though that it was hard to keep him on task.

The potty training at home has slowed to a crawl. He asks to go sometimes but when we put him on, he does nothing. Oh well. Maybe in a month or so, he'll show some genuine interest. Gage still isn't crawling although he continues to be quite mobile. At this time, he is on the living room floor rolling around next to Cyrus. Cyrus keep looking at me as if to be sure he's not doing anything wrong.

We've almost all beat our colds now. All of us except Dan are ridding ourselves of running noses and coughs. Dan has yet to catch the bug.

Daddy's on the outside...

Daddy's sitting on the outside of the couch this evening, and what fun he's having. About every minute or so, he has to get up and either separate the boys, take Gage back into the living room, or take away something from one of the boys. Talk about exercise. He is sitting closer.

Today, I took Logan to the eye doctor to have another look at his eyes. I agree this time with what has been said all along. We will continue to play the waiting game with his strabismus. Our next appointment is June 6th at which time we'll hope he can communicate a bit more with us. I think the long term plan is to make sure he continues to use both eyes, even if independently, and if one becomes stronger than the other, to patch the strong eye. If as he grows a little older, we find the crossing is too striking, then we'll opt for surgery. I'm relieved that I finally feel good about things. I certainly don't want to put Logan through surgery again. Of course, another option is to bring him to a pediatric opthalmologist. That time may come but not right now.

Reffing was fun last night. I certainly have a lot more learning to do. I feel like I'm one of those blind refs that don't see a thing. Last night, I never called one penalty and my reffing partner called about 5. I must not see a thing. I did make one nice off-sides call. :) Like that's real hard. None the less, my next game is not until January.

I think Gage is days away from crawling. He spends a lot of time on his knees until he wants to go somewhere. Also, he's quite vocal, but VERY happy. Logan was so easy, but Gage is even easier. What a delightful little boy. It's easy to forget he's even here, except he's so cute you just can't stop looking at him.

My hand appointment went poorly. It seems it's done no healing so now I have a choice to make. I'll see an ortho on Tuesday at which time I'll ask some questions. My Dr. said that the chances of it healing are pretty unlikely. So it comes down to if I want to continue dealing with the pain or not. When I think about going through the rest of my like with this pain, it doesn't sound good. Here's the thing. i can go nearly the whole day without noticing it. It doesn't hurt hardly ever until... I pick up squirmy kids, work out, put my weight on it... Things I don't do that often. So, I think I'll make sure it won't do any healing before deciding on surgery.

We're trying to decide when to put the tree up. I'm in the mood to do it tonight but I think we'll wait until sometime this weekend. I wonder what Logan will think.

We are starting to plan my Dad's 60th Birthday/retirement party for the last Sat. of January. What a celebration that will be!

A quick update... Thanksgiving, etc.

We went up north for Thanksgiving... Dan's side on Thursday and mine on Friday... then we came home Friday night. There's no place like home. It was great seeing everyone as usual and the food was wonderful.

On Sunday, I was giving the boys a bath together and Logan said, "poopie", so I took him out and put him on the potty. After about 10 seconds and some toots, he said "All done." So I put him back in the tub and let him play some more. He then said "poopie" again so I put him on the toilet again. And again, he farted and said "all done" after just 10 seconds or so. So I put him back in the tub and finished with Gage ASAP. Sure enough, Logan pooped just after I got Gage out of the tub. Two little terds floating in the water. So I emptied it all out and showered Logan instead. Little stinker. :)

Gage is edging closer and closer to crawling. He spends a lot of time on all fours but can't quite figure out how to motor. There's no doubt that it's just around the corner.

I keep hoping that someday soon, Gage will sleep through the night. It's just not happening which is starting to wear on me. I get up usually twice a night. I am looking forward to the day when Gage is a year old and can handle just solids as his main source of nourishment. He's 8 months old so I only have 4 months left. Chin up.

Logan is still my perfect little angel. I hope it never ends. He's been so good and communicative. He requires a lot of attention but the way he goes about asking for it is easy to manage. He gives hugs and kisses and follows me every where, babbling about his day... It is impossible to do anything requiring concentration until the boys are to bed. Ahhh... Motherhood.

I do have one complaint and that's how difficult it has become to take Logan out to eat. I know we need to keep taking him out so he can learn how to behave. I think we need to stick to typical family restaurants and not the fancy ones.

Gage has had some pretty dry skin for quite a while now. I am starting to really watch this and see if I can't get it under control. He'll have to go back to the Dr. soon for his flu shot follow-up. At that time, I'll visit with the Dr about it and see her thoughts. One of his cheeks is really dry which may be caused by his drool and sleeping in the wet drool puddle all night.

Together

Today was a REALLY rough day at work so it's awfully nice to be home with the family.

Logan's whining ways are nearly a thing of the past. For the last week or so, he has been able to control his frustrations pretty well as it's becoming apparent to him that whining over little things is not acceptable, especially when a few words can explain feelings and wants much better. I sure am hoping he keeps up the great work.

When I picked the boys up from daycare today, I saw Logan's turkey card he made. I set it down in a place where I wouldn't forget it and proceeded to get Gage ready for the ride home. By the time I turned around, Logan had picked all his feathers off the turkey card with no regret. Funny. He's been playing with those feathers nearly constantly now. Dan noticed all the feathers laying around and said in subtle frustration, "Man. How many feathers are there?" Logan responded, "Un, to, fee, fy, un, to, fee..." It was hilarious. I guess we know the time at day care is paying off

The boys have been playing well together as usual. The living room is full of all the toys Logan drags out. I don't help much either by making so many available. Gage moves all over the place, rolling and edging forward. He's growing up so fast. Logan continues to be the perfect big brother.

Today was Ruth's funeral. I had intended on going until 11 AM rolled around. At that time, it was obvious that it wasn't going to happen with all the issues at work. I feel terrible for not attending.

Josh, our nephew, had an emergency appendectomy today. While they were removing it, it ruptured. Thank goodness he had the procedure when he did. By the sounds of it, his appendix was in an odd place to start with. We wish Josh a fast and complete recovery.

Nothing too new but will post any way...

Gage is starting to get up on all fours for a little while... He is much more interested in crawling than sitting up. No teeth yet either.

I was gone most of the evening and left all the boys alone. I first reffed my first hockey game ever and then did Tae Kwon Do. Busy day, but fun. It's amazing how nice it was to come home, to hear Logan as I walked in the door and see Gage's big smile when he saw my face.... bliss.

Logan helped me do the laundry today as usual. It's his favorite task. He takes the clothes out of th dryer and pushes the basket to our bedroom for emptying... then pushes it back into the laundry room. Very helpful.