Time is flying!

    It's been a while since I've posted. Things have been going much smoother since the first week in January which felt like chaos. I realized today as I took a 10 month picture of Canton how quickly the month has gone by! In the past week Canton has started pulling up and crawling in the traditional manner. For the past couple months he has been doing the "army crawl" and has mastered it! He had been up on his hands and knees rocking back and forth and today decided that must be the way to really get moving.
     Collin had a follow-up appointment today with a Pediatric Endocrinologist. Over the past 18 months his weight and height have been checked regularly because according to the growth charts he is below normal for his age. Our pediatrician first referred us to a Gastroenterologist and they tested for a couple things that can affect growth and nutrient absorption with the results being normal. He then referred us to an Endocrinologist who has done an x-ray to check Collin's "bone age" which was also normal. At our follow-up today his growth was minimal so they may perform a more invasive test to check his growth hormone levels after he turns three. But for today they just drew blood and will see him back in three months. I have very mixed emotions about the whole situation.  I really feel like there is absolutely nothing wrong with him but there is also that nagging thought that if he does have a growth hormone issue and it can be treated,  I would feel horrible if we didn't address it. At this point we will just keep encouraging him to eat and wait it out. For those of you who know me well know that waiting is not my favorite thing :)  I guess all those times I have quizzed Carson on the definition of patience will come in handy!!
     Carson on the other hand continues to grow so fast! He is very tall for his age and while hanging out with Papa the other day at Hydro Hose we discovered that he weighs 49 pounds! Last I knew he was about 44 pounds. He has begun to enjoy drawing much more than in the past. He is able to recognize most of his letters and knows quite a few letter sounds. He is also acquiring a list of scriptures he can quote. We are very excited about his willingness to memorize scripture!
     Bart had quite an exciting time last weekend. On Saturday night he and his good friend Scott "camped out" at the Buffalo Wild Wings that was scheduled to open Sunday morning. Why would he do this? The first 100 customers received free wings for a year. Bart just happened to be number 100! So it looks like we will be eating wings pretty often for the next year. Thankfully they have my preference, boneless wings, as well!
     We are all doing well. I am very excited I have made it to the gym four times this week! I have been enjoying the activity and the boys enjoy playing in the "Kid Zone"! I have also gotten on a reading kick over the past few weeks. I am enjoying a series by Terri Blackstock and have been staying up past my bedtime to get in some reading :) Hope all is well with each of you!
     

Back to normal!

    If you aren't a member of my family you probably haven't seen me in a couple of weeks. It's been crazy around our house lately! My last post covered the excitement that took place Christmas day. Well, New Year's definitely took the cake! Canton woke up at 12:30 with a stomach bug. By six a.m. he seemed much better only to be sick again that night. Monday morning he was not too spiffy when I got him out of bed. He had slept all night but seemed tired and really out of it. The pediatric clinic wasn't open so we ended up at the ER. It turned out that he needed IV fluids. After receiving several different test results he was cleared to go home.  Poor thing, he was pitiful and I didn't get a smile out of him for quite a while! It was Wednesday before he was really back to normal.
                                          

Don't worry the excitement doesn't end there!!

    Tuesday morning Bart wasn't feeling too hot so he ended up staying home from work. Trying to care for a sick husband and a sick baby plus handle two rambunctious little boys is no easy task! But we survived the day. I was happy to be able to stay home Tuesday night from my part-time job and it turned out to be arranged by God! Bart and Canton went to sleep early and the other boys were in bed by eight p.m. or so. I decided to quickly vacuum the living room while there was no one in it, ha!As I finished and had just turned off the vacuum I heard the bathroom faucet. I thought Bart had woken, but soon heard a blood curdling scream. I ran into the bathroom to find Collin holding his hand up to his mouth. As he looks up I realize there is blood, a lot of blood! His top teeth went completely through his bottom lip. As there was no other place open, another trip to the ER was in order. This trip was MUCH longer than Canton's visit. I am so thankful my mom tagged along because she entertained Collin very well! We left the ER about 12:30 with a little glue on his chin/lip and a very sleepy boy. The insane part is the next afternoon as we read a book just before nap time he managed to pull the glue almost completely off without me knowing! Our Pediatrician checked the ER report and discovered that it was merely superficial and didn't really require the glue so we thankfully didn't have to make ANOTHER trip to the Dr. :-)

We've had a few somewhat calm (as calm as it gets with three boys in the house) days and are so thankful that everyone is pretty much back to normal!! Still praying the stomach bug germs are not secretly lurking around our house waiting to attack those of us who haven't been bitten!

Getting all three boys together and still for a photo doesn't happen often!