Christmas 2008

Christmas was busy, busy, busy. To me, the priorities at Christmas are celebrating in church on Christmas Eve the birth of our Savior, and spending time with family. Between Christmas and December 27, we visited Bill's mom, my entire immediate family, Bill's Dad and crew, and then all of my relatives in Illinois. We had fun, but it would have been more enjoyable if Sam had been feeling better. He wasn't running a temperature, but he was still coughing a bit, and he wasn't eating at all (NOT normal for Sam!). It's a good thing he's too young to realize how much it stinks to be sick on Christmas.

My boys thoroughly enjoyed their gifts, and were pretty good about remembering to say 'thank you'. TJ loves his Legos (thank you, Craigslist!). Sam loves his flashlight (thank you, Home Depot!) and his new Elmo's World DVDs. Nolan could care less about the presents, he was thrilled to rip wrapping paper and drool all over it.

Sam and his flashlight:

Christmas at the Baron's:

My 3 boys with Owen and Audrey:

Nolan and Audrey are good friends!

TJ, Clark, and Sam wait for Great-aunt Bobbie's Christmas train to go by:

All of the great-grandkids with my grandparents. I really treasure photos like these! Of course, I completely forgot to take one with my other grandparents. Maybe this weekend at Amanda's wedding!

Nolan's bath tub

A couple weeks ago, I figured it was time to move Nolan from the tub in the kitchen sink into a larger, inflatable tub that goes in the bathtub. I had moved TJ and Sam by the time they were six months old, and figured it was time for Nolan to make the move. He hadn't outgrown the sink tub, but he did seem bored with it.

It was a wise decision. He loves his new tub! The only problem is, he's so tiny he slides all over in it. I have to keep a hand on him at all times to prevent him from landing on his back. I tried to take a few pictures (let go, snap the picture, grab the baby again), but he wasn't very cooperative. He was too busy splashing to look up at Mommy.

Here's what I managed to get:
Just for kicks, here's a picture of Sam at 5 1/2 months....he's got a wee bit more chub on him than his little brother does!

Nolan's trip to the ER

I'd better blog about this before I forget. Nolan slept from 9:30 p.m. Monday night until 8:00 Tuesday morning. Fabulous, right? Well, that's too good to be true for him. A great night for him is a six-hour stretch. This was just too long. When he did wake up, he didn't really want to nurse, he seemed lethargic, and he wanted to go back to bed. His cough sounded terrible. I decided to see if the pediatrician could squeeze him in. They got him right in, and were not happy with what they saw. His pulse ox was only 89, and it didn't improve after a breathing treatment. His left ear was infected (of course, I had no idea!), and he was pretty limp for them too. So, they sent me to the emergency room. Great. If I had known they were going to do that, I could have gone straight to the ER and saved myself a co-pay!

I found a way to by-pass the agonizingly long wait at the ER. Walk in and tell them that your baby has a bad cough and his pulse ox is low. You are immediately taken back to a room, and within 15 minutes of your arrival, one nurse, one doctor, and two respiratory therapists are examining your son. They suctioned him out, which helped his breathing, ordered a chest x-ray (which came back clear) and then monitored him for several hours. For awhile, they had him on oxygen to help boost his numbers. I could tell the ER doc was on the fence. He said normally, he would send someone with Nolan's oxygen levels home. But with Nolan being so small (he was 14 pounds, 13 ounces with a wet diaper and a onesie on), and given the fact that he was premature, the doctor didn't want to take any unnecessary risks. Just before 4 p.m., he had two pediatric doctors come down and take a look at him. Nolan had bronchiolitis (also known as RSV), but the doctors decided he was at the peak of it and should be starting to improve in the next day or so. They put him on an antibiotic for his ear and told me what to look for should Nolan not improve.

I was a bad mommy, though. I had grabbed a muffin on my way to the doctor at 10 a.m. I knew we'd be at the ER for a minimum of 4 hours, and I knew that I wouldn't be able to leave Nolan unattended once we got there. So, we stopped at Arby's on the way to the hospital. I bought a sub sandwich and stuffed it in his diaper bag. Good thing--I didn't get home from the hospital until 5 p.m.

Nolan was starting to perk up on Christmas Eve and is now back to his old, smiley self. TJ never did get an ear infection and is also back to normal. Sam didn't get sick until the 22nd and is having a hard time getting over it. He's lost weight and is still coughing and out-of-sorts. I kept him home from church this morning. I kept Nolan home too, just to avoid exposing him to any unnecessary germs.

I'm ready for spring. I really am.

All I Want for Christmas...

Is 3 healthy boys! They all have bad coughs, and TJ and Nolan have been running fevers on and off. Now TJ is complaining of ear pain. I'm going to be watching that closely. He was at the ENT on Thursday and was fine then, but if he's getting an ear infection, we will be at the pediatrician's tomorrow. I don't want to risk him being miserable on Christmas.

What I wouldn't give for some fresh air! They've been cooped up for days! And another winter storm is coming tomorrow. Geez. This would DEFINITELY be the year to win another cruise. Anybody know of someone who's giving one away?

Quote of the day

From the front page of today's Grand Rapids Press:

"The only way we're not going to have a white Christmas is if we collide with the sun."
--meteorologist George Wetzel

This made me laugh. I'm sick of snow already and I needed that laugh!

Chastized

Nolan has reached the grabby stage. He is constantly grabbing at my face, and scratching me. It doesn't matter if his nails are long or short, they are still painful.

A few days ago, he reached up and somehow scratched the inside of my nose. Thankfully, it didn't bleed (that would have been one unattractive scab!), but it is painful, annoying, and taking a long time to heal. Plus, it keeps making me sneeze! Today, I was gently rubbing the sore area. Sam walks over and says quietly but firmly, "Mama, don't pick your nose".

Pillows

Can someone please tell me why I purchased pillows for TJ and Sam? During the day, they are often dragged around the house and used for the creation of what TJ calls "forts" (Mama calls them 'big messes I always get stuck cleaning up'.) At night, the pillows lay abandoned on their beds. TJ usually sleeps just below his pillow. Sam is worse. He starts out laying with his head on his pillow, because I put him there. 99% of the time, he falls asleep with his head at the foot of the bed.

Those poor, abused, lonely pillows. I wonder if they'll love them someday? I certainly couldn't do without mine! I need at least two!

Night Prowler

Monday night is grocery night. I leave for Meijer around 7:30 p.m. and Bill puts the boys in bed by 8:30. Last night, I was running late and didn't leave until 8:00. Then I arrived at Meijer and discovered my list and coupons were at home on the counter. I had to come all the back and get them. I gave the boys good-night kisses when I stopped in, then returned to Meijer again to shop. I love unnecessary trips when it's 14 degrees out.

Anyway, when I got home, Bill was watching Heroes. I joined him, since it's one of only 3 shows that I watch every week (along with The Office, and ER). At 10:00, I went down to the boys' room to lay out their clothes for today, and to flip off their closet light. They insist on having it on when we put them down, but are fine with it being turned off when I go to bed. I got to their room and noticed Sam's special blanket and Buddy (one of his old burp cloths he drags around) laying just inside the door. I thought it was very odd that Sam would have gone to sleep without them. He usually yells non-stop if something is amiss with his bedtime routine. As I pushed the door open, I bent down to pick up his things, but I had to stop because the door was stuck. I peeked around the back to see what was in the way, and it was SAM! I looked around the room and was quickly able to discern that he had gotten back up after Bill put him in bed. The ceiling fan was on full-blast, some toys had been pulled out of the closet, and Sam was sound asleep on top of several Matchbox Cars. I had to leave the room before I started laughing. I had Bill come and observe the disaster before I cleaned everything up, turned the fan OFF, and put Sam back in bed. Bill must have been in the basement the whole time I was shopping, or he would have heard Sam goofing off. I can't believe Sam fell asleep on his toys! And of course, TJ slept through the whole thing. He never lasts more than five minutes.

I just wish I had taken a picture.

Pandora Radio

Bill is full of ideas, most of which I do not understand (see his blog if you don't believe me). But every once in awhile, he comes up with something cool.

He just set up a Pandora radio station for me (www.pandora.com). My station is Josh Groban. It plays alot of Josh Groban (TJ was thrilled to hear them play 'Believe' from "The Polar Express"), but it also plays music it thinks is similar to Josh Groban. So far, I love it. (Bill has 3 stations set up for himself...Percy Faith, Pat Methany, and Fourplay. Can't say I'd listen to any of those!)

It's free, and Bill can't figure out why it's free. He says it must be new.

For the record, he also dressed the boys and made them cinnamon rolls this morning. Maybe he's getting sick or something.

Sam's afternoon snack

1 graham cracker square
1 small handful of peanuts
1 small handful of sunflower seeds

I am not kidding. He cries if I don't give him his peanuts and 'flower seeds'! I gave him some one night when he was bugging me for food while I made dinner. I thought they would gross him out and he'd leave me alone. Wrong!

My irresistable little man

Nolan started holding his arms up to me this week. Of course, he holds them up whenever I set him down, as he is of the opinion that he should be held constantly. Why, oh why, does he have to be so stinkin' cute (and so stinkin' clingy!)?

What a difference a year makes!

This past Sunday evening was the annual Christmas program at church. Last year, TJ had me totally mortified when he got up front and started moaning into the microphone. I had no one to blame but myself. I told him to stand still (he did), I told him to leave the hay alone (he did), I told him to keep his hands to himself (he did). Did it occur to me to talk about microphone etiquette? Nope, and I paid the price. The congregation was in stitches, but I desperately wanted the pew to swallow me up.

This year, TJ was Mr. Responsible. His class (the four-year-olds) was in charge of setting up the manger scene. TJ and his friend Drew carried the manger up. This involved TJ climbing the stairs backwards while holding the manger (I held my breath the whole time). After he set the manger down, he tripped, and then added another fake fall for effect, but kept moving toward the exit. He and his class all came back up together and sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus. At the end of the program, TJ was in a special choir that he volunteered for. They sang "All is Well" and "Silent Night". We had been listening to those two songs endlessly, trying to help TJ memorize them. Even Sam walks around the house, singing a few phrases from "All is Well". I hear that song in my sleep!

This was Sam's first year in the program. His class, the two-year-olds were up first. Sam was so excited to get up front that he slipped and smacked his head on the pew (we were in the front row). He started crying loudly. The congregation thought this was cute and laughed. The louder they laughed, the harder he cried. I was a little frustrated that they thought it was cute when he was hurt. He did pull himself together and got up on stage. He was just supposed to do the motions to "Away in a Manger" (he stood there and smiled) and then motions to a song called "Hush" (he puts his finger to his lips, but that's it). Toward the end of that song, he started wandering around the platform, smiling the whole time.

As usual, Cookie did a great job with the Christmas program, and the birthday party for Jesus afterwards. I wish I had half of her energy!

Eight months old!

Nolan hit the 8-month mark yesterday. This is really flying by! He's changed a lot in the past month. He's interacting so much more and we're starting to see more of his personality. I continue to be grateful every day for our little surprise.

Coming soon...to a Christmas card near you...

Once again, I am doing photo cards for our Christmas cards this year. Last year, it was a nightmare trying to get both TJ and Sam to look cute for the picture I took. This year, I decided to do three separate shots. I met a girl at a craft show who is designing a card for us, and will make it a 4x6 size (so I can print it at the regular price at Meijer instead of the photo card price).

This concept has gone extremely well so far. I was really happy with the pictures I got of the boys. Here they are, in their un-cropped versions:

The first Christmas party!

On Saturday, we had our first Christmas get-together. We (our family, Bill's mom, and Mandy & her crew) went down to Niles and spent the day with Bill's Uncle Bob, Aunt Joyce, and cousins Katherine, Jennifer and her husband, and Chris and his wife. I have no idea how long this had been planned, as I only learned about it six days earlier. Bill needs a palm pilot, a secretary, or he needs to start writing things on his hand. Thankfully, we had the day free!


The boys had a blast. Uncle Bob took TJ, Sam, and Owen out for a tractor ride. He made the mistake of showing TJ how to raise and lower the basket. Apparently, TJ slammed it into the ground a few times, making for a quick and uncomfortable stop. Sam was a bit hesitant about the tractor, so his ride was a bit shorter. Later, Dan and Kevin had TJ and Owen playing pool (with no sticks, since neither TJ or Owen is big enough to handle those).



Nolan (whose middle name is in honor of Uncle Bob) was extremely fascinated with his great-uncle. Whenever Uncle Bob was in the room, Nolan was staring at him. Maybe Nolan was trying to tell him he wanted a tractor ride too!





The boys got their annual gift of a new CAT vehicle. Audrey got a doll (finally, a child for Aunt Joyce to shop for!). Bill got a 300 ft measuring tape. He was thrilled with it. I think of it as another tool to get him in trouble. I got a green kitchen knife (it's pretty cool!) and my annual Precious Moments ornament.



It's too bad life is so busy...we always have so much fun with the Knapps! Maybe next year I can do less chasing and policing of children and have more time to sit and chat.