Life These Days

We are slowly, but surely settling in to the new house!  We still have random boxes throughout the house, but I am setting a goal of getting them emptied and out of the house by this weekend (I know, I know…why am I on the internet then?).  The house is coming together and I can’t wait to post pictures as soon as we have everything put away!

We have met some of our neighbors.  The people across the street from us have a 4 year old girl and a 2 (almost) year old boy.  She is a stay-at-home mom and he works for NASA on the arsenal (where Larry works).  We have spent most of our afternoons outside talking with them and letting the kids play.  The really nice thing is that we pull out all the toys from each of our garages and just let the kids play with whatever.  Their kids have taken a liking to Alex’s truck and tricycle and Alex loves riding their tricycle and a Dora bike!  There is also a couple a few houses down that have two little boys, one is 5 and the other is 2 – he was actually born a week after Alex.  They have come and played with Alex a few times.  And yes, if any of you are friends of mine on Facebook you will have noticed that we also have a neighbor named Harley Davidson.  Kind of ironic, huh?!  I just laughed a little when he told us his name J  Our neighborhood is full of kids and young couples – I love it!  The ladies play Bunco once a month – I’m not quite sure what Bunco is, but figure I will give it a try!  Also, our neighborhood has a 5K walk every Saturday morning.  It is a time to come out and meet your neighbors and get healthy.  We haven’t done the 5K walk yet, but we are planning to!  Our community pool will soon be open and I can’t wait to get Alex out there and enjoy it!  It is great living in a neighborhood where Alex can play outside with other kids, Larry and I can meet people that we really like and where we feel a sense of community!

Alex is loving Mother’s Day Out!  He is really thriving and learning so much.  He knows a few letters, knows what sounds they make and can pick the correct magnet letters of his magnet board!  The other day he made me the best present ever.  For Mother’s Day, the kids painted a flower pot and the teachers helped them put a paper flower in it with their pictures on it.  It was adorable!  He looked so cute waiting at the door to give it to me and he was so excited, however last night he decided that he wanted his present back and it was his, not Mommy’s!  I could never understand why my Mom kept all of my little arts and crafts from all of my school years, but now, having Alex, I can’t imagine not keeping these treasures!

I’m back to cleaning up around here!  I just wanted to give you a little update on what we have been up to and how we are doing!  I know that I haven’t been all that great about taking pictures lately – I promise to get better about it!  I know you all are missing out on your Alex “fix”!    Here are a few pictures from my cell phone to tide you over:

Here is my incredible flower pot...I just love how he smiles for his teachers, but he won't smile when I take his picture:

Driving our neighbors tricycle (yes, he is wearing his helmet OVER his hat):

What's Been Going On Lately...

Just thought I would post a little (well, it may get long) update about us!  So much has been going on lately, so I have a bunch to say!

THE MOVE/NEW HOUSE

The move went fairly smoothly.  We had packers in our house in Enterprise on March 25 and March 26.  They were great.  However, my Dad's Galileo Thermometer was broken and that made me VERY sad!  We have it listed on our missing or broken items sheet, so I am hopeful that I will be able to get a replacement for it.  The loaders came to the house on Monday, March 29 and loaded up all our belongings. 

We travelled up to Huntsville separately.  I had Alex and the three dogs, along with Mom & Dad's urns. I also had a few suitcases of clothes that we would need for the next few days, and a few coolers full of our frozen and refrigerated items.  Larry had a car packed full of our personal belongings (things we didn't want to movers to take).

We closed on the new house on Tuesday, March 30.  We were very excited and the closing couldn't have gone smoother.

They delivered all of our household belongings to the new house on Wednesday, March 31.  We directed them what rooms to put boxes and furniture in and they did.  We have been slowly and steadily unpacking boxes since April 1.  I think we are 75% done, but we are having a hard time finding the motivation to do it and we have had a few setbacks.  Also, have you ever tried packing or unpacking with a toddler around?...IMPOSSIBLE!!  No matter how many times I tell him no, he still takes things out of boxes that he shouldn't and often hides them in places where we cant find it.  We try to do most of the unpacking during naptime or once he goes to bed for the night!

We are determined to get it done in the next week though.  I can't wait to post pictures of the house once we have all the boxes out of here!

ALEX

Alex is growing and changing everyday.  He is no longer the little baby that was content with being held, now he is a fast moving, quick thinking, active toddler!  He is trying so hard to speak and is getting pretty darn good at it (I wonder who he gets that from).  He is beginning to form sentences, which is pretty neat!

Alex goes to Mother's Day Out two times a week - Mondays and Wednesdays from 8:30 am until 12:10 pm.  He is loving it.  The last time I dropped him off (last Wednesday), he went right through the gate and said "Bye-bye Mama!"  It made me sad that my little boy is okay with me leaving, but I was also very happy that we have found him a place that he is comfortable at and wants to go to.  When he woke up this morning, he said "School Mama, School!"  He was heartbroken when I told him that we weren't going to school because he had a cough.  It is important to me to have found a place for him that we both feel comfortable at - and I think I accomplished that!

We are struggling with listening.  He hears us just fine, he just chooses not to do what we ask of him.  We are trying to be patient and remind ourselves that this is just a stage and it will pass, but that is a VERY hard thing to do!!  There are days that I feel like we are making progress on the listening front, and other days that I feel like we are taking a few steps backwards!

Oh, the joys of raising a toddler...but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world!  I love my son and he is a constant reminder of how blessed I truly am!

LARRY

Larry had 10 days off to spend with us thru the move.  It was great to have him around 24/7.  He went back to work on April 12 at the new Huntsville facility for the first time.  I think he spent a day or two getting everything up and ready to start working.  He had to get a few new badges, set up his desk and meet all the new people!  

He is already back in full-force work mode.  He had his first flight this past week and is actually in the midst of analyzing the data from it.  In the next few weeks (I'm going to be vague here and not say the exact dates - there are sickos out there and I don't want them knowing when Larry isn't going to be home), he is traveling to Indianapolis for a meeting with the people of Rolls Royce.  As stressed as he sometimes gets, I know that he loves his job and he knows that he is blessed to have found such an incredible job right out of college!

SARAH

A little about me...hmm!  Well, as some of you know, we have been trying to get pregnant since Alex turned one.  I have been on several cycles of Clomid and nothing has been happening.  It has been frustrating each month to not have a cycle end in pregnancy.  We knew that we had been doing everything that was asked of us, but nothing was happening.  I finally decided that enough was enough and made an appointment with the ART Fertility Clinic.

We met with Dr. Allemand on Wednesday, April 7.  After a full and thorough discussion, he felt like something more was going on with my body than what we knew.  He felt as though it would be best to  do a laproscopy and hysteroscopy.  This procedures would look around the outside of my uterus, as well as the outside of my ovaries.  During this surgery, they look for endometriosis, scar tissues or any adhesions.  We set up surgery for Friday, April 9 - yes, it was quick and no, we weren't really prepared for it being that quick, but it worked out best for where I was in my cycle and Larry happened to already have off work!  We also discovered from an ultrasound that I have Polycystic Ovaries.

On Friday, we went to Brookwood Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama, bright and early - we had to be there at 5:15 am, which meant we left our house are 3:00 am.  VERY early morning!  They took me back fairly quickly, got the IV's in, gave me a little medicine to calm my nerves and then took me back for surgery (my scheduled surgery time was 7:15 am, but I think they took me back to the operating room around 6:55 am).  I don't remember any of the surgery since I was knocked out :)

When I started to come back around in recovery, it was nearly 9:00 am.  Apparently the surgery went a little longer than we expected.  After spending a little time in recovery, they wheeled me back to a room and Larry was there within seconds!  Once I felt up to it, Dr. Allemand came in the room to tell me his findings.  I have Stage 3 (out of 4 stages) Endometriosis. He had to laser out quite a bit on my uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes.  He still left the disease on my bowel and large intestine.  He doesn't mess with those areas (looks like I will need to visit a GI Doctor or a General Surgeon in the future to get that taken care of).  He was impressed with how much he was able to get out and said that he definitely thinks the Endometriosis contributed to us not getting pregnant.  Endometriosis mixed with Polycystic Ovaries is not a great combination.

At the next appointment, we are going to discuss injectable hormone medications to stimulate egg growth and development.  My body does not ovulate on it's own - I have to give it some sort of medication to have ovulation.  And since we have done SOOOO many cycles of Clomid, my RE (Reproductive Endocrineologist) would like me to try shots - yes, that does mean giving myself shots, and yes, I am so thankful that I am not squeamish.

We are trying to remain hopeful and place all of the medical decision into the hands of an RE and place all of our fears with God.  For it is only Him that knows if we are lucky enough to have another little addition to our family!

For those of you that don't know, my Mom had Endometriosis discovered in her body when she was only 28 - they had to take out one of her fallopian tubes as well as that vary.  Eventually, the Endometriosis regrew on the other side and on her uterus and she had a full hysterectomy at the age of 31.  During all of my struggles to get pregnant, I always wondered if I could possibly have Endometriosis - it was both relief that we found out something that could be causing us problems in getting pregnant, but it also scares everything in me.  Knowing that Endometriosis does regrow makes me wonder how much time I have before it grows back and once it grows back, what do we do?  I am trying to take all of this one step at a time and not try to rush anything.  

This is long enough!  Hope you enjoyed the little update on our life!  Thanks to the many friends and family who have helped with the move, watching Alex for us and being there for us!  It really does mean a lot to us!

Alex's Half-Birthday

Our little man is two and a half today...or as he likes to say "two-half"!

I can't believe that time is going by so quickly.  Lately, when I look at him, I see a little boy and not the sweet baby that he once was!  As much as I loved snuggling that sweet, warm baby, I would never trade these days!

Everyday with Alex is an adventure.  He is learning new words and phrases and is using them ALL the time.  We have to watch our words around him...he sure can repeat things :)  He is also mimic-ing our movements and the things we do.  He keeps us laughing constantly - and he knows it.  He loves to make us laugh and laugh along with us!  He does so many things looking for our reaction, both positive and negative!

He has no fear and embraces life fully and fearlessly!  I love watching him try something new and hearing "I did it"!  He is full of pride when he does things on his own - he definitely is an independent little man!

He is very affectionate when he wants to be!  And really, there is nothing better than sweet kisses from my boy!  He gets so excited when Larry comes home from work and showers him with hugs and kisses and begs him to "go play"!

At school, my big boy goes off to class and says "bye-bye mama"!  I'm so glad that he likes school, but honestly, it kills me a little inside that he doesn't get more upset when I leave!  As much as I like taking him to school and getting a four hour break - I really can't wait to pick him up!  I love when he first notices me in his class and says "my mama, my mama"!

Our little boy is growing up and we are loving it!  He has changed so much in the past two and a half years - I can't wait to see what the next two and a half look like!

Happy half-Birthday, sweet boy!

20 Months Old...

Our little man is 20 months old…I just can’t believe it! It feels like just yesterday I was holding our brand-new baby in my arms! I sit here today marveling at how much he has grown and how much he continues to grow.

I figured that today, on his 20-month birthday, would be a good opportunity to update everyone on all that he is doing and saying! He amazes me everyday with all that he is learning – he really is like a sponge, soaking up everything…all the time!

*Alex has two speeds…fast and faster! He is always on the move and always going full-throttle! He doesn’t know how to slow down, but he wouldn’t be Alex if he was still!

*He is saying so many new words and it seems like he is saying a new one everyday. On his list of frequently said words are:
-Go – and many variations of it, including “Let’s go”, “Go Away”, “Go, Go, Go”
-Hi and Bye (sometimes “Goodbye” and sometimes “Bye-Good”
-Dog and Kitty
-Here
-Hot (simultaneously blowing on food that he thinks is hot)
-Daddy – mostly to Daddy, but EVERYONE is Daddy though! I can come down the
stairs and he shouts “Daddy” – we laugh every time he does it, so now I think
he just does it because he thinks he is a comedian!
-Mommy – a word that just melts my heart
-Rascal
-Milk, Cup and Juice
-Please and More
-Yes, Yeah and Yay
-No and Nope
-Play
-Diaper and Potty
-Mouth, Eyes, Nose, Ears and Toes
-Cracker and Cookie
-Car and Truck

*He answers us “Yes” when we ask him if he want to do something and he does. He answers us “No” if he doesn’t want to do whatever we have asked of him! It is showing us that he does understand what we are asking him. He is also following direction very well. For instance, he will go and get his cup when I ask him to, or he will put away a toy when I tell him to.

*Alex LOVES to feed the dogs their dinner (see post on June 10 for pictures). Every night he waits by the pantry door and gets so excited when we tell him it is time to feed to dogs.

*He can tell us the noises that several different animals make and point them out in his little animal book. It is absolutely hilarious to hear him make the noises – I promise to try to get a video of him making the noises soon! He can successfully make the noises of and point out: a kitty, a dog, an elephant, a lion (by far his favorite), a tiger, a bird, a pig, a mouse, a bear, a frog, a duck and a monkey (his second favorite).

*He can point out his ears, nose, mouth, eyes, belly button and toes. He can also point them out on Larry and I!

*Saturday, I started to teach him the alphabet (we are learning by cookies shaped like the letters)! So far, he can recognize and say A, F, K, M, O.

*He is still a terribly picky eater. I swear, this child could live on macaroni and cheese and hot dogs!

*He has a cute little habit of putting on his batting helmet whenever he rides his Little Einstein’s Rocket ride-on toy!

*We are slowly working on potty-training! We are more interested in getting him used to the potty and what he is supposed to do on it, rather than trying to “make” him use it all the time! He is doing good and does realize what he is supposed to do on it.

*He gives kisses out randomly…and it is the sweetest thing EVER! He will pucker up his little lips and say MUAH!

*He is a creature of habit! When Daddy comes home from work, we wait by the window looking for his car, wait on him to come up the stairs and he leads Daddy upstairs to change out of his work clothes! He loves his routine!

*Alex is a dancing fool! Whenever he hears music, he will put up on of his arms (not quite sure why) and start be-bopping to the music. It is so funny to see him dancing…and it ALWAYS puts a smile on my face!

*We have a naptime and nighttime routine that he loves. We read him a story, give our hugs and kisses and tell him that we love him and goodnight. He waves us goodbye and then settles in for sleep! He takes a nap around 1 pm for about 2 hours and goes to bed for the night around 7:30 pm.

*He loves playing with the dogs. We are still trying to teach him to be nice and to not be so rough – he is getting it, but it is a slow process!

*Most nights, he shares his dinner with the dogs. Don’t worry though, he is VERY fair. He makes sure to throw down three pieces of whatever he is eating – he doesn’t like to leave anyone out! The dogs now wait at his high chair for his handouts!

*We have started implementing “time-out”. He knows when he does something wrong and starts to head to the “time-out” chair. He only has to sit in the chair for a minute and a half (the time correlates with his age).

*When he doesn’t get what he wants, he has started to throw himself down on the ground and cry! He looks so pitiful when he does it. I try my hardest not to acknowledge him until he calms down (I don’t want to encourage his behavior or condone it), but sometimes he is so funny that I can’t help but laugh!

*He loves to be outside! He loves running around, playing at the playground, going for wagon rides, riding his battery-powered four-wheeler and running through the sprinklers at the Sprayground! If he is outside…he is a happy boy!

*He has been trying to put on his clothes. Sometimes, the shirt is where the pants go and the pants are on his head, but he is trying and showing interest in doing it himself. He loves to put his own shoes on – he has a hard time with tennis shoes, but he is great with his sandals and Crocs! He has been known to put on my shoes or Larry’s shoes, which is quite entertaining!

Oh goodness, there is so much more, but I think this is enough of a “brag” post for now! All in all, our little man is growing up, meeting milestones and amazing us everyday. He is the light of our life and the sunshine on our darkest days! Even when he drives us crazy, we couldn’t imagine our life without him!

Update on all things Alex - Part 2!

I realized that it had been quite awhile since I have given an update on all things Alex (it has been about 2 months). Between the holidays and moving to Maryland, I haven't had much time to write in the journal! He has started doing new things both physically and developmentally, as well as fine tuning all the things has been doing!

He is saying so many more things, it is incredible. I swear he learns a new word everyday (or at least it seems that way). He can now say the following words, and most of them are pretty recognizable:

Dog

Ball (and simultaneously points to a ball)

Hi/Hi Guys/Hi Dada

Oh Man/Oh Me

Dada

Mama

Gabba (for his favorite show – Yo Gabba Gabba!)

No

Stop (usually at the dogs when they are barking)

Look

That

Cup

Bite

Bye-Bye (or sometimes when he is feeling lazy just “bye”)

Recently, I have started trying to teach him the parts of his face. We have started with the mouth. I try to point to my mouth and say mouth, then point to his mouth and say mouth. Yesterday (January 20) for the first time he pointed to his mouth when I said mouth. I couldn’t wait for Larry to get home so I could show him his new “trick”, but of course when Daddy got home we decided not to show off our new skill!

Alex is a dancing fool! Whenever there is music on at the house, he is dancing. He shakes his booty and gets the biggest smile on his face – so cute! I need to get a video of it, so you all can see it! I will try to work on that this week! He also has figured out how to spin around in a circle, which he does quite often!

He is climbing onto everything. A few weeks ago he figured out how to climb on and off the couch (bad idea). He is constantly climbing on the couch, off the couch and on the back of the couch! There is a picture in the album titled “Added 011609”, where he has climbed up onto the back of the loveseat and is messing with the air conditioner thermostat. When I asked him what he was doing, he just turned around and started grinning…he is such a mess! Oh, along with his great new climbing skill, he has learned how to successfully climb OUT of his Pack-N-Play. Yesterday (January 20) I left him in his Pack-N-Play to run in the kitchen to get him a snack and some juice. I heard him making some noises, but thought nothing of it – when I came back in the room he was standing outside of his Pack-N-Play and smiling at me! I put him back in while I was sitting in the room and he climbed out not once, but twice! He was not shy at all to show me his new found talent!

Another fun game is to take his toys and throw them over the gates. Sometimes if he is really lucky, he will get to watch the toy bounce down the stairs to the foyer! Every time he does this, he laughs like it is the first time he has done it. It amazes Larry and I the things that he will throw over the gates – some of them are really heavy, but he has determination!

He is quite fond of running up to either Larry or me and blowing on our arms (or whatever skin is exposed). He thinks that is the funniest noise in the world. He smiles and cracks himself up! Of course, Larry and I are expected to laugh right along with him! Each time he runs up to us with an open mouth and each time we are worried that he might bite us, but he hasn’t yet – he just wants to blow on our skin!

Alex does not know the meaning of slow or still! He is neither of these two things! He is always RUNNING around and always on the move! If you find him slow or still, he is usually sleeping.

He enjoys the new stairs at our place in Maryland. He loves crawling up them and scooting down them. We have put gates up so he can’t discover them on his own, but when we go up the stairs with him he insists on doing it himself.

Alex and Daddy love to roll around on the floor and play together. Alex will tackle Daddy and roll over him. He laughs so hard when he plays with Daddy! It melts my heart to see them playing around with each other – they both are having such a good time and it is completely evident how much they love each other. I added a few pictures of them playing together in the album titled “Added 011609”.

Another thing that melts my heart – he comes up to us now and gives us hugs! He will run over from wherever he is and give us hugs, spur of the moment and unplanned. Totally unexpected, but so very much appreciated! He has started giving kisses – although they are very sloppy and usually consist of his open mouth slobbering all over you!

On Monday (January 19), we took Alex to a place called Kiddos. It is an indoor toddler play place. They have padded mats on the floor, a ball pit, tunnels, things to crawl on, balls to play with and mirrors. Alex had a blast! They have a playgroup for his age group every Monday morning from 10 to 11 and I think we are going to go. The other Mom’s were pretty nice and it was great to be able to have Alex interact with the other kids. Larry was off on Monday, so it was great to be able to have him come along.

We are still holding steady with 8 teeth. The top four and bottom four. But he is in the process of having a molar come through on the left side of his mouth. He is also getting his top two incisor teeth, nothing like getting three painful teeth all at once. Needless to say, this process is going very slowly and he has not been a happy camper!

All in all, our little man is growing and changing every day. He is constantly surprising us with new things he can do - some we teach him, others he just picks up on his own. He is at an amazing age – filled with so much wonder, excitement and love.

Update on All Things Alex...

It has been quite a while since I have given an update on what Alex is doing developmentally. There are so many things to update on!

Alex has three words in constant rotation (along with his “normal” babble).
1. "HI" - He can plainly say “HI” and often overuses this word. He says “HI” nearly a hundred times a day – that is not even exaggerating! In the beginning, he was saying it ALL the time, regardless of the situation! However, he now says it when he is greeting someone. He makes it a point to say “HI” to most everyone – people that come in the house, daddy when he gets back from work, the dogs, random people at restaurants and stores, etc.
2. "NO" – thankfully, he is not using this to be defiant…yet! He hears me tell the dogs “NO” when they start barking, so now he has decided that he needs to be the one to tell them “NO”! He is very clear when he is yelling NO at them and it is very cute! He has yet to understand that NO can be used in many different situations, but I am sure that one day he will learn it!
3. "OOK" (for look) – he ALWAYS points at things, so Larry and I have been pretty diligent to say “LOOK” when he points to things. We are trying to teach him that is the appropriate time to say “LOOK” and he is slowly learning it!

Alex is officially a walker (and has been for about a month). He much prefers walking as his method of transportation. If he happens to fall down when he is walking, he gets right back up and continues on. He is fearless when it comes to falling down (or anything really).

Alex is into EVERYTHING! This child cannot be left alone! He opens cabinets and pulls everything out (we are in the process of baby-proofing the cabinets). We have to keep all the doors closed and for the most part we try to barricade him in the living room.
He is active…so very active! He is constantly on the move. I really don’t think he ever sits still (and if he is too quiet, you know he is into something). I now know why he is only in the 20th percentile for weight – he is burning off calories just as fast as he is putting them into his mouth!

He is eating real food, three times a day! He loves most everything that we give him. He has a habit of letting the food that he doesn’t like fall out of his mouth. I guess that is his way of letting us know that he does not want anymore! He also only gets whole milk now, no more baby formula! He drinks juice out of a straw cup – he never really took to a sippy cup! And one of the most enjoyable things for him to do during any meal times – SHARE HIS FOOD WITH THE DOGS! He takes delight in throwing his food down and watching the dogs scramble to get it! He laughs so hard when they run around his high chair waiting for his handouts! Oh, don’t worry he is plenty fair – he makes sure to throw enough food down for each of the THREE dogs!

One of his favorite new games is to turn off the TV. He enjoys pushing the button and running quickly from it! We are trying to teach him not to do that, but so far we haven’t been very successful!

He LOVES Wheel of Fortune! Sad, I know, but so darn cute! When he watches the show, he will stop whatever he is doing and clap for the contestants. We think that it might be the lights and the wheel that attract his attention! Needless to say, every night we turn to Wheel of Fortune at 6:30 and laugh at Alex clapping along!

He is loving the game “peek-a-boo”. He will put a blanket up over his face and wait for you to say “Where’s Alex?” before he pulls the blanket down. As soon as you say “peek-a-boo”, he starts belly laughing. It is so much fun. A few times, he has put his hands in front of his eyes instead of a blanket.

One of the most special and sweet things that he does that absolutely melts my heart – he points out Grandpa Jim and Grandma Kathy’s picture. When you walk into his room and ask him where Grandpa Jim and Grandma Kathy are, he immediately points to the picture that I have up on his bookshelf. I never taught him to do this and neither has Larry, which makes it even more special. One day I ask him where they were and he pointed at them - I firmly believe that he knows who they are and that makes me so incredibly happy!

He is getting to be such a big boy. Sometimes I look at him and wonder where my baby went! He looks so grown up and even though I might be a little biased, he certainly is handsome! He is doing so many things and each day I am amazed at what he is learning. This age is difficult – they get into so much and they are not comprehending the word no when they are doing something they shouldn’t, but nevertheless it is such a fun age

There are so many more things, but that is enough to brag on for one entry!

Total Teeth - 8

For those of you keeping count, our little man has 8 teeth!

Two new teeth popped up overnight - or at least it felt like overnight! The two next to the center bottom teeth are in the process of coming up! So he now has his front four teeth on both the top and the bottom! Our little man is growing up...before we know it, he will have a mouthful of teeth!