I've had a lot of thoughts rolling through my head as we have been preparing for kindergarten.
Will my child be able to find his classroom once he gets off the bus?
What if he gets off the wrong bus stop on his way home from school?
Will he be bullied while on the bus?
What if he is just wandering around the halls as school? Will anyone help him find his class?
Will he come in from recess when his teacher blows his whistle?
Does he have recess at the same time as older kids? How closely do they monitor for bullying?
Will he make friends?
Will he be able to sit still all day?
Can he follow directions?
What if he gets belligerent? Sometimes he has those days . . .
Sometimes he doesn't warm up to people very fast, will he like his teacher?
Will his teacher be able to understand what he is saying? Sometimes he is hard to understand.
Will kids make fun of him for being hard to understand?
These thoughts plague me.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Best Mother's Day Gift . . . EVER!!!!!
I know all you mother's out there think that your kids give you the best gifts, but I think Ethan has provided the best gift of all. Seriously. No Contest. None whatsoever. No, it wasn't a cute little fingerprint sample with a poem, or some incredibly original craft. No watercolor or sleeping in his bed all night (although I would probably think that was the best thing ever . . . hmmm, a thought to savor for a later time . . . ) He gave me the best present ever, coughing the little lego coin out of his nose. And yes, you read that right. Let me preface.
Ethan loves sticking things up his nose. Generally they are things that cannot get stuck up there. Example: The toy drill that he and Connor have that actually revolves around. For some reason, it is fantastically fun for him to stick the end up his nose and give it a little whirl. Maybe he's finally figured out personal grooming, I don't know . . . but I digress.
Last night as we were watching a movie together as a family, Ethan was tinkering around, like any normal 2-year-old. Brian and I were both watching him putter when we noticed him open up the little treasure chest that Connor has for his lego men. He then proceeded to stick a little coin up his nose. This caused both Brian and I to jump up off the couch and run over there, frantically trying to get said object out of his nose. Of course, to no avail. I tried suctioning the little coin out with our nasal aspirator, but with no success. I had Brian load the boys into the car (Connor grabbed his doctor kit, he was pretty excited to take Ethan to the doctor) and we called Instacare. The sad little recorded message informed us that they had closed 15 minutes earlier. Of course they had.
Brian unloaded the boys while I started googling the scenario we were in. Of course, this didn't help me any. I sat there praying about what I should do. I really didn't want to have to take the little stinker to the emergency room. I suddenly remembered the retired ENT doctor we had in our ward. I called him up and asked this sweet man his opinion about what I should do. He had a hard time not laughing. He reassured me about all the things that he had pulled out of little boy's noses and just told me to make an appointment with an Ears Nose Throat doctor on Monday. He told me 1 of 3 scenarios would probably happen. 1- Said gold coin would work its way out on its own before then. 2- Mucus would start to coat around the little coin, in which case the doctor would inject an anesthetic with a little bit of a decongestant and use forceps to pry the item out. Or 3- the coin would work its way up and finally come out the back of the throat, in which case Ethan would probably swallow it and we would never know. Lovely. At least he had reassured me that taking him to the Emergency Room was not necessary.
Well you can imagine that we watched him like a hawk that evening and the next morning. Just making sure that his nasal passage wasn't completely blocked and that he could still breath. You could tell by the way he was breathing that something was up there, like he was congested. I figured the mucus was starting to wrap its slimy little arms around that little coin. We stuck him in the shower that morning for his customary cleaning before church. He loves to gurgle and swallow the water, but ends up coughing most of the time. Whilst gurgling, coughing, and laughing, the little gold coin shot out of his nose.
HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!!!!
I know what you are all wanting to ask, so I'll just tell you. You had better believe that I kept that coin! I taped that sucker to a card and labeled it "Best Mother's Day Present EVER!!!" I will treasure it always.
Little gold coin in the Lego Playset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $12.47
Cost of monthly Internet for use of google . . . . . . . . . . .$32.12
Estimated cost of Emergency Room visit . . . . . . . . . . . .$374.83
Having your child give you the best mother's day gift you have ever received, thereby helping you save the estimated cost of the emergency room 22 days before you change insurance policies, so you are not having to needlessly fill your deductible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Priceless.
Ethan loves sticking things up his nose. Generally they are things that cannot get stuck up there. Example: The toy drill that he and Connor have that actually revolves around. For some reason, it is fantastically fun for him to stick the end up his nose and give it a little whirl. Maybe he's finally figured out personal grooming, I don't know . . . but I digress.
Last night as we were watching a movie together as a family, Ethan was tinkering around, like any normal 2-year-old. Brian and I were both watching him putter when we noticed him open up the little treasure chest that Connor has for his lego men. He then proceeded to stick a little coin up his nose. This caused both Brian and I to jump up off the couch and run over there, frantically trying to get said object out of his nose. Of course, to no avail. I tried suctioning the little coin out with our nasal aspirator, but with no success. I had Brian load the boys into the car (Connor grabbed his doctor kit, he was pretty excited to take Ethan to the doctor) and we called Instacare. The sad little recorded message informed us that they had closed 15 minutes earlier. Of course they had.
Brian unloaded the boys while I started googling the scenario we were in. Of course, this didn't help me any. I sat there praying about what I should do. I really didn't want to have to take the little stinker to the emergency room. I suddenly remembered the retired ENT doctor we had in our ward. I called him up and asked this sweet man his opinion about what I should do. He had a hard time not laughing. He reassured me about all the things that he had pulled out of little boy's noses and just told me to make an appointment with an Ears Nose Throat doctor on Monday. He told me 1 of 3 scenarios would probably happen. 1- Said gold coin would work its way out on its own before then. 2- Mucus would start to coat around the little coin, in which case the doctor would inject an anesthetic with a little bit of a decongestant and use forceps to pry the item out. Or 3- the coin would work its way up and finally come out the back of the throat, in which case Ethan would probably swallow it and we would never know. Lovely. At least he had reassured me that taking him to the Emergency Room was not necessary.
Well you can imagine that we watched him like a hawk that evening and the next morning. Just making sure that his nasal passage wasn't completely blocked and that he could still breath. You could tell by the way he was breathing that something was up there, like he was congested. I figured the mucus was starting to wrap its slimy little arms around that little coin. We stuck him in the shower that morning for his customary cleaning before church. He loves to gurgle and swallow the water, but ends up coughing most of the time. Whilst gurgling, coughing, and laughing, the little gold coin shot out of his nose.
HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!!!!
I know what you are all wanting to ask, so I'll just tell you. You had better believe that I kept that coin! I taped that sucker to a card and labeled it "Best Mother's Day Present EVER!!!" I will treasure it always.
Little gold coin in the Lego Playset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $12.47
Cost of monthly Internet for use of google . . . . . . . . . . .$32.12
Estimated cost of Emergency Room visit . . . . . . . . . . . .$374.83
Having your child give you the best mother's day gift you have ever received, thereby helping you save the estimated cost of the emergency room 22 days before you change insurance policies, so you are not having to needlessly fill your deductible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Priceless.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Wanted . . . One working Computer
Our computer seems to be having a midlife crisis. It no longer wants to read anything. It will no longer read CDs or anything put in through the USB port. Stupid thing. I probably shouldn't insult it too much though, or it might find more room to revolt.
Our family has been super busy and I'm sorry it has taken me so long to update. With the annoying lapse of my computer, I'm not able to download any pictures, so we will all have to patiently wait until we decide to invest the money into this dumb thing.
Connor is busy with school. He has just turned 5. He is as active as ever. He loves the nice weather, and loves to be outside. (Does anyone else wonder how they survived the winter? I find I ask myself that question whenever we have a rainy day, like today.) He's busy with school and is making leaps and bounds. I had an IEP meeting with his teachers a week ago and it went very well. They've got some good goals mapped out for him. We've set some good goals for him here at home too. Connor responds like a champ to all of this. He has to work a little bit harder than most kids his age, but he's a pro. We've started assigning him some simple chores around the house, and he is always happy to help out. He loves showing Ethan new things and has been a big help in potty training Ethan. Connor has this amazing imagination. He and I have started writing stories together. I love watching his mind work. His stories are classic Connor. They involve a myriad of animals and always have a fight scene.
Ethan turned 2 at the end of February. When Brian and I were expecting Connor people used to tease us that we should name him Calvin. (Calvin N. Hobbs . . . Come on, you've all thought it.) While Connor is extremely active, he doesn't have the mischievousness that a true Calvin would need. Enter Ethan. He is such a sweetheart, but this kid could drive a mother nuts. He is into everything. He never stops. He never lacks for a new adventure. He knows how to push all the right buttons. But I sure love him. He loves to snuggle and give hugs and kisses. He talks incessantly. He is always following his brother around and hates to be without him. He finds simple joy in everything. I love this little crazy. We've recently started potty training Ethan. He's responding pretty well to the whole thing. It's been very different from potty training Connor. What worked amazingly well for Connor, did not work at all for Ethan, a complete bomb. He loves his Mater and Lightning McQueen underwear though, and loves to get a prize from the potty jar. He's a trooper.
I am incredibly happy to report that after about 18 months of unemployment, spotty work, and sporadic pay checks, Brian has a new job. He's been applying for different jobs all over the place. Nothing has panned out. It was getting completely depressing. When he first lost his job we felt like it was an opportunity for something better to come along. It took its time getting here, but now that he has this awesome new job, I would do it all over again. He works for a company called Air-O Fastener. They supply nails, nail guns, etc. to contractors and building companies all over the valley. Brian got a call out of the blue asking him if he would like this job. I kid you not, just like that. All we can say is that it was completely heaven sent. There is no other way to describe it. We know that the Lord was watching out for us. He gets paid a salary, has benefits, paid days off, holidays, and has a regular pay check. What a blessing. I don't know if I could adequately express our happiness over this. Brian just got a new calling teaching the 14-year-old Sunday School class. It will be a good calling for him.
I'm staying busy chasing the boys. They are amazing. Who knew there would be so much gratification in raising kids? I'm still teaching piano lessons a couple days a week. I love it. It is so fulfilling. My piano kids are all pretty diligent about their lessons. Mostly little joys to teach. I'm still working with the Young Women. They are a riot. In spite of piano lessons and young women, I find myself busy with vocabulary words, chauffeuring Connor back and forth to school, potty training, cooking, cleaning, laundry, an occasional Zumba class, gardening, and playing with the boys. This is the life.
Our family has been super busy and I'm sorry it has taken me so long to update. With the annoying lapse of my computer, I'm not able to download any pictures, so we will all have to patiently wait until we decide to invest the money into this dumb thing.
Connor is busy with school. He has just turned 5. He is as active as ever. He loves the nice weather, and loves to be outside. (Does anyone else wonder how they survived the winter? I find I ask myself that question whenever we have a rainy day, like today.) He's busy with school and is making leaps and bounds. I had an IEP meeting with his teachers a week ago and it went very well. They've got some good goals mapped out for him. We've set some good goals for him here at home too. Connor responds like a champ to all of this. He has to work a little bit harder than most kids his age, but he's a pro. We've started assigning him some simple chores around the house, and he is always happy to help out. He loves showing Ethan new things and has been a big help in potty training Ethan. Connor has this amazing imagination. He and I have started writing stories together. I love watching his mind work. His stories are classic Connor. They involve a myriad of animals and always have a fight scene.
Ethan turned 2 at the end of February. When Brian and I were expecting Connor people used to tease us that we should name him Calvin. (Calvin N. Hobbs . . . Come on, you've all thought it.) While Connor is extremely active, he doesn't have the mischievousness that a true Calvin would need. Enter Ethan. He is such a sweetheart, but this kid could drive a mother nuts. He is into everything. He never stops. He never lacks for a new adventure. He knows how to push all the right buttons. But I sure love him. He loves to snuggle and give hugs and kisses. He talks incessantly. He is always following his brother around and hates to be without him. He finds simple joy in everything. I love this little crazy. We've recently started potty training Ethan. He's responding pretty well to the whole thing. It's been very different from potty training Connor. What worked amazingly well for Connor, did not work at all for Ethan, a complete bomb. He loves his Mater and Lightning McQueen underwear though, and loves to get a prize from the potty jar. He's a trooper.
I am incredibly happy to report that after about 18 months of unemployment, spotty work, and sporadic pay checks, Brian has a new job. He's been applying for different jobs all over the place. Nothing has panned out. It was getting completely depressing. When he first lost his job we felt like it was an opportunity for something better to come along. It took its time getting here, but now that he has this awesome new job, I would do it all over again. He works for a company called Air-O Fastener. They supply nails, nail guns, etc. to contractors and building companies all over the valley. Brian got a call out of the blue asking him if he would like this job. I kid you not, just like that. All we can say is that it was completely heaven sent. There is no other way to describe it. We know that the Lord was watching out for us. He gets paid a salary, has benefits, paid days off, holidays, and has a regular pay check. What a blessing. I don't know if I could adequately express our happiness over this. Brian just got a new calling teaching the 14-year-old Sunday School class. It will be a good calling for him.
I'm staying busy chasing the boys. They are amazing. Who knew there would be so much gratification in raising kids? I'm still teaching piano lessons a couple days a week. I love it. It is so fulfilling. My piano kids are all pretty diligent about their lessons. Mostly little joys to teach. I'm still working with the Young Women. They are a riot. In spite of piano lessons and young women, I find myself busy with vocabulary words, chauffeuring Connor back and forth to school, potty training, cooking, cleaning, laundry, an occasional Zumba class, gardening, and playing with the boys. This is the life.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Simple Equation
2 sets of boxing gloves + 2 little boys =
2 hours of fun
18 giggles
1 set of bite marks
416 times of mom asking them not to kill each other
And at the end of the day, 3 happily exhausted people . . .
2 hours of fun
18 giggles
1 set of bite marks
416 times of mom asking them not to kill each other
And at the end of the day, 3 happily exhausted people . . .
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Oh How I Love Them
How could Christmas not be wonderful with these two? Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!
Four-letter words and potty training
Funnily enough the two items in this post are not related, although it seems like they should be . . .
The other day Brian dropped Ethan's high chair tray on his foot. He immediately let out a 4-letter expletive, which sounded something like "darn it". Upon hearing his father, Ethan started repeating the offending 4-letter phrase, over and over and over . . . I think having this little parrot in our family might help Brian make some better word choices.
Ethan took me into the bathroom the other day and informed me that he wanted to use the potty. So I opened up the little potty for him and took off his diaper. I got him all positioned on it and sure enough, he used it! This has happened a few times. I want to say it is just a fluke. Maybe I should be pursuing this much more aggressively though. Being out of diapers before he is 2 is a big plus . . .
The other day Brian dropped Ethan's high chair tray on his foot. He immediately let out a 4-letter expletive, which sounded something like "darn it". Upon hearing his father, Ethan started repeating the offending 4-letter phrase, over and over and over . . . I think having this little parrot in our family might help Brian make some better word choices.
Ethan took me into the bathroom the other day and informed me that he wanted to use the potty. So I opened up the little potty for him and took off his diaper. I got him all positioned on it and sure enough, he used it! This has happened a few times. I want to say it is just a fluke. Maybe I should be pursuing this much more aggressively though. Being out of diapers before he is 2 is a big plus . . .
Sunday, December 13, 2009
12 Days of Christmas
Some cute family picked us for the 12 Days of Christmas. The boys were so excited! I don't know who you are, but you have made our holidays so much brighter! What a great reminder about what this season is all about; the love of Jesus Christ and the joy in giving. Thanks to whoever you are! The boys love the cozy new blanket! (Or as Ethan calls it, his "night-night")
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
