Panama City Beach

This year for our family vacation we decided on Splash Resort in Panama City Beach, Florida. We loaded up the cars and headed out. Grayson wanted to ride with us which worked out well because she kept William company and decreased the amount of times I had to crawl in the back to find his cup, snack, toy, etc. We loaded up the car at 2330. William had been asleep for a couple hours so I thought I would be perfect and he would sleep most of the way...I was WRONG!!! He was up for 12 hours straight!!! He was really good...he played and watched movies but he did NOT sleep! I had planned on sleeping when he slept so as you can guess I didn't sleep either! He finally crashed about 5 minutes before we stopped for lunch so I ate in the car and didn't let anyone wake him up! We finally got there and got unloaded and then I think we all crashed. The resort was nice. There was a small water park, a toddler splash pad, 2 pools, a hot tub and an arcade. It was right on the beach so all the rooms had gorgeous views. My only complaint with the resort was that for a place that was made for family it was absolutely not childproof. William could leave the condo and get out on the balcony. We had to barricade the doors and let him sleep with us which made for a long week since he has never slept with us and he is a wild sleeper. The wait for supper was 2 hours no matter where you were which doesn't really work with a 2 year old. Panama City was nice but it was crowded...definitely a popular place.  However, overall it was a great week and we got to spend it with some great people. The water was a bit rough due to the tropical storm blowing in but William loved the waves. We would hold him and the wave would hit and he would laugh and say "again, again!"

Dino Adventure

Carrie and I took the boys to Wichita Falls to see the Dinosaur exhibit. It's still so hard to take William to things like this. He refuses to ride in the stroller he's been able to unbuckle it for at least a year so we had to stop using it. He just takes off running...I don't think he's ever learned to walk. He went from crawling to running. I think the boys had fun but I think we could have spent a lot less money and just gone to Jumpland cause all they wanted to do was run and play in the bouce houses. Silly Boys!!!

2 words!!!

William put 2 words together!!! This may seems like a crazy thing to blog about but I'm so excited! William's speech has been delayed since his sleep apnea. We started speech therapy a couple weeks ago but it seems to be a slow process. Today after church William crawled in my bed and said "night night" so we laid and bed and played for a while and then I took him to his room to put him down for a nap and he said "momma bed!" I can't tell you how excited I was...I don't usually get excited when he throws fits so I think he was a little confused! :) I'm so glad he's making progress...I'm so proud of him!!!

Terrible Twos

The terrible twos are in full force at our house. It is to the point where I'd rather just stay home then try to take him anywhere. Tonight we decided we wanted to get out so we drove to Muenster for supper. As soon as we put William in his chair he started throwing a fit...a very LARGE fit! Rusty took him outside 3 times and he was a little better but not great. We drove 2 towns over and had already ordered drinks and an appetizer so we weren't leaving...we knew he'd calm down eventually but he was in a mood. Clearly we were frustrated but he's two and he throws fits...all two years olds throw fits...so why do some people feel the need to stare and give disapproving looks??? Seriously people...he's 2, I'm frustrated and exhausted and I'm doing the best I can...GIVE ME A BREAK!

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

I have always loved Dr. Seuss! Starting sometime while I was in college I would buy Dr. Seuss books any time I found them on sale, for the children I hoped to someday have. I had considered a Dr. Seuss themed party for William's first birthday but we decided on a barnyard theme. In June of 2011 I was shopping at Target and found the dollar aisle filled with Dr. Seuss things. I love to get an early start at planning and I knew it was possible that this might be the last year I get to choose the theme for his party so Dr. Seuss it was!!! Six months before his William's 2nd birthday I left Target with a basket full of Dr. Seuss decorations and party favors and began planning the party! The party was a huge success...we all had so much fun...but I had tons of left over Dr. Seuss stuff. What do you do when it's time for a play date on March 2 and you have lots of Dr. Seuss stuff??? You have a birthday party for Dr. Seuss!!!

They painted while we watched "The Cat in the Hat"

The finished product...One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

He loves stickers!!!

I attempted to take a pic of them together in their Dr. Seuss shirts...this is the best I got. They were so much easier to photograph when they were babies!

The cupcakes

Yummy

I'm not sure how much of the cake they ate but at least they enjoyed the icing!

T&A

The past few months have been rough and exhausting. William hasn't slept well in MONTHS...which of course means I haven't slept in months. He often wakes up multiple times during the night. When he does sleep it isn't good sleep...he's very restless. He used to eat anything and everything but eating has become a HUGE challenge. He isn't growing...he's actually lost weight. His speech is delayed and his behavior is often unbearable. After everyone continued to tell me he was a just a normal toddler boy and I needed to stop worrying I finally figured out he had obstructive sleep apnea due to enlarged tonsils. I took him to his pediatrician, who agreed with me and put in a referral for speech therapy and sent us to a ENT who agreed that William's tonsils needed to come out so on Valentine's day William had surgery to remove his tonsils and adenoids.

Even though it was just a T&A, standing there watching as your child is rolled into the OR is such horrible feeling. I quit my job to stay home with William...I've never been away from him for more than a few hours at a time. If I do have to leave him he stays with his daddy or his grandparents. So, standing there watching strangers wheel my baby boy back to the OR broke my heart and scared the crap out of me. I just wanted to go with him and hold his hand through the surgery. Those 30 minutes in the waiting room were 30 of the longest minutes of my life. While we were waiting my friend Ryan (who I worked with at Children's) came to the waiting room to check on us. He knew I was worried and took the time to go into the OR and check on him...I'm not sure he realizes how much that meant and how having someone I know and trust back with my baby, even for a short time, made me worry just a little less. Soon after that the nurse came and took us back to recovery. When I walked into the recovery room I heard my baby screaming and saw him climbing and hitting the nurse. Needless to say he didn't come out of the anesthesia well. Besides the screaming and hitting he wasn't keeping his sats up so Dr. Murray decided to send him to the PICU for the night. As we rolled into the PICU the attending Ben (who I also worked with at Children's) walked out to greet us. I was relieved and knew we were in good hands. Once we got to the PICU William was a different kid. The fentanyl and lortab had obviously kicked in. He was sitting up in bed playing with his new toys, watching Veggie Tales, drinking and eating a popsicle...and within a few minutes goldfish crackers. It was obvious at this point we didn't need to be in the PICU but we were there for the night. As you can imagine keeping William in bed attached to monitors was quite a task...I'm not sure how many sets of EKG leads we went through! Once he finally feel asleep he slept pretty well...I did not! First, I couldn't hear him breathing. I know this may sound crazy but for as long as I can remember William has been a loud breather and at night the snoring is so very loud followed by an apneic period and then a loud gasp for air...but that night I couldn't hear him. Clearly this is a good thing but something that will take time to get used to. It was also impossible to sleep in a recliner that didn't recline, in a room with monitors alarming and bright lights coming through the door. I just need to say that I've always thought that the parents of the patients I used to take care of were strong and amazing people but just one night in a PICU made me realize they are much stronger than I could ever imagine! The next morning Dr. Murray and Ben saw William and agreed he looked great and was ready to go home! We spent about an hour walking around the PICU while they got us discharged and then we were out of there! It was a rough 10 days. William spent most of that time in my arms. He was in a lot of pain. I had hoped that the lortab would make him sleep through most of it but that wasn't the case. We didn't get much sleep and he didn't eat much other than ice cream. Then all of the sudden William started eating and he hasn't stopped!!! It's so good to see him eat! We are working on eating better foods and eating at meal times and not just eating snacks but HE'S EATING!!! He is also sleeping! For the past week he has slept through the night! I'm sure that sounds crazy since he's two but it's been so long since that has happened. He is also taking naps on most days. This is a huge improvement! I knew that this surgery could make a difference but I have to say I am shocked at how quickly things have changed. It's been a week since he started feeling better and and started sleeping through the night and in that week he has learned at least 5 new words, started pronouncing others he already knew better and his behavior has improved SOOO much! Who knew removing your tonsils and adenoids could change your life that much!!!

Having so much fun...poor kid has no idea what is about to happen!

This might have been his favorite toy!

His ride while he was checked in

My sweet baby!

Yummy goldfish!

This is what happens when you put my son in the PICU! Crazy boy!

Philippians 4:6

Do not be anxious about anything,

but in everything, by prayer and petition, 

with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

This morning after William was wheeled back to the operating room and I was a nervous wreck I found myself thinking about this verse. I like the new living translation which says...

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.

Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.

As I was sitting there I realized I'm usually good about praying and I'm usually good about thanking God for what for what he has done but I'm NEVER good at the not worrying part. In fact I'm REALLY good at worrying. Now, I'm not gonna lie to you and tell you that once this verse came into my head I stopped worrying about my baby who was lying on the operating table and I'm not going to make some promise I can't keep about never worrying again. However, I did realize that I need to stop worrying so much and start trusting God more. I know this will be a daily battle. I know I will fail miserably at times...let's face it as I sit here writing this I'm worried about a hundred different things...but I hope that gradually I will worry less and trust God more.

Happy 2nd Birthday William!

I cannot believe my baby boy is 2! Where did time go??? William bringing you into the world was a great adventure and you've made sure that everyday since is an adventure as well. You are so smart, funny and loving. You have filled our home with love and laughter. I fall more in love with you every day. I'm so glad God chose me to be your momma...you truly are a blessing in our lives.

Decorations from William's Dr. Seuss party

Happy 2nd Birthday sweet boy

He loved having the food where he could get what he wanted when he wanted

The bounce house was a hit

Time for some coloring

Make a wish

Opening presents

Thank you to everyone who helped make William's birthday extra special. We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family!