Happy Halloween!

Halloween 2010 was a giant success!  Nicholas has been obsessed with Star Wars, and especially Darth Vader, for some time now so we decided that would be the perfect costume for him this year.  He was so proud of himself with his long cape and giant light saber in hand!  The first of the celebrations came on Thursday when they had a costume parade at his school.  Then on Friday Uncle Ryan, Aunt Cindy, and Jillian came up from Texas to spend the weekend with us.  On Saturday morning we took the kids to Parkhurst Pumpkin Patch which was great family fun!  They had a hay ride and Nicholas got to take his first pony ride too.  After a restful afternoon, the kids suited up and we headed out for trick or treating in our neighborhood.  Nicholas had so much fun collecting all his candy and looked absolutely adorable as the evil Lord Vader (I realize that's a bit of a contradiction, but it's true).  Jillian was dressed up as a poodle, which everyone fell in love with on sight!  The whole day was just perfect and we can't wait to do it again next year!  Happy haunting!

A Night to Remember

Once you have a child you quickly realize that parenting is really just one giant roller coaster ride.  There are countless ups and downs that take your breath away and leave you reeling with vertigo.  But you buckle yourself in for the ride and hang on tight because that thrill is better than anything you've ever experienced in your life and you'd walk through fire to get it.  But it's not all a walk in the park.  You also have to brace yourself for those sudden drops to the bottom because they come out of nowhere and hit like a Mack truck.  This weekend was one of those times when Nicholas pulled one out of left field that scared the bejejus out of us.  He had started getting a little sick with a runny nose and sneezing on Thursday.  No big deal, he gets that from time to time.  But by Friday evening the congestion was moving into his chest and I could tell he was getting quite a bit worse.  So, I gave him a dose of medicine and sent him off to bed for a good night's rest......or so I thought!  At about 1:30 I could hear him calling for me so I headed off to his room to check on him.  His congestion was considerably worse and his breathing was a little labored.  I decided it was best for both of us that I just crawl into bed and stay with him the rest of the night.  He tried his hardest to go back to sleep but was so restless and uncomfortable that it took about 2 hours before he was able to fall asleep, and that was merely from exhaustion.  I thought we were set for the rest of the night.  He was nestled in our bed with the vaporizer steaming in the corner, but the quiet slumber didn't last long.  Just before 5:00, he woke up again, but this time was different. He was really struggling to breath now and he was wheezing horribly and kept crying that it hurt.  But the moment that broke our hearts and sealed the deal was when he looked at us and said "Mommy, fix it.  Daddy, fix it."  That was all it took.  We hurriedly got dressed and headed out for the emergency room.  They got him in without any wait and hooked him up to a monitor.  His pulse was soaring at 180 and his oxygen level was very low so they instantly started him on a breathing treatment.  He was really upset and crying his eyes out so Greg and I feared that this would completely send him over the edge.  But he accepted the mask on his face with no problems and within seconds of his first breath I felt his entire body relax and the crying stopped.  You want to talk about two very relieved parents, WHEW!  After a few tests and a lot of waiting they diagnosed him with bronchitis and sent us home with antibiotics and an inhaler.  He's on the mend now and getting better with every passing minute.  The inhaler was a huge help but now we're only giving it to him right before bed to help him sleep comfortably.  I'm so glad the excitement is behind us for now and things are getting back to normal.  We're buckled in tight  and climbing back up the track to the top, ready to take on the next plunge Nicholas decides to throw at us.  And we'll love him through every minute of it.



Lots of TLC!



A New Friend

Man, I feel like I've had so many wonderful things to blog about lately! When you're living in the moment your life seems so ordinary and plain but seeing all the posts I've done lately makes me realize that our cup is indeed very full. Full of happy times and joyful memories! Last night was another one of those times when I took Nicholas to meet his buddy Kacee's brand new baby brother, Aiden. He was born on Friday and he's as handsome as can be. I was a little nervous about Nicholas actually holding the baby but he handled it like a pro.  He smiled and looked him over for a few minutes, pointed out his teeny body parts, then announced "All done."   Easy as pie.

Don't they look like the
happy little family?  I love it!!

A Day Out With Thomas

Yesterday was the day we've been waiting for with much anticipation.  Yesterday, Nicholas got to meet Thomas.  We've been talking about it for weeks now and his excitement kept building with every passing day.  When Greg and I woke him up in the morning and asked if he remembered what today was, he smiled the cutest little smile and replied "TICKETS!".  Nope, he definitely hadn't forgotten.  The event wasn't anything fancy but it was perfectly put together with plenty to keep a boy of his age happily entertained.  They had an  area with lots of train sets for the kids to play with, moonbounces, model trains, mini golf, and of course the real deal train cars on display from the railway musuem.  But the highlight of the day was getting to stand right next to Thomas himself to have a picture taken together, followed by a 25 minute ride in one of his cars.  The area we traveled through was a little rundown (to say the least), but at least Nicholas got to learn some new words - like "the projects" - and also got to help Daddy look for dead bodies.  Greg and I were bracing ourselves for the possibility of a good old fashioned train robbery at any moment.  But seriously, as far as family time goes this day was at the very top of my favorites list.  Nicholas was in heaven the entire time and seeing that huge smile on his face was the best feeling in the world.  Thank you Thomas!

We're Counting!

Nicholas has learned to count from 1 to 10!  We are so proud of our boy!!