Updates..

Well, after seeing the pulmonologist she wants him to try the sweat test one more time for the c.f. and if that doesn't work then they are trying to get authorization through our insurance to do a genetic blood test??? I'm not a doctor, but I feel that my child is turning into a test experiment. We are also on our way to see a ear, nose and throat specialist in the next couple of days to have his tonsils looked at and determine if they need to come out. We are keeping our fingers crossed that he doesn't but they are perfect little balls that almost touch. So I guess we will see.



McKenna on the other hand, was blessed with all the "healthy" genes. She is extremely healthy and rolling from her tummy to her back. She is quite the entertainment.



I am on this new food kick. My friend Jessamyn had posted in her blog that she starting using this book, "The Sneaky Chef", so I thought that I would give it a try since we are trying to get Griffin as healthy as possible. Basically it is hiding fruits and veggies in foods that kids love to eat. Griffin does love his broccoli, he has been known to choose it over popsicles and french fries, but I thought why not get as much goodness into all of us as possible. I really can't get enough of it and more importantly Griffin is eating it all up. I like the food more than Tim does, but he is being a trooper and not complaining, except for when he went to grocery store yesterday to get "man food" ie. steaks, all seriouness he likes it. Plus I am sure that it doing wonders for McKenna since I am nursing. So a big thanks to Jessamyn, and I suggest that if you have a picky little eater, give it a go.

Rain, Rain don't go away, Griffin wants to play

Well the rain finally came when Griffin was awake, and what an afternoon!!

The rain might be coming...

It is getting darker, it smells like rain...

Where is the rain???

I still don't feel it, please let it rain...

I think that it is coming...

OKAY, NOW I FEEL IT!!!

OH, to splash in puddles...

Mom, I'm all wet!

What a week...

Well after a long week we are trying to get back to normal. Griffin was tested for cystic fibrosis, but the test came back inconclusive so we meet with the pulmonologist on Tuesday. She doesn't think that he has it, just trying to rule it out as a cause of his string of hospital visits. Then he had an appointment with his allergist and she said everything is looking good except his tonsils are really enlarged and to have those checked out, so the next day I took him to the pediatrician and she agreed and we have to watch him for the next month to see how much he snores and if he gasps for air when he sleeps to see if they need to be removed. Grrr... my poor guy just can't seem to win in the battle of staying healthy, from the time that he was born it seems as if there has been one thing after the other. But as the allergist said, he wouldn't have been given all the problems if he couldn't handle it, and my Griff is a trooper!! But as a parent it is really hard to tell a 2 year old that he can't go out back when Tim is mowing the yard because it will cause him to break out and have an asthma attack or that he is better about taking medicine than most adults or when we go to the doctor for any reason he tells the nurse where his armpit is so they can take his temp and holds out his arm for his blood pressure. But he really is doing better.

On top of all this I had a infected milk duct, and after being on the couch for a day with a 102 temp and the chills I went to the doc and got some antibiotics. Thanks for the help that day Mom and Jessica.

Then there is McKenna, who I can not get enough of. She rolled over once, but I had Griff at the doctor and missed it :(, she is starting to teeth already. Yes, she is only 10 weeks, and yes she tries to use me as a teething ring, ouch! She is smiling all the time, babbling and growing like a weed.

Here's a little piece of my heaven...

If you didn't notice, both of my children were blessed with Tim's eyelashes, long and thick. I tell Tim everyday that I think McKenna's grew a little longer. What can I say, I 'm jealous.

Happy Birthday to you you..

Happy Birthday to you you as Griffin would say. Well Mom, the big day the big 5-0, half a century, 5 decades, 29 plus a few years. ;) how ever you want to say it. Go with it since now 50 is becoming the new 20's. Especially since every time that we have gone out in the past few weeks everyone thinks that we are sisters or you are the mother to my children. Does that mean that I look old or too young...hmm...

I know that there have been many sacrifices made along the way, all you time, attention and resources spent on us growing up and well I think that you did one hell of a job, to put it bluntly. You have a 26 year marriage, 3 wonderful, beautiful, articulate, determined, strong daughters. :) One crazy son in law just determined to annoy you the political world, and another soon to join the family. Not that he annoys you like my husband can, love ya Tim. Most importantly 2 amazingly fantastic grandchildren, I will take a little credit for them... I know that there have been some hard times along the way, especially hard decisions, and some real struggles. There have been just flat out great times like birthdays, holidays, graduations, weddings, and births. I know that I can speak for all us when I say that we love you, appreciate you, and would not be nearly the women that we are if it were not for you. It seems that your life is about to go full circle here in the next few weeks as Rachel goes off to college and Jessica gets married and you will not have children living with you, but you can rest assure that you have made a place where we all feel comfortable being, want to be and no other place will be like "home".

Have the most fantastic birthday ever!!!

Happy Birthday Tim-o-teo

A very happy 29th birthday to you, wow we have spent 5 birthday's together. Time sure does fly...I know that we had the conversation this weekend about remembering what is was like to not have kids, but oh how many funny times that we have with your miny me, Griffin. Especially when you don't get to unwrap your own gifts, or blow out the candles on your cake and the cake has finger prints all over it, yum. I wouldn't change it for anything. I hope that you have the best birthday so far, we know that you are working so hard for us, and for me to stay home with our munchkins and not a day goes by that I don't appreciate it. So Happy Birthday!!!

So we officially celebrated Tim's birthday last night and went out to dinner and then came back for presents, cake and ice cream. I made Tim's cake and of course since Griff helps me with everything, he was MORE than willing to help.

Griffin is also very into Star Wars right now, he plays with all Tim's action figures from when he was a little boy and knows all the characters so we made a card for Tim with our own Star Wars pictures. Griffin was Chewbacca for Halloween and Tim had the Darth Vader helmet, we just needed something for McKenna so I made her into Princess Leia, can you tell...

So you will notice that our little Vader is wearing a Urlacher football jersey. My parents present to Tim was matching jersey's for him and Griffin for this upcoming football season. Griffin put it on last night, wanted to sleep in it and still has it on today, so the art of bribing will be coming in handy to get him out of it, but until then Tim and I had a good chuckle over the site we saw when we checked on him before we went to bed...

Fun on the Fourth

This is the best picture of the fireworks that I could get...

We had a very fun day on the fourth, Tim got up in the morning and starting preparation for our b-b-q. He made pulled pork and ribs, along with baked potatoes and corn on the cob, they were sooo good. After dinner we headed to a parking lot next to Peoria Sports complex. We took lots of water, Popsicles and of course watermelon with us. We had a really good time hanging out and visiting.

Here is Aunt Rachel holding McKenna in the back of Aunt Jessica's new Yaris.

She looks very pretty in her red, white and blue.

As a background to this picture, Griffin hated fireworks last year but we were hopeful that he would forget and enjoy them this year. Well, when the first one went up in the sky and made that loud boom, the fear and uncertainty kicked in again and it started to scare him. But as long as dad or papa was holding him, he really had fun. He woke up the next morning asking to see fireworks again.

It was a really fun day and the best part, other than being with my family, that night McKenna slept from 10:30 to 6:30, and Griffin slept in until 9:15 the next morning, yeah for Mom!!

Say Cheese!