Saturday, July 24, 2010
What A Sweet Big Brother
As Ethan was falling asleep tonight, Jonathan comes over and leans towards him and says in his soft sweet little voice, "Good night Ethan. Sweet dreams." This was after he wanted to share with Ethan today. He came over as Ethan was taking a bottle and said, "Ethan's eating". Then he said as he put silver Percy and Guido on Ethan's lap, "Here Ethan. Play with this." My heart is melting.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Jonathan's Big Day Out With Thomas
Today was one of two weekends for the Day Out With Thomas. Thomas apparently goes on an American tour every year and this was his Seattle stop. As expected, Jonathan absolutely loved it and had a great time! The weather was perfect: sunny but not hot. Considering this is Seattle, this is a rare thing in summer - either it's scorching hot, or it's raining.
There was actually a fair amount of things to see and do if you are a Thomas aficionado as Jonathan is. The day started with arriving and heading straight for the merchandise tent. Jonathan made out like a bandit thanks to his sucker parents. Even the lady at the register was impressed by Jonathan's haul.
We then lined up for a ride with Thomas. While you are guaranteed a spot on the train, it's first come first served in terms of where you sit. We decided to line up early so that we could sit in the first coach behind Thomas so Jonathan could see him for the whole trip. It was actually quite cute and amusing to hear Jonathan among the countless other children making the characteristic "whoo whoo" peeping noise that Thomas makes.
After the train ride (25 minutes total time) it was off to explore what else the excursion offered. We lined up for pictures with Sir Topham Hatt, pictures with Thomas (as the passengers disembark/board Thomas, other people take pictures with him), checking out the gift shop (which was separate from the merchandise tent - very clever those capitalists!), getting a tattoo of Percy, and lots of play time at the train tables. (As an aside, I was curious as to just how many of the Thomas toys walked off never to be seen again...).
As another aside, meeting Sir Topham Hatt was interesting. From the front, he looked normal. From the side/profile, one could see the costume was very loose fitting and it often appeared as if his head would come off/self decapitate. It was somewhat funny and yet disturbing at the same time and one wonders if any children noticed and if so what they might have thought (or what neurosis it may have spawned only to show up later in life)...
Jonathan was so enthralled with playing with the trains at the tables that he basically held off going to the bathroom for just about as long as he absolutely possibly could. Luckily, his parents had the foresight to put a diaper/pullup on him ahead of time. In the middle of playing, Jonathan suddenly stopped, looked at me, and said, "I got to go potty". Before we could even leave the tent, he suddenly assumed the tell-tale frozen Spider-man position and held it for about 10-15 seconds. Then he said, "Play more!". A very good thing he had a diaper on, indeed! It just goes to show you where basic biological functions rank in comparison to playing with Thomas toys.
We arrived at the festivities around 1:30PMish and basically stayed until closing (about 6PMish).
Below are the pictures of Jonathan's day (in chronological order).
Tent near the entrance welcoming you.
Thomas arriving at the station. Thomas leaves/arrives for train rides every 30 minutes.
Jonathan seeing the "real" Thomas for the very first time and waving at him.
On board the coach getting a ride from Thomas.
Handing the tickets to the conductor.
Ethan exploring his surroundings. Probably not quite sure what to make of them.
Meeting Sir Topham Hatt.
Jonathan sporting his new Percy tattoo.
Playing with the trains (Percy and Rosie, specifically).
More playing (with Percy)...
Meeting Thomas The Tank Engine.
Thomas in all his glory.
Back to playing (with Edward this time).
They even had an "official" Thomas baby changing station.
Jonathan's haul at the end of the day...
There was actually a fair amount of things to see and do if you are a Thomas aficionado as Jonathan is. The day started with arriving and heading straight for the merchandise tent. Jonathan made out like a bandit thanks to his sucker parents. Even the lady at the register was impressed by Jonathan's haul.
We then lined up for a ride with Thomas. While you are guaranteed a spot on the train, it's first come first served in terms of where you sit. We decided to line up early so that we could sit in the first coach behind Thomas so Jonathan could see him for the whole trip. It was actually quite cute and amusing to hear Jonathan among the countless other children making the characteristic "whoo whoo" peeping noise that Thomas makes.
After the train ride (25 minutes total time) it was off to explore what else the excursion offered. We lined up for pictures with Sir Topham Hatt, pictures with Thomas (as the passengers disembark/board Thomas, other people take pictures with him), checking out the gift shop (which was separate from the merchandise tent - very clever those capitalists!), getting a tattoo of Percy, and lots of play time at the train tables. (As an aside, I was curious as to just how many of the Thomas toys walked off never to be seen again...).
As another aside, meeting Sir Topham Hatt was interesting. From the front, he looked normal. From the side/profile, one could see the costume was very loose fitting and it often appeared as if his head would come off/self decapitate. It was somewhat funny and yet disturbing at the same time and one wonders if any children noticed and if so what they might have thought (or what neurosis it may have spawned only to show up later in life)...
Jonathan was so enthralled with playing with the trains at the tables that he basically held off going to the bathroom for just about as long as he absolutely possibly could. Luckily, his parents had the foresight to put a diaper/pullup on him ahead of time. In the middle of playing, Jonathan suddenly stopped, looked at me, and said, "I got to go potty". Before we could even leave the tent, he suddenly assumed the tell-tale frozen Spider-man position and held it for about 10-15 seconds. Then he said, "Play more!". A very good thing he had a diaper on, indeed! It just goes to show you where basic biological functions rank in comparison to playing with Thomas toys.
We arrived at the festivities around 1:30PMish and basically stayed until closing (about 6PMish).
Below are the pictures of Jonathan's day (in chronological order).
Tent near the entrance welcoming you. 
Thomas arriving at the station. Thomas leaves/arrives for train rides every 30 minutes.
Jonathan seeing the "real" Thomas for the very first time and waving at him.
On board the coach getting a ride from Thomas.
Handing the tickets to the conductor.
Ethan exploring his surroundings. Probably not quite sure what to make of them.
Meeting Sir Topham Hatt.
Jonathan sporting his new Percy tattoo.
Playing with the trains (Percy and Rosie, specifically).
More playing (with Percy)...
Meeting Thomas The Tank Engine.
Thomas in all his glory.
Back to playing (with Edward this time).
They even had an "official" Thomas baby changing station.
Jonathan's haul at the end of the day...- bob
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
No More Trips To Visit the Feeding Therapist!
Yesterday Ethan went to see Suzy his Physical Therapist for a feeding evaluation. This would be the first time the PT has been able to evaluate his feeding since he was constipated two weeks ago when his last session took place and he did not cooperate. Suzy thought Ethan has made significant progress in his eating and in his motor skills, enough so that she doesn't think he needs to come back unless another issue comes up. This is so encouraging! I knew he was doing well with his oral spoon feeding, but to have Suzy confirm this just makes me feel like he is back on track. He even dipped his spoon into the bowl and put the spoon in his mouth with food on it; feeding himself!
Suzy has been working with Ethan since his birth. She worked with him as a newborn in the NICU at Evergreen, at Children's after his surgeries, and at Children's Therapy of Woodinville. She has been there from the beginning and has watched Ethan along with the rest of us as he has grown. She even encouraged me by telling me what a great job I have done with him, which I really appreciate! We will miss going to see her, but we are happy that Ethan has made another step in his growth. Thank you Suzy for everything!
Suzy has been working with Ethan since his birth. She worked with him as a newborn in the NICU at Evergreen, at Children's after his surgeries, and at Children's Therapy of Woodinville. She has been there from the beginning and has watched Ethan along with the rest of us as he has grown. She even encouraged me by telling me what a great job I have done with him, which I really appreciate! We will miss going to see her, but we are happy that Ethan has made another step in his growth. Thank you Suzy for everything!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
We Have A Cruiser and First Pool Party of the Summer
Ethan is now walking around while holding himself up on things. He loves to be at Jonathan's train table and his activity table. He also loves going from the coffee table to the couch. For the first time today, he pulled himself up holding his high chair and decided to push it while walking. He is definately ready for the walking toy.
Today, we also went over to a friend's house for a playdate. Both Jonathan and Ethan went with me. Karen had a little pool set up in her backyard and Jonathan LOVED it! He played in there with the little kids splashing and playing around. Ethan didn't like it at first, but he started to crawl over to it and put his hands in all by himself. I guess I should buy a little kiddie pool for the house!
-Dina
Today, we also went over to a friend's house for a playdate. Both Jonathan and Ethan went with me. Karen had a little pool set up in her backyard and Jonathan LOVED it! He played in there with the little kids splashing and playing around. Ethan didn't like it at first, but he started to crawl over to it and put his hands in all by himself. I guess I should buy a little kiddie pool for the house!
-Dina
Friday, July 2, 2010
The Missing Poo-FINALLY SUCCESS!
It has been more than a week now since Ethan has unloaded a big poop. I think going from hardly any solid food to a ton pretty quickly after his surgery was too much for his poor little digestive system. It just couldn't keep up. We've been to the doctor. We've talked to his nutritionist and his physical therapist. We've tried prunes. Nothing. We took him off of all solids and started giving him prune and pear juice. We've tried rubbing his tummy using a technique suggested by his PT. Still nothing. The doctor yesterday suggested we give him Miralax and glycerine suppositories. He just pushes those out, though we get bits of stool out. Not the big explosion we were waiting for. The suppositories seem to work more than anything we've tried though.
_______________________________________________________
So before I posted the above, he FINALLY POOPED!!! I put in a new suppository and I guess that got things working. He started pushing; his face was turning bright red. He pushed for quite a while and I was holding him the whole time so there was some space in his diaper. Then I smelled something. It wasn't his normal smell, but something different. Bob and I both went upstairs to check the diaper. This has happened before and there was no result, but this time I knew he had done something. I laid him down and took the diaper off and there it was...(IF YOU GET GROSSED OUT AND DON'T WANT TO READ ABOUT POO, STOP READING :) one log buried under a bunch of dark paste-like stuff. We got him all cleaned up and then we just looked at the diaper. It wasn't the big blow out we were expecting, but nevertheless we think he got the blockage out. The stool was pretty hard and the suppository also came out. I guess he'd been trying to push that thing out this whole time, only getting little pieces off until now. It only takes one log to plug the hole. Now I guess we'll see if his poo pattern returns to normal and restart solids, though we will make sure he gets his dose of prunes with a lot of liquid!
-Dina
_______________________________________________________
So before I posted the above, he FINALLY POOPED!!! I put in a new suppository and I guess that got things working. He started pushing; his face was turning bright red. He pushed for quite a while and I was holding him the whole time so there was some space in his diaper. Then I smelled something. It wasn't his normal smell, but something different. Bob and I both went upstairs to check the diaper. This has happened before and there was no result, but this time I knew he had done something. I laid him down and took the diaper off and there it was...(IF YOU GET GROSSED OUT AND DON'T WANT TO READ ABOUT POO, STOP READING :) one log buried under a bunch of dark paste-like stuff. We got him all cleaned up and then we just looked at the diaper. It wasn't the big blow out we were expecting, but nevertheless we think he got the blockage out. The stool was pretty hard and the suppository also came out. I guess he'd been trying to push that thing out this whole time, only getting little pieces off until now. It only takes one log to plug the hole. Now I guess we'll see if his poo pattern returns to normal and restart solids, though we will make sure he gets his dose of prunes with a lot of liquid!
-Dina
Thursday, July 1, 2010
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