Purina Farms

After the boys' therapy today, we headed to Parina Farms to meet up with our friends, the Adair's and Witthaus'. It was a gorgeous day and we enjoyed eating lunch outside, seeing lots of animals, enjoying a dog show and ending the day with a hay ride!!


Andrew was captivated by the pump that milked the cow.


Nathan and Kaitlyn hanging out in their strollers :)


Getting a close look at the Herefords!!

Group shot!!

Busy Weekend!!

We made the most out of the awesome weather this weekend!!

We started off Saturday by attending Capable Kids and Families' Fall Family Celebration. The boys had a GREAT time and Andrew did lots of crafts - he made a face mask, stamped a card, made play-doh and decorated a place mat with a picture of our family front and center. Nathan loves the place mat and mini pumpkin he got :)

Family Pic :)

After lunch we headed to another Pumpkin Party put on by our friend's real estate company. Our family was able to pick out another pumpkin (Andrew can't get enough) and enjoyed ALL of the festivities - live music, games, give-a-ways and hanging out with friends!!

Sunday we headed to an actual pumpkin patch - Stuckmeyers!! Andrew couldn't believe we were getting to pick out more pumpkins. It was a great morning - Andrew went from one thing to another and both boys were pooped by the time we were home for lunch :)


Daddy and Andrew found a keeper!!


Andrew with lots of pumpkins.


Our boys :)

Our little pumpkins :)

Andrew found a HUGE pumpkin and posed with his gord.

Leading Mommy through the corn maze :)

All ready for his tractor barrel ride.

Nathan and Mommy.

Our happy little guy :)

All done for the day...

Zoo with Gigi and PaPa

Today Gigi and PaPa took Andrew to the Zoo while Mommy and Nathan spent some QUALITY time together :) Andrew loved walking all around and ending his day with a train ride. Thanks Mom and Dad for giving me a little break - it's amazing how much you can get accomplished with just one kiddo!!

Andrew LOVED the hippos.

I think this picture is precious - he couldn't get enough of the acquariums and all of the fish!!

BIG Boy Bed

We converted Andrew's crib to a full size bed today and he LOVES it!! We started the project when Nathan went down for his morning nap and Andrew was such the helper. He kept saying, "Almost done" numerous times throughout the process - he couldn't wait :) We finished right when Andrew was due for his afternoon nap and he went right down!! He slept soundly for almost three hours - mission accomplished. It's so funny how huge he looked in his crib and now how small he looks in his bed. We are waiting for the day that he actually figures out that he can get out of it - but for now, he probably just thinks it's just a bigger crib between the head and foot boards and his bed rails on either side of the bed - ha!!

Welcome Home, Gigi and PaPa!!

We are so happy to welcome back Gigi and PaPa from Italy for the last 18 days!! We are glad to hear your trip was amazing and can't wait to see ALL of your pictures. We missed you and are excited to have you home to play with us!!

Cute Pics

Just some cute pics to share...


Check out the saliva shoe strings coming out of either side of Nathan's mouth...you think some more teeth are coming or what!?!?


Nathan and Mommy working with his therapy ball.


Uncle Todd with his nephews - his hands are more than full :)

Parent Teacher Conferences

I LOVE that I attended a Parent Teacher Conference for preschool - it cracks me up!! Andrew's teachers just love him to pieces (who wouldn't ?!?!) and he is doing great in school. He made the transition just fine and is interested in interacting with all of his classmates. We were able to set some goals to work on for this school year and we are so happy that he has handled this adjustment so well since he has been cooped up with us protecting his little brother for so long.

Happy Birthday, Daddy!!

Although you started your birthday out in the ER with Nathan, we hope you are able to enjoy the rest of your birthday, Daddy!! We LOVE you more than anything and appreciate EVERYTHING you do for us!!

Nathan Scare!!

How eventful 15 hours can be...

After a throwing up battle along with screaming and crying around 9pm and then again at midnight hardly being able to console our little guy, Nathan and I were headed to the ER at St. John's. By the time we arrived at the hospital a little after midnight, Nathan had settled down and decided to act like his old little smiley self. They couldn't determine whether his symptoms were shunt related or stomach related since he didn't have a fever or diarrhea. After trying to get him to drink some apple juice and that resulting in another screaming and crying episode, we were sent to Children's for further evaluation for possible shunt malfunction.

They allowed me to drive Nathan rather than transfer us via ambulance. At this point, we called Grandma and Pops to come over and stay with Andrew and Daddy joined us for our ride to Children's. After arriving at Children's around 3:15am, we were in another ER exam room and Nathan had quieted down some. We went through a round of x-rays and a CT Scan of his shunt, but weren't able to get the results until 10:15am - it was a LONG 7 hours to say the least.

THANK GOD everything looked normal and his CT Scan showed the best results yet regarding Nathan's ventricles!! We were still unclear as to what caused the episodes through the night, but were relieved with the news of his ventricles looking great. We decided to feed him again at this point and see what would happen. He was able to drink 3 oz of water and keep 4 oz of apple sauce down and with that we were ready to be discharged!! The doctors released us around noon thinking it was just some sort of a stomach bug...it was one doosie - that's for sure!!

We are SO thankful everything turned out to be fine, but it's really not even the start of cold and flu season and we have already visited the ER. We are nervous for this winter and pray that we are able to get through it without any more scares. We unfortunately don't have the convenience of letting a virus or bug take its course with Nathan and his VP Shunt. Please keep our little guy in your prayers that he stays HEALTHY!!

First Day Back at Work!!

Today marks my first day back at work (at Boeing that is) since having Nathan. It's GREAT to have something else to focus my mind on for a bit. Don't get me wrong, being a Mom is the most challenging job I have ever had and it keeps me busier than ever, but being back in the work force is a good thing for me. I am very fortunate to stay home during the day with the boys and continue all of our daily therapies, appointments and check-ups and then be able to work virtual from home in the evenings. It makes for some LONG days, but I am up for the challenge and so far, so good!!