March for Babies 2011!

Check me out--I'm AHEAD of the game????

Well friends, once again our lives have been touched by a premature birth.  This time some old friends have welcomed Baby Noah, at just 24 weeks gestation. Because of advancements made possible through funding and awareness efforts from the March of Dimes and March for Babies, baby Noah is already wowing the NICU nurses and docs.

Every year, more than half a million babies are born prematurely in the United States. Premature birth is the leading cause of newborn death worldwide. Even babies born just a few weeks too soon can face serious health challenges and are at risk of lifelong disabilities. Premature birth costs society more than $26 billion a year.  Click here for more information on how the March of Dimes supports families to both reduce the risk of premature birth and assist those facing it: http://www.marchofdimes.com/mission/localprograms.html

I hope you'll join us in 2011 to support our March for Babies team "Will's Wobbly Walkers". We'll be walking April 30th and have a BIG goal this year.  I hope our team will raise $3000 or more to support the March of Dimes. We've come a long way as a preemie family, and I am so grateful to everyone who has helped us support this cause that is so near and dear to our heart.  Click here to register for our team, or donate today!! http://www.marchforbabies.org/tarisakay



Watch for updates in the coming months! 

Will's First Day

First Time With Mom

Big Strong 3 Year Old!



Soccer!

We started soccer this weekend--what a blast!!!Will surprised me by actually being pretty good and handling the ball and showed a lot more coordination that I'd expected. He is still working on his "participation skills" and told me a couple of times that he "was just going to watch" because he was mad he couldn't do what he wanted, but it wasn't too bad. I can't wait to see what he learns in this class--AND we were super excited (well, I was) to see some old Gymboree friends in our class!

More Shots!

Will had a second round of Botox injections this last week. It was a completely horrifying experience for about 30 seconds.  I had to hold him in a bear hug with his legs dangling down, while they gave him a total of FOUR injections--one in each calf and one in each hamstring. This was the toughest round for me simply because of his eloquence in expressing the pain.  He turned his little head around to see what they were doing behind him and wailed "What are you doing to my legs!!!!????!!!!" and "It hurts so bad!!!!" There was a moment I thought I might puke.

We've also been referred to New Berlin Therapies for PT once a week. This is a big change for us--we'd only been doing Birth-3 PT and it was very sporadic---it was always a "teaching" session, and it got to the point where they weren't showing us anything new.  Anyway, they tested him for 3 different areas, Ball Skills (catching, throwing and kicking) where he surprised me by testing at 38 months, but tested at 21 months for Balance Skills and 28 months for Locomotive Skills (running, walking, jumping).  So, it's been determined that his gross motor skills are delayed and posing a safety issue (he's still extremely wobbly on stairs, coming down a curb, or running across gravel, etc.)

New Berlin Therapies was always recommended to me by other preemie moms, like it was just the end all be all of where I needed to be--and now I see why!! This place has slides, swings, a huge trampoline, a ball pit, ladders and anything else you could possibly dream up to play with--and they use it all in therapy.  They have him step on bubbles, climb a rope ladder, ride a tricycle--you can't make PT any more fun than that!! I'm really looking forward to seeing how he progresses!!

The third component at this point is a new set of orthotics.  He received a new pair at the end of September, and they were so ill-fitting that I finally just decided he wasn't going to wear them.  When we had the followup with the doctor who prescribed them, she was pretty disgusted with the shoddy work and sent us to be re-fit.  We'll pick those up this next week, so we'll see what happens with those.

This probably sounds like a lot--but I know in the grand scheme of everything that he could be dealing with, it's a small thing.  It's frustrating for me to watch him struggle to keep up with other kids his age--and some even  younger, but I know how far he's come and I know that things will only keep getting better!

Fall Fun!

We're already having so much fun this Fall, with 2 trips to pumpkin farms (and we're not done yet!), getting in some last warm-day fun at the Zoo and romping in the 40 tons of leaves all over our front (and back, and side) yard.  This is truly a special time of year!

Happy 3rd Birthday Will!

Three years ago today, I started that greatest adventure of my life.  Will came so quietly into our lives, just a little attempt at a cry. He's spent the next 3 years making up for it!

You are loud and wild Mr. Will. You are funny and fun. You are a chatterbox who commands attention. Your smile melts our hearts and your giggle is addictive. You are loving and snuggly and you're a wonderful friend.  I'm proud of the kid you've become. I'm proud to be your mommy. I'm a little sad as the the baby in you slips further and further away, but you're so much fun as a crazy 3 year old that its replaced with excitement over what will come next. I love you buddy-Happy Birthday!

Jeff and I took the day off of w ork and we spent the day as a our little family of 3, and Will's choice for the day was BOWLING! He's a boy after my own heart.  We bowled, played video games, "played" pool and had lunch at the bar like a bunch of old men :) It was a great day, and I know Will had a lot of fun.  

OUCH!

We had our 6 month follow-up with Children's Rehab Clinic last week and the doctor discovered that Will does not have full range of motion on his right foot.  He can only take his foot to 90 degrees which attributes to him constantly up on tip-toes.  So, she decided to give him Botox injections (well, actually, it was a similar drug but this particular one has "dry mouth" as a side effect, so she thought that would be helpful for his excessive drooling).  It appeared to be the most painful thing I've seen him have to get stuck with in a long time!  He was brave though and only screamed for a mere 2 minutes. It's been just a week and I can already see HUGE improvements!!!  He's walking pretty flat-footed on his right side and just a bit tip-toed on the left. He gets casted next week for new orthotics, so hopefully that will help correct him even further.

He's also on his 4th week of gymnastics and it appears that the whole "listening and following directions" thing that's alluded him for so long may finally be sinking in!! He actually did all the stretches and the obstacle course this week!! He LOVES gymnastics and the access to the trampoline and other equipment is great for him.  We'll definitely be signing up for another session!

Not a whole ton of other new news, but this kid definitely gets more and more hysterical every day.  He sure has a lot of "isms" lately including:
"Come ON Mom!"
"You freak me out"
"Holy cats!"
"It's gonna be ok mom. It's gonna be GREAT!"
Little weirdo. I just love him. :)

The Evidence...

May: The Memorial Day Parade & Kites at the Lakefront

June: Summer Zoo Day & A Visit With Mr. Sprinkles & Jess's Shower

July: Bessie's Wedding

 

Whoa SLAAAACKER!!!

So I realize I've been slacking on updating this blog--shame on me!!!
It's been a SUPER busy couple of months, with so much to share!  I'll give a bit of a rundown and I promise pics are to follow--I thought I lost my camera battery charger, so the camera's been out of commission, but I found it and we're back in action--look for the evidence to follow!

May: It was a busy start to Spring with this mama squeezing in a birthday (boo!) and enjoying Mother's Day with my boys.  We were so excited about the awesome weather that we spent day after day and night after night outside.  With all the bustle in and out, we are sad to report that we had an escapee.  Our beloved Malachi bolted out the back door and before we noticed he'd escaped, he was long gone.  We looked and looked, but our kitty has not returned. His absence was pretty much unnoticed until recently actually--Will's been saying "Were's Malachi?? I can't find him anywhere! Maybe he's in my room? Maybe he's in the closet? Maybe he's hiding in the bushes?"  It's been breaking our hearts!!  We did find a day to have some fun and ventured into Oconomowoc for the Memorial Day Parade. It was short but sweet and Will really liked the marching bands ("Like Caillou does!!).

June: Mama was a flurry of crafting activity all month long with Jessica's bridal shower at the end of the month.  Lots of sleepless nights and running around days, it was a big success to toast the beautiful bride-to-be.  We found a few weekend days to have some R&R out at Pretty Lake thanks to our good friend Mike an his awesome beach access.  It's warm, shallow and sandy and Will LOOOOVES the water.  He's not very brave but loves to sit and make mama some "Lake Water Soup".  Our evenings have been spent outside (of course) with lots of time perfecting our scooter and skateboard riding.  He can finally reach the pedals on his trike and Harley big wheel and loves zooming down the driveway.  I also purchased a bike trailer and borrowed my mom's bike so we've hit the trails a few times to the park, Le Duc's and Pick n Save!  We managed a trip or two to the zoo and have fallen in love with feeding the goats (gross, if you ask me!).

July: Another busy, busy month!  I finally snuck in a date with my boyfriend, Dave Matthews, and returned to Alpine after a 5 year hiatus from our yearly love-fest. It was fantastic as usual and Will and Daddy enjoyed a boys-night-in while I swayed with 10,000 in the grass.  The next evening we had a great 4th of July barbecue with the neighbors who've become our second family.  Will had fun swinging on Alex's swing set and exploring all his "big boy" toys. The next weekend was our local "Wales Splash" festival, and this year it expanded to include a few carnival rides and games.  Will had more fun than I've ever seen him have--he won a giant Batman doll at the pick-a-duck game, took a white-knuckle ride down the "giant" slide, fell in love with the carousel, fell in HATE with the kiddie gator-coaster (they had to STOP the ride!!) and danced his booty off to the live band!!  It was a great time, and just a stroller walk away!  Just 1 short week later Will made his debut as Flower Boy for Auntie Bessie's (Jessica) wedding! It was an absolutely beautiful day and Will was adorable in his suspenders and bowtie.  Nevaeh was his partner in crime in her matching dress and together they "dumped da flowers so Bessie can step on them!  Then they're going to have a wedding and KISS!"  I am so proud of my baby sister and thrilled to have Dana join our family!!!  The next week we started gymnastics class at the YMCA, and so far, so good--Will loves it!  He was a swinging, somersaulting, jumping maniac. Can't wait to get a few shots of him in this class!

And with that our summer is quickly coming to an end!  I can't believe in just 4 weeks the neighbor kids will be back in school and our street and backyards will be silent before 8pm! We love summer vacation, its like we live in some alternate universe where clocks don't matter, bedtimes are in flux and the ice cream is free flowing!

With fall on the horizon, that has mama in FULL ON birthday party planning mode....LOOK OUT! :)

Happy Easter!

This Easter was literally right on the heels of losing our beloved Great Grandma Shwartz--after a very brave battle with cancer, she passed away at the end of March.  Easter was always an awesome holiday with her--she made an amazing ham, always remembered the lamb-shaped butter, and was the only one who ate the hard-boiled eggs.  When my sister, cousin and I were little, she had an amazing egg hunt for us, and always bought the coolest egg dye kits for us--glitter, swirly, tye-dye--so much more fun the the homemade vinegar and food coloring that my mom did! :)  We missed her so much this year, and it definitely wasn't the same without her.

Easter was also a strong memory day for me and my Dad....this is going to sound weird, but when Jessica and I were in our teen and pre-teen years, every year, he delivered our Easter Baskets with a variation of this story: He'd awaken to some noise, a bustle, if you will, out in the kitchen. He armed himself, and a scuffle ensued--well, it was a flurry of Easter grass and fur, and he shot that intruding bastard. He dragged his bleeding carcass to the roadside, and bagged the evidence deep into the garbage cans.  All that remained was this basket of goodies--covered in "blood".  Every year, he shot the Easter Bunny, and surrendered his blood-covered treats to us--the only remaining "evidence".  I loved that story every year.  He was quite dramatic about it too....God I miss him.

Even with the looming sadness, I was able to enjoy Easter--again, like Christmas, it's hard to be sad with toddlers in your life!  We kicked off the festivities and invited our buddies over on Friday for a pre-Easter brunch, egg hunt and trip to the park.  Finally something went my way and we had more than 70 degree weather that day!!

We rounded out the weekend with some egg-dyeing, basket-finding, ham-eating fun.  We spent Easter afternoon with the Schwartz family, and though it was rimmed with a little sadness, we enjoyed time together and being thankful for the true reason for the seaon--He is Risen indeed! Halelujah!

Lions & Tigers & SIT IN YOUR CHAIR Oh My!

We braved the Tripoli Shrine Circus this past weekend!! It was a surprisingly good time.  However, I learned that a big box of popcorn truly only does last so long. I also learned that intermissions must be expertly timed--it came at the approximate moment Jeff was starting to sweat through his shirt.  The first half Will was thrilled--popcorn tightly in his grip, only realeased so he could participate in a HUGE round of applause. "Yay! Yay!"  "Yoook Mama YOOOOOOK!!! Yook at daaat!!!"  

We overspent on consessions, of course.  We managed to dodge the $10 light saber, somehow. And we snuck out at intermission, which worked out perfectly!  I would have enjoyed the second half, but we figured Will wasn't about to allow it.  He was more interested in climbing the ramps and rails of the ol' Mecca Arena once the lights came on, so we knew hopes for staying in our seats were slim to none.

The money went quickly, but the excitement on his face for that first 30 minutes was worth every penny.