Jared and Kristi Craft

2011 At a Glance

2011-10-20T10:24:00.004-05:00

So apparently I can't raise two kids and keep up with a blog. I have learned that this is the only way I can look back at events in my kids lives and remember. So I'm gonna make a better effort at blogging. I've just posted a few pictures from our summer. So many things have happened. Colt and Landry started going to daycare. I've like it so far except that they always seem to be sick. Hopefully they'll build up a good immune system and not catch everything eventually. I started my 4th year teaching 1st grade. I'm just about burned out teaching 1st. I want to try older. But I'm working on my masters. I'm going through a program that will take me 3 years. So I really don't want to take on a new grade and be working on my masters. So I will continue with my masters for now. When I'm done, I will concentrate on studying for the second level test and get certified to teach either Jr. High or High School. I know it's a jump but I need something different. Jared is still working for Kirco Welding Supply. The summer time is very busy for him so he's ready for things to slow down a little. I can't think of anything else but the pictures can sum things up. Life is a going by so fast. I have to stop and things sometimes, that one day I will wish my kids were still small.

My precious baby girl

Cheering for the Rangers

Sweet boy (only about 30% of the time)

He was worried about his sister falling in the water!

We spent alot of our time swimming this summer

Bubba gave me a banana nut muffin (before I'd ever eaten anything solid)

Whoops! I pulled a table on my head at Rio Lerma

Loving me some Carmona's with daddy!

Pulling up (before I could walk)

Swimming with friends at City Lake

Summer fun at Ham's Peach Orchard

Love to swim!

The past several months

2011-02-27T16:45:00.008-06:00

Well as always, I have alot on my plate. I don't take the time out to blog. But an old friend reminded me that I need to record some of the things that Colt is doing now because one day I'll look back and laugh. I cannot believe how fast he is growing and turning into a little boy instead of a toddler. He is such a sweet boy most of the time. He does love to test the waters on a daily basis. HE loves to climb and jump off of things. I feel very fortunate that he seems to be indestructible! Hopefully that will last a while!! It has definitely been an experience trying to take care of a 2 year old and a baby. Landry has become the best baby. She was a little grouchy the first few months. She wouldn't let anyone hold her except for me. But now, she's the perfect baby. She never cries unless she needs something. She has recently discovered her voice. She likes to see how loud she can scream. It was cute the first few days. It's still cute most of the time. Just not when we're in the middle of the store or in Church. For the most part, Colt loves his little sister. He still doesn't call her Landry. He calls her sister. HE loves to kiss on her and hug her. He also loves to hold her, with mommies help of course. Some of my favorite things Colt says..... he says 'no bully" when Bully (our chocolate lab) does something to annoy him. He says 'mony milk' which means chocolate milk. He says "pwetty gurl" to his sister all the time. He says "all done" when I try to take his picture. We are trying to continue potty training since he completely forgot everything he learned when Landry was born. He's so use to getting candy for going potty that as he's "going" he's saying "candy" with a big smile on his face. He prays with us every night. Sometimes he thanks God for everyone in our family. Sometimes he thanks God for his candy. It melts my heart to hear my 2 year old son "talk to God" He also tells us he loves us. There's nothing better in the world. Landry is growing like a weed. She's in the 99th percentile for weight and the 89th for height. So she's a big girl just like her brother. She has just recently started crawling. Now my life is really going to be chaos!!!

On a side note I do want to mention that I am thankful, as a teacher, to be employed right now. I'm not even going to get on my soap box and talk about how ridiculous the legislature is being right now about cutting educational funds. I'll just say that I am lucky to work for a district that has handled it's money smart. I am continuing with my masters (even though with the budget cuts, they eliminated the requirement). I am one class away from being half way done. I will graduate December 2013. It's difficult at times but I have a very supportive husband who picks up the slack when I'm overwhelmed.

Here are some pictures from the past few....okay several months.

After daddy shaved his head

We had some visitors. Our honeymoon friends from Kansas (the friends we met on our honeymoon) came to visit with their son, Cody. Colt had the time of his life.

Landry got her ears pierced.

He absolutely loves his little sister.

We spent the morning swimming and then took a trip out to Hams Peach Orchard to eat a burger and get some peach ice cream. It was so yummy and the kids loved it!

We were trying out some new hats we got for the summer time

8 months going on 16 years!

Colt went to his first Rangers game with daddy and mommy. He had more fun playing with the water bottle fan but it was still a fun experience for him.

Trying not to fall asleep during church

Such a happy baby

They both love the pool

Colt loved it when mommy caught a fish. He had to come kiss it. Yuck!

Whirlwind Life

2010-12-09T13:02:00.005-06:00

Well, obviously I thought I would have more time than I do now. I thought, I'll be home for 8 weeks and I'll have plenty of time to help more around the house, have dinner ready, maybe get caught up on laundry. Boy, was I mistaken. This little girl of mine doesn't like to be put down. In fact, she has to be touching me at all times. Not her daddy or her uncle Jakie, but me. So I've gotten creative and learned to do lots of things with a baby attached. My poor baby boy though, has really been rudely awakened. His world has turned upside down. He's acted out in different ways here and there but overall he's handled being a brother pretty well. Landry has gotten a little better at being put down. I guess people were right when they told me God gives you the easy on first so you'll have another. Needless to say, I think 2 is all I can handle. 1 boy and 1 girl is perfect enough for me. So here's a few pictures (not in any order) that I've taken the past few months. Enjoy

2010-10-04T10:17:00.003-05:00

We had a busy week, obviously!! Landry FAith Craft was born at 2:08 pm on Friday October 1st, 2010. She weighed 8lbs 6oz and was 19.5 in long. She had a full head of dark hair which was very surprising. She's just beautiful. Here are some pictures. I'm keeping my post short but thought I better get one up before I go home and our world becomes complete chaos!

The day before Landry got here, Colt's Mother's Day Out had a family picnic so Colt and I got to spend one last "mommy and Colt day" together.

Our last "family of 3 photo". This was when we were dropping him off a the Sloans on our way to the hospital.

Righ after she was born. I'm sure she'll appreciate this shot later.

I havea feeling that she's gonna get whatever she wants from her daddy!!

What a cutie!!

First Family of 4 photo

She wasn't very happy in this picture

Colt just wanted his mommy. Wasn't too sure what was going on.

Memaw and Pepaw with their 2nd granddaughter

Love Love Love this picture of Lexie wth Landry. She as counting down the days until Landry was born. I think she was almost as excited as I was to have her

Alot of people have asked if Landry looks like Colt. So I pulled up some pictures from when Colt was born. He was a few weeks older in this picture. I think they favor each other but they don't look exactly alike.

She's almost here!!!

2010-09-14T19:04:00.006-05:00

I think this is the longest I've gone without posting. It was a long summer filled with potty training. That is how I would define our summer. It was frustrating and exciting all at the same time. There is so much going on now. School is back in motion. I'm counting down the minutes until I have Landry Faith. I'm really starting to feel very uncomfortable. It's alot different be pregnant this time b/c I can't really come home and rest. A certain 2 yr old takes up alot of my time. I did say 2 yr old. Colt just turned 2. He's such a big boy. He's talking so much more. He's still not a big "talker" but he is so funny sometimes when he decides to say something. He loves watching the rangers with his daddy and uncle Jakie. He stands in front of the T.V. and holds his fist in the air and says "Go Rangers". He also loves to pray before dinner. He puts his hands together and says "Amen" when we're done praying. He's also learned to climb out of his crib so finding a toddler bed is on our list of things to do this week along with a million other things. I'm going to the Dr. every week now. Yesterday she informed me that she weighs about 7 lbs and is measuring 38wks and 6days. That would be great if I wasn't only supposed to be 36 weeks!! So yes, she's almost 3 weeks ahead of schedule. I really wish she would come on her own before Oct 1st but I guess I'll wait if I have to. The Dr said she's either gonna be really long, really big or both! So more than likely I'll be having another 10 pound baby! But I'm not as worried this time b/c I know I'll be having a C-section. Well, I know I'm rambling and probably the only reason you're looking on here is to see pictures. So here's some random pictures from the summer.

These are a few of the pictures we had taken a few weeks ago. I'm still trying to decide which ones I want to order

Opening his bday presents

Eating a cupcake

This was his actual bday with just mommy and daddy

Colt giving his newest cousin, Lily Kate some loving

Doting over Lily Kate with A.J. and Samantha

This is where he went when I told him to go sit down

Colt and mama

Me and a good friend of mine at school. We're due a day apart

Back to School Bash at church. Colt's sporting his daddies hat along with his daddies favorite football team painted on his cheek

Summer summer summer!!!

2010-06-22T22:07:00.003-05:00

WEll, alot has happened in the past few weeks. I've started potty training which I'm slowly figuring out that it's gonna be a loooong process! Somedays are great and someday I want to give up. But I'm trying my hardest to be consistent. Colt knows when he needs to go. It's just a matter of getting him to go to the potty on a regular basis. We're nowhere near being fully potty trained. I would say we're in the beginning stages but hopefully by the end of the summer, we will have progressed. I am determined to have him potty trained before the average age (which is 39 months!!!)

We've also been working on swimming alot. WE go at least 2 or 3 times a week to our pool. He is not scared what-so-ever. He loves the water. He even tries to make me let go of him and then quickly realizes that he still needs his mama. He has learned to kick his feet. He still doesn't hold his breath under water all the time. So we're working on that. That's kinda important I think.

Colt is really growing up before our eyes. He repeats alot of what we say. Some of his recent words are.... gross (I've been saying that alot when he pees or poops on the carpet), walmart, cheese, more, Ace, and many more. But those are the more recent ones he has learned to say. He likes brushing his own teeth. He has learned how to climb into and out of the bath tub. He's learned to open doors. He has yet to figure out how to climb out of his crib. We're hoping he won't learn that for a while. We're trying to keep him in his crib until after Landry is born. He still takes 3 hr naps (which is wonderful for mama). He loves loves loves his uncle Jakie being at home. He loves playing with both dogs. He enjoys praying at the end of the night. I pray with him and he always concludes by saying Amen as he points his fist to the sky (I have no idea where he got that) He's such a happy boy most of the time. We're having the time of our life watching him grow each and everyday. I know this is the last summer it will be just the two of us so I'm trying to appreciate the time I have with him. (trying is the key word. Some days I want to run and hide!lol)

Our niece was born on June 15th. Lily Kate was born at 3:48 weighing 7 lbs 3 oz. She is adorable. We got to spend some time with her this past Saturday night. It's so surreal how small babies really are when they're first born. Of course, mine was never that small but he was only a few pounds bigger. Can't believe I'll be having one of those in 3 short months. Oh and the little time we've spent with her, Colt has done really well. He's very gentle with her and wants to give her kisses. Besides wanting to put his finger in her ear, he was very sweet to her. Hopefully he'll be the same way when Landry gets here.

Jared went to Chicago with my dad and my brother a few weeks ago. He came back with all pictures of stuff he saw and none of himself. He had a good time but we were glad to have him home. This single Mommy stuff was not fun!

I went to the Dr. today. One of the first things I asked was "IS she still a girl" and the DR. said it was very clear that there were no boy parts! haha. So I was happy to be reassured. I've heard stories of people not knowing until the last minute that the girl really was a boy. Everything looked good. I was measuring 24 wks and 6 days which is a little ahead of where we thought we were. And one of the best things I found out was that I've only gained 4 pounds in the past month. So I've gained 6 total. I have no idea how. This baby feels sooo heavy sometimes. But I'm happy with that. My C-section will be scheduled for October 1st unless she decides to come before then. I'm trying to enjoy my summer as much as possible b/c once August comes, it's going to be non-stop until she gets here. Phew... I'm not looking forward to that.

This is the first picture I've taken of me. This is me at 25 weeks.

Mantha's bday party. Mantha, Colt and A.J.

Uncle Jakie with Lily Kate.

This is probably one of the funnies videos I've taken of Colt. It's a little sad towards the end when Colt beats the dog but up until that point, it's really funny!

It's a GIRL!!

2010-05-26T09:43:00.002-05:00

Well, if you know me, you already know that we found out Monday that we're having a girl. We cannot even begin to understand why God has blessed us so much. We have truly been blessed with the most precious little boy that has changed our world completely. Now, in October we will be welcoming a little girl into our world. We went to the high risk Dr. on Monday. He measured every little thing you could think of. WE saw her feet, hands, all 4 chambers of her heart, the brain, stomach, liver, kidneys, diaphragm, and much more that I don't even remember. The best news is everything was perfect. She was measuring right on time. Her head was a normal size. By this time with Colt, he was measuring way ahead and his head was off the charts! So I'm thinking I might not have another 9lb 10oz baby! Unfortunately the reason I was going to this Dr. is to see if we could detect Hirschprungs disease which is what Colt had when he was born. He thought he might be able to detect it at 20 weeks but the baby was not producing enough "poop" for him to see anything. But what he did see looked good. Stomach and intestines weren't enlarged yet but that doesn't mean they won't get that way later on. He said my regular OB should be able to detect it later on in a sonogram. Honestly, I'm not really worried. The odds are really low and the disease is more prominent in boys. I was just thankful my Dr.referred me to him b/c if she hadn't I would still have no idea that she was is a girl. So, we are thrilled beyond words. I cannot wait to start buying girl clothes and find girl bedding and girl everything! She's also gonna have a girl cousin really close in age. Jared's sister is going to have a baby at the end of June. So they'll only be 4 months apart! We are going to name her Landry Faith. I can't wait to meet her! I'll post pictures later. Just wanted to share the news!

2010-05-06T09:14:00.006-05:00

Well, I guess I'm not too good at blogging anymore. Maybe I'll be better in the summer. I was actually waiting to blog so I could announce what the sex of the baby is. But our little one is a little stubborn and/or modest and did not want to show us the goods. So we wait 3 more weeks until I do the 3D sono at the high risk Dr. Surely they'll be able to tell then. Jared and I are on opposing teams. I'm on the girl team of course and he wants another little boy for now. But honestly at the end of the day, I just hope this baby is healthy and we get to bring him/her home from the hospital with us.

So, Colt's growing so much everyday. He's starting to say more words and do more things. He understands alot of what we tell him. Here are some of the words he can say. daddy (his favorite, the one he says the most often), dog, milk, ball, uh oh, ouch, more, mama (only when he's whining) quack quack, woof woof, baby, and there might be some more. He's not a huge talker yet. Might be a little like his daddy. So far, most of his qualities are like his daddy. He doesn't like to be dirty. If he's walking barefoot and there's the tiniest piece of dirt on his foot, he'll stop and brush it off. He can find the smallest little things in our carpet and brings them to us. He's very meticulous (just like his daddy) and aware of details and his surroundings (again like his daddy). He is such a good little boy everywhere he goes. (kinda makes me nervous about the next one). He has been a bit more clingy. I'm trying to not pick him up as much and let him walk even if it takes a little longer. I know when the baby gets here, there's no way I'll want to carry both of them!

Speaking of baby, every thing's been great so far. I only felt sick until about 12 or 13 weeks. I'm now almost 18. This part of the pregnancy is pretty good since I'm not sick and not too big yet. The only time I really feel it is when I lift something heavy (including my son) or walk too much, my lower back starts hurting real bad. I had the same thing with Colt. My sciatic nerve doesn't agree with a baby growing in me. But it's something I'll just live with for another 4 1/2 months.

School is going good for the most part. It gets a little worse everyday b/c the kids are done with school. The weather is so nice outside, nobody wants to be in school anymore, including me! But the countdown is on. We have 20 days of school left. I cannot wait. Colt is gonna be so much fun this summer. I'm hoping to potty train and continue with swimming lessons (from me of course).

Motherhood is so much more than I could've ever imagined. It's hard, tiring, worrisome, but also the best thing that anyone can ever do. I honestly don't know what Jared and I did without Colt. He is our world.

On a side note:Jared is going this weekend to help move Jake back. He'll be living with us until he finds a job. Although Jared doesn't show it, I know he is so excited about having his brother back at home. We're all excited. Colt loves his uncle Jakie so much.

After a long day. He screamed and yelled in his crib so he got to fall asleep with daddy.

At Grammy and Grandad's taking a break after hunting easter eggs. He thought it was funny to throw the eggs at A.J.

Hunting eggs is serious business!

We went to my Uncle's a few weeks ago in Edgewood for a family reunion. Colt had the best time being outdoors all weekend.

These are two of his cousins, Lexie and Ella keeping him entertained.

He loved getting on Uncle Charlie's Harley. (I'm sure daddy would too)

Just Colt and mama

He loves dogs

A little out of order. This was from Easter. He was taking a drink break. Hunting eggs is tiring!

Wow, there's actually something in these eggs!

Hunting with daddy

He was not a fan of the Easter Bunny

We ate at Ihop before the Hunt and saw a good background for pictures. Unfortunately, I couldn't get all 3 of them to look at the camera at the same time.

Baby # 2 is on the way

2010-04-01T18:52:00.002-06:00

WEll, I've actually known for quite a while but wanted to wait until I was far enough along to make the announcement. Colt will be a big brother in October or possibly the end of September. My actual due date is October 9th. I've had 3 sono's so far and everything looks good. Yesterday my ob told me she was going to ask her Dr. friend who does sono's for high risk pregnancy's if he would be able to detect Hirschsprungs in a sono. Apparently he said he could b/c she called me today and had already made me an appt. I have to wait until I'm 20 weeks when the baby's bowels are functioning. So I'm very excited about that. I really don't think anything is wrong but it will be nice to rule it out.
So my next appt is April 27th. I will be 16 wks so I hope to find out the sex. If the baby is cooperative we'll be able to tell but if not, we'll definitely be able to tell on the 3D sono at 20 wks. I can't wait!
Other than that, we are really looking forward to summer. I want to savor every moment I have while it's just Colt and I. A part of me is a little sad that he won't be the only child anymore, but I know it will be what's best for him. Jared and I both enjoyed having a sibling so close in age. Colt is growing up so fast. He has started saying words. It's crazy how he can communicate already!
Well, please keep us all in your prayers as we begin this new journey (again)

Random fun

2010-03-15T10:40:00.002-06:00

Well, I'm on Spring Break this week so I thought I'd have some extra time to post. There's not too much to share but I thought I'd post some cute pictures. I celebrated my 29th bday last Friday. Jared gets an A+ for planning a great night out. I thought we were going to Edohana which is a Hibachi grill in Rockwall that we enjoy going too. He totally threw me off. We went to Shananegenz instead. He also invited several of our friends who were waiting there. We ate dinner and played a game of bowling. It was a great night with some great people. Unfortunately Jared is going out of town for his bday so I won't be able to surprise him with anything. But he'll be doing what he loves best. He'll be fishing on the lake with his brother and cousin.
So Colt is growing so much. He's 18 months old now. I can't believe he's 1 1/2 yrs old. He's starting to say a few words. The one he says the most is "hot". It's crazy how much he understands. Since he can't talk yet, I guess it's just hard for me to believe he actually understands what we're telling him. He does though. I can tell him to go put something in the trash and he will. He does have a very stubborn nature. When he wants something, he is very persistent. I guess that can be a good thing or a bad thing as he gets older. Well, we don't have any plans this week. I just plan on spending time with Colt and going to lunch with a few friends. The count-down until summer will begin as soon as we go back next week. With all this beautiful weather and being home with him, I'm getting really excited about summer and what fun it will bring.
He loves sitting with the dog

The look on his face is priceless

Me and Colt at Iron Chef

Jared and I before my Bday surprise

Jared thought it would be funny to not take his shirt off all the way. Colt thought it was pretty funny too.

Cruises, snow, anniversary and everything else in between

2010-02-12T09:45:00.011-06:00

Well, I have put "blogging" off for a while and so I have so much to catch up on. We have had a very busy year so far. I'm definately not complaining because we've been fortunate enough to get alot of much needed vacation time. We decided about a year ago that we would probably be to the point of needing a vacation by the time we celebrated our 3rd anniversary. We celebrated our anniversary on the 13th of January and we left for our cruise on the 17th. We started off the weekend by taking colt to my parents. It was VERY hard to leave him knowing we wouldn't see him for another week. We both just tried to keep our mind on other things. We left very early Sunday morning. We picked up some friends in houston and began our journey to Galveston. We went to Jamaica, Grand Cayman and Cozumel. It was a wonderful vacation. We went with our friends that we actually met on our honeymoon 3 years ago. They live in Kansas so we don't get to see them very often. It was so nice to spend time with each other. It was also nice for JAred and I to get some alone time. Don't get me wrong. We missed Colt terribly. In fact, by Friday night I was wishing is was already Sunday so I could be holding my sweet boy. We all survived the seperation though. Colt had a great time with my parents, Uncle Zach and Aunt Margie, Grammy and Grandad and Uncle Joe and Aunt Jaime. I'm not sure he even realized we were gone. So, we had a great time and are thrilled that God has been able to bless us enough to enjoy a vacation every now and then.
Well, I felt that one cruise this year wouldn't be enough for me so I decided to go on another one 10 days after we got back. Okay well, it was planned. My mom told me several months ago that she wanted to take me and my sister in law on a "girls trip" and the first weekend in February was the only weekend we could go. Wednesday night, we flew to Orlando. We stayed at the Airport Marriot. Thursday, we drove down to Port Canaveral. We boarded the ship. We had a great time. I will say I have never felt sick on a cruise until this one. Thank goodness our room was in the middle of the ship so once I got to our room, I felt fine. It was a smaller ship and the waters were really rough. We still had a good time. We went to the Bahamas. Once we got there, we went to the Atlantis hotel. We had the most amazing experience of swimming witht he dolphins. I've always wanted to do this but it is so expensive for 2 people. Well, this time i only had to pay for me, so we were able to experience the dolphins close up. It was amazing! While I was on this cruise with my mom and sister in law, Jared was at home playing mommy and daddy. I think it was a really good experience for both of them. Jared really did a great job being a single parent. He did tell me I couldn't go away again for a long time. LOL.
Well, I haven't even been home a week and we had a snow storm here in Texas. I have never seen so much snow in Texas in my lifetime. We have 11 inches in our front yard. It was so much fun playing in it this morning. Colt wasn't really sure what to think of it. He could hardly walk in it since it was up to his waist! Schools were closed today. Jared went in a few hours late. The only bad part is now we have to make it up at the end of the year. Boo! Oh well, we made some great memories today.
Well, I hope I haven't bored you too much. I'll try to not wait so long until the next post.

The roses Jared sent me on our anniversary.

me,mom, margie

us again leaving the Bahamas heading back to the ship

These aren't in order. This was in the big Golden Chair at the Atlantis

me being silly looking like i'm kissing the fish.

At dinner

Jared and I getting heading back to the ship in Cozumel

Our friends

Notice there's only a picture of me with the Sting Ray. Yes, I look a little scared but it was fun. You won't find any pictures of Jared b/c he was in the water less than 5 minutes. And he certainly didn't get near any sting ray. Maybe he was the smart one!

After we left Sting Ray City in Grand Cayman, we went to a private beach. It was great. Not crowded at all. Beautiful!

Our professional picture taken on formal night

At school, trying to not get too wet!

2009-12-28T19:28:00.004-06:00

Merry Christmas!!! I know, it's ben forever since I've posted. Wow, a 15 month old can really keep you on your toes. We've had a great Christmas break so far. Colt has enjoyed the extra time with family, opening presents and trying different foods. He is still going through a 'seperation anxiety' stage so he wants his mama all the time. But that's okay with me. Mrs. Pat might be upset when I take him back but for the time being, I love the time I get to spend with my little man. He has been in and out of the Dr. 3 times since September. I am getting a little frustrated with the Dr. He never seems to be able to give me any answers. But I'm not really sure there are any. He had a cough for several months that wouldn't seem to go away. We did some breathing treatments and alergy medicine and it subsided a little. He also got some kind of stomach bug that lasted almost a week. The Dr. says it's really common for kids under 2 to get sick alot. Cold after cold after cold. Well, I really don't like his answer. In fact, Colt is sick again now. He woke up yesterday with a fever. A high fever. And he's acting very lathargic. I'm praying he'll feel better in the morning. So, I don't know what I'll do in the morning. It might be time to find another Dr. I hate to sound like a paranoid mom because maybe he's right. Maybe that's all it is is one cold after another.
So anyway, on a better note, we still have one more Christmas. But below are the festivities so far. We have had such a blessed year. Jared is enjoying his job. He's moving up and taking on more responsability. I'm proud of him because he gives 110%. It's also very exciting to see Jared interact with Colt. Sometimes just watching them brings a tear to my eye. There are many times now that Colt just wants his daddy. The love that a father has for his son is priceless.
As for me, I'm glad to be half way through the year at school. My kids are wonderful. Everyday one of them says something that makes my heart smile. I should be writing a book. I just finished my first masters class. It was alot of work but I know it will be worth it in the end. If I follow the program and don't take any time off (which I don't plan on doing), I will be graduating sometime in the summer of 2011. Oh and I did get a perfect 100 in my first class. (I think that's a first).
I saved the most exciting part for the end. Jared and I are about to celebrate our 3rd anniversary. We will be going on a much needed vacation. We are cruising through Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Jamaica. We are going with the couple that we met on our honeymoon. So we are very excited to spend a week with them again. It will be the first time we have been away from Colt for more than 24 hours. The more I think about it, the more I don't want to go. But I know this will be good for me and Jared. And Colt will be well taken care of by our family. Please say an extra prayer that we'll make it a full week without our little man.
Here is a list of some of the things Colt does now that he's growing up.
1. He can show you his belly button (or raise up his daddy's shirt and show you his)
2. He can give you a high five and low five.
3. He can eat just about anything you put in front of him. (he has a mouth full of teeth now so he can enjoy a good steak)
4. He still has a shoe fetish.
5. He likes to wave by and walk away from us
6. He likes to blow bubbles in the bath
7. He can almost run faster than his mama. Uh Oh!!
8. He loves to climb up on everything. Uh Oh again!!
9. He still loves to give kisses and most of the time they're open mouth kisses!
10.He tries to take the remote away from me to give to his daddy. (I don't know who has taught him that)
I'm sure there's so much more but these are what i can think of now.

Christmas Eve at my parents. This is me, my nephew, Luke and my dad

Me and my man

Me and my little man

Colt playing with his new toys

Colt is modeling his new hat and mittens

Me and my niece, Lexie

Memaw reading to my baby

I did not pose him this way. I went to fix him a drink and came back to this.... Seriously, is it something men are just born with?

Taking a nap with daddy

Riding in daddy's work truck for the Forney parade

Forget teaching when it's snowing outside in Texas. I had to let them go outside and play in it.

At Bass Pro with Lexie and Luke

Kissing daddy

Sharing with Aunt Jaime

Swinging with cousins A.J. and Samantha at Gigi's house.

2009-11-20T21:26:00.003-06:00

Wow, I'm really a slacker with this whole blog thing. We have just been so busy. I am soooo thankful that we have a break next week. I don't get the whole week but I'll take what I can get. Then, we only have a few weeks until Christmas. I can't wait!!!! I honestly believe that teachers would lose their mind if we didn't have breaks every once in a while. It's so hard to see what some of these kids go through at home. Yesterday one of my kids told me his dad went to jail for selling drugs! There was no amount of schooling that could prepare me for how to handle that situation. I also have a child in my class who is so far from being disciplined at home. I got into my first.... hmmmm what should I call it.... heated conversation with a parent. I'm pretty sure the parent was either drunk or high because nothing he was saying or yelling at me made any sense. And it's really hard for me to believe that a sober person would talk to his son's teacher the way that he talked to me. So I know that these kids need me and that God put me here for a reason. But, man, sometimes it seems impossible to just do what I went to school to do... teach! So I'll get off my little soap box. Everything at home is great. Jared is really busy at work. I am happy for the overtime but not happy about the long hours. Colt is doing good. He's getting a new tooth every other day it seems. He was sick a few weeks ago. He had an ear infection and a cold that gave him a pretty bad cough. But he's feeling much better now. I'm sad to report that he is beginning his "terrible 2's a year early! He has soooo much personality. He is so stubborn and hates being told no (who does). We are trying to be very consistent in disciplining but he keeps doing the same thing over and over and over. He is very hard headed. Not sure who he got that from. Since Jared doesn't read my blog, I'll say it his fault. I'm afraid we have a very long road ahead of us. I'm sure it will be filled with lots of time-outs, spankings, groundings and who knows what else. But with all that being said, he is so much fun. Everyday I think he can't possibly be any cuter and then he'll do something to prove me wrong. He is really funny to watch and interact with. It's amazing how much he's picked up and how fast he learns. My sweet boy is growing up too fast! Well, I can't think of much more going on. Oh, I did start a masters class this week. Man, I don't know what I was thinking. It's sooo much work. But I really want to get it over with. It's a very fast pace program. Classes are 5 weeks long with a week break between each class. I should be done in 18 months. I just might not have much of a life for the next 18 months. Well, here are a few pictures from the past month. I think they're out of order... sorry

Grandad actually let Colt get up on Duke. He wasn't sure what to think about that.
The only picture I got of my little Chef smiling on Halloween

He's learned how to splash. Bath time is a little more messy these days

He's so smart. He picked up Jared's phone the other day and held it right up to his ear. He knew what to do with it. So he's either really smart or he sees his mama on her phone too much!

We has a fun family shoot a few weeks ago. My little stinker wouldn't smile for any pictures with the family.

Lots of Fall fun!

2009-10-24T21:54:00.005-05:00

Well, it's been too long since I've posted. We have been busy having fun. We try to take advantage of the few days that have been beautiful. It's been so rainy. A few weeks ago we went to the fair. We had a good time. Colt didn't have the best time only because he doesn't really enjoy having to sit in his stroller. He would much rather be walking. So we only stayed for a few hours. Just enough time to eat some good food and see some cute animals.
There's not too much going on. Jared and I are blessed to enjoy our jobs. We both love coming home and getting to play with Colt. We taught him how to sign "please" for his food. He does it all the time now when he wants something to eat. It's so cute. We might try to teach him a few more signs. He's just growing and getting bigger and bigger. He wears mostly 18 or 24 month clothes. I put him in a 2T A&M sweat outfit today. And it fit him just fine! He's 13 months wearing 2T clothes! Wow, he's gonna be a big kid. I'm scared he's gonna out grow his mama when he's 10.
Well, today we TRIED to go the the Arboretum. Tried is the key word. We couldn't even park. So we found another pumpkin patch to take pictures in. It wasn't as easy as last year. Last year, I remember thinking "It will be so much better next year when he can actually hold his head up" But it was definitely not "easier" He wouldn't sit still long enough to take a picture. Then that little stinker found a rotten pumpkin and before I could stop him, he reached inside it and got nasty pumpkin all over his sleeve. UGH!! oh well, so I was able to get one good picture of him by the pumpkins. It was such a beautiful day. Jared got up really early with Jake and Brandon to go fishing. Unfortunately they didn't even get one bite. But they had a fun spending time together.
Well, things are great and moving fast in our world. God has blessed us so much with more than we could ever ask for!

His first State Fair corny dog.

Finally, he sat still for 1 second so I could get a picture

Hard to believe this was just 1 year ago

2009-10-06T21:09:00.004-05:00

We traveled the long trip to Alabama this past weekend. We had planned on visiting Jared's memaw in the summer. We just couldn't make it this past summer so we went this weekend b/c I had a 3 day weekend. We had a great time with his memaw and Aunt Cathy. We did learn that we will never take a 10 hour trip with Colt again until he is much older. He was sick last week so he wasn't back to his normal self. But we did get there at 1:30 in the morning. And of course Colt was not ready to go to sleep. He was so tired but so restless from being in a carseat for 10 hours. He finally fell asleep somewhere between 3 and 3:30. We took our time the next morning getting out and about. We went to Heritage Christian University where JAred's parents lived after they got married. His dad graduated from there. There were lots of memories and stories that we enjoyed hearing about his mom and dad and the life they lived there. His dad was a man that everyone loved and enjoyed being around. We always knew that but it's nice to hear that from everyone else. We enjoyed going to Wilson Dam where we got to walk around and appreciate the amazing beaty that God created. Colt just wanted to get down and play with and/or eat the rocks. There were so many people fishing. We even witnessed a guy who caught a pretty good size fish. We spent the afternoon relaxing. Some of us caught up on some much needed sleep. We enjoyed several good meals thanks to Cathy and memaw. Overall, we had a great visit. We wish we could visit more often. We did decide to leave Sunday night and only drive half way. Colt was much happier. We made it home yesterday afternoon. It was good to be home. We are blessed with such a great family who loves us so much. Thanks Cathy and memaw for taking care of us this weekend. Colt misses you already!

We had to take some good ole family pictures in our church clothes. Isn't my boy so handsome? And Colt is pretty cute too!

How precious is this?

And he found the shoes in the house

Trying to keep him from jumping in!!

He did not want to be held

He really wanted to eat this leaf

Having fun with Aunt Cathy

He loves ridign on Daddy's shoulders

The Walk of Honor at Heritage Christian University (formaly known as International Bible College) where Ron (Jared's dad) graduated from.

1st Birthday Party

2009-09-15T13:31:00.007-05:00

Okay so I've have to stop posting pictures. There are a ton more but I'll stop. We had such a good time. We celebrated Colt's first birthday on Saturday. He loved having all his cousins (minus 1) and a friend from church there to play with. He wasn't very interested in his cupcake but we did get some good pictures. We had over 30 people in our house! It was crowded but fun. Colt stuck with me opening his presents for about the first 3 or 4 and then he was off to do other things. He got some really neat toys, books and some cute clothes. He was worn out by the time everyone left. My baby boy is growing up so fast. I've decided to write out a list of all the things he can do now that he's 1

*climb up on the couch
*wave goodbye
*kiss his mama and daddy (and anyone else that wants a kiss)...... (sorry Brandon he only kisses on the lips)
*says daddy and mama but he only says mama when he's whining!
*claps his hands
*knows the word "no" ( I have a feeling he'll be told this at least 50 times a day until he's 18)
*not only walk but run
*somewhat feed himself with a spoon
*gets down off the bed or chair by himself
*sleeps all night most nights (yay for us)
*drinks from a sippy cup instead of a bottle (most of the time)

I'm sure there's many more but these are the things that I can think of. He has such a personality. I'm afraid he's inherited his daddy's stubborness (okay maybe a little bit is from me too). He is very tender hearted. He cries when we spank his hand or tell him no. Sometimes, jared will just give him "the look" and he'll start crying. He has also given me attitude when I discipline him. Something I didn't think would happen for a while! Well, I'm gonna end by saying being a parent is the best thing in the world! Maybe next year one thing on my list will be "he's potty trained"!!! I'm thinking positive

The chaos has begun!!

2009-09-02T12:43:00.005-05:00

School has started and life is busy, busy, busy. Colt adjusted really well to going back to Pat's. In fact, sometimes when I go to pick him up, he wants to get back down and play. He's running around with all the older kids, playing and having fun. When I pick him up, he's usually filthy from playing so hard. But I don't mind at all. He's all boy. He's not afraid of anything. I have to work really hard at not running to his rescue when he falls or bumps his head. As long as I don't react bad, he usually laughs it off. There have been a few instances where I'm holding another baby and he runs to me and holds his arms up. He doesn't cry or whine but when his mama is holding someone else, he wants to be held too. He's such a sweet boy. He's very loving and happy. Jared and I are just having the best time of our life being parents. We can also tell that Colt is very stubborn (huh... wonder where he got that from) and wants to do things his way (again.... wonder who he got that from). He's very sensitive. We spank his hand when he tries to get into something he's not supposed to. He just cries and cries b/c we hurt his feelings. Just yesterday though, he didn't cry, he gave me a dirty look and pushed my hand away! I couldn't believe he could do that. But I made him mad and he wanted me to know it I guess. I can foresee some spankings and lots of grounding in his future! But for now, we love every minute watching him grow up. Next week, he'll be 1!!! I can't believe it's been a year!
On another note, school is going great. It's so much better the second year (and it's better not starting out 9 months pregnant!) I actually feel like I half way know what I'm doing most of the time. My kids seem great so far. I have my few that have tested me but nothing I can't handle.
Jared has been very busy at work. His boss purchased a new building so they've been working so much overtime trying to get things moved to the new building. He enjoys his job and and feels blessed for that.
I can't think of much more that has gone on. It's been a while since I've posted to here are a few pictures from the past few weeks.

This is his new little girlfriend. Her name is Journey. I work with her mother. We had free CiCi's night last week so we ate together. She's 17 months old. An older woman!

I walked in Colt's room the other night to check on him and found him sleeping like this. So I had to take a picture. I thought it was hilarious!

Lex and Luke had their bday party at the skating rink. Unfortunately Colt was still a little young. They didn't have skates small enough for him. You can tell in the picture how disappointed he was! We had a good time though. I won't post the pictures of me skating! Scary!!!

A few weeks ago, we went to pick up my parents at the airport and got a flat on the way. So we pulled over to an empty parking lot. I tried to get creative to keep Colt entertained while JAred changed the tire. So we had a little photo shoot. I think they turned out good!

A happy man! Notice Colt has the remote in his hands. He always tries to change the channel

Again... a sleeping position I can't imagine sleeping in. Strange child (he must get that from his daddy!)

Surgery update..... sorry so late

2009-08-14T19:25:00.002-05:00

Colt did great in surgery. It didn't even seem like it was surgery. We showed up at 11:15 and left at 1:30. The only time he cried is when he woke up from the surgery. We gave him apple juice and he stopped. He was so hungry. We went home and he slept all afternoon. He woke in a great mood and was fine. He hasn't seemed like he even had surgery. I think we have a really tough little guy. We somewhat enjoyed our last week together. I took him to Pat's for a few hours everyday so I could go to my classroom. I've gotten alot of things done so hopefully I won't be putting in 12 hours days next week. We'll see how well that will work out.

Finally surgery date

2009-08-11T21:26:00.002-05:00

After several phone calls I finally set a surgery date today. First she said the earliest was next Wednesday which would not be good. I start back to school on Monday. So I asked her if she had anything this week. She had something tomorrow afternoon. So we took it. It's set for 12:30 pm. He can't eat after 6:30 so I guess we'll be waking up early to eat (Maybe he'll go back to sleep after that). I'll update tomorrow night to let everyone know how it went. Please say an extra prayer for us. Especially his mama. I'm gonna hate them taking him away from me. Maybe he won't freak out. That would make it much easier!

My hair is turning gray!!!

2009-07-30T19:53:00.005-05:00

We've been to the dr. twice this week. First on Monday i took him b/c he's been running fever, runny nose, and rubbing his ear. So I thought ear infection. Well, he didn't have an ear infection. There was also something else that I asked the Dr. about. When I changed Colt's diaper, there would be this bulge in his groin area when he cried. I noticed it once on July 4th b/c he was crying b/c of his diaper rash. But I hadn't seen it again since this past weekend. So the Dr. couldn't see anything so just said he wouldn't worry about it unless it became more common. Well, this whole week he's been crying every time I change hid diaper b/c he's had an upset stomach. So I've noticed it at least once a day. So I read up on it and thought maybe it was a hernia. I took him back to the Dr. It was a different Dr. cause our Dr. was out of town. This time he saw it and told me I was right. It's a hernia. So I have an appt with a surgeon next Tuesday to talk about what to do with it. The pediatrician today told me it's almost always corrected with surgery. So this will be his 4th. I have read that it's usually just day surgery so that will be better than a long stay. But it's still anesthesia and it's still wheeling out little baby off to a room where we can't be so they can cut him open. Oh and what makes things worse is we can't use the same surgeon. I only have my school insurance now. When he had his previous surgeries I had my bank of America ins. So Colt's original surgeon doesn't take my school ins. so I had to find a new surgeon. I hope I get a good feeling from her on Tuesday. We just really loved our last one and trust him with our son. He's done such a good job and he's known Colt since he was a few days old. usually I'm willing to give new people a chance but I'm a little hesitant when it concerns performing surgery on my son. But I'll meet her and decide if I want her to do this surgery. So keep us in your prayers as we go through another surgery. And I know I can't post w/out adding some pictures.

Colt and his friend Wilson from church

Lex' new baby doll

Driving daddy's truck

My little boy is growing up

2009-07-24T12:12:00.004-05:00

Our summer is flying by. Colt is definitely walking all over the place. Getting into everything all the time. I'm about to buy a play yard gate thing that will block him in the dining room where all his toys are. I'm sure he'll eventually learn how to climb over it but maybe it will work for a little while. He now has 5 teeth and working on the 6th. We've enjoyed being with each other. He's lately become a daddy's boy. We were in Costco the other day and he only wanted his daddy. He didn't want even want me! And I love that. It just melts my heart when his daddy comes home and his face just lights up. Here are a few recent pictures of the past few weeks. Only 3 weeks of summer left. We're gonna make the most of it.

Playing at the splash park

Wanting to play Tennis with mommy and daddy

Thinking about putting this locust in my mouth

Luke with his new "insect" friend

Trying to show Colt how to play with a Locust (and not eating it)

Wrong way Colt

Our play date with Amy, Cade and Kinley

Colt thinks he's about to walk the dog. What I didn't get on tape is what happened when Bully walked away. colt didn't let go. It was so funny

More pictures

2009-06-30T10:28:00.005-05:00

Climbing over daddy

Who loves his mama??? I do!!!! I do!!!! If this doesn't speak his personality, I don't know what does! Ice cream please

Paint Project # 1

2009-06-24T18:39:00.002-05:00

Before

After

Colt's shoe fetish

2009-06-24T16:25:00.005-05:00

I'm not sure exactly what this means, but colt loves shoes. I can put anything in a room and he will go after my shoes. Anyone that has been around him will contest to this. He's even tried to take a pair of flip flops off people so he can eat them. So I decided last week to try to capture this shoe fetish he has.It's actually kinda funny. Last night Jared couldn't find his other shoe. I'm sure as colt gets older, it will be harder to find the shoes he's hidden. Maybe he'll grow up and be a famous shoe designer. Mama would love that (although i don't think dad would be that happy)

2009-06-24T15:02:00.006-05:00

Well, I thought i would have so much more time this summer to post and take pictures. But obviously, i haven't posted in 3 weeks so I don't have as much time as I thought. But it's been great. We've spent some days doing nothing and others on the go. He was supposed to have his 9 month appt a few week ago but they had a power outage due to bad weather. So I rescheduled it for this past Monday. Everything went great. He always has a runny nose and watery eyes so the Dr. gave us some zyrtec to give him. It's seemed to help. I guess my poor baby has allergies. They drew blood to test for some things. It was all routine stuff. He was such a trooper. He didn't even cry when they took his blood! Such a big boy!
He's started to eat a few things here and there from the table. He's done really well so far. One thing the Dr. told me is to start giving him more baby food and less formula. And he wants him to start on a sippy cup so we can start weening him off of the bottle. It really hasn't been that bad. He went all day yesterday with no bottle, just a sippy cup. He was a little fussy last night but overall did very well. I also am attempting to make my own baby food. It's really simple and much cheaper so as long as Colt tolerates it, I'll keep doing it.
I can't believe my baby will be 10 months. Before i know it, I'll be planning his 1st birthday!
I didn't cature pictures from all the fun things we've done so far but here are a few. We've been swimming with all of his cousins, we've gone to Six Flags,the park, McDonalds, shopping with mom (which i'm sure he really enjoyed) and much more.
He is starting to get really attached to me which i love for the most part but sometimes it's hard to get anything done. I do make him entertain himself for a part of the day everyday. I know I can't hold him or play with him all day. His baby sitter would hate me when i take him back in August.
I started painting our house this week. So far, i've just done part of the kitchen but befor the summer is over, I want to do everything. I'm not that great at it but hopefully i'll get better as I go.
Well, enjoy the pictures. There's lots of them!

Hangin out with the boys

Getting ready to see the Dr.

Colt waking up his cousins

He's getting more hair

He wanted to taste a lemon. It doesn't really look like it in this picture but he liked it. I finally had to take it away when he bit off a big chunk of it.

Everytime he's in my lap and put something in my mouth, he goes after it! In this picture, it was just a piece of ice!

Sara and Brandon are in thier new house. We went over to see it.

This is how Colt decided to help out!

Brandon and Jared just removed the frame that was around the tub. It looks 100 times better

Just a random pic showing one of his funny expressions

Colt's first trip to Six Flags

We decided to try some spaghetti

I'm not sure how much he actually got in his mouth but I think he liked it

2009-05-30T07:48:00.007-05:00

Well, it's been a while since I've posted. We're just super busy all the time. Time is just flying by. I can't believe my sweet boy is almost 9 months old. He's taking steps and so proud of himself when he does it. He shows so much of his personality. It's so fun to watch. We go next week for his 9 month shots and I haven't made an appt with the surgeon. He wanted to see us sometime in May... whoops. He hasn't had any problems related to his condition so I really think he's fine. But we'll go this summer just to make sure. This is my last week of school. I can't wait to spend the summer with him. We've been swimming a few times. He doesn't really cry or smile. I think he's still trying to get used to it. I'm just glad he doesn't cry. I can't wait to go swimming everyday! I'm babysitting a little girl in my class for a few weeks after school so we'll have lots of fun entertaining her. WEll, i'll update in a few weeks when we go to the Dr. I'm really curious about his weight. I'm guessing he's at least 23 pounds. He's a bigggg boy!

okay had to add a few more pictures

Taking a few steps

sweet smile

laughing at T.J.

Watching Daddy play ball

hey mom

being silly

He can climb now. We're in trouble!

Wearing Wilson's hat

My friend Landon at church. He's only 5 weeks younger than me

swimming with the fam

funny video

2009-05-11T19:55:00.003-05:00

I know you can't see his face but turn up the volume. It's so funny

Mothers Day

2009-05-11T18:56:00.006-05:00

We had a good Mothers Day. Colt drew me a picture at Mrs.Pat's house. It's beautiful! We spent the afternoon with my family and the evening with Jared's. We also spent some time outside fishing. I didn't fish but Jake and Jared did. Colt experienced some "firsts" too. He rode on a John Deer tractor. He seemed to enjoy it. He also rode with Jared and I on the four wheeler. Of course Jared went very slow and we held on tight. We really just rode it from the car to the pond (which wasn't very far). But he still got to ride on it for the first time. Overall we had a great day. Colt is all over the place. It's hard to keep up with him. He's starting to be a fast crawler. We are really needing to baby proof our cabinets and everything else very soon. He's also started letting go and standing on his own. I can't believe how fast he's growing. I'll let the pictures speak for themself.

Eating Uncle Charlie's hat

Feeding myself

My cousins

We had a great time eating dinner at the Harbor with Brandon and Sara

laughing at my mommy

Trying to drink Daddy's mountain dew

I got away!!

Trying to get away

Naked boy trying to get away

Reading the paper with Mrs. Pat

What a week!

2009-04-26T20:57:00.006-05:00

WEll, I just realized I hadn't posted in a few weeks and alot has happened. We went on a fishing trip. It was more of a "stay indoors" trip because it was cold and rainy. But we got to get away for a weekend. Colt did great. He still slept all night in his pack-n-play. He had a great time playing with his friend, Anberlin. They're only 10 days apart. Colt got to be outside and see his daddy fishing. We all had a great time.
So I'm glad we had a restful weekend because we had a busy week. It started with Colt having a fever on Tuesday. It happened overnight. Monday he was fine. Tuesday he was running 103 fever. So Wednesday, I took the day off and took him to the Dr. All the peditricians were not there so we saw a regular Dr. She didn't really know what he had so she gave him a breathing treatment. He was not breathing good at all. So she was still not happy with his beathing so she sent us home with a breathing treatment machine and some albuterol. Well, long story short, it didn't get any better so we went to the ER. He had Croup. They gave him medcine through a breathing treatment and a steriod shot. It worked almost immediately. We had to spend the night since they gave him a steroid shot. So that was fun! But we're all better today. He has a little cough left but he's as happy as can be. He's crawling all over the place, pulling up on everything. He's so fun to watch.
So we're keeping busy. I can't wait until summer is here so I can be home with him everyday. Here's a few pictures from our camping trip and a few from today in his "big boy" outfit.

Such a big boy!

Lot's of Easter pictures

2009-04-13T19:59:00.005-05:00

This has nothing to do with Easter but it was a funny moment. Friday Jared and I decided to let Colt stay with his aunt Jaime and Uncle Joe overnight. We planned this a couple of times but I backed out because I just didn't think I was ready to be away from him all night. So he's 7 months old now and I thought it would be a good time for me and Jared to have a whole night to ourself. We survived and I know Colt had a great time too. He slept alot longer for Aunt Jaime than he ever does for me. So right before we left the house, I decided to give him a bath. AFter his bath, I took him to his room and started to put a diaper on him but realized I had already packed his diaper rash cream. So i left him for about 30 seconds and this is what I came back too.

If you can't tell, those are a package of diapers that he's trying to grab and he had a little accident on the floor before i made it back. This all happened in about 30 seconds. This will be a great picture to show his dates when he's about 16!

Anberlin and Colt at LTC

Easter Sunday
The happy couple

me and Lex

Look at me mom

My handsome Easter outfit

I don't care what's inside the egg yet

uncle Joe and Colt

Telling mom a secret

HAHA I got out of my car seat

I'm not gonna look at the camera

I don't care how ridiculous you sound mom, I'm not looking

Okay, I'll look but I'm not taking my fist out of my mouth

7 months old!

2009-04-08T21:41:00.008-05:00

Colt after I fed him squash. This is the first time I actually put him in his highchair.
Wow, how time flies. It's so weird... I look at clothes Colt has in his closet and I think "there's no way he'll fit that. it's way too big. But then I put it on him and it's almost too small! Just last month i bought him some cute one piece shorts outfits. They're so cute. I bought 9 months thinking he would for sure be able to wear them in Spring and maybe early summer. Well, today i put it on him for the second time and it's too small. Ugh,,, I'm not buying anymore clothes under 12 months. He's just growing too fast. Well, i really don't have many updates. He's doing the army crawl and still pulling himself up pretty good. We just got over a really bad diaper rash. We switched to soy formula and I think that helped alot. He hardly spits up at all anymore. It stinks alot worse than regular formula but I think it's better for him. Next weekend we're going out of town. I'm really anxious to see how Colt will do away from his own bed for a weekend. We're going to Lake Texoma. We're meeting Darrell and Michelle and they're 3 year old and 7 month old. It should be a very interesting weekend! I hope to spend lots of time outdoors. Pray for good weather! I hope everyone has a happy Easter. I'm looking forward to our staff egg hunt tomorrow. Our principal is great! PS: I hope you're happy mom!

Quick picture post

2009-03-28T19:00:00.004-06:00

i love riding on Daddy's shoulders!

I had so much fun swinging at the park!

The swing taste good too!

Someday soon I'm gonna let go and take off. Then mommy and daddy will never get to sit down!

Dr. Update

2009-03-23T21:18:00.003-06:00

We went to the Dr. Wednesday for his shots. Everything was fine there. Thursday we went to the surgeon. He finally said we could stop doing the dilation's. He thought he looked great and was happy with his progress. He wants to see us in a couple of months but I think I'll wait till we're out in June. He just wants to make sure he's still "pooping' good after eating solid foods. He is up to eating 2 jars a day. He has had peas, green beans, carrots and butter corn squash. So far, the squash is his favorite. His tooth is poking through, he's crawling and pulling himself up. I know he's just gonna take off any day now. I just can't believe he can stand up. He tries to climb up the couch or chair. He's not quite strong enough for that yet but I'm sure he will be soon. I think it's time to baby proof our house!

More pictures and standing proof

2009-03-17T19:53:00.004-06:00

Colt is definately a dog lover. He is so facinated by any dog that we're around. This is Roxie, my brother and sister - in-laws dog.

This is how we give Colt a bath. Either me or Jared will just put him in the shower with us. He loves it and it's so much easier

This is a very common expression

auntie M, Colt and Luke

He will stand up every time i put him down in front of the laundry basket. Such a big boy!

6 Month pictures

2009-03-16T20:59:00.003-06:00

We finally took Colt to get his pictures taken. It was so much fun and we got such good results. He did so good and smiled so much. We had a few more outfits but we realized we squeezed as many smiles out of him as we could get. He is such a big boy. I haven't posted in a while. Life has just been so busy! He is sitting up so good and so close to crawling. He can get up on all fours. I'm sure it's just a matter of time before he figures out how to move. He also did something very exciting the other night. I sat him down on the floor in front of me. There was a laundry basket in front of him. He grabbed it with two hands and started chewing on it. Then i could tell he was trying to pull himself up but I thought... there's no way he can do that yet. He's only 6 months old. But, to my surprise, he did it. He pulled himself up like a big boy! He stood up for like a minutes on his own. I was so proud of him (if you didn't notice already). So I'm sure we'll start preparing the house for crawling soon. As for now, I'm going to enjoy my Spring Break. We have 3 Dr. appts and two rooms to paint. Wish us luck!

2009-02-28T17:37:00.003-06:00

Well we've had a busy week. Jared started us off being sick. Then Colt had an ear infection and then I had some kind of bug that gave me a fever. But we're all feeling better now. We went to a birthday party today for twin girls that just turned a year old. It was fun watching them interact. Colt is rolling all over the place. I can set him down in one place and he'll end up across the room cause he keeps rolling or scooting. It's so fun to watch how he does something different everyday. I'm sure he'll be crawling before I know it. Sleeping with daddy Happy boy I don't like to wear party hats... I like to eat them Uh Oh mama caught me! Grammy and Grandad loving on me

First Ear Infection

2009-02-25T19:39:00.003-06:00

So I took Colt to the Dr. yesterday. He has been congested for about a week now. Last week he had some diarrhea and loss of appetite (and that's a big deal for him). But I thought maybe he was just teething. But yesterday his babysitter called me at work to tell me he was running a fever so i decided to take him just to be safe. When we got there I felt like a paranoid mom because he didn't have a fever. The Dr. looked at him and said he looked like he was feeling okay and he didn't have a fever. But then he looked in his ear and sure enough that's what it was. So he's on antibiotic for 10 days. He also gave me a medicine for his congestion. So last night he slept all night. He hasn't been really fussy... just a little more than usual. So hopefully tonight he'll sleep all night again. That would be amazing! Still no teeth though. We'll see if any pop up soon, but for now he's still toothless!

2009-02-19T21:40:00.003-06:00

Things are going good. The dog is just like another child. But he's sweet and fun to have around. Colt is doing good. He's growing and doing something different everyday it seems. For Valentines day my parents watched Colt so Jared and i could go out to dinner. We had a great time at Edohana. My mom had a great time with him. He rolled over but she turned her head and didn't see it. So nobody has actually seen him roll over yet. He won't do it while i'm watching! Oh well, I know he will eventually. His 6 month appt is coming up. Almost half a year! I can't believe it! Well here's a few pictures

My smiling boy

Our good friends from Kansas City

Cody and Colt

In the front seat with dad. (Don't worry. The truck wasn't moving)

When I walked away the burp rag was beside him. This is where it was when I came back! He likes to cover his head with things and play hide-and-seek

We're growing up!

2009-02-11T15:44:00.002-06:00

So I decided to go ahead and start baby food. He is eating 8 oz and sometimes 10 oz of cereal every night. I think my Dr. wanted us to wait until 6 months but I don't think most 5 month old babies weigh 18lbs. So we are starting with peas. Wow, I"m glad I don't have to eat those. I hate peas. I thought I'd share a picture. Hope you enjoy. We sure did!

Our new family member

2009-02-07T17:09:00.005-06:00

I know it didn't take long but we decided to get another dog. It's just too sad in our house without one. So we didn't start out our day today thinking we were going to come home with a dog but that's what happened. We actually are looking for another car. We sold mine last week and are looking for another one for Jared to drive. I'm driving his truck so we're looking for something for him to buy. So we drove all the way to Fort Worth but didn't end up getting the car. On the way back I thought we should stop and just look at the dogs at the Dallas Aninal Shelter. So we found a perfect (so we thought) dog. His name is Dex and he's about 3 yrs old. He's alot calmer than alot of the ones that were there. He's a Pointer mix. He is so cute. So we decided to adopt him. He did great in the car on the way home. Colt loves him. Dex stuck his face in colt's face and Colt just laughed. So we brouhgt him home and let him in the backyard for a while. Well, I let him back in and he started smelling all around the house. Jared thought he better go back outside but I thought he was just getting to know his new home. Well, needless to say, Jared was right. So I don't know if he really just isn't potty trained or if he could smell Kit and wanted to "mark his spot". So we will be leaving him in the backyard when we're gone until we know he is potty trainined. He is a cutie though. On another note, Colt went to the Dr. yesterday. He weighed 18.3! Wow, he's getting so big! The Dr. was impressed with his progress but still wants us to do the dilating. He gave us a bigger one! But the good thing is, colt doesn't cry much when we do it. I guess it doesn't hurt him as bad anymore. So we will go back in about a month. Okay so here's a few cute pictures of our new family member.

On our way home from the shelter

He already knows how to sit,lay down, and shake! (but I guess he doesn't know where to go to the bathroom)

This is what colt thought of him when we were on our way home

We wore him out. He was so sleepy

Bye Kit

2009-02-04T20:12:00.005-06:00

So our sweet dog is now in doggie Heaven. For a few months now, we've noticed a lump in his throat. It had gotten alot worse in the past few weeks. He started losing weight and running into things. So we took him to the vet on Saturday and found out he had lymphoma. So he was starting to suffer because it had spread to his eyes and he couldn't eat. So Jared took him on Monday and had him put down. He was such a good dog.. I don't know if we'll ever find another dog as good as him. I'm glad I have a husband that was willing to take him because I don't think I could've done that myself. We didn't have him for very long but he was starting to become part of our family. But he was suffering so I know we did the right thing. Here's a few pictures of our sweet Kit.

A snow/ice day at home

2009-01-28T14:24:00.005-06:00

Well, I get to spend some extra time with Colt today. We didn't have school because of the ice. I'm glad I didn't have to drive on the ice but a little ticked that we have to make up the day now. But oh well... Colt is actually watching Baby Einstein right now. He actually made it through a whole episode without falling asleep. He loves those DVD's. A great friend from church just gave us the whole set! Well, Colt rolled over on Sunday. I put him on the floor and went to the kitchen. I didn't see it but I left him on his stomach and came back and he was on his back. So he did it again. Of course now that we want to get it on video, he won't do it anymore! So my little man is growing up! He also did a little better eating with a spoon last night. I'm sure in time he'll be a pro. He's still sleeping through the night for the most part. He still wakes up when he doesn't have a pacifier in his mouth so I put it back in and he goes right back to sleep. The whole dilating thing is going okay. Jared is doing it. Jared's also putting him in the shower with him. It's so cute. So much easier than giving him a bath. We are just having such a great time with him. Being a parent is the best thing in the world! Here's some cute pictures.

I found my toes. They taste so good!

My parents are so mean to me!

My cousin, Luke loves to hold me

I'm getting so sleepy

I can roll over (just not for the camera)

Grammy and Grandad watched Colt Saturday morning for us. They had a great time with him

Colt and his "new" Grandad

Another Dr. Update

2009-01-23T15:41:00.004-06:00

Well, I'm a little bummed because I thought this would be our last Dr. appt for a while. His little hiney was still too tight so he had to dilate it again. It was aweful. I think I cried as much as he did. I hate watching them do that. But 5 minutes later he acted fine like nothing happened. So he sent me home with a little instrument to dilate him myself. We have to do that twice a day for the next two weeks and he said that should help him loosen up. It really just makes me hurt to think about how that must feel for him. Another reason, I'm so glad he's so young and won't ever remember this. He weighed 17.8 pounds today. So he was happy with his progress. He just wants his little hiney to loosen up a little. So please keep us in your prayers. This whole dilating thing will probably not be very fun for either of us.

Dr. Update

2009-01-19T19:35:00.005-06:00

Well, i haven't posted in a while. We've been busy busy! We went to the Dr. today for his 4 month shots. He weighed exactley 17 pounds. So he's in the 84% for weight adn 86% for height. So he's on the bigger end of the spectrum! The Dr. said everything looked great. He's growing good and getting big. Of course we both hated the shots but he actually did okay with is. Friday we go to the surgeon. Hopefully for the last time. I really really hope the surgeon thinks he's doing good and we will be done with Dr. appt's for a while! So I'm posting a few pictures from the past few weeks. Today he is 4 months and 2 weeks old. Wow, how time flies!

A few weeks ago, we had a girls day so Colt had a daddy day. It was the first time I left Colt with Jared all day. They had a great time. This is how I left them!

How cute is this. We all wore our cowboy boots to church on Sunday. I'm gonna have to frame this one.

Colt and mama

We attempted feeding cereal with a spoon again. He's still not quite ready! Can you tell?

Me, Lexie and my Nana at the River walk at the Gaylord. It was really pretty and the food was great. We had alot of fun

So I found this picture of my brother. I've always thought Colt looks just like his daddy but he looks like my brother too. I think maybe just the eyes.

sweet video

2009-01-07T20:08:00.002-06:00

tons of pictures

2009-01-07T19:19:00.004-06:00

So Colt likes taking baths now. I finally told Jared to take some pictures while i was giving him a bath. He does great except when he poops in the water. That's not fun!

This is our sweet Kit.

Great picture of Colt but my eyes were closed :(

Jared and I on New Years Eve

My nephew, Luke and I on New Years Eve. He's so silly

My sweet niece on New Years Eve. We went to my brother and sister-in-laws house to play games and celebrate the new year. We had a good time. Jared played rock band on Anthony's Wii and I played Lexie's DS. It was actually pretty fun. Wonder what they're going to have when Colt is there age

Me, Jared and Jake went to Bass Pro. Of course I had to get my camera out

How cute is this. Colt and my niece Samantha

So I'm pretty sure Colt is teething. I know it's kinda early but I can see two little white specks on the top of his lower gum. I was curios becaus his drooling has really increased and he won't stop chewing on his fingers. So we'll see. I don't feel anything yet so I don't know when they'll actually come in. Wow, how time flies! Hope everyone had a great holiday season. I'll update when we go to the Dr. in a few weeks.

2008-12-30T20:04:00.004-06:00

We went to the pediatrician today. He weighted exactly 16 pounds. He's in the 83% for weight; 72% for height and 100% for head circumference! So needless to say, he's healthy and growing good. He wasn't worried much about his cold. It is about gone. He gave me a special cream for his diaper rash. He also told me the name of a pill I can take to increase my milk supply. I would love for him to only get breast milk. It would be so much better for him and not to mention a lot cheaper. So I'm going to GNC tomorrow to get some. I'm posting some pictures I think everyone will enjoy.

He loves his walker. His feet almost reach the ground

This was about 5 minutes later

And 5 minutes after that

We went on a walk this evening after dinner. He enjoyed it

We are trying to get some tummy time so he can build up those neck muscles.

I've always thought he looked like Jared but I can see my brother in the picture

"okay mom, that's enough"

Dr. Update

2008-12-29T20:48:00.002-06:00

We went to the surgeon today for a follow up. It was not a fun appt! He said he looked good but he couldn't fit his finger up his little hiney which means it's too tight. He said sometimes when they sew up the colon, it grows together too tight. So he got out this case with some medal rods. I couldn't believe he was gonna use one of those. So he attempted to dilate his little hiney. My poor baby was screaming to bad. I felt to bad for him. So the Dr. said that was normal but wanted to see him in a few weeks to make sure it was loosening up. If it doesn't then we'll have to dilate his rectum at home. That is something I really don't think i can do! So please pray it will loosen up on it's own. Ya know one day he's gonna be really embarrassed that everybody knew all about his pooping problems. Hopefully we'll be able to look back on all this and laugh. I can't wait for that day!

Our First Christmas

2008-12-27T11:54:00.005-06:00

Well, I'm a horrible mom cause I didn't take one picture on Christmas day. We also didn't record anything on our camcorder. It honestly never crossed my mind to take any pictures. Actually my sister in law took some pics so I'll have to get some from her. I did take one picture yesterday. The weather was beautiful so we decided to go to the zoo. It was the perfect day for it. We could have done without some of the wind but other than that, it was great. Christmas day we just did the family thing. Saw both families and finished the day off by seeing a movie. Colt is almost back to normal. I think he's still not eating as much as he was but he'll get there eventually. He's not sleeping through the night yet. Maybe he'll do that soon. We have a follow up appt with the surgeon on Monday and his 4 month appt on Jan. 19th. i can't believe he's gonna be 4 months old already! He's holding his head up really good and scooting around when I put him on his stomach. He's talking to us more and more everyday. He's the love of our life. We are so blessed to have him. Here's the one picture I took yesterday at the zoo. I think it's one of my new favorites.

Here's the pictures my sis-in-law emailed me.

Pictures pictures pictures

2008-12-23T17:11:00.002-06:00

I love my cousins!

I look just like my daddy!

mommy is making me smile

I'm feeling much better!

Me and daddy

We're home!

2008-12-20T08:39:00.003-06:00

So yesterday i went to school and Judy (my mother in law) stayed with Colt all day. By the time I was heading back up there, the Dr. had come in and said he could go home. So yeah!!!! We were on our way home last night and Jared's boss called and wanted to take us to dinner. So we met them and got home around 7:30. We were in bed by 8. It was so great to be in my own bed with my baby boy. He is so much happier than a few days ago. I can't even describe the relief we both feel. Now we just pray that his insides continue to work. I wish we could just spend the day playing with him but oh my goodness, our house is a disaster and we have like 5 bags to unpack from the hospital. So we'll spend the day cleaning. But i really don't mind because I'm just glad he's here with me. I'm sure I'll take more pictures soon and post them.

Before and After

2008-12-18T23:02:00.006-06:00

Well, it's been a long week. Monday was very long because we had to go through almost 3 hours of waiting for colt to get out of surgery. He slept most of the day and stayed awake most of the night. Tuesday night, he did great and slept most of the night. His stomach was so distended and hard so they are still suctioning everything out of his stomach and keeping him on iv fluid instead of letting him eat. So yesterday was a little depressing. His bowels weren't waking up as fast as we thought they would. Honestly I think jared and I thought it wouldn't take this long to recover. I guess we were just being naive. The positive part of my day yesterday was seeing one of my best friends have her second child. My childhood friend, Amy, was on the floor right above me having a baby. So it was a breath of fresh air getting to see her and her baby. So last night was a long night because i his bowels finally started working. So he's passing alot of gas and since his stomach is getting softer and smaller, he is starting to feel hungry. So he wanted to eat last night so bad but I couldn't feed him. It's so sad! So this morning, I woke up to the Dr. standing by his bed (with a young college student observing him). He said his stomach looked better and was happy with his progress and maybe he could start eating soon. Well, I went back to sleep and woke up a few hours later. Colt had no iv in and he was sitting in poop that leaked from his diaper and his suction was off. So another nurse came in. She seemed annoyed because the night shift left the suction off and took the iv out and didn't replace it. So he missed a dose of his antibiotics. So she said she would be right back in to put in another iv. Well, 2 hours later, I called the nurse. Our nurse had gone home sick. And apparently there weren't clear instructions left for the nurse taking over. So I told her he needed an iv. Now it had been like 5 hours without any fluid. So she came back in and put an iv in. Well, he finally settled down and we both fell asleep. Amy called and I decided to go see her. The nurse said she'd keep an eye on Colt so i could go see Amy for a while. When I came back, there were two nurses by his crib and there was something wrong with his hand. As I got closer, this is what I saw

They infiltrated his vein (not sure how to spell that). Basically, the needle popped out of his vein and the fluid was just going into his arm. His arm swelled up so much and stretched his skin so much that he got several blisters. It looked awful. I thought the nurse was gonna cry. She kept apologizing. I felt bad for her but I really didn't realize until later that she obviously didn't check his iv after she put it in. Some other nurses told me that it wouldn't have gotten that bad unless it was like that for a couple of hours. So of course I feel like the worst mom in the world because this happened when I was gone. So now my child has not gotten any fluid since early in the morning. He hasn't gotten his antibiotics and his skin is peeling off of his arm because it's stretched to the max! So needless to say, I was not a happy mama today. But the good news is, his stomach has gone way down and he's pooping and passing gas like crazy. Also, they couldn't' get another iv in and didn't want to chance it going bad again so the Dr. said I could feed him and they're just giving him his antibiotics through mouth. So my parents came up here tonight and sent me and Jared to dinner. It was nice to get away for a little while. So, now that he's eating, hopefully we can go home soon. Please pray that Colt will digest the milk and poop it out good without spitting any of it out. Tomorrow I'm going to school since it's the last day before the holidays. Jared's mom is coming to stay with him. Thanks so much for all the thoughts and prayers on our behalf.

This was yesterday

This was today. That little stinker smiled at me today which made my day but he wouldn't smile for the camera so this is the best I could get

Still in the hospital

2008-12-17T10:34:00.002-06:00

Well, Colt is still here. I went to work yesterday. It wasn't a great day for my poor baby. So I'm glad Jared was with him all day. I hate seeing him so uncomfortable. He kept spitting up. His bowels haven't started working yet so he's spitting up and his stomach is very hard and distended. He slept better last night and we had a great nurse last night. Jared went home last night because he had to be at work at 6:30 this morning so i stayed by myself. It wasn't so bad. The "very uncomfortable bed" is a little more comfortable when I don't have to share it. Colt slept better last night too so we both got some much needed sleep. The nurse this morning was a little worried about his stomach being so hard and she's not hearing any bowel sounds at all so she called the dr. He said it is very common and that's what he expected. It just takes some time for his bowels to work. But when they start working he'll be able to eat and be all better. Can't wait for that. He just looks at me with these pitiful eyes. I know he's just wondering why we're doing this to him. i hate not being able to help him be more comfortable. But i know that hopefully a week from now he'll be almost back to normal. Again, thanks to all of you who have been praying for us and Colt's recovery!

Out of Surgery

2008-12-15T12:40:00.005-06:00

So Colt is out of surgery and doing okay. He's fussy but I would be too if they did to me what they did to him. He hasn't fully woken up yet. He's still very sleepy from the anesthesia. The Dr. said he would be on iv fluid for a day or two until they can make sure he's pooping good and passing gas. Then after he can eat and poop good they'll let us go home. So I think we'll probably be here the majority of the week. Thanks to everyone who has been praying for us this morning. I'll post any more news if we hear anything else.

Plans have changed

2008-12-10T15:16:00.002-06:00

Well, I should've known that once we had everything all figured out and ready to go for his surgery, something was gonna mess it up. The surgeons office called today. They want to move his surgery up to Monday. My first reaction was .... great, the sooner the better. But then i thought about my 5 days off with no pay! So it's a little upsetting because we really can't afford to miss 5 days of work but I'm trying really hard to believe that God will take care of us. So I'm torn because I don't want anyone else taking care of my child when he just had surgery but I might have to so I can work a day or two. I guess we'll just have to figure it out. Please keep us in your prayers.

Dr. Update

2008-12-08T19:13:00.000-06:00

We went to Dr. last Thursday. He weighed 15.4 lbs. Wow! He's getting big. I know there will be a day when I think 15 pounds is nothing but for now, I'm very excited he's gained so much weight. I went to the Dr. with a list of questions. Most of them I already knew the answer to but just wanted affirmation. One I wasn't sure about was feeding colt cereal. I asked it he was still going to be able to start getting cereal at 4 months. He said he should be fine and he should be able to eat like a normal baby after this surgery. I also asked about doing the rectal irrigation's after the surgery. Originally he told us after the surgery we would have to do that for a little while. But what he told me Thursday was we won't have to do that unless he's not pooping well. Then he said there's a small chance that he will need additional surgery in the future but he didn't see that happening. I think I've read that there's like 5-10 % of kids with Hircshcprungs that have problems after surgery. So we'll just pray that Colt doesn't fall in that 5-10%. So this time next week we'll be so incredibly excited about the surgery. I don't know if excited is a good word. I'm still very scared and nervous for my little boy to have surgery (for the 3rd time) but I know it's what has to happen for him to live a healthy normal life. Well, I'll post a few new pictures. Hope you enjoy!

I love all his expressions

Only if he could do this all the time

new pictures

2008-12-02T20:35:00.000-06:00

Well, I don't have any news other than we have 15 days until his surgery. I'm very excited for him to get this bag off. I can't wait to give him a real bath. It's gonna be so weird to change a poopy diaper. I can't wait! We have an appt with the surgeon on Thursday just to follow up. I'm gonna be asking alot of questions abut his upcoming surgery. I'll keep everyone posted So here's some recent pictures.

The Lanford's came in town for Thanksgiving so we had to take pictures of the kiddos. They are 10 days apart. Colt has just about caught up with Anberlin.

"I love this picture. Jared is trying to keep him entertained.

He actually likes his walker even though he's a little young for it. He loves to kick.

He needs to grow about 2 more inches and he can reach the ground!

Buy a Calendar

2008-11-27T09:37:00.000-06:00

I have some friends, Jamie and Sarah Burch, that are starting the adoption process and have found a way to raise some money to help. This is the link to buy the calendar. Also, the link to their blog is at the bottom of my page if you want to keep up. Thanks

A sad day for mama

2008-11-24T18:56:00.000-06:00

Well, Friday night was a very sad night for me. Jared (without asking or telling me) went to put Colt in his crib when he fell asleep. Colt has never been in his crib. So he brought me the monitor (which we've never used) and I was not happy. I kept telling him I was not ready for him to go to his own bed. But he was in there already and I wasn't gonna wake him up. So he slept in there from 9-1:30. Then he didn't wake up until 4:30. I can't believe how well he slept in there the first time we put him in there. Then Saturday night he slept from 9pm-4am. (Jared gets up with him on the weekend so of course he sleeps longer at night when it's dad's turn). So I guess I'm gonna have to get used to him sleeping without his mama. I still get him when he wakes up the second time and bring him back to bed so I can nurse him. So we still get a little sleeping time together. I know it's what's best for both of us but I just loved waking up with him every morning. It is easier to get things done at night and it's definitely more comfortable sleeping. So all in all, I guess Jared made a good decision. Here's a bunch of pictures from recently

Muscle Man!

Wanna go for a ride in my convertible

My handsome ralph lauren outfit (which was a gift)

What's up homie?

He loves his memaw

All Colt's first cousins on my side

Most of his second cousins on my side. This was the best one we got. It wasn't easy getting all those kids to look at the camera at the same time!

Church Sunday

Double Chin

Happy Thanksgiving a few days early

More Pictures

2008-11-18T20:25:00.001-06:00

He's getting rolls

I love this one. He's looking at Kit. Kit doesnt really notice him much yet but I'm sure he will soon enough!

Dr.'s update

2008-11-13T21:42:00.000-06:00

Colt had his two month check up today. I couldn't believe how much weight he's gained. He weighs 13.4 pounds. So he's gained over 3 pounds in a month! The Dr. was very impressed. It was a whirlwind of a day. I went to school this morning. I dropped my kids off at music at 12:45. Picked up Colt at 1. Took him to the Dr. at 1:15. We left the Dr. at 2:30. I took him across the street to Judy (mother-in-law). I was back at school at 2:40. (I was supposed to pick my kids up at 2 but my Principal covered for me) I stayed at school until 4. Went back to pick Colt up. Took colt to my sister-in-laws house so I could go enroll with ins. That took about an hour. I went to Albertson's cause we were having Brandon and Sara over for dinner, went back to pick Colt up and finally went home! What a day! So grades are due tomorrow and i still have to average them out and put enter them in. Not going to bed any time soon. Oh and in between driving everywhere and taking and picking colt up everywhere, I was playing phone tag with the surgeons office. They called this morning to schedule Colt's surgery. We finally settled on a date. We originally wanted Dec. 29 but he's gonna be out of town that week and the week of Christmas so we had to push it to the week before. So bad news is I'm gonna miss 2 days of school. Good news is I won't spend my Christmas break in the hospital. I'm really looking forward to spending time with my son more than just a few hour everyday. And the best news of all is no more bag! Can't wait! Okay, gotta go enter grades and get into bed.

Colt's first wedding

2008-11-09T21:45:00.000-06:00

We traveled to Abilene this weekend for our cousins wedding. I only worked a half day at school. Jared and Jake picked me up at 11 and we headed to Abilene. Colt slept most of the way. I made him wake up for the last part because I didn't want him to be up all night. We got there in time to visit with some family before the wedding. I was nervous about Colt being fussy during the wedding but he did great. He ate right before and slept through the whole thing. The wedding was beautiful. It was in a theater which was a really good idea. They had a mash potatoes bar and cheese and chocolate fondue fountain. Also, the cheesecake was amazing! So congrats to the bride and groom! Colt was so good all weekend. So many people held him. It was kinda nice being able to eat with two hands! He was great until we got home. I think he was so used to being held that he wouldn't let us put him down. His bag also held up all weekend. This one lasted two days. I was thinking today that we have less than two months left with the whole bag situation. I can't wait! Twice this last week, I was walking out the door to go to school and saw his bag was leaking so I ended up being late. But this won't last forever and we're getting faster at changing the bag. All in all, things are great. We took some great pictures this weekend so enjoy!

Great Weekend

2008-11-02T09:06:00.000-06:00

Well, I got through the first week back at school. It really wasn't bad at all. I really enjoy teaching and being with the kids. The only difference is, I make myself go home at a decent hour so I can go see Colt. He's continued to do well at Pat's. She said he was one of the best newborns she's ever kept because he's such a good baby. That was good to hear. Friday after school, I went to my brother and sister-in-laws house to see my niece and nephews. My niece was so proud of herself because she held him up on her shoulder standing up. Of course I was right there with her, but she bragged to everyone the rest of the day about how she held him while she was standing up. It was so cute. His bags have been doing great. They haven't been leaking. We usually change it every 3rd day. Colt still hates it when we have to give him a bath and change his bag but hopefully we'll only have to do it a few more months. Well, we've had a great weekend. We went to a baby shower yesterday. He did so good. I asked my mom to go with us cause it was about an hour drive and didn't want to attempt that by myself. He was so good. Everyone said what a good baby he was. The mornings are my favorite times with him, especially when we can sleep in a little. He just kicks and swings his arms and smiles so much. It's amazing how much he changes everyday and how many new expressions he comes up with all the time. Well, here's a few pictures of the past few days.

He loves his swing!

We caught these two this morning.

Melissa's husband was holding him and he gave him all kinds of smiles. So cute

This was at Melissa's shower.This is a new expression. I think he looks like Jared's dad in this picture. Wonder what he's thinking

Long time... no post

2008-10-29T18:46:00.000-06:00

Well, obviously I'm a little busier now since I have to work and take care of a baby (and a husband!). Colt is doing great. He's getting bigger and bigger. He gets half formula/half breast milk everyday. The whole pumping thing at school is not so fun but I want to keep it up as long as I can. My first day back was staff development so it wasn't so bad. I was actually excited to see the kids again. It's so much better teaching and not being 9 months pregnant! My kids missed me and so far I think they're happy that I'm back. Colt has been doing great at Mrs. Pat's house. She said he eats all the time. She is learning with the rest of us how to empty his bag. I'm so grateful that she's taking care of him. She's like a grandma to me and I know she feels like Colt is one of her own so I'm thrilled that she is keeping him! Anyway, his bags have been doing better. We can get them to stay on 2 or 3 days now. It's a huge improvement so it's alot better. Well, here's some cute pictures I've taken in the past week.

His big boy outfit. So cute! Thanks Grandmother Craft

Michelle came to visit us. Anberlin is 10 days older than Colt. Look at those chubby cheeks

This is how dad burps him

How cute is this!

10 Things I've learned being a mom

2008-10-23T16:40:00.000-05:00

1. I can't be in a hurry to go anywhere.
2. If God wanted to teach me patience, He's doing a great job?
3. No matter how many times I shower, I always smell like poop or spit up.
4. Getting peed on is a daily occurrence that I just need to accept
5. When poop comes out a different way, it smells alot worse!
6. I get alot more attention everywhere I go if I have Colt with me
7. Somehow new moms don't need as much sleep to survive
8. Even though I lost all the weight i gained, my clothes still don't fit
9. I've learned to always check to make sure my shirt is on right and not inside out before I leave the house!

And the most important thing I've learned being a mom
10. I can love this little boy more than I ever imagined loving anything else.

Dr. Updates

2008-10-23T16:30:00.000-05:00

Yesterday we went to the nutritionist. I think it was a waste of time. I guess it kinda set a bad tone with me when they weighed him and he only weighed 9.7. I was sure he had gained weight since we'd been in the hospital. So then, we go into a room with a girl that looks younger than me. She didn't really tell me anything I didn't already know. Her only suggestion was to add some formula to my breast milk to add calories so he can catch up to where he's suppose to be. He's a little behind in the weight area but ahead in the height area. So basically he's tall and skinny. Wonder how long that will last? So today was a better day. We went to the surgeon and on their scale he weighed 10.7. So either he gained a pound in 24 hours or the scale yesterday was way off. He'd been weighed at the surgeon before. Two weeks ago he weighed 9.4 so I think he's gaining weight at a good rate. I'm still gonna add a little formula to the breast milk just to make sure he's getting enough calories. Another positive that came from the surgeon was a possible date for the next surgery. We told him our insurance situation. Right now they pay 100% but starting Jan 1st they'll only pay 80%. So he had no problem with scheduling surgery the last week of December. He said he usually does the pull through surgery around 3-6 months of age so Colt will be almost 4 months. Also, I'll already be out of school so i won't have to miss anymore. So it was a good day. Also, last night he slept 4 hours two times in a row. So he only woke up at 12:30 and 4:30. Maybe he'll keep that up. So that's the updates for now.

Things are looking up

2008-10-20T19:40:00.000-05:00

Well, we took our first road trip with Colt. It went pretty good. Every year we go to my family reunion. Usually we have to drive 4 or 5 hours but this year, my parents were in charge so they chose Lake Whitney. We were glad since it's only a few hours away. We stayed at this peacock farm right on the lake. It was really a beautiful weekend to be outdoors. So when we got there, Colt's bag had leaked so we had to change it that afternoon. Then that night it had leaked again so we changed it again. It was a stressful night because I was really starting to worry about not having enough bags. But that one lasted until yesterday morning. So the longest we've gotten one to stay on is 2 days which the colostomy nurse said that's now long they will probably last. Well, other than having to change the bags, we had a great weekend catching up with family. I have a cousin that I haven't seen in years and she was there with her kids. It's really weird to see all my cousins with spouses and kids. We're all grown up! So today we went to the Arboretum to take pictures of Colt with the pumpkins. I thought it would be a good day to go since it's a weekday and maybe it wouldn't be so crowded. Man was I wrong. There were so many "stay at home" moms there with their little ones. It was so crowded! But we were able to get some really good pictues. Of course it would've been so much easier if he could hold his head up but that's okay. Next year will be really fun. A big thanks goes out to my cousin Sara for going with us and taking the pictures. I also had a Dr.'s appt today. All went well. Then we had lunch with my dad and came home. Tonight we're gonna try to put let him sleep in his bed, even if he starts crying. Wish us luck! Here's a bunch of pictures from today.....
"I can't wait to go to my first Ranger's game"

"Just chillin with my pepaw"

"I love my memaw too"

"My cousin Sara is making weird faces at me"

"What in the world are ya'll doing to me?"

"Okay I'm bored now"

"I love my cousin Sara"

Mama's sweet boy

"What are ya'll doing to me?"

"Okay so I can't really hold my head up yet"

"Okay mom, that's like the 100th kiss you've given me today"

"Okay mom, I'm done!"

I'm not sleep deprived anymore!

2008-10-16T18:39:00.000-05:00

Well, for now, I feel a little more rested. I've decided that he sleeps alot better with me in our bed than in his own bed. I really tried not to get that started but I'm tired of not sleeping. So when he's with me, we both sleep longer. I figure he's been through enough and he just needs the security of his mama. He is staying awake more in the day and sleeping more at night so that's a good thing. We got one bag to stay on for 2 days. But we've yet to get another one to last that long. I spent all morning on the phone with insurance and medical supply companies. The hospital gave us a catalog and a company to order supplies through. So I called Monday and placed an order. We thought we'd have more time since the bags are supposed to last 2 to 3 days. But we were down to 7 bags so i thought I should just order. Well, that company took 3 days to call me and let me know that they are not contracted through my insurance so I couldn't order through them. Well, I have no idea where else to get colostomy bags. So I started to panic thinking we're gonna run out of bags and then what would we do. So i called my insurance company and they gave me 5 different places I could call where I could go pick them up. Oh and they told me medical supplies are 100% covered. So I was a happy person until I called all 5 places and not one of them sold colostomy bags. so i called the insurance company back and they gave me the website that had all the providers. I called every one of them in a 30 mile radius (which was 53 of them) and no one sold colostomy bags. So I'm getting desperate at this point. I think the last person I called was some sort of angel. I only asked one question "Do ya'll sell colostomy bags?" and she said "no, but I see you're with Aetna. Let me tell you where you can order them" So how in the world did she know which insurance I had? So I finally got the supplies ordered. I ordered a different kind so we'll see if this one works. They say they will be here within 2-3 business days. So now we're cutting it close and praying that the bags will last until the new ones come in. On a different note, he's always hungry which I guess is a good thing for him but not so much for me. He likes to eat every 2 hours and he usually takes about 30-45 minutes to eat. So basically by the time he's done I have an hour until he eats again. It's driving me crazy! So I called the Dr. because I'm wondering if I'm not producing enough milk for him. I've been giving him a little formula. The Dr. wants to send us to a Dietician which I wasn't sure why at first. But he explained that with a normal baby (without a colostomy) the nurtients have time to absorb before they get all the way down to to colon. Since his is cut short, he may not be absorbing all the nutrients he needs so he's hungry all the time. So he might need a special formula that contains a higher fat and nutrient content. I will still nurse regardless of what they say but i may have to supplement formula to help him gain weight. So we'll add that Dr. to our list. Now we have 3. So between my follow up appt from the C-section, the surgeon and the dietician we have 3 appointments next week. Next week is that last week I have off. Although my principal called today and asked if I needed more time. It's nice to know that she is so supportive of what is going on in my life right now. But I'm going back. We can't really afford for me to take any more time off. And I know this may make me sound like a horrible mother but I'm kinda looking forward to getting back on a schedule. And I've learned that teaching is alot easier than taking care of a baby. Never would have imagined that but it's true. And i kinda miss my kids at school. Well, I'll stop blabbing about all the stuff going on and get to the good stuff. I know everyone really just checks this blog to see pictures. So here's a few. He started smiling a little and I finally captured one.

Now, i just need to capture one with his eyes open

I spent the day with my good friend Amy yesterday. She has a little boy and a baby girl on the way. She's my back up baby sitter. She's really gonna have her hands full.

This was right after a huge smile. It's still a precious face though!

Tough weekend

2008-10-13T11:30:00.000-05:00

Well, colt has decided to start a new schedule of sleeping all day and staying awake all night. Don't know when he got these two mixed up but somehow he likes making his mama crazy. When we got home from the hospital he would not let me put him down. I think he was really sore from the surgery. So I was keeping tylenol in his system. We are having the hardest time with the colostomy bags. We can't get them not to leak. But we're working on it. Hopefully we'll find a way to put it on where it won't leak very often. Jared and I had to get up at 2:30 in the morning to change his bag because once again it had leaked. So once we figure that out, my life will be so much easier! Today my goal is to keep him up so he'll sleep tonight. Oh and I left him for the first time on Saturday. i felt really guilty for leaving him but he didn't even know it because he slept the entire time. I went to my parents to take a nap and then got my hair done. So I felt rejuvinated afterwards. Jared came home Saturday night. We were both so happy to see him! Oh and we've discovered the swing. He loves it most of the time. It helps him sleep sometimes so I think we'll be using that more often. Here's some cute pics of our little man.

This is what he thought of his hospital visit

He loves his boppy

"What are you looking at mom"

"I love eating my hand"

When it rains it pours

2008-10-08T23:09:00.000-05:00

Well, I'll start by saying that Colt is fine. He did great in the hospital. The nurse was impressed with how well me and Jared could empty his bag. We were actually pretty bored today in our room. I will say though... Medical City has really good food. Alot better than Baylor. The Dr. came to see us and looked at Colt. He said he looked great and could go home tomorrow. A few hours later we got an upsetting phone call. Jared's papaw passed away today. He was such a wonderful, loving man of God. He has had nothing but encouraging words for us in the past month. He's been having some health problems and finally went home to be with his Father today. Of course we were very saddened to hear about his today but we know that he is rejoicing in Heaven right now. So with that news, we asked the nurse if she could call the Dr. and ask if we could go home tonight instead of tomorrow. She came back and let us know he thought that would be fine. So, a few hours later we signed out discharge papers and went home. We had to make the decision to go to be with the family (they live in Florence Alabama) or stay here. Jared and I both really wanted to go but we both decided it would be better for me to stay with Colt since he's so young and just had surgery. At first we were set on me going because I really want to be there for my husband but we're learning to think about what would be best for Colt and not necessarily ourselves. So keep Jared and his family in your prayers as they will be traveling to Alabama tomorrow. Colt and I will be here by ourselves but I'm sure my mom will come over and help me with Colt.
On a better note, Colt is eating very well and pooping. He even looks a little chunkier already. The whole bag thing doesn't seem like it will be such a hassle. Tonight we started smelling it really bad and realized it was leaking so we had to change the bag. They told us it would last 2 to 3 days. Well, this one lasted a day. So tomorrow I'll be on the phone with different suppliers requesting samples of different products so we can see which ones will work best for us. I will try to post some pictures tomorrow. I'm sure I'll have plenty of time this weekend (I hope you heard the sarcasm in my voice)

Surgery went well

2008-10-07T17:47:00.000-05:00

Colt went into surgery about 2:20 this afternoon. They told us 10 am but he was really on a waiting list since it was last minute. So the surgery only took like an hour and he did great. The surgeon said it was a short segment so when it's all said and done he won't have to lose much of his colon. We went back to recovery and he was already awake. Poor baby sounded so raspy from the tube down his throat. He is pooping and tooting like crazy. It's all being released and man oh man does it not smell good. He's been fussy since we've been back in the room. I think he's just trying to let all that gas out. So, right now we're waiting for the colostomy nurse to come in and give us a lesson on how to change his colostomy bag. The surgeon said he should be able to go home on Thursday. So only two more days in the hospital. I'll update more as I know more. Thanks for all your prayers!

Back in the Hospital

2008-10-06T21:23:00.000-05:00

Well, we have been to two different Dr's offices today and now we ended up in the hospital. We already had the appt with the surgeon but I called first thing this morning to see if the pediatrician would see him because he's been spitting up more this weekend. It started Friday morning. He kept spitting up and not wanting to eat again. We thought maybe he had built up an immunity to the prilosec and it just wasn't working anymore. Yesterday we noticed that his stomach was really bloated. So the pediatrician didn't think his stomach looked normal so he did an x-ray. He sent us over to the surgeon early (although we got there late because I went to the Dallas office and the appt was at the Plano office). The surgeon definitely didn't like the look of his stomach and with his spitting up and rejecting food, he wanted to admit him to the hospital. He will have the surgery tomorrow at 10am and stay in the hospital a few days afterwards for observation. The good thing is we have our own room here so we can stay with him the whole time. So my first reaction was to lose it and cry and feel sorry for myself. But after a few minutes, I realized that I had to be strong for my son and know that this is what is best for him right now. So we went to eat and went home to pack. We headed back up to the hospital and that's where we are now. Tonight they did a barium enema which he already had right after he was born. The surgeon just wanted him to have that to confirm that his colon was too dilated. Tomorrow he'll have the colostomy surgery. Basically, for those of you who don't know what that is.... they will take the good part of the intestines and connect it to his stomach so a bag can be connected from the outside. We will have to learn to change the bag out. Instead of changing a poopy diaper, we'll be changing his bag. He'll still pee in his diaper but any waste will come out in the bag. This will help the colon get back to normal size so they can do the surgery. They won't do the surgery until everything is the size it needs to be and he has gained more weight. The colostomy is supposed to make him eat better and poop better which will help him gain weight. So overall, this is a good thing. We hate that he's having two surgery's instead of one. But it's kinda of a relief to know why he hasn't been eating and hopefully he'll start to gain weight. Today he actually weighed a few ounces less than what he weighed when we left the hospital two weeks ago. We're not thrilled about the colostomy bag but it's just another thing we'll have to learn about and do until he has the surgery. We've heard that it's not so bad once you get used to it. So, again, we ask for your prayers for all three of us. I know I sound like we're being so positive and we're okay but we have our moments of "why us". I know that one day maybe we'll be able to help someone else that is going through this. Another thing my mom reminded me of is that God won't give us anything we can't handle so I guess God thinks we're strong enough to endure all of this. One more thing that happened today to prove that God is working in our life.... Right after after I told my mom about being admitted to the hospital, a girl from church texted her a message. This girl knew nothing about what is going on with Colt. This is what the text said "Psalm 18:28-29 - You, O Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light. With your help I can run through a barricade; with my God I can scale my wall." Then she went on to say "Give everything to God. Place your heart in his hands today and you can overcome any obstacle. he will fill you with hope and joy. Have a great day!" So God knew how to get that message to me. On that note, I'll end my long post. I will definitely post tomorrow night so everyone can know how the surgery went. This is a link to a website that tells alot about Hirschprungs Disease and the surgeries he'll be having. http://www.lpch.org/DiseaseHealthInfo/HealthLibrary/digest/hirschpr.html

Very exciting news

2008-10-01T09:08:00.000-05:00

Well, I have 2 great things that happened this week. To some, this may not seem like a big deal but it was very exciting to me. As some of you may know, we've been trying to nurse to I don't have to pump all the time. He finally caught up with me and I ran out of bottles so he had no choice but to nurse. Well, he was being picky and would only nurse from one side, which obviously can cause some problems. So yesterday he decided to stop discriminating against the one side and nursed from both sides. So I haven't had to pump much. Of course, in 3 weeks when I go back to school, I'm gonna have to go back to pumping. But at least, for now no more preparing bottles. Okay my other piece of exciting news has nothing to do with Colt. I have always wanted to see the Eagles in concert. My parents,brother and sister-in-law all went a few weeks ago right after Colt was born. I was so bummed that I couldn't go. So now, they are coming back and I was online first thing Monday morning and I got tickets! I am thrilled. I was raised listening to the Eagles and I am a huge fan. So on Nov, 15 we will be at the Eagles concert. I guess that will be the first night Colt will have a baby-sitter. My sister-in-law is so excited to baby sit that night. Okay, so that's my exciting news. I'm posting some pictures of last night. Harmony came over to cook us dinner, which was very yummy. She asked to give Colt a bath so she did. While she was giving him a bath, her son, Dylan, wanted to take a bath too. So Colt had his first bath buddy. I'm sure they'll both appreciate this picture later!
He loves his aunt Harmony

Boys taking a bath

How sweet is this

"Okay mom, stop taking so many pictures. Everyone knows how adorable I am."

"I'm so sleepy!"

Colt's first Rodeo

2008-09-29T12:43:00.001-05:00

So Saturday we stayed home all day. We had lots of visitors. Jared went four-wheeling with his brother. He came home and asked if it was okay if he went to the rodeo so of course I didn't mind. He left and went to eat with some guys. All of our visitors had left and I decided I wanted to get out. Friday night was such a stressful night and getting out really sounded good. So I called JAred and he came back to pick us up. It was the last night for the rodeo so it was really crowded. Colt stayed awake the whole time. He was so cute. So at 2 weeks old, Colt had his first trip to the rodeo! Also, we went to Jared's mom's boyfriends house Sunday night. He has alot of beautiful horses so we walked out to take a look at them. Colt was just thinking about eating so we didn't stay too long. So here's a few pictures of our weekend.
Margie and Luke came to visit

Samantha loved holding Colt

Uncle Jakie feeding Colt

His daddy talking to him about the rodeo

The whole family

He loves eating that hand

He wasn't too interested in the horses yet

First hospital visit

2008-09-27T11:40:00.001-05:00

Well, it was the first since he's been discharged from the hospital. Friday he had a really hard time keeping anything down. He did so good on Thursday, I started to get relived thinking that this reflux thing has passed. But I was wrong. Friday the only feeding he kept down was at 6am. Every 3 hours he would eat and about an hour later, throw it all up. So about 6 that evening I started to worry. His spit up was now yellow so I knew there was nothing in his stomach except bile. So I called the Dr's office and they paged the Dr. for me. They called back and suggested I take him to Childrens to get him checked out before he gets too dehydrated. So we went and man oh man was that an experience. We definitely felt like the minority there. There were screaming yelling kids and parents. One parent was cussing at their child. Another was slapping her child's hand a little bit too hard. It was dirty and all I wanted to do was cover my child up so he wouldn't breath any sickness. So thankfully my Dr. called and referred me so we weren't last on the list. We didn't have to wait that long in the waiting room. We got into a room. The Dr. said he was a little dehydrated but everything else looked good. Because of his disease they wanted to make sure his colon was okay and not blocked. So they did an x-ray. It looked good. They basically said it was reflux and had him drink some pedialite and keep it down before they would let him go home. Well, he kept it down for about an hour and they did the paper work to let us go home. They gave us a prescription for medicine to help with his reflux. Right before we were about to leave, he spit up the pedialite. But they had already discharged us. So we had an eventful night. We left about 2:30 am and couldn't find a pharmacy that would fill the perscription. We went home and I fed him about 4am and he spit that up too. Finally the next morning, Jared went out to fill the perscription and as soon as we gave it to him, he's kept everything down. It's amazing how a little medicine can make all the difference. So he's great now. He's like a whole different baby because he likes to eat. I don't have to fight him to eat the amount he needs to eat and the best part of all.... he doesn't spit it all up. So that was our eventful Friday night

Surgery Update

2008-09-26T11:26:00.000-05:00

Well we went to see the surgeon yesterday. He said Colt looked good. He wants to wait as long as possible to do the surgery so he can grow and get a little bigger. He said it would be anywhere between 3-6 months but probably closer to 3 months. That's as long as the irrigation continues to work. So maybe around Christmas time. I really hadn't planned on spending my Christmas break in the hospital but at least I wouldn't have to miss any more school. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Until then, we have to see the surgeon every two weeks. So between the pediatrician and the surgeon we'll be going to the Dr. alot. Okay, as for the spitting up.... I was so excited this morning to write on the blog "no spit ups in 24 hours" but my little man wanted to bust my bubble and he spit up his last bottle. It is probably my fault though. I'm trying to pump and feed him at the same time and obviously it didn't work. This was the mother of all spit ups too. It went all down my shirt, in his hair and ears and all over our bed. But the good news is he is nursing more often and keeping most of it down. I've been able to get him to eat 3 oz at a time and for the most part, he's keeping it down. So hopefully he's gaining weight. Oh and we gave him a bath for the first time. He's not really sure what to think about it. But he sure does smell nice and fresh when we're all done. Enjoy the pics

Not sure what to think of the bath

Right about this time, he's peeing on me through the towel

"Mom, why are you always taking my picture"

He's already such a big boy, holding his pacifier all by himself

This is how he likes to sleep.... how precious!

I finally started putting him down in his bassinet... He doesn't mind it so much.

Another bath time picture. This is right before he started screaming. Guess he doesn't like the bath too much yet.

More pictures

2008-09-24T13:21:00.000-05:00

Colt had his first Dr.'s appt today. The Dr. thought he looked great. Everything was perfect. The only thing he is a little concerned with is his weight. Typically babies are supposed to be back at their birth weight at 2 weeks and he's not quite there. But hes had a rough couple of weeks. So we'll work on gaining weight. He's been spitting up still so we're gonna have to do something about that if it doesn't get better. The Dr. wants to see him in a few weeks to make sure he's gaining weight. If the spit up continues then we'll try some medicine for reflux. So one Dr. down and one more to go this week. We see the surgeon tomorrow. So here's a few more pictures from yesterday and today. We put together his bouncer. We're hoping that will help him not spit up after he eats since he can sit up in it.

Our First Night

2008-09-22T20:14:00.000-05:00

Well, we survived out first night at home. Between irrigating, pumping, feeding and changing his diaper I don't know when we're supposed to sleep. I guess this is what everyone has warned us about. I will be glad when he learns how to nurse and that will eliminate at least one thing that keeps me awake. I was excited this morning because he nursed really well but tonight he wasn't interested again. I hope he hasn't gotten too used to the bottle. We'll keep working on it. The irrigation thing is really messy. We're gonna have to figure out a better place to do it. Today he not only squirted poop on the changing table but it got on the wall! So we might try his bath tub. He's a trooper though. He doesn't like it but he tolerates it. Hopefully we won't have to do it for too much longer. So, the Dr. gave me permission to drive today. Jared is going back to work tomorrow so I'm on my own for the first time. I think I'll sleep when he sleeps. Today was a busy day and we didnt have any time to relax. Wednesday is his peditrician appt and Thursday is the appt with his surgeon. So hopefully tomorrow will be a nice peaceful day. Here's some pictures

He's Home!!!

2008-09-21T20:45:00.000-05:00

Well, this won't be a long post because obviously the last thing I want to do now is be on the computer when I could be holding my sweet boy. But I did want to update everyone on what is going on. He was discharged today. The Dr. tried to get him to stay another day buy Jared spoke up and compromised with her. She said if he could eat two more feedings without spitting up, then she would discharge him. So he made us proud. We got home about 6 this evening. We've already done an irrigation. And i think I'll let Jared do it from now on because he peed and pooped all over me and his changing table again. But at least he's pooping. That's a good thing. So now he's laying on my chest as we watch the emmy's together. I'll post pictures later.

Still not home

2008-09-20T22:42:00.000-05:00

WARNING - THIS IS A LONG, VERY INFORMATIVE, PROBABLY VERY BORING POST....
Well, I guess we were wishful thinking when we thought he would be coming home this weekend. He's still doing good. He just got a different Dr. that had a different opinion than the one who has been seeing him. The one who's been seeing him from day one went on vacation starting yesterday. Before she left she told us she thought he would be going home on Saturday or Sunday. So of course we got all excited. But the Dr. that is covering her is a little overly cautious. While I appreciate her looking out for my son, I think it's time for him to be home. Basically, he's spitting up when he eats. But he was eating about 2 to 3 oz every two hours and spitting up maybe 5-10 mL. She thinks that is too much to spit up. But when Jared and I are there and we feed him and keep him really still for about 15-20 minutes after he eats, he doesn't spit up. So I argued with the Dr. that I really don't think his spitting up is related to his disease. I told her that I really thought he would eat better at home with his parents being the ones to feed him. But she thinks that is a "red flag" so our hands are tied. Also, the person last night that weighed him put down that he weighed 9.3. The night before he was 9.8. So that was a significant weight loss so that was another "red flag" that concerned her. So we stayed up there all day today and fed him at every feeding. And, just as I thought, he didn't spit up when we fed him. Also, when the nurse weighed him tonight he was 9.7. So either he gained 4 oz in the past 24 hours or they didn't weigh him right last night. The nurse tonight said that whoever weighed him last was obviously wrong. Oh, also she put a call in to the surgeon to come access him. She basically gave him her opinion and she came back to tell us that he agreed with her. So we asked to talk to him. When he talked to us, he didn't agree with her at all and thought there's no reason he should still be there. He said he probably just likes to spit up like any other baby. But by the time he came, the Dr. was already gone and she has to be the one to discharge him. So she'll be back in the morning. Hopefully, the nurse tonight will honor our request and hold him for a little while after she feeds him and he won't spit up. And hopefully the Dr. will read the surgeons notes and see that he thought he should go home. So that may be more information than anyone really cared to know about. We were just a little frustrated today. Our hands are tied and our opinion doesn't really matter. I know I'm not a Dr. but I really didn't think his disease had anything to do with him spitting up. And the surgeon agreed so hopefully the Dr. will let him come home tomorrow or Monday. Oh and she also ordered an upper GI series to make sure there's not obstruction in his bowels (which is what started all this in the first place). And of course, as I suspected, it was perfectly clear. He's just a normal baby that spits up alot. So, I've learned through all of this that it's very hard to be patient and kind to the Dr.s when it comes to your child. I hate feeling like I know what's best for my child and I can't do anything about it.I know that he will be home in the next few days so I'm really trying to be understanding and trusting of the DR. And we are appreciative of all the nurses and Dr.s that have taken care of him. I do have a funny story from today. I was doing the rectal irrigation today and he started to pee on me. It's hard enough to cover it up when I'm changing his diaper but I was trying to put the tube up his rear when he started to pee so there wasn't much I could do. Then he finished peeing and as I'm still trying to put the tube in, he shot poop right out. So that was fun. He not only peed on me today but he pooped on me too. Yesterday Jared did the irrigation and he didn't pee or poop on his daddy. So this little boy is already grounded when he comes home! I'm sure his dad will get peed or pooped on eventually. So, overall today was an okay day. We're getting closer and closer to him coming home. So continue to keep us in your prayers. Also, you can pray for me and have a little more patience with the Dr. We appreciate all the prayers your sending our way.

Almost Home!

2008-09-17T23:09:00.002-05:00

Today was another good day. Colt is continuing to eat and poop good. The Dr. anticipates him coming home on Saturday or Sunday. Today they increased his feedings to 2 oz which is what he needs to be eating. They took him off of the iv. He still had it in today but they'll take it out tomorrow as long as they don't have to give him nutrients through it again. We got a little taste of parenthood today. He spit up on me and Jared both. Yesterday when Jared was changing his diaper, he starting to pee but Jared caught it in time. I'm sure that's the first of many. He also burps really well and is "tooting" alot too. So his insides seem to all be working very well. I guess it's another thing we get excited about that maybe most parents don't. So tomorrow night we get to stay at the hospital in a room with Colt. He'll be in a regular crib in a hospital room with us. Most moms get a few nights with their newborn with nurses help. But since they took him right after he was born, we never got that one on one time with him. So this is something they offer to NICU moms at no charge. So really tonight is our last night without him. I'm so excited. I just pray that he gets through the last night continuing to do really good with eating and pooping. Then hopefully we'll bring our boy home on Saturday night. So I'll keep everyone updated. I can't wait to bring him home!

Still the cutest boy in the world!

This is how he reacts to his diaper change

He always has this expression on his face like he's so curious

A Great Day

2008-09-17T23:09:00.001-05:00

Today we spent several hours at the hospital. He has been keeping down all his feedings. The only time he spits up a little is when they do a rectal irrigation right before they feed him. So they are gonna try to not do the irrigation thing right before the feed him. I think it kinda upsets his stomach. So we got there at 2 which was right after one of his feedings. We took a onesie up there so he could actually wear some clothes. We barely got it over his head when he spit up all over it! So we just decided he could stay naked for a while. I think another reason he spit up that time is because they gave him formula instead of my milk. She said they were out but she just didn't look in the freezer. When she looked, she found it. So he barely got used to the breast milk and they gave him formula so I don't think he liked it. But since then, he's kept everything down. He's even pooping a little bit too. The Dr. seemed impressed and said he just needs to keep it up for a few days in order to go home. They increased his feedings to 1 oz every 3 hours. She wants him to be eating 2-3 oz every feeding before he goes home. So maybe she'll increase it a little more tomorrow.She also let me try to nurse today but he wasn't too interested yet. It wasn't time for him to eat but I had to pump so we tried. He just slept. Hopefully he'll get the hang of it when he comes home. So Jared was super dad today. He changed his diaper, fed him and held him most of the time we were there. He's so good with him. Even the nurse said yesterday that he was very good with him. So we're counting down the days. Hopefully he'll continue to do good and he can come home soon. I'm posting lots of pictures. Enjoy.
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Lots of firsts

2008-09-17T11:37:00.000-05:00

Well yesterday, our Internet was down so I couldn't write about our exciting day. We were so excited about the news that our son might come home if he could just eat and poop good for a few days. When we got to the hospital they told us the first feeding didn't go so well. He threw it all up. So we were a little bummed but also realized that that was his first feeding. He's never had anything in his belly so the Dr. wasn't that concerned that he didn't' take the first feeding. So before I could give my opinion the Dr. must have read my mind. She wanted to try again and let me feed him. So I fed him (still my milk but out of a bottle) and we held him upright so he wasn't laying flat on his back in his bed. We waited a few hours and guess what.... He kept it all down. So one down and several to go before they'll let him come home. So we left to eat dinner with our cousins and came back in time for his next feeding. This one wasn't as successful but he still kept some of it down. They're starting out giving him 15 mL which is half an ounce every 3 hours. At 4 he only took 10 but he kept it all down. At spit up 5 but kept 5 down. I called this morning and all night he got down all 15 every feeding and only spit up 5. So I think he's doing better and better the more he eats. It's just gonna be a slow process. But we're happy with the progress. Hopefully now it will all come out the other end and he'll prove he can eat and poop so he can come home. Okay so for the firsts.... I changed his diaper for the first time(Most moms can't say that after their baby is a week old). I fed him for the first time. I took his temperature. The nurses are great about letting me help do some of the things I've been missing out on. So all in all it was a good day. I did take some great pictures but I left the camera by his bed so we'll have to post them later. Keep the prayers coming and maybe our precious boy will get to come home soon.

Finally some news!

2008-09-16T11:10:00.000-05:00

The Dr. just called. He does have Hirschsprungs disease but they don't know how long the segment is. The Dr. wants them to start feeding him my milk and see how he does. If he can digest it good then they will send him home in a few days. The Dr. doesn't want to do surgery right now. He wants to see how well he does first. If he does good then it is just a short segment and surgery may not be necessary. If it's a long segment then he won't be able to digest much and they will talk about surgery sooner. The Dr. wants to see him back 2 weeks after he is discharged to see how well he is doing. So now we pray that he does well eating. She said today they would bottle feed him with my milk and if he does well today, tomorrow I can actually nurse him to see how well he does with that. So hopefully we're looking at Thursday or Friday if he does well. So pray, pray, pray that our little man can eat and poop the next few days so he can come home where he belongs. I can't wait to see him without the tube down his mouth. They are still leaving the iv in and giving him some nutrients through that because they won't give him all the milk he needs at once. They'll only give him a little to see how well he does. So we'll be down to only one iv and no tubes. Thanks for all of you who have been praying for him. Keep them coming and maybe he'll come home soon.

No news yet

2008-09-15T15:16:00.000-05:00

I know there are several out there who check the blog for updates. So I just wanted to write and say that we haven't heard anything yet. I guess God is testing our patience because it seems like we've been waiting forever to get some kind of news. Thursday they told us it would be Friday. Then Friday they said Monday morning. Now it's 3:15 and still nothing. We just left the hospital again. The Dr. said she called the pathology lab this morning. They told her they would get the final results to her by late this afternoon or tomorrow. So one more day of waiting. I keep think he will be home with us eventually but everyday that goes by it just gets harder and harder without him here. Jared is going to have to go back to work soon. We were kinda hoping to have some kind of plan and know when Colt would be back before he had to go back to work. But I know everything will work out. A big thanks to everyone who has offered to take me to the hospital and cook us dinner and offer anything we need. Right now, it's hard to know what we need. Hopefully we'll know more when we know when we can bring him home. Also, thanks to everyone who is praying for our little guy. He always seems so perfectly content when we go see him. Right now he's usually sleeping all day and awake all night. Maybe he'll break that habit before he comes home! I didn't take many pictures today. He was sleeping so peacefully and I hated to disturb him with the flash. I'm sure in a few years, he'll be annoyed with my picture taking. If I hear anything later today, I will let
everyone know.

Another Day

2008-09-14T21:52:00.000-05:00

I don't have any new news today but I thought I'd share some new photo's. He's doing great. I did have a "proud mama" moment today. He was crying and as soon as I picked him up and put him against my chest he stopped. It was so sweet. I felt like I was the only one in the world who could make him happy. Hopefully we'll have some more news tomorrow.

We are blessed

2008-09-13T21:17:00.000-05:00

Today, I decided to try and think of all the positive things that we should be looking at. When we go see Colt, we have to pass by a few other babies in the NICU. There's 66 babies in the whole unit. They come from all over because Baylor has one of the best NICU units. But in Colt's nursery there's 4 other babies. The biggest one was born weighing 3lbs4oz. There's a set of twin girls who were triplets at birth. One was 1 lb3 oz and 1 lb4 oz and 12oz. Obviously one didn't make it. It is so sad to see how tiny they are and know that they will be there for a long time. So here I am so sad that they are going to keep my baby for another week or so. I can look at them and know that I really have so much to be thankful for. It could be so much worse. So I'm trying to keep my chin up and know that he will be home with us very soon. Today my parents went up there and stayed for a few hours just holding him. I'm very thankful for that so he doesn't have to be alone so much. I would sit up there all day if I could. I just know I need to be trying to heal and rest as much as possible. They took the iv out of his head and put it in his arm. He's having a hard time because he loved to suck on his hand. Now it's all wrapped up and he can't suck on it. It's kinda cute but sad in a way. I'm just glad it's not in his head anymore. He's starting to get really fussy because he's so hungry. They have an iv in him but that doesn't satisfy his hunger. Today, while I went to pump, Jared held him for a while. He said he starting screaming at Jared and it took a minute to get him to calm down. I thought it was kinda funny because we haven't had to deal with any screaming yet. I never thought I would appreciate the sound of his cry. So I came back from pumping and held him. I felt so bad because he wanted to nurse because he was hungry but he can't eat yet. Hopefully he'll be a good eater when he finally gets to eat. We stayed for a while and said goodbye for the night. He's just so perfect and precious. He's definitely going to be spoiled when he comes home. I never thought I could love something so much. I am thankful for all of you who are keeping us in your prayer. I know that I could not get through any of this without the strength from God. I'll try to take more pictures tomorrow when we go up there so I can post more. He changes so much everyday.

No definate answers yet

2008-09-12T17:40:00.000-05:00

Well, today wasn't the best day. I had to leave my room. We had to leave the hospital without our son. It was probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do. I know that he will be fine and God is taking care of him. I just hate not having him here with me. I hate not being able to give him what he needs to make him better. I hate not being able to just pick him up because he has all these tubes in his mouth and arm. So now that I've vented for a minute, I'll try to be more positive. We did find out some news today but once again, it's nothing for sure. The biopsy they did is still being looked at. They've gone through some of it and haven't found any cells which means it's looking like he has the disease. But they still have more tissue to go through. So there's still a little hope that there will be some of the nerve cells in parts of the tissue they haven't gone through. They will be done going through the cells by Monday morning and will make the final conclusion then. Once that is made, they'll be able to decide what to do. Honestly if he has the disease, I just want to know so we can make a plan and bring him home. Of course I'd rather him not have it but if he does than we'll deal with it and do what it takes to make him better so we can bring him home. I just want my baby home with us. So that's the news we got today. I was hoping for something better but we'll deal with what we got. I know that there's a reason for all of this and God has a plan for us. I have faith that God will take care of him when his mama can't. As always, please continue to keep us in your prayers and know that we appreciate all of them.

A good day

2008-09-11T18:08:00.000-05:00

Today has been a good day. I am starting to feel better and move around better since my c-section. Also, we went back to see Colt after the anesthesia wore off.He was more alert than we've ever seen him. Since we can't be with him all the time, we don't get to see those certain faces or noises he makes. We've never even changed his diaper. The nurses have been great at telling us little cute things that he does and funny noises he'll make. I really appreciate the nurses in the NICU because they're helping me not miss out on so many things. The nurse also said he had been pooping alot. She had to keep changing his diaper. She said that was a very good sign. The whole blockage could've been that the merconium (the tar like poop that babies have when they are first born). Sometimes the poop is so tarry that it blocks the intestine. So this morning they did this irrigation thing that was supposed to help cleanse him. Well, it's working cause he's pooped alot today. So we're not getting out hopes up. HE could still have this Hirschsprungs disease and if he does, we'll deal with it. But it would be wonderful if he doesn't have it. We would be able to take him home. We still won't take him home with us tomorrow either way. If he doesn't have the disease, they will still keep him for a few days to see how well he eats and digests it. So alot of things will be decided tomorrow. I hope they dont wait all day to contact us. We're gonna stay at the hospital as long as we can tomorrow. I think we have to be out by midnight. So please, please, please everyone say your prayers tonight that he will be disease free and we can take our precious boy home very soon! Here's a few more pictures from today.

Past the first hurdle

2008-09-11T09:40:00.000-05:00

Colt had a biopsy this morning. I was nervous about him being put to sleep. He came out of it great. He's still sleeping right now but the DR. and anesthesiologist assured us that he did great and they got what they needed to diagnose the problem. The Dr. said that the best case senerio would be the biopsy came back normal and this blockage was just some fluke. But if it comes back missing the cells that are supposed to be there, then they'll diagnose him with Hircshsprungs disease. At that point they would make a plan for him. The Dr. said he likes to send the baby home and teach us how to use an irrigation system to keep him cleaned out for the next few months until surgery. They won't do surgery right away unless the enlarged colon makes him sick. Right now he's not sick and doing fine so the Dr. thinks he'll just send him home which would be great. So we won't know the results until tomorrow. So we could possibly bring him home this weekend! The irrigation should help get his colon back to normal size and then they would be able to do the surgery. So, I hope I haven't confused everyone. We're thankful that we have to many friends and family that are lifting our precious child up to God in prayer. Please continue to pray for us and pray that the results from the biopsy come back normal so we can take him home and not have to have surgery.