Rule #70: Babies and planes (and benadryl) don't play well together.

*Pictures uploaded in Jan, Actual post date- Feb 17th

I know, I know. I have been completely absent from the blogging world for almost two months! No good excuse, a few vacations (which you will be hearing about...I promise) and then just general laziness I think. I hope you will forgive me. Be sure there will be plenty of posts in the next few days to make up for it.

Way back in January Evan took his very first flight. We flew to Colorado to visit with the Lawsons thanks to a killer deal by Southwest. Evan did really well, but his limit was about on hour. Thankfully the flight is only about an hour! I'm not sure if he even noticed that we went up in the air at all. He didn't make any reaction, didn't seem to mind the pressure changes, and mostly enjoyed his surroundings.

The weekend with my family was wonderful! It was such a nice relaxing vacation. My mom, sister, dad and step mom came on the same flight with us! It was really fun, and so nice to have the extra bodies to help entertain Evan.

Nana and Evan at the Denver airport. He loved the moving walkway!

We crafted and made necklaces and watches, and Evan got to "play" with his cousins. He liked to watch them play, but he certainly didn't join in their fun. I wish I had taken pictures at Annie's house, I even brought my camera. Oh well. You live and learn. And my favorite part was staying up late chatting with the girls. Some of the best conversations happen when everyone else is asleep.

Other than an amazing deal, our main purpose for going was Davis' baby blessing. Despite a close call timing wise, it was a beautiful blessing and I'm glad that I was able to be there. Davis is a super cute baby, and it's so nice to be able to see Annie's children when they are still relatively new!

My dad and Emma stayed at a hotel, the rest of the group crowded Annie's kids out of their spaces. (We appreciate it.) Evan did pretty well sleeping in a new space, we had one rough night, but mostly he adapted well. He's just a mellow, laid back kid.

The flight home was a different story. Apparently Honey nut Cheerios have almonds in them. Who knew? Evan had a mild reaction, some hives and such. So I had the brilliant idea to give him Benadryl before the flight, hoping to help the hives and maybe he'd sleep too! So wrong! My child is not one to sleep in the arms of anyone. Even in his drug induced haze, he still refused to give in. So, instead of an hour of busyness but tolerable, Evan was SO tired and unhappy because we wouldn't just leave him alone to sleep! I was so happy to land and get him home to bed! But, now I know. I will NEVER give him benadryl (at least for several years) unless I can put him to bed by himself.

*Although, after his first reaction to nuts that sent us to the doctor, we were giving him benadryl three times a day for three days to keep away a rebound reaction. And I don't remember him being extra sleepy or loopy. Hmm.

It's a horrible picture, taken from Alex's phone, but this is my drugged-up baby on the flight home. Wouldn't even sit still for two seconds!

I'm glad that I have such a flexible job that allows me to get away with my family for weekend visits, without using up vacation time or it being a big deal. Thanks again Annie for hosting us! We had a great time!

Rule # 69: Peanuts don't grow on trees.

We took Evan to see an allergist today. They pricked his back in 14 spots with different allergens. I know it looks bad, but he didn't cry at all, during or after. We had been suspecting cashews, but it turns out he is allergic to all tree nuts, but not peanuts fortunately.
However, of the tree nuts he had the strongest reaction to cashews. We also got an epipen from the pharmicist, which you have to jab harder than you'd think into the thigh.

Rule #68: Dad is funny.

Rule #67: Don't try new things.

Two Saturday's ago we were having dinner and Dave and April's, after dinner Evan was very fussy and scratching his head alot. Finally we noticed hives on his neck. Turns out they were all over his poor little body. He was having an allergic reaction to dinner, we suspect a pea salad that had cashews, green onions and ranch dressing. These are the hives he had, you can see all the red on his back is the hives.

We're taking him to an allergist on the 28th to be tested and see what it was. We gave him benadryl and the kids care gave us a steroid also. There was no effect on his lungs thankfully. He's fine on all accounts now.

Rule #66: Better late than never

My sweet cousin Bianca took family photos way back in September. Who knows why it has taken me this long to post some highlights, but...better late than never right?

It's so hard to decide what pictures to post! I love them all, here are a few of my favorites.

I really like this one, even though it's kind of far away....

I look at this picture now and I'm surprised to see my boy just beginning to walk...it's crazy how times distorts your memory....

My boys!

Happy family including Jasmine!

Just look at that face! Gotta love my babes!

Rule #65: You can talk with your hands too.

My son "talked" to me for the very first time in his short 16 month life yesterday! By talked, I really mean signed...but it's all communication right!?

We have been teaching him signs since he was 6 months old. Ten months later.....he signs please!

It took some coaxing for him to sign it, but he did...several times! It wasn't just a fluke!

I'm so thrilled that my baby has decided to "tell" me something, anything!

Just wanted to shout it out loud......

Rule #64: Dogs are a boys best friend

I was folding laundry in Evan's room when I heard laughter coming from the kitchen. I went to investigate, and this is what I found!

Evan was trying to put his favorite blanket on Jasmine...maybe playing peek-a-boo? Who knows...but he thought it was hysterical!

So when I finally did put the blanket on Jasmine, he nearly lost it. I wish I had the camera on the first time...it was a better reaction. But this is still pretty good.

Isn't she such a good dog? I love to see these two play together, it gets better everyday!

*Sorry about my loud laughter, and the shaking towards the end...it was just too funny!

Rule #63: Knowledge is Power

We're back from our appointment with Early Intervention.

I'm pleased with how things went....and this is going to sound strange, but I'm pleased that my son qualifies for some help therapy. Basically because I don't know what else to do with/for my son as far as communication goes.

I'm thrilled that they didn't give a "diagnosis", just said he's behind in a few areas that we can work on together. Deep down I never felt he "had" something, nothing was SERIOUSLY wrong with him, I just knew he should be doing more than he was. So I'm glad they couldn't diagnose him. Alex, on the other hand, thinks that if it's just a delay, then there's no real need for therapy. He'll catch up.

He's not fighting me on this, he is willing to do therapy, but since nothing is "wrong" with Evan, he doesn't feel it's entirely necessary. I understand how Alex is feeling, but most of Evan's delays are pre-language....that pretty much impedes every other advancement in skills for the near future. So, while he may eventually have caught up on his own, I'm very excited to have some guidance to nudge him along sooner.

It's a state funded program, so thanks to all of you for your unknowing support via your taxes. :) We still have a VERY small monthly fee to pay for their services. Another reason Alex can't argue. They come to our house, and it's like $30 a month. It's a pretty sweet deal if you ask me. (I guess the program used to be free, but about ten years ago started charging a small fee based on income. They've seen more responsibility from parents when they have to pay. Even just a few dollars. Less no-shows and more willingness to learn.)

I'm not sure how often he will be seen or when his first appointment will be. They will call me and set that up. But it probably wont happen until after Thanksgiving.

For those of you who want to know the details...here you go. For those just mildly interested, you can stop reading now. You got the gist of it. :)

There were two therapist, a developmental, speech, and a nurse there. They played with Evan, and ask Alex and I a lot of questions. It lasted about an hour. Evan was very pleasant as always. Gave of his smiles freely and was his usual self. (which was good, I was concerned he might do more or less because of the new faces)

They "graded" Evan on different areas based on what he could do, or what we said he could do. This is the copy that they gave us.

Cognitive: 9 months + splinter skills to 12 months. (Splinter skills are when he has stopped doing certain skills in a group, but then can also do more advanced skills in the same group. More or less, he skips some skills)
Language: <9 months
Gross Motor: 15 months
Fine motor: 12 months
Social/Emotional: 7 months + splinter skills to 15 months
Self Help: 12 months

They said they were very pleased with how interactive he is, and how much he focuses on faces. Almost to the point where he can't concentrate on anything else. They said he needs to learn how to "multi task" He's so focused on someones face, that he can't/doesn't pay attention to what they are trying to show him. They also said his attachment to Alex and I was at 18 months. Which makes me feel good, knowing that he knows he is loved and loves us back. (not that I was ever questioning it)

I'm not sure how long he will need therapy, only time will tell. But I am excited to get it started. Another waiting game. :) But this is one time I don't mind waiting. I know what is going on with my child and I know that someone is going to help me help him. That's all I ever wanted.

Thanks to all of you for your love and support! I'll keep you all updated!

Rule #62: There's a light at the end of the tunnel

Well, my wait is almost over. Tomorrow is the day we meet with Early Intervention.

I've been excited for Monday to come.

Now....

I'm anxious.

The heart squeezing kind of anxious.

It a very good probability that they will tell me my child is stubborn and will communicate with me when he is good and ready.

Will I feel foolish for all of the worry?

But what if they don't?

I'll be fine because then I'll know.

But tonight, I still don't know...and all of the anxiety that I've felt for that last several months when I wasn't sure if I should be concerned or not is all coming to it's breaking point. Because it's almost over.

*sigh*

It's almost over....

Rule #61: Halloween is for suckers.

Evan went to see his grandparents for halloween. Everyone was a sucker for his little monkey face.
Evan had his first sucker coutesy of Nana, which he enjoyed getting himself all sticky with.

Don't forget his little monkey tail.

Rule #60: Good news is worth waiting for

Evan had his hearing checked this Monday. To no ones surprise he has perfect hearing. So check hearing loss of the list of reasons why my baby isn't communicating. The reasons left are as follows, in no particular order:

~ Stubbornness. He just plain doesn't wanna
~Genetics. Alex and Uncle Jeff didn't speak till they were 18 months and 2, respectively. Although this does not explain the lack of pointing and other ways of communicating.
~His chill attitude. He feels it's unnecessary because we somehow know what he wants, and we'll get there eventually, without any cues on his part.
~Some form of communication deficit.

The only one that can be "helped" is the last one. If it's all because of personality, then all we can do is what we are already doing. And then just keep on waiting.

But I'm waiting anyway. We won't be seen by Early Intervention until the 16th. But at least we have a date set. I'm fine to give him all the time in the world to want to communicate with me, but I need to know I'm not ignoring something important. Hopefully the 16th will give us news one way or the other.

Nothing left to do but wait.

I hate waiting.

Rule #59: Pumpkins rot...I mean rock!

We carved pumpkins on the last pleasant day of fall this week. It was gorgeous! Mom came over and helped carve and entertain the babe. We didn't carve pumpkins last year, we had just moved and had a new baby, I was preparing to go back to work the week before. It just never got done.

But this year because of the pumpkin patch we had three beautiful pumpkins just begging to be carved! Here are the results.

Alex's pumpkin....it's a little green, so even in the daytime it still looks really cute. I think this one is my favorite.

This was mine, it looks like I need to tweak it a bit, it looks better from a distance.

This is my mom's, the fire-y face. Thanks for coming mom!

Happy Halloween!!!

Rule #58: Doctor's are always late.

Evan met his new pediatrician today. After I posted the conversation with Dr Black it was decided by basically EVERYONE I know, that he needed a new pediatrician. Most of my friends at work don't live near me, so I couldn't ask for theirs, so I waited. For a long time. Finally his 15 month appointment was coming, so I decided to go with a woman in my sisters neighborhood.

I waited to be seen for over a half an hour...but I was assured by the receptionist it shouldn't have been that long, and that future visits would not be like that. Then the usual waiting for the doctor came. All told, I was there for an hour and a half! But I'm not complaining, it was a good decision to switch!

What a difference I tell ya! There was virtually no chit chat what-so-ever. She came into the room, sat down and asked if I had any concerns. (Why yes I do, thank you very much for treating this like a professional meeting) She was quite good with Evan, but by no means does she want to be friends with me. And I'm okay with that. She listened to what I had to say, offered opinions, and assessed my boy, all without talking about nudist in France! All in all I think it's safe to say that we will be keeping her.

Here are Evan's stats:

Weight: 21 lbs 3 oz (10%) He moved up!
Height: 32 inches (80%) Getting to be so tall!
OFC: 18 inches (15%)

In reference to the concerns I have for my son, Dr Burnett decided to have his hearing checked and referred me to Early Intervention. For those not in the Know, Early Intervention is a group of therapists; developmental, occupational and speech, that work with children who have deficits. Don't go thinking anything has been decided about my son, but he is showing signs of a communication delay of some sort. So, sometime in the future strangers will come to my house, play with my son and tell me what they think. Whether he is just on a different timetable than most kids, whether he's capable of communicating but it too stubborn to do it, or if he would benefit from therapy and programs to overcome a deficit.

I'm very excited about this.

It's strange to think I am excited to have strangers come tell me if something is wrong with my child, but I'm excited to have some knowledge one way or the other. I can handle anything, whether it be stubbornness or something more. But I cannot handle not knowing. I can't. So I am excited for some information.

I feel validated. I was worried she would think I'm some crazy paranoid nurse, who's looking for problems. But she didn't. I don't even know if she knows I'm a nurse. (I guess that depends on what Emilie has told her?) I feel justified in my concerns, and that's very relieving.
His hearing test still needs to be done. I think Evan can hear just fine, but it is possible that he has some mild hearing loss, or fluid or something, and that can Definitely affect speech. But it's not just that he won't "talk" to me. He doesn't really try to communicate. No pointing, no mimicking. Hence my mild concern.

I'm thrilled to now have a pediatrician that doesn't want to "wait and see". So thank you to everyone for voicing your opinions about Dr Black and convincing me to go and seek elsewhere!

As for my toddler, he is a walking machine! It's hard for me to remember a time when he wasn't walking. He's just as cuddly as ever, and I love when he toddles up to me to sit on my lap, or bury his face in my lap....it's all affection right? He continues to love reading, but prefers to read to himself I think. He adores Jasmine and thinks everything she does is the funniest thing ever. Yawning, eating, walking past him...it doesn't matter. It's all hysterical! His laugh is contagious and I can't get enough of it!

I love this little man!