Helmet here we come...

So I'll start of with an update on Luke's plagiocephaly (fancy word for a misshaped head) - after a consultation with an orthotist, the scans revealed that he will need a cranial band (aka helmet). Most people do not have a symmetrical head; your measurements are off by about 2-4mm. If the child's head is off by 6-10mm, they highly recommend the helmet. Luke's was off by 12mm. So for the next 5 or 6 months, he will be having to wear his sweet little helmet 23 hours a day. That's right - 23 hours a day! Poor guy. I was under the impression that he might have to wear it a couple hours a day, but, unfortunately, I was wrong. His cranial band will be ready on Monday, when we'll go for a lengthy appointment to further customize and fit it to Luke's head. So be in prayer for that situation - that he takes well to the helmet and stays a sweet and happy baby. And that it doesn't hinder his sleep... we are just to the point where he is back to sleeping through the night, for the most part, and are so not looking forward to adding something to complicate his sleep.
On a lighter note, here are a few fun stories about Elijah that I thought I'd share to add a bit of laughter to your day...

• Stephen had to go to Miami for work. Elijah is doing a great job w/ his pronouns when he talks - so great that he pronounces "Miami," "Your-ami." How funny is that?! I told him "daddy's going to Miami... where is he going?"...Elijah: "He's going to Your-ami". We were praying and I said "Please keep daddy safe in Miami" and Elijah repeated and said "Please keep daddy safe in your-ami". lol
• One of his new favorite songs is Zaccheus (was a wee little man...) Out of nowhere, generally at dinner time, he will say "Zaccheus, you come down!..." Of all the bible songs, that one has clearly stuck.
• He has this funny little voice that he uses sometimes. It's really deep and he chooses to use it at the funniest times. He'll say "Papa Jeff and Jerrie" and will almost always say "Jerrie" in his low voice. Stephen and Elijah chase each other all the time, and the other night Stephen had a coin of his and Elijah kept yelling "HEY! (Really deep)... gimmie my coin.... HEY!... gimmie my coin!" Although his manners weren't top notch at that moment, him yelling "hey" like that and chasing Stephen was so funny to us both.
• Thumbs up is the biggest incentive right now. He will do just about anything to get you to give him 2 thumbs up. A few weeks ago, when he was just learning to do thumbs up, he would look at his hand and say "thumbs up!... is that my thumb?" Now he has it down pat.
• Elijah sat down on the potty tonight and was waiting and said "Penis! Tinkle!"
  

More stories to come soon!

Luke is 6 Months Old!

It's hard to believe, but our baby Luke is 6 months old! We went to the doctors yesterday for his check up, and he weights nearly 18lbs, which puts him in the 50th percentile for weight. He is in the 75th % for head size and 15th % for height, so he's still short and chubby, but Dr Malone is hopeful that he'll hit a growth spurt soon. We have an appt with an orthotist on Monday to see if they would recommend our sweet Luke to get, for lack of a better term, a helmet. =) So that will pressurize his head and get it shaped a little bit better. It has improved greatly, but he could use a little extra help since we can't force him to lay a certain way anymore b/c he's so mobile. He has changed a lot in the past couple months! He scooted for the first time on December 16th, one day shy of his 5 month birthday! He only goes a few feet now, but it is progress. He sat up for the first time right around then too... I just don't know where I wrote down that date! So it's fun right now, watching him curiously try to get objects and try to move around. And it's so cute to watch him and Elijah sitting next to each other, playing with the same toys. He loves to sit in his little jumperoo (like an exersaucer, but it bounces) and the little jumper that you attach to a door frame - however, I have learned that I can't leave him in it while I'm showering b/c several times I peaked my head out of the shower, to see Elijah standing next to him, smiling mischievously at me. =)
He's eating solids for breakfast and dinner (fruit and cereal for breakfast and fruit and veggie at night) and is even drinking a little juice every other day (to help out his tummy). Sleeping is a whole different issue... Ever since we visited our family in Huntsville for Thanksgiving, we've been dealing w/ him waking up once a night most days of the week. (prior to that he slept through the night since 2 months or so). And since we had to position him in a certain way at night for his head, we swaddled him up until last Friday. So now that he can play with his feet and hands at night, he thinks it's playtime. Last night was especially rough (could have been attributed to his vaccinations yesterday) - He woke me up every 30 minutes until 1:20, and then he decided to cry until 3 when we finally decided to put him in his swing. We generally let him cry four about 15/30 minutes before we check on him and/or change his diaper. Thank the Lord Elijah is a fantastic sleeper and could care less whether or not his brother is crying in the wee hours of the morning. We're working on teaching him to nap in his bed rather than his swing now, so napping is rough too... whew. I'm getting exhausted just writing about this! So this time period is a little trying, but it is temporary. We'll get through it.
I'll end on a happy note though. He loves to giggle, especially at his daddy and Elijah. At the doctors, he got so tickled watching Elijah run around the room that he made me and the dr crack up as well. It is so precious and so contagious. He is such a sweet child and such an incredible blessing.

Elijah's 2.... and a month

So I understand that I'm posting stuff about my sweet Elijah's 2nd birthday a good month after the fact, but that's what happens when you have a son who's birthday is right before Christmas! It's been quite busy! I cannot believe he is two years old. Before his birthday, he was so excited about his "Mickey Mouse Birthday Party," which he would say all the time. When you asked him who was coming, he would name a list of friends from church and what not, but it basically was family and a couple of our best friends. His party was a blast! It was Mickey Mouse Clubhouse themed, so all the food had to do w/ the show... Toodles' Tea, Donald & Daisy's Cheese & Quackers, "Chip" & Dale's salsa, Goofy's goody bags, "Minnie" fruit cups, Boo Boo Chicken Nuggets, Hot Diggidy Dogs,... and my favorite - Professor Von Drake's Vaffle Chips". (I mean, if you're going cheesy, you might as well go all out) We made a "toodles" for his party and Elijah had to call on him throughout the party for mousekatools. But it was absolutely precious when a baloon floated to ceiling and he grabbled the cardboard toodles to help get it down. Thankfully, his daddy was there to save the day. He had a great time at the party and was sad that it was only a one day thing. That night we went to our fav mexican restaurant, San Antonio, b/c you can't miss having your little boy decked out in a sombrero and sung to on his birthday. He thought it was so fun! He is just the most incredible little two year old! He loves loves loves to sing. I always wondered if our first born would be more musical than the others since he heard me teaching music all day while I was pregnant with him... we'll see... But he can sing SO many songs! Stephen's favorite is the farmer in the dell. I was singing rudolph, which I barely sang during Christmas, and I would stop at the end of each line, and he would sing the correct word every time! And then I sang "Oh you better watch out..." and he sang the rest of that song! I didn't even realize I had sung it that often for him to learn it. A sweet thing he is doing now, is that everytime we go up to bed for his nap, he runs and kneels by the side of his bed to pray. He repeats everything I say when we pray and it is just so sweet - he, the 2 year old, was reminding me, the grown up, to pray. And after he sings the blessing before we eat, he always says, so sweetly, "Thank you God for our family... I love you God" I know I'm going on and on about Elijah, but that's b/c this post is about him. My next one will be all about Luke. I have a lot of catching up to do on this blog! Hope all is well with you and your families!