Sorta Sick

We're not sure what is going on with our little guy, but he woke up this morning with a low grade fever of 99.7. I decided not to send him to preschool. He is eating just fine and plays once the fever breaks. It comes back after a few hours (100.7). He really shows no other symptoms and has minimal congestion. I know doctors really don't even consider this temperature a problem, but even a low fever can make you feel yucky! He has been a trooper, and Mommy got in some good snuggle time!


Just catching up on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

A Church for Us

When we first moved to our new city almost two years ago, we quickly began our search for a new church. This is not an easy task when you are trying to stay on the same page with your spouse about what you want in a church home and a two year old who you are having to drop off at a different place every week. Dave and I were praying so hard about this decision, since we want to make our home here and desire for J to grow up surrounded by godly men and women who will serve as spiritual mentors. As a couple and individuals, we have spiritual needs and a strong desire to serve. So, we ventured out of our little area and looked around here, also. We attended lots of great places, but many just seemed too far from our home. We worried we wouldn't be as active as we would like if the drive was too far. Well, about 9 months ago, we went back to one of the first churches that we had visited... only after a couple of church members showed up at our doorstep. Well, we are thankful for those men, because it got us back to the church that we are pretty sure will become our church home.

God has revealed some common things to both Dave and me about this church but also some individual things. Both of us LOVE our Sunday School class. The teacher speaks from his heart and is totally authentic in his sharing of personal experiences. The class in interactive and the mood is positive. There is also a heart in that class for reaching others for Christ and serving those who need us most. In two months, we have watched three men in the SS class come to know our Heavenly Father and our class rejoices with these guys...husbands, fathers. We have been able to share some of our experiences with J, and they pray for his progress. A couple of weeks ago, we shared in detail about our answered prayer with the insurance company and J's gains in his expressive language. They rejoiced along with us, and their sincerity was evident as a few mommies cried along with me. Aside from our class, the preschool workers love our little man. I don't mean that they just think he is a cute three year old; they invest love and time in him. Now that I have a child of my own, I know what a sacrifice it is for these same workers to give their time and talents each week to the little ones of the church! They are understanding of J's apraxia and celebrate every improvement along with us. They know our boy & all of the other children and accept each child as a unique creation. I have seen this firsthand in many of the nursery classes and in J's class, of course. The church believes that children should hear about Jesus from the time they are very young, so even the very youngest ones hear short words and descriptions of God's love and creation. Awesome. Finally, there are lots of opportunities to be involved...all three of us. We are so thankful that God has led us to this place!!

J's Arrival...3 years ago

As a second birthing experience is coming my way, I can't help but think back to my very first birthing experience with J. The most memorable part of that day was hearing his first cry and being filled with so much emotion: immense happiness, relief, pride, etc. Dave and I vividly remember Dr. Risinger holding him high in the air seconds after he was born and asking Dave to tell everyone who she was holding. Dave proudly announced our boy's full name. The operating room, filled nurses, doctors, med students, etc. clapped & cheered for our brand new baby! Dave then scooted over to watch them check out our newborn.



I remember asking for J's apgar score and inquiring about why he got a 9 instead of a 10. :) Only a few minutes passed before they moved me to the recovery room, and I got to nurse my precious baby boy for the very first time. Then, it was time for us to introduce J to his aunts, uncles, and grandparents. They gathered around us in the recovery room (thanks to a sweet nurse who sorta bent the hospital rules to make this happen), and we proudly showed him off to those who love him most.






All of this was such a sweet ending to what was a stressful morning as we found out moments before inducing labor that J was breech. A c-section was inevitably part of my future at that time. However, I could not have asked for sweeter memories than I have of that day.

Look at those little legs. He had been sitting in the womb like a little frog, and the nurses knew he was a breech baby without even asking.

We just thought we were exhausted at this point! We had no idea how tired we would be just weeks later.

Baby Brother's Upcoming Arrival

Only 8 weeks before we get to meet our little guy! We are so excited to add this baby boy to our family. I get teary-eyed thinking about those first moments when he is introduced to us and especially the time when we introduce our two sons to one another. We have decided to make that time very special for our little family of four and are praying that all goes well!

I sat down with Dr. Barnes yesterday, and we discussed my c-section in more detail. It looks like Baby Boy Hilton will come into the world, bright and early, on the morning of June 1, 2011!!!

A Little J Update

J continues to well with pottying. It took him a week to be comfortable enough to potty at school, but once he did it for the first time, we haven't had any problems. He has gone days without accidents and tries very hard to not have one even when he does have a slip up. We are so proud of him, and he loves to hear us praise him.

He is continuing to say new words and try harder words. This week he clearly said "applesauce" which is probably his first three syllable word. He combines a couple of words and gets very excited at school & home when he can verbally communicate his wants & needs. His SLP has done a great job at school of teaching him how to move his mouth for certain sounds, especially the tongue. A few months ago, his tongue would be out of his mouth to make the "n" sound, but now he says "banana" on a good day and just "nana" on other days while keeping his tongue in and reaching the roof of his mouth to make the "n" sound each time. The apraxia is still evident as the new words don't come automatically, meaning we clearly see him having to think about how to say the word. Dave and I just want to scoop him up and hug him so tight when we see him trying to get words out correctly and thinking so hard about how to move his mouth. Lori said in time the words will become more automatic, but this is how more difficult words start out. Believe me, we have come such a long way...I am not sure he was saying more than a few sounds (not words) the word "more", and signing this time last year. He couldn't blow or do other oral motor tasks last year. Six months ago, we were seeing no two syllable words come out and minimal one syllable sounds aside from animal sounds which they actually count in the speech community. We definitely weren't getting combined words. We are training the brain, and it is a process! We celebrate every single new word or word attempt and are absolutely amazed at the determination of this little guy. God has blessed him with a huge amount joy even though he has to work so hard at something that seems so easy to us. He is my sweet child, with a truly precious heart like his daddy, who will probably give me more gray hairs as I worry about him! Thank goodness he is laid back and doesn't get frustrated or worry!

We got his IEP progress report which noted his progress, and we were very pleased to see this from his school SLP. Mommy has come a long way, too, with accepting that he has to have an IEP. It really isn't a big deal, but I never imagined I would be on the other side of the table listening to a team of educators explain to me what they are going to do for my child. I am supposed to be the one TELLING the parent what I am going to do to accomodate their child in meeting their educational goals. I checked my pride card in at the door in November of last year, and we have pressed forward. God has given me the opportunity to meet many other teacher moms, as well as, moms who are OTs, PTs, SLPs who find themselves feeling that same way as they sit in that IEP meeting for their own child. Funny how it works that way, but it does.

Walmart Crazies

J and I ran errands this morning. First on the agenda...J's haircut. He loves going in there, because it is a kid's salon equipped with a train set and play kitchen while you wait. Then, he gets to sit up on a motorcycle, watch tv, and eat animal cookies while Miss Chris cuts his hair! Pretty cool setup, huh? Then, we headed to Lowes Foods to pick up their specials for the week..Bounty and Charmin $4.99 each. I have been doing better about couponing and deal shopping, since I got out of my first trimester of pregnancy. I am still working at staying within our budget for groceries, but I am getting a lot for our money! Next on the agenda...Walmart. Ah, Walmart, why do I even go in there? For one, I needed to make a return and grab a potty seat for the upstairs bathroom. I prefer going in there around 8:00 in the morning, but I didn't make it there this week. So, we went around 11:30 a.m. A lot happened in just the 10 minutes we were in line. Let's start off with this, my child must be pretty BAD, because a lady in line handed him a children's Bible and me a 1995 devotional. I didn't see where she had anymore to give out. I explained that we are believers, but she informed me that I should keep the Bible and devotional. So, I showed J the nice (much used) Bible that the sweet lady gave us. ;) I must admit that J was actually being pretty good at the time, just standing in line with me. Within seconds, an older gentleman, who had talked and played high 5 with J earlier in the store, finished up in line, and noticed us again. He took out a $1 bill and handed it to J. He told him to buy a toy with it. I made a really big deal to J about it, and we thanked the nice man. Precious. The only nice thing that came out of this trip! Last came Michael Jackson, yes that was the guy's name...I overheard his unkind words to the cashier as she poked fun at his name. Well, there we were, finally up at the register, when MJ's little guy, a little younger than J, came over to him repeatedly saying "hi" and waving. He was probably at that age when the child has learned to say hello and wants to share it with everyone. J just looked at him and smiled. This child's dad called the boy over to him while loudly communicating through the child to the cashier about J not speaking to his son..."some kids don't speak and his child did the nice thing by speaking and how his child shouldn't feel bad about the "other kid" who didn't speak and blah, blah, blah. If this man had calmed down instead of getting so offended that my child didn't speak to his, he would have heard me explaining to J that when someone speaks to him, he should say "hi" back. It shows good manners. I had also been telling J to say "hi", but he has trouble interjecting when people are talking constantly...he is just used to wait time and doesn't have the confidence to interrupt unless it is Dave or me talking! J made sure to then speak to the cashier. Classic. You know, I could really get on my soapbox about this whole situation, but why bother? I just had to chalk it up to another day at Walmart...

The Neighbors Love Us

On Saturday, our neighbor across the street gave J a power wheels truck that his boys had outgrown. Too funny since I was actually looking for a used one. We were so grateful to this family! This is J's first motorized riding toy. I didn't want to get him anything motorized until he learned to pedal and could appreciate riding toys that make him use his legs. Anyway, we are still working on steering and stopping right when Mommy says "STOP!". Well, he was riding it in the cul-de-sac (in his undies, by the way) earlier today when one of our neighbors drove up. We were talking until I realized J was heading straight for the other neighbor's freshly planted beautiful flower bed. It just so happens that this neighbor's kids are grown up and are pretty particular about their yard. I yelled "stop" but J kept going, smashing these beautiful flowers of all colors. The other neighbor was laughing hysterically while this fat mama was running and fussing the whole time without any such luck of stopping him in time. I tried to straighten the flowers, but I am sure they will notice. We just need to move to the country!

Check out the picture to see if J had any remorse!




"Bye, Mom, I'm off to run over some more flowers!"