Not wanting to leave Charlotte out of Thomas’ upcoming hospital experience (kidding), we took her to the doctor yesterday confirming a dime-sized mole on her scalp needs to be removed.  It’s not raised, but multi-colored enough to warrant a pro-active approach.  And those of you who know me from reading this blog are aware I take all-over skin checks and questionable moles very seriously–having had a pre-cancerous spot on my nose in recent years.  So two weeks before Thomas has the ear tube hopefully removed from under his ear drum and replaced along with his adenoids taken out, he will accompany me to another surgical experience where Sissy will be put to sleep.  Perhaps this will better prepare him for his procedure or freak him out to the point where I’ll regret his inclusion.  Maybe I will ask Nana/Papa to come up and watch him.  Of course, like her brother, Charlotte has been promised a big toy after it’s over!

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

Thomas’ 4th birthday party Saturday exceeded expectations.  Lucas, a local gymnastics teacher with more than four years of parkour training–think flipping over obstacles, proved to be an incredible Spider-Man.  The costume I ordered online fit perfectly.  Surprising considering it was supposed to be average-sized and arrived with an XL label.  I assumed a guy who does gymnastics would be short.  Wrong, he was tall.  He slipped in the front door after party guests had moved to the backyard.  Then locked the bedroom door after Dave accidentally walked in on him changing.  Not even superheroes can avoid interruptions.  I knocked when it was time to come out and thought when he asked to make sure a spot had been cleared at the base of our 2-story deck it was so he would have room to go down the stairs and do some moves on the lawn.  Nope–he jumped off the railing and flipped onto the grass below!  We were all stunned.  Even the “older” kids were into it and nearly everyone wanted a picture with him. 

The face painter, Eric,  was similarly impressive.  He stayed an extra hour to make sure everyone had a turn, so we gladly paid him double. 

 Unfortunately there was a mishap once it ended.  Charlotte was cutting Thomas’ Spider-Man stunt plane out of the packaging with what I thought were the rounded-tip scissors.  Turns out they were the sharp ones that slipped and cut her thumb open.  A lot of blood later and Nana and I calmly took her to the ER.  Once cleaned we discovered the gash was small enough some butterfly tape would suffice to hold it together over stitches.  We were all so relieved I snapped a picture of the caring staff with the happy patient.

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

You know that moment, thanks to social media, when someone posts a picture of you online that you had no idea was being taken?  Your stomach drops when you discover a notification that you’ve been tagged in an image you didn’t approve.  Because let’s face it, the unflattering shots of ourselves are not ones we’d post on the Internet.  Yet you can’t always restrict others.  And it can be an eye opener of sorts.  Yes, I have put on a few pounds this summer.  The working out and counting points have kinda taken a back seat to barbecues and restaurant dining.  Weight Watchers has always been my go-to plan of action.  But what works for you?  My mom has had great success with Jenny Craig, though to do it where I live it would be by mail.  Curious who else has had success with diet plans that include food in the price.

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

Thanks for the advice about keeping bugs at bay during a back yard barbecue.  Your suggestions led Dave to get a yard spray, safe for children and pets, that he covered the back with hours before it started.  In addition, he attached four citronella-filled torches around our deck and two other tiki torches in the yard.  He lit them once it was dark and the flames added a nice touch along with hopefully the added benefit of scaring away mosquitoes.  Dave’ s report from the back yard where he mingled with the crowd, played bean bag games and cooked more hamburgers was little to no insects.  I manned the party from inside where our main floor and basement were occupied by a lot of kids, neighbors, pasta salads and desserts.  It was a lot of fun, despite my hostess duties keeping me from totally enjoying the spread.  I didn’t miss out on one of the last pieces of Southern Crack, however, snatched up quickly among the sweet treats lining the kitchen island counter.  My friend and neighbor, Jodi, was kind enough to share the recipe she said came from country singer Trisha Yearwood:

Southern Crack (Sweet-n-Salty Bars)

Ingredients:  saltine crackers, 1 pkg. chocolate chips, 2 sticks butter, 1 cup light brown sugar

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Cover 2 bar pans (one large, one smaller) with tinfoil.  Spray pans with cooking spray–including edges.  Line bottom of pan with saltines, salt-side down.  Melt butter & sugar in sauce pan.  Bring to boil 3-4 minutes until mixture pulls away from side.  Pour over saltines–spread ’til covered.  Bake in oven for 5 min.  Remove from oven and sprinkle with chocolate chips.  Let sit on top of hot bars until soft then spread until smooth.  Put in freezer for 15 minutes.  Serve broken pieces like brittle or cut along saltine squares.  Stores well in fridge or freezer.

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

Reading over my son’s medical records on the way to the doctor today (in the passenger seat!) I discovered my memory does not always serve me well.  For some reason I was certain his more permanent T-tubes in his ears had worked well for two years.  Wrong.  They are his third set and I failed to do the math.  He has had a new set put in every year from the age of 1 to 3.  So his last surgery was summer 2011–last summer.  That means, like clockwork, this new set failed exactly one year later as did the previous ones.  I should clarify, the tube in Thomas’ left ear is in place and fine.  But the right one has fallen inside and possibly lodged under the ear drum.  That means, I’m told, there is no guarantee surgery can remove it safely with scar tissue present and the risk of permanent damage.  However, the doctor is going to attempt to get the tube out as it is slightly impacting his hearing in addition to failing to drain fluid inside.  In addition, he will put in a new tube that is smaller than the previous one and remove Thomas’ adenoids as well.  This should help with my little guy’s snoring and recurrent stuffy nose.  A trip to a toy store to pick out something big has already been mentioned in exchange for full cooperation during his 4th time being put under.

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

Dave is a dog lover.  I grew up with cats.  But we’re both allergic to both as are our children.  So neither animal is in our future plan as a house pet.  A hamster, suggested by Charlotte, has been shot down as well.  “They can bite and they’re dirty,” I quickly explained.  Of course she went on to repeat this to an employee at a local pet store as we were standing in the fish section.  I once had gerbils and now can’t imagine letting something that resembles a mouse into my house willingly.  So hard-to-kill Betta fish it is! 

Thomas and Charlotte pooled their coins and Tooth Fairy dollars to defray some of the cost of two small tanks, one accented with pink the other blue, and two male fish.  Of course the male Bettas are more colorful.  The great news, you only have to feed them three little pellets every other day and they can survive for years in a small plastic container.  Which means they are currently living the high life in spacious aquariums at our house.  Their names?  Charlotte’s is Flipper.  Thomas says he’s calling his Slippery.

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

It’s been two years since Thomas had a third set of ear tubes put in.  This time the more-permanent “T” tubes did the job… until now.  Drainage in one ear recently led to antibiotic drops, ear plugs for swimming and multiple doctor appointments that revealed one of the tubes is in place and working while the other one is not.  In fact, it really can’t be located.  There’s talk of it being under the ear drum, but no confirmation.  But what an audiologist has confirmed through testing Thomas this week is that the ear with the AWOL tube is not at its optimal hearing level.  So that’s not good.  What is good to know is that his hearing should be restored to normal if the tube is removed and/or put back in place.  Meeting with a specialist next week to get guidance on the next step.  Fortunately Thomas is in no pain and, with ear plugs, is able to swim normally.  Know many of you have been there with on-going ear issues involving your little ones!

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

My son’s best friend is our neighbor, Isabella.  They are a couple months apart–so she’s an older woman.  But clearly they have a bond that surpasses age or gender.  Some times they watch movies.  She now shares his love of Spiderman and The Smurfs.  Yet they are both afraid of Gargamel.  They just click.  And it’s been great to have a pal right next door when so many other nearby kids are reserved for Charlotte.  Izzy is his go-to play mate.  My first friend and one of my closest in the early years was my neighbor, Kent.  So the boy-girl friend thing is totally normal to me.  Although they have their moments, for the most part they can talk things out and compromise… like about which Disney Junior game they’re going to play on the computer or which episode of Max & Ruby to select on the DVR.  Izzy’s parents plan to send her to kindergarten as a young 5-year-old while Thomas won’t go until the following year at a just-turned 6.  It will be good for them to have their independence, but I wonder if she’ll sit with him when he boards the bus the following year?  I think yes.

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

My parents lived in the same house a few years before I was born up until a few years ago.  Since college, I’ve moved nine times in two different states dwelling in everything from a friend’s upstairs,  a studio apartment to a duplex and two houses.  So it’s no surprise people have come in and out of my life on a regular and revolving basis.  It’s sad, actually, how a move even within the same town only a couple miles away means you’ll never see some of the neighbors you’ve shared so much with.  They were there when I brought the kids home from the hospital and now a year may pass before we run into them at the grocery store to discover their children look totally different–all grown up.  Eventually new people make up your daily circle of contacts–as you chat with them taking out the trash, reminding your kids a third time to pick up their shoes in the yard or getting the Sunday paper out of your mailbox in your pajamas.  (Yes, I do this.)  But you know I have a problem with name recall.  That’s why I’m handing out name tags at the barbecue.

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49

I am a mosquito magnet.  Worst case happened unknowingly.  I was sitting with Dave and some friends in the backyard at the house of one of their parents–legs coated with my then favorite lotion, Nivea.  Let’s just say the scent was the sweetest thing mosquitoes in that suburb of Seattle had ever smelled.  I woke up with 36 bites on my feet, ankles and legs.  Honestly did not feel a single sting or pinch or blood draw as they happened.  But for the following two weeks I was only comfortable in the shower with water running on the raised lumps.  Thankfully West Nile escaped me.  I share this bad memory to request assistance for a planned barbecue on our grass.  What works for you to keep backyard get-togethers bug-free?

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 49