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Caleb has become my tricky little gnome. I know, I shouldn't call my infant son a gnome, but he's such a compact little package that it's amusing. Or we could start calling him a hobbit, you see when I discovered that one of his many medications was causing him hair growth on his legs Tom shockingly proclaimed, "you gave birth to a hobbit!". The crazy mess of hair on this kid doesn't do much to dissuade you from the argument either.
Anyway, my tricky little gnome/hobbit managed Sunday evening to pull out his NG tube. There we were feeding him his bottle through the tubing when he sneakily slipped one tiny little finger under the tube and yanked. He didn't even squeal. I turned to see milk dripping all over Tom (who was holding him) and it seriously took my brain about three seconds to register what had happened.
There is nothing like sitting in the ER on a Sunday evening to have a NG tube reinserted for your baby. As usual Caleb has quite the charm in winning over the nurses with his cooing and giggling. It seriously makes you feel like crap when he hates you after the tube has been reinserted.
So Monday morning, we're home from the ER. Phone rings. Cyndee answers, I overhear her conversation with the ER rep following up for our last night visit. "Oh yes, everything is fine, he hasn't pulled his tube out again and everything is great..."
I head upstairs to check on Caleb in the crib sleeping. There he is, sound asleep with his tubing pulled out once again. Why??!?!
We are quite lucky though, we have a home nurse who comes Monday, Wednesday and Friday to check on Caleb. This way we don't have to head into the doctor's so often. She checks his weight, his breathing, his tube placement, and so forth. Well, Tanda (home nurse) was due to come at noon, so we decided to let her put the tubing in instead of making any inconvenient ER trips.
So there is Tanda, and she wants to teach me how to put in this NG tube to my beautiful smiling baby boy who is cooing at me. What???!! Yeah, so I decide to stop being a wimp and learn the trade, right? I mean I might as well suck it up and do it. So there I am, staring at the cutest little nose in the world and attempting to jab a long tub up into and down into his stomach.
Well...I failed. Not too shocking. As soon as I ran into any resistance I freaked out. Tanda took over and finished the job. I'm hoping that next time I might be a little less queasy about the whole thing and manage better.
On a good note, NG tubes really do work. He has reached the eleven pound marker. Woohoo!
On a bad note, he has been really sick. He has terrible congestion, which doesn't help with a nose tube, a bad cough and this morning he started running a fever and puking. So stressful. I'm waiting for the doctor to call me back for a plan of action.

He had a Bad Day

So much to catch up on.

Monday we saw Dr. Mooradian (Caleb's cardiologist). He determined Caleb to be way too small to undergo heart surgery on Wednesday, so he proposed postponing the surgery for 2-4 months.

Okay...I mean if your doctor is telling you he doesn't feel good about your child having heart surgery and saying things like, "let's give him a better chance with more weight on him" and stuff like that, you're going to agree.

So we did.
Surgery postponed.

Our new job is to fatten him up like a Thanksgiving turkey, the doctor's words once again. So on Friday we visited Dr. Boonstra (Caleb's pediatrician) and he set us up with the NG Tube.

My poor baby was quite upset.

After screaming and kicking and sobbing, he slept. And slept. And slept.

Grandma Cyndee has been our life safer. She spends a lot of time with Caleb getting him to eat. We try to feed him with the bottle first and get him to drink as much as possible. After a while he refuses.

So this is how we feed him.

Cutest boy in the world!

He's adjusting great to the tubing and hasn't pulled it out yet (finger's crossed!). We get a lot of interesting looks and double takes when we go out with him. And of course it's so sad to see him like this, but hopefully it won't be in for long. Hopefully our little man will decide to eat on his own!

Magical Talin

I asked Talin to hold a fussy Caleb while I vacuumed last night. By the time I was done he had managed to get Caleb to fall asleep by rubbing his face. So cute and sweet.
(And yes, this is what the summer attire looks like in our home, I don't pick out the outfits!)
And doesn't Caleb look chubby? He's putting on the rolls!

Caleb

Took Caleb to the pediatrician today for his weight check and he did great. He has gained four more ounces since Sunday. The doctor was pleased and said that she would go and call his cardiologist, who is Dr. Mooradian, and let him know, and also call his usual pediatrician, Dr. Boonstra, who is taking a week off this week to let him know.
After two hours in the doctor's office, it was with a sigh of relief that we went home, me smiling to myself that we've made it another week.

And I'm such a silly woman, I woke him up with my picture taking and now need to go remedy the situation!

These are pictures I took the other week. He's so cute and so quick to smile anymore.

Update

Caleb is doing well. We were released from the hospital Sunday afternoon, and sent home with instructions to bottle feed him with fortified breast milk every three hours, and then try to nurse afterwards, and then for me to pump after that to keep my breast milk up. It's quite a ridiculous routine I find myself repeating over and over several times a day.
People keep saying, "I don't know how you do it".
Well, me neither, it's frustrating but also worth it to sustain my little person. We go back to the doctor tomorrow to see how well I've been doing in getting him to grow. I'm not sure what happens if he's not doing well, another hospital stay? A feeding tube? Not sure, but at this point I don't care, whatever is best for Caleb. That seems to be my motto as of late. On a sour note, or a more sour note at least, my child being hospitalized has only managed to postpone my lovely talk giving in church. Yes, I'll be speaking this Sunday now. Not much of a reprieve. And I also had someone call me on Monday to teach relief society this Sunday. I politely declined.

And I think I'm going crazy. I didn't make my children lunch today and let them gorge themselves on movie theatre popcorn instead, and then bathing them this evening I found myself squirting out the entire bottle of bath foam over their heads. They were thoroughly amused, and I was just trying to rid myself of the bottles that have been in there since December rusting, yet never running out. It took a lot of spraying to empty just one bottle of foam, my fingers were sore afterwards.

And I finally did it. After being questioned by every nurse and doctor we saw over the weekend on whether or not I've had Caleb tested for genetic syndromes, I finally made the appointment to do so. I guess his heart and ear problems are very common in genetic disorders. So I busted up the courage to make the phone call and set the appointment. I guess I shouldn't have been so worried about doing it, I don't have to take him to the appointment until December 10th. Yeah, that's how long the wait is, how crazy is that?

Miniature Trouble

Yesterday Caleb was admitted to the hospital for observation. He doesn't seem to be gaining weight fast enough for them or for his impending surgery. So here we are hanging out. I've learned a few things while I've been here:
1. My child is capable of sleeping in a crib all by himself throughout the night.
2. Hot Rod is truly an awesome movie if it can keep me up giggling while I'm sitting in the hospital.
3. Having your child hospitalized is a great way to get out of speaking in church on Sunday.
4. You can take blood out of a vein in the side of a child's head.
5. Caleb does not like #4.

Better late than never

Talin & Baylee

I've been behind in posting, but here are pictures of when Jo and the girls were here a month ago (that long already!!) and we went out to the Omaha Zoo.

Andee, Madee, Collin, Talin, Baylee and JoDee @ the touch tank.


More touching of creepy sea creatures.


Caleb's first zoo trip, he was a good boy.

Baylee, Collin & Talin checking out the penguins.

We spent the ten dollars to rent the stroller to push around our large children that are no longer toddlers and can easily walk around the zoo on their own. Although we didn't quite realize it until we saw how huge and ridiculous they looked in the stroller. So we abandoned it. This is their sad goodbye, although I think Collin was confused.

Wild children.

I'm not so sure they're on the right side of the glass.

Andee, Collin, Madee, Baylee & Talin

My attempt at a group picture, I insisted.

JoDee and Andersyn

The only way to get a picture of these two is to do it secretly.

It was very hot and humid, so the kids found the water to be a welcome relief.

The boys had so much fun hanging out with Baylee, I'm glad JoDee decided to bring her, they rarely get one on one time together.

Madalyn, our always happy girl.

Talin, my spastic child.

Collin, trying to be mischievous and hide from me.

Baylee.

We aren't sure what the humidity was doing to her hair, but it was...interesting.

Overall the trip wasn't what we planned. We rushed through the exhibits because it was so crowded and we felt absolutely suffocated by the throng of people. Early in the afternoon Jo and I looked at each other and decided that we were both okay if we left and went home right then. The kids didn't seem to notice that we had only been at the zoo a little while. I think they were ready to go as well.

But it was so much fun to have JoDee and her girls here for a few days. I miss them terribly!

We Survived

1. We have survived the Iowa flooding this past week. Let's just say I'm not a fan of Iowa anymore; between the winter from hell, the storms that blow over full grown trees, the tornado sirens that go off at 10:30 in the evening and force my children and me to huddle in the basement, and now the insane flooding. I just can't believe the destruction the flood waters have caused. Gratefully it's starting to recede; hopefully we will have our downtown back soon, and please keep all the flood victims in your prayers. Our family is feeling very blessed that we have not been flooded out ourselves. The church of course has been amazing in sending out many semi trucks filled with supplies for flood victims, Tom went to help unload them last night and this morning during church. Crazy!!

2. Happy Father's Day to my awesome husband. His request this morning was to have "really thin pancakes" or in a normal person's world, crepes. So I bought him a crepe maker for Father's Day and made them this morning. They truly are delicious. But thinking that a crepe maker wasn't exactly what he really wanted, we went and got him some button up shirts and slacks for him to wear for his clinics. And my oh my, he looked quite delicious in a pale blue button up shirt and grey slacks this morning. And let me just add that he is the BEST dad ever. He loves his boys, spends time with them, is patient with them and is such a good dad. His little guys worship him, and he's always been so good with the baby stuff as well, which helps me out a ton! I'm a lucky girl to have him, and my boys are lucky to have him as their dad.

3. So after gorging myself on Father's day dinner and cheesecake, I've decided to embrace my new curvy figure that doesn't seem to be going anywhere soon. I can work out like mad, but honestly, my eating will never get much better with the stress and breastfeeding going on. So until then, I'm determined to be happy with the extra thirty pounds and bulging belly fat and deal with it after Caleb's surgery, or after I'm done breastfeeding, but it will be dealt with!

4. And I was asked to speak in church next Sunday, which I’m really not pleased with. I’ve been in the ward for just over two years and this will be my fourth time speaking, um hello! I thought I was off the hook for awhile since Caleb was born, I guess not. I just have no desire to get up in front of the ward wearing the same black skirt I wear every week, because it’s the only one that will fit, and speak. Hopefully I’ll have a change of attitude by next week.

5. Last but not least, a quick shout out to Cynthia who had her birthday earlier this week. It sucks not being able to be there and celebrate with her, but I know she has lots of people who lover her and took care of her on her birthday.

Caleb's Blessing Day

Last Sunday we blessed Caleb. It was beautiful, and I was so happy to have JoDee's family there with us.

The snazzy blessing outfit.

It came with a hat, but we decided to leave it at home.

Isn't he a doll?

My family.

It kills me how old my two boys are getting!

Tom and I with our baby boy.

Trouble!
These three loved being together over the weekend. It was a lot of fun for them to play and they were all best of friends, as you can tell.

My boys and lovely nieces, in order: Baylee, Madalyn, Collin, Caleb, Andersyn and Talin.

I can't tell you how much I miss these girls! It was so nice to not be outnumbered for once!

I'm trying to convince Andersyn to save up her money and come for a visit this summer and have some one on one time. I was so incredulous at how grown up she is!

We were trying very hard to keep these guys out of the grass in their Sunday clothes, they loved to be outside playing.

Madalyn & Caleb.

Andersyn & Caleb.

Again!

This child is attracted to poison oak, or the other way around.

If you recall, last year we had a run in with poison oak all over his face, and now he has found it again.

I don't know what to say...

Nauvoo Picture Overload

This is where Caleb spent the entire trip, Tom and I took turns carrying him.
The beautiful Nauvoo Temple.

This is a statue of Joseph and Hyrum right in front of the temple. It's gorgeous, and I love this picture that Tom has taken.

Me and my boys in front of the temple, you can see the Mississippi in the background.

Talin and Collin.

There were a ton of little shops we stopped in and looked through.

Me and Caleb. The boys were busy making rope. We learned how to do that, how the pioneers made bread and lots of other things. The boys loved it.

Are these not the cutest pioneer boys ever?

They got to dress up in Pioneer clothes and do the things the pioneer children did.

There were games and tools they used back then that the boys had a great time doing.

Talin hauling water!

I had to help Collin out on the stilts.

(And yes, that's Caleb on me as well, so tiny!)

Tom helping out Talin.

Here are the boys in a little school room they had.

Collin, Tom and Talin at dinner.

This is at the Women's Center, they have a ton of statues dedicated to woman and it's absolutely beautiful. I kept saying to Tom that I wanted to spend some time in the Women's Center. And my boys not knowing what that was kept whining, "I don't want to go to the women's place!"

It was pretty funny, I think they were okay once we got there.

Here is a statue of two people courting, and I thought it was so funny in a creepy kind of way that Collin was appearing in between them.

The Family.

It was so cold when we were there, and it rained a lot. Tom forgot his jacket so he was super lucky to be able to buy a Nauvoo sweatshirt. They did have a sweatshirt that said "I Love Mormon Boys", I really had to hold back Tom from getting that one. Ha ha!

Our last day it was pouring rain, but Tom had been wanting to go on the ox ride the whole time we were there. So we dragged the boys out of the car and did the ride in the rain.

Nauvoo was a lot of fun, it was great to take the boys and teach them about the pioneers, and it did a lot to raise my own appreciation of them and what they've done for the church. They truly were amazing, courageous and faithful people.