Rectangle Glasses, Buttbeans and Swirleys.

Lots of errands today. Got J's hair cut, ordered his new rectangle glasses and now we're going to be heading to the grocery store as soon as J2 wakes up.

We were able to get J the Miraflex glasses. They come in circle or rectangle shapes; I don't even need to say which J picked. He was not very happy with the glasses we tried on because they come with a headband on them. Once he gets used to it, I think they will be perfect for him. The glasses come in every color of the rainbow; we picked a pearly dark blue. We should have them in about 3 weeks.

J2 is on a button kick. Elevators, phones, doors, crosswalk signals, if there's a button, he'll find it. The funny part is that he's taken to calling buttons, "Buttbeans." We're walking through the mall to get to the optical store and as we passed the elevators, J2 is yelling, "Buttbean!" I'm sure people wonder what I teach my children!

Poor Jeff Wiggle. I was in the boys' room changing J2's diaper. J leaves the room with Jeff Wiggle in tow. I later found J holding poor Jeff by his ankles and dipping his head in the toilet. What is with the fascination with the toilet? Now poor Jeff needs to go through decontamination.

Tomorrow is out neighborhood Trick or Treat. I'll post pics on Sunday.

J has his photo shoot next week and an appointment with Physical Medicine and Rehab at Children's. We're heading there to have them check out J's muscle tone, balance and pelvic tightness.

On a completely different note, one of J's trisomy 4p counterparts is currently hospitalized with complications from H1n1. She's been really struggling. Please keep her family in your prayers.

Object du Jour: The Thomas sticker from the haircut and the rectangle glasses (which we don't even have yet.)

Dance Dance Flag!

This weekend we went to Grandma and Grandpa's house and then up to visit J's aunt and uncle. J's cousin was home from Iraq for a visit, so we all went up to see him.

J fell in love with their "Dance Dance Flag." It's an American flag that waves and plays patriotic music. He cried for 45 minutes after we left because he didn't want to leave the flag behind. I've never seen him that upset over something. After he calmed down, we stopped at Wal-Mart and found a little snow globe with Frosty inside. It lights up and plays music and Styrofoam snow whirls around inside. This morning, the flag is all but forgotten.

The pictures above are J with the glorious "Dance Dance Flag," J trying on Uncle Dave's glasses, clutching a handful of Uncle Dave's dominoes and the last one is J's new awesome hat! J2 has a red and grey on just like it.

We made the attempt to get J an H1N1 shot on Friday. The ped's office says they don't know if they are getting any, so we tried the flu shot clinic at the Health Dept. The clinic started at 2:30 and I guess people were in line early that morning. We got there at 1. It was pouring rain, the line was hundreds of people long and there was no guarantee he would get a shot. So, we went home. There were still people in line when we went by at 5:30. I guess I'll call the ped this week and see what she recommends.

Object du Jour: Tons of Grandma and Grandpa's things. It's much more fun here than at home!

Rocks and Gingerbread Men

I joined a new Mom's group today on the recommendation of a friend. They were having a scavenger hunt with their kids, so I tagged along with Pete and Repete. We walked through the woods to find pumpkins, gourds, leaves, acorns, apples and harvest corn. Jameson had a blast. He carried his "punkie" under one arm while trying to gather up more stuff. Jackson wanted to get back in the car. When we went inside to play, Jackson wandered around and played with toys and would watch the other kids, but didn't try to interact. Jameson was really intent on watching what the other kids were doing. He and a little girl had a tea party and they poured and stirred and cooked together. It was really cool to see him interacting with a kiddo who played back. I think this group is going to be good for all of us!

J's favorite place lately is "Best Buy's house." We were looking for a new cell phone for me since J sucked on mine (again!) and ruined it. This is the second phone he's killed. He and J2 had so much fun looking at all the sample phones and trying out the Rock Band game and the Wii. I guess Best Buy's Wii is much more fun than the one we have at home! But, I now finally have a new cell with the same number (In case anyone wants to call me!)

J broke his glasses yesterday! Gah! So, I called Children's where we see the dr. he used to see in Mequon. They can't help me because, even though he's had his exams there, the prescription is from the other clinic. The Mequon clinic can't help me because he hasn't been seen there since '08. Clear as mud, right? So, the receptionist in Mequon is going to talk to the dr. and let me know what she says. http://miraflex.info/ I want to get him some of these because they are bendy and unbreakable. As an added bonus, they have rectangle frames! Woo Hoo!

Here's where I get sappy and philosophical: I read an article written by a SN mom a few years back. It was about how the people in your life, once you announce your child has SN, either become rocks or Gingerbread Men. The rocks are there for you through everything and the Gingerbread Men run, run as fast as they can away from anything having to do with your SN child. I was just thinking about my rocks and Gingerbread Men. And the Gingerbread Men weren't necessarily who I thought they would be once I started talked to people openly about J. So, to my rocks, Jenny, Jodi, Lisa and Melissa, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for listening to me and supporting me (and for all the drinks!) You gals rock! (Aaaand, now I want Gingerbread.)

Object du Jour: A cool laptop at our friend's house today. J had a lot of fun typing e-mails to Daddy in Chicago!

Baby it's cold outside!

Just some new pics to share! The one of J2 was taken at the school playground and the one of J is on the hay ride at the pumpkin farm. Aren't they just the cutest?

Object du Jour: Putting stickers on big sheets of paper. I found a smiley face sticker stuck to J's knee when I changed his diaper. lol

Late Breaking News...

Magic Erasers even get Sharpie off the walls. I'm so writing Mr. Clean a letter!

Further bulletins as events warrant.

Object du Jour: Back to the shape books with the awesome page of all things rectangular: crackers, a window, a door, a brick and a puzzle. He slept with it last night.

Anyone know how to remove Sharpie from a cell phone?

I talked to J's genetic counselor yesterday. The results of the microarray aren't back yet, but it seems that J's thyroid is normal. She didn't have any other suspicions as to what could be causing the mottling on his legs. The poor kid is so cold all the time.

Daddy went with J and his class to the pumpkin farm today. He said J wasn't so sure about everything at first, but loved the hay ride. J came home and told me "Hay ride, blue tractor!" He brought home a cute little pumpkin and a yellow gourd. I'm really glad he did well. I had the poor kid dressed in so many layers I'm surprised he was able to move his arms!

I'm in one room changing J's diaper. Boychild #2 is in the toy room (aka the living room) and he's vewry, vewry qwuiet. I get done with the diaper change and find that J2 stole a black Sharpie out of the desk drawer and scribbled all over the wall, mirror, my cell phone and a Mr. Potato Head. Someone please tell me this phase is almost over! He's not even two yet!

Object du Jour: The sticker from the pumpkin farm.

Astrounauts and feeding pumps

J brought home a book of "A" words he had colored at school. Apple, ax, astronaut, alphabet and alligator (An ax? Were they out of "A" words?) Jackson took the booklet out of his backpack and pointed to the astronaut and said, "Astronaut, Jackson's pump!" There's a line coming out of the astronaut's belly area and a square with buttons on his chest. J thinks that he uses the same feeding pump. I wonder if it's an Infinity? J carried the picture around and just stares at it saying, "Jackson's pump" over and over. I think it's great that he can find something relatable in a novel picture.

I worried for a bit about how Jameson would handle J's g-tube "stuff." J2 points at the pump and says, "Daxdon's!" He has also taken J's medication syringes and tried to find the button in his own belly to put them in.

J has become a parrot. He will repeat the same phrase over and over and over. His favorite is "Pincha fingers in the rectangle." No clue what that means, but I think he says it close to million times a day. "Letice" and "Cleesus" are also two favs with unknown meaning.

He's also started screaming at the top of his lungs and then laughing at himself. Oh joy! The poor cat practically climbs the walls when he does it. I told him not to scare the kitty, she might bite. When he screams now, he'll say, "No 'creamin', kitty pincha fingers." He gets it in his own little way!

ETA: Figured out tonight the screaming is to get the lights on the baby monitor to go full tilt. Here's a boy that wants it to go to 11 (obscure reference!)

Object du Jour: The "A" book.

Ooo, spellcheck loves me today!

*Cough*

Now I have a horrible sore throat. Really? Is this ever going to end? I hear poor J2 up there coughing in his sleep. Randy is hacking away too. Out of the lot of us, Jackson is the healthiest. That defies logic, but I'm not complaining one bit!

I think someone broke into our house, armed with a blue crayon and decided to vandalize the walls in the kitchen and dining room. Couldn't have been either one of my angels. Although, if I had to guess, I think the culprit's name rhymes with Bameson. Magic Erasers have become my bff.

Jackson's eating has been great lately! He chewed and swallowed parts of a fruit rope and ate smooth/crunchy textures mixed together at therapy on Friday. His intake volume of solids has gone way up lately. He's also requesting mini-saltines, aka "Squackers," as in, square crackers. Tonight for dinner, I tried to get him to try a slice of pear and a cooked baby carrot. No dice, but at least he touched them and smelled them without gagging or getting upset. J is really loving dehydrated apples, but just to suck on and not to chew and swallow. We'll get there.

Jameson is really into fingerplays lately. Tonight we sang "Itsy Bitsy Spider." His face just lit up when he figured out how to copy me. We I sang the "down came the rain" part, he yelled, "RahRah!" His word for water. Excellent connection!

Object du Jour: The box from Daddy's new hedge trimmer. Awesome!

Saturday musings...

I think everyone is slowly getting better. Jameson has still had a fever on/off all week, albeit a low one. Jackson has just kept the runny nose. Randy and I have also been sick over the last week, but we just had cold-like symptoms. I'm so ready for everyone to be plague-free! I'm really starting to lean toward getting the H1N1 vaccine for J. His clinic doesn't have any yet, so I still have some time to mull it over.

The monkeys are getting stir crazy after being trapped in the house for so long. Our outside time is limited due to illness and now the weather. The forecast called for the 20's tonight and possible snow. I'm so not ready for that yet.

J came to me yesterday and said, "Dave?" I asked him "Dave, who?" and he said, "Dave!!" I told him I didn't know who he was talking and he put his hand on my cheek and said, "Dave and Donna!" So, Aunt Donna, just know J is thinking of you guys!

I'm such a klutz. I took J's pitcher out of the fridge this morning to pour him a cup and I dropped it. It shattered all over the floor. 40+ ounces of sticky liquid everywhere! After the boys go to bed, I will have to move the fridge and stove and clean underneath. Can't wait! I may be a klutz, but I'm not crazy enough to attempt this maneuver with an audience! But, on the plus side, I now have an excuse to go to Target!

Object du Jour: A car ad in my Oprah magazine. It's got a great picture of the dashboard and radio. J has been talking about it all morning.

In patient stays...the gift that keeps on giving.

Jameson went to the ped yesterday for a follow-up from his hospitalization. His lungs sounded clear, but he had a temp of 102.1. The dr. felt that he may have picked up another virus while at the hospital and to just give him Motrin. This morning his temp was 101.9, but he's in much better spirits and back to his silly self.

J went back to school on Tuesday. He was so excited to be there. He's been asking since he woke up this morning if he's going today.

The temp has really dropped here and they've mentioned the "S" word a few times in the forecast. I'm so not ready for that! Plus, we're not getting the new furnace put in until next week or the week after!

Object du Jour: A little tiny pink heart sequin. It must be left here from J's cousin, because I can't think of anything else it would have come from. J's been calling it M's heart. He's been carrying it around most of the morning.

The other big obsession is that we've rediscovered The Wiggles on the Sprout channel. They disappeared from the Disney channel quite awhile ago. Now there's a disagreement as to whether we watch The Wiggles or "Elmie" before lunch/school.

Home again.

We are all home and finally under the same roof! Jameson seems better, he's still really crabby. We have a prescription steroid he needs to take two doses of and then we head into the ped to have him listened to. I gave him the first dose tonight and he promptly threw it up all down my back. Both boys are finally sleeping, but I'm hearing coughing from both of them.

Off to bite my nails down to the quick watching the rest of the Packer game!

Object du Jour: J and I went to Target to get Jameson's prescription and general junk. We made a stop in the toy area (my mistake) and J fell in love with an Elmo microwave. I think he said, "Elmo microwave, have it" about 1,000 times during the rest of our Target visit. I just couldn't make him understand that it was too much money to buy today and maybe Santa would bring it. Instead we came home with a Handy Manny paint with water book and that kept both fellas occupied for quite awhile this afternoon.

I want my toaster!

Jameson was admitted to the hospital yesterday through the ER. He was still struggling to breathe and coughing so hard he would cry from the pain. I was hoping he'd be able to come home today, but he's still working hard to breathe, so hopefully tomorrow will be the day. Randy is staying there tonight and I'm home with J.

Seriously now. Enough is enough. I'm exhausted and stressed and it's not even winter yet. I pray that this is it for us and everyone will stay healthy.

Object du Jour: No clue. I only saw J long enough today to put him to bed. He was thrilled that he got to come home with me and not stay at the hospital with Jameson and Daddy.

Chateau stay v2.0 with Jv2.0

Here we go again. Jameson woke up last night about an hour after he fell asleep and threw up all over me and the floor. Got him bathed, put him back in bed and then he started with the wheezing and coughing. I tried hot steam, the humidifier, and opening the window for the cool air. Nothing worked and then he spiked a low grade fever. I called the ped and she heard the wheezing when she picked up the phone. The first thing she said was, "Croup and strider?" She told us to head to the ER for a breathing treatment and steroids.

We got to our room in the ER and found out that we were seeing the same doctor and nurse from Wed night. I told them that my "Frequent Flyer" card is one punch away from getting the toaster. Woo Hoo! (Thank goodness they thought I was funny!)

J2 and I got there at 5 am and they let us go about 9. I'm really happy that the breathing treatment worked in one dose. He still had a little fever and is now upstairs sleeping. Poor little guy. The people that worked with him were so pleased with how cooperative he was. Jameson was fascinated with the pulse ox (which usually causes J great distress), took the mask like a champ and opened his mouth for the meds like a pro. This is kid is Michigan J. Frog. When the staff was in the room, his halo was blinding; the second they stepped out he was climbing furniture, trying to call China on the phone and jumping on the bed.

Lets hope this was our last visit to the Children's ER for awhile. Sheesh, and it's not even winter yet!

Object du Jour: Magnet wands and Snapple caps. Great fun!