Reece the independent one

Well, now that Reece is almost 5 (OK, 4 months away) he has a opinion about everything. Before, we could make or force him or even bribe him to do something WE as parents needed from him or for him to do. Now, he is telling us what he wants to do. He really needs a haircut (I hate long hair on boys) but he is telling us not to cut it because he loves his hair. What to do? Do you make him cut it and create drama or do you let him make this decision on his own? It does not bother me that much, but its weird since I am used to him having a shaved head. For now, he has won, but when do you decide what is right? I mean, can't he have a opinion too? It is his body and its not a major issue.... do you relent?

Anyway, that is where we are right now. In the middle of our own family dilemma. Pics to come this week, just extremely lazy right now. :)
Have a good Thanksgiving!

New pics of Ree

Well, Reece is officially in Pre-K! He is now on a color system that is mandated by the nazi's (oops meant teachers) of his class. Green is good, yellow is ok with a issue and red is really not good for Reece. So far we had a bit of a issue with him getting one yellow. It seems he likes to ignore the teachers and do his own thing, not unlike at home. However, we came up with a few changes of our own. First we told Ree that if he gets all greens throughout the week he gets something special at the end. This has worked not only for him but for us since we now do not need to buy him anything throughout the week, saves money. It also helps him to focus and try a little harder. We explained our process to the teacher and told her to threaten the yellow pencil :) We have also been taking him to school around 7:30 when his actual teacher is there. This allows him to sleep in another full hour and he gets to go to his classroom. He did not like going to the room that was 2 years ago since he is a big boy now. This seems to have worked, he is doing a lot better. Its all about trial and error on our parts to find the way that works best for our son. Whether it works for us is not debatable, its all about getting him started off on the right foot.

Here are a few new pics and we will post some more next week!

Our new puppy

So, we have a puppy. Are we crazy, maybe. Thank god we have the right dog, she is very relaxed and calm which goes really well with our family. She is 1/2 Chocolate Lab and 1/2 Brittany Spaniel, she is simply gorgeous. Charlotte is 13 weeks today and a very happy girl. She is already going outside (only one accident so far) and has the kind of laid back attitude you can appreciate. Walks on a leash and runs on a leash very well, she is a good running companion but that means someone would have to run! (not me!) Reece likes her but is not overly happy, yet!

On another note, Ree woke up with a slight fever and has had it for the last 2 days. He was burping and almost threw up twice, not sure what is going on but I have a feeling......
Of course, Scott leaves in the morning so I will have a sick kid, its just how life goes here. Anyway, wish me luck with Ree and cross your fingers this puppy stays mellow!

Pre-K here we come

Reece starts Pre-K next week and I am kinda bummed that this is going by so quickly. Wasn't he just born? I can't believe how fast he has grown up, its weird but amazing. We went to see a movie and he sat through the whole thing which is great (its not the first time, but still awesome) and then we went to Busch Gardens at night. I think he had a blast! Plus, its the first time he wore a hat. He is not a big hat kid but he is starting to like them since he sees Scott wearing one all the time. If you look at the pic of Scott and Ree it is amazing how much they look alike.

Well, nothing new on the plate for now. We are hoping to get our new dog in the next few weeks but who knows, it may take a while. We are trying to rescue a dog all the way from Indiana! She is a bit older but a wonderful dog nonetheless! Enjoy the pics and we will update you once we have any new news!!!

New Pics

Well, we are back from Arizona. Not the best trip I have taken but definetely one of the more interesting. Reece had a wonderful time with his cousin's and played like nobody's business. :) He really enjoyed himself which is all that matters. I thought he would bond more with Tyler, the only other boy out of the group but instead he chose to cling to my oldest niece Alanna who is 15 going on 16. They really got along well and he is still asking for her. She treated him like he was the only important thing in the world and that is why we love her so much. Abbi, Teagan and Tyler were wonderful as well and tried to make Reece and I feel as welcome as they possibly could. We miss them all dearly and appreciate the effort they made to get to know us both.

We also had a photo shoot while we were there and I am including the pics that came out of them. I have to tell you that Scott and I have one of the most gorgeous kids we know, he is amazing and flawless. Of course, I am his mom so maybe a bit biased but see for yourselves.

Alanna is the other person in some of the pics and there is one of myself and Reece which I will cherish for a long time.

My son.... the goober...

Reece decided that out of all of Toys R' Us (now this is a BIG store) that he wanted a Bakugan glove so he could look like Dan.. his hero. I tried and tried to talk him out of it for a Toy Story Buzz Lightyear toy for tomorrow's movie but he would not give in. He is so funny, literally put the glove on right away and started practicing his Bakugan moves. Funny if you have ever witnessed this. The smile on his face was crazy, he was so proud of himself.

Now he is scooting around the house with his Frankenstein mask on... I can't stop laughing. God Bless Reece, for without him I would be insanely bored and sad. Hope you like the pics!

Accident Prone Reece

Reece decided to get out of the bath tub last night by himself, he has done this a few times so we let him be independent (of course, we are watching). He slipped on a toy and hit his head on the bath tub ledge thing, then proceeded to cut himself on the way down on a toy dragon from McDonalds. His lip would not stop bleeding so we ended up in Urgent Care at about 8:45 or so at night. He did not need stitches, however, he had a pretty nice gash in his lip.

On top of that, on Monday he was diagnosed with Strep throat... again. He has been on a antibiotic since Monday, but since he now won't stop going to the bathroom (#2) we were wondering if something else was wrong. Even though we were not complaining that he was going, we were worried it was too much after having diarreah for over 2 weeks. Come to find out he has a virus/ bacteria that he is fighting and they are putting him on a new compound oral something to fix it but he has to get off the Omniceff for his strep. Whew! So, they are hoping the strep goes away while they work on this other problem.

After he is done pooping this virus out, he has to get Merilaxed again so he can have his colonoscopy! Does anyone wonder why I do not want any more kids?????????

This is crazy! My baby is just so messed up medically and I can't do a thing about it except put him in a sterile bubble for the rest of his life. Needless to say, he is still freaking out over hospitals and drs, but that is only the icing on our cake since we end up at one of the two once a week. God help my son.

My son, the anti-pooper

Well, Reece is still having issues going to the bathroom. Today is day 8 of no poop! This is getting out of hand. Calls to the Pediatrician and G.I. are nothing great, same old same old. So tonight we have to load him up on Merilax... this will be fun. Not. May have to do some more tests with Ree to see what is going on. Will let you all know what we find out... but for now we are kind of stuck again. Maybe a scope/ probe is next who knows though.

Ree's Easter picture 2010

Here is a pic one of the mom's took of all the kids in Reece's class. Yes, there are a lot of kids in his class! :) Ree is in the bottom row, and I think 2nd from the left. Can't really miss him! Sorry this didn't go up earlier but I forgot I had it and there has been A LOT going on...

Ree's hospital visits take 3!

Well, as most of you know, Ree ended up in the hospital on Thursday. It seems his pooping problem was too out of hand for anyone to fix. The G.I. said it would be better for him to be admitted so they can watch him rather than us trying at home. The Merilax they were giving him in high doses needed to be monitored in case he had a bout of nausea. Which he DID! So I am glad he was there....however, he had quite a ordeal when he got there. First, they put a I.V. in his hand which I had to step out for, it is never fun to see them restrain him. This bit only took 3 nurses but he did fight the whole way which was good, its nice to see him fight them. :) Second, he would not drink the recommended amount of Merilax per hour they needed him too (I mean come on the kid is completely bloated and you want him to drink 8 oz every hour, not happening). So, they ended up putting a tube up his nose... which sucked. He was not happy and screamed every time the fluid started up because he could feel the coolness in the hose itself. He threw up about 3-4 times while this happened. Finally, after 24 hours of being in the hospital, he started to poop. Good job Ree. He was released about 6pm our time which was wonderful! I have never been so happy to be out in the sun. As Ree was walking out of the hospital, he said " Look mommy, its sunny" "Look mommy, there's a lizard" It was like he was reborn as well. Sometimes you have to be thankful for the family you have. Life is not about money, its about the love you have with your husband/ wife and your child or children. I learned a very valuable lesson this week and I will never take either one for granted. Promise!

*And Ree, if you ever read this one day I want you to know that I would sit with you in the hospital for the rest of my life if it meant I got to be with you. You are my life! Your dad and I will love you unconditionally with all our heart until the end of eternity. We are proud of you and you are such a big boy to go through all this. All the love in the world to you Ree!

Easter at the Carlson's

Ok, Easter was a interesting day. We decided to play it very "non-traditional" since Ree had about 2 easter egg hunts earlier in the week. I had a whole movie day planned where we would go see "How to Train a Dragon (or whatever the title is)", but Scott changed plans and took Ree to Chuck E Cheese. All in all a good day for us, but very low key. Scott is off to St. Louis, MO so it looks like its just Ree and me............Again!

On a side note, anyone wanna take bets on how sick Ree gets this week? Put me down for $20 on anything that is out there he will get! Till the next time! Happy Easter!

After the Drama

Well, the last 2 weeks have been hell on Reece and I. It started off as something small and ended in something much more complicated than I realized. The pediatrician started Ree off on Omniceff for 14 days to try and fight something he was getting. He had a runny nose and the start of a cough. As you all know, once you have pneumonia, any little cold can lead right into that horrible diagnosis again. So, his Dr was wonderful and put him on Omniceff right away. After 10 days, his fever came and then he contracted a much worse cough. It sounded like he had been smoking for 50 plus years. So, Dr. Allison put Ree on a Z pack for 4 days. Not so good for a child that is keen to any medicine at all. He recognized the z pack right away in every drink we could find, I tried everything including ketchup. (the kid loves ketchup). They then upped his Flovent inhaler to 4 puffs in the morning and 4 puffs at night. That seemed to do the trick! We also ended up taking him in to the G.I. for another problem he has, which is not going #2 on a regular basis. He has a tendency to hold it in for up to 6 days, which is not good. He gets irritable and nasty. She has him on Merilax 2 x a day and it seems to be working..... too well! Now he won't stop going. :) Beggars can't be choosers. Anyway this is another week in the world of Reece. Hopefully with his 4th birthday coming up, things will get easier and better for him. He has been through a lot but is still smiling. Happy Early Birthday Reecey! We love you and wouldn't change you for the world!

Good Black and White pics...