Henry has FINALLY come around to seeing his Dr. He really likes the man, but going into the office building used to be enough for me to pull my hair out. Last year when we had to go get Henry's flu shot Rob came with us and Henry climbed the back of him like a monkey trying to get away, screaming all the while. The lady checking us in said "Oh, don't worry. They all do that. One little boy cries from the moment he walks in to the moment he walks out!" I stepped aside and said "Does he look like this?" and she said "Oh! Hey Henry!" It's THAT bad. He was a story that the nurses talked to other parents about. For this reason, and much to my mother's chagrin, we avoid the doctor like the plague. Henry has to be extremely sick if I'm taking him in. No little coughs, or a throw up here and there, will ever be enough to get us in the door.
So you can see why I was DREADING yesterday. 4 years, 4 year old check up. Yikes! Much to my surprise, Henry was incredible! He hasn't seen Dr. D since his sleep issues in August, and before that only for his 3 year old check up. He walked in, went over to the (disgusting, and covered with other kids sick, I'm sure) toy area, and started playing. When we were called back, he stepped onto the scale (didn't happen without screaming since birth), then stepped up to the wall to be measured, and let them take his temperature (usually we just all agree he's fine, and they write in a number)! No crying! I was so excited!! When Dr. D came in he answered his questions, and drew on the paper for him. Then LET him check his ears out and laughed when he was checking his tummy!! These are all amazing feats that just show me how big he's getting! They did his hearing and sight. He did great! And then... Dr. D dropped the bomb. Henry was getting 4 shots at this visit. We were so close to a perfect visit. The nurse came in and Henry started slowly shaking his head no. I hugged him tight to keep his arms down, and she did two very quick pokes and then traded sides with me as Henry started to let her have it! She was very fast, but it didn't matter. He was red faced and puffy eyed the whole way to Rob's work.
One day, sometime in the future, we will get a perfect Dr. visit. One day, that office will forget Henry's name and he will no longer be fodder for nurses to tell other parents that bring in crying kids. One day.
At 4 years old Henry is 41 lbs and 42 inches! He's doing great!
Friday, February 17, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Play Dough
It's gray and rainy outside, which makes it a great play dough day! Henry loves to play with play dough. Mostly he makes worms with it, but today we made snowmen.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Race Cars
When Rob was gone Henry had a LOT of sleep problems. Bed time was a fight every.single.night. Every night Henry would not "throw a fit", he would lose his mind! He was terrified and shaky and would break out into a sweat. After about a month of this Henry and I took a trip to his Dr. and he recommended a sleep therapist near us. Dr. Abraham's office was sparse to say the least. Every time we went Henry got to pick one toy out of the toy locker to play with, and each time it was a Hot Wheels track. He loved getting to go and play there, but once Rob got back his sleep issues dissolved and there wasn't a need (thank the Lord!). When Christmas rolled around Papa asked what Henry would want and I said "Race tracks!" So that's what he got! Today we took 20 minutes out of an otherwise Mario filled morning and played race cars. He had a great time!
Henry's No Good Day.
Henry is obsessed with Mario Brothers. He would play Wii ALL DAY LONG if I let him. It's great for when I'm making dinner, or working, but he gets very upset if you mess with him while he's playing. Yesterday was the only 'nice' day this week, meaning it got to about 48 so I wanted him to go outside and get some sun before it started raining later this week. He was NOT happy with me at all and had no trouble telling me about it! These are from the 5 minutes we were outside.
Disclaimer: Henry is better at Mario than most grown people and it is really incredible to watch. He can play every Mario game Rob has and picked all of them up really quickly. He's WAY better than me and is a good gaming buddy for his Dad!
Disclaimer: Henry is better at Mario than most grown people and it is really incredible to watch. He can play every Mario game Rob has and picked all of them up really quickly. He's WAY better than me and is a good gaming buddy for his Dad!
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Game night
Today marks day 2 of snow on the ground. Really, it's not much. Maybe 2-3 inches, but it's iced over and is a good excuse to stay home and do nothing all weekend long! And since we aren't Ravens fans we used today as a game day of our own featuring Life: Simpsons Edition. Henry decided he was way too cool to play with us so he sat on the couch playing Wii (aka his latest obsession). Even though Rob is a rules maniac I still mopped the floor with him!
My victory :)
So sad :(
And... Henry on his banana phone. I don't know why he does this, but he does it every.single.time. he has a banana. He walks around with it 'talking' to people before he'll let me open it. Usually he's really shy about it, so I had to have my little camera waiting in the kitchen to catch it!Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Oh Henry!
This is a sensitive subject, but I never want to forget my sweet boy's reaction tonight.
We were so excited to come home this year for Christmas and tell everyone the news. Baby Caruthers was due in August. We actually didn't say anything to Henry for a week, but had to at some point, because his favorite thing to do is jump on me. He was so mellow about it. He seemed happy at the thought of being a big brother (I'm sure he didn't really get it) and Rob and I were happy about the thought of someone new in our lives. Except, it never felt right. There were issues that made me cautious to be too excited about the outcome. We prayed and prayed and prayed for God's will to be done with our family, and on the 15th I was in the ER at North Hills being told that I was losing the baby and there was really nothing else to be said or done. God's will is tricky sometimes, but His peace is ever present. On the way back to my mom's I decided it was best not to let Henry in on this bit of information and just let it pass. I didn't see a point in having a discussion about why this was happening or what it meant when he had only known for a few days and hadn't said much about it.
We were in Texas for 3 weeks and have been home for about a week and a half now with zero mention of any baby. Henry and I were sitting at the dinner table tonight, while Rob was in the kitchen, and Henry looked me dead in the face and said "So do you still have our baby in your tummy?" I looked at him and said no and of course he asked why not. I told him that it just wasn't the right time for that baby and it wasn't there anymore. He said "So is it somewhere in our house hiding?" and I said "No. God decided to take that baby back to be with Him." And he looked at me with giant eyes and said "Mom, did we have baby Jesus?!"
He thinks so highly of me :)
We were so excited to come home this year for Christmas and tell everyone the news. Baby Caruthers was due in August. We actually didn't say anything to Henry for a week, but had to at some point, because his favorite thing to do is jump on me. He was so mellow about it. He seemed happy at the thought of being a big brother (I'm sure he didn't really get it) and Rob and I were happy about the thought of someone new in our lives. Except, it never felt right. There were issues that made me cautious to be too excited about the outcome. We prayed and prayed and prayed for God's will to be done with our family, and on the 15th I was in the ER at North Hills being told that I was losing the baby and there was really nothing else to be said or done. God's will is tricky sometimes, but His peace is ever present. On the way back to my mom's I decided it was best not to let Henry in on this bit of information and just let it pass. I didn't see a point in having a discussion about why this was happening or what it meant when he had only known for a few days and hadn't said much about it.
We were in Texas for 3 weeks and have been home for about a week and a half now with zero mention of any baby. Henry and I were sitting at the dinner table tonight, while Rob was in the kitchen, and Henry looked me dead in the face and said "So do you still have our baby in your tummy?" I looked at him and said no and of course he asked why not. I told him that it just wasn't the right time for that baby and it wasn't there anymore. He said "So is it somewhere in our house hiding?" and I said "No. God decided to take that baby back to be with Him." And he looked at me with giant eyes and said "Mom, did we have baby Jesus?!"
He thinks so highly of me :)
Friday, October 28, 2011
Homecoming!
We love being a military family. We really do. It is not a bad life at all, but it is not for the faint of heart :) We are THRILLED to put this last deployment behind us for sure. In part, it was easier for me this time around. I knew what to expect, and I knew it wouldn't be as long. On the other hand, Henry was old enough to understand, he had a HORRIBLE time when it came to sleeping for the past 4 months, and he started to worry about things a 3 year old shouldn't have to worry about.
We weren't expecting Rob until November 4-7th so when I woke up last Sunday CONVINCED he was on the move it was hard to look at the calendar. I called my good friend, Arlena, and told her "He'll be here in 3 days. I can FEEL it." She told me not to set myself up and not to do anything out of the ordinary. Just go about your life. Such a typical military spouse!! Monday I felt like I was going crazy all day watching the door. Our count down said 11 days, but I couldn't shake this feeling and literally would stare at the door. By dinner time that night we had to get out of the house. I was making us both anxious! I took Henry to Sonic and came home, sat him down at the table, then heard 'knock, knock' but no one was in the window (our front door is about 1/3 window and is flanked by 1/2 windows so I can definitely see out). I got up from the table and looked down and there was my sweet Rob! Crouching down with a dozen roses! It was so very exciting!! Rob's boss and his wife picked him up and brought him home and were standing in the yard taking pictures for me. It was the most fun! After a minute I called Henry out to see who was on the porch. He was a little unsure with the strangers in the yard and the unexpected Dad in a baseball hat so he pretty much held on to my leg, but once Rob came in and the Salems left he started getting more and more excited! Every few minutes he would look up and say "Daddy!! You're home!!" When he woke up the next morning the first thing he said was "Is my Dad still home?" and then took off down the stairs to find him! Nothing in the world is better than having us all together again. And now we have 2 weeks of R&R to fill with a lot of hanging out, movie watching, and book store trips!
We weren't expecting Rob until November 4-7th so when I woke up last Sunday CONVINCED he was on the move it was hard to look at the calendar. I called my good friend, Arlena, and told her "He'll be here in 3 days. I can FEEL it." She told me not to set myself up and not to do anything out of the ordinary. Just go about your life. Such a typical military spouse!! Monday I felt like I was going crazy all day watching the door. Our count down said 11 days, but I couldn't shake this feeling and literally would stare at the door. By dinner time that night we had to get out of the house. I was making us both anxious! I took Henry to Sonic and came home, sat him down at the table, then heard 'knock, knock' but no one was in the window (our front door is about 1/3 window and is flanked by 1/2 windows so I can definitely see out). I got up from the table and looked down and there was my sweet Rob! Crouching down with a dozen roses! It was so very exciting!! Rob's boss and his wife picked him up and brought him home and were standing in the yard taking pictures for me. It was the most fun! After a minute I called Henry out to see who was on the porch. He was a little unsure with the strangers in the yard and the unexpected Dad in a baseball hat so he pretty much held on to my leg, but once Rob came in and the Salems left he started getting more and more excited! Every few minutes he would look up and say "Daddy!! You're home!!" When he woke up the next morning the first thing he said was "Is my Dad still home?" and then took off down the stairs to find him! Nothing in the world is better than having us all together again. And now we have 2 weeks of R&R to fill with a lot of hanging out, movie watching, and book store trips!
Tuesday, September 06, 2011
The Beach
This is is year 3 of our Aunt Emmy and Aunt Kasey beach trip! The kids are so excited when we start planning things and the past two years Papa has gotten to go with us, which gets them even more riled up! Though, next year he may want to take his own car...
This is actually a little backwards, but that's fine. We always have a 'super fun ice cream party' on the last night of our trip. The two big ones count on it! They are already planning which kind they are going to get before we ever make it to the hotel.
Lore found this guy and played with him for a solid 20 minutes. She named him "mist-o cwab' and kept dragging him out of the water! So funny!
I love this trip so much. Galveston is not the most attractive place on earth, but to the kids its paradise! Here's to many, many more Texas beach vacations!
Texas
Henry loved getting to play at Grandma Terry's for the 4th!
Getting a picture of all of them is almost impossible!!!
These two couldn't love each other more. It's so adorable!
This is kind of a 'dump' post! It was all taken before Rob left, so it's been a while. It's hard to believe he's been gone for over 2 months!! We are so ready for him to come home.
This post is about our Strode 'babies'! All of the Strodes came and stayed with us for a week on their way out of the country. We had so much fun with them!! This was Henry's first time to bowl, and it was HILARIOUS!! Every. single. time he veeeerrrrrryyyy slowly rolled his ball down the lane he would dance and jump and say "I am a CHAMPION!" Clearly, self esteem should not be an issue with this kid!
This post is about our Strode 'babies'! All of the Strodes came and stayed with us for a week on their way out of the country. We had so much fun with them!! This was Henry's first time to bowl, and it was HILARIOUS!! Every. single. time he veeeerrrrrryyyy slowly rolled his ball down the lane he would dance and jump and say "I am a CHAMPION!" Clearly, self esteem should not be an issue with this kid!
Saturday, September 03, 2011
Irene.
We have been busy! A lot has happened since our last post, but I'm not going to pretend that I am actually going to catch up so I'll just start with the most recent. And then if I do catch up, we'll all be surprised!
Most recent was our run in with hurricane Irene. What a witch. In the week leading up to Irene, we experienced a decent sized earthquake one afternoon. I have been working on a project and thought I was just so nervous about it I was going to pass out... until I realized the plates were rattling too! Then came Irene. It wasn't a big storm by the time she really swung by, but you would have thought she upended the entire state. Over 300,000 people lost power for days. In our neighborhood it was SIX days. Six days with no tv, no internet, no hot water, no ice. You would think my house would be cleaner than it is. We were fortunate enough that one of our friends did not lose power, and graciously insisted that we stay with them. We already thought we loved the Dickensons, but after living with them for a week and waking up today a little sad, because we weren't going to be hanging out with them, I know we REALLY love them now!
One of the nights I decided enough was enough, and Henry and I needed to get out and give them some family time. Especially since Zack just got home from a 6 month deployment! We headed to the Westin for the night and had a great time swimming in the cold and 'hot' pools. Henry thought it was the best thing ever!! After that night we stayed at home one night in the dark, but ended back up at the Dickenson's for the last night. While it sucked to not have electricity for so long, we are so grateful that there was no damage done to our house, we were not hurt, and we have an amazing group of friends that kept us busy!
Most recent was our run in with hurricane Irene. What a witch. In the week leading up to Irene, we experienced a decent sized earthquake one afternoon. I have been working on a project and thought I was just so nervous about it I was going to pass out... until I realized the plates were rattling too! Then came Irene. It wasn't a big storm by the time she really swung by, but you would have thought she upended the entire state. Over 300,000 people lost power for days. In our neighborhood it was SIX days. Six days with no tv, no internet, no hot water, no ice. You would think my house would be cleaner than it is. We were fortunate enough that one of our friends did not lose power, and graciously insisted that we stay with them. We already thought we loved the Dickensons, but after living with them for a week and waking up today a little sad, because we weren't going to be hanging out with them, I know we REALLY love them now!
One of the nights I decided enough was enough, and Henry and I needed to get out and give them some family time. Especially since Zack just got home from a 6 month deployment! We headed to the Westin for the night and had a great time swimming in the cold and 'hot' pools. Henry thought it was the best thing ever!! After that night we stayed at home one night in the dark, but ended back up at the Dickenson's for the last night. While it sucked to not have electricity for so long, we are so grateful that there was no damage done to our house, we were not hurt, and we have an amazing group of friends that kept us busy!
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