Croupy Baby

My little buddy has his 1st virus! We've been so fortunate that he hasn't been sick before now, but he's really sick. I feel so bad for him! I finally stopped nursing about 3 wks ago and I think that's why! (well, I still nurse him before bed, but that doesn't count for much!) Yesterday, he started with a runny nose a slight cough, wouldn't nap well for my mom b/c he started coughing in the middle of his nap, didn't really take a bottle well either b/c he couldn't breathe! She said he otherwise ate and played well all day. He was really cranky by the time I got home from work last evening. His cough was just slightly raspy and he had snot everywhere! So, we fired up the humidifyer and I plugged in a Vicks night-light before bed. He tried to nurse, but he couldn't breathe and then got mad so I just held him for a few minutes and rocked him. He fell asleep in my arms, which he hasn't done since he was probably 3 or 4 months old! He slept for about an hr and half and woke up barking (or the tell-tale "croupy" cough for all you nurses). I was just on my way out the door to go to Karen's birthday party and that cough stopped me in my tracks. Part of me felt like I shouldn't go b/c he was sick - even though I know daddy can handle it. But we all know Mommy's just have the touch when we're sick. So, I took that as my sign that it wasn't meant for me to go and I spent the better part of my Friday night in a steamy bathroom with an exhausted baby....and Mommy! This morning, Ethan woke with a temp of 101.5, so after some Motrin, I called the ER where I work and talked with one of our Dr's who was kind enough to call-in a dose of Decadron (a one-time dose steroid), to help open up his airway. He's actually doing very well for being sick. Still turning on all of his music and dancing, laughing, eating well too. He's a trooper! Hopefully tonight is a better night with some steroids on board!

Happy Easter (a few days late!)

The Easter Bunny came to our house for "technically" Ethan's 2nd Easter, but he was only a few days old last year! He had fun digging in his Easter basket for the shiny eggs! Then we went to Boatwerks for they're FABULOUS Sunday Brunch with the Eade's! Derek and I didnt' eat all day so we could pig out....and we did!! Grandma Bonnie had a little Easter basket waiting for Ethan as well. It was filled with books and his favorite Gerber puffs! She also got him some spring jammies! Ethan did great too! Here's some pictures from Easter!

Busy Weekend!

Wow! What a busy weekend we had! Ethan's 1st birthday party went great! He had a ball, although he wasn't really into unwrapping his presents, he just wanted to play with them once they were out! I'm sure next year will be a different story! He got some really great summer clothes and a lot of fun toys. From Grandma Sue and Grandpa Rich he got a a Pooh and friends ride-along toy with lots of gadgets and songs, his very own gardening tools to help her this summer, and some fun summer clothes, from Grandma Bonnie and Grandpa Denny he got fun bubble machine, a farm toy that sings and makes animal sounds and all the animals are in a carral, and several cute summer outfits as well. From Aunt Sara and Uncle Brian he got a Leap Frog learning/play table that was a big hit! It does a lot of stuff and has many different songs and sounds to play, and he hold onto it when knealing or standing. Uncle Nate could only make it for a few minutes before he had to go to work, but at least he was there to see him on his big day! Karen (Aunt Kiki) and her sister Shelle came too. They were a big help in getting toys out of the boxes and ready to play. Karen sent a boque of balloons attatched to a super cute teddy bear on Ethan's actual birthday. He loved the ballons! Uncle Cliff and Aunt Susie sent a fun car game that Ethan likes to watch and a couple summer outfits too! We should be all set for summer....now we just need the weather to cooperate!

Ethan had fun "playing" in his cake after we opened presents. He didn't really eat any of it, just had fun squishing it b/t his fingers. I gave him a couple tastes of it, hoping he'd dig in, but he didn't...it was still a huge mess though! It was great! I had a Monkey cake made for him since he loves monkeys...especially the sounds they make (he probably just thinks it sounds hilarious when MOMMY makes the sounds!) and the bakery threw in a little monkey cake for him! It was probably one of the best cakes I've ever had! All my friends spent hours making they're kids cakes....but I know that I'm no Martha, so Ididn't even attempt this one, maybe next year!

Here's some pictures from the day!

Happy Birthday Ethan!

Ethan turned 1 today!! I can't believe how fast this year has gone! I've been working on his scrapbook and looking at all of his pictures just amazes me how much he's changed. Last night, he fell asleep while I was nursing him and I just stared at him for a while. I must admit, I did shed a few tears too. He looks like a little boy now, where did my baby go? I miss it, but I'm also looking forward to him walking, talking, becoming more independent, taking him on fun vacations and all that good stuff to come! I am so blessed to have such a happy, healthy baby...er toddler! We thank God every day for him. I remember one of the first things that I said after he was born was Happy Birthday! I also said that now I really understand why Birthdays are so special. Not only was Ethan born, but a new Mommy, Daddy, two sets of Grandparents, and 2 new Uncles and Aunts were born that day too!

Grandpa Len came over today to celebrate Ethan's birthday by himself b/c his wife won't let him come to the party on Saturday. After 14 years of marriage, she apparently has a problem with him being in the same room as my mom. We all know that's not the REAL reason though, she's just jealous and STILL hasn't gotten over the fact that my dad had a life before her. It's really sad how someone can hold onto things after so many years. Unfortunately, the only one she's hurting is my dad, but I'm sure she know that too.

Sorry, I just had to vent a little. Divorce just sucks!

Today

It still seems like yesterday, but a year ago tonight my contractions started. Little did I know that he wouldn't actually arrive for 2 more days!! This week has been busy with work and trying to get things ready for Ethan's Big Day! He has been so much fun! He's so busy that I can hardly keep up with him, and it's very obvious if you take a look at my house! Oh well, I'd rather play too! Today, I let him have a magazine that I was going to throw away and he had a ball tearing out the pages! Then he tried to put the pages back on the shelf (where the magazine was). It was so cute. He's also starting to stack things, and at Grandma Bonnie's (where the toys are endless and he NEVER gets bored!) she has a big bag of soft plastic balls and after he plays with them for a while he puts them back in the bag! The past few nights, when I comb his hair after his bath, he's been grabbing the comb from me and trying to comb his own hair! Now tonight during his bath, he took the washcloth and washed the side of his face and his ear. He amazes me every day, I can't believe how quickly he can change or learn something. Well, I have to work tomorrow so Daddy's bringing Ethan to Grandma Sue's for the day!

Shutterfly

Well, hopefully I was successful in sending out emails about my new blog and on how to view pictures that I've placed on Shutterfly. If you didn't get one, it's an honest mistake! Feel free to email me at: emergencyrn_mi@yahoo.com (that's an _ b/t rn and mi) and I'll send you the shutterfly link to view my albums...you can also order any prints that you would like from there! I know all the pictures on Shutterfly are old....it's all a work in progress!! I'm in the process of making an on-line scrapbook and haven't gotten very far in the uploading process yet! I just started that too! I'm slowly creaping out of my comfort zone, be patient with me! Well, ta ta for now!

What Ethan's Doing Now

Ethan is almost 12 months old. It almost pains me to say that - he can't be a year old already! Anyway, I have to get over it! He was a late crawler, so he's not walking or even taking steps yet. As busy as he is crawling, I am just fine with him not walking right now! He started doing the "Army crawl" around 10months and has now been up on his knees for about a month and boy is fast! He loves water!! I have to set up barriors to keep him out of the dog bowls and we must keep the toilet lids down too! He's always right next to me when I'm getting his bath ready and can't wait to get in. He's pulling himself up now but not really opening cupboards and drawers...yet. He also just LOVES music. All of his toys that play music, he turns on and then sits up and rocks back and forth with a huge grin on his face. I think it's the cutest thing I've ever seen! He's also starting to point and say "eh, eh" he usually only points at the lights right now though. He really enjoys eating too. His favorite foods are Gold Fish, Gerber Puffs, any fruit I put in front of him he double fists in his mouth, mac and cheese, Kraft Singles (this is another one he can't get in his mouth fast enough!), peas, Gerber meat sticks, spaghetti, bread, yogert, and jello. He also really enjoys sharing his food with Rocki and Daisi. He does this one for me, one for the dogs thing and throws his food down to them and then tries to lean over and watch them scramble for it! It's nice not having to worry about picking up everything he throws down though!

Well, we are planning his first birthday party on 3/22/08. I went back and forth on how big to make this party and I decided to go with just immediate family for cake and ice cream. He's not going to understand what's happening and I don't want to overwhelm him either. I'm sure every other birthday will make up for this being pretty low key anyway!! I'll be sure to post the pictures for everyone to enjoy though!

Welcome!

Well, I'm hopping on the "blogging" band-wagen! Since I'm so terrible at sending out pictures of Ethan, maybe this will be even better! A bunch of my friends are "bloggers" and I really enjoy reading them. Hopefully, I won't dissappoint! First off, I have to thank Denise for getting me started (I'm a little computer clumsy and she got me all set up).

I'm actually at work right now and it's almost 3am! There were a bunch of night-shift holes so Denise called to see if I wanted to work tonight instead of tomorrow, well today, and I said sure! However, I wasn't prepared to stay up all night....no nap!! So far so good though, I'm sure I'll crash when I get home though! Sorry for the incredibly boring first post, but I can't think of anything else to say and I just wanted SOMETHING on my page!!