Three clean Mini Coopers after their baths.
I am so way behind on this blog. I apologize. My life is just a wee bit crazy right now, but in a good way. Just keeping up with the house and the family is taking all of my time. I haven't even been on facebook in days. Yes, I've been that busy. So let's start where I left off last time....
Okay, so Silas is still off of the oxygen. He has been doing totally awesome. He weighed 8 pounds, 1 ounce last week when he saw the pulmonologist in St. Louis. That doctor released him and he doesn't have to back. Woo hoo! He is four months old today. He has slept through the night twice now. The rest of the time he wakes up once through the night. That makes me very happy. He saw a physical therapist last week from Child and Family Connections. He was qualified for services for them automatically because he had a birth weight of less than 1000 grams. The therapist could not find one single thing to work with him on though. That is unusual for a 25 weeker to not have some weakness or need a little help. I really wasn't surprised though because that kid is strong. He is all muscle. A few days later a developmental therapist came by to decide if he needed any help on getting him caught up developmentally. She said that she has been doing that job for 14 years and she had never met a 25 weeker that did not qualify for her services or need some sort of therapy... until she met Silas. He needs nothing! That is the power of prayer, baby! He acts exactly like he should for his adjusted age (about a month now). He really showed off for the lady too. He was wide awake and did all of the following (a few of these I didn't even know he could do): he tracked a toy with his eyes, he reached for a toy, he said gaa gaa, he smiled at her, he rolled over with her help, he held his head up and looked all around, and when she put him on his belly he raised up so high I thought he was going to start scooting across the floor. Ahh-mazing. The therapists are going to check back quarterly to re-evaluate but for now, he is good to go.
One of our ministers, Ben VanHyning, stopped by
last week to meet Silas.
Grandma Debby and Silas
Last week Maleah went with me when I took Silas to St. Louis. We left Carissa home with Grandma. Daddy had to work so it was just me, Maleah, and Silas. We had a great day! We went to his appointment at the hospital and then went and visited with Dr. Chao and our nurse Jen at the Nicu. They were really happy to see how well Silas was doing. After that, we had lunch at The Cheesecake Factory, shopped at the Galleria, and took a coat back to REI that Maleah had gotten for her birthday. She took that money and went to Target and bought herself a brand spankin new scooter. She was a very happy camper. Silas was awesome the whole day and was a good shopper and a good lil car rider.
Maleah was a little sick when we arrived at The Cheesecake Factory and nothing sounded good to her. She was past the point of being hungry and her blood sugar was low. I hurried up and ordered her a hot fudge sundae (they have the best ones in the world there) and a meal. She ate the sundae first and started to perk up. Then she ate about 7 slices of bread and butter, a sliced banana, and then made room for some chicken fingers. By the time we walked out of there she had her second wind and was ready to shop.
Silas at The Cheesecake Factory. He slept through the
entire meal!
Maleah and Silas in front of the big fountain
in the Galleria Mall in St. Louis.
Maleah really wanted to stop and walk on this bridge
over the river in Carlyle, Illinois when we were
headed back from St. Louis. It was beautiful!
Silas on the bridge.
Let's back up a little and talk about the girls' birthdays. Maleah's was March 22nd (Silas' due date) and Carissa's was March 26th. Silas was my only baby due in March and the only one that wasn't born in March. Remember that in case there is a test later. The girls had their birthday party at Skateland Rollersport in Fairfield for the third year in a row. It was lots of fun. They had a Minnie Mouse theme because they are both very excited about our upcoming Disney vacation. They loved seeing their friends and family and they got some pretty cool gifts.
The girls before the party.
Carissa eating the layer of birthday cake that
got smushed in the car on the way to the party. It
turned into her own personal layer!
Me and Carissa Faith
Carissa blowing out her birthday candles.
Maleah, talking like usual, at her birthday party.
Maleah had asked if we could eat at Peking Palace for her birthday. It is our favorite Chinese restaurant and it is in Harrisburg. We met our good friends, Jessi and Mike Hall and Becky Stafford there. My Mom went with us. It was a fun evening and good food. Carissa asked to go to Lonestar for her birthday dinner because she likes their baked potatoes. However, after she opened all of her gifts that day and got a brand new big girl bike, she no longer wanted to go. She wanted to stay home and play. We grilled out instead and she got to play outside with her sister and our neighbors Peyton and Sheldon Rose. It was so beautiful and so warm outside for both of the girls' birthdays. The highs were in the 80s. It snowed last year on Carissa's birthday so this was a big difference. We loved it!
Jessi, Becky, and Silas
Maleah at her birthday dinner at Peking Palace,
with Grandma Debby and Becky.
Jessi holding Silas
Carissa riding her new bike!!
Carissa eating the slice of Coconut Creme Pie from
Julian's that Grandma Debby brought her on her birthday.
Carissa after playing in the yard all evening on her birthday.
She was filthy!!!
March was fun but so is April. We had Easter Sunday dinner at my Uncle Tim and Aunt RaeAnn's house. It was such a good time. The food was the best ever, especially the turkey. The kids' Easter Egg Hunt was great. Carissa won $10 and two lottery tickets and a whole bunch of candy and prizes. Maleah won $115.00 total plus a whole bag of prizes and candy. She has decided to buy an American Girl doll with her big winnings. She found one egg that had $50 in it! She is a lucky girl for sure! After the kids had their egg hunt, we had a first annual Adult Easter Egg Hunt. It was fun. I was out of breath, I tell ya. Some of my cousins are way faster than me. I won $5 and two lottery tickets. I wasn't the big winner (like my Aunt Angie!) but that's okay. I still had a great time! Love my family. Silas got to meet and hang out with someone his own size. My cousin Bryan Oestreich and his fiance Jamie Wilson had their newborn daughter, Kendyll Rose there. She was born on March 14 and is the same size as Silas. They looked so cute together!!! She is beautiful and has the most adorable spiky brown hair ever.
Silas and Kendyll
Me, laughing, and holding Silas and Kendyll
The Mini Cooper girls getting ready to hunt for eggs
Carissa hunting eggs
Maleah on her egg hunt
In other news, our family has grown again. No, I am not pregnant. Please do not even joke about that. Our babysitter/family friend Calli Chadwick has moved in with us. She is seventeen and is graduating high school in a few weeks. She is a very sweet girl and we love her. She really wants to become an au pair overseas in the fall, so if any of my blog readers have experience with this or know anyone who has done this, please contact me. We have transformed my sewing room into a bedroom for her. Unfortunately for her, there is still some sewing stuff in there but at least it is a very big room. She still has room for her stuff. It's a good thing we have a big house but it is busting at the seams right now. I am gearing up for a big rummage sale on May 4th. Remember that and come and buy all of my stuff. I have a lot of girls clothes!!
Calli and Silas
Okay, whew! I think I am all caught up again! Things are starting to slow down a bit around here so hopefully I can start updating my blog on a regular basis again. We can all hope, right?
