"Its My Mustache, Daddy!"

I remember the days of a little boy with big sensory issues.  A tiny drop of paint on his fingers could trigger a meltdown.  Playing with whipped cream or handprint art projects at daycare brought tears before any sort of "play" even started.  Expect him to eat mashed potatoes?  Heck no.  Not a chance. Especially not with his fingers.

Fast forward to the here and now.  

Paint everywhere.

A hilarious mustache.

Smiles for days.

A little boy embracing life's most awesome messes. 

Happy Birthday, Maxwell!

One year ago today...I woke up tired from a restless night of sleep, anxious about the thought of c-section number 3, nervous as all get out about how our lives were going to change in a matter of a few short hours, excited to meet our little boy.  

One year ago today...we kissed our "baby" Harrison on the head and sent him off to school knowing that the next time we saw him he would seem like a giant in comparison to the tiny bundle in our arms.

One year ago today...I checked into the hospital, Matt by my side, and had a crazy feeling of routine.  Three kiddos in 3.5 years...I felt like somewhat of a pro.  

One year ago today...I was reminded that it doesn't matter if its your first baby or your third, seeing your child for the very first time is an experience that will absolutely take your breath away.

I can hardly believe that it's been a year since that "take your breath away" moment.  

It has been an adventure beyond my wildest imagination and my heart continues to overflow with love.    

Happy 1st birthday, sweet Maxo!  

Tubes for the Win

Two weeks ago Mr. Max had his first ever trip to see an ENT. He'd been struggling with a stubborn ear infection since before Thanksgiving, and after 2 courses of oral antibiotics and 2 Rocephin injections we decided it was time to take the next step. Our new friend Dr. Edmunds confirmed with relative ease what we already suspected...fluid in his left ear, lots of fluid in his right.  They didn't appear infected at the time, but his snotty nose and watery eyes told us that it was just a matter of time.  

The following week, just 5 days after our initial ENT visit, we were able to get our sweet boy on the surgery schedule at Children's for bilateral ear tubes.  We woke up early, and with a little help from the best friend ever and Grandma Debbie, got one boy to the hospital and one to daycare without a hitch. (Thanks ladies!)  

We checked in at the hospital at 7:30 and then camped out in the CARES unit for about and hour and a half before it was go time.  Maxo did amazing with the wait.  Despite being tired, hungry and a little suspicious of his surroundings, he was a very happy boy.  We snuggled, sang songs, had a visit from our good friend Natalie, and before we knew it it was 8:50 and time for surgery.

A short ten minutes after they carried him back for the procedure, Dr. Edmunds was back in the room to tell me that Max was in recovery (just a little different than the times we checked into Children's for open heart surgery!)  Max did great. Dr. Edmunds told me that his ears were pretty angry looking when they got in there, and she was surprised at how content he seemed despite it all. Typical Maxo...feeling crappy but keeping his cool.  They were able to clear out all of the yucky goop and successfully placed a tiny tube in each of his tiny ears.  We snuggled some more, downed some apple juice, and were on our way home before 10:00.  

One week has passed and I'm THRILLED to report that our sweet Maxo is doing amazing.  The impact on his hearing was apparent almost immediately.  Our quiet little boy with the plugged up ears is suddenly full of babbles, giggles and squeals. And while he's always been content...even when he felt like crud...his HAPPY, GOOFY personality is finally able to shine. 

Congratulations Maxo!  Here's to happy and healthy ears in 2015!

My Boys 2014

If you scroll through my iPhoto albums, you will see that most of them are dedicated to our kiddos.  Each child has 5 guaranteed albums - Hospital pictures, 0-3 months, 3-6 months, 6-9 months and 9-12 months.  Each album is jam packed with digital images, most which I've never gotten around to printing, that document the growth of 3 perfect little beings.  Charlotte's albums stop 2 weeks into 12-18 months.  Harrison's are now divided by years, and Max...well...he fell victim to the 3rd child phenomenon and has about 1/2 the photos as his big siblings.

Despite having albums for 3 kiddos, it wasn't until sweet Maxo came along that I had to come up with a way to organize images that contained 2 children.  Individual albums for individual kiddos wasn't going to cut it any more since many of our day-to-day photos contained both of our little guys.   Shortly after Max was born I created My Boys 2014 (clever title, huh?), an album that is filled to the brim with memories of our boys together.  There are sweet moments (big brother loving on little brother), feisty moments (big brother shoving his feet in little brother's face), and quiet moments capturing to boys playing contently side by side.  My Boys 2014 represents a new chapter in our lives...a chapter that displays a full house, full arms, and most importantly, full hearts.

This week I sat down to clear out the remaining pictures from my camera and sorted the last images of 2014 into their appropriate albums.  My Boys 2014 saw its last additions and My Boys 2015 waits patiently for its first memories.  

Thank you 2014 for so many amazing memories.  You brought with you new life, new priorities and new respect for all of those mamas and daddies out there with multiple kiddos!  It wasn't always easy, but I wouldn't trade our 2014 for anything.  

 

 Wishing you all a very happy New Year!

Snickerdoodle Love

Some of my favorite Christmas traditions are the ones that involve cookies.  I grew up in a home where frosted sugar cookies were a holiday staple.  Mom took care of all of the baking, and the rest of us sprung into action when it was time to decorate.  Last year we carried on this cookie tradition in our own home, but I'll admit, with another little (and very active/curious) boy in the house, it seemed quite daunting in 2014.  Lucky me...the boys have a dad who has some cookie memories of his own!  I've heard Matt mention on many occasions that he remembers making snickerdoodles with his dad around Christmas.  One afternoon me decided to do the same with Harrison and the two set to work!  

Harrison has recently discovered a love for helping in the kitchen.  Combine that with the fact that he got to work right along side his daddy and the boy was in heaven! 

 The whole process was quite amusing to watch.  Matt would portion out the cookie dough and roll it into the ball.  Then it was Harrison's job to roll the dough in a cinnamon sugar mixture and put them onto the pan.  

In the end the balls were covered with divots left behind by little fingers and were even more misshapen from the "SPLAT" they took onto the cookie sheet.

Maxo approved.

Yummy cookies made by adorable babies and a handsome daddy?  

Now that's a tradition I could get used to!