Miss Elizabeth recently had her 15 month checkup. She is finally 20 pounds (11%), has grown to a whopping 31.25 inches (76%) and has our family’s large noggin at 47.5 cm (89%). She also has inherited our family allergies. Miss E has been sporting a runny nose and puffy eyes off and on as the plants have been blooming. The doctor confirmed it was allergies and we will start on Zyrtec now. Everything else checked out great. She is a healthy, adventurous little girl!

Ellie will be moving to a new classroom later this week. She is transitioning to one nap a day for this new room and has done pretty well. Late mornings can be hard, but a long afternoon nap is a pleasant change of pace for Mom and Dad. There are even days when Ben naps about the same time. Ellie loves her friends at school and loves letting the teachers know what she would like to do. She is enjoying playground time now and loves exploring her new room. During her visits to the new room, Ellie has already peeled off some decorative vinyl clings on the wall and made herself at home!

Ben has done amazingly well since his tonsillectomy. His sleep has improved drastically and he is the quietest sleeper in the house now! It is amazing to see the difference in his energy level and emotional state. Now, he does still have his moments – he is three! But he faces change and daily activities with far more confidence, excitement and zest for life. It is amazing what good sleep can do for a body.

Ben is enjoying the warmer weather and has been learning lots at school about plants, bugs, animals, recycling and much more. He got to raise 5 caterpillars in his classroom and then got to release them on the playground after they changed into butterflies. He planted flowers this week and is eager to see what is going to sprout. He enjoys the varied experiences he gets at his school, at home and with his grandparents. He seems to be on an adventure of some sorts most of the time even if it is just hunting for a lost car in the jungle of toys. :)

Ben is a Champion!

Recently, the pediatrician diagnosed Ben with “giant” tonsils. A visit to the ENT confirmed this diagnosis and a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy were quickly scheduled. When your tonsils are “giant” causing you sleep issues due to airway restrictions and possible eating issues due to gagging, they are pretty swift to recommend surgery as soon as it can be scheduled.

Mom and Dad decided not to let on to Ben what would go on at this upcoming “doctor’s appointment”. Ben is a worrier and there was no need to fret over this for weeks. (That is Mom’s job. Ha ha!) The morning of the appointment Ben was excited to visit the ENT again. He thought the doctor was pretty cool and couldn’t believe that the doctor had requested that Ben wear his pajamas and bring a stuffed animal. This must be a great appointment if it is like a slumber party! Ben’s grandpa noted that it was like a dog visiting the vet for the first time. Poor kid had no idea what was coming.

Ben was very brave and took his medicine to relax him so the doctor could “check him out”. He then became pretty loopy and laughed and laughed that Mom said something about his forehead. He decided that it should be a two head instead of a four head and giggled for a long time. Surgery went really well and Mom and Dad were able to come back to recovery as soon as Ben started to stir. He woke up pretty easily and didn’t have fits or crying that can be common when coming off of anesthesia. He complained that he was sleepy and then told the nurse that her apple juice did not taste good. She sweetly brought him a water and a popsicle instead and Ben was determined to hold both himself. When he had a minute to look around, Ben complained that someone took his TV and wanted to know who did it. The pre-op room had a TV on the wall playing cartoons and the recovery room did not. What a blessing that this was his chief complaint. Ben was also nauseous, but a dose of Phenergan alleviated that and he avoided getting sick.

Three year olds are real troopers and it is such a blessing from God that everything went so smoothly. By lunchtime (the day of the surgery) Ben was “starving” and ate a banana and yogurt and a plate of pancakes with syrup. After his regular afternoon nap, Ben was asking to play with trains upstairs or go outside. He even wanted to know if it was time to go back to school or if we would stay home the rest of the day. He is off of school for a week and the biggest challenge is going to be keeping him “inactive” during this time when it is 80 degrees outside and he has more energy than I have seen in a while. He must be getting some good sleep without those tonsils in the way!

Thanks for listening to the story of Ben the Champion. He is a tough little boy and has been so sweet through what could have been a yucky week. Thanks to all that have been praying for us during this time and praise be to God for answered prayers and abundant blessings!

E's Eleven

1. E is obsessed with stirring pretend cups of tea and pretend bowls of cereal. She loves to then pretend taste them and make a smacking noise.
2. We learned the hard way last month that she is allergic to penicillin. Hive city!
3. Fave words right now are dog, duck, clock and bye-bye
4. Elizabeth is trying everything we eat at dinner and does not want to be left out. We make Ben hide his fruit snacks and other choking hazards or she gets very mad.
5. Favorite school pastime – carrying the pretty pink purse and taking dress up clothes to the teachers to change into
6. E continues to climb and can easily get on the fireplace now and tries to stack things in order to get onto couches and tables.
7. E loves to dance and has started to enjoy the songs that come on with some of Ben’s shows. Our family fave is the “Hot Dog Dance” on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.
8. E is quickly becoming the best sleeper in the house rarely getting up in the night and even “sleeping in” on some mornings.
9. Per Ben’s #9, E will not remember life without Chuck E. Cheese. L
10. We’ve taken E’s Soothie (a brand of pacifier) away from her, but wimped out and just replaced it with a more ortho-friendly brand of pacifier. She only takes it for sleeping, so we are lightyears ahead of where Ben was at this age. Ha ha!
11. Elizabeth loves her baby dolls. If she isn’t stirring a cup of tea, she is feeding or patting a baby. She has this amazing radar and can seek them out wherever we go within minutes!