silly boy...kibbles is for Buddy!

Today was a LONG day as i was running around a lot and havent stopped until just a bit ago. the day has gone by fast. All in all it was a good day. had to run to the drs to get my PPD shot read AGAIN, went and made a foolowup apt for Owen to make sure his pnemonia is clearing...dont think its all gone yet despite constant meds. :( and had to deal with a sick daycare child and vinny. ;)) i tell you never a dull moment. I love my life. some may say im crazy and at times i feel crazy but i still wouldnt change it. Anyways, after Whittnee left (thanks Hooker) Owen wandered in the kitchen. I heard Buddy (our dog) munching away so i thought id go check on Owen since he has this fascination with Buddy's food. Sure enough he was sitting up next to Buddy nibbling away on some kibbles and bits. All i said was "Ooooween" and he looked at me then turned really fast onto all 4's and went to jet off so that i coudnt catch him and take the kibbles out of his mouth and he went straight into the water bowl. You shouldve seen the look on his face! It was SOO friggin funny! Moments like that are EXACTLY why i wouldnt trade my life for anything! My boys can always brighten my day even if one of them is making it harder than it has to be). Just had ot share as i thought it was TOO cute that he really thought he'd out crawl me.LOL.welp, he is off in the kitchen again.LOL.

A wonderful day!!!

Today was AWESOME!!! It was completly relaxing and uneventful!! BORING...just the way i like my days when Sean is gone. ;) We started out with baths as they stunk like boys!lol. And of course it turned into a 30 min process as they both LOVE the bath and never want to get out (not that Owen has a choice since i just pick him up...poor guy!) and then we waited for a friend to come over from Mt Vernon with her son so we could go to the Bounce House and let them bounce their heads off. We decided it would be wise to eat first so we stopped at Taco Bell and all 3 boys were amazingly good. Off to bounce.....they bounced for almost 3 hrs non stop. I was tired from just watching them.lol. my friend, Becca, bounced too as i had to watch Owen. They truly bounced the day away. Vinny and Owen missed naps cuz of this but it was ok as we were going to head off with some more friends to a new restauraunt in town (red Sky Steakhouse and Martini Lounge) so we figured theyd be soo tired they would have ot be good at dinner and not want to get up and run around. Well, this rang true for Vinny but unfortunatly not for my friends son. The food was good, service was SLOW and they werent even busy (only 2 other tbales had a few people at them). Oh and guess what the boys got their applejuice served in.......those tall shot glasses. yes, i said shot glasses. i couldnt believe my eyes. so theres two yr olds tossing back apple juice.LOL. i wish i had my camera on me. i took a pic of my friends kid tossing it back with my phone but dont know how to get it on here. And my friend ordered a non alcoholic beverage and it came with liquor in it (maybe we sholdve tasted the applejuice to be safe as they kids were downing them.LOL). I sure hope they were JUST applejuice...they should really invest in plastic cups with lids for kids. ;))
Vinny and Owen were soo good today! it was GREAT! Vinny listened at home, lunch, bounce house, dinner and at home again. Both boys have been passe dout since 730PM....WOW....It has been SOOO nice! What a wonderful day!!!

1st time self feeding a real meal feb 6th 2009

So tonight i decided to let Owen self feed himself dinner. usually the only thing i let him do is the yogurt melts/gerber puffs or the fruit slices from the jars that gerber makes. I knwo i should let him do it more often but since i have the daycare i do not have time to clean up a huge mess and one of the other kids would be bound to walk through the mess he was sure to make.....well he did not get even one noodle on the floor! Yes, i picked spaghetti with meatballs and sauce to start with. i know im crazy! Surprisingly he did well and didnt make a huge mess. he had it all over his hands as the spoon was not working for him (still doesnt have that down) and all over his tray but that was it. i was soo glad i didnt have to spend 15 mins cleaning the floor up. ;))
He's turning into such a big boy! Cant belive he will be ONE in a lil over a month!!!

feb 6th-Day and Night

So today i was wokin up by vinny at 930 (i NEEDED that extra sleep). He always says "wake up mommy! Get up!" But today he added "i be good. i listen today!" and he kept asking for stuff and he would say "i asked mommy. i say please mommy!" so i was astonished as he was a major turd yesterday (if you read yesterdays post youd know why i say this). He truly is a GOOD kid, but since Sean has been away he has had NO problems with testing me and pushing my buttons on a daily basis. But then again he is 3 and thats what 3 year olds, especially boys, do!
We did have to all go to the hospital so i could redo my PPD shot AGAIN and i knew it was not going ot be a fun wait in immunization. i was praying whne i got there it would be empty in there but i walked around the corner and into the room and it was packed. only one chair left! AAAHHH!!! This was NOT good! So Vinny did ok for a while but once his donught and chocolate milk were gone that was it. he was off out of the room and opeining the door ofr others, which soon turned into him going on the other side of the door and then down the hallway. Finally a cheif said something to me about keeping him with me and in my sight. So, i HAD to strap him in and thats when the screaming began! He just screamed and screamed. 2 1/2 hrs waiting for a 2 second shot is WAY too long for a 10 1/2 mth old with pnemonia and a 3 yr old who doesnt know how to sit still. I FINALLY go thim to calm down for hte last 20 mins or so and he was fine. Both passed out in the car as it was way past their nap time. Of course as soon as we got home Vinny did not want to nap...but owen did and i wanted too (no such luck though). But since we have been home things have been going smoothly...YEAH!!! I got some cleaning done and have a friend coming over to watch the boys so i can go to the store and get more cleaning done. im exhausted but all in all it was a good day! I hope everyone else had a good one too!

Feb 5th-I cant even pee (LOL)

February 5, 2009 - Thursday
I cant even pee..... Current mood:tired, overworked, aggravated and ready to take a
I cant even pee without coming out to some sort of mess or Owen choking on something or eating dog food. ;) Today was such a LONG day! As most of you know Owen got diagnosed with Pnemonia AGAIN (had it in Oct last and it was RSV related). We spent 6 hrs in Urgent Care (UC) on monday for what i thought was just trouble with teething but i wanted to make sure as little things with him ALWAYS turn into BIG things. UGH! So needless to say i was SHOCKED when the xrays came back showing he has pnemonia....THAT was the last thing i was expecting to hear. Luckily it is not as bad as it was in Oct (which i didnt expect it to be since in Oct he also had double pink eye and bronchiolitis at the SAME time). I am glad i errored on the side of caution...with Owen i just have too. so needless to say he is not a happy baby right now and has 2 teeth coming in. aahhh (for me)!LOL.On top of all this Vinny decided to be a turd today and not let me get him dressed this morning as we were in a hurry for my drs apointment then Owens Synagis (RSV) shots right after. He continued to run away and then took clothes off every time i turned around to do something, then didnt want to get in the car. I dropped him off at a friends as there was NO WAY i was taking him and i of course missed my apt by 20 mins (UGH!) so i just went to get Owens shots then would go to my drs nurse and reschedule and get my PPD read for my recertification process for daycare. Owens shots went well.....well, he screamed but didnt turn blue this time so thats a plus. he weighs 22 lbs 5 oz so he has gained a lil over a lb in a months time. I beleive his shots were the only thing that went smoothly today!After his shots i went to the nurse and he said i had to reschedule but to go to records and have them bring my records to immunization so i walked across the hospital with Owen only to find out my Dr had my records as i was supposed to see him this morning. went back to the nurse and waited then told him he already had them. he had to fetch them and i went to immunizations and waited for my turn. When it was my turn i said i had a PPD on friday and need to have it read still. he said i have to redo it as its been too long and shouldve had it read on monday (sorry my son had pnemonia so i was a bit busy) so i said OK and was ready to get another titer and he continues to say we do the PPD on every day BUT thursday....and what is today...THURSDAY!!! Are you kidding me?! so i have to go back tomorow. went to my nurse and told him and he said to do it tomorow and then come find him to reschedule. ugh! ooh the fun didnt stop there.I went to get vinny and then had to go to the NEX. buckeld him in after fighting to get him to leave Heathers. get down to the NEX, check my pockets and realized my ID fell out of my pocket either at safeway or Heathers. put vinny back into his carseat as i had just gotten him out then checked my pockets and went to heathers where i found my ID in her flower garden. grabbed it and went back to the NEX AGAIN. Vinny wanted to walk so i told him he could AS LONG AS he listened and stayed with me....he ran off! So once i FINALLY caught him i put him in the shopping cart where he threw a fit saying "i dont want shopping cart! no shopping cart! I want to walk!" I told him to sit down and be quiet. he stayed standing up and kept trying to put his leg over the cart. i told him he needed to be SAFE (hes on a safe kick right now) and sit down or he would fall out and get an owie! Lo and behold 2 mins later while im looking at espresso machines he falls out of the flippin cart! OMG!!! Course the floor is tile so i turn expecting the worst and a worker ran over as she saw him do it to make sure he was OK. He some how did a flip and luckily landed on his butt but bent his finger which appears to be OK. He cried for all of 5 secs then started laughing and later told daddy over the phone "i fell out of shopping cart. i hurt my butt and finger. i wasnt listening. i no safe!" so at least he knows what he did. you think it ends there?.....NEGATIVE!!! Oh yes, there is more.....we get home and i go to make lunch for vinny and owen and i was going to eat after they laid down for a nap but i was thirsty so i grabbed a cran-energy drink and took the lid off. before i could get a sip vinny asked for a drink so i said OK (even though he had OJ) . i asked for it back and he turned it upside down and dropped every oz all over the kitchen floor. I spanked his butt, made him clean some of it up, threw his lunch away and sent him to bed where he fell RIGHT asleep. OMG, apparently i did NOT want to eat!! Luckily i got a lil break (all of 45 mins he slept for...usually its 2 hrs so i was disapointed, but owen slept for 4 hrs). So dinner time approaches and im making hamburger helper and vinny has to pee and for some reason he decided to pee on his hand while sitting on the toilet. i told him it was ucky and he needs to wash his hands real good. I turned on the water and went to check on the meat, strain and add noodles, etc and then i go check on him as he is STILL in the bathroom....i open the door and what do my eyes see, but an overflowing sink of bubbles, bubbles on the wall, floor, toilet, his hair...ya....cuz i didnt have enough to do already! i spanked his butt again and told him he was going to bed after dinner (needless to say he ate all his food which he doesnt usually do in an effort to not go to bed). I put him in his room which he was fine with UNTIL i put the baby gate up then he threw a fit! he screamed and screamed (probably for about an hr and a half) then he started screaming "MOMMY I POOP! MOMMY?!!! I POOP!!! I STINK MOMMY! MOMMY COME HERE, I POOP!!! I STINK MOMMY, HELP! I NEED OUT!!! MOMMY?! STINKY!!!" So finally i went to get him. he hasnt pooped his pants in like 4 wks (probably longer), but in his defense he did yell he had to go but i didnt care as i needed a second away form him before i strangled him (LOL). oh and meanwhile i was feeding owen his dinner and he dropped his sippy and the lid fell off and formula went everywhere...WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG?! I probably shouldnt ask that cuz if it is going ot happen it is going to happen to me TODAY! OH WAIT! and to top it off housing left a note on our door tonight saying we have 10 days to comply with picking up our backyrad. 1st off i jsut cleaned it a few days ago as it WAS disgusting. so the only things back tehre are kids toys which are lined up against the fence and a patio set ON THE PATIO. so what is unsitely about that? i am soo pissed about it. I knwo there was A LOT of dog crap in the yard before sat but i cleaned it all on saturday so there is only poop from today whcih i cleaned up tonight as i cant leave the kids wandering the house alone (clearly...just look at what they manage to do while im IN the house!) Sorry my dog poops and im not out there AS SOON AS he poops to clean it. but theres maybe 3 turds in the yard. would they rather i bring him to the park and let him crap like others do? geeze! it gets picked up!!! soo aggravated by them so i WILL be making a phone call to them. its probably good they were closed when i got it cuz i called and was ready to cuss them out. now i can be a bit calmer and not get us kicked out of housing due to my attitude! ;)So ya, that was all in ONE day! Welcome ot my life right now!!! Hey, it can only go up from here, right?!LOL....

Jan 31st-Boys will be boys!

Boys will be Boys!!! Current mood:loving my two boys!!!
Last night Vinny refused ot wear pants or underware and so he went in the kitchen and i was ont he couch talking on the phone with sean. Vinny walks in the front room and is walking funny and has this BIG grin across his face and he walks all the way over here and says "Here Mommy! I DID IT!" I was confused until he turned around and had my debit card hanging out between his naked butt cheeks!!! He just keot saying "I did it mommy! I did it!" He was soo proud. Sean and i were bsuting up laughing and of course i had to sterlize my card!LMAO!!!Earlier he had also gone intot he clean laundry basket and grabbed my bra and put it on and said "LOOK, MOM! I put it on!!" BOYS WILL BE BOYS!!!

high calf jumpstart ankle foot orthoses

January 19, 2009 - Monday
high calf jumpstart ankle-foot orthoses Current mood:curious how owen will do
Tomorow we go and get Owen fitted for high calf jump start ankle foot orthoses for both feet/legs. His PT said they havent used them on anyone as small as him (our PT place that is) but they can only do good. So i am hoping it helps correct his feet as they are starting to correct some on their own and after mths of PT and stretches throughout the day. In case you dont know his feet turn inwards and dont sit on the bottoms when standing but on his sides so basically his feet bottoms are always facing eachother instead of downwards. he also has tibial contorsion (curved tibia bone) so we are hoping it will help correct that as well! heres to praying......wish us luck.....and wish me luck as Sean just left for a mth and a half and so i will be stuck with a very unhappy 20 mth old how wont want to wear his braces. ;)i dont htink we will ge tthe braces tomorow but will get fitted...ithink. ill update you all afterwards! *****UPDATE*****so we went and got fitted to make sure they sized them right (needless to say they did NOT). We got ot take them home anyways to let him use them but the orthotic dr wasnt sur ehe liked the way they fit. so we have to ask Owens PT if she likes them and if not then we will get custom one so we will have to go back AGAIN to pick those up. all these trips....it was supposed to be a 2 time deal and now it’ll be more. oh well, itll be worth it. he threw a fit while i was putting them on...took me 15 mins to get him to sit still and to put them on right. then 2 mins later he got one off.LOL. I couldnt go and decorate these as we are getting different ones and have to return these so i bought some ubber cute leggings. so he had the leggings, 2 braces, padding and then the slipper shoe on...THATS why it took me 15 mins.LOL. Anyways, i thought he’d throw a fit when he tried to crawl and he didnt. so then i though "OK. wait until he tries to stand and cant since he cant roll his ankles int he braces" so he crawled over to the entertainment center, put his foot down flat and stood up! It wa slike he could read my thoughts and wanted to prove me wrong. he never ceases to amaze me! I posted pics in their own album.1/30/09:2nd day of wearing them and he keeps getting one of them off. GGRR!!!LOL.

Jan 16th-Owens Party/getting excited!

January 16, 2009 - Friday
Owen's party! Current mood:excited!
i am getting excited about his party...cant beleive he is almost one! WOW!!!! i ordered his custom invites today (113$ later...ssshhh.....DONT tell Sean. He asked how much and i told him its better he doesnt know.lol). and they are WAY cute! Looking through the pictures to find the perfect ones for the invites i was reminded of his first days and jsut how far he has come!...i cant believe how far he has come, not only size wise but all the hurdles he has overcome! He truly is our lil miracle!!!Hope you all can make it! Oh and i NEED addresses for the invites!!! They should be here in about 2 weeks!

Jan 16th-about to get busy

January 16, 2009 - Friday
so it begins in 3 days Current mood:overwhelmed
Sean leaves on Monday (3 days form today) for a mth and half. I havent minded him leaving as i get laong jsut fine even with the boys (although some days i want ot pull my hair out i am independent so i dont mind) but this time my schedule is going ot be crazy busy.On top of my daycare which i have all day and some nights and some overnights i obviously have Vinny and Owen to take care of. We jsut enrolled Vinny in Soccer (my parents paid for it as it was a bday gift) and he starts that next sat and it is EVERY sat. Sean will miss all but the last one March 14th. :( He also has speech on EVERY monday where i will have to bring him too. Owen has Physical Therapy EVERY wed (Thank goodness they come here) AND he is being fitted on Tuesday for braces that will go from his toes to below his knees ot help try and correct his tibial contorsion and his feet being turned on their sides and inwards. So he will be a very fussy baby due to having to wear them all the time. oh this is going to be fun.lol. Vinny has a dental appointment ont eh 26th which i was hoping sean would take him as you have ot put him in a headlock for the dentist to put tools in his mouth but i have ot go WITH owen too and we have WIC appointments and Drs appointments and ya......I think i may pull my hair out now just thinking of it all. aaahhh!!! ;)) So if anyone is up for playdates WHEN and IF i ever become free id love it as im sure i will want ot relax and get out of the house! Oh and i started Weight Watchers again today. I fell off track in Aug and jsut go tlazy but havent gained any weight since then so i am going to try to stick with it as it DOES work and i want to try and lose quite a bit while Sean is gone. Wish me luck on this too!well, i should go but i wanted ot let you know that i will be busy so please dont take offense if i dont get to contact you for a while. BUT please feel free to contact me as im sure id love the break!

Jan 7th-Soccer!!!

January 7, 2009 - Wednesday
SOCCER!!!! Current mood:excited for vinnys 1st sport
Yup, Vinny is going to be starting his 1st sport on Jan 24th! It is something i wanted to put him in naturally since i played for soo long and so did Sean. My parents and brother and sister paid for it for a bday gift so we have him, paid, registered and so all we have to do is buy shin guards and shoes. im excited as i know he will have a BLAST!!! His Uncle John also got him a soccer ball for xmas! He's all excited!
i will of course be taking pics when he starts! He is playing with 3.5-5 yr olds! My baby is growing up soo fast! :(

Jan 7th-All caught up

January 7, 2009 - Wednesday
all caught up Current mood:proud proud PROUD!!!!
So Owen saw his physical therapist today for the 1st itme in 2/3 wks. She comes to our home once a week except has been closed for the holidays. When she last saw Owen he was barely army crawling (he wouldnt do it if you watched) and still wasnt very stable while sitting.
in the last 2/3 weeks he has sat while being stable/balanced, crawls on all 4s really fast, pulls himself to his knees AND standing, cruises the couch (as of 2 days ago), can crawl while holding onto things, took 4 steps in a row with his walker, and knows what HI and BYE are. he will wave at you and has said HI and bye bye and today said Da Da for the 1st time! He has come soo far this last month!...heck, he has come soo far in general! Oh and he uses sippy cups. All this isnt bad considering he is really only 8 mths old. He pulls himself up in the crib and so i think he may move into a toddler bed sooner than we though. SOO not ready for that. ;)
cant believe he will be ONE in 2 mths...WOW!!! So thats about it. i am happy that they think he is right on target now seeing as how he was mths behind when we started therapy at 5 mths old. im soo proud of him. According to his corrected age she said he is ahead! He thinks he is HOT STUFF now! lol

Jan 5th-Update

January 5, 2009 - Monday
update update update Current mood: thankful
So Vinny turned 3 yesterday! cant believe its been 3 yrs since i did my 32 hours of labor and then an emergency c section...oh what we endure to have kids.LOL. We had his party on sat and again a BIG thanks to those who showed up.....he had a blast and sean and i appreciate it! He enjoyed playing with all his lil friends and i enjoyed catching up with you all while they played.
I waited to post this because we had his 3 yr checkup this morning and i wanted to post his weight and height and all that jazz. He is now 34 lbs which means he only gained 3 lbs in 1 year! and he is 38" tall! the dr said he is in the 75% for height and weight so he is doing excellent there! He goes to speech therapy once a week for 30 mins still and will continue to do so. it is to help him answer W questions as he knows the answer but doesnt know how to respond to those questions. I think today was the 1st time someone asked what his name was and he answered correctly instead of saying some randon thing. obviously he has known his name for a LONG time but again didnt know hwo to answer the question. he seems to have a fear of being wrong so he wont answer a lot of things you ask him and will wait for someone else to say what he should've said. So we are working on this but he is doing good!
Now onto Owen. as some of you saw he took hsi 1st steps last night. yes, it was with a walker but it was a start seeing as how he had never lifted his legs in a walking motion EVER and we stuck him behind the walker and di the walking motion for him and then off he went....so, its pretty exciting even if he only made it 4 steps. He got weighed today at the drs to readjust the dosage for his reflux meds and he is 20 lbs 6 oz (i was close as i guessed 21 lbs). So in 10 mths he has gained just under 18 lbs...NOT BAD....NOT BAD! I still cant get past the fact that in jsut over 2 mths he will be ONE! WOW!! Look for details as his 1st bday is going to be extra special seeing as how he has made it soo far. its going to be fun!
well, i have to get going but thought id give you all an update. we are doing good and jsut enjoying life one day at a time...what else can you do?!

Nov 20th-Proud of my husband!

November 20, 2008 - Thursday
where do i start? soo much to say... Current mood: blessed
well, i will break this down into different blogs to dow ith each thing as there is truly a lot going on in our lives right now. some good some not soo good (some of you know about that) but health wise we are all doing well and are enjoying time together and looking forward to the holidays!
So not everything is bad....today we found out Sean made 1st class so he is now 1st class Petty Officer Shenefelt....GO SEAN! and to top it off he scored in the 99th percentile! I am soo proud of him!!! Now if only the pay-raise could come before xmas....LOL. Sean is currently in Utah until friday and is takign a class to dow ith Link (or somethign like that.lol) and he cant wait to be back home although i am sure he is jsut saying that and enjoying quietness since we dont get much of that around here with our boys and the daycare.

nov 20th-all day apointment at Madigan Hospital

November 20, 2008 - Thursday
Update on Owen..all day apointment at Madigan Current mood:PROUD OF MY BOY!
ok so some of you know we had an all day appointment at Madigan yesterday where we were to see a pediatric physciatric, a Physical Therapist, a social worker and a Dr.
I will get to that in just a minute but first i have to tell you that in the last 5 days owen started rolling form his stomach to his back, army crawling faster and all over the floor, making new sounds and he got his first tooth 2 days ago (17Nov2008). He appears to be cutting another one, but up top form the one he cut down below in front. I say this cuz i think i feel something and he has been extremly crabby today.
ok so back to madigan and our appointment. We had ot be there by 830 am and anyone who works there/has been there can tell you about parking.w ehad to park out int he middle of nowhere and push the boys in the troller and won the stairs (i swear a MAN designed the layout to get to the hospital from the back parking lot.lol). Anyways, we went and met with a really nice Dr (i cant remember his name) in the developmetnal clinic and started talking to him about our concerns (well mine since sean is in Utah and my mom was there to help out with vinny). Owen and i then went to meet with two pediatric pshyciatrics and they assessed owen and ran him through a series of tests. we then went back and talked to the Dr again and then a social worker came in to get our family history and to discuss any concerns and then it was off to see the PT. She coudl tell Owen has been worked with already by a PT and was amazed at how well he was doing with all the tests they had to run . All the people we saw were blown away by his happy disposition and how he jsut kept on smiling. She came up with basically the same thing the therapist who sees him here once a week has came up with but added torticolis to it (whihc i said form the beginning he had as vinny had it and i could tell it was the same jsut not as bad as vinnys was) and she wrote a prescription for the therapist here to do work on it as well as showed me some stretches for his neck to do. we then met with the dr againa nd he looked over Owen and then told us the team would meet and assess everything they found through the series of tests and write up a report and get back to us in a few days or maybe later THAT day. i wasnt holding my breath as most times we dont hear back frmo a military dr for weeks/mths in some cases. But about 3/4 hrs later he gave me a call and gave me their report and i can get one from owens PCM here. He said that it is refreshing ot see a normal baby like Owen come through the clinic after seeing soo many babies wo started out with such an unsure future as he did. He said so many of them come through and have been hospitalized several times since leaving, have tubes/a trach put in and that they are pleased to see someone like owen who is striving and doing SO well. He said he is doing EXCELLENT and is RIGHT ON TRACK for where he should be. Everything they tested him for he is at a 6 mth (and some odd days in them all) level (except receptive communication which he is at a 5 mth 10 day level) which is RIGHT ON since he is techincally only 6 mths old. He said they wont need ot see him back for another all day clinic again unless he regresses which they dont see being likely but he himself would liek to see Owen at 15 mths of age to check up on him and see wher ehe is standing at that point since most preemies seem to blossom by then. He said Owen was a breath of fresh air!
I am SOO proud of my lil guy! He is truly a miracle and a trooper. he is stubborn like his mommy but it is paying off. ;)
Thank you everyone fo ryour prayers and thoughts and although i know we are not entirely out of the woods yet i can feel a sense of accomplishment for raising such a strong willed, happy lil boy.

Oct 10th-RSV test results

October 10, 2008 - Friday
RSV results Current mood: relieved
it is NOT RSV related!!!! So Owen just has straight p pnemonia and should be better in a week or so (probably longer since he does not do well with even simple colds). I am SOOO relieved!!!!
Oh and we start the RSV shots on the 16th of Oct and he will get two shots EVERY month untilt he end of RSV season (last year it got extended through May, i believe). So with these shots t should dramatically decrease his chances of a cold turning into RSV this year. Here's to hoping they work!

Oct-Diareaha, double pink eye X2, bronchiolitis and pnemonia

October 8, 2008 - Wednesday
a long month Current mood: drained
Its been a LONG month!!! ast month vinny got diareaha, we think it was from the place we went to eat and maybe something form the shopping carts, a stomach bug, well he had it for TWO WEEKS! He FINALLY got over it and then 4 days later got pink eye..where from, we do not know and then it took him a week to get over it and then the day he woke up looking great he had given it to owen. So we went to my parents and spent all alst friday in the ER at the Bremerton Naval Hospital (in their waiting room as they are soo slow there). Both boys developed a cough the same day they woke up with pink eye. so while at the tail end of being over pink eye...FINALLY. we brought owen in to Urgent Care last night as his cough he got the same day as pink eye has progressivly gotten worst and last night was having trouble breathing and started throwing up....he has Pnemonia AND bronchiolitis and they are worried it will turn into RSV. So after spending all night at Urgent Care and almost getting transfered to a NICU/PICU he stats went up and we left with a nebulizer and amoxicylin (sp) well after they were supposed to be closed (and we werent even the last ones there). oh he also got a steriod shot fo rhis lungs last night before we left and he screamed...POOR GUY!We had to go back in today to have an RSV test done but they said that it will take 2 days to get the results back. in the meantime we have to use the nebulier every 6 hrs like clockwork, give him the yucky amoxcyclin and his pink eye meds. So until the results come back we are to watch him closely and if there is even the slightest change we are to bring him in ASAP so he can be transfered and admitted. I also put his breathing monitor back under his crib for right nwo so i can sleep a bit better. I feel soo bad for him! Sp please pray fo rhim and hope he gets well soon and that it isnt RSV related.
Oh the joys of being a mom to a preemie!...heck the joys of being a mom period!

Sept 23-Hypertension Stage 1

September 23, 2008 - Tuesday
hypertension stage 1 Current mood: drained
so i have been having issues with my blood pressure on and off for several years but recently to add ot it i have been ahving chest pains. I know most of it is form a daycare child i have who has been screaming constantly and has been becoming TOO much for me and my family. I knew i had ot ge tit checked as my chest pains have been getting worst since last week and so we went into the drs today and of course my blood pressure was high (knew it was) and so she is starting me on a Beta Blocker (blood pressure meds). The one they started me on is not the one they usually start people on (its the one they give you if the 1st 2 are not strong enough to help), BUT it is known to help reduce/eliminate migraines which i get a lot of so she said why not kill two birds with one pill?!so i have to take the pill once a day and can NOT stop taking them/miss a day or can have sever complications. Also part of the blood pressure would be that i am fat..yes, i know this so you dont have to sugarcoat it.lol. so i am having to go see a dietician to get on a hypertensive diet (low sodium and whatever else causes blood-pressure to rise and add in lot sof what makes it go down). SO this will be fun! here goes nothing......

Sept 21-a good chuckle

September 21, 2008 - Sunday
a good chuckle Current mood: amused
So i had a lapse in judgment, a blonde moment, or whatever youd like to call it today so for those of you having a poopy weekend already or are just needing a smile here it comes. ;))
So as you all know i am selling D.Toys....well, i had to borrow my leaders kit as mine didnt come in time and i had a show to do. Sp the next day vinny had spilt water on one of the cardboard books (that was in rough shape anyways) and the back page came apart so idecided that super glue would do the trick.
Today we went and bought the super glue as she was coming to pick up her kit, including the book, this afternoon. I open the package, read how to open it....take the lid off, twist the top until it stops clicking and then untwist. well, i had no problem with the 1st two steps but i could not get it to untwist and being lazy and not wanting ot go into the kitchen to get somethign to untwist it with as it was killing my fingers i decided to use my teeth...YUP...MY TEETH! Well needless to say it untwisted AND squirted in my mouth. Within seconds i could feel my tongue sticking to the roof of my mouth....whats worst i was on the phone with nancy TRYING to talk normally os she owuldnt know what stupid thing i just did (i eventually had to tell her and get off the phone). Then i could feel my teeth getting all hard. so im sitting there trying to scoop it off the roof of my mouth and tongue before it dries all the way and my tongue is permantly stuck (try explaining THAT to the E.R. Drs.LMAO)! so i got it all off my tongue and roof of mouth but meanwhile it had completly dried on my teeth. so hours later i STILL have super glue on my teeth!
Moral of the story: dont be lazy and put Super Glue in your mouth!
Trip to Walmart to get the glue: 2 hrs with the kids and husband
Bottle of Super Glue: $3.96 + tax
reading half the directions: 15 seconds i cant get back
using your teeth as pliers: PRICELESS!
*Hope i made you all chuckle! ;))

Sept 21st-Flu time?

September 21, 2008 - Sunday
flu time already?! Current mood:poopy
so vinny has had diareha (sp) since monday but it hasnt been ocnstant, in fact he didnt have it at all on thursday plus never had a fever until last night so i took him into the urgent care last night to make sure all is ok. They werent sure as he wasnt pooping consistantly and same with having a fever but he said it is possible he may have the stomach flu. isnt it too early for that?! UGH! I am soo not looking fwd to the cold season.
So ya, they sent us home with 3 tubes to fill with his poop and bring back to them. just what i wanted to do on my day off....fill tubes with poop! Yup...good times. and of course sean made me do it AGAIN (i had to do it a yr and half ago when he had the stomach flu too). i say the next 3 times are sean's. ;)) so, anyways....cross your fingers its not the stomach flu and jsut a bug as i dont need owen catching anything and that he iwll stop pooping soon.

Sept 17th-EIP Once a week

September 17, 2008 - Wednesday
once a week Current mood: pleased
So we had our big meeting today with the Physical Therapist and the head person of The Toddler Learning Center to determine how often and what kind of P.T. he will recieve.
so this is their results from the evaluation they did a few weeks ago (he was 5 1/2 mths then) to help determine how often they will come to OUR house for P.T.

Gross Motor Subtest Equivalent Age percentile
reflexes 5 mths 50th%
Stationary Skills 4 mths 37th%
Locomotor Skills 2 mths 16th%
Total Gross Motor Score: 27%; -.61SD
Fine Motor Subtest Equivalent Age Percentile
Grasping 2 mths 16th%
Visual Motor Integration 3 mths 25th%
Total Fine Motor Score: 16th%; -1.00SD

SO, they say he does not qulify for Gross motor skills which i do not understand if NONE of the areas in gross motor skills he is up to his age level and his overall percentile is 27%. Makes no sense....BUT they do not take into consideration his prematurity and do not specialize with preemies so we will be going to madigan to have an evaluation done there since they specialize in it and have a "high risk" clinic (EIP) there. However, he does qualify for P.T. in fine motor skills os they WILL be coming to work on that and his feet since they sit inward on their sides when he stands (like vinnys did and he had torticallis) and his legs bow a bit.
After discussing all the stuff that needs to be worked on and goals we want reached in teh enxt 6 mths-one year form now they decided it would be best to come to ur home to do P.T. with Owen ONCE A WEEK for 6 mths and then reevaluate then to see where he stands in one year. Our first real P.T. session will be next wed here a the house...i REALLY love that they come to our house for it!
*******Owens 6 mth stats)**************
we had his 6 mth appointment the other day and we got stuck with dr Rasmussen (whom i did NOT like at all...he was extremly rude and told me that i wanted owen to get on zyrtec to get rid of his bumps for my personal cosmetic reasons so i will have a better looking baby and not to help Owen with his allergies...which the bumps ARE FROM HIS ALLERGIES!....GGRRR!) But in the end i got the prescription jsut hav eto go get it now..vinny was screaming so i wasnt about to wait 2 hrs with a screaming 2 1/2 yr old.
They did not correct it to a 4 mth old when doing his percentiles like they are supposed too
Weight: 17 lbs 12 oz 75% so for a 4 mth old hed be off the charts.lol
height: 25 1/2 in 10-25%
Head Circumference (sp): 16 7/8 in 25-50%
so basically he is chubby, short and has a big head.LOL. I love my chunky monkey!!

Aug 24th-Our weekend

August 24, 2008 - Sunday
Our weekend Current mood: drained
So thursday we went to bed early as we had to leave at 430 AM to bring Sean to the airport before 8am (thats when his flight left) and so we had to pack the car the night before, including the pack n play bassinett. That was the 1st night (21Aug08) Owen slept in the crib and not in our room. I was sad at first but amazingly I did well with it and we didnt even stick the monitor on in there. And even more amazingly when i went to go get him int he morning he had only moved 2 in vs. across the whole crib like he does in the Pac N' Play.
So we dropped sean off and immediatly had to get coffee....Thanks Goodness for Starbucks drive thrus! and then off ot my parents it was for the boys and I. My allergies were soo bad when i had woken up that morning and have since gotten worst and so have the boys' allergies. Vinny brokeout for the 1st time sinc eh was like 11 mths and of ocurse i didnt pack his allergy meds. luckily i had owens and mine but mine didtn help but the Benadryl helped Owen a lot. So ya, our allergies have turned into colds now and we are all miserable now.UGH!
Sat we went to the Kitsap County Fair and Rodeos. brings back memories of the old 4-H days! But ehy had something new there this year. they had a barn full of exotic animals. i posted pics. they had zebas, reindeers and all sorts of exotic animals you normally dont see. It was cool. VInny is obsessed with animals so i figured hed eat it all up but nope. We tried to get him to pet teh Llama and he jsut yelled "NO LLAMA! NO LLAMA!" Sandra and I started laughing. He didnt want to do the petting zoo either. I think part of it was that he was soo hot as it was over 80 there. I was getting tired fast too frmo the heat. so we thought wed get an ice cream cone as we saw people walking around with them...NOT FOR $3.00 a cone.....NO WAY!!! SO we left and went to wendys and ate lunch and got frostys for 1.49!!! 3 bucks was a bit rediculous ot me.
Anyways, we are back home now and my cell may die on me so call the hosue if you want to get ahold of me or message me on here as sean took the charger with him to Maryland. Hope everyone is feeling better than us!

8-12: UC?EIP/1st taste of baby food all in one week

August 12, 2008 - Tuesday
Urgent Care/Early intervention/1st taste of baby food Current mood: animated
Yes, what a week...on top of my whole inspection ordeal. Two weeks ago both my daycare kids were sick btu i let them come in anyways (i know my fault) and i did everythign i could to keep things clean and used bleach and washed hands before touching owen and yet he got sick. So Owen started weezing and was all nasaly so i took him into Urgent Care last thursday as he was getting bad and his lungs arent as developed as they should be for his age so we ahve to be careful so they looked him over said his lungs sound clear TODAY but that could change fast and that he was congested up top and it was working its way down to his chest so thats the sound we hear along with a cough. Thje Dr asked about his rashes on his face an di said allergies but his dr said he couldnt take anything including benadryl but he left and came back and said that he weighs enough to take 1/2 a tsp two times a day (which has helped A LOT...they ar ento as noticeable now..still there but he cant get on zyrtec until 6 mths), then he gives us tylenol, saline drops and he has to take all AT THE SAME TIME. So i feel like i am drugging my poor child. He now gets in the morning): zantac for reflux, benydral, tylenol, iron and vitmain drops, saline drops and gas drops all at the SAME time. i feel like im lining up a mini pharmacy! Poor guy! He said to make a follow up appointment within 2-3 days so i call 1st thing monday (well after my crappy inspection) and they cant get us in until FRIDAY...WHAT THE CRAP??!!! he still sounds bad but the meds work for a few hrs. So we shall see what they say on friday.
Also, we have a conusltaion for the Early Intervention Program to come to the house tomorow for a consultation. It is basically physical, ocupational, and speech therapy NOW so they dont get behind later. Being a preemie he automatically gets it. and the nice thing is that until 36 mths of age they come to our house so we dont have to pack the kiddos up and i dont have to miss work. AND when he becomes preschool age he automatically gets into headstart FREE. YEAH! So i will let you all know how that goes after tomorow.
Baby food: Today at 5 mths 1 day old we gave owen his 1st taste of baby food, applesauce, it is the same thing I started vinny with at 4 mths. He LOVED it! he threw a fit when i wouldnt give him anymore. Sean took pics so ill post them later. He did GREAT with it too. he didnt shove it back out with his tongue or anything. Such a BIG boy now!
So, ya thats my update!

july 30th-4 mth stats

July 30, 2008 - Wednesday
4 mth stats Current mood: artistic
so we went to the dr the other day for owens 4 month appointment...you know how the military drs are. they cant get you in until they are almost ready for the next checkup. ugh!
Anyways, the dr is sure i am rigth about Owen having bad allergies like vinny as his rashes/bumps are the same as vinnys and in the same places and he has been sneezing and a runny nose like vin and i have right now (as our allergies are going crazy!) BUT he can not ge ton Zyrtec until he is 6 mths old..1 1/2 more months to go. poor guy has to wait. we also are going to try soy formula to see if that helps with his spitups and all. if that doesnt work we will go for the more expensive formula.
We are also hoping to start ECIP (Early Childhood Intervention Program). different places cal it different things but basically its for preemies to get physical and speech therapy EARLY ..s at 6 mths) so that they dont get behind later. its a great idea. and in most places the therapist comes to you which is even better. we are waiting to hear back from teh drs about it as he wasnt sure this hospital has it but he will write a referal for out in town if they dont offer it. they probably dont knowing this hospital but its ok as long as he gets it as it is something we were told he automatically gets being a preemie.
anyways, his stats are as follows: he is now a whopping 15 lbs 1 oz (we guessed 15 even so we were close)
he is 23 5/8 in long now
And the dr says he is doing great and is at a 4 mth olds level for most everything. he sees no lasting effects of being a preemie, so far (lets hope it stays this way!)
well, thats the update! Thanks for reading!

july 22nd-torn....

July 22, 2008 - Tuesday
descisions/torn Current mood:conflicted
so as many of you know Owen has slept through the night for months now, actually he sleeps from 1030PM until 1030/11 A.M. EVERYDAY and then eats and goes back to sleep....LAZY BOY! ;)) Anyways, Sean wants to stick him in his own crib now and i want too but then again i dont. I know he is fine as his apnea monitor has never gone off and he is 4 mths now, heck some nights we dont even turn it on as his bassinett touches my side of the bed, but to stick him in a room all by himself?! After all he's been through it jsut scares me even thoguh i KNOW he is fine and i know sooner or later i have to put him in his own room as his bassinett only holds 20 lbs and he's about 15 now so couldnt i just wait?! I said if i stuck him in his own room i woudl stick him on the apnea monitor instead of the regular one for a bit until i get ocmfortable but i am torn cuz i also said i am not going to be one of those moms who relies on one of those until hes 2 or longer. i said 4 mths would be good and yet despite not always turning it on having him in his own room makes me nervous. i am sure this is normal for anyone who has had a preemie and had to endure all that we did but i would jsut liek to say i could stick him in there with regular rmontiors and still sleep...but yet i cant say that.
there really is no question im getting at but wanted to vent about how torn i am over it. sean says he'll be fine..which i know deep down he will be but i still feel like it was just yesterday we brought him home from the NICU and i dont want to let him out of my sight for that long. Sat for our anniversary was the longest i have ever been away from him (12 hrs) and i know he was in VERY good and capable hands as him and vin were with whittnee but i still called her like 10 times to check in. i never did that with vinny. i just dont know....i suppose in time ill gain the strenght i need to be away from him but im not sure now is the time.....

July 11th-4 mths ago from today

July 11, 2008 - Friday
Where does time go?! Current mood: peaceful
4 mths ago from last night i got my 1st helicopter ride EVER! 4 mths ago from this morning I had an meergency c section and LITTLE Owen made his big appearance into this world weighing in at 2 lbs 11 oz. 4 mths ago from today his future was uncertain and he hung onto life with every breath he took. But today 4 mths from March 11, 2008 he is a strong, healthy lil guy who is thinking big and learning new things everyday. He is my little miracle and i will never take any of my children for granted as noone should either but we (my family) now truly understand how prescious life is and that it is not always a given and neither is tomorow. We were blessed to have him strive and progress so well and fast and i love watching him grow. His new thing (as of last month) is he LOVES to stick his tongue out at you. All i have to do is say "where's your tongue?!" a few times in baby talk and he sticks it right out and smiles...His smiles....OMG I LOVE his smiles! He LOVES to smile as he is a very happy baby and that too I am grateful for! He started cooing and trying to make noises several weeks ago for the 1st time. it is soo cute. I love his belly laughs too!
We went in today for his 4 mths shots but dont have his appointment/well baby checkup until the 28th but he needed to get the Rotateq Virus Vaccine BEFORE the 23rd or it would be no good. And he needs it since i have the daycare and he can catch stuff from the other kids if he is sick. Of course he did NOT like the shots AT ALL as he was poked and prodded at the whoel time he was in the NICU so he definitly will have a phobia of needles when hes older. Vinny could care less when he gets shots or blod drawn...its like youre not even touching him. Anyways, i am not sure how much Owen weighs now as we wont find out his percentages untilt eh 28th and the stats until then so i will update this then but we are thinking baout 14 lbs by now. that would be 12+ lbs gained in 4 mths....WOW!!! Sucha BIG boy now! oh and he can sit himself up, like if hes sitting in the corner of the couch or on your lap leaning/slouching against you he can use his stomach muscles and get himself up straight all by himself and he can sit ont eh floor on his own (at times) for about 3 secs or so. He is getting there. Not bad for a baby that will be "graded" off a 2 mth olds scale (as thats all he should be today). Thanks agin for all your thoughts and prayers while we were in the NICU. They made all the difference!
We love you all!
p.s. ill post his monthly pic under his album later and in here next to his 2 mth one so you can see how far he has come

june 29th-Laughing

June 29, 2008 - Sunday
laughing Current mood: ecstatic
yesterday my friend becca came out form Mt Vernon since it was nice day and she is childless at the moment (lucky duck.lol). and she was holding Owen and clicking her tongue while swaying him back and forth and he started smiling at her which he has been doing for several weeks now (but is smiling more and more every day) and then all of a sudden HE LAUGHED!!!! and he KEPT laughing. it was those deep belly laughs and it was SOO friggin cute (and funny). He hadnt laughed before but now he has. I LOVE the sound of babies laughing! my kids like worship her as vinny crawled for the 1st time to becca at a D.T Party i was having one night and now Owen laughs for the 1st time to her! ;))
anyways, jsut htought id share he laughed for the 1st time and hopefully i can get him to laugh more today!

may 27th-My Lil' Big Guy

May 27, 2008 - Tuesday
My Lil’ Big Guy! Current mood: animated
just wanted to share my lil guy is such a big (lil) guy now. ;)) we went in to have him weighed and he is now 11 lbs exactly (at 2 1/2 mths). he was 2 lbs 11 oz when he was born on march 11th, 5 lbs 8 oz on april 20th when we got discharged and is now a whopping 11 lbs. he is ALL boy and LOVES his food! ;) im soo proud of how far he's come in such a short period of time!
I'll post pics later when he wakes up and we take him out of the carseat as he fell asleep in it and you know what they say...."NEVER wake a sleeping baby!" ;))

slept through the night-May 21st

May 21, 2008 - Wednesday
Owen Did It!!!
HE SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!
I woke up this morning and noticed owen was still sound asleep next to me in his bassinett and i went downstairs and called sean at work and asked if he had decided to be nice and get up with owen, even though it wasnt his turn last night, and he said "NO.... Did you get up with him?" I said "NOPE. Guess he slept through the night!"
this was his 1st time doing it as usually he wakes up between 230-330 everynight for one feeding and then sleeps in again until 730ish. which isnt bad but ill take the WHOLE night anyday! ;)) He went to sleep last night at 11pm and didnt get up until almost 730am! GO Owen...Heck GO US!!!LOL.
its funny too cuz last ngiht we were in bed saying how much we wish hed sleep through the night but that he was still soo small to be taking away his middle of the night feeding...maybe he heard us and was like "who you calling little?!" LOL.
so ya, had to brag. oh and yesterday was exactly a month since he got discharged from the NICU. it sure feels like longer as we have a routine and it is pretty easy taking care of two lil ones...easier than i thought it would be. he is 2 mths and 11 days old today!

How Does God chose Moms of Preemies?

May 18, 2008 - Sunday
How does God chose the moms of preemies?
Did you ever wonder how the mothers of premature babies are chosen?
Somehow, I visualize God hovering over Earth, selecting his instruments for propagation with great care and deliberation.
As he observes, he instructs his angels to take notes in a giant ledger.
"Armstrong, Beth, son. Patron Saint, Matthew.
Forrest, Marjorie, daughter. Patron Saint, Celia.
Rutledge, Carrie, twins. Patron Saint...give her Gerard. He's used to profanity."
Finally, he passes a name to an angel and smiles. "Give her a preemie."
The angel is curious. "Why this one, God? She's so happy."
"Exactly," smiles God. "Could I give a premature baby a mother who knows no laughter? That would be cruel."
"But does she have the patience?" asks the angel.
"I don't want her to have too much patience, or she'll drown in a sea of self-pity and despair.
Once the shock and resentment wear off, she'll handle it.
I watched her today. She has that sense of self and independence so rare and so necessary in a mother.
You see, the child I'm going to give her has a world of its own. She has to make it live in her world, and that's not going to be easy."
"But Lord, I don't think she even believes in you."
God smiles. "No matter, I can fix that.
This one is perfect. She has just the right amount of selfishness."
The angel gasps, "Selfishness?! Is that a virtue?"
God nods.
"If she can't separate herself from the child occasionally, she will never survive.
Yes, here is a woman whom I will bless with a child less than perfect.
She doesn't know it yet, but she is to be envied.
She will never take for granted a spoken word.
She will never consider a step ordinary.
When her child says momma for the first time, she will be witness to a miracle and know it.
I will permit her to see clearly the things I see--ignorance, cruelty, prejudice--and allow her to rise above them.
She will never be alone.
I will be at her side every minute of every day of her life, because she is doing my work as surely as she is here by my side."
"And what about her Patron Saint?" asks the angel.
His pen poised in the air. God smiles.
"A mirror will suffice."

2 mth checkup/vinny update may 14th

May 14, 2008 - Wednesday
2 mth checkup/vinny
WOW..has time flown. I cant beleive that Owen is TWO months already and that we have been home for almost a month now! Today on the drive down to madigan army medical center for owen's 2 mth appointment Sean and I were tlaking about how lucky we are for how things have turned out. If you think about it the say their discharge date is usually their due date which means that we still wouldve been staying int eh Fisher House and visiting Owen on the ICN until 2 days ago (my due date was May 12th) but instead we are home and have been for almsot a month and he came home with NO medications and no monitors and no major health problems. speaking of which he has been cleared and does NOT need a blood transfusion after all. We truly are grateful for our little miracle and know things couldve been worst. and although at the time it seemed like we were down there forever and would NEVER be going home but in hind-sight it wasnt long at all. We are home and he is healthy...what more could we ask for?!!!
As for his appointment:
It has been confirmed....HE LOVES HIS FOOD!!!! and definitly is vinnys lil brother...i can see them fighting over the last slice of pizza now.LOL. sorry....he now weighs 8 lbs 14 oz (75% for his corrected age...newborn) and is 18.5 in tall (25%) and his head is in the 50th percentile. so he may be short for his corrected age and a bit on the chubby side BUT he does NOT have a big knogen.LOL. oh and obviously we can take him off the 22 Kal formula as he doesnt need the extra cals. ;)
developmentally he is where a 2 mth old would be, in most areas, which is GREAT as he is only expected to be where a newborn is. starting at 4 nths he has to see a developmental physician to help him catch up to his real age, which almost all preemies have to go see one. other than that the Dr. says he is doing GREAT! her major concern is 2 yr old siblings.LOL. i told her vinny is GREAT with him and doesnt even pay much attention to him except to say "stinky baby owen" when he farts and he likes to tickle him lightly on the stomach. there has been NO jealuosy issues between him with owen. we REALLY lucked out!

VINNY:
Speaking of Vinny he is doing great too. getting big and says all sorts of things. he mimics everything and is very opinionated. he picked up a lovely word from my mother while he was staying with them (while we were at the fisher house) and so one of his new favorite things to say is "God Damnit!" Yup, thats right..."God Damnit!" he doesnt always add the God but sometimes he does which only makes it THAT much worst. Try being in an elevator with another adult and have him say OH DAMNIT! DAMNIT! ALL the way down from the 3rd floor...OH YES this happened to us at the hospital. i was trying to talk to sean louder than eh was saying it so the lady wouldnt hear him and give us dirty looks as we did NOT teach him that. sometimes we can not help but laugh...i know...i know..laughing does NOT help! so ya, other than his new phrase he is doing good and on the way to becoming a normal functioning person in todays society...well almost! ;)
Have a good week everyone!

Mothers Day May 12th (2 mths old)

May 12, 2008 - Monday
mothers day/owen is 2 mths
yesterday was my 1st mothers day with my two boys! i had a blast as we went to Bucca di beppos with family and friends. (thanks for coming Becca and Bubba!) then we dtrove to Beccas so we could stop and feed Owen and vinny and bubba could play (next time we will skip DQ, Becca) and then we headed out for home. When we got here i had a gift at the door from my Secret Sister (Jen), and she had a plate made with both vinny and owens handprints on it and it says Thank Heaven for little boys and one the back it has their names and date on it. I LOVED IT! i think it was the most thoughtful gift ive ever gotten for mothers day. THANK YOU JEN! Later Whittnee, Mary and I went to happy hour at Applebees and i had my first real drinks since before i got prego...lets jsut say it didnt take much.lol. although i also had a martini at Buccas earlier. ;)) so it was a fun night! Thanks everyone!!!

As for Owen he turned 2 mths old yesterday (mothers day). we are not sure how much he weighs now but we think about 7 to 7 1/2 lbs. we will fin dout for sur eon wed when we have to go back to Madigan for his 2 mth checkup. he has gotten soo big and is about where he shouldve been if he was full term (size wise). developemtnally i beleive he is a lil behind but i know that is to be expected with preemies as they tend not to hit developmental marks until their corrected gestational age and they on average dont catch up tot heir peers until 2 yrs old. it will be different going from vinny who has awlays been ahead for his age to having a preemie. Owen is starting to get those horrible bald spots in the back of his head....my only wonder is will his hair come back in red like it is?! his eyes are still blue too! oh and he has outgrown almost all of his preemie clothes and has moved up to size 1 in diapers as he has chubby lil thighs now. he's soo cute.
well, thats it for now. iw ll update everyone more afte rhis 2 mth checkup on wed! hope you all had a good mothers day too

April 25th-Our 1st outing and updates

April 25, 2008 - Friday
Home at last Update
So after a long 6 1/2 weeks of living out of a hotel then the fisher house and having to go to the hospital to see my lil guy we are home and still trying to settle in. so for those of you whom i have nto called yet i am sorry and will get around to it but feel free to call me before hand if youd like...always up to taking ont he phone.
so we went out to the commissary (all 4 of us) the day after we got home (monday the 21APR) and it was our first family outing with 2 kids. sean and and i agreed if it didnt go well wed never leave home again as a family and would let Vinny watch Owen for us. J/K. LOL. Anyways, it went very well until we were trying to figure out how to leave the store with our bags and cart as we didnt have money for a tip and paid with a credit card and vinny and owen wer in the car shopping cart which for some reason you cant take outside (UGH) so i got vinnys and and carried owen out in his carseat and sean pushed the cart of bags AND THEN IT HAPPENED...Owens blankie fell out of his carseat and i couldnt put him down in the middle of the road (i didnt notice it had fallen for some time) and i definitly couldnt let go of Vins hand or eh wouldve jetted out of there so sean left the cart of bags in the middle of the road came running back to me and grabbed vinny and i went to get the blanket....DANGIT...thats it vinnys watching Owen now!LOL.
Wed 23Apr we had to go back to Madigan for Owens follow up apt. it went well. in the 4 days since he was released he went from 5 lbs 12 oz to 6 lbs 8 oz (almost a pound in four days). So they dont think he needs to be on NeoSure (22 KAL) formula so they want us to transition to 20 KAL (reg.) Similac a few days before his 2 mth checkup (which can you beleive is in TWO WEEKS!) and see if he is still gaining weight on reg similac and if he is then we are done with Neosure. He had too get poked and have blood work as they are still watching his hemoglubin (SP?) levels as his red blood cell couts arent as high as they should be so they have been considering a blood transfusion on him for some time now. so as long as they keep going up then he will not need one. they are going up (they called with the results) but it is not going up as fast as it should be so we ahd to go into the OHNH today and have it rechecked. hoping all will be fine. Other than that he is doing GREAT! He is a goo dbaby and only wakes up two times a night to eat and is very calm but likes to grunt A LOT! LOUDEST baby i have ever heard while eating.LOL.
Thursday 24April was my 1st day with two kids and it being just me. and of course the double stroller istn here yet and we had a WIC apt for BOTH of them..AAAHHH. It was funny cuz vinny and owen were asleep when we got there so i popped owens carseat intot he stroller and had vinny asleep on my hip and was trying to walk all the way up the ramp to the WIC office while not crashing the troller or dropping vinny. well we all know vinny isnt exactly light and anyone who has been to BLDG 13 knows it a good walk to the door let alone while holding a 32 lb child and pushing a stroller.LOL. Needless to say i only made it to the door before having ot put vinny down (not bad though if i do say so myself). ;)) It went well besides trying to chase my escape artist (vinny) every 5 mins while trying to listen to the WIC lady.
ONTO ME: Today i had my postpartum check up with Dr Sylvetti (the best Dr ive ever had) and we talked a lot about what happened while i was down in madigan and he was soo happy to see Owen too. He said he would like to still see me as a patient and have updates on Owen which is great to know i still have a good dr to rely on for questions. he said all looks good with me and when i got weighed i now only weigh 12 more lbs than the day i got prego so in the last month and half (mind you we ate fast food EVERY DAY down there in tacoma) i have lost over 30 lbs. GO ME! (Of course i never sat still between the fisher hosue and the hospital and playing with vinny). so i am excited about that.
well, i have to go feed Owen as sean is telling me bragging about owen on myspace isnt nearly as important as feeding him in real life!!! I love my husband! LOL.

April 21st-we REALLY ARE home!!!

April 21, 2008 - Monday
We REALLY ARE home! Current mood: relieved
Hi. Sorry i havent updated anyone. It has been a rollercoaster of emotions and changes for us this last month and some odd weeks. BUT yesterday morning at 11:05 AM i signed us out of the hospital for the LAST time. Yup, Owen got to come home with us....heck we all got to go home since none of us have been home in forever or so it seems like. What a better birthday gift for me than that. oh and since it was my bday i convinced sean to get up with him all night. Owen got up 2 times and slept for a 5 1/2 hr stretch at one point. GO OWEN.....GO SLEEP! LOL. So we survived the 1st night. vinny had the most readjusting to do as he was freaked out in his room so i had to turn on the night light and his tv (which is never on at night). he did fine after that.
well, i have two kiddos up to attend too as i took them downstairs so sean could get SOME sleep. feel free to call. we arent going anywhere for a while....want to just relax and enjoy being home. THANK YOU ALL AGAIN FOR YOUR LOVE, SUPPORT AND UNDERSTANDING!
Love,
melissa, sean, vinny and owen

oh and he weighed in at 5 lbs 12 oz the night before last and he eats about 3 oz every 4 hrs. and we ahve two follow up apts down at madigan starting with one this wed

April 12th-a relaxing day

April 12, 2008 - Saturday
update/relaxing day 12APR08 Current mood: refreshed
So 2 days ago for the 2nd time we got told we could take Owen home only to get there and find out he had another episode so now they want to keep him for 3-5 more days (most likely the 5 day sretch). While i am not holding my breath this time it is hard not to get excited about the idea of finally being able to go home and be a family. we are now on day 2 so 3 more to go (or more?)! now dont get me wrong we both are smart enough to know that it is better for him to have had these epidodes while at the hospital vs at home in the middle of th enight when were sleeping and we cant know and rmeind him to breath. if he were closer to 40 weeks they wouldve still let us go home but with a monitor. now i am hoping we wont be here until 40 wks and that we ownt need to go hme with a monitor but whatever can assure his health and well being i best. we are blessed that he is in an incridible hospital with a great team of drs and nurses. oh but this time we are not packing the car until AFTER we get him and leave th ehospital. we are both tired of packing and cleaning only to lug everything back upstairs. its getting old. i told sean its like a BAD April fools joke only it keeps repeating itself and its NOT April fools day.ugh!
so yesterday we had to drive out to the island to get osme stuff for sean as he left work the other day and went home to get in civis and came down thinking we were going only not to leave so he was in the same clothes for 3 days and didnt even have a toothbrush on him. eeewww!LOL. so we went to get him stuff and drop off stuff we have that we dont need. it was sad when we got there i asked vinny where we were and he said "i dont know!" and when we got int here he was scoping stuff out like he had never seen it and then just sat there looking around. i felt soo bad for him. i still do. so while driving back i came up with an idea for the next day (today). Since we knew it would be nice i suggested we go to Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium so vinny could do something fun after all he's been through and that sean and i could use a relaxing day as well after all this "youre going home today" only not too. he agreed.
this morning we went and checked on owen and then headed to the zoo. there was onoy an hr until it closed but we paid and went in anyways. vinny had soo much fun. he loved the fishes and his fav is still th ebaluga whale. we brought him to see the monkeys as he kept asking for them and one went swinigng real fast rght in front of him (behind the glass of course) and it scared hiim so he freaked out and wanted nothing else to do with the monkeys.lol. he also wanted to see the elephants so we went and did that and when it started walking closer to the gate vinny started stepping backwards real fast (almost tripped over the stroller behind him) and whispered "Oh My Goodness!" Sean and I laughed. it was soo cute. oh and he loved the "BIG kitty cat" (AKA Tiger). He didnt want to leave form waching it run around and go in the water. so all in all it was a fun day and hte best part...vinny passed out as soon as we got into the car...the perfect way to end such a beautiful day! WE NEEDED THIS!
As for Owen he is doing good. day two of no episodes and still eating like crazy. he is 4 lbs 11 oz (exactly 2 lbs more than he was when eh was born one month and one day ago). Growing like a weed! ;)
i took more pics of owen today in a new outfit and some while we were at the zoo. ill post them soon.
hope everyone enjoyed this sunny day as well!

April 9th-Crushed into a million pieces

April 9, 2008 - Wednesday
Crushed into a million pieces Current mood: worried
A GREAT day turned CRAPPY! So Vin and i went in to see Owen this morning and rbing some more "liquid gold" and vin was being a turd so i asked owens nurse if she wanted a 2 yr old and she said "no you can keep him and you get one more today. Owen is going home TODAY!" i was ecstatic! i hung out for a bit to get osme info and they said theyd do his circumcision and then ahve to watch it for a few hrs to make sure there was not an excessive amount of bleeding and he had to pass the car seat test. so we left and i was nervouse about the carseat test, but i called sean at his work and told him he needed to get off work early cuz WE ARE GOING HOME TODAY! We were both SOO excited.
he got down here a few hrs later and owen had already passed his car seat test with flying colors and had his circ so they sent us for his multivitamins and iron drops and then we left to go pack up our room and after what seemed like forever and they said his circ was bleeding still a lil more than they like to see so they were going to watch it some more. later they did a shift change and we left to go get something to eat while they were watching it still. we came back and the guy nurse said he saw his stats do something weird on the monitors and that he desated to the 80’s and that he coudnt see owen going home with this concern so he had talked to the dr and they decided to come tell us that we cant take our baby home anymore. so the excitement we had all day and the plans of being home FINALLY just got crushed. i tried to be strong but i was to hard. they said to coem back tomorow and find out wha tthe drs in the morning think. so as of now things are up in the air and who knows when we will be going home. it could still be tomorow as planned or in a few days ora few weeks or next month. who knows...
needless to say we had both cars packed and turned in our keys to our room at the fisher house by the time we got our hearts crushed into a million pieces it was past 9pm so there was noone in the office at the fisher house to get us our keys back so a gaurd came and ulocked our door for us and we will get keys back tomorow. i dont know how much sleep ill get tonight as i still cant beleive this. its like our world got turned upside down AGAIN! i hate this!!!

April 8th-a light at the end of the tunnel

April 8, 2008 - Tuesday
there is light at the end of the tunnel Current mood: relieved
so it has been a trying month for our family as we have endured many ups and downs starting from this whole ordeal (March 10th) until now and as i know we have some ahead of us since we are now the PROUD parents of a healthy preemie boy weighing in at 4 lbs 5 oz, as of tonight. we got word this morning that we should expect to be going home by THIS thursday as long as he made it to midnight tonight without having a brady episode. so of course i am staying up waiting for the clock to strike midnight so i can call the NICU and see if we are finally going home as a family after one whole month of being away and torn as a family.
If i call and they say he did not have a brady then we WILL be going home. NO more going back and forth to the hospital, no more being away from vinny and having him confused and out of his normal life and longing for kids to play with, NO more monitors, no more worrying about what happened to him overnight as he will be by our side. We will truly be a family and feel ever soo blessed to have such a strong fighter on our hands. We believe it is truly the thoughts and prayers from all of you that has made not only us stronger but owen stronger as well. It was in this greatest time of need and desperation for all to be well that God tried testing our faith, but while we may have struggled we never stopped belieiving that you all were out there hoping and praying for the best and caring for our family. THANK YOU ALL!!!
Owen has gone from being born 2 months early at only 2 lbs 11 oz and being on a CPAP and IVs and in an incubator and phototherapy lights to being graduated to the Intermediate Care Nursery in a short period of time and then there he came out of the incubator depsite his small size and proved the drs wrong that a baby soo small can maintain his body temp and he then continued to surprise us all. When we first got there they said to expect his release date to be my due date of May 12th. we geared up for the long haul in front of us but with such persistance and strenght owen is now going home ONE month before his due date and at a mere 35 weeks (gestational) old. He truly is a blessing and i am sure he will have lots more to show us all. Miracles do happen and this one was made possible by all of you! We cant wait to be home and see you all after we get settled in again.
*******************AND THE VERDICT IS IN:*******************
WE ARE COMING HOME!!!!!!!!

April 5th-update from yesterday!

April 5, 2008 - Saturday
update form yesterday Current mood: bitchy
first off i want to thank you all for your support and encouragement. whenever my slow hubby gets here i am going to give BF another go tonight. i forgot to mention that when they make him a bottle it is not formula but BM ive been pumping since ive been pumping my life away(or at least it feels that way). ;)) he has NEVER had formula and he had to be on a bottle until yesterday as he wasnt old enough (gestational wise) for him to know how to BF. but since hes doing so well with the nipple on the bottle they figured he was ready to try BF. so we shall see how tonight goes. on monday the lactation consultant who works in the hospital will be coming by during one of our "sessions" to observe and give more pointers. she was a greatr help yesterday morning but was already gone by later when it all went downhill.
So today has been a stressful day too. i think i just need some sleep but i dont have time as i either need to be at the hospital, now watching vinny (which is a never ending job obviously), or going ot get something to eat only to go back to the hospital again. i feel like if im not there at the hospital then i look like i dont care or that im a bad mom that i am not with my son at all times but i have vinny too and i cant keep him entertained at a hospital all day and he needs time and attention from us too. this brings me to my 1st attmept to birning vin with me to see Owen this morning (my 1st time bringing him without sean) and lets just say if we wouldnt have left we wouldve gotten asked to leave. he was telling me and the nurses NO, he tried kicking one of them when she was trying to tell him he needed to be quieter as he kept yelling and scaring the babies. he wouldnt sit in one spot. aaahhh!!!! so we left! we tried again later today and i left him strapped in the stroller and rolled the tv cart over again (like we tried this morning) but i had gone out and bought him the movie cars after we ate lunch in hopes this bribe would work. it did for an hour! YEAH!! then we had to go as he was wanting out of the stroller. so i got to hold owen which is more than i got to do this morning.
i am now awaiting my hubby who left later form work and then took his sweet time leaving the house. i know its all cuz im stressed and tired and anxious to ge thome but i have been getting snotty with him and mean as he doesnt seem to understand (im sure he does but hes never been one to say how he feels or what he wants) how im feeling or why it is soo important for him to be here. he has had to go back to the island and work all week and now is almost here (he just called me) and he is supposed to be off sun-tues (he has to go back tues night for work wed morning through thursday) but apparently whomever is supposed to work the night watch on monday wont get back form cali in time for it so its ebtween him and 2 other guys to take it. i wa slike he is oging ot be all the way down here he is not oging to go back up on monday morning to come back down for tuesday morning to leave back there on tuesday night.t hats RIDICULOUS!!! One of the other 2 guys they couldnt get ahold of but the one who was there (one of his friends whom hes known since A school said he didnt want to do it as he has to work all day monday. well im sorry call me a BITCH but who cares if you have to work all day monday and thn tuesday night...your friend has a baby in the hospital and he NEEDS to be here for owen and vinny and i! to me that should take top priority and it just upsets me to think they could care less. i so hope he gets to stay down here after this next week. ugh. well, hanks for lettting me vent again.

********Update on Owen and when theyre saying his release date may be***
He is officially 4 lbs as of last night. since he is full bottle fed he now only has to go 5 days witout a brady before we can go home. hopefully towards the end of april. he went two days the other day then had one. the nurses said they think he’ll be out of here by April 20th but thats their guess and they spend the most time with him. i hope so as that would be an AWESOME bday present for me...the 20th is my bday and it owuld be SOO nice to be home as a family and to have all this behind us. also since he is full bottle fed he is also eat on demand so no more every 3 hrs. whenever he wakes up and acts hungry they feed him and he gets to decide how much. he was only getting 42 ccs while on a schedule but with him deciding he has been eating 60-70ccs every 4 hrs or so. so he should pack on the pounds in no time!!! we might have a 5 lber by the time we go home. i guessed hed be mid 5 lbs when we get to go home.

april 4th-24 days old

April 4, 2008 - Friday
24 days old 4-4-08 Current mood: frustrated
so today was a long frustrating day and while i should be asleep as i am exahusted from running back and forth and from being upset i am sittting here as maybe writing it all out will help me sleep. This is how my day started........
i went to the hospital to see owen and do his 9am feeding and when i got there Nurse Janet asked me if i wanted ot hear the good news i was excited to hear what it was. not only was he now full bottle feed which now leaves one more requirement (no more bradys for 5 days) before we can go home but they wanted to try having me breastfeed 2xs a day starting that feed since i had said it was something id like him to know how to do so i dont have ot be home every 3 hrs of the day (seriously how am i supposed to go anywhere that way?!) she told me she doesnt exepect him to do much as it would be his 1st real time doing it and he’d probably just get frustrated but after about 5 mins he had a good latch and didnt let go and stayed on for 20-25 mins. they were all impressed with how well he did. i was stoked and left happy looking fwd to the 3pm breastfeeding time but when i got there for that thats when my day went downhill.....
i got all set upt o breastfeed againa nd he was soo hungry as he was sucking vigerously on his hand, my hand, his blanket before i took him out of his crib so im thinking it was going to go as well as earlier....it DIDN’T!! He cried and refused to latch on but kept trying to suck on my hand and his and so i asked for help they told me to hold on. waited and kept trying myself while he kept getting more upset. he had got past the "let down" part as there was milk coming out but he owuldnt latch and so after 30 mins i asked AGAIN for help. sat there with him crying and getting cold as they had me get him naked to feed him and he was getting frustrated and iw as getting frustrated so finally after AN HOUR AND A HALF i got up put him back in his crib and go thim dressed and wrapped his cold body up in a warm blanket and i grabbed my shirt and went over to a nurse and said he didnt latch on AT ALL and is starving so please make my son a bottle. and i went and pumped and changed all while breaking down. now i know i shouldnt expect him to get it right away as it is something new but i was so frustrated that i had asked TWICE and still had to sit there for over an hour whiel my poor lil guy was getting codl and was ever so hungry. by the time they made his bottle it was TWO HOURS AFTER when he was supposed to start eating. i was soo upset i left as i couldnt be there anymore and i had to go to my parents to get vinny anyways. i also know i probably got soo upset since i am soo tired and worn down and emotional but still it all seemed a bit much to me. i thought they were there to help. that nurse that took over janet who was supposed to be helping me i do not like now. she didnt even introduce herself to me at all. she asked if i was shenefelt and i said yes and she walked away adn i didnt see her after that until she made Owens bottle. GGGGRRRR!
so as i kind of want to say that i will just bottle feed him and screw putting him to breast i dont want to give up that easily as ive never been a quitter. and when he did do well the 1st time he didnt DESAT or have any BRADYS which he usally does when he bottle feeds so breastfeeding could reduce/prevent these then he could go home that much sooner. its just frustrating.
well, thank you for letting me vent about my awful day. i am going to go pass out on the bed once i move vinny from the middle of it. ;)

april 1st-3 wks old

April 1, 2008 - Tuesday
3 weeks old! 4-1-08 Current mood: anxious
so we found out yesterday that sean would have to go back to the island for work as there is only one other perosn who is working in his office as everyone else is on leave or on a det to cali until next week so they couldnt get him orders here (for the time being). So we went and got my car last night fomr my parents and left vinny there and i went back to the hospital and sean went home. it was soo weird driving my car after not driving for 3 weeks.
anyways, the way senas rottion works at work he should have tomorow off but NOPE he doesn. since he is one of two left in the office he has to work today through sat and can have sun-tues off and by the end of next week everyone will be back so they are then goign to see about getting him orders here at Fort Lewis while Owen is still in the hospital. it iwll be a great relief to me as i will ahve help with vinny AND more importantly sean can spend some time with his lil boy (owen) too. So about my BUSY day. i got up early so i could make it to Owens 9 am bottle feed so i could do it and i fed him (which he eats all 32 ccs in like 2 mins flat and wants more) and i held him and rocked him while he slept until 11:42 when i left to get something to eat and relax a bit before going back for his 3:00 bottle feed. i turned on my cell and i had a message. out of all the days for the fisher house to have a room available for us it is the day sena isnt here. i had to check in by NOON (that was in like 18 mins!) so i go and do paperwork, get the tour and then it was 1:00 and i still had to grab something go back to the hotel to pack and check out and move everything UPSTAIRS to our room in the fisher house AND be at the hospital by 3:00! AAAHHHH! So i grabbed a quick bite and dove into packing. i had to make like 8 trips (ok it was 5) from our hotel room to the car and then it was 2:30 by the time i pulled back into the fisher house so i had a half hour to bring everything upstairs and get back to the hospital. needless to say nothing got unpacked but i made it to the feeding on time...exhausted but i made it! then when i was feeding him his nurse, crystal, today asked if they would up his food amoutn as after 32 ccs he was still wanting more. so not only did they up his feeds but now 2/3 of his meals are bottle fed instead of just 3xs a day. so it will go bottle-bottle-tube-bottle-bottle-tube-etc, etc. and when he is bottle fed he got upped to 40ccs but still only 32 ccs for tube feedings as they dont want to push it. hopefully with this uppage of ccs he will pack on some more weight (which he gained more today too) and he will maintain his body temp in an open crib. he has two things left to do to go home once he is full bottle fed (all meals fed by bottle..one more meal a day to go until this), maintain his temp and then no bradys for 5 days. then we’re home free! i know we still have about 4 weeks until all this but still. i cant help but feel the end is getting near. so i thought the next feed would be at 9 so i was getting ready to elave at 445 and was going to go back to the fisher hosue to take a nap and i said "see you at nine" and she reminded me abotu his change in feed and so his next bottle feed was going to be at 6pm and 9pm owuld be his tube feeding. so left and got a coffee and then had to be right back there to feed him. so i didnt get out of there until almost 8:0 pm as i rocked him to sleep and hung out for a bit and i am now soo exahusted that i am heading to bed early. so ya, that was my exciting and yet busy day! get to go back starting tomorow at 9am.
I am jsut amazed at all the advancements he has made in a meere 3 weeks. i think it is amazing how fast he has been progressing for how small he was when he was born and still is. The night nurse last night told me it was funny cuz she never thought someone soo small could be soo onry. wonder where he gets that from?! LOL. oh and the NICU nurses have nicknamed him The WIIZZARD or Mr. Wizz as hehas pee’d on almsot everyone of them and is contantly leaking thorugh the diapers. i call him my little squirt. never thought id come up with anything to nickname him until after we got home and i got to know him better but jus tlike "Cheekies" came o me one day out of the blue for Vinny "Squirt" came to me the other day! I LOVE MY BOYS!!!

3-30-08: moving on up

March 30, 2008 - Sunday
Moving on up 3-30-08 Current mood: hopeful
so we are still living out of the hotel over here as the Fisher House was supposed to have a room available but the people who were supposed to be leaving had to stay longer. so the morning w were supposed ot be leaving (before we had to extend our stay with the front desk) we got a receiept under the door and for two weeks it was 1,712.60$ and we jsut extended our stay for ANOTHER two weeks! WOW!! SOO glad we arent going to pay for that. and they said they ahve 3 other fmailies form the hospital staying here that they are paing for. so when it ocmes time to donate we will definitly be making a donation to the Fisher House here at Ft. Lewis! we couldve never afforded this!
On another note:
as some of you already know seans work told him to get the navy liasion number back to his sr cheif. well after days of trying to reach the navy laision in his office at this hospital (as he was NEVER working) we just found a number by his door so sean called his sr cheif back and left a message for her as she is never working either, with the liasions number. after two days of not hearing anyhting i made him call and to no big surprise his SR. was not in and so he talked to one of his 1st’s and regave him the number and told him what was going on. he said no biggie hed relay the message to SR. AGAIN and we should get a call. two days later sean FINALLY sees the liasion in his office and asks if hes heard form his work...NOPE! NOONE has called ofmr seans work (this was this last friday) and seans work is the one who has to put in the orders for sean to work here while Owen is still in the hospital. so by then it was too late for seans SR. to be int he office still and of course the next day was sat and otday is sunday and so she is NOT going ot be there then and tomorow is MONDAY and then tuesday is the FIRST...THE day he is supposed to go back to work. now where he is working we do not know? is he wokring nights? days? (if he is going ot have to go back to the island and work) when would he work here? where would he work here? he doestn ahve any uniforms here. my car isnt here sow e ahve to go get that tomorow. okay so i guess im a lil PISSED OFF that we have NO lcue what is going on and NOONE has bothered to call and they KNOW where to reach us. GGGRRRR!!!!

On a HAPPIER note:
Owen is doing GREAT!!! Either tonight or tomorow they will be moving him into an actual bassinett and out of his little "box" (incubator) as he is doing well with maintaining his body temperature. if he gets too cold they will have ot put him back in the incubator. but they think he will do fine. he has gained some weight and you can tell when looking at him...still a small lil guy though. he is at 3 lbs 9 oz now so he is slowly but surely moving on up! they said last night he was staying warm and so he had to use energy to keep his body cooler so they are thinking he should be fine. also, he is up 2 more ccs so now hes over an ounce every 3 hrs (32 ccs) we are glad we have a little fighter on our hands. we are probably going to have our hands full too between him AND vinny. ;)) the joys of having boys! ;)) oh and also, he is going to be fed now 3xs a day witha bottle now instead of just two as they think he is doing great with the bottle feeds and sean is going to feed him tonight for the first time ever. i will post pics later ;)

march 27th-out of the NICU side

March 27, 2008 - Thursday
out of the NICU side 3-27-08 Current mood: cheerful
so when we went in to see him this afternoon we found out that in a few mins after we got there they would be moving him out of the NICU side of the room and into the intermediate section (which is closer to the door...they say the closer you are to the door the closer you are to going home). they took the monitor off that keeps track of how much oxygen he is getting as they said we need ot be watching him and not the screen when it goes off cuz at home we wont have a monitor to tell us if he stops breathing...A LOT scary. but he is doing good. he is up to 30 ccs now and i get to go back tonight and bottle feed him again and they are seeing about otmorow having me try and BF him too. so he is moving on up in the preemie world. ;))
now we know it will still be several weeks before he gets to come home but we are moving in the right direction. i am soo proud of my lil guy!
****Added at 8:57 p.m.********
so we went back tot he hospital and they had me try and BF him....didnt go to well. he wasnt having it UNTIL after we decided to just give him the bottle. honestly the bottle is fine with me as it seems easier for him to figure out and he is still so young (gestational wise) that in time he can pick up the BF part. he did AWESOME witht he bottle. even better than he did last night. he went to town on it and drank it all and then wanted more as he kept shoving my hand in his mouth and sucking on it.lol. it was funny cuz he kept giving me this look while he was sucking on my hand like "hey, wheres the milk?!"
Well, i should go as vinny decided to color his face and hands with marker. i am going to try and get a pic of it and ill post later. theres only soo much a two yr old can do in a hotel room.lol.