Bowl-A-Thon 2010!

Well today was the Spina Bifida Bowl-a-Thon, and Caleb had an absolute BALL! 

I love these ramps so that wheelchair users can bowl.  Caleb was so excited about bowling, the kid could barely contain himself.  He was so cute.

Daddy helping Caleb get his ball on the ramp.

Caleb and his mommy.

Benjamin was too young to bowl but not too young to try "dippin dots" for the first time.  Of course, he loved them.  Caleb did too.  I couldn't get Caleb to bowl once Glenn got the dippin dots, because he was so worried that Benjamin would eat them all while he was bowling.

Caleb cooling himself off at the fan....

....and no blog post is complete without a picture of Caleb picking his nose!  That's my boy!

We want to thank those of you that supported Caleb and the Spina Bifida Association by making a donation.  This organization means a lot to us and we so appreciate every donation we received. 

Benjamin, Benjamin, Benjamin

While Big brother Caleb is doing  his horseback riding, I have to keep Benjamin entertained.  We went outside to look at the horses.  I got a few cute pictures of my little 14 month old and thought I would share.

 I sat him down in the grass, actually I don't think it was grass...maybe weeds.  Anyway...

...he was not a fan of touching the grass.  I've definitely noticed that he has a couple of texture issues.  He really wanted to crawl around but he didn't want to touch the grass so he wasn't sure what to do about it.  

He's looking at the grass, trying to figure it out...but nope not going to touch it.

He's shoveling baby goldfish crackers into his mouth.  Cheerios have recently taken a backseat to the cheddar cheesiness of baby goldfish crackers.  Benjamin says "mo" (his version of more) anytime he wants to eat (which is all the time), so at home I'll walk him to the pantry and ask him what he wants...he points to the baby goldfish bag every time.  

And this is when I dropped ALL the baby goldfish crackers on the ground, leaving Benjamin with no more snack.  I shamefully admit that I pondered VERY briefly to just dust the crackers off and let Benjamin eat them but I quickly decided that was not a good idea since they were on the ground at a horse stable.  Don't worry, I'm not in the habit of feeding my children food off the ground. 

Benjamin's eye surgery is set for next Tuesday so keep him (and me) in your prayers.  I'm certain everything will go fine but I'm a mommy and I hate the thought of him having to be put to sleep. 

Bounce House field trip

Caleb's class went on a field trip today to this huge bounce house place.  It is basically a huge building with several different bounce houses and the kids get to go absolutely crazy!  Here are a few pictures:

Caleb rode the school bus to the bounce house place.  This was only his second time to ride the bus but he was super excited about it.  I'm a dork so of course I had to take a picture!  I take pictures of everything.

Benjamin crawling around in a bounce house.  He's too young to really enjoy it but I think he had a good time anyway.

Caleb wanted to go down the slides all by himself...such a big boy.  It was hard to get a good picture but here he is soaring down the slide. 

 Benjamin with mom and dad inside a bounce house.  

Benjamin going for a ride in a little car.  He really enjoyed that.

Caleb taking Benjamin for a ride.  Hopefully Benjamin won't try this on top of a real car!  Maybe this is a glimpse of our future with 2 teenage boys...Caleb driving a car and Benjamin hanging on to the roof!  Can you imagine?

Bounce House fun works up quite an appetite so it was off to McDonald's for some chicken nuggets.  He liked to dip the nuggets into the caramel sauce that came with the apples, mmmmm yummy.

Here are a couple of short videos for you viewing pleasure...

Caleb flying down the slide!  The kid had a blast.

Benjamin giving Glenn the cutest grin! 

Spina Bifida Clinic

Well today was Spina Bifida Clinic day, and for those of you that have kiddos with SB you know what a LONG day clinic days can be.  We are blessed to have such a wonderful hospital in the metroplex that focuses on kiddos with orthopedic issues.  The morning started with Caleb's dentist appointment.

Caleb does absolutely AMAZING for the dentist.  I could not be more proud of him.  No one likes the dentist but he is such a trooper and does great!  The staff is so great and really tries to make the kids feel comfortable, the dentist let him try out some of the equipment which Caleb thought was really cool.  All-in-all Caleb's teeth look pretty good, no cavities!  She said he would likely need braces one day but that's no big deal.  He's already got braces for his legs so he'll just have braces in his mouth too!

We spend a lot of time in a little room during clinic days while a dozen different people come in a look at Caleb so we have to be creative to keep the kiddo entertained.  A small container of playdough did the trick today.  We made a snowman.  

Caleb saw a variety of professionals today, therapists, orthotists, orthopedic surgeon, dietitian....and they were all pleased with his progress and how well he is doing.  We got an A+!  Caleb did great today, he only cried when they did some blood work...but who can blame him, that hurts.

At MeMe's

We took a trip to MeMe's this weekend.  It's been a few months since we've been able to visit her so it was a nice trip.  Here are a few pictures from our weekend:

Caleb and I at a restaurant.  

Benjamin at the restaurant.  His favorite thing to do now is to take his food and throw it on the floor.  When we got up to leave there was a lovely pile of food under his chair. 

MeMe's backyard.  It was a beautiful day on Sunday so we spent some time outside.

Glenn took Caleb for a ride in the wheelbarrow.  Poor Benjamin was napping and missed all the outdoor fun.  

Caleb in the wheelbarrow.

Me and my big boy.

Benjamin loves Caleb's wheelchair so we sat him in it.  

We had a good time at MeMe's.  We had to cut our visit short because Caleb started throwing up and we weren't sure if it was something serious (shunt malfunction or kidney infection) so we decided to come home just in case we had to go to the hospital.  Caleb is fine now so I guess something just didn't agree with his tummy. 

More SNOW!

It has snowed all day in Texas!  I think we got about 7 inches so far, it's crazy!!  We took the boys back out in the snow this afternoon.  Here are a few pictures:

Using a laundry basket as a sled.  Caleb had too much fun!

Caleb falling out of the laundry basket because Glenn was going too fast.  He's still smiling though.

Caleb getting a mouth full of snow when he tipped over and fell on his face!

Benjamin going for a ride with big brother.

Caleb had a blast...Benjamin not so much.  He tolerated it for a few minutes and then he was done. 

SNOW!!

We woke up this morning to find snow covering the yard and street.  It has been snowing and snowing all day today.  I've never seen snow like this!  It's absolutely gorgeous.  Of course, Caleb was begging to go out and play in it so I took the boys outside to enjoy the snow.

Caleb and Benjamin checking out the snow together.

Caleb is loving the snow, having an absolute blast.

Thinking about it....hmmm....not too sure about this cold, wet stuff. 

Cute little hand.  Benjamin didn't really want to touch it.

The snow is still coming down as I post this.  I can't wait for Caleb to wake up from his nap so that we can go back out...maybe build a snowman.

Surgery Scheduled

Well Benjamin's eye surgery has been scheduled.  He will have a stint placed into his tear duct on March 2.  It is an out-patient procedure so as soon as he comes out of anesthesia we can take him home.  The procedure only takes about 15 minutes.  The stint will stay in the tear duct for 6 months and then the doctor will pull it out (doesn't the thought of that just give you chills?).  I'm not happy about it but it needs to be done.  I'm sure it isn't much fun to have a goopy eye all the time.   He's so stinkin' cute!  And rotten!  He is already doing "mini tantrums".  He arches his back and gets as stiff as a board so that you can hardly hold him!  It's crazy.  I'm just waiting for the day when he throws himself on the ground kicking and screaming in the middle of Target.  

PT and Piano

Ms. Vickie came today for physical therapy.  She is always bringing out new things for Caleb to try and today she brought a floor piano.  Caleb was so excited about it.  She had him walk down the piano several times in order to play the music.  He had a ball.   Here are a couple of pictures and a video.

Here is just a random video of Benjamin.  He loves to play at the fireplace and he will take Caleb's cars with him.  He will stand at the fireplace and just play with those cars forever.  It's so cute to watch.

Benjamin snoozing

I couldn't resist taking these pics of Benjamin this morning as he was napping.  He loves to snuggle with a burp cloth while he sleeps, and as you can see, he has buried his face into the cloth.  So cute.

I still haven't called the eye doctor yet, I'm procrastinating.  His eye actually looks good today but I think I am just in denial and putting off the inevitable...surgery.  Oh, and he is sleeping wonderfully!  He has slept until almost 8 am the past 2 days!!  Woo Hoo!

Pictures from the week

Here are a few pictures from this past week:

Benjamin looking at books.  I'm so impressed at how well he plays by himself.  It is so fun to watch him.

Of course, he had to see how the books taste!  I'm sorry to say that I think Benjamin is going to need that eye surgery for his tear duct.  The drops seemed to be working great and his eye looked wonderful for a couple of weeks....but this week, not so good.  He woke up this morning and couldn't even open his eye because of all the gunk.  I was really hoping it would get better, I really don't want to do this.  I feel like throwing a big tantrum about it!  I just hate the thought of putting him to sleep.  You'd think that I would be a pro at this by now, Caleb's been put to sleep at least 5 times and I have been 4 times.  I don't think there is anyway around it though, we've got to get this tear duct thing fixed.  I'll keep all of you posted.  

Caleb and Benjamin playing at the window together.  Wherever Caleb is...Benjamin is close by.  It's so funny because Caleb will go somewhere to play (away from Benjamin) but Ben follows him, so Caleb will move somewhere else...and Benjamin follows him.  It's hysterical!  

I mentioned on facebook the other day that Caleb has turned into a chronic nose picker...and here is the proof!  I wonder where that booger ended up?  His shirt?  The couch?  The floor?  Who knows...I'm sure I'll find a dried up booger somewhere!!  At least he isn't wiping them on Benjamin...yet.

Spina Bifida Bowl-A-Thon

 

Hello family and friends! The annual Spina Bifida Association of North Texas Bowl-A-Thon is right around the corner and we need your support.  The SBANT's mission is to promote the prevention of Spina Bifida and to enhance the lives of all affected.  The Bowl-A-Thon is the organizations main fundraiser for the year.  The funds raised help the North Texas Spina Bifida community by funding the many activities and programs for local children, and adults, that have Spina Bifida.  Because of the SBANT, Caleb has been able to attend a variety of events like the Easter Egg Hunt, Family Day at the lake, Family Camp at Camp John Marc, and more.  We have been so blessed by the SBANT and it has made a huge impact in our lives and the life of Caleb.  Because of this organization we have met and connected with so many families that also have young children with Spina Bifida.  

Please consider supporting the SBANT by making a pledge or donation.  You can choose to make a flat donation or you can pledge .10 cents per pin (Caleb bowled a 57 last year).  The Bowl-A-Thon will take place on February 27, 2010.
Please let me know if you are interested in making a pledge or donation.  Thank you for your support.
Cassie