Seriously?

I've been meaning to finish up Lincoln's birthday posts, and I will. But first, I have to fill you all in on his ENT appt. he had on Tuesday! We drove down to St. Joe for another ENT appointment on Tuesday and I was so excited because the doc said that Lincoln's ears looked perfect! Yeah, NO TUBES! I was thrilled to say the least. The only weird thing was that he said was "he's only had 4 ear infections since January, so that's not too bad..." Seriously? That's one a month!! I think that's a lot, but I guess what do I know?? I was thrilled that my babe wouldn't been having any kind of surgery!

We spent the afternoon and evening at my dad's house. (Nani watched Riley for me during Lincoln's appt. which I was so thankful for since it's 10 times more difficult to take her!) Papa came home early from work and he and Riley flew a kite, played in the sand and on the swing set. She LOVES Papa. Too bad I forgot my camera...

We got ready to leave around 7pm and when I was changing Lincoln into his pj's I noticed that he felt warm. Weird...we drove an hour home and he screamed the whole way, which is VERY unusual. He never cries, especially in the car. I took his temp when we got home and it was about 102. I gave him Tylenol and put him to bed. In the morning he still had a fever. I alternated Tylenol and Motrin ever few hours, gave him a bath to try to break the fever. By evening his temp was almost 104. It finally went down a little bit, so we just put him to bed. Then this morning he was still having a high fever--at least 103+, so I took him to the doctor again this evening.

After checking him over the doc determined that he has a form of hand, foot mouth disease (but only has sores in his mouth...not on his hands and feet) AND an ear infection!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME? WHAT THE HECK? That's what I was thinking. Did we not just get back from the ENT like a day ago and his ears were perfect? So, that's 5 ear infections in 4 months. We'll see how the antibiotics take care of this ear infection and then go from there. I am just so bummed that he's got another one. I also think it's weird that he got an ear infection, somehow on Tuesday somewhere between 1:30 and 6:00 pm. I don't know if the ENT missed something, or if maybe the hand, foot, mouth thing caused the fever then he got an ear infection the next day or what...but if you think of it keep little Lincoln in your prayers because he's pretty miserable!

I promise, next post will be of his birthday party!! :)

A Letter from Lincoln

Dear ear infections #2,952 and #2,953,

You make my ears hurt and don't let me sleep (at night). Mommy is tired and her arms her from holding me all day. Leave my baby ears alone! Please go away and don't come back again!!

Love,
Lincoln

Lincoln @ 9 months

DISCLAIMER: I wrote this when Lincoln was exactly 9 months (2.5 weeks ago, a lot has changed since).

My sweet Lincoln is 9 months old already, I cannot believe it! I thought time flew by when Ri was a baby, but it has gone way quicker with Lincoln! As you can see from the picture the only hair on his head that is growing is his Mohawk!

He is such a sweet and good baby, so content and happy...when he's not sick. The past few months have been rough for him, as far as sickness goes! (Actually it's just been his ears mostly). Here's an update on that: I took him to the dr. on Wednesday for his 9 month check up and to recheck his right ear, which was the one with an infection. Well, Wednesday morning he woke up and when I changed his diaper I noticed a red rash over his whole body. Need less to say, I was glad he had an appointment that morning. After taking him in the doctors they concluded that in addition to his right ear infection, he also (within 3 days) had gotten an ear infection in his left ear and also had Roseola (the rash)...poor Lincoln. He's had such a rough couple of months. They decided to keep him on the Augmentin and hopefully it will help his ears clear up.

Other than him being sick the doctor appointment went well. He weighs 17 lbs. 6 oz. (7th %ile) and is 27.75 inches (40th %ile). He's starting to even out now, like Riley did when she was a baby. They are a little concerned with his weight, but not at the same time. He's lost a couple of ounces since 3 months ago, but it is understandable since he's been sick so often. The doc. said he's very advanced for his age when it comes to his fine motor skills; he waves bye-bye (not on demand though), he's feeding himself, points and with his forefinger, etc. However, he's still not sitting by himself. What I mean is that he has to have his hands on the ground when he's sitting rather than sitting without support of his hands. The doc. seems to think that he's just learning his fine motor skills before his big ones and is doing things in a different order (ie. he crawled way before he sat up). No big deal. He's not even close to standing yet either!

He is starting to eat "big people food" now. Last night he had lasagna and loved it. I've been trying to get him used to big people food because I'm sick of making baby food :). He loves whole milk organic yogurt, eggs, pancakes, and pasta!

He also said his first word on Feb. 13th it was "Dada". Ty was so bummed that he was in New Jersey and didn't get to hear it. He's being saying ba ba ba ba for a while, now he's saying da da and occasionally ma ma! He still only has 2 teeth, good for me! :)

WE MADE IT!

Sorry for the lack of posts while Ty was gone, I was either way too busy or way too tired. BUT...we made it two weeks without him home, and I wasn't sure we would! Ty got home after a long couple of weeks, safe and sound. We were all so excited to see him. We had a busy couple of weeks going to play groups, hanging out with friends, going to see family and doctor appointments. I've got great friends here who went out of their way to make sure we stayed busy and had plenty of company--they don't realize how much I appreciated it!

It was a long two weeks especially because Lincoln wasn't feeling well. When he doesn't feel well, he doesn't sleep well. This time was no exception, except this time I didn't have Ty to give me a break or let me take a nap when I got no sleep. I'm pretty sure that the whole time Ty was gone I didn't get more than 4 hours of sleep a night. Some nights I only got a total of 2 hours. I was simply exhausted. BUT, I have to admit the kids were really good for me. Riley and I had so much fun playing house and being crafty. I'm also teaching her to recognize her letters of the alphabet and can almost point out all of them! Lincoln and I enjoyed snuggling in bed at night, as he slept with me every night (he didn't feel well, so he needed to cuddle :)).

We also went and stayed with my Dad for the weekend. Lincoln had his appointment with an ENT in St. Joe (which is close to where my Dad lives) so we stayed there until after his appointment. A quick summary of his ENT appointment: his ears were clear, no fluid and when hooked up to the specific machine his ear drums sent back vibrations (or something like that). All I know is that is a good thing--so NO tubes--or at least not yet. The doctor said he doesn't like to do tubes on babies younger than 1--which is fine by me! So, lets just keep praying that he gets over these stupid ear infections! He'll be seen again in 3 months at the ENT and at the pedicitian's office if he gets any more ear infections of course.

We hung out with my friend Molly and her kids a lot. Riley and Evan play so well together and Cannon and Lincoln pretty much ignore each other :). We also went to McDonalds a lot (not to eat, but to play) with friends.

Riley and Evan finger painting!

I have to admit I got a little bit jealous of Ty being in New Jersey because when he wasn't working and during the weekend he spent the whole time in New York City visiting sites, eating at expensive restaurants, seeing a Broadway play, shopping and so much more while I was stuck at home being mom and dad! Don't get me wrong, I'm so glad he was able to experience that because he hasn't traveled much, I just wish I were there with him!!

Ty's flight from Detroit to Kzoo had gotten cancelled so he and his coworkers rented a car so they could get home earlier. Man, was I glad. I saw him and jumped into his arms to welcome him home. The kids were excited to see him too and acted like he had never left. Once he got settled in again I broke the news to him that I never once took out the trash. If you know me at all, I HATE taking out the trash (he knows it too)...so he came home to this out our slider door:


I thought he was going to kill me :). How hillbilly-ish does that look? I'm sure people think we're crazy because trash was piling up outside our door. Oh how I hate taking out the trash, thankfully my wonderful husband took care of it first thing :).

After that we went out for a nice dinner and came home, put the kids to bed then he told me he had gotten me something. I was so excited, I love surprises!!! I had to close my eyes and hold out my hands. This is what he got me:


Not 1, but 2 Coach PURSES. WHOOO HOOO!! I was so excited and really needed a new one! Then we and cuddled on the couch the rest of the night!! All in all, we're so thankfully that he's home. I really realized how much easier he makes my life and how much I truly miss him when he's gone.

They're baaaaaack....

What's back you ask? Lincoln's ear infections!! Oh, so frustrating! This past week Lincoln acted like he was getting a cold (he was congested and had a runny nose--at the same time), then Friday he woke up in the middle of the night, which he never does unless he's sick, I nursed him and he felt like he had a fever. He went back to sleep, so I just let him sleep. Saturday he acted like he didn't feel well so I called the Urgent Care in Kzoo and took him in on Sunday morning. Sure enough, they confirmed my suspicions: he had another ear infection and a fever of about 101. They gave me a script for Augmentin and sent us on our way. Poor Lincoln just didn't feel well at all and when he was awake he cried for hours! I felt so bad for him. He also hadn't been eating baby food a whole lot.

I put him to bed at 7:30 last night and the whole night he kept moving around and whining in his sleep. He finally woke up at 12am and when I picked him up I could tell he was burning up! I gave him some Tylenol and took his temp (underarm) and it was close to 104! I knew a rectal temp. would be even higher because it's more accurate. I called the ER to ask them if I should bring him in and they advised me to. So, Lincoln and I were at the ER from about 12:30 until 4 am. They gave him some stuff to get his fever down and that's about it. He slept through most of it--he was so tired and just laid there, limp, in my arms!

His fever is down this morning, but now he's throwing up everything he ingests (food, medicine, etc.) We've got a follow-up appt. tomorrow morning at his doctor's office. I plan on having him seen again at another ENT (I didn't like the previous one we visited) and if they think that he needs tubes in his ears we're going to just going to go through with it. I feel like there is no reason for my little guy to go through all of this when it could be prevented. So, if you think of it, throw up a prayer for Lincoln that he feels better!

Lincoln @ 7 AND 8 months

Story of my life, I'm way behind and can't get caught up, so I'm combining posts.


Lincoln has grown and changed so much over the past sevens months, it's hard to believe that my little baby is starting to grow up and become much more independent!! This month Lincoln has started to sit up by himself, he definitely found his tongue and is still crawling all over the place! He's still eating solids and man can he eat!! He's tried just about everything already. From sweet potatoes (his first food) to homemade avocados! He's had a major issue with ear infections this month-there was one point where he had 5 infections within 6 weeks. Thankfully they've seemed to run their course and he hasn't had one in about 2 1/2 weeks!! Because of his ear infections he wasn't sleeping well...at all!! I mean waking up 2-3 times a night. I was exhausted for 6 weeks, but felt bad because I knew he wasn't feeling well.

As I said, Lincoln started sitting up all by himself this month, however, he really doesn't like sitting. I'll sit him up and he'll purposefully fall onto his belly so he can crawl. Oh well, he'll do it when he wants to!

It's hard for me to figure out how much he actually weighed at 7 months because he kept losing weight, gaining weight and losing again. At one point he was 17 lbs. 14 oz. then the next week he was only 17 lbs. even. So, I'd say somewhere in between there!

These pictures totally capture the type of baby Lincoln is--so happy and so much fun! Rarely does he cry or fuss! He, thankfully, is sleeping through the night again. Once his ears cleared up I slept on the couch for 3 nights, so I wouldn't feed him at night and when he woke up we let him cry for a minute of two and he went right back to bed!

At 8 1/2 months he finally got his first 2 teeth, a day apart! I knew they were coming, not because he was crabby, but because he was drooling like it was his job! He got his two bottom teeth (I'll see if I can get pictures soon and post them). I just pray that he doesn't bite me when I'm nursing him! I never had that problem with Riley, so I hope I don't with Lincoln either!

He's still nursing 5 times a day (every 3 hours) and eating 3 meals a day and one snack. He's already feeding himself--cheerios, peas, etc. He loves picking them up with his thumb and finger and putting them into his mouth. His favorite food, by far, are peas, green beans, and sweet potatoes! Weird, I think, because those are the ones most kids don't like. Although he's not a picky eater and he'll eat just about anything I'll give him :)!

He's starting to get quite the little personality. He LOVES playing peek-a-boo and he and Riley play for a long time in her rose petal cottage. They are starting to become best buds. First thing when Lincoln wakes up in the morning, Riley says "Lincoln play mommy". So, once he's eaten he and Riley play on the floor or she'll read him books. So cute... Oh and he also hates getting his diaper changed, probably because it means he has to lay still for 30 seconds.

Lincoln is quite the momma's boy. He has begun the "seperation anxiety" period. I can't leave him anywhere--church nursery or MOPS or anywhere. So, he usually ends up with me wherever I am. It's not that I mind, but a little break every once in a while would be nice and is much needed!

At 8 1/2 months (01.27.09) Lincoln weighs 17 lbs. 12 oz. and is 27 1/2 inches long!

Prayer request for Lincoln

I have mentioned it before but Lincoln has been sleeping horribly lately and has been having a lot of ear infections. Well, when we went to my Dad's this past weekend Lincoln got sick again. When we got back I took him to see the doctor and sure enough he had another ear infection, actually a double ear infection. Poor Lincoln has had 5 separate ear infections in 6 weeks and has been on 5 different antibiotics within those weeks as well. Anyways, to make a LONG story short, we've got an appointment with the ENT doctor because they think Lincoln may need tubes in his ears. They are afraid if we don't do something about it quickly it may affect his speech development because he may not be able to hear very well. When they told me that and what the tubes entailed I just started crying...I can't imagine having my poor little baby going through all of that. But, I do realize it will help him in the long run. So just pray that his ears will heal and he'll stop having infections and also for the doctors that they'll make the right decisions. (Also, that I can get some sleep, because he hasn't been sleeping well AT ALL the last 2 months and I'm starting to get worn down!)