Week at Grammy's!

 

The boys spent a week up north with Grammy Pammy and Grandpa Howie!

 

They were good little travelers!

 

 

Kiddie cocktails at Gina's!

 

9am at Sand Beach!

 

Max in the sandbox while Liam was off on the boat with Grandpa, catching 20 fish!

 

They had a great time and came home with lots of great stories!

Can't wait til next time, Grammy!

Just Breathe

** Update: we are back from the allergist, and Liam is allergic to GRASS! We were so relieved to find out the cause of his breathing issues! The doctor suggested we try Claritin, Zyrtec or Allegra to see if he gets some relief with that. Liam thinks being allergic to grass is very hilarious, and we are glad that is all it is!**

Liam has been having some breathing issues that are concerning, so we brought him in to the doctor to get it checked out. He often feels a little short of breath (not gasping for air, just like he has to breathe deeply) and will stop what he is doing to focus on breathing. We took him in to see the nurse practitioner last week and she ordered a neck x-ray to make sure there wasn't anything stuck in his throat or causing air blockage (there wasn't.) She gave us some acid reflux medication and a referral to an ENT doctor.

The problem has persisted, and we decided to get a second opinion from his pediatrician before going with an ENT. I just don't think it has anything to do with his throat, and everything to do with his breathing. Dr. Boyd agreed, and thinks it is either allergies or asthma. He didn't think it was anything more serious than that (thank goodness) and said Liam's heart and lungs sound great. We have an appointment with an allergist next week to figure out for sure what is going on.

In the meantime, we've got the dehumidifier going in Liam's downstairs bedroom and have moved his hamster out of his room for now. We're just trying to figure out if he's reacting to the new hamster or the air in the basement. It doesn't seem to have made much of a difference, and he doesn't ever have symptoms when he is in his room. We still plan to ask the allergist about those things as triggers, though.

Liam has been so good about going to so many doctors and has been so patient as they check him out. Maxwell has gone with for both appointments and has sat amazingly quiet, too! Hopefully we'll have good news from the allergist and this will be something minor and fixable! We'll keep you posted!

Butterfly Launch

Max got a caterpillar-to-butterfly kit from Auntie Doris and Heather for his birthday. He has faithfully checked on them for weeks, just waiting for them to emerge from their cocoons. One by one they appeared, and Max marveled as they stretched their wings and started flying around.



Today was Butterfly Launch Day, so we took them outside and set them free.

Max was super excited to see them fly, but he didn't realize that they wouldn't come back. So, he cried and cried after they had all flown away, but calmed down when we explained that they were happy now with all that room to fly, and maybe they'd come back to visit! I think he thought this was going to be like taking them for a walk, and then he'd get to put them back in the cage! I was so sad for him, but glad that he had such a good time watching them grow!

And maybe we'll just have to get some more caterpillars...and start all over again!

Newport State Park

I went on my first solo camping trip this weekend!

Newport State Park is at the tip of Door County - 14 camp sites right on the shores of Lake Michigan. And about a half mile to a mile between campsites. Heaven.

I hiked my gear in 1.5 miles and set up my tent right on the sand, with a beautiful view of the lake!

It was a little overcast, but I spent the afternoon reading on the rocky shoreline and hiking around my campsite.

The sun snuck out for a few minutes! I could hear these waves roaring from my tent all night long!

Lots of birds to keep me company.

 

This little guy didn't like me getting too near a nest and did a fake "injured wing" dance every time I got too close!

 

I woke up from a nap to find the sky turning dark - and my rain fly right where I left it - AT HOME. So, I rigged up a garbage bag on the outside of the tent and an upside down umbrella tied to a bungee cord inside the tent. I think it would have kept me dry - HAD IT EVER RAINED! I was convinced it was going to storm, and there was not a drop of rain all night long. Oh, well!

 

 

 

After a quiet night in the tent, I woke up to a beautiful sunny morning on the beach! This is the view from my tent!

The sun stayed out and the breeze came in off the water while I packed up my site.

Last look at the view...time to hike back out! And that is a lot of crap to carry...I'm packing lighter next time!

And safely back home! Can't wait to do it again!

Fun at Grammy's!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Star of the Week

Liam is "star of the week" this week, and gets to bring in something special for show and share. He decided he wanted to bring his hamster in to show his friends. So, with his teacher's permission, Max and I hauled Harry and his cage to the kindergarten classroom today! Liam's friends were very excited about it and crowded around the cage for a look!

Mrs. V had everyone sit in a circle on the floor and then Liam sat in the center with the hamster cage and talked about it! His speech went a little something like this:

"This is my hamster, Harry. Sometimes my mom calls him 'Harold'! Hamsters are a lot of work and you have to be really responsible to take care of them. You have to feed them and clean their cages. If you take very good care of them, they can live up to three years."

He then took questions from all his friends, which varied from "what is there toilet paper in his house for?" to "can a hamster climb onto your head?" He was so well spoken I almost cried. His soon-to-be Doctor of Communications auntie would be proud of him!

I forgot my camera, so you'll just have to trust me that it was super cute!