Spring has Sprung

Well it's only been 12 short days since I updated last, but sheesh I have a lot to catch up on. If I didn't feel so darn sick all the time I would probably update more! Last week was the worst, in retrospect, I think I had a little virus that Joel and Ethan had the week before but at the time I thought I might be dying. (I know I am TOTALLY dramatic) Since January Greg has been traveling like a mad man which compounds our craziness and to top everything off we are having the rec room in our basement finished so my entire house is full of hammering, pounding, and a fine layer of dry wall and saw dust. (It's going to get 1000x worse tomorrow when they start taping and mudding, yikes!).

So here goes, here is my best effort at reliving most of March:

On the 14th Greg turned 36. We celebrated with a crock pot cake, unfortunately he wasn't that impressed. Lucky for him the next day we celebrated Madison's birthday (a friend of the boys) and Connie sent him home with two HUGE pieces of her amazing cakes!

In the last couple of weeks Gabe and Joel have really started to hang out more. They especially like to sit together and play starfall on the computer. I think it is so cute and reminds me of two other little heads who used to sit together and play...how did Sam and Ethan grow up so fast!?

The third week of March should have been renamed Walter Reed week! On Wednesday Sam and I had an appointment with the pediatric GI. He is such a nice guy but a real talker. We were in his office over an hour. I learned some really interesting things about food allergies, we feel certain that Sam is food allergy free. He explained to me that the cells in your skin are very different from those in your nasal cavaties and stomach, meaning just because you do or do not test positive for an allergy on your skin does not mean you are allergic to said item. For instance, Sam does not show allergy skin reactions to trees and weeds even though he really struggles in the spring and fall. This is because his skin cells do not have an allergic reaction (which is what was tested) but his nasal cavaties are obviously a different story (does this all make sense). This explains why 1000's of children are being diagnosed with food allergies that they may or may not have. I found all of this extremly fascinating!

We are all still a little perplexed about his random puking incidents. Doctor D. is going to run a few more tests on him but since he hasn't had a reoccuring epsiode in over a year we are going to let it rest unless he starts to have problems again. On April 1, we head over to Bathesda to have a scan of his kidneys. He can't eat for five hours before hand and his appointments at 2:30, should make for an interesting day!

Sam clearly has a healthy appetite. That's him completing his first six inch sub at subway. No more kids meals for that kid!

Two days after Sam's Walter Reed visit we made another visit for Ethan. We really do enjoy going to see his pediatric opthomologist Dr. Birdsong. He is such a nice man and has tons of toys!! After some careful consideration Dr. Birdsong has decided to put Ethan in bifocals. I'll have to take some pics of his new glasses, he looks so handsome. The bottom of his new lense is a +3 power, which is pretty stinkin' strong. The top remains clear for now, but will probably be adjusted in the future for his astigmatism. These bifocals are often called "training glasses" according to the internet. When Ethan focuses on things up close his eyes turn in and he gets double vision, without treatment one of his eyes could eventually stop working. Dr. Birdsong feels by about 10 or 12 he will have grow out of needing the glasses, his eyes will be "trained" to focus without turning in.

Have you met Mr. SoberSides? This is the baby who gave me his virus. I now comprehend why we spent the entire last weekend on the couch. He wanted nothing but to be held for about 72 hours. I totally understood, especially on Friday when I laid down on the couch at 1:00 and barely moved until Greg got home at 7:00.

This picture cracks me up because he was dying to have his picture taken, he was yelling CHEESE but as soon as I would click it he would put on this sly look. What a stinker!

Here he is a little happier enjoying his first spoonful of whip cream!! YUM!

Have I mentioned that we like the school we go to? One of the reasons we moved off Fort Belvoir was (well the biggest reason was the drive by shooting in front of our house) the fact that we didn't really care for our school. Fort Belvoir Elementary is HUGE with over 1,300 students in K-6 (and getting bigger by the month). Because it was so big and because the military has such a transient population there weren't a lot of things that were put on well and/or well attended. Our new school is nothing like that. This past weekend was the annual Spring Carnival. The boys had a blast! There were games, prizes, ribbons, cotten candy, popcorn, food, face painting, balloons, and tons, and tons of people. We had to wait over an hour to get face painting, Sam chose this nice dragon!
Ethan, always the outspoken one, chose this super cool pirate!

Gabe, always my conservative cautious pants was very happy with a "colorful soccer ball" on his hand. No FACE painting for him!


You can't miss spring when you see all the wild daffodils and trees blooming!


The boys have been bringing me lots of gifts. Ethan brought me all the purple flowers while singing the wedding march and Sam brought me this lovely Daffodil picture complete with a live daffodil. Poor kid he's been planning it for days but his mean mother (that'd be me) wouldn't let him go down in the woods. He colored this at school and put in his folder, but knowing I always ask for folders first thing he snuck it out and left it in the car. Then when I wasn't looking he put it on his dresser "face down" until I would let him go down in the woods behind our house to pick a wild daffodil. In my defense it's been raining and disgusting and the mud drives me crazy in the house. He was so proud to finally bring it in to me!

My biggest boy brought me a gift too:

On his latest trip to Fort Stewart Greg picked me up these Adirondack chairs. Aren't they beautiful! They are made of cedar and smell divine. The one on the right is a glider. LOVE EM'!!

Hope ya'll are having a lovely spring! Can't wait for summer!!