Us: July 2009

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

New Tricks

Since Sam has turned one he has become quite the linguist. He has his own versions of Grandpa, Grandma, rock, water, hot, help, goodnight, hi, fish, and apple, all dogs are "ra-ra's" (as in Rocco) and all Sesame Street characters are "la-la-la-la's" (as in the song for Elmo's World). But of course the ones we love best are mama, dada, and my-my (Miles). I also finally caught his animal noises on video. He has been making all of these noises for a few months, but I can never seem to get them all on video. He has also learned how to climb on the chairs in the living room, he has been practicing for awhile and finally mastered it today. As you can see he is very proud of himself.

A Year Later

A few days after Sam came home.

Today.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

The Blanket

You would never think that a blanket could be so much fun for two boys.

The Astronauts

With the 40th anniversary of the moon landing this past week, we have watched lots of new space shows lately (Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Science Channel- Miles' favorite channels). Tonight was "In the the Shadow of the Earth", and Miles got dressed up for the occasion. Sam followed.

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Cincinnati

Here we go...

We took Grandma Ellen's suggestion and walked around Hyde Park. We found a place where Sam could run around and play, which he deserved following Day 1's procedure at the hospital.

Sam waited very patiently for Day 2's procedure (exam and biopsy under anesthesia). The hospital has a group of people called Child Life Specialists, whose only job is to bring toys to the kids and play with them while they wait for and undergo different procedures. They also have a room called the Induction Room. They let parents come into a room just outside the operating room to stay with them while they are put to sleep. I held Sam and they put the mask on his face. He fell asleep and I put him onto the table, kissed him, and walked out (crying).

Overlooking the Ohio River and Downtown Cincinnati from the Kentucky side. Yes- in 5 days, if you include our stops at different airports, Sam visited 4 states. Well 5, if you include Nevada.

So hotel rooms are really not the best places for active 1 year olds to hang out. We did our best to keep him busy. I hope they didn't need this phone book.

So here is what we learned...
Sam's original surgery was done well, however there are two different types of surgical procedures to treat Hirschsprung's. The procedure that Sam had left a cuff around the lower end of his colon (this is common). He will need to have his surgery re-done. Bummer. He will have his surgery in October at the hospital in Cincinnati. The great news is that the doctor there is wonderful. This is his specialty. He is confident that he can fix Sam. But another surgery is not something we look forward to. However, Sam is one tough kid.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

And then he was one...

It is hard to believe that one year ago today we welcomed this new person into the world, having no idea what kind of fight he would be in for. So, congratulations to our little fighter.