A life less lived

I can't believe it has been so long since I blogged. I think about it every night but never get around to it. So much has happened in such a short period of time . We had our dermatology appointment and he said it is just a benign birthmark and we should not worry about it. The nephrology appointment showed his kidney is actually getting better on it's own (yipee) the blood work was a little off but surprisingly it was not his calcium levels. I have to email Dr. Morris some questions. Our pedia. didn't answer my questions and just said we will retest next time(6 months from now) we come in. We had a great visit with our cousins. A house full of kids was a challenge but we survived. Five kids under the age of five for four days over the holiday weekend! Had fun at the petting zoo, kids museum, and beach.

How did he manage to climb up on the couch? Still don't know! Dermatologist appointment went well. Nothing to follow up with. Horray. We have been sooooo busy and he has been so incredibly good. Very little complaining about all the running around and not sticking to our schedules. My little munchkin is starting to look more like a little boy and less like a baby.

Happy Birthday Autumn. I can't believe you are five already.

Took Autumn for her birthday pictures. She is almost five!. Where has the time gone. As a bonus I got this adorable picture of the two of them together.(See photo at the top) Aiden looking like a farmer boy. He was so good during the photo session. He also amazed me at the Father's Day brunch. Made it through 90 % of the meal before he starting getting fussy. This was a huge improvement over most restaurant trips. I usually dread eating out because it is more stressful on me and forget about enjoying my meal. Hopefully as he gets older and stronger we will keep moving in this direction. He surprised me at the last visit to the pediatric doctor as well. He didn't cry! Maybe because big sis got seen first or because he is just growing and changing a bit. He is giving kisses out upon request now. Very cute. He loves when two people are near him and he gets to bop his head back and forth between us and alternate kissing each of us. A game to him but it melts my heart. He is such a momma's boy.

I've stopped worrying about the future. Really can focus on the here and now. Even still there are good days and bad. Only one year since we found about about Williams Syndrome. It still seems like a dream. All that we went through with our baby boy. The scars from two surgeries serve as a constant reminder of how far we have come. He is such a joy. I wait for the day he calls me Mom and means me. Waiting for him to run around the yard. Still not sure why it has to be this way for our family yet I feel blessed to have such wonderful kids. It's just hard some days.

Can it get any hotter here? The kiddies are loving the sprinkler and kiddie pool. Aiden would sit in the pool and splash all day if I let him. He cries any time I try to remove him from the pool or the tub. He took several steps during PT today and started clapping for himself. So close to walking, can't wait. His favorite word is open and uses it all day for anything he comes across. Autumn's officially home on summer vacation. First day home and as expected therapy was rough for her. She wanted to play and be the center of attention. Tried talking with her reasoning with a four year old! Let her play some but she started getting carried away. Grandma suggested computer time during therapy . I'm going to try it tomorrow. I have three months with four days a week therapy ahead and have to nip the issue in the bud now. My poor girlie . 

The beach is on our to do list. Splashing in the backyard pool, enjoying ices on the deck. Sleeping late and taking swim lessons. I could stop there and it sounds like all the plans families have for their summer break. What is not on their mind is the nephrology appointment, kidney ultrasound, blood test, urine test and oh just for added fun dermatology appointment. Six month IEP meeting and adding a speech therapist. I was waiting for school to end so I could more easily schedule all his doctor follow ups. I really don't know what I am going to do to keep Autumn happy during all the therapy and doctor appointments. I scheduled most sessions while she was at school but now she is off the whole summer. I really need to have a game plan. I have tried rewards, playdates, bribes, tv time and  she always seems to misbehave during therapy. She is too young to understand why these people are here to "play " with her brother and not her. We let her play with some of the toys  but she still wants all the attention. I probably need to start a reward chart. Good behavior during therapy and she gets a star etc....