Labor Day & "West Fargo"

Our Labor Day weekend was spent as usual, relaxing and taking in the Box Car Days festivities.  Colin loved the rides and games and got to skip his nap and go to the Labor Day parade for the first time.  Lydia had fun swimming and watching her brother on the rides. 

14 years & 4 kids later...

Happy girl with dad at the parade

The sun was apparently too bright...

He was so excited to be on the Spider-Man motorcycle!

From Grandma and Grandpa's we took off for South Dakota (or West Fargo, as Colin often called it) and the Black Hills.  Our ultimate destination was Deadwood where I had meetings for work.  John had never been out there so we made sure to stop and be tourists every chance we could.

Wall Drug had a [newer?] "backyard" area that was fun.
Too bad it was 90 degrees at 11:00AM.

Trying to make it to the other side without getting hit by the fountains.
This turned into a fun game until he slipped and fell.  Then it was tears
all the way back to the car.

Our last stop before the hotel was Reptile Gardens in Rapid City.  It was fun to see the shows and America's largest crocodile. But it was HOT that day and we were all ready to be done riding in the car. 

 

Alligator show at Reptile Gardens



Feeding time

Colin wouldn't touch the tortoises so dad had to show him it was ok

While I was at meetings the next day, John took the kids to the fish hatchery in Spearfish. Colin says this was one of his favorite things (and it was free - even better!). He was fascinated with all of the ducks and trout.

Feeding the ducks

 

Room service picnic







Our last must-see was Mount Rushmore. We were wavering on whether we should actually go a half hour out of our way to see something that Colin wouldn't even understand (or remember) but in the end it was totally worth it. It's a lot different now than I remember it and John definitely enjoyed it. Even Colin got something out of it, even if it was only that their ice cream is yummy. :)

 











Pretty sad family picture.
I should note that we ran into someone from Tracy when
I asked her to take our picture. Small world!



It was too hot to walk any longer!

I have to say that our South Dakota "vacation" really was a great time - even if chaotic at times. I'm so thankful my three favorite people were able to make the trek with me! 

Grand View

This post has apparently been sitting as a draft for months.  Here are some pics from our trip to Grand View in June with all of the Holts.

7 months

Our Liddy girl is 7 months old!  She continues to be such a happy girl & has really fit into our family perfectly.  We are so fortunate!

Lydia is still a peanut, although 2 meals of solids each day have started to round out her tummy a little more.  We haven't found a fruit or veggie that she isn't a fan of yet - so far sweet potatoes, peaches, and pears seem to be favorites.  She is very much a routine girl; up at 6:45, naps at 9:00 and 1:00 (and sometimes a catnap at 5:00), last nurses at 7:00 and is in bed for the night around 7:15. 

Likes:  sitting and standing to play, banging toys together, chewing on her feet, sitting in the bathtub

Dislikes:  getting dressed, having nails trimmed, being on tummy

  

6 months

August brought another milestone for Lydia - 6 months old!  It's amazing to think that half of a year has gone by already.  She is changing every day and her personality is really starting to evolve.  

Likes:  sitting up, watching herself in the mirror, laughing at her brother, eating purees

Dislikes:  getting dressed, unfamiliar faces

Weight:  13lbs. 8oz.

One for the baby book

Colin has been a [somewhat] regular in the ENT department at Sanford over the last 9 months. We were referred to his doctor by our Speech Pathologist who discovered he has a bifid uvula ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bifid_uvula.JPG) and possible submucous cleft palate. What started out as a confirmation appointment for the two previous oddities ended up showing that Colin’s tonsils and adenoids were extremely large and contributing to his speech and sleep apnea. Fast forward to July 10, 2013: the little man went under general anesthesia for a tonsillectomy and modified adenoidectomy. The doctor removed the majority of the adenoids up in the nasal cavity but left a larger portion toward the bottom so as to prevent VPI and nasal regurgitation (due to the bifid uvula).

Going in to surgery, Colin was pretty apprehensive. His mood that morning was pretty cheery though and it made his day to see this in his hospital room.

His very own room! We also gave him a new puppy that John told him was going to help him be brave. He latched on instantly and named him Fuzzy Lovey Puppy. :) 

Everyone at Sanford was fantastic in making it a special and comforting experience for Colin (& us!). He rode down to the OR in a wagon, got to pick out stickers, and even had lovey bear and puppy in the OR with him. The surgery itself lasted about a half an hour and we spent some time visiting with Dr. Elliott afterward. He was very pleased with how things went and also decided to treat Colin for chronic sinusitis based on what he saw in the nasal cavity. Add 3 weeks worth of meds to the post-op fun!  Because of our long visit, Colin was already awake when I arrived in the PACU – I could hear his moaning/wimpering from the hallway. After a quick shot of Morphine and a brief nap he was much more alert and comfortable.  The look on his face when he first saw me will forever be in my memory. :(  It’s amazing what apple juice, popsicles, and ice cream can do for a kid, though…these photos were taken maybe 10 minutes apart, shortly after we got back up to his room.

We hung out at the hospital for a little while until Colin's fluid intake was acceptable.  It's hard to believe we were at the hospital around 7:30 AM and home by noon!  Colin’s recovery was picture perfect.  He was pretty much back to himself the next day.  We administered Tylenol and Motrin around the clock for 5 days and stuck to the liquid diet for the first 3 days, slowing adding in soft foods (had first scrambled egg and mashed potatoes 4 days post-op). Both grandmas were able to spend some time helping Colin recover and we couldn’t be more thankful.  He was able to stay home an entire week and was back to daycare on the 8th day post-op. We’ll be back to speech next week to see how things are sounding!