Ski trip...

We are planning to take a quick trip up to Boone, NC next week to ski.  We are hoping to ski on some snow and not the patches of grass and ice that are currently showing on the lodge's ski cam. 
As you can see, it has been quite a few years since we have gone skiing. Ethan was 4 and Aiden was 2 our last trip. They were small enough to ski with me down the mountain and they had a great time but I quickly found out that I was out of shape.


                              

Ryan and Ethan learned a hard lesson that year as well.  Ryan "learned" to ski on our honeymoon.  (Ryan was so sick on our honeymoon. He was near his death bed had a bad sinus infection and slept the majority of our trip.) He did venture out of the condo long enough to take a lesson and then make a few runs with me. So on our last ski trip, Ryan took Ethan up the mountain and soon found out that they had gone too far up and now had to figure their way down with Ethan skiing between his legs.  Needless to say... I didn't see them for a few hours and Ethan stuck with me for the rest of the day.

I swear he is having fun!

This year, the boys are both taking lessons so then we can all ski down the mountain together as a family minus Isabelle (she will have to wait a few years).  I have this mental picture of us skiing happily down the mountain holding hands and whistling but in reality, it will probably be more like something seen on America's Funniest Home videos.  Oh well, we will have fun!

Pneumonia plus more

Our house has been sickly for the past week or so.  Fingers crossed, knocking on wood and walking around with Lysol, I am the only one who hasn't come down with anything yet..  Ryan has been sick and is heading to Urgent Care today.  Hopefully, they will give him some antibiotics and a shot in the biscuits.  Ethan has had the sniffles.  Aiden had an appointment with his allergist yesterday due to his sickness.  Right after Aiden's appointment, Papa came to rescue Aiden so Isabelle and I could make a visit to the Pediatric ER.  Isabelle is in between Pediatricians so of course, she gets sick.  Switching back to our original Pediatrician is a longer process than I had anticipated and once the Urgent Care found out she had OHS, it was recommended we go straight to the Pediatric ER.  It is a good thing we went last night because after a nose swab to check for RSV and a chest X-ray, we found out Isabelle has the beginnings of pneumonia.  I am so glad I took her in and they caught it before it got too bad because much longer and she would have been sent to Pensacola.  So now, she is on antibiotics again and hopefully this kicks everything out of her system for good this time. 

Isabelle getting some rest after her long visit to the ER

Everyone needs to get better and I better not get sick so we can all enjoy our trip next week.

Tooth fairy

Ethan and his tooth fairy are breaking the bank these days.  Yesterday, he had to get 3 baby teeth pulled to make room for his adult teeth that are trying to come in but have no where to go.  He has a big fear of the shots so I bribed promised him $ for each tooth they pulled.  He is excited and reminded me at least 20 times last night that I owed him.  Well... I forgot to hit up the bank for some cash so he has an I.O.U until this weekend.  His tooth fairy apparantly forgot to hit up the bank as well before her visit last night so Ethan woke up to find a role of quarters.  Tacky you might say but also way more than the normal payout.  Lesson learned for Mommy... always have a few dollars on you in case of emergencies. 

8 months later...

Isabelle, you are 8 months old today.  Can you believe it?!? 

*You are weighing in at 14 lbs. (no one has measured you lately so no accurate update now) and you are wearing mostly 3-6 months clothes except for pants, those are still 0-3 months. 
*You love all of your food except peas and all the meats.  You refuse to open your mouth if she see something green coming your way.  I have to sneak the green beans in your diet so you don't turn orange.  You might look a bit silly with an orange face to go along with your strawberry blond hair.
*You are now saying Mama, Dada, baba and a bunch of other things we can't understand.  You started out with Mama but once you learned Dada, I have yet to her my name again.  I am kind of missing it (hint, hint).  You love to babble all the time and we love to listen to you.  You definitely are a happy baby.
* Your brothers adore you and you might start to think very highly of yourself pretty soon because they are constantly telling you how beautiful you are.  (which of course you are!)  Soon you will learn to slap them when they get right in your face but until then, they enjoy being nose to nose with you.

Isabelle, you can look back on these pictures of you with your brothers and always know that they will love you and protect you:

* Aiden prefers you in dresses and bow/flowers in your hair while Ethan prefers you to have nothing in your hair.  He thinks they are silly looking but with two against one, you normally have a bow/flower in your hair.
* You are still sleeping through the night.  You begin to get sleepy around 8:30 and normally begin to stir around 6:30am.  Some mornings, you will even play quietly so Mommy and Daddy can get a few more minutes of sleep before we start the day.
* You are getting a lot stronger and love to roll over onto your tummy. We are still working extra hard to get you to sit. Once you conquer that, then we will move onto the crawling. Your legs are ready but since you had OHS, your upper body needs a little extra time to catch up.
* You are now getting physical therapy ever week so we look forward to meeting these milestones soon. Plus you will begin speech therapy soon. We are excited to see what we will learn with this new therapy.
Each day we notice you doing new things and we are excited for you to reach some of your current goals and milestones.  We are so proud of you little sister!

Rest in Peace...

It is a sad day in the Holt household.  Our dog Brodie, has passed away.  He had been sick the last few months and he and Ryan had come to terms that they would need to part.  Although this was the hardest decision for Ryan to make, Brodie is no longer suffering. 

When I married Ryan, Brodie and Tucker came with him.  I didn't grow up with dogs so he and Tucker are my first and although we have had a rocky relationship at times (stealing our food and getting in the trash)... I do truly love Brodie and will miss him (especially for the relationship he had with Ryan and the boys).  

I will be letting the boys know the sad news when I pick them up from school today.  They will have a hard time (Brodie was their favorite) but hopefully they will realize that he is in a better place now and is no longer hurting.  Isabelle on the other hand, doesn't have a clue...both Brodie and Tucker became outside dogs right around the time she was born so she just looks at them strangely when they sniff her feet.  She isn't sure what to think of all that hair! 

We love you Mr. Brodie Alowishus Holt!

Out cold...

Look what Izzy got...

No... not an attitude (although she does look like she is going to tell me what she thinks right about now)

She got... Earrings!!  She was such a big girl.  I explained to her that we were going to get sparkles in her ears and she gave me a huge grin so I knew she was down for the idea.  Ryan said he wouldn't go since he didn't want to watch her in pain so we recruited Nana.  Ethan and Aiden were big helpers and kept her attention while she marked where to put the earrings.  Then they both hid behind the counter once she started crying.  That's my boys!! 

The boys told her approximately 20 times how beautiful she looked so I think she is going to love her new bling!

Lost tooth and more...

Aiden got a special visit from the tooth fairy a few nights ago!  He lost his first tooth Tuesday morning while brushing his teeth.  I am so glad that thing is finally out.  My stomach would flip every time he would come around wiggling and twisting that loose tooth.  He asked me a couple of times to help him wiggle it but I just couldn't.

It is hard to tell but it is the bottom tooth.  The adult tooth was already poking through by the time it fell out.

Isabelle received a visit from Big Giant Monkey.  She didn't know what to think about him at first but then they became friends until she took a bite out of his arm.

What is this thing?!?

I don't know but he looks tasty!!

 Yesterday, Ethan began phase 1 of his orthodontist visits.  His mouth is over crowded so in a couple of weeks he will be getting some teeth removed.  Five to be exact... Ouch!!  Don't worry, I have bribed him with money for each tooth pulled.  Phase 1 includes braces on the top teeth along with spacers and a special contraption on the roof of his mouth to help spread his teeth.  Yesterday, he got 4 braces on his front 4 teeth and the rest will follow next week.  He is doing really well so far but is overly worried about what foods he can eat.  (This is our chance to cut out a lot of the candy he consumes since he can't eat most kinds.)

He says he now has 2 smiles.

So far, he is really excited about having braces.  I was worried about his first day at school with them because you never know what kids will say but his friends think it is pretty cool.  Plus, there are a few other kids in 2nd grade that have them as well.  I know when I went to school with braces for the first time, it was not a pleasant experience.  I had just gotten a lovely perm, add braces and my big, thick glasses and that is a combination for disaster. 

And just because she is cute... here is a picture of Izzy passed out on the couch.

She must have had a rough day.

Another doctor's visit and more...

Isabelle had to make a visit to her pediatrician this afternoon.  She has been getting sick after some of her feedings so we were cautious and decided to make an appointment. Good thing we did because her left ear is starting to get infected and she has a little rattle in her chest.  It is amazing how quick an ear infection can start especially since we went to the ENT on Friday and she was clear.  So... we are back on antibiotics, nebulizer and saline drops.  Hopefully all of this kicks in and clears everything up quickly.  She of course, is still her happy and laid back self and you would never know anything was wrong. 
We did prop her up in her boppy last night to sleep and she slept all night without getting sick.  Mommy on the other hand, couldn't sleep a bit.  Oh well... sleep is over rated!

She is pretty cute though!

Last night, I finally got motivated enough to get on the treadmill.  I started off slow with a mile but hey...at least I started.  The treadmill is a big deal in our house.  The boys love it and annoy ask constantly when I am going to get on the treadmill (or treademill according to Aiden).  If I were overly self conscious I would begin to think they were trying to give me a subtle hint.  So, I snuck downstairs so I could start without the constant asking of "are you almost done, is it my turn yet??" and soon I begin to see little eyes peeking around the corner of the stairs.  A few minutes later, I see 2 boys coming down the stairs in the newest workout wear.  I thought I would let you take a glimpse in case you wanted to follow their trend...

Nice, huh?!?  I think I will pass but at least they were comfortable during their workout.

My Isabelle

Isabelle had an ENT appointment on Friday.  We got up early and headed an hour away to see if we could get a solution for some of her congestion.  We arrived and 10 minutes later, we were done with our appointment and headed back to our car.
Isabelle got a great report and her ears and nose are all clear and he was able to see into her canal without any issues.  He was surprised that they were not as small as most babies with DS.  But, no solution to her congestion and we may just have to deal with until she gets bigger or out grows it.
Although we got great news in the office, I was torn during our appointment.  The doctor was great and very loving with Isabelle but he called her or children with DS- Downs at least 15 times during those 10 minutes.  It completely caught me off guard and the first few times I made excuses for it (in my head).  I left without saying anything and made it to my car before bursting in to tears.  It broke my heart and I couldn't stop the tears.  I haven't cried like that for a very long time and I think it was good to get it all out.  It hurt my heart because Isabelle is not Downs... she is Isabelle- my Isabelle.
If this happens again, I will be better prepared to speak up.  I don't think this doctor meant any harm or tried to offend me.  I think he is misinformed on the proper way to address someone.
Isabelle isn't Down syndrome- she has Down Syndrome.  She will always be Isabelle first but she just happens to have an extra chromosome.  However, it doesn't define who she is or who she will become... only she will do that.

Isabelle's first words

The last couple of days Isabelle has been very vocal.  She has been babbling to everyone who will listen.  Mommy is listening and guess what I finally heard?!?  Mama...  She said her first word and it was Mama!  Now she has added baba to her vocabulary as well. 
I remember just a few weeks ago, I was so worried because she wasn't making much noise and now she is babbling non stop. 
She has been a busy little girl.  She is also rolling over and over.  I can no longer lay her down and expect her to stay put.  I come back and she is in a different spot.  I love it!
She amazes me each and every day!

Christmas day pictures

I realize I am a bit late but that is how I roll these days. 
We had a great Christmas morning and the kids were wonderful and very thankful for their gifts.  We slimmed down a lot this year and I was happy to see that the boys either didn't notice or at least were kind enough not to mention it.  We have really been talking a lot about other children who don't get much during Christmas and how we need to be thankful for what we have.  It seems like it sank in at least for now.

Isabelle was happy with all the ribbon

She really likes looking at the pretty girl in her new mirror.

Isabelle and Papa taking a nap before the craziness begins.

The 3 Angry birds

Isabelle is excited about her baby oil from her stocking.

After Christmas over at Nana and Papa's, we headed to the movies to see Alvin and the Chipmunks.  In my opinion it wasn't as good as the first but we enjoyed some family time.

Isabelle got Smurfette from one of Ryan's coworkers and she loves her.  It is about as big as she is but she enjoys a good snuggle every now and then especially when she is tired.

 We hope everyone had a great Christmas like we did.  Now we are looking forward to the new year.