Endearing nicknames for baby brother hits all-time high today:

"Hi Gavvey, my little mister naked nipple boy penis face!"

Cornea takes the Gold!

So this past Saturday morning, Gav was in his swing and started crying out of the blue. Upon picking him up & examining him, we immediately noticed that his poor little right eye looked very raw, red, and swollen. He kept whimpering in pain and it soon became obvious to us that he might have accidentally scratched himself in the eye while in his swing. We immediately brought him to be seen by the on-call Dr. She did this diagnostic test where yellow dye is dropped in the affected eye, and then a blacklight is used to examine it. When she did this, my heart broke into a million pieces and I wanted to cry; The Dr. didn't even have to point out the obvious, 1/2 of an M & M sized sliver of bright yellow dye in the center of his eye, signifying a large tear. Even the Dr. said that this was a pretty "big gouge" and that we may have to see a Pediatric Opthamologist. She sent us home with antibiotic ointment and told us to give the little guy Tylenol as needed since this was "definitely extremely painful."
I felt so helpless, so sick for him. Definitely ranked on the very top of the "I would give anything to switch places with my child and take all of their pain away" list.
Anywho, Saturday & Sunday were pretty rough days, as he was still in tons of pain, his eye was watering profusely, and he winced in pain any time he attempted to open it past a squint.




Well, this morning we had our follow-up with the Dr. and were definitely expecting the worst-- to be referred over to the Opthamologist for further evaluation of this "massive gouge."
So, same thing again....yellow dye, blacklight, and...
"Where's the spot?" I quickly asked the Dr.
She, too, saw nothing at all and quickly determined that she had not used enough dye. So, blacklight off, more yellow dye, blacklight back on, and take two...But still, nothing.
"Wow," the Dr. said to me as we stared into Gavin's eyes in the blacklight. "Unbelievable. It's gone-- completely healed. His little body knew to produce another cornea in less than 48 hours-- how amazing is that!"
"Amazing," I parroted, entranced by the electric blue that illuminated Gavin's eyes in front of me.
She switched the lights back on and my heart instantly melted in the realization that we wouldn't have to go see a specialist, that my little trooper was no longer in pain, and that his tiny little eye healed perfectly fine on his own.
As the Dr. was leaving the room, she said to me, "Just so you know, I certainly wasn't expecting today's visit to go this well-- especially considering the size of the abrasion 2 days ago. It was one of the biggest I've seen in a baby his size. You have one strong little boy on your hands!"
With that, I picked up my little boy, smothered him with kisses & tickles until he giggled his contagious belly laugh, and we headed home.

In conclusion, I'd like to make a quick little shout-out: Cornea,you have officially amazed me, and you pretty much rock for knowing how to regenerate like that. (Well, you and the Starfish.)

Ava's random thought of the day

(while driving home from Preschool)
A: "I'd really like a brother, Momma."
Me: "Ummm, do you not see that adorable bundle of brother sitting in the car-seat next to you?!"
A: "No Momma, I mean like a BIG brother. And his name would be something like Billy, and he would be thirteen and a half, and he'd do things like make me grilled cheeses and throw snowballs at me. Wouldn't that be cool?"

Hip (ultrasounds) don't lie!

 Voicemail I came home to today-


"Hi, this is a message for Gavin's mom,  it's the nurse calling back. Just wanted to let you know that Gavin's hip ultrasounds both came back COMPLETELY normal. Everything is just where it should be, growing in the right spot, looks perfect. Turns out your little guy just has extra chubby, munch-able thighs. Enjoy them!"

...and enjoy them I certainly will :)

(*this was in response to a concern his pediatrician had on Monday at his 6-month checkup...there were some extra fat roll creases in the backs of his legs, and apparently this can be attributed to a condition called hip dysplasia. Needless to say, we spent the entire week worrying about the possibility of him having to be in a cast or apparatus for the next several months to alleviate the condition-- so when this was the voice-mail we received after his ultrasound, we were beyond grateful & ecstatic!)

Good morning, sunshines!

This is what I get to wake up to every morning-- not such a shabby way to start the day  :-)

Compliments to the chef

Last night as we finished dinner, Ava rubbed her belly and said to me in the most serious tone ever,
"Momma, that was the most delectable dinner I have EVER had. Seriously. It was feeeeeeee-nominal."

*Please note that we had Perdue chicken nuggets, steam-fresh peas, and butter noodles.
You better watch out Rachel Ray-- there's a new chef in town and she knows how to heat up nuggets...

What better way to ring in the last year of your twenties than...

1. Waking up to a beautiful, massive snowstorm and chocolate chip pancakes- Heaven!

2. A yummy family dinner out at Bugaboo Creek, (complete with VIP seating right next to the big cozy fireplace, and directly beneath the massive taxidermy Buffalo head AND squirrel swinging on a lantern). OH, and of course the stuffed mallards. Can't forget those.



3. Mommy-daughter pedicures! (Of course Ava persuaded the very nice Vietnamese nail technician to also please do her "regular hand nails" too, so she ended up with a full mani-pedi.)We had a blast and it was excellent and much needed girlie time, just the two of us :)







4. A truly one-of-a-kind, HOMEMADE cake from your 4 year old daughter!
Me: "Wow Aves, this is amazing! Did you make this yourself?"
A: "Yup, me and Daddy went to the supermarket and I chose ALL the ingredients all by myself! I chose pink cake mix, and then I put in: raspberries, strawberries, watermelon, chocolate ice cream, frosting, whipped cream, and cream cheese."
Here is my proud little chef with her first culinary masterpiece:





...And to be honest, it was actually super yummy!

So as the day comes to a close, I feel blessed to have spent my 29th birthday with my cozy little family on a snowy January day. Here's to the last year of my twenties; hoping it is a year full of health, happiness, and lots of laughter. Happy Birthday, me!