Our family (my brother & his wife) welcomed little Connor Bradley into the world today at 11:07 am. He was 7 pounds, 14 ounces - 20" long.
Looks like Emily is the official QUEEN of the boys in the family & a very proud big sister!
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Our Newest Member
It's a BOY!
Our family (my brother & his wife) welcomed little Connor Bradley into the world today at 11:07 am. He was 7 pounds, 14 ounces - 20" long.
Looks like Emily is the official QUEEN of the boys in the family & a very proud big sister!
Our family (my brother & his wife) welcomed little Connor Bradley into the world today at 11:07 am. He was 7 pounds, 14 ounces - 20" long.
Looks like Emily is the official QUEEN of the boys in the family & a very proud big sister!
Cole walked!
My awesome therapist sent me this video a few minutes ago from Cole's therapy session this morning. She was able to capture his first steps on tape for me since I was at work and not there. Tears streamed as I watched...knowing that he's a bit behind in things, this is a HUGE day for all of us. High five Cole!
(Be patient for the last 5 seconds and you'll see)
(Be patient for the last 5 seconds and you'll see)
Friday, April 11, 2008
Recent antics
As you can see, we have some room for improvement in our table manners. But we're working on it...plates are more like frisbees.
This shows even better how far we have to go with our manners. Why is it that all males (any age) think it's hilarious to make bodily noises? And then pound thier chests? This one's for you Grampa Jeb.
And finally, you see that we've become fans of Little Einsteins; JD is a pro at "blast off"!
This shows even better how far we have to go with our manners. Why is it that all males (any age) think it's hilarious to make bodily noises? And then pound thier chests? This one's for you Grampa Jeb.
And finally, you see that we've become fans of Little Einsteins; JD is a pro at "blast off"!
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Nerves of Steel?
Hardly. A while back, I posted about not really wanting to go back to the NICU again, for any reason. I thought I had made my last trip. Never say never I guess.
A few weeks ago, I was asked to become a NICU support parent volunteer. I accepted. This was something that has been on the agenda at the hospital for a while and nobody really knew if it would really come to fruition. Well, it did!
We had training this week, which included mostly hospital training for HIPPA/Privacy junk, as well as emergency policies and procedures for the hospital (including a written test, yes, really) and a few other details that they want to make sure the volunteers are aware of. Following this short training session, our NICU support parents chatted and then went to the NICU unit for a tour. Most of the parents (5 families) had not seen the new unit - this unit was completed half way through my kids stay there so I was one of the fortunate ones who got to spend some time in the new and improved NICU. In any case, we went back. Being one of the more recent families that had been there, I didn't think twice about going back through those doors. Piece of cake right?
Ummm, hit me like a ton of bricks. As we started walking through, it was very quiet and not too many parents were there for some reason. The babies were all nestled in their isoletes and it was peaceful. As we approached "Cole's" room (he was the first baby ever to stay in that room since it was a new unit), I was blindsided by the memory of him being so frail and tiny. I suddenly was thrown back to how it felt to arrive in the evenings for our night visit and have to say goodbye to him for the night and leave. I remembered instantly that unsettled feeling that was there at all times that anything could go wrong - and sometimes did. Seeing those babies in their rooms with nobody there with them was heartbreaking. It was a reminder that my boys were those babies once and they spent the first 8-12 weeks of their lives in that place - while we came and went as often as we could; but we were not there 100% of the time either. That guilty feeling came rushing back.
I started to cry as we walked - kind of in a daze while all of these thoughts were rushing around in my head. It was then that I knew that I need to do this. I was glad in a way that these feelings came back - I think it will help when we actually do get to meet with these families. We've been there. We get it. We made it through and have beautiful children to show for it.
As a friend of mine said, we all share a common bond having been through such an experience in life. And it's a badge that you never would choose to wear, but now that I have it, I hope I can put it to good use and help some of the other parents that never imagined they would be where they are, in NICU.
I know one thing, I came home that evening and ran straight upstairs to see my sleeping boys. They have some such a long way - it's such a miracle.
A few weeks ago, I was asked to become a NICU support parent volunteer. I accepted. This was something that has been on the agenda at the hospital for a while and nobody really knew if it would really come to fruition. Well, it did!
We had training this week, which included mostly hospital training for HIPPA/Privacy junk, as well as emergency policies and procedures for the hospital (including a written test, yes, really) and a few other details that they want to make sure the volunteers are aware of. Following this short training session, our NICU support parents chatted and then went to the NICU unit for a tour. Most of the parents (5 families) had not seen the new unit - this unit was completed half way through my kids stay there so I was one of the fortunate ones who got to spend some time in the new and improved NICU. In any case, we went back. Being one of the more recent families that had been there, I didn't think twice about going back through those doors. Piece of cake right?
Ummm, hit me like a ton of bricks. As we started walking through, it was very quiet and not too many parents were there for some reason. The babies were all nestled in their isoletes and it was peaceful. As we approached "Cole's" room (he was the first baby ever to stay in that room since it was a new unit), I was blindsided by the memory of him being so frail and tiny. I suddenly was thrown back to how it felt to arrive in the evenings for our night visit and have to say goodbye to him for the night and leave. I remembered instantly that unsettled feeling that was there at all times that anything could go wrong - and sometimes did. Seeing those babies in their rooms with nobody there with them was heartbreaking. It was a reminder that my boys were those babies once and they spent the first 8-12 weeks of their lives in that place - while we came and went as often as we could; but we were not there 100% of the time either. That guilty feeling came rushing back.
I started to cry as we walked - kind of in a daze while all of these thoughts were rushing around in my head. It was then that I knew that I need to do this. I was glad in a way that these feelings came back - I think it will help when we actually do get to meet with these families. We've been there. We get it. We made it through and have beautiful children to show for it.
As a friend of mine said, we all share a common bond having been through such an experience in life. And it's a badge that you never would choose to wear, but now that I have it, I hope I can put it to good use and help some of the other parents that never imagined they would be where they are, in NICU.
I know one thing, I came home that evening and ran straight upstairs to see my sleeping boys. They have some such a long way - it's such a miracle.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Girls Weekend...
was amazing! What a blast. Great chats, endless laughter, good food, good drinks, great spa & uninterrupted sleep. It wouldn't have been the same without the "check" controversy, but we're over that I think. I hope everyone came away as relaxed and rejuvinated as I did ~ it was great having you all here in Naptown. The photo montage below will not be interesting to anyone but the 7 other awesome girl friends that I spent the weekend with. But for lack of any place else to post it for their viewing, here it is on the blog, as promised. Girls, it was a fantastic weekend and as always, our time together was much too short. Each and every one of you are such wonderful friends and I feel so lucky to have you all in my life. Get some rest this week to catch up and good luck getting back into the grind. Hope all of the kids fared well while you were away. I can't wait for our next one! This montage came out with really crummy quality - I'll work on it. But for now, here it is...
Thursday, April 03, 2008
I can't wait....
Watch out Annapolis - we're back! Fun, relaxing girls weekend on tap. Eight of us Roanoke College girls will be reuniting at the local Westin for the weekend - lots of good meals, fun catch up time, spa treatments and wine! Will probably need a week to recover after this but it will be well worth the fun...can't wait to see you girls! Safe trip into town!
Swimming lessons
Well, tonight was our first of 8 swimming lessons at our local gym pool. It was great! Grammy was parent #2 since C couldn't get home in time for this one. The boys were VERY tentative at first but warmed up fairly well by the end. We didn't do much but get familiar with the water so hopefully next time they will be up for some tricks.
Next time I'll try to take some fun photos - their bathing suits are down to their ankles - that in itself is worth a photo. Hopefully they will be pool rats like I am ~ until Daddy gets a hold of them and takes them to the golf course...
Here they are on the way out the door in their sweat suits - (thanks Melanie, they finally fit!)
Next time I'll try to take some fun photos - their bathing suits are down to their ankles - that in itself is worth a photo. Hopefully they will be pool rats like I am ~ until Daddy gets a hold of them and takes them to the golf course...
Here they are on the way out the door in their sweat suits - (thanks Melanie, they finally fit!)
Saturday, March 29, 2008
The second best thing to the shopping cart with the attached car in the grocery store are the food stores that give away BALLOONS! What a hit! Had I known that Trader Joes did this before today, I would have started frequenting that store a long time ago.
Our quick grocery outing was a huge hit - we returned with lots of smiles. We met many people in the store today due to the boys insisting that they wear their sunglasses (despite the 1000 x's I had to pick them up off of the floor). Sadly, I did not have my camera with me but took a few shots when I got home. They were quite the little entertainers.
We're fighting the sniffles so it was nice to have some smiles...
Our quick grocery outing was a huge hit - we returned with lots of smiles. We met many people in the store today due to the boys insisting that they wear their sunglasses (despite the 1000 x's I had to pick them up off of the floor). Sadly, I did not have my camera with me but took a few shots when I got home. They were quite the little entertainers.
We're fighting the sniffles so it was nice to have some smiles...
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
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