Todd's Arm After 9 1/2 Months Later

So I briefly put on Facebook that Todd's last scab from the past 9 1/2 months of surgeries has finally came off! YAY! We averaged a surgery every month since November 22, 2014. Can't believe it!

But I thought some folks who don't see Todd very often, or at all, would like to see what his arm looks like after 9 1/2 months of surgeries, waiting, infections, more waiting, crazy emotions, more infections, more waiting, and more surgeries becomes!

His elbow may not look great to some of you, but man oh man, does it look great to us! We have waited a long time for us to get to this point. He will probably have many of these scars his whole life, but talk about a testimony! A long testament to getting through such a crazy ordeal! We are still not completely done, as we still have a couple more Doctor's Appointments, possibly some more therapy on muscle use, and likely 2 more months of antibiotics! So we aren't done, and infection could always show it's ugly head again, but with no more surgeries being planned and there officially being no more open wounds, it isn't as likely!

And there is the part of me that wondered this whole time why God allowed this to happen. And I really still don't have an answer on that. But God did help us along this long journey in more ways than one. And possibly, I will write more about that on a future blog post. But, I am grateful for what is his arm right now! His bone is fully healed (when it was completely shattered). He has about 75% muscle control. And no infection!

So thank you for the prayers. These photos are answers to prayer! The journey isn't completely done yet on this, but I know we are most thankful for where it is right now.

Much Love for your prayers, love, and kindness!

The Taber Family!

Chatty, Fun Loving Toddler Turns 15 Months and other Updates

 

This guy - yes, this guy is 15 months old! My oh my! He is soo fun, even if he gets into trouble. He is curious and loves life. I love his excitement about even the littlest of things. But to him, they aren't little. For instance, just saying the word "Do you want to get your shoes on?" And he instantly squeals with delight "AH SI!" Which means Outside. He loves to go outside.

 

He is a strong willed boy too! He likes to do what he likes to do, and if you try to veer away from the norm, well, he will tell you about it. I always knew I would have a stubborn child like me! LOL! But, he is doing better about listening to us say "No." He doesn't always listen, but there are times he does, and so that is definite progress!

 

He is getting better about playing with toys on his own if we are busy with chores or making dinner, etc. So that's encouraging too. And many times, we will just find him sitting by himself "reading" a story.

 

We are learning some new stuff as well! He "dances" on his own now. He has this little march, two-step dance thing he does. Haha! It's so cute! He also has a recent obsession with trying to walk backwards. And even though we know he loves music and when Mommy sings songs to him, his interest in music and songs has deepened even more. Sometimes when I hug him or hold him, he sounds like he is trying to sing to me too. Or we are in the car, and I will hear him sound like he is trying to sing a song. I love it!

 

Caleb has been working on steps more and more to the point that he can walk up our steps outside our home by himself. He grabs the railing and does a great job going up the steps! We are working on going down steps as well, but not without holding Mommy or Daddy's hand. However, our stubborn boy thinks he can do it on his own sometimes, and last week, the boy decided to try going down a step when I thought he was doing something else, and he went down into some gravel. Poor kiddo. I love his independence and I love how he wants to do things for himself, but it is so hard to see him fall. And you'd think that would stop him from trying it again, but he is fearless.

 

Some new words he says (or improvements on words) since last month:

• Cacker for Cracker (this is definitely and improvement - it used to be Cack)
• Beal for belly
• Buba for bye-bye (when he chooses to say it)
• peee for puppy (this is when we see a puppy on a story)
• STA! for Stop! (this is a pretty recent thing where if he doesn't like something or if he hears me say stop, he says STA! very emphatically. In fact, I think I even heard him the other day say this to a little girl who got into a car toy he got out of (because it was her turn). LOL. He is definitely going to learn sharing.
• Go (not very often does he say this, but when I say let's go, he has said Go)
• Lite (I know I heard him say this for light before. Just once, but he did say it)
• Goke (yogurt - this is an improvement)
• Wawa for water. Not very often does he say this, but he has said it a few times now.
• Ah for up. This is when he wants us to pick him up for really anything. If he doesn't want to walk (which isn't often) or when he wants us to show him pictures on the walls or turn off the light.

Now even though he can't say these next words, he knows what they are when he sees them and can point to them when we go for a walk, etc. So even though he isn't actually saying the word, he knows what they are:

• moon (Every evening we go for a walk, and he always points to the moon. What's cool is that he recognizes the moon from stories he reads too. So when I say where is the moon when we are outside, he points right to the moon)
• He doesn't say the word light very often, but he knows what it is. He points right to a light when I ask where is the light. Or if I ask him to turn off the light, with me lifting him up, he knows that when he turns off the switch, a light goes out. So it's really cool to see him recognize that cause and effect.
• He knows what a penguin is - you'd think so with all the penguins he has in his room! LOL! But even though he can't really say that word, he knows what they are.
• He knows trees and points to them all the time when I say "where is the tree." He knows trees very well because we go outside so often.
• He knows the word shoes and knows that when we say Let's get your shoes on, he sits down beside me so I can put them on. He also knows shoes on means going outside too.

He is also able to climb up and down our couches all by himself. He still scares us by sometimes being to close to the end when he sits or tries to stand up, but he does it very well.

He definitely keeps us on our toes and is truly learning every single day. I love it! I love to see the wheels turning in his brain when he figures things out. Like for instance, when he said Cacker because we were trying to get him to say the word better than just cack, and he did it, we were all "YAY Caleb," and then he lifted his hands up in the air with excitement. He was even proud of himself too!

And in Todd updates - we are on our last, tiny scab on his elbow. Then no more open wounds! Woohoo! He will still be on pill antibiotics for the next couple of months, but this is great! hoping and praying that it stays that way. It's been 9 1/2 months since his accident, and we are ready for this all to be done!

So I leave you with a cute photo of my two guys! And also a cute photo of me and my little man! So grateful for both of these guys!

 

 

If Not Us, Then Who?

A little different than my normal blog posts. Most people won't even read this post. Especially because it is so "controversial." But, if I just let those "odds" determine everything I did, I wouldn't be where I am even now. And honestly, I felt pressed by God to share this.

Many know I am pro-life. And I can honestly say, I have felt an urgency in the past few weeks like I have never felt before to really speak out. Why put post after post on my wall about Planned Parenthood? What good will it do? What can Sarah Taber do for those babies? What can any Christian or any person that hates abortion do? I'm here to tell you - that YOU can make a difference. In fact, if I may be so bold, if you are a true Christian, you have an obligation to stand up for those little ones because they can't.

If you are like me, the videos that have been coming out on Planned Parenthood are disturbing and quite heartwrenching. I didn't enjoy watching those videos. I didn't enjoy watching the moral depravity set before me. I didn't enjoy seeing these workers laugh about "Oh, it's a boy" when they realize the baby parts they are going through were parts from a boy. I didn't enjoy seeing them lift up parts and pointing out how much each of those parts would get them as a group. I didn't enjoy hearing them say pretty clearly that sometimes babies are born before the procedure is done, and these are living, intact babies, and then they clearly will suffer and die alone because intact babies get more money. It's disgusting...it's heart wrenching....it's EVIL!

How many of you watched the videos? I don't blame you if you didn't. But, I think sometimes it is necessary to know what we are up against when we are fighting what is clearly a spiritual battle - between EVIL and GOOD. But if it feels too overwhelming, and if you feel it is easier to just be appalled and then forget. Yes - I guess that would be easier. It would be easier to get through life without thinking of the evil that is funded by our own tax dollars. It would be MUCH easier to forget and live life ignorant. I would rather live in a happy-go-lucky bubble. But, since you and I both know these things are going on (you can't avoid knowing it is occurring with social media), and if you avoid doing anything, are you not then saying it's okay? Are you not being complicit? It was that kind of attitude of "doing nothing" that led to the slaughter of millions of Jews.

Here are some facts you may not know - the current tally of babies killed since Roe vs. Wade is well over 55 million! This number of children killed is more than the number of people killed during the Holocaust in Germany and more than the number of people killed in the Armenian Holocaust combined.

I'm not saying you have to become one of those people on the streets screaming the end is near or anything like that. But, I believe that Christians have a moral responsibility to take a stand against evil. What does that entail? Well in this case with Planned Parenthood, what are some of things you can do? I came up with a list of things that my family does as some examples. Do one or some of these things, and you are helping in this fight.

• Spread awareness - post on your Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.
• Pray every single day against these injustices - with prayer, I believe God moves mountains. I believe that babies lives can be saved. I believe that things can be changed.
• Call/write your state representatives about defunding Planned Parenthood or to look into investigations
• Stop giving money to companies that fund Planned Parenthood. This list provided in the link below is an updated list of companies that support PP (although recently, American Express and The American Cancer Socity has also distanced themselves from them). That list can be found here: http://prolife.ie/news/2015/07/23/us-companies-distance-themselves-planned-parenthood. Maybe you think it is too hard to give up any of those things, but you can do it. My family is. We love Pepsi more than Coke products; however, Coke distanced themselves from PP. Pepsico did not. So we are making adjustments to our lives to avoid having any more of our money going to people that kill these babies.
• Volunteer at a crisis pregnancy center or donate baby clothes/money to them as these centers focus on helping women get the help they need to provide for those babies or put them up for adoption. Many of these centers also provide ultrasounds for women to see their unborn babies to help them understand their baby isn't a blob of tissue, but a LIFE!
• Go to a protest - Go with the intent to pray over the women that enter those abortion mills. Pray that the staff will have a change of heart and mind. It CAN happen. Abby Johnson is just one example of someone that was a Director for PP, and she stopped after she saw a baby at 13 weeks try to get away from the abortion suction device. She saw the life in that ultrasound and vowed to never be a proponent of abortion ever again. She changed. People can change.
• With that same thought - even if there isn't a scheduled protest. If you know of PP or abortion mill in your area, take a lunch break and walk over there and pray. Again - prayer can move mountains!
• Pray for legislation to change/propose new legislation to your representatives to allocate funding to go to those crisis pregnancy centers that focus on life, not death.
• Attend the March for Life in Washington D.C. once in your life. It is truly an amazing experience! I promise!
• If you know a woman that is struggling with whether or not she should keep a baby or not, be her support. And if she chooses life, be her support through the child's life. She is going to likely need support and help, and if we claim we care about life, we should care about them well after they are born. So show that compassion and love to those women who are choosing life even when it seems hard. Be the encouragement and help they need.
• Be a big proponent of adoption. And if you can, prayerfully consider adopting children. Not even just the children that are babies.
• Vote for candidates who actually live their lives as pro-life candidates.

Do you have any other suggestions?

It makes me sad that I know of Christians who would rather keep silent about this because it is so controversial than to do anything about it. Being sad about the unborn lives lost every day isn't enough. And it makes me sad that there are more people on the bandwagon to seek justice for a lion, than there are for these little babies. Why is that?! Where are the Christians?! If we are going to leave a mark in this world, do you want to be known for someone that just shrunk back in the shadows when evil is occurring, or do you want to be known as someone that stood strong and fought for little unborn babies everywhere? When we say nothing and do nothing, we act like those nations did when the Jews were being killed in Nazi Germany. This is OUR time!

So do it - make a difference for all of those babies. Their very lives depend on it!

Matthew West - "Do Something"

Toddlerhood with Caleb (14 months) and Update on Todd

I mean, can he be any cuter?! 14 Months Old!

  

I am amazed at the changes our little man has made in just a month's time. He is 14 months old and wow, does he act like a toddler. There are wonderful things about that, and as we are learning, not-so-wonderful things. Like tantrums! haha! I was only being slightly integrated into tantrums last month, and now we are getting more. He is very stubborn and wants what he wants, but we are learning to talk to him at his level and tell him No (and trying hard not to involve yelling, but stern voices). But  most of why he may act up is if he isn't the focus of attention when he wants to be the focus of attention. He is perfectly fine with playing by himself when he wants to do it. But, if he wants your attention and you are doing something else, he will throw a toy, a book, or just look at you and get mad. He scrunches up his face and may even yell. We understand though that he just wants our attention and not because he wants to be "bad." So we try to focus his attention elsewhere and distraction. Sometimes we can't stop what we are doing, so he is learning that he can be okay for a little while, as long as we do end up giving him the attention he desires after we are finished. He definitely tests us too. There are things he wants to grab/touch/get into still, and so we are consistently having to tell him no. But he knows he shouldn't. He will look straight at us as he is about to touch it. And we will say No, but he will inch that hand closer and closer til he touches it. It's so cute, but we try hard to hide the smiles we have (because he is so cute) to emphasize he needs to listen to us. This is definitely a learning time for all of us.

But the fun things about this boy...so many. He is learning more words, which makes it so much easier to understand what he wants. Here is his list of words we have heard him say. There may be a little more...I can't think of them right off hand. But his vocabulary is growing:

• Uh - Ooooh!  (He really draws out the Oh). He has been doing this for a few months now.
• Mama
• Dada
• Daddeee
• Sooooo Biiiiiii (So Big). This is his favorite book and it has Elmo!
• Baba (bottle)
• Ick (stick)
• aaa saaaa (applesauce)
• cack (crackers)
• gock (yogurt)
• awwwwww (he does this when he hugs a stuffed animal or when he puts his cheek next to our cheeks)
• Yeah (he definitely says this more when he is showing he is agreeing with you on something. For instance, If I ask if he wants something, he will Yeah like he agrees)
• Nana (banana)
• Ahh Dahhh (All done) - and he does this with his hands up as he says all done!
• ah si (outside)
• Guck (duck)
• Ditty (kitty)

He is sleeping better now. We took a weekend a litte over two weeks ago to really sleep train him again. And it worked. Within one day, he was sleeping better and in his bed! So yay! We are all getting a little more sleep now! Even if that means he wakes up between 7-7:30. I know at least he will sleep.

He has also gotten his first two molars (left and ride bottoms) and more are definitely coming. So we now have 10 teeth!

He is so much more affectionate. I love how he gives me kisses more often now and puts his cheek next to mine and says awww. It's so sweet! I can help myself when he shows me that love!

We play a fun game where I will run away to another room, and I will say "Where's Caleb?!" And he squeals and is all excited and giggles and then runs to find me. When I see him, I yell "Boo!" and he laughs very hard and runs away and we repeat that for a while. It's sooo cute!

The weekend before July 4th, we had a cookout with friends north of Columbus, and we had a ball. Our friends have a farm, and they have chickens, turkeys, and pigs. Caleb LOVED to see them. Plus, they also had some dogs, and Caleb loved to chase after those dogs! And then when we went to a park/farm nearby a week or so later, he got to pet a donkey and sheep, and also chase chickens and a cat. He even says "ditty" for kitty! It is so sweet! I love how much he loves animals. He has the best giggle when he is around them, and it's just so fun!

 Ecstatic about the animals!!

 Petting a donkey!

We also started a new tradition on July 2nd - we put off balloons in the sky in honor of Gabriel in heaven as a family. Caleb loved the balloons, and we always want to emphasize how valuable life is. How even at such a small age in the womb when Gabriel went to heaven, that he had a purpose. His life was short, but his life had purpose. I believe we advocate for the unborn even more, and we have an awareness and understanding about miscarriage that we never had before. I believe that the unborn deserve a voice, and because they don't get a voice in this country, someone has to be their advocate. I am more vocal about my miscarriage as well because I believe people should talk about it. Women feel way too alone during a miscarriage in this country, and it's no surprise that it is because many people don't view these little ones as a life. And even though I am an advocate for the unborn, I believe I am even more of an advocate of love and compassion to those mothers that feel like they have no other choice but abortion. I believe they should be shown love and grace. I hate abortion, but not those women. Women should be told the WHOLE truth about abortion. They should be told that there are other options. I believe women who have abortions are given misleading information and scared. We should do what we can to help them choose life. And instead of advocating abortion, what if that money would go toward adoption or helping the mother take care of her child herself. That way, no one has to die. Just my thoughts, but again, I feel this so strongly because of what happend to us three years ago! And perhaps Gabriel's life will always be a testament to why we fight for those babies!





This past Wednesday, we had a trip to Newport Aquarium (his first visit to an aquarium). We had intended on visiting Cincinnati Zoo because it was $1 admission; however, when we got to the exit for the zoo, it took us well over an hour to drive to the zoo because of the LONG line. Then, when we got there, there was NO parking anywhere. UGH! So by this point, we had been in the car for 3 hours. So as a Plan B, we drove to Newport to the aquarium. I think we would have enjoyed it more had we not had such a band experience at the zoo. Plus, there was a line to wait in to go into the aquarium (and a toddler waiting in line is not really fun, when all he wants to do is run around). But we paid and went in, and he saw all kind of fish, turtles, jellyfish, alligators, stingrays, sharks, and of course my favorite - the penguins! He really loved it when a fish would swim right up by the window of the aquarium so he could act like he could touch it. He would squeal and laugh. It was fun! Plus, he really got a kick out of walking under the aquariums that had fish overhead. He loved the reflection of the water on the floor, and he would go back and forth through them squealing and laughing! Too cute! And when we saw the penguins, there was one in particular that was pruning himself, and he just laughed and laughed at him. :)

Looking up at the fish over us!

Walking under the water with Daddy!

Back and forth he would go!

And he loved to touch the wall of aquarium to "touch" the fish

So lots of fun things happening with this boy just in one month.

In other news: Todd's elbow is still healing. Where they did the skin graft, the elbow is actually starting to look like skin and it is now scabbed. YAY. Just waiting for those scabs to come off, and then we will feel better. As long as there is a possibility of an open wound, there is still a chance for infection. But, so far so good. I hope next month, I can say even better news! But Todd will likely be starting work up again the first week in August. So please keep him and us in your prayers about that. We want that to go smoothly too!

Even though, he has had so many surgeries, the good that has come from this is that Caleb and I have seen Todd more. We have had more time together as a family, and I am thankful for that. But, I know Todd is bored during the day when both Caleb and I are gone, so he will be happy to be busy again.

Can't believe how fast this year has been going. I guess surgeries and toddlers will make time fly! At any rate, we appreciate your prayers, love, support, and encouragement. We couldn't do it without that! Much love!



Update on Caleb's 13th Month and Todd's Healing Process

Our 13 month old!

Our big boy is 13 months old. Didn't we just celebrate is 1 year birthday?! Oh man...time is just flying by. It's been quite a busy month.

Caleb was officially weighed in at the Doctor's two weeks ago, and he was 21 pounds, 14 ounces (almost 22 pounds). And he is 29 3/4 inches long! So he is almost half my height! He is doing really well developmentally. He continues to learn and talk our ears off! LOL! Our doctor is very pleased with his walking, interaction with people, talking, and learning.

He loves to run around the house (quite literally). He is all about running and then racing up to give hugs! Oh he gives the best hugs! He loves to open EVERY cabinet door there is. And he can actually reach our top drawers in the kitchen and can open them. YIKES!

We discovered he loves dogs and cats. Our sitter has a sweet neighbor dog and cat that sometimes comes over to her yard. And Caleb just loves to run over to them. He literally squeals with delight when they nuzzle up next to him. Haha! So cute!

He has also been working on his steps. We have a lot of steps outside leading up to our home, and holding our hands, he takes the steps up. It's so exciting to watch him want to do that. We can't go down the steps yet as it's scarier to do that. But we are working our way to that. He loves to be outside, and gets upset when we tell him we have to go back inside. He is all about sticks too. He loves to pick up random sticks and carry them around. We think it is because he feels like he can reach further because he likes to reach up high with the stick.

We also love that he likes to take our hands and walk. Sometimes he wants to be independent, but he loves to hold our hands and walk. He knows when we say "want to go outside?" or "want to go for a walk?" what that means. He goes right to our front door. And I gotta say, I love watching him with Todd. Todd and him are buddies for sure. Caleb already tries to imitate his Daddy's strides. It's so precious!

Holding his Daddy's hand!

See how he watches Todd's strides

We also played in his baby pool for the first time two weeks ago. He had a ball! And with as hot as this summer has been (I know - it just turned summer technically), we are going to need that pool!

Caleb loves to dance with us too. He loves to have one hand holding ours and we dance. All we have to sing is "Dancing...Dancing" and he is sooo excited. He loves to dance to whatever music is playing or if we sing ourselves. It's so cute!

Caleb has been somewhat regressing in his sleep, but some of that may be due to his recent MMR shots, and some of that might be teething (still working on those molars). I also think he has been having some very scary dreams lately. I saw him sleeping and there was this one moment where he puts his hands in front of his face and is all upset and scared (but his eyes were closed and still sleeping). And just my touch on his back, and he calmed down. I just hate seeing him scared like that. I heard that kids go through that, but it's still very hard. We have had to re-sleep train him, and it works sometimes. But there have been definite nights involving night terrors or bad dreams. Poor kiddo.

We are also being integrated into the toddler tantrums. Caleb is such a sweet boy, but he has his moments for sure. He gets all angry when I don't let him open up the trash can and pull out the trash. He gets upst when I won't let him keep the refrigerator door open so he can touch and play with everything in it. Sorry kid, but we pay for that electricity. We did pretty good with putting things up high or away that could break, but there are still moments where we take away something because if we don't, he will hurl it across our end tables, and I'm concerned he might actually break the end table. Or when he just throws things across the room to see what it does. He gets mad when his toys don't do something as he wants it to do (don't ask me what that is, as he can't communicate that very well right now). It's so cute to watch sometimes (his face gets all scrunched up and he clenches his fists and whines really loud). But it can get old too. LOL! I guess I have more fun to look forward to in the coming years. I just try to distract him with something else. The hardest part is when he just wants to be with Daddy and accidently touches something that hurts Daddy. Ugh...I hate that. Caleb doesn't understand and I feel bad because Todd wants to do so much more with Caleb too.

Caleb started drinking only whole milk two weeks ago (YAY - no more formula!). I wanted to wean him off of it to see how he would handle it because he has been drinking soy formula. But he didn't mind the change at all and didn't have any allergic reactions to it either. So YAY. Cheaper costs...I'd rather pay $2.58 for a gallon of milk a week vs. the $28 a week of formula!

Another big change - we have a new sitter. Starting in June, we have been with a lady from our church. She is truly a God-send to us! I noticed quite a difference with how Caleb interacted with her and how he interacted with his old sitter. He loves Ms. Jane. She has a calm and sweet personality, and loves to tickle and play with him. She prays with all the kids, and has so many fun toys. I expected that Caleb would struggle the first week with a new person, but he only cried for the first 5 minutes when I dropped him off the first two days. On Wednesday that first week, he didn't even cry. He was happy. And when I pick him up, he is happy. Todd and I both noticed he just seems happier now than he ever did with our old sitter, and that eases this mama's mind. Plus, she is not disrespectful and she doesn't do anything questionable. She is definitely an answer to prayer!

We also celebrated Father's Day this past weekend with family as well. Was nice to celebrate another Father's Day with our Caleb! Caleb had a "test" hot dog with the guys (my Dad and Todd). So he was just one of the guys ;) LOL!

Caleb got his Daddy a mug with photos of him with Daddy

Up close at the mug

But G-Pa also got a mug too for being the BEST G-Pa Ever!!

Eating a "test dog" like the rest of the guys!

And this photo is very similar to a photo of me with my Grandpa Dunmyer feeding me a big drink

from a big bottle! I had to imitate this same thing with Caleb and his G-Pa!

So all in all, Caleb is doing wonderfully. And he hasn't been sick since early May, so YAY! We are finally having a break from all of the sickness! Woohoo!

And in other news - Todd had surgery back on May 29th to clean out infection that was found. AGAIN. And they cleaned it out really well and kept him in the hospital for a week. While he was there, he had muscle moved from above his wrist and moved to the elbow to promote blood flow. This then allows the antibiotics to work better. And in that process, we received a pick line in his working arm so that he could take IV medication for the next 6 weeks. He can administer it himself and we only have a home health care worker come to the house once a week for dressing changes and for blood to be drawn. Todd had a wound vac attached to him for the first week in the hospital and at home, and it promotes sucking out anything nasty (leakage), and helps move the good tissue up and heals faster. But that was only the first week. And a week or so ago, Todd also had a skin graft done by taking from his thigh and moving it up to the elbow area where they placed the muscle. The worst pain actually came from that skin graft (which is normal), but even that is healing well. I change out his bandages on a daily basis, and it is nice to see that it is healing very well so far. I am seeing scabs where they should be and watching this skin adapt to its new location on his elbow is just fascinating. Maybe I could have gone into medicine. I think Todd is happy that I don't get grossed out by this stuff because I can help him more. It's been quite busy, but so far, so good, We have received much love from family and dear family friends, and many prayers from family and friends. So if you have been praying, we continue to say thank you and please keep it up. Our prayer has always been that this would be it, and I continue to hope and pray this is it. So far it is looking really good. But we still have a few more weeks of IV medication and healing before Todd would go back to work. So continue to be praying for us if you would! Thank you friends!

We are looking forward to this next month to see friends and family to celebrate Independence Day. This upcoming weekend, we are seeing our friends in Columbus area at a cookout, and this year, Caleb will be able to run around outside. Last year, he was only 4-5  weeks old. :) So it should be fun to see how he handles it all.

Enjoy the time with family and friends and stay tuned for most updates!

Much love to all of you!

Caleb is ONE!!

 

Well it's official! Our boy is ONE! I can't even believe it! The year has totally flown by. Seems just like it was yesterday when we brought him home. I remember how scared I was because the idea of taking care of this tiny human and being responsible for him was a daunting thought. And yes, the first couple of weeks were the absolute hardest, but after a few weeks went by, I was feeling better about it. And looking into this beautiful face when he smiled at me - I was smitten! And we became the best of pals this year! We have had a year full of many firsts, days at the park, singing, dancing, napping, doctor visits, and lots of snuggles!

 

I love this boy more and more each day. Even though there are days where all I want is a nap, I find that when he isn't with me, I miss him. He has a smile that lights up any room. He is full of so much life and curiosity. We prayed that our boy would be curious and love life....and boy did God deliver! This boy loves to explore. He loves to get into everything. He quite literally keeps us on our toes!

 

Caleb has been walking pretty steadily since 11 months and continues to climb into and around things. He is becoming more and more independent and doesn't always want to hold our hands because he wants to do it on his own. He has also been playing "ball" with us for the past few weeks. He likes to throw the ball to us and we throw it back! I am soo proud of him. I mean, how did he learn so much in a short year? It's amazing! We look forward to seeing what more he learns this year!

 

Caleb's Birthday Party

 

Caleb's birthday party was the day after his birthday, and it was a success. It was a Penguin themed birthday party, and I even made the cake. I was so nervous about making it because I had the best mom in the world who made amazing cakes, and I wanted Caleb to have that in me too. But it turned out great!

 

Birthday boy in his birthday outfit!

 

The Birthday cake

 

I made a fun board of photos and his baby stats on it. I weighed Caleb on our scale (and he was actually detected), and he weighed 21 pounds. I also attempted to get his height (though he was quite squirmy), and he is around 29 inches (might be more as he was moving around a ton). It was fun putting this board together as it really took me back through the last year. I truly have a handsome boy! And despite being quite biased, I would even say he is the cutest!  

 

 

Caleb had many special guests come to his party, but the best surprise was when we heard the doorbell, and there at the door was his Aunt Jen and Uncle Wes!! I quite literally squealed with excitement! Jen had told us just the day before on Skype that they couldn't make the trip, but were so sad about it. So that's why we Skyped with her on his birthday. It was a great call and Caleb would go play and then come back and talk to her. But then the next day, they were there! My parents knew and kept this fun secret from us! :) It was the best surprise! I was so touched that they thought it was so important to be there! And honestly, we see them once or twice a year, so this was just the best thing ever! But we were honored to have many other special people there who are family to us!

 

Aunt Jen and Uncle Wes

 Bunch of family and friends

 

The Food: The food were pinwheel sandwiches, penguin shaped cheese crackers (mostly for Caleb), delicious crackers and cheese dips, fruit and yogurt dip, penguin shaped pasta salad, and blue raspberry cupcakes and Funfetti cupcakes. Caleb was the only one that got a whole cake to himself! hehehe!

 

Pinwheel sandwiches

Penguin cheese crackers

Crackers with vegetable cheese dip and spinach artichoke cheese dip

Fruit, penguin shaped pasta salad, and Blue Ice punch

 

Blue Raspberry and Funfetti cupcakes

 

 Caleb's Birthday Cake: I put a candle on his cake and we all sang to him! I gotta say, I even had a tear in my eye when I heard everyone singing to him. That was just special! So I tried to show Caleb how to blow out a candle and he watched me. Then it was time to try the cake. He wasn't sure about it. I think he liked the taste, but it was quite overwhelming to him because he doesn't eat sugar normally. In the end, he was bored and didn't care about eating it. He wanted to play! He still got quite messy though. His arm kept getting mushed into the icing! LOL!

 

 

So then we opened presents, and boy did he make out like a bandit! He got a corn popper, a swimming pool and swim trunks, cool John Deer tractor, a car, a dump truck, a push toy with a cute lion face that makes music as he pushes it, books, clothes, a fun stackable hamburger that spins, a beautiful wooden toy turtle, a height chart, and a game where he pushes balls into a hole that goes through a maze. Lots of fun for this boy!

 

"Nothing Run Like a Deere" - says the John Deere Tractor

Helping Daddy put together a toy

Playing with his corn popper!

 

But honestly, the best part was just the love that was shared with this boy as we celebrated him. It was so special that he was surrounded with many people that love him!! So thank you to those that were able to come and to those that live far away and couldn't be here, thank you for sending love to him in your messages.

 

It's been an amazing first year, and we are looking forward to seeing him grow and learn even more! I leave you with this cute one year old's face!

 

 My heart!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Caleb is 11 months old - 1 more month to go!

The reality that Caleb is turning 1 in a month has definitely set in. We have sent out birthday invitations, and we are getting things together for his big day! But just this past month, I swear this boy has changed a ton, and he is learning and growing so much!

Baby Stats

 So a few weeks ago, this poor boy was very sick with a stomach virus and had lost 12 ounces since he weighed 19.1 pounds. I know that he has definitely gained it back because he just keeps eating and eating and eating. So I am assuming he is anywhere between 19 and 20 pounds. We will find out for sure in a month about how much he is gaining.

Hanging out with Mommy when he was sick. Oh this face gets me!

He is drinking 20-24 ounces of formula each day. This is exclusively given during the day. He is now off any nighttime feedings! Woohoo for Mommy! More sleep! This is definitely less than he had been drinking last month. Since at around a year, we pretty much eliminate formula completely, so we will have to ensure his food sources come from solids. And we have been practicing with the sippy cup, and he is doing better than he had. We found a better transitional sippy cup for him to use, and it seems to be working.

Caleb continues to eat a lot of table food and baby solids. He is pretty much telling us that he is no longer a fan of baby food (pureed stuff). So we are taking him away from that. He has 8 teeth for goodness sake. This boy can chew stuff pretty well! His favorite foods are applesauce (I know that it isn't chunky, but he loves the stuff), bananas (he will eat directly from the banana), and crackers! He also loves pasta, and whatever Mommy and Daddy are eating. We went to a restaurant fairly recently, and we ordered him food (mac and cheese, and some zucchini). His food tasted good to us, but he wanted whatever we had. So I gave him several bites of my Jambalaya and he loved it! Spice doesn't seem to bother this kid! He is all about it! So if we are eating it, he would rather eat that. And you can't eat something without him wanting to eat it, even if he just ate. He is a growing boy, and I am learning quite a bit about how much this boy loves to eat!

Sleep has been an issue because of him continously getting sick. When he is congested, I like to use the swing to prop him up, but then when he is all better, he doesn't want to be in his crib so much. Sooo....we tried propping up the bed with some blankets underneath it, and that didn't work. We tried making it a little cushier (we thought maybe he thought the bed was too hard), well that didn't work. And he can't sleep in his swing forever. He will have to be in his bed, so we attempted sleep training. And it works! It really does! It's hard to hear them cry, but it really only took him about 20 minutes before he settled down and slept like a champ! Unfortunately, he is sick again (congested with a runny nose), and so we had to resort to propping him up (if he has asthma like his Daddy did, we don't want it getting into his chest) again. But, since I know the sleep training works, I am not worried about whether he will sleep in his own bed again. Because he will. We just need a longer break between illnesses! I realize that babies in their first year or so get sick (especially with colds) between 8-12 times, but UGH. It sucks!

I mentioned above - He has 8 teeth! Two more showed up this past month! This kid has been teething since 4 months old! And he is still going. These next teeth, which have caused a lot more pain and lack of sleep, are his first molars! Ugh! Poor boy!

Caleb in the past week, has been attempting more walking on his own. Just last night, he walked about 6 or so steps before he falls on his bottom. But then he gets back up and tries again! So he is definitely walking more. I expect full blown walking will occur in the next few weeks. He is also walking along the walls...but he has gotten really fast at it! Plus, he is only holding one hand of ours versus two hands. I think that has inspired him to try walking on his own. He is building up confidence for sure.

He is a super fast crawler, and he plays games with me. He has this look he does before he crawls and he looks at me like he wants me to chase him. And then he takes off. So then I go and "chase" him, and he squeals and laughs as he crawls away from me. Cracks me up.

He loves to play Peek-A-Boo with me on his own. If I am sitting on the floor, he will come behind me and stand up, and smile. He wants me to say "Where's Caleb?" and then he peeks his head around and I say "Peek-A-Boo" and he laughs hysterically! I love that he loves to play games with us!

 When he gets excited, he almost does this panting-like squeal and jumps up and down! Doesn't take too much to excite this boy, whether it is food or playing with a toy truck and driving it up to him and saying "Beep! Beep!" He cracks us up all the time now. He is just so much fun to be around and loves to play and explore! I love his curiosity!

He has been "talking" a lot more this month too! Most of what he says is jabbering that I don't understand, but I love to listen to him. He really sounds like he is having a conversation with me! But a week ago or so, I was in the kitchen and I dropped something on the floor. I said "Uh-Oh" without even thinking about it. I hear Caleb crawling/walking along the walls over to me and he says "Uh-Oh!" and then laughs! It was soo cute. He imitated me! I also believe he is trying to say bottle. We try to talk to him with the correct language (and not baby language) so that he knows what things are all the time. And so when I am feeding him a bottle, I always say the word to him. Well this past week, I believe I heard him say "Ba Ba-Ul." That's what it sounded like to me. He says Mamama and Dada a lot, but I am not sure yet if he is talking about us yet or not. He also says NumNum for food. See - he loves his food! LOL! And while he doesn't say No, I believe he is learning that No means not to touch or do something. A few days ago, I told him No to something, and he started crying. I think he is learning what it means for sure!

This past month, he has really loved playing with doors. He loves to open and close doors all the time! He loves little doors, big doors, doesn't matter. He is all about opening and closing and opening and closing. This has definitely led to a few pinched fingers, but he is learning from it.

Already closing the door to his room to keep me out ;) LOL!

On Easter Sunday, Caleb played in a swing for the first time! He LOVED it! He smiled and smiled and laughed! It was so fun to see him love that! He also loves to get out on the grass and walk with us. He loves the feel of grass! It's the little things!

Easter Sunday - looking so cute!

 Easter Sunday - Playing in a swing for the first time!

Sadly, this boy keeps getting sick. I have read and heard from many mothers that this is common the first year. Sigh. He wasn't sick, except for Hand Foot and Mouth during the first 6 months of his life, but these past 5 months, he has gotten sick pretty much every month. :( But I am hoping that this just means that he will be golden once he goes to school! I just keep praying that for his birthday, he isn't sick!

Other than the fun experiences above, not much has been happening with us (thankfully!). Todd and I got the same stomach bug Caleb had a few weeks ago, but we didn't have it very long. Caleb had it for a week, which was very rough! Todd has been told that he will need a 5th surgery...yes I said number 5! But this is more to repair the muscle tendon near his elbow that is preventing him from moving his arm in a certain way, and will hopefully help with pain. Plus, while they are in there, they will remove the metal in his arm (which is likely the culprit of his infections). So that will be happening the week after Mother's Day! Coming up soon! But here's hoping this is the LAST ONE! :)

I can't believe the next time I post about Caleb's development, he will be ONE! My baby is becoming a toddler...ugh! Time has flown! But I plan on enjoying this month thoroughly!
Again thank you for the prayers and love, and I look forward to sharing more fun stories next month! I leave you with this adorable shot of my baby boy!