Happy 2010!

Well, it has been a long time...Of course, I am sorry for the time lapse that has occured since I last wrote. Everyday I think of things, and the boys do funny stuff that I could write about, but, by the end of the day, I am usually just content to feed my starving face and study with Clint in the hour of silence before we have to turn in (Clint is at MD Anderson hospital this month and leaves at 4am! So, we turn in early - We do feel super old and lame, but must do it to survive!).



The holidays were wonderful! We had Carol come out for a visit during Thanksgiving (sooo fun!) and Kirk and Mandy were able to come for another visit. Also, because of our wacky schedules for work and school (Clint was doing a graveyard trauma rotation) we were able to spend a little more time together. Christmas Eve we carried on the tradition of nachos with Rick & Linda, Kay and her boys, Greg and Mike, and Keith & Liz. Then the next night, we went over to Rick and Linda's to be with them all again for the best turkey I think I have ever had (Rick is a wonder with the meats! We are so lucky to get to eat his fabulous cooking and grilling. AND, he even helped us to make our own turkey a couple of days later with his recipe and special brining bucket!) Of course, there were also the traditional cakes, cookies, and fudge by Linda and Kay! We just love our Texas Christmas traditions!



It seems that the boys have grown in leaps and bounds these last few months. Curtis is now telling stories that he makes up, reciting the first two & 1/2 Articles of Faith, and perfecting the puppy-dog eyes and pathetic pleading that melts our hearts to give in to his requests. Ben is all about letters - They got a LeapFrog "Letter Factory" DVD for Christmas and Ben loves to point out letters everywhere and say their sounds now! He is really impressing us with his little brain, which suprises us because his hair is still so blonde! He is also very, very energetic, brave and focused on HIS OWN agenda. (I am trying to find a nice way to say that he is just an uncontrollable "live wire"!).



The other day was Daddy's birthday. When he got home, I was telling the boys that we should sing the "Happy Birthday" song to him when he walked in the door. I really didn't say more than that, but when he came in, Curtis just broke into the whole birthday song - all by himself! It was adorable! Then, he went even further - He picked up his new tricycle that he'd received from Uncle Bubba, Aunt Linda, and Aunt Kay for Christmas, carried it over to Daddy and said: "This is for you, for your birthday!" The rest of the night he wouldn't even let Ben near the tricycle that he'd given to Clint because it was "Daddy's". Pretty cute! He is now counting the days until his birthday.

Our latest excitement with our bouncy little boys was a trip and overnight stay to Texas Children's Hospital. NOT so fun...

On a routine trip to Kroger for groceries last Friday, Curtis and Ben seemed to be on crack! - They were extra energetic and unmanageble...Long-story-short, Curtis ended up falling out of the shopping cart onto the back of his head. It really was an aweful sound and scene! After about an hour of crying (both boys now) and some "zoning out", I was scared enough to find a place to take Ben and head to the ER with Curtis. By the time we made it to the hospital (Methodist Willowbrook), Curtis had calmed down and I was wishing I hadn't brought him. But, they did a CTscan and about two minutes later the Dr. came in and told me that he actually had fractured his skull and needed to go to Texas Children's to be admitted and observed. I was shocked!

I called in "sick" to work, notified Clint of what happened, asked him to meet us there, and then they transported us via ambulance downtown to Texas Children's (apparently there are only two hospitals in Houston that handle pediatrics - both downtown). We entered in through the ER, they took his vital signs, and then we were seated in the front Lobby for about two hours until they took us back to an ER room. Clint found us there and then an ER Dr. finally saw Curtis, looked at the CTscan images, and consulted neuro surgery (Yikes! There was a possibility of areas of bleeding!!). The neuro surgeon said that it probably wasn't much to be worried about, and they didn't expect to do any surgery or procedures, but we were admitted under them to be observed for seizures or vomiting until morning.

We finally made it to a room in the epilepsy unit around 9:30 pm and tried to find some food first thing (breakfast was long, long ago by this time!!). The cafeteria was the only thing open and is CRIMINAL - that is all I will say! - But, we were able to take Curtis with us in a little wagon and he enjoyed some chocolate milk while we ate our million $ sandwiches.

Some parts of the experience were nice: Clint was able to stay with us the whole night (Janet took care of Ben when I raced off to the ER, and then Laura graciously boarded Ben for us during most of our time away!), we slept a little bit, had cable on the TV, and some nice one-on-one time with our oldest little boy. We pretended like it was a second honeymoon - in a hotel with cable, in the big city,...but, with our kid.... Yeah, OK, not really a honeymoon at all, but an adventure!

Anyway, we were released the next morning. Curtis has not had any need for medicine and doesn't show signs of lasting effects (although I think he has a healthier fear of shopping carts and ambulances now!). Ben has apparently overcome his abandoment issues already. And, thanks to our wonderful friends and good medical technology, hopefully Curtis will retain all of his brain cells. We do feel really lucky to have our boys and health for everyone most of the time!