Memorial Day 2012

We had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend.  We celebrated Benjamin's Graduation from College on Saturday with the Overberg family.  It was great to see everyone and even better for William to meet family members that he has never met!  We were able to get a (4) generation photo - Great Grandpa Overberg, Grandpa Overberg, Brian, and William! 

We were also able to get some really good newly updated pictures of the kids while we were dressed up!

William and Parker hung out on the couch during the party

When Norah was just a baby Brian and I bought a Slip n Slide on sale :) yes, we are those kind of bargain hunters!  We used it for the first time this year - and the kids all had a great time.  (Side note: so did Brian and I!  If you haven't slip n slid in a while; do it - you'll feel like a kid again, I promise!!)

After the exhausting fun of the slip n slide, we heard the sounds of summer - literally via the ice cream truck!  The girls excitedly ran to the sidewalk in front and we indulged them by getting Popsicles.  Norah picked a doll face Popsicle and Bella picked a penguin!  Sadly, it didn't appear there were any dairy-free options, so William indulged in a dairy-free chocolate chip cookie!  (In case you are curious, Target sells dairy free chocolate chips - delicious!!)

On Monday, we celebrated by spending the afternoon with friends.  We had a delicious barbecue and the kids had a lot of fun playing in the kiddie pool.  We discovered that William has no fear of the water and not only did he crawl through the little pool, he also gladly put his face in the water time and time again! 

Thank you to all the men and women who have served and are currently serving our country.  We know the freedoms we enjoy would not be possible without their sacrifices. 

Imagination

I noticed something while watching the girls playing at a park...even though the backdrop is provided; they use anything around them to create a new world that is constantly changing.  The park has a play set with slides and steps, a viewing scope, and a small tunnel.  In another part of the park, there is a metal butterfly chair, and (2) bronze turtles.  The girls were princesses (Cinderella and Celestia (stars? moon?)), running from monsters, flying on the butterfly, magical princesses with wands that can disappear, swimming with the turtles, and many more that I didn't quite understand.  I am proud of how imaginative they are and how they can create such colorful and elaborate worlds with their minds.  There are many times where I wonder if we're doing a good job of being parents, but with days like these; I feel that we are doing a good job.


Norah reading to William

Today I treated the kids to Starbucks while on the way back from an errand.  I think we must go to our local starbucks a lot because when I began to order the girls' drinks (yes, they have specific ones: a frappichino like Mimi, (Norah) with whip cream, (Bella) with no whip cream) and the barrista broke in and finished their order :)  She said (and I quote): "Oh, for the little girls!?  One with whip and one without?" Hmm...our children can not begin to tell you what McDonald's serves, but they know with much certainty what Starbucks serves!

I am going to try to break out of my comfort zone and take the children to the library children's story hour this summer.  I am not sure how successful this attempt will be, but I will try none-the-less.  Sadly, the girls already say, when they see other kids at the library or the park, "...there are other kids here, can we stay? Or do we need to leave?"  Mostly our rule of thumb is that we can stay - if it's not crowded - as long as there are no coughing or snotty nose kids (literally not figuratively) around.  The threat of pneumonia is sometimes too encompassing for me to handle being around children that could be sick...I'm trying though, and sometimes that is good enough.

William has a 6-month meeting with First Steps (the MO funded program for therapy) coming up in June.  We found out last week that our beloved nutritionist is taking a full-time job at a local research hospital, which is a wonderful opportunity for her, but makes us sad.  For anyone who has long-term therapy sessions, you know how close you become to your therapists.  We will miss "Mrs. Tara" but know she will continue to be in our lives.  We will meet William's new nutritionist in the next couple of weeks.  At the meeting, William will also be evaluated by a PT to see if he needs to add that therapy.  He turns his left foot out when he cruises and his OT thinks it's a good idea to get help now.  We couldn't agree more and look forward to helping him with this obstacle.

We've started a new dinner tradition...eating outside almost every night.  The weather has been too nice to pass up and all the kids seem to enjoy the cool evenings and sounds of spring sliding into summer.  The other benefit - we can hose William's seat off at the end of the meal! 

Up close and personal

Here are some pictures of the giraffe's we saw at the zoo lately; a day where we got to enjoy this beautiful spring weather and the company of good friends.  The zoo was surprisingly empty, and the animals must have enjoyed the peace and quiet because they were all out!  Especially the giraffe, a favorite of mine and the girls; we have seen them only a few times lately, but today one of them was eating literally right by the fence - amazing to see them so close.

Mother's Day

 

We celebrated Mother's Day by spending it at the park and enjoying each other.  I feel so blessed this Mother's Day to have all our children at home! We couldn't have asked for better weather or a better day!

I was able to sleep in, was given wonderful gifts that were successfully hidden this whole week(!), and even got the pictures of me and the kids I was hoping for.  I am so lucky to have such a wonderful family - thank you to Brian and the kids for spoiling me this weekend!

Twirling with Bella

Daddy and William

Swinging before heading down the slide...SO much fun!

Norah turns F-I-V-E!

Today our sweet baby girl turns FIVE!  I can't believe she is already five years old - it seems like just yesterday she was born...time is going by too quickly.

We took Norah to American Girl and let her pick out her very first American Girl Doll.  She was so excited to see all the dolls and after looking at all of them - yes, all of them! :)  She chose one that looks just like her - short blond hair and blue eyes. 

Her doll's name is Rose Norah Catherine Overberg ;) and Norah loves her so much.  Her doll got to eat lunch with us - the restaurant at the mall must have anticipated little girl's bringing their dolls because they had high chairs just for the baby dolls!

I will never forget the night Norah was born and looking over at her in the delivery room.  She was and is so beautiful and my heart leapt with joy at seeing our baby for the first time.  We hadn't found out that our baby was a boy or a girl before she was born...so after the nurses took Norah for her first bath and Brian stayed with me in the recovery room; I remember looking over at him and smiling so much and saying "we finally have our Norah!" 

Norah is a fantastic big sister - even from the first day we brought Bella home - Norah stood in front of her carseat and announced that Bella was "..my baby!" and wouldn't let me take her out of the carseat!  She loves William and Bella so much and helps them with doing big sister things...reaching things they can't reach, holding and carrying William around :), offering hugs when they fall down...little mommy things!

Happy Birthday sweet Norah, we love you so much.  You make everyday wonderful and special. 

Updates

Norah turns 5 tomorrow...5!  I am shocked at how fast time has gone and see such a big girl in my arms now.  She is doing so well at school and is such a little mommy at home.  We had to cancel her school birthday party (due to illness at school) but have a special birthday surprise for her tomorrow...more on that another day :)

Bella is...well Bella is Bella :)  On a daily basis I am surprised that she is only 3 and has such a large vocabulary and such a large amount of attitude!  She is overwhelmingly a love bug though and we continue our daily "snuggle time" with Mommy and Bella....love this time of day and am sad that she will also be going to school next year - I'll miss having her home but I know she is going to do so well at school.

William has been having his yearly check-ups with his Pediatric GI, and Pediatrician. 

We've gotten really good news from his Ped surgeon; his esophagus looks great and there is no narrowing at the stricture.  The Ped GI was encouraged that his reflux seems to be under control since the surgery and on his medication.  She is concerned about his weight gain since William is under the 3% for baby boys his age...so we are giving him 10 mL of Olive Oil...yes, you read right!  Olive Oil!  to see if that helps him gain weight.  We haven't had to use his g-button for food in a month and a half; but the GI doesn't want it removed in case we need to use it if he doesn't start to gain weight well enough.  We got a tip to see if he likes smoothies and so far, he loves them!  It works well because I can also put veggies and the olive oil in the smoothie along with all the fruit and it still tastes really good.

We see his Pediatrician tomorrow and have a list of questions for him as well (as we did with all the other doctors!) We are hoping for good news as he is the last stop for follow ups this month (more to come next month).

William has had a few blue spells the past couple of weeks - he isn't having dying spells thank goodness, but is having blue spells - his mouth turns blue around his mouth when he is crying and upset.  This could be nothing to be concerned over, but after speaking with the Ped Cardio-thorasic Surgeon; he wants to perform a bronchoscopy to confirm that the aortopexy is still in place.  Either way, hopefully we are able to find out what is causing the spells and that he is okay through them.

He has been doing well with his OT therapy and is pulling himself up on everything and will cruise along furniture if there is something he really wants just out of reach! 

Thank you to everyone who donated for the NSTAR's walk for Boston Children's Hospital - I reached my goal and it helped our EA team to reach the team goal!  Your donation is so greatly appreciated!

I'll post some pictures of our new garden and the girls helping with the garden - they are very excited again this year.  Since the dogs are outside most of the time, we hope the squirrels and rabbits stay out and we can actually have food to eat this year! 

Ramblings



Happy, full, and watching the rain

This has been one of those weeks in STL where the weather is all over the place.  We started the week with rain and have gradually eased into very warm weather.  The nice thing about rainy weather is that it forces you to stay inside and huddle close...watch movies snuggled under warm blankets and just relax. 

Norah and Bella love helping in the kitchen, so we've started bringing them in more and more to learn what spices and food smell like and how to put things together for a meal.  It's fun watching your children discover how simple ingredients come together to form delicious meals. 

Brian and I were both lucky to grow up in families where dinners were served around the table and discussions flowed.  When Norah was old enough to sit at the table, we started the same tradition in our home....it's where conversations weave through the meal and tie us closer together.  

Explaining how she snaps the green beans at the ends



Final green bean!



This week started the year check-ups for William and, with that, comes all the visits to the specialists.  Unfortunately, William has been sick the past week and a half; so we've already been to the pediatrician twice.  Over the next few days, William will see his pulmonologist, his pediatric surgeon, his GI, and his pediatrician for his well-baby check.  We are switching ENT's so that will be added to the mix once we find one we like and feel will give William the best care.



Love



Bella feels the beat of music wherever she is!  Dancing in the park :)

Norah and Bella are amazing with all the doctor visits and trips to the hospital.  It never ceases to amaze me how well they behave and try to be so patient during these visits.  Today, as a treat, we stopped and picked up lunch and made our way to the park to have a picnic.  I have to admit, these parts of the day are usually my favorite...watching them play in the grass and enjoy nature.


So happy to see Daddy come home!

 

Love this sweet baby

This afternoon, we brought the kids outside and enjoyed the early evening weather on the front lawn.  Eating flowers and bees eventually got the best of us, but discoveries were made none-the-less.