What I Come Home To: A Photo Play In Three Acts

Act 1: Sleeping Baby

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Act 2: Sleeping Baby, too

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Act 3: Crazed, Hysterical, Hair Pulling Mom

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Long Weekend

Let's see... Things I want to blog for posterity's sake and because my memory is fading with old age...

1) Cooper's word of the week is "Dog". It gets repeated a lot. He saw another dog at the Sunday cookout and he followed it around saying "Dog!". He obviously knows a dog when he sees one, even if it's a different breed. The question is now "does he know the difference between a dog and a cat?".

2) Cooper can climb on the couch without help. This means there is now more stuff he can reachthat we don't want him to get into.

3) He's learned to climb down the steps, but he won' do it if you want him to do it. It would be cool to put the gates away for awhile, but I'm sure if we did that, we would find Cooper in the basement eating the dog food or something worse. He gets into everything. Even stuff he knows he's not allowed to get into. Yep, I've started seeing some open acts of defiance from the boy. He's spoiled.

4) Cooper dances all the time, even to stupid commercials. He's got this one dance where he puts his arm out kind of funky and crooked. I wish I could get it on videotape. I would certainly exploit it by posting it here.

5) Cooper ate hamburger today. He has never eaten red meat before. He has always pushed it away in the past. We've been able to get him to eat chicken (nuggets), but he mostly eats fruit, powdered donuts, pancakes, and Cheez-Its. Loves the Cheez-Its.

6) We turned on the A/C in the house on Saturday. I planted some "crops" in my garden today. My raspberries and strawberries are nearly ready. I expect to eat a few of my homegrown strawberries by this weekend.

7) Colton looks more and more like Cooper each day. The other day I picked Colton up out of the crib and I had a flashback to picking Cooper up when he was that age.

8) Colton did something today that Cooper has never done. He pooped on Micole. He had pretty good volume and distance, I must say.

Here's a picture of Colton doing what he does best. Sleeping.

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Is it the living room or the toy room?

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Cooper will follow Dobie wherever he goes.

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We put together our new dual stroller this weekend. Micole plans to use tomorrow when she'll go shopping with the boys.

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Cooper on duty as the lifeguard at Sunday's cookout. Ooh, I feel so much safer.

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The obligatory cute cousin McKenzie picture.

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Those eyes are so blue. I think Colton's are going to be the same color.

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Chillin' in the bouncy chair.

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1 and 14 months

Colton celebrates his 1st monthday, while Cooper gets to celebrate his 14th. Micole and I celebrated the day by getting a new stainless steel grill. Colton celebrated by puking on me (which Micole loved to laugh at) and Cooper celebrated by being a whiner butt. It's kind of nice that they share the same day of the month so I only have to do one post.

Both boys at 1 month of age. Cooper on the left and Colton on the right. So let's see... Colton more hair and chunkier. There may also be a slight difference in the noses.

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Cooper at 14 months. I can't get him to set still to take a picture anymore. He's always on the move.

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Uh Huh

Cooper has a way with words. He learns one and then he repeats it over and over, sometimes screaming it. For a long time it was "Dad!" , "Dad!!!", "Dad!!!!", etc. He still does "Dad!", but now he's saying "Uh huh!" constantly. You can ask him a question, any question and when he's in the "Uh huh!" zone, that is his only answer. Our typical daily banter might go something like this:

Me: Did you miss your Daddy today?
Coop: Uh huh!
Me: Really?
Coop: Uh huh!
Me: You want some Cheez-its?
Coop: Uh huh!
Me: So am I your favorite?
Coop: Uh huh!
Me: Is Mommy mean to you while Daddy's at work?
Coop: Uh huh!
Me: Does she beat you?
Coop: Uh huh!

I definitely have some fun with his new development.

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Colton had his one month doctor appointment today, even though he is only officially 28 days old. He's 11 pounds and change. 22 1/1 inches long. Most importantly he's breathing fine. The oxygen tanks will be going home.

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Nearly everything on the floor in this picture was thrown down the steps by Cooper. That long piece in the middle is part of our refrigerator. This is actually pretty clean.

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Micole bought a sling this weekend. We got it when we went out shopping this weekend. It was Colton's first trip out of the house without going to the doctor or the hospital. We got to go to the new Super Walmart. Of course, there's really nothing super about Walmart. It should just be called the Bigger, Cleaner Walmart.

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As evidenced by the following pictures, Colton has had no trouble sleeping.

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All's Well

Eat, sleep, poop, repeat. It's a pretty good life. Enjoy it while it lasts, big guy.

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So what did Cooper do today? He threw more stuff down the basement steps, of course. There was something new he did today, which it seems like he's doing something new almost every day now. The something new was sticking out his tongue. I looked over and he stuck it out at me and then I stuck my tongue out at him and we went round and round like that for a while this evening. It's so much fun getting to teach your kids bad habits. Tomorrow we'll try keg stands.

He also discovered a fascination for my belly. As I was sitting on the couch, he lifted up my shirt and then ran his hands through the hair on my belly. He thought this quite funny. The biggest laugh came when he stuck his finger into my navel.

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Micole says he really looks like Cooper and sometimes when I'm looking at Colt I would definitely agree and sometimes not. It's hard for me to compare them, because Colton has so much more hair than Cooper did at the same age and he's a bit meatier than Cooper ever seemed to be. I suppose if he looked exactly like Cooper we'd have to call him The Mini-Mini Cooper.

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Binky Theft And Its Victims: The Untold Story

Cooper has never seen a binky he didn't like. All the time he's taking Colton's and sometimes right out of his brother's mouth. We try to keep track of Colt's binky, but it has a way of disappearing. Look away for a few minutes and it's gone.

There is hope, however. Last night when I asked Cooper where Colton's binky was, he looked at me, stood up, took a few steps and pointed to the small space between the recliner and end table. Colt's binky was right where he pointed.

Cooper understood every word I said. I wonder how much more he understands. A co-worker pointed out to me that soon we will be able to train Cooper to get his Daddy a beer. A tear comes to my eye! The thought may be a bit premature, because even if he gets the beer out of the fridge, he will most probably throw it down the basement steps. I will be sure to buy only canned beer when the proper time comes.

I got home from work today and everybody here was still in their jammies. It was certainly a tough day for Mommy.

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Cooper is used to the being the center of attention. Now that our clan numbers four, it is much more difficult for him to get the same amount of attention. It's not jealousy really, because he doesn't yet comprehend the concept of jealousy. It's because he's totally spoiled. So our first child is spoiled, but at least we can be certain to save Colton from this dreadful fate. There is no way possible for us to give him the same amount of attention as his brother got in his first year.

Colton was off the oxygen when I got home. He was off all day Saturday, but he was a little worse and back on "the sauce" on Sunday.

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I feel like I haven't taken very many pictures of Colton, but at the same time most of the pictures I could take would be of him sitting in his chair with oxygen tubes up his nose. I've already seen enough of that.

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Colton's doing well despite the fact his brother tries to sit on him. Cooper doesn't understand how fragile his little brother is at this point and that Colton can't play with him yet. Cooper likes him a lot, though. Colton fits right into our mix.

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Tanks Alot!

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Colton is home. The doctors decided to let us oxygenate the boy at home. We have 2 big tanks with enough oxygen for 30 days. We're praying that is enough. It will hopefully make everything easier. Two kids are enough of a logistical problem without one being in the hospital.

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The oxygen tanks come with a free Sirius Satellite radio! At least I thought it was a satellite radio at first.

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Cooper is high maintenance. Now there's tubes and tanks and more devices around for him to mess with. He knows what "no" means, but it doesn't mean anything to him.

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Lather, Rinse, and Repeat

For the most part you could probably read the post from last Wednesday and it would fit perfectly for today. We're hopeful that Colt will get out tomorrow, but Micole doesn't believe that will be the case. He is definitely better than he was a week ago, but he just can't seem to shake it off. I'd like to thank everyone for the kind words and concern. Right now everything seems a little out of sync.

Cooper and I are having a good time in spite of things. We've reached a new interesting stage in his development. You can ask him to go get something and he'll do it. Micole asked him to bring his drum to her. He did. I asked him to go get the doggie and he did. He's done stuff like that before now, but you could never tell if it was just some random occurence. When I asked him to get the doggie, he got up, looked around, pointed, made a noise, walked over, and then grabbed him. No doubt about it. He knew what I was saying and he knew what to do.

Cooper's a smart kid. He's definitely a problem solver. If you put an obstacle in his way, he'll look for a way around. If there is one, he'll find it. I hope as he grows up he keeps that part of his nature.

Here We Go Again

Colt was admitted to the hospital last night. When they tested him he was getting a little less oxygen than he needs. Not as bad as last week, so maybe it won't be another 5 day affair.

The Soap Opera Continues

Micole took Colton back to the hospital tonight. He seemed to have some facial discoloration which is one of the things the nurses told Micole to watch. She called the doctor and he wanted Micole to take him to the emergency room to be observed with a "pulse oxymeter" or some other medical dohickey. Back to square one?

Micole asked me if I thought she was being paranoid. Uh, no. His skin definitely looked purplish-black around the nose and lips. After what Colton's been through I think a little paranoia might be a good thing.

Back To Normal

Colton and Micole came home from the hospital today. He was able to go over 7 hours without supplemental oxygen. Things are back to the way they should be.

Cooper keeps trying to play with Colton. He brings his toys over to him and he tries to sit in Colton's chair, while Colton is still sitting in it. Cooper is into everything. He's still throwing everything down the stairs. What are we going to do when they're both mobile? They're going to age Micole and myself five years overnight when they get to that point.

If Colton had any more hair he would look like a member of the Hair Club for Men.

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Give Cooper food and he'll usually eat it.

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Not Home Yet

Several days have passed and we're still in the same position. Colton is doing better with the oxygen but not well enough to come home. He needs to be able to stay off for about 6 hours. He's been able to do 2 and a half. The doctors are hopeful for tomorrow, but we've heard that line for a few days. Now young Colt is also being treated for ear infections in both ears.

The situation is roughest on Micole. She has cried more than once. She's been spending about 20 hours a day at the hospital with Colt. Her parents have helped out a few times and stayed with Colt so she could come home and have dinner with us.

Pappy, Aunt Kelly, and Granny came to the hospital this weekend to see Colton.
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He just looks so pathetic with the oxygen tubes on him.

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I wonder if Cooper wonders what happened to that little guy that was here for a few days.

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Cooper and I

Colton is still at the hospital. Between visits to the hospital I was able to work 6 hours today and hopefully I'll be able to put in at least another 6 tomorrow. Big guy is doing better. Micole thinks they'll release him tomorrow. She's been by his side almost the entire time except for a few visits home to freshen up and get some clothes. She HAS to be there to nurse him. No way around it.

They're trying to wean Colt off the oxygen. He was on a higher concentration yesterday. A couple of times they took off the oxygen today, but he still is getting just a little less than he needs to be getting. He is getting more oxygen on his own than when he first got to the hospital yesterday. So we're crossing our fingers on a little more improvement and a hospital release for tomorrow.

The Mini Cooper and I are on our own this evening. He spent last night at Joyce's house (AKA "The Best Babysitter In The Whole World"). Tonight us dudes are doing a lot of male bonding, which mostly involves walking around in our underwear, eating red meat, making monkey noises, spinning the dog around until he can't walk straight, and watching television (but not necessarily in that order). Of course, there was also the secret sacred ancient tribal binky sharing ceremony, which I'm expressly forbidden to talk about. Oops. The first rule of the secret sacred ancient tribal binky sharing ceremony is that you do not talk about the secret sacred ancient tribal binky sharing ceremony. I've already said way too much.

Poor Colton

We had to take Colton to the hospital today. His respiratory infection wasn't getting any better. Micole and I have been at the hospital for the better part of the day. They admitted him overnight. Micole is staying in the room with him.

He's got RSV, which is about like a common cold for an adult. For infants it can be quite serious because they can't expel the mucus efficiently, which then causes some difficulty breathing. They've got Colt on oxygen. When they tested him he wasn't getting enough oxygen. He looks so pathetic with the tubes going up his nostrils. He's doing much better now that he's getting oxygen and also because the nurses have used a tool called the BBG (which all of the nurses call the Big Booger Grabber) to suction out the excess mucus.

Hopefully my baby can come home tomorrow. It really just depends on how long he needs to be on supplemental oxygen. It's possible he'll have to stay a few days.