Warm Weekend

Last weekend we had no plans but to play, that changed very quickly! Our quiet weekend quickly became very booked with fun activities.

Friday I picked Brode up early from day care and we headed home to play water balloons. It was finally a warm enough day to get the water toys out.

 We got a new water balloon pumper and it made it much easier. We filled a lot of gallons and threw them all over, except each other. Brode was not a fan of actually getting wet.

After water balloons we drew with sidewalk chalk and made a mess. Brode worked hard in one little corner while Dane and I covered the whole driveway.

Finally after chalk we cleaned up and headed to the Timber Rattler game for the evening. The game started out slow but ended exciting, and who can complain about a hot dog at the ball park for dinner!

We had to giggle at all the little boys running and bouncing around while Brode sat still as could be asking questions about all he plays and calls. He loves baseball!

I didn't get any pictures from our busy Saturday but we started by visiting flag football. We're looking at getting Brode signed up in flag football this fall and as long as Dane was working we went to watch a bit to see if he was interested. Brode loved it and is excited to get started. After football we ran a few errands then headed to the park for "Things That Go". There are dump trucks, garbage trucks, delivery trucks, buses, police cars, cement trucks, firetrucks, buggys, etc. for kids to look at along with bounce houses, lunch, and face painting. Brode liked it but it was very hot!

Sunday was a relaxing day at home in the warm weather. Kelsey and Dane came over and we got out the water hockey mat and water table. The hose water was cold but didn't stop the boys.

Monday was our last day of fun before Brode's eye surgery. We went to the zoo, out to lunch, and to the park to play. It was a beautiful day to get outside and play, and Brode loved to feed the goats and llamas. 

We had a great weekend playing. The weather was perfect and we had a lot of laughs! These types of weekends get us very excited for summer.

Strabismus Surgery

Next week Brode will be undergoing Strabismus Surgery on both eyes. Technically "strabismus" means lazy eye, but he does not quite have it to that extent. Here is a bit of a backstory:

Brode always had a head tilt when he was little, they thought maybe torticollis. After multiple physical therapy appointments it wasn't making progress and I just knew that isn't what it was. Torticollis is often diagnosed with Craniosynostosis patients but they end up down a different path.

We waited to see if his first craniosynostosis surgery would change it with a total reconstruction. It improved but could come back when he was very tired or staring at something very deeply.

At an appointment for a cold/pneumonia with a different doctor at his pediatrician's office (actually, his doctors husband) he began looking to his eyes as his tracking seemed to be off. They then noticed after consulting that when following the lights he would turn his head to the sides, not just the eyes. His tracking is bad and he tilts his head to make them align so he can see. Bingo. They send us to an ophthmologist within the same network.

Ophthamologist, with the notes from the pediatrician, performs tests and tests - he is farsighted, needs glasses. Wrongo. We came here for tracking issues, she never looked at that, only vision. Appointments, many many dollars, and 2 weeks later the "he will keep them on because he will be able to see better" theory was NOT working with Brode. Back to the pediatrician for a referral for a pediatric ophthamologist at Children's that will be familiar with his head history. Bingo. Very happy mommy.

Welcome to our lives Dr. Ruttum and your wealth of knowledge. Before we had his first appointment at the eye clinic we happened to have another head check-up in there and his craniofacial surgeon mentioned Brode's new eye doctor (whose office is 3 steps away) contacted him and they discussed his history and plans moving forward. This is very common with cranio so they have been through this many times. Thank you, finally! His eye muscle movement/tracking issues are because of the eye socket reconstruction when everything moved.

Many appointments later and second head surgery later we've patched Brode's eye for 9 months to correct any vision differences he has between eyes. They're as even as they are going to get for now. Now that Brode is old enough to sit in the chair and identify letters, shapes, etc. he can be tested throroughly for surgery.

3 muscles (between the 2 eyes) will be loosened in next week's surgery. This will correct any tracking/floating issues that Brode's eyes currently have. After surgery we will evaluate his vision again. They expect this to change as they begin to work together a bit more than they have been.

Hesitations - it's not a sure bet. No one can say how much to tighten/loosen. No one knows how his vision will react. Sometimes it's right on, sometimes things need to be repeated between muscle surgery and patching. Please just let this work!

Confessions - I'm more nervous for this than head surgery. I do not know why. Am I crazy? Child's entire head getting cut open with 2 weeks of recovery vs. outpatient 1 hour procedure with red eyes for a few weeks. I trust our doctor completely, I think it's the level of protection. I know his head was near his brain, but after many anatomy classes I also know they did not go through thick layers and were only on his skull. I went into protective instincts for healing, it was all done. Eyes, no way, he can not lose any vision. Eyes are small, fragile, tiny movements. Whew, I will be a wreck for those few hours.

Please keep Brode in a prayer or two this week! Through surgery and healing.

Check our health page at www.caringbridge.org/visit/brode for updates as surgery moves along.

First Fish

Brode got to fish for the first time at the lake on Sunday. He has had his pole with a foam hook on the end practicing in the living room for months. The month of April his "teeth brushing earned prize" was a tackle box. Grandpa picked up his license and they were ready to fish!

After a few casting-with-a-hook lessons he gave it a few tries and found the hot spot. Brode's first fish happened to be his biggest of the day and a story we will always remember as he got a dog with the same cast.

As we reeled the fish in my aunt and uncles yellow lab was in the shallow and decided he would like to taste the fish. Grabbing it and running with the line and all, but we got the fish back.

Brode was not excited about taking a picture that close to it, and the back of the fish was a bit beaten up from the dog's grasp.

Either way it is still his first fish and very exciting!

After that they came flying in - 6 total for the day!

He was finally comfortable being a bit closer and holding them with the pole, but would not even think about touching it! 

This was really one of the experiences he was nervous about, but can only imagine the stories he is telling his friends!

Wonderful Weekend

What a wonderful weekend! I had been looking forward to this weekend all week so when Friday finally came I was more than ready. 

Friday I had Mother's Day Lunch at Brode's day care. The kids are always very excited to have everyone there and I was excited for a lunch break with him. Every mom in his class came, they made flowers for the table, and finger painted cards. We had a fun lunch but little boy was very upset when I needed to leave. I told him I would be back soon and told him our plans for the night if he took a good nap. After a few more hours of work I picked him up nice and early to play.

We sidetracked and took a trip to the hardware store to add to the bird feeder collection growing in our backyard. After a popped tire mishap (ask Brode about the story, he will give EVERY detail) we weren't home until almost 5:00 and ready to get our weekend started. Brode, Dane and I played baseball outside before we packed up our things and went to the drive-in movie.

The Field of Scenes was playing The Lorax so we grabbed some blankets and snacks and drove in. We had to wait for the sun to set but luckily they have mini golf, basketball, and a concession stand to keep busy as it was a beautiful night to play outside. We got a pizza and some drinks before the movie started then got all set. Brode thought it was the coolest thing to watch from the car. He especially liked standing on our laps and looking out the sunroof. Once the movie was over we headed home and Brode was sleeping in 2 minutes.

Saturday morning we woke up to free play time. We made some breakfast then I headed to the American Cancer Society's Soleburner 5K. Brode stayed home and played with grandma and grandpa. The Soleburner had near 8,000 participants and it was a gorgeous day! I loved the course and was glad I participated. After a nice 26:19 run I headed back home for play/shower/nap time. The afternoon consisted of toys, chalk, baseball, cleaning the garage, and then golfing in the garage with all the new found space.

Saturday night Dane and I had date night to celebrate his birthday (even if he didn't let me tell the waitress). We got all dressed up and went to The Melting Pot (fondue). There were prom kids everywhere so we were glad we had reservations as it takes 2 hours to get through the 4 course meal! We had cheese fondue, salads, then an assorment of shrimp, chicken, steak, ravioli, and vegetables to cook. Finally we had the "smores" chocolate fondue to finish up the meal. Delicious is all I can say. It was such a fun meal to do, and wonderful to have the quiet time with no rush.

After our meal we headed out to meet friends for combination birthday, graduation, and going away celebrations. I felt like I hadn't seen them in forever with school, work, and children taking over our lives!

As if the weekend wasn't exciting enough Sunday came and with it was Mother's Day! We opened presents right away during breakfast because Brode had no intentions of waiting. He was so proud of the present he got me and that he picked it out all by himself:

The cupcake necklace. My mom took him shopping and she said he just kept going back to that cupcake jewelry box and necklace, along with the orange bag and paper to wrap it. I wore it right away on Sunday and he was so excited I was wearing it to show everybody! My mom opened her presents then her and my dad headed off golfing for the morning. Brode was upset he couldn't go with, but I was extremely excited to get alone time with him. We went to the park for a good hour where he ran, jumped, swang, and slid then we picked up lunch for a picnic at home. It was near 80 yesterday without a cloud in the sky and could not have been more perfect for play time outside. Before we headed out Brode and Dane surprised me with Mother's Day presents they worked on themselves including a beautiful necklace, my favorite under armour shirt, and a picture frame with a poster with pictures, stickers and handprints. After packing up the car and playing driveway hockey we were ready to go to the cottage for the afternoon.

(Watch for another post on Brode's fishing adventure)

The rest of the day was spent relaxing on the dock, fishing, playing, and eating. The beautiful weather made the day even better and it was perfect! We filled up with dinner, packed up our things and headed back home for the night.

My Mother's Day was great, I was just so thankful to get to spend so much time with Brode as it seems I'm always working and running around. He is at such a funny age and I just want all the time with him I can have!