"To hear or not to hear..."

That is the question that we have hopefully answered today. Today was Luke's big day...ear tube day. Anyone that has had a conversation with either Kurt or I this winter will know that Luke has encountered the same fate that his big brother did in the ear infection department. We finally met the ear infection "quota" last Monday and received our referral to the ENT. We went to the same office, but a different doctor this time. Mainly because we could get things rolling a little faster and boy did we ever. We were able to get in for a consult last Wednesday and then boom - surgery this afternoon! We were actually very grateful that the doc was able to squeeze us in today. He said Luke's ears were in pretty bad shape and really needed the procedure. He flunked his hearing test last week too, but due to the amount of fluid in his ears. We will go back in a month to get it checked again. I'm certain it will be fine and just glad we are getting this done before it starts to infringe on his speech development.

Anyone that knows us well, will also know we've been through this twice before with Blake. So, it made the process somewhat easier. At least this time we were more confident in what we were doing and understood the benefits and risks. However, it didn't make the process easier in the "heart" department. It absolutely broke my heart to see my little baby boy being carried off by the anesthesiologist in his little koala scrubs.

He had a rough afternoon. His surgery was supposed to be a 2:45 so the last time he could eat was at 8:45 am. That didn't go over too well. He was doing fine until they gave him some grape flavored Tylenol around 2:00 and then the taste of "anything" put him over the edge. He then proceeded to cry, no scream, for at least an hour. It was terrible not being able to give him the one thing he wanted and that we knew would calm him instantly. Eventually, after many laps around the pre-op area, he crashed. And finally, about an hour later than we thought, he went into surgery. Children's has a nice waiting area that shows you on a video monitor the progress of your child's surgery so we knew the minute it started and the minute it was over. Phew!

So, it's done...for now. I can only hope at this point that the tubes stay in tact and we can make it through the rest of this winter and hopefully next.

"I take Luke to doctor"

Lately we've spent a lot of time at the doctor's office...A LOT. So much in fact that tonight Blake decided to put Luke on the back of his fire truck and take him to the Doctor. He needed a little help hoisting Luke onto the back since he weighs 20 lbs and Blake only weighs 29! So began what I'm sure will be the first of many excursions these two will take together. You can see from the picture that little brother was having a ball. He couldn't get enough of the fire truck and was even holding onto Blake's shirt for dear life (not a bad idea if you've ever seen Blake ride this thing on his own)! It was just precious...I couldn't help but fast forward 14 years to when it will Blake behind the "real" wheel and little Luke riding shotgun. If only life had a pause button too.

A BIG Thank You!

(We tried to get a better picture, but as most of you can imagine, doing anything with two small children is akin to herding cats.)

Anyway, we want to give a BIG thank you to my dear friend Sara and her family for sending us these amazing puzzles with the boys' names. They are so cute, match the motif of both boys' rooms and even have a little shout out to IU on them! We LOVE them - thank you Prather family! We hope that some day you will make it up here to the frozen North (I promise it's pretty nice in the summer) to visit us.

Happy 7 Month Birthday Luke!

Here he is the "birthday" boy!! I almost let today get past me...we have had a rough week with teething. I cannot believe 7 months have passed. You are such a big boy now. You have learned to blow raspberries and you do it all the time! Between that and your teething, your chin and shirts are in a constant state of wetness. I'm trying really hard to get you to say Mama, but no luck yet. I know you know who Mama and Dada are...you get a super big smile when I say the words. Believe it or not, I would not classify you as a "great eater." Now, don't get me wrong, you can suck down a ba-ba like nobody's business, but you have just not taken to baby food or baby cereal like we thought you would. If we can get a couple of bites out of you each night, we call it a good meal. That's okay for now, you are certainly not starving!

You cut another tooth today too. That makes two for you! Look closely at the picture above and below and you can see my first tooth just barely peaking through.

So, Happy 7 Month Birthday little Luke! We have enjoyed every second (give or take a few really groggy ones in the middle of the night) of your little life so far. You make us so happy and proud with all of your smiles, laughs and milestones. In just a few short months you will finally be able to chase that puppy and keep up with your brother. We love you!!

Chomp Chomp!

Well he may not be ready for barbeque ribs or corn on the cob, but he is officially on his way!!Though you can't tell from the picture (it's really hard to get a baby to cooperate in getting this angle) but Luke cut his first tooth today!! It was the bottom right (his left) and it's just barely poking through. He has been SO fussy lately and we thought this might be the cause. It's nice to finally know we were right. Luke really threw us for a loop...Blake was a "stealth teether". You wouldn't have a clue anything was going on and them BAM he'd have a few new teeth!

So congrats little guy! In a few more months you will chewing on all kinds of stuff...but still maybe not ribs and corn on cob! We love you!

The Good Life...

Sometimes it's the little things that remind you how thankful you are for the blessings that have been bestowed upon you...like having two healthy children, a roof over our heads, ample clothes and food (and toys), two reliable vehicles and most importantly (especially after this tough week at Target) two stable careers. I experienced my first layoff this week at Target. It's the first one they've had of this scale in over 20 years. My team was not directly impacted, but we had business partners that were. It was a difficult week for many.

So, here are some images of the "little things" that have reminded me how fortunate I am and how these little moments/milestones make everything else seem so insignificant.

Blake practicing "cutting" using his Playdoh scissors. He has been very excited to begin learning how to cut.

Luke has started eating more than just peas. This pic is after he had a go with some carrots. We let him hold a spoon in each hand to try and keep him from putting his hands in his mouth or swatting at the spoon with food!

We bought Blake some underwear this weekend. We aren't officially potty training, but he has begun to show "interest" at school, so we thought this might help. I have to admit, his little tushie looks pretty cute with Cookie Monster on it!

Mr. Cool...on Saturday I was going to meet a friend and he wanted to watch me pull out of the driveway, but the sun was in his eyes. So, he wore his monkey glasses (you can't see in this picture, but the lenses have monkeys on them).

Here's our little Luke holding his own Ba-Ba!! Yay!!! We have been waiting for this moment in order to have a hand or 2 freed up, however it is a little sad to think he that much more independent.

Luke also had his first bath in the big tub this week. He and Blake took their first bath together. It was really funny. Blake had Luke laughing the entire time.

Here's Lukey trying to watch out the window. He's not quite tall enough to see Mommy or Daddy pull out of the garage yet.

And below is a video of Blake singing his ABC's in an attempt to entertain his brother.

So, that was our week. And honestly, our life in a nutshell. We are in a phase where every day someone is learning and sharing something new and it takes both Kurt and I to keep up and keep track.