Cute Kiddos

I took these tonight when giving the kids a bath and thought they were so cute! Keegan is very silly with toys, he often holds them in his mouth like that...maybe he learned it from Bailey. Yes, I did give him a haircut today. The top turned out a bit shorter than I was wanting, but I was using Matt's little clippers for the first time and he was not home. Overall, I think it turned out good.

I also thought it was time to update the look of the blog as well :)

Father's Day

Riley made this at school for Matt...it is just WONDERFUL!!

Keegan News

Keegan went for his 9 month check up last week and he is doing good. He weighed 17lbs. 8oz., which we are very happy with...still gaining weight very nicely. We also saw the GI doctor last week and have decided to move ahead with the G tube (the feeding tube directly into his stomach). At this point it is apparent that is will probably be quite some time before he will be taking all his nutrition by mouth, so we think it will be so much better for him not to have the tube up his nose and down his throat. At this point he will taste pretty much all foods, but really has no desire to actually eat or to drink his bottle. We are hoping/praying that some of this is due to the NG tube and that things will start to improve once it is gone. We meet with the surgeon on Tuesday so we will know more then. We will be continuing with feeding therapy and we have also started physical therapy to get him doing all the things he "should" be doing at this point. He is doing really good with physical therapy and making great progress. He is just so much fun these days!!

The Artist

Last weekend I came around the corner of the couch and saw what Riley had drawn on her wipe board and I was amazed...at first I thought maybe Matt had done it. She is pretty good at smiley faces these days and I love that it even has eyebrows.

Riley is doing great with the big girl potty. We only use pull ups at nap and night time. We have been so lucky that she has done so well with it. She is doing great at school, although they tell me she is a little quite at school...I guess that is why she is NEVER quite at home. She is in swim lessons and doing good with that also!!

One thing about Riley that we have noticed lately is how observant she is. Example 1: Matt put a new handle on the toilet downstairs while she napped one day. After her nap she went to use the potty and noticed the new handle. So funny!! Example 2: She noticed that when she uses the potty at Mimi and Papa's house the toilet paper is closer to her (the cabinet is closer than it is at our house). Seems so grown up for a 2 year old to notice such "odd" things. I know there have been other things, but right now I cannot think of them. Mom brain!!

What Keegan has taught me...

In just 8.5 short months Keegan has taught me many things; I thought I would share some of those things...

1. Always trust your instincts, if something does not feel or seem right keep looking for answers.
2. Doctors do not know everything and everything they say is not always right.
3. If you are having doubts about your doctor or second guessing things then find a new doctor right away...do not put it off.
4. It is best to take each day as it comes. (This one is not so easy!)
5. Do not take things for granted; especially the little things.

These are just some of the many lessons learned along our journey with Keegan. He is an amazing little boy - it is heartbreaking to think about all the things that keep working against him in his first year of life, but he is so full of energy and life! He is doing great, except for the eating thing...that continues to be a big struggle, but we will get through it. He now has 6 teeth, he babbles back and forth with you and waves, which is very cute. He is absolutely wonderful and we are truly blessed.

Too Cute...

Riley

What to say? Just think this is such a cute picture!!

Trying Foods

We went to the new GI doctor last week and we REALLY like her. She had a great attitude...to sum it up..."What do we do to get rid of the tube?" Yea, that is what we want to know and do. Our last doctor had not wanted us to start any types of food yet, but this doctor said to jump right in so that is what we have done. We have tried apples and pears so far; I think apples are a little strong for Keegan, but pears go down a little better. Of course now Riley wants to eat what Keegan does, goofy girl!! We are also trying a different formula in the bottle; she said some kids will not drink what they get through the tube. So far not really seeing a difference there but we are still hopeful. We are to try those 2 things for the next month and go back for a follow up and we will go from there. The good news is that he is gaining weight nicely and looking pretty chunky these days.

Keegan update

Keegan is doing good these days. No, we are not rid of the feeding tube yet, but since he pulled it out today we let him have a break this afternoon. He is now gaining weight quite nicely and is happy and full of energy. We still have to get him eating more by mouth, but we will get there; we are making a little progress, but slowly. Keegan's big news of the week is that he had another tooth come in today and he has 3 more that will be in any day now. He loves his toys that play music and loves the bath tub. He is a funny boy!!

Riley Update

Riley has had a big week this week. Here are pictures from her first dentist appointment. I got my teeth cleaned first so then she was brave enough to get into the chair. The light was too bright for her, but with her lovie on her head she was just fine...hey, whatever works!! She let Marcia (the hygienist) count her teeth and clean them (well, some of them). Now for the funny part - after she was done she went to look in the chest for a prize, after looking for a while she asked if she could have toothpaste!?! Really, she wanted toothpaste over a prize. Silly girl!

Also this week Riley has decided that she wants to use the big girl potty. She got up the other day and used it twice which makes her an expert so now she wears big girl panties. She is doing great, of course there have been some accidents, but good so far. She even gave Keegan her diapers tonight since she now wears her big girl panties and special ones for napping and sleeping (pull ups).

We started swim lessons on Tuesday. She did good. I watched through the windows and it was too cute. I kept catching myself with a huge smile on my face or laughing out loud. It is so fun to watch her learn something new.

She is still in love with Mickey Mouse. She is just getting more independent by the day..."Riley do it all by Riley's self" is what I hear a lot these days. She repeats everything you say and enjoys calling Matt and I by our names instead of mom and dad - funny, funny girl.

Las Vegas

Well, Matt and I had a nice time in Vegas last weekend. We played a bit, enjoyed some great food, and a great show - Jerry Seinfeld. It was a good little get away, now back to the real world.

Matt's Birthday!!

Matt's birthday was last weekend so I thought I should post a few pictures. I would love to say that he just had the best day on his birthday, but it was not that way. It was a crazy day around here...2 sick kids...Riley had some allergy stuff going on and Keegan was very congested which caused him to throw up after most feedings. It felt like we were constantly wiping noses, cleaning up throw up, changing clothes and washing hands.

I would like to report that Riley is doing much better now and Keegan is on his way. We had to take him back to the doctor on Wednesday and she gave him an antibiotic, thank goodness. After 10 days of awful congestion, coughing, and throwing up I think the kid deserves a break. Other good news is that Matt gets to celebrate his birthday again tomorrow in Las Vegas!! We flying out in the morning and staying the night and coming home Sunday afternoon. It will be a quick trip, but a nice little break. We are so thankful for having great family around to watch our children.

Newest Fashion

Here is Riley's newest fashion statement!! I am not sure how or why it happened but it did and she seemed to like it. Funny girl! That is her new toy behind her, it is a fun sand and water table.

Keegan

Well, we went for our check up today and Keegan gained 1 lb 7 oz since we left the hospital (about 10 days ago). This was great news and he is definitely looking plump these days. We will continue our current plan for now and we have a follow up with the GI doctor on Monday.

Fun Saturday

Yesterday we went to the zoo for a while and had so much fun. We saw all our usual animals, but the newest one we saw was a 3 day old zebra, so cute!! After the zoo we went to the park for a little while to let Riley get rid of some energy, she loves to slide and swing.

So far this week Keegan has been doing really good. Tomorrow we will have the real test, we go to the doctor for a weight check. We know he has gotten bigger because pants that fit last week no longer fit this week, yea!! I will keep you posted.

Keegan Update

Well, Keegan has been through a lot since my last update of him. He started eating less and starting losing weight, so we went into the hospital to have a scope and barium swallow test to see if we could figure out why he would not want to eat. The scope was last Wednesday and after that test we were admitted to the hospital. The scope looked good. The next day we had the barium swallow test and found out he silently aspirates, meaning that sometimes when he drinks the liquid goes into his lungs instead of stomach. So now what he takes by mouth we have to thicken with rice cereal to a thickness of honey; that makes it safe for him to drink. But since he has already lost weight and we need to build him back up, they put in a ng feeding tube to supplement. That is the one that goes through his nose to his stomach. We spent 3 days in Phoenix Children's Hospital and were so happy to come home Friday night.

He is doing good, so much happier to be at home. We are so happy to have found an answer and to get him back on the right track, we are now just adjusting to a whole new way of life for now. They had all kinds of doctors check him out and everything else with him looks good, we just have to work on his feedings and plump him up. Right now he is getting about twice as much per day as he was getting so we feel confident that the weight will come. Matt, being a numbers guy, figured out how many calories Keegan is getting for his weight and came to the conclusion that he would have to consume over 8,000 calories a day to be equal to him, WOW!! I don't think Matt will be keeping up with Keegan.

Yes, that is Keegan in purple...apparently they do not have gowns that small in any other color!?! Seems silly to me. Also, the cribs there are a little prison like, glad to be home!!

Happy Easter

We had a great Easter today. The Easter bunny was very good to Riley and Keegan...he is so smart, he somehow knew how much Riley LOVES Mickey Mouse these days. After discovering the Easter baskets we enjoyed our traditional Easter breakfast - chocolate chip pancakes. We then did a little Easter egg hunt here for Riley and then went over to Matt's parents for the afternoon.

Keegan checking out what the Easter bunny brought him.

The Easter bunny brought the kids sunglasses, so cute!!

Hunting Eggs

Riley had lots of fun hunting Easter eggs this morning. It took her a little while to get into it and by the time she did she had found all the eggs; so Matt would throw the eggs she already found back into the yard when she was not looking for her to find again.


The Easter Bunny hid a special egg for Riley and Keegan that had money in it to go into their piggy banks...it's a good thing they have no concept of money because 70 cents is not going to get you too much.

This year as Riley found Easter eggs she just had to open them as she went along, so by the end her basket was quite the mess.

Riley putting her money in her piggy bank that the Easter Bunny brought her.

Coloring Easter Eggs

Saturday night we decided to color Easter eggs and boy was it fun!! We helped Riley with the coloring part and she added stickers.


Patiently waiting for the eggs to come out of the color bowls.

Keegan played with his toy while we did Easter eggs, next year he can join in the fun.

Working hard...

Riley forgot to let go of the color tablet when putting it into the bowl.

Sunday Afternoon