6 Months

It is amazing that 6 months has passed since Ben was born. It seems to be flying by. He is eating solids now & he loves it! I think he does something new everyday. He has had a rough April though. He was back in the hospital again the weekend of Easter. I took him to the ER on Friday night & he had a 7 day stay. At one point he was on 5 liters of oxygen, 2 antiboitics & breathing treatments every 2 hours. I am still nervous that he is going to get sick again. We are taking him to see a Pulmanologist on Monday, so hopefully they will be able to give us some insight as to why he keeps getting pneumonia.

He is also going to see a cardiologist in a few weeks for a check-up on his heart. They are not concerned but because it is rare for Downs babies to not have heart problems, they wanted to re-check him at 6 months.

As hard as it is to have had multiple hospital stays with Ben, I know things could be so much worse. We are thankful everyday & feel so blessed. Our family, friends & neighbors have been such a huge help..I don't know what we would do without them!

Here are Ben's Elmo pics..1 month & 6 months :)

Ben...

I am wondering if this roller coaster will ever stop. Before we went to Florida, we took Ben to Urgent Care where they told us he had pneumonia. They put him on antibiotics & steroids. We took our vacation & had a great time..will post more about that later.

I was concerned with his breathing this past week again. So we took him to the pediatrician. They had us give him neb treatments every 4 hours as needed. It wasn't doing much. On Monday we took him back to the ped & he left there in an ambulance because of respiratory distress.

He was admitted to the Children's hospital & put on oxygen. They have been giving him steroids & breathing treatments everyday. He is getting better but they are thinking it is asthma. They thought maybe when he was nursing that a small amount was going into his lungs. They tested that today & that was not the case. Which is good but asthma isn't good either. They have prescribed for him to be on a steroid neb treatment twice a day, everyday. Hopefully they have figured out why our little man has breathing issues.

I want to thank everyone for your thoughts & prayers. They mean so much!
Here are some pics of Ben hanging out at the hospital.

Happy Birthday Zach!!

Sunday the 22nd was Zach's 4th Birthday. It seems like it was yesterday he was a baby! When I was pregnant with him we didn't find out the sex. So when they said "It's a BOY!" I was shocked..& a tad scared! What was I going to do with a little boy?? He is the sweetest, funniest, kindest little man! He is definetly going to be the class clown. He loves to make us laugh. He loves his sisters & brother, anything that has to do with trucks or trains..he is all boy! But he has a soft, gentle side..just for me :) 4 years ago I couldn't imagine having a little boy & now I can't imagine not having one.

All he wanted for his Birthday was a baseball glove & ball..I see baseball practices in our future!

The Big "Move"

Last week we moved Ben to his crib in Zach's room. With all the kids it was always hard to put them in there own room. I loved having them right there beside me where I could peek over & check in on them at anytime. He has been sleeping through the night since November so it was time. I think I put it off because of his breathing issues early on. Anyways..he loves it & sleeps very well..even at nap time! Zach loves sharing his room with Ben & gets sad when I don't put them in for a nap at the same time. He is such a good big brother!

A Day with the Ducks :)

The kids love to save the heels of the bread & take them up to feed the ducks/geese in the front of the neighborhood..hey it's fun/free entertainment! The weather was nice just a little windy so Ben stayed bundled in the stroller. Then we walked up to the park & they ran off some of their energy..I can't wait for Spring!

Something New

Well Ben had his 4 month check-up this week...he weighs 14lbs 12ozs & is 25-1/4" long. He is in the 50th percentile for his weight & 75th for his length. He is getting chunky & I love it!! The doctor said he looks great & is doing well. She did say that his muscle tone is a little low which is to be expected but you would never know it..he has a strong grip! We are looking into getting him evaluated & maybe starting some physical therapy depending on what they recommend.

Ben is getting to that fun stage where he is interacting more everyday. He loves to watch the kids play & gets excited when they come over & talk to him. He got to try some rice cereal the other day & he actually did really well. Here are some recent pics..

Ben's sad face :(

Our Yearly Snow Day!!

We rarely get snow here but we did on Tuesday! The kids were beyond excited. Kaylea was in my room at 4:45AM to let me know it was snowing..that made for a long day. They had so much fun. I wish it would have lasted a little longer. The kids were bummed we didn't get a chance to build a snowman, so hopefully we will have at least one more snow day this year!

3 Months...already!

As of today Ben is 3 months & 3 weeks. He is changing everyday. He babbles constantly & he has started laughing..it is so cute! He loves to stand up & bounce..already! He has been sleeping through the night since December. He is such a good baby, we couldn't have asked for better. Here are a few pictures..

Winter Photo Shoot

Instead of taking the kids to get their pics done for Christmas, I just dressed them up & took them outside. I think I took over 200 pictures. Getting 3 kids to look at the camera & make sure Ben wasn't crying is hard work! But I did get some good shots & some funny ones. Zach's facial expressions crack me up!

December 2008

Wow..December was busy! We had lots of company & so much fun! Grandma & Grandpa Leonard came to see us for a few days. Bill's cousin Lori & her husband came over from the coast to see us & Bill's parents. We had a fun time, wish they could have stayed longer. My parents came for Christmas & surprised the kids! They were so excited. We can't wait for our visit to Florida in March. Here are some pictures from December..
* If the slideshow doesn't work for you, just click on view all images :)