Lost Camera - Boring Update

I have misplaced my camera, thus the lack of pictures/videos and updates on the blog. I am hoping to locate it soon, because Tom has come up with some new dance moves and other fun stuff that I want to record and share. It is amazing how different he really is when he is not constantly dealing with an ear infection. Don't get me wrong, he still has his days (this past week has been a moody adventure, he is cutting another tooth or two, so, yeah). Overall, though, he has been very happy and doing well since he got the tubes.

Emily and I got to take a trip recently to Miami, Florida. We planned a little get away once we found out Em was pregnant. We figured, this might be the last chance for us to go somewhere on our own for a few years. So we picked Miami, since it is warm and on the ocean. We had a very relaxing couple of days. Basically just hung out on the beach, slept in, and ate good food. It was everything we wanted it to be.

Back in the real world, I am on week 9 of marathon training, which means it is "serious" time. This weekend I have a 15 mile run to do and the weather, per usual in Cincy at this time, is going to be ugly. Emily is taking a class on Wednesday nights to keep her teaching certification. That means she leaves for school at 7:45 am, teaches all day, then heads to class from 4 until 9. Needless to say, Wednesdays are a little tough on Emmy.

We have our first ultrasound next week on Baby #2. I'll have an update on the results when we get them. We are still undecided about finding out the sex. I am fine either way. On one hand it would be nice to know so we know if we need a bunch of new (pink) clothes or not. On the other hand, I like surprises, especially good ones, so it could be fun to wait again. Well, we have about a week to decide, I guess.

The best of Tom and Francie

One day a week (usually Wednesday), Tom gets to go to GG and Hi-Pop's (my parents) house and spend the day with his cousin Francie. Being about 8 months older, she has taught Tom some cool things. How to use a fork, how to turn the music machine on and off in the crib, how to put on a sports bra, you know, the usual 1 - 2 year old stuff. Here are a few pictures of their time together:

Snow Storm Pizza Night

During the recent snow storm, our neighbors Joe and Melanie came over with their daughter Greta for some pizza. All the adults needed a break from being stuck in the house with their 1 + year old and the kids needed a break from their boring parents.

Joe and Melanie are great neighbors to have. First off, they are big Bengals/Reds/UC fans so that is fun. We actually ran into them at Opening Day last year. Also, we have some friends in common, since this is Cincinnati, that is not such a weird thing. I swear this city is like one BIG high school. Another cool thing is that their daughter Greta is only a few weeks older than Tom so we are all going thru the first time parents thing together (their blog is now listed to on the right). Finally, we are both expecting our second child so they also get the stress of having one here and one on the way.

We had a good night, the kids loved the pizza, the dads loved the beer, the moms loved the adult conversation. Here are some pictures from our Snow Day Pizza Party:

(Joe and Melanie somehow escaped the camera's lens, but I swear they were here.)

All Clear

Tom's ear procedure went very well. All told, we were at the hospital for about 2 hours. The operation took all of 10 minutes. So most of the time we were just hanging out in various waiting rooms trying to keep Thomas entertained. It sounds boring/bad, but it was really pretty nice. The Children's Hospital in West Chester was unbelievable. There were so many things to do and play with, the time flew by and Thomas was actually having fun.

Then we got to the actual procedure. The fun came to an end. Thomas did not like the mask that administered the sleeping gas and was fighting pretty hard to keep it off him. Then, in about a minute, he was just out in my arms. It was very scary to see that. The doctors all assured us he was doing great. We were then escorted to a little room to wait for the doctor. Within 5 minutes, she was there telling us everything was finished and Thomas was in recovery. It was that fast. We got some care instructions, and were out the door. Thomas was a little groggy, but he had a really good day. I hope the week continues like this because so far it has been pretty good.

Some Health News

Thomas has had about 6 ear infections since we started daycare. Today we went and saw an Ear, Nose and Throat doctor to find out what was going on with our little guy. We had a good visit with Dr. Schott at Children's Hospital. She saw Tom's history and checked out his ears, which are currently infected (yes....again). Then decided he needs tubes. So we go in on Monday for the procedure. It is pretty quick, and relatively simple, but scary, none-the-less. They are going to use a little sleeping/laughing gas on Tom so that he goes to sleep. These tubes are barely visible to the human eye, so to insert them in his ears, he has to be asleep. Emily and I are hoping this helps Thomas sleep a little more and feel a whole lot better. The poor kid has just had a tough run since Fall. It would be nice to have a full month go by without a visit to our family doctor.

We'll let you know how everything turns out on Monday.