Going private

For a long time I've moderated all my comments because I get random creepy people commenting on here. Nothing super creepy, but if I don't know them, I don't want them looking at the pictures of us, etc. So, if you want an invitation, send me your e-mail address and I'll send you one. I know it will take several days to get everyone, so I've decided the official "going private" date is Saturday, October 9th.

Our little trooper

As many of you have already seen on facebook, Weston has had a rough day. We brought him to the ER at about 4:00 this morning, because he was coughing so hard he was dry heaving, and barely able to breathe. The people in the ER were fantastic and got him in right away. I mean, before we could even fill out the forms they took him back to start looking at him. Weston didn't enjoy all the poking and stethoscopes, but he was a trooper through the whole thing and even sat still for his chest x-ray. The ER doctor told us from the x-ray, he thought it was RSV. We were much relieved however, when the test result came back as Bronchulitis. (Like RSV, and treated the same way, but not as severe. And if it had been RSV, Wes would have had to live in a bubble.)

Wes had several rough hours, where all he wanted was Bob (his duck) and Bryan. (Nope, not me. Usually I'm the one he wants when he's sick, but I think the hospital made him scared so he wanted his big strong daddy.) He was (and is) getting albuterol treatments every 4 hours or as needed. He was on oxygen this morning too (which he hates!). He is now also on antibiotics to keep him from getting any other infections, and steroids. When the nurse brought in the steroids, he told us Weston is lucky because they are the same kind baseball players use. (Wes being a huge baseball fan, you can imagine his excitement... except really not.)

This morning our friends Steve and Karen came by and Steve helped Bry give Weston a blessing. If you read on, you will see that it worked! We love miracles. :)
By about noon Wes had had about 8 hours of sleep since 8:00 last night. However, he woke up in a much better mood and even ate a tiny bit of lunch.

I was feeling kind of bad because today was our ward's primary program, and I had to call this morning and tell the primary president I wouldn't be able to make it. (I probably would have felt worse, but it's hard to care much about anything else while watching your baby suffer.) Fortunately, the primary president was so understanding and found someone to cover me. Right after church one of the primary teachers (who has often helped take care of Wes while I play piano in primary) stopped by to visit. A couple hours later the primary presidency and chorister showed up, and even brought Wes a present - a pack of cars! Not long after that, a couple of men from the church showed up and gave me the sacrament. It was such a blessing to feel so connected to the church even when we couldn't go. The Lord has really watched out for us.

Now Weston is still getting his breathing treatments, but he's off the oxygen. If he can stay that way through the night he'll get to go home in the morning. He barely ate anything for breakfast or lunch, but he ate dinner like there was no tomorrow. He scarfed down his grilled cheese sandwich and French fries.

***Pause for random thought: is it really necessary to capitalize "French" in "French fries", even though they are not in fact French? ***

Another blessing is that we get to see my mom tomorrow! Originally she was going to get here Saturday night and leave this morning. But thanks to some "blessing in disguise" delays, she'll get here tonight, stay with Steve and Vivian, and we'll get to see her in the morning. Weston and I both will be much better able to enjoy our short visit tomorrow morning than we would have been able to this morning.

The last thing I have to say to everyone is THANK YOU. We have had so many texts, phone calls, & visits, and we know that lots of people out there were praying for Weston's speedy recovery. Our little adventure will sure put a ding in the budget- but just like it's hard to care when he's suffering, we're just SO grateful that he's feeling better that we are not even going to complain. We feel so blessed to have our healthy, happy boy back.

"We do not hit..."

As many of you are aware, Weston has had eczema since he was very small. His doctor is great, and so sympathetic. He had us try different lotions and baby oil at first, because he was so tiny. As he got a little older it became apparent that those things were not going to cut it.We went on to try vaseline, and even lanolin. We followed the doctor's advice and only bathe Weston every 3-4 days, unless he really needs it. Finally, we decided it was time to try the steroid cream triamcinolone. It did great for a few months (which is longer than any other treatment lasted). It still does help keep his skin somewhat under control, but it just can't keep him from having a nasty breakout every now and then. In addition to putting stuff on his skin, we have tried different allergy medications, because eczema has been linked to allergies.

Yet, whenever Weston has a break out, anywhere we go some random person sees fit to make a comment, such as: "Well what lotions have you tried?", "You should take him to a doctor", or even better "have you tried putting lotion on that?" (Obviously none of these people have had this problem, or have kids with eczema. I have talked to other parents whose kids have eczema, and they have the same peeve as I do with comments like that.)

For some reason people, whether strangers or people I know, seem to think that I enjoy watching Weston suffer with his skin problems. So far I have managed to be polite and say "He HAS been to a doctor. He has medicine, but sometimes he just breaks out anyway. "

However, there was one day that a Walmart cashier almost pushed me to jump over that dirty conveyor belt for a good sucker punch to the face. Weston's face, arms, and everything else were red and cracking. The cashier took one look at him, and giving me a dirty look, said "*GASP* Did mommy give you something you're ALLERGIC to?!" She seemed to think I was completely oblivious to his suffering. It took every ounce of self-control to give the usual polite answer (though this time it was through gritted teeth). She went on to say that he needed to see a doctor, and I shouldn't be taking him out like that. You know why I was at the store? To get him a treat because he was having a rough day.

Some people.

3 Years!

I can't believe it, but it has already been 3 years since Bryan and I got married! The winds howled, lightning took down trees, trying to stop us the night before. On the day of our wedding, I went to the church to get ready because there was no power at my parents house. On the way to the temple, the police were performing some kind of man-hunt on the highway, which held us up. But we were determined, and no force of nature or anything else could keep us apart! I'm so glad I found such a great man, who takes great care of me and our amazing little boy. I can't wait to see what the rest of forever brings.

Happy Anniversary Bryan!

Summer Part II

August:

-Weston climbs. EVERYTHING. And yes, that is his outfit of choice.
-Weston is learning new words. His favorite is still "no". I wish I could say I don't know where he learned it, but he hears the word a lot. (See above entry: "Weston climbs") Other words include "Mama", "Dada", "zoo" (shoe), "Woof woof" (a.k.a. dog), "voom" (car/truck/airplane/train), "Ba" (ball), and "ooba" (football - Daddy is so proud.)

-After much Persuasion, Bryan convinced me that it was time to leave Weston overnight.
-Actually, he tried to get me to leave for a few days, but I was too much of a chicken.
-We left Weston at Grandma Visser's, with me almost in tears, and Weston so excited he would even acknowlege Bryan or me as we left. Weston had a great time, and I called every few hours, ready to go get him at any moment.
-Bryan took me to Park City for the weekend. Did I remember the camera? Check. Did I remember to take pictures? Not so much. I did manage to take 2 pictures, and they're not great:

-This was on the drive down to Park City. Gorgeous views.
-We stayed at a 5-star hotel called the Waldorf. A. Maz. ing. Included were robes and slippers for both of us (not to keep. Dang it!), a SUPER fluffy bed (maybe a little too fluffy for my taste, but that's probably because I can't afford such a luxury!), and a pool & two hot tubs all to ourselves. Also, a fireplace, and TWO TV's. One in the main room, and one - pause for effect - in the bathroom. The bathroom had a jacuzzi tub, and a TV with a sound system so it could actually be heard. Turns out there's really nothing on TV on Saturday mornings, but I watched TV anyway while I got ready. Just because I could.

-Also in our room was this blow dryer. My camera is not great, but if you look closely you can see the diamonds (fake? Let's pretend not) on the handle. Talk about luxury.
-It turns out if you stay in a 5-star ski resort in the summer, prices are WAY low. Still, the most expensive place we've ever stayed, but think of all the money we SAVED!
-We didn't know before we got there that we were not permitted to park our own car. Nope. You pull up to the front door, and a valet takes your car. I felt out of place at first, but man. That was cool.
-While we were in Utah, we saw 2 of Bryan's mission buddies. One we went to lunch with in Salt Lake on the way down. The other happened to be staying at his families cabin right outside Park City. Talk about convenient! We got to go have dinner with him & his wife, and his parents, who were so kind. They even drove us up the mountain to their cabin so we wouldn't get lost. (And trust me, we would have. There were a LOT of cabins up there, and they were towards the top.)
-On Saturday we went to the outlets in Park City. I have to say, I've always heard about great prices at outlets, and I wasn't really impressed. The prices were about the same as going to any store here in town. We did each get a new shirt though, and even got Weston a new hoodie.
-We got back on Saturday evening, in time to get Weston and put him to bed. Was he happy to see us after almost 2 days? Not a chance. He cried for an hour after we left Grandma's house. I was glad he had a good time. And next time, Bryan can take me away for a few days instead of just one night.

-The BIG news of August - Weston moved into a big boy bed!

-For the record, I was all for keeping the crib as long as possible. But remember what I said earlier? Weston climbs. unfortunately, when he climbed out of his crib, it was not in a graceful manner, nor was he able to climb back in. The night that he climbed out, I rocked him to sleep (which took a while), then layed him back in the crib. He woke up in the middle of the night and was climbing out again, so I brought him to my bed for the rest of the night. That was a very long night. The next morning, I pulled out the toddler bed (luckily I had gotten a great deal on craigslist just the week before!) and Weston couldn't wait to jump in it, just like he jumps in Mom and Dad's bed.
-Weston napped in a playpen that day, because there was no way he was going to stay in that bed.
-That night I walked Weston back to his bed over 30 times before he finally stayed there and went to sleep.
-The next night was about 40 times.
-The third night in the bed I walked Weston back to bed about 60 times, and finally just shut his bedroom door.
-Now he knows when it's time for bed, and almost never gets out of bed at all. He even naps in the bed, except for the days I babysit. Then he sleeps in a playpen just like the other kids. (Only because he won't stay in his bed when there are kids to play with. )

-We went with our friends Steve and Karen to the East Idaho State Fair. Having never been to a state fair besides Minnesota, I was shocked how small the grounds were. Was I complaining? Not one bit. Still pretty much all the same food, all the crafts and animals to look at, and you don't have to walk nearly as far. Not to mention it is SO much cheaper than the MN State Fair.
-We took Weston in his stroller, but he was only in it for about 5 minutes total.
-Wes LOVES Steve. He did spend some time on Bryan's shoulders, but for the most part he just reached out to Steve. Neither Bryan or I minded one bit. :)
-Yep, I forgot the camera that day.

-Also in August, we got the GREAT news that we'll be getting a niece! Mathias', as some of you may know, tend to produce boys in mass numbers, so we are thrilled to have a girl in the family! Congratulations to Alicia and Brian!

September:

-We haven't done a lot worth writing about this month, but it sure seems like we've been busy. Where has the month gone?!
- On Labor Day weekend Bryan's brother John and sister Staci came up from Utah to visit.
-Staci was very kind and got up at a ridiculous hour to go on the milk route with Bryan.
-I love saying "'the milk route". Yep, I'm married to a milk man. That's pretty cool to say. (I mean really, how many people do you know that can say that?!)
-We went to breakfast on Labor Day, which we didn't actually get until 11, so it was more like brunch. Bry's parents took us all to Smitty's.
-Smitty's is a place here in town, which serves great breakfast. Get any other meal, and be sure that you have pepto on hand.

-Usually when we go out to eat, I share with Weston, because he's not a huge eater. However, on this particular day, I got a huge waffle (we're talking monster-size waffle), and Weston ate over half of it! Needless to say, he left the restaurant stuffed, and I left... not so stuffed. Now we know that Weston gets his own meal when we get waffles.

-After brunch, we all went bowling. Wes rolled a ball a few times on my turn. The first time he rolled the ball himself, he hit nine pins. No bumpers, no help. NINE pins. (True, every time after that was a gutter ball. But wow!)



-While at the bowling alley, Weston and Bryan played this driving game. Bry worked the pedals, and Weston did all the steering. And he didn't come in last place! (7th out of 8!)



-Weston turned 18 months this last week, which means he went into nursery! I actually took him in a couple of weeks ago just to meet the leaders and other kids. When I tried to take him back to primary with me, he was so upset that the leader said he could stay. This Sunday should have been his first week in there, but he was in there for the third time, and has stayed without a problem every time.

-Weston had his 18-month check-up this week. He has only gained about a pound since his 14-month shots. For weight, he is in the 22%. For his height however, he is in the 83%, and his head is a whopping 91 percentile head.

-Last Christmas, for some reason, we all measured our heads at the Visser's house. Weston's Uncle Scott's head was the smallest adult head, at about 22". (Why do I remember these random facts?!) This week, Weston's head was measured at 19.5". Talk about big brains! 

Revived!

As someone recently put it, my blog died. Actually, my will to blog just died. But it has been revived! At least, for today. I won't make any promises about the future. :p

This summer SO much has happened. Therefore, I rely on the list to update:
-Weston has taken an interest in helping around the house. Any chore besides cleaning up his toys, of course. Here he is helping Bry mow the lawn.

-In June my mom and youngest brother Danny came to visit for a few days. Being the genius that I am, I didn't take a single picture. Gah! I hate that. I loved spending time with my mom. I wish she could live here. Weston LOVES his uncle Danny, and spent lots of time running around and laughing with him.

-Also in June, we went down to Salt Lake to visit Bryan's grandparents. It was a quick trip, but we were glad we got to see them. Weston showed them how to drive cars on the floor, and was glad to play with the wheels on their chairs. (People at church don't take so kindly to that.)
-At the end of June, Bryan's sister Jodi and her husband Scott came from Hawaii to visit! They brought with them our nephew Max, who is SO cute. We were instantly best buddies. (He even gave me some barf on my shirt to remember him by.) They did Max's baby blessing here in Idaho, so we got to be there. We sure do miss that little guy, and his parents. Why can't everybody just live closer?

-Weston spent lots of time with his buddy Hannah, who I babysit. They spent many days in the kiddie pool out in the back yard. These kids play so well together, and they are SO cute!

-Bryan had a long beginning to the summer, working full-time, and going to school. A lot of his time at home was spent on the computer doing homework. Weston wanted to do some homework too, so he pulled out his computer, sat at his table, and acted just like Daddy, typing and of course, taking pauses to think.

-In July, Bry and his twin sister, Staci, turned the big 2-5. They can both legally rent a car! Our nephew Max was kind enough to send a cake.

-In July my family came! My parents and two youngest brothers drove out here. We were so glad they were able to make it out here (they almost didn't make it, due to car trouble). While they were here, my mom's brother Dan and his family came up from Downey for a visit. Above is my nephew Ben, Weston and Jonah (Dan and Jodi's adorable little guy!) playing in the pool.

-The big kids enjoyed the pool as well. At least, their feet did.

-While my family was here, I forgot my camera everywhere we went. Typical me. Luckily, I have some pictures from my mom's camera. I wasn't able to use a lot of pictures because for some reason blogger insists on uploading them sideways, even though I rotated them the right way before uploading them. Anyway, here's a few things we did:

-We went swimming at the aquatic center. Monday nights you can get in for $2, so Weston and I have gone several times since. He loves it!

-Joe and Ben feeding the ducks. There are lots more pictures of everyone feeding the ducks, but they all upload sideways. Blasted blogger. (I do LOVE this picture though.)

-Weston and Ben playing drums at our picnic.

-We went mini-golfing! (For some reason, these pictures worked!) Weston and Ben got to golf too, and a grand time was had by all.

-After a week, unfortunately the fam had to head back to MN. We wish they lived closer, but it sure is a treat when we get to see them!

That wraps up June and July. Summer part 2 is on its way...