Caleb's tonsillectomy

After having Strep Throat four times in a six month period, the Doctor decided it was time for Caleb's tonsils to come out. The Ear, Nose & Throat Doctor said that his tonsils are a considerable size and that he has a deviated septum in his nose as well. We've noticed for a long time now, that he has trouble sleeping at night and often sleeps restlessly. We're pretty sure that is the reason why, making it difficult for him to breathe at night and we're hoping that with his tonsils and adenoids removed that he will sleep much better.

Surgery was on Thursday, May 8th. Caleb and I rose early and made our way to the surgery center, talking along the way about what it might be like. Caleb LOVES one-on-one time and was loving all the special attention and I was enjoying the time with him as well.

The staff was so sweet and they have a special room just for kiddos, decorated with animals and colorful kid stuff. On the bed waiting for him was a special Giraffe stuffed animal. He'd brought his own to take with him into surgery, but decided all he needed was the new Giraffe. :)

They gave him some "juice" to make him relaxed and sleepy and he sure acted goofy once it got into his system. After giving it to him, they raised the side rails on the bed and warned me that he might act silly and he sure did! I made some videos of him. He was swaying his head and at one point put his head out through the railings, saying he wanted to sleep that way. He was just goofy. It was funny!

 The day we came home, he spent a good chunk of the day sleeping on the couch. The next 4 days were spent on the couch watching lots of movies and Disney Junior Channel, including several middle of the night sessions while he took his medicine and ate a popsicle. 

 

Polly Carl stopped by the first night with a balloon and a new set of legos--a gift from Cornerstone, and our next door neighbor came by with a bowl of Jello for Caleb. The Ingelsby's came by with a new coloring book, a Spider Man wall-crawler and some flash cards and Andrea & Grant Moffat stopped by with a balloon and some silly straws! All were very thoughtful gifts for our little guy recovering and having to spend lots of time on the couch and eating soft  things and drinking lots of water and juice! We're so thankful for the love and support of family, friends and neighbors! Our family also gave him an Iron Man action figure guy, who spent most days by his side on the couch or in bed. Along with his fellow super hero, Captain America. ;)

Caleb's favorite popsicles were orange then grape and least of all cherry. He asked for blue jello and blue juice. He decided he liked the orange part of the rainbow sherbert ice-cream and cried when he couldn't have pizza the first night. He absolutely hated the grape flavored Tylenol Codeine that he had to take every 4-6 hours and chose to take it anyway. He would say, "can you put it in fast?" and then would swallow it and try to put something yummy in his mouth as fast as he could. We are so proud of him. And for the record...at this point in his life, he doesn't like oranges, Cuties or Orange Juice. ;) Love you sweet Caleb!

It's been a little over a week now and he told me this morning, "My whole body feels normal again, Mom!" I'd say he's more like 85:% and if I don't keep up with regular (bubble-gum flavored) Ibuprofen (the yummy medicine!) about every 6-8 hours, then he gets pretty wiped out. He's been a real trooper though and we're super proud of him! 

Cawub is fwee!!

Our little Caleb is three years old!! I love, love, love the way he talks right now! He's growing out of it, but he has been in the stage where most of his r's and l's are easier pronounced with a "w" and "th" sounds are pronounced with an "f" sound. So words like "three" are pronounced "fwee" and a "truck" is a "twuck". It's so cute!!

He is our most stubborn little guy at home, but so sweet with others, especially adults, like in the nursery at church or with Grandparents or people out in public and especially with babysitters!! This past year at church one Sunday, Ellie Campbell (one of our babysitters) was holding him. He was being really sweet with her and eventually kissed her! Paul Obrist, a big-time kidder at church saw it and told Caleb, he has to get by Paul if he is going to kiss Ellie. He was really close in Caleb's face as he told him so Caleb leaned over and kissed Paul, right on the mouth! He received Paul's approval!

We have been knee-deep in training issues with Caleb this past year. He is by far the most stubborn of our children and also has anger issues, so we've been doing lots of training in our home. Sometimes I'm full of grace and wisdom and see great progress with our little guy, other times I'm tired and worn out and perpetuate the problems in him. It's been a long year...we've seen some really good fruit in him the past month or so though and are praying for strength, patience, grace, consistency and for a softening of his heart. By the the Lord's grace, we will all persevere!

He also has a very sweet and tender side to him. He is very affectionate, especially with Hannah and loves--probably craves--one-on-one time! When we have issues arise, I've been sitting down with him on the couch in the living room as we look at the Bible together to find some solutions to the situation. He will sit and listen for a good chunk of time and often asks for more verses to be read. I think a good part of the reason is that he has his Mama all to himself. I'm seeing amazing progress in his heart through it though and hearing God's words coming out of his mouth. I'm translating the verses into "little boy" versions, so we often talk about the difference between "bad guys" and "good guys", "smart guys" and "stupid guys" instead of "foolish" and "wise"  but he is getting it and in his heart, wants to be a good guy and a smart guy!

His friendship with his brother is really growing too and I love watching them play together! He is quite the wrestler and athlete. It will be fun to see what sports he ends up enjoying as he grows up. He is a really good player. The first of our kids to really "play" with toys. If he's ever quiet, it's usually because he found some toys and became absorbed in making them come to life! Maybe this is going to the be year where he finds "mischief" ...I hope not!!

His favorite toys are cars, Monster trucks, Handy Manny toys and Playmobil guys. He's often putting "bad guys" in jail. He has a favorite "basketball" shirt that he calls his "soccer" shirt. He's pretty much outgrown it now but it was THE shirt for awhile. I finally gave in and let him wear it any time he wanted no matter how dirty it was and snuck in a cleaning when I could. He's not big into wearing a coat or sweatshirt and sometimes it's just best to let it go to avoid a big battle, especially when we're trying to get somewhere on time. He's particular about shoes too and has some favorites so some days it's just easier to let him wear his sandals even though it's December. He won't die from cold toes, right? : )

His favorite tv shows are Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Jake and the Neverland Pirates. He has started answering their questions and interacting with the shows. It's really cute to watch! Recently, the boys were given a two-seater Jeep and it's one of his favorite things to do now. Here is a link to some video of the boys riding it! He also got a "preschooler scooter" this fall and is really good at that and keeping up with Abby & Elijah on their bigger scooters.

We really love this little guy and are so grateful the Lord placed him in our hearts and family. He is really funny and often has our whole family laughing at his antics. He is a joy! We wuv you Cawub!! 

Caleb's first haircut

He doesn't have that much hair yet, but it was a little longer on the sides around his ears, so we decided to give him a little trim yesterday! He did great with it! I think Elijah had his first haircut about this age too, although, he had a lot more hair by this time. Slowly, slowly it's making it's way in!

Abigail actually took this picture...I think she did pretty good! We should've had her stand on the other side, but oh well! It's nice to have another set of hands around! : )