Love These...

Today when I got home I had an email from Erin with a few pictures she took of Bryson earlier this week. I. Love. Them.

Just wanted to share...

Quote of the Day

~WARNING: The following post is about poop! Read on only if you can handle it!~

So, unfortunately with this new formula we are now experiencing constipation problems. I will admit that I'm a little bit panicky after watching Bryson strain and strain, only to find a small "marble" of poop in his diaper this afternoon. So, we've given him prunes and tried a few other home remedies. I was literally praying for poop! You definitely do things you would never dream of when you're a mom. Well, right before bedtime I decided to change Bryson's diaper one last time, even though I didn't think it was even wet. I opened the diaper and suddenly hear Jason in the background:

"OH MY GOSH. It's a real human turd!"

I have never laughed so hard in my life...

Still praying for more of this real human poop...

Here Comes TROUBLE!!!

Just wanted to share a quick video of our little man on the move. We are DEFINITELY in trouble now!

-Firsts-

Bryson has been feeling much better! We got cleared by the pediatrician to go visit our sweet friends who just had a baby, so we decided to head to The Woodlands yesterday. Along the way, Bryson had a few firsts we wanted to share.

Bryson and I picked up Jason at the golf course on our way. This was Bryson's first time to visit the golf course, and I really loved watching Jason introduce him to everyone. Such a proud daddy! I LOVE this picture I got of the two of them. We can't wait for spring when everything will be green and the bluebonnets will be out!

We stopped and ate lunch at one of my favorite restaurants, P.F. Changs! I know Bryson is going to love it just as much as I do- he sure did love this horse!

Then it was on to the real reason for our day out. We got to meet baby Landon for the first time. He was born on Monday and is just beautiful (in a boyish sort of way!). Melissa and Derek are also doing well. This trip definitely brought back memories of Bryson's birth last summer. It is almost hard to remember Bryson being this little, and that was only six months ago! Now he is one busy little boy. He was hard to hold onto at the hospital, constantly wanting to get down and crawl on the floor.

Landon is such a sweetheart. We were so glad to finally meet him.

Congratulations to the proud Mommy and Daddy! We can't wait to watch our boys grow up together!

Operation Disinfect

Well, unfortunately the few laughs we got on Sunday were only a tease. Bryson screamed ALL NIGHT LONG. I ended up taking him back in to see the pediatrician yesterday, just wanting to have his ears checked out and make sure nothing new had started there. Luckily his ears checked out great. The doctor said that his throat even looked better, but that it was just going to take him a while to get back to feeling good again. The good news is he has put on some of the weight he lost through this whole ordeal. So, looks like we are on the right road--- it just may be a long road!

So, having gotten the worst (hopefully) of this awful virus behind us, I became very focused on one mission last night. Our house has officially been disinfected, sanitized, and sterilized from top to bottom! All of the toys got a bath in bleach water, and the cloth ones were thrown in the washing machine with color-safe bleach (even though most of them said not to wash them- we'll see how that turns out!). I sterilized all of the pacifiers and bottle nipples. Everything else was wiped down with Clorox wipes. Hopefully we got it all!

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Now that Bryson seems to be feeling better, he is once again on the move! Yesterday he discovered the door stopper. He must have crawled over to it about twenty times. He loves to pull it back and then laughs at the noise it makes. So cute!

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And in other updates, we had a HUGE first yesterday (1/18/10). Bryson wanted to see Halle so he pulled up on Jason- to a standing position! I thought that it was probably just a fluke, but then he did it a second time. I was able to get a few shots of his second attempt:

Things are looking up around here!

Finally...

We finally got a laugh out of Bryson this afternoon! He has been so sick since Tuesday, so even smiles have been hard to come by. When he started laughing, I had to grab the camcorder. What a sweet sound for worn-out parents. This makes it all worth it!

Enjoy!

One more time!

Well, Bryson is STILL sick. He is still running fever, very congested, and not eating.

I called the pediatrician's office this afternoon, and they wanted to see him AGAIN. So, off we went.

Bryson has white puss pockets all over his little tonsils (no wonder he screams every time he takes a swallow from his bottle). I saw it! :(

Luckily his ears look great- so it looks like we may have dodged a bullet on that one. Now it is just a waiting game.

Meet our two new best friends:

Bryson actually drank 3 oz of grape pedialyte tonight! We need him to drink up so he doesn't get dehydrated and end up in the hospital on iv fluids. I was surprised at how easily he took it. It smells like grape kool-aid. :)

I have recently been told that it helps to put Vicks on the bottom of babies' feet if they are really congested. I asked the doctor about it this afternoon. He laughed, looked at me like I was slightly crazy, and said "Sure!". At this point I almost had a breakdown and told him I was very desperate. We'll try anything at this point...

So, the diagnoses remains. Bryson has a horrible viral throat infection. Nothing we can do but wait it out.

Please pray for Bryson, and for our sanity and health as we spend most nights awake taking care of this sweet baby.

Again???

Here we go again.

When I picked Bryson up from Erin on Tuesday she told me that he had been a little bit fussy and that he had taken three naps (he usually only takes two). We thought maybe he was just tired, but I noticed that he felt a little bit warm. By the time we got home he was more than warm, so I took his temperature. It was 101.7 degrees. I could tell he wasn't feeling well at all, and congestion was setting in.

Tuesday night was like many nights that we have experienced recently. Bryson was so congested, running a high fever, and would not sleep. He also screamed most of the night, and wasn't easily consoled.

Luckily my mom was able to come on Wednesday morning to keep him. I went into work early and got done early, and we headed to see the pediatrician. His temperature right before we went to see Dr. Meyer was 103.5 degrees and it was obvious to see that he felt horrible.

Dr. Meyer said his ears look cloudy and are filled with fluid, but are not infected - yet. She said this could easily turn into an infection at any moment, but without a crystal ball there was no way to tell if it would become an ear infection or not. Then she looked at his throat and found the problem. She said it looked terrible! She said babies usually don't get strep, but wanted to test him for it anyways. The rapid strep test came back negative and they sent it off to be cultured. We should have those results early next week.

In the meantime she said he has a viral throat infection. So, the waiting begins. Just as we have been doing since December 10th when he was diagnosed with his first ear infection. Dr. Meyer said if this would have been an ear infection her reccomendation would have been tubes. She said if he gets worse (at all) to bring him in immediately.

I'm concerned and wondering why he is getting sick so often (each time he has only been off antibiotics for a few days!). Dr. Meyer said that around six months is when the maternal antibodies received through the placenta "wear off", it is cold and flu season, and he is putting EVERYTHING in his mouth. Knowing that makes me feel better, I guess. But it is SO hard to watch your baby feel so horrible, and know there is nothing you can do about it.

I guess the good news is that we're not heading for tubes at the moment. We're now just praying that this infection will resolve and will not lead to ear infections.

On a side note------> I was rocking Bryson this morning as he was screaming at the top of his lungs. I had tried to give him a bottle because he will not eat. He took one swallow and began to wail. So, there I was rocking him and watching Good Morning America. They started talking about the recent earthquake in Haiti and showing pictures of the destruction and devastation. My heart hurts for the people there. I can't help but think about all of the moms who now can't provide for their children, who probably don't have a roof over their heads, and who don't know where their next meal will come from. Even amidst all of this sickness (which is really rotten) we are so blessed. We are lifting up prayers for the people of Haiti. We are praying that God will send help, healing, and a sense of peace to those in the midst of this horrible chaos.

Strawn Family Christmas Pictures 2009

Over Thanksgiving we had pictures taken with my family for my parents' Christmas card. I loved how they turned out! Here are a few of my favorites...

~~Six Months Old~~

Our sweet baby turned SIX months old yesterday. SIX MONTHS! We can't believe it. On one hand it seems like time has really flown by, and on the other hand it seems like he has been with us all along. We just fit together as a family. What an amazing blessing.

Over the last six months we have experienced more emotions than we knew were possible. We have watched Bryson grow from a helpless little baby into a mobile chatterbox!

On Friday we braved the cold (it was a chilly 26 degrees!) and went to the pediatrician's office for his six month check-up. Bryson weighed 17lbs 5oz (50th percentile) and was 27 inches long (75th percentile). The shots did not go as well as last time (he ran a fever of 103.3 degrees even with the Tylenol and Motrin), but he is back and running 110% now! The doctor said that developmentally he is "rocking and rolling", and to continue with what we're doing. He also said that his ears looked great, which was a huge relief.

Here are a few pictures of Bryson over the last few weeks:

Bryson can sit up if he can be entertained for long enough to do it. If we sit him up he usually dives forward and is off to his next destination across the room.

Bryson is army crawling EVERYWHERE. And he is FAST! He does get up on all fours and rock back and forth- and he has crawled using his hands instead of forearms a few times- but I think he has realized that he can get wherever he wants to go much faster army style! His newest thing is standing up on his feet and literally running in place with his hands on the ground. I think we're in trouble...

Good for my Soul

So, we had an unbelievable thing happen today. Jason and I went on a date!

That's right- you heard me- a real date!

The last time we attempted to do this was August 28th. This was the day Jason turned 29, and to celebrate, his mom and my parents came into town. They graciously offered to keep Bryson so that we could go out to eat and to the movies. Well, we made it to dinner. We talked about Bryson the whole time and then decided to skip the movie because we couldn't wait to get home to our sweet baby.

So, it has been over four months.

Bryson got his six month shots yesterday. He usually does pretty well with shots. Not this time! He felt horrible all day yesterday and was even running a temperature of 103.3 degrees last night (alternating Tylenol and Motrin every three hours!). I was thinking of calling and cancelling the babysitter. Here is the kicker---- we've called this babysitter twice in the past month and set up evenings out----- and each time Bryson has gotten sick and we've had to cancel.

You must know that this is no ordinary babysitter. This is Bryson's teacher from his old daycare (the one that we loved!). She can handle pretty much anything, and she is one of the few people I feel totally comfortable leaving Bryson with.

So, Jason said we should wait until this morning to make a decision. Bryson was up most of the night (wide awake at times- because he slept most of the day yesterday- and fussing at times). Today he ran a low-grade fever and was a little bit fussy. We could tell he didn't feel totally back to normal, but he was not sick like he was yesterday.

So, we decided to go on our date. The miraculous news-----> Bryson is fine. He did great for her! (has anybody else noticed that their kids seem to always do better for other people??) She said he only fussed when he was hungry and right before nap time.

And, I enjoyed our afternoon SOOOOOO much. We went to eat lunch at Red Lobster. Then made a quick stop at Target (which is definitely close to being my favorite place on earth). Then we headed to the MOVIES!

I am a movie junkie! I love going to the movies. I love paying too much for a coke and a pickle and not having any other care in the world. Maybe this is one of the few places that I get to do this, or that I will let myself do this. Anyways, I have not been to the movies since July 7th. Not that I'm keeping track or anything. :)

Then we went to drop off a gift for a friend who is due to be induced and have a baby on Monday.

What a great day. We got home just in time to feed Bryson his cereal. We played for a while, gave him a bath in his new bathtub that he LOVES (see previous post), played some more, gave him a bottle, and then he eventually went to bed. Out like a light after playing with Kayla this afternoon.

It is so refreshing to know that Jason and I can get away for a few hours without our world at home totally ending. I always feel that I need to be with Bryson ALL THE TIME.

Today was good in so many ways.

I am refreshed. I am excited. I am peaceful.

Bryson: 1 Sweet Potatoes: 0

Hallelujah!

After much anxiety and prayer, we decided to pull Bryson out of his daycare. An opportunity for in-home care fell into our laps at the same exact time our daycare situation was falling apart! I went and met this family last Thursday and Jason went with me on Saturday. We decided to have faith and follow our instincts. The result- Bryson started staying with Mrs. Erin today! Everything went better than we could have even hoped for! We're trusting that we are right where we should be. Thanks to all of you who prayed for us during this difficult situation. We are excited to watch Bryson grow in this sweet and loving environment.

*Erin sent Bryson home with the collage above. Love it!*

Splash!

Bryson has officially outgrown his baby bathtub! Thanks to the West family, we had this bathtub ready and waiting for the next phase of bathing. Bryson LOVES it! He especially loves splashing in the water, and spends most of his time leaning forward doing just that. Jason and I usually end up drenched! It is amazing how fast he is growing up!

Here he is CRACKING UP at a turtle in the bathtub! Too cute!
Splish! Splash!

Wrinkly Feet!

Now the trick is figuring out how to get him out of the water! When we get him out, he leans towards the water and whines! I didn't even know he knew how to whine (on purpose).

Every day is a learning experience! This just keeps getting better and better...

Christmas as a Family of Three

What a sweet time to reflect on our Saviour's birth so many years ago. We have really enjoyed this Christmas season and all the many blessings that come with having a new baby.

Christmas was definitely different this year! On the 23rd we traveled to Grandma and PawPaw's house in New Braunfels. Uncle Matt, Aunt Amy, and Great Grandma Strawn were there. It was great to see everyone and we definitely enjoyed the company (and of course- Bryson loved all of the attention!). Unfortunately on Wednesday night Bryson started to get congested (he had just finished antibiotics on Sunday). This was just the beginning of what would turn into a very long week! He started running fever again on Thursday night, and on Christmas morning Jason and Bryson celebrated by going to eat breakfast at IHOP at 4:40am. What else are you going to do when you have a sick baby who can't sleep??? So, they came home, we opened presents and ate lunch, then headed to Granny and Grandpa's house in Pleasanton. Bryson got to see all of his cousins and Aunts and Uncles and was loving that too. Then he got REALLY sick. His temperature again got up to 103 degrees (on Tylenol and Motrin) and he would not stop screaming. We were debating on taking him to San Antonio to the ER or waiting until Saturday morning to go somewhere. We finally just put him in the car and headed out. He stopped crying and actually fell asleep. I had been on the phone with Abby who was helping me with local doctors, etc, so we ended up at their house for about an hour. Thanks to the Winns who helped us find emergency clinics and were so supportive. We missed opening presents at Granny and Grandpa's, but Bryson did open a few things when we got back. You can tell in one of the pictures where Granny is holding Bryson that he feels terrible. So, we stayed in Pleasanton Friday night. We were up at 5am on Saturday (after a loooong night) and decided to just go ahead and come back to the walk-in clinic here in College Station where a pediatrician from Bryson's regular doctor's office would be working. We drove the four hours back (stopping at my parents to pick up our presents, dogs, and Grandma rode back with me and Bryson!), then waited three hours to see a doctor, just for them to tell us that he had a viral upper respiratory infection and his ears looked fine. No antibiotics! Ahhh! On one hand I was happy that we didn't have another ear infection, but on the other hand it is hard to basically be told to just wait it out. The doctor said his fever would be gone by Monday night. Ahhhh again! So, we went home and started the waiting game. Bryson still felt horrible. PawPaw came to get Grandma later that afternoon and we continued through the weekend with a sick baby. On Monday while Jason was at work Bryson started getting worse again, so I took him in to the pediatrician. Now he had an ear infection! So we started antibiotics Monday evening and he seems to be doing much better now. We're crossing our fingers that this bout with upper respiratory infections and ear infections will be over for a while! Having a sick baby is hard- I don't know if I've ever felt more helpless.

Having rambled on about all of that, I will say that we really enjoyed seeing all of our families and several friends during Christmas. This is probably a Christmas Bryson would like to forget, but we cherished each moment with him. We are so grateful for the sweet memories that were made and are looking forward to having a toddler running around next year at this time!

Here are a few (or maybe a lot :) of highlights from our trip in pictures:

Bryson definitely mastered one thing this Christmas: eating wrapping paper!

We are blessed and are so thankful for these sweet memories!