New Items Added to Wishlist

We've got a few items to add to Southern's birthday wishlist...

-sunglasses
-house shoes (size 7 or larger)
-floor lamp for his room
-toddler sized fishing hat (rim all around)
-toddler sized cap to wear out to the tennis courts

Stitches Update

 Southern has been very good with his "owie". He doesn't try to touch or mess with it, and he can point to it when asked where it is. We went in to his doctor on Friday for a check-up on it, and everything was pronounced healthy and healing properly. We followed up that visit with another on Monday to get his stitches removed. He was so good at both appointments. In this photo, you can see him pointing out the deer on the wall. Each room in the doctor's office has a different theme, and it's fun for the kids to check out the paintings as we wait. Southern especially loves animals, so the forest animal room was right up his alley.

On Friday, he allowed the doctor to look at his "owie" while sitting on my lap. He also gave him each ear to check out and opened his mouth upon request and even let him check out his nose. The doctor was quite impressed and asked if he could give Southern a balloon after the visit. I said sure, pictuing a real balloon. But the doctor blew up one of him rubber gloves and drew a little face on it. Southern loved it! As you can see in this photo, he wouldn't let it go.

Southern's also been very good about letting Dustin doctor him up at home too. Dustin will tell him to climb on our bed and lay down when it's time to change his bandage and apply the medicine, and Southern will. He lays back and lets Dustin work.

Here is one last photo before getting the stitches out.

Dustin was off of school on Monday for President's Day so he got to accompany us to the doctor's this time. Our doctor had a lady (a young doctor? a medical student?) shadowing him that day, and after the appointment, he told her not to expect removing stitches from a toddler to ever go like it just did. Haha! Southern was a perfect angel. He stood up between Dustin's legs and tilted his head back a little for the doctor. He just snipped a few times, removed most of the stitches with his fingers, and then used tweezers on the last little bit, and Southern was perfectly calm and allowed him to do what he needed during the whole process. I'm so proud of our little guy! :)

Boys will be boys

I've been told by many that having a son is a lot different than having a daughter. I've heard they're easier as babies, hard to control as toddlers, reckless during the teenage years, and that as adults they looove their mommies. I've also been told to expect a couple trips to the ER during his childhood. Well, today, at less than 2 years old, we had that first one.

I'll start off by saying that Southern is fine. He's a strong little guy, and he's feeling great right now.

Now on to the story... We drove to Newcombe's Tennis Ranch here in New Braunfels today to visit Dustin while he was at a tennis tournament with SHS. It is located on the north side of town, on the way to Boerne. So it was in the Texas Hill Country, and for those familiar with the THC, there is little grass, a lot of cedar, uneven topography, and a lot of rocks.. big, sharp limestone and/or granite rocks.

There was another little boy about 2 1/2 years old at Newk's, and right away he and Southern got to be friends. They were hanging out and playing together when Southern fell. And he fell right on a big, sharp rock. It punctured his forehead and started bleeding A LOT right away. I immediately ran to him, scooped him up, and ran toward the court where Dustin was standing. I screamed Dustin's name, and he came running. I just handed him over and told Dustin we needed to go to the emergency room. He started walking with him and I ran (literally, and it was no easy feet at this stage in the pregnancy) to get the car. I pulled up to them. Dustin put Southern in his car seat and hopped into the driver's seat as I climbed in the back to buckle Southern in as we started driving. By that time Southern had stopped crying for the most part, but the blood was still flowing. I mopped it up with a blanket and tried to distract Southern with Dustin's phone during the ride... and a ride it was! Dustin drove very quickly with his hazards on the whole way to the hospital, and we unbuckled and ran inside.

There was a short wait in the waiting room. Dustin used that time to show Southern a mirror and explain about blood (guess he was a born science teacher) while I tried to wipe up his hands a bit. They soon took us back, weighed Southern and took his temperature, and then lead us to a room. It seemed to take forever until someone came to see us. By that time Southern was bleeding pretty badly again so we used my mini-first aid kit from my purse to spray Neosporin and apply a Scooby Doo bandaid. Finally a nurse came to check on us. She looked in Southern's ears and nose, asked questions, checked out the wound, and then told us what they were going to do. Luckily, Southern had none of the warning signs - blacking out, vomiting, coughing, etc so she said all we would need were a few stitches and we'd be good to go.

So someone else came in to apply some numbing gel to his forehead. We would wait another 15 mins or so for that to set in, and then the nurse was going to come back to do the stitches. Well Southern hadn't finished his hamburger at lunch so I went out to the car to get his water and food. He was still happily munching down when the nurse came back with the stitches. We had to wait on him to finish his last bite, and then she wrapped him up like a burrito in a blanket. I laid down beside him while Dustin held his body, and she proceeded to put in three stitches. He was a trooper the whole time and didn't make a peep.

To reward him for his bravery, we stopped by Baskin Robbins on the way home. He loved it. We got him a little cup of strawberry ice cream, and he ate it up gladly. Once the bowl and spoon were licked clean, he put one hand up in the air with his first finger pointing up, and proclaimed "more!". :)

We're going to his doctor's on Friday for a check-up on it and will have the stitches removed Monday. They said we could give him Tylenol for the pain, but he has been acting so happy and normal, that I don't think it's even bothering him at all. I'm so thankful we made it through so well. It was pretty scary at first, but he's been so good through it all.

Below is a photo of the ride home... it was a long day, and with tummies full of ice cream, my boys were zonked out :)

24 Weeks Along

Today Southern and I went to see my doctor about the new baby. I am 24 weeks along, and my next appointment is at 28 weeks. After that, it will be every 3 weeks until it's closer to due date and then every week. My appointment was originally set for 4:30pm so Dustin could take off of tennis a little early to be home to watch Southern. But they called yesterday to ask if we could move it up a couple hours. I said yes so long as I could bring my son along. Children aren't allowed in the sonogram room, but she said it would be fine to have him in the exam room with me since this visit would be relatively short.

Southern had fun playing with toys in the waiting room. He had a book with different farm animals in it, and he would moo, quack, neigh, bark, etc as he turned the pages. And he was quite loud so I'm sure the others in the waiting room enjoyed it ;) (I say that he inherited the Brandl lungs as Dustin, his granny, and his late great granny were/are all well heard... haha)

When the nurse called us back, he was excited. And the nurse was really nice and sweet to him. She weighed me and took my blood pressure all while talking to Southern. Then she took him out of the exam room to get a lollypop while I gave my urine sample. We waited quite awhile for the doctor again, and I am proud of how well Southern behaved. He was a little rowdy, but he didn't try to pull things out of cabinets, pull on cords, roll the stool around, etc. and we made it through. The doctor came in and asked some questions. Then it was time to measure the baby bump and listen to the heartbeat :)

I climbed on the bed. Southern stood to the side and watched as she lifted my shirt and measured my tummy. I'm at 27 cm. Then she got out the device to listen to the baby's heartbeat. As she was getting it out, she was telling Southern that we were going to hear the baby. Sure enough, his heartbeat was clear, loud, and strong at 141. As soon as we could hear it, Southern's mouth dropped open, he cupped his hands around his ears, and said "wow...."! :) He was so cute. I'm glad he was able to experience this.

I go back next month for the glucose test - fun, fun! I drink the yucky drink, wait one hour, and then get my blood drawn. At least it falls on a day during Spring Break so Dustin can stay home with Southern, and hey, maybe that hour in the waiting room will be the most relaxing part of my week - with both Dustin and Southern home all week things are bound to be loud and messy!

Pop-Up Book Fun

Here's a cute little video clip of Southern and Daddy "reading" a book after bath-time.

Birthday Wish List

Southern's 2nd birthday is almost upon us! *gasp* When did this little boy get so old? I've been getting a few questions on gift ideas and/or clothing sizes so I thought I'd make a list for anyone interested.

Sizes:
Tops - 3T
Bottoms - 2T
Pajamas - 3T fitted or 2T loose
Socks - 2-4T
Shoes - 8

Gift Ideas:
- anything Yo Gabba Gabba, Thomas the Tank Engine, Dora, Diego, or The Upside Down Show
- kid-sized broom and/or vaccum cleaner
- red or blue sheet set for his new toddler bed (a gift from his great-grandmother DeDe)
- footed pajamas
- swimming trunks and/or pool toys
- Schleich animal figures (found at Target and TSC)
- books for his "Story Reader 2.0"

Touring Schools - Part 1

Southern and I spent our morning touring a local school. We all had gone to a child care fair a couple of weeks ago, and I had filled out our names and address to receive free information on certain schools. It was mainly a fair for people looking at pre-school programs. Southern is still too young for most of them, and we are content with me staying home with him now - especially with another little one on the way. But I was thinking toward the future and wanted to at least get some info.

Fast forward a week - I got a phone call from Cross Lutheran School saying that I had won the grand prize in their drawing. Yay! Unfortunately that prize was $75 off the enrollment fees for this upcoming school year. I explained that Southern would only be 2, and since that would be of no use to us, she suggested switching that prize for the runner-up prize. I agreed and told her I would meet her to claim said prize and tour the school next week.

So today was the day. Southern and I set out not knowing what really to expect, but overall I'm happy with it and would seriously consider putting Southern here one day (if we can afford to).

We first saw outside the church. It looks nice and is new.



The we saw the outside of the school. Hmm... one side looks nice and offical. The other side reminded me of the elementary schools in Yoakum and Sweet Home with their little mobile home looking annexes. But we strolled on and found the front office (located in the right hand building).



We met with our tour guide and started off. Our first stop was the pre-k room. Not too impressed here. Just your typical small classroom with tiny tables and chairs. The kids were having snack time. We observed for awhile, I got to meet the teacher, and then we were off for our next stop - the gym.



This gym made me happy :) It reminded me of my alma mater, good ol' St. Joe's. It serves as their gym and cafeteria. She said the older kids set up the tables before lunch and clean them off and put them back up after they eat. That was nice to hear. We also cleaned in school. I remember cleaning desks, chalk boards, etc. At the time, I thought that was normal. Looking back, I realized this was due to lack of excess funds at a small private school, but I feel it helped make me the caring and responsible adult I am today. As opposed to Seguin High School where the kids just throw food/trash all over the place with no regard to self-image or respect for public property.



We soon made our way outside. As we walked, I learned that the school offers athletics for grades 5-8. They have tackle football and basketball for the boys, and volleyball and basketball for the girls. They also offer recess for all grades so the kids get plenty of fresh air and exercise. Here is the pre-k playground. I felt good knowing they have seperate playgrounds for the smaller ones. This one was for ages 5 and under.

This one is for the older crowd. They also have outdoor basketball nets. She said they are in the process of getting new play equipment right now so it should only get nicer.

Then we entered the "annex". Below is the main hallway. It was fairly nice and new. The kids here have lockers. It's grades 5-8. Their teachers all have bachelor's and are in different subject areas - math, science, art, and language arts. The principal also teaches a few classes. And they have a computer lab and science lab. Again, it reminded me of St. Joe's where the kids get a well-balanced education but it's on a small scale. The class sizes here looked around to 10-15 kids per grade.

I met and talked with the principal at this point. He met and talked to Southern as well. He was young-ish and seemed really nice. The kids all felt comfortable around him, and they were all quiet and well-behaved. Southern had spoted a toy panda bear magnet on one of the lockers and was holding it and playing with it as we talked to Mr. Dierks. When it was time to leave, I thought for sure there would be a scene. But my little guy surprised me by simply putting the bear back on the locker and turning to walk on.

And here we are back in the main building. Southern loved all of the art on the walls. We visited the pre-k again. They had finished their snacks and were in the process of putting on coats and lining up to go outside for recess. It was semi-chaos. But the teacher had a song they all sang that involved clapping that got most of the kids under control and in line. There were two little boys still playing with cars on the mat instead of putting on coats. Southern saw them and joined in. They soon were taken to their cubbys for their coats and Southern kept playing with a train as they lined up with the rest of the class. I didn't have any more questions and needed to get going to finish the rest of our errands for the day so instead of watching the pre-k recess which our tour guide offered as an option, I said we would just make our way back to the offices. Again, I thought Southern would throw a fit when it was time to put away the train. But I told him to put it away, that it was time to go, and he did! He put it back in the box with the rest of the toy cars and waved good-bye to the kids. What a mature little guy!! Needless to say, our tour guide was impressed and commented on just how well-behaved he is. :)

So our first tour of a school went well. I would love for Southern to have the same opportunity I had growing up in attending a small private, Christian school. The public schools here in New Braunfels are great I've heard. But it's just not the same. Dustin also benefited from small teacher to student ratios, involved parents, etc. and it really makes a difference. Hopefully our budget will allow for that one day.