Kilgore-Poth-Fleharty Vaca

Last weekend we went to Surfside beach (near Galveston). My parents rented a big beach house and we all stayed for the weekend. It was so much fun!!!! Thanks to Mimi & Pops for organizing it. Afterward, the Poths came to our house on their way to San Antonio. Mimi & Pops stayed a few extra days and babysat Drew while I went and took care of a bunch of appointments (teeth, eyes, hair...whew)! Living here without a babysitter makes those things tough to do on a regular basis, so we're thankful for Mimi & Pops! Matt and I even went out to dinner baby-free! Wooo hooo! Drew sure LOVES his time with them! We've had a fun fun week!!

Sisters & Cousins

Pops & Drew checking out a big ship

Uncle Lex & Pops

We had a lot of toys at the beach house!

And Mimi had her margaritas and big hats

Drew with Mimi

Drew & Dad

Matt & Drew beachcombin

Drew loves Jonathan!

Babies on Deck

Shane in his zero gravity chair

Beach View from our deck

These pics were stolen from my mom's camera. I actually didn't take a single picture (can you believe it!?)! I'm sure she'll post more pics of the girls and the rest of the fam!

Taylor & Stephen's Shower

Mr. & Mrs. Wood
My mom made this super cute quilt for them!

Drew loved playing with Stephen!

Drew loved to rearrange the chairs

This one needs to go waaaay over there!

Showing Taylor & Stephen the blanket he picked out for them. He seriously picked it off the shelf and cuddled it the whole time we were shopping. I didn't think he'd let the cashier scan it!

The Newlyweds!

Eating eating eating....and Cousin Melissa!

Valarie, Angie & Brenda

Taylor, Stephen & Channing

Stephen's sister & parents

Sandi, Brenda & Angie

Mimi, Melissa & Toni

Hangin w/ Mimi & Pops

Drew's gotten to spend a lot of time with his Mimi & Pops this month! They came and babysat him for the weekend while Matt and I had a staycation. We stayed in Houston, but went out and did all the fun stuff that we don't usually do...restaurants, movies in the theater, comedy club, Galleria, etc. Oh, and we got to sleep in two days in a row!!! I literally have not slept in since Drew was born (17 months ago)! Thank you, Mimi & Pops!

We also made a quick trip to Dallas for my niece's wedding shower, so Drewski got to hang with them some more!

Poor baby is covered in skeeter bites :( I was afraid to take him to library storytime last week because I thought the other moms would think he had chickenpox!!

Can you believe this toy from "the Year 2000" (best Conan voice) still works? "Happy New Year, Amigo!" Drew loved it.

Texas!

This may be small, but your eyes aren't playing tricks on you. That says 119 degrees. Yup. Welcome back to Texas!

Daily Dose 'O Drew!

Eating WITH a spoon...

Latest favorite activity: driving the highchair...till it falls off the ledge into our sunken living room or tips over. Awesome.

Spikey hair from sunscreen. We are loving swim lessons!

Summer Fun

Last weekend we went to the Houston Aquarium. It was fun, but has nothing on the Dallas Aquarium, that's for sure. It was a pretty short exhibit, but it was perfect for Drew. Of course, Drew's favorite part of the aquarium was the tigers (makes perfect sense, right?)! Last year we went to the Dallas Aquarium when Drew was 4 months old and the Pintada Tigers were his favorite there. They even brought on his first real laughing fits :) So, I guess we have a Tiger fan on our hands.

Blurry, but I love how he looks like such a big boy standing by himself with his shoes on!

NO Fear...we are in trouble with this one!

Petting Stingrays
(I gladly volunteered to be the photographer for this one - yuck!!!!)

Scuba Drew

In other news, Drew usually entertains himself at home by finding all the things he can get into! Here he is in the ONE cabinet in the kitchen that doesn't have a child latch on it...Note to self: get more latches!

Silly Tee Pee Maker

New favorite hideout...behind the high chair! He stands back there and pull the straps through the back, climbs up the chair, pushes the chair around like a walker (until it falls of the ledge - we have a sunken living room)! He's always on the go!

Fish Dog

Drew loves the water so much that you'd think he was part fish....

...or is he part dog???

Yup, that first squeal is Drew!

Short Video

I never could get blogger to upload this, so here is a You Tube video! It's nothing fancy, just Drew "reading!" He LOVES books.

In other news...Some fun was had this month!

Mother's Day 2011

Mimi with her 2 favorite little Fleas

We've been a wee bit preoccupied this past month. I can't imagine why! :) So I've failed to post any of the cute things that Drew has done. I shot 2 quick videos this evening to show you some of his recent doings. The neuro doctor told us to count Drew as walking from when he took his first unassisted steps. So technically, he's been walking since early April. But in reality, he's only been what we consider a walker for the last several weeks. Sorry we didn't celebrate this milestone more! We were consumed with medical worries :) But....we have a walker! He can even turn corners and go into different rooms, etc. now! Yay!!

P.S. Apparently the 2nd video doesn't want to load tonight...It's a cliffhanger until I can get it to work!

Update on Drewski

We had Drew's "big" neuro appointment today and it was good news all around! All his tests have come back normal so far (and there were a LOT of tests). Thanks be to God and thank you all SO MUCH for the prayers.

There were 2 separate issues - the seizure & the calcification they found with the MRI. They aren't necessarily related. Update on the seizure: There is nothing to indicate that he has epilepsy. The doctor said that basically there is still a 50/50 chance that he will have another seizure, so we will cross that bridge if we come to it. Update on the calcification: They believe it was caused by a virus I had while pregnant (seriously, I was sick for less than 2 days - didn't even think it was a big deal)! It could cause developmental delays, but as of now, he's on track with his milestones & the doctor isn't worried. We chose to have him evaluated a little more in depth, just to catch anything that a developmental specialist might see. That won't happen for a few more weeks. Again, the doctor thinks he's fine, so we are thankful beyond measure! (The calcification could also not effect him in anyway, which is what we are hoping and praying for).

P.S. His new doctor is literally a brain surgeon who graduated from Harvard Medical -- YESSSSSSS!

Praise God!!

Our precious boy had a seizure on Friday. 911 was called, we were taken the ER where they did a CT scan that showed a brain mass. We were transported to Texas Children's so that a pediatric neurologist could examine his scans. They determined that he needed an MRI. The doctors at Texas Children's showed us the CT scan. The mass appeared to be about the size of a dime in Drew's left frontal lobe. The doctors said that this is not a normal place for a tumor to develop. Speculation included anything from an amoeba to a metastasized tumor (could not have been the original tumor based on location). We had to wait overnight for the MRI with this knowledge and these possibilities looming.

On Saturday morning Drew had the MRI and it showed NO MASS. PRAISE GOD. We have never prayed so hard in our lives. Apparently, the CT machine at the first hospital had an "artifact" (dust?) on it that showed up on Drew's scans. Seriously, Praise God!!!!!!! All other blood and urine tests came back normal.

We are still undergoing testing to determine the cause of the seizure. It was not febrile. Blood sugar and blood pressure were normal too. Some calcification was found in Drew's brain during the MRI. It could be the cause of the seizure, or it could be nothing at all. It's something that is usually never found in babies because it can only be seen with an MRI, so usually it goes undiagnosed. The calcification could be from a virus I had while he was in utero (I did get violently ill once while pregnant). It could cause developmental delays in Drew. At this point, they are not concerned with his development. He is a late walker, but so far he's within the normal parameters. The calcification could also be a sign of a metabolic disorder. So we will undergo some more testing including an EEG, more blood work and more urine work (these take 4-6 weeks for results). I will keep you posted.

If you had told me about the calcification 2 days ago I would have bawled and been stressed about my little guy. Today, I am beyond relieved. ANYTHING compared to a brain mass is a relief and a blessing.

We are so thankful and so blessed to have our little guy!!!! There are so many little things that happened during the course of this ordeal that are absolute blessings. Starting with the fact that we just moved to Houston and have access to AMAZING healthcare. If this had happened in Hobbs there wouldn't have a PEDIATRIC NEUROLGIST (times 10) to care for him. He had so many doctors working on him and this was their exact specialty. The clinic he will go to from now on is even more specifically tailored to him - a pediatric seizure clinic. Hallelujah. Amazing health care. Also, we were shopping at HEB when the seizure happened. I went there on a whim (instead of a closer store). This meant I was out in public and had so many kind strangers helping me during the seizure. Also, the location of the store had a clinic in the same building! The nurses there gave Drew oxygen and cared from him until the EMTs arrived. Also, Matt had just called and asked me to get pastrami from the deli before I left. If I hadn't done that, I would've been checked out already and in my car when the seizure happened. Drew is still extended rear-facing so I wouldn't have even seen him seize. I am blown away by how everything came together for him to get the best treatment possible.

Today we are so thankful.

...but I think we will skip all Friday the 13ths from now on! ;)

<3

Taylor's Wedding!

Our precious little guy was The World's Cutest Ringbearer last month at Taylor's wedding! Val decorated this wagon and Drew and Katelyn (flower girl) rode down the aisle, pulled by Jonathan. Sounds cute, right?
Well, this picture of Drew with the beautiful bride is just a tiny warning of things to come...

Taylor looked gorgeous on her wedding day!
I wish I got more pictures, but I was doing a lot of baby-wranglin'

The boy cousins! Jonathan & Drew looking dapper.

Drew & Dad practicing walking at the church!

"Hey, Dad. Am I showing too much cuff?"

The sweetest little cousins made the cutest flower girl/ring bearer pair. They did great while they were practicing...

They look so well behaved and calm...
Right before it was time for them to go down the aisle, Drew decided that he just could NOT part ways with the world's ugliest monster truck toy from the church nursery. Like oversized tires, scary face painted on it, monster truck. He threw a FIT that the entire church heard. So, I threw him in the wagon, with the monster truck. Only then to realize he only had one shoe on. Too late. Oh, and I couldn't find black socks, so he had a navy blue sock showing. And did I mention that whenever Drew cries, Katelyn gets super upset? So they both screamed the ugly cry all the way down the aisle!

There were no more pictures that day after the wedding. I was pooped from baby wranglin and carrying a 28lb child while wearing 3 inch heels. Not a good idea!

It really was a fun time, though, and we were glad to be a part of Taylor's special day. I wish I had a good pic of the couple! I'll try to steal one from FB :)

Best wishes to Mr. and Mrs. Wood!!

This pic was stolen from Kristi's blog! Drew has the music in him, that's for sure. The boy has the beat! Loves to dance!