Flashback Friday

Wow, the week just got away from me! I had intended to update during the week, but alas, it wasn't meant to be. For right now I shall offer you the Flashback Friday post, and work on a real update to post a little later.

Today we flashback to September 28, 2008, my baby shower! My mom and sisters threw me a fantastic baby shower at Riccardo's By the Bridge in Astoria.



We didn't know if we were having a boy or a girl (well, I had a feeling it was a boy all along!) so the place was decorated in pink and blue.


The favors were adorable! Everyone loves candy, so my mom and sisters filled little glass containers with a mix of candy for everyone to take home. They did a lot of work!



The finished product:




The guests played a very understated game. Everyone received a tiny pink or blue felt diaper pin as they arrived. At one point, Natalie made the announcement that everyone should check inside their little diaper for "poo." If your diaper had poo inside, you won a prize! LOL. Simple and cute.

I had a great time, and received so many generous gifts.


At the end, Raph came to help finish opening and transport the gifts. Of course, he got roped into taking a bunch of pictures with me!


I absolutely loved my baby shower, and am still so honored and grateful that my family and friends threw me a party to celebrate and prepare my becoming a mommy!

Flashback Friday

Now, that, my friends, is a picture. This is the majestic Basilique du Sacre-Coeur in Paris. We visited there in August 2007 on our trip to France. This was one of the most rewarding places to visit, because we had to work to get there. It's located at the top of Montmartre, the highest point of the city.


But the view from up there was unbelievable. Just in front of the church (a word that does no justice to the beauty and majesty of Sacre-Coeur), there are hundreds of people milling around the steps, just taking in the sight of Paris arrayed before them.



Check out the view of the steps. I would love to get married again in this church and take photos on these steps (sans mobs of holiday-makers, bien sur).


I shall leave you with just one more image of the Sacre-Coeur. I loved this place so much. Photography was forbidden inside the church (although Natalie did sneak a picture of the fabulous domed ceiling which I thought I had on my computer but can't find) so I can't show you how gorgeous the interior was. But I will tell you that I experienced a very spiritual moment there, and I purchased a rosary there that I carry with me always. If I am every lucky enough to be in Paris again, I will be sure to make the trip to Montmartre again.

there is also so much joy!

Life with my babies is truly incredible. Markus is the smartest, most amazing little boy I've ever encountered. I know all mamas say that about their babies, but when it's true, it's true! ;)

Markus has had a word explosion. Not only does he speak at least 100 words, he uses them correctly, in context, and in combination with each other. The child can identify so many objects and people. He also knows verbs and commands. He tells us when he wants to eat, when he wants to go. It's simply awesome. He knows colors, too. He has these 3 balls, red, yellow, and green. He actually learned to say yellow first, which sounds like "yo." Once he has the yellow, he always asks for green, then red. Woe betide if one of them has rolled behind the couch!

A sample of Markus' new words: bubbles, go/going, eat, cookies, cake/pancake, key, block, puzzle, missing, broken. I can go on and on but I will stop here because I am amazed that at 21 months, Markus understands states of being. He knows when there is a piece "missing" from the puzzle. He knows when something is "broken." I'm floored by how much comprehension he demonstrates.

He's also started doing something I'd really missed - posing and smiling for pictures! He used to do this as an infant, around 6 months old, then suddenly stopped. Now, only when he feels like it, he'll say "cheese!" and really give a cheesy grin.

Kira continues to be a dream baby. She's already got a great nighttime routine. She's drinking about 25-28 oz of milk per day, and after her last bottle of the day, we can put her down in her crib drowsy but awake and she will fall asleep on her own. This is GOLD for parents. Wow, she's so easy. One cute thing she does is suck her thumb! It's adorable. She's so precious and friendly. Smiles so much and loves to chat with everyone. I want to share a picture from her Christening. She was simply beautiful.


Much more to come. :) Maybe I'll bring back Flashback Friday tomorrow. That would be fun!

life's challenges

I've put off writing about this for a while, but I think it's important to document it. It's long.

On July 15 I had my first MS relapse since being diagnosed 3.5 years ago. This was not entirely unexpected - there is a documented increase in likelihood of relapse within the 3-4 months after having a baby. Kira was born at the end of April and was just shy of 3 months old when the relapse hit. I'd also been experiencing an increase in the little MS symptoms I live with every day ever since giving birth. I'd just been commenting on how quickly those came back this time around.

I woke up on that Thursday morning feeling a little numbness in my left hand and foot. As the day progressed, my entire left side became numb, from the top of my head to the bottom of my foot. It's a very bizarre feeling that is difficult to explain. I could feel temperature and touch, but movement was awkward. At that point, I could still do what I needed to do with the babies - change diapers, feed and carry Kira, etc. But the numbness was ever-present.

We went in to see my neurologist the next day, Friday. He confirmed I was having a relapse and started me on a course of IV steroids (the same ones I'd done back when I had the optic neuritis in 2006). I did the first dose in his office. My mom had met us there, and since she'd been visiting with her sisters, my 3 aunts were with her as well. We made quite a scene in the office - Raph and I with baby Kira who was very upset and cried the whole time, Markus who just wanted to run and explore everything, and my mom + 3 aunts. All I wanted was to get better. It was very stressful.

That night the rest of my IV meds were delivered by courier. A visiting nurse came on Saturday to set me up with the next infusion and fill out a ton of paperwork. Then Brenda had to drive me around to get my hair and nails done because...

To complicate things, this was the weekend of Kira's Christening. The meds were to last 3 days, so Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The Christening was on Sunday at 1:30 and we wanted to be done by then so that I could remove the IV and no one would know. We were able to do that, but not without a little drama. The nurse had to come back on Sunday. Raph usually handles my infusions (he's AMAZING) but the IV was in a bad position and shifted painfully overnight so it needed to be removed and a new one placed. With the IV in (really, it's just a super-thin plastic catheter that is inserted using a needle), I need to be very careful with my movements so it won't shift out of the vein - so doing things with the babies, lifting, etc. had to be very limited. I needed a lot of help.

The emotional impact of all of this was...a challenge. Obviously living with MS there is a certain amount of uncertainty that we have to accept. But for the past 3.5 years, I have done so well that I guess I was lulled into a deeper sense of security. After Markus was born, I happily noted the end of the 4-month "danger zone" and went about my business. This time around, I knew there had been some disease activity based on the MRI I had last July, but I was still optimistic that I would deal with the everyday symptoms and not actually relapse. The timing was unfortunate as well, because I was so focused on my daughter's special day and hosting the party afterward. I didn't want to deal with a physical setback and the discomfort of the treatment itself.

My condition improved with the 3 days of steroids. The day after the Christening I felt better and was on my own with the kids as usual. Then Tuesday, everything fell apart again. I was so weak and exhausted, I could barely get off the couch. I had to ask Raph to come home from work early so he could take on the kids and I could lie down. The numbness, which had been steadily receding, returned. I called the doctor and he ordered me another 3-day course of steroids. Another nurse, another IV placement. My mom and aunt came on that Wednesday and helped me out so much - they cleaned the house, cooked a huge pot of spaghetti to last us several days, did the laundry, and took care of the kids.

Along with the numbness is a feeling of inflammation. My leg, especially, feels like it's swollen, particularly around the knee. This makes walking feel awkward. Climbing stairs is pretty uncomfortable.

On Thursday, my sister Natalie came to stay with us, and was such an awesome help. She truly loves taking care of the babies, and did a lot around the house as well. She ended up staying here for weeks, leaving only when necessary. It was the only way anything got done! From grocery shopping and cooking to cleaning the floors and making me breakfast, Natalie was invaluable. Also, the emotional support during the days was great.

The doctor put me on a tapering course of oral steroids after the IV was done. Over the course of the next week, I took my meds every morning along with a Prilosec because all those steroids can wreak havoc on the stomach (along with some other unpleasant side effects like being hungry all the time, insomnia, and loss of taste/smell) and was improving gradually every day. But the ordeal was not over yet. On Saturday July 31, I started to feel worse again. I spoke to the doctor the next day, and he increased my oral steroid dosage for 5 days. This time, instead of getting better, the numbness got worse to the point where it was worse than it had ever been at the beginning.

Back to the neurologist. He did an exam and was satisfied that although this is a stubborn relapse, I still have my strength. It was reassuring. The numbness was very widespread and intense on the left side. I felt it under my arm, my torso, my ear/side of my face. Everywhere. Movements felt muffled and strange. My clothes felt too tight on the left, but weren't, which is the weird thing. They were the same, but felt different.

The doctor ordered me a third round of IV steroids, which I started on August 5. The IV placement was a nightmare. The nurse couldn't get a good vein. She had to poke me 4 times, very painfully. I had to actually take a break in the middle because I was starting to feel faint. I should say that at this point, my friend Gina started working with me as a mother's helper. We had discussed this for a while, and now that I was out of commission in a way with regards to baby care, she started coming in to take over that stuff while I had the IV in.

Throughout everything, we kept up our routine of daily injections of my maintenance therapy, Copaxone. At the end of the day, after an hour-long IV infusion, it was all I could do not to cry sometimes when I still had to do that shot. As grateful as I am for all the available medications and therapies out there, it's been tiresome and getting more so the longer this relapse drags on.

This all brings me to today. Right now. The third round of IV steroids have been over for a few days and I'm back on a tapering dose of oral steroids. Improvement has been MUCH slower this time around. I didn't start feeling better at all until after all 3 infusions were completed. I feel better today than I did at the beginning of the week, but am by no means healed. This process is frustrating because I want to do things. I have lots to do around the house, regular maintenance things but also special projects, and I want to enjoy my son and daughter. I get tired easily. I had some energy yesterday morning and did some things around the house, then felt my condition getting worse as a result - so that's frustrating.

I am trying to remain prayerful, hopeful, and positive. I have to acknowledge that this is an arduous and challenging event in my life, but it is just one event and it won't last forever. I'm learning a lot about myself and about my family and friends during this time. The people who know what I've been going through - what we've been going through as a family - have been incredibly supportive. Ericka took a day off work this week to spend with me and the kids when she found out I'd have to be on my own. Natalie has been here every day she possibly could be. My mom takes time from work as often as she can as well. Those that haven't been able to come see me have been praying for me and checking up on me and sending their love and positivity. For all of this, I am grateful.

baby girl!

Kira is 2 months old! 2 months and 1 week, precisely. She's growing so much and is already smiling and showing us what a sweet personality she has. She's been sleeping through the night (going to sleep around 8:30-9:30 pm and waking up around 7 am!) since she was 6 weeks old. She's absolutely amazing. Doesn't cry except when she needs something (a bottle, some company or some cuddles).

We're planning her Christening for July 18, which is exactly one year since Markus's Christening. Her godmother, Diane, bought her an exquisitely delicate and beautiful Christening gown from Colombia.

We don't have any pictures of Kira up on the blog yet, so to correct that, here are a few favorites!

BACK HOME!

Well, it's been over 2 months, but Sandra and I have finally moved back into our home. It feels like this is the 3rd time we're moving into our home. Initially, then we left for Markus/kitchen renovation, and now with Kira. Of course everything ended up being last minute so the house is a giant mess of boxes and clothes, as if we just moved in! Anyway, things are generally good. Markus and Kira are both happy and healthy. Here's a video of Markus drinking out of my GIANT Dunkin' Donuts coffee cup (I started drinking coffee occassionally after Markus was born). He makes my Father's Day when he calls my name and gives me hugs twice!

Markus & the Dandelions

About a month ago (2 days before Kira was born) I was outside playing with Markus. I picked up a dandelion and blew on it to show Markus. I did this ONCE. Now, when Markus went to pick up a dandelion, he makes that same blowing motion. It's one of those things that just makes my heart melt and why I love being a dad. Here's a video:

Markus (18th Month) & Kira (2 Week) Updates

Kira's 2 week check-up went very well. She weighed in at 8lbs 10oz and was given an overall good bill of health. She has dry skin, her feet and hands in particular, but our pediatrician told us not to use any lotions as they may cause irritations.

Markus had his 18 month check up and that also went very well! The doctor was pleased with his development. He's 31 lbs. 10 oz. and 34.5 inches. He is actually hovering on the top of the average growth chart, so he's not way off the scale. I think he's in the 97% percentile now.

He can say roughly 20 words and we're always amazed at his comprehension. For example, we can ask him to throw something away and he'll go the kitchen trash, open the door, pull out the garbage, throw the item away, close the garbage and clap his hands! We love it! Some of his words are:

• Juice (Gooo!)
• Ball
• Kaka
• Train (Choo Choo)
• Car
• Guitar (Tar)
• Mama (Ma!)
• Daddy (Da-dee!)
• Toothpaste/Toothbrush (Eeeyah -- from old McDonald)
• Socks (Dah!)
• Glasses (Dah!)
• Eat
• Bread (Pan)
• Apple (Ba-Bow)
• Water/Agua (Oowah)

We absolutely love watching Markus grow and learn! Kira continues to be quiet compared to Markus. Don't want to jinx it, but it's been good so far! Here is the first photo of all four of us together!

Born: Kira Marian Frydman

April 26th, 2010 11:30 p.m. - 7lbs 7oz.



Throughout the pregnancy, Sandra had been doing just fine. On the weekend before the 26th, her blood pressure went up to 130/90, which was high, but nothing critical. Since we were at 38 weeks and 5 days, we, along with our doctors, decided to deliver that day before it became an emergency. So, we gathered our bags and headed out the St. Luke's Roosevelt (St. Vincent's was already bankrupt and closed).

The c-section went very well. The anesthesiologists were incredibly nice and really made Sandra feel as calm as possible. One was nice enough to take photos of Kira's birth (in case I would faint) and he did a great job!

Kira's abgar scores were 9 and 9, and she is beautiful!

We stayed in the hospital just two days, as we wanted to get home to see Markus. (due to H1N1, no children under 12 are allowed to visit). Our doctor was okay with us going home early, as Sandra had plenty of help at home and her father is a doctor too.

We continue to stay at Sandra's parents house while Sandra recovers. Its been almost two weeks now since Kira's been born. We have her two week appointment tomorrow.

So far, Markus likes to point to his little sister and say, "et daaa?". =) He always smiles and giggles when she moves or hiccups.

Will keep the updates flowing now that we're full steam ahead!

Update

Sandra and I have decided to stay at Sandra's parents house until the baby is born (and a little after) as Sandra will have some help from her aunt during the day. We're also preparing the baby's stuff -- clothes, bottles, bassinet, etc. -- and waiting for her to come join us!

The new nursery is just about done -- I will post pictures next week.

This past weekend we visited my parents. My mom and her friends took Markus to the park to play for a while. All in all, a great weekend.

NCAA Picks

Markus made his first NCAA picks this year! He had Kansas winning it all, so it's already busted. I don't know if I should be teaching gambling to a 16-month old, but it's fun!






In other news, Sandra is doing great and we're still on track for our new baby girl in May! Also, I recently fell into the hole that is Facebook, so posting photos and updates on the blog has been scarce! I will get back on track though.

Markus says, "uh-oh" for EVERYTHING these days. Turn the TV on, "uh-oh", turn it off -- "uh-oh", walk in the room -- "uh-oh", ...you get the picture. It's cute, but also difficult to decipher. He's also showing more interest in the books we read to him and pointing and asking what it is ("oeresi?", or something like that).

Want Excitement? Have a Toddler!

Markus is so much fun. I personally loved the newborn stage (can't wait for Baby K to be born so I can have a newborn again!) but find the toddler stage to be super difficult. Between power struggles, teething (those molars are fierce and they're coming in 4 at a time), the unfortunate Staph Aureous experience, the grunting that passes for speech, and trying to get the kid to eat something other than crackers while not overfeeding, it's been a daily challenge. I haven't even mentioned the inconsistent sleep and the incredible trials a very mobile toddler bring to a very pregnant mom.

For a peaceful life, we can sometimes find ourselves letting Markus do something we know deep down inside is Not A Good Idea.

Yesterday morning, while I blissfully napped in the basement, Markus was spending time with his grandmother. Since it was her birthday, the phone was ringing pretty much non-stop with well wishes. From my seat on the basement couch, I was awoken by the phone ringing then hanging up 4 times in a row. No one was answering it, but I was now awake and so decided to go to the bathroom and wash up and go up to eat breakfast. While I was in the loo, the door opened and my mom peaked in.

"Markus called 911 and the police are here."

It was all I could do not to laugh. I was completely unsurprised. This was bound to happen; Markus, like every other toddler I've heard of, loves the phone. Just wants to play with it, press the buttons, put it in his mouth, and pretend to have a conversation. As I said, for a peaceful life, we sometimes give in to his desire to play with the phone, and despite my warnings not to give in, my mom had let him play with the phone and now the cops were at the house. She'd come down to check on me at the cop's suggestion because they couldn't be sure I hadn't been trying to call for help.

The cop was gone by the time I got upstairs, but apparently he was really nice and understanding. Didn't even admonish Mom not to let the baby play with the phone anymore. I did plenty of that. :P

Preparing for Baby Sister

I don't think we made a huge attention-grabbing post about this, but for about 2 months we've known our second baby is a GIRL! We're excited beyond belief to be welcoming a daughter into our family, and have been gently and slowly preparing Markus for the enormous change to come. Well, as much as we can prepare a young, non-verbal toddler for anything!

Lately I've been sitting on the couch kind of a lot, due to a mix of pregnancy-induced laziness and pregnancy-and-toddler-induced exhaustion. Markus is fantastic at independent play, sometimes for as long as 10 minutes at a time, but he does come to me a lot. I'm his "home base" and in between his duties as a plastic bowl wrangler and toy inspector, he likes to come to me and bury his face in my lap. Which now sort-of includes my belly.

In the interest of saving my unborn baby from enthusiastic head-butts, I began telling Markus that his baby sister was inside and he had to be gentle. I would lift up my shirt and show him my belly (he usually pokes my now-outtie belly button with his finger and laughs when I giggle) and point to my belly, saying, "It's your baby sister in there. Let's be gentle." This inevitably resulted in tiny finger-pokes all over my belly, which weren't much gentler than the aforementioned head-butts. I took his hand and softly stroked my belly with it, telling Markus, "We have to be gentle. Your sister is very small."

Being a stay-at-home mom, I obviously talk to Markus all day long. I tell him lots of things: what I'm doing at any given time, things I'm thinking about, what gramma was telling me on the phone, what I'm planning on making for dinner, etc. I also give him many instructions and commands throughout the day, most of them beginning with "don't" or "stop" or "OMG NOOOOOO!!!" It's still incredible when, often days later, he remembers one thing and repeats or demonstrates understanding of it.

Today, I was crouching in front of Markus, having just received one of his amazing little toddler hugs, when it occurred to me to ask, "Markus, where's your sister?" Without hesitation, Markus pointed to my belly, then rubbed it gently. Just as I'd taught him! It was the sweetest thing. I'm at my parents' house for the week, while Raph works on the new baby's nursery and some other projects around the house, so I immediately wanted to show my mom Markus' new trick. He repeated it, but so much better - he first "hugged" my belly, then rubbed both hands all over it. It was very loving and just wonderful.

I hope this means he'll love his sister and be gentle with her when she's physically here...time will tell!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOMMY!!!!

Markus' 15 Month Check-Up

Yesterday Markus had his 15 month check up at the pediatrician. He is now 33 1/8th inches tall and weighs 31 pounds. He's two inches taller than his last check-up but he is basically the same weight. This was okay as he was way off the scale last time, but now he's just off the scale. =)

Markus has been eating less, and is basically eating three meals a day (not including milk). He's running around and is now very fond of climbing! This is normal for toddlers as they are excited to be up and about, but is, of course, nerve-wracking for us!

Markus also got his MMR (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella) and HIB vaccine this time. The MMR might cause him to have a fever in a week, the pediatrician informed us, but we knew from our unfortunate friends who had to find this out the hard way with their son a few years back!

All in all, Markus is doing great. The doctor also gave us a dose of reality when she said next time we visit, we'll be bringing TWO kids! And she was right! YIKES! We're excited, but also nervous!

The Staphylococcus aureus experience

On Thursday (Jan 28th) Sandra noticed a large bump on Markus' pelvis. I came home from work and we immediately called the pediatrician and set up an appointment to get it checked out Friday morning. We did what every parent is NOT supposed to do -- used the Internet and our parenting book to diagnose Markus with a hernia. We were pretty upset and anxious that night, which made it difficult to sleep. We woke up Friday morning and took Markus to see a pediatrician. We had no idea what was to follow.

The doctor was "concerned", which really made us nervous since doctors don't really say that and he had another doctor look at the bump. They told us to go to Morristown hospital to meet with a pediatric surgeon that they partner with. Morristown is about 30 minutes away from us, but the surgeon was there performing a surgery, so we were sent there to meet him. We immediately went to the Morristown hospital emergency department where about 6 different doctors examined Markus, who was now really upset about the whole thing. Finally around noon, the surgeon examined him. It was determined that Markus had an abscess (an infection underneath the skin). The surgeon stuck a needle in him to drain some fluid to send to the lab. It hurt! They sent us home with some antibiotics to treat the abscess. They told us to come back if his temperature was above 101. We went home that evening around 3 o'clock and ate some lunch/dinner. After an hour or so, we thought Markus was hot, so we checked his temperature and it was 102.4. As if we weren't nervous enough!

We packed up and went BACK to the hospital (this is still Friday). Again with the 5 doctors. The doctor on staff that day said that they probably shouldn't have told us to come back with anything over 101. Freakin' great. Now they say since we're here, we can opt for surgery (requiring Markus to be sedated) OR continue with the antibiotics. Since it was early with the antibiotic treatment, we decided to stick with the original plan, knowing that the fever was okay and treated with Motrin. And we set up a follow up appointment with our pediatrician in the morning.

Home again Friday night. We eventually got to sleep. At 3:00 a.m., I woke up with some sort of stomach virus. Into the bathroom I ran, vomiting...enough said. And then every hour after that. Morning came and Markus' infection was looking slightly worse, not better. I was unable to really move...I was miserable and I couldn't stop throwing up every hour. I honestly couldn't make it to the doctor. Sandra's mother came down and they went to the pediatrician. I tried to rest, but I felt terrible, both physically and mentally. Sandra called me to say pediatrician wants Markus to go to the hospital to do intravenous antibiotics. I was barely able to walk, so Sandra went with her mom to Overlook hospital. Finally, around 11:00 I managed to go a few hours without any "interruptions" and I ate an apple, drank a bunch of water, took a Tylenol and went to the hospital.

When I got there I found out that we would be there at least overnight. This was now Saturday afternoon. So there we are at the hospital, our little guy with an IV, I’m barely functioning and Sandra with a cold (and 6 months pregnant!) as well. Later that day both our parents came down and stayed with us for a while. The room they gave us was nice – had a raised crib, bed (for Sandra) and a nice pleather couch for me to sleep.

Anyway, the idea was to keep Markus in IV antibiotics (IVAB) to get the maximum effectiveness. The surgeon would see the results the next day and determine if he needed to do something (draining the infection with a needle or through surgery), or continue IVAB. I think we got some sleep that night, and the next morning (Sunday) the doctor checked him out and said that we should continue doing IVAB until there is a real reason to do any incisions. We also did warm compresses. The warm compresses seemed to be working to raise the infection and drain as much pus as possible without surgery. Although it is quite horrible to see Markus crying in pain while the doctor is poking and squeezing, the IVAB and compresses were working. The infected site started looking better and the we were told to continue this treatment.

Sandra’s parents and sister and Markus’ godparents came to visit and this allowed us to go home, clean up and bring some things back with us as we knew we were going to have to stay at the hospital for at least another day. So now it was Sunday night, and it has been a long, long weekend.

Now, having said all that, Markus is doing very well. The infection doesn’t bother him or hurt (as long as doctor’s aren’t poking at it) and he is basically the same active little guy. He hasn’t had a fever all day today, and the area looks better. All great things. They have toys for him to play with and both Sandra and I are here with him.

Anyway, I have a laptop here and I’m going to work from the hospital on Monday and possibly Tuesday. I’m exhausted now (oh, I finally got my appetite back this evening) and going to sleep on my pleather couch.

Monday came and I made a few calls and e-mails to explain the situation at work. At this point Markus was doing much better and his infection was under control. He had an IV dose every eight hours, for one hour each dose. Nurses would come in periodically to check his temperature and blood pressure. Markus didn't have a fever since Saturday, and we didn't give him Motrin Sunday or Monday. Again, we were there all day Monday into Tuesday.

Finally, on Tuesday 4:00 p.m., the doctor said that we could go home and continue with oral antibiotics. No surgery needed and hopefully the infection site will heal with the AB. We were so glad to go home! It's now Sunday night (after the Saints just won the Superbowl) and we've gone all week with the oral AB. Markus is doing great and life is pretty much back to normal. He even LIKES the medicine! (I think it's strawberry flavored).

The hospital (Overlook) really did a good job of trying to make us feel comfortable. They gave Markus a bunch of toys to play with, they have a play room, televisions, DVDs, as well as a masseuse (which Sandra took advantage of) and even a musical coordinator who will sing to Markus if he needs help sleeping. Really great staff over there.

Anyway, that's the scoop of our weekend last weekend. The whole ordeal knocked us out of our day-to-day grind and it just makes us appreciate how fortunate we are. We're so blessed with Markus and there are no words to describe the anxiety/sadness/emotions you feel when your child is sick in any way. There was a little scare that Thursday and Friday, and your mind just worries about the worst. Human nature, I guess. No matter how much you know that things will probably be okay, it's tough to shake the worry.

Well, so our lives as parents continue. I'm sure this won't be the last scare, but we'll do our best to make sure it is!

(going out to flirt with nurses)

(gotta make some calls...)


(playing with mommy)

(toys toys toys!)

(getting ready to go home!)

Markus Walks!

Right before the New Year, Markus started walking! It took him a little over 13 months, but he finally took a few steps without holding on to anything. He's done it a couple of times and each time the room goes quiet with tension and excitement. Here's a short video where Markus demonstrates his talent (while acting like a little monster):