Payton meets Santa

Last night we went to a Christmas Parade so Payton could sit on Santa's lap and get a picture taken. She LOVES Santa.....and even on her birthday was a bit confused because she thought Santa brought her all of her birthday presents :) Before leaving, she gave him a big hug and then a few minutes later she said she'd forgotten to give him a kiss. Anything to get to go back to see the bearded man.

This weekend has kind of been a long week. I was under the impression when a child had tubes they would no longer get ear infections. Koen had been sleeping next to nil each night and he was such a fussy little man (so unusual for him), so I kept blaming it on teeth. Finally on Friday he kept grabbing his ear and just crying in pain. So, Bob and I took him to urgent care and sure enough it was an ear infection. Nice thing was, by the time we got to urgent care, tons of fluid was coming out of his ear, so I'm sure it felt good for Koen to have the pressure off. They went ahead and put him on an antibiotic to clear up his cough and congestion (and infection) but said the tubes were doing it's job, the fluid was draining. So, that was kind of good to know. And-it made me thankful that Payton hasn't had any ear infections since she's gotten her tubes.

Payton's been pretty emotional this week. Last night she was up about four hours screaming that her back hurt. I kind of struggle to understand why her body seems to ache so much. I suppose she could be using these aches to play us - just to be awake screaming. But, I'm guessing she'd rather be awake just hyper (which I can handle the hyperness much better than the screaming and crying). I don't know.....I've read that it's not unusual for individuals with ws to have joint pain and maybe that's what she is experiencing. I just had it in my head that it would come into play when she was much much older. I'm trying to remind myself daily (sometimes by the minute!) that generally the emotional episodes last about two weeks and then she'll get back to herself. Sometimes after these episodes I notice a huge developmental jump, which would be awesome!

This next week Payton and Koen are going to go to Bob's folks for an extra night/day of playing with grandparents, aunts, and cousins. Payton is ecstatic!!! I'm a little nervous. This is the first time Payton and Koen have stayed the night away from me out of town before. But, I know they will have a blast - and it's so good for them to be able to have the extra time with Bob's side of the family. We just don't get to see them very often-so the kids will eat this up. And, I'm proud of Payton because I really feel like she's able to handle it. She's really changing right before our eyes. Ofcourse Koen is too. He is talking, playing, and amazing me every day. For a while this week I wondered if he was just waking up because his brain was taking so much in during the day and he was waking up to practice all of his new words. He would sit there and just ramble thru words that he knew (most importantly choo-choo). It really is a neat thing to see.

If I don't post before Thanksgiving, I hope everyone has a wonderful time with family and friends. Happy Thanksgiving!