It's Wiggles Time!

Henry has a new group of friends... the Wiggles. They're a group of four Australian guys that sing and dance to such hits as "Fruit Salad (Yummy Yummy)", "D.O.R.O.T.H.Y the Dinosaur" and "Captain Feathersword".

Yes, the songs are as crazy as they sound. But Henry just loves jamming out with his pals Anthony, Greg, Murray and Jeff.

We took this video when he was sick with RSV and had a fever. We eventually had to turn off the DVD because he was dancing up a storm and we were worried that his fever would spike. He just loves them that much!

This is what happens...

...When a 2-year-old tries to dress himself. "I do it myself!" ends up making interesting, um, outfits!

Yum Yum!

Teddy got his first taste of real food this weekend! He tried out some rice cereal and loved it. REALLY loved it. I felt kind of bad for holding out the real food on him for the past weeks, since he pretty much went wild about it. We weren't in a hurry to get him started on it, and I wanted to wait until he was feeling better and we sorted out the allergy stuff. But I guess he was craving something more than just milk since he went nuts for it, as you can see!

Henry had to try it, too... he gave it a thumbs down.

Here's a link to a slide show of his first few bites.

Teddy at 5 Months

What a big boy! Little Teddy turns 5 months old this week. He's getting more and more active each day and is currently working on mastering the roll. He can flip from his back to his front - and vice versa - but it's a lot of work for the little guy. He's been flipping over at night and sleeping on his tummy in his crib, too. He often gets stuck in weird positions in his crib, though - the kid bounces around like a pinball at night - so hopefully he'll get the hang of it soon and the nights will go a bit more smoothly.
He's still on the soy formula and we've been trying to stock up his wardrobe with 100% cotton clothes to help the eczema problem. It's gotten better, but we're noticing that he's still super-sensitive to sweaters, fleece, etc. He's a delicate flower, I guess!

Teddy has also started laughing here and there lately - no better sound than that! Hopefully we'll be able to capture it on video to share with everyone soon.

Of Baptisms and Diapers

Teddy is going to be baptized in the next few weeks. At our church, before the actual baptism takes place, there's a short ceremony during mass a few weeks beforehand. They bring all the babies and parents together and you say a few words in front of the church. It's sweet and spiritual. Teddy's ceremony took place during mass this morning. And, thanks to Henry, I think Matt, myself and the entire church won't be forgetting it anytime soon.

It started when we were told to sit in the reserved pew in the front. Yeah, I didn't have a good feeling about taking a front and center spot with a 2-year-old, but we figured after the ceremony we could move to the back of the church. We brought a bag packed with snacks, trains and books, so I hoped we could get a somewhat quiet 30 minutes or so out of Henry.

He was a little antsy and loud (we're still working on "inside voices") but was otherwise really OK. Typical 2-year-old stuff, and our church is pretty family friendly, so you figure it just comes with the territory.

Then it came time to stand up in front of the church. Henry wasn't having it - and decided to play the "potty card" while the priest was talking...

Henry: (Semi-loud) I have to poopy.

Daddy: (Whispers) Just stand right here for a second.

Henry: I HAVE TO POOOOPY! POOPY!

Mommy: (Beet red, frantic whisper) Just wait a second, OK?

Henry: (Walking to the pew to rummage through my diaper bag) WHERE IS MY DIAPER? I HAVE TO POOOOPY! POOOOPY! MAMA, I NEED A DIAPER!!!!!!

As the words "poopy" echoed off the walls of the church, Matt and I looked at each other, totally mortified. It was so embarrassing... yet hilarious at the same time. We both tried not to bust out laughing, but it was pretty difficult. The priest just kept on talking as if nothing out of the ordinary was going on. As if poopy talk is common during 9:30 mass.

Thankfully, the ceremony wrapped up shortly after and we grabbed our stuff and headed to the back of the church. Of course, Henry didn't actually have to go potty - he just knows enough from potty training that any talk like that from him means instant adult attention.

Ah... life with a 2-year-old. Gotta love it.

Soy Boy

Poor little Teddy. He's still getting over the RSV that hit him hard last week, but he's also dealing with an eczema outbreak as well. We've talked to many doctors about his issues and it looks like we might be dealing with a possible allergy or asthma issue. The doctor sent us home from a visit on Monday with lots of different creams and new formulas to try. It's possible that it could be a milk allergy, so he's trying out soy-based formula. He wasn't too thrilled out it at first, but now chugs it down just fine. And since we've tried it, he does seem a bit better, so maybe things are looking up? He'll go back to the doctor on Friday, so we'll see. Let's hope so!

Bouncing Baby Boy

Teddy tested out the bouncer for the first time this week - and he really seems to like it! Although he's not really bouncing now, mostly just hanging out, he likes being able to grab and look at the toys. Lots of fun! Henry loved the bouncer as a baby, too.

Henry likes to play with Teddy while he's in the bouncer, although we're trying to teach him to dial down the enthusiasm just a bit so little T-Bone doesn't get injured. Here's some video of the two of them. I think it also illustrates how the two of them share germs... this was taken just a day before the RSV outbreak. Henry loves to kiss his baby brother!

Ringing in the New Year with RSV

It's been a week of illness around our house. Both boys were diagnosed with RSV, Teddy spent some time at Children's Hospital and Henry's RSV turned into a bit of pneumonia. Since Mommy and Daddy are too tired to write out a long post, here's a recap:

• Last Sunday, both boys had the sniffles, but were otherwise in good spirits.
  
• By Monday night, they had both developed fevers, so we took them to the night clinic at our ped's office. They were also both wheezing, especially Teddy. As soon as the doctor saw them, she tested for RSV and we had to nebulize (aka neb) both of them in the office. They were especially worried about Teddy, since RSV can be especially dangerous for infants. They checked his oxygen levels and decided it would be best to keep him overnight at the hospital. So, we pack the kids up and head downtown.


• Note to self: When you head downtown at 9 p.m. at night, be sure you have a full tank of gas. We didn't and spent about 30 minutes driving on gas fumes as we searched for an open gas station with two sick kids in tow. Fun times!


• We finally arrived at the hospital and got checked in. Teddy and Mommy stayed there until Tuesday afternoon. Teddy was a champ, though, despite his illness he was full of smiles for all the doctors and nurses. I think he liked all the attention!


• Once we got home on Tuesday afternoon, Henry had developed a 103.3 fever that pretty much continued until Thursday morning. We took him to the doctor on Thursday and the doc thought he had developed a bit of pneumonia. The good news is that they gave him some antibiotics which seemed to kick in for him right away.
  
• As of today, they're both a lot better, thank goodness! Henry has a little cough but seems otherwise OK and Teddy is still a little wheezy, but not too bad. Let's hope they're on the mend for good!

A Day On The Ice

Henry and cousin Layla took their first spin on the ice this week, at the Depot ice rink in downtown Minneapolis.

The kids did great - they were really excited to try skating. Henry was a little unsure at first but quickly warmed up to it. Although Matt did most of the work by ferrying them around the rink. As Laura and I quickly found out, it was a back-breaking work to push them along! And I think Henry sensed my sub-par skating skills and opted to skate with his former goalie daddy, who is a lot more comfortable on the ice.

Here's a slide show of their day on the ice...