Saturday, March 31, 2012

Cirque du Soleil

We just finished watching Cirque du Soleil with the boys. I was worried about Callum lasting through the show but funny enough, it was Logan who was more fussy. He was worried about stuff falling on us, or the acrobats falling themselves. ;-) We still had a great time though, and I'm glad we went!

It's raining, it's pouring!

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Princess Shoes

Logan's teacher texted me this pic today. Made me laugh out loud. Not sure if you can see, but he seems pretty proud, rockin' the class dress up princess shoes. ;-)

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Puddle jumping

It was actually a really nice day out today. Jon got a bit of rugby practice in while the boys and I hung out at a playground nearby.

After, we brought lunch over to my parent's house to enjoy with them and my grandparents, Nana and Clock, who will be staying with my parents for the next few months.

Friday, March 23, 2012

Sanka

When I got back from New Orleans, I immediately put the boys to bed (it was late) and then started up my usual "just got home" routine, unpacking bags, starting up laundry, etc.  Our house/pet sitter left me a note telling me the animals did great all weekend long, and that I'd need to feed them that night when I got home.

So, I fed all the animals, but noticed our usual loud and demanding Sanka was nowhere to be found (or heard).  The cat food dish had been left out, however, so I assumed she had already eaten.  I gave her her normal evening insulin shot (she's diabetic) and finished up with my chores before bed.

The next morning (Monday), I noticed Sanka was still not interested in eating.  What's worse, she was laying by the water bowl but totally not interested in drinking, even when I moved her closer.  I then carried her to her food for the morning but she wouldn't budge.  Not interested.

So, I decided to call the vet.  We had an emergency with her a couple of weeks ago where her blood sugar had dropped through the floor - I was worried maybe her sugar levels were out of whack again.  But, the vet tested her levels and everything looked normal.  She was, however, very dehydrated (not a huge surprise since she wasn't eating or drinking) and her temp was lower than normal (not a great sign).  I left her with them for the day so they could get some fluids back in her, and give her an appetite stimulant to see if she'd eat some.

When I picked her up that afternoon she was doing better.  Her sugar levels were still normal - and she was better hydrated and while not a lot, ate a little bit too.  The vet sent me home with some meds to help stimulate her appetite if she stopped eating again.  My instructions were to get her back to a stable state where she'd eat and drink again - since she was clearly not feeling well.

She did ok Monday night and seemed ok Tuesday morning.  But by the time I got home Tuesday night, she was in a sad state of affairs again.  In fact, she was MUCH worse than the previous couple of days.  I called Jon that night to let him know I was pretty sure she was on her last breath, that I'd be taking her back to the vet the next morning but that I was afraid we may need to put her down (something we had already discussed earlier when I was noticing her odd behavior).

She was extremely lethargic and still, not moving at all when I came to check on her (she was laying on our bed).  I picked her up and carried her to her food, but she just slumped down and laid next to the food, not interested in anything.  I tried holding little bits of kibble in my hand up next to her mouth, but nothing.  I took one of the pills the vet gave me, crushed it up, mixed it with water, and fed her the water through a syringe (since she also wasn't drinking out of the water bowl I put next to her).  She hated the syringe and kept spitting the water out.

That night, I made sure to put her next to the heat register, wrapping extra towels and blankets over her to keep her warm.  She cried out a few times in the middle of the night, not her normal meow but a very pitiful cry for help.  :(  It was about 1am, but I got up and searched for her (she wasn't in her bed anymore) and found her just lying very still, in her litter box.  It was alarming to find her there, because she really did look dead at that point, her energy was so low.  :(   I picked her up and carried her back to my room for the night, figuring she may not make it through the night and she'd want to be near me and the dogs.  I pet her awhile until she went back to sleep (she did finally purr a bit which was great), but was so worried I kept waking up throughout the night to check on her.

By morning, she again looked dead, she was so still and without energy.  She wasn't, so I wrapped her up and took her back to the vet (I took the boys to school first because I didn't want them to be with me if I needed to put her down). 

Sure enough, she was in a horrible state.  She was extremely dehydrated with a very low temp again, worse than before, and the vet was pretty sure her kidneys weren't functioning anymore, but instead shutting down.  He remarked she was likely "knocking on death's door" :(

I called Jon, teary-eyed and gulping down sobs, in between relaying what the latest prognosis was.  It was extremely hard for me because I so wanted Jon to be there and see Sanka one last time.  But, we decided, given how much pain she appeared to be in, her age (18), and that even using extraordinary efforts to prolong her life, the doctor thought she'd likely only last a few more days, we decided to put her down.

I stayed with her while while the vet and nurse gave her the shot.  They were incredibly gentle and kind through the entire process and we talked about how interesting it was that a young man (Jon) would have kept this cat (Sanka) with him for so long.  The vet remarked how unusual it was, and that usually men will part from their cats at some point in their lives, not taking them along with them, or for so long.

I agreed.  As a final story before Sanka left us, I described to them the first time Jon and I met and started dating.  Sanka immediately took to me, which really impressed Jon.  Apparently (so he told me), she "hated", hissed and clawed at any previous girlfriend he had dated, and she had never liked any of his girlfriends like she liked me.

The vet so wisely observed,

Aha, so Sanka approved.  She chose you.

And, driving home that morning thinking it over, he was probably right.  She definitely did approve of me and seemed to love me endlessly.  I like to think there are many reasons why Jon chose me.  But, it's quite possible that was also one of them.  ;-)


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


When Jon returned home yesterday, I think it finally hit him - hard - that Sanka was gone.  He posted on Facebook about Sanka's passing later that evening, and I think his post sums it up nicely:

Through thick and thin, for better and for worse, she was always there for me. R.I.P. Sanka 1994 - 2012

Brothers

Today was picture day at school so the boys were dressed a little nicer than usual. (Which is becoming a bigger fight as they get older!)

Callum's teacher texted me this pic today of three sets of brothers since the younger ones are all in the same class and the older ones are all in the same class. And, they are all good pals. :)

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Daddy's home!

It's been a looooong week. Glad to have him back home with us.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

An animal fan

Callum slept in until 9am this morning (unheard of! I think he may be going thru a growth spurt) and was in a VERY good mood when I dropped him off at school. He immediately grabbed his favorite book (a pop up on animals) and sat down reading out the animals to me. Now I know how he has mastered words like "elephant", "rhino" and "giraffe"!  ;-)

Make your own pizza night

The boys and I met the Jodoins at Pizza My Heart for dinner tonight. Every Tuesday night they provide a "make your own pizza" for the kids. Such a great idea and so much fun! :)

Monday, March 19, 2012

Bead necklaces!

After Callum saw Logan putting on every single necklace (and dancing/swinging around with them), he decided he wanted in on the fun too. Logan helped him put each one on and them take them all off. :)

Ready for a party!

Brought back all the beads I collected the other night, plus a couple feather masks for the boys to play with.

Aren't they cute?! :)

Home sweet home

Got home late tonight but that didn't stop Logan from waiting up for me. The minute I walked into my parent's house, he popped up his head from the guest bedroom and smiled really big - Mommy!

Always a wonderful welcome home with little ones. :)

(My mom accidentally mixed up the boys' pjs tonight which was pretty funny on Logan, so I took a pic to send to Jon)

Jon is staying in New Orleans for a work conference the rest of this week but I came back tonight since I needed to get back to work and more importantly, as I was mentioning in a previous post, it's hard for me to stay away from my kiddos for too long. :)

Had a super duper wonderful time with Jon and really glad we made the trip together. I'm glad to be home with my boys but I also immediately started missing Jon, the minute I waved goodbye to him from the cab earlier today.

I guess that's a good sign that we're still strongly in love. ;-)

Erin go bragh!

We closed out a wonderful birthday last night at an Irish bar, with a local band covering many of our favorites. Loved it!

Sunday, March 18, 2012

My boys

The boys have been staying with my parents this weekend and my parents have been awesome about sending a few pics of the boys to us while we're away. This is the second weekend away from them (the last one was for my birthday last year!) and it's still really hard for me (especially) to be away from them for so long.

Anyway, I love that they send these pics. This was one of my favorite because they are looking so happy and content.  :)

Fantastic birthday night!

Saturday, March 17, 2012

I'd like to thank....

....all these strangers who, out of the kindness of their hearts, came out to celebrate my birthday with me. Thank you, to each and every one of you. It meant so much to me. :-P

Me!

I know I'm never in my own pictures. :( So here's one of me and the t-shirt I had made (in 15 seconds!) today, because I was so focused on packing green for Jon and the boys, that I forgot something for myself! ;-)

Lunchtime!


Jello shots!

(For the record, they're gross). ;-)

Daddy got invited to a duel

He ain't too bad! ;-)

Happy birthday to me!

Birthday beignets and cafe au lait. Yum!

A required stop

Waiting in a 20 minute line for beignets and cafe au lait, but it'll be worth it! ;-)

Friday, March 16, 2012

My date is falling asleep

Jon and I flew into New Orleans today, to celebrate my birthday this weekend. Our flight was a bit delayed so by the time we checked in, charged our phones and relaxed a bit, we didn't get out to dinner until about 9pm. Which actually is perfect timing for both CA kids like us *and* locals here! :)

This place is called La Crepe Nanou, not near us but super delicious and was worth the drive. Now, I've got to wake up my date so we can hitch a streetcar back to the Quarter, and possibly even find a jazz club or two! ;-)

Monday, March 12, 2012

Pucker up!

Today, as we were leaving school, Logan said goodbye to his sweetheart and best pal, Stephanie, giving her a big hug.

He then leaned in real close. Do you want a kiss too?

She leaned away.  No kissing!

Why?  (I was curious too)

My Daddy said no more kissing.

Logan tried chasing her around the grass to get his kiss in, until I made him stop (if she says no, then that means no!).  ;-)

As we're piling into our respective cars, a few minutes later, the two are literally YELLING at each other across the street, continuing their conversation.

But I still love you Logan!

I love you too!  See you tomorrow!

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Best friends

Robert was super sweet and told Logan they should share his blanket while watching TV (quiet time to start calming down for bed).

Crazy Connor!

Pizza dinner!

Logan and Robert are doing their "argh matey!" pirate impersonations. It's pretty cute! :)

Night night!

Hanging out at the Jodoins and Callum has discovered their dog beds. ;-)

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Full moon

On our drive home from school today, Logan noticed the big fat full moon outside and said:

What?!? The sun and moon are out at the same time?!? That's crazy Mom!

So, I explained how the earth is round and as it rotates, the sun and moon alternate rising and setting. He seemed to follow this train of thought so I asked, Buddy, did you know that the earth is round?

And Logan responded:

Yesssssss Mooooooommmmm.... (with a big DUH sigh)

So, what I learned today is, the sun and moon being out at the same time of day, blows my kid's mind. But the fact that we live on, walk on, drive on and play on earth, which is round, does not even phase him.

Ha!

Hard at work

These are the types of text messages/pics I get during the day (while *I*, at least, am hard at work!). :)

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Guardians

Logan's dragons have some extra reinforcement tonight.

Trampoline!

Forgot to post this on Sunday but we went over to the Hickson's for a last minute BBQ get together. Callum loved Molly's trampoline, as you can see from the big grin on his face! :)

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Post nap wake up time

I know my boys won't always like to snuggle, so I take advantage of all the snuggling while I can get it! ;-)

Backwards!

Callum seems to be more of a dare devil than his older brother (or maybe he just doesn't know any better yet). He went down the bigger, taller and twistier slide, backwards no less! ;-)

At the park

Some slide action earlier today.

Loganism of the morning

All of these red lights are slowing us down!

(On the way to the movies, to see The Lorax). :)

Lookin' older (and handsome)!

We got the boys much needed haircuts yesterday. They (Callum especially) look so much older!

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Happy birthday Tyler!

Tyler, Callum's friend, just had his 2nd birthday party. His older brother, Aaron, is Logan's buddy, so the two boys had a ton of fun hanging out (and hopefully now will have a nice nap to give Mommy and Daddy some downtime!). :)

Incriminating evidence #6873

Playing with Mommy's lipstick again.

Saturday morning

Snuggled together, watching some Cat in the Hat.

Friday, March 2, 2012

My boys

Spoiled Callum tonight, since I let him stay up late to see his daddy (normally he's in bed before Jon gets home). The three hung out on the couch for a few minutes before bedtime - super cute! :)

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Loganism of the other day

Mommy, tools are dangerous for little kids.

Yes, some can be. What else is dangerous for little kids? (Me thinking my fantastic parenting skills will finally show thru when he answers with something like "playing in the street") His answer?

Fighting zombies.