Hang on

Landon was so excited hook a "trailer" to his 4-wheeler and give Phoebe a ride around the yard. 

What a good big brother ;)

Lately

 Aside from some random cold spells, the weather here has been pretty nice...which means it's been all about outdoor play lately.  Every day ends with hanging in the front or back yard, riding bikes, playing in the sand box or trying out the new lounge chairs.....

 

I tried so hard to get a picture of the two of them in their new chairs.  When taking pics of kids be sure to have lots of memory on your phone or camera...it's all about quantity, then maybe you'll find one quality!

Finally, I got one where they're both looking at the camera!

 

While Landon's at school during the day, Phoebe and I take advantage of the cooler weather in the morning and often go on walks.

They usually end with me sitting on the drive way while she tastes (yes I said tastes) every stick, rock, leaf, flower and patch of dirt in the yard.  It's hard to see in this picture, but she had dirt drool rolling down her face and chin.  Although, you can see the top teeth coming in!  (And yes, that hat is way too big.)

 

We finally got around to hanging our swing in the back.  I remember Landon swinging in it at the old house ;)

 Landon has been talking about camping for weeks.  I felt badly because I think he would probably like it, but I'm just not up to the challenge of a real camping trip....especially with a one year old.  So instead, we set up the tent in the back yard.  We bbq'ed hot dogs for dinner, roasted marshmallows that evening and watched a movie in the tent when the sun went down - a full camping experiences....except I told him it was going to rain that night and we had to sleep inside.  (I'm a mean mommy:)

Some afternoons have definitely been warm enough to warrant play at the water table.  Phoebe loved it....and Landon loved splashing her :)

 Our trip to the park last weekend found us exploring the baseball game next to the playground.  Landon was very interested in the game and kept asking questions about the rules.  Maybe t-ball's in our future??  He picked a bouquet full of dandelions that he ended up giving to the girl in the background of this picture.  Her brother was on one of the teams playing in the game, so she was there watching.  She took a great interest in Landon and wanted to marry him ;)

 Pheebs wandering the field.

 

Landon recently attended a birthday party for a friend.  I just love seeing him playing with his friends and watching how he interacts with his peers, so cute!

Oh Pheebs, you're just too much!

This and That

 I love this picture of Phoebe - she loves being outside now that she can walk and get around so well.  She is so interested in every flower, every leaf....and slimy, disgusting, drool-soaked Rocco tennis balls.

 Aunt Pat was so generous to send Landon a Thomas sticker book after his surgery.  He LOVED it, as if you couldn't tell by his genuinely ecstatic smile in a usual sea of cheese ball smiles :) He's just so handsome!

 That's right, I've got two forward-facing car seats in the back of my truck!  Awesome!

 Phoebe going to her 1 yr appointment....all 24 lbs of her.  88th percentile!

 Landon's alien bunny cake we made together for Easter ;)

 I just love it when they show each other affection. 

 Now that Phoebe has a bike, we're enjoying family rides around the neighborhood.

 Little Bunny Phoebe.

She has gotten so good at "riding" her bike, she'll put her feet on the peddles, hold the handles and even ring the bell!

Happy Birthday Phoebe Kate!

 Just a year ago we were a family of three.  Then sweet Phoebe Kate entered our lives.

We couldn't have been more blessed, she was the perfect baby....with the perfect hair!  Seriously though, she had awesome hair!

 We celebrated her birthday on Sunday with a small family gathering at the house.  I think she knew the fuss was about her because she smiled pretty well for the cameras and enjoyed getting her presents.

 Posing with Uncle Steve.

 Trying out her new baby stroller.

 And loving her bike from Grammie and Grampy!

Trying to figure out how the bell works. 

 Giving brother the evil eye for trying to creep in on her birthday gift :)

 Did I mention I love this bike!

 Our cheeky family :)

 I'm tired of pictures, can I go ride my bike!?

 Check out my fabulous birthday crown, fit for a princess!

Grammie lovin!

 Aside from this picture, she was actually more sedate than I thought she'd be when it came time for cake. 

 You can tell, she doesn't miss many meals, so I thought she'd love the chance to dive into her own cake.  She has been sick for the past week, so maybe that's why her appetite wasn't at its usual roar.

 Had to include this shot because you can see her two bottom teeth and new upper tooth that's coming in!  Happy Birthday Phoebe girl, we love you!

Surgery time

 Oh those darn Havard genes....they don't come from the Gottlieb side!  Poor Landon was born with the Havard crossed toe gene.  Scott has it, his dad has it....and come to find out another aunt and several cousins have it.  Scott and his dad's I don't think are as severe.  Scott's are crocked these days, but were never as crossed as Landon's.

Landon has always commented on his toes and wanted to know why they were crossed, when no one else's are.  I mostly thought it was cosmetic and that he'd learn to get over it, but as he got older he'd occasionally comment that they hurt or felt like they were poking him.  I even noticed the nails on the "tucked under" toe becoming deformed.  A visit to the orthopedist confirmed Landon would have to have surgery to repair the crossed toe. 

Luckily it was to be a short surgery.  The orthopedist would snip the tendon under the middle toe, releasing the tension that had been causing it to cross.  Once that toe could relax, it would naturally straight out the second toe.  The only bad news was that he would have general anesthesia and be put under.  I wasn't thrilled about that.  The majority of Landon's complications as a preemie were respiratory and airway related.  To this day, he still has a "floppy" airway, which results in stridor/high pitched inspiration noises while sleeping and during exertion.

 Landon knows daddy goes to the hospital everyday for "work" to do anesthesia, so we played this up as him getting to go to the hospital for anesthesia.  Luckily he bought that story with not many other questions or concerns.  Here he is after being checked in and changed into his gown.  At the children's hospital, they do everything they can do make the experience as pleasant as possible for the kids (and parents) - they gave him a toy, a hat and even a super-hero cape!

They also gave him "happy juice" to drink before he left us to go to the operating room.  The liquid versed basically relaxed him enough so they could wheel him away from us without even batting an eye!  It took probably 15-20 minutes to full kick in, but by then he was slurring his words, talking silly and emphatically stating that there were two televisions in our room (there was only one tv :)

 After what seemed like an eternity, they finally said he was done and called us back to see him.  He was awake, but did not look happy.  It turns out they had to intubate him during the surgery/put a tube down his throat to breathe for him, instead of using a less invasive airway device, because he couldn't protect his own airway.  However, as a result of using a more invasive airway device, he basically had airway spasms after they extubated him, requiring a breathing treatment to resolve.  Not to mention the pain associated with having both feet cut open.  He was not a happy camper.  I was on that recovery nurse like white on rice making sure he had two extra doses of pain meds!

By the time we got home, got the pain meds and some food in his system, he was feeling much better.  His little feet were wrapped up in dressings and ace bandages.  We received strict orders to keep him off his feet for up to a week to let the incisions heal and prevent swelling and tearing.  (It's only been 1 day and I'm already seeing what a challenge it is!)

We've tried to keep him busy with movies, computer games, coloring and rides around the block in the wagon...but he is still getting very antsy!

 Today we tried some science experiments with baking soda, vinegar and food coloring. 

 It was definitely a hit!

I'll have to keep hitting up Pinterest for indoor activities this week if I have any hopes of keeping him occupied....it's going to be a long week!  

In all seriousness though, I am so grateful and blessed that everything went well and that he had no complications!! From such humble beginnings to a strong fighter, he must be meant for greatness!