I think it is probably time for an update....right?

Welcome back everyone! I am glad to have you reading this post, and I hope that it is a refreshing treat for you, since I am lucky to blog once a week now a days. I don't really have an excuse not to blog, I really don't....but lack of motivation to do ANYTHING plays a big role in that.

As of late, i have still been pretty sick. For those of you who don't know, about the middle of January I had to go to the doctor because my tonsils were so swollen that I was basically suffocating on them...it was the scariest thing I have had to go through for sometime....I was gasping for air and had to be careful how I took in breaths because if I took too deep of one, then I would gag and choke. I went into the doctor and he confirmed that my tonsils are the problem and he put me on antibiotics. Well, two weeks later I ended up getting a really bad ear infection and my throat still killed like no other, so I went back in. My doctor put me on a different antibiotic and said that if this doesn't kick the infection then he would send me to an Ear, Nose, & Throat specialist. Those antibiotics made my stomach feel like it was being eaten from the inside out, so I decided to stop taking them a few days into the cycle....mistake, because the next week my throat flared again...so about a week ago I got back on them, knowing that I still had 7 days that I could take it and that it might help things get a little better, except they didn't. On Tuesday I started to feel like crap, and I mean the gross stinky/runny kind that no one likes to deal with. It got progressively worse and now I am sitting here trying to recover from this awful sickness, while still having a throat that burns, head that throbs, sinus pressure that kills, and a cough that is painful. I will try to get into the doctor sometime next week to see if there is any hope to the end of this sickness stuff. I would venture to think that if I can get the tonsils out, then I would be miraculously cured because I have been sick and been known to get sick for a very long time....I am always sick...ALWAYS! If is isn't something dealing with my infertility, it is something that is dealing with the flu, cold, sinus infection, strep, etc. Needless to say, my week has been pretty miserable. So that is me....

Joel is doing great. He loves his job still and is finally starting to do claims on his own now. He still has lots of questions, but he can go on a job and get what is needed and be coached on the rest when he needs it. He travels a lot and will be leaving me for two weeks this Sunday to go to claims school in Bloomington, Illinois. I AM NOT EXCITED FOR THIS AT ALL. I use to enjoy a few nights away for a little breather, but now, with our babe, it is a lot harder to be flying solo all the time. I might be officially insane by the time he returns...haha But once he returns, I get him for a day, then he goes to Colorado for a few more days. UGH! I kind of feel sad for Joel though because Calvin is at his peak stage of starting to crawl right now, and when Joel returns from all his business stuff, Calvin will be a mover for sure!

Calvin is growing by the day. He started doing the one armed army crawl a few days ago. I have been trying to get it on video, but so far, no success. He doesn't do the crawl all the time, but each day he moves more and more. It is so fun to watch, but it is definitely showing us that we have a lot of baby-proofing to do, and FAST! I bought a cheap baby gate at WalMart the other day, but because of our stairs, we are going to have to figure out what other options we have....we need a baby gate that will bolt to the railings or something like that and latch to the wall. I am keeping my eyes out, but if you know of any, please let me know. Calvin still doesn't sleep through the night and it is driving me crazy. We are working really hard at trying to get him to sleep but nothing so far is working. I have tried the "ferberizing" method, and I don't mind that, but when Calvin has a cold or a cough I don't like him crying a lot because he chokes...so as of late we haven't been working on that...just waking up when he does, giving him a little bit to drink and then praying that he sleeps longer than 2 hours at a time. He is still a chunk, but is only in 9 month clothes (unless you bring up the gerber white onesies because he is in 18months for those...NERT) Now a days, if you are around Calvin, besides the moving, you will also notice that he is a talker. He loves to talk....baby talk of course, but he is always saying something. It is pretty adorable. We continue to do sign language and are working on expanding our volcabulary so that we can teach Calvin more as the time progresses, but at this point we get reactions from Milk, Eat, Jump, Mommy, & Daddy. We are signing drink, boy, more, play, cereal, and ball as well, but those are newer to him, so he just thinks I am a goof. I know it will pay off, so that is why I don't mind if he thinks I am a goof! No teeth yet, but I am sure they are working their way out....there have been many a night when there is no soothing possible unless you use the teething tablets and orajell stuff. Hopefully those little buggers will stop moving under the gum and start poking out. I am also trying to help Calvin learn how to feed himself with his hands. He isn't very good at those rice puff things and he always chokes on them, so the other day a friend suggested that I try to soak them in water first and then offer it to Calvin. I did, and there was no issues...I break the little puff into about three littler sizes so that he can figure out the chewing thing. Next week I might start giving him a whole one and seeing what he does. He loves to eat squash, sweet potatoes, peaches, and as of yesterday prunes. He had been a little backed up, so I thought giving the prunes would be helpful....umm, yeah, they sure were...all down his leg to his foot helpful! YucK! He can eat the peas now without gaging, but only half a serving at a time. He still eats rice ceral too, but I am going to move to oatmeal soon. I bought an abundence of rice cereal, so I am going to try to see if I can exchange it for the oatmeal instead...we will see how that works.

I guess that is the update I have for you right now. I will try to be better at blogging, but no promises right now. Life is going to be alittle crazy for me the next few weeks....Imight even try to escape to Utah for a few days if my friends will have me....we will see how that goes! Whelp, hasta-pasta!