Pajama Dance

Drew's school had a dance Friday night where you wore your pajamas so we took advantage of some "Drew and Mommy time" as we call it. I dressed in my most colorful pjs and Drew loved it telling me how "pretty" they were. There weren't too many parents who dressed in their nightly attire, but I really want to be one of those moms who does.

We got to the dance and we danced our hearts out! The DJ was great and Drew saw some friends from his class as well as his teacher. We bought chocolate chip cookies, sang out loud, and joined in on the line dances too. Drew was such a trooper because he even hung in there and tried to learn the Macarena which is not an easy dance for how fast they were playing it! I was so proud of him for just having a good time and enjoying the experience. Even though his dancing consisted mostly of jumping up and down, I jumped right along with him. It was a night to remember!!!

Drew and me dressed in our pjs ready to go to the dance

Another shot of my obnoxious get-up

Drew's teacher, Mrs. Putonen, and some classmates

Drew and Bree - our neighbor across the street, Drew's classmate, and his BFF

Outside the dance eating chocolate chip cookies with friends

Drew and Andy - another neighbor down the street

By the way, can you believe Drew, Bree and Andy (all live within a few houses of each other) have the exact same birthday! I am talking the same year too - it's unreal!!

Dulles Air and Space Museum TAKE 2

This past Saturday, we went back to the Dulles Air and Space Museum but this time with David - the one person in our family who would appreciate it the most. He loved it and knew all the planes before we even got close to reading the information on them. He was even a bit disappointed when it was clear that Drew was more excited to eat at the McDonald's they have there for lunch instead of learning about the airplanes. Setting the scene: David trying to explain to Drew what this kind of plane does and what war that kind of plane flew in and Drew asking repeatedly, "Is it time for McDonald's yet?" or "Now, can we got to McDonald's?" It was pretty funny. We had a great time except for the fact that David forgot to put the stroller in the trunk - yes, he actually opened the trunk to put the stroller in and then got distracted so the stroller never quite made it. We were both pretty tired from carrying our precious baby around but all in all, it was a great family outing.

David and the older kids in front of the plane David's grandfather worked on in WWII

Me and the kids below:

seriously, David should be writing up this post because he knows the names of these planes

Top Gun airplane with David and the kiddos

Closer shot of the cute ones

Shuttle Enterprise

All of us with a space suit that was on display - Drew tried on the gloves which has a reflective mirror so the astronaut can read the information on his chest

The Concord that flew from the US to France that has now stopped flying

The Enola Gay - the plane that bombed Japan

A better view of the shuttle Enterprise

the family leaving the museum

4 months!

Drake is 4 months old now! He weighed in at 15.5 pounds and is 25.5 inches long. 75th percentile all the way around.

The second doctor went back to the original diagnosis of a hemangioma on his neck. But he did say it should stop growing at nine months to a year and start going back down until it goes away. That made me feel better that I had a time limit on its growing period. I don't think it's grown much in the last month but it definitely hasn't gone away. If it stays the way it is, no worries but we just have to monitor its size.

Drake is such a happy baby - he gets tons of kisses all the time because he is so so cute! He is also weaning when it comes to nursing because he is needing more milk as he gets bigger. He knows it doesn't really come from me like it does from the bottle so no wonder he is making his choice early on. I feel a little rejected because I'd like to give him the milk I do have, but I also feel the bottle is easier on all of us so I am letting it go slowly but surely. We sure do love this little boy!!!

Drooling is an all-the-time occurence now!

So cool in his shades

Cub Scouts - WEBELOS

I am currently serving as the WEBELOS den leader right now and surprise, surprise, I'm loving it! I only have two boys right now but two more are coming in next month. I even get to wear a boy scout shirt with patches and everything. This is a picture of our blue and gold banquet last Friday where the theme was Knights of the Round Table. I was able to bring Drew with me and let him see what he'll be doing in another two years or so. I know I am supposed to learn this program because I have two boys that will be doing it. Slowly but surely, it's starting to not sound like a foreign language to me, and I am getting the jargon down. Scouts has some very committed people to it, that's for sure!

But how could a program that has you earning badges and checking off a big list of things to do not totally be up my alley? It really is a fit for me and hopefully we will just keep accomplishing badges together, those sweet Webelos and me. :)

Mother/Son Date Night at Chick-fil-a

Chick-fil-a's picture of us on our date

Our local Chick-fil-a had a mother/son date night last night. David noticed the flier a month ago and I made a reservation for 7 p.m. that night just for me and Drew. He was so excited as was I. I picked him up after cubscouts and we headed to his favorite place. They sat us at a special table that had crafts to do while we waited. They came to take our order, and they even had a man making balloon objects. Drew chose a blue "ray gun" and he could not stop talking about it (how it could shoot things and people and how it was just pretend). We even got our picture taken and given to us! After our dinner, we headed to the play area where there were lots of boys and lots of energy. Drew met some new friends and had a good time. We really enjoyed our time together on our special date night!!!

Our decorated Chick-fil-a hat and a ball they gave us

Drew excited with his ray gun

A picture of me and my date

Cinderella

Dilan is the perfect age to start dressing up and today she chose to be Cinderella!

Valentine's Day Party

Drew had his Valentine's Day party on Monday afternoon. Unexpectedly, David came home for a late lunch as Dilan was asleep and I was rocking Drake. So, I took full-advantage and chose to go to his party by myself (I was planning on waking up Dilan and bringing them along). I sacrificed being able to stay the whole time with two little kiddos in exchange for about 20 minutes one-on-one time with my oldest son. It was well-worth it. We had time to make a craft together and for me to pay all of my attention to him. He was very happy to see me, and I continue to fulfill my goal of never missing anything he has going on (including his V-day party 4 days after giving birth to Dilan and his Halloween party 3 days after giving birth to Drake). I love this boy!!!

My special Valentine

Drew and classmates at his table

Making our craft

We made a bumble bee together with paint pens. Loved my time with Drew!

Special Visit

Having my mom here for Dilan's birthday was very special. We are so fortunate that my mom is able to come and be here for these special times. She was a huge help during the party holding Drake for me and allowing me to truly enjoy the moment. She also cooked, shopped, and played with each of my kids. I try to get some pictures of these priceless times when she's here so here are a few:

Tickling Drake

Walking Drew to the bus stop for me in the bitter cold

Giving endless hugs and kisses to the kiddos

Swollen Lymph Node!!!

The doctor called this morning to discuss the ultrasound results with me and to my surprise she told me that it is NOT a hemangioma. In fact, it is a swollen lymph node. Of course, this was what we first thought when it happened but then getting the diagnosis from the pediatrician made us think differently. She did say that if it is red, irritating to him or hard, then we have to take another look at it. But since his is soft, squishy and can be rolled around on his neck, it is of no concern. They will check Drake again in a few weeks when he goes in for his 4 month appointment. We will just watch the lymph node carefully, but the idea that this is not a long-term condition is very relieving!

Thanks again for all your support, thoughts, and prayers. This is much better news than I thought we were getting and I'm so very grateful.

Update on Drake

The test results came back to confirm the diagnosis (another doctor left a message on my phone after hours so I could not call back to discuss it). We are grateful it is not a worse outcome and that we know what it is. We will just continue to think positive that this won't affect Drake's development. Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers.