The Connell Chronicles

Well I better get to typin’! This kiddo is everywhere and doesn’t look to have the intentions of slowing down anytime soon! We have had a really rough couple of weeks since the last time I blogged… From his eye infection, to an ear infection… I decided to have the worst allergic reaction to poison ivy (we are still guessing that is what it was, a month later I still have remnants of the outbreak) that I and I think even the hospital I went to has ever seen. They were calling in nurses to OHHHH MY GAAAWWWDDD LOOK AT THIS. It has been absolutely miserable.. I wasn’t able to sleep for more than an hour at a time without waking up in misery from itching! I was given a steroid shot, as well as steroid pills, and they about made me come out of my skin! I could go on all day about that and whine away.. but I will just stop and say it was the most horrible experience.. and if you see me running like an idiot to the other side of the road to get away from a bush OF ANY KIND that might possibly touch me, keep your laughs quiet please :). Sorry, but this chick is not going to be enjoying wilderness outside of walking under a tree to get to my hotel room on any vacations anytime soon. Sorry bug, you gonna have to go campin’ by yoself :)! It is getting better, but man.. I am not kidding when I say it has been a month. Insane!

Look at my misery... ignore the pits and almost bootie crack please :)

AND YES, IT IS ON MY FACE TOO!

This is my right forearm up to where my elbow is :(.. that is where it allll began.

NEED TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO MY GOOD MAN UPSTAIRS... I BRING HIM ALOT.. AND I CAN SAY THAT I SERIOUSLY WAS BAWLING ASKING FOR HIM TO MAKE ME BETTER BECAUSE I WANTED TO SCRAPE MY SKIN OFF.. aaaamen lord, he has made me better, slowly but surely!

We are having a hard time kickin’ the ear infection and eye infection! 2 days after we stopped the drops, here came the “you know what” (goop) in the eyes again! I was like ohhhhh nooooooo! If you don’t remember, I am not having a big love for the eye drops.. nor is Bug. So back to the doctor we went and yup.. another round of drops AND another round of antibiotics because my little tough guy had a DOUBLE EAR INFECTION! I was like oooook.. hold up one sec.! I pictured a screaming baby, pulling on his ears like it was a one sided tug o’ war game, miserable baby when/if he got a devil ear infection! That and teething.. because you can’t see it necessarily but the two things are SO typical to happen, those two things were two things I was so afraid of for him… I guess you can add this to the list of a gazillion things that he has proved me wrong on haha! He didn’t so much as TOUCH his ear.. maybe brushed it faintly a couple of times before this was diagnosed.. didn’t cry, NADA! When they said it was a double I was like whhhhaaaaaattt? Sheesh.. poor kiddo.. I am going to just let myself think that he hasn’t had one bit of pain :), since he didn’t “tell momma”! It’s crazy because NOW he is grabbing at his ear a lot.. but I really think (or should I say hope) that it is the big ol’ top “toofs” that I think I see coming down from the top arena!! I swear though we have to go out with a bang in all that we do :).. We will go in this week just as a follow up to make sure we got it knocked out! Only good thing is I am getting weekly weigh ins :)! I love learning how much he has grown! Although if he doesn’t stop growing we are going to have a small MAN on our hands! Let’s see, on Thursday, July 22 he weighed 21 lbs. 14.5 oz.! What was good about the date of that appt. is that he turned EIGHT MONTHS (hold please, let me find a tissue)…. OK I am done sobbing :)… so I had a good weight to put in his baby book for his 8 month stats :). What I haven’t even done is take his 8 month picture… sheesh, I really need to x-nay on the procrastionation-ay.

OK.. so for another long blog.. here we go :)!

Well not only do I live with one growling dog, I now have a growling husband and a growling baby boy! If you were to stand at our door and just put your ear to it.. you would think we were living “where the wild things are”! Brady and Brad are hilarious.. they get going back and forth.. Brad- GRRRR!.. Brady- GRRRR!... Brad- GRRRR! Brady- NOTHING, GAME OVER. Hahaha… No but really they go back and forth, it’s hilarious until that final time when he looks at you like a weirdo for growling at him. ;) COOONNNNVEINENTLY he was full of little growls last night, and I got him in the tub :)! Once again ignore my participation and weird noises :).....

I think I have found my way into being a millionaire since for some reason I am not winning the lotto by osmosis since I haven’t bought a ticket but still want to win?? Straps… Buckles… Brady loves ‘em all! If there is a strap, he will gum that thing until you pry it from him. He loves them, and I assume that he is not the only one that does, I am going to invent a toy that is a strap.. I have googled, and although I have not really dug into searching, I have not seen a strap toy. However, I did just google- STRAP TOYS... and I got this lovely recommendation- Did you mean: strapon toys.. OK LET ME ADD TO MY SEARCH WORDS PLEASE. hahahaha... HEEEECK NO I AIN'T LOOKIN' FOR THOSE KINDS OF TOYS! Sheesh!

Because I ~~would never~~ let him sit in his seats with trays without the “seatbelt” on.. he will find those things just hanging and there is no toy that I have spent a gazillion dollars on that can take the place of the strap. Sheesh.. only time I had to cut him off was at the sparkling clean brand new HEB in Pleasanton lol-NOT (that is for you Renee).. I couldn’t even tell what color the seatbelt was for the grocery cart that I ~~reluctantly was too lazy to put his cover on and~~ put him in. He went to suck on that “strap”… whew wee.. I about had a heart attack! :).

We are a steam rollin’ fool!! That kiddo is QUICK! He was on the bed with me yesterday after we got done napping and got him out of bed.. we were bein’ lazy… he literally got from the middle of the bed to the edge in oh I would say about 3 seconds. Scary! I was with him… but man, there is not a time that I can’t be if he is like lightnin’ :). Quite a few times he is going from laying down to allllmost sitting up! He uses his little arm as a kickstand! He’s funny with his little arm that he “leads” with in his roll. It’s like he was introducing a show on stage or something haha… and if you are in his way.. move… please move… ok if you aren’t going to move I will growl at you hahaha. He is something else. That growling now that I am putting two and two together on when he does it… it really is when he is annoyed most of the time. Or I should say, same way that we say grrr… I wish that car would move or whatever we might get annoyed with… that is how he does it! HAHA! Today (8/2- for baby book purposes haha) mom went in to get him up from his nap and uhhhh there was little guy SITTING IN BED! He did it!! He went from laying down to sitting up after alllll the failed attempts this weekend! She said he was sitting there clapping! So funny! He has really taken on to clapping more and more.. started last week and now is full on doing it.

Eating wise.. eating a lot of new things… still all baby food… had a little mashed potatoes, but don’t really go outside the “box” as far as big people food goes :). I know, I am a weiner… YOU ‘MEMMMMMBER!! :) He is eating more though! Last Saturday he devoured TWO jars of food.. and this is a huge change as he used to eat 1/3 of a jar of a meaty type of meal and 1/3 of a jar of a veggie every night.. He really seems to be like “eeehhhh I can live with or without it”, but that has changed lately. Mom and I have our little “schedule” that we are going to throw in that third meal on his 9 month birthday. It doesn’t seem that we are off much with throwing that third meal in when we are since he seems to want more here lately too. I feed him until he “cuts me off” so I think we are on track..

We have begun an awesome game of… CHUNK IT when it is chow time... I give him toys to keep him "busy" in between bites. This is all I have to say about that game… ;0)

I would like to introduce our new baby nephew, another Jackson :). Sweet baby Jackson was born on Monday, July 19th! Poor little guy has been given a rougher path to begin his new little life. He has a condition called coarctation of the aorta and will be enduring an open heart surgery on Thursday. Basically the Aorta is too narrow to pump the blood throughout the lower part of his body. Please pray for him.. and for his parents, and our family. He is doing so well, and is gaining weight quickly! Please pray for the positive progression! Like I say over and over again in regards to Brady, these little guys are amazing with the strength and will that is compacted into their little bodies. He is showing that ten fold.. Although I can't imagine going through this myself with Brady, we are lucky that they found this complication now... before he ever left the hospital. He will heal quickly and live the wonderful life that he is meant to live! I can't wait to hold him! He is being transferred from the NW Women's Center to Dell Children's Hospital this afternoon at 3 pm! That place is soooo wonderful! I was so ecstatic when I heard he was going there.. My brother in law and his girlfriend are going to be able to stay there... their own room, which will be connected to his. Amazing.. I was told that prior to any procedures that the nurses and the doctors join hands and pray over the patient. That warms my heart and sends chills throughout my body.. He will be having the surgery done on Thursday morning... I will update my blog as his recovery progresses. Thank you for your prayers!

Here is the sweet little guy!! Just as beautiful as can be... you would never know such dramatic stuff was going on inside that precious, perfect little body!! Poor little guy had to have an IV put in his head last week :(.. I hope this all goes away soon and he heals so quickly! So hard to watch these little guys go through anything.. To think that I have a hard time watching Brady get shots.. and for what Ash/ Michelle are going to have to go through.. they are my heroes.. Poor things... They will be so strong though.. Everyone will pull through just fine!

Well I am going to close this for now, and because I love my redundant promises of blogging more often, I will again say that I will get better :). He is doing too much, too often.. and my brain is that of a pancake, a flat one. So here is to another promise :). Hope your week treats you well! Here are some pics :).

BUNTING!