Celebrating Healthy Babies

On Sunday, April 18th, our family participated in the March for Babies walkathon in Salisbury, MD, to celebrate healthy babies and to honor those babies who have struggled.  We have certainly benefited from the continued efforts of the March of Dimes to improve the health of all babies. 

As all of you know, this past June, we learned just how scary premature birth can be when Gavin was born just shy of 38 weeks. Although 38 weeks is typically considered full-term, Gavin's lungs were not fully developed. He spent 9 days in the NICU and was given two doses of surfactant to improve his breathing. Although the experience was harrowing, we realized how fortunate we were to have access to expert healthcare and state-of-the-art medical technology and resources. Due in large part to the tireless efforts of the March of Dimes, Gavin will be ensured a healthy, promising future. 

Ryan also threatened to arrive too early.  I went into preterm labor with him at 24 weeks and was put on bedrest for the duration of my pregnancy - 15 weeks, to be exact!  To prevent contractions and delay premature birth, I was put on a terbutaline pump, which was a device I had to wear at all times that constantly delivered low-level doses of terbutaline through an injection site on my thigh.  I also had to be monitored twice daily for contractions and was given two betamethesone steroid shots as a precautionary measure to accelerate the development of the Ryan's lungs should he be delivered prematurely.  Despite our early scare, Ryan made it to term, due in large part to advancements in preventing premature labor and delivery made possible by the efforts of the March of Dimes.

Given our boys' experiences, we wanted to support the March of Dimes' mission by raising funds to help finance research, advocacy, and education initiatives to help give all babies a healthy start!

Thank you to all who donated and who braved the cold temperatures and brisk winds to celebrate healthy babies, particularly Ryan and Gavin! 

Not So Chunky Monkey

In typical Mann family fashion, Gavin just had his 9-month well-baby visit...on his 10-month birthday!  Much to our surprise, we discovered that Gavin is not the little chunky monkey that we thought.  He is well above average in height, but slightly below in weight.  I never would have guessed since the boy seems to be a bottomless pit and will eat anything that he's offered (including peas!).  Between his relatively low weight and sunken fontanelle (a.k.a. "soft spot"), the pediatrician was slightly concerned about his fluid intake, particularly his dairy consumption.  So, at her suggestion, we recently introduced formula into his diet.  He now drinks 4 oz at every meal, in addition to his baby food (although he does eat fewer containers of baby food now). 

Gavin only received one shot during his appointment and he handled it like a trouper! I think Ryan was more upset about it than Gavin was. Ryan was such a great big brother, holding Gavin's hand and comforting him while he got the shot. Then, when we returned home, Ryan brought Spot and Monkey over to give Gavin "kisses" to make him feel better from the shot!

He is also slightly ahead of the curve in terms of teething.  He has 6 teeth, whereas the average baby his age only has 3.  Both boys have been early teethers.  Gavin is not quite as mobile, but is certainly trying to get around.  He did crawl a few paces this morning for the first time (4/23/10) to reach a ball that had rolled away from him.  Previously, he did the backward scoot or the army/belly crawl to get where he needed to go.  And, last week he pulled himself to a standing position for the first time.  He hasn't stood unassisted or "cruised" yet, but I suspect it's only a matter of time before he's toddling around.

Although I generally don't like to compare the two boys, I thought it might be interesting to see what Ryan's measurements were around the same age.

             GAVIN                                                                           RYAN

Height: 29 7/8 (80th)                                          Height: 27 3/4 (25th)

Weight: 20lbs,12oz (40th)                                  Weight: 20lbs (45th)

Head: 18 1/2 (80th)                                              Head: 18 3/4 (95th)

As I was looking for a picture of Ryan when he was around 9-10 months old, I stumbled across some bathtime photos of him that reminded me of a couple of pictures I had recently taken of Gavin.  Clearly, both boys love their bathtime!  They also brought back fond memories of the orange bat that accompanied Ryan everywhere for a period of several months! 

GAVIN

RYAN

BATH BUDDIES

EGGciting Adventure

Sorry this Easter post is almost a month overdue.  I've worked on two consecutive freelance projects and just submitted my final report.  Hopefully, over the coming days, I can regain control of my life and start tackling many of the projects and chores that I had to put on hold while I was working.

Although things have been pretty hectic lately between my work commitments and Mike's work/school/medic schedule, we wanted to be sure that we made time for all of the usual holiday traditions, especially since this was Gavin's first Easter.  Between dyeing eggs; reading Easter-themed books; participating in several egg hunts; hosting a school Easter party; opening baskets of goodies from the Easter bunny and grandparents, aunts, and uncles; and snacking on jelly beans, chocolate eggs, and Peeps, I think the boys had a memorable Easter!

Dyeing Eggs

A couple of days before Easter, we set up an egg dyeing station in the kitchen.  Gavin enjoyed chewing on the bunny egg dipper scissors while Ryan dyed the eggs.  Ryan pre-decorated many of the eggs with a wax crayon prior to submerging them in the dyed water.  Then, after the eggs dried, he painted polka dots, zig zags, and curly cues using a special egg decorator pen.  Although he took his egg dyeing job quite seriously and seemed pleased with the results, he had the most fun disposing of the dyed water.  At Daddy's suggestion, Ryan very carefully carried each water cup from the kitchen to the downstairs bathroom, emptied the contents in the toilet, marveled at the new colored toilet water, waved goodbye, flushed the toilet and giggled as he watched it disappear.

Our Easter Celebration
We knew that eventually our luck would run out and Mike would be scheduled to work on a holiday.  After having Christmas Eve and Christmas morning off, we figured he'd probably have to work on Easter.  We were right; Mike was scheduled for day work (6 am - 6 pm) on Easter.  Since we thought it would be unfair to expect two very excited little boys to wait until Sunday evening to go on an egg hunt and open their Easter baskets, we decided to celebrate the afternoon before.  The only problem was finding a time for the Easter bunny to sneak in, hide the eggs, and fill the baskets.  My only opportunity was during naptime.  So, as soon as Ryan drifted off to sleep, I got to work, frantically trying to get everything done before he woke up and caught me in the act.  I stuffed plastic eggs with candy, filled the boys' Easter baskets, and hid the eggs in record time.  I even hid Ryan's Easter basket and plate of dyed eggs in the trunk of the Explorer. That way, when Daddy got home, he could quietly hide them in the front yard before Ryan and Gavin realized he was home.


I turned the baby monitor up to it's loudest setting so I could hear even the faintest of sounds.  When I heard Ryan start to stir, I quickly rushed upstairs and pretended to be waking up from my own nap at the same time (because, like Santa Clause, the Easter bunny can only do his work when everyone is asleep).  Ryan got downstairs and discovered some things were amiss and determined the Easter bunny had been there.  He declared it a mystery and began looking for clues.  Here are the 5 clues he found during the course of his investigation:  1.  Ryan and Gavin's Easter baskets were missing (prior to his nap they were empty on the dining room table).  2.  The picture he colored for the Easter bunny and his forest friends and left by the front door was missing.  3.  The dyed eggs were no longer in the refrigerator.  4.  There were plastic eggs (some of which he had never seen before) hidden all over the downstairs.  5.  Guinness had been barking (which is what woke him up, but he attributed it to the Easter bunny being inside).  Since we still had a few hours before Daddy got home from work, we decided to go outside to look more clues to confirm Ryan's suspicion that the Easter bunny had been there.  Armed with a magnifying glass, Ryan inspected all of the areas in our yard where the bunny could have left evidence (e.g., the front stoop and a patch of clovers in the grass).  Then, we went for a walk down the street to see if he'd left bunny prints as he hopped away.  As we passed our neighbor's house who was outside with his boys playing, Ryan asked him if he had seen the Easter bunny.  Mr. Sam looked a bit confused since it was the day before Easter, but when we explained our mystery to him, he played along.  Luckily, there were lots of plastic eggs hidden throughout their yard so Mr. Sam pointed them out to Ryan as evidence that the Easter bunny had been there.  (I think he and his boys were just playing, but talk about serendipity!) 

Once we got back inside, it was difficult to distract the boys' attention, especially since many of the eggs were hidden in plain sight.  The boys anxiously waited for Daddy to get home so the fun could begin.  Finally, Daddy arrived and showed Ryan an empty container that used to hold the dyed eggs that he said he found on the front steps.  Ryan, obviously, was perplexed since we had just been outside and hadn't seen anything (I'm telling you, he's too smart for his own good!).  He put his hands on his hips, narrowed his eyes, lowered his brows, pursed his lips and in a very serious voice announced, "we have a mystery here."  Thankfully, he forgot all about the inconsistency once he got outside and realized there were eggs hidden everywhere.  Gavin watched all of the festivities outside with fascination, but was eager to join in the egg hunt inside, especially once he discovered some of the eggs were filled with Puffs!  I really struggled to get some of the plastic eggs apart, but he was able to swiftly open them using his teeth.  I guess Puffs are a pretty powerful motivator!  After going through the baskets that the Easter bunny left them, the boys then opened their Easter presents from grandparents, aunts, and uncles.  Finally, around 8 pm, we sat down for Easter dinner with candy and chocolate bunnies for dessert!  Despite all the sugar he consumed, the excitement wore Ryan out; he was alseep before his head hit the pillow!  Gavin, too!

Easter Morning

Although Mike had to work, I still wanted to do something special with the boys to celebrate Easter.  So, I started off the day by making them chocolate chip pancakes and bacon for breakfast.  This was Gavin's first time to eat "real grown-up food."  I gave him a pancake that didn't have any chocolate chips and he ate the entire thing!  Mommy's little hog jowl!  Then, Ryan wanted to play with the paint-your-own race car kit that the Easter bunny had left for him.  He was so proud of the finished product that he took it to school to show his friends on his next sharing day!

Easter Afternoon

In the afternoon we went to my aunt and uncle's house near Annapolis for lunch and another egg hunt.  Ryan enjoyed playing with his second cousins, Julie and Lauren.  And, amid all of the dolls and "girl toys," he found a battery-powered train that he rode around during our entire visit.  At the end of the visit, Uncle Scott asked Ryan to be the ring bearer in his upcoming wedding.  Ryan respectfully declined and said he preferred to be the dancer at the wedding party (he's been practicing his dance moves for the reception).  After learning he could do both, he agreed.

It was a beautiful weekend, not only because it was so unseasonably warm, but also because it was neat to watch Ryan enjoy the holiday traditions and learn about the real meaning of Easter.  It was also memorable to celebrate more "firsts" with Gavin (first Easter and first table food).