Explain This!

Explain how a kid who survives (on a typical day) eating 6 cans of stage 2 baby food, 1 yogurt, water, assorted crackers, veggie chips and 20 oz of milk can be in the 60th percentile in weight for his age! I was shocked when I plotted his weight and height on a chart after being measured today. He is in the 50th percentile for height....average, which is what I would expect.

Lately, I have been ridiculed by a couple of friends for still feeding him baby food. What they don't understand is the kid is stubborn with a capital "S" and refuses to eat anything but soft foods, with the exception of what I call "filler foods" like: chips, crackers, rice cakes, etc. Every blue moon I can get him to eat bacon, and he'll eat McDonald's french fries and chicken nuggets, but no real chicken (only the frozen pressed kind).

He had reflux as an infant, throwing up so much throughout the day that he could not be without a bib, and he went through about 5 a day. In addition, I was known for having yellow stains on my left shoulder of every t-shirt I wore, and when I was wearing something nicer, I ALWAYS had a burp cloth on my shoulder. He was never an unhappy colicky baby, but more of a happy barfer. As a toddler this has turned into a huge texture aversion.

I have asked our pediatrician about this numerous times, but since he continues to grow and is happy and otherwise healthy...he isn't concerned. Since I am typically not an overly worried parent, I have not been either. However, the past few weeks he has complained that his neck hurts when he is eating....which immediately leads to him throwing up. It starts with him gagging a little when he is eating, then he rubs his throat, then says it hurts, then throws up! I encourage him to drink water in between bites, which has helped cut down on the times he throws up a week (yes, he throws up multiple times a week), but it hasn't stopped it altogether.

After talking to a friend about my concerns, I do believe he needs to be consulted by a specialist for a second opinion....just to make sure. I would never forgive myself if he has something really wrong with him and I ignored it. Deep down, I am hoping that it is all a mental thing. Steve didn't eat but a handful of foods until he was 8 or 10, so he does come by it honestly. It is just so difficult to understand, considering what a great eater Bennett is and always has been (and I really didn't think I did anything differently).

Anyway, I would love any feedback from you readers, but I am consulting another pediatrician in our practice in 2 weeks and getting her opinion on a specialist in the area.

Roll It!

Pres has the ability to roll his belly, and I think it is just hilarious. Every single time he does it, it makes me laugh. What is so cute about it is recalling photos and video of Steve doing it as a child too! I have tried to do it, as has Bennett....and neither of us have the talent.

I hope this short clip makes you laugh too!

Mother's Day.....just another day

This morning I got to sleep in (thank you Steve), but when I looked at the clock and realized I had 1.5 hours until church, I knew I better get going. I immediately went up to strip Preston's bed to wash his sheets, and the kids ran up to meet me with mother's day cards, homemade gifts and boxes of candy (the last thing I need). Unfortunately, they got a little confused and thought the candy was theirs and then started crying when I wouldn't let them open it and start eating it at 7:15am. Really??

I convinced them to come downstairs to eat their breakfast, then I got the laundry started and emptied the dishwasher while Steve fed them breakfast. Neither wanted what we initially offered, so more tears were shed. Then Pres spit out his bacon and started complaining about his throat, and before I knew it, he had thrown up all over the kitchen floor. This is how my mother's day got started.....Happy Mother's Day to me!

After church we fought the crowds and went to lunch. Then we came home and Steve helped me get the kids to bed for naps. Steve had to fly out for work this afternoon, so I watched a little TV and took a short nap. I felt my day turning around when I awoke feeling much better. Then I went to wake up the kids, and they were both in good moods (thank you God). I got them dressed so we could head back to church for Bennett's spring choir concert. Steve's parents met me up there and helped with Pres while I took this very poor quality video of Bennett singing.

Now the children are outside playing...they are happy and getting along! I feel like my mother's day is going to end on a high note! Happy Mother's Day to my mom, and all of my friends and family reading this! I hope all of your days went more smoothly than mine!

Regions Tradition at Shoal Creek

Years ago Birmingham's Shoal Creek golf course was the home to two PGA Championships (back in 1984 and then again in 1990). This year, 21 years later, a major championship returned to the Jack Nicklaus designed Shoal Creek, and we were there.

It could not have been a more beautiful day to spend outside and on the course. The only way the day would have been better was if I was playing at Shoal Creek, rather than watching the seniors. It was my first time to see the course (and I can't say that I saw much since I spent all of my time on the 18th hole), but it was beautiful.

We arrived after lunch (I had a tea party to attend with Bennett at school which I didn't want to miss), and met up with some friends at a corporate tent on the 18th fairway. It was a par 4 hole, and the tent was located at the spot where most of the drives landed. We saw several of the fan favorites like Mark Calcavecchia, Fred Couples, Tom Kite, Jay Haas, Fuzzy Zoeller and Tom Lehman hit right in front of us. When we left at the end of the day today, Calcavecchia was the man to beat after earning first place with an impressive 11 under par! We'll see if he can hold onto his gain tomorrow.

Twister of April 2011

Wednesday, April, 27, 2011 will be remembered for a long time in the state of Alabama. The local meteorologists did a great job of warning everyone, days in advance, that Wednesday had the potential to be a very bad day for the northern half of Alabama. But no one could have predicted what would eventually unfold.

Before sunrise the tornado sirens blasted throughout the local communities to warn of a line of approaching thunderstorms with winds in excess of 70 mph (some areas in excess of 100 mph). Preston was already awake and in our room (that was not planned but a result of him still not really sleeping through the night). Not in the mood to chance it, Steve went upstairs to drag a sleeping Bennett out of bed and bring her downstairs. The storm quickly blew through Birmingham but left a path of damage that would disrupt everyone's normal routine for several days.

Most roads in the Birmingham area were blocked by debris and downed power lines (including Highway 280). Steve's office along with almost 250,000 residents lost power. Traffic was a nightmare! By midmorning, without power or phones, Steve's office sent home those that could make it to work. Since the really bad storms were not forecasted to arrive until later in the day, schools decided to let out half day (Bennett's was actually canceled that morning for the entire day), and most businesses closed early to allow people to get home to their "safe spot."

The storms had started in Arkansas days before and were barreling their way east creating destruction along the way in Louisiana and Mississippi. With technology the way it is now, our weathermen were predicting strong straight line winds as well as many tornadoes. Tuscaloosa being one of the more westerly placed cities was the first to bear the brunt of the storm. It was headed right towards the campus (where our niece, Maria, attends college), so we were all concerned for her safety. We were watching the coverage on TV and watched as several tornadoes touched down and ripped through town. With several stationery cameras placed around Tuscaloosa, and storm chasers trying to catch the best visual....we watched the whole thing unfold right before our eyes. The tornado took up the entire TV screen and we could see the debris getting sucked up into the tornado and blown around. It was just awful and we were dumbstruck watching it.

Thankfully, Maria was fine and was able to text us almost immediately afterward. However, much of Tuscaloosa was not, and many people have lost their lives, their homes and all of their possessions. Here are several photos taken by our photographer friend, Lindsey Smith, who resides and works in Tuscaloosa. Also below is a "before" and then an "after" photo of an area on 15th Street, where the tornado did the majority of its destruction in Tuscaloosa.

The first video shows the monster storm approach the city of Tuscaloosa and the heart of its residential area (foul language warning from two UA students who were chasing the tornado).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIx26tN6pCk&feature=youtube_gdata_player

The second video shows the tornado exiting the heavily populated 15th Street area (where many off campus students and faculty live, shop and eat) and approaching Alberta City.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ohIVzIZLuQ&feature=youtube_gdata_player

(Steve is typing this)....The stormed roared northeast as an EF4 (at least) and destroyed everything in it's path. We huddled in our basement with friends as the storm approached Birmingham. It was chilling seeing live shots of downtown Birmingham with a 1.5 mile wide tornado in the background (see photo below taken from the UAB Hospital helipad of the tornado just north of downtown Birmingham). The tornado was on the ground for over 80 miles and passed about 8 miles north of our house in Homewood. The remainder of the night was spent watching the news reports of the damage, reading Facebook, and trying to find out if everyone we knew was accounted for. It didn't take long to determine that it would be a long recovery for many places in Alabama.

The following day we found debris from who knows where scattered all over our yard (shards of wood stuck in the grass, roof shingles, insulation, paper, toy parts, etc) which was a common occurrence all over the state. I can never remember that happening before. The damage was so devastating and covered such a large area that it was just difficult for most communities to determine where to start picking up the pieces.

On Saturday, I joined about 10 other members of Trinity in an early response effort in the small town of Pleasant Grove, AL. We arrived at the local Methodist Church around 7:30 am with a goal to just help in any way we could. Relief efforts were not very well organized and access was extremely limited due to the recovery efforts of first responders. The first priority was to help the minister locate the remainder of the congregation that had not been accounted for (2.5 days after the storm). We set out with our GPS (with no land marks or street signs, this was a must) to locate and hopefully talk to approximately a dozen families in all to determine/prioritize any needs. Luckily we were able to locate the families unaccounted for and spoke to all of them (or spoke to someone that had spoken to them). The obvious immediate need for most was just to have someone to talk to.

One kind lady had lived in the community her entire life and just simply broke down while we talked and looked over the devastation surrounding her neighborhood while her home had minor damage. I was wearing an Alabama hat and she wore an Auburn T-shirt. We spoke for about 10 minutes and all she could think about was her neighbors that lost everything. As we said our goodbyes and exchanged hugs she stopped me, eager for one last word, and said "I've just got to say War Eagle!" ...It didn't feel right to respond as I normally would so I just had to let her end on that note.

Soon after, first responders blocked vehicle access across most of the city so we were forced to walk back to the church to do what we could. Our path took us through what must have been the direct path of the storm. The damage in this area was about 1/2 mile wide and extended as far as the eye could see. Here are a few pictures of that journey.

As you can see, the devastation is just awful. It will take months to clear the debris and wreckage, and years before everything can be rebuilt. However, the spirit of those Alabama residents and business owners that suffered major damage has not been destroyed. I am confident that with the help from many (we both plan to do more volunteering in the coming weeks and months), our beloved state will recover from this.

And She Danced...

Sunday afternoon was Bennett's spring dance recital. Since September, she has been going to weekly dance classes in preparation for the big "finale!" There are so many children that the Children's Dance Foundation service, they broke the recital into three groups: 1pm, 3pm and 5pm. Unfortunately, we were scheduled for the 3pm slot (right in the middle of nap time). It was an easy choice to leave Preston at home with a babysitter, but I hated to see Bennett not get a nap before her big performance.

We were worried that she would stand on stage dumbfounded with a finger in her mouth. I kept telling her who was going to be there watching her, and how important it was for her to perform. In fact, I let her select her own flowers (she chose pink roses), and her own treat (she chose a donut) which she would receive IF she danced (nothing wrong with a little bribery, right?).

Thankfully, she did NOT disappoint us. The recital was broken into 13 short performances (one by each class), and then the finale at the end where all of the little girls come out on stage and do one more song. She was a little mesmerized with everyone on the stage at the end, and was turned around backwards for a little while at the beginning checking everyone out, but she finally turned around and sung for the last one song.










We were asked to drop them off 30 minutes beforehand. Then they sat backstage with CDF staff for the whole performance. Occasionally I would see her peak around the curtains on stage (I even saw her yawn...see below), but she hung in there. When I went to get her afterward, I congratulated her, and the first thing out of her mouth was "I want my donut." We made her smile for a couple photos, but then she chowed down. She almost fell asleep during the 5 minute drive home, but we kept our tiny little dancer awake until bedtime. Now dance is over until the Fall.