Eye doctor

At Leo's three year check-up, the pediatrician noticed an inconsistency with his "red reflex" in the retina. She said that it probably was nothing but she wanted me to follow up with the eye doctor for some more sophisticated testing. Today was his appointment. Of course, in the days leading up to the visit, my neurotic, worrying mind made me a little kooky. I can't help but let my mind go to the worst case scenario. Sometimes my fears are eased, like Serafina's pyloric valve and her heart murmur. Sometimes they are confirmed - Leo's hernia, Serafina's leg. Today they were eased, which is a wonderful feeling. His retinas and his eyes in general are healthy and normal. His vision isn't all that great. Not too surprising given that his mom and Nana are highly myopic (nearsighted). She doesn't think he needs glasses right now but will see him in six months to check how he's doing.

He did amazing during the appointment. So cooperative and polite. He surprised me with his ability to tell how many fingers the doctor was holding up. He did get upset when the assistant sprayed him in eyes to dilate his pupils, but it was pretty startling and uncool.

Of course, I took a few pictures because I may be the most insane mother ever.

Here he is playing in the waiting room.

Happily snacking while we wait for his eyes to dilate.
Pretty dilated.
Reading the chart with some help.

Sporting the cool shades the doctor gave him.
He wasn't a fan of the plastic glasses but did a good job wearing his own sunglasses. He's sucking on a lollipop in this picture. He asked when he would be going back so he can get another one.

Our Daddy is Awesome!

He took us to the mall (one of his least favorite places) and bought us Yo Gabba Gabba shoes by Vans.




We are looking forward to the adult sizes being available in March. I'm working hard on Gabba shirts for Serafina and Leo so all of us will be decked out for the live show.

Princess Party

Leo's friend Addison turned three earlier this week and today was her princess party. Serafina stayed home with daddy, so it was just me and Leo.

Everyone had a crown to decorate. Here he is with the birthday girl creating a masterpiece.
Looking good.
He did plenty of bouncing.
I was helping at the craft table when he showed up like this.
Leo and Addison show off their pretty party dresses. He kept that dress on the whole rest of the time. He always gets very fixated on the cake and pesters the host mom about when it will be cake time. He got a prime spot during the singing and blowing out the candles.
Ah. Sweet reward.
If you look closely, Leo is beginning to melt down because he ate all the frosting but still had cake left. He wanted more frosting. He got quite upset about his cake-to-frosting ratio. It was all down hill from there. I even got into the bounce house with him (pretty fun, but exhausting) to keep him happy and distracted. I ended up carrying him to the car crying his eyes out. A sure sign of a good party.

Swimming lessons

Leo had his first swimming lesson today at the YMCA. Though we've done Parent/Tot classes, this was his first big kid class. I didn't have to put on a bathing suit, get in the water or sing any stupid songs. Woo-hoo. Even better, Leo did awesome. He had fun and was an excellent student. His confidence and willingness to participate inspired the other students to jump in...literally.

Waiting to start the class with his buddies Doug and Sophia.

The teacher invites Leo to come on in.



Parents aren't allow to be on the pool deck. There's a little waiting room with windows and chairs in the hallway with closed-circuit TV. It doesn't allow for very good pictures, but I was able to give him the thumbs-up through the window. Since he does so well without me, I won't watch every lesson and instead, take advantage of the time to work out.

Happy face

About a boy

I blogged 27 times in the month of October. Pretty impressive. Granted there were some special events to document - Leo's birthday, family visits, Halloween. But most of my focus was definitely on Serafina and the leg. It's pretty big in our world and I have a deep need to remember this time, even the slightly sweet stink of her foot.

So here's a little post about Leo. He's funny as always. Unfortunately, he isn't a very cooperative eater and meal time can be a battle. I think this is especially hard for me because he was such a great eater as a baby. Since his weight and height are normal, I haven't been too worried, but today the preschool teacher told me that he was complaining that he was hungry and tired. I'm not sure if he was just looking for attention, but I didn't like hearing it.

He really wants a pedal bike "like Daddy's", but we told him he has to get really good on his balance bike first. Every time we're outside, he wants to get on the bike. The practice is paying off because he's actually balancing and lifting his feet to coast. It's really cool, but I can't help but worry he's going to fall and end up in a cast. Anyway, I tried to get it on video tonight but he was too fixated on being filmed.

Here's a little video we made that he thought was hilarious and wanted to watch over and over.


While we were outside, a flock of crows flew by. Leo asked: "why do birds fly?" My answer: "Because they have wings." His response: "I think they are pretend dragons."

Short and sassy

Today Serafina got a new short cast. Exciting stuff.

Here she is this morning with the long cast.

We decorated it a bit yesterday. The cast was starting to look a little rough.

Back in the waiting room.
The cast removal was pretty traumatic. Despite all the advancements in medical technology, they still cut casts off with a loud, scary saw. When she was in between casts, I stuck her foot in the sink for a quick washing. I wish I could have done her whole body. Here she is with the new cast. She still has a tears on her face.
Admiring the glass sculpture on the ceiling.
I decided to get purple because the darker color will hopefully hide the dirt better. They didn't have a cast shoe in her size. It would protect the cast and give her a little better grip when she walks on it. The tech said she'd call me when they get them, but I will probably make her something in the meantime.