"Mama, hold your baby"

Trystan has been feeling under the weather the last three days. Poor kid woke up Thursday morning hacking and as the day progressed his nose and eyes started running and the fever set in Thursday night. I knew he was not feeling well when I dropped him off at my mother-in-laws on Thursday morning...and I felt like the worst mom ever when I left him, though I knew he would be perfectly fine with grammy! I had yesterday off and we spent the day snuggin and watching movies. I called and made his appointment with The GI specialist yesterday, and while I was on the phone he kept saying "mama hold your baby!" Sweetest thing ever. So I was scheduled to work this morning, but got up with Trystan in the middle of the night and he was running a fever again and wanted to "bye, by" (rockabye). I thought I had him back to sleep so I put him in his bed and he sat up with snot running down to his chin and big tears in his eyes and said "mama hold your baby." I called in!!! sucker maybe so, but I hate leaving him when he is not feeling well. Daddy had to work today and Trystan was going to spend the day with grandma, but sometimes a baby just needs his mama.

Well Visits or Hell Visits!!!!

Why do I dread taking my little one to his well visits..I know they are important and that shots are important but they are stressful appointments for me. At his 18 month appointment I got copies of his growth chart stating that he had fallen below the 5th percentile for his age in both height and weight with a lab order for failure to thrive blood work. Failure to thrive I think not... on the small side yes, the kid goes a hundred miles an hour from the second his little eyes pop open to the minute he falls asleep. No he doesn't eat well either, can he eat yes he knows how to use utensils and does it well, but he is too busy to eat. He only likes low caloric foods such as fruit and he eats it is on the go! He loves loves loves his milk most days so at least he gets some nutrients from that, we try new things all the time, and always put things he does like on his plate along with the new stuff, he just refuses to eat. He eats on average pretty good about once every 5 days. Fast forward to 2 year well visit today, "Mom we are concerned as he is still off the growth chart, I want to send him to a gastointerologist for a complet GI work up. I know we did blood work 6 months ago (which must have come back normal because nobody ever told me otherwise) but I think we should run some more tests. How's his appetite?" see above statements. "Depending on what the GI doctor finds we may send him to an endocrinologist to check growth hormones and do some x-rays and bonescans." We like to see kids in the 50th percentile. Deep down I don't feel there is anything medically wrong with Trystan, but we like to make sure before we say he is just going to be little as it is part of his gene pool." Trystan has gained 10oz and grown and inch in 6 months. I'm grateful he is gaining weight, and I guess I should be grateful they want to check everything out, but instead I just get frustrated. They did all of the same tests on me and my little sister. Meanwhile the entire time we are in the doctor's office Trystan is saying done go home mama, I done with giant crocodile tears rolling down his cheeks.... then of coarse we get shots! Trystan screamed bloody murder, ripped the bandaids off his legs and stuck them onto the medical assistance hand and told him no, go! I always feel like I am to blame when I leave the doctor's office, I hate that my little one doesn't eat well, but its not because we don't try!!!!!!!! Then they told me it was time to take him to the dentist as well. He made the cosmotologist bleed (though I'm pretty sure I mentioned this last time was a complete success)! But wish me luck holding him down for all of these other tests, plus the dentist!!! Sorry for the rant, but sometimes it is necessary to vent the not so exciting moments of our lives.

PS: if anyone has any great ideas or receipes for kids please share!!! I'm fresh out:)

Chugga Chugga Two...yes Two!!!!

I can't Believe my little one is Two already! It seems like I just had him yesterday. We love this sweet, sensitive, rowdy, rambunctious, train loving two year old! I braved it and took him to get his hair cut on his birthday. My heart sank when we walked into the salon and the only girl there was the one he made bleed the last time :( but I held my breath, crossed my fingers and bribed him with a new toy if he would sit on my lap and let the nice lady cut his hair. Worked like a charm!!!! He sat on my lap and didn't budge or make a peep!!! He looks so grown up without the shag hanging over his ears and nearly to his shoulders, my baby looks like a handsome little boy!! I was so proud of him...anyways onto the birthday festivities. On Trystan's birthday we just spent the day together! We went shopping and got some stuff for his party. My dad, sam and the girls came into town that night and Mikie and I got to work creating the train cake! I love the way it turned out, wasn't to sure how good it would taste though so I also made rice crispy treats!Saturday morning before the party, Trystan spent playing with his auntie's! They played racing games outside and played the Wii. The girls were holding onto Trystan shifting his weight on the wii fit board so he was acutally playing the games. He loved it!

Then we had his party at his favorite place...the park!Papa K and Trystan getting ready to play on the slides!

Peyton aka (baby) yes that is what Trystan calls her, but she calls him the same thing:)Brianna, Gracie Trystan, and Brynlyn posing for a pictureKaysen and Gracie!
I love this picture of Brynlyn and Trystan even though all you can see is the back of Trystan's head.Jason, Auntie, Chelsea, Auntie Cole, and uncle RichardGrammy and Trystan!Kylie, Trystan and Gracie going for a walk.The absolute only time Trystan sits at the table to eat is with Wyndee and the girls.Trystan and GracieTrystan and BrynlynBig boy doing the slide all by himself.

When we got to the cake, Trystan blew out his own candle, then took the train apart. He is concentrating so hard too, He sticks his tounge out when he is concentrating hard! mmmmmmm Chocolate! Attempt at a family photoAccomplishments:

We are down to Binki's at nap time and bedtime only!!!!
He says please and Thank you most of the time:)

He knows and will tell us when he pees and poops...though he doesn't think using the big boy potty sounds to grand!

He now says Thomas clearly... before it came out as dumbass;)

He gives the best hugs and kisses, and I love it when he says "mama, hold you!"

He is playing alot more independently, which allows me to get a little more done around the house when I can get myself motivated.

Happy, Happy Birthday little Monster!!!! We love you

Trains, Planes and Automobiles...and then some!

Christmas has come and gone again for another year. It was full of all the usual festivites: Homeade Ravioli's, Sugar cookies with grandma, Christmas Eve with the family, then Santa unloaded his sleigh in our living room. I love Christmas! It's my favorite time of the year, but I never really got into the spirit of it this year. I don't know if its because I worked Christmas eve and spent way more time shopping than normal. But none the less we still had a fabulous holiday and enjoyed one another's company. The weekend before Christmas we spent the day and grandma and grandpa's house making I don't know how many dozen meat, cheese and butternut squash Ravioli's! This is acutally my favorite part of the Bellino Christmas traditions. We have fun cooking together and have quite the assembly line set up. Kylie (Trystan's favorite person in the world) played with Trystan so Mikie and I could help. This kid loves his ky-ky! It took Andrea, Mikie and Debi to roll up the pumpkin roll!
Chelsea filled the Ravioli's and Niccole sealed them and placed them on the cookie sheets

Andrea took a nap:) All that work is exhausting!

Trystan thinks the coffee table is his own personal table, he considered eating something

After the Ravioli's, pumpkin bread and sugar cookies we made pizzelles (a flat waffle italian cookie ((love them))! Mike pressing the pizzelles in the pizzelle maker.

Family time

I had to work on Christmas Eve, bummer I know, but my in-laws are amazing and decided that they would make everyone wait until I got there for all of the Christmas festivities including dinner. I tried to convince them to eat without me, but they didn't listen so of course I didn't get out of work on time, I left at 8:10pm and got to their house at 8:30. We all ate our fantastic Ravioli dinner and cleaned up! Then the kids got to open their gifts. Trystan was not to enthused with the gift opening. After about 10 minutes we finally had one gift open and thats all he wanted to play with.

Trystan of course would not touch his dinner or try the Ravioli's! I sure hope one day this kid decides to eat us out of house and home!

Aunt Shelley and Taylor Reading Peanuts Christmas Story!

Andrea and Jason

Trystan's Monkey Christmas Jams!

Train wreck number one in grandma's living room

Trystan loves his Fire truck and all the cars and trucks it holds from Auntie Niccole and Aunti Drea Chelsea and Morgan

Brandon and Taylor

Mike and Trystan playing Trucks

Grandma and Uncle GaryChristmas morning was fun at our house! Trystan was adorable. Mike, Debi and Aunt Reta came over early and were there when Trystan woke up. Santa had brought Trystan a big train table:) The kid has a serious love affair with trains. His reaction was unexpected. He was shy and would not go look at anything without daddy holding him! After a minute he woke up and was soooo excited about his trains. I don't know how long it took for him to notice the other stuff he got.

He spent all morning playing trains, Mikie made bisquits and gravy for everyone, Niccole, chelsea and Kylie came over for breakfast too.

Trystan is extremely spoiled, maybe a little too spoiled. Our living room looked like a toy store had vomitted profusely! We went over to Grandma and Grandpa's for Christmas dinner and had to convince Trystan the train table was too big to take over there. So we packed the rest of the house and had a fabulous dinner and enjoyed some more family time. New year's came and went as well. We all slept right through it, big party animals I know, but again I worked new year's eve. Mikie made a fabulous steak and scallop dinner for us when I got home though. Then we played trains, watched Curious George and went to bed. Mikie was not feeling well, I was exhausted, we tried to watch a movie and shut it off at 11:30!

Yesterday morning I woke up to our annual snow in Las Vegas! It wasn't much and it didn't stay long, but was beautiful!

I did some rearranging in my house and I love it! I was tired of our living room looking like a toy store rummaged by a bunch of hoolagans! So I moved my dining room table into the back part of my living room to make it a more formal dining area! We never eat at the table anyway!!

And I turned my other half of the kitchen into a toy room!!! It was origianlly set up as a second family room! I love, love, love it!!!!! There is more space for Trystan's toy's and they are in the back of the house so we aren't immediately greeted with them when we walk in the house, a much better use of space if you ask me

The week of Christmas I had a trying week. One of my patient's was a retired Anesthesiologist, he was a bit short with me and snapped a couple of times the First day I had him. I was a bit intimidated! However over the three days that I had him, we found some common ground, his family was incredible, and I enjoyed learning their story. He ended up being one of my best patient's. The morning I discharged him, his wife brought me in these flowers. I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays and were blessed with many friends and family! I know we were! My baby will be two on Friday! So stay tuned for the locomotive celebration!