Nicky's Test Results

We went to see Nicky's GI doctor this past Monday and I'm happy to report that everything seems to be good to go as far as his guts are concerned! We are definitely very happy about that and thankful that he doesn't need any major procedure to straighten him out. So - what's with all the explosions? The doctor seems to think it's a combination of "Toddler's Diarrhea" and "withholding". He said to continue with the probiotics, as this is know to help with issues regarding Irritable Bowel Syndrome & malabsorption. The thing that gets me (other than the actual explosions themselves!) is the fact that most doctors think that "toddlers diarrhea" is caused by an excessive intake of juices (especially apple & pear). Well, those of you that know me, know that I am not a fan of giving Nicky juice & the only juice he does get is the V8 Fusion (because it claims to have a full serving of fruit & veggies per serving). So, we're going to water down the juice we do give him & push the water. I guess I'll have to talk to his teachers again about not giving him as much juice. The doctor also said that the explosions could be a residual effect caused by the parasite he had when we first returned from Russia - it could have done a bit of damage to his guts & it will just work itself out eventually. As for the withholding, well, unfortunately we'll have to wait that one out too. He said not to push "ocaccalo on the potty", but to just reward him excessively (gotta love cheering for poo!) when he does happen to go on the potty.

Now, you may be asking yourself, what's with the picture of the pink dinosaur?! Well, that was the "prize" Nicky picked after visiting with the doctor. I just had to post a picture of it because Kris' oh so favorite color is pink!!! Well, not exactly, it's actually the complete opposite! He can't stand it, so when Nicky chose the pink one I just had to rub it in! :)

Happy New Year!

Austin Matthew Sutten

A few posts ago I mentioned that one of our friends had their baby, very prematurely (he was due at the very end of February). I can now make the announcement more official & say that it was our friends Ramsey & Shelly Sutten. I am very happy to announce that everything's going well so far! He's a little fighter and is making progress every day. When he was born (12.18.08) he was 16 1/4 inches long & 2 lbs 10 ozs. He's now 2 lbs 13.9 ozs, so he definitely has a long way to go, but the important part is he's thriving! There's even a picture on their blog (http://austinmatthewsutten.blogspot.com/) of him giving "the bird"...too funny! He's already just like his mommy & daddy :) They are able to go up to visit Austin for feedings and "touch times", but they don't get as much contact with him as would be ideal and it's been tough for them to leave him each day. I couldn't even imagine having a baby, yet not really having the baby. Please keep them in your prayers as the new year approaches.

Nicky's 1st Christmas

Well...maybe not his first Christmas ever, but his first as a Johnson! As I mentioned in a previous blog, they celebrate the Russian Orthodox Christmas in January & their jolly man is referred to as Father Frost. Kris' parents (Granny & Papa) arrived the afternoon of Christmas Eve and Nicky went to work decorating cookies with his Granny.
Later that evening, we put out cookies & milk for Santa and some carrots for his reindeer. I think Nicky was most excited to get to eat a cookie for himself!

Kris came home from work early Christmas morning and we woke Nicky up at 7:25am - proof that he doesn't quite "get it" just yet! We looked at the evidence that Santa had, indeed, visited us (cookies were eaten, milk drunk & carrots nibbled upon).Then the three of us checked out our stockings to see what Santa brought. Nicky peered into his, saw his stickers & "lips" (chap stick) and was good to go!

One of the wrapped presents in the stocking made noise and he recognized the Elmo song, so he ripped the paper off that one.
We handed him another one that was wrapped & he said "don't want it"! Too bad we didn't get that on video...we could use it against him in the years to come!

After stockings we ate breakfast then proceeded to sit by the Christmas tree and open all the other gifts.

Nicky would open one, play with whatever it was, then lose interest.
We started opening presents around 10am & he still had a pile waiting for him after nap time! He finally opened the last one late in the evening. I'm sure next year will be the opposite...he'll wake us up at 7am and he'll tear through the presents with gusto!

Some of his favorite gifts were a pair of gloves he insisted on wearing right away (from Granny & Papa)...

A pair of sunglasses he refused to take off all day (from Granny & Papa)...

An Elmo "see & say" (from Santa)(notice he's still wearing the sunglasses)...

and a Little Einsteins piano (from Aunt Caroline & Uncle Brent)(you can just call him "Nicky Wonder!)...
The rest of our visit with Granny & Papa was spent playing and hanging out. Momma & Daddy actually got to spend a little time alone & even got to go see a movie! We walked through Deerfield (the neighborhood next to us) to see all the Christmas lights. We had a record high on the 26th here in Dallas...it was in the 80's! Crazy! Last week we had freezing rain & snow and we started out this week in the 20's! Gotta love Texas weather!

Thank you so much to everyone who helped to make Nicky's 1st Christmas memorable! He loved all his presents and we appreciate all your thoughtfulness! We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

Gingerbread House

My friend Veronica (or as Nicky says "Onca") gave us a Willy Wonka Gingerbread House kit for Christmas this year (it contained a full pound of candy!). She thought it would be something fun for us to do & would maybe occupy Nicky's attention span for more than 10 minutes. Well - it did to that, however, I have to say, it's a good thing I didn't become an architect! I should have thought ahead and put the house part together before I sat Nicky down to do the decorating. The icing that comes in the kit, although very tasty, is not very good at holding the house pieces together! I managed to get the walls up without too much of a problem, however the roof turned out to be rather tricky. So with my left hand I held the house together, and with the right hand I iced the different parts of the house for Nicky to decorate! Quite comical, actually, especially the part when the whole thing came crashing down! The look on Nicky's face was priceless! I felt so bad; but once I got over the shock of it all, told him it was ok, gave him a few more pieces of candy to sample, and let him proceed in decorating the piece of the roof that survived the fall, all was good in the world again. Even though our house might not be showcased on any HGTV show, I have to hand it to Veronica - the purpose of the mission was to occupy Nicky's time & it did just that!

Here are a few pics of the disaster...

We started out so strong...all prepared for our masterpiece!

Nicky's face after "the fall"...

Nicky after realizing the fun wasn't all over...

Nicky decorating the roof...

Merry Christmas everyone! I'll post pictures of Nicky tearing through his presents on Christmas morning later this week!

Upper GI Scan

Daddy took Nicky for his upper GI scan today. After the crazy Saturday we experienced with Nicky (tantrum city & time-out central) I feared for Kris' sanity while they were at the hospital. Well, my fear was ill-founded - Nicky was the model patient once again! He drank the barium with gusto & asked for more! What the?! We can't get him to eat his dinner, but serve up some barium & the kid's all over it! The testing took a few hours, as they had to x-ray the barium as it made it's way through his upper "guts". Nicky sat quietly, watched tv and played with his puppy "Marley" (which he received after being a good patient during the barium enema)(he took him to this appointment too - that's him in the picture above). The radiologist told Kris that everything appears to be normal, which is great! However, that means we have a long road ahead of us trying to figure out what all the explosions are about! :( The doctor did run some blood tests, but we're still awaiting those results. We'll know more of what our game plan is when we visit with the doctor next week. But for now - we're thrilled that his little guts aren't twisted in knots and he's otherwise healthy!

The Johnson Week in Review

There isn't really anything major to talk about this week, but I thought I would jot down a few things.

1. We've now been home for 3 1/2 months and have run the gamut of emotions. We had a lovely "honeymoon" period followed by a less than exuberant period of him yelling at us, throwing tantrums & hitting us. Then we had a nice breather, where things were nice and almost relaxed at the house. We're back to the wonderful hitting & screaming of the word "no" and constant tantrums. I recently read an article in Parents Magazine that said the average toddler will argue with his parents between 20-25 times an hour! Well, they must've been a fly on the wall in our house when they did that study! Even though the word means the same thing, I kinda preferred it when he still said "nyet". I don't quite know why I liked it better...maybe because then I could still think "poor little guy, he's still adjusting" or something along those lines. Now, it's just "typical 2 1/2 yr old" behavior.


2. Nicky's little GI issue has not gotten any better. He was sent home from school on Tuesday for having 3 explosions within and hour & a half span of time. That made 4 for the day, only to be followed by 2 later in the evening/overnight. Now, that could've also been a touch of a little stomach bug that was floating around, but who knows! His doctor ordered some blood work and he will be having an upper GI scan on Monday - they won't put a scope down his throat like we originally thought, thank goodness. We're praying that they don't find anything serious. I'm inclined to think that some of the problem is that he's a "withholder", because he will at times tell us he needs to go, but other times will go in his pants & when asked if he did so will always reply "no"! Oy vey! Very frustrating! Hopefully, the doctor will be able to help us regardless of the issue.


3. The Christmas holiday is almost here and I'm getting nervous as to how Nicky will react to all the hoopla. I'm afraid of overwhelming him and am thinking that we might start bringing out a few of the toys (that were supposed to be coming from Santa) this weekend. I think we'll limit the number of presents he opens on Christmas day and will give him his stocking, but we'll try to be more low-key about the whole thing. He doesn't really understand what the whole thing is about anyway, so this year can be our dry run & next year we can go crazy!
   
4. Last item actually pertains to a couple that we are friends with. They had their baby last night, very prematurely, and I ask that you pray for his health and well-being. He's just a little guy and has a tough road ahead of him!

Here are a few fun pictures of Nicky. He might act crazily at times, but man is he cute!

Nicky & his SSN card...more & more American every day!

Nicky trying on momma's glasses

Nicky getting ready for bath time...can't get his shirt over his big noggin! (that means he must be super-smart since his head's so big!)

To Stitch Or Not To Stitch...

...That was our question Saturday afternoon. We chose the latter...not to stitch. Now, I'm sure you're wondering "stitch what, exactly?" Well - Nicky's lower lip, that's what. Nicky & I were heading up the stairs after lunch and we had a little accident. Nicky was upset with me because I wouldn't let him play with his lunch - how dare I actually want him to eat it! I told him he could eat or it was nap time. Although Nicky's decision wasn't nap time, it also wasn't to eat, therefore, up the stairs we went - with Nicky rebelling the whole way. As we continued up the stairs, Nicky slipped and down he went...on his face. He screamed out and when he tilted his head back, I saw his mouth quickly filling up with blood. There was so much, I couldn't tell exactly where it was coming from, so I rushed him to the kitchen sink and tried to determine the extent of the damage. What I found was a big gash along the inside of his lower lip on the left side. Even though I was shaking and freaking out internally, I managed to stop the bleeding and called Kris to get his professional opinion & to beg him to come home. Momma's not so good with the sight of blood and I wasn't sure whether or not we should rush him to the hospital. Kris came home and checked it out and we decided that Nicky would survive without stitches (he would probably pick at them & pull them out anyway). Nicky is doing much better today, although he has a nice fat lip and cut on the outside of his mouth. He's such a little trooper - he's acting as if it never happened! But, you bet momma won't forget & I was monitoring each step he took on the stairs when we went up for today's nap!

Happy Belated Birthday Great Granny!

We love and miss you and hope you had a wonderful birthday!

Perfecting the Drop-Off

It finally happened! A full week of drop-offs sans crying and tantrums!!! Nicky's been in school for 2 months now and this is the first week that he didn't seem to be as upset when we left him in the mornings. He is usually fine until we get into his classroom and herd him to the table so he can eat his breakfast. We've had a few days here and there that were better than the others, but never more than 2 consecutive days. We usually leave with him screaming and trying to clutch onto us as long as he can; there have even been a few days where he's thrown himself on the floor kicking and screaming. We know he settles down soon after we leave, but it still makes for a stressful drive into work. Funny thing is, even on the most difficult mornings, he is never ready to leave school when we come to pick him up! Lately, they have been playing "Mr Potato Head" in the afternoons and this seems to be a new favorite of his. And half the time he's just carrying the head around, without the features that accompany him! I guess it really is the little things that amuse kids. Let's just hope this week wasn't a fluke & instead it means we're getting more settled into our routine.

Nicky's 1st Thanksgiving

Our Thanksgiving celebration began on Wednesday with a frustrating start for us all. I had a cold and laryngitis, Kris had to work 2 shifts in a row, my sister-in-law (Caroline) and her 2 kids (Brenden & Emily) got lost in Oklahoma while driving down from St Louis, and my parents and my Granny & Nana had to deal with the crazy traffic on the road from San Antonio. My voice finally joined us on Saturday and I'm happy to say that Caroline made it safe and sound! This was the first time Nicky had met them and they all got along really well. Other than the occasional "mine!", the visit was a success. We watched the Thanksgiving Day Parade, had a big turkey dinner on Friday (since Kris was working Thursday), played at the playground (where Nicky was assaulted by another little boy - the kid bit Nicky on the back & his mom had the nerve to tell me "he doesn't know how to bite", even thou there was evidence of the attack on Nicky's jacket!), we went to the Dickens of a Christmas festival in downtown McKinney, we looked at Christmas lights, and best of all Nicky met Santa for the first time! In Russia, the holiday we celebrate as Christmas here in the US is actually celebrated just after the new year, and Santa's counterpart is called Father Frost. Here are a few pictures of our fun and thankful holiday.

Parade WatchingWalking to the playground with Nana
Emily & Nicky at the playground
Brenden & Nicky at the playground
Helping Nana make stuffing
Nicky & Emily at Dickens Christmas
Emily, Nicky & Brenden dancing with lights
Nicky, Brenden & Santa
Nicky, Nana & Pop

Now that everyone has gone home, it's a little too quiet around here! It was so nice to have the family together for the holiday and we can't wait to spend many more together over the upcoming years. Thank you for coming to help us celebrate Nicky's 1st Thanksgiving! We miss you already!

No No Cow!

A friend of mine (Wendy) gave me a bank that's in the shape of a cow & she's painted very fancy - like those cows that travel all over the world in the Cowparade. Anyway, Kris & I call her the "cash cow" and we've introduced her to Nicky. He loves to feed her money & the second he sees any loose change lying around, he picks it up and says "cow?".

So - a few weeks ago Nicky & the cow had a little tussle. It went a little something like this: Nicky feeds the cow. Momma doesn't have any more change for the cow. Nicky becomes upset at this fact. Nicky kicks the cow while momma's not looking. Nicky picks up the cow so momma doesn't see (only momma does see...love those eyes you get for the back of your head when you become a momma!). Nicky realizes the cow's ear has broken off. Momma realizes Nicky's bleeding from somewhere (initially just saw the blood on the floor, assumed it wasn't the cow's). Momma sees that it's Nicky's finger. Once momma points out the fact that Nicky's bleeding he yells "No No Cow!".And why wouldn't he yell at the cow? Wasn't it in fact the cow's doing? Forget the fact that he's the one that kicked her over in anger! Oh to be a 2 1/2 year old again & have no responsibility in the world! The cut turned out to be a very little thing on the end of his index finger, but it sure did bleed! We have all since kissed and made up and are friends once again. However, now when I get the cow out for Nicky, the first thing he does is scold her with "No No Cow!", then proceed to feed her the money!

The Test Came Back Normal!!!

We've been patiently awaiting the results of the barium enema Nicky had last Friday. I was getting a bit nervous after not hearing anything, but we finally got the call this morning saying that the results were normal (for the lower GI that is)! Yeah! I have to say, the little guy is a trooper! Kris took him to the hospital, and other than getting nervous & upset when changing into the gown (which didn't quite fit him), he didn't make a fuss.He laid still on the table & wasn't too happy about having the initial insertion, but Kris said he was a model patient after that. He let the doctor turn him to each side and he laid on his back while they mashed a tool on his belly (Kris said it looked like an ice-cream scoop...no clue what that was!). After the test came the fun part...expelling the barium...ew! Kris said Nicky was a little unsure about all that - kind of a weird thing to experience, especially for a 2 1/2 yr old. On the way home, Kris called me and Nicky was screaming "ocaccalo" (his word for poop) and seemed to be quite distressed. He did, however, pause to tell me about his new puppy "Marley" that they gave him for being such a good patient! So cute...this is the first stuffed animal that he's named! He has a book "Bad Dog Marley" (a kid's version of "Marley & Me"...thanks Marissa - it's one of his fave books!) & that's where he got the name. He is completely enamored with Marley & he carried him around the house all weekend.

He didn't seem too traumatized by the whole ordeal, which is good, considering there's more testing to be had. The doctor has now recommended we do an upper GI scope to make sure there isn't any twisting in that neighborhood. Once again, I'm gonna have to chicken out and pass the task onto Daddy! In the meantime, we're giving him pro-biotics "for proper gut health". The doctor said that maybe he just doesn't have the right bacterium in his belly, so this could help...sure couldn't hurt at this point! We'll let you know more as we have the next round of tests. For now, we're just very thankful that our little Russky's lower belly isn't all twisted in knots and there doesn't appear to be any major health risk!

A Barium Enema They Say...

Well, we took little Nicky to the GI doctor today to see if we could get any insight regarding Nicky's persistent exploding diarrhea (technical term, I assure you). The doctor was very thorough, as one would hope that a physician would be, and seemed to really know his crap...I mean stuff! Sorry, a bit crass I know, but at this point, after sifting through several diapers in search of enough of a sample for the various tests they've already run, I feel I've deserved a few laughs! Let me back up a bit. For those of you that may not know, Nicky has never had a solid BM. "Never?", you may ask. "Never", I will answer, as far as my knowledge stretches (which is about as far back as August 29, 2008 (our "gotcha day"). You see, dear reader, although the orphanages do provide you with some "medical background", they don't really give you the full picture. So, as far as we know, Nicky has had super yucky, go everywhere, throw away the clothes & sheets, kind of diarrhea...and no - we can't just wash the clothes, it's that bad!


Now, back to the present. After the second parasite test came back negative & the symptoms persisted, we thought that maybe something else could be going on in that little colon of his, so we should be responsible parents & have it checked out! Nicky did NOT like the initial "checking it out" that the doctor did, I assure you of that. Nor will he particularly enjoy the upcoming enema, I'm sure! I've assigned the task to Kris...I've passed the butt. (ha ha! another little bit of crass-ness!) Hopefully we'll be able to have the test later this week so we can get it over with. We asked the doctor if he thought it could be some type of food allergy, but he indicated that if it were a food allergy, then Nicky would most-likely be having massive BM's after meals, whereas now, Nicky can go 72 hours before the explosion emerges. His thoughts? A malrotation or twisting of the colon. And wouldn't you know, the way to "fix" this problem is surgery. This malady is typically found during infancy, however...well, I'm not even gonna go there...I'm sure the orphanage, etc, took the best possible care of him.

If this test is inconclusive, the doctor will run some blood tests (specifically for celiac disease & others) and will most-likely want to perform an upper GI series. Poor little guy! Lucky for him though - we will need to wait to have the circumcision done until this is all cleared up, as to avoid any infection in/on/around his penit! (Nicky can't say the letter "s" - it becomes a "t", so "penis" sounds more like "peanut"! Of course, we run with that one!)

Anyway...we'll keep you all posted with any and all updates!

Houston...We Have English!

And wouldn't you know, the first Russian word to be translated to English is "no"! I have to say, even though he's saying "no" in answer to every question no matter what we're asking (i.e. "Nicky, would you like an ice cream sundae with chocolate and sprinkles?"), it's pretty cute. He says it in a sort of sing-song manner & sometimes thinks about the answer before he says it (like it will be anything other than "no"!). It goes something like this: "Nicky, would you like to go outside and swing?"; Nicky's answer "Ummmm....noooooo." Most of the time it's immediately followed by a "da" - still not saying "yes" in English yet, but hey - "da" is kinda cute! As for the rest of his speech - he's getting much easier to understand and he knows about 116 words/short phrases!!! Yeah! We've been home just over 2 months, so we're thrilled with his progress! Some of his favorite words are: no, moon, come on, owie, more, mine, book, car, dog, snack; to name a few. We are amazed at the progress he is making and we get giddy as school girls when we hear him say something new. His teachers tell us he is really making strides at school too, as far as playing with the other kids, and not clinging to the teachers. Drop-offs are still a little rough & are frequently accompanied with tears and sometimes screaming. Pick-ups however, are a different story. He sees us & runs the other way, playing with his friends & hiding from us! At least we know he's enjoying himself now. The transition from school to home has gotten better as well. Whereas before he would run around the house crying & expecting to be held constantly, now he plays with some of his toys while we're fixing dinner & actually eats! The tantrums have gotten better, however, we've reverted to the constant whining - sigh...if it's not one thing, it's another! But - overall, things are much better in the Johnson household! Can't wait to see everyone over the holidays!

Nicky's "Welcome to America" Baby Shower

This past Saturday our friends threw us a party in Nicky's honor. It sounds funny to me to call it a baby shower, but that's really what it was. They decorated the house with red, white & blue - not only to signify the colors of the US, but also that of Russia. Our friend Shelly found a bunch of mini US & Russian flags and our friend Anne went to a Russian store in Arlington and bought a ton of Russian candies - mostly chocolate. For those of you that know me well, you know that I'm not the biggest chocolate fan (tragic, I know), so all the kids at the shower got to take a bunch home & there was enough to bring to the office on Monday - I was an all-around hero! :)

Everyone brought yummy food and drinks and as the guys watched College Football, the girls all gossipped in the kitchen, while leisurely grazing. Nicky seemed to enjoy himself immensely to our delight! He ran around with the other boys (Ryan and Cole, who are both close to his age) and played alongside the girls (Hannah and Katie). He shared his toys - and boy did they all play with his toys! At one point, as I turned the corner in our den, Kris told me to just "look away" - I think he was afraid I would keel over with an anxiety at the mere sight of the mound of toys on the floor! We may have been worrying about Nicky's eating habits before, there was no need the night of the party. He was a grazing fool! There wasn't anything on the plethora of platters that he wouldn't try...he may not have ended up liking it all, but he sure tried it all & then some! I was afraid his little belly was going to explode with all that he was stuffing in his mouth. I ended up having to cut him off around 6:30pm & only allowed the intake of milk, much to Nicky's dismay. He was not happy with me at all; but then he saw Cole walk by with a sippy cup of milk & that's all we needed to get him to drink it!

Nicky has really grown much more confident. We were afraid he would be glued to our sides the whole night, and not play & enjoy himself. Our fears were unfounded - he was all about playing & then coming back to "check in" with us all throughout the evening. It was very sweet actually! He would run up at random times and give me big hugs or want to be held for a second, while showering me with kisses (he did the same with Kris).


Everyone left around 8:00pm-ish and Kris took Nicky up to bed - surprisingly without a fight. While he cleaned up Nicky's room & put him down, I flew around the house like a mad-woman, cleaning every surface in sight. I figured if I didn't do it then, I wouldn't get the chance later, as Kris had to work at the fire station on Sunday & I would have to be the entertainment for the day! And, I sure wasn't going to miss out on a nap on Sunday - man I love me some naps! They say to "sleep when the baby sleeps", so who am I to disobey?!

(Nicky riding his new "rocket". Notice he's holding momma's cell phone...already sending text messages! Man they grow up fast!)

We decided to fore go the opening of presents while everyone was around. He doesn't really understand what it all means anyway, plus I didn't want him to get the idea that he will always get presents every time he meets new people. He's already gotten so much this year. We had such a good time visiting with everyone, and most of all, Nicky enjoyed himself. Thank you so much to everyone who has helped him feel welcome and loved in his new life! We are so truly blessed!!!

Nicky's 1st Halloween

Well, Nicky's 1st Halloween didn't start out so well. Kris had to work at the fire station, so we were not planning on doing much, but I wasn't prepared for what the day had in store. I woke him up to go to school, only to realize he had thrown up on his bed twice! :( Poor little guy! I took his temp (normal), he ate breakfast and was acting fine, so I decided that the vomit (yuk!) was due to the excessive amounts of drainage the little dude has had lately (he gagged a bit when he was coughing). So, off to school he went! Now, before you think I'm a bad momma, had he been acting as if he didn't feel well, or had a fever, at home we would've stayed. But, on the contrary, he seemed fine, so I figured I would just take him to school & then pick him up early to go to the doctor in the afternoon. I didn't want him to miss his 1st Halloween party after all! In answer to the question that I'm sure you're wondering now, no, they don't celebrate Halloween in Russia. Well, some do, but it's definitely frowned upon (the powers that bee feel that it's too "Western" and that the youth of Russia should focus their attention on their own country's holidays instead).

Nicky's class (well, the parents of those in the class) all voted to have the kids bring in a black shirt to paint, in lieu of dressing in costumes. They all trick-or-treated to the other classrooms and then had a party-esque lunch. During which, Nicky threw up again! :( His teacher called me and agreed that there was no need to pick him up (still no fever & after puking on his plate, he asked for "more" chicken nuggets!). I went ahead and picked him up a bit earlier - figured he'd had enough partying for one morning. I waited until he was napping before opening his "treat" bag & was very happily surprised. Most of the parents had brought "trinkets" as opposed to candy! Thank goodness! Our poor son - he's still a "virgin" when it comes to all the varieties of candy! We're trying to keep him sheltered in that arena as long as possible.

After our visit to the doctor, she agreed that his symptoms were more likely related to the drainage than a stomach bug. Whew...dodged that bullet! Momma's soo not a fan of the vomit! In fact, his sheets and clothes that were soiled found their way into the trash - there was no way I could stomach cleaning them!

To kill time before dinner, Nicky played in his pug dog costume. The tag said it was a 2/3T and the measurements implied that the costume would fit. However, the costume did not fit! We could get it on him, but by no means could we zip it up! So - he wore it more like a cape, but seemed to thoroughly enjoy it, so who am I to stop him!

Nicky & I had dinner, then went to our neighbor's (Pat & Becky) house - they have a party every year. Their 14 year old daughter had all her friends over, so Nicky got to see a bunch of

costumes. They all entertained him so momma could enjoy herself with the grown-ups. Nicky also played with Pat outside by the pool...thank you Pat! :) Nicky also got to sample some chocolate and cookies!

Even thou we had a few pitfalls along the way, I think Nicky had a good 1st Halloween. Can't wait to actually take him trick-or-treating!

my trip to the punkin patch

a few weekends ago my granny & papa came to visit me and after our big trip to the TX State Fair, we all went to the Big Orange Pumpkin Farm. it was way out in the country and kinda far from our house. i'm still not a big fan of long car rides, so my papa sat in the back and played with me to ease the pain. once we got to the farm, we got cups filled with food to feed all the animals. i was a little timid at first cuz the night before i got bit by that big ostrich when i was feeding him, so papa had to help me a bit. once i saw all the other kids doing it, i knew i could do it all by myself too.

after feeding a bunch of goats and some cows me, momma, daddy, granny & papa decided to ride the tractor hayride thing. that was fun stuff! it took us all around the farm and we got to see more animals, a barn and a pond. then we walked thru the punkin patch & there were so many punkins to look at, i couldn't stay focused! most of them were just my size, too, so i could pick them up all by myself.after that, i climbed on a big hay bale that looked like a punkin...i fed a big cow...

i sat on a big, red truck with momma & daddy...

then me and daddy went down a big slide!all in all, it was a fun day! when we got home, papa helped me put my punkin i brought home on the front porch. punkins are my favorite thing - this halloween holiday sure is cool!

smell ya later gators! :) nicky j.