Spring Break and Easter!

We spent our spring break in SW FL with my family. We arrived Sunday evening and Monday morning Alex awoke with a fever. Tuesday we took him to the pediatrician (who was actually my Dr. growing up) and discovered he had a nasty cold and an ear infection. He was put on antibiotics. We spent a lot of time in doors resting. Good Friday we were due to come home but Alex seemed worse. On top of that Matthew started coming down with the same symptoms. I was squeezed in at the pediatricians office where they gave Alex an antibiotic shot and checked Matthew over. We decided to extend our stay til Tuesday since Greg would be traveling on Monday and Tuesday within south FL.

It was a good time with family but dealing with two sick ones and being up almost every night with one or both took a toll on everyone. Needless to say we were all exhausted. We are getting back into the swing of things and the boys are doing much better. We need to schedule an appointment with our pediatrician to make sure Alex's ear infection has cleared.

I am sharing some pictures from our time down south. You will notice that the boys are not present in the majority of the pictures for obvious reasons. We were unable to get a big group family portrait this time too. The last one we took was when Nathan was still in Mellany's belly. As you will see he is a big boy now. So cute and cuddly.

The first picture is of Gabby and Matthew with my Grandmother their Great-Grandmother. All the greats call her little grandma probably because when standing she is about a head taller then Gabby. Her health is declining yet she is in good spirits. She eats well and gets around the house on her own. She does sleep quite a bit but I think that comes with age and all that her body is fighting right now. If you think of her please pray for her and her health. We are so thankful we got to spend time with her on this trip. She enjoyed being around the little ones despite their grumpy demeanors and sickness. Her name is Juana Ramos and she will be 96 years old in May.

Little Grandma with Gabby and Matthew

Cousins Carly and Vinny with Gabby.

Carly, Gabby and the Easter Bunny.

Nathan

I had to post it...too funny.

Nathan and Carly. Too cute!

Gabby and Mama.

Unfortunately 3 of the 8 grandkids were missing.

Girls Easter Celebration

Today Gabby and I participated in the 4th annual Girls Easter Celebration at our friend Judith's home. Judith and her sister Amy provide the crafts, Easter egg hunt and the home for a lovely event. It was such a sweet time with the women in our church and meeting some new women from another local church. We ate well and created some beautiful things. Thank you Judith and Amy for a wonderful time! Here are some pictures of Gabby at the party today.

LOL

Photo Lesson #3 ~ Field Trip

Here are some highlights from my photography lesson field trip. Random people and dogs were my subjects.

Ballet and Tap

This past Saturday at Gabby's ballet and tap class parents/family were invited to observe class. Gabby started taking ballet at this dance studio last January. Just recently Gabby switched over to a ballet and tap class. She just loves it! We got a sneak peak of her ballet and tap performance for the recital in May. She did such a great job! We all enjoyed watching her perform.

Photo Lesson Part 1 & The Scary Princess

Yesterday was my first day of photography lessons. I received a gift certificate from Greg for my birthday. I finally got the first class scheduled. I learned the basics of photography, shutter-speed, aperture and/or F-spot and ISO (film speed). My photography instructor, Gary was able to show me all these modes on my Nikon D60 and how to change and modify them. In the words of Lauren Sykes, "It rocked my world". Wow! This is awesome stuff! I am starting to see the light! I am enjoying being the student for a change and learning something new.

Today I played around with all these different features and was able to capture some really cool shots. Here they are...

These first two images were my first attempt at panning. The background is blurry and the main subject, in this case Matthew and Gabby riding their bikes, stay focused. Pretty cool effect.

This evening the whole family was out and Alex and I passed this dress and bridal boutique and immediately when he saw this he said "oh, scary princess." I am still laughing as I write this. Later on in the evening I got my camera out of the car and was able to use my new knowledge and capture this picture of the "Scary Princess" in all her glory.

Fever & Canker Sores...Oh My!

Today marks a week since Alex woke up with a fever. The fever has remained consistent for about a week and then the canker sores appeared. This is the second set in 3 weeks and these are bad. This picture does not do it justice. I was able to take some other pictures with his lip pulled down and they are NOT pretty. They are actually quite gross. So, I will show you the PG version.

It has been a long week. Sunday I was able to bring him to the Dr.'s office and they said it was viral. They did blood work to confirm. The canker sores will pretty much get worse before they get better. It has not been fun. Canker sores and a 2 year old do not mix well. Once Alex gets Motrin and some Kanka on his lip he is much happier. But as soon as it all starts wearing off, he becomes cranky, clingy and starts crying. For the last several nights we have been up once or twice through out the night. It reminds me of when I was nursing.

If you think of Alex, please be praying for him and a full recovery. Hoping that you stay healthy this season.