Sick Again

Yesterday Gus started to get a red, teary, draining eye. Last night in the middle of the night he woke up and was inconsolable for about an hour. This morning his eye was crusted shut, so Josh and I took him to the Dr. He has an ear infection and pink eye, probably a continuation from the bacterial infection he had a few weeks ago. The Dr. put him on a stronger antibiotic. He can go back to daycare on Wednesday. Josh is home with him today, and I will be home with him tomorrow. Poor little fella!

Winter Weekend

Gus likes to tear all of my books off the shelf when I am on the computer.

Here in KC we got lots of snow this weekend. WE only got about an inch, but parts of the city got up to 7 inches. Jack was here this weekend and he and Josh got to go out and party Friday night, since Josh's Saturday morning games were cancelled due to poor weather conditions. All of Josh's high school buddies were supposed to come down this weekend, but everyone but Jack cancelled on him. I am really glad Jack ended up coming, because Josh rarely gets a weekend off, and with Jack here, he got to enjoy it.

I have spoken with Lindsey several times and she and Parker are doing well. They came home from the hospital today, after he had his circumcision this morning. I am so excited to go visit them next weekend, I hope this week flies by quickly.

It is a sad weekend in the Dillavou household, as far as the McCollom Family NCAA Tournament Bracket Contest is concerned. Oh well, I guess there is always next year :(

Standing in the Bathtub

Sit down Gus! Of course, Buster doesn't help the situation at all by teasing and luring him to stand up.

Almost got it...

Gus loves to put the faucet in his mouth. Well, actually Gus loves to put anything and everything into his mouth these days, so this really shouldn't surprise me.

Gus is fascinated with the faucet. He touches it, chews on it, stares at it... No matter how many times we pull him back to the other end, he always crawls right back to it. You can see in this picture that Gus is starting slim down more and more and looks almost like a toddler now instead of a baby.

Last night during his bath he was really into eating the bubbles, which left this cute little bubble beard on his chin. You can also see that Gus is starting to get a little bit more hair. It is so blond and fine though that it is sometimes still looks pretty nonexistent.

And, as mentioned prior, starting to crawl back to the other end of the tub toward the faucet.

It scares me half to death, and nearly every bath involves some element of slipping these days, but he insists on standing up. I try and try to reason with him, although reasoning with a ten month old is rather pointless, but he always tries to stand.

Baby Varner is here!

Parker Levi Varner was born this morning, via Cesarean, at 7:39 am. He weighed in at 6 pounds, 11 ounces, and is 20 inches long. That is all I know for now, I will update with pics as soon as I get some. I will not be able to meet the little man for another week and can HARDLY WAIT!!!!!

Baby Update

I just talked with Linny. She had an appointment this afternoon and has not made any more progress (dilation/effacement) since last week. She has scheduled an appointment for a Cesarean section for Thursday at 7am. So, if baby boy Varner does not decide to come out today or tomorrow, he will be here on Thursday morning. Please keep them in your thoughts. This anticipation is driving me nuts!

NCAA Tourney at the Sprint Center

On Saturday, Josh and I went to the Power and Light District which is across the street from the Sprint Center, where the Michigan v. Oklahoma NCAA tournament game was held.



The Power and Light District is an outdoor courtyard in downtown KC. It has a covered heated Plexiglas roof, which is pretty cool to be under. There are several bars and restaurants that have entrances into the courtyard, so you can buy drinks in them and then browse out to the communal outdoor area.

This is a huge screen near the entrance where NCAA tourney games were projected all weekend. Josh has some friends coming to town next weekend and hopes to take them down to this area, but it is supposed to be pretty cold in KC next weekend, so they will have to play it by ear...

Inside the Sprint Center during the game Saturday night. Some friends had extra tickets so we got to go for free. It was a lot of fun!

Michigan vs Oklahoma

Papa and Nama D Visited!

Gus in his new pajamas from Papa and Nama, an early Easter present. They are so adorable on him! Hard to believe they are size 24 months.

Climbing through his plastic Little Tikes playgym from Papa and Nama, an early birthday present (this way mommy and daddy do not have to drive it all the way back from Clear Lake in a few months!). Thanks- what a lucky boy!

Not so sure about the slide...

Gus' new favorite place to crawl is under his highchair. He used to get 'stuck' but this week figured out how to crawl out from under it (making mommy's life muuuuch easier!).

Gus has been playing with his tongue a lot the last few days. I am sure it is just his sore throat. The doc said that it looked pretty sore, not strep though. I also have a sore throat, so I know how he feels.

Gus had some car trouble so Buster checked under the hood to make sure everything was okay.

Hey slow down Gus... That's not a speed bump, that's Buster!

Last Tuesday night Gus was starting to feel better so daddy took him outside to play for a little while.

Gus is feeling better and slowly getting over his illness. He has not had a temp since last Tuesday but still his a nasty cold. He had a bad day yesterday at daycare and he woke up for about an hour or so in the middle of the night, but that was his first bad day in the last several. This morning he has been good and is taking a nap right now. I really hate to say it again, but the way he has been chewing on everything and pulling at his gums, I really think he will break a tooth soon. His upper gums look very irritated. Babies are supposed to get the bottoms first, but they are also supposed to start teething between 4-6 months, so I guess Gus has just decided to do things a little differently. I think his irritability is also related to teething, but who knows.

Yesterday I bought a replica of his favorite sippy cup and some of his favorite treats to bring to daycare on Monday, so hopefully that will help him get back onto schedule, as this week with him being sick and spring break and his grandparents being around may have thrown him for a loop. Nama and Papa left this morning and are off to San Antonio for several days, before they finish up next week in St. Louis to visit the Spratt's.

Lindsey is still pregnant! On Thursday she went to the doc and was 4 cm dilated and 80 percent effaced. She has been having irregular contractions, back pain and some cramps, but is still not yet in labor! I have decided to wait until next weekend to visit her, as I want to be certain there is a little baby for me cuddle with when I get there. I honestly can't believe she is still walking around! My mom is there with her this week to help out so that is a blessing. She has an appointment for Tuesday but let's just hope she doesn't have to go- she is very ready for baby boy to arrive.

I hope your NCAA bracket picks are all going well- sounds like Rachel, according to her blog, knows how to pick em! I am up Josh by one game... hahaha!

Quick Update

Gus is doing much better. Last night he ate a full meal for supper and played and laughed and was adorable. He slept all the way through the night. This morning he woke up with no temperature and ate breakfast. His cough is horrible and sounds much worse, and his little nose is very runny, but otherwise, it looks like he is on the mend.

AND... no baby Varner yet...

Luck of the Irish

Trying real hard to give mommy a smile. Look at those red, sad eyes. Poor little fella.

Sneaking away from mommy (and tackling his Cabbage Patch doll in the process).

Kiss Me I'm Irish! Notice Buster in back window enjoying the beautiful weather.

We are trying to make the best of mommy's favorite holiday. Gus and I are both wearing our green St. Patrick's day shirts, and before daddy left for work, he put on a green polo. No parade, but getting Gussie back to good health is worth it.

Last night he only woke up once, for about 30 minutes around 1 am and didn't seem to have a temp but I gave him Tylenol to be preventative, so it was not a bad night at all. This morning he had a temp of about 102.5 when he woke up at 8:30, so I gave him more Tylenol and he just had his 3rd dose of antibiotics. He is not eating well yet, but I keep trying to give him little snacks and juice whenever he will take them.

He is really whiney this morning and just not wanting to be anywhere but attached to me. My arms are so tired from holding him constantly the last two days. I hope by tonight he will be back to feeling better.

Nama and Papa Dillavou are coming tomorrow for a visit, so we are all very excited for that! It is gorgeous this week, so hopefully they will get to spend a little time outside in the warm weather while they are here.

Our sick little man

Well, it has been a long weekend (and today!). Last weekend Gus had a pretty high temperature, but after 24 hours and Tylenol, it had gone down. He seemed fine all week; we thought that he had just had a little 24 hour bug. His appetite was a little weak all week, but other than that he had seemed fine. Never really seemed like he had a temp, so we didn't check it.

On Saturday night, Gus woke up in the middle of the night with a temperature of over 103 again. Tylenol helped a lot (kept it at 100-101), but the second we didn't give it to him, his temperature would spike from 101 to over 103 in a very short time frame.

He kept Josh and I up nearly all night the last two nights, and when he woke up this morning, his temperature was 104.3, so I took him to the walk-in clinic at our pediatricians office. After two hours of waiting and a negative strep test, the Dr. decided to run blood work, which revealed a bacterial infection. So, our little man in on antibiotics for the first time, and not feeling well at all. Even with Tylenol, his temperature was 104.2 a few hours ago. It is so sad to see him just lay there and stare at you, with his sick eyes, rosy cheeks and burning hot skin. All he wants to do is lay on my lap and sleep. I gave him an overlapping dose of Motrin (on top of Tylenol) about two hours ago because I did not know what to do to get his temp down, and that seemed to do the trick for now. The doctor had said to do that at last resort if I could not get his temp under 104. So, now his temp is down to 102.5. He started to feel better enough to eat something, which he had hardly done all day, or all weekend for that matter. He is napping now, so we will see how tonight goes.

Upside, it is gorgeous outside! Downside, Gus is too sick for the parade tomorrow :( But, the doc said with the antibiotics Gus should only get better and should no longer have a temperature after Wednesday. Good thing, cause mommy and daddy were really starting to worry about the little guy. Thank the Lord it is spring break and I can be home with him and not miss work (guess I'll have to cancel the trip to Jamaica I had planed, LOL!).

And for those of you wondering, still no baby Varner to report...

Vote for Kate!

My very good friend, Kate Fischer, is up for an award sponsored by the Waterloo Courier... But, she needs your vote to win! Please click on this link to see her video and vote for her. Her profile is the one waaaaay at the bottom, so you'll have to scroll all the way down to read about her.

More Bathtime

We are having a good week. The weather has been cold, but otherwise things are going well. Next week is spring break and it is always fun to not have to work for a whole week! Lindsey is due soon (as of this morning she was 1.5 cm dialated but is measuring a little small, like she did with Kennedy) so hopefully I will be making a trip to Iowa City next week to meet her new baby boy (name still undecided). If we are in KC on Tuesday, Josh and I are thinking about taking Gus to the St. Patrick's Day parade. It is supposed to be 65 and sunny on Tuesday and 75 degrees and sunny on Wednesday. Nama and Papa Dillavou will be here Wednesday for a few days- hopefully the weather stays nice for their visit. Gus is oh so excited to see them! He has changed a lot over the last 2 1/2 months since Christmas! He now crawls, cruises and tries very hard to have conversations with you (well, not really, more like babbling, but it is a step!).

Jeremiah and Lynn Treloar are having a girl, they sent us a text yesterday, so that is great news. Finally a little girl for all the recent baby boys to fight over some day!

This weekend Josh and I want to continue to work on the basement. Our goal is to have it finished by the end of this spring. I think we can do it if we stay focused :) But we better hurry, because spring officially starts next week!

Kennedy is in her uncle Lance's (Brandon's brother) wedding as the flower girl on Saturday, and so is Brandon (best man). Hopefully baby boy waits until after the weekend to arrive, or the Varners will have a crazy busy, unpredictable couple of days! The wedding is in the Mason City area, so it is about 3 hours from where Lindsey wants to deliver. She did have Kennedy in Mason City though about 4 years ago, so if she had to deliver there, it probably wouldn't be the end of the world. Hopefully they would be able to make it back to Iowa City though. Oh how exciting!!!

I'll update as soon as I hear any news of Linny's baby-to-be!

Go Panthers!

March Madness here we come! Even the KC Star has it as front page news (on their website anyway!) :)

Warm Weather

Me and my buddy sitting at my table.

I want to write a thank you to Gma Sue for this cool table and chairs...



Hmmm.... But I juuuust can't figure out what to write... (um, or how to write?!?)



I like going on walks with mommy, but why does she make me wear this darn plastic thing on my face????

Josh has to work a big youth tournament all weekend for the YMCA, which has kept him more busy than I have ever seen him this past week. So, it is just Gus and I this weekend during the day. Gus seems to be feeling better. Last night I took some photos of him at the little table and chairs he got for Christmas from Grandma Sue and Papa Randy. He looked pretty adorable sitting at them.

We are in the process of hiring someone to spray the ceilings in the living room (water damage) and then in the basement, since they would be here anyway to do the living room. Nama and Papa Dillavou will be coming next week- hopefully Papa is ready to help daddy finish the mudding and sanding of the basement ceiling so we can get it sprayed :)

Lindsey is due any day and I am so excited to meet her little man. Iowa City here we come (but hopefully not for at least another week, so I can be on Spring break!!!!)...

Sick Update

Just a quick update... Gus is feeling much better and has no temp (or at least one that the tylenol and motrin are able to finally keep down). Yesterday when he woke up from his nap his temp was over 103 degrees, and even with Tylenol around the clock and a tepid bath, it still went up to almost 104 and was never below 101 degrees. It was a long day and night for all three of us.

This morning Gus seems to be feeling better, although his appetite is not quite back yet. We will keep giving him medicine today, but it looks like we are in the clear. Must have been just a 12 hour bug. He was left with a little cough, but nothing to get too worried about.

Summer Here We Come

Gus has been as adorable as usual the last few days. He had fun playing with the Easter Froggie his Great Aunt Kathy C. sent him yesterday, and he also had fun helping mommy do the dishes this morning. We went for a walk earlier today and are loving this weather! It is supposed to get to 79 degrees today, and still be in the 70s through the weekend. It is a bit breezy, but honestly, I really hate to complain. I just painted my toe nails and will wear strappy heels to work tonight! Yay! I am so pumped for spring and summer.

Inspiration

Want to be inspired? Click on this link. I would be lying if I told you I posted this because this speech was given at an elementary school speech competition (although that is true believe it or not!). I posted this link because I am proud of the little girl who fought to have her opinion (and what a great opinion it is!) heard. To read more about her story, go here.

Des Moines Trip

Gus and Kennedy in the tub Sunday morning after swimming. Had to wash off the chlorine.

Gus after swimming.

Kamden (and Lane and Rachel too of course) stopped by the hotel Sunday morning for his first time ever in a swimming pool. I didn't get any pics of him actually in the water, but here is one from right after. He was so cute! He loved to he held with his belly to the water. He was so easy to hang onto and was so calm in the water, unlike my crazy, slappy, splashy little man. I miss the calmness of 6 month olds- the Smiths sure have a lot to look forward to! I am sure Rach will have some pics up on her blog soon.

Gus, Mommy, Kennedy, Brandon

We couldn't get a good one of all four of us looking at the camera. At least Brandon and I knew how to listen to directions :) We were in the pool off and on for a couple of hours. It was a lot of fun and I think the kids really enjoyed it. Jen Farquar and her son Hayden came over to swim too, but I didn't get any pictures of them.

At the Smith home.

Playing with Kamden's toys. He and Gus are going to be good buddies one day. Right now they basically only know how to reach for and grab each others faces (although Gus did like giving Kammy's hair kisses, or he just liked the taste and texture of it!) but before we know if they will be playing catch with a baseball. Time flies so fast.

So smiley!

Saturday morning KC got 6 inches of snow, the biggest snowstorm in 4 years. Of course, that was the day I had planned to travel to Des Moines to see friends and family. I had to leave three hours after my original ETD so was in the city less than 24 hours. And although I left later than planned, my usual 3 hour drive ended up taking 4 due to treacherous driving conditions for the first 2 hours.

I had originally planned to visit Preston and Kamden, but had to cut those plans short. We did stop by Kamden's house for a few minutes, since it was just a few minutes from the hotel, but soon had to meet the Varner's at the hotel. Hopefully next time we will get to finally meet Preston!