When left to their own devices...

I love how the boys just HAVE to be doing what the other is. Sure, they tend to squabble over favorite playthings more frequently than I'd like to admit... but, there are these fabulous moments when I find them sharing so nicely. As I was washing the dishes the other day, I heard the sounds of the little Casio, and peeked around the corner to find them both seated with it resting on their laps. Dex is on the left, Jax is on the right.

In other news, we watched our first Holidazzle Parade as a family last night. What fun! The boys loved all the lights and excitement of seeing what float was going to come next. Somehow, we lucked out and found ourselves outside on the warmest night of the week. Iwas holding Jax and D.R. was holding Dex. In between floats, Jax kept pointing to the skyscrapers above us saying, "There are people up there!" Sure enough, as I peered high above, there were people still working in the offices above us. Why don't we all take the time to look around us?

Outtakes and Updates

Dex- left, Jax- right.

Jax- left, Dex- right. Apparently, these are their new "cheese" faces. Hmm....



The above photos are outtakes from our little Christmas card photo shoot. As challenging as it is to get two two-year old boys to stay in one spot long enough for a photo, we found it can be much easier if you reward them with M&Ms. Hee hee.

We took the boys to the shark aquarium at the Mall of America last week-end and they LOVED it. Interestingly enough, standing in the shark cage seemed to be equally fascinating for the boys!

Also, speaking of field trips, we had a blast at the Macy's Nutcracker display last week with T. The boys would have gone through three times, if we had let them. How fun to be able to share these sorts of holiday activities with them! I think I'm going to love this transition into the preschool years!

Why I love toddlers

Pure goofiness. Love it.
The boys can't get enough of counting, these days. I was actually trying to tape Jaxon counting the Christmas tree lights, but by the time I had pushed the record button, Dex had, quite typically, taken over! I need to post on this later, but it's becoming quite obvious how the boys' personalities change based on whether they're together or apart. Very interesting... ANYWAY, I love how silly Dex gets in this video.

Boys will be boys?!

It's official. Anything that Mom is doing, the boys want to do, as well. If it's cleaning, I have two little helpers. If I'm playing music, it's instantly a trio. If I'm eating, they're eating. If I'm fixing my hair.... well, let's just say, barrettes have become the latest rage here in our little house! Maybe it's time for another haircut?

Jaxon-left, Dexter- right. This is Jaxon's new photo smile, by the way. He gives me this huge smile, but squints so much that he closes his eyes!! Too funny!

Update, cont.

And, as if on cue, the boys wake up sick. Ear infection number four for Jax... that's four ear infections in an 8-week period... and, of course, it wouldn't be an ear infection without a good respiratory infection to go along with it. Dex, not wanting his brother to get a sick day all to himself, seems to have some sort of tummy bug. Aagh!

Updates

Most of the time, I like to post about things I WANT to remember about the boys being toddlers. I don't want to rewrite the past, I just want to dwell on all the lovely aspects of having two little munchkins. There are, however, certain challenges that we've faced with them and, since there are people who check the blog for updates on these topics, I will give one grand update before the end of this year, 2007.

In March, Jaxon received a diagnosis of PDD-NOS. At the time, the pediatric neuropsychologist was a bit hesitant to give the diagnosis, as she felt a child this young could really go either way and she almost preferred to take a "wait and see" approach. Knowing that treatment and therapy could only help (and would only be covered by insurance with a diagnosis), she gave us the diagnosis and we started our journey into the world of autism spectrum disorders.

In August, both boys were diagnosed with selective IgA immune deficiency, which is the most common of the primary immunodeficiencies. For some people, they never show any symptoms and for others, they can become significantly ill. The boys have had chronic infections and GI problems, which is why it was a pediatric gastroenterologist who diagnosed them. Jaxon seems to be having the toughest time, as was the case last winter and is starting to be the case this winter. In the past seven weeks, he's had three ear infections, respiratory infections, pneumonia and high fever (unrelated to the ear infections).

So, where are we now? Nine months after the PDD-NOS diagnosis, things are looking really good. The boys have been removed from the "autism" track through the school district and it's been recommended that they attend regular preschool next year (if we choose to send them to preschool next year). They still attend school two mornings a week in a program for children with communication disorders, though their language has twice been tested to be in the normal range for their age-group, which is truly something to celebrate! Several doctors in the past month have told us they think the boys are completely normal, which again, is very reassuring.

All that being said, we're still being cautious in our celebrating. After all that I've learned about ASD, I find myself analyzing every little thing the boys (specifically, Jaxon) do and am hypervigilant about trying to "fix" odd behavior. It's hard to find a balance between accepting the quirkyness of toddlers and trying to notice "red flags" for autism. I think our biggest concern, right now, is Jaxon's obsessive behavior, at times. I know this can be normal for many toddlers, but given our history, it's something we're watching closely. Otherwise, language and social skills are fine, pretend play is developing normally and we have no real sensory concerns for the boys. These are all wonderful things. We still occasionally have issues with transitions, but not daily transitions, they're more of the major transitions... ie. traveling to see family, etc. Of course, it doesn't help that the boys are almost always sick when we're traveling. And, we're well-aware that the boys are strong-willed little guys... not necessarily a bad trait, though. :)

Anyway, we're feeling really good about the progress we've seen and every day our fears subside a bit more.

As for the immune deficiencies, we had a follow-up visit with our GI two weeks ago, as both boys had enlarged spleens in August and we wanted to make sure they were doing okay. Spleens are fine (yay!), but clearly chronic infection still seems to be an issue. Jaxon is being tested to see if he'd be a good candidate for intravenous immune globulin replacement therapy and if he is (though we suspect he won't be), we'll look into having Dexter tested, as well.

Our GI is highly optimistic, though (all this optimism!), as he's had many patients outgrown chronic infection by early adolescence. He feels like as the boys mature, we'll see fewer and fewer infections and GI prolems will disappear. Boy, do I hope he's right! In the meantime, we're trying to keep the boys as healthy as possible... and I'm so anxious for all the holiday traveling to be over, as they almost always seem to get sick when traveling. Aagh!

So, there's the update. Business complete. Tomorrow, I'll have something much more entertaining to write about! :)

Piano Dancing

Here are the boys, acting amazingly silly at the piano. I couldn't help but keep taping through their silliness. I especially like hearing Dexter sing, "I'm dancer" and Jaxon call Dexter "Dot." I think the best part of the clip, however, is when they look at each other like they're sharing a great inside joke.

Jingle, jingle, jingle and other Christmas wonders

Dex- blue; Jax- brown

I am loving December. Everyday is a new opportunity to show the boys something new and magical (at least for them) and I love how exciting this is for all of us. We've started a family movie night (yes, we're allowing TV, now... one night a week) and have been watching some really fun holiday movies. The boys get so excited about snow and Rudolph and Santa Claus. I love that the morning after we watch one of these movies, the first thing they mention when they wake up is their favorite character from the night before.

I've been checking out holiday-themed books from the library, which has also been really fun. I tried the Polar Express this week, thinking MAYBE it was a little too old for them, but they're totally into it. They love the big train, the love that it travels to Santa and his elves and they always want to talk about that silver bell off of Santa's sleigh. Last night, while running errands, I found a small bag of giant jingle bells and picked it up for the boys. I wasn't quite sure if they would think it was fun, but thought it was worth a try. I tied ribbons on the bells and then handed them over to the boys. They went crazy!! :) They were shaking their bells, singing "Jingle Bells," and dancing all over the place. I couldn't help but wonder why we EVER buy toys when something as simple as a storybook and a couple of bells easily turns into the highlight of the day.

We took the boys to see Santa this week-end, too. Again, I wasn't too sure how the boys would react to the big man dressed in red, but we really thought it would be a good thing to do with them. We explained how they had to tell Santa what they wanted for Christmas and that they would get to sit on his lap. When the moment arrived, Dexter was all about sitting on Santa's lap, but Jaxon was a little timid, so I just held him nearby. And, as it happened, Jaxon was totally obsessed with the Pirates of the Caribbean movie case that I had let him hold the night before (he loves carrying movie/CD cases around with him), so the ENTIRE time we were with Santa, Jaxon emphatically kept looking at Santa, saying, "Pirate! Pirate! Pirate! Pirate!". Tragically, when he realized that Santa wasn't going to give him the pirate movie RIGHT NOW, he just fell apart. Of course, at the time, there was nothing funny about it... I was so sad for Jaxon and mad at myself for not better explaining how this whole Santa/Christmas thing worked... but, looking back, I think it's adorable and just another example of how sweet and innocent toddlers are. Besides, it will make a great story to tell Jax when he's older.

Today, the boys and I are going to attempt the Macy's Christmas display with T. It's the Nutcracker, which the boys know nothing about... so it could really go either way. Regardless, it's another "something new" and they can't seem to get enough of all the "new-ness" these days. Besides, I'll most likely let them bring a jingle bell, or two, along and how can you beat that? :)

Some days...

are like this:

...and other days, are like this:

On any other day, the boys might have switched roles. :) Oh, toddlers!

'Night, 'Night, Christmas Tree Lights

We put up our Christmas tree this week-end, which went far more smoothly than I had imagined. The boys are fascinated with the Christmas lights and, of course, love trying to rearrange our ornaments. They have a lovely zeal for Santa Claus, Rudolph and anything with an angel and pointing to these items usually involves much laughter, silliness or singing (since angels all go, "Ahh- ahh- ahh"). We told the boys they were allowed to touch the lights on the tree if they used only one finger and they have been demonstrating amazing restraint (for toddlers), tiptoeing up to the tree with their little index fingers ready to poke the nearest light. It's really too cute.

My favorite thing, however, is their new bedtime ritual. We'll have them all ready for bed, teeth brushed, stories read, prayers said, lights out... even that last drink of water is carefully swallowed... and then, from the quiet of their room, we'll hear, "Go boom boom downstairs? 'Night 'Night Christmas tree lights?" I have to admit, the first time we heard this, I thought it was a ploy to prolong bedtime (since they're pros in this area), but given the fact that it was such an earnest request, we decided to give in. We scooped the boys out of their cribs and brought them downstairs, where they sweetly and quickly, said good-night to the Christmas tree lights. It's now become a nightly ritual. And, yes, it is one more box to check in our bedtime routine, but it's such a good reminder of how magical Christmas time is for children. Besides, the tree will be gone in a few weeks, anyway... right? :)

Stump Jaxon

I've posted before about the boys' love of music. Again, I know this isn't unique to them... it seems to be a common trait in most toddlers I run into. I can't help but be fascinated by it, though! I've also posted about how they'll pick a new favorite song and want to listen to it OVER AND OVER again! Luckily, this lasts only a few days and then they're on to a new tune and we start the whole process over again.

A few weeks ago, I was listening to music with the boys when Jaxon announced he wanted to listen to a particular song. I couldn't remember which number it was on the CD, so I just started going through the album, one song at a time. After hearing only 2-3 seconds of a tune, Jaxon would shout, "No! No _______ (name of the song)!" Seriously! I was stunned. He recognized songs that I couldn't even name from such small sound samples.

After going through one CD, I thought I'd make things more interesting, so I put three CDs in the stereo and I set the machine to random. Amazingly, he did it again. After only 2-3 seconds of a song (sometimes, all it would be is a drum beat), he'd shout out the name of the song and whether or not he wanted to listen to it (usually, it was a big fat "NO!"). Of course, Dexter soon picked up on how much fun we were having, so our game of "Stump Jaxon" quickly turned into a game of "Name that tune... toddler style."

I should really give the boys minus points for occasions when a Fiona Apple CD is in the stereo. Everyone of her songs is automatically called, "The Apple Song." To their credit, however, they almost always label it correctly before she even starts singing, which means they're listening to far more than just the vocals. And, in their defense, a lot of her songs have VERY similar beats. What fun!! Now, if I could just get them to listen to what I want to listen to, when I want to listen to it, I think we'd have the perfect situation!! :)

Rub-a-dub-dub, two boys in a tub

"Check THIS out!!!"

Jaxon, nice and giggly

Dexter, quite proud of his new do.

So there's one more thing that Daddy is WAY better at than Mommy.... bathtime. The boys already love to play in the tub, but when Daddy's in charge of the bath, they never want to get out! This is one of those grand situations where everyone benefits. D.R. and the boys get great Daddy/son time and I get the freedom to put away laundry or clean up the kitchen without any distractions! Yipee!!!