Same old, same old...

Hi everyone! I know it has been a while since we've posted, but there really isn't anything new going on here. Ben has been very busy attending doctor's appointments these past few weeks (seems like Ben's bi-monthly appointments all fall within the same two week time frame). So far, everything has been status quo.

Thursday is one of his bigger appointments - head catscan and neurosurgery appointment. They are going to check to make sure his ventricles in his brain haven't increased in size and measure the amount of fluid around his brain (he hasn't had a head catscan in 6 months). I feel confident that everything is fine because I measure Ben's head circumference once a month and it has been stable. He also hasn't been showing any signs of pressure on his brain. I always worry before these appointments though because the brain is such a complex organ and this is one of the few areas of Ben's body that has avoided surgery so far (and I'd like to keep it that way). We have to be at the hospital at 7:00 a.m. on Thursday, so it will be an early morning for us! Thank goodness the hospital is only 15 miles away (and hopefully we will be early enough to avoid rush hour).

I'm also happy to report that Ben has been stable enough (and our night nursing care has been really good and reliable lately), that Mike and I have been able to do some leisure activities of our own. Mike's been training to run the Columbus Marathon (which is in October) and I've joined a tennis league. I feel like we are amongst the living again!!

And last but not least, we took Ben to get his two year old pictures taken today. The first one is in honor of his love for books. I like how the page he stopped to look at coordinated with his outfit. Couldn't have worked out better. And the second picture is his vacation shot. We like to pretend we went to the beach for Ben's birthday :)

Pool Date

Today my mom and I took Ben to the pool. The weather was a little questionable, but we already had plans to meet up with another friend for lunch before hand. We made the drive to Dayton and right when we got there, it started to rain. We had a nice lunch and just planned on going home afterwards. The weather held out long enough for us to give Ben a quick dip in the baby pool. He seemed to enjoy himself for the 5 minutes he was in the water. Because of his trach, we had to be very careful that he the water didn't get to close to his neck. I think Ben just thought I was giving him a cold bath in a big tub!


Ben and I were posing for a picture in the car before lunch. I didn't think I would get a picture of Ben in the pool, so I at least wanted one of our "attempted" pool date.


But, the weather cooperated briefly, so we were able to have a pool picture after all.


And this is Ben in his skivvies after we took him out of the pool. I love this picture because I think Ben looks so sweet and innocent - and it shows off his meaty thighs.

Little Miami Bike Trail

Last week, Ben went for a walk on the Little Miami Bike trail. This trail is a nicely paved wide path that runs along the Little Miami River (it is a 72 mile long trail). This trail has an access point five miles from our house, which makes it really convenient. You can also rent horses at this access point and the woman running the horse rental was sweet enough to bring a horse over for Ben to check out. You would have thought Ben had seen a horse every day of his life based on the lack of excitement he showed... he wasn't impressed to say the least. I should have taken a picture, but I forgot!



I did get a picture of Ben peeking out of his stroller though. It was so cute, he keep on pulling open the little spot between the hood and the side of his stroller to check out what we were doing.

Swing was a success!

We had a very nice visit at my parents yesterday (thanks for having us over, everything was wonderful) and the tree swing was a success. At first, Ben looked a little petrified and maybe on the verge of tears, but after a few more big pushes he started to enjoy it. He stayed in the swing for almost 30 minutes and he was really enjoying the scenery at my parent's house (lots of HUGE trees to admire). Luckily we got the swinging in first thing, because it rained the rest of the day. I love the first picture because Ben has his tongue out like he is really concentrating.

In honor of the holiday, we were all decked out in our red, white and blue attire... but at dinner it was taken to a whole new level! (NOTE: those are napkins that Mike and Ben are wearing)

Happy 4th of July!

I hope everyone has a safe and happy 4th of July. Ben, Mike and I will be heading to Dayton for the day to spend some time at my parents house. My brother and his wife (expecting their first baby in a month) will also be visiting. My parents put up a tree swing for Ben, so I'm excited to see what he thinks of that. From what I've heard, they put it on one of their huge trees, so it is sure to give Ben quite a ride!


Is this how they do it in the Color Guard?


I know that Section 7h of the flag code reads, "the union of the flag should be placed at the peak of the staff", but who's Peak and where is his staff?


Ben would like everyone to pause for a moment on the 4th to remember our Troops, past and present, which make protecting our freedom a priority. Thank you to our troops.